Chapter 1125 (2/2)

Randidly glanced up at the sky. Since Lady Iellaya had driven them back and weakened the Nether forces infringing upon the Aether’s land, the blue veins had withdrawn somewhat from the air. They no longer transformed the edges of the Nether army into a forest of spectral algae. But certainly, the Nether army wouldn’t stay passive for very long.

But still…

Randidly rubbed his forehead. “So many fucking things to check…”

The first thing he did was open up a Skill description for Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil, which was the evolved form of Infinite Fingers of Yggdrasil.

Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil (T): A powerful Skill that allows the user to channel the near-infinite energy of Yggdrasil and create powerful roots and vines to attack the target. As long as the user can sense the target, plant matter can extend near infinitely to chase. In addition, it is possible to extend roots from any dirt, stone, plant matter, or object that the user has touched in the last twenty-four hours. Mana cost decreases with Skill Level. Damage vastly increases with Skill Level. Limits on range ludicrously increase with Skill Level.

Nodding to himself, Randidly’s eyes focused on the line about any object he touched in the last 24 hours. He turned around as he spun the possibilities slowly in his mind. But there was simply so much other reflection to do. Returning back into the tent, Randidly lay himself down next to Vualla and entered into his Soulskill.

With a light pop, Randidly found himself standing in a familiar office towering like a titan amongst two dozen Spriggits who stood around wearing brightly colored party hats. As he suddenly appeared, they all leaped back with gasps and shots, scrambling backward in order to avoid whatever calamity had suddenly descended upon the office.

But as the crowd of Spriggits parted, Randidly was given a straight path forward to view a single individual who was sitting primly behind a desk. In front of that individual was a cake covered in lit candles. Her cheeks were puffed out, as though she was about to blow out the candles and make a wish.

Due to Randidly’s arrival, Wendy could only sigh. The candles wavered but didn’t go out.

“Happy birthday to me, I guess,” Wendy grumbled. She pushed the cake to the far side of her desk, as though the whole ordeal now disgusted her. Her gaze on Randidly displayed a clear irritation. Likely because he had promised to visit quite soon after he had brought her back to his Soulskill. “I suppose you’ll be wanting something, yes? Maybe a mechanical planet that has the ability to shrink? Or better yet, a perpetual motion machine that also generates energy and can play the piano? Well, I’m not interested in such trivialities any longer.”

Randidly’s smile was forced, even as he felt a thread of irritation at the obviously hostile reception. Not that he could blame her; he had broken his word. “Look, Wendy, I know I promised to check in more often and provide you resources for your research, but I was… removed from my body for a time. This is the first chance I’ve had to rest somewhere safe.”

“Uh, huh…” Wendy said skeptically. Her thin face wrinkled up as her paranoia demanded that she be suspicious of everything that Randidly said. Randidly waited.

Eventually, she sighed. “Well, that’s fine then. I believe you. But this is a private event. I’ll be perfectly happy to have a normal discussion with you… as soon as you schedule one with my secretary. For now, I’m sure you know this building well enough to see yourself out.”

Although her words were still grumpy, Randidly could easily tell that this was just Wendy reacting to the suddenness of his arrival, not the fact that he had come altogether. Which is why he smiled confidently and leaned forward. “But it’s your birthday. Surely-”

“You can’t seriously expect me to believe you remembered it,” Wendy said with a shake of her head.

Randidly didn’t even bother to lie. “But does it matter if I brought a gift?”

At her core, Wendy was a simple woman who was motivated by her curiosity and desire to understand the world. Beyond that, she was simply a stubborn scientist. There were a few seconds where suspicion and desire warred across her face, but the victor was obvious from the beginning.

“Well….” Wendy said slowly. She stood up from her desk. “I suppose… you’ve come all this way… and if something was enough to bind you… it must have been troublesome… and about this gift…?”

Chuckling at her sudden change of heart, Randidly stretched his hand forward. He wasn’t sure about both whether it was possible, or his chances of success in a short time frame, but he had faith that the result of his efforts would be a gift that Wendy would find fascinating.

Nether roped together once… and failed. But on the second attempt, the pieces intertwined perfectly and set… and a pseudo-Nether core appeared in Randidly’s palm. The small thing appeared like a royal blue marble, already warping the surrounding air with the energy that it threw off. It might be a very much watered down source of Nether, but it was still an energy that reacted very violently toward almost any substance.

And it was something that Wendy had never seen before.

“Just something I picked up in my travels… I would treat it carefully,” Randidly said with a small smile. “It releases a powerful energy field that will neutralize and corrupt most normal energies and substances…”

Wendy’s eyes were sparkling as she took step after shaking step forward. Her fingers flexed and trembled as she stared at it. “It’s so pretty…”

Randidly closed his hand. “I just hope you could answer a few questions I have about the current state of the Soulskill… I’ve been away for seven months, after all.”