During this process Randidly watched GertrudeÆs image And that pure dedication to education caused a small smile to form at the corner of his mouth The pure joy and commitment to helping others grow was exactly what he needed
At the end of her slew of questions Gertrude stared down at the table in front of her The previous shyness she had was shed as the focus on education came to the fore of her being Randidly waited silently feeling rather satisfied that he had listened to Derek Moss and come out to talk with this teacher He could already tell she could help shape the spirit of Kharon Academy
Chewing on her lip Gertrude finally spoke some of these things are too big for me to know any decent methods IÆll need to contact some people I knew back in Zone 1 They they have more experience than me Even if they arenÆt as talented at images they know how to handle children But I do have one suggestion even though IÆm not sure how realistic it is
Well obviously not the whole thing but Gertrude gestured toward the still scaffolding being assembled for the duos tournament It sat next to them in the dark opposite the bright lights of the carnival If you really want Kharon Academy to be an institution that epitomizes KharonÆs spirit of forging its own path what would capture the image of trailblazing better than having a portion of the Academy built by the very children who will spend their time there
Randidly froze His thoughts began to race Obviously there needed to be a base structure in place but other than that a portion of the students would likely choose to address weaknesses related to building or craftsmanship anyway It could be an on going process We donÆt need to build it all at once As they graduate the students can shape the Academy or they act as support to throw their vote behind which professor should shape the Academy
Very quickly Randidly shook his head and brought himself back The details could wait until later But for now he needed to make sure he had GertrudeÆs support going forward What better way than a Kharon municipal team building retreat Do you have some spare time tomorrow If you do IÆd like you to come into a Dungeon with me to work on these ideas
Chapter 1421
Randidly frowned Due to the smoldering flames in the center of the room the enclosed space was really hot But the response he received was enough to distract him from all of the specialty tool laying about in the workshop What do you mean Why donÆt you know if you will be able to help DonÆt you think
Randidly stopped himself before he could complete that sentence It was somewhat rude to admit that he had thought Sam would be swept up by what he was offering and accept immediately But truthfully Randidly was somewhat floored that the resources Randidly had described didnÆt seem to tempt him
Sam idly waved a hammer that was the size of a human head to dismiss RandidlyÆs words Due to its strange shifting hue Randidly could tell that the item wasnÆt a simple tool The fact that Sam could so casually wave it was a testament to his strength My schedule is extremely busy Even if I am no longer in charge of DonnytonÆs refinery I have quite a few projects lined up right now IÆve accepted down payments it isnÆt an easy thing to push back such work for a favor even if itÆs for you
When Randidly didnÆt respond to him Sam snorted and then continued to hammer the piece of metal in front of him Every time the heavy tool smashed the metal a clear ringing echoed out in the small room A shifting and amorphous image thickened the air around the tempering demonstrating why Sam was the pinnacle of his field Even though he wasnÆt imbuing it with any specificity that Randidly could see it was slowly growing more powerful The image shaped the metal and the metal shaped the image Randidly had no doubt it would slowly develop into something powerful
This ability is why I want him to help with Kharon Academy but this reaction Randidly stared at SamÆs grizzled silhouette as he continued to work Wearing a leather apron and working away with the metal the figure was a familiar one to Randidly His friendship with Sam was one of his oldest and strongest They were bonded through Aether Sam was his Dawn Smith Yet now Sam seemed completely content with where he was
Smiling slyly down at his current work Sam placed the strange hammer to the side and picked up a pair of tongs Then he lifted the metal in question and regarded it critically from several angles He even brought it to his face and sniffed it Once he set it back down the hammering began with renewed vigor
As Randidly watched a sense of strangeness grew in his chest Watching SamÆs movements nothing was off but this sort of behavior wasnÆt like Sam Normally if he really wasnÆt willing to listen to my offer he would have just kicked me out Which means that he probably wants something
Eventually Randidly sighed The better he got at observing people the more work seemed to appear in front of him Things just get more complicated donÆt they IÆm sorry that the first time I came to see you it was work
Sam glared at him this time with genuine irritation He slowly lowered his strange hammer to his side Kid do you really think I would care about that I understand how busy you must be running a city Plus heh the projects you bring me are always the most interesting ones Nah itÆs fine you are a bit forgetful
Hearing that RandidlyÆs eyes narrowed Then what is it you want How can I get you to come agree to work on the construction of Kharon Academy
SamÆs assistance wasnÆt absolutely necessary but it would be a huge help to the project Not for the general construction any average worker could handle the details of the typical buildings Due to GertrudeÆs suggestion Randidly was even considering allowing the kids themselves to do the lionÆs share of it But for some of the critical pieces in the labyrinth for the components that would blend images and Engraving to hold the whole Kharon Academy together Randidly would rest easier leaving it in SamÆs hands
Finally seeing that he had RandidlyÆs attention Sam coughed lightly IÆm not much for negotiation IÆd prefer if everyone was direct about things So IÆm just gonna say my demand No room for discussion I want to explore one of the Corrupted Worlds Soon And I want to be the first human to do so Since the Order Ducis is in charge of them I assume you have that power
Randidly frowned Corrupted Worlds referred to the five extra Danger Zones that had been pasted onto Earth due to the test from the Xyrt Brigade After the Earth had completed its task in time these worlds had brought their Aether and significant resources to Earth At least in theory that is Right now they were just a bunch of portals to dangerous worlds
The populations of those worlds had just been primed by the System to attack and massacre the Earth a few weeks ago as part of the test Although that prompting disappeared the Nexus never bothered to send out a follow up notification that the people of these planets should cooperate with the Earthlings So the Order Ducis had been trying to establish communications with the various factions within the worlds with mixed results
You want the materials Randidly guessed after thinking about it
Of course SamÆs eyes were shining now An entire worldÆs worth of resources Not that I want to monopolize them but IÆve already noticed that the EarthÆs resources are curving toward mythic materials that were the stuff of legends prior to the System If our images shape the materials too I definitely need to test out the materials that these other worlds imagined
Randidly thought about it for a bit before slowly nodding From what IÆve heard discussions with one of the worlds has gone pretty well I think that trade will start up in earnest soon And at that time Randidly paused as a thought occurred to him But then he shook his head and continued at that time I believe you can be the first to see and experience the materials within the world