The wind blew coldly through the forest. In this forest which has many trees that are colossal in height and size stood three unique tents. A powerful barrier protects the tents from hostile outside forces and around this tent is a runway left behind by the footsteps of a young man called Rox.
Rox runs at incredible speeds around the barrier every Mini Cycle to train his skills but today, he is not alone. With him, standing just outside the barrier are eight more people and a cheetah called Juba. All around were his subordinates.
Rox wanted to see their fighting capabilities so he invited them for some sparring matches.
He skipped the youngest of them all, Etit Zairitz formerly known as Etit Sairitz since she had no fighting capabilities to show and called Au, the subordinate with the highest level if you disregard the fact that her level is now being suppressed.
Au is a commoner who used to work for the First Noble of her country which is called Delle. Her family has served the first noble family as part of its Special Corps for generations. She was put in the corps as a child and even when the First Noble's character changed, she continued serving him because that was all she knew. When she came in contact with what she perceived as unfathomable power and she was given the chance to serve that power or die, she did.
Au is twenty Big Cycles old which translates to twenty-six Earth years. She is five-foot-four-inches tall having long red hair and beautiful green eyes. Her voluptuous shape makes her look elegant and her skin has zero scars although she is in the military. At least, the visible parts have no scars while her facial beauty is above average.
Before Rox started sparring with her, he checked her stats first;
Name: Au.
Race: Lower Divine Xerxi.
Level: 18. Suppressed (21).
Health Points(HP) = 118921.
Mana Points (MP) = 27590.
Strength (ST) = 11416.
Speed (S) = 185.5.
Durability (D) = 2569.
Stamina (E) = 30444.
Skills: [Flame Magic Boost],[Intermediate Field Detection], [Advanced Flame Burst], [Advanced Fire Lance], [Advanced Flame Ball], [Advanced Flame Wall], [Advanced Magic Barrier], [Basic cooking] etc.
Resistances: [Advanced Heat Resistance], [Advanced Flame Resistance], [Basic Water Resistance], [Basic Fear Resistance] and [Intermediate Intimidation Resistance].
Titles: [First Noble Family's Dog] (Greyed), [Flame Mage], [Rox's Subordinate]
Compared to her earlier stats as a tier-one system user;
Name: Au.
Race: Xerxi.
Level: 21.
Health Points(HP) = 80000.
Mana Points (MP) = 18560.
Strength (ST) = 7680.
Speed (S) = 124.8.
Durability (D) = 1728.
Stamina (E) = 20480.
... She has gotten a lot more powerful although her level has been suppressed.
*******
Before they began the sparring match, Rox let Ansah suppress his stats to fifty per cent. This way, Rox will be able to enjoy the match and not overwhelm Au. Although his speed is still above Au, Au now has more magic power than he does. Rox let the others get inside the barrier which will block any outside attack below level fifty.
"I have suppressed my power to your level. Do not hold back and fight me with all that you have. If you can defeat me, I'll promote you to knighthood. I'll also do my best to use skills that are similar to the ones you have in your skill set." Rox said while readying his stance with no weapon in hand.
With a staff in her hands, Au asked; "My Lord, will you use no weapon, staff or wand?"
After hearing her words, Rox realized that he did bring a few but never used them. They should be very powerful but since he never considered himself a mage, it never crossed his mind. "I do have some staffs and wands, but they are so powerful that using them would mean going out of my way to suppress my power was useless. You can attack now." Rox doesn't really need a staff or wand in casting spells because he is a Seed but if he does use a wand he will get all the benefits the wand provides in addition to his privilege as a Seed.
After Rox asked Au to attack, Au started chanting a [Fireball] spell.
"I thought you would start with a skill."
"My stamina is not that high so I can not use a skill for probing. '...incinerate my enemies. [Fireball]. A football-sized ball of fire burning at a thousand Degrees Celsius appeared in front of Au and rushed at Rox.
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Although the fireball was fast for Au, Rox effortlessly dodged it.
"Can't you say the incantation inside your head or skip it entirely?"
"My Lord, only those with the [Silent Cast] skill can cast spells silently and shortening spells will reduce their potency unless you are a genius or you have used the spell so much that it is second nature to you."
"I see." Rox pointed his palm at Au and said "[Fireball]" without incantation but the fireball he conjured was twenty per cent more powerful, faster and bigger than Au's fireball although he used no staff. The mana he used was twenty per cent less compared to Au as well.
After taking some time to experiment with his magic, Rox found it easier to cast spells without the need for incantations as long as he learns and does it once. With [Ability King Sirus ], he just has to see the spell ones and because of [Ruler's Reach], Rox now has copies of all of Au's skills and spells. His [King of Cheats] title has also made sure his abilities are cheat versions of the originals.
Au barely blocked the fireball that rushed at her. "My Lord, how can your chantless fireball be more powerful than mine."
"Although I have suppressed my stats, it seems my skills and spells are more efficient compared to yours." Rox accelerated towards Au trying to hit her but before he could touch her, Au used one of her skills called [Flame Burst].
With Au as the centre, flame burst out of the ground trying to incinerate everything that is within a five-metre radius of her. Rox immediately stepped back to avoid the flames.
"I see, the [Flame Burst] skill is quite suitable for your fighting style. You are not fast but close combat types can not get close to you and you can keep attacking them from afar. However, I can stay afar and attack you with fireballs as well. Water will be more effective but I am going to use your skills to defeat you."
Rox charged ten [Flame Balls] at Au and fired. Au activated her [Flame Magic Boost] skill and charged ten [Flame Balls] to intercept the ones charging at her. Her flame balls consumed Rox's and went on to attack Rox.
Rox did his best to dodge as many as he could and deployed a magic barrier on his hands to block the ones he couldn't.
Au was in awe because being able to deploy [Magic Barrier ] only on specific parts of your body was beyond impressive. It was legendary. [Magic Barrier] is mostly deployed in an arc or spherical manner to block attacks.
Rox countered by firing a [Fire Lance] which is faster than a [Flame Ball] at Au. Au hurriedly deployed a [Magic Barrier] in front of her to block the attack. Her magic barrier was shattered and although she tried to dodge the lance hit her shoulder. Because of her [Heat Resistance] and [Flame Resistance] and the fact that the lance's power was reduced she didn't get burnt but, before she realized it, Rox was already behind her pointing a [Fire Lance] at her.
Au gracefully surrendered bringing an end to their duel.
"You did great, Au.".
"I was pitiful my Lord. I couldn't even touch you although you have weakened yourself."
"You almost forced me to use a skill that will boost my speed when you nullified my flame bullets. I've seen many people fight and I've done my best to absorb their fighting style into my own so you shouldn't pity yourself." The people and fighting styles Rox talked about are those he saw on television on Earth and currently, those he has seen on his terminal.
"Thank you, My Lord for the duel."
After the duel, Rox's subordinates congratulated him on his win and showered him with praises.
*******
After Rox was done sparring with Au, he rested for a short while and invited Epei.
Epei is nineteen Big Cycles old which is approximately twenty-five years old on Earth. He is six foot one inch tall having a well-defined muscular build. His hair is green and his face is but ordinary. Compared to Au, his red skin has a darker hue to it.
His plain green eyes don't do much to enhance his handsomeness, making him an average-looking man.
Epei was born into an ordinary commoners' household. He was stronger than average as a child and he got recruited into the army at ten Big Cycles old. From there, he kept on growing in strength and became a squad captain at sixteen Big Cycles old. He was recently recruited into the First Noble's special corps and his first mission ended in failure when he met his new master.
*******
Rox appraised him to check his power before they started the duel.
His stats were;
Name: Epei.
Race: Lower Divine Xerxi.
Level: 18.
Health Points(HP) = 128434.
Mana Points (MP) = 24260.
Strength (ST) = 12843.
Speed (S) = 214.1.
Durability (D) = 3101.
Stamina (E) = 33773.
Skills: [Intermediate Blade Arts], [Intermediate Swordsmanship], [Intermediate Physical Reinforcement], [Area awareness], [Basic Swift Parry].
Resistances: [Basic Magic Attack Resistance], [Basic Physical Attack Resistance], [Intermediate Fear Resistance] and [Basic Intimidation Resistance].
Titles:[Rox's Subordinate].
Compared with his previous stats as a Tier One system user;
Name: Epei.
Race: Xerxi.
Level: 18.
Health Points(HP) = 51374.
Mana Points (MP) = 9704.
Strength (ST) = 5137.
Speed (S) = 85.6.
Durability (D) = 1237.
Stamina (E) = 13509.
...His stats have more than doubled.
"My stats are the same as they were when I fought Au and I will fight you using skills similar to the ones you have. Fight with all you've got and you may win." Rox stretched his right hand to his side and his second dummy sword appeared in his hand.
They started by issuing basic attacks. As they continued their back and forth it was evident that Rox was slower but his [Swift Parry] skill helped him block Epei's attacks.
When Rox realized they were going nowhere, he activated his [Intermediate Speed Boost] skill effectively turning the tides. He could have used [Wind Haste] but that would have been overkill.
Epei also activated his [Speed Boost] and [Physical Reinforcement] and started overwhelming Rox once more. Rox also activated his [Physical Reinforcement] to fight back. The playing field was even. Rox dealt heavier blows while Epei used fast attacks.
Then, Rox made a clean strike from above. Epei blocked it but for some seconds they were stuck pushing against each other. Epei was being pushed down but he made use of his extra legs kicking Rox from the side.
Then, " [Blade Arts; Sword Slash]" he attacked the already out-of-balance Rox with a projected slash attack which Rox barely dodged by rolling on the ground.
"Thanks for your lesson. With how much I was pushing you down, a two-legged individual like me wouldn't have been able to lift a leg but you used the advantage your race has against two-legged individuals like me against me." Rox acknowledged that he overlooked the fact that the Xerxi have four legs.
"Thank you for your compliment, Sir! [Blade Arts: Multiple Slash Attacks]"
"[Blade Arts: Multiple Slash Attacks] You are welcome." Both of them unleashed multiple slash attacks against each other canceling some and those that were not cancelled were either blocked or dodged by the other. The stray attacks went into the forest and marked the trees.
Rox realized Epei had started breathing heavily and decided to end the match. "[Blade Arts: Heavy Slash]"
Epei realized the power behind the attack coming his way and activated all the skills he could use to defend against the attack to block the attack.
Upon impact, Epei was thrown back and he crushed into a tree tired and weak.
"Epei, you are an excellent fighter but my skills are more efficient than yours and I have more mana and stamina than you. You shouldn't have tried to keep up with my skill usage. You should have only used your [Speed Boost] skill when I am close and attacking. That's what I would have done against someone superior." Rox went close and started healing Epei using [Aqua Heal] a skill he got from Eu.