Rain slowly dragged the vineclaw's carcass to the glass where the mage had been. He was going to get a new weapon, but maybe he could negotiate for some information as well. The man seemed to like him, or at least more than that weird moose man thing. Rain continued through the forest, dragging the corpse along until he finally reached the edge. He scanned the area, making sure nothing else was around, and then apprehensively approached the glass. He knocked, and a chime sound played before the mage appeared on the other side.
Rain presented the vineclaw to the man, and an eerie smile crept onto the man's face. Rain stepped back slightly as the familiar voice intruded into his mind once again.
"It looks like my investment wasn't pointless, What do you want from me, boy."
Rain looked at the man, unsure if he could trust him, but he didn't have a choice right now.
"I need a new weapon," Rain said, motioning to the mutilated bo staff. "And I need a way to gain levels fast. I figured you would know a way."
The man's smile deepened before he spoke. "Well, for your first question, sure." With a snap of his fingers, a new bo staff materialized out of thin air. It was black, adorned with small blue streaks along the base, and featured large metal bulbs on both sides, enhancing its lethality. "Now, for your second question, I'll give you the information, but on one condition: come back here once you've finished this task. I'll have something for you."
Rain grabbed his new weapon and gave the man a curt nod.
The man acknowledged Rain's agreement and began to speak. "Go to the true center of the forest. You'll find a staircase there. Descend it and take the Colosseum trial. If you survive, you should reach around level four by the time you leave."
Rain turned around and looked into the forest before thanking the man and taking off.
That went better than expected. He got a new weapon and more information, knowing it wouldn't be free, but all he had to do was receive another reward if he managed to survive. There was probably a catch, but he could worry about that later.
Rain zoomed through the treetops, avoiding the creatures below, conserving as much energy as possible. He knew whatever lay ahead would be dangerous. Continuing to hop through the canopy, Rain finally reached a clearing in the forest. He descended from the trees and approached the center where, just as the man had described, there stood a staircase. Rain approached it cautiously, uncertainty gnawing at him.
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Rain carefully descended the stairs, walking as slowly as he could while he descended the stairs the doors at the top of the stairs slammed shut there was no going back now, so he continued down the steps finally reaching the bottom.
"Welcome to the Colosseum Trials, competitor. Please enter the door in front of you."
A door appeared in front of him, and a bright light shined through. Rain approached and pushed the door open, stepping into a sandy arena surrounded by hundreds of empty seats.
"The god servants are arriving," a voice announced as small orbs of light began to appear, filling the stadium seats. Rain looked at all the onlookers now filling the arena. This was not what he expected—not at all.
"The god servants are here. First trial initiating." A groaning sound reverberated through the stadium as a crocodilian creature slowly materialized. It resembled a crocodile but stood elevated from the ground, prioritizing agility.
Rain readied his weapon, ignoring the spectators. Paying them any attention would only get him killed. He knew the creature would be fast, but he was confident he could outmaneuver it with his superior aerial abilities.
The crocodile snapped its jaws at him and blasted forward. Rain quickly escaped into the air and brought the end of his staff straight down onto the creature's head. While it was trapped under his staff, he lifted it up again and launched another devastating blow. He then jumped backward and got back into a stance. He had learned his lesson from last time and wasn't going to get taken off guard again.
His intuition was correct as several spikes of sand shot up around the crocodile. The creature realized it missed its attack and charged at Rain again, but before getting too close, it summoned a tornado of sand around itself, obscuring it from view. Rain jumped to the side and stuck to the wall of the stadium, leaving one hand free. He watched as the sand crocodile smashed into the wall where he had been moments before.
Rain stifled a laugh as he jumped from the wall. The crocodile couldn't see while it was in that sand tornado. Rain called forth water, which spiraled around his weapon, but he didn't create a vortex this time. He wanted to try something different. Rushing the dazed creature, he swung at it, sending the crocodile flying toward the opposite side of the arena. He realized he wasn't strong enough to do that on his own; the water also boosted his stats when summoned, by a decent margin. A small boost to his six strength couldn't have done that.
Rain rushed forward again and leaped into the air. He pointed his staff straight down at the crocodile and smashed its head. Jumping back, he readied his stance for another attack. Just as he was about to move, words clouded his vision.
"Sandstalker slain, Intermediate rune of agility rewarded, Intermediate Rune of Dexterity rewarded"
Rain dispelled the water on his weapon, and a thought crossed his mind. "That was surprisingly easy for two intermediate runes." Just as he thought this, another wall of text appeared.
"The god servants have judged your performance, awarding extra stat points." streaks of light flowed from the stands and flowed into Rain.
"twelve stat points awarded please invest before the next trial."
Rain smiled level five wasn't that far after all. Rain summoned his stats and began to invest.
"He put six points into strength and three into both agility and dexterity, reaching a stat investment of twenty. One more trial before his first true level up."