Psychic Parasite

Chapter 168: Perceive the World with Naivety

The brown coloured Relic was slightly bigger than the previous one, having a side of 11 centimetres based on an approximate measurement. Jyorta watched it hover before him, lifted by his psychic arm.

It slightly shivered, like a boat rowing on a gentle sea. It lit up with a faint brown hue but didn't exert any changes. Jyorta couldn't sense anything other than what he normally perceived.

Madam Rizenne's voice resounded in his ear, "This is a skin-type Relic and houses a sensory-based Skill, Altitude Perception. Place the Relic anywhere on your Skin and you should be able to perceive the altitude of your current position."

Jyorta rolled up the sleeves on his left arm, placing the Relic on the exposed skin. Immediately, a sense of vertigo enveloped him, akin to an illusion of free fall. It was like the vertigo wasn't produced from a state of rapid descent but a stationary state, confusing his senses.

The psychic arm lifted the Relic, severing its connection with his skin, dissipating the weird sensation. The voice continued, "The feeling of descent determines your altitude; the greater the feeling, the greater the implication of your altitude. Only through practice will you be able to convert this feeling into the system of unit, metre."

Jyorta nodded his head, allowing his psychic arm to press the Relic against his skin once again. The feeling of vertigo enveloped him once again, inducing a churning sensation in his stomach. If this feeling persisted for longer durations, Jyorta was bound to vomit.

Jyorta opened his mouth, his words akin to a whisper, "Ma'am, can you please lift my body and vary my height? I want to get a feel for the change before my body can no longer tolerate this sensation."

"Good choice," The voice praised him and lifted his body, the ascent steady. Jyorta's body levitated, proceeding towards the ceiling at a speed of one metre per second. His ascent stopped when his head was just 20 centimetres from the ceiling. Pausing for a moment, his descent began.

For every metre his body travelled, the voice stated the distance in his ears, giving him an inkling as to how the sensation varied. Jyorta's body travelled up and down three times, landing on the ground by the end of the third journey.

Jyorta's expression was scrunched up, on the verge of puking. Madam Rizenne stopped moving him, turning the psychic arm seeped inside his body blue, alleviating his sensation, and recovering his bearings. The healing effect abated the sensation of vertigo, stabilising his senses.

Jyorta distanced the Relic from his skin, heaving a sigh of relief. He got some vague sensations in the previous run but, it wasn't to the extent he could glean insight into the workings of the Skill, Altitude Perception.

The voice instructed him, "It is relatively easy for Warriors to bear this sensation, considering their developed physiques. Among all the Relics that are a result of us humans, only Tier 3 Relics can be used in battles by Espers. Any effect the Tier 1 Relics produce, they can be naturally achieved by Espers from Tier 3 onwards. This is why Espers are greatly valued."

"Espers are good at defence, thanks to their domains. Their attacks are swift, actuating anywhere within their domains in a second. Their minds are developed, capable of multi-tasking. Their cognition is unmatched, allowing them to excel in the fields of research. They have great mobility, able to fly from Tier 3 onwards. They can treat people, thanks to their psychic arms. These are just the basics of what Espers can achieve."

"Never feel envious of Warriors after witnessing their Skills. They may have strong bodies and don't lack any inherent weaknesses but, Warriors are incapable of protecting. They are strong one-on-one but, they don't have any long-ranged attacks. Only Developers Nurture long-ranged emission-type Skills but even they prove useless at Tier 4 and Tier 5."

The voice concluded, "Warriors and Espers have their advantages and disadvantages. Only by working together in harmony can the maximum effect be achieved. When you lead your own team into the Wilds in the future, remember to select members whose Skills can complement one another."

"Thank you, ma'am; I'll never forget your advice." Jyorta nodded, slightly bowing towards Madam Rizenne. A moment later, the other four Line Controllers too had finished checking out their respective Relics.

They then exchanged their Relics; Jyorta grabbed hold of a peach coloured Relic, wondering the Skill contained in it. This Relic was soft to the touch, almost like a jelly but was sturdy enough to not deform under his hold.

The voice detailed in his ears, "This is an auditory-based Relic, housing a sound-based Skill, Enhanced Hearing. This is by far the most commonly Nurtured Skill. All it allows you is to hear better than normal. Place it on your ear and activate it through your psychic arm."

Jyorta did as told, seeping his psychic arm into the Relic and placing it beside his right ear. He could hear faint murmurs, the contents of which weren't clear. He gazed at the students seated on the first row, ones who were conversing with their friends in hushed tones.

He could neither make out the dialogues nor pinpoint the source of the sounds, making him wonder if the Skill was a dud. Making context of his thoughts based on his facial expressions, Madam Rizenne smiled a little, detailing the concept to him through a psychic arm.

"Unlike other Skills, Enhanced Hearing has to be manually adjusted upon activation. The user will focus his/her senses on the target, listening on to the sounds. But, this is not possible here, thanks to the Skill stored inside a Relic. Relics are not as useful as one might think, possessing numerous restrictions to their usage."

The voice gave him a brief conclusion, "Consider the Skills in Warriors as alive, capable of adjusting their effects, like a tap that can vary the flow of water from zero to maximum. Then the Skills in the Relics are just dead husks of the former, like a faulty tap, capable of only going zero or maximum. You can't concentrate, assign, focus effect, etc. with Relics. This is more pronounced in the Skills in Tier 3 Relics, considering their variable usage when within Developers."

Jyorta and the other four Line Controllers exchanged their Relics, looking into their various effects. Jyorta experienced the Skills: Focus Vision, Enhanced Smell, and Thermal Vision.

Focus Vision was no different from a telescope, but with a fixed range and magnification. Enhanced Smell was just like Enhanced Hearing, unable to be concentrated. Jyorta classified it as a dud Relic.

The last was the Relic with the Skill, Thermal Vision. It proved to be quite insightful, allowing him to see all heat signatures, and identify the sources and sinks. It was fun to use and didn't strain his nerves upon extended usage.

They were the last group, once they were done experiencing the effects of all six Relics, Madam Rizenne motioned for them to return to their seats. As Jyorta approached his seat, he noticed Dalna Doppler glance his way, the sentiment underneath her gaze confounding him.

'What does she want?' Jyorta wondered, sporting a blank expression as he seated himself. The moment he sat, he noticed Dalna Doppler redirect her gaze to the dais, indifferent in her actions.

There was a small spark in her eyes as she gazed at Madam Rizenne, her thoughts unknown. Jyorta mentally shook his head, unwilling to get involved with the other party. It wasn't as if he was averse to the notion of talking with her; in fact, it was the opposite.

He still remembered the regal aura Dalna Doppler exuded after placing first in the obstacle race in the first exercise they had since coming to the military academy. He would be lying if he said he wasn't attracted to her.

But, his mind was currently plagued by many things. The memories belonging to Gajara Rahi stored in his subsoul, constantly birthing an ego that wrestled with the ego he had in his subsoul. There were the memory fragments he had obtained from the Floating Spiders, possessing a treasure trove of knowledge and experience. He had yet to begin comprehending them.

These were just the two prime concerns. There was also the presence of the hound he witnessed in the Mental Realm. Its existence prevented him from attempting a breakthrough, unless Atika Light encased some safety measures in place.

All these factors constantly pressured him, preventing him from just enjoying his life in the military academy. The moment he saw someone, he would immediately try to glean information into their background, to see if they might prove useful to him in the future.

If they had connections that would help him, then he would try to forge a relationship with them. Jyorta was getting such thoughts ever since he returned from the headquarters of Grapple Force. They were a result of him trying to understand the memory fragments from the previous life and comprehend them based on his current self.

It was in an effort to better understand himself and bank on the experiences of his previous life. Since he didn't have any attachments to his previous life, there were many experiences in them that shaped his current character but their essences were a blank slate. He wanted to fill them up and enrich his character, and not be as hollow as his current self.

A part of him hinted that such an action was a must in order for his future growth.

These were the thoughts of adults who survived in the society. As a student, Jyorta didn't wish to lose his innocence this early into the picture. He preferred to be a student who acted as part of the age and wholeheartedly strived to study and better himself.

'One step at a time; I shouldn't rush towards the future and forget to enjoy the present. All responsibilities aside, I am just 16 years old. I should enjoy my teenage and perceive the world with some naivety.'