I walked back to the medic camp, intending to check up on my teammates. With my notebook in hand, I wanted to quickly share the information I got and discuss strategy with them.
But what greeted me was a sight to behold.
Inside a tent specially prepared for us, the four espers of my team were surrounding Ilyas, listening intently to what he's saying. They were gathered in a circle, like children hearing fairy tales from their grandfather.
I didn't know what led to this situation, but I halted my step. I inched closer to the entrance and decided to eavesdrop on their conversation from the outside.
"So you're saying shamanism could help bridge spirits and perceive alternate realities?"
"Yes, powerful shaman like my grandmother can do that. While shamanism is a way to forcibly interrupt with the universe, gates and ruptures are created naturally. So these towers, which are the result of a rupture, literally exist, and might affect our world in some way based on how strong it is in its own world. That's why I said these towers might not be gone by the time we finish it."
Ilyas said firmly, planting his beliefs. While Xain and Cedric were nodding along with how used to they were to hearing Ilyas talk about shamanism, Patricia and Marcello were more skeptical, asking a few more questions just to be sure.
"Gates and ruptures aren't something that could be scientifically explained to begin with, so sometimes you need an expert in other fields to see things from a different perspective."
"Yeah, you learn something new every day. You sure know a lot of things huh, Ilyas?"
The two finally got convinced.
Hearing their comments, Ilyas awkwardly smiled at them, "I'm still attempting to pursue the depth of shamanism, spiritualism and mysticism, what I just said was only the surface level knowledge."
Deciding that the serious conversation was over, I stepped in.
"Looks like you guys are in a better condition now."
"Ethan!"
Ilyas beamed the moment he saw me. I stepped inside the circle and opened up my notebook, which made Ilyas, Xain and Cedric squint their eyes.
"Did you go to the tower by yourself?"
"He certainly did."
"Judging from that notebook in his hand, yeah, he did."
Their words stunned me a little.
"You knew?"
"Of course, that's why we are having a discussion here instead of searching for you."
Ilyas stared at me with accusing eyes, as if I were an unruly child lacking discipline.
'Am I that easy to read?'
Regardless of what they said, I decided to put the problem on the table, showing them my notebook and explaining what I found.
Cedric took the notebook and observed it, "Crown-shaped tower and ornaments on the front door, we didn't pay attention to these details when we inspected it earlier."
"What do you guys think this implied?"
Marcello rubbed his chin when I raised the question, "Crown represents authority if it's a black crown, does that mean a corrupted throne?"
Ilyas frowned as he explained, "If you looked at the symbols, in spiritualism, the turtle is a symbolization of longevity and maybe immortality because of the snake around it, while the sun might be a representation of good fortune and happiness."
He tapped on the drawing of waves below it, "This wave however, might represent changes or maybe disaster. So this symbol on the door might represent unending joy in life's constant flow."
"Then what do the thorn and flowers mean?"
"It might be a symbol to warn people of what's beneath."
"Beneath?"
Ilyas nodded, "Under the beautiful flowers, there are thorns that could hurt you. So while the joy was unending, there's a sacrifice that has to be made."
He continued, "And it's the corrupted throne."
The image of the boss flashed in my mind. It was a black tortoise with golden crown on its head. What caught my attention wasn't the boss itself but the surroundings, it was an empty hall with rooted vines.
Sacrifice.
That's what it means.
"Let's reenter the tower again."
I had my doubts, but my gut feeling told me the tortoise didn't seek a fight but a talk. Tortoises weren't a being of violence to begin with, rather it was depicted more as a being full of wisdom. So what if we proposed an intelligent conversation instead?
I suggested the idea to my teammates, and they agreed.
And once again, we stepped foot inside the tower.
This time, the tortoise didn't say anything and just quietly observed us.
[Thou intent hast changed.]
"You are willing to talk with us then?"
It gazed into the distance, seemingly reminiscing in past memory before speaking.
[Doth thou know why these towers exist?]
[We are the rulers of the world, each with our own territory. We thought we had it all, power, land and authority. Countless had challenged us to claim our place, but only one had ever succeeded. He is our leader, a human wielding the power of gods.]
[He was the strongest in the heavens and many wanted to challenge him. Mortals, spirits, gods, all wanted a taste of his power. Under his rule, we set up trials to select those who are capable of meeting him. When they get all four tokens from us – his guardians – they are eligible to challenge him.]
[But now the wise leader we admired has changed. His mind was corrupted, turning him into a mere doll of higher beings in the universe and in turn, corrupting us – the beings under his influence – as well.]
[Seeing the crack in the world, we thought this was the best choice to keep our minds sane, so we accepted.]
[I hast no combat abilities, all I can share is the story of our glory. The territory we and our leader lead might look prosperous, but the life and death struggle of constant challenges, the corruption slowly consuming our mind and the external threat of the universe take everything from us, leaving us as an empty shell.]
[This castle is my last cry of help, hoping that people could understand our resilience and hope, and thou hast proven yourself.]
A black shell formed in the air, the last token of approval had finally been given to us. To Patricia to be exact.
[His castle will soon descend to this world. Please, help us bring back our master.]