Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage-Chapter 604: Rune Sage II
CH604 Rune Sage II
***
’English might as well be a dead language in this world,’ Alex mused inwardly.
’In my previous life, the number of people who have ever spoken English —whether fluently or not— must have been staggering, right?’
’And the language has existed for centuries, so it should possess a decent amount of longevity providence as well.’
’As for powerful individuals... I doubt there are any tied to it in the world.’
’But that shouldn’t matter too much. After all, it’s unlikely that anyone else here would even use it for spellcasting.’
’With all that considered, English should have a workable Language Power. Let’s just hope that the fact I’m its only user in the world gives it enough leverage...’
’Otherwise, this would all be for naught.’
The spell Alex intended to create was, by all accounts, an absurdly broken one— something he doubted even a language as powerful as Dragon Tongue could sufficiently support.
That was why he had chosen a different approach.
Instead of relying solely on an established language, he decided to gamble on the Providence and Language Power of an untouched, foreign language.
’The spell creation method is actually quite intuitive,’ he reflected. ’It’s like... yes— like writing a prompt for an AI.
’A very advanced one.’
’All you need to do is make the prompt as detailed and as clear as possible...’
’...and then— voilà.’
["Activate."]
The moment Alex uttered the final word, the world around him shifted.
The space surrounding him warped.
In the next instant, Alex found himself standing in the void of outer space, surrounded by swirling nebulae and countless distant stars.
’Why am I—?’
Before he could finish the thought, a gigantic balance scale, tens of times larger than his own body, manifested before him.
On one side rested an orb.
From within it, he could faintly hear a voice— muttering something.
’That’s... my voice.’
’That’s the spell I requested.’
On the opposite side of the scale shone a familiar golden light.
Providence.
Yet, there was something subtly different about it.
The scale tilted.
The side containing Alex’s request weighed heavier than the side containing the Providence.
’I see...’
Understanding dawned on him.
’The spell I requested is still too heavy... too costly... for what I currently possess.’
’So I only have two options...’
’Either reduce the weight of the spell... or offer something of equal value to balance the scales.’
He realised something crucial.
’The universe is fair. It won’t allow me to obtain such a broken spell without placing restrictions... or imposing a sacrifice from me.’
’I think the fact that it’s even giving me the option to choose my restriction or sacrifice, is already a huge concession.’
’I can’t complain.’
’Instead, I have to decide.’
Alex fell into deep thought.
"This spell can only be used by the Rune Master class," he declared, imposing his first restriction.
The scale shifted... but only slightly.
Alex chuckled wryly.
’Of course... something like that won’t be enough.’
For a moment, he considered reducing the scope of the spell itself.
But he quickly dismissed the thought.
’No. If I weaken the spell, then what’s the point?’
’What other restriction can I impose...?’
Then, on a sudden whim, he spoke again—
"This spell is a unique spell that can only be used by me, Alex Fury."
This time, the scale shifted far more noticeably.
Alex frowned.
’...Is it just me, or does this system heavily favour sacrifices tied directly to me?’
’There really are no free lunches in this world... If I want this level of power, then I’ll have to pay a price to match it, is that it?’
His gaze hardened as he looked at the side of the scale containing his requested spell.
’But if I can obtain it... this will be a complete game changer.’
A ruthless glint flickered within his eyes.
’In that case... no sacrifice is too much.’
Calm Madness.
A chilling stillness settled over him.
His eyes burned with a cold, calculated insanity as he raised his head and uttered a truly extreme condition—
"From the first time I use this spell... I will lose all my bloodline talents, save for my True Name concepts..."
"...and my ability to cast any other spell."
The moment those words left his mouth—
Something changed.
A new presence suddenly appeared beside him.
Thwack!
"Argh!"
A branch smacked the back of Alex’s head.
He clutched his skull, wincing in pain as he turned around.
Standing there... was none other than the metaphysical bonsai tree from his Sanctuary pocket dimension.
"Hey—what was that for?!" he groaned.
Lord Bonsai raised a vine-like branch again—
Thwack!
"ARGH!!!"
Before Alex could react, the tree launched into a full-on assault.
Branch after branch came crashing down on him without mercy.
Alex rolled across the void-like floor in pain as Lord Bonsai proceeded to give him a thorough beating.
"Child abuse!" Alex screamed.
Lord Bonsai, however, could not have cared less.
After thoroughly disciplining the unruly child, the bonsai’s phantom form turned toward the universal scale.
Without hesitation, it plucked the crimson fruit nestled within its crown and offered it to the scale— attempting to reclaim the restriction Alex had just imposed upon himself.
Alas, things did not go as it expected.
While Lord Bonsai managed to reclaim the restriction placed on Alex’s bloodline, the scale stubbornly refused to return the condition tied to his mage abilities.
The exchange was... partial.
Left with no alternative, Lord Bonsai slowly withdrew its branch.
The restrictions... were sealed.
The scale shifted heavily.
Then—
It stabilised.
A perfect balance was achieved.
A beam of light descended from the scale, projecting the finalised terms directly into Alex’s mind with absolute clarity.
—
’The Spell, @#$%^&*, is a unique spell that can only be cast by Alex Fury, the Rune Master.’
’Each activation of the spell will require a portion of a false deity’s divinity as its medium.’
’From the first casting onward, Alex Fury shall permanently lose the ability to cast any other spells through his own power.’
—
The moment Alex finished reading, his mind suddenly went blank.
Within his Bloodline Space, a profound transformation occurred.
The runic True Name that had remained obscure for so long... finally revealed itself.
It manifested as a Greater Rune.
And its meaning was simple.
Sage.
The instant the Runic True Name revealed itself, the censored spell name within the restriction began to change.
The distortion faded, and a name emerged.
Rune Sage.
The revelation triggered yet another reaction— this time, from OmniRune.
The spell construct within Alex’s Mindspace began to distort and reshape itself, rapidly shifting through countless rune configurations.
One after another, seemingly endlessly.
For several minutes, the transformations continued— until finally, the construct stabilised and returned to a singular, refined form.
Then, a new message appeared within Alex’s mind.
—
[Rune Sage: A unique spell that allows Alex Fury to comprehend the magical glyph systems of any plane.]
[Through OmniRune, these foreign glyphs can be analysed, translated and integrated, allowing Rune-Tech to replicate their unique properties within runic structures.]
—
A second line followed.
—
[Hidden Restriction: All imported glyph natures can only be utilised through Rune-Tech.]
***
