The Stubborn Skill-Grinder In A Time Loop

Chapter 40: Rooting Out Spies

A week had passed.

It was almost surprising to Orodan, how much growth and gains could be made in a singular week where he abused time dilation chambers. But then again, a number of the skills he’d picked up hadn’t gone through specialized education and dedicated learning time prior to this long loop. His tutors had all been a bit intimidated at the fact that he could work endlessly for days with no need for rest, and that was also a big contributor to his gains.

Cleaning had gained a level, going from 78 to 79. Even though the rate of level gain had slowed down a bit, Orodan hadn’t really encountered the bottleneck most people experienced at level 75 of a skill, where every level after was a true chore to acquire without life and death combat or innovations and breakthroughs. He chalked it up to his deep understanding and natural talent for the skill and had an inkling that crossing into the Master-level for it wouldn’t be an issue either. His Vision of Purity had also increased from 45 to 47.

As for his crafts, Woodworking and Alchemy had gained a level each from 58 to 59 and 57 to 58 respectively. Enchanting and Blacksmithing had gained two levels from 41 to 43 and 35 to 37 respectively; and Jewelcrafting had made a jump of four levels from 23 to 27. His Tool Mastery had also gained, going from 60 to 61, which in Orodan’s opinion was an excellent general skill which made picking up any tool-based craft rather easy for him now.

Wood Communion had also crossed the threshold and become an Adept-level skill, from 49 to 50. The quality of wood he could empower now, was truly monstrous, and Vespidia came by to caution him against giving his tutor a ‘gift’ as it made the man a target for covetous people.

One particular skill that’d experienced stellar growth, was Teaching. It went from 12 to 21, and his students were both thankful and miserable for it. Zukelmux and Aliya had both measurably improved, although for the goblin any skills he’d hit level 75 in naturally slowed down due to the bottleneck. Aliya however had made excellent progress in Staff Mastery, and Orodan began giving her spears and halberds to train with as well. His students would soon be due for an excursion somewhere to get some more live combat experience. Zukelmux would be easy enough; Orodan would simply accompany him to the deep depths and supervise the goblin as he fought various monsters.

Aliya, however, would be slightly trickier as he’d have to find a good Level I infestation site and watch her closely. Then again, he needn’t be too concerned as the girl had been sneaking into monster infestations by herself before she met him.

His progress in Space Mastery was coming along well, and in just three more weeks Orodan felt it was due for a breakthrough. However, his favorite book had taken to multi-tasking during those sessions, and he’d made some excellent magical gains.

Draconic Fireball went from 19 to 21, Flare went from 29 to 32, becoming an Apprentice-level skill, Fire Magic Mastery went from 4 to 8 and Draconic Mana Channelling increased from 46 to 47. Without Agathor’s Blessing infesting his soul, and with dedicated training time, Orodan could make some good gains in magic skills. Much as he hated to admit it, he could probably become a mage of great power if he continued on this course. He was already monstrously powerful when combining his endless power generation with magic and his action increases. Just how strong could he be if he brought his magical skills up to par with his martial ones?

He felt close to acquiring a skill for mental combat as the book engaged in mental attacks against him, but his companion told him it was harder since he was using the soul as a medium to access the mind. Progress would’ve been faster if he had a skill to directly read a mind alone.

“This month, I’m focusing on my crafts and magical skills,” Orodan said. “But from next month, after I’ve gotten the breakthrough and acquired Space Mastery, I plan on using the time blocks I have for crafting to instead hone my physical skills.”

“Such dogged insistence on honing your body,” his companion spoke. “Don’t you think you have enough muscles?”

“If I recall, you said that I’m limited only by how much my body can take,” Orodan replied. “Then it’s about time I focus on honing skills like Body Tempering, Physical Fitness, Harmony of Vitality, Bulwark Physical Resistance and the like. In the past, using Endless Blitz alongside All-Strikes would bring my body to ruin, but I’ve come far since those days. That doesn’t mean I can slack on honing my body however.”

“For once, I agree with your meat-headed methods,” she replied. “I’m sure there are valuable artifacts in this place which can help.”

“Yes, the wealth of Novarria in comparison to the Republic… is quite staggering,” Orodan said. “Hearing that the Republic is a mere secessionist offshoot is one thing, but seeing the wealth present at the heartland of Novarria is stark proof of that fact.”

“Bah! You haven’t seen true wealth yet, boy,” she replied. “Back in my day entire cities were made of gold and precious jewels.”

Their conversation was interrupted however, as a familiar figure came to the door of the training chamber. Orodan got to his feet and received the visitor.

“You usually travel with that invisibility skill of yours,” Orodan remarked. “The sudden appearance of manners is a surprise.”

Vespidia gave him an unamused look in response.

“I stopped once I realized you can detect me every time. You ruined my fun,” she spoke. “His Majesty also warned me to be very nice to you, so I suppose this is me following orders.”

“Anyhow, to what do I owe this pleasure?” Orodan asked.

“I believe you spoke to his Majesty a week ago about offering your talents towards dealing with a certain issue?” she asked, and Orodan nodded. “Well, that time has come, and we’d like to ask for your help.”

“Why does it not surprise me in the least that you’re a part of the Novarrian Intelligence Service?” Orodan asked. “Sneaking about, turning invisible, and stabbing people does lend rather well to such a line of work, no?”

“While your line of reasoning is correct, officially, I’m not part of the Intelligence Service,” Vespidia clarified. “Actual operatives of the service are tied up with bureaucracy, paperwork, reports and boring field work which involves stake-outs and month-long investigations. I have better things to do than that. However, I do get calls for situations which require a specialized skillset.”

“Such as ensuring a dagger finds its way into someone’s skull?”

“Among other things. We all have our specific talents, yours involve cleaning the entire citadel, and mine involves work of a clandestine nature” Vespidia replied. “The head of the citadel’s maids was complaining to me a few days ago, about how you’ll put her out of a job.”

“She could stand to do a better job of reaching the impurities on a particulate level then,” Orodan replied. “Better to not clean at all if a half-baked job is done.”

“You certainly don’t believe in half-measures do you, Orodan Wainwright?” she asked. “What of that skill of yours which allows you to affect the soul? How far can you push that? Can you cleanse any impurity?”

“For now… I hone it in the hopes of being able to clean a Blessing out of someone’s soul,” Orodan spoke. “A friend of mine is under unwanted divine influence, and I intend to rescue him.”

“…truly?” she asked and then remained silent for a bit, choosing her next words carefully. “Then, if the day comes where you become capable of it… I hope I’m not too rude in asking for your aid. I too have need of such an ability, although much work will need to be done before it can work the way I need it to.”

“I see… I don’t necessarily have a problem with it as long as you tell me what exactly it’s for,” Orodan replied. “Is it perhaps in relation to a certain imprisoned Goddess?”

Immediately, her face changed, and she gave him a very sharp look.

“You speak of things you shouldn’t know of. Has the emperor told you?” she asked. “Who are you really?”

“I’m just a warrior on a journey of learning,” Orodan replied. “Why can it not be just that?”

“You broach a very sensitive subject that’s very near to my heart,” she replied. “There’s no way you’re just some wandering warrior either. You barge into Novar’s Peak, force your way past all our Grandmasters and Avatars and breach the emperor’s meditation chamber. Then, you somehow leave alive, and the emperor expressly orders us to assist you with whatever you may need. He hasn’t deigned to tell me or Demosthenos anything about you… but keep your secrets, our monarch must deem it critical enough that even we haven’t been informed.”

“Would it make you feel better if I said I’m stuck in a time loop?” Orodan asked.

“While it would explain the lack of transformation potion, your jests come at an inopportune time,” Vespidia spoke, and then looked at him curiously, thinking. “Unless… that wasn’t a joke?”

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Orodan had never been the type of person who could keep his mouth shut about the time loops anyways. Moving forward like a bull, both in combat and in social settings was how he operated.

“It wasn’t. I really am stuck in a time loop that begins on the day of the ancient machine’s awakening underneath Mount Castarian,” Orodan revealed. “You don’t detect any transformations because there are none. I really am, physically at least, just seventeen years of age.”

Vespidia remained silent for a while. She looked at him, looked at the ground, and then at him again before she spoke once more.

“No wonder his Majesty is so polite to you…” she muttered. “I won’t even question the mechanics or truth of it. If our emperor believed it, then it must be true.”

“Such faith in Balastion? He seems to be a reasonable man in general,” Orodan spoke. “I don’t think he’s polite to me just because I’m in a time loop.”

“Yes, his Majesty is gracious, but if you can travel through time over and over again… then making an enemy of you would be the height of stupidity. We’d never see our destruction coming,” she spoke. “But if we were to treat you well… the benefits could be endless.”

“You’re awfully accepting of this. Usually, it takes a two hour conversation where I have to detail everything I’ve done, the secrets I’m privy to, all I’ve learned, my Quests, and so on before people truly accept it,” Orodan said. “You’re just… believing me?”

“As I said, I know our emperor has a powerful skill which can verify the truth. And your level of power lines up with the idea,” she said. “What I really do want to know though… is have you met me in prior loops?”

“Just once during the Inter-Academy Tournament in my last long loop,” Orodan answered. “And you seemed rather fixated on striking out against any divine competitors there. Against me you tried using your fancy dagger which can supposedly sever the connection between Avatar and divinity, but it didn’t work; mainly because I don’t call upon external power.”

“Of course you’d know about that too,” Vespidia spoke. “Did I tell you anything else? About my past life?”

“No, because I never told you about my time loops in that long loop of mine,” Orodan replied. “I was more focused on winning against Othorion Evertree and preparing to face the Eldritch Avatar upon its descent in Guzuhar.”

“You fought the elf? How strong was he? Did you push him to call upon the peak of his power?” she desperately questioned.

“I did, and he was decently strong if a little unskilled and not quite good at actual combat, I don’t know if you’d stand a chance against him though,” Orodan said, and she frowned not in offense, but in contemplation. “I pushed him all the way till he had to temporarily give control to Faraine in his final attack, which was when my skill which returns damage crossed dimensions to harm her directly. She broke free for a moment till two elven Avatars immediately showed up and interrupted the battle to bring her under control.”

“A skill which can harm Gods? How unfairly powerful…” she muttered. “But this is great news, excellent even! Knowing that she can be freed through harming her into awareness opens up many possibilities.”

“Don’t tell me-”

“Orodan Wainwright, will you help me free Faraine during the Inter-Academy Tournament? I will forever be in your debt!”

“Absolutely not! Especially if it involves me competing,” Orodan immediately stated. “I have no desire to waste my time fighting students again.”

“Then-”

“And have you considered the resulting war that would occur? I can’t imagine the Gods of Eldiron would be pleased if you managed to free a God they’ve been keeping captive for how long now,” Orodan warned. “Yes, I do enjoy a good fight, but fighting the Gods of a different continent might cause a whole lot of death.”

“Far from it, now would actually be the best time to make such moves,” Vespidia argued. “With the descent of the Eldritch threat, the Council of Aldenil won’t want to commit to any fights which risk a loss of military power. Why do you think the emperor was willing to allow your aid in rooting out their spies? Now’s the best opportunity we have without them thinking to react too strongly.”

“Yes, but there’s a difference between rooting out spies and freeing a strategic weapon of theirs,” Orodan countered. “Not to mention, I doubt Faraine will look upon the Elven Gods too favorably after. How can you be confident they won’t escalate upon the loss of a weapon and the creation of a new enemy?”

“Because she’s been imprisoned and exploited for long enough!”

It wasn’t really an argument, but an emotional outburst.

In truth, even though Orodan seemed to be arguing against it, he was gradually liking the idea of stirring the pot a bit himself. Freeing a Goddess would doubtlessly put him in her good graces, and there was plenty of information he could glean. Namely, who the coward was thirty-thousand years ago. But among other things, receiving advice and perhaps even tutelage from a Goddess who was older than the Prime Five, and who hopefully wasn’t out to manipulate or control him, would be worth quite a bit.

But mainly, Orodan enjoyed the thought of humbling arrogant Gods who acted in a domineering manner. He wasn’t sure when, but he’d developed a taste for humiliating the divine. And what better way to do it than by setting an imprisoned Goddess free from under their noses?

“Well, I suppose the Inter-Academy Tournament is rather close to the time the Eldritch will be descending,” Orodan spoke. “Even if someone were to accidentally set Faraine free, would the Elven Gods even want to risk a fight so close to the descent of the strongest enemy they’ve seen?”

Vespidia looked at him a bit suspiciously.

“And you’re agreeing to help me with this? After all that back and forth arguing you did about why it isn’t a good idea?” she asked.

“Well, I was mainly against the idea of me competing in another Tournament,” Orodan replied. “I’m still not competing, if that’s your plan. I’ll happily swoop in and receive Othorion’s assault once he gives control over to Faraine, but there’s no way you’re powerful enough to force him to that last resort.”

“Then how else do you expect to free Faraine? If Othorion is as strong as you say, then the only one capable of bringing him to the point of relinquishing control, would be you,” Vespidia spoke. “You might as well say you aren’t going to help.”

“Come now, I didn’t take you for the damsel in distress. I would honestly say you were either the second or third strongest competitor in that Tournament,” Orodan quipped. Maybe Akelrim was her better, maybe not. “In six months, I think we could get you strong enough to force Othorion to go all-out. Being a reincarnated old hag, you’re already at the Grandmaster-level, aren’t you? It can’t be too hard to push you to dual-Grandmaster, no?”

“While I admit, my second highest skill is at level 99 and of legendary rarity, there’s no way it will hit 100 in just six months,” Vespidia explained. “I feel you’re making excuses.”

“Do you really want me to swoop in and solve all your problems for you?” Orodan asked. “I need levels in Teaching, and you’re an excellent case study for what I’d need to do in order to get someone else I care about to the dual-Grandmaster level as well. How about this… I train you hard, and by the end of the six months if you still can’t force Othorion to unleash his full power, I’ll handle the issue myself. Until then however, we’ll work on developing you to the limit. That man uses divine power cheaply and freely, however he’s not very good in actual combat, his skills and fundamentals are woefully lacking. If you worked hard, you could surmount the difference.”

“You’re a strange man Orodan Wainwright… but I suppose I can agree to this,” Vespidia spoke. “Will you put me through many hours of boring meditation and take me all over the world in the hopes of granting me insights?”

“Meditation? Traveling?” Orodan asked with a bewildered look on his face. “The only meditation you’ll be doing is upon the chaos of life and death battle, although traveling to fight various foes does sound fun.”

“You… I’m not in a time loop, you know?” she said. “Do you think us Grandmasters get to the ages we are by engaging in such risky behaviour?”

“No, and I won’t deny that taking it slow and steady is the logical move,” Orodan said. “But I’ll be accompanying you, and we have six months to get you up to par. Besides, the stronger I get you, the better our odds against the Eldritch Avatar.”

Well, technically anyways. Orodan doubted Vespidia becoming even ten times more powerful would make a difference in the battle against that thing.

“Fine, I suppose that’s acceptable,” Vespidia said, and then she smiled. “Was there anything else you wanted to know?”

“Yes actually, you never told me about your part in the matter of Faraine,” Orodan said. “You seem awfully attached to her.”

“…I was host to her Avatar. I was the Chosen of Faraine fifteen-thousand years ago.”

Orodan about expected that answer. It made sense now, how Vespidia had been able to bypass his second Blessing of Agathor at the time. She had a Blessing from Faraine that dealt with a contradictory concept of fleeing, and when two Blessings sought to do opposing things, the one from the stronger God won out.

And given that the Elven Gods were all rather old, it didn’t surprise Orodan that Faraine’s Blessing superseded Agathor’s.

“Hmm, that explains a lot about why you hate Gods,” Orodan remarked.

“I don’t hate all Gods… just the Elven ones,” Vespidia remarked. “Anyhow, we’re getting off-topic. Thank you for agreeing to help me free Faraine; now onto what I originally came here for.”

“Which is assisting the Novarrian Intelligence Service?”

“Yes, and on the way, you can tell me more about this time loop you’re stuck in,” Vespidia remarked. “Now come, I have a plan to smoke out potential infiltrators at headquarters. I’m told your ability to interact with souls is profound and could help identify compromised individuals.”

The Novarrian Intelligence Service’s headquarters wasn’t a gaudy building that spoke of power. Rather it was one of the smallest and most unassuming towers in the royal district. In fact…

“I sense the discrepancies; this entire tower is an illusion isn’t it?” Orodan asked. “Must cost a decent amount of energy to keep that running continually.”

“It does, but it’s a price we gladly pay,” Vespidia remarked. “Of course, anyone with a detection skill worth something can tell there’s something wrong, and the location isn’t exactly a secret either.”

“True, who needs the headquarters of a national organization to remain hidden when the citadel is right next to it?” Orodan said. “I doubt any attackers or enemy operatives could deal with the response right next to the throne.”

“That… and our actual black sites and sensitive locations are carefully protected secrets which only a handful of people know,” she spoke. “It would take even you a decent number of loops to become privy to the secrets of those.”

“Well, consider one secret discovered then. I’ve been looking at it for at least a few minutes now… but I can tell there are certain minute particles in the headquarters that are actually spatial passages to somewhere,” Orodan spoke, and Vespidia’s eyes almost imperceptibly widened. “It’s rather well-hidden, using some of the smallest particles as an anchor for a spatial tunnel is rather well done, and I can’t sense any energy emissions either. I’d wager multiple Grandmasters of space had to work on those, no?”

“I wasn’t aware you’d become so well-versed in spatiomancy,” Vespidia remarked.

“I’m not skilled in it yet, but I’ve been reading about the theoretical foundations,” Orodan spoke. Even though he was trying to acquire the rare and hard to develop Space Mastery, it still involved boring theory-work in text books. “Besides, it’s my Vision of Purity which allows me to notice such things, all down to the smallest particle.”

“A powerful skill, I ask you keep its existence hidden for now as we hope to catch certain people unaware today,” she replied. “In fact I-”

Orodan cut her off as he detected multiple wisps of impure mana headed his way. Not a damaging spell, and nor could mana truly pose a threat to him any longer, but the purpose of these impure wisps was different. Meant to spy.

Absolute Soul Dominion shot out and surrounded the wisps of mana, Orodan poised to annihilate them entirely.

“Wait! Do you detect mana packets?” Vespidia asked in a whisper, and Orodan nodded. “Destroying those would tip off whoever sent the probe out. Can you tell me what you sense about them? Their structure? How the mana flows within them?”

Orodan frowned and concentrated. He wasn’t versed in the theory of mana structure, and even if he was, he likely wasn’t as knowledgeable as Vespidia who could apparently tell what the spell was based off of mana structure. Yet, he focused all the same. Vision of Purity was great at detecting impurities, and as almost everything had some minute amount of impurity, it was possible to see most of the picture.

However, it wasn’t yet at the level where he could tell the internal structure of a wisp of mana. Perhaps if the caster was less skilled and the mana less pure, but as it stood, somebody with a decent amount of skill had cast the spell. Eager to sniff out just who was approaching.

“I can’t tell you much, as my skill doesn’t work like that… but from the movements of the impurities… mana seems to be flowing inwards, in a circular motion, gathering into the center to pulse out a signal, and then flowing outwards once more,” Orodan answered.

[Vision of Purity 47 → Vision of Purity 48]

A welcome gain from pushing the skill in an unorthodox manner.

“Alright, likely the Mage Eye spell, capturing both visual and auditory input,” Vespidia warned. “Follow my lead and give nothing away.”

It was a common favorite of scouts, assassins and those specializing in espionage. However, any areas of importance were warded against them, and anti-scrying wards targeted the Mage Eye spell among a suite of other common surveillance methods. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that anti-scrying wards were the second most ubiquitous ward type, right after anti-teleportation wards.

And if someone was able to cast the Mage Eye spell on them in the middle of the royal district, then that could only mean that this unknown party was keyed into the wards. Which suggested an inside watcher, snooping on anyone approaching the headquarters of the Novarrian Intelligence Service.

“Alright, I’m with you,” Orodan replied.

“Mister Wainwright, I look forward to giving you a tour of headquarters,” Vespidia spoke. “Some of the research we’ve been focusing on is ground-breaking, and I hope it catches your eye.”

“Good, good,” Orodan replied. “I can’t wait.”

They walked forward, chatting about various unrelated topics which didn’t give much away as they walked into a wall, which was in fact the actual entrance to the illusionary tower which was the headquarters of the Novarrian Intelligence Service. Upon crossing, the sight wasn’t what he was expecting.

A fairly sizeable front lobby, with a receptionist manning the desk, and behind that, multiple doors leading to various parts of the building.

“Miss Vespidia! We’re happy to have you with us,” the receptionist, a diminutive woman, likely a halfling, spoke while looking at Vespidia. “Here to assist with the yearly equipment audits?”

“Of course, someone has to ensure the gear is properly cycled in and out,” Vespidia replied. “Not that I’ll be doing any of the paperwork though.”

“Hehe, of course… and your guest, is that…?”

“Mister Orodan Wainwright? Yes, this is him,” Vespidia replied. “Just giving him a tour of the facility.”

The halfling’s eyes held a hint of curiosity and awe. She, like many others, knew the news that Orodan had stormed the imperial citadel and barged right in, only to be let off the hook later as though nothing was the matter. People had their conspiracy theories as to who he was, but one of the more popular ones was that he was a deep undercover member of the Novarrian Intelligence Service, so deep that nobody recognized him until he stood before the emperor himself.

A part of the theory was correct, save for the minor detail that Orodan had presented himself before the first emperor and not the currently serving one. He also wasn’t a member of the Intelligence Service, although he was certainly lending fuel to that theory by being seen here.

In any case, whether they believed him a returned agent or something else, Orodan’s sudden arrival and continued presence in Novarria was the talk of the city. Vespidia had informed him that plenty of nobility and people of power within various echelons of Novarria’s government were attempting to scope him out, kept at bay only by the first emperor’s command which Vespidia and Demosthenos enforced.

“Anyhow, shall we?” Orodan asked as he remained aware of the small wisps of mana still nearby.

The purity of mana was influenced by multiple factors. The Mana Manipulation and Mana Mastery skills contributed, as did the skill level of the spell the caster was using. As a result, Orodan had never found a truly pure source of mana. Soul energy was often pure as it came directly from the source, but mana was not, not unless someone had achieved true Grandmastery in many skills, and Orodan had yet to meet such a being.

They progressed on through the headquarters, and Orodan was surprised to see such an ‘office’ looking environment. Most operatives really did just spend their days behind a desk, monitoring things through special devices and scrying eye feeds, doing paperwork, making calls via communications amulet, and liaising with colleagues and seniors. This wasn’t to say that they were slacking however, as operatives at headquarters would train daily and often.

However, field work was something that required care and preparation. Vespidia had told him that a newly trained Adept-level operative could go their first year without any field work if their superiors thought their skill levels too low or their mentality unsuitable. Unlike adventuring, the military or the imperial guard, a conflict-prone mentality was frowned upon in the Intelligence Service as it went against the delicate nature of the work and the need to keep things subtle.

Finally, the two of them reached a large equipment room where a group of supply staff were taking inventory of various weapons, devices, and gear pieces. Just behind a gate, however, was a line of operatives waiting to trade their old and worn gear in for the new.

“Ma’am, we’re ready to begin this year’s audit,” one of the armorers spoke. “Er… is that-”

“Change of plans, sorry Vespidia, but we may have to improvise a bit,” Orodan said.

What Orodan hadn’t told Vespidia so far, was that he’d been monitoring the entire headquarters using Vision of Purity, and the moment the two of them entered the supply room, two individuals immediately attempted subtle exits of the building.

It was too far to use Absolute Soul Dominion. Powerful as the skill was, it had range limitations.

One tried teleporting out, and All-Consuming Rage reached out to the other end of the headquarters to drain the man’s mana completely and cancel the portal, and the other was near a window and attempted to jump out.

A quick cast of Whirlpool Whirlwind from his right hand, and both were smashed into walls while being pulled in the direction of Orodan.

“Where are they?” Vespidia asked.

“One’s in an office, third floor, the other on the ground floor,” Orodan answered. “They should both be rather hurt. I don’t think your operatives are built for getting slammed into walls.”

Vespidia nodded and the communications amulet around her neck glowed. Soon, five swift rogues clad in dark attire flashed into the room, looking every bit the stereotypical assassins used for clandestine work.

“Capture the two who attempted to flee,” she commanded, and the five shadowy enforcers vanished. She then turned to Orodan. “You know… I had the entire perimeter set up with a detection ward designed to warn me of and track any targets who attempted to exit within a certain period of time. But I don’t think I’d have caught the Mage Eyes listening in without your help… and if they could cast those, then whoever did that could teleport out as well, bypassing my ward.”

“The one on the third floor did try to teleport, but I stopped that by draining his mana and cancelling the portal,” Orodan replied and Vespidia looked both impressed and wary that he could do such a thing. “He must’ve been keyed into the wards, high-ranking then. Just how deep does this intelligence war go that they’ve managed to infiltrate so deeply?”

“Handy skill you have there, remind me to never get on your bad side,” she said. “As for this mess… we’ve let it fester for long enough, but today, we’ll be cleaning house.”

Within minutes, the two suspected infiltrators whose timing of exit was rather suspect, were bound and brought before Vespidia and him.

“V-vice Director…” one of the armorers muttered.

Vespidia’s amulet glowed, and a portal opened up beside her. A man with a twirly mustache and green eyes stepped out.

“Venerio, these are the two we found,” Vespidia spoke. “Can you infiltrate their minds?”

“Yes, but divest them of their regalia and jewelry first,” the man spoke. “I sense anti-psionic enchantments, and the Vice Director always was one of my better students on the cusp of reaching the Master-level… a shame.”

Orodan’s hand twisted in the motion of Whirlpool Whirlwind once more and all enchanted items he detected on both were ripped right off and flew to his outstretched hand. Venerio gave him an appreciative nod and a look of interest.

Soon, the work began. This man, Venerio, was doubtlessly a Psionic of great skill. His targets were swiftly struck and the entire affair lasted less than two seconds.

“Well?” Vespidia asked.

“Good news and bad news,” Venerio spoke. “The good news is that neither of these two willingly betrayed Novarria, their minds bear the trace of psionic manipulation.”

“Good, the vetting process for the Intelligence Service is rigorous and I doubt either of these two were disloyal to begin with,” Vespidia spoke. “But… what’s the bad news?”

“The bad news is these elven psionics are damned good at their job and I don’t know how I’m supposed to attack this. Even the energy seems entirely different than what I’m used to. I can’t tell if it’s soul energy or mana,” Venerio explained. “Their psionic conditioning is rather deep rooted. Truly, how did they manage to do this under our noses? Subtle work, but quite effective and extensive. Even as a Grandmaster myself, I don’t know where to begin… was this even the work of one?”

“Perhaps I could try?” Orodan suggested. “I know nothing about mental combat… but I have a companion who can help provided you maintain secrecy. I also have a skill which can target the soul but reach the mind as a side effect.”

“Hmm, Orodan Wainwright was it? Your entry into the royal citadel was quite the eye catcher. I tried stopping you, but I don’t think you even noticed my Psionic assaults upon your mind with that resistance of yours,” Venerio spoke. “Venerio Balmento, triple-Grandmaster and the best Psionic in Novarria, at your service. Although… when facing work like this, I’m not sure I can call myself the best for much longer.”

“Balmento? Like Ilevida Balmento?” Orodan asked. “Are you perhaps related to the Headmistress of the school of Psionics at Bluefire Academy?”

“Pah! My estranged relative and her branch of the family decided to play rebel and secede alongside the Republic,” Venerio replied. “The difference in talent between us is rather apparent too. She’s still a dual-Grandmaster, while I’ve been a triple-Grandmaster Psionic for a while now. Anyhow, let’s not dwell on my trivial family affairs.”

“Alright then, I’ll delve inside and see what I can do,” Orodan said.

Preparations were made, and the two unconscious captives were taken to a secluded room where Orodan’s book companion came out.

“Boy, you truly do get into the most nonsensical of situations,” she spoke. “Well, at least you’re entertaining if nothing else.”

“Are you going to flutter about and bicker all day? Or can we get to work in purging these two of whatever psionic influences plague their minds?” Orodan asked. “Absolute Soul Dominion can get inside, but the fine work is something I’ll need advice with. I know you lack power in your current form, but I can do the heavy lifting as long as you accompany me and provide direction.”

“Hmm, for once you speak sense,” she said. “I was half-expecting you’d batter their minds into brain death and say they’d been ‘cured’. Wouldn’t be far from your usual brand of madness.”

“No, these are innocent men who were subverted by enemy psionics,” Orodan replied. “Now will you help me?”

“Alright, alright,” she spoke. “Perform the initial entry and slay their mental representation, then I’ll enter, and we can begin taking a look.”

His eyes glowed white and Absolute Soul Dominion contacted the Vice Director first.

The man must’ve been an excellent psionic for even though he was already unconscious, the man’s mental self still lived and continued attempting to defend the mindscape. The memories were rather guarded too, but the defense was moot against Orodan’s endless power and drive.

A memory of being promoted to Vice Director flashed by, and Orodan left the memory itself alone out of respect as he finally caught the man’s mental self and slew it. In the sky, subtle impurities lingered… filth not of the man’s own making.

“Do you see it? His entire mind’s corrupted,” Orodan spoke. “His soul is fine, I can verify that much, but I have no clue on how to begin clearing his mind.”

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

Orodan’s expertise lay with the soul. To combat a psionic corruption which was essentially brainwashing, wasn’t something he was currently capable of. He would need assistance to get it right on this try.

“Hmm… foul stuff,” his companion spoke as she entered. “This will take work, I’m not even sure what energy this is...”

It was Orodan’s first time seeing her form within a mindscape. And she was… something else indeed.

A ten foot tall, towering figure of feminine beauty and draconic splendor, but it was incredibly cracked, disjointed and blurry as though his companion herself didn’t know what she looked like. Certain details such as flowing silver hair and lustrous scales stood out, but aside from her mismatched white and gold eyes, nothing else was certain.

“You’re a hybrid…” Orodan said quietly. “Exus Baldrimon my breeches… you were never him.”

“Stop leering and focus, fool,” she reprimanded.

“I’m not even leering, I’ve just never seen an actual draconic hybrid before,” Orodan honestly clarified. “Well, aside from the one time I turned into one and reverted back. Anyhow… let’s focus, how can we overcome this?”

“Aside from a few dozen more loops of teaching you mental combat and psionic skills?” she asked. “I don’t quite know. Yes, there are methods to counter this form of corruption, but both would involve a psionic of higher skill than you. And this energy is strange, I’m hesitant to touch it almost. My current form lacks power, and I might take a full day in the real world to fully cleanse this man.”

Then it was possible, for as much as his companion tried to act humble. She was clearly an incredibly talented psionic herself, even in her reduced form. Still, Orodan found the solution dissatisfactory.

And the Vice Director’s mental self had reformed again, as befitting someone who was a near-Master Psionic. The man rushed towards Orodan and his book, and he was prepared to strike him down again until…

“Hold interlopers! Identify yourselves and state what you seek within my mind!” the man yelled. “I’ve already been violated and corrupted against my will once, and I’ll be damned if it goes any further!”

“Oh? We’re actually here to cleanse your mind of the rot that plagues it,” Orodan replied. “We’re cleaning house in the Intelligence Service, and you and one other operative immediately attempted to flee the moment you suspected something.”

“I see… I’ve been captured then? That’s good,” the man spoke. “At last, my body is no longer a puppet to be commanded by the enemy. I still retain a semblance of awareness despite my body being under foreign control. You must be Orodan Wainwright, your audacious entry into the city caused quite a stir, and my handlers were very intrigued, demanding I acquire more information on you.”

“Who are your handlers? Can you provide us any information that may help?” Orodan asked. “It seems you’re as against your mind being controlled as we are, so how about we work together to break this psionic control?”

“I concur, I would like nothing more than to break free, however even now the corruptive psionic methods they’ve used attempt to drag me back,” the man spoke. “I do not know how long I can remain in control until they come by and attempt to restrain me. The energy they use is exceedingly strange, I don’t know if it’s mana or soul energy.”

As the man finished, Orodan saw insidious tendrils descend from the corrupted sky of the man’s mindscape, all headed towards the Vice Director, in a bid to re-establish control.

“Damn…! Before they take me once more, one of the handlers is a half-elf! I met her at a tavern in Jerestir! They used a strange device on me, that’s all I know! She doesn’t have pointed ears either!” the Vice Director fearfully shouted as the corruption hit him once more.

Orodan decided, that would be enough.

“What if… instead of us using psionic prowess and skill to combat the corruption, we instead empowered him to fight it himself?” Orodan asked his half-dragon companion.

“And how would we do that?” she asked. “Potions which affect the soul are difficult to concoct, and I’ve never met a soul specialist who could empower the soul of another.”

“Well, that’s not entirely true,” Orodan replied. “If this works, you might be speaking to one right now.”

Which was to say, Orodan had a plan.

What was Absolute Soul Dominion? The skill had been a combination of Soul Manipulation, Soul Assault, Soul Strengthening and most importantly… Weapon Aura. As standard with all skill combinations, the prior skills weren’t lost, but simply fused into the new whole while retaining all of their previous functionality.

And what had Weapon Aura allowed him to do? Empower potions well past their intended limits during the empowerment phase.

Therefore, what if he extended that just a bit further…

…and decided to empower somebody else’s soul too?

“Hold still, this is probably going to be very painful, but you want to be free, right?” Orodan asked, and the man’s mental self nodded frantically. “Then work with me and fight, do not give in.”

Absolute Soul Dominion already had its grasp over the Vice Director’s soul. Orodan couldn’t yet get past the System barrier a quarter of the way into the soul core, but he could access the soul’s mana generation functions. It was what allowed him to freeze enemy energy generation.

However, the absolute control that came with his skill allowed him to not only freeze something but speed it up.

Which was what he began doing as he forced the Vice Director’s mana coils to churn faster than they ever had before. The man’s mental self shook and began grunting in pain.

“What are… what are you doing? The pain is tremendous!” the man roared. “Yet, I feel more power within myself than I ever have before!”

“Keep fighting!” Orodan yelled. “Don’t let your concentration lapse. I’ll ensure you have the power, just focus on combatting the corruption upon you.”

[Absolute Soul Dominion 65 → Absolute Soul Dominion 66]

Orodan maintained his iron tight focus upon the man’s mana generation as he forced the Vice Director’s soul to churn harder and harder, increasing its mana output. The man’s soul looked as though it wanted to explode, as if it would lose control, but Orodan’s absolute dominion over it held the man’s soul up and prevented him from faltering.

And slowly but surely, the man’s efforts at beating back the corruption began to bear some fruit. It struggled against large volumes of power it seemed.

“Yes… yes! If this continues, I can free myself!” the man exclaimed.

“Good, keep going and work on cleaning your mind of the foul influences,” Orodan said.

In the real world, thirty minutes had passed as the act of churning another’s soul to a level which increased their mana generation, was both time consuming and delicate work. A single slip-up in Orodan’s concentration, and a soul explosion worthy of a history book would occur, followed by the Vice Director’s demise.

Unfortunately, the power of the strange corruption looked nearly endless. Hells, it might’ve even been getting stronger, as though it drew upon power from elsewhere. Orodan wasn’t sure if the Vice Director’s willpower would hold out for the amount of time needed to beat it.

“This won’t work,” Orodan said. “We need to try something else.”

“Say, boy… don’t you have a skill that allows the return of damage, no matter the source?” his half-dragon companion asked and Orodan nodded while he still maintained focus. “You, when the tendrils attempt to strike you, divert them towards Orodan.”

The Vice Director of the Novarrian Intelligence Service nodded, and on the next assault by the now weakening tendrils, he deflected them all towards Orodan.

Which led to a discovery.

Upon hitting him, the attack was entirely useless, however, not because of his Psionic Resistance…

…but because of his Divine Resistance.

His enemies didn’t receive the benefit of his or their resistances when it came to Warrior’s Reciprocity, however. Instead, the tendrils were immediately disintegrated outright due to a more than fourfold return of damage. In the Vice Director’s corrupted mindscape which was looking cleaner now than it had at first, the corruption in the air recoiled in utter shock, as though struck, and it immediately dissipated, leaving the man’s mind entirely.

In the real world, both the Vice Director’s and Orodan’s eyes opened.

“I am myself once more!” Thank y-”

“No time! Orodan, the corruption seeks to destroy the other one’s mind, jump into this one next!” his companion spoke while fluttering about with her pages whipping wildly.

He must’ve targeted the caster of the divine mind corruption directly via Warrior’s Reciprocity, and while they may or may not have been aware before, they certainly knew what was going on now. And if the sudden turbulence within the lower ranking operative’s mind was any indication, the other brainwashed agent wasn’t going to have a good time.

Orodan swiftly grabbed the soul of the other unconscious operative in the room via Absolute Soul Dominion and saw the problem; the corruption within the man’s mind was decaying it and eroding all of the man’s memories.

“Damn, I’m not sure how to stop this,” Orodan remarked. “Maybe I can force his soul to absorb the memories from his mind?”

“It’s worth a try, I’ll enter his mind and begin directing the memories towards the soul. While I do that, you use your skill to ensure his soul absorbs them swiftly,” his half-dragon companion said.

Like that, the two of them got to work simultaneously operating on the man’s mind and soul in a valorous effort to save his mindscape and memories from being entirely destroyed. Whichever being cast such a high-level and insidious thing, was dangerous. Orodan was beginning to develop a dislike towards Psionics and it might soon become a branch of magic he abhorred much as he did necromancy.

Memories could exist both within the mind and within the soul. Someone’s core memories related to their identity, their family, loved ones and with those whom they had deep bonds, naturally existed with their soul too. As a result, people who suffered mental assaults which wiped their memories clean could procure the services of a soul specialist to retrieve their important memories. Not only that, but sometimes the important memories within the soul would naturally return without any specialist intervention.

For soul specialists and those in excellent tune with their soul, such as Orodan, the mind and soul were the same thing. Even if Orodan’s mind was shattered or the outer layer of his soul destroyed, he held full confidence that his memories would return upon reforming his soul’s outer layer once more. For the average person however, they held only core memories important to them within their soul, and other things could take a long time, or emotional attachment, in order to become part of the soul.

Orodan and his companion’s hope then, was to use this fact and try to stow the man’s memories inside of his soul expediently.

Soon, Orodan felt the first of the man’s recent memories arrive, and Absolute Soul Dominion forced the operative’s soul to expand. The man screamed in pain, both in the real world and in his mindscape, but this was to spare him from a worse fate. This lower-level operative wasn’t skilled enough in mental combat or Psionic skills to fight off the corruption, even with the current level of empowerment Orodan was capable of. Unfortunate as it was, the man’s mind would be wiped clean, and he’d need to undergo treatment.

The good news however was that in wiping the man’s mind clean, the corruption had also eradicated itself and there was no further need for Orodan to act.

[Absolute Soul Dominion 66 → Absolute Soul Dominion 67]

They’d managed to save the majority of the man’s recent memories by shoving them into his soul by the time the corruption completed its destructive course of action and wiped itself out in the process.

The liberated Vice Director attempted to jump into the operative’s mind and help as well, but he wasn’t a Master Psionic yet, and compared to his companion, not nearly the contributor she was.

In the real world, Orodan sighed and held a frown on his face.

“Don’t have such a look on your face, this was one of the best outcomes such a situation could’ve had,” his companion spoke. “We saved most of his memories, and his core ones important to him are within his soul to begin with. Treatment from a soul specialist will see him sorted out well enough.”

“Perhaps, but it’s still not ideal,” Orodan replied. “In time, I hope to hone my ability to combat this sort of divine corruption. I wasn’t aware such skills existed which allowed someone to hold people as hostages within their own minds.”

“In truth sir, even we were caught unaware by this terrifying psionic ability of theirs. The might of Eldiron is great, and who knows what other secrets and weapons the south-east has in store,” the man spoke. “But, most importantly, allow me to thank you for saving me. I am Kalemar Cosanox, Vice Director of the Novarrian Intelligence Service. I do not know how long this entire situation would have gone on for had you not acted today, Mister Wainwright. Let us reconvene with my colleagues outside, I am sure they’ll want to see our progress, alongside subjecting me to a battery of tests to verify my integrity of mind and loyalty.”

Orodan picked up the unconscious operative and went outside with Kalemar, his companion had flitted back into his spatial ring a while ago. Frankly, the matter of her identity was a concern for another time, interesting as it was.

Vespidia Aulmalexis and Venerio Balmento were waiting for them.

“So, you’re both awake and walking free, Kalemar?” Venerio asked. “I take it that means he’s been scoured of the foul influence which had infected him Mister Wainwright? I don’t know how you managed that when even I could not.”

“I don’t think I could’ve managed it the normal way either. At first, I tried empowering the Vice Director to fight the corruption himself… but while it went well initially, the power of the psionic corruption looked endless,” Orodan answered. “We then had tried re-directing the tendrils to assault me directly, and I have a skill which can return damage to the caster no matter where they are or what medium is used.”

“A risky gamble…” Venerio muttered.

“But one that paid off,” Orodan said. “Upon harming the source of the corruption, it immediately left Kalemar’s mind. Unfortunately, whoever the caster, they became aware of what was going on once I harmed them, and they immediately began the process of wiping the mind of the other operative. I gathered most of his memories into his soul, but he’ll still need treatment from a soul specialist.”

“A greater result than we could’ve hoped for,” Venerio spoke. “That skill of yours is profound in what it can do with a soul. With some minor treatment, the operative will be back on his feet in no time.”

“It also lines up with the recent reports I received in the last few minutes,” Vespidia spoke. “At least seven of our operatives have inexplicably fallen unconscious, and across the city we’re still receiving reports of tavern keepers, merchants, officials and other people in positions of intelligence-related importance facing the same issue.”

“So, what you mean to say is…”

“Yes, you seem to have scared Eldiron into pulling their spy network back Orodan,” Vespidia elaborated. “I’m not sure if it’s their entire network, and today we’ll be conducting an organization-wide audit, with your assistance of course.”

“Yes, but that’s for later,” Venerio spoke. “For now, we need to verify whether Kalemar’s readings are normal after what he’s undergone. And about what he knows.”

In response, the Vice Director stepped forward and had a monitoring device placed on him.

“I told Mister Wainwright this as well, but the only thing I recall was being in Jerestir a year ago meeting an informant when I realized they brought company,” Kalemar spoke. “My enchanted blood detection ring sensed elven blood and it went off for her, otherwise I wouldn’t have suspected her to be an elf at all. Then she brought out a strange glowing rod and I lost the ensuing psionic battle within seconds with nobody in the tavern the wiser.”

“A glowing rod? Now that’s odd…” Venerio muttered. “You’re near the Master-level, and even a Grandmaster would take at least a bit of time to subdue you in mental combat given your talent so it couldn’t have been a regular amplifier or soul energy converter.”

“Venerio, given the range of this psionic ability of theirs I do not think even an old elven Grandmaster psionic would be capable of such feats,” Vespidia spoke. “The agents who were found unconscious were in separate parts of the Empire, separated by hundreds of miles. To maintain influence over that many concurrently would require multiple Grandmasters and colossal amounts of energy… unless…”

“It was divine,” Orodan finished. “When the attack struck me, I felt my Divine Resistance trigger and deny it.”

“D-divine… Resistance?” Venerio muttered. “Is that why even the Avatars were unable to stop you?”

Vespidia looked down and sighed while shaking her head.

“Venerio… that’s a Grade IV national secret, please accordingly alter everyone’s memory and keep it to yourself henceforth,” Vespidia spoke and as Venerio worked on everyone else, she cast a silencing bubble around just Orodan and herself. “And if you’re going to blurt such things out Orodan, you could at least give me a warning first. Do you know how troubling it is to have someone shadow a Psionic, let alone the best one in Novarria? I’ll have to use mindless dwarven infiltrator golems for the task lest he detects anyone else through his Psionic Sense.”

“Ah… sorry,” Orodan muttered, his usual brash nature and inability to keep secrets shining through. “Still, is a spy detail so necessary? I assume he’s an old member of the empire and rather trusted by now.”

“Nobody is above surveillance, not me, nor you. Given how good Eldiron is at subverting people as we’ve seen today, you should understand the importance of remaining aware,” she said. Orodan didn’t disagree, after all, in such a cold war of psionic battles and treachery, information was a must. “Only the first emperor himself isn’t watched by us, and if he were to fall then we might as well dissolve Novarria. But even if we aren’t watching him, I’m certain his Majesty’s enemies are doing that themselves.”

“So, you’re saying I’m being monitored at all times?” Orodan asked. “How does that even work?”

“It’s not my place to say,” Vespidia spoke. “Yes, you’re in a time loop and you’ll find out eventually, but if you don’t know yet, then I’ll leave it to his Majesty himself. Ask the emperor when you next meet. Given how much he seems to like you, I doubt he’ll refuse to answer.”

Orodan would say Vespidia didn’t know the imperial founder then. Balastion on plenty of occasions didn’t answer certain questions claiming that it’d ruin Orodan’s experience. Annoying, but nothing Orodan had the right to whine about.

“Anyhow, about the rod; wouldn’t that make it divine then?”

“A divine artifact, yes,” Vespidia spoke.

Divine artifacts were among the most powerful items that existed. Orodan had seen divine artifacts on three other occasions. First, when the headmaster of the school of soul magic had poked him with a spear during his time at Bluefire in a bid to train him. It was powerful at the time, but in hindsight Orodan felt it rather weak for a divine artifact, and not possessed of much divine energy. The other one he’d seen was the Divine Tower itself during the Inter-Academy Tournament, a structure of grand proportions which was created by the Gods as a trial and training tool of sorts.

The third occasion was Balastion himself telling Orodan that the crown he wore was a divine artifact, hence the elves continually coveting it, and now… this strange rod might just be the fourth.

Divine artifacts varied in power, but aside from the spear, Orodan had to admit that they caused quite the stir and national power struggles whenever they were in play. Balastion Novar’s crown allowed him to trivialize even Avatars and make the patriarch of a dragon flight fearful, and this rod used by the spies of Eldiron was capable of mind control and coordination on a continental scale and possibly even further.

“What’s the plan of action then?” Orodan asked. “Do we hunt down the bearer of this divine artifact?”

“No, if anything your actions forced them to reconsider their position and retreat. I can almost guarantee the rod is secure in Eldiron now. Whoever was using that artifact, when they noticed your resistance to it in Kalemar’s mindscape, they doubtlessly put two and two together to surmise that you have Divine Resistance,” Vespidia explained, and then she let out a weary sigh. “On one hand, it’s a good thing we discovered the enemy have a divine artifact. But on the other, they now know we have a warrior with the Divine Resistance skill on our side. Do you know what manner of headache you’ve given me Orodan?”

“I don’t see how that’s a problem,” Orodan replied. “The Eldritch Avatar’s descent is too close for the elves to want to have an open war.”

“Yes, but what about after? You speak as though your death is certain in six months. Your very existence and the fact that you’ve chosen to aid Novarria means you’re a direct threat to much of Eldiron’s established military might. Once the Eldritch threat is resolved, one way or another, Eldiron will have nothing holding them back from subjugating Inuan,” Vespidia explained. “You know of Othorion Evertree, yes?”

“Him and that Bloodline of his?” Orodan asked, and Vespidia nodded.

“What do you think happens when that Bloodline is borne by someone as strong as our monarch?” Vespidia asked.

Balastion had warned Orodan of the first emperor’s ‘elven counterpart’, which could really only mean that this being was the ruler of elvenkind upon Alastaia. Someone as strong as Balastion, who then also possessed the same Bloodline Othorion Evertree had? An ability to call upon as much divine power as needed, something which essentially bypassed an Avatar’s only limitation which was their host burning out.

Such a being, with the baseline power of the first emperor, and backed by the divine power of an imprisoned Goddess, would be beyond reckoning.

“Someone who might be concerned that I’ve come along and threatened the balance of power between nations,” Orodan answered.

“Glad to see you’re catching on,” she spoke. “While he’s powerful, his main source of strength is the divine energy he draws from Faraine. And to have someone like you come in and align yourself with Novarria while having Divine Resistance… it neuters a large portion of his arsenal and now makes Novarria a credible threat to the elves.”

“Yet, the elves should still have the advantage in terms of overall power, no?” Orodan asked. “Balastion mentioned that there are at least two other beings on Eldiron as strong as he, and this is aside from that quadruple-Grandmaster Chosen One who bears the Bloodline.”

“They do hold the advantage; however you make the gap considerably narrower with your existence,” Vespidia spoke. “Your existence makes what would be a difficult but doable strike to obtain the emperor’s crown, into a very costly effort. Yes, there are at least three quadruple-Grandmasters among the elves, however neither of them wishes to risk their long lives in such a venture.”

“Perhaps they should covet the possessions of others a little less then?” Orodan asked. “I was under the impression that Eldiron kept to themselves, since when are the elves possessed of covetousness to rival the dwarves?”

“Before the ascent of the Void Horror thirty-thousand years ago, the stance of Eldiron was a bit more… expansionist,” Vespidia spoke. “They would often war with the ancient Hasmathorian Empire upon Inuan. This stereotype of elves being peaceful forest-dwellers is something more modern, and only because the first druid and his council have decided that conserving military prowess before the arrival of the Eldritch Avatar is for the best. Don’t make the mistaken assumption that elvenkind is peaceful and isolationist, however. There is a popular sentiment on Eldiron that humanity is a threatening species, with your short lives but great talent, it’s a real concern that if allowed to grow, you’ll become a problem.”

“But aren’t you a human in your new life too?” Orodan asked, diverting the conversation. “Did you retain the benefits of being an old granny elf while gaining the talent of a human? That sounds rather convenient.”

The thrown dagger he caught was a bit excessive, but he had it coming for making jabs about her infirmity.

“And I see this conversation is over,” Vespidia spoke with an unamused look on her face. “I believe Venerio is trying to get our attention anyways.”

The silence bubble was dispelled, and Venerio Balmento approached the two of them.

“Mister Wainwright, I’m most curious about what you’ve done to Kalemar during your bid to free him,” the Psionic spoke. “I finished running the standard battery of tests, and the readings are drastically different. Frankly, the implications of your skill are incredible.”

“How so?” Orodan asked.

“Sir… my mana generation has more than quadrupled thanks to you!” the Vice Director Kalemar Cosanox spoke. “Whatever you did to my soul, while it was excruciatingly painful at first… the moment I adapted and got used to the changes, my natural recovery speed has skyrocketed since.”

Well, this was an interesting if unintended benefit of his skill.

There had been no further reported activity from the elves, and he gave his students the day off since he’d spent his time in the headquarters of the Intelligence Service remaining on-hand to assist with things as needed.

Vespidia had explained that for the moment, it seemed as though Eldiron’s spy network had pulled back over the course of an hour. Her theory was that upon discovery of Orodan’s Divine Resistance, the ones in charge of Eldironan intelligence had come to the unanimous decision that provoking a conflict so close to a bigger threat descending in six months would be unwise. Balastion hadn’t been wrong when he said now was the best time to root the elves’ spies out of Novarria. Fighting the Eldritch after a war against Novarria would be quite unwise, even if Eldiron was conventionally stronger and held both the advantage of quality and quantity.

Either way, Orodan had been told that he’d be called if there were any changes that required his direct attention.

The side effect of his Absolute Soul Dominion was an interesting benefit that Orodan would have to explore in the coming days upon willing subjects. But he doubted many people would refuse the chance to have their mana generation quadrupled.

For now, however, he was paying a visit to ensure his student’s home life was going well since his tribe’s relocation.

The Rising Spears tribe had been granted a compound on a protected plot of land directly next to the Novar’s Peak Academy in the royal district. Many peaceful goblins wandered about the grounds and seemed to be enjoying the fresh air. Goblin children frolicked about playing games or practicing, and riders went about on boars either patrolling or engaging in training exercises. It looked to be a happier existence than the one they had within the depths living under the protection of the clan of depths moles.

The gate to the compound was guarded by two fierce looking Elite-level halberdiers who naturally gave Orodan no issues. The goblins were free to wander the city from what Zukelmux had told him, but they needed a guard escort lest the citizenry cause issues, and an unfortunate incident occur. As for who could enter, only the goblins themselves, approved scholars and diplomats or select people such as Orodan, Vespidia or Demosthenos who were the two hands of the first emperor.

He saw a familiar elderly goblin walking up to the gate. This was Griok, the chief of the Rising Spears tribe.

“I imagine the fresh air and greenery is more to your peoples’ liking than the depths, no?” Orodan asked.

“Quite so, in fact living on the surface is our natural habitat rather than scurrying underground like rats,” Griok spoke and then bowed. “Esteemed benefactor, Zukelmux speaks of your description and warrior-like bearing almost every day. Am I correct to assume you must be none other than the honored Orodan Wainwright?”

“That would be me,” Orodan replied. “But please, you needn’t stand on ceremony. You must be his tribal chief, Griok?”

The elderly goblin nodded.

“Yes benefactor, I am chief of the Rising Spears tribe. You’ve changed our fortunes by choosing Zukelmux as your disciple,” Griok spoke. “Might I ask what made you see him as worthy of the honor? It is to my great shame that I do not recall ever meeting you in the past.”

“It’s a long story, but for now I’ll keep it simple and say that Zukelmux is indeed a true talent,” Orodan explained while not quite elaborating about the time loops. “He’s an Elite-level warrior but can jump a tier to fight at the peak of the Master-level. There’s only one other person I’ve seen possess such talent, and that was a halfling warrior who also came from humble beginnings.”

“I see… your eye is quite profound then honored one,” Griok said. “It is true that Zukelmux has always been the most talented among my people. In fact, he might well be the most talented warrior of our kind I’ve seen. I’ve only ever met one Master-level goblin and he was near the end of his natural lifespan when we found him. A youngling like Zukelmux brings great honor to not only the tribe, but also promises a brighter future for our kind as a whole.”

“I concur, but talent aside he also has an excellent work ethic,” Orodan said. “Although, much like his teacher he too has a habit of not wanting to ask for help or guidance and stubbornly carrying along his own path.”

“Truly? I will speak to him about this at once!”

“No, no. That shan’t be necessary, or even desirable,” Orodan said with a smile. “Rather, sometimes, one’s stubborn dedication in the face of the world saying otherwise can lead to great things. The most profound paths are often those we find through following our own hearts.”

“Teacher! You grace my tribe with your presence?!” exclaimed a familiar voice. “Allow us to host you within the main hall!”

Orodan allowed himself to be dragged around on a tour by the excited Zukelmux. Frankly, the entire place was full of life and his student, and the entire tribe seemed much happier in Novarria.

“Say, how did the depths moles take your tribe’s departure anyways?” Orodan asked, and Zukelmux’s face darkened in response to that question.

“Teacher… let us not dwell on such unsavory matters,” his student said. “The moles were of course rather unhappy that we, their servile workers, and servants, were leaving to seek better opportunities. And they attempted to cause trouble for it. Of course, Lady Vespidia slew the tyrant Istilvaras and granted us safe passage to Novarria from there.”

Orodan made a mental note to ensure that dual-Grandmaster depths mole was wiped out in long loops from now on. He quite liked Zukelmux and the Rising Spears tribe, so ensuring they had a good life was something he intended to do moving forward.

“Very well, let’s not speak of it any longer,” Orodan said. “Tell me about how your tribe’s fitting in here. Have any humans tried causing issues like they did at the Academy for you?”

Orodan asked, because naturally a student of a race that people almost exclusively saw as monsters, would face discrimination. Of course, in line with being his student, Zukelmux had beaten all of his attempted bullies senseless and more than earned his respect at the Novar’s Peak Academy in just his first week. His student had approached Orodan and guiltily asked to be punished for causing such damage, and Orodan only laughed and waved the goblin’s concerns away while praising the beatings he delivered.

As it stood, Zukelmux was currently the second strongest student at the Novar’s Peak Academy, with the nominal strongest being Vespidia of course. But, Orodan had told his student that she was a reincarnated old hag, and it wasn’t a fair comparison. His student had of course looked ill at the thought of referring to ‘Lady Vespidia’ in such a way.

“There was perhaps one scholar who came in with some… pre-conceived notions about my kind and sought to prove them by aggravating us for no reason,” Zukelmux said. “But he was swiftly sent out the door by Lord Demosthenos… I wasn’t aware curses could make a man scream like that.”

“Yes, having either Curse Resistance or a powerful soul with a solid defense is a worthwhile investment,” Orodan replied. “Otherwise, how’s everything been? Do you and your people prefer it above ground?”

“It’s as though a dream has come true…” Zukelmux quietly said. “Before this, our tribe would always wander the wild depths and migrate from place to place, always navigating the politics and alliances between various civilizations of other depths dwelling species. The surface was off-limits, and I’d only been there a handful of times, mostly against the chief’s direct wishes. But to have a permanent home here now? It is more than we could’ve hoped for.”

Orodan hummed in acknowledgement, and then his attention was diverted as he smelled something.

It was possibly the most wonderful and mouth-watering scent he’d ever experienced. Naturally, he followed it.

“T-teacher, that way is er… my personal room! To go there would-”

Orodan was inside the room before he thought to heed Zukelmux’s wishes. This was…

“This smells amazing…! I didn’t know you were a cook, Zukelmux!” Orodan exclaimed in excitement.

“Ah but… I’m not even all that good yet Teacher… I’m merely an Adept,” the goblin spoke. “I’ve been learning through the Academy offered classes on crafts, and I’ve been experimenting with Imperial techniques used to make goblin cuisine better. Would you like a taste?”

“Of course!” Orodan almost demanded but calmed himself. Whatever this food was, he’d smelled nothing quite as appetizing in any of the fancy events he’d been to in the Republic. Frankly, Orodan hadn’t eaten much food over the years in general.

Zukelmux had an excited look of his own and ladled some of the stew out onto a bowl with a spoon.

“Roasted depths scorpion stew,” Zukelmux explained. “It’s mixed with various spices, herbs and mushrooms native to the wild depths.”

Orodan greedily took the spoon into his mouth…

…and experienced true pleasure.

This!

This was real food! Just what had Orodan been missing out on all this time? The very spices, the herbs, the mushrooms, it all mixed together so well with the scorpion’s flesh and crispy carapace bits. His mouth was packed with pure flavor and his mind felt rejuvenated.

He analyzed it all and realized that there was so much more to flavor and taste than just the ingredients. That food itself, could be a true benefit to the body.

[New Skill (Rare) → Gourmand 1]

“Z-zukelmux…! This is incredible!” Orodan declared. “I must have more! You must show me how to cook as well as you!”

His student looked exceedingly proud, and Orodan decided then and there that this would be the beginning of his journey into the culinary arts.

The world was a wide place, and who knew what benefits he could get by eating good food, particularly food made from exotic ingredients. Even better if he hunted it himself.

Orodan had left the Rising Spears compound with a full stomach and three more levels in his new Gourmand skill. Frankly, it was exceedingly strange, but his body felt better as a result of having experienced such good taste. His vitality felt just slightly more potent, his body felt just a little bit sturdier, and his mind a tad bit sharper. Life in general, just felt better, and Orodan wouldn’t deny that he’d found something to enjoy across the loops which would help keep things fresh.

He’d paid a visit to Aliya’s house as well, and her parents had been exceedingly grateful and excitedly discussed Aliya’s progress and their new life in Novarria. Of course, they didn’t know about the existence of Masters, Grandmasters and above, and it was almost humbling to have an ordinary dinner with regular people who were more focused on getting by day-to-day and seemed to dislike the thought of their daughter engaging in a life of violence.

Gods, Avatars, the descent of the Eldritch and international tensions between Novarria and Eldiron weren’t concerns which Aliya’s parents knew of. Their little girl was their primary concern, as were their livelihoods. Orodan had provided them a better life, but it was almost endearing to see her mother attempt to ‘warn’ Orodan against putting her little girl in danger.

He had no plans on doing so, but it was a nice reminder that while he was out shaping intercontinental politics, there existed normal families having dinner.

His last stop of the day was a meeting with two familiar people in the lowest point of the royal citadel of Novar’s Peak.

“See Malzim? It’s been a single week and already Orodan Wainwright has scared the elven pantheon into retreating from Novarria,” Balastion Novar spoke. “Will you not consider remaining to fight with us now, old friend?”

“I must admit Balastion, while I was initially hesitant to remain and stand my ground, with such a mighty ally on our side I’m not as concerned as I once was,” Malzim spoke. “I have thought about the matter for a while, and I agree, I shall stand by your side. Though if I see the battle going awry, I shall depart.”

“That’s more than I would expect of you,” Balastion spoke. “That you would dare to stand alongside us against the Eldritch at all is cause for celebration.”

Some more small talk and pleasantries were exchanged and the Avatar of Malzim departed, leaving only Orodan and the first emperor within the chamber.

Orodan wasn’t surprised that Malzim agreed to stand and fight, after all, the God of Death had been convinced to stand as part of the Prime Five and face the Eldritch in Guzuhar in the last long loop too. Still, Orodan couldn’t help but think…

“That was a pointless conversation,” Orodan voiced. “I owe him much, but he isn’t meant for combat and he’s not the most powerful of the Prime Five either. In the battle against the Eldritch the key contributors will be you and I, why bother involving Malzim if he doesn’t want to fight? I’ll gladly die a thousand times till I’m strong enough to the point where he needn’t lift a finger.”

“Be at ease my friend; your concern comes from owing the God of Death a debt, but I also don’t need him to fight specifically,” Balastion said. “However, with his support, getting the Prime Five to join us during the battle becomes more likely. Malzim himself might not contribute as much, but all five of the Inuanan Gods together? Every little bit makes a difference. And need I remind you, I cannot act as though I’m in a time loop, for me, this upcoming battle is where our fate will be decided.”

Orodan accepted that explanation and nodded in assent.

“I understand, still, if he were to somehow become corrupted by the Eldritch during the battle, I won’t be happy,” Orodan remarked. “Although corrupting a God takes a while longer than some mere exposure I believe.”

“Yes, that it does. And if it concerns you so much, I can have him on the back line or even send him away once the thick of the fighting begins,” the first emperor said. “In truth, it shall be you and I, alongside the patriarch of the Soaring Flame and certain powerful individuals who face it.”

“I don’t know if that’ll be enough,” Orodan said. “Why not inform the World Guardians and Gods of Guzuhar of your plan? That we intend to draw it directly to Novarria?”

“I do intend on that; however I’d rather not count my dragons before they hatch,” Balastion spoke. “Acquire Space Mastery first and then I will begin informing our mutual allies of the change of plans. I dislike working alongside Gods, however, in such a scenario we’ll have to act as needs dictate. Additionally, I’d rather inform people of your existence and center role in this conflict near the end, particularly to avoid any meddling Gods getting ideas of backstabbing and possession like they did in the last long loop you tell me of.”

That was a good point. Easier to spring it on them with little time left to prepare. The chance of getting stabbed in the back was lower then.

“Understood, anyhow, on the matter of Eldiron, have they truly retreated altogether?” Orodan asked.

“You underestimate how much of a threat someone with Divine Resistance can be,” Balastion Novar spoke. “Nobody in the history of our world has acquired Divine Resistance that I’m aware of. No records state it as being possible, and only in a record of a conversation with an otherworldly transmigrator did they claim to know someone in their native world who had it. Given all this, and the fact that you got past three Avatars during your bid to see me the Eldironans aren’t stupid. They can deduce that you’re near my level of strength. And by remaining on Inuan they have a divine artifact that they’d stand to lose, those things aren’t exactly disposable.”

The emperor tapped his own crown as he said the last bit.

“How threatening is it anyways?” Orodan asked.

“To you? Not very,” Balastion spoke. “But for me who doesn’t possess Divine Resistance? Very threatening. To the point where I have enchantments capable of detecting divine energy for that explicit purpose. If I was caught unaware by it and for long enough, even I might come under its control. I’m almost certain that artifact they used is the Wand of Athandelu, created by the elven God of Domination and Psionics. I always suspected its existence, but the events of today confirm it.”

“Still, all’s well that ends well, no? We rooted out a bunch of unfriendly spies and forced them to reconsider provoking us lightly,” Orodan said.

“You sell yourself short, Orodan Wainwright, it was you who made them reconsider provoking Novarria,” Balastion spoke. “The appearance of another being near my level of power who has Divine Resistance is a concerning matter indeed. Until the Eldritch threat is resolved, the elves would be wise to not act too hastily. Unless of course… you were to do something reckless, such as freeing a certain imprisoned elven Goddess.”

“I see Vespidia has spoken to you about that,” Orodan said.

“She didn’t actually, I was just watching, but she knows that,” Balastion said. “This crown is capable of more than just conjuring Eldritch energy.”

“Little wonder the elves want it then,” Orodan remarked. “Well, are you going to tell me not to do it?”

“On the contrary, you have my wholehearted approval,” Balastion said. “Neutering the wielders of that accursed Bloodline by freeing the source of their power altogether would be a great boon to my forces who currently are assisting the dwarves in their war with the drow.”

“The elves are involved in that war as well?”

“Yes, it’s a proxy war for the both of us,” the first emperor explained. “We back the dwarves, and the elves back the drow. They seek a foothold on Inuan through those vampire-harboring vermin. We’ve mostly managed to push the drow and their elven backers into a corner; however the last vestiges are proving problematic.”

“Well, don’t look to me to solve it anytime soon,” Orodan replied. “Rooting out elven spies in a defensive move is one thing when they mind controlled your people, but I have no interest in marching over to the Dokuhan Mountains and slaughtering an entire race to aid in your proxy war.”

“It’d be nothing of the sort; rather I’d simply ask you to strike at some priority targets and perhaps take out a Bloodline wielder or two among the elves using your Divine Resistance,” Balastion said.

“And without their elven backers, I’m sure the dwarves would happily then proceed to exterminate the drow, no?” Orodan asked. “Whichever way you try to sell it, that sounds like a bit more senseless slaughter than I’m interested in enabling.”

“Fine, I won’t insist, and your decisions are your own,” Balastion accepted.

Orodan hummed in acknowledgement, and the remainder of the conversation was regarding more pleasant matters, such as his students and their training, his own progress in the crafts, and potential trips to the depths to give Zukelmux and Aliya combat experience.

Orodan left the Memorial of the First Emperor, but as he did, he couldn’t help but think that Balastion Novar’s idea of a world of peace was one thing, and the man’s method of going about it by enabling the slaughter of an entire race was another. Unless there was something he was missing, Orodan wasn’t sure why the drow needed to be slaughtered en masse in order to counter the elves.

Admittedly, denying international rivals a foothold on the continent was important, but did it justify a war of that scale? After all, from what Orodan knew, the dwarves were the aggressors in the war between them and the drow, so why were the Novarrians helping them?

Still, that was far away in the Dokuhan Mountains to the south, where Orodan currently had no business.

As of now, within three more weeks he felt he’d understand the secrets behind Space Mastery. And once that happened it would be time to focus on another branch of magic and begin taking his students to the depths.

He mentally summoned his Status.

Name: Orodan Wainwright

Age: 17

Title 1: Avatar Slayer

Title 2: One Who Has Experienced Death

Title 3: Wielder Of A Mythical Skill

Title 4: Cleaning Elite

Available Titles:

World Gate Delver

Avatar Slayer

Wielder Of A Mythical Skill

One Who Has Experienced Death

Grandmaster Slayer

Combat Elite

Sword Elite

Shield Elite

Physical Elite

Unarmed Combat Elite

Wrestling Elite

Cleaning Elite

Soul Adept

Woodworking Adept

Alchemy Adept

Enchanting Apprentice

Laboring Apprentice

Blacksmithing Apprentice

Pathfinding Apprentice

Gathering Apprentice

Rewards:

Permanent +13 Action Increase

Skills:

Eternal Soul Reactor 91 (Master - Mythical)

All-Consuming Rage 83 (Elite - Mythical)

Warrior’s Reciprocity 75 (Elite - Mythical)

Absolute Soul Dominion 67 (Adept - Mythical)

Eldritch Resistance 52 (Adept - Mythical)

Incorruptible Being 50 (Adept -Mythical)

Divine Resistance 12 (Initiate - Mythical)

Harmony of Vitality 88 (Elite - Legendary)

All-Strike 83 (Elite - Legendary)

Unassailable Fortress 82 (Elite - Legendary)

Bulwark Physical Resistance 80 (Elite - Legendary)

Endless Blitz 75 (Elite - Legendary)

Mana Resistance 62 (Adept - Legendary)

Wood Communion 50 (Adept - Legendary)

Vision of Purity 48 (Apprentice - Legendary)

Body Tempering 44 (Apprentice - Legendary)

Fate Disconnect 43 (Apprentice - Legendary)

Draconic Fireball 21 (Initiate - Legendary)

Iron Body 80 (Elite - Exquisite)

Psionic Resistance 76 (Elite - Exquisite)

Flash Strike 65 (Adept - Exquisite)

Whirlpool Whirlwind 55 (Adept - Exquisite)

Draconic Mana Channeling 47 (Apprentice - Exquisite)

Vitality Destruction 41 (Apprentice - Exquisite)

Fire Resistance 26 (Initiate - Exquisite)

Lightning Resistance 18 (Initiate - Exquisite)

Curse Resistance 4 (Initiate - Exquisite)

Wind Resistance 3 (Initiate - Exquisite)

Ice Resistance 3 (Initiate - Exquisite)

Soul Mastery 61 (Adept - Rare)

Soul Defense 54 (Adept - Rare)

War Cry 35 (Apprentice - Rare)

Gourmand 1 (Initiate - Rare)

Shield Throw 68 (Adept - Uncommon)

Power Strike 61 (Adept - Uncommon)

Mana Manipulation 55 (Adept - Uncommon)

Fate Reading 31 (Apprentice - Uncommon)

Pain Resistance 89 (Elite)

Unarmed Combat Mastery 87 (Elite)

Physical Fitness 86 (Elite)

Combat Mastery 84 (Elite)

Sword Mastery 82 (Elite)

Wrestling 80 (Elite)

Shield Mastery 79 (Elite)

Cleaning 79 (Elite)

Tool Mastery 61 (Adept)

Woodworking 59 (Adept)

Alchemy 58 (Adept)

Surprise Attack 45 (Apprentice)

Enchanting 43 (Apprentice)

Sprinting 39 (Apprentice)

Pathfinding 38 (Apprentice)

Blacksmithing 37 (Apprentice)

Laboring 34 (Apprentice)

Maintenance 34 (Apprentice)

Flare 32 (Apprentice)

Gathering 31 (Apprentice)

Construction 28 (Initiate)

Basic Healing 25 (Initiate)

Jewelcrafting 23 (Initiate)

Repair 22 (Initiate)

Teaching 21 (Initiate)

Magical Rituals 18 (Initiate)

Mining 17 (Initiate)

Club Mastery 15 (Initiate)

Lumberjacking 11 (Initiate)

Parkour 11 (Initiate)

Intimidation 11 (Initiate)

Observe 11 (Initiate)

Fire Magic Mastery 8 (Initiate)

Thievery 6 (Initiate)

Identify 5 (Initiate)

Deception 4 (Initiate)

Disguise 1 (Initiate)

He still had a lot more work to do before he could face the Eldritch Avatar.

A fight against it approached in little less than six months. He’d be the one yanking it off-course to land in Novar’s Peak and fighting alongside the first emperor and other powerful figures to hopefully bring it down once and for all.

Yet, as Orodan had learned from fighting it twice now, things were rarely ever simple with the Eldritch.

For now, he could only look forward to the end of the month and acquiring Space Mastery through hard work and grinding.

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