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~~((National Senior Citizens Day -- page 14 of 24))~~
Perhaps the most ridiculous thing, however, was the fact that even after twenty-four hours of fighting the man, Croll's other abilities aside from his swordsmanship were still somehow unclear. He didn't appear to be a materialization, destruction, or alteration user, as the wielding of those powers should have been obvious.

That left transfiguration, integration, and mutation, but even after debating the matter for sometime, the reapers couldn't puzzle it out. If it was transfiguration, then he wasn't using it in the normal manner of creating explosive compounds and corrosive acids. If it was integration, that would make sense as to why he was relying so heavily upon his weapon, but there were still minor ways that he could have used integration in combat--theoretically, at least.

And mutation, well. That was usually obvious just by looking at someone, and Croll had the appearance of a very normal human man.

Well... mostly normal.

Those dark eyes were something else. The weight behind the man's gaze felt almost like another blade of its own. Raul never heard him utter a single word, yet Thaddeus Croll's murderous determination still seemed obvious from those eyes alone.

'That is no accident,' Orric had observed. 'I believe that man has something called czort-jasnosc. It has been a very long time since I have seen it.'

"What in the world are you talking about?" said the Lady Stroud.

'It is a unique form of psychosis,' the reaper said, 'and quite possibly supernatural, as well. It's rare, and I can't claim to know exactly what causes it--or if anything does, for that matter. I have heard speculation that it is simply a natural phenomenon attributed to genetics. But I have also heard that it is something that only happens after someone has murdered countless innocent people.'