138. Next Steps

Apparently for Reina, watching him fight was incredibly stressful. Her heart was also overflowing with joy and pride. It was a lot.

She vented it on him for about four hours straight.

When they were done she rested her head on his chest, fast asleep. Her whole body was totally relaxed; she wore a gentle smile. He watched her for a bit—she fit so well with him. She was sprawled all over him; her soft curves just melted into him. Her chest slowly rose and fell, squished up against him; he gently stroked the dark tresses of her hair. They were both glistening with sweat.

After that... he was pretty confident she wasn't waking anytime soon.

But he was still lively. He wasn't about to go comprehend anything—he was still burned out on comprehension. But maybe he could take in some treasures, do a stint in the sauna. Just be out and about.

This time he extracted himself slowly and gently. And it was the rare time he was actually successful. He left her hugging three pillows. Her instincts kicked in; she got possessive.

Reina seemed a very smart and logical person most of the time—and she was. But once he got to know her he realized she also had very strong drives and feelings… it was just that most of the time, the first part of her kept the second part in check.

When she was sleeping or drowsy that second part took control—she just wanted to snuggle and kiss him and never let him go. But this time she was so exhausted she didn't stir, to his relief.

He managed to wiggle his way out.

Well—what now? He stood there in the hallway—the gold-wallpapered, red-velvet carpet hallway—and blinked.

He figured he'd go for the Electricity Law soon, once he was done recovering.

It had been a while since he checked his stats...

ℤ𝕒𝕟𝕖 𝕎𝕒𝕝𝕜𝕖𝕣

𝔼𝕤𝕤𝕖𝕟𝕔𝕖 𝕃𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕝 𝟙𝟙𝟘

𝕊𝕚𝕘𝕟𝕒𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕖 𝕋𝕚𝕥𝕝𝕖: 𝕊𝕒𝕧𝕒𝕘𝕖 𝕊𝕒𝕘𝕖

𝕂𝕖𝕪 𝕃𝕒𝕨𝕤:

𝔼𝕝𝕖𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕒𝕝 𝕃𝕒𝕨 𝕠𝕗 𝔽𝕚𝕣𝕖

𝔼𝕝𝕖𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕒𝕝 𝕃𝕒𝕨 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕥𝕖𝕖𝕝

𝕄𝕒𝕛𝕠𝕣 𝕃𝕒𝕨 𝕠𝕗 𝔻𝕚𝕤𝕔𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕘𝕖 (𝔼𝕝𝕖𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕒𝕝 𝕃𝕒𝕨 𝕠𝕗 𝔼𝕝𝕖𝕔𝕥𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕚𝕥𝕪)

𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕥𝕤:

𝕍𝕚𝕥𝕒𝕝𝕚𝕥𝕪: 𝟙𝟚𝟞.𝟙

ℝ𝕖𝕘𝕖𝕟𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟: 𝟞𝟝.𝟡

𝕊𝕥𝕣𝕖𝕟𝕘𝕥𝕙: 𝟙𝟜𝟙.𝟜

𝔻𝕖𝕩𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕚𝕥𝕪: 𝟟𝟟.𝟜

𝕊𝕡𝕖𝕖𝕕: 𝟟𝟝.𝟠

𝕂𝕖𝕪 𝕊𝕜𝕚𝕝𝕝𝕤:

(!) 𝕄𝕖𝕡𝕙𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕠'𝕤 ℙ𝕝𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕦𝕣𝕖 𝕊𝕦𝕥𝕣𝕒 𝕍

𝕊𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕞𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖 ℂ𝕪𝕔𝕝𝕠𝕟𝕖 𝕀𝕍

𝔸𝕡𝕠𝕔𝕒𝕝𝕪𝕡𝕤𝕖 𝕊𝕞𝕒𝕤𝕙 𝕀𝕍

𝔽𝕚𝕖𝕣𝕪 ℝ𝕖𝕟𝕖𝕨𝕒𝕝 𝕀𝕍

𝕄𝕒𝕟 𝕠𝕗 𝕊𝕥𝕖𝕖𝕝 𝕀𝕀𝕀

𝕎𝕚𝕤𝕙 𝕌𝕡𝕠𝕟 𝕒 𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕣 𝕀

Even he hadn't expected to jump three Levels from one Array run—on top of all his Skill levels. But he did take out a Level 140 Boss. Made sense.

He went down the elevator, strode into the swanky lobby. It looked like something out of a 19th century European mansion. The floor was a glossy white marble. Above, a chandelier the size of a Christmas tree tinkled gently.

The moment he came in it was like all the air was sucked out of the room. Heads turned instantly. Eyes popped.

By now things had settled down some, though—when he turned up his 'Do-Not-Disturb' aura they stared and whispered but they left him alone, thankfully. It wasn't that different to before. It seemed like he was close to 'peak fame', to his relief. This level was manageable at least.

Just then, he felt another strong aura behind him. Reserved, tightly controlled—quite familiar. Zane didn't even have to turn to know who it was.

"Zane Walker," said Eze with a soft smile. He was dressed in dark form-fitting combat robes, plain yet elegant. "Off to training?"

Zane nodded. "To the Soul Sauna, probably."

Eze grunted. "By the way—I must congratulate you. Quite the performance."

"Thanks."

"Are you busy, by chance?"

"No."

Eze gestured over to stand of wicker seats with a little wooden table between them. "Shall we sit, then? I've something I've been meaning to discuss with you."

They were both a little too big for the seats—the seats were meant for normal-sized people. They had to perch a little over the sides. Eze made it look effortless, like that was how you were meant to sit on it all along. He crossed his legs, steepled his fingers. And treated Zane to a curious gaze.

"I assume," he said. "Electricity's next for you."

Zane grunted.

"Tell me—what is that Fusion you seek precisely? Fire and Electricity... I've done a good deal of study on the various paths. But I haven't come across that one."

Zane saw no harm in telling him. "Stormfire."

"Stormfire," said Eze, nodding thoughtfully. "I believe this is one of the rarer paths. I've heard of the common ones. Tell me—have you formed the initial stage of the Fusion? If you've managed a Concept… "

Zane just blinked at him.

"... You don't know what that is," said Eze, blinking.

"No."

"That… makes sense." Eze paused. "Your Stormfire is powerful. But had you achieved true initial Fusion, you would have crushed me. And the Array. With ease."

Zane frowned. "Explain?"

"To know Fusions, you must first know Concepts," mused Eze. He tapped a finger to his lip. "Concepts govern the interactions between Elements. Take, for instance, the little water demon. She wishes to fuse Water and Light. There is a Fusion of those two Elements called 'Mirage.' But to achieve even the simplest Fusion, the most basic Mirage Law, one must understand how light passes through water. Which means one must understand the Concept of 'Refraction.'"

"Huh."

"Or say—Core Magma, which is Fire plus Earth. You must first understand Phase Change. The way liquids and solids interact. Then there are the more advanced Concepts relating to geothermal powers."

"I see," said Zane. "How do you know all this?"

"I research," said Eze simply. "Back home I maintain a collection of rare texts. I've also acquired portions of various Inheritances of the Nine Great Factions of this galaxy—at great cost. But I find it's been worth it."

"Nine Great Factions."

"You've seen the names. World Tree Faction. Azure Flame Faction. Mount Steelheart. And so on."

Zane nodded.

"One can find parts of their Inheritances through loot in dungeons. Or by trade. I only have certain fragments, but even so I've gleaned a great deal..."

He paused—a Silicon Coven attendant had come to check up on them, asking if they wanted anything. Eze ordered 'Moonflower Tea'. Zane asked for plain spirit spring water.

"So," said Zane. "These... Concepts. Tell me more."

"Simply put, they are the next building blocks of Law," said Eze. "They must be comprehended to make Fusions. They are what tie the strands of Elements Law together to make new divergent shapes. There are many ways to combine water and light—it needn't be Mirage. What makes this specific Fusion are the Concepts particular to Mirage. They trace the shape of the Fusion...the more Mirage Concepts you incorporate, the more powerful the Fusion. The complete Fusion incorporates every Concept of the Mirage."

Zane nodded. That did make sense. So for him, they'd be Concepts of Stormfire. He wondered what that meant.

"It seems you have me at a disadvantage," said Eze, pursing his lips. "You've managed some initial form of Fusion—without Concepts. How is that?"

And Zane told him about pseudo-Stormfire.

"Fascinating," said Eze. He mulled it over for a few seconds. "At present I'm trying to fuse Earth and Darkness. The Law of the Abyss, it's called. For hours a day I immerse myself in the deepest bowels of the earth I can find, in total darkness. In an attempt to touch upon a certain Abyss Concept—'Nullification.'"

He shook his head. "It has been devilishly difficult. And I have the advantage of an Inheritance, an A-rank tome which maps the foundational Concepts of the Abyss. It was left by a Sage of the 'Deep Earth Hall'... I have but a fraction of it the first portion. But it's already been invaluable to me. I suspect the alien Factions have every Fusion path thoroughly mapped out."

He took a sip of wine.

"This first tome alone makes reference to hundreds of powerhouses who've walked the Abyss path, across millennia... though they appear to have had Law resources unavailable here on Earth. Here I must resort to mere caverns." He wrinkled his nose.

Zane just listened and nodded, soaking it in.

"The tome claims," continued Eze. "That one Concept may take a decade to learn. Even for the talented. I find a good heuristic for these texts is to divide their timescales by about a factor of one hundred. Without some external aid—some bespoke Law treasure, perhaps—it could be weeks before I comprehend this Concept. Perhaps months. For you... with the right materials. The right environment. The right guidance? I suspect it'll take about a week."

"Hm."

"The difficulty is in achieving all of those." Eze shook his head. "The work is not easy, either way. But it is significantly easier when you have an Inheritance to work off of... Your Fusion. It's called 'Stormfire,' yes?"

"That's right."

Eze nodded. "It's quite likely there's a Tome that maps your path. Once you achieve Elemental Electricity and begin exploring your Concepts, I'd see if I can find a copy somewhere. Otherwise... it'll feel like climbing a sheer cliff without a foothold."

"I will," said Zane. "...How?"

"Luck." Eze shrugged. "Or perhaps... in a few weeks, they are holding an 'Auction.' 'The Merchant's Guild'—I know very little about it, but you can try your luck with them. Though I should say—it will likely prove expensive. I would raid at least one A-rank dungeon before you do. The dungeon chest alone is a trove of high-grade Essence Stones."

Zane nodded. He'd gotten that Merchant's Guild Token months ago, way back in the Abyssal Crater up in Washington; he was wondering when he'd get a chance to use it.

Eze stood, gave a little smile. "On that note. I have a certain Mythic-grade Inheritance Skill to comprehend…"

He paused.

"I suspect," he said. "Once I grasp this, my Combat strength will drastically increase. I also plan on taking four A-grade Vials of Essence. Then we shall see about the Asura Hell Array. You may have the lead now, my friend. But don't be complacent—or you may find it vanishing before your very eyes."

"Don't worry. I won't be."

They shared a look. Smiled a little.

Then Eze left, and Zane sat there. There was much to think about.

***

It was getting to be early morning by then. First he went to the sauna and got in a good stint relaxing, recovering. He'd spend most of this time here for the next two days.

When he came out around noon and passed through the Warrior Dojo lobby, a few young men were brave enough to come up to him despite his 'I will bite' aura. They asked him for an autograph; their eyes were shining—they kind of reminded him of Evan. So Zane obliged.

This turned out to be a big mistake. Soon everyone came after him—he had to resort to glowering to make them go away again. He just couldn't afford it anymore; especially now, he'd be mobbed everywhere he went.

As he went back to the hotel, even the security guard—who was meant to keep away all the fans—asked him for an autograph.

***

He went out for lunch with Reina. Then Evan caught up with him for desert—he'd baked Zane another cake to celebrate getting #1 on the Hell Array. Nobody knew where he was getting the ingredients from. Evan was inexplicably good at baking cakes.

According to Evan, Avery was still breaking through in the Light Law Area.

Zane gave Reina a Kiss; she went off to finish up her Wood Laws. Now that they were set to clear an A-rank dungeon together, she was putting a lot more time and focus into it. As well as A-rank treasures. Her comprehension was pretty darn fast—not Avery-fast, but still quite good. She was more than halfway through her Wood Laws; a few more days and she'd be ready for Elemental.

She said it hadn't been this way before her Signature Title. But it'd boosted her talent a lot.

Over lunch, Zane had told her about what Eze said, and she'd thought it over. Then she also decided the Auction was the best bet. She made a quick trip back to Headquarters to set up a mandate. For the next few weeks, three-quarters of the Luminous Faction's earnings—and a good chunk of its treasury—would go to Zane's Auction fund.

When one of the council-members protested she shut him down with a five-pronged argument about why it was a critical Faction security measure that they made absolutely sure Zane got his treasure.

The problem with arguing with her was even when you knew she just wanted to pamper Zane—which was pretty clear to everyone, including Zane—she backed it with such airtight arguments it was hard to deny her.