"[Cross Slash]!"
"[Parry]!"
"[Cross Slash]!"
"[Flurry of Blades]!"
"[Cross Slash]!"
This happens a few more times as I try to chip the undead general down until he kneels. Despite this, he keeps standing and I see no scratches or damages on his armor added to the ones I made earlier. And it's all because his [Mana Armor] has overlaid his armored body. When he said it was impenetrable against my physical attacks, he wasn't kidding. What's worse is that he hasn't attacked me at all. He has just taken all of my attacks like nothing! I wondered if he was cheating with this OP skill because he was desperate. No, the better question is how strong he was when he was alive?!
[What's the matter, kid? Where did all that bravado go? You already showed me your conviction. Yet you're starting to give up because you can't use your usual tactics anymore. I can say the same with your defense.]
He's right. I haven't had any luck avoiding and blocking his counterattacks. Even with my [Parry], it isn't enough to endure most of his attacks. And there is no way I can prolong this fight any longer.
"Ask an undead general who has years of experience on the battlefield while a guy like me only spent months beating up bears, living trees, and large ants who killed me and my brother," I snark. "But that doesn't stop me from kicking your ass!"
Yeah, declaration aside, I don't know how to win this fight. I know I have to risk it all to do it, but how can I achieve it by maximizing the damage without killing myself in the process? There must be some way I can defeat him. Even with that one skill failing me back then, it won't be enough!
[Ah, there you go again. Having your conviction doesn't mean you have to get too confident about yourself.]
Now that I think about it, why did it fail in the first place? I met the requirements before, but it never activated. Was it a bug in the system or was it something that seems to be hidden in this fight? He disabled my stats and skill UI windows so I can't rely on them right now. But is there anything else that stands out from this fight?
[Or have you started to have second thoughts about this?]
Okay, think! I have limited time to do so before he starts yapping away. Since I'm limited to [Swordsmanship Mastery] for this fight, then it should affect the same way as Veritates! Although he does have some high-level skills that I don't have right now, I don't know if that's enough for me to determine his strength. But I know he has to have a weakness somehow! There is no way he could have continued fighting if he lets his [Mana Armor] linger for too long. That must have cost him a lot of [MP] and I don't know if this logic applies to monsters, but he must have a large amount of it despite him being an [Insignis] from the past. Then again, does the [Insignis] race have some skills related to [MP]?
[Despite everything, you still rely on brawns instead of your brains.]
Now that I think about it, is there any skill related to his [Mastery] or [Race]?
[Race]... [Mastery]... Something that might have bypassed the handicap of this fight...
Maybe a special skill? A skill that only he can use in his past life? Maybe something similar to Kazu's strange [Mastery] he got from Bai Hu?
[Or rather, you felt like you won't be able to measure up to yourself because of your self-proclamation to protect your brother just to make yourself better?]
I swear if he keeps repeating my issues again and again...
Wait, that's it! I think I got the answer. But all that is left is to find proof of it. If I'm wrong, then I'll have to do this fight all over again and I am so done with this fight!
And to do that, I scream as I raise my sword and charge in with my eyes dead-set on the general's neck.
[So in the end, you chose over recklessness rather than facing your hardships forward. [Aftershock]!]
Upon hearing that skill once more, I quickly raised my sword. But it was too late. The general is too fast for me to react before his attack reaches me and there is no way I can block it in time. However, I quickly jump up before the shockwave of his attack gets me and I decide how to end this.
"And you should stop using your old tricks, gramps! [Flurry of Blades]!"
If this multiple attack skill hits, then I might able to end this f-
[And again, you are still reckless. [Counter Slash]!]
That attack... I put my sword in front of me, but to my shock, it seemed that my skill ended up powering it up enough for me to fly and crash into the pillar behind my back again. So we're doing this again, huh? I can't stand up, my legs are losing strength, and I watch him kneel with his claymore by his side.
[You may have true convictions, kid. But you know what they say. "Old habits die hard".] He raised his claymore and aimed at the middle of my head. [Good try, though. But you get the drill by now. No second chances during the battle. Looks like you have to try again.]
I cough as I try to let out some words. "Y-Yeah... I thought you won't. This is a [Test of Courage], right? There's no way I can convince you otherwise, right? What a bummer..."
[Unfortunately, your recklessness is still an issue. I guess you better work on it before you battle me again.]
I slowly look up and watch his claymore about to swing to my hips. "T-True. But about that..."
I quickly raise my sword to where his claymore was going.
> [Activating [Clash Block]...]
"I didn't say I'm calling it quits yet!"
> [Successful!]
As I open my eyes, I notice that my body hasn't been flung away in pieces. Rather, I notice his claymore unable to penetrate my [Sapphire Sword's] blade despite its heaviness and size of it. No way... That damn skill finally activated when I needed it the most!
...Just as I predicted and theorized.
[W-What is the meaning of this?! T-This...]
"You're expecting this skill to fail? Guess I was right on the money!"
I take some time to use my remaining strength to push Veritates's claymore away. I have to admit, it's so damn heavy! But I manage to push it away thanks to my [Clash Block] skill. To be honest, I was expecting to have this skill activated from the first fight. But something blocked it when I saw the "Failed" message before he killed me. I thought it was a bug in the game, but I know this battle was special because we could only use our [Swordsmanship Mastery] skills. But from the first fight, I feel like he was much stronger outside of his armor, weaponry, and level. There is something that triggered the failure and it has to be connected with something.
That something might have been my emotions!
[Y-You didn't break from my taunts?! But you...]
I grin when he says those predictable words. "I felt something wasn't right with the last few moments of our first fight. So I intentionally made some reckless moves so you can activate your [Counter Slash]. Once you did, I acted like I’d lost all of my confidence and courage..."
[So you could exploit my attack and absorb it with your [Clash Block]...] He finished with the words I was about to say next. [You haven't learned about the connections of swordsmanship and life and yet, you managed to fool mine with that small trickery of yours.]
"Bingo!" I quickly stand up once I regain most of my energy and raise my sword. "Of course, I know that this is still a [Test of Courage]. That's why I'm testing mine to see if I can take more damage with your [Counter Slash] boost from my [Flurry of Blades]!"
He widens his eyes as I keep my smirk. [I see. That's your plan all along. But haven't you forgotten my [Mana Armor]? Even if you use it against me, it won't matter since it will only deplete most of my [Mana]."
"Yeah, I can't deny that fact. But that only happens if I have a normal sword with me."
With those words, I have a feeling it will take a while until Veritates realizes what I meant.
[Y-You don't mean your sword is...!]
I grin as I let my [Sapphire Sword's] blade become enveloped in mana. "You should have checked twice on your opponent's equipment before egging me into this fight!"
Yes. I didn't forget my sword's [Imbued Arcana Element] effect. And with his pesky skill out of the way, now I can do this by swinging my blade toward the undead general!
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
"[Counter...]"
Even with my strength waning, I don't hesitate to swing my blade with all of the remaining within my avatar body.
"[...SLASH]!!!"
I don't know how much power I've absorbed from his attack combined with my [Flurry of Blades]. But as soon as my blade touches his claymore, I can feel the strength in my arms as I surprisingly push it away despite the size and weight. I can hear from Veritates's scream that he is trying to push back on my attack. However, I scream back and forge on without stopping my attack.
Eventually, I hear a crack, and right in front of me, Veritates's armor broke in half and my sword slashes him as I see a large gash cutting through most of his armor. And as soon as my attack is finished, he has flown away and crashed into a nearby pillar from the force of it. The very same way I was defeated by him.
While it's enough to break through his [Mana Armor], I know that's not enough to bring him down. But that doesn't mean that attack is my last. I can feel the strength in my legs fading, but it's not like it can stop me. "Time's up, Gramps!"
With the last of my legs' strength, I jump up and charge my sword at the now-unguarded general. "[Flurry...]"
[Don't think I'm going down without a fight, boy!] Veritates counters as he raises his claymore in my direction. [I am General Veritates, former captain of the Arcane Army!]
"[...of...]"
[You may break my [Mana Armor], but you will never break my [Orichalcum] arm-]
"[...BLAAAAAAADES!!!!]"
> [CRITICAL!]
>
> [CRITICAL!]
Without counting how many slashes I make from that skill except for the two critical hits I got from the UI, I unleash everything I have on my opponent. I don't care if this skill is a bit overkill, but this guy is already powerful enough. I'm gonna kick this guy's ass no matter what. I keep attacking until the rubble completely buries the general and I'm forced to jump out of there before I’m next.
I gasp for air as I collapse to my knees and plant my sword on the ground afterward. I would have declared this my victory, but since my UI is disabled at the moment, I don't know if I did or not. However, I can tell that I exhausted most of my [HP] and [SP] from using most of my skills. Unfortunately, it translated too well to my game character's body that my eyes were getting too heavy. I can barely keep myself conscious as I stare at the rubble that buried the undead general. Even so, I simply grin at it while being aware I can't stay awake for long.
"Huh... Who says my recklessness...is a weak...ness..."
That is all I can say before my world went dark and I heard a thud.
> [NOTICE]
>
> [You are now [Unconscious].]
...
[10 minutes later...]
...
[NOTICE]
> [Your [Unconscious] condition has been cured!]
Ugh... I heard you, game window. I groan as I slowly get up and rub the back of my head. Damn... I don't know how that status condition happened, but I'm guessing I overexerted myself from my non-stop attacks without considering my [HP]. But strange, I haven't seen anything that would determine the results of the fight or the death window itself. Did the game glitch or was it delayed or...
[Good morning, kid.]
I scream as I quickly jump at that familiar voice. But to my surprise, it's actually General Veritates sitting on the rubble of the pillar with his pillar beside him.
[I didn't expect you to be the heavy sleeper.]
I quickly sigh when I see it was him. Yet, I can't help but notice that he has more scratches on his armor than before. Probably from my last attacks. Either way, he doesn't look like he's mad about my trickery.
"Heh... I didn't expect your [Orichalcum Armor] to get all of the dents and scratches," I snark.
[Real hilarious, kid.]
Both of us sighed as we lean our heads against the pillar rubble behind us.
"So how I do?" I ask. "The [Test of Courage], I mean."
[Don't get your hopes up. This is only the first half of the test, so you can't get all high and mighty before the results are in,] Veritates answers. [But I have to ask, Wind. How did you figure out I possess a skill that blocks your [Clash Block]?]
How indeed. I do have one, but...
"Well, what is your skill then? We know where this is heading and sooner or later, I will figure out your strange skill bypassing the rules of this battle."
[I guess so, too.] Veritates hums for a while before he says, [I call it [Piercing Soul]. It's not what you think of that name. It's a skill that simply breaks the opponent's spirits very briefly to take advantage of it. I know it's a bit mean, but it's perfect for apprentices needing to get off their high horse before their ego swells. One of the skills perfect for my [Stern Teaching Mastery]."
Stern...teaching? That definitely does not sound like a real [Mastery]. "Please don't tell me you make that [Mastery] up on the fly as an excuse for being a strict teacher to them."
I watch the undead general sigh under his helmet. [It's more of a [Unique Talent] than a [Mastery].]
Huh? I raise my eyebrow when I heard that term for the first time. "[Unique...Talent]?"
[It's a special trait that is unique to an individual. No two [Unique Talent] are the same and it's up to you what you want in your talent.]
So in other words, it's a special [Mastery] that acts like a custom skill of sorts based on your fighting style, I think? Although, that might be overpowered for NPCs who had one.
"Right. I'm just lucky I managed to figure out the weakness of your talent of sorts," I mutter. "No offense. I know this is a test but isn't that a bit too much breaking me down with your words while I'm running for my damn life?"
[Someone has to show you what you need to improve as a person and a warrior,] Veritates answers. [But I'm not the only person who has a [Unique Talent]. Everyone has one. [Humans], [Elves], [Beastfolk], [Feles]... Even a [Half-Insignis] like you can have a [Unique Talent].]
My eyes widen. "You're saying that because you're feeling pity on me."
[No, I'm serious. You can. And your brother will, too.]
...What.
[I can't say how you will get your [Unique Talent]. But all I can say is that when you find what you really want in life, then you will discover it in due time.]
That...That's just all flavor, right? There is no way this game will let me...
> [SNEAK PEEK UNLOCKED!]
>
> [Due to the story, you are granted the title, [Potential Talent].
>
> With this, you can unlock the [Unique Talent] feature without going through a special quest!
>
> The [Unique Talent] feature is one of the features coming next year! Stay tuned for more updates on the official site!]
...Why did I even question the sudden foreshadowing and the update shilling?
[To be honest, my [Unique Talent] might be cheating because of the loopholes of the battle. But looking at you now made me reminded of one of my apprentices. Lost, putting all of the unnecessary burdens on themselves... I decided to use this test to help you open your eyes and realize you have a lot of paths that are too good to ignore.]
I see. It makes sense now. His taunting, his overwhelming strength, his [Unique Talent]... He did all of that to help me realize my path beyond Kazuki and myself. It's thanks to that battle that I know what to do next.
"I guess the results are already obvious."
[Then I won't beat around the bush.] The general raises his hand and to my surprise, a red key appears out of nowhere before he passed it on to me. [You’ve shown me not only your resilience and determination from that battle, but you’ve also discovered what you want in life and how you proceed to it. The future is scary, but I know you can't rush into things, right?]
I nod with a smile before I accept the key, a sign that I passed the first door of the test. "Yeah. Thanks for the enlightening battle."
[Good. Cause when you get defeated in the next battle, I'll take that key back and you will battle me again!]
My eyes widen at this horrible news. "WHAT?! HELL NO!!! I had enough of it!"
Suddenly, Veritates chuckles and says, [I'm just kidding. Having that key means you reached a checkpoint. Dying from the next battle will simply restart you to the same altar with the key on hand. Though if you fail the test altogether, you know what happens.]
Right... While that's good news, I frown at Veritates at his dirty trick. "Right. I'm guessing you're going to the afterlife now, huh?"
[Not right now. I do need to see through your test until the end. If you pass all of the remaining trials, I may give you a special gift as a job well done. Plus, I need to see my successor. It's been years since I saw them. But don't forget. If you lose conviction, you will lose what you desire in life. Never let go of it no matter what everyone says.]
Never let go...of my true conviction... That's something I will keep in mind for the future. "Thank you, General."
[No problem. Now go! Your next trial awaits!]
And I follow his words with a bow. General Veritates might be loony, but he's surprisingly a good teacher. He reminds me of my old one back in middle school. The very same one who is teaching Literature in Kazuki's class right now. NPC or not, I'm glad I met him.
With that said, I leave the Veritate's trial room, hopefully not for the last time. I wish I could worry about Kazu right now. But I have to do that later. Right now, I have to prepare for the next trial of the [Test of Courage] in a few minutes.
----------------------------------------
> [Key of Beginnings]
>
> [A key specifically made for the [Test of Courage]. It can open any door to the participant's choosing.]
>
>
>
> [Key of Conviction]
>
> [A key specifically made for the [Test of Courage]. It is granted by the participant who defeated the [Orichalcum General] in a [Duel of Convictions]. It can open any remaining door to the participant's choosing.]
>
>
----------------------------------------
Current Quest: Test of Courage ***
Type: [Hidden]
Status: In Progress
Party Members:
[Wind]
----------------------------------------
Wind's Masteries
[Archery] Level 19
[Woodcrafting] Level 10
[Swordsmanship] Level 21
[Cooking] Level 9
[Wind] Level 16
[Physical Enhancement] Level 17
[Hunting] Level 15
[Blacksmithing] Level 18
[Dagger] Level 6