CCTnovel Chapter 294: Can you lend me a hand? You know what, I’ll take the whole arm
Chapter 294: Can you lend me a hand? You know what, I’ll take the whole arm
“You mentioned a way to stop resistances from forming?” Priam asked, leaping out of his hammock. A mist pant clothed him in an instant. On a whim, he added a dozen light runes inside the garment. Dimly powered by his aether, they appeared like stars behind a thin cloud. It looked cool, but more importantly, it allowed Priam to work on his aether control. After the battle he had just witnessed, it seemed important.
“Penetrating skills, made to hinder resistance formation,” Esmée confirmed.
“Knew it!” Priam grinned, pulling out a chair for her. Log-a-rhythm conjured a table, and he sat facing Esmée. “With all the manipulations from Eve and her clone, I figured I should’ve gained a memory resistance sooner. Have you known this for a while?”
“My family has spent generations ensuring their opponents don’t develop resistance to their probability manipulation,” she admitted.
“Interesting. So, you can build resistance without the System?”
“It’s more difficult and rarely as effective, but life finds a way...” She frowned in thought, and Priam found her expression adorable. “Take poison, for instance. All royal family children drink a little of it regularly to immunize themselves. Maybe that was a thing on your world?”
“Not exactly,” Priam chuckled, then shivered. “Though they did force me to eat endives...”
“What is that?”
“A bitter vegetable, supposedly good for your health.”
“Oh. You don’t like bitterness?”
“I prefer sweetness.” Priam smiled as Esmée blushed. “Back to resistances, taking poison to build up tolerance was a practice back in the day. Supposedly, an ancient king spent his life immunizing himself to poisons until he couldn’t even use them to take his own life when the Romans invaded his kingdom. And there’s also the story of a certain Rasputin. In a way, our vaccines confer resistance to certain diseases, and the more alcohol we drink, the less our nervous system responds to it...” The more he thought about it, the more Priam realized life didn’t need magic to protect itself. “We can develop resistances without the System, even if they’re less effective,” he admitted. “How did your family prevent their enemies from resisting?”
Esmée pointed to her temple. ““My geas prevents me from explaining their technique. However, the general method is straightforward: you have to find a flaw in the formation process. Threat detection, cell, mind, or spirit mutation, then synchronization with the soul; if something blocks one of these steps, nothing happens.”
Priam nodded thoughtfully. By simulating the enemy’s aetheric signature, his perfected version had prevented Clock from developing kinetic resistance. Thinking of other approaches, he remembered [Radiation Resistance]. Naturally, radiation disrupted aether, preventing a body’s mutant cells from synchronizing with its soul and thus forming resistance. By the same principle...
“Is it possible to reduce mutation probabilities of—” He trailed off, seeing Esmée wince in pain. He was onto something, and her geas deemed it her fault. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine.” Despite her words, her eyes were bloodshot. Helpless to aid her, Priam asked Log-a-rhythm for a drink. The table between the two rivals opened to reveal a glass crafted by Bertomne, filled with fruit juice prepared by Blueberry. Almost feels like civilization’s within reach...
“Thanks,” Esmée smiled, taking a sip. Her eyes widened. “This is delicious.”
“Lamnas grafted a bunch of new fruit onto Log-a-rhythm.” Priam let her savor the drink before continuing. “Got any other examples of penetrating skills?”
“Thanks to our rivals, yes. Seth temporarily separates the soul from the body. Dishnu drains aether from his victims with specific plants. Eve... I theorize she forces her enemies to forget resistance at its onset. I’m not sure if she targets aether, spirit, or soul, but she is incredibly skilled.”
To slip past Priam’s adaptability with all his synergies, that fae was indeed a monster.
“There are as many methods as there are Concepts,” Priam mused, then grimaced. “Kazuki, Jasmine, and I are behind in this area.”@@@@
“Do you truly need it?” Esmée raised an eyebrow as Priam looked at her in surprise. “The skills I’m talking about are necessary for those with utility Concepts or who fight prolonged wars. Manipulating or imprisoning an enemy requires preventing rebellion or, at the very least, slowing resistance development. In your case, the worst that could happen is your opponent gaining a level or two in [Fire Resistance].”
“That could make all the difference,” Priam pointed out.
The princess laughed softly. “I forgot how much you love to optimize everything.”
“It’s served me well so far.”
“True,” she said with a smile. “I’m sure you’ll find a way to develop a penetrating skill.”
Half of Priam’s attention was already on the thought. Pyro could burn aether, and [There is no Heaven] affected the soul. These were strong candidates to hinder resistance formation.
Remembering his fight against Clock, Priam recalled that his opponent’s attacks had two parts. An initial curse disrupted his aether, preventing resistance formation, while the second part attacked. Clever. ℞ἈŊÓBƐŞ
The sound of a glass being set on the table snapped him out of his thoughts. Esmée had finished her drink while he was lost in thought. “Sorry, I was lost in thought.”
“I noticed.” Her voice was neutral, but her eyes sparkled playfully. “A gold for your thoughts?”
“You mean a nickel?”
“I meant a gold coin. Princess’ privilege.”
Priam laughed. “Well, I was wondering if Arnold uses this kind of technique.”
“The Tyrant annihilates his foes too quickly for them to develop anything. They might as well resist Death.”
“Can do.”
The princess laughed.
“All Empyreans eat like this?” Priam asked after devouring a skewer.
With practiced ease, Esmée used two telekinetic runes to slide a piece of meat along a wooden skewer, dipping it in a vanilla-colored sauce.
“Only the royal family,” she replied. “On our twelfth birthdays, we are stripped of our cutlery—they are considered tools for the commoners. Those who master aether can dine with dignity. Boys who fail use their fingers and are mocked; girls are... disowned.”
It was one of many methods designed to ensure power remained in the hands of an elite. This had never been a problem for Esmée; she had learned to eat with magic at three years old.
“Oh...” Priam set down his knife and fork. “Blueberry, another skewer, please! Wouldn’t want Esmée thinking I’m a man of the people.”
“Directed?”
“His direct attacks. When it invoked curses using my name or blood, I couldn’t avoid their effects.”
“Fortunately, those weren’t that powerful.” Seeing Priam’s puzzled expression, Jasmine added, “You have no idea what we’re talking about?”
“Not really... I’m guessing [Ciphered Record] blocked that kind of attack.”
“Cheater,” she muttered.
“Winner,” Priam corrected. “You gonna be alright?” he asked, nodding to the stump where his friend’s left elbow used to be.
“I took a few overpriced elixirs; it should be healed within a few days.” Kazuki absentmindedly scratched the scar. “Sometimes, I envy your regeneration ability.”
“You could have it too.”
Kazuki and Jasmine both raised an eyebrow.
“I’m serious,” Priam said. Opening his interface, he searched for one of his earliest notifications. “[Axolotl or Hydra - Bronze] - You have regenerated your arms, legs, organs, and even your heart! Your vitality now allows you to restore any body part as long as you have the time and energy. Vitality +10%. It was one of my first titles, and it’d be useful for you both.”
His two rivals exchanged a worried glance. “Just to be clear... you want us to chop off our limbs and then blow out our organs?” Jasmine asked.
She’s so dramatic.
“Put that way, it sounds stupid.” Priam ignored his friends’ nods. “But with Hydra Pills, elixirs, and hoplite mecha’s artificial organs, you could unlock the Title. Its evolution lets me restore any limb or organ once per day, which could come in handy for you.”
“I must admit the reward is tempting,” Kazuki conceded. “But the way to achieve it...”
“No pain, no gain.”
The three friends discussed further until they devised a method to unlock [Axolotl or Hydra]. Tier 0 was known as the fundamental Tier, the prime time to unlock Titles, Talents, and skills. This might be Kazuki and Jasmine’s only shot at a Title like this, and they decided to seize it.
Priam laid the two pieces of Promesse before his father and Gallad.
“Split in two by a Duke.” Damn Zelgius. “I wanted to know if you could reforge it.”
The old man and the hoplite leaned over the weapon, examining it. Priam smiled, watching his father use a sort of magical magnifying glass to get a better look. Though his eyesight was better than any human, it hadn’t reached supernatural levels.
“A flexible blade core encased in a hard outer layer... a nearly supple metal shaft... These dimensions and forging techniques... This is a hoplite weapon,” Gallad declared.
“Kazuki’s old spear,” Priam confirmed.
The sword-master looked up briefly but didn’t comment.
“I’m out of my depth,” Alain admitted after a few minutes. “I’m an architect and a decent tinkerer, not a blacksmith. Can’t you summon one like you did with Lamnas or Bertomne?”
Priam grimaced. “I can, but of the six currently available, none are suitable. Esmée scried them, and they're all problematic.” The princess had assured him that with the destruction of new tribes, more candidates would be available soon, but Priam wanted his spear ready before his Tribulations. Since he planned to initiate them within a week, time was tight. “There’s someone among the Gaeserts, but it’s not yet time to meet their tribes.”
His father nodded, then fell silent, letting the hoplite finish his inspection.
“I should be able to restore it,” Gallad announced after a few minutes. “I’m an engineer, not a blacksmith, but our mechas are equipped for emergency repairs, and I have documentation.”
Priam ran a hand over his weapon, smiling. Though it wasn’t his trump card, he missed its presence.
“Is reforging it possible? My enemies won’t be getting any weaker, and I’m worried it’ll just break again.”
It was time to upgrade his bound weapon. Its Bronze quality was becoming a liability.
Gallad furrowed his brow, looking at the spear. “It’s far from simple. First, we would need to heat it to a very high temperature, and its coppery sheen makes me think of a phoenix. I assume its flame resistance is significant?”
“Very, but I can help,” Priam promised. “With Pyro, it should be easy to melt down.”
Gallad turned to Alain. “Even so, we lack a crucible, a bloomery, and...”
The two scientists launched into a technical debate, periodically turning to Priam for input. Without a powerful, modern industry behind them, the task was complicated, but the young man reassured them. By using runes during the various forging stages, they could bypass many issues.
Gallad eventually nodded, a glint of determination in his eye. “I can’t make any promises, but I see a way forward. However, improving it hinges on one critical factor: we need an alloy superior to the current weapon’s...”
Grinning, Priam opened a portal to the Concept Archipelago, reaching through to pull out a heavy sack, which he dropped onto the ground with a thud.
“Already covered! With my resistances and constitution, my bones are incredibly tough, and the same goes for Kazuki. Did you know his Titan bloodline made his bones metallic? So, I found the perfect excuse to get him to, uh, part with a few limbs. With such impressive materials, I’m sure we can upgrade Promesse to Silver or Gold rank!”
Alain and Gallad stared at him in astonishment before looking back at the bag. Once the initial shock wore off, they both leaped back in unison.
Next arc already complete on Patreon if you want to find out what happens next!
/ANovelConcept