Chapter 336: A failing technique
While Leo brushed off the feeling that perhaps [Monarch’s Indifference] might be failing him fairly quickly, what he did not understand yet was that training the [Sevenfold Revelation Codex] and being constantly on the lookout to feel and experience emotions, was slowly making him resistant to the technique.
Ideally, [Monarch’s Indifference] was supposed to be a (passive) skill, that limited his range of emotions to about 10-20% of what he would usually feel, keeping him perpetually stoic and collected, however, using it while training the codex was leading to momentary lapses where the skill stopped working for a few seconds, before sputtering back to life again.
The early sign of this phenomenon was how his old cocky personality was surfacing again and how he was experiencing life as a joyful ride again, however, although the changes were not fully noticeable yet, the first cracks had finally begun to show.
Him missing Amanda today out of the blue was only the start, as the deeper his mastery of the codex became, the weaker the (passive) of [Monarch’s Indifference] was sure to grow, to the point where once he mastered the first layer of the technique, gaining a surface level understanding of the seven basic emotions, [Monarch’s Indifference] could possibly turn from being a (passive) to an (active) skill for him, which he could activate or deactivate at will.
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*Desert sand rustling*
Leo walked with his usual soundless steps, as he left no deep trail, nor made any loud sounds that could attract unwanted attention.
On his shoulders, the two unconscious women breathed steadily, their faces flushed and their bodies warm, as Leo carried them gently on his shoulders.
He had been walking for over four hours, yet the two unconscious women still showed no signs of waking.
By the time he estimated they had covered at least 10 to 12 kilometers, the weight on his shoulders had shifted from effortless to mildly annoying, not because it tired him, but because it reminded him that the two were still dead weights on his shoulders in a world that punished weakness.
"The two of you better wake up before the kindness in my heart dies out, because just like how I have decided to save you on a whim, I may also dump you on a whim....." Leo muttered, as he found a spot near the base of a weather-worn dune and set them down beside him with practiced care, brushing loose sand from their bodies, before setting up a basic camp.
He had paused to drink water and eat a brief meal, when he suddenly felt the ground beneath him rumble and shake.
*SCREEECH*
A low frequency screeching sound filled his ears, as he immediately climbed the nearby dune to look towards the source of the sound, where he saw the giant sandworm being on the hunt for the first time ever.
*Thrum*
The very ground beneath his feet trembled and shook as the sandworm surfaced.
It was at least twenty feet long and six feet tall, and seemed to be on the hunt for a mid-sized desert porcupine that was merrily walking on top of a sand dune, until it panicked and began running when it felt the tremors intensify under it.
*BOOM!*
The dune it was walking on exploded outward in a geyser of sand and grit as the sandworm erupted from below, its segmented body twisting midair like a massive, armored whip as it soared toward its prey.
The sandworm’s mouth opened to display a grotesque vertical split, revealing rows of sharp teeth rotating like drills, as with a sickening crunch, it swallowed the desert porcupine whole.
One snap. One thrash. Then gone.
The beast vanished just as quickly as it had appeared, burrowing back into the earth in a whirl of collapsing sand, leaving only a crater and a faint tremor in its wake.
Leo watched it all unfold with a calm, almost fascinated gleam in his eyes, his lips curling into a wide, boyish grin that he hadn’t worn in years.
"Beautiful," he whispered under his breath, as a tingle of excitement ran down his spine. "A proper predator."
His fingers flexed by instinct, brushing the hilt of his dagger as his mind immediately began mapping out potential battle scenarios.
If he were swallowed whole by the beast he’d activate [Dark Blade] and carve a way out from inside, letting the cursed flames eat through flesh, gut, and bone.
But ideally... he’d dodge the attack entirely.
Ideally, if the sandworm tried to eat him, he would use [StormFlash Traverse] to dance across the desert sand, keeping just ahead of its mouth, which was the worm’s only true weapon, before unleashing [Thousand Phantom Slashes] along its exposed length.
Slice. Vanish. Reappear. Repeat.
A high-speed, high-stakes ballet of death.
’A thrilling hunt,’ Leo mused, eyes still locked on the now-settled sands.
’Maybe I should pick a fight with one of those sooner rather than later.’ He thought, when suddenly–
*Rustle*
A faint stirring sound near him interrupted his thoughts, as he turned to look at its source.
The captain groaned softly, her body twitching as her eyes fluttered open—pale lashes sticking together from dried sweat and blood.
Leo watched as her gaze swam through confusion before landing on him, as she immediately grew alert, her hands searching for the weapons that were supposed to be in her storage pouch, however, were already removed by Leo for security reasons.
Leo said nothing.
He simply squatted calmly, one arm resting lazily across his knee, as he waited for the Captain to regain her composure and initiate conversation when she was ready.
For a while, the captain weighed her options, however, eventually as she looked at the unconscious Della beside her, then her surroundings, and then the Black Serpent Guild robes on Leo’s body, she let out a deep sigh before initiating conversation.
"I’m Captain Reema... and if I’m not wrong you’re Leo Skyshard?
You have grown a stubble, but you still look like the Circuit Winner from Rodova that I saw on TV—" Reema said, as Leo smiled wide for being acknowledged.
"Indeed, I am Leo Skyshard, the circuit’s winner from Rodova.
It’s a pleasure to meet you, Captain Reema.
Forgive me for taking away your weapons, I will return them to you once I assess that you won’t turn and stab me in the back," Leo said with a smile, as he stood upright and calmly approached Reema with his hand extended.
"Karl Maxtern was a wanted criminal that the Guild warned us about before we entered this world.
He was a Transcendent level Evil Cult operative undercover as a cook, and it wasn’t until your team entered this world that the guild found out about his truth, but by then it was too late to warn you guys about it.
We never expected to encounter him here in the desert... But I guess such is fate—" Reema said, as she sat upright and accepted Leo’s outstretched hand for a handshake.
"I’m guessing you’re the only survivor from your group? Or are Raiden and the others still alive?" Reema asked, as Leo only shrugged his shoulders in response.
"Last I know, Raiden and Bob were still alive, but I’m not sure anymore....." He replied, as Reema made an ’Oh’ face, before immediately nodding in understanding.
In the time-stilled world, luck was as fickle as the wind, and it seemed Raiden’s team had run into the wrong kind of storm.