The Hundred Reigns

It said something about the Oracle’s approach to information security that a level seventy-five Adventurer who clashed blades with Balzam Magnos himself knew little of her machinations.

While the Oracle had apparently distributed nearly a dozen Mana Sword replicas to various White Unicorn members, she didn’t inform anyone about her plan to take out Balzam Magnos. The main reason why Alcyone wandered off to find the Sanctuary in the first place was that all plans to cross the Dragonsea and retake Magvolia had apparently been dropped.

“I hoped I could finally rope a friend into helping with that, or find some pre-Doom gizmo that could turn the tide,” Alcyone admitted as she reviewed the geas contract, “Many in the White Unicorn have lost faith in the Oracle’s guidance, so it was up to us to pick up the slack.”

“You do have a rare opportunity to turn the tide,” Simon replied. “Endymion’s factions will soon come to blows and its enemies will crawl out of the woodwork when the truth about my father’s passing spreads. Magvolia will become especially vulnerable.”

“Hence why I have to get back quickly before I miss out on all the fun!” Alcyone stroked her chin. “Did you see who killed your father in your visions?”

“I dreamed of my brother Louis slaying him,” Simon replied while remaining evasive. He was wary of giving out too many details and arousing her suspicion.

“I’m not surprised that creep would murder his own father, but are you sure the Overlord Class didn’t pass on to him?”

“I’m sure,” Simon insisted. “The Crimson Throne lies empty.”

“That’s strange… but then again, we only had two prior cases of Overlord inheritance, so the Class might simply transfer to the biggest asshole alive rather than the last Overlord’s killer.” It was a good guess on Alcyone’s part, and Simon was almost tempted to agree with it considering how his last reign went. “Either way, Endymion wasn’t built to last without an Overlord in charge..”

“Exactly. Louis’ rule will be tenuous without the Class.”

“We’ll make sure he never gets to enjoy his ill-gotten throne for long.” Alcyone set the contract aside. “Alright, seems straightforward to me. My crew and I will sign on the condition that you do it too, as a show of good faith and solidarity.”

“Sure,” Simon replied with a shrug. His Title would protect him from any backlash either way. “I don’t intend to leave the Sanctuary though, so it’s a waste of ink.”

“You know what they say: trust but verify.” She was willing to extend him the benefit of the doubt, but he still remained a Magnos in her eyes. “These people welcomed us like friends even though we literally crashed on their front lawn. I don’t want them to get into trouble.”

“Truthfully, at this point I’m more afraid of the danger inside the Sanctuary than others finding it.” His precautions should have at least prevented Vouivre and the Cobweb from finding its location. “How is the Forbidden Keep?”

“Not gonna lie, the critters inside would demolish you,” Alcyone warned him. “Most of them are the equivalent of level 30 or so Class users, and I’ve slain guardians reaching as high as level 50.”

They’re strong enough that I might actually gain some levels out of it, Simon thought. Alcyone is right though. They’ll tear everyone else in the Sanctuary to shreds.

Simon did manage to defeat Nodens when he had merged with Casval, though he had Thalas, Filip, and Alphonse at his back. The possessed dragon had been the equivalent of a level seventy foe at most, so the demon at base power should remain manageable. The Goatfish was apparently among the weakest Zodiac Fiends and so likely inferior to the likes of Exodeos.

However, Simon had no idea what powers a Zodiac Fiend commanded when strengthened by their constellation. The Abraxas-powered Nodens had managed to slay the original Merchant, thrown an enhanced Xenophon off the Sanctuary, and gave Elios Magnos a run for his money. Simon had to assume the worst.

“Could you provide us with a map of the Keep and intel on its guardians?” Simon inquired. “The archfiend shouldn’t escape before a year has passed, so we could set defenses around the seal to at least weaken him prior to its escape.”

“Sure,” Alcyone replied with a thin smile. “Don’t worry. I swear I’ll come back with reinforcements to take that monster out. He’ll crawl back into his prison before the day is done, I promise you that.”

Simon hoped she would live up to her boast. The kindness of the Sanctuary’s inhabitants was growing on him in spite of their naivety, and he would be loath to see them harmed.

Alcyone quickly sketched out a map of the Forbidden Keep, which she had explored in great detail. The architecture mostly resembled a normal castle, except for the fact it floated in the air and centered around various clock-like contraptions. Simon wondered if it had been a pre-Doom landmark cast into the sky or Nodens’ old fortress transformed into his tomb.

Otherwise, the creatures within appeared to be mostly constructs, mimics, torturer demons fueled by Nodens’ ambient miasma, animated traps, solid illusions granted substance by the castle, and even giant spiders hiding in the waterways. A typical Dungeon’s fauna, in short.

“The Keep hasn’t been touched in centuries, so it’s full of treasure,” Alcyone said as they left her study. “I would have looted it whole if I had more time. Maybe your Librarian ancestor left a weapon or failsafe behind to take out the fiend on his way out.”

I doubt that, Simon thought. Elios Magnos said he wouldn’t interfere with the Scorpion’s escape even when he lived right next to it, so why would he bother with adding security measures for the Goatfish? “Let’s hope so.”

They arrived to find Eole singing to the Adventurer’s crew and Belzemine in the main lounge. The setting reminded Simon of the Golden Butterfly, though much classier. Eole clearly enjoyed it much more too, considering how livelier her song sounded compared to her performances in Valne.

Most importantly, Simon spotted a piano near the stage and found that he couldn’t resist its call. He sat there and quickly began to play the keyboard to accompany Eole’s song, much to her delight. The irony that the Overlord was secretly performing for a White Unicorn party seasoned the whole performance with delicious irony. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

The song concluded to thunderous applause, none louder than Alcyone herself. Eole bowed to her audience before flying up to Simon with eyes gleaming with delight.

“I didn’t know you had learned to play music, Simon,” Eole said, smiling ear to ear. She sounded pleasantly surprised by this discovery. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“I only know the basics,” Simon replied with humility. “I’m better with a pipe organ.”

“We could build you one,” Eole suggested. “I know a few songs we could play together.”

Simon raised an eyebrow. “You could teach me Performances?”

Eole looked at him as if he had said something both incredibly cute and deeply stupid.

Oh right, she was a Songstress. Of course she knew Performances he could adapt into miasmic variants. They wouldn’t be as powerful as Your Lord Knows Best, but there was no such thing as a useless spell. Weird that the idea never crossed his mind. Simon guessed he outleveled Eole so much that he subconsciously assumed he couldn’t learn anything from her.

Well, time to correct that.

“How would you feel,” Simon asked Eole, “about forming a band?”

The Great Council of the Sanctuary concluded after three days.

Simon spent most of them helping the Adventurer’s crew with their engine issues. Early tests quickly confirmed his theory that the airship’s machinery could work when powered with local manaliths, though it would take a huge chunk of it for the Freedom Bird to fly again.

Lady Junon thus invited Simon, Eole, and Alcyone to her island for a private discussion on the matter. They found Vayan, Queen Zeal, Tybalt, Ruto, and Anaximander already present as well, most of them sporting grim expressions. It seemed the reality of the danger threatening their hidden paradise had finally sunk in.

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“You say I maintain the barrier around our Sanctuary?” Lady Junon asked when Alcyone concluded her report. She sounded genuinely puzzled by their findings. “I never realized it…”

“Your ladyship must have instinctually developed this power to protect yourself after being separated from your sisters while young,” Anaximander hypothesized. “Your wish to protect your land and our people took a life of its own.”

“You must be maintaining it unconsciously,” Simon suggested. “Though I still don’t understand why it interferes with teleportation and not eidolon summoning.”

“Summoning eidolons, contrary to what the term implies, is not truly teleportation,” Vayan explained. “My own body is but an avatar of my true self, which is an ideal resting in the heart of the Worldsoul.”

Simon quickly put two and two together. “You’re like the Noble Crestones. An archetype channeled onto the material plane.”

“Yes. Summoning an eidolon is actually the act of creating a new avatar for us to inhabit. Unlike a demon who will dissipate back into miasma upon destruction, my true end will come only when all creatures in this world cease to believe in my existence.”

“Couldn’t you constantly throw yourself at this Nodens then?” Alcyone asked. “Just manifest a new avatar to replace the old as soon as the old one dies?”

“It would take me many years to gather enough mana to create a new avatar should my current incarnation suffer destruction, and decades to restore my strength.” Vayan glanced at Simon. “I issue you a warning too, Simon. Any eidolon you channel is intimately connected to your soul, so our avatar’s destruction will damage you too. It may even kill you.”

“I will keep that in mind,” Simon replied. The backlash might be even worse for him than a normal Visionary considering he also channeled the Abyss’ power during a summoning. Still, the fact that he could call on eidolons even inside anti-teleportation barriers presented an enormous tactical advantage compared to demonbinding.

“While I am glad we have found a way to cure your airship of its sickness–” Lady Junon seemed to still mistake the airship for a living creature rather than a vehicle, “extracting manalith in the quantity you require may be difficult.”

Simon couldn’t hold his tongue any longer. “Why are you so afraid of exploiting your manalith supply?” he asked. “You have enough to create plenty of Crestones and automatons to defend yourselves with.”

“You must suspect the truth by now,” Anaximander replied calmly. “Boreas has a handful of golems, but we could easily produce enough to take care of all manual labor in the entire archipelago. We did not forget our craft.”

Lady Junon uncomfortably fidgeted in place. “Three centuries back, I allowed my elven children to mine the island of Anemoi for manaliths. The golems and the Crestone our people use today came from there.”

Eole frowned in confusion. “Milady, there is no island called Anemoi.”

“Not anymore,” Vayan replied darkly.

Simon’s heart skipped a beat in his chest as the truth dawned on him. “The manaliths are what keep the islands afloat,” he muttered out loud, Eole’s skin turning pale next to him. “If you take out too much, they’ll stop levitating and crash.”

“Indeed,” Anaximander confirmed. “Crestones and golem hearts require the purest and most potent manaliths, so Anemoi’s miners accidentally destabilized the entire island by taking out too many of them.”

“Anemoi fell apart without warning and crashed into the ocean below,” Lady Junon said, her voice quiet. “Everyone unfortunate enough to be on the island perished in the crash.” She looked away. “Since then, we have outlawed mining our Sanctuary’s manaliths.”

“We will have to take the risk,” Queen Zeal replied firmly. “To survive, we must gain strength.”

“I fear Queen Zeal is right,” Tybalt agreed with a solemn expression. “According to Simon’s prophecy, the archfiend will regain the same power that let him fight on par with the Noble Heroes. It may become stronger than the Sky-Father himself.”

“It will become stronger,” Simon stated bluntly, even as the eidolon flinched. “I’m sorry, Lord Vayan, but it’s the truth.”

To his credit, the Sky-Father was wise enough to accept the truth. “The Noble Heroes wielded power greater than mine, and victory cost Lord Waybright his life. I will need allies to contain this problem.”

“Don’t make those faces,” Alcyone cut in with bold confidence. “Quality is better than quantity when it comes to Class users, and you’ve got a Dungeon at your disposal. A year is plenty of time to form a powerful demon-busting team. Not to mention you have Lady Firewand and yours truly to call on.”

“It’s true that five or six high-level fighters are better than an army of low-level weaklings,” Simon conceded. “You could focus on arming and intensely training a small elite force.”

“This would indeed be our best chance of protecting the Sanctuary without risking it falling apart,” Lady Junon agreed, her gaze settling on Alcyone. “Noble Adventurer, we will provide you with the manalith you seek under one condition.”

“You don’t have to ask.” Alcyone smirked and gave the dryad a bow. “I swear on my honor as the first sky pirate that I’ll come back with reinforcements when you need it most.”

“Your kindness and determination honor your Crestone and legacy, Lady Alcyone,” Vayan praised her.

Simon spotted Queen Zeal frowning in annoyance at the gathering’s edge. He had the strong suspicion she likely argued with her allies to confiscate Alcyone’s Crestone again, only to be outvoted.

She has the foolish boldness of an untested general and bestial ruthlessness, Simon thought. A dangerous combination. I'd better keep an eye on her.

“Then it is settled,” Lady Junon decided. She looked at each of the archipelago’s leaders in turn. “Go forth and gather the best of each island. The bravest, the strongest, those willing to lay down their lives for the good of all; and from them we shall select our Sanctuary’s Champions.”

And so, the Sanctuary’s people began to prepare their defense.

One of the smaller islands forming the celestial stairway to the Forbidden Keep, Kaikias, was chosen for manalith extraction since it was a mostly unpopulated volcanic rock filled with magma kept perpetually hot by fire-charged mana in the air. Extraction would be a grueling process for golem workers, but nobody would die should it fall from the Sanctuary. Simon was put in charge of the process since he could craft Crestones with the help of Anaximander, who had expertise with golem creation.

Their first order of business was to extract enough material to power the Adventurer’s airship, since the Sanctuary’s council decided to focus on bringing in more Noble Class users like the Necromancer to help them and Queen Zeal wanted the Freedom Bird out of her territory. Simon was so engrossed in his task and so detached from the world outside the Sanctuary that he realized the month of Nivose had ended three days after the fact. The attack on Frightwall should have taken place by now, yet he hadn’t received any telepathic call from Shabram.

Simon tried to contact her, only for a vague sense of muffled presence to answer him each time. He briefly feared something had happened to her, only for the same thing to happen with Duchar, who should have been living peacefully in Telluria at this point in time.

The connection is still there, but partly disrupted, Simon realized. He recalled that he had failed to contact Shabram soon after she boarded Louis’ airship to the Sanctuary during his ill-fated reign in Cocagne. Nodens managed to contact and attack me through the Devil Brands, so reestablishing communications should be possible… but then again, his assault might have followed the destruction of the Sanctuary’s barrier.

While the Brand of Sloth’s telepathy could work no matter the distance, it might require the connected individuals to be in the same dimension to function correctly. A Domain’s demiplane nature likely interfered with it. Simon guessed he would have to step out of the Sanctuary in the future to receive information about the outside world.

This disturbed him a lot. While he trusted Shabram to handle Endymion’s affairs with all the foreknowledge he provided her with, part of him could only depart for the Sanctuary in full peace of mind because he knew he could contact his spymistress at any time. Being cut off from her for a long period disturbed him.

He would find a moment to briefly leave the Sanctuary and catch up with her. If he was right, restoring the connection would be as simple as flying through the barrier.

Either way, Simon and Anaximander eventually located strains of manalith pure enough to fuel both the Freedom Bird’s flight and a handful of Crestones, which allowed the Adventurer to finally depart the Sanctuary. Her crew signed the geas contract forbidding them to speak of the flying islands, with the exception of friendly Noble Crestone users that could be recruited to help defend the archipelago, and then took off.

“I’ll bring back the Necromancer for sure, maybe even the Paladin,” Alcyone promised them before departing. “I’ll come back to check on you in a few months, if I can.”

She also agreed to keep Simon’s and Belzemine’s presence on the islands a secret, which he appreciated. The last thing he wanted was to have Alphonse hunt him down for something his father did.

Speaking with Anaximander also proved rather enlightening. The elf was centuries older than the Doom and was indeed the same Anaximander whose name Simon had spotted in the Church of the Light’s archive, having been the first to quantify the effect of Brimir’s moons on certain spells. He had served Lady Junon since she was first planted in the Sanctuary and had developed quite the breadth of magical knowledge since.

“You can cast Tier VI spells without a Crestone?” Simon asked in shock as they made their way to Vayan’s temple alongside Belzemine to meet with the champion candidates.

“I can cast the equivalent of Tier VI spells easily enough, but I know a Tier VII Astromancy spell I can trigger when the stars are right,” Anaximander corrected him. “While Astromancy is much easier to practice than Chronomancy, its spells rely on celestial phenomena to work.”

“Could you teach them to me?” Simon immediately inquired. “Or at least the basics of Astromancy? It is a field of magic I haven’t delved too much into, but the coming of Abraxas might make it very relevant to us.”

“Astromancy is always relevant, Simon. The stars won’t go away if you stop looking up.” Anaximander smiled kindly at him. “I wouldn’t mind teaching you and Lady Firewand my ways, but I fear it would take you decades to cast my spells without a Class.”

“I’m a quick learner,” Simon replied as they reached the temple. They found a good hundred people waiting for them there, most of them harpies and kish with two dozen elves among their numbers. Every Class user in the Sanctuary was also present, alongside Lady Junon and Vayan.

“We have been waiting for you, Simon Magnos,” Vayan declared, the eidolon marking a short pause before continuing. “However, I would like to ask you a question before we begin this gathering.”

Simon frowned. “Yes?”

Vayan loomed closer to him, his head tilting until Simon could see his reflection in the eidolon’s eagle eye.

“Do you not believe,” he asked, “that it is time you revealed your Class to us?”