LoRG 2

Every day included a few hours that Randidly simply came before the tower and studied the plans that the ultimate Engravings version of himself had designed He examined the small models that he had made to test the viability of the designs Then using the Engraving encyclopedias as a reference Randidly furiously studied to raise his own understanding of Engraving

What was unfortunate was that improving his knowledge didnÆt truly raise his Skill Level It certainly made it easier for his Skill Level to improve but there would be no direct improvement in the Skill Level from studying As such Randidly was beginning to feel that he was improving quite a bit in terms of Engraving while his Skill Level remained completely static

He knew that he could rectify this rather quickly if he would spend a few weeks just testing his theories with repeated experiments but now this foundation building seemed more relevant to his future tasks

So with glittering emerald eyes Randidly studied Not long now

He glanced up at the towering stone pillar unadorned and smooth Soon we will have to see how well this works An emerald flaming eye as the Engraving pattern a Skill that can Level which will enable the entire city to recognize friends or foes just from looking LetÆs try to push the envelope as much as possible

Chapter 1007

RandidlyÆs mouth twisted into a grimace as his head continued to pound I knew raising the demands on All Else Succumbs would hurt but actually going through the activation of the Skill plus with the accumulated damage from the process of forcing Nether Resistance to increase in Skill Level And now

With a hand that trembled from accumulated mental strain Randidly reached out and touched the final square stone that had been a part of his tower experiment There was a poof of air and the stone disappeared brought to the assembly site within RandidlyÆs Soulskill where Wendy continued to diligently work herself to the bone in order to accomplish RandidlyÆs assigned tasks

Honestly Randidly was a bit worried about her In the beginning he had set a pretty brutal pace in order to tease her but she had stoically accomplished all of the tasks well within his very optimistic deadlines She was working herself with a zombie like fervor that even Randidly found somewhat intimidating

She must really enjoy the project Randidly thought as he sprawled out on the ground and looked up at the sky It was another cloudless day in the Dungeon Laying as he was directly below the edge of the plateau no wind came here The temperature was ideal when he closed his eyes Randidly couldnÆt tell where his body ended and the air around him began

For several seconds he simply savored the feeling of being intimately connected to the surrounding world

Although Randidly hadnÆt been able to improve his own images much he had still been slowly learning how to recognize lessor images present in the world His sensitivity was initially numbed by the constant exposure to the image of timelessness but as he learned to balance that force with his own images a strange sort of clarity came to him

Perhaps it was because he could use the image of timelessness to check his own images that Randidly had long subconsciously released into the surrounding area But Randidly felt shadows of old images that once ruled this land In quiet moments like these those shadows seemed to shiver and seep out to brush against RandidlyÆs skin

The bold and bright gallantry of the monkeys The modest determination of the Ki KunotÆs heron people The speculative patience held by the poisonous toads The geography that Randidly had steamrolled might have been erased but the spirits of the different people that once inhabited this land werenÆt so easy to eradicate

Randidly opened his eyes and looked down at the sparkling glove of Chulroon The energy flow Engravings on the metal gleamed with Mana as Randidly used them to manipulate his replacement limb The individual pieces of chainmail shimmered dully in the light of the sun Honestly the result of his arm remake was very satisfying

Everything is finished here the Riders have gathered everything they can Randidly reflected Then he checked his absolute timing

There were three minutes remaining in his self imposed year time limit

Has it really been a year already Randidly asked the sky Truly it would be too easy to hide away in a Dungeon and let the exterior problems fade away to a stretched out future Plus as RandidlyÆs experiments with Engravings grew more intense and intricate it seemed like the avenues he had to advance grew more diverse every day Even despite the diminishing returns to his other Skills Engraving was a wondrous wonderland of knowledge he was just now approaching

Yet the isolated genius was not the Path he had chosen The Crown of Upheaval and Gloom hummed in pleasure at the firm declaration he carried with him

After all Randidly was the Lord of the Baleful Wood And it was after a year here in the Dungeon that he finally felt comfortable bearing the full weight of that mantle It was not just an individual image that he carried Behind him was an entire court

With a light hop Randidly flung himself to his feet His gaze swung outward taking in the 860 Riders that waited patiently around him His mouth curled upward into a mocking grin Fine then itÆs time to ride LetÆs confine ourselves to just this Dungeon no longer

His RiderÆs didnÆt smile or rejoice After all they were beings that were born of Randidly Ghosthound they were cut from a stoic cloth But they rode after him with wide eyes like a murder of crows gliding toward a battlefield with their mouths open just slightly

Tatiana There is something that you need to see

Tatiana didnÆt bother to stifle her yawn in response to the barking terminal Although her sleep had been interrupted once again her assistant hadnÆt sounded too worried So she took her time stretching her arms up above her head until her shoulders released a satisfying pop Then she twisted her torso around savoring the series of spine tingling cracks she earned there

Only then did Tatiana rub her eyes and wander over to the terminal itself Bring it up on the screen

ScreenÆs way too small Came the slightly tinny response You should get dressed and head up to the outer wall

For a split second Tatiana didnÆt move It felt like someone had shoved a needle made of ice deep into her heart Too small Something that I need to see The tingling numbness woke her up immediately Tatiana drummed her fingers nervously against the edge of the keyboard below the terminal Understood Two minutes

Why the hell did I just assume that Helen would take care of the monster problem Tatiana thought furiously I should have at least told her to investigate But to just assume she had it handled when she was wandering around fuck And now

Of course Tatiana also hadnÆt bothered to ask what the specific problem was that made it necessary for her assistant to wake her up But when he wanted to bring her to the outer wall Tatiana immediately knew it was something large enough that a view on a monitor wouldnÆt convey the extent of it Which made Tatiana think of a fearsome term that she hadnÆt heard in a while to describe the current threat

Monster Horde

Now that Zone 1 had forces enough to pacify Dungeons they hadnÆt needed to deal with large scale attacks by rampaging monsters Still Randidly had insisted that Erickson Steel be built with walls high enough to resist in case those dangers would ever appear again So it had been done with TatianaÆs blessing Plus Erickson Steel had a fair amount of prototype drones from RandidlyÆs earlier days

Tatiana shimmed side to side as she slid her skirt up her legs Hopping on one foot she moved over to the mirror and checked how she looked The result had her growling in frustration and looking around fruitlessly for a hairbrush

But it wasnÆt like Erickson Steel was defenseless They had the walls some turrets and Tykes might be hanging around somewhere

In addition Helen would come rushing back as soon as she was contacted And as far as Tatiana could tell her arrival meant it would then only be a matter of time before the whole of the monster horde was executed But TatianaÆs real concern was what would happen in that intervening time

Tatiana threw up her hands in frustration If her hair was soon gonna be soaked in monster blood anyway it didnÆt matter how it looked now So she made sure all of her articles of clothing were properly buttoned and then hurried out Seeing no one around in the street Tatiana lengthened her stride and accelerated

With a few light steps she leapt up onto a low wall then up against the side of a three story building then across the road to reach the roof of a five story building Then she accelerated further becoming a blur that flowed easily along the rooftops

Generally Tatiana wanted to maintain a facade of calm and controlled CEO while she was moving around Erickson Steel It helped create an image that was easier for the people who worked for her to respect her But if there was a danger threatening the compound speed was of the utmost importance

Besides nothing builds internal pride than a dangerous external threat

With an easy grace Tatiana vaulted up across the last bit of distance from the factory rooftops to the outer wall that surrounded Erickson Steel Her assistant was already waiting there with a dozen other of the Erickson Steel guards They all looked seriously out down from the wall to the road leading down from the Northwest toward Erickson Steel

With a light cough to grab their attention Tatiana folded her arms behind her back and began to speak WhatÆs their average Level

Uhh Her assistant looked at her in confusion W What do you mean

Tatiana looked at him Immediately it became clear that there had been some sort of miscommunication from the bewildered look on his face She missed Vye dearly Then she curtly pushed him to the side and stepped up to the wall to look down at what they were all regarding with such slack jawed wonder

Below the wall along the road as far as the eye could see to the Northwest was a column of gleaming drones Instantly Tatiana narrowed her eyes Had Halloway been dishonest and the government was launching a separate inquiry for HelenÆs violence

But very quickly Tatiana recognized that these were not any of GhostÆs drones which were based on the same principles that Randidly used when creating machines No these were extremely complicated and ornate looking covered in thick layers of metal shielding to protect the valuable pieces that lay within their bodies

These were the creations of the Order Machina

Tatiana saw fully articulable metal centipedes with mounted flamethrowers and Mannatech canons There were large hives of metal built on wheels that could produce a thousand deadly flying knives within only a few seconds There were tall and lumbering dinosaur inspired collossai with long necks and teeth of superheated plasma

Truly the display was an oppressive one Just from a casual count of the models that Tatiana recognized there were probably five hundred high end machines moving in formation toward Erickson Steel At the front of this procession was a well preserved a neon yellow Maserati sports coupe undoubtedly made long before the System arrived

Still the fact it was so immaculately maintained was a testament to the financial power of the man at the helm

I just thought you should see isnÆt it amazing TatianaÆs assistant whispered I wonder does the Order Machina want to establish a branch here

Tatiana almost rolled her eyes You seriously got me out of bed for this

Chapter 1008

Honestly when the head of the Order Machina wandered back from the brief meeting with Tatiana wearing an expression of deep confusion Evan Crane felt a rush of catharsis So much so that he had to carefully school his face to remain neutral

Truly if Erickson Steel would have fallen to this sort of diversion it wouldnÆt have been a company worthy of having Evan at its head It was only because it continued to elude the many traps that Senator Heathridge set in its path that it proved to be the gem that Evan Crane so long obsessed over It was worthy of his jealousy due to the fact that so few other hands were able to brush it

How could they just reject me out of hand The head of the Order Machina mumbled Devin Finde was a rather young man considering his position but he had been a rising star at an Engineering firm before the System arrived But of course he was an insufferable ass who spent more time tinkering with old cars and obsessively trimming his goatee than actually attempting to improve himself

Not that what he had accomplished wasnÆt impressive Devin had created a parallel methodology of creating drones that involved heavily reinforced exteriors and interior circuitry that was much closer to old style technology than the Erickson Steel method of simply Engraving runes onto the materials

The benefit of the Order Machina style was that machines could be preprogrammed to respond to quite a bit more scenarios That internal machinery gave the makers a lot more real estate to work with in terms of Engraving surfaces In addition it did not require that they be connected to GhostÆs network in order to be controlled to fight They could function on their own should Zone 1Æs network ever be taken down or if the drone owner wanted to accomplish something without Ghost being aware of it

Which is why people like Senator Heathridge and his slimy ilk pushed for the Order Machina to be inducted as an official Order There was a lot of dirty money that flowed into LindeÆs many businesses that desperately needed an air of legitimacy

However that variety of drones were extremely time consuming to make Undoubtedly they would have been completely priced out of the market by RandidlyÆs drones if only there were more people at Erickson Steel who were capable enough to make the Engraving based drones

RandidlyÆs Engravings were theoretically open to anyone to utilize but most people were dumbfounded by the elegant ingenuity that they incorporated into their structure Without an Engraving Level over 100 it just wasnÆt possible to do what Randidly did with any sort of consistency Hell without an Engraving Level above 150 doing what Randidly could do in an afternoon took an entire week

Perhaps there is some sort of tool that Erickson Steel possesses that gives Randidly that ability Crane fantasized His fingers twitched but he resisted the urge to pull out and light a cigarette This was his last pack for today and he wanted to save them as much as he could And when Erickson Steel becomes mine then it will be ME that is the greatest Engraver in the world IÆll call it the Crane method

Abruptly Crane realized that Finde had settled beside him on the hood of CraneÆs humvee in a slump Ah she didnÆt give any reason to reject the Order Machina

Bah she said it was because they didnÆt need our help FindeÆs hands curled into claws I told you we should have waited until the monsters started to wander up here Hmph then weÆd have the pleasure of watching that bitch Tatiana begging for our help

That lovely eventuality of course was something that Evan Crane couldnÆt allow Because if they waited for the monster attack to actually come Erickson Steel would likely suffer irreparable damage And that was something that Crane couldnÆt bear So he just grunted noncommittally in agreement

So our next move Crane began but he trailed off as he saw a group of very dirty travelers jogging down the road toward them

Although the Order Machina had brought out their drones with their full regalia to impress Erickson Steel it was possible to condense their forces into a much smaller group of transport carriers for ease of movement Which after they were rejected was exactly what Finde did All of his pretty little toys were folded into smaller pieces and then moved around through the surrounding forest North of Erickson Steel to the East road where Crane had been watching the whole process play out

And now from the east a group of about thirty people was jogging past in an extremely haphazard looking line

All of the people in the ragged column were at least a little dirty but the group was led by three individuals who seemed a little bit more put together than their followers a teenage boy a lizard person and a cockroach

Crane narrowed his eyes Why do these three seem so familiar

Aside from the three more composed and stoic leaders the followers seemed completely gassed They staggered forward often stumbling over even the smallest obstacle in their exhaustion Large drops of sweat gathered on their foreheads as they continued onward And the more that Crane looked the more he released that they were equally covered in dirt and blood It seemed like these people had wandered out of a battlefield to arrive here

Should we Help those people Finde scratched his nose his own depression driven out by the extremely bedraggled state of the new arrivals He straightened and climbed onto the hood of the humvee Then he put his hand above his eyes and peered at them and the direction from which they originated Are they refugees But why would they be coming from the East

For almost ten seconds the two men watched the procession approach With the drones stored away in their transports and hidden in the surrounding forest it was likely that this strange parade of wounded wouldnÆt even see the pair Which was probably for the best because Crane just couldnÆt put his finger on why

Finde went pale then abruptly bright red Unless the monsters did attack But they somehow wandered past Erickson Steel and attacked another town

Shit shit Crane gritted his teeth If that was true Senator Heathridge would be pissed Part of the agreement here was for Crane to maintain control over the situation It wasnÆt hard for Senator Heathridge to arrange for the patrols to vary and allow monsters near Erickson Steel to build up but the good Senator would be thrown under the bus at the drop of a hat if the oversight came to light

If the damage had been to Erickson Steel no one would care But if there were other population centers involved

Alright letÆs retreat now and run damage control Crane said while his mind spun at one thousand miles a minute As long as we can get on scene and mop things up quickly we can control the news and spin it w we want

LindeÆs response was bitter and childish But if we kill the monsters before they can threaten Erickson Steel

Crane punched Linde full in the face before he could finish that sentence Although sowing more discord between them might hurt him in the long run Crane couldnÆt deny how much he enjoyed the feeling of dominance he felt afterward as he looked down at the blank faced stare that Linde gave him

That is business Crane said bluntly A business I donÆt want your grubby fingers touching This is for the good of the Zone LetÆs get going

Oblivious the staggering group of thirty people ran past arriving before Erickson Steel

They didnÆt have breaks not really on their trek West to return to Erickson Steel But even so there were exercises that took significantly less energy than the others Which ended up being the equivalent of rest Jogging was actually the most restive of those but there was also time given to the aspirants of the Order Ducis for self improvement

During one of those self training exercises Vye had mentioned to one of the other applicants she had become close to Garrett that she wasnÆt sure how their training could grow worse form this current level Despite her Level she hadnÆt had her Stamina above one third full the entire week Let alone sleep their meals were so truncated that Vye felt less like a civilized person and more like a beast hurriedly devouring carrion before an even greater predator arrived and stole the lionÆs share of the spoils for itself

During the week they had spent sweeping sinuously North and South on a meandering path back to Erickson Steel the Order Ducis has antagonized and exterminated every Raid Boss they encountered while carrying weights and sprinkling in random duelsÆ between the different members of the training camp

At one point at AjaxÆs barked order Vye had to hurry out from a protracted siege of a warren filled with monstrous badgers to participate in a duel immediately Afterward he had urged her to return because everyone had saved her spot in the attack Æ

And truthfully Vye had hurried back Because she had been forced not to advance in an attack but simply hold her ground without killing any monsters while some of her companions had dutifully marched out to duel It was hell And then it was a relief when the person dueling returned and the group could finally resume killing the monsters God only knew where Naffur had come up with such a hellish series of rules to exacerbate the difficulty of fighting even further

GarrettÆs expression darkened while he listened to VyeÆs flippant joke Heh make sure you donÆt say that too loudly Believe me they have ways

When Vye raised her eyebrows Garrett shook his head sorrowfully I was there as the first three were inducted into the Order Ducis Afterward Randidly insisted on personally training Naffur Now I know that Naffur isnÆt the most outwardly intimidating but youÆve seen his obvious Stamina by now But a half an hour later Naffur had practically every bone in his body broken

Perhaps even worse the rumor was that the Ghosthound had learned NaffurÆs Skills during the training session and used them to beat him bloody It was mental and physical suppression But Naffur later admitted that he had gained almost a hundred Skill Levels from just that one session with Randidly Ghosthound So it will get worse but we will grow faster

When I met Randidly He honestly seemed rather normal Vye said lightly

Garrett sighed Of course because you were just a person to him But to those in the Order Ducis IÆve heard he tortured someone who slacked too much on their training just by looking at them and unleashing his killing intent

Blinking Vye tried to rationalize the view of Randidly as this average barefoot man with him as a torturer He tortured someone

Well I think thatÆs a rumor Garrett had said But just remember itÆs gonna get worse when the Ghosthound starts handling our training

Now after a week of training that had been plenty exhausting for Vye she was standing outside of the gates of Erickson Steel Which was perhaps the most exhausting activity she had done this entire time

Mental and physical suppression Vye thought bitterly But she refused to give up She would find the Path Randidly used to become powerful even if it killed her

Chapter 1009

They came at night without any fanfare to speak of

Tatiana stood at the Southern wall of the Erickson Steel compound and looked down over the sparse trees and grassland below her A small wind came lightly touching TatianaÆs hair and causing the grass below to sway The only noise in the night was the soft rustle of grass Then they arrived

The first group came silently which such abruptness that Tatiana had to blink These Riders were different than the ones she had seen in the past Their steeds were tall and long legged possesses none of the brutal horns or preter natural agility that she remembered They simply looked like lumpy horses calmly grazing the grass below the compoundÆs walls

These initial Riders kept their arms folded and weapons sheathed as they studied her almost a dozen of them in all Then seemingly satisfied they turned and regarded the dark grassland behind them

Next came the rumbling It built slowly while Tatiana waited alone on top of the wall and the dozen outriders milled about below her It was a hum then a buzz the a rumble and then a roar

Out of that rumbling darkness next skittered a strange variant of the Riders with additional legs and a ridiculous amount of mobility They hopped and scrambled up toward Erickson SteelÆs walls They didnÆt move in formation but came in some sort of strange circling wave As Tatiana looked down over them her eyes were drawn into their beguiling shifts and woven movements of their current like formation

Then as the roar had reached a volume that it had begun to resonate in TatianaÆs chest the final column careened out of the darkness These Riders were perched atop hulking monsters of muscle moving rigidly in tight groups and columns Despite their obvious power they managed to control their momentum to an incredible degree

As they came closer their wide hoves smashing the various undergrowth in the sparsely vegetated landscape Tatiana had a brief moment of fear where she believed they would simply smash into Erickson SteelÆs walls The reinforced concrete would crack and disintegrate and then the Riders would continue charging leaving a wide swathe of destruction through the core facilities of Erickson Steel

They would not stop They were more freight train than an actual train bound together in a tight knot of weight and momentum

But of course they slowed before that could happen falling into an easy canter up to the gate The rumbling drifted off to silence leaving the night empty except for rustling grass

TatianaÆs mouth quirked upward Was this for dramatic effect

Nah Randidly leaned against the wall next to her having simply appeared there a few moments ago as though he had been standing there for hours Tatiana privately believed he was relying on pure Agility rather than stealth but it was hard to tell with Randidly Mostly this was to see how tight control I can keep on them if I make my orders explicit Honestly it went better than expected One less reason to worry about what comes next

Tatiana opened her mouth to reply but then she paused Narrowing her eyes she carefully examined the Randidly next to her Same short black hair same lithe musculature same piercing emerald eyes but standing beside him Tatiana felt like this was not the Randidly that she had once known The air felt different You how long have you been away

Long enough to completely lose the desperate edge he had before Tatiana thought idly Or has he simply gotten better about hiding it

Quite a while Randidly chuckled A year And IÆve learned a lot in that time For one thing ah by the way I have a project that is going to take up a lot of space is there any land around here that we own but we havenÆt built anything

Tatiana opened her mouth The thing he had learned but then got distracted from wasnÆt patience or elaborate manners She then closed her mouth She reconsidered her question She opened it again WerenÆt you the one who bought all this land And how much space do you need

Randidly ignored the first question Quite a bit The more the better If I need to I can simply dig down into the Earth to open up enough space but IÆll need to do that later for the final assembly It will be better if I have some surface area to begin with

IÆm sure we can find you something Tatiana rubbed her temples By the way both the Order Machina and the Order Ducis arrived earlier today I sent away Machina but the Order Ducis is within the compound per your orders Will they also need some sort of base area to set up a headquarters

Randidly grinned down at the Riders who continued to stand without any movement as the two discussed Heh more than a headquarters They are going to be setting up a training camp nearby in addition to a headquarters within the Erickson Steel compound So yea we will need space for that too Will it be easy to expand the walls here

Tatiana sighed So basically all you want right now is more land Well that seems doable but the government is insisting that we give the land back to them and rent it from now until we move away from this location They want to make a Village here for Erickson Steel Or at least thatÆs what they claim but I bet it’s just to get a leash on us

Huh Well that should be fine Then Randidly smiled wolfishly Just make sure we own the mineral rights to the land The rest will work itself out in the next month

You want to do all these things in a month Tatiana asked Her mind tried to imagine how much manpower would need to be mobilized to accomplish not just the tasks that Randidly had stated but the laundry list of things that he undoubtedly wanted to do with that land

Randidly nodded I have the feeling I will need to go away for a while at the end of the month For quite some time IÆm not too sure of the details just that itÆs something I canÆt avoid In the meantime I need to finish the upgrades to Erickson Steel and take care of some other loose ends Oh how has steel production been Since my demonstration

Tatiana shrugged and turned away from the edge of the wall She was growing a little unnerved by looking at the completely still Riders below ItÆs been a week Randidly And fuck there are already results ItÆs slightly aggravating IÆve been looking at some of the raw numbers from the Quality Assurance Department In terms of uniformity and density

Randidly gave Tatiana look She rolled her eyes Fine fine 5% increase in quality on average across the board And the best part is that most of this growth is fueled by the average smelter Some of the top end producers have only changed by 3 3 5% Which is still a great boost but the fact that it’s the lower end that is improving the most

With a wave of his hand Randidly cut her off IÆll do another demonstration in another week But before that we need to expand the drone production and Engraving divisions A lot Double their member count Or at least try On such short notice it might be difficult

We canÆt recruit locally but we have quite a few connections with some of the Academies and Universities in Zone 1 Tatiana did some quick calculations in her head In fact several have been pushing for us to offer internship programs With that we can probably get about 40 applicants within a week I can screen

DonÆt bother you work yourself to the bone already Randidly gave Tatiana a sharp look I missed it before but IÆve asked a lot of you havenÆt I IÆm sorry Heh I know someone that I should introduce you to well you will meet eventually

Then Randidly shook his head Well anyway just bring them in for an interview IÆll screen them myself I should be able to cut through the riff raff pretty quickly Plus we need to be sure that they would be willing to work for Erickson Steel for an extended period

Only you would casually call Zone 1Æs brightest students riff raff Tatiana said warmly Despite how much she loved working at Erickson Steel and managing so many spinning plates it still felt pretty nice to hear Randidly so frankly acknowledging her contribution TatianaÆs face twitched as she suppressed the urge to smile But that works Anything else you need

Seeds You should start stockpiling foodstuffs as well and water filtration systems We will be able to take care of most of our needs if we have a few high Level individuals but its always better to be over prepared

Tatiana felt a strange sense of foreboding Randidly you told me to get more land and be sure to secure the mineral rights now you want to gather seeds and water filtration systems Maybe IÆm just overreacting but do you plan to

Randidly held up a finger ItÆs better not to say even here But yes ItÆs just a matter of building the scaffolding right now ThatÆs what I need the space for

Tatiana considered that If you extract all the value from the land here and then leave the Zone 1 Government wonÆt be very happy

Yea well I donÆt think most governments will be satisfied with me for as long as I exist Randidly laughed quietly as he looked out into the night TatianaÆs eyes swept down to the several hundred strong army that Randidly had returned with That he had created with a single Skill

I suppose someday IÆll stop being shocked

whatever do you mean governments will not be satisfied with you Tatiana asked wryly Your constant stream of jaw dropping surprises is exactly the sort of thing on which governments thrive

Randidly gave Tatiana a look laced with amusement Even so better to draw a clear line now so no single government gets any ideas about to whom I owe my allegiances ThatÆs why for all the trouble that Erickson Steel has had to endure IÆm glad weÆve been ostracised It will make it easier for everyone if the break is a clean one

as opposed to how messily you broke things off with Donnyton Tatiana said quietly

Randidly just smiled in response For several seconds the two figures stood in silence as they watched the statue like Riders waiting below A low wind came through the area causing the grass to stir in mute revelry at surviving the pounding of heavy hooves they had just endured The Riders seemed to be fixed in place Tatiana couldnÆt resist the shiver that burrowed into her body from the unnerving display

Things are going to get strange again arenÆt they Tatiana asked

Randidly shrugged Maybe Give it a few months It will feel normal to you in no time at all

Chapter 1010

Hours later Randidly stood on the roof of the Erickson Steel building with his eyes closed His Aether Detection Skill hummed at full capacity feeding him constant information about people structures and materials in the surrounding area Periodically Randidly released pulses of charged Aether granting him an almost omniscient view of the surrounding miles

Slowly but surely he was creating the final details of his moving city plan in his mind Although he could gather plenty of materials within the Dungeon he didnÆt have any exact information regarding the physical situation in the outside world Therefore he had to estimate based on his admittedly acute memory

Most of the general details he had remembered correctly but Randidly still wanted to go over the specific state of reality with a fine toothed comb What he was doing was already rushing a rather intricate and complicated project with an extremely aggressive timeline So he had to at least do plenty of due diligence to ensure that any small mistakes would be covered by the larger umbrella of preparation

Twenty three and a half more days RandidlyÆs eyes opened After he had finalized and stored the details in his head he briefly slid through the almost redundant divide between himself and his Soulskill Unlike how Randidly didnÆt truly exist in his Soulskill until he wanted to possess an avatar because his entire body was the Soulskill itself RandidlyÆs real body still stood on Earth while his attention was focused inward So he quickly found one of WendyÆs aides and passed on the very exacting details that she had demanded

Still it wasnÆt that he wouldnÆt be safe in Erickson Steel Honestly with his Physical Stats most people would have a hard time hurting him even if he didnÆt do anything But he was expecting a visitor One Randidly didnÆt want to be surprised by

Then on a whim as he was hurrying to leave Randidly made sure to tell the aide that Wendy should keep her schedule open a week from now All deadlines would be pushed back a day to allow for it

Then Randidly was back on Earth turning slightly to smile at the lovely young woman who had condensed on top of the building next to him As always terrible timing You are a day early Lyra We had a deal

And I figured you would have plenty of time to decide considering how long you were within the Dungeon Lyra shrugged her hair shimmering as it swayed around her shoulders during the casual motion But if you prefer I can come back tomorrow

No you are right IÆve made my decision But I do have a to ask a question first And I wonÆt take no for an answer Randidly said lightly Purposefully he forced himself to relax Aether Detection ceased its constant scanning Randidly looked at Lyra into her violet eyes and let all the other methods of discernment he possessed fall away Some things were worth doing the old fashioned way

The eyes were the window to the soul and Randidly peered through to see the inner workings of Lyra

Was that Dungeon arranged for me

Although Randidly was relying on solely his eyes his gaze was no longer that of a simple individual He wore a Crown and his inner world was illuminated by the emerald flame of insight and innovation The weight of his attention took on an almost irresistible quality If someone who was less unusual than Lyra was on the receiving end of that look it might have knocked them unconscious

But Lyra bore it stoically There was no tightening in the lines around LyraÆs eyes at the question just an easy smile of acceptance There was no guilt there but there was responsibility

Yes in the spirit of honesty Lyra said finally But I would point out that Yystrix simply located that variant hiding within his own Aether The meeting between you was arranged but you are both actors who control your own fate The words and stories that were exchanged were your own

Randidly couldnÆt help but chuckle bitterly at that thinking of the Touch from Beyond Skill that he had possessed rather obliviously for several years But at least she had been honest about their involvement That was one test that she had passed

Still RandidlyÆs lip curled upward I thought the Creature had been absent from Earth Since she tried to take over my body as IÆm sure you recall So then how did it manage to arrange this Are you trying to tell me that it somehow predicted I would be looking for a high Level Dungeon on the banks of Lake Apollo