I saw the world spin and tumble. If anyone still believes beheading is a painless and quick death, think again. I had a good ten seconds to live and see the world from the football's perspective.
> > You Di...
Then…
> > Four-Leaf Clover Activated. The curse of the [Dullahan Blade] was neutralized.
>
> > Your species changed. You are now a Holy Dullahan Revenant (unique). Readjusting Attribute values.
>
> > You gained +2 to all Physical and Spiritual Attributes, +1 to all Mental and Magical Attributes.
>
> > You gain an extra 1 HP, MP, and SP per level.
>
> > You gained a free Proficiency.
>
> > You gained the Perk, Dullahan (ultra-rare): Beheading attacks do not kill you. They cause your head to detach and fall off and deal no damage. Your head can be separated from the body up to 1 kilometer per point of Soul with no detrimental effects. A flame burns on your neck while your head does not rest on it. The flame cannot be covered or concealed. You can detach your head at will but it won't move on its own. Reattaching the head requires 24 hours of rest. This Perk cannot be turned off.
Just a question, my Class is "unholy" but my species is "holy". I wished the System made up its mind. Was I sacred or profane? What was the difference?
When the description said that the {Four-Leaf Clover} Perk could change an event on its head, I didn't think it was that literal. Maybe it could also make me get ahead in this competition. I dealt more than three million HP of damage to Ignatius, it should be easy to finish him, right? But maybe it is going all to my head because right now I'm headed in the wrong direction. I'm literally looking at the tunnel I came in from. I can even see the headlines. Ignatius beheads Kel'Caldor's apprentice.
But my {Perfect Awareness} Perk allowed me to "see" from any point of my skin or hair. While Ignatius gloated, I started to cast a spell. The brute didn't sense or notice it, believing me dead. I overcharged it by paying ten times the activation cost, hoping to get better results. {Control Undead} finished casting while he was shouting at the crowd.
> > Contested (Willpower+Ego) vs (Charisma+Willpower+Skill) test won.
I felt stupid. I should've opened with this spell. I was a necromancer's apprentice, for crying out loud. But he wouldn't let me cast the spell right in front of him at the beginning of the duel. My only opportunity was now that he was distracted by the standing ovation.
"Ignatius!" I shouted from where my head was. "Spit my leg out, and gently gather my body parts!"
The stupid Abomination wobbled around and turned to look at me. "Yes, mistress," he droned. Then he vomited my foot. I don't think I want it back anymore.
I felt a hand grabbing my head, then it was pressed against my stomach. The puke-covered foot came next and rested on my breasts.
"Give me your hand," I ordered after I had set everything back in its place. I drained his remaining HP to heal myself, reducing Ignatius to a dried husk. And my MP pool plummeted to less than ten percent of its maximum.
> > For killing Level 79 abomination you gained 182.8 million Exp (Base 5,713,806 x4 Size x4 Rank x2 Class Rarity)
>
> > You reached Unholy Avenger (Holy Dullahan Revenant, unique, first rank, 5 slots) level 20.
>
> > You gained [...]
>
> > You ranked up. All unallocated Exp divided by 10,000.
>
> > You gained the Perks,
>
> * Pinnacle Of Dexterity: You never miss a step or fumble with your hands. Add Dexterity to the Attribute damage bonus for your physical attacks.
> * Pinnacle of Endurance: You resist 50% of all poison and disease damage. Halve the time to recover from exhaustion. Increase the effect of Endurance on your HP pool and recovery by half.
The bastard gained the Exp for kiling me and leveled up. No wonder he wasn't paying attention to me.
The crowd went silent as I climbed back on my feet. Feet! But only one shoe. My skin had the same damage reduction as a sheet of steel so I tossed the other boot away. I wove my storage ring and claimed the discarded weapons. And the shards of the [Dullahan Blade]. It had lost its enchantment but maybe it was worth something. The mountain of desiccated flesh that was once Ignatius was left behind.
I took a long look at the balconies, then curtsied at the Lords with my ruined dress. Then I went back down the tunnel.
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Nenandil thanked Providence for the slow boss monster. She worked in record time to reattune the portal while she thought. The [Hero of Starfall] was a true [Hero], title and all. Was he part of a conspiracy to bring the last remnant of Windemere down? Was she being paranoid?
She couldn't shake the idea that his grab-and-run had something to do with her arrival and subsequent killing of the [Silk Sage]. Her paranoia was only reinforced when she remembered the mage's first action was to try and get her killed. They knew who she was and they didn't want her there. When she proved too much for them, they bolted for the exit.
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And she lost a Dungeon Core. As far as she knew, they were nigh-impossible to make. The three they had were all gifts from Bit, the God of Dungeons and Monsters.
But she couldn't do anything now. They were dead, their secrets have gone with them. What she could do was guide the people to the surface. The portal connected and people started pouring through. It wasn't your everyday portal though. People went into the tree trunk as if it was an illusion and exited from another tree on the other side.
"Families with children first!" She shouted. Pandora shone and the [Priests] chanted their magical hymns to keep the people from panicking.
They had thousands to evacuate and the Shardling wouldn't give them the time they needed. Especially not when people insisted on carrying all of their belongings with them.
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"You've done splendidly," Kel'Caldor cheered after we returned to the Third Pillar. "Not only you grasped victory from utter defeat, evaded death, but you also gained a new power. As expected from someone as annoying as you. I don't mean that as an offense. Just that I was reminded how bitter is defeat when one goes against you."
He sighed, "The Universe really loves you."
I was sitting with my head on my lap, with my eyes closed. A blue torch burned on my neck but it wasn't a normal fire. It illuminated but didn't shed heat or burn things. It felt like a flare of power from my soul, connecting my head to the rest of my body regardless of distance. Neither I nor Kel'Caldor knew what would happen if the current fifty-kilometer range was broken but I feared I would die. The head was a liability so I opened the Perk list and browsed what my new species had to offer.
Once more I was afraid I would waste Perks on frivolous stuff but these were my Perks. My future incarnations could level up and buy their own Perks, and I wouldn't butt in. It was different from the Proficiency Abilities which were binding choices. I found quite a few Perks to choose from.
* Summon Spine Whip (ultra-rare): You can summon a whip made of a human's spine. The whip has a reach of two meters and deals (Soul/30)d12 of base damage. You learn the [Whip] Proficiency 34% faster. The whip deals triple base damage if used from horseback.
* Summon Shadow Horse (very rare): You can summon a horse made of shadow without a Core for 20% of the base cost with no maintenance cost. The horse functions as a normal destrier of your level but disappears under direct sunlight.
* Death Watcher (rare): You can sense when people are Fated to die soon or places where people will probably die.
* Unlocked Path (very rare): No locks or gates can keep the Dullahan from his destination. They are unlocked and opened as if someone with the right Proficiency with a score no lower than (Level + Magic) attempted to open them.
* Gold Fever (ultra-rare): You gain +10 to all Attributes. You cannot approach or touch visible metallic Gold and suffer 200% more damage from gold weapons. This Perk cannot be turned off.
* Summon Funeral Wagon (ultra-rare, second rank): You can summon a wagon pulled by six Shadow Horses without a Core for 40% of the base cost with no maintenance cost. The wheels and horse hooves spout fire as they move. The wagon works as normal but disappears under direct sunlight. Requires {Summon Shadow Horse}.
* Head Grasp (very rare): When holding your head, it never slips from your grasp and you add half your Soul score to your Perception tests. Your head may shed light like a lantern. Living creatures are frightened by the sight of its light and must avoid coming closer.
* Funeral Call (ultra-rare, third rank): By uttering a person's given name, you strike with a death attack. If heard, the person called must win a contested (their Willpower+Ego+Magic+Soul) vs (your Magic + Soul) check or die. If they win, they are frightened for 1 minute. Add your Willpower to the contested check if you are driving a Funeral Wagon. Requires {Death Watcher}
* Creek Ward (very rare): You gain +10 to all Attributes. You can sense running water near you even if it's concealed or hidden. You cannot willingly cross running water and will do anything in your power to avoid doing so. This Perk cannot be turned off.
* Sentry Head (ultra-rare): By standing still and holding your head up above, your eyes can see distant objects as if they were 50 times closer and as if under direct sunlight regardless of illumination levels.
* Lost Head (ultra-rare): Your head gains bonus absolute base damage reduction equal to the distance in kilometers between it and your body. If your head is further away than your Soul limit, you cease receiving sensory input from it. You can still sense the general direction to your head.
The list went on but most Perks were under heavy requirements or higher ranks. I stopped because I got overwhelmed. My eyes were drawn to the +10 Attribute Perks but the weaknesses they granted along with it were an obvious trap. I put aside the Perk choice as I wasn't in the right headspace to make a choice.
No. Decision paralysis would be the end of me if I let it creep into my life again. I made my choice.
* Head Grasp (very rare): When holding your head, it never slips from your grasp and you add half your Soul score to your Perception tests. Your head may shed light like a lantern. Living creatures are frightened by the sight of its light and must avoid coming closer.
* Lost Head (ultra-rare): Your head gains bonus absolute base damage reduction equal to the distance in hectometers between it and your body. If your head is further away than your Soul limit, you cease receiving sensory input from it. You can still sense the general direction to your head.
These two unlocked a hidden Perk, which I bought as well.
> * Telekinetic Head (ultra-rare): Your head can float or fly at your normal walking speed if it is within the Soul range limit.
>
> > Head Grasp, Lost head, Telekinetic Head, and Dullahan combined.
>
> * Dullahan (combined): Attacks that hit your head merely cause it to detach, dealing no damage or effects. Your effects may originate from either body or head, whichever is beneficial. While your head is up to (Soul) kilometers away, it functions normally and floats at your normal walking speed. Further away you only know the general direction. It never slips from your grasp. While touching you, add (Soul/2) to Perception. Your neck sheds cold fire like a torch when the head is not on it. Detach at will, reattach with 24 hours of rest.
The Perks changed when they merged. I lost the damage reduction and the frightening glowing head effect but from what the Perk said, my head was basically invulnerable now. With the dilemma of losing my head and dying gone, I finished my Status update by spending my Attribute points, making sure to push Endurance to the next multiple of ten for the damage reduction.
> Level 40 (Next: 2,200 / 17,280,000)
>
> Strength: 60+11 (71) / 92 - Dexterity*: 52+58 (110) / 92 - Endurance*: 89+31 (120) / 92
>
> Mind: 49+34 (83) / 92 - Willpower: 49+34 (83) / 92 - Charisma: 30+52 (82) / 92
>
> Magic: 53+19 (72) / 464 - Faith: 42+0 (42) / 464
>
> Ego: 6+30 (36) / 92 - Luck: 6+44 (50) / 92 - Soul: 6+44 (50) / 92
>
> 211,680 HP
>
> 28,552 MP
>
> 8,050 SP
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"Are you even listening?" The lich shook my shoulder, making my head on my lap open my eyes. Still awkward.
I made my head float and rest over the blue flame from my neck. It caused the flame to flare out and spread around my neck, from behind my locks of hair, and under my jaw like the weirdest collar ever but it didn't cause any discomfort. I felt tired and not in the mood to entertain a curious lich.
"Not really, sorry," I deadpanned. "I was busy with my Status windows, trying to solve my headlessness problem."
"And did you?" He sounded genuinely curious.
I shrugged, "Not really, but it is no longer a problem. I think I managed to make my head invulnerable."
The gemmed skeleton clattered his teeth and his emerald-eyes flashed with annoyance. Then he quickly cast a spell and a purplish-brown beam shot at my forehead instantly. It did fuck all to me.
"It seems you've done something absurd again," he angrily remarked. "Your so-called 'Cheat Power' is getting stronger with defeat while others just get… defeated," he deflated and his eyes' light became dim. I think he was squinting.
"What was that spell?" I demanded, afraid he was turning on me.
"Nothing big, just the good old everyday {Disintegrate}," he ground his gem-teeth. "Congratulations, you were correct in your assessment. Your head is now invulnerable," Kel'Caldor floated away in a hurry.
Weird lich.