After clearing the cluttered mess of notifications, Randidly looked at the whole of his Status Screen.

Randidly Ghosthound

Class: Lord of the Baleful Wood (x5)

Level: 62 (94%)

Health(/R per hour): 12051/12245 (4778)

Mana(/R per hour): 11198/11223 (2838)

Stam(/R per min): 8301/8796 (1772)

Vit: 1065

End: 1000

Nether Brawn (A): 1120

Agi: 1265

Grim Intuition (L): 1280

Reaction: 1000

Resistance: 1014

Willpower: 1207

Intelligence: 1058

Wisdom: 794

Control: 1530

Focus: 824

Nether Sphere: Fang of the Primeval Betrayal (Ru)

Weight: 311

Connections: 1,261,697,311

Scope: 12,509

Influence: 1,999/???

PP: 1712

Skills (Soul Skill): Figure of the Alpha Cosmos Lvl 25750

Combat: Spear Mastery Lvl 333, Heavy Blow Lvl 134, Iron Skin Lvl 47, Dodge Lvl 150, Block Lvl 77, Calculated Blow Lvl 149, Roundhouse Kick Lvl 97, Idiosyncratic Cut (Un) Lvl 126, Stalemate Breaker Lvl 142, Talon Strike Lvl 146, Counter Lvl 94, Ruinous Drive (Ru) Lvl 114

LoBW Class Skills: Spray Holy Sap (Un) Lvl 27, Sharpness Lvl 250, Earthquake (Un) Lvl 48, Invigorating Call (Humanity)(Un) Lvl 14, Erode Image (L) Lvl 100, Spriggit’s Tinkering (R) Lvl 252, Aether Understanding (A) Lvl 201, Aether Infusion Lvl 47, Volatile Ash (A) Lvl 44, Conviction of the Smiling Horror (L) Lvl 370, Fruit of the Planting of Enmity (L) Lvl 49, Absolute Timing (Ru) Lvl 182, Cycle of the Gloomy Wood (R) Lvl 45, Riders of the Baleful Court (A) Lvl 304, Torch of Fast and Slow Silences (A) Lvl 212, Sigil of an Approaching Fate (A) Lvl 66, Profound Influence (A) Lvl 21, Reckoning of the Bleak Dawn (L) Lvl 99

Supremacy of the Grim Chimera (T): Chimeric Impunity (M) Lvl 355, Cursed Appetite of a Wraith (L) Lvl 365, Grit of the Ascendent Bane (T) Lvl 393, Reaper’s Mantle of Catastrophe (L) Lvl 301, Pernicious Fang of the Shade (L) Lvl 306, Man is Proud, but the Chimera Takes (L) Lvl 313, The Chimera Weeps as Man Mourns (L) Lvl 261, Ruin is Inevitable, Yet This Too Shall Pass (T) Lvl 285

The Stillborn Phoenix: A Star that Prayed it would be Reborn (P): Piercing Gaze of the Egg (L) Lvl 259, The Tug of Tragic Silence (A) Lvl 258, Cosmic Necessity (M) Lvl 301, Hallucination of the Bloodless Heart (T) Lvl 341, Tide of the Void (L) Lvl 297, Stigma of the Stillborn Phoenix (L) Lvl 316, Revelation of the Atramentous Threshold (T) Lvl 367

Aether Skills: Aether Detection Lvl 240, Aether Manipulation Lvl 252, Living Aether (R) Lvl 165, System Interference Lvl 88, Aether Surgeon (Ru) Lvl 104

Spells: Yggdrasil Soul Seed (R), Inspiration (R), Burning Footsteps Lvl 23

Crafting: Potion Making Lvl 73, Farming Lvl 34, Analyze Lvl 29, Refine Lvl 106, Extract Lvl 92, Architecture of the Primordial Ways (M) Lvl 399, Experienced Creator’s Ingenuity (A) Lvl 199, Touch of the Ghosthound (U)

Yggdrasil, the Universe that was First a Tree (P): Glittering Leaves of Yggdrasil (L) Lvl 298, The Golden Roots of Yggdrasil (L) Lvl 321, the Emerald Sap of Yggdrasil (L) Lvl 260, the Yyrwood Flesh of Yggdrasil (L) Lvl 314, the Inscrutable Mien of Genesis (M) Lvl 321, the Implacable Price of Exodus (M) Lvl 283, Reign of the Eidolon Crucible (L) Lvl 275, Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil (T) Lvl 332

Auxiliary: Sneak Lvl 56, Acid Resistance Lvl 22, Poison Resistance Lvl 21, Sewing Lvl 11, Digging Lvl 9, Cooking Lvl 101, Clockwork Mastery Lvl 30, Aether Connection (A) Lvl 21, Soul Bond Lvl 155, Chef’s Palette Lvl 36, Nether Modification (U), Child of the Rain (Un) Lvl 59, Engineering Savvy (R) Lvl 275, From Darkness, Genesis (R) Lvl 17, (Domain) Crossroads of the Alpha Cosmos Lvl 260, Connection to the Alpha Cosmos (U), Nether Sensation (L) Lvl 389, Nether Ritual (A) Lvl 221

After examining everything, Randidly felt quite a bit of satisfaction at his own growth. Especially when he looked at the amount of PP he possessed.

For now, Randidly didn’t try and force his Nether Sphere up to the next Rarity tier for two reasons. He probably would be able to make succeed now, but raising his influence would likely get him more Weight when he expanded. In addition, he currently didn’t understand the role of this Primeval Fang of Betrayal at all.

Scratching the wall was impressive, but Randidly had managed to Engraving the walls with Nether in the past. And also, where had that name even come from? The System claimed that Weight would increase his capabilities, by 30% according to the notifications, but he would be more comfortable if he had some more time to train and observe the changes.

Randidly looked down at his hands. Certainly though, that warm gush of energy through his body when he connected to his Nether Core had felt quite enjoyable… And when he squinted his eyes, he could see ethereal flames rolling off his skin-

Influence +1!

Randidly tilted his head to the side at the new notification but then chuckled. Apparently, someone somewhere was thinking quite fondly about him. Based on the number of connections… it seemed that both Expira and the Alpha Cosmos were included in the Sphere that was generated by making the Nether Core. Which hopefully meant that the people in those places would help him increase his Influence quite quickly-

A thought occurred to Randidly and he went white. He hastily produced his Philosopher's Key but was so twitchy in his movements that he almost dropped the Fatepiece. Just the thought of the Philosopher’s Key tumbling down to the bottom of this shaft after he worked so hard to escape made his heart skip a beat. After snatching the piece of brass out of the air, he slid the key forward and opened a portal into his Alpha Cosmos. After about two minutes of sending out messages and waiting, four individuals floated out of the portal and looked around.

Vualla raised her hands and threw back her hair as she floated out of the portal, supported by Randidly’s Hallucination of the Bloodless Heart. She was dressed casually in leather armor, without her heavy gauntlets. Since Randidly had seen her last, Vualla’s hair had grown out from shoulder length to near her waist. As Randidly saw that, he couldn’t help but grimace at the amount of time that must have passed.

But Vualla just smiled at Randidly and opened her arms toward him. That express was enough to remind him of the connection between them. They embraced, both squeezing each other with enough force that they probably would have squished and popped weaker humanoids.

“We made it,” Vualla whispered against Randidly’s shoulder.

He nodded, suddenly realizing that he was still floating around down here shirtless. “Yea. It was… a pretty vicious trap we fell into. But the pull of significance down here isn’t a problem for me any longer.” Randidly pulled back a little and scanned Vualla’s face. “How long did I take…?”

Vualla wrinkled her nose. “We were having a moment, Randidly. Don’t you worry, I’ll beat your ass for making me wait so long… but wait, you don’t know how long it took?”

Randidly shook his head, while inwardly hoping his Nether Sphere would give him enough power to surprise Vualla in their eventual confrontation. But his earlier nerves were quickly fading. “Part of the way I escaped was going into a hyper-training mode with my Fatepiece. By the end of it, I thought about basically nothing except finishing my Nether Core. Time was meaningless. So… I really have no idea…”

“Five fucking years. Well, maybe a month or two short of that, but it took a long while.” Helen floated forward. But although she swore, her expression seemed relatively light. She even grinned over at Randidly and slapped his shoulder when he separated from Vualla. “Five years of my life waiting while you are training. Pretty typical, if you ask me.”

“You… seem in a better mood than I would have expected,” Randidly said slowly. But inwardly, his mind was spinning. Five years…? Depending on how much time dilation there was, things might have changed significantly in the Nexus. He hoped Edraine and Lady Iellaya had managed without him. And had Neveah waited in the Nexus during that whole time…?

Instantly, Randidly felt for his familiar connection with Neveah and sighed when he found her waiting there in that familiar place inside of his Soulspace.

About time you remembered me, Neveah said playfully. I’m a bit jealous that Vualla was your first thought… But don’t worry about the time; for use, its only been ten days. Commandant Wick has been pressuring Heiffal to give up information on where you are hiding, but you made it back in time. The real issue is- well, we will talk about that when you come back to Edraine’s lodging.

Meanwhile, Helen gestured backward to the two individuals floating behind her. “Heh, who would have guessed that raising proteges would be so fulfilling…? Bahaha, they might be a bit rowdy, but that’s why I like them. These two you told me to take on the special training mission… well, let’s just say I’m a genius, kukuku…”

Finally, Randidly recognized that the other two individuals standing there as Raymund Ballast and DiOrtho Vant. Both looked wildly unrecognizable from his prior impressions of them. The previously disciplined but meek Raymund had let his fur grow out, resulting in the wild savagery of his Vulpine blood being on full display. His arms and shoulders were crisscrossed with jagged looking scars.

Meanwhile, that wild ram-demon DiOrtho was wearing a nice suit and had trimmed his hair. He looked like a middle-aged office worker, all of his aggression and hatred for authority gone as though it had never existed.

Despite these changes, the images that both released had improved quite a bit.

But also… Randidly tilted his head as he looked at the duo. His gaze was above their heads, but Helen misinterpreted his confusion.

“Ah, yea, these little punks changed a lot. Vant even got married to a racist princess. But their images are finally up to snuff, so no worries about that,” Helen grinned. “I don’t know if the recruitment is still happening, but these two will be able to slaughter Nether Gatekeepers like they are chickens.”

“Uh-huh,” Randidly said softly as he thought about the true Nether Gatekeepers below. But then his gaze went back to that spot above their heads. His hand came up and rubbed his chin as he continued studied the duo. As the moment lengthened, Randidly could sense both of them becoming increasingly nervous; rather belatedly, Randidly wondered if he should continue with the rather harsh persona that he had used earlier in their training.

But what Randidly was truly looking at were two small notifications that hovered above them. Above Raymund were the words Influence: 135, Borrowed Weight: 135 while DiOrtho had Influence 90, Borrowed Weight 90.

“Hey, you.” Vualla floated over to Randidly and put her hand on his shoulder. She sniffed around Randidly like she was a feral cat. “This… why do I feel something warm when I’m near you…? Some weird flames…? I feel like I could crush an entire city…”

“You are only realizing your feelings for me now?” Randidly joked as he turned around, but when he saw Vualla, he had to suck in a breath.

Influence: 503, Borrowed Weight 311

Randidly’s face twitched. Does this mean that when we are near each other, Vualla will receive the same benefits from my Nether Sphere as I do…? I suppose my dreams of suddenly overwhelming her will need to wait a bit… but hell, my images have improved a lot too. Perhaps-

But Randidly shook himself to get himself back on track. He nodded to the two recruits and floated past them to close the door to the Alpha Cosmos. Both scrambled to get out of his way. Then Randidly opened a portal to the Fifth Cohort Rally Station and gestured. “Good news for everyone but Vualla. Only ten days have passed in the Nexus. For now… don’t reveal what happened to you, recruits. It seems like tensions are rising in the Fifth Cohort. I’ll gather some information and debrief you later.”

After a fleeting kiss from Vualla, she led the way through the portal while muttering about being late to report due to a boy. Once they were gone, Randidly rolled his shoulders, closed the portal, and exploded upward once more.

It only took him a few minutes to reach the portion of the shaft that was crisscrossed with wires and then a few more minutes to locate the side door that led to Edraine’s neighborhood. As always, the streets of that isolated place were completely deserted.

When Randidly walked up to the study, he was met with a leaping Neveah. Chuckling, Randidly caught her and spun her around. Then he lightly settled Neveah onto the ground. His hands tightened on her shoulders. “Thanks for coming.”

“Thanks for not going too wild down there,” Neveah said wryly. Suddenly, Randidly’s chuckles became awkward as he recalled his mad descent downward in order to dilate time enough that he could create a Nether Core. The brittle smile on Neveah’s face told him exactly how aware she was about the true nature of his behavior.

Lady Iellaya wasn’t present, but Edraine and Octavius Shrike seemed exhausted, sitting next to ceiling height mounds of scrolls that made the previously expansive and sophisticated study seem like the den of a hoarder.

Most interestingly, Edraine didn’t even bother to inquire how he was. Instead, she said. “It’s been a tumultuous few days; the Nether forces in the Fifth Cohort have launched an enormous offensive by folding space. But we can get to that later; by any chance, did you happen to witness the situation down in that Aether Refinery at the base of the spine?”