Therefore it seemed theoretically possible for Lazareth to use that connection to usurp RandidlyÆs control of the connection But Randidly didnÆt have the faintest clue how one would go about accomplishing that or what it would concretely mean if it occurred Would Lazareth then be able to possess RandidlyÆs body on Earth while Randidly was stuck here in the Alpha Cosmos
LazarethÆs panicked eyes settled on Randidly Undoubtedly RandidlyÆs puzzlement was clear on his face as he considered the implications of what Lazareth suggested It seemed that this was enough of a provocation for Lazareth to roar and leap toward Randidly
This is your fault
The ground beneath Lazareth cracked and shattered from the physical strength of his charge His hands spread outward and long claws emerged from his fingers Randidly grinned it seemed it wasnÆt just his head that looked like a lion
Randidly had somewhat expected this When Randidly touched Lazareth in order to make the connection he felt a brief impression of who Lazareth was And that was someone who was motivated by a deep loss that had been contained in his chest for so long that it had slowly curdled into hate and fury Honestly his path was quite similar to the one walked by Alta
But Lazareth had no Lucretia to carefully arrange the situation to his benefit Which lowered the threat of Lazareth to the point that Randidly hadnÆt bothered to keep tabs on him but it might also make him more unstable
Seeing that Azriel was simply amused by the display of emotion Randidly sighed and hopped to his feet in a flash He didnÆt bring Acri into the Alpha Cosmos with him but Randidly had been studying the spirit of his Skills for the last several months Even without a spear Randidly was nowhere near harmless
Molten Fang of the Pariah
A cherry red glow gathered around RandidlyÆs right hand as heat condensed HIssing from the sharp pain of the burning heat Randidly raised his right hand and prepared to meet Lazareth
Although this man was only a denizen of the Alpha Cosmos and therefore didnÆt have any real grasp of how images could be used yet Randidly knew that Lazareth was powerful He immediately scanned Lazareth and saw that the other man was a staggering Level 72 More than that when Randidly looked at his Skill Levels
Randidly frowned imperceptively Wait why is reading his Aether so difficult
But by that point LazarethÆs claws were about to land RandidlyÆs hand speared outward to intercept The collision shook the air causing the nearby bushes and trees to sway Azriel delicately crossed her legs and watch the confrontation with amusement
how Lazareth seemed genuinely shocked that Randidly had been able to stop his attack Randidly was surprised too but he just tightly pressed his lips together
Seems like being Level 72 wasnÆt just for show
Sidestepping quickly Randidly moved to the side and slammed his leg against the side of LazarethÆs knee Grunting the other man endured the blow and stalked forward with blazing eyes It seemed like the fact the two of them possessed similar levels of Strength wasnÆt enough to shake his mentality for long And Randidly had a rather critical weakness
Even if I have the essence of my Skills pretty well fixed fighting with only one arm is difficult Randidly thought with a grimace But in the few breaths before Lazareth attacked Randidly was able to determine why the reading of LazarethÆs Aether was so difficult
It was somewhat like a doctor trying to perform an examination on himself Although it was theoretically possible the difference in perspective and feedback made some of the seemingly effortless judgment calls he usually made much more difficult What was most disturbing about this realization was that it corroborated LazarethÆs theory about seizing control here in the Alpha Cosmos
Of course it gave no true insight on what would happen if this beast man was able to accomplish that It wasnÆt that anything would really change RandidlyÆs physical body and the Alpha Cosmos were one connected by RandidlyÆs soul But the Alpha Cosmos being connected to RandidlyÆs body was somewhat unusual So unusual that it hadnÆt been seen in the history of the System As Randidly was pioneering and had done it while under extreme duress he had been rather haphazard in his anchoring
Did that give this monster an opening
RandidlyÆs emerald eyes refocused once more Lazareth lashed out at him
Chimera Weeps But Man Mourns
RandidlyÆs one good arm struck out eight times in quick succession His blows smashed into LazarethÆs chest and arms bypassing his defense simply on the virtue of pure speed And although RandidlyÆs hand wasnÆt a weapon his powerful physical improvement passives gave him the ability to leave deep gashes with just his fingers
However Lazareth didnÆt take these strikes lying down While Randidly was inflicting wounds on him his body shifted One of his arms became covered in thick scales The slash abruptly shifted into a thrust and RandidlyÆs arm was too busy striking to defend
Lazareth smashed Randidly downward into the ground shattering the cobblestone path RandidlyÆs bones groaned uncomfortably from enduring the strike Thankfully Randidly had started putting more on an emphasis on his Endurance or he likely would have quite a few fractures in his torso Again Lazareth was shocked by RandidlyÆs continued resistance His eyes widened in surprise and there was a split second where his focus slackened
Man is Proud but the Chimera Craves
With his hand curled into a claw Randidly ripped into LazarethÆs side The Skill that was the combination of Spear Advances Ash Trails and As the Sun Stills threw both of them across the courtyard and buried Lazareth into the wall Rumble clattered down burying Lazareth in a short pile of stone
Breathing heavily Randidly walked back over to Azriel
She quirked her eyebrow up at him You werenÆt surprised by his abilities
Randidly shook his head slowly No I was not
In their original moment of connection Randidly had felt Lazareth and his capabilities Lazareth didnÆt truly have any active Skills at all Instead he had created a body that was extremely powerful and was able to switch the constitution of its muscular structure at the drop of a hat Dangerous and erratic and almost impossible to beat in a battle of stamina Lazareth was not an easy foe to fight Especially with one arm
But for the same reason Lazareth was nowhere near the threat of Alta even though he was the prince of the Armgrast Empire He was a man focused on improving his individual power through training and repetition not by modifying himself into a metal monster And he didnÆt have access to images yet
Striking with enough force to knock him out therefore was all Randidly
But of course as Randidly had that thought the wall quaked and rumbled Huffing in irritation Lazareth pushed himself out of the collapsed wall You do you think this will stop me Even if you win this fight all I need to do is try again until I defeat you
For a second Randidly was consumed by the impulse to kill Lazareth right here It might destabilize his Alpha Cosmos but it would eliminate a threat that could sabotage him from within in the future Just like Alta Lazareth could perhaps turn the whole Soulskill against him Even if he was currently a lesser threat images were spreading in the Alpha Cosmos Soon LazarethÆs abilities would grow
But just as quickly Randidly sighed and shook his head To be fair he didnÆt really understand what Lazareth could accomplish the manÆs poisonous optimism aside Did he really pose a threat against Randidly How would he seize control of the anchoring point
And also Randidly was somewhat exhausted It seemed like too many times in the past year he had been forced to make decisions regarding the lives of others HIs Crown weighed heavily upon his head
The question he had half jokingly asked Azriel came back to him in a flash Which came first the king or the Crown
One of AzrielÆs questions buzzed in his mind
The sort of world that you can create by being good at fighting isnÆt that what we have already earned