Chương 62: Chapter 57: I haven’t fallen yet

Fabrisse raised his shield, but the wind broke through and struck him in the chest.

"Hrk—" He stumbled back three steps with a hand over his ribs. It hadn't hurt much. A two-word mnemonic meant Cuman was still using low-grade practice spells.

"Oh?" Cuman grinned.

"You actually blocked it. Well... for about half a second. Still broke to a basic Gale Lance, though. That's all the Chosen One's got?" His fingers were already weaving another seal. Fabrisse took a few more steps back.

"Gale. Sweep." Fabrisse jumped as the gust came at his legs. He felt it brush the soles of his boots.

"Well now…" Cuman raised his eyebrows.

"Why're you dodging? I preferred it when you just stood there and let me knock you over." Green sparks appeared at his fingertips. He'd actually put emotion into this one. The courtyard wards would keep Fabrisse from getting seriously hurt, but that left Cuman plenty of room to make his afternoon miserable.

"Gale. Shove." Fabrisse wasn't quick enough. The wind struck his chest, forcing him back. He nearly lost his balance but managed to stay upright. Cuman snorted.

"Still the same wimp. You gonna land on your arse again?" I can't beat him. I have to get out of here. He was about to leave. Then he remembered Severa saying, "You're always like that. You stop trying to stand the moment you fall."

[NEW SIDEQUEST REMINDER: "Rock and Retaliation"] Objective: – Strike Cuman Gollivur with a Stone-Based Thaumaturgy spell – Bonus Objective: Humiliate him publicly for 100 EXP Reward: Spectral Appraisal (Rank I) – View target's combat stats: FP, attributes Time Remaining: 3 days (Standard Calendar) Right. If I couldn't muster the courage to hit him now, how would I ever finish this sidequest?

"I haven't fallen yet." Fabrisse's hand shot into his satchel and brought out his glowing Stupenstone. No, I can't throw this one. It's giving me a DEX boost of 3. It's why I've managed to dodge at all. Instead, he grabbed an ordinary Stupenstone. Without warning, he hurled it. Cuman barked out a laugh.

"Ha! Throwing rocks? What are you, twel—" The stone blurred through the air. [Skill Cast: Stupenstone Fling (Rank I)] The laugh vanished. Cuman threw his hand forward on instinct, and the wind swiped Fabrisse's rock away. Cuman hissed through his teeth.

"You've got a decent arm. But it won't happen twice." He crooked three fingers.

"Come on, Rock Witch. Try me." My chance. Don't mind if I do. Another stone flew. Cuman flicked it aside without looking. The third one: blocked. The fourth: deflected.

"So predictable." Green sparks erupted between Cuman's fingers.

"Gale. Lance." The wind struck harder this time. [Damage Taken: Blunt Force (Light)] The impact slammed into his ribs and drove him backward. It actually hurt. Rank I isn't enough. Unless he could improve the skill or distract Cuman, he wouldn't—"These rocks are so dull, rock witch. I thought you could be a tad more entertaining when you fight back, but you're so pathetic it's not even fun anymore." Hold on. Stupenstones weren't dull. They reacted to aether. If he could upgrade them…

He took out the stone he'd improved through alchemy. [Item Upgraded: Glowing Stupenstone #392202] This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. DEX +5% when thrown or held Regain 12% FP after thrown He threw. It only flew slightly faster, not nearly enough to trouble Cuman. The bully swatted it away again. The ordinary stones were too weak. He had to throw the original glowing Stupenstone and try to upgrade it.

But all the alchemical components in his pockets were Common-graded. There was no way it was going to yield better results than specimen Number 392202.

"Looks like we've got the whole courtyard to ourselves." Cuman smiled.

"Finally. Nobody will mistake recreation for misconduct." Leaves lifted from the stones as a spiral of wind swirled around him. Green sparks crackled through the growing cyclone. I should run, Fabrisse thought. But no. The quest says to strike Cuman. This is my best shot. I have to try. Cuman clicked his tongue.

"Today?" The leaves wheeled into a spinning ring.

"We can be educational." The only item I had that wasn't Common was… Severa's Catalysis Dust. So he pulled out the pouch and grabbed a fistful of the dust. Normally he would've spent five minutes weighing every grain. He didn't have five seconds. I've sprinkled this stuff thousands of times... I can eyeball it. He dusted the glowing stone. Once. Twice. Three times. That third one had definitely been too much. Recipe Complete.

Glowing Stupenstone + Aetheric Catalysis Dust + Aetheric Catalysis Dust (Oversaturated) + Aetheric Catalysis Dust (Oversaturated) [ITEM UPGRADED: GLOWING STUPENSTONE #001727] Throw Damage: +42% Visual Emission: +200% Aetheric Stability: -91% Trajectory Consistency: -54% Warning: Excess catalysis may result in unpredictable discharge. Violet aether erupted from the pebble with a crackle. Fabrisse held it farther from his face. Cuman stopped smiling.

"…Whoa. You're actually going all in. I didn't know you had it in you—" Fabrisse threw it. He immediately understood Eidralith's warning. The stone veered off course, nearly hit the ground, then shot up despite his efforts to bring it back in line. More aether burst from its surface until he could barely see it through the purple light.

"What in the Flames is that?" Cuman shouted. The green in his cyclone faded as charcoal-black threads spread through it. He was afraid. Cuman abandoned the spell and flung himself aside. The pebble corkscrewed through the space where he'd been standing, wobbled, and dropped to the paving. Fabrisse hoped Cuman hadn't seen that last part. He stared at the stone. There wasn't a spark left in it. That looked far more dangerous than it actually was. If I'd used the correct amount of Catalysis Dust—"Gale. Sweep."

The delayed gust struck the side of his shin, shoving him to the ground. He landed on his side, pebbles spilling from his satchel. Cuman lowered his hand. The earlier amusement had vanished from his face.

"Still a wimp." He looked at the smoking pebble one final time before taking a step backward.

"Our session ends here. I'm bored." A faint breeze gathered beneath his boots.

"Next time, don't count on getting lucky.' With that, he drifted into the air and glided over the courtyard wall, leaving only a swirl of leaves in his wake. Fabrisse gathered his scattered pebbles one by one. Cuman hadn't looked nearly as confident when he'd left, or maybe that was wishful thinking. Still... Cuman had ended the fight first. Fabrisse glanced at the sidequest. Strike Cuman Gollivur with a Stone-Based Thaumaturgy spell. He frowned.

'Strike' meant strike. Shooing him wasn't enough. He had three days to actually hurt Cuman. There was no chance. Fire came first. He'd have to forfeit this sidequest. Surely the solution to both of his problems wouldn't just happen to drop from the sky.

"Mr. Kestovar." Fabrisse jumped, turning around to see Lorvan approaching him. Again. What was it with the Luganos and sneaking up to people from behind?

"Mentor." Lorvan folded his hands behind his back.

"I heard you've been training Fire today. Is that why you look even more disheveled than usual?"

"Yes." Fabrisse considered telling Lorvan about what'd just happened, but then he performed the arithmetic: no witnesses, no evidence. Cuman's spell had already dispersed and he'd already picked up all his rocks. There was probably a ninety percent chance the complaint would lead to nothing except paperwork upon paperwork and a meeting neither he nor Lorvan wanted to attend. That was time he could spend learning Fire instead. Better to solve the problem himself.

"Good." A faint smile crossed Lorvan's face.

"I believe I've found a temporary solution to your predicament." Fabrisse arched his brow.

"You have?"

"Walk with me." Well, that was encouraging. If only stoning Cuman were equally straightforward. Surely the solutions to both of his problems wouldn't fall out of the sky. Lorvan strode toward the outer practice rings behind the administrative block. They passed through two archways, down a short slope of stairs, and onto the edge of the south plateau. This area was mostly unused, with only a ring of scorched dirt, old channel marks, and a single practice pylon long since warped from heat damage.

"Where are we going?" Fabrisse asked, glancing at the sky. It was still late afternoon. The glyphlights weren't even on yet.

"You'll see." They stopped near the circle's center. Lorvan checked a pocketwatch and then looked up.

"Right on time." Fabrisse was about to ask what was happening when a sudden flash burst across the sky. He turned to a line of fire through the clouds, followed by a trail of mint spark like that of a comet. At first, Fabrisse assumed it was a meteor. Meteors, however, generally preferred continuing downward. This one banked left then right, deliberately circling the training grounds before beginning its descent. Fabrisse squinted through the haze.

A figure emerged from the thinning smoke, rust-brown hair loosely tied behind his head and sun-scarred skin announcing someone who preferred the elements to a roof.

"What's cooking, dude?" the showy fire man called out to Fabrisse before clapping Lorvan's back.

"Yo teach. Still looking keen. Though you might wanna take care of that single strand of greying hair behind your back."

"Tom?" Fabrisse staggered back. That was definitely his old best friend, Tommaso Ardefiamme. The solution to both his problems really did drop from the sky.