Kristoffer Pauly
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Loopshard - Chapter One-Hundred-and-Eleven
🕑 Added 2025-10-28 09:54:15 +0000 UTC-Previous Chapter-
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Rare morning chapter!
Also, the previous chapter has been edited.
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Chapter One-Hundred-and-Eleven
The Erudition Barter. That’s the same name as the boon given for worshipping the Tome Keeper at the Altar!
Why would it be possible to use it like this??
“Is there a downside to this ritual?” Adam asked the floating tome sigil.
“As with any ritual, the toll must be paid. If it cannot be paid, certain adjustments are made to ensure equilibrium. If you do not possess knowledge to trade, then I shall take knowledge from you by other means.”
“That’s horrific.”
“You are the one who invoked me. I hardly think you are in a position to complain.”
Adam gritted his teeth and let out a steadying breath.
“I know what I wish to trade,” Adam said. “It is the fate that awaited Emelia and I at the bottom of the Floating Sea of Gold, inside Alepheria’s hidden laboratorium.”
“I have long wished to learn what transpired. I was surprised to discover that you both perished together. It goes against the will of the All-Seeing System, who values the fairness of its game, but there are other powers at play, and despite the All-Seeing System observing all there is and ever will be, it does not possess the power to control it all.”
“What do you mean you’ve long wished to know?” Adam asked, picking up on the specific wording.
“To you it may have felt like a few days ago, but much time has passed for those able to observe every universe you travel between.”
Adam froze.
He’s right…
Each loop I died in didn’t stop the universe in its tracks, and, since it seems all but certain that I travel up another layer when I die, each loop still plays to the end. Based on what Emelia told me about the length of the Stages, that is a lot of time.
Depending on how the Absolutes perceive universes and their layers, it’s possible that between my fourth and thirteenth loops, they’ve experienced the beginning and end of nine universes. That is an untold amount of time, and to beings such as the Tome Keeper, who clearly transcends my loops, it may be considered a ‘long’ time.
It brought an aching existential pain into Adam’s stomach to consider that his self-destructive ends to his previous loops were each aeons apart, perceived only by those living beyond the bounds of mortality and time.
Adam swallowed down the cascade of horrifying thoughts that naturally followed that line of thinking about existence.
Once he’d regained his composure, he went on to describe Emelia and him journeying into the underground of the Floating Sea of Gold.
During his tale, the hovering tome sigil did not move nor speak, but Adam assumed that one of the Tome Keeper’s many avian scribes was writing down the story for later internment in the Absolute’s grand library of knowledge.
Something he noticed belatedly as he came to the end of the story, was that the Eye was nowhere to be seen in the dark of the hidden chamber. Thinking back on it, it hadn’t even followed him down the well.
This place is like Nwetrou’s cave. It must be beyond the bounds of Interim Island…
Which means I am not safe here.
Any rituals invoked in the chamber could most likely harm him if he lacked the ‘tolls’, as the Tome Keeper had called them, or if he performed them incorrectly. It had truly been foolish to attempt the ritual to commune with the Tome Keeper, especially since he hadn’t yet reached the point where his death did not result in a horrific punishment by the All-Seeing System.
I’ve been too reckless with my own life.
This is exactly what Willow was warning me about.
“I believe I know whom Alepheria was communing with after abandoning her worship of me,” the Tome Keeper said.
“Who?” Adam asked.
“It should be obvious, even to you,” the Absolute replied.
Adam thought about it for a moment. Then he put all the clues together. The Dimensional Splinter, the painting wherein which the realm of the Floating Sea existed, and the ultimate goal of Alepheria’s masterpiece.
“The Realm Traveller,” Adam said.
“Indeed. He is a scheming trickster with tremendous power, but worshipping him is unwise.”
Given that Alepheria had summoned a Voidspawn Apex unintentionally, Adam was inclined to believe that warning.
“Now then, what would you like to receive in exchange for your offering?” the Tome Keeper asked.
Adam thought about that for a while.
I won’t be able to trade information forever, since eventually there will be nothing the Tome Keeper does not know, so I need to consider my questions carefully. That being said, I also want to know why he asked Beck to give me that message, even though it might not be very important to me.
Besides the knowledge of what Adam found in Alepheria’s laboratorium that led to him and Emelia dying, he also thought that he could trade his horrific tale of visiting Nwetrou, but he wasn’t completely certain. As such, he started with his most pressing question first.
“How do I reach a universe where my friends exist?” he asked.
“I cannot comprehend your power, since it was birthed from the corpus of the Realm Traveller. It is truly foolish to attempt to put reason to his existence and sphere of influence. It has not stopped curious minds from trying, such as my erstwhile adherent, Alepheria. But that way lies only the obliteration of one’s sanity.
“To answer your question in other terms. It is indeed possible for you to find such a universe, for they exist in plenitude. Many universes do not fall into the Abyss like this one, and it is only the Abyss that takes Players permanently away from the Trials.
“It is truly obscene that the All-Seeing System allowed Nwetrou such a prominent feature in its game, for he is nothing but a mindless devourer. There is no bottom to his ceaseless desire, and when he eats, he takes bites that reverberate through time. That which was becomes never-was, and the ripples created by the vacuums left behind are devastating waves that crash upon everything, violently distorting it and ruining much in the process.”
Adam frowned.
Is he saying that the sacrifices to Nwetrou are so devastating because they completely erase a person from existence? Is that why one death can lead to the loss of millions?
“But you don’t know how I can get to such a universe?” Adam asked.
“I do not. You may have to rely on luck, though that is hardly sound advice. Sometimes, however, good fortune is also a skill.”
Is that a hint? Adam wondered.
“You have more knowledge that I do not possess,” the Tome Keeper noted.
Adam nodded, though he wasn’t sure the floating sigil in front of him transmitted more than just his voice to the Absolute.
“It is the knowledge of visiting Nwetrou’s abyss and dying,” Adam explained.
“While I have seen the Leviathan of Leviathan’s bottomless black abode, I believe you may be the only mortal to have ever experienced death by his maw and been able to return afterwards. The novelty of such an experience is something I would gladly like to possess.”
Adam was happy to know that the gruesome end to his seventh loop had a point to it after all, and while he went into meticulous detail as he recounted it to the Tome Keeper, he thought about what he’d ask for in return. Most of his pressing questions had been about how to get to a universe where his friends were still alive, but since it was clearly not something in which he had much agency, aside from a vague hint about luck, many of his follow-up questions had essentially been rendered moot.
When the question came, Adam answered, “I want to know the entire reason behind why you had Beck pass a message to me in this universe. Why is it so important that I worship the Flayed Lady?”
“I have my designs set far into the future,” the Tome Keeper started. “Even when you cease to be, my designs will not have fully unfurled and taken hold. As I stated previously, the Flayed Lady and I are at war. The cause of it is petty, even for an Absolute, but she is the Primogenitor of Envy for a reason.
“In war, knowledge is key. The Flayed Lady is a cunning adversary and I wish to learn more about her. She would never willingly expose herself and her hidden powers, but to an adherent she might reveal a lot of secrets. Secrets that I wish to possess.
“Before reaching the Self-devouring Eye, Benjamin managed to discover something quite clever, which enabled him to worship me. Since I was aware that his timeline and yours would intersect, I saw an opportunity to learn something through you. After all, you are an enigma that neither death nor divine power can stop. This makes you the perfect candidate to infiltrate the inner circle of the Flayed Lady. To betray the Betrayer, so to speak.”
“How did you know I would be in the same universe as Beck? And how did you know that I would be in a position to worship the Flayed Lady?”
“You do not possess any knowledge to trade in exchange for that answer,” the Tome Keeper said. “I will just say, something as simple as the broad strokes of an individual’s fate is not so difficult to learn for those with a keen eye. Obviously, my interference alters the course of your fate and washes out the broad strokes, making future predictions less reliable, but that was my intention with the message passed on to you.”
Adam frowned. It was hardly an explanation, though he somehow didn’t doubt that the Tome Keeper could easily know of a person’s future if his adherent Alepheria had the means to understand anything she touched, such as with the Legendary Relic tied to her.
“So, what? I’m supposed to worship the Flayed Lady and learn everything I can about her?” Adam asked sceptically. It seemed overly optimistic to assume that would work.
“She is an Ascendant like myself,” the Tome Keeper explained, as though he could hear Adam’s thoughts even outside of his abode. “It means that we were once mortal like you. What you need to understand is that mortality, while easy enough to shed, does not entirely let go. We Absolutes are rules and laws and concepts given form, but when that form originally had a mortal shape, it is hard to entirely relinquish it. That is why we are drawn to our petty little games of influence. We seek the worship of mortals more than other Absolutes, despite their lives being insignificant to us. You are but ants in the garden we keep, and yet we admire the little nests you build, even when they disrupt our plants and destroy our soil.”
“So, she will want to share her secrets with me, because humans are like entertainment to you?” Adam asked, trying to wrap his head around what the Tome Keeper was saying.
“Perhaps. If I truly understood her motivations this would not be necessary, of course,” the Absolute admitted. “But if you undertake this task for me, and do your very best to serve the Flayed Lady and learn everything you can, then I shall gift you knowledge that will serve you well in the future.”
“She seems to be the type that would hold a grudge,” Adam remarked.
“Blame not the beast,” the Tome Keeper replied.
Then the magic holding the ritual together collapsed, and the floating sigil became dust that rained down onto the stone slab.
Adam knew he could easily invoke the ritual again, since it was quite simple. But the Absolute had outright said that Adam didn’t possess any more knowledge to trade. And though he might treat Adam with some manner of kindness and mercy, it was quite clear that it was driven by the fact that Adam was the perfect tool to learn about things that nobody was expected to survive. Attempting to stretch that leniency would not serve Adam well, and it was important he remembered that he was just a pawn in the Absolute’s game.
After all, why not just ask Beck to worship the Flayed Lady and then get the knowledge from him in the following loop? It’s clear that worshipping her is not conducive to survival…
The question is, do I take the plunge and worship her, in order to gain something that will hopefully benefit me later, or do I stick around with my friends and make an honest attempt to reach the end?
I guess even if I do worship the Flayed Lady, I might be able to go far if I do everything she asks.
But that means I’ll have to kill another Player in Stage Six…
And who knows what other requests she’ll have after that??
Adam sighed.
He left the ritual chamber, closing the fake wall behind him before climbing back up to his garden where the Eye awaited him.
“I noticed you didn’t introduce the garden well to me when I arrived,” Adam pointed out.
[I am not allowed to enter this domain nor am I allowed to speak of it.]
That’s unsettling.
“Is it for the same reason as the squid’s hideout below ground?”
[For the Deep Place, the All-Seeing System’s covenant with the Devourer of Suns prohibits me from entering. As for the garden well and where it leads, it is beyond the influence of Interim Island and cannot be observed by anyone except the Players who venture inside.]
That’s… odd.
So it’s basically a privacy chamber then?
I guess there are rules about eavesdropping on the conversations that might take place down there.
That should at least mean I’m safe from anyone spilling the beans about me potentially infiltrating the Flayed Lady’s circle.
Adam pushed the many thoughts to the back of his mind for now as he made his way to the Market. Unlike when he’d had the spell-tome, he didn’t particularly enjoy using blood and flesh magic to travel around the island.
Once in the Market, he passed by Yenna and the fountain with its statues of the Forlorn Captain. He walked past Thea, Belin, Karie, Lucca, and Nelly, before stopping in front of Weaver’s stall.
“Hello again, Adam,” said the small skittish spider. Without Belamouranthe present, she wasn’t quite as sociable, which spoke to the little Elphin girl’s natural power to get people to open up. “Would you like me to spin you something from my silk?”
“Actually, I wanted to give you something,” he told her.
He pulled the Vanity mirror out of thin air.
Weaver’s eyes locked onto the object.
“Are you certain?” she asked when he handed it to her.
Adam nodded.
“Thank you for this gift,” Weaver replied and looked into the mirror.
< < Vanity Activated > >
< Transforming Weaver into a humanoid >
Weaver’s grey, white, and black body shifted and changed. For a moment Adam feared the transformation was painful to her, but it seemed to be of a magical nature, rather than her body physically undergoing the big changes.
Once the power had fully taken hold and turned her into a humanoid, a young girl had replaced the poodle-sized spider. She sat atop the web-spun stall and stared directly at Adam with two big fully-black eyes. She had grey skin and shoulder-length white hair in a bob, and from her back sprouted four spidery arms with a black and grey pattern. From her shoulders and down was an off-white dress made of her own Spidersilk.
Adam suddenly understood why she was so timid and only opened up to Belamouranthe. It was because she was still a child. He had assumed that she was just smaller because of the type of spider she was, but that had clearly been incorrect.
“Thank you, Adam,” Weaver told him.
One of the limbs sprouting from her back reached down below the counter of her stall and retrieved something. As the limb came back into view, he saw that it held a spear-head or horn that was about the length of his arms. It had one long tapered point with three carved-out channels spiralling from the bottom to the point, and looked like it was made to be attached to a massive spear.
“I want you to have this,” she told him.
Adam gratefully accepted the item, unsure of what it was. As he took it into his hands, he saw that a spooled-up bit of ultra-fine string was attached to the opposite end from the tip, where a small ring protruded out of the bone-like material on the flat bottom of the object.
< < Secret Weapon Obtained > >
< Spidersilk Needle (Legendary) — The needle of a Spidersilk Weaver >
It’s a Legendary weapon!
[You are already carrying two weapons and cannot carry a third. Which of your equipped weapons would you like to swap for the Spidersilk Weaver?]
“Gram,” Adam said.
The stone sword disappeared from his back.
< < Second Sheath Activated > >
< Would you like to swap to the Spidersilk Weaver Weapon Type? >
“Let me see the stats compared to the base ones for Blood Mage,” Adam said.
< Spidersilk Weaver compared to Blood Mage >
< Level 0 >
< Stats >
< Health — 150 (-100) >
< Stamina — 50 (+25) >
< Mana — 50 >
< Damage — 25% (+75%) >
< Defence — 0% (+100%) >
< Speed — 50% (+150%) >
< Luck — 10 (-10) >
A lot less Health and no Luck, but better in every other way.
It’s curious that it also comes with Mana, but it reminds me a bit of the Beast’s stats.
“I’ll keep Blood Mage for now,” Adam decided.
I want to mess around with the weapon before I make the decision.
“Thank you for this,” Adam told Weaver.
“It is hardly enough for the gift you have given me,” Weaver replied.
She hopped over the stall and landed next to him, slowing her fall with the spider legs growing from her back.
“Can you take me to where Belamouranthe is?” she asked.
“She’s not on the island right now,” Adam told her. “But do you want to join me for some food? I know someone that might be happy to meet you.”
Charlie clearly had quite an affinity for children, and since it seemed that Weaver was now able to leave her stall, thanks to the Vanity, he wanted to introduce them to each other.
Weaver nodded.
“Then let’s get going. Maybe you can teach me a bit about this Spidersilk Needle on the way.”
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Comments
SUPAH_SCRUMPEH
D'aww, weaver sounds adorable. And that weapon sounds VERY fun. Our glorious queen remains her true self too!
Apotheosis
Shaw!!!
