“I’m happy to go, unless you want it,” Jason said to the young woman. “It’s already gone through most of its abilities.”

She looked at the state Mobley was in and shook her head.

“No, you go ahead,” she told him.

“Think you can handle it, Asano?” Vincent asked.

Jason set off towards the tortoise at a casual stroll, which still outpaced the tortoise at full flight.

“I’ll muddle through,” he said.

56. Gary’s Gift

56

Gary’s Gift

Jason and Mobley passed each other as Jason walked in the direction of the rune tortoise.

“Sorry, mate,” Jason commiserated. The burned and blackened would-be adventurer just shot him a contemptuous look and kept walking. Jason wasn’t sure if it was the immediate circumstances that drew the man’s ire, or just general dislike. Jason had become an outsider to the group, for a couple of reasons.

The first was Jason’s unusual mannerisms and general disregard for status and etiquette. The same traits that helped him get along with the people in every town and village they passed through didn’t endear him to the wealthy scions that made up his fellow candidates. For them, status was everything, and only someone like Humphrey, born at the very top of the pile, could disregard it.

The other reason they disliked him was his friendship with Humphrey. The Geller family stood at the peak of Greenstone society, and their local power was just a fragment of their world-spanning influence. On top of that, Danielle Geller was the strongest adventurer to come out of Greenstone in generations. Building a friendship with her son was a ticket to the top not just for an adventurer, but their entire family.

For some of the candidates, making a connection with Humphrey was more important than passing the field assessment. Having their chances monopolised by Jason left them increasingly rankled. Jason didn’t much like those who shunned him for this reason, finding moments to tell him that he should know his place. He much preferred someone like Liana Stelline, who disliked him for himself rather than having an agenda.

Jason moved forwards until he was just outside what he estimated to be the maximum range for the rune tortoise’s powers, based on its battle with Mobley. He had a new wristband, which had a small razor that could be easily pushed in and out of a sheath. The tiny blade was in no way an effective weapon, but the sharp edge was perfect for quickly and easily drawing a shallow line of blood on the back of his hand.

Holding the cut away from him, leeches started spraying out of the wound like he’d knocked the side off a fire hydrant.

“Now I know what an emptying balloon feels like,” he muttered. “Alright, Colin; fetch.”

What came next was a slow-motion pursuit as Jason’s sedately ambulating pile of leeches undulated in the direction the tortoise’s soporific escape.