Chapter 1521 (2/2)
After explaining his demands, Randidly returned quickly to his own area of the Rally Station. He didn’t even bother to scan through the parting crowd of Drill Sergeants to get a good read on which openly hostile emotions belonged to who. In addition, he barely had time to notice Lay’mel Tuuellethe skulking in the back, avoiding eye contact before he walked into the stone tunnel and pulled out his Philosopher’s Key.
Two things bothered him. First and most importantly, he had felt the arrival of Commandant Wick to his training area. Just the Commandant’s arrival was enough to cause the Aether and Nether ecosystems Randidly had created to shudder. Even worse, the man hadn’t bothered to wait for an invitation and instead had directly pressed forward into the Aether Engraving around Randidly’s base. Had Randidly not noticed what was occurring and designated Commandant Wick as an ally, the Commandant might have simply ripped Randidly’s defenses to shreds.
Which at least answers the question of how effective the Aether defenses currently are against true power, Randidly thought darkly. But he observed the ways that Wick strained the defenses and sent the details to Neveah, so she could try and improve their formula.
Meanwhile, the other reason that Randidly was in a bad mood was because of the performance of the opposing recruits: they had entirely failed to present a meaningful challenge for his recruits. He had been distantly aware that his was the ‘elite’ squad, which meant that most of his troops had been groomed to be capable enough. Meanwhile, the other recruits were desperate individuals from fading worlds in older Cohorts.
The opposition had been trained in fighting in groups, but it immediately became obvious that these other recruits hadn’t been exposed to Nether. The changes that Nether was making to the bodies and images of his recruits were relatively minor, but it added weight to them that their opponents lacked. After receiving a few blows, his recruits realized that the opposition was nowhere near as dangerous as their Overseers.
Their strikes were light. Then, like a pack of wolves that smelled blood, they struck suddenly and with overwhelming force.
At which point the other aspect Randidly had forgotten about took over; the natural recovery of the recruits underneath the System. Without the array suppressing them, they swiftly began to recover Stamina. By the time the fight was over, Randidly’s Overseers were almost anxious to get them back into the array, lest they need another few days to adjust to the constant image exertion to move.
Plus, all their images have really solidified after needing to use them for everything, Randidly frowned. Then he tsk’d lightly. Looks like we will have to up the difficulty for the next skirmish…
With those thoughts, Randidly returned to the central training area, where Commandant Wick was hunched over Randidly’s personal training pod that he hadn’t even the chance to use yet, inspecting the Engravings. As Randidly closed the door behind him, the massive bear-man glanced over his shoulder, then looked back at the Engravings. “Quite interesting, the setup you have here. Truly… your physical body is impressive. You’ve passed the System limit directly?”
Randidly nodded slowly. The Commandant’s furry mouth twitched. “A pity. Although you can achieve a small amount of success once you pass the limit, being cut off from the System’s blessings comes with hidden costs. Well, anyway, you clearly are capable enough now. But not so capable that you can survive without relying on my reputation. Hm?”
Toward the end, Commandant Wick spoke with a rumbling tone that brooked no disagreement. He turned around and folded his hands behind his back while regarding Randidly directly. Despite his image physicalizations, the Nether Nebula that spun in his chest and anchored him with significance, and his extremely high Stats, Randidly felt the edges of his vision darkening as he met the gaze of Commandant Wick.
The Commandant’s aura was a study in opposition. On the one hand, there was an extremely demanding series of mental restraints through the Commandant that brooked no disagreement. Those powerful bindings could suppress almost anything. Even the dangerous scent of pure madness that hung across the bearman’s person.
The shape of the image was still hidden, but the image was so powerful that Randidly didn’t need to witness it directly in order to sense some of the broader strokes.
Randidly’s heart rate increased and his hands grew sweaty as he resisted the radiating waves of pressure. Each second saw him violently assaulted by the horrid madness that raged underneath the cage of the Commandant’s image. Very deliberately, the Commandant was testing Randidly.
Randidly was powerful, but before someone who genuinely possessed an irresistible image, he still fell a bit short. His hands curled into claws. His Nether Nebula spun, trying to steady his images, but Randidly couldn’t muster enough dominance in the surroundings to generate his own images to fight back.
Yet Randidly refused to back down, even as the Commandant’s dark eyes seemed intent on smashing him into the ground, breaking him open like an egg, and poking through his secrets. Randidly raised his chin and forced himself to speak. “You bet on me when you believed the Nether Invasion was a small matter, but now that it is important, you are unwilling to take the political hit by admitting that you knew nothing about my capability. You are greatly relieved by my success, right?”
Emerald eyes met black ones.
Congratulations! Your Skill Conviction of the Smiling Horror (L) has grown to Level 355!
“I see we understand one another,” The Commandant’s face broke into a wide smile that showed his wide and thick yellow teeth. His image receded like he had drawn a curtain across an open window to the deepest pit of hell. “And considering what you displayed in the skirmish today… I believe we will have no problems cooperating. Truly, I appreciate capable subordinates, Randidly Ghosthound. Results will matter first, in the military. Do not forget that.”