Chapter 911 (1/2)
With the Stats of just the first equipment already so impressive, Randidly couldn’t help but a glimmer of excitement for what Sam had whipped up for him. His focus shifted to the other three pieces of equipment. For his next choice, Randidly’s hand stretched out toward that brilliant belt. The entire time, he struggled to keep his breathing even.
Sun’s Teardrop Belt (L) Lvl 68: A belt made of three sunstones of condensed solar energy. Legend has it that every night the sun sheds a tear when it rises over the horizon to find that the moon has already left. These special gemstones are extraordinary precious and can absorb the sun’s rays to grow more powerful over time. Stamina +300, Stamina Regeneration +50. Solar Binding III. Three Wishes V. Celestial Longing IV.
Solar Binding III: The powerful cosmic energies have been forged together by a master artisan into a belt. Within each is a pocket dimension capable of storing a small world. Objects in the individual pocket dimension will not interact with others. Life can be stored and grown within the pocket dimension.
Three Wishes V: Once per day, each of the three sunstones on the belt can be used as a source of energy to fuel the use of the Skill. Some of the Sun’s righteous fury will be included in that Skill. Depending on the Skill it fuels, results may be unpredictable. Warning, until the sunstone is recharged, it will be impossible to access any other functions of the sunstone.
Celestial Longing IV: The Sun is internally lonely, yet continues on its predetermined route through the sky. Like clockwork, it rises and it sets. Such is the Sun’s resolve and duty. Wearing the belt, you can feel some of those stalwart feelings seeping slowly into the fiber of your being. Willpower +40. Willpower per Level +1, as long as the belt is worn. The gains will not disappear if the belt is removed later.
Randidly rubbed his chin. He would need to experiment with the Three Wishes function of the belt. And the spatial storage. But it seemed, based on the wording, that he wouldn’t be able to access the spatial storage if he used one of the stones for a wish.
Three wishes, huh. Wishes made on the tears of a celestial body… Randidly frowned down at the equipment. The same thread of narrative that was present in the circlet was also part of this equipment. Was it a coincidence, or…? And if it wasn’t...
Next, Randidly’s attention moved to the gloves.
Iradak’s Tinglesilk Gloves Lvl 70 ®: The Great Spider, Iradak, spent its entire life attempting to disguise itself as a human. It made a robe to walk like a human, gloves to touch like a human, and a face to smile like a human. Yet Iradak was caught and killed, and its blood has soaked into its three Tinglesilk items, warping them beyond recognition. They still possess the delicate touch that Iradak was hoping for, yet now they also bear the truculent power of Iradak’s Grudge. Strength +20, Focus +30. Long Sleeves, Stretching Shadows III. Touch of Iradak V. Along Came a Spider IV.
Long Sleeves, Stretching Shadows III: The sleeves of Iradak’s gloves were made longer to cover the many legs of a spider, but when a human wears the gloves, the long sleeves fall over the hand, obscuring its movements. Opponents will find it difficult to predict how the user will move. Agility +15.
Touch of Iradak V: Despite its best efforts, Iradak could not escape the fact it was born a spider. After the gloves were soaked with Iradak’s blood, those feelings became an insidious grudge. Iradak’s gloves are soaked in a numbing agent. A single touch of a finger against another living being will soon reduce an entire limb to a limp and useless appendage. The effect dissipates with time.
Along Came a Spider IV: Iradak planned and plotted for a long time. Although all those moments in the shadows led it toward its own death, that does not mean that the calculating spirit of Iradak was completely pointless. Intelligence, Willpower, Wisdom, and Control +15.
Randidly raised his hand he had been stroking the gloves with, feeling a sense of wonder as a tingling numbness spread up his fingers to his hand, and then his wrist. It was about that time that Yyrwood Body of Yggdrasil noticed what was happening and flooded the entire arm with warmth. Slowly, the numbness receded, forced out of Randidly by the dominating power of his World Tree image.
But it was worth remembering that the effect was strong enough for even him to be affected, albeit briefly. If that weakness had been in the middle of the fight, those few seconds where his arm wasn’t able to move would have been a dangerous opening. Certainly, Alana would not let him get away with it.
Randidly’s eyes went to the final item laying in the box, the open bottom greaves. The gloves had a story that he had never heard of before as well. If what Randidly suspected was true, there was a pattern here that… well, dangerous was too strong of a word. It was a pattern that meant something larger was at play than Randidly had been expecting.
But it was clear that Sam was creating these pieces of equipment in the mindset that he was ‘creating’ a context for them. It gave them power, sure. But where did these images of these creatures come from?
No offense to Sam, but he was not really the type to create an entire fantasy world as a backdrop for his items. He would be meticulous and creative in his designs, but he was a straightforward man. The preparations for the forging would focus more on the process itself than a history of the item.
Yet there was a clear history written into some of these items. Sam stated that the inspiration came from the blessings that Randidly had given to the four of them all that time ago, but…
...it seems a bit much to come from those Blessings, either, Randidly thought to himself. Unless those Blessings came from the huge warehouse of images that the System had gathered in the past. Does that mean… Was I drawing on the System’s images when I gave those blessings…?
Shaking his head, Randidly looked at the final piece of equipment.
White-Steel Greaves Lvl 65 (Ru): A masterwork created for one of the finest hunters in the Assembly, forged the metal that was the life’s work of Monyt the Vizier. The great hunter who wore the White-Steel Greaves was never known, but that legacy has lasted millennia. Due to the tireless efforts of the White-Steel Hunter, the Assembly has endured to this day. Agility +100. Bladed Wings IV. Glittering Blur III. Heritage of the Great Hunter III.