The scroll with the map was actually the greatest treasure Wolf had brought out. Everything else he picked up was of little consequence when compared with it. This included even the replica of Lonely Eagle’s sword.

The map depicted most of the Empire of Elf, a part of Empire Human as well as some of the territories under the rule of Monster Beasts. In this day and age finding a map with this much detailed information was next to impossible, doubly so since this map was magical in nature.

The region depicted on the map was crisscrossed with red lines. Looking at those red lines Archibald had the feeling that they were the world’s blood vessels. All of those blood vessels were heading towards the same destination, their destination.

The map portion itself appeared simple and small. It lacked any text, or borders or settlements. And yet when the user of the map focused on those red lines their mind would be flooded with information on the selected route. These details were abundant, extremely clear and described even the most minute of features. It went as far as to include the number of steps one had to take before making the slightest change in course. The magical thing was that the number of steps changed to match the user’s current stride. Archibald tested by tiptoeing and by making extra large steps. Truly a marvelous thing!

After reading the scroll that accompanied the map, Archibald knew that this was no ordinary parchment. It was a very powerful artifact. The man was positive that this wasn’t created by Lonely Eagle. In fact Archibald knew that no Mage or True-Namer of this era could create something as elaborate as this humble-looking map. Scratching his head for a moment Archibald realized that he couldn’t even recall a mythical existence that could fashion such a profound artifact.

On several occasions Archibald tried to think about why such a treasure was given out so easily, but every time something else would grab his attention. After finally cleaning his shoe of the sticky dung he had stepped in Archibald gathered his thoughts and shared his conclusions with Wolf.

“Son, you’ve really stumbled across a marvelous treasure. This seems to have been made by some great person before recorded history began. If you really can obtain the inheritance this map mentions, the Sword-Saint’s place you’ve been to will appear like a hovel when compared to a castle.”

Hearing his father’s praise Wolf beamed a bright smile. As for the rest of the words, he didn’t quite understand them. His great adventure had taken a turn for the better. After months of doing nothing but walking he had finally slain monsters and found a treasure as big as a castle! Well, the monsters were illusory wolves for the most part. And there was no real danger for Wolf, but still it kind of felt real, if one ignored the illusions sometimes glitching. And there was still the castle his father just mentioned. Heroes needed castles!

Having made their decision, Archibald and Wolf set off towards their next destination. The red line was merely several dozen paces away, seventy-three according to the map. Archibald figured that Lonely Eagle had most likely chosen this place because it was right next to one of those red lines. And really, after taking those seventy-three steps Archibald and Wolf stepped onto a clearing they hadn’t noticed before.

This was an earthen road that disappeared into the horizon on one side, while on the other it seemed to end just where Archibald and Wolf stood. The path was two meters wide, free of underbrush and trees, covered with grass that reached half way up to Wolf’s knees.

Archibald stared with disbelief.

Wait, this stretches all the way back to the Northshield duchy, but it looks like it’s ending just here?

“Let’s go.” Archibald said and led the way.

The big man immediately noticed that with each step they took, the path behind them vanished. Archibald focused hard on seeing why it vanished. The funny thing was that nothing really changed, but Archibald’s eyes couldn’t recognize this patch of grass and instinctively drifted towards the bushes and the surrounding forest. He tried walking back, but after five steps he drifted off the road and found himself in the underbrush.

Marvelous! I wonder how he did it?

I guess it really is like the map says. The red veins really are a safe path for those seeking knowledge. Or the sacred passage of enlightenment, as the map called it.

I just wonder what the supreme legacy of the world is? Under normal circumstances I’d say the man that wrote that is cocky, but just seeing this road…

I just need to run one more test.

“Wolf, can you stay here and go through the chants for the spells you know? I’ll be right back. Oh, and be loud when listing them.” The man didn’t wait for an answer and stepped into the bushes.

Amazingly, after taking just one step he was unable to hear Wolf. Archibald turned around to see whether the boy had begun. Just like when looking back, he was unable to focus on what was happening on the road. Not only that, Archibald was unable to see a single trace of his son.

When he stepped back on the road he heard Wolf loudly speaking the words of Ventriloquism spell.

Archibald’s mind was blown. This meant that he could talk as loudly as he wanted! As long as he met the requirements this road offered perfect protection. Meaning as long as they were traveling towards the conflux of these red lines they would be safe. Which was fine, because that was their destination anyway…

Nothing much had changed in the way in which the father and son traveled. Archibald continued lecturing, while Wolf paid close attention and asked questions from time to time. Still, in the back of his mind, Archibald couldn’t help admiring this marvelous work of magic. This was true magic, not spells! This was changing the world and not asking it to bend a bit to suit your present need as long as your bribe was good enough…

Over the course of a week Archibald and Wolf strictly followed the path, even making camp on it. They only strayed when nature called. And that was because Archibald said that this was a masterpiece that shouldn’t be tainted. They encountered neither man, nor beast. This changed about a month after they had set off on their new journey.

That day father and son spotted a Black-tailed Monitor. The seven meter long lizard was on the prowl and its mostly green body with black stripes blended perfectly with the forest.

Under normal circumstances, this twentieth Order Monster Beast should’ve noticed them well before they saw it. Given its speed and camouflage it would’ve devoured a pair of manling travelers before they managed to scream.

However, with the protection of this road, the monstrous reptile lazily dragged its body not five steps from them. It didn’t even look in their direction as a forked tongue darted in and out of its mouth.

As the monster passed them Archibald was stiff. He believed in the magical path of enlightenment, but he was a father with a small child next to him! That small child on the other hand was filled with curiosity as he observed the Monster Beast with awe.

The lizard was as tall as Archibald. It prowled in search for prey, its giant head bobbing left and right in a steady rhythm. Even though it was obviously hunting, the Monster Beast failed to notice their existence. Wolf tried hard to be noticed though. His wows almost earned him a beating from Archibald, but the boy couldn’t help it. As far as he was concerned this was a real dragon!

Time passed. At first the pair spent their evenings with Archibald teaching Wolf how to read and write. Unsurprisingly, Wolf took only a couple of days to figure it out. A couple of weeks later Wolf was fairly proficient with math as well. Whatever Archibald taught Wolf understood on the first try. It’s just that some things like grammar and advanced algebra needed time to sink in.

High comprehension ability was one of the many advantages of having a powerful soul and a well developed Mind Palace. Unfortunately building up a vocabulary would take a lot longer. Right now Archibald decided to focus on magic, rather than teaching Wolf random complicated words. Even though half of the man’s vocabulary were random complicated words…

A couple of days after running into the Black-tailed Monitor, Wolf managed to cast Mirror Image. This was a Third Order illusion spell that created mirage doubles around the caster. While Archibald was caught off guard, he was no longer as shocked as he would’ve been before the two of them set off on this journey.

The weeks he had spent tutoring Wolf on reading, writing, grammar and mathematics made the man painfully aware that compared to his son, he was hardly better than an idiot. Since Archibald was very confident of his own genius, this made him a very proud parent indeed.

Time passed. Archibald lectured about the theory of magic whenever they were on the move. In the evening he prepared camp and dinner while Wolf practiced casting third and Fourth Order spells.

This steady rhythm continued and nine more months went by in a blink of an eye. It was now midwinter. Back in the Northshield the snow would’ve already piled up several meters high, but in this primal forest of the Beast-lands the climate appeared to be locked in an eternal spring.

On a certain day, in the early afternoon, Archibald and Wolf finally reached the mysterious cave which was the focal point of these roads of enlightenment. Archibald was trembling with excitement. In fact his reaction was much more violent than Wolf’s. He checked the map carefully and they were indeed only a hundred paces from the grand cave, but he couldn’t see it no matter how hard he looked around.

Finally when they were only a few dozen paces away Wolf pointed towards a hollow in a huge rock. Calling that thing a cave was an overstatement. It was no more than a crack in the side of a rock that was several dozen meters in diameter. The hollow was three to four meters deep and less than two meters tall at its highest part. Yet this unsightly place was where all of those roads met.

It was more of a cranny than a cave and a grown man couldn’t stand upright inside of it. No explorer would spare it a second glance and it was too shallow for an animal to make a den in there. The only way Archibald could imagine himself going inside it would be if he was looking for a shelter in the middle of a storm, but even then surrounding trees offered better and more comfortable awning.

“Are you sure this is it?” Archibald asked with obvious doubt, despite holding the map. The man was filled with doubt to the point that he had actually asked his five-year-old whether he was seeing things.

“I don’t know? We followed the map all the way here, so this should be it?” Wolf was just as uncertain. Still, he decided to slowly walk towards the cave.

“I don’t know how long I’ll take this time dad.”

After taking a step Wolf turned around and looked at his father with concern.

“Take care and don’t worry about me. Just do your best and get back safe.” Archibald knew that he would be safe as long as he was near the cave. In fact he was more concerned about Wolf. Especially when he thought about that Magma Marrow incident. He tried to teach his son some complicated words, but that was just random, you never know what someone could say…

Once Wolf walked into the hollow he saw a silvery plaque on the left wall of the cave. How did we not see this from the outside?

“Hey dad take a…” Wolf shouted before being interrupted by a familiar woman’s voice. He longed to hear that voice and it pulled him into a trance.

“It’s easy to be virtuous when times favor you. It is easy to praise a god that sends you nothing but blessings. It is easy to be filial before a master when all you know is light and sunshine. How will you act when good times abandon you? Will you curse your god when they send nothing but hardship? How do you treat your honored master when they are in need of shelter as the sky falls and demons reign?”

Wolf stood dazed as he heard his mother asking these questions. He didn’t know all of those words, yet all of them entered his mind with greater clarity than a normal person could ever understand.

Wolf stood in a daze. Finally, after gods know how much time, he snapped out of it. Wolf looked before him and the cave stretched into infinite darkness. It was odd that there was no light, even though the opening was mere meters behind Wolf.

Wolf walked for a long while. Really long, days probably. Occasionally he would step on a dry twig which crisply snapped. The deeper he went in the more twigs there were until Wolf made several crunching sounds whenever he took another step. The boy had no idea how long he had been walking, but at some point he saw a faint green light up ahead.

Walking towards the green light Wolf eventually came across a man holding a green flame on the palm of his hand. The old man was scrawny, nothing but skin and bones. His white beard reached all the way to his waist. His unkempt hair looked more like tangled ropes than something that should be found on a human head. The old man raised his head and slowly made his way towards Wolf.

As the old man approached the light of his green flame allowed Wolf to see what was around him. He was standing on a floor littered with small bones. The walls of the cave were covered with skulls and bones. Just those that Wolf could see numbered in tens of thousands, maybe even more.

Despite seeing such a disturbing scene Wolf did not panic one bit. Bones were a part of the dead. Dead came back to life after a while. Death was only a brief moment of moving between lives, while the empty husks that used to be people were nothing to be afraid of.

“Good. It seems you understand.” The old man’s face showed a hint of satisfaction as he gave a slight nod of approval.

“Those that don’t understand can never leave here and can’t be taught regardless of their talent in other fields. I used to be a famous Mage at some point. If you wish to accept me as your honored master I will gladly guide you. I don’t want anything in return, save to be treated the way I deserve to be treated. What do you say young one?”

Archibald's lessons:

Manlings worship ten gods that make up a single pantheon. All races of man worship the same ten deities. As for Monster Beasts, manlings don't know whether or not they have their own gods.