CHAPTER 102.

Amber wanted to feel deceived, but at the same time Frei had very much readily offered to deal with things; in fact, the only reason for this situation was because her new not-particularly-trust-worthy companion genuinely believed that this was something she wanted. And to some extent, the appeal of facing a monster with these conditions was very much there, and if spoken to properly beforehand she would’ve very much rushed at the opportunity.

But that didn’t happen.

None of that happened.

Instead, it was an opportunity given to her out of the blue, something that came practically out of nowhere; all because Frei couldn’t speak ⁠— because she had an ongoing Essence Contract that prevented her from doing so ⁠— and there was also the fact that the monster had randomly shown up and the accumulation of all of that made everything really unexpected. And it was really really really jarring for Amber.

She cursed as the Fledgling Chimera fired a beam of death, which she dodged with the 3rd Rank of Quick Dash. She wasn’t stupid enough to think she could tank that. Amber looked over as an explosion shook the surroundings, immediately destroying the unkempt road where the carriage had been. The vicinity was made out of small rocky mountains with little to no trees, it was as if she was at the beginning of a valley, which Amber found great for visibility, but it also made her question something else.

Why is there such a high level monster nearby in the first place? That didn’t make sense to her either. That said, she couldn’t blame Frei for that specific part.

The group itself was further behind, at the continuation of the other side of the valley, but safe away from the twisted monster in front of her.

The chimera roared; it had a multitude of heads, from lion, to serpents, to something reminiscent of a shark⁠— totalling a grand total of ten. Its main torso was that of a lion but at the same time it had eight legs of different beasts, some were ghastly and sickly looking while others were bulky and furry. And sticking out of its body were five tails of varying lengths, some had spikes and one was reminiscent of a mace. It was an abomination of nature no matter how it was viewed. A being that from mere appearance alone would be referred to as cursed.

The monster raised one of its many heads as purple light began to gather, and Amber in turn flicked her hand using Cursed Rage Synergy along with Fulminating Slash and Wind Cleave, all while pushing their speed as much as she could with wind.

In a single moment, the iridescent slash hit the beast, exploding as another slash passed and carved into the monster’s body. The chimera stumbled back as black blood spilled onto the ground, blue and purple flames clung to its body, letting a sizzling sound and Amber knew that this was an opportunity.

This wasn’t an enemy she could underestimate after all.

She immediately used the 3rd Rank of Quick Dash and landed in front of the Fledgling Chimera as it let out an angry screech, launching spikes from numerous of its maws in an attempt to retaliate, but Amber smirked and aimed for the spikes that were going to hit her, then she swung the Cursewelder as it ignited into silver flames.

Woah⁠—

Amber stumbled back from the sheer strength of the spikes she swiped off the air, while the rest barely missed her body. They were lanced with curses but also poisoned, something that immediately made her frown.

I wasn’t using all my strength enhancements, but even the projectiles overwhelmed me… 100 levels above me is really just as terrifying as I remember.

She thought back on the first member of the Arcane Council she ever fought and just how helpless she had felt at the time, but unlike before she had a Legacy Branch, unlike before her class was even more unique, and unlike before she had access to Essence.

The monster tried to pounce with deceptive agility, whipping with three tails at once, but she got out of the way with a dash to the side. Amber this time used every single body strengthening skill, feeling her blood boil, her muscles tear, and her Essence flare. In a single moment, her strength reached almost its full peak, the only thing missing was for Crimson Fervor to build up, but that would happen in no time. And finally, as the monster spun and whirled to slam with its tails again, Amber felt it.

The excitement of battle.

How do I compare to something 100 levels above me now?

Of course, she had no way of knowing if this particular Fledging Chimera had a Legacy Branch, or what its exact level was, but even then Amber’s heart skipped a beat as silver flames erupted on her sword and she slashed. Cursewelder cleaved through a thick tail with an explosion of blood as the monster shrieked, the second tail stopped the sword and the third hit.

Amber was thrown away with a painful blast that shattered multiple bones in her body. The wall of the valley she collided with practically exploded, and for a moment her world went dark before she jolted. Her body snapped back into place and she felt danger⁠—

Quick Dash⁠.

And the spot where she had just been exploded. Amber was sent flying by the following shockwave but managed to lithely land when her leg snapped into place. The Fledgling Chimera in turn roared as it rushed at her. And Amber, now mostly recovered, pounced towards the cursed monster.

She had to go faster, do better. The monster seemed to be avoiding doing a lot of its skills ⁠— probably because they were curses ⁠— so she was at an advantage. Even if her curses weren’t all that effective against it she still had Essence.

Amber side-stepped a lightning swipe from the thick leg of a monster, and she slashed at the amalgam of flesh. Her slash cleaved right into the monster as black blood that sprayed over her, burning her skin and Amber smiled. She dug out her sword and with a whirl she slashed into the monster again, slashing through its flesh this time sending a Fulminating Slash and a Wind Cleave at the same time as it tried to hit her with its tails.

Blood exploded and a loud screech erupted; blue flames were engulfing her vision along with flying chunks of flesh, and as she dashed to the side to slash again, she felt danger. Instantly, she teleported onto behind the monster and with an axe kick she hit it down against the rocky ground. The spot where she had just been practically evaporated at the same time with a close range magical projectile from the monster and Amber grinned.

The monster sure was much stronger but at the same time she had the advantage here.

She hopped and stabbed the Cursewelder deep into the monster as it let out a shriek of pain.

I can do it. Amber thought, a smile plastered on her face. This is the perfect fight for me⁠— Advanced Blue Fire Creation.

Blue fire exploded melting the surrounding rocks, a torrent of fire engulfed both of them as the flesh of the monster melted, and in return the monster retaliated. Before she could even react to the danger, tentacles sprouted and⁠— pierced right through her body as Amber felt venom fill her body. Then, she was thrown towards a wall. Her supernatural regeneration took over and Amber landed panting, but even when she was bleeding all over and now poisoned, she knew something deep down.

That she would win this battle.

Inexorable Will was hard at work, essentially making her considerably tougher⁠— she believed that the toxins wouldn’t do much to her, therefore they wouldn’t⁠— and thanks to Inexorable Body she was slowly becoming more durable.

Amber cracked her neck with a smile as she raised her sword, channeling blue fire into its edge as it began to burn brighter and brighter.

And in retaliation the Fledgeling Chimera, for the first time since the battle begun⁠— teleported.

Amber’s eyes went wide and she was whipped against a wall, breaking her neck and spine in an instant, the mountain behind her exploding into pieces.

* * *

Cecile was panicking, she had been panicking all this time, and for good reason. Amber was in grave danger! There was absolutely no way the trickster-elf hadn’t lied, and in fact it was quite visible by how much Amber was struggling, it was the very same Amber that had saved her from hundreds of monsters in the fall of the Grand City of Torl.

The same Amber that had defeated all those monsters so easily. And yet, that same Amber was bleeding all over with holes in her body. No matter how she looked at it, it was a losing battle. Even though Amber was barely keeping up with the strength of the monster, at the end of the day it was a fucking Chimera. A creature of legend.

Perhaps it may have been a mere fledgling, perhaps it was just the beginning of what was known as a calamity inside the world of Vir, but the fact was that a Chimera ⁠— even if Amber was resistant to curses ⁠— couldn’t be faced by her friend. Not in her current state. While Cecile understood that Amber was truly exceptional, it still wasn’t enough to bridge such a big gap in levels.

And that was the main source of her panic. Finally, she snapped and grabbed the elven woman by the arm and pulled.

“Intervene already!”

“I keep telling ya it’s not needed,” she answered as casually as ever. “I believe in her.”

“Just because you believe in the fact that she is inhuman doesn’t mean she can do it!” Cecile screeched.

“That’s right,” Asil intervened. “Even if she is strong, that thing is above 250. If she dies, who will help you?”

And in response, the peach fuzz haired elf scratched her cheek. “You people really don’t have faith in her, huh?”

“I know the depths of her talent, but even then this is too much,” Asil growled.

Once more, the elf shook her head. “Just watch, she isn’t going to die. Besides, if I intervene you two may actually die, along with the horses and the guy I knocked out.”

She gestured at the fainted horses and the coachman.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Cecile looked pointedly at the woman, but all she got was a shrug.

Sure, the valley continued behind them but there were no monsters in the surroundings whatsoever.

Then, she turned back to the fight. Cecile and Asil followed suit, and the first thing she saw was Amber holding her gigantic sword, readying it for something. The blue flames covering her sword were glowing brighter and brighter.

Just like the arrow… Cecile remembered that terrifying attack. She had seen it twice at this point in time, and each time she saw it it sent shivers down her spine. Such attacks were only reserved to the most elite of mages, and yet Amber as a berserker could do it. It was ridiculous; something that just went to show how extraordinary she was.

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But even then, it’s not like it’s enough to bridge the gap. Cecile gritted her teeth, and then remembered the elf’s words.

“I believe in her.”

For a moment, she refused those words, but now⁠— seeing the flaming sword, remembering those attacks, Cecile chose to do the same.

She chose to believe in Amber.

Her eyes focused and⁠ the chimera teleported in front of Amber and whipped her. The mountainside exploded, the ground erupted from the strength of the attack as the environment itself changed. A loud rumble echoed as Cecile’s eyes went wide with shock and at that moment she remembered that the monster was close to 100 levels above Amber.

She turned towards the Arcane Council member who seemed unimpressed, and felt rage.

“If she dies⁠—”

“She won’t. Stop yapping, ‘kay?” The woman sighed. “She’s fine.”

“How is that fine?!” Cecile almost shrieked.

In return the elf clicked her tongue and at that moment another explosion resounded. Asil seemed to be looking at the site in concern, too busy to really pay attention to their conversation. But Cecile had her eyes locked into the elven woman; the only person with any power in this situation, but the woman remained looking ahead. And eventually, she relinquished and looked forward as the chimera charged forward into a cloud of smoke.

“I can't really see how she stands no chance, even though I don’t even know what her abilities are. Maybe it’s ‘cause I made a contract that connects me to her, but…” the elf began.

The Chimera in the smoke pounced towards Amber’s incredibly broken and barely moving silhouette, outlined by the blue light of her sword.

“Right now the way I perceive Amber is…”

The Fledgling Chimera hit, and Amber disappeared. Light manifested above and the berserker’s silhouette reappeared, her sword perched over her shoulders as it reached another level of brightness. Cecile’s eyes grew wide as Frei finished her statement with a barely audible whisper.

“As someone whose strength is on the path to change the world.”

And Amber at that moment, slashed at the Fledgling Chimera’s back.

Blinding light erupted, a torrent of flames exploded in all directions consuming the immediate surroundings⁠— the flames went up in the air, a hellish pillar that consumed everything above and below, changing the terrain itself forever.

That had been Amber’s attack, and even though she had seen it before, this time it was even stronger.

In the end, Cecile couldn’t keep her mouth closed, and Asil had a rather proud look, while Frei herself was looking at her with a grin.

“Told ya.”

And at that moment Cecile realized that, even though Amber was above everything she understood as normal and abnormal, she still managed to underestimate her.

* * *

Amber felt like death.

It was hard to explain just how bad the initial hit had damaged her, but even now she was still limping, her lungs were full with blood⁠, keeping her unable to breathe, and she was constantly on the verge of throwing up as her skills did their best to heal her. But that had to have been a good hit.

Amber forced herself to use Quick Dash away, landing atop of the crater she had just made with her attack. At the bottom was a charred black mass with smoke coming out of it, and yet she understood it was far from over.

“Ugh…” she groaned from pain. “If⁠—”

And she coughed, she couldn’t even speak.

If Cursed Battery worked on me… Pain flared. Fuck… it’d be so easy to heal. Her wrists snapped back into place, and her shoulderblades did as well. The fact that she had even been able to swing was a miracle. However, she wasn’t going to do anything, right now more than anything she had to heal.

Used two third of my Essence on that attack too…

Amber frowned and at that moment, the monster twitched. It slowly rose from its spot as flakes of charcoal fell from its body, and then it turned towards her⁠— half of its eyes missing but otherwise, based on what their senses were telling her, the Fledgling Chimera wasn’t all that damaged. Sure, it was hurt but it would probably take another attack of that magnitude for it to be seriously hurt.

She bit her lip as the Fledgling Chimera took a step, at the same time Amber raised her sword preemptively and the monster teleported. It rammed into her and she slid across the rocky ground her whole body cracked as her previously healing ribs just broke once more from the impact.

Blood exploded from her mouth and she gritted her teeth, the chimera in turn whirled and Amber used the 3rd Rank of Quick Dash⁠—

The air was whipped as the barrier of sound broke and the spot where she had just been exploded into nothingness. At that moment, she prepared herself to block again and realized she had a whole fucking storage ring that had once belonged to the Arcane Council.

Amber immediately pulled out two High Quality health potions ⁠— the only ones there were ⁠— and chugged them. The chimera in turn rushed at her and she dashed to the side. Dodging its pounce. Thankfully, aside from its energy attack the Fledgling Chimera wasn’t able to do that much except for physical attacks and⁠—

She tumbled out of the way as a flurry of spikes shattered through the ground, barely missing her.

The poisonous spikes.

Amber took out a potion with a curse related to lightning and slammed it on the ground next to her. She immediately was zapped by the contents of the bottle and healed enough to breathe at last. The potions were also aiding in her speedy recovery, but even then she couldn’t relax because⁠—

Her eyes widened as red light gathered at the maw of the Fledgling Chimera, and Amber didn’t have the 3rd Rank of Quick Dash just yet. For a moment she panicked but quickly regained her bearings as she pointed her finger with a flick.

Wind Cleave and Fulminating Slash went off, then she exerted her will, and the monster froze.

Both attacks hit exploding upon the Fledgling Chimera as it shrieked, Amber dashed out of the way but the monster seemed to lose focus on its attack; causing it to disperse. The monster shook its many heads as black blood pooled on the ground, and then turned towards her pouncing upon her.

And Amber in turn, rushed at it and slid under the monster. She raised her sword with silver and blue flames and cut across its belly as blood spilled. From what she could tell it was completely and utterly immune to curses, so to deal with it all she had was her Essence, her body enhancement skills and her Legacy Branch skills.

Amber this time around lamented not having had her blood extracted beforehand, otherwise she would’ve used copious amounts of it to try and poison the chimera.

“Well, whatever,” Amber scoffed as she emerged from behind the monster.

It tried to whip at her, but with yet another use of her slash based Essence Skills, the tails were amputated as the monster shrieked. She couldn’t contest it in a battle of strength or go toe to toe with it directly, but she could still most certainly kill the monster given enough time.

Even if it’s a bit lame.

Amber prepared herself and danger came. She whipped her arms upwards, using the Cursewelder to block and at that same moment the Fledgling Chimera appeared, slamming down⁠—

The ground shattered and her arms cracked under the strength of the attack, and the Fledgling Chimera roared. A wave of wind swept over the environment as the dust cleared, and a red glow overcame the monster, Amber immediately felt danger and the chimera pulled back. She used the opportunity to get out of the way and the monster tackled.

She dodged, but the extremely destroyed mountain wall behind her exploded⁠ with a deep rumble, and then the monster almost instantly tackled in her direction again⁠— once more Amber barely managed to dodge, and this time the dodge was accompanied by the earth shaking. However, it wasn’t from the Fledgling Chimera impacting something, but from a landslide.

The chimera turned towards her amidst the cloud of smoke and pounced, its speed basically tripled as Amber blocked with her sword that immediately was nicked by eight claw marks. The twisted monster whipped its tentacles and sent her flying before she could even react. Multiple bones broke, and Amber coughed in pain.

The monster pounced at her once more but a gigantic rock hit her, Amber stepped out of the way as another rock threatened to crush her. In a single moment hundreds of gigantic rocks rained down, and roars began to echo in the distance⁠— perhaps the monster ecosystem was disrupted but either way she didn’t care.

Amber used the 3rd Rank of Quick Dash to get away from the avalanche as the environment fell apart. The chimera shrieked as a multitude of rocks began to crush it, but even then it tore them apart with its swipes as if it were nothing. The red aura around its body was some kind of skill that greatly enhanced its physical prowess in all aspects, and it also enhanced something else.

The chimera turned in her direction practically instantly ⁠— it enhanced its senses ⁠— then it rushed towards her at lightning speed, Amber braced herself and tried to dodge, but she still had to block a hit with the Cursewelder on the side. This time she was sent deeper into the valley she had been fighting in, further away from her friends and acquaintances.

And Amber this time, heard the roars that she had heard before be incredibly close. Her gaze turned in the direction amidst the pain and her eyes momentarily widened, because there were dozens of monsters running in their direction. From monsters that looked similar to Deer, to serpents, to even ones that resembled coyotes.

[Zauvan Agil. Lvl. 182]

[Earthen Exen. Lvl. 82]

[Grand Ackal Zauvan. Lvl. 129]

…

Their levels ranged from low 70s all the way to 190, however, what caught Amber’s attention wasn’t the fact that it was a stampede of an eclectic group of monsters, but rather that they were in a panic. Had her fight scared that many monsters? She didn’t know, but there was something she understood perfectly.

This is an opportunity⁠—

The Fledgling Chimera rammed her into the other side of the valley, almost making her black out even after she blocked it. Amber shook her head to snap out of her stupor and the Fledgling Chimera rammed into her yet again. Her arms gave out; shattered from the second ram, and she tried to use the 3rd Rank of Quick Dash but it was still on cooldown.

Amber gritted her teeth, the worst part was that even if she hadn’t been distracted the outcome wouldn’t have changed. She chose to tough it out, enduring the next ram ⁠— being weaker than all the others⁠ ⁠— but even then her spine cracked and she lost feeling on her legs and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Shit⁠—

Finally, as the monster prepared itself again she finally managed to use the 3rd Rank of Quick Dash, appearing as far away from the monster as possible, which was a few meters behind it. The Fledgling Chimera whirled around and sent spikes her way.

Amber attempted to block but stumbled from her failing body and numerous spikes pierced her all at once, injecting further poison into her bloodstream. The curses within the spikes somewhat healed her but barely did anything, and Amber immediately took out three cursed potions and drank them all in a hurry with a blurry vision.

The relief was instant, and she also used the 2nd Rank of Recovery of Curses, immediately putting the healing of the skill into overdrive.

And at that moment, danger came as the chimera fired a crimson beam of concentrated mana right at her. Amber raised the Cursewelder, blocking the hit and the blade⁠—

Exploded.

Shattered into thousands of pieces, finally breaking from all the abuse, and she went flying, gripping the handle. She hit the ground in a rolling mess with her vision on one eye blurry and the other eye entirely missing. Her brain uncomprehending of the world itself, feeling nothing but pain. An odd and dull pain that permeated her body.

Her bones were snapping back into place, even if the pace felt slow, but her brain was… she couldn’t make sense of anything⁠, and then she regained some sense as she jolted in pain.

Pain assaulted her body all over as Amber registered the extent of her injuries. She tried to stand up, but only one arm responded, her consciousness barely there. She lifted herself trembling with her single arm, and the Fledgling Chimera was gathering energy on all of its maws, ready to end it once in for all.

She had to run⁠— she tried to activate the 3rd Rank of Quick Dash yet couldn’t⁠— perhaps it was because of her brain was affected, or the skill was in cooldown, either way Amber couldn’t register it.

All she knew was that she had to get out.

She gritted her teeth, doing her best and her consciousness faded for a moment as she fell on the ground. Again.

Poison. It was the poison.

Her vision began to darken, and as she almost lost consciousness the person that had promised to help arrived. Frei slung her over her shoulder as the Fledgling Chimera stared in wariness.

“Aight, time to sub out princess.”

Amber gritted her teeth. “No.”

“What do ya mean no? You’re almost dead. It’s level 285.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

Amber used part of her accumulated rage to regenerate and recovered enough to push the elf off of her, then she took out four cursed potions and just slammed them against her body immediately bringing her to an acceptable condition. The spikes inside her body were pushed out, the Cursewelder’s blade was made once more with her mana, and at the sight of all of that Frei frowned.

“You’re still gonna die.”

Amber took a breath. “I can do this, leave. I want to fight it.”

Frei got a look of hesitation as Amber glared at the chimera, the monster stampede had also literally halted at Frei’s presence interestingly enough. Finally, after a moment of deliberation, she relinquished.

“Fine, I gotta keep your friends safe anyway since one ain’t here. Bye, oh and this time I may not be able to save ya⁠— well either that or your friends.”

“Save Cecile and Asil if it comes down to it,” Amber scoffed.

“Alright, bye bye.”

With those words Frei disappeared, waving, as the Fledgling Chimera let out a deep roar, and the stampede of monsters immediately resumed. Perhaps this hadn’t been her fight to take at the start, but after everything, it was now hers.

And because it was her fight she had to finish it.

Still feeling light-headed from all the poison inside her body, Amber cracked her neck and smiled.

“Besides, killing a monster that’s 130 levels above me alone isn’t an opportunity I can pass up.”