VOLUME 1
- CHAPTER 33 -
SEVENTH SHADOW COMMANDER
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Lelitt:- - - - “It almost got me, poor thing.”
The short girl in the white cloak caress the laying birthrill’s back.
Lelitt:- - - - “Even though he tried so hard to aim at me, he missed at the very last moment. What a shame, really.”
I feel the world at the corners of my eyes twist, my entire body sore, it’s like a truck just ran over me.
[1783/3710] my health bar flickers at the corner of my eyes.
Tasah: - - “AAAAH! S-Strider!? W-What do we do? What do we do?”
The sheepkin crawl away from the soldiers surrounding us, and Apaw lay unconscious on the opposite edge.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Fuck…”
I try to get up, using my right hand to push the grass floor over my shoulder, but my strength fails.
Just above my focus, a pair of bare yellow-sand feet halt at my side. I weakly raise my chin to see a deformed person, no, at the approaching demon, a rugged fat face with small tusks coming out from his lower jaw, dark-green tough eyes, brown helmet and armor, a thick metal collar at its neck, and a rusty great axe in his dirty hands.
The demon lifts his weapon, glaring down at me with hidden anger; points a silver sharp sting at its base to my head; and then—
Adiana:- - “Don’t.”
Her voice instantly stops the Orc’s attack, making it turn to silently ask for a reason.
Adiana:- - “After all, he came a long way to see me… we should be better hosts, shouldn’t we?”
The tall demon steps back, releasing one hand off his great axe and going back to a guarding position in the background.
From her makeshift throne, the horned pinkish woman stands up and walks forward, stepping over my chest and reaching the ground.
Adiana:- - “Ahh~ Why rain comes at the best moments? It’ll ruin my hair…”
She sighs one more time looking at the cloudy sky.
Adiana:- - “It doesn’t matter, not when a Hero is visiting. Isn’t that right?”
I turn to face her chaotic red eyes staring at me.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “What… you…”
Adiana:- - “But this isn’t good at all… What is this? You’re not the great hero I was being promised of. Lellit!? Why is he so weak?”
The white hooded short girl sighs from the side, standing up straight and walking lazily around.
Lelitt:- - - - “Unfortunately… the strong hero I talked of is missing, he probably ran west about two days ago. Master Eraet will take care of him, I’m sure.”
Adiana:- - “Eraet--!? Even without her presence, she steals my glory. Gahh~ What a pain. I was hoping for a warmup, gain some reputation, you know. Anything. Why I am the one taking the most pitiful missions? I should be way more important to the Shadow Army.”
Adiana snaps her finger and a hexagonal cyan energy shield appears over her head, evaporating the raindrops before reaching her.
Adiana:- - “Well.. well… At least it isn’t all that useless, I need to admit. I have a new toy now.”
She smiles at me and kicks my ribs right after, my body is pushed against the wooden platform, and I instinctively go to a fetal position to protect my belly as I face the ground.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Dammit! What the fuck--.”
Adiana:- - “You’ll be mine from today forward. Do you understand?”
She straightens her posture with a sigh.
Adiana:- - “Don’t you worry, because you’re quite a cutie, I’ll take very good care of you. I’ll spoon-feed you, walk you around, play a little, and toss a branch for you to catch and bring it back. You know, things a good master does.” – She opens a malicious grin and her eyes shine red brighter. – “Then, when you get strong enough, you can serve me as a foot rester for the rest of your life and purr when I stroke your head. So… what do you think? I’m sure it’ll be better than dying here, right? All you need to do is put on a collar and be by the side of someone as magnificent as me. What do you have to lose?”
She genuinely waited, curious as to how I would respond.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Hah-…”
From deep within me, a chuckle builds up, overcoming the pain of my throbbing body.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Hahaha…”
I can’t help it, the urge to laugh only becomes greater by the second. My body is possessed by a strength I didn’t know I had in me, the anxiety fueling me to laugh even harder, even longer, even madder.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Hahahhahahhahahahahahahahahaahahhahhahahahaahahhahahaahaaahaahhaaaahaaaaaaaaa!”
My lungs empties as my eyes pierced between the inner space of my upper arm and forearm, intently staring at the demon woman throughout the entire time.
After a long hissing breath-in, I open my smirking mouth.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “…being talked down like that is the first for me. Sorry, it was just too funny. Your deal is tempting but I must refuse. I’m not here to play with you, I’m here to kill you, then erase all your men from this stupid game. A foot rester? Really? Who do you think you are? someone invaluable? An evolved species? A god? I despise people like you. Thinking they’re above everything else and that nothing can hit them. Oh, don’t you worry, I’ll prove how pitiful you are. How someone as weak as me can take you down without much trouble at all.”
The gradually stronger rain falls over the encircling army near the commander’s tent. It was all static: Adiana''s serious face looking at me, Tasah’s fearful wide eyes, the elite Orc guards hiding their building anger, and Lellit with a happy grin on her face.
Adiana:- - “… No one gets in my way. Don’t interrupt my playtime. That goes for you too, Lellit. My new pet needs to learn a few lessons.”
Another couple of seconds of complete silence remains without anyone daring to move a step.
Tasah: - - “S-Strider?? What is the plan?—”
Adiana’s head moves before my dagger show from below my belly. The bullet-fast attack pierces the air in an instant, cutting the side of her cheeks and burning her skin with the passing flames embedded in my blade.
She lifts her hand and grabs the black ribbon tail of my dagger, but it disappears as I teleport.
My second dagger shoots towards her guardless back, only to frizzle in a piercing fight against her hexagonal barrier and fail to go through.
Adiana turns from beyond her almost invisible shield, rain falling over her hair.
I pull my dagger back and swing my other one to her. Her shield quickly moves with the same speed as her eyes shift and blocks my lashing attack.
Adiana:- - “Look at that… my hair is all messed up now.”
She says with sadness, blocking another two-combo attack without much trouble.
Adiana:- - “Someone has a towel?”
My two daggers move simultaneously, one at her forehead and the other to her feet.
She bends down to evade my upper attack and her magic shield frizzles my lower dagger against the ground, but once the blade touches the grass, it explodes, its flames instantly surrounding her protection and reaching her before dying out.
Her health bar doesn’t even flinch.
Adiana:- - “Geez, you want to burn my dress? What a naughty boy.”
A quick flicker of strings turns my upper dagger to strike her from above, cutting through the thin smoke of the evaporated water. Her shield blocks it off without sweat, and fire spreads towards her on impact, stronger than before.
My second dagger comes again from below, like a wave of a traveling whip to change courses and magically propelling itself to her other side. Her shield moves in its way once more, then even a bigger explosion booms near her legs.
I pull my daggers back, tiredly taking time to breathe.
- - - - - - - - - - - - Right… I’m at eighty percent of energy already. I won’t last too many turns, but if I don’t attack this heavily there’s no stopping her. I don’t have much space to maneuver because of these monsters around me. She said for them to not attack, but like hell I’m going to trust that. I need to keep a safe distance from them while I keep on drawing their attention.
- - - - - - - - - - - - This isn’t going to be a long fight, so I don’t need to worry about spending my energy, the real problem begins after she’s dead. We will need to cut away from the soldiers surrounding us and retreat. Without the birthrill, this is going to be very difficult. I’m hoping the villagers can see us from there, our survival depends on the artillery support landing right at us.
- - - - - - - - - - - - It’ll be soon… I hope the rain doesn’t ruin the fireworks.
Adiana:- - “Is that all? Is your tantrum over? Have you seen how powerless you are? You have no chances against me, so why don’t you drop the weapons, lay on the ground, show your belly, and play dead. I’ll give you a good treat for it.”
Adiana’s health bar hovers within the cloud of vaporized raindrops, being somewhere above ninety percent, a four stack of a fire icon effect above it.
I throw my main dagger with everything I’ve got, the blade sizzles in the air on an arc to her head, but before it could land, the magic barrier blocks it as always, and the flames burst out from my frizzling blade into a red curtain surrounding her. Right after, my second dagger comes from below to her left, and the shield moves, pushing the upper dagger with it to protect herself from my second attack.
- - - - - - - - - - -
Adiana:- - It’s like he truly believes he can win. How childish… I thought heroes were better than this. Burning all your mana to prove a point you never had in the first place. Truly childish. Such weak trait needs to be fixed by force.
Her eyes move to reallocate the magic shield, blocking the swinging daggers one by one, the fire spreads to the sides like red rain around her, burning her military-green dress at its unprotected corners. His next attack would be an arc from above and then another below to the side. His play style was too easy to predict. Always going for her blind spots made the job only easier to handle.
But something strikes her odd when going to defend against the attack from below, the vaporized water particles and her magic shield made something like a blurred faded mirror, one which only faintly replicated the colors of the dark-blue sky, but with a shadow in its middle.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
It’s fuzzy and impossible to see what it is, of course, but that was enough for her to shift her attention to it.
He was fighting as if he already knew he would win… The overspending of energy to create blasts of flames… Coming here with two others to attempt killing her… on an invisible flying mount… even though all of them are weak.
Those concurrent ideas flashed in her mind. Experienced as she was in battle, it should be obvious that something was out of place.
Adiana:- - They were expecting to kill me and run away? How?
Only one answer came to mind.
Without second-guessing, she moves the magic shield, unprotecting herself from Strider’s attack and dragging it to the extreme opposite direction; exactly to where that shadow was emerging, all in but a frame of a second.
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- - - - - - - - - - -
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Just like that… the plan failed.
My dagger exploded on the commander’s hip, a direct hit. Adiana’s life dropped ten percent in one go.
But to the other side, an arm flew without its body.
A sword sliced down the steamy air without balance, a blade embedded in dark energy cutting the flying treads of Adiana’s hair, but ultimately missing her neck.
And right above her, Apaw was falling directionless as he tried his best to evade the hexagonal shield, blood splashing from his missing left arm.
- - - - - - - - - - - - My plan was simple. Tasah’s vampire skill increases his attributes the more time he spends with the same enemies, considering our target was a commander, they would be surrounded by an army, so the effects would max out pretty quickly. Then Tasah can use his other skill, one which allows him to share his increased attributes with someone else. Apaw would be the receiver.
- - - - - - - - - - - - While the build-up happened, I would use flaming magic to decrease our target’s resistance, call its attention to buy time, and give Apaw the perfect shot for him to use his critical strike skill, consequently, one-shoting the commander by its neck.
I already used such a tactic before. Get closer without being noticed, surprise the target with debuffs, and a buffed full-out glass cannon finishes it off. In but a couple of seconds the most powerful player would be taken down and we would retreat to normal formation.
It was fairly easy to do, I saw it working many times, but not this time.
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Before Apaw could reach the ground or escape, Adiana grabs him by the neck with veins popping out of her arm as her grip tightens.
The wolfkin tries to lift his sword with his remaining arm, but the strength runs out together with his gushing blood.
Adiana:- - “You little--”
I quickly teleport with my blink and cut her wrist with my enflamed dagger. She releases the wolfkin in surprise and I take him on my back like a potato sack as I activate my speed boots. I rapidly change pace to go away and throw the wolfkin at where I was before teleporting.
Apaw bounces twice as he rolls to a stop.
Before he has the chance to complain, I toss a potion of healing in front of him.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Drink it up, I’ll buy time.”
He grabs it with hesitation.
Apaw:- -- - “But, the plan…”
I nod affirmatively.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “It failed.”
Apaw’s eyes fill with guilt.
Apaw: - - “… I’m sorry…”
- - - - - - - - - - - - “We can still fight. Tasah still has the shield and his other skill is still going. Just like before, same plan. I’ll figure things out.”
My hands tremble from the uneasiness as I grip the daggers tighter.
- - - - - - - - - - - - That’s right. I just need to buy enough time for Apaw’s skill to cooldown, and try again. </a>I still have fifty percent of energy left, that’s plenty. One hundred and twenty seconds, that’s all it takes for our second strike, this time around I’ll make sure she won’t survive.
I turn my face to the side to scream.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Tasah! Shield yourself, don’t release it until I tell you to!”
The sheepkin scares on hearing his name, but he nods understanding my order, and quickly lifts a small yellow barrier around him.
- - - - - - - - - - - - No matter what, these two need to stay alive. If one dies, we all are done for. I need to play my steps perfectly now, draw her away until the time is right. If everyone does their part we can still win this.
I face Adiana standing on the other side of the encirclement, her hexagonal shield hovering above to protect herself from the pouring rain.
[Adiana Bigrand {HP: ~75%}]
Adiana:- - “That was surprisingly smart.”
Adiana looks genuinely impressed from the other side of the rainfall as she walks forward.
Adiana:- - “Without a second thought, you blinked to free your friend when you saw the opening. You even used Speed Boots with Area Effect to buff yourself and decrease his weight with it, even though you spend more mana, you optimize your speed. Clever, that’s something that not even I would consider. But… I would never try to save anyone, to begin with, so it makes sense that I would never think of that.”
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Well... that’s experience for you.” – I shout to be louder than the rain. – “I have way more tricks on my sleeve than that though.”
Adiana:- - “Is that so? But I know your sleeve isn’t big enough to hold many secrets. Heroes can only use six abilities at a time, right? And you can only change your skillset when you’re not in combat. I, on the other hand, don’t have that limit.”
I frown confused.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Huh? How do you know that?”
Adiana:- - “Oh? Now you are interested?... Hmmm, because you’re so weak, I will give you this for free, so listen well.” – She coughs to clear her throat and pose straight with a building smirk. – “I can copy any skills I want, no rules attached. Naturally, I can see how all of them work, otherwise, how would I copy them, right? There’s no hiding from my eyes.”
She points to her chaotic red irises.
Adiana:- - “Ah, and I also can change them in the middle of combat.”
- - - - - - - - - - - - “What the hell… Something like that exists?”
- - - - - - - - - - - - It looks too overpowered for the devs I know of.
Adiana:- - “Of course it does, it’s called a Blessing, but enough of that. I hate foreplay, you know. Why don’t we get a little bit more practical?”
Blue magic wraps her feet, then with a step forward, her back is pushed by the wind into a leap. Blood leaves from her right hand, solidifies into a small sword, and it’s stricken down with black energy wrapped on her blade, the same amplification skill Apaw just used.
If it wasn’t for the distance, I wouldn’t be able to respond to her incredibly fast reach. The dark magic extends itself to cut the grass floor where I was, before I jumped back, evading it by a hair.
Her semitransparent shield comes from below in a diagonal slash, almost separating my legs from my torso, but passing through cutting the air at extreme speed.
Adiana:- - “Don’t worry.” – she says while striking twice with her sword. – “I won’t kill you.”
Her shield comes from above, like a satellite revolving around her, luckily, it stops just a few inches from decapitating me.
Adiana:- - “I’ll just immobilize you.”
The shield orbits her in a full spin to strike from below, aiming for my legs once more, but I’m fast enough to step out of it with the activation of my own speed boots while black smoke bursts from within my cloak.
Only the yellow silhouettes appear in my vision, being hard to see what lines are the men encircling us or Adiana’s quick attacks.
No matter how much I jump back and burst my enflaming blades against her, she keeps advancing relentlessly at me and cutting the black smoke with her bloody sword, attempting to slash my legs and arms.
- - - - - - - - - - - - So that’s how I look like with speed boots? So damn annoying.
My daggers fly from my hand to protect two strikes from reaching my chest. The wind supports me to evade two more combo hits.
[Trickery Parry skill used, 9s of cooldown]
- - - - - - - - - - - - I can’t be hit, or it’s all over.
[Health: 1958/3710]
- - - - - - - - - - - - Just ten more seconds.
Her attacks slice through making gaps in the smoke cloud, showing her mad smiling face briefly before I retreat back inside the darkness. My back hits something, and I have just a frame of a second to realize it’s the wooden commander’s tent. I see the yellow silhouette of something coming at my face at a quick pace, I bend down just as the dark smoke disperses, and a red blade pierces the thin wood wall, showing Adiana coming forth with wide eyes.
I step away before she unstucks her sword.
[Area effect ready]
[Invisibility ready]
[Speed boots twenty seconds of cooldown]
[Normal Blink ready]
- - - - - - - - - - - - There.
The world warps away from another coming slash and I exit the smoke cloud as I step back, my speed boots fading from my feet.
Adiana:- - “Where do you think you’re going?”
With heavy steps, she jumps out of the smoke with a mad grin on her face.
Her red blade slashes my chest open, my blood mingling in an instant with the solidified blood of her weapon and transferring to heal her.
[1###/3710]
[###/3710]
[658/3710]
Smoke comes out of my wound, of my passive skill nullifying half of the fatal damage.
I trip and fall on my back, turning my body invisible as my last resort.
Adiana:- - “Stop running!”
She slices the ground, missing my feet by an inch.
- - - - - - - - - - - - That’s it, you just missed your last chance to kill me.
I extend both my hands to aim, and my dagger shoots forward. My weapon only turns back visible after its guard presses against her skin and the entire blade pierce her forehead. Flames burst in an explosion inside her pushed-back skull.
The invisibility is lifted from my body, showing myself on the ground in front of her and my hands holding the extended cloth tail going all the way over to her head. After a full second without her moving, the hexagonal shield slides down to cut the dagger’s ribbon as she goes to grab its handle.
Adiana:- - “You seriously think you can win!?”
She grips its handle and tries to force it out, her anger building up on her wrinkling face until she manages to pull it off with her splashing blood.
Adiana:- - “Congratulations!! My health is at half, now my second phase begins!” – Her health bar shows ten fire stacks above.
She breathes heavily, looking down at me with her bloodshot eyes and her closing wound bleeding over her nose.
Adiana:- - “Now… playtime is over.”
I smirk.
- - - - - - - - - - - - “Oh, it is.”
Her eyes follow mine, just behind her head, a semitransparent wolfkin strikes his sword with only one hand, dread black energy surrounding its swift blade.
The shield moves faster than ever. It passes through on her back, missing Apaw’s extended side attack and his body. It was too late.
Adiana sees herself flying away as her head is separated from her body in one smooth cut.
- - - - - - - - - - -
Adiana:- - Uh? What?
She looks at the extended blade made of dark magic disappearing right in front of her headless body, and the wolfkin fading back from invisibility and falling to the ground at her side.
Adiana:- - How?-? He doesn’t have any sort of invisibility skill, how did he--?
Her eyes widen as the world loses its life in slow motion.
Adiana:- - That damn Hero used Skill Resonance, he… he… But why? Why? I never told him I had Spiritual Vision, I never told him I had vision over the entire battlefield from above. When he took out my eyes, I thought… I thought he would take the opening and strike me himself. But it was all for his friend to attack?? Why would he take my physical eyes and make the other invisible? It doesn’t make any sense. He can’t know I had other ways to see them. Did he guess it just by his first failed attempt?
Her head bumps on the grass floor and stops faced to her body, her eyes hopelessly observing it tumble on its knees and fall to the ground.
Adiana:- - No, he just improvised… did whatever he felt like it and won. He evaded my attacks by a hair and wagered that his friend would help him in the nick of time. That’s luck. Pure luck. He’s just too damn lucky. There’s no way that was his experience, he shouldn’t be able to do all of this only by playing the game. He wasn’t following any plans, he wasn’t…
Her weak eyes stare at Strider getting up as everything fades to black.
Adiana:- - …how did I let someone like that kill me?
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