Regaleon: The Forgotten Knight

Hearing Veyrath’s question, Caelestra looked at him strangely before replying.

”How is it suddenly my turn? Isn’t Vaelorin still talking about his own Essence Runes?”

Vaelorin waved his hand dismissively. ”Never mind me anymore. I’ve already told you guys about my most important Runes anyways. Now, let’s talk about you...”

The failed Pyromancer narrowed his eyes. ”Or more specifically, about your Coins. Where are they? I mean, aren’t they supposed to be floating around you like some sort of guardian spirits or something?”

His question wasn’t without basis because ever since Caelestra arrived in the Nether Lands, her silver Soul Essence had always revolver around her. Whether she was eating, walking, sleeping, or fighting, the Coins never left her side.

In that regard, she was strangely similar to Regaleon.

Just as the silver-haired Knight never willingly dismissed his Armour, Caelestra also rarely dismiss her Coins.

This was why seeing her without a single Coin floating around her now felt unnatural.

Caelestra let out a sigh as she replied. ”Before I tell you guys about what happened to my Coins, I would have to first tell you about my Essence Runes.”

Regaleon’s voice was metallic as he said. ”We are all ears.”

Caelestra folded her arms as she began. ”I awakened two Essence Runes for each of my Soul Essences...”

”And someone called me less of a genuis.” Veyrath interrupted gloomily.

Caelestra shot him a glare sharp enough to cut stone.

”You didn’t hear me speak when you talked about Runes now, did you?”

The failed Alchemist instantly apologized. ”My bad. Please, continue.”

Satisfied, she turned away from him and spoke further.

”For my Coins, the first Rune is called Coin Legion. Actually, this Rune is fairly common within House Auricrest and most monetary-type Soul Essences posses some variation of it.”

”So what does it do?” Sylveris asked.

Caelestra smiled sweetly at her and explained. ”This Rune allows my Coins to assume the forms of warriors; knights, vanguards, archers, spearman, calvary, and more. As long as I have sufficient Coins and Aether, I can temporarily transform them into soldiers.”

Vaelorin suddenly whistled. ”Wow. That’s actually terrifying.”

”Indeed.” Kaeloris agreed. ”If someone possessed enough Coins, they could potentially command an entire army.”

Caelestra nodded. ”Right. That is one of the reasons House Auricrest became one of the wealthiest families in Valoria.”

Then she raised a finger and wriggle it. ”However, Coin Legion is not without its own limitations. The first drawback is the Aether consumption; the more complex the warrior I create, the greater the strain on me. A simple swordsman required very little Aether. But creating elite soldiers, cavalry, or specialized units requires exponentially more.”

Kaeloris immediately understood. ”That would explain why you didn’t summon powerful warriors during yesterday’s battle. If you could have summoned an army, the fight would’ve ended much faster...”

”Exactly. Just like Veyrath’s Fruits of Miracles, this Rune becomes truly effective only after I reach Rank Three Etheryean Realm.”

Valmyr frowned and asked. ”Why Rank Three specifically? Wouldn’t Rank One be enough?”

Caelestra shook her head.

”Not really. Have you forgotten how cultivation works? Rank One focuses primarily on refining the Aether Veins and strengthening the body. Rank Two focuses on the Divine Consciousness. As for Rank Three, that is when an Etheryean gains sufficient control over Aether to properly sustain complex Aetheric manifestations.”

Understanding dawned on Valmyr’s face as he scratched the back of his neck. ”Oh right! It skipped my mind. Please, carry on...”

”My second Rune is called Equivalent Exchange and it allows me to sacrifice Coins in return for temporary enhancements; speed, strength, wisdom, perception, and much more.”

”Hold on...” Veyrath interrupted. ”That function is suspiciously similar to my Fruits of Miracles.”

Caelestra nodded. ”It is. The only difference is that my Rune provides the effect directly. In other words, I simply spend Coins and receive the enhancement immediately. Though, the effect is temporary...”

Regaleon folded his arms and remarked. ”Nevertheless, it is a powerful Rune; especially in a desperate situation.”

”Yes. It saved my life more than once during yesterday’s battle...”

Then the failed Merchant’s expression darkened slightly.

”And that brings us back to the original question. The reason you don’t see my Coins anymore...”

This time, everybody focused intently on her.

”During the battle, I sacrificed several Coins through Equivalent Exchange. Then, one of the monstrosities destroyed the reminder after I activated Coin Legion.”

There was silence for a few seconds before Sylveris spoke softly. ”So, does that mean that they are all gone?”

”No...” Caelestra shook her head, then a small smile touched her lips. ”That is one of the blessings of House Auricrest. Our Coins can always he recreated.”

”Say what now?” Veyrath blurted out.

Caelestra tapped the Treasure Chest floating beside her and replied.

”My Treasure Chest can convert Essence Crystals directly into Coins.”

”How exactly?” Sylveris tilted her head and asked. ”Is it by crushing them directly like Regaleon did or by eating the Crystals?”

Caelestra chuckled slightly and replied. ”Sylveris, it is none of those options. Actually, it is an automatic process. As long as enough Essence Crystals are placed inside the Chest, it can convert them into Coins.”

”So that’s why you took all those Crystals from the Drake’s cave.” Valmyr muttered to himself.

”Also, since my Treasure Chest is a Duke Tier Soul Essence, it can only produce Coins one rank lower than itself...”

”In other words, Earl Tier Coins.” Regaleon said.

”Exactly!”

For a few moments, silence settled over the clearing...

Then, Veyrath suddenly spoke up. ”You know, that sounds like an opportunity disguised as misfortune...”

Everyone turned toward him...

The failed Alchemist simply shrugged before speaking further.

”I mean, sometimes you lose what you have only to discover that what replaced it is better. Your Count Tier Coins were destroyed, but now, you’ll be able to recreate Earl Tier ones. In a strange way, yesterday’s loss somehow becomes tomorrow’s investment...”

The group stared at him in shock...

Even Vaelorin was stunned as he asked. ”Did those words actually come from you?”

Then, the failed Alchemist had to ruin the moment with his reply.

”Of course...” He boasted, beating his hand against his chest. ”After all, wisdom is one of my many talents.”

Hearing that, several people rolled their eyes.

And he is back to being a bozo...

Suddenly, Aureleah spoke with a narrowed gaze. ”Caelestra, if creating Coins is your first Essence Rune, then what of the second one?”

”Oh, no, no, no, no. Creating the Coins is actually something natural for my Treasure Chest. Therefore, it still has its own original Runes. Actually, the first Rune is called Infinite Vault...”

Kaeloris immediately asked. ”This was the reason you offered to store the Aether Cores yesterday, right?”

”Yes. This Rune enables me to store items within my Chest, whether living or non living things.”

Veyrath looked horrified as he asked. ”Living creatures? You mean to tell me that tiny Chest can fit an entire person inside it?”

Before Caelestra could answer, Vaelorin suddenly gasped dramatically.

”How dare you?”

The failed Pyromancer looked genuinely offended as he rebuked. ”Calling a lady’s Chest tiny. Have you no shame?”

Veyrath looked at the failed Pyromancer strangely, wondering what dirty thoughts he is trying to cook up this time.

”Actually...” Vaelorin continued solemnly. ”I think her Chest looks quite endowed.”

Then he added thoughtfully. ”And definitely sufficient to contain a person or creature within it.”

Caelestra stared at the bozo with a look that suggested she was debating whether commiting an homicide right now is justifiable.

Finally, she pinched the bridge of her nose and turned toward Veyrath.

”Ignore this fool. Actually, Infinite Vault grants me access to a special static spatial dimension...”

”You mean like a separate world?”

”Not exactly quite. Think of it as a storehouse existing outside conventional space.”

That was when Aureleah finally spoke again.

”What about your second Rune. What does it do?”

”The second Rune is called Treasure Mimicry and it allows me to create duplicates of any items stores inside the Vault.”

This time, Valmyr was the forward one as he asked.

”So, if I put an Aether Core inside your Chest, can you make another one?” The failed Vanguard’s eyes practically glowed with greed and expectations...

But Caelestra immediately crushed his hope.

”No. It is not possible... A simple object might require little Aether to mimic but a complex material becomes exponentially more expensive...”

”What about living creatures?” Veyrath asked.

”That is basically impossible at my current level...”

The failed Alchemist was distraught as he sighed. ”And there goes my dream of having an army of handsome copies...”

The rest of them was speechless at Veyrath’s impractical dream...

Caelestra simply shook her head before continuing. ”Besides, Treasure Mimicry only becomes truly useful when I am a Rank Three Etheryean.”

”And there it is. The disappoinment of discovering that every amazing Rune comes with ten restrictions attached to it, thereby making it ineffective.” Veyrath muttered.

Caelestra immediately shot back. ”Speak for yourself, considering that almost half your Runes comes with their own drawbacks...”

Veyrath was about to give a reply when Kaeloris adjusted his glasses once more.

”Since you are done discussing about your Runes, I suppose it is my turn now.”

Immediately, the clearing became quieter.

Among all of them, the failed Gnost possessed one of the strangest combinations of Soul Essences; a Lantern and a Scroll.

Neither looked particularly dangerous but there is a reason that wise man said never judge a book by its cover... Or a lantern by its flame.

”Like Caelestra, I awakened four Essence Runes. Two for each of my Soul Essences.”

”Oh, another non genius again...” Veyrath grinned.

Kaeloris ignored his remark and continued.

”For my Lantern, the first Rune is called Light of Revelation. This allows the Lantern to reveal hidden things, enemies, illusions, falsehoods, and more. With this, no one or nothing can be concealed from me.”

Regaleon nodded appreciatively. ”The Rune is particularly effective against deception...”

Aureleon also added. ”Also, for an opponent that relies on camouflage, concealment and misdirection to fight, they are literally vulnerable to you.”

Kaeloris nodded. ”Yes. For the second Rune, it is called Guiding Light. It is especially useful because it grants clarity, focus, concentration, and understanding.”

”In other words; a wandering mind becomes focused, a confused mind becomes clear, and a chaotic mind becomes orderly. This Rune also have a battlefield application.” Aureleah noted.

Kaeloris then lifted his Scroll and explained.

”For this one, the first Rune I awakened is called Law Script. This allows me to impose a law temporarily in a particular area. For example, if I were to write stop on it, then in this place, all motion or any form of movement would cease instantly.”

”Well, that is a very scary Rune now, isn’t it?” Veyrath asked curiously.

”However, I can’t use this Rune to impose more complex laws like stopping time, reversing time, controlling gravity and other conceptual laws. I might be able to utilize part of them but that is until I reach the Rank Two Etheryean Realm... As for the second Rune, it is someone useless...”

Regaleon was suddenly intrigued. ”And why would you say so?”

Kaeloris adjusted his glasses and replied.

”Because this Rune name is called Memory Archive. And like the name implies, it allows me to record and save events, conversations, informations, and more for later purposes. Actually, I am yet to even figure out a practical application for the Rune itself...”

”Well, I hope you find an application soon...” Veyrath encouraged.

”But in the meantime, it is my turn to talk about my Essence Runes...”