Chapter 984 (1/2)

In the face of Vye’s taunting, Roland didn’t back down. He spat out a thick glob of blood and phlegm that was thick enough that it didn’t spatter very far when it hit the ground. For several seconds, Vye studied it, before looking back to his red face. Then Roland released an angry breath through his nose, producing a hissing noise reminiscent of a kettle about to boil.

A strange golden energy began to gather around Roland’s eyes. Sparks zipped across his brow, quickly growing in frequency. Within a few seconds, a crust of crystal began to form over his eyes, swiftly becoming a shallow covering over his eye sockets. Vye’s confident smile completely disappeared.

He has a Fate? That means he’s over Level 50… Why the fuck is he picking on ME?!? Vye’s hands flexed. Some part of Vye regretted attacking him so aggressively, but another part of her stubbornly dug in her heels with this new bit of information. Roland was asking for it, so she gave it to him. No matter what Level he is, he doesn’t have free reign to ignore the rules of basic human decency.

But based on the Fate… it’s one of the high-quality ones… Although there was a palpable energy surrounding him, Roland’s fate just became a golden crystal covering his eyes. And from the way that his head was still pointed toward her, it didn’t seem like the crystal would block his vision at all.

Vye’s eyes flickered from Roland to Naffur. And to get those sorts of Fates, you need to visit with the Order Ducis or Donnyton…

As more and more people had reached Level 50, there was an explosion of knowledge that was spread around regarding the Fate that you condensed as you passed through that threshold. At first, most of the information was nothing but rumors, but recently the Order Ducis had led a large crusade to spread out accurate information about the process.

Because, as the original rumors ominously warned of, if you messed up condensing a Fate you could die. This the Order Ducis confirmed. There was a real danger to reaching Level 50.

However, Donnyton possessed a concentration aide that allowed individuals to condense a Fate with a fraction of the trouble. For a small fee, it was open to anyone to use. Plus, the usually erratic Fate would focus its crystal manifestation in a much more restricted area if you utilized Donnyton’s service. Whereas there were urban legends about a Fate immobilizing a whole leg, Donnyton’s aide allowed these crystals to be smaller and easier to handle.

A high-quality Fate had the added bonus that it would be so small it was practically invisible when it was not in use. It was only when you summoned its energies that it would grow to form its disruptive form.

The Order Ducis also possessed this capability, although Vye was less clear on the means they used to achieve it. But then, most of the activities the Order Ducis involved itself in were rather mysterious.

A lot of people might have ended up deciding Fates were not worth it, had the Order Ducis not made one fact abundantly clear: condensing a Fate increased your growth rate. Both in Stats gained per Level and the rate at which you gained Skill Levels related to your Fate, obtaining a Fate gave individuals an edge.

Drawn by these tantalizing benefits, most high-Level individuals had recently pushed past their fear and began condensing Fates. Immediately, their boosted strength with which they were endowed proved that the decision to listen to the Order Ducis had been a prudent one.

As for Vye fighting against someone with a condensed Fate… The difference between them wasn’t just at least thirteen Levels. It was also between Vye, who’s eclectic gathering of Skills had no real focus, and this man who was talented enough to host the lottery. And even so-

Randidly Ghosthound would do it.

At her instinctual thought, Vye wanted to tear her hair out in frustration. Who was she trying to kid, aspiring to be Randidly Ghosthound?

But before she could berate herself for unrealistic comparisons, Roland bared his teeth at her. His words were waspish and spat out like another thick glob of phlegm. “Do forgive me for underestimating you, Miss Vye. Worry not; the rest of the challenge will be a great deal more difficult, so your talents can be made abundantly clear.”

Remembering Randidly’s rather mild gaze, Vye did her best to imitate the casual acceptance that she had seen in his emerald eyes. She couldn’t be sure that Roland could see through the crystal covering his eyes, but there was no way in hell she was going to show even a hint of fear to this man. Breathing in, Vye pictured Randidly as she had first seen him, walking barefoot to the Erickson Steel headquarters.

“Do you have any proof of your identity?”

“No.”

She released a breath with that same unflappable confidence. “Perfect. I’m not here on vacation, after all.”

The lines around Roland’s face tightened. Seemingly pushed beyond the reach of human civility, he raised his hands and blasted two beams of concentrated golden light toward Vye.

Although they moved extraordinarily quickly, Vye reacted in time. Her hands flicked out and four Reject rituals met the beams of light. From the sizzle-crack as the two Skills encountered each other, Vye could tell that her Reject’s were very close to being overpowered. The fact that Roland was able to throw two of those beams at once would make this duel very-

Sneering, Roland spread his arms wide. Eight beams of light blasted outward in curving arcs toward Vye.

The graceful curves meant that the light beams took a little bit of extra time to travel to Vye, but she also had to contend with four times as many vectors as previously. Even though her hands were fast, they weren’t that fast.

Still, Vye blurred into determined motion. This time, she threw out her Rejects in a careful formation. Five of them together combined to become a more powerful version of the same ritual, allowing five of the Rejects to block three of the light beams. So after throwing out fourteen pieces of paper, she had neutralized his attacks.

Barely. The Rejects groaned and cracked. Ambient energy refracted downward, slicing into the ground with a prowling sort of stymied ill-will. Vye’s heart rate gradually began to increase and her palms were slick with sweat. Using that small moment of peace she earned, she hurriedly wiped her writing hand on her shirt so her grip didn’t slip.