Nathan stared right back at the Master imp. Other imps surrounded it, and he really hoped that Big Ugly 2 would send forth a couple of them to help him grind through a few levels. It didn't.

Where Big Ugly had let its squad handle Nathan before jumping in the fray, Big Ugly 2 seemed to have a lead-by-example kind of approach. It charged straight at him, other imps in tow. Nathan focused on big ugly as it charged.

Master imp (lesser demon)

Level 8

The distance between them was about forty steps, and Nathan considered turning around and making a run for it. Big Ugly 2 didn't seem like the type to mess around, and Nathan wasn't sure he could take on Big Ugly 2 and all its twelve imps at once, something that was looking like the most probable scenario with each step the imps made.

I can do it, I can do it, I can do it.

Nathan repeated the words as many times as he could, preparing himself for what was going to be a tough fight. With his sword out and mind focused, Nathan met the charge on his terms.

Some of the smaller imps were now at the forefront of the charge, screeching for his blood. Nathan could let them score a few cuts, but they'd pay with their lives.

Wide arc.

Nathan's sword flashed out, cleaving through the first three imps leading the charge. He hadn't bothered finding out their levels—he had to kill them regardless of what level they were—and so he hacked and slashed viciously, his new strength aiding him, the Berserker in him half-unleashed.

Nathan had managed to mow down about five more imps before his sword was stopped mid-swing. Big Ugly 2 had joined the fight proper; the remaining four imps formed a semicircle at the other side, probably their little way of discouraging him from fleeing. An act that Nathan thought was sweet because if he had a choice between four imps and one master imp, the four would be dead before they realized it.

He tried to pull his sword back, but the damned demon held it with an iron-clad grip. Nathan received two slashes from imps behind him for his stubbornness. While the claws raking through his back had hurt, he could tell that he'd lost less health than usual. Probably his higher Vitality stat in effect.

Nathan let big ugly 2 have the sword as he released it, going for a sucker punch.

Crack.

Nathan felt something shift or break in his fist as it connected with the Master Imp's face. The imp itself seemed a little unperturbed at the attack, if only a little dazed—more from surprise than anything else, though.

Surprise he could work with. He gripped his sword and pulled with ease, taking it from the shocked imp. His fingers protested as he wrapped the injured hand around the hilt of his sword. Nathan's respite didn't last long though, as Big Ugly 2 and the other imps attacked him as one.

"Fuck me," Nathan muttered as his back, thighs, and legs sported new cuts while he defended big ugly 2's overhead slash, his sword blocking both clawed hands, barely. Every second that Nathan spent trying to win the battle of strength between him and the Master imp was a second where the other four slashed at his exposed parts.

I have to get rid of those four.

Warning: 50% health remaining.

Rats.

It was now or never. Having his back exposed while he fought with the Master imp was just him fighting a losing battle. In fact, it was him assuring the imps their victory. He had to handle the ones behind him first, which meant he had to turn his back on Big Ugly 2.

Fuck it.

Nathan spun around, cleaving through the first three imps with ease. He couldn't believe that he hadn't done this earlier. It would've saved him a bucketload of pain. Just as Nathan's sword thrust through the remaining imp, he got a refresher on why he hadn't done it earlier. Bigger claws, by the feeling of the tear, tore gashes in his already bloodied back, the force behind the swipe tossing him a few feet away.

Nathan almost cursed—he was a claw or two away from twenty-five percent health. However, the good side was that his gamble had paid off and now he could face off against the Master imp. More interesting was that he could feel himself almost breaking into the next level, and the means to do so was staring right at him.

Blood poured from Nathan's back; he needed to end this and to end it fast. Big Ugly 2 seemed to have a different tactical approach to killing him than the last group he'd met. While Big Ugly had let his imps try their hands and fail, giving Nathan the chance to heal up, Big Ugly 2 preferred to go for the kill without hesitation. It hadn't even used its imps as meat shields. It had fought amongst them and would most definitely die beside them. For that, it had Nathan's deepest respect—it was, for all intents and purposes, a proper leader.

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Nathan charged at the imp who'd decided to stand still, watching and calculating. As expected, Nathan's blade bounced off its skin without doing any harm. It had tried to catch Nathan, but after confirming his fears, he'd jumped back, putting some space between them. He hadn't escaped unharmed though; blood poured from a very small tear he'd received as the tip of one of the imp's claws made contact with his arm.

I'm getting sluggish.

There was no need to deny the obvious—he was getting slower as he lost more and more blood. He couldn't even stop to put his remaining point into his vitality; big ugly 2 didn't look like it was going to afford him the chance to do that. The Master Imp rushed at him.

If it won't let me spend my points, I might as well.

Nathan rushed the imp, slashing at it with his sword while it defended with its clawed hands. The difference in strength between the pair was marginal, but the Master imp currently had the upper hand when it came to that stat. Nathan just needed a little boost to close the gap completely. He pulled back and went for the eye, missing as the imp tilted its head to let the blade fly past, their trademark creepy-ass grin spreading on its face.

Oh oh.

A clawed hand raked through Nathan's chest, tossing him to the side. It felt like his chest was on fire. Blood had already started flowing out of the wound. This was it, it had to be.

Critical Warning: 17% health remaining.

Blood Rebellion triggered.

Gotcha.

A simple smile blossomed on Nathan's face as he stared at the screen before closing it with a thought. He'd already started to feel the effects of the ten percent boost the skill gave his stats.

It was almost as if he'd added one point to his skills, and in other words, he was probably as strong as a Level nine monster. He would've said ten if he was at full health, but he had seventeen percent health and it was dropping. The boost to his Vitality would clear his mind and energize his body, but he'd still be leaking blood. Meaning he needed to end this fight fast.

The imp had already started walking towards him, no doubt taking the smile as Nathan's acceptance of his death. Nathan, on the other hand, had started to push up from the floor, grasping for his sword where it had fallen during their scuffle.

He wasn't going to lie down and die if that was what the Master imp expected. With renewed strength, Nathan rushed at the imp, slicing with one hand. Big ugly 2 raised one arm to block the attack, not stopping in its stride as it knew this was the dying attack of a human—a persistent human, but still a human nonetheless.

Unfortunately for Big Ugly 2, Nathan wasn't the same person he was a couple of moments ago. His sword slashed through the arm from its elbow down, tearing through flesh, tissue, and bone alike. The cut was jagged as if it was only raw strength empowering the strike, the blade itself not sharp or quality enough to deliver a clean cut.

The Master Imp looked at the new stump where its clawed hand was once attached in shock, and Nathan did the same. An ear-piercing screech filled the air, the imp wailing at the loss of part of its arm. Nathan, on the other hand, took advantage of its distraction, pulling back and slashing at its torso in a bid to bisect big ugly 2. The blade went halfway in before losing momentum.

Life steal triggered.

Nathan let out a breath as he felt his health bump up. The skill description had said five percent, and he'd gladly take the five. Nathan pulled his sword out and jumped back, hoping to avoid any "I might die but I'll take you with me" tendencies that the imp might have.

Nathan watched as the imp dropped to the floor on both knees, its one hand clutching at its torso while it looked at Nathan, demon eyes to human ones. It dove for him with its remaining clawed hand, trying to take his legs. Nathan didn't want to find out if the imp would succeed or not. His sword cleaved through the imp's neck, killing it instantly. It had lived like a warrior and died like one, and most importantly, it had been a worthy foe, a good leader to its kin. That... Nathan could respect.

A wave of euphoria enveloped Nathan, healing his wounds and numbing the pain, but he suppressed the feeling in honor of a fallen warrior. A question did come unbidden to his mind: did he get the euphoric feeling when he leveled up because he was a Berserker and something like other Archetypes like mages felt smarter after leveling up, or rangers felt sharper? Or maybe everybody else just felt the same euphoria he did? It made for quite the question, but Nathan shrugged it off. He needed to be alert and present right now.

Status

Name: Nathan Orion

Moniker: N/A

Level: 9

Archetype: Blood Berserker

Class: Blood Pawn

Imprints: Balls of Steel, SkullCrusher

Strength: 13

Dexterity: 10

Vitality: 11

Constitution: 8

Perception: 7

Dao: N/A

Ra'hal coins: 8,250

Free points: 3

His fight with Big Ugly 2 had confirmed that strength was his most important stat as a Berserker, followed by vitality. His Vitality might come into question and might explain why he became sluggish after losing too much blood.

Maybe a few free points chucked into vitality would make him immune to the sluggishness that came with losing blood, but until he had enough to spare, he wasn't going to waste the ones he had right now.

This meant he'd have to prioritize his strength stat right now; the rest could wait. A higher Vitality would also allow him to take more hits without losing much health. The other stats weren't that important, although dexterity did seem intriguing. He'd file that one off for later.

Two points to strength:

Strength: 15

###

Free points: 1

Nathan closed the status screen with a thought, a warm fuzzy feeling going through him to signify the change had taken place.

Level 9.

Quite the step up if you asked him. Blood rebellion had since deactivated by itself as soon as he'd healed past twenty-five percent, at least that was what he thought, as the skill had seemingly lost its effectiveness somewhere during the euphoric feeling.

He did have a little conundrum though: what would happen if he dropped below twenty-five percent, triggering blood rebellion, then while fighting he managed to use life steal to get back up to twenty-six percent? Would he lose the blood rebellion boost then?

Probably.

Nathan shook his head to dispel his idle thoughts—he still had more master imps to hunt.