Unfathomable
After a good sleep, Rui woke up and started to look around the room. It was made of wood that could be found in the forest. It wasn't extravagant, but it was well-built and designed for a remote village.
He had no way of finding out what happened in Ashgrade, as he was on another continent far from the north. Just the voyage alone would take two to three weeks to arrive at the northern parts of the continent, and even longer to reach this remote village.
Rui wanted to buy new clothes, but looking at the four copper stags in his hand, he sighed—it wouldn't even be enough to buy food for two days. He had decided to use them to buy a bag so he could carry the artifact wherever he went; he didn't trust leaving it in the room.
"The doctor sure was generous enough to give me what he had on him," Rui mumbled to himself. He then stood up, grabbed the key and the artifact, and headed out.
The inn he was staying at was two stories. The first floor was much larger than the second. His room was on the second floor, without a window, as glass was expensive—only the high- and middle-class families could afford it.
The first floor had a restaurant, a bar, and trading posts—but most importantly, a quest board. He decided to look for something low-risk but still worth good money. He searched through the board before finding one to gather either wolf or deer hides. In its description, it said, As many as you can, meaning multiple people could accept it simultaneously.
To track how many people accepted the quest, each person would rip a piece from the paper.
He then wandered into town. The paths were well made, and most buildings looked similar, all made out of wood, with a few exceptions. Some buildings were painted, but those were rare. There were lanterns here and there—enough to see by, but not enough to make it bright as day.
He visited a shop to buy a knife so he could skin the deer or wolf that he caught. The knife cost him two copper stags, so now he couldn't afford a bag.
After walking near the edges of town, he realized there were many farms. The most important crop was sweet potato—it was perfect for nutrients and grew well in the southern environment.
He soon entered the forest. There weren't any animals nearby, so he decided to head deeper, near cliffs and caves, as those were where animals liked to rest.
He walked cautiously; he could hear movement and rattling sounds, but those were mostly snakes and other reptiles.
Some time passed before he suddenly heard running. He was sure it came from a deer—the sound was distinct enough. He quickly ran toward it.
When he came in sight of the sound, he saw two deer that looked like they were being chased.
He decided to tail them, hoping to find out what was chasing them without exposing himself to danger.
After some time of tailing, the deer finally stopped to drink water. That meant they had lost their predator.
Rui rushed in quickly before the predator returned.
Roots grew from the ground, grabbing the legs of the deer and immobilizing them from running.
It was a spell he had seen in the memories he received, and he also knew how it worked—he could control the roots and thrust them in different directions.
It was more useful in action than he had thought.
With the deer locked in place, he rushed forward with the knife in hand and slit their throats. It was the best way to kill an animal without contaminating the meat.
He also thought about selling the deer meat—and if he couldn't, he would eat it.
With an accurate slice, the deer fell to the ground. He felt disgusted by the smell. He had seen corpses at the manor, but they never smelled like this.
"The smell is very bad. How could they handle it without complaining?" Rui muttered aloud, as there was no one else around. He had already put the artifact down to avoid staining it with blood and to keep his hands free.
He had been holding it ever since leaving the inn.
"I really need a bag—and a big one too. I won't be able to carry more hides in my hands," he complained again, before a thought flickered in his mind.
The artifact had teleportation power. He hadn't communicated with it since searching for a village or town.
"Can you teleport us to the town after I skin the deer?" he asked the artifact on the ground, expecting an answer.
A few minutes passed. No reply.
_Is it refusing to answer? Are there reasons for its silence? Or maybe… I need to hold it?_
Deciding he had nothing to lose, he picked it up. Holding it in his hand, he repeated the question.
After a few seconds, he heard a reply.
"Yes, I can teleport us to the location of your desire—only within this area." The artifact made it clear it wouldn't teleport him to the northern continents or large cities.
"Is there a limit to how many times it can be used, or a wait time between uses?" Rui asked, wanting to know everything he could.
With a familiar voice—one he had heard before—the artifact replied, "I can use it all day, with a wait time of one hour between each teleportation."
_This voice… it's Rin's. Are these voices from the people it absorbed?_ Rui didn't focus much on the answer—his thoughts lingered on the voice.
He remembered one thing that piqued his interest: the mysterious entity Rin had met in that isolated place.
"What was that strange entity in Rin's memory?" he asked the artifact, expecting it to either answer with writing or stay silent.
Suddenly, the book flipped open to a torn page. Only a single letter remained: M. The first letter of a title.
_Why is it torn? Why only one letter? What could the 'M' stand for?_
From his experience, each person had a different title. Rin's was The Puppeteer, and his had been 9..17.0.....13.
_Rin's title was easier to understand—she was trying to make him a puppet. But why were there numbers in his? What did the dots mean?_
Taking a deep breath, he asked, "Does my title have a hidden meaning?"
The ink started to form: ... 48
_What does 48 mean? Can't it ever give a normal answer for important matters?_
Frustrated, Rui put the book down, grabbed the knife, and approached the deer.
He had no experience in skinning, so he didn't expect it to be perfect.
He cut off the neck and legs, then gently moved the knife against the hide.
After a difficult process, one hide turned out poorly, but the other was okay. He gave himself a proud smile.
He set the hide down, cut meat from the deer, and prepared a fire using logs he gathered quickly.
The smell of roasting meat filled the air. He gulped in anticipation—this was his first time eating deer.
Once cooked, he bit into it. His pride surged.
_It tastes very good. Now I understand why it's popular among nobles. With spices and herbs, it would be perfect._
He quickly finished his portion and cut some more, not wanting to waste it. He couldn't carry it back anyway—it was too heavy.
After eating, he wiped his hands and mouth with leaves, placed the hide over his shoulder, and grabbed the book.
"Teleport us to the village," he said with a light heart, his mood improved.
In seconds, the scenery changed. He was now slightly outside the village.
Teleporting directly into town would've exposed him.
Teleportation magic was ranked seven-star—the highest tier. It consumed a huge amount of mana.
The average mana reserve for humans was 1000. No amount of training could increase it.
A short-range teleport spell consumed 100–200 mana.
_If I remember correctly, my mana was 3500 when I was tested. That classifies me in the high category. If I could learn this spell, I could charge high fees for teleporting people to the north. At most, it would use 1500 mana per trip—enough for only one person at a time._
Mana regenerates from the surroundings, but replenishing 1500 mana naturally would take more than half a day.
_There are faster ways to restore mana. I should have studied more. I never imagined I'd be dragged into this… or constantly talking to this sh*tty artifact._
His emotions now settled, Rui reflected on his recent choices. Why hadn't he felt worried or scared?
A sudden thought hit him—_the entity. Could it be influencing me?_
The artifact never claimed to be the one influencing him. It simply said he had been influenced.
He would ask the artifact again—once he returned to the inn.
The quest stated the meeting location was the inn in the evening each day, which was convenient. Rui returned to the inn and went to his room since it was still early.
He dropped the hide to the ground. The room only had a bed, so he sat down.
Facing the artifact, he asked nervously, "Who or what influenced me? And will I be influenced again in the future?"
_I'll accept any answer as long as it doesn't include numbers._
The book burst open, flipping through page after page without stopping.
This is different… Can't it find an answer? Or… is it scared?
His heart raced. His face turned pale.
The flipping stopped. Ink began to form.
"I can't… I don't know… I fear..."
The handwriting was messy and rushed—completely unlike the usual perfect beautiful form.
Rui's anxiety surged.
_Even the artifact fears this thing? This artifact… a calamity in itself… afraid?_
_What kind of entity could terrify such a power?_
Many thoughts filled his mind, none of them good.
Could it be… a god?
There were three gods worshipped since ancient times, and one more that appeared centuries ago.
First was the Mother of Life—believed to have created the world for humans. Second, the God of Knowledge—who bestowed ideas that helped humans advance. Third, the God of Power—who gave strength to fight the lurking monsters.
And then, the last—believed to have granted the originator of magic dominion over all types of magic.
The god's name was The Ancient Watcher.