Sybil came over to inspect the books that Karl had set on the table in front of him, not quite understanding why they were important. She had gotten so used to nobody caring what she was up to that she had long since stopped paying attention to gossip, so she only picked up what was in her textbooks, and the details of how Elites advanced were not part of the core coursework.
The methods were common knowledge, but she had missed out on a lot of that, and until today, hadn’t cared.
But she liked to study, so she flipped the [Silent Movement] book open without hesitation, then looked around in confusion as it vanished, wondering if some trick was being played on her.
“It’s a skill that lets you move without making a sound. I know you can’t tell the difference, but it’s an essential skill for a Rogue, and it goes well with the other skill that we have prepared for you.” Karl explained. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
She quickly grabbed the second book and flipped it open, then stared around the room as it took effect.
Then, she snapped her fingers, and watched the world change as the readings from [Echolocation] came in from all directions, and not just forward. It appeared in front of her eyes, like a second layer of vision, and it didn’t seem to matter to the skill that her ears didn’t work.
She made a series of hand gestures, and the clerics began to laugh. Karl waited for someone to explain, and Sybil took out a small notepad and pen.
[This is absolute bullshit. Now I can SEE SOUND, and I’m still deaf?]
Karl did his best not to laugh at her suffering. “Well, I don’t know a spell that will allow you to hear again, but this is magic, I guess you don’t need to hear to be able to use it. When the lights go out, now you’re not deaf and blind, you can function in perfect darkness, or even blindfolded.
For a Rogue, an Elite who is likely to take on infiltration and stealth roles in the future, this is one of the most important passive abilities that you can have.” Karl explained.
Sybil reluctantly nodded, then began to write again. [What else were you going to teach me? This was really fast.]
Karl gestured to Rae, who had an evil grin on her face.
“You already know the skill [Backstab], so I am going to teach you how to [Shadow Step]. With that skill, you can move through darkness to appear in any other shadowed place that is large enough. My Karl will use his skills to help you learn, and I will start with exposure therapy to help your body understand.”
Karl focused on the pair with [Skill Master] to help them learn faster, and then smiled as Rae turned out the living room lights and began to move rapidly back and forth between the living room and spare room until Sybil pleaded for mercy as the dizziness overwhelmed her.
The spider turned her tiny charge to face her and patted Sybil on the head. “Now, you just need to focus on the feeling of moving through the shadows. When you understand it, you will be able to escape, and my training will be complete.”
She started bouncing back and forth again after gagging the Rogue with a strip of silk cloth, and Ophelia turned to Karl in concern. “How long are we going to let the spider torture a middle schooler?” She asked.
“Technically, I think she’s in her last year of primary school. Skittles said she was younger than the others by a couple of years. But I have Skill Master at Rank Four now, and there are few skills that Rae is better at than Shadow Step. She loves that skill.
I give it two hours at the most, and the newest Elite will manage to escape.”
An hour in, everyone was researching their training methods for the next day, and the doorbell rang, with room service delivering the stew that Lotus had requested for dinner.
Ironically, that was the trigger for the great escape.
Sybil vanished from Rae’s arms and appeared under the food cart, then made a run for safety down the hall, only for Rae to grab her a half second later and drag her back inside.
“Not bad. Only one hour and you’re getting the hang of the skill. Now, sit down and eat. You’re going to need the energy for training tomorrow.” Karl instructed as Sybil realized she couldn’t Shadow Step away when she was being held by the ankle.
[I have a potion for her. Put it in a cup, I want to see what it does.] Remi informed Karl as Rae set the Rogue down at the table.
[Wait for tomorrow. I want to know everything that she’s capable of before we start feeding her new supplements. Tonight, we will focus on skills. You can make potions for all the Acolytes if you would like, and then we can test them all at once.] Karl suggested.
[Oh, that’s a good idea. Everyone at the same time will be much better entertainment, and then if strange things happen, the others won’t be able to refuse. I knew you were the Karl for a reason.] Remi agreed.
What exactly she thought the job of a Karl was remained a mystery, but he felt like it had become a middle management job, and less of an Elite powerhouse position.
But if nothing else, Remi would have potions for all five of their Acolytes the next day during training, and once she found time for a new beauty routine, Rae should advance, and possibly pick up new skills that she could leverage to take back her top spot.
Having Rae at the Monarch Rank would motivate Remi and Cara to advance as well, even if the power of the separate spaces advancing wasn’t enough to immediately force them to break through.
In short, tomorrow was going to be a very busy day for Karl and the team.
But before that, he should likely rescue the young Rogue from whatever had happened to her now. She was turning red in the face and squeaking, but she appeared to be breathing well enough, so she hadn’t choked on her soup.
[I think it’s an energy overload. We’re all used to the condensed power of the boar meat, but she’s never had anything like it before. Maybe take her to the training grounds in the basement to burn some of the excess off before something bad happens.] Thor offered.
[Right, good call. You have to be careful with giving humans good things.]