With only thirty seconds remaining in his break, Randidly tore his eyes away from the stirring forces of the battlefield’s two main combatants and took a brief moment to inspect his Path screen. After all, he had been steadily accumulating PP during the entirety of this frantic confrontation. Even though Randidly had been active for only one-fifth of the total battle, he had gained a lot. His current PP total sat at 523.

And there were a few new Paths waiting for him.

Monarch of the Baleful Woods 0/450, Image Cooperation I 0/100, Body Refinement I 0/???, Chimera’s Struggle II 0/????

Randidly hummed softly to himself as his eyes weighed each of the options in turn. The first was a rather overt reference to his Class. And one that seemed like it would continue the focus on Randidly as a leader. The second, on its face, seemed to be built around creating a method of blending images together. Which, considering the individual power of Randidly’s three images, was definitely an avenue worth pursuing.

With both Yggdrasil and the Grim Chimera working together to empower my body… Yet Randidly schooled his thoughts and continued through the other options.

Perhaps the third option was due to the strain that Randidly had been putting his body under recently. It seemed the System had taken his masochism as a deliberate choice to pursue the creation of a more powerful body. The fourth and final option seemed to be the evolution of Chimera’s Grudge, which had provided Randidly with the viciously targeted Nether Infection Skill. Certainly, that path had given Randidly quite a few Stats while completing, but the targeted Skill filled Randidly for a thirst for revenge against the System that he intended to have sated.

Later, Randidly said to himself. Combined with Randidly’s previously possessed Paths, there were certainly too many options to pick on easily. Especially when the fighting on the frontlines was so chaotic. Especially when Randidly’s heart consistently urged him that something was wrong in the images of Lady Iellaya and Abiodun. His mind was pulled in too many directions; there was no rush to select a single option.

As if to provide its own support to Randidly’s thoughts, his internal clock told him that his break would end in ten seconds.

Congratulations! Your Skill Absolute Timing (Ru) has grown to Level 110!

Randidly cracked his knuckles. Above, the open eyes of the Nether King continued to burn white-hot and survey the battlefield. Slowly and obviously, the Nether Gatekeeper looked from Lord Miln’s position on top of the rocky outcropping to Lady Iellaya. Ignoring that gaze completely, Lady Iellaya used her wings to eviscerate another Nether Gatekeeper. Already the numbers of those remaining in front of her dwindled to fifteen. To say nothing of the vast darkness that the raven-winged serpent dragged in its wake, which seemed to suffocate the average Nether Beast in the surrounding area with its presence.

Although Randidly’s perception was muted so far across the battlefield, he could sense the Nether forces using their new foothold to assail some of the Aether camps from three sides. Losses were rapidly mounting. Bodies were left piled to the side as Nether Beasts stalked forward. Almost the entirety of the reinforcements sent to that side of the battlefield had been slaughtered, leaving only the original forces turtled up in their fortifications.

Yet those final holdouts were also under heavy fire. Even with the advantages of a base to operate from, the Commanders of these forces were rapidly tiring.

And the Commanders were the only defense against the Nether Gatekeepers.

My role… Randidly glanced once more over toward Vualla, and then shifted his gaze upward to Lady Iellaya.

Randidly’s break was over. He took a single step forward. His Mana seethed in his veins as he took a deep breath and the expended almost five thousand of his nine thousand Mana in a single moment. The sensation of immediate loss was certainly a strange one. Due to his time Engraving, Randidly was intimately familiar with the behavior of Mana. At certain quantities, Mana seemed to clump together. Separating out individual drops of Mana was a difficult thing.

Yet Randidly didn’t bother with any sort of attempt at control. Instead, he allowed the huge mass of Mana to condense together and explode as he forced it through his Skill. Around him, the fortifications shivered. When used all at once, so much Mana became more than just five thousand drops of Mana. It became a veritable bomb, ready to explode with power. Randidly’s Skill quaked.

Congratulations! Your Skill Riders of the Baleful Court (A) has grown to Level 131!

Congratulations! Your Skill Riders of the Baleful Court (A) has grown to Level 132!

Congratulations! Your Skill Riders of the Baleful Court (A) has grown to Level 133!

…

Congratulations! Your Skill Riders of the Baleful Court (A) has grown to Level 156!

His breath hissed out through his teeth as Randidly pressed against the limits of what his Skill could give and did not relent for a second. Rather than being an issue of Mana, what Randidly faced was the numerical limit of how many RIders he could summon at any one time. They were distant, but Randidly knew that Neveah still possessed some in her service. Some were also assisting Kharon. So when Randidly tried to summon so many, he was pulling at a well that was already partially tapped.

Plus, it was painful to push past that limit. The Skill groaned and creaked from the strain. Yet Randidly didn’t waver. Pain was something that he knew intimately. After enduring the slow roasting that absorbing the hiltless blade Fate required, this was nothing. And as Randidly did not balk in response to rising levels of pain, the Skill Level shot upward.

Then Randidly rolled his shoulders in discomfort. There were a few breaths of silence as he waited. Then a gnarled hand of root pierced up out of the fortification beneath him and grasped desperately at the air. Its fingers twisted and popped.

One by one, Randidly’s newly summoned Riders pulled themselves out of the top of the fortifications, grown out of the same heavy wood that Randidly had nurtured to create the tall fortifications. Not that he had this location in mind as a birthing place for Riders, but it was certainly convenient now that it had been constructed of wood.

And a powerful wood at that.

It’s not like these forts turned out to be very useful anyway… As the chitinous steeds clambered awkwardly out of the gutted would of the groud, Randidly glance out toward the Nether Gatekeepers. Just serves as a symbol. There is no power to these forts. Maybe if I had time to think up an Engraving for them… but for now, that symbol was all I could give. Hopefully, that will be enough.

All told, there were about one hundred and seventy Riders that Randidly had managed to summon. It pleased him immensely that he had been able to push past the limit of his Skill Level, even as it was frustrating to know that these Riders were barely at the power of a one-star Nether Beast to start.

“Help the right flank,” Randidly said lightly. His eyes scanned amongst the entirely uniform riders who watched his every move with blank eyes. At the moment, they were completely identical to one another. Slender bodies, leafy spears, mounts there were a mix between a camel, a rhino, and a spider. Many of these would die when tossed toward the Nether Beasts. But some of them would grow, developing identities, establishing themselves as leaders. Those perhaps could make a difference. “Give it your all. Leave no energy idle for later regrets.”

Most of the ones who evolved into more powerful individuals would still end up dead. This was practically a suicide mission. But the RIders of the Baleful Court nodded and cantered down off of the upper ramparts, past several overwhelmed looking guards. Then Randidly turned and looked back toward Lady Iellaya’s portion of the battlefield.

She clearly had something specific in mind for Randidly, so he would respect that wish and not expend too much of his mental energy. But Randidly did have a slight realization as he considered what his role was and what his Fate meant.

Perhaps he could barely rival a Nether Gatekeeper, but that missed the point. In a way that few others could match, Randidly could rival the entire force of lesser Nether Beasts arrayed against them today. To ignore that was to ignore his greatest strength. And to demonstrate that ability didn’t necessarily take mental power, it only took Mana.

Mana hadn’t been exceedingly important since coming to the frontlines, so Randidly hadn’t been using it much. But now he steadily removed the ten rings he kept in his interspatial ring that stored Mana and Stamina. At this point, Stamina recovery wasn’t a problem, but Randidly gladly absorbed the two thousand or so Mana that he had put there previously.

Perhaps Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil was the most Mana efficient Skill that Randidly possessed, but it was certainly not the most damaging. Grinning, Randidly raised his right hand and watched the emerald and orange fire dance across his fingers. It’s been a while since I utilized my Ignition Essence Skills… but I’ve felt the image of Illym slowly percolating down through them. I think it’s time to check that progress.

With a light step, Randidly tossed himself off the edge of the battlements and flew quickly over the recovering mass of Aether soldiers below. He touched lightly down on a small open space on the battlefield that opened up as both forces were forced backward by the powerful darkness from Lady Iellaya. Many of the Aether soldiers looked up to him in shock as he landed in one of the most dangerous areas of conflict, very close to the back of Lady Iellaya’s image.

Up closer to the image, the sense of anxious struck Randidly much more fiercely. Yet he did his best to ignore that feeling and concentrate on resonating with the Skills in his chest. Skills that Randidly hadn’t relied on in quite some time all started to hum in unison at his call. The orange notes in Ignition Essence began to brighten in radiance on his hands.

Ignition of the Emerald Essence. Verdant Nova. Influence of the Molten Core. Eruption of the Blazing Leyline. Ignition Bolt. One day, they would form the foundation of a Skillset based around Ignition Essence. But for now, they were simply the Skills that would benefit the most from the power brought to him by Illym, the Above-Average Child, and her images.

Although the Skill Levels of these Skill were relatively pedestrian compared to Randidly’s accomplishments with the Yggdrasil and Grim Chimera related Skills, Randidly’s high Intelligence and Control would more than make up for that difference.

From his hand, the emerald and orange flame spread across Randidly’s forearm, elbow, and then ran up to his shoulder. A few seconds later, the surrounding Aether soldiers backed a few more steps away as Randidly became a human torch. Even Salazar, who was telling a story nearby, stalled and stumbled over his words at the sight. Heedless, Lady Iellaya continued to shred and tear at the Nether Gatekeeper numbers.

Congratulations! Your Skill Ignition of the Emerald Essence (L) has grown to Level 163!

Yet Randidly didn’t stop there. He pushed the heat of his flames steadily upward. Very quickly, the ground around him began to melt and bubble. Still, the heat continued to rise. Acri squirmed in annoyance while Sulfur seemed quite pleased with the change in temperature. As the waves of heat rolling off Randidly spiked upward, the neon orange streaks at the tips of Ignition Essence became more pronounced. The heat soon approached the point that it was painful.

Congratulations! Your Skill Ignition of the Emerald Essence (L) has grown to Level 164!

Yet as all his Skills began to resonate from the power rolling off of him, it was an unexpected Skill that cracked in half and then immediately reformed into something stronger.

Synchronicity detected! Warning, continuing without sufficient energy-

Congratulations! Your Skill Mana Physique (Un) is involving! Synchronicity detected! Absorbing sympathetic Skills…

Congratulations! Your Skills Fire Resistance, Pain Resistance, Chosen of Ash, and Catalyst of Agony have been absorbed by Mana Physique!

Congratulations! Mana Physique (Un) as evolved into Stigma of the Lifeless Phoenix (L)! Calculating Skill Level… Skill Level set at 201!

Stigma of the Lifeless Phoenix (L): By taking the power of a deceased phoenix into the user’s body, the user has been gifted with immense resistances to fire and pain. In addition, wielding fire will result in vastly increased power of Skills. However, absorbing a true corpse of a phoenix comes with costs. All Skills that require Mana will now partially exhaust you, requiring a portion of the Mana cost to be spent as Health and Stamina to fuel the Skills. Activating all Skills will result in a small amount of pain. Resistances increase with Skill Level. Potency of fire Skills increases with Skill Level. Pain increase with Skill Level.