Location: < Berenices's 'Unnamed Settlement' > - One of a few such places scattered through the isolated corners of the lower heavens.
POV.: P̴̱͍̀҉̵͊͑ͅ҉̵̵͉̱͉̂̽̇̃͢͜҉̷̶͔̫́́͋͢h̶̘̃̈́҉̸̵̵̵̜͈͈͎̙̩͚̀͂̊̄̈̚͢͢͢҉̷̛̱͘o̶͎͂҉̷̣̈́̋҉̸̶̨͙̦̈́̀͢͝e̷̴̴̷̵̵̶̶̸̛̬̟̖͕̟͓̩͕̮̼̹̙̓͐̑̌̊̄͐̍̄͘͢͢͢͢͢͢͢͢b̵̴̮̖̰̊͗͢҉̴͎͘҉̸̟͙̽̓҉̵̬͂͑҉̵͇̇̒҉̴̧͈̈́͒u̴̢͆҉̸̃ͅ҉̴̷̵̨̤͎̳̓͐̓́̈̚͢͢҉̸̬̘̃҉̷͖̦̏̅s̴̸̴̷̷͙̥̳̘͚͖̩̫̥̽͒̒̔̈̎̐͘͢͢͢͢͝҉̶̷̮̤̝̏̾́͢҉̵̶̤͔̊́͒͛͢͜҉̴̰̐̇҉̶̨͕͒̂҉̷͓̯̃̓
Lady Berenices sat crosslegged on the soft grass, she was meditating and her golden robes billowing out around her as if dancing in a non-existent breez, she drew in the surrounding aether pulling it into her colossal form. Luckily she hadn't expended much mana bestowing the legacy to the fledgling. Plus her mana, like her aura had been full ever since last night.
So it didn't take long for her to finish absorbing all the aether she needed. It took even less time for her to convert it into mana.
And so it was that she looked up just in time to see an angel sorcerer she didn't recognize come plummeting through the temporary defensive barrier that the coven had just set up.
Berenices couldn't decide whether it had really happened or not but for a second she thought she sensed two auras coming from the sorcerer. But before she could determine the truth she was distracted by the sound of two consecutive pings coming from the System, notifying her that she had two new quests.
Still sitting crosslegged with an aura of tranquility and peace around her Lady Berenices mentally opened up her menu before scrolling to the quest window and mentally clicking the [New Quest(s)] tab.
New Quests LTrpg Table [https://i.imgur.com/wK7Wx3I.png]
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[ V New Quest(s): (2) ]
[ > Settlement Defence [Settlement (Public)] ]
[ V Aberration Execution (0/3) [Personal (Accept)] ]
[ Difficulty: Very Hard ]
[ Dark omens loom over your coven as a small legion of Lesser Holy Aberrations threatens to purify your settlement. Leading this destructive force are three Elite Holy Aberrations. Should they reach your settlement's defences, doom shall befall your coven. It falls upon you to thwart this impending calamity by executing the elite aberrations before they reach your settlement’s borders. ]
[ Success Conditions: Execute all three Holy Aberrations before they reach your settlement's boundaries. ]
[ Failure Conditions: Two or more Holy Aberrations reach your settlement boundaries. ]
[ Rewards upon Success: Race Level Experience, Class Upgrade for Angel Lord, Experience in Phoebusin Agent Class, Other. ]
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[ > Current Quest(s): (9) ]
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[ > World Quest(s): (X) ]
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As she had expected, one of the two quests she had gotten access to was the basic settlement defence quest that her [Angel Lord] class told her would almost always be generated and given to almost every adult member of the settlement whenever a threat like this one emerged.
If anything she was more curious as to why she hadn't gotten it earlier, since it had been quite obvious that they were going to be attacked by the small legion of Lesser Holy Aberrations.
Looking at the contents of the Aberration Execution quest Lady Berenices distantly wondered if the coming of the angel sorcerer had been a trigger of some sort for the two quests.
Then as she read the contents of the second quest she decided to accept it. After all, she would probably have to kill the three elit aberrations anyway.
Additionally, not only were there some very tantalizing rewards for completing the quest but there also didn't seem to be any consequences if she didn't complete the quest and drove off the aberrations some other way.
However the System and by extension, her god had offered her this quest so she would of course try her hardest to complete it to their satisfaction.
Deciding that waiting any longer wasn't patience but rather sloth Lady Berenices mentally clicked to accept the quest. The System immediately pinged as with the new addition her [Current Quest(s)] tab ticked up to ten. Then she closed her menu only to hear the ping once more when the settlement defence quest was automatically added to her [Current Quest(s)].
Knowing that patience was the key to her victory, Lady Berenices sat there still crosslegged as she thought about what she knew about Holy Aberrations and in particular Elite Holy Aberrations.
As far as Lady Berenices knew Elite Holy Aberrations were a type of holy spirit that were considered to be around the level of a Nascent Soul practitioner or a little lower in strength. Which meant that they were around level fifty according to the system.
While this was well above her current level, however as her level hadn't yet caught up to her actual strength the gap didn't mean much. While not only killing but also preventing three of them from advancing would pose a "very hard"-challenge as the system put it-, it would be by no means impossible.
Aberrations, as Lady Berenices knew were spirits departed from what is normal for spirits embodying the aspects of their element in a wrong and twisted way.
Lady Berenices knew that this was especially dangerous with the holy element since overwhelming good is always dangerously close to evil. So it doesn't take much for a holy element spirit to become aberrations and unlike most other types of aberrations, they actually become stronger, not weaker in the process.
Deciding that she was prepared and that it was time to go Lady Berenices took to the air. Shooting through the air like a falling star, her golden robes billowing behind her as she flapped her four mighty wings.
Moments later, Lady Berenices, was engaged in an ethereal dance of magic with the Elite Holy Aberrations. Her golden robes shimmered as her wings moved with deliberate grace, embodying the tranquillity born of years of patience.
At first, Lady Berenices exhibited a masterful display of her skills. The first elite aberration lunged with its twisted holy aura, aiming to disrupt her balance. With a patient sweep of her wings, Lady Berenices conjured an wave of sunlight, a radiant shield that absorbed the speed that the aberration had lunged with.
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As the skirmish unfolded, Lady Berenices appeared to have the upper hand. The second aberration unleashed a torrent of holy flames, only to be met by the Berenices' calculated response. Her one of her sun-type skills she had obtained recently through the System ignited in retaliation, a controlled blaze that not only quelled the flames but also hinted at the incandescent power she could command if given enough time.
As the battle droned on the minutes becoming hours, Lady Berenices above the clouds found herself in a precarious position. The tide had turned, and what was initially a seemingly manageable fight had transformed into a relentless assault by three Elite Holy Aberrations. Each adversary, fueled by their own twisted holy powers, converged upon the angel of patience with aggression.
Lady Berenices, however, struggled to hold her ground amidst the escalating onslaught. Since not only did she need to defend herself she also needed to protect the mountaintop settlement behind her. This meant she couldn't use her most powerful evasion skills which would leave the settlement open to attack.
The golden glow that enveloped her flickered under the weight of the relentless attacks. In the face of the ferocious lunge of the first aberration, her wings moved with patient desperation, attempting to weave a barrier of sunlight that struggled to absorb the overwhelmingly twisted energy. The clash echoed through the heavens, and the air crackled with the overwhelming dichotomy of twisted holy power against her diminishing resilience.
The second aberration unleashed another torrent of unholy flames this one even bigger than the last, engulfing the angelic knight in a blaze that seemed to threaten to consume the very essence of her composure. Lady Berenices, embodying the art of patience, struggled to respond with a controlled blaze of her own. Fire and sunlight danced in a faltering tandem, struggling to repel the malevolent flames while barely illuminating the celestial battleground with a flickering radiance.
Amidst the chaos, the third aberration, shrouded in dark clouds, conjured another holy storm this one more targeted, trying to overwhelm Lady Berenices's defensive aura. Lightning crackled, and the winds howled, tossing her through the tempest. Her four wings moved with a strained rhythm, no longer guiding her with the hypnotic grace that had defined her earlier movements.
As attack after attack assailed her, Lady Berenices faltered under the relentless storm. The once-intensifying golden glow around her now dimmed, and the profound reservoirs of patience within her celestial being seemed to wane. Each clash, each surge of corrupted holy power, only served to erode the strength of her aura.
In the midst of the overwhelming assault, Lady Berenices became a fading beacon of diminishing patience, a lone figure in the vast expanse above the clouds. The celestial dance reached its tragic crescendo, the clash of elements a cacophony that echoed the inevitable struggle between tranquillity and corruption. And in this crucible of celestial turmoil, Lady Berenices, weakened and faltering, stood on the precipice of losing.
However, her patience finally paid off. In the midst of unrelenting adversity, she reached into the profound depths of her cultivated patience, a wellspring that had only deepened as the fierce battle raged on. The golden glow enveloping her intensified, a radiant testament to the enduring strength drawn from years of patient training.
With a deliberate and masterful blend of fire and sunlight, Lady Berenices initiated a counterassault that threatened to annihilate even the surrounding air. Four colossal sun-like orbs, each the size of her tall form, erupted from her outstretched wings. This was an attack meticulously charged since before the skirmish had even begun, a manifestation of the patient preparation that defined who she was.
Above the clouds, the heavens bore witness to a momentous spectacle as the four suns exploded in a crescendo of power. Their incandescent radiance engulfed not only the three Elite Holy Aberrations in her immediate vicinity but also reached out to smite the lesser aberrations assaulting the mountain peak settlement behind her. The spell of destruction painted the sky with a tapestry of fiery brilliance.
However, even the cataclysmic eruption was not enough to fully extinguish the elite aberrations. The third, slightly stronger than its counterparts, had achieved an extraordinary level of 55. In the realm of spirit-type monsters, this milestone represented more strength than most.
This aberration, having reached this pinnacle, practically gained another life. Its soul, now fully purified of imperfections, could withstand having its entire body destroyed. And like with most spirits as long as its spirit remained it could reconstruct a new body with time or magic.
Amidst the dissipating echoes of the celestial explosion, Lady Berenices stood as a luminous figure against the canvas of the battered heavens. Her golden aura, once radiant with enduring strength, flickered as though the culmination of her patient assault had exacted a toll on her ethereal form. Fatigue etched across her features, and the once-immaculate golden robes bore the scars of the battle.
However, as the smoke cleared and the aftermath unfolded, a miraculous transformation began. The wounds that marred Lady Berenices's celestial form, evidence of the relentless assault she endured, seemed to mend before the very eyes of the cosmic audience. The exhaustion that weighed upon her, a consequence of the arduous confrontation, dissipated like morning mist beneath the strengthening sun.
With a steady gaze and wings now poised with a serene strength, Lady Berenices prepared to face the ultimate adversary. The scars of battle, once vivid, now faintly lingered as echoes of a cosmic struggle.
As the elite aberration attempted to flee, seeking refuge in the remnants of the holy storms it had conjured, Lady Berenices unleashed her final attack. With a sublime manifestation of her own magic, she transformed the lingering tempest into a radiant vortex of purifying light. The holy storm, once a tool of corruption, became an instrument of divine retribution.
In this climactic moment, the fleeing aberration found itself ensnared in the very forces it had unleashed. The celestial vortex surged with an intensity that seemed to mirror Lady Berenices's renewed strength. The elite aberration, caught in the maelstrom, struggled against the overwhelming power of purification.
As the holy storm transformed into an instrument of its demise, the third aberration, weakened and unable to escape the wrath of patient justice, met its final fate.
The battlefield, once shrouded in turmoil, now bore witness to the triumph of Lady Berenices. The scars of battle faded beneath the resplendent glow of her rejuvenated aura, and the celestial heavens echoed with the remnants of a vanquished aberration's lament.
In this moment of celestial resolution, Lady Berenices stood as a beacon of enduring patience, her wings unfurled against the backdrop of a cosmos that whispered tales of redemption and renewal.
In the unhallowed chronicles of our timeless skirmishes, I have faced a myriad of celestial foes, each with their own distinct brand of terror. Yet, among the myriad portraits of anguish, the most chilling visages are painted by those angels who have traversed the path of patience to its forsaken terminus.
As a denizen of the infernal abyss, I recount the unsettling tales of my encounters with these celestial paragons, whose essence is steeped in the unyielding fortitude of eternal waiting. Their patience is not merely a virtue; it is a weapon, honed to a razor's edge through epochs of cosmic stillness. In the throes of battle, when fatigue descends upon lesser beings like a shroud of impending doom, these patient angels emerge as spectral juggernauts, relentless in their pursuit of celestial justice.
Picture, if you will, the desperate tableau of conflict unfolding across the astral expanse. Mana and stamina, the lifeblood of mortal adversaries, drained with each frenetic clash. Yet, against the tide of exhaustion, the angels of enduring patience remain untouched, or dare I say, invigorated. The very fabric of reality seems to warp around them, as if the cosmos itself conspires to fuel their undying vigor.
It is a rare spectacle indeed to witness the defeat of such celestial paragons in battles that last beyond the first few minutes that bind the struggle. As any adversary exhausts their reserves and succumbs to the gnawing jaws of weariness, the patient angel would stand unwavering, like titans forged from the very essence of time.
— Excerpt from "Ephemeral Desolation: Chronicles of Strife with the Heavens." by Maledictus Nocturne.