Chapter 56: Shredded

"In that case, I think that I might have something good for you. After Rend, there is an advanced version of the skill known as Shred. They're similar in function, but Shred is much more deadly at the same rank and leaves jagged wounds that make it difficult to stop the bleeding if they lack magical healing. I will get someone to bring you a skill book to see if you can learn it, or teach it to your Hawk. If either one of you knows it, you shouldn't have too many problems fighting above your level as an Awakened warrior." Overlord Drake announced. [Better than Rend? Is he being silly? Rend is the greatest skill in the world.] Hawk complained. [It's an improved Rend used by more powerful creatures. Trust him, it's a good thing.] Karl replied. Then he bowed politely to the powerful warrior. "I would appreciate any help we can get. I don't know what the limits of this class are, but if we can learn some more powerful attack magic, it would be incredible." The Headmaster reached into a bag hanging from his side and pulled out a book that looked the same as the one for Rend, but with a bit of silver trim on it. "I have a spare copy with me, just send the new one to my office and I will give this one to Student Karl." The Headmaster suggested. "That is much easier. My assistant should still be waiting there, and he has one with him. It looks like the lull is over, if these two are anything to go by. It has been a few years since any really outstanding students began their training, and we were beginning to worry that it was only luck that brought us a flood of geniuses in the first few years." Overlord Drake announced. The Headmaster handed over the book, which was warm and soft in Karl's hand, and everyone stared at him expectantly. "Go ahead, try to open it and see what happens." The Headmaster insisted. Karl gently flipped open the manuscript, and a flood of power flowed into his body. [Skill Learned: Shred] [Pet Skill Learned: Shred] Hawk popped out of the Beast Space and landed on Karl's shoulder to show off, making sure that everyone could see the blood-red feathers streaked through the cream colour of his legs. "Wow, I was not expecting that. But where did the book go?" Karl asked. "It vanishes if someone who can instantly learn the skill uses it. I have to tell you, that was a shock to the Inscriptionist teams when they first learned of that little bit of information. They cried for a week when they found out that the books they were making would just vanish to strengthen others, since they couldn't use them themselves." Drake laughed. "So, there are limitations?" Karl asked. The Prince nodded. "Very strict ones, though we don't really understand why. Certain books can exclusively be used by those with certain types of mark, but it varies from skill to skill, and even ones that are similar might not work for the same person. But when there is one that works like this, it saves so much time, and the user will be able to activate the skill at full force, the same as they could for their first skill, with none of the failures or half - power activations in the learning phase." Dana was beginning to get excited about the prospect. "And the Elites that have an affinity for Inscription can just make these? That is incredibly powerful, even if they're not a combat class." The Prince shook his head. "They need an original copy to work from. The only ones they can make are ones that we have managed to find an original working copy for, or that were created with the help of an Elite that has mastered the skill well enough to teach others. The total number of spells that we have tomes for right now can be counted on my fingers, But Rend, Shred, and Golem are the ones that we focus the most on, since they are all advanced skills, and are harder for Elites to learn on their own. Things like Guard and Slash we don't need to use a book for, you can just teach the warriors the skills." Dana nodded in understanding, and the Prince got a curious look on his face before he took out another book from his pocket. "How about you try this one? It's not one that I can use, and our Marks are the same, but I haven't actually had anyone else try it since it was copied out." He suggested, passing her the book. Dana focused, and flipped the cover open, showing an intricately detailed set of notes and diagrams. "That's what I thought would happen. It's a Vine Whip spell that we found in some ancient Ruins. We gave the Headmaster a copy for the Library here as well, but we haven't found any class but the Druids, the ones with the animal paw mark, that can actually use it." Karl examined the book, trimmed with the same silver the Shred tome was before speaking. "That makes sense. The one working as a guard on the train said that his powers didn't activate until he touched a tree, so their bonds to nature would make them the perfect candidate to use a vine spell. If there are others that are animal related, I might be able to use them, while the mages should be able to use ones that are related to their first spell, right? I'm not sure what the mages limits are, but from what I have seen, everyone has their own niche." The Prince nodded. "Exactly. We all have our niche, but nobody knows exactly how to tell what the limits are. If there was some way to accurately define the powers of the Elites, or tell what skills they would be able to use without having an identical class mark test the ability as a reference, it would save us so much time and effort. Too many of us have wasted months trying to learn a new ability that was simply impossible for our Class." He was going to continue, but a knock on the door interrupted them, and a group of men in servant uniforms stepped inside. "Your Highness, there is an urgent matter at the Capital, we need to go." The first man to enter announced. "That is fine. Pass this young mage a copy of the Golem spell so we can see if she can use it. Then we can leave."