CHAPTER XXVIII: ONLY THE STRONG CAN SHOW MERCY.
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{00:13 LOCAL TIME 13TH JUN 1ME}
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LONG BEACH
LISETTE
Lisette was livid, she could not believe how inept she was, how could she take that much damage from three low-level Classers, and a bunch of NPC that she had to be saved by this brute? She looked up at the behemoth carrying her and scowled. The bodies under the skin were trying to escape the torment of being absorbed by the Greater Ghoul, and she was just in pain. She let out a frustrated yell.
The Greater Ghoul was taking her back to the second-floor entrance carrying her like a baby. This made her even more angry. She had made them, not the other way around, she was the Alpha not them, she was the high Ghoul, not this abomination. With that thought, she bit the Greater Ghoul and started to absorb it.
The Greater Ghoul tried to throw Lisette off of itself in a futile attempt at self-preservation. Lisette however, was latched on tight, and it only took seconds to kill it, and a few more seconds to absorb it fully into herself.
She threw her head back in ecstasy, before focusing. Her rage had peaked. Revenge was going to be hers. She could see the fort from where she stood. She activated her stealth Spell and ran back to the fort sticking to shadows around the battlefield.
As she got close she saw no one on the wall, or the cannons paying attention. They all looked exhausted. Good, because she was tired of them all as well. A feral smile crossed her pale round face. Exhausted prey made mistakes, and she was going to make them all pay for hurting her so badly.
The light coming from the leftover barrels was minimal. With the night cycle of the Dungeon in full swing she was truly in her element. She admonished herself for being so stupid and impatient before. Letting herself be hit by that mage. Always kill the mage first. The pet was the source of their power, but the mage was the source of the pet. She shook off those useless thoughts now, she needed to act quickly while they were not fully recovered. So she did just that.
She slowly climbed over the broken northern wall looking at the Archer and Mage discussing something. She stuck to the shadows, but just before she could strike from behind the mage, the Archer noticed her. She smiled because it was too late.
“LOOK OUT!” He pitifully yelled as Lisette punched through the mage's chest.
She felt her ribcage give way like butter. The mage was lucky to move just enough to avoid a direct heart shot, but Lisette’s entire arm had gone through her spine and lungs. She slumped on her arm, as the mage turned around to see who had killed her.
Lisette smiled at the look of despair from the mage’s eyes. “Now where were we... bitch?”
To the archer’s credit, he recovered quickly and fired one of his weak dark mana arrows at Lisette, she had a ton of resistance to them but she wasn't going to underestimate them anymore. She put the mage's body in front of her. She smiled at the irony of the archer finishing off his own teammate.
But much to Lisette’s surprise the black projectiles went right through the mage and hit her in the mouth. She jerked back with a grunt. “What the heck?” Another arrow goes through her ‘human shield’ this time hitting her left eye. She tossed the mage’s lifeless body to the ground and started evading the shots while advancing on the Archer. “I’m going to rip your dick off and feed it to you, you piece of shit.” She yelled as she casually knocked the dark mana arrow aside.
A strong hand grabbed her from behind shocking her again. She spun around just in time to see a fist approaching her face. “Funny you said that, I was thinking something similar.” The fighter said. “Knuckle sandwich?”
‘Where the hell did he come from?’ She thought as her head snapped back. She saw the Archer readying one of his silver arrows, and she felt like she could use that to her advantage, the punch was more surprising than painful. She was ready for anything now, and she didn’t even have to look for the fighter anymore, he had come to her. ‘One down, two to go.’ Is Lisette’s only thought as she internally smiled.
***
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{00:13 LOCAL TIME 13TH JUN 1ME}
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LONG BEACH
PRIME
Colonel was mad at himself, he had played the game long enough to know that pain was real, and falling uncontrollably from that height was not going to be good at all. The game had magic, yes, but physics was still in play. His own spell knocked him off course. He felt idiotic.
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< ALERT >
{You are no longer stunned}
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At least he was still alive. He groaned as the pain hit him he should have a concussion at least, but he wasn’t going ask for something he hated. If the game thought he was fine, he was fine. He got up and looked at the chunk of the southern wall he had taken out with his body, but he was tougher now. He wondered how he wasn’t overrun with ghouls trying to eat him.
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< QUEST COMPLETE >
{Quest Name: STOP THE OUTBREAK III
Quest Type: Legacy (Legendary Chain)
Description: Something ominous has been unleashed on your local area investigator for more updates. You have found and killed Feral ghouls which means there is at least a lesser ghoul making the feral ones. Now that you have killed a lesser ghoul you are now aware that there must be a Greater ghoul controlling them. Also, the homeless NPCs are under attack from the ghouls, protect them.
Requirements: Find the source of the undead.
Objective 1: Find and kill 3 Greater ghouls (3/3)(Completed)
Objective 2: kill 25 lesser ghouls (25/25)(Completed)
Objective 3: Save homeless 100/152 remaining(Completed)
Rewards: 150000 EXP, Legacy shirt, 1000,00 bonus EXP a General Skill tome, +10 skill points.
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That's great at least that is done. He shook his head at the wall. “I guess over two hundred constitutions protected me.” He mused. All the gunners look like shit, not even noticing him as he began to walk back to the fort. That gave Colonel pause. No matter how tired you were as troops, you should always be scanning your sectors in a hostile environment, or you asking for an ambush.
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< MAP ALERT + SUBTERFUGE CHECK >
{An enemy combatant is about to strike your teammate!}
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He hated being right. “Shit!” He ran up to and easily jumped onto the top of the wall. Only to see Sugar impaled by Lisette’s arm. His eyes widen in shock. Then he locked eyes with her for a second as Soto started firing through her hitting Lisette in the face.
The High Ghoul threw Sugar to the side as she rushed at Soto yelling. “I’m going to rip your dick off and feed it to you, you piece of shit.” Colonel saw the Sugar’s icon blink on his HUD. Sugar’s head rolled over to lock eyes with him a sad smile on her face as the light was abo-
“RALLY HERE!”
Sugar appeared on the wall where Colonel was standing she took in a huge breath now that she could. She kept gasping for air as she stepped back grabbing her chest where her wound used to be. She took one too many steps back and fell off the wall knocking herself out.
Colonel on the other hand was in so much pain that he could barely stay conscious. But Barely was enough for what he needed to do.
[Soto the okie doke!] Colonel ordered as he grabbed a surprised Lisette’s arm, causing her to turn around, off-balanced as her taunting words registered. “Funny you said that, I was thinking something similar.” He said coldly. “Knuckle sandwich?”
Lisette recovered quickly as Soto released the arrow. She was ready but noticed right away that the shot was off. She smiled at his tired face, as she moved slightly to the right to let the arrow pass her on the left by two arm lengths. Her smug satisfaction turned to confusion when she heard the arrow caught behind her. She spun to see Colonel cock back his hand holding the arrow much to her horror. “Catch!”
Colonel threw it at her as Soto’s second arrow slammed into her back causing her mouth to open, and giving Colonel a perfect target.
The grenade arrow Colonel had thrown was a little unwieldy, but with his Increase Accuracy passive he had compensated.
Lisette’s eyes widen as the grenade hits the back of her throat and explodes taking half of her face with it. She was still very much alive though and very, very angry. “You piece of WHAT THE FUCK.” Colonel wasn’t listening at all he was too busy punching her and the novice effect of his legacy melee skill kicked in. She felt every punch like it was burning her soul. Then Colonel detonated the stacks with the snap of two fingers, his mana dropped by 100, and ten mini explosions wrack Lisette’s rapidly regenerating body. The mana headache hit him as he rolled back from her, opening the party chat channel.
[Gunners fire for effect! I’m danger close.] Colonel ordered.
The two of them are enveloped in flame ten seconds later. Lisette burned to ash as the critical damage hit her. The Colonel had of course stripped away 90% of her HPs. He jumped out and started to roll on the ground putting himself out. He looked up at Johnny and his crew cutting their fire as a loot globe formed where Lisette had been standing over her ashes.
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< QUEST COMPLETE >
{Quest Name: STOP THE OUTBREAK IV
Quest Type: Legacy (Legendary Chain)
Description: Something ominous has been unleashed on your local area investigator for more updates. You have found and killed Feral ghouls which means there is at least a lesser ghoul making the feral ones. Now that you have killed a lesser ghoul you are now aware that there must be a Greater ghoul controlling them. Also, the homeless NPCs are under attack from the ghouls, protect them.
Requirements: Find the source of the undead.
Lisette has died she was the source.
Rewards: 300000 EXP, Legacy pants, UNDEAD Bane(Bane mark) title to all participants.
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Soto whistled at the rewards walking up to Colonel. “That was a ton of EXP and a title, dope.” He reached down to the still-smoking Legacy. "I think you need new pants boss," He smiled at Colonel's completely burned pants. "I figured you were more of a boxer guy, but thongs are cool." He points at Colonel's charred underwear chuckling.
Colonel had to agree with him on the first statement. He took Soto’s offered hand and got to his feet. All of the clothes he had entered Dungeon with were burnt badly. He looked at the ash pile that was Lisette. “Man, she was tough.” He said as he equipped his Legacy pants.
“Well, she was the final boss,” Soto said.
“Sugar!” Colonel remembered she was close to death.
“Shit’ you’re right.” They both run to the southern wall.
***
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{23:00 LOCAL TIME 13TH JUN 1ME}
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DUNGEON CORE ROOM
THRALL ALDO
Aldo watched Lisette burn to ash with a bloody tear running down his cheek. Bour pat him on his back. causing him to flinch. “It's all good lad, this was always going to be the outcome.” Bour turned back to Adia who had jumped off the Avatar’s lap. She blew the avatar a kiss. Bour shook his head at her behavior. ”Time to go.”
Adia looked at the former priest. “Remember this day. Get stronger, because only the strong can show mercy in this game, and I have no doubt that those two will be the strongest adventurers one day. Take pride in being part of their first steps in their ascension to the highest points of power. Good day, and LIVE WELL.”
“For today you are safe from dying free.” Bour finished and they both disappeared with a pop.
Aldo let out a breath he didn’t even know he was holding, he was pretty sure he didn’t even need to breathe anymore.
Another purple throne was formed next to the useless Avatar. As it finished forming, Lisette appeared in it screaming. Which died off when she realized she was no longer burning. Aldo looked at her with every emotion from fatherly to disgust but ended up on disappointment. For himself, for her, for failing their master, but mostly for being weak.
Lisette realized where she was, and her confused face changed to fury. She tried to get up from the chair she was sitting in, but she was strapped in it. “What is this? Let me out of this, I have to go kill those fools.”
“The only fool here is you, my child. So brash, and impulsive. This is not a sprint, it is a marathon. You lost ten levels when you died, do you think you can beat them as you are? You will permanently die if you go now. Do you want that?”
“I don’t care, I will eat them all.” She screamed trying to escape the respawn chair and failing.
“You don’t have the strength to be prideful, so I’ll make that decision now for you. We will wait, and grow stronger that way we will make them regret for showing us mercy ever again. We can put that Wild Dungeon protocol into effect.” Aldo looked at the screens smiling ignoring Lisette’s screaming behind him.
“Attaboy we look forward to it.” Adia's voice drifted into his ear sounding like she was right next to him. Aldo’s smile disappeared immediately.