Chapter 201: 137. Sacred Relic
“Sir Book?”
Jasmine glanced at the ancient book floating in mid-air. At that moment, she seemed to feel the book without a body slightly lift its head as if to prove its nobility and uniqueness.
Jasmine was considering whether this book named “Emhart” was like the novel said, that a wizard had once sealed a true count’s soul into this book with dark magic, and then it required a giant frog to kiss the book in order to free the knight.
Hmm, this might be a story about a book prince and a frog princess.
However, Fisher examined the book before him, its cover seemed to have weathered the test of time without a single wrinkle, not a speck of dust, and that anthropomorphized eye blinked, though sadly devoid of eyelashes, creating a scene reminiscent of a horror movie in this dark library.
“Are you a relic?”
Yes, Fisher discerned that the book before him was not a living being in essence but a highly skilled relic.
“Ah, a relic. Yes, you junior fellows like to call these miraculous, inexplicably created artifacts that way, like gifts passed down from ancient times. Indeed, the noble Sir Book Emhart is a relic if you prefer to call me that.”
It swayed in mid-air, and the pages spread open like an accordion.
“However, I still prefer the original name bestowed by the esteemed creator, Ainolongba. This is the language of the Holy Spawn, translated into Nali language, it means ‘Divine Creation,’ though ‘Sacred Relic’ is more appropriate.”
“Sacred Relic?”
“Exactly, a long-lost mythical skill. But I don’t know how I was created; after all, you know, which person can know the specifics of their creation? Especially when you are still a book.”
Jasmine opened her mouth but did not point out that the book referred to itself as “human.”
Fisher, nearby, had more or less confirmed through dialogue that this peculiar book posed no harm to him and his companions. He then changed his tone to inquire about Emhart’s intentions.
“If you are a very cherished relic, how do you come to be here? In the Royal Library of humans, rather than in some well-preserved ruins?”
“Well, I have no special hobbies, I just have a particular liking for recording the content of all the books in the world. Oh, speaking of which, I’ve been pondering whether my love for books comes from my own interests or if the great Holy Spawn set this preference for me during my creation.”
“Since awakening, I have been wandering throughout the world, reading various books. Coming to this library happened decades ago, and so far I have read all the books here. Oh, I originally planned to rest well here for a few months before heading to the next place with books, but unexpectedly tonight presented me with such a good fortune.”
Sir Book kept floating in mid-air, slowly flying close to Fisher, circling around him.
“I can feel it, you have two very profound books on you! Right? Right? Oh my, I haven’t smelled such fragrant books in a long time; they must contain many jaw-dropping secrets, right? About the Chaos Race? The Demon Race? Or… about that word that cannot be spoken?”
As the book got closer, its raspy male voice became softer until, near Fisher’s ear, he suddenly grabbed it, making its blinking cover look at him.
“The word that cannot be spoken?”
“Oh, is it not? Then I’m even more curious! Please, I just want to read the contents of those two books and record them. I haven’t encountered such enticing knowledge for a long time. Even the books collected by the Godlin royal family taste bland to me. Please, kind human, let me read the content inside.”
Its raspy voice sounded both ugly and pitiable, but Fisher vaguely sensed that the enticing books it spoke of were the completion manuals he held.
The two manuals in his chest slightly warmed up. This was the first time anyone other than himself had sensed their existence since generally, even if the two completion manuals were taken out, others couldn’t see them.
Could it be that humans and relics are different?
Or is it because Emhart is a book itself?
“Fisher has no books, does he? Perhaps your nose is blocked, or you’ve been sleeping too long and gone a bit daft?”
Jasmine, who had swum here with Fisher, stood from her perspective, taking note that Fisher was completely soaked through and didn’t see a book’s shape. Even if he had those two books, they would be thoroughly soaked, and Fisher surely would take them out to dry.
“No, no! How dare you, little Whale Folk, question my craving for books? That exquisite flavor is like a dish sealed under a warming spell in an apartment two blocks away; the scent is faint but oh, so wonderful.”
That raspy voice made Jasmine’s skin crawl, especially after it said “oh, so wonderful,” making it even more uncomfortable.
Fisher glanced at the book in his hand, thought for a second, and suddenly spoke.
“I do have two magical books, and I can let you see their content, but it won’t be without cost.”
“Oh, a trade! Yes, you Nali people love to trade, excelling at exchanging a few bullets for vast amounts of gold from the Southern Continent’s Subhuman Race. Alright, state your request for Sir Book to consider.”
The book began to float again, looking at Fisher as it spoke.
“Let us exchange knowledge; trade your recorded content for the content of my two books.”
“What?! Exchange? How unreasonable. Do you know how much content has been recorded in my body, how many precious books? Just a single page of information would require your barren brain to run at full speed for an entire year. Even if I wanted to exchange, how would you record it?”
Fisher smiled faintly, waved his finger, and said.
“I certainly can’t record it. So let’s try a different way: one book for one year of time. Two books would be two years. During these two years, you must follow me at all times, answering every question I ask you. When the two-year term is up, regardless of how many questions you have answered, I will show you the contents of the two books for you to record.”
“Oh!!!”
Once Emhart heard Fisher’s “charitable terms,” the whole book flew up in excitement, swirling mid-air like a little butterfly.
“Oh, time! Such a precious commodity for humans; two years can be considered a long duration. Fine, I can agree, but before that, let’s refine the details of our trade, shall we? I also want you to take a blood oath.”
It seemed this book understood many things about the world, including how to constrain humans to keep their promises.
“Sure, but the blood oath can only constrain me, not you, the thoughtful relic.”
“Oh, not necessarily, after all, I’ve never tried whether a blood oath can extract my life force. But you don’t need to worry because I am the one paying to answer your questions first, right?”
Fisher chuckled softly, nodded, indicating it should add conditions.
“Well, at any time and under any circumstance for the next two years, you can ask me any question. All the information I know must be answered to you truthfully, but I can’t guarantee that every question has an answer. Sometimes, if I truly don’t know, I might give you a piece of advice based on that question.”
“Secondly, you must ensure my safety while following you. I must remind you, although typical bubbles, fire, and blades do not harm me, if you dare to use me as a shield or pillow, do not blame me for turning against you!”
“And finally, during the time you follow me, if you come across any books I haven’t seen before, you must record them for me. In return, I may extend the duration of our trade or share something additional with you that you did not ask about. How does that sound? Will you agree?”
“Sounds like it perfectly compensates for your lack of legs.”
“Ha, actually, I can run quite far; it’s just a hassle for me. Of course, you can remain in Saint Nali’s little room without moving. I just mean if you can read something I haven’t, and not all books are of my interest. They must be interesting; don’t show me those pink romantic novels from the street; give those to this little Whale Folk girl beside you instead.”
Jasmine’s face flushed red as she suddenly recalled the second-rate romantic novel Milica had once shown her, which contained vivid line art illustrations about a female student secretly meeting her male professor at night.
Oh, that’s so embarrassing.
Ignoring Jasmine, whose ears started flapping again, Fisher readily agreed to Sir Book’s trade, then extended his hand toward Sir Book, biting his finger to draw a blood oath circle magic on the ground. That was the blood oath.
Actually, the structure of the blood oath is the simplest yet also the oldest; it involves knowledge from the history of human magic, which we can supplement later if there’s an opportunity.
However, from the first few magics ever used by humans, the blood oath magic was present, indicating that ancient people had little trust in one another. To ensure others could keep their promises, they could only use this simple and crude method.
Besides attacking magic, the blood oath magic has lasted to today, with many associated anecdotes.
Fisher’s hands did not stop moving, and soon enough, a circular blood oath magic was carved. The moment it formed, a meaty mist of vapor swirled and rose, like illusory chains quickly flowing into Fisher’s body, moving along with his veins.
In fact, the faint mist also flowed into Emhart’s body, but Fisher did not know if this could bind the relic. But as he said, he was the one paying first, answering Fisher’s questions.
“Deal, young man! Hopefully, we will have a pleasant time together during this period. I believe I’m quite good-tempered, the best among conscious relics in terms of temperament. Alright, Sir Book Emhart will have no secrets from you; fire away with your questions, hurry now!”
Fisher raised his brow, recalling how this Sir Book differed from other relics, so he asked his first inconsequential question to set the stage.
“In all these years, I have only seen you as a conscious relic; are you that special? Or is it that conscious relics are, in fact, more advanced than those without consciousness?”
Sir Book puffed out its “chest,” causing its entire book body to tilt noticeably and look somewhat comical.
“Of course! Otherwise, why would my title be so noble? In fact, all sacred relics are tools crafted by the Holy Spawns, who possess unparalleled forging skills and aesthetic senses. Even the vessels they use in daily life are extraordinarily beautiful, let alone their physical forms.”
“The more time expended, the more precious the materials used, and the more profound the forging techniques involved, the more likely one can create a conscious sacred relic like me. However, in all these years, I have only encountered one other relic like me; there are likely many more lying in unknown corners, asleep…”
Emhart was indeed honestly answering Fisher’s questions, at least from Fisher’s perspective, he was not lying and was even imparting a lot of uncommon knowledge.
Since he could almost confirm the truthfulness of the creature’s words, Fisher decided to get into the main topic. This creature had been here for decades, surely it knew how to enter the Black Vault, which was the true urgent issue.
“There is an entrance leading to the Black Vault here, right?”
“Correct! Captain Blake Vasily, oh, such a legendary figure, now a pitiable soul beguiled by immortality. Decades ago, he set up the entrance to his vault here; it is an entrance ring crafted from magic, leading deep underground beneath Nali Lake. In fact, he first dug out the vault in the super-deep underground before coming here to place the entrance.”
Sir Book floated to the front of the second-floor railing, where he saw Anna and Xiatu; apparently, they had been sitting there silently listening to Fisher and the others’ conversation.
“Magic? I have felt no traces of magical power here.”
“That’s because it’s not time yet; you can only open this entrance after sunrise. The specific method is to operate the glass above, a total of eight pieces, and you need to open four of them for the traces of the entrance to appear.”
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(End of Chapter)
