The fifth layer was more like a mansion with many rooms, an indoor garden, an empty library, a dining hall, and other facilities like training rooms and others. The more that they walked through the fortress, the more Arthur realized that someone must have lived here for a while.
When you compared each layer to the last, you would realize that more work was done to it in comparison. In the fifth layer, the gears were no longer seen and what remained was tiled floors and varnished wood. However, it seems that the place wasn't probably taken care of, as dust filled the halls and corridors.
"Just how big is this place?" Ivy muttered in fascination as the two made their way through another set of rooms and a hall.
"Space expansion runes are used excessively, so you can't judge from its outside appearance," Arthur answered as his thoughts drifted elsewhere.
Whoever, or whatever, built this was truly proficient in runes. They worked together in such a harmony that Arthur doubted if the fortress had a mind of its own.
The fortress shook again, but this time it was less prominent. They reached a set of double doors that were encrypted with runes again. Arthur didn't delay and directly tried to open it.
This time, the runes were so numerous and so layered that Arthur had no idea where to start. If the difficulty of the previous gate was a ten, this one was a hundred. He started shifting through them and arranging them but each arrangement collapsed. Arthur realized that he needed to decode the layers in a specific sequence, otherwise they would collapse and rearrange themselves.
"Is something wrong?" Ivy asked after seeing how Arthur's face was contorted in a heavy frown. Arthur shook his head and refocused.
If he needed to find the specific sequence, he'd need to experiment. However, the layers were so numerous that trying each combination would exhaust him to death, excluding how much time it would need.
He felt the runic world and massaged his temples. He sat on the ground and opened his legacy, something he hadn't done for a while. The rows of words appeared.
[Scholar Guardian's Legacy]
[Level: 23 (3%)]
[Legacy Points: 37]
[Strength: 100] [+40]
[Agility: 100] [+40]
[Stamina: 100]
[Perception: 100]
[Mana: 121/121]
[Abilities: Beginner Runes Wordsmith (35%), Useable Runes: 19]
[Skills: Lesser-Mana Breathing Skill (F), Poison Strike (F), Camouflage (F), Earth Manipulation (E), Bladeless Wind Slash (E), Shadow Swap (E), Monster Claws (D), Iron Skin (D), Goblin's Bond (Unique)]
[Insignia: The Breaker.]
[Legacy Inheritance.]
The last row was the only one shining, and Arthur knew it meant he could access it. With a thought, several more rows appeared.
[Artifacts.]
[Potions.]
[Knowledge.]
[Arts.]
[Skills.]
[Runes.]
Arthur's eyes gleamed. As expected from the true master of runes, the legacy he created was phenomenal. He had an itch to browse through every category, but he restrained himself. He opened the knowledge category but was disappointed that he didn't have enough points to buy the knowledge necessary to decode the encryption.
Even if he did, they were mostly books or scrolls. He would have to study them extensively before being able to wield that knowledge.
Arthur ruffled through his head in frustration but calmed down soon after. He was too old to get antsy over a setback, so he kept looking for a way.
He opened the artifacts category and the list tripled in size. He was only shown what he could buy with his points, so he had no idea how far the actual list went on.
He felt awe at how much possession the scholar guardian had before he died. However, it was expected as he was the master of creation and artifacts were simply a matter of materials.
As he browsed through the list, his eyes finally picked up on something. An item that was rated among the highest he could buy with his 37 legacy points. They were barely just enough to buy it and he didn't know if Jizo was helping him.
It was probably the case. Legacies weren't inanimate objects but living souls living in people's bodies. If a legacy owner can help the user survive, they would. However, Arthur had read some theories on why the power of the legacy owner assimilated gradually instead of instantly.
The more the will of the user aligned with the owner, the faster the fusion of soul fragment happened. Soul's existence was still debatable, but legacies couldn't be explained otherwise. So, the more Arthur leveled up, the more Jizo would grant him power. To level up, he needed to do what Jizo asked of him. To get stronger and stop dungeons from remerging the worlds.
[The Dome Mansion Key: The key to the scholar guardian's mansion. A fortress in a dome-shaped that he used as the first house after he became a guardian.] [30 Legacy Points]
Arthur grinned. He had suspected as such, but he didn't dare be sure about it. This place was built by Jizo himself. Now, sitting in front of him was the key to controlling this mansion itself. He was sure that Jizo knew what he needed right now, and he was offering it to him.
However, its price was high. It would cost him all of the points he had earned so far. Doing basic math, the 37 points probably came from his leveling up. Nine were earned from leveling to 10, twenty were earned from leveling up to level 20, and another nine from leveling up to level 23. That makes them 38 points.
He had a mana-replenishing potion for one point against the Ender, making his total 37. It seems as each point held considerable weight since one point could get you a mid-tier artifact. Now, he was asked to pay thirty away.
It took Arthur nothing but a moment to decide to buy it. As much as he would have loved to decode the gate himself, he knew that his current ability level made it rather difficult. Furthermore, weren't these points a representation of how much he worked? How many enemies he made and how many times he almost died?
His legacy was unique from the beginning. He might have been lucky, he might have been the fated one, neither possibilities matter.
What he does with this power would decide if he was worthy or not.
He bought the key and it manifested in front of him. A golden necklace that looked like a pocket watch. He wore it around his neck as he felt a connection appear to it. He felt Jizo's emotions when he first created this house. The pride, the warmth, and the nostalgia.
The necklace disappeared and fused to his body. He touched the gate leading to the sixth layer and the layers of runes reappeared. However, no he could see it. That single bit of runic line that shone golden light. It was the key to break it apart.
The gate rumbled as it opened, revealing the last layer. Arthur walked in with composed steps as Ivy followed along, marveling at the interior.
It was a runic world. A sphere with floating platforms that Arthur and Ivy used to walk toward the core. It laid there, a giant runic sphere that would prevent access to anyone.
Except for Jizo… and his inheritor.
Arthur realized that no matter what they did, the Association would have never been able to access this place. Even Arthur was like an ant in front of the scholar guardian.
The only reason he was able to reach this place was his ability and Jizo's fragmented soul living inside of him. He pitied the association working fifteen years for naught, but this was his now.
"Wait, are you sure this is safe?" Ivy stopped on the platform as Arthur kept walking without answering.
Weirdly, he felt nostalgic to stand in the middle of the runic world. The runes were welcoming him as if they were waiting for a long time. Ivy looked at him from afar with worry as he stepped into the middle of the runic world.
He watched the platform turn and the runic lines glow. He felt the runes bow down to him with his very soul. He has never been here before, but he felt like he was home for the first time in years.
The world turned bright as he lifted his hands. He could control every rune in this fortress as if it was his own. The fortress started glowing as every unwanted person was teleported or thrown outside.
The gears shifted on his command as the fortress stood again. The runes he had cut apart repaired themselves as metals elongated to cover the wound he had inflicted. The gate opened as he felt his group coming inside. He closed the door in front of others as the runes pushed them off.
He felt the panic that spread among everyone who witnessed this sight. However, he didn't care. He used the runes that generated wind and those the decreased gravity and the fortress began to levitate. Without another problem occurring, it started flying into the distance.