I stormed away from Drayek’s grave and into our hovel, too hurt and angry at Sarina to even think to feel saddened by Drayek’s empty chair and empty cot. I paced back and forth in the space, kicking up dust clouds as I went. With all of my training and the hunts I’d been on in the last few days, I’d neglected my chore of sweeping the place. But that was beyond trivial at this moment in time.
I threw myself onto my bed and tried to calm my pounding heart. My head hurt, and my body groaned from exhaustion, begging me to allow it some rest. But I couldn’t rest. Not just yet.
It took an immense amount of focus to slow my breathing enough to drift into a meditative state. I had gathered a lot of essence during our hunt, and I had a feeling it was enough to advance into Tier 2. I would take any sort of advantage I could get when going into tomorrow. I was going to fight Priest Kane–I wanted to kill him. A Tier 1 would have no chance against a Tier 3 like the Priests, but maybe a Tier 2 Skill could very well provide me with a boost.
It might not go my way, but I was going to do everything I could to see that miserable Priest dead at my feet. Even if I died trying.
As I sat meditating, I found that I had been right–the most essence I had ever seen within myself swirled around inside my Soul and awaited my direction. It took a great deal of effort to remain calm amidst my tumultuous thoughts and emotions, but I was finally able to dive deep enough into my meditation and sift through the essence and direct the streams toward my core.
Ding!
My internal screen hovered in my vision.
STATUS
NAME: CLONE #52
TIER: 2
LEVEL: 1
TIER 2 SKILL:
SKILL SNARE
-THIS SKILL ALLOWS THE USER THE ABILITY TO READ ANOTHER’S ESSENCE USED WHEN THEY CAST A SPELL, MAKING IT POSSIBLE FOR CLONE #52 TO STEAL SAID SPELL. BUT ONLY AS LONG AS THAT PERSON IS USING A SKILL RANKED TIER 3 OR LOWER. THIS SKILL CAN BE USED ONCE PER 10 MINUTES.
The Imitator, I thought, Lady Euridice had called Lord Solomon ‘The Imitator.’ A nickname people had given Lord Solomon due to his abilities to steal and use others’ Skills….
I remembered the memories the Lord Solomon AI had shown me, how the original Solomon was able to learn and use more and more Skills each time he broke through to another Tier. And, those Skills seemed to change every day. Lady Euridice had used the perfect nickname for someone who could read someone’s spell and then use it himself. The Lord Solomon AI had even said that the original Solomon could tweak and adjust the spell to fit his own needs.
This was incredible. If I could duplicate someone’s Tier 3 Skill and use it myself, I could maybe even hold my own against Priest Kane!
I turned to the next page of the screen and saw that my free stat points were at three.
“Master, if I may, I would like to suggest you place two stat points in Wisdom and one in Intelligence. Things like logic, problem-solving skills, and even your intuition and perception could come in very handy when deciding what spell to duplicate in a fight. You will often come across many choices of spells. And because you can only use your Tier 2 Skill every 10 minutes, your ability to quickly think through your options can prove vital in life or death situations.”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
“Yes, thank you, Codex,” I answered.
I followed his advice and added one point to Intelligence and two to Wisdom. I read the new numbers:
STATS:
MIGHT: 13
AGILITY: 10
VITALITY: 9
INTELLIGENCE: 9 (+1)
WISDOM: 8 (+2)
WILLPOWER: 14
FREE STAT POINTS: 0
After reviewing my most recent stat point allocation, I felt like I’d made the right choices for a fight against a Tier 3. A battle against Priest Kane was all my mind could think about–the impending Nagari army was no longer a concern for me.
I wanted to face the Priest right then, but some semblance of logic emerged from the torrent of the other emotions within me. Before I did anything, I needed rest.
I released myself from my meditative state and finally laid down, my sore limbs thanking me profusely.
***
I tried desperately to sleep that night, but rest evaded me. I maybe got in a half hour of sleep total in between the stupid tears that came as I occasionally woke from a nightmare and caught sight of Drayek’s empty cot. Or, when I thought of Sarina’s and Priest Kane’s betrayal or the approaching army that would be within Edrona’s borders in mere hours.
I threw my covers off of myself and stepped toward the door. I peered into the approaching dawn and fog-covered lands. I couldn’t see the oncoming army, possibly because of the heavy fog and also possibly because they were still hours away. Most likely both.
I shut the door and hobbled over to my Tier 1 armor, spear, and sword. The three would do for now, but it would be best if I went into town and asked Gerald if he had any Tier 2 items to spare.
I strapped on my armor, placed my spear into my back sheath, and then reverently slid Drayek’s old Tier 1 sword into its sheath. It felt sad to think about not using his sword anymore once I upgraded to higher-Tiered equipment. As it rested at my side, it almost felt like a piece of Drayek would remain with me during every fight. But I knew that would be true regardless of whether I used his sword or not. Drayek trained me–taught me everything I know. And as I continued to grow in strength and Tiers, that basis of training would stay with me always. That is, if I survived a duel against Priest Kane.
I shook away thoughts of death and decided to approach the oncoming day one step at a time. I rolled my shoulders back and retrieved my sack of loot from our last hunt. I’d given over half of what I’d gathered to the other Hunters so they could report it to the temple. This way, I wouldn’t arouse any suspicion that I was breaking the new law. But I had kept more than enough to buy some new equipment from the Blacksmith.
As I packed, I looked at the Tier 4 heart and core at the bottom of the loot pile. Both probably contained the largest amount of essence I’d ever come across. I could almost feel the buzz of magical power just by looking at the items. But… I couldn’t bring myself to use them. Maybe because I felt it wasn’t the right time, or possibly because the heart and core belonged to the monster that had killed Drayek. Either way, I planned to hold onto them for as long as possible.
With gloves on my hands, I carefully procured the Tier 4 loot and placed them in their own small sack that I had tied to my right hip. I would use the rest of the loot to buy equipment and keep my Tier 4 heart and core secret–even from the Blacksmiths.
I completed my packing by procuring the necessary provisions, like food and a waterskin, into my hunting satchel, and then I marched out of our hovel.
I slowed my march, however, as I passed the small stack of stones marking Drayek’s grave. I halted and turned to face the grave directly. Something in my gut warned me that I might never see his final resting place again. Maybe because, deep within me, I didn’t expect to survive my fight against Priest Kane.
I dropped my sack of loot at my feet and pressed the heels of my hands together, then directed my fingertips toward where Drayek rested, following the motion with a deep bow. The Edronan bow of respect was reserved for the Priests, the goddess’s chosen, but Drayek had been better than all of her “chosen” combined. If anyone deserved the utmost respect, it was the man who had raised me.
“Goodbye, Drayek,” I whispered into the wind.