Path of the Slayer B3 44. Slayer Feast & System Sincerity

As we set our souffles into the oven and prayed that they would workout, Chef had us stop at one table to sample different wines. We’d worked on this periodically while getting brief notes on how to differentiate what we taste. He’d even opened up various casks of whiskey, gin, and other drinks that went with particular dishes.

I had to put a hard order on Grimmy to spit most of her drinks out.

The alcohol was all Rank 5, and they all hit hard. If it weren’t for Slayer Intent helping me destroy the Epic alcohol inside me, I would’ve lost myself.

“Spirit Blaze,” Chef said, perking us both up, “is like soufflé. Most think it’s through constant hardship and iron-sharpening-iron that the Spirit Blaze technique will finally achieve its completion. This is only true for those who will use Spirit Blaze as a last effort technique that would heavily damage their soul afterward and force them into a long restful period without gains.”

That had me stopped in my place.

Chef chuckled in his deep and song-like voice. “But worry not. Such a route to completing the Spirit Blaze takes a long, long time. Or until you become a Demigod. But I will help you get the Spirit Blaze as you are now or in the early Levels of being a Veteran.”

“Even me?” Grimmy squeaked.

“Even you, little knight.”

“Yay!”

I tried my hardest to maintain a disciplined front. Though I might’ve leaned forward a little eagerly as Chef explained his process.

“Initially, the fight with your soul is to help bring you understanding through passionate vigor. Then you must transition from fighting with your soul to nurturing your soul, providing it with a love that only you can. Make it understand to blossom and become stable from there.”

Chef waved one hand about. “Just like how there is air in the custard that puffs up and forms the top of the crust. The stability that keeps the soufflé’s shape cannot be found in the conflict, but in the acceptance of what is true to you. This part is difficult, because you must come to terms with the depths of your soul that might not be congruent with what you want your surface to suggest.”

The explanation seemed simple.

Too simple.

I’d fought my soul so many times and lost every battle.

Part of me wanted to defeat the little crimson-and-black blob of fire and its wicked blade. But what the Elder Slayer was saying suggested I had to submit in the middle of that combat and get the soul to work with me.

That didn’t seem possible. Once that crimson-and-black blob began a fight, it ended that fight, and nothing survived it.

“I’dunno,” Grimmy groaned. “That sounds weird.”

“It is,” I said, agreeing with her.

Chef chuckled musically again. “It’ll come easier for others while harder for some. It came easier to me. But I know Slayers who couldn’t get the Spirit Blaze technique because of how combative they are with their souls.”

“That was me,” Paige said. “I couldn’t ever get it even though the Spirit Blaze technique is more of a half-giant technique. But it just couldn’t be done through me. My soul … well … excuse the language, but she was a raging bitch. So, I sought other avenues of power along with Slayer Intent. Weapon Release was one of my favorites.”

Both Grimmy and I froze.

We slowly turned to Paige.

This time, I let my hunger for new powers come out. “Weapon? Release?”

Paige laughed. “Ah. Dang. Maybe I shouldn’t have said that one. You haven’t even gotten Spirit Blaze down yet.”

“Please say more,” I urged. “Even if I can’t work on it now, just give me some idea of what it may be.”

Paige sighed. “I can’t. Parameters are in the way. It’s just something to look out for as you climb higher or get closer to certain power-hungry crowds. It’s one of those old, old secrets. But if you ever figure it out, having a Weapon Release in your back pocket can really change an entire fight.”

My annoyance flared, but I set it aside, knowing that the constructs could only push so hard while helping me. From my understanding, they weren’t the true souls of the former Slayers. But the copies were so lifelike and personable that they felt real to me.

There was a possibility that the System was puppeting these armored corpses to present themselves as real to me. But I pushed aside such a possibility because I was okay with playing along as long as I remained immersed and had something to gain.

Though, it didn’t go unnoticed that the System had remained quiet the whole time.

“I scolded the System, by the way,” I said, after taking out my latest soufflé. It didn’t collapse. Suppressing my grin, I focused on my next words carefully. “She crossed a line with me, and after I scolded her, she apologized. Is that normal for her?”

“Hm. Not exactly. Not from my time. She was always brazen and sure of herself back then. Or she would’ve dared you to fight her,” Paige said.

“She was cold and calculative during my time,” Chef explained. “She was more like a machine while also distant. In fact, I believe the karmic scales back then were far lighter, too. Powerful Pathwalkers were allowed to treat Rankers and weaker Pathwalkers as if they were mere bugs. I’d seen tragic works across certain Realms where an entire host of folks would be used as experiments, slaves, food, or worse. Far worse.”

“Then you helped change things, huh?” Paige said to Chef.

“Yes, I made the ultimate sacrifice to deliver a blow that changed the game.”

“Same here. I had to take down a certain scion to shift the scales. I ended up dying, but I think my death influenced both society and our dear goddess. As much as I liked her, I think she liked me a lot in return.”

The exchange between the elders was a curious thing to behold for me and Grimmy.

Chef nodded from across the kitchen. “That is good to hear the grand goddess has become more grounded, more warm over the Cycles. I can’t imagine how society has become now, but knowing that the System has grown in character and care is pleasing. She was not always that way.”

I sighed. “I was going to hold her at a distance for a while, but you two are making me think otherwise.”

“Don’t compromise yourself if you don’t have to,” Paige said. “I’m a total whore for our goddess, our most wonderful mistress. I’ll ask how high she’ll want me to jump if she utters the order. Chef over there is more pragmatic despite how obsessed he’s with his favorite craft. But we both came from different Cycles and had different versions of the same God-Queen. It is both pleasing for us to know she’s more considerate these days.”

I nodded at that. “I have a Divine Quest to complete by making it to the Grand Generational Passing. And I want to see that through no matter what. With my friends at my side. So, if what you say is that the System has changed for the better, then I better take full advantage.”

“Wait … you have a Divine Quest? Just like in the stories?” That was Grimmy this time.

I held in a groan before turning to see Grimmy raise a hand and point at me. She made screechy half-gob sounds and lost her wits for the next few minutes.

The two Elder Slayers chuckled at us, which lightened the mood even further. I supposed they had gone through the same ordeal back in their time. I could only wonder how big of a deal my secret would become once the truth became public.

But I had to make it to the Grand Generational Passing first.

***

After what felt like months of intense and studious work, sampling, and meditation with a dash of Spirit Blaze practice slipped in, our time at the Slayer Sanctum Second Portion ended.

I stood with Grimmy beside me, the two of us forged anew in the crucible that was Elder Slayer Chef’s kitchen. Before us was an impeccable display of meals and drinks that featured different cultural delicacies from across various edges of the Realm Verse, going as far as delving into Modern Earth Realm culture even.

I’d grown used to the scents, the taste, the knowledge of myriad recipes that now occupied a portion of my memory. Grimmy was the same, but more importantly, she’d grown more impeccable at being my aid.

Somehow, without having to fight anything for the past couple of months, our understanding of our united capabilities had grown so deep, I could further predict what she would do along with what I would do dozens of steps ahead.

In other words, it really was like having a miniature version of me running around.

Frankly, I would find that scary if I were an enemy of the Slayer. I took up a lot of attention – while the Little Fighter could fade from attention and take enemies by surprise with expert sword magic. Especially with how she’d gained a lot from this excursion:

[Congrats! Path of the Little Fighter Leveled Up! 89 to 91!]

[WARNING! You’re now entering the dangerous Level 90s. Not only does it take longer to leave the Level 90s, you’re extra vulnerable! Pathwalker Veterans in the low Level 100s, especially those under Level Lock, can now target you with little to no negative karma!]

[Congrats! You’ve acquired a new Great Skill: Rage Reveler Restraint!]

[Rage Reveler Restraint: Level 11 (Uncommon): It’s okay, sweetheart, the passion of a half-gob runs deep. If ever bothered or angered, activate this to restrain your rage and use it to fuel your strength and toughness. That way, your anger can be even more useful when murdering the target of your ire!]

[Congrats! You’ve acquired a new Great Skill: Incurruptible Squire Faith!]

[Incurruptible Squire Faith: Level 11 (Uncommon): Whether you care a lick, the cursedness of your master has passively affected you. Yet, your faithfulness has not only shielded you, but provided a new power. Activate this when under the subject of an enemy’s corruption to turn that into power, making you more faithful while shielding your mind better.]

[Congrats! You’ve acquired a new Great Skill: Little Sister Charm!]

[Little Sister Charm: Level 11 (Uncommon): You know how you can make yourself even more useful? Activate this to turn up the charm and make everybody want to doth on you like the cutest little sister there is. You might even convince your enemies!]

Each gain was worth a celebratory toast, and Grimmy seemed to blossom from all the attention. Her smile was brighter than when I first met her. Whatever dark past she’d survived, the half-gob girl didn’t think twice about accepting her new life that came along with her absurd talent.

As for me, my growth was more singular. But it was the main point of me being here.

It was also a shocker for me and Grimmy, which led to the Elder Slayers laughing. They hadn’t explained how powerful Slayer Feast truly was, leaving it as a surprise.

[Congrats! Path of the Slayer Leveled Up! 93 to 96!]

[Congratulations, Slayer! You’ve acquired a Path Magic: Slayer Feast!]

[Slayer Feast: Level 101 (Legendary): Activate and dump your magic on an expert meal you’ve prepared. Then all those who eat it shall have their souls and Path Energy invigorated with a touch of that Slayer specialness. That’ll make them less corruptible and much mightier. They’ll have an easier time in combat, especially with killing evil foes. And they’ll generally feel more like main characters in their own little stories. The effect will last for either a few days, until the end of a majorly hard encounter, or until they meditate. Can’t be stacked, of course, so another Slayer Feast would only refresh. Oh, and one last thing. This power is doubly effective on you and those closely linked to you in the supernatural sense.] [Cost: -165%]

It was hard for me to believe, but I had another Legendary power other than Sabretooth in my profile now. The cost wasn’t even that bad because of how easily I could push my energy capacity.

There was more than just that, too. The System had more to say in my logs.

[To avoid making the description too long, I’m throwing this into your System Logs as an aside. You can read it or ignore it; I just hope you’ll understand that I’m being sincere.]

[I wish to apologize again for how I’ve wronged you and your friends. I’m deeply sorry about that. Sometimes, I have to remind myself that I should be more careful with how I treat those I care about the most. You are more than a toy to me. The same goes for your friends. I’m not impartial. I’m not perfect. But I do care. And I’ve watched you well enough to know better. So, I’ll take more care from now on. And not with just hard-coded parameters.]

[With that said, I’m also very, very proud of you! You might not have expected it, but Slayer Feast is actually one of the harder magics to learn on Path of the Slayer. Most Slayers in your long and lustrous history weren’t capable of learning this because most Slayers haven’t been craft focused, and even the crafter Slayers aren’t variable in their crafting disciplines. But you’re an artificer! You may not be the most disciplined expert, but being an exceptional generalist makes it easier!]

[And yes, Slayer Feast is meant to be Legendary. It’s really, really that good! Hell, you might knock Melody Eclipse off her feet with this one. Wink, wink.]

I couldn’t help but smile. Enough time in the Second Portion had dulled away my anger.

Perhaps it was a good thing I’d scolded her. We were dealing with a much kinder and more self-aware version of the System compared to the past Cycles, granting me the power to help course correct her when she fell into bad habits.

Maybe that was unfair to the Slayers of the past, but that was why I was doubly attentive to improving upon the legacy of the Slayer.

I had no intention of dying like my elders. So, having a Legendary Path Magic like Slayer Feast was definitely going to change the odds for me even further.

“How much time passed in the Realm I came from?” I asked.

“Possibly three days,” Elder Chef said.

I winced at that. Anything could’ve happened. That also meant my timetable was shorter.

I met Grimmy’s eyes, and the Little Fighter nodded resolutely. She knew it was time to go … even while hugging Paige’s leg.

The armored half-giant bent down to pat the little half-gob’s head while addressing me.

“The next time you return to us, you’ll be testing in the Third Portion of the Slayer Sanctum. This one’s the most important. If you succeed, you’ll gain more responsibility, and you’ll get the ultimate power of the Slayer. It’s what makes us diverge more from the other Paths.”

“What’s that?” I asked eagerly.

She answered just as eagerly. “Slayer Sanctum.”