If Jon was being completely honest, he thought that the idea of a building-shaped Memento Source Fragment was outrageous. Outside of a System Introduction where any manner of Mortal Ranked spiritual item could be obtained, just finding someone capable of creating a Mortal Ranked Magic House or a Mortal Ranked Garden Abode would be impossibly difficult.

Oh how wrong he was.

Tilting his head backwards, Jon gazed up at the enormous Memento Source Item placed at the centre of Springtown. The Vanishing Palace was the pseudonym given to Nestor's Memento Source Item by the denizens of Springtown.

It's full name was-.

"Takamagahara; Vanishing Palace Bridge." Aerilayna said, gesturing towards the grand, imperial-palace-looking Memento Source Item. Although somewhat reminiscent of Japanese-architecture, the spiritual construct did not seem to blend in with the surrounding flora and natural landscape.

It did not exist in harmony with the natural order of the world. Rather, it seemed to emanate the unrelenting presence of progress and civilization. A dominance over the natural order, rather than a co-existence.

It was as if it was constructed to stand atop all of creation.

To bring order to a chaotic and disordered world.

The presence of an unfamiliar type of spiritual energy caused Jon to raise an eyebrow and to turn towards Mael and Aerilayna with a curious expression on his face. There was something about this Memento Source Item that seemed to… disagree with his Source.

Princeps Of The Wandering Mutation hummed in response to its presence, putting Jon on guard rather than filling him with a sense of purpose. It was not a malicious or malevolent feeling, but rather just a faint sense of friction between the concepts of his Title and the concepts contained within the Vanishing Palace Bridge

Unbeknownst to him, Wilheim thought the exact same thing.

His Wisdom Of The Myriad Lands opposing the concepts contained within the Memento Source Item.

"C'mon everyone! I'll introduce you all to one of Nestors' echoes! The Vanishing Palace is where all requests for building permits, trade agreements, exploratory quests and foraging tasks are placed!"

"Everyone places at least one task here, requesting specific fragments or Mana Cores. Or even the creation of specific spiritual items! Who knows, perhaps you guys might be able to come to an agreement with someone even before leaving the palace!?" Aerilayna said, once again, not-so-subtly turning her gaze towards Jon, who just ignored it, focusing on the presence of the Mortal Ranked Memento Source Item in front of him.

His expression remained impassive, and his true thoughts shared with no-one but his three summoned companions.

"… The moment I step inside, this "Strategos Of Eyes And Words" will know that a Knight has stepped within his territory, right?" Jon asked, earning an affirmative nod from Ashvattha Rana.

"Yes. Although depending on what manner of fragment and Mana Core went into constructing the Vanishing Palace Bridge, it might counter the effects of your Mask Of Jade Lies. I will admit, I do not recognize the spiritual energy released by this Memento Source Item. Apologies, Jon," Rana replied, causing Jon to shake his head softly.

"It cannot be helped," Jon muttered, before noticing a slight twitch of his Fragment Of Dragon within his Weave Mana Core.

"Do you recognize it Song?"

The epoch dragon stirred from within his Murmur-Glacial Marrow, glancing towards the enormous spiritual construct before huffing and nodding his head.

"It uses a Fragment Of Castle combined with an Order Mana Core. The spiritual item used in its creation was also formed from a Fragment Of Civilization. My [Threaded End] Aura would not be able to penetrate further without alerting this "Nestor" of my presence."

"Additionally, Fragment Of Facelessness tend to be more effective against Fragments Of Civilization but not Fragments Of Castle. Order natured spiritual energy is also inherently resistant to lie natured spiritual energy."

"You could look to improve Lethe to Knighthood, although currently lack the requirements to do so…" Song said honestly, causing Jon to furrow his brows remembering the requirements to improve his Mask Of Jade Lies from Mortality to Knighthood.

Simply put, it required everything that Jon needed as a Mortal, save another Mana Core and Memento Source Fragment. Although with one small caveat.

'In order for me to ascend Lethe to Knighthood, I'll need a Knight Ranked spiritual item to serve as the foundation. Another Knight Ranked Title to support its ascension. And another fragment to produce additional Knight Ranked effects.'

'In other words, it could take several months push Lethe from Mortality to Knighthood.'

And it only compounded upon his ascension to Lordship.

And further ascension to Barony and Viscount.

Jon watched as Aerilayna and Mael led Wilheim, Avahni, Shamael and Sariel into the Vanishing Palace. Despite his initial hesitation, he let out a quiet sigh, before taking a half-step forward placing one foot on the lowest step to reach Takamagahara. It was unfortunate that Aerilayna did not know how this Memento Source Item worked, but Jon did not feel worried about meeting a Sixth Initiated Mortal.

'From what Mael and Aerilayna were saying, "Delila" is the more rational and level-headed of the three leaders of Springtown. She handles the management and logistics of the Safe Zone while Maliq heads the Creationist Guild and Amadeus leads the Explorers Guild.'

Jon smiled, feeling numerous different possibilities bubbling up within him.

'Perhaps I could use Springtown as the basis for my own Guild?'

He hoped that Wilheim and the others would find this idea satisfactory or at least agreed with him enough to consider Springtown as less of a permanent residence and more of a "base" where they could always return to rest or resupply themselves.

The exact moment Jon placed his foot upon the steps leading up to the Vanishing Palace did he feel something brush up against his Sea Of Knowledge. A wisp of eye natured spiritual energy slid across the surface of his mental landscape before reeling back in shock feeling the emanations of a Knight from said imaginary construct.

His stride unbothered from the half-intrusion, walking up the steps behind Aerilayna and the others, examining the structure of the Memento Source Item all around him. Eis, Rana and Song readying themselves for any signs of potential retaliation.

Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

The grandness of Takamagahara was extraordinary.

Although he was sure that the age of the Vanishing Palace Bridge exceeded even the earliest inspiration for traditional-Japanese architecture, Jon could not help but draw parallels between the Memento Source Item and the intricate wonder of East Asian shrines and castles.

Despite the quiet reverence he suspected would fill the insides of Takamagahara, Jon was surprised to see the complete opposite, his senses assailed on all sides by noise. Voices echoing over each other as though this was a pre-school rather than an actual palace.

"Creationist looking for work! Specializing in shoe-type spiritual items! Prices are negotiable!"

"Looking for someone with healing type abilities! We leave for the Vine-Ocean Jungle in two hours! Healing type abilities only!"

"Looking to trade water-type fragments in exchange for fire-type fragments! Fragments Of Deluge, Fragments Of Cloudburst, Fragments Of Torrent!"

"The Brahmal Hall is having a three-for-two special for this week only! Spend two fragments and gain an additional night's stay free-of-charge! This week only!"

"Looking for individuals with weapon-type Mana Cores! Please consider joining our Weapon Association for just one fragment per month!"

Dozens of humans, floresiensis, vermitons, appaloscians, lutins, drus and satanas all congregated in different sections of the Vanishing Palace floor, hollering at those that passed by them. Scaled-vermitons chatted beside blonde-haired lutins, and fur-covered drus negotiated with red-skinned satanas.

Discussions regarding fragment exchanges and the creation of spiritual items echoed all around him. There were those standing in armour or wielding spiritual constructs that tried to recruit those with specific Mana Cores, most notably Life Mana Cores or Recovery Mana Cores.

There were several languages used all around him that he did not even remotely understand, which limited the number of conversations that he could listen to. Jon almost did not notice Mael pat him on the shoulder, seeing that he looked somewhat overwhelmed from the sheer number of people talking all around them.

It was then that he noticed that Aerilayna had already started leading Avahni and the others up towards the second floor. Jon swiftly followed behind them, walking in between an enormous scaled-vermiton and a bone-armoured appaloscian.

His brows twitching, remembering his encounter with Han Of The Red Wind.

'Ah… so that is what race he was…'

Jon half-glanced back towards the appaloscian, before feeling his [Monstrous Intuition] ripple, prompting him to lift his head towards the top of the staircase, noticing a lone woman standing at its zenith, looking straight at him with an impassive expression on her face. Although Jon did not feel anything brush up against his Fragment Of Mind, he could still feel her gaze judging him, brows furrowing as her eyes swept up and down the length of his form.

A noticeable streak of grey-hair tucked behind her ear, giving Jon the impression that this woman was older than what her appearance suggested. Depending on what fragment she had integrated, it was possible she was in the prime of her youth.

Before she had a chance to say anything, Jon opened his mouth to speak, knowing that Nestor was somewhere around him, conveying his words to his summoner.

"I'm not here to fight. Just to complete my mandatory task," he said plainly.

The woman in question tilting her had back, expression emotionless and giving away no details. He felt the brush of eye natured spiritual energy against his Fragment Of Mind, Eis informing him that it was neither malicious nor filled with wicked intent.

"Please forgive me if I do not completely trust your words. The previous Knight that I encountered said the exact same thing before slaughtering several of my citizens." Delila said, walking up towards the second floor, maintaining her mental connection with Jon.

Half-turning his head, he had noticed Mael continue following Aerilayna and the others, looking to show his companions the sign boards, where denizens of Springtown could post quests and log their acceptance of said quests with Nestor.

The Strategos Of Eyes And Words could manifest copies of himself throughout the Vanishing Palace Bridge assisting whoever walked through its doors so they would be able to find him so long as they asked one of his echoes.

Jon opted not to follow Avahni or Sariel, instead ascending the steps and walking several metres behind Delila. Despite the temptation to use his Minerva-Sagacity Eyes to observe her, he restrained himself from activating his Fragment Of Eyes and observing her status page.

He had no doubt that the woman in front of him had integrated all six universal fragments. Fragments Of Mind manifested perhaps the greatest source of mental resistance abilities even at Mortality. Even if he could brute force her defences with pure spiritual energy, there was no way that she would not notice the sudden mental intrusion.

Jon did, however, feel his eyebrow twitch in response to her words.

"Another Knight?" he questioned.

"A man by the name of Theodore," Delilia replied, causing Jon to frown, face growing stiff in response to his name. Although neither his thoughts nor emotions flowed through the mental connection Delila had formed with him, he still felt his Sea Of Knowledge churn at the very mention of his name.

"We've met," Jon stated, prompting Delila to pause her stride.

"And you fought?" She asked, her words curious while her expression remaining impassive.

"I injured him pretty good, but unfortunately he is still around," he said, Delila staring at him for a few seconds before letting out a small tsk.

"And you still remember details about him? His face? His voice? His Mana Cores? His abilities?" She could not help but ask.

Jon furrowed his brows, but nodded, remembering the exact details of his fight with Theodore. Although his most prominent ability was [Itsumade; Quest Death Of Light And Virtue], Theodore was capable of manifesting illusory images and even teleporting through knowledge natured spiritual energy.

Eis had mentioned that his fire-titan transformation had been the product of a fragment pathway. Perhaps one that he had gained from his blood-night acerodon. Although other than that, Jon did glimpse at the details of his summoned weapons and defensive tool.

[Behold Thy Lustrous Knife, Born From Scarlet Death].

[Behold Thy Scorching Knife, Birthed From Rose Light].

[Behold Thy Virtuous Shield, Delivered From White Purity].

"Yeah. Knowledge. Lies. Fire. Life. Blood and Knife Mana Cores. Fragments Of Mind, Fragments Of Weapon, Fragments Of Aegis…" Jon listed the fragments that he suspected Theodore had integrated, watching as Delila nodded, presumably allowing the information to flow into whatever type of mental construct she had manifested.

He could feel the faintest emanations of civilization natured spiritual energy bloom from within her mind. Civilization Mana Cores were something that he had not encountered up until this point, interesting him greatly.

Jon had absolutely no idea what would happen if he integrated a Fragment Of Fire or even a Fragment Of Wind into said Mana Core. However, before he could say anything he noticed the corners of Delila's mouth curve upwards as she tilted her head back, allowing her gaze to match his own.

Feelings of gratitude spilling over from their mental connection.

"I appreciate the information." She said.

"Those without an extraordinary mastery over their Fragments Of Mind cannot resist the Knight Ranked effects of his own abilities. And even then, snippets of memories tend to be erased without our noticing them," Delila continued, giving him a small smile in appreciation. Her eyes lingering in the direction where Wilheim and Shamael had headed in.

"Nestor just informed me that you rescued Aerilayna from the man that had taken her?" Delila asked, half-turning her head in his direction. Jon could hear Eis laughing at him from within his Sea Of Knowledge, pushing down the urge sever the active connection between his Ice Mana Core and Fragment Of Summon, instead just nodding at Delila's words.

"I'd like to say that there was no misunderstandings during our first encounter, but Avahni did help smooth a number of things over." Jon replied, giving nothing but half-truths. His agreement with Aerilayna still held, the blonde-haired lutin promising to clear up any confusions regarding who exactly kidnapped her.

Watching her reaction, Jon was pleased to see that Delila smiled, taking a deep breath while extending her hand towards him.

"I know a thank you is not worth much in the System Introduction, but I'd like the chance to thank you personally for rescuing her. Although I regret to admit it, I think the lack of laws within this "tutorial" have allowed the more primal aspects of humanity to flourish, both the good and the bad."

"But to see you, a youth of barely twenty, befriend and assist individuals from other Races without being prompted to, warms my heart as both a mother and a human being. Thank you…?" Jon noticed Delila's cheeks turn red, realizing that she had not yet asked him his name.

"Jonathan! But just call me Jon," he swiftly responded, allowing Delila a moment to gather herself. The corners of her mouth raising, severing the mental connection the two of them had.

"Thank you Jon," said Delila, this time in English, albeit with a slight accent to it.

His Minerva-Sagacity Eyes observing the extended hand, blinking several times before mimicking the action, shaking hands with the older woman. Given how close to Delila right this moment, he could quite clearly see her facial features, feeling certain memories bubble up from within his Sea Of Knowledge.

His mouth dropping as memories of the previous year's Olympics rose up to the forefront of his mind, other hand pointing at her, remembering the achievements of Delila Anderson-Moore, celebrity sportswoman and gold-medal winner.

Ignoring the more rational part of his brain, Jon just blurted something out, forgetting the serious tone of their conversation.

"You were on TV!"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.