Chapter 1030 (1/2)

Vye shook her head. It wasn’t even that difficult of a decision. “No, I’ll keep it. It might be painful… but its also powerful. I recently got the Pain Endurance Skill as well, so I’ll be able to Level that up while using it…”

Randidly chuckled and Vye frowned at him.

Shaking his head, Randidly said. “Sorry, you just reminded me… of me. Of a crazy sort of masochism that I learned from someone very precious to me… And you are right, What you have here… is extremely special. And because of that, powerful. Even I haven’t seen anything like this before…”

The emerald flames dancing across his hand died out, but for another minute Randidly continued to poke and prod at Vye’s hand. It wasn’t painful, but Vye found the whole procedure rather awkward. Rather than an individual brought to a manager’s office to be rewarded for her work, Vye felt more like a patient in a clinical trial that Randidly was running.

Finally, Randidly took a step back and let both of his hands fall to his sides. His expression turned rather stern as he looked at her. “Still, Pain Endurance will help, but it’s a Skill that raises your capability to handle pain without really dulling it at all. Don’t push yourself too hard before you are ready.”

Vye gave Randidly a look that she hoped wasn’t as incredulous as she felt at the moment. “With all due respect… Would you have heeded that advice, if it was given to you early in your experience with the System?”

Smiling wanly, Randidly shook his head. “Of course not. But won’t I seem like a heartless boss if so casually expect you to endure pain for my sake? I have to tell you not to do it, in order to keep up appearances.”

Vye didn’t have an answer to wry humor, so she smiled politely and then asked a question that she had been thinking of after listening to Naffur speak about the looming problem of the borderlands. “By the way, I wanted to ask… why are you only accepting ten people into the Order Ducis? If the borderlands were expanding that quickly, won’t it be helpful to recruit more people?”

Randidly snorted and shook his head. “Well, obviously more powerful individuals would be better for us. But there are two problems. The first is maintaining the integrity of the spirit of the Order Ducis. Frankly, that’s more Naffur and Ajax than me, but they raise a good point. Image is important, and since we are part of an organization, each of us is doing our part to shape the direction that image is taking. Therefore, taking in too many people at once would dilute that image. Plus, rapid expansion lowers our ability to screen the undesirable elements who want to come into the Order.

“Which brings us to the second problem; who the hell is going to train all of you?” Randidly grinned at Vye. “Naffur and Ajax are running themselves ragged arranging all of the training for just 50 people. But that’s really just a method of identifying 10 that they will take the time and effort to genuinely assist in growing. Plus, it's not like they’ve stopped training themselves…

“Being an instructor, especially with the sort of harrowing pace they’ve taken with you all, is a full-time job. I’ve arranged for someone to take over some of the more physically demanding tasks, but there is a limit to how many people we can give targeted attention to.”

“And you? What about you?” Vye asked quietly. “They don't talk about it much… but it seems like you are going to be leaving again soon. Is the Order Ducis… not high on your priorities? Ah, I don’t mean it as an insult. I’m just… worried about something so important that it will pull you away from saving people freed from the borderlands...”

That dropped Randidly’s cheery expression into a frozen tundra. After a long sigh, he shook his head sadly. “It’s not that I’m choosing to address an issue that’s more important than that. It’s just… well. What I leave to do is unavoidable. Because I’ve taken shortcuts in the System… I’m being punished for it. It’s a Judgment I cannot escape.”

Then an extremely strange smile wandered out across Randidly’s face. His eyes began to sparkle. “But maybe you are right. I should take a more direct approach to this. Before I go… I should take some time to get to know the cute applicants to my Order. It’s worth touching the image of all of you directly before I go.”

Strangely, Vye had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that reminded her of the times in university that someone inadvertently reminded a professor to assign homework. And Randidly’s expression… contained a bit too much sadistic joy for Vye’s taste.

Before she could figure out what the feeling meant, Randidly extended his hand toward her. “Well, that’s enough chit-chat. First, the reward for being the best with images. And then… if you want, I can still give you that gift I mentioned before, if you are willing. Now that I know about your hand, it will take a different form, but it will definitely be a powerful addition.”

“Yea. I want the power to travel this world with impunity. If your gift will provide that… by all means.” Nodding, Vye reached out and offered her hand once more.

As he held her hand, Randidly started muttering to himself. “First… the connection… easy. Hmmm. And if your Skill really formed its own Soulspace, then it should be possible to…”

Vye’s left hand twisted as the warmth hidden inside of it began to spiral into a tight seed in the palm of her left hand. Of course, as that warmth focused into a smaller point, the heat of it rose sharply upward. So much so that Vye winced as Randidly’s grip tightened on her hand.

And then System notifications appeared before her eyes.

Congratulations! Due to your deviant Skills, you have achieved a great benefit! You have unlocked the ability to Dual-Class! You have obtained the sub-Class Alfen Priestess!

Due to limitations in your Soulspace, benefits acquired from your sub-Class are diminished. Due to the high-Level of your main Class, you will only acquire experience for Alfen Priestess until the Level of your sub-Class equals your main one.

Warning! Possessing two Classes will consume a great deal of energy. Please see your Village Spirit for details.

Warning! Please note that illness and death may result from your Dual-Class!

Congratulations! You have received the class of Alfen Priestess. You have gained the Prayer to Nature (Un) Lvl 1. You have received the skill Ritual: Consume (A) Lvl 1. +1 Health per Level, +4 Mana Per Level, +1 Stamina per level. +1 Perception per level , +2 Wisdom per level, +1 Free Stats per Level.

“Uh…” Vye blinked as she looked at the notifications. “It says that… I received a Dual-Class… and that illness and death may result…”

Randidly was staring almost fanatically at Vye’s hand, but he looked up and waved off her concerns airily. “Relax. Although it sounds rather intense, the issue is a relatively minor one. The reward I gave you to start should solve it.”

“Okay... and as someone who has lived with this System for a few years, I respect your knowledge of these things,” Vye said slowly. She drew in a long breath. “But didn’t you say that you are about to be punished for taking short-cuts in the System…? Is there any chance that this is related to that?”