Chương 45: Stone Legion
In a lonely square, six living statues stood guard, adorned in metal armor and wielding masterfully crafted weapons. They all guarded the square without rest.
On each side of the square was one statue, and their leader was a figure made of stone, dressed in heavy metal armor with a long, thick greatsword. It was shaped like a tall, well-built man, the helmet revealing only scarlet eyes that glowed and peered in all directions.
The square was also guarded by other equally menacing statues. The second was a slightly shorter male statue wielding a halberd and dressed in the same dark metal. Close to one another were two statues resembling females.
On the right stood a tall female statue wielding two sickle swords, and a few meters to her left was a slightly shorter statue holding a shortsword in her right hand and a long shield in her left.
Situated on a ruined part of a gate that once led to the square was a lean, shorter male statue holding a longbow nearly as tall as he was. At the rear gate of the square was an incredibly tall male statue wielding a massive warhammer in both hands.
Within the Stone Soldiers' defenses, there was a glaring issue: an empty spot where a statue would typically stand.
However, that statue was gone entirely, leaving not even a pile of shattered stone.
The square's guardians were, however, oblivious to the one who had eliminated one of their members. He was leisurely leaning against an age-worn chimney, observing the square from a comfortable distance.
His eyes scanned the area as he scratched his neck, sighed, and idly played with a tentacle he had conjured. He moved it around absentmindedly before attacking it with a single punch, disintegrating the tentacle into dust.
"Let's see… five close combatants and one long range. Hmmm." Musing aloud, Pleiades frowned.
It would have been easy to destroy the whole place, but he wanted at least a bit of fun with the situation.
From his body, a shadowy figure emerged, complete with paws and dancing amethyst flames.
As Regis manifested and yawned he observed the statues below, and wore a mocking grin. "Look at them, standing there like they're worth something. I'll bet they break as easily as your ego."
Barely sparing the wolf a glance, Pleiades sighed and stood up.
[This should be interesting, I guess. Say, Sunny, wanna make a bet?]
(Like hell I do! I still owe you that favor; I'd rather not owe you two.)
[Lame ass] he groaned, hopping off the roof. Landing on the ground, he took a deep breath and walked over to a broken wall that hid him well.
Peeking from behind it, he assessed the bow-wielding statue's power. 'Awakened Monster,' he thought, 'and with that bow, it could probably blow my head off.'
Regis emerged from the shadows and huddled close. He looked to the side, eyeing the two female statues in the back.
"So, which ones am I taking on?" he said in a hushed voice. Pleiades, still examining the statues, noted that the female ones were the furthest, giving him a good opportunity to attack from behind.
"Go for the two in the back. They're close in proximity, so you should be able to at least take an arm or two off." Contemplating, Regis nodded and began to meld with the shadows.
"Wait a second." Regis stopped and looked back with a questioning gaze.
[Sunny, could you augment him with your two shadows?] Regis's eyes widened slightly.
(Are you sure you won't be needing any?) Gloomy looked at Pleiades with clenched fists, while Lazy just yawned and seemed to doze off slightly.
[Nah, I'm good. Even though it might be a bit slower, it should be done quickly nonetheless.] After thinking, Sunny commanded the shadows.
Gloomy protested, visibly shaking his fists in fury, but he obeyed and augmented Regis. Lazy, meanwhile, slumped his shoulders and went toward Regis.
After both shadows augmented him, Regis's fur darkened and seemed almost fluid. His flames expanded even further across his back, making him appear even more menacing.
His size increased slightly as well, and the tips of his horns deepened to a darker violet. Regis's tail wagged, and he looked clearly excited.
"Consider them already dead" he growled in satisfaction before melting into the shadows like a wraith.
Pleiades watched as the shadow wolf glided across the ruined square without any of the guardians noticing. Trusting Regis to handle his targets, Pleiades hyped himself up and waited.
Then, he heard it—many meters away, the grinding of stone against stone and the clash of stone against metal.
This sudden assault drew the attention of the remaining statues. The archer statue at the ruined gate lifted its weapon, scanning the battlefield with precision as its stone-set orange eyes locked onto Regis.
Pleiades saw his chance. With a swift leap from his hiding spot, he dashed toward the halberd-wielding statue, activating his [Bad Cassie] ability to conceal the sound of his approach.
Just as he closed in, the statue turned, swinging its weapon down in a powerful arc aimed directly at him.
Pleiades dodged, slipping to the side and coming up behind it, narrowly evading the strike. He raised his arm and conjured a tentacle, aiming a blow at the statue's neck joint.
The stone cracked under his attack, but the statue merely staggered, unfazed, its eyes blazing with unnatural intensity. It swung its halberd with speed defying its stony bulk, forcing Pleiades to leap back and reassess.
"Fine, play hard to get" he muttered, conjuring several tendrils to create a defensive buffer.
Meanwhile, Regis had managed to sever an arm from the dual-sickle-wielding statue, which crumbled upon impact with the ground.
The second statue, however, had adjusted its stance, bringing its shield up to brace against Regis's assault.
Each strike Regis dealt was answered by a powerful shield bash, sending sparks and stone fragments flying. Undeterred, Regis grew more excited with each blow.
As the archer statue prepared to release an arrow at Regis, Pleiades flicked his hand, summoning a tentacle that shot out and wrapped around the bowstring, yanking it back just as the arrow released.
The projectile veered off course, missing Regis by inches and embedding itself into a stone wall with a resounding crack.
"Oi, thanks for that!" Regis yelled, glancing over his shoulder with a sly grin before returning to his brawl. Pleiades nodded slightly, smirking, feeling the exhilaration build.
[Regis, take out that shield. I'll handle this one.] he transmitted, focusing on the halberd-wielder.
As Regis launched himself at the shield-bearing statue, Pleiades circled his own target, staying just outside the reach of its halberd. He carefully studied its movements, noting the slight delay before each heavy strike.
The statue lifted its weapon once more, and Pleiades anticipated its move, diving in close to summon an invisible slash across the exposed joint of its arm. With a loud crack, the statue's weapon arm dropped to the ground.
The halberd-wielder staggered but didn't retreat, lunging forward with surprising speed to attempt a shoulder bash.
Pleiades sidestepped, summoning a quick succession of tentacles to bind its legs, bringing it crashing down.
As the statue struggled on the floor, using its remaining arm to pull itself up, Pleiades felt a sudden surge of bloodlust directed at him. Looking up, he saw the archer aiming an arrow straight at his head.
Before he could react, the arrow shot forward at breakneck speed. Just before impact, however, it halted mid-air, as if losing all momentum, and then dropped into Pleiades's hand.
Smiling menacingly, he tightened his grip on the arrow and hurled it back toward the archer, its momentum restored after being stolen.
Bound by tentacles, the archer couldn't dodge.
The arrow pierced through its torso and exited out the other side, causing the statue to crumble, its metal armor petrifying before it, too, turned to stone and shattered.
The spell's voice echoed in Pleiades's ears:
[You have slain an Awakened Beast, Stone Bowmaster.]
Satisfied, Pleiades turned his attention to the other statue struggling against the tentacles.
Not allowing it to stand, he raised his foot and, using [Load Amplifier], stomped its head open.
[You have slain an Awakened Beast, Stone Halberdier.]
The spell's voice sounded in his ears, but he focused on Regis, who was holding his ground well. The sickle-wielder had lost a leg and now limped, its head cracked on one side.
Meanwhile, the other female statue defended against Regis's relentless assault. Her shield was nearly gone, her sword chipped, yet she held her ground—barely.
'Two down, soon to be three when Regis finishes the sickle one' he thought, turning his attention to the hammer-wielder cautiously approaching. The leader, too, was advancing just off to his side, and he realized he was about to be surrounded.
Not one to panic, Pleiades looked directly at the sickle-wielder attempting to sneak-attack Regis.
Pleiades released a slash imbued with [Cutting Dominion]. The slash whistled through the air and then made contact with the statue's other arm, severing it without resistance.
Sensing this, Regis turned his attention to her and leapt into the air, mouth open wide, fangs ready to clamp down on her head. With a crushing force, her head was completely destroyed, reduced to fine dust.
Retaining his momentum, Regis used the statue's body as a stepping stone and launched himself at the other one, his claws infused with destruction.
As his claws scratched against the shield, annihilating flames spread across it. Almost as if sensing the danger, the statue dropped her shield and gripped her short sword with both hands.
Baring his teeth, Regis let out a growl and pounced toward her.
Regis hit the statue with a resounding impact, his claws tearing through the ancient armor with ease, the searing flames of destruction licking across its surface.
The statue attempted a counter, thrusting her sword toward Regis's chest. But Regis anticipated the move, twisting mid-air to evade the strike, then diving down to sink his fangs into her shoulder.
The stone crumbled at the point of impact, his corrosive flames spreading, leaving fractures and cracks like the roots of a great tree.
The statue's balance faltered as its arm cracked and shattered beneath the force of Regis's bite. Soon, the statue fell, leaving only two opponents standing.
The last two statues looked upon the piles of stone that used to be their comrades, their eyes ignited with fury.
The hammer-wielder swung its weapon with full force, attempting to crush the intruder, while the leader hoisted his greatsword and swung it horizontally, intending to cleave Pleiades in two.
Unbothered by the oncoming attack, Pleiades looked at the leader and activated [Antithesis], switching places with him.
Now the leader's view shifted, and his greatsword was aimed directly at the hammer-wielder. Meanwhile, the hammer was already crashing down toward the leader.
It was too late to stop. The greatsword cleaved right through the hammer-wielder's body, severing it at the hip. As the hammer was about to crush the leader, he used the weight of his sword to fall out of its path, but not quickly enough.
His side was nearly crushed, and now his greatsword was merely dead weight.
The hammer-wielder's upper body fell to the ground, and before it could die, Pleiades jumped into the sky and released a slash that severed its head.
[You have Slain an Awakened Monster, Stone Warrior]
As he landed, Pleiades saw the leader statue still alive but kneeling, with an exaggerated amount of fury burning in its stone-set eyes.
Attempting to get up, it found itself unable to, as its entire side was destroyed. Pleiades approached with a hint of pity as a sword weaved itself into existence. A beautiful kord nestled itself into his arms.
Only a meter away, they stood face to face. Even though the statue was kneeling, it was still slightly taller than Pleiades, which annoyed him to no end.
Sighing, Pleiades returned the glare with one of his own and grabbed his sword with both hands.
"Any last words?" he asked, pausing for a moment, then smiling and scoffing. "Oh right, you can't talk. My bad."
With a simple slash, he cut the leader's head off. The armor it wore was petrified and turned to stone, crumbling to rubble along with the rest of its body.
[You have Slain a Fallen Beast, Stone General]
"Ohhh, so it was a rank higher than the rest" he mused. Then the voice of the spell continued.
[You have received a Memory.]
Widening his eyes, Pleiades summoned the memory's runes:
Memory: Dark Warblade
Memory Rank: Ascended
Memory Tier: I
Memory Type: Weapon
Memory Description: [Deep within his territory, Nether solemnly crafted an army. In his endless longing to reclaim what was taken from him, he raised an army to do his bidding, as he himself was no longer willing to face those who had forsaken him.]
Memory Enchantments: [Staggered], [Pugilism], [Giant's Physique], [Burden of Might]
[Staggered]
Enchantment Description: "Once an enemy is sliced by this blade, they will become weaker, slower, and confused."
[Pugilism]
Enchantment Description: "Anyone wielding this sword will become more powerful the longer they fight and the more they bleed."
[Giant's Physique]
Enchantment Description: "This weapon demands a giant's strength to wield properly. Because of that, strikes from it can break both armor and flesh without effort."
[Burden of Might]
Enchantment Description: "This sword is able to consume a large amount of essence to deliver an obliterating strike."
With furrowed brows, Pleiades considered the memory. It was truly incredible; though he couldn't wield it, copying the first, second and last enchantment to his sword could be useful.
'I wonder how much Effie would pay for this' he thought, smiling.
Turning his attention to the direction of the cathedral, he frowned.
'Now just one more target to go.' He sighed.
"I really am doing too much."Regis approached him with a mischevous glint in his eyes.
"Why so Stone Faced?" he questione and pleiades roleld his eyes.
"Could you not, i did have to fight four awakened monsters by myself, and i also had to help you out."
Regis scoffed and retorted, "I think you take me for Granite, i did well on my own y'know, it was you that decided to but in. I was doing marbelously!"
Thinking for a moment pleiades knitted his brows, "That was a good one, i'll give you that much."
With that they began to collect the soul shards.
Next Chapter: Domain of Death
Tình trạng nguồn điện hàng tuần
-- Xếp hạng
Quyền lực 
-- Đá
Quyền lực