The Amber Sword

“My lord?” Scarlett whispered to Brendel while she looked a little distrustfully at Kodan.

“Just wait for a little while,” Brendel said.

He was certain that the door was not there previously, and it was likely that it had to something to do with the monsters.

“There are words on the door!” Kodan suddenly raised his voice.

The rest of them went closer to take a look at it and saw unknown letters carved into the heavy steel gate. Brendel studied the angular letters for a moment before he spoke:

“These are Dwarven words.”

“Dwarven words?” Kodan turned back and looked at Brendel with a frown: “But why would it appear here? Mountain Dwarves live in Trentheim, but they don’t live in caverns or mines.”

Medissa and Kodan were silent, but they were on their guard as their hands were ready on their weapons.

“The Coliseum of Destiny,” Brendel said.

“Coliseum of Destiny? What is that?” Kodan asked.

“See that sword?” Brendel raised his hand and pointed at a certain location.

Everyone else followed his finger. There was a sword embedded in a boulder located near them. The black heavy-looking longsword reflected a dull gleam, and its design was quite unique. The length of the weapon was a longsword, but the width was as wide as a palm, looking like a combination of a greatsword and a longsword.

“What is that sword?” Kodan’s eyebrows jolted a little. As a grandmaster swordsman, he was able to see that it was an excellent weapon.

“I recognize it,” Medissa said in awe, “the Sword of Earth, Halran Gaia, This is the Legacy item of the Rune Dwarves.”

“Indeed, this is the sword, Halran Gaia. Legend states that it’s connected to the ground, and when it’s used it is able to cause the ground to shake and even make avalanches happen. A Fantasy-ranked sword.” Brendel said.

[Another name that the gamers called it was the Earthquake Sword. Each time the weapon is swung, it allows the user to cast an Earthquake spell……]

The spell was an AOE attack that could be cast in a frontal direction, and almost had the same area of his White Raven Sword Arte. Even though it needed Mana, the efficiency in conversion was definitely worth it.

It was truly a divine weapon for a profession like Magic Swordsman. Even Brendel’s fingers were itching when he saw the sword.

[There’s even the additional trait of ‘Guidance’. Since the name has an ‘Earth’ in it, it could ‘guide’ that particular element….. I see, so the Rock Panthers we saw came from this sword.]

“Halran Gaia…… That Halran Gaia that was used by that Giant, Migael?”

“Yes. The most doted son of the Earth Mother, and known as the Crownless king of the Earth. The sword is his symbol to rule the lands.” Brendel recited the legend he knew of, and his heart fluttered a little.

He drew in a deep breath and looked at everyone with grave eyes before he continued:

“Everyone who comes here has the chance to challenge the series of tests to obtain that sword. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a price. If you fail in the challenge, you will become a rock statue and never leave. This is where the name ‘Coliseum of Destiny’ comes in. You either win in glory, or lose in death.”

Brendel was feeling a slight headache. The Coliseum of Destiny was posted in the forums sometime after the discovered quest in the Silver Mines and was rated to be one of the harder Legacy Quests. Right when he was still agonizing over the quest, Kodan suddenly asked:

“How difficult is the challenge?” Even though the grandmaster swordsman did not understand what the place was, he considered himself to be skilled and a Gold-ranker like himself would not act like the worker who was still shocked into silence.

“It’s nearly impossible,” Medissa said, “this place is created in between fantasy and reality with the Laws of this world. There is no limit to the difficulty.”

Scarlett’s expression changed upon hearing that.

“What about those who can’t duel? Do we have to?” She asked.

Medissa shook her head: “There’s no way to avoid this. Everyone has to duel in this place at least once before they gain the permission to leave.”

“Everyone?” Kodan keenly caught on to the keyword.

“Yes. Everyone has to fight their own battles. The only exception is that you’re an Iron-ranked fighter and below, and you can fight in twos.”

Scarlett’s face paled upon hearing that answer: “What…… if the person…… fails?”

She had no strength right now, and passing the challenge was almost impossible for her.

“You will be temporarily imprisoned. Once the Barrier disappears, you will become a statue permanently,” Brendel interrupted, “however, if someone is willing to challenge the test again and succeed, they would have the chance to save their comrade. There’s no need to worry, Scarlett.”

“My lord……” Scarlett naturally understood what Brendel was saying, and she looked at him with complicated eyes.