Kron ran for where the human hadn’t come up while the crimson-eyed kelpie galloped toward me.
I was actually glad I was getting another shot at one of these. The last time it hit me in my nuts was a fluke. The only reason I survived was because of my good armor and skillful party members working together to save me. So, if I was going to get it to strike me down there, I needed to be in control of how and where. To do that, I needed an aura redirecting skill. However, I’d never heard of an aura skill that specifically redirected an attack. Then again, I’d never heard of a dodge tank until I recovered my past life’s memories, either.
If I could create such an ability, this would be the time to do it!
I couldn’t approach the giant dark pony from the front. This meant I’d have to do it like the rogues do.
Once the mare neared me, I bolted towards it. The creepy horse reared up to attack, but I hadn’t slowed down. Instead, I repeated the move I did when I retrieved my blades and skidded across the ground only, this time, I zipped between the giant horse’s two hind legs. Once I cleared them, I jumped to my feet and attacked its knees.
The kelpie screeched in pain as my swords slashed into its aura protected flesh. Almost on reflex, it kicked out toward me with both legs. I Dangerous Dodged, jumping away just enough. As it rushed by me, I stabbed Blood into its back leg.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/949515587766329405/1042235510657138749/SPOILER_same_copy.jpg]
“Nngh!”
This time, my aura infused swords actually left a small gash along its blubbery side. The beast could be harmed!
Oh, snap! That buck would have been the perfect attack to redirect to my groin! And I’d used it on a dodge and counterattack. I wanted to kick myself. Well, technically, I wanted the kelpie to kick me.
The dark mare glared at me, then charged like it planned to trample me to death.
I leaped backwards to avoid the monster. Unfortunately, it didn’t stop to attack me again. Instead, it kept going towards the lake where Kron had pulled the orange haired rogue out of the water and healed her. My taunt must have worn off, and for some reason, this kelpie held a major grudge with this girl.
Her eyes widened, and she bolted away from the monster, nearing the treeline.
Not acceptable.
“HEY! YOUR COW BREATH SMELLS LIKE GOOD CHEESE!”
It stopped and slid on the grass for several feet before turning to glare at me. Then it loped toward me.
Murr hit it with a green shot. A burst of poison dust swelled around the fishy mare. Unfortunately, the wind picked up, and the cloud headed my way.
“Damn it, Murr!”
“Not my fault!”
I ran away. Why was it so hard to get a horse to kick my nuts?
Since the mare was chasing me, I led it over to an area with flatter terrain. By the time it neared, the cloud of poison had dissipated.
Our eyes met, infuriated crimson to my blue. It scraped one hoof over the grassy ground and snorted a lung full of fishy mist. I choked on it. Disgusting.
That was when it charged, head down.
Using Dangerous Dodge, I avoided it like an elven matador.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/949515587766329405/1042235510384492574/SPOILER_sam2_copy.jpg]
It barreled past like a tiny train. Its nostrils even practically puffed out a small steam engine’s worth of mist.
Like hell could I redirect that charge!
Once the dark mare reached the edge of the clearing, it trotted around for another go. This time, instead of trying to trample me, it reared up and attempted to badger my face with its hooves. I ducked, avoiding the attack. That was when it turned. This was it, my chance.
If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
Maybe I’d been redirecting attacks for so long that I’d finally hit a bench mark. Or maybe Belinda just liked messing with me, because as the hooves flew toward my chest, I slashed my swords down on the legs and infused my aura into grabbing them and shoving them between my legs. They barely grazed my aura defended crotch.
I was shocked. The kelpie was shocked. The system was shocked.
What?! Ah... Congratulations! You’ve created an... what is this... an Aura Redirect Skill?!
The Shocker - Rank K - Grab your enemy’s attack with aura and redirect it between your legs. Your enemy will be stunned for 10 seconds from mental shock... time you’ll probably need to recover.
The dark mare looked at me with wide eyes, then galloped away from the bat-shit-crazy elf who forced it to kick his own balls. And that was when the ache hit. I temporarily threw my swords into my inventory and grabbed my junk to make sure everything was intact... and because it was a reflex. Fortunately, before I could fall over like a fainting goat, Kron threw a heal my way. The soothing spell cleared away all the pain and soreness.
Murr, who must have been waiting for his chance, appeared out of nowhere and suddenly stuck a knife into the monster’s eye. The kelpie shrieked in agony.
Kron stepped forward and sent a ball of blue light toward the mare. Its head drooped. With a final stab in between its shoulders by Murr, it fell onto its side. Then it violently flopped like a fish.
All three of us jumped in shock.
The kelpie stilled.
Congratulations! Through shocking means and the tiniest of taps, you have gained a level! You have 1 attribute point to add.
The catfolk quickly cut off its hoof for verification and tossed it into his inventory.
“By the way, did you manage to get the other one too?”
He gave me a look.
I held up my hands. “If you didn’t, that’s fine.”
Murr scowled in exasperation. “What are you talking about? Of course I got it. You think I’d hop into danger like that and not collect the goods?”
Well, kind of. Avoiding his glare, I turned to Kron. “Thank you for the timely heal.”
He grinned. “It’s my job to mend you from even the worst of injuries. Even the ones down there. You can think of me as a buddy who saves your nuts... Oh! You could just call me your nut bud!”
It took me a second. “No... Nope. I do not like that.”
“Ooo.” Murr wiped his dagger on a cloth. “Maybe that should be our company’s name? Nut Buddies!”
“Don’t make me beat you.”
“Nut Savers?” Kron suggested.
“How are you making it even worse?! No!”
“Excuse me?” The rogue with the orange braid cautiously approached.
Oh great. A stranger heard us talking about this.
“Yes?” I said, with an awkward business smile and my face a bit too warm.
“Ah, Hi. I’m Jessica. I was wondering if your party could use another DPS?”
“We aren’t actively searching for one,” Kron said.
Murr grinned. “But if you have a boon...”
She blinked. “I do.”
All three of us froze. “What is it?”
“It’s called Fisherman.” Woah! I’d seen that on the wheel. “It allows me to fight aquatic creatures ten levels higher than me, like they’re my same level.”
“Wait... then why did you have such a difficult time with the kelpie?”
Jessica grimaced. “As an amphibian, it apparently, it doesn’t count.”
Oh, she’d misjudged her boon severely and bit off more than she could chew.
Kron stroked his chin in thought, then shook his head. “I don’t think you’d be a great fit for our party.”
The orange haired rogue scowled and placed her hands on her hips. “Is my boon not good enough or something? Because I know it doesn’t sound impressive, but it can be really valuable if I focus on aquatic monsters.”
I pointed to my face. “I’m an Elven Tank.”
Her eyes widened.
“Our team is aiming for 300 in four years. If you join us, you’d need to be able to keep up.”
With a sigh, she scratched the back of her head. “Yeah, I don’t think I’m a good fit. I’m not crazy enough to try for 300. But I’ll be sure to spread word about how you saved me so you can get some credit.”
To encourage adventurers to get along and help each other, the guild gave out incentives like access to better dungeons.
Murr stepped up. “Why don’t you return with us? We may not be able to party with you, but we can at least bring you back to the guild since we’re heading there, anyway. And on the way, you can tell us all about how you became a rogue.”
She grinned. “Sounds good.”
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/949515587766329405/1042235509851832330/SPOILER_Jessica.jpg]
The lake shook. Her smile vanished. We all turned to stare at the rising water as a massive multi-tentacled octo-fish rose from the water. It was a monster unique to Faeruled with eight main arms like an octopus but the head of a fish.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/949515587766329405/1042235665871556749/SPOILER_fish_octopus.jpg]