Meera flew back from the massive shield that broke through the ground and was coming for her. It was no ordinary shield. This one had spikes the size of javelins all around its edges. Meera flew around it and used Mirror Step to fall on Pallas' back.
His danger sense or Guardian's Sphere activated. He turned around, which was what she had wanted. She blocked his arm with her Druvis Powered one and flicked a finger. Her level 2 chakram flew towards him, but he raised a shield to block it.
She extended her hand and shot Vampiric Chains. Her Death Mark that she had placed earlier did its work fabulously as Vampiric Chains drained his life as if he had a hole in his proverbial lifeboat, but Bastian's Strength struck the killing blow.
The blow she had absorbed had given her enough boost that her chakram cut through his shield and then sliced his throat.
Pallas smiled as he fell to his knees. "Good one." He fell and was no more.
Brison appeared shortly after. "Oh, good job. I was to inform you that your next opponent is Tekton, and you have the next hour to sleep."
As soon as she heard the word sleep, all the adrenaline left her body, and all the tiredness of fighting continuously for almost a day fell on her.
A hut appeared. "Also, that one hour of sleep should be enough to rejuvenate you fully for your opponent."
"Thanks." Meera, not wanting to waste any time, walked off to her hut. Inside, it was barebones. A single bed with some food and water. Her stomach grumbled. She chowed down the food and fell on the bed, but there was one thing left to do.
She opened her notifications.
*ding!*
[You have killed 5 Guardian Wardens – Level 282 – Level 289. For killing an opponent sixty levels higher than your own, you have gained bonus experience.]
*ding!*
[Congratulation. The Shadow Image has gained 18 levels and reached Level 234. You have been awarded 54 stat points]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Chakram of Echoes effect activated. Upon reaching Level 220 & Level 230 in your main class, you have earned two more Chakrams.]
Two more chakrams appeared on her arm, bringing her total to seventeen—eleven regular and six level 2 chakrams. She could create more level 2 chakrams, but she had enough for now.
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Mirror's Affinity has gained 11 levels and reached Level 173. All of your mirror-based attacks will get a 176% boost.]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Armor of Mirrors has gained 8 levels and reached Level 93]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Ambush Tactics has gained 3 levels and reached Level 92]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Shroud of Shadows has gained 5 levels and reached Level 82]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Vampiric Chains has gained 6 levels and reached Level 74]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Mirror Step has gained 11 levels and reached Level 82]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Druvis Power has gained 7 levels and reached Level 66]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Mirror Eagle's Perceptivity has gained 7 levels and reached Level 99]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Mirror Shield has gained 9 levels and reached Level 83]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Mirror Blast has gained 7 levels and reached Level 86]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Mirror Shard Barrage has gained 12 levels and reached Level 79]
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Vitalize has gained 10 levels and reached Level 95]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Mirror Wing has gained 11 levels and reached Level 88]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Petrifying Surge has gained 3 levels and reached Level 35]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Shadow Coating has gained 17 levels and reached Level 38]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Shadow Affinity has gained 8 levels and reached Level 60. All of your shadow-based attacks will get a 62% boost.]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Mirror Phantom has gained 6 levels and reached Level 39]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Death Mark has gained 14 levels and reached Level 15]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Bastian's Strength has gained 9 levels and reached Level 10]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Wild Instincts has gained 8 levels and reached Level 41]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Tactician's Gaze has gained 9 levels and reached Level 67]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Absorption has gained 12 levels and reached Level 51]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Spectral Resilience has gained 10 levels and reached Level 79]
*ding!*
[Congratulations. Iron Skin has gained 10 levels and reached Level 34]
As for her stat points, she put the most in Endurance, as she lost one of the fights because she almost ran out of Stamina and had to shut off her Mirror Eagle's Perceptivity Skill. Next came Constitution and Dexterity with ten points each, and lastly, Agility, as the last fights had shown her, she was too slow for these high-leveled opponents.
With all that sorted, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
----------------------------------------
There was a knock on her door. She ignored it. Then they knocked again, louder this time.
"Go away," Meera called.
"I'm sorry to disturb your sleep, Meera, but it's time," Brison said.
Meera groaned and sat up with a big yawn. She couldn't call it being refreshed, but she wasn't deathly tired anymore. So, there was that, at least. She woke up, washed her mouth with water, took a big gulp, and was as ready as possible.
Man, do I miss taking a bath? How long has it been? Days? Can't be a week?
She pushed that horrifying thought out of her mind and left the hut that collapsed into the ground behind her. On the other end of the clearing, Tekton emerged from his hut, looking as refreshed as Meera felt.
"Well, I have more people to wake up. Play nice." Brison waved and walked through the shimmering door.
"Now, I get to…" Tekton yawned. "To…" He yawned again. "By the gods, I'm awake. Sheesh."
"You were saying you get to cut me up now or something like that," Meera said.
Tekton squinted at her. "You know, I never really liked you. That Shade brat seemed sincere, but I always felt something off about you, and working for the Shadowsteel Warlord to infiltrate our ranks…"
"Look, I didn't mean to. That was not my original plan," Meera said. "It was Dirik's. I just tagged along, hoping you could help me in my quest."
"Right. Sure. Whatever, let's fight."
Meera was about to ask him if he would let her cut him with her chakram, but she didn't think she would have any luck. So, she used Identify on him.
[Gladiator Guardian – Level 291]
Meera almost smiled. The divide between her and the Wardens was getting smaller. It was night again, so she could still use her Shroud, at least for the next few hours, until sunrise.
Tekton wore chainmail armor and always carried three swords—two longswords on his hips and a great sword on his back. The great sword might as well be a thick piece of iron. It was a foot wide all the way through, and it ended abruptly at a point. Luckily for Meera, he pulled out only one of his longswords.
On a whim, she used Identify on the sword.
[Numheia's Justice – Level 214]
"Your swords have levels?" Meera asked.
"What of it? So does your armor."
"That is true."
"Let's see how well your mirrors hold up to my steel." He grinned and charged.
Thankfully, he was nowhere near as fast as Pallas. Tiny mirrors exploded out of Meera's armor, and she teleported behind him, out of safety. He stopped mid-charge, turned on a heel, and came for her. The way he maneuvered was something else entirely. It was like he didn't lose an iota of speed as he shifted and did a whole about-turn. She hadn't seen anyone move like that.
Meera threw one of her regular chakrams at him, and he deflected it with ease and kept coming for her. She threw a couple more to throw him off his game, but he deflected those as well, and not for a moment did he seem out of control. She waited until the last moment to teleport to safety.
When she reappeared, he turned to her right away. Does he have something like Mirror Eagle's Perceptivity?
She wanted to test it out some more, but Tekton pulled out three throwing knives from his belt and launched them at Meera. She used Mirror Wing on the three chakrams she had thrown earlier and used them to deflect the throwing knives.
But in the time it took to do that, Tekton had closed the distance and leaped in the air. He was about to crash down on her, but she flicked her hand, and all three chakrams flew at him from the side. He noticed the danger to his life and turned his sword around to deflect two of them but couldn't stop the third. It caught him in the side, and he went skidding on the ground. She heard a notification bell, which meant she had gotten through his chainmail.
He stood wincing, with a hand on his ribs where one of her chakrams was wedged there. She flicked a finger back, and her chakram tore out of him. He groaned with wide eyes but stayed on his feet.
"Oh, now you've done it," He said through gritted teeth. "Now, you're going to—"
Meera didn't give him any more time to talk as she slit his throat with her chakrams. As he fell, bleeding out, she quickly checked her notifications.
*ding!*
[You have killed Gladiator Warden – Level 291. For killing an opponent sixty levels higher than your own, you have gained bonus experience.]
*ding!*
[Congratulation. The Shadow Image has gained 4 levels and reached Level 238. You have been awarded 12 stat points]
She dumped the twelve points into Focus and moved on to what she wanted most—his skills.
*ding!*
[Class Ability Activated. You have stolen the skill Whirlwind Dance. Whirlwind Dance – Type: Active. You can execute a rapid series of spinning strikes with your swords and deal damage to multiple nearby enemies or massive damage to a singular enemy. Would you like to acquire this skill?]
*ding!*
[Class Ability Activated. You have stolen the general skill Gladiator's Last Breath. You achieve a temporary state of peak performance, significantly boosting all aspects of the Gladiator's combat abilities when you only have a tenth of your Health remaining. Would you like to acquire this skill?]
Meera smiled as the choice was obvious. Whirlwind Dance might be powerful, but it limited her to using swords, while anyone could use Gladiator's Last Breath, and it didn't limit Meera to a singular type of weapon. And a near-death boost in her abilities was more than helpful.
*ding!*
[You have acquired the general skill Gladiator's Last Breath – Level 1]
As she closed off her notification screen, Brison had finished reviving Tekton, who didn't look pleased at having gone down so fast.
Brison chuckled. "Didn't think you would go down that fast, Tekton. Meera was the first one to go down in the last round. Looks like you went a tad overboard, eh Meera?" He slapped Tekton on the shoulder. "Well, I'll be off then."
"Stay," Tekton said.
Brison shrugged.
Tekton drew his second longsword.
[Numheia's Judgement – Level 254]
Meera got ready for him as he dashed for her, but he disappeared midway through. She frowned, and her Mirror Eagle's Perceptivity was at full blast searching for him. She heard a crunch behind her, then a sharp pain as Tekton reappeared, sticking his blade deeper into her spine.
"How's this for fast?" Tekton said into her ear.
Even though she was in immense pain, Meera sighed as her legs gave in, and she fell to the ground.
This is not going to be as easy as I thought.