Alnea never worried for himself. His master did that enough for the both of them. The robe that she had made for him had enough Glyph Arrays sewed into its borders to render the attacks of even True Wanderers as useless. He could not say the same about the girls though. At least not for Cecilia and Vestia. He still remembered how their first trip into the Black Desert had gone.

  Although he had always expected the Lotus clan to ambush them, he had never thought that they would be able to command so many Oren Beasts. Not to mention that the Wanderers of the Lotus clan themselves were particularly strong. If not for some quick thinking on Yuri and Vestia’s part to separate those Wanderers, their end might have been a little different.

  Even then, by the time they took down all their enemies, their team had been almost completely wiped out, leaving half of them severely injured, and the rest, completely exhausted. Never again, Alnea had said to himself. And proven himself to be true to his words. He had never let his team suffer such a dangerous situation again. At the very least, he had kept them from facing despair. But that was before, when he was not being targeted by the entire city. In his current situation, he was not sure if he could continue doing the same. Thus, the Glyph Tokens.

  It was not his first time creating one. He had created a Glyph Token as far back as a month after entering the Lost City. A few of those old creations were still resting in storage pouch, waiting to be used in desperate situations. They were, after all, prototypes of a pseudo Eternal Flame. Using them came at a risk of not only injuring himself, but all those around him, including his teammates. Such suicidal methods were best reserved for desperate situations, and perhaps, to hold back their enemies.

  Just in case, he had given some of his old creations to the girls after returning from their first Black Desert Trial. Thankfully, their situation never devolved to a point where they would have had to use those Glyph Tokens. Yet. The Final Trial…

  Alnea did not know what they would have to face in the Final Trial, but he knew that the Glyph Tokens he had given to the girls was far from enough to ensure their safety. Or that of his other teammates. Then again, what else could he expect from a Glyph Token made from just a single Glyph, and a clever combination of some active materials? Or one made just a month after he had begun walking the path of Scholars?

  No, the prototypes of the pseudo Eternal Flames were just a fail safe measure. To ensure the safety of his teammates, to keep the girls from getting hurt, Alnea had always been experimenting with his Glyphs, trying to create a Glyph Token that could help defend them against unexpected enemies. Unfortunately, Glyphs of the lineage of Destruction were not quite suited for defending and recuperating, so he had not been met with much success.

  That was until he exchanged some Blood Glyphs, and became inspired with their structures, and their effects. Of course, he could not actually use the Blood Glyphs. He did not know what lineage they were from, but they were certainly not from the lineage of Destruction. Using them would be akin to dooming himself. The Blood Crystal Martial Styles though…

  A few experiments, and many failures later, when he accidentally depicted the Blood Crystal Patterns in the structure of Blood Glyphs in a daze, he effectively combined the two to create something entirely different from either of them. Not exactly a Glyph, but not exactly a Martial Style either. Something between the two… A Token that had to be charged with Oren ahead of time, and did not actively summon a Mystery, yet somehow, still managed to summon a shield, and recover his Spirit Power and mental strength when triggered by the set conditions.

  Blood Spirit Tear, Alnea called it, a name he had derived from its shape and origin. And though he did not know exactly how the Blood Spirit Tears worked, that did not stop him from distributing some of them to his teammates. After all, having a Blood Spirit Tear by their side was almost like having an extra life.

  For the girls though, he was going to prepare something different. Something a little more potent, and secure. Maybe he was being a little paranoid. Maybe, he should have had a little more trust in his teammates. But just like how the Orthodoxies could not take any risks with the Lost City’s legacy, he could not take any risks with the lives of his teammates either. Especially with the girls.

  He did not know what the Final Trial was going to be, or how the other clans were going to target him and his team, but preparing more lifesaving means could never hurt him. Three Glyph Tokens that could summon a shield capable of withstanding all attacks below the Rank of True Wanderers for each of the girls, two Tokens that could heal their injuries and restore their Spirit Power, two Tokens that could launch attacks beyond the scope of average Peak Stage Wanderers… Did he miss anything?

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  Alnea looked at the array of Glyph Tokens resting in front of him, glancing at the remains of the materials he had used towards his left, before letting out a sigh. Having exhausted all the materials he had bought, even if he had missed something, what could he do? Fantasise about what more he could have created in his head?

  Collecting the Glyph Tokens, Alnea put them away, before stretching out his limbs. Creating Glyph Tokens was hard. And tiring. Both mentally, and in terms of Spirit Power. The Spirit Power that he had recovered a couple of hours earlier was almost all exhausted. He did not wish to meditate just yet though. So, he began exercising, practising his Martial Styles that could be used without Oren. Like the Oathkeeper Style.

  How long had it been since he had last practised the Oathkeeper Style? A couple of months? Maybe three? He could not remember. A realisation that struck a certain chord within his Heart. Once, he had relied almost entirely on the Oathkeeper Style to progress in other Martial Styles. After mastering other Martial Styles though, he almost never used it again. When exactly had he stopped caring about the Oathkeeper Style? More importantly, why had he stopped caring about it?

  Alnea paused in his steps for a moment, as he recalled what he had said to himself while pondering on Concepts within the Spring of Eternity. That it was not yet time to delve into the secrets of the Oathkeeper Arts. That what he had figured out was already enough to keep him busy for a long time to come. But then, why had he not thought about the Oathkeeper Arts after coming back from the desert? Was it because it was not of his world? Was it because of Alnea Oathkeeper of the world of Attuners? Was he afraid?

  Taking a deep breath to clear his head, Alnea resumed his practise of the Oathkeeper Arts, moving from one stance to another, reacquainting himself with what he had lost, while examining himself at the same time. The Slaughtering Human Stance, a stance dedicated to have him Slaughter the hesitation of fighting against other humans. A feat that he had finally accomplished after coming to the Lost City. He was still a little reluctant to kill, but if anyone threatened the things he cared about, he would not hesitate to kill.

  Slaughtering Blade Stance, an extension of the Slaughtering Human Stance, was meant for teaching its practitioners how to Slaughter their hesitation for picking up their blades. Not literal blades, of course. It could be any weapon. Or it could be just a thought. An idea. An intention to fight. Not meaninglessly, but for a purpose. Like protecting the things he cared about. As long as one had a purpose to fight, they would have a Blade in their Heart, and grasp the essence of Slaughtering Blade Stance.

  In contrast, the Slaughtering Serpent Stance was more about Slaughtering the hesitation of using any means to deal with one’s enemies, while the Slaughtering Turtle Stance was about helping its practitioner Slaughter the hesitation in defending like a turtle if they met an enemy they could not defeat. Things like honour can be regained when they get stronger. Vengeance can be had in time. As long as one was alive, anything was possible. That was the essence of the two stances.

  Alnea could never completely grasp the latter two stances. At first, he thought that it was because of their weird movements. In reality though, he just could not accept retreating in danger, and leaving the people he cared about to fend for themselves, only to get revenge for them later. What was the point in revenge, if one could not even protect the people they loved?

  The two stances were not for him. So, he skipped the two stances, and moved on to the Slaughtering Tiger Stance instead. A stance, that focused on Slaughtering the Tiger within his Heart. And by Tiger, the stance meant the ferociousness within one’s Heart. Coupled with the Slaughtering Phoenix Stance, which focussed on Slaughtering the lust within one’s Heart, if one could succeed in the two stances, they could gain a hint of sagacity…

  Although the thought of sagacity, and not letting any external factors influence his Heart was tempting, he did not even think twice before skipping over the two stances, moving on to the Seventh Stance. The Slaughtering Dragon Stance. The stance that resonated the most with his Heart, teaching him how to Slaughter all his fears and worries. A stance, that taught him courage.

  Then there was the Eighth Stance, the Slaughtering God Stance, that spoke about Slaughtering the inviolable respect for the Gods. In essence, the stance was meant to inculcate a belief within one’s Heart that even the Gods were not invincible. That if they were strong enough, they could stand even above the Gods. Alnea had no intention of standing above the Gods though. He was content with protecting everyone he loved, and becoming the strongest and the greatest Wanderer.

  And so, of the eight stances of the Slaughtering Origin Volume, Alnea chose to retain only three, discarding the rest. After all, if he wished to truly make the Oathkeeper Arts his own, if he wished to truly create an Oathkeeper Style, one that belonged solely to himself, then he would have to create a Martial Style that would suit his Heart, and not change his Heart according to the Oathkeeper Arts. Then, and only then, would he be able to stand at the apex of the world, and protect everything he loved.