"A golem can only last so long. In time, the bronze ape and the cleaners will whittle away. Even if their parts are replaced, the artificial core cannot. It will never be the same golem even if the core is replaced." Gol-4 hovered down to the anvil, landing with a soft metallic clang.

"I'm sure you noticed my cracks spreading. You can try replicating the configuration of my core to another golem. It will only extend the gradual deterioration of the formation. Nothing lasts forever." Gol-4 sighed.

Oscar put away his newly forged copper shield and sat down, drained from the long fabricating endeavor and Reis-forging. Gol-4 was staring dead ahead at him, and Oscar thought he saw a hint of anticipation from those emotionless glass eyes despite how impossible it was.

"Learn golem crafting? That will take too long and will extend our stay in this realm. Also, I'm not an alchemist. You need to be both to create golems or have a partner who can create the cores." Oscar sighed, his eyes closed.

"Please! I don't beg much for anything, but I must pass on my techniques. I'll try to teach you alchemy, and if you can't learn it, then at least memorize the methods for when you find a suitable person or want to teach it to others." Gol-4 pleaded, raising his voice in desperation.

Oscar could tell how strongly Gol-4 felt about his techniques. Rubbing the temples of his head, Oscar struggled with himself, reasoning it out in his thoughts. It took five years to become an Elite Exalt, and it would surely take longer to reach the peak of the realm. Right now, his friends and home might be in the midst of war, and he could not afford any detours.

"I know what you're thinking, and you're right. Your home may already be overwhelmed by war, but if you return with just yourself, what can you offer to help them out of it?" Gol-4's blue eyes gleamed with a harsh light. "My knowledge of golems can help you and the others tremendously. Imagine building an army of powerful and specialized golems for your Pavilion."

Oscar raised his brow slightly, interested in Gol-4's words now. The truth was he wasn't strong enough to be a deciding factor in a war. Picturing himself building golems to add to the Pavilion's military forces, Oscar softly closed his rough fists.

"Why can't you teach me when we get out?" Oscar asked. "What's the difference between teaching me now against later?"

"As I said, I might not hold on for much longer. Maybe traveling through the portal will adversely affect a defective golem like me. Besides, I've seen your forging skills multiple times now. You have degrees of competence and are hardworking. Please let me teach you."

Gol-4 seemed truly desperate. Oscar knew it was a lot for a powerful memory of a former Primaere to beg for something different from Gol-4's usual goading and convincing words. He felt like he was making a mistake, but Oscar slowly nodded with a resigned smile.

After all, Gol-4 had done so much for him, and Oscar needed him later for the portals. This was his way of repaying Gol-4.

"Thank you!" Gol-4 levitated up while spinning in joy. "Don't worry, Oscar. You already have the basics of fabrication down, so golem crafting is a mere extension. It'll only take a while longer."

"Your desperate and sad mood changed way too quickly." Oscar laughed at himself, feeling he had just gotten scammed.

Dusting off the soot from his knees, Oscar turned his attention to Erden, watching the deer sleep soundly by the entrance. It was around time to sleep. Oscar laid down, resting his head on Erden's side, and slept away in the workshop.

…….

The next morning, Oscar woke to the burning glow of the furnaces, which never seemed to die down. He got up and stretched his back. As he did, Erden let out a low yawn and barged out of the workshop with its antlers. Oscar picked up Gol-4 as its functions turned back on.

"Good morning, Oscar. Let's get started on learning about golems!" Gol-4 was chirpy this morning, happy from yesterday.

"No can do. There's something we have to do first." Oscar splashed some water on his face and hair to cool down. He joined Erden outside and went over to the mine shaft, which he, Orden, and Erik had used. Tectusen was a fortified and safe place, with the only concern being the deep mines below.

Chances were that another colony of Grovekeepers lived within the ancient, twisted tunnels. Oscar remembered when he and Orden were surrounded by the Grovekeepers near the mine shaft entrance. Leaving these dangerous elements to linger within Tectusen would surely come back to haunt him.

"The mines…Stonehaven provided so many materials and raw ores for my clan's purposes. The sounds of pickaxes and carts wheeling around never ended and were quite fun to listen to." Gol-4 said.

Oscar entered the mine shaft, closed the door, and pushed the lever. Gears turned, and chains rattled around as the platform lowered and descended into the mines. Oscar tied the copper shield onto his arm and drank some blue potions. As it lowered further, Oscar focused his breathing, trying to reach the optimal state for battle.

With a loud thud which might as well have been a bell to proclaim Oscar's coming, the lift stopped, and Oscar reached for the doors, nodding to Erden. Exerting his arms, Oscar forced the doors open, and Erden rushed out with a mighty stomp to stagger any foes in their path.

"Ten, no eleven." Oscar counted.

Several Grovekeepers struggled to stand up straight on their wobbly legs, knocking into each other and tumbling on the rocky ground. Before they could let out a sound, Oscar, Erden, and his deer anima stomped on all of them, taking out their cores.

A low groan rose from the tunnels around the main hub where Oscar stood. He quickly looted the Grovekeepers, replenishing his supply of blue potions, and had Erden drink some. Rapid footsteps hammered within the dark depths, and many red eyes gleamed from the obscure reaches. Not wanting to be surrounded by an unknown force, Oscar rode atop Erden, entering one of the tunnels.

"Hold on, how are you going to return?" Gol-4 asked.

"I'll remember, and if not, Demon will," Oscar noted one of the other uses for Demon: remembering things he forgot or neglected. It struck a nerve that he had to rely on his darker half, but right now, he had to work with everything to get out.

Erden rammed Grovekeepers, impaling them with his antlers, and trampled on their bodies, flattening their wooden husks. Erden became a primal force of brutality, not stopping once in its carnage. Oscar depended on Erden to clean up the tunnels as he hastily drew a map of their path.

A loud, brutish cry shook the tunnels. Oscar noticed a large Grovekeeper stampeding toward them. He was about to leap off Erden to deal with it. However, the deer knocked its antlers up to force Oscar back. Despite being a human, Oscar felt he could sense Erden's meaning. His mighty deer companion wanted to deal with the Grovekeeper himself.

"Alright. Go for it." Oscar kicked his feet on Erden's sides.

Erden let out a bellowing shout full of Ein and charged at the large Grovekeeper. As the Grovekeeper swiped its dense arms, Erden buckled his legs low and crouched. The next moment, Erden stomped its legs, knocking his head straight upward, and tossed the Grovekeeper into the air. Spinning around, Erden stuck his hind legs. Cracks formed on the Grovekeeper's skin from Erden's teal hooves and it crashed into the rocky wall.

In a final blow, a pair of teal hooves crushed the Grovekeeper's chest. It exploded into a mess of rock and wood, exposing its core. Oscar took the core and fed it to Erden while patting it on the head.

"Not bad! Though, I would have beaten it faster than you." Oscar teased.

Erden sneezed and went off, purposely shaking its back to make it harder for Oscar to stay on.

"Don't be so petty. Keep growing in strength." Oscar tightened his grip on Erden's neck as Gol-4's laughter rang across the tunnels.

After four hours of rampaging through the mines, Erden stopped moving and dropped to the floor, gasping as it nudged its head around for a comfortable spot. Oscar grinned, feeding Erden some more cores to grow stronger. Taking out his makeshift map, Oscar reviewed their progress so far.

"You don't know much about the distance," Gol-4 sighed at Oscar's rough map.

"As long as it provides a sense of direction, I'll be fine. We went over several pathways, some dead ends, and some loops. Even after several hours, their home remains hidden."

"They don't come from the same direction. Somehow they're springing up from everywhere. What a confusing mystery." Gol-4 added on.

Oscar was still thinking when he heard more footsteps approaching from all directions. Judging from the sound, it was only a few, most likely some scouts, looking for them. Thanks to the glowing crystals, Oscar spotted two from both directions and fired Silver Stars, shooting off their heads. Quickly, his feet rushed with Silver Burst back and forth. In his hands were the two cores.

"Where are they coming from?" Oscar understood the problem would never end until he could expose their origin. Tracing his hands through the map, Oscar started to circle the intensity of their activities. Gol-4 helped to note down which parts had the most numbers.

"It's almost like they just hopped up from the ground…" Oscar couldn't make heads or tails of the spotty appearances and dense eruptions of activity.

An idea struck him. So far, he had been fighting up from the base level of the lowest point of the mine shaft. Gol-4 had mentioned this was the lowest his people had dug but what of the Grovekeepers?

"Those bastards continued to dig!"