Mythshaper

Chapter 64: The Duel

The sun was particularly bright on the morning of the duel, with stray clouds drifting aimlessly across the striking blue canvas. The institution compound was bustling with a crowd by the time we arrived. All the high-profile folks in town seemed to have got wind of the upcoming fight and couldn’t stop themselves from joining in the fun. From most of my classmates and instructors to Guildmaster Rowin, the Headmaster, and even the Millates, all were among the spectators.

On one side of the compound stood Tribune Alexis Denarys with a frosty expression, donning full-plated armour, a longsword slung across his back. A squad of legionaries stood behind him imposingly; only Immunis Lucien and Shaper Ao were familiar faces among them. The rest of the instructors were among the rest of the crowd.

In contrast, Father wore a simple grey tunic, the blade on his hip his only preparation for the event. A few people came to greet us, among them the old Guildmaster, Headmaster of the Institution, Shaper Tullia, Instructor Delric—mostly those Father had got acquainted with after joining the Militia.

Most of them weren’t aware that Father had reached Fabled class, but even so, they had high hopes for him after learning about some of his abilities during the expedition.

“Be careful,” said Oldman Rowin, patting Father on the shoulder. “That lad seems to have borrowed a rather powerful relic for the duel.”

Father perked up at that and turned to Mum, whose gaze swiftly darted to the golden sword Alexis Daenerys carried. Her Influence spread briefly and focused solely on the weapon.

“A powerful one indeed,” she said, withdrawing her power. “Likely Epic Class, with high fire and light aspects.”

A few gasps sounded from those who understood the calibre of the weapon. The Somnus's Bell was merely an entry-grade relic, and it held sixty-four essence threads. An Epic class Relic should have at least eight times the number. Yet Father merely nodded as if it mattered little to him.

“I’ll make sure not to get a get by it," he said.

Mum showed not the slightest worry, which quenched my restless heart too. My eyes drifted to the sword on my father's hip. Apparently, it was a relic as well, though Father never drew it into his essence seed. I wondered what its grade was. The sheath restricted any kind of inspection, but even after studying the blade thoroughly with Father's permission, I made out nothing about it save for its devouring capability.

Whenever I tried to infuse my essence threads for a check, it would devour the essence. Fractal Sight, too, was helpless, as all it saw was an impending darkness devouring my perception. I guess that implies its class to be higher. At least on the epic scale, right?