Saryn took steady steps, striding out of the portal, which had ignited shortly after he ate.
With a full stomach, despite how the echoes were already making him full, he picked up his obsidian sword and orb, stepping through the gateway.
And now…
"Another ritual chamber, just like the first one, at least the ritual circle is already laid out." Saryn spoke, intending for Marduk to hear and maybe pop out of the four mirrors decorating each corner of the room.
It was extremely similar to the room where he had performed the ritual for hydroform, except about four times larger, the ritual circle seemed a lot more complex as well, covering a way bigger area than the one he had personally created.
Bookshelves lined each wall, neatly labeled to show the subject of every section. Next to the bookshelves were stools and small tables intended for the use of one person, the stools seemed brand new, showing no signs of wear.
The portal fizzled behind Saryn, as he dropped his items trying to focus on recalling the memories of the previous candidates.
But, against his expectations, nothing came.
'I suppose I haven't reached a bit where the memories trigger, but I suppose I could be wrong and… nobody reached this stage?' Saryn thought, but he knew this was impossible.
He began recalling memories of room four while counting with his fingers.
'A couple candidates passed room four, no way they all just decided to suicide in the saferoom.'
'Well… I wouldn't be surprised if they did upon encountering Marduk and his childish sense of humour.'
Saryn looked around some more, some bookshelves were filled with what seemed to be storage artifacts rather than books, the storage artifacts each had notes stuck underneath, most likely describing what was stored inside.
He walked over to the bookshelves, picking out a thin book at random from the "History and Folklore" section, before taking a seat and flipping open the verdant green book, waiting for Marduk's imminent arrival.
The aged tinted pages flapped at his face, throwing dust everywhere, before he patted the book down and rewound to the first page.
Saryn looked through the table of contents, which had a list of folklore, composed into one book by a person he assumed wasn't a ritualist, but simply a powerless scholar.
There was a mix of various legendary beasts and mythical entities, some seemed to be made up just to entertain the horrors of the readers, while others seemed fairly believable.
And it didn't help how the author had explained on the back cover that he was legally required to mark all the bits that were confirmed to be real, as real.
Saryn looked through the table of contents, he was fairly interested in folklore, the feeling of mystery which enshrouded these creatures and beings enticed him, fictional or not.
His eyes ran down the page from the top, before his pupils suddenly dilated, as he found a familiar name, marked in a small font as "[REAL / DECEASED]".
Saryn involuntarily muttered the name of the beast under his breath, remembering Marduk's words.
"Tiama-"
Marduk cleared his throat as the noise alerted and cut Saryn off, his head tilting to his right, glancing toward the now ever so slightly more animated mirror.
He saw himself, sitting on the same stool, his figure returned his gaze nonchalantly, resting its head on its arm, which was against the closed book on the table in front of it.
"Before you delve into the details of my heroic victory against one of - if not the - most powerful being in this world, listen thoroughly to my instructions."
Saryn nodded in response, as he closed the "Scholarly Tales and Fables" book, placing it onto the table in front of him, similarly to the reflection in the mirror.
"Good." Marduk nodded approvingly in response to the gesture of respect, which slightly irritated Saryn for a reason he didn't know.
"As you have observed, this room holds countless books, every single one was tailored toward holding a certain use or some sort of necessary knowledge to you, and you are free to use them as needed."
Saryn listened as he turned his head slightly, stealing a look at the storage artifacts. Marduk caught his glance, before speaking again.
"Those contain many, and I mean absolutely plenty of materials, all of which are also for your use, considering you have been supplied with a low tier three ritual circle in the middle, which shall assist you greatly in your rituals should you use it wisely."
Saryn opened his mouth as if to respond, but Marduk simply raised one palm toward him, before continuing.
"If you want to learn about the system behind ritual circles and their levels, please refer to the boundless amounts of knowledge which surrounds you rather than having me explain it all."
Saryn scoffed, rolling his eyes at Marduk's laziness, which was paid no heed by Marduk.
"Saryn, you have no set objective nor time limit in this room, the portal can be ignited at any time with just a thought from you, but this doesn't mean you should leave as quickly as possible, rather, I expect great boosts to your strength and understanding over the works of your powers upon leaving this place, use as long as you require, and make sure you have utilized this stage to the fullest, understood?"
Saryn nodded in response, before a creaking noise erupted from the other end of the room, an empty bookshelf was pulled back, before sliding to the right behind a neighbouring bookshelf, revealing an open arch leading to what seemed to be a small dueling stage, in it was a holographic warrior, similar to the ones in the fourth room, entirely made of pure cyan echoes while its blade consisted of blue ones.
'No time limit? Depending on exactly what I have at my disposal, this could turn out to be my strongest opportunity, I shouldn't rush.' He thought, before turning his gaze back toward Marduk.
"That arena is also reserved for your use, in case you need a testing stage."
"But remember Saryn, strength is not always the prevailing factor."
"Without knowledge of your surroundings, your opponent, and most importantly… yourself, I guarantee you will not leave the final trials alive."
The mirror rippled slightly before shattering, the loose bits of glass dropping to the ground as Saryn replayed Marduk's words in his mind.
The pages of the book in front of him fluttered open, mimicking the flapping of a butterfly's wings as the cold air rushed toward Saryn's face.
'Time to get to work.'