BOOM!
A daeben emerged from the erupted ground, red eyes fixed on his prey. The sword in his right hand cut through space with the speed of a viper, its aim the opponent's jugular. The monster at the receiving end snarled in contempt as it jumped back. With a sufficient gap created, the hammer in its hand roared as it swung down at the daeben.
Kashi kicked against the destroyed stairs. He deftly spun in place, strands of air just about singed off by the deadly strike. He pushed a button on the sword’s handle, and it snapped open into a dangerous bow.
Froy let out a guttural roar as several arrows ripped into its chest with numbing speed. Blood pooled in his eyes as he issued another roar, this time filled with rage. As if responding to his cries—or maybe to send him to his death faster—several arcs of red electricity roared out of the hammer. These red arcs burrowed into Froy's blood and heart, writhing underneath his skin like enraged serpents.
Several arrows struck against Froy as Kashi rapidly backpedaled up the stairs. The daeben's pupils constricted as those arrows exploded after smashing into an invincible force field. Shit! Kashi knew he had done it now. He had provoked something he shouldn't have. He naturally knew the meaning of red electricity.
Just like armors and weapons, elemental attacks were into grades.
Aside from Water, Air, Light and Dark, whose natures never changed, Fire, Earth, and Electricity were divided into five grades, each multiple times stronger than the last.
Fire started from Orange to Yellow, Blue, Black, and finally, the realm-destroying white. Even Razznik, that monster could not reach the level of white flames. If, by chance, Razznik did, he would not even need to fight.
Just a wisp of white flames could clear out several thousands of combatants.
Earth element was a little different, in that its rank only increased in terms of hardness. At the base level, it could be said to have the hardness of graphite. In time, it would grow to have the hardness of diamond, which could block almost every attack known to man.
This was the level Zeing was at. It was also the reason Rider refused to fight with him. The dwarf's defense was too perverted. He could just stand in a single position and receive attacks for several days before there was even a chink in his defense. This was also why Earth users were hailed as the best in terms of defense techniques.
Electricity's pure destructive ability fell short of Fire. It lacked the flexibility of water and air and was not as defensively stable as earth. Indeed it was an all-rounder element, but that was also why it was one of the most feared elements, as a single lightning mage could handle a fight against thousands of soldiers far better than any other elemental could.
Its destructive ability, which was woefully short of fire in the early stages, was only slightly less potent in its latter stages, especially at the last two: Red and Black lightning.
Anyone who read light novels or watched animes would know what these two represented. They were the pinnacle of lightning arts, used only by high-level Gods or end-level OP characters. These two forms of lightning were not something mortals could possess or control!
With this in mind, Kashi leaped back, eager to drag this fight out as long as possible. This was no longer a case of if he could kill Froy or not. Since the priest had unleashed the red lightning, it was only a matter of time before he perished. Now, it was more a question of surviving until the inevitable occurred.
Froy's bloodied teeth curled in a sneer at Kashi's retreat. "Think you can run?" He took a step forward, then 'poof' he disappeared!
Kashi's eyes pulsed as he activated [ Mind's Eye ] , forcibly enhancing all his senses to their limits. Like most of his passive skills, the daeben frequently used this skill outside of battle whenever he could. As such, even though the skill was only Lv.2, most importantly, it was no longer disorienting. At this point, the daeben could easily keep it on indefinitely, since the cost of 500MP was not much to him who did not rely heavily on mana-consuming skills.
In fact, the only reason Kashi did not use it in battles was that in the end, he knew the reason for his existence: To help Suzuki regain the things he had lost and improve even further so he would never lose them again. While the skill was great, if Kashi relied too much on it, he would lose that innate sense of danger warriors developed on the battlefield. In such a situation, if he ever lost [ Mind's Eye ] , he would not even know how he died. Even more so where Suzuki was involved.
Kashi pushed against the wall on his right as a flash of red appeared and smashed onto the ground he initially stood. Kashi forced himself to swallow mouthfuls of blood as stray arcs of electricity crashed into him. These tiny strands ran amok, ripping his body from the inside out.
Kashi did not have to see his HP to know it was dropping exponentially by the second. This was just from being close! Kashi refused to imagine what he would happen if that hammer smashed into him directly.
Kashi swiftly took out three Health Potions from his inventory. He then dashed up the staircase, downing two in one go. For many similar reasons as Mind's Eye, Kashi had formed a habit of fighting without relying on potions. But since this damned game had brought out a god-tier weapon to deal with him, he too would shamelessly show off the fruits of his alchemy experiments.
Even though it did not show on his face, Kashi was utterly enraged. Fuck this difficulty curve! If it were anyone else in this current predicament, they would have died ten times over! Such weapons should only appear end-game when everyone had hundreds of thousands of HP bars to sacrifice. Why was such a divine weapon appearing now!?
A trace of ruthlessness flashed in Kashi's eyes as he suddenly froze in his steps. Nothing to it! If they wanted to play this game, then he would play with them! Several flasks appeared in his hands with different kinds of liquids churning menacingly within. With a determined grunt, Kashi flung the flasks in every direction, just before a flash of red appeared.
Green, Black and red smoke exploded from within the flasks, engulfing the tunnel in a myriad of colored gas. A few of these flasks smashed to pieces as they hit the red flash.
The world suddenly crawled to a halt from Kashi's perspective. He saw the hammer which had grown in size, bearing down at him with the oppressive nature of a tyrannical mountain. His gaze traveled up from the hammer to his enemy’s disfigured snarling face. A smile curled up the daeben's lips as the red arcs round the beast's body made contact with the gaseous substances.
BOOOOM!!!
A floor below, Zeing's eyes went wide as an entire section of the whole cavern disintegrated to dust accompanied by a raging inferno so hot, the surviving rocks turned to beautiful sheets of glass. This inferno died off as quickly as it appeared without a single trace left. Zeing had to resist an urge to act as two figures plummeted to the ground, one of which was surrounded by three glass walls.
First floor? Gone!
Staircase? Gone!
For at least a mile around, a spherical glass dome was forcefully carved into the earth. The only thing left was the ancient stone Dwarven statue, which stood out like a sore thumb at the center of this glass world.
Zeing unconsciously heaved a sigh of relief when the two figures jerked mid-air as if waking from a nightmare. Both figures corrected their postures as they slammed onto the glass floor. Surprisingly, not even a hint of a crack appeared.
The glass walls, however, shattered upon impact, to reveal a daeben with a pained grin. Nestled between his teeth was an empty health potion. He spat out the bottle as he wobbled dangerously, only able to sustain his balance when he stomped his right leg ahead.
Kashi cast a ghastly figure with half of his face charred down to the bone. The heat and red electricity had excited his blood vessels till they ruptured, bathing his entire frame in dried blood.
Even with Kashi’s high elemental resistance, coupled with the protections from [ Wall ] , his life tethered on the edge of oblivion. If he had not begun drinking the potion as the explosion occurred, simultaneously healing the damages as they cropped up, he would have surely perished.
Blood leaked from the edges of Kashi’s lips, but he still wore a triumphant smile. That was because, as bad as his situation was, his opponent was far worse!
After all, the explosion was not caused by any run-of-the-mill flammable gas.
Except for high-level creatures that used advanced magic, the elemental attacks of other beasts were rooted in their biological makeup. Take the salamanders, for example:
The fireballs they shot out were made from igniting a flammable liquid stored in their glands. The timeframe from the liquid escaping to ignition was shorter than a second, so most people just saw it as regular flames. Alchemists, on the other hand, knew better. The liquids in these glands were popularly used for creating highly effective bombs. And since these liquids had the unique property of diffusing to gas at room temperature, they could gain far more yield per liter compared to ordinary flammable substances.
Kashi had stored several of these bombs during his alchemy sessions. He had never thought he would use them in combat but planned to save them as ingredients to refine future weapons. However, life rarely went the way he planned. To cause maximum destruction, he had not hesitated to toss out everything he had on hand. If he wished to obtain more, he would have to find fire breathing creatures again. Luckily, they were in the hot wastelands. There were no shortages of such animals in this climate.
Kashi shook his head to refocus his mind, which had begun to wander in circles. Damn, the shock from that explosion might have given him a 'confused' debuff. The daeben forced himself to focus on the lump of flesh about thirty meters away from him.
The monster that was Froy, although possessing a terrifying attack, had little in the way of defense. After suffering the full brunt of the instantaneous combustion, it had crumpled upon itself into an unrecognizable mass of flesh that formed a small mound.
Suddenly, a light brown human hand stabbed out of that mass. A handsome, barefooted man soon followed it in tattered clothes that just about covered his privates.
Froy's golden mane fluttered lightly as a pair of golden eyes bore into the daeben across from him. The young mage looked to be the symbol of power, his full health returned to its peak and even increased. Green electric snakes coiled along well-toned muscles that rippled with divine power.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Even though he possessed this imposing form, both men knew the truth of the matter. That accursed hammer had drawn out all of Froy's life-potential to execute one final stand. The masonian, as of that moment, was like the brightest flicker of a flame before it snuffed out.
It was a manner of moments before Froy’s body would crumble to pieces.
Strangely, neither man made a move at this moment.
Froy's eyes held neither hate nor contempt, nor did they fall into melancholy or despair when faced with the certainty of his death. Maybe it was because he had glimpsed into the profundities of the world when infected by the hammer, but he realized just how insignificant he was in the world.
The revelation washed away all of his hate, greed, and contempt. After all, he had given everything he had to the cause. In this life, Froy had offered everything that he was to his god, Razznik. If there was one thing he regretted, it was the greed that had formed in his heart after living the life of a king among the dwarfs.
If Froy had stayed in the Holy Land until death, even with his inferior magic skills, his ability to plan several steps ahead would have allowed him to reach much greater heights. Alas, greed had consumed him as he sought more power and control. He should have reported the dwarven statue when he first saw it. He should have also reported the crystal after he excavated it. He should not have eyed the power of the Summoned, which even his superiors feared.
Although his research into the way they leveled and increased their 'stats' grew his status in the eyes of the superiors, karma, in turn, decided he would perish by the hands of a Summoned.
Who knew it would be so soon?
Froy regarded the daeben with tired eyes as he said with a soft sigh. "This is your victory." Indeed if they were still in that narrow staircase, Froy could have stood a chance. But in this world of glass, Kashi's superior speed had already determined the battle if the daeben should choose to run around and stall for time.
Shameless?
Of course not! Even Froy knew such an accusation would be beyond stupid. The most important thing was survival. Everything else was secondary. As such, why should Kashi risk his life to fight a battle he had already won?
Kashi shook his head as a bow appeared in his left hand. Four sets of quivers appeared on his back and sides. "No. Not like this." That was right. If this were Suzuki or Kashi at the beginning of this game, they would have chosen to stall for time. Suzuki had his reasons, but Kashi, at that time, was just a ball of instincts without direction.
Now, however, it was different.
Kashi had awakened! It was moments like these that would define the man called Kashi. Survival was important, yes. But it was only the most important to a man with nothing to protect. A man who had someone or something to protect would eventually find out that those values (like pride & honor) which he scoffed at before, suddenly possessed a whole new meaning.
The Kashi of now did not just have himself anymore. There was the ever watching Kira; the hot-tempered Hektor; the free-spirited Syèl; the prideful but valiant Shoko; the cheerful Jade; the silent but steadfast Shadow, and his wonderful sister, Lunette. Kashi knew if he was to be worthy of these companions, and the guild which the incomparably capable Leila helped him run, he would need to be more than a strong adventurer.
More importantly, if Kashi wished to fulfill his ambition to unify all of Dreiza, he needed a certain level of character.
It would be easy to run away from Froy now. After all, no one would see him. But that did not matter! Kashi himself would always know. The red lightning had regressed to green, and while that was still dangerous, it was nothing the daeben could not handle given his current strength.
Kashi had chosen to stay true to his ideals, to always plunge into danger to increase his strength. Since that was so, "My name is Kashi of the Daeben. Guild Leader of The Hopeful Maggots. Your ambition crossed with mine, and as such, you shall fall to my bow. Such is the karma between us."
A ghost of a smile played on Froy's face before his eyes swelled with unabashed pride. "My name is Froy or the Lord clan, HighPriest of the Chaos Order . My mission was to suppress the dwarfs and then slowly turn them over to the side of Chaos. Alas, time was not on my side, as I have run into you. With these final breaths of mine, I shall at least take you with me as a gift to our Lord Razznik."
"You can try!" Kashi activated [ Angel Steps ], and his figure instantly blurred as he dashed straight for Froy.
Five arrows whistled through the air ahead of him but failed to hit anything, as Froy had already appeared next to the daeben.
Froy swung the hammer down at the daeben's head. Kashi's right hand seized a bunch of arrows from the lower quiver, which he used to block the strike. Electric snakes slipped into his arm, rendering it numb for a split second. Luckily, his left hand had already jerked heavily on the bow shaft, swiftly turning it into a sword.
The sword whistled as it pierced straight for Froy's heart. Hardened lightning caked Froy's left hand as it stabbed at the blade, effectively blocked the strike.
All this transpired in a second. By the next, the impact of blocking the fatal strikes blew both men several meters backward.
A grin spread on Kashi's bloodied lips as he dashed once again for Froy. The masonian answered in kind with a roar with sent several layers of shockwaves at the daeben.
Kashi's eyes focused as he released one arrow after another in quick succession with varying strength. These arrows all had [ Drill ] activated. The formation consisted of four arrows flying in a square shape, with one just a bit ahead of the rest. The triangular prism tore a small hole in the shockwaves, which Kashi dove through.
Kashi rolled to a stop, but then abruptly jumped to the side. He looked up in surprise as wind from the hammer striking the ground had yet to reach him when the hammer was once again centimeters from his face.
Kashi gritted his teeth and then raised the 'sword' to take the strike.
The blow lifted him off the ground.
Ten arrows screamed in revenge from the transformed bow! Of the ten, three stabbed through Froy's chest, but at this point, the mage could not care for any injury that did not immediately end his life. With a fanatical roar, he once again ambushed the flying daeben, his speed greatly enhanced by the lightning.
Kashi caught the movement from the corner of his eyes and rotated midair. He slung the bow over his shoulder as green hues enveloped his fists. With [ Gaia ] activated, Kashi's fear of electricity naturally diminished as well. No matter when and where, Earth was the natural enemy of Electricity!
Kashi instinctively unleashed a punch towards an empty space.
BANG!
Impact! Froy's eyes widened in surprise as he realized the daeben had predicted his movements. Still suspended mid-air, the mage screamed as he drew on even more power from the hammer. Several afterimages blurred the mage's form as hundreds of hammers suddenly appeared in the air!
Kashi's gaze grew solemn at this attack. The green energy spread from his hands to the rest of his body. "HA!" The daeben's defiant scream echoed throughout the glass arena as he punched at those hammers. At first, he only hit one or three, but suddenly his arms seemed to multiply exponentially, filling the air with arms smashing against the hammers.
Both men were wrath incarnated as they gave their all with their finishing moves. Seconds later, one of Kashi's punched slipped between the hammers and landed on Froy's face. As if expecting the blow, the mage did nothing to block it but instead swung the hammer upwards. He traded his face for a blow to Kashi's jaw.
Froy was sent crashing to the ground while Kashi was launched several meters into the air. The priest rapidly regained his faculties, only to see the roof blocked by more than a thousand arrows spinning in place. Fuck! That daeben had two finishing moves! How was this even fair!?
Froy roared as the thousand, or so arrows struck down towards him. A giant dome of electricity pulsed from within Froy and directly swatted away the thousand or so bolts. He refused to believe the daeben had any more moves after this! He rapidly searched for the dae—
Puchi!
"Ah..." Froy gurgled as blood pooled in his throat from the 'sword' embedded in it. No! How, how was this possible!? He looked over his shoulder at the daeben’s apathetic eyes as he withdrew the sword.
Singed hair, which gave off the smell of smoke, told the story.
This damned daeben, Kashi, used the thousands of arrows, his ultimate finisher, as a decoy!
Rather than hide in the air after sending down [ Gilgamesh ] , Kashi held onto the tail end of two arrows at the back. As such, when the arrows slammed into the protective dome, Kashi, with the imperviousness of [ Rock ] activated, tore through the electric barrier and landed behind Froy. The only downside to this move was that once activated, his feet could not move for the sixty seconds it was activated, and its cooldown was an alarming twelve hours! Even longer than [ Gilgamesh ] .
However, since he stuck his landing perfectly, all Kashi had to do was reach out with his 'sword' and stab Froy in the neck.
Kashi released a huge sigh of relief as he watched Froy crumple to the ground, eyes wide in disbelief. Suddenly, cracks began to appear all over the mage's body. Once the cracks permeated every corner of Froy, the body crumbled to dust, which formed a mound on the floor.
Froy was ‘kind’ enough to leave a few items as loot, but Kashi was too tired to even glance at them.
Once the sixty-second penalty wore off, Kashi fell to the ground and just lay there. He did not know when or why he started laughing, but he realized that at some point, the dome filled with his laughter.
"Hot DAMN! What the hell kind of fight did you have here!?"
Kashi cracked open an eyelid to see Syèl's mocking jeer hovering above. Next to him, the Maggots, who formed a circle around Kashi, stared at their guildmaster with mixed expressions.
Kashi chuckled as a small mass jumped onto his midriff and lay her head on his chest. Kira, who had inexplicably adopted the tiny puppy form she'd had when they first met, did not say anything as she rested on her partner. No words were needed, nor did she need to cry or vent her feelings of how worried she was. No, all that mattered was that her partner was alive and here.
No one was allowed to kill Kashi except her. He would never die before that. That was their solid pact.
Kashi patted Kira's head, suddenly realizing it had been a long time since he played with her like this. Somehow, because she had matured, he had begun treating her like a person and ignoring her. Seeing her content expression, he realized that no matter how evolved she got, it would not change her nature. She was a wolf—a diety, but a wolf nonetheless. He would make sure to keep that in mind from now on.
“Ugh.” A sudden wave of fatigue overtook Kashi. The daeben’s hands dropped, and his eyes involuntarily shut as if protesting the noisy attention. The last thing Kashi saw was a pair of aqua-blue eyes smiling down at him.
And so, the Hydra Slayer, Liberator of Countries, and Leader of one of the world's strongest guilds fell into a deep slumber, surrounded by men and women he trusted with his lives.
A luxury he would have never possessed in his parallel lives.