Tales of the Endless Empire

Chapter 444: Saranya

“So… you want to give me this sword, which is also the soul of your beloved daughter? Just like that?” Thalion asked, completely flabbergasted, while slowly walking over to the marvel of a masterpiece. He had never seen anything like it, and his own sword looked like a child’s toy compared to this.“Also, how do you power it if there is no crystal in it?” Thalion asked, overwhelmed by curiosity.

“Wait, you are a smith too? I have seen the ‘armor’ you wear, which is why I hadn’t thought that you were able to make anything,” Rurgaorus said bluntly.

“Compared to this, that assessment is accurate. Made armor and a sword before. Basically, I shrunk a bunch of big crystals and then used my blood to fuse it with the sword and armor. My blood was also good for strengthening the material,” Thalion explained while walking around the sword, trying to find out what those runes did.

“Sounds like very inefficient usage, but since you said it was in the tutorial and since you didn’t look like a craftsman, I think it is okay? You want any tips?”

This reply came out of nowhere, but Thalion quickly ordered his thoughts. There were only hours left until he would be teleported to the final stage, and he wanted to get the sword before that.

“Anytime, but if you want me to take the sword—in a few hours I will be teleported to the next stage.”

“Hm, then we probably won’t have enough time. I already started the awakening process. Hopefully she will choose to follow you, because I doubt another soul will find this place before my hologram runs out of power,” Rurgaorus said. Motioning with his hand, a few more lights lit up on the ceiling, bathing the whole chamber in orange light.

And there Thalion was on edge again. That the daughter had to choose him felt horrible. What if she didn’t like him, or worse, came to the conclusion that she would rather be wielded by somebody else? He was about to clash with chosen who were likely all better candidates than Thalion, right?

“Even when I can’t teach you much right now, I can give you a few books. Still, the most important lesson I have learned over time: craft with your heart and with as few rules as possible. If you want something to be special, you have to let it make its own rules. Like, for example, who said that it isn’t possible to make a weapon or armor out of fire—or in your case, blood and fire? Only to achieve the impossible is good enough,” Rurgaorus explained, tapping his finger multiple times against Thalion’s chest, each touch sending a shock through Thalion’s body, but he didn’t dare to move back.

“I… I will keep it in mind,” Thalion managed to say after the silence stretched on a bit too long.

Time passed, but Thalion didn’t dare to speak up. He really wanted to ask a few questions, but with how much power always lay in the voice of this man, he rather enjoyed the silence.

The chamber lit up more and more until the light entered the sword, which awoke—early enough, since there was half an hour left. The runes on the sword didn’t begin to glow, but another figure formed beside Rurgaorus. She looked gorgeous and was also some kind of hologram. She had long, dark purple hair, and her skin was the same black as her father’s.

“Saranya, how good to see you alive. I fear we won’t have much time. I have found one to wield you, and he is currently in a system trial, which is why we can’t talk for too long,” Rurgaorus explained while falling to his knees with tears dripping down.

Thalion had been focused way too much on the sword, which was why he only now noticed how high his daughter held her chin. There was also quite an arrogant demeanor on her face. Thalion realized that nothing good was going to happen.

“This F-grade should wield ? Father, are you serious?” the daughter grunted in probably the most arrogant tone Thalion had ever heard.

Alright, just disrespect your father who had basically sacrificed his life to give you some form of life. A thank you was probably too much to ask.

“Eh, my dear Saranya, this is Thalion, and he was in first position on the leaderboard.”

“He is also a strong fighter, like you were,” her father tried to explain, almost like a slave, but was interrupted quite rudely.

“THIS man should be a fighter like ME?! You take that back immediately. I was on the brink of ascending to D-grade while he isn’t even E-grade—and an old man too. Seriously, wake me up again when you’ve found someone better.”

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This reply kind of got on Thalion’s nerves, and there were only a few minutes left until he would be teleported out after the waking up had taken so long.

“COMPARE me to you. Are you a stupid woman? By now, I have killed too many E-grades to count. If your father hadn’t made such a good sword, I would already be out of here. On top of that, I respect that he sacrificed everything to craft this sword and heal you. Either you work well like a normal sword, or I will leave without taking you along, which means that no one will ever find you. Your father’s hologram will run out, and you will never wake up again.”

Maybe a bit overdramatic, but Thalion was so annoyed that this perfect sword was being ruined by the stupid woman inside it.

“You dare to speak to me like that? Do you know who I am? You are lucky that I don’t have a body, because otherwise I would have cut your tongue out already,” Saranya replied, venom dripping from her voice.

The last seconds were ticking down, and Thalion had now had enough of this stupid sword. All the pressure he had faced in the treasure hunt, and now this.

“Eh, honey, he is right. He is the only one who can take you out…” Rurgaorus tried to calm her down, but he was interrupted immediately.

“No, I will not go with this man, and no one should be allowed to talk to me like this. These are my last words,” Saranya huffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

Thalion didn’t even bother to respond and simply stretched out his hand. A dark red vine erupted from it, and the moment it touched the sword, Thalion put it into his spatial amulet.

Rurgaorus looked at him, perplexed.

“... I guess you two will get along quite nicely. Just swear that you will take good care of her and never give it away, or I will crush you right now!”

With those last words, power rushed through the chamber, bringing Thalion back to his reality. All the emotions that had raged through his body made him forget what position he was in.

“I swear,” he managed to force out between clenched teeth.

“Fine. Then my time has come. I’m happy that it has been you who found this place…” With those last words, the hologram of Rurgaorus disappeared with a light smile on his lips.

Thalion just stared at the empty spot as the whole place began to rumble.

WHAT DID JUST HAPPEN?! Thalion almost screamed inside his mind. This had all been far more emotional than normal. Normally, Thalion had himself well under control, but in the last few seconds, it had slipped. He really needed a small pause. Oh, how he missed the system shop, where he could have a little drink every week. Maybe that was the reason for having the system shop every week—to lower the mental pressure everyone was feeling from being thrown into a new world with new rules.

Speaking of getting thrown into a new universe, Thalion was finally teleported out of the crumbling laboratory and on his way to the last and final stage of the trial. Yet before he could arrive in the final stage, he was stopped in empty space that reminded him a bit of the system shop in the tutorial, and a screen popped up before him.

Congratulations to everyone who managed to come this far

You are about to enter the last and final stage of this treasure hunt

In the previous stages, you were allowed to leave and receive a payout

This will not be possible in the final stage

You have the opportunity to leave the treasure hunt now

Once you enter the final stage, you must stay until it is over

This is a stage created only for the strongest

Make your choice now

Two buttons popped up under the message. On one stood, in big letters, LEAVE, on the other CONTINUE. For Thalion, the answer was clear. There was no way he would leave right now, and he hadn’t planned on leaving the event either. Now it was all or nothing, and whatever this final stage was, he would tryhard the shit out of it.

A few moments passed before Thalion was teleported once more, appearing in a dark landscape. A dark red moon rose high in the sky. Before Thalion lay a giant city, and in the middle of it, a multiple-kilometer-high ziggurat rose toward the sky, surpassing every other building. Outside the tall city walls, multiple wooden villages were placed that didn’t have much in common with the big, majestic stone buildings inside the city.

Yet something was off. Fires were burning inside the city, and you could hear loud, pained screams here and there. In his human form, Thalion instantly made out the metallic scent of blood. He was still at a good distance from the city and the ziggurat, but it was clear where he needed to go.

The wall of nothingness started directly behind him and circled around the city and the villages. This was by far the smallest stage so far.

Then came the final system notification for the last stage.

Welcome to the tenth stage of the treasure hunt

The Zyrvathi Ascendancy

The Zyrvathi were an ancient civilization obsessed with transcendence. They believed that blood was not merely life, but a gateway

Their cities were raised from obsidian and crimson stone, their foundations carved with sigils meant to drink the lives of those who walked above them

Under their last sovereign, King Malachyr, the Covenant enacted the Scarlet Continuum, a grand rite in which the lifeblood of their own citizens was offered to strengthen the kingdom

Each sacrifice was said to strengthen the whole. In truth, the rich and powerful killed the weak to become stronger and stronger

Pained screams still echo over the once-grand empire of the Zyrvathi

Here are your missions for the final stage

Killing a Scarlet Warden will reward two million leaderboard points

Killing a Sanguine Prelate will reward five million leaderboard points

Killing a Crimson Regent will reward ten million leaderboard points

Killing the king before the Scarlet Continuum ends will reward one hundred million leaderboard points

Ending the Scarlet Continuum will reward one hundred fifty million leaderboard points

Killing the king after the Scarlet Continuum has concluded will grant five hundred million leaderboard points