Chương 146: Creation

Joe's voice came out rough as he broke his flow long enough to shout at Symphony. Her empty eyes flickered, and she looked up at him, crouched over her fallen sword. He saw it then, the way she was slipping, spiralling inward. It made him angry.

"You interrupted me for a reason, didn't you?!" he continued, moving again as his staff carved a swirling arc through the air.

"So why are you wallowing in self-pity? Are you really that weak?" She flinched. Just slightly. But it was enough. Good. She picked up her sword and hauled herself back to her feet.

"Better," he said, turning fully toward her.

"Now come at me and help me complete my new skill." He flashed her a wide, shameless grin. The provocation landed perfectly. Her breathing steadied, and she exploded forward once more.

"I once read a book when I was young," Joe gasped as he deflected two rapid slashes and snapped his staff into her ankle, sending her airborne.

"It was about the greatest swordsman in the world," he continued. Symphony's kick whistled over his head. Joe ducked, spun, and slammed her into the ground. She rolled and sprang back up with a snarl.

"He had never known defeat."

"Why are you talking!" she shouted as she lunged again. Joe barely had time to breathe as he fought and spoke at the same time. She was too fast. Every movement demanded anticipation. A single mistake would end him. He relied on one thing only. She telegraphed her strikes, as most swordsmen did. He slipped aside, countered with a sharp thrust to her ribs, and sent her skidding across the ground again. His counters barely hurt her. He knew that. The gap between their grades was undeniable. So he did not try to win.

He only kept her away.

"It's an important story," he said, forcing the words out as he repositioned.

"So listen." She charged again.

"When that swordsman reached the peak of his power," Joe continued, voice tight with effort, "the absolute height of his ability… he went to visit an old friend." Joe ducked and weaved once more, knocking Symphony off her feet.

"This old friend was a simple man," Joe continued, breath tight as he moved.

"A farmer who lived with his adult daughter. She was a sheltered girl, so when this dashing swordsman appeared before her, she instantly fell in love."

"Shut up!!" Symphony shouted. Her blade clipped Joe's shoulder as she lunged. Pain flared, and he hissed, barely forcing her back with his staff. Telling a story while she tried to kill him might have been a bad idea. He kept going anyway.

"The swordsman was honourable," Joe said, voice strained.

"So he asked his old friend for permission to take the daughter on a date. The farmer laughed and agreed, with one condition. The swordsman had to land a single hit on him in a spar." Joe spun and drove a brutal kick into Symphony's ribs. The impact landed clean. She crashed into a nearby tree with a sharp crack of wood and bone. Joe staggered as a third heavy fracture split across his bottleneck, the sensation echoing through his mind. He was so close. Close enough to taste it. Then Maestro moved.

He surged forward in a blur, hand reaching for Joe's throat. Joe had no time to defend. His eyes widened as death closed in. Rose struck like a thunderclap. Two compressed orbs of water slammed into Maestro's torso as she caught his arm, pivoted, and hurled him over her shoulder. He vanished into the forest to the south in a burst of displaced air. Rose shot Joe a furious look over her shoulder, though her anger wasn't aimed at him.

"Hurry up. And stop wasting time on stupid stories," she snapped before disappearing after Maestro.

"Hey, it's not stupid," Joe protested. He didn't have a chance to check if Rose heard him, as Symphony blasted his way.

"Right. Where was I?" Joe said, deflecting another strike.

"Oh yes. The swordsman was shocked. But he thought his friend was just giving him a chance to impress the daughter. So he accepted." Joe ducked under a flurry of cuts and winced as distant explosions of mana and water shook the forest nearby.

"But you see, the swordsman's confidence was short-lived. The moment he stepped up opposite his friend, his smile vanished. Every fibre inside the swordsman told him he was facing a foe weathered with experience, and doubt crept its way into his mind. Then, when the spar started, that doubt was replaced by shock as the farmer disarmed the swordsman with ease and slammed him to the ground with a chuckle. The farmer only said one thing to the swordsman before he passed out.

Never, ever, under any circumstances, underestimate a farmer with a quarterstaff." Joe drove the point home with a sharp strike that tore Symphony's sword from her grip. He swept her legs, then brought the staff down in a clean crack against her head. Her eyes rolled back, darkness taking her.

"For a quarterstaff, in the right hands," Joe whispered as his feet traced the final pattern, "cannot be defeated by a sword." Joe lifted his face to the sky, completing his new skill.

"Fates Broken Roads." The bottleneck that had choked his growth for months shattered. It felt like a seal tearing free. Mana erupted from Joe as his Mana Stream surged out of control. The sky split open, and rain poured down in heavy blue sheets, as though the heavens themselves rejoiced. Above the forest, a water dragon coiled into being as Rose cried out in triumph. The bond at her chest flared, this time without pain. Only completion. Only achievement.

Her clash with Maestro ended in an instant as she reappeared in the clearing, mud and water streaking her form as she landed beside Corel. Corel's own bond shone through her leather armour. She pressed a hand to it and smiled. Joe stood beneath the open sky as rain streamed down his face. His mana, finally under control, spiralled above him in a tightening coil, forming a funnel as the downpour fed into it. A restrained sense of growth stirred deep within him. He tried to summon his status, but nothing answered.

Just like before, during his previous fate event, it was sealed away. At fate's threshold, even the system had no reach. For now, he could not see how far he had risen. Eventually, the rain eased, and Joe drew his mana back in, dismissing his skill in a fading flash of light. Corel and Rose approached, stopping beside him as he continued to stare up at the clearing sky. Corel reached out, tugged gently at his arm, and leaned close to whisper in his ear.

"Well done," she said softly. She stepped back, giving Rose room to move forward. Joe did not notice the change. When he felt a hand touch his elbow, he reacted without thinking, wrapping both arms around her waist and pulling her into a tight, intimate hug. He lifted her clean off her feet. Their bodies pressed together, chests touching, faces only inches apart. Only then did he realize who he was holding.

Rose stared back at him, shock written plainly across her face as her mind struggled to catch up with what had just happened. Joe froze. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. His thoughts scattered into panic. Her scent filled his lungs, warm and all-consuming, and the closeness of her left him utterly locked in place.

Heartbeat after heartbeat passed before his mind finally screamed at him to let go, to set her down, to apologize for the unforgivable intimacy of what he had just done. But he hesitated. Her hands were gripping his arms. She was not pushing him away. She was not protesting. She was simply staring into his eyes through his sunglasses. For a breathless moment, it felt as though he was seeing her for the first time. And what he saw stole the air from his lungs. She was beautiful in a way that went beyond reason.

Corel was stunning, radiant in her own right, but Rose was different. There was something about her that demanded attention, something that set her apart from everything else. A sharp pinch on his arm snapped him back to reality. Joe flinched and hurriedly lowered Rose to the ground. She landed lightly on her feet and released her grip on him. He lingered for just a moment longer, reluctant to let the space between them return, before a sudden wave of horror washed over him. Corel was standing beside them.

He turned, bracing himself for anger or hurt. Instead, she smiled. She reached up and gave his cheek a gentle, affectionate pat.

"Now kiss!" Corel said, her voice light and teasing. Joe jumped backwards.

"Absolutely not!" he blurted.

"She would kill me!" Joe sat in the mud with his arms wrapped around his legs, trying to make sense of the last few minutes. He had completed his movement skill. He had shattered the bottleneck. Months of work and stubborn persistence had finally paid off. So why was the only thing replaying in his mind the moment he had shared with Rose? He stared down at his hands and, with complete sincerity, vowed never to wash them again. Trevaldo's voice cut through his thoughts.

"Victory! Excellent! Good job, everyone!" Joe pushed himself to his feet and grimaced as he looked down at his state. Mud clung to him from head to toe. He pulled out a towel and tried to clean up, but it only made things worse. When he glanced over, Corel and Rose were already spotless, Rose calmly using a water skill to clean them both. Joe was just about to step closer and ask if she could do the same for him when a sudden blast of water slammed into his chest and sent him stumbling backwards.

Laughter broke out around the clearing. You would have thought he was the one who had suggested kissing, with how she was treating him. Rose shot him a sharp glare, and Joe wisely decided to keep his distance. Maestro had returned, and he and Rose behaved as though their battle had never happened. Joe followed their lead when Symphony rose and took her place beside Maestro, pointedly ignoring him. He still had no idea why she had tried to stop him from breaking through.

In the end, she had helped more than hindered him, so he let it go. As he flexed his hand, he felt a noticeable difference in how his body responded. Smoother. Lighter. Was the skill always active? For now, he shrugged and moved on.

"Let us move on to the next challenge," Trevaldo announced as he took the lead. The group set off once more. As they walked, Joe kept sneaking glances at Rose and Corel. Both of them avoided his eyes, focused straight ahead, much to his dismay. Regret settled in again.

'Is she really mad about what happened?' he pulsed to Corel.

'Can you tell her I'm sorry?' Corel finally looked at him. He lifted his sunglasses just enough to give her his most pitiful expression. She giggled and leaned in to whisper to Rose. Rose let out a long, very long sigh before waving Joe over without looking at him. Joe smiled and quickly closed the distance, feeling noticeably lighter. As they jogged through the dense forest, his thoughts wandered again. He found himself wondering what she actually would have done if he had kissed her.

A chuckle slipped out before he could stop it. Rose shot him a glare, then stuck her tongue out at him. Joe blinked. She did not just read his mind. Did she? The thought lingered as they ran. Soon, they reached a massive hedge with a single arched opening. Joe looked left, then right. The hedge stretched as far as he could see in both directions. It was unmistakable. A maze. This time, the two robotic beings stepped forward together and approached the archway.

"We shall enter," one announced. They tried to pass through. An unseen force stopped them cold, as if they had walked into an invisible wall. The pair stepped back, separated, and turned toward Trevaldo.

"We enter in pairs, not bonds," one of them said. Trevaldo nodded.

"It seems so." He clapped his hands once.

"Garvo, escort one of our friends. I will…" He turned toward Corel.

"Escort this young lady through today, if she will accept." He bowed lightly, hands flourishing. Corel looked ready to refuse, but Rose stepped forward and placed a hand on her arm.

"My sister would be glad to accept, Trevaldo. She would be honoured to have you ensure her safety within." She emphasized the word safety as she met Corel's eyes.

"Ah. Of course, Princess." Trevaldo bowed again, deeper this time.

"I will put my life on the line to ensure your sworn sister emerges safely." Joe watched as Corel stepped forward and accepted Trevaldo's offered hand. Before she entered, she sent him a pulse.

'Be safe.' Then she went into the maze. Joe felt that familiar loss of control settle in his chest. It was humbling. He had to admit. Was this how Corel felt when he was the one charging into danger? Probably. Maestro stepped forward next. Joe tensed, expecting conflict.

"Princess. May I escort you?" Maestro asked. He did not bow or even nod, but did offer his hand.

"Thank you," Rose replied. She took his hand with the lightest possible touch, and together they disappeared into the maze. Joe did not know which situation he felt worse about. Corel walking beside Trevaldo and his polished arrogance, or Rose moving in silence beside Maestro. Before Joe could turn toward one of the remaining bonds, another pair formed and entered the maze. That left only three. Joe, one of the snail beings, and to his dismay, Symphony.

"You have two bonds. Therefore, we both should join you," the snail said as she approached Joe. Fuck, he thought. She was right. Otherwise, one would be left behind.

"I'm Joe. I hope you don't hold it against me, but I think I forgot your name," Joe said to the snail.

"Zerrepperty," she replied with a nod before holding out a gooey hand. To his credit, Joe showed no hesitation as he took it, then held out his other hand to Symphony. Symphony took his hand without a word, her grip like iron. One of Joe's fingers cracked. He winced and guided them through the archway and into the maze. The moment they crossed the threshold, hands were released, and space opened between them as they moved forward.

Symphony immediately tried to sprint away, likely searching for Maestro, or so Joe assumed. As soon as she rounded the corner, she reappeared behind them, her expression twisted with confusion.

"Hmmm. We cannot part ways," Zerrepperty mused. She mimicked Symphony, darting around the same corner, only to reappear beside them at the entrance.

"Fascinating. I could not even feel what moved me. It was as if fate plucked me up and returned me here," she muttered as she stepped closer to Joe. Symphony scowled and trudged forward instead, positioning herself a little behind them. Joe was fine with that. As long as she did not attack him, he could live with however she chose to handle this.

"Tell me, Joe. What are you?" Zerrepperty asked as they turned the corner together. This time, they were not pulled back.

"High Human," Joe answered, scanning the path ahead while watching for traps or signs of danger. He noticed Zerrepperty had stopped walking. She stared at him, unblinking.

"That is not possible. High Humans are extinct. There are none left in the Multiverse." She resumed walking. Behind him, Symphony's glare burned into his back, and the fine hairs on his neck prickled beneath it.

"Well, technically, I'm not in the Multiverse," Joe said with a shrug.

"Oh?" Zerrepperty skipped forward and clapped her hands, sending a splash of slime toward him. Joe sidestepped smoothly.

"Now I remember where I've seen you before. You are part of the Integration." Joe halted.

"You've seen me? How is that possible?" Before she could answer, the path opened into three branching corridors. Symphony stepped up beside them, and the three of them studied the routes in silence.

"Right!" Zerrepperty said.

"Left," Symphony said at the same time. Joe glanced between them, then reached into his storage and pulled out a coin.

"Heads we go right, tails we go left," he said, holding it up. Both nodded. Joe smiled and flipped the coin. It spun far harder than he intended, striking the ground and bouncing again and again. After nearly a minute, he shrugged apologetically, promising himself he would use less force next time. The coin finally settled, standing upright on its edge. They all stared at it. Joe shrugged once more.

"Centre it is," he said, and led them down the middle path.