章節 42: Champion
"Do not deliver the final blow if you have not touched the surface of the statue first."
Nephis particularly looked at Caster, Sunny, and Aldric. With their combat skills, they were the ones most likely to deal the final blow to the nightmare champion.
Sunny seemed to want to continue the conversation but was interrupted.
"Of course, Lady Nephis."
Caster spoke in a measured tone of respect.
"Yeah. I understand. But I do need to say one thing."
Aldric responded.
Everyone looked towards him as he spoke.
"My aspect ability is down for the count during this fight. It should be back soon, but whatever that thing did to me in the sea left some damage. It doesn't change much, though. I'll fight all the same."
Aldric admitted to his temporary weakness.
Nephis was silent for a moment. Ruminating about what she just heard.
"Ok, that is good to know. Let's go."
And so they did.
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Carrying on their march, they came upon a large cavern. With an open-air space, the size was comparable to the Bright Castle itself.
'I guess they don't call it the Hollow Mountains for no reason.'
With black sand surrounding the floor, a large, unfinished black statue stood at the centre of the cavern. Reminding him of the Stone Mimic that he fought when he entered the dream realm. It looked as if it was stuck mid-transformation.
Knowing what they were here for, they continued onwards.
Meeting the cohort was a horrid creature. Something out of mythology. The kind that didn't have a happy ending.
A chimera dropped from the darkness of the cavern. An unnatural mix between a lion and a raven. With two powerful hind legs and six others protruding from its torso, each with a set of deadly, sharp claws.
Its face was predominantly fashioned like a raven. With a massive single beak ready to pluck its prey. Black feathers adorned its body, looking like a messenger of hell.
"MESSENGER!"
Sunny shouted.
The fight had begun.
Hearing the signal, Nephis adorned her [Dawn Shard] with its enchantment activated. Empowering the cohort's memories, Aldric was in particular need of this.
With his innate ability still faulty, he could not coat his [Malice of the Deep] in darkness. This is what gave his awakened blade the ability to pierce through the few Fallen-ranked creatures that he killed. Without it, he would have to rely on Nephis' [Dawn Shard].
The messenger charged through the air with its wings spanned out.
Immediately Sunny met the charge like a bullet. Covered by his dark wings, he levitated in the air. With his [Midnight Shard] at the ready, he slashed at the messenger's wings. Crippling the beast, it fell down to the ground.
Continuing his momentum forward, he dashed to the statue.
The rest of them were not standing, still watching. Kai released a blood arrow at the beast the moment it landed. With disturbing accuracy, his mark hit true. Replenishing his blood, he pulled back his next arrow.
Effie and Saint now controlled its attention. With Caster and Aldric dealing significant damage as they took advantage of their numbers. Nephis stood in between. Dealing damage when she could and supporting Effie when needed. After all, the beast could only attack one person at a time with how spread out they were, giving ample enough time for a counter from somebody else. With Kai taking shots when he felt it was safe to do so, even Cassie's loyal echo was helping. Darting in the air, aiming for the beast's vulnerable eyes.
This was Aldric's job; utilising his basic battle style in perfect synergy with his [Insight] allowed him to react to the intervals of danger with pinpoint accuracy. Like a symphony, he was in step with the beast. After all, a battle was not just about trading attacks. It was the imbetween. The repositioning, setting distance, and pacing. His [Insight] gave him cues on when to attack and when to disengage. Like a conductor, his attribute was his guiding hand. He knew this rudimentary battle style would not pass moving forward as an awakened. Feints and speed were just some of his weaknesses. But he knew this was the start of his battle art.
But what made it as effective as it were was his [Tranquil Core] attribute. It allowed him to calm his racing nerves. Giving him the peace of mind to be able to put his complete focus on listening to the signals from his attribute. A single misstep could have him walking right into an attack after all.
'Dodge, duck, step back. Left claw, feint, attack.'
That's all his mind was filled with.
Aldric and Caster's attacks dealt significant damage to the beast. The beast was slower and more predictable. Bleeding profusely, it was now met with flames of the soul. Nephis pierced the left side of the beast's torso and injected a burning white flame through its insides.
"CROOOOAHHHHHH"
The beast screamed in pure agony. Stunned by the pain, it was ripe for the kill. But it was not time yet.
They were not unscathed either. Effie had taken the impact of a beak strike through her shield. Dislocating her shoulder. Caster as well caught a swipe from the beast's claws during an exchange. Four bloody lines were carved through his armour.
Aldric looked at Nephis, waiting for her next move. This was the perfect opportunity to kill it, but they had to wait.
It seemed that not everyone was comfortable waiting for Sunny to return. In a blitz of speed, Caster had left for the statue. This had increased the workload for Aldric twofold, but it was better than having done all of this for no reason. So he persevered.
Before he knew it, a small shadow darted below the messenger and gutted it like a pig. Blood and viscera dropped onto the floor in a gruesome display. But the shadow had a problem.
The beast was not dead yet.
In a final act of vindication, the chimera launched its powerful beak to break through its attacker. After all, a beast is most dangerous when it is near death.
Facing death in the face, Sunny did not have enough time to move. A white light stood in front of him just before impact.
Nephis redirected the blow with expert accuracy. Using all her strength, she was able to avoid being clipped by its beak.
A ghostly green Jian was positioned perfectly to behead the dying creature. But it was a second too late.
A small kunai attached to a thin wire exited the already destroyed eye. Pulling brain matter along with it.
"THUMP"
With that, the fight was over.
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Hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Writing fighting scenes is not a strong point of mine so I hope it came across well.
JubayerSiam&NYXLOGOS chapter 41 response: For real. I wanted something that was reasonable to act as Aldric's special thing. While Sunny had {Fated] to guide him and literally save his life many times, Aldric would not have that. Without giving him a crazy advantage like a system, two aspects, or like 10 attributes. I just chose an attribute duo with amazing synergy.
It is not all powerful, as you've seen with the scene in the dark sea. But yeah, It is his best ally in all of this.
Well, hope you enjoy the rest of your day. Till the next one.
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票