Runeblade-Chapter 227B2 : Payment, Finale

Kaius nodded.

“Before we move on to the matter of our training, I did want to ask something. Do either of you know much about growth weapons? I’d just like to know if waiting for the bone is the right move, or if I'd be better off using a cheaper material if one comes along.” he asked.

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Rieker tilted his hand back and forth.

“A little—they’re famous enough that the guild has some records that I can access, though they’re also rare enough that the notes are spotty at best and more than a little vague.” Rieker replied.

“In essence, yes, it’s probably worth it. Both Ro and myself spent the last few days reading as much as we could, and it seems like the first development of a growth item is the most impactful, and the easiest to get. The results seem to be based on the materials used, and once they’re awakened, improving their rarity is the effort of a lifetime, and improving their rank is tied to your own. Though, I'm not sure of the specifics beyond that.” Rieker replied, his gravelly voice filling the room.

Kaius nodded. That cemented the matter in his mind. He had to get that bone, even if he was forced to use a replacement blade for a little while. Hopefully he wouldn’t, but no matter his sentimental attachment to his weapon, he would not let that get in the way of practicality.

…

“Well, if that’s all settled, it’s time to discuss your training.” Ro said, drawing their attention away from their current and future rewards.

Ro was as focused as ever, her stern features demanding their attention.

“Last time, we focused on your general skills. That was important, they’re the foundation of your strength, and were abysmally low. Now, however, our focus is shifting. Your class skills—they’re the core of your abilities, and drastically impact the actual threat you can bring to bear. The next few missions will be much more aligned to your strengths. Single, powerful targets.” Ro continued, before she stood up and began to pace back and forth.

Kaius had noticed that about her. She seemed incapable of sitting still whenever she was working through a thread in her mind.

“Improving your ability to hit hard has become even more important with you sharing the existence of Honours. There is only one additional one we can be certain of—killing a monster a hundred levels above you before you reach tier two. That is a lethal challenge—even with your strength, that will require much preparation and the selection of the correct foe. We will help, but your best chance will be to stall out at level two-hundred and cap your skills first—something you will want to do anyway.”

Ro came to a stop, turning and focusing her attention on Kaius.

“Your goal for the next couple weeks will be your glyphs. They are curious things, but you’re using them without much skill.”

Kaius clenched his jaw, suppressing his urge to bristle defensively at Ro’s criticism.

“I see that look—trust me, greenhorn. Your magic may be new, and you’ve already mentioned how little influence you have over them with mana manipulation. That is one thing, but even runewrights can influence their workings with focused intention and will.”

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Kaius looked at her in surprise. That was news to him, Father had never mentioned anything of the sort.

“You can?” he asked with a quiet voice, his surprise mirrored by his team.

Ro nodded. “You can. It’s not something that’s taught to new students—it’s barely worth mentioning when it’s only useful with significant Intelligence and Will. Let alone that by the time it’s truly viable everyone almost invariably discovers it anyway.”

“You’ll be focusing on trying to control how your lash moves, and what the secondary arcs target. For your evasive skill, you should focus on trying to influence the timing of the flickers. It’ll be far more useful that way.” the guild manager continued.

Digesting her words, Kaius mulled the thought over in his mind. In a way, it made sense. One thing that he did know was that all forms of magic had some level of interconnection with every other. A lot of the grey areas had fallen into place with his discovery of glyph-binding, but the influence of free casting on the art had been mysterious.

Mana manipulation was almost useless, but it seemed the dominance of Will in free casting bled over to his own art.

He gave Ro a swift nod, determined to discover what he could of what she had mentioned. Every edge was something he could use to grow strong, even if it was difficult.

“Do not expect great results. Even for you, I doubt you’ll see anything extraordinary. However, it is highly likely that stressing your skills in such a way will be fantastic for their growth—potentially enough for you to strive for your next spells.” Rieker interjected, throwing a little cold water on his growing fire.

Ro nodded. “It’s true, but the earlier you start, the quicker you will grow adept at the skill.”

Then the guild manager switched her focus to Ianmus, the half-elf straightening in his chair as the force of her personality was brought to bear.

“Ianmus, your focus will be on your beam spell—the quicker you can start to fire additional rays, the quicker you will be able to actually assist. While your team will likely outstrip you in pure firepower for some time, the ability to fully blind something in a single cast will be invaluable. Additionally, I expect you to be using your Hypercharged Spell metamagic continuously—with its scaling you should be aiming to reach a point where it is something you can use consistently.”

Ianmus nodded, accepting Ro’s direction.

Pacing the room once more, she stopped with a snap of her heels on the hardwood floor, spinning to Porkchop.

“Unfortunately, due to the nature of the skill, we won’t be able to effectively train your Bulwark’s Challenge—my advice is to use it as often as you can in a real combat scenario, even against those that serve no significant threat to your team.”

Porkchop winced—Kaius knew that his brother had been wanting to improve the skill, it was the first he’d received that helped to truly define his role as a Bastion.

“What will I be focusing on instead?” Porkchop asked.

“Your armour—you’re right on the verge of a development, and if we focus on it completely we just might be able to edge out a second one. The additional coverage will do much to shore up your weaknesses.”

Kaius gave Porkchop a look of pity. There was only one way for his brother to rank that skill up—getting hit hard, often. It sounded like he was in for a rough few weeks.

Porkchop rolled his eyes at Kaius, but gave Ro a brief nod.

“Good—I'll give you one thing, few people would so willingly sign themselves up for that. At the very least, you’ll give Ianmus opportunity to practice his healing, which will be good for his Solar Manipulation and Hypercharged Spell.” Ro replied.

“What of our resources?” Ianmus asked. “If Kaius and I are going to be casting so much, we’ll be burning through mana like it’s water.”

“We’ll provide potions.” Rieker said, his gruff voice cutting through the room. “You’re worthy of investment, but even if you weren’t, the secrets you have shared today have brought you much. The largest rewards will have to wait until we enact our planned program, but you’ve earned yourself a few training aids, to say the least.”

His attention flicked to Kaius. “You’ll also be drinking more toxins. No point wasting time when we can level up your resistance and healing skills at the same time, though you’ve already burnt through the stock of readily available affinities, so I doubt we’ll be adding more resistances.”

Kaius groaned inwardly. He knew he should be thankful—tonics were not cheap—but he couldn’t help but dread the experience of feeling his body dissolve from the inside out.

At the very least, it would be good to train his focus through the distraction.

Rieker grinned at his obvious distaste. “Life sucks, boy. May as well get used to it before you have to do it while something is trying to eat you.”

Done with his teasing, Rieker focused on Porkchop.

“Now, you mentioned you needed help with your Aspect—care to explain? I’d be more than happy to help right after this if I can.”

Porkchop perked up, excitedly launching into an explanation of his insights into Corporus. How it was centred in the physical body—and how he believed he needed to force himself to overcome his physical limits if he wanted a hope of igniting it.

Rieker leaned back, scratching his chin. After several moments, he slowly started to speak.

“Well…I have one idea. It’d be dangerous…but it’d definitely work.”

Ro snapped her eyes towards the guildmaster, narrowing them dangerously. Kaius swallowed, impressed that Rieker took the look without even flinching.

“Rieker, you can’t seriously be thinking of that, can you?”

The guildmaster shrugged. “What? It’s right there, isn’t it? Sounds bloody perfect to me.”

“It’s meant for the transition to Silver!”

“It’s also meant for higher races, not a greater beast hopped up on Honours and an obscenely strong class. He’s a big boy, he can take it—at worst I'll just yank him out before he dies.”

Ro gave the guildmaster a withering look. The kind that Kaius half expected to eat made its way through the man's head, and the wall behind him.

Kaius looked between Rieker and Ro with a moderate amount of alarm—whatever they were talking about, it seemed serious—especially if Ro was concerned for Porkchop’s safety.

“What, exactly, are you talking about?” Kaius asked cautiously.

“The Trial of Will.” Rieker and Ro replied simultaneously.