CHAPTER 308: BARGAIN WITH THE WARDEN

Zephyr leaned forward, his eyes sharpening with interest. "So you know about the other dimensional tears then?"

Ossian nodded gravely. "Both of the other Overseers were spotted in their respective ’tears’. And both of the tears were on this continent. One was probably at the opposite end of this continent, while the other was between the continental borders. That’s the only thing I remember about their locations. The rest is swallowed by the fog, as if the Abyss doesn’t want me to remember them."

He paused, his skeletal form growing more rigid as if recalling something particularly troubling.

"That’s right, I have to warn you about one thing about the Abyss itself," he continued, his voice taking on a more urgent tone. "The corruption it spreads... It’s not just physical or mental. It’s something far more insidious."

His eyes flickered between us, ensuring he had our complete attention.

"The Abyss doesn’t just corrupt individuals - it corrupts the very fabric of reality around dimensional tears. The laws of our world get broken, time flows differently, and space itself becomes... unreliable. What should be a day’s journey might take weeks, or you might find yourself walking in circles for hours only to discover you’ve somehow traveled hundreds of miles."

I felt a chill run down my spine. This was worse than I’d anticipated.

"Moreover," Ossian continued, "the closer you get to these tears, the stronger the Abyss’s whispers become. They’ll try to convince you that your friends are enemies, that your mission is pointless, that surrender is the only logical choice. And unlike the Architect’s silver tongue, these whispers know your deepest fears, your secret shames, your most painful memories."

He looked directly at me, then at Zephyr.

"The Nexus Stone will help, but it’s not perfect protection. You must be prepared for the possibility that one or both of you might be compromised, even temporarily. Have signals, have backup plans, and most importantly..." His voice grew deadly serious. "Never, ever split up near a dimensional tear. The Abyss loves to isolate its prey."

"Then, is there a way to cure the corruption or fight against it?" I asked, though I suspected I already knew the answer from his grim expression.

Ossian shook his head slowly. "Unfortunately, no. At least, not in our time. The only thing that proved useful against corruption was the light element."

He gestured toward the faintly glowing Nexus Stone.

"Light-based techniques could slow the spread of corruption, sometimes even halt it temporarily. But a complete cure? We never found one. The most common method we developed was to create barriers of concentrated light around corrupted areas, containing the spread rather than eliminating it. Some of our most skilled light practitioners could even purify small objects or heal minor corruption in its earliest stages."

His voice grew more serious. "But prevention is always better than attempting a cure. Avoid prolonged exposure, never touch corrupted materials with bare skin, and if you feel the whispers beginning, retreat immediately. The moment you start rationalizing why you should listen to them, you’re already halfway lost."

Ossian straightened, his violet eyes dimming slightly. "That’s all the information I know regarding your questions. And I doubt I can remember any more, even if I tried."

I nodded respectfully. "Thank you, Senior. That should be more than enough."

A moment of silence passed, then Ossian’s gaze shifted meaningfully toward me, and I caught the subtle change in his demeanor.

"Good, then..." he said, his tone becoming almost ceremonial. "It’s time to give you some gifts too. Tell me, what do you need?"

Finally, the moment I’d been waiting for.

I smiled, the plan fully formed in my mind. "To be honest, Senior, I need a lot of things. To escape, to fight, to defend myself, to protect myself from psychic attacks, to attack, to move quickly—"

"Wait, wait!"As I continued to count on my fingers, Ossian raised his massive claw, cutting me off with a strained, apologetic sound. "My apologies, young friend, but I cannot give you that much. Nor do I have such a vast arsenal. I can grant you about... three gifts-"

"Five," I said immediately, not missing a beat.

Ossian’s eyes twitched noticeably. "Three," he insisted, his voice firming. "Your companion received three substantial boons. It is only right that you receive an equal number."

I shook my head, my expression turning earnest. "With all due respect, Senior, didn’t you say it yourself? Zamir is the stronger one, and I’m the weak, unreliable one." I spread my hands in a helpless gesture. "The logic is sound; shouldn’t the weaker link in the chain be reinforced more to ensure it doesn’t break? And five isn’t really a big number considering the scale of the task."

I leaned forward slightly, employing my most reasonable tone. "Think about it, Senior. What will the world say if I were to die while completing your task? What would your old comrades, Lady Mayan, Sir Marcus, and Lady Elena, say if they learned of it? That the great guardian Ossian was... frugal to a fault with the fate of the world at stake?"

I let the question hang in the air, watching the lights in his sockets flicker rapidly as he processed the blatant emotional and rhetorical blackmail. It was a low blow, invoking his fallen friends, but a necessary one.

...It’s still not enough?

"Besides, if Zamir is our main fighter, then I need to be our support, our strategist, our backup plan. That requires more versatility, more tools to work with. You’re not just giving me gifts, you’re investing in our mission’s success rate."

Ossian stared at me for a long moment, his jaw slightly agape again. Finally, he let out a sound that might have been a sigh.

"...Five it is, then."

"Thank you, Senior!" I gave him my happiest smile. "Your generosity is as boundless as your wisdom."

Then I straightened myself, taking on a more serious expression.

"First," I began, holding up a finger. "I need a reliable way to detect the Abyss and its corruption. A relic, a technique, an art, whatever you have that is most effective. Your description of distorted space and hidden corruption is our greatest threat. We cannot fight what we cannot see. This is non-negotiable for the mission’s success."

I paused to make sure the critical logic of this request was clear before continuing.

"Second, I need..."