Chương 13: Seizing Records

Kayzen explained what the shaper of hex was in brief, and not surprisingly, Vasser understood it at once. She had been his desk mate at Opheim academy and the two often talked about their hobbies.

"How many records do you have?" Kayzen asked while looking at her toned muscles. Or rather, at the flow of ether around her.

"I have all five. Just a step away from becoming Xin. By the way, what have you learned about records?" Vasser manifested her shards, but all Kayzen could see were just flowing shapes. None except the owner of the records could read them. This time, Kayzen didn't answer directly. He knew that Vasser was coming from Qmarz. Compared to him pondering alone, the collective research of many was bound to be more fruitful. Still, it wasn't like he didn't have his own ideas.

"Akashic records should be related to something we have done in the past. Not sure how they are counted or what qualifies as a record, but all of mine are related to my actions."

"Oh! Then what's this? Did you work out?" Vasser poked at his arm and nearly broke through the pain resistance. Indeed, it wasn't a lie when she said she was on the verge of becoming a Xin.

"Ahem. I extracted that from a centipede. Gives me pain resistance." Kayzen thought she would joke around a bit more, but her sapphire eyes staring at him became serious. The words she spoke next was something he hadn't expected.

"What you said sounds similar to other warlocks. We don't have many at the castle, but reports say there's been all sorts of mutations due to this.

"More importantly, we've learned that the way records work for those following the seven are different. Some Eikons and even Xins are just like you: their records have something to do with what they did in the past. However, there are exceptions." Vasser clenched her fists and a golden glow appeared over her body. It was different compared to when she had smashed the fawn to bits. Under Kayzen's focused gaze she explained her abilities.

"As you saw before, I have strength. More than most fiends. The second one is this, I can enhance my body's sturdiness and stamina."

"I expected nothing less from you!" Kayzen tapped her shoulder, but his teasing voice seemed to convey otherwise. Vasser raised her eyebrow, "Are you saying I'm like a fiend?"

"Nope, You're better."

"Since we have a fight ahead, I'll take that as a compliment." Kayzen grinned after seeing her scoff. Still, for the future him he decided to change the topic.

"What other abilities do you have?"

"I was going to say that before you interrupted! Guess what they are."

"Speed? A light related spell maybe?" Kayzen couldn't be sure since Argia's followers had a wide range of abilities. Especially those like Vasser. Just like him, she too came from a family that had deep heritage.

"Wrong."

"Something like penetration or weakness attack then? Healing is also possible, though I doubt you'd ever choose that."

"Wrong again."

"…" Kayzen didn't know what to say. He had pretty much listed all areas an Eikon of Argia could specialize in. He once again looked at her but found no other fluctuations of ether. That ruled out the possibilities of passive abilities unless they were hidden.

"Didn't I tell you before that there are exceptions? I have records that aren't mine. More like borrowed to be specific. Only thing that's stopping me from becoming a Xin is refining them." Kayzen flinched as if Foudre had tapped his head. After living in Greenford for two years he had subconsciously overlooked many things. One of which was what made the templars and crusaders nonsensically strong.

"You can use divine laws?"

"Heh. Three of them," Vasser stuck her fingers over his nose.

"Damn. That's just unfair."

"Hahaha…you have a long way to catch up." Kayzen couldn't even refute that statement. Although they were both on the same rank, he, despite being a shaper, wouldn't hold a candle against her in a one-on-one. It went against all logic since warlocks were more powerful than their counterparts in the early stages. Then again, that's what divine laws did: Defy logic. The sound of rustling leaves interrupted their conversation. They had arrived at the hilltop.

"You know, I'm glad you can use the divine laws." Kayzen let out a deep breath after looking at the monstrosity that lay beneath the hill.

"You know what it is?"

"More than that. I've worked on its species for over a month. Remember the assignment we had about defeating a captured orc?"

"Of course. You cheated with some shady chemical and melted its skin."

"It's not cheating if it doesn't go against the rules. Anyway, that thing is a hundred, maybe a thousand times worse than that shady chemical." Kayzen observed the hundred feet tall plant with a wary gaze. Its stems were bruised and hollow like a flute. Greenish white umbels sprouted on its purple branches like a botanical explosion. The creepiest part were its taproots which spread across the radius of a hundred meters; and that was just based on surface observation. It was hard to tell how deep and far they went.

"So, what's the plan?" Vasser asked while drinking from her leathered gourd. If it was her alone then she would have either ran away or just jumped right in. Things would be safer and more efficient with Kayzen around. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

"The common name of that thing is Angelica. The name isn't deceptive since it was also known as the king of medicines in olden eras. It's chemically potent and has a strange, rapid growth cycle.

"During our test I had used chemicals called Furanocoumarins. The angelica produces them to defend against insects. This was the case before the apocalypse began." Vasser didn't really remember any chemical compounds or how they worked, but the scene of dissolving orc was etched in her memories. As if predicting her thoughts, Kayzen continued,"The furanocoumarins are photosensitive. They absorb ultraviolet light and cause blisters." The implication of this didn't need to be discussed.

Normally using some means to hide sunlight or just attacking during night would be better, but neither options were viable. They didn't have the means to block an area over hundreds of meters, nor could they wait around and let it grow stronger. What if it became a ravager by nighttime?

"So both of our abilities are restricted." Vasser spoke while looking at her glowing arm. As an Eikon of Argia she was essentially a beacon of light. Kayzen had it worse since the bone he had prepared would be wasted on a plant.

"I expected it to some extent. Judging from the fact that it didn't attack any plants means that none of them could harm it. Thanks to you though, I'm sure of success. Give me a moment." Kayzen was inspired by what she said about records. Divine laws were in essence borrowed records from the seven. This meant that it was possible to use records from a living entity. He summoned his shard and looked at its description.

Rank: Low Record Extraction: With your knowledge in genetics you are able to observe and isolate fragments of records from an organism's DNA. Sure enough, the words dead organism were nowhere to be found. He had been using dead creatures to extract records since that was how all shapers progressed, by consuming the essence of others.

"I've decided then. I'm going to seize its records. All of them." Kayzen spoke in a determined tone.

"Became more greedy huh, I like it." Vasser looked at the man whose white hair were swaying in the wind. In her opinion, ambition was all he lacked in order to awaken his potential. Now, it looked like Argia had granted her wishes. The two then discussed about the plan. It was rather simple: All Vasser had to do was destroy the roots and the rest would be left to Kayzen. And since it was so simple, was there a need to waste anymore time?

The battle began with Vasser jumping down from the hill and smashing her gauntlets against the root network. An area of over ten feet cracked apart under her glowing fists. The roots stood no chance against such force. Nonetheless, the angelica wasn't to be overlooked either. The towering plant wriggled all over as if it was waking up from slumber. The umbels released white mists while its flute-like stems cried out in hollow tunes. Even from atop the hill Kayzen felt the prickling sensation on his skin.

The furanocoumarins were already released in the air.

"In the name of Argia, CLEANSE!" Kayzen exhaled in relief as he set his eyes on Vasser. Her entire body was radiating a pure golden light. With a single shout of hers the photoreactive compounds lost all their effects.

'Divine laws…indeed, they're as illogical as ever.' He didn't bother remembering divine laws of the seven since that act itself was pointless. Take the current scenario for example: If Vasser had used the law of purity then it would remove all that was impure. What was considered impure? That depended on the mentality of the caster. It could be a debuff type ability, terrain, or even living creatures. As long as the follower of Argia deemed them impure, they would be incinerated by the divine law.

'Of course, it's not that simple either. Few can use them.' Comprehending divine laws had nothing to do with Ether or even one's rank within the templars or crusaders. Each of the seven embodied a certain way of thinking, and those who followed the same principles from their heart would be closer to the specific progenitor, allowing them to borrow the divine laws. Or as he had come to figure out, borrow their records. For Keb'akaran it was protection, for Argia it was glory.

It was for this reason that he didn't choose to become a templar or a crusader. Regardless of his talents he knew that protecting others wasn't his life's calling.

"In the name of Argia, SHATTER!" Kayzen's spirits lifted as he looked at Vasser going wild. As much of a pleasing sight it was, it was time for him to make his move. Even with three divine laws it was impossible to kill the angelica since it could just hide underground via roots. Normal plants couldn't do that, but this was a creature on the verge of becoming a ravager. He spread his perception wide and threw a couple of bone shards towards the root.

They didn't inflict any damage as he had expected, yet his goal of getting the plant's attention was achieved. A whip-like root stretched out from the middle of the hill and swiped down at Kayzen who was standing with his eyes closed, drawing a polygonal rune in the air. 50 feet… 30 feet… 15 feet…. as soon as the root reached the boundary of 10 feet, it became ethereal.

'It worked.' The ethereal roots passed through Kayzen who had activated phantom shift just in case. This proved that he could affect other organisms directly so long as they appeared within his range. It wouldn't work on stronger creatures, but this time, the size of angelica had become its disadvantage. It was well within his capacity to overwrite its records if he focused on a small part of its body. Kayzen climbed down from the hill without pausing his hands.

One after another he used hex on the rampaging angelica. Vasser was destroying the root network, the plant was releasing furanocoumarins, and he was now standing at the bottom of the hill. Nothing seemed to have changed after his hexes, yet Kayzen was confident. He didn't know whether the plant in front of him felt pain or not, but the pain resistance should be able to numb its consciousness. As for the question on whether the plant had consciousness, he was sure. It did.

He clearly remembered the head splitting pain he felt after assimilating with the records of the phantom crocodile. That was just the heart of a fallen fiend class. Now, he was attempting to seize the entire records of a living creature who was comparable to a ravager class. One miscalculation and the outcome would be his death.

"… I can't go on for much longer." Vasser puffed out after blasting through another root. No part of the angelica remained intact except its umbels. Kayzen nodded and pointed at the bottom of the hundred feet tall plant, "Prepare for the final strike then." The fight might look one sided so far, yet the reality was different. Vasser was exhausted after using divine laws over and over. The same was true for Kayzen who had been using Ether from the start.

Without divine laws and phantom shift, neither of them would survive for even a minute against the furanocoumarins. Those who died on the field of bones were prime examples of that. Kayzen's boots crushed the broken roots as he made a beeline for the angelica. He bit on his thumb and infused ether into the dripping blood. Instead of falling down, his blood defied Gaia's call and followed the trails of his fingers. On the side, Vasser was standing with her knees slightly bent.

A golden flash, and the third divine law was activated. Neither Kayzen nor the angelica noticed when a basin-sized hole had torn through the trunk.

"Go ahead. I'll cover the retreat." Kayzen nodded at Vasser and set his eyes on the burning hole. The size was just enough to accommodate the prism shaped hex. He dragged his feet over to the trunk and gazed upon the towering plant that was still attacking him. Every swipe of its root and furanocoumarins in the air were depleting his energy. If not for sheer determination and pain resistance, he would have already fainted from overdrawing Ether.

"All for this moment." Kayzen thrust his palm full of blood and sweat into the burning hole. The hex, compelled by his will, settled down in the middle of the trunk. His target were the records of the angelica. He was the source. His blood, the medium. Vasser's ash grey hair flew as she watched over Kayzen. The turbulent flow of ether had blown away all of the furanocoumarins in the air. Under the crimson glow of hex, both Kayzen and the angelica stood unmoving. The battle had shifted to another realm.