Deal or no deal?

"A crystal. It holds great importance for our kind." The voice once again reverberated within his mind; its tone now solemn.

"Can you tell me anything more about this 'Thanatos' and the Templars' trial grounds!? …And why are you so certain that I'll be participating?" Hugo questioned; his tone steady and measured.

"You know nothing about the trials?" The voice's owner seemed very surprised.

"No!" Hugo shook his head in denial.

Since one of his spells was named the 'Cloak of Thanatos', he needed to confirm whether it had something to do with a deity similar to the one in Greek mythology, or an ancient mystic from Gaia.

"Really unfortunate." The owner of the mysterious voice sighed.

"Thanatos was the ancient God of Death in the era of old. He disappeared about ten to fifty thousand years ago, long before the first interplanetary explorers discovered Gaia." The entity paused in its speech like it had spiraled off into a state of reverie.

Hugo's lips remained sealed but the gears in his head turned rapidly as he processed the new information. He could now confirm that Gaia was in some way connected to planet Earth.

[Maybe, a wormhole connects the two worlds!] He mused while gazing at the long slit torn through the very fabric of the space before him.

"Thanatos rarely appeared in person but he was well known as the personification of death." The voice continued. "He is probably the most enigmatic of all the deities who lived in the underworld of ancient Gaia."

"Thanatos was also said to be the twin brother of Hypnos – the primordial deity of slumber. And together, the brothers were allegedly invincible especially when faced in their domain; the underworld…"

"Some ancient legends say that Thanatos and his twin battled and defeated Ananke and Chronos; the primordial deities of fate and time respectively. That's tantamount to defeating time and fate!"

"But what is really interesting is that Thanatos and his twin set up four major trial grounds in each of the four continents of Gaia to select the inheritors of the mystical knowledge of death and slumber."

"These trial grounds are now called the Templars' trial grounds after having been solely controlled by the Grim Reaper's Templars for millennia." The voice concluded.

"How often do these trials occur? And why are you so sure that I'll be participating." Hugo hurriedly asked. He still couldn't see how he was connected to these so-called Templars.

"The trials have always been carried out once every century."

"…And young man, take it from me that you have already been marked as a potential progeny of the Grim Reaper."

"Whether or not you like it, you will have to participate in the trial that will happen around four to five years from now. Otherwise, you will have to spend the rest of your life as a fugitive on the run from the enigmatic Templars." The entity behind the space slit added.

"How are the potential progenies identified and marked?" Hugo was still confused about this. Although he strongly suspected that the mysterious token was the cause of all this, he wanted to be absolutely sure.

"This is what remains a mystery. In one way or another, various tokens or trinkets will always find their way to the hands of the young men and women identified as potential progenies of the ancient Thanatos…"

"Even the Grim Reaper's templars have no control over this selection. Legends point at the process being controlled by Thanatos himself from the shadows. But those could be just myths resulting from the overactive imagination of ancient Gaians." The voice added.

Hugo shuddered after as he fought a rising panic. He clearly remembered receiving the token in question from Elena. But now he was being told that the process was controlled by Thanatos himself! The very notion of having a deity's eyes on him was deeply alarming.

[After Gaia's test, I need to be very careful with any strangers that come my way.] He resolved before raising his head to gaze into the colossal eye.

"Which crystal do you want me to retrieve from the trial ground," Hugo inquired after a moment of contemplation.

"Odin's blood inheritance crystal. It should be at the trial ground of the Central Continent." The voice replied.

"Will the trial be dangerous?" Hugo whispered.

"Yes! Very. To this date, not a single person has successfully managed to complete the trial of the Grim Reaper. But that is mostly due to interference from the templars. They are the cause of most dangers faced by the potential inheritors partaking in the trials."

"Only two options exist for potential progenies; participate and maybe become a Templar, or miss the trials and face assassination."

"Thus, you have no choice but to attend the trials. That is the sole reason I am gifting you a complete archery inheritance in advance." The voice added.

"Deal or no deal?" The voice inquired.

Hugo was still partially unconvinced by the promise of the archery inheritance. Instead, he kept silent and assessed the pros and cons of the deal. Since he already possessed the Apollo-Archery that he had yet to master, it seemed useless to obtain another mystic art related to bows and arrows.

"The reward isn't to my liking. I don't have any immediate need for that inheritance. So, I will have to humbly reject your offer." Hugo answered; his arms raised as if in surrender. He did not wish to take any more risks to attain techniques similar to what was already in his possession.

"You're sure that you want to reject the deal?" The voice questions; its tone indicating the astonishment of the entity behind the space slit.

"I am sure." Hugo nodded in affirmation. Though he wished to gain an inheritance from one of the greatest mystic archers of the pre-colonial era, he curbed his impulses since he wasn't sure about the motives of the entity behind the space slit.

The whole sequence of events leading to this conversation was shrouded in mystery. Hugo was certain that the owner of the colossal eye had intercepted his spell for unknown reasons. But it didn't seem likely that it was because of the so-called inheritance crystal.

[Is it because of the Knowledge Keeper's Posterity test? Or is he just interested in Infinitus – the Grimoire of All Beginnings?] Hugo wondered.