A moment passed between them before Ariandel exclaimed.

"Ah! Before I forget, I brought a few things." She said as she took out a bundle from her woolen coat and placed it between them. When she opened the package, an array of items spilled from within. There were bottles of potions in kaleidoscope shades of color, 2 archaic books with very particular design and even a glittering ring that reflected the morning sunlight on its smooth enchanted surface.

“Your passions for runes and sigils made me take the liberty of borrowing this book from my master’s collection.” She said as she picked up the heavier of the two books, its size more than double than its counterpart. It was beautifully embellished with runes, its cover filled with strange hieroglyphic letters he could somehow make sense of.

“It’s titled The Complete Compendium on Foundational Runes & their Sigils.” She declared proudly. “It’s a much more comprehensive guide than the small book you are currently using…” Her dainty hand lightly aired in the direction of a petite book of Apprentice’s Runes that lay open on his desk together with his Spellbook and a mesh of papers. “In addition it contains most of my master’s precious notes as reference. It was quite troublesome to let her part with it but it was worth it.” She solemnly stared into his eyes as she deposited the hefty book on his lap. “If you want to show your worth before the whole cathedral then the spells within will prove invaluable.”

When she saw her brother raising none any of his usual protest, a brilliant smile bloomed on her face.

“I have also brought a few potions and elixirs for your use. The red hued bottles will heal you while the purple ones will elevate fatigue. The blue tinged potions will surely refill your mana though they are meant to be used very sparingly, only as a contingency. The purple elixirs are meant to consolidate your cultivation of mana after a breakthrough…”

Her sister continued elaborating the use of each and every potion unaware of small exasperated smile on his brother’s face. Lukas was truly touched as he gazed at the sprawled things in front of him. This was proof of how just worried his sister was for his brother but all it did was make it harder for him. How could he confess to her that her true brother died under the machinations of the few? How could he explain of the terrible pain he experienced as he was being devoured by the wolves, and that the last thoughts he had were for his sister and their long distanced mother?

His dark thoughts were interrupted when her sister picked up the ring. “This…” Her pale eyes mirrored his as they stared at the accessory. “…is named the Ring of Protection. A simple White artifact enchanted with a spell that will protect you from harm two times. I wasn’t allowed to bring any of the powerful artifacts for you.” She pouted sullenly before she quickly brushed off the memory. “But it is better than nothing. Its enchantment is so shoddy that it will completely disintegrate once its strength is used so beware. Wear it at all times”

She placed the ring in his hands and it took all of Lukas’s will not to return it to his sister. Who was he kidding anyway? He needed resources true but most of all he required protection from many of the existing threats in this new world. He had no idea how effective the enchantment will be but with the ring in his hand, he made a silent vow in his heart. No matter whether he would truly be able to return to his old world or not, as long as he lived and breathed in this world, he would protect his only sibling with everything he got. At the very least he would fulfill the last wishes of a dead soul whose body he was currently living in.

“This…” her sister continued proudly as she picked the last book in the pile. “…is meant to be your Spellbook. It was especially enchanted to the element of Light thus able to ease the burden of casting low tier spells. Additionally not only can it act as a journal of sorts, able to record one's thoughts and comprehensions; spells and battle strategies. It also can be bound through special runes attuned to your own mana. No one other you can hope to open it unless they risk destroying the book.”

She enthusiastically declared her adorable face flourishing with such glee that she didn’t notice her brother’s strange expression.

“But I already have a book of spells…” he told her as he barely raised a finger when in flash of light a book floated from mess of the table to his lap in a heartbeat. It elegantly settled itself atop the runic book almost like a baby returning to its mother’s embrace.

Aria's eyes went wide

"What…how?" she asked shocked as she flitted closer and then raised the average book into her hands. It was the standard book of spells every outer sect disciple was bestowed once they qualify into the Cathedral of Light. The book was long, thin and lightly enchanted to aid the apprentice mages in their quest for magical knowledge and spell casting. It was poles apart from the spell book she wanted to grant his brother, the only difference being the small silvery runes that adorned the edges of the book and a slight heavy presence she could barely picked up with her heightened senses. She caught a light rustic scent that lingered on its surface. A smell she was very familiar with… the smell of blood.

“Is everything alright? “ Lukas asked with concern when he noticed her sister’s pale face contort in a grave manner.

“H-how are you able to do that?” She faltered before she forced out the question in her mind.

Lukas frowned, confused. “What do you mean?” he began to ask when it dawned on him. “Are you asking about how I was able to summon it?”

Ariandel barely nodded, her hands gingerly placing the book on to the floor.

The gesture was not lost to Lukas but he instead chose to answer her query. “I have…no idea.” He honestly replied. "I found I could always summon both the book and the staff at will ever since I returned." He digressed with what could only be considered the truth. Ever since he had arrived here he found that some kind of connection existed between him and the last of his previous host’s belongings. To control them, he barely needed any effort. They were so responsive that after his first shock, he chalked up the phenomena as part of the whole magical package but depending on his sister’s visceral reaction, he might have been deeply wrong.

Her eyes gleaming, she turned to look around. Noticing the staff and the respectable distance between them she requested “Can I see?” her tone ominous and yet demanding.

Curious to see where this was going, Lukas was apt for a demonstration. He simply waved his hands and the staff once resting on the wall glowed a little before it flew and settled into his hand in a flowing grace. Aria's face froze before it was filled with anguish. As her eyes watered, Lukas’s heart plummeted as he could already tell that her sister was really struggling to hide her emotions. For a moment he panicked, thinking he might have exposed himself but before he jumped to conclusions, he had to make sure.

“Ariandel, are you okay?” He couldn’t help but act concerned.

In silence, Ariandel stared at the two artifacts repeatedly. It wasn't until Lukas called out to her that she snapped out of her daze and responded.

“Brother, you almost died, didn’t you?” She whispered with a conviction of someone who was sure of what they were talking about.

Caught by surprise, Lukas stuttered. “W-w-what are you talking about?”

Ariandel stared deeply into his brother’s eyes before she picked up the book from the floor while also eyeing the staff in his hands.

“There is no doubt about it. These artifacts are definitely blood bound.” She said as her fingers fluttered over the blood scented book, a feeling of slight revulsion and deep hatred correlating within her. In a flourish of moves, she placed the book back onto the floor before wrestling the staff from her brother’s grasp.

The simple staff she observed was pearly white, with a long slender stem that afforded a strong firm grip. But where there was once a single ring of runes on its shaft denoting its rank as a White Artifact, Ariandel saw three other rings of mystical carved runes adjacent of each other. They were so artistically engraved that they seemed ethereal, letting out the same eerie silvery hue similar to his book of spells. Minute and clear, the more she stared, the more she felt as if that she was staring at the most beautiful piece of artistry in her whole life. They seemed so effortless and natural that she felt herself subtly drown to them. It took a considerate amount of effort to tear herself from the runes, willingly closing her eyes as she placed her free to hand to her chest, trying to placate her erratic heart.

A whiff of blood from the staff rose grief in her heart.

“Blood bound?” Lukas asked, justifiably confused.

Ariandel nodded with her eyes closed.

"They have turned into Blood-bounded artifacts… and they are freshly made." She said it more to herself than to her brother. Suddenly aware that her brother might be clueless of what she was talking about she explained further.

“Unless some very advanced runes are used, the first three ranks of Artifacts namely White, Silver and Diamond are rarely bonded to their wielders. Each rank denotes the strength of the mage or warrior who can safely wield the artifact and attain its maximum strength. Mortal Mages can freely wield White Ranked staffs, but they will find it almost impossible to use the Silver staffs. The same thing goes to earth mages and crystal mages. Because of this, many disciples in the cathedral train hard just so they can be bestowed with a stronger staff once they advance to the Inner Sector.”

When she opened her eyes and saw her brother attentively paying attention she sighed. “But the process of binding an artifact to the wielder in no easy feat as it involves a deeper knowledge of runes and mastery. Yet once bonded, the wielder will not only find safety in the bond, but they will also be able to obtain even greater power from their artifact.”

It finally dawned on Lukas as he stared at the two artifacts beside him. “Are you saying these artifacts are solely bonded to me and only me?”

Ariandel slowly nodded, a complicated look resurfacing on her face. “You are now only one who can use them to their full effect.” To make her point, her sister barely managed to enter her mana into his staff when Lukas suddenly recoiled with disgust. He physically felt her mana lingering inside of his staff when it quickly purged itself of the alien matter before rudely escaping her grasp and flitting back to his hand almost like a child retreating to its parent’s embrace.

Fascinated Lukas still asked a question that bothered him more than he could admit.

“What does my…ordeal have to do with the blood bonded artifact?”

Ariandel deeply exhaled before she continued.

“There are only 3 known ways of bonding an artifact to the wielder. The first method…” She crossed her first finger as she counted, “is the most common one. Through the usage of special advanced runes, an artifact can be enchanted with ability to bond with its caster. But it can only be performed by at least an Enchanter of the Fourth Tier and those are usually very expensive to hire.”

She pointed at the embossed book she had arrived with. “I was only able to obtain such an enhancement due to my master’s favor. And even then she will most probably start to pay attention to you now seeing as I’m almost sure she will check to see if you are worthy of such a treasure.”

Lukas stiffened before he wryly shook his head. It was really true that there are no free lunches in the world. A part of him was curious of just how strong her sister’s master is if she could easily afford such an enchantment but he knew such thing was much better left alone.

He didn’t want to call further to himself attention than he already has.

“The second method more uncommon but not unheard of is through the Breakthrough Momentum. The more ranks we ascend through cultivation, the harder it is for mages and other classes to increase their strengths. There have been several cases of mages using their power and the momentum of their breakthrough to influence their artifacts to ascend with them. If it ever becomes successful then the artifact is not only increased in rank and power, it conforms and conjoins to the wielder in such a way they can fully harness the power of such said artifacts."

She paused, her 2nd finger crossed as she continued. "This was proven to almost never work except on rare chances during soft and harder water shed marks in the path of cultivation. Even then the artifact was guaranteed to advance only once in its lifetime. Hence the higher the grade of the artifact, and the stronger the wielder, the longer they can use such power in their lifetime. Sadly lower cultivation stages don’t posses nearly the enough mana to perform such a ritual.”

As she slowly crossed her third finger, her face became somber.

“The last method…”she began,” is so rare and so vile that its practice was jointly outlawed years ago by almost every institution in the Continent of Lush. It has led to so many deaths that its infamy has spread to almost every corner. That is…” she dramatically paused for a second,”…through a blood connection on the Precipice of Life and Death.”

Lukas couldn’t hide the intrigue in his voice. “That’s sounds…ominous.”

Her eyes twinkled as she nodded. “It is and for a good reason as it involves the wielder to experience a life and death situation. For the bond to occur, the artifact has to be soaked with blood of the possessor. It is said that during the precipice of life and death, where emotions burned with blinding intensity, with magic lingering in the air, and dreams, desires and regrets are left unfulfilled, the artifact possess a very small window of opportunity to change at a fundamental level. But once such transformation occurs, the artifact becomes a beacon of the wielder’s twisted will. With a connection running deeper than enchantments, the Artifact is tied to its Wielder’s fate. Such a binding can never be undone unless the artifact is destroyed or its wielder dies. It's a bond the previous methods can never hope to match."

She then turned to his staff. "When I read this I never imagined I would lay witness to it with my own eyes. These types of artifacts in are usually filled with darkness especially as the wilder usually dies. But if they do live and their artifact happens to transform, most are more likely to be driven to madness, wreaking havoc and mayhem until they are sealed if possible or even destroyed in the end.”

Lukas stared at his artifacts in a new light. If the previous host had died then these would have been reeking of the danger and death and most probably would have lain in the forest until they were eventually discovered and destroyed.

He sighed. The only reason he was sure the artifacts were still docile was because the body that should have died somehow rose from the dead, with the surviving soul merging with a new one. But sadly this was something only he needed to know.

Her sister intimately cupped his face with her dainty hands. “You almost died brother. While I’m grateful you have survived, I will not allow anything like this to happen again. If our enemies dare resurface again, I will destroy them with my own hand.”

Her soft voice chilled his spine when her grim face abruptly transformed into a softer smile.

“But you shouldn’t worry so much as this can be counted as the luck of the heavens. Out of all who have perished you have obtained an unprecedented opportunity. Blood bound artifacts might be extremely reviled but their strengths are undeniable. From casters who run mad to warriors who fought for what they stood for, all of these wielders possessed enough strength to live a mark in this world, for better or for worse. It only took the lives of so many before the mages and scholars learned it was impossible to replicate such a bond. Fate decreed whether the bond formed or not, not the will of men.” She lightly said though her heart twitched with anger and sadness every time she thought that she almost lost her brother.

Shaking her head her face went through another transformation, this time filled with anticipation. “Now brother, enter your mana at fullest into the staff and let me witness its might.”

Disoriented from her abrupt shifts in moods, Lukas aimlessly filled the staff with his mana. It flowed freely and for the first time ever since he found the staff beside him on the forest of where he had transmigrated, it awakened.

The Medial staff glowed and spluttered before a bright silvery light shone on its top with a dazzling radiance. It lit up the room despite it was still day, showering the walls and the floors with a vivid luminous grey. Lukas stared in wonder as he noticed another kind of light was emitted, a sharp contrasting bluish light that ebbed and flow like a small star in the midst of a velvet sky. Along the staff, assorted energies swirled until they fully lit the first ring of runes on staff. They both curiously stared until it was clear that no matter how much Lukas channeled his mana into the staff, the first circuit of runes was the seemingly the limit, with the other rings muted and still, hinting at the latent power hidden within.

Fascinated, her sister eyes went wide with impossible conjectures filling her mind.

“Brother…you must have been touched by gods.” She breathlessly said as she pointed at the etched runes on the staff. “One of the most known limitations to blood bonded artifacts is that while the caster’s ability is massively heightened, such advantage falls off when the wielder cultivation increases. It’s why it’s written those who wield such artifacts pay a heavy price of time and precious resources to reforge their artifacts to their strengths.”

Her right hand lightly passed over the dormant runes as she continued, her fingers subtly sensing the power within. “Such a limit might not apply to you brother…at least not now. If your current mana can only empower the first ring of runes, then I reckon the rest of the runes can also be empowered as you get stronger. We would have to investigate at later date but now you can safely wield this artifact until you become an Earth mage.”

Although there was a twinge of jealously in her voice, Ariandel was truly happy for her brother. Despite what the rumors and books might say, she only saw the artifact as the perfect boon for her brother. As long as he was careful no one would have any idea of the true nature of his artifact. After all in her eyes, this was something her brother deserved after almost dying…

Lukas also traced the runes with his fingers, and the staff responded in waves of multicolored hues. He felt as if he was handling a conscious weapon which was perfectly aligned with his whole being. It sounded almost crazy but considering he had been transmigrated into the world of magic, talking weapons should be the least of his concerns.

“This is incredible,” her sister sighed. “Such an artifact truly deserves a name for itself.”

At her brother’s puzzled face, her eyes nearly rolled. “This is an artifact reborn by fate, a staff transformed by the world to cater to your every whim. Not only have you have barely scratched the surface with its power, it will stay by you for a long time to come. It will become your companion, a visible proof of what you have survived and of what legacy you are about to embark on. Bestowing it a name should commemorate its new power.”

Feeling a little pressured, Lukas stared at his staff as it glowed of light and star intermingled in its vibrant shade. He thought of his own soul altar and the unique situation it was in. Slowly like an ebbing flow, a perfect name rose into his mouth, a name that portrayed his previous world obsession with the night sky and the stars that flickered on its surface, a name that encompassed his passion of the zodiac that filled the heavens above.

He solemnly opened his mouth and announced in audience of one

“I shall call you…The Starlight Staff" he proudly declared naming the very staff that would accompany him on the many of the upcoming adventures on his exalted journey of magic; the staff that would bear witness to his growth and power and finally at the very end, illuminate the skies with its pervasive brilliance when the vast darkness threatens to engulf the whole world.