Manuals of The Lost Empire
Damian and Kai silently walked along the market path. The market crowd had been thinning, and fewer and fewer sellers remained open. The father and son finally stopped at one of the merchant houses in the area. It was a fairly large building, spanning three stories.
The building beautiful and ornate and full of many complex designs carved onto the stone walls. The dark red door of the structure was wide open, guests were still being entertained. The name 'The Sirbius Palace' was plastered on the merchant house in a grandiose fashion.
Kai was still unsure as to why they were here, but he nonetheless, silently followed his farther's lead, as they both entered the Palace.
The inside was a wide room, lavishly set, full of all kinds of expensive wares. Most notably, there were weapons, swords, bows, armours, shield and the like, displayed around the ground floor.
There were two burly individuals, bolstered with minimal armour, stationed at the entrance. They were constantly observing the people in the hall.
Eventually, they noticed the father and son, one of the guards seemed to have recognised Damien and immediately called for a clerk to escort them. Kai was too enamoured by the contents of the hall, to bother noticing anything else.
Soon a man entered through the stairs connecting to the second floor, he was dressed well, wearing an expensive tunic and was covered in golden jewellery, he had a fairly large stature. The man was handsome, with a slight stubble on his face, his hair stretched long behind his back into a ponytail. He strode towards Damien, with a large smile on his face.
"Damien you bastard! It's been too long, how dare you be so close and never visit?" The man spoke loudly without a care for the customers around.
Damien had slight embarrassment etched on his face, but he was smiling as well, "Martin, my friend, it has been long… but, it's not like we haven't seen each other at all since I started work in the city."
"Oh, don't lie to my face, I know you only think of me when you're in need of my help, its disgraceful, but I'm too used to it to bother, now tell me how can I be of service…"
Before Damien could respond, Martin interjected him, "is that young Kai with you? Boy, I saw you as a baby, but look how you've grown in all these years." Martin spoke loudly, so much so, that even the enamoured Kai was shaken out of his illusion.
Kai looked up at the man, he had an awkward expression on his face, "Hello Sir… it's n-nice to meet you…"
Martin narrowed his eyes, and turned to Damien, "Your son doesn't recognise me, does he? Does our friendship mean nothing to you?!"Martin spoke in an exaggerated manner.
"Oh, how my heart pains… Anyway, what brings you to my palace so late in the day?" Martin quickly expressed contrasting expressions, his responses were unlike anything Kai had experienced before.
There was slight confusion on Damien's face as he simply looked at Martin in response, "I thought you'd received the message I sent…"
"Of course I did! I was simply joking, now follow me upstairs. Thats where all the good shit is anyway." Martin walked towards the stairs, but before he reached far, he stopped himself and turned to the guard standing by the door.
"By the time I return, I want all business here concluded, prepare to close for the day." Martin's words seemed simple, but his tone was stern and slightly menacing. It definitely had a visible impact on the staff of the Palace, they were nervous at the thought of displeasing this unpredictable man.
Even Kai couldn't imagine what Martin would do if he were to get angry. But, it was none of his concern, he simply followed his father up the stairs, as the three made their way to the third floor.
On the third floor, the three entered a neatly decorated, yet, small room, which seemed to be Martin's office.
"Damien make yourself comfortable, Kai you follow me, its time for you to choose." Martin spoke bluntly once the three entered the office.
"Perhaps, I should come along, it may not be much but I have some expertise in the matter." Damien spoke in a concerned manner.
"Nonsense, don't bother, the boy must make his own decision… and after all, he has me with him for guidance."
Damien had a displeased expression after hearing Martin's words, but he didn't express any dissatisfaction beyond that.
"Don't worry your son is in safe hands." Martin spoke reassuring words as he dragged Kai along with him, leaving a concerned Damien alone in the room.
Martin and Kai made their way through the hall of the third floor. The entire floor was inlayed with red velvet carpet, it all felt extravagant to Kai. They arrived at the door of the main room, "Kai, this is the Sirbius Palace's most valuable room, if not for me, you won't even be allowed on this floor. But worry not, your uncle Martin will ensure you make the best possible choice in the matter." Martin had a wide grin and a proud expression as he spoke.
"Um sir, what is it that we are here to choose?" Kai finally asked the question that had been on his mind since they left the Keep.
"Not big on the uncle bit, are you boy?" Martin responded with noticeable disappointment.
After a moment of awkward silence between the two, Martin spoke again. "Ahem, so Damien didn't tell you? Well that's just like him, secretive bastard he is… excuse my language. Your father and I, we go way back you see, he's called me plenty worse anyway."
"Now that we're here, why ruin the surprise." Martin smiled and pushed a key into the lock of the door, his big stubby hands parted the big wooden door open, giving way to a dimly lit room.
The room was not very large, but it was intricately decorated, and well preserved. There were embroidered carpets covering the walls, and many shelves with glass coverings. The shelves were made of impeccable wood and the glass coverings were more sturdy than they initially looked. The room consisted of around 12 shelves laid out on both sides, books were delicately encased within their glass containers.
Kai had never seen books of this kind before. Some of them were extremely well preserved, moreover, some held a subtle hue that emanated from the books.
Books were a valuable commodity in the Kingdom, since most of them were manufactured by hand. However, even among books there were some considered more valuable than others.
The books displayed in the room weren't conventionally recognised, or commonly found in the Kingdom. In actuality, they weren't books at all. They were referred to as manuals, often pertaining to the revered refiners. They were identifiable by their distinct look, as they had a hue to them, this hue may reflect in three grades.
The first grade, uncommon but not rare, was bronze in colour. While the second, which was considered to be rare, was golden in colour. But the third, most difficult to acquire, most valuable grade, was silver. Silver manuals, much like in the case of origin stones, reflected the epitome of value within the continent.
Right now, some of the manuals laid out in the room, had a subtle, yet noticeable hue permeating from them. Many were just regular leather covered books or manuals, but some were bronze, their lustre and make made them stand out in the dimly lit room.
However what caught Kai's attention the most were the three golden books that were neatly enclosed in a special section towards the end of the room.
Martin had a proud smile on his face, but it soon turned a bit awkward, "Um, Kai, unfortunately, the bronze and golden grade manuals are off limits for us, I'm sure you're aware of how valuable they are. But, you see all these leather manuals, they're great too, in their own right at least."
Martin walked across the room as he analysed the different books on display.
"Hmmm, how much do you know of refiner manuals Kai?"
Kai too walked around the room as he observed each and every book he came across with intense focus, "I-I believe refiner manuals allow for an individual to shape a sort of path to new abilities… I'm not very clear about it."
"Well to frame it simply, refiner manuals can be considered a unique path, a refiner takes in his lifetime, it not only distinguishes you from the rest of the refiners, but it helps you glean one additional ability over the pre-existing benefits to refining." Martin spoke as he continued looking through the various manuals, to spot a suitable find for young Kai.
Kai's attention would occasionally go to the three golden manuals placed at the end of the room. The titles on the graded manuals were written in a language Kai couldn't recognise. Moreover, he knew he had to think more realistically here, those manuals were simply unaffordable. So, he focused himself and turned to Martin.
"Sir could you tell me more about these additional abilities?" Kai asked straightforwardly.
"Ah, that's the thing boy, we don't know, it isn't until one exercises the technique in the manual, that they may ascertain what exactly that ability is. The title of the manual can sometimes give us a hint, other times it maybe sold by a refiner who details the exact specifications of their experience with it. There are a few famous examples of various Refiners possessing extraordinary abilities, such as extending refining capabilities to a certain weapon, or even extending your inherent abilities as a refiner outwards."
"I do have to clarify something here, we do not yet possess the expertise to manufacture graded manuals, perhaps nobody in the Kingdom or even the continent does. We are only capable of producing manuals that are derivatives of the original graded versions, they cannot be replicas. In fact, one must rather specialise in a graded manual until they can paraphrase the concept into a new manual, hence leather manuals exist, they're a product of the new ages, and new refiners. But they're imperfect, as even the refiner's understanding of the particular ability is usually incomplete, it maybe achievable to learn from a manual, but it's damn near impossible to completely master it."
Martin noticed the contemplative expression on young Kai's face.
"You must be thinking, where did the graded manuals come from, well the theory is that they're remnants of the lost empire, the famous empire that existed long ago, now it's in ruins and all that, I'm sure you've heard of it.
"Anyway, after many expeditions to the land of the lost empire, apart from the material loot, we discovered the existence of these manuals, which serve as the very basis for refiners nowadays. Of course the graded manuals are still in the language of the lost empire"
"So, why can't we replicate the contents of the graded manuals?" Kai spoke as his curiosity got the better of him.
"When we attempted to duplicate a graded manual, something peculiar occurred, the parchments burned up. No matter what we tried, the result was the same. This is also the reason why all the graded manuals are still in their original form and language... Something is preventing us from duplicating or destroying it. Absurd when you think about it, but such is the reality we live in, to this very day we don't understand it very well, but then again there is a lot we are yet to learn about the lost empire." Martin had a slight frown on his face.
After learning of the manual's connection to the arcane lost empire, Kai's excitement for a new manual continued to grow. He carefully scrutinised all the leather manuals he came across, He passed by many names,
'The Unbreakable Fist'
'The Lion's Roar'
'The Shield of Argon'
'The Immortal Scourge'
Kai paused as he came across the last manual on the left shelf, it was more worn down than others. But the word immortal kept resonating in his mind, 'could it be related to them… its unlikely… but it's not impossible.' His mind calculated the ideal manual for himself, when suddenly Martin exclaimed, "I found it."
"'The Royal Javelin.' It's famously built after a silver graded manual, you're lucky it's in shop right now, even amongst the leather grade, these don't sell cheap. You see, attack based abilities are very sought after, since refining already allows one to bolster your defences. What do you think boy, should I take it out for you?" Martin stood next to a shelf, with the keys in his hands, as he patiently waited for Kai's response.
Kai had a noticeably conflicted expression on his face as he looked between the two sections. "S-Sir, before I choose, could you tell me a little about this manual, 'The Immortal Scourge'?"
Martin's eyes narrowed, "hmmm, I've seen it in the room, but it doesn't seem awfully valuable… ah I remember now, there was a person, not from around here, who found the book and attempted the methodology. I remember he said it failed to work for him, but he also claimed, it holds great value for those who can make use of it. At the time it intrigued our interest at the Palace. He eventually came here and sold it to us, he practically fleeced us with that price. We only bought it because it showed promise, but ever since then, it's been kept away in this room. It's hard to convince upcoming refiners to invest in such an unknown technique."
The manual's origins were vague, but it was still verified to be genuine. If Kai's theory was correct, this maybe related to the revered immortals that Theodan had told him much about. Not many in the Kingdom were aware of the existence of Immortals, in fact Kai wouldn't have either if Theodan hadn't confided in him. So it was understandable if no one made the connection. Nonetheless, it was a risky choice, Kai was still unsure of his decision, but he knew his chances to become a refiner were low as it is, so he wasn't concerned with the ability, as much as the cost of the manual.
"Sir, will 'The Immortal Scourge' cost father less than the other manuals here?"
Martin erupted in laughter when he heard the young boys words. "Hahahahaha boy, I like the way you think, if it were upto me, I would gift this to you for free, but my House Sirbius, runs this place, I'm only a humble overseer... perhaps our statuses in our families is what helped your father and I become such close friends... well somewhat close."
Martin paused as he looked at Kai's disappointed expression, he sighed as he spoke"Look, as per policy I wouldn't charge less than the usual for leather manuals, but for you and this particular manual, I'll consider making an exception, but beware boy, you may or may not be able to actually make use of it, it depends entirely on your perseverance and luck."
Martin smiled and raised his index finger "Also, there is a condition, you must refer to me as Uncle Martin from here on, no excuses… So, what's it going to be lad?"
Kai smiled brightly in response, "I will remember you kindness, Uncle Martin."