Carolyn and Angus had apparently been waiting for Rory when he got back. They had surrounded one of the monstrous souls, an ethereal Emberteeth that was bumping its head over and over against a tree.

Rory recalled seeing some of the lich’s souls at the bank acting just as aimlessly. He frowned. It made it seem as though the summoned soul wasn’t really doing the job it had been called to do. Maybe it was just part of how resurrection worked for now. Maybe Evelyn had to be in the vicinity, or the Sigil’s Tier needed to be raised to properly control a large number of souls.

“Are you alright?” Angus asked. “You look unwell, Rory.”

Rory considered blowing it off, but then, all the former Neophytes were connected mentally via their hivemind. Whatever Diane had healed, she hadn’t removed that, either on purpose or by being unable to in the first place.

Which meant that these two knew all about what had happened in the main hall.

“I’ll be fine,” Rory eventually said. “Just something else I have to keep running in the back of my head and figure out.”

“We could think on it as well,” Carolyn said with a nod. “A solution is easier to come by when there are many working on the problem.”

“Oh, I’d accept all constructive thoughts. That said, I’m just wary of being too aggressive or thoughtless about the solutions themselves, ironic as it might seem.”

Basically, Rory didn’t want anyone begin harassing Sue with their ideas about helping her. She needed support, but she ought not to be pushed into anything, even if it was something that looked like an easy answer to her problem. Rory didn’t want to put any pressure on her.

“But anyway,” he said, pulling his Staff of Deadly Winter out before him. “I’m here for other business. Time to take care of that first.”

Setting his staff down, Rory held his two new Sigils in each hand—the Sigil of Draining Blizzard on his right and the Sigil of Barricade on his left. Angus and Carolyn both drew closer to watch intently. Rory activated his Weaving and brought the Sigils together, focusing the lines of white light on them.

[Warning! Sigils cannot be combined due to exceeding the number of diverging functions available at current Tier.]

“Something wrong?” Angus asked. Apparently, he hadn’t seen the notification.

Rory pulled the Sigils apart, smoothing the scowl that had appeared on his face. The warning made sense when he thought about it. This blizzard of his was already doing a lot.

It had started off with a rending effect to destroy everything it touched, then Rory had added a preserving effect back at the grocery store, before adding the recent draining effect with the Sigil of Lifedrain. Of course, adding a barrier-summoning function on top of that felt like too much.

Rory had never had trouble combining Sigils before. However, he had never tried to add too many functions to a Sigil before either. It made sense he’d need higher Tiers to achieve that level of complexity. Now to just begin testing it.

“Is there an issue?” Carolyn asked.

Rory quickly explained the problem and his intended solution. “I think I’m going to need some space.”

Angus and Carolyn both stepped far back, the latter going back to the confused Emberteeth. But as Rory picked up his staff and tried to insert the Sigil of Draining Blizzard into it, he received yet another warning.

[Warning! Sigil Warded into Item cannot be at a higher Tier than the Item’s Tier.]

Oh, of course. The Item’s description stated that it could only use Sigils that was of the same Tier. Well, that just meant he had to use his staff a lot more than he had already. Rory activated the Sigil of Harmonic Blizzard and let it blast around the area, hoping his Staff would grow stronger faster. It was cold, freezing in truth, but he was used to bearing it now.

It took a while. Rory kept periodically checking his staff’s stats. But he was sure at least three hour’s worth of continuous usage had gone by before he had final reached Cerulean VIII on his staff. Quite a bit of those three hours included mandatory rest periods for his ailing body. He looked up, tired and cold but smiling at finally being done.

Angus and Carolyn had both taken turns trying to play with the ghostly Emberteeth, before wandering off for a while, though they had returned before Rory stopped.

Shaking his head, Rory tried inserting the Sigil of Draining Blizzard into the same slot within the staff that held the Sigil of Harmonic Blizzard. It worked. The new Sigil replaced the new, he was finally ready to test it out.

“Careful,” Rory said. He told Angus and Carolyn, who had looked over when he had finally decided to speak, about the Lifedrain. They both looked a little uncomfortable at the prospect of having their souls sucked out of their bodies, which Rory understood. “I’m going to test that now, so just be a little wary.”

Angus and Carolyn nodded, then stepped back some more, pulling the Emberteeth along.

Rory took a deep breath, then activated the Sigil of Draining Blizzard. Icy wind and slicing snow flew everywhere, the cold striking him like iron whips left outside overnight in the winter. He shivered, though he had gotten used to it enough to withstand it well.

What he couldn’t resist as well was the Lifedrain. He hadn’t expected it to take a part of him of him too. After all, he was supposed to be the recipient of it. But the deathly aura he had seen acting out of the Wraths and the Wraith Lord now wafted through the stormy air. If he peered hard, he could see a slight green tinge in the wind.

It didn’t really make him feel worse, now that the sensation settled in properly. Rory felt as though something was being pulled from him before being returned in a moment, as though a small part of him was breaking off only to be reattached a second later.

His Lifedrain didn’t have a target. Well, not much of one, at least. He had activated the blizzard on a patch of ground devoid of much vegetation, and certainly lacking any other living things. Rory didn’t want to accidentally start sucking out someone else’s life force like a strange vampire.

Putting aside all thoughts of the draining effect of his blizzard, Rory focused on his goal. As the storm raged, he used his Weaving to get more Sigils of Draining Blizzard. He was running out of Mana, so he asked Angus or Carolyn to retrieve some more for him, which they both agreed to, leaving him momentarily alone.

By the time Rory had Woven twelve Sigils and was almost out of Mana, they returned with another cache. Rory continued blizzarding, Weaving, and combining the Sigils, crossing past Cerulean VIII, IX, and X until he finally broke into Tier I.

New Achievement!

Tier Stomper! You’ve broken through yet another Tier level! If there is anything in the world that can stop you, it’s your immovable ego.

Rewards

You can choose one Item to be raised to the same Tier as your highest Tier Sigil.

Rory grinned. The Sigil of Draining Blizzard had a new circle around its image, an aquamarine ring with a single triangle at the top. He looked around at the area and noticed that he had essentially buried half the rear courtyard in a mound of snow and ice. He had lost track of things while using his staff and its blizzard.

“Are you done?” Angus asked.

There was a slight shiver in his voice. Lizards and reptiles were cold-blooded creatures who didn’t deal well with wintry things, so Rory imagined he couldn’t have been feeling pleasant at the moment.

“I’m not sure,” Rory said. “I got an achievement that lets me take any item I have to Teal Tier. Well, to the highest Tier I possess is its specific words, but since I’ve reached Teal I with the Sigil of Draining Blizzard, I can take my staff to it too. But, I’ve almost reached it with the staff naturally by continuing to use it. It’d be a waste to use the reward on the staff itself.”

“Do you have other items to use the reward on?” Angus asked.

“I don’t, no…”

That felt like a failing on Rory’s part, though he wasn’t what sort of item he could get. Something with passive bonuses and abilities, no doubt. It was stressful enough just to use his staff in the middle of a fight. Rory wasn’t sure he’d have the mental capacity to use yet another Item that required active handling.

“I have some ideas though,” the told his audience. “So, for now, I’m just going to keep going until I have the staff at Teal as well. But first…”

Now that the Sigil of Draining Blizzard was at Teal I, Rory ought to be able to Ward the Sigil of Barricade into it. He placed the two Sigils together in one hand, then used his Weaving on them. Light turned them both white and they started to meld together in his grasp. Soon, Rory had a new Sigil. The crystal coin was purple with the blizzard’s stormy icon drawn in light-green.

New Sigil!

You’ve obtained a Sigil of Barricading Blizzard. A storm approaches. A storm of icy walls that will let none pass. You can hermit safely behind them and protect yourself from the evils of socializing.

[Teal I] allows remote summoning a barricading blizzard in a 67-meter radius.

Stats

Type: Atmosphere

Rarity: Exceptional

Tier: Teal I [0%]

Efficiency: High [73%]

Rory smiled at his new Sigil. There was a lot of power behind it. He could tell. Apart from destroying things, it could stop magic, drain life force, and now, set up barricades as well. That was the hope, at least. Rory would still have to test it.

But to do so, he was going to have to raise the Tier of his staff first.

Training progressed smoothly. Tired as Rory was getting, it felt good to see the Tiers of his Sigils and his staff rise up over and over. It didn’t take long before the staff was at Teal I as well, after which, Rory inserted the Sigil of Barricading Blizzard into his main weapon, replacing the Sigil of Draining Blizzard with it.

When he checked the staff’s description again, he noticed there was a new slot for a Sigil. All total, he could Ward four different Sigils into the thing. Rory had to laugh. He could barely figure out what the third option was going to be, and now he had a fourth?

“Why do you smile?” Carolyn asked.

Rory laughed at the question, then he explained what he had found in the staff. “I do have an idea for what Sigil I might get next.”

He looked at the Emberteeth that was circling a large tree. Rory approached the ghostly monster, activating his Weaving when he was close enough.

“What do you intend to do?” Angus asked.

“Get a Sigil of Resurrection.”

He didn’t turn to see what kind of reaction the other two had. April’s reluctance about the idea suddenly barged into his head, but he pushed it aside. It was clear for anyone to see that this apparition they called a soul had nothing in common with the original, living Emberteeth except for the same form.

Rory pushed the thoughts aside and focused his Weaving on the specific idea of the ghost having risen due to the acts of a Sigil. It was a stretch, perhaps, to get the Sigil he wanted. But it worked. Soon enough, Rory’s Weaving had turned the ghost into a Sigil of Resurrection. Next, he Warded the Sigil into his staff, checking its description to make sure he had everything he needed.

“Now to test it,” Rory said.

Problem was, he had no idea how to go about it. He hadn’t seen the lich performing any resurrections actively. All the souls seemed to have appeared on their own, without the lich’s active intervention.

Rory tried to wave his staff around while focusing on the Sigil of Resurrection. Nothing happened.

He stopped. Frozen Lightning, the other Sigil in the staff apart from Barricading Blizzard, only worked because had crafted the Sigil carefully, setting up conditions, requirements, and methods for its activation. Perhaps he needed something similar for Resurrection.

In fact, it would be better if he could have a similar effect as Frozen Lightning. Something he could set up once and then have it activate automatically.

Bidding the others a temporary goodbye, he set off towards the palace’s main hall to gather the things he needed. He found the Sigils of Activation, Automation, and Monstrous Essence. Then he needed a further condition—death.

Some of the others were wondering what Rory was up to, but he promised he’d explain later. For now, Rory Wove another soul into a Sigil of Resurrection. Then he walked over to where the pyres had turned to ash, using his Weaving there as he focused on the idea of people passing away. The new white Sigil he got had the picture of a skull.

New Sigil!

You’ve obtained a Sigil of Soul Departing. It can’t be helped that some people need help to separate their souls from their body. With this power, you can transform murder to an art form.

[Cerulean IX] hastens death in a 25-meter radius by 12%.

Stats

Type: Necromantic

Rarity: Remarkable

Tier: Cerulean IX [0%]

Efficiency: Medium [43%]

Interesting. Hopefully, it would work. Pocketing the Sigil, he walked over the edge of their protected area, where the Safe Zone’s golden boundary sank into the ground.

Praying that this wouldn’t harm the barrier in any way, Rory used his Weaving on the shimmering, translucent veil. The barrier flickered for just a second as Rory’s Weaving acted on it, the white lines turning the veil into a golden Sigil in Rory’s hand.

New Sigil!

You’ve obtained a Sigil of Boundary. Ever needed to set an area of effect? Well, never fear, for attaining such abstract skills is why Sigils exist.

[Cerulean IX] allows setting a boundary in a 20-meter radius.

Stats

Type: Concept

Rarity: Uncommon

Tier: Cerulean IX [0%]

Efficiency: Medium [32%]

Rory made sure the Safe Zone’s barrier was fine and functioning correctly before bending to combine all the Sigils he had received. He swallowed. Once more, he activated his Weaving and combined the Sigils of Automation, Activation, Resurrection, Monstrous Essence, Soul Departing, and Boundary.

When he was done, he found he had a single, light purple Sigil in his hand.

New Sigil!

You’ve obtained a Sigil of Resurrection Field. One soul? Two? Ha, that’s not enough for one such as you when you can have an entire field of souls.

[Cerulean IX] all minor corpse and one major corpse reanimation in a 24-meter radius for 12 minutes.

Stats

Type: Concept

Rarity: Exceptional

Tier: Cerulean IX [0%]

Efficiency: High [56%]

Rory grinned. Then he Warded it into his staff. Now he was done.