A moment ago, I was locked in a staring contest with the behemoth-sized serpent, gazing into its blue, eldritchly intelligent eyes when, in the very next instant, it thrust forth with a speed that didn't fit its size. Then, as quickly as it threw itself, it disappeared, only to reappear not in my view. What came into my view was the inside of its mouth closing in on me.

Reacting fast, I blossomed ice clusters that stopped the serpent's large maw from closing on me. Cracks spread on the ice surface as the snake's maw pressed onto the ice. It wasn't going to hold long, but that was fine as the half-second window it offered allowed me to get out of the serpent's large mouth and fly up.

"Since we're doing this," I summoned swords, different from the first skill I ever had of the same type, "Frost Sword Conjuration." These weren't made of ice but instead spiritual weapons, a type I have had access to ever since becoming a Weaponry Ascetic. This was a main theme of the special class: Weaponry Ascetic, a subclass of monk that makes the wielder good at summoning spiritual weapons. I unleashed such weapons at the serpent, which at this point crushed the ice I'd summoned.

Despite their size, the spiritual swords fell fast onto the serpent, but once again it happened, as if momentarily phasing out of existence, the serpent disappeared causing the lances to continue their descent and crash onto the capital, making me realize that I should perhaps start to be a little more cautious with my attacks.

In any case, not even a couple of seconds had passed after my spiritual swords missed their target when the same notification as earlier appeared again in the corner showing the skill that allowed it to close in on me so rapidly and evade my attack.

[Identification Lvl.10] Description: This ability allows the wielder to manipulate their size at will by harnessing their mastery over gravitational forces. By compressing or expanding their body, they can achieve extreme size shifts without altering their physical density or structure.

Active Usage:

- Expand: The wielder increases their size, gaining massive strength and gravitational pull. This form can crush enemies or fortify their surroundings with immense pressure.

- Contract: The wielder decreases their size, becoming faster, harder to detect, and more precise in their movements. This form enables them to evade attacks or infiltrate tight spaces.

Passive Effect: The wielder's control over gravity ensures they maintain their mobility and agility regardless of size.

As the creature, having resumed back to its original size, hissed at me from the ground, I laughed at the sight of the ability being used in such a way. "Hahaha, let's do this," I shouted as I ascended higher, finally getting into this battle against the monster that the Umbryan family had thrown everyone into with his foolish arrogance.

Without much concern for the mental note I made earlier about holding back with my attacks, I activated one of the rare jinxes in my arsenal, before manifesting a spiritual sword hanging vertically above my head. Through the jinx, I confirmed that there were no elves to hold back my punch in this corner of the capital, just buildings. So really, no reason to hold back from the fun. I summoned more spiritual weapons and unleashed them at the serpent. As the serpent coiled back and literally threw itself at me, using the same ability, this time it took a subtler size but not to the point that it disappeared from view. It took a size that allowed it just enough to slither past the hail of giant projectiles hurled at it. But then, just as the last one closed in on it, it took back its conventional size to arrogantly stop the projectile by biting down on it.

"Bold," I sneered in amusement, clenching my fist then activating the parameter the projectiles came with, like the one I unleashed upon the second wave of behemoths. The projectiles I summoned through Judgment of the Firmament came with a little elemental infusion: obviously, ice.

Just like the projectile still in his mouth, most of the projectiles that he had just evaded exploded, engulfing the whole area in ice. It was nowhere as potent as the attack I unleashed upon the second wave, which cost me easily over 10% more MP, but the explosion of ice was enough to completely engulf the serpent without overdoing it, as I didn't want to waste too much MP for nothing when the serpent could pull exactly what it pulled out in that moment.

Just as I had predicted, the attack produced enough ice to completely engulf the serpent, but in that lost moment, it unleashed a skill that effectively protected it from having the fate of being thoroughly engulfed. My attack had blossomed into a dense amalgamation of ice around which the snake was encased in a spherical force field that kept it unharmed by the ice.

"Oh," I started but before I could add anything else, I saw my identification skill notify me of a skill and not even a second later felt the effect of it as it dragged me down to the ground.

I, with my sword, landed hard to the ground so much so that a circular, deep crater formed around.

This was the kind of attack that would have been my bane in my hexcaster days. Now, no longer just a hexcaster but a Weaponry Ascetic, a monk subclass, I was fine. So, the moment the effect of the skill vanished, I stomped the ground, throwing myself above the crater. But the moment I made it out, I was welcomed by the serpent's gaping maw. This time it was not to close on me but rather to unleash an attack.

Taking that attack directly to my face, I was literally being thrown across town, my uncontrollable body crashing against and through buildings due to their wooden structure having an easier time crashing against and through. After crashing through the seventh building, I decided to recover from that, to come to a halt. I called forth the evolution of the skill that allowed me to earn the title Chainweaver, aka the title I was most proud of, and the skill that steeled my mind on taking that class change bet: [Chains of Permanence]

Black chains erupted from within me and from the array of magic circles that suddenly materialized around me. What should have been a violent stop turned surprisingly gentle as the chains caught me, suspending me midair. There, dangling in the stillness, I spotted an object hurtling toward me—a literal house, undoubtedly flung in my direction by the serpent.

With lightning-fast reaction, I swung the chains at the unexpected projectile, my chains bisecting the house into two equal parts. I didn't even get to enjoy what I just did before I saw more houses being thrown. Swinging my chains, I disposed of them.

Originally, I unlocked [Ethereal Chains] when I reached level 42. At first glance, it seemed like a rather bland skill, especially when compared to the other skills I had, like Cursed Frost Sword Conjuration and the rest of the Cursed Frost Weaponry skillset, which were far better, more convenient, and higher level. Ethereal Chains allowed me to control magically summoned chains, and while I had full control over them as if they were an extension of myself, they lacked additional effects or magical damage capabilities, unlike the Cursed Frost Sword Weaponry skills. Even the physical damage they could inflict was subpar. But that's only if you use the skill incorrectly—by that, I mean using it standalone without combining it with other skills.

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The real value of Ethereal Chains lies in a subskill that makes them an excellent conduit for magical skills, specifically magic-type skills like ice magic. They are particularly compatible with all my available curses and a skill I would unlock three levels later: curse magic. This magic-type skill allowed me to use all forms and expressions of curses, which I could then channel through the chains summoned by Ethereal Chains. Upon choosing mage as a secondary class, I acquired two more magic-type skills to use with these chains, enhancing their effectiveness. When the skill evolved into its latest version, [Chain of Permanence], its physical effects improved further when I transitioned from Hexcaster/mage to Hexcaster/Weaponry Ascetic. This made it my favored skill for two main reasons: one, because I was already accustomed to wielding it, and two, because it addressed one of my biggest weaknesses.

After dealing with buildings being thrown at me, I next found myself facing the snake, which came slithering rapidly toward me. Clenching my fist, my black chains wrapped tightly around it, enhancing my grip and strength. I poised myself and welcomed the slithering snake with a response I had only managed to muster the courage and power to use against formidable opponents in the past fifty years: using my fist to land a powerful punch.

The punch, earth-shattering and powerful, brought the creature to a violent halt, but as violent as that punch was, I knew that what my fist met wasn't the serpent's body but rather the barrier it erected to protect itself in the last moment. The barrier gave out as my chain, conventionally black and crackling with a glacial infusion, whipped on their own and shattered the barrier. But before I could make use of the opening that it was, something happened.

Contorting its body, the serpent whipped its tail at me, who, being under the effect of his skill, was pinned in place and could only watch as the tail whipped viciously at me, only to be stopped by my chains, which allowed me enough time to activate a superior variation of an old skill.

I summoned four moon-like spheres between us, which for one second straight gained in size only to suddenly explode, releasing a potent and highly pressurized mist that effectively cleared the area and engulfed it in mist.

Without its barrier, the serpent tasted the effect of [Lunar Cataclysm] fully. But let's be honest, the best that could have done is release me from the effect of [Directional Gravity Control], which pinned me in one spot. And that assessment was proven right when, amidst the mist, I saw a series warning flash from my identification skill.

With the help of “wind magic”, which I called forth without a magic circle through my skill, Zenith of Sorcery, formerly Unbound Sorcery, I flew up to avoid the attack at random from the serpent.

As the cold mist cleared, which it rapidly did with the rate at which the serpent fired its gravity beams, from midair, I locked in an intense staring contest with the serpent. This was only broken as the serpent's gaze momentarily left me to go to the southern horizon. Understanding that something must have happened, something that had to do with the battle between the patriarchs, I too looked into the southern horizon but wasn't able to see or sense what could have had it look that way. The moment my eyes went back to the serpent, I saw in the corner of my vision a warning coming from my identification skill.

I watched as the gravity changed, houses and habitations being torn apart by what the serpent unleashed. Considering the preparation it made, the serpent was about to strike a powerful blow, one that from the look of it was going to end this all.

With a smile, I took on the challenge, for that's what it looked to me. "Since we’re doing this," I said, "Let's really do this!" Activating all the skills I believed I would be needing to respond in kind when, locking eyes with the serpent, I saw in the corner of my vision countless black dots in midair, which made me frown, then grimace when I realized what it was.

"Crap," I cursed, realizing then that the black dots were—people, well, to be exact, elves, the same ones that had come to the center of the capital for safety. They were now floating high up in midair because of the skill the serpent unleashed, which affected a large portion of the capital. More so, without me actually noticing, it seemed that our battle, which initially took place in the northern corner of the capital, had taken us toward the center, where the elves were taking refuge around the Patriarch's palace, where they'd been promised safety.

They definitely weren't safe where they currently hovered.

As I turned toward the serpent, I saw it hiss and unleash its attack: [Directional Gravity Control]. Once again, it altered the gravity around us, causing everything that had been hovering—including me—to crash down heavily. Actually, calling it a "landing" might be too generous; it was more like a crash.

After pulling myself out of that heavy landing, just as I had expected, the serpent came with something else—something more grandiose. It could have been the "coup de grace," but instead, it turned its back and made an escape. As I rose back into the air, I debated whether to give chase and ultimately decided against it, muttering to myself, "No, best not to overdo it. I've overdone enough, or perhaps not." I looked around at the capital, which was now unrecognizable from just minutes before; the last attack had destroyed everything.

Making my way toward where the patriarch's palace once stood—around which people had previously gathered before being lifted and then slammed to the ground by that last attack—I hovered above what was now just rubble. I thought to myself, "Perhaps this is what heroes in movies feel at the end of the film, when they save the city." Well, I hadn't exactly saved the city, but at least I had saved most of the people.

I extended my arm, and in that moment, black chains manifested, stretching from my hands down into the debris. As I absorbed the chains back, what they were connected to began to reveal themselves from beneath the rubble where they had been buried. It was the elves who had earlier been caught in the attack. Instead of being splattered into puddles of blood, they were fine—unharmed, in fact. It was all thanks to the chains that had bound them to me, sparing them from a grimmer fate.

The moment I realized that a battle was to be fought in the capital, I understood that civilians' lives were to be lost, but nonetheless, I understood that some measure ought to be done to ensure that they don't die, not because of it, but here's the issue, I didn't have a barrier type skill that could conveniently shield everyone from what might happen, but I did have a skill that could allow me to avoid them dying a stupid death, which is why the first thing I ever did was cast a jinx that effectively hexed, harmlessly all living beings of the capital and thus allowing me to form a connection to cast a curse upon them. That curse was what manifested the crown hanging above their head as they stood there, chained, amidst the rubble looking up at me, holding them on chains, deactivating both [Blood Oath], which is the curse which through my [Chain of Permanence] connected me to their HP, and [Fate Reversal], which made it so that any damage they'd be subject to was translated into a mere MP subtraction from me. Perhaps saying "mere" isn't all that accurate as it left me with a huge drain, but compared to the loss of the entire population in the capital, isn't this a worth it sacrifice?

"Go ahead," I thought, looking down upon them and spreading my arms, "Praise me, praise your savior," as I released the hex I had cast on them. The chains and the hanging crown above their heads disappeared, just in time for a rather surprising event to unfold. Out of nowhere, a barrier, vibrant and seemingly more robust than the one that had been shattered earlier, materialized, effectively replacing the broken one.

Whose Ancestral Tree was this?

There could only be one answer to that question. Half a hundred meters away, hovering above the remnants of his palace, appeared the figure. Without the familiar he had earlier ridden into battle and dressed in tattered robes, it was clear that he, the Umbryan family patriarch, had seen better days. It seemed like ages since he had experienced a day as terrible as this one.

Floating there, I, just like he did earlier in the day, made no comment, simply staring into the eyes of the black-haired patriarch who returned my gaze with a gloomy expression.