Isa belatedly shut his mouth and refused to answer any further probes.

"Should I use it?" He wondered aloud to himself before turning to Hagalaz and Kenaz. "Do you have any problem with it if I use this?"

"Not at all." Hagalaz shrugged. "It was you who led us through the maze to save Isa, and it was you who found it anyway."

"I agree." Kenaz nodded. "Without you, we wouldn't even have come here. It's all yours."

"Thank you." Ansuz was happy they didn't adopt the same attitude as Isa. "Now, how do I use this?"

He thought for a moment.

"Should I eat it?" He asked himself aloud, purposefully saying it loud enough for Isa to hear.

"Don't you dare use it!" Isa raged, conjuring a spear of ice and sending it towards Ansuz's chest.

"So that's how I use it." Ansuz grinned, popping the tasteless, glass-like eye into his mouth and swallowing, easily dodging the spear.

Isa's eyes bugged and he slumped forward in defeat, yelping when it aggravated his wound.

Ansuz felt a pleasant stream of heat suffuse his body, concentrating itself in his head, making him feel comfortably warm as the colours around him grew more vibrant.

"Damn it!" Isa exclaimed furiously. "I hoped you'd die from absorbing it."

"That's a possibility?" Ansuz asked curiously, slightly surprised to see Isa's body tinged grey.

"Yes." Isa nodded. "It's a shame you didn't die."

"Should we just abandon Isa?" Ansuz asked the other two.

"If he's unrepentant and actively wishing death upon us, then perhaps it would be for the best." Kenaz said, in mock-regret.

"I concur." Hagalaz sighed with genuine sorrow. "If I hadn't witnessed him attacking you, I'd disagree. I had hoped he'd come around, but this is unforgivable."

"As soon as you heal, we will be ejecting you from the party." Ansuz said. "I'd feel guilty about ejecting a wounded man."

He walked to the area behind the altar and pulled a few loaves of bread from the small pile they laid in, along with a few waterskins.

With his arms full, he turned back towards his companions and handed out the food to them.

"How did you know you could sell artifacts?" Ansuz asked as they ate.

"Is it not a given in situations like this?" Isa demanded irritably. "This is just like a game. Just as you have an inspection skill, you also have other skills. Figure it out yourself."

"Whether or not we leave you with food will hinge on how you answer my question." Ansuz said sweetly.

Isa responded with silence.

"How do you know things like this? We all had our memories wiped, right?" Ansuz asked, taking his silence as assent.

"I still have all my memories of my life before this." Isa glared at Ansuz.

"Ah. Your rune makes sense then." Ansuz chuckled. "Isa represents standstill. It can also represent egomania, blindness, betrayal, and deceit. I'm guessing his rune is also the reason why his memories weren't wiped. His rune protects him from changes. It also perfectly captures his personality."

"Hmm. All we have to go off of is your knowledge, but it does make sense." Kenaz said thoughtfully. "I guess this was unavoidable if your conjecture is true."

"It probably was unavoidable." Hagalaz agreed. "But why did he have power over ice?"

"Answer his question and you'll get to have water when we leave." Ansuz said to Isa.

"You start with a free common rune in your inventory, dumbass." Isa responded scathingly.

"And how do you access it?" Ansuz asked patiently.

"You just say it with the intention to open it." Isa growled. "This is basic shit."

"Inventory." Ansuz muttered, ignoring Isa's insults that he continued to throw at them.

Inside Ansuz's inventory were items, just as Isa said, arranged into a four by four grid, however he had two items. He experimented for a brief amount of time before finally figuring out he just had to reach into the box he wanted the item out of.

Pulling out both items, he inspected them.

One was a piece of bark that looked like a rough imitation of a gauntlet, its 'fingers' were little more than twisted wood that ended in a point, and its wrist covers looked like little more than dry bark that would be used as tinder.

{Artifact: Wooden Claws}

{Type: Armour(Treant Set Item)(Durability: 50/50)}

{Alignment: Wood}

{Rarity: Common}

{Description: One piece of the four pieces of the Treant set. A pair of gauntlets that slowly regenerate durability over time. Grants mediocre defense for its grade in return for a mediocre piercing attack.}

{Restrictions: Can only be applied to the hand, must not have conflicting alignment(fire)}

{Penalties for use: None}

'I guess I can't use this because I posses an alignment with fire.' Ansuz thought, holding the item as he inspected the other. 'Or any artifact that possesses a restriction to an element.'

The second item was a thumb-sized, resplendent rainbow crystal that shimmered dazzlingly when he moved it in his palm.

{Artifact: Shimmering Rainbow Crystal}

{Type: Item(Reward Item)(Consumable)}

{Alignment: Fire, Water, Earth, Air, Metal, Arc, Light, Shade, Frost, Magma, Blood}

{Rarity: Rare}

{Description: A precious jewel that, when consumed, will grant the user a mediocre boost in affinity to many elements, as well as improve the user's constitution and Mana capacity.}

{Restrictions: Soulbound, must possess omni-affinities}

{Penalties for use: None}

{Reward from being among the first one hundred people to acquire a legendary artifact.}

"Hey, Ansuz." Kenaz glanced at him, smiling. "Thanks to you handing that legendary artifact to me, I got an achievement item."

"I did too. What a strange system." Ansuz nodded, promptly swallowing the beautiful rainbow crystal and enjoying the slight heat that once again suffused his body.

"You got an item for touching that eye?" Hagalaz asked suddenly. "Damn it! Why didn't I touch it?"

"FUCK" Isa screamed out, enraged. Everyone ignored him.

"Unfortunately, all you can do is regret." Ansuz said, feeling genuine regret for his companion. "If we find another legendary, how about it goes to you?"

"You do deserve it." Kenaz agreed. "You've received very few benefits from travelling with us."

"Well, if you put it like that, then I won't have to regret." Hagalaz responded, his massive shoulders quaking as his laughter shook the room. "But, seeing my free common artifact, wouldn't it be best to avoid consuming an artifact now?"

"Are you referring to the massive amounts of restrictions that were on my artifact?" Ansuz asked, confirming his conjecture when Hagalaz nodded. "Perhaps it would be better for you to wait, while at the same time it might not. It could be important for you to have an artifact if we're to get more to survive, while it might simultaneously cause you to be unable to use the artifact when we find it."

"I don't know what I should do!" Hagalaz exclaimed, torn.

"How about this. If we encounter another group with hostile intentions, you'll use it and help us fight them off, but if we find another legendary artifact in the mean time, you'll use it." Ansuz suggested, laying Hagalaz's worries to rest. "While it might lead to you having a disadvantage regarding your familiarity with the artifact, you could still turn the tables with regards to combat."

"I'll do as you suggested." Hagalaz said, pleased. "Thank you."

"It benefits all of us, so why are you thanking me?" Ansuz asked.

"Because it benefits me." Hagalaz responded, his laughter echoing off the walls.

"I think I'll avoid using both my Shimmering Rainbow Crystal and the common earth artifact I received. It'd be best for me to wait until I have a legendary artifact as well." Kenaz said after a momentary thought.

Nodding in understanding, Ansuz turned once more to the belligerent Isa.

"Anything else we should know with regards to this system?" He asked, sweet as honey. "Answer me and I'll give you this artifact."

Isa's eyes lit with greed and he hurried to respond.

"There is also a status screen as well as a shop, you just need to say their respective names with the intent to open them." Isa spoke as fast as he could, his eyes never leaving the wooden gauntlet.

"Thanks." Ansuz dropped the gauntlet next to Isa and turned to his screens that he summoned with a word. "Status screen."

{Rune: Ansuz}

{Race: Human}

{Mana: 1500/1500}

{Health: 500/500}

{Stamina: 250/250}

{Physical Status: Healthy}

{Mental Status: Slightly Tired}

"Fascinating." Ansuz said after he finished reading over his status screen.

Kenaz, who was reading his status with him, opened her own and glanced back and forth between his and her own.

"Your mana is massive." She said, shocked by the number that was displayed by his screen.

Ansuz looked over at her screen and saw that his numbers did indeed dwarf hers.