Chapter 1132 (2/2)

Perhaps because Randidly feared the worst. And if Vualla was truly a puppet of Ileot, Randidly wished to find out as soon as possible. Otherwise…

Randidly shook his head and accelerated forward. The ground began to fall away and seethe beneath him as he moved toward the edges the land controlled by Aether forces.

To Randidly’s surprise, Ileot was already standing there at the edge of the Great Rift when Randidly started traversing the broken ground, fully a half-hour before the agreed-upon time. Again, Randidly’s eyes flashed. Truly, it seemed like the meeting was just as important an event for both of them. Which implied that Randidly would have some leverage to get the information he wanted out of Ileot.

It was just a matter of figuring out what Ileot’s goal was.

As Randidly hopped over a deep fissure in the ground, he studied Ileot. Currently, Ileot was wearing the same slight, hairless form that he had taken when he used the name Cail Tweocs. Which made Randidly wonder whether this was his natural form, or that Ileot felt no need to reveal what he looked like to Randidly. Either way, there was, unfortunately, no way to leverage what he looked like for more information.

Ileot Swacc still didn’t turn as Randidly began to rapidly stride forward, flexing the muscles of his legs to make each of his steps cover a dozen meters. It was only when the two figures were right next to each other, both looking into the vast darkness above them, that Ileot Swacc cleared his throat.

“You came quickly. Good. I suppose that means you understand how important an issue this is.”

Randidly slowly nodded. “...yes.”

Ileot gave Randidly an amused look then continued to pipe up in that high-pitched voice of his. “Heh, you are probably wondering why I invited you here. Or rather, you are probably wondering what my game is. And who I am. The truth is, I am not Cail Tweocs. I am not a member of the Xyrt Brigade. My true name is-”

“Ileot Swacc,” Randidly said softly. Some part of him considered hiding his knowledge, but there didn’t seem to be any real point to doing so. And Randidly was quite looking forward to Ileot’s face when he revealed that he knew who he was.

Ileot’s gape didn’t disappoint. “Eh? Am I truly so well known that you have heard of me…? I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised-”

Randidly spoke again, interrupting a line that seemed to be veering toward boasting. “Ileot Swacc, the Duplicator. Who… who duplicated Vualla, an ancient warrior.”

“Ha! Truly, you have caught me by surprise with your knowledge,” Ileot rubbed his chin. “This will go much easier if you already know this much. Yes, with Aether that Lord Miln borrowed from the frontline, I duplicated Vualla. I created a replica that was supposed to quickly make back the invested Aether… or at least return the Aether in a more potent form that would make up for the lost efficiency. And yet…”

Ileot's face twisted into a leer. “That didn’t happen, did it? The project was largely a cover to explain my existence without revealing that I was here to study you… but it seems that this project has cost me quite a lot without netting me any benefits.”

Clenching his fists, Randidly tensed up as Ileot’s eyes burned with naked avarice. As soon as their gazes met, Randidly felt a physical weight settle on his shoulders. The air around them stilled and the ground underneath Randidly’s feet groaned ominously. A split second later it cracked, a hair-thin branching crack revealing the strain from Ileot’s gaze was a physical presence.

The moment stretched between them, a rope rapidly fraying as two forces pulled at it without budging. Then, just as Randidly was marshaling his Willpower to activate his own images to resist Ileot’s overwhelming force, all of the pressure in the air faded. Ileot Swacc sighed.

“However, I do not blame you for how things turned out. Rather… it would have been a miracle if things went as I had wished them to go. No one knows better than I how… temperamental a power I possess. So if you came here afraid I would seeking vengeance… You can relax. In fact… I would much prefer for you to think of me as an ally.”

The Grim Chimera immediately wanted to rip Ileot Swacc’s face off for so casually asking to be thought of as an ally when Ileot was clearly aiming for Randidly’s body, but Randidly restrained that impulse. Although he largely agreed that the notion of being an ally with Ileot was nonsense, that didn’t mean there wasn’t value in keeping things civil between them.

When he spoke, Randidly’s voice was cool. “As long as our interests align, I don’t think we need to remain antagonistic toward each other.”

Apparently Randidly’s phrasing didn’t escape Ileot’s notice, but the hairless man just smirked. “Indeed. Such a relief to hear. And I can understand that it will be difficult to build trust between us, but I would like to take the first step and build our relationship by sharing two truths.

“The first I’ve already given to you,” Ileot held up a finger and leaned forward. “As I said earlier, I am not actually a member of the Xyrt Brigade. And let me tell you, they would not be happy to hear that I said that I was. They… hmph, even to their elders, they are a group of entitled little shits. Not that they are all so powerful as to threaten me… but there some among their number even I would avoid. So me admitting this to you can be considered an act of good faith.”

While Randidly was slowly digesting this first piece of information, Ileot held up a second finger. “And the second thing… I would like to tell you the story of Vualla, and why I chose to duplicate her. Then, afterward… we can finally talk business.”