A Background Character’s Path to Power Chapter 308: Bargain With The Warden

Zephyr leaned forward, his eyes sharpening with interest. "So you know about the other dinsional tears then?"

Ossian nodded gravely. "Both of the other Overseers were spotted in their respective ’tears’. And both of the tears were on this continent. One was probably at the opposite end of this continent, while the other was between the continental borders. That’s the only thing I rember about their locations. The rest is swallowed by the fog, as if the Abyss doesn’t want to rember them."

He paused, his skeletal form growing more rigid as if recalling sothing particularly troubling.

"That’s right, I have to warn you about one thing about the Abyss itself," he continued, his voice taking on a more urgent tone. "The corruption it spreads... It’s not just physical or ntal. It’s sothing far more insidious."

His eyes flickered between us, ensuring he had our complete attention.

"The Abyss doesn’t just corrupt individuals - it corrupts the very fabric of reality around dinsional tears. The laws of our world get broken, ti flows differently, and space itself becos... unreliable. What should be a day’s journey might take weeks, or you might find yourself walking in circles for hours only to discover you’ve sohow traveled hundreds of miles."

I felt a chill run down my spine. This was worse than I’d anticipated.

"Moreover," Ossian continued, "the closer you get to these tears, the stronger the Abyss’s whispers beco. They’ll try to convince you that your friends are enemies, that your mission is pointless, that surrender is the only logical choice. And unlike the Architect’s silver tongue, these whispers know your deepest fears, your secret shas, your most painful mories."

He looked directly at , then at Zephyr.

"The Nexus Stone will help, but it’s not perfect protection. You must be prepared for the possibility that one or both of you might be compromised, even temporarily. Have signals, have backup plans, and most importantly..." His voice grew deadly serious. "Never, ever split up near a dinsional tear. The Abyss loves to isolate its prey."

"Then, is there a way to cure the corruption or fight against it?" I asked, though I suspected I already knew the answer from his grim expression.

Ossian shook his head slowly. "Unfortunately, no. At least, not in our ti. The only thing that proved useful against corruption was the light elent."

He gestured toward the faintly glowing Nexus Stone.

"Light-based techniques could slow the spread of corruption, sotis even halt it temporarily. But a complete cure? We never found one. The most common thod we developed was to create barriers of concentrated light around corrupted areas, containing the spread rather than eliminating it. So of our most skilled light practitioners could even purify small objects or heal minor corruption in its earliest stages."

His voice grew more serious. "But prevention is always better than attempting a cure. Avoid prolonged exposure, never touch corrupted materials with bare skin, and if you feel the whispers beginning, retreat imdiately. The mont you start rationalizing why you should listen to them, you’re already halfway lost."

Ossian straightened, his violet eyes dimming slightly. "That’s all the information I know regarding your questions. And I doubt I can rember any more, even if I tried."

I nodded respectfully. "Thank you, Senior. That should be more than enough."

A mont of silence passed, then Ossian’s gaze shifted aningfully toward , and I caught the subtle change in his deanor.

"Good, then..." he said, his tone becoming almost ceremonial. "It’s ti to give you so gifts too. Tell , what do you need?"

Finally, the mont I’d been waiting for.

I smiled, the plan fully ford in my mind. "To be honest, Senior, I need a lot of things. To escape, to fight, to defend myself, to protect myself from psychic attacks, to attack, to move quickly—"

"Wait, wait!"As I continued to count on my fingers, Ossian raised his massive claw, cutting off with a strained, apologetic sound. "My apologies, young friend, but I cannot give you that much. Nor do I have such a vast arsenal. I can grant you about... three gifts-"

"Five," I said imdiately, not missing a beat.

Ossian’s eyes twitched noticeably. "Three," he insisted, his voice firming. "Your companion received three substantial boons. It is only right that you receive an equal number."

I shook my head, my expression turning earnest. "With all due respect, Senior, didn’t you say it yourself? Zamir is the stronger one, and I’m the weak, unreliable one." I spread my hands in a helpless gesture. "The logic is sound; shouldn’t the weaker link in the chain be reinforced more to ensure it doesn’t break? And five isn’t really a big number considering the scale of the task."

I leaned forward slightly, employing my most reasonable tone. "Think about it, Senior. What will the world say if I were to die while completing your task? What would your old comrades, Lady Mayan, Sir Marcus, and Lady Elena, say if they learned of it? That the great guardian Ossian was... frugal to a fault with the fate of the world at stake?"

I let the question hang in the air, watching the lights in his sockets flicker rapidly as he processed the blatant emotional and rhetorical blackmail. It was a low blow, invoking his fallen friends, but a necessary one.

...It’s still not enough?

"Besides, if Zamir is our main fighter, then I need to be our support, our strategist, our backup plan. That requires more versatility, more tools to work with. You’re not just giving gifts, you’re investing in our mission’s success rate."

Ossian stared at for a long mont, his jaw slightly agape again. Finally, he let out a sound that might have been a sigh.

"...Five it is, then."

"Thank you, Senior!" I gave him my happiest smile. "Your generosity is as boundless as your wisdom."

Then I straightened myself, taking on a more serious expression.

"First," I began, holding up a finger. "I need a reliable way to detect the Abyss and its corruption. A relic, a technique, an art, whatever you have that is most effective. Your description of distorted space and hidden corruption is our greatest threat. We cannot fight what we cannot see. This is non-negotiable for the mission’s success."

I paused to make sure the critical logic of this request was clear before continuing.

"Second, I need..."