The wind howled with a bone chilling fervor as the dense snow piled on ahead of their open carriage.

"Couldn't you have added a roof to this thing?" Soren said while trying not to freeze to death. His lips were slowly turning purple as he covered his eyes with his arms, afraid that the cold wind would freeze his face solid. No amount of fur could have prepared them for this…

"I didn't expect a snowstorm! It was calm yesterday!" Myrin said while leading the Spirit Beast they had captured earlier. The poor thing was clearly exhausted from pulling the wooden carriage for too long, but they had no way of stopping now. With the snow piling on more and more, the situation was only going to get worse if they didn't keep moving.

They had to find shelter, quick.

The winds picked up once more, and with it came another wave of frigid air that bit at his skin like needles. The weather here truly struck him as odd. Sometimes it would snow lightly, and at other times, it would erupt into a blizzard of death, just as they were currently experiencing. But that was exactly how many in this region described it.

In fact, it was seen as normal—any deviation from such extremes felt unnatural to those who lived in these ice-cold plains of the north.

The storms are a sign that we are getting closer to the Tolarion White Expanse… He thought. We are on the right track.

But even with that slight reassurance, a part of him still felt anxious. Prior to their departure, Soren was going to try and inspect the Dungeon Door that Myrin had arrived from, only for it to vanish before their very eyes.

According to Myrin, this was proof that the Dungeon Door was of the disappearing kind. A common trick within the Avalon Ruins—sending an explorer somewhere they had never expected to be sent to, then leaving them there with no way of ever returning… Unlike Dungeon Door #1 which forever stays in the air, the one they went through vanishes after the person exits through it, leaving them stranded in the middle of a random location.

There were countless previous accounts recorded of explorers sent to the harsh black sands of the Eclipse Moor, forever fated to die a gruesome death under the scorching heat of the blazing sun… Some were more fortunate—sent closer to populated places, though, whether the people there would welcome them or shun them remained up to luck. And now, it was their turn to experience the same.

Fortunately or unfortunately enough, Soren's twisted fate likely influenced this random outcome, allowing them to arrive closer to their goal, rather than further. He didn't know whether to thank its benevolence or curse it a thousand times.

Those damned Orbits…

As the sleet of ice chilled his remaining thoughts to a standstill, Soren's eyes noticed a dark silhouette ahead—past the flurry of snow and fog… It was getting clearer and clearer.

"I see it!" Soren yelled out to Myrin, "A cave!"

Hearing his call, Myrin looked toward the direction he was looking. He immediately noticed the same thing. Without hesitating, he steered the lead rope, changing the carriage's direction.

Just as they had assumed, it was indeed a cave. And a rather deep one at that… It didn't take much time for the pair of magi to climb the discreet snow cliff and enter inside. After lighting a small fire away from the cave entrance, both of them finally lowered their guards and leaned against the walls for rest.

"Praise the Blossoms…" Myrin exhaled—the cold air showing his raspy breath.

Staring into the tiny flame, Soren also couldn't help but sigh in relief as well. Every time a breeze entered their cave, it would swiftly threaten to end the tiny blaze they had managed to start…

"We really could have been done for…" Soren mumbled under his breath as his teeth chattered from the cold. And he wasn't wrong—snowstorms like this one might have been frequent in this region of the continent, but that didn't mean they were not deadly… They were nothing more than spillovers from up north in the Tolarion White Expanse, where storms like these were seen all year long…

"Our supplies weren't enough for this kind of weather." Soren said while placing his hands close to the warm flame. "Can't you illustrate us some better things to wear?"

"It will only get worse from here the closer we get north." Myrin replied. "The fur coats I made are already the best I could do. Though, if Cassia were here—she has a 1st Circle spell that's made for this kind of situation… Too bad…"

Soren's lips sank. The mention of that name left him hollow, as if a weight had settled in his chest. He momentarily forgot the bone-chilling cold…

"I wonder how she's doing." He asked casually. "Where do you think she could be right now?"

Myrin chuckled slightly, "Probably somewhere better than us."

"Hopefully," Soren smiled slightly.

The coldness continued to settle in as the minutes passed. Eventually, even the flame didn't seem to be enough. The pair decided to sit close to each other to share the warmth. And with the night hours slowly rolling in, the silence paired with the backdrop of raging winds just a few yards away became therapeutic…

Both of them got to work doing their own things. Soren became busy analyzing the items had obtained while Myrin sat in silence, doing Consciousness Training to recover his anima.

It was only now that they were away from the dangers plaguing the Avalon Ruins that it began to settle in him just how much they had obtained…

Countless philosopher's stones, a plethora of Magitech Devices, and even more wealth enough to declare themselves nobles of an estate. Though, nothing could truly compare to the jewel of the Safe Zone:

The Blood Amulet.

During that entire trek across the endless snowfields, Soren had no opportunity to truly analyze its capabilities. Not only was his mind still reeling from the aftereffects of the battle with Rodrick, but the storm they were hit with gave him no chance to truly have time to himself in peace.

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Now that they were free to wait for the storm to end, there was no better opportunity than now. Without hesitating any further, he commanded his Soul Weapon to see the unseen:

Heartdrinker Sigil (Mystery):

A Sacred Treasure that once belonged to a Sovereign Daemon. This item holds the power of inscribing knowledge into blood. A Tier 6 Sacred Treasure whose authority corresponds with the Spirit Body of Tazzith—Blood of Taboo Wisdom. It is a fragmented part and is missing several expression fragments worth of Abstract Runes.

Contractual Price: Must consume a liter of your blood a day. Two sacrificial Spirit Beasts must be given every week. And every usage of the desired skills must be exchanged with equivalent knowledge. Dreams may be plagued with the nightmares of consumed creatures.

Skills:

[Hemomantic Transmutation] - Convert blood into anima and vice versa.

[Bloodrune Catalysis] - Utilize the blood of others to fuel the casting of spellforms. The affinity that person holds becomes accessible.

[Crimson Homunculi] - Create puppets of blood through the sacrifice of Spirit Beasts.

[Coagulated Progeny] - Combine multiple blood puppets into a monstrous construct with its own pseudo-intellect.

[Forbidden Resistance] - Your hunger for knowledge overpowers its psychological consequences.

[Crimson Lexicon] - A secondary grimoire formed from your own blood.

[Ophidian Insight] - Read into the souls of others without them knowing.

[Ophidian Transfer] - Inscribe knowledge into the souls of others without them knowing.

Soren was surprised. No, that might not have been the right word.

He was fucking terrified.

"Tazzith… This is…"

Suddenly, a rather tame voice entered his mind. It sounded rather innocent, like that of a child's… And yet, the words he was reading said otherwise:

"Hm? Ah yes, you've pried into my secrets. How unfortunate."

Soren shook his head. "To think a bastard like you is this powerful…"

"What's that supposed to mean?! Did you forget I was a Sovereign?!

"A Sovereign! Get it in your head!"

"A Sovereign that talks like a child," Soren retorted—his words carrying salt. "How disgusting."

Still, despite the banter, it indeed once again became obvious to him the disparity between him and the ancient demon he was contracted with… Although most of the abilities were missing, despite it being a Tier 6 Sacred Treasure, it was already more than enough to demolish a city if he needed it to…

No wonder Rodrick fought so hard to obtain it… If he had been able to form a contract with this kind of Sacred Treasure, would anyone even be able to stand a chance against him?

And that logic extended to most of the other churches as well. It was evident that both the Church of Nature and the Church of Brilliance had tried to obtain it for themselves, but gave up in the end… If either of them did manage to somehow acquire it, the political imbalance within Celestine would have collapsed, or worse, sparked a civil war.

Scary… It was finally hitting him just how significant their actions were… Soren wondered if there was a bounty on his head by now.

"So…" Tazzith's voice startled him out of his thoughts. "Are you planning on contracting with it?"

Soren frowned deeply upon hearing his words. It was indeed a very logical thing to ask—although the amulet helped to protect them from most rogue Spirit Beast attacks, its abilities could expand their capabilities far more than they could even imagine…

Especially now that there was an enemy Sovereign fae spirit heading their way. They could use all the help they could get.

"I am not sure." He answered very plainly. "Is it even possible? I thought Phantasms who wield their own Soul Weapons cannot possess Sacred Treasures?"

"Under normal circumstances, that is true. Your Runic Existence has already been tainted by the influence of an Abstract Rune—in your case, the Fairy Witness rune. And technically, your Soul Chain isn't even here—it is inside that mysterious space you're able to travel to.

"This entire body of yours is nothing more than a constructed avatar. One that was likely created through the powers of [Fictionalization]."

Soren's lips twitched slightly. "How do you know the name of the ability?" It became clear that Tazzith's visits to [The Faerie Court] didn't come without a cost. The curious daemon cannot stop Himself from obtaining information…

Knowing this, Tazzith innocently ignored his question, "...So a full contract with a Sacred Treasure is likely impossible, even if you never had a Soul Weapon to begin with.

"But! A contract in this case is not even necessary."

Hearing this, Soren tilted his head in confusion. "Not necessary? What do you mean?" His eyes trailed over the [Record]ed text once again. Clearly, there was information listed there explaining what the price of the contract was…

"Indeed," Tazzith reaffirmed. "Because that bastardly necklace doesn't wish to contract with anyone."

"What?!" His eyes widened in shock.

"The amulet… As I said before—it holds a will of its own. Though, it's likely still not mature enough to form any complex thought. However, it does understand its role, and what it may need to grow its influence.

"Usually, a Sacred Treasure will go out of its way to seek a mortal in order to obtain a contracted host. Then, that person will become its primary feeder of influence—every time the Sacred Treasure is utilized, a portion of influence is reflected in the Beyond, giving it more Abstract Rune fragments."

Soren nodded. "Yes, that's how they function… So why would this amulet be any different?"

"Because it doesn't need you to grow its influence. It has already been doing that on its own…"

Soren didn't understand what he meant, until he remembered the skills listed under its status page:

"[Crimson Homunculi] - Create puppets of blood through the sacrifice of Spirit Beasts…

"I see!"

Everything finally clicked into place—why this obscure amulet that held colossal power was so feared by Spirit Beasts…

The Safe Zone—It was safe due to this ability!

"Over the span of a thousand years," Tazzith explained, "this little cretin has been slowly absorbing any and all Spirit Beasts that dared to cross its way… And with that influence over the Beyond, a spark of will began to bloom—Sentience."

It was then no wonder that the Safe Zone remained as safe as it was. With how many Spirit Beasts were dying to its hands, that entire ruined city became a taboo location for any creature to enter. In fact, it was likely its designated hunting grounds…

A Safe Zone for humanity turned out to be a death trap for everything else that walked, crawled, or flew…

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