The Kobold Shaman sacrificed the Kobold Champion to weave a high-grade magic spell.
Xavier didn’t know what kind of spell was about to hit him, but the Lesser Danger Sense tingled wildly. It was obvious that his life was in danger.
[Proficiency of Lesser Danger Sense reached 100%. Level Up!]
[Proficiency of Lesser Danger Sense reached 100%. Level Up!]
Well. If that’s not a sign to get fucking moving I don’t know what else could be anymore!
He used Thunder Step and Dash once again, creating a thunderous explosion in the surrounding area as he kicked the ground. Simultaneously, he used Elemental Aegis several times in the hopes of avoiding the Kobold Shaman’s magic spell.
Suddenly, the Kobold Giant made its move. The humongous monstrosity appeared in Xavier’s path of retreat and blocked him. The tingling sensation in the back of his head intensified, informing Xavier that something was about to smack him. He twisted his upper body and stared back, just to see a compressed mass of energy blast toward him.
The Kobold Shaman didn’t use any fancy techniques or affinities to enhance its attack. Instead, the monster used its immense energy storage and Wisdom to control and compress energy by force. The magic circle stabilized the energy blast that was unleashed toward Xavier. Xavier’s eyes narrowed as he witnessed the destructive power of the energy blast. It destroyed everything in its wake and didn’t slow down at all.
Do I have to use Borrow already?
Xavier didn’t want to pull Glut out of his evolution, but he didn’t want to die either. The energy blast was almost a meter in diameter and it was too fast and destructive to block with his Cards. His body would disintegrate the moment the energy blast hit him.
His Lesser Danger Sense created even more ruckus than before. It was apparent that he had to decide if he wanted to survive. Time was running out.
Xavier’s field of vision was filled with the tip of the energy blast as he made his move.
He gathered a massive amount of World Energy beneath him and used the Minor Affinity Soulshare had granted Xavier. An unstable fireball formed underneath Xavier. It crackled and sizzled loudly as Xavier forced the unstable fireball to compress.
It rose in the air and was trying to force its way forward but Xavier was trying hard to thwart its advance. The Kobold Shaman kept muttering as Xavier grit his teeth while trying to keep his feet firmly planted on the ground. A few plants and shrubs caught fire as a result of the flames while the intense heat made Xavier sweat profusely. The cloud of fire flared suddenly and heat singed his arms and face. Yet, he kept trying but his feet skidded a little, pushing him backward.
The fireball was already unstable, but forcing it to compress worsened the situation. However, that was exactly what Xavier wanted. He kicked the ground hard, ready to jump high into the air right before the fireball exploded, hurling him through the air.
Once again, Xavier was flung through the air but this time it was with much greater force. He tried in vain to hold onto tree branches as he was carried up in the air like a feather and smacked hard upon a massive trunk of a tree. The thorns on one of the few branches he had scrambled to get hold of, dug painfully through his skin and left long cuts on his palm but he did not even register it. He was more focused on the cloud of fire that had gotten too close to his feet. Luckily, it only reached the sole of his boots before he was hurled away though for a panicked second, he had felt that the fire would melt his skin and bones from the waist down. It had only been a hair’s breadth gap that ensured he would keep his legs.
A groan escaped his lips when he fell on the ground after being smacked upon the tree trunk. He was fortunate that he hadn’t broken a bone or dislocated his shoulder because the impact had been jarring enough. Panting to catch his breath, Xavier forced himself to get back on his feet. He swayed a little as his vision blurred for a moment but he was not heavily injured.
He quickly ran a hand over his body to check if there were any lethal wounds but apart from the burn and scorch marks, there was nothing. Even though he gained some resistance to Glut's fire through the Minor Fire Affinity, It was not as if Xavier was immune to fire. He couldn't take a bath in lava, but he could endure flames more easily. That was how he could even try to compress the fireball in the first place.
The smell of burned hair and skin reached his nose but he did not have the luxury to inspect the injuries carefully. The Kobold Shaman was still alive.
His burns looked quite bad, but the Star of Vitality combined with Minor Regeneration had already begun to tend to his wounds.
[Proficiency of Minor Physical Resistance reached 100%. Level Up!]
I hate you!
Xavier’s heart palpitated wildly, and his breathing was hard, yet the adrenaline that pumped through his veins like crazy allowed him to analyze the situation swiftly.
The Kobold Giant hadn’t been as fortunate as Xavier. The monster had blocked Xavier’s path and foolishly turned into the only victim of the Kobold Shaman’s compressed energy blast. Even its high Vitality couldn’t protect the Kobold Giant against the destructive power of the energy blast.
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Blood was oozing out of the Kobold Giant’s stomach as it took the brunt of the powerful attack. The fireball not only burnt through its fur and melted off in a few spots but also left a gaping hole in its stomach. Its robes were drenched in blood and melted bits of skin and bone. It was howling in pain and clutching its stomach as it staggered back.
Xavier had long since known that Kobolds didn’t care much about camaraderie. If they could defeat their enemies by sacrificing each other, they would gladly do so. At least, that was the mindset of the more intellectual Kobolds such as the Kobold Shamans. Kobolds that had undergone a lower evolution or fewer evolutions than the Kobold Shaman would naturally submit to the Kobold Shaman. However, it was rare to see a Kobold Shaman jumping in front of its kin to protect it with its life.
Xavier found that fascinating and a little bit confusing, but he diverted his focus quickly back to the battlefield. The Kobold Shaman was about to chant something again but Xavier was faster. He used Air Bullet and applied Armor Break and Pierce Armor to reinforce the Air Bullet.
The Air Bullet burst through the air with great velocity and shattered the magic circle before it could form completely. The Kobold Shaman squealed and conjured dozens of smaller magic circles. A deep frown formed on Xavier’s face but his focus returned to the Kobold Giant.
The hole in its body made it seem like the Kobold Giant was about to die. However, that was not the case. The Kobold Giant was alive and it would heal, just like its eyes. When Xavier first noticed that its splattered eye had begun to heal, he figured that the Kobold Giant’s Vitality was much higher than expected.
It was probably above 150 and just below 200. That was a lot higher than most enemies Xavier had fought in the past. Fortunately, he gained some experience fighting enemies with great regeneration perks from his teamwork with his father, Leyla, and the other combat Card Holders.
He exploited the moment when the Kobold Giant was distracted and had to focus its entire attention on regenerating. It was mortally wounded and had to focus its attention and energy to regenerate a little bit, otherwise, it would die before it could deal with Xavier.
Unfortunately, Xavier didn’t pay much attention to the Kobold Shaman right now. Instead, he ignored his wounded body and charged at the Kobold Giant. He leaped onto the Kobold Giant’s broad shoulders, and used Armor Break, Pierce Armor, Energy Blade, Shadow Blade, and Coat of Fire to enhance the Ruby Katana before piercing the multiple-enhanced blade through the monster’s eye sockets.
The sound of muscles and flesh tearing apart reached Xavier’s ears along with the sound of something cracking as the ruby katana’s blade collided with the Kobold Giant’s eye socket but he managed to bypass the bones and penetrate the Kobold Giant’s brain in one go.
Kobold Giant +8 Soul Essences +4 Common Card Shards
[Proficiency of Shadow Blade reached 100%. Level Up!]
[Proficiency of Energy Blade reached 100%. Level Up!]
[Proficiency of Armor Break reached 100%. Level Up!]
[Proficiency of Pierce Armor reached 100%. Level Up!]
The Kobold Giant went completely still… but the ruby katana was not thankful for Xavier’s actions.
With a grunt, Xavier pulled the blade out and pushed the corpse’s head with his feet to ensure that it was truly dead. He wiped the ruby katana on the Kobold Giant’s corpse and inspected the blade. The edges of the blade around the tip were chipped and cobweb-like cracks had appeared all over the surface of the blade. A rueful smile appeared on his lips. The ruby katana had been a faithful companion since the advent of the apocalypse and he had not expected to be forced to let go of it so soon.
Though he knew using a lot of Cards and their amplifications on the weapon had resulted in greater wear and tear of the blade. Ordinary katanas were not made for cutting through bones and cracking the skulls of powerful monsters. Hence it was a wonder that the katana had survived so long.
For the first time, Xavier truly felt that his father’s hobby of collecting shiny weapons came in handy. Without the katana, he didn’t know how long he would have been forced to use some other makeshift weapon that would have resulted in him sustaining far more injuries. He held the blade up in the bright light of the sun to take a good look and wondered what metal or alloy it was made of to survive the perilous ordeals he put it through.
It was a shame that the ruby katana would break soon. However, Xavier knew that he had to use this many Cards to amplify the ruby katana and sharpen its blade. Without the added enhancements, it would have been quite difficult to fight monsters like the Kobold Giant.
I need a better weapon.
He knew that it would not last long, but there was no better weapon than the ruby katana in the settlement. Furthermore, Xavier had yet to kill the Kobold Shaman.
The Kobold Shaman had prepared 50 smaller magic circles. Each of them condensed a miniature version of the compressed energy blast from before. Nonetheless, the attack was still powerful enough to pierce through Xavier’s body easily. The energy blasts were like small missiles, and Xavier had yet to meet someone who could withstand missiles.
He used Air Bullet using World Energy and amplified their destructive power with Pierce Armor and Armor Break. Repetitively using Air Bullet, Pierce Armor, and Armor Break consumed his energy rapidly, but the Air Bullets managed to break through the mini energy blasts and obliterate their threat.
[Proficiency of Pierce Armor reached 100%. Level Up!]
[Proficiency of Pierce Armor reached 100%. Level Up!]
[Proficiency of Armor Break reached 100%. Level Up!]
[Proficiency of Armor Break reached 100%. Level Up!]
It was unusual for Xavier to level up his Cards this quickly, but given that his enemy had a higher Foundation and that his Spell Mastery Card was already at a decently high level, it did make sense. Maybe, the Kobold Shaman’s unique Staff and its glowing earrings played a role in its rapidly increasing proficiency as well, but that was only a guess.
The Kobold Shaman does feel stronger than other monsters with a 400-plus Foundation. That’s the Armaments’ doing, right?
Xavier grit his teeth and analyzed the Kobold Shaman’s movements. The Kobold Shaman was at an advantage…but only in terms of its Star of Energy and Star of Wisdom. Xavier was certain that his other Foundation Stars were stronger and that he had a more versatile Card Deck.
From the looks of it, the Kobold Shaman didn’t even have an elemental affinity and could only create energy blasts with brute force using its magnificent staff.
Xavier’s eyes locked onto the wooden staff.
It was time to destroy the Kobold Shaman’s little toy!