Chapter 279 - Painful Gift

"Hands out, please."

The Mech God approached Rynold, issuing an order. Whatever that small glistening orb was, Rynold didn't think anything special of it. By the looks of it, it was far from anything interesting. Hell, Rynold couldn't even tell why the Mech God was giving something like that to him.

"What's that supposed to be?" Rynold asked as he refused to put up his hands, "I'd rather know what I'm dealing with here. Rather than, you know, ending up with a surprise that would pull my leg from under me."

As far as Rynold knew, this orb would put him in a coma. There was no explanation of what would happen, after all. At this point, Rynold just wanted to be safe than sorry. And, considering the history he had with the Mech God, it was the better option.

"The worst that would happen is that you'll feel a slight pinch of pain. But, as to what this is, the orb in my hand is an upgrade. Hopefully, the process will give you immense benefits. But, hey, anything could happen. It's only really up to you whether you not live through the process."

"I'm sorry, what?" Rynold asked, completely baffled as if he had misheard, "I'm not sure if I heard you right. You're saying that I would have to live through the process? As in it's not a sure thing?!"

"It's not that difficult to understand," the Mech God casually added as he stood right in front of Rynold, "This thing can help you. A lot. You have my word. But, seeing as how your Mana Gauntlets' Mana Bond with your Mana Core, the results are iffy at best. In the end, it's really up to you if you can take the transformation or not."

Rynold raised one of his brows as he wasn't sure if he could believe what the Mech God said or not. It was far too mysterious, even coming from him. But Rynold knew that his word was trustworthy. By the end of the day, an advantage was something Rynold needed in spades.

So, who was he to reject such a proposal?

"Tell me what happens, then," Rynold sighed and gave in, "You know, to something that's not Mana Bonded to a Mana Core."

The Mech God took a second and stared at Rynold before turning away and starting to shift through some boxes. Both Rynold and Crimson looked at him, wondering what the god was trying to do. It was, well, unusual for the Mech God to spring for some tedious labor.

"Ah, here we are," the Mech God pulled out a small knife, no bigger than one used for a kitchen, and presented it to the two mortals, "Take this knife, for example. It, for the most part, is nothing special. I didn't even put any thought into making this, not even my Mana."

"Hey, focus," Rynold snapped at the Mech God, knowing well enough that the god would go into some monologue of self-praise.

"Right," the Mech God smiled, "As I was saying, this orb in my hand can forcibly influence an object with Mana. It's a long and winded practice of us craftsmen, one that hailed from the early years. And, the results, of course, vary from object to object and orb to orb."

"I'm guessing that none of these items had any Mana before, huh? Even then, it's weird how this practice became a practice in the first place. I mean, didn't the craftsmen of the old know that they could build things with Mana Crystals in them?"

"Not when they have an orb like this one," the Mech God held it with his palm, with the orb glistening from the lights, "Orbs like these are hard to get. You can't make something like this, and to find it in the wild is almost impossible. It's only ever seen in a high Elemental's dwelling, with the orb being a natural byproduct."

"Huh," Rynold thought back to the time he spent with the Undine not too long ago. He didn't realize that something so valuable was there. Well, not that he could do anything about it if he did.

"Yeah," the Mech God nodded, "This thing contains the natural elemental Mana coming from a source itself. At best, it could infuse an object like this knife. Thus, making it so that it would exhibit abilities corresponding to the Elemental."

"Okay," Rynold caught a firm grasp onto the Mech God's explanation, "So, there hasn't been a prior incident of using that on a Mana Bonded item? That's a bit strange, don't you think?"

"No, there has been several," the Mech God added, storing away the knife, "While the details aren't necessarily clear to me, there have been incidents before. Some good, some bad. I've never really done it before, but I've come across mortals who were capable of so much more than they should be. Although I don't have firsthand accounts of their equipment, I've seen what they can do."

Rynold didn't think the Mech God was lying about something like that. While he remained skeptical, a part of him knew that this thing would be great. Given the circumstances, Rynold had half a mind to take it on the spot. But then again, the risks won't necessarily subside.

It was a 50-50 chance, as far as Rynold could tell. And, failing to take this chance might bring up more problems in the future. It was better to be ready than not.

So, after bouncing back and forth on the idea, Rynold grabbed the orb from the Mech God's hand. He stood there, slightly hesitant but eager nonetheless. He looked to the Mech God, steady in his actions, and asked, "What will I have to do?"

"Simple," the Mech God smiled and explained, "Use both your Gauntlets and crush the thing with the palms of your hands. Don't hold back at all."

With a sharp exhale, Rynold extended his Mana Gauntlets to Strength-form. Putting his hands together, Rynold held the orb in between, crushing it with all his might. He even activated Mana Infusion, not holding back and giving his all.

Crack!

The orb audibly cracked at the pressure, but it was far from turning into dust. Rynold still had some ways to go. So, he didn't dare stop.

Constantly pouring out Mana, Rynold focused everything he had. He pushed harder and harder, crushing it until the orb turned to dust. And, in a few minutes, that was what exactly happened. Although, the complications weren't at all what Rynold had expected.

As the orb turned to dust, the dust suddenly seeped into Rynold's Mana Gauntlets. Then, out of the blue, Rynold felt a sharp pain in both hands. And, from the hands, it went up to its forearms then into his Mana Core. It was like stabbing him over and over. The whole thing seemed bizarre as Rynold collapsed to his knees, blood gushing out from his hands and his mouth.

Crimson saw Rynold fall to the floor and immediately rushed to help. But the moment that Crismon moved, the Mech God held out his hand. He then looked at Crimson, eyes gazing into his soul. The Mech God ordered him not to help Rynold without saying a word.

That said, neither the Mech God nor Crimson knew what was happening to Rynold. Seeing as how Rynold was the only one who could deal with the problem he was facing, the two could only wait.

And, much to Rynold's displeasure, he was not having a good time.

Within his Mana Core, Rynold could feel like something was tearing him apart from the inside. It was as if something was resisting the transformation. That something, Rynold didn't know what, was trying to fight back. And hard, too.

It was as if the thing inside him had a mind of his own.

'The symbiote!'

Rynold struggled to put two and two together, his mind a blur. Rynold knew that the tree living inside him was something of a sentient being. It was alive and, as things stand, was against the orb from taking place. They were like waves crashing against each other, and Rynold had a feeling why it was so.

But, even knowing that, Rynold had no idea how to stop it. Going at this pace, Rynold was going to die. He urged, begged, pushed every fiber of his being to stop this madness. The pain was overwhelming, and Rynold could barely keep it together.

So, in a sheer act of desperation, Rynold willed his Mana to life. He couldn't control it, but Rynold felt the need to do something. He let out his Mana from his Mana Core, rampaging from inside him. Whether it was a smart decision or not, Rynold didn't care. He just wanted to get out of this situation alive.

And, just like that, the Timber Sumbios reeled back. Rynold couldn't describe it, but he felt the pain near-instantly calm.

It was like nothing happened at all.