Chapter 198 - An Unexpected Trial (2/2)
Realizing that this was the case, Aurus could not help but be confused, asking himself, ”How the heck did I enter the inheritance so easily? Is it because I entered the inheritance before. No, that wouldn't be the case since Herellia had been here before, yet she had to reply to the magic circle to enter the inheritance.”
”Seriously, how?” Aurus muttered not long after as he tried to make sense of the situation he was currently in. Just as he was about to enter a deep state of thinking, a voice he was somewhat familiar with resounded throughout the whole stone room he was in, prompting Theresa to snap him back to reality and shout, ”Master, listen to the voice!”
”Hm?” Although he was slightly annoyed at the fact that he was interrupted from his train of thought by Theresa, at the very instant he heard the voice resounding throughout the room, a certain memory surfaced in his mind as he muttered in disbelief, ”Is that…the Inheritance Ruler's voice?”
”Welcome back to the great Ruler Inheritance, Substitute Ruler of the Void!” This was what the voice was saying as it resounded throughout the room it was in. A few seconds later, a chuckle resounded before it was followed up with, ”Oh? It seems I was mistaken. Welcome back to the great Ruler Inheritance, Assistant Ruler of the Void.”
”The Inheritance Ruler?” After making sure that the voice came from the Inheritance Ruler that allowed him to obtain the title of Ruler of the Void, Aurus could not help but shout out his question before adding, ”Is that really you?”
”Of course I am! Why would it not be me?” the Inheritance Ruler, which was the voice resounding a while ago, replied to Aurus's question with a cheerful tone before abruptly changing into a slightly melancholic tone as it added, ”It has only been over a week or so since you came here, but you've already forgotten me? How unpopular must I be…boohoo.”
”Haah.” In response to the Inheritance Ruler's words, Aurus could not help but let out a loud sigh as he recalled the weird phenomenon before he entered the inheritance a while ago. Since the Inheritance Ruler was directly communicating with him at the very instant he had entered, he would be able to obtain the answer to his question easily. This was the thought in his mind.
”Er…Inheritance Ruler, I have two questions,” Aurus said out loud, which attracted the attention of the Inheritance Ruler as it stopped its melancholic facade before responding with, ”What is it?”
”First off, how the heck did I enter this inheritance without going through the usual process of replying to the magic circle's words?” Aurus replied to the Inheritance Ruler's question with a question of his own before following it up with, ”Second, are you really okay with me calling you the Inheritance Ruler? It's quite a long name.”
”I'm glad you asked,” the Inheritance Ruler said before letting out a light chuckle. The sound of someone taking in a deep breath could be heard resounding throughout the room Aurus was in before the Inheritance Ruler's voice could be heard, saying, ”I'll answer the second question first. You can call me the Inheritance Ruler and I wouldn't mind it since we're not that close. But since you find it a slightly c.u.mbersome name to say, how about calling me Inhee? It's a name I made up from the word 'inheritance'.”
”Inhee…” Aurus muttered it in response as he repeated this name in his mind multiple times. A few seconds later, he replied, ”Inhee is fine. Anyways, the first question?”
”It's quite simple, really,” the Inheritance Ruler…or rather, Inhee replied to Aurus's query before adding, ”The reason why you entered this inheritance without needing to go through the usual process is that you already have a Ruler title. Only those that don't have a full Ruler title must go through the usual process.”
”I see,” Aurus said in response to Inhee's reply, thinking that this did indeed make sense. Just as Aurus was about to ask Inhee a question, Inhee took the initiative to ask Aurus a question first, asking him, ”Anyways, why did you come to this inheritance again, Assistant Ruler of the Void?”
”I need more Comprehension Leaves,” Aurus responded to Inhee's question before adding, ”Also, calling me Aurus is fine with me.”
”Hoh? You need more Comprehension Leaves?” Inhee said with slight curiosity. It then added, ”What for?”
”To increase my comprehension speed to the limit,” Aurus replied without hiding anything.
”Well, since you're an official Ruler, I wouldn't mind giving you as much Comprehension Leaves as you want,” Inhee said after pondering over Aurus's words, which made Aurus radiate an aura of gratefulness and elation. But then, this aura was instead replaced with curiosity as Inhee said, ”But…”
”But…?” Aurus wondered why. Thankfully, Inhee satiated his curiosity as it continued, ”After sensing your presence in this inheritance, the Supreme Ruler of the Void, which is more or less your teacher, wanted to test you out. He noticed that you were acting in a way that was unbefitting for a Ruler of the Void, using the inferior element of Wind rather than the superior element of Void.”
”Huh?” Aurus was somewhat confused as he added, ”You did tell me that I could choose any Ruler I wanted to learn under, right? When did he become so demanding?”
”His words, not mine,” Inhee replied to Aurus's query as it added, ”Nonetheless, after looking at what you were doing secretly, he was slightly infuriated that you were using the element of Wind instead of the Void to fight against others, making him ponder whether accepting you as a Ruler of the Void was a right choice.”
”Since the power you hold as an Inanimate far surpasses the average power held by the Inanimates that came here before you, the Supreme Ruler of the Void has decided to give you a second chance and let you undergo a trial that would remove his doubts.”
”…” Aurus was left at a loss for words, wondering what he did to tick this powerful Ruler off. Although it seemed that since a Supreme Ruler was doing this so he had no choice but to accept, Aurus went ahead and asked Inhee just to clear his doubts, ”Can I decline?”
”Declining the trial means you give up the title of Assistant Ruler of the Void, according to him. Are you sure?” Inhee replied to his question, to which Aurus could not help but let out a long sigh.
”Fine, fine, fine. I accept the trial,” Aurus said with a slightly annoyed tone before adding, ”There better be good rewards in this trial.”
”As the Inheritance Ruler, how could I not give you rewards that are equivalent to your efforts?” Inhee said in response to Aurus's words in a cheerful tone. It then cleared its throat before continuing, ”Anyways, this trial is composed of three stages, just like what you took back then when you first entered the inheritance.”
”Well, let's not waste any time since it seems you're more or less ready to get this trial over with,” Inhee added a few seconds later. It then continued, ”The first stage of this trial shall test your prowess in the element of Void. Namely, the infinite spaces it has.”
”And with that, the name of this stage is…”
”Myriad Void Dimensions.”