LoRG 2

Well itÆs not like IÆm without methods even if I donÆt send a message heading toward the space where the old headquarters was built would be a good start

Closing his eyes Randidly let his Aether sweep outward away from his position Even more clearly than before Randidly developed a very intimate understanding of the state of Erickson Steel as he touched all the individual workers and felt the different Skills that they possessed Their Levels and basic Skills appeared in his mind Although he was dealing with a sea of information his Intelligence gave him enough processing power to work through it all

What he found left him confused When he had informed Tatiana that he was heading over her immediate relief was obvious It seemed that the difficulties that Erickson Steel had faced over the last several months had not been small Yet as Randidly scanned the surrounding area the people he sensed were a high Level and were clearly using Skills that they had trained with for a long time

Although everyone was busily working everyone appeared satisfied no one seemed to display any sort of fear for their own life from being openly persecuted or oppressed

So the Skilled workers of Erickson Steel werenÆt getting poached and the other party wasnÆt using force to intimidate the people here at all Those were positive signs but also signs that resolving the issue would be more troublesome Violence was simple to address Tatiana had mentioned the other party was restricting Erickson SteelÆs access to raw materials but could that really have such a non visible effect And could this other force do it without relying on rough instruments

Very quickly Randidly located Tatiana working within one of the central facilities It seemed that the same headquarters was still in place although it had expanded upward five floors He turned and looked at Helen On second thought can you go gather some high Level monster bones for me IÆm running a bit low and it seems like the situation here isnÆt simple IÆll need to devote some time If you head West you should find some high Level areas Aim for monsters above Level 60

Got it HelenÆs eyes were bright with the promise of violence as she hurried away

Chuckling Randidly crouched down After gathering sufficient bodily capability with Yyrwood Body of Yggdrasil and MonstrosityÆs Appalling Physicality Randidly was able to explode into the air collapsing the edge of the slope on which he had been standing The air travel was quick but also dangerous In order to obtain a clean landing Randidly guided several roots upward to serve as a landing spot above the Erickson Steel Headquarters It was almost silently that he finally alighted on the roof without destroying anything

Afterward Randidly figured it would be for the best to simply walk in the front door to get a good look at this renovated headquarters As with many of the locations in Zone 1 the Erickson Steel headquarters was equipped with old Earth automatic doors that slid easily open as he approached Air conditioned air immediately blasted outward cooling RandidlyÆs face Blinking Randidly proceeded forward

As he walked into the building RandidlyÆs smile was slightly twisted Honestly it’s felt like IÆve been in a different world for the past several years This sort of building it really brings me back

Within the building was a lazy looking guard at a security desk a young woman typing in the reception area and several plastic chairs in which people could sit while they waited in the atrium area When the security guard didnÆt look up at all to RandidlyÆs presence Randidly wandered over to the reception desk

Can you let Tatiana know that Baloo Erickson is here to see her Randidly said even as he internally winced at speaking aloud the horrendous name that he had made up on the spot during his first arrival in Zone 1

The young looking receptionist looked up when Randidly approached and smiled politely But at the name both the receptionist and the security guard perked up It was clear that they recognized it

You youÆre the founder of this company The receptionist asked Her fingers ceased typing and her whole attention seemed to focus toward him Although Randidly hadnÆt noticed initially the eyes that waited for his answer were yellow like a catÆs As he considered her he noticed her glossy chestnut hair and expensive looking coat It was clear that she was well compensated for her position at Erickson Steel

Yes Randidly said simply If you could tell Tatiana as quickly as possible IÆd appreciate it

Behind him Randidly felt the security guard giving him a rapid once over Very quickly the manÆs gaze landed on RandidlyÆs bare and dirty feet Over RandidlyÆs shoulder the security guard gave the receptionist an aggrieved look that probably translated to something like why is it our job to deal with crazies like this

Without bothering to assist the receptionist at all the security guard slouched back down at his station and began to ignore Randidly But the young woman continued to stare at him with her warm amber eyes

Do you have any proof She asked in a quiet voice

Randidly thought about it Perhaps he could produce a bar of Blood Steel in order to convince her but would that really carry enough weight to go against his rather disheveled appearance Would she even recognize a bar of Erickson Steel Aside from the belt he acquired from Sam Randidly wasnÆt wearing any of his other new armors In his mind walking around in such obvious battle equipment looked a little silly

So he had the ash grey Sulfur a leather vest and a clean pair of worn jeans that he had obtained from Donnyton before the challenge He looked like someone who just came from a long shift at work If he wanted to walk in through the front door like this he really needed to spend a bit more time on his appearance

Randidly scratched his head awkwardly Well no one can be good at everything if this doesnÆt work I can just proceed directly to TatianaÆs office from the outside Or send her a message to come fetch me although that feels a bit embarrassing

Nope All I have is my word Randidly said And then he laughed to himself because hundreds of miles away from Donnyton and that lingering violence a receptionist at the door of a business he owned stopped him dead with a simple request for proof This place didn’t care about the turmoil in his chest And he didnÆt have the heart to force the issue publicly as he understood she was just doing her job

A job that was likely listed under the security guardÆs job description yet it was clear that man had no intention of assisting the young receptionist

Strangely Randidly felt oddly liberated by the fact that the demonstration of power he had made with images in Donnyton meant nothing here Even more strangely despite RandidlyÆs frank admission he had no proof the young woman continued to look at him The two stared at each other bright yellow and emerald considering each other Then after nodding to herself while keeping her eyes fixed on him she picked up a phone at her desk and dialed a number

A few seconds later she tskÆd in annoyance and set the phone down Ms Tatiana is in a meeting but I can take you up to wait outside her office for her to finish

As if finally catching onto the fact that this was not going the way that he had expected the security guard looked up and frowned meaningfully at the receptionist With a practiced motion he adjusted his belt and sniffed loudly

thanks IÆd appreciate it Randidly said slowly following the young womanÆs gesture and heading toward the stairs Behind his back he felt the young woman stick her tongue out at the security guard behind Randidly and then follow him down the hall and into the stairwell Scowling the security guard watched both of their departing figures without saying anything With light steps the young woman caught up to him and moved swiftly upward

For the eight flights of stairs up to the top floor of the Erickson Steel administrative building both of them remained silent In fact Randidly was quite content to send out waves of Aether continually monitoring the type of people that were housed in this building It was immediately clear to him that Tatiana had down an impeccable job in personnel selection Even after casually scanning he felt several individuals using management or planning Skills that were over one hundred

That Level wasnÆt much compared to Randidly but since Erickson Steel was a relatively new company to have so many talented individuals under its roof still seemed impressive As they moved up the stairs Randidly idly watched the bobbing of the young womanÆs ponytail as his brain gathered and sorted information

When they reached the top floor she held the door open for Randidly After a brief pause he walked through onto a plush carpet that felt exceedingly delightful to feel on his bare toes He stretched his toes wide and pressed them deep into the soft maroon cloud on which he was currently floating

The receptionist’s eyes dipped down to land on his feet Her gaze lingered there so long that Randidly tilted his head to the side and twisted to look at her Randidly smiled slightly unsure of what to say in the face of her frank observation

Her immediate reaction to being caught staring at his feet was to blush Ah Well whatÆs the point in having stuff like this is someone doesnÆt enjoy it right Please have a seat on one of these couches When Ms TatianaÆs meeting is over you can head on in the rest of her schedule today is free

Are you a gambler Randidly asked lightly

The young woman blinked The bright amber of her eyes flickered in confusion

With a small smile Randidly gestured to himself I understand what I look like ItÆs a tall order to go out on a limb and believe that IÆm the mysterious and absent founder of the company the titular Erickson I would understand it if we had met before but you are a new hire right ThereÆs no way we have met Yet you brought me up here clearly angering your coworker downstairs So are you a gambler

The young woman grinned at him Maybe weÆve met and I am simply such a minor character that youÆve forgotten

I would remember you Randidly said calmly He turned his Aether scan toward the young woman Instantly he felt her Class and Level Meticulous Technician Level 37 But RandidlyÆs attention was immediately drawn to the fact that her Careful Preparations Skill was at Level 179

Minor character huh

The young womanÆs smile shrunk Then she shrugged ThereÆs something about your eyes It feels like you arenÆt someone who would lie At least thatÆs what I believe And besides with the System what about life isnÆt a gamble

Then she closed the door and left Randidly alone with the plush carpet and his delighted toes Shaking his head Randidly turned and headed toward TatianaÆs office If nothing else he needed to let Tatiana know that it was a waste to have such a talented individual working as a receptionist And the fact that she had managed to get to Level 37 meant that she wasnÆt a slacker when it came to fighting

As Randidly approached TatianaÆs office he immediately sensed that it was her and Tykes within As such Randidly knocked briefly on the wooden door and then calmly opened it to step through

Both bodies within turned quickly to face the surprise intruder at the door but the harsh rebuke that Tatiana was preparing for whoever dared interrupt this meeting died immediately when she saw who pushed open the door Baloo

Randidly winced Seeing his reaction Tykes chuckled and stepped closer to pick Randidly up in a bear hug Man itÆs good to see you Means that we can stop playing around with these fucks

Grinning at them both Randidly said with amusement So we have a problem with the competition After your messages I was worried that they were interfering with us directly But after looking around the factory honestly it seems like we are doing well So whatÆs the problem

If it was as simple as another business just suppressing us and looking for the formula donÆt you think I would have solved it myself Have some faith in me Mr Ghosthound Tatiana said his name with a conscious effort Then she shook her head Competition and pressure we can handle WeÆve dealt with it so far But recently theyÆve changed their strategy

What we canÆt compete against is tariffs Because Erickson Steel isnÆt constructed in the Senate approved industrial districts of Zone 1 raw material suppliers are taxed when they sell to us a foreignÆ business interest We can pay a little extra for the materials to compensate them for that but that tactic has been slowly bleeding us of our liquid funds While we’ve been petitioning to change the law we were blindsided by another rule they are trying to pass

Tykes grimaced There is a bill proposed that would require all foreign business interests to employ government licensed quality control agent as we are making industrial grade metals In all of Zone 1 Erickson Steel would be the only company affected by this bill We are being targeted by someone with political power in this Zone

Chapter 959

So Randidly frowned at Tatiana and Tykes The two both wore extremely depressed expressions as they explained what Erickson Steel endured over the last few months They want us to move the headquarters

Maybe at the beginning but now that they own our debt they have gotten greedy Tatiana said grimly They want control of production luckily they canÆt change the terms of the mortgage without us having a legal out but theyÆve done their best to eliminate our options And as long as everything runs under your name

They own our debt Randidly looked over at Tykes Are we deeply in debt I guess the new expansion is pretty big Well anyway if they are so obviously refusing to be civil why do we even bother paying this targeted tax

If we donÆt the suppliers canÆt do business with us Tatiana said In addition the government would take any excuse to send investigatorsÆ to Erickson Steel headquarters and look over the process When they talk about the Erickson Steel formulate they treat it like a national treasure that we are selfishly using for our own gain If we even stick a toe out of line

Do we truly fear them that much How strong are they Randidly asked his eyebrows rising

Tykes immediately chuckled and Tatiana just looked at him with wide eyes After cracking his knuckles Tykes seated himself in one of the two wide leather couches along the wall

Randidly with all due respect Tatiana said slowly She spread her hands wide ItÆs not about strength Or at least it’s not about fighting strength This is our government If we take an antagonistic stance there are a thousand ways they could harass us and make our lives difficult They have the ability to make laws In addition military bases are a significant portion of our sales they buy some of our specialty drones in bulk Without them it will be difficult to make enough of a profit to pay the tariffs

So we donÆt pay the tariffs IsnÆt that what I said Randidly cracked his neck in irritation Of course as soon as he left Donnyton with a bitter heart he would encounter a pointless situation like this While he was away it seemed that the threat of Randidly Ghosthound meant less and less in Zone 1

If they think IÆll remain passive because I did in the past they are fools Neither of my images will allow this disrespect to go unpunished Randidly barred his teeth at his hands It wasnÆt ideal but Randidly felt like there was no point in being civil if Zone 1 was willing to rely on the heavyweight of contracts and societal pressure to bind him

Hell even if Tatiana had sold the soul of the company to the devil I would just head to hell and kill him to take it back Randidly thought darkly I acted previously to stabilize society because thatÆs what I thought I needed But now I know we need to stop playing these games and work on growing stronger If Zone 1 refuses to take the hint

IÆm not sure if you understand Tatiana tried again but Randidly waved her silent

Randidly did understand He understood that his disrespect for the rule of law on Earth was dangerous and subversive On the one hand he might be able to get away with it due to his status as the Ghosthound But if other organizations became aware of it they would wonder whether breaking those bonds of decency would be worth it

That could lead to more infighting and weakening the Earth even further What Randidly was considering now was extremely risky And yet

In his heart the heavy image of the Grim Chimera stirred just slightly Immediately Randidly released a breath and forced that part of him to relax After seeing the collapse of Tellus Randidly had no hope that he could completely maintain the stability of Earth in the face of the Calamities

Better to risk it and protect the valuable portions And to him and to the forgers of Earth Erickson Steel was extremely valuable

This is going to be hard for you to understand I actually believed your method was the better one until not long ago But now Randidly looked down at his hands once more Although Randidly was very careful not to allow his images to stir again his arms still warped into the wicked weapons of the Grim Chimera before his very eyes The air smelled like ashes and dried blood We donÆt have to play nice We are going to refuse to pay their taxes and ignore their agents

Plus if they force the issue we can always leave Randidly finished

The other two people in the room just looked at him for several seconds Finally Tykes flexed his hands with a grin plastered on his face Thank god IÆm so tired of just letting these slugs crawl all over us without doing anything about it

Sighing Tatiana asked Where will we get raw materials then Our process will grind to a halt without a constant stream of materials

Randidly sent Helen a message to keep an eye out for any sort of ore veins And if she couldnÆt get any results in a short amount of time he could just move himself to search IÆll handle it When it comes to locating things within the ground I have a fair amount of confidence Is there anything else Any other way they are messing with us

ItÆs not so much messing with us Tykes said as his lip curled upward But most of our workers get rather constant headhunter calls Most need to leave their cell phones in their locker so that they donÆt get distracted while working

Certainly Zone 1 is much closer to the way Earth used to be Randidly thought to himself Spam callers and cellphones

Then he shook his head to dislodge his idle wonderings about the dangers of technology and instead focused on the issue at hand What did he actually want to accomplish If he would only spoil the image of Earth with his interference then his focus on helping Earth could either shift into general instruction or by providing powerful materials However when Randidly saw his Paths that would enable him to instruct individuals earlier he hadnÆt felt any sort of desire

Instead Randidly found himself smiling much more widely as he imagined stealing away this entire factory and becoming an independent provider

If he didnÆt have to remain close to civilization it was better to maintain some space Randidly had absolutely no interest in creating some sort of super martial artist school to help teach the people of this world how to fight Even if all Randidly attempted to do was raise the strength of some teachers it would still be incredibly time consuming in the short term And a hassle to improve the power of these teachers without relying on images

No it was better if he could use images freely And the only way that would be safe was to isolate RandidlyÆs base of operations from the other emerging images If he ran away from taxes and tariffs at the same time well that was just a happy coincidence

I already planned on calling over some friends to apply some pressure IÆll get them to stop the calls But also How easy would it be to simply move Randidly asked

Impossible came TatianaÆs immediate answer That debt you seemed so dismissive of earlier was spent reinforcing the ground in the surrounding area so we could expand in the future It was an investment In addition weÆve done a lot of groundwork here to ensure that Erickson Steel can accomplish everything on sight Without the ability to simply lift up the land and carry it away with us Erickson Steel will lose a lot by moving

Something like that Randidly tapped his cheek There was a thing layer of stubble there he noticed He should shave soon

Randidly could forcefully pick up and move the facilities it with Mana but it would become a constant drain on his attributes Still he thought it would be rather interesting if he could manage to turn Erickson Steel into a mobile business Although Randidly didnÆt want to casually use the Skill maybe spending some time refining a Soulseed for that purpose would be for the best

Again Randidly shook his head Leave the details for later What about the employees How many people work here How willing would they be to leave Zone 1

If you got us out of here donÆt be surprised if some of the people praise you like a god Tykes muttered There would be a holiday named after you

ItÆs dramatic but Tatiana rolled her eyes and walked to the cupboard From it she removed three crystal glasses and a full bottle of liquor A finger of amber liquid was poured into each glass and then Tatiana offered one of the glasses each to Randidly and Tykes Without even thanking her Tykes took the liquid and threw back the shot

Tykes smacked his lips as he lowered his glass onto the desk with an audible clink Ahh I never get tired of that Did you get another shipment from Donnyton

Tatiana nodded and offered it to Randidly who took it curiously He held the liquid up to the light and studied the color Strangely it lightened almost to the point of appearing luminous when put beneath lights It was less amber and more a brilliant butter color

It reminded Randidly of the receptionist’s eyes

As Randidly considered the liquid Tatiana continued to speak A rough way to put it but Tykes isnÆt wrong A lot of our workers opted to switch to Erickson Steel because the government sponsored industrial complexes are poorly managed hell holes It seems that they mistakenly believed that since the System prevented illnesses there was no real need to develop sufficient sanitation facilities

And when the word was spread that Erickson Steel was given a foreignÆ designation there have been some retaliation against us Not by the government But by regular people Being considered foreign are workers are classified so they arenÆt able to obtain any citizenship other than probationary Often Erickson Steel workers are refused service at restaurants and stores Which is why we built up more infrastructure here so most people can just live in our facilities without worry

RandidlyÆs expression darkened It took an effort of will to keep his Crown of Upheaval and Gloom from making an appearance at that moment After all Erickson Steel was ultimately his These were his people To hear that they were being discriminated against immediately set his teeth on edge Especially after his own drawn out experiences trying to gain citizenship in Zone 1

They classify our employees Randidly said softly

Tatiana grimaced Honestly itÆs a good thing for us If the effect wasnÆt permanent more people would be tempted to switch over But mostly its a recent law passed to keep us from expanding any further

While thinking about the callous actions of the Zone 1 government Randidly rapidly composed a message and sent it to Naffur requesting that he pack up and head South to assist in the Erickson Steel as soon as possible In addition Randidly added that he planned on establishing an official base for the Order Ducis

Then as an afterthought Randidly recalled that Naffur came up out of the Orchard In a second message Randidly requested Naffur arrange for a new batch of recruits be picked from the OrchardÆs lottery system with the possibility of entering the Order Ducis as a reward

Those recruits of course would come and work for Erickson Steel in the meantime

When RandidlyÆs gaze refocused on Tatiana she noticed his attention and continued to speak In terms of number there are about 600 people living and working on the Erickson Steel campus About as many again that work in our delivery side taking our materials and transporting them to different locations Plus we have branch members working in most major cities

Well pull them all back Randidly said offhandedly They needed to reestablish their relationship with the world if they wanted to quickly shake off these annoyances from bothering Erickson Steel Best to do that from a consolidated state

As Randidly watched Tatiana slowly turn increasingly pale as she considered the implications of what he just said Randidly finally took a drink of the liquor that she had given to him Immediately a tingling sense of numbness spread across his mouth Randidly grinned in pleasure

Not only was the alcohol strong enough to affect his powerful physical body but he could also immediately feel the tyrannical possessiveness in his heart that demanded retribution against these bugs slowly ease and relax The anger and vindictive emotions became foggy and drifted away no longer urging his images to mobilize

Randidly finished the rest of the glass enjoying the tingling numbness that spread down to his throat Honestly the feeling was quite a lot like having his face touched by the Tinglesilk Gloves

Even though she was still gritting her teeth Tatiana recovered enough to speak I can see why you would want to lessen the avenues the Zone 1 government can use to strike back but if we recall our people we will not sell metal Without sales we have no money Without money we cannot pay our workers or the bank We will starve ourselves without those branches in operation

How much better is Erickson Steel than its competitors Randidly asked with a small smile

Tatiana bristled at the question Of course as much as 20% better in turns of strength or reliability at the top end Less so in the middling products But

Then wonÆt people come here on their own accord Unless they want to use inferior metals Randidly said casually He too was unsure if it would work out perfectly but there were some things that you could only learn by acting Worrying about it would help not at all

Besides He lifted his gaze and peered out a nearby window toward the horizon Although he looked what Randidly was really doing was expanding the scope of his Aether scans to scan the nearby train tracks The tools are all there All it takes is a Crown and the will to bear its weight

Very quickly he found what he was looking for and turned back to Tatiana Also look into getting a working train car for our track As soon as possible Customers will need an easy way to get here for as long as we are going to remain at this location actually no never mind IÆll take care of it personally

There is another problem Tatiana was shaking her head rapidly now her soft brown hair bouncing wildly All trail lines are technically the property of the Zone One government Possessing a train car is not illegal but selling or buying one is We cannot

Tatiana I wonÆt be buying a train car Randidly sighed I get it You have guided Erickson Steel well even while targeted on all sides I can see how difficult it has been While you were doing that you could only rely on your wits Erickson Steel would cease to be if you did not take all the right steps You played by the rules But now we donÆt need to play by the rules any longer I can deal with the consequences

It would be much easier to just produce one himself

Tatiana was quiet for several seconds looking at Randidly with a confused gaze what does that even mean

Tykes hands flexed as though he was imagining squeezing his huge iron ball It means it’s time to run wild

Chapter 960

Several hours later as he was preparing to eat an extremely early lunch Evan Crane tapped his newly acquired cigar against the side of his desk

Tap

But he only tapped it once After that first tap the man paused as he tried to slowly unpack the statement that his subordinate had just reported to him For several seconds it was difficult to believe his ears were working properly Evan set down his cigar Slowly he pivoted away from his salmon topped salad to stare at the man What did you say

Erickson Steel has packed up its branches and brought all personnel back to its headquarters The man repeated This didnÆt just happen in Zone 1 apparently it happened across every Zone The Erickson Steel representatives told customers that all previously made contracts can still be redeemed but only by proceeding directly to Erickson Steel Headquarters to obtain the metals

They Evan sat upward frowning down at his chilled salmon like it could provide him answers Yet it only sat there Perhaps it slowly decomposed as the warm room buzzed against its chilled body Do they really think people will take the time to traipse over to their headquarters to obtain their metal

Most people already are The subordinate dutifully reported Although most people are complaining there is already a train line in place that

They have a train line Evan hissed He was aware that they had some handcarts operating out of convenience but if they actually established a train line

But wait the cornerÆs of EvanÆs mouth curled slowly upward into a sinister smile If you have a train line doesnÆt that mean it falls under the sway of the Zone Transportation Board Heh youÆve dug your own grave with this

Feeling very satisfied Evan picked up the tobacco and took another long drag from his cigar The subordinateÆs expression turned aggrieved as seconds continued to tick past while Evan inhaled Then after almost fifteen seconds Evan opened his mouth and released a stream of industrial waste directly toward the face of the subordinate

Alright hereÆs what we do Evan said Even if customers still want their metal get the bank to send a representative to Erickson Steel Use the pulling of the branches as an excuse no matter what I want to know if thereÆs something special going on in there Hehe I refuse to believe they wonÆt lose a bunch of business from this idiotic move

Then get the ZTB involved See if they can cause trouble even if itÆs just raising the fare on the branch track Finally send over a message from us to Erickson Steel requesting assistance on a joint venture project

WhatÆs the project The subordinate asked

Evan Crane chuckled Let them know that weÆve discovered a method to use Engravings to imbue a Skill into equipment That should certainly catch their attention

After bowing hurriedly the subordinate left leaving Evan alone in his office Enjoying the silence Evan took a long inhale and then released a thick cloud of smoke

Well Erickson Steel letÆs see how foolish you really are Then with relish Evan Crane began to eat his salmon topped salad

After an extremely long night of raising objections and Randidly simply laughing them off Tatiana felt rather exhausted And if she was being honest slightly unappreciated But in the face of his confidence what could she say As promised they took a brief break to eat a meal and Randidly managed to cobble together a working train car In the face of results Tatiana kept her mouth shut

Finally Tatiana looked at Randidly and asked Alright so what will you be doing now

Randidly rubbed his hands together First I want to see what Erickson Steel has managed to come up with since I left Then IÆll probably spend a fair chunk of time smelting IÆve certainly missed it

Nodding Tatiana pressed a button on the desk Only a short twenty seconds later a young man pushed open the door to her office and bowed to the three of them Tatiana turned to Randidly This is Mark Since my assistant is busy he will be the one to show you around the different facilities If you have any questions or needs ask him directly He can get you anything we have here

For the first time since Randidly arrived he appeared genuinely excited as he walked over to Mark Then at the last second he paused and turned around to look at Tatiana Oh one more thing WhatÆs the name of your receptionist

Tatiana blinked Her head was already pounding from all of the arrangements Randidly had insisted upon these last few hours And from all of the threats that they had left unaddressed during their planning session It was becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with his rapidly shifting thoughts Ah the receptionist I think her name is Clarry Why

Shrugging Randidly simply said I scanned her a little and she seems skilled I just wanted to suggest moving her to a position that takes advantage of her abilities

TykesÆ eyes gleamed as he looked at Randidly Mr Ghosthound even if you own the company you canÆt talk about entry level employees that way anymore It ainÆt the 1950s

DonÆt even joke about something like that Tatiana said poking Tykes as hard as she could in the side Even as a joke not good to normalize that sort of scenario

Tatiana was rather disgruntled that her full strength poke barely managed to make Tykes twitch let alone driving the smug smile from his face Then she turned to Randidly trying to understand what he had meant by that comment She did her best to give Randidly the benefit of the doubt regardless of the conclusion Tykes had jumped to

To TatianaÆ surprise Randidly blushed slightly I looked at her Skills and Level I just wanted to draw your attention to it in case you didnÆt know SheÆs talented

Then Randidly shrugged and hurried away with Mark

It seems even our fearless leader can be embarrassed and flustered about things so long as they arenÆt the presiding government of our area Tatiana thought wryly Then she cast her mind around to try and recall what she knew about Clarry

The woman wasnÆt someone that Tatiana brought over from the agency she was just a hire they made as Erickson Steel was expanding a few months ago So far she seemed to be performing satisfactorily But also even after exchanging a few words with the woman every morning for three months Tatiana didnÆt have a single strong impression of her

To put it bluntly Clarry was pretty but bland

Tatiana looked toward the door Well for his sake IÆll look into it a bit

Then she turned to Tykes who was still lounging around her office DonÆt you have some work to do

Tykes shrugged Maybe but I feel like I should get some rest After this the fun will start and not give us much chance to catch our breath But we probably have a few days Even if those idiotic senators notice the change in behavior they will be suspicious Only after they realize we plan on resisting them directly will they start to expose themselves

Can we do it Tatiana asked softly A long time ago sitting on a bench in the park area still intact near the Erickson Steel headquarters she had resigned herself to be bound to Randidly Ghosthound as a subordinate When he revealed his prior lie about his name they had lost something a budding intimacy Stillborn their friendship collapsed at that time But they also created a base to build their current relationship

Although she was distantly aware of RandidlyÆs personal power and had heard rumors about what he had done against DonnytonÆs best Squads it seemed another leap to resist the combined power of Zone 1 Once they took this course of action they wouldnÆt be able to recover easily To treat Zone 1 lightly now cut off their ability to back down

Yes Tykes smiled evilly CouldnÆt you feel it The air around him something changed This version of Randidly gives me goosebumps

Tatiana hadnÆt felt anything but then her focus had never been on the same areas as Tykes If Tykes claimed Randidly was stronger Tatiana believed him This was her role to surround herself with experts and allow them to give her opinions With that information she someone who was not as smart or capable as her specialized subordinates would use her general experience and guide the company forward

So now she trusted that Randidly knew what he was doing and let go of her misgivings

Instead of dwelling on it and the direction that Erickson Steel was currently heading Tatiana waved Tykes out of her office and knocked on a secret compartment behind her desk Instantly a small fold out bed stretched out from the small alcove into the middle of the room Tatiana rubbed her hands along the silk sheets and shivered

Because of how constant the threats on Erickson Steel had been the last several months Tatiana had no choice but to shift most of her life here But even if this was only a work bed there was no way that she would subject herself to a low thread count Randidly did get one thing right despite the tariffs Erickson Steel was still the most profitable business in the whole Zone

With a helpless groan Tatiana collapsed onto the bed and allowed sleep to take her into its warm embrace Although her current body didnÆt need much sleep Tatiana still felt psychologically off kilter when she didnÆt get at least one good night of rest a week Which meant that she got one night of sleep a month If she was lucky

The rest of the time she just laughed quietly to herself and made ghoulish faces at her reflection in the mirror

As with most of those mornings that seemed to dawn peacefully the sound of her intercom woke Tatiana up Her first response was to gurgle in annoyance Then when the infuriating piece of machinery refused to take the hint Tatiana had no choice but to roll off the bed and onto the floor

She took the sheets with her and then sat up as she rubbed her eyes The wood panels of the floor were both cold and uncomfortable Then she stood stretched and finally answered the intercom

What is it

The voice that replied was the junior of her two assistants Jacob Two things First Lenna is finally giving birth so Crosby wonÆt be in to manage the foundry today Second you should turn on monitor number four Immediately

While TatianaÆs mind grappled with the fact she would need to produce a replacement for Crosby from thin air her body mechanically went over to the display on the wall and clicked the switch for number four Immediately the terminal displayed for Tatiana a view of the main gate into Erickson Steel where two figures were standing face to face The first was a yellow eyed young woman with her sleek brown hair done up a ponytail and the other individual was a bespectacled man

IÆm sorry The bespectacled man who Tatiana abruptly recognized as the bank representative said

IÆm not the young woman who was TatianaÆs second assistant Vye said with her arms folded Unfortunately we cannot allow you onto the premises

But The bank representative seemed at a genuine loss for several seconds Then his gaze hardened IÆm afraid I must insist Per our contract the bank possesses the ability to inspect the premises at reasonable intervals If the business model of Erickson Steel has meaningfully changed we must know of it I hope I donÆt need to remind you that the land and equipment itself is owned by us

Even so Go through official channels and bring a stamped and signed complaint if you want Vye said lazily She waved her hand as though she was warding off a persistent mosquito

The bank rep glared at Vye That stamped and signed complaint would be a foreclosure DonÆt joke about subject matter above your paygrade Everything you own would be ours Do you truly wish to force this issue I would like to speak with your supervisor

In the face of the bank repÆs ire Vye continued to just smile guilelessly Her gaze never wavered Eventually the man looked away first with a snort

Heh then I suppose IÆll return tomorrow with the police I hope your superiors understand just how royally you fucked up We will take away everything from you

You and what army But despite the question Vye simply raised her hand and waved cheerily at the bank rep as if this was the most normal conversation in the world Flushing with some dark emotion the man turned away and stormed off

Immediately Tatiana called Vye She watched the terminal and saw her subordinate pick up after the first ring You seemed to enjoy that entirely too much

Computer screen Vye shrugged That asshole has always been arrogant Did you know he asked me for a chocolate the last time he visited Then he had the nerve to act insulted when I denied having any Hmph IÆm not the Easter Bunny Besides the Lindt truffles I squirreled away are my personal treasure I will part with my life before surrendering them

Chuckling Tatiana shook her head Well IÆm glad that you are in such a dramatic mood Because I have a favor

The change in VyeÆs expression was immediate IÆm afraid IÆm very busy

youÆre not Tatiana clucked her tongue And we need this today While Randidly Ghosthound is around the facility we canÆt look half assed And Lenna is giving birth so Crosby

I hate the foundry Vye muttered

thanks ItÆs just for a few hours Probably Tatiana immediately hung off On screen Vye kicked the tall concrete wall around the Erickson Steel complex Then after she vented her anger she carefully looked around From an interior pocket of her jacket she produced a small chocolate which she gobbled up almost immediately

With a much cheerier expression on her face computer screen Vye walked out of TatianaÆs field of view Rubbing her temples Tatiana turned to the pile of paperwork sitting on her desk

No rest for the wicked

Chapter 961

Cracking his neck Randidly walked over to the bustling industrial center of the Erickson Steel headquarters Although Tatiana seemed to have a rather grim outlook on Erickson SteelÆs future it was hard to be anything but optimistic while looking around Men and women in thick leather aprons were hurrying toward the various individual smelting chambers but also there were several large groups standing around in the plaza and enthusiastically chatting

With RandidlyÆs Perception he could hear them discussing the finer points of temperature and mixture ratios in order to create a more stable metal Not exactly the sort of discussion someone who was worried about their job would have But then again Randidly supposed that for these people who owned Erickson Steel didnÆt matter Perhaps they would be just as happy to chat while employed by the government

Randidly looked at Mark with a wry grin Really seems like this isnÆt a place under constant threat of government oppression

Most average people wouldnÆt feel the weight of the dagger at our throats Mark said slowly He seemed like a rather reserved and morose person even if he had been extremely helpful to Randidly thus far Erickson Steel has that much clout Anyway sir would you like to examine our current products first Or do you want a room to work yourself

Current products first Just a few examples of each But no rush Randidly shook his head and then looked curiously around at the constant flood of slightly singed people There are a few personal things I need to take care of before I begin In the meantime IÆll just be seated at the cafeteria area over there Find me when the materials are prepared

Mark gave Randidly a careful look Ah Is there will you require any assistance with these

Randidly shooed the man away IÆm simply selecting what Path I should take next donÆt act like everything I do has some deeper meaning Like everyone else I have taken several long Paths to get where I am

But IÆm quite sure your variety of Paths are quite enviable Mark frowned You will wait for me here then Do you need

IÆll be here Randidly said with a sigh He shooed the other man away once again hoping that he would take the hint this time

Seemingly relieved by the answer Mark nodded and hurried off toward the towering stone building belching out smoke As Randidly walked over to the much smaller cafeteria tucked next to the stone goliath he idly considered the pillar of pitch black smoke running upward looking like a corridor of asphalt into the sky

The System means we donÆt have to worry overmuch about pollution right

Randidly took a seat and turned his attention inward He hadnÆt lied to Mark but he had only given him half of the truth Randidly would pick out his next Path but he also wanted to spend some time examining his images It wasnÆt that his images were damaged per se but that they were spreading their influence too far If he didnÆt act now to restrict them the images might bleed into each other with unpredictable side effects

In addition from the way the Grim Chimera image had been acting Randidly had a suspicion that the combination between the Ashen Kata and the Spear Phantom had thrown off the delicate balance at the imageÆs core Some of the annoying and insidious elements of the Ashen Image he had picked up from the Patron of Ash were beginning to manifest

Nothing concrete now but hints that foreshadowed a return to that poisonous image He had kept his images inert over the past day to simplify the task but Randidly would still need to delve deeply into the images in order to figure out what he could do to focus the images away from each other and keep the Grim Chimera under control

Well letÆs take the easy part first Randidly thought as he opened up his Path screen He twisted his lips as he considered the three options that he had settled on Ashes of Ulaat Perfect Soul Bond and Physique of the Grim Chimera

The first decision Randidly made was to exclude Physique of the Grim Chimera as a choice Physically he was in the best shape of his life Both due to high Skill Levels and extremely high Stats Yet he couldn’t deny that his physical gifts had been insufficient to handle using the Skill All Else Succumbs While Time Whirls the Earth

Even at his peak that Skill reduced him to a shuddering mess

But rather than brute forcing the issue by continuing to raise his bodyÆs capabilities Randidly believed that it would be more prudent to work on his understanding before attempting it again That way he could use his understanding to lower the demand the Skill placed on his body without seeking the diminishing returns of higher stats

Between the other two Ashes of Ulaat and Perfect Soul Bond Randidly finally settled on learning the Perfect Soul Bond Path

Ashes of Ulaat was a Path that Randidly wanted to take eventually likely as he gathered himself into the shape that would transform his Ignition of the Emerald Essence into a Skillset in its own right But at the moment RandidlyÆs focus was on Yggdrasil To that end Randidly knew that unity and growth would aid the World Tree image

Plus his experience heading to the land of the frogpeople impressed upon Randidly how strange and dangerous the Aether in that place was Someone had adjusted it so it was possible to forcefully rip Aether out of a being with an inferior claim That sort of ability spoke to an individual who was talented but vicious Someone with enough mastery of Aether to threaten even someone who had been made aware of the threat

Randidly ultimately didnÆt worry much that Neveah would influence his Riders into defecting to her side Due to her influence the Skill was a tool that wasnÆt as useful but Randidly didnÆt mind providing her with assistance And hopefully finishing the Path would connect them even more intimately thereby increasing the passive assistance that he could provide to her

Plus Randidly looked down at his fingers splayed against the worn metal of the mass produced dining table at which he sat Becoming closer to Neveah is moving closer to Aether If I can increase my understanding of Aether everything becomes easier Perhaps IÆll be able to give the engraving capable of Leveling another shot

Unfortunately that caused RandidlyÆs mind to move nimbly to the looming problem of Lyra Irritation immediately bloomed in his heart but was just as quickly snuffed out as Randidly purposefully shifted his focus That problem had another five and a half days to settle No need to torture himself with it now

With the decision made Randidly poured 1000 PP into the Perfect Soul Bond Path Every 100 PP he earned himself 10 Willpower and 1 Endurance which wasnÆt a bad payoff for an extremely PP intensive Path

Congratulations You have completed the Perfect Soul Bond Path The Soul Bond is like an entire being in and of itself existing between you and your partner A third combination existence To put it crassly a child between two willing beings As time has advanced parts of your two souls became increasingly intermixed Through that process the substance of the bond has grown strong As Attributes and Skills flowed freely between you two a deep foundation of what was to come has formed

It is clear from this proceeding down this Path that you two are different existences Your substances are flesh and energy only finding an anchor in each other as the world continues to advance around you The Path you walk is not forbidden but the connection is one that goes against your own Destiny Warning to proceed is to go beyond the point of no return

Some blessings are too heavy to bear Randidly Ghosthound Lord of the Baleful Wood Loyal Benefactor of the Weak Lighthouse of the Boundless Worlds Lodestone of the Black Wanting Lesson for those of Brittle Will and Longing of the Banished Wind

Error Recalculating

WARNING Interference detected

IÆve finally found you Yystrix My one and only love Wait for me

Even as the confusing notifications continued to pop up before him the rest of RandidlyÆs vision was casually wiped away Instead of the noisy and jovial atmosphere at the Erickson Steel cafeteria Randidly found himself standing below an enormous translucent crystal continent and was flanked by obsidian spikes The crystal itself was so large that RandidlyÆs entire vision was filled with it As he quickly scanned left and right he couldnÆt see the edge of it it was like standing in front of a giant crystal wall

Yet somehow he knew there was an edge to it It was a truth of this place This was not an eternal being only a vast and powerful one

To his left and right were enormous mountains of obsidian that seemed to be acting as a natural barrier around the crystal But as his scrambling mind caught up with him Randidly paled further as he looked at these mountains

They werenÆt made of obsidian in fact Randidly saw a flash of copper when he focused his Perception as much as it could upon the mountains Instead they were simply covered with an extremely dense web of writing

Engravings that sucked light away rather than producing it

Although the sound was that of a crack being made it felt more like someone reached and casually ripped a piece of paper A rift opened in the crystal Hair thin and filled with a deep darkness it ran from bottom to top of the crystal continent as far as Randidly could see

At this point Randidly was all strained nerves as he struggled to understand what was happening So his gaze instantly jumped to that thin crack that appeared in the crystal Around him the mountains began to hum and produce an even thicker veil of blackness that spiraled upward around them but before it could spread and smother him Randidly saw something

It wasnÆt anything specific it was just something stirring A small movement deep within the rend created in the crystal something so far away that RandidlyÆs Perception couldnÆt reach it Something old and vicious waking up As it moved its attention focused on Randidly

Something akin to a physical force hit Randidly in his Soulspace eventually impacting his Class directly as it ripped through him The carefully constructed structure of Aether buckled and cracked underneath the sudden force For several seconds Randidly couldnÆt breathe

Rather than being hit with a cudgel it suddenly seemed that this strange being had reached out and was now gripping him within a tight fist The pressure was so much that some of his Skills shivered in protest But the weight was too vast and heavy RandidlyÆs images couldnÆt even gather themselves to move

Everything was casually smothered

Then just as quickly as it came the feeling was gone RandidlyÆs Aether Detection was barely able to sense that weight quickly departing following the line of one of RandidlyÆs karmic connections Toward someone else

There was a split second where Randidly was able to dazedly intuit that this thin karmic line so thin that he hadnÆt even been able to sense it previously was a karmic line that led to the Creature

But at that point the pain of having his Class partially shattered hit

Biting down on his lip Randidly barely suppressed the urge to scream What hit him then was a pain that he hadnÆt felt since his Skill was reduced to cracked pieces by AegiantÆs Skill incarnation It was an existential sort of helpless agony starting from his inner world and spreading outward to his physical body It came in pumping waves washes of crimson agony that splashed against his psyche with unending determination

Unfortunately Randidly noticed too late that his hands were spasming While gritting his teeth Randidly pulled his trembling hands away from the metal mess table leaving ten holes and two hand shaped impressions on the table

Just as the fifth wave of agony came from his Skill something changed His Soulskill began to hum sending a wave of warm energy outward to counteract the pain It was not enough to overwhelm it completely but it certainly took the paralyzing edge off of the agony Once the worst of the pain was gone the energy spiraled into cones that began to carefully nurse his Class back to health

At which point Randidly realized that he was receiving notifications agony

ning

Recalculating resuming display

Congratulations All Stats +50 You and your Soulbound companion have gained the Skill Soulbound Doppelganger Lvl 1

Soulbound Doppelganger Create a projection of your Soulbound partner The Doppelganger will possess all of your partnerÆs Skills and a portion of their stats Effect increases with Skill Level Periodically it is possible to possess the doppelganger of yourself vastly improving its power Cooldown decreases with Skill Level Current Cooldown 170 hours

Well at least I got some Stats Randidly thought bitterly His Soulspace throbbed painfully even while his Soulskill provided more energy to heal the damage done to his Class It seemed it would take a bit of time before it recovered

But what the hell was that

Chapter 962

Morning Vye Nerrick said with an enthusiastic nod Are you free tonight

I donÆt date men who work with metal Vye replied perfunctorily while cursing Tatiana for throwing her so immediately into this shitstorm of work and constant harassment Then Vye blinked rapidly letting go of her daydream of climbing distant mountains in the monster infested wilderness in order to come face to face with the mundane reality of her situation

The two of them were standing outside of the main foundry of Erickson Steel Which unfortunately was where Vye needed to remain while she filled in for Crosby She had already answered a slew of questions from some of the earlier workers who noticed CrosbyÆs absence and had finally believed she had fielded all questions when Nerrick arrived likely late to his shift

Truly disaster struck only when one let themselves blinded by hope

IÆm not traveling the world Vye repeated to herself dourly IÆm working as a temp A temp that was rapidly promoted to assistant to the CEO but still a temp IÆm going to leave soon and travel the world All this is just to give me some money to work with And to Level a bit so IÆm not devoured by a two headed otter

NerrickÆs grin refused to be damaged at all by her matter of fact retort DoesnÆt that seem hypocritical You work with metal What if your Prince Charming worked with metal You would doom yourself to sadness simply because you werenÆt willing to broaden your horizons

I think what you meant to say is willing to lower my standards Æ Vye yawned and stretched mindful to keep her stretch as innocuous as possible The last thing she wanted to do was given this gritty crustacean of a man any sort of excuse to approach her again

Please please please be a busy day She had prayed What she hadnÆt meant was busy for her Why couldnÆt there be a fire or something in a portion of the foundry she wasnÆt watching Then everyone would gather over there and she could just sit around and talk to Terrence who had just returned from the Donnyton branch

Vye had so many questions for Terence about Zone 32 It seemed like a completely different world from Zone 1 A world where anything was possible And to the South they had the sea

Ahhaha You always have jokes donÆt you Then Nerrick leaned forward But actually IÆm not here to flirt Actually

Really Vye thought tiredly She wondered if she could move fast enough to pop a chocolate into her mouth without the man noticing

there was something work related I came to you about Nerrick scratched his head Some of his aggressive confidence faded I know itÆs not I donÆt know against the rules but well there is a man walking around the foundry barefoot HeÆs sitting over at one of the mess tables right now but isnÆt that dangerous And no one recognizes him so

Ah yes Vye said seriously as she rubbed her chin Could this be a spy from another corporation IÆll need to investigate immediately Thank you for bringing this to my attention

Then as if she transformed into a cool autumn wind Vye fled from Nerrick so quickly that the man didnÆt even have a chance to say anything in response As she left Vye shook her head slightly Having to fill in for that airhead Clarry these past two days might have been boring but at least I had time to read up on news from other Zones But this job

It was just an excuse to move away from the foundry but Vye also thought someone wandering around without any foot covering within the area was rather strange As she was thinking that however a certain silhouette appeared in her vision sitting at one of the metal dining tables around the cafeteria

A rather tired looking young man who perhaps was the most powerful person on Earth sat at the table with his back slightly arched Baloo Erickson Randidly Ghosthound A man who single handedly cleared the first Danger Zone and gave up the reward of personal power in order to give the whole world a boost in experience A man who pioneered the technique of refining monster corpses to mix with metal to improve the performance of Erickson Steel

An engraver who was more talented than the ultimate AI that was the culmination of AmericaÆs brightest minds over the past ten years boosted by the presence of the System

What must he have seen Vye wondered as she approached I wonder if it’s true that heÆs gone to other worlds They say he learned his spear arts from a flaming tree and his Engraving came from runes he found buried in a low Level Dungeon They even say that he finished a Dungeon before he even had a Class

What kind of enemies have you been cursed by to accomplish so much What sort of sights have you been blessed with And meanwhile I

And when Vye arrived at the mess area and saw the black haired young man sitting at the table she chuckled self deprecatingly Then she carefully controlled her face into a neutral expression and produced a pair of steel toed boots from her interspatial ring Somehow Vye found it extremely difficult to imagine that the barefoot man in front of her was that legendary figure who had basically accomplished everything she dreamed of

His presence was altogether nonexistent He seemed just like anybody else Like a guy she might have gone to high school with

But would anyone else have the gumption to offer no further proof of his identity and smile easily at me in a place like Erickson Steel Some part of Vye asked But Vye ignored that voice It was somewhat easier for her to control her envy if she continued believing he was just a guy like everyone else

The System had changed so much World traveling couldnÆt be that special right

As she approached Vye drew up short Because suddenly RandidlyÆs back arched even further An expression of agony spread across his face Wide eyed Vye watched as his hands tightened and punched right through the metal of the table like it was paper

Several seconds passed and slowly his expression eased He carefully raised his hands inspecting the table with not a small amount of bitter amusement Coughing lightly Vye walked carefully forward toward him She held the pair of boots aloft Mr Ghosthound are you alright

Vye paused and considered him His eyes were somewhat dazed and it appeared as though he hadnÆt heard her Then she said helpfully did you stub your toe If you want you can borrow these boots for your stay here in Erickson Steel They will prevent something like this from happening again

Randidly Ghosthound paused in his pained slouch then looked slowly up at Vye Then he sighed deeply shaking his head I wish it was just a toe stub Hey you were the receptionist at Erickson Steel right I

Before he could continue Mark appeared nearby giving Vye a slight nod Randidly paused in his words his gaze shifting to the new arrival Vye almost rolled her eyes in response I get it you want my job Honestly you can have it IÆm starting to wonder if Erickson Steel is really where I belong

I suppose there isnÆt any point in putting it off Randidly said with a shake of the head He forced out a smile only looking a little worse for wear for whatever experience afflicted him Anyway thanks for your concern Hopefully we can talk later

And the boots Vye asked while holding them aloft

Randidly waved his hand and walked away with Mark They wonÆt be necessary

For several seconds Vye just watched the two of them walk away Then as the implications of what just happened sank in she quickly grew pale

DoesnÆt this mean Vye said slowly That I no longer have a reason not to go back to work

Randidly went into the storeroom where Mark had laid out the latest samples of the most recent Erickson Steel products and then was left alone with the assurance that Mark would be right outside

Grimacing Randidly waited until the man was gone before gracefully collapsing into a seat For the moment the metal samples would need to wait

Under the constant flow of energy from his Soulskill his Class did seem to slowly mend itself back together It wasnÆt the sort of damage that would weaken him directly by taking away Skills or Stats but it might create deviations in the weave of the Aether he was using to build himself Over time such defects would quickly lead to a weakened Class

As such Randidly had no intention of gaining a Level until he could give the Class a thorough once over And that would need to wait until the strange fractures from whatever had just occurred ceased spewing waves of agony like someone with food poisoning

The strange impressions that Randidly had seen after completing the Perfect Soul Bond Path lingered in his mind That vast crystal The mountains covered in light devouring engravings The being that stirred at the core of the crystal

IÆve finally found you Yystrix My one and only love

Wait for me

Even now the memory of those words set Randidly to shivering After that the attention had shifted to Randidly himself That brief moment of examination by that being was enough to shatter his Class The weight of that thingÆs attention had reached the point that it could kill someone Just as casually the attention had caught the scent of its true quarry and followed that trail off into the universe

Frowning at the table Randidly considered the sinking feeling of dread that the encounter had left in his heart Yystrix that is the name that Lyra used for the Creature And I did find out from the CreatureÆs memories that it very carefully was taking all these actions in order to avoid detection from the System

Did I spill the beans early Will this have consequences

thatÆs probably a dumb question

Very likely he did expose the Creature to danger Which would lead to unpredictable consequences It would be bad if the Creature came back to Earth seeking retribution but it would also be bad if whatever monster was living in that crystal could not find the Creature and therefore returned to Earth in order to look for clues within RandidlyÆs Soulspace

In addition there were two small facts that truly filled Randidly with fear

The first was the way that the notifications appeared It was very clear that the overlay System knew something was going wrong midway through the Path completion message Very quickly it reported an error But then the overlay seemed to have been seized by something and thereafter used to speak directly to Randidly

What sort of entity could speak directly through the System

Perhaps even more worrisome

Why had completing the Perfect Soul Bond Path triggered that sort of result A result which had included a list of his exact name and Class Was that a part of the original Path or something that was just a warning of the deviation that was about to come

Was it triggered by Randidly himself Had Octavius Shrike put some limit on the things that he could accomplish and this Path had somehow transgressed that boundary

But at RandidlyÆs core he had a single worry And that was that it wasnÆt him at all that triggered the strange change in the Path completion No his secret fear was that what caused the strange being to move was what he was now connected to

Did the System know that Neveah had an Aether Crossroad

Chapter 963

So many questions but not an answer in sight Randidly muttered to himself He exchanged a few quick messages with a worried Neveah who had felt the damage to his Class without knowing how extensive it was

After assuring her that he was fine Neveah demanded that he produce their new doppelganger so she could possess it briefly and get a good look at him in the aftermath of what he went through Exasperated but understanding that this came from a place of worry Randidly did as she asked

The doppelganger took the form of NeveahÆs human version an androgynous faced young woman that looked to be RandidlyÆs sister For several seconds the doppelganger was still Then as though a light was switched on behind her eyes she looked sharply up at Randidly After inspecting him critically for several seconds Neveah shook her head Dangerous Very dangerous

Yea that response has occurred to me Randidly said with a sigh Considering what he just experienced Randidly could finally understand that distinct dread that he had felt in the CreatureÆs memories If the System was run by beings like this Randidly could understand wanting to hide from them at all costs

Do you feel it Some of that energy still lingers Neveah lowered her head to next to RandidlyÆs shoulder and sniffed Powerful Very rigid Aether Barely any flexibility remains

But powerful Randidly sighed He leaned back in his wooden chair and allowed his body to go boneless Even now the same helpless feeling he had acquired the moment that thingÆs attention came on him hadnÆt fully departed

mm Æ Neveah continued to sniff around as though seeking more information As Randidly sat with his eyes closed he could distantly feel understanding of NeveahÆs extremely acute Aether sense that was flowing through their connection Well there is also good news

Oh Randidly didnÆt bother to move more than his mouth as he answered Hell how long had it been since he had taken a breath

I do not sense any marks This is not a subtle power just a brutal one So as long as we produce enough Aether to wash these traces away

How long with that take Randidly asked And are you saying that it is possible to hide from something like that

Perhaps a week It is certainly slow to leave Raw energy barely sways it Only prolonged exposure will work Neveah leaned back and shrugged And not hide But make it inconvenient to locate us again It isnÆt a kind truth but the fact the attention hit you so hard is a good sign it meant that being had to make a concerted effort in order to reach you

RandidlyÆs mouth crinkled into an unwilling smile I like to play hard to get

Neveah just gave him a look I understand human humor enough to notice that you are no longer speaking literally But who knows perhaps to rid yourself of these traces will be enough In the future it might be for the best that we undertake no Paths relating to my special gift I was born inside It seems those might be a lightning rod for trouble

Shaking his head Randidly said I donÆt think either of us believes that just getting rid of those traces of Aether will be enough Which is why

Which is why you are scared Neveah said You have grown strong Here on Earth you have grown into the whole of your strength Slowly you realize the value of the Crown you bear But we do not fight against our peers Randidly We have always been fighting against the whole of the System itself and the heartless tests it insists upon

Did you truly think your enemies would be any less than this

IÆm not Randidly began but he begrudgingly shut his mouth His hands were still trembling as they were clasped loosely in his lap Showing his teeth to the air Randidly forced his focus to turn itself inward

Neveah was right He was scared For the first time in a long time Randidly had encountered something that was so far beyond his own personal ability that he could not see any way to close that gap

So he was afraid So he panicked So he briefly lost his grip

So Neveah was worried enough that she wanted to speak with him in person

Randidly released a breath Even four years later the depths of the System is still enough to scare the shit out of me NeveahÆs right through This doesnÆt change anything This isnÆt any new information

His emerald eyes refocused The trembling in his hands slowly ceased This was always the caliber of foe I needed to overcome to accomplish my goal This is just the first time we encountered one another And although it cannot be denied this one was my tragic loss

that doesnÆt mean the same will be true for the next time we meet

which will hopefully be later rather than sooner

Ah the connection is fading Neveah muttered It seems we much increase the proficiency of this ability slowly so we can communicate more effectively For now do not forget to release a large amount of Aether at all times only through constant pushing can you get rid of those traces Good luck

Then the Neveah next to him was just a puppet with a fraction of her real Skills and abilities Randidly dismissed it immediately There was no point in keeping it around at the moment Instead Randidly took several more breaths and enjoyed the quiet of the testing room Here finally he had the chance to reset himself

The shock of being under the gaze of that thing had given him a wake up call Perhaps the equivalent of the wakeup call that he had spent so much time and effort giving Donnyton Although the threat that was nearest to arriving was his Judgement that was never the foe that would make or break RandidlyÆs struggle

More than anything else Randidly knew that it was time to center himself which he had prepared to do since becoming conscious after the strange mutation of his Grim Chimera image Without finding his inner balance he wouldnÆt be able to improve He couldnÆt make the decisions that needed to be made in regards to the future So Randidly closed his eyes and let himself slip into his Soulspace

Once there he looked up at the deep cracks and gaps left in his Class Although the worst of the damage was slowly being nourished by his Soulskill it still left a rather uneven and haphazard Class that remained in the pressureÆs wake The immaculate pattern that Randidly had been able to weave was largely demolished The five legs were crooked and patched together

Well these were things he had made before He could make them again Shaking his head Randidly turned and walked away from his Class into the deep darkness of his Soulspace

After traveling for a few minutes the Skills and Class and Soulskill were all left far behind Because it was only once he was alone that the images slowly rose to the surface in the darkness

To RandidlyÆs left was a vast tree that stretched upward toward a night sky populated by millions of stars the tree illuminated from within by a crown made of fire and light In front of his feet the thick roots off the world tree stretched down to the infinite depths of the dream ground The soft sound of rustling leaves filled his ears as a small breeze played its way through the canopy

To his right a dark and twisted figure sat alone in the darkness The ground around it was soaked in blood and smelled like charcoal As a creature born of resentment and unwillingness the Grim Chimera did not respond at all to RandidlyÆs presence Instead it remained perfectly inert a killing machine that was keeping energy expenditures low until necessity urged it into motion

Surrounding both of these images small balls of emerald fire flickered and danced in the air It was this emerald fire that added dimension to this realm of images Because of that Ignition Essence it was possible to distinguish between the two images It became the border between the influence of these two images

In that road on the boundary between two worlds Randidly first proceeded to the left He departed from the boundary word and was soon standing on a field of grass leading to the enormous trunk of the world tree As he walked Randidly saw several small roots poking out of the ground and glittering with golden light

Very soon Randidly crossed the distance to the tree and was able to lay his hands against the glimmering bark His first impression was how warm the substance was After he closed his eyes that warmth felt like a physical force radiating outward toward him with an energy that was filled with kindness and understanding

The World Tree was ultimately a being that supported the world Of all things it understood the misery of resistance more than any other image Undoubtedly RandidlyÆs struggles seemed very familiar to it

We arenÆt strong enough not yet You can grow even taller at this Your history can grow longer And if we donÆt manage that Randidly said softly Above him the rustling of the leaves slowly ceased Then in the silence the ancient branches of the tree moved slightly creaking its assent to his statement

Then the warmth underneath his hands grew even more intense Randidly smiled wryly and shook his head You are too much But thank you Your support makes this easier

Then he dragged his finger across the pitted bark feeling the rough and jagged natural runes that covered the bark Nodding to himself Randidly turned and walked away heading back toward the road of emerald flame that let him arrive here

As he had suspected the easiest factor to address was the runes themselves They were increasingly becoming a part of the World Tree image but they were still shallow and rough if he wanted to create a Skill that was part of the World Tree Skillset he would need to address that deficiency

After reaching the road once more Randidly continued to the right There he found darkness and the Grim Chimera

As he approached the monster that was born of loneliness and frigid hatred and resent stood tall It spread its arms wide The screened blacked of its mouth opened wide seemingly to question why Randidly had come after restraining it for the past days

If you want me take all of me the black figure of the Grim Chimera seemed to say I am struggle I am strife I am war I am truth

You are arrogant Randidly said lightly You are strong but you arenÆt that strong You need balance For without it you will rush toward the enemyÆs bared blade and handle the task of slaying yourself

The Grim Chimera just looked at Randidly To those weaker fight To those stronger live and evolve Eventually all things will become weaker

Randidly nodded sagely in return Strangely he was thrown backward in time Before him he saw in the Grim Chimera but with his own innocent figure imposed upon it A figure adrift in a world without perspective drunk on its own improvement A figure doomed to die if left to continue upon this Path

Ah I see I too required quite a lot of time to learn this lesson He held out a hand and his spear condensed within it born of his pure and focused image

Randidly leveled his spear at the Grim Chimera If you refuse to cooperate well that certainly makes things simpler LetÆs make a deal Beat me now and you can take control of my body whenever you want That potency of your image will become permanence

The Grim Chimera took an aggressive step forward but then it paused It looked uneasily over his shoulder toward the road of emerald fire and the towering tree behind it

Randidly chuckled Do you really think I need to rely on another image to fight You were born of my will beast I know you

The Chimera growled lowering itself into an aggressive stance For several seconds Randidly waited watching it But the Chimera settled like it was planning on becoming a status Its blank gaze was fixed upon Randidly waiting for his move

Randidly sighed We cannot and should not run from ourselves Now that we finally have time to grow we cannot cloud it by losing sight of who we are and what we should be doing You are not an image of destruction but of survival You need to remember your core essence

Then Randidly launched his first attack and was over the course of an hour able to finally relax as he relayed to his Grim Chimera those same lessons about Strength that he learned from Shal all those years ago Truly physical exertion carried with it the ultimate sort of release

Chapter 964

Randidly came back to himself slowly fully reveling in the sense of peace that was now radiating outward from his Soulspace Although the damage to his Class was still painful the harmony amongst his images following his previous actions was palpable It muted the pain and hastened the recovery

Now that balance had returned Randidly could move forward

It wasnÆt so much that the image of the Grim Chimera itself was in any danger of taking over his body as he had implied to the Grim Chimera when interacting with it Although images were powerful Randidly was not under any sort of delusion that his images were currently so powerful that they were tangible enough to actually exist outside of him That simply was a problem that was thankfully still in his future

No the issue was that images relied very heavily on certain perspectives and traits to gather their potency While Randidly used those images those traits were magnified in order to strengthen the image Constantly magnifying those sorts of traits in this case the feeling of anger and isolation that Randidly carried with him every moment had consequences for his psyche As these negative emotions were indulged it became almost habit to rely upon these traits in real life situations where they were more dangerous than helpful

And as Randidly had come to Erickson Steel to act as a leader the Grim Chimera definitely needed to be massaged back to only a small portion of his personality Although that darkness existed inside of him that was not all he was

His interactions these past few days had felt extremely draining and stilted Even if Randidly wasnÆt the most social person in the world it occurred to him that this might be a deeper problem than just a Donnyton hangover In order to build this company into the traveling source of value that Randidly imagined he needed to be able to interact with them directly

Therefore it had been time to demonstrate to the Grim Chimera the realities of their relative strengths

So although Randidly had actually fought against his own image in a sense he had really addressed the tight knot of emotions that the Grim Chimera represented in order to relieve some of the tension

Scratching his head Randidly couldnÆt help but wince When emotions get tied up in images and metaphors my sense of self becomes way too confusing

Anyway there wasnÆt really any need to go into a deep psycho analysis of himself at the moment It was enough to accept the fact that pacifying his negative traits exemplified by the Grim Chimera was a victory However it had also impressed upon Randidly that rather than continuing to empower Yggdrasil working on his Ignition Essence might be just as fruitful for his tasks here with Erickson Steel

Those strange and enlightening emerald flames served as the buffer between his two images the glue that held his disparate pieces of personality together If he could strengthen that image Randidly believed that the other things that he wanted to accomplish with Erickson Steel would be much easier Perhaps interactions would not be so strained Plus being able to manipulate the extremely hot flames would help him immensely in the forging process

Chuckling to himself Randidly stood and stretched But there is only so much time in the day I canÆt simply work on everything Ignition Essence certainly is a part of me A strong part Just hard to know how much I can force that image to grow in the short term

But it was a possibility that he would consider

For now Randidly looked around the room and at the several samples of metals that Mark had provided for him from Erickson SteelÆs current production Frowning Randidly thought for several seconds about how to test the materials Then he walked over to the table and peered at the various samples

From the labeling provided the metals provided fell into three categories civilian use mass produced and high end Of the categories most of Erickson SteelÆs money came from the sale of high end materials because that was the area that they had the biggest advantage

Randidly spent a small amount of time playing with the mass produced metals but he directly skipped the civilian use He wasnÆt very interested in looking at the basic metals made by his company It was enough that they were competitive focusing overmuch on basic products seemed like a poor investment After all Randidly believed that the quality of their base metal would increase if he could jumpstart innovation at the top end A complicated refining process could be streamlined and simplified to affect the bottom line in the future

In industry if not in economics progress tended to trickle down into the consumer sphere quite well

For the mass produced metals it quickly became clear that Randidly was physically able to bend the metals with his bare hands It took some effort and it was slow but the material was definitely not durable enough for him to bother with it at all If his grip could warp it there wasnÆt any point in putting the metal under any sort of rigorous testing Instead Randidly simply used his Ignition Essence to melt the metal taking care to note the general temperature where the metal was completely melted

Finally Randidly arrived at the high end products There were three varieties provided likely from Erickson SteelÆs most skilled craftspeople Each was a variation on the same theme that Randidly had previously pioneered a mixture of metal with refined materials from monsters A theme that seemed to have not been sniffed out by the competition

Which likely has made people focus too much on the bones Randidly thought with a sigh as he considered the examples When they really needed to work on their own basic Skills

One bar of metal appeared closer to a crystal than a true metal Another seemed as dense and heavy as lead The third was covered by a very general engraving and there was an included note that stated that the engraving was impressed upon the metal while it was still in liquid form to aid in its resilience

That at least was something that piqued his interest Randidly wondered how the individual was able to affix the engraving in liquid metal Maybe a special processing area

For reference Randidly produced a single bar of the metal that he had made in order to construct his metallic left arm Then he proceeded to test each one

It took five minutes for Randidly to throw his hands up in the air He glared at Acri Would you stop being so sharp How am I supposed to judge the differences if you can just easily cut through them all

Acri looked relatively chagrined shaking its head sadly at its masterÆs disappointment It was clear that the spear felt very guilty about it so Randidly regarded Acri with suspicion Through their connection Acri sent Randidly a stream of information in an attempt to explain

As it turned out it had an epiphany in the fight against Donnyton After that evolution it was able to steal experience directly from victims it attacked without needing to kill them Therefore it had greedily devoured quite a bit of experience from the people of Donnyton who dared challenge Randidly There were however strange limits that Acri could not understand People possessed varying amounts of experience that it could steal although this amount was not related to that personÆs strength

Perhaps Acri can take experience but not reduce someoneÆs Level Randidly thought in awe looking at this innocuous looking branch/snake/spear It wiggled guilty under his fierce observation Then Randidly couldnÆt help but release a low giggle I can imagine some SquaderÆs horror when an entire LevelÆs worth of experience disappeared in the fight against me They certainly wonÆt be willing to attempt that again anytime soon I suppose IÆll just consider it my payment for teaching them so thoroughly about images

Acri continued to wait for RandidlyÆs judgment hoping he would agree that it wasnÆt at fault for being sharper than this metal Randidly glanced at his own bar Acri had left a deep gash from a single slash but it had only pierced about one fourth of the way through the metal As for the others they had been completely sliced in half The sliced portions were so glossy and smooth that they sparkled

Randidly considered melting them as well but he shook his head Waving airly he gestured in a manner that conveyed that he was relieving Acri of all responsibility The spear gleefully curled around his waist Then Randidly turned to the sliced metals

This is just a waste of time Randidly finally decided He had come to see if there had been any interesting innovations but it seemed like there was just the process of putting an engraving in the liquid metal And from what Randidly could tell from his basic test the benefit was extremely small So small to make it indistinguishable from the uninteresting methods used by the other smelters to make their own signature metal

With a shake of his head Randidly turned his attention back inward to his Path screen The memory of that strange being within the vast crystal caused him to freeze for a second but a surge of resolve emerged within his chest I wonÆt reach that Level of ability by cowering fear I need to advance After working on my forging process it might be worth it to hole up in a Dungeon for a while the Judgement can definitely arrive in a Dungeon but since it is based on a dwindling time is that time my time or the worldÆs time IÆll have to test it

if I can delay by spending time in a Dungeon

When Randidly attempted to pour PP into his Growth of Yggdrasil Path he received a notification that made him want to pull out his hair

Growth of Yggdrasil III is not yet ready Please germinate for an additional 27 days then the Path will be prepared

Fuck me Randidly muttered When he had checked earlier he had sensed that raising his Stats would open up his Path But now that he examined the feeling more carefully and translated the constructs of Aether it seemed that increasing his Stats would only lower the amount of time that Randidly needed to wait It wouldnÆt rid the Path of its gestation period altogether

So now Randidly looked bitterly at his Path screen Do I save this thirteen hundred PP for 27 days from now or do I get another one of those 1000 PP Paths

Ultimately Randidly swore quietly several more times and walked the circuit of the room for several minutes When no obvious answer manifested itself Randidly walked out of the small room without making a decision Spending time simply sitting around and considering right now felt like a waste of time It was enough to now know that the decision was one that he needed to make Although the Judgement was coming it wasnÆt coming suddenly

RandidlyÆs attention again shifted inward Rather than his Soulspace he examined the constructs of Aether that the System had constructed around him including the probe left by Octavius Shrike and the looming Judgement After a brief examination Randidly could feel that his actions thus far shifted the timeline up In three or four weeks the Judgement would come

Like LyraÆs proposal the issue of whether to use the PP immediately would be put on the back burner while he focused on other issues Hopefully clarity would come from giving himself some space and perspective on the question

Mark jumped to his feet when Randidly walked out of the room Mr Ghosthound Have you finished already It has only been about twenty minutes

Yep Randidly said lightly although he inwardly cursed the fact he hadnÆt thought to check his Absolute Timing before blandly walking out Part of his haste was because he had mistakenly been under the impression his fight against the Grim Chimera had taken quite a while Thanks for the help Is there a room where I can work on some forging

Ah Yes everything is prepared Mark bowed You will not be disturbed while you work I have personally arranged the details IÆm sure you wonÆt be disappointed

Those words gave Randidly pause Not because this man was obviously a leech like being worthy of disdain but because it gave him an idea An idea that caused the blood to immediately drain from his face

But Randidly gritted his teeth If you want to be a leader you need to lead

Actually would there be any way that you could broadcast my forging

Chapter 965

When Evan CraneÆs phone rang he was already in such a foul mood that he chewed in frustration on the end of his cigar rather than answering He didnÆt even glance at the terminal How come I have heard nothing from the Zone Transportation Board And Erickson SteelÆs chilly rejection of the offer of Skill Engraving is ridiculous How could they not covet this knowledge Did they possibly not believe that we

While EvanÆs mind was racing the second ring dragged his attention over to the monitor of his phone Instantly he paled and scrambled to pick up the receiver

Ahem Senator Heathridge to what do I owe this pleasure Evan coughed out inwardly glad that the other party couldnÆt sense that his words contained half a lung of cigar smoke Still he frantically waved his hand worried that the Senator would have some way of noticing

Because you fucked up That bitch Tatiana really pulled a fast one on ya The cool response came IÆd wondered why they were being so passive the past few months but to think they had taken such a long view of things Basically the ZTB is on their side now

What The amount of money I pay them is Evan fumed but he was immediately cut off

is a fraction of what they gained from Erickson Steel from what IÆm told Senator HeathridgeÆs clipped and direct tone didnÆt sound angry but just like he was calmly reading a story from the front page of a newspaper Apparently the new train car was provided by Erickson Steel and the engraving used to power it is ingenious Impossibly so After connecting to the main transit system this new care actually added energy A significant amount of energy So much so that the ZTB will rubber stamp Erickson SteelÆs activities so long as they are allowed to inspect the engravings

That gave Evan Crane pause Erickson Steel was sitting on an engraving that could revolutionize the Manatech railway system Damnit if he could only control the company and look at its secrets with his money

Releasing a calming breath Evan Crane said Then we bring an official inquiry Force the ZTBÆs hand

There was a chuckle on the other end of the line DidnÆt I already say it You fucked up But IÆll indulge you What happens if we bring an official congressional inquiry

We have the votes Evan said through gritted teeth It was hard to take HeathridgeÆs casual arrogance even now But Evan Crane would still be a two bit criminal if the Senator hadnÆt noticed his potential and given him some seed money Even if they get Firefly and his cronies we

Senator Heathridge sighed You truly donÆt understand anything but money IÆm not worried about Firefly I have him distracted with other matters IÆm worried about the ZTB

The only thing ZTB can do is act within the manatech railways Evan said dismissively Other than that their only power

Then Evan froze

yes their only other power is to unilaterally enter into a partnership with a foreign power and delegate to that foreign power the ability to expand the rails in their own territory Senator Heathridge said softly A law that was passed specifically with Donnyton in mind A law that includes the ability for the designated foreign power to give out a not insignificant number of Tier I citizenships

And you have been pushing the foreign angle very hard against Erickson Steel They are subject to numerous taxes due to that designation It would be politically thorny but it is difficult for me to see how we could win on both the tax issue and whether they could be designated a foreign power WeÆve already committed too much to altering the public perception of them

Evan blankly looked down at his desk

Senator Heathridge continued to speak Whoever came up with this plan well itÆs genius I wonder how long they struggled in secret to create an Engraving that they were confident enough to tempt the ZTB with well no matter The mastermind clearly has given this situation a lot of thought Undoubtedly this is the culmination of months of preparation And this might not yet be their final move

For a second Senator Heathridge was silent When he spoke again his voice was filled with urgency We cannot let them control the tempo of this ItÆs time to put our final plan into effect Can I count on some extra cash from you

of course Evan Crane said a vein in his temple spasming

Good Send the funds to the usual place And Crane donÆt take any more actions on your own Then the line went dead

For several seconds Evan Crane stared at the door sincerely hoping that a subordinate would come through with bad news so he would have the excuse to put his cigar out in someoneÆs eye Then with his jaw still painfully clenched from this humiliation Evan began making a few calls

Every time someone picked up the phone as he called and answered ingratiating Evan Crane grew a little bit more bitter Because he knew deep down that the only reason these powerful people took his calls was due to his association with Senator Heathridge Without his power Evan Crane was nothing

But that wouldnÆt last Once Evan Crane was the CEO of Erickson Steel

Even if I have to go myself I will get to the bottom of Erickson Steel and devour all of its secrets

The sky was laid out before Vye like a painting the mid day sun peeking out behind towering storm clouds sending brilliant rays of sunlight down to gleam against the stone and metal walls of Erickson Steel Behind those rays the long wall of black clouds cast shadows across the surrounding forest warning of the rain to come

Vye stood on top of the radio tower that served as a crown of sorts for the headquarters gripping against the metal latticework of the tower and leaning out to look over everything in the surrounding area The people were ants and the concrete city was only a portion of what was below her Such was the height of the headquarters and then the additional height of the tower that Vye could see around for miles and miles

Beyond the tin and plastic roofs there was dirt and mines in the trough below Beyond that was the trees and beyond that was the river snaking South to Lake Apollo It was a clear enough day that the hint of the newly revealed mountains to the West was visible The breeze was strong at this height but that was the point

When Vye was up here she could imagine that she wasnÆt trapped in this strange place The SystemÆs implicit threat fell away She could imagine that she had seized the strength to control her destiny and was moving throughout the world She felt independent The wind spiraled around her limbs comforting her whispering of all the places that it had traveled through to reach her

Vye closed her eyes and listened It was only in moments like this that she was truly happy

As a crackling cacophony emerged from the speakers mounted along the roofs of the surrounding factories Vye was so shocked that she almost reflexively released her grip and toppled off the tower Hastily she grabbed onto the metal and calmed her breathing Falling from this height would have been bad the twenty or so meters down to the roof itself would have given her enough time to gather enough momentum to punch through the roof

Which in turn would have revealed that VyeÆs lunch break had seen her fleeing from the foundry floor Quick as a monkey Vye zipped down the tower and landed on the roof Just as she had dashed to the side and was beginning to scale down the gothic exterior on the side of the building TatianaÆs voice began to boom out from the speakers

does she know IÆm up here Vye thought guilty but then she shook her head It seemed that all of the speakers in the whole damn factory were activating Surely Tatiana wouldnÆt mobilize the entire speaker system in order to track down a single wandering assistant Surely

Vye gulped audibly

Ahem TatianaÆs voice boomed outward Then Vye could practically hear the woman plastering a smile across her own face before she spoke Greetings everyone I just wanted to make a quick announcement The founder of Erickson Steel Randidly Ghosthound will be performing a forging demonstration in ten minutes He will be assisted by our three most talented smelters and the whole process will be broadcast on the large screens in the assembly halls I encourage everyone to attend and watch the process

I repeat TatianaÆs electronically spread voice boomed out again repeating her message Vye ignored it and landed on the ground For several seconds Vye simply grinned and savored the feeling of release as her earlier anxiety dissipated like mist beneath the beat of a strong midday sun Then her face twisted into a frown

A demonstration huh

Inwardly she was extremely torn Although she was interested in Randidly Ghosthound and his experiences in other places Vye truly didnÆt have much interest in forging itself If the focus was supposed to be on forging it likely wasnÆt worth her time And everyone would be gathered in the assembly halls to watch

Do you have any proof

Nope all I have is my word He had said his emerald eyes glowing with easy confidence It was a gaze that said canÆt you see it My what proof do I really need

Rather his gaze seemed to suggest with not a little amusement which one of us is truly being tested here I wonder Æ

Vye gritted her teeth and forced her feet to carry her toward the assembly hall In their prior two meetings Randidly Ghosthound had seemed profoundly ordinary In the past Vye had met powerful individuals from Zone 1 who seemed to ooze authority Randidly Ghosthound didnÆt possess that But he possessed accomplishments that the people that Vye considered powerful couldnÆt even dream of Even if it was just to check whether the stories or the rather bland impression she had was true Vye would go and watch at least the beginning of the demonstration

Was that air about him just the circumstances Vye wondered Her eyes flashed If it was then in this demonstration IÆll be able to see what he really is like The man who has the power to control his own destiny Randidly Ghosthound

Because of her status Vye possessed keys to head up to the administrative box in the central assembly hall When she arrived she was surprised to find the relatively spacious room already had about thirty people standing around waiting for the demonstration to begin Below in the floor of the assembly hall proper bodies were packed like sardines

As she looked down at the crowd each tiny head peered upward at the screen which was displaying a relatively basic large forging room Almost unwilling Vye followed their gaze and looked at the screen Although the camera used changed frequently giving the watchers a complete understanding of the contents of a room what she saw there was relatively without suspense

Five people stood within the room Randidly Ghosthound and one of the loveliest women Vye had ever seen were talking quietly in the corner At the other side of the room seemingly too intimidated to approach two men and a woman stood stiffly in silence All three were wearing heavy leather aprons and gloves

Vye recognized the three as the best forgers Erickson Steel had And it was clear that they would be working in the function of assistants for the demonstration

Minutes slowly crept past Around her Vye could hear the whispers of other high ranking members of Erickson Steel but she didnÆt bother to join the speculations She simply looked at the screen Even through the filter of technology Vye could immediately tell something was different about Randidly Ghosthound But maybe that was just the fact Vye was hyper aware of how many people were gazing up at him with worship and envy in their eyes

Yet Vye couldnÆt shake the feeling that something had truly changed Where he had been almost blank before now he seemed peaceful She had seen him calm and also in pain but this was not related to either of those His determined gaze his furrowed brow

With an abruptness that shocked Vye Randidly looked up and stared directly at the camera For a split second she had a deep fear that he was looking directly at her His eyes were so so emerald Then Randidly smiled and the reality of her situation as one amongst the crowd hit her like a bowling ball to the chest

Just like always IÆm here watching Vye thought with a sigh

Anyways Randidly Ghosthound said drawing the attention of the all watching to himself I think itÆs time we begin IÆll try and keep this brief so IÆll be explaining while I work Today I want to impress upon everyone the uses of an image while creating metal If Erickson Steel is going to be the best metal manufacturer in the world this is the Path

Chapter 966

Despite her earlier doubts about the staying power of the demonstration VyeÆs eyes were locked onto the screen from the very beginning

Randidly casually waved his hand Behind him a monster with a huge claw for a left arm and a spear for a right arm appeared Its legs were inverted like a raptorÆs Its face was obscured by a layer of skin revealing only dark holes for its eyes and mouth From it a vast sense of desolate loneliness washed outward VyeÆs hands tightened into fists Around her several people flinched or took several steps backward

But then in the next moment it was gone

In its place there was an immaculate tree The ground physically rumbled causing Vye to blink rapidly and place her hand against the wall to steady herself When she looked out the nearby window she paled there was a hundred meter tall tree right outside of the assembly hall ItÆs thick branches spread over Erickson Steel shading it from the midday sun

Just as quickly the tree disappeared In its place motes of emerald fire danced around Randidly

IÆm going to move through this preface quickly Randidly said casually as he spared the three assistant forgers During the actual smelting feel free to ask questions For now just listen Helen if you would like to start

The lovely woman next to Randidly nodded and walked over to the central area where a heavy wooden table sat With a flourish she deposited almost a half ton of shattered and cracked bones onto the middle part of that table Several loose bits of bone rolled down over the edge clattering onto the floor as the table wasnÆt able to handle all the bones

Just as quickly the woman produced a spear and used it to skillfully knock the larger pieces that had fallen back up to the table Her movements were so quick that it was difficult for VyeÆs eyes to follow After putting everything back on the table the woman began to brutally chop and crack the bones further reducing them to just debris

While Helen did so Randidly continued to talk To put it generally Skills are preset images that we obtain from the System Therefore when I say image IÆm referring to the process of using a Skill without System assistance It is a matter of willpower belief and focus but these are generally much weaker than Skills After all these images donÆt consume attributes So what they lack in power they make up with flexibility

Randidly strolled forward to the central table ignoring HelenÆs continued frenzy of activity He waved his hand and two barrels appeared next to the central table Ah it is also a difficult process to reach the point IÆm at When you struggle just know it is part of growth Now on to forging

The point of images in forging is to give a character to the metal If you think about it in System terms what I will attempt to do with an image is to give the metal a ClassÆ to shape its strengths and weaknesses Because as IÆm sure you have all noticed the System places particular importance on the individual Therefore if I force my image into an inanimate object vehemently enough the System will notice and empower that object In this case this metal

Scratching his cheek Randidly seemed to consider his words and looked back I bet this is all a lot IÆm moving through a lot of information very quickly And it isnÆt scientific But what IÆm telling you is that this is a method the System has provided to improve our results If Erickson Steel masters this it wonÆt just revolutionize our high end products every bit of metal we make will have an edge over the competition So suspend your doubts and watch

Then Randidly pointed to the barrels IÆve brought two special ingredients Those of you who already possess some standing in Erickson Steel probably can recognize them For those of you who donÆt know work harder to deserve that knowledge ItÆs enough to think of them as a strengthening liquid and a weakening liquid

The camera shifted displaying a barrel filled with a crimson liquid and one with an emerald liquid Vye blinked IÆve seen those before but never in those quantities Based on the reports those are just his blood

Just his blood Just blood that has the chemical properties equal to industrial acid A tiny voice ridiculed in her head but Randidly continued to speak before she could be distracted by that nagging voice

We have the liquids we have the monster bones being ground up as we speak and the only other ingredient we have is raw iron ore provided by the mine on site I wanted to work with basic materials so you had a better understanding of what image can accomplish So letÆs begin

Abruptly Vye realized something The secret of Erickson SteelÆs high quality steel using a mixture of monster bones was being broadcast to everyone on the factory floor Now there likely wouldnÆt be any non employees wandering around but it was unrealistic to think that the news wouldnÆt leak now that everyone knew the secret

For a dissatisfied bureaucrat this bit of news would net quite a bit of money

Yet Tatiana clearly understood this She had announced the demonstration there was no way that this wouldnÆt have occurred to her So what were they thinking by giving this knowledge away so cheaply

Without seeming to care about his casual treatment of Erickson SteelÆs trade secrets Randidly Ghosthound walked up to the crate and removed several rough chunks of unprocessed ore Based on what Vye could see they were relatively impure too It would be very difficult to get metal worth working with just from a few of those chunks

Randidly didnÆt pay it any mind As he moved over to stand next to the table Helen finally seemed to have finished her work

She gathered up all of the broken pieces and swept them into a huge trail that was waiting behind the table A tray that was basically just a dumpster with very low walls As she knocked almost all of the bones within she stepped into the dumpster tray and began to grind those pieces into even smaller bits Randidly beckoned the three assistants over toward him

It will be easier if you follow along The three blinked and then surged into motion grabbing their own chunks Whether it was purposeful or not the other three also gathered five pieces of raw ore just as Randidly had These they selected with much more care and it was immediately clear that the pieces they chose had a much higher purity than the ones Randidly casually picked

But Randidly just smiled at them So IÆll lift the ban on questions now but IÆm going to start with the first one what traits do we aim for when producing metal If we want to imbue an image into this it needs to start from the beginning So before we start we need to know what sort of character we want for the metal and focus on it the entire time

The two men and one woman glanced at each other Eventually the woman cautiously said Strength in the face of adversity Ability to resist being warped

Still smiling Randidly casually tapped one of his chunks of raw ore Before the entirely of Erickson Steel the impurities simply fell away revealing a gleaming core of metal As one everyoneÆs jaw dropped to the floor

Even if he had a ridiculously high Level in Refine the fact that it happened instantly Vye struggled to grasp what she had just seen Although she wasnÆt interested in forging she had watched forging occur hundreds of times It was a tedious and drawn out process And all he did was tap the top of the raw ore and it seemed to Refine itself

Next Randidly asked

One of the men stepped forward Flexibility and functionality

Randidly tapped another piece of ore and a similar thing happened Suddenly it was just the pure metal within Randidly looked at the final man

Durability the man grunted It needs to endure

After tapping another piece of ore Randidly twisted and looked to the side Helen

The woman snorted It needs to make a spear

Rolling his eyes Randidly tapped the fourth bit of ore Then he paused as though considering something After a few seconds he opened his mouth and spoke And I think metal needs to protect

After tapping the final piece of ore he had five gleaming bits of metal in front of him each no larger than a fist Vye blinked as she stared at the screen Then she leaned closer were all those nuggets really extracted from the same type of ore The coloration

Randidly waved his hand causing roots to twist up from the ground and pick up the barrel of emerald liquid The roots casually poured the liquid into four smaller glass trays that were waiting on the central table Then Randidly casually tossed the five nuggets into his tray He looked over at the other three forgers I recommend you stick with your own image and use it on all five pieces Ah whoever creates the best metal will receive some personal instruction from me so give it your best

Instantly the eyes of the three assistants were lit on fire After seeing how casually Randidly was able to manage everything their earlier doubts were assuaged The temptation of being instructed by him was more than enough motivation

But the man who answered endurance raised his hand I do have a question if we use the Refine Skill without heat wonÆt impurities remain Even at ah your Skill Level

Randidly nodded Yep but thatÆs kinda the point ThatÆs what the weakening liquid is for Mostly I use that initial Refine to impress the image on the metal While IÆm Refining IÆm thinking of removing everything that doesnÆt help the one focus I want The weak things that I miss will be devoured by the weakening liquid

WonÆt that also damage the metal The woman who said strength asked

Again Randidly nodded But just like something is never truly invulnerable nothing is ever truly damaged beyond repair Now you should hurry so I donÆt move need to move onto the next stage before you even have refined your metal

Already the emerald liquid was frothing around the nuggets Randidly placed into them With pale faces the three assistants surged to work It was clear from their pained expressions that they were attempting to mimic RandidlyÆs casual motions

With that same small smile Randidly turned back to the camera An image gives purpose When that purpose in the metal resonates with the purpose of the piece of being equipment it is being forged into the benefits are strengthened Images associated with armor or weapons are relatively simple It is a much more abstract thing to have an image for the material

Not impossible obviously but less intuitive Honestly I would recommend trying to obtain images in other areas and then working on images with materials but we simply donÆt have time At that moment RandidlyÆs smile turned somewhat pained The world continues to spin no matter what we need But remember that need isnÆt useless Use that need as fuel Use it to warp the world around us It is only by growing beyond recognition that we can survive the future

It seemed like Randidly abruptly sensed something was amiss because Randidly tilted his head to the side In the administrative booth the silence had shifted to something full of confusion Even Vye couldnÆt really follow what Randidly was saying

Need isnÆt useless Use it to warp the world Vye wondered But more than his words Vye was fascinated by the feeling that he had created as he had spoken about those issues Every word had weight The air hummed with it It was that urgency and power which they had hitherto not seen from Randidly was what gave everyone pause

For just a moment he had seemed inhuman in his intensity His eyes were blazing lanterns of emerald light

I just what do I need And what would I warp to make it so Vye wondered Somehow the words started to lose their meaning in their place that wild determination and RandidlyÆs emerald eyes were all that remained

The question didnÆt matter what Vye was transfixed by was the attitude that let him ask such a ridiculous question Because there was not a hint of doubt in Randidly Ghosthound right now demonstrating before a couple of hundred people

This was what she had dreamed of without knowing she was dreaming That easy assurance that freedom

Vye wanted it so badly she couldnÆt breathe

Randidly grinned seemingly aware of the effect his words had Although he was just looking at a camera it was like he understood exactly how the group watching was reacting to what he said Too much too soon Well you all will see eventually Time has no mercy Anyway Helen demonstrate some images for these people so they donÆt assume IÆm crazy

Chapter 967

Randidly smiled softly as Helen conjured her image in front of the camera The thick waves of the Tides of Blood Domain appeared Although she will do what I ask itÆs very likely that she has no idea what is going on Although I explained that we are being observed it really seems like nothing on Tellus prepared her for a live stream

After a few seconds Helen turned back to Randidly The choppy crimson currents faded away Is this enough These shits are too weak to get anything out of further exposure

Sighing Randidly wondered briefly if there was a production team that could bleep out HelenÆs dismissive comments about the three best forgers in Erickson Steel Still it wasnÆt like Randidly didnÆt think Helen was right it was clear that the images that these three were exposed to left them bewildered rather than enlightened Further exposure might even be enough to inflict some mental damage on them

And part of the point of this exercise was helping these three forge even more successfully than they had in the past

Randidly was asking a lot of them by throwing out so much information in a very short span of time But he had to be quick And it wasnÆt like being mysterious and gradual with this information would aid them later It was only awkward now because this was their first experience with images But breaking through all of these firsts right at the onset would make their further development even more explosive and smooth

Finished Randidly finally said as he smiled at the three forgers torn between looking at Helen with shock and peering down at their own refined ore carefully Although he couldnÆt tell for sure from this distance his instinct was that any further and the damage to the ore would be rather substantial Plus this had dragged on for long enough already

Guilty the three nodded and used titanium tongs to remove the metal from the vat of his blood Then Randidly guided them over to the tray of shattered bones Casually Randidly removed five scoops and brought them over toward a furnace area

The man who responded flexibility raised his hand with a question These bones I can tell that they are from a powerful beast but shouldnÆt we be more discerning with what sort of traits we introduce into the alloy Now that all the different corpses are mixed up wonÆt we get an unpredictable result

Theoretically yes Randidly responded as he set his materials down on a work table next to his furnace Then he considered the three forgers It would be better to be able to get the bones of monsters that exemplify the images you wish to imbue in your metal That way the final result accomplishes your desired goal But let me ask you how well do you truly know the traits of monsters

The man blinked

Shrugging Randidly said You extrapolate based on what youÆve seen yes But isnÆt there much more to a monsterÆs information than the way it fought before it died You can study the tensile strength of its corpseÆs materials but that misses a lot

Randidly rapped loudly against the wooden worktable next to the furnace Take this table Can I sufficiently describe the tree it originated from by looking at a pile of the harvested wood Of course not I miss its height the way it flowers the shape of the leaves the radius of its roots And although those traits arenÆt very important in making a table it is very important to be aware of those concerns while crafting an image

Taking a few seconds for each individual Randidly studied the expressions on the forgerÆs faces I know that this is difficult to understand right now But believe me when I saw you will realize by the end how important this is We are crafting an image Images symbols and stories are an implicit part of the System

Classes shape you Paths shape you For the lucky ones Soulskills also shape you Then Randidly focused on the man who had asked the question If you could perfectly know which monster was the most creative the most willing to keep a flexible lifestyle then yes your point is correct But that knowledge is hard and time consuming So instead

For good measure touched each of his nuggets a second time reinforcing the image We will be refining these nuggets three times Ideally the image acts as a magnet and a beacon it draws the qualities that most closely matches its own deeper into its structure The stronger the image the stronger the attraction That way when we place the metal back in the weakening liquid the traits not associated with be toward the exterior those portions will be damaged and pulled away leaving only the harmonious bits

Rather casually Randidly threw the five nuggets and five handfuls of bones into the furnace He didnÆt even bother to turn it on While the three others watched with wide eyes Randidly conjured Ignition Essence and gathered his materials into five groupings Emerald flames gathered around the piles of materials in tight clusters Immediately the high heat of the Ignition Essence caused the materials to crack and warp

Randidly glanced up at the five with not a little amusement If you just keep watching youÆll be left behind

After a few seconds of blank shock the three jumped to work They rapidly turned on their respective furnaces and began to melt the materials down As they did so RandidlyÆs focus turned back toward his own metals As the different materials liquefied he made sure he held a clear image for all five of the different groupings

It was quite difficult but Randidly gritted his teeth and managed it Once everything was melted Influence of the Molten Core was used to conjure strange bits of gravity and thoroughly mix the materials into a cohesive whole The blending continued for several minutes while Randidly thoroughly monitored the progress

The waiting for his assistantsÆ to finish their own tasks was difficult but Randidly calmly kept himself from getting impatient Time after time he used those waiting moments to stress the importance of image and did his best to make sure he showed how capable images could be

Over time the expression on the assistantÆs faces turned from confusion to simple workman like frowns Likely less about the use of images and more about the fact that RandidlyÆs speed in smelting metal was almost one half of theirs and it was clear that he was waiting around quite frequently so that distance didnÆt grow to something impossible

His casual efficiency completely surpassed their prideful attempts to keep up with him This while he was taking the time to instruct all three of them in the finer points of eachÆs image

Carefully they took the newly mixed metal alloy and dunked it in RandidlyÆs processed red blood in order for it to cool and strengthen Then after a few minutes they removed the gleaming hunks of metal and physically hammered the metal

There wasnÆt really a goal to the hammering but to add pressure to the process The base structure of all metal was based upon uniformity Even Randidly didnÆt have enough Perception and Control to make sure that it was perfectly uniform with just his Influence of the Molten Core By hammering the nascent metal those defects in structure would be revealed and could thereafter be addressed

Then the metals would go back into the weakening solution allowing the flaws to be thoroughly destroyed Afterward the process repeated itself two more times

Finally Randidly calmly watched as his sweating assistants were hammering out their final ingots It had taken almost two hours and that was only because Randidly had streamlined the learning process for these three

It was clear however that they were nearing the end of their physical endurance they had been struggling with too many things for too long Generally Randidly didnÆt use hammering as the way to find the stress points But he was glad that he had for this demonstration

Randidly grinned Good When the body is tired the mind is free to imagine

Finished Randidly asked casually During the last rotation through the process Randidly hadnÆt bothered to wait for these three As such he had finished his five hammered ingots almost a half hour ago and had simply studied the three Very carefully however so as not to interfere with any images that had been lucky enough to force into the metal

Not that Randidly had high expectations for them But this would be the ultimate test

At RandidlyÆs question the three assistants looked at each other Then they nodded Without saying anything else Randidly swept up the twenty ingots that the different groups had produced Despite his extremely low expectations he was surprised to see that the three varieties from the assistants looked rather different from each other And amongst the same type there was a high degree of uniformity

They arenÆt the best just for show Randidly thought

Mark

The man hurried over handing Randidly an ingot prepared beforehand Randidly held it up IÆll be personally testing these for you all It isnÆt the most scientific method but I just want to demonstrate the general strength provided And also the pieces will be left in this room for anyone to inspect In case you doubt my impartiality IÆll start with this Erickson SteelÆs high performance alloy Our best seller

Randidly tossed the ingot lightly up into the air Then Acri blurred into motion

Several bits of metal clanged onto the floor

Five slashes Randidly announced Due to the relatively poor resistance to cutting attacks I could complete five full slashes through the material while it was in the air So who wants to volunteer their ingots to go next

Chapter 968

Vye stared at the screen How can that be considered a testing method If he varies his speed or angle just a tiny bit the efficacy of the cutting test would drop to nothing

After blinking rapidly the rest of her brain caught up with what she just saw Nevermind that did he seriously just slice five times through the high performance alloy I could barely follow his movements

Although the three assistants on screen seemed to have similar doubts to the ones that Vye had they still stepped forward and offered their ingots to be tested in this manner And as they watched the results the blood drained from their faces

Four slashes Even if we just consider the fact that you beat the high performance steel on your first try itÆs pretty good Understand the value of images now As Randidly Ghosthound glanced around at them the three just stared at him Vye gulped

As he stood surrounded by the three shocked forgers Randidly seemed profoundly in his element Now his rather crumpled shirt and ashy vest didnÆt make him seem shabby Instead he seemed to dominate the entire room with his presence The muscles of his forearm stood out clearly as he gripped his spear His emerald gaze calmly looked around then dropped to the sliced bits of metal that covered the floor

Then Randidly shook his head Well I guess we will test mine then

He picked up an average looking grey ingot that he had made and tossed it into the air Again his arm blurred into motion beyond the range that Vye could catch

Ah whoops Randidly winced Trotting over toward the small hole in the wall Randidly beckoned for a camera to follow While everyone watched he removed his ingot from the fist sized hole in the concrete wall The ingot itself was bent and twisted with a savage gash that cut almost all of the way through it

I suppose that will count as one slash Randidly said lightly bringing the ingot back to the table and picking up another one

Sighing Randidly walked again to the wall This time the ingot he had used had been completely split in half so the debris from his strike impacted the wall in two places With a shake of the head Randidly walked back to the table with the severed pieces This one I suppose on and a half would be more accurate If it hadnÆt been knocked away I would have had time to strike again

Then Randidly calmly proceeded with his tests

Aside from one ingot that was full slashed by Randidly twice the others could endure a single slash from Randidly More than that VyeÆs mind was buzzing as she reflected on the earlier tests So basically the difficulty in slashing through our high performance steel is so low that no force is transferred to an airborne item

Randidly considered the broken wreck of one of the automated cameras that had been destroyed by debris from his testing Then he shrugged and brought all the pieces of the ingots he had forged back to the central table His eyes scanned the surrounding people ThatÆs all for today IÆll leave these here for you to test Perhaps In a week IÆd like to do this again I hope your results will improve by then DonÆt let this be all you ever accomplish

Vye shivered as though Randidly Ghosthound had stood behind her and whispered those words directly into her ear DonÆt let this be all you ever accomplish

Then Randidly left the room About two minutes later the three assistants finally found the strength to move heading toward the central table They immediately reached a consensus and split up to test the ingots that Randidly had made Although Randidly had left the broadcast continued The people around Vye began to talk quietly with one another as they discussed what they had just seen

Some shared VyeÆs doubts but others seemed infected with a contagious sense of awe and veneration for Randidly Ghosthound Even if his testing methods had exaggerated the results it seemed clear that he could craft materials that made the Erickson Steel high performance alloy obsolete

It took ten minutes for the assistants to give up on their quest to damage RandidlyÆs ingots With the basic furnace that was used in the test it wasnÆt possible to melt the metal made by Randidly Ghosthound They were effectively invulnerable

Even the ingot that had been slashed twice by Randidly was only slightly warped by their combined efforts From there they began to test the abilities of their own creation What soon became apparent was that while these creations had their own weaknesses due to their lack of familiarity with the process they were likely the strongest ingots each of them had ever made

The talking in the assembly hall became a dull roar But Vye didnÆt even notice She simply stared at the screen slightly dazed

DonÆt let this be all you ever accomplish

Then as her resolve finally returned she got up and headed toward Erickson Steel headquarters Likely due to the pseudo holiday that today had become the building was almost deserted But it was with great relief that Vye arrived on the top floor and found that Tatiana was still in her office

At least in this case this womanÆs addiction to work was a good thing Otherwise Vye shook her head I might have done something drastic If I wasnÆt able to say this today

When Vye knocked on the door Tatiana looked up Her face immediately cracked into an uneasy smile Ha I figured youÆd come Incredible wasnÆt it HeÆs well heÆs not the most famous individual in the world for nothing

Then Tatiana paused and looked at Vye a little bit more carefully Heh you are trembling Hit you that hard Did his display finally light your inner passion for forging I canÆt say that IÆm surprised He made it seem so

Again Tatiana paused This time her inspection of Vye took several seconds longer Vye you are white as flour WhatÆs up Did you TatianaÆs eyes went wide Then a knowing smile settled on her face Did you happen to develop a crush Randidly certainly has a compelling intensity When we first met I

Tatiana Vye said through gritted teeth Her hands were trembling IÆm having a hard enough time saying this as it is Please dont

Vye trailed off TatianaÆs grin faded somewhat Alright I wonÆt tease you Spit it out IÆll help you with whatever you want

IÆm quitting Vye said quietly

Tatiana froze

After After seeing what he did what he could do after knowing that he had gone to so many places to reach that level Vye shivered I canÆt stay here Tatiana I really want to thank you so much for everything youÆve done for me Without you when I was released from the time freeze six months ago I would have been who knows

And if you hadnÆt offered me a job as your assistant I would probably still be struggling in some refugee slum somewhere So sincerely thank you

TatianaÆs smile returned filled with warmth as she regarded Vye Then as though releasing some dark weight she had borne for too long Tatiana walked over to Vye hugged her and sighed meaningfully into her shoulder

Vye blinked You youÆre not surprised

Of course not I was hoping this day would take much longer to arrive but no I knew this would happen someday You think I didnÆt notice you sneaking off to climb up the radio tower Hah You are a hundred years too early to sneak away from an old pro like me Tatiana reached out and patted TatianaÆs arm I always knew you dreamed too big to stay here forever Although itÆs a good thing you donÆt remember the horror of a world that wasnÆt prepared for the System The time freeze kept you safe for the most bloody first months Those of us who were originally here

A shadow passed over TatianaÆs face we all bear the scars Probably even Randidly Ghosthound We can only advance so far before those deep wounds make us stop in fear of what lays beyond But someone like you we need heroes like you to make our world a better place Heroes willing to go out further than our current limits

The image of RandidlyÆs emerald eyes appeared before Vye Him standing barefoot and lithe seeming more of a natural force than a human being IÆm no hero

Neither was Randidly when I first met him Tatiana shook her head As I recall the first time we met was at a cocktail party where he destroyed a rooftop pool Heh even then he had a flair for the dramatic

While Vye was attempting to imagine that Tatiana shook herself as if rousing herself from a stupor Well anyway what do you want to do now The world is a wide place If you need any connections to find a place to stay feel free to contact me

Thanks I really appreciate it Vye smiled Immediately she imagined the wide sky spread out in front of her Traveling Without a destination or a goal Just experiencing the world Well thatÆs a bit general but

Vye produced a chocolate and popped it into her mouth After finally quitting her heart was humming with joy Now all she needed to do was pack up and leave And honestly she was so excited that she considered leaving all of her worldly possession behind

I have some friends in the Orchard Vye finally said Maybe for now IÆll go visit them But after that I have no idea IÆll see what fate has in store for me

When Randidly arrived at TatianaÆs office he found the woman once more drinking a glass of that precious liquor that she had shared with him when he arrived Compared to the time she poured glasses for all three of them this glass was significantly more full

RandidlyÆs eyebrows rose Is this a celebration

In a way Tatiana said softly But also something somewhat IÆve feared for a long time has finally happened ItÆs good news but life isnÆt so straightforward that the things that make us happy canÆt also hurt us

Nodding RandidlyÆs mind turned back to his departure from Donnyton If he was able to shock them into understanding the importance of images he would be very glad The Earth needed heroes The System would not be kind when it came collecting

But the way that that lesson had ultimately played out

Randidly released a breath through his nose and said Well anyway I just came to let you know IÆll be heading South for a few days to check out Dungeons If you need anything while IÆm gone contact Helen She should be able to handle most problems

Shortly afterward Randidly was rushing South Now itÆs time to find out just how inevitable the arrival of this Judgement is

Chapter 969

Bundled up to look bulky and wearing a fake beard Evan Crane swaggered toward the gates of Erickson Steel In addition to his disguise Evan also prided himself on maintaining a constant cloud of smoke around his face With the extra layer of screening it was practically impossible for anyone to discern his exact identity

Even for the paranoid Erickson Steel Evan sneered Above him along the road to the front gates several drones hovered about scanning every individual who approached Evan and his companion were walking calmly behind a government humvee completely inconspicuous in the busy road filled with dozens of people going in each direction

In fact Evan felt a weird squeeze in his heart as he considered the busy road from the train terminal to the factory proper He had secretly hoped that the decision to pull all branches from the varying cities around New Earth would have severely diminished Erickson SteelÆs business prospects The added difficulty of traveling to acquire their metal would win them no favor

The road into the Erickson Steel complex was incredibly busy More than that on the crowded Path Evan saw no fewer than five Orders represented To add a slightly festive air the road into Erickson Steel was bordered with a market of street stalls Most of their wares were fresh produce and little knick knacks but there were also stalls run by relatively inexperienced smelters as a way to sell their experiments rather cheaply

Grinding his teeth Evan attempted to keep his spasming jaw from revealing him to the drones watching above He reached out and lightly touched the arm of his companion Slow down LetÆs let the government vehicle arrive first I want to see the fear on their faces when they understand the news

The figure next to Evan was a scarred man who called himself Thirteen Although his skin was dirty and rough his teeth were almost immaculately white when he smiled Heh alright But no matter what happens you canÆt back out on your end of the deal IÆm going to have quite a lot of fun in Erickson Steel

EvanÆs smile was sharp After taking a long drag to finish his cigarette Evan dropped it on the ground and stomped it out DonÆt you worry The more damage you can do to Erickson Steel

Both men froze as a drone zoomed down toward their position EvanÆs immediate reaction was to draw his pistol and blow the piece of garbage out of the sky but he managed to suppress that impulse to an ineffectual twitch of his right hand Then he began to sweat Did the drones have enhanced listening capacity If they did

By this point all of Erickson Steel would know that he was antagonistic against them Even if all they did was lock him up for several days they would undoubtedly realize he was disguised And then

A metallic voice echoed out of the floating drone Please sirs allow me to take your refuse

The drone floated down toward the ground An aperture slid open and a small arm stretched out to take the cigarette butt Then the drone floated back up above the road Both men were tight lipped as they watched it retreat They exchanged a wary glance

Before either could say anything the government humvee ahead of them arrived at the gate of Erickson Steel After the car was parked a tall man got out of the backseat His gaze was as pitiless as a hawk as he scanned the surroundings

The several guards at the wide open gates hurriedly straightened Colonel Maude

mm The Colonel hummed softly while continuing to scan the surrounding area One of the guards at Erickson Steel turned around and spoke into his watch and within a minute a rather tough looking older woman hurried out It was clear she was someone relatively important in the structure of Erickson Steel

Colonel Maude She said with a smile To what do we owe the pleasure of a visit from our government liaison Is there a problem with the previous batch of steel

There were no problems The Colonel said stonily His eyes finally ceased their roving and settled on the older woman But there is something pressing on which we need to speak

Please follow me We can discuss the details in a more comfortable

Actually The Colonel interrupted I believe it is only fair that we talk about it here After all I have news that impacts everyone who has traveled today to Erickson Steel To hide this news would be a disservice to them

The fact that the government humvee had stopped and an important military figure stepped out of it hadnÆt escaped the notice of the almost two hundred travelers who were briefly dallying at the outdoor fair to amuse themselves And when the Colonel said that he came with news that impacted them all they all looked up from the stalls and focused on the Colonel standing in the middle of the road

The Colonel coughed lightly into his hand and then said Everyone IÆm afraid you must return this time without being able to purchase steel Due to the dangerous new threat coming out of Zone Eleven Congress has determined that military projects need to be emphasized beyond all others Therefore

The Colonel turned back to the older woman we will require the delivery of the entire amount of promised steel now rather than over the course of the rest of the month Unfortunately we have no other choice Some of the monsters wandering into our heartlands are Level 70

Behind them on the road Evan CraneÆs mouth curled into a smile This was the first of the three part plan that Senator Heathridge had come up with to suffocate Erickson Steel The danger was exaggerated of course but there were truly isolated incidents of high Level monsters wandering down from Zone Eleven

And if Erickson Steel canÆt fulfill the order immediately We will be forced to find other suppliers The need is immediate The Colonel said ominously Around the fair various individuals looked at each other with serious expressions They had understood that recently the government had been applying additional pressure to Erickson Steel but to see it so blatantly and publically done

Perhaps Erickson Steel wouldnÆt exist for very much longer

Even more intoxicating than nicotine Evan inhaled that confused and hesitant scent that filled the air With Erickson SteelÆs monthly order from the government and as this is only the 18th of the month what the government is demanding is a little over one third of their total order immediately An order that generally takes Erickson Steel ten days to produce

Even if you have enough stock on hand to satisfy the Colonel EvanÆs gaze when to the representatives of other business ventures and the Orders that were present You will be forced to disappoint someone I donÆt think business will be quite so booming tomorrow Will it Erickson Steel

The older woman blinked

Then she thought about it and nodded firmly Oh thatÆs perfect We can do that

I The Colonel began but now it was his turn to blink What

The womanÆs smile brightened further and she nodded emphatically Actually we currently have a surplus of stock The founder of the company did a forging demonstration yesterday so all of our best workers have been producing metal frantically to try and imitate his technique We honestly have more metal than we know what to do with Your arrival couldnÆt be better timed Colonel if youÆll just follow me

Then the woman froze Ah there is one thing

Finally the predatory air returned to the ColonelÆs eyes As Senator Heathridge had motivated him to find any possible excuse to change suppliers even if just for a short while the Colonel seized this chance Oh

The woman shook her head helplessly Because of the guidance of Erickson SteelÆs founder some of these new metals are even more high performing than our regular products As such the Colonel may require more powerful tools in order to create drones with them but we have had to deal with those same problems recently as well so you are in good hands

The older woman led away a befuddled Colonel Evan jerked his chin sharply at Thirteen who nodded and discretely proceeded into the Erickson Steel compound Evan retreated some distance away and then called Senator Heathridge

After hearing EvanÆs explanation of what had occurred Senator Heathridge was pensive To think they had prepared this so far in advance no the story about the founder is probably just PR They must have been secretly working on a new product line for months now well no matter Did Thirteen enter successfully

Yes all according to plan Evan twitched slightly He was craving a cigarette but was too wary of the drones above to smoke another one

Then we just wait Senator said gently Soon they will be begging for our help

Thirteen sat on a rooftop grinning down at the peaceful Erickson Steel campus below

ThirteenÆs given name was Theodore but he had always hated that name So much so that he had begun acting out at a young age resentful of his parentÆs overbearing and controlling nature It had all been rather harmless transgressions until he had run a red light while drunk and killed a couple while turning their smart car into a crumpled tin can

When the System arrived Thirteen had been halfway through a ten year sentence And when chaos descended he finally found himself free to share that horrible venom that had bubbling in his chest for five years

Now Thirteen was employed by the rich to make trouble for each other Generally no one ever requested any deaths but neither did they say anything when bodies inevitably cropped up ThirteenÆs smile expanded And now this whole company is mine to play with

Sniff

Thirteen spun around finding him face to face with a lithe young woman with brilliant mahogany hair and sharp eyes She was one of the prettiest women that Thirteen had ever seen and she was currently sniffing him And Thirteen was immediately floored that she had been able to arrive behind him without him noticing

But that body Thirteen didnÆt even bother to pay attention to her expression just gazing at her chest and hips greedily Seeing that she was a woman all of his earlier tension evaporated He licked his lips After IÆm done with her

I was rather excited when I smelled blood The woman whined But to think itÆs just a pesky mosquito like you Better that I donÆt let you wander around though

Thirteen didnÆt even see the spear strike that slit his throat

Chapter 970

The feeling was kinda like the taste of bad tequila sticking in her throat No matter how many times Alana released a breath she couldnÆt shake it Her instincts informed her matter of factly it was a bad feeling but it was really just tight AlanaÆs iron control bound it in place keeping it from being a big deal

In the predawn light Alana used even strokes to brush ReinaÆs hair The filtered sunlight from the tall windows caused the other womanÆs locks to glimmer revealing the rich and complex color that belied her dark hair While it was calming the even motions werenÆt giving her the usual sense of no strings attached bliss

Alana was careful to keep her breathing soft and quiet even though she vehemently attempted to activate her diaphragm and expunge the peculiar knot of tension that constantly nagged at the edges of her attention Part of her thought that the lack of success meant she should stop trying to force it Yet she still clicked her teeth together and ruthlessly expanded her ribcage in fruitless attempts to dislodge it

What is wrong with me Alana wondered This this isnÆt me IÆm DonnytonÆs fighter Even if images arenÆt simply another battle why am I losing so badly This is so stupid

RainaÆs been rubbing off on me IÆve become practically maudlin around her

Raina sighed and looked meaningfully up at Alana Do you really have to go

A hint of a smile tugged at the corners of AlanaÆs mouth as she felt Raina consciously or not activated some of her charm when she asked the question At the moment it was a welcome distraction from the unstable and contradictory currents of emotion that AlanaÆs mind had devolved rapidly into over the last four days

If nothing else it was a good sign that RainaÆs mental trauma from the challenge against Randidly was slowly starting to heal Very few things had pierced through AlanaÆs own funk but how strongly Raina had been affected had grabbed her attention The long shadow cast by Randidly was starting to fade Of course If not me I canÆt be sure that we will be able to help Zone Eleven Besides this will be good training for myself IÆve been feeling a bit restless the past few days

And what about your oh so precious training sessions Raina asked

Alana waved her hand while trying to keep the motion light and careless Paolo and Kayle will manage without me Even if they donÆt want to their competitive edge will make them go all out

After nodding meekly Raina said nothing further The two women remained silently in their positions Alana brushing while Raina sat for the next ten or so minutes Alana gritted her teeth and forced herself to enjoy it She should be savoring it It would be the last time they had this small comfort for several months after all

Alana was not currently upset that she hadnÆt been able to face Randidly in the prior challenge No she was quite proud of her ability to force three blows out of him while he was in that hyper powerful state The problem started the night after the challenge

No even that was wrong The night after the challenge she furiously inscribed into her soul the feeling of channeling all those hopes and images fed into her by Donnyton That experience of transcending she memorized its every corner She was like a wide river basin prepared to bring a vast flood of water toward the sea

When she woke up the next morning the only feeling that remained was a metaphysical dehydration No more spiritual fluid flowed into Alana from DonnytonÆs people She was empty The feeling had vanished It had left her so aggravated Alana had to consciously relax her jaw several times over the past four days in order to not grind her teeth to dust

After being the most powerful person in Donnyton for so long this struggle made her feel weak

It was a dumb thing to panic over The past four days without any progress in the area of images exacerbated that foolish panic It was even more foolish to expect to master something in four days that Randidly took months at least in which to grow proficient Her current progress was more than enough

But without a solid counterfactual that seed of panic had grown fat and poisonous in the back of her mind Her anger and frustration was a vicious cherry red poker prepared to burn away the rot but she couldnÆt pin the emotion down enough to eliminate the remaining panic Some always seemed to squirt away

Until she could finally get the knack of making an image down Alana suspected that it would remain as slippery as a muddy eel

Getting out of Donnyton might be good for me Alana thought

Later today Alana would depart with Sam and a group of fifty elite individuals from Donnyton to head toward Zone Eleven and assist with their rampant monster problem The request from Zone Eleven could be considered a godsend for both parties Zone Eleven needed help to prevent the greatest monster horde Earth had ever seen and Donnyton needed a way in the wake of their public draw with Randidly to prove their strength

Both to the world and to themselves

Alana was quickly selected to lead the expedition She took the news stoically when she had been informed and then returned to the darkness of her tent Very rarely over the past four days had Alana left her tent For training reasons She was the peak of Donnyton strength its invincible spear the teacher that led them all

Yet since those light headed hours in the early morning after facing Randidly an image had refused to manifest for her That truth was an unavoidable plague upon her mind While Kayle Paolo and Dozer all slowly gathered their strength and created more and more detailed images Alana found she could create nothing

ItÆs only been four days Alana rumbled at herself Yet her thoughts continued to scurry around the reality of the situation

She was an empty riverbed The substance of her Soulspace became dry and rutted That dark panic whispered that this would become a long term problem If she didnÆt solve it immediately there would be consequences

Again ItÆs been four days Alana thought tiredly as she set her brush down What can one person accomplish in four days

Randidly took only a single day to break the spirit of Donnyton and leave without a backward glance

Donnyton needed her more than ever and she could do nothing So in some ways it was a relief to leave Donnyton now In other ways it felt like she was running away

While AlanaÆs body continued to sit in silent struggle Raina interrupted the quiet between them You know these days have been such a nice break for me This was the perfect excuse to take some days off of work IÆve even made some recent sketches ItÆs one of the few things I can safely do as an invalidÆ teehee Would you like to see them before you go

Of course Alana said simply with a completely even and neutral breath Although she knew that it was likely the fear and pressure itself that had kept her from being able to condense an image from the abundant mental energy she produced it was difficult to simply be rid of it

Even now my mind is running around in circles Alana sighed inwardly

Raina hopped up enthusiastically and rolled across her bed to the desk at the far side When she reached it she pulled out a long drawer and produced several thin pieces of sketch paper With an easy smile Alana accepted them and began to look through them

The first to AlanaÆs embarrassment was a portrait of her staring meaningfully out a window Even more strange was the fact that she was not wearing her armor or carrying a spear At the moment she was currently wearing the exact clothes that could be seen in the sketch She looked fragile Vulnerable

Alana looked at Raina and curled up the corner of her lip Only you would dare depict me like this

Well you so rarely try to be anything but a spear Raina said as she rolled her eyes She picked up a lacy pillow and flung it at Alana Are our breakfasts the only time you relax Both you and Donnyton would do well to remember you arenÆt just a fighter

Shaking her head Alana looked at the next picture This one gave her pause for a long time

It was a picture of just a silhouette glancing back over his shoulder toward the viewer In the background to the figureÆs left was a giant tree that was so large it couldnÆt be contained by the thin paper To the manÆs right was a twisted monster with hideous claws Of the silhouette no details were provided he was simply done in shadow All of the detail was given to the two images in the background

For all that it was immediately clear who the figure was It was a man who cast a very long shadow

Alana released a breath Have you shown this to Mrs Hamilton

Raina shook her head No but IÆd heard she was scrambling to find anyone who could capture the feeling of RandidlyÆs two images I sorta did it on a whim When IÆm feeling well enough IÆll visit and give the sketch to her

Sighing Alana put the sketch into her interspatial ring Æwhen you are well enoughÆ huh Maybe itÆs just better that I give it to her before I leave today

Laughing Raina didnÆt bother to argue Both knew that RainaÆs avoidance of Mrs Hamilton wasnÆt something that could be overcome by mere whims Only at official Donnyton events would the two cross paths Feeling rather helpless in the face of RainaÆs straightforward dislike of Mrs Hamilton Alana continued to look at the other sketches

The third picture showed dozens of bodies reaching toward the sky and waving their fists in their fervor The energy captured in the sketch was palpable As Alana looked at it she felt the familiar tingle of pride as she remembered all of that hope and belief flowing through her body to fight against Randidly That same feeling she spent at least an hour every night trying to capture since then

Focus DonÆt let it distract you It will solve itself

It has to

And the last picture

A Valkyrie and a monster crossed spears in a vast and war torn battlefield It was a moment frozen in time from her memory somehow made perfectly manifest on the page And it felt so incredibly distant

AlanaÆs breath hitched in her throat The sour abscess of panic became just a small amount more swollen giving her internal organs less and less room to breathe

You donÆt have to hide it you know Raina said softly We all know or we can guess You were the one closest to Randidly So the fact that he abandoned Donnyton it hurt didnÆt it ThereÆs no shame in that

Alana kept her mouth shut Her current emotions werenÆt about that at all It had hurt sure But right now it was hard to feel any pain If she felt pain wouldnÆt that make finding her image easier She wished for pain The finally she could just force the image out and be done with all of this disgusting self pity

If her mouth opened right now nothing would come out Her tongue would just sit there This wasnÆt about Randidly It was just the constant irritation that she was missing something to do with images

After coughing and licking her lips Alana refocused on the sketches and said you are getting much better Your lines are smooth and flowing Honestly this is good enough to be featured in an old Earth art museum

Raina watched Alana who kept her gaze fixed on the sketches Then her expression softened and she said nothing about the abrupt change in topic Instead Raina laughed softly and said Thanks but I know IÆm not that good There are several people in Franksburg who can produce even better artwork than me Singing is still where I do my best work

You definitely are a phenomenal singer Alana said easing quickly into the task of talking about someone else But IÆm not kidding Although you might not guess it my undergraduate degree was in art history I was going to finish my Doctoral thesis if not for the System arriving So when I say you are good you are good

Raina blinked Alaina weÆve probably had breakfast together for the last six months Ever since we discovered we were neighbors

Alana nodded slowly wondering where this was going

and in that entire time you have never talked about your past This calls for a celebration You majored in art history Why Was it due to a dare oo was it about chasing a boy Raina laughed

With a grimace Alana realized she had somehow walked right around toward talking about herself again But she supposed this wasnÆt a very dangerous subject Yes the grand spear of Donnyton an art history major No dares no boys Ha ThatÆs a pretty accurate description of my childhood I grew up in a very strict household Both my parents worked for the military My father for the marines my mom at the pentagon Pretty typical conservative family So when I was finally independent

Alana shrugged What had she thought It was just my way of rebelling I guess I wanted to be more than the same tired justfications of my parents Social issues they didnÆt come up very often in our houseÆs political discussion And the more I saw of the world the more questions I had that neither of my parents were willing to answer

Raina blinked and studied Alana for a split second It was clear from the softening around her eyes that she was about to shift the tenor of the discussion For which Alana was very grateful So the reason you are so good at training was that because of your family

To that Alana laughed Unfortunately so yes Until I was 18 I ran four miles every morning with my father In all weather conditions no matter what else was going on in my life I could always count on him softly knocking on my door at 5 30

After I moved out we became more distant I volunteered got more involved with groups on campus registered as a Democrat Alana looked toward the window By the time the System arrived we were barely on speaking terms And my mother got transferred away from D C so although I looked I didnÆt find any trace of them when Zone 1 arrived It sucks but sometimes you just need to accept that relationships change And not always for the better

Then Alana shook her head Ah sorry I have no idea why I said that

Raina reached up and gently touched AlanaÆs shoulder without saying anything Unsure of what to do Alana shook her head and offered the three remaining drawings back to Raina She took the first two but pressed the final picture of the final clash against Randidly into AlanaÆs hand Keep it

IÆm not this valkyrie you drew Alana said stiffly

The smile Raina flashed in return was radiant and kind Of course you are not You are Alana But Alana you are also the only one of us who could ever fight him like that That hasnÆt changed You are really really strong

Am I Alana wondered The rest of their goodbyes faded to a soft buzzing and as Alana rested her chin against RainaÆs shoulder during their hug her eyes were clouded

Am I

Chapter 971

As it had been the past four days Donnyton was eerily silent Perhaps double as many people were active as there had been previously although it was only a few minutes past dawn but they all moved with frowns and a cloak of purpose Perhaps some would write it off as a function of the early hour but Alana knew that the day would drag on and the silence would remain

Seriously if the challenge bothered you so much just say something about it Alana thought grumpily Much better than reflecting on her own feelings she could direct her ire outward and feel more like herself

Had it been the Alana of a week ago she would have been delighted in the increased focus It would have been the perfect opportunity to push the Squaders harder in their training With this united grim purpose the efficacy of AlanaÆs guidance would have doubled

But now that she had tried and failed for several nights in a row to conjure her own image

Alana pressed her eyes shut IÆm making this too difficult for myself All of these other concerns are secondary Even if I donÆt have an image I can go out and fight for Donnyton I am DonnytonÆs spear IÆll fight and IÆll fight and IÆll be damned if I donÆt manage to produce a powerful image for all the people who are relying on me

Okay okay you are going to be talking to people other than Raina Alana slapped her shoulders deriving a certain pleasure from the sharp sting of her skin They donÆt they donÆt see me like that I have to be myself No more pity parties

Alana wasnÆt sure when it happened but over the past several months she had grown to consider Raina one of her best friends The two women were not alike at all Basically the only thing they had in common was the view from their bedrooms And yet now they made a point to have breakfast together every morning

As to why Alana just shrugged She enjoyed it She didnÆt need to make it any more complicated than that

The Squaders that would be heading North with Alana knew their business so she didnÆt bother meeting with them prior to departure Everyone had their own goodbyes to say The challenge against Randidly had been a reminder of their own mortality As such and as this mission into Zone Eleven might last for several months it was better to leave nothing up to chance

Rather than just wandering around Alana went directly to meet Mrs Hamilton Although her image was stubbornly refusing to appear AlanaÆs vast amount of mental energy enabled her to now sense individuals who were quite some distance away After about ten minutes Alana climbed the bluff and stood next to Mrs Hamilton who looked down at the sinkhole with arms akimbo

Alana followed the other womanÆs gaze The sinkhole remained largely untouched after DonnytonÆs best stone mages had worked to reinforce the edges of it And from the initial estimates the hole was extremely deep So much so that any serious expedition to plumb its depths had been put on hold for the moment

Around the almost half kilometer in diameter sinkhole hundreds of Squaders trained furiously From this height their rapidly flailing limbs looked rather amusing

But even from this far away their determination was clear The whole area was filled with the raw emotion that they poured into this effort It was the same emotion that silenced them It hung thick and clinging over the entire town

It was a feeling that they couldnÆt shake More than the training itself the suffocating feeling in the air that mirrored the feeling in AlanaÆs chest a little too closely for her comfort was created by a new addition that now sat suspended in the center of the huge sinkhole

A thick web of roots snaked out from six points of the sinkholeÆs edge meeting in the exact middle At that point the roots wrapped around each other into a thick platform allowing a tall wooden monolith to thrust upward toward the sky Thick glowing runes danced across that monolith throwing off an oppressive aura that was very similar to Randidly GhosthoundÆs Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil Even from this distance Alana felt a slight headache brewing as she looked at it

Upon the one side of the monolith there were also two phrases Here lies the pride of Donnyton Do not forget this lesson

No name was associated with the phrases but the with the context of the roots and that mental strain very few people in Donnyton would question from whom the monolith had come

Alana glanced at Mrs Hamilton A little dramatic donÆt you think

Anything less dramatic would have felt like an insult Mrs Hamilton replied breezily not even attempt to deny that it had been her who had made the monolith and framed Randidly Besides itÆs had quite the effect hasnÆt it

Shaking her head Alana didnÆt bother to continue down that track It would remind her of her own struggles Rather than being discouraged by the fact that her plans to defeat Randidly had failed Mrs Hamilton seemed rather invigorated in the aftermath In fact her cheeks glowed with healthy color It was like the defeat had added ten years onto her lifespan

Meanwhile Alana felt like a stone rod had been inconspicuously slid into her ribcage Every now and again her lungs would expand a little too far and the brush against that foreign stone would send a little jolt through her core

Alana doggedly sorted away her emotions and spoke again And the Engraving How did you manage to mimic the effect so closely

Mrs Hamilton smiled at her I will tell you but this needs to stay between us

After Alana nodded seriously Mrs Hamilton continued I ate a fruit A very dangerous fruit

How dangerous Alana asked

Mrs Hamilton considered that Some of the joviality left her face if word of these fruits got out I have no doubt that the other Zones would go to war for them Maybe not yet But soon when growth begins to stagnate and the threat of monsters grows once more

AlanaÆs eyes narrowed There are more fruits

Mrs Hamilton smiled sweetly Not for us no I think the biggest lesson I learned from this fight is that Randidly wasnÆt really worried about what we can do No it seemed that his gaze was far in the future to the fight that our childrenÆs great grandchildren will fight And that I find makes his concerns all the more salient

The two women looked down at the furiously training Squads of Donnyton Alana cleared her throat I also hear that even our experts were unable to stabilize the area around the sinkhole totally And quite a few of those mages have been working furiously to prevent it from expanding Hopefully their tasks succeeds

Ha Mrs Hamilton barked out a laugh Then she playfully shoved Alana Sometimes you are too sharp for your own good IÆm sure that the efforts of our best mages will result in fruitful results ItÆs all a matter of laying the groundwork now

Alana shook her head unable to keep the smile from her face But then her expression turned extremely serious as she produced the sketch from her ring and handed it to Mrs Hamilton Raina asked me to give this to you Unfortunately her wounds

I get it I understand that we are destined to never get along Mrs Hamilton flapped her hand Then she considered Alana But IÆm endlessly fascinated by the fact you two get along so well

Why Alana asked I may be DonnytonÆs spear but I do enjoy more sensitive pursuits as well Her drawings

No no not that Shaking her head Mrs Hamilton stored away the drawing She patted her interspatial ring in satisfaction Because I have no doubt that she badgered you about your struggles with condensing an image Likely she brought up Randidly as well

Alana coughed awkwardly She wondered what sort of expression her face was making

Mrs Hamilton laughed awkwardly See You canÆt have thought we didnÆt notice Hide in your tent all you want that energy you throw off shouts your mental state to the world Honestly I donÆt know why you are so wound up over it ItÆs only been four days And although Paolo and Kayle can sometimes cause an image to appear when they are using Skills it’s still far from the raw strength you can generate with your orange wind

But IÆm DonnytonÆs spear Alana said quietly Even if I know IÆm putting too much pressure on myself I cannot help it I need to lead the charge If not me then who

Mrs Hamilton sighed and then pointed toward the wooden monolith Careful Here lies DonnytonÆs pride DonÆt forget this lesson Æ To quote a much pithier individual than me

Your jokes are extremely aggravating sometimes Rolling her eyes Alana turned away and looked toward the base of the bluff on which they were standing Sam sunburnt and carrying two heavy hammers steadily ascended toward them Noting with bemusement that Alana seemed done with this line of discussion Mrs Hamilton didnÆt say anything further

When Sam arrived at the top of the hill he scowled at them both Well Are we ready to leave I donÆt want to waste much time I have a lot of work to do

Although Paolo and Kayle were the two that had made the most progress in terms of manifesting images Alana secretly believed that Sam was the one that had benefited the most in the wake of RandidlyÆs challenge The air around him positively hummed with his razor sharp focus His will was becoming increasingly palpable

Hello Sam IÆm glad to see you are in a good mood Mrs Hamilton said dryly Below them the rest of the expedition slowly gathered chatting and stretching But as she studied the group Mrs Hamilton frowned DidnÆt you add someone last minute Who is it

SamÆs frown actually twitched into something resembling a smile for a split second Some girl of EdÆs Apparently she has made herself so indispensable to him that Bekany is getting jealous of all the time that they spend together Otherwise he wouldnÆt have let her go

Her name Mrs Hamilton sharply asked Although this isnÆt exactly a secret mission I would prefer to know who she is

You donÆt think we can handle ourselves Alana asked sourly But Mrs Hamilton just gave her a suspicious look that left Alana speechless

I may be struggling with images but I can still lift a spear

Sam thought about it for a second Then he pointed to a slender figuring hurrying to join the casual crowd below Out of everyone who had gathered this teenage girl was the only one who didnÆt store everything in her interspatial ring she was wearing a rather large backpack I believe her name is Mareen Ed recruited her out of the Orchard

Chuckling Mrs Hamilton nodded as she looked down at the young woman Ah interesting Very interesting

Then she turned to Alana and smiled Well well Miss Spear of Donnyton Are you ready to depart

Chapter 972

After leaving the dungeon Randidly was grinning from ear to ear So the timer for the Judgement is specifically out of Dungeon time Which gives me plenty of time to prepare

Then RandidlyÆs excitement switched into a wry acceptance I suppose it would have been too much to hope the one month time period for the Growth of Yggdrasil Path would have been affected when the Judgement timer wasnÆt so that Path will need to wait until after the Judgement Does that mean I should take another Path in the meantime

Randidly glanced around He was standing on the beach of Lake Apollo next to a Level 40 Dungeon that Tatiana had told him about The lakeÆs water was gently lapping onto the shore As far as Randidly could sense there was no one around for miles This was far from Zone OneÆs military base on the East shore of Lake Apollo

Farther to the South and West was a new Zone that Randidly didnÆt know much about It had apparently connected only a week or two ago and was still struggling with its own monster problems now that the wild areas had been exposed As long as he didnÆt seek civilization out he would likely have free reign in this area

Randidly clicked his teeth and considered his next move Ideally he would be able to hole up in a Dungeon and spend quite a bit of time refining his images and working on Engraving But the Level 40 Dungeon here on the shore of Lake Apollo was quite a bit less than he would want There were likely a few higher Level Dungeons to the South in the new areas but they would be difficult to find on short notice

Randidly could sense the Aether fluctuations of a Dungeon if he was near but they were purposefully disguised so that wasnÆt possible from a far distance This protection became more intricate for the higher Level Dungeons About Level 60 which was exactly the type that Randidly wanted he was only able to feel the distinct energy from a distance of less than one hundred meters

In addition he had to consider the type of Dungeon he was going into The Dungeon here was mostly in a cave system environment While the constant water dripping it wasnÆt exactly ideal for an extended stay

Because aside from Engraving Randidly also wanted to work on metal creation He had checked with Tatiana and they still hadnÆt been able to train anyone to the Level that they were proficient enough to create GhostÆs body So that was a favor that he still owed And he would need high quality metal for that

Plus Randidly still had some ideas about how to make Erickson Steel mobile That would require a staggering amount of metal to the point that it was less about the ability of people to refine metal of a sufficient quality but simply how long would it take to create enough metal to make a city mobile Setting aside the costs of future repairs

Sighing Randidly just shrugged Well fuck it

Immediately he set off to the South at a fast speed While he was moving his attention returned to the issue of Paths

He had 1359 PP remaining so Randidly was immediately tempted to either take Physique of the Grim Chimera or Ashes of Ulaat They were the two Paths that Randidly had considered before ultimately choosing the Perfect Soulbond Path Whether or not it had been the right decision his reasons for not taking those Paths still was the same just the ultimate result

At the thought of how that Path finished Randidly shook his head letÆs hope the consequences of that action will take a while to manifest In the meantime I need to improve as fast as possible I donÆt have time to play cautiously against opponentÆs like that

But Randidly was also now tempted by the Experimenter IV Path Although nothing amazing had happened since he had gotten the Skills he had noticed that his five ingots he had made in the demonstration were of a higher quality than he would have expected otherwise It wasnÆt such a change that it would make much of a difference but it was tangible

Although perhaps that was a manifestation of Touch of the Ghosthound

Still considering the fact that most of his training would likely involve the production tasks Randidly was sorely tempted by the Experimenter Path The higher quality his results in the Dungeon the more Skill Levels he would gain Which would lead to more PP So of the Paths Experimenter would upgrade his growth engine the most

ItÆs a gamble but the faster I handle these annoying political and economic issues the more quickly Erickson Steel and the Order Ducis become self sufficient without my constant assistance and I can focus all of my energy on improving myself Then we can work on making Erickson Steel indispensable to Earth

But then again Randidly wasnÆt sure that this was the fastest Path for creating a stable future Honestly was it worth it to spend so much time developing Erickson Steel Providing a supply of high quality materials would certainly assist the other Zones without interfering with their images But it definitely required quite a bit of his attention now which would be better spent preparing for either the Judgement or the Calamities

However if Randidly focused all of his attention on his own growth he didnÆt doubt that he could make great strides Perhaps only in the finer details of working with metal did Randidly have things to learn from the people at Erickson Steel As a loner he would have quite a bit fewer annoying curve balls thrown at him

But this feels right Randidly thought as he calmly drew Acri and approached a group of Level 57 Stone Golems I am the Lord of the Baleful Wood Although I am powerful alone I am more than that I am a leader

Acri flashed outward and diced a nearby golem to pieces in a flash but the sensation from the cuts was enough to give Randidly pause It was faint but there was a slight resistance in the golems bodies While he was pausing to examine the corpses a few more golems noticed RandidlyÆs calamitous arrival in rumbled in fury

Casually Randidly reached down and touched the monsterÆs remains heedless of the dozen or so golems charging toward him Huh they arenÆt just stone There is quite a bit of metal content in here killing these will be much faster than just finding some random mine to harvest while IÆm in the Dungeon

Huhuhu is this the world telling me that forging is the right Path Well I suppose that it wonÆt matter either way if I help myself to these corpses

Randidly looked up sharply Roots ripped upward with enough of an edge to pierce through the firm bodies of the golems As the monster struggled to crush Randidly with their heavy fists Randidly simply buried them underneath waves of thorny vines

As monsters fell they screamed calling out to more of the kindred Soon hundreds of golems were rumbling out of the nearby mountainside caves to attack Randidly As they poured toward him and were killed by his Skills and not Acri Randidly got his first long overdue Level

Congratulations You have reached Level 45 +8 Stats distributed between Vitality Perception Resist Intelligence and Control +20 Free Stats +1 Stat to a Mental Stat +1 to a Physical Defense Stat +1 to a Mental Support Stat +2 Control +36 Health +40 Mana +40 Stamina +3 5 to all Regenerations +1 to Health and Stamina Regeneration

Congratulations You have learned the Skill Sigil of an Approaching Fate Lvl 1

Sigil of an Approaching Fate Mark an opponent with a mysterious ancient curse allowing you to track the opponentÆs position across distance no matter how large When a Skill or attack his an opponent marked with your curse the curse activates to deal a slight amount of damage Mana cost decreases with Skill Level Specificity of tracking increases with Skill Level Damage increases with Skill Level Number of active Sigils possible increases with Skill Level Current Number 1

While Randidly continued casually killing the attack golems he considered this new Skill Interesting but it looks like it’s the sort that is designed for strong opponents If I kill things too quickly I wonÆt have much of a chance to Level up its abilities But on the other hand

RandidlyÆs eyes flashed If I Level it up enough I can have more Sigils active It probably isnÆt too difficult to remove for those who understand Aether but it might be easier to agree to LyraÆs request if I can place one of these Sigils on her to keep tabs on her

In order to see the effect Randidly used the Skill a few times on some of the tougher golems that rushed over to be harvested by him

Certainly the first thing Randidly noticed was that the Mana cost was not small To activate it took about 500 Mana and then it required about one Mana a second to keep the sigil active In terms of tracking even at the low Level it gave Randidly two pieces of information When he saw the monster he had marked he recognized it immediately And he also possessed an internal compass that pointed toward it

Because his the amount of damage he inflicted was already too high for even these defensive monsters to handle Randidly couldn’t really draw any conclusions from the offensive portion of the Skill But based on the Mana cost Randidly assumed it wasnÆt small Or at least he hoped he would receive a large amount of damage based on the amount of Mana he pumped into the Skill

Besides the actual details of the Skill Randidly was fascinated by the actual formation of the Skill When he used it glowing golden light gathered in his hand until a sigil formed there ready to be thrown out toward an enemy But if Randidly didnÆt throw out the Skill it stayed on his hand and continued to marginally shift

By the end of five minutes of observation it had completely changed But Randidly was endlessly fascinated by the form it took

It isnÆt exactly engraving but it’s also not exactly just a simple construct of Aether Randidly thought as he narrowed his eyes and considered the sigil IÆve always sorta assumed that the difference between Engraving and Aether constructs was just the underlying energy but IÆve never been able to truly connect the two But as I look at this

ROaaR

A towering Level 62 Golem showed up almost double as tall as its fellows It immediately began to stride toward its own doom

Randidly shook his head sadly If you really want to be harvested me so badly donÆt mind if I do

Chapter 973

After finishing off all of the nearby monsters and gathering the almost five hundred bodies of the golems Randidly had gained two more Levels and reached Level 47 Truly spending a small amount of time grinding experience was an extremely relaxing and rewarding experience

But that was ultimately just a distraction Scratching his head Randidly ultimately decided to gamble on the Experimenter Path The further he pushed his ability to create and Engrave now the more it would benefit him in the future

Yet it feels sorta dangerous to invest so completely in one area of myself with all this PP Randidly thought idly But still he trusted his instincts He could always earn more PP in the future But it would be difficult to find an opportunity to boost a passive Skill like this again without the assistant of a Path or a powerful image

When he poured PP into the Experimenter IV Path he obtained 2 Perception 2 Control and 2 Focus for every 50 PP spent With the additional boosts from the Levels he had gained recently these bonuses pushed RandidlyÆs Control beyond 1000

At first Randidly thought nothing of it But almost immediately he felt a very distinct sensation of empowerment Before he actually finished the Path Randidly paused and lifted up his hand to look at it

Information flowed into him about every small muscle group in his hands As he traced the sensation Randidly realized that he could distinctly feel each tendon and nerve ending in his entire body As his focus shifted up into his brain Randidly felt the flow of blood and the slow secretion of neurotransmitters If he desired he could spike the amount of adrenaline within his body in a heartbeat

ItÆs not so much anything really changed Randidly thought slowly The value of each point in Control didnÆt grow In fact the diminishing returns are still there But it feels like reaching 1000 Control opened a door of knowledge within myself It isnÆt just that I can exercise Control but that I was given the knowledge of how to do so

Randidly rubbed his front teeth against his lip It was a valuable bonus Already this strange implicit knowledge made itself extremely valuable by providing several key insights on how Randidly could improve his root avatar training methods for the spear Likely Randidly would focus his efforts toward getting another Stat to 1000 in the near future to see if it happened again But it still disturbed him quite a bit that it had happened

the more I learn the more I realize why the Creature so desperately feared the System Randidly thought with a grimace But I still donÆt believe running away is the correct answer This Path my Path is the right one for me

After experimenting with his new awareness Randidly finished off the Experimenter IV Path

Congratulations You have completed the Experimenter IV Path What waits in the summit That question drives you forward like a taskmaster Many things are sacrificed in the ascent but the certainty that this will be worth it never weakens Nay perhaps because of the lack of assurance your Faith grows stronger Willpower +100 The Skill CreatorÆs Aptitude has evolved into Experienced CreatorÆs Ingenuity The chance of all prior positive outcomes occurring has increased

Randidly was not amused by the text of the Path reward even if the 100 Willpower boost was nice It pushed his Willpower to 920 which meant that would likely be the Stat he attempted to get to 1000 next

Randidly was also not amused that the bonus to the Skill was slight and it hadnÆt even been enough to lift the Rarity of the Skill to Legendary Instead it continued to sit at ancient And now waiting in his Path Menu was the Experimenter V Path requiring 3000 PP

Sighing Randidly began distributing some of the free Stats he had earned in the past couple days When he pushed his Willpower to 1000 he did once again feel the immediate shift in perspective Rather than having increased understanding of how Willpower worked what Randidly received was a sense of familiarity over the varieties of Willpower

A firm Willpower that endured over a long period of time That was a portion of RandidlyÆs Willpower but he often switched it out for other varieties during tough moments

A sharp knife edge Willpower that cut through even the worst mental agony and spat in the face of its opponents This was generally what Randidly relied upon Ever since he had acquired Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil it was this will that carried him forward Yet Randidly let his consciousness wander finding other methods of using his will

A vast almost liquid Willpower that accepted all comers becoming increasingly influential as it grew

A fiery Willpower that devoured those weaker than it and grew even brighter and more scalding

This strange knowledge was much less straightforward But Randidly immediately saw the different varieties of Willpower could be used in conjunction with different images Although he had always prided himself on his own determination Randidly couldnÆt deny that his own standoffish personality had pushed his World Tree image toward his Crown and Cruel Indignation His own pride was a part of his typical Willpower

Randidly remained thoughtful as he continued to distribute his Stats next intending to raise Agility to 1000 to see those results After he finished Randidly considered his Status screen

Level 47 (21%)

Health(/R per hour) 5046/5954 (3529)

Mana(/R per hour) 3986/7344 (2174)

Stam(/R per min) 4713/5369 (1183)

Vit 672

End 348

Str 592

Agi 982

Perception 780

Reaction 652

Resistance 618

Willpower 1070

Intelligence 688

Wisdom 530

Control 1107

Focus 615

Equipment White Steel Greaves Lvl 65 Agility +100 Strength + Reaction +20 IradakÆs Tinglesilk Gloves « Lvl 70 Str +30 Focus +20 Agility Intelligence Willpower Wisdom Control +15 SunÆs Teardrop Belt Lvl 68 Stamina +300 Stamina/R +50 Willpower +40 +1 Willpower per Level Ancestral Circlet of the Broken Ridge Lvl 69 Health +300 Vit and End +20 Resistance +40 Perception +20 Str Agi Reaction Willpower +25

Total Equipment Bonuses Health +300 Stamina +300 Stamina/R +50 Vit +20 End +20 Agi +140 Str +75 Perception +20 React +45 Resistance +40 Focus +20 Int +15 Willpower +80 Wisdom +15 Control +15

PP 123

Paths Taken Newbie 7/7 P Def 10/10 M Supp 10/10 Risk Taker 15/15 Basic Physical Fitness 20/20 Trainee 15/15 Wandering Survivor 20/20 Pathless I 5/5 Pathless II 5/5 Pathless III 10/10 Pathfinder 15/15 Disciple of Shal 37/37 Pathless IV 10/10 Pathless V 15/15 Pathless VI 15/15 Pathless VII 20/20 Pathless VIII 20/20 Pathless IX 25/25 Pathless X 50/50 Pathless 100/100 Mana Bolt Path 25/25 Phys Fitness 25/25 Evasion 35/35 Phantom Thrust Path 40/40 Spear Mastery I 50/50 Monster Slayer I 1/1 Monster Slayer II 3/3 Heavy Blow Path 20/20 Monster Slayer III 6/6 Monster Slayer IV 12/12 Monster Slayer V 25/25 Potion Making I 25/25 The Monster Slayer 100/100 Entangling Roots 40/40 Meditation 35/35 Frontrunner 100/100 Apprentice Path 50/50 Fireball I Path 50/50 Potion Making II 35/35 Spear Mastery II 75/75 Phantom Thrust II 75/75 Empower I 60/60 Root Manipulation I 75/75 Advanced Phys Fitness 100/100 Fighting Proficiency I 80/80 The Lonesome Spear 100/100 Path of Carnage V 1000/1000 Oathbreaker 25/25 Grace I 75/75 Fighting Proficiency II 100/100 Weeping that Falls like Rain 200/200 Aether Philanthropist 1/1 Tireless 50/50 Initiate of Ash I 75/75 Bacterial Mutation I 125/125 Initiate of Ash II 150/150 Anguish I 125/125 Intermediate Battle Intent 200/200 The Ash of Aemont the Spear Phantom 500/500 Steps of the Godling I 50/50 Mentalist I 50/50 Basic Mana Engraving 100/100 Adept(+1) 250/250 Basic Soul Bond 75/75 Path of Control 200/200 the First Legend 300/300 the Seed of Yggdrasil 150/150 Growth of Yggdrasil I 250/250 Lavamancer 300/300 the PhantomÆs Embrace 150/150 Intermediate Soul Bond 125/125 Crown of Yggdrasil 500/500 Growth of Yggdrasil II 500/500 Chosen of Ash 200/200 Fighting Proficiency III 175/175 Mana Ghoul 200/200 Steps of the Godling II Path 200/200 Evolution of Self I 50/50 Intrepid Will of a Godling 175/1750 War Leader 200/200 Alpha Cosmos I The Intermingling 200/200 Ashen Aura I 600/600 Advanced Mana Engraving 400/400 Raiment of the World Tree 3000/3000 Nexus Traveler Cohort 5 50/50 Experimenter I 50/50 Metallurgist 300/300 Fiery Sharpshooter 350/350 Mana Lich 500/500 Experimenter II 250/250 Experimenter III 500/500 Perfect Soul Bond 1000/1000 Experimenter IV 1250/1250

Skills (Soul Skill) Figure of the Alpha Cosmos Lvl 8650

Combat Spear Mastery Lvl 205 Heavy Blow Lvl 118 Iron Skin Lvl 47 Dodge Lvl 119 Fighting Experience (Un) Lvl 163 Block Lvl 77 Calculated Blow Lvl 110 Roundhouse Kick Lvl 80 Idiosyncratic Cut (Un) Lvl 124 Stalemate Breaker Lvl 76 Talon Strike Lvl 90 Counter Lvl 94 Flowing Momentum Lvl 12

LoBW Class Skills Grasp of the World Seed Lvl 235 Spray Holy Sap (Un) Lvl 27 Sharpness Lvl 127 Earthquake (Un) Lvl 48 Invigorating Call (Humanity)(Un) Lvl 14 Reach of the Jade Slag Lvl 110 Erode Image Lvl 30 SpriggitÆs Tinkering « Lvl 99 Aether Understanding Lvl 74 Aether Infusion Lvl 47 Volatile Ash Lvl 44 Visualization « Lvl 204 Fruit of the Planting of Enmity Lvl 40 Absolute Timing Lvl 70 Cycle of the Gloomy Wood « Lvl 39 Riders of the Baleful Court Lvl 75 Lantern of Harsh Truths « Lvl 27 Sigil of an Approaching Fate Lvl 7

Descent of the Grim Chimera Chimeric Avoidance Lvl 181 Cursed Appetite of a Wraith Lvl 246 MonstrosityÆs Appalling Physicality Lvl 205 ReaperÆs Mantle of Catastrophe Lvl 85 Molten Fang of the Pariah Lvl 177 Man is Proud but the Chimera Takes Lvl 160 The Chimera Weeps as Man Mourns Lvl 146 All Else Succombs Yet Time Whirls the Earth Lvl 119

Aether Skills Aether Detection Lvl 136 Aether Manipulation Lvl 130 Living Aether « Lvl 120 System Interference Lvl 40

Spells Yggdrasil Soul Seed « Inspiration « Ignition Bolt « Lvl 118 Verdant Nova (Un) Lvl 83 Burning Footsteps Lvl 23 Touch from Beyond « Lvl 37 Influence of the Molten Core « Lvl 90 Eruption of the Blazing Leyline Lvl 100 Ignition of the Emerald Essence Lvl 115 Mana Physique (Un) Lvl 1

Crafting Potion Making Lvl 73 Farming Lvl 34 Analyze Lvl 29 Refine Lvl 74 Extract Lvl 59 Mana Engraving Lvl 198 Experienced CreatorÆs Ingenuity Lvl 5 Touch of the Ghosthound

Yggdrasil the Tree of Upheaval Glittering Leaves of Yggdrasil Lvl 141 The Golden Roots of Yggdrasil Lvl 174 the Emerald Sap of Yggdrasil Lvl 157 the Yyrwood Flesh of Yggdrasil Lvl 200 the Deific Mien of Yggdrasil Lvl 170 the Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil Lvl 178 Crown of Yggdrasil Cataclysm and Gloom Lvl 120

Auxiliary Sneak Lvl 56 Acid Resistance Lvl 22 Poison Resistance Lvl 21 Pain Resistance Lvl 100 Fire Resistance Lvl 111 Sewing Lvl 11 Digging Lvl 5 Cooking Lvl 77 Clockwork Mastery Lvl 26 Aether Connection Lvl 21 Soul Bond Lvl 118 ChefÆs Palette Lvl 33 Nether Resistance Lvl 20 Child of the Rain (Un) Lvl 59 Chosen of Ash Lvl 139 Engineering Savvy « Lvl 114 From Darkness Genesis « Lvl 16 (Domain) Crossroads of the Alpha Cosmos Lvl 70 Connection to the Alpha Cosmos

Randidly was actually relatively close to reaching 1000 in Agility A few more Levels and he would manage it But of course the high bar of Level 50 was in RandidlyÆs future Although he knew that the sharp rise in experience required above Level 49 wouldnÆt be a problem for him Randidly was more concerned about the looming task of condensing a Fate

I should Level up to 49 but there is no real point in going beyond that until I can talk to Nathan about Fates Randidly reflected From what Naffur had said Nathan would be coming down to Erickson Steel with him after stopping in the Orchard to recruit some talented individuals to the Order Ducis

Besides Randidly wasnÆt in any rush to condense a Fate But he hoped that he would be able to do it without a problem based on his very unique existence within the System

Humming to himself Randidly considered his options as he slaughtered his way South Whenever he sensed other humans he carefully avoided them and avoided making too much of impact on the monster ecosystem that it would be obvious that someone powerful passed through here

At this point Randidly was withdrawing into himself rather than seeking to expand his influence Erickson Steel and the Order Ducis would be his connections to this world He didnÆt need to be making relationships with a new Zone at this point in the game

But he did notice that a group of people right under Level 50 was struggling to head North likely to connect with the nearby Zone

Sighing at his own foolishness Randidly used Infinite Fingers of Yggdrasil to eliminate some of the more densely packed group of monsters in this groupÆs path Although he didnÆt want to connect with these people he also didnÆt want them to die They seemed to work well together but they were out of their depth Level wise

To avoid running into the nearby Zone Randidly veered West beginning his search for a high Level Dungeon in earnest

Chapter 974

Tatiana stared blankly down at the still slightly warm body You you just killed him

Yup He wanted to fuck with Erickson Steel so I made sure he couldnÆt cause any problems HelenÆs lip curled upward into a sneer It was immediately clear that he was the sort that wasnÆt worth leaving alive I just didnÆt know whether you wanted to investigate the body for clues who sent him Otherwise IÆll just find somewhere to put the body Maybe I could just toss it into one of these furnaces

Tatiana blinked rapidly Her mind failed to start working properly for the second time of this conversation Instead of having a normal response she just mutely looked at the satisfied young woman that Randidly had assured her would help take care of any difficulties Certainly she looked like a perfectly normal individual