Fool Or Prodigy?

Will's act of ogling the many ladies there did not anger Mercedes in the way it had angered others, instead, her issue with his actions was on the completely different end of the spectrum.

'He looked at dozens of women but he didn't look at me. How unacceptable!'

Mercedes took this as an affront and stared at Solitary in hostility. The latter nodded with the most platonic and sombre expression he could portray before ogling a woman behind Spectralia and muttering, "Now that's more like it." After that he took his spot and waited calmly with a cheerful whistle escaping his lips from time to time.

Mercedes could not believe that he had chosen to observe a woman behind her and had shown a complete lack of interest in her. She did not have any interest in him at all, but she could not accept being overlooked. Ulysses on the other hand was quite happy, he was tired of seeing men stare at someone he considered his woman. So he approved of Will's actions. He couldn't care who Will ogled, as long as it wasn't Mercedes.

'He is a good man.' Ulysses made a mental note to look after Solitary. Few men existed that could outright resist Mercedes, and he was not the only one who noticed.

'This Solitary looks like an idiot that can't control his lust, but Mercedes' charm seems useless on him. His mental strength is actually quite impressive.'

Gianluigi was amused and impressed at the same time. The Solitary Sword Sovereign Manual was a manual that focused mostly on the mind. It was a sword type mental cultivation technique that required quite an extreme mind-set and high quality Intent to pull off. Thus this display of mental strength by Will made the more observant such as Gianluigi and Natasha wearier of his abilities.

Natasha and Francis stared at each other and nodded, both of them were thinking the same thing Gianluigi was contemplating. They registered Solitary as a mental strength powerhouse to watch out for. This still did not make them despise him less because he had ogled them intentionally.

'I will return the favour one day you piece of trash.'

Natasha plotted how she would deal with him when the time came.

Meanwhile Mercedes did not allow her displeasure to show on her face as she smiled back at Solitary. Her own mental strength was nothing to scoff at. She simply noted that Solitary was indeed a talent and went on with the proceedings. She still had to maintain the image of a leader and guide everyone properly. Her mind was acknowledged as one of best of her generation, and she was quite experienced in the art of scheming, thus she chose to make her move at the appropriate time.

"These are the individuals leading the expedition. Now then, let's discuss the details."

…

"Okay so let's round up the objectives for this trip. Narcissus and Jingsung will instruct the boy and his subordinates on mental arts while the boy makes two contracts. One with Thor and one with Narcissus. The point of this trip is to strengthen his understanding of divinity, anti-divinity, the Dao of Madness, the Realms of Perspective and consolidate his foundational skills. Any other additions?"

Modus was looking at a table that had every individual involved with Will. Hercules, Odin, Odysseus, Athena, Narcissus, Jingsung Ha and Hou Yi paying attention to the standing Modus with the ever stoic Adelda by his side.

"I think that sums it up nicely." yawned Odin as he stretched himself in his Wodin form.

"The jade pendant I fused with the boy will not only allow him to see me and Adelda but will now also allow him to see any individual in this room without anyone noticing. Narcissus you will instruct the boy on the basics of mental energy training, including Intent and use of Radiant Energy while Jingsung will deal with all sword and water related abilities. Jingsung, since both of you are SSS water type swordsmen with mental strength as your main weapons you will take point on the boy's education."

Jingsung nodded lazily while Hou Yi chuckled, "I will instruct Duke through the Sun Chasing bow in a similar manner. A week should be enough to see some growth."

"That's an understatement if I've ever heard one." Stated Odysseus. He and the other deities were stunned after seeing the evolution that Will's subordinates had gone through after completing the Centralized Tripartite Soul Brethren Contract. It was an evolution almost on par with what Will had gone through before his battle with Ulysses. Duke, Alice and Letty were already a far cry from what they were just days earlier and were off performing their own duties.

As Will had instructed, Alice and Woodsy were connected by the Mindmeld done. An exploration of Woodsy's memories by everyone had already been accomplished resulting in their abilities shooting up a level. Even Will benefited greatly from Woodsy's trip. Treant Warriors had the wood and water attributes, and Woodsy had spent a lot of time researching life force and warrior related skills.

Will had received a great amount of mage art knowledge from Wodin but his understanding of the warrior's perspective was a bit weaker as he had effectively taught himself. After going through Woodsy's memories Will had gained new ideas on how to apply concepts, intent and how to properly distribute life energy. Will's use of Radiant energy and water type skills benefited more than anything else.

Duke and Letty also benefitted greatly, going off to pursue their own targets. Duke went around Kolladas Tis Moira and Ta Dasi challenging as many high level users as possible while Letty had immediately departed for Hela's legacy ground. The duo were itching to test out their newfound understanding of Intent and concepts. They walked different paths and had to go down this route alone as each user was fated to their own concepts.

Alice and Woodsy stayed behind to deal with the worm in the former's head while Merlin and Tobias ran Tsimikas, consolidating its gains and position in the region.

Odysseus Athena and Hercules looked forward to seeing their growth and also working with them. After all, which deity would not want talents? As an archer and tactician, Odysseus was eyeing the versatile Duke along with Hercules while Athena was more interested in Alice's mental capabilities. Odin on the other hand was far more invested in Letty and had even made plans for her. Thus Will's trio had a bright future if they played their cards right.

"It doesn't matter how talented they are, first they have to survive." Said Jingsung with a grave tone.

"Do you always have to be so depressing?" quipped Narcissus as he gazed at his reflection in a mirror.

"Narcissus, don't be naïve, you know very well that the odds of them surviving are still slim, because they are tied to a deity slayer." Athena saw herself as the thinker of the group and chided Narcissus for his complacency and apologized to Jingsung with a glance. The latter snorted in approval and continued, "Prodigies rise and fall daily, even more so when one is a student of the mad one and a deity slayer. I'm glad at least one of you Olympians has a clear head."

"What are you trying to say about my head?" Narcissus was visibly incensed by Jingsung's remark, but a steady hand from the ridiculously muscular Hercules landed on his shoulder and sealed his movements.

"Calm yourself you brat, don't embarrass us. You of all people are benefitting most from this. Your contract with Peerless will allow you to tap into Perspective. Jingsung has traversed a similar path to the boy and his best chance at growth at the moment, it would be best to heed his words, no matter how depressing."

After some banter, the group ended the meeting on a high note. The Olympians left leaving Wodin, Jingsung, Hou Yi and Adela with Modus.

"So Adelda, when are you delivering the boy's reward." Asked Wodin with a cheeky smile. Before Adelda could respond, Modus cut it, "Now that the outsiders are gone let's talk about the real juicy stuff. We can discuss saliva exchanges later."

Hou Yi and Wodin laughed at Modus' cheeky words while Adelda face palmed herself. Modus smiled and continued, "So, do you think you can teach the boy your Raindrop Sword?"

Jingsung smiled mysteriously as his eyes flashed with a sharp sword force that seemed to cut into the very space around him, "I think we can do something."