"Are you hungry? If you are, I can make you something," asked Seraphina, her tone softer and less defensive.
"Not for now, but later, yes," replied Aelion.
Seraphina then stood up and left the room, while Aelion, on his side, let himself fall to the floor, thinking about the conversation and everything it implied—especially her past and the reasons why she wanted to leave. Even though he only had vague answers, he felt that he had somewhat broken the ice, as the gauge had dropped another 10%. That was rather quick. But he couldn't rest on his laurels; he still had to reach level 15 and find a way to do it inside the manor. Maybe the magic Seraphina would teach him could help. Moreover, he had to hurry to complete the second quest—there was still the eastern part of the hall to explore.
As for her, she hadn't given him a clear answer—not only to protect him but also because there was something she still didn't know: why had she come back to life here? She feared that it might have something to do with him, since he didn't know her. What was even stranger was that he wanted to learn magic when the manor itself was literally imbued with it. Either way, for now, she wanted to rest and headed to her room.
With the goal of acquiring the management unit, he went to the other part of the ground floor, where he discovered three rooms: the training room, the forge, and an inventory.
The training room was vast, filled with targets to practice on. There were even various wooden weapons meant for sparring. The place itself was built of white marble reinforced with some kind of multicolored metal alloy. Near the entrance stood a square plate that, with every rotation, changed the type of training ground—from sword practice, to archery, to hand-to-hand combat. A perfect place to grow stronger.
The forge, on the other hand, was a much more imposing and oppressive place, somewhat like the altar dedicated to the goddess. There were countless tools, mechanical installations, and furnaces for working with metal. What Aelion noticed was that the place emitted a strange coolness. It wasn't subtle—he could clearly feel it when touching the floor and the walls. It was odd for a forge, where the temperature was supposed to be the opposite. Still, the fact that it seemed unused could explain it.
The inventory, compared to the training room, was filled with real weapons forged from metal, iron, and various alloys he didn't even recognize. Aelion walked among them, occasionally picking one up and trying to reproduce the stances, positions, and strikes he used to observe back on his homeworld. Some weapons were heavy, others light—ranging from greatswords and one-handed blades to daggers. The ones he had the most affinity with, requiring the least effort, were the dagger and the bow. Inside, there was also a room dedicated to resources and raw materials: metal ingots, iron, and even leather preserved in optimal condition.
If he had been a blacksmith, this place would have been his paradise—a place to create and innovate endlessly. Unfortunately, he was better at conceptual design than at physical crafting. At the far end of the inventory, there was another door, unlike any typical one: a circular door that didn't open in a traditional way. Aelion had already tried pushing and hitting it, but it wouldn't budge. However, on the surface of the door were three distinct notches forming a triangle. Above each notch was a dot indicating their order.
He ran his fingers over the marks and the dots, trying to figure out how to unlock the mechanism, and then an idea came to him.
"Aren't those notches made by blades? What a coincidence that I'm in the inventory," he said excitedly.
He walked along the weapon racks, searching for something that might fit, when he noticed a sword bearing a mark identical to the one on the sealed door. He grabbed it quickly, approached, and slid the blade into the first notch. A satisfying click echoed. He smiled unconsciously—he had just found a way to open a hidden room. Aelion hurried to find the next sword engraved with two dots, then the one with three, and repeated the same process.
A deep, guttural sound escaped this time, releasing a cylindrical structure from the center that moved toward him. Now, instead of dots, arrows had replaced them. Naturally, he looked for spears that matched the same pattern as the swords he had used earlier and inserted them into the openings before pushing them deeper. Nothing happened.
"Huh? That's it?"
Surprised, Aelion double-checked everything he had done, inspecting the door in the smallest detail. Exhausted, he accidentally rested his hand on one of the spear handles—and then, the structure began to turn.
"Jackpot."
It was like turning a reel, but in a single direction. As he rotated it using the handles, the first structure of the door spun in the opposite direction, and when he reached the end of the turn, the entire room shook. Finally, the door opened—he could at last see what was hidden behind it.
[ Congratulations! You have discovered the Mausoleum: Memento of the Hero! ]
[ You have completed the side quest! ]
[ You have obtained the complete map of Ira's Manor! ]
[ You can now activate the Esoteric and Logical Automated Management Unit! ]
[ Would you like to activate UGAEL? Y/N ]
"Not now."
The system had called it a mausoleum; however, nothing he saw resembled one. The inside seemed drowned in absolute darkness, like the altar before, and no structure or law appeared to define the limits of the room. It felt as though the space itself existed in another dimension. The only light came from the center, where a massive tree stood—a weeping willow. Nestled among its visible roots was a sword: the reward for finding the hidden passage.
Guided by a beam of light of unknown origin, Aelion approached the blade, intrigued. It was a large sword adorned with gold and a luminous metal that reflected like a mirror. Embedded in its enormous blade were two gems that pulsed with dark and ominous energy: one a vivid dark flame, the other a violet lightning spark.
A weapon beautiful and hypnotic in appearance, yet dangerous in the power it contained. He thought about using his skill to analyze its characteristics, though he doubted it would work.
[ Legendary Sword "Twin Destiny" ]
· Type: Two-handed sword (Greatsword)
· Origin: A divine artifact forged by the Primordial Goddess from the Heart of the Fire Dragon Dierdre and the Core of the Thunder Demon Akastor, in honor of the sacrificed hero.
Effects:
· Dual Incarnation: The sword can alternate between two elemental states at the wielder's will:
· Blade of the Incarnate Dragon: Wrapped in solar flames, inflicts burning and lingering fire damage.
· Blade of the Black Thunder: Lashed with dark lightning, paralyzes enemies and disrupts magic.
· Judgment of Souls: Each strike absorbs a small amount of the enemy's vitality or mana to strengthen the wielder.
· Ultimate — "Heroic Sacrifice": The wielder can unleash the essence stored within the sword for a single, devastating strike, but the blade breaks and demands a heavy price (usable once only).
Ego Properties:
· Divine Recognition: The weapon can only be wielded by one with a pure heart or a connection to the original hero.
· Aura of Legend: Grants passive resistance to mental effects and corruptive magic.
· Empathic Link: The sword reacts to the wielder's emotions, its glow intensifying in moments of great resolve.
"A divine-ranked artifact hidden away?! For what purpose? Its abilities are incredible!"
For once, his greedy and ambitious side took over—he wanted this sword, because he knew that with it, he would no longer have to fear anyone, not even the malicious beings the goddess might send his way. Impatient, he gripped the sword's hilt with both hands and tried to pull it from the roots—only to be thrown into an unknown place, accompanied solely by a strange, living sphere burning with the same dark flame.