Chapter 173: Chapter One Hundred Seventy Four

Bulls, as it turned out. Were BIG. Like, most people knew that, they  knew Bulls were large, and I'd seen this one from a distance before.  Given that, and my own Perception, I should have been prepared for the  size of the animal I was preparing to ride. I should have remained stoic  and unbothered as I closed in to climb onto the back of the best that  was currently being held confined in a small area, waiting for its next  rider. I wasn't.

Standing there next to the Stone hoof  Titanic Ox, I felt...small. Not just physically, I was a big guy, and  even if its sheer mass dwarfed me, I was tall enough to at least look it  in the eye. Not in terms of Impact either, that was something I'd felt  from Zeke, and I knew what it was like. This though...this was  different. This animal was just...more. It was my equal in Impact, in  the weight we imposed on reality, which meant I was essentially feeling  the same thing I would be feeling as a mortal when facing something like  this.

I'd expected to be unbothered by that, really. I'd  stood in the presence of a giant dragon skeleton so big I could fucking  run around in its rib cage, but that was somehow more surreal. It was  too strange to hit me like this was. Still, despite being incredibly  worried about what was coming, I never really considered turning around  and leaving. I felt intimidated like a mortal might have instinctively,  but only as a sort of phantom instinct. It was just the person I used to  be flaring up at an inopportune time. Shane Wyndham might be afraid to  do this, but Solomon wasn't. Solomon had done worse, and that knowledge  let me shake off any lingering worry easily.

The person  the circus had sent to help me out gave me time to sort out how I was  feeling. I don't know if he knew I was worried or not, my mask covered  my face, but regardless he let me wait, and then, when I indicated I was  ready, he led me over to the small boxed in sub pen and let me climb  over the side to sit astride the bull. I figured it would buck as soon  as I got on, but they had it trained I supposed. Once I was on it didn't  move, granted it didn't have much room to move in the smaller section  of pen, which was the point, but still, it was impressive.

The  assistant looked up at me seriously. "Ok, do you understand all the  rules?" I did, and I told him as much, and he nodded again. "Good.  You're free to call a halt at any time, it's tough for a G ranker to get  killed by accident, so if you get thrown don't be afraid to halt the  competition. Getting trampled CAN kill you, and plenty of people have  died that way, so don't take any stupid chances. Are you ready to  start?" His voice contained a warning, clearly having given this speech  to many others and been ignored more than once.

I nodded  and he moved to open the gate. As he did, I went ahead and put my plan  into action. I triggered Leaf on the Wind. While it might have seemed  odd to some people to use that ability to pass this trial, I was pretty  sure it was perfect for multiple reasons. Firstly, my strength was  colossal, and Leaf on the Wind didn't make me weaker, just less affected  by gravity. Being lighter meant that having a grip on the saddle would  be much more effective, with less pull from the bucking of the bull.

The  decreased gravity should also somewhat mitigate the momentum, or at  least my reaction to it. I wished briefly I had some kind of sticking  ability, but I would just have to deal with the current setup. Being so  much lighter should effectively multiply the efficiency of my Might stat  for this though, so I had a decent chance. My other main trump card was  my armor. I hadn't switched it out yet, and the absorption ability of  my gear should be able to handle what little force I had to suffer with  my decreased mass.

With all these idea running through my  head, I was pretty confident as the bull trotted out of the sub pen and  into the main area where the trial would take place. The bull was moving  at a slow and steady plod into the middle of the pen, and I was curious  as to what the hell was going on, at least for a second, until we got  to the middle of the trial area, when the bull stopped. I looked down at  it in curiosity when it did for a second, until finally, with nearly no  warning, the bull went absolutely fucking nuts.

The first  buck took the bulls back feet off the ground so hard the thing went  fully vertical snout to tail. I gripped hard on reflex, barely managing  to maintain my hold, and then the bull REALLY started. That first kick  had been intense, but it had also been singular. Once its feet touched  the mud again (which I swear somehow took less time than gravity should  explain) it kicked out again, and then again, faster and faster and  harder and harder until I half thought it was just teleporting itself  into position, or would have if not for the strain from the yanking.

The  thing snapped and whipped like a towel someone was cracking in a locker  room, and even with my skill active I had trouble managing to keep  ahold of that damn saddle. The beast wasn't fucking around, he wanted me  gone, and he wasn't shy about how it happened. This had looked so much  less terrifying when Wyatt was doing it, and while I didn't let myself  scream, I DID understand why Wyatt had done so.

Even with  the lightened gravity, I felt like a rag doll as my body was jerked back  and forth in mid air. Despite all that though...I was having fun! This  was amazing, the adrenaline, the thrill. My heart was pounding and my  blood was thundering in my veins. It had become clear up to this point  that I developing a reckless and sometimes dangerous love for combat,  but apparently, it wasn't just battle I enjoyed. Despite the danger of  getting thrown free and my very close up view from several positions of  why it was a STONE HOOFED Titanic Ox, this was the most fun I'd had  since the hunt ended.

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I could see the audience around me,  cheering and whooping as I held on for dear life, but the person I was  staring at hardest wasn't any of them. It was Callie. Her smile lit up  her face like a beacon, not because of the job or because we were closer  to completing our mission, but because she could tell how much fun I  was having. This beautiful girl was here with me, and she was happy, for  the simple and uncomplicated reason that I was happy, and she loved me.

I'd  done many things since becoming an Ascendant. I'd fought monsters,  beaten serial killers, and even saved some children. That smile  though...that smile was the most amazing thing I had seen since I  entered this world. Treasure and magic was impressive and interesting,  but it didn't have a patch on the sheer beauty of seeing that look on  Callie's face and knowing it was aimed at me. I gripped the saddle  tighter, and despite being in the exact same situation as a moment ago, I  felt so much more...free.

I felt like I was flying, and I  knew for a fact that I could do this. I let my body relax, and found  that going limp actually helped a lot as long as I maintained my grip,  especially with Leaf on the Wind still active. I let myself be jerked  back and forth on the back of the bull, and I couldn't pretend I had  literally any idea when this was going to end or how long it had gone on  so far. Despite my glee and my good mood I was extremely confused at  that moment, and when the assistant finally called out for them to end  it, I barely heard him.

Luckily, there was a loud horn to  signal me passing the trial, so it was easy enough to puzzle out what he  said. I relaxed my grip as soon as I heard it, which turned out to be a  huge mistake because I'd forgotten I being whipped through the air by a  giant beast. I went flying, though Leaf on the Wind slowed me down as I  flew. It didn't end up mattering how fast I was going past that though,  because I came to a stop against a huge black cushion that I could  easily see was made of shadows. Callie had me.

I  felt myself lowered slowly to the ground, my head still spinning, and I  laughed breathlessly as my back hit the mud softly. Callie's face  appeared in my vision, and I wished neither of us were wearing our  masks, just so I could see that smile unobstructed. Sadly that wasn't to  be, so I sat up with a groan instead. Callie chuckled as she helped me  up. "That was pretty damn impressive. Wyatt and the other Jerks are all  in awe of you now. That bull made a big impression on them, and seeing  you conquer it really won them over."

I  laughed a bit as she helped me stand. "Enough to give me the answers to  how they're planning to take this place down and for who?" That got me a  snort of dismissal. Wyatt might be a bit of a dunce, but he was also a G  ranker. With that level of Focus there was only so stupid you could  actually be, and I knew better that higher ranking Ascendants tended to  level up incredibly low stat values fast because of the overall  impression their power left on other people.

She  helped me over to the edge of the pen, my feet still a bit unsteady  especially on the mud given how dizzy I'd been. When we got to the side,  the assistant led the others in a loud round of applause as we  approached, giving me a nod of respect. "An excellent showing. I'd ask  how you managed, but it's something of an unspoken rule that one doesn't  question how a thing is done, as long as you see it completed." He  passed me a big. "As agreed, your winnings my friend." His visage was a  bit unhappy, and I suspected they collected interest or something while  they held the money.

To  his shock though, I didn't take it, pushing it back. I put an arm  around Callie's shoulder. I had a ready made excuse here. "You Circus is  where I first told my girlfriend I loved her, that's worth much more  than a few chits. Keep it. Consider it a thank you for everything you've  done for us." The assistant looked completely poleaxed, which was far.  What I'd just done was absolutely batshit crazy. People didn't just give  back money like that.

He  looked confused as he took the bag, but after a second his head snapped  up, tilting to one side. After a brief pause he turned to us. "You are  too kind, I wonder, perhaps you would like to meet our founder. Mr.  Castelton hopes to invite the two of you for a personal meeting as  thanks for your generosity." I grinned. I'd been hoping for something  like that. While they might have someone infiltrating this place, I knew  there was at least one person who wouldn't be working for the Jerks or  their employers. After all, Cicero Castleton had the least reason to allow his circus to change hands. It was time to get some answers.

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