Chapter 226: Battle Between Psychic Arms

The sound of a needle-like object drilling its way through flesh and blood echoed, painting the surroundings with a dreary atmosphere. Though, there was neither the stench nor the gory visual effect accompanying it.

As the spindle drilled into the Floating Spider, dust flew out, dissipating into psychic energy. Except for the sound of the drilling operation, there wasn't any other sound.

The lady's voice commanded him, "Use both your psychic arms now. It will be difficult but, try to get a feel in using them both at the same time."

Jyorta frowned, nervous at the task at hand. Until now, all he had ever used at a time was a single psychic arm. Even then, he still had difficulties in perfectly controlling both the operations he was capable of—actuating a Refined Object in 2 directions.

He had been getting some practice under him, trying to use both the psychic arms at the same time. But, the time allotted to it was very less, since his first priority had been to master the full extent of his psychic arm's capabilities.

'I guess this is high time I focused on it.' Jyorta unleashed his second psychic arm, his stronger one. It held the heavier spindle, 10 centimetres in length. The moment it came into the picture, the rpm of the other spindle slowed down to a pause.

When he made the lighter spindle spin, the heavier too spun as a result.

He placed the heavier one before him, motionless, willing the lighter one to come towards him. It was difficult, having to split his attention in two directions.

The moment the lighter spindle flew a couple of centimetres forward, the heavier spindle slipped out of his control, falling on the ground, creating a clanging sound, sonorous. An instant of concentration lapse dissipated his psychic arm.

A sigh involuntarily escaped his mouth. Jyorta bent and picked it up, allowing his psychic arm to seep into it. A sigh resounded, this time, from the lady, "That is where your problem originates from. You still behave like a normal human. Your subconscious hasn't yet realised the powers you possess now."

"Haven't you seen Madam Marble's actions in your class?"

"Madam Marble?" Jyorta inquired, having heard the same term used by the staff in the weapons section, "Are you referring to Madam Mila?"

"Yes," The voice replied, "In normal conversations, we address someone by their family name. Suppose, for example, I and Madam Mila were to be in your presence; then, only Madam Mila can be addressed as Madam Marble. In return, I will be addressed by my full name. It is a form of respect to the stronger party."

"In the absence of Madam Mila, it is appropriate to address me as Madam Marble. It is something you would have to get used to once you graduate. You must have experienced something similar before."

Jyorta nodded, "When people talked with my mother, they addressed her as Madam Bone." He then inquired after a moment of thought, "But earlier, Madam Mila wasn't here. So, why did the staff in the weapons section address her as Madam Marble?"

"Tell me one thing," The lady chuckled, "Do you think there is someone from the Marble Family here that is stronger than Madam Mila?"

Seeing Jyorta shake his head, the voice continued, "Therefore, most are used to addressing her as such. So, even when she is not present, she is addressed as such. You can also consider this from another perspective."

Jyorta's eyes widened, listening to her continuation, "Madam Mila's domain encompasses the entirety of our military academy and beyond. You can say that her presence is everywhere around us. So, it is not strange to address her as Madam Marble, since she can very well be beside us."

Jyorta nodded, heaving a breath, and closing his eyes, feeling a prickling sensation on his arms and the sides of his face. He opened his eyes and looked at his arms, noticing the faint presence of sweat that had seeped through the pores, opening them.

'Such pressure at the mere mention of her name; it seems I am psychologically affected.' Jyorta controlled his emotions, glancing at the spindle in his hands, wondering about when he would attain such powers.

Sky Controller!

The name itself was domineering; a Sky Controller's powers were even more domineering. It would be a long goal to reach such a point, not to mention the trials he would have to face in the journey. Jyorta longed to witness such a day, but at the same time, he wished to be grounded to reality and proceed step by step.

'One step at a time,'

"Wear the suit now. I will create a simulation to help you further." The voice resounded in his ears. Jyorta heard the faint rumble of machines, seemingly huge, judging by the base sound emitted. He felt anxious, sliding into the suit from the top.

The suit had only one opening—the neck area. Due to the elastic material, he could stretch it and enter. It took him a couple of minutes of struggling to finally wear it right. Two psychic arms helped him with the process.

Lying on the floor near his feet were his weapons, arranged into a neat pile. The moment he bent down to pick up a spindle, he felt his arms being pulled to the back, the force greater than what he could resist.

Alarmed, Jyorta instinctively jumped back, watching his body stop midway, making him lose all sense of support. A pair of blue handcuffs materialised, locking his hands and legs. Two blue straps simultaneously appeared; one tied his cuffed arms around his midriff while the other tied his knees.

When Jyorta struggled to break free, the voice of the lady resounded, "An Esper's psychic arms are capable of accomplishing the same tasks as your limbs, and capable of even more. Madam Marble is the best example; she hardly ever moves her body and accomplishes everything she needs with her psychic arms. After all, psychic arms are faster, have more range, etc."

"This is a form of comfort and also serves as a mode of training. Even Sky Controllers train this way every day. You should have seen Madam Rizenne, and how her body's movements are always minimal. Madam Marble takes it to the extreme though."

The voice said with a laugh, "To quickly grasp the method, I have tied up your limbs. Now, your only means of use are your psychic arms. Continue attacking the Floating Spider and other Frenzy Beasts I would be creating. As for anything else, attack, defend, or escape as you deem fit."

A loud sound resounded, of a canon being launched. A pebble-like object crashed into the floor a metre beside his head, rebounding from the force and travelling forth. It hit the curved walls and rebounded again, crashing onto the floor, making a bounce before stopping.

'What was that?' Jyorta felt scared, sensing the force behind the projectile. The injury would have been severe if it were to hit his guard. Should it hit in an unguarded region, he would probably bleed a lot.

"For starters, the power adjusted is akin to a child's throw. The projectile is made from a semi-soft material. It will hurt a lot but it will not injure you severely." The voice said, the tone calm. Though, Jyorta could sense a faint glee hidden within it, smirking at his situation.

Jyorta swerved his head, looking at the holes in the walls, noticing that each was pointed at different spots. There was no blind spot in the hall, at least, based on what he had glanced. He exerted strength in his shoulder, changing his centre of gravity and making his body turn.

Faint smoke billowed out of a hole, aimed at him. His psychic arms approached the weapons, seeping into two. He instinctively seeped his stronger psychic arm into the chakram while taking control of the lighter spindle using the other.

The two weapons took to the air, their motions aligned, soon arriving beside him, and occupying one side each. The spindle pushed at the floor using its sides; the extra push allowed him to easily roll a couple of times. The moment he came to a stop, he concentrated on his chakram, lifting it.

He had safely rolled out of the line of attack. Now, he wanted to see whether the force he could exert in his stronger psychic arm was enough to stop a projectile or not. The moment he concentrated on the chakram, the psychic arm holding the spindle dissipated.

A projectile flashed his way; Jyorta adjusted the position of his chakram accordingly, watching the projectile hit the top half. There was a loud clanging sound, as if two metals had collided into each other.

The force behind the projectile made the chakram flip in its direction, only halving its momentum. Its flip made the chakram escape Jyorta's control. The projectile continued in its path, slightly deviated from its original, bouncing after hitting the floor.

It flew forward before crashing into the wall, losing all its momentum. It then dropped to the ground, stopping.

'If I time the actions right, I should be able to completely stop it.' Jyorta smiled, despite the situation. The previous probing allowed him to glean enough information, now beginning to take countermeasures.

Before he could gather his bearings, he noticed from the corner of his eye, smoke billowed out of two holes. One was aimed at his current position while the other was aimed a metre to his right, forcing the direction in which he had to roll to escape.

Just when his psychic arm seeped into the chakram that had fallen on the floor, he noticed a movement in the centre of the hall. The figure of the Floating Spider, one that had been stiff until now moved.

Its mandibles clacked once as it turned around, gazing his way. The next second, it took off into the air.