Zenith Online: Rebirth of the Strongest Player

While Kieran was inside the Ancient Rune Oasis attempting to become the next Mystic Runemaster, Agatha took the time to ask Hekaina a number of vital questions.

Although she had never mentioned it to Kieran, these questions were partly why Agatha felt somewhat aggrieved while in Kieran's presence.

Having her master put faith in someone else left a sour taste in Agatha's mouth. It made her feel as if, despite her unprecedented talent with the mystical arts, she wasn't enough in the eyes of her master.

However, because of the adoration she received from her doting master, Agatha knew that it was nothing personal.

Nevertheless, she still couldn't help but harbor a hint of resentment, though it was not aimed toward Kieran. Instead, it was towards her inability to subdue the Archaic Verity Compendium when she tried.

After a moment of silence, Agatha spoke up with a deep sigh. "There's no scheme. Master Hekaina does not intend to take advantage of Aatrox. On the contrary, he has already been given a True Relic."

The moment a True Relic was mentioned, Scar and Zephyr revealed troubled expressions. Though knowledge of True Relics was sparse amongst the masses, the same situation did not apply to the Mythical Heroes.

Their ties to the Boundary Protector resulted in them gaining access to information necessary to guarantee the safety of Xenith. Amongst that information was records of some known True Relics, which all carried great and highly implicative strength.

Strength so great that they could become an immense threat to the world if handled improperly.

Not to mention, most True Relics retained an Ego powerful enough to dismantle the soul of a lesser being.

Scar silently turned toward Kieran and frowned, considering his current circumstances. 'He has an Aspect... and manifested a proper Soul Trait. If it's him, perhaps he'll be able to resist having his soul dismantled in the event of a rejection.'

After that, Scar returned to gazing at Agatha. "What is the nature of the True Relic?"

"No idea. All I know is that it belongs to the Endless of Mysteries," Agatha answered truthfully.

Unless one could open the Archaic Verity Compendium, or rather get its Ego to open the pages, the information inside would remain a mystery, just like the power of its creator.

"An Endless?" Scar muttered, his expression becoming complex and difficult to ascertain.

Surprisingly, this was a term he had yet to come across despite having been instructed by the Protector.

"That's something outside of our worry. No one willingly pays the price to arrive in this Lesser Boundary after the transgressions of that past era. Have you forgotten what we read in that place? If you thought rationally, you would have never become so angry," Agatha retorted, scoffing at the end.

Scar's actions of lifting his hand toward her irritated Agatha greatly, to the point where she struggled to refrain from starting another scuffle altogether. It was bad enough that she was passed up by the young man beside her. But now, his master felt confident enough to admittedly belittle her.

However, before she could erupt, Agatha felt a hand on her shoulder that released a strange presence. It was amateurish, but Agatha could sense it clearly.

'The Fifth Syllable of Eni,' Agatha thought.

As she lifted her gaze, she laid eyes upon Kieran standing beside her while shaking his head. Thanks to his abilities that matched Agatha, albeit of a minute scale, Kieran could more or less sense her frustration.

"I'll apologize on Scar's behalf. He has become overly protective of me. There's no reason to become so angry," Kieran remarked.

After inhaling and gaining more confidence, Kieran looked toward Scar.

"You should also apologize. Sure, we're Berserkers, but wasn't it you who told me that if we can truly control our emotions, then we reach the epitome of our power?"

In response, Scar clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Am I getting a lesson on control... from my brat?"

"That's precisely what's happening. If you destroy this kingdom due to a petty fight caused by misunderstandings and assumptions, where will I grow? Ask yourself that question, Teach. You being overprotective is doing more harm than good in this situation," Kieran responded.

To the side, Zephyr looked at Kieran, astonished by the young man's gall.

Eventually, Scar understood Kieran's point of view and nodded.

If Aeredale were to perish, all opportunities would vanish along with it. That'd be a misfortune, seeing as Kieran had already invested hundreds of thousands of gold in this place.

"Truth be told, I didn't expect to gain the legacy of the Wykins, but it was definitely a pleasant surprise. And I'm sure you should understand why Scar," Kieran voiced.

"I know, I know. Lord Agrianos is acquainted with Enchantress Hekaina. They were the leading force in subduing Argexes," Scar grumbled.

He waved his hand, irritated by the entire situation.

"Not just that. The power of the Wykins delves deeper than you know and it's quite intriguing, to say the least. Whether it's Argexes' power, or the abilities of the Mystic Gate, I intend to utilize them to their fullest extent," Kieran claimed.

Scar looked at him for a moment, his expression incredulous, but he ultimately relented. "Whatever. As long as there's no conflict or interference during the rite, then I won't press the matter. However, should anything go awry... I'll have Lord Agrianos destroy the seal placed on your power."

"Understandable. After all, it's the base of my abilities, I can't neglect it," Kieran agreed.

After a while, the floor grew silent, with Kieran, Scar, Zephyr, and Agatha all looking at each other. Since the matter of a supposed scheme was settled, they didn't have much else to talk about, hence the awkward silence that ensued.

Soon enough, Zephyr was the first to break the silence.

"Since I have escorted and supplied my successor properly, I'll be returning to the Deathless Temple of Gloom until it's due time," Zephyr voiced.

"I suppose I'll similarly leave. I hastily left the Wildes to tend to Aatrox, but since he's safe... I must return," Scar said next, scratching his head while awkwardly chuckling. "Ahem... again, sorry Agatha. You know how my temper gets."

"Whatever." Agatha scoffed while crossing her arms under her bust. The clangor from her mystic bangle seemed innocuous throughout the movement of her arms, but it wasn't.

Scar winced and covered his right ear before glaring at Agatha.

"Payback. Surely you won't start another wave of conflict, right?" Agatha questioned mockingly, giving Scar some side-eye.

Instead of responding, Scar turned away and pressed his hand against space before ripping it open.

Before stepping inside, he left Kieran with a message. "Once you finish Isadora's quest, come see me. If you hold a True Relic as strong as Agatha insinuated, your soul should be prepped by then."

"Understood." Kieran nodded.

Seconds later, aside from Kieran and Agatha, his teammates and Hamon remained in the building.

"Er, what da hell was all that? Are ya having some conflict? Is it safe to be here?!" Hamon questioned, stepping away from his forge momentarily.

"It's fine," Kieran assured him. "Don't let us disturb you. Continue to produce items at your pace. We'll need them to showcase once we commence our grand opening."

"Ah! Speaking of forging, this flame you supplied, it's awesome. So convenient!" Hamon exclaimed.

However, his volume while speaking was almost as if he was hard of hearing. The incessant hammering had led to a ringing in his ears, which took a while to subside.

As the alchemy station required additional renovations, Aspaira and Sorcia currently used the branch of the Alchemist's Circle in the city to carry out their potion and elixir creation.

'I suppose I should bring them in shortly. From what I can see, the renovations will be done in a few hours. If I can get Sorcia to agree, I'll let her learn the recipes as well,' Kieran thought.

Aside from the Guild Creation Order that dropped inside the Mad Alchemist's Hidden Laboratory, another reason he requested the first pick of loot was the other exclusive items.

As the dungeon's name suggested, its exclusive rewards were tailored to Alchemists. In this case, those rewards referred to potion recipes, which Kieran picked up three of.

One was basic but still quite valuable, an Advanced Health Potions that could be used until the higher levels. Unfortunately, as a high-grade potion, it was demanding to properly brew it.

One mishap and the batch would be ruined, becoming nothing more than an Intermediate Health Potion or worse. As for the other two, one was known as the Inferior Immunity Potion.

Though it sounded overpowered, it wasn't. What it did was temporarily increase the user's ability to resist abnormal statuses and the elements.

The second potion was known as the Madness Potion--a special type of potion because it directly increased the user's main damage type.

If a Mage consumed it, their magic damage would be bolstered.

However, like the Inferior Immunity Potion, its duration was temporary, admittedly brief at that.

With these three potions, and the fact that each sheet could produce ten copies, Kieran estimated that he could begin cultivating a crew of alchemists.

However, this task wasn't something he could do alone.

After considering it, Kieran headed upstairs to the floor of personal rooms and entered inside one. According to Alice, the last time she checked, Aspaira was in the facility asleep due to how mentally drained she was.

Since that was the case, it was time to visit her, not only to familiarize himself with the young lady but to also request that she help him scout promising alchemists inside the Alchemist's Circle.

Before logging out, however, Kieran placed all of his collected Treasure Chests on the floor, including the ones that he removed from his Personal Vault.

'Once I come back, I'll be dealing with you all.'

If anyone were to learn that Kieran's collection of Treasure Chests ranging from Rare to Epic ones filled up a decent portion of this large room, they'd surely stop at nothing to ensure his demise, especially considering his reward for clearing Hell Mode.