Words of Power Quest [Needs ketchup]

Herald 4

Things never fall the ways one might expect.

R : "Are you sure, Jullan?"

Roberia was clearly losing her composure from the situation she had been thrown into. Not only had she been removed as a candidate for the throne, but for the two before her who were to fight the prospect was aggravating.

J : "It's alright, Roberia. Pierre isn't much of a warrior, so this shouldn't be too hard."

R : "Stop treating this like a joke, Jullan. My entire future is at stake here."

But, then again, it was not surprisingly for things to fall as they were. After all, the others did not expect the ruler of Rugnud to be strong.

J : "I know."

R : "I want you to beat him. I would rather marry a pauper than that snake-eyed bastard who put me here in the first place."

They simply expected a ruler with the power to lead Rugnud in the right direction. In a sense, the ideal that Rugnud's monarch would be the strongest was, in itself, a childish dream of Roberia's.

J : "You can't really blame him for it, can you? I mean, you produced the dirt for him to use in the first place. If it were me, I would never give an opening like that to the very end."

R : (Easy for you to say. You're not the one who's had to fight that child... But, now that I think about it, I've heard that the Words of Power are supposed to be incredibly strong when used correctly. I wonder if there's a more plausible way to defeat it?)

Roberia's fantasy of thinking the strongest ought to be king crumbled rather quickly. The others had skipped her opinion on the matter, and the knights were finished with selecting a handful of young candidates willing to learn kingship by the time she was even aware of it.

As a mere individual, she was powerless to topple that decision.

*** ***

Katachi picked up what seemed to be a purple mushroom with white spots and cut it apart into small slices before mixing them into a stew of sorts.

K : (... Quiet and painless.)

Katachi couldn't quite find the courage to continue on. Though he may be chastised on his weaknesses and shortcomings, though he may be worn out by his circumstances, nothing battered his spirit harder than the acknowledgement of the bitter truth.

He may have been corrupted by the Words of Power long ago.

He may have been doing the wrong thing the whole time.

He may have denied Rekter, the Demanti couple, and many others of the things they endeared.

K : (Then, the only logical option...)

... Was to end himself before the corruption could grip him any further.

The risk of searching for a successor, another person trustworthy enough to carry the torch was too great. Who across the lands would wish for the dream he dreamed, to obediently follow and collect the 292 Words of Power without satisfying themselves selfishly midway? Was there even a guarantee that he would have the discipline to let go of the Words of Power should that time come?

Was he not already satisfying himself with his 定? Had he not set the status of the orange to Constant as a gift for Mother Rinnesfeld, had he not set the status of a piece of gold to Constant such that it would not be consumed when he used it to clean his clothes? What made him different from Rekter, or any of the other men who manipulated the sigils for their own desires?