Chapter 80: Peeking on Lila
"Master... Formation Master!" Thrain’s voice trembled. "Such insight... such intuitive understanding of the sacred geometry of power... I have not seen its like in all my long years! These are not mere doodles; this is the work of a true master!"
Riku flushed. "Elder Thrain, please! Get up! I... I truly didn’t do much. I just adjusted what felt a little off in your excellent designs. It was your foundation..."
But Thrain was already scrambling to his feet, his eyes blazing with a smith’s fervent passion. "Nonsense! This changes everything!"
"I am not sure what exactly your modifications achieve, Master Riku. But I feel that the effects of these changes won’t be small. Borin, the forges! I must try this immediately!"
He snatched up Riku’s parchment. "Half an hour! Give me half an hour. I will be right back." And with that, he practically bolted from the room, Borin hurrying after him, shaking his head in bemused wonder.
True to his word, slightly less than half an hour later, Thrain returned, his face smudged with soot but alight with triumph. He held out a newly forged copper talisman, its surface now gleaming with Riku’s modified engravings.
"Here, Master," he said, his voice filled with reverence.
Riku took the talisman. It felt different now, humming with a subtle, contained energy. He focused, channeling his ’Minor Healing’ spell.
A soft, gentle golden light flowed from his hand into the talisman. The light briefly enveloped the entire copper piece, then, instead of dissipating, it seemed to be drawn into the intricate engravings, settling within the lines of the formation.
However, after settling down into the engravings, the runes themselves began to glow with a steady, warm light, noticeably brighter and more vibrant than the initial spell he had cast. The talisman now pulsed with a gentle, moderate healing aura before fully stabilizing and returning to its original color.
Borin and Thrain gasped.