Andrew Rowe - On the Shoulders of Titans

“Why not?”

“Ferras only takes on projects that interest her. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of people petition her for help with something each year. And that’s if you even get a chance to talk to her — you’d have to find her first.”

I nodded. “I can try other routes first. But I’ll find a way to help Sera, regardless of how much effort it takes.”

“That’s a good spirit to have, lad. Now, can I interest you in something a bit less… divine in cost?”

“Sure, let me take a look around.”

In the end, I didn’t buy anything right then, but I put a few items on my list for the future.

He didn’t have a jump bell for sale, but he did have a single-use teleportation stone that interested me. That was only fifteen silver sigils, so it was reasonable, but I still didn’t have that much money on me.

I was also interested in getting an enchanted dueling tunic. My shield sigil and phoenix sigil both provided a good layer of defense against magical attacks, but I was extremely vulnerable to standard physical attacks.

If Derek had hit me with a clean sword swing, I’d have been dead. I couldn’t keep taking risks like that.

I considered more old fashioned armor — he had some of that as well — but I wanted something that wouldn’t hinder my mobility significantly.

My preference would have been to get a dueling tunic.

Dueling tunics were essentially just cloth, but they were made from rare and valuable materials that provided a high degree of defense, both against traditional weapons and spells. The two most common types were Ironweave and Steelweave.

Neither was actually metallic; they were simply called that because they were difficult to cut. I’d heard that the silk used to make them was from monstrous spiders.

Some dueling tunics were also enchanted for additional protection, like the one that Orden wore.

I considered just enchanting my own shirt and coat, but I couldn’t manage anything particularly potent yet. The runes for hardening a material were the key to making cloth provide any extra protection, and those required stone and enhancement mana — two types I couldn’t generate myself.

Getting a dueling tunic would have been somewhat more plausible. Unfortunately, even the most basic enchanted dueling tunics were about two hundred and fifty silver sigils, more than I’d ever owned. Lars’ most expensive one was seven hundred, and Lars told me he’d heard of ones that sold for thousands.

So, yeah, that was going to take me a while.

Aside from those, I also still wanted a long-distance communication item, but he didn’t have any. I’d have to look into other shops or make one myself.

With my shopping out of the way, I headed to the next place on my agenda — the Divinatory.

I still had a key to the restricted archives. Professor Orden had given it to me when I’d still been working with her. I figured I had at least a few days before someone else remembered that and tried to take it away.

I made it into the restricted section without incident.

I wasn’t the only one in there, though.

An elemental creature floated in the center of the room, her shining blue skin contrasting with her current outfit — a tailored suit in the academy’s white.

She was about a foot above a raised platform etched with a complex pattern of runes. It was some sort of combination of a containment device and power source, but I didn’t know exactly how it worked. Either way, it was definitely what kept her in the room.

She was doing stretching exercises when she saw me enter. She gave me a cheerful wave. “Hello again, Corin Cadence. I am Researcher 437-C. I have an answer to your previous question!”

I blinked, not remembering what she was talking about. “Oh? What’s the answer?”

“You may refer to me as a summon.”

Oh, that. She didn’t like being called a summoned monster. Because it had monster in it.

Makes sense. I wouldn’t want to be called a monster, either. Probably would have gone with summoned elemental in her case? Her choice, though.

“Summon it is, then.”

She visibly brightened. And I mean that in the literal sense — she glowed a little brighter, even without my attunement active. I hoped that meant she was happy? “Thank you, Corin Cadence. How may I assist you today?”

I removed the glove on my right hand and showing her my new attunement rune. “Any idea what this is?”

Her eyes widened to comical proportions, then she knelt down and lowered her head. “I am honored to serve in your presence, Arbiter.”

I tilted my head to the side. “Arbiter? Is that the title for this attunement?”

Researcher replied without raising her head. “It is.”

I waved a hand upward, uncomfortable with her reaction. “No need to be so formal. You can stand, er, float, back up?”

Researcher raised her head, then stood and floated back above her pedestal as before. “If I would better serve you in that way, Arbiter.”

I’d been raised in a noble household, so I understood the kind of behavior she was demonstrating, but it still felt wrong. Unearned. “Can you explain to me what this attunement does, and why you’re reacting the way that you are?”

“Certainly, Arbiter. Your attunement is only granted to one who has successfully completed a diplomatic task for one of the visages. Typically, it involves assisting in a political matter between visages and human cultures. Arbiters have demonstrated that they can be trusted with delicate matters, and thus, they are often employed by visages for additional assignments.”

Researcher paused, gesturing to herself with both hands. “As a spire elemental, I am bound to assist an Arbiter in any way possible, since their tasks are often of great importance to the visages.”

Well, that’s good and bad. It means I might be able to ask other elementals for help, but it also means Katashi or other visages might come calling for more help in the future. And I certainly can’t say “no” to one of their requests.

I considered that for a moment, raising a hand to my chin. I didn’t scratch it. I was trying to cut back on that habit. “Okay, but you’re a summoned elemental, right? What happens if I ask you to do something that conflicts with your Summoner’s instructions?”

“I cannot directly go against my Summoner’s commands, even at an Arbiter’s request.” She grinned, showing a hint of mischief glimmering in her eyes. “But…if it wasn’t directly against my Summoner’s orders…”

Huh, she’s got a mischievous streak. Wouldn’t have guessed that.

“Got it.” I smiled in return. “I’ll keep that in mind, thank you. Do you know exactly what I can do with this? I mean, like, what abilities does the attunement confer?”

She nodded once. “Ah, yes. The Arbiter attunement specializes in transferring mana into others. Its primary mana generation type is transference. Its secondary type is life.”

I blinked. “Wait, transferring mana into others? Isn’t that extremely dangerous?”

“Humans typically are unable to transfer mana into other humans because of impurities. The Arbiter attunement purifies mana that is sent through that specific attunement, allowing for safe transfer into other humans. This is its core function. It can be used to both restore lost mana and to temporarily increase the power of an ally over their normal maximum limits.”

My eyes widened as I considered the possibilities this created.

“Temporarily? Is there any permanent benefit to using the attunement on someone?”