”I’ll let you choose, Archie: General or Wild Men?”
Yugo had led Archie and Clez to a clearing a few kilometers away from the Wild Man Colony closer to where he and Rui had fought some Wild Men earlier in the day. Because Yugo had been running at full speed, it’d only taken him seconds to clear the distance they’d covered in over an hour. Unfortunately, General Clez’s men weren’t nearly as fast. They weren’t slouches, though, and thanks to the scouting effort of The Historian, we knew they’d get to our location in no more than ten minutes.
“That depends,” Archie mused. “Do you plan on following Somnia’s intimidation method?”
Yugo gave Archie an annoyed scowl. “Do you think they’ll listen?”
Well, thanks for making the choice easy for me, mate.
“I’ll take General Clez,” Archie said, looking over to the Wild Man who’d been kicking and growling in Yugo’s grip. “I’d rather keep him alive if we can. Also, please try to keep the Wild Men alive if you can,” Archie begged, remembering the group of Wild Men he’d grown a bit fond of back in Saikou.
Yugo rolled his eyes like a precocious child. “Fine. I’ll see what I can–”
“Dare?!” General Clez interrupted, somehow managing to free himself from Yugo’s grip. They both turned to him, equally stunned to find a Combat-Class capable of speech.
“Clez… powerful! You… disregard!”
“Big words for a Combat-Class,” Yugo whistled. “Very… impressive!”
General Clez sucked his teeth and lunged for Yugo but Archie intercepted the Wild Man. He’d taken a page out of Yugo’s book, grabbing the Wild Man by the neck and literally keeping him at arm’s length while the Myth wrestled in his grip. He’d even tried biting Archie’s arm, but thankfully he hadn’t been successful. That wouldn’t last forever, though. Yugo was Level 500. Level 1000 if you wanted to be technical. He could keep General Clez retained with no effort. Archie was Level 98. He needed to end this fight before things went south.
“I’m gonna go intercept them,” Yugo called from behind Archie. “Shout if you need me!”
“I’ll be fine!” Archie responded. “I’ve just gotta–”
“Rip your… body! Corpsebones… fertilizer! Pee in… mouth! Defacate in… hollowed stomach!”
Goddamn, man…
As… enlightening as General Clez’s words were, the fact that he was speaking more indicated that he’d been “evolving”. And as much as he would’ve liked to spare the Wild Man and recruit him to the Oni’s side, Archie knew that wasn’t a realistic option right now.
It’s a damn shame what you are, Clez. I hope your next life is more peaceful.
Archie cast [INTIMIDATION] on General Clez. It was a debuff he rarely used simply because he didn’t need to use it. Despite the name, it didn’t strike fear into his opponents like that odd aura thing Somnia did when she was angry. All it did was slow down and weaken his opponent. That was all he needed it to do, though. Archie knew it’d landed when General Clez began to glow with a faint purple light and his movements became more sluggish in Archie’s grip. He lifted the Wild Man higher in the air as he charged a [WRAITH STRIKE] in his free hand.
WOW! CRITICAL HIT FOR 77%!!!
The attack connected with a loud bang that reverberated throughout the forest. It sent General Clez flying into a tree in the far distance, the force of the impact causing the tree to break and fall to the forest floor. Archie wasted no time, closing the distance with another Wraith Strike charged in the same, bloodied hand.
Archie stopped in his tracks, however, when instead of a panting Wild Man sitting beneath a fallen tree, he’d seen a Wild Man glowing with green aura, cackling and staring at Archie with a threatening glare. A quick scan showed he hadn’t evolved, but given the sudden change of the atmosphere Archie wasn’t quite sure how much longer that’d be the–
YOU HAVE BEEN [TERRIFIED]. INCOMING DAMAGE HAS INCREASED BY 20%.
WARNING: GENERAL CLEZ HAS RESTORED HIS HEALTH BY 50%!
WARNING: GENERAL CLEZ’S SPEED HAS INCREASED BY 80%!
WARNING: GENERAL CLEZ HAS ACTIVATED A PERPETUAL HEALING SKILL!
Oh, you asshole…
Archie decided to even the odds by summoning Lochness in her serpentine form. She hissed, though due to the size she was summoned at it sounded more like a roar. Across from them, General Clez threw aside the tree that’d fallen on top of him and charged at Archie and Lochness with both hands stretched behind him like claws.
General Clez’s speed buff, unfortunately, was more than Archie or Lochness could defend. Despite not hitting particularly hard, he clawed and swiped at both fighters with a speed and ferocity that neither of them could guard against quickly enough. To make matters worse, Archie’s defensive debuff meant that those weaker hits did even more damage than they otherwise would have.
The two adjusted quickly, though. Recognizing that he was General Clez’s primary target, Archie started playing decoy; perpetually guarding and letting General Clez waste his energy while Lochness attacked from behind. Whenever Clez turned to face her, Archie would respond with a [WRAITH STRIKE] paired with an [INTIMIDATION] debuff. They’d managed to get General Clez down to 50% HP, but his perpetual healing Skill paired with his half-health healing meant that their efforts went down the drain soon after pulling them off.
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
Their saving grace was the fact that Clez was Level 154. Stronger than them, but not stronger than any strong Oni. His aura was limited, and he wouldn’t be able to pull off his healing forever.
Unless he evolves mid-fight…
When General Clez recovered from having his health drop to 50% a third time, Archie decided to change his gameplan up. Negotiation was unfortunately off the table. General Clez needed to die because if he didn’t he’d end up dead alongside Lochness. It felt wrong to put his own life above someone else’s like that. Hell, he’d killed before. Plenty of times. He’d raced to kill Wild Men with Rui! The difference between those times, though, was that they’d been killing Wild Men who were verifiably a threat to civilian life. If they hadn’t killed those Wild Men, they’d have killed innocents. Of course, General Clez had the capability of doing that. In fact, he likely had done it in the past. Yet right here, General Clez’s only target was Archie – not an innocent civilian.
Archie stood beside Lochness. General Clez panted a few meters away from them, cursing Archie and staring deep into his eyes. He didn’t know how close death was. How could he?
“I chose to walk this road, General Clez,” Archie whispered to no one in particular. “If I want to be a force of good, I’ll need to use force. Even when I’d rather not. I’m sorry.” He stared up to the sky and snorted a humorless laugh. “Mom, next time I’m in Harrowstead I’ll stop by church. Promise.”
Lochness looked over at him with concern clear on her face. Archie rubbed her scaly head and cast [DRAGON DANCE], the only buff Skill he had in his arsenal. He smiled solemnly at his partner and spoke only one word.
“Gyrostomp.”
***
Yugo hated Somnia’s intimidation strategy. Not because he was bloodthirsty or anything, but because it was difficult. Needlessly difficult. It was easier for his students to pull it off because they didn’t need to hold too much back to pull it off, but Yugo? He was Level 500 two times over! Somnia didn’t understand how much he’d need to hold back to successfully participate in her plan.
“This is the kind of exercise Gehenna would have me do,” Yugo complained, not for the first time. He stared into the darkest pit of the forest he could find. “And it would’ve been useless!”
His master’s voice echoed in his mind. Considering how… odd she was, Yugo wouldn’t have been surprised if she really was speaking in his mind.
You’re the strongest man in Minashire. Stop complaining and act like it.
Yugo took a deep breath. “For now, Gehenna. For now.”
He slapped a Wild Man in the face as lightly as he could. The Myth flew through six trees. When it stood, bones protruded from its body at odd angles. Yugo groaned.
“Some of you guys are stronger than the Seekers. Why are you all so fleshy?! I’m not even moving fast! You had full, uninterrupted seconds to dodge my–”
Boom!
Yugo immediately teleported to the source of the explosion not quite sure what he’d find. He knew Archie would win. That boy was far stronger than he thought he was. He’d assumed it would’ve been a battle, too, but Yugo would’ve been a poor teacher if he’d sheltered Archie from difficult fights. What he hadn’t expected to see was Archie standing over the pile of gore that used to be General Clez. His robes were soaked in blood up to his knee, and the Myth below him was nothing more than a pile of mush and bone chunks. Lochness, bless her soul, had been nibbling at the pile out of Archie’s view.
“I would’ve expected this out of Somnia or Rui,” Yugo tried.
Archie didn’t budge. He wasn’t exactly on the verge of tears, but he wasn’t happy with what he’d done, either. Yugo grabbed him by the shoulders and looked him in the eye. He didn’t need “big brother” Yugo right now. He needed his mentor.
“We do this for the people who can’t, Archie. There aren’t enough people in Minashire strong enough or capable enough to protect it from the threats that lurk in the dark.”
Archie looked down at his… handiwork. “I know. It’s just… this is my first… kill kill. The Wild Men were threats to Saikou. The Nixies were a threat to Harrowstead. But Clez was a threat to me.”
“And if he’d killed you, he would’ve mobilized his troops and killed Oni. You weren’t his only target, you were one of them.” Yugo released Archie, but he hadn’t let up on the intensity. On the contrary, he doubled down.
You’ve gotta harden your heart a little more, Archie. Things aren’t gonna get any easier after this.
“There’s nothing wrong with feeling guilt or sympathy. But when it’s time for us to work, you need to put it to the side. Being a ‘hero’ isn’t as glamorous as movies make it out to be. It’s solitary. Terrifying. Painful. What makes us special is our willingness to bear those feelings for the sake of others.”
Archie did shed a few tears now, though he didn’t break out into a sobbing mess. When it ended, he wiped his eyes and stood a bit taller. “You’re right. This is the road I chose to walk. Thanks for the reminder.”
Yugo smiled and patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry. We all need a little reminder sometimes.
“What about you? Do you ever feel overwhelmed by it all?”
If only you knew.
“No,” Yugo lied. “I’m me. You all, though? You’ve gotta get like me.”
Archie rolled his eyes. Yugo wanted him in better spirits, and now he was. With that, he decided to share the good news.
“If it makes you feel any better, you’re Level 110 now. You passed Rui!”
“I know,” Archie responded. “I’ve been getting notifications and achievements for the past five minutes. That’s why I started crying.”
“Ah, right. Forgot about that. Well, anyway, how about we–”
“General Archie!” An unfamiliar set of voices called.
They turned to find the very Wild Men Yugo had been fighting running up to Archie like a long-lost friend. Archie’s eyes went wide as he saw them all. Even Lochness hissed her approval of the oncoming Wild Men.
“It’s you guys from the alley! I’ve been looking for you all! I–...” He looked down. “Sorry about General Clez.”
The lead Wild Man, a slightly taller one with dark brown rags spoke up. “He was… annoying! You… better General!”
Archie smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, I’m not the General type. Try Somnia,” He knelt down and ruffled the Wild Man’s hair. “In the meantime, tell me all you’ve been up to!”
ONI MAJORITY. 55% CONVERSION.