The Dreamer's Fall

Chapter 58 - Elrinth Forest

Arthur appeared to be in dire need of a history lesson, as it was the first time he had heard of such a kingdom. Unlike Earth, nations rarely rose and fell on Nithe. Instead, most nations on the map have existed in one form or another since the start of recorded history.

It was only in the last six hundred years or so that wars of conquest became more commonplace. For most of Nithe's history, the small population kept border friction to a minimum, and the threat of a ninth-circle mage running wild acted as a significant deterrent for any would-be conquerors.

Arthur's tutoring on history began at the founding of the Cellan Theocracy seventeen hundred years ago. So, unless the kingdom of Aellyr was wiped from the history books, it needed to be older than the Theocracy for him to have never learned of it.

It seemed ridiculous that a story could be kept alive for such a long time by word of mouth alone. Even with the stability seen in early Nithian history, great families inevitably die out, and with no heir to pass the story on, it too would die.

He also wondered whether or not he should take Rennar's warning to heart. Jeren had told him he was the second son of some small baron family, but according to Rennar, he must bear Aellyrian lineage.

Whatever that meant, Arthur didn't think the two were mutually exclusive. So, Jeren may not have necessarily lied to him. It wouldn't surprise him for an ancient family to have fallen from grace over thousands of years, but he didn't even know what Aellyr was until a moment ago, so he couldn't rule it out.

On the other hand, Jeren had been nothing but helpful to Arthur until now, so there was no use panicking over it just yet. He'd need to learn more about Aellyr before deciding on Jeren's true motives.

"That story makes it seem like the gods abandoned us." Foster suddenly blurted out.

"Who knows." Jeren shrugged. "It's just a story my family passes down. Don't think too deeply about it."

Arthur listened in, but his attention was diverted by something he saw ahead. In the distance, a glossy white spire reminiscent of a cathedral's bell tower reflected light into his eyes.

Arthur curiously pointed it out. "What is that?"

"It's a ruin from the age of the gods, lord." Jeren replied. "There's some in southern Ollerin as well. You usually find them within a hundred or so miles from Elrinth Forest, but most are buried deep underground by now."

It looked far too pristine to have been carved thousands of years ago, so Arthur rode closer to check it out with his guards in tow.

The spire, reaching twenty feet high, sat atop a modest hill and appeared to be cut from a single block of polished marble. There were no seams anywhere, nor was there a single sign of weathering, as if it had just been carved yesterday and placed there as some sort of art installation in the middle of nowhere.

It lacked any fixtures or decorations other than the holes where windows once sat half-buried at its base, leading Arthur to believe the rest of the building was buried deep below them. He was curious about what the building looked like in its prime, but it would probably take weeks to dig it up, so he could only use his imagination.

Arthur ran his hand across the strange structure, finding it perfectly smooth to such a degree that it felt odd to touch.

Kyren grinned by his side. "Wanna see something cool, kid? Have one of the guards fire some magic at it."

Arthur's eyebrow razed as he wondered what Kyren was on about. He loved all things historical and would never allow such an ancient building to be destroyed unless he had no choice. Even if the building had no secrets buried within it, it had borne witness to the ages and stood as a testament to whatever civilization had built it.