Chapter 125 (1/2)

Randidly hadn’t used this move in quite some time, purposefully, so as to take advantage of the notification free period to refine his image for this move. Even now, he could feel the icy hot violet Aether flowing through him, making a strange symbol, the symbol that was the skill that he had created.

And as he thought, and believed, it changed slightly, evolving, shifting. It was hard to tell whether this change had been a good one, but it had been one he had been working on for several weeks.

During that time, Randidly had thrust his spear countless times. It was a heavy repetition, not to increase the quality of the thrust, but so that his body knew intimately the motions required in a thrust. A thrust was to advance, to attack, to proceed. T thrust was to walk forward into battle. It was a simple motion, but it was the bread and butter of a spear, using its strength, its speed, and its monstrous reach.

To thrust was the first reaction of a spear. To advance was the only option, in some cases.

As he stood there in that room in the bottom of the boat, his bare feet on the planks underneath him, the soft swaying of the waves making the entire structure rock, Randidly focused on this, searching inside of him for the perfect feeling of advancing. That perfect thrust, that he slowly grew closer to the longer he practiced.

After he had finally settled on that feeling, he did not stop there. His move was one that required more than just a spear, there was also the propulsion of fire that threw him forward. Breathing slowly, Randidly ran through everything he had learned, practicing flexing his mana, reaching for that feeling, attempting to imbue it into that symbol of Aether inside of him. Insidious, addicting, cold, and deadly, that energy pulsed, burning his insides.

But there was one more thing he needed for this image, and it was a rather recent addition. It was a phrase that Shal had just said to him, earlier in the day, that had stuck like a burr in his mind, nagging at him.

“It is like you forgot that the true weapon you have is the spear. You try to do the work yourself, but you are just a man with a spear. The spear knows its business…”

The spear knew its business, huh…

As he raised the spear in his hands, Randidly relaxed his grip, using just his fingertips to hold the spear. Then he slid his hands into position, learned over the long practice with the root avatars. Then he steadied his grip, and opened his eyes.

In his mind, he merged all of these concepts into one hold, combining all those feelings he hung onto into the move, the Aether in his chest roiling and burning.

“The Spear Advances, Ash Trails.”

Stance, grip, mana flex, explosion.

Crack.

Randidly felt the board beneath his starting position crack and splinter as he launched himself forward, his whole body a blur, Eyes of the Spear Phantom working as effectively as he could manage as the whole scene blurred.

The speed he had gained was too much. Randidly in the past had struggled with remaining calm as he screeched forward, but this time, he relaxed. After all, the spear knew its business.

By the time all of these thoughts had flickered across his mind, he had arrived at the woman and her spear blurred, the blunt end rising to meet him. As the spear curved towards him, Randidly had a crazy idea.

He activated Phantom Half-Step, teleporting himself backwards a small amount. His momentum continued though, and he ripped forward, through the air, his move creating only a brief moment’s delay

It was only a fraction of a second, but the woman noticed it, that strange, unnatural movement. Her eyes widened. Her spear blurred even faster.

BOOOOOOM.

*****

Randidly sat up, wincing. His head was killing him. As he looked around, it took a few seconds for his vision to stop spinning, and for the people around him to settle back into normal motion. The bearded man was talking animatedly with his employees. The two women were in quiet discussion with Shal in the corner.

When they saw he had awoken, they all turned to coolly regard him.

Randidly had to suppress a grin. This certainly was a lot different than the reception that he would have received in a similar situation back in Donnyton. He hated people who fawned over him and were overawed by his presence. Much better to deal with people like Shal, who was practically glaring at him.

Shal, in fact, was the one who spoke first. “You cheated.” He said simply, and Randidly flushed. In the heat of the battle, he had forgotten that he was just testing the power of his created Skill Set. He had been too lost in the move, and reacted naturally when the instinct to use the skill had struck him.

“Be that as it may, in terms of power, that move was almost enough to overwhelm my counter, even before he… adjusted his position.” The woman said coolly.

Shal crossed his arms. “This was unnecessary. A mid tier color will suffice.”

“And it is dishonorable. He should wear badges of his strength with pride. Shouldn’t you, the son of a Spear Adept, know that better than anyone else?”

Shal remained silent, and the woman walked slowly over to Randidly. “Follow me, I shall take you to our back room. You may pick any color but Indigo or Violet for your Tassle. It is the proof of your accomplishment. It will draw attention to you… but it will also bring to you the respect you have earned.”