Free Web NovelChapter 9: Piece
’Wait a moment...’
Right in front of his room, Cillian came to an abrupt halt.
His hand that extended towards the door’s knob seemed to have paused to open the door as his mind seemed to dart to another situation.
’Who was that person earlier sitting beside the other man?’
He was fully focused on indifferent but warm Darwin.
Hiding away that he had stolen a Piece from Bard and questioning about the matters relating to creating a club, he had forgotten the existence of the person beside Darwin earlier.
’Ugh, at least I know that the person is a she. Why do I have a hard time remembering things in this guy’s head if I didn’t think about it very seriously?’
Since he couldn’t grasp particular details about the lady as he was vigilant about not getting caught, Cillian had to set aside his suspicions and enter his room.
His eyes cast towards the entire room. Even if it was full of trash and things were scattered around, it was rather empty.
This room for three people had been reduced to one person. After Fergus’ disappearance, Fred came next. It seemed he quickly moved out right after their fight.
His bed, whose sheets were cleaned and his cabinet being emptied, Cillian was left alone with it.
He curled his lips upwards.
"Just the way I like it."
With no disturbances that could pry or look into him, Cillian can now focus on what he should do currently.
And that was studying the Piece and becoming a Ruiner!
Locking the door, Cillian headed straight to his bed and picked up the gold coin.
Bringing it down, he scrutinized it with a strange look as he formed a hypothesis inside his head.
"This Piece is something that person even complimented with just a single glance. It appeared to be some sort of relic of the past, and because it had an intricate design, Bard used it as a decoration. But because its Runic Language didn’t appear too obvious and small to even look at, people who didn’t survey it too much will likely think of it as some sort of item."
As for where it originated and how it came into the hands of Bard, Cillian didn’t care, as the moment he came to this world, this was one of the things he put his attention on since it was mentioned and seen by the main character.
"Piece huh..."
A Piece can be called the Things of the Ruins, Boon of the Ruin Gates, Trove of the Otherworldly, or Gifts of the Unknown.
It goes by many names, but it is mainly a Piece because it can be a form of any item, such as a cup, a formless fire, or a moving eye. Literally anything.
That’s why it is a Piece.
It is simple to write and say as well, making it convenient for others.
’What can you expect from a trash author?’
The names given to these Pieces stemmed from being treasures inside the Runic Gates after it was ’cleared’.
These Pieces that came from different disguises are a way to become a Ruiner. Ruiners are something people used to call that consumed these Pieces.
These Pieces aren’t something that can just come and be acquired and receive their power.
There are certain ’requirements’ for one to become a Ruiner.
Cillian, who had prior knowledge thanks to certain someone and also read tidbits of the articles and information regarding the Pieces, set up some principles for himself to finally become a Ruiner.
’First, understand the Runic Language inputted onto the Pieces.’ fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
Without its ’activation’ sequence, a person will not begin acquiring its power.
’Second, each Piece has its weakness, and its information is stored by whoever owns that particular Runic Book from its Runic Gate.’
Clearly, the one who wields the book has the advantage, hence Ruiners are careful to show their powers.
Keep it a secret and only show it when it is needed.
’Third, a Ruiner’s greatest enemy that removes a person’s Piece is called Butchers.’
It could be anyone. Someone you love might be aiming to get your Piece and transform it into an Artifact and use it for themselves.
Someone really need to be alert once they’ve become known as a Ruiner.
Cillian let out a short breath and muttered.
"Power comes with a price."
He might be lying if all he thought about was having fun in this unknown world.
Obviously, he was as nervous as anyone if they were put in the same situation.
Getting a Piece is a means to protect himself, in a way, he wouldn’t get played by the hands of the others.
In that way, he could do the things that can achieve self-fulfillment.
At this point, he slowly adjusted to the fact that he belonged to this world. The clues he had as to how he got transmigrated died within his hands.
He doesn’t even know how he transmigrates into the body of a character from some novel that he loathes, and the killer happens to be the author.
That part is the worst
"Pheww..."
Feeling his mind went adrift for a moment, Cillian relaxed.
Knowing it would be bad if he didn’t put his utmost attention on figuring out the words of the gold coin can pose a danger.
He understands the hidden danger from it and is ready to act upon it once he does.
"Now then..."
Cillian quickly knew that the gold coin with intertwined faces on its front and back was small, like the coins back from Earth.
For that same reason, if they weren’t looking carefully, one would not know that it was a Piece.
Cillian himself might not believe the gold coin was indeed a Piece if not for the fact that it was notarized by that person.
He would have the same opinion as Bard and others who might have seen this.
But it wouldn’t matter to him since the only thing he needed to worry about was finding the runic words in the gold coin.
It was something that he had learned from that person. As long as the Piece is real, the Runic words it contains are manifested as well.
’It needs something like a magnifying glass. No matter how many times I looked at it, I’m still unable to discern anything.’
With a sigh, Cillian left his bed and proceeded to find anything that could be used to magnify whatever he could see in the gold coin.
After a thorough research around the room, he heaved another sigh of relief as he found an extremely old monocle under his drawer.
Putting the monocle on his right eye, Cillian looked at himself in the mirror and pinched it slightly.
"Looks cool."
Cillian then did another inspection.
First, he looked at the front side of the coin, and there were words attached to it. It was written in Runic Language and goes around in a circle.
He slowly read it in Runic while slowly moving the coin.
"To deceive is to perform tricks."
Upon reading it in that language, Cillian quieted down, trying to see if he was successful.
Yet for a whole minute, nothing had changed.
According to what he knew, an appearance of dark green, intricate, and hazy Runic words should resurface in the air. That is what he knew from that person.
For now, there aren’t any changes.
"Did I miss something...?"
Cillian muttered quietly before proceeding to head to the back face of the coin, and to his slight surprise, there was another runic language.
"To perform tricks, one must be equipped with deceits."
Upon remembering those words, Cillian carefully placed the gold coin between his hands so that the sides kissed each other.
Letting out a short breath, he begins the activation activation of a Piece by saying the passage in Runic Language.
"To deceive is to perform tricks. To perform tricks, one must be equipped with deceits."
In that instant, Cillian’s eyes widened.
His vision changed, seeing spherical and intricate "lights" and a "view" that resembled the outer space back on Earth surrounding him.
They were overwhelming and mysterious.
In the middle of these lights and view, the elaborate language of Runic manifested, appearing to be the same words as the passage he just read.
Soon, the spherical lights exploded into tiny bits as they meshed around with the green, hazy Runic Language.
When it’s done, the surrounding vision he had was only the "view" without any spherical lights. The words became more prominent. Almost instantly, these words compressed before getting back inside the gold coin.
Gulp!
Cillian couldn’t help but marvel and be nervous at what he had just witnessed. The only thing he did was chuckle and mutter in an amused tone.
"As expected of a fantasy world."
When the activation phase was done, Cillian knew he had to move on the next step which is the easiest step of them all.
There are currently three steps to fully converting the power of the Piece to its owner, and now he was on the second step.
Looking at the gold coin that suddenly started emitting a strange aura, Cesar didn’t hesitate even longer and took the next phase.
He ate the gold coin.
