Chapter 147: Dangerous Deal (Part 3)

Tess: “This is called schema stacking. It’s a diagram for explanation, but in reality, the user feels all of this simultaneously while performing a single action. Of course, there’s a priority. That’s what becomes the base build. For warriors, it’s strength; for archers, it’s nerves or senses.”

Shirone: “Then what you mentioned earlier, ’reversal,’ is…”

Tess: “Right. For example, let’s say you’re lifting a rock. At first, you’d base it on strength. You need to lift something heavy. But when you actually lift it over your head, you realize you can’t handle the weight. If you keep going, your body might break. In that case, most humans would release their physical strength and quickly move away. In other words, agility, which was the lowest priority when strength was the base, suddenly becomes the base. That’s reversal.”

Shirone: “It’s a response technique for specific situations. Like the Four Directions Technique in the Spirit Zone.”

Tess: “Exactly. Even people who haven’t opened their schemas have basic strength and agility, so they can attempt reversal, but in actual combat, it’s not at that level. To suddenly maximize agility while exerting much greater strength than an average person requires advanced training. If you try it without proper training, your body could break.”

Shirone: “It’s a schema balance issue.”

Shirone had heard about it in passing.

Tess: “Yes. Unlike ordinary people, schema users artificially enhance specific physical abilities, which can lead to balance asymmetry. If you boost the nervous system too much, your reaction speed outpaces your strength, and your body suffers. Conversely, if you focus too much on strength, your fists could break when you strike. That’s why the base schema is important. You establish the base first and then stack schemas accordingly.”

It was similar to how different athletes train different muscles.

Tess: “As I said earlier, the most efficient schema is the base one. There are individual differences, but if the efficiency of the first schema is 100, the second is 50, the third is 25, and so on. You can change the order of schemas, but unless you’re a master of the technique tree, it’s hard to apply in real combat.”

Shirone: “Because the balance would be ruined.”