"What was that," Aquaflora reacted, mirroring Licht's and everyone else's shock.
In an instant, something happened that shattered the barrier that had held so well, even with the viciousness of the stampeding monsters crashing into it. It had held until that ripple from across the capital; then, in an instant, everything was thrown into chaos. The monsters that had been held off by the barrier were now allowed much closer, to the dread of the elves in formation.
Panic spread, though the "elders," being more astute and experienced, immediately tried to contain it. But truthfully, could you blame them for their panicked reaction? The barrier they had so much faith in—the same one that had been holding back these creatures that only dreamed of tearing them apart—was shattered before their very eyes, allowing these same creatures to crawl, dash, and fly their way toward them.
The sight of such chaos and naturally the bloody mess that followed as the invading monsters reached the panicked front line compelled Aquaflora, without much hesitation, to rush in to help. Seeing Aquaflora's actions, I glanced at Licht, who was holding—no, at this point, literally clenching—onto his sword, overcome with an urge to join the fight but still managing to restrain himself. Glancing back like a very obedient pupil, he asked, "What do we do?"
"Join the fight, perhaps," I responded, "but I don't know about you, I don't feel like joining that fight," I declared pointing at the chaos below.
Given the specialties of my classes, a chaotic close-combat battle is far from ideal. I'm better suited to a grander arena, ideally facing a manageable number, perhaps in the single or, at most, double digits. The sheer volume of opponents here was overwhelming. True, these monsters were low-level and easily dispatched, but that didn't mean it would be easy under these conditions. It was particularly tricky for me to engage effectively, considering I couldn't just obliterate the area without risking the lives of our "allies". In essence, intervening would be more trouble than it's worth, and I'm not fond of unnecessary complications.
"Besides," I started before explaining, "I think we have a big problem on the other side of the capital. Someone should go check it."
"We're heading there?" Licht asked, with repressed impatience in his voice.
Upon being asked that question, I glanced at Aquaflora, who, along with her little noodle now in a much more threatening form, was engaged against the monsters. Coming to a decision, I declared, with a sigh, "Go help her. Make sure she doesn't die. Kill as much as you can, but should you arrive at your limits—"
"I withdraw."
I nodded with a smile, "This is not our fight. This is an outcome chosen by their patriarch. Regardless of the outcome, just make sure to stay alive."
"Understood. Is that all?"
"Yes, it is," I said before telling him, "Have fun."
He didn't answer; he only gave a nod at my words, then drawing his sword, thrust himself into the battle, where he quickly began hacking, stabbing, and bisecting his way through monsters.
"Woah," I marveled, "to think you were repressing so much bloodthirst behind those serious airs." At the sight, I couldn't help but think that he, Goblin, and Bortz should really get along, but between him and Goblin, it took off on the wrong foot.
I sighed, bringing my focus back to what was currently happening, "I did say I'm going to check on what's happening on the other side of the capital, but I can't really just leave, can I?"
Despite most likely giving a very bad image by simply not interfering and just watching them struggle, I couldn't let my image be worsened by performing what might come across as me fleeing the battlefield, could I? I had to rack up some contribution that would fix my image, and there in the distance, getting closer and closer, I saw exactly what I could make use of.
Atop my floating sword, I had it fly past the fighting elves and monsters below, past where the barrier used to be before it shattered, closing in on the approaching second wave of monsters. As I flew, flew till I reached a distance of a kilometer or so from the behemoth-sized monstrosities, I reached my arm out and summoned the change that made me switch from mage to the class I currently am.
The only reason I chose mage in the first place was to see what other magic-type skills I could unlock. Doing so, I was able to unlock two other skills besides the one I already possessed: ice magic and curse magic, these two new skills being wind and water magic. I leveled them to the highest level and took advantage of every skill-wise opportunity I could as a mage.
Immediately upon reaching level 75, which is the level, like 25, where one can initiate a class change, I did a class change, changing my core class to monk, for that was the plan from the moment I chose mage as a secondary class. The goal of this maneuver was simple: to rake in the benefits of a mage and keep them even when I made my transition to monk. It was a risky bet as it came with the risk of having my mage skills balanced, but luckily for me, only skills that were balanced or purged—as it's sometimes easier to put—were skills that I didn't care about losing. What mattered to me was that I kept the magic-type skills.
What I did is a known maneuver, but it's one that is avoided by most for the simple reason that it's very risky; more so than having all one's skills that one has acquired through 25 levels be purged for a bunch of level 1 skills because yes, when my level 75 mage self turned into a monk, all the skills I unlocked were those of a level one monk. If I were a level 25, it meant that I would be a level 25 highbreed with the status of a level 25 highbreed but with the skills and abilities of a level 1 highbreed. As a level 75, I still had 50 levels as a hexcaster to clutch, but without it, I would have only had level 1 skills that I had to level up, and level up I did, I did for the past 50 years, and I do remain level 75.
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How so?
The answer was simple. Because I had struck a very unique deal with an eldritch being that could stop me from harvesting experience.
And for what purpose would I do that?
Also simple. For the purpose of making up for the loss there's been by becoming a monk only at level 75, because, of course, I was lagging behind by becoming a monk so late midway through, this lateness manifesting mostly in the level of my skills, so I take time to fix that.
It took 50 fucking years, but finally, here I am with not just fully functioning additional mage skills but also a monk's special class, because I didn't just become a monk upon reaching level 50, no, I'd also chosen a monk special class like I did sorcerer once by choosing Hexcaster as a Special Class. The class I've chosen: Weaponry Ascetic.
Now, as my arm waved over the monstrous behemoths, giant magical swords, lances, and spears materialized above them, suspended in the air like the wrath of the heavens. With a whisper, I unleashed my ultimate technique. “Judgment of the Firmament: Arctic Oblivion.”
The weapons fell like divine retribution, piercing the earth and striking the monsters with devastating precision. Each impact was an earthquake, shaking the ground violently, while the resulting explosions roared like a billion panes of glass shattering simultaneously. A cold mist billowed out, spreading rapidly and freezing everything it touched in a crystalline frost.
As the mist dissipated, the devastation became clear. A mountain of ice stood where the second wave had been, jagged and massive, glinting under the pale light. The behemoth-sized monstrosities—once embodying unstoppable might—were entombed in the icy monument, their forms twisted and frozen in eternal stillness.
[Level Up Interface]
Experience requirement met.
Congratulations! You've Leveled Up!
Attribute Points Earned: 15
『Expand』
After that little interruption that appeared in the corner of my eyes, the battlefield was silent for a brief moment, save for the distant cries of those still fighting. I hovered, taking in my handiwork, a small smile tugging at my lips. "Not bad, at least that wasn't a waste of so much, and that should be just flashy enough to not flag me as a deserter," I muttered before noticing a lone behemoth flying, as if on fire, from where the others were coming. It came screeching and with ill intent, diving straight at me. But in that moment, standing on my sword, I saw something gigantic, almost as much as the behemoth, if not bigger, flash past from behind and immediately initiate aerial combat. Well, 'aerial combat' was a big word; from the moment they collided, what happened next was an aerial massacre that remained in the air for a dozen seconds before the lifeless and headless body of the flaming bird fell to the ground, while the red wyvern made a turn to meet me again in a series of screeches, "I've missed you too, girl. Nice to see that you still got it," I smiled at the sight of Veilleuse-19. The red wyvern responded with a screech.
"I would have loved to fight together again like we used to, but unfortunately, I have to go back to the capital, and I don't think it's a smart idea to take you there. I'm gonna need you to stay here again, okay? Better yet, go help Licht, Aquaflora, and the others. Just make sure not to get mistaken for one of the stampeding monsters."
Letting out a strident sound, Veilleuse-19 made a turn, just like I did, headed toward the capital to help everyone against the creatures. Not even sparing the embattled elves below, Aquaflora, or Licht a glance, I flew at high speed past them, my destination where what shattered the barrier came from. Atop my sword, with the help of my wind magic, reaching hypersonic speed, it took less than half a minute for me to reach the other side of the capital, where I arrived at a scene of utter chaos. The entire northern corner of the capital was in shambles, a display of unprecedented destruction making one immediately think that perhaps here should have been where the focus should have been. For there, in the middle of the urban area, were monsters, behemoths in size much like the ones I smote with my [Judgment of the Firmament]. However, these creatures were different. While the earlier behemoths, despite their varied appearances, shared a singular destructive intent, here the scene was chaotic. Instead of a unified onslaught, these behemoths were embroiled in conflict among themselves, with several of them ganging up against one.
Several monstrous behemoths were locked in a violent struggle against a singular adversary. The battle was already in full swing. Towering over the city, four colossal creatures clashed with a formidable adversary: a giant serpent with piercing blue eyes and gleaming white scales. One of the challengers was a golden flame-infused bird-like creature. That majestic creature was not in the sky; no, it was stuck between the maws of the gigantic serpent, as it tried to escape. The creature's feathers were matted and bloodied, screeching in agony. The bird’s cries pierced the air, a desperate plea lost amidst the chaos of the clash. Nearby, a grotesque reptile with bat-like wings unleashed long-range attacks, along with another creature, a spindly spider, its body fragile-looking yet unnervingly large, launching volleys of lightning.
The serpent, still clutching the screaming bird in its jaws, easily dodged the combined assault, slithering past the corpse of a giant monkey-like behemoth. This creature, largely dismembered, lay defeated in a corner of the city—a grim preview of the fate awaiting the bird-like creature in the serpent's grasp, which was visibly losing its vitality.
Seeing the long-range attack of its peer not working, an armored lizard came closing in fast but just as it did, it came to a mysterious halt. Rising to the bold lizard's eye level, and even staring it down, the crawling white serpent finally landed the killing blow on the bird-like creature, snapping its body into three chunks, one of which it gulped before immediately slithering to his next target. Releasing what halted the armored lizard from closing in, the serpent locked it in a strangulating embrace as it came biting onto the reptilian creature's throat. Refusing to go like the bird, the eight-legged armored lizard unleashed a powerful frost explosion that engulfed the surroundings with ice.
After that desperate attack, there was a moment of silence as the two other behemoths circled apprehensively around the icy prison that had formed by the explosion. In a sense, that attack reminded me of the secondary effect of my earlier attack, but unlike my attack that turned out fatal for its targets, this one revealed that it was not effective, as the serpent behemoth broke free of its prison of ice. The creature's jaws closed in on the flying behemoth, bringing it down in a loud thud that shook the earth. Seeing this as his call to attack, the scrawny spider-like creature unleashed a lightning breath attack that the serpent countered by yanking the creature it had catched mid-flight onto it. Scrawny looking as it was, it was knocked down by the weight of the much more imposing reptilian creature that, in that serpent attack, lost its wings.
Wasting none of that opportunity, the serpent closed in on the two knocked creatures and finished off what it began with a strange attack that caved in the whole surrounding more and more until there was nothing left of the creatures but a gory puddle.
Having watched that battle through, I stood there atop my sword thoroughly impressed, and it was then, as the dust settled over the ravaged cityscape, the serpent reared its head, victorious, its blue eyes flashing with triumph. I believe it finally noticed my presence, as in that moment, I felt it pause and stare back.
The staring went on for a moment until suddenly “it” was upon me.