The Runic Artist Chapter 32: Chapter 351 - Diverging Paths

Read chapter 32 of The Runic Artist by Ellake on NovelPedia.

Nate looked over the gathered members of the Risen Sun Sect. Ankh’aris loomed at the back of the room, already aware of what Nate was about to reveal. As for the other members, they jostled for position and displayed their personalities with almost comical precision. Fili looked worried, like she always did when faced with the unknown. Jak, barely clothed, since according to the Orc he was armoured with righteous heroism, stood ready to face down whatever news Nate intended to deliver. Luci and Frick were fighting like cats and dogs or, in this case, goblins and dragons. A small horde of Fricks were clinging to her draconic back as Luci had decided she didn’t want to return to humanoid form unless she had to. A much larger Frick was facing down Luci as he treated the solar dragon like a bullfighter, waving a ragged, red cloth in front of her with multiple holes in it. Luci hadn’t held back with her breath of light or solarbeam or whatever she was calling her laser ability these days. Kiri was huddled in a corner, whispering with Gwen. She alone, besides Ankh, knew what Nate was about to reveal and offer. Wulfgar looked like he hadn’t been sleeping again with dark bags beneath his eyes. Of everyone, he was struggling the most to control his new Truth and the toll showed. Only Vicoli was absent, still sitting inside Nate’s Created Space and working on fervently absorbing the Molten Heart of the Void Star to ignite his Divine Vessel. Nate coughed to get everyone's attention. All eyes flicked to him and Nate watched as Luci ever so slowly spat out a mini-Frick she had been not-so-pretending to eat. “Let me start by saying…” “We won!” cheered Frick, interrupting Nate. “We won! We won! We won!” repeated Luci. Nate let the room devolve into cheering, mostly driven by Frick and Luci. When Nate felt they’d gone on long enough he tried to quiet them down, which of course only made the two lunatics cheer harder. Finally, Nate got fed up and muted them with a Sound Rune. Frick was clearly still cackling, arms on his stomach, and head thrown back like a little, blue, evil overlord. Luci however had her jaw open in a look of absolute betrayal. Nate raised an eyebrow and the young solar dragon had the good sense to look a little embarrassed. “As I was saying, yes, we won. We did what we set out to do, what I agreed to do. I appreciate the help you all lent to the cause.” “Just wish we could’ve helped more,” said Jak. “A hero should be in the thick of it.” “Me too, lad,” added Wulfgar. Nate nodded his agreement. “We all did the best we could with what we had, which is why I called you all here.” He reached into his Created Space and extracted the bag of tokens he had been given by Kali’Terra. “In this bag I have a…lets call it payment, from The System. Tokens provided by Kali’Terra that will allow anyone who consumes one to be free of their Class Core and Reciprocity. Forever.” Nate let the words hang in the air as he drank in the looks on their faces. Fili, again, looked torn between elation and worry. Jak looked ready to go to war and Wulfgar next to him oddly hopeful as if the release might finally let him get a good night sleep. Frick, still muted, was dancing in a circle like he used to so long ago. Nate thought it must be some sort of goblin tribal thing in the Half-Spirit’s memories. Only Gwen looked sad, until Kiri whispered something to her. Then shock bled into her face as well. Fili was the first to recover. “What do you want for one?” Nate shook his head. “Do you even need to ask, Fili? I offer them to all of you, freely. You are my companions and friends. I just want you to understand that by consuming one of these, you will lose all of your Skills, Levels, and everything else the Class Core provided.” “True,” agreed Jak. “But we’d be able to unlock our Divine Vessels a lot sooner, right?” The question was directed at Ankh’aris, who nodded before answering. “Within a month, given your current progress.” Jak turned back to Nate. “