Blademaster Ascension

28- Self-Destruction

[ Alert: the preliminary results of the simulation and experiments shows that it is possible for me to manipulate ether outside host's body. However my range of influence is quite small compared to host and the ability to affect ether is also quite weak. But this can be confirmed that I can assist host in absorbing ether at a faster rate than before. ]

The notification came when Rowan was sitting in front of the complex inscription that drew ether from the surroundings. It was definitely a news that made him swell with happiness, but tomorrow was the day when he'd have to enter the bunker alongside many of his peers, most of whom could defeat and kill him if he slipped up just once. The mind numbing pressure of the event tomorrow masked most of the happiness that came with Chip's announcement.

Slightly adjusting his sitting posture to relieve his half-paralyzed butt, Rowan instructed Chip to start their first double absorption together. He immediately felt the change in the concentrated ether in front of him as soon as Chip joined him. Some of the ether moved without his influence. At first the amount was tiny compared to his own absorption. But he clearly felt Chip increase his effort as time passed. By the time he felt that he had hit his limit, Chip's speed was almost half as fast as him. As he finished the session, Chip informed him that this was Chip's limit of absorption rate currently and doing it for a lengthy period would lead to some damage to Chip's biological capacity. Rowan was happy enough with this result already and instructed chip not to overtax himself.

Then Rowan examined the small vials sitting on his table, organized carefully. He had paid one last visit to the marsh a couple days ago and cleaned it completely of any herb it had left. Then he spent the next day concocting any potion that he found useful from his collection of formulas. These vials contained the results from that day. He also realized that after his relentless concoction of the grade two potion from last week, his general alchemic skills seemed to have undergone a qualitative change. The difference was very obvious.

Nodding to himself absent mindedly, Rowan gazed outside through the window. The town was deathly silent by now. Most had fallen asleep. Rowan decided to do the same to relieve some of the immense stress.
As he lay on his face while random thoughts ran in every direction inside his mind, he couldn't help but think about how his life seemed to have been overturned in a small number of days. His goal had always been to seek out his family somewhere out there, unknown to him but
still existent. He wanted to find out what happened to his parents, why he had been abandoned, why did the seemingly worthless diary contain a legacy that could get him killed just for possessing it, knowingly or unknowingly. But his first priority was now to survive the next few days and perhaps reach rank one in any possible way. Slowly, his consciousness dipped into a blurry pool of dreams and darkness.

...... ....... .........

"Are you sure you're ready?" The gruff voice asked, addressing the young girl standing ahead with a large book in her hand as she read something from it attentively.

She raised her head and looked back at the speaker, the focus and sharpness in her gaze seemingly replying to his question silently. She nodded a moment later and returned to reading.

"Start the final step, check again for any hidden faults. This isn't something that can be done while even the tiniest flaw is left unchecked," the person who had spoken turned around and instructed someone behind him. Footsteps echoed as they left the room, leaving the girl behind. She finished reading almost at the same time as they left. With a sigh, she leaned back and massaged her temples. Then she took out a stack of cards from a pocket of her robe. The cards were colourful, depicting different pictures that seemed to have nothing common among themselves. The girl neatly shuffled them in her hands with practiced motions, nearly turning them into a blur of colours. Then she stopped and laid them down on the table before her in a neat formation.
A strange sense of presence enveloped the room. It felt like the pressure of having millions of predators casting their gaze on oneself, a pressure that made the girl shudder instinctively. It was unknown when a black dice had appeared in her palm. She dropped the dice on the table while her eyes became glazed and unfocused for a few moments.