In Oliver's dark spiritual plane, the vast emptiness stretched endlessly in all directions, a place where the concept of time was nothing but an illusion, and existence itself seemed to waver between being and non-being.
Oliver's purely dark plane shifted as he focused on the connection he had with Anastasia. Through the mark of corruption he had placed upon her he could read her thoughts, guiding her like a puppet from afar. The mark had long since tethered her loyalty and mind to his will, ensuring that every piece of information she uncovered would be his, no matter how hidden or obscure it might be.
The task he had assigned her was simple at first: Gain knowledge on sacrificial rituals. He knew that other divine beings existed and wanted to learn through which methods did their power keep growing or they had first attained it.Originally, he though that going on to a more horrific and darker route, where it needed to start being humans or demi-humans that needed to be sacrificed, but he did not have the manpower for that even if he wanted to.
Anastasia had to go through great lifts to get this. While being a young girl her true personality was even more conniving and mischievous than his. She had to meet an information broker at a small time cafe shop, saying that she was a young girl staying with her grandma, and her parents were killed by heretics - which wasn't that far from the truth, and wanted to know anything he could give her on the subject of their sacrifices. The broker seemed to have a soft spot for this particular situation and gave her as much information as he could for free.
However, what Anastasia had found through their conversation had broadened his focus, revealing a far more intriguing path—national treasures. These were items that could be offered as sacrifices just like living creatures, but could give an even more outstanding effect.
These artifacts—items of great power, steeped in the history of the empire and province—could be the key to his ascension. Oliver's mind raced as he processed the implications. National treasures were more than just symbols of wealth or prestige; they were vessels of immense, often untapped magical energy.
These treasures were forged through ancient rituals, deconstructing sacred relics that were forged by deities, combining pieces of them with lower quality materials. Passed down from the empire's founders, and imbued with the collective will of generations.
There was a total of three-thousand national treasures, often being passed down through nobility families.They were capable of amplifying one's power far beyond the limits of mortal understanding, for each treasure had one magical ability it would gift its user.
Oliver's thoughts honed in on Anastasia's discovery. Through the mark, he knew she had uncovered the whereabouts surrounding several of these treasures.
Each one was being either used or hidden, protected by priests of the Three True Gods Religions, royal bloodlines, or treacherous forces. But they were there, waiting to be seized, ready to serve someone who could fully use their power to it's entire potential. And he would be that someone.
Deciding to take the easier road, Oliver had decided he would find the national treasures that haven't be found, instead of stealing from some prominent figure and getting his followers executed.
One of the most sought-after artifacts, according to the records Anastasia had found, was the Crown of the Forgotten Kings—a treasure forged from an ancient sacred relic of Twin Gods of the Sea.The crown was said to grant dominion over both water and ice, granting the wearer the power to command legions and bend those two elements to their will. This national treasure was said to be located in a body of water in a mountain range North of Krebes.
Another treasure was the Obsidian Dagger of Elvarian, a blade forged from a sacred relic of the Sun God. The dagger, though small, was rumored to have the power to burn flames that had an immeasurable temperature. One could even materialize a fire that never went out, though at the cost of a number of years of their lifespan. This dagger was in one of the two volcanoes in the empire, but nobody could withstand such heats so they have never been found.
Finally, there was the Heartstone of Ashkor, a necklace with an imbued gemstone said to be worn by a celestial emperor realm expert in the earliest ages of man. Forged from a sacred relic of a heretical cult, this treasure was able to take a year off your lifespan and kill one specified target. Though this power could only be used every decade. There are no known whereabouts about where this necklace could be located, being lost to time.
Oliver had decided to go with receiving the crown of forgotten kings, for that artifact seemed to be easiest to obtain and would benefit the Frost family more considering their bloodline and affinity with ice. If they could obtain the power from this treasure, then that would be beneficial to him as well.
Oliver, however, was aware that retrieving these treasures would not be simple. They were well-hidden, their existence buried under layers of history and legend. Yet, the more he pondered, the more his resolve hardened.
He could feel the thrill of it already, the anticipation of gaining control over humanity's most coveted items. It would take time, cunning, and perhaps the elimination of those who stood in his way, but these treasures would be his—he could almost taste the power.
Remembering all the people he's spread his influence over, Oliver thought about sending out the small ogre family from before. Since his first meeting with the twin boys, he had used them to spread his mark of corruption to their mother - becoming somewhat loyal followers, still a few steps away from the level of devout believers.
After that, he had awakened their magic bloodline and mutated it a bit by intertwining his into it, becoming the bloodline power Terrain Giants. This bloodline power has turned their base forms more muscular and taller, and gave them a total of four new abilities.
Terraforming which is basic earth magic spells and manipulation, giving them different ways to shape, create, and move small stones and rocks.
Titanic strength which uses up their magic power and transforms it into brute strength equivalent to half a ton of force.
Mountain's resilience that gives them a small regenerative ability as long as their touching the groound.
Terra's wrath which transforms them into 3 meter giants that can cause small shock waves with their voice alone. Their speed, strength, and agility are all boosted eight-fold but they lose all magical abilities and can only retain the form as long as their not out of magic power.
With the new power, the demi-human Ogre mother who is actually named Regalis, has started hunting beasts for pay. This has given them enough money to afford rent a small cottage in the city. Her two sons are eight and named Reggie and Doug. The mother has a more of a reserved personality, not voicing her opinion really much at all, and her two sons are still young and immature. Not holding a candle to the intelligence of Anastasia. But she could be considered a genius in her own right.
Between the Ogre family and the Frost clan, I think that those ogres might fare better in a life or death battle.
Both options are pitiful but they're all I got unfortunately. If that young Frost boy could advance his extraordinary power to the second level, then he would be one I send out on these missions.
As of right now, all he can do is give every physical attack he uses the attribute of ice to slowly freeze his opponents, and his sister needs to do some other things for me so she's not an option.
I'll think on it a bit more before I come up with a final plan to retrieve that artifact. But for now, I should gain all the more followers I possibly can.