Roar. A piercing roar echoed through the room, as Arvalor tore through the unending waves of undead summoned by Odale. The three heads on the shadow beast each kept the undead at bay and away, with the snake head occasionally extending to great lengths, to wipe out the undead at a greater range.
Up above, there was no shortage of fighting.
I was locked in a fierce duel with the undead knight, the two of us exchanging blows — however neither getting closer to actually harming the other in any meaningful way.
The knight flipped back, flicking its sword behind it for a second, before dark aura shone over its body for a second – gathering into the arm that held the sword. Then, the knight sent the sword down at me, crashing with immense force – forcing me to jump out of the way as fast as I could. The blade just barely scraped by clothing as I landed on a nearby pillar, using the shadows on it to bind myself to it.
"Okay, so it can enhance its strength.." I commented, before gripping the spear in my hands a bit more tightly, reshaping it into a halberd. Then, after taking in a small breath, I launched at the knight – our weapons clanging as it blocked my strike.
I flew above the knight, sharpening my gaze.
In an instant, the shadows on the knights armour reacted — extending before quickly binding it. Then, in that split moment of it being unable to move, I landed down onto the shadow platform I created earlier, before swinging the halberd at the knight.
The hit connected, however the knight's armour resisted the strike for a few seconds, before finally I managed to pierce it, leaving a cut opening it, right as I sent the knight flying into another pillar. "Not sure why I never thought of using shadows like that…" I exhaled, before a sudden ping went off in my mind.
In a split moment, I leapt back, barely avoiding a direct attack from Odale.
A fire spell, which destroyed the platform I had created, forcing me to make a new one, before I reached the ground below where Arvalor was tearing through the legions of undead summoned by Odale. Looking up at the lich, I shed a cold sweat. "Right… This guy is the main event. I was so taken up in fighting that knight, I slightly forgot about him.." Spinning the halberd, I launched up at Odale, swinging the halberd at the lich with as much strength as I could exert.
Cling.
Nothing.
A faint, red shield encased Odale — completely blocking my attack. I tried pushing the halberd through, exerting more and more strength — pushing myself to my absolute limit, however, nothing. The shield withstood, forcing me back. Landing back onto the platform I scoffed, before brushing off my face and using my right arm to form many, many small purple orbs around me. Then, I lifted my arm into the air, the orbs forming into small knives.
"Let's see if I can perhaps overwhelm that shield." I commented, before leaping up above, before spinning the halberd and tossing it down at Odale. Then, immediately afterwards, I sent all of the purple knives I had formed at Odale as well — only at a faster speed.
Odale backed up a bit, his eyes shining.
Then, two giant red magic circles formed behind him. "Flame rain." Two words exited Odale's mouth. Then, a barrage of fire bolts fired out of the two magic circles — one side firing down at the knives, while the other flew straight towards me.
Without any time to react, I was unfortunately forced to tank the barrage — using my arms as a way to shield my body, before using the shadows on my body to form a shield in front of me. However, the shield only worked for a bit, before quickly being overwhelmed by the barrage and shattering, forcing me to pull myself down faster with shadow appendages from the ground.
Then, I formed a massive platform under me, before leaping towards Odale — as all the knives I had sent were destroyed by the fire bolts he had fired. The halberd bounced off of the shield – flinging into the air for a second, before it shattered as well.
"That shield is so annoying… Maybe I could try—" Before I could finish any planning, the knight from earlier suddenly leapt up behind me, before dashing down at me.
Overworld Detection went off.
Slowing myself for a second, I jumped to the side – barely evading the knight, who used his sword to slice my platform in half. Then, it looked at me, the scratch I had inflicted earlier healing. Its piercing red eyes sent shivers down my spine as I shed a sweat, rising back up to my feet.
"Seriously, this kind of durability should be illegal…" I exhaled, before tapping the platform lightly with my right leg. In an instant, a thin strand of shadow rose up, which I then grabbed, breaking it off from the platform, before spinning it and shaping one edge of it into a spear.
"Maybe it's time to try that technique… It worked well against the Southern Beast, however… It drains my magical energy like crazy…" The knight locked eyes with me, before stretching out its limbs and dragging its longsword against the platform, stepping over onto the half I was on. Odale also looked at me, his eyes glimmering — clearly intending to observe only.
Sighing, I placed one foot back.
"Screw it. It's worth the risk." Even if I run out of magical energy to use, as long as I can take the knight down and break that annoying as hell shield around Odale, Arvalor will be able to take care of the rest. He's gotten strong enough that something like this should be no trouble.
Forming a blob of venom in my other hand, I squeezed it, before fusing it with the shadow spear – forcing the two to combine. It was a bit difficult, just like last time, however I managed to fuse the two elements together, creating the weapon I had used against the Southern Beast once more.
Shadowvenom Spear – [ B-Rank Weapon ].
Then, before jumping in to fight the knight, I pulled the shadows around me towards me, infusing them into my body. Unlike the first time, this time around it was a lot less painful and much, much faster.
In no time at all, the shadows were infused with my body.
Successfully infused shadows with your vessel.
The Resistance of the body has increased.
Durability of the body has been increased.
"Alright," I spun my spear, before taking a defensive pose. The knight stopped for a second, before lifting its head higher and then raising its longsword up. Then, it leapt at me with great speed. I narrowed my eyes. "Let's dance."
I launched at the knight, our collision creating an outburst of wind that was strong enough to shatter the platforms I had created, as well as destroy the lesser undead below that Arvalor was mawling through.
Odale remained in place – unmoved by the collision.
"...Fascinating." He commented in his mind, as he saw the scene before him. Faofa and the knight he had summoned were locked in a standoff – both pushing each other back. Then, the two broke away from the other, before beginning to exchange blows.
However, unlike last time, this time, something was different.
Whether it was because of the weapon or the fact that Faofa had infused the shadows around him into his body — seemingly to strengthen it — he had gotten stronger and faster. Now, he was managing to push the knight back a bit, and even graze its armour – leaving scratches on it.
After a bit, I pulled back, dodging a swing from the knight, before gripping the spear and flipping around, striking the knight from its undefended side. And for the first time — I managed to do meaningful damage. The knights' armour cracked, before breaking off. Odale's eyes shone a bit, while the knight's eyes ignited, seemingly with shock or rage.
As the knight was sent flying away into a wall, I launched after him, forming as many venom orbs around me as I could – then, I shaped them into knives once more, before sending them at the knight. The lich lifted itself out of the wall a bit, its armour bruised and damaged, however slowly healing. The knight looked at Faofa, before its eyes shone a bit bright — as if to show surprise, as a barrage of knives crashed into it, the thing barely managing to protect itself from it with its sword, and even then, not successfully, as its armour was even more damaged now.
Then, I crashed into the knight.
My spear managed to shatter the sword it held in half, before breaking through its armour and splitting it half. However, I knew that wouldn't be enough — no, this thing would definitely recover from this. So before it could, I threw my spear into the air, before grabbing the knight's head and lower half, pushing both into the shadow realm.
Then, after tossing it around in it, I used the darkness in the shadow realm to pierce the knight's both body halves from all sides, holding it in the air. Then, I exhaled, before sinking out of the shadow realm, leaving the shadows on the ground, leaping into the air, catching my spear and then using the shadows to pull myself against a solid surface.
Then, I launched myself at Odale.
The lich remained in place, before chuckling. "Not bad…. for a trick… But my knight…. is far more….. durable than…. that." I raised an eyebrow, however continued my path towards the prince. But then—
Grab.
"Huh—?" My eyes widened in shock, as the knight suddenly leapt out from some shadows on a nearby pillar, its body back together and its armour almost fully recovered. The knight grabbed me by the back of my collar, before flipping me around and then tossing me into the wall.
Then, after stretching out again, it raised its arm into the air.
Its long sword suddenly repaired itself, before flying over to the knight — the thing catching it, and swinging it down.
I coughed lightly, brushing my face off as I looked at the thing through the dust cloud. "How the hell is that thing even standing… I split it in half…" I thought, before a small platform formed below me, allowing me to step onto it. Then, to my shock, the knight placed the sword in front of it. Shadows began to swirl around it. My eyes widened as I watched what was happening before me.
This thing – it was… manipulating the shadows?
But that… that shouldn't be possible. 'Shadowlord' is an individual skill, which I assume means only I can use it… Is it casting magic? No, I don't sense any magical energy being used by it. Is it some sort of skill that's similar to mine?
"Surprised….?" Odale asked.
I threw my gaze at the lich for a second, before looking back at the knight.
"Allow me…. to explain….. a bit – my knight….. is a bit…. special. You see…. while it is extremely skilled... in using a sword….. in terms of ability, the only….. thing it has is immense regeneration. No offensive….. skills or fancy spells….. No, mostly it only has… techniques… that is of course…. besides the one skill…. it does possess." The shadows swirled around the knight more and more, before fusing with its body, forming an outer layer to its armour.
Now the knight looked even more intimidating.
Its body was covered by a much thicker armour, made from the shadows it had pulled to itself. I shed a sweat, while Odale narrowed his eyes. "Many…. call it – 'Greed'. The skill….. which allows the wielder…. to copy any ability they witness."
I narrowed my eyes on the knight, a window opening.
[ Monster ]
Name; Dean
Species; Greater Lich
Level; [Unknown]
Once a strong knight, now just another cursed soul.
As a Greater Lich, it possesses much higher intelligence and much more power.
- Status: Due to the effects of [Greed], the monster has copied your [Shadowlord] skill and formed an outer armour for itself, enhancing its durability, strength and speed.
[ Monster ]
"Screw off…. This thing is supposed to be a subordinate for Odale? Just how strong is the freaking lich itself then…" I commented, before taking in a deep breath. There was only one way to try and even out the playing field. I tried doing what I had done earlier again, to infuse more shadows into my body, however before I even managed to start, the knight closed the distance between us in an instant, swinging its sword down at me.
I barely managed to block the strike – however, I was not able to hold against it for very long. The strength exerted by the knight was immense. Far, far too immense for me to overpower.
I flicked it to the side a bit, managing to dodge to the side, before dodging even more strikes that the knight threw at me – not leaving any opportunity for a counterattack or anything of that sort. I was basically being pushed back, with the only reason I was able to even keep dodging the knights strikes being that 'Enlightened' processed everything just fast enough for me to keep up with the knights speed.
Odale silently observed, using his scepter to summon more undead to face Arvalor, the shadow beast slowly being overwhelmed by the endless swarm. Not much longer, and he may just fall.
"This is seriously bullshit—" I thought, dodging or blocking each strike that the knight threw at me, all the while pushing me back more and more. The knight eventually managed to pin me against a wall, before striking me with the most powerful swing yet — shattering my spear into pieces. Then, it immediately followed that swing with another swing, which I was only able to stop thanks to the shadows, using them to restrain him.
However, because this thing had copied my ability using that 'Greed' skill – it quickly overrode my control of the shadows, freeing itself and basically forcing me to dodge. However, not like previously. I swiftly morphed into my snake form, leaping out of the way and onto the ground.
Then, after landing, I took in a few breaths, before dashing towards Arvalor. Odale watched Faofa carefully. "Well this is certainly an interesting turn of events… He's not human." The lich commented, before lifting his scepter into the air. As I dashed towards Arvalor, suddenly a massive red circle formed under me — giving me only enough time to gasp in shock, before a pillar of flames shot up, engulfing me in an instant.
"...Go."
Odale stated, with Dean leaping at the pillar, slicing it in half with its sword, before swinging its sword down at Faofa, whose scales were singed by the flames.
I quickly sunk into the shadows below, morphing back into my human form, before leaping away and exiting the shadows next to Arvalor. The shadow beast growled, however I could sense its exhaustion. He was reaching his limit – and so was I. Despite the fight not going on for all that long, being overwhelmed this badly in terms of strength, made it more exhausting to keep the fight going, especially since now I know that the knight was able to copy my skills.
The undead quickly surrounded me and Arvalor, with the knight slowly walking towards us, dragging its sword behind it — the tip of the blade leaving a clear trail behind it. Odale floated in the air above, his red eyes piercing down at us.
"Is this it? Is this how I die?" I felt a cold sweat drop down from my face, while shivers ran down my spine. I was breathing heavily, my body damaged from the fighting. "Is that all?" Odale asked, his tone slightly mocking. "I expected more from you. Perhaps…. I was mistaken. You aren't the hope…. I have been waiting…. For." I grit my teeth. Was he making fun of me?
I was greatly overpowered by him and his knight, that I knew – however something about the tone he said that in… It made me pissed off. It made me feel like he was looking down on me - and perhaps, he was. Taking in a deep breath, I placed my hand on Arvalor. "...Return to the shadows and rest." The beast looked at me with wide eyes, clearly about to protest, however I looked at him with a reassuring gaze. "Rest Arvalor… I will finish this on my own."
Hesitant, the shadow beast lowered its heads and returned to my shadow. Then, I looked at Odale who raised an 'eyebrow'. "Why…. send your… subordinate…. Away?"
I remained silent.
Why did I send Arvalor away? I don't know. Perhaps I wanted to make sure that if I was to die, he didn't have to witness it? Sounded stupid and silly. More than likely, if I 'died', he'd cease to exist, as he was created by me technically. However, whatever my reasoning was, it didn't matter.
Not at this moment.
Exhaling, I reached down and sunk my hand into the shadows below me. Then, I pulled out another polearm, shaping it this time, into a scythe. Then, I quickly created a few venom orbs around me, fusing them into the scythe — the process being a bit more difficult than the one with the spear, however eventually I managed to combine the two, to form my new weapon.
Shadowvenom Scythe – [ B-Rank Weapon ].
Odale simply observed, while the knight pushed through the army of undead that surrounded me. Then, it stopped, lifting its sword up onto its shoulder. "Have you…. Got the will… to fight… still?" Odale asked, narrowing his eyes.
I remained silent.
For what must have been the longest few seconds I have ever experienced – I remained silent. Then I looked up at Odale.
"If there's one thing I won't lose yet… it's my will to survive." At this time, the memory of Arabor and our promise shot through my mind. Then, I thought about my promise to Iyka. I had promised to get revenge on Erwin for killing her sister, for her sake.
And then lastly, I thought about Avy.
Even though we haven't been together with each other for a super long time – in the time we've spent together, we have managed to become good friends. Even though I am still not certain, I can return her deeper feelings to her at this time – I hold her dear to my heart as a friend. And thinking about what she would be like, if I actually fell here – how broken she would become…. It ignited a small spark in my heart.
A meaningless — tiny, barely even noticeable spark.
A spark… which only echoed one message.
Over and over, and over, and over, and over again. It replayed in my mind and body. My heart and soul. It felt as though the people I had made 'connections' to were all here, telling me it. I felt as though the three surrounded me. Then, it felt as though 'Avy' moved in closer and whispered in my ear – a gentle, soft voice.
….'Don't give up. Survive.'
Then, in the next moment, energy surged around Faofa.
Magical energy exploded in his body. His aura alone, pushed back and even destroyed some of the lesser undead. Odale's eyes slightly widened, before narrowing again. "...Your resolve…. It is astonishing… I can… see it… so… so… clearly."
Individual skill [Beasts Will] has been converted into the Individual skill [Survivors Resolve].
The converted skill has automatically been granted to the Vessel.
I opened my eyes, a slight shine sparkling from them. Then, I spun my scythe around, taking a more battle ready pose – the magical energy around me quickly engulfing my body in a bright purple aura, forming an outer layer around my body. Odale lowered his arms and then raised his scepter into the air. The masses of the undead suddenly disappeared, before the magic space that was summoning them disappeared. Then, the lich created four massive magic circles behind him, four different weapons made of flames coming out from them.
The knight's eyes shone brightly, as for the first time in this fight, it gripped its sword with both of its hands, taking a defensive stance – again, a first for it in this fight.
"Let us see… whether that strength… you suddenly gained…. Can help you."