I donÆt need to beat her just for the game to end He told himself He straightened his spine and began to weigh the situation
Before Randidly had even arrived in the upper platform Claudette and Tyune had forced MacDuul slightly away from the dais with the treasureÆ Technically now that Randidly had so aggressively been attacking MacDuul he was the closest to the treasure But the fist of foreign dread that lodged itself in his chest made him very sure that Devick wouldnÆt let him simply run up to the coin and end this
Randidly had absolute confidence in his speed now even more solid as he grew more adept with DevickÆs methods But precisely because she had shown him those methods he had no confidence of using them against her
After utilizing his body she knew what he could accomplish
A part of him urged him to gamble anyway and rely on his physical body to withstand the inevitable counterattack from Devick but he knew that was beyond foolish his skin turned clammy as he remembered the strange corrosion her chains had left briefly on his skin before it had been cleansed by the sapphire liquid of the lake The same sort of corrosion that turned her casual punch into a force that unraveled the DonÆs entire Engraving No Randidly couldnÆt move easily or Devick would run wild
The air around her seemed to be dyed red with her madness but he could only see it out of the corners of his eyes Her presence warped space That he supposed was what it meant to have passed through the image fulfillment stage
A genuine Speculum now looked at him with ill intent
Kinetic force hadnÆt worked but what about borrowing anotherÆs image power Normally such a thing would be impossible but based on the similarities between the two
Nidhogg sank its fangs into the target meadow and took a corner of MacDuulÆs image became RandidlyÆs at least for a short amount of time Pressing a seed of the World Tree image into that warm ground Randidly whipped around and faced the ringing chain that aimed for his throat His three images roared The World Tree Sips from Every Realm The Ashen Doors to Pandemonium Unlock Breath of the Cosmos
All three images pounced upon the well of MacDuulÆs image power ripping handfuls of force and detail for themselves Like coals removed from a fire they quickly faded but much of the heat remained for a few moments Pinned by Nidhogg it couldnÆt even resist this pilfering
Dozens even hundreds of Skill Level notifications flashed in front of Randidly but he ignored them and urged his images to work more quickly Then the Grey Creature and the Stillborn Phoenix passed along their stolen power to Yggdrasil who swelled and exploded out of the image ground Its trunk thickened and darkened even as its roots wormed their way deeply into the image manifestation that MacDuul had made
The two images wove together using the shape that Randidly had painstakingly refined but powered by the force the retired Commandant had gathered over his career
MacDuul seemed too stunned to respond just gaping at the tree suddenly growing out of his image and draining his power
RandidlyÆs breath hissed through his teeth He felt the overwhelming power of this manÆs image but handling it with his Willpower was agonizing His eyes flashed with a strange blackness He couldnÆt handle this for long But for now
Randidly growled and attacked that horrifying chain Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil Piercing Gaze of the Egg The Wrathful Calamity Rends
If it hadnÆt been for the Nether storm he had made Randidly wasnÆt sure he could have survived utilizing that image potency The caustic Aether seared its way through his Soulspace barely prevented from crippling him by the thick foundation of his significance Then it was gone surging and burning its way forward
More Skill Levels blurred in front of him as symbiotic image roots exploded out of MacDuulÆs meadow containing the Stillborn PhoenixÆs lust for vengeance and the unflinching desire of the Grey Creature to survive The roots bulged and sizzled with grey lightning possessing an impossible amount of power for the current Randidly His emotions sang with those roots and even as his senses flickered and got burned away by the image he handled he existed totally in that effort to stop Devick
To put it simply it was a miracle
The impact shook the platform Randidly fell over his head pounding This activation of his First Authority had been much more concentrated which mean the effort wasnÆt so gargantuan but the target had also been extremely formidable Behind him he felt Nidhogg loosening its grip and the overpowered Yggdrasil slowly collapsing Yet he laughed he had spent everything and forced DevickÆs image to a draw
The chain now writhed and ripped its way through the collapsing roots to get at Randidly but it had been brought to a dead stop just for a moment And now
Descent of the Wolf God Moonlight BladeÆs rough howl cut through the remnants of the impact Suddenly he was loping across the cracked ground to catch up with Claudette and Tyune At the same time Tyune had given up on trying to reach the platform and just unleashed his attacks on Claudette to slow her down
Devick spared Moonlight Blade a glance and curled her lip up Then she shook her head and turned back to Randidly One idiot at a time Anyways Ghosthound you did it again you surprised me IÆm trying to decide if this new information makes it more or less likely that IÆll kill you right here
IÆm not just imagining it For a brief moment his forehead creased She definitely is dyeing the air red
Randidly tried not to let any emotion show on his face even as Claudette was dragged into a direct confrontation with Tyune The sallow beingÆs weirdly damp image didnÆt possess overwhelming force but the repeated solid attacks from its amorphous tentacles smashed apart the walls of frost that Claudette threw up Even with her sharp movements the overall power of her image was less than this old monster
Meanwhile Moonlight BladeÆs image grew more and more powerful as he charged A new note spread through his image creating a strange harmony of power And when he raised his claws
That sensation Randidly muttered to himself He felt a small strand of his own significance in this rising power It wasnÆt much but the energy was familiar With his significance as a counterweight Randidly probably could affect Moonlight BladeÆs attack
Alas you are too pretty I donÆt like the prospect of you remaining alive Devick announced She shook her masked face Perfection should be destroyed I like you entirely too much Perhaps if you had a broken nose or a few warts Well there is no point crying over it Accept your fate
A second attack Randidly thought to himself numb at the prospect But despite that he felt hope rising in his chest Claudette and Tyune clashed three times in quick succession Moonlight Blade raced to their position MacDuul sagged behind Randidly finally catching his breath Neshamah crouched behind Devick by the staircase
Devick pointed The sluggish chain accelerated once more
RandidlyÆs eyes were bright He didnÆt blink I just need to survive one more attack
Chapter 1873
A single mad strike Randidly didnÆt blink
DevickÆs chain exploded from stillness into motion aiming once more for RandidlyÆs heart However his mind continued to churn through his options in the current situation Despite using Seize earlier on MacDuul Randidly still possessed a significant portion of his significance and Nether using it with a single target lowered the difficulty by a lot He was tired but it wasnÆt as crippling as it had been in the past
In addition both the Stillborn Phoenix and the Grey Creature were itching to fight They still resonated clearly with the emotional energy he held Plus force still churned through his body swirling through the patterns in the grey firestorm At this point it was just coasting but he still had about two seconds before the chain would reach him That was enough to strengthen it
He had tools at his disposal He could mount a resistance And obviously he would