44 Caution : Compromise

After the initial tension began to settle down, the grey-skinned man introduced himself as Krone, a member of the Ashvalla tribe.

Contrary to their original guesses, Krone's Blessing was neither adaptation nor absorption. Instead, he had the infinitely rarer [Mimickry] Blessing. This allowed him to mimic the traits of anything he was in contact with but, unlike the previous two Blessings, he could mix and match multiple traits so long as he had the SP to sustain the transformation.

Like most Blessings, Krone's [Mimickry] had two components, one requiring him to touch what he wanted to mimic and the other allowing him to emulate something he has seen, though only the physical appearance and not the capabilities. This second ability allowed him to copy the appearance of Linnaeus and, while he would have been able to copy Eliza's as well, she expressly forbade him from doing so.

The only restriction for Krone's Blessing was that he was within 50m of the targets he had used his [Mimickry] on. This meant he couldn't simply copy the appearance of a bird and fly freely as, the moment he flew beyond the effective range, the mimicry would end instantly.

Even with the detriments, Linnaeus was envious of the versatility of Krone's Blessing as he could easily think of several ways to exploit it. This including things like disguising himself as a member of an enemy Party to cause confusion. He could also use it in a group of monsters, selecting specific traits to enhance his own Skills and Abilities.

Though Linnaeus couldn't really do anything about his envy, he didn't let it bother him too much. He had actually become rather fond of his [Barrier Master] Blessing so, while it didn't seem as useful as Krone's [Mimickry], he didn't look down on it. After all, it had saved his life more times than he could count and, while not one of the famously powerful Blessings, it was still extremely useful in a Party.

With this in mind, Linnaeus once again tried to recruit Krone to his Party but, despite his fear of Eliza, he still refused, saying in a cautious tone, "I do not work well with others. My nature already got my previous Party wiped out so I intend to atone for my mistakes here. There is nothing waiting for me back in the Tower..."

When Linnaeus first heard his reasoning, he felt a small amount of respect towards Krone as it wasn't easy to accept responsibility and seek penance for one's mistakes.

Eliza didn't seem to share his sentiments, however, as she made a show of huffing before remarking, "If you really want to repent for your actions, there is no sense in staying here wallowing in despair. If anything, you should be more determined to live. Only by accomplishing something with the life you have been given can you make up for your past mistakes."

Though he grimaced in response to Eliza's words, Krone didn't make any attempt to refute them. He could see the reasoning behind her words and, while they were more than a little harsh, he couldn't help but reflect on them. The most important thing, however, was that the Ashvallan tribe had been one of the vassal tribes of the Felborn for thousands of years. His family had even been helped out by the Evendoom family in the past so, while he might take offense to the words of others, Eliza's were not something he could simply disregard.

After several awkward minutes of tense silence, Krone ultimately released a tired sigh before rising to his feet. When standing, he was approximately 200cm tall so, compared to the 153cm Linnaeus and 158cm Eliza, he was practically a giant.

Linnaeus felt a little tense when Krone suddenly stood up but he quickly relaxed when the latter said in a solemn tone, "I will join your Party and help you leave the Crucible. This will be my penance."

Rather than accept outright, Eliza huffed in response to Krone's words before pointing to Linnaeus and saying, "Say it to him, not me. I'm not the Party Leader so stop ignoring Lin."

Hearing the berating tone of Eliza, Krone awkwardly rubbed the back of his head before turning to face Linnaeus as he said, "I'd like to join your Party. I will do my best as your Vanguard..."

Linnaeus could tell that Krone had significantly more respect for Eliza than he did for himself but, considering the identity of the latter, he couldn't really blame him. In fact, once Krone knew of his background, the man would likely look down on him so, for the time being, Linnaeus could only do his best as Party Leader to prevent any issues from arising.

Without beating around the bush, Linnaeus accepted Krone into the Party and, as a show of good faith, kept the function that allowed each member to view the others' Status active. He had already discussed with Eliza so, while she wasn't too comfortable with other people knowing her Status, she still accepted his reasoning. Since she had already confirmed that Krone wouldn't be a threat, as she had forced him to reveal his Status prior to joining the Party, she wasn't as worried as she otherwise would have been.

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[Status]

Name: Krone Castille

Title: Bruiser(+3 Str, +5 Con, +2 Spi per Level)

Race: Ashvalla

Age: 19

Gender: Male

Level: 34

Health: 4272/4272

Soul Power: 3006/3006

Strength: 129+103.2

Constitution: 178+142.4

Agility: 74+25.2

Dexterity: 103+45.2

Intelligence: 54+2

Wisdom: 71+2

Spirit: 113+24.6

Charisma: 11

Luck: 23+1

Free Attributes: 0

Skills: [Kinu Comprehension:(-)],[*Mimicry:LV58*], [Brute:LV39], [Herculean Strength:LV30], [Healthy:LV43], [Vital Spirit:Lv35], [Deft Hands:LV19], [Heroic Spirit:LV26], [Sense Danger:LV41], [Martial Arts:LV53], [Grappling:LV52],[Acrobatics:LV51], [Footwork:LV48], [Iron Stomache:LV52], [Pain Tolerance:LV54], [Abnormal Status Resistance:LV44], [Perception:LV29], [Dismantling:LV37], [Cooking:LV28]

Abilities: [Strength Amplification:LV51], [Body Hardening:LV55], [Trait Mimicry:LV57], [Doppel:LV52]

Magic: [Enhance:LV53]

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When Linnaeus saw how much Health Krone had compared to himself, he began to understand why so many people invested in the Constitution attribute early on.

Though their Levels weren't that far apart, Linnaeus barely had a third of Krone's Health, despite the fact that the latter was only around 1000 SP short of his total. This showed how important Spirit could be in the grand scheme of things, especially with Skills like [Heroic Spirit] providing a persistent bonus.

Still, despite Krone's clear advantages, Linnaeus felt that a battle between them would be remarkably close. The latter might have six Levels on him but, with the difference in their Agility and his overall mobility being higher, there was a good chance he could outpace the much larger man. Though he might lack the means to actually damage Krone, the same could be said for the latter in regards to himself...

While Linnaeus had been viewing his Status in detail, Krone had been doing the same for him and Eliza. When he saw Eliza's age, combined with her Level, he began to feel a cold sweat on the back of his neck but, when he viewed Linnaeus', confusion became his most prominent emotion.

It wasn't until Krone saw Linnaeus' Charisma and his [Charm] Skill that his confusion turned into a deep and seething rage. He managed to keep it from showing on his face, an easy feat considering he rarely expressed himself, but his mind was abuzz with fury after reaching his unjust conclusion.

Despite Krone's attempt to keep his emotions concealed, Linnaeus was extremely perceptive when it came to such things. He instantly opened a bit of distance between himself and the taller man, two daggers entering into his hands as he asked, "What happened...?" in a low tone.

Rather than Krone answering, it was Eliza who crossed her arms with a cold expression on her face as she venomously stated, "He thinks you used your [Charm] to take advantage of me. What a farce. If you are going to jump to such conclusions and cause trouble, you should just go hide in the water. I decided to follow Lin on my own, not because of some stupid Skill. If you think my upbringing and Spirit would leave me susceptible to a kid's [Charm], you're seriously looking down on me."

Krone was at a loss as to how he should respond but, seeing the icy look in Eliza's eyes, he ultimately averted his own and stated, "I'm sorry...I jumped to conclusions..."

What Krone, and Linnaeus, couldn't have expected was that, immediately after the former's apology, Eliza had grabbed the latter from behind. She hugged Linnaeus tight enough to pick him up off the ground a bit as she stated, "Lin is like my precious little brother. I will protect him until he is strong enough to protect himself. If you try to harm him, I will break you."

Now, Linnaeus and Krone were both at a loss, albeit for entirely different reasons. The former felt like he was being treated like a child while the latter felt like he was trying to antagonize a tiger's cub when the mother was still present. He also began to understand that, while Linnaeus may not have used his [Charm] against her, it was apparent that Eliza was rather taken with the pale-haired youth.

After hugging Linnaeus for several seconds longer than necessary, Eliza finally set him back down on the ground. This brought Linnaeus back to his senses and, after lightly patting his chest, he looked at Krone and stated, "I didn't choose my appearance, nor did I grant myself this Skill. Instead of judging me for things I have no control over, you should observe my actions with your own two eyes. I will prove to you that I'm not the person you believe me to be..."

Hearing the conviction in Linnaeus' words, Krone continued to stand in silence for several seconds longer before giving a curt nod and saying, "I'll be watching closely..." Then, after rubbing the back of his head again, he added, "Sorry..." in a decidedly more awkward tone of voice.

Linnaeus just gave a curt nod of his own in response as further words would only exacerbate the matter once again. He knew that Krone wouldn't have apologized if not for the presence of Eliza so, until he could prove himself a worthy leader, he had to be patient. So long as Krone didn't try and contest his position as Party Leader, there wouldn't be any problems in the short term.

After collecting his thoughts, Linnaeus gathered the attention of his two companions before saying, "Now that we have a capable Vanguard, we'll go ahead and try to recruit our final Party member. If she agrees to join us, we'll spend a few days acclimating to each other before taking on one of the territorial Kings. We can harvest a few Soul Kindling before deciding when we want to move on to the next Floor."

Eliza had already been made aware of Linnaeus' plans so she just gave a small nod in response. As for Krone, he crossed his arms but, without having to ask his question, Linnaeus began to explain his observations and the capabilities of their prospective Party member. This made Krone feel awkward but, as it did clear up a lot of things, he followed up the explanation with an understanding nod.

Once everyone was on the same page, Linnaeus discussed their basic formation and how they would deal with any enemies that appeared. Krone, as expected, would be in the front but, so long as they were not in active combat, Linnaeus would keep his [Barrier Aura] on each of them. This would keep them safe from surprise attacks and, depending on the situation, they would change their strategy in order to conserve SP and make the best use of their individual strengths.

Krone noticed that Linnaeus intended to fight in the frontline with him but, rather than try and argue against it, he decided this was better than leaving him in the back with Eliza. He didn't fully trust the pale-haired boy so, for the time being, he was more comfortable with fighting alongside the youth rather than entrusting his exposed back to him. With this setup, he would be able to observe how Linnaeus fought and, while this wasn't the determining factor of a person's character, it was possible to get a loose grasp on their true nature in the heat of battle.

After their formation had been decided, the trio began their slow trek towards their unsuspecting prospect. Her domicile was located a few territories away from Krone's so it would be a good three hours before they reached their destination. This afforded them a lot of opportunities to familiarize themselves with each other's combat style, something that was of paramount importance to nascent Parties...