Chapter 1164 (1/2)

“You wish to bring Lady Iellaya along with you to the Nether Prince?” Ileot Swacc’s brows furrowed as he considered Randidly’s request.

Randidly nodded. “Yes. I owe her quite a lot. She’s helped me get my feet under me here at the frontline. I think that it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t try to share the benefit of the Nether Prince with her now. She is my benefactor.”

Honestly, Randidly’s reasoning for bringing Lady Iellaya was quite a bit different than what he revealed to be Ileot Swacc. Partially it was to pay her back, but that wasn’t the primary reason that Randidly wanted them both in whatever the Nether Prince was. No, the reason that Randidly wished for Lady Iellaya to come was that he was swiftly realized that they would need a significant screen to mask what Randidly was doing by creating a whole new Class and Fate for Lady Iellaya.

Especially now that the Grim Chimera was so steeped in Nether. Hiding that was… difficult.

In the two days since Randidly had started focusing on incorporating adding the aspect of self-growth into the shapes on Yggdrasil’s trunk, he had only rarely taken breaks. But during those breaks, he had often casually used Grim Chimera moves while practicing, forgetting that Nether was now in every aspect of that image.

It was honestly quite problematic. It certainly upped his available power of image, but tensions on the frontlines were simply too high for him to produce Nether in any significant capacity right now. And the reaction between the two energies when Randidly used a Skill made those notes of Nether into something more significant than what the term notes could contain.

The new changes to the Grim Chimera were a double-edged sword. Because although it made him severely restricted in using the Grim Chimera’s Skills, having that image as a focus made it much easier for Randidly to manipulate Nether. HIs Nether Ritual abilities shot up by 20 Skill Levels over those two days, just because his focus was suddenly through the roof. His touch was deft and sure where it had felt like he was grasping in the dark previously.

Some part of him wished he did have quite a bit of spare time available, so he could thoroughly investigate the situation on Earth.

And hell, the situation in his Soulskill. He had checked in a few times, but Azriel emphasized the need for her to familiarize herself with what was going on before she could answer any definitive questions.

Still, Randidly was rather confident that he could rely on the Grim Chimera’s new discovered affinity very heavily for both condensing his own Fate and for creating Lady Iellaya’s Class. But while Randidly could sneak away into the badlands to move his Nether reverberations as he worked on himself, Lady Iellaya was a bright star amongst the Commanders.

When would she have the chance to go somewhere that reverberations of Nether would be dismissed as nothing dangerous? Especially because Randidly wasn’t sure how much time it would take to complete a reshaping of her Class and Fate. Even if she could sneak away for a brief time, if the Nether forces attacked while Randidly was working, it wasn’t like they could stop halfway and pick it up again later.

He would literally be laying her soul bare. That sort of surgery was unpredictable enough already without interruptions midway.

Yet despite Randidly’s worries that Ileot would disagree with him, Ileot seemed to take the news in stride. “Hum. Well, it isn’t impossible. Lord Miln plans to reserve another spot for a young protege of his, but having four people go into the Nether Prince won’t diminish its potency that much. Still…”

Ileot gave Randidly a disappointed look. “You did not choose to bring Vualla? I had thought the two of you had grown close. And you haven’t inquired at all about her status from me… Well… I will inform Lord Miln of your decision.”

Randidly opened his mouth to tell Ileot’s departing back that he and Vualla were close, but he forced his jaws to snap shut. Vualla’s existence as a weird, reflected existence was something that tormented Randidly on a daily basis. Yet what could he do? Knowing that there was time before the effects arrived alleviated it somewhat, but it remained a source of anxiety.

There was so much going on that Vualla’s eventual fading was one of Randidly’s lessor concerns. Honestly, it didn’t make much sense, but Randidly felt much more guilty over how little time they had spent together over the last week than Vualla’s eventual fate. They spent more time together when fighting against the Nether than when they were training.

Yet Randidly did his best to reassure himself that this was just his anxiety. Vualla was just as serious about gaining enough strength to defeat the System as he was. She threw herself into training with the same wild abandoned.

They both sought the impossible. Normal methods would not carry them there. Normal training wasn’t enough.

This was a truth that made them unhappy, but they both understood it. And that understanding did a lot to bridge the space left between them as they trained in solitude.

Still, the memory of that dazzling smile that crossed Vualla’s face when she had realized that Randidly was growing an orange tree for her still remained. And while the fruit wasn’t technically an orange, Randidly had carefully changed it so that it was a sweet and tangy citrus. Not exactly orange juice, but close enough-

“Oh! Hello Cail.”

The words drew Randidly’s attention sharply upward because it was clearly Vualla speaking right outside his tent. After Ileot greeted her in his piping voice, Vualla stormed into Randidly’s tent with a heavy frown. In fact, she was practically glaring at him as she raised a flask that was filled with his fruit juice.

Despite her expression, her timing was perfect to calm the ripples across his heart almost immediately. Before Vualla could speak, Randidly cut in with a sly smile. “Did you miss me?”

“Bah. You know I did,” Some of Vualla’s determination seemed to fall away, but then she shook her head and raised her flask once more. “But this isn’t about that! It’s about this fruit that you gave me. I was just spending some time with some family and I finally had the chance to try the juice you made. And you know what? I gained sixteen Perception and twenty-two Control from drinking the juice! That is thirty-six Stats from a single fruit!”

“Would have been more if you waited longer,” Randidly nodded at Vualla. “But I compensated for some of that by forcing energy into it. That’s why growing the fruit devoured so much; It takes a lot to condense those Stat points.”

“So you knew about this effect?” Vualla blinked at Randidly. “Then why aren’t you growing whole orchards of these things? You could sell them.”