Essence Vision

"How are you feeling, Lorelai? Anything hurting?"

Dignitas knew that asking the girl if she felt any discomfort was quite meaningless, as she would most likely already have said so to Doctor Neil. Still, he wanted her to know he cared about her.

"I'm okay, really!" Lorelai waved her hands in nervousness. "I can see… so much more now."

Thankfully, both the Implant and his eye seemed to have worked as replacements for her old ones. There seemed to be no sign of anything harmful going on.

"Well, don't push yourself. Did you receive Death's Vision, perhaps?"

The All-Seeing Eyes, if granted the power to foresee attacks, would've definitely made an already broken ability even more powerful.

Dignitas wasn't quite sure as to whether such power could be wielded by one person, but he trusted that Lorelai could handle it.

"Umm, yeah! I've got this thing on my screen now called Essence Vision. Here, you can take a look."

Suddenly, a bluish holographic screen appeared in Dignitas' eyes. It had been quite a long time since he looked at a status, let alone his. It was mostly because his growth had been stagnant.

___

|Lorelai Seraph|

|19,F|

Rank: D+

ATK: C DEF: D

AGI: C+ MANA: C+

|Skills|

|Wind Step| | B |

Step on what cannot be stepped on. Use the wind as a foothold and run through the air with ease.

|Ammo Replenish| | C- |

Will automatically detect when the user is low or has run out of ammunition, and will refill it. It can also be manually filled.

|***** Style| | ? |

A sword style that has yet to be named. It fuses unpredictability with elegance. As this style has not yet been embodied truly by its user, it will not be assigned a rank.

|Essence Vision| | S |

The All-Seeing Eyes, gifted by Meza, Goddess Of The Hunt, fused with an eye that holds the power of Death's Vision. While still keeping the abilities of its parent skills, Essence Vision allows its user to sense the presence of any entity within a five hundred meter radius, their mana pool, and their current condition.

___

Lorelai showing him her status was basically tantamount to her trusting him a great deal. Even when Dignitas first met his teammates during the entrance exam, they never once showed each others' statuses.

"...what." Something caught Dignitas' eye. He blinked a few times just to make sure it was really true and the screen wasn't glitching.

"An S rank skill?"

Dignitas almost dropped to the floor at this. Was it even possible to have something this strong this early? This single skill alone most likely shifted the power scale with its mere presence alone!

Just being able to sense people was already a big plus. But combined with the fact that it apparently had a five hundred meter radius, and not to mention the capability of discerning a target's mana pool and condition (health), it made it a true monster of a skill.

"You're amazing, Lorelai." Dignitas rapidly switched between the screen and the girl in bed as he complimented her.

"Oh! Hehe… it's nothing. It's all thanks to you."

Dignitas loathed to think what would come to be of Lorelai's opponents if she were to use this skill against them.

And supposedly, it could also use the powers of the ones before it. So did this mean she could use Death's Vision: Self as well?

Too many questions, but Dignitas couldn't find it in him to strain the girl too much. There was always time to talk later on.

"Are you two done with your love talk?" Professor Shib's head poked through the curtains. "Good. Doctor Neil has the release papers ready by the receptionist, so just stop by when you're ready to head home, miss Seraph. See you two at school."

Dignitas turned to Lorelai once their teacher had left. "So? How about it? Wanna go home? What do you feel like doing?"

"Umm, I'm still pretty tired. Can I come over to your place to sleep?"

"R–right, there was that…"

It only lasted for a day, but Dignitas still vividly remembered how Lorelai had acted like a housewife once she moved in. The cooking, cleaning, and even the laundry had been done by her.

He feared she would try to continue doing so if she set foot inside his dorm room. But then again, he couldn't refuse Lorelai. Especially with the pleading expression she had on her face.

"I guess it'll be okay. Let me send Professor Shib a message and ask him. If he approves, I'll let you stay." He said as he patted her head.

***

Once Dignitas and Lorelai had finished talking and the latter confirmed she was ready to go back home, they left the hospital.

Bigsby had texted Dignitas that his interrogation would take a bit more time and that he'd simply message the author when he was ready.

The time was just nearing the afternoon, and Shib had granted the two an actual leave of absence, so Dignitas didn't see a reason not to head home straight away.

"Say, I've been thinking."

"What is it, Diggy?" Lorelai replied with an expectant look on her face.

"Diggy?"

"It's a cute name, don't you think? Diggy, Dignitas."

"Right… whoa, never had any people call me that before."

Dignitas didn't seem particulatly averse to the would-be pet name, so Lorelai took it as a sign of approval.

"Anyway, now that we've gotten your eyes fixed, we need to get started on studying for the entrance exam. I've missed out on multiple self-study sessions thanks to my recent trip."

"A study session?" Lorelai's face started to brighten, and stars seemed to appear in her pupils, sparking. "Just the two of us?"

"Well, you're living in my dorm room, and you've also missed out on two days of school work, so why not catch up on the material?"

"Ehh… can we duel instead? I don't feel like reading…"

Even when she was her old self, Lorelai never made it a habit to study a lot. In terms of combat and practical application, she was top tier. The same couldn't be said for theoretical studies, however.

That old trait of hers seemed to have been unaffected by the personality change. Maybe some things just existed for all Lorelai's.

"Well, alright. I kinda do wanna see you in action as well."

"Yay!" Lorelai raised her hand in the air. "How about I fight you with one hand?"

"You're not that skilled."

Dignitas was curious to see how both of them had adapted to the recent physical changes in their bodies. While admittedly it wouldn't be fair due to him only having one eye, it would still serve as great practice.

"Welcome, Student IB-401, and Student LS-337."

The A.I's same, unchanging monotone voice greeted the two as they entered the Training Hall. With but a small murmur from Dignitas, the A.I began changing the environment into what the two of them were the most familiar with.

The Colosseum Arena. By now, it had been somewhat of a treasured memory for Dignitas. Part of it was due to the unforgettable fiasco that was the first entrance exam, but a larger part was simply because of its versatility and accessibility.

Shingg! Dainsleif's red blade emerged beautifully. Dignitas pointed the sharp edge of the sword towards Lorelai, who stood on the other end of the arena.

On the other side, her personal weapons appeared on her back. The A.I kept a detailed profile on its students, and could replicate their personal armory whenever it was necessary.

Lorelai had the A.I conjure both of the weapons she had been using, a sword and a bow with a quiver full of arrows.

"Bring it on, Lorelai. Just cause you've got an S rank skill doesn't mean this'll be an easy fight."

"Ehh… but I don't want to hurt you, Diggy. Will you just surrender?"

"Not a chance. Come on then, Lorelai." Seeing how hesitant she still was, he thought of a way to get her to fight. "If you win this battle, I'll do whatever you want me to do, no questions asked."

Lorelai's ears suddenly perked up, and her heart rate started increasing. It sounded like what someone who acted in a romance novel would say, and she was all for it.

"Heheh… anything…"

"That's right, any–whoa!"

Without warning, Lorelai closed the distance between them and began attacking Dignitas.

Instead of engaging in a strength bout and hoping she would win, Lorelai played into her theme of unpredictability and casted Wind Steps.

With each spell she casted, Lorelai frolicked off the ground. This way of moving caught Dignitas off guard and made way for her to land a few barely-blocked slashes.

It didn't help that Lorelai was clearly taking advantage of Dignitas' reduced field of vision and purposely attacking his left side.

Now that Dignitas only had one eye, he was only able to see a hundred and sixty five degrees around him. Any more than that, and he would have to move his head.

It was a glaring disability that would come to bite Dignitas on the behind whenever he entered in a battle, but was something that he would have to learn how to adapt to.

In Midania, if you couldn't change yourself or the world around, then you would have no choice but to be swept by the waves.