"You want me to hunt the what!?" Vincent exclaimed. Zar-Rhah for his part winced and picked one of his ears. He grumbled, flicking away imaginary earwax. "I want you to hunt the Fang of f-" Vincent cut him off before he could repeat his request, "I know what it is. I've met the bastard. Twice. My question is why?" He asked aggressively.
At this the man seemed bemused if anything. "Oh so you've met the beast and survived the encounter, have you? And.. Not that it's any of your business… but to answer your question, I need it's heart for the king." Vincent snorted. "You're going to try and become king?" He asked in disbelief.
Zar-Rhah did not seem amused by this either. "Idiot boy. I am not fighting myself.. I wish to help another. You see.. the Fang's heart is a powerful catalyst. A new Fang only appears once every 5 years so the heart of the beast is the rarest ingredient in the country. With it.. I can craft a weapon for the only Orc I believe worthy to be king.." The old man said cryptically.
"So you're going to sponsor someone else to get in good with the king huh? Not bad. How many can participate in this 'ascension' at once?" The young man asked. Zar-Rhah merely shrugged. "As many as are willing to die.. but most know their place. Most know.. they stand no chance." It could have been Vincent's imagination but he was sure the old man glanced briefly at gildarts while saying that last part..
"So it's a fight to the death then?" Vincent asked. Zar-Rhah shook his head in denial. "Not at its core no, but.. when mighty Orc's fight their hardest.. casualties are inevitable." Vincent nodded in understanding so the Orc continued. "So do you accept the test or not?"
Vincent for his part didn't really feel like he had much of a choice in the matter. Learning from a master swordsman would be invaluable. As an added bonus it was one who could teach him a whole other branch from which to grow more powerful.. This was exactly what he needed to finally become more than just potential dinner for the various creatures of the jungle. "I accept." The blue eyed man said curtly.
Gildarts and Zar-Rhah waited for the boy to leave and be well away from the cave before Zar-Rhah spoke. "You know what you ask of me when you besiege me to take him on as a student." The aged Orc glared. Gildarts nodded slowly. "I know. I am sorry. But.. I believe he could be the one.." He said quietly while continuing to stare at the spot where Vincent had exited from. Zar-Rhah's eyes widened but he said nothing as he too stared off in the direction the human had departed.
The two orcs eventually made their way out of the cave whereupon they saw Vincent lazily catching fish with his telekinesis. 'This boy.. is going to be the laziest fucking brat I have ever trained.' Zar-Rhah sighed internally. Still.. The lazy ones often possessed the most ingenuity and were incredibly efficient in their methods, due to wanting to get things done as quickly and easily as possible.
After planning their next few days in advance Gildart and Vincent bid their farewells. The two made quite an odd looking pair, the towering Gildarts lumbering along and the unruly looking human trotting beside him. Surprisingly it was Gildarts who broke the silence first.
"I cannot help you with this hunt." He said simply, switching his weapon to the other side. Vincent nodded. "I get it this is something I must do on my own blah, blah, blah." But Gildarts shook his head.
"No. You misunderstand. I too will be hunting the Fang.. I need its heart for my own purpose, you may recall.. And I suspect many others will be too. So from now until the end of this hunt we shall not be allies, but rivals. I refuse to see you as an equal so I will not fight you or intentionally obstruct your efforts but know this.. I do not intend to let you take the Fang before I."
Vincent laughed out loud, excited at the prospective challenge presented by the Orc beside him. He grinned up at the green skinned man. "Alright then big guy, you're on! I'm not even sure how many months of training it's going to take before I'm strong enough to even survive an encounter with that thing but I suspect you still need to train your agility up to snuff too so I've got time."
Gildarts sighed. "I.. should not be telling you this.. but I like you. You remind me of myself from my younger days. You are human but your heart is Orc. I hope you survive and grow stronger so that you may stand among our people." Gildarts had stopped and turned to Vincent as he spoke. Then he began to walk in the opposite direction of where he knew the blue eyed man was going to go.
Vincent watched him with a small twinge of pride and joy at the Orc's acknowledged comradery with the man. "I shall require approximately one year and six months to reach level 50.. after that.. I will kill the Fang. May the best man win. And when I do we'll celebrate with drink!" The Orc laughed over his back.
After he had gone Vincent chuckled. He stood stock still for several moments simply taking in the sights, sounds and smells of the wooded area around him. It was different from the jungle. The jungle was vibrant and beautiful in many areas but also dark, heavy and deadly in just as many others. creatures lurked in all corners of the wilderness there.
Here in the jade forest he now found himself, it was quiet and peaceful. It was dark but not overly so. More like a pleasant shade. He sighed. He knew he would need to train harshly for the next dozen months or so if he wished to stand any chance of completing the daunting task that was demanded of him. His best bet would be to go back to the jungle where the most powerful of beasts lurked.. but first.. it was time to test a theory of his.
He had been using his dash like a mad man every chance he got, focusing on the fundamentals of the technique. Each time he used it, it was like for a mere split second the world faded and warped into a long black/purple tunnel connecting two points. Within that tunnel, time didn't move. It was like another realm, or a wormhole or something. Vincent was always pulled involuntarily toward his intended destination. He couldn't slow down or speed up how long he was in the other realm for. He just surrendered every time.
But each time he couldn't help but notice.. within that realm, energy flowed in reverse. In doing so, it seemed to counterbalance the system constructs somehow creating a sort of incorporeal tunnel. To Vincent's careful eye it was a stark reminder of his System Interference's Anti-energy properties. After months and months of studying and using the technique…
Congratulations! Your skill: improved Dash (Epic) has increased to 50!
New trial available! Warning! Multiple previous trials available! It would be wise to use your trials to grow stronger! Trials and potential rewards may be lost if you wait too long!
He chose to ignore most of the ever growing list. The fact that the longer he ignored his trials the more and more insistent the system became only further cemented in his mind that he was absolutely doing the right thing. Honestly the system could tell him not to jump off a bridge and he would find one to jump right off of out of sheer spite.
He combed through his list and focused specifically on his trials for improved Dash. It was one ability he had a specific plan for. He needed it to grow and evolve and in order not to acquire too much infamousy too early he decided to do it the system's predetermined way. The last thing he needed was bounty hunters coming after his ass for being labeled as an interference to the system.
Trial(s) available:
Acute dynamic movement lvl 25
Multi-Dash lvl 50
He thought about doing the easier trial first. His finger hovered over the letters but he hesitated before reconsidering. The whole point in this little experiment was to see what, if anything, would happen if he skipped trials altogether.. Would he lose the benefits, gain more, or would it just allow him to do the trials out of order for the same rewards?
If he were being honest with himself he was exceedingly nervous. He really hoped the system didn't freak out and try to delete him again for diverging even this much. That had been more painful than anything he had ever felt in his life. He had never really been scared of a lot of things. Heights and clowns maybe. Living with crippling anxiety and depression in the old world was weird that way. It numbed you to a lot of things.
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It was like your brain was constantly overloaded by uncontrollable thoughts and emotions and often for absolutely no reason. With conditions like mental illness the intrusive thoughts and feelings happened often enough that whenever something tragic or painful happened in reality, you took it in stride like it was just another shitty day. Because really that's all it was. And physical pain? Heh, he was no stranger to that either.
At its core, pain told you that you were still alive. It kept you cautious. It's not like anyone particularly enjoyed being in pain (unless they are mentally unstable) but individuals could learn to harness it so that it could give you an edge in staying alive and avoiding danger. A therapist would call his theory delusional dissociation. Vincent called it evolution.
In spite of his line of thinking, the kind of pain he felt in his mind, body and soul when the system decided to eradicate him put true fear into him. He never wanted to feel that again. He knew he couldn't handle it. Couldn't numb it or ignore it. With a shudder he raised his shaky hand, trembling from anxiety as he pressed 'Multi-Dash.'
Trial initiated!
Synchronization detected!
Recalculating..
Error.. due to unusual circumstances and unexpected values unknown changes to the trial have occured
Acute dynamic movement + Multi-Dash..+ Sneakskillvalue#
Congratulations! New trial created!
Commencing.. Trial of the one who moves in the shadows...
Vincent raised an eyebrow at the unusual flow of information but a second later he felt the familiar sensation of the world falling away. The space around him slowly bled into a purple, almost maroon hue with black spider webs spreading all throughout. He waited several seconds for the world to come back into view when it began to dawn on him this may be the world.
He was pretty sure physical sensation was returning to his body.. he was floating, suspended in the void. He waved his arms and legs which seemed to respond fine but he couldn't tell what way was up and what was down, everything looked the same. It was all very disorienting.
Suddenly what he thought may have been above him, a dark purple figure condensed. This figure was several shades darker than the environment around him and closer to a lilac or amethyst in color. Thick, stringy shadows seemed to drift off his studded leather armor. At least that's what it looked like. It was hard to tell when everything was different shades of purple.
The figure pulled out two green daggers that contrasted sharply with the figure holding them. It's eyes flashed red and in the next second it seemed to teleport from his view. He yelped and summoned his shield just in time to block an attack in the shape of an X. The figure seemed to float backwards at insane speeds, as if he flew. The shadow around him thickened as he moved concealing his movements and his energy flow became impossible to track in the surrounding environment.
Vincent realized the creature wasn't teleporting exactly but with its weird movements and the visual obstacles created by its skill it may well have been. It would disappear and reappear at random taking swipe after deadly swipe at Vincent. The phantom seemed to get closer and closer with every strike.
He tried to single himself and take a swipe at the phantom but it easily gilded around his attack and struck him in the back "gah!" He yelled, blood spurting, suspended through the weightless air. As the phantom came back around for a follow up strike, he swung around and tried to do a sort of shield bash.
Unfortunately he couldn't muster any real force and it did little more than deflect the attacker who shadow stepped away to begin his assault anew.
This wasn't working.. he had to do something. And of course naturally the damn system wouldn't let him use his own dash. He used telekinesis to angle himself as best as possible to counter his opponents blows, but it was hard while deflecting unending dagger strikes. This opponent wasn't weak to boot. He almost wondered if trials didn't scale stats somewhat.
He couldn't manipulate the energy of this place but he could still manipulate his own energy. Each time he was impacted it raised his momentum slightly. His absolute timing and aerodynamics were hard at work. With each impact he noticed what was akin to a swirl pattern deepening within the energy. He let it build and build until the energy within him became difficult to control and resembled a vortex.
The next time he was struck, he snapped his arm up in a counter, using the butt of his sword to smack the creature in the forehead, sending it careening away. All of the built up momentum from the attacks his shield had sustained was transferred to his arm in an instant. He couldn't see the result but he only hoped it bought him a few seconds to breathe. He didn't expect for the system to ding a second later and reward him so heavily for his efforts…
Pilfered kinetic force (Epic) achieved!
Pilfered kinetic force (Epic) Allows the user to absorb and store some of the kinetic force of an opponent's attack. Also partially reduces damage received. This skill is most effective with a sword and shield. Due to the 'Epic' rarity gain a large boost in kinetic force stolen per level. Agility gives a moderate boost to this skill.
Impact reduction (Epic) achieved!
Impact reduction (Epic) grants greatly increased poise allowing the user to withstand heavier blows without flinching. Due to the Epic rarity gain a large boost to poise per skill level. Strength and endurance grant a considerable boost to this skill.
"Oh yeah. Your ass is mine." He grinned. The being looked like it had a chunk of its head caved in but if it was in any sort of pain it did a damn good job of hiding it. It shifted its stance and charged again, resuming the last course of attacks. It hit his shield with two quick strikes.. dashed away.. came from the opposite side.. two quick strikes.. 'Is this stupid thing just going to keep attacking me and running away..?'
Vincent tried to repeat the process again, charging energy much quicker this time, but the damn creature was nimble and even though he had been blocking nearly all of the attacks, the damage was accumulating.
Getting frustrated Vincent roared and swung his sword ina. Sideways arc at the creature. It twisted out of the way of his counter with what Vincent had to admit was downright impressive reflexes. Apparently it had learned from their previous exchange. A trial enemy that could learn might be difficult. He needed to end this.
He began blocking once more, storing momentum within his body. He could almost faintly see it as it grew, a ball of chaotic energy within him, this time much more contained. Using the foundations of Aerodynamics and Telekinesis he began to merge the energy flows of the two skills with the ball of growing momentum within him.
The two energies of wind and mental prowess swirled around the ball in a tight circular pattern. A sharp tearing pain began to claw its way through him from the inside but he couldn't focus on that right now as he was still blocking attacks and trying not to lose control of the rapidly accelerating storm of energies.
In a metaphysical way he could feel his grip slipping. It was like slowly losing control of a heavy object only this object might rip him apart from the inside out. He was pretty sure he was completely screwed when..
Congratulations! Maelstrom Whirlwind (Rare) achieved!
Maelstrom whirlwind (Rare) Extremely rare variation of two or more skills. User manipulates the force of the elements primarily air, to create a whirlpool of kinetic force that has both offensive and defensive capabilities. Skill works in unison with the amount of Kinetic energy the user has gathered. Due to the 'Rare' rarity gain a small boost in how quickly you accumulate energy per level.
Using his plethora of skills he rapidly built up both hsi potential and stored kinetic energy. He used Telekinesis, Aerodynamics, Pilfered kinetic force and Maelstrom whirlwind in unison to move around and launch himself forward. Before he had no way to do anything but wait for the enemy to come to him in this metaphysical plane of existence, leaving him no way to exert any real manner of force.
He wondered how exactly anyone who didn't possess his ridiculous ability to evolve and adapt could even complete this challenge but then again mixing the difficulty of two trials together was probably meant to be a damning idea from the start.
The creature reared back its blades and dashed at several times at him, gaining speed with each dash. At this point Vincent was more or less flying as he activated his unyielding strike and the two meant with a thunderous crash…
Congratulations! Skill: Shadow Step (Epic) achieved!
Shadow step (Epic) An evolved form of Improved Dash! Only obtainable by someone who has mastered the art of stealth, and the element of darkness to achieve maximum survivability! Become one with the shadows to disappear and reappear in a wide vicinity. Due to the 'Epic' rarity gain a large bonus to Range per level. Gain a moderate reduction in mana consumption per level. (Active skill) (consumes 500 mana)
As the world came back into view Vincent breathed in deeply. That was.. a pain in the ass but it was fruitful. This proved that putting off trials until there were later stages available would result in a much harder test with much better rewards.. hell apparently even different techniques all together could potentially be minced in if they were high enough level. His sneak skill had just hit level 50 the day before and properties of it had been mixed in with this level 50+ trial somehow.
This trial had been particularly difficult for him. He hated being in situations where he couldn't control his body movements. It was a down right phobia. Tight spaces or if his air flow is cut off for example really drove his anxiety through the roof. He had two massive gashes across his chest, and several across his arms and legs. He wasn't worried, he pulled out some food and drink and was good as new within minutes.
Roughly fifty feet ahead of him was the large cliff side on top of which lay the jungle. Vincent used the shadow step several times in quick succession. It somehow felt much smoother than his improved Dash. He felt as if was gliding through the matter that occupied the space around him with little to no resistance at all. Visually it was largely unchanged but he definitely felt like he remained in the tunnel like 'void' a few moments longer than before.
His skill spit him out at the tree line that composed the rear end of the jungle. He noticed when shadows were around his ability seemed to activate and deactivate just a hair quicker. True to its namesake it would seem…
He began his long trek back to the cave, testing out his new abilities as he went.
The journey back was far faster than the journey away as he tested his new abilities. He couldn't believe how much faster he had become with just the few new additions he'd acquired. He was easily able to manipulate three times the amount of energy he could before both in density and quantity, propelling himself through the air at speeds nearing two hundred feet per second.
If he were relying on his own inadequate perception he was positive he would have a horrendous case of tunnel vision. There's no way he'd be able to comprehend nor control his forward momentum. As it was his lucky break, absolute timing, advanced tracking and sixth sense all worked in unison to keep him from becoming a pancake. He would need to address that issue.. and soon.
In record breaking time he was able to make it back to his sanctuary, breaking through the threshold of the jungle with an army of birds chasing him. He had made sure to make as much noise as possible when traversing their territories specifically in order to test his new limits. He had made it back without a single scratch. Needless to say he was satisfied.
As he entered the safety of his cavern he sighed, rubbing his head. He needed a nap. He began to take off his equipment letting it drop unimpeded as he shuffled through the cave. As he rounded the large stone pillar he saw his companion happily waiting for him. Upon seeing him the thing began to jump for joy pumping it's arms to and fro.
It fixed him with a lopsided grin and then a determined glare. It slid into a stance as it motioned for a sword and shield. Vincent couldn't help but chuckle despite his exhaustion. "Oh yeah? You wanna test out our new abilities too huh buddy?" He sighed once more as he seemed to be doing a lot these days.
He transferred his sword and shield to his companion pulling out a much weaker back up pair of his own. He slid into a stance mirroring his companion and grinned himself. "Alright. But i'm tired so lets not waste any time. Here I come!" With that he shadow stepped forward.
Chapter 17 end.