Thank you Sam revealed a rare smile Then his expression shifted and he gave Randidly a long look Now will you be staying for dinner
Randidly felt quite a load of expectations within that expression and couldnÆt help but sigh I suppose Do you think
For a second SamÆs expression was warped by commiseration He walked over to Randidly and patted his shoulder Yes I might not mind your habits but Regina will undoubtedly have some opinions on your lack of social etiquette You are after all SunanÆs godfather But still Facing it now is better than letting more sourness accumulate for a few more years
So despite his frantic schedule in preparation for tomorrow Randidly stayed for dinner with Sam and Regina As expected the first portion of the dinner saw Regina calmly lashing out with sharp comments about how long it had been since Randidly had visited or inquired about their son
Randidly took a glance at the rather silent baby sleeping within the cradle Ultimately he decided that there was no meaning to pointing out that little Sunan wasnÆt old enough to even notice Instead he simply smiled awkwardly Luckily as the three of them continued to converse through the meal ReginaÆs attitude softened Although it wasnÆt how he wanted to spend his time Randidly enjoyed the small break chatting with Sam and Regina
When he left their residence he had a message from Gertrude Collins WeÆve obtained all the guardian signatures we need All told we have thirty two volunteers to come into the Dungeon with us IÆve spoken with them and they should be mature enough that the extra few months wonÆt matter much
Randidly produced his PhilosopherÆs Key with a flick of the wrist as he was replying That seems fast Did you check to make sure all the signatures were genuine
Of course I was a teacher Mr Ghosthound I know my job Gertrude quickly replied ItÆs somewhat awkward to say but a lot of the children live in large groups under a single homeowner There are very few children with genuine familial ties So to sign a form that the child will be gone for two days itÆs quite a casual thing
RandidlyÆs heart tightened when he thought about the lives of these children but then his emerald eyes flashed This was why Kharon Academy was so important It could be the lifeline that these people needed
But Mr Ghosthound Gertrude said in another message IsnÆt thirty two too little
RandidlyÆs eyelid twitched This much will be fine Thank you Miss Collins
It had been GertrudeÆs idea for Randidly to bring children into the Dungeon with him and train them to help make Kharon Academy while also training the police force Randidly had immediately expressed a strong desire not to on account of the number of children that he would suddenly need to manage but Gertrude had responded rather blithely
I mean not everyone will volunteer if you ask They are kids
Privately Randidly feared that Gertrude was dead wrong
Randidly didnÆt want to overestimate himself but he was somewhat aware that he was a powerful figure in the minds of these children If word spread that he was offering a bit of training he believed that quite a few children would agree Perhaps even most of them And then suddenly he would be responsible for the ten thousand children that were already causing headaches all across Kharon
So instead of putting RandidlyÆs name on it they had spread word to the children that the Kharon government itself was sponsoring a workshop for children looking to focus on careers in architecture construction gardening blacksmithing metal working and materials processing Despite GertrudeÆs complains Randidly insisted on making the language of the request as dry as possible
He didnÆt want people to come that thought the project sounded cool He only wanted children who truly were interested in the field Thirty two volunteers was abysmally low from a population of ten thousand but Randidly had a good feeling about those thirty two They could be left in the hands of Ed Dugg for most of the time in the Dungeon Hopefully they would be able to gain quite a bit of experience
Humming to himself Randidly opened a portal and walked through to visit Neveah
Chapter 1422
Neveah chuckled as she looked at RandidlyÆs face She walked up next to him and poked him in the side WhatÆs with that reaction Did you think I wouldnÆt finish the Engraving
Well no but Randidly blinked He shifted his weight from one foot to the other feeling awkward that he had been seen through so easily It made sense Neveah could detect his thoughts through their Soulbond Hiding his thoughts from her was basically impossible But still IÆm just the Engravings are great I didnÆt realize you had so much progress in understanding YystrixÆs murals recently I had sorta thought
Randidly The corners of NeveahÆs expression turned downward We both know what this is really about The pain I suffered when we fought Kaan It was a lot I havenÆt ever encountered anything like that Not personally IÆve seen some of your memories but this was Even now I still have nightmares about his hand squeezing my soul The sounds of bells or wind chimes make me flinch ThatÆs why I think itÆs for the best if I donÆt go to the Nexus with you this time
Randidly stood very still as Neveah was speaking but the words still hit him with more power than he had expected He pressed his hands down against the counter in front of him His fingers tensed but he was careful not to grip with too much strength This cabin of NeveahÆs was only made with basic materials
Neveah put her hands behind her back and continued to speak We each have our own strength This the Engraving understanding the secrets of Aether that is my strength And here on Earth is the place where I can take advantage of it best So I really think staying here will benefit both of us I can remain here and deepen my understanding of YystrixÆs teaching
As Neveah turned to look at him Randidly was very careful to control his emotions He didnÆt want his response to that to taint their relationship But simultaneously there was no way that Randidly could hide his feeling of disappointment To have long anticipated them both going to the Nexus together to become strong and fight against the System Randidly was sad for that to change
For several seconds he simply stood and looked at Neveah His heart ached His metallic hand twitched
But then he shook himself slightly and showed Neveah a fragile smile although itÆs not what I had planned before it might be for the best Besides the beginning period of the Kharon Academy will be the most dangerous So with you present there
Oh please Neveah interrupted him She rolled her eyes and waved her hands as though to push what he said away Are you trying to leave that pile of work in my lap Nuh uh no way Besides if we intervene too directly in the Academy wonÆt we be spreading your image too widely I hope youÆve realized how quickly the scale of your Kharon Academy is growing
Ah humm Randidly immediately frowned Actually he hadnÆt thought about that problem Originally Kharon Academy had been relatively small He had assumed there would be maybe five hundred students within its walls But with the huge population of children in Kharon he had expanded his schematics to be eight times the original size Even then things looked like they were going to be a tight fit
But Randidly had been so caught up in scaling Kharon Academy up that he had forgotten about the latent threat that his image presented to Earth passing the Second Calamity In the end Randidly could only shake his head at NeveahÆs words I honestly donÆt know I hadnÆt thought about it But even if ten thousand is a lot of people have you seen the most recent reports A conservative estimate of the population of all the bubble cities in the Wildlands and Zones is about 100 million people Compared to all those growing images ten thousand isnÆt too much
Heh DonÆt try and say that with a straight face Based on the work that you are doing those ten thousand images will grow faster and with a better foundation than most Those images are much more likely to become elites They will influence other images Neveah walked over to the stove of her cabin and picked up the pot of stew She brought over a ladle and then carefully poured some into his bowl You are gathering some of the most talented people on Earth right now Randidly You need to handle this carefully