Prytaneum
Preparing
Light flooded the training area, exploding out from my shield the moment Ryuu's blade made contact, momentarily whiting out everything else—and with it came a sound between the rush of wind and the crash of a wave. What's more, I didn't feel a thing from the impact of Ryuu's blade. I didn't mean that the impact was small or muted, either; I literally didn't feel it, as if the whole of the force had been reduced to a light breeze.
The light lasted no longer than a blink of an eye and then began to tear like it was made of cloth, ripping as I continued to move and then fading into countless motes of light that began to fall like snow after surrounding me briefly in a sphere. The moment I could see, I focused on my surroundings, noticing what had changed. Though no more than a moment had passed, Ryuu was falling backwards with widen eyes, the expression the closest thing to surprise I'd seen on her face. Her sword was flung back over her head as if it had rebounded horribly and she was trying to keep a grip on it—so much so that it seemed to be way she was suddenly falling.
More importantly, however, she was completely off-guard and I was already in mid-swing.
All at once, the situation changed and everything was going wrong again. I wasn't certain if Ryuu could defend herself in such an awkward position, just as I wasn't sure if I could stop myself before I struck her. Having already understood Ryuu's strength from our previous exchanges, I hadn't held back at all and the force of my blade could have cut a Minotaur in half. No problem if Ryuu was on guard, I was sure, but this?
I tried to abort my attack, but it was like…well, it was like trying to stop a sword in mid-swing. I felt a sudden rush of strength fill me, however, and I tried, attempting to soften the blow before it landed—but even then, I wasn't sure it'd be enough. As I felt my heart begin to hammer in my chest, I reached for my power and—
I needn't have bothered. All of a sudden, it was like I was back on the Princess Andromeda, frozen in time before Kronos. Even my strongest, fastest attack seemed like it was in slow motion as Ryuu's free hand reached out to me. I felt her fingers touch my face at the same time her settled on my chest and then she pushed, throwing herself clean out of the way in an instant and landing twenty feet away with a flourish. Even as light as she seemed, the force was enough to make me rock back on my heels a bit. She escaped my blade without a scratch.
A moment later, my sword stopped in mid-swing, chains of water binding my arm and pulling against the force, leading to the amorphous mass I'd summoned through my own connection to the sea. It hurt, a sudden flash of pain that was as sharp as a knife, but it was nothing compared to the sudden feeling of exhaustion that abruptly settled on my shoulders. It was enough to almost make me stagger, but I stopped myself.
What the hell? Was that because of that light?
Taking several deep breaths to steady myself, I let the water fall away and sighed.
"Sorry," I said, not entirely sure what for. For nearly cutting her? I hadn't even come close. Then, maybe for the dangerous surprise? Who knows. I just felt bad, looking her way.
"…There is no need to apologize," Ryuu said after a long moment, still watching me closely. "The fault is not yours. It seems I underestimated you, Mr. Jackson. I was reckless."
I scratched my head, not sure how to answer that, either.
"Still, I must say you are quite skilled, Mr. Jackson," She continued, heedless of my uncertainty. "So much so that I briefly questioned whether you were truly Level 2 or not."
"I am," I said. "But…I'm not really normal, is the thing."
"I did not mean to accuse you of dishonesty," Ryuu said, expression briefly chagrined. "I have already determined that you do not seem like one for such a thing. Even so, I made an error of assuming you would fight like a normal Level 2, despite how fast you Leveled Up. I was concerned about going too far again and instead held back too much."
"No, I should have said something," I told her. "You had no real way of knowing any of that, while I at least had an idea. It's my Status, after all."
Ryuu didn't answer that, considering me again. Her sword was held lightly at her side, but was clearly at the ready, prepared to respond to anything while she took my measure.
"…I didn't intend to ask before, to respect your privacy," She said. "But you seemed quite surprised by what just happened. Was it the result of a new spell? Or a skill, perhaps? If so, it would appear you don't have much experience with it."
"That's true," I admitted. "I…think it's the result of one of my new skills, but I found out how it worked about twenty seconds ago. Symbols started appearing on my shield a while ago and they just wouldn't go away. It didn't do anything until now."
"I see," She said calmly, looking at my now pitch-black shield. "Then, given the phrase you used, would I be correct in assuming you have several skills, Mr. Jackson?"
"Ah…yeah," I said, smiling embarrassedly. "I probably shouldn't have said that, since Hestia wants to keep them under wraps, but…it's probably fine, since you're helping me and all. I'm not really certain what all of them do, anyway."
"Perhaps I can assist you on that front," Ryuu replied. "As an adventurer, understanding one's own capabilities is as important as understand one's enemies. Knowing your own limits is important if you wish to keep from being outmatched."
I doubted it'd be enough, but it was still a pretty good idea.
"Do you want me to tell you what my skills are, then?" I asked her.
"I would not ask you to reveal confidential information about your Status," Ryuu answered, shaking her head. "Or rather, you should not offer to reveal such things in the first place, Mr. Jackson."
"The entire Status thing is still just kind of weird to me," I said, sighing. "I know that it'd be bad to standout, but even hiding it among friends? I don't really get that. I mean, so what if I show Welf or Eina my Status? Isn't it good for them to know? It's not like they're learning about my Achilles Heel or anything—even I don't understand most of it."
"It is generally meant for the sake of confidentiality," Ryuu said. "However, you should understand that it is also true that knowledge and power. From what I heard, you've already been faced with the fact that Familias tend to clash, for a variety of reasons. While it would be fortunate if such problems could be resolved amicably, reality is not always that pleasant. Even if an adventurer's Status lacks any critical weaknesses, all people have things that they are good and bad at, which can often be made clear by the Status. As an elf, I naturally favor the abilities of Agility, Dexterity, and Magic, while I fall behind in terms of Strength and Endurance. Comparatively speaking, it is clear that you possess a great deal of Strength and Endurance, but you Agility and Dexterity fall slightly behind, though they are very impressive, given your Level. Provided they have access to such knowledge, it becomes possible for enemies to plan fights accordingly. A fast but weak poison-user might prove more than a match for a strong but slow swordsman, provided the latter lacks Abnormal Resistance."
"Mhm," I said, nodding along as I listened absently. "And I get it, for enemies. But for friends? They all say it's because of the risk of coercion or whatever—but if anyone forces my friends to do something like that, I'll just have to crush them. If it's their god, if it's some other god, or whatever, it doesn't matter to me."
Ryuu seemed to agree with that point, because she didn't argue against it as she watched me.
"It's important to keep the limits of one's ability in mind," She said instead, eyes turning away from me slightly. "While I can understand and agree with your intentions, some of those who might attempt to harm you and your friends might be beyond your ability to stop."
"…I already know that better than anyone," I said after a moment, scowling at myself. "But I've already decided—I'll die before I let that happen again."
Ryuu continued to watch me for a long moment after that, remaining silent until—
"Two…four," She said, confusing me, especially when she fell silent again. "…Eight."
I followed her eyes back to my shield, where the same symbols as before were slowly appearing. Was she counting the seconds? I already knew that the early layers appeared faster than the later ones, but I hadn't exactly had a chance to clock it, given that it had only happened once before now.
"Sixteen," Ryuu continued to announce, waiting quietly until each layer finished. "Thirty-two…sixty-four…one hundred twenty-eight…two hundred fifty-six. Is nine the maximum, Mr. Jackson?"
"I think so," I said, still looking at the shield. "It's stopped there both times, at least."
"It would appear that the layers form according to a simple geometric sequence," Ryuu said, clarifying when I looked at her silently. "The first layer forms after a single second has passed. The second forms after two seconds have passed. The third after four seconds have passed, the fourth after eight, and so on, the time required doubling with each layer."
"Oh," I said, understanding.
"Have you understood the nature of your skill?" She asked. "After having used it once?"
"A little bit, I guess," I replied. "It's a shield, right? It felt like it completely blocked your attack."
"Certainly," Ryuu allowed. "It did more than that, however. Perhaps it was more obvious to me, as the attacker, but the moment I struck the shield, I was thrown back. While I was too surprised to measure it carefully…I believe that the force I received was at least twice as strong my initial attack, as well. Rather than simply blocked, it would appear as though the attack was reflected entirely. I was quite startled."
She really didn't look it. But what she was saying was…interesting, to say the least. If I could reflect an attack back on an enemy, that would be pretty awesome, especially if it really was stronger than the attack I'd have received. The thing is—
"Two hundred and fifty-six seconds is practically forever in battle, though," I murmured, touching my shield lightly.
"Indeed," Ryuu agreed, looking at it carefully. "What's more, while you can charge your power beforehand, it would seem to reset after a single use and may be triggered by any attack that connects with the shield. After the initial use, it would be difficult to form more than the first three or four layers in battle. The question, then, is the precise worth of each layer. Was the force I received the maximum your shield was capable of producing, or was it instead simply the full reflected force of my attack? If it was the latter, then it is likely capable of a great deal more, but is also limited in that the amount reflected remains proportionally the same."
"What would the point be of charging it, then?"
"…Perhaps to withstand and reflect greater attacks?" She mused. "In effect, there is both a defensive and offensive aspect involved—the shield protects you and harms your attacker. Adding more layers could increase the effectiveness of either or both, shielding you from greater forces or turning larger scale attacks around. The question then becomes, what is the limit of each layer? And what are the limits of the skill itself? What effect does it have on a wide area attack?"
"And how would I tell?" I wondered, frowning at the shield as I considered it, unsure of where to even begin.
"Why don't we test it?" Ryuu proposed, drawing my attention back towards her. "If those words you said before are true, then that shield might become the best way to protect those you care about—assuming it is wielded properly, of course. That means not just understanding its limits thoroughly, but also becoming accustomed to using it in battle. In that case, shall we focus our training in that direction, Mr. Jackson?"
"—Yeah, please" I said, meeting her eyes and slowly smiling. "Thank you, Ryuu."
She nodded once, expression unchanged but eyes somehow different.
"Then defend yourself," She said a moment before she struck.