Redemption Arc

After figuring out what was going on with them, Rowan had taken it upon himself to assume the role of distracting Saltbelly. That freed them up to engage with its mate, but that didn’t solve their core problem. Even though Olivia had agreed to follow Lucian’s direction, as the terrifying drake haunted the two of them down, she found herself questioning that decision.

We’ll be heading toward that statue of the goddess, he’d said with total confidence. I’ll support you whenever I can with First Sanctuary and whatever healing I can spare, but I don’t have any more other items I can use.

She didn’t see what there was at the goddess statue that might be able to bring an end to this drake, but she did trust Lucian’s judgment enough to play along. He’d demonstrated a great amount of situational awareness in both the bandit camp and this cathedral.

Olivia tried her best to fend off the attacks from Saltbelly’s Mate, but without Lucian’s intervention it surely would’ve overwhelmed her by now. She was reminded of the sensation that she had felt while confronting that bandit chief in the confluence. It was a similar sense of powerlessness. At the same time…

I feel so alive, she thought. I could die happy.

The majority of the members of House Vantz-Leon died in battle. Those of her bloodline harbored an intense enjoyment of battle. It only amplified as time proceeded. No matter how many powerful opponents that they fought, they wished to strive for greater heights. Olivia hadn’t felt at it first, fighting those bandits. But now, after the first taste… she felt it creeping in.

But she couldn’t recklessly indulge this sensation. This indefatigable desire to engage in conflict had led her father to attempt to summon a demon. In the end, it slew him and hundreds of others besides. That incident had greatly tarnished the prestige of her house. Olivia was determined never to let this sensation rule her actions.

“Olivia!” Lucian shouted.

She couldn’t look away as the drake lashed out with its whip-like tail. She swatted it aside with her rapier and asked, “What?”

“I need you to hold it off for about five seconds,” Lucian said. “When I give the signal, you need to turn and run as fast as you can. Here: Élûn,” he said, empowering her with First Sanctuary.

Olivia confronted the drake and held her ground. She had been retreating backward all this time, and now that she stopped, came up against the full might of her opponent. Before, against the bandit chief, there had only been one weapon to concern herself with. Now, her opponent had four limbs with deadly claws, a biting mouth, and a whip like tail.

Olivia held her rapier out. It reared back on its hind legs. Rather than allow it to ceaselessly press the offensive, Olivia darted in with a slash-thrust combo. Though she was fast enough to carry out the slash, it swatted away her rapier and scratched her wrist, breaking First Sanctuary and leaving a wound on her arm. Without the hand guard, her rapier would’ve flown out of her hands. The drake lunged out to bite, but Olivia managed to duck left and stab at its chest. It weaved out of the way.

Thing moves like a snake, Olivia thought. We’re evenly matched in speed, but it’s far better at dodging than I am.

“Got it! Move as fast as you can!” Lucian shouted.

Olivia trusted him and turned around. She was incredibly surprised to see that a path had opened up in the base of the goddess statue—there was a ramp descending downward. Lucian was already running down, and Olivia chased after him. The drake tried to chase after them, but Olivia heard it get caught on the narrow opening. She briefly glanced back, but it managed to fit through after struggling for a moment.

They ran all the way down the descending slope, pursued intently by the drake. The close confines of the pathway prohibited the creature from moving as fast as it normally did. That allowed the both of them to get a substantial lead on the creature. Eventually, the narrow passageway opened up into a room. Olivia held her breath when she saw the scene ahead. It was an altar of some kind. Looking closer, it was probably a grave. Resting on top of the coffin…

A god’s blessing, she realized.

“Take it,” Lucian told her.

Olivia looked at him. “What?!”

“No time for arguments. Take it. I’ve already claimed one in the confluence—only fair you get your shot.” As Olivia stared at him, agape, he shouted, “Take it, before the drake comes!”

Olivia, realizing time was of the essence, just decided to obey. She took the blessing. It popped, and its power surged into her body.

“Now, time to kill that damn thing,” Lucian said. “Go.”

***

Lucian didn’t feel as bitter as he thought he would about giving up the blessing. Honestly, it was incredibly well suited for Olivia. There were only a few other characters that could use it at the same level she could. She was undoubtedly about to discover its effects.

Either way, the blessing was more to ensure victory rather than to make it possible. In the War of Four, there was a pretty simple way to overcome a lot of challenging enemies. Physical attacker up front, healer behind, narrow space. It didn’t matter if the physical attacker was weaker than the opponent ahead so long as the healer could stop the attacker from dying. No doubt that drake was stronger than Olivia… but in a confined space like this?

Being surrounded by walls reduced avoidance, Lucian recalled. As did sloped terrain.

Olivia confronted the drake once more, her rapier held out before her. Lucian stood behind her. She started stabbing out—it started snapping out, clawing and biting. Lucian lingered behind, continuously casting heal. It was a straight-forward slugging match. Given Olivia’s low CON and HP, this was generally something she was ill-suited for, but… Lucian could recall the prompt for the blessing down here.

You’ve received the Blessing of the Unknown Saint.

+3 SPD

Whenever you land a physical attack, add +5 CON until the end of the turn.

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In Lucian’s hands, it could have been a decent enough blessing. Anything to help him advance was going to be worth it. But in Olivia’s hands, whose speed attribute was an absurd value… well, the result unfolded before him. She could land multiple attacks in one turn. That meant she could raise her previously insignificant CON to very high levels.

Olivia had before been struggling to contend with the drake, but once she started to realize the effect of her blessing, she attacked infinitely more recklessly. Her rapier darted in and out like a prisoner trying to shank someone before the prison guards arrived. The drake’s claws, which before had cut through her flesh easily, now left only shallow cuts on her skin.

As the fight went on, the balance of power clearly shifted. Olivia’s attacks didn’t do much to the drake individually, but she started to advance up the stairs while it retreated. Lucian hung in the back, picking his nose and occasionally giving her pats on the back to heal her wounds. Eventually it fell, and she fell with it—stabbing it furiously until it turned to ash. Its purified essence empowered her.

“Good job, Olivia,” he said.

Olivia turned back. She was breathing heavily, and there was a madness to her expression that made him pause.

Her bloodlust, he quickly realized.

“Now, go get Saltbelly,” he commanded as he might a dog. “Go get him! Gittem!”

Olivia looked up rather like a commanded dog, reinforcing the image. Then, she set off running. It was almost like she’d forgotten that she was exhausted. In her haste, she didn’t realize that there was something that the drake had left behind. Lucian leaned down and picked it up.

Gave the blessing to Olivia, but… got this, at least. Sells for quite a lot. He twisted the item in the light of a nearby lamp on the pathway. It was a set of earrings. These are solid. Going to the crypt in this place to hunt it down was more trouble than it was worth, but Saltbelly’s mate came to us.

Lucian, realizing that he was wasting valuable time, stowed the earrings away and proceeded back up the ramp. When he arrived outside, he spotted a figure above and looked up.

“Nice work,” Rowan said, sitting atop one of the bookshelves. “We finished things up here.”

Lucian exhaled in surprise, looking around. Olivia looked to have come to her senses, and looked mortified at her behavior. Miriam was approaching, and Helen was waiting for her. Rowan had a grand new shield—it was blue, and looked like a glacier had been shorn off and fastened into a shield. The drop from Saltbelly.

No feeling quite as good as having competent coworkers, Lucian thought with a smile. Didn’t hog all the rewards, but… the best is yet to come.

***

They had managed to destroy Saltbelly largely because of Lucian. Miriam, well-suited for long-range engagement, had been quick to take advantage of the opportunity Lucian provided to land several powerful spells on his exposed underbelly. After that, all it took was one more opportunity, which Rowan managed to force. Miriam got the purified essence—meaning she’d contributed the most to its demise. It was a hefty boon, but Lucian wasn’t upset she’d gotten it.

In the end, this trip hadn’t been as grand as Lucian had been hoping. He ended up surrendering the blessing to Olivia, along with the bulk of the purified essence. He didn’t regret his decision, even if it did complicate the future a mite. And on the bright side…

“I have to repay you somehow,” Olivia said. “You were the one to find that area. But you gave it to me, because of your plan. I…”

“I’ll hold you to that,” Lucian said. He wasn’t the type to refuse gas money when people were offering it. “What would you say to a fresh start? Too soon?”

Olivia looked up at him, her red eyes clear and happy. “No. Not at all.” She held her hand out. “I’ll assume we’re meeting each other for the first time. You’ve given me a very good first impression.”

Lucian smiled and shook her hand. “Looks like all I have to do is save the lives of all of the other Student Ambassadors, and then I’ll be free of all charges.”

“Maybe,” she concurred. Her face scrunched up. “By the way, did you…?”

“Did I what?” Lucian asked, knowing immediately what she was ruminating on—how he’d known about that little staircase.

“…nothing,” she said with a shake of her head.

As they stood there, Helen called out, “Hey! Over here!”

Lucian smiled. All in, there was a very simple reason he’d come here. Even though this was an optional mission, it was often included in speedruns. The reward was simply so excellent that it was worth the diversion to get. For Lucian, who wasn’t even trying to speedrun, it was an essential. He walked over to where he knew Helen would be.

One of the bookcases in the Scriptorium had been raised upward to allow passage to a hidden chamber. Everyone gathered around.

“I found a way to raise this part. What do you think? What is this place?” Helen asked, looking within.

Lucian advanced. “I don’t think it’s dangerous.”

Lucian looked around the area. The place had been stripped bare. There were empty armor stands and empty display cases. Maybe once, a set of inquisitor’s gear had rested within this place. Now, it looked like a James Bond lair that’d been raided by the police. There was one thing in the back of the room that still functioned, though. It was an altar humming with faint magic. There was a tablet with a handprint atop it.

“I… think I know what that is,” Helen said, walking forward. “It’s a…”

Lucian brushed past everyone and put his hand on the tablet. It shone with light that enveloped Lucian. He felt a subtle shift in his body, and then a searing pain on the back of his hand. He grabbed his wrist to disguise that fact.

“What are you doing?!” Miriam asked, largely out of concern. “Do you even know what that is?”

Lucian turned around, casting a guilty glance toward Rowan. Ordinarily, that was a protagonist-exclusive opportunity, but he couldn’t help but think he deserved it. Besides, he was going to make good use of it.

“I just had a feeling it was something good.” Lucian looked toward Helen. “Was I wrong?”

“…I’m not… entirely sure. My aunt would know more, but… I think it’s a specialized form of power developed by the Inquisitors,” Helen said, staring at Lucian. “We should go see her. If we stay here any longer, it’ll be dark. What does everyone say—time for the return trip?”

Lucian tried not to smirk, but it was hard.

***

Lady Lorenna held Lucian’s hand, studying the fresh brand. It vaguely resembled a cross but it had some elaborate flourishes that made the comparison with the crosses Lucian knew end there.

“You went into the Fifth Canton,” she said, staring at her niece.

“I—”

“You went into the Fifth Canton,” she repeated scornfully. Then, her gaze shifted to Lucian. “And you… do you have any idea what this mark is?”

“I think that you're about to tell me,” Lucian said with a faint smile.

Lorenna sighed at his arrogance. “Technically… this brand makes you an Inquisitor. The last Inquisitor.”

“Oh? And whatever does that mean?” Lucian pressed.

“I’m not sure. We personally killed every Inquisitor a very long time ago, save one, but… he doesn’t qualify anymore.” Lorenna released his hand. “…but I don’t think this mark is, in and of itself, harmful. As a matter of fact, you may have inherited some of the last abilities of the Inquisitors.”

Lucian held the brand up to the air, admiring it. A hand tattoo… not his favorite thing, he’d admit, but he didn’t have any job interviews on the horizon, and soon enough he’d get some solid gloves to cover it up. Either way, this little mark opened up a field of opportunities for him.