There were about ten imps in total, chattering and screeching as they descended. About halfway down they unfolded wings and pulled up in a disorganized mob. Every single one had its eyes trained on Edgar and Mirai.
Monster: Common Imp
* Type: [Imp]
* Level: 1
Mirai glanced at him, “if we get separated and surrounded, we’re done for. Stick together. Back to back if we can.”
Edgar nodded, turning to follow her instruction. He noticed Mirai was moving continuously, turning slowly, so he kept moving too, doing his best to keep his back to hers and his eyes on the many imps circling above.
One of them swooped down at Edgar, swinging taloned feet. He blocked the attack with a swipe of his own claws and it flew off, rejoining the mob above. The attack was weaker than he expected, which helped raise his confidence a bit as he prepared for the next assault. Over his shoulder, he heard a clang of steel and talon as Mirai fended off an attack.
“You good?” She asked over her shoulder.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Edgar smiled, feeling his heart thump with excitement. “Let’s rock these imps.”
“Don’t get cocky just cause they’re weak. There’s a whole lot more of them than us.”
Edgar nodded, but he could hear relief in her voice. Perhaps this wouldn’t be so bad after all.
Another imp swooped down and Edgar moved to block the attack. He focused intently, watching the imp’s talons as it neared and raised his claws to intercept it. In this state of focus, he realized he could feel his skills and abilities like warm motes of energy inside him. [Tail Whip] felt almost like an antsy child, rearing to go. He readied the skill and felt a small bit of energy travel through him.
When the imp struck, he batted aside its talons, which created an opening. He spun and activated [Tail Whip]. The skill made his tail glow just slightly, leaving a subtle trail of light as the hard tip crunched into the imp’s body.
It wavered in the air, but ultimately flew back up to the others. Behind him, he heard Mirai quickly clash with another imp and then saw the imp fly off, clutching at its side. It slowly lost altitude and ultimately fell to the ground.
He glanced at her over his shoulder and noticed the practiced grace in how she handled her rapier. It was clear she had some training in how to wield a sword.
The imps didn’t leave him with much time to appreciate her form—two more swooped down at him. He swept his claws out, knocking away the first attack and used [Tail Whip] to strike the second. The tip of his tail crunched against the imp’s face as it rocketed directly at him in a sort of tackle. He managed to avoid getting tangled with the imp’s lifeless body, but one of its claws sliced his shoulder, drawing blood.
His adrenaline dulled the pain, but he could feel blood running down his arm. Testing his arm and fingers, he could tell the arm was mostly fine. He gazed down at the imp’s limp body below him, red eyes dull and claws dabbed in blood—his blood. It was finally sinking in that these monsters were trying to kill them. However much this world felt like a game, he was fighting for his life.
“Hey, snap out of it,” Mirai bumped him with her elbow, knocking aside another imp as it swooped down at them. “Are you ok? Can you fight?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. I can fight.”
“Good, cause I need you. We’re still outnumbered.”
Edgar flexed his claws, shaking his head. “There’s no way I’m dying twice in one day!”
“What was that?”
“Oh, ahh... I said, these flying mice are gonna pay!”
“That’s the spirit. Here they come.”
He sighed gratefully. He wasn’t exactly sure how much he should share with her yet.
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He shook his head, turning back to the fight. The imps all lowered to about chest height, glaring and flexing their claws angrily. Suddenly half of them charged, with the other half lingering briefly before flying in as well. Clearly their plan was to overwhelm Edgar and Mirai with numbers. A two wave attack.
Edgar spun, trying to make the most of his tail while still watching Mirai’s back. He blocked one imp’s strike with one hand and slashed across its chest with the other. With [Tail Whip] he caught a second imp in the side and both fell to the ground.
He caught a glimpse of Mirai as she effortlessly poked holes in two imps at once, even as she side stepped an attack from a third. This dodge sent the third imp barreling past her, which allowed her to slash its exposed back. She moved like a dancer and threw her cloak off her shoulders as combat heated up, allowing her to move more freely.
Then, the second wave of imps was on them. Mirai’s thrown cloak distracted the last two imps on her side, creating openings for her to take them down. On Edgar’s side, the final two imps struck in unison, swiping at him with their claws. He knocked both attacks away and then slashed across their chests. They staggered backward and Edgar pushed forward, clawing at them until they fell to the ground.
They glanced hurriedly around the room, but all the imps were down. Remembering his [Tasty Snacks] ability and its healing effects, Edgar glanced at one of the dead imps. He could feel the skill trembling with excitement as he stared at the dead monster, but he just… couldn’t. He kicked the body away in disgust.
He noticed two notifications waiting at the bottom of his field of view.
New Skill Acquired!
[Parry]
New Skill Acquired!
[Scratch]
He waved to dismiss them and the notifications disappeared. He still had a strange feeling of being watched.
“Nice job. Not bad for a rookie,” Mirai flicked her sword clean again, sheathing that and picking her cloak up off the ground. “How’s the arm—”
Before Edgar could answer, their attention snapped upwards at the sound of footsteps and wings above. Another imp was descending, its skin covered in purple runes and its eyes shining with intelligence. Where the other imps had small stubby horns, this one had tall, ink black horns. Its gaze drifted between Edgar and Mirai as it landed. Standing on the ground it was taller than them, about the size of a human adult.
“Welcome to my palace,” the imp called proudly, spreading its arms in a grand gesture.
Mirai blinked, freezing at the sound of its voice.
“Thanks for having us. Need to work on your hospitality, though.” Edgar drew his claws again and lowered into a crouch.
Edgar squinted at it, searching for the icon above its head. When it appeared, the triangle was red.
Monster: Prince of Imps
* Type: [Imp]
* Level: 5
Edgar blinked, realizing the so called Prince of Imps was four levels higher than himself. He knew that couldn’t be good. Judging by the look of shock frozen on Mirai’s face, one might even say they were in trouble. The Prince of Imps strode confidently forward into the center of the room, and for every step, Edgar and Mirai edged cautiously backwards.
“Mirai, you ok?” Edgar whispered.
“L-Level five? We’re dead.”
The Prince of Imps smiled, “the rules of this challenge are simple. Survive my attacks for thirty seconds.”
At the sound of his voice, a ring of purple flames erupted around the perimeter of the room, blocking off all the doors.
“Mirai, get it together. You’re the only one between the two of us with any training, I need you.“
Mirai grasped at the handle of her sword, collecting herself, “I’m sorry it had to play out like this, Edgar. The odds of us defeating a level five monster are basically zero.”
Edgar managed a dry smile, “well, who said anything about defeating it. We just have to not die.”
Mirai drew her sword, sweat shining on her face, “I’d say the odds of that are just as low.”
“Well, lucky for us, I’m beating all the odds today. After this we should go for lottery tickets.”
“What’s a lottery ticket?”
In front of them, the Prince of Imps clapped his hands and a three-foot hourglass appeared out of thin air next to him. Glowing with purple magic, it drifted down to the ground as if it were light as a feather.
The Prince of Imps smiled, stretching his arms and legs, “Are you ready?”
The Prince’s voice awakened the space. Lights like purple fireflies winked into existence among the gargoyles up above, flying down towards the battlefield in wandering, playful loops. Behind them, the wall of flame rumbled loudly, easily ten feet tall.
Edgar and Mirai shuffled uneasily.
“Give it everything you’ve got,” Mirai whispered. “If you’ve been keeping any badass skills in reserve, now’s the time to use them.”
“Unfortunately for us both… nope,” Edgar said, flexing his claws and flicking his tail.
Then, the Prince of Imps raised a hand, “Here… We… Go!”
With a snap of his fingers, the first grains of sand began to fall inside the hourglass and the Prince of Imps charged, claws extending from his fingers. Edgar tried his best to ignore the similarities as he unsheathed his own claws, too.