The Path of Ascension

Chapter 261

As predicted, Matt spent a full week in bed as he recovered from the side effects of the mana concentration formation.

If it had simply been the spiritual strain, he could have been up and moving the day after, as he was experienced with spiritual strain and could easily push through it. But as it turned out, the potion had some nasty side effects of its own, which included, but were not limited to, his bowels had been liquefied, he had blurry vision, nausea, hives, and his skin had turned various shades of purple, causing him to smoke any time he was in light that was too bright.

All and all, Matt considered it a success, as all the side effects vanished on their own without a healer's intervention.

Liz had been stressed out of her mind the entire week, with Aster only doing a little better, as she could feel through their connection he wasnt really in any danger. That was touching but unhelpful, as seeing them feel bad didnt make his pain any better. Eventually, he resorted to asking Leon to drag the duo out of the room for an afternoon of fun activities just to get a break from their worries.

He could hug a toilet and vomit out his stomach lining perfectly well all on his own, thank you very much.

While he was hugging his personal throne he was able to do some good soul searching. Was he still as independent as he once wanted to be? He had once been so determined to prove himself on The Path, and prove that he could do everything himself. While vomiting his guts out, he had to ask himself if he failed on that account with his mana concentration issue. Was he still being true to himself?

Matt thought he might have failed that initial idea of standing on his own, but he also didnt mind. The Matt who made that initial declaration had been a kid who was worried about his Talent taking over his life and becoming the only thing he was good at. He was afraid of not being able to stand on his own next to Liz, who was a double princess.

He had grown a lot since then, and really didnt mind having other people help him. Civilization wasnt built by one person, and he was a part of that civilization. Getting others' help was nothing to be ashamed of.

If he had wanted to, he could have gone off into a rift somewhere and spent a few million years as a Tier 15, and gotten to the same solution as the team but his time was better spent elsewhere. He was better off leaving the search for a viable solution to the professionals on King Frederic and Mannys teams.

Everyone had the place they fit properly, but civilization worked most efficiently when everyone was able to shine in the role that suited their desires. Not necessarily what they did best, as forcing someone into a box based on their Talent was a good way to suppress potential prodigies like Duke Waters. But for the most part, people tended to gravitate towards paths made easier by their Talents, and for people like Frederics researchers, it was one and the same.

Thankfully, on the eighth day, the side effects had mostly passed, and he was able to resume somewhat normal activities.

Due to their planning, they had no parties to go to for another week, but Mara did take Aster on a quick tour back to Hestial, where shed arranged for a days worth of meetings that she could sit in on with minimal disruption. For his part, Leon took Matt and Liz on their own little trip to watch him smack around a Marquess who seemed to forget to whom he ultimately owed allegiance. Most of it happened so quickly that neither Liz nor Matt got to see anything, but Leon did take the two of them out for ice cream afterward, which was really fun. It made Matt feel like a kid again, and despite his age, he couldnt really complain about having a loving parent again.

Afterward, Leon took them back to the capital. There, he did some paperwork and gave Liz and Matt each a case to do while he blurred through thousands in seconds. It was necessary, as he had what seemed to be a never-ending stream of documents to look over and deal with.

The file Matt got seemed like a fairly simple request for funds to expand a portion of the city into an otherwise protected planetary forest. His initial inclination was to accept due to the population boom, but he had been trained too well to just accept things at face value, and so he dug deeper into the problem.

The issue seemed threefold; first of all, the city was formed around a number of valuable rifts and was originally settled deep into a mountain range, and it had expanded in a snake-like fashion through the valleys until it reached a sort of oasis in the mountains where several valleys turned into a basin. A basin which housed several unique forms of life that proved sensitive to human activity and hadnt taken well to transplanting.

Secondly, the citys mayor had a friend in the construction business and had been funneling most work into her company, which was why the city had expanded in that direction instead of out of the mountains, where they would have eventually reached a plain that they could expand into endlessly.

Thirdly the city, while experiencing a population boom, could easily handle such an increase of births and immigrants simply by expanding their existing infrastructure.

Feeling like he now knew what was going on, Matt reviewed the situation once more before suggesting to Leon that the mayor be prevented from running for election anymore, and having the local noble more firmly guide the city's growth along the suggested patterns for Empire cities.

Right before he went to submit the answer, he paused, thinking it all seemed too easy. If the situation was this simple, it should have never come across King Leon's desk.

Once more, looking into the backgrounds of everyone involved, Matt found out why the local noble had simply shoved the problem onto Leons lap; the mayor was the illegitimate son of a Duke, who had some notable influence on Tier 25 through Tier 30 weapon production. More digging showed that while the duke had never acknowledged his son formally due to his actual wifes anger at his infidelity, people who tried to make things hard for his son seemed to have a really hard time ordering weapons or armor.

Matts first instinct was to simply suggest Leon warn the man, but looking into the duke, he was a well-regarded and rated noble who rarely, if ever, abused his position to such a degree. He simply seemed to be trying to protect his childs interest in the only way he could without further angering his wife.

Matt was well and truly stumped, but knew the project shouldnt be authorized, and once more wondered why Aster would want to solve puzzles like this as a Queen in her own right. It sounded dreadful.

Scooting over to Lizs spot on the table, he started peeking at her situation, but quickly gave up. Her situation, the prospective lessening of a local imperial tax as disaster relief, didnt seem any less complicated than his own. Sliding back to his own case, Matt pondered the situation some more before concluding that the mayor still needed to be put in his place, and his father, the duke, needed to be slapped down, even if only a little. There was little wrong with protecting one's child, but to bring weapons production into the situation was a step too far when a war was going on, so that was frankly unacceptable. Taking into consideration his and his family's loyal service, removing him was a step too far, so a warning and a small slap on the wrist seemed appropriate.

As for the original situation with the unique biology of the mountain oasis, that was an easy solution. Instead of just being a local reserve, Leon could register it as an Empire reserve, which meant it became the Emperor's personal property. The criteria for those locations were fairly strict, but the entire purpose of the Empire reserves was to prevent local nobles from taking unique places and bulldozing them for personal profit. The city, and even the planet in question, would even see an increase in tourism thanks to the protected status of the oasis, and no one needed to be executed or removed from power.

It seemed like a clean and easy solution, which made him worry that it was too simple, or he had missed something once again, but no matter how much he looked, he couldnt find anything he had overlooked.

Finally sitting back, he got ready to wait for Leon to finish the pile of paperwork, but seeing that Matt had finished, Leon immediately paused and turned to him.

Matt nodded at the rest of the paperwork. You don't have to break for me.

Leon just blinked at him in a way that made Matts mouth click shut.

Seeing he had won, Leon smiled and asked, So, what was your answer? Explain your steps and reasoning for each one.

Matt smiled slightly as he recounted his initial viewing of the problem and his simple answer before looking deeper into it as Leon nodded along.

Finally, when he presented his final answer, Leon smiled. A good answer. It's even similar to what I would have done. Not exactly the same, but part of that is my experience and knowing everyone in question.

Matt raised an eyebrow in silent question, which Leon read and answered, Really, it is similar to your answer; I would have just added a second contingency of ensuring an impressive new politician came into the city and ran for mayor. It's best to remove someone who can't take a hint like that. At Matts confused look, Leon explained, This isn't something you would know, but this issue has come up once before, though it never made it to my desk. Instead, the local duke took care of it on behalf of the Marquess.

Matt nodded, as that did change things, but was distracted as Leon smiled brightly. Since you did so well, are you interested in taking a few dozen more cases?

Seeing Leon was serious, Matt started throwing out excuses as fast as he could.

Leon thankfully gave up and returned to his own work until Liz finished her paper, and he immediately paused again and went over everything with her like he did with Matt.

Lizs case was more complex, and when it was finished, Matt complained about stupid nobles and snarked that Domninus would fit right in, which seemed to catch Leon off guard.

You might not have picked it up from the reports, due to the fact it's something everyone knows, Matt, but the Maniakes family are some of the most progressive in the Empire. Even before the Sophron dynasty took over, they were championing the rights of those who were weaker than them for eons. They hate me and Mara, but if you give them a chance, they will probably be one of your biggest supporters.

Matt wanted to refute Leon's words, as anyone who hated them couldnt be good people, but he knew that wasnt how the world worked.

Nodding, he took Leon's small rebuke to heart and made a note to go over the top ten noble family list more thoroughly. Missing that tidbit of information was inexcusable, as his professional pride wouldnt let him half-ass something. Even if he intended to skip the noble games, he needed to know who best represented his own goals and motives.

As he mulled over that, Leon quickly finished up the rest of the paperwork he had to do. With Leons Tier, even thousands of cases were taken care of in short order, and the three of them returned to the estate for a small dinner Matt whipped up before going their own separate ways.

Like he did most often when he had free time, Matt worked on his Intent. Not that he could try forming it, but he was able to see what felt compatible. Besides, after the mana concentration experiment, he had new ideas thanks to his resonating with the sensation of being crushed but enduring. It was similar to his endless Concept and its ability to push him forward and through hardship, but it was a different flavor of strength. Enough so, he thought he had a chance at making an Intent around it.

Sadly, his first idea didnt work.

A black hole would have been perfect, as it was the polar opposite of his Concept, and despite his mana concentration problem being seemingly solved, he still liked the idea of having his own unique, personal way of solving the issue that wasnt reliant on anyone else. But the moment he tried to create a black hole image, it clashed with his white hole image and threatened to destabilize his Minkalla image.

Tossing that idea out, he tried for a few more, but nothing was better than his Minakalla image, so he turned to his phrase.

Having a good sense for the idea of being enduring he started playing with word combos.

I am Enduring.

Matt let the thought build in his head and spin around, seeing how it fit with his proposed image.

In and of itself, the phrase was stable, and he felt like he could move forward with it even though it lacked the feeling of a puzzle piece falling into place that I am Endless had had. It was also a decent fit with his Minkalla image, but still lacked the perfection he was looking for in an Intent.

Matt didnt want to be just decent though, and knew there was something out there that would be perfect. When he found it, he knew it would send his power to another level.

After a full six hours of meditating, he was woken up by a quiet beep from his AI. If he was deep in an idea he could ignore it easily, but it was a rescue from his purgatory of self reflection he happily latched onto. Six hours was normally a very short time, but when you were looking into yourself, it could feel like an eternity, and even Luna recommended taking a break after that long.

Opening his eyes, he found Liz still sitting in her meditative pose and was about to leave her to it when she opened her own eyes and grabbed his passing hand to pull him back down next to her.

Falling into his lap, Liz groaned, Tell me you had better news than I did?

Matt smiled as he ran his hand through her hair. That's only possible if you tossed your previous ideas out, because I got nothing that fits perfectly. I am Enduring isnt bad, but it doesn't feel right.

Liz groaned at the mention of tossing her previous work out, and Matt knew he had hit the mark. I did. At least my phrase, Blood is Life felt soooo good, but it just felt wrong at the same time. Like a puzzle piece that got wet and no longer fits the other shapes around it. Shame on that one.

Together, they commiserate the difficulty of making a Intent before Tier 20, and after moping around, they decided to abscond out and have a date night to cheer themselves up.

With Aster not due back from Hestial for another month, he and Liz had to partake in the noble activities alone. It was a bit more boring for Matt, but he tried to be involved and pretend to be interested.

This time, thankfully, it wasnt even as hard, as they were at the hEachaidh family's local estate. As the third strongest ducal family in the empire, and the second strongest family in the Beast kingdom, the hEachaidhs held considerable sway. So when the invitations for the two of them arrived, Matt knew they couldnt get out of it.

Still, Sciath had seemed nice in contrast to Dominus, but Matt knew that while the second strongest dragon family was kind and amiable on the surface, they were still dragons, and were not to be trifled with. On a more positive note, while they weren't super progressive with things like commoner rights, they were still moving things along instead of trying to pull things back to the way they were. That, if nothing else, was a mark in their favor, as some of the other top ten were quite content with how things were a generation ago. They had little interest in moving things along beyond paying lip service to Emmanuel and doing just enough to keep themselves out of trouble.

While Sciaths party wasnt a large one, and was slated as more intimate for close friends, there were still a dozen people attending out of the top twenty-five strongest noble houses. Matt wasn't sure if she hadnt invited the others, or they hadnt chosen to show up, but either way, the smaller crowd let him enjoy the party slightly more.

As he and Liz entered, they saw Heracleonas and Eleazar lightly sparring on a water like reflection with their real selves sitting off to the side. Matt assumed it was an enchantment of some kind, but wasnt sure, as he had never seen anything of the like before. Still, a fight between the two scions of the only two hereditary grand duchies in the Empire was certainly a treat.

The two families had earned their double duchies in vastly different ways. The Rajagukguk had been the first major family to throw themselves behind Empress Agathas bid for the throne, and had most of their higher TIers wiped out by the old dynasty holding off a strategic flank during a critical battle in the early years of the war. That earned them Empress Agathas trust and protection, which was why they were given twice as much land to control and govern as a normal duchy, despite that making the family stronger than normal, thanks to the increased resources at their disposal.

The Staurakius family, on the other hand, had been loyal to the old dynasty, or rather the Empire itself. And as Empress Agatha had been a traitor by all metrics, they had fought tooth and nail until the old emperor had been killed and she crowned herself Empress. The family had been damn near exterminated by the new Empress, who had zero tolerance for disloyal vassals, especially old-blood military families. While the details were dramatized and possibly entirely fabricated, the Staurakius had sold themselves to Agathas service in exchange for leniency, and Agatha had used and abused them. Any time she had an issue that needed cannon fodder, she sent the Staurakius family, and they never balked. More notably, they never failed. She repeatedly threw them into impossible situations, and they always came out on top. That, along with continued loyal service, had earned them Agathas leniency and Gregorios trust, which was when they were granted the second dukedom to rule over.

From the information Matt had, the Staurakius family had almost become the leaders of Rustys kingdom, but lost out to the current royal. From all the reports, it had been a close call, with Rusty and Prokopios each nearly splitting the support of the Kingdom. Rusty only really became the royal since he was closer to Emmanuel, and in the end, the next Emperor was the one to decide for every kingdom except the Beast Kingdom, who decided through strength of arm.

Considering the two families' histories, Matt was a little surprised to see them fighting. Especially considering that Heracleonas came from a military family, and Eleazar came from a family who specialized in crafting, and reportedly had little combat experience.

Watching the fight as they entered, he noticed that while Heracleonas was undoubtedly the better fighter. He was also five Tiers lower than Eleazar, who, while clearly not a professional combatant himself, was handling himself well enough not to be defeated.

As Sciath stood to greet them, everyone else also moved, and a round of polite greetings commenced, which Matt mostly tuned out. He had met everyone here not too long ago, and even if he had forgotten them and their information, he could always rely on his [AI] to bring up the relevant information as needed.

Once the pleasantries were finished, Sciath nodded to the water illusion. This is a new product one of my uncles invented a while ago, but has finally moved to mass production, as they finally found a way to replace an expensive natural treasure. We are testing it out, so if you wish to give it a go, wed love to see what you can do.

Matt wasnt crazy enough to accept any kind of illusion enchantment that might read his abilities, so he asked as if he was only curious, How does it work? Some kind of AI-based fighting sim?

Sciath chuckled politely, but Matt felt there was a hint of derision, though he couldnt be sure if that was him projecting his feelings, the draconic features the woman had, which gave her a slight lisp, or her judging him for not already knowing. Nothing so droll that has been done before. This device acts similarly to a legacy in a lot of ways. You merge your spirit with the device, and it makes a small copy of you that lasts for half an hour, or until you choose to delete it. It's entirely private and safe. We cant see anything, and the fragment isnt recorded in any way, shape, or form. Otherwise, it wouldnt get approved for public sale and use.

Matt pinged Luna and Leon to see if either could back those claims up, and when Luna answered that the young dragon was telling the truth, and that it wouldnt give anything away, Matt and Liz both agreed to partake.

Heracleonas stood forward, and with a small but confident grin, offered, I would love to spar with the two of you. Pathers are so rare to find and be able to duel. Ive sparred with a few of them, but no one who was really exceptional. Care to battle it out?

His already stained spirit felt a little sore with a piece of it removed, but Matt kept the discomfort off his face, even as his copy took its place next to Liz, and they fought the Tier 13 Heracleonas one after another. Thankfully, his copy fought as a Tier 15 and with his normal Matt restrictions, so while he beat the scion of house Staurakius, it wasn't a quick or particularly easy fight like it would have been if Matt really let loose. But neither was the outcome in question, and everyone could see that.

After Matts copy stood down, Heracleonas turned to Matt. Impressive. I rarely lose to anyone just two Tiers higher than me. Your reputation isnt just for show then.

Matt shrugged as if it didnt really matter. You are impressive yourself. Your family really knows how to train fighters. I dont think I can compare to you in your versatility. Im good with most blades, but Im still specialized with my longsword.

Heracleonas agreed, as if it was only natural. My family has a long history to pull from, and each of us always adds to the family's legacy so the next generation has an easier time progressing and building upon our success. Our family has something similar to the Path, as we limit the resources that any descendants can use without earning them. When I was 11, I had to kill a feral Tier 1 wolf to earn the essence to awaken, and I have been pushing myself ever since.

Turning to Liz, he nodded to their clones, which were fighting, and was about to say something when Eleazar interrupted, seeing Lizs clone was already taking the lead in the fight. Not so confident now, Hera; losing two for two must hurt. Imagine how strong they will be when they start taking resources from their Royal parents. How will you hold your head high then? It seems the Path does find prodigies after all, even if they aren't ascenders.

Sciath smiled as she leaned forward, her scale-patterned skin giving an edge to the otherwise normal expression. Speaking of Ascenders, do you two know Queen? As if hearing her own words, she chuckled. Well, obviously, you know her, as you participated in the same Tier 10 tournament together, but my point is the rumor is her father is outing her identity. I got an early copy of the interview, and wanted to share it before it went public.

The grin turned proud as the other noble heirs turned to her and started clamoring to see the interview.

Matt felt Liz relax slightly, even as she leaned forward as if to see better, but knew she was simply trying to not give any tells away while being as nervous as he was.

During their time in Minkalla, Susanne had slowly told them about her life and how her father was an immortal who liked to philander with mortal women, get them pregnant, and then leave them high and dry, just to go on and repeat the cycle when someone else caught his attention. She had also mentioned he was a competent swordsman in his own right, even if he wasnt as amazing as he had been in her Folded Reflections life. A lot of her early style was based on his teachings.

When Sciath started the recording, and it was Susanne's actual father on the other side of the interview table, Matt immediately called out to Luna, Carol, and Susanne herself. Luna, being on the planet, was the first to respond.

Relax, Matthew. This isn't the first time someones relative has tried to sell a mask out for a quick buck. Carol and her team know how to handle this. If you want to send Susanne a message sending her your condolences, feel free, but her identity is in no danger.

As Susanne's father thanked the interviewer, Matt wanted to vomit as the man went on to explain in excruciating detail everything about Susanne and how he taught her blade work, demonstrated his own style, showed recordings of a young Susanne wielding a blade, and then comparing them to Queen in a number of tournaments she participated in over the last few years.

Matt wanted to say it was all bullshit, but AI verification and comparison showed there were similarities in young Susanne's style and adult Queens style, though that was flimsy proof at best.

Frankly, it was disgusting to see a father selling out his daughters secret identity on the possibility that it was true. Worse yet, they dragged Susanne's younger brother through the mud as well, saying that the fake Susanne, who simply seemed to be delving at Tier 9 to pay for his secondary school, was a fake, despite all the numbers adding up for the financials.

The interviewer then dropped a bombshell and said they had gotten a statement from Queen herself, and Matt saw the screaming face of Queens marble-like mask, looking at a pad someone was shoving in her face. From the surroundings, Queen had clearly just come out of a rift and was obviously injured, with blood leaking out of her armor and still dripping from her left hip.

After a slight pause where she looked at what Matt was sure was a condensed version of the interview, Queen shrugged. Im certainly glad hes not my father, what an asshole move.

With that, Queen turned away and walked into the setting sun, a massive greatsword floating on her back. The silhouette made for an amazing moment, and the interviewing news station left it up while they cut back to Susanne's father, who started deflecting the probing questions the interviewer shot at him.

Matt wanted to punch the man in the face when he proudly admitted that he was only doing this in retribution to his daughter, ruining his good name by having someone contact anyone he tried to trick and telling them of his history. He tried to spin it that he was in the right, but even the interviewer seemed to struggle to keep a polite facade up.

Only a few minutes later, Sciath paused the video. What a scandal. Even if it's not her actual father, it's not a good look. What do you guys think will happen? Frankly, I dont think it's her; the style is general enough. The small similarities are things you can find in any greatsword users technique. This just seems to be someone angry; he will need to change his face and identity if you ask me. But what if it was true?

Matt wanted to say that Susanne was going to kill the man, but kept quiet as the other nobles started speculating. Instead, he composed a message to Susanne and gave her his best wishes, and told her to contact him, Liz, or Aster if she needed anything. While they kept in touch, their messages were usually on the shorter side, with Susanne being such a quiet person, but he felt this was a prime opportunity for her to vent her frustrations if ever there was one.

Liz was tearing down Susanne's father when one of the other nobles asked what Matt thought.

His answer came easily. My parents died when I was young, but they would have never tried to sell me out for a few minutes of fame or temporary wealth. It's disgusting, and he should be ashamed, but clearly, with his self-admitted behavior, he had no pride or decency to lose.

Sciath agreed. Well put. My own parents would never do something like that. Im fairly sure my uncle Baroub would kill the man if he had the chance. He's a bit more feral, and very family oriented.

Liz smiled as Matt knew Sciath brought up her connection to Baroub on purpose, as he was good friends with Mara and Leon, and was sort of an uncle to Liz and her other siblings.

Yes, Im sure Uncle Bob would not take kindly to such behavior. Even if Queen isnt Susanne, the real Susanne must be devastated that her father is willing to try and make a quick buck on her name, especially after everything else he has put their family through. Who admits to abandoning their family so readily?

One of the lesser nobles, Brandon, shrugged. As much as everyone here doesn't want to admit it, we all have relatives who wouldnt hesitate to do the same if they were in the same position.

That started a whole new debate about whether or not anyone's family would treat them so callously, which Matt mostly ignored.

Thankfully, the meeting had truly been about Sciath flexing her hot new gossip, and once that was discussed to death, they were able to leave without being rude. That in and of itself was a bit of a shock for Matt, as he couldnt imagine getting a party together to talk about the latest gossip. Not that he never gossiped or talked about such things, but he wouldnt get his friends together just to show off he had the newest piece of news.

It wasnt until they were safely back in the estate with Leon there to block anyone from spying on them that Matt and Liz let loose the torrent of things they had to say about Susannes father.

Leon didnt try to stop them, but did leave them with a small nugget of wisdom. Someone who is willing to do that to their own flesh and blood is so deeply unhappy, nothing can make them better and they will eventually self-destruct.

Matt tried to take comfort in the words, but knew it was a hollow statement at best, no matter Leon's good intentions. He well knew that Leon was the type to die for his kids, and would never do something like that, but Matt knew plenty of detestable people who were more than willing to sell family out and not lose a moment's sleep over it.

Susannes father seemed the type.

Thankfully, when the interview went live a few weeks later, it was quickly pushed out of the news cycle thanks to a duchess affair being leaked, and that had a much greater draw thanks to the very public battle between her husband and her lover.

Matt was pretty sure Carol, or at least the Path management system, had something to do with the leak, but he was just happy it kept the spotlight off Susanne.

Aster arrived soon after, and was excited about her trip with Mara. She now seemed even more inclined to eventually become queen herself. Matt still had no idea how she found that desirable, having dealt with even one case for Leon, but he agreed to support her in any way he could.

Thankfully, one of the longest years of his life ended, and they were free to return to delving with their body doubles taking their places, though even that delving session didnt last too long. Eleanor and Ethans Tier 10 tournament was right around the corner, and they wanted to be there for the kids. Taking another year off wouldnt be the end of the world, as they were going to do a mission while they were there, which they could use to redeem essence stones.

Counterespionage didnt seem particularly fun, but apparently Queen would be there doing the same thing, as it was something of a rite of passage for high end Pathers, so they had to do it eventually.

Matt couldnt say he was looking forward to doing counterespionage work, but he was looking forward to seeing Eleanor and Ethan again. The two of them, while not exceptional, should be able to make it to Tier 12 or 13 without too much issue, though their getting any further on the Path was in doubt.

Still, he and Liz felt responsible for the two of them, and Aster wanted to meet them, so they happily accepted the mission.

Susanne even said she had a surprise for them, which only added to the anticipation.

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