"H…. How? How did you break into Solid Stage so quickly?"
When she saw Eren approaching her with a charming smile, Altashia inquired. He continued walking and gave her a gentle hug before responding.
"Well… it seems Sid sharing his attainments and his experiences in using the Red Lightning helped me a lot. And when I used the red-lightning runic stele, I reaped far better gains than I thought I'd reap."
***************
The butcher wasn't lying when he said he had progressed even further in the way of the elements than before. This was courtesy of the runic stele lent to him by the army. It was just that he had exaggerated its effects. He made the runic stele responsible for all the progress he had made, most of which was due to his abilities.
A runic stele was a metallic surface or a stone's face that was etched with runes made by at least a Grandmaster level ranker. Such a stele could only be carved by a ranker of this caliber who had reached a certain point in their elemental path.
Hence these runic steles were precious. They could only be obtained from official sources without going broke. Of course, the black market would also contain runic steles obtained by cultists during their explorations. But most of the time, such steles were counterfeits.
Then there were the runic steles, which were meant to harm the rankers that used them. Because of this, the legal method of obtaining these steles was more expensive, but also more reliable.
One also had to note that runic steles weren't common ranking resources. Only rankers who had backing or rankers who had made enough contributions to their establishments were privy to use them.
Furthermore, since the lightning element wasn't that common, the amount of army contribution points required to lend such a stele was no joke. That's why Eren had to use Arjun's help to get his hands on this precious ranking resource.
The runic stele for the red-lightning element that the butcher had received was a square-shaped metallic surface. It would spark with red lightning every time someone touched it.
This runic stele was created by a ranker with an official title of Red Ripple. In the stele's description that Eren had read before collecting it, Red Ripple was in the liquid Stage of the A-Rank at the time of creating it.
The ranker was expected to isolate themselves and find an ambiance that generated mana compatible with the stele and ranker's affinity. Then they were supposed to drink supplementary potions, if any, to ease their mana circuits and minds before touching the stele.
The stele could be used by rankers imbuing their element's mana into it. The stele would then slowly take control over the ranker's five senses. This would enable them to experience the spells, conditions, fragments of memories, and thoughts of the ranker that had created the stele.
Some steles would also contain the personal messages of the rankers who had made them. They might also contain the guidance recorded by such entities, enabling the low-level rankers to benefit greatly from them. Of course, such steles would cost even more.
Eren had not used runic steles in his previous timeline. He didn't have the reach he had today to get his hands on such premium stuff. He also had to thank his military status for this.
Eren was provided a complete set of items and ranking resources when he applied for a red-lighting runic stele. When he first used the stele, he couldn't gain anything from it. Then, during his third session, his attainments in the red-lightning aspect of lightning suddenly improved even further because of one particular instance that was recorded in the stele.
And yet, Eren didn't dwell on the stele much. Because comprehending all the experiences and thoughts that were recorded in the stele could take weeks on end if not months. And that was not something he was willing to invest in at this point. He was only using the stele as a reason for his attainment in the red lightning anyway. So he didn't mind.
Plus, the runic stele was going to stay with him for the upcoming months before he was required to submit it back to the army. So he had ample time to further his understanding of lightning.
The use of runic steles wasn't limited to rankers' statuses only. Anyone could use them, even if they were not as high ranked as a ranker who had created them. It was primarily concerned with the ranker's way of using the element, it was not rank bound for the most part.
It was a general rule that only Ace rank entities could use runic steles to gain and improve attainment in the elements. Since Novice rankers are not aware of the elemental aspect of their elements, they were not able to take advantage of the stele. Their path as a ranker had only begun when they were in the Novice rank after all.
**********
"I… I'm speechless at your improvement, Eren. I could have never thought you'd be able to get into the Solid Stage of the Ace rank so soon."
Altashia said with expressions of bewilderment written on her face. Eren smiled and responded.
"Neither did I. But sometimes speaking your goals out loud helps you channel your efforts in the right direction. This is one of those instances."
Altashia also returned his smile with an understanding nod and a slight smile of her own before narrowing her eyes on him.
"So… are you looking for trouble with me?"
Eren smirked and did not reply verbally. He took out his two swords and imbued his mana into them, enabling them to bathe in the aura of their respective elements.
The Rigor Mortis was in his right hand while Anduril was in his left. Altashia narrowed her eyes on the Anduril. She felt she wanted to ask something. But on second thought, she decided to accept Eren's challenge right away.
"I should have figured it out after you invited me here of all places. Hehe!
Eren, I won't be easy on you just because you are my FRIEND. I hope you know that. Hehehe!"
Eren heard Altashia's statement and his smiling face was frozen. His dual-elemental mana stopped manifesting for a while before bursting into intense waves.
The butcher was angry about being friend zoned.
He was angry because, after all his progress with Altashia, she still dared to only refer to him as 'friend'. He knew Altashia was just trying to tease him. This was evident by the way she emphasized the word "friend" in a dramatic manner. But this was a tease he wasn't willing to overlook.
"Altashia darling. It's the other way around. Don't expect ME to go easy on you just because I want to tap that perky ass."
