Chapter 133: His New Map

Raziel stood in his room staring at the bronze plate resting on his small wooden desk.

He survived the Ascension Tournament and secured his title as Quintile, gaining unrestricted access to their Library.

He could stop reacting to immediate threats and start planning a long-term strategy.

He analyzed the current situation and broke down the tactical map.

The first marker on the bronze blueprint glowed a solid permanent silver.

He mastered Architectural Inscription in the East Basement.

The first of the six Forbidden Gifts belonged to him.

The second marker blinked with an urgent pulse.

The chamber for Soul Resonance sat beneath the Main Chapel.

He needed to bypass the consecrated stone and the constant Paladin patrols to reach the chamber without destroying the main altar and triggering a heresy alarm.

The third marker for Bond Forging flickered and lacked a fixed location on the map.

The coordinates shifted on the bronze metal, indicating the chamber required a specific trigger to anchor itself in reality.

The fourth marker for Chronoperception remained dark.

The fifth marker for Anchor Blood showed no signs of activation.

The sixth marker for Devourer stayed dead.

The bronze plate confirmed the sequence.

He needed to master the Gifts in exact numerical order.

The ancient system locked the later chambers behind the prerequisite mastery of the earlier disciplines.

Raziel grabbed a piece of parchment and a charcoal pencil, drawing a timeline.

The System estimated Prince Ayres would execute his coup in eleven months.

He needed months to master the remaining five anomalous magics, but he could not do it alone.

Raziel left his room and gathered his pieces.

He brought them to the abandoned storage room near the old armory.

It was the only place in St. Celeste devoid of instructor patrols.

Lucian sat on a wooden crate sharpening his practice dagger, Lara stood by the small window.

Zorya sat on the floor with her legs crossed clutching her heavy canvas satchel of runic notes.

Caius stood in the darkest corner of the room leaning against the stone wall and staring at the group with his empty eyes.

Raziel stood in the center of the room pulling the bronze plate from his tunic and setting it down on a flat wooden crate.

Five faces looked down at the glowing metal map.

“Six Gifts,” Raziel stated pointing at the six markers engraved into the bronze.

“Six sealed chambers hidden beneath our feet.”

Lucian leaned forward squinting at the silver runes. “And the Church knows nothing.”

“The Church built their religion on top of a temple they do not understand,” Caius answered from the corner. “They live inside a library filled with books they cannot read.”

Zorya pulled a fresh parchment from her bag and started sketching the map layout, her ink-stained fingers moving fast.

“I translated the first sequence in the East Basement,” Zorya said without looking up from her drawing.

“The foundational runes require absolute precision so we need to decode the architectural syntax for the other five chambers.”

Lucian spun the dagger in his hand. “I can scout the entry points without triggering the alarms.”

Lara turned her head away from the window. “I will monitor the emotional signatures of the instructors.”

Raziel looked at the group possessing the perfect tactical squad.

Lucian provided stealth and physical combat.

Lara offered early warning perception.

Zorya supplied technical runic research.

Caius held the historical knowledge of the Ancient Pantheon.

Raziel withheld the specific details of his Umbral Paragon core from Zorya and Caius.

They knew he possessed an anomaly but they did not need to know about the Shadow Parasite or the exact cost to his humanity.

Zorya pointed her pencil at the dark markers on the map. “How much time do you need?”

Raziel crossed his arms. “To master all six? I do not know. Months. More.”

Lara frowned. “What if we lack months?”

Raziel met her gaze. “Then I learn faster.”

BAM BAM

A heavy knock hit the door.

Lara gasped taking a step back from the window. “I felt no one approaching.”

“Because I project zero intent,” a voice said from the hallway.

Raziel walked over and opened the door.

Arawn Rivers stepped into the storage room wearing a dark travel cloak covered in road dust.

He looked exhausted, bypassing Raziel and walking straight to the center of the room.

“I bring fresh news from the capital,” Arawn announced without bothering with greetings.

Lucian stood up gripping his dagger. “Is it bad?”

“It is catastrophic,” Arawn replied.

Arawn pulled a crumpled dispatch order from his cloak and tossed it onto the wooden crate next to the bronze map.

It carried the red wax seal of the Inquisition.

“Elector Mordecai initiated the Silence Protocol,” Arawn explained. “He convinced the High Luminar to sign a continent-wide mandate.”

Raziel picked up the crumpled paper and read the text.

“What is the Silence Protocol?” Zorya asked.

“It is a total purge,” Caius answered from the shadows. “They will blind the world.”

Arawn nodded. “The Inquisition deployed specialized sealing teams across Phaedra. They travel to every ruin and every old temple and every academy built over the remains of the Pantheon.”

Arawn looked straight at Raziel.

“They will seal the ancient nodes. They plan to pour consecrated lead into the foundational runes and destroy the magical architecture. They will murder the memory of the Nine.”

Raziel tightened his grip on the dispatch order crushing the paper under his fingers.

“St. Celeste is priority number one,” Arawn added. “Mordecai confirmed the node activation during the tournament. He knows the anomaly is here.”

The room fell into silence.

The long-term strategy shattered. The eleven-month timeline held zero value now.

“How much time do we have?” Raziel asked.

Arawn crossed his arms. “Mordecai is assembling a massive team of high-level sealers in the capital. They need to gather the consecrated materials and secure the transport routes.”

Arawn paused.

“They arrive in two months.”

Two months.

Raziel looked down at the bronze plate.

The second marker beneath the Main Chapel blinked.

The race was no longer about reaching the Forge before Zion was against the clock instead.

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