Parallel (A Virtual Gamer's Story) [Vol.1 - Vol.4 Complete]

Chapter 117:Upgrade

15th Muriel, 1093.

Within a dome of glass sat a cross-legged figure. Even breaths akin to those of a slumbering dragon echoed off the ice-colored walls. The figure's eyelids fluttered slightly, then opened to reveal a pair of blood-red irises from which boundless pressure escaped. Kashi took a deep breath, and the pressure significantly reduced as he released his breath. His gaze remained cold, but the suffocating presence had receded to its depths.

Kashi rose from the floor, tired bones creaking in protest from the move. He rotated his arms and neck and kicked forward to put those complaints to rest, then walked to the door. He placed a palm on the door, and it willingly pulled open to reveal someone at the other end who had been patiently awaiting his arrival.

Kashi bitterly smiled at the faint feeling of disappointment that arose within him. Was it because of Jade's last words to Suzuki?

Zeing Ashqoj caught the expression that fleeted across the daeben's face. He grinned as he pushed off the wall he had been resting on, "Sorry to disappoint you."

Kashi resolutely kept a poker face, refusing to fall for the obvious trap. "Nothing of the sort. I am, in fact, delighted to meet you." Kashi held out his hand. "After everything I've done, I think it is fair to give me the next piece, right?"

Zeing's eyes flashed. "When did you realize?"

Kashi shrugged. "Since we fought. There are extremely few beings that can possess the power you have." Pointing at the dwarf's forehead, he continued, " Plus, there's the mark on your forehead. Though your nonchalant reaction to Aygor only confirmed my thoughts."

"HAHAHAHA!" Zeing threw his head back and laughed animatedly. "So I gave myself away! Good. Good!" With an air of over-familiarity, his left arm clasped round the daeben's neck and dragged him up the flight of stairs at the end of the corridor. "As you said, you do deserve the next piece, but I'll only hand it over on one condition."

Kashi frowned. He hated ultimatums, even if they were given by a being thousand times more powerful than he was. "What conditions?"

Zeing's right hand waved three fingers in front of the daeben. "For the next three months, devote three hours every day to me."

Kashi's brow rose. "Why?"

"Your martial art is terrible!" Zeing flatly stated.

"That's bullshit," Kashi confidently retorted. Although he would not go as far as to call Suzuki and Razznik the strongest martial artists in their respective worlds, they had learned from various masters and fought multiple practitioners.

Kashi had absorbed the styles of these two and even improved on them, so much so, the game system had created a brand new martial art as a result.

Zeing did not react to the daeben's tone, choosing only to continue with a smirk, "Heh, I don't know who your teachers are or were. I will admit that they must be a couple of capable bastards to have taught someone like you to such a degree. If I were to liken your teachers to a couple of exquisite paintings, you would be a rubbish mishmash drawing by an amateur who thinks that by haphazardly combining several original paintings, he can suddenly produce a masterpiece." Zeing stroked his beard, pleased with his genius in using the painting analogy. "As you are now, you surely have a lot of skills and are definitely a genius in combining them to suit your needs... but you lack an identity of your own."

"Identity?"

"Yes, Identity." The two men were so absorbed in their discussion; they ignored the dwarves they passed on their seemingly aimless walk. "A man's method of fighting speaks to his identity. It is a reinforcement of his ideals, one he can always call on amid battle. Tell me, what are your ideals? Are you a shield, protecting your allies from harm? A spear blinded by rage who seeks to destroy the enemy without regard to your own life? Do you fight to live, or live to fight? All these answers can be found within your fists." Zeing pointed ahead of them. "Look up."