Chapter 236 - You Will Not Stop Me

The center of the Outlands had once seemed like a wasteland interspersed with occasional beasts. Mana Omnis revealed just how wrong that assumption was. The land was alive with life; innumerable creatures hid just beneath the cracked, hard ground, ready to pounce on any hapless passerby. Jiran experienced a combined tingle of gratitude and relief that he had learned to fly before crossing this deadly place the first time. For anyone who had to walk without the means to detect the lurking predators, death was the only likely outcome.

Mayalyn raised her hand, pointing into the distance. Jiran quickly spotted what had drawn her attention.

[Landshark: (Tier 4) (1100/1100) Agile stalker capable of tracking prey over vast distances. Relies on Strength and Agility, sacrificing mana manipulation to physically overpower lesser foes. Weak against ranged opponents]

Before he could finish analyzing and compiling the far more thorough description supplied by Gaze of Pediamus, Mayalyn had already rushed off to fight the beast. She approached from above like a missile, her strong body reinforced by the sturdy armor wrapped around her. 

The beast didn’t even see her coming. She collided with its head, releasing a thunderous bang. They crashed into the ground, sending sand high into the sky. Mana Omnis had no issue piercing the cover so he could see their ‘struggle.’ Using the force of her flight, Mayalyn had pierced its thick skull, burying her arm to the elbow inside its brain where she released a small jolt of current that turned the organ to mush, killing it instantly.

The creature spasmed several times when she extricated herself. With a swipe of her arm, blood splattered the ground before she dusted her hands. She flew back to the group who had paused to watch. Her darkened visor did nothing to hide her embarrassed posture as she stared shyly at her boots, “I… could not help myself. Sorry for not leaving any fun for the rest of you.”

The things she gets flustered over. So cute.

Jiran waved off her concern, lifting his visor so she could see his smile, “Why would you need to apologize for wanting to relive your first glorious battle to the death? If I ever saw a worthy crab, there’s no way I would hold myself back.”

Cameron nodded emphatically while Niya tilted her head at Mayalyn, “That was the first beast you ever fought?” Mayalyn nodded, squirming under their combined scrutiny. 

Niya sighed, shaking her head, “You two were made for each other.”

Jiran chuckled, the sound echoed by his friends. He moved to float beside Mayalyn and wrapped his arm around her. She snuggled into him, practically preening as she hugged him back with enough force to crush normal metal. The movement shifted his perspective to where Second Father was nearing the horizon. 

While he felt like he could go for several more days without a break, the same might not be true for the rest of them, “Should we settle in for the night?”

“Is that wise with those Numbered guys after us?”

Gaze allowed him a brief glimpse of their enemies' wearabouts, but when all he saw was darkness through their eyes, Jiran twisted his lips in thought, “Not sure. Can’t tell where they’re at.”

“Okay, enough of your cryptic nonsense. What are you hiding?” Niya flew closer, leaning toward him menacingly. When Mayalyn moved away from him, nodding in agreement with his cousin, he gave up.

Jiran patted the air with his hands, “Fine, fine. I’ll spill.” Absorbing the nearby densoon clouds during their journey had brought Armament back to a comfortable reserve, so Jiran spent the mana required to tear the framework around his hardened aura, sealing the four of them inside a bubble of darkness, “When I ascended to tier five, I upgraded a skill. After I identify a creature, I can see through their eyes. Not sure the limitations on distance and time, haven’t had a chance to really test it out yet.”

Cameron whistled, eyes wide, “Woah. That’s out there. You know, at first I wasn’t sure about the whole evolution thing and not being human anymore. Maybe it’s actually worth turning into a freak.”

“Pervert! You just want to spy on every girl you see,” Niya smacked Cameron on the back of the head but he seemed no worse for wear judging by his shit-eating grin.

He shot back, “Please. Don’t confuse your fantasies for mine. You’re ten times the pervert I’ll ever be!”

Without refuting the claim, Niya turned back to Jiran, “You said they’re not coming for us. So then, what are they doing right now?”

Jiran activated Gaze of Pediamus again, only to discover he could no longer connect with the two Numbered. In a panic, Elemental Castigation converted his orb of black lightning back into mana and the framework rapidly repaired itself. Unfortunately, whatever connection allowed Gaze to do what it did had already been severed.

Gaze of Pediamus: + 4

“Damnit. I should have guessed it used the framework. I can’t see them anymore.”

Niya nervously waved her hands left and right in front of her chest, “No way. I’m not sleeping out here when we have no idea when or how many tier nines are coming for us. We’ll be much safer blending into Sanctum than snoozing out here in the middle of nowhere.”

Cameron threw in his agreement, “She’s right. I know you were probably planning on using us as bait, but that’s not a good idea anymore.”

Jiran gasped, his hand pressed against his chest, “What? How could you even say that? Do you really think I’m capable of using my friends and party members as bait?”

“As far as denials go, that is about the worst one I have ever heard,” Mayalyn trailed off, glaring at him through slitted eyes.

“Guilty!” Cameron pointed at Jiran, then gave him a thumbs down.

“C’mon guys. A little trust, please. It’s not as bad as you think. First of all, I’ve been scrubbing our mana trail this whole time, and I haven’t felt any signs of an aura tracking us. I don’t think they know where we are. Second, I was going to watch through the night, and if any of them showed up… Well, let’s just say I have a plan. Besides, we’re going to need to split up when we get to Sanctum anyway.”

In a flash, Cameron’s frown shifted to a grin as he turned to Niya excitedly, “Hah! I knew he’d say it! Pay up!” Niya’s only response was a huff with flared nostrils. “No fun,” Cameron clicked his tongue, recentering his attention on Jiran, “You’re thinking of sending us to grab Olive while you cause a distraction. Am I right?”

Jiran nodded, “Yup. I’ll have enough mana to add the rest of the new functions to your suits in the morning. If you run into a couple Numbered after we separate, you should be able to escape at least. If you can’t get out, you better surrender. I’ll draw as many of them as I can and deal with them all at once. If that fails, I’ll gather more mana and try again.”

Cameron twisted his lips, hemming and hawing over Jiran’s plan. “I don’t have any intention of dying, and they won’t risk killing me any more than they would Olive. It’s these two I’m worried about,” he lifted his chin toward the girls, “They don’t have any noble ties. Niya being a disciple of Master Filibree might help, but that’s not guaranteed unless he’s there and intervenes.” The lack of him bringing up Mayalyn had them all looking at her worriedly.

Sensing their fear, she snorted, “I am not staying behind. There are times when it is foolish to risk life and limb, and there are times when it is not. Even if the rest of you fall, I will find her and bring her back.” Her jaw locked, muscles clenched and there were none who doubted the resolve blazing behind her eyes. Not for the first time, Jiran wished he could taste her emotions as she did his.

He broke the group’s silence, matching the gravity of her tone, “Madra is a dangerous world. One of the Numbered could kill you as easily as you killed that landshark. But I don’t think that will happen if you keep your Obfuscation active.”

Her ears twitched in confusion, unfortunately hidden beneath her helmet, “But my skill does not work with this armor.”

“It won’t be cheap, but I’m sure I can make the underlayer not only function with your skill, but also block Manasight and aura. So long as you’re quiet and don’t get close enough for them to feel you displacing their aura, you should be impossible to detect.”

“How is that possible? Before, you said you needed to understand my skill to do such a thing,” As Mayalyn talked, Cameron and Niya’s heads swiveled back and forth between them, both dialed into the conversation with bated breath.

Jiran once more wrapped them in an orb of black lightning, shredding the framework, “I’ve had an acclamation for a while and wasn’t sure what it did but I think I finally figured it out. It lets me do things with mana that might not normally be possible, just at a higher cost.”

While the group chewed on this latest revelation, Jiran checked his status since he hadn’t bothered going over it in a while.

NAME: Jiran of Madra

RACE: Remalon

AGE: 1

WEIGHT: 28.2 T

ACCLAMATIONS: Remalonian Constitution / Scion of Mana

TIMER: N/A

TIER: 5

EXP: 0/1000

GROWTH: 0%

Zero growth and no attributes. I’m so bad about leaving my body any density to actually grow stronger. Since I don’t plan on absorbing challenger density for a while, I better do something about that.

MANA: 150

CONCENTRATION: 54

STRENGTH: 540

AGILITY: 540

ENDURANCE: 540

DURABILITY: 540

WISDOM: 540

INTELLIGENCE: 540

CHARISMA: 80

SKILLS:

Mana Confluence: 80 > 99

Elemental Castigation: 51 > 56

Mana Omnis: 25

Enthralling Touch: 33 > 43

Gaze of Pediamus: 26 > 45

Manabody - Aspect: Origin of Ice 27.81M

Armament: 0 > 14

Mana Venom: 0 > 14

OTHER:

Adaptive Translator

Affinity System

Designation: Keynote Prime

Cartography System

Intermediary User Interface

Party System

Sanctuary 100%

UNIQUE: Foresight

Mana Confluence is right on the cusp of one hundred! I really hope there’s a skill evolution waiting for me. Just have to find another clue that pushes me over that edge.

Cameron was the first to recover, his jaw clicking shut but not staying that way for long, “There’s got to be some kind of limit to that acclimation, right? That sounds completely unfair!”

“This coming from the guy who can take a hit from an emperor once an hour without dying. How is that fair?”

“Oh please. All they have to do is hit me again and I’ll splatter into a thousand pieces. Yours is way more ridiculous!”

Realizing they would likely go back and forth for a while, Mayalyn redirected them, “We have not even tested it on my skill, so there is no point getting worked up. Which reminds me, are we positive Olive is in this city? What if they took her somewhere else?”

“That’s a good point. Let’s find out,” Jiran allowed the framework around them to reconstruct itself as he directed a small portion of his mana into his soulwall. He colored it with the intent that it would find and feed Daughter. He wanted to talk to her, but that would drain all of the mana in his body, which was far more than he could afford at the moment. He hoped what he gave her would be enough to locate Olive, and he laced the energy with a heavy desire to summon her for a real talk soon.

“Whew,” he sighed when a blinking icon in the shape of a flaming sword appeared on his map, right where he knew the city of Sanctum lay, “She’s there,” Jiran frowned as his attempt to expand his map on the city to find her exact location failed.

“What is wrong?” Mayalyn asked in a delicate whisper.

“I can't see exactly where she is, the marker covers the entire city no matter how close I view my map,” Jiran's unspoken question was answered in the form of a strong impression from Daughter, letting him know that something was blocking her divination. “Damn, we're going to have to find her the hard way when we get there,” Jiran sent Daughter another burst of mana laced with thankful intent.

Niya was quick to nod sharply, “All we've done is upgrade from a smash ‘n grab, to a search ‘n smash ‘n grab. Which means there’s no time to waste. Besides, we’re not sleeping out here just so you can set up an ambush for enemies that don't even know where we are.”

“Alright, alright. Message received. But I’m still going to need more mana before I can finish your suits,” The group consented, and together, they continued their careful flight toward the city of Sanctum. 

Jiran called for several stops on their way, taking his time to absorb the ambient density as well as draining every cloud and beast they passed. With the help of his suit’s masterium, he cleansed huge swaths of land, freeing them from their collected bounties of pure density, quickly amassing enough mana to finalize the last of his designs.

As predicted, enhancing Mayalyn’s undersuit so it could take advantage of her race’s unique Obfuscation skill was incredibly costly. When Jiran tried to extend the camouflaging properties to include her armor, the sense he got from his mana was that the price would be astronomical. Not only was the metal of her suit not directly touching her skin where the skill took effect, the mana storage formations were causing a negative feedback loop, destabilizing her invisibility. And so, with a drooping tail and ears, she said goodbye to her short-lived ability to fly.

Jiran wasn’t at all thrilled she would be heading into enemy territory without her usual defenses. He only relented when she activated Obfuscation right in front of him and he couldn’t directly sense her with either his aura or Mana Omnis. That wasn’t to say her skill was perfect. His aura could tell there was something unusual with the space she occupied, and Gaze of Pediamus had no issues supplying its usual thorough evaluation.

They reached Sanctum in the dead of night, only a single moon shedding light on the city’s majesty. Sanctum Santorum was boxed in by the typical fifty-meter-tall Imperial city walls, complete with beast-repelling formations created by none other than Lostrifar herself. Additionally, to the southeast, several kilometers from the city stretched a wall running north and south that extended far out of sight, separating the empire from the hordes of the undead.

Even from the group’s distant aerial vantage, the beasts could be heard clawing and howling in their never-ending thirst for living blood that was so close, yet just out of reach.