Scared shitless, Michael downed a potion and cautiously retreated. Seeing his Life points only regenerating back to 180, he almost smashed the glass vial onto the ground in anger.
Retreating even further, he kept his distance from the Boss and healed back up to full health in a matter of minutes.
"That was terrifying. The fuck was that damage!? But now that I was hit with it once, it won't happen again. I can just use Bone Storm or Blood Mist to avoid damage. I just need to pay more attention and, if possible, destroy the wooden walls as soon as he summons them."
Plans differ from reality, though, and Michael found himself forced to activate Bone Storm when the Boss ridiculously summoned over 20 Skeletal Archers all across the room.
Unable to gather them together through Corpse Tendrils due to their distance and continuous movement, he had to use Bone Storm to block some of the projectiles coming at him as the Boss sat back and watched.
Then, the problems kept popping up, with more walls and minions he had to deal with. He found himself unable to damage the Boss over the course of almost 15 minutes when he came to a terrifying realization.
"The Boss is controlling the movement of the Archers. Fuck! What sort of bullshit is this!? If that won't work, I must deal with you directly!"
Seeing Michael ignore the ranged attacks from its minions and just madly attack him, the Boss used his party-wipe skill again.
Just as the young Necromancer wanted to use Blood Mist to escape, he was stunned to notice that the staff movement wasn't right. It wasn't headed toward the floor but instead toward the ceiling.
When the staff tip touched the ceiling, a strange circle of bluish air descended around Michael in less than a second, giving him no time to react.
Worried about the skill's damage, Michael watched his Life points in confusion. A second later, there was no damage. Except for his field of vision being slightly impaired, there was no effect.
"Shit! He's going to smash it! Blood Mist! Huh!? Why is it not working!?"
Once more, he was pierced through by a flurry of wooden splinters, though, this time, he could wave his scythe and batter away a few. Down to 320/670 of his Life points, Michael was the epitome of confusion.
"The skill was obviously off cooldown, so it was usable. A silence skill? That wall of air?"
The more he fought with the Boss, the more scared he became. The Boss was cunning and didn't show all his skills at once, but worst of all, he knew how to combine them to achieve the best effect.
Furthermore, it analyzed Michael's attacking methods and, therefore, controlled his minions to stay as scattered as possible while attacking him from afar.
After a grueling battle that took over an hour, the Boss finally fell, and Michael rushed to kick its body before it disappeared.
"Motherfucker! This has to be the hardest I had to fight ever since my transmigration into the Sanctuary. What kind of bullshit is this!? Helen fought solo for so long and even at higher difficulty!? What sort of monster am I sleeping with!?"
Both proud of his achievement and somewhat worried about spanking her in bed in the future, Michael looked at the ground where the loot was.
A shit-eating grin threatened to split his face.
"That looks fucking Legendary grade to me!"
With both pockets full, he sorrowfully dropped two Magic item boxes on the ground, this time for good. He tried stuffing them into his clothes, but the chest piece he was wearing wouldn't allow that.
Taking a bit of a loss, Michael directly used his quick travel to return to Menestad.
Heading straight for the Blacksmith after asking around, he reached an Inn. Obrusz, the Blacksmith, was in a corner, waving for him to come closer.
[Looks like your business is with me?](Obrusz)
"Yes. I need to salvage some items."
[Show me.](Obrusz)
In the end, Michael salvaged 7 Magic items (including the two in his pockets), earning 7 Rawhides, 3 Superior Leather, and 9 Iron Chunks.
But that's where the trouble started. After opening all the Rare item boxes, he was left with many of them, which he could use as replacements for what he was currently equipped with.
He first 'sold' three axes, which he couldn't use due to Class restrictions. That resulted in 6 Iron Chunks, 2 Silver Ores, and 3 Veiled Crystals.
Then it was the chest armor he replaced, which barely gave him 1 Rawhide. After that, the swords and daggers he didn't like to use resulted in 7 Iron Chunks and 4 Veiled Crystals.
After much consideration, he opened the Legendary item. He also decided to salvage the two shields in his possession, earning him an extra 4 Rawhides, 2 Iron Chunks, 2 Silver Ore, and 1 Veiled Crystal.
[Are you sure? They seem like good items.](Obrusz)
"I'm sure."
[Okay. I can give you 2 Rawhides and 1 Veiled Crystal for it. Since it's a Class-restricted item, any more and I'll take a loss.](Obrusz)
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"That's fine."
The Rare Boots he found were sold off as well. He was left with 5 Rare Wands, 2 Rare Scythes, 2 Rare Rings, and 5 Rare Amulets. Of course, there was another Legendary Shield, which Michael was very conflicted about.
On one hand, it was good for security; on the other, it would lower his damage again.
After some back and forth with some Wanderers who were curious and decided to throw their opinion in the mix, Michael decided to swap his remaining Magic Ring for one of the Rare ones he gained.
[ Sinister Signet
Rare Ring
336 Item Power
-----------------
* +2.3% Resistance to All Elements
* +2.3% Poison Resistance
------------------
* +6.5% Critical Strike Damage
* +10.5% Overpower Damage
* +2.3% Lucky Hit Chance
Empty Slot ]
The drunk Wanderers argued quite a bit, but they all agreed on the need for Poison Resistance and Lucky Hit Chance.
Apparently, the Poison damage was the worst of the worst, and there were Dungeons where all monsters had the modifier. It was best to have items that gave that specific resistance.
As for Lucky Hit Chance, it was needed for both skill procs and item procs. For example, the Cooldown Reduction of his Decrepify was a Lucky Hit effect.
The higher the chance, the higher the probability of his skills being refreshed 1 second faster.
[3 Iron Chunks, 1 Silver Ore, and 1 Veiled Crystal for the Rare Ring and the Magic one. Also, you bastards! Stop crowding around like that! I'm going to suffocate from your nasty stink!](Obrusz)
However, the Wanderers ignored the angry Blacksmith as they observed the remaining items.
[Replace your current scythe with the Distinguished Scale. You said you're not using any Core skills, so the new one is better. Higher damage as well.](?)
"That makes sense. What about the other one?"
[Two-handed. Doesn't fit with your Legendary Focus, does it?](?)
[ Distinguished Scale
Rare Scythe
299 Item Power
-----------------
185 Damage per Second
* [135 - 203] Damage per Hit
* 1.10 Attacks per Second
* +6 Life on Kill
------------------
* +6.5% Basic Skill Damage
* +6.5% Damage to Close Enemies
* +6.5% Damage to Slowed Enemies ]
Realizing that the people around him made sense, Michael agreed it was the best course of action. After all, it was an upgraded version of his previous scythe.
Furthermore, he was glad he did as Helen instructed and asked for their opinion. Veteran Wanderers were always kind to newbies, as they either received lots of help themselves or had to learn things the hard way and wanted to make sure others didn't suffer the same fate.
Getting rid of the two weapons granted him another 3 Iron Chunks, 2 Siver Ores, and 1 Veiled Crystal.
"You guys are right. This Wand is good to keep in case I get into a party in the near future."
[Mhm. It gives good attributes and increases your damage.](?)
The other four Wands were scrapped into 6 Iron Chunks, 1 Silver Ore, and 1 Veiled Crystal.
The Wand that survived was quite tempting, but Michael didn't know how to fight with one. So he decided to wait and check back with the girls. After all, Hella was a Mage.
[ Arcanum Orders
Rare Wand
315 Item Power
-----------------
198 Damage per Second (+13 Damage per Second when compared to the currently equipped item)
* [132 - 198] Damage per Hit
* 1.20 Attacks per Second
* +3.0% Lucky Hit Chance
------------------
* +6 to All Stats
* +16 Intelligence
* +6.0% Damage to Vulnerable Enemies ]
Objectively speaking, the Arcanum Orders was a much better weapon than his scythe. However, he wasn't accustomed to using wands in battle. Therefore, it would be shelved until he got a chance to practice.
After all, meeting a Boss such as the Tomb Lord and fighting him with unfamiliar weapons sounds like a recipe for death.
With only the amulets left to handle, the group immediately decided to scrap the older Bloody Necklace and an amulet focused on defense. That brought an additional 3 Iron Chunks and 1 Veiled Crystal.
[Tsk! This is a pretty tough decision.](?)
[I finally learned the meaning of being spoilt for choice...](?)
[Hmm... in the end, it depends on how the kid fights, right?](?)
[That's right, that's right! Kid, you said you focus on Shadow Damage, right? So, it should be Nobility Favor. It even gives you extra Armor.](?)
[I like the Silent Pendant better. Isn't it more damage overall? Plus, it even has Resource reduction, which is always welcomed.](?)
[The Agent is good as well. That +1 to all Corpse skills would give him the same damage increase, won't it?](?)
He only got his Majesty's Symbol recently, but it looked like it was about to be replaced. After all, the new options were much better overall.
Michael agreed with the Wanderers that it was a tough call to make since they all provided something worth having.
[ Nobility Favor
Rare Amulet
314 Item Power
-----------------
* +5.4% Resistance to All Elements
------------------
* +5.0% Shadow Damage over Time
* +4.0% Total Armor
* +25 Thorns ]
[ Silent Pendant
Rare Amulet
325 Item Power
-----------------
* +5.6% Resistance to All Elements
------------------
* +5.0% Shadow Damage over Time
* +2.2% Damage
* +3.0% Essence Reduction ]
[ The Agent
Rare Amulet
318 Item Power
-----------------
* +5.5% Resistance to All Elements
------------------
* +2.0% Damage Reduction from Close Enemies
* +4.5% Essence Reduction
* +1 Rank to all Corpse Skills ]
After much back and forth, Obrusz finally gave his opinion, and everyone decided on Nobility Favor.
The other three were salvaged, resulting in 4 Iron Chunks and 2 Silver Ores.
With the headache gone, the Wanderer veterans were happy to hear that Michael would pay for their food and drinks, leaving behind 1,000 gold coins after asking the Innkeeper for a rough amount.
Judging from the happy shouts, it was the right call to make, as he refused to join them due to the last ongoing Quest he had to finish.
Seeing the marker on the MAP, he left the city behind.
--------------
[A good kid.](?)
[Mhm. Not everyone takes advice seriously. Some kids were even offended that I offered to help.](?)
[Looks like he'll live longer than the other brats.](?)
[Also, Obrusz, did you give that brat a preferential price? A crappy ring of his was worth more than double what you gave me for a goddam Rare item that was level 70!](?)
[Scram! It's called investing in the future, got it!? Plus, I've seen that kid earlier this morning when he came through the Waypoint.](Obrusz)
[And?](?)
[Based on the total number of items he had on him, he gained everything today. A full inventory.](Obrusz)
[Fuck! How many items did he give you!?](?)
[Almost 30. You should all know what that means.](Obrusz)
[Class Awakening. *Sigh* It's good to be young. Seeing how strong the enemies are, I stopped after the first one. I remember almost dying countless times after my first. This kid probably returned after finishing a Dungeon.](?)
[You're all missing the point... Again.](Obrusz)
[What?](?)
[Didn't he say that it would be good to keep the Wand if he partied with someone in the future?](Obrusz)
[Huh!? SHIT! He's soloing!? Is that kid not afraid of death!? Fuck! Let's go after him and convince him!](?)
[Calm down, you old farts! He's probably walking that path. It's not our turn to interfere.](Obrusz)
Like a spell cast on the Inn, the Wanderers inside all fell silent. Realizing that the Sanctuary was probably grooming the child they met, the food and wine turned tasteless.
They all knew what that meant in terms of difficulty. They also knew what it did to one's mentality. Seeing people die repeatedly does a number on your mental health.
Furthermore, he was embarking on a lonely path that few could tread, shoulder to shoulder with him.
[What's there to be gloomy about!? Just give him more advice when you see him. That brat is strong, and his Class is pretty rare. He would probably attend all your funerals before he dies himself.](Obrusz)
[Fuck! Old man Obrusz, stop cursing us!](?)
The atmosphere in the Inn turned lively once more, but all the people inside were wondering when they'd see the kid again.
In their hearts, they were hoping it'd be soon.