NOVEL NEXT 138: Distributing Loot
138:
“That doesn’t mean anything though,” Tom countered. “I’m not sure if we would’ve won that fight if it wasn’t for the barrage you unleashed at the end.”
“Nonsense,” Aleph replied. “You were the reason we survived. All of us know it. Stopping him from teleporting by latching onto his arm mid-battle… I do not even know if I should call the strategy brilliant or incredibly foolish, but the results are one thing I cannot argue with. Zirel landed the poisoned blow, but it was your willingness to trade a serious wound in exchange for a momentary advantage that let us win the battle.”
“If you’re asking me, I prefer foolish,” Tom replied, blinking in surprise a moment later as he realized that The Fool had not stopped him from using that word. It was as roundabout a hint as he could give, if it even counted as one, but he had managed to get through the filter.
Aleph sighed, before wearily adding, “Foolish it may be, that is not a maneuver I would’ve attempted without Total Recall’s aid. Did your ability somehow suggest that the ploy would work?”
“It was an educated guess,” Tom replied. “Well, the part where I feigned an opening and let him gouge through me for that one chance, uh, that was just plain old desperation,” He admitted, though there was no shame in his tone. None at all. Just a hint of respect for his fallen foe.
It was odd. Zeth had tried to kill him first, even if it had been through a proxy and Tom had just retaliated. There were many emotions across a broad spectrum he could’ve been feeling after the deed had been done, but respect should not have been one of them.
To respect an opponent that tried to kill you as you did them was to recall the primal emotions of the moment, to think back upon a fight where the din of adrenaline obfuscated everything. In the clash of blades, the most primal urge is one of survival, after all.
But there was a deeper connection that had been forged between Tom and Zeth. Even though he had failed to break past Zeth’s Maya and enter the realm of Yul, in the short span of time he was allowed, Tom had felt his enemy’s determination, his drive and most of all, his conviction.
His methods were cruel and deplorable, but his goal itself had been worthy of Tom’s respect.
He would take upon the piece of the puzzle Zeth had left him with and build upon it.
“Well, there you have it,” Aleph replied. “You were as integral to the fight as I was, if not more,” She opined.
“Equals,” Tom replied, his tone dead serious. Zeth’s management of the Shadow Guild had revealed to him the dangers of a hierarchical organization. He had treated those weaker than him like pawns and the stronger he got, the more disposable he thought of themselves as. He had thought himself a pioneer of a new path, but in reality Zeth had been enslaved by a mere possibility.
If Tom were to ever call a guild his own, it would be one without a leader. A guild where every member had an equal stake, an equal standing.
“Should we rip the card in half then?” Aleph jested, her joke not particularly amusing.
Tom laughed anyway, if only because how unexpected it had been. Aleph liked to tease him from time to time, but she seldom dropped her guard low enough to casually joke around.
Hopefully, now that they were a vast distance away from the Syrelore Kingdom and never intended to return, the wounds that the Nobles of its land had left upon her heart were beginning to heal.
“No,” Tom replied, his tone amused. “But I am not opposed to hearing out less violent suggestions.”
“I cannot use it right now,” Aleph replied. “The fight against Zeth gave all of us levels, but his Rare is too nebulous for my skillset. I have trained to use projectiles for both attack and defense. Unlearning all that in favor of shadows that behave far more like a liquid than solids will take me too much time and also take away SP from my pool. In light of all that, I have a proposal.”
“Oh?” Tom hummed in thought. “Do tell.”
“Give me the Heat Infusion Card. It will work well with my crystals. With Total Recall and my Rare Artifact, coupled with two uncommon cards that should synergise well with each other, I think I will have a setup that I can use with the greatest efficiency. In return, I shall loan you my half of Zeth’s Rare card, until we find a worthwhile trade for it or you compensate me with something of similar value, minus the cost of the Heat Infusion card,” Aleph proposed. Her words seemed fair and logical, but it was clear that she was giving up a card of incredible value in exchange for something Tom would’ve offered to her anyway.
“I won’t forget this,” Tom replied, as a soothing warmth blossomed in his heart.
“Forget what?” Aleph asked. “This is a trade, not a favor. Come on now, out with it,” She said, extending her open palm towards him in clear demand.
Removing a deck card from its slot required no more than a second of thought and there was no pain or discomfort that came with it. The Heat Infusion card was honestly of little use to him. Zeth’s Rare Card coupled with his own mirror world and Zeth’s Rare Artifact that they had all agreed would go to Tom, because he lacked a weapon appropriate for his strength, was all he needed for a build that The Fool would most likely approve of—- with shadows that let him teleport, a rare artifact that would use the strength of his enemies against them and a mirror that would reflect any projectile attacks back to it’s caster, he would become a deadly wildcard.
Unpredictable, aberrant and most important of all, chaos manifest.
The rest of Zeth’s loot coupled with any uncommon cards Aleph and Zirel wanted from his collection would be split between the two of them, besides his share in healing potions.
“Here,” Tom offered the uncommon card to Aleph, whose visage lit up with a childish glee as she nicked it from his palms with haste.
“This will do nicely,” She said, before offering him a beaming smile.
Tom’s heart almost skipped a beat.
“Well, what are you waiting for,” Zirel chimed in. “The Rare belongs to you. Claim it and then, there will be nothing stopping us from what we came to do here.”