《Vrilmaxxing: Song of Borenger》 I - Reunited ¡°Borenger!¡± A blue skinned man twitched his ears under a straw hat with tepid excitement as he noticed him while walking along a bridge. Lalant Vorinasche was the famous ¡®Blade Whisperer¡¯ known also as the ¡®Divine Piercer¡¯ but not someone who was known to have students. ¡°Hey, Borenger, can you hear me?!¡± He shouted at the only pupil he has taken and will ever take. Borenger Ala-Mak was an older boy, rather tall for his kind standing at five feet and ten inches and dressed in nothing but pants, his tanned red skin looking ripley cancerous, he turned around hearing someone yelling at him ¡°Oh! Mas-¡± but before the words could get out a sandal had whacked him in the face, though he remained in place he awkwardly bent backwards. ¡°Still too slow gahaha!¡± Lalant laughed at him, despite his noble visage he was a loud laugher. ¡°Anyway! What are you doing down there? Come up!¡± Borenger sighed and began climbing the slope, though another sandal came for his face he caught it and sighed. ¡°Borenger! Jump, don¡¯t be a lazy bum.¡± ¡°But-¡± Borenger gently snorted and slid down the slope. ¡°Also don¡¯t drop my sandals!¡± Lalant added as Borenger leaped over eighteen feet into the air, though he had to use his hands to help him over the bridge¡¯s fence. ¡°That¡¯s more like it.¡± Lalant swiped the sandals from him as Borenger stabilized himself on the side of the bridge. ¡°It¡¯s been a few days, master. I think I am ready to show you what I learned from the Kyreneans.¡± ¡°With live arms as well, and several - not even all swords. And you call yourself a swordsman?¡± Lalant smirks and pokes Borenger¡¯s chest. ¡°I am a vrilya, not just a swordsman.¡± Borenger pulls out a bulky blaster, carrying it like a pistol though it is more like a carbine. ¡°This has been particularly useful.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good and all but let¡¯s save the spar for later. Hungry?¡± ¡°Not particularly, the bandits and mercenaries carry sufficient money.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t been killing them, have you?¡± Lalant prepared to whack his apprentice in the back of his head but Borenger shook his head. ¡°Nope, like you told me I started assisting their blood flow and getting them picked up by medics. I¡¯ve even helped reattach a few arms.¡± After hearing this explanation Lalant whacked him in the back of his head. ¡°W-wait I was kidding about the arms!¡± ¡°I doubt that. Plus I didn¡¯t say you should rob them either.¡± Lalant smacked him again ¡°Though it¡¯s better than killing them, the law wouldn¡¯t forgive that.¡± Lalant continued smacking him and the pair continued bickering down the dirt path until they reached a small tavern with a convenient lodge. ¡°Room for one.¡± ¡°What about me?¡± Lalant turned around and looked at Borenger plainly. ¡°Pay for yourself. Besides, haven¡¯t you been sleeping somewhere?¡± ¡°Under the bridge.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do that, idiot. Also, split with me.¡± ¡°I spent all my money on food and equipment.¡± ¡°...¡± Lalant blankly stared at him and bought the room for two, going up to lie down immediately on the mattress nearest to the bathroom. ¡°Master, why did you lead me here?¡± Lalant sighed and tipped a hat over his face. ¡°Tonight we¡¯re going to meet with someone. This is important for your career as a vrilya so don¡¯t go running off too far.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Borenger plopped down and lied next to Lalant, stretching his sore body. ¡°I forgot how much dwarfs stink when they get sweaty.¡± Lalant commented, squirting hand sanitizer under his nose. ¡°Go clean up and after my nap I will explain, ¡®kay?¡± ¡°On it sir.¡± Borenger rolled out of the room as Lalant stretched and yawned, getting comfortable on the bed. As he was doing so, Borenger went to first wash his clothes and take a shower. A process of eight minutes and then went to take a nap on the bed next to Lalant. However, there was no way he was going to sleep from only three to nine or ten so he woke up after around thirty minutes of rest and looked out the window. This was in a relatively outskirt city within the Ibintil Empire on Mafakas called Feir, existing in a temperate plain with a population of around twenty thousand residents. Unlike Agadi, the capital city of Ibintil which is perhaps the largest city in the Outrim. It is said to have ziggurat like buildings for residential living covered like they are nature reserves and plenty of farmland within it¡¯s walls that almost entirely exist to feed the city itself. Borenger wondered if he would ever get to see Agadi, perhaps the only city of grandeur in the Outrim but it is not exactly like the Ibintil Empire really needs such warriors except in ventures against the smaller Mafakan states and special missions that are usually afforded to special cadres of the Imperial armories. He sighed as he watched out the window, then went off to wander outside. It didn¡¯t take long for him to become occupied. As aforementioned, such warriors as vril users like him. They had many rivals throughout the entire galaxy, though no one would guess Borenger was a vrilya and those he had fought before knew it definitely. Five men stood before him, armed and one wore kyrene armor which was the one that Borenger recognized standing in front of them. ¡°Listen, this doesn¡¯t have to get messy. Just give us our money back.¡± ¡°You sure-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t try to wiggle yourself out of this. I appreciate that you didn¡¯t let me lose my arm but I am not going to forgive thievery.¡± If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°I understand, but you see. I had to feed myself.¡± ¡°And I imagine none is left?!¡± The kyrenean sounded angry. ¡°You know, thieves usually go to jail or prison here on Mafakas but on Kyrene we take their fingers!¡± The man pulled out a sword and his off-hand dagger. The other men with the kyrenean were also men Borenger recognized though one he did not. A gigan with a club, two thuggish dwarves and a furry merwoman stood slightly behind the kyrenean. ¡°I¡¯m willing to negotiate, whatever your terms are.¡± ¡°Let me get all ten fingers, but the others will take what they¡¯re owed too.¡± Borenger sighed and backed up, he had only brought an axe with him on his venture outside. ¡°I can¡¯t do anything to the kyrenean with this.¡± He looked around for an escape route and unfortunately it would take quite a bit of effort but he could use their current position to his advantage. So, he lunged forward with his axe wildly, scooping dirt into one hand to toss in the face of the Kyrenean. ¡°Pathetic, you should know that wouldn¡¯t work with my helm-¡± He realized his mistake in his assumption as Borenger gripped the top of the helmet and launched himself into a handstand and tossed himself onto the gigan¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Isos, you didn¡¯t say he was a vrilya!¡± The merwoman said she immediately transformed into something resembling a chimpanzee, a wolf and a cheetah and had obviously seen where Borenger intended to escape to. Which was the roof of the nearby inn, but he didn¡¯t have time to correct his course and leaped from the gigan¡¯s shoulders before he could be grabbed and use the axe like a hook to help himself up. He began to run on the rooftop as the merwoman chased after him. Naturally, even without utilizing vril techniques she was very fast which forced Borenger to exert a strenuous amount of energy into his legs. ¡°Agh-¡± He tried to speak as he ran. ¡°Can¡¯t we make our own deal? I didn¡¯t rob you!¡± The beast only kept chasing after him, and had considerably made distance and nipped his ankle. ¡°Ow!¡± He performed a backflip over the beast who slid to a stop and faced him. Now that Borenger saw her clearly, he noticed a specially tightened belt with gear on it and the beast turned back into a woman albeit taller and more ferocious looking. ¡°Damn shifter, I ought to have brought my blaster to put a dog like you down!¡± Borenger tightened his stance and rested the axe on his shoulder. ¡°Aren¡¯t vrilya swordsmen?¡± ¡°I hear that one quite often. Vrilya aren¡¯t usually dwarves either.¡± ¡°You¡¯re quite tall for a dwarf, but far too ugly to even be a quarter fay.¡± ¡°Whatever, I bet that weakling kyrenean is the only type of guy who¡¯d screw a pooch like you!¡± Borenger stepped him and took the initiative, which the merwoman was unprepared for, though she could have blocked it with a dagger she aimed too low and the blade of the axe lopped off her hand. ¡°Urgh!¡± She briefly grunted and swiped at Borenger with her free hand and the claws tore through his chest while he dodged. ¡°Ouch!-¡± Borenger chided himself a bit internally as he should have realized she could do something like that, even though this was his first time fighting a shifter, a part mer and part fay warrior that could use vril but only focused on pure animalistic abilities. Doing anything else would be a waste of their mer blood. ¡°If you run away now with your hand, you can reattach it. Otherwise I will kill you.¡± Borenger threatened her with his axe but she just snorted and her muscles rippled, making her much taller than she already was. There was no chance she was a gigan, but she was as tall as one right now. ¡°What the¡­¡± Borenger had no time to analyze as the beast approached, sprinting towards him and attempted to shatter his skull with a swipe of the paw. So he dug in, tightly swinging for the air before him and switching the blad around at the end of the arc into the beasts¡¯ neck. It worked, but he was forced to abandon the axe as it embedded itself into the fur of the neck. Borenger was knocked off the roof and though he rolled he was in pain from the fall, but he wasted no time in picking himself back up. Running into an alley between two buildings, unfortunately the other people after him were closer and the beast leaped down, breathing heavily and taking heavy steps while transforming into the smaller more beastlike form she was in earlier, the axe dropping from her neck as she shrunk. ¡°That didn¡¯t do anything?¡± Despite the thought he kept running through the alley but the beast caught him by his ass. ¡°Ouch! Owowow!¡± He briefly charged a large load of energy into his hand and smacked the beast, though this was fatiguing the beast let go and he leaped to grab onto whatever he could. In this case, he grabbed an electrical wire and though he was being shocked he put his hand on a window and began climbing. The merwoman transformed back into a normal woman and groaned as the pain for her lost hand settled in more. The two dwarf thugs found her in the alley. ¡°Did you get him?¡± ¡°No, he¡¯s climbing right now. We¡¯d probably be too late if we tried to follow.¡± She balled up her fist. ¡°I have to go get my hand reattached. We can probably find him in town again, I know how he smells.¡± She limped back to the building where she lost her hand and the group went on their way. Borenger sighed in relief as he spied the group going to the hospital. ¡°Note, to defeat a shifter I probably need something for stabbing.¡± He touched his chest and realized something was gone. ¡°She ripped my nipple off?¡± He searched around in his shirt but found nothing, he figures it is probably on the roof where they fought but it was too risky to grab it when he needed more immediate treatment. He noticed discoloration in his blood. ¡°Poison too? This¡¯d be enough to kill a man¡­ lucky me.¡± He didn¡¯t bother purging the poison as it wouldn¡¯t be an issue for him. In a few hours Lalant woke up and saw Borenger getting dressed. ¡°You got into a fight?¡± ¡°I did. It was a shifter, don¡¯t worry I cleaned myself off and ditched the clothes I was wearing so they wouldn¡¯t follow me here.¡± ¡°They, huh? Well you always were smart.¡± ¡°Y-yeah.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll be able to get your revenge, even if your vril control will never be as acute as other Vrilya, you¡¯ve got the talent to defeat most well trained warriors. The shifter must have been quite powerful to injure you.¡± ¡°She was, I couldn¡¯t even get my axe through her fur when she became really large and beastly.¡± ¡°You encountered a war form shifter? That¡¯s my pupil for you.¡± ¡°I suppose that is a good thing?¡± ¡°Definitely. Shifters can¡¯t go into that form for too long or too often without going insane.¡± ¡°I did chop her hand off.¡± ¡°A natural talent I see.¡± Lalant sounded a bit irritated but he also couldn¡¯t hide how impressed he was. ¡°Anyway, we¡¯re going to meet with someone important, so be polite.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Borenger stated firmly. Lalant sat up and stretched, groaning a bit ¡°I¡¯m a creaking sack of bones.¡± Though he said this, his skin tightly clung to his muscles, unlike other races the fay looked extremely lean all the time due to their innate ability to manipulate their bodies all the time, of course training to get the physique of a vrilya always took time. The pair got ready to go to their meeting, and once there Borenger could only note that it was well guarded. Several high grade warriors were around the area, watching them as they entered an apartment room where two veiled ladies sat comfortably in a surprisingly fancy room. II - Tea Party One of the ladies, a clear gigan given her massive stature even in a chair. Sitting even a head length maybe two more than Lalant as he stood and at that, therefore three compared to Borenger. The other one was about a dwarf woman¡¯s typical size; five feet and four inches tall. She spoke first ¡°Sir Lalant, pleased to make your acquaintance. And who is this one?¡± As she said this, her tone was awfully hostile. ¡°There is only one chair, Borenger. Stand beside me when I sit down.¡± Lalant used a transmission technique to essentially speak to Borenger discreetly, who blinked in reply. ¡°Ladies, this is my apprentice; Borenger Ala-Mak.¡± The giant lady swung a fan open and covered the bottom portion of her face. ¡°I did not know you were in the practice of training Kyreneans?¡± ¡°Do not make the mistake of an assumption; Borenger is very much a vrilya-¡± ¡°But he lacks fay blood, does he not?¡± ¡°I see you¡¯ve become more experienced in that gigan sight of yours. You are right, he is a pure-blooded dwarf. But he has a unique physique - a total accident of birth!¡± The gigan hummed and Lalant continued. ¡°I originally took him as an apprentice to experiment on vril control, but I found that he can perfectly utilize physical vrilya techniques.¡± ¡°Oh, how interesting!¡± The lady extended her arm, indicating for her to sit. Borenger wanted to move but Lalant did not move yet. ¡°You may sit.¡± After she said this, Lalant moved and sat down more carefully than he typically would, not making much of a sound when sitting at all. ¡°This must be a manners thing, so this lady is some sort of noble?¡± Borenger studied the trio at the table and stepped forward, where he noticed the presence of another vrilya leaning against the wall in a portion of the room he was only now able to see, though he restrained his reaction. ¡°As you know Lalant, work that requires an outsider to the Imperial armory means discretion.¡± While the noble lady said that, her eyes were trained on Borenger. ¡°I do, no worries. I¡¯m the God of discretion, people don¡¯t even know what that ¡®Holy Star Slasher¡¯ looks like.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because no one calls you that.¡± Borenger almost rolled his eyes when Lalant called himself the Holy Star Slasher. ¡°I¡¯m aware I can trust your Sir Lalant, it is simply something I must state.¡± She uncovered the bottom portion of her face. Though it was still veiled Borenger could vaguely see her lips and as she noticed, they curled. ¡°I need you to handle an investigation against a noble.¡± Her eyes darted back to Lalant as she finished. ¡°That isn¡¯t exactly what I expected, though knowing myself I imagine this sort of investigation entails far too much danger?¡± ¡°Right, too many kitties have been lost. Though I can still provide one, that will be all if you cannot protect it.¡± ¡°Got it. I accept.¡± Borenger swung his head to look at Lalant who showed no apparent worry as far as he could tell. His jaw dropped but he feigned a cough and recomposed himself. ¡°He obviously knows her already.¡± He thought, wondering who she could possibly be. Perhaps she was his long lost half-gigan daughter. Granddaughter? ¡°To the details then.¡± As if it were a command from the noble lady the dwarf sized woman produced a multitude of documents. From what Borenger sees, they are after multiple people. ¡°These are all important figures within this region and the county of Belkay - this territory used to be of Belkay and many of those who had their titles stripped or retained are on this list.¡± The dwarf spoke as she arranged the figures, though two in particular stand out. ¡°These two, naturally, are who we need you to investigate. Master Selja of the Nazari Trade Guild and General Fierenand. All that we know of them is that they are direct contacts and that the General employs efficient counter espionage agents.¡± ¡°I see, any goal?¡± ¡°They have some kind of connection to our traditional ally on Obregault; the Burkan Republics.¡± As the Gigan herself said this, Lalant straightened his back. ¡°Pretty big deal. So we need to find ourselves in Nazari?¡± As Lalant said this the lady simply nodded. ¡°What are we getting here, about three hundred ureygols?¡± ¡°That sounds reasonable.¡± ¡°T-h-three hun? T-t-t-hth-th-hun?! THREE HUND-!?¡± Before Borenger could finish stuttering, Lalant smacked him in the face with the sheath of his sword. ¡°Shut it!¡± ¡°Owowow s-s-sorry master.¡± Borenger gently checked his nose to make sure it wasn¡¯t bleeding. The noble lady giggled, causing Borenger to blush which burst the dam making his nose bleed. Lalant simply sighed as he stood up and bowed. ¡°Forgive my student, my lady.¡± ¡°Consider it as if nothing happened. You have your mission Sir Lalant. Depart as you please.¡± She covered herself with her fan so that she could remove her veil and drink tea. With that Lalant practically shot out of his seat and escorted Borenger out of the room. As they exited, the two of them noticed that the entire guard detail could have invaded the room in just a few minutes. They exit the apartment complex and return to the now dark streets. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize this was a lights-off city.¡± He sighed and used his internal vril to artificially enlarge his pupils. ¡°How are you holding up?¡± Borenger can accomplish the same technique but not to the degree a fay blooded vrilya could, yet. ¡°Fine.¡± The two walked through the darkness, where few walked about except with lights. Naturally, they generally avoided the two vrilya given how suspicious it was to travel in this way. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. As they silently entered the inn, Borenger sat down on his bed. ¡°Master, was that Princess Roriana?¡± Lalant¡¯s ear¡¯s twitched and though Borenger could no longer see in the dark he figured they blushed. ¡°You¡¯re too observant for your own good, you sure you ain¡¯t some kind of fay blooded thing?¡± ¡°You flatter me - so it is true?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, but don¡¯t dare mention it unless she reveals herself. Though I figure she already knows.¡± ¡°Why is that? She was looking at me so maybe she knows but how? I only guessed because of her beauty.¡± ¡°I mentioned this some time ago but all beings contain some amount of vril, dwarves like most animals compared to the other races are sort of like rocks - you in particular, are built like a rock.¡± ¡°It¡¯s still insulting when you say it like that¡­¡± ¡°Gigans cultivate vril in a peculiar way, this is why the fay elders regarded them as honored shamans and seers. Their peculiarity is to see the threads of fate and have obtained a myriad of mystical abilities.¡± ¡°Right, gigan sight. But she is a princess-¡± ¡°All noble ladies go under some amount of such training, though it is not as if her highness is going to become a priestess - she is prodigal when it comes to such things. Though when you saw her looking, maybe it was not that you recognized her beauty but because she let you recognize her presence.¡± ¡°Her presence?¡± ¡°Ah, it is too faint of a thing for a Vrilya let alone a dwarf to detect. But as I understand it, many gigans can implant ideas in others¡¯ minds without them even recognizing it as a foreign thought.¡± ¡°That¡¯s insane¡­ you¡¯d think it would be heard of.¡± ¡°Well it is uncommon but like I said, her highness is incredibly skilled. It is why she remains unmarried.¡± ¡°Because her value rivals her brothers.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Borenger lied down, satisfied that his curiosity was sated. ¡°I¡¯d like that ability.¡± ¡°It is probably possible, I recall something like that existing in my great-great grandfather¡¯s time.¡± Lalant sighed, recollecting the memories of his far off youth. ¡°Y¡¯know if this path takes us to Obregault, I will be sure to introduce you to my niece.¡± ¡°Your niece? Is she pretty?¡± ¡°You know me too well boy, she is older than you but I am sure you will match together well. I hear from my sister that she hates men.¡± Lalant chuckles. ¡°Why would I be a good match then?¡± ¡°You can handle a beating.¡± Borenger winced at his words, imagining what such a fay lady looks like. ¡°Is she worse than you?¡± ¡°Certainly.¡± Lalant smirked as he tortured Borenger¡¯s mind with tales of his niece as they both drifted to sleep. The next day the two stirred in the early morning and they gathered their things. The Princess afforded them as much time as they felt like taking, naturally this meant that Borenger would undergo new stages of training. Though Lalant was a relatively hands off master he wasn¡¯t always this way, after all Borenger recalled many of the beatings he received as a child and the strict drilling that came with it. The two met in a secluded field under a tree. Lalant looked over the vast plain, it was pretty much an oak savannah but instead of oak trees the trees were like a smelly girl¡¯s hair mixed with a palm tree given the region¡¯s arid climate. ¡°This spot will do.¡± Lalant began to stretch and Borenger followed suit after laying down his stuff. The warm up was simple, consistent. A small amount of running, making sure the whole body moved properly through crawling and shrimping on grass. After a few minutes with barely any sweat on their bodies they began to drill many techniques. Lalant was known for his swordsmanship but when unarmed they primarily trained wrestling, albeit it looked wild and free form given vril manipulation and the enhanced agility vrilya have. Three hours of training unarmed, then a break for eating. After that they would train with weapons and then finish with another meal before wandering around for the day and returning to sleep. As this schedule moved on, Lalant was progressively less able to easily exploit flaws in Borenger¡¯s stances. His martial arts were much improved. ¡°I am glad to see I was right to let you get around on your own devices.¡± Lalant lowered his sword as Borenger clasped his knees while breathing heavily and dropping his broken weaponry. ¡°Damn, they still break too easily.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get too frustrated, I always break them on purpose.¡± Lalant chuckled and he tossed Borenger a dagger. ¡°Consider this a reward.¡± Borenger examined it and was surprised by its rugged shape, but he understood what it meant. ¡°kyrene metal?¡± ¡°Exactly, I have held onto it for around eighty years when I received it from my father. I believe a distant relative of mine was a Kyrenean.¡± ¡°Thank you Master, I was left in a tight spot the last time.¡± ¡°Well, don¡¯t thank me yet. I expect you to be fighting tougher enemies. Like that shifter you got into a scuffle with the other day.¡± ¡°You think I will see her again?¡± ¡°Soon, since she can see you as we speak.¡± Borenger wanted to look around but knew that if Lalant was speaking so casually, it meant he shouldn¡¯t reveal it. ¡°I hope to be able to share your senses one day.¡± Borenger bowed. ¡°Now I think you might!¡± Lalant bowed as well and chuckled. ¡°Make sure to meet me here tomorrow night. We¡¯ll head to Belkay after you deal with that merwoman.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure I can do it without killing.¡± ¡°Then kill. You¡¯ll have to do it eventually during this job.¡± ¡°Really? But she¡­¡± ¡°Preserve your own life, you might as well kill the Kyrenean and anyone else who you think will trouble you as well.¡± Borenger stood silently and Lalant casually left. As he was left to himself to think about his situation, he decided he¡¯d convince the other three warriors to give up on their feud. First it would be the gigan. So he went back to where he recalled having fought him, fortunately bandits rarely give up their ways when all you do is beat them and take their stuff. As he was disguised in a cloak, the gigan and the two dwarves ambushed him with the gigan blocking his front path and the dwarves from behind. Once the cloak fell they lost their confidence. ¡°Dammit, it''s that vrilya.¡± Regardless, they took their stances. ¡°I¡¯m not here to take your things.¡± ¡°Ah, so you¡¯re here to give us our money back?¡± ¡°Your money? I know full well we might as well be in the same career, though I only take from idiots who try to fight me.¡± The gigan snorted. ¡°You¡¯re so arrogant. You think you can take us on only with a dagger?¡± ¡°I see your eyes are still working.¡± Borenger drew the kyrenean dagger and took a forward facing stance. ¡°I only need you to not interfere with me later, do you need to be mutilated again?¡± Borenger smirked and the Gigan raised his arms. He couldn¡¯t see it but he could hear the two dwarves approaching carefully. He noted that the two dwarves were using spears the last time they met. So he couldn¡¯t carelessly allow them to approach and a gigan is not as slow as one might imagine, given the immense strength provided by their ancestry. ¡°I might take that big dude¡¯s club or at least half of it.¡± Of course, Borenger intended to restock his small armory. So he quickly dropped his butt down and leaped backward. III - Cleaning Up (1) Borenger landed on the ground and rolled toward the dwarf bandits. He pumbled with the two over their spear shafts, but he could only successfully lock one. With great effort and an enhanced arm he wrung the bandit down lower and while avoiding stabs from his partner he was able to shove his dagger into his shoulder causing him the exhale sharply. Which would be followed by screaming as he let go of the spear, practically giving it away. In the same moment the gigan swung at him, catching him and dislocating his shoulder though he managed to throw the club off just enough to prevent doing worse damage. ¡°Gugh!¡± As soon as he could he skipped over to the trees and swiftly began relocating his arm, but the gigan like many of their kind quickly closed the gap and for now Borenger had to use the spear with one hand. For this round the strategy was simple, he¡¯d make distance and wear the gigan out. However the gigan seemed to have improved compared to last time they fought. ¡°Natural talent.¡± As the gigan refused to commit, Borenger took the opportunity to fix his arm and bait the gigan. As expected, the gigan rushed forward and used his long arms and club to close even more distance. But Borenger simply shifted his position and dug the spearhead into the gigan¡¯s wrist. He shot back in surprise and the club switched hands, the dwarf bandit carefully took the front position. Now with no weapon, he had to focus on the dwarf but unfortunately as he moved forward the gigan took point again. ¡°Don¡¯t, the vrilya has no weapon.¡± the Giant bastard said. ¡°How annoying, a bandit who thinks he has a brain.¡± ¡°Arrogant bastard, I don¡¯t care if I can never come to Afair again - I¡¯ll kill you.¡± ¡°Nos! What about Frede?¡± ¡°Agh- dammit.¡± the big bandit began to calm down. ¡°You seem like brothers. Why don¡¯t we end this here?¡± ¡°Fuck you.¡± Nos took an aggressive stance with the head of the club lying on the ground past his right hip. ¡°Fine.¡± Borenger leaped up to a nearby try and tore a branch out of it. This startled the dwarf bandit a bit, but the two bandits kept the pressure on the vrilya as he landed. As predicted, the gigan aggressively swung his club around and even glancing blows made him bleed. The dwarf used his spear to pressure Borenger but there were still major gaps. For example; Borenger could feign a leap and the dwarf would stab low and he could quickly step on it as the gigan took the time to reorient the club over his shoulders with only one hand - even if he grabbed with both he would be too slow to prevent Borenger from using the dwarf as a human shield. This exactly happened, not too soon after he thought of doing it. Without saying anything, the vrilya kept the shaft in his armpit and he used his free hands to wrist lock and subsequently dislocate the elbows of the bandit with some more space between himself and the gigan as he was able to prevent being smashed given the hostage situation. The dwarf of course stood to the side wailing in pain. Borenger confidently and carefully aimed his spear for the gigan¡¯s face, which distorted the bandit¡¯s vision a bit but all he could do was throw the club forward like a spear or swing from on high. Figuring that it was an unexpected move, he chose to stab with the club. It was not unexpected. The vrilya hopped to the side, and though he almost puked from the impact glancing his midriff he threw the spear forward with an intense and electrical force using the fingers, straight into the gigan¡¯s shoulder. From there, Borenger leaped and using his knees to hold himself on the gigan¡¯s face threw both of his elbows down onto the top of the head. ¡°A-again!?¡± The gigan began to shout but it faded as the crack of his skull and some amount of blood spewed out and into Borenger¡¯s face. He sighed, such gore was usual but despite his comparably healthy condition he had yet to learn how exactly to stop the pain that comes with striking a thick skinned and boned gigan. Despite the pain he chuckled to himself as he was checking out the weapons. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t lie too often. I¡¯m taking their weapons.¡± He grimaced as he tried to pick up the club. He could do it but it would be unsuitable, so he chopped through it with his hand. Not a clean chop at all since he is not powerful enough, but it was at a better size. An hour later he was sitting in an open air healing vat. These were for more minor injuries like his. Though he was broke, he luckily could make up most of it working for the hospital. In some ways it was easier to be broke in the Outrim, even though Mafakas is very developed there were often places like this where they would accept help from non-medical personnel. Though, as he swept the floors and cleaned things it was a bit annoying, he could pretend like he was training all he wanted but it was embarrassing when other people could see. After spending most of the day cleaning the hospital he went off on his own and snuck over the buildings to the inn. Strangely, Lalant wasn¡¯t in their room. ¡°Maybe he had business of his own.¡± Borenger looked through his bag and dug everything out so he could reorganize it. Mostly clothes, some tools and a notebook. First he used a sharpening tool on the spear and a bit on the kyrene dagger but it did noting due to how solid the material was. ¡°I wonder how they make these. Maybe Master will take me to Kyrene.¡± He thought to himself as he admired the dagger compared to the spearhead. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Compared to regular metal it is said that kyrene metal can last millennia without needing maintenance. He caressed the blade, it was unusually curved and the comfortable position to use it was backhand which is not common in weapons. Luckily, this was useful against the unarmed. After reorganizing things he began to sift through his journal. Since he now had a kyrene blade to study he spent a few hours making notes on it when Lalant walked in. ¡°Good evening kid, I see you''re the owner of a few new weapons.¡± Lalant yawned and stretched as he sat down. ¡°Did you kill yet?¡± ¡°Oh hello Master. I only dealt with some of them. I think I can lure the shifter and the kyrenean out to the bridge. I¡¯ll probably cause a lot of trouble so if I don¡¯t meet you at the tree I will meet you further out of town when I am sure no one will try to arrest me.¡± ¡°Good. I don¡¯t feel like bailing you out this time.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°You could afford to be less polite, y¡¯know.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re my Master.¡± ¡°So?¡± Lalant grumbled a bit but just went to sleep and not long after Borenger also did. In the morning Borenger was armed with his three weapons, which made people in the street ignore him. Though for now he was being casual so that he could catch attention. Since he was sure the two warriors meant to do more than simply cripple him he figured he wouldn¡¯t be attacked as brazenly since police could interrupt more easily. The incident from the other day was a fluke and ended relatively quickly without much real fighting and now that they know he has no money there was no point in trying to get it back. Given he was a vrilya, they could use their reputation in killing him to get more work. Even if said vrilya was relatively unknown - at the same time he could achieve the same fame from killing a shifter and a kyrenean. ¡°I can also benefit from killing a kyrenean and a shifter even if it could land me in prison.¡± The Outrim was notorious for such half-assed legal enforcement. They were mainly concerned with public order but did not go out of their way to deal with mercenaries as long as it didn''t cause too much trouble to the municipality itself. Of course, as the clash had been dragged out pretty long it was getting to the point where a fourth fight would only turn them into fugitives even if no one died. It would be best that they were also not allowed to follow him and his master. Being noticed was easy, going to bars. Buy weird drinks, which should also make his two opponents more confident. Thankfully, his unique body made him tolerant to poison, vril and alcohol so even dumping out five entire bottles of high proof alcohol would only make him buzzed. This was a boring process for an introvert but it worked as the afternoon came and he approached the bridge to see a kyrenean on one side and a merwoman on the other. This time, she was well armed and armored as well, spiking the difficulty even further. Besides them there were also onlookers, some were probably associated with law enforcement meaning that if he were to kill both he had to do so around the same time - unlikely. ¡°I will ask a question!¡± Borenger smiled as he heard these words from the kyrenean. ¡°Are you willing to surrender and surrender yourself to the estate of Borissa?¡± He held out a block of wood with a bronze colored tassel, a symbol of a baronate within the Ibintil Empire. Though such seals are known to be sold quite often it did not lack authority given these were given primarily to real fighters who don¡¯t often cause much legal trouble. ¡°I suppose that means the law will not get involved unless I kill one of them.¡± This only strained Borenger¡¯s smile as he grew in excitement. ¡°I hope you¡¯ll make for an excellent trophy.¡± He set down the club and put the dagger in his mouth, aiming to primarily use the spear. Before he moved he quickly examined the kyrenean. Borenger had around four inches on the kyrenean, as fellow dwarfs. He spun around with the spear intending to face the dog lady first and as he saw her he noted that she was a lot closer in height to him and her armor was light but it was to be expected of a being that can burst into a large terrifying beast. ¡°I¡¯ll take that as a no?¡± The merwoman said first and began moving toward Borenger slowly. But he did not care to engage her properly, the point of the bridge was to use an age old tactic known as ¡®toss the bastard over¡¯ and he charged her. This brash action startled her and what more was that he only used the spear to sneak past her own polearm and sweep her into his arms. The strangeness of the action made her blush but before she could process this she was tossed over the bridge. ¡°What!?¡± She screamed as she fell into the water below. ¡°Anarah! You bastard! Are you a one trick pony?¡± Isos charged Borenger and they clashed though he was strong with the long two-handed kyrenean sword he was being pushed back whenever Borenger would use his spear to lock up his massive movements. Isos began to wildly swing with one arm which made the trick more difficult to perform, but this allowed him to first pull out a smaller blade with a rounded point and with that unsheathing he stuck the large blade into the wooden bridge. Allowing him to unsheathe an off-hand dagger. As they continued to fight, Borenger let himself get pushed back. Naturally, this was because kyreneans were built for this. Warfare in this era consisted of long spears, slow blaster fire and inbetween it all these heavily armored soldiers would be used to break up pike formations. This however was planned. As they backed up, Borenger launched the spear with his fingers as he leaped backward. It simply bounced off Isos¡¯ plate armor but he did not keep his eye off Borenger who was now rearming himself with the large club. ¡°Now he¡¯ll start to hurt.¡± Borenger inched forward, his stance held the club up high. ¡°This is inane¡­ are you really trying to use jigen?¡± Isos mumbled under his breath, recognizing the stance. It was a common stance among Vrilya - even Lalant often used it in his youth and passed it onto Borenger but it did not suit something so heavy. He leaped forward and swung down. As the club came down Isos avoided it and at the same time the merwoman; Anarah leaped onto the bridge behind the both of them in her war form. Borenger grimaced as he realized he took too long before even getting a solid strike on Isos. Now he could not afford to be cautious. He was not experienced enough to use it properly, though he understood is required momentum like with the gigan but he could probably not reliably fight like he normally could so he began to breathe heavily so that he could force his body to make up for flaws with his movement with pure strength. IV - Cleaning Up (2) Borenger intuitively lifted his leg as he lifted the club swiftly and stepped down to stab at the kyrenean. The sudden speed of movement caught Isos off guard and it struck his breastplate, making him stumble back to the rail. Seeing this, the shifter brazenly charged at Borenger. Her ability to use her claws lost much of the same refinement it did in her other forms but it nonetheless began chipping away at the club. Borenger could not lament the damage of such a cool weapon, with the pressure she was building he could do nothing but block and use his agility to make her lose momentum. Though he earned a few nicks and grazes and even as splinters embedded themselves into his skin everywhere he managed to create enough space to start trading blows. When there was enough of an opening between her wild clawed haymakers he went back something approximating the jigen stance and he loudly bonked her on the head. As she stumbled she clipped his stomach causing him to grunt in pain. He rested a hand on it, making him realize it was much more than a mere clip. Then suddenly Isos made his approach again, though Borenger could hit him the armor negated most of the potential damage. Now he had to deal with both of them relentlessly covering for each other. If there was any solace, it was that the bridge would not be able to handle their combat for long. He could also see that some of the onlookers noticed this and the only ones who came closer were waiting to spring into action to arrest Borenger. ¡°Damn seal, at least without that-¡± He snapped out of the thought as Anarah¡¯s claw came down and almost swiped his head off. He blocked in time but he was stabbed in the stomach and the claw shredded the club down enough to be totally useless, so he abandoned it and began using his knife and unarmed techniques. ¡°Fuck!¡± As he flew out a kick he had to just as speedily if not more retract it as the wolf lady swiped down. Though now he could still force openings it was a lot more dangerous without the club. He dove for the spear immediately, as he did so though his flesh was torn again by the claws. With the spear he used it like a staff, but it did not take long for it to begin being shredded as well. Even as small holes were made in Anarah¡¯s side she still easily overpowered him. ¡°It¡¯s useless, she is holding her form on for a lot longer than I expected - or maybe it hasn¡¯t been that long at all?¡± As he tried to recover his position they continued pressing him and he was forced off the bridge, so he slid down the slope into the stream and looked at them. ¡°Maybe this¡¯ll help?¡± He was wet unfortunately but he didn¡¯t intend to stay standing in the water once they came in. Anarah came in first as Isos prepared to bring his greatsword to fight. This was good enough, Borenger planted what was left of the spear in the water and used it to launch off of and attack the beast. ¡°Shit!¡± Isos hurried up as the vrilya began stabbing and cutting the large beast. Though it was strenuous enough that it felt like he could burst his vessels he continued fighting and using the single pole and Anarah¡¯s body to avoid touching the water. This finally began slowing the shifter down but it hadn¡¯t really started to turn around for him. As he stuck to her back she clawed his back, causing him to drop the knife for a moment but he quickly recomposed himself and reached for it - dislocating his shoulder briefly and was able to grab it, even as her claws stuck in his back he found the position advantageous and dug it into her breast and pulled the blade upward while shouting. Blood spewed from multiple places in the wound and he took the opportunity to stab her in the head. Though the fur was thick, he eventually was able to dig it through her skull. ¡°Anarah! No!¡± Isos tossed his blade which found its way into Borenger¡¯s stomach. ¡°Ah!¡± But even as he was bleeding everywhere he took the opportunity to scalp the shifter. ¡°This is enough!¡± As he was doing so he could hear a whistle, the law enforcers began to rush down from the north side. But it was too late, Borenger leaped southward and ran into the forest. He was definitely being chased but luckily none of them would be fast enough to catch him in a hundred years. He collapsed in the woods, seemingly about to die. The adrenaline quickly and sharply faded away and he could feel the pain all over his body, unlike other times it was not even a good feeling. He curled up to prevent the hilt of the sword from pressing into his body and while moving he puked. ¡°Gah¡± He could barely speak but as he breathed heavily his body heaved and drooled. He hoped to some degree his Master would not see him in such a gross state but at the same time, he was internally begging for Lalant to come. ¡°Pl-¡± He wanted to groan but his body was properly reacting to the severe wounds. Before he could consider more about his position he fainted from the bloodloss. A man cloaked in darkness lowered down and put his fingers below his nose. ¡°Good. Still alive.¡± It was Lalant¡¯s voice. He frowned seeing the state of his disciple but it quickly turned upside down as he saw the scalp in his hand. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. He chuckled as he pulled it and was unable to get it away from Borenger¡¯s fingers. ¡°Even like this you still hold on, I wouldn¡¯t have it any other way.¡± Lalant took the blade out of his stomach, the body sensing the danger weakly tried to stop him but he was too fast. Using it he also cut his own hand, but instead of blood it was more like sparks out of an electrical wire. As they fell down onto Borenger¡¯s body and into his wounds his body was shocked but reinvigorated. ¡°Not even regular vrilya can receive this sort of treatment you know? Lucky bastard.¡± Lalant reminded himself of his own life and death encounters, feeling a bit bad that he forced this young dwarf into even more extreme circumstances. There was also a big change that such a mental strain could lead to destroying his development as a warrior. When he was able to stop his pupil¡¯s severe bleeding he picked him up and took him to a decent hiding place within a backdoor hospital. The man there was nobody Lalant knew but criminals could at least be trusted to not give up customers to the law. Even if the kyrenean successfully got the info about their location, he was someone that Lalant could easily dispatch himself, let alone kill. Within two days Borenger woke up but was now being carried via his bag being dragged behind Lalant. He sat up, sore and he could feel the pain as he rolled. ¡°Ouch!¡± Lalant turned his head around. ¡°Good afternoon.¡± ¡°Agh!¡± Borenger struggled to get back up, even if most of his wounds were safe from infection they still basically felt like he still had them. ¡°T-thank you Master.¡± He gripped the ground and Lalant came over to put him back on the pack. ¡°Rest for now. Good job by the way.¡± He tossed a pelt which landed on Borenger¡¯s chest. As he picked it up and examined it he remembered his battle and teared up a bit, feeling a mix of emotions he stayed silent and Lalant continued dragging him on the baggage. Borenger could imagine some of the fight, though without wanting to mess up his wounds he didn¡¯t take the time to enhance his mental image of the event. ¡°Ah, I wish I had a good solid weapon that wouldn¡¯t break.¡± ¡°Well, luckily you stole that kyrenean¡¯s blade?¡± ¡°Really? I don¡¯t recall such a thing.¡± Lalant chuckled a bit and had some trouble speaking. ¡°Well, your stomach took it with you when you fled the cops.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± He didn¡¯t recall such a thing. ¡°Hey! Did I develop vril-OW-¡± Borenger hurt himself a bit twisting and sitting up. ¡°V-vrillic intuition?¡± ¡°It¡¯s pretty close, I think if you can focus on the feeling when you¡¯re better off you¡¯ll be able to develop it.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ ah awesome.¡± Borenger practically passed out again, earning a soft sigh from Lalant as they continued to move through the sand and patches of grass. Eventually they made it to the carriage stop, Borenger was still asleep but two servants loaded him onto one of the hovering carriages. Though wheels were of course existent in this world, the ability to hover was widespread - afterall, it allows for easier movement without roads as well as creating the ability for travel between planets. Between that stop and the border cities of Indigol and Manzart was not long and equally was not eventful beyond some chatter between Borenger and Lalant. Elsewhere on Mafakas, in Belkay a bodyguard swiftly draws his blade - the butt catches the chin of the mer spy in front of him. Before its knees hit the ground below he grabbed the mer by the nape. ¡°Not cute at all.¡± His voice was soft and boyish - fitting his general appearance, albeit with fay green skin and long blonde hair. A vrilya swordsman. Dragging the mer with him he approached a hovercarriage surrounded by one other vrilya and five dwarf bodyguards. He tossed the beast inside. ¡°This is certainly the last of those spies. Don¡¯t kill it this time.¡± The other vrilya flipped her hair around and the dwarves waited expectantly. ¡°What are you doing? Go.¡± He said and the dwarves hopped onto the carriage immediately, though the other vrilya stayed behind. ¡°Jezat, you shouldn¡¯t be so mean to them.¡± ¡°It is just annoying to barely get any time to myself.¡± When he said this, she pouted. This one was his sister; Skyrane ¡°What about with me?¡± She got close and before she could butter him up he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her in. ¡°No one can compare to how cute you are.¡± Even though Skyrane was the one teasing her brother, her face blushed from her cheeks to her ears. ¡°Brother¡­ too close!¡± Ignoring her, he kissed her nose which was ticklish so she giggled. ¡°Don¡¯t think I will forgive you for that PDA just because I laughed¡­¡± ¡°Do you ever forgive me?¡± He touched her face and let her go, the suddenness of it almost made her fall straight onto her butt. ¡°Jerk.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve improved Skyrie, though I am a bit disappointed you didn¡¯t drop like you used to.¡± She hit his chest and whined. ¡°Stop!¡± He took her wrist and began walking with her. ¡°I believe there¡¯s somewhere we could get more privacy.¡± His ears twitched while he watched her in his periphery. As he expected, her ears were drooping and she was looking away. It wasn¡¯t performative, she was simply that sensitive. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡­¡± ¡°In this world there¡¯s no one that could possibly satisfy me.¡± They walked together casually. Meanwhile the spy they captured was being taken to a compound owned by a Nazari Trade Guild member; Tangse Fishery. The smell of which woke the spy up. Though, it sighed when it realized there was a blind fold on and without a doubt was a site for torture. Lalant sat near a window looking down into the street from a hospital window. It was a rather convenient vantage point to see the border crossing. Borenger was resting in a tub full of healing liquid, meditating on his body¡¯s functional movement to assist the healing process. ¡°We¡¯ll be here for a little.¡± ¡°Is there something important here, Master?¡± ¡°Good restaurants I haven¡¯t seen in something close to twenty years.¡± Borenger stayed silent for a moment and Lalant continued speaking. ¡°Also, I think with that sword it is like fate. Long swords always did suit you.¡± At this, Borenger¡¯s eyes brightened up, but Lalant sighed as someone far more interested in the whole grain pancakes of a particular restaurant in Indigol. V - Indigol (1) As Lalant lazily poked his soaked whole grain pancake he watched Borenger tiredly practice various stances that he generally knew but only for single sided swords. Though it was obvious he enjoyed it a lot, the nuanced differences between them despite their similarity intrigued him. ¡°What a freak.¡± Lalant thought to himself as he slipped a bite into his mouth. Over a period of three days, Borenger had gotten used to the different movements. Before he had to keep relatively fluid and focus on the basics of footwork that could be translated between a multitude of weapons. Though Lalant recognized this could hurt his progress he also was not sure what weapon would be best for a vrilya with a unique case as him. The issue was that he was likely to never be able to exert pure energy outside of his body. A fatal flaw, though given Borenger¡¯s natural talent toward fighting it could potentially be corrected with the adoption of multiple weapons but then a kyrene blade literally fell into him. Such weapons, let alone armor, were certainly in circulation in the black market. But if three hundred ureygols could buy one a large estate in Ibintil and still have leftovers to spend one hundred years without work then it would take millions of ureygols to obtain a sword like that. The Empire only has a few such pieces and anyone else carrying one is a target for kyreneans who would kill for the chance to gift a lost item to a member of their family or to a notable kyrenean. Of course, Borenger had risen in prowess to the point that he could be considered among the fifty deadliest warriors of Mafakas. Naturally at the bottom of that list but it shouldn¡¯t take long for him to make such a thing meaningless, much like Lalant had long ago. ¡°Master? With a weapon like this, there are more stab techniques correct?¡± ¡°That is right. Go through the ones you have discovered already.¡± He demonstrated all of the basic ones anyone could intuit with some handling of weaponry in general. However he was pretty stiff and did not use the blade¡¯s main advantage. ¡°Borenger, how did that kyrenean fight? Was he stuck in mud like you are?¡± ¡°What? What do you mean?¡± ¡°Recall how he swung that large blade.¡± Borenger focused, boosting the blood flow within his mind he could easily recall the large movements of the man he fought. ¡°But isn¡¯t that somewhat impractical?¡± ¡°Did it not work on you?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± He had remembered how, even if it was on purpose he was pushed back and also that it was not as wild as it seemed. Since there was only one opponent he had no need to act as he might against several. Borenger could see the man in his mind as if he were being projected in front of him. He began to dance with the blade, adjusting any mistakes he saw. Lalant too would point out mistakes through transmission rather than speaking outloud due to eating more of his pancake. ¡°You don¡¯t need to use so much muscle behind you if you¡¯re facing a single enemy in front of you.¡± and the like consisted of his advice. Later on through the day, they also ordered for a sheathe. Given that carrying an open blade, especially for a weapon like that, they could only cover it in towels to avoid trouble given such men with that kind of military authority could not simply cross the border. This was through an old friend of Lalant¡¯s; Gar. Gar was a half-gigan, dwarf mother which was unusual. The man was burly and tall, standing at six feet and four inches. And old, hair greyed by the years. ¡°Lalant? You damn fay don¡¯t age a day!¡± ¡°I may not look it, but I feel it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s been what? Twenty years? I see you¡¯re only using a small blade.¡± Gar noted that Lalant¡¯s blade wasn¡¯t the kind most vrilya would wear into their adulthood, it was typically worn by child vrilya especially amongst the Vorinasche clan. ¡°These days I prefer to get by without much work. Not to mention, armor dulls reactivity.¡± ¡°I could never be as insane as you.¡± Gar sat down and sighed. ¡°Who is this? Your bastard child?¡± Lalant snorted. ¡°He may as well be. He¡¯s my pupil.¡± At this Gar raised his eyebrow and looked at Borenger. ¡°Unsheathe the sword.¡± He silenty placed it on the table and the towel fell as Gar raised it, shock widened his eyes but then his lips curled into a smile. ¡°I¡¯m forced to believe it now. Only a pupil of yours at this age could take a kyrene blade. Eh, doesn¡¯t he beat you by about fourteen years?¡± ¡°Tch. For such a large thing you talk a lot.¡± Lalant¡¯s ears flapped, though he feigned annoyance he was secretly proud to hear of someone praising his student. ¡°Fay just age slower.¡± This was a lie. ¡°More importantly, you¡¯ve surely discerned the reason for our coming here.¡± ¡°As I don¡¯t see any other weapon, I suppose you¡¯d like something that would make it easily drawn.¡± ¡°Yup. Hip drawn is ideal.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been wanting to make something with a lock mechanism¡­¡± Gar mumbled to himself and rolled away on his chair with the sword in hand. ¡°Got a replacement weapon?¡± ¡°I have a dagger Master gave me, all will be well. Thank you sir.¡± Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Isn¡¯t he a bit too polite?¡± Gar looked incredulously as if Lalant couldn¡¯t have possibly raised him. After ordering a custom sheath, the two enjoyed the sights of Indigol. Though nothing all that special was going on they did hear something about a farmer¡¯s market. Borenger spent most of his life in a Temple or in the wild - in fact Afeir was one of the first cities he had been to and besides the bar he didn¡¯t look at much. ¡°Master, what is a farmer¡¯s market?¡± ¡°They still do that here?¡± Lalant rubbed his chin. ¡°It¡¯s a simple thing, the street will be crowded and vendors will sell food, various assortments. Actually, there¡¯s rarely any farm related products at all.¡± ¡°Sounds stuffy.¡± Borenger frowned, not a fan of crowds. ¡°It¡¯s not so bad.¡± Lalant patted his back and they continued checking around town. Stopping for dinner where Lalant ordered meat for a strange beast that could only be described as smelly so Borenger plugged his senses with an excessive amount of hot sauce on his more civilized food. Bone chips in rice. The next day, Borenger got his scabbard. With a button, the blade would practically be dropped and Borenger could cut with it efficiently. ¡°Just make sure to take care of the mechanism, the same oil that you¡¯d use for folding blades would be used here¡­¡± Gar described the process of cleaning the dagger-like mechanism within the scabbard that held it together. Later on the farmer¡¯s market started, the pair visited not expecting much more than the typical features of such a place. Music that danced on Lalant¡¯s ears, games where Borenger felt engaged due to their vaguely martial nature but of the highest interest was a sporting event. ¡°Hm, athletics? I didn¡¯t expect that in little old Indigol.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that like? Running?¡± ¡°Probably and a bunch of other things. Interested in watching?¡± ¡°Not really¡­¡± Borenger dramatically slumped over and sighed, the image of unenthused. ¡°What? Aren¡¯t you basically an athletics freak?¡± ¡°Well I do like training but isn¡¯t it boring to watch someone train?¡± ¡°So you were aware¡­¡± Lalant patted his back. ¡°This is a bit different though. I wonder if vrilya are allowed to participate.¡± At this, Borenger lit up a bit. So they made their way over to the training grounds, unexpectedly it was all dwarfs. Some fay, gigans and even mer could be spotted in the crowd. ¡°Well, things sure have changed since back in the day.¡± Lalant said as if Indigol wasn¡¯t a dwarf majority city the last time he came. ¡°How about you sign up?¡± ¡°But isn¡¯t it¡­ cheating?¡± ¡°Then don¡¯t use vril. It should be more interesting that way for you.¡± ¡°If you say so.¡± Borenger handed Lalant the sword and he went up to the first official looking guy he saw. This one wore a hat and decent clothes. The man greeted him before Borenger could say anything. ¡°Hello there young sir.¡± He was sizing him up, which put Borenger a bit on edge. ¡°Are you here for the field events or the track?¡± ¡°Uhm¡­ I guess both.¡± ¡°B-both?¡± He was taken aback. ¡°You sure?¡± ¡°I guess.¡± Borenger was a bit worried it was unusual but he was too embarrassed to correct him. ¡°I-I mean yeah I am here for both.¡± ¡°How about you join the javelin event? They¡¯re going first.¡± ¡°Ok. Is that them?¡± ¡°Yep, good eye.¡± Borenger joined up with the group, like him some of them were quite tall like himself. As he approached they looked at his physique, they could tell he was strong just from that alone. One approached him through the group, he was tall and blonde. ¡°Hello, I am Luger, you?¡± ¡°Borenger.¡± ¡°Nice meet you.¡± He extended his hand and they shook. Not long after they began throwing javelins. Borenger had thrown things before so he felt pretty confident, he understood the objective but when the first guy; Luger, threw a javelin, it had a unique sense of finesse he wasn¡¯t sure he could imitate on the spot. Even while he was the last of the group he still didn¡¯t quite get it or at least he wasn¡¯t sure if he could make it as far. At this point the distances being made were all decently above two hundred feet. Luger had made his throw reach just below three hundred feet. Then Borenger threw and he made three inches below luger for the first throw. With six throws in total, Borenger messed up a few times trying to imitate the method. Though the other throws were impressed that it was just pure strength. ¡°Kid, you could become a galactic thrower y¡¯know?¡± ¡°Galactic?¡± ¡°It¡¯s held in the core¡­ if you want-¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t enter this competition with those kinds of ambitions.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ that¡¯s a shame.¡± The man gave up on introducing the young Borenger to a traditional coreling sport. In the end Borenger ended up with the bronze, under another man for silver and Luger who took gold. Of course, their physiques weren¡¯t weak but they clearly never stimulated their muscles through vril control like Borenger was used to. The rest of the day¡¯s activities were somewhat similar though he did the worst in long distance running and anything that took heavy weights. Granted, he was just under what was considered decently high leveled. This of course changed when it came to wrestling. The traditional cycle of these sporting events had two directly combat related events. Today was wrestling and the next day would apparently be punching of some kind. Thankfully for this in particular, there was no restriction in terms of pure grappling. Though most vrilya training traditionally focused on weaponry, Lalant was among the relatively common advocates for anti-armour techniques - one such technique was utilizing grappling. For Borenger, this was trained through many tumbles in grassy plains, forests and deserts of Mafakas. Unfortunately two things were true of the wrestling tournament. Borenger ached and his opponent was also some kind of warrior. Though he wasn¡¯t scarred much, his stance, musculature and the set of his eyes told him that this man was a kyrenean. ¡°Keep your energy in check Borenger.¡± Lalant transmitted into his head. Borenger sighed and stood before his opponent. ¡°You¡¯re strong.¡± He said and stretched his hand out to shake. Borenger let his hand slip into it and it was tightly gripped. This didn¡¯t bother him too much but he thought it was sort of strange. ¡°He has to be gauging my reaction, right?¡± Then when they got into their spots, the ring guard blew a whistle and before Borenger could properly gauge his opponent the man had rapidly crouch walked into his stomach, offsetting him and picking him up off the ground. ¡°Borenger!¡± Lalant¡¯s call loudly rung through his skull as he was tossed up into the air. He caught himself with a hand and swiftly put himself back on his feet, though the man kept pressuring for a fight. Borenger, caught him and they began plumbing for an advantageous position. Despite the man¡¯s slightly smaller stature he was bulkier and extremely strong, he forcibly bear hugged and picked Borenger up again. This time slamming him into the ground on his back. Though Borenger would recover given his stamina, he was continuously thrown down several times. Leading to a loss.