Chapter 625 - Odd Ranger (Part 1) (1/2)
When Lith started to talk about Forgemastering, things went back to normal.
'So that's what he was he was talking about.' Solus thought, half relieved and half disappointed when they went back to the Forge lab.
”We are, hopefully, the only two people in the whole Mogar who have the same mana signature. Now that you have a body, we can Forgemaster together! Imagine what kind of items we can craft by combining our efforts.
”Not only do we always live, breathe, and work together, but our minds are also linked. I doubt there are many artisans who can match our mutual understanding.” Lith said, being overly optimistic.
It turned out that their mana was indeed compatible, but they had two completely different ways of Forgemastering and they had to learn how to adapt to each other. The problem was that Solus had to keep the magic circle, empower both hammers, and Forgemaster, whereas Lith could focus only on shaping the pseudo cores.
On top of that, Solus could only hold her body for a few hours if she did nothing, but Forgemastering exhausted her strength much more quickly. Time was an enemy she couldn't beat.
”With the little time we got, the best we can do is some basic stuff I have no need for anymore. Either we must make you stronger or find a way to speed up the crafting process. We could try again, but this time you step in only during the pseudo core injection phase.” Lith proposed after a few test runs.
”Seems like a great idea. Do you mind if we continue another day? I'm so tired that even my wisp is about to collapse.” Solus was back in her wisp form, wheezing and panting.
”Sorry, I didn't mean to make you work even on the date of your birthday.”
”If you didn't, I would've thought that you had been replaced by an alien shapeshifter.” She chuckled.
”Besides, I had a lot of fun. I never feel alive like when we work together, especially on Forgemastering.”
”Next time, I keep the circle and you do the crafting. That way I can observe your method and learn how to better coordinate with you.” Lith proposed after they had discovered that they couldn't use mind fusion to speed things up.
Fusing their minds caused Solus's body to get assimilated as well, making it impossible for her to wield her hammer. The fusion would allow them to feel what the other felt, but also would flood their minds with each other's thoughts.
Shaping a pseudo core required surgical precision and their conflicting approaches at crafting ended up being a distraction.
As soon as the next labyrinth reset happened and there was no trace of Jarok, Lith received a call on his army amulet. He returned back to Huryole via the Warping Mirror before answering.
”Ranger Verhen, this is Ranger Morok Eari. I supervise the Hessar region and I'm calling you to schedule your yearly evaluation. Are you done with urgent business in Kellar?” Lith had never heard of other Rangers, but he knew about Hessar.
It was the region neighboring his own and according to his books, it wasn't much better. Ranger Eari was a man in mid twenties, about 1.8 meters (5'11”) tall, so he was quite tall according to Mogar's standards.
He had black hair and dark eyes. Like most Rangers, he had a stubble a few days old and unkempt hair. There was no reason to keep appearances if you were alone most of the time.
”Yes, I've already taken care of most Lost Cities and I've nothing to do except for patrolling. What do you mean, evaluation? I do regular reports and so do those who request my help. I never heard about a further test.” Lith asked.
”It's no standard procedure. A normal Ranger has no need for a yearly evaluation, but so far you have proven to be anything but. The army is interested in putting your abilities to test since you have only one more year left of service.