Chapter 69: Runeth

Chapter 69: Runeth

"Suppressing him isn't the permanent solution, kid. It would be best to become strong and skilled enough to beat him. And when your goal is similar to his, or you agree to fulfill his goal, he will give up and become a part of you. He is more like an alter ego, thinking he is different. It's a psychological condition, so nothing much to worry about." Runeth said as he released the golden chains from Raven's body.

As Raven stood quietly, Runeth turned towards the bluish humanoid creature still swinging its spear.

"I've been staying here all this time to relay important information to you."

Raven touched his chest to check if the chains were gone and soon asked.

"What is he doing?"

"He is practicing Basic Spearmanship. When I looked into the Frozen Ender's past, I noticed that the weapon belonged to someone from the Primordial Era."

Runeth paused momentarily, pointed his finger at the spear, and added.

"Although it's just an iron spear, it strangely became stronger along with its owner. Even if it is broken into two, it realigns after some time. Another advantage is that this spear has its own intelligence and ice-related abilities."

"I saw Casper activate this spear and use an ice skill." Raven nodded in understanding and asked further.

"I heard from Zera that this weapon can create a disaster itself. Is it true?" 

"Disaster? That's an understatement, kid. Do you believe if I say this spear froze the whole world in a layer of ice long ago? Haha, it's kind of absurd even for me, but I saw it with my own eyes. And the owner of this spear is someone who stood on equal footing against the 'Creator' himself. I even felt the gaze of the Creator when I watched the battle through the Elapsed Time. That's why I decided to use the spear as my main weapon if I ever get to use the fake reincarnation technique and be reborn in a different world. Unfortunately, Casper's invasion spoiled my plan, destroying my original consciousness."

Raven listened to the old man's speech and was amazed.

'Am I able to handle such a weapon?'

"Without strength, you can't protect anything, lad," Runeth spoke as if he had seen through Raven's thoughts.

"Now, let me tell you about the illusion world. This world is two hours long. When the time ends, you will be expelled from the illusion world and can enter only after 22 hours. And when you completely comprehend what that man has been practicing, you can move to the next stage. There are nine stages in this illusion world; each has a different scenario and time limits. Although there was a tenth stage, I couldn't manage to see anything because of the 'Creator's' intervention. But you will figure it out when the time comes. Anyway, this is my final gift as your previous reincarnation."

Saying so, he conjured a dense golden orb out of thin air and pushed it towards his chest.

"You are leaving?" Raven felt a strange sensation as the golden orb entered his body.

"This is just a 'Will' of my original consciousness, kid. I would've long disappeared if not for the spear in a sealed state. But don't worry, you might be able to meet my other consciousness in Easica World. And, this illusion world can be altered with mere imagination, so don't recklessly bring anyone inside." As he spoke, he suddenly thought of something and added with a smile.

"Take care of Zera for me."

A second later, Runeth suddenly became more transparent and disappeared like he had never existed, leaving Raven alone.

"What the heck happened?" He asked himself and soon saw the blue-skinned humanoid being was still practicing spearmanship.

"Runeth, huh?" Raven wanted to ask him many questions, but he didn't expect him to disappear even before he could reorganize his thoughts.

Shaking his head, he slowly turned towards the blue-skinned human creature.

He slowly approached the creature and tried to mimic a single stance.

"If I had a spear-" Just as he spoke, an iron spear appeared in his right hand!

'It can be altered with my imagination, huh?' Raven nodded, gripped the spear, and mimicked the creature's movements.

But every time he thrust, slashed, or parried, his understanding of the spearmanship increased steadily.

'My basic posture is wrong from the beginning. And the grip, too." He also noticed that his footwork also had many flaws.

He gained some insights as Raven looked at the blue-skinned guy's movements and corrected his mistakes.

But as he was about to go through enlightenment, the surroundings started to shimmer and soon broke into multiple pieces, like broken mirrors.

A second later, Raven felt a suction force out of nowhere, pulling him away.

…

Raven soon opened his eyes in the master bedroom and gasped for a breath.

"Damn it, I almost gain some understanding about the sidestepping movement." He said with a regretful tone.

[Are you all right, lad? What happened? You've been unconscious for more than two hours. Strangely, a familiar power emerged from the spear and even healed your broken soul. How is that possible?] Zera said in a shocked tone.

"I entered an illusion world and even met your owner." Raven sat up and started telling what had happened inside the mirror world in an excited tone.

[… He could've told me the spear's secrets before his death.] Zera complained and soon asked him about the strange blue creature. After hearing the details, she spoke.

[From its looks, that must be a being from the primordial era. A blue-skinned humanoid with a third eye and strange antennas, huh? You will find some information once you explore that illusionary world.]

"I have been curious about something too, Zera. What does the Primordial Era mean?" Raven asked as he stood up from the bed.

[After the universe's birth, it had undergone various changes, and its time frame was divided into four eras based on four major incidents. The first one was the Primordial Era. From the universe's birth to 1 billion years ago, we call that period the Primordial Era. Many ancient beings were born and died during this period, and many even disappeared. Only a handful of beings from the Primordial Era are still roaming around, while the rest have long disappeared. The next era, the Age of Origin Time, ranges from 1 billion to 100,000 or 200,000 years ago. It started after Goddess Myxenta undid a seal and released Chaotic Creatures from the Abyss and Hell. This era was also the birthtime of the Path of Divines and Path of Mages. The period of Origin Time was long and chaotic. Countless Taboo Existences were born during this era, resulting in chaos happening all over the Universe. At the end of the Origin Time era, precisely around 9 Million years ago, the Invasion of the Demons under the Supreme Demon's leadership took place, forming the Lawful Faction and Neutral Faction between Gods. The next era was the peaceful era called the Era of Past Time, which lasted only around 75,000 years. Other than the death of Goddess Myxenta, no major incidents happened, and many high-ranking gods also went into hiding. And the fourth and final Era is called the 'Era of New Time.' I suspect we are also in this Era. The one who caused this era is called the 'Angel of Time.' He is someone Charles knew personally.]

"What about the Rune Era?"

[That's the era of this world. We are talking about the era of the universe. Please don't ask me stupid questions like what the universe is all about. You can read them in the library later.] Zera sounded annoyed.

'Maybe because I talked about Runeth?' Raven shook his head and decided to practice what he had learned from the illusion world.

Without delay, he walked out of the master bedroom, went downstairs through the split staircase, and reached the foyer.

At that moment, the mansion appeared silent as only the chandelier light glowed brightly and illuminated the surroundings.

He hurriedly checked the time after taking out the pocket watch and was startled.

'11.P.M?' But he decided not to wait.

He quietly walked out of the mansion, entered the lawn, and gripped the spear with both hands. Then, he recalled how the blue-skinned human moved and slowly mimicked his action.

'One step forward, thrust, two steps backward, maintain steady posture, then Slash… Parry… Spin one round… Take a side step…' Raven continued to do similar actions and soon started to notice a big change in his every movement.

He stayed outside practicing spearmanship for the next four hours in the cold winter and only stopped after feeling fatigued.

Then, he wore the monocle and looked at the spear first.

…

[Name: Frozen Ender (Sealed)

Rank: Common (Evolve)

Experience Comprehension: 5.2%

Description: None

Unique skill:

Rank-1 Skill: Frozen Lance (Locked) [Requirement: User needs to be able to master 'Basic Spear Mastery' and activate 'Basic Aura.']

…

'Wow, it rose by 3%?' Raven was stunned inside.

Then, he opened his status and looked at it.

…

[Name: Raven Sillalus Jorvot,

Age: 15

Nationality: Zenith Empire

Title: 66th Prince of Zenith Empire

Level: 6

Class: Acolyte Warlock (0th Circle)

Soul Rank: Mortal (Soul Damaged 0%)

Life Pathway: Beginner Alchemist

Health: Fatigued

Attributes:

Strength: 6.5

Agility: 5.67

Vitality: 5.56

Luck: 1.5

Spirit: 17.1

Bloodline Spells:

Iron Resilience, Poison Touch, Fortuitous Finder (Completed), Blood Control, Face Morph.

Additional Skills: Past Finder, Instant Memorize, Night Vision, Spiritual Scan.

Affinities:

Life: Low, Ice: Genius.]

...

'Oh? I finally got Genius Rank affinity!' A smile appeared on his face.

[I think you will get spear affinity, too. So, what is your next plan, lad?] Zera asked after keeping silent for a long time.

Raven stored the spear in his inventory and soon saw two people standing at the entrance door.

"Jacob and Quincy! What are you doing at this hour?" He asked.

"I saw you walking downstairs hurriedly and followed you here with Jacob. And thanks to that, I saw something interesting." Quincy showed a deep look and asked.

"Are you a genius in spearmanship? I have never seen someone improving so fast by correcting their mistake, Young Master." Even Jacob nodded at her remark.

"I got some kind of enlightenment." Raven lied without blinking an eye and soon entered the mansion house after telling them he needed some rest.

After that, he quietly went to the master bedroom and lay on the bed.

'It was a long day.' He didn't even have any time to talk to Zera about his plan as he felt drowsiness washed over him.

…

The next day, Raven woke up early and had breakfast with the four Sepoy Mercenaries who arrived for the day shift.

After that, he moved to the study and pondered about his next plan.

'I need to learn the Rune Language as soon as possible and start creating the Elemental Circlets in the Mind Space.' His next aim was to increase his proficiency in spearmanship. After learning how powerful that blue-skinned creature was from Runeth, Raven felt it would be a dumb idea not to use such an opportunity.

'But my utmost priority is to learn about my aunt and see if I can save her.'

"Emanuel!" He shouted.

A few seconds later, a young man in his butler suit opened the wooden door and walked in.

"Did you call me, My Lord?"

"How much money do you still have?" Raven asked.

"33 golds and 35 silvers, My lord," Emanuel responded instantly.

"Buy a good carriage for a reasonable price and hire a trusted coachman. I want the carriage ready by afternoon. Can it be done?" Raven asked.

"Yes, My Lord. But which type would you prefer?" Emanuel asked his preference.

"Hmm, which one is best for personal use?" Raven inquired.

Emanuel paused, considering Raven's question carefully before answering.

"For personal use, especially within the city, I would recommend a Brougham. It's compact, enclosed, and offers privacy while being practical for travel. It seats two comfortably, which might suit your needs if you plan on making short trips or traveling with a companion. If you're thinking about something more stylish for appearances, perhaps a Victoria carriage would be more appropriate. It's open but still elegant and often used by nobles for social outings."

'Brougham is good, but I want a large carriage to travel in groups. Victoria is mostly stylish and is preferred only by ladies. Even my sister said she wanted to buy the Victoria Carriage but gave up due to the high cost.'

"I prefer a carriage with four seats and luxurious looks. How about Clarence?" Raven asked.

Emanuel nodded thoughtfully at Raven's preference. "A Clarence would be an excellent choice, My Lord. It's spacious and luxurious and offers the privacy you're seeking. It also has the advantage of seating four comfortably, making it suitable for city travel and longer journeys."

"Perfect. Make the arrangements," Raven instructed.

"Is there anything else you need, my lord?" Emanuel asked.

Raven pondered for a moment and nodded.

"Get a map."

Emanuel hurriedly moved towards the nearby shelf and picked up three maps from the top.

"Which one, my Lord? City map, Territory map, or Empire Map?"

"Give me the empire map." Raven quickly took the map from Emanuel and spread it on the table.

He then looked at the map deeply for a while and soon added.

"Get details of shops that sell Rank-1 Magical Beast corpses in Bloodstone City, Red Ember Royal Capital, and Iron Peak."

"Yes, My Lord. If I can ask the mercenaries working in the Giaris Guild, I can get this information easily." Emanuel responded.

"Good." Raven nodded and waved his head.

"Then, I'll be leaving, My Lord." Emanuel bowed his head and left the room.

On the other hand, Raven leaned on the chair and entered the memory library.