One fact that immediately jumped out to Randidly was the fact that Nether Beasts counted toward experience. A significant amount of it. Which put into question some of Randidly’s theories about how experienced was gathered.

Killing them today on the battlefield with Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil had earned him enough experience to grow to Level 48, and then 49, before stopping halfway to 50. And considering the sharply increasing experience requirements to reach 50, it was clear that he had gained a huge amount of experience in a very short amount of time. Most of it was probably gobbled up by the half Level toward 50.

In addition, as was indicated by the notification that Randidly received as he repaired his Class, Level 48 had given him no bonuses. All of those were used up in order to repair the damage to Randidly’s ‘prayer’ that had resulted from that brief moment of the attention of that being seeking the Creature. But the Level up gains for 49 were as they should be, so at least the brief damage was repaired now.

With the knowledge that Randidly had gained from his extended use of Nether Rituals, Randidly made use of the return walk to examine his Class with an even more exacting gaze. But it seemed to him that his previous efforts weren’t in vain; the ritual had been prepared. Once more the core desire of his Class had been restored. All that remained was to see it to the end.

Which, in the System’s eyes, meant condensing a Fate.

But of course, there were quite a few things to do before then.

When he finally made it back to his tent, having been left in the dust by the shocked Lady Iellaya and Abiodun, the first thing Randidly Ghosthound did was set Vualla gently down on the ground and gaze meaningfully at her. With a trembling hand, he did his best to corral the mass of her azure hair.

Then he shook his head and turned away. This is a problem for another day. For now…

Randidly’s Perception turned inward. At the core of him, where an Aether Crossroads still calmly flowed, four cores of Nether spun slowly around the Aether Crossroads. Where there should be violent rejection, there was just calm contentment. The Aether animated the communication and synchronicity between the cores, and the Nether added weight and balance to the crossroads.

Even now, looking at it and sensing the strange symmetry and balance of the arrangement, Randidly was thrown. Although the evidence was clearly before him, it was difficult him to currently understand what was going on. It was like showing algebra to a child. You could believe it worked from seeing it work, but there was no true understanding.

But that was also an issue for another day. So Randidly moved forward with his Perception; the balance between Aether and Nether was interesting, but not why he came.

Deep within the four swirling cores was another small pseudo-core, made not to hold Nether, but to hold image. And Randidly quickly popped it and gritted his teeth. When the core was shattered, what was held within quickly exploded outward. Trembling, Randidly fell to his knees as the strange sensation rocked him.

And then there they were, Salazar and Zauna, blinking and disoriented.

“We are b-b-back!” Salazar exclaimed excitedly. “The p-place that you p-put us was a b-b-bit-”

“It was the best I could do on short notice,” Randidly said quickly to cut off Salazar before he could work up a head of steam. “And honestly, I’m exhausted from it. Please, give me some peace to recover.”

While both nodded shortly after a brief hesitation, Salazar seeming extremely disappointed by Randidly’s brusque response. Yet it escaped neither of their eyes that Randidly had reclaimed his body since they had seen him last. And it didn’t escape Randidly’s notice that Zauna was looking at him with eyes that were burning with questions.

Perhaps due to his change in status now that he had recovered his body, both listened when he looked pointedly toward the door. They filed out, casting slow glances over their shoulders as though they expected Randidly to change his mind halfway, seeing the pitiful state of their departing forms. But Randidly just stared forward with his mouth in a thin line.

What he had to do next, he wanted to do alone.

Although maybe the reason they are listening to me now was because they are afraid of me, Randidly thought rather sadly. It wasn’t exactly me, but the Grim Chimera… but he did leave Zagnal there with the Aether Key so that the Nether forces wouldn’t believe something was wrong when there was a dramatically weaker Aether Key that also possessed no defenses.

But it’s not like I wouldn’t have made the same decision. Randidly shivered at the certainty of the knowledge. My situation in the pod… With those learning restraints… it was only a matter of time before they would have overwhelmed my ability to manipulate Aether. And then… there weren’t just restraints there, those Aether constructs were designed to fish out secrets. Certainly a chilling reception for Heretics here at the front lines…

A decision had to be made, and shortly. And I was in no shape to fight my way through the army of the Nether King… But I sacrificed a life for my own. I cannot deny that. There’s no point, not when this is the Path I’m walking...

Taking a deep breath, Randidly sat next to Vualla and rubbed his thumb along the ring that was still present on his metallic left arm. Rather than dwell on Zagnal, his first priority was preparing for the future. Immediately Randidly grinned because his equipment was all dutifully stored within. Some part of him was somewhat worried that the equipment would have been kept separately from his body, so it was a relief to find it all here.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Randidly carefully removed Acri and Sulfur, both of which cooed happily and wriggled across him. Only when they settled down did Randidly begin to remove his other equipment from the ring.

His White Steel Greeves. Iradak’s Tinglesilk Gloves. Sun’s Teardrop Belt. The Ancestral Circlet of the Broken Ridge. Piece by piece, Randidly slid the equipment back onto him. Although he hadn’t gotten the chance to wear this equipment for long, it was still his equipment. Wearing it was part of who Randidly Ghosthound was.

Finally, Randidly produced Chulroon’s Chisel and the fingerless leather glove with a hole in the palm and placed them on the ground in front of him. Hissing his breath out through his nose, Randidly then began to concentrate. After quite an exhausting series of mental conversations, Randidly pulled the hiltless blade out of his image area and laid it on the ground next to the two gloves. It flared up briefly, but Randidly was able to convince the will within to enter into a dormant state.

The weirdest part of the whole process was how abruptly cold Randidly felt after he removed the blade from his chest. Shivering, he leaned forward to stare intently at the three Fates. I’ve gotten more reliant on the blade’s energy than I thought… But it might be time to think about how to use these Fates for my own benefits. If each one forms the core of one of my images to help me condense my own Fate…

Randidly wasn’t sure it would work like that. But from his experience with Nether and Nether Rituals, he suspected it would be possible, assuming he was willing to put a sufficient amount of effort into the attempt.

And faith. It would take quite a bit of faith.

The only problem with this strategy was the indeterminate Status of the glove Fate that Randidly had found in the trunk. It had clearly saved his life, and it felt extremely familiar to him… but that didn’t make him want to use it at all.

Right now, sitting in the lonely tent with Vualla’s wounded form next to him, Randidly could practically taste that sense of familiarity in the Aether of the glove. It was uncannily familiar. But no matter how much he cast his mind around, he couldn’t figure out of whom it could remind him.

The complicated part of it was that considering the three Fates to the three images plan, the glove would go to the Grim Chimera. Yggdrasil and Chulroon’s Chisel seemed matched together, and Ignition Essence could use the heat and power of the phoenix fire in the hiltless blade.

To have the Grim Chimera, who seemed to have become the most dominant of Randidly’s image, be possibly influenced by whatever familiar sensation was in the glove… it was difficult for Randidly to wrap his mind around it. It seemed much riskier than necessary.

Randidly sighed. Too many questions. One thing at a time.

Gingerly, Randidly reached forward and picked up the hitless blade. As his fingers touched the slate-grey metal, his skin began to hiss and spit as the heat rapidly overwhelmed his body’s defenses. But Randidly didn’t waver. Still keeping a careful grip on the blade, he turned and cautiously walked to the far end of the tent.

There, waiting, was the thoroughly cracked almost-paper mache ball that housed the wounded Ignition Essence. With a sense of solemnity, Randidly approached the cracked egg with the blade raised above his head.

Although you meant well Yggdrasil, you aren’t the best at things you don’t understand. Randidly’s eyes glowed emerald as he looked down at the cracked egg. You are a creature that grows from sunlight and water. Your growth is even and considered. Inputs follow outputs. It possesses none of the erraticism of Ignition Essence.

Because Ignition Essence… is perhaps the true wildness of my personality. It is the part of me that believes I can stand against the System… Yggdrasil and Grim Chimera provide me the backbone and bravery, but Ignition Essence gives me the spark I need. And that spark can’t survive in a vacuum.

It was hatched in darkness, but it was birthed from the memories and desires I held from my time on Earth and Tellus.

As he raised the blade above his head, Randidly’s bare foot moved forward and he tapped the egg lightly with his big toe. From a single touch, it sighed and scattered to ash and flaking paint. In a split second, there was nothing but a pile of expended and dried gunk on the ground in front of him. If Ignition Essence had been hiding within, there was no outward sign.

Yet Randidly’s grin was vicious. Your second mistake, Yggdrasil… is that you were afraid of the wrong thing. It is not such a terrible thing for the light of inspiration to flicker on and off. Inspiration is not a constant companion... no… the most terrible fear should be the death of progress. That the will that drives toward that epiphany should disappear. That the soul will no longer crave that the world be better than this.

Which, unfortunately, was exactly what had happened. Cut off from memories, Ignition Essence had forgotten itself. Yet Randidly didn’t feel any sadness. Ignition Essence had vanished. But it was still an image that he had made. Although it would expend quite a bit of energy, it could be recreated. And in this case, he didn’t even need to use his own energy during the process.

When Randidly’s personality had been removed from the Ignition Essence, that drive had disappeared. The fire had slowly faded. All that was left was emptiness and darkness… those same elements that had given birth to Ignition Essence in the first place.

Yet that wasn’t all that went to this solemn moment of holding the blade high above the ashes of his image. Randidly now had his understanding of Nether to guide his hand. The gunk egg had been the bubble, and those sensations of emptiness and darkness had been the core. With the egg shattered, now emptiness and darkness expanded to fill that same space. Those qualities became the bubble.

And there was always another core laying within.

The hiltless blade began to glow cherry red and release heat, as though sensing Randidly’s emotions. His grip tightened on the weapon, so much so that it cut his palm open and blood began to drip down onto the dust in front of him.

Slice through the darkness, cut apart the emptiness. Randidly’s face twisted and he laughed. Rise for me, Ignition Essence!

The blade left a red trail through the air as it cut. The wind of the blade’s passage blew away the remnants of the egg and cut a deep gash into the ground. Those ashes that were blown away quickly ignited into a shower of sparks that exploded outward and singed small holes in the canvas of the tent.

For a second, there was silence. Randidly’s hand tightened on the blade as the fire in it continued to build. His skin, even with the benefit of his Endurance, was quickly being overcome. His brain warned Randidly that soon his muscles would be damaged. And he was oh so tired.

Congratulations! Your Skill Fire Resistance has grown to Level 180!

Yet sometimes all you could do is wait. Inspiration might only visit those who worked for it, but that didn’t mean it was predictable.

Then, as Randidly watched, a small emerald spark began to glow in the scar on the ground. The visual variances in the air slowly stilled as that emerald tongue of flame began to flicker unevenly upward.

Randidly smirked and tossed the burning blade to the side. He flexed the hand to the side, waiting for Yyrwood Body of Yggdrasil to heal the wound. “Welcome back. Now let’s get to work.”