Chapter Sixty-Five


    He thought of, and discarded many different ideas. Bori had left him to it, getting to work on other orders while he thought. The smith was not interested in helping him decide.


    “It’s yar armour, just know that if the System says what ya want is beyond legendary ranked, I won’t be able to do it.”


    What he needed was utility. He didn’t want any new offensive or defensive skills, he had that in plenty. His eyepatch allowed him to pierce illusions, and that was something none of his skills did for him.


    Awareness was the most useful thing you could have in a battle. If you don’t see it coming, you’re dead. His recent trouble with the now deceased Stroud supported that fact.


    He hadn’t seen him coming. The elf had gotten the drop on him and it had allowed him to capture Elayne. If he had known the enemy was there, he could have done something about it. That’s why he was always scanning the area, to be on the look-out for threats.


    But when those threats were invisible, it didn’t matter if he were looking. His eyepatch was great, but he was sure it had limits.


    With an idea in mind, he called the smith over, and Ambrose went over his thoughts with the man.


    Bori nodded, fingers combing his beard,


    “I could do that, yes…Okay then. Sit tight!”


    After that it was just a matter of waiting. Noelle kicked her feet under the table, and he looked over at her.


    “You okay?”


    She swiveled her head around to look at him directly.


    Her tail swished, and her ears twitched. Then she shrugged, her blue eyes lowering.


    “Miss Elayne?”


    Noelle nodded, ears lowering.


    Ambrose put a hand on her head, and she looked up at him, mouth open slightly.


    He smiled a little awkwardly at her,


    “I don’t always check in with you. You must feel like you’re not my priority, and that isn’t true. I am sorry, and I will try to do better, okay?”


    Noelle beamed, tail wriggling happily. She launched herself into his arms, and he let out a little breath.


    He tried to ingrain the feeling into his memory.


    ______________


    “Got yar order right here!” Bori exclaimed, setting out the chest piece of the half-plate.


    Ambrose blinked. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    It didn’t look like his current platemale. It was simpler. The armor was carved from the void, but occasionally, lines of sanguine red and iridescent green light pulse along it.


    “I took what ya already had goin’ on as inspiration. O’course I had to add my own spin, yeh? This right here would scare a Kraken back into the sea if I do say so.”


    Ambrose used [Retributions Gaze] on the armor.


    [Infernal Crusaders Half-Plate-Legendary]: Crafted by the C-Grade craftsman Bori Snugerson. This armor is enchanted to provide the wearer with multiple benefits. The first is a mild awareness of everything around you, up to one hundred feet in every direction. The armor integrates with your senses, making this ability easy to use. Secondly, the armor has been attuned to your Infernal Realm, allowing you to retrieve anything within it instantly.]


    He almost whistled. It was exactly what he had asked for. Bori tapped the armor with a finger, a proud grin curling his lips, beard jiggling.


    “I’m proud o’this. I won’t lie about that. Took a considerable amount o’ingrediants, too. May it serve you well!”


    He wasted no time putting it on before putting his platemale in his infernal realm. Instantly, his senses expanded. It was like he had just uploaded his mind to a high-definition camera with an eagle’s eye view. He could see and hear everything going on around him.


    The people bustling about outside, the old man sleeping in the house near the shop, the child crying to his mother, all of it filtered to him. He almost clutched his head, but a second later, it all toned down to a mild background noise. With some experimentation, he realized he could prioritize what he heard and saw.


    If people or things weren’t dangerous, they were grayed out and muted. If their level was near his, and there was hardly any of those, they were highlighted, and he heard them like they were on a television screen in front of him.


    Noelle cocked her head as she watched his lips tug upward into a smile.


    He looked at her,


    “Nothing like what happened with Elayne will happen again. With this armor? I will at least have a chance to stop it.”


    Noelle smiled, tail curling around her shoulder.


    Ambrose tried to thank Bori, but the smith just waved at him to leave.


    Shrugging, he did so.


    He had places to be and people to hunt, after all.


    ___________


    He had decisions to make. Firstly, he needed to find Eric. However, he had no idea where Eric had gone. However, it wasn’t a huge leap in logic to put together where he may have gone. Eric had been after a spear, and he was reasonably certain his foe had gotten it from the forerunner in this city.


    He had needed the spear to get access to spirit. So why wouldn’t he go after an item that gave him access to an Icon? It felt right. If not that, Eric would likely want to control Fenrir. Having such a powerful creature under his control would appeal to him.


    He hoped to have surprise on his side, but he doubted he did. Eric had a healthy paranoia, and he would expect Ambrose to follow after him. He would prepare for it.


    It was the only lead Ambrose had, however, so he had little choice but to follow it. Which is how he found himself on the path to yet another great forest beyond the western gate. Once again he found it somewhat amusing that he kept ending up in forests.


    Where there no other settings that one could find mythical monsters to fight? Noelle skipped along beside him, the dirt smooshing beneath her feet.


    You go into the dragon’s lair, hatchling. Beware its claws.


    Ambrose acknowledged the dragon’s words with a thought. She was right that he should be aware of traps or even an ambush. It was possible that Eric had surrounded himself with flunkies, or other such minions. It was better that he prepared for that.


    His awareness wasn’t quite precognition, but with his training, he would be able to use it almost like it was. Eric would be prepared for a powerful opponent in Ambrose and likely would expect him to have tricks he wasn’t aware of.


    He wouldn’t think of Ambrose having this kind of awareness, though. There was no way he could predict that kind of thing. It was a card he would surprise the bastard with.


    He passed a few others on his path. Signs warned travelers that the forest was dangerous and to go around. The path even wound around the forest itself. He ignored the signs, heading straight for the foreboding opening to the forest ahead of him.


    He could practically feel the danger from it, like it was a living, sinister thing, beckoning him forth.


    Ambrose entered its embrace, ready to face what came.