The Serpent’s Shed Skin

***

People see only as much as they know.

Accordingly, the limits of what most people can imagine a person achieving extend only a little beyond what they themselves can do.

A Tier 0 citizen can imagine himself at Tier 1, swinging a greatsword like a branch,

and a low-ranking Tier 1 knight can imagine himself at Tier 2, wielding people like weapons.

And when they reach the level they once imagined for themselves, they’re bound to be amazed by what they can do.

The Holy King—Vesper II—realized this when he reached Tier 2.

The world was vast, and his imagination was meager.

Rising one tier meant living in a different world.

Simply becoming stronger and faster was only a secondary effect...