Apocalypse Baby-Chapter 273: Alone with Tree

"In exchange for Doomslayer, I want to analyze your barrier."

Alex blinked, thrown by the simplicity of the request.

For all the heavy air hanging around them, all the talk of doom creatures and dying worlds, Grugrim wasn't asking for salvation or blood.

He just wanted to study his defensive skill [Arcane Dominion].

The dwarf scratched at his beard, his brow furrowed with frustration.

"I've been trying to replicate a reflection ability," he said. "Tried integrating it into armor—tried a dozen runesmithing methods, mirror layering, even spirit-imbued alloys."

Grugrim spat to the side, his face darkening.

"And I failed. Every. Single. Time."

He lifted his hand, fingers curling slightly like he was trying to grasp something invisible.

"If I could study your magic shield...I can learn its language, its pattern... maybe I could craft armor that throws attacks back. Not just absorb 'em."

Grugrim's eyes gleamed with a hunger that had nothing to do with greed.

It was the pure, burning need of a craftsman at the edge of discovery.

"And if I succeed..." he added, "I could take that knowledge back to my people."

He didn't say it aloud, but Alex heard the silent hope:

Maybe give them a fighting chance.

Alex exhaled slowly, weighing the request.

Was this some trick? Some hidden agenda?

A huge ploy to get him to make a big mistake?

Using his discernment skill, however, he found nothing.

And that ability enabled him to feel the ripples of deception.

But there was no malice in the dwarf's word.

Only a short man desperate to hammer survival out of a dying world.

Alex's shoulders relaxed slightly.

"...Alright," Alex said, voice calm.

He had nothing to lose.

Accepting meant he gets an immensely powerful sword.

Grugrim's face lit up like a forge igniting.

He was trembling like a toddler who was about to be handed ice cream.

Alex lifted his hand and was about to activate [Arcana Dominion], but something tugged at him—the name of the skill.

He preferred the old name [Aegis Arcane] as he was more familiar with it, so he decided to change it back, now that he could.

Ding!

[Arcane Dominion] had now been renamed to [Aegis Arcane]

Activating [Aegis Arcane] mana then flared in a brilliant wave around him, and the barrier exploded into existence with a deep hum, surrounding Alex in a shimmering dome of translucent energy.

Grugrim gasped audibly.

The dwarf moved immediately, circling Alex like a predator studying an impossible prey.

"By the stones..." Grugrim muttered, eyes wide, tracing his fingers just short of the barrier's surface.

He stopped in front of Alex, a childlike awe plain on his face.

"Can I..." Grugrim hesitated, then coughed roughly. "Can I strike it?"

Alex chuckled under his breath.

"You can," he said, tone easy, "but don't hit it too hard. You'll regret it."

Grugrim grunted in amusement.

Originally, he looked ready to drive a dagger into it—but at the last second, he thought better of it. Instead, he balled his hand into a fist and gave the barrier a light, almost playful punch.

The result was instant.

The barrier gurgled—an eerie, liquid sound—and spat the attack back with more force than it had taken.

The rebounded energy slammed into Grugrim's chest, forcing him to stagger backward a full step.

The dwarf blinked, stunned... and then threw back his head and laughed.

"Amazing!" he roared. "The reflection's even stronger than the force of the blow!"

He clutched his ribs, grinning like a man who'd just glimpsed the edge of heaven.

But then Grugrim's expression became serious,

His hand began to glow, intricate runes appearing along his palm, weaving in and out of his skin like molten gold.

His whole demeanor sharpened—focused—as though he had become a blade himself.

"Hold steady," he said.

Alex gave a nod.

Grugrim touched the barrier carefully, reverently.

The moment his fingers connected, the dome shuddered.

A low hum filled the room, rising in pitch.

The dwarven runes on Grugrim's palm pulsed in time with the vibrations, drawing strands of information, magic theory, and arcane signatures from the shield.

Grugrim's eyes blazed, glowing fiercely with the power of his ancestral craft.

For a long, tense moment, it was like time itself had frozen around them.

Then, just as suddenly, the light vanished.

The hum died.

Grugrim pulled his hand back and stumbled away, breathing heavily.

He didn't say anything.

Didn't look at Alex.

He simply turned and bolted toward a far corner of the hall, muttering under his breath as he pulled parchment, chisels, and enchanted stones from his belt pouch, scribbling down furious notes.

Alex dispelled [Aegis Arcane] with a flick of his hand.

The barrier collapsed in a flash of light, folding inward like a bubble popping in reverse. The hum in the air vanished, replaced by a soft silence.

He stood there for a moment, watching Grugrim work.

The dwarf had already dropped to one knee, surrounded by scraps of parchment and glowing stones, muttering to himself like a man possessed. His hands moved fast—chisel scratching, ink flowing, runes burning into place like fire was guiding them.

Alex tilted his head, mildly curious.

But only mildly.

Whatever knowledge the dwarf had ripped from the barrier—whatever he was about to do with it—it didn't matter to Alex.

Not really.

Because he had walked away with a living legend strapped to his side.

Doom Slayer rested along his arm, the blade thrumming with a low, steady hum. Not loud. But constant. Like it was breathing. Like it wanted something.

Alex grinned, then he sensed it.

A shift in pressure. A presence entering the room.

He turned slowly and saw Vess, the Tranagian.

Her match was over.

And it was time for the next.

Alex's gaze drifted to Sylen and Brakka, standing off to the side.

They exchanged no words. No signals. Just a brief look.

Then they shimmered, and then they were gone.

Vanished from the room, pulled into the waiting arena.

Only four people remained in the room, but two seemed lost in their world.

Malik sat cross-legged, eyes shut, deep in meditation.

His breath was slow, barely noticeable.

Grugrim was still hunched over his scrolls, scribbling like the world was ending tomorrow.

So really—it was just Alex and Vess now.

And she was still staring at him.

Unblinking.

Alex was almost tempted to wave 'Hi.'