When Bardulf joined them a few minutes later, after Sinalthria had seen to it that the man was brought in and a message was sent to Ceruviel detailing Leonidas’ whereabouts and the new plan, Leonidas himself smiled wryly at the half-Lycanus Shadowblade.

  “{Did you also think I was pursuing Synthra in some strange attempt to make her my partner, Bardulf?}” Leonidas asked him directly, while Synthra narrowed her eyes at them upon overhearing.

  “{...think, Achilles? My friend, you announced it to the entire Guild Hall,}” Bardulf said with a look of genuine confusion. “{I had thought that you were here to negotiate your dowry from the Guild Mistress, given how superlatively Synthra dressed herself for your eyes.}”

  “{I really wish that I had delivered that announcement in English instead of—}”

  “{How what I what, Bardulf?}” Synthra demanded over the top of Leonidas, who fell silent with amusement, while faintly admiring her willingness to throw away all pretense of not eavesdropping. It took a commendable lack of shame to be so bold, and he genuinely found himself admiring her boldness. “{I will have you know that this big-headed simpleton had nothing to do with my desire to enjoy cosmetics! I am a female, Bardulf! I enjoy looking beautiful, sometimes!}”

  Bardulf stared at Synthra, and his nose twitched as he sniffed the air before raising his eyebrows at her.

  “{...if you say so, Synthra,}” he said politely, and turned away to give Leonidas a look as if to say ‘no chance’. No doubt his instincts were telling him she was lying, which was, truthfully, incredibly useful.

  Leonidas suppressed a smile and simply nodded to Synthra in concession to her point. “{I have no doubt that is the case, Synthra. I would never presume to be so important within the scope of your considerations.}”

  Synthra glared at him when he spoke, as if he’d insulted her, and turned away with a scowl to march back to the office’s window—cocking her left hip and resting her left hand on it in a way that, once again, was absolutely unfair in pure physical appeal.

  Leonidas suspected she was doing it on purpose and pointedly looked at Sinalthria instead, forcing the image of the curvaceous Sorceress from his mind.

  “{Guild Mistress, while I am here, I hoped to speak to you regarding a matter of Aetherium?}”

  Sinalthria, who had been watching the exchange with amusement, resettled her slit-pupiled gaze on Leonidas at his words and raised her eyebrows.

  “{Oh? Why did you not consult Ceruviel?}”

  “{She did not wish to be bothered, and on top of that, I think you are better-equipped to advise in this context, especially since I have heard the Guild has a special reserve within the [Aetherium Store] subspace. I already have everything an Archon could reasonably require, in terms of armament, for the moment. I was thinking of acquiring something more ancillary, or along the line of Skills.}”

  “{Oh? Branching out, Achilles? Wise,}” Bardulf said from beside him with an approving nod, which Sinalthria mirrored.

  “{Young Bardulf is correct. You are showing wisdom, Achilles. Versatility in combat can be far more beneficial than raw power, unless that power is utterly overwhelming. You may be the strongest first-tier combatant in Dawnhaven, if not the world, at present—but you are still first-tier.}”

  “{He needs mobility,}” Synthra cut in from the window without turning to look at them, her voice low and edged with a degree of annoyance still. “{Achilles likes to fight with speed, but he lacks mobility skills other than [Chivalric Charge]. He made up for it with tiles of Psi as makeshift stairs against the Hydra, but that won’t work against a more flexible opponent—especially not one with aerial superiority. He needs mobility, mother, and he needs speed.}”

  Leonidas looked at the Sorceress with genuine surprise at her apt, exact, and most of all accurate appraisal of his requirements. He did like to fight with speed and mobility; it was how he learned to maximize his impact on Elatra, and it had synergized very well with his [Radiance Core] during his time as the Hero. Combined with the Seven Sword Arts, the preference for overwhelming aggression he had cultivated had been manifest in his ‘blitz’-style assaults.

  “{Synthra has found the mark, Guild Mistress,}” Leonidas said with a tone of genuine appreciation. “{I had not realized her to be watching my fight so closely, but—}”

  “{I was preparing for a rematch. Don’t flatter yourself, you bighead,}” Synthra interrupted acerbically.

  Leonidas paused and then sighed.

  I feel like she’s overcompensating for our little moment earlier.

  Even Sinalthria looked askance at her daughter, shaking her head before looking back at Leonidas. “{I believe I understand your needs, Achilles. The Guild Store does, in fact, have some items that may be of interest to you, but I fear you will find they all have limitations. Your current level means none of them will be very effective until you reach the Contender rank.}”

  “{Third Temper? Really?}” Leonidas asked with disappointment.

  “{That is when the Spirit is tempered,}” Sinalthria confirmed. “{Spiritual control is what primarily deals with Skills, and ancillary abilities. Your Mind Tempering at Adept rank will help with your Affinity Skills specifically, but your overall Skill improvement will only improve at Contender.}”

  “{Ceruviel did mention that,}” Leonidas admitted while reaching up to rub a hand through his hair. “{I had hoped an item or something equivalent would escape that limitation, to an extent.}”

  “{Some do,}” Bardulf said with a bracing smile, “{but the Guild Mistress is correct, Achilles: there are some absolutes that not even a monster like you can ignore, where the System is concerned.}”

  “{He doesn’t need to ignore them; he just needs to pick something that will give him an opening,}” Synthra said in a tone that sounded a little reluctant, but simultaneously impassioned. Whatever else she may have been, Tsundere or just sheer mad, the Sorceress also seemed very passionate about combat—not surprising to Leonidas, given her bloodline and upbringing.

  “{He doesn’t need something supreme, Bardulf,}” Synthra continued while turning back toward them, and folding her arms under her bust with a look of mild reluctance, and perhaps even a little embarrassment. Leonidas found it bemusing how shy she could look, at times. “{Achilles needs something that will give him a chance when he needs it most—a window of opportunity, not an overwhelming advantage. His baseline combat power is already absurd, as you pointed out. Achilles needs something that can maximize his mobility in a critical moment, that’s all.}”

  Sinalthria smiled at Sythra when she finished, and nodded in agreement.

  “{My daughter is quite right,}” the Guild Mistress said with evident love and naked pride in her child. “{I believe the same in fact, given my analysis of your combat style, Achilles. You favor overwhelming force in the natural Terran way, blended with Haelfenn precision and economy of movement. This would typically be somewhat counter-intuitive, given terran combat instincts seem very brutalist—like orcs, in fact—yet somehow, in you, they have found a comfortable equilibrium.}”

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Sinalthria set her taloned hands on the desk and leaned forward, forcing Leonidas to focus on her gaze instead of her impressive cleavage, with a flicker of embarrassment.

  “{You fight with the force of a hammer and the elegance of a rapier, young Archon. It is fascinating, actually. I have never seen someone wield Haelfenn combat styles as you do.}”

  “{It was what caught so many people off-guard during our Trial, Achilles,}” Bardulf agreed, his voice thoughtful. “{I had thought you were simply a student still, but it seems I was incorrect. The Guild Mistress saw through you. I never considered you had combined your natural traits with Haelfenn swordsmanship to that degree.}”

  “{Because you don’t know how to recognize a Blademaster, Bardulf,}” Synthra said without ire, and simply looked at Leonidas with an expectant expression. “{Or are you going to deny it? I know you’re a Blademaster, Achilles. Ceruviel never would have put you into the Arena that fast if you weren’t, and certainly not on this Dungeon Delve team with the Princess-Royal.}”

  Leonidas couldn’t fault her logic. Ceruviel had said largely the same thing, praising his swordsmanship in a way he now knew was exceedingly rare for the cantankerous Archon.

  “{She must have thought your swordsmanship could carry you through where your lack of experience with the System failed.}”

  Bardulf looked at him with a sense of curious appraisal, and Leonidas sighed.

  “{I suppose I could be considered a blademaster, but—}”

  “{It still makes no sense, though,}” Synthra cut him off, her expression focused enough that Leonidas found his surge of annoyance rapidly smothered by the sheer perplexion on her beautiful features.

  Wait, beautiful features? Get it together, Ace!

  “{What troubles you?}” Bardulf questioned.

  “{He’s too young,}” Synthra said bluntly. “{Haelfenn blademasters usually take decades to cultivate their talents, but Achilles is our age, Bardulf. Where the hells did he find the time to learn the sword to that degree? I suspected you were a true war veteran, Achilles, even a soldier of many battles, when we fought in the Trial—but I never had the chance to ask you about it.}”

  Leonidas looked between Synthra, Bardulf, and Sinalthria when the Sorceress finished her observation, and sighed quietly.

  “{I cannot speak about it.}”

  “{Achilles—}” Synthra started angrily, only to stop when Leonidas settled a cold gaze on her, letting his Core churn to generate pressure and manifest a few strategic crackles of scarlet lightning across his body. Not enough to be genuinely threatening, but enough to make a point.

  “{No, Synthra. Not this. You do not get to bully me about this. I will accept your reticence and belligerence about other matters, but this is mine, and I will not be pushed on it. Do I make myself clear?}”

  Bardulf stepped over to Sinalthria’s desk and nodded as if the statement had been for the entire room instead of just Synthra, sitting back against it, while the Guild Mistress simply let loose a thoughtful ‘Hm’ as her eyes zeroed in on his abdomen as if she were staring right at his dantian.

  Synthra, meanwhile, stared at him with wide eyes and then nodded once, turning back toward the window with an air of sudden acceptance that Leonidas would have called meek in anyone else. That, more than anything else, bewildered him and shocked him out of his anger.

  This girl is impossible to read!

  “{Now, regarding the matter of this item, Achilles,}” Sinalthria said, glancing at her daughter with a little smile and pulling the attention away from Synthra. “{I think I have some ideas.}”

  Leonidas took a breath as his [Cataclysm Core] settled once more and nodded politely to the half-dragon Guild Mistress. “{I am most interested, Guild Mistress. What is it you suggest?}”

  “{There are several options at your disposal, but I have used my Administrative Access to the Terran Guild Shard, specifically the one for Sector 117, to grant you priority purchase rights for the Guild catalogue. It should have already been done when you were declared a Strategic Keystone, but the matter was missed, given all the… excitement.}”

  “{Priority purchase? Well, now, that is a nice perk of the position,}” Bardulf said with an enthusiastic tone from where he leaned against Sinalthria’s desk. “{It means you can entirely skip the vetting process for purchases and proceed with immediate acquisition, and circumvent any bidding wars to purchase an item outright. Given the quality of the Guild’s catalogue, it is an invaluable advantage, Achilles.}”

  “{Then you have my sincere thanks, Guild Mistress Sinalthria,}” Leonidas said to the elder dragon-blooded woman with gratitude.

  “{Thank Synthra,}” Sinalthria said with a wry, maternal glance at her daughter, who glanced back warily. “{If not for her impetuous decision to declare you a Strategic Keystone, it would not have happened. She did it without my knowledge, in fact, just to ensure you were protected—foolish girl.}”

  Synthra blushed faintly at her mother’s words and turned to Leonidas and Bardulf as if daring them to say something.

  Bardulf merely smiled at her affably, while Leonidas met her gaze thoughtfully. It occurred to him that Synthra must have suffered a withering reprimand for what she’d done, not just from her mother, but from many of the elites within the Guild. Ceruviel had told him that Synthra had made the declaration on her own power, but he hadn’t considered just how dangerous that may have been for her on a political and social level within the guild.

  “{Thank you, Synthra,}” Leonidas said finally, stepping forward and coming to a halt closer to her, just shy of invading her personal space. “{I know you did this to help me, probably at Ceruviel’s urging, but you still chose to carry the burden of the declaration on your shoulders—knowing you were backing the Guild into a corner. That cannot have been a painless decision, and I wish to express my sincere gratitude for that act of selfless aid. It does not go unappreciated, and I apologize for not acknowledging the kindness you showed me sooner.}”

  Synthra stared at him unblinkingly for a moment, and then turned away from him sidelong, her face partially obscured by her hair as she lifted her chin and folded her arms in a way he was coming to recognize as a sign of self-conscious embarrassment.

  She probably wasn’t used to being thanked.

  “{You’re welcome, Achilles,}” she said stiffly, in a voice that sounded a little strained. She must have been restraining her natural inclination toward mockery with every ounce of her willpower. He could appreciate that. “{I… it was the right thing to do,}” Synthra continued in a quieter and more sincere tone. “{You are important—to Dawnhaven, I mean, and to the Guild. It would be unthinkable to lose you—I mean, to lose your strength. For the Thronehold. And the Guild. For both. For all of us. The people, I mean.}”

  Synthra muttered something when she finished speaking and tossed her head, turning to her mother with a flush to her cheeks. Shame or sulky resentment, perhaps, at the remembered embarrassment of the reprimands she must have received. Achilles understood that feeling well, thanks to both Miranda and now Ceruviel.

  “{Mother, show him the items. This—he has thanked me. I require nothing else.}”

  Sinalthria’s eyes brightened at her daughter’s words, and Bardulf smiled like he knew a secret, but only winked at Leonidas when he glanced at him in question. Strange man.

  {If you open your [Aetherium Store] access, Achilles, the invitation to peruse the Guild Catalogue should be there.}”

  Leonidas raised an eyebrow, but did as Sinalthria suggested.

  AETHERIUM STORE

  Sinalthria, the Administrative Manager of the [Adventurers’ Guild] branch in [Unclaimed Sector 117] has invited you to peruse a curated selection from the [Guild Catalogue] with [Priority Purchase] allowance.

  Would you like to peruse the curated [Guild Catalogue] now?

  [Y] | [N]

  Leonidas read over the message and raised an eyebrow at the formality of it, before reaching out to tap ‘Y’ without hesitation. He was curious about what Sinalthria had curated for him, and more than that, he was just excited to use the [Aetherium Store] again. It was one of the only parts of the System Incursion he actually found to be a net benefit for everyone, given it provided access to amenities and items from across the entire System World Nexus.

  When it navigated him to the Guild Store a moment later, his eyes lit up.

  Oh yes, he thought with a slow grin. These are some very nice options.

  40+ Advanced Chapters can now be found on my !

  Cataclysm War (Book 2) is posting actively.

  I need to dump Chapters for a timing issue, so you guys are in luck!

  Next Chapter will be as per the usual posting schedule!