Why was it easier for her to control the birds than it was for you to dodge them
Randidly was silent for a long time before sitting up scratching his head his hair messy and sweaty It was in moments like these Lyra felt those old pangs in her heart struck by how beautiful his green eyes were
I would have said skill level but she was so bad at it to begin with I guess that using the circles helped But I’m not sure how
Lyra’s eyelid twitched Mrs Hamilton laughed
Yes it was that plan that gave her an advantage The reason why is simple part of what she was doing was routine Whereas your movement technique is the most sophisticated I have ever seen it’s like manually doing simple addition rather than multiplying You need to think more systematically about the moves you are making with your feet and then figure out how to use them efficiently
Randidly stayed silent looking at the ground
I will return tomorrow Lyra practice the other subroutines I taught you We will continue with the other two exercies tomorrow they require a bit more preparation But I believe with what I saw today it will be ready promptly tomorrow morning
With that she left leaving the two tired individuals to mulling over their own inadequacy Lyra opened her mouth ready to speak but to her surprise Randidly beat her to it
Thank you He said looking at her seriously his green eyes bright even in the dying light You are I mean you are really important to the village so I appreciate that you are taking the time to help
Lyra could have said that it was trying for her too but she remained silent Then slowly she said then let’s make a deal so it’s more fair I’ll help you every day and you you need to answer one question of mine completely honestly
Randidly chuckled as if he knew that she was deriving benefit from it too but just nodded Inwardly Lyra was just glad that he didn’t know she had inherited some of Kimmy’s powers and could maintain a projection a short distance away
So what’s your question
It’s just Lyra hesitated Randidly was so strange to her He didn’t fit into any of the easy to understand types of people she had dealt with her entire life The fans the superior folk that flatterers he was just profoundly contained within himself And that made her even now curious What do you want From all this
Leaning back against the ground Randidly looked at the sky He was silent so long that Lyra was beginning to believe that he had forgotten her question but he finally answered breaking the dusky silence
I don’t really know Since the system came I’ve wanted a lot of things First it was to survive then it was to find my friends I’ve survived and I’ve realized there are no clues about my friends They are probably dead All of my connections to my past life He winced just slightly here but then continued on Well they don’t mean much anymore now
Almost instinctually Lyra opened her Eyes of Wonder
Now now I’ve taken the time to help nurture this village At the end of the trials as I stood there holding that spell I knew in my heart I could wipe it all away burn everything clean Lyra kept her gaze locked on him agreeing that he had that power if he was willing to sacrifice everything And I didn’t want that
Here he paused pushing back his drying hair Then he turned to look at her So I guess I want this to continue I want this town to grow Because in a way it was a seed that I planted And to protect it
His eyes narrowed I’ll push myself into the ground
He stood slowly and slipped back on the vest Then he began to move slowly using his strange movement technique in small bursts looking at his feet She retreated reforming her body some distance away and watched him with her Eyes of Wonder
That brilliant emerald aura surged around him constantly She could also see how he was constantly using his skill to control nearby roots working mana the entire time during the exercises His steps became increasingly slow then fast then back to slow and she could make out the small frown on his face As she watched in the middle of his chest it was like a door opened and thin tendrils of violet energy slid outwards running through him
Lyra leaned back on her heels So he was using it to accelerate his growth Not consciously yet but if he could learn how Briefly she considered telling him about it and doing her best to teach him But her previous attempts demonstrates pretty clearly that wasn’t her role Her skill set did not include teaching a person like him
Perhaps she consoled herself it was just that he wasn’t teachable in that way He was stubborn almost obsessive and weirdly implacable There was a growing vicious streak in him All one could do was set obstacles in his way and watch him struggle to overcome them learning the hard way
Maybe that was what she liked about him About how he insisted on doing everything the most difficult way Even when there were simpler answers available
Lyra turned her attention inwards and brought out the complicated diagrams that Mrs Hamilton had prepared for her earlier To be a good obstacle herself it was time to start homework
Razor gaped looking at the strange scene in front of him
A tall slender tree stood in the center of a clear surrounding by a small path its leaves burning Around it dozens of people mostly children but also quite a few adults were doing a weird dance After viewing the scene for several seconds Razor had to admit that it appeared that the tree itself was dancing and everyone was imitating it
What He said aloud almost instinctually and the little girl that led him here released a tinkling laugh
This is Arbor Come on I’ll introduce you
To Razor’s shock he was led up to the tree He was asked to introduce himself The tree seemed to listen then seriously extended its branch towards him as if to shake his hand Nonplussed Razor obliged finding the bark of the tree to be oddly warm and comforting Although he did earn a hand of greasy ash for his troubles
Afterward the dancing continued for a while then people began to leave as if a ritual of some sort was over Razor was somewhat mystified but this at least was something the elders had prepared him for Some foreign cultures had extremely strange or primitive religious beliefs and the elders had urged him to exercise the utmost respect should he encounter any
Although Razor didn’t believe that the elders thought he would have to spend QUITE so much time over here experiencing the culture before he would find someone in charge He tried to approach a few people during the tree dance thing but most had just shushed him and continued dancing Helpless he remained with the two children Only when everyone departed and it was only the 3 of them before the wiggling tree did the girl again turn to him with such poise and grace that Razor was slightly shocked Her eyes burned brightly lit by the flaming leaves above her Perhaps these people appeared younger than they actually were
Thank you for your patience What is it you came here for If it’s within my power I will give it to you
Razor almost blushed Was his impatience so obvious It was slightly disturbing that this little girl saw right through him I simply wish to talk to the elders of this village To discuss our future relationship If possible I was supposed to bring a group back to our village for a show of goodwill
The girl considered this for a moment then nodded seriously I believe I can help But it must wait until tomorrow
Uh Oh Razor asked somewhat disappointed
It’s bedtime soon The boy added Then he stuck his hand out to Razor I’m Nathan This is Kiersty We really want to help you Mr Bunny Rabbit but our mom will be angry if we aren’t in bed soon
Oh that’s Okay I’ll just
You are probably tired too right The girl Kiersty said brightly her eyes glittering Why not come and stay with us
Razor wasn’t sure how he wanted to answer either that he had already napped away most of the day or that wasn’t it strange to sleep with strange children but he was given no chance The two grabbed his arms and began dragging him forward