Chapter 963: Testing Grounds

Vask meant business. Unlike the former hero who found it more interesting to chase after power. Vask showed that power is above all else. And knowing your enemy is always the best advantage.

The difference between them was night and day.

One acted like the hero.

And one felt like he truly was a hero.

The bishop’s mouth slowly closed. Vask turned back toward Titania, having already spent more time explaining what he wanted than he thought should have been necessary.

"After that, I need somewhere to train."

Titania stared at him. Behind her, one of the younger priests whispered something to another, though Vask did not catch the words. He did see Pedri’s expression. Clementine was hiding it well, but Vask had spent enough time around him to recognize satisfaction when it appeared.

This was working considerably faster than either of them had planned. Vask found himself becoming suspicious of that ease, particularly with Titania still watching him. Nothing useful should come this readily without someone eventually making it unpleasant.

"Fine."

Titania uncrossed her arms and started walking. Vask remained where he was for a moment, looking after her.

"Where?"

"Training grounds."

"I thought you hadn’t decided whether I could access the archives."

"I haven’t."

She looked over her shoulder, waiting for him to follow.

"You said you wanted to train."

Vask went after her. Pedri moved with him, but Titania raised a hand before the priest could take more than a few steps.

"Not you."

Pedri stopped, his smile remaining in place despite the interruption.

"Of course, Your Holiness."

Vask glanced toward him. Clementine’s eyes offered a warning that his expression carefully concealed, and Vask almost found it insulting. He understood the need for caution without the old man reminding him in front of half the clergy.

He turned and followed Titania through the hall as the gathered bishops parted around them. Once they were far enough away that the conversation behind them blurred into indistinct noise, she spoke again.

"You’re hiding something."

"So are most people in that room."

"True."

She did not sound bothered by the answer. Vask kept pace beside her, waiting to see how much she intended to press.

"You don’t move like a priest found you wandering through some village."

"I never said I was helpless."

"You didn’t."

They passed beneath an archway leading toward the exterior courtyards. The noise from the hall faded behind them, making the next question seem considerably more deliberate.

"You also weren’t overwhelmed when the Sacrosanctum acknowledged you."

"I had more pressing things to think about."

"Like?"

Vask brought up his status window. Only he could see the information hovering before him, though he needed little time to find the part that had occupied his thoughts.

[Level: 210]

[Unused Attribute Points: 1,046]

He dismissed the window and returned his attention to the path ahead.

"How badly the previous owner wasted what he had."

Titania stopped walking. Vask took another step before realizing it, then turned to find her staring at him.

"Previous owner?"

"The Heroic Mandate."

Her expression became difficult to read, and Vask understood immediately that he had chosen the wrong wording. He waited without attempting another explanation. Adding one before she asked would only make the mistake more noticeable.

Then Titania snorted and resumed walking.

"Fair enough. He called it system. The last one did treat it like property."

Vask remembered how Hiro used to call it system. And in fact it looked systematic in a sense.

"Yes, the system," he said. "It has immense possibilities, and the ability to change a person, not only physically but mentally too."

"It can make one smarter?"

"No, that is a gift one was born with."

"Yeah, otherwise I would have been surprised by how stupid the last one was. You seem to have one or two working stones in that noggin. We’ll need to test them."

They reached the training courtyard shortly afterward. It was larger than Vask expected, with rows of weapon racks lining one side and stone targets, reinforced mannequins, magical barriers, and several marked fighting circles occupying the rest. Paladins training inside slowed when Titania entered. Within seconds, most had stopped entirely.

Titania ignored them and walked toward one of the empty circles. Vask followed as far as its edge, watching her step inside.

"What are we doing?"

"Finding out how bad you are."

There were dozens of paladins watching now. Vask looked from them to Titania, reconsidering how useful his request for training had actually been.

"You’re testing me personally?"

"No. You’re fighting him."

She pointed toward a broad-shouldered paladin carrying a blunted greatsword. The man froze, his face producing an expression Vask recognized immediately. Whatever he had intended to do that afternoon, volunteering to fight a Hero had not been part of it.

Titania waved him over.

"Come here."

The paladin obeyed, giving Vask time to examine him as he approached. His stance was heavy, his shoulders strong, and there was old damage around his left knee. The calluses on his hands suggested considerably more use of the sword than the shield hanging behind him. His Mana circulation remained stable, while the Aura Vask could detect was present but restrained.

The system responded almost instinctively.

[Inspect.]

Information appeared, and Vask read it once before dismissing the window. Having those details confirmed without needing to test them himself was useful. Unfortunately, Titania noticed his eyes move.

The man shuddered and took an immediate fighting stance.

"What did you just do?"

"Looked at him."

"You looked at him strangely."

"I’ll work on that."

"It felt like I was being stripped naked... I didn’t like it," the paladin said. "Don’t do that again please."

The paladin entered the circle while Titania pointed toward a weapon rack. Several of the men watching had drawn closer, though none seemed willing to interrupt her.

"Choose something."

Vask walked over and passed the swords, spears, axes, and maces without taking any of them. He stopped near the end of the rack, which drew a frown from Titania.

"You’re fighting barehanded?"

"No."

He removed a simple training knife from the lower rack. The paladin looked offended, but Vask paid more attention to the blade in his hand. Its balance was poor, its edge dull, and it weighed less than he preferred. It would still serve well enough for the test.

Titania stepped outside the circle, leaving the two of them facing one another.

"First clean hit wins."

The paladin raised his greatsword and settled into his stance. Vask kept the knife low, allowing the man to see exactly how little reach it offered.

"Ready?"

Vask nodded, and the paladin attacked immediately. He was far faster than an ordinary soldier, though half a step carried Vask clear of the sword as it passed his shoulder. He could have ended the exchange there. His body already knew several ways to do it, from breaking the elbow to cutting the wrist or driving the knife through the throat.

Hoyo’s instincts supplied those possibilities faster than the Heroic System could quantify them. He chose none of them and waited for the next attack.

The second strike came horizontally. Vask ducked beneath it, then retreated when a third followed. Titania watched from outside the circle while the paladin grew more confident, encouraged by an opponent who seemed content to keep moving out of his way.

Vask allowed another six exchanges. That gave him enough time to understand the man’s habits and, more importantly, enough time for everyone watching to believe he had needed to study them. When the paladin finally stepped too deeply into an overhead swing, Vask moved inside his reach and brought the knife to his throat before the greatsword had finished descending.

Silence spread through the courtyard. The paladin stared at him, his weapon still raised, while Vask withdrew the knife and stepped away.

"Clean hit."

Titania did not look impressed. That concerned him considerably more than applause would have, especially when she walked into the circle without looking toward the defeated paladin.

"You were holding back."

Vask returned the knife to the rack. There was little point denying something she had already noticed.

"So was he."

"Not nearly as much."

The paladin suddenly became fascinated with the ground. Titania stopped in front of Vask, close enough that he could no longer watch her without making it obvious that he was studying her in return.

"How much combat experience do you have?"

"A lot."

"As a Hero?"

"None."

That answer landed exactly where Vask wanted it to. Titania’s eyes narrowed as she considered him again. She had expected an inexperienced replacement carrying divine power, and instead she had found someone who already knew how to fight before the gods touched him.

Vask could almost see the questions forming. He could work with questions, choosing which answers to give and how much of himself to reveal. Certainty would have been considerably harder to manage.

Titania looked toward the training paladin.

"Again."

Vask frowned and glanced at the man, who appeared no more enthusiastic about a second attempt than he had about the first.

"With him?"

"No."

Titania removed the simple outer robe from her shoulders and handed it to the nearest paladin. Then she stepped into the circle and turned toward Vask, smiling as he realized what she intended.

"With me."