Bro, I'm not an Undead!

Chapter 1112: Price For An Eye (1)



The skills from [Bringer of All], that is, those processed from the skill(s) that Replicus inputted into the skill in addition to the Apostles he wanted to merge with, were forcefully emboldened from the rank of their source.

For instance, back in Inhone City, Skullius had used [Bringer of All] in conjunction with [Mana Force] to obtain a bunch of new mana-related skills. They had all been very efficient against the threat at the time, the Galemonger, because they had been elevated generously by means that didn't conform to the logic of Normal, Special, Super or Supreme.

(A/N: Refer to Ch.332.).

These skills were simply better than the original, and where Null Life was involved, Replicus could safely say this wasn't the first time he noticed his prowess breaking Aigas' power system modestly.

All this was to say [Bringer of All] was a cheat Class skill that allowed its user to gain and use skills several levels above what they should have.

This became even more true when Replicus chose to upgrade [Bringer of All] earlier. Now, it allowed him to use three skills as a basis, and he would earn a total of twelve more skills from

each.

[Mana Centurion] was one of these empowered skills, which he retained even after separating from Red Rage and Araeyn.

[Mana Centurion (Super) | Lv.1]

When activated, the user's mana reserves are quintupled while maintaining the quality of mana they produce. A 700% increase in mana regeneration is also granted to all mana cores.

...

At once, Replicus felt his purple core spill out similar mana cores, just as it had done when he first assumed his amalgam form before. However, unlike last time, the effect of [Mana Centurion] did not only apply to his main core, it also extended to the Nature-Bound Malleable Form Core, creating five more of it as well!

This hadn't happened when he was Vohnvolt, because when he activated the skill, the Nature- Bound Malleable Form Core had had its shell removed. Replicus had been busy trying to ensure that this core worked best with his newly acquired concept, Maximum Catalyst.

And so, Replicus now had thirteen cores.

Six purple ones.

Six Malleable Form Cores for Maximum Catalyst.

One for Null Life Essence.

The Progeny's Ju`wtta - the bracers around two of his arms - turned livid and spewed more than a hundred times more Ju`wtte passively, turning Replicus radiant both inside and out.

Thankfully, because of his other mana-related skill [Resource Vault], Replicus didn't have to worry about mana expenditure as much, after all, the skill drastically improved his efficiency with using mana for skills. Most of said skills, when [Resource Vault] was activated, only required 30% of their original cost to cast!

"Good!" one of the phantoms said. "Now we can look towards doing that thing we discussed, huh? With all this mana and such a crazy degree of efficiency, we won't have to worry about the cost of using Reversion to accomplish it, right? Using Progression to turn mana into Nitros wasn't that draining, so this probably won't be all too energy-consuming either." Replicus sighed.

'Calm down. Using Reversion to try what you want with this is likely going to warrant creating something new altogether. That's probably where the cost lies,' he told his phantom.

"You reckon this kind of thing doesn't exist anywhere else beyond the void? I highly doubt it," the phantom argued.

"Master..."

Right then, Replicus' debate with his phantom was interrupted by Yuyui who called to him meekly. She couldn't have known he was busy talking to... himself.

"What is it?" Replicus asked.

He looked at her drooping eyes exposed by the Ju`wtte radiating around them. She looked sad. "About Stylla... I'm sorry I allowed her to get snatched away. I didn't see it coming. I should have seen it coming," she said, accusing herself.

Yuyui had wanted to mention this when Pherdanta was bawling out about Allora's death earlier, but hadn't gotten a chance. They were still battling the masked man then, after all.

Replicus sighed.

"You're starting to overestimate yourself. You have tremendous potential Yuyui, but you have yet to embody it all. I never imagined you to be able to take on an enemy even I wasn't sure how to beat before. The Null Devil King, or I guess, the BoneTender, is a formidable foe. You're no match for him as you are now. Maybe when you awaken all twelve eyes, you'll be able to beat the likes of him, but not now," he said to her.

Yuyui wore a weak smile.

Since arriving on the battlefield, she had taken up a role for herself that she hadn't quite understood. She felt so confident in her new eye that after saving Replicus and the others, she felt that she had become a component so crucial, that its minor glitch would cause the collapse of not only her master's ideals, but everything and everyone he had built up.

This really was exaggerated. Yuyui was indeed a very part of why Replicus had gotten to this point, but she didn't need to continue shouldering such a burden. At least that was what Replicus felt.

Instead of continuing to try to hammer this truth into her, though, Replicus switched the subject.

"You never told me. How did you earn your third eye? I know you were reluctant to engage in physical altercations before. You were so sure this kind of life wasn't for you. To earn your eye, you must have been willing to do something you didn't think you could. My words to you before leaving Deign couldn't possibly have been your only drive, right?"

Before leaving Deign, Replicus had told Yuyui that he would need her help against Skullius. He didn't think saying something like that would have sparked so much drive in Yuyui in the

short term. Or could it?

Yuyui smiled.

"Your words were... a large part of it," she said. "Hearing you say that you needed me in the near future finally pushed me to do something I should have done a long time ago. I might have been hesitant to fight, but I also wanted to live up to your expectations. But... just that wasn't enough. You know my emotions are one of the ways in which I receive my powers. Nothing could trigger them more than my lost memories."

Replicus sockets flashed.

"You finally remembered?" he asked.

Yuyui nodded.

"Yes. I finally did. I had wanted Ferex to be the one to do it before, but... he was gone before I

knew it, and I had drowned in guilt. But then, I went back to Bassbion and Yagrina. They wrenched those memories out the only way they could after I gave them my permission."

"Wrenched?" Replicus asked suspiciously.

"Yes," Yuyui smiled bitterly. "The only way they could help me, was by bringing me to the brink of death and partially extracting my soul. If they killed me instead, the Inhumane Eye would simply restore me. So, I had to try this rather painful method."

Yuyui looked up at Replicus and a tear streamed down her face.

"I remembered it all. It was bittersweet and a lot more... ordinary than I imagined."