Chapter 749 (2/2)
Then, slowly, the treeboy raised his fist and bumped it quickly against Naffur’s. It was hot, but… no, it was warm. Naffur’s face split into a smile.
“So, ready to go to the festival?”
The treeboy blew out his cheeks in annoyance and stomped his foot. But after throwing a mini, silent tantrum, he nodded reluctantly.
“Excellent Lord Arbor. We have prepared your procession. I am so happy that you have agreed to come.”
Naffur spun around. In the middle of the path behind them, there were suddenly a dozen bowing… monsters. The leader straightened. His head was a snake’s, with a neck almost a half meter long. The rest of the men with him straightened as well and revealed a series of tigermen and beetles and broad-shouldered storks.
“Uh…” Naffur glanced at the treeboy. The treeboy was giving him an accusing look, blatantly saying ‘This is your fault.’ “W-who are you?”
“You may call me Alm. I was placed in charge of following behind Lord Arbor in case he may have need of mundane assistance. Praise Arbor.”
“Praise Arbor,” The people behind the snakeman Alm echoed.
Naffur looked back at the treeboy. “Your name is… Arbor?”
Arbor nodded, his eyes creasing into two happy moons. Then he shook his body back and forth, swaying in place. And to Naffur’s disbelief, the dozen sudden arrivals imitated Arbor. They looked like fools.
Arbor himself wasn’t that great of a dancer. And for all these seemed to be monstrous animal forms of humans, they dance a lot like the way Naffur had seen normal middle-aged men dance. It did a lot to help Naffur's last vestiges of instinctual fear dissipate.
When the dance ceased, Alm snapped his fingers. “Fetch the palanquin! Lord Arbor will grace the city with his presence. May all sing praises in his name. Praise Arbor.”
“Praise Arbor,” They all chanted, even as two dashed toward a nearby boulder. Within ten seconds, they had stripped off layers of dyed cloth and vegetable matter they had used to disguise a small dwelling. From there, the rest of the chanting assistant rushed forward and disassembled the house while the first two began to pull a large parcel from a tiny shed they had erected and began to unpack that.
Five minutes later, Naffur was sitting on a wood platform surrounding by thin veils of what seemed like chainmail. Ostensibly to keep other people from looking in, Naffur guessed.
Struck by a sudden thought, Naffur turned to Arbor. “Arbor… are you super rich.”
Arbor grinned and raised his eyes to the sky. Then he began to gyrate his trunk and shake his foliage. The strange movement lasted all of ten seconds before Naffur looked away with a scowl. Goddamnit, he was rich.
Well, at least that meant Naffur would probably get access to a shower today…
In order to pass the time without acknowledging the obscene movements of Arbor, Naffur went into his Path menu. To his delight, he had enough PP to finish his current Path. It was a completion that Naffur had looked forward to and dreaded because it was the Path Ducis: The Two-Faced Boy.
For all that the title had scared Naffur away somewhat, he had heard that the more specific the Path seemed to your life, the more likely it was to be powerful. So Naffur had bit his lip and began pouring his PP into it. And now…
Congratulations! You have finished the Path Ducis: The Two-Faced Boy! In your body lies a deep potential to accomplish much. If you pursue it, you could stand at the pinnacle of the world. And yet, in your heart, you hold many weights that prevent you from advancing. Both in act and deed, you are many people. Yours is a life filled with masks. The Path you walk is not one you chose. But you have chosen to follow it. And this world is such that if you seek your fate at the end of the Path, it will be found, in one manner or another. No matter your dreams or longings, your feet can carry you forward.
You have gained the Skill “Three Aspects of the First Ducis (L)”. You have gained the ability to create three aspects to affect your own performance, Stats, and Skills. One will be active at all time. Switching between the different Aspects will cost Stamina and Mana, depending on the effects of the Aspect you are switching to. Costs will decrease with Skill Level. The bonuses provided will increase with Skill Level.
You have created your first Aspect! You have gained the ‘Aspect of the Lost Boy’. While utilizing this Aspect, you will be harder to notice. Skills involving deception and stealth will be more effective. You will experience a minuscule bonus to Reaction and a small bonus to Perception.