The spawn easily avoided the first and the second strike by rolling. The next three didn't hit him either, but they were close; the attributes reduction made him slower. The sixth strike finally landed, shattering his ankle and breaking the invisibility.
Jean smiled widely until the whispers warned her of a direct attack at her heart. Three small kunai landed on her torso before she could react. The ribs stopped two, but the third pierced between them and punctured one of her lungs. The moment they pierced her skin, she detected the unmistakable sensation of poison.
Spitting blood, she stepped back while cringing in pain. Whispers screamed for her to protect her neck. This time she reacted in time, but without the shield to deflect another kunai, she had to sacrifice one arm.
She trudged back to grab her shield while healing. She barely avoided bleeding to death after tearing off all the kunai and healing her punctured lung. Eliminating the poison wasn’t as fast as she would like. Her mana had also suffered due to her recklessness.
The spawn took the opportunity to gain some distance. However, his limping retreat didn't mean he was defeated; he just laughed again.
Jean charged faster than he could run. Every step brought her closer to her revenge, but this time she wasn't going to let her impatience drag her down. She slowed her pace and picked up one of the previously thrown spears. The other was behind him.
She threw out her entire arsenal: the spear, the three kunai and even four daggers in her belt that she hadn't used until now.
Despite his attempts to avoid everything; the spear, a kunai and a dagger reached him, knocking him down. Jean saw the two-handed hammer nearby, but left it lying in the same place. It was too slow and she didn't want any more surprises.
When she was close enough, she raised her shield, hiding her fist imbued with Sacred Touch and Ki in an attempt to catch him off guard. However, it was she who got the surprise gift instead. A stab wound in the groin that the bastard aggravated, twisting the dagger before she smashed his hand with the edge of the shield.
"If you think it's going to stop me again, you're very wrong!"
Jean screamed to withstand the pain of the still stuck dagger and punched him relentlessly in the face. Although he raised his arms to protect himself, they didn't withstand and broke. Yet as much as she unloaded all her pent-up fury and hatred on him, he did not complain for a moment. Pain he must have felt, his face was a good sign of it.
Jean grabbed him by the hood and shook him as she healed. She didn't remove the dagger yet. This way she wouldn't have to worry about the bleeding while she focused on the poison. Learning from mistakes was crucial.
"Why did you kill her, you bastard?! What the hell did she do to you?!"
The spawn remained silent as a repulsive grin formed on his face. Even when she stabbed him in the chest with his own dagger, the one lying on the ground, he didn't stop smiling.
“Talk, dammit!!”
Jean's hair stood on end as she heard the derisive laughter again. The creepy thing was that it wasn't coming from the spawn. It came from far away. But still, it was perfectly audible. They were playing with her. “Fucking bastard! Hide while you can!”
Jean removed the dagger from her leg and closed the wound. The spawn laughed out loud when she held it against his neck. No sound came out of his mouth, but she managed to read, "You are as doomed as I am, Cursed one".
His death was quick and without any resistance. She slit his throat with a single slash. She wasn't going to give him the pleasure of stooping to his level. The spawn escaped all the pain she wanted to inflict on him because she realized that her hatred was not meant for him.
She waited a few seconds, but the notification for completing the mission to punish Gabriel never came. In fact, she had expected it.
Out of habit, she tried to purify him before nourishing from his evil, but to her surprise there was no soul inside him.
“What the heck! But earlier you said...”
“[I think you misunderstood! Spawns are linked to a soul, but it’s in the power of its master.]”
She approached the defeated undead and did the same ritual as always before they raise. She purified their souls and turned their bodies to ashes.
[You have defeated Spawn. Level 24.]
[You have defeated Undead Human. Level 14.] x8
[You have defeated Undead Human. Level 15.] x12
[Experience bonus awarded for killing creatures corrupted by evil.]
[You have acquired +2 Dexterity, +1 Strength,+1 Endurance.]
Her lower attributes barely improved with enemies of that level, most of the improvements came from the spawn.
[You have learned Chameleon — Level 1.
You are made to fight unnoticed. Allows 15% presence concealment. In the shadows it's twice as effective, and quadruples if you are standing still. High mana consumption when moving.]
[You have learned Precise Aim — Level 1.
You no longer need to get closer to your target. You can visualize the trajectory of a thrown object in order to hit.]
[Guardian Whisper has increased to level 2.]
[Master Healer and Cursed Binding have increased to level 5.]
[Dash, Rapid Assault and Heavy Strike have increased to level 7.]
[Pupil of Evil and Hunger for Evil have increased to level 10.]
[Healing Hands has increased up to level 4. Rank 2.]
[Evil Coexistence has increased to level 3. Rank 2.]
[Low-Light Vision has increased up to level 2. Rank 2]
[You have reached Level 20. +5 attribute points.]
[Choose a specialization.]
She was about to retrieve her weapons when she felt something unknown inside her. It was an urge as basic as hunger, but it sounded completely different. It was like the growl of a beast that carries death wherever it goes.
Contrary to what one might expect, she felt no fear, only acceptance. What was the meaning of it? Impatient to find out, she hid in the pitch blackness of a deep crevice and closed her eyes; the beast called her insistently.
The growl quieted down as if it had never existed. When she opened her eyes again, she was alone in a small cube that seemed to be completely made of glass. Outside, there was only darkness.
A simple touch made the walls and ceiling that bound her to shatter, and the vast darkness to dissipate, revealing a starry sky filled with nebulae. The spectacular view expanded in all directions, even under the crystal like floor beneath her feet.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
A burst of light followed a loud roar behind her. A purple-hue supernova spread everywhere, eclipsing everything else. From the center of this phenomenon emerged a colossal creature composed of a dense purple smoke. The creature resembled a serpent of galactic proportions.
The creature moved smoothly through the surreal space as if it were its natural habitat, disappearing into the vastness of the universe before abruptly reappearing from below, very close to her.
Jean shielded herself with her arms in a vain attempt to avoid being swallowed. But when it was very close to her, the serpent began to divide. I was as if it had several heads now, like a hydra. Each head struck the transparent floor without breaking it.
Six columns of purple smoke formed around her, each equidistant and approximately seven meters away. From each one, a couple of women formed. All of them with green eyes and reddish hair like her.
Darkness settled again except around the twelve female figures. The ominous pressure of the dungeon made her feel the ground beneath her feet again. But not only that, her surroundings changed to resemble it as well.
[You are eligible to combine your class with any of the basic classes upon reaching 20 points in each of your attributes. Before you, your possibilities!]
Unable to contain her excitement, Jean rushed to inspect her options. She couldn't stop smiling.
At her 12 o'clock stood a pair of women that she compared to warriors. Both wore white heavy armor, but her weapons were very different in size. One carried a two-handed hammer, which sometimes appeared to change into an ax or sword of similar proportions. The other carried a shield that changed size based on her thoughts. Her weapons also varied, alternating between all types of one-handed weapons; axes, maces, hammers, swords...
A couple of hunters kept an eye on her at her 2 o'clock. They were dressed in leather and fur armor with strategically placed metal protection to safeguard vital points without hindering mobility. They carried bows, short swords and nodachis.
She looked at them bewildered. They didn't look like clerics at all. She didn't see a good hybridization there, but she didn't dislike it either.
The females positioned at her 4 o'clock were dressed entirely in black attires made of cloth and leather. Their weapons were concealed. However, for a moment, she saw a lute on one of them.
"Assassins, rogues and... bards? This has less and less to do with clerics. Can I really distance myself so far from the original path and still use divine magic?"
Two female scholars dressed in cloth seemed thoughtful at her 6 o'clock. They held wands, staffs, and other magical artifacts that seemed to amplify or channel magic. Although seeing them made her smile, she didn't spend much time with them either.
Those situated at her 8 o'clock were also wearing mostly cloth, but they had leather and metal protections on their arms and legs. They didn’t carry any weapons, suggesting they did not require them. However, for a brief moment, they had shurikens, kamas, and nunchakus in their belts.
Seeing them, she couldn't help but think of Dih as her heart shrank. She couldn't look at them for long without guilt choking her.
Finally, those located at her 10 o'clock had larger metallic elements in their armor than the previous ones. Both wore medium armor. One looked more like a druid, always accompanied by a creature that alternated between beast, spirit, and totem. The other had conjured weapons typical of a battle mage.
Jean was between a rock and a hard place. Many classes were too far from a cleric at first glance, yet their hybridizations were possible, or so it seemed. Perhaps her desire to be a jack of all trades had played a role. To live without restrictions, adapting as the situation required. It was what she longed for, but that wouldn't bring her companions back. She would have to follow the cleric's path again and give up what her heart yearned for. How else was she going to resurrect them?
"EVERYTHING!" A monstrous voice roared inside her. No matter how hard she tried to convince it, it roared louder, to the point of shaking everything around her. It was at that moment that the twelve women around raised their weapons. Jean prepared to fight when a figure struck the scholars. Their bodies flew through the air while a storm of lightning exploded the warriors like balloons.
The hatred of the classes turned to the powerful female figure. The druid, her pet and the battle mage died on the spot under a sea of arrows from nowhere. Arrows of different elements; fire, ice, lightning, poison...
The archers charged their bows, backed by the rogues, the bards and the monks. However, despite the long chains hanging from her body, she moved in the blink of an eye amidst them. Her fists were enough to burst them one by one. It was so easy for her that Jean only had time to see the blood splattering in all directions.
The woman abruptly turned to face Jean. The chains on her arms pulled hard to bind her to the floor. Jean had no idea how deep they had gone, but from the fire that began to ignite her, it seemed as if they had reached hell itself. Even so, there was nothing they could do to stop her advance. No matter how many of these were anchored, the floor crumbled with each step.
“Cursed One!” Thousands of echoes whispered. “Rise, Cursed One!”
With every step the woman took, the growl vibrated stronger inside her. Her whole being resonated, begging her to move closer to that unstoppable force. When the aura of black and mahogany surrounding her dissipated, she understood the reason.
"Holy shit! That's my face! It's me!"
The personification of absolute power wore her face. Jean smiled arrogantly as she looked at what remained of the original classes. She understood perfectly well what it was offering her, but the chains that hardly posed a problem for that woman bothered Jean greatly.
[You have requested the forbidden class: »Cursed Guardian«. You meet 6 of the 7 requirements.
◦ Base class, Cleric or Paladin.
◦ Been chosen by a relic to carry the curse.
◦ Unlock the basic skills of the cursed class.
◦ At least 20 points in all attributes.
◦ Desire the power of all the classes for oneself.
◦ Desire to take revenge with all your might against one of the 9.
◦ The burden of the cursed one remains to be accepted.]
"The chains must be the burden, but... who are the 9? My hatred is towards Gabriel!"
The beast growled angrily.
[Power has a price! You must finalize the unfulfilled promise while bound to this dungeon in order to…]
"I'm sorry! But I won't accept anything without first knowing the details of that promise."
The beast growled again, impatient.
[You must kill those who cursed and corrupted him. Those who abandoned him to his fate. Starting with the demons; Acles, Uthem, Nimbas, Octometh and Rerom...]
"You expect me to kill demons?! ... Sure! Why not?! I don't see a problem with it!," she finished while rolling her eyes.
[ … and to the angels; Norhas, Maith, Kalgas and lastly, Zattank, the one who ordered Gabriel to kill you when the relic merged with you.]
“And angels too?! ... Wait! What did you say?”
[Your sacrifice in pursuit of revenge is greatly appreciated! You have been blessed with the cursed forbidden class: Cursed Guardian...]
"WHAT?! NO, NO, NO!!! Don't you understand what sarcasm is?!”
[... What?! You said no?! But... there's no turning back now...]
"Why can't it be undone?"
[Because the limits of your mortal body had started to fade!]
Jean gaped for a long time, lost in her desires. "My limits are going to totally disappear?"
[Yes, but... not immediately.]
"Being bound to this place doesn't sound very appealing... How long would it be?"
[Until you achieve revenge. For that, you will need many more relics.]
"There's more?"
[Yes. Some will even allow you to raise the fallen.]
"Really? Are you sure?!"
[Yeah! Not all of them are nearby, but we know you will be able to find them.]
“Cool, when do we get started?!”
The woman stopped inches away from her before her being began to merge with Jean. As the woman gradually disappeared, the chains that restrained her began to encircle Jean's wrists, binding themselves to her flesh after turning red-hot.
[Now we are closer to being one.]