“I think now might be a good idea to go and get some of those explosive charges. Are you sure that you can use them properly?” Blake asked as the massive Stone Colossus took its battle form.
“Yeah, I’ll head into the explosives storage building and check it out, but I’m sure I can find something. Can your new wolf hold on for a few minutes?” Harry asked.
“Honestly, I’m not sure,” Blake said. “Just try and hurry as quickly as you can.”
Harry leaped into the air and soared toward the explosives storage building.
Meanwhile, Blake commanded his Berserker Wolf to launch an assault against the golem’s ankles. The wolf possessed a singular, yet ferocious tactic: Unbridled Fury. It charged headlong into the fray, relentless in its aggression.
The ax-wielding wolf raced toward the massive creature with incredible speed, before raising its hefty weapon and delivering a powerful swing aimed squarely at the monster's ankle.
The Berserker Wolf channeled its momentum into a devastating strike, targeting the very foundation of the Stone Colossus. The impact sent fragments of stone and rock flying, causing the monstrous behemoth to reel backward, its balance compromised.
Though the colossus quickly repaired itself by drawing more rocks and stones to its wounded extremity, Blake was relieved to see the wolf was capable of inflicting tangible damage.
In response to the wolf's assault, the Stone Colossus attempted to stomp the wolf. As the wolf darted and weaved around the colossus's feet, it narrowly evaded the crushing blows that left huge craters in the stone.
Witnessing the wolf's impressive display of speed and dexterity, Blake felt a surge of satisfaction in his evolutionary choices. A slower, heavily armored monster would have likely succumbed to the colossus's relentless onslaught.
Despite the wolf's valiant efforts, the Stone Colossus seemed unfazed, continually repairing itself each time the ax cleaved away chunks of its rocky body. It became apparent that the wolf's attacks were merely delaying the inevitable.
Sooner or later, his wolf would run out of luck.
Blake needed to devise a new strategy. Every pulse-pounding moment brought them closer to potential defeat.
The moment the wolf’s luck ran out came sooner rather than later. The colossus fists swept across the battlefield in a wide arc and caught the wolf as it tried to dodge. The wolf yelped as it was knocked backward and was thrown across the quarry.
The sound of his monster getting hurt awakened something within Blake. He felt a fire inside kindle as he watched his wolf try to get back to its feet.
Fury of the Master
One of your monsters has been reduced to a critical level of health. Whenever your monsters reach this reduced level of health, your own statistics are increased significantly.
The cards Blake had received thus far had all transformed into formidable monsters, while other Challengers around the world acquired weapons, armor, and abilities that enhanced their own personal prowess.
Though Blake had yet to experience such self-empowerment, he now realized he possessed an innate ability that could significantly bolster his combat effectiveness.
With renewed determination, Blake plunged into the heart of the quarry, wielding his pickaxe like a mighty warrior. As he hacked away at the legs of the Stone Colossus, Fury of the Master amplified his power beyond his wildest dreams.
He could feel his muscles swell and strain, pushing their limits like never before. His heightened senses allowed him to anticipate and evade the slow, crushing strikes of the Stone Colossus with ease.
Despite his newfound strength, Blake harbored no illusions that he could single-handedly topple the golem. Instead, he focused on keeping the colossal foe occupied until Harry arrived with the explosives.
He raised his voice, “Harry, I need your help! How are you going with those explosives?”
A shadowy figure burst forth from the explosives building, its wings unfurling as it soared into the sky. “Apologies, buddy! I was moving as quickly as possible! Don't worry about your wolf. It'll be alright now.”
Harry landed upon the Stone Colossi’s broad back. He carefully cradled a plastic explosive under one arm and planted it between a pair of boulders at the creature's shoulder joint. With his task completed, Harry took to the air once more, circling around to the front of the towering enemy.
Blake swung his pickaxe with all his might, severing one of the colossus's toe sections to draw its attention. His plan succeeded as the enraged behemoth attempted to crush him, its focus now solely on Blake, leaving Harry momentarily forgotten.
Harry landed on the opposite shoulder, slipping the second plastic explosive into a crevice between the colossus's neck and shoulder. The stage was set.
Harry swooped down and grasped the back of Blake's outfit, whisking him away to a safe distance.
The Colossus chased after them with long lumbering steps but couldn’t quite catch up.
30 seconds later, the atmosphere of the quarry was violently shattered by the deafening roar of two explosions.
A tempest of rocks and pulverized dust erupted in a gigantic boom.
Amidst the settling chaos, a notification appeared before Blake, capturing his attention.
Congratulations! You have triumphed against a formidable boss, one that far exceeded the limits of your current abilities.
How did you ever manage to survive such an extraordinary challenge? Was it simply a stroke of good fortune, or have you honed a set of impressive and clever strategies to outwit your foes? Regardless of the means, your accomplishment is truly commendable!
Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.
Under normal circumstances, the system would require you to emerge victorious in a specified number of ranked duels and acquire a collection of power cards before becoming eligible to participate in the Rank 3 examination.
However, given your recent success in defeating a monstrosity that even a Rank 5 challenger would have struggled against, it is our strong recommendation that you return to New Meridia post haste and inquire about taking the exam.
Your exceptional performance has granted you eligibility for the Rank 3 Challenger examination.
“Yo, Blake, did you just get the same message that I did?” Harry asked.
“Did it just tell you to go and take a Rank 3 exam as well?” Blake asked.
“Sure did.”
“Then yeah, I got the same message that you did, buddy.”
“Rank 3! Can you imagine?”
“I don’t think we’re going to need to imagine for much longer,” Blake said. “But just remember about the kind of power levels we’re talking about at Rank 3. That Heath Ryder guy, the master of flames, he can fly as well. His only synergy relies on his opponent being stuck on the ground, and as long as you draw your Gargoyle’s Fury card, you can take to the skies. I’m pretty sure you’ll be able to give him a decent run for his money.”
“I just can’t believe your wolf can use an ax like that. That’s freaking insane! Not in a bad way, it’s awesome.”
As Blake surveyed the aftermath of the intense battle, his eyes were drawn to a bright, flashing indicator in his interface. The power card indicator was glowing with an intense aura, beckoning him toward the epicenter of the destruction. It was located right at the spot where the stone colossus had fallen.
Excited by the prospect of a new power card, Blake approached the marker, his heart racing with anticipation. He could feel the raw energy emanating from the card, calling out to him, and he knew that he was about to receive a truly powerful and rare reward for his efforts.
With each step he took, Blake felt his excitement grow, and he could see the same excitement reflected in Harry's eyes. They both knew that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and they were determined to seize it.
Finally, Blake reached the spot where the stone colossus had fallen and reached out to claim his reward. As he touched the power card, he felt the anima within it flow into him, strengthening and empowering him in ways he could never have imagined.
With a triumphant roar, Blake raised his hand to the sky, embracing his newfound strength and reveling in the glory of his achievement.
This was a moment that he would never forget, a moment that he would always treasure as a testament to his bravery and his determination.
“Do you see that power card indicator?” Blake asked.
“I sure do. Let’s go and check it out!”
It was Harry's turn to claim the next power card, but upon arriving at the remains of the stone colossus, he was taken aback by the sight of not just one, but two power cards. The first one was marked with a large red circle and displayed a message stating that it belonged to Harry Grenfell.
However, the second was marked with his name, Blake Thornwood, and had an additional message beneath that read.
Source: Boss Monster.
Blake couldn't believe his luck. He had never seen a power card drop from a boss monster before, and he couldn't help but feel a tingling anticipation at being the recipient of such a rare and valuable item.
He looked over at Harry, who was equally surprised, and the two of them shared a grin.
“Well, that’s interesting,” Blake said. “It looks like when you kill a boss monster even in a big group, there’s a chance for a card to drop for everyone. Or maybe it’s a guarantee if you manage to takedown the boss like this?”
Harry had already taken his own card into his hand and was grinning at whatever he saw.
“I take it you got something good?” Blake asked.
“Oh buddy, this is freaking incredible. I got an attack called Avalanche, and when I play it, it summons a rockslide on a location of my choosing,” Harry said.
That did sound awesome.
Blake reached out and took his card, then waited for the system to reveal what he received. The image on the card coalesced into a flaming meteor streaking through the night sky.
The card was called Meteor Strike, it was marked as Epic rarity, and cost two anima to activate. This devastating attack summoned a flaming meteor to the location of the user’s choosing, and made it slam into the ground.
It listed both Earth and Fire elements on the card, which was the first time Blake had ever seen something with dual elements.
“What did you get?” Harry asked.
Blake didn’t want to come out and tell Harry exactly what the card said just yet, because he didn’t know what would happen when he actually used it. Like his other cards, it would probably transform into a monster card, but until he knew what kind of monster card it would become, anything that he told Harry could potentially be untrue.
“I really need to test this card out as soon as I can. But I’m totally out of anima for today,” Blake said, trying to move the conversation on without revealing too much.
“Yeah, me too, my reserves won’t be replenished until tomorrow, but we can totally have a practice duel later on if you want to,” Harry suggested.
“I think I need to experiment with this one by myself first,” Blake said.
Harry seemed to realize what Blake implied. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Harry, it was just that in this current situation they were in, it was wise to play many things close to their chests.
“The card is just not really clear on exactly what it does, but it sounds like it could be pretty dangerous. Do you want to meet up again tomorrow after work and go and hunt some more monsters?” Blake asked.
“Absolutely, man. We make a kick ass team.”
Blake grinned. Despite their rocky beginnings, Blake really was starting to think of Harry as a good friend.
They proceeded to retrieve their packs from the administrative building and made sure they filled each pack to capacity with the most valuable pieces of salvage and monster loot available. They meticulously transported any remaining monster loot leftover to a secluded corner at the rear of the quarry.
They left a sizable sheet of metal to conceal their treasure from potential treasure hunters. Both Blake and Harry intended to return at a later time to claim the entirety of their hard-earned spoils.
As they ambled past the lifeless husk of the once-mighty stone colossus, Blake's attention was captured by a shimmering object within the creature's chest cavity.
He clambered atop the fallen behemoth, tearing away the rocks that obscured his view. With the anima that had once bound the monster together now dissipated, he found it surprisingly simple to dislodge each stone individually.
After dedicating several minutes to his task, Blake peered into the exposed chest cavity and discovered a multifaceted gemstone of remarkable clarity, akin to the transparency of glass.
The system identified this extraordinary find as a Stone Colossus Gem Heart, revealing that it would fetch a considerable sum when bartered with a vendor.
“Hey Harry, come and check this out. I found something that’s pretty valuable. Do you want me to take it, and we can share the proceeds?” Blake asked.
Harry climbed up next to Blake and looked down at the gem heart. Harry smiled but shook his head. “Nah, man that’s all yours. I don’t need money, not while my work orders are keeping a roof over my head. Besides, the more possessions you own the more your possessions own you. You go and sell that and invest in something that's going to make your life better from here on out.”
Harry said that last bit with a strange tone, like he was getting ready to say goodbye or something.
“Thanks, man. I’ll do that.” Blake thought about whether or not he wanted to say anything else to Harry, because he had a bit of an idea of what was going on. Now that Harry had a card which could take him wherever he wanted to go, there was no real point to him staying in New Meridia. Not while the rest of the world awaited.
“Hey, Harry, if you decide to leave New Meridia, don’t go without saying goodbye, right?”
“You can see right through me just like that, can you?”
Blake shrugged. “I’m just getting that vibe, you know?”
“Yeah, well look, I’ll make sure I don’t leave without saying goodbye. It’s never been my strong suit, but I feel like I owe it to you, you know?”
“You don’t owe me anything, but you have become a good friend to me, and if you go I am going to miss you.”
Harry gave Blake a playful punch on the shoulder. “Don’t go all misty eyed on me. I don’t do those kinds of emotions, you know?”
Blake remembered something he'd heard from someone many years ago. He couldn’t recall the time, the place, the person, or even the situation, but he remembered the words.
I’m not going to say goodbye, I’m just going to say see you later.
Blake echoed those words to Harry. “When the time comes, we won’t say goodbye. We’ll just say, see you later, okay?”
“Yeah, that sounds good. But for now, let's get back to the city and hand this quest in. And then I’m going to go and watch the duels!”