"I can't sense any memories…" Roon then took a step back.
"How can that be?" Ingris face contorted, expressing her confusion in full.
The Knight did not panic – it did not know much about their power, but it did know about their kind of soul. It was that made to accommodate memories, and their form was state of age corresponding to how much memories they had accumulated…
They all stepped closer, all trying to verify her claim. They could not see the Knights memories because for all intense and purposes they did not exist. Not the memories from the void, those it had blocked them, and to try and see them they would have to try harder and that the Knight would notice.
The memories Roon was trying to view were those from maybe three hundred years ago. She was trying to see how far back the Knights memories in order to ascertain if she had anything to worry about, but before coming to, the Knight's memories did not exist, even it had never felt them, just habits.
'I guess she couldn't just take 'I was training' for an answer.'
Right then, behind all her innocent laughter, she was trying to check the Knights background, meaning she was trying to check the Knights first memories of being existent, but the Knight did not worry that she might see the void, since the memories she was unintentionally aiming to see were the human ones – it's first ones. But just as the Knight had tried before, they did not exist, and those that did, the Knight had blocked through layers of mental walls that would require a forced and detectable breach.
"Problem?"
"Your memories, your first memories I mean, what happened to them?"
'So, she did try to see the ones I'm defending. I bet with some effort she could even see them. But even as high level as they are, my human memories we're all destroyed – leaving me with faint habits and instincts.'
"I can't say – I've never seen them, so I wouldn't know what happened to them."
"Doesn't it bother you? … Hear me out, this is the first time I've been unable to see memories completely. Usually even from amnesiacs I can still see them, even monsters have memories. The strong usually fortify theirs like you're doing right now. But your first memories the strangest, they don't exist – but something clearly indicates something should. By my calculations almost a billion years of memories are missing, but that can't be right... They aren't stored, hidden or even masked – not even damaged or corrupted, they're just gone."
'Billion‼! I don't know about you Mugaw, but even high-level humans don't live that long, do they…?'
…
'Right… not here… I better answer her…'
"I've never needed them and I can't say that I ever will."
Now their fascination in the Knight had risen, and the Knight's fascination hooked on the almost billion years of memories. They raised their hands to touch the Knights armour.
"Can we?"
"…"
"Don't worry we won't try to dig up the ones you're hiding."
Even if they did, there was little hope they could contain them, being a void being, the Knight's memories were stored and processed in a manner unlike the living. It could see the void, and even live in it easily, there just isn't any telling what kind of damage viewing these would do to one's Saiki.
'Even if they do break in, the distorted perception of reality might buy me some time to escape.'
"Go ahead."
They touched the Knight, and the others touched the backs of those in front of them. A minute later they all backed away. Throughout their eons of experience, they could tell through that single minute of trying, that was all they needed to verify that truly they were incapable of accessing these.
"Sorry about that, I find your name." Said Roon, filled with misplaced curiosity and frustration.
At first all the Laurels stared at each other, but after some passing, they made nothing of it, instead making an expression made by those who had learned not to get their hopes up, choosing to calm down. You could see them actively trying to come to a specific conclusion – almost as though making this conclusion would break their hearts. Then Roon turned her gaze to the Knight and added.
"Maybe the next time you come here I'll be able to see them. Sorry about all that. Anyway, is there anything you want to ask from us or about us. We've had our fill of fun, right guys?"
"Yes – I'm exhausted." Said another Laurel as they all headed back to their business.
The Knight could see that all of them were visible puzzled by the whole situation. It also managed to piece together that all of it was also disorienting them. But most of all, it meant that their visit would soon be over. All in all, there was no more time to stall.
"Yes, there is something."
"Go on, don't be shy. Wanna know about the heroes? Who we are? How to get stronger perhaps? Or maybe you want to learn an ancient secret lost to time?"
"No – I want to know about a sword."
"A sword! I'm afraid I don't follow."
"A long descendant of one of the knights Errant of ancient, said that his grandfather used to regale him of tails about this long-forgotten ancestor of theirs. In one of the stories, he mentions how their ancestor changed the course of their family by discovering a passion for crafting and smithing. The source of this knight's newfound passion came from here.
Once summoned here, he laid his eyes upon a magnificent blade of which his then current skills could not come close to making. It was a blade as rusty and degraded as my armour – which is what prompted the smith from down below in Arulli recall from this tale. I have reason to believe this sword is still here. And I would like to see it if you do not mind."
She put her hands on her face, a hint of interest in her words. "A sword you say."
"Where did he see this sword did you say?" asked another Laurel – Gui. The other Laurels ears burnt with a fierce desire for something that all of them on multiple occasion have learnt to bury, a hope similar to a bad memory they did not want.
"Near the entrance. He was part of an entire envoy that had been summoned together."
"I think I remember. Sorry, our memories are usually sharp. It's just everyone here including me is trying to understand how something like that could be possible – how could something missing memories exist? So, do excuse our slowness." replied Gui.
"And you can still think just fine, or should I give you all time to process?"
"Well, I didn't touch you for as long as they did, as soon as I realised Roon was struggling, I tried not to strain myself."
Then she began walking and gestured for the Knight to follow. Roon, Ingris, and a few others also came, for a total of just nine of them. The rest stayed back in the park, either to resume their day, or mull over the situation with the Knight's memories.
"…I remember. We stopped sending invitations as often. One of the last groups that big was a million years ago. And shortly before that group, I remember one where a knight took a long potent stare at the sword. Must be the one you're speaking about. It used to sit high up on the entrance to our house.
But a while back we moved it to the hall. The head Laurel said there was no reason to keep it up there anymore, it was more trouble than expected, and in the hall, it wouldn't attract as much of a crowd. She used to stare at it all day, but now she just spends her time idly. In fact, I'm surprised someone other than us even knows about it..."
"What do you mean?"
"Even Juval hasn't seen it, and of those that have most are dead, and the rest we made forget."
Right before the Knight asked a follow up question, they turned a corner, and Ingris spoke. "Here we are. The ancient artifact isle."
The Laurels all looked like mirror images of each other at different time stamps of life. One had a tan, the others skin glowed in the dark, the other had grey silver hair, others dark black. Even their voices were an uncanny level of similar. The Knight had to keep track of them individually to remember who said what to whom and when. It became less of a problem as soon at the crowd size decreased. The excitement had died down.
In the hallway, was a heaping stash of garbage, lined up along the walls. Roon finally stopped thinking about the whole memories thing and spoke.
"In this isle, you will come upon every single artifact we have ever collected, we used to give them as treasures to those that thought they were worthy. But most of them in here need specific spirit essences of specific souls to link, thus it became a glorified collection of useless trash – for nostalgia – and most knights had learned to make their own weapons or had someone who could make them one more fitting."
They started walking through the hall. "And this is why this particular sword became a problem. Many thought it would grant them immense power, thinking it was rusty and cracked to dissuade the shallow. But in reality, it just…"
They kept walking through it, them mentioning summarised stories about each. Blades, tools, shields, and even a string similar to the one Adriel could make but this one did not fade.
"… and over there is the hero Arulli's gloves…" then she pointed to another and another.
"Most if not all of them are unusable." Added Ingris.
It turned to look at Ingris. 'It's like talking to Red, but at least Red was the same person.'
Ingris continued. "They were made for specific souls and specific essences. And most of them can do only a single thing and some take too much spirit essence to be used by just anyone – most just die upon touch, some die after giving a bit of essence and the rest of it is drained clean."
Another Laurel stepped up and added. "I remember someone taking one a while back. It was this blade. I think her name was … Q… Quu-Quu… Yeah, that's right."
"I remember her. She was quite the fan, excited like a toddler – too bad she stopped doing her duties."
They went silent for a while. Meanwhile, the Knight's gaze roamed freely through the room. Analysing and forming a comprehensive dictionary for the collection.
"I can tell by your silence you know about how dangerous imparting spirit essence to a sword can be…"
She was stopped speaking when they realised they had left the Knight behind on their ramblings. The Knight had stopped dead still, right next to one of the rusty blades.