Chapter 1176 (1/2)

Randidly hummed softly to himself as he and Lady Iellaya walked forward along the longer path from the sigh. It led them down a low slope and then around to a ridge that opened up to another tunnel. Both paused to admire the waves of energy that were radiating off the hill above them before they walked down into the shadow of the hill. The energy waves certainly were weaker than they had been around the first hill, but Randidly still shook his head lightly as he looked up at them.

Even now, they were clearly beyond his ability to handle. Not that he needed to force the issue, but after seeing the two other figures struggle, Randidly was slightly curious.

Very quickly they were moving steadily through another tunnel, this one at least with the decency to have placed the ceiling at a reasonable height. Both could walk comfortably upright and side by side through the drawn-out gloom.

...basically, what I’m going to do is like refinancing a loan, Randidly thought to himself as they continued through the sparsely populated tunnel of uneven stone floor and uneven stone walls. Add some additional karma to the process so that Lady Iellaya can mobilize a larger amount of force. The only problem is how to do so within having to shatter her original Fate, which feels quite dangerous considering how much karma is tied up in it...

Of course, Randidly also planned on shattering her original Class. But that seemed like a much more manageable task, if only because Randidly had seen it happen before and knew how to heal it into a serviceable state.

That was a lesson he had learned with his own body. Painful, but manageable. Meanwhile, a Fate...

Randidly’s right hand dropped down and pressed against the warm metal of his Philosopher’s Key. Even now, the world seemed warped around the key. The weight of its image pressed against the surrounding meter or so of space, so as Randidly examined his own person the narrow point of the focus was taken immediately to the key that held the most potent image.

Even as Randidly struggled to incorporate all of the dense image that was present into himself, there was simply so much that leaked out of his control and affected the surrounding world. At least to his mind. But neither Lady Iellaya or Lord Miln really reacted to it, so it was possible that it was just a perception that Randidly hadn’t yet grown used to.

Perhaps its a good thing I only get one piece at a time, Randidly sighed. It’s going to be hard to manage so many Fates at once…

“You dodged the answer before, so let me ask again;” Randidly looked up at Lady Iellaya’s words. She walked a pace in front of him, with her hands clasped behind her back. In the dim tunnel, Randidly could only see the general shape of her cheek. “In your life, do you usually take the long path or the short path?”

Shrugging, Randidly let his hand drop from the golden key on his belt and answered as honestly as he could. “It’s a question that misses the point. But if I had to choose one… I generally take the long path.”

“Misses the point?” Lady Iellaya tilted her head to the side. “We seem to be stuck in a desolate place where that choice is the only thing present, repeated ad nauseum. The only valuable energy we have seen is destructive in nature, coming from the summits of these hills. If we have spare time after our… project, don’t you want to see what’s up there? And I think it’s best if you know what your answer would be if we attempt to examine those energies.”

“Our project?” Randidly grinned. “Still worried they can overhear us?”

“Being interrupted during the process would be exceedingly bad,” Lady Iellaya replied lightly. “But anyway, it’s rather boring to simply walk. Wouldn’t you rather discuss philosophy?”

Randidly opened his mouth and then closed it. In truth, that first reaction was his most honest one; to ask long or short was to ask a question that missed the point. And he had been about to insist that was the case again, but something in the air gave Randidly pause. He looked at Lady Iellaya again. Although they had become much closer after Randidly had admitted to the possibility of remaking her Class, she was still someone who was much more powerful and influential than he was. Perhaps relying on that expectation to speak casually was not the best idea. Even if he was about to fulfill that promise, being a little more polite wasn’t too difficult.

Randidly rolled his eyes at himself. The lengths that I will go to avoid a conversation I didn’t have the idea of having are a bit unbelievable...

So rather than harshly repeating his point, Randidly stopped himself and crafted a more considered response. “...I think it is a choice that is reductive to the point of removing all the motivations for making the choice from the equation. In life, you aren’t choosing between the path being short or long, you are choosing between preparation and action. Or rest and training. Or gambling now or waiting for a more sure result. Or biding your time or seizing an opportunity. Which could be reduced to that binary, but what you are removing are all of the relevant details.”

“Yet you said that you typically choose the longer path. So even if you want to deny it, is it possible that the whole of your past decisions reflect a philosophical choice you haven’t yet acknowledged? Perhaps it is your inherent risk aversion” Lady Iellaya glanced back at Randidly.

Again, Randidly fell silent for several seconds as he mulled that over. Perhaps that really was the case. However, he believed that his choices weren’t because he was worried about the short or the long path…. But because taking the short path in his current life generally meant being subservient to a more powerful entity for a time.