Their numbers were currently just under 3000 with around 800 of them taking classes mostly men although an increasing number of women who had been training up skills were getting interesting classes Many of Regina’s group had gotten healing style classes and were now fully integrated into the regular squads There was even one woman who received the class Green Mage and had shyly come asking him for advice
He calmly told her Practice and returned to his own training
Those of Regina’s group that hadn’t chosen healer had usually gone a mage route quickly bolster their previously pathetic mage corps Just recently after obtaining a specific skill they wanted to base their class on and leveling it a decent amount they were now taking classes getting even more specialized skills preparing to be an active participant in the village’s defense
Over the past three weeks he had also taken Thorn hunting several times The little bugger was vicious moving invisibly underground and springing upward sinking its many thorny vines into the victim’s body and wrapping the unfortunate monster in a death grip on its throat before it even knew what hit it Unfortunately it seemed like it had become very picky about blood after eating the Sphinx and hadn’t leveled again
His own training with the spear had gone very well Although he hadn’t gotten Equip high enough to use the stat bonuses despite a bunch of shitty high level equipment he had gotten from Sam he was now used to the new spear’s weight and rigidity
It wasn’t a change reflected so much in skill level but comfort in battle More than anything Randidly had focused on solidifying the foundations of his spear techniques practicing the strange forms and exercises Shal had taught him
If he were to meet the Tribulation now he had no doubts in his mind that his powerful spear blows would rip wide holes in its body even without his oppressively powerful magic
In terms of productivity of mage skills these weeks were spent mostly focusing on Fireball trying to raise it to the point that it was comparable to Spearing Roots However it seemed like that wouldn’t be the case for a long time Instead Randidly now hoped that he would get a Fireball path and obtain a more powerful flame spell that he could focus on with a higher potential
He did have the option of going and checking if there were any skills he could learn from the Skill Challenges but until he went through the Apprentice path himself he was leery about spending SP to learn something that he might be able to get on his own
What was significantly slowing his progress was everything else Randidly knew logically that his attitude was getting worse and worse He struggled but failed to refine energy shards to a stronger version of themselves allowing him to discover the next tier up from potions
Since their fight a week ago Randidly no longer bothered with lessons with Lyra in regards to mana control and she hadn’t bothered to come and ask about it Both of them appeared to be agreement at least on this subject and for some reason this annoyed Randidly even more than the fight had
He could sense the cool mana and warm stamina flowing through him strengthening him being used for his different skills He just couldn’t Affect it at all and Randidly didn’t know why To him it felt akin to trying to affect the flow of his blood Yes he could feel his heart pound and the blood flow through him That didn’t mean he have any method of interacting with the blood controlling it
These frustrations and the lack of the Tribulation really seemed to sap away the effectiveness of his skill training It just hadn’t been increasing like it used to Something needed to change
Sighing Randidly returned to the present and stood He had waited long enough and he was now quite sure of his theory It was time to talk to the Council
Although Donny was the nominal Chieftain Donnyton was basically now run by three people Daniel Regina Northwind and Mrs Hamilton Honestly although she led the NCCs Mrs Hamilton had the most influence due to the sheer number of people who had chosen not to take a class yet or ever She controlled access to coffee to the baths to soap to the mass produced potions and to the food
Needless to say she usually had the deciding vote
Every night the 3 of them met to discuss the direction the town was headed what resources they needed and what the big project for tomorrow would be There was a standing invite to Donny and Sam and they showed up occasionally but they were largely absent Dozer and Decklan had no interest in it and preferred to spend their nights training
They also didn’t invite Randidly but he sorta assumed that this was because he made his unwillingness to be involved in the small details quite clear to them all
So when Randidly showed up dragging a confused Donny the three were very shocked
They glanced at each other nervously at their luxurious meal of baby wolverine with freshly harvested herbs as garnish The new trendy strain of coffee filled their mugs
Of them all Regina recovered herself the quickest Ah Ghosthound Lovely for you to join us Would you like some
No and I’ll make this short Randidly’s face was grim I’ve put it off for some time but I think something needs to be done I will lead the caravan south to gather additional refugees in Franksburg
The group blinked
But what about the tribulation Daniel blubbered
Randidly grimaced That’s the whole point I suspect it won’t come as long as I am here In fact I suspect it was the reason I discovered the other tribulation in the first place
After picturing the wounded cat that led him to the Sphinx for several seconds Randidly shook his head He had assumed it had died or had been eaten by the sphinx but he had never seen any proof
At any rate we cannot constantly stay at the ready forever I suspect it is a different variety of tribulation than the other village experienced but no less dangerous Just less confrontational For the trip I think Alana Clarissa and Devan will suffice
The three were silent Not because the choices were bad but because the choices were some of the hand picked few they were considering sending south already Had he been monitoring their communications Not that there was anything to hide but
Meanwhile Randidly simply chose those three because it made sense Devan was the first person to successfully complete the mentor system with Donny and was the knight with the highest level other than Donny His squad which would accompany him was ranked 16th currently Alana obviously knew the path and would be a good guide of the area and Clarissa’s magic would be useful as well as exposing her to danger which she had thus far been insulated from due to the structure of their squads
They could take one of the junior squads for manpower and would be able to handle basically anything that Randidly had seen thus far
Besides they were traveling back into a zone covered by the Newbie Zone Any more would be overkill
I’m glad to see you agree Randidly grunted and left them
Donny feeling awkward sat down and began to eat the food
So He asked talking with his mouth open What were you guys talking about Wow this is good
Chapter 62
In the predawn light Randidly’s face cracked into a smile He had just gained a level in Meditation and with it
He finally had enough to finish off the Frontrunner path After putting the final PP into it he received a notification
Congratulations You have completed the The Frontrunner Path The odds were stacked against your race but you rose above the trials and tribulations to give your people a safe place to stay Being the first brings great power but also places a great weight on your shoulders Others are raised but only because you drag them upwards May this path give you the tools to share some of this weight Because beyond this path there is always another
You have learned the skill Blessing of the North You have learned the skill Blessing of the East You have learned the skill Blessing of the South You have learned the skill Blessing of the West You have learned the skill Inspiration ®