Chapter 261 (2/2)

Randidly’s smile faltered somewhat. “Well… mostly I didn’t make the mental connection that I needed to ever before. It was a concept sort of thing. For both of them. Once they clicked, I felt like I could accomplish it, so-”

“Are you mentally handicapped?” Divveltian said, his glare even more vicious now. “Setting aside the damage you could have done to your body… your own resilient nature would have probably protected you, I’ll give you that, why would you think that you could successfully perform one, let alone TWO variants of your moves in one match!?? You are a lucky piece of shit that she didn’t force you to use the Phantom’s Embrace again, or you would have just gotten yourself a shattered spine.”

“I-” Randidly went to say, but he was swiftly cut off.

“No, don’t even start. I’ve seen the Phantom’s Embrace done; you got lucky today. Without powerful observational skills and the physical abilities to keep up with what you will see, you will just smash yourself, without any guard up, into their attack. Maybe your variant on the charging skill is more reasonable, but for the Phantom’s Embrace… you played with fire. Don’t be gleeful because you won, but nervous because you almost died.”

Again, Randidly opened his mouth, but then what Divvet was saying slowly sank in, and his mouth drifted closed. He had a point. He wasn’t sure how he had found the perfect edge of force to ride on the first time. It had just been… instinct. Nothing more.

But also…

“You… knew Aemont? You saw him fight?” Randidly asked. After all, Shal hadn’t been able to master the Phantom’s Embrace, which was why Shal tried to get Randidly to master it. It had ultimately paid off, but still, it could clearly demonstrate his frustration with his inability to master the skill. If Divvet knew of the Phantom’s Embrace…

“...yes.” Divvet answered shortly. “When used at its full force… it made him invulnerable. You...are not at that point yet. You cause ripples, but that skill isn’t even at the Artisan level. You need to focus on your image more. But I suppose now you understand its full strength…”

“But it couldn’t have made him invulnerable, right?” Randidly asked, sitting up, wincing. Even his own powerful regeneration was having a hard time coping with the huge amount of strain and micro muscle tears that he was plagued with. “After all, he was killed by the Devourer.”

Divvet was silent for a long time. “It… cannot be denied that Aemont is dead. But I stayed on the front lines after he returned to his family. The details of what happened in that castle… no one truly knows.”

****

“You… fucking ghost….” Shal spat out, along with a mouthful of blood, glaring at the figure of Aemont standing over him. Maybe he had gotten soft from all the time he had spent training Randidly, but Shal had sorta believed that his level of skill and control had increased a level, based on his spar with the boy without killing him.

But his father- no, Aemont, continued to stand tall and firm, a wall in his path.

The other real impediment to victory… was the fact Shal was stubbornly refusing to attack with the Spear Phantom Style. He would only use the Style created by himself and Pronto, in those whispered, brotherly moments all those years ago.

It was shallow and contradictory and inefficient, but Shal refused to give up. At least this Style was based on integrity. And no matter the disparity between them, Shal would not give in and use the skills taught to him by Aemont.

What was most annoying about the whole arrangement was not that Shal was being beaten, but that the whole time, ghost Aemont didn’t say anything about it. He didn’t encourage Shal to switch from the weak Style, didn’t taunt him on his weakness and the weakness of the Style, didn’t lord his superiority over Shal at all.

It seemed that Aemont even had a deep respect for Shal’s decision. Which, of course, made Shal furious. The damn ghost had even stopped its constant “Take It’s” that had become so common in the last few stretches of dreamscape that Shal remembered.

Straightening slowly, Shal readied his spear. Aemont watched him, his eyes mild, his hands on his spear relaxed. He exuded an impossible confidence, just like the real thing had done. A strength that made all other things unnecessary. A strength that gave him the confidence to take what he wanted and expect others around him would do the same.

A strength that inspired strength. A strength that…

...that had a certain brutal integrity.

“Fuck you.” Shal whispered, eyes burning, as he tightened his hands on the shaft of the spear, then lashed out towards Aemont.