Chapter 296 Hidden Treasure (1/2)

Arran found Karanos's quarters exactly as they had left the even the s offered a stark contrast with theof a fa Aht — the city had fallen, and Karanos himself had been forced to take shelter in a place where wealth was e had remained behind in the Shadow Realm, there to make a last sacrifice that none but Arran would ever know about

As he considered Karanos's fate, Arran could not help but wonder if the man's life would have been happier within the Eic, but h Karanos wouldn't have accoic, he wouldn't have seen all his achieveht for a few ht have fared in the Empire, the fact of the matter was that he'd been born in the borderlands

And in the borderlands, peace was a rare thing

It took Arran a few er possessions, and with a quick exaht ones One held notes on the Shadow Realic, and the third detailed the history of As untouched Even if it was unlikely that Karanos would ever return to this place, Arran could not bring himself to steal from the man Not when he had risked — or perhaps already lost — his life trying to protect the world

Instead, Arran stored the books in his void ring, then began to head back to the portal

He had only barely stepped out of Karanos's quarters when he felt a sudden surge of awareness from his sword It was the first ti from the bond he shared with the weapon, and he felt an ih the portal, the Living Shadow had lain in slu other than a simple steel weapon But now, he felt its alien presence once er in the Shadow Realm

Yet after barely a second, he realized that this was no warning What caer interest, as if it had Sensed so that had roused its curiosity

Rather than warning Arran of so hi about a hundred paces in the distance

”You want o there?” Arran had drawn the sword, and now he looked at its smooth steel with some suspicion

There was an ih the bond, which Arran knew to be agreeht not understand his words, but it had clearly understood hisall the sa the weapon's guidance He had not forgotten how ruthless it had been in slaying the arht it into his oorld, he feared it er needed hih the connection he shared with the weapon, and he kneould have to build a bond of trust with it sooner or later

Without that, he would be unable to use the weapon in battle, and it would be all but useless to hiht, he decided to follow the sword's urging The underground city should be a safe place to test its intentions — safer than most, at least There were no eneers, Karanos would surely have warned hian to walk toward the building that had caused his sword to react so eagerly, holding the weapon out in front of hi some moments later, and found it just as empty as the rest of the city The bare stone chan of any threat or treasure

Yet the sword's eagerness only grew stronger, and Arran could aluided hi

This chamber was as empty as the others had been, but when Arran stepped inside, he felt a buzz of excitement come from his sword as it drew him toward one of the walls And this time, he realized that the pull he felt was all too real

The sword ca a spot that seemed wholly unremarkable to Arran's eyes

But then, he Sensed it — a concealment ithin the wall, so faint as to be nearly i what lay behind it

Despite his sword's obvious i the ward Although it was very different from the ones he knew, its craftsmanshi+p was io to waste

When he had studied the ward enough to recreate it, he reached forward and destroyed it, using a thin sliver of Essence to sever the pattern

The ward dissipated in an instant, revealing a large loose stone within the wall Arran pulled it free, and when he laid eyes upon as hidden behind it, he felt an immediate rush of excitement

There were several pieces of fine jewelry, nize, set with fiery red gemstones And there was a small pile of coins, too, made from the same black metal as the jewels

Yet what drew Arran's attention was soe and shi+ with power

He knew at once that these were Essence Crystals, but they were unlike any he had ever seen before They were far larger, and the Essence they held seemed clearer — purer, somehow

He stored the jewelry and coins in his void ring — froical properties — then carefully examined the four crystals