Elijah tackled the monster, leveraging his greater mass to drive it into the ground. As he did, he used Iron Scales, though even with that ability augmenting his defenses, the creature dug its own claws into his body, ripping his scales free. Elijah ignored it, trusting Ron to heal him. Instead, he hammered his fists into the creature’s body, hitting her with so much force that his blows cratered the ground below.

But the advantage afforded by his surprise attack didn’t last, and the creature used its superior Strength to throw him aside. Elijah skipped across the rubble, then hit another building. It collapsed atop him, but he’d long since passed the point where a fallen building could truly damage him. So, a second later, he burst free from the wreckage, sending a shower of rocks in every direction. He was just in time to see Sadie descend upon the monster, her sword glowing with white light. It cut into the creature, but only a few inches.

The monster had no abilities or skills – Elijah had seen enough to recognize the lack – but its Constitution was so inflated that even Sadie’s best shot couldn’t do more than graze it. Fortunately, she was not alone.

Benedict cast a mass of roiling darkness at the monster, and his imps bombarded the creature with one fireball after another. At the same time, Oscar and his dogs brought their own abilities to bear. The two largest among them darted in on either side of Sadie, nipping at the monster’s legs. Their bites were no more effective than the Crusader’s, but they weren’t there to do damage. Instead, they were a distraction that allowed the rest of the pack to bring their own unique abilities to bear.

The shih tzu was a whirlwind of activity as it dashed in and out of combat, ripping one wound after another into the monster’s legs. At the same time, another dog – this one a mix Elijah couldn’t identify – suddenly appeared behind the monster and tore a chunk of its hamstring away before disappearing a second later.

However, the real star of the show was the chihuahua, who bathed the monster in dense fire that far exceeded the potency of any flames Elijah had ever seen. They were almost solid, they were so powerful, and they had more effect than any attack anyone else had leveled against the monster.

Seeing an opportunity, Elijah shifted into the Shape of Venom, then dashed away. Once he’d turned a corner, he used Guise of the Unseen before returning to the scene of the battle. Embracing Venom Strike, Predator Strike, and Envenom, Elijah jumped atop a pile of rubble, then raced along a still-standing wall, and leaped at the monster’s back. As occupied as it was, it didn’t even know he was there until he bit into its neck and injected the potent venom of the shape into its flesh.

But Elijah wasn’t finished. Even as the creature tried to dislodge him, he jumped away, then darted in and bit the monster again. And again after that. Six times, he hit and run until, finally, the monster had had enough. It wheeled around, ignoring every attack as it tried to catch him.

The creature was strong and fast. Elijah couldn’t even begin to guess how high its attributes were. However, he knew they far exceeded his own. Still, he was no slouch, and he was capable of easily moving in three dimensions. So, he managed to remain just ahead of the creature until, at last, Sadie used Call of the Crusader, snatching its attention back.

With a little room, Elijah transformed and cast Swarm before rejoining the fight in the form of the lamellar ape. He crashed into the monster, adding his own attacks to the tidal wave of damage his companions had inflicted upon the monster.

Yet, the creature endured.

The fight had been ongoing for almost fifteen minutes when Elijah felt something change. The monster remained as feral as ever, but the difference was that dozens of new people had arrived to add their own efforts to the fight. The monster didn’t acknowledge the newcomers. Instead, it remained entirely focused on Sadie, who used Call of the Crusader as often as possible. At some point, it was clearly unnecessary. The sheer hatred in the creature’s bloodshot eyes was strong enough that there was no chance of her looking elsewhere.

Eventually, the already-unrecognizable monster had lost so much of its scarred skin that it had begun to look like an exposed corpse. Still, it fought on, even as its attacks started to lose their potency. Not because its Strength had given out, but rather because the mechanical connections between its muscles and joints had become so frayed that they began to snap.

Finally, it fell, its leg muscles having been shredded.

Even then, it flopped around, biting and clawing until it couldn’t move. It took thirty more minutes of constant attacks to wear it down enough that, at last, someone destroyed its brain.

More experience washed over Elijah, sending him to level one hundred, but he couldn’t muster any excitement for the achievement. Nor could he pay much attention to the notification that came with it. Instead, he could only stare at the shredded pile of organic matter that had once – long ago – been a human woman.

His choices had pushed her down a dark road that had eventually turned her into a monster, but Elijah couldn’t deny his own role in her descent. He told himself that she’d had it coming, but he didn’t really believe it. Nobody deserved to endure the fate that had been foisted upon her. Death? Sure. That was a fitting punishment for her misdeeds. But to lose her humanity entirely? That was something else altogether.

Elijah was busy ruminating on that when someone spoke up.

“What do we do with the others?” Sadie asked.

“I think you know,” Elijah answered without looking back at her.

“They’re helpless.”

“And they won’t be once they’re let loose. I don’t know how it all works,” Elijah answered. “For all we know, if we let them live, they’ll be able to take the leader’s place. We need to end the threat, here and now.” Finally, he looked back at her and said, “If you’re not up for it, I can take care of it.”

“No,” Sadie said. “We all have a responsibility to do what needs to be done.”

After that, Elijah and the others all headed to where the remaining Immortals were still bound by Kurik’s traps. None of them were nearly as powerful as the monster, and so, the traps were more than enough to subdue them. It wouldn’t last forever, though, so it was with no small degree of grim determination that they began the extermination.

No one sat it out. Elijah and his companions, alongside all of the other Trial-takers who’d joined the battle against the monster, killed the Immortals. Then, they embarked on a mission to scour the city and the surrounding area, just to ensure that none of the Immortals remained.

Such was their ire that no one was willing to let a single one escape. A few of the Trial-takers had tracking abilities that facilitated the hunt, and by the end of that first day, none of the Immortals remained among the living.

Along the way, Atticus and the other non-combatants were freed, and the man apologized profusely for his Consortium’s role in building the enchantment that had very nearly gotten Elijah killed. For his part, Elijah brushed the apology off, acknowledging that they’d had no choice in the matter.

However, it was a good reminder that, just because someone wasn’t built for combat, it didn’t mean they weren’t dangerous.

After two more days, the Nexus Town returned to some semblance of normality. No one would forget how close everything had come to disaster, but with the absence of a common enemy, everyone went their own way. That included both Benedict and Oscar, who disappeared sometime during the clean-up. Elijah didn’t blame them, though he wished that Oscar, at the very least, had remained.

Elijah and his companions took the opportunity to rest and recover. For his part, he stripped off his bloody armor, doused it with cleaning powder, then retreated to an empty room where he used Healing Rain to take a shower. When he was done, he donned a set of mundane clothes, then lay down on his bed. And finally, he gave his status the attention it deserved:

Name

Elijah Hart

Level

100

Archetype

Druid

Class

Animist

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Specialization

N/A

Alignment

N/A

Strength

115

Dexterity

104

Constitution

117

Ethera

112

Regeneration

104

Attunement

Nature

Cultivation Stage: Adept

Body

Core

Mind

Soul

Stone

Whelp

Jade

Novice

Upon killing the monster, he’d progressed to level one hundred, which meant that he’d gained one point in each of his attributes. In addition, he’d also been given a new spell called Savage Might:

Savage Might

Embrace your bestial nature, temporarily enhancing your physical attributes by 33%. Duration based on Ethera attribute. Current: 31.1 Seconds.

It would be an incredibly useful ability, though the degree to which it would impact his fighting style would depend on two things. First, he hadn’t seen any restrictions based on form, which meant that there was a chance it would be usable in his human form. If that was the case, then it would be an incredible boon that could turn the tide of battle. Second, its usefulness also depended on the cooldown. If he could chain it back-to-back, then it could change everything. He would need to test things out to find out what restrictions, if any, it had.

Still, Elijah couldn’t deny that he was excited about the ability.

He was far more excited by the next notification:

Congratulations! Having reached level 100, you have come upon the first major milestone in your development. At this point, you may choose a Specialization. While not a fundamental alteration of your class, it will serve as a subtle nudge in a particular direction. Choose wisely.

Elijah had read a little about Specializations, and what he’d discovered supported the notification’s assessment. They weren’t as game-changing as class evolutions, but they had the capacity to enhance certain aspects of a class’s toolset, pushing it in one direction or another. The efficacy of each Specialization offered was based on Feats of Strength, which meant that Elijah fully expected his to be more powerful than most. So, it was with no small degree of anticipation that he read his options:

Archetype: Druid

Class: Animist

Specialization Options

Preservation

Savagery

Connection

Permanently increase the potency of all healing abilities by 50%. Also grants an additional point per level to Regeneration and Ethera attributes. Finally, increases the efficacy of Mind Cultivation.

Permanently increase the physical traits of all bestial forms by 30%. Also grants an additional point per level to Strength and Dexterity attributes. Finally, increases the efficacy of Body cultivation.

Permanently increase the efficacy and range of One with Nature by 100%. Also grants an additional point to Ethera and Regeneration attributes per level. Finally, increases the efficacy of Soul cultivation.

Elijah stared at the options, unsure of how to react. They were all powerful in their own ways, but the moment he’d read them all, he knew which one he preferred. Still, he decided to do his due diligence and go through the pros and cons of each choice.

The first option, Preservation, was clearly meant to nudge him in the direction of the Healer. And to do so, it dangled before him an incredibly potent modifier to his healing spells. He could already function as a passable Healer, but an improvement of fifty percent to his spells would put him on par with people like Ron. Perhaps not in diversity of spells, but at least in sheer potency.

But as useful as that would be, was it the right choice for his development? If he chose that route, would he regret it later? He loved healing people, but it was more of a side project than a calling. More, he expected it would push his evolution options in that direction, and he couldn’t afford to be shoehorned into that role.

So, he pushed that option aside and focused on the next two.

Savagery was strong. Very, very strong. And it played to his strengths as well. Yet, he was given pause by one aspect of the description – it specified that it enhanced the physical aspects of his forms. That led him to believe that it would only increase the attribute bonuses, which was slightly limited in scope. If it augmented his bestial abilities as well, it would have been an easy choice, but the fact that it didn’t meant that he needed to consider the third option as well.

On the surface, Connection didn’t seem quite as powerful as the other two. One with Nature was not a combat ability, which meant that any benefits he did experience would only have a tertiary effect on his fighting prowess. Yet, the option still called to him, and it wasn’t difficult to see why.

Almost since the very beginning, One with Nature had been the core of his archetype. Without it, his attunement to nature would not have been nearly as impactful. It allowed him to connect with the natural world in a way that he never would have thought possible. It was through that lens that he saw his surroundings, and he could only imagine what it would be like if it grew more powerful. The fact that it was the focus of an entire option by itself seemed to support its importance.

And yet, he hesitated.

“You are on the right track,” came a familiar voice. Elijah looked up to see Kirlissa standing before him, appearing the same as she had when he’d advanced his Core. To call her beautiful would have been inadequate to the point of becoming insulting.

“How are you here?” he asked.

“Can a mother not visit her child?” she asked, raising one delicately arched eyebrow. “The moment you stepped foot on the Path of Dragons, I took on a responsibility to see that you had enough information to make the right choices. So far, you have exceeded my expectations. As to how I am here, would you believe me if I said magic?”

“That’s my go-to explanation,” Elijah admitted. “Is that all I’m going to get, though?”

“The connection between us is special. In most cases, I would be able to appear before you at will. However, because your world is newly touched, there are certain restrictions that will keep me at bay. Those restrictions have been relaxed due to the limited influence of the World Tree on this excised planet.”

Elijah eyes widened slightly.

“You seem surprised. Was that explanation insufficient. I can go in depth as to the ethereal flows and the –”

“No, no. It’s fine. I just didn’t expect you to be so forthcoming. Usually, any information I’m given is either incomplete, outdated, or only partially applicable,” Elijah explained. “I guess it just knocked me for a loop to hear such a straightforward response. Thank you.”

“You are welcome, child,” she said with a smile. “However, I must insist that we move on quickly. My time with you is limited.”

“I see. You think I should pick Connection, then?” he asked, returning to the subject at hand. “Why?”

“The same reasons you want to choose it,” she answered. “I am no Druid, but One with Nature is, indeed, the core of what makes your archetype what it is. Without it, you would be a mere nature mage. So, it stands to reason that the more powerful that singular ability, the stronger you will become. It is the obvious choice, which is why you were instinctively drawn to it.”

“But Savagery is powerful. I can see that,” he said. “Better Body cultivation, stronger forms. It’s…”

Elijah trailed off as he truly considered the option. There was something about it that just felt wrong. Or not quite right, at least. Then, he uttered a single word, “Hollow.”

“Indeed. Attributes are a tool, but focusing on them is a mistake.”

He frowned, though he saw where she was coming from. His class granted far fewer attributes than many others, though he was still one of the most powerful people in the world. That alone seemed to support her assertion that attributes weren’t everything. Yet, there was something attractive about seeing that tangible representation of his power, and it was difficult to turn it down.

“I should point out that you cannot make a mistake with any of those options. Because of your Feats of Strength, your choices are much more powerful than most I have seen,” Kirlissa explained. “Whichever route you choose to take, you will continue to grow, and eventually, I will bring you to the Empire of Scale so that your true education can begin.”

“I don’t –”

“My time runs short,” she interrupted. “I trust you to make the most appropriate choice, my young dragon. When in doubt, trust your instincts. They have yet to send you down the wrong path.”

With that, she disappeared, leaving Elijah with even more questions that would go unanswered. He sighed. “Same as always, then,” he said. But the visit from his patron had confirmed that his instincts were valid. So, without further consideration, he chose the Connection specialization.

The moment he made the selection, a wave of information slammed into his mind, and it was so overwhelming that he only retained consciousness for two agonizing seconds before he succumbed to the blackness encroaching his vision.