The ape lowered itself from the opening, holding onto the edge of the portal like a ledge. Edgar watched as Milo activated a skill and a flurry of snow obscured the figures of Klein and Milo, but the ape didn’t hesitate, dropping right into the middle of it, landing with a loud crash. The force of the landing created a wave of air that blew away the snow cover, revealing Klein and Milo both charging melee attacks on opposite sides of the creature—Klein wielding his sword and Milo a pair of daggers.
Even from this distance, Edgar could see the adrenaline in Klein’s smile.
The ape roared, bringing fists down on Klein and Milo, but the pair unleashed their skills in tandem, mirroring each other almost perfectly. Slashes appeared on the creature’s sides, ice welling in the wounds. The monster roared angrily, pounding its chest. A regenerative skill took effect, pushing the ice out of its body and great wedges of it clattered to the ground.
Milo shouted to Klein, dodging backward as he drew the great crystal bow hanging from his shoulder. Klein tapped the ground and gestured, an ice wall rising from under one of the ape’s feet, unbalancing it and knocking it prone.
The Night Watch in the stands roared, cheering.
Milo angled his bow upward and an arrow of ice appeared between his fingers, cold energy swirling around it. The arrow arced upward, the energy morphing into a storm that obscured the arrow, and then parted to reveal an entire volley of icy arrows raining down on the beast.
Out of range of Milo’s attack, Klein took a wide fighting stance and a large spear of ice flash froze in the air above his open hand. With a throwing motion, the spear of ice launched forward, digging deeply into the ape’s side.
The Night Watch in the stands roared again, even louder, stomping their feet in time.
The ape roared, flipping up onto its feet. Blood dribbled from its mouth, although the extensive wounds were already beginning to heal. It raised its hands above its head and Milo shouted again to Klein, who nodded.
When its fists came down, the arena rumbled, cracks lancing outward in a large circle. A tower of ice sprouted underneath Klein, launching him high into the air before the cracks reached him. Behind him, a barrier of snow appeared around Milo, which protected him from the attack.
Edgar gasped as the shockwave from the attack washed over them, sending bits of snow whipping past and shaking their seats. Mirai glanced at him, awed at the force of the attack.
Klein hung in the air as if suspended, sword held in two hands with the tip pointed down at the ape’s exposed back. The blade glowed blue as ice skills stacked on top of each other, cold clouds forming in the wake of his blade. Then, he struck.
The ape groaned, slumping forward. Milo appeared beside its head, twin daggers aloft, flashing as he finished the monster with a flurry of strikes. The head fell first; the body crashing to the ice afterward.
The Night Watch cheered, throwing themselves over the barrier with passion, inspired to redouble their practice and summon more monsters to train against. In the central arena, underneath Klein, the ape’s body began to vaporize, turning quickly to dust.
“The one problem with this toy is there is no essence to be gained.” The Feather said, stepping away from the railing to sit in the stands behind them. “These summons are shallow copies.”
Down below, Milo waved at Edgar and Mirai. A boy had appeared at his side, presumably Milo’s younger brother, as the resemblance was striking—their sparring partner. Edgar glanced at the Feather beside them, but she waved them away.
“Have fun.”
Edgar used [Shadow Step], targeting Milo’s shadow. It was the furthest he had ever tried to teleport before, and the skill activated slower than usual, but after a long moment, he felt himself melt into the shadows cast by the railing and half wall in front of them.
“Oh?” Milo said as Edgar appeared. “Impressive.”
In the distance, back on the wall, Mirai scrambled to follow him, jumping down from the balcony and jogging over. He could see frustration on her face as she took the mundane route.
The boy half-smiled at Edgar, his brow twitching with a superiority complex. “You’re… one of the twos?”
Edgar nodded, holding out his hand. “Ed, nice to meet you.”
The boy looked from Edgar’s outstretched hand to his face. “You’re level two and you have a teleport skill? Are you a cheat or a liar?”
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
“A cheat? I don’t follow?” Edgar scratched his head.
Milo cuffed his brother on the back of his head. “Orion, what do I have to tell you? Act with respect and you’ll be respected.”
Orion grumbled.
Orion Winters
* Race: Human
* Level: 2
Edgar blinked. “Oh, if that’s your real name, mine’s Edgar Voss. Good to meet you, Orion.”
Orion’s eyes darted away, glancing at a status screen that Edgar couldn’t see, but knew would be appearing for Orion now.
“So you are level two. Well, if you’re not a liar, let’s see if you’re a cheat!” Orion called, deftly dodging his brother’s hand as he danced over to an empty arena.
“I don’t get it, what do you mean, a cheat?” Edgar asked, flexing his claws as he followed the boy into the arena. “I don’t see how it’s even possible to cheat.”
“There’s always a way to cheat.” The boy said, a war hammer and shield appearing in his hands. “You could be some kinda rich boy, with your Daddy buying all the skills you want? Maybe he even bought enough essence crystals to shortcut your first level!”
He clanged his weapons together. “Fair warning, I’ve got a full set of skills, all earned through blood, sweat, and tears.”
Edgar smiled, feeding a few mana to [Hot Foot] as he sensed Orion's skills activating.
“That’s a whole lot of assumptions, friend,” Edgar said, smirking.
The boy scowled and charged, running at Edgar with his hammer raised. Edgar saw the shimmer of skills around Orion’s hammer and shield… but the boy was so damn slow!
Edgar feigned a yawn as the boy loped across the arena at him, shouting a lame war cry. He had a feeling it’d be overkill, but on a whim he fed half his mana to [Hot Foot] and waited patiently for him to cross the arena. When the war hammer finally came down, Edgar danced away, combining [Dark Strike] and [Tail Whip] to land a heavy blow, and the boy rolled away. Mirai arrived just in time to see Orion curled in a ball on the ground.
“C-Critical!” the boy called out, spitting up some blood. “Ridiculous! I-I want a rematch.”
Edgar sheathed his claws, frowning down at the boy. “Sure, as long as you don’t hold back this time.”
The ice below Orion began to glow with healing light and his wounds disappeared. Mirai held out a hand to help him up. “If you don’t mind, Edgar. I’ll take the next round.”
The boy blushed as he grabbed Mirai’s hand, gazing up at her.
Edgar snickered, seeing his thoughts written so plainly on his face. “Careful, that rose has thorns!”
“Hey!” Mirai turned to glare at Edgar, unintentionally releasing the boy’s hand. He fell back to the ground in a pile as she pointed a finger at Edgar. “Look who’s talking pointy fingers!”
There was a shattering sound followed by a roar from the entrance to the Cold Depths, which caught the attention of every single person in the space.
Monster: Young Yeti
* Type: Yeti
* Level: 3
Monster: Yeti Knight
* Type: Yeti
* Level: 4
There were tons of them; a wave of monsters that flooded through the entrance, wielding axes and clubs.
“Summons!” The Night Watch cheered. “Let’s make mincemeat of these fur balls.”
Feeling something amiss, Edgar glanced towards the arena in the center of the room, where a large group of the Night Watch were positioned. That number times three would be a lot, but not this many. There are at least fifty, and more coming behind. Could it be some kind of bug in the system? An error?
As the bodies continued streaming in, a voice called out. “That’s a lot! It must be a mistake—Die, Summons!”
But nothing happened. The call went out again, but the yetis didn’t falter. “I don’t understand…”
Edgar turned towards the stands, looking for the Feather. Her eyes locked onto his, and her face showed a cold half-smile, revealing the barest hint of regret.
My only purpose is to make sure their little experiment doesn’t end in tragedy…
Edgar’s mind whirled.
If she’s bound by her purpose, and her purpose is tied to the experiment, then…
“They’re real!” Edgar shouted. “There’s been a rift break!”
Milo’s eyes snapped to Edgar, a questioning look on his face, but he spun back to face the tide of white fur. “To arms! By the ancient oaths, I call you to arms!”
The attitude in the room shifted immediately as the Night Watch settled into position, drawing their weapons. A seriousness settled over the hall.
“Hah! Who needs summons when you can have the real thing…”
“For the Great Halls!”
“None shall pass!”
“Hold the line!”
~~~~~
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