BXBX NOVEL Chapter 523 522: Secret
So, we closed our eyes and drifted off, hoping that the comfortable embrace of sleep wouldn\'t be scarce in our imminent future as we traveled to the North East section of the Empire, past the Blizzard Dukedom and far above March Asmodia, traversing into unclaimed, wild land covered in a thin sheet of snow and frost.
Nothing grew this far north, with the temperature being far too cold to allow much in the way of vegetation, while the monsters that might be able to live here chose not to due to the lack of other animals to eat.
In other words, this portion of the Empire was entirely barren of life, just left to be occupied by the large expanse of snow and stones that comprised this monotonous landscape.
It was like entering an entirely new world compared to where we had been, the spotless blue sky above us allowing the sun to shine harshly down on the compacted white snow, creating a bright land of such deep chill.
Even inside the carriage we felt the nip of well below freezing temperatures creeping in through any slight cracks in the windows or doors, making each of us move closer to one another and rub at our arms to keep warm.
The glass had begun to frost over, and when we looked out towards the Draconic Horses, they too moved together in a pack, making us wonder if they\'d live when we reached where ever we were going.
On a side note, we never needed to worry about being followed since the landscape was so empty and flat, and we would have caught glimpse of someone already should they have tried to stalk us.
The Marquess continued her self imposed silence as we traveled closer and closer to the dark blue ocean that lapped at the shoreline, the waves crashing against the sand and snow as the water continued to move, not allowing the growth of ice overtop its surface.
When we reached a few hundred feet away from the shoreline, the carriage came to a stop and the Marquess stood up, opening the door and stepping outside, saying "Stay inside for the moment."
Closing the door behind her, she took a few steps into the snowy plains before raising her hand, slashing her palm open and letting her blood drip onto the snow, the liquid crystalizing almost instantly and creating small droplets of brilliant rubies on the snow\'s surface.
Healing her palm, she reached down and plucked each of the droplets, staring at them for a moment before tossing them into the air with a word that none of us could hear.
The six droplets hovered in the air above her head, gravity not applying to them anymore as they floated around the area, before they shot off into the distance, leaving us behind.
Opening the door and entering, the Marquess just tapped the window and had the Banshee get us going again, following behind the blood.
It led us to a stretch of the shoreline a distance away, the six droplets floating in a circle before dropping to the earth, landing on stones that had been placed on the snow covered beach.
When the blood hit the stones, a dark red Ritual Circle appeared between them, and the beach began to rumble as a fissure appeared, cracking through the sand and leading down towards the ocean, which was being held back by the magic of this spell.
The fissure widened to a point that allowed the carriage through, and the Draconic Horses were coaxed into moving forwards, into the now split ocean and beneath the waves, which crashed above us against a barrier of mana.
We stared at all of this in awe, before our eyes focused on the large set of stone gates that opened up, revealing a temple beneath the water.
It was located a hundred feet off the shore, and as soon as the carriage crossed the threshold of the gates, the water behind us crashed back to the ocean floor, held back by the magical stone gates.
The carriage came to a stop, and the Marquess once more opened the door, welcoming the warm air into the carriage and surprising us all.
"Come on, out."
Shooing us out of the carriage, she made us step into the large hall of this underwater temple, which was illuminated by a purplish light.
The temple was shaped as a cube, each side matching the others perfectly at roughly fifty feet, and in the center of it all was a large platform about a dozen feet into the air.
This temple was barren on the inside, no furniture or items covering the stone brick floor, nor anything hanging on the walls.
Engravings lined the walls though, with runes and pictures working together to create a beautiful tapestry of Demons fighting against monsters, the detail remaining clear despite the obvious age of the stone.
The air was warm and soothing around us, and it got warmer and warmer the closer we got to the platform, where we saw something familiar.
"That\'s the Gate, and that\'s another of the Asmodeucian Secrets that\'s been kept for centuries, if not millennia. It\'s... a special thing, that Gate, and like my father did for me, I\'ll do for you. This... is one of the things that will fall to your hands when you take over for me when I die. A part of the legacy for the Asmodeucian\'s, a part of what makes the Asmodia\'s still so strong."
Looking towards us, the Marquess gave the Banshee a nod and had it begin to take care of the Draconic Horses, letting them roam free in the space and give them some of the feed she brought with us.
"I have been alive for a long time - even if it doesn\'t feel that long to me - and I can say this about my time in this world. Without the help of what lies past that gate, without the aid of Ka\'Hondi, without the standing legacy of this family, I doubt I\'d be as strong as I am now... at least as quickly as I reached it. The Empress is right; if I had been born in a time of war, I\'d have progressed so much farther than I already have. There is no shifting of the Sultanate, no formation of the Western Kingdoms back when they were under Lycanthrope rule. The Dragons are quiet, the world in a lull. Conflict still exists, but past a certain level, conflict is meaningless. You need something more, something stronger to hone your edge."
Stepping forwards, she looked up at the purple Gate and grinned, her dark blue skin reflecting the glow as she stared at the swirling mass of mana and magics, making her words even heavier than normal.
"That\'s what this is. A whetstone of the highest caliber for someone looking to get stronger. But, like all whetstones, it smoothens out and requires replacing after use. It can\'t be used constantly, or else it grows brittle and breaks. This Gate is our whetstone, and it currently is waiting to be given the last few scrapes of a blade before it requires some time to replenish its grit and grain. You five shall be that blade. I prepared this for you when you were first born, Jahi, so that I could show you this in simplicity. This relic of ours..."
Looking over her shoulder, the Marquess aimed that grin at us as she made her way up, saying "Follow me to the greatest thing a warrior could ever ask for, oh daughter mine. Walk the same steps that each of the Asmodia\'s before you have walked, and show me the blade that I have forged you to be. Step into the fires that have tempered our blood for generations, and emerge as something new."
With that, the Marquess vanished into the Gate, leaving us all alone as we stared at one another in confusion, barely able to grasp the myriad of surprises that have popped up one after another.
However, Jahi took a deep breath and stepped forwards, not thinking about it and instead placing her faith in her Mom and in herself, following behind her and entering the Gate next.
We all nodded and followed behind her, not wanting to let her face whatever was behind that Gate alone.
And so, we scaled the platform and stepped through the purple Gate, instantly being embraced by a warmth and shrouded with mana as we were transported away.