Ancient Soul Piercings

"I think there's one more thing only you would be interested in." Zarris uncovered his sleeve and activated the hidden, ornate storage band on his right arm. An item appeared in his hands. It was deceptively small and seemed insignificant, but Jack's gaming veteran eyes were green with envy and greed. Seeing this reaction, Zarris chuckled and lobbed it to Jack, "Here, tell me what you know."

"You don't know what this is?" Jack didn't hide his true emotions; he already knew that Zarris wouldn't scam him and that his relationship with a merchant like Zarris was crucial for his growth.

"Not a clue. I've asked dozens of merchants and craftsmen but all they can tell me is that it's probably linked to ancient times. They all offered a great deal for it, but I refuse to sell anything without knowing its purpose," said the old man in deceptively tattered clothing.

Jack tried to calm his nerves before he explained the item. "It's not an adaptive item, but it isn't any less valuable. This type of item can be soul bound, in other words, it can only be used by a single person who must bind and link it with their soul. Without the know-how to perform the activation ritual, it's completely useless."

Zarris' was somewhat saddened when Jack said it wasn't an adaptive item, but a smile too big for his face immediately formed after he heard it was an item that could be soul bound. Items like those were nearly impossible to acquire, let alone forge and equip. He said, "I found it while visiting a ruin over a decade ago. After holding on to it for so long and rejecting so many offers, I can finally be at ease. Now go on, tell me what it does."

Jack took a minute to read the system's item description to ensure he fully understood the item's capabilities. He then gave a summary to the patiently waiting Zarris. "This is a type of soul-piercing; the item's been named "Privacy Screen".

By piercing it anywhere on your body and performing the right ritual to link it to your soul, you will be able to conceal any information or general presence on demand. If you were to link it and then stand in front of someone, they'll still see you. It just conceals your aura and prevents anyone from easily seeing through your level, class, and other general info."

"Hmm…" Zarris didn't know what to say. It was something incredibly rare and specially crafted during ancient times, but it had a very specific use and wouldn't be generally attractive to a lot of buyers.

"Let me make you a deal," said Jack, effectively grabbing Zarris' attention. "Let me have this. It's possible to find other buyers but they won't know how to activate it and link it to their soul. Besides, this is perfect for a newbie like me that doesn't want everyone to know that I'm a summoned hero. What's it gonna take to walk away with this?"

Squinting his eyes and stroking his unkempt beard, Zarris pondered the offered carefully. It didn't take long for him to say, "Very well, you take it. As payment, you'll let me watch you activate it so I can learn this for myself. That kind of knowledge nowadays is priceless."

Jack laughed lightly, "Good, cause I was going to need your help to do so anyway. I'm too low leveled to perform the ritual, so I'll have to teach you either way. You're over lv. 20, right?"

"Of course! I'm actually lv. 31 despite the old looks," declared Zarris proudly.

Jack wasn't too surprised. Considering the fact that the old man had survived in ancient ruins which were probably filled with booby traps, Zarris would need at least this level of strength and an insane amount of luck. "Perfect, then let me explain the process."

Jack instructed Zarris to draw a large hexagram on the floor and surround it with a ring of characters used during ancient Kartonia that Jack easily understood thanks to "A Hero's Tale." They made sure to use some magical beast blood that Zarris had on hand as the medium; this would increase the possibility of success to almost 100%.

Jack sat down in the center and Zarris stood at the side and followed Jack's command to direct some of his mana into the hexagram, causing it to dimly glow.

"Now you must recite these words exactly. Repeat after me, 'Ice!'" said Jack, as he pierced his left ear with the earring, and he began to dimly glow like the hexagram.

"Ice!" Zarris grew excited and spoke loudly.

"Bank!" continued Jack.

"Bank!" Zarris followed along.

"Mice!"

"Mice!"

"Elf!"

"Elf!"

"Now repeat!" said Jack.

Zarris instantly memorized the few words and continued reciting, "Ice… Bank… Mice… Elf…"

"Louder!" Jack and the hexagram showed an even brighter glow.

The old Zarris showed more enthusiasm at the sight of this. "Ice! Bank! Mice! Elf!"

"Faster!"

"Ice, Bank, Mice, Elf!" Zarris subconsciously released even more mana into the hexagram as he shouted.

"Once more!"

"ICE BANK MICE ELF!" yelled Zarris at the top of his lungs, loud enough for all neighboring shops to hear.

"HA HA HA!!" Suddenly the light flashed brightly and disappeared, leaving a dull, used up hexagram and a hysterical young hero rolling on the floor in laughter. Zarris was confused until he heard Jack say, "Wow Zarris, I didn't know you were into that. Do you spank yourself daily or weekly?"

Zarris' face began to glow an even brighter red then the formerly lit hexagram and yelled, "You! You made me say such drivel! I ought to—"

"The link was successful." That quick line got Zarris to shut up but couldn't help the old man hide his moment of shame. "The ritual doesn't need you to recite anything. Just dump enough mana into the pentagram and make sure to pierce it after it has begun to glow. I'm grateful for your help; I don't have anywhere near enough mana to pull this off on my own."

With a few long, deep breaths, Zarris temporarily curbed his frustration. "So that's it huh? It's simple enough, I just wish I understood those symbols. Either way, I can now replicate it when needed. It's a good thing I have a few more soul piercings to sell now."

"You have more?" Jack stopped laughing and immediately felt like he got shortchanged. But he quickly dispersed such thoughts and had to give credit to Zarris for his sales tactics. "Can I see them? I might be interested in cutting another deal and can at least let you know what each piercing can do specifically."

Without hesitation, Zarris threw three more rings to Jack and wore a smile on his face after getting the upper hand in the end. Jack inspected each ring carefully. He noticed that all four piercings were crafted by the same person and he was blown away by something.

The craftsman carried a title, not like a grandmaster but a title given through achievements from "A Hero's Tale." Such a discovery led Jack to believe that the characters everyone played as in "A Hero's Tale" actually lived in ancient Kartonia and affected it personally. Before his mind ran away with that theory, Jack grounded himself and threw two of the piercings back to Zarris.

"What did you find?" asked Zarris, seeing Jack make a startled face.

"The piercing in your left hand is called 'Life Tree's Leaf' and it will passively increase total mana capacity and regeneration by 5%. Your right hand is holding 'Life Tree's Seed' and is part of the same set as 'Life Tree's Leaf.' It will passively increase total health capacity and regeneration by 5%," answered Jack.

"And the one in your hand?" asked Zarris with a lifted eyebrow.

"I'd rather not say, and I will make whatever deal I need to in order to leave here with it," said Jack.

Zarris was surprised that Jack was so determined to leave with the other when he knew how great the other two were. He was ecstatic to have found a set of soul piercings, but he wondered what could be better than those?

"I can tell you this, I'm the only one who can use this one to its fullest potential. For other adventurers, this little thing in my hand is useless compared to that set," stated Jack.

It was a difficult decision for Zarris, especially now that he knew how to activate them. He mulled it over in his head and tried to imagine what would have equivalent value to an ancient soul-piercing. After a few moments, Zarris nodded and said, "Very well, the last one is yours. But now you owe me a favor. No matter the request you must not refuse when the time comes. Got it?"

Jack was a little apprehensive, but he agreed. "For a friend, anything."

They both smiled, each excited for their new treasures. After they quickly performed another activation ritual and made a promise to meet up next month, Jack left the stand. He quickly left town square and hurried home. When Rydel was nowhere to be found in their room, Jack sighed and stroked the stud piercing that now sat above the "Privacy Screen." Excitement filled his body as he thought of the piercing's name, "Hidden Agenda."