Otherwise, they would have been as smelly as her blood-soaked clothes that carried a putrid stench that could make weak-willed men puke their guts out.
She felt embarrassed as Roy's nose wrinkled because of the awful smell coming from her.
"Let me see."
Roy moved closer to Delilah, the heat radiating off of him gently enveloping her.
'Why is he coming so close to me?' She thought he was flirting with her, but after seeing that his eyes were fixed on the four items nestled in her palms, she scolded herself for being too imaginative.
There were two crystals, one marble, and one silver plate in her hand. They looked innocent enough, but Roy knew that in the world they inhabited, nothing was ever as it seemed.
The blue crystals sparkled in the dark, their surfaces glinting with an ethereal sparkle as if there were a thousand diamonds encased within. These were no ordinary stones; they were elemental cores, coveted by aura masters for their mystical properties. The market value of just one of these was no less than that of a rank-5 runic weapon.
As for the marble that looked like a child's toy, it was actually a runic stone with the power to enslave and store monsters.
With this stone, one could become a tamer, commanding up to three beasts. The enslaved beasts could be stored inside it.
The power of the stone would deplete once it's used three times, but the bond would remain, even after the runic stone shattered.
It was an excellent item, but Roy only spared it a glance.
Roy's eyes drifted over to the unassuming silver plate that lay before him. At first glance, it appeared to be nothing more than a discarded piece of rusty, mold-covered metal. However, as his gaze lingered on the strange archaic words etched into its surface, he felt a sudden thrill of excitement race through his veins.
"Skill plate," he breathed in disbelief.
Amused by his reaction, she couldn't help but ask, "What is a skill plate?"
"It is the embodiment of the power a beast gains when they reach the coveted aura monster stage. It requires the very essence of its creator to survive. It usually dissipates into the ether with the death of its creator, but in rare cases, it remains intact." Roy explained as he waved the skill plate in his hand. "This a magic-type skill plate, and it can grant the Quick Cast ability to those who establish a connection with it. Anyone can become its owner if they have a magic sea."
"Why is this knowledge being kept a secret?" she asked, suspicion clouding her voice.
This was the first time she heard about skill plates. Knowledge about skill plates should be widespread since they were so special, but it wasn't. It could only mean that a massive organization was purposely suppressing it.
"It's much easier to swindle a dirty-looking plate that no one wants from a naive and innocent person than it is to win a treasure that everyone with money is bidding for," Roy said.
"You know who is behind it?" Delilah asked.
"It's the High Lords and the Imperialists. Only High Lords and the Imperialists have enough power to keep this knowledge hidden. They have a vested interest in keeping the skill plate shrouded in mystery, allowing them to monopolize them without much cost. Their agents are spread throughout the empire. Their job is to keep this knowledge hidden, to preserve the skill plate's secrets for only the most elite and privileged members of the empire, and they will dirty their hands with the blood of the innocent if they have to." Roy said.
Delilah's eyes widened as she took in Roy's words, "That's not fair."
"We live in a cruel world. The ones running it don't care about fairness. They only care about maintaining their grip on power, and the skill plates give them an edge. Imagine being able to learn any skill instantly without having to spend years training and practicing. Almost everyone would become greedy for it. In a sense, it's better than soul shards as it doesn't mutate your body or require energy to be activated. I think only those pure of heart would be able to resist the temptation of such power." Roy spoke profoundly.
Skill plates did appear in the novel.
A similar conversation took place between the main protagonist and the main female character.
When she used her power to access the world's history and saw the truth, she felt disgusted with the figures she used to look up to as a child. They were the ones behind the conspiracy. They had looted many adventurers from their treasures using a pathetic sum of money, and they also made them sign an agreement so that if one day they found out what a skill plate really was, they won't be able to demand compensation.
"I think it's not right. Everyone deserves to know that there is another item like soul shards that can grant them an ability," she said like a righteous charlatan.
"Delilah, poking your nose into this matter is a dangerous game. The Imperialists and High Lords won't hesitate to silence anyone who dares to challenge their authority. So take it as if this conversation never happened." Roy warned her.
Delilah nodded. "About this, I am on the same page as you. I don't like it, but I will take this secret to my grave."
She knew she had to keep it a secret if she valued her life. It wasn't hard for forces that governed the world to crush her like an ant. Even her Lord might be implicated if she got on their nerves.
"What are you planning to do with that?" she asked while pointing at the skill plate.
"Use it, of course," Roy replied.
Without a second thought, Roy conjured a small aura sword and pricked his finger. He let a droplet of his blood fall onto the plate.
