Chương 201: A Proper Hiding Place

"Hmm," I said while I carefully sketched out the design I wanted to make. I would be using the metal I had collected from Harren and the beastkin to make the container for the cursed longsword. With my limited supplies, I had to make the container count. The sword would go in the container and then the container would go into a hole in the ground. Blocking out all the Mana wasn't possible with the amount it gave off. But I could reduce the Mana so it wasn't a beacon.

Unless someone was on top of it, then they wouldn't be able to sense the sword. Unfortunately, there were still divination skills out there. Any kind of Mana leak would allow a divination type skill to lock onto the blade. That was the biggest problem I had at the moment. I didn't want some demon or beastkin coming along and digging it up. That's why I had to draw from all my runic knowledge and carefully design a runic structure that would contain the cursed longsword.

It was taking time to design the proper container. It was complicated since I wanted to block all Mana or divination type skills. I had only one divination type skill and hadn't covered runic structures related to countering them. I was studying the few books I had with me when we stopped for the night trying to get some idea on what runic structure I could make. Now that we were at the passage to the surface, I needed to put my plans into action. I didn't want to just keep waiting around here.

Something or someone might show up.

"I think that is the best I can do," I said with a heavy tone, looking at my runic design. The issue was that if the cursed sword was found, then I would die. That Tier 7 curse skill was no joke. I had enough supporting skills and I felt the curse settle on me, that I could tell that the skill would only activate if the cursed longsword was removed from its sheathe. I could leave it wherever I wanted without issue.

I thought about bringing it with me, but to get back to the Eldarin continent I would have to go back deep into the dungeon. I had checked the direction several times the last few days after finding the exit passage and it pointed me back down into the dungeon every time.

"That should do it," I said as I looked at my the most complex runic structure I had ever designed in my life. Lanner got up from where he was reading a book I had lent him and came over to take a look.

"Complicated. Very complicated," he said while looking it over. Unfortunately, he had no experience with runes at all. While the gnomes knew quite a bit about runes, I hadn't gotten their full runic knowledge for blocking divination and Mana. A missed opportunity, but not something I could change now. At least the collapsible wood plate to practice their anti-divination skills had given me some ideas.

"That's a lot of runes. Can you fit all of them on the container you are planning?" he asked me.

"It will be tight, but I have a good idea of the dimensions that can be made. The main issue is the inconsistent quality of the metal," I said and looked over at Ozy. He had been put on crafting duty. He was mixing all the collected metals together. While they wouldn't be the best, due to the beastkin metal being quite poor, it needed to be even in the Mana infused into it. If one piece of metal had more Mana infused into the metal than another part, the runes could become unbalanced.

This was the same problem that could happen with a ritual, just that a ritual was much more uncontrolled and more external factors. While a ritual could have a more powerful effect the risks were greater as well. Ozy was doing a good job blending the metal together as evenly as possible. If made into a piece of equipment, it would a be a low Tier 2 weapon or piece of armor. Low grade but it was metal and stable. Metal was the best material to inscribe runes and enchantments.

Metal tended to hold the Mana better without breaking down. Too much Mana and a substance would break down. That was also the leading theory on why dungeon created monsters and equipment broke down so fast. They were made with Mana. And once there was no active mind or presence, the container would break down. That was why the more powerful monsters tended to break down more quickly, since they had more Mana.

I had considered using my armor and equipment, but I would need it on the return trip to the Eldarin continent. While it was damaged, it still provided a certain level of protection. Better some protection than no protection. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"Alright, let's get started on making the container for this cursed longsword," I said. I sat at a table looking over my runic drawings while Ozy slowly shaped the metal block he had mixed into a rectangular coffin that would be completely sealed. A more spherical shape would have been better, but my runic skills weren't high enough to design something like that. The base was shaped first. There would be runic inscriptions on the inside, strengthening themselves with the ambient Mana and reflecting it back.

The runic inscriptions on the outside would use up any Mana that leaked through to strengthen themselves and block out a range of sensory skills. The eventual cave would have a runic circle that I would power with Mana cores to create a diffuse area of Mana, hiding the cursed blade and any other residual Mana that leaked out from it. That was the best layered defense I could think of to hide it.

I would rate it as sub-standard, but my hope was that this place was remote enough and that it would be hidden for the next couple of years until my return. It was a risk, but carrying the blade across the White Wastes to this forge was just asking for death. I needed to hire some proper craftsmen to make a much better container back at the College of Advancement. Then I could transport the blade to the forge via stealth. Trying to accomplish that task with a huge beacon of Mana was insanity.

After the horrendous trek through the dungeon back to this passage, I just knew the cursed longsword was far too much trouble for me to handle at the moment. The risk of carrying it anywhere was far greater in my mind than hiding it near this entrance to the dungeon. And with my new skill, I would be able to get back to this entrance. It would be a huge hassle, but it was the best idea that I had. I couldn't bring the cursed blade back with me.

Every legend would go crazy over it and I didn't have the strength to protect it. Just thinking of Xanatos getting it had been motivation enough for me to put everything I had into making sure the cursed blade was properly hidden. As the base was finished being shaped, there were a series of elevated metal stands. I lifted up the obscenely heavy cursed blade and put it on the metal stands.

The walls and top of the metal coffin would also have metal stands protruding out, ensuring the cursed blade remained in the center of its coffin. That would ensure that the runic structure didn't become imbalanced by the blade being closer to one side compared to the other. It wasn't an elegant solution. I had thought I could have had the blade float in the center of the coffin, but that would have made the runic structure far too complex with the limited metal I had.

That was why I went with a physical solution instead. I kept conveying to Ozy how to shape the metal coffin and the runes that should be made into the metal as he slowly shaped it with his Alchemic Bounded Field. That skill truly was overpowered, but it was also the core skill of a Winged Serpent. I had been worried about his control and precision, but that wasn't a problem. His skill level was high enough to handle the intricate runic work that needed to be completed.

The metal coffin slowly took shape around the cursed longsword. Ozy was leaving off several key runes that he activate once it was fully enclosed and the rest of the runes were in place. The coffin was finally closed up, the cursed blade suspended in the middle. I then mentally directed Ozy on how to crave out the last couple of runes. As they were put in place, the runic structure flared blue and the ambient Mana quickly began to decrease.

"Finally. It is easier to breathe," Lanner said. He had been watching the entire time. While he couldn't contribute, it was still quite interesting and novel for him. I poked the metal and let out a hiss as Mana was pulled out of my body. I hadn't been able to make the runic structure safe to interact with. Another failing on my part due to my inexperience with a runic structure so complex. Getting out some cloth I slowly moved the metal coffin onto its side.

Once that was done, I carefully watched the coffin and checked the ambient Mana. Nothing was changing. Good. That meant the cursed blade was properly secured in the middle of the container. That had been my biggest concern. If it shifted, even a little bit, the imbalance would cause the runic structure to degrade and eventually break.

"Now for the next part. This is going to be miserable," I muttered.

"I thought you liked the cold?" Lanner asked me.

"To level up my resistance skill. Not for traveling across. We will go to the nearby mountains," I said.

"Do you need me?" Lanner asked.

"You don't want to come?" I asked.

"Not really. I would prefer to wait here," he said and I shook my head.

"Unfortunately, no. Splitting up a team is a bad idea. The risks are too high. If there is an attack and I have to depart, we would be split up and you would be in grave trouble," I explained.

"You are right. This is going to be miserable," he muttered.

"At least you can improve your Cold Resistance," I said.

"Yeah," he said sarcastically.

"I do have good news. I have worked out a skill to navigate the dungeon after the recent headaches. I have confidence once I hide the sword we can make our way back to the Eldarin continent," I said. I had been waiting to break the news and now seemed like a good time. I wasn't going to tell anyone about the skill Compass of Desire no matter what. But a lesser navigation skill was fine.

"Really, we are going to your homeland?" he asked.

"Yes. Hopefully you reach level 60 by then. That would make you a professional and be able to get a platinum adventurer's card." It wasn't fully platinum. Only a tiny bit was used with silver. The metal was too expensive to waste on such an item by making it fully out of platinum. But that was one of the things that no one ever said and you just learned over time. Lanner was definitely excited about getting to meet other people and I didn't blame him.

There was only so much we could talk about after being together for months in the dungeon.