A day had passed since Sam woke up. His body had recovered enough to move, and his mind was buzzing with thoughts. That dungeon… that dream… and that presence. Something about it kept gnawing at him. But there was an addition...Anna.
That morning, Sam stood near the balcony of his room, feeling the cold breeze brush past his face. Below, he saw Anna in her usual attire, sword strapped to her back, giving instructions to the cleric team. Sam made his way down slowly and approached her. He was just being his usual self. Yes, usual....
"Hey, Anna," he called out. She turned toward him, surprised but not showing it on her face.
"You..have you finished resting?." She asked.
"I'm fine. Just… needed to ask you something."
Anna tilted her head slightly. "What is it?"
"Edward's workshop. I have decided to visit him. I have questions." His tone was serious.
Anna stared at him for a second before nodding. "Fine. It's in Sector D-7, on the northern end of City M. But I have to handle something else today, so you'll have to go alone."
Sam nodded. As she was about to turn away, her eyes caught something.
"Wait… that ring—"
Sam looked at his hand. A thin, silver ring lay on his middle finger. He hadn't noticed it before. It had intricate lines that shimmered faintly in sunlight.
"This… I saw this in the dungeon. That white-haired figure in my dream had the same ring," Sam said in a low voice.
"Huh..". Anna's eyes narrowed. "That's not just a ring." She said with a doubtful look. "...That's all I know, maybe ask Edward while you are at it."
She walked off before Sam could say another word.
—
The journey to Sector D-7 wasn't long, but it was unfamiliar. The air there smelled more of iron and oil. Steam-powered carts moved slowly through narrow streets. Sam followed Anna's directions and found himself at a large, reinforced door with two dwarf guards standing in front.
One of the dwarves raised a brow. "Who goes there?"
"I need to see Edward."
The second dwarf laughed. "Everyone says that. You got clearance?"
Sam hesitated. "I know him. He asked me to come."
"No proof, no entry," said the first one.
Sam sighed. He looked down at the ring. Then he stepped forward.
"If you want proof," he muttered, "test me."
The dwarves glanced at each other, shrugged, and pulled out blunt training axes.
It didn't take long. Sam's instincts kicked in. But that didn't help him. A short scuffle later, Sam was on his back, groaning. Against experienced fighters, he was nothing more than a practice dummy.
Sam was frustrated. He was about to back off and come again after he was healed when another dwarf showed up from inside the workshop.
"Alright, alright, that's enough." He said, turning to the others Dwarfs. "Enough playing." He said in a stern tone.
He then asked Sam to follow him asked they both walked through the reinforced door.
Inside, the workshop was filled with sparks, metal grinding against stone, and glowing enchantment cores. Edward was hunched over a table, inspecting a blueprint.
"So you came," he said without looking up.
Sam walked closer and showed him the ring.
"I don't remember putting this on. But I saw it… in that dream. On that person."
Edward finally looked up, eyes narrowing at the sight. He took the ring gently, examining it under a lens.
"This isn't a regular ring. It's an artifact, probably Riorian-made."
"Riorian?" A familiar word resurfaced.
Edward leaned back and took a deep breath.
"Long ago, before humans you earthings joined this war, there were two dominant forces in the monster army, fighting against the ancient gods. The Titans… and the Riorians. Titans were beings of chaos and destruction born along with intelligence far greater than average monsters. Riorians had a similar origin, but their appearance was very similar to normal humans. They were architects of order and balance. They used powerful runes, artifacts, and ancient mana arts to fight against the gods."
Sam listened, confused yet intrigued.
"Then one day, during the war news spread around the world that the Titan's leader had fallen and the one responsible was....the leader of Riorians - Sivelly. Of course most of the monsters didn't believe the news at first, but they all realised after the god's army's advancement speed increased signifying that somthing was wrong in the front lines. But about the things after that...I can't say anything more because it's better if you hear it from someone else."
"So this ring…"
Sam was clearly intrested in knowing more, but he knew that once Edward decides on somthing nobody can change him. "Such a tough-nut!" Sam thought in his mind.
"…is a fragment. A marker. If the ring chose you, it means your fate's tied with ..."
Sam clenched his fist. "Then atleast tell me what I should do or whom I should meet."
Edward stood and walked toward a shelf, pulling out a sealed scroll.
"Go to Nova Sanctum Academy. Meet with Instructor Cainen. He's a Riorian. Or at least, the only known one. And give this scroll to him, he'll guide you."
Sam took the scroll with both hands.
"Ok."
As he walked out of the workshop, the weight of his journey truly settled on him.
The ring pulsed faintly on his hand, as if whispering that this was only the beginning.
---