《Entering Apocalypse in Easy-Mode》
Chapter 1 Countdown To Apocalypse
?[ THE EARTH YOU KNOW WILL END IN SIX DAYS ]
A transparent text apanied by a mechanic sound suddenly appeared on the bus.
Clyde, a ssed high school boy widened his eyes. His reaction was almost the same as the people on this bus. They were all confused and terrified.
"What does it mean?!" A man wearing a neat suit shouted.
"What''s this?" A girl asked her boyfriend.
"I don''t know." Her boyfriend said while holding the girl''s hand, trying to calm her down.
All those voices of panic and fear were heard throughout the bus.
Clyde spread his eyes around and swallowed his saliva.
''Shit, what the hell happened?'' Clyde thought to himself.
He had not imagined that this day would actually happen.
Apocalypse scenarios like what he read in online literature.
It was something Clyde often imagined in his spare time.
He spends his time reading apocalyptic novels, watching apocalyptic movies, and ying apocalyptic games.
Clyde liked the scenario where the world would be destroyed. Either by a zombie outbreak, nuclear war, or monsters.
The earth has been very close to apocalyptic scenarios for a long time and imagining what scenarios will happen is just a fun thing to do.
However, Clyde never imagined that the apocalyptic scenario that would ur was something so far from predictable.
A red letter that floated like a notification pop-up window in the game appeared.
Clyde knew that the text was real. Unlike these people who have a hard time believing it.
Because he had read it in a web novel. Something like this is very familiar to him.
After a while, Clyde finally calmed down.
On this bus, he was the only one who can be calm.
Not because he felt he could handle this apocalypse, but because Clyde was ready if he have to die.
His life wasn''t a pleasant one that he wanted to keep it longer.
He was bullied at school because of his difficulty in socializing.
Although Clyde is quite smart, he is just being exploited.
His parents divorced and they already have their own families.
Leaving Clyde to live alone. They only send him money every month.
Clyde had always wondered why they bothered getting married and having children when they ended up throwing him away.
Clyde was always looking for an opportunity to die but he was too scared to kill himself.
Eventually, he immerses himself in video games and web novels to escape reality.
"Why didn''t the bus stop?" asked an old woman in front of him.
Clyde also wondered why the bus didn''t stop.
He had guessed that, maybe that was because the bus driver have also seen the transparent writing in front of him.
Then an idea popped into Clyde''s head.
"Maybe something happen to this bus and its driver," Clyde muttered in a very low voice.
"You think so?"
Clyde turned his head when he heard a voice.
He saw a girl wearing the same uniform as him staring at him.
The girl had straight, shiny ck hair.
Her face is small and cute. Her expression looked troubled making her face look even cuter.
"You talking to me?" asked Clyde.
"Of course!" said the girl.
Clyde stared at the nametag on her chest. Asqa S.
Clyde thought she had heard the name somewhere. Possibly at school. But he didn''t know who this girl was.
"I don''t know," answered Clyde. "Maybe."
"What do you think this is?" the girl named Asqa asked in a panicked voice.
Perhaps subconsciously, she moved closer to Clyde.
"As you can see. The world ising to an end," Clyde said tly.
"Oh, God!" Asqa starts shedding tears. "What should we do?!"
Clyde looked at her dryly. Too bad he met such a beautiful and cute girl in such a situation.
Clyde''s luck had never been good so he couldn''t help but sigh.
At least thest sight he saw before dying was Asqa''s face.
Suddenly, another line of transparent text appeared before Clyde''s eyes.
The text was also red and floated in front of him. Like the interface Window he had seen in video games.
Asqa and everyone on the bus seem to get the same Window. Because they stared ahead with shocked eyes.
Suddenly, a thought appeared in Clyde''s mind.
If there was such an Attribute Window like this, there was a chance that they wouldn''t die right away.
''This looks like a game, or a scenario. Maybe we should y.''
He also read something like this in web novels. A very famous one.
Clyde''s originally pessimistic feelings turned to optimism. If it''s about games or scenarios. Maybe he has a better chance to survive.
The shape of Clyde''s Attribute Window looks pretty simple.
<>
[ Name: Clyde Cross ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 17 ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Exp: 0/100 ]
[ Private Attribute: Easy-Mode yer. ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Inspection (Lv.3), Weapon Mastery (Lv.1) ]
[ Skill point: 0 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (3/10), Stamina (2/10), Agility (3/10), Magic Power (5/10) ]
[ Stat Point: 0 ]
[ Inventory: 1 Gold Starter Pack ]
<<==================>>
"What''s this?" Asqa''s panicked voice woke Clyde who was observing his Attribute Window.
The girl was very confused. It seems she had never seen anything like this at all. So did most of the people on this bus.
Suddenly while everyone was panicking, a screen appeared under the red text.
The screen looked like an LCD screen. However, the absence of a projector made Clyde think that it must have something to do with what was happening right now.
The form of a man with sses appeared on the screen. He smiled greeting everyone like a friendly host.
[ "Good afternoon, Earthlings! Are you ready for the 69,399 editions of the End of Time Game?" ] said the man on the screen.
Clyde listened intently amidst the panic.
When he nced out the bus window, everyone outside the bus was also staring at something in front of their eyes.
''Everyone goes through the same thing.'' thought Clyde.
"Who are you?! what happened?!" asked a man who looked furious.
"Stop this bus!" a young man walked up to the driver, but he immediately backed away when he saw something terrifying.
Clyde guessed that the bus driver got the same thing. Or worse. Maybe he was already dead.
The young man sat back down.
[ "Hahaha. Don''t worry. The bus will stop and the First Chapter will start. I''ll just give you a small guide to make things easier for you." ]
[ "First, you have an Attribute Window that you can check at any time. Inside the Attribute Window is your status in this End Times Game. All yers will start with a Level 1 status." ]
[ "Level 1 is your current state. As the Game progresses, You will get Status Points and Skill Points which you can use to upgrade your power." ]
Clyde stared at his Attribute Window. Surprisingly, he had a Status that was at a Level above 1.
''Everyone except me I guess.''
Something else that caught his attention was his Private Attribute which read "Easy-Mode yer."
Was it because of that choice he made three days ago?
~~~
Chapter 2 The Prolog
?THREE DAYS AGO.
Clyde rubbed his eyes with both hands. When he looked at the corner of his monitor, it was already six in the morning.
Clyde raised his sses and yawned.
"Today it seems I didn''t sleep again."
Just like yesterday, Clyde was ying games until he lost track of time.
He was online from night till morning. He did it all, for one thing, to drive away loneliness.
Clyde hastily showered and put on his uniform. Then he went to school with mixed feelings.
Going to school was not something he was happy to do every day. Clyde is not good at socializing and making friends.
His gloomy appearance also made him shunned.
Clyde was smart. Because of that, the students in his ss would be friendly to Clyde when they needed someone to copy the homework from.
From then on, Clyde no longer wanted to show his intelligence.
Being bullied also became his daily life. Clyde was no longer fighting back and let the bullies do what they wanted.
Clyde wasn''t too eager to do anything in this world anymore. His life is not something to be proud of.
When he walked to the bus station, Clyde always passed by arge river.
The river seemed to split the Aschea city area into two.
Every time he passed by the river, Clyde saw the current and asked himself, should he jump now?
However, Clyde hadn''t done that yet.
The river current was too strong, or maybe he didn''t want to die just yet.
Clyde didn''t know which was the right reason. But one thing is obvious, he didn''t do it today.
"Not today," Clyde muttered.
Then he continued. When he got home, while eating cup noodles, he turned on theputer and yed the game he yedtely.
''The Day Comes'' was an apocalyptic-type game that he had been ying for over a year.
In this game, Clyde must survive a zombie outbreak. A ssic theme that never goes out of style.
Unfortunately, the game wasn''t popr at all.
The Day Comes is a game with pixel graphics. ording to Clyde, it makes this game fun. But it seems that most people in this world don''t think so.
Clyde also read several apocalyptic web novels with almost the same themes.
Fighting monsters, surviving in some kind of magic apocalypse or Virus, etc.
The Day Comes, the game he yed, is created by the same developer who created many more games. However, all of them are not so popr.
In essence, all of it is about the destruction of the world.
Suddenly when he died in the game, an iing email notification appeared. Clyde frowned and raised his sses.
The emailes from the developer of the game he often ys. Clyde opened the email.
[ "Dear yer, The Ender would like you toplete the following survey for further development." ]
Clyde shrugged his shoulders and immediately filled out the survey because his in-game character was dead. The Ender is the Developer of those games.
[ "Do you like apocalyptic scenarios?" ]
"Yes." Clyde sighed because this question was so useless. If he doesn''t like it why is he ying their games?
[ "Please select one of the following options." ]
After that, choice after choice appeared. No more questions.
[ 1. It is alright if the apocalyptic scenario happens. ]
[ 2. No, it''s not alright! ]
Clyde went straight to number 1 without a second thought. If this is for the next development of course he wants this game to continue making apocalyptic games.
[ 1. The world needs to be reset. ]
[2. The world is fine and does not need to be reset. ]
Clyde snorted. "Number 1, of course."
[ "Last question." ]
"Oh, is it over?" Clyde was surprised. It turned out that this survey did not contain as many questions as he thought.
[ 1. You want to go through the apocalyptic scenario with the hardcore mode difficulty. ]
[ 2. You want to go through the apocalyptic scenario with the easy mode difficulty. ]
Clyde immediately chose option number 2 without thinking. He doesn''t like to take things too hard.
Real life is hard enough. Why would he want to add more difficulty to a game?
[ "Thank you for filling out the survey. In the next development, you will be given the advantage when it started. Sincerely, The Ender." ]
"Oh, do I get some bonus pack?"
After that, the survey ended. Clyde closed the email and continued ying his game.
~~~
PRESENT DAY.
Clyde was still not sure if the survey he was filling out at that time would affect what was happening to him now. But it seems like a possibility.
The bus just stopped. All passengers got off the bus. Some immediately ran away.
But Clyde just stood quietly. After all, if the apocalypse had started, where could they run to?
The girl next to him didn''t wither. Her face tensed and she looked back and forth like a confused person.
[ ATTENTION! ]
[ The Prolog will start now! ]
The voice apanied by red text echoed in everyone''s head. A bigmotion ensued.
Clyde was quite confident. Judging from his stats and the Resource Bag he had, Clyde was pretty sure he could survive better than the others.
[ THE PROLOG "UNDERGROUND MONSTER" BEGINS NOW! ]
[ PROLOG: UNDERGROUND MONSTERS. ]
[ DIFFICULTY: C. ]
[ OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE ATTACKS FROM MONSTERS APPEARING FROM UNDERGROUND. ]
Suddenly, the ground shook like an earthquake on a small scale.
After that, the ground started to crack and from within the cracks, ck and skinny hands appeared.
ck and skinny bodies crawled up. They were monsters with ant heads but walked on two legs. Their bodies are as big as humans.
"SKREEE!!!"
The monsters gave off a disturbing screech when they saw humans.
The girl who saw the scene covered her mouth with both hands.
Her eyes opened wide in horror as the monsters from deep in the ground began to tear apart the unlucky people.
Suddenly, Clyde got a notification for himself.
[ Private Attribute Effect: Difficulty changed to D. ]
Clyde smiled. "Nice."
A monster crawled from the crack behind the girl. She didn''t notice because she was too deep in fear.
The monster raised its hand and then pointed its ws at the girl''s head.
Clyde who saw it can not remain silent.
He ran towards the monster and then dealt a punch to its stomach.
*BUAGHHH!*
The monster was blown away after being hit by Clyde''s punch and crashed into a trash can.
Clyde grabbed the girl''s hand and led her to hide in an alley.
"Hide!" Clyde said.
~~~
Chapter 3 Checkpoint
?Clyde immediately moved and ced the girl behind him.
The ant monster chased them into the alley. It seemed that their attempts at hiding were in vain as the monster saw them enter the alley.
''Okay then, let''s see what I can do.''
Clyde realized that he had a skill called Inspection. So Clyde used it.
Instructions on how to use the Skill were not exined.
No tutorial is given at the beginning. But Clyde had a rough idea about it.
Clyde intended in his mind to use the Skill.
[ Inspection (Lv.3) activated! ]
After that, he could see the stats of the monster in front of him.
<<>>
[ Name: ck Ant. ]
[ Affiliation: Underground Monster. ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Skill: Bite (Lv.2), sh (Lv.1) ]
[ Stats: Strength (1), Stamina (1), Agility (2), Magic Power (0) ]
[ Weakness: Fire. ]
[ Affinity: - ]
[ Rank: C->D ]
<<==================>>
With Inspection Skill, Clyde could see the stats, weaknesses, and even affinity of the monsters in front of him.
Clyde concluded that the change in the monster''s rank must be due to the Exclusive Attribute he possessed.
"SKREEE!!!"
The monster lunged at Clyde. Clyde didn''t run, instead, he lunged back at the monster.
The ant monster opened its wed jaws to snatch Clyde''s head. But Clyde''s hand which had formed a fist was aimed at the monster''s head.
*BRUAAGGHH!*
The ant monster''s head was instantly destroyed by Clyde''s fist.
ck liquid sshed onto his face and shirt.
[ You gain 5 Exp. ]
The girl''s eyes widened at Clyde. "How did you do that?!"
"Uhh..." Clyde himself was amazed by his strength. "I just hit him."
She was still staring at Clyde with eyes of awe mixed with horror.
Especially when she saw Clyde''s face which was covered in the liquid from the head of the monster he had just destroyed with a punch.
Clyde took off his sses. He realized that he could see well without sses now.
''Is this also the effect of my stats?'' Clyde wondered.
Then put his sses in his pocket.
Clyde looked out the alley. People were still being ughtered by those ant monsters.
Some can defend themselves by running or fighting. Because this monster is rtively weak.
"What will we do now?" Asked the girl.
"Let''s wait here a moment," Clyde replied. Then he used Inspection on her.
<>
[ Name: Asqa Starr ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 17 ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Exp: 0/100 ]
[ Private Attributes: Witch Doctor. ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Healing (Lv.1). ]
[ Skill point: 0 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (1/7), Stamina (1/7), Agility (1/7), Magic Power (3/10) ]
[ Stat Point: 0 ]
[ Inventory: - ]
<<==================>>
"You have the ability as a Healer. That''s quite amazing," said Clyde.
"Is that so? But I don''t understand." The girl shook her head in confusion.
"The point is, you can heal people. Just like the name implied."
Asqa''s eyes opened wide with hope. "Is that true?!"
"Yes." Clyde nodded with a smile. "My name is Clyde, by the way."
"I''m Asqa." Asqa smiled.
Clyde felt a little surprised at the change in Asqa''s expression.
Saving Asqa is probably a very good decision. She has the ability of a Healer.
Having someone who could heal wounds woulde in handy.
In addition, she is also extremely cute. That is a nice additional point.
Clyde looked at his Inventory. He opened the Gold Resource Bag which looked like a bonus pack specially made for him.
Clyde often sees bonus packs like this given specifically to a yer aspensation for certain things.
It immediately made Clyde wonder.
Does The Ender - the game developer - have anything to do with this incident?
Everything that was happening to him right now seemed to lead him to that thought.
When he opened the Resource Bag, Clyde''s eyes widened.
[ - A-grade weapon: Elderss Sword (Upgradable),
- High-grade Health Potion (x3),
- Medium-grade Mana Potion (x3),
- 10,000 Coins. ]
The Items he got were quite good. This is a ''Gold'' Resource Bag after all. Maybe the highest Resource Bag there is.
He even got an A-grade weapon. Clyde will his mind took the weapon from the Inventory.
Suddenly a sword appeared in his hand. Clyde drew the sword from its scabbard.
The de of the sword was like ice frozen to form a sword.
Clyde could see right through the de. It is about one meter long. And It''s probably five centimeters wide. The sword is very light in his grip.
"Where did that sworde from?" Again, Asqa asked innocently.
"Don''t worry about that now. We have to go," Clyde said.
As Asqa''s trust in Clyde had increased, she nodded obediently.
They both came out of the alley running.
From Clyde''s experience reading web novels, there should be some sort of checkpoint avable where they can be safe.
But without any clues, Clyde thought finding Checkpoint would be difficult.
Abruptly, monsters rushed at them from several directions. Asqa screams in fear.
But Clyde immediately shed his sword at the monsters. With just one sh he could kill them.
Even Clyde didn''t give off any significant strength.
The stats he had were too strong for this level. Clyde realized that maybe he was the most powerful person in this city right now.
In the middle of the journey, Clyde did not know when exactly but Asqa was holding his hand tightly.
They kept walking but unlike the others who ran in panic and fear, Clyde and Asqa walked like a couple spending the weekend.
"Hey, shouldn''t we quickly find a hiding ce?" Asked Asqa who felt that they were too rxed.
"What for? There''s no safe ce around here." Clyde stretched out his sword to point around.
The buildings were crawled by giant ants. Several corpsesy on the streets in torn condition.
Asqa sees some people locking the doors tightly and pushing out other people asking for help.
"I didn''t think they could be that evil. This disaster changes a person," Asqa said as she snuggled close to Clyde''s body.
She also gripped Clyde''s hand harder. Either consciously or unconsciously.
Clyde snorted. "This disaster doesn''t change people. This disaster only reveals their true nature."
Asqa turned her face to look at Clyde. As if shocked by the answer.
But Clyde was only busy shing his sword at the monsters that kept charging at them.
"Why can you be so strong?" Ask Asqa.
"Well," said Clyde. "I chose Easy Mode."
Clyde answered honestly. However, Asqa did not understand the meaning of that answer. So she chose to remain silent.
Suddenly, while they were walking while Clyde shing monsters, they saw a red text floating above the subway station.
[ CHECKPOINTS. ]
"Ah, there it is. Come on."
Clyde pulled Asqa towards the subway station and they went inside.
[ YOU HAVE ENTERED THE CHECKPOINT AREA. ]
Asqa turned her head, she saw the monster chasing them turned away, and ran in another direction.
"Are we safe in this ce?" Asqa asked with a slightly relieved tone.
Clyde looked at her. "We''re safe from monsters."
They went down the stairs and saw that there were already a lot of people gathered at this station.
They were people from all categories who finally came together to avoid disaster.
"But there''s another threat toe," added Clyde.
He knows how human nature is. Especially those who are under pressure.
~~~
Chapter 4 Boss
?Clyde slid his sword into the scabbard at his waist. He and Asqa walked slowly through the crowd.
The people here stared with curious eyes but also didn''t really care.
Assuming the two teenagers are a couple caught in the middle of this disaster.
However, someone was watching from behind the crowd. Someone noticed the weapon on Clyde''s waist.
The girl narrowed her eyes. ''There''s no way that sword was picked up on the street.''
Some people had brought their weapons. Some carry pipes, pruning shears, self-made spears, and so on. Everything they get on the street.
They will take anything to defend themselves as best they can. But no one managed to get a sword.
Moreover, the sword on the boy''s waist looked good. The sheath just looks normal. The in ck color without any ornaments.
But the girl could see the powerful aura surrounding it. All because of the skills she has.
Standing up slowly, the girl followed Clyde and Asqa from behind the crowd stealthily.
"Let''s sit here first," said Clyde.
They both sat in the corner of the station.
Asqa''s eyes looked at everyone in here sadly. But given that there was nothing she could do, Asqa could only sigh.
While Clyde was t-faced. He immediately thought of what steps he would take next.
If this is a scenario, then there must be some kind of objective that they have toplete to finish this Prolog.
But what he saw in that floating text message was, that they just had to survive.
But for how long?
Suddenly Clyde heard Asqa''s belly grumble next to him. He turned his head and saw Asqa''s face was red, looking down.
"That''s not me," Asqa said in a low voice.
Clyde snorted. "I''ll try to find some food."
Clyde stood up and looked around. Then he found a vending machine.
"There''s a vending machine. Wait here," said Clyde.
Aska nodded.
Clyde walked over to the vending machine. He saw several pairs of eyes paying attention to Asqa.
It is natural because Asqa is indeed a cute girl. If this was the usual situation Clyde wouldn''t be worried because they wouldn''t dare do anything in public ces.
But this is an apocalypse. Humans can be very brutal because they are desperate.
Moreover, before this disaster urred, even depraved humans already existed.
''I have to hurry.'' thought Clyde.
Clyde just had to move quickly to the vending machine and take the food back to Asqa.
After he finished buying some snacks and canned drinks, Clyde immediately walked back to Asqa.
But suddenly a group of men had gathered around Asqa. Seeing this, Clyde begins to rush to her.
"You alone?" asked one of the four men. "We can protect you if you want toe with us."
Asqa seems to be getting restless. But when he saw Clyde approaching, she became relieved.
"Clyde!" Asqa called.
Clyde walked his way through the crowd of men and nudging them to make way.
If the world still went on as before, Clyde definitely wouldn''t be this brave.
But he knew that now he was much stronger than everyone else. So there''s no reason to be afraid.
"You okay?" asked Clyde.
Aska nodded. "Yes."
"Hey, kid. Weren''t you taught manners?" one of the men shouted at Clyde.
His demeanor had started to be aggressive.
Clyde faced them with a calm expression. "It''s best if we don''t make a fuss. In a situation like this, wouldn''t it be better if we just cooperated?"
Despite saying that, Clyde was sure that what he said would not change their original intention.
The man snorted. He spread his arms and received a pipe from his friend.
Clyde sighed. He thought, ''Don''t they see the sword at my waist? or do they think the sword is just a toy?''
Asqa retreated behind Clyde.
"Stop it. Can''t you see I have a better weapon?" Clyde pointed at his sword that was still hanging from his waist.
"Haha... It must be just a toy sword you pick up to scare people, right?" the man asked disdainfully.
Clyde shakes his head. There''s no point wasting time talkingmon sense with these people.
So Clyde drew his sword.
*Shiiing...*
The sound as the sword was drawn was much louder than Clyde had expected. Everyone who could hear the voice turned their head.
Including the girl who was observing from afar.
''You fools,'' thought the girl. ''But that''s good too. So I can see what the sword looks like.''
Clyde pointed his sword at the man.
"This sword is very real," said Clyde tly.
The three men behind him looked at each other. As if reconsidering the life decisions they took to get to this situation.
The man holding the pipe started to retreat. They just left without saying anything.
Clyde slid his sword back into its scabbard.
Everyone turned their faces away. As if they didn''t want to be seen watching him.
"I can''t believe it. There are still people like that during a disaster like this," said Asqa.
"Yeah, sorry to leave you earlier," said Clyde.
Aska shook her head. "That''s okay."
Asqa started eating the snacks that Clyde bought.
A voice apanied by floating text came out again, startling everyone.
[ PROLOG: UNDERGROUND MONSTER. ]
[ PROGRESS: AN EGG HAS APPEARED AT THE ROSARY JUNCTION. ]
Then the video screen appeared and showed arge egg appearing in the middle of arge crossroads. That''s the Rosary Junction.
The egg was probably about three meters high and pitch ck. Clyde had a rough idea of ??what they should do next.
[ OBJECTIVE: IN THE EGGS THERE IS A ''BOSS''. DESTROY THE EGGS BEFORE HATCHING OR BEAT THE BOSS AFTER IT HATCHES TO COMPLETE THE PROLOG. ]
Themotion began. Everyone was confused and panicked.
Of course, they panicked because another monster would appear. And seeing the word ''BOSS'' on it, it was clear that it was the monster that would be their biggest challenge.
"What should we do?!" Asqa asked in a frightened tone.
"Don''t worry." Clyde smiled at her.
Asqa didn''t know what exactly Clyde was going to do because he didn''t say much.
But seeing what had happened so far, Asqa had faith in Clyde.
~~~
Chapter 5 To The Boss
?The conditions for this so-called Prolog to bepleted are by destroying the eggs before they hatch, or defeating the BOSS when it hatches.
Even people who had never yed a video game would know that defeating the BOSS before it hatched would be easier.
Then themotion started getting louder and louder. The people at the subway station are confused about how to finish this chapter.
Clyde looked around. This is what happens when there is no or someone to rely on.
But he also doesn''t want to be relied on. Even though Clyde knew that he could be the strongest person here, he knew that being strong and having a leadership spirit to lead desperate people were two different things.
"You want to destroy the egg alone?" Asked Asqa next to him.
Clyde turned. "We have no other choice."
Asqa wants to say something. But she pursed her lips again as if canceling the intention to say that.
Clyde was someone he just met. Even though Asqa feels safe around him, they are not friends.
Asqa doesn''t know what Clyde is thinking and what could possibly offend him.
"Don''t worry. I won''t leave you," said Clyde.
Asqa didn''t know why Clyde did that. Why would he go to the trouble of protecting her?
But Asqa chose not to say anything as she too was relieved. This was an opportunity she had to take to survive.
Even though others weren''t as lucky as her, what could she do?
Asqa tried to avert her eyes from the confused and frightened people.
"Excuse me, I hope I''m not disturbing you guys."
Suddenly a girl walked up to them with a friendly smile. She was wearing a ck leather jacket and jeans.
There was also a ck liquid on her clothes. She must also have struggled to live to this point.
"Can I help you?" Clyde asked.
"I was thinking maybe we could work together. This whole thing must be hard to do just the two of you, right?" The girl said.
Clyde looked at her with a furrowed brow. Why did this girl suddenly approach them?
Asqa looked at Clyde as if asking him for an answer.
"You want to be our ally?" Clyde asked. Straight to the point.
"Ah, of course," said the girl. "My name is Sonya. Nice to meet you."
[ Inspection (Lv.3) is activated! ]
Clyde used Inspection on her.
<>
[ Name: Sonya Reid ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 19 ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Exp: 55/100 ]
[ Private Attributes: Shadow Ranger. ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Stealth (Lv.1), Weapon Mastery (Lv.1) ]
[ Skill point: 0 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (1/8), Stamina (1/9), Agility (2/10), Magic Power (2/8) ]
[ Stat Point: 0 ]
[ Inventory:
- D-grade weapon: Compound Bow (Upgradable) ]
<<==================>>
Clyde was quite impressed. As soon as he saw the Attribute Window, Clyde knew that this girl had pretty good abilities.
In addition, she has also been able to put her weapons into the Inventory.
That meant that she must have quite an understanding of this Attribute Window system.
Clyde felt that having a useful ally would be advantageous. He wouldn''t trust her. But he can use her ability.
"You can join."
Hearing that, Sonya looked happy.
"Thank you. I hope we can work well together!" Sonya said.
Sonya immediately spoke to Asqa. She seemed to be trying to get close to Asqa.
Meanwhile, Clyde just turned his head and stared nkly at the crowd.
Thinking about what he could do with this addition of his new ally.
Every now and then Sonya saw Clyde. ''He seems a bit unapproachable.''
"Wait." Clyde suddenly said. "The clear condition only says that if the BOSS is defeated, then the Prolog will be over, right?"
"Yeah, but not necessarily. People who participate and people who don''t participate, you think that would be the same?" Sonya said.
"You''re right," Clyde replied. "Let''s go."
The three of them walked up the subway.
Clyde immediately exins that Asqa can''t fight and has the ability of a Healer. So the two of them had to protect her.
Sonya of course nodded in agreement.
[ YOU HAVE LEFT THE CHECKPOINT AREA. ]
Crowds of monsters started to rush at them as soon as they got out of the subway.
Sonya picked up the bow from her Inventory while Clyde drew his sword. The two of them pierced through the crowd.
"We have to run," said Clyde.
Sonya and Asqa nodded. They ran through the crowd of monsters.
Sonya killed monsters easily enough so Clyde felt that his decision was right.
Along the way, Clyde and Sonya also Level up several times due to the number and ease of their killing monsters.
Only Asqa hasn''t Leveled up because she didn''t kill a single monster.
They finally arrived at Rosario Junction. The ck egg stood upright surrounded by hundreds of giant ant monsters.
"We go there!" Clyde who saw another Checkpoint pointed them in there.
A checkpoint is provided when they want to face the BOSS. Clyde thought that this world was getting closer to a game.
[ YOU HAVE ENTERED THE CHECKPOINT AREA. ]
This area is a convenience store that leads to the junction. So they can see the egg easily.
When they entered the convenience store, there was a strange vending machine inside.
Instead of selling food, the vending machine sells something else.
[ SKILL PURCHASING MACHINE. ]
Clyde immediately walked over to the vending machine. Asqa and Sonya follow him.
On the transparent ss, instead of looking at snacks, Clyde can see a list of avable Skills by price.
There were no warnings about the Skills they could or couldn''t choose, so it seemed the yers could choose freely. For now.
"You have the coin to buy skills?" Ask Sonya.
"Yes. I have some coins," replied Clyde.
"What are you going to buy?"
Clyde remembered that the monster had a fire weakness. So Clyde immediately bought a Skill that he thought would be useful.
[ "Put your hand on the coin holder to buy skill. Make sure you have enough coins." ]
As soon as he heard those words, Clyde put his hands together.
*Trriiiingg!*
[ "Skill ''Burning Hand'' purchased. 1,000 coins used." ]
Sonya''s eyes widened. "You have 1,000 coins?!"
"Yes."
A silver tube came out and Clyde opened it.
Orange-colored light shot out and entered Clyde''s body.
"I still have a few coins left. What do you want?" Clyde asked.
Sonya''s eyes widened with a gleam of happiness. She didn''t expect Clyde to offer it.
"Are you sure?"
Clyde nodded. "Make sure the Skills you buy are useful. And don''t go for the expensive ones."
Sonya smiled and nodded. Then she immediately chose a Skill that she had been aiming for.
~~~
Chapter 6 Already Hatch
?Her hunch wasn''t wrong at all. Joining the two of them was truly the right decision.
[ "Skill ''Hunter''s Marker'' purchased. 1,000 coins used." ]
Clyde handed the silver tube to Sonya. Sonya epted it with pleasure.
She immediately opened the tube and a purplish ray entered her body.
"What are you doing?" Asked Asqa who was confused looking at them all this time.
Sonya and Clyde turned to her.
"We bought a Skill. Uhmm...it''s a kind of magic ability," Sonya tried to exin.
"Sorry, Asqa. It''s not that I don''t want to buy you one. But for now, there''s still nothing that suits you," Clyde said.
"Ah, it''s okay. Besides, I can''t help you either," replied Asqa with a sad smile.
"You don''t have to worry about that," Clyde smiled faintly.
Sonya wondered if the two of them were dating. She admits that Asqa is cute. So naturally, Clyde would like her.
If that''s true then Asqa is much luckier than her.
"How are we going to destroy it?" Sonya asked.
"I''ll go straight ahead. You, support me from behind with your bow. Asqa can wait here," Clyde replied.
Clyde drew the sword from his waist. "Let''s go."
The giant egg began to hatch. A crack appeared and got bigger.
Clyde knew he couldn''t waste any more time and immediately ran towards the crowd of ant monsters.
Sonya summons her bow from Inventory into her hand.
"Asqa, hide in this store. Don''te out until we''re done. Do you understand?" Sonya said to Asqa.
Asqa replied with a nod. Sonya left the convenience store and locked the door.
Clyde ran and shed his sword. The movement was so fast that the ants couldn''t react.
The number of ant monsters was probably over a few hundred. And they all work together to surround Clyde. Preventing him to get any closer to the egg.
Clyde made a circr motion with his sword. The movement cut off dozens of ant heads around him like a sharp knife slicing through a sausage.
*SRAAT!*
*SRAAT!*
Clyde spun, jumped, then fell into the crowd of monsters. Then he shed again.
The sword seemed to stick to his hand and Clyde was sure that it would not slip from his hand even if he twirled the sword.
''This is what Weapon Mastery Level 3 can do!''
Its clear blue de reflects the sunlight like a mirror. Making this battle look even more like a battle in a fantasy fairy tale for anybody watching from afar.
That''s how Sonya felt.
Seeing Clyde shing down the ant monsters without a problem made her gape.
"If this is a real game, then he must be a cheater," Sonya muttered.
Clyde thought so too. He feels like ying an MMORPG game with only him ying it in easy mode.
While others y it with the hardest mode possible.
Too much engrossed in enjoying the battle he knew he had already won, Clyde didn''t realize that he had already wiped out countless ant monsters.
Trimming their number down to maybe a hundred.
[ "You leveled up!" ]
[ "You leveled up!" ]
[ "You leveled up!" ]
[ "You leveled up!" ]
[ "You leveled up!" ]
...
So many notification sounds that indicate that Clyde has leveled up. However, he didn''t rush to check his Attribute Window.
Instead, Clyde walked toward the giant egg. But he soon noticed something strange.
"CRACK!"
"CRACK!"
The cracks that appeared erged much faster. A ck hand came out from inside the shell.
"Shit, did I waste too much time?" Clyde kinda regretting it.
But he didn''t feel anxious. Maybe at least, this BOSS can be quite a challenge for him.
The ant monsters that were swarming around gathered together behind the BOSS that was about to hatch.
Red light mixed with a dark aura emitted from the egg along with a shockwave that threw trucks, cars,mp posts, and everything around.
Yet Clyde stood unwaveringly and only covered his eyes with one hand. His slightly long dark hair was pushed back.
Sonya clung to one of the nearby poles and thought about going back to the convenience store with Asqa. She didn''t have to do anything to help, Clyde could handle it himself.
"Yes, that''s better!" Sonya made up her mind and then ran to the convenience store again.
But before she arrived, from the ground appeared an ant monster that immediately grabbed her leg.
It made Sonya fall straight down. Fortunately, the bow did not slip out of her hand.
"Shit!" Sonya cursed and then turned around to shoot.
One of Her Private Attribute''s abilities, Shadow Ranger, allows Sonya to create arrows directly at the bow.
So she doesn''t have to worry about running out of arrows as long as her Magic Power is sufficient.
"Take this, you damn ant!"
Sonya shot her arrow right into the ant monster''s head. Sonya then released her leg from the monster''s ck hand when the monster died.
"SKREEE!!!"
Abruptly, the screams of the ant monsters became louder and louder. They all seem to be speaking in unison.
Sonya turned and saw Clyde still standing in front of the egg. Meanwhile, the creature from inside the egg began to crawl out.
The eyes of the ants around turned bright red. It wasn''t long before the BOSS was finally freed from its shell.
"SKREEEE!!!"
The BOSS was in the same form as the surrounding ants.
It''s just that it''s twice as big. On its head, there is also a pair of horns like bull horns. On the BOSS''s four hands were sharp ws like daggers.
The ants around calmed down when their king had appeared
"Fuck!" Sonya immediately stood up. "I need to get outta here!"
Sonya ran back to the convenience store faster than before.
Suddenly Sonya heard a big bang. She stops.
Then she saw Clyde slide and hit the highway creating several holes.
He was bouncing several times before finally hitting the building anding to a stop.
"CLYDE!"
It was clear that Clyde had been hit by the BOSS. Sonya was worried.
However, her worries didn''tst long because Clyde had risen again.
He took off his torn uniform. The originally t-faced Clyde was grinning.
A momentter he disappeared from where he was standing.
''BOOM!''
As soon as Sonya turned she saw Clyde and the BOSS facing each other. Clyde''s sword collided with the BOSS'' ws. Shockwaves spreading everywhere.
Sonya was surprised that Clyde could move so fast she couldn''t see his movements.
Clyde had already fought the BOSS. Their movements were so fast and destructive.
"This is not something I can get involved with."
Sonya ran into the convenience store like her life depend on it. Because it is.
~~~
Chapter 7 First BOSS Defeated
?Clyde remembered the first time he entered high school. A boy who wears sses because he staring at the PC monitor too much.
A boy who is too thin and pale because he always spends time in a dark room.
It all provoked the bully to go after him.
Bullying doesn''t just mean being beaten up or ridiculed with harsh words.
But anyone who chooses to walk away when he''s been treated unfairly is also a bully.
Clyde didn''t me them. He too, wouldn''t even bother to defend the victims of bullying when he sees them. But Clyde didn''t like their actions either.
Sometimes he wants to be defended. But back to reality, the figure of a hero in the real world doesn''t exist.
The heroes were created in a fictional world to fill the fantasies of the oppressed person like him.
Clyde even refused to ask his parents for help. Two people who had the heart to throw him out of their lives and create a new family.
And so Clyde had run out of hope in humanity and the world. His teenage emotions can''t handle that treatment.
He felt that the world was supposed to be hit by an apocalypse.
Not for a good reason like, the world should be destroyed and return to start over as a better world.
Clyde just wanted the world to fall apart. That way everyone can feel the misery in life like him.
Back to the present.
"HAAAA!!!"
Clyde hit the giant ant BOSS until he flew through several buildings.
Now Clyde was on top of the building. The heated battle brought him here.
He was only wearing trousers that had holes in them. His shirt had been destroyed.
But Clyde smiled.
He felt happy because he turned out to be so strong. The feeling he had when he could step on the BOSS monster so easily was delightful.
On the crushed asphalt, the ck ant BOSS stood.
Its body was already battered and oozing ck liquid. The light in its eyes was even dimmer than before.
Suddenly a fireball shot toward him. An explosive sound was heard and the asphalt shattered and burn.
*BOOM!*
But the BOSS had jumped before the fireball hit it.
Clyde fall off the top of the building andnded on the road.
He spread his eyes around to find out where the BOSS was.
The ant monsters that had been away from the battle area suddenly started charging at Clyde again.
Clyde snorted, disdainfully. This must all be the BOSS''s attempt to defend itself.
But Clyde instantly ughtered all those ant monsters like before.
His clear blue sword shed along with the ck liquid of the ants.
[ "You leveled up!" ]
[ "You leveled up!" ]
[ "You leveled up!" ]
Rainn continued to level up while taking care of the monsters. Then he saw the BOSS in front of him.
The ant BOSS was eating its underlings. When it finished eating, the wounds on its body began to heal.
Clyde who saw it dash towards the BOSS and then spread out his hand that wasn''t holding the sword.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.3) is activated! ]
Clyde who had used Skill Points to raise his Burning Hand shot fire at the BOSS.
The BOSS shouted and his underlings charged forward to form a wall of ants.
Clyde''s mes burned them and scorched them to ashes in an instant.
The BOSS ran away and crept into the building. But Clyde shot through the mes and thrust his sword forward.
*CRAAT!*
Clyde''s sword pierced its body and they both fell onto the ground.
ck liquid gushed out from the wound inflicted by Clyde''s sword.
Clyde grabbed the ant BOSS'' face and pressed it against the asphalt.
Clyde smirked at the ant''s eyes which glowed red and looked terrified.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.3) is activated! ]
*SWOOOOSHHH!!!!*
mes shot out of Clyde''s hands and spread in all directions creating a heatwave that scorched everything around them.
Once the fire was ended, Clyde no longer gripped the BOSS''s head.
When he raised his hand, what was there were ck ashes.
Clyde stood up. A chime-like rhythm of tone resounded in the air. The sound of an announcement followed.
[ "Congrattions to yer "CLYDE CROSS" for defeating the BOSS "BLACK ANT KING."" ]
Clyde smiled. Finally, he could feel what it was like to win something with his own strength. He walked back.
[ "Rewards for defeating the BOSS sent to Inventory." ]
[ Reward: B-grade equipment: Dark Night Coat (Defense: Lv. 5), 1,000 Coins. ]
Clyde walked into one of the clothing stores that were still intact and picked up a ck shirt and ck jeans and a pair of boots.
The clothes he was wearing were already torn as a result of the battle.
After that, he took the Dark Night Cloak and put it on.
Clyde saw himself in the mirror''s reflection.
Dark shirt, dark jeans, a dark coat, and dark boots, plus a sword hanging from his waist.
Clyde smiled contentedly admiring his appearance.
He likes ck and has wanted to wear an appearance like this for a long time ago.
But if he wore it, then he would only be considered a freak. But now, no one will judge him.
As soon as he came out of the shop a voice was heard.
[ "The Prolog: Underground Monster has beenpleted." ]
[ "yers who participate in killing the BOSS will be given the key item for the next chapter." ]
[ "The next chapter will start tomorrow." ]
Tomorrow, this disaster will continue. Clyde felt calm in the face of this apocalypse.
This was quite strange since he was probably the only person who was grateful to face this apocalypse.
Clyde doesn''t want to be a hero who will settle things so everyone can be saved.
He just wanted to feel the joy of being the strongest person in this apocalypse.
Asqa and Sonya had already exited the convenience store and were staring at the approaching Clyde.
"You''re still spending some time shopping," said Sonya, looking Clyde up and down.
"My clothes are torn. What can I do?" Clyde shrugged his shoulders.
"You okay?" Asqa asked in a worried tone.
"I''m fine," Clyde replied.
"What will we do now?" asked Asqa.
"Hmmm," Clyde thought. "We''d better find a ce to stay first."
They started walking again amidst the rubble.
Sonya looked at Clyde and wondered what kind of reward he got for defeating the BOSS alone.
Sonya could tell that the coat he was wearing contained a strong magical aura.
That means the ck coat is one of the rewards he gets.
''As long as I follow him I''ll be safe.'' Sonya thought of using Clyde for her own safety.
Clyde could take on the monsters alone without help. Sonya just needs to be near him and she will be fine.
Behind Clyde and Asqa, Sonya smiled at her luck.
~~~
Chapter 8 A New Party
?The three of them walked through the ruined highway. But the monsters were nowhere to be found.
After defeating the BOSS, it turned out that the monsters had indeed disappeared.
It was still noon and the hot sun was shining on the ruined city.
The three of them walked silently without saying anything.
In six days the world they knew will be destroyed.
Those words echoed so clearly in everyone''s head. Even the first day hasn''t started yet and everything has turned out like this.
Clyde figured things would only get more difficult. Not only Clyde but Asqa and Sonya felt that way too.
But both girls were relieved to have Clyde by their side.
For whatever reason, Clyde himself felt that having a Healer and anotherrade who could attack would be quite useful.
Clyde knew he was strong enough. But it''s still the Prolog and there are still six more days for this apocalypse.
Then after those six days, he didn''t know what will happen.
Will the world really end then they will die? No, that''s not possible.
Clyde thought there was some purpose to all of this.
The world you know will end in six days.
That''s how it sounds at the beginning of this apocalypse.
''The world you know. Does that mean there will be a new world created?'' thought Clyde.
He didn''t think long. Even though a new world would indeed be createdter, he didn''t think that the new world would be any better.
The world that humans still live in will never be ideal. Clyde is also human and he is aware of his ws.
Suddenly there was a caring from the opposite direction.
The car was a roofless sedan in ck color.
As soon as he saw the three of them, the driver of the car slowed down.
They were a group of three men and one woman. They all carried their weapons.
"Only three of you?" Ask the man driving the car.
"Yes," Clyde replied.
The man looks at Asqa and Sonya. Then back towards Clyde again.
"I heard there''s a BOSS around here," the man said. "But once we got here, there was no sign of that BOSS. What happened?"
"Someone''s beaten the BOSS," Clyde replied.
The man furrowed his brow. The three of his colleagues also gave a reaction that was not much different. They look confused.
"Who is that?"
"I don''t know," said Clyde with a shrug. "Try checking on the subway. It''s a Checkpoint so a lot of people are gathering."
The man thought for a moment. Then after seeing the approval of his three friends, he nodded.
"Okay thank you."
After that, the car started again leaving them.
"Why didn''t you tell the truth?" Asked Asqa innocently.
"That would be very troublesome," replied Clyde. "Come on."
Asqa was still confused by Clyde''s answer. But Sonya immediately spoke to her and distracted the girl.
Sonya and Asqa spoke quite casually as if they were old friends who had not seen each other for a long time.
Clyde was grateful that there was another girl so he wasn''t too awkward being with Asqa.
Unfortunately, his inability to talk to a girl greatly hindered his progress to make them his trustworthypanions.
~~~
That roofless sedan could no longer pass through the ruined highway.
The four people also know that this is all the result of a fight.
"That''s very strange," said Mona, the only woman in the group. "No one should be able to ovee the BOSS in the Prolog other than us."
"Yeah, you''re right. Too bad we showed up in another city," Eric said as he looked all over the ce.
"Even so, I''m a little grateful because it means that not many people died. That guy said that there were still a lot of people on the subway, right?" Reed - one of the men - said.
"But who can beat that BOSS?" asked Rodney. He was the man who was driving the car earlier.
The question left the three of his friends speechless.
"Could it be..." Mona mumbled. Even so, her voice could be heard by her three friends.
They all turned to Mona as if thinking the same thing.
"There are other Regressors besides us?"
Regressor. They are people who revive again after death.
However, they will onlye back to life at the beginning with the knowledge they gained before dying.
Those four people were Regressors who had lived through this apocalypse until the fifth day.
But they always die before reaching the sixth day.
The four of them had repeated all these five times. And they knew what would happen until the fifth day.
Each time they regress, it bes easier for them toplete Chapters.
But on the fifth day, there was something they couldn''t beat and always sent them back.
This time, for the sixth time, they were repeating everything from scratch. But something strange happened.
The BOSS in the Prolog has been defeated. It never happened before.
"It could be," said Reed. "In the beginning, I thought I was the only Regressor."
"That might be the case. Don''t you guys feel weird about those three teenagers?" Asked Mona.
"Yes, the three of them look too calm. Especially the young man dressed in all ck," said Eric.
"Could it be that he is the Regressor?" Reed asked.
Rodney was silent and thinking. The newly created variable means that the situation could be out of control.
And the variable that can beat the BOSS is a big variable.
"What should we do?" Reed asked Rodney.
No one formalized it but they acknowledged Rodney as their leader.
Rodney looked in the direction they came from. The three teenagers were already gone.
"It''s toote to follow them. We should have done that earlier," Rodney said. "Now we better head straight to the subway. I''m sure we''ll see them again."
His friends immediately agreed and they walked again towards the subway.
~~~
"We might as well stay there tonight." Sonya pointed to a motel in front of them.
Clyde agreed to her proposal and they headed toward the motel.
They find an abandoned motel. The condition of the motel was not exactly good.
There was blood sttered in several ces along with body parts and corpses.
In addition, the furniture has also been overturned and destroyed.
However, some rooms are still locked. As soon as Clyde forced the door open, the room was still clean and tidy.
"This ce is pretty good," said Clyde. "We can rest here."
"Do we can only just wait?" Sonya asked worried about tomorrow.
"I guess so," answered Clyde, as curtly as ever.
~~~
Chapter 9 The Quests Carriers
?Dusk has finallye upon the ruined city.
The city''sndscape wasn''t as beautiful as before. Instead, it gives off a depressing atmosphere to whoever sees it.
But for tonight, no one wants to go out to see the atmosphere of the city.
They prefer to huddle inside the Checkpoints area that is spread out at several points in the city.
The four Regressors arrived at the subway a few minutes ago.
The atmosphere here was no different from what they had seen in previous lives.
Fear.
Fear dominated these people until they were unable to move even an inch.
They didn''t want to die but were too afraid to fight.
Nothing prepared them for a situation like this.
Who knew that their normal life could turn into chaos like it is today?
The four Regressors circled the subway but all they saw was a bunch of depressed people.
There was no sign of someone having beaten the BOSS.
If such a person, or such a group, did exist then they would be regarded as heroes and revered.
"They''re not here," Rodney said.
"Yeah, I think so too." Mona agreed.
"That means our guess was right."
"Not necessarily," said Eric.
"Anyway, it''s getting dark so we can rest here for the night. Also ''that person'' will appear in a moment." Rodney reminded them. His three friends nodded in understanding.
They sat together in one corner of the subway.
Several pairs of eyes stared at them with various feelings. But then they ignored them.
The existence of a weapon in each of their hand made people who wanted to get closer reluctant to do so.
Mona still felt that feeling even though this had happened so many times.
She and the other three Regressors didn''t know why they got that power and were able toe back to life when the other humans died.
Luckily, Mona has grown up without her parents - if that could be considered luck.
She didn''t feel the sadness like Eric who lost his wife and child, Reed who lost his parents in his hometown, and Rodney who nned to marry his girlfriend today.
Mona saw the three of them look broken when being resurrected in the same ce.
They intend to save the people they care about. But they can''t and when the fifth day came, they would all just die again and see the same thing.
That''s when they knew that nothing could be done before this disaster was over. Maybe when this is over, they will be back to those moments.
[ "You will get what you desire if you can win this game." ]
That''s the only motivation for them to move forward now. A man in ck sses said that and gave them a purpose.
Several hours passed and finally, night came. As night fell the people on the subway started forming groups to go out.
The monsters weren''t there until tomorrow and some people took the initiative to look for food and other items.
One of them - a man with a seemingly well-trained build and a short haircut, indicating that he was a veteran - came up to them.
"Would you like toe along?" asked the man.
"No," Rodney answered.
"I see you guys look prepared. You guys have your own weapons too. I''m guessing you already have food in your backpacks, don''t you?" The man said.
"Yes," Rodney answered without even looking at the man.
The man seemed to tighten his jaw. But he didn''t say anything.
"It would be very helpful to us if you would help," said the man.
"No."
Again, Rodney answered curtly.
''You will die soon. There''s no point in fighting.''
The man gave up and left them.
He regrouped with his colleagues and then exited the subway. Carrying makeshift weapons.
They shouldn''t be able to calm down tonight. Monsters should still be roaming the streets outside the Checkpoint area.
But since the BOSS had already been defeated during the day, so the number of the monsters is decreasing.
Whoever had defeated that BOSS, he had definitely made the situation easier for them.
When night falls, someone wille over to the Checkpoint area or other ces where there are yers.
They will always find the whereabouts of yers wherever they are.
They came to give a task to anyone who would ept it. Like this time.
After a few minutes, a man wearing a neat suit and dark sses came down the stairs into the subway.
Several people who don''t go outside looked at him in confusion.
It wasn''t just because of his strange appearance. But because of a red exmation mark above his head.
"He''sing," said Eric.
The four Regressors approached the man.
"Good evening everyone. Would you like to ept the Quest?" asked the man.
"Show me the list of the Quest," Rodney said as he approached.
Mona, Eric, and Reed walked behind him.
The man smiled. "Alright."
~~~
Clyde who was observing his sword with a look of admiration was surprised to hear a knock on the door.
He walked towards the door while holding a sword and opened it.
A woman in a ck suit and dark sses smiled at him from behind the door.
Clyde of course noticed the exmation mark above her head.
Usually, such an exmation mark is shown by an NPC who will give the Quest.
But Clyde wasn''t going to open the door too wide until he knew for sure.
"Who are you?" Clyde asked.
"Good evening. Would you like to ept the Quest?" asked the woman in an unnaturally cheerful tone.
"What Quest?" Clyde still wasn''t sure.
"A Quest is-"
"I know what a Quest is," Clyde cut in. "What I''m asking is what should I do and what is the reward?"
The woman was still smiling. The sses she was wearing plus her weird cheerful tone made Clyde feel ufortable about the woman.
"You can get coins, skills, or equipment. It depends on the difficulty of the Quest you take," the woman exined.
Suddenly the next room door opened. Asqa and Sonya came out and approached Clyde.
"That woman also came to us earlier. I didn''t understand what she was saying so I told her toe to your room." Asqa exined in a hurry.
"Oh, I see. All right," Clyde replied.
Then Clyde looked at the woman. "Can I see the Quest?"
The woman took a few steps back and then waved her hand in front of her face.
After that, a list of Quests appears based on their rank and reward.
~~~
Chapter 10 Silver Lunar Wolfs
?Clyde looked at the list of Quests and immediately chose the one with the highest rank.
That is Rank B.
It seems that on this first day the highest rank of Quest only reached Rank B.
"Are you sure?" the woman showing the Quest asked with that unnatural cheerful tone. Clyde was almost certain that she wasn''t human.
"Are you sure, Clyde?!" Sonya approached and asked in a surprised tone.
"Of course. With that, we can get the best possible reward."
"But I''m not sure that I can helpplete this Quest."
"You don''t have to worry. We''ll do it together."
Clyde''s words made Sonya feel relieved. Although she knew beforehand that Clyde would indeed say that.
"I''ll take the difficult part."
After adding that, Clyde nodded in agreement once again to the woman with the dark sses.
The woman said nothing and nodded. Another screen appeared confirming that Clyde had sessfully taken the Quest.
"When the Quest ispleted, the reward will be received immediately. Since this is a Hunting Quest, the quest will bepleted when you finish killing the target," said the woman.
"Okay."
The woman walked out of the motel and then disappeared into the shadows.
Rainn, Sonya, and Asqa looked back at the screen showing the details of the Quest.
<>
[ Quest Category: Hunting Quest. ]
[ Clear Condition: Hunt down Silver Lunar Wolf. ]
[ Rank: B ]
[ Time: Sunrise. ]
[ Reward: B-grade Equipment, 300 Coins. ]
"Are you ready?" Clyde asked.
He saw Sonya nod. But Asqa who was behind Sonya looked unsure.
"Asqa, are you afraid?" asked Clyde.
Asqa did not immediately answer.
Instead, she bit her lip nervously.
She didn''t want to be a burden to them so she had to try to fight too.
But all this was too scary for her.
Monsters, death.
Asqa still can''t get rid of her fears and get used to it all.
"You have to be tough," Clyde said, looking at Asqa.
"The world you know no longer exists. If you want to survive, you have to try and strengthen yourself. You understand?"
Hearing Clyde''s words, Asqa''s body suddenly straightened, almost stiff. Her eyes were on Clyde. Asqa swallowed her saliva.
"A-Alright," Asqa said.
Clyde nodded curtly then went inside to retrieve his robe.
After that, he walked out of the motel. Asqa and Sonya followed behind.
''Was I being too hard on her just now?'' Clyde thought about his words just now.
Clyde sighed. He just wanted Asqa to be stronger. What he had told her earlier was the actual situation.
Clyde couldn''t say that everything would be fine even with his power. Because he wasn''t sure he could protect Asqa forever in a dire situation.
In the beginning, his intention was just to make use of her healing ability.
One thing Clyde learned in his life is that nothing always goes smoothly.
At some point, eventually, there''s bound to be something that messes things up.
That''s why Clyde tried to prepare everything once they were still in the early stages.
By taking the Quest with the highest Rank, he could get the best rewards at this stage.
Even with the easiest mode, Clyde still thought of making his preparation well.
Because he thought thatter there would be circumstances where he would also find it difficult even with easy mode.
Once the three of them got outside the motel, the moon shone brighter than usual.
Clyde looked up, the moon was perfectly in full round shape.
Suddenly the air turned cold. The wind was blowing a little bit stronger, fluttering Clyde''s ck coat.
"What happened?" asked Sonya anxiously. Something must be going on right now.
Abruptly, a roar rang out from every corner of the city. Clyde, Sonya, and Asqa looked in all directions looking for the source of the sound.
"That sounds like a wolf''s howls!" said Sonya.
"Well, the Quest details say that we have to hunt a monster called the Silver Lunar Wolf," said Clyde.
Sonya looked at him. Is that true? Sonya didn''t remember because she only skimmed through it.
Clyde drew his sword. "Let''s find the Wolf!"
Sonya pulled out her bow from the Inventory and followed Clyde.
Sonya also held Asqa''s hand which was beside her.
Honestly, Sonya felt sorry for the girl. She didn''t look like someone who could endure a situation like this at all.
Asqa was busy biting her lip and looking around her with eyes that exined fear.
But what can she do? Clyde''s words were true.
She had to be able to get herself stronger if she wanted to survive in a world that had be like this.
The three of them headed in the direction the wolf''s roar came from.
Clyde suddenly stopped in ce leaving Sonya and Asqa confused.
However, their confusion was soon cleared.
On the roof of an abandoned shop, there was a wolf with silver and sharp fur like a big needle standing.
The wolf fur that looks like it''s made of ss reflects the moonlight making it seem glowing.
The wolf was about the size of an SUV. Its eyes were blue and also seemed to glow.
[ Inspection (Lv.3) is activated! ]
Once Clyde used Inspection he was able to see the stats of the monster.
<<>>
[ Name: Silver Lunar Wolf. ]
[ Affiliation: Lunar Monster. ]
[ Level: 5 ]
[ Skill: Frostw (Lv.3), Frozen Fur (Lv.3) ]
[ Stats: Strength (3), Stamina (3), Agility (5), Magic Power (2) ]
[ Weakness: Fire. ]
[ Affinity: Ice Attributes. ]
[ Rating: B (C) ]
[ Private Attribute Effect Activated! ]
Clyde smiled.
With his Private Attribute, he didn''t have to worry too much.
The monster''s rating has changed from B to C, which means all of its Stats have also dropped.
Clyde turned to Sonya. "Attack it from afar. I''ll attack from up close."
"You can''t beat that monster on your own like before?" asked Sonya.
"Maybe this one will be a little difficult."
Clyde didn''t feel that this would be difficult for him. He just had to make sure that Sonya''s fighting ability was good enough.
Clyde immediately advanced toward the monster.
Sonya pulled her bowstring and an arrow was created.
"What should I do?" asked Asqa in a worried tone.
"Uhh..." Sonya was confused about what to answer. "Just hide."
Asqa immediately ran to find a ce to hide.
Sonya looked at her who was running like a desperate person. Then looked back at the monster.
Unexpectedly, while Clyde was running over to Wolf above the abandoned shop, another Wolf monster appeared from the crossroads.
It was the same Silver Lunar Wolf as the one in the shop.
"Clyde!" Sonya shouted.
Clyde turned his head and saw another monster running towards Sonya.
~~~
Chapter 11 Another One
?''Why there''s two of them?!''
Clyde''s eyes widened at the sight of another Wolf rushing toward Sonya.
They were already quite far apart, did Clyde still have time to save Sonya?
Clyde immediately turned around and ran towards Sonya.
However, the Silver Lunar Wolf had already noticed Clyde''s existence.
The wolf jumped from the top of the shop andnded in front of him.
"Shit!" Clyde cursed.
He gritted his teeth. He wouldn''t be able to save Sonya in time.
The wolf in front of him opened its mouth and was about to grab Clyde. But Clyde immediately dodges by jumping backward.
On the other hand, Sonya was already running to avoid the Wolf that chasing her.
Sonya''s running speed was much faster than a normal human because of her Private Attribute.
''Fuck fuck fuck!'' Sonya screamed in her heart.
She jumps between abandoned cars and trucks nimbly.
Wolf in her back chases her and destroys cars and trucks with its ws.
The sound of trucks and cars being thrown was very loud in the middle of the night.
Then Sonya turned into an alley.
The Wolf jumped and immediatelynded right in front of the alley where Sonya had turned. But the Wolf didn''t see her.
The alley was too narrow for it to enter, so the Wolf just sniffed Sonya''s presence.
However, even with his keen sense of smell, the Wolf couldn''t find her.
Sonya was still in the alley. She stared at the muzzle that had entered the alley and sniffed like a predator looking for its prey.
The reason why the Wolf couldn''t find Sonya was because she used her Skill. [Stealth].
With that skill, Sonya could eliminate her existence. Sonya was relieved that she had the Skill.
Sonya drew her arrow and aimed it at the Wolf''s eyes.
[ Hunter''s Marker (Lv.1) is activated! ]
Sonya''s eyes glowed purple. She had marked the Wolf as her prey.
That way, the damage from the attacks she inflicted on the Wolf would be doubled.
*SYUT!*
Sonya''s arrow shot and hit the Wolf''s eye.
The big Wolf jerked back and groaned in pain.
Sonya creates another arrow and then shoots again.
Unfortunately, the arrow bounced as soon as it touched the Wolf''s fur which turned out to be very tough.
"Damnit!" Sonya cursed.
In that case, she had to aim for the other eye to deal damage to the Wolf.
But the Wolf was moving wildly through the streets because of the pain.
This opportunity was used by Sonya to get out of the alley and go to a more suitable ce for aiming.
Suddenly a sedan came out of the intersection.
Sonya turned and realized that it was the car they had seen this afternoon. The car stopped and four people got out.
They couldn''t see Sonya because she was still using [Stealth].>
"There are two Silver Lunar Wolf!" said Reed.
The four of them saw a man fighting one Silver Lunar Wolf and another one who was moving wildly with arrows stuck in its eyes.
"Which one is ours?" asked Mona.
There was no way of knowing which Silver Lunar Wolf for their Quest was.
But amid the confusion, Rodney came up with a solution.
"If we can kill those two monsters. Whichever it is won''t be a problem."
His three friends immediately agreed.
''They took the same Quest?''
Sonya, who was quite close can hear them.
"Reed, Mona, you help that guy. Eric and I will fight the other Wolf," Rodney ordered.
They all immediately agreed and started to move.
''Who exactly are they?'' Sonya wondered. ''Ah, it doesn''t matter now. Looks like we''re on the same side so it''s a good thing!''
Sonya moved and walked over to the two men who were walking toward the Wolf she had just shot.
She disabled [Stealth] and appeared behind them.
"Hi."
Rodney and Eric turned around and brandished their weapons.
Rodney brandished a ck katana while Eric brandished his shortsword.
In Eric''s other hand, there was a round shield. They all looked at Sonya warily.
"Who are you? how did you appear all of a sudden?!" asked Rodney.
"I put the arrow in that Wolf''s eye. But we don''t have time for long introductions now, do we? My name is Sonya and let''s kill the Wolf first," Sonya said.
Eric and Rodney looked at each other. Then lower the weapon.
"Okay,e on!" Rodney said.
The three of them ran towards the still-raging Silver Lunar Wolf.
On the other hand, Clyde was trying to dodge the Silver Lunar Wolf''s ws which were continuously moving fast without giving him any openings.
Some of the ws managed to hit him. But the Dark Night Coat he was wearing gave him strong protection.
Despite being scratched several times, Clyde suffered no injuries.
Suddenly the Wolf stopped attacking.
Its clear-looking fur swelled up and then shot toward Clyde as hundreds of ice needles.
Clyde spread his arms.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.3) activated! ]
Clyde''s hands were enveloped in mes. Then the mes shot forward.
The ice needle hit Clyde''s torrent of mes and disappeared in an instant.
With his left hand shrouded in mes, Clyde stood before the Wolf.
Previously he had a hard time attacking because the Wolf moved so fast.
Now it had stopped and given him enough distance.
"Now it''s my turn." Clyde grinned.
Clyde spread his arms, and mes shot toward the Wolf and instantly enveloped it. However, the Wolf immediately dodges Clyde''s mes.
Clyde didn''t let it escape too far. He ran after the Wolf.
He added Stat points to Agility and now his Agility was at level 6. That way, Clyde could catch up to the Wolf with ease.
Mona and Reed who previously wanted to help him stopped on the spot after seeing what Clyde was doing.
"Burning Hands," muttered Reed. "That''s Burning Hand, right?"
Mona saw it too. At this early stage, he shouldn''t be able to buy [Burning Hand].
But they knew that what they saw was indeed [Burning Hand].
"Yes," Mona answered "And he''s so fast."
They saw Clyde catch up with the Wolf and sh his sword.
But as they had expected, the sword bounced against the Wolf''s clear and tough fur.
Knowing that Clyde put his sword in its scabbard and decided to fight with [Burning Hand].
Now both of Clyde''s hands were covered in mes. Then he threw two fireballs at the Wolf.
The fireball hit the Wolf and shattered its tough fur.
"Does he need help now?" asked Reed, feeling helpless.
Mona who also saw what Clyde had just done was taken aback.
''Who exactly is that guy?''
~~~
Chapter 12 The Other Fight
?''BOOM!''
Explosions and heat waves spread out in all directions. Clyde had just sent a fireball bigger than before toward the Silver Lunar Wolf.
But its tough fur proved to be able to withstand the attack.
"GRRRR..." the Wolf growled as it brandished its teeth.
Then its two fangs extended beyond its lower jaw. The fangs almost looked like frozen tusks.
In addition, the Wolf''s fangs are not shaped like usual teeth. But it is clear like a block of ice sticking out of its mouth.
Clyde grinned. He felt like he was going to get an exciting fight now. Clydended on the roof of a shop.
His hands were still covered in smoldering mes. He saw two people standing and watching the fight from a distance.
"Hey! Don''t worry about me!" shouted Clyde. "You guys just deal with the other monster!"
Mona and Reed looked at each other in bewilderment. It seemed that the man didn''t need their help.
So instead of wasting time here, they''d thought it was better to help Eric and Rodney.
The two Regressors didn''t think for too long. They immediately ran towards another battle and left Clyde alone with his Wolf.
The Wolf suddenly jumped at Clyde. Behind him, he left frozen trails.
Clyde greeted it by throwing fireballs the size of footballs.
But the running Wolf jumped to the side and was able to dodge the fireballs well.
Clyde noticed that the Wolf was getting faster and more agile. Yet he felt with this power, the Wolf still couldn''t beat him.
The self-assured Clyde lunged fearlessly. He''s confronting the Wolf monster head-on!
*BANG!*
Clyde collided with the Wolf. His hands hit the Wolf''s two front paws.
Clyde could see its clear jaw and fangs right in front of his face.
But Clyde still grinned. This fight made him feel excited.
Clyde also knew that his strength was enough to hold the Wolf head on.
''This is my strength.''
The grin on his face grew wider. mes shot out from Clyde''s hands.
The Wolf screamed and jumped back.
Clyde dashed forward towards him and punch the Wolf with his hand covered in mes.
*BUAGH!*
The Wolf was tossed and bounced across the street before stopping.
As soon as it got to its feet, Clyde was already in front of it and hit the Wolf again. Makes it bounce even further.
"Is this supposed to be Rank B?! Ha ha ha!"
Clyde caught up with the Wolf and prepared to hit it again.
However, suddenly the Wolf opened its jaw.
Clyde''s eyes widened. He wouldn''t be able to escape.
When it came to that conclusion, instead of looking for a way to dodge, Clyde stretched his arms forward instead.
*CHOMP!*
The Wolf''s jaw grabbed Clyde''s hand.
Now Clyde''s hand was inside the Wolf''s mouth. He felt a chilling sensation begin to rapidly spread throughout his body.
Ice appeared and started to freeze the part of Clyde''s bitten hand and the frost spread throughout his body.
Luckily, Clyde was wearing a Dark Night Coat so his body wasn''t affected by the frost.
Now they were both locked in this situation.
However, this is exactly what Clyde wanted.
The hand that was inside the Wolf''s mouth was still covered in mes.
Clyde smirked.
As if realizing how dangerous the situation was for it, the Wolf''s eyes widened.
Unexpectedly smoke rose from inside the Wolf''s mouth and hot air came out.
"You''ll give me a good reward," Clyde muttered. As if to say goodbye.
*BWOOSHH!!!''*
mes shot out from behind the Wolf''s head breaking through its body.
The Wolf''s body fell helplessly. The cold blue light in its eyes dimmed.
Its frozen fur began to melt. Clyde pulled his hand away from the Wolf''s jaw.
Turns out he didn''t suffer any injuries.
"Wow, this coat is amazing!"
Clyde admired his ck coat. A notification appeared before Clyde''s eyes.
[ Quest Complete! ]
[.Reward: B-grade Equipment: Honed Silk Coat, 300 Coins. ]
[ Rewards sent to Inventory. ]
After receiving the notification, Clyde nodded in satisfaction.
He wasn''t very interested in the B-grade Equipment he got because it wasn''t a weapon.
Clyde thought maybe he would give the coat to Asqa. He walked towards another fight.
However, as soon as he got closer, it turned out that their fight was not over.
Clyde decided to look from afar. He wanted to see how capable the four of them really were.
They didn''t look like ordinary people.
Instead, they looked like experienced people in these situations.
That raised a question in Clyde''s mind.
''How can they be this calm and ready to face the apocalypse?''
Seeing how they fought, seemed to confirm Clyde''s suspicions. The four of them did have experience.
''Are they rted to The Ender like me?''
Clyde couldn''t rule out that possibility. Maybe they also know that there will be an apocalypse like this.
Clyde had no idea what The Ender was. There''s no way they''re just ordinary survival game developers.
The Ender might have been also involved with these four people. He had to find outter.
Suddenly, Asqa came out and approached Clyde. Clyde is quite surprised to realize Asqa''s presence.
"Have you defeated the monster?" asked Asqa while looking in all directions.
Clyde nced back. But that Silver Lunar Wolf''s corpse had already disappeared.
"Yes. I''ve defeated our monsters."
In fact, Clyde didn''t actually know which Wolf was for their Quest because suddenly another Wolf appeared.
But it doesn''t matter. The important thing was that he killed the Silver Lunar Wolf and the quest wasplete.
"Oh, right."
Clyde withdrew the B-grade equipment he had just obtained.
It was a soft white coat that was theplete opposite of his.
"For you." Clyde held out the coat to Asqa.
"What''s this?" Asqa''s eyes widened as she epted the coat.
"Put it on," said Clyde.
Asqa wears it. As soon as she put on the coat, a notification appeared before her eyes.
[ Equipment Effect: Magic Power +1. ]
"Magic Power plus one?" Aska frowned.
"That must be the effect of the coat. That means your Magic Power has increased by one level," Clyde exined. "That''s a good thing."
"Thank you." Aska smiled. She looks happy.
"Sure. You look good wearing that."
Suddenly a scream was heard. The two of them nced at the battle.
They saw that one of the men from the group was bitten on the arm by the Wolf.
Then the Wolf threw him until he hit the wall of a building.
"That doesn''t look good," said Clyde. "Let''s go!"
He and Asqa ran together.
~~~
Chapter 13 Suspicion
?Reed fell to the ground with his arm nearly severed. In addition, freezing also began to spread from the bite wound on his hand to the rest of his body.
Clyde brought Asqa closer to Reed. Behind them, everyone was still fighting the Silver Lunar Wolf.
Clyde thought that another Silver Lunar Wolf that appeared must be because these four people were also taking the same Quest as them.
But looking at their state, shouldn''t they have thought a little longer before taking on a Quest of this high difficulty?
Asqa and Clyde saw Reed''s condition. Reed himself was unable to open his eyes. The pain plus the freezing was unbearable.
"Asqa, do you know how to use a Skill?" asked Clyde.
Asqa looks at him. Asqa remembers that Clyde said she could heal people. But she doesn''t know how to use it. Asqa shook her head.
"It''s easy. You just need to will it in your mind to use the Healing Skill."
Clyde paused for a moment as if thinking about something.
"Maybe you should stretch your hand towards the wound as well. Anyway, you have to heal him as quickly as possible. I have to help them."
"Ah-"
Before Asqa could say something, Clyde had already turned around and ran towards the fight.
Now Asqa is left with this injured man. Seeing his almost severed hand made Asqa wince between fear and nausea.
But since Clyde said she could heal people, Asqa gave it a try.
Asqa stretched her hand towards the wound. Then willed her mind to use Healing.
[ Healing (Lv.3) is activated! ]
A text appeared. Then warm white light started toe out from Asqa''s hand and covered Reed''s wound.
The freezing that had spread throughout his body began to dissipate. Not only that, the tissue of the hands that almost severed started to heal.
Reed slowly open his eyes. His previously thinned consciousness now starting to return.
As soon as he opened his eyes, he felt warmth on his sides and see the face of a beautiful girl.
"Who are you?" asked Reed.
"My name is Asqa. Please stay, I''m trying to heal you."
Her voice is also soothing. If this was thest sight he saw before he died, Reed wouldn''t mind.
Asqa''s serious face lit up with white light. She pursed her lips and concentrated fully.
Reed felt that the pain was starting to fade away. On the other hand, he was worried about his friends.
It turned out that, things weren''t as smooth as before.
Previously, they deal with Silver Lunar Wolf by trapping it.
But who would have thought that the monster would run away? Causing attempts to trap it to be futile.
And now Reed was almost dead. Luckily there was a healer nearby. Reed raised his head to look at his friends.
Reed saw there was a man dressed in ck helping them. It turned out that Reed had nothing to worry about.
*SWOOSH!*
The mes gushing from Clyde''s hand made the Wolf jump backward
"Sonya!" Clyde shouted.
"Alright!" Sonya who had been aiming fired her arrow. The arrow flew and went straight into one of the Wolf''s eyes.
"GRAAAHHH!" The Wolf screamed in pain.
"What are you waiting for?" said Clyde to the three strangers. "Attack!"
The three Regressors looked dumbfounded by what Clyde had just done. However, they didn''t let the shockst too long.
"Let''s go!" Rodney ran.
Eric took over the front position and put a shield in front of his body.
Silver Lunar Wolf branded its teeth. Just like before, its fangs extended beyond the lower jaw.
The Wolf then threw ice spears from its frozen furs.
"Eric!" shouted Rodney.
"I got it!"
Eric''s shield gave off a golden glow then the golden light expanded and condensed into the form of a light shield that was five timesrger than his original shield.
Mona and Rodney approached and took cover behind Eric. The ice spears hit Eric''s shield of light and then fell to the ground.
The three Regressors continued their charge toward the Wolf.
Rodney and Mona ran to Eric''s right and left. After that, their bodies gave off an aura indicating that they had activated a Skill.
Mona and Rodney apparently use the same Skill.
They shed their swords, then from the shes came out arcs of light that shot towards the Silver Lunar Wolf.
The two shes hit its clear feathers. The damage they inflict is only not significant.
Clyde noticed that they seemed to have experience inbat. It is evident from their movement.
It was as if they had been prepared for this for a long time. This made Clyde even more suspicious.
Not only Clyde, but Sonya also felt suspicious. Yet she was more curious about one thing.
Sonya drew closer to Clyde. "You can defeat that Wolf monster alone?"
Clyde answered with a nod. His eyes were still watching the battle ahead.
"Why don''t you help them? With your strength, the monster will be easily defeated."
"That''s not our monster. You know that, right?" Clyde said.
Sonya of course also realized that the four strangers had taken the same Quest as them.
Now the four of them looked much better at dealing with the Wolf.
Earlier one of their friends made a mistake that caused him to be bitten. That mistake is unlikely to be repeated now.
Sonya turned and looked in the direction the man had been thrown. It turned out that Asqa was with him.
"Asqa is healing him?" Sonya asked.
"Yes." Clyde nodded.
Sonya watched them for a moment.
From this distance, the progress of his wound healing was not very noticeable. But Sonya was sure that the man was getting better.
The Silver Lunar Wolf let out another scream. This time its movement became faster.
Clyde frowned. The Wolf he had been up against had never been this fast.
"He entered Red Blood!" Rodney shouted.
"What does it mean?" Sonya asked Clyde.
If this was a game, then Red Blood might be the stage where the monster had entered a critical stage.
When entering a critical stage, usually the monster''s stat will increase.
Clyde just happened to kill the Wolf before it entered that stage. He dropped the monster''s HP too fast.
"Looks like it''s going to be a little dangerous." Clyde walked over.
Sonya followed behind him. The three of them seemed to be having a hard time.
''Damn, the trapping n went awry. Reed was dead. Do we have to just start all over again?!''
Rodney''s mind was already thinking the worst.
He had been concentrating on the Silver Lunar Wolf in front of him ever since. He didn''t even get to look at Reed.
In this battle, if he diverted his attention even a little bit, then it would be over.
At that moment Mona suddenly slipped from her footing. The Wolf who saw her fall opened its jaws wide at Mona.
~~~
Chapter 14 The Truth
?The Wolf opened its jaws wide at Mona. Her eyes widened when she saw two rows of clear teeth and fangs that were ready to pierce her.
Mona closed her eyes.
''Ah, I have to do it again. To think I would fail on the first day...''
*DANGG!*
A voice sounded in her ears instead of a fang piercing her body.
When she opened her eyes, Mona saw a ck coat fluttering in front of her.
Clyde was holding the Wolf''s jaw with his sword. Then seeing Clyde''s burning hand, the Wolf jumped back as if on alert.
"Get up!" said Clyde.
Mona blinked a few times quickly.
Before she could say anything, Clyde was already running toward the Wolf.
"Let''s go!" he eximed to Eric and Rodney who were looking at him in confusion.
Clyde could deal with the Wolf monster himself. However, he didn''t want to bother him too much because it wasn''t his monster.
Rodney and Eric immediately took action.
They run to Clyde''s right and left sides.
Clyde himself slowed his pace and allowed the two men to attack at the front position.
However, Clyde sighed when he saw how the two men were fighting.
They were already experienced in dealing with monsters. But their strength was not enough to kill the monster.
"You guys should think a little more before taking on this Quest." Clyde shook his head.
Now there were even two of their members who were almost dead. That doesn''t bode well for their abilities.
Clyde was still activating Burning Hand ever since. His fairly high Magic Power level made him less anxious about constantly using Skill.
Clyde created a fireball in his left hand. Then threw the fireball at the Wolf.
*BOOM!*
"GRRRRAAHHHH!!!"
? The Wolf let out a scream of pain as the fireball hit it. Its feathers started to melt down.
Rodney and Eric didn''t waste this opportunity and attacked.
The Wolf had been weakened considerably by Clyde''s fireball. Even the feathers that acted as armor had almost gone.
Rodney and Eric didn''t squander this opportunity and attacked incessantly.
After several minutes of going on without Clyde''s help, the Silver Lunar Wolf for the Quest was finally defeated.
Rodney and Eric stood breathless next to the Wolf''s corpse.
Clyde deactivated the Burning Hand and then plunged his sword into its scabbard. Then he walked over to Sonya.
"You didn''t do anything," Clyde said to Sonya.
"Uhhm..." Sonya didn''t know how to answer because she really didn''t do anything. "Well, you''ve done it all. So..."
Clyde just sighed and then turned to look at Asqa.
Asqa seems to be doing a good job. The man is now able to stand although he looks quite weak. They both walked closer to them.
Rodney and Eric greeted Reed with a sigh of relief.
"You''re still alive," Rodney said with a relieved smile.
"Yeah, thanks to this girl."
Asqa just smiled.
Through her smile, Clyde could see that Asqa was happy to be able to do something useful. She looks proud of herself.
The identities of the four people were still mysterious to Clyde.
Without thinking too much, he used Inspection on them.
<>
[ Name: Rodney String ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 28 ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Exp: 50/100 ]
[ Private Attributes: Regressor. ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Regression (Lv.??), Sword sh (Lv.1). ]
[ Skill point: 0 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (2/10), Stamina (1/10), Agility (1/8), Magic Power (1/8) ]
[ Stat Point: 0 ]
[ Inventory:
- D-grade weapon: Katana ]
<<==================>>
<>
[ Name: Eric Hansen ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 31 ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Exp: 30/100 ]
[ Private Attributes: Regressor. ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Regression (Lv.??), Light of Shield (Lv.1). ]
[ Skill point: 0 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (2/10), Stamina (1/10), Agility (1/7), Magic Power (1/8) ]
[ Stat Point: 0 ]
[ Inventory:
- D-grade weapon: Shortsword.
- D-grade weapon: Shield. ]
<<==================>>
<>
[ Name: Mona Coxx ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 23 ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Exp: 50/100 ]
[ Private Attributes: Regressor. ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Regression (Lv.??), Sword sh (Lv.1). ]
[ Skill point: 0 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (1/8), Stamina (1/9), Agility (2/10), Magic Power (1/10) ]
[ Stat Point: 0 ]
[ Inventory:
- D-grade weapon: Katana ]
<<==================>>
<>
[ Name: Reed Rivera ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 26 ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Exp: 50/100 ]
[ Private Attributes: Regressor. ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Regression (Lv.??), Sword sh (Lv.1). ]
[ Skill point: 0 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (2/10), Stamina (1/9), Agility (1/9), Magic Power (1/10) ]
[ Stat Point: 0 ]
[ Inventory:
- D-grade weapon: Longsword ]
<<==================>>
After seeing their Attribute Window, Clyde frowned, ''What is a Regressor?''
Rodney approached Clyde and said, "Thanks for your help. If it weren''t for you, we would have died."
"You''d better not take on a Quest that''s way above your abilities," Clyde replied.
Rodney seemed to tighten his jaw. But he didn''t deny that it was true.
"The situation went beyond our expectations," Rodney said.
Clyde looked at Rodney and his three friends behind him then asked something that piqued his curiosity.
"Tell me something," said Clyde. "What is Regressor?"
Hearing that, Rodney seemed to hear the sound of thunder in the distance.
His chest suddenly thumped loudly. So did his three friends who heard Clyde''s question.
"H-How did..." Rodney took a deep breath and exhaled to calm himself. "How did you know about that?"
"I just know." Clyde looked at Rodney. As if demanding an exnation.
Rodney turned to his three friends. They all looked at Rodney with almost the same expression.
"We''d better go somewhere better to talk," Rodney said.
Clyde nodded. "I agree."
They returned to the motel where Clyde, Asqa, and Sonya used to stay.
They were all gathered in the room Clyde had stayed in earlier.
After previously discussing amongst themselves, the four Regressors decided to tell Clyde their true identities. But they will not tell everything in detail.
Clyde, Asqa, and Sonya were surprised after hearing their exnation.
"You guys can go back to the beginning after you die?!" Sonya looked at them in disbelief.
"Yes," Rodney answered.
"How is that possible?" Asqa asked.
"We also don''t know who gave us this kind of power."
''That exins how they can fight like they already have experience,'' Clyde thought.
"That means you already know what''s going to happen," said Clyde.
They nodded.
"We knew what happened until day five," Eric said.
Clyde frowned. "Why only until day five?"
The Regressors stared at each other.
"There''s a very powerful monster on the fifth day. We can never beat it and alwayse back to start over," replied Reed.
"What monsters?" Clyde asked with a pounding chest.
"An Outer God."
~~~
Chapter 15 The First
?"Outer Gods?" Sonya frowned at Rodney''s answer.
She had never heard of it before. But Sonya knew that name sounded pretty terrifying.
Unlike Sonya, Clyde knew what the ''Outer God'' was about. But he didn''t think that such a creature would exist in this apocalypse.
Because Clyde spends his time reading novels in addition to ying games. He had a slight idea of ??what the ''Outer God'' was.
Clyde swallowed his saliva. Then look at Rodney to ask.
"What does the Outer God look like?"
The Regressors exchanged nces. The one who answered Clyde''s question was Mona.
"We don''t remember how it was."
Mona looks like she is trying to find the answer in her mind. Yet the frown and expression on her face seemed to say that memory was something very difficult to achieve.
"No one has managed to remember its form. All we remember from day five is the feeling of hopelessness and immeasurable fear," said Reed. His body seemed to be shaking a little.
Clyde bit his lip. Hearing their exnation about what would happenter made him feel scared.
Even when he already had an advantage that no one else had in a disastrous situation like this.
''ying in Easy-Mode alone will not be enough to defeat the Outer God.''
While thinking about this, Clyde stared at the four Regressors.
"I think we should work together," said Clyde while looking at them seriously.
"We thought so too," replied Mona with a pleased expression. It was as if she had found new hope.
''I can make use of the knowledge they have.''
Clyde''s intention was of course not to help them. But the knowledge possessed by people who have repeated this disaster several times is invaluable.
"We have to prepare early. The first day isn''t over yet," said Clyde. "What can we get on this day?"
"There are still some monsters hanging around. We might be able to get Exp points from them to level up," Eric replied.
"Didn''t all the monsters disappear once the BOSS was killed?" asked Clyde with a confused expression.
"No. Actually, there are still a few that survive but they won''te out of their nests. It''s as if they were deliberately hidden."
"Like ''secret'' in the game, huh..." Clyde mumbled. "We also need food."
Even though Clyde wasn''t feeling hungry at all right now - perhaps because of the effect of his stats - he knew that the effect wouldn''tst long. They had to find food supplies.
After everyone agreed, they exited the motel to go to the location indicated by the four Regressors.
The remaining ant monsters were hiding in the dark buildings and several houses.
They killed the monsters and started earning enough experience to advance to the next level.
But Clyde didn''t get any more Level ups.
He who had reached Level 10 after killing many monsters at once and the BOSS alone needed more Exp points than others to be able to level up.
After hunting down the hiding monsters while gathering food, they returned to the motel.
Almost all of them advanced to Level 3.
Except for Asqa who was still at Level 2.
Even so, Asqa wasn''t at a disadvantage because she was only a Healer.
Clyde thought at this early stage, that Asqa had be a pretty good Healer.
With her Healing skill reaching Level 3, she could even treat Reed whose arm was about to sever until that man looked as healthy as ever.
Once back at the motel, Mona went into Asqa and Sonya''s room.
Eric, Rodney, and Reed were in one room. Clyde made it clear that he didn''t want to share a room with anyone else.
Before Rodney entered his room, Clyde asked. "Tomorrow, what will we face?"
Rodney looked at Clyde with slightly anxious eyes. "Zombie Virus."
"Oh, ssics." Clyde nodded his head.
"But the First Chapter will be more difficult than the Second Chapter."
Hearing that, Clyde frowned. "Why?"
"Tomorrow, everyone who is exposed to Virus smoke for more than a minute will turn into zombies. That means the same as dying. Then the zombies will start mutating every ten minutes into a stronger form."
"How do we deal with the smoke?" asked Clyde.
"There is a special gas mask that we have to find to block the effects of the virus smoke."
Clyde nodded. "Then, the BOSS?"
Rodney sighed before answering. As if to convey the toughest part of the story.
"The BOSS can control all zombies. He has sharp weapons, blunt weapons, and firearms. And also quite intelligent."
''Seems like quite a troublesome BOSS.'' Clyde thought.
"Thanks for the information. Get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day like before," said Clyde.
Rodney stared fixedly at Clyde. "I don''t know how you got to be that strong. But, the four of us are grateful to have you here with us. Thank you."
After saying that, Rodney turned around and went into his room.
Clyde felt a strange feeling he had never felt before.
Did someone thank him? it never happened before.
But Clyde saw clearly from Rodney''s eyes, that he was really sincere in saying that.
Though Clyde just wanted to make use of their knowledge. Does he deserve that gratitude?
"Hahh..."
Clyde sighed and left the motel.
He canceled his ns to sleep after hearing Rodney''s exnation.
Instead, he headed to the convenience store where the Checkpoint was previously located.
He walked over to the vending machine that sold Skills.
Clyde scrolled through the screen to select a Skill he thought would be useful for tomorrow.
The moon began to slip into the night sky. This indicates the night is gettingte.
Clyde came out of the convenience store carrying six Akill cylinders. Then he returned to the motel.
He spends a lot of coins on these skills.
~~~
The next day arrived. As soon as the sun began to reveal itself, a notification about the First Chapter came.
[ ATTENTION! ]
[ The First Chapter will start now! ]
[ THE FIRST CHAPTER "UNDEAD VIRUS" BEGINS NOW! ]
[ CHAPTER 1: UNDEAD VIRUS. ]
[ DIFFICULTY: B. ]
[ OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE FROM VIRUSES THAT TURN HUMANS INTO ZOMBIES AND SURVIVE ZOMBIE ATTACKS. ]
~~~
Chapter 16 The Next Day
?Clyde opened his eyes. The sound of notification echoed inside his head like an annoying rm that he couldn''t turn off.
Clyde stretched and got up from the bed. Then he came out of the room fully clothed with a sword at his waist.
As soon as he got outside it turned out that everyone was awake. They waited outside with worried faces.
"You ready?" Clyde asked while looking at all of them.
He knew it was a stupid question. Because even if they weren''t ready, they had to do it anyway.
"Toxic gas wille out in a few minutes. For the newest Chapter, the Checkpoint will change," said Rodney.
"So you mean the people on the subway will lose their haven?" Asked Asqa with a shocked face.
"Yes." Rodney nodded.
Asqa looked like she wanted to say something but she immediately closed her mouth again.
Clyde thought maybe she wanted to say that the people on the subway needed to be saved. But soon realized that what she wanted was too much.
"Let''s go."
Clyde walked first toward the motel lobby. After that, he stopped and turned to all of them.
Clyde took the six skill cylinders from his inventory and gave it to them.
"What''s skill is this?" Mona asked with confusion on her face. The questions represent them all.
"Open it," Clyde said.
They all knew that it was a cylinder skill. So they just opened it.
[ Skill obtained: Passive Skill: Toxic Resistance (Lv.1) ]
They all get the same notification. Their eyes widened knowing the new skill they had acquired.
"How did you get it?!" Reed asked.
"I bought it," Clyde answered simply.
"But the price of this skill is quite expensive!"
"I have a few more coins. Anyway, we should head out now."
Clyde was already walking towards the exit.
The six of them were naturally relieved after getting this skill. With [Toxic Resistance], the smoke that turns humans into zombies does not affect them.
However, the Regressors knew that the skill''s price was 500 coins.
They couldn''t possibly get it at this early stage. The reward coin from a rank B Quest - which is the highest Quest at this point - is only 300 coins.
The four of them once again were grateful to have met Clyde.
"Let''s go," said Rodney.
They all followed Clyde out of the motel.
Gray and green smoke coalesced and filled the city.
At this time the smoke was still a thin smoke that only covered the road at ankle height. Butter the smoke will get thicker and will be as high as the building.
Passive skills are skills that do not need to be activated and will take effect once they are obtained.
Sonya exins to Asqa who doesn''t understand. Mona came closer to them and help Sonya to exin.
"Where is the BOSS located?" Clyde asked.
"The BOSS won''t appear before the notification. Don''t you know about that?" Eric said.
"Ah, I see. I don''t know." Clyde said tly. "Then what can we do?"
"Well, we''ll have to find a special gas mask that can ward off this toxic smoke, but..."
Clyde nodded in understanding. "Then we should start killing zombies?"
"Yeah..."
"Okay."
The seven of them walked the streets filled with smoke. The zombies began to appear from everywhere.
There are a lot of zombies that appear right away.
There may be hundreds of zombies appearing and all of them are bloodthirsty.
The zombies immediately charged toward them.
Clyde turned to Sonya and Mona. "Give Asqa a chance to kill the zombies."
"Alright!" Sonya said.
Sonya and Mona knew what they had to do.
They both protect Asqa and then give her an iron pipe that they found on the road.
Asqa hits the head of a zombie that has been weakened by Sonya and Mona with fear and disgust. But she did it anyway.
Each zombie gives enough Exp to level up. But the zombies that appeared began to multiply and they began to struggle.
"Find a better ce to fight!" Clyde said to the six of them.
"Yes!" Answer Rodney. "But what about you?"
"I can handle it myself," Clyde replied calmly.
Rodney didn''t question it any further and immediately led them to find the right ce to fight thisrge zombie horde.
Clyde fought alone because he needed more experience to level up. And also he can fight more easily if he is alone.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.3) is activated! ]
From Clyde''s hands, bursts of fire spread in all directions and instantly burned the walking corpses. In an instant, he had already killed dozens of zombies.
[ You leveled up! ]
A level-up notification appeared.
Clyde didn''t stop and continued to attack. He killed the zombies with his sword and fire.
Rodney takes the group into a shop and hangs in there.
They kill zombies that pass through the door in turn.
Arge number of zombies will have no effect when they can only enter through one door in front of the shop.
Several minutes passed. The new notification sounded in the air.
[ "Zombies will start evolving!" ]
Clyde heard it too. But he who was busy ughtering zombies wasn''t too worried.
After all, he felt he could ovee these zombies even if they evolved for now.
The zombies instantly changed.
Their bodies began to be overgrown by sharp des.
They charged toward Clyde while swinging the sharp des that grew on the hands, head, and chest.
Some des can also extend like tentacles.
''This is going to be even more troublesome!''
Clyde noticed the changes taking ce around him. If indeed every ten minutes these zombies became stronger, it would be dangerous.
Even with his high-level and Easy-Mode Attribute, Clyde starting to get worried.
Because for Clyde, vignce and caution were indispensable in all situations. Especially in a life-and-death situation like this.
Clyde cut off the sharp tentacle that was aimed at his head.
Then he used his Burning Hand to burn the zombies around him.
After that Clyde ran to find a better ce.
When the zombies began to change, he did not want to be in the middle of their siege.
As he ran, Clyde saw someone standing on top of the building.
The person wore a ck hooded robe that covered his/her entire face.
"GRUAAAHHH!!!"
A zombie jumped at Clyde with both hands covered with sharp des shaped like an ax.
Clyde swung the Elderss Sword to block the sharp de. Then kick the zombie until it bounces back.
Not wanting to waste time, Clyde started running again.
He found a member of his group in a shop. Clyde ran towards the shop to regroup.
~~~
Chapter 17 Where They Came From
?The mysterious figure on the roof of the building stared down.
His brown eyes peeked from the shadow of his hood.
"Who''s that kid?" The figure muttered to himself.
He saw how Clyde fought against the zombies like someone with enough experience.
It was not natural for someone who had experienced a strange apocalypse for the first time.
Out of curiosity, the figure decided to look a little longer. After all, there was no way anyone would notice his presence here.
The child looks very young. But his strength looks great and his fighting ability is quite great.
How could he fight like that when he was at this level?
Even he and his group still have to fight hard. Even though they have more advantages than other yers.
He even already has a skill that is strong enough at this early stage. What is happened?
"I have to report this to the captain."
After feeling enough to pay attention to the boy, the figure just disappeared like being blown by the passing wind.
Clyde is still struggling to cut down all the zombies surrounding him.
Even though he could easily kill them, the number of zombies seemed endless. So Clyde is still in trouble.
In the end, he chose to join his other group members.
Clyde breaks through hordes of zombies who have evolved so they have sharp des on their bodies.
*SRAATTT!*
Suddenly, Clyde''s cheek was shed by a de that he didn''t know where it came from.
Clyde ignored that and continued to sh his Elderss Sword.
*CRAAAT!*
*CRAAAT!*
*CRAAAT!*
...
[You Leveled Up! ]
Clyde massacred all the zombies mercilessly. He beheaded them, pierced their chests and stomachs, and he also burned them.
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!*
The rotting and charred bodies of the zombies fell to the ground.
Clyde stomped and jumped over them while shing his sword repeatedly.
[You Leveled Up! ]
When the number of zombies had decreased, Clyde could see something in the distance.
''That''s it!''
Before long, the path to the shop where the rest of the group was located came into clear view.
Clyde jumped while shing then ran as fast as he could towards the shop.
Asqa realized that Clyde was running toward them.
"Hey! Clyde is running over here!" Asqa spoke to the others.
The rest of the group responded to her words and turned in the direction Asqa pointed.
It turned out that Clyde was indeed running toward them.
"Let''s help him!" Rodney said.
"How can we help him? Can''t you see that our own situation is already difficult?!" Reedined expressing his anxiety.
Reed was right, they were even having a hard time holding off the constant waves of zombies trying to break through their defensive wall.
Eric who was at the front while holding his shield grimaced, gritting his teeth with an expression of difficulty holding back their waves.
Eric''s body and face now had several sh wounds from the sharp des of the zombies.
Even though Asqa keeps healing him, the wounds keep appearing.
In addition, there are also bite and scratch marks.
Luckily he already has the Toxic Resistance skill, so he doesn''t need to worry. Even if he gets hit by their attack, he won''t turn into a zombie like them.
Unfortunately, the Skill couldn''t shake off the pain he was suffering from.
It turned out that Clyde didn''t need their help to get to the shop.
He broke through the horde of zombies himself with his strength.
With the Elderss Sword, he shed zombies and with [Burning Hand] he burned those who got in his way.
[You Leveled Up! ]
Clyde forgot how many times he had Leveled Up since he first ughtered the zombies.
He didn''t have time to count that now.
"He''sing!" Asqa screamed.
Among them, only Asqa can spare some attention for Clyde who is trying to reach them.
Rodney, Eric, and Reed work together to clear a path for Clyde so he can enter the store.
When the road was open, Clyde immediately jumped with all his might into the store.
He fell and rolled until he hit the wall.
Asqa who turned towards him realized that there were several wounds on Clyde''s face.
She immediately ran to him and performed healing without saying anything.
A soothing green glow covered part of Clyde''s face.
"I''m fine," Clyde said.
"Let me be a bit useful person," Asqa replied.
Hearing her reply, Clyde didn''t say anything else and let her do her job.
Clyde turned to all the people fighting at the store door.
''They won''tst much longer.''
Clyde nced at Asqa. "Thank you. I''m better now."
Clyde smiled faintly at Asqa. Asqa finished her healing feeling a little relieved as if a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders.
Clyde stood up and walked towards them. Asqa followed beside him.
"Have you healed Eric yet?" Clyde asked.
Aska nodded. "Yeah, I did."
"Good. Keep doing it like that."
Clyde walked over and spoke in a bit of a shout at them. He had to shout because the wild roaring sounds of the zombies around were too distracting.
"We can start the offensive now!"
Rodney turned to him. "What do you mean?"
"I saw something outside. That seems to be where these zombies are spawning," Clyde said.
"You mean where this poisonous smoke appears?" Rodney asked with a frown.
"No! I mean this is where these zombies are spawning! The remaining townspeople won''t be enough to make this many zombies. So, they must havee from somewhere else!" Clyde exined.
That sounds so preposterous. Rodney doesn''t know about what Clyde said. In the previous regression, he and his friends only survived by hiding until the time limit was up.
"Are you sure?" Rodney asked.
Clyde nodded. "Yes. We have to destroy it quickly if we want this to end!"
Rodney nodded and chose to believe Clyde''s words. After all, he had already decided to believe in him.
The two of them immediately exined what they were going to do next to Reed, Mona, Eric, and Sonya.
After that, they started to make a move.
~~~
Chapter 18 Pushing Through
?Eric pushed with all his might apanied by loud groans and screams.
"ERGGGHAAAAA!!!"
Eric''s strength is indeed stronger than his three friends. Among the four Regressors, he is indeed the one with the highest strength and endurance.
Several zombies were pushed back with annoying groan res.
Their sharp des danced and whipped all over the ce and scratched Eric''s body.
After that Rodney, Reed, and Mona jumped out and shed their swords at the zombies in front of them.
Sonya also shoots arrows at high speed at the zombies.
Meanwhile, Asqa keeps an eye on the group members to provide healing to anyone who needs it.
Clyde jumped higher than the others and immediately activated [Burning Hand].
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 3) is activated! ]
Clyde sent fire at the zombies and immediately scorched them.
After hended, Clyde shed his sword at incredible speed.
All the group members who saw him froze in awe at Clyde''s strength.
In an instant, he had taken care of many zombies when they had not even moved from their ce.
"Over here!" Clyde shouted without looking back.
When he didn''t get a reply, only then did Clyde turn his head and see that they were still having a hard time.
''Damnit!''
In his heart, Clyde was starting to question whether joining them was the right decision.
But in the end, he also stayed back and helped them.
After Clyde came, the zombie hordes around them started to decrease for a while before spawning again.
"Over here!" Clyde repeated himself because he was sure they had not heard him.
Even though they had a hard time, with Clyde''s help they started to push through this sea of ??zombies.
"Sonya!"
Sonya turned at Clyde''s call. "Can you aim at it?"
Clyde pointed to an organic green lump situated in the middle of the road.
The lump looks like a cocoon with a predominant gray color.
Meanwhile, there are transparent holes where the zombiese out.
The lump is about one meter in size and beats in a regr rhythm like a heart.
"I will try it!" Sonya answered.
"Everyone protect Sonya!" Clyde shouted.
"Understood!"
They all shouted in unison.
Sonya started aiming. With her Private Attribute ability, she can aim very easily even amid the zombies'' siege.
The distance between where they were and the lump was about ten meters. With a sea of ??zombies horde between Sonya and her target.
*TSYUUUUT!*
Arrow shot from Sonya''s bow with incredible speed.
*CRAAAPPP!*
The arrow stuck into the organic lump and dealt considerable damage to it.
Even though it''s just an arrow that looks small, the arrow was created with Sonya''s Magic power so the effect is much greater than ordinary arrows.
As if realizing that it had taken damage, the organic lump beat even faster. As if showing signs of pain.
"Do it again!" Clyde shouted again at Sonya in the middle of the fight. Turns out he had seen what was going on even though he was busy.
Sonya nodded and drew her bow again. However, when she shot, the arrow missed.
Sonya grit her teeth and cursed. But she pulled the bowstring again.
She couldn''t give up just yet while the other group members were working hard.
This time Sonya channeled a lot of her Magic power into her arrows.
Then fire it.
This time she was sure that she would hit it.
Yet, her belief was betrayed by a zombie who suddenly jumped in front of her arrow.
*CRAAATTT!*
The arrow stuck in the zombie''s head and immediately made him fall on the road.
"FUCK!" Sonya swore loudly.
She pulled back her bowstring to shoot again. But suddenly a sharp de swung at her from behind the crowd of zombies.
*TAKK!*
The sharp de that came out of nowhere severed Sonya''s bowstring. Making her gape with widened eyes.
"Oh, this is fucking great!" Sonya cursed even louder.
"What happened?" Asqa asked amid her panic.
The question was immediately answered when she saw Sonya''s bow.
She couldn''t say anything and just looked at Sonya with an expression as if to say that this was all very bad.
"Why did you stop?!" Clyde shouted in an annoyed tone.
"They cut my bowstring!" Sonya shouted back in frustration.
Clyde turned his head and stared at Sonya''s bow. He gritted his teeth when he saw that it was true.
Rodney, Reed, Eric, and Mona also heard Sonya''s answer so they also felt anxious.
"Okay, it can''t be helped. I''ll do it," Clyde said. "You guys help me get closer!"
Finally, they returned to the way before. They broke through the horde of zombies with their limited strength.
Clyde was starting to get worried because he felt that his Magic Power couldn''tst much longer.
The zombies that came turned out to be too many and kept spawning non-stop.
He had drained his Magic Power to use [Burning Hand] since the beginning. And that is a loss for him.
Now, he must fight alongside these people. At least when they managed to destroy the gray and green lumps, their burden would be reduced.
Clyde asked for Eric''s shield because he thought he would be better at using it.
Eric was a little reluctant. However, in the end, he gave it up without wasting much time.
Eric now only fights with his short sword.
Clyde took the front position. With his strength, he can make the group break through the horde of zombies faster than Eric.
Seven meters...
Five meters...
Three meters...
"I can see it!" Clyde shouted. "I''m going to jump!"
All group members nodded in understanding.
They fought harder and harder to support Clyde.
When he feel the distance is right, Clyde pushed his shield as hard as he could and then threw it.
After that, he held the shoulder of a zombie in front of him to jump.
Clyde then stomped on the heads and shoulders of several zombies. A momentter he jumped while activating [Burning Hand].
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 3) is activated! ]
*SWOSHHH!*
Clyde threw a fireball at the green-gray organic lump.
*BOOM!*
A huge explosion was created and burned the lump. Yet Clyde didn''t stop there and kept attacking.
~~~
Chapter 19 Limit Breaker
?Clyde continued to sh his sword at full power.
Elderss Sword, the sword with a bluish transparent de stabbed and shed into the organic lump''s body hard.
From the green part of the lump, zombies started crawling appear. But Clyde didn''t let them surface.
Every time an arm or head appeared, Clyde shed directly with Elderss Sword and decapitated it.
The pounding on the strange lump seemed to get faster and stronger. Even Clyde was starting to feel the rhythm under his feet.
Clyde became even more worried because he felt his body weaken.
It''s not a matter of stamina but something else. He knew that this feeling was because he is started to run out of Magic Power.
''Even with Magic Power at Level 5, I''m in trouble like this!''
Clyde turned to his group members who were still trying to get closer.
Their distance is not too far. But the zombies havee and surrounded them again, filling the path between Clyde and his group members.
Seeing no other choice, Clyde pressed his palm against the surface of the lump. He intended to pour arge amount of Magic Power into this one attack.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 3) is activated! ]
*SWOOOSSSHHH!*
A huge and powerful burst of fire shot out from Clyde''s palm. The explosion spread to all parts of the green and gray lump. Cover it with a smoldering fire.
The beat of the lump grew louder. Then a hissing sound came from it.
Not long after, all the zombies in the vicinity stopped to attack the other group members.
They turned to Clyde and immediately ran to him.
''Shit!''
Clyde also realized how difficult his current situation was.
This lump turns out to be able to summon a horde of zombies to protect itself. That made the difficulty multiply many times over.
However, Clyde also saw good development. The lump that couldn''t stand the burst of fire started to look ck and then melted.
''A little bit more!'' Clyde thought optimistically.
The hordes of zombies were also charging toward him simultaneously.
Their number of maybe a few hundred was intent on devouring Clyde. Like children trying to save their mother.
Clyde looked at his group members. With their current state, they wouldn''t be able to help him.
Clyde was starting to think that this was all impossible. Most likely, actually, they would just have to hide until the time came and fight the BOSS to clear the second day.
''But I''m already here. There''s no point in regretting this!''
Clyde steeled himself and chose to continue fighting. Yes, now he just has to keep fighting and survive!
"HYAAAAARGHHH!!!"
Apanied by a loud scream, Clyde poured all of his Magic Power into his palms.
The bursts of fire that came out were getting stronger. The speed of the scorching lump was also getting faster.
*KREEESSSS!*
*KREEESSSS!*
*KREEESSSS!*
Multiple hissing sound was heard as part of the lump fell as it burned. Up until now, half of the lump had been burnt.
Clyde shed his sword around to dispel and kill the zombies around him.
Clyde had already suffered several w attacks and bites from the zombies.
Some who tried to rip his back and arms were blocked by the defensive power of the Dark Night Coat. So Clyde only suffered in his face and the front of his hands that were not covered by the coat.
Clyde gritted his teeth.
''A little bit more!''
*KREEESSSS!*
*KREEESSSS!*
*KREEESSSS!*
Arge chunk of that lump started to copse even more. Until finally there are only a few parts left.
''A little bit more!''
A few momentster, finally, the lump waspletely burned.
*SWOOOSSSHHH!*
Clyde''s mes spread around as the lump finally disappeared and copsed into ck ashes.
Suddenly, all the zombies that were surrounding Clyde fiercely fell helplessly. Like a robot that has lost its power source.
Clyde panted hard. Even though he looked around and see that all the zombies had fallen, Clyde couldn''t let his guard down.
He turned his head in all directions looking for any possible danger. But he found nothing in the end. Instead, Clyde got a notification.
[ Congrattion! You have aplished the impossible task! ]
[You have destroyed a Zombie Spawner. ]
[ New Title Unlocked: Limit Breaker (Lv.1) ]
[ Title Effect: Grants the power to raise the limit of all Stats. As the Level of the [Title] increases, the Stats limit will also increase. ]
Clyde blinked his eyes a few times quickly.
''Wow! this is quite amazing, isn''t it?''
It turns out that destroying the lump is something that is impossible at this early stage.
Doing something out of the limit at this stage will give him a [Title]. And the effect of that [Title] was surprisingly good.
''If I can stack enough [Limit Breakers], then I can increase my Stats quite a lot. It will be very useful in theter stages toe.''
"You did it."
Suddenly, Rodney''s voice came from beside him.
He had suffered many injuries all over his body and his face looked tired.
Behind him, Eric, Reed, Mona, Sonya, and Asqa didn''t look any better. Even Sonya and Reed had fallen on the road.
''It''s only natural that they aren''t that useful. We really shouldn''t destroy the zombie spawner at this early stage.''
"It''s okay," Clyde said. "Oh, yeah. Did you get a notification?"
"I didn''t get anything," Rodney replied.
''Does that mean, I''m the only one getting that [Title]?'' thought Clyde.
If that was true, then he should keep it a secret for now.
Suddenly, another notification appeared before their eyes. This time, this notification is not only received at Clyde but by all members of the group.
[Sorry for the dy. Something extraordinary has been done. So it took us a long time to do the calctions. ]
[ You have killed all the zombies in this area by destroying the Zombie Spawners. ]
[You gain experience from all of the dead zombies. ]
[ You Leveled Up! ]
[ You Leveled Up! ]
[ You Leveled Up! ]
...
Everyone gets level-up notifications many times.
~~~
Chapter 20 Another Group
?All members of the group made stunned expressions. But soon an expression of happiness reced that.
"Whoa, amazing! I''m level 30!" Reed shouted after taking a look at his Attribute Window.
He still couldn''t believe what he was seeing so he nced at his Attribute window that floated into his field of vision once again.
Mona, Eric, Rodney, Sonya, and Asqa saw the same thing. And their reactions were the same as Reed''s. Their eyes opened wide in shock.
"We should only reach level 30 on the third or fourth day," Rodney muttered in a dreamy tone. It was as if he still couldn''t believe the number written on his Attribute window.
Clyde also checked his Attribute Window to see how much his strength had grown.
<>
[ Name: Clyde Cross ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 18 ]
[ Level: 55 ]
[ Exp: 0/1000 ]
[ Title: Limit Breaker (Lv.1) ]
[ Private Attributes: Easy-Mode yer ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Inspection (Lv.3), Weapon Mastery (Lv.1), Burning Hand (Lv.3), Toxic Resistance (Passive) (Lv.1) ]
[ Skill point: 66 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (6/10), Stamina (4/10), Agility (6/10), Magic Power (5/10) ]
[ Stat Point: 63 ]
[ Inventory: ]
- A-grade weapon: Elderss Sword (Upgradable),
- Dark Night Coat (Defense Lv.5)
- High-grade Health Potion (x3),
- Medium-grade Mana Potion (x3),
- 5,800 Coins.
<<==================>>
Clyde nodded in satisfaction seeing how his Attributes had grown so much.
Besides him Leveling Up countless times, he also obtained a [Title].
For this one, Clyde will keep it a secret. Maybe Clyde wouldn''t ever say that either.
Clyde turned his head in all directions. But he didn''t see any more zombies attacking.
The thick green smoke was no longer visible within a radius of several kilometers from where they stood.
However, Clyde still saw the smoke rising high in the northern sky.
''That area still seems to be facing zombie attacks.''
Clyde looked at the northern area that was still covered in green smoke thoughtfully.
He managed to destroy the Zombie Spawner in this area and killed all the zombies numbering in the hundreds.
This made him - and all his group members - level up a lot.
This means he got a veryrge power development drastically.
Clyde thought of going to ces that were still being threatened by zombies and destroying the Zombie Spawners again. That way he would level up quickly.
But, wouldn''t that look shy?
That one thought was enough to make him hesitate. But the temptation of a great Level up made his heart waver even more.
Should he be careful not to stand out? Because he doesn''t want to attract too much attention more than now.
"Clyde, what were you thinking?" Asqa asked while walking towards him.
She then looked at Clyde''s hands which were full of wounds.
"Your hands..." Asqa said in a worried tone.
"Nothing to worry about. I''m fine. It''s just a scratch," Clyde said.
Then Clyde put the Elderss Sword into the scabbard at his waist.
Even if ones Leveled Up in this apocalypse, they would not return to their original state like in the game. They will continue to bear the wounds they experienced.
Clyde didn''t feel anything in his body from the zombie scratch on the top of his hand.
That means unlike in the movies, these zombies won''t turn humans with scratches or bites.
"Let''s go back to the motel," Clyde said.
He approached the rest of the group and told them to go back to the motel and rest.
The group members walked with happy looks on their faces even though their bodies were covered in wounds.
It must be because they had gotten something far beyond their expectations when they left the motel this morning.
That is a lot of Leveled up. The pain in their bodies was nothingpared to what they had received.
~~~
Somewhere else, another group is hiding in a building.
The group consists of five people. But one of them had not returned from his reconnaissance duty.
Those who were here consisted of two men and two women.
They tried their best not to make a sound so that the zombies outside this door would not notice their presence.
One of the men among them started to speak in a very low voice. "Where''s Albert?"
"He''s doing reconnaissance, did you forget?" a young-looking woman - maybe in her teen age - replied in a suppressed irritated tone.
"Yeah. But why isn''t he back yet?" The man nced at his watch. "Nine minutes have passed."
"Be patient," one of the men with a stern face said.
The man looked the oldest of them. His hair is still full but slightly turned silver in a few ces.
"With his ability, Albert will return safely," the man added.
Hearing him speak, all the members of the group calmed down again. As if what he said would be the truth for this group.
The sound of zombie footsteps outside sounded terrible. They walked with fast steps apanied by a hoarse disturbing voice.
[ "Zombies will start evolving!" ]
The voice sounded in their heads. The four people were suddenly enveloped by a feeling of fear.
Their minds filled with thoughts about how the zombies would change.
"It''s okay," the stern-faced man said with a smile. "We''ll be fine if we hide here."
The man said trying to calm them down. But the only person who felt slightly better at his words was the young girl.
The other two people looked the same. The man and woman who looked grown up didn''t feel that everything would be fine. But they stay silent.
The older man had a reason why he could stay calm in a situation like this.
However, that reason would only be his and that man named Albert - The man who was now going on a reconnaissance - to keep.
The sound of zombie footsteps outside sounded even louder. No one knows what they have turned into.
If their footsteps were that loud, it was certain that they would turn enormous.
Shortly thereafter Albert came through the wall. Everyone was immediately surprised at his arrival.
Albert was the man in the robe who had been observing Clyde earlier.
He drew closer to the stern-faced man and whispered.
"I see a very strong person."
~~~
Chapter 21 Getting Out
?Hearing Albert''s words, the man looked up to look at him.
The look in his eyes was a mix of shock and confusion. But he still managed to keep his face to keep looking calm.
"Exin to us," the man said.
Albert nodded. Outside, there was the sound of zombies rampaging in the background.
"Hey, Albert," the adult man sitting next to him said. "Did you see what the zombies turned into?"
Albert sat and looked at him. "It''s getting worse. They''ve grown to be three meters tall and their des also be bigger."
"Shit¡" The adult man in the suit muttered with frightened eyes.
Albert looked at him with a level gaze. ''His power is pretty good. What is the reason for being so afraid?''
"Tell me about your findings earlier," the man with a stern face said demandingly.
Albert turned back to him and started exining what he had seen.
Albert started straight to the point, where he noticed that there was a man who looked very young.
He could use the Skill [Burning Hand] which could only be used by spending lots of coins.
Albert also exined his great fighting ability. It was as if his whole body had fully adapted to this apocalypse.
Or as if he already had higher Stats than everyone else at this stage.
Hearing that, the stern-faced man frowned. It made his face look even sterner than before.
Turns out, it''s possible for him to look more stern.
"Are you sure about that?" the man asked.
"Leon, I''m sure. I saw it with my own eyes," Albert said.
Leon, turned his eyes the other way. Then he scratched his chin.
Albert knew that was what he usually did when he was thinking.
"Maybe we should meet himter," Leon said. "Wiley, how about we head out now? Are you ready?"
Leon nced at the adult man in the suit. His agitated face made him look unprepared "Should we really be leaving now?" Wiley asked. His reluctant feelings could be seen clearly.
"Yes." Leon nced up at the clock on the wall above Wiley. "It''s about time. You heard the info that woman gave usst night, right?"
The group has also done a Night Quest. Afterpleting the Quest, they got a clue as a reward.
The clue said that at twelve o''clock in the afternoon the next day, something called Supply Cache would appear at a predetermined location.
The rewards they got frompleting D-rank Quests were just that. They don''t get coins or Exp frompleting the Quest.
They all think that the reward they receive is pretty shitty. But, Leon said that there was no point inining. So they decided to just ept that.
Wiley sighed. "I guess it can''t be helped. Why do we have to bother to get that reward? Why don''t they give it directly to us?"
"Whoever is behind this apocalypse is an asshole," a woman who looked the same age as Wiley said after being silent for a while.
"Let''s go," she said. "I''ll pave the way. As usual."
The woman stood up first holding a hammer in her hand. She who had been silent until now had turned into a figure that looked the most prepared among them.
Leon grinned. "That''s a good spirit, Rosie."
Leon also stood up. In the end, all the members of the group got to their feet and prepared to head out into the terrifying sights out there.
Leon was holding a machete with a shiny de. The Machete was his own and Leon took good care of it.
Behind him, the youngest girl of them closed her eyes. A yellow light appeared around her body.
The rest of the group waited for her to finish before starting to move.
It was because she had a Private Attribute that allowed her to see the future.
Even though she could only see up to thirty seconds into the future, but in this world''s situation, being able to see even for a second was an advantage.
Albert stood while holding a short dagger in one hand. Suddenly his body turned transparent, almost invisible.
He also got that ability from his Private Attribute.
Leon turned his head towards the young girl. He and the rest of the group waited for her to finish.
It wasn''t long before the young girl opened her eyes.
"How is it, L? What did you see?" Leon asked.
L started to exin what would happen in the next thirty seconds.
She could only see the future from her own perspective but since L was at the back, she could see the rest of the group in front of her.
L gave a short and fast exnation. The other group members had gotten used to it because they already do it since yesterday. So they do their best to pay full attention.
With that ability to see into the future, L could also tell how many zombies were behind the door including their position. That is a huge advantage for them.
"Alright. That''s enough. We''ll break through and head straight for the Supply Cache location," Leon said. "Everybody ready?"
Wiley, Rosie, Albert, and L nodded their heads almost simultaneously. After that, they put their gas mask on.
Seeing that his group was ready, Leon walked closer to the door and opened it.
Their hearts pounded as they saw the door finally slowly open.
Instantly, huge des connected to flesh tentacles extended inward.
The tentacles danced wildly trying to find their prey. Rosie who already knew what she had to do walked forward and lifted her hammer.
Electric sparks appeared in her hammer. Rosie swung her hammer at the door with full force and screamed.
"HYAAAHHH!"
*BOOM!*
*JZZZZZRRRRRTTT!*
A surge of electricity shot out with the impact of the hammer against the door.
The zombies who had grown their heads against the ceiling were electrocuted and convulsing. They were unable to move for a few moments.
Wiley, Albert, and Leonunched their attacks all at once.
Take advantage of the opportunity that has been created by Rosie.
~~~
Chapter 22 The Given Place
?They were originally inside a building. So what awaited behind that door was a corridor, that was now cramped by the presence of zombies that had evolved to be three meters tall.
But when they be that big, this corridor would restrict their movement.
Taking advantage of the situation and what L had revealed about what was happening thirty seconds from now. Leon, Albert, Wiley, and Rosie began their consecutive attacks.
The humans who were now yers made good use of the power of their Private Attributes.
After struggling with hardships before, they were finally able to gain a better understanding of the power of their Private Attributes.
Although they still can''t use it perfectly, but at least it''s enough to keep them alive.
Leon swung his machete with all his might without fear of anything.
He was leading at the very front, and Rosie was next to him.
The several sharp des of the zombies that were located at the ends of their flesh tentacles swung at Leon with great force.
However, the sharp des couldn''t hurt him in the slightest. The sharp des seemed to just hit a very strong wall.
? Meanwhile, Rosie blocked the sharp-ded tentacles with electricity surging from all over her body.
The electricity surrounded Rosie''s body like armor and repelled all attacks aimed at her.
The tentacles heading towards Rosie were electrocuted and scorched then fell limply.
Because of that, Rosie could attack blindly without paying attention to her surroundings.
Because of that defensive power, the two of them became the ones who were at the forefront.
Meanwhile, the others stood at the back tounch their attack at the right time.
Albert has the power of the Private Attribute which allows him to turn his body transparent. In that phase, Albert will not be able to get hit.
He can also prate solid objects with ease. That''s what makes him the right person for scouting.
After Albert uses his powers, he goes through Rosie''s body.
Once he was in front of Rosie, Albert turned his body into a solid body again and jumped, then he swung his dagger at the neck of a zombie.
*SRAATTT!*
The dagger managed to sh the zombie''s neck. But that''s not enough to kill it.
At the very least, Albert had to separate the zombie''s head from its body to kill it.
But the zombie was already swinging its huge, de-ridden arm at Albert.
So Albert changed his body to be transparent again so the zombie''s hand just pass through him.
After the rotten hand pass through Albert''s body and hit the wall next to him, Albert made his body solid again and jumped. Then sh his dagger again.
*SRAATTT!*
This time he managed to cut the zombie''s neck off.
Its head which was rotten and covered with small des fell on the floor and Albert gained experience from it.
Wiley who looked hesitant peeked from behind Leon. He then threw a purplish blob he had created seconds before.
When the purple blob hits one of the zombies that it targets, the purple color spreads over the zombie''s body rapidly.
With the power of his Private Attribute, Wiley can create some kind of purplish blob. The blob has the power to rot and poison anyone unlucky enough to get touched by it.
With that kind of power, Wiley could drastically weaken an enemy. However, he couldn''t kill them outright.
Because of that Leon immediately shed the machete at the zombie who had been hit by Wiley''s purple blob.
Leon''s machete can easily sh the leg of the zombie. After it fell, Leon shed its neck until its head was severed.
Wiley''s private attribute also allows him to attack from behind and protect himself against direct attacks.
It suited his reluctant-to-fight personality perfectly.
Wiley took cover behind along with L.
The young girl looked even scarier than Wiley. As a man and an elder, it was Wiley''s responsibility to protect L.
Wiley was a coward. But that doesn''t mean he''s a lowly loser.
They proceed to leave the building with the same tactic.
This tactic is very effective because some function as tanks and damage dealers.
Besides that L who can see the future for thirty seconds is also a useful support.
L uses her powers when the opportunity arises. For example when there aren''t many zombies around. Or when they find a pretty good hiding spot.
Unfortunately, L''s Magic Power wasn''t high enough to overuse it.
So they all had to think carefully before ordering L to use her powers.
The group of five managed to get out of the building where they had been hiding before.
Outside the building, they encountered a few zombies but the numbers weren''t as bad as they had expected. It''s just that their body size is very huge.
"If we don''t get the proper rewards after going through all this, I''ll beat up whoeveres to give a Quest tonight!"
Wiley groaned as he continued to run behind, he had already created a purple blob in his hand.
His Magic Power already running low, Wiley could clearly feel it.
He was now filled with feelings of uneasiness and fear. Wiley will tend to fuss if he''s feeling agitated or scared.
The rest of the group ignored him because they didn''t have time to deal with Wiley''s grunts.
After a few minutes, they finally arrived at the given ce.
The ce is a gas station. ording to the directions given, the Supply Cache is in the supermarket next to the gas station.
They all breathed a sigh of relief that there were no zombies there.
"Don''t let your guard down," Leon said.
His group members immediately knew what he meant.
Even though from here the situation looks safe because there are no zombies. But that is not reasonable for the situation that is happening now.
Howe there are no zombies when the zombie apocalypse is in progress?
Unless something else is waiting for them near that Supply Cache.
They approached the gas station with full vignce around.
~~~
Chapter 23 The Guard
?They approached slowly with great caution.
Their eyes spread around and tried not to let anything out of their sight.
Until finally a few momentster the five people arrived at the gas station.
Absolutely no zombies here. And it''s very strange. Where are the zombies actually located right now?
Those who had swarmed andpeted to eat them were now gone. There are no zombies within a few tens of meters of this location.
That can only indicate one thing. That indicated that inside the gas station there were likely bigger, or stronger, zombies.
They all came to the same conclusions on the circumstances that urred here before even saying anything.
They prepared to face anything near the Supply Cache.
There is a convenience store near the gas station. Because they couldn''t find the Supply Cache anywhere in the gas station area, they all concluded that the Supply Cache must be in the convenience store.
Leon peeked through the ss door. As soon as he took a peek, he immediately saw what seemed to be the Supply Cache.
It was a ck box covered with a silver metal line. The box is approximately one-meter square. Not too big but it seems enough to contain whatever reward awaits them inside.
"It''s there," Leon said in a whisper to his group members.
"What else is there?" Wiley asked.
"I didn''t see anything," Leon replied. "I''ll go in first and check things out."
They knew what Leon was capable of, so no one tried to stop him.
With his ability, Leon was indeed the most appropriate person to enter first.
"Be prepared if something happens to me."
After saying that Leon stood up and walked into the convenience store.
His jaw tightened because of anxiety. His eyes moved non-stop to scan every inch of the convenience store. But he still found nothing.
''This is weird. Very weird.''
Leon stepped closer to the Supply Cache but nothing happened. He stretched out his hand to touch the ck box.
*BRAAAKKK!*
Suddenly, from above him something fell through the minimarket ceiling.
The falling dust blocked his vision so he couldn''t see what was falling. Leon only felt something hit his shoulder.
Something very hard hit him with tremendous force until Leon fell to his knees.
"Urghh..." Leon groaned.
A momentter the dust and debris cleared so Leon could see what had attacked him.
The creature was hulking two meters tall. Its head was covered by a white sheet that was almost ck with blood.
Its body was also wrapped in a white cloth stained with blood.
It gripped a giant ax with both hands that had bulging muscles. The de of the ax was now on Leon''s shoulder.
Leon finally knew what hit him on the shoulder. If it wasn''t for his ability, Leon''s shoulder would have been sliced ??open by now. Then he bled to death.
This is the zombie that guarding the Supply Cache.
A purple blob suddenly hit the ax zombie''s head. Making it let out a groaning that sounds deep and disturbing.
Leon used the chance to heave the giant ax on his shoulder and rolled away.
After that, he stood up and swung his machete at the creature''s back.
*CRAAATTT!*
Leon''s machete can injure it. But he couldn''t make the wound too deep because it''s hard muscle.
The creature which was some kind of evolution from a zombie swung its ax toward Leon.
Leon was able to duck in time so the ax just destroyed the food shelf behind him.
"HYAAARGHHH!"
From behind the zombie Rosie jumped up with her electrified hammer.
*BUAGHHH!*
*JZZZZZZZTTTT!*
After the hammer hit its head hard, electricity flowed through its head and staggered it.
Albert followed shortly after and stab his dagger.
*CRAAAT!*
The dagger prated the white cloth and a bit of skin from the zombie. However, as happened with Leon''s machete earlier, the dagger didn''t do much damage.
"GRRAHH!"
The zombie waved its hand at Albert. But Albert had already used his ability to be transparent so the zombie''s hand just went right through him.
Seeing that the blob he threw earlier did no significant damage to therge zombie, Wiley decided to create another one.
Behind him, L was staring at the store with frightened eyes.
After Wiley had created a purple blob in his hand, he threw it at the zombie''s head again when he saw an opening.
*BLART!*
The blob hit the back of the zombie''s head. It groaned in pain again.
This time something happened. The dirty white cloth full of blood that covered its head began to decay and finally fell off.
Revealing an ugly face that was rotting and full of maggots.
"Fuck! I should have just left it there!" Wiley again groaned.
However, Leon, Albert, and Rosie seemed unfazed by the ugly sight of the zombie''s face.
They continued tounch attacks in hopes of dealing enough damage to the zombie.
The zombie swung its ax at Rosie. Rosie blocked it with her electrified hammer.
*CLANG!*
Then Rosie uses her ability to transmit electricity through the ax to the zombie''s body.
*JZZZZRRRTTT!*
Rosie grimaced and gritted her teeth. It indicated that she was squeezing her Magic Power to transmit the electricity.
But Rosie''s efforts ended well because soon the zombie convulsed as electricity filled its body.
The purple blob was also spreading faster and faster from the zombie''s head to its entire body. Thus causing it to weaken quickly.
Leon and Albert did not waste the opportunity. They immediately charged and swung their machetes and daggers.
*CRAAAT!*
*CRAAAT!*
*CRAAAT!*
...
Leon and Albert attacked repeatedly with their weapons.
The zombie could no longer attack as its body convulsed due to the electricity from Rosie.
The two of them also noticed that Rosie''s Magic Power was running low. So they made their attacks as stronger and fast as possible with the remaining time Rosie gave them.
~~~
Chapter 24 Handling The Guard
?As the zombie''s strength decreased, its speed increased. Suddenly, it stopped from its convulsing and then begin its attack again.
The zombie swung its ax as hard as it could. It was trying to cut through Leon''s abdomen.
But the attack was blocked by Albert with his dagger.
The ax head collided with Albert''s dagger. With a loud ng, Albert''s dagger broke into pieces. Fortunately, he still got one more dagger.
A secondter the zombie''s ax was on Leon''s side. It happened so fast that neither Leon nor Albert realized it.
The ax was swinging down while Leon was holding his machete in front of him.
He couldn''t afford to hold anything else while fighting this monster.
Finally, the ax struck Leon''s machete.
*CLANG!*
And then the ax was stuck in Leon''s machete.
"FUUUUCK HARGGGHH!" Leon yelled.
The zombie pressed its body against Leon and rammed its giant ax with great speed into Leon''s machete.
"Leon!"
Rosie screamed. She was watching the situation from afar.
She ran to help Leon even though she knew that her Magic Power was running low.
When she felt she was close, Rosie swung her electrified hammer at the back of the zombie''s head.
Unexpectedly, the zombie immediately turned its head back as it noticed Rosie''s arrival. It removed one hand from the ax and swung it at Rosie.
*BUAGHHH!*
Rosie was sent flying before her hammer could hit the zombie''s head.
She has thrown over the shelves containing food before finally hitting the wall anding to a stop.
Rosie fell on the floor. She felt excruciating pain in her ribs.
''Shit! looks like I broke my rib.''
Rosie winced in pain. After her Magic Power ran out, now she had to endure the pain of broken ribs. Plus, it doesn''t look like the big zombie will be going down anytime soon.
''What should we do?''
Leon and Albert were of course worried about Rosie. However, their circumstances are not much different, so they can''t do anything.
Leon realized that his machete was broken. There was a part in the de of the machete that was shattered by the giant zombie''s axe.
"HGGRRAAAHH!"
The zombie roared loudly. Then it ran towards Leon and Albert while raising its giant axe.
Leon gritted his teeth seeing the giant zombie approaching. He had not the slightest intention of running because he knew what he was capable of.
Instead, Leon darted toward the zombie.
"HAAAAA!" he shouted.
The giant ax descended toward his head. Leon threw down his machete and raised both hands to catch the ax de.
Leon knew that the giant zombie''s strength had been greatly reduced.
And its speed also increased drastically. Because of that Leon was quite confident he could stop the swing of the giant axe.
"Urghh..." he groaned.
He managed to catch the axe, but the force behind the swing was still quiterge even though it had been much reduced.
"Attack now!"
Albert dashed towards the zombie after Leon shouted.
The giant zombie tried to lift its ax from Leon''s grip but to no avail.
Leon moved his hand swiftly towards the giant ax''s hilt, preventing the zombie from pulling it again.
"I won''t let you!" Says Leon.
Albert came and immediately thrust his dagger into the zombie''s eye. At least what was left of his eyes.
*CRAAAT!*
Albert''s dagger pierced the zombie''s eye easily. Unlike before, it felt like the giant zombie''s body was even more fragile than before.
"GRAAAHHH!!!"
The giant zombie seemed to be screaming in great pain. Of course, none of the five of them empathized with its pain.
Instead, they were happy to hear that they managed to inflict pain on the zombie.
Rosie, who was still kneeling in the corner of the store, stared at the zombie with a grin on her face.
Even though she felt pain, seeing the zombie also feel pain made her relieved.
Suddenly L came towards her. She seemed to being from the ss wall that had already been destroyed behind the store.
"You alright?" she asked.
"I''m fine. Urghh..."
Even though she said she was fine, L could see that something was wrong with her ribs.
"We''d better get away from here," L said.
Rosie didn''t argue because she knew Leon and Albert would be able to handle it on their own.
Her presence here could have been a nuisance. So Rosie went outside with L''s help.
Wiley on the other hand had turned to the other side of the store so he could throw his blob on point.
Wiley heard the zombie''s screams of agony and grinned happily.
''A little more!'' Wiley said in his heart.
Wiley created another purple poison blob in his hand. Then threw it toward the giant zombie.
*PLOP!*
The purple blob hit its back. Decay and poison spread quickly and seeped into its back.
Because of the purple blob that Wiley threw, the giant zombie became even weaker.
He fell to that knee and the grip on the ax loosened.
Knowing this, Leon pulled the ax from the zombie''s hand.
Leon felt that he could still hold the ax even though it was quite heavy.
So Leon immediately grabbed the handle of the ax and was ready to swing it at the zombie.
"GO!"
Albert, who previously attacked the zombie fiercely, immediately made his body transparent when he heard Leon''s scream.
"HYAAAAARGHHH!"
Leon swung the giant ax at the giant zombie''s head with all his might.
~~~
Chapter 25 The Rewards
?The ax swung down from above. The zombie''s rotten, maggot-infested eyes widened.
If there was even a hint of emotion or awareness In them, it would know that its end was very near by now.
*CRRAAAATTT!*
Red and gray liquid sttered all over the ce as the de of the giant ax stuck in its head.
The giant zombie''s hands that had been iling wildly now fell paralyzed beside its body.
Its mouth gaped wide and it let out a groan that apanied whatever was keeping it alive.
Leon released his grip on the giant axe.
After he let go, the giant zombie''s body fell to the side along with the axe.
*CLANNGG!*
A loud thud was heard as the ax''s rusty iron handle fell onto the store floor.
After that, a notification appeared before the eyes of each of them.
[ Congrattions! you have seeded in defeating The Guardian (Grade B) ]
[Rewards: 500 Exp. ]
The five people immediately widened their eyes.
They all gain 500 Exp simultaneously. Even though it was Leon who delivered the killing blow to the giant zombie.
Wiley cheered with L beside him. They were able to cheer like that because they didn''t fight directly with the giant zombies.
Meanwhile, Leon and Albert slumped on the floor of the store and breathed a long sigh of relief.
Rosie, who was next to L, was no different.
Although she smiled, her smile was weak. Because she had to bear the pain in her ribs.
"We can open the box now," Wiley said. He then approached Rosie.
"Can you walk?" Wiley asked Rosie.
Rosie didn''t answer instead she tried to stand up. But then she fell back with a groan.
"Hmm, I guess you can''t."
Wiley reached out to help Rosie up.
Rosie didn''t say anything and just put her arm around Wiley''s shoulder.
Wiley, Rosie, and L walked into the store following Albert and Leon who was already standing in front of the Supply Cache.
"What should we do? We just have to touch it?" Wiley asked.
"I think so," Leon replied.
But they couldn''t find a handle that might be something to use to open this box.
So, Leon then decided to extend his hand towards the box.
As soon as he touched it a cking sound was heard.
The box began to open in four different directions. The five of them immediately stepped back.
But then they immediately approached again after knowing what was in the box.
There are four different weapons and an orange orb in the box.
The weapons were a fifty-centimeter-long short sword, a hammer that seemed to give off a bluish glow, a thirty-centimeter-long ck blow dart, and a pair of daggers with silver des.
Besides that weapon, the orange orb looks different.
"Is our reward?" Wiley asked.
Leon and Albert walked closer to the city. While Wiley just stayed where he was and let them check it out.
"It seems so," Leon said.
Leon then lowered his head and extended his hand towards the short sword.
When Leon finally grabbed the hilt, he expected something to happen. But nothing happened.
So Leon raised the sword. As soon as Leon brought the sword to his face, a Window containing the sword''s simple description appeared.
[ Name: ck Silence Sword. (Upgradable) ]
[ Type: Melee Weapon. ]
[ Grade: B. ]
Leon had a smile tugging at his lips.
"This is a grade B weapon!" Leon eximed.
"What?" Albert looked at him then looked at the sword in his hand with a look of disbelief.
Then Albert immediately approached the box to take his weapon.
Wiley, L, and Rosie also drew closer to the opened box. They scanned every remaining weapon.
"I think these weapons are adapted to the weapons we use and our fighting style," Albert said.
Without thinking any further, Albert took the pair of silver daggers.
[ Name: Double Fang Daggers (Upgradable) ]
[ Type: Melee Weapon. ]
[ Grade: B. ]
"This is really a Grade B weapon," Albert muttered as he studied his new weapon.
Wiley, L, and Rosie also grabbed weapons that they thought fit them.
Rosie of course took the hammer with the bluish glow. That meant only a blow dart and an orb left for Wiley and L.
Rosie looked at the hammer in her hand and a Window appeared.
[ Name: Thunder Eater Hammer. (Updgradable) ]
[ Type: Melee Weapon. ]
[ Grade: B. ]
"What''s this?" Wiley was confused as he picked up the blow dart.
He had never known that a weapon like this existed before.
"That''s a blow dart," Rosie said. "Something the tribes used to shoot poison darts."
"Oh, that one." Wiley nodded his head. "In that case, it does suit me."
[ Name: Fullgrim Blow Dart. (Upgradable) ]
[ Type: Ranged Weapon. ]
[ Grade: B ]
In that case, only the orange orb would be left for L.
The orb was about five centimeters in diameter and fit in L''s hand.
[ Name: Magic Orb (Lv.2) (Upgradeable) ]
[ Type: Magic Item (Rare). ]
[ Grade: B. ]
"It says Magic Orb. What is this?" L asked those around her.
She scanned the orb, turning it several times but found nothing.
"Maybe it''s something that can grant Magic Power?" Wiley made a suggestion.
"If that''s true, this orb will be very useful," L muttered with a smile.
After sessfully defeating the giant zombies and getting better rewards than they expected, the five decided to leave the store and gas station.
The sun was higher than they hadst remembered. Indicates that the new day enters the time around ten or eleven in the afternoon.
There is still a long day until this day ends. But so far have been pretty good for them.
The green poisonous smoke still lingered around. Their gas masks are cracked in several ces but still function properly to prevent them from turning into zombies.
"Should we take the same Quest tonight?" Wiley asked with a smile after knowing they got such a good reward.
"No," Leon said. "I''m thinking of taking a higher rank Quest."
"I think that''s a good idea," Albert said. "I think that with Grade B weapons, ourbat ability will improve a lot. After all, the rewards from Quests with higher ranks will be much better."
~~~
Chapter 26 Next Step
?While Leon''s group and his party were happy, Clyde''s group and the Regressors'' group were feeling anxious about what wasing next.
It was almost noon. In their area, the zombies had disappeared and the greenish smoke had also thinned.
After they destroyed the Zombie Spawners, the threat to their area disappeared. But the biggest threat is still not over.
They still haven''t fought the Boss. Therefore, today can be said to still be quite long. They couldn''t feel relieved yet.
"When is the Boss showing up yet?" Clyde asked because he was getting impatient.
"The Boss will only appear when most of the zombies are gone, or when the time is right," Rodney - the leader of the Regressors answered.
"Hmm..." Clyde mumbled. It was obvious that he had something on his mind now.
Everyone present seemed to know what Clyde was thinking after spending some time with him.
"How about we end this quickly?" Clyde finally said his suggestion.
"I knew you would say that," Sonya responded.
Clyde turned to her. He saw the worried look on Sonya''s face.
"Well, if you don''t want to do it you don''t have to."
Clyde gave them a choice. He guessed that now they wouldn''t want to venture out to get into any bigger trouble.
After all, they have leveled up a lot. And their bodies were also injured. So there''s no point in them putting themselves in any more danger.
"If I''m being honest, I don''t want to go out there anymore," Eric said expressing his heart.
He could be said to be the one who carried the most burdens among others. Beside Clyde of course.
Eric was at the forefront and he was the one pushing the zombies away.
He is also the one who gets hit by the zombies more than the others. So it was only natural that even with his big body, Eric was the most tired of them.
Clyde himself was not too tired after he rested for a few minutes. So he''s ready for action again.
Clyde just nodded. Then he stood up and picked up the Elderss Sword.
"You guys have leveled up quite a lot. So it''s time for you to rest without worrying about anything," Clyde said.
"You''re really going to face the zombies again, Clyde?" Asqa asked.
"Yes."
"But why?"
"So that this can all end as soon as possible."
Clyde gave an answer that touched their hearts.
Was he as tormented by this apocalypse as they were? So he wants to end this immediately so that everything returns to how it was before?
They saw Clyde walking towards the outside of the motel.
His broad back was wrapped in a long ck robe. He seemed to be the hope for them all.
Clyde exited the motel and headed north.
''This way I can get the [Title] without attracting their attention.''
As he walked, Clyde grinned. With his current strength, he was confident that he would be able to destroy Zombie Spawners again.
Even if he has to do it by facing hundreds or maybe thousands of zombies that already evolved.
Clyde was now Level 55. His strength had skyrocketed after he distributed his Stat Points and Skill Points.
The surge of power flowed within his body. He felt invincible.
Of course, Clyde didn''t distribute all those Stat Points and Skill Points. All of that is limited to Level 10.
Meanwhile, he still has a lot of points left. Clyde didn''t know what to do about it.
Was Level 10 the limit of Stats? But why was he still able to store Stats and Skill Points?
Clyde decided to put that aside for now and focus on what was in front of him.
He would get a hint about itter from the system that was running this apocalypse.
Clyde also knew from the online literature he read that there would be some kind of event that would p him in the face, and humbled him real quick if he became an arrogant character.
So Clyde calmed himself down and focused on remaining vignt.
He couldn''t allow himself to get carried away and make mistakes.
He''se this far. Then he better finish it properly.
Greenish smoke still rising. That means there''s still a zombie mess to clean up.
So Clyde ran in that direction. His stats that had reached Level 10 brought a very significant change to his body.
Clyde ran until he saw his surroundings as a blur. But he was still able to easily control his body.
It is like a cheat in a video game. He reached this level of strength in just a short amount of time.
Clyde put his foot on the roof of a car and stomped hard. So that he can shoot as far as tens of kilometers ahead.
Clyde did that a few more times until he finally arrived at the area where the green smoke was still dense.
His [Toxic Resistance] skill was already Level 10. So Clyde was confident that he would be fine.
He stepped into the green smoke.
Instantly, the zombies lurking in the green smoke area became aware of his presence.
Clyde could hear their disturbing growls and screams.
He drew the Elders Is Sword from its scabbard.
"Now, where is the zombie spawner?"
Clyde stepped up and spread his eyes around. But within this thick green smoke, it was too hard to see anything.
"GWAARRRGHH!"
Suddenly a zombie with a strange shape came toward Clyde.
It lunged on all four. Its entire body was covered in spikes that seemed to havee from its erged bones and pierced through the flesh.
The zombies were the size of trucks and charged with terrifying ferocity.
Clyde raised the Elderss Sword.
*DANGGG!*
The transparent de blocked the zombie''s head. Even though he was hit by a zombie the size of a truck, Clyde didn''t budge at all.
Clyde grinned at how light the zombie impact was. He grew more and more confident in his strength.
Then Clyde kicked the zombie until it flew away.
He put the Elderss Sword back into its scabbard because he felt that this battle was enough for him to fight with his bare hands.
~~~
Chapter 27 Against Five Zombies
?It turns out that there isn''t just one zombie around.
Clyde was quite surprised at how the zombies had evolved.
They got bigger. Really big. That''s obvious.
But other than that they also changed to have a more terrible shape and look more like monsters.
Their faces are distorted by messy overgrown bones.
Clyde had no idea how hard it was for them. He hoped that the consciousness or whatever was still left of their humanity had disappeared.
He couldn''t imagine how much they would have suffered if there was still conscious when the zombie transformation happened.
"Well, that doesn''t matter anymore now."
Even though Clyde felt a bit sorry for those people who had turned into zombies, he couldn''t do anything but kill them.
So Clyde will do it as soon as possible.
Clyde saw that there were now 5 five-meter-tall zombies around him. Including the zombie, he threw earlier.
They showed clear signs of hostility to Clyde.
Clyde didn''t wait for them toe. Instead, he darted towards one of the zombies he thought was closest and threw a kick.
*BUAGHHH!*
Because Clyde''s agility and strength had reached their peak, the zombie didn''t even know what happened before its body was thrown back.
"GWARRGHH!"
The other zombies have a fairly fast reaction even though their bodies are very big.
One of the zombies whipped a tentacle with a sharp de at Clyde from the left.
Clyde jumped back to dodge. Then he darted forward again to grab hold of the tentacle.
Clyde pulled the tentacles with a little more force.
*CTAASS!*
The tentacles snapped off instantly. Its blood had turned into a thick green liquid sshed in all directions.
The zombie let out a loud screaming sound that seemed to be a sign that it was feeling pain.
Clyde frowned and wondered. Was it a pain that emanated from its human mind, or was it just a natural response to having part of its body ripped?
Anyway, Clyde should continue the attack.
After ripping off its tentacles, Clyde dashed toward the zombie and stomped his feet to the ground.
The move sent his body flying through the air until Clyde was level with the zombie''s head.
After that Clyde sent a punch to its face.
*BUAGHH!*
*CRAAATTT!*
Clyde''s fist seemed to crush something on the zombie''s face.
It staggered and tripped over its own feet before finally crashing to the ground.
*BOOM!*
Clydended again. He looked in all directions and saw another 3 zombies charging toward him.
The zombie he threw earlier is back with all four. It also charged toward him.
"Bring it on!"
Clyde didn''t think about any strategy and just let his barbaric side guide what he would do against the zombies.
Clyde let his whole body move. There was an extraordinary cathartic feeling when Clyde saw for himself how his body moved agilely avoiding every tentacle and w or even the sharp de shots fired by the zombies.
He fought with a grin on his face. He still had no intention of pulling the Elderss Sword out of the scabbard.
*SYUUUHHH!!!*
A sharp de shot toward Clyde''s face with incredible speed.
Clyde tilted his head to the side. The sharp de shot and cut the ends of his hair.
After that Clyde shot toward the zombie who threw a sharp de at him.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was in front of the zombie. He sends a fist to its face.
*BUAGGGGHHH!*
The zombie''s head was knocked back. Clyde did not stop there. He sent out another fist repeatedly.
*BUAGGGGHHH!*
*BUAGGGGHHH!*
*BUAGGGGHHH!*
*BUAGGGGHHH!*
...
After being hit by several blows without stopping, finally, the zombie''s body began to disintegrate one by one.
The part of its face that was already disfigured was shattered in half.
Its chest was hollow and its hands fell to the ground. Even so, the zombie is not ''dead''. It''s just incapacitated.
Clyde wanted to finish but suddenly two tentacles snared him from behind.
''Shit! I let my guard down!''
Clyde''s body was pulled back. After that, a fist covered in sharp des hit his back.
*BUGGHH!*
The zombie who hit him sent out a punch with all its strength.
However, with Dark Night Coat''s defense, and his Stats at the peak, Clyde didn''t feel any significant effect from that blow.
He then grabs the two tentacles binding his upper arms and pulls them.
The two tentacles immediately snapped off and Clyde fell to the ground.
"I won''t waste any more time."
He had yed enough with them already. Time to end this and continue searching for the Spawner.
Clyde darted and hit the leg of one of the zombies that had attacked him.
*BUAGGHH!*
*CRAAAT!*
The zombie''s leg was immediately destroyed because Clyde increased the power of his fist.
After the zombie fell, Clyde climbed onto it and stood on its chest.
He then stomped on the zombie''s head.
*CRAAATTT!*
The zombie''s head was immediately crushed with thick blood sshed in all directions.
The zombie didn''t move anymore.
Clyde then turned to the other zombies. He dashed towards one of the two nearby zombies and then stomped his feet.
Clydeunch towards the zombie and gave it a drop kick.
*BUAGHH!*
The zombie fell backward. Clyde wanted to finish it immediately but the other zombies attacked him by swinging their ws at Clyde''s head.
Clyde could dodge by bending his back. The w was inches from ripping his nose.
Then Clyde got back up and attacked the two zombies.
He hit the zombie who had swung its ws at him. The punch crushed the zombie''s leg and sent it crashing to the ground.
After that, Clyde ran to destroy the zombie''s other leg.
When they both fell, Clyde crushed their heads with his punches and kicks.
*CRAAATTT!*
*CRAAATTT!*
Clyde manages to kill two more zombies. Now there is one more that he must handle.
Clyde rushed to one of the zombies that in standing position and stomped his feet to the ground so he could reach its head.
~~~
Chapter 28 Huge Flying Zombie
?Clyde shot up into the air. Then he swung his fist with the same strength as the one he had used to kill the other four zombies.
*BUAGHH!*
*CRAAATTT!*
The zombie''s head was immediately destroyed by Clyde''s punch.
It fell with a thump on the ground. Followed by Clyde whonded not far from its body.
Clyde sighed. He managed to kill those five zombies in less than five minutes. Maybe even less than that.
He didn''t feel like he had used up much power even though he had already faced those five gigantic-sized zombies.
It was proof that his strength had increased tremendously in just a few hours.
Clyde walked offughing. He never would have imagined that he would be this strong two days ago.
Two days ago he was still a lonely and cowardly teenager. A teenager who is too cowardly to even end his own meaningless life.
But now, he might have be the strongest person - or yer - in this world. And that possibility is very likely toe true.
Clyde looked back again. He had gotten a notification that he had gotten Exp since killing the first zombie.
But because he was already at Level 55, Clyde still needed quite a lot of Exp points to be able to advance to the next level.
He didn''t mind that.
Clyde walked on through the green smoke. His vision was limited and Clyde regretted that he didn''t seek the Skill to be able to see through this dense fog.
"KUUOOOKKKHHH!"
A strange sound was heard from the sky. Clyde immediately looked up when he heard it.
''What''s that?''
Clyde looked everywhere but found nothing.
Whatever was making that strange sound just now must have been flying through the air. But this thick green smoke prevented Clyde from finding it.
He can''t be reckless even though he''s already at a high level.
Clyde always reminded himself of that. So he immediately ran to find a ce to hide.
At least until he manages to find whatever it is screaming from up there.
This all feels weird too. There were no zombies to be seen after the five zombies he had defeated earlier. Where are they all?
"KUUOOOKKK!!!"
The voice sounded closer.
Clyde finally finds a building and runs into it.
He kept his eyes up looking for the creature. A few secondster he saw a ck silhouette hovering above him.
The creature was hidden behind a thick green fog so that only its silhouette was visible.
The creature is huge. Looks like it''s about ten meters long.
Its wingspan may be up to six meters from one end to the other.
That''s just a rough approximation of its size.
The creature could have been even bigger because it was still floating in the air so its size wasn''t clear.
''It seems a troublesome monster has appeared.''
Clyde felt sure that it was another evolution of these zombies.
If it could fly, then fighting against it could be very difficult.
''Unless I can get it to the ground.''
Clyde ran into the building. Then through the emergency stairs to get to the top of this twentieth-floor building.
Once he had reached the top, Clyde stepped out warily.
"KUOOOKKK!!!"
The creature kept screaming. From up here, the sound became clearer.
Clyde crept toward the sound. He finally managed to see the creature''s form more clearly.
It was a dragon-like creature. But the creature''s entire body seemed to be made of pieces of flesh glued together.
Clyde could even see human faces with gaping mouths, their expressions looked miserable.
The creature has a long beak like a bird. The beak seemed to be made of bone that protruded from inside its body.
Its wings are membrane like bat wings but blood red.
It has four legs and all of them have ws.
It has no eyes. It made Clyde wonder how it could navigate through these buildings.
Clyde waited for the moment when the creature would turn around and draw closer to the building he was in.
It turned out that Clyde didn''t have to wait long because the creature was already heading toward him again.
It seems that the creature just rotates randomly following the instinct that leads it.
Clyde focused his eyes on the creature and used his Skill.
[ Inspection (Lv.3) is activated! ]
After that, the information about the monster appeared.
<<>>
[ Name: Corpse Bringer Dragon. ]
[ Affiliation: Dragon Monster. ]
[ Level: 25 ]
[ Skill: Death Breath (Lv.5), Decaying w (Lv.5) ]
[ Stats: Strength (5/10), Stamina (5/10), Agility (5/10), Magic Power (5/10) ]
[ Weakness: Holy. ]
[ Affinity: Darkness. ]
[ Rating: A- (C) ]
Clyde grinned.
A monster that should have an A- rating now only has a C rating.
That must have happened because Clyde has Private Attribute: Easy-Mode and is already at Level 55.
So Clyde gets a double advantage.
But that monster named Corpse Bringer Dragon had a Holy weakness.
While he does not have a Skill with that element.
''Should I go back and look for a Skill with the Holy element first before fighting it?''
The thought had crossed Clyde''s head. But that idea vanished as soon as Clyde saw a good opportunity before his eyes.
The Corpse Bringer Dragon flew right in front of him from right to left. It had no idea that Clyde was here.
Instantly, his thoughts of being reckless vanished and he decided to attack now.
After all, he was already at a high level and had the Easy-Mode Attribute.
Clyde ran and jumped on the monster''s back.
"KUUOOOKKK!"
The monster seemed to have realized that something foreign hadnded on its back.
It contorted its body trying to shake Clyde off its back.
Clyde immediately jumped up and gathered his strength.
After that, hended back on the monster''s back while mming his fist.
*BUUGGHHH!*
"KUOOOKKK!"
Clyde''s punch knocked the Corpse Bringer Dragon off bnce due to the strong impact.
Clyde then dashed toward the monster''s head.
He jumped up and sped his hands together. Then mmed it into the monster''s head.
*DUUAAAGGGHHHH!*
*WOOOSSSHHH!*
Corpse Bringer Dragon dived down under Clyde''s punch.
It kept swooping down until it finally fell to the ground with a thunderous sound.
~~~
Chapter 29 Fighting Corpse Bringer
?The sound must have spread in all directions.
There were no zombies around the Corpe Bringer Dragon''s location. It was because the creature had absorbed all the zombies in the area.
However, a few tens of meters from that area was where Leon''s group and the others were resting.
After they fought the axe-wielding giant zombie and got their reward, the five people decided to rest until nightfall.
But a booming sound heard from far away caught their attention.
"What the hell was that?" Wiley asked.
"I don''t know," Leon replied.
Albert walked towards the window to look outside. But he couldn''t see anything because the thick green fog still enveloped the surroundings.
"I can''t see anything," Albert said.
"Then we don''t have to think about it," Leon said. "Looks like whatever it is, it''s far away from here."
Albert was still looking outside worriedly. Even so, he assumed Leon''s words were true.
"Yeah, you''re right."
Albert returned to where he had been sitting and fiddled with his new dagger.
"Have any new monsters appeared?" L asked in a frightened tone.
"I think so," Wiley replied. "After all, this is an apocalypse. And we are still on the second day."
L looked even more frightened. She pulled her knees closer and buried her face in them.
Rosie came closer to L and rubbed her shoulder. After that, she nced at Wiley with a piercing gaze.
"Great job," she said.
Wiley who realized what effect his words had on L felt guilty.
"But I''m just telling the truth," Wiley muttered under his breath.
Meanwhile, Leon was staring in the direction he heard the voice just now.
It was a very loud sound. From that alone, one could predict that whatever fell wasrge.
Besides that, the soundsts a bit longer. It was as if the fallen creature had length and continued to move for several meters before finally stopping.
Leon swallowed his saliva subconsciously. He was starting to feel scared too.
Even though he has the power to be unprable, he still doesn''t know what will appear out there anymore.
Yet, he couldn''t show that fear. Or the group members will be even more scared.
Leon gripped his short sword tightly. While hoping that everything will be fine for them in the future.
~~~
The Corpse Bringer Dragon''s body was indeed dragged a few meters before it finally stopped.
It''s all because of the force and size of hisrge body.
Moreover, it fell suddenly while flying. Its forelegs were broken and formed a painful-looking angle.
Clyde himself was also thrown from the creature''s back when they fell together.
Clyde crawled up from under the rubble. He found Corpse Bringer still lying in front of him.
The monster didn''t move. Clyde thought maybe it was dead. But he didn''t get any notification saying that he got any Exp points.
"Well, that could only mean one thing."
Clyde walked from the rubble and approached it. He drew the Elderss Sword as he knew it was time for action.
The Corpse Bringer suddenly stirred.
"KUOOOKKK!"
It let out its distinctive screaming sound while pping its wings.
The p of the wings lifted its body.
Clyde watched as its front leg which had been broken earlier began to twitch.
A disturbing rattling sound was heard then a few secondster, its forelegs returned to normal.
Clyde could control himself quickly knowing it was going to happen.
Seen from anywhere the monster looks like the main boss that can''t be defeated easily.
Clyde immediately ran at full speed toward the Corpse Bringer.
He kicked the ground and then shot up. Even though he couldn''t be defeated easily, Corpse Bringer was only a C-rated monster to him.
So, there was no reason for Clyde to be worried.
Corpse Bringer noticed Clyde''s movement and immediately swung its front ws.
Clyde used the Elderss Sword to keep the ws from hitting him.
*CLANG!*
The reddish-ck, rotting-looking w smashed into the clear de of the Elderss Sword.
Clyde was knocked aside by the force behind the swing.
But he managed tond well on the rubble-filled asphalt.
Corpse Bringer opened its beak. Then a wisp of reddish-ck smoke appeared at the back of its throat.
*SWOOOSSSHHH!*
It blew the red-ck smoke at Clyde.
''It must be that skill called [Death Breath].''
Clyde immediately ran as hard as he could to the side to avoid the reddish-ck smoke.
He managed to avoid that. When Clyde looked back, he saw that the ce where he had been standing had turned into a ck, reddish slime.
Both the asphalt and the rubble covered in slime began to melt and disintegrate within seconds.
''That''s very dangerous.''
[Death Breath] was extremely fast and deadly.
If Clyde''s Agility wasn''t Level 10, he didn''t know if he could have avoided the smoke.
Corpse Bringer didn''t let Clyde remain silent for too long.
It pped its wings and flew again into the air. After that, it dived towards Clyde about to thrust its beak into him.
Seeing that, Clyde ran away. The beak pierced the ground where he had been standing.
Clyde then kicked the ground again. He shot onto the Corpse Bringer''s back.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 3) is activated! ]
*SWOOOSSSHHH!*
mes shot from Clyde''s hands toward the Corpse Bringer.
"KUOKKK!"
The creature screamed as if in pain. Some parts of the meat on its back were burned and melted.
Clydended back on the ground. He wasted no time and immediately took off with the Elderss Sword in hand.
Clyde shed the Eldergss Sword with all his might at the Corpse Bringer''s feet.
*CRAAATTT!*
The clear bluish de shed the Corpse Bringer''s left hind leg. It immediately fell because it lost its bnce.
Then Clyde channeled his Magic Power into the Elderss Sword intending to cause greater damage to the Corpse Bringer.
The Elderss Sword''s de let out a bluish glow in response to Clyde''s Magic Power.
Clyde ran fast. In the blink of an eye, he had reached the creature''s head and shed the Elderss Sword.
~~~
Chapter 30 How Is That Possible?
?["Wait, what the hell is that?" ]
Inside an empty white room, a man wearing a pure white suit spoke in a shocked tone.
His forehead was furrowed deeply until it looked as if his two brows were about to connect.
[ "What?" ] a woman with short red hair answered him.
The woman was wearing quite revealing clothes.
The pants she wearing were short ck jeans. And she was wearing a ck tank top over a leather jacket.
The leather jacket was unable to cover everything let alone her protruding chest.
Her face looks beautiful with bright green eyes. There are a few freckles on her face but you can''t see them until you get closer to look at her.
[ "Just look at that." ] the man in the white suit pointed at the holographic screen floating in front of them.
On the screen was a young man fighting a huge winged monster.
The monster''s entire body seemed to be made of flesh melting into one.
The monster''s size was enormous. Almost like a small jet ne. Maybe even bigger.
But the young man could easily fight it without much trouble.
He jumped from the top of the building and thennded on the monster''s back. He then ran through its neck and whacked the monster on the head until it fell to the ground.
[ "Whoa, that guy is so brave!" ] the red-haired woman looked amazed.
*PLAKK!*
A book flew to her head. The woman winced and stroked her head.
[ "What are you doing?!" ] the woman shouted.
[ "Look at that screen. It''s not something that should be happening at this stage," ] the man in the white suit said while pointing at the screen.
[ "His power breaks the bnce of this stage!" ]
When she thought about it some more, what the man in white had said was true.
It''s only day two and that monster should only appear to terrorize anyone who sees it.
No one else should be able to beat that monster. In fact, no one should even go near that monster.
But the young man even approached the monster by jumping from the top of the building. And now, he was fighting it with incredible strength for a yer on the second day.
["Ah, you''re right. What happened?" ] the woman said while looking at the screen.
[ "Did he get a certain artifact scattered around this area?" ] the man in the white suit picked up a thick book with a blue cover.
He intended to check out any artifacts that might be in the area.
The red-haired woman was waiting for him. They were silent for a few moments.
Until finally a sigh from the man in the white suit was heard.
[ "There''s no artifact that can give him that kind of power at this stage." ] he said.
[ "Then, what exactly happened?" ] the red-haired woman asked.
The white suit man looked at her with a serious look.
[ "You should go over there and check it out." ] he said.
["WHAT? ME???" ]
[ "Of course, you have to go. You want to tell your seniors to go there?" ] the man in the white suit said in an annoyed tone.
The red-haired woman could only sigh and couldn''t say anything else toin.
Then she stood up and walked away from him.
The man in the white suit looked her away and nodded approvingly.
Then he took his cell phone out of his coat pocket and make a phone call.
~~~
Clyde channeled his Magic Power into the Elderss Sword.
The sword glowed blue in response to Clyde''s Magic Power.
Corpse Bringer turned its face towards Clyde. It didn''t have eyes but it seemed like it had another way of detecting Clyde''s presence.
As Clyde swung the Eldress Sword at its neck, the Corpse Bringer suddenly used its tail and bound Clyde''s body then swung him towards the wall of a building.
*BRAAAAKKKK!*
Corpse Bringer mmed Clyde against the building''s wall until he broke through the wall and ended up inside the building.
But the pain Clyde felt wasn''t as bad as he thought when he smashed through the wall.
Clyde was able to stand up instantly.
When he turned his head, the Corpse Bringer was pping its wings to fly.
Due to the severed left hind leg, it couldn''t use its legs to stand on the ground.
"I won''t let you!"
Clyde dashed from inside the building.
The Elderss Sword in his hand shed furiously in response to Clyde''s Magic Power.
When Corpse Bringer saw Clydeing out of the building, it immediately spat out [Death Breath] like before.
Clyde who saw the ck liquid fall on him immediately ran to the side.
The ck liquid fell beside him. But the Corpse Bringer didn''t give up.
It spewed out ck liquid again and again. And repeatedly Clyde can also avoid it.
While continuing to dodge, Clyde used his mind to raise his [Burning Hand] Level.
In the hope that he would be able to deal enough damage to the Corpse Bringer even if it wasn''t a Holy elemental Skill.
[ You upgraded Burning Hand to Level 10! ]
[ Skill: Burning Hand has reached Max Level! ]
After getting a red notification before his eyes, Clyde immediately increased his speed to charge toward the Corpse Bringer.
When he got the proper distance, Clyde kicked the ground andunched himself up. Towards the Corpse Bringer that was trying to fly away.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!*
Clyde released a very strong burst of fire from his hand.
The mes looked no different from the mes that came out when [Burning Hand] was still Level 3. But its power had clearly increased a lot.
The mes hit the Corpse Bringer''s rear right leg and burned it much faster than before.
The flesh that covered the leg was immediately charred and melted down leaving the leg bone.
"KUOOOKKK!!!"
Corpse Bringer screamed in pain. But Clyde wasn''t done yet.
He grabbed the Corpe Bringer''s leg bone and then pulled it down with all his might.
Corpse Bringer fell again. Its attempts to get away from Clyde have failed.
Clyde wasted no time and immediately ran toward its head when the monster had fallen.
Then he used his will tobine the power of the [Burning Hand] with the Elderss Sword.
A momentter the previously transparent de was enveloped in mes.
Clyde jumped up and stabbed the Elderss Sword into the Corpse Bringer''s head.
*CRAAATTT!*
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!*
mes spread in the Corpse Bringer''s head.
~~~
Chapter 31 Red Haired Women
?The mes instantly spread as the ming de of the Eldress Sword stabbed into the Corpse Bringer''s head.
The mes expanded very quickly. The Corpse Bringer screamed in an extremely loud deafening voice.
But Clyde stood still and sticks his sword with all his might.
He also continued to channel his Magic Power into the Elderss Sword so that the mes would not be extinguished.
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!*
After a moment of only burning that head, the mes expanded and spread very quickly throughout the Corpse Bringer''s body.
The fire didn''t affect Clyde because he was the one who released it.
The Corpse Bringer moved its legs and wings frantically.
It was as if he was trying to shake off the pain and heat from the fire that was burning all over it.
However, the monster''s efforts only ended in vain. After a while, the Corpse Bringer finally stopped struggling. Its legs and wings fell limply and burned with fire.
Clyde didn''t stop releasing his Magic before a notification about the death of this monster appeared.
Even though he had already seen that the monster''s body was not moving.
[ Congrattion! You have aplished the impossible task! ]
[ You have killed a Corpse Bringer Dragon. ]
[ You received: 2.000 Exp. ]
[ You Leveled Up! ]
[ You Leveled Up! ]
[ Title Upgraded: Limit Breaker (Lv.2) ]
[ Title Effect: Grants the power to raise the limit of all Stats. As the Level of the [Title] increases, the Stats limit will also increase. ]
"Haaahhh¡" Clyde let out a long breath and then jumped off the Corpse Bringer''s burning body.
Clyde turned his head and watched the mes scorch the body of flesh that had joined together in a strange way.
Sizzling sounds and the smell of burning flesh filled the air.
Clyde was a bit bothered by that so he walked away.
Clyde put the Elderss Sword into its scabbard. His body didn''t feel exhausted even though he had just fought that giant monster.
The effect of his high Level and Private Attributes was great.
Clyde wasughing smugly alone in the middle of an empty, rubble-filled street.
There''s no one or anything here because everyone has be zombies.
And those zombies had probably been absorbed into the body of the Corpse Bringer he had just grilled.
Clyde didn''t see the Zombie Spawner here either. It was odd enough but Clyde didn''t think about it any further.
Maybe this was intended by the ''organizers'' of this apocalypse.
[ "You''re quite strong for a young man." ]
Clyde hears a woman''s voice that suddenly appears and startles him.
He hastily drew the Elderss Sword from its scabbard and turned to the source of the voice.
She saw a beautiful woman with red hair wearing short pants.
She was sitting on top of a truck so Clyde could see her long, smooth legs hanging down.
But the woman''s face looked surprised for some reason.
["You okay after hearing my real voice?" ] the woman asked with a surprised tone.
Clyde frowned. "Should I feel something else when I hear your voice?"
Turns out, Clyde was supposed to fall down and feel excruciating pain when he heard the red-haired woman''s voice.
However, [Private Attribute: Easy-Mode] blocked the influence of the woman''s voice.
[ Private Attribute: Easy-Mode blocks the pressure from the World Master''s voice! ]
After seeing the notification appear before his eyes, Clyde frowned. ''World Master?''
Clyde nced at the woman with red hair.
She jumped down from the top of the truck andnded in front of him.
[ "I actually wanted to prank you a bit by speaking in my real voice. But you didn''t feel anything. Ahh, that''s really disappointing." ]
The woman looked sullen. But Clyde didn''t care about her insignificant grunts.
"Who are you?" Clyde asked.
The woman showed a pretty smile. However, Clyde was not in the mood to think that smile was pretty.
Amidst all this, there are only zombies or monsters. A beautiful woman smiling at him could be a monster.
And the system stated that she was a World Master. Then she could be even more dangerous than a zombie.
"Stay away from me." Clyde pointed the Elderss Sword at the woman.
[ "You''re always this mean with women?" ] the woman asked.
"No. I''m only like this with women who are most likely zombies."
The woman snorted in annoyance. [ "You think I''m a zombie?!" ]
"If you don''t want to be called a zombie then tell me who you are," Clyde said.
[ "Hahh, alright. You can call me Agatha. That''s enough for now," ] replied the woman.
"That doesn''t exin anything. Tell me what a World Master is."
Agatha''s eyes widened at Clyde''s words.
[ "Y-You, where did you know about that?" ]
"I just know. Just tell me about it."
Agatha stared at Clyde silently with a dumbfounded expression.
How could he know about the World Master as soon as she appeared here? Did he get any information from someone?
"You won''t say it?" Clyde demanded.
[ "I was about to tell you. But, you also have to say something about how you got that strong. You weren''t supposed to get this strong in Chapter two." ]
Clyde stared at Agatha for a few moments. Then nodded.
"I''ll say what I need to say," says Clyde.
[ "Okay. Then I''ll just say what I need to say." ] replied Agatha.
"I''ve read many novels where apocalypse like this one happen. So, I already have some preparations on what I should do."
Clyde said confidently. As if he really was telling the truth.
He wasn''t lying, he wouldn''t tell the truth.
[ "Oh, I see. That makes sense." ]
Clyde didn''t know this woman would actually ept that answer. Is she that stupid?
[."I too have been observing this world for a long time. So I know about the literature that contains about apocalypse events like this." ] Agatha said.
[ "So that''s how you get those powers?" ]
"Yes," Clyde said.
[ "But I can''t believe it. Someone must be helping you. Are you one of the people who had the opportunity to sell your soul to the Demon King?" ]
"Demon Kings?" Clyde frowned in surprise.
Once again, he received an unexpected surprise.
~~~
Chapter 32 Supposed-To-Be-Confidential Info
?After saying that, the red-haired woman named Agatha immediately covered her mouth. Her eyes widened.
[ "Oh shit. I think I''ve said too much," ] Agatha muttered to herself.
But Clyde, who had already heard about it, would not stop there.
"What do you mean Demon King?" Clyde asked demandingly while looking at Agatha with serious eyes.
[ "Uhhhmm... can you pretend you didn''t hear what I said before?" ]
Agatha said with a grimace on her face.
''She''s kinda idiot even though she was someone who called herself the World Master. Whatever World Masters are, they must be beings with power in this apocalypse.''
"It''s possible that I did make a deal with the Demon King," Clyde said.
He decided to y a trick on this woman so he could gain information.
[ "Is that true?!" ]
"However, I''m not too sure. Under these circumstances shouldn''t I take any means to survive? So, I take whatever anyone offers so I can survive. Even though I don''t know who it is," Clyde said.
[ "Hmmm..." ] Agatha seemed to think.
ording to Clyde, there would be no use even if she thought hard.
With her brain capacity, maybe Agatha won''t get anything in the end.
[ "I''ll tell you a little about the Demon Kings. Enough to let you know whether you made a deal with them or not." ] says Agatha.
Clyde nodded. Then he lowered the Elderss Sword in front of Agatha''s face. But he did not put the sword in the scabbard.
[ "Demon Kings are one of the three groups of Celestials. They will offer you the power of Hell, The Realm of Darkness. The power you will get will usually not be far from the attribute of darkness or the mostmon is fire." ] Agatha exined.
[ "Why do I assume you made a deal with the Demon King? Because you cast a Fire elemental Skill." ]
''So because of that. Though, this is a Skill I bought at the vending machine.'' thought Clyde.
[ "So you did make a deal with one of the Demon Kings?" ]
"I don''t remember," said Clyde tly.
Agatha stared at Clyde with her eyes and mouth wide open.
She seemed dumbfounded at what had juste out as a response from Clyde.
[ "Hey! You''re ying with me, aren''t you?! You''re making me give you information that should be confidential, and giving me such bullshit answers!" ]
Agatha stamped her foot on the asphalt.
The stomp of her feet shattered the asphalt she stepped on.
Making Clyde surprised at the strength of that woman with a slim body in front of him.
"I didn''t trick you. Didn''t I say from the beginning that I wasn''t sure of all this?" Clyde asked back with a straight face.
Agatha just sighed. Then she pped her forehead formenting her stupidity.
[ "Well, I don''t think there''s any other way." ]
Suddenly Agatha shot toward Clyde with incredible speed.
*CLANG!*
Luckily Clyde managed to raise the Eldress Sword in time to block Agatha''s fist.
[ "Hmm? You can even block my attack without being pushed." ]
Agatha then spun around and kicked Clyde with one leg. But Clyde was still able to block the kick with his hand.
Clyde groaned as he felt the powerful force behind Agatha''s attacks.
He had guessed that she was indeed stronger than him with the title of World Master she had.
Judging from the name alone, it''s clear that Clyde as an ordinary yer in this apocalypse game won''t be able to match her even with all of his Stats already at the maximum level.
Agatha then jumped back. She looked at Clyde while tilting her head.
She looked at Clyde as if he was a creature that caught her interest.
[ "You''re interesting. Actually, what are your Stats numbers?" ]
"You can''t tell?" Clyde asked back.
Agatha stared at Clyde for a few moments.
Then Clyde''s Character Information Window appeared in Agatha''s view.
She seemed surprised after knowing Clyde''s Stats.
[ "Not only do you have Stats at Level 10, you also have a Title. And I can''t see your Private Attribute," ] Agatha said.
''She can''t see that?''
Clyde thought this could work to his advantage.
[ "You still won''t tell me who gave you that power?" ]
"Okay, I''ll be honest with you," Clyde said. "I don''t know who - or what has given me power. And I''m also honest that I use some knowledge from novels I''ve read about situations like this."
[ "Then, in a situation like right now, what should you do so I don''t kill you?" ]
Clyde paused to think. ''Should I use that here?''
He recalled something in a novel where the protagonist experienced something simr to the current him. Not exactly the same, but simr.
"Perhaps you want to make a deal with me instead?" Clyde asked.
''Shit, I''m not sure if this is going to work or not. I must find a way to escape from here immediately if this fails.''
[ "A deal, huh..." ] Agatha said. ["Let me ask my senior first." ]
When Agatha gave a sign that she was going to leave, Clyde immediately called her.
"Wait! You''lle to meter?"
Agatha turned her head. [ "Yes, of course. If my seniors agree, we might be able to make a good deal." ]
"You should consider it properly. You can see how strong I am, right?" Clyde said.
Agatha smiled at Clyde. Then turned her body.
She walked in a very interesting way. Her short pants made Clyde unable to take his eyes off her nice ass.
A momentter Agatha had disappeared behind a thick green fog.
"So she still has a superior. Hmm... very interesting."
Clyde then continued. As it turned out, his way of offering a deal was quite sessful.
It meant that those World Masters - Agatha and her superiors - must need something.
Clyde may have involved himself in a scheme carried out by the powerful beings in this apocalypse.
Regardless, Clyde thought of using them to his advantage.
He also got some valuable information from the carelessness of Agatha who couldn''t keep her mouth shut.
She said there were three groups of ''Celestials''.
Whoever they are, they must be big yers in this apocalypse.
~~~
Chapter 33 Maybe A Good Thing
?Lio, the man wearing the white suit just finished his phone call.
Of course, those World Masters also had amunication mode like smartphones.
Although the smartphones they have are certainly not the same as smartphones that are sold in stores in the human world.
"Hhhhh..." A long sigh escaped from Lio''s mouth.
He just got an annoying request and shout of anger from one of the Demon Kings.
The Demon King is asking for something out of the ordinary from him, that is ess to see the selection process by himself.
Which of course Lio refused. But considering his position as a Demon King, no matter how annoying he was, Lio couldn''t possibly refuse him so harshly.
All Lio could do was plead politely, give understanding to him as best as he could, ande up with usible reasons for the Demon King to stop bothering him.
Lio still remembered the words the Demon King had said before he hung up.
Those words are more urately described as swear words directed toward him.
"You useless piece of shit! Can''t you make a deal with me or something?! I''ve been in trouble so many times because I didn''t find a good candidate!"
Another sigh escaped from Lio''s mouth. If he wasn''t a Demon King, Lio would have cursed him back with even more vicious words.
But he couldn''t do that. So Lio could only exhale. And slumped back in his soft chair.
It was then that Agatha suddenly entered the white room and surprised Lio.
"Senior! I have good news!" Agatha shouted as she drew closer.
She walked by skipping. Making her pair of breasts bounce quite clearly.
But Lio was not interested in the sight. To him, Agatha was just a stupid woman who happened to be paired with him in this world.
"What?" Lio asked in azy tone.
Whatever news Agatha brings, and what she conveys with such excitement is usually quite different from reality. So Lio had given up hope.
"I found someone who is confirmed to pass the selection with Grade A, Senior!" said Agatha with a happy face.
Lio just stared at her with azy pair of eyes like before.
"What are you talking about? How did you find him only in the second chapter?" Lio replied.
Agatha sat in her chair. "Yes! I know it''s unlikely. But, I actually found him!"
Lio already knew who Agatha meant. Because earlier he told her to meet someone.
The young man did look quite strong. But getting Grade A at the end of the selection isn''t something that can only be done with sheer strength.
After all, this is only the second chapter.
That young men are strong but there''s still a lot that can go wrong in the next four days.
This wasn''t the first time a strong person had appeared in the Selection Stage.
And many of them eventually fail or go down to the lower Grade when the Selection is over.
But, maybe he could hear what Agatha wanted to say. She had already met the man so she must have brought something with her about how could that young man can be that strong.
"Okay," Lucio said. "What did you find?"
"That man''s name is Clyde Cross. He''s 18 years old-"
"Hey!" Lucio snapped. "I don''t need that kind of information. Say something important enough for me to hear."
"O-Oh, sorry," Agatha let out a regretful smile and then continued.
"He already has the Title: Limit Breaker (Lv.2). It was an amazing achievement in the second chapter!"
Lio began to be interested in the man. If indeed he has a Title that has reached Level 2, which is the hardest Title to get, his Level and Stats must be very high already.
"Then how did he get it?" Lio asked.
"He is said that he gained knowledge from frequently reading novels with this kind of storyline. But I''m not sure, maybe he made an agreement with a Demon King," Agatha said.
"That''s possible. We can''t see whether a yer has made an agreement with them or not," Lio said. "But...he can survive by reading novels might be true."
"What?" Agatha frowned. Can''t believe what her senior just said.
"That''s right. You wouldn''t understand because you''ve never read a book. Novelists these days have extraordinary imaginations. They already suspect that something like this will happen sometime in the future."
Lio exined that with a bit of visible excitement. As if he seemed familiar with what he just talked about.
But Agatha just shook her head as if she wanted to get rid of the conversation earlier. And said the important points.
"That young man also offered us to make a deal," Agatha said.
"Hmm... I expected him to say that when you said he often read novels about something like this," Lio said.
"Alright. Let''s take a look at his progress first. After that, we cane over to him again."
Agatha let out a smirk. "Senior, you also think what I think, right?"
"What are you thinking in your dumb mind?"
"We can use it to increase our Rank!" Agatha said excitedly.
Lio just snorted, he didn''t say anything and continued to watch the screen.
This time the scene on the screen moves to another area and disys many humans who are still shrouded in fear.
Crouching helplessly at various checkpoints scattered throughout the city.
~~~
Clyde continued on his way. He encounters several zombies along the way. But that wasn''t a problem for Clyde.
He had a hard time seeing the sun because of this thick green fog. But Clyde estimated that it was already noon.
Clyde just realized that he could still feel hungry even though his Stats were already at the max level.
"Should I go back?"
Clyde didn''t see anything else here. So maybe he''lle back now and wait for the night.
Maybe he could take a Night Quest with a higher rewardter. Or maybe he should wait for Agatha toe back.
~~~
Chapter 34 Sooner Than Expected
?At the motel, Rodney was sitting alone in his room. He looked into the mirror where he could see his own reflection.
Those gray eyes seemed to be telling him that he should stop wasting time. And proceed to make the next n.
Now he is at a very high Level. His current levelpletely exceeded all the Regressions he had experienced. Even many times over.
With all his knowledge of what was going to happen, coupled with this high Level and Stats, Rodney was confident that he would be able to pass this Selection and advance to the next.
But one person worries Rodney.
That person is Clyde.
A young man who he didn''t know how could be so strong.
He was the one who allowed Rodney and the other Regressors to reach this Chapter so easily.
It was also thanks to him that they could reach this high Level in just two days.
But because of that great power, Rodney was worried that he might mess up his ns.
"Hhhh...." Rodney sighed as he looked at himself in the mirror.
''Should I get rid of him now before he gets stronger, or can I use him to make my way easierter?''
If Rodney could get him to work together, then his path forward would be significantly easier.
However, Clyde doesn''t seem like a fool.
So maybe Rodney should also think of a way to get rid of him if Clyde notices something strange and starts to wonder.
But that won''t happen if Rodney can y it safe and smart.
After all, there were two girls he could take advantage of if Clyde threatened his ns.
Rodney grinned. This time he must seed.
Rodney was tired of going through everything over and over again only to die by an imitation creature on the fifth day.
He would start feeding Clyde information to get the young man to do what he wanted.
After that, he would get rid of him and qualify as the candidate with the highest Grade.
Rodney saw his reflection in the mirror and smirked. A sly grin that no one even the Regressors had ever seen before.
A momentter, as if he hade to his senses, Rodney returned to his usual facial expression.
"No, I can''t look like this in front of all of them."
~~~
Clyde finally came out of the ce where there was still a lot of that thick green fog.
He had wanted to explore further but he suddenly felt hungry.
Clyde wouldn''t know what happened when he got hungry in this apocalypse so he didn''t want to take too many risks.
Last night they ate some leftover food at the motel where all the guests and their owners had left. Coupled with the food they get from the shop around.
By now the food should still be left. Clyde felt quite at ease.
He thought nothing bad would happen once he was at a high Level and had a useful [Title].
With his current power, Clyde was able to handle the monsters that appeared easily
Even earlier he had killed a huge monster that seemed impossible to kill.
The people in his party were also at high Levels. So they won''t hinder him too much.
However, he still didn''t know what the day of the third Chapter tomorrow would have in store.
While it was still a day
light, perhaps they could use this time to prepare.
With the presence of the four Regressors, everything bes easier.
Clyde even felt that this was all too easy. His life feels better after the apocalypse happened than when everything was still running normally.
Clyde snorted at the irony of this. How the destruction of this world could be something good for him was beyond his expectations.
Clyde arrives back at the motel. He stretched out his hand to grab the door handle.
But before his hand could grasp the door handle, a tremor happen as the sound of rm echoed through the air.
The sound of the rm is like the sound when an earthquake or tsunami ising.
Clyde know this was a clear sign of rm signaling disaster.
The people in the motel rushed out with their weapons in hand. They saw Clyde standing outside and looking up.
"What''s going on?" Asqa asked in a panicked voice. She spread her eyes around but still couldn''t find anything out of the ordinary.
"This is the sound thates when the Boss in the second chapter spawned," Rodney answered. "This is too soon. Howe this happen already?"
Clyde had one guess. Maybe the appearance of the Boss was triggered because the progress that had urred was much faster than it should have been.
"Maybe it happened because we destroyed one Zombie Spawner and Leveled Up quickly," Sonya said. "Maybe our progress is considered enough for the Boss to appear."
"But in our previous Regression, no one was able to destroy the Zombie Spawner or reach this kind of Level. Even so, the Boss still appeared when the time came," Mona said.
"That''s because the time is up. So like it or not the Boss has to appear to finish this second Chapter," Sonya said.
"It doesn''t matter now," Clyde said. "The Boss has appeared. We just have to kill it."
They are all silent. What Clyde said was true. No matter the reason why the Boss appeared so early, in the end, it still appeared and had to be killed. Before the Boss killed them.
"But before that, is there any food inside?" Clyde asked.
Clyde''s question left them dumbfounded. What more is he saying by asking that with a straight face?
The sound of the rm ring through the air seemed less important than his hunger. "T-There''s still plenty of food inside," Asqa said.
Clyde just nodded and went inside without saying anything.
~~~
Chapter 35 Time To Face The BOSS
?Clyde came in and got some bread. The earthquake grew bigger and the sound of the rm outside sounded more and more terrifying as time went on.
Even so, Clyde ate calmly but quickly. He will not waste time just eating.
But he also wouldn''t panic too much knowing how strong he was.
About a minuteter Clyde came out drinking a coke. After that, he threw the can once he emptied it.
"Okay," Clyde said. "What should we do?"
"The BOSS in the First Chapter is a pretty intelligent creature. It is also very strong and can control the zombies around it. I''ve also seen it have a pet which is a veryrge flying monster," Rodney exined.
"Don''t worry. I''ve taken care of the flying monster," Clyde said in a calm tone. As if it''s no big deal.
"What?!"
Even so to others, his words were something hard to believe.
"Don''t worry about that flying monster. Just tell us what we have to do to kill the BOSS faster," Clyde said.
Rodney stared at him with a stiff face.
''He''s already managed to defeat the Corpse Bringer Dragon? But given his strength, it''s notpletely impossible.''
Eric took over the exnation. "I guess we should wait until the BOSS weakens."
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked.
"In time, that BOSS and all the zombies will start to weaken when the sun goes down. After that, we can kill it."
"So we have to wait until the sun goes down?" Sonya asked.
Eric nodded. "Yes."
"That''s still a long time. The BOSS might have found us before sunset," said Sonya, looking troubled.
"We don''t have to do that," Clyde said. "Have you guys forgotten that you guys are much stronger than before?"
Hearing Clyde''s words, the group blinked their eyes.
Their facial expressions said as if they had just realized something important.
"Jeez, I forgot. We''re already Level 30!" Mona said with a happy face.
Reed and Eric also showed their relieved faces. They both even smiled.
Only Rodney looks like he was thinking bout something and looked restless.
He had realized that from the start. And now Rodney was upied by another thought.
Asqa noticed the look on Rodney''s face that looked strange.
But Asqa did not think too much about it. She thinks it''s not worth mentioning.
"Let''s go," Clyde said, looking at them all.
Clyde was nning to let them take care of the BOSS. Because he was already strong enough.
After all, now he also got a [Title] which was at Level 2.
He would let them achieve this victory so that their chances of survival in the next stage also increased.
Clyde told himself, he only did that because he didn''t want to be troubled by what happened in the future. And so they can help him.
Rodney showed them the way to the ce where the BOSS would appear.
Just as they were walking, the Window that announced the appearance of the BOSS appeared.
Clyde wondered why it had to take this long. Did they want to create a terror effect by letting the earthquake and rmst longer?
[ CHAPTER 1: UNDEAD VIRUSES. ]
[ PROGRESS: MYSTERIOUS ZOMBIES HAVE APPEARED IN AN EMPTY BUILDING. ]
[ OBJECTIVE: THE MYSTERIOUS ZOMBIES IS A ''BOSS''. KILL THE ZOMBIES TO COMPLETE CHAPTER ONE. ]
"Don''t forget to use your Stat Points to upgrade your Stats to max," said Clyde.
They all do it. Clyde had seen their Character Information earlier.
Unlike him, even if they upgraded their Stats to full, their Stats wouldn''t reach Level 10.
The limit of their Stats was mostly less than Level 10. So even if they had upgraded their Stats to full, they wouldn''t be able to be as strong as Clyde.
But there is one thing that makes Clyde a bit confused. Why does the text on the notification say ''MYSTERIOUS ZOMBIES''?
"Hey, how many BOSS do we have to fight actually?"
Out of curiosity, Clyde decided to ask the Regressors.
"We''ll only fight one. But it''s very troublesome. At least before," Reed replied.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. Why?"
Seeing the look on Clyde''s face, Reed and the others who saw the look on his face became confused too.
"Clyde, did you notice something?" Asqa asked.
"I''m the one who''s surprised that you guys didn''t notice. Did you see that notification that popped up earlier? We might be facing more than one BOSS."
They all rushed to check the notification they received earlier.
They could reopen the notification Window just by thinking about it.
Everything has been recorded in any system that runs this apocalypse.
"You''re right," Asqa muttered in a trembling voice.
"Shit, my bow isn''t even properly fixed yet," Sonya said in a worried tone.
"What are you doing with your bow? Can you use it to fight?" Clyde asked.
"I tied it with ducktape and added my Magic Power to the it. It turns out that with Magic Power, this ducktape could be more binding than it should be. Even so, I feel unsure."
Sonya showed Clyde her broken bow.
There is a ck tape that unites the two arc fractures. It looks pretty good and solid.
But as Sonya had said, Clyde couldn''t be so sure about the bow either.
"If you''re not sure, you better hideter," Clyde said.
Sonya just nodded her head.
They walked for several minutes. Until finally they could see a very tall building.
They could immediately tell that the building was where the BOSS lived.
Because there was a dark red aura that filled the surroundings of the building.
Around the building, there are so many hordes of zombies. They just stood still like statues.
Yet anyone could see that the zombies, numbering in the hundreds, or even thousands, were waiting for orders to move.
"Okay, now what?" Clyde asked in an even tone.
"I didn''t see this before." Eric looked confused. "Why are they just standing still?"
From the other side, another group of survivors who arrived earlier were observing Clyde''s group.
"They are here too," Albert said.
~~~
Chapter 36 Plate-Armored Zombie
?Albert returns from his scouting. As soon as he returned to his group, Albert said everything he saw.
"There are seven people?" Wiley asked. "And one of them is the strong man you said that time?"
Albert nodded "Yeah. And I don''t think hispanions are weak either."
They were all silent and lost in their thoughts.
"You do know that we will probably face more than one BOSS, right?" Leon said. His group mates nodded.
"There might have been two BOSS created since there were two groups in this area."
They pondered on what Leon had said. Then Rosie said what was on her mind.
"That may be true. But, we have no clear way of knowing for sure."
They know that this apocalypse is run by ''something'' that is very powerful. For whatever reason, they don''t know.
Whatever consideration ''they'' put into making future developments was far beyond their expectations.
"How about we wait until they fight the BOSS? Once the BOSS looks weak, we can kill it," Wiley said.
They all stare at him. Wiley''s face which did look like a cunning person now became clear.
"Doesn''t that mean... we''re going to take advantage of their predicament?" L said in a doubtful tone. Her facial expression looks ufortable.
"What are you saying, L?" Wiley looked at L. "We would indeed take advantage of their predicament. That''s how we live in this messed-up world."
L wanted to say something. But then she had another thought.
What Wiley said had some truth to it. Was she willing to maintain the old way of life in a world that was already like this? That seems impossible.
"I agree," Rosie said. "If they are as strong as Albert says they are, then they should be able to take care of those two BOSSes."
"I agree too," Leon said.
"Sure," Albert said. "I almost suggested that too before Wiley said so."
Wiley grinned. "I''m d no one wants to act like a hero in this group."
After they reached the agreement, they waited in a hidden ce.
Albert was once again in the role of the man who carried out the furthest reconnaissance.
On Clyde''s group side, they were still checking the ce to confirm the threat they would face.
"I haven''t seen the BOSS yet," Mona said.
"The notification says that the BOSS is in the building," Reed said.
"Fuck, does that mean we have to deal with the thousands of zombies lining up before we can meet the BOSS?" Mona gritted her teeth uneasily.
There are thousands of zombies as silent as statues.
They know that the zombies would immediately attack them as soon as they stepped a little closer.
"What should we do?" Asqa asked.
She brought her hands together in front of her chest and bit her lip.
Clyde who looked at her felt sorry for the girl. She looks so fragile.
Asqa''s strength ispletely unsuitable for her to be able to fight alone.
If Clyde hadn''t helped her on the bus that time, Asqa would have been torn to death somewhere.
"You don''t have to join the fight," Clyde said.
Asqa looked up at him. "But, that means I can''t do anything to help."
"Your powers really can''t be used to fight. That''s a fact. But that doesn''t mean you can''t do anything to help," Clyde said. "You are a healer. So, heal the wounded."
After hearing Clyde''s words, a faint smile appeared on her lips.
"Thanks. I owe you a lot," Asqa said.
This was the second time Clyde had heard someone''s sincere thanks.
There was a warm feeling in his chest that he found difficult to describe because it was something he experienced very rarely.
Clyde is currently thinking, maybe having apanion in this apocalypse isn''t too bad either.
But soon he quickly shook off that thought. Because he still can''t trust someone easily.
"You have to remember that I saved you because you have the power of a healer," Clyde said.
Hearing those words, Asqa did not feel offended.
"I know. I''ll try to be a good healer for you and the others."
Clyde did not reply to Asqa''s words. He just stared at Asqa with a look that was difficult to understand.
*BOOM!*
An explosion suddenly sounded from the building. Following that, loud and disturbing roars were heard.
"GRRRUUUAAAHHH!!!"
They all stared at the building. Both Clyde''s group and Leon''s group could finally see the figure of the BOSS they had to kill.
The BOSS had a body simr to that of a human. However, its body size is probably five times the height of an ordinary human.
The strange thing is, the zombie BOSS has quite different characteristics and looks very dangerous.
It wears ck te armor that covers its chest, upper arms, and thighs.
The zombie was also holding an ugly shield that was round like pieces of steel glued together.
And in its other hand, the zombie was holding a cleave sword that was more than two meters long.
The zombies who were clearly the BOSS on this stage looked much more dangerous than the ck Ant Kings that Clyde was fighting at that time.
"I-Is the BOSS you fought back then like that too?" Asqa asked with a trembling voice.
She was unable to take her eyes off the zombie even though her eyes were shaking with fear.
"No No No. We shouldn''t meet zombies like this. What the fuck is this?!" Reed said with a scared face that was almost the same as Asqa.
In fact, everyone in the group stared with fear and terror evident in their eyes.
Clyde wasn''t as calm as before either.
The BOSS they had to kill seemed can''t be hurt with the strength of this group alone.
''At this rate, I also have to join the fight.''
~~~
Chapter 37 Starting The Fight
?"GRRUUAAAHHHH!!!"
The thunderous sound seemed to shake the heavens.
The windows in the nearby buildings were broken and scattered all over the street. Adding to the horror of the scene in front of them.
"What''s the n?" Rodney asked as he turned to Clyde.
After him, the others turned to Clyde to wait for his answer.
Clyde who was stared at like that breathed out.
"Why are you asking me? I also have no ns for this. Aren''t you the Regressors?" Clyde said.
"That''s true. But we haven''t faced a BOSS like this before," Reed answered with a worried look on his face.
"Let''s hide for now," Clyde said.
They all then hide behind a building.
Once they were a little more hidden in the shadows of the building, Clyde asked.
"Don''t you guys have anything we can use against that BOSS?"
The Regressors were silent. Their eyes moved as if they were searching for something in the memories from their past lives.
But it took them a long time to search for that memory.
Clyde, Asqa, and Sonya have lost hope. And in the end, what they had guessed was indeed what happened.
They couldn''t find anything useful.
"We didn''t find anything. We just waited until the sun set for the BOSS to weaken. Then we just killed it," Rodney said.
Clyde clicked his tongue. "That''s out of the discussion. We can''t wait until the sun goes down."
A feeling of anxiety enveloped the group until they finally sank into a suffocating silence.
However, the silence was shattered by the sound of thousands of zombies that had started to move.
"Graaah!!!"
The voices of the zombies that were the size of ordinary humans, who had only been silent like statues, began to let out screams.
They seemed to have just started the parade.
From the sound of their roars and footsteps, the zombies started to move in search of their targets.
There was no longer time to hide.
"What now? What should we do?" Asqa, who was already panicking, was now even more frightened when she heard the voices of the zombies.
"Even though our Levels are already high, and we''ve also used up all our Points to raise Stats to the max, I don''t know if we''ll be able to ovee them," Reed said.
"No use guessing," Clyde drew his sword. "We just have to fight to survive!"
Clyde then walked out from the shadow of the building.
They all stare at him. Their faces were filled with worry.
Even if Clyde disyed such bravery, it didn''t mean that they would all feel the same.
But, they knew what Clyde said was true.
"Let''s go!" Rodney said. He stepped to catch up with Clyde.
Eric and Reed followed with tense faces.
Sonya and Mona agree that they must protect Asqa who cannot fight.
"How''s your bow?" Mona asked Sonya.
Sonya sighed. "I''ll try not to get killed too soon. Besides, Asqa is right next to me. I don''t have to worry about getting hurt, right?"
Sonya chuckled.
She did that not because she felt no fear. Instead, she was too scared and nervous.
Because of that, she let out thatugh to ovee her fear.
But both of them seemed to find it a brave move.
It made Mona and Asqa feel better after seeing Sonya''s smile.
"Let''s do our best," Mona said.
With Clyde in front, they finally approached the zombies.
Clyde himself felt quite anxious. But he convinced himself that he was equipped enough to feel confident.
He was Level 57 now and he had [Title: Limit Breaker (Lv.2)].
Besides that, he also has one more important thing, [Private Attribute: Easy-Mode].
Clyde swung the Elderss Sword with moderate force.
The transparent de of the sword cut through the zombies as easily as cutting through the air.
*CRAAAT!*
*CRAAAT!*
*CRAAAT!*
...
Clyde didn''t even feel any pressure when he shed his sword.
He can sh three or even five zombies in one swing.
That way, Clyde can prate the sea of ??zombies quickly.
Behind him, Rodney, Eric, and Reed could also easily prate the sea of ??zombies.
They were already Level 30 and all of their Stats were also maxed.
So they also don''t face significant problems when facing these zombies.
Clyde kills a lot of zombies because he is walking in front.
Rodney, Eric, and Reed also took care of the rest.
Meanwhile, Mona is also fighting well.
She shed her katana with a swift movement so as not to let the zombies get closer to Asqa.
Sonya is also no less strong than them.
Even though she uses a bow, because her Stats is maxed like the others, Sonya can shoot her bow like a machine gun.
*SYUUTTT!*
*SYUUTTT!*
*SYUUTTT!*
...
Sonya shoots arrows with incredible speed and precision.
Her arrows can hit the zombies'' foreheads and prate the back of their heads.
Asqa on the other hand still hasn''t seen an opportunity for her to be able to use her powers.
But Asqa was not disappointed because it meant that none of her friends were injured.
*BWOOOSSSHHH!!!*
Clyde let out mes that spread around him with incredible intensities.
The fire immediately scorched the zombies to ashes.
Clyde''s me bursts could be that powerful because his [Burning Hand] skill had reached Level 10.
"GROOOOAAAHH!!!"
The BOSS gave a thunderous shout once more.
Its eyes suddenly lit up red when it saw Clyde and his group.
Clyde who was busy killing zombies caught that look. They both stared at each other for a few moments.
The BOSS suddenly ran at high speed despite its huge size.
Then it directly threw the nearly two-meter-long cleave sword toward Clyde.
*WOOONG*
*WOOONG*
*WOOONG*
...
It was so big that the cleave sword made a sound as it spun through the air and cut through the wind.
The cleave sword flies at high speed toward Clyde.
If he didn''t do something, that huge sword would split his body in two with a single sh.
So Clyde jumped and stepped on a zombie''s head randomly and approached the cleave sword.
Then he swung the Elderss Sword with all his might.
~~~
Chapter 38 Another BOSS
?Clyde swung his sword as hard as he could. And of course, he also channeled his Magic Power into the Elderss Sword because he didn''t want to take risks in something that could take his life.
The transparent bluish de shed as it reacted with Clyde''s Magic Power. Then, the de met the Cleave Sword that the BOSS threw.
*CLANG!*
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!!!*
The shockwave spread in all directions and prompted the nearby zombies to duck or even fall.
The four Regressors, Asqa, and Sonya also felt the shockwave so they also ducked and were pushed.
Asqa even fell. But Sonya immediately pulled her back to her feet before she got trampled.
"What happened?" Asqa asked because earlier she had not seen what Clyde was doing.
"It''s Clyde," Sonya said. "He stopped the huge sword the BOSS threw at us."
After Sonya exined, Asqa understood everything. She nodded then looked at Clyde.
Clyde swung the BOSS''s cleave sword in a random direction.
Then hends back on the ground. As it turned out, the BOSS was quite strong.
Not strong enough to make Clyde feel the danger. But Clyde felt great pressure from the attack earlier even though his Stats were maxed out.
''Apparently, those World Masters leveling up the apocalypse.''
Clyde had the thought that Agatha - the woman who imed to be the World Master knew his strength and decided that they had to raise the level of difficulty.
''Then, is my [Easy-Mode] still in effect?''
Clyde questioned it.
[Easy-Mode] was something that allowed him to survive and reach this level of power when he was still in the early stages.
But if it was true that the difficulty level had been increased by the World Master, wouldn''t that mean that there was no [Easy-Mode] for him anymore?
"GROAAAHHH!!!"
The BOSS screamed again. It seems that it was annoyed because Clyde had already thrown its sword.
So the BOSS charged towards Clyde with steps that were not only wide, but also fast.
*DUMM...*
*DUMM...*
*DUMM...*
...
As the BOSS ran, its giant legs hit the ground and created tremors.
It also stepped on the zombies that were lined up in front of it and crushed them into pulp.
Clyde stood up and prepared to greet the BOSS with the Elderss Sword in hand.
In an instant, the BOSS was already in front of him. It swung its arm that was d in a ck iron gauntlet.
*CLANG!*
Clyde blocked the BOSS''s arm with the Elderss Sword.
Then he stomped on the ground and jumped into the air.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
Clyde''s hands began to burn with fire.
As soon as he was level with the BOSS''s face, Clyde threw the fireball in his hand.
*BWOOSSHH!*
The fireball exploded in the BOSS''s face. Making it let out a scream of pain while wing its face.
Clydended back on the ground.
His eyes nced at the part of the leg below the BOSS''s knee that was not covered by the ck iron armor.
Clyde lunged forward with all his might. Then activated [Burning Hand] and channeled it to the Elderss Sword.
*SWOOOSSSHHH!*
The de of the sword was burning with fire.
Clyde swung it with all his might towards the part of the BOSS''s leg that was not covered by the armor.
*CRAATTT!*
After the Elderss Sword pierced through its leg, mes spread and burned it.
"GRAAAHHH!!!"
The BOSS once again let out a roar of pain. The fire that previously burned the face had been extinguished and left a badly burned face.
Part of the BOSS''s facial skin had been burnt until all that was left was bone. The rest of its face leaves burnt flesh.
Even the BOSS''s eyes were about to pop out because the flesh supporting them had melted.
"Heh!" Clyde grinned.
The BOSS seemed to notice Clyde''s disdainful grin. Because it immediately swung its hand toward Clyde.
*WUSHHH!*
Clyde lowered his head so that the BOSS''s hands only brushed the top of his head.
After that, Clyde tried to sh his Elderss Sword again at the BOSS''s feet.
However, before Clyde couldnd an attack, something grabbed his leg from below.
Then threw Clyde aside with great force until he flew away hitting the zombies.
Clyde''s body shot like a bullet that had just been fired from a gun.
He broke through the wall of a house and finally ended up inside.
Luckily, Clyde tightened his grip just fine. So that Eldress is still in his hands.
Clyde got up and shrugged all the rubble that covered his body.
"Damnit! What was that?!"
Clyde cursed while grinding his teeth. Something grabbed his leg from the ground.
And before Clyde knew what it was, he was thrown deep into this house.
Once again, he was saved because his Stats were maxed out.
He came out of the house. But now hundreds of zombies have surrounded him and don''t allow him to take a step further.
Clyde looked up at the back of the zombie army.
Now there are two giant zombies there.
"So that''s what pulled me out of the ground. I didn''t know they were smart enough to make such a n."
"GRAAAHHH!!!"
The zombies lunged at him like hungry predators.
Clyde knew that he couldn''t be here too long. Or the two BOSSes could act freely and kill everyone in the group.
"GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY WAY!"
Clyde shouted then lunged toward the wave of zombies.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!!!*
mes gushed over the zombies. Clyde spread his mes over arge area. Try to scorch as many zombies as possible.
On top of that, he also swung the Elderss Sword with his other hand.
Splitting a zombie''s body is like cutting bread with a butchered knife.
With all the arsenal he has. Clyde can easily wipe out the line of zombies.
On the other hand, Albert came back after he felt he had something interesting to report.
"You won''t believe this. Two BOSS have appeared. And the strength of the yers there is stronger than we thought!"
~~~
Chapter 39 This Is Different
?Albertes back to his group with shocking news.
In addition, the look on his face also made them all worried.
Albert said that another BOSS just appeared from the ground.
"So there really are two BOSSes?" Leon muttered while keeping himself calm.
"Then, about that other group, what can you see about them?" Rosie asked.
"They are all very strong. Perhaps they are at a much higher level than us," Albert replied.
"How high?" Wiley replied with his question.
Albert thought for a while, then after a while, he answered.
"Maybe 10, or even 20 Levels above us."
Albert''s answer made them all feel shocked. The same question is in the head of each of them.
What made the group so strong in such a short amount of time?
*SWOOOSSSHHH!!!*
An enormous wave of mes suddenly appeared.
The fire was so high that they could see it rising from the shadows of the building they were hiding in.
"Shit, was that an attack from the BOSS, or one of those group members?" Wiley asked with trembling eyes staring at the pir of fire that stretched up into the sky.
All of the group members expressed the same shock.
"I believe that it came from one of the members of the group. He is the strongest among them," Albert said.
"I just saw him dispel an enormous sword. He manage to repel the two-meter-long sword that the BOSS threw at him! By himself!"
Leon, Rosie, L, Albert, and Wiley thought they were strong enough after getting weapons from Supply Cache.
They are only trapped in an illusion. On the other side were people with powers they couldn''t even imagine.
And they were now facing two BOSS simultaneously.
"That adds another reason for us not getting into the fight," Leon said.
Wiley nodded quickly.
"Let''s stay here first. I don''t know for how long," Leon continued. "Maybe we should let them kill all the BOSS."
They had wanted to steal the BOSS killing from the group.
They waited until the group injured the BOSSes and came up with a powerful attack.
That way, they would im that group''s BOSS kill. And get Exp to level up quickly.
However, after hearing an exnation from Albert, they agreed to cancel that intention.
The two BOSSes were obviously very strong. They weren''t sure they could kill them even though they were already badly injured.
Even if they managed to steal the BOSS from the group, they would bear the wrath of the group.
The power difference that Albert had exined made them reluctant to seek trouble with them.
"So now we only have one goal, huh," Wiley said. "We''re just going to have to get through this by doing nothing."
Rosie looked at him. "Yes. I think that''s the best choice."
"GRRUUAAAHHHH!!!"
A deafening scream sounded again.
They didn''t know which BOSS it was from because right now, ording to Albert''s exnation, there had already been two BOSSes that had appeared.
~~~
Clyde is trying to make his way through a sea of ??hundreds of zombies to get to where his group is.
But even though Clyde had killed hundreds of zombies, hundreds of other zombies spawned and rece their ce.
''How should I end this wave of zombies?! There must be some kind of Spawner around here!''
Clyde cast his eyes around in search of the Spawner who was spewing out this endless wave of zombies.
However, Clyde did not find the Spawner anywhere.
Meanwhile, his group mates were fighting those two gigantic BOSS.
''Shit!''
Clyde''s anxiety is growing.
Meanwhile, on the other hand, Clyde''s concern is not without reason.
The fist of one of the BOSS moved towards the group.
Fortunately, Eric swiftly managed to use his skill.
A golden light shield appeared in front of the group.
*DANGGG!*
The BOSS''s fist hit the light shield. But because of its power, Eric was slightly pushed back.
Fortunately, his Stats were maxed out. Otherwise, he would have been smashed to a pulp by that punch.
The fact that the fist was still strong enough to push him away proved something.
This BOSS was still stronger than those who already had maxed out Stats.
"I''ll go!" Rodney, taking the initiative when he saw an opportunity, jumped from behind Eric and sent a [Sword sh].
*SWISSH!*
The dark sh flew towards the BOSS.
But even though Rodney had raised the Skill to its maximum level, the [Sword sh] only pushed the BOSS backward without hurting it.
The te armor that looked like it was made of ck steel had holes due to Rodney''s skill. But no significant effect was created on the BOSS.
Seeing what was before their eyes, the four Regressors felt hopeless.
"This has never happened on the turns before this," Mona muttered.
~~~
Chapter 40 Blind Rage
?"HA HA HA HA!" Agathaughed loudly in the room.
In front of her, there is currently a very interesting scene in her eyes. The scene is being disyed on the floating monitor screen.
The yers in that scene are currently struggling.
Their faces were in shock realizing what was in front of their eyes.
"Look at their faces, Senior!" Agatha said while pointing at the screen with her long fingers. There is a dark red color like blood on her nails.
Lio on the other hand kept his face straight.
He remained calm while staring at everything that was happening before his eyes. Because there is no reason to be too excited.
"Will you be quiet?" Lio said.
He was starting to feel irritated by Agatha''s annoying shout andughter.
"Didn''t you see that? They thought they were already strong because they leveled up fast. But when we gave them a tough enemy, they were immediately shocked!"
Lucio gritted his teeth.
"Don''t you know what price we have to pay to be able to do raise the difficulty of this Chapter?" Lio asked Agatha.
Agatha''sughter stopped when she heard the question.
She had indeed never heard of the price they need to pay before this Chapter.
She only knew that, they need to raise the difficulty because the yers are somehow be to strong for this stage.
Agatha only felt the excitement when she saw the yers who thought they were strong enough to pass this Chapter leisurely feel the suffer.
After she saw how happy they were after getting a lot of Level Ups and was quite confident about what would happen in front of them.
However, Agatha was so wrapped up in her happiness that she forgot to ask about what they would have to pay to raise the level of difficulty for this chapter.
She just trusting everything on Lio''s decision.
Because Agatha didn''t want to bother with all those troublesome things. So she chose topletely trust Lio.
"S-So... what did we use to pay?" Agatha asked with a feeling of anxiety that was starting to grow in her heart.
"You think for yourself. What is the most valuable currency for us," Lio said.
"Don''t tell me... Our Tokens?!"
Lio shrugged his shoulder. "What else?"
All of Agatha''s happiness that she had just now suddenly vanished. As if it never happened and she neverughed that hard.
Agatha put her hands on her head.
Her face was deathly pale and her eyes widened.
In her eyes, there was the despair she had seen in the yers on the screen.
"Shit," Agatha muttered. "How much do we pay, senior?"
"You pay 4,000 Tokens," Lio replied in an even tone.
Hearing that, Agatha''s brow furrowed.
She realized there was something wrong with Lio''s words.
"Me? What do you mean I pay 4,000? How about you?!" she asked.
"I only paid 1,000."
The answer from Lio made Agatha feel like she was struck by lightning.
"What the fuck?! How can you do that to me, senior?!" Agatha snapped.
She stood up from her chair and stared at Lio with eyes that seemed to light up, burning with rage.
But Lio didn''t look worried.
He just kept staring at the screen where the yers were fighting two BOSSes that making things difficult for them.
While Agatha was next to him and stared at him with such obvious rage.
"Of course, you have to pay more. I''m your senior, remember?" Lio said.
Agatha was already at the limit of her patience.
She unleashed her Magic Power.
Her body was enveloped in a dark purple aura that was rotating like a tornado.
Then a scythe with a hilt longer than her body appeared in her hand.
Agatha swung the scythe at Lio without a second thought.
"DIEEEE!" She screamed.
*KRRRRRR!!!*
Suddenly, a metallic rustle was heard.
Chains emerge from the greenish vortex behind Agatha''s body and ensnare her hands. Instantly stopped her swing.
Lio stared at Agatha with piercing cold eyes. "You dare attack me?"
Lucio''s voice was low. He didn''t scream like Agatha.
However, his voice felt so cold to Agatha that it chilled her spine.
Her rage was extinguished as fast as fire doused with water.
Lio stood up from his chair. He stretched out his hand in a pushing motion towards Agatha.
Instantly, Agatha''s body was pushed back and pressed against the white wall.
Her scythe fell on the floor and made a loud sound.
After that Lio formed a gripping motion.
About a dozen vortexes appeared around Agatha.
Chains shot out of the vortexes and tied her body to the wall very tightly.
"Arghh..." groaned Agatha. Feel the bonds of the chains getting tighter.
Lio approached Agatha who was tied to the wall while putting hid hands in her pockets.
"You are an idiot," Lio said, still in a calm tone.
"I know you''re angry and you''re attacking me on impulse. Now think again about your actions while you''re tied up here."
"Since this is the first incident, I will forgive you. But not the second time."
Then Lio walked towards the door and disappeared.
"Shit," muttered Agatha. "That bastard stole my Token!"
Agatha''s anger was still soaring. She knew that Lio was much stronger than her.
But her mind could no longer think straight because of anger.
Now Agatha''s body is tightly bound to the wall with very strong chains.
Not only that, these chains are getting tighter every few seconds.
~~~
*BUAAGHHH!*
A fist from the BOSS shot towards Rodney.
He was thrown several meters before finally stopping after crashing into an abandoned bus.
Rodney felt a pain in his chest. It was only natural since he was hit in the chest by such a big monster.
''This is so bad. Why is there such a powerful BOSS in the second chapter?''
Rodney tried to get up after being thrown. But as soon as he woke up, hundreds of zombies barely ran toward him.
''Damnit! Should I go get ''that'' now?!''
~~~
Chapter 41 Dire Situation
?Rodney jumped from where hey after getting thrown by the BOSS.
Then he shed his katana sword at the hordes of zombies charging toward him relentlessly
All the zombies are not a significant threat to Rodney.
With his Stats, he could take care of them without worrying about getting hurt.
The problem was, this never-ending amount of them was extremely troublesome.
''If I take the artifact now, there''s a high chance that I''ll blow my cover off.''
Even amidst the endless attacks of the zombies, Rodney was still able to think. He thought about how he should take his next step.
''I have to think carefully.''
On the other hand, the rest of the group was struggling against the two BOSSes.
Eric was at the forefront with his Skill to create a light shield.
But he was at his wit''s end when he had to withstand the attacks from two BOSSes that m at his shield almost together.
*DANGGG!*
Therge ax held by the other BOSS smashed into Eric''s light shield.
That attack alone was strong enough to make him push backward and groan with agony.
From behind him Reed jumped up and create a sword sh toward the BOSS''s hand.
They had learned not tond a direct hit on the BOSS'' te armor. Because it won''t have much impact.
The sword sh sent by Reed aimed at the finger of the BOSS holding the axe.
*CRAAT!*
It turned out that the attack from the skill that had been raised to the maximum Level was enough to injure the BOSS.
As long as the skill doesn''tnd on the te armor protecting it.
The BOSS'' finger was cut off and fell to the ground. The sound of the roar of pain sounded thundering.
Not only that finger that fell. But the ax it was holding fell to the ground and made a loud nking sound.
Reed screamed with joy in his heart knowing he had seeded in wounding the BOSS as well as disarming it.
However, it is still far from the end.
"Sonya!" Reed shouted. "Your turn!"
After calling Sonya, Reed proceeded to fight off the zombie hordeing towards them with Mona.
Sonya, who already knew what she had to do, immediately pulled her bow.
Sonya''s face grimaced slightly when she saw the condition of her bow. Would a ducktape enhance with Magic Power can work properly?
But Sonya immediately pushed that thought away.
There''s no use thinking about it now. She just had to focus on fighting these BOSSes and hoped that her bow wouldn''t break in the middle of an important situation.
Sonya activated [Hunter''s Marker] towards one of the BOSS and started aiming.
*SYUTT!*
Sonya''s arrow shot into the BOSS''s eye. She knew that her arrow would hit the BOSS''s eye without missing it.
And because the skill is already at the maximum level, there will be additional damage from the arrow.
*CRAATT!*
When the arrow stabbed into the BOSS''s eye, blood immediately gushed out without stopping.
''The Bleeding status is in effect!''
Sonya smirked, even though she used more Magic Power to bring out the Bleeding effect, it was worth it against these BOSSes.
"Asqa!" Mona shouted.
Aska turned around when he heard the scream. She swiftly ran towards Mona and cast her skill.
A greenish light covered Mona''s body which was full of scratches and scrapes.
In the blink of an eye, all those wounds had healed.
"Thanks!"
Mona then proceeded to sh the zombies around them.
While Asqa is d she can help. She can no longer just hide behind the bodies of her friends.
When Asqa''s [healing] skill is at max level, she can heal wounds almost instantly.
Asqa had just realized how useful she was when Clyde disappeared because he was thrown by the BOSS.
By reflex, Asqa immediately used her skill on anyone who was injured.
She was surprised to realize that she could do something like that.
"Asqa!"
Now it was Eric''s turn to scream.
Asqa didn''t even answer anymore. She immediately rushed closer to Eric and cast her skill.
Green light enveloped Eric''s body and instantly his hand which was broken from enduring the BOSS''s punch in front of him healed.
Eric didn''t have time to thank Asqa because he was busily withstanding another blow that came from the BOSS.
In a way, the reason they have survived until now is because of Asqa.
"Shit! We have to retreat!" Sonya said.
She had fired arrows at one of the two BOSSes.
Her shoot speed coupled with [Hunter''s Marker] skill allows her tond five shots on target in just a few seconds.
Her arrows stuck in both the BOSS''s eyes, forehead, and forearms.
So that the BOSS received a stacked Bleeding status.
Blood flowed out from the wound caused by Sonya''s arrows. Until it formed a pool of blood under that BOSS.
But even though it had been injured that badly, the BOSS didn''t look weakened.
It''s just that its movement became erratic because both of his eyes had been destroyed by Sonya.
That''s why Sonya told them to back off. Without Clyde who being thrown far away, they would be in danger.
Apart from that, Rodney was also thrown somewhere. That only made their situation worse.
"Where to?" Reed asked. "You think we can get out of here?!"
Sonya gritted her teeth. Reed was right.
The zombies were surrounding them from all directions. There''s no way out of here.
Sonya prepares to shoot again. At this rate, she can only continue fighting and hope that Clyde arrives on time.
Or until they can deal enough damage to kill the two BOSSes.
But thetter feels very unlikely.
Suddenly there was a pir of fire soaring into the air.
Together with that, dozens of zombies were also thrown into the air in a scorched state.
The distance between the pir of fire and them was not too far.
Those who saw it knew it was Clyde.
He managed to fight his way past hundreds of zombies that never stoppeding back to them.
~~~
Chapter 42 Back Together
?Their guess was not wrong. It was really Clyde who was trying to reach them by using all his strength to y the zombies.
Clyde spouted mes from his hands all around. He incinerated dozens of zombies in one strike.
But it wasn''t over yet because the zombies were still spawning from somewhere without stopping.
Even so, Clyde did not give up. He had one guess as to where these zombies were spawning endlessly from.
They must alle from those two BOSSes.
If he could destroy the two BOSSes, then this wave of zombies woulde to an end.
Even though Clyde couldn''t be one hundred percent sure, right now that was all he could think about.
So he would focus on killing the two BOSSes.
After several minutes of splitting waves of zombies, Clyde finally arrived at his group''s location.
Those who were also struggling against the zombies'' attacks looked at Clyde with relief.
"Finally you''re back!" Sonya shouted.
Clyde wasted no t to answering her shout. Instead, he looked at the two BOSSes.
Clyde saw that one of the two BOSS was bleeding from its body.
More precisely the blood was gushing out from the wounds caused by Sonya''s arrows.
Clyde was quite amazed at what Sonya could do.
However, he also realized that it was still not enough to significantly weaken the BOSS.
''Apparently, there is something wrong with this stage. They obviously increased the difficulty of this Second Chapter.''
Clyde''s suspicions grew stronger when he saw the state of the BOSS.
Sonya must have gotten that effect because she has raised her skill to the maximum level.
But the BOSS still hadn''t been killed.
That meant the organizers of this apocalypse ¨D most likely the World Masters ¨D had also increased the difficulty of this stage to bnce it with their strengths.
Whatever it was, Clyde could figure it outter. Now he had to kill those BOSSes first.
"Reed, Eric, Mona! Focus on blocking the zombies. I and Sonya will fight those two BOSS!" Clyde said.
They immediately followed Clyde''s words. Clyde didn''t see Rodney.
But now there was no time to worry about him even though he might be seriously injured or even dead.
Especially when he''s dead. The more there is no reason to think about him.
Reed, Mona, and Eric immediately changed positions to face the zombies.
Eric, who was in front of the BOSS and put up his light shield, now feels a little relieved because Clyde has arrived.
He no longer needed to face the onught of attacks from the two BOSSes.
After that Clyde moved to take Eric''s ce.
All those rotations happened in less than a second and they were already in position.
Now Clyde was in front of the two BOSSes. Sonya is now also behind him with an arrow already nock on her bow.
Clyde spoke to Sonya without looking at her.
"Sonya, BOSS A is the one that has already been struck by your arrows. While BOSS B is the other one."
Clyde decided to provide simple identification to make it easier for them to work together.
"Got it!" Sonya replied.
"Shoot BOSS B with your skills!" Clyde ordered.
Sonya once again activated [Hunter''s Marker] and shot an arrow at the BOSS.
*SYYUUUTTT!*
*CRAAT!*
Sonya''s arrow stuck in one of BOSS B''s eyes and gave it a Bleeding effect.
On the other hand, Clyde shot towards BOSS A and then kicked the ground to shoot up.
Clyde shot up until he was in front of the BOSS''s uncovered neck.
Then Clyde swung the Elderss Sword with all his might.
*CRAAATTT!*
The de of the Elderss Sword stuck into its neck.
But stopped because it struck something very strong. Most likely it is its spine.
''Damnit!''
Clyde gritted his teeth in disappointment.
A little more and he should have been able to cut BOSS A''s neck.
But apparently, the spine was too strong that it could withstand his sh.
"GROAAHHH!!!''
BOSS A let out a scream of pain and raised its hand to hold Clyde.
However, Clyde dodged by kicking the BOSS in the chest
and flying his body backward.
Without its eyes which were destroyed by Sonya''s arrows, BOSS A couldn''t see that Clyde was already outside of its range.
So it just reaches for the air.
Clydended on the ground a momentter. He wasted no time and immediately shot toward BOSS B.
"Sonya! Shoot BOSS A!" Clyde shouted.
BOSS B saw Clyde approaching.
It remains aware of Clyde''s arrival even though it was distracted by arrows from Sonya.
BOSS B took the ax lying on the ground with its left hand and immediately swung it at Clyde.
*WUSSHHH!!!*
Because the ax was so big that it made a sound when it passed through the air.
Clyde, who already knew that BOSS B would do that, could dodge easily by swerving to the side. The huge ax passed him barely.
After that Clyde proceeded to dash toward BOSS B.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*SWOOOSSSHHH!*
Clyde let out a torrent of fire at BOSS B''s feet as he continued to run towards it.
BOSS B''s feet started to blister from Clyde''s fire.
It also started making grunting sounds which Clyde assumed were due to the pain in its leg.
BOSS B pulled the ax down again from above and pointed the ax directly at Clyde.
However, because of the size of the axe, no matter how hard BOSS B swung it, it couldn''t be any faster than Clyde.
Clyde jumped and climbed onto BOSS B''s leg while clinging to its armor.
Then he threw a fireball toward BOSS B''s one
remaining eye.
*WOOSH!!!*
*BOOM!*
The fireball exploded in BOSS B''s eye, blowing up its one remaining eye.
Now the two BOSSes had lost their vision. This fight will be easier.
The thing that was still a problem was how to prate their bodies.
Even though Clyde could attack parts that were not covered by armor, those BOSSes also had very hard bones.
~~~
Chapter 43 Too Strong
?All of that bes an obstacle that makes this fight even more difficult.
But that doesn''t mean it''s an impossible battle to win.
Clyde was still confident that he could sh the necks of those two BOSSes. He just needed to add more power behind his shes.
Because one of BOSS B''s eyes was destroyed by an arrow shoot by Sonya.
And one of its other eyes was hit by a fireball explosion from Clyde, BOSS B had already lost its vision.
Clyde slid down under BOSS B. He saw its exposed leg below the knee. So Clyde took the opportunity.
Clyde channeled his Magic Power into the Elderss Sword. The transparent bluish de glowed with a bright bluish color.
Heunch himself towards the back of BOSS B''s knee then shed the Elderss Sword.
*SLASH!*
Although Clyde''s sh managed to prate the flesh, once again, his sword crashed into the hard bone.
Clyde didn''t give up and channeled his Magic Power even more stronger.
He pulled the Elderss Sword from BOSS B''s flesh and swung again with even more force.
*CRACK!*
''That''s it!''
Clyde knew that he had seeded in shing BOSS B''s bones. However, BOSS B still had not fallen.
"GROAAHHH!!!"
A roar of pain was heard. BOSS B was feeling pain because Clyde had managed to sh through its hard leg bone.
''Still not enough, huh?!''
Clyde gritted his teeth because this BOSS started to annoy him.
Clyde would have been able to kill this BOSS a long time ago if it weren''t for the hard bones.
BOSS B tried to twist its body to attack Clyde with that giant axe. But due to the weakened state of its legs, BOSS B finally fell to the ground.
*BRUGGHH!*
A thump sounded as BOSS B''s massive body fell. Clyde grinned then he ran over to the BOSS.
''That skull must be a hard part because it protects the most important part. Then, where should I attack it?''
"GRAAAHHH!!!"
But BOSS B didn''t give Clyde time to think. It had swung one of its arms to brush against Clyde.
Clyde who realized that a giant hand wasing towards him immediately jumped up.
So BOSS B''s hand only swept through the air because it couldn''t see Clyde.
''Argh! Fuck it! I will use it so that this battle is over quickly!''
Clyde felt his anger getting to its peak. Because of this annoying BOSSes.
Hended on top of BOSS B''s belly. Then he used something that was his secret weapon.
''I will activate [Title]!''
[Title: Limit Breaker (Lv.2) is activated! ]
[ All Stats (+2)! ]
Clyde felt an extraordinary power flowing through his whole body.
''Even when I only gained an extra 2 Stats, it turned out to be this great!''
Not only that, but another notification also appeared before Clyde''s eyes.
[ You have be a Transcendence! ]
''A Transcendence?!''
[ Your strength has exceeded the maximum Stat of a normal human! ]
Clyde''s body gave off an unusually strong aura. The aura spread around like a gust of a hurricane.
The zombies that were attacking blindly suddenly stopped attacking.
They all turned to Clyde who was standing on top of BOSS B''s body.
Even the zombies who were monsters withoutmon sense could feel how powerful Clyde''s strength was.
''This is fucking amazing!''
Clyde grinned. Even BOSS B was unable to move under the pressure of Clyde''s power.
Apart from the zombies, other people present in the area also felt the pressure of Clyde''s power.
Their reaction is not much different from the reaction of the zombies.
"Incredible¡" Asqa muttered.
Clyde who knows that his strength has increased drastically due to activating [Title: Limit Breaker (Lv.2) ] feels confident that now he can kill BOSS B and Boss A with ease.
So Clyde dashed towards BOSS B''s head at lightning speed. In the blink of an eye, he was right above BOSS B''s head.
Clyde raised the Elderss Sword and then plunged it into BOSS B''s head.
*CRAATTT!*
The de didn''t just stab into the BOSS''s head. But it also instantly destroyed its head due to the overwhelming pressure of Magic Power.
[ You have killed the BOSS: Berserk Zombie (Lv.40) ]
[You gain 500 Exp. ]
["You Leveled Up!" ]
Clyde grinned looking at the Level of the BOSS he just killed.
''They raised the BOSS Level to this high?''
Due to the intensity of the fight, Clyde had forgotten that he had the [Inspection] skill and didn''t realize that the BOSS''s Level was 40.
Clyde then looked around. Surprisingly, all the zombies seem to have stopped their attacks.
BOSS A also stopped moving for a moment.
It was as if they were all hit by a shockwave that made their bodies freeze.
Then Clyde saw that his group members were also looking at him with awe.
"There is still one BOSS left!" Clyde shouted.
Clyde''s shout made them aware of the danger that still threatening them.
Asqa, Sonya, Mona, Reed, and Eric immediately returned to do their jobs again.
Clyde jumped from above the helpless body of BOSS B.
Then he shot towards BOSS A.
But a notification popped up surprising Clyde.
[ Activating the Limit Breaker will quickly consume Magic Power. ]
''Oh, shit. It turns out that this much power will indeede with great risks.''
Clyde intends to finish this as soon as possible.
A dark bluish aura enveloped his entire body.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was right in front of BOSS A.
"Retreat!" Clyde shouted at his group members.
He stomped the ground and threw his body into the air.
Clyde channeled his Magic Power into the Elderss Sword. Making the de glow with a bright blue-ck aura.
Then he shed the Elderss Sword diagonally into BOSS A''s body.
A sword aura appeared as Clyde shed and cut BOSS A''s body from the shoulder to the waist.
*CRAAATTT!*
BOSS A''s gigantic body fell in two chunks onto the ground. It falls on the zombies behind it.
Clydended back smoothly. Not wanting to linger, he quickly deactivated [Title: Limit Breaker].
The dark blue aura that was enveloping his body vanished in an instant.
~~~
Chapter 44 Defeated
?[ You have killed the BOSS: Berserk Zombie (Lv.40) ]
[You gain 500 Exp. ]
Clyde breathed a sigh of relief after he managed to kill the second BOSS.
Hundreds of zombies around them copsed to the ground like robots whose power was suddenly cut off.
''Will I gain experience from all these zombies?''
Clyde''s eyes widened as the thought crossed his mind.
However, what Clyde thought apparently did not happen. The zombies just die without giving Exp.
He didn''t feel too disappointed though. Because he had already guessed that that was what was going to happen.
If indeed the zombies also provide Exp, then the bnce of this apocalypse will be even more chaotic than now.
And then, the World Masters will be raising the difficulty even more. That can''t happen.
"Clyde!" Asqa shouted from behind him.
When Clyde turned his head, he saw the rest of the group breathing hard while sitting on the ground.
Their faces expressed immense relief.
Soon the sound of an extremely loud notification echoed through the air.
[ "Congrattions to yer "CLYDE CROSS, SONYA REID, ASQA STARR, ERIC HANSEN, MONA COXX, REED RIVERA, AND RODNEY STRING" for defeating the BOSSes "BERSERK ZOMBIES."" ]
[ "Rewards for defeating the BOSS sent to Inventory." ]
[Rewards: 5,000 Coins. ]
[ "The First Chapter: Undead Virus has beenpleted." ]
Everyone frowned. Even Clyde frowned in disbelief.
"That''s the only reward we got? 5,000 coins?!" Reed was the first to voice hisint.
Reed''sint was what was on everyone''s mind right now.
After experiencing such difficulty even so close to dying, they only got 5,000 coins.
"This is too much," Sonya said in a low voice full of despair.
She was too weak to scream out her anger. If she wasn''t tired, Sonya would have screamed like Reed.
Clyde looked up at the sky. He wished those World Masters could see him.
So that they can realize that they have indeed done something outrageous.
~~~
Meanwhile, in the white room, Lio snorted and gave a small smile while looking at Clyde''s angry expression.
He looked up with eyes burning with obvious anger.
"Does he feel angry because he just received a reward like that? Tch, what a greedy young man," Lio said.
"But he is quite good. I admit that. He can even be a Transcendence in this Chapter."
Then Lio turned to Agatha. To be precise, towards Agatha who was being bound by his chains on the wall.
Agatha looks pathetic. Blood was gushing from the part of her body that was bound by the chains. It was because the chains were getting tighter binding her.
Even now the chains have gone into her flesh. Making her feel unimaginable pain.
Agatha''s eyes were red looking at Lio. The look in her eyes showed a feeling of rage. And even though it''s faint, there''s a despair that merges in it.
Lio only snorted at Agatha''s condition.
"You enjoying your time?" Lio asked rhetorically to Agatha.
Agatha did not answer. Instead, she gritted her teeth as she continued to give Lio that mad look.
Lucio nodded. As if he was approving something.
"Good. You still have that spirit."
Then Lio continued to stare at the screen in front of his eyes.
~~~
When he felt like he couldn''t do anything anymore. Clyde took a deep breath and walked the other way.
"There''s nothing we can do about it. After all, you guys have leveled up already, right?" Clyde said. "Instead, we need to find Rodney."
Because what he said was true, they all straightened up again.
Although there was clearly still a feeling of disappointment on their faces from only obtaining 5,000 coins they had also leveled up.
"I don''t know where he went. Maybe he''s even dead," said Eric.
"Isn''t he your friend?" Asqa asked with a look of disbelief upon hearing the way Eric said that.
Eric just nced at her. "You think this is the first time we''ve seen him die?"
Asqa was silent. She presses her lips together realizing that they are Regressors. They had seen others die more than once.
"So if one of you dies, you two go back to the beginning again?" Clyde asked.
"Yes. So don''t worry. We won''t really die," Reed replied.
"That means you guys will return to live in this hell with no end in sight?" Sonya asked.
The Regressors did not answer. But by the look on their faces, Sonya could see their grim answer.
"It doesn''t matter now." Clyde broke the silence. "Let''s at least find them first."
"You''re right," Mona said.
Then they started looking for Rodney amidst the corpses of the zombies scattered everywhere.
Rodney was actually hiding behind a narrow alley. After returning from taking something that was not very useful for now.
''Shit, it''s no use taking this!'' Rodney cursed in his heart.
In his hand now there is a white orb. Inside the orb, there is a kind of fog that moves and is trapped in it.
The orb is a secret item located not far from the BOSS spawning location in the First Chapter.
The information about the item was only known to Rodney after going through many Regression turns. And only he knows of its existence.
Rodney shook his head in frustration. But because he knew that everything already happened, he put the white orb into his Inventory.
The orb disappeared from Rodney''s hand. Then he walked out of the alley.
But Rodney came back inside as soon as he saw Mona walking towards him.
Rodney immediatelyy down in the alley and pretended to pass out.
A momentter Mona saw Rodney lying in the alley.
"Rodneys!"
Mona ran into the alley and approached Rodney.
"Hey, you okay?" Mona shook Rodney''s shoulder.
Then Rodney opened his eyes. Try his best to show the acting of a person in pain.
"Argh... What happened?" Rodney asked.
Mona sighed her. "Everything is okay. We have seeded in defeating the BOSSes."
Rodney then rose to his feet assisted by Mona. They exited the alley and headed for the rest of the group.
~~~
Chapter 45 Intension
?Mona who came together with Rodney made them feel relieved when they see Rodney was still alive.
Especially the Regressors who had faint smiles on their lips.
Rodney is now walking on his own. He told Mona that he was fine. So Mona let him walk by himself.
"Sorry, I wasn''t much help," Rodney said once he was in front of the group.
Once again, he tried to make his face looks like someone who feels guilty as convincingly as possible.
"It''s okay. The important thing now is that the problems we are facing are over," Reed said.
"Now, what should we do?" Sonya asked.
Now the sky had gotten a bit darker than before.
The sun had slipped to the west.
It was alreadyte afternoon and it felt a little calmer now that the two BOSSes were dead. And the First Chapter already ended.
This calm became something very strange. They felt like they could finally catch their breath after running a marathon without stopping.
Clyde looked at the Regressors in turn.
"What do you think? Is there anything we can do now?" Clyde asked.
The four Regressors exchanged nces. Then Rodney spoke.
"We''ve never had anything like this happened in our turns before. So we didn''t know what to do."
"This is something that never happened. I still can''t believe we finished the First Chapter this quickly," Reed added with a smile on his face.
Clyde thought about what he could do.
"Is there some kind of hidden pieces? Items or weapons. Or a monster?" Clyde asked.
Hearing Clyde''s question, Rodney could barely control himself from flinching.
But he still managed to control himself not to show any reaction.
"Even if there were, we don''t know anything about hidden items or Quests," Mona answered.
"Yeah. We were too busy hiding to survive in our turns before," Eric added.
Clyde didn''t say anything. He was only busy with his thoughts.
''If I search and find something of value, the World Masters will act and increase the difficulty in the next Chapter.''
Clyde sighed. From his face could be seen the obvious difficulty.
''Is there a way for those World Masters not to see me?''
Clyde nced around. But he found nothing that the World Masters might use to observe him.
He also looked up but found nothing. But Clyde was still sure that they were watching his every move.
In the end, Clyde just sighed. "Let''s find some food to stock up on. Then head back to the motel and rest."
At Clyde''s words, they all felt relieved.
Then they rushed to walk away from the ce which was still filled with hundreds of zombies.
~~~
In another ce not too far from Clyde''s group, Albert was still observing until finally, the group disappeared from the shadows of a building.
After they disappeared behind the building, Albert returned to his group.
"They''re gone," Albert informed them.
Leon, Wiley, Rosie, and L were silent. Don''t know what to do.
"Is there anything we can take from there?" Leon asked.
Albert shook his head. "I don''t think so."
"I think we should join them."
The words that L blurted out abruptly made all of them turn their heads toward her.
"What do you mean?" Wiley asked in a confused tone.
L looked at her friends with an uneasy look.
"You saw how they fought. Especially that guy in the ck coat," L said.
They manage to take a nce at the fight nearing the end.
Her friends immediately knew where L''s words were going.
"Joining them will make our chances of survival better."
They didn''t answer right away. Because they still have a lot of things to think about.
Even if they all agreed to join the group, it didn''t mean they would immediately ept them.
"I think that''s a great idea," Wiley said. "We won''t be a burden to them. So, I don''t think they will reject us outright."
They pondered the idea again for a few minutes.
Consider all their options. Pros and cons when they join that group.
"If we want to act, we''d better do it soon. Because we don''t have much time," Albert said.
"How about you, Albert?" Leon asked while looking at Albert.
"I will follow where you all go whatever your decision," Albert answered simply.
"But what do you think of this idea yourself?" Leon asked again.
Albert shrugged. "I think that''s a pretty good idea. The more people in the group the easier it will be for us to survive."
After hearing Albert''s reply, their decision became firmer.
"Alright," Leon said. "We''re going to meet them and ask if we can join in. You all okay with that?"
Rosie, Wiley, and L nodded without waiting too long.
With that, it was decided that they would join the group.
~~~
The sun was getting lower to the west. Clyde was just finishing loading thest supplies from a restaurant.
Clyde is with Asqa and Sonya. Meanwhile, the Regressors scattered to other ces.
Now Clyde was alone in the lobby of the restaurant.
While Sonya and Asqa were still in the kitchen picking up what supplies they could take.
Clyde is thinking about how this apocalypse will unfold tomorrow.
''Something is wrong. How can I have trouble facing a level 40 monster when I''m already at level 55?''
It''s all so absurd. If indeed this apocalypse followed the proper rules, then he shouldn''t have any trouble fighting that monster.
But why is he having a hard time? Even though it''s not that hard, it''s supposed to be easier than what he has experienced.
The only answer he could think of is that the parties behind this apocalypse did something that messed with the rules.
''Shit. I should have been more careful.''
Clyde was a bit regretful because he used his power so openly.
Because he was too happy to get this overwhelming power, Clyde didn''t think about the risks behind it.
''But now it''s toote for me to hide it.''
Clyde couldn''t help but sigh. Now all he can do is live what is in front of his eyes as best he can. So he doesn''t die.
"Excuse me."
Suddenly a girl''s voice startled Clyde who was thinking.
~~~
Chapter 46 Failed
?Clyde frowned at the woman. No, more precisely at the young girl in front of him.
From her appearance, she is wearing a uniform under a jacket and sweatpants, Clyde was sure that she is not much older than him.
"Who are you?" Clyde asked in a sharp tone. He was ready to put up an attack stance.
"I didn''t mean to ask you to fight," the girl raised her hand in the air. Her face looks scared.
Because Clyde didn''t want to miss any possibility, he immediately used [Skill: Inspection] on her.
<>
[Name: L Robertsen. ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 16 ]
[ Level: 7 ]
[ Exp: 50/100 ]
[Private Attributes: White Oracle. ]
[ Exclusive Skill: Precognition (Lv.1) ]
[ Skill points: 14 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (1/5), Stamina (1/7), Agility (1/7), Magic Power (3/10) ]
[ Stat Points: 14 ]
[Inventories:
- Magic Orb (Lv.5) ]
Clyde frowned as soon as he saw the girl''s Character Information.
Apart from proving that she is indeed no older than him, Clyde also saw a Private Attribute and skills which were quite interesting.
Besides, seeing her Stats, Clyde was sure that she wasn''t a threat. Even when she wants to do something to attack him.
So Clyde rxed his guard a bit. Just a bit.
Because even though the girl looks weak, that doesn''t mean she just came alone.
"What do you want?" Clyde asked.
"I... want to join your group," replied the girl named L.
Clyde stared at her for a few moments.
His sharp eyes made L nervous. She gulped a few times to suppress her nervousness.
"First of all, tell me what your power is," Clyde said.
L had expected that. She knew that the reason for getting Clyde to ept her was to show her that she had something useful.
"I have the ability to see the future," L replied.
But Clyde didn''t look surprised by her answer.
Clyde''s reaction was so different from when her friends heard the answers about what her power is back then.
L already knew Clyde''s reaction would be like this. So the shock had already passed.
''Turns out that''s what Precognition really means,'' Clyde thought. ''Then she probably already knows what answer I will give.''
"Then you should know what my answer will be," Clyde said.
But to his surprise, L shook her head.
"I can only see thirty seconds into the future. I only see the future until you asked that question" L exined.
''Thirty seconds?''
That''s too short a time. But in a fight, thirty seconds was the time that could predict the entire course of the battle.
There''s nothing wrong with epting a girl named L to join her group.
"You can join in my group," Clyde said.
"Who can join?"
Suddenly Sonya''s voice came from behind. Shees along with Asqa.
They both carried onerge ck stic bag each which most likely contained food.
Even with Asqa''s tiny body, she can lift the stic bag easily because her Stats are maxed out.
"Who is she?" Sonya asked with a suspicious look.
While Asqa just stares in silence. Even though she was also suspicious, she didn''t say anything.
"My name is L. I and my group will join you guys." L said with a smile.
Clyde shot her a re. "Your group?"
L nodded with a sorry expression.
"Sorry. I seem to have forgotten to mention it. I''m actually already in a group of five people."
"Where are they now?" Clyde asked sharply.
L then directed them outside. There, her group members were already waiting outside the restaurant.
Clyde noticed someone wearing a brown coat and hood.
"You were watching me on top of the building, weren''t you?" Clyde asked while pointing at Albert.
Albert looked shocked. "You noticed?"
"Of course, I noticed," Clyde said. "Have you guys nned this from the start?"
All members of the group nced at each other. In the end, the one who stepped forward to face Clyde was Leon.
"We previously only intended to keep an eye on you guys. Then, we decided to join forces because we thought the more members in a group would be better for this situation."
What the big man said did make sense. But Clyde didn''t think that was the best thing to do.
Too many people in a group will only lead to greater opportunities for disagreements.
And that will eventually lead to conflict and betrayal.
Clyde was already aware of all these things not just from novels or movies. But also from real life which is providing more clear references.
"I thought it was just Her," Clyde said.
Albert, Wiley, and Rosie exchanged worried looks. They felt as if those words were an early indication of Clyde''s rejection.
"We won''t be a burden to you," Wiley replied. "We can hold out this far, right? That means we''re not weaklings."
"It''s true," Clyde said. "But that doesn''t mean we can join forces. If you guys feel strong enough, that means it''s okay for you not to join us, right?"
Albert and Rosie gave Wiley a sharp look because his words didn''t help. Instead, he just made the situation worse.
"Let''s go," Clyde said to Asqa and Sonya.
In this case, Asqa and Sonya feel that it is better for them to remain silent.
Clyde walked away from the restaurant. Asqa and Sonya just followed him.
"Hey, I think it''s a good idea," Sonya said to Clyde in a whisper.
"Too many people will create a risk. I don''t n to increase our group size," Clyde answered curtly.
Sonya didn''t say anything else after that.
Even though she thought it was a great idea, Clyde didn''t think so. And now it''s his decision that matters for their group.
Leon sighed and turned to his friends.
"Well, apparently it ended in failure."
"Sorry, guys," Wiley said with an apologetic face.
"Don''t be. Even if you don''t say anything he still won''t ept us," Rosie said then let out a long sigh.
"It seems that now we do have to live in our own strength," Albert said.
~~~
Chapter 47 What Happen Next
?Clyde returns to the motel with Asqa and Sonya next to him. His face looked t without any emotion.
On the other hand, Asqa was still feeling a bit uneasy about what happened a few minutes before.
She felt quite sorry for those people.
The figure of the girl who seemed to be not far older than them looked full of hope that they could join Clyde.
But once again Asqa remembers that here, she doesn''t have many ces to ask for more than she already has.
After all, Clyde''s considerations also had a point. The more people in amunity, the greater the risk of error.
Asqa knows very well about that. The group of girls she was part of in school always praises her.
They say that she is a beautiful, smart, and kind girl.
Asqa had heard various kinds ofpliments that were liked by young girls like her.
However, all of thatplement is only given on the surface. They only praise her when she is present among them.
When they found out that Asqa was not around, they began to insult and ridicule her.
But Asqa can only pretend not to know. Because if she showed her feeling for them, they would go. That would make her lose her friends.
And for Asqa, losing friends is something scary.
So for the current situation, she chose not to say anything to refute Clyde.
The state of the world is much more different than it used to be.
So the risk of being shunned in Clyde''s group is far greater than simply being shunned by her peers.
On the other hand, Sonya no longer cares about the group they met before.
She also agreed with Clyde''s statement that having many people in a group was a dangerous thing.
Once they arrived at the motel, they ate with the Regressors while discussing important matters.
The important matter is none other than what will happen tomorrow. In the next Chapter of this damned apocalypse.
"So what happens tomorrow?" Clyde asked while shoving a cake into his mouth.
"What''s happening tomorrow is something quite unique," Rodney replied. "We will face a scenario about hunger."
Clyde, Asqa, and Sonya stared at the food on the table. And they also realized that they already had a few refrigerators stocked full of food in the abandoned rooms.
"Then we''ll be fine, right?" Sonya said with a happy tone.
The Regressors looked at each other. Their faces looked troubled about something.
"No?" Sonya asked. "Oh, damn. Tell us what happened."
"Well," Reed replied. "We are indeed lucky because we have gathered food supplies for ourselves. Because food that is still out there and has not been... touched.. by yers, will immediately rot."
Clyde frowned. "Rot?"
Reed nodded. "Yes. When tomorrow''s Second Chapter starts, all the food that the yer hasn''t touched will rot as I said earlier."
"Then all the animals will also suddenly disappear. As Rodney said earlier, what will happen tomorrow is quite unique and terrible."
"What about nts?" Asqa asked.
"nts are still there. But you can''t eat all the nts, can you?" Mona replied. "And we''re in town so there''s no farm."
Sonya just shrugged her shoulders with a calm expression. "We don''t need to worry since we''ve stocked up a lot of food, right?"
"That''s not quite true."
Rodney''s words made Sonya turn her head with a surprised look.
Not only her but Asqa and Clyde also stared in confusion.
The three of them originally thought that the Chapter about hunger wouldn''t be something dangerous since they already had plenty of supplies.
However, Rodney''s words broke their expectations.
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked.
"Tomorrow, our hunger will increase many times over. So, maybe our supplies won''tst long enough."
Hearing Rodney''s exnation, Sonya took a deep breath.
"They won''t make things easy, huh? Even when our Levels are high, they bring out monsters so strong that we find it difficult with our current strength," Sonya said.
Clyde chose to remain silent.
"Actually..." Asqa said in a low voice. "Who are ''they''?"
Slowly, Asqa''s eyes turned towards the Regressors in the hope that they would say something.
"We don''t know either," Mona answered with a shake of her head.
"Throughout our Regression turns, not once did we get a clue as to who was responsible for all this event," Eric continued.
Asqa then became silent because she really had nothing to think about.
Her facial expression that already looked mncholy looked more sad.
Clyde also chose to remain silent. He felt that the time was not yet right to say about those entities who called themselves World Masters.
So now Clyde will keep it to himself. He also didn''t know whether he would ever say anything about that or not.
"That''s not important now. Let''s think about how to continue surviving." Clyde broke the silence between them.
"Will there still be monsters appearing tomorrow?" Clyde asked.
"Of course," Rodney replied. "Monsters that arise from unstoppable hunger. They originate from humans who die from hunger."
"However, they don''t just die and lie there. They will rise again and be creatures that hunt to satisfy their bottomless hunger."
"Just like the zombies?" Sonya asked.
Rodney shook his head. "Simr. But not necessarily the same."
Rodney turned to the others to continue because he wanted to eat a cake in his hand.
So, Reed continued.
"They''re called Wendigos. Maybe you guys have heard of that somewhere."
"Wendigo..." Clyde tried to remember if he had ever heard or read about it.
Not long after, his eyes widened as he remembered that name.
"That creature has a gray and thin body?" Clyde asked.
Reed nodded. "Yes. That''s their characteristic. But, do you also know about their strength?"
"They are very fast and can move silently. They also can trap their prey in some kind of hypnosis."
Reed nodded again. He seemed impressed by Clyde''s knowledge.
"You know quite a lot. I didn''t even know that until I got back to Regress."
~~~
Chapter 48 Little Help
?"I got that information from a reliable source," said Clyde.
"What source is that?" Rodney asked with sparkling eyes.
Whatever the source of all Clyde''s knowledge, if he could find even a little bit of it, it would be a great help.
Clyde could be this strong because of the resources he got.
A source that seemed toe from a ce untouched by this world.
Rodney and his three fellow Regressors are people who have gone back to the past many times. However, they couldn''t be as strong as Clyde.
So the ce where Clyde got the information must have been something extraordinary.
However, their hopes and guesses could not be further from reality.
Clyde just going to say that he got information about a creature named Wendigo from just reading fiction books.
"Have you never read a book?" Clyde asked back.
"No. For me it''s so boring," Reed said.
Clyde snorted. "That''s where you went wrong. I got information about the Wendigo just from reading books."
The Regressors and Asqa looked a little surprised. Even so, Sonya seems calm because she is also a nerd.
"I also enjoy reading books. How do you think I can survive in this apocalypse and stay calm when monsters start to appear?" Sonya answered.
"All this happened in the book?!" Asqa looked shocked.
Sonya nodded with a proud expression on her face.
"You''re kidding," Eric said. "There''s no way there is the book that predicts all this chaos."
"It''s true," said Clyde. "Well, not actually true. All the events in this apocalypse are not one hundred percent the same as what I read. But they are simr."
"The sudden appearance of Magic, the monsters that evolve from Magic, and the Windows that appear before your eyes just like in those video games. It''s all been written in online novels," Clyde continued. ''Except something called Regressors.''
Asqa bit her lower lip. Feelings of regret came over her who had never read a book and was only busy ying with her fake friends.
"Hah..." There was a sigh from Rodney. "It seems that people who have read such literature have a better chance of surviving this apocalypse."
"Not really," Sonya said. "Luck is still the determining factor of our life and death."
Hearing Sonya''s words, Clyde remembered the game he yed before the apocalypse happened.
A message appears from the developer asking whether he wants to go through the apocalypse the easy or hard way.
Of all the humans, Clyde wasn''t sure if he was the only one who got the message.
However, the people who benefited from this [Easy-Mode] weren''t many.
''The luck factor, huh.''
Clyde felt that it was indeed something that had made him survive until now. Moreover, he could obtain this much power because of that.
"Since we already know that the organizers of this apocalypse will add to our troubles, the best course of action is to hide and stay out of trouble," Clyde said. "What do you think?"
"So we don''t need to look for Exp?"
Clyde seemed to think for a few moments before answering.
"We''ll take a look at the situation first. Then we can decide whether to fight the Wendigo or not."
Everyone seemed to agree with his words. There was still a possibility that the difficulty would return to how it was before.
The sun was getting lower. Dusk ushered it into a night that was much quieter today.
Clyde came out of the motel as night fell. He had already told the rest of the group that he was going somewhere. But Clyde didn''t say where.
Clyde conveys a message to his group members that if they want to take the Night Quest, it''s up to them.
But they have to think things over carefully before making a decision. When they realized that the difficulty level could be increased.
Clyde walked in the middle of a quiet street.
Abandoned buildings still give off their light because the power still existed.
This situation is very differentpared to before the apocalypse came.
The city is always busy with people passing by who are preupied with the world.
People who have forgotten how fragile their lives really are.
Until finally the apocalypse happened and they realized that everything they had been chasing and cherishing disappeared from their grasp.
Clyde jumped on top of the building until he finally got to a ce high enough to look around.
"Where are they..."
After a long while spreading his eyes around, Clyde finally found something he was looking for.
Five people were sitting around a bonfire.
Clyde jumps over the building towards them.
The five of them immediately stood up and put their weapons on alert.
"Who is there?!" Leon asked in a threatening tone.
Clydended before them.
"It''s me," Clyde said. "Don''t worry. I don''t want to fight."
The five of them immediately lowered their weapons.
"What do you need here?" Leon asked again.
"I wanted to give you some information about what''s going to happen tomorrow," Clyde replied.
They were confused.
"Why did you do that? What''s in it for you?" Wiley asked.
Clyde has a reason why he even bothered toe here and give them that information.
Maybe he just felt sorry for them. But he couldn''t say that as the reason because it could hurt their pride.
Even though he felt pity, he still couldn''t ept them into the group for obvious reasons.
Clyde tries to ovee his guilt by giving them some useful information.
"No real reason," Clyde replied. "So are you going to listen or not?"
"Of course, we will!" Wiley answered enthusiastically.
Clyde then told them about what would happen tomorrow.
They all had worried and scared faces. Especially that young girl named L.
She seems more fragile than the others in her group.
"That''s it."
Clyde prepares to jump up the building again.
"Wait!" Leon stopped him. "Thanks."
"Don''t thank me. How you survive, entirely depends on your ability."
After saying that, he immediately jumped back on top of the building and disappeared into the darkness of the night.
~~~
Chapter 49 The Night
?Clyde had just disappeared from their sight. Yet they were still looking up as if his figure was still there.
"He''s not that bad," Albertmented.
"Still, why didn''t he take us in?" Wiley said. If he really means well, why not bring them to his group as well?
Wiley''s words stopped whatever they were trying to say. But not long after that, Leon said.
"He is a careful person."
His group member turned to look at him almost simultaneously.
"What do you mean?" Wiley asked with a frown of confusion.
"He probably thinks that many people in a group are troublesome," Leon replied.
Leon sat in his ce. Then stretch his arms toward the bonfire to warm it.
"But that group already has a lot of members, don''t you think?" Rosie said.
Leon thought for a few moments before answering. "Maybe he thinks the members of his group have an important value to him. Like I said before, he is a careful young man."
They were all starting to ept that they couldn''t get into Clyde''s group. Because they can not do anything about that.
Wiley threw a rock at the bonfire in annoyance. Then he took a deep breath as if to let out the uneasy feeling in his chest.
Tomorrow, they will have to go through a hunger disaster. Luckily, they had prepared food stocks from day one. Which they eat very sparingly.
However, they still can''t rx because there are still other threats.
Which may even be more dangerous than just hunger.
"Why haven''t theye yet?" Rosie looked around with a face full of anxiety.
"Maybe in a little while," said Albert. "The night hasn''tsted too long."
So they waited for a few peaceful moments. There was only the sound of wood and stic crunching as the mes shattered it to ashes.
They waited until the people who brought the Night Quest came.
Maybe bypleting this Night Quest, they can get something to ease tomorrow''s struggle.
~~~
Clyde was still on top of the tall building and was looking around. His ck robe fluttered in the cold wind.
A few seconds passed, and his eyes saw the figure he was looking for.
She walked with calm steps amidst the ruined streets. A quite big exmation mark hovered above her head.
Clyde jumped down from the building andnded on the street.
The woman in the ck suit should have seen him. But her dark sses probably kept her from seeing Clyde.
Clyde walked over to her. ''Can I pull the sunsses off her face?''
His intrusive thought spoke as his steps brought him closer to the woman in the suit.
The woman suddenly smiled and slowed down as if she had just noticed Clyde''s presence.
"Good evening," The woman greeted in the strangely cheerful tone she had before when they met. "Do you want to ept the Quest?"
"Can I see your eyes?" Clyde asked back.
The woman looks confused. "I''m sorry. You can''t do that."
"Why? Because there are no eyeballs there?"
"Unfortunately, I can''t answer that question either," she replied.
Clyde stared at her for a few moments. He was still curious to see the woman''s eyes.
But he was a little doubtful knowing that the World Masters had done something to this level of apocalypse difficulty.
This woman who looks like an NPC might kill him if he messes around with her.
"Are you the only one who came?" Clyde asked.
"Two of my friends have also gone to this location. One of them has already left for the motel where your friends are," the woman replied.
"They''re not really my friends," said Clyde. "Anyway, I assume that they have already taken the Night Quest themselves. So I will also take the Quest for myself."
"You''re going to take the Quest now?"
"Yes." Clyde nodded his head.
"Very well."
The woman then spread her arms to the sides. Then a Window appeared like a screen floating in the air.
The window looked the same as thest time he saw it the night before.
Clyde scanned the Quests list that was there for a few minutes. Until finally there was a Quest that interested him.
That quest was the third highest ranked quest on the current list. That is Rank C Quest.
''I''d better not take a Rank that''s too high.''
Considering everything that happened, Clyde decided to reduce the risk. So this C Rank Quest was probably the best choice.
"I''ll choose this one," Clyde said as he choose the C Rank Quest.
<>
[Quest Category: Defending Quest. ]
[ Clear Condition: Protect the object from the waves of monster attacks. ]
[ Rank: C ]
[ Time: When you decide you can''t hold on anymore. ]
[ Reward: Rank C Dungeon Key. ]
The fact that he would obtain a ''Rank C Dungeon Key'' - whatever is that - must be pretty good.
But it could also mean that the Quest would be even more difficult than he thought.
Even so, Clyde was willing to take the Quest because it was a C Rank.
He had no way of knowing whether the setting of this apocalypse had returned to its proper setting or was still being manipted by the World Masters.
Taking C Rank Quests with pretty good rewards can let him know the answer to that question.
"Are you sure you want to take the Quest?" the woman asked.
Clyde nodded. "Yes."
The woman nodded in full approval. "Very well."
After Clyde took the Quest, a vortex appeared behind the woman in the suit.
"Please enter the portal to transfer to the ce to carry out the Quest," the woman said.
Clyde didn''t ask much and immediately walked into the vortex.
A momentter he was in a bright white room. But Clyde did not know where the light that illuminated this room came from.
The walls are white with a ck square pattern.
In the center of the room was a tform five meters wide in diameter.
Then in the middle of the tform, there is a crystal with a diamond shape.
~~~
Chapter 50 Another Quest
?Clyde looked around him. He saw nothing more in this spacious room.
The ck square patterns on the walls gave him a strange feeling of being watched.
It was as if the square pattern was a door that would give rise to strange creatures.
Remembering that the task he had to do was to protect the crystal, Clyde immediately rushed up to the tform and stood next to the crystal.
The crystal was quite big and almost the same height as him.
Floating on a base in the middle of the tform as if supported by invisible hands.
The crystals are pink and clear. Clyde is able to see the reflection of his own face in the crystal.
[ Are you ready to start? ]
A text appeared in front of him suddenly.
"Yes. Let us begin," Clyde answered the question in a t tone.
The text then just disappears as suddenly as its appearance.
Then the crystal began to glow in a rhythm that looks simr to a heartbeat.
Clyde pulled the Elderss Sword from its scabbard at his waist and prepared to face the iing wave of monsters.
About a minuteter an rm sounded. The same rm sound that signaled the arrival of the BOSS this afternoon.
Then the square pattern on the wall began to move and open one by one in turn.
From it, huge scorpions and spiders crawled out with a screeching sound that made the hair on the back of Clyde''s neck shudder.
Clyde even winced at the sight of therger-than-should-be bugs crawling around.
"Urghh... so disgusting."
[ Wave 1 begins! ]
A notification appears along with a mechanical sound. Marking the start of the Quest that Clyde mustplete tonight.
"It''s just a bug, right?!"
Clyde grinned as he saw the bugsing towards him with a disgusting rustling sound.
They are indeedrger than they should be. But that didn''t matter much to Clyde.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!!!*
mes shot from Clyde''s hands in all directions. He also rotated his body so that the fire could hit more areas.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde had burned almost all of the insects that had crawled out of the square pattern on the wall.
''This. is weird,'' thought Clyde. ''Isn''t this too easy?''
Clyde continued to use [Burning Hand] and sh the Elderss Sword until finally there were no more bugs left.
All this only takes a minute. And the bugs had turned from loathsome monsters into piles of ck ashes scattered on the floor.
[ Wave 1 cleared! ]
''This is really weird. Has the difficulty returned to its original state?''
If that were true, then this Quest that should have been C Rank would be a D Rank Quest. Or even lower considering his already high level.
Clyde clicked his tongue in annoyance. ''If I knew this, I should have taken a higher Rank Quest!''
But there was no point regretting now that he was already on this Quest.
''I better finish this quest quickly and thene back. Maybe I still have time to take another Quest.''
[ Wave 2 begins! ]
After that, the ck square pattern on the wall is opened again. And this time what appeared was the horde of zombies.
They also came out with crawling movements that were just as disgusting as the bugs earlier.
The zombies immediately lunged at Clyde apanied by a strange growling sound.
"If indeed the level of difficulty returns to normal, then they are not a problem at all."
Clyde grinned and started shing at the zombies that came rushing at him.
~~~
On the other hand, a Quest Carrier also came to the motel where Sonya, Asqa, and the Regressors were.
The six of them were already waiting in the hotel lobby with anxious faces.
Finally, after waiting for a long minute, the figure they were waiting for came too.
He was a man with shoulder-length ck hair who wore a neat suit.
ck ss covered his eyes even though it was night. And of course, there''s an exmation mark over the guy''s head.
"Good evening," the man greeted in his usual oddly cheerful voice. "Do you guys want to take the Quest?"
"Of course," Rodney said. "Give us the list."
The man immediately waved his hand and a list of avable quests immediately appeared next to the man.
"So we agreed we''d just take the easy one?" Sonya asked.
Everyone immediately agreed with his words. They''d talked about it before.
And through the same considerations that were running through Clyde''s mind, they came to the same decision.
"We will take the avable C Rank Quests," Rodney said.
"Very well."
<<>>
[ Quest Category: Searching Quest. ]
[ Clear Condition: You must find the five artifact pieces scattered around this area. ]
[ Rank: C ]
[Time: Sunrise. ]
[ Reward: 300 Coins, a C Rank artifact. ]
Everyone in the group seemed to agree. It looks like an easy Quest. Although with a reward that seems also not too big.
But it''s better than doing nothing.
"We will take this Quest," Rodney said.
The man nodded. Then he turned and walked out of the motel.
A momentter the man disappeared as he turned a corner.
"Let''s go," Rodney said.
"Have you ever done this Quest?" Sonya asked because she saw that the Regressors seemed more rxed than before.
"We do. This is a fairly easy Quest," Mona replied.
Sonia nodded. She looked at Asqa who still looked worried. That expression seemed to havee naturally to her now.
"Hey, don''t worry." Sonya moved closer to her and rubbed her shoulder. "They say it''s an easy Quest."
Asqa tried to smile. "Yes."
Sonya feels sorry for Asqa. She waspletely powerless alone.
Maybe she even thinks of herself as a burden on this group.
Even though Sonya thinks that Asqa''s healing abilities are very great.
Among this group, only she has the ability to heal. Asqa shouldn''t have looked worried like that.
They walked out of the motel and started looking for the scattered pieces of artifacts.
~~~
Chapter 51 Lesson Learned
?They circled around the area close to the motel for a few minutes but found nothing. In the end, they had to start expanding their search range.
"Should we split up so we can find the artifact quickly?" Sonya asked with an irritated face because she was bored.
"No." Rodney shook his head. "There''s a monster guarding that artifact pieces."
After hearing Rodney''s words, Sonya''s eyes widened. It turned out that not only she, but Asqa also looked shocked.
"You said it''s an easy Quest!" Sonya said.
"This is easy when we do it together," Rodney replied. "Because of that, splitting up isn''t a good idea."
Sonya and Asqa sighed. In that case, they could only keep looking until they found the pieces. What they didn''t know was when they would find them.
"Don''t worry. We willplete this Quest before the deadline," Mona said in a reassuring tone.
Sonya sighed her. "Alright."
So they continued their search. They walked through narrow alleys, broken streets, and destroyed buildings.
The night was gettingte. Yet, they still haven''t found anything.
But Sonya was at the peak of boredom, and Asqa was already getting sleepy. But turns out, not long after they finally found one of the pieces.
However, just as Rodney had said earlier, there was a monster guarding the artifact piece.
"That''s it," Rodney said. "Get ready to fight."
"Are those monsters strong?" Asqa asked in a worried tone.
"With our current Level the monsters shouldn''t be a problem," Rodney answered her question.
"But you know that something is wrong with this apocalypse, right?" Sonya mentioned the problem they were facing.
Rodney drew his katana sword. "That''s why I said ''shouldn''t''. There is still a possibility that it will be harder to kill."
The Regressors also readied their weapons. Sonya and Asqa also got ready.
"Don''t worry, Asqa. I will protect you," Sonya said to Asqa with a smile. ''If I can''t do it, Clyde would kill me when he finds out you''re dead.''
Even though she felt sorry for Asqa, Sonya''s biggest motivation to continue protecting the girl was because she was afraid of Clyde.
"Uhm." Asqa nodded. She tried to put on a smile as best she could. But Sonya still couldn''t ignore the look in her frightened eyes.
''She still can''t adjust to this situation,'' Sonya thought. ''Well, I can''t me her. But she had to steel herself quickly if she want to survive longer. Neither I nor even Clyde can protect her forever.''
"Are you ready?" Rodney asked.
The Regressors only nodded but their eyes showed a clear look of readiness.
"Yeah," Sonya answered while creating an arrow in her bow.
While Asqa only gave a small nod in response.
"Let''s go!"
On cue from Rodney, they dashed toward the monster.
The monster was a humanoid shape nearly three meters tall. Its body is muscr and gray. When the monster noticed their presence, its eyes shed red.
"Sonya!" Rodney shouted.
Sonya, who already understood her assignment, pulled her bowstring and aimed.
*SYYUUTTT!*
The arrow shot through the wind in high paint towards the monster''s eye.
*JRAATTT!*
Sonya''s arrow pierced and shattered the side of the monster''s face.
Sonya and the others were dumbfounded.
"What the hell? Why is the damage that big?" Reed asked with wide eyes.
"Are... everything back to the proper settings?" Asqa muttered doubtfully.
"Maybe you''re right. Otherwise, how could I destroy that face with a single arrow?" Sonya said.
"Grrhhh..."
The monster let out a disturbing growl. But it was different from what they heard from the zombie BOSS that they fought earlier this afternoon, it sounded like a groaning pain from a dying monster.
The monster was also moving unsteadily. As if no longer strong enough to hold the weight of the body.
"Well," Mona said with a grin. "If that''s true, let''s finish this Quest as soon as possible and take another Quest."
They all happily agreed to Mona''s words. They lunged at the monster and attacked it fiercely.
Nobody said that they needed some kind of special strategy to defeat the monster.
Because they already know that the monsters are no stronger than them.
~~~
In that white room, Lio sighednguidly looking at the monitor screen floating in front of him.
"They already know that everything has returned to its original setting," Lio muttered.
He actually still wanted to watch those humans suffer.
However, they have very limited funds to be able to manipte the settings of this Selection Stage.
Lio turned towards Agatha who was still entangled with her chains on the wall.
Even though Agatha''s Tokens still had quite a lot left, Lio wasn''t that cruel to use all of her Tokens.
Agatha was still moaning against the wall. Her saliva dripped onto the floor. Her saliva is mixed with thick blood thates out of her mouth and internal organs.
Agatha''s eyes were bloodshot. And her whole body suffered immeasurable pain because of the chains that tore her skin and flesh.
Under Agatha''s body, there was a pool of thick blood that came from the wound that was opened by the chains that wrapped around her body.
If Agatha was just an ordinary human, she would have died a few hours ago from loss of blood.
"Hey, are you still awake?" Lio asked.
Agatha tried hard to lift her face which looked so miserable.
"Senior," Agatha said hoarsely. She tried to squeeze her voice from her nearly crushed throat. "Please forgive me. I have made a mistake. Forgive me, Senior."
Lio nodded as if approving. "Good. You''ve finally learned something."
After hearing Agatha''s pitiful-sounding words, Lio stretched his hand towards her.
A few green vortexes appeared around Agatha''s body which was entangled by the chains against the wall.
Then the chains broke away from Agatha''s body with a disturbing sound as they were ripped out after being buried for such a long time in her flesh.
After the chains werepletely removed, Agatha''s body fell limply into a pool of her blood.
The chains entered into the greenish vortexes, then the vortexes disappeared.
~~~
Chapter 52 Split Up
?Agatha breathed rapidly where shey limp. The ce where shey was none other than a pool of her own blood.
The pool of blood was so thick and gave off a rancid smell. It is very simr to the blood that came out when she was still a human being.
"Are you ready to go back to work now?" Lio asked from where he was sitting on the nice couch.
Agatha actually wanted to spend a few minutes lying down until her strength recovered. However, she felt that she couldn''t ignore Lio''s question.
After what he did to her, Agatha still felt the terror from the man with the white suit that now be her senior.
His movements may indeed look calm and cold. But Agatha didn''t expect Lio would do something like this to her.
Without emotion, Lio gives tortures to her with his chains for what seems like an eternity.
"Y-Yes, Senior."
Finally, Agatha steeled herself to answer the question. Although still with her face down in the pool of blood.
"Good." Lio nodded without Agatha being able to see him. "You should see that young man again. I think making a deal with him isn''t a bad idea."
''Why don''t you just meet him, bastard!'' Agatha cursed inside her head.
"Y-Yes. I''ll see him as soon as I am able to stand up again." However, Agatha replied withplete obedience on the surface.
"Take your time. I understand that you must need a lot of time to recover," Lio said like a lord giving mercy.
Agatha gritted her teeth silently. Unfortunately, her hands are too weak.
Otherwise, she too would have gripped tightly because she was pushed by anger.
~~~
On the other hand, Sonya, Asqa, and the Regressors had already finished killing the gray monster.
The monster''s body fell to the ground in a very horrible state. All of its limbs were separated from its body, scattered in several ces.
The monster''s head had also been destroyed.
It wasn''t just chopped off but shattered because it was rained down by the arrows that Sonya fired.
[ You gained 20 Exp! ]
[ You gained 20 Exp! ]
[ You gained 20 Exp! ]
...
They all gain Exp. But the amount of Exp they gained had absolutely no effect.
The amount is stillcking a lot to advance to the next level
Rodney walked towards the monster and then thrust his sword into the monster''s gray chest.
*CRAAT!*
Then he cut the meat with ease. Not long after, Rodney has taken an object shaped simr to an isosceles triangle. But the bottom of the triangle is curved.
"Here it is." Rodney raised the object he got from inside the monster''s body towards them.
"I didn''t know that the artifact pieces were inside that monster," Sonya asked while staring at the artifact piece that was still covered in blood and the monster''s innards with a frown.
"Yeah, they''re in the bodies of monsters," Rodney replied.
After that, the artifact piece disappeared from Rodney''s hand. He put it in his Inventory.
"Let''s continue. If we can find the other pieces faster, we can finish this Quest quickly and take another one," Rodney said.
"So we can take the Night Quest more than once a night?" Sonya asked.
"We can," Mona answered her question. "That''s a very rare thing to do because usually, yers have troublepleting just one Quest. But it can be done."
Sonya nodded in understanding. "If the monsters we have to face are that weak, we can split up, right?"
The Regressors fell silent and stared at each other for a few seconds.
"I think that''s a good idea," Reed said.
"Yeah. I guess it''s fine if we split up now," Eric joined in to agree.
In the end, their decision depended on Rodney''s decision who was the leader of the Regressors.
Even though Sonya and Asqa weren''t exactly part of that group of Regressors, they were now in the same group. And the two girls saw nothing wrong with the way Rodney was leading.
So Sonya and Asqa decide to acknowledge Rodney as the leader when Clyde is gone with his business and isn''t here.
"OK." Rodney nodded. "We can split up."
So the group was divided into three groups of two people.
Rodney is in the same group as Reed. Mona is with Eric, and Sonya is in the same group as Asqa.
They scattered in opposite directions in search of the remaining artifact pieces.
Asqa walked closer to Sonya now that they were alone. To be honest, Asqa didn''t agree with the idea of ??splitting up.
Sonya, who noticed Asqa''s attitude, immediately took her hand and squeezed it.
"You don''t need to be afraid like that. You see that monsters are weak, right?" Sonya said. Trying to calm Asqa as best as she could.
"But... are you sure that the monsters are the only threats here?" Asqa said.
Asqa''s words made anxiety start to build in Sonya''s heart.
They basically don''t know what''s in this apocalypse other than the monsters that appear when the Chapter starts.
"Don''t worry too much. Our Lovels are already high, right?" Sonya said apanied by a smile that made her look confident.
Once again, a smile from Sonya can make Asqa feel a little calm.
Although actually in her heart Sonya was feeling worried. But even if she showed that worry, then there were only two worried people separated from their group. And that would make them both look pathetic.
They walked around for a few minutes. The moon appeared slightly higher than they had seen before.
"I see it!" Asqa said to Sonya in an emphasized whisper.
Sonya turned her head in the direction Asqa was pointing. She finally saw what Asqa saw.
Not far ahead of them, the gray monster stood stiffly facing the opposite direction.
"Great, Asqa. You found it," Sonya said. "Now we just have to kill it."
Asqa gripped Sonya''s jacket sleeve. "Are you sure we can do this?"
"I''m sure." Sonya nodded confidently. "You just need to find a ce to hide."
Asqa bit her lips. "Sorry, I wasn''t much help."
"You always say that even though you have healed us from serious wounds," Sonya said in an irritated tone.
Increasingly, she also felt annoyed with Asqa''s attitude who always med herself. Even though she ys the same role as the others.
Asqa was just silent while continuing to bite her lips.
Sonya sighed. "Sorry. I didn''t mean to scold you-"
"No. You''re right. I shouldn''t have said that" Asqa interrupted Sonya. "You can kill that monster. Don''t worry, I''ll hide without causing trouble."
Sonya smiled faintly. "Alright. I''ll be going."
Sonya walked away from Asqa who immediately looked for a ce to hide.
''Hahh... I can''t continue like this,'' Asqa said to herself. ''I have to steel myself. I can''t say that I''m useless or that it will only annoy them.''
It didn''t take long for Asqa to find a hiding ce behind an overturned truck.
Sonya walked up to the monster. It was still not aware of her existence.
Then Sonya pulled her bowstring and created an arrow in it.
Sonya aimed at the monster''s head. She also added her Magic Power to her arrows.
~~~
Chapter 53 Whats Going On?
?Arrows fired from her bow flew through the air. There was a sort of thin bluish light that enveloped the arrow.
But no one could see the light because the arrow speed was so fast.
The thin light was created because Sonya added her Magic Power to the arrow.
That way, the damage produced by the arrow is also bigger than it should be. Maybe even many times bigger than before.
*CRAAATTT!*
Sonya''s arrow hit the monster in the head hard from behind.
Its head instantly shattered.
Sonya lowered her bow and grinned.
''It turned out to be this easy, huh.''
Sonya turned to look for where Asqa was hiding. It turned out that the girl was hiding behind an overturned truck.
"Come here!" Call Sonya. "It''s over already."
Asqa had also seen what had happened. The monster was hit by Sonya''s arrow and its head was instantly destroyed.
So she didn''t hesitate to walk out of her hiding ce and approached Sonya.
"GRAAHHH!!!"
But suddenly a loud, deafening voice was heard.
Asqa automatically stopped where she standing and turned around. Her eyes widened and her body froze in shock.
Before she could really see the source of the disturbing voice, a gray figure lunged at her and swung its massive arm.
*BAGGHH!*
The huge gray arm hit Asqa''s body with such force that she was sent flying far away.
"ASQA!" Sonya shouted with wide eyes.
Her shout made the monster turn towards her. It seems to have considered that Asqa is dead after it hit her and no longer considers her as something worth its time.
''Shit! It''s still alive?!''
Sonya couldn''t stop thinking. How could that monster still be alive when she just clearly see its head being destroyed by her arrow?
Now what Sonya can see is, that the monster''s head has grown back even though it''s not fully recovered.
In the instant that Sonya looked away from it, the monster had already regenerated its head. It really was a terrible monster.
But how could it be like that? Weren''t they able to kill monsters easily?
Just as those thoughts were running through Sonya''s mind, the gray monster lunged at her.
Those wide steps made the gray monster quickly approach Sonya.
Sonya immediately darted to avoid it.
*BRAAKKK!*
The huge monster''s hand hit the ground where Sonya had been standing.
Sonya, who had dodged to the side, immediately pulled her bowstring and created an arrow.
*SYUTT!*
Sonya fired her arrow.
*CRAATTT!*
The arrow pierced the monster''s chest and created arge wound.
However, the wound can heal quickly.
"What the fuck is going on?!"
Sonya didn''t know what was going on. Will each monster have a different power level?
In that case, why didn''t Rodney say anything before agreeing to split up?
But there are still other possibilities. Maybe, the setting of this apocalypse was deliberately made easy some time before to catch them off guard.
Then, when they were caught off guard by splitting up like this, the difficulty setting was raised again.
If that''s true, Sonya can only curse the parties who were running out of his apocalypse even harder inside her heart.
The monster kept charging toward Sonya with incredible tenacity.
It also keeps emitting deep growls as if its appearance wasn''t horrible enough.
However, Sonya quickly collected herself. If she was carried away by fear, then she would only really die.
''Calm down. You got this.'' Sonya encouraged herself.
She reminded herself that she was a Level 32 and have maxed out Stats. She wasn''t a weak human who would quickly die facing this monster.
Sonya continues to dodge at high speed.
None of the attacks from the gray monster can hit her.
''I shouldn''t have been afraid like before.''
Sonya was much calmer now knowing she could dodge that monster easily.
Because she had be calmer, Sonya can aim properly after creating an arrow in her bow.
[ Hunter''s Marker (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*SYUTTT!*
The arrow shot and stuck in the other chest of the gray monster. Then blood started gushing out from the arrow wound.
The monster stopped running. Then he lowered its head to look at its chest which was bleeding.
Its ugly gray face seemed to say that it was wondering what was going on.
Yet Sonya didn''t allow it to be in a confused state for too long.
*SYUTT!*
*CRAAT!*
Another arrow shot and stuck in the monster''s head. Then blood flowed down its face.
"Graaaaahhh!!!"
The monster let out a scream simr to a mix of rage and pain.
On the other hand, Sonya grinned at its suffering. She created another arrow in her bow.
''If I use [Hunter''s Marker] just two more times, maybe I can make that monster bleed to death,'' thought Sonya.
The monster lunged again. This time it increased its speed.
Sonya could see it and hear the change in pace by the increasingly intense sound of its stomp.
Yet Sonya no longer trembled with fear. With [Skill: Hunter''s Marker] already activated, Sonya shot her arrow.
*SYUTT!*
*CRAATTT!*
The arrow dug into the monster''s thigh and knocked it to the ground in an instant.
"Graaahh!"
The strange scream came out. Sonya did not stop.
She created another arrow and activated [Skill: Hunter''s Marker] and immediately shot.
*SYUTT!*
*CRAATT!*
This time the arrow stuck in the monster''s head for the second time.
So now on the monster''s head, two arrows create wounds that keep bleeding.
The Bleeding effect made the monster unable to move anymore. It drowned in that pool of its own blood.
"Hey!" Sonya snorted and then grinned. Now she just has to wait for it to die.
"Grrrhh..."
The monster was still letting out a growl. Though now that growl sounded like nothing more than a sign that it was dying.
Sonya then ran past the monster to look for Asqa who had been thrown away.
"Asqa!" Call Sonya with a worried look.
"I''m fine."
Asqa''s voice was not far away. She walked out from where her hiding with a faint smile.
~~~
Chapter 54 Another Struggle
?Sonya finally smiled with relief when she saw Asqa appear. She should be able to survive the monster''s attacks since her stats are all maxed out.
She walked closer to her without caring about the monster that was on the verge of death.
But the monster''s soft voice was still heard. So that made Asqa look worriedly at its body that was lying on the ground.
"I-It''s not dead, Sonya," Asqa said.
Sonya looked back. But she turned back to Asqa with a smile on her face.
"Don''t worry. That thing won''t live much longer," Sonya said calmly.
"Are you sure?" Asqa asked.
Sonia nodded.
And of course, what Sonya said was true. A momentter a notification indicating that the monster was dead appeared before Sonya''s eyes.
[ You have killed Artifact Bearer (Lv.33) ]
[ You gained 30 Exp. ]
"That''s true," Sonya said after seeing the notification.
"What?" Asqa asked.
"The monster''s strength has increased from before," answered Sonya. "And it''s clear that someone messes with the setting. I only got 30 Exp."
Ashka looked shocked. "So that''s the reason the monster can rise again."
Sonia nodded. "Definitely. Whoever started this apocalypse are some assholes in power!"
Sonya looks furious. She even stomped her feet when she said the sentence just now.
"Hey, watch your words!" Asqa said.
"Why?"
"Aren''t they watching us?"
Sonya''s eyes suddenly widened because she realized that.
"You''re right," said Sonya. "Shit, what if they get us in even more trouble?"
"It can''t be helped. They have heard what you said, right? We just have to keep fighting," Asqa replied.
Sonya looked at Asqa and then smiled a thin smile.
"It''s not like I can help much, though," Asqa added with a sigh.
"Hey, didn''t I tell you not to say that again!" Sonya said.
"I''m sorry."
Sonia sighed. "It''s okay. Let''s get the artifacts and catch up with the others."
Asqa just nodded.
"Maybe they''re also having a hard time now that the monsters'' Levels have gone up. But I''m sure they''ll be fine."
They then took the artifact that was inside the monster''s body and left from there.
The night is still early. But it''s possible that their desire to take another Quest should be canceled.
Now they know that the Level of monsters has increased.
However, they still don''t know what other surprises have been prepared by the party carrying out this apocalypse. Who was watching them from an unknown ce?
~~~
However, what they didn''t know was that the World Masters watching from behind the monitor in the white room felt the same confusion as them.
"What''s going on?" Lio stared at the screen with a frown.
He was seeing with his own eyes that the yers were fighting monsters with higher Levels than they should be.
Even though, he didn''t do anything to change the settings.
Lio turned to Agatha. The woman was now sitting against the white wall.
She had gotten out of the pool of her blood and was now sitting next to it.
Agatha''s face still looked pale and her eyes were still red as if filled with blood.
Wounds all over her body were a little better than before. But that doesn''t mean it''spletely healed.
The wounds still showed open and showed cut tissue of flesh and skin. The grotesque scene would stillst for a few more hours.
"Hey, you know something?" Lio asked Agatha in an unsympathetic tone.
Agatha looked at him with angry eyes. Her teeth gritted before she was able to let out a nice-sounding reply to Lio.
"No, Seniors."
''Did he forget that he just tied me up like this with that damn chain! I don''t even know what he''s talking about!'' Agatha thought inside her head with explosive anger.
Agatha didn''t even want to waste her energy staring at the screen. She focused her Magic Power on self-healing.
"Yeah. I think so too," Lio said with a thoughtful expression. "But who''s messing with the difficulty?"
''Someone messed with the difficulty?'' thought Agatha.
Her astonishment was the same as Lio''s. If anyone really changed anything during the Selection Stage, it would probably be them, the Demon Kings, or their lower subordinates.
Agatha had already seen several Demon Kings act up and interfere with the Selection Stage.
However, just like the World Masters, ''they'' also had to pay a pretty high price to be able to do that.
Though, the high price is a rtive thing.
For Celestials, what they - World Masters - considered expensive, could mean nothing.
"The damned Demon Kings," Lio muttered angrily.
Lio thought for a few moments. He just kept silent and stared at the floor with a frown. A sign that he was thinking about something heavy.
"Agatha." Suddenly Lio called her. Agatha immediately looked up.
"You should quickly meet that young man. Or, I suspect a Demon will approach him first."
Agatha gritted her teeth. "I''m still a bit weak, Senior. Why don''t you just meet him?"
"He''s a man. Do you think he''ll want to meet me who is also a men?" Lucio replied.
Based on her assessment of the human named Clyde, she knew that he wouldn''t care who met him be it men or a woman.
But of course, Lio still has his reasons for not meeting him in person. And it''s not because they are both men.
"I will see him in a moment, Senior," said Agatha.
In the end, Agatha could only obey Lio''s orders. She saw Lio nodding with a faint smile on his couch.
"Good," Lio said.
So Agatha began to focus on healing herself more than before.
~~~
Asqa and Sonya leave to find the rest of the group. The longer they searched, the more worried they became.
Maybe, the Regressors will be caught off guard because previously they were almost in a very dangerous situation because of the surprise given by the gray monster.
But soon they finally found them. More precisely, they found Mona lying on the hood of a car.
While Eric was struggling against the gray monster.
~~~
Chapter 55 Saved
?Sonya and Asqa widened their eyes when they saw the scene ahead.
Mona was lying with a body full of wounds on the hood of a car.
The car also almost looks t as if pressed by Mona''s body weight.
This is untrue because of course Mona''s body isn''t that heavy.
It had to be because Mona had just been thrown so forcefully into the car that it made the car the state it is in now.
"You go to Mona and heal her," Sonya said.
Asqa didn''t say anything else and ran straight to Mona. Meanwhile, Sonya ran to help Eric while pulling her bowstring.
*BRAAKK!!!*
The gray monster''s punch hit a car that was behind Eric. While Eric had managed to roll over to avoid the attack.
Eric gritted his teeth. His grip on his sword tightened.
''Why did things turn out like this?'' Eric wondered apanied by feelings of anger and anxiety in his head.
Of course, he was confused. The monster that was previously so weak has now be so strong that it even managed to attack Mona to make her like that.
But Eric''s anxiety and fear disappeared when he saw Sonya running from behind the monster. She raised her bow to aim and then fired her arrow a momentter.
*SYUUUT!*
The arrow sliced ??through the air and dug into the gray monster''s back.
*CRAAATTT!*
"NGGGRAAAHH!!!"
The monster let out a scream of pain. It which previously was about to be charged toward Eric now rotates its body.
"Grrrhhh..." The monster growled before charging toward Sonya.
Eric did not remain silent. Because Sonya had saved him, now it was his turn to save her.
Eric ran from behind the monster and aimed for its exposed back. With Sonya here, he was no longer as afraid as before.
With the two of them, they would be able to ovee the monster.
Eric increased his running speed and then stomped on the ground once he felt he had gotten the right distance.
Eric jumped high into the air as he raised his sword and shed the monster''s back.
*SSSSRAAATTT!*
"GRAAAHH!!!"
The monster let out a scream that sounded louder than before.
As soon as hended, Eric immediately rolled to the side to avoid any attacksing from the monster.
And sure enough, the monster immediately turned around and swung that gray fist.
*DRAAKKK!*
The ground where Eric was just a moment before cracked from being hit by the monster''s fist.
Eric made the right decision to immediately roll over when hended.
Sonya drew her bow again and fired. Her arrownded in the same ce as before.
There are now two arrows stuck in the back of the head of the gray monster.
All of that makes it divided attention. The monster''s eyes shifted between Eric and Sonya.
Meanwhile, Eric and Sonya''s eyes also met. From each other''s eyes, they can alreadymunicate and know what to do.
Sonya pulled her bowstring. This time, it took her a bit longer because she used [Skill: Hunter''s Marker].
Meanwhile, Eric lunged at the monster and shed his sword at its leg.
*SRAAATT!*
Because the monster''s attention was distracted for a moment, it was toote to notice Eric''s attack.
Finally, on the monster''s thigh, there was a deep cut that was dripping blood from Eric''s sword.
*CRAATTT!*
Then an arrow was also stuck in its back. Unlike before, now the wound produced by the arrow was bleeding more profusely than that produced by Eric''s incision.
Eric did not stay silent seeing that Sonya had injured him. He dashed with great speed and thrust his sword into the monster''s chest.
*CRAAATTT!!!*
The monster let out a scream of pain like before. Then the monster swung both arms simultaneously at Eric.
Eric released his sword and used his Skill to create a golden shield.
*DANGGG!*
The monster''s two hands hit its shield. Eric felt the pressure from the attack make his knees buckle.
*SYUUTTT!*
*CRAATTT!*
Another arrow from Sonya stuck in the monster''s back.
The arrow was also fired with [Skill: Hunter''s Marker] so that it immediately caused a wound that was bleeding.
The blood from the monster has now formed a pool under its feet. The monster now looks weakened.
With Eric''s sword in its chest and the wound from Sonya''s arrow that kept bleeding, the monster couldn''t hold back the damage that kept consuming it.
The monster finally fell to its knees. Realizing that it had weakened, Eric lunged and then threw a full-force punch toward the monster''s face.
*DOUGHH!*
The blow sent the monster crashing to the ground. Eric immediately pulled his sword from his chest and thrust it into the monster''s head.
*CRAAATTT!*
Blood sshed all over Eric''s body but he didn''t care. Eric drew his sword and then stabbed it again many times so that blood was sshed many times over his body.
[ You have killed the Artifact Bearer (Lv.30) ]
[ You gained 30 Exp. ]
Eric took a deep breath next to the monster. As soon as he got the notification, Eric eximed.
"LEVEL 30?!"
Sonya, who already knew everything, approached him.
"You surprised?" she asked.
"You already know about this?"
Sonia nodded. "I also encountered the same problem. I thought they would never give us a break."
"Where''s Asqa?" he asked.
"She''s healing Mona. What''s going on?"
"We thought the monster would be easy to kill. So we immediately attacked it recklessly. Turns out, it gives much greater resistance than we thought," Eric exined.
"Just like what happen tonus," Sonya said. "We have to catch up with Reed and Rodney quickly. They might be having a hard time too."
As soon as they got near Mona and Asqa, they saw a soft green light already enveloping her body.
It was a sign that Asqa''s healing powers were working on Mona.
Eric also said that the monster grabbed Mona and then mmed her many times into the car.
Mona should have held up better because of her Stats. But she didn''t know that the monster''s Level was already above theirs.
~~~
Chapter 56 Unexpected Development
?With her healing abilities, it didn''t take long for Asqa to recover Mona from her previously critical condition.
That''s how strong Asqa''s healing abilities are now. She had always considered herself useless before this. However, everything she has done proves otherwise.
Everyone can see this except for Asqa herself.
Mona opened her eyes shortly after Asqa was done with her healing.
She turned and found Eric, Sonya, and Asqa in front of her eyes.
"I thought I was dead," Mona said in a low voice apanied by a sigh.
She felt relieved. It turns out that she hasn''t died yet and is back for another Regression turn.
"You won''t die that easily with Asqa in our group," Eric said. Then stretched out his hand.
Mona grabbed Eric''s hand and stood up from the hood of the almost ttened car.
"Thank you," Mona said, looking at Asqa.
Asqa nodded with a small smile.
"Let''s go. We have to get to Rodney and Reed as soon as possible," Sonya said.
The two of them might as well be in deep trouble. They already know what happened.
Someone messed up again with the setting of this apocalypse. So they didn''t know what unexpected thing woulde next.
But they don''t forget to take the artifact pieces inside the monster''s body.
Eric who was in charge of opening the monster''s chest and taking the artifact pieces then put them into his Inventory.
They left the ce to find Rodney and Reed.
~~~
On the other hand, in the white room, Clyde is struggling to finish the 10th wave.
Everything passed quickly enough without Clyde noticing. He shed and burned all the monsters until the fight made his body feel a little bit tired.
The monster has started to get stronger than in the initial waves. But Clyde can still handle them easily.
Now, he is fighting monsters called Skeleton Warriors. As their name suggests, they are skeletons wearing te armor, swords, and shields. Like a warrior.
Clyde had already killed half of them. Now he only had to ovee the other half.
"Hahhh..." Clyde exhaled. This battle began to feel a burden on his body. But that doesn''t mean he can''t take the long fight to survive.
A sword suddenly thrust from behind him. Clyde realized that with his keen senses.
He dodged by moving his body sideways. The sword was only inches away from hitting his body.
Clyde immediately swung the Elderss Sword at it.
*TANGGGG!!!*
The sword flew up. But the Skeleton Warrior was still able to maintain its grip on the hilt of the sword.
Clyde then lunged at the Skeleton Warrior and swung his arm to hit the part of its face that was not covered by its helmet.
*DRAKK!*
When Clyde''s fistnded on its face, the sound of bones cracking was loud. If it was a human who was still alive, the blow would definitely hurt a
lot.
But the Skeleton Warrior who had eaten Clyde''s punch was still able to stand straight.
It even counterattacked again by bashing its shield toward Clyde.
Clyde raised his hand to block the shield bash.
*BAGHH!*
Clyde felt considerable pressure from the attack. But it''s still not a problem. All because of his maxed out Stats.
Clyde then kicked at the Skeleton Warrior. The kick hit its te armor hard and didn''t cause significant damage to it.
However, that kick pushed the Skeleton Warrior away and gave Clyde some space.
Because he knew that another Skeleton Warrior was attacking him and he didn''t want to be stuck in that position.
Just as Clyde had predicted. A sword swung right where Clyde''s neck should have been.
But Clyde had dodged by ducking to avoid the sword.
Clyde then activated [Skill: Burning Hand]. With that, he spewed mes toward the Skeleton Warrior behind him.
The mes enveloped the Skeleton Warrior. Then Clyde jumped and immediately responded with the same attack as the monster did earlier.
Clyde swung the Elderss Sword which had been overflowing with Magic Power towards the Skeleton Warrior''s neck bone.
*KRAAAKKK!*
The sound of the bone Clyde managed to cut through was loud and painful. The Skeleton Warrior''s head fell to the floor.
But Clyde didn''t have time to celebrate. Because the other Skeleton Warriors were already approaching the crystal he had to protect.
And the Skeleton Warrior that he had kicked earlier had
already lunged back at him.
Clyde dashed with his incredible speed toward the Skeleton Warriors who were closing in on the crystal. Then he shed the Elderss Sword.
Unfortunately, the Skeleton Warrior managed to block his attack with its shield. The Elderss Sword''s bluish de just hit that shield.
But it doesn''t matter because Clyde has the n to attack.
Because [Skill: Burning Hand] was still active, Clyde threw a fireball from his gripped hand toward the Skeleton Warrior''s face which was not protected by the helmet.
That is a very big w for them. However, Clyde was very grateful because they weren''t wearing helmets that cover their face.
There are some spots that are not protected by their armor.
The face and neck were spots that should be well protected but they were clearly exposed.
Clyde''s mes seared the Skeleton Warrior''s facial bones. The bone that was originally white was instantly burnt ck by the power of a skill that was already at Level 10.
Clyde then thrust the Elderss Sword into the Skeleton Warrior''s face.
The bluish and transparent de pierced through the skull bone and killed the Skeleton Warrior instantly.
As soon as Clyde drew his sword, he wasted no time and immediately dashed toward the other Skeleton Warriors.
The fight continued for several minutes. Until finally Clyde managed to kill all the Skeleton Warriors.
"Phew..." Clyde sighed as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. "It''s quite a challenge."
Suddenly, a shocking notification appeared before Clyde''s eyes.
[You have sessfully passed Wave 10. Quest Rank will be increased. ]
Clyde frowned. "What the fuck?! I never knew it would turn out like that!"
~~~
Chapter 57 Appearance
?Clyde stared at the red floating text for a few moments. His eyes widened in disbelief.
His forehead was furrowed so deeply that it seemed as if his eyebrows might knit together at any moment.
But then Clyde calmed down. There''s no point getting upset over those notifications because they never yed by any clear rules in the first ce.
Whoever has the power behind this apocalypse will determine everything. So Clyde didn''t protest much anymore and was just getting ready.
"Fine. Give me all you got," Clyde said to no one. He gripped the hilt of the Elderss Sword tighter.
His body was still a bit tired after fighting dozens of Skeleton Warriors yet he knew that he couldn''t rest now.
The notification text before his eyes disappeared. After that the atmosphere became quiet.
The Skeleton Warriors scattered around him started to disappear one by one as if they had been erased from reality.
Just like bugs, zombies, and enemies that Clyde previously killed.
Clyde knows that these are times of transition. The time when new enemies will appear along with notifications about thetest Wave.
[ Quest Rank has been changed sessfully. ]
[ Quest Rank changes to A. ]
[ Wave 11 starts! ]
Clyde gritted his teeth. Changing the Quest Rank from C to A was truly outrageous. Whoever did this seems to have a psychopathic personality.
However, when Clyde felt that anxiety, a happy notification appeared before his eyes.
That notification wasn''t something that the apocalypse system popped up like a notification about the start of a new Wave.
But the notification appears for himself. From a system that has been his ally all along.
[ Private Attribute activated: Easy-Mode! ]
[ Quest Rank: A (C) ]
Clyde grinned. He hasn''t seen that notification in a while. It was as if the system didn''t feel the need to tell him about it.
But now the notification about [Private Attribute] being active reappeared. As if to give Clyde confidence that something is backing him up from behind through all this trouble.
There was silence for a few more moments. Yet, unlike before when Clyde always felt anxious when the quiet moment between Wave changes urred, Clyde now felt calm after knowing that [Private Attribute: Easy-Mode] had activated and reduced the level of difficulty he would face.
''But it''s longer than the previous one.''
Previously the monsters that came out of the square pattern on the wall didn''t take this long. What happened?
They seemed to take more time to prepare monsters for Clyde. And that''s not a good sign.
If it did take that long, there was a high chance that the monsters that appeared would be strong ones.
While Clyde was thinking that, something shaped like a vortex appeared in front of him.
The vortex is abination of pink and ck energies that create a strange and unusual feel.
From that human-sized vortex, legs stepped out one after another.
The legs were long and smooth as if they had been chiseled out of porcin.
Then the body of the owner of the beautiful legs appeared.
She is a woman with jet-ck hair and red eyes.
She was wearing revealing clothes. You could even say that she was almost naked.
She was only wearing a kind of ck underwear that looked shiny.
So that the curves of her waist and thighs - which are pretty thick - are exposed clearly.
Above, she was only wearing a ck bra that looked shiny as well. The ck bra barely covered her busty breasts.
Clyde swallowed reflexively. As a man, seeing such a sight before his eyes must have made a warmth start to build up within his body.
But Clyde immediately noticed the shape of a pair of huge bat-like ck wings that stretched behind her body.
The wings indicate that she is a dangerous being. Not a sexy woman figure that Clyde should admire.
The woman''s face is also smooth and oval in shape. Her lips are thick and red. The woman smiled, making her face look seductive.
"Hello," she greeted in a deep sensual voice. "What''s your name?"
Clyde''s conscious mind returned before he was consumed by the seductive sight the woman disyed.
Clyde pointed his Eldess Sword at her. "You who will be my opponent this time?"
The woman kept smiling. She tilted her head to one side. And Clyde who saw it felt that small movement was so sexy.
"Yeah, let''s just say it that," the woman answered ambiguously.
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked.
The woman did not answer more. Instead, she pped her wings and flew.
Clyde immediately put himself on alert. Now, their battle will begin.
The woman changed her hands to look like ws. Then it shot towards Clyde with incredible speed.
*CLASH!*
Luckily, Clyde still managed to raise the Elderss Sword in time to block the w.
? The woman grinned. "Not bad."
Then she turned her body. And threw a kick at Clyde.
Clyde blocked the kick with his hand.
The woman then floated away. Only to circle Clyde and attack him from behind.
Clyde, who had already thought that this was going to happen, rolled sideways to dodge.
The womannded where she had been with ws extended forward.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
Clyde stretched out his hand towards the woman. Then let out a huge torrent of fire.
The fire managed to hit the woman. Then a scream came from her.
"Arghhh!"
It was a shrill scream of pain. Clyde grinned because he finally knew he could hurt her.
At first, Clyde was worried because the woman looked different from the enemies that had previously appeared.
She spoke and greeted him as if she had some awareness of her own.
Unlike the monsters that appeared just now that were just empty bodies driven by the power behind their existence.
The woman also had a more varied form than the previous monsters. These things made Clyde conclude that she was no ordinary monster.
As soon as the fire disappeared, Clyde could see the shape of the woman.
She knelt with badly burned skin. However, her eyes did not reflect anger. But a feeling of surprise.
~~~
Chapter 58 Duchess
?The woman stared at Clyde like she was staring at a sight she had never seen before.
Clyde initially felt a little relieved to see that the woman suffered injuries from his attack.
However, the bit of relief that Clyde was feeling was immediately destroyed a moment after.
The woman stood up slowly. Her movements are slow but sure.
Her thick red lips curved to form a terrible smile especially coupled with the burns that were on the side of her face.
But the burn disappeared a momentter. Her smooth skin is back again.
She stared at Clyde with wide eyes that showed admiration.
"Amazing," she said, with a dreamy voice and eyes that seemed to shine.
Clyde frowned. "What?"
Of course, he was confused by the words that came out of the woman''s mouth.
''She''s different.''
Clyde saw how she had recovered so quickly after suffering such severe burns.
''Who is she? She is not a monster.''
That woman is strong. Clyde could feel it even before she put up any real fight against him.
"You managed to hurt me," the woman said. She walked closer to Clyde.
Her long and smooth legs create hypnotic movements. Clyde immediately pulled himself together so as not to be affected by the sight.
The influence of the temptation that the woman gives seems unresistible.
Clyde seemed to be forced to stare at every curve of her body every time even though he already knew what he was going to see.
''This must be the influence of her power. Whatever that is.''
"What''s your name, young man?" the woman asked.
"Why do you want to know? Aren''t you here to defeat me?" Clyde asked back in a sharp tone.
"Ahahahaha!" The womanughed as if amused. "Defeat you? I didn''t even have toe here if I wanted to incapacitate you, or kill you."
Clyde subconsciously swallowed his saliva. The woman is not a monster. She was a very powerful being that he had never imagined before.
But, how did she get here?
"Who are you?" Clyde asked.
The woman tilted her head. She stared at Clyde with undecipherable eyes.
"Very well," she said. "I''ll introduce myself first because you''re quite special."
If the woman sensed offense from Clyde''s words, she endured it quite well.
Clyde himself felt quite tense at her tone of voice. Clyde was under the impression that he had just said something that offended her.
That gave Clyde the idea that a woman was a figure who was used to being respected and had some great power.
"My name is Gremory. Have you ever heard of it?" the woman introduced herself her.
Clyde frowned. "Gremory?"
He was trying to figure out if he had heard that name somewhere. However, Clyde felt he had never heard of it.
Or if he had heard of it, Clyde had forgotten about it.
He hoped that his ignorance would not offend the woman named Gremory any further.
Gremory snorted. "Maybe you''ve never heard of it. That''s fine. I heard that in your world, my name is rarely mentioned."
''In my world?'' Clyde frowned. ''How many are the worlds involved in all this?''
"I''m Clyde."
Gremory nodded.
"Put down your sword and let''s talk," Gremory said.
"Why should I talk to you?" Clyde returned a question.
"Because I''m about to present you with an interesting offer. It might not even be something you can turn down."
Hearing that, Clyde felt interested. Before Gremory came to him, Clyde had heard about an ''offer'' from Agatha who met him first.
Exactly what''s with all this offering stuff? The beings behind this apocalypse seem to have a bigger purpose that Clyde has no idea about.
And each of these goals seems to be rted to the survivors of this apocalypse.
"What offer? Are you also a World Master?" Clyde asked. He felt the need to know more details about the background of this offer and agreement.
Gremory seemed a little surprised. "So... have World Masterse to see you?"
Clyde nodded hesitantly.
"Ha ha ha ha!" Gremoryughed again while shaking his head. "As it turns out, the rumors about them ying dirty were true."
Clyde just stared at her in silence. Based on her reaction, there was some sort of feud between her and the World Masters.
The way she said that already showed that she wasn''t part of the World Masters.
"Have you made a deal with them?" Gremory asked.
Clyde only answered with a shake of his head.
*CLAP!*
Gremory pped her hands in front of herrge chest. So it''s pressed together.
"Then, you can make a deal with me."
"I''m not sure," said Clyde.
"Oh, I know you won''t be sure right away because you don''t know who I am," Gremory replied.
"Yeah. Who are you?"
Gremory smiled proudly before answering. "I am a Demon. More precisely, a Demon Duchess."
Clyde looked a little surprised. A Demon Duchess?
Is it the same as the creature that Agatha said at the time? One of those powerful beings called Celestials?
Knowing that a Demon had appeared in front of him was a real shock.
No wonder she is that strong. She took his attack as if it was nothing.
In that case, making a deal with the Gremory could benefit him, right?
"I think we can talk," Clyde said.
Gremory gave a satisfied smile. "I knew you would say that."
"But before that," Clyde said. "How about this Quest?"
Gremory waved her hand in front of her face. "You don''t need to worry about that. Once we finish talking, you will be deemed to havepleted this quest and received your reward."
Clyde nodded with satisfaction. As expected from a Demon.
"How long will we talk?" Clyde asked.
"You don''t need to worry about that either. Time will stop when we talk."
Hearing that, Clyde gave another nod.
Gremory can even stop time.
Clyde heard her title earlier. She didn''t say she was a Demon King - or Queen - but a Duchess.
If a Duchess was this strong, Clyde couldn''t imagine how strong a Demon King would be.
~~~
Chapter 59 In A Warehouse
?While Clyde was spending time with a Demon Duchess named Gremory, his other party members were having a hard time dealing with the gray monster.
To be more precise, it is Reed and Rodney who are in trouble right now.
Now the two of them are fighting the monster in an abandoned warehouse.
They are fighting in a fairly closed ce. And that is a bad thing for them.
What''s worse is, this warehouse has been turned into a kind of privateir of the monster.
Reed and Rodney can''t get out of here. The roller door now can''t be opened anymore because it''s covered with sharp gray thorns.
Making Reed and Rodney have no other choice but to defeat the monster to get out of there.
But the monsters weren''t as weak as they had previously thought.
"Why did everything turn out like this?!" Reed gritted his teeth. His face showed a very clear panic.
"I don''t know! Looks like someone messed with the setting again," Rodney could only give that answer.
"How are we going to beat him?" Reed asked, gripping his katana handle tightly.
Rodney did not immediately answer. He nced at the gray monster that was now also staring at them from the other side of the warehouse.
''Should I use the orb?''
Rodney had been faced with this kind of difficult situation many times.
This afternoon he too had almost used the orb but Clyde had taken care of everything.
But, will someone save him now?
Using that orb now was indeed very risky to reveal everything he was hiding. Yet, Rodney no longer wants to return and Regress.
He would not have made this much progress if he had regressed alone. So, Rodney''s choice clearly fell on the choice to use the orb.
Even though in the end he had to sacrifice someone so that the orb could be used to its fullest power.
"Rodney! Do you have a way to beat him?" Reed kept asking because he saw that the monsters were now advancing toward them.
"Let''s just fight him for now," answered Rodney.
Reed didn''t see the look on his face who was looking at him with scheming eyes. Reed''s eyes were focused on the gray monster.
"I guess there''s nothing else for us to do but fight, huh? We''re Level 30 plus after all."
Reed tried to convince himself. Then he immediately charged towards the monster because he was pushed by his fear that almost exploded in his chest.
Reed, who did not want to continue to feel fear, chose to fight it.
Starting from the third Regression turn he has started to change how he will react to his fear subconsciously.
Instead of cowering under the pressure of fear and freezing like an idiot, Reed charged toward the source of his fear.
And finally, he knew that what he was afraid of was not as bad as he thought.
Except when he tried to charge toward that Outer God.
"HYAAAHH!!!"
Reed let out a scream as he ran over to the monster.
He shed his katana sword with all his might. Unexpectedly, his attack was able to hurt the monster.
*SRAATTT!*
A gaping wound was created on the gray monster''s arm which it tried to raise when it saw Reed approaching.
''What the hell? It''s pretty slow.''
Reed was a little confused because the monster''s movements were quite slow. He thought the monster would dodge and thenunch a counterattack.
Reed certainly didn''t just charge blindly because he was driven by fear.
He had also prepared a n for what his opponent would do and how he would respond.
Of course, at first, he only attacks blindly. But several Regression turns taught Reed a lesson.
However, now Reed''s n had to change because the monster was so easily hit by his attacks.
Knowing that the monster''s movement was slow, Reed immediately swung his sword again.
*SRAATTT!*
Just like before, Reed''s attack inflicted wounds easily on the monster''s body.
The monster is now trying to fight back. It swung itsrge, gray hand at Reed.
However, Reed could see the attacking. So he dodged by rolling to the side and shing the monster''s arm from below.
*SRATT!*
Once again he managed to injure the monster.
Reed grinned. ''It''s not as bad as I thought.''
Rodney who was still behind and observing the battle from earlier also noticed that the monster was moving very slowly.
Perhaps, the monster had used its powers to trap them in this warehouse. So now his strength is reduced drastically.
''Looks like I don''t need to use it.''
Rodney immediately canceled his intention to use the orb. He dashed by holding his katana sword. Following Reed who was facing the monster.
Reed saw Rodney approaching out of the corner of his eye. He smirked because it didn''t look like this fight wouldst much longer.
The monster noticed Rodney''s arrival. It started walking towards Rodney as if forgetting Reed''s existence.
''Apparently, its intelligence has also decreased.''
Reed who saw the monster''s careless movement used the opportunity to swing his sword again.
*SRRAAATTT!*
This time Reed managed to sink his sword into the monster''s knee. Since it was moving its leg forward, Reed swung his sword in time to meet its knee.
"GRAAAHHH!!!"
The monster let out a deafening scream of pain.
The narrow walls of the warehouse reflected its screams inside causing Reed and Rodney to feel a pain in their ears.
Of course, Reed''s attack stopped the monster''s movement.
Reed immediately pulled his sword and rolled away because the monster was already swinging its big arm toward him.
Meanwhile, Rodney who was approaching quickly was now right in front of him. Rodney jumped and then shed his sword at the monster''s neck.
*CRAATTT!*
The sword sank into the monster''s neck. But not strong enough to cut it off.
Rodneynded and rolled away.
"Let''s use our skills together!" Rodney said.
"Okay!" replied Reed.
The monster fell to its knees. Makes them both easier to target its neck.
~~~
Chapter 60 Interesting
?The gray monster''s eyes stared at Reed in front of him. Reed didn''t care even though he saw a hint of fear of death inside the monster''s eyes.
It was a sudden sh of feeling. Reed didn''t know if it was a real thing or just in his head.
However, Reed couldn''t care less. He activated his [Skill: Sword sh] together with Rodney.
Their katana swords were enveloped in almost the same dark purplish aura. Then they swung their swords forward almost simultaneously.
Curved sword shes of a dark purplish color came out from their des.
The two sword shes shot toward the gray monster. More precisely, towards its neck that almost severed from attack before.
*SRATT!*
*SRATT!*
The sword sh hit the gray monster''s neck. But do not immediately behead it even though it was already wounded.
Their shes only created deep wounds from the front and back.
The monster seemed to open its mouth as if it wanted to scream.
However, its desperate attempt was pointless because part of its throat had already been crushed.
The monster''s head hung limply because its neck couldn''t support its weight of it.
Seeing that, Reed and Rodney immediately knew what they had to do.
They both stared at each other for a few moments. Then nodded together.
Reed shot from the front while Rodney from behind. They shed their swords from two opposite sides simultaneously.
The gray monster''s head rolled onto the barn floor. The blood spurted up like a fountain.
Not wanting to be hit by any more of the blood, Reed and Rodney jumped back.
The monster copsed onto the warehouse floor. The blood pooled with a disturbing rancid smell.
Reed and Rodney got the same notifications their previous group members received.
Their reactions were not much different. They stared at the notification in front of them with shocked eyes.
"This is so strange. Not only are these monsters'' Levels higher than we know. But the rewards we receive are also less," Reedined in between panting breaths.
"They mess with the setting again," Rodney said, shaking his head. ''This has never happened before.''
Rodney sank into his own thoughts and worries. How did this apocalypse get this messy?
But Rodney didn''t take long to find out why.
''It was Clyde.''
Rodney didn''t know how to feel about Clyde''s existence. On the one hand, Clyde is an anomaly for this apocalypse.
Even in the midst of this strange disaster, there are anomalies like Clyde that mess it up.
However, on the other hand, Rodney also enjoyed the benefits of Clyde''s existence.
The man who looked like he hadn''t even reached the age of twenty made him to this high Level in the First Chapter.
But because things had changed so much like this, Rodney became even more agitated.
Because he doesn''t know what will happen next. He can''t n anything even though he already has a lot of information.
All that information would be useless when the future that was going to happen was different from what he knew.
"What are you doing?"
Reed''s question snapped Rodney out of his thoughts.
"Oh, it''s nothing," said Rodney.
The gray spikes blocking the rolling door of the shed started crumbling shortly after the monster died.
Rodney dissected the monster''s body to retrieve the artifact fragments and stored them in his Inventory.
"Let''s get out of here," Rodney said.
Reed nodded and happily agreed to his words.
~~~
Meanwhile, in the white room with a square pattern, Clyde was looking at Gremory.
Gremory, a mysterious woman who ims to be the Demon Duchess.
He had a body that could make any normal man drool. Gremory also knew how seductive she was that she wore clothes like that.
But now that wasn''t Clyde''s biggest concern. But the deal that wants to be offered by her.
"I can give you enormous power."
Gremory got straight to the point. She looked at Clyde with seductive eyes and lips curved into a smile of confidence. As if she was sure that Clyde would just agree to her offer.
After all, who wouldn''t want power in a world like this?
"Do you have any other offers?"
To her surprise, Clyde said such a reply. Even so, such an answer was not entirely beyond her estimation.
"You don''t need power?" Gremory asked again.
"It''s not that I don''t need power. But I also want to know what awaits me in the future. That way I can use my power well," Clyde replied.
Inside Clyde''s head, he was thinking of not saying something that would offend Gremory.
That way he hopes to be able to get all kinds of benefits from her in the future.
Gremory tilted her head to one side. "So you want to get information?"
Clyde answered with a nod.
Gremory''s red lips curved again into a wider smile.
"You sure are interesting. Normally, those humans wouldn''t think twice about receiving power," Gremory said.
Clyde saw the mysterious look in Gremory''s eyes.
From her eyes, Clyde sensed she was secretly thinking of some kind of scheme.
''I have to be careful,'' Clyde thought. At this moment, his heart was pounding with a mixture of anxiety and fear.
The one before him now was a Demon Duchess. Can he carry out his intention to outsmart her?
"Alright. Tell me what you want to know," Gremory said.
"I don''t want to say anything before you tell me the price I have to pay," Clyde replied.
"Ahahahaha!" Gremoryughed as if amused.
"You are indeed interesting. You are not stupid either. You already know that there is a price you have to pay every time you get an answer. Whatever that answer is."
Clyde swallowed his saliva. ''I almost forgot about that. Luckily I managed to remember before asking any questions.''
"I like you, Clyde. Because I like you, I will answer three of your questions."
? It was unexpected. Clyde couldn''t tell how the Demon''s mind was going.
However, this is a good opportunity for him.
Or is it?
~~~
Chapter 61 Personal Request
?What Gremory is currently offering does sound like a good deal. Because she offers it for free.
In fact, it''s too good for the level of a Demon.
"I can''t believe you''d give something away for free," Clyde said.
The corners of Gremory''s lips turned upwards slightly. As if indicating that she almost let out augh. But she managed to suppress it.
"Ah, alright. I give up. I won''t try to trick you anymore," Gremory replied.
''I knew it would be like this!'' Clyde felt his chest pounding. He was just about to say yes to that Demon.
What Gremory did was indeed very dangerous for humans who weren''t careful.
She didn''t say any conditions and only said the reward she would give. Some people will obviously be easily fooled by that trick.
Clyde really didn''t want to make a Demon feel offended. However, Gremory openly almost tricked him and it made his anger raise.
"If you don''t have anything else to say, then you better leave," Clyde said in a cold voice.
It was obvious Gremory would ask for something in return from the three answers that she said were free.
The longer he is with her, the greater the possibility for Clyde to fall into her cunning tricks.
"No no no. Don''t get mad like that. I didn''t do it on purpose. It just became my habit after so long," Gremory said.
Clyde looked at her sharply. "Let''s finish quickly. No more tricks. Name your price."
Gremory looked at Clyde with the same eyes. Namely the amused eyes and a thin smile on her face.
Gremory''s face now would always look sly in Clyde''s eyes.
The impression she gave him after the attempt to trick him just now would not go away. Maybe forever.
And that''s good because that way, Clyde will always be careful when with her.
Maybe all Demons will be like that. So Clyde had to prepare himself because he felt that this was not hisst encounter with the Demons.
He also had to be prepared the next time he met other Celestials.
"Alright," Gremory nodded her head curtly. "Tomorrow, when Chapter Two begins, I''d like you to do some things for me."
"What''s that?"
"I''ll send it to you right now."
Gremory stretched out her hand towards Clyde as if giving something to him.
Not long after that, in Clyde''s eyes, a new Window appeared that he had never seen before.
Even more confusing, the color of the Window was different from normal.
The window is now pink and with ck writing. It''s as if this new Window is somethingpletely outside the system that manages this apocalypse and just forces its way in.
[ You have received a Personal Request from Demon Duchess Gremory. ]
Clyde''s brow furrowed deeply. ''Personal Quests?''
[ Demon Duchess Gremory''s Personal Request. ]
[ 1. The Green Wendigo''s Blood (0/1) ]
[ 2. The Blue Wendigo''s Blood (0/1) ]
[ 3. The Red Wendigo''s Blood (0/1) ]
Clyde scanned the Window with three Personal Requests in front of him.
All of that seems suspicious. He never knew there were Wendigos with different colors.
What Clyde knew from the book he had read was that the Wendigo only had a gray body.
"What is this?" Clyde asked.
"That''s what you have to do to get the answers to the three questions that I will give you," Gremory answered.
"You should get answers before you know what to do. But you''re smart enough not to be fooled."
Clyde knew what Gremory meant by his words. If he asks and gets an answer, then like it or not he mustplete all of her Personal Requests.
If he failed, then Clyde would receive a consequence he couldn''t imagine.
''Shit, I just avoided death,'' Clyde thought.
"What if I can''t clear everything?" Clyde asked.
"Then you will only get the answer from how many you clear," Gremory gave a very simple answer.
"May I know what the consequences will be if I already receive an answer, and fail toplete your Personal Request?" Clyde asked again out of curiosity.
Gremory chuckled. "Well, actually it''s not as bad as you think. You will only have a bond in the form of ''debt'' to me. Which you have to pay when I ask for it."
Clyde snorted. "Seems like you want to tie me up as a ve."
Gremory only showed a faint smile that was full of meaning. She did not deny or justify Clyde''s words.
"How difficult is it?" Clyde asked.
"They''re pretty strong. But at your current level, they shouldn''t be a problem."
Once again, Clyde couldn''t believe Gremory''s words.
''I have to do this task with the assumption that this colorful Wendigo is strong enough.''
That way, he won''t die silly.
"You still seem quite worried. Don''t worry. Even if you ept those Personal Requests, you haven''t gotten anything from me, so there won''t be any consequences for you.
It''s just that if you fail, you won''t get anything either."
Clyde stared at her. "Just that?"
Gremory nodded its head. "Yeah."
Clyde thought for a few moments. before he finally answered.
"Alright. I''ll ept your Personal Request."
"Then you just need to finish it. Once you get the blood, call me with this."
Gremory opened her palm up. A ne with a certain symbol appeared floating above her palm.
Gremory moved her hand and the ne flew towards Clyde.
Clyde took the ne and looked at it.
There was some kind of symbol he had never seen there. The symbol is aplexbination of circr shapes and curved lines.
"Call my name and I wille. Wear the ne," Gremory said.
"No thanks." the ne disappears into Clyde''s Inventory.
Gremory let out a chuckle.
"Is that it?" Clyde asked.
"Yeah," Gremory replied. "That was it."
A Portal appears next to Clyde. The portal was different from the portal he used to enter earlier.
Instead, the portal looked the same as the one Gremory had used toe from earlier.
Clyde walked through the portal. Before he disappeared inside, Gremory''s voice sounded.
"See you soon, Clyde."
~~~
Chapter 62 Back To Motel
?Clyde stepped out of the portal. His feet hit the asphalt in the same ce where he had just entered before.
He had no idea how long time actually passed in this world.
With Gremory''s ability to temporarily stop time, the time shouldn''t have passed too long.
When he just came out of the portal, then a notification about the sessful quest appeared.
[ Quest Completed! ]
[ Reward: Rank C Dungeon Key. ]
[ Rewards sent to Inventory. ]
Gremory is maybe one of the parties who manipted this Quest. But Clyde didn''t mind too much because he also got something from her.
"Personal Requests, huh."
Clyde walked down the deserted and ruined streets.
His mind wandered thinking about the various possibilities that might happen tomorrow.
He had to find three types of Wendigo that had different distinctive colors.
The Request sounded quite difficult considering all the things that had happened.
But if he doesn''tplete the Personal Requests, Clyde wouldn''t be able to ask what he wanted to know about this apocalypse.
Just now Clyde was trying to hold himself back so as not to identally asked his question. Even though he felt that curiosity rose in his heart.
Or that question will only lead him to a disaster. Namely the debt he owed to that Demon.
Clyde didn''t even ask how the apocalypse setting was manipted in the future. Although it is a very important thing.
Once again the same reason was that he didn''t want to be trapped by debt to Gremory.
Clyde nced around. But there was nobody for him to see.
He can''t help but thinks that maybe everyone is already dead. And only the people he had seen were still alive. Like his group members and that other group.
Clyde didn''t know what to feel. To be honest, he didn''t care much for them. Because he really couldn''t do anything.
He was never someone who wanted to be a hero. So, saving people he didn''t know was something he never thought about.
However, that feeling seems to have changed in thest two days. Clyde''s feelings be contradictory to his self before the apocalypse.
He had no intention of saving others who were of no use to him.
But when he saw his group members, Clyde acted almost without thinking to fight alongside them.
He kept telling himself that he did it because he needed them to help him survive.
But, is that really the truth?
Clyde no longer knows what happened to him. He who has always been alone suddenly has to be faced with a situation when he has to cooperate with other people.
Clyde shook his head. "There''s no use thinking about that."
He didn''t even know why he suddenly thought about that now. He should have thought of a n for tomorrow though.
So Clyde immediately removed that thought from his head. Thinking about it will only give unnecessary burdens.
''For now. As long as we both focus on survival, we will continue to work together.''
That''s right. Clyde didn''t need to think about whether there was a greater bond between himself and the rest of his group than the mutual desire to survive.
After all, there''s still a chance that they''ll betray him, right?
Night''s gettingte. Clyde walked towards the motel where he and the rest of the group were staying.
Once he got there, Clyde found that the motel was still empty. No other group members have returned yet.
''Are they still running Quests?''
Clyde walked back outside and stood at the lobby door. His eyes moved in all directions but he could only see chaos.
But it didn''t take him long to wait because he saw the rest of the group already walking towards the motel from the dark end of the street.
They walked with tired movements. Sonya and Asqa are the ones who seem to be suffering the most from exhaustion.
But they were both still able to walk on their own despite their limp steps and slumped shoulders.
"You''re back, Clyde," Rodney said.
Clyde answered with a nod. Then his eyes fixed on Asqa and Sonya who looked exhausted.
"Let''s get in," Clyde said.
They went into the motel and rested. The Regressors told Clyde that they would immediately rest.
Clyde saw no reason to hinder them. So the four Regressors went to their respective rooms.
Sonya and Asqa had also gone into their room. Clyde watched them both from the doorway.
"What happened?" Clyde asked.
"We seem to be running out of Magic Power," Sonya answered in a tired voice.
"That could be dangerous," Clyde said.
"Yeah." Sonya made an answer that sounded a bit like a sigh.
While Asqa who was next to him had closed his eyes with a slightly open mouth.
Maybe she was too tired to even have a hard time maintaining consciousness for even a moment.
Clyde felt that this was not the right time to talk to them.
"I''ll go now. Sorry to interrupt you," Clyde said and left without waiting for a response from Sonya.
He closed the door slowly and walked towards his room.
There must be bad consequences when they run out of their Magic Power. Unfortunately, Clyde didn''t know what it was.
He took off the Dark Night Coat and ced the Elderss Sword next to where hey.
Clyde stared up at the ceiling of his room. There were still many things he didn''t know.
The Celestials, World Masters, and what would happen after the sixth day after they managed to survive.
All of that is still a mystery that makes Clyde feel a disturbing feeling of uneasiness and anxiety.
Clyde took a deep breath and exhaled it. Hopefully, that way he can calm down.
Because tomorrow, he would still have to face something troublesome. He has to kill 3 Wendigos of three different colors.
That Personal Request sounds weird in this situation. But Clyde had a hunch that a Wendigo with a different color would be stronger than a normal Wendigo.
Moreover, when someone messes up the setting of this apocalypse.
~~~
Chapter 63 Breakfast
?Once again, the sound of an rming from an unknown ce started everything that would happen today.
[ ATTENTION! ]
[ The Second Chapter will start now! ]
[ THE SECOND CHAPTER "UNBEARABLE HUNGER" BEGINS NOW! ]
[ CHAPTER 2: UNBEARABLE HUNGER. ]
[ DIFFICULTY:D.]
[ OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE FROM THE ATTACKS OF ''UNBEARABLE HUNGER.'' ]
Clyde opened his eyes after hearing that voice. He sat up on his bed and stared ahead for a few moments.
"I''ve felt it already," Clyde muttered to himself.
Clyde felt his stomach growl with hunger. Even when he had just opened his eyes and the sun was not yet high. Yet Clyde felt that he had not eaten for a whole day. Which he knew was not true.
So Clyde got up and left his room. As soon as he came out of the room, Clyde smelled the aroma of cooking which excite his appetite.
Clyde walked towards the kitchen. Someone was already cooking the breakfast there.
Sure enough, when he was in the kitchen, Clyde saw Asqa wearing an apron and staring at the food on the table.
This motel is indeed small. So there''s no restaurant here. However, there is a kitchen that the motel staff might use to rest.
Asqa, who was preparing the food, barely noticed Clyde''s arrival. But not long after Clyde came she looked up and smiled.
"You''re awake," Asqa said.
Clyde seemed amazed by all the dishes on the table. The food was made from the ingredients they had gathered yesterday.
Asqa cooks a wide variety of dishes from chicken, beef, and pasta, enough to fill the table.
Clyde felt this was a pretty extravagant dish considering what they were going to face after this.
However, he won''t be able toin too much because his stomach feels like it agrees with what Asqa has prepared.
Clyde who felt hunger eating his stomach, gulped. His eyes stared slightly widened at the food.
"You''re hungry, right?" Asqa asked.
"Yes. I think the effects of this Chapter are already being felt," Clyde replied. "How about you?"
Asqa nodded his head. "Yes. I''ve also felt it since I woke up. But I''m holding it until this food is finished."
"Why do you bother cooking?" Clyde couldn''t stop thinking. In the midst of a situation like this, Asqa still finds the need to cook.
However, that could be a good sign that she has been able to make peace with this chaotic world situation.
"I just want to do something useful," Asqa replied.
Clyde stared at her. "You''ve done enough already."
"I know." Asqa smiled. "Don''t worry. I''m feeling better and I''m not going to be that whiny girl anymore."
Upon hearing Asqa''s words, Clyde smiled faintly. Then nodded in full approval.
"Good," Clyde said curtly.
Then Clyde walked over to the chair and started grabbing some food for himself.
"You''re not going to wait for the others to wake up first?" Asqa asked while looking at Clyde with shocked eyes.
"No," said Clyde coldly. "You should eat too. They''ll wake up soon."
Asqa also actually felt very hungry. So she also immediately took food of her own.
Just as Clyde had expected, the Regressors came before long. Their faces still look tired because they just woke up.
But even so, they immediately sat down and devoured the food that was on the table.
Not a word was spoken between them during the meal. They didn''t even ask who had cooked all this and Asqa didn''t bother to exin either.
It was because they were only focused on getting rid of the hunger in their screaming stomachs.
A few minutester they were finished eating. The seven people leaned back in the chairs with relieved looks on their faces.
"Am I going to get fat after this?" Sonya let out a chuckle.
"No. Everything will be back to normal tomorrow," Mona replied.
"Good," Sonya said.
"It''s pretty impressive you can still think about getting fat at a time like this," Eric said.
Sonya shrugged. "Just curious."
Clyde was the first to rise from his chair.
"You want to go?" Asqa looked at Clyde in shock.
"Yes," replied Clyde.
"Shouldn''t we just hide here because of the unexpected setting of this apocalypse?" Rodney asked with a frown.
"Yeah, you guys have to stay here. But I have to do something by myself," Clyde said.
Clyde didn''t want to waste time. So he was already walking towards the door without saying much anymore.
"Are you sure you don''t need help?" Asqa asked while looking at his back.
The question made Clyde stop in the doorway. Indeed, having Asqa help him with her healing ability will definitely help a lot.
However, does he want to involve Asqa inpleting this dangerous task?
Clyde turned to Asqa. "You don''t have to do that."
Asqa bit her lip.
"What exactly do you want to do? Why did you keep it a secret from us?" Rodney asked.
Clyde nced at Rodney. "This is something dangerous. I''d better do it myself."
"You think we can''t fight alongside you?" Rodney asked again.
"No."
Clyde answered quickly. Almost instantly. That answer made Rodney grind his teeth.
"I''m just saying the truth. Your chances of survival will be greater if you stay in hiding rather thaning with me," Clyde added.
After that Clyde walked away before they could say anything to stop him.
They were all silent at the dining table with their thoughts.
Asqa bit her lip nervously because she was worried for Clyde. But, she also knew that what Clyde said was true. She won''t be able to help him even if she wants to.
"Don''t you guys feel suspicious?"
Suddenly in the middle of the silence, Rodney said something that was enough to catch their attention so they looked at him.
"What do you mean?" Sonya asked the question.
Rodney paused to think for a few moments. He had to convey his words as best he could so as not to sound like he was cornering Clyde. But it can also make them question his actions.
~~~
Chapter 64 Looking For Wendigo
?Rodney nced at all of them and waited for their reactions.
A momentter, Sonya stood up from her chair. "I want to go to my room right now. Asqa, you want toe?"
Sonya seemed to want to avoid the conversation. She stared at Asqa with eyes indicating that.
Asqa returned Sonya''s gaze. A momentter she stood up as well.
"But what about these dishes?" Asqa asked.
Sonya exhaled. "Why are you still thinking about that? Isn''t there a lot of clean furniture left here?"
Asqa immediately thought that Sonya''s words were true. She can''t leave the habit where she always cleans the dining table after finishing eating.
But now the apocalypse is going on. So that kind of behavior doesn''t matter.
Asqa followed Sonya out of the kitchen. Leaving the Regressors without saying anything.
The silence continued for the Regressors. Reed nced at Rodney with a questioning look.
"What are you thinking?" Reed asked.
"Just like what I said earlier. Clyde might be hiding something from us," Rodney replied.
"I don''t see a problem with it," Eric said. "I know maybe he doesn''t want to share how he got his powers. But, it doesn''t mean that he means evil."
"Are you sure?" Rodney asked while looking at Eric.
"What do you mean?" Eric asked back with a frown.
"Don''t you think that Clyde might just be using us for his purposes?" said Rodney.
Mona slightly widened her eyes after realizing what Rodney meant.
"You mean... Clyde was just using the information we have about what''s going to happen next?" Mona said.
"That''s very possible, right? Then when we''re not very useful, he''ll maybe be going to ditch us." Rodney replied.
They all look thoughtful. After all, it''s not like they be friends even though they had fought together.
It didn''t take long for Eric to ask. "But didn''t we do the same to him?"
His words made his fellow Regressors turn towards Eric almost simultaneously.
"In a world that has been thrown into chaos like this, aren''t we simply using each other to survive?"
They fell silent again. The four of them were just taking advantage of each other too.
Isn''t that basically how living creatures at work? By always taking advantage of others for their ends?
"I guess you''re right," Reed said with a shrug. "If that''s what Clyde wants, we can''t do anything, can we?"
"I don''t like that," Mona snapped. "What if he betrays uster?"
"I''m not saying we have to trust himpletely," Reed said. "If any sign that he''s going to betray us shows up, we can leave. We''re not that stupid, are we?"
"Or we can betray him before he does that," Rodney said in a hushed voice. He knew that Asqa and Sonya had gone to their rooms by the sound of their footsteps moving away.
The two of them must have been out of range to overhear this conversation. Because of that Rodney dared to say such a thing.
Eric, Reed, and Mona looked at him with different expressions. Eric looked at him disapprovingly.
Reed didn''t really like the idea either but that doesn''t mean it was out of question for him.
Meanwhile, Mona seemed interested in listening to his n.
Rodney who saw their gazes immediately exined his meaning in the same whispering voice.
"You guys know how day five is going to go," Rodney said. "We can use Clyde for that."
~~~
On the other hand, Clyde is walking down a ruined street.
Clyde has packed a few foods in the refrigerators of the motel rooms into his Inventory. So thatter when hungeres, Clyde doesn''t need to be bothered.
He was quite surprised to find the sky suddenly turned cloudy and dark.
Sunlight seems difficult to reach the earth. Obstructed by those hanging gray clouds.
The sound of thunder also echoed. Either far away or even right above Clyde.
Yet, the atmosphere here seems quiet. No sign of monsters appearing.
At this rate, Clyde could have a hard time finding the Wendigos that Gremory wanted.
It is still very early in the morning. But, he didn''t know what kind of trouble there would be. So Clyde always moves in the mindset that he only has so little time.
"Even now no ordinary Wendigos have appeared. Where should I look for them?"
Thest time Clyde knew, the Wendigo had no problem moving around during the day.
But, what he knows could be wrong because this apocalypse can be unexpected.
So, Clyde decided to get into one of the subways. If indeed the Wendigo is a creature that dwells in the dark - in this apocalypse - there is a good chance that they will be down there.
Clyde descended the stairs with his hand gripping the hilt of the Elderss Sword. His eyes immediately focused on scanning the subway area.
But he only found scattered corpses and an unbearable stench.
Then, not far ahead, Clyde also saw an object that looked like a vending machine. But instead of selling snacks or drinks, the vending machine sells skills.
''It is such a coincidence. I''d better buy a skill now.''
Clyde walked over to the bodies. When he was in front of the Skill Purchasing Machine, Clyde saw the skill list on the screen in front of him.
''There are a lot of good skills here.''
Clyde pressed his hand on the coin insert and used his mind to buy the skills he wanted.
*Trinnggg!*
[ "Skill ''Exp+'' has been purchased. 5,000 coins used." ]
Clyde smiled. Even though this skill is quite expensive, Clyde is sure that no one will think that his decision is wrong.
Clyde took the silver tube that came out and immediately learned the skill.
With this skill, Clyde can double the Exp he gets. There is no clear description.
However, Clyde guesses that the amount of experience he gets will increase as the level of the skill increases.
"Grrhh..."
A low growl sounded from the passage where the train was passing.
Clyde immediately bought another skill that he was after.
[ "Skill ''Pure Lightning'' has been purchased. 5,500 coins used." ]
~~~
Chapter 65 Ambushed
?Clyde hurriedly picked up the silver tube that had fallen on the subway floor.
He wanted to quickly learn the skill he just got but something was already holding his Dark Night Coat then swung Clyde backward.
*BUAGHGGH!*
Clyde hit the wall above the railroad tracks. He fell on the rail rocks hard.
Due to the sudden jolt, the silver tube containing the skill he had just obtained fell.
"Shit!" Clyde cursed. Because he was grinding his teeth, the curse came out as a hiss.
He immediately stood up and drew the Elderss Sword from its scabbard.
Then his eyes darted around looking for the figure of his attacker.
But strangely, Clyde didn''t see anything. He didn''t even hear any sound as a sign of his attacker''s whereabouts.
Clyde thought that what had attacked him earlier was definitely a Wendigo. But he had no idea that the Wendigo would be that powerful.
''Is that a Wendigo of a different color?''
The thought crossed Clyde''s mind. The attacker ¨D if it was really a Wendigo ¨D was quite strong. And it''s also could move with such speed.
Clyde hoped that it was the Wendigo that had a different color. Because if an ordinary Wendigo had that much power, then it would be really bad.
Because he didn''t see anything appear and attacked him again, Clyde dared to step towards the ce where his silver tube had fallen.
Clyde''s eyes nced around the dark corners at the end of the railroad tracks. Waiting for whoever will appear from within that dark shadow.
As soon as Clyde was one step away from reaching the silver tube, he heard the sound of rapid footstepsing from the dark alley of the railroad tracks.
Clyde, who had expected this follow up attack to happen, immediately turned his body towards the sound.
He saw a gray figure moving towards him. It turned out that not only one was charging toward him but there were five of them.
"Khaaakkkhh!"
One of the five skinny gray creatures jumped at Clyde with a disturbing scream.
Clyde shed the Elderss Sword toward the creature. The bluish de of the sword greeted the Wendigo''s arrival with its incredible sharpness.
*CRAATTT!*
The Elderss Sword''s blue de sliced ??through the Wendigo''s head with ease. Like a knife cutting butter.
Clyde didn''t even feel any pressure when he split that grey creature''s head.
Red and Grimy blood also sshed after the Wendigo''s head was split open. Its body fell next to Clyde with a disturbing sound.
The other four Wendigos stared at Clyde with their piercing yellow eyes.
Their body resembles that of a human. But their limbs were so skinny that there are only bones and skin remained.
And the length of their limbs is near twice the length of a normal human''s limbs.
The first impression Clyde got from meeting them was that they were weak monsters but have high speed.
Even though he could easily kill a Wendigo with one sh of his sword, Clyde couldn''t rest easy because the difficulty level might suddenly go up.
The Wendigos who appear to have anorexic bodies can be very strong in a short time.
ording to the wishes of anyone who manipted this apocalypse setting.
Clyde nced briefly at the silver tube under his feet. Then he directly activated his skill.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!!!*
Clyde shot fire at the Wendigos. Then he lowered his body and picked up the silver tube on the floor.
"Khaaakkk!"
They let out heartbreaking screaming sounds. From that sound, Clyde thought they were burning in Clyde''s mes from a skill that was at Level 10.
But it turned out that Clyde was wrong. The four Wendigos leaped through the mes extending their wed hands toward Clyde.
Clyde was of course taken aback by the unexpected thing they did. He almost let his guard down and let the w hit him.
But Clyde swung the Elderss Sword swiftly to sh the Wendigos'' arm as he jumped backward.
Their hands fell on the floor. But a momentter, their hands instantly grew back.
The regeneration process was so outrageous that it seemed as if there was no pause from the time the hand was cut off until it grew back.
''That is crazy!'' Clyde screamed internally.
Not only that, but their burned skin also began to recover. Even though it seemed to take longer than the recovery from the sh wound, it was still an amazing regeneration.
They didn''t waste time and immediately charged toward Clyde together.
''It looks like the way to kill them is simply to destroy or cut their heads.''
Clyde immediately opened the silver tube he just got in a hurry. Luckily he managed to open the lid before the Wendigos reached him.
A white light apanied by a bit of electricity appeared and entered Clyde''s body.
After that, he immediately threw the tube with all his might toward one of the Wendigos.
*BAAGHH!*
The silver tube hit the Wendigo''s face hard and threw it backward.
Three of its friends don''t seem to care about it. They are still charging with incredible ferocity.
Clyde who has finished learning his newly purchased skill is ready to fight them now.
He knew that the way to kill them was to strike them in the head. So he will do that.
However, Clyde didn''t realize that reinforcements from the Wendigos would appear from behind him.
Long, thin, gray hands held Clyde''s arms and legs.
''Shit!''
As if all of that wasn''t bad enough, those hands were also holding his neck.
All those skinny gray hands held Clyde so he couldn''t move. Meanwhile, the three Wendigos in front of him drew closer. The Wendigo that he had thrown with the silver tube had also lunged at him again.
''Let''s try the skill now.''
Clyde just got a skill called ''Pure Lightning''. If indeed the skill lived up to its name, then it should be able to help him escape from this situation.
~~~
Chapter 66 New Skills
?The abnormally long, gray, and skinny hands gripped Clyde''s arms, legs, and neck. There seemed to be so many of them that Clyde could no longer estimate their number.
Meanwhile, the four Wendigos in front of him lunged at Clyde with their jagged mouths already open. Get ready to tear his flesh.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.1) is activated! ]
At that critical moment, Clyde thought that the only way he could survive was to use the skill he had just acquired.
As soon as he activated that skill, Clyde felt his whole body filled with a tingling surge of power.
It felt as if there was an electric current running through every inch of his cells.
Clyde''s body was flowing with brilliant bluish-white lightning energy.
Then the lightning spread in all directions and stung the Wendigos that were holding onto him and the three Wendigos that were charging at him from the front.
*ZZZZTTTT!!!*
Even though the lightning had stung them, the Wendigos didn''t look like they were in pain.
They only looked shocked for a moment as the sh of lightning dazzled them.
But that was enough for Clyde. With that [Skill: Pure Lightning] he had managed to escape from the clutches of the Wendigos behind him.
This skill apparently can also affect Clyde''s movement speed besides creating a sh effect that blinds them.
Coupled with his stats that have been maxed out, Clyde was able to avoid that dangerous situation in the blink of an eye.
He was now about ten meters from where he had been. The stair to go up to the surface is not far behind him.
The Wendigos let out screams from their ravaged throats. So that their screams sounded disturbing and heartbreaking at the same time.
''I will upgrade [Skill: Pure Lightning] to Level 10.''
In his mind, Clyde immediately upgraded the skill that had helped them the skill to the max because it was obvious that the skill would be very useful in this situation.
[ You upgraded Pure Lightning to Level 10! ]
[ Skill: Pure Lightning has reached Max Level! ]
Clyde clenched his fists. A savage grin appeared on his face.
"Now, lets the real fight begin."
"Khaaaaakhhh!!!"
"Khaaaaakhhh!!!"
"Khaaaaakhhh!!!"
...
The Wendigos let out an ugly scream almost simultaneously. After that, they charged at Clyde with extraordinary ferocity.
Their numbers had clearly increased a lot from before.
Clyde didn''t have time to count them all but he estimated that there were now more than a dozen Wendigos for him to face right now.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*JJZZRRRTTT!!!*
Lightning covered Clyde''s entire body, the lightning sh spread and dazzled the entire subway that was originally pretty dark.
Clyde also channeled the lightning energy into the Elderss Sword. The de instantly absorbed his lightning power. The translucent bluish de gave off a brilliant white light and discharges of electricity.
*JJJZZZTTTT!!!*
The distinctive buzzing sound of moving electricity appeared when Clyde moved.
With his Stats and power from [Skill: Pure Lightning], Clyde''s movements became much faster than before.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already in front of the Wendigos and shed his Elderss Sword.
*SRAATTT!!!*
*SRAATTT!!!*
*SRAATTT!!!*
...
Clyde swung the Elderss Sword, shing at the Wendigos in an imperceptibly smooth motion.
Only visible white sh movements can be seen moving so fast when Clyde shes his sword.
Momentster, Clyde had already managed to sh the heads of a dozen Wendigos.
Their gray and bald heads fell to the floor of the subway and railway with sshes of blood.
In the midst of that gruesome sight, Clyde''s figure stood with a body still flowing with brilliant white lightning.
After making sure there weren''t any Wendigo left, Clyde deactivated his [Skill: Pure Lightning].
The white lightning disappeared from his body slowly. Clyde grinned in satisfaction.
"This is a good skill," he muttered to himself.
[ You gained 30(x1) Exp. ]
[ You gained 30(x1) Exp. ]
[ You gained 30(x1) Exp. ]
...
Clyde gets the same amount of notifications as the number of Wendigos he just killed. However, there is something different there.
''Oh, I see. At level 1, I will only gain Exp multiplied by 1. Then when I upgrade it to Level 10, I will gain Exp multiplied by 10.''
A wide grin returned to Clyde''s lips. To think he would find skills like this was ridiculous.
Doesn''t that mean that if a yer discovers that he or she has this skill, he or she can be said to have some sort of cheat?
''But I don''t know. The setting of this apocalypse has probably been messed up in such a way that this kind of skill exists.''
Even if he had those Skills, Clyde couldn''t let his guard down. Because you never know what will happen in this apocalypse.
''Let''s not waste time.''
Clyde hurried off down the dark alley where trains usually passed. He now knew that the Wendigos were hiding in dark ces.
Even though it was still early in the morning, Clyde couldn''t rx because he didn''t know how long it would take him to find the three Wendigos of different colors.
He also had no idea how strong they were or how long it would take him to defeat them.
So, moving as if there was no time left was the best decision Clyde could make in this situation.
Clyde walked down the dark tunnel for several minutes. But he didn''t find anything.
This is pretty weird because Clyde is almost sure there will be a Wendigo hiding in here.
Clyde can even see the light from the end of the tunnel which indicates the end of this tunnel. But he found nothing.
''Could they be in that tunnel over there?''
Clyde wondered while looking back. Then without thinking he dashed the way he hade and into the tunnel on the other side.
Clyde finally heard the Wendigo''s whereabouts. As he plunged deeper into the darkness, the Wendigos attacked him from all sides.
Clyde entered battle mode by activating [Skill: Pure Lightning] so he could quickly kill them.
~~~
Chapter 67 Meet Again
?Agatha finally managed to stand up. After a day and a night of unbearable torment, and several more hours of recovery that seemed forever, Agatha was finally able to stand up again.
Her body condition cannot be said to be fine. However, it is still much better than before.
Agatha''s face was still pale. Her hair was in mess and tangled. Agatha looks like a woman who still has a hangover from heavy drinking.
Lio who was reading a book on the couch suddenly said, "Are you ready to go?"
Agatha stared at Lio with sharp eyes. Everything he did to her was still clear in her head. In fact, Agatha won''t forget that for a long time. Maybe forever.
In her heart, Agatha harbored a huge feeling of revenge. Something likeva frozen at the base of a volcano and waiting for the right moment to erupt.
"Yes, Senior," answered Agatha.
"Good. It''s been too long anyway," Lio said.
Without saying anything else, Agatha walked towards the only door in the white room.
"It looks like someone else is messing around with this apocalypse setting. You have to be careful," Lio said.
Agatha only answered with a nod. But Lio didn''t even take his eyes off the book he was reading.
Agatha gritted her teeth. Yet she knew better not to say anything.
Agatha continued her steps towards the door. The double doors opened to both sides allowing Agatha toe out.
As soon as she came out, the double doors closed again. At that time Lio looked up from his book and stared at the door where Agatha had disappeared.
Then he turned towards the monitor screen. Worry was clear on Lio''s face.
"Too many disturbances on the Selection Stage this time," he muttered. "It''s not good. It''s all because of that brat."
On the monitor screen, Lio was watching Clyde fighting the Wendigos. No, to be more precise, he was ughtering them since the fight seemed one-sided.
As soon as Clyde got his new skills, his strength which was already too strong beyond the limits of this Chapter increases again.
Lio felt regretful that he had not observed Clyde from the start. So he couldn''t know what exactly had made Clyde so strong.
His weapon and the number of coins he had from the start were what amazed Lio. Where did he get all that?
Lio only realized something strange about Clyde when he was already at a very high level.
So he has missed all the things that made it so easy for him to reach that high level.
"Tch, if only this damn system could be more sophisticated."
Lio cursed the system he currently had.
If only he had higher funds, then Lio could have bought an even better Selection Stage system.
Unlike the system, he had bought for this cheap price. Apart from this system being unable to track yers ording to his will, this system is also very vulnerable so that interference from outside parties can enter easily.
Lucio took a deep breath. What has happened has already happened. So he can''t do anything about it.
Lio stared at the screen floating in front of him. The screen now shows that Clyde has killed every Wendigo he encounters.
Thest time he saw that about a hundred Wendigos were attacking him from all sides when he noticed his presence. Yet Clyde can take them out in less than a minute.
His body was still enveloped in a stream of white lightning that Lio remembered as [Skill: Pure Lightning].
The price of the skill was very expensive. But Clyde could even afford that skill and one more skill he didn''t know what.
Again, it was due to the Selection Stage system he was currently using.
~~~
Several lines of notification that he had Leveled up appeared in Clyde''s eyes.
He smirked realizing how much Exp he had gotten after killing dozens of Wendigos and upgraded [Skill: Exp+] to max Level.
Now when he looked at his Character Information, Clyde felt delighted because he was already at Level 65.
Thebination of the experience he previously gained and the experience he was gaining now had him at that level.
"Ha ha!" Clydeughed. He let happiness envelop him for a moment after being confused and restless since yesterday.
Since he got this quite overpowered [Skill: Exp+], Clyde felt quite assured that he could pass what was in front of him.
Clyde continued on his way. Unfortunately, he didn''t know where to look for the Wendigo in the green, blue, and red colors.
''Are there no clues scattered around here?''
If he just randomly searched all of them, Clyde didn''t know when he would find them.
At this moment he regretted not asking Gremory in more detail about how to find the three Wendigos she wanted.
In the end, Clyde got out of the subway station and decided to look for the Wendigos around the city.
Clyde circled the city for a few minutes, then the hunger came.
Even though it seemed like it hadn''t been an hour since he had breakfast at the motel.
So Clyde took out a pack of bread from his Inventory and started eating while looking for clues.
He didn''t expect to meet Agatha here.
Clyde''s chewing stopped automatically. He stared at Agatha for a few moments.
He noticed that Agatha''s face looked much paler than thest time he saw her.
Agatha was sitting on a chair. She turned to Clyde and Clyde could see her tired-looking eyes.
"What''s going on?" Clyde asked. "You look like a dying person."
Agatha just sighed because what Clyde said wasn''t too far from the truth.
"Come sit with me," Agatha said. This time she didn''t even use her real voice because she wanted to save energy to recover.
"Why?" Clyde asked.
"Do you always ask so many questions?" Agatha said in a tired tone. "It''s up to you if you don''t want to sit down."
In the end, after reasonable deliberation, Clyde chose to remain standing while eating his bread.
~~~
Chapter 68 New Deal
?Agatha looked at Clyde withzy eyes. Her feelings were clearly shown on her pale face.
"You won''t sit with me?" she asked.
"No," Clyde replied curtly. Then took a bite of his bread. "Why do you want to see me?"
There were sighs from Agatha. Then she leaned back on the back of the chair.
"I''ve just had a tough day," Agatha said.
"So the World Master also had a hard day, huh?" Clyde replied.
"Yeah. I thought that after bing a human, I wouldn''t find it difficult to go through everything anymore." Agatha looked at Clyde. "I want to make an offer."
"You get to the point? I heard when someone just had a bad day they want to tell their story to someone who''s going to listen," Clyde replied. "Wanna talk?"
Agatha smiled and let out a chuckle. "If I''m not mistaken, I would think of you as a caring person. However, I know that you just want whatever information you can get."
Clyde didn''t change his expression. But inside he was a little disappointed because Agatha couldn''t say what had made her day so hard.
Something that could make a World Master has a bad day was definitely not something trivial. And clearly rted to this apocalypse. Whatever it actually is.
But Clyde wasn''t really that disappointed. Because he had expected that Agatha wouldn''t be that stupid to say anything.
"What kind of offer?" Clyde finally asked to the point knowing he couldn''t get any more information.
"We will offer you power so that you can go through the Selec... uhm, I mean this apocalypse more easily," Agatha said.
Clyde''s forehead twitched because he realized something had slipped out of her tongue.
"What do you think?"
"I don''t think I really need it," Clyde said. ''Especially if Ipleted the Personal Request from the Gremory and obtained information from her.''
Given that, Clyde thought that it seemed like he was better off not saying anything about his encounter with the Demon Duchess.
But Agatha smiled and snorted. As if she had expected that Clyde would say that.
"You must think you''re strong enough now," Agatha said.
"However, you don''t know what tomorrow will bring. There are still three days before this is over, you know. Anything can happen."
Clyde frowned. "You manipted this apocalypse so that many strange things happened. Then you forced me to obey you or I couldn''t get through it. Is that it?"
Agatha had heard from Lio that someone was manipting the Selection Stage.
"That''s not us," Agatha said.
But Clyde looked at her as if to say he couldn''t believe it.
"Believe me. We are not the ones who manipted this apocalypse. We are also confused about who did it," Agatha said.
"Whatever." Clyde realized that he had spent too long here. "I don''t have time so I''ll just say that I can''t ept your offer right now. Maybeter, or tomorrow, you can see me again."
Clyde walks past Agatha. Agatha looked at him with a frown.
''Where exactly is he going?''
"Hey, wait!"
Agatha got up and followed Clyde. "Why did you refuse my offer so easily?"
"The reason is quite simple. I don''t want to be a ve to World Masters or a party like you. I know quite a lot that in an offer like this, I will be the one who loses. Even if I''m sessful to do the things you wanted," said Clyde as he continued walking.
''Damnit!'' Agatha cursed inside her head. ''Why does there have to be someone like this again in the Selection Stage! But at least I have to get him now.''
"Alright." Agatha stepped in front of Clyde and blocked his path. "I''ll offer you something that won''t cost you anything."
Clyde snorted. "Oh yeah? What is that?"
"It''s kind of a Quest. So if you manage to do this you''ll get a good reward. But if you fail, you have nothing to lose."
''Is this a Personal Request?'' thought Clyde. From what he heard, it did sound like Agatha wanted to give him a Personal Request.
"What''s that?" Clyde asked in an even tone.
Agatha then stretched her hand to the side of her head. After that, a Window that looks the same as the usual Window in this apocalypse appears.
UnlikeGremory''s Window, the Personal Request Window that Agatha pointed out didn''t look like something that came from outside this apocalypse''s system.
In that window, there is only 1 Personal Request.
[ You have received a Personal Request from World Master Agatha. ]
[World Master Agatha''s Personal Request. ]
[ 1. Kill 1,000 Wendigos. ]
Clyde frowned and put on an incredulous look on his face. Even though it''s only one, that Personal Request sounds quite hard.
"1,000 Wendigos?" Clyde asked while looking at Agatha. "Are you serious?"
Agatha smiled awkwardly. "That''s a lot. But you will get a handsome reward if you manage to finish it."
"What''s that?"
"We can offer high-grade weapons, skills, coins-"
"I will do it if you want to answer my question," Clyde cut in before Agatha could finish her sentence.
Agatha blinked her eyes a few times. "What do you want to ask?"
"The things about this apocalypse."
Agatha closed her mouth and pressed it together. She didn''t think that Clyde would want that.
"W-Why?" she asked.
"I just wanted to know."
Agatha seemed to think about it for a few moments.
''If he manages toplete that, then I can get quite a lot of Tokens. It''s not enough to cover my Tokens that have been stolen by Lio. But it''s still better than not getting anything.''
''But if he seeds, he will demand the answers he wants and get to know about what really happened behind this apocalypse.''
Agatha nced at Clyde who was also staring at her.
''Could I take that risk?''
"You still thinking? Didn''t I tell you that I don''t have much time?" Clyde said.
Clyde then walked past Agatha.
"Argh! For my Token''s sake, I''ll take that risk!" Agatha ran back to Clyde.
"Alright. I agree," said Agatha.
~~~
Chapter 69 Refusal?
?Agatha ran and stopped again in front of Clyde.
"Okay, I agree."
Clyde already knew that Agatha would most likely agree.
He wasn''t one hundred percent sure. But Clyde realized that the look on Agatha''s face conveyed an urgency about something Clyde didn''t know about.
This offer seems quite important for Agatha and her World Master friends.
"You may ask after youplete my Personal Request," Agatha said.
Clyde nodded. "If I don''t finish it, I won''t suffer any consequences, right?"
"Yeah, but you won''t receive any reward either," Agatha replied.
Clyde shrugged. "I''m fine with that."
Agatha felt a little ufortable with this situation.
Why does this situation seem to indicate that Clyde is the one who has the advantage to make a bargain with her? After all, he''s just a yer.
But, Agatha realized that the situation was indeed true.
Right now because her Token has been used by Lio without her permission, making her the party that needs Clyde who is just an ordinary yer to look for Tokens for her.
Of course, Clyde didn''t know anything about that. If he knew what a ''Personal Request'' really was, he would have demanded better.
''Besides, this must also be the first time he''s heard of this ''Personal Request'','' Agatha thought.
"Okay. I willplete your Personal Request," Clyde said. "How am I going to contact you once I''ve finished?"
"Um..." Agatha looked confused.
''She looks like she hasn''t thought all this through properly and just made a decision on the spur of the moment,'' Clyde thought.
Then Agatha pulled something from the back pocket of her shorts pants and held it out to Clyde.
It was a in ck ring. The ring looked simple but Clyde could see that there was gold writing on the inner ring.
"This is a valuable thing that belongs to me. I am giving it to you so you can contact meter," Agatha said.
Clyde epted the ring. Then the ring instantly disappeared into his Inventory.
Agatha didn''t give anyments about Clyde who didn''t ask first whether he should wear the ring or just keep it.
As if, Clyde never intended to wear the ring no matter what.
Clyde''s stomach suddenly growled. His hunger had returned even though Clyde had just finished his bread.
Agatha can''t help but let out a chuckle. "Haha. This chapter is quite annoying. Have you brought any food?"
Clyde only answered with a nod.
Agatha grinned at Clyde. "I''m not sure the amount of food you have in your Inventory will be enough to keep you going. Even for a few hours."
"You don''t have to worry about that."
Clyde said it with an even tone and an unbothered expression on his face. That made Agatha frown.
"Do you know what you''re going through today?" she asked.
He had already fought Wendigos in the subway. But that should only give him information about the monsters he will face.
However, Clyde looked as if he already knew about the hunger he was about to face.
"I''m going to start looking for Wendigos now. You''ve wasted so much of my time here," Clyde said.
Clyde didn''t answer Agatha''s question. And because Agatha knew the urgency of this Personal Request, she chose not to waste Clyde''s time anymore.
1,000 Wendigos is a lot. Even for yers with a Level as high as Clyde.
"Alright. Good luck," said Agatha.
Then Clyde walked past her. Agatha stared at Clyde''s back which was getting away.
''Apparently, Lio''sziness gave me an advantage.'' thought Agatha.
By meeting Clyde in person, she could make a ndestine deal like this.
And Agatha knew that the system they had for the Selection Stage was outdated so she could take advantage of it.
Agatha grinned. If this all went smoothly, then she would be able to get her revenge on Lio after what he did to her.
But she couldn''t rush things or the n would go awry.
~~~
The double doors opened to two different sides just like before when she came out. Now Agatha has returned to the white room.
She stepped inside and let the double doors close behind her.
Lio on the other hand was still reading the book he had been reading solemnly earlier.
"How''s it going?" Lio asked still without taking his eyes off his book.
"He turned it down," Agatha replied.
Agatha walked over and sat on the couch next to Lio. In her heart, Agatha still felt fear when she was next to him.
Of course, she would feel scared after being chained for that long by Lio.
The image and pain when the chains ensnared her and prated her flesh slowly are still fresh in her head.
She gulped. And chill run down her spine. But Agatha tried not to show anything in front of Lio.
She tried to act normal as if she didn''t feel anything anymore. After all, she was sure that Lio wouldn''t care either.
Lio only looked up after a while. What he read in the book seemed so interesting that he couldn''t hear Agatha''s answer right away.
"What do you say?" Lio asked with a frown of surprise. He closed his book with a loud sound.
Agatha looked at Lio. "Yes, he refused."
Agatha saw Lio''s jaw tighten. That sight made her feel as if her heart wanted to jump. Agatha saw the same sight before Lio took out his chains that time.
"What exactly are you offering him?" Lio asked.
"As usual we offer. Skills, coins, weapons," answered Agatha.
"And he refuses?"
"Maybe he feels he can survive well with his own power," Agatha said.
Lio clicked his tongue. "Because of this garbage system, we can''t monitor him properly. We can''t even see his Character Information!"
Agatha was silent while looking at Lio. Inwardly she smiled.
Lio wouldn''t know that she just gave her Personal Request to Clyde because she did something to the system.
''This is a good start. Just wait until I rank up and I''ll pay you back for what you did to me!''
~~~
Chapter 70 Questioning
?Clyde continued to walk around the city while eating bread. Until now he had finished five packs of bread within ten minutes.
Here he no longer sees any survivors which indicate that most likely most of the city''s residents are dead.
Viewed from any angle, this apocalypse is indeed very heavy for ordinary humans. There shouldn''t be any humans who could survive even the first day.
Now that the third day hase, Clyde believes that the only remaining humans living in this city might just be himself, his group members, and one other group that Clyde doesn''t know where they are now.
When he looked up, the gray clouds were moving again.
They had not yet covered the sun but the morning atmosphere was already dark.
Clyde even believed that it might rain today. Heavy rain and storms will hit this already gloomy and ruined city.
Perhaps the rain would wash away the scattered corpses of humans and monsters.
"Maybe this world will be destroyed on the sixth day," Clyde muttered to himself as he nced around.
Whatever happens to Clyde or the rest of his group, this world will surely meet its fate. That is the destruction that has been talked about since day one.
"After that, what will happen to me?"
That was the question Clyde most wanted to know the answer to.
Because of that he always intended to exchange whatever was offered to him and rece it with answers to pieces of information he could get.
If Clyde doesn''t know anything about what will happen, then he will only be a ve who is used by anything who has power over this apocalypse.
World Masters and Celestials. Particrly, Clyde wants to know what they really are.
After all, he could still get skills, coins, and experience from hunting monsters andpleting Night Quests. There''s nothing to worry about that.
Clyde heard a growl and quick footsteps as he passed a building. The building was quite low, maybe only five or six floors.
All the curtains were closed so that no sunlight came in. A ce where the Wendigos would most likely hide.
Clyde pulled the Elderss Sword from its scabbard and walked toward the building. While in his heart he hoped to find one of the three different colored Wendigos he had to kill.
When he went inside, the building waspletely dark. Luckily, Clyde managed to pick up a shlight at a shop he had just passed.
Clyde turned on his shlight and looked for the light switch. He expected some attack toe at him when he turned on the shlight. But nobody came.
Even so, Clyde was sure that there was a Wendigo here. His instincts told him so.
*CLICK!*
As soon as Clyde pressed the switches, the lights in the room turned on almost simultaneously. Turning a dark room into a bright one.
"Khaaaaakhhhh!!!"
Hearing the disturbing screams, Clyde wasn''t scared but grinned instead. The shlight disappeared back into his Inventory and he was ready to fight.
A Wendigo jumped onto the table from under it. It stared at Clyde with those yellow eyes.
Not long after, the herd came. They emerged from cupboards, under desks, and from the stairs leading up.
There were about twenty of them on this floor.
''If there are that many on this floor, it''s possible that I''ll encounter almost the same number on another floor.''
Then at least Clyde would get enough Wendigo to fulfill Agatha''s Personal Request target.
The Wendigos lunged at Clyde with their thin, wed gray arms.
Clyde gripped the hilt of the Elderss Sword tightly. Then approach them.
He decided not to use [Skill: Pure Lightning] directly because it would only drain his Magic Power faster.
Instead, Clyde used his fighting strength and the sharpness of the Elderss Sword in his hand.
For now, Clyde felt like he could still face them as long as he wasn''t cornered.
~~~
In their room, Asqa and Sonya are daydreaming while eating potato chips. Their mouths never seem to stop chewing.
Coupled with the hunger that keepsing. The two girls felt that they could never stop chewing.
"Is it true that we really can''t get fat, huh?" Sonya asked, staring at the piece of potato chips in her hand.
Asqa turned and looked at Sonya in disbelief. "Are you still thinking about that?"
Sonya looked back at her. "You don''t know how hard it is when you are fat? You''ll be bullied and told you look like a pig."
Asqa flinched and put on a horror face.
"That''s probably the most unimaginable thing for you," Sonya added.
Yes, of course Asqa never imagined that he would be treated like that.
Since a long time ago her body was always skinny and not too tall. She is often referred to as a girl who looks like a doll.
"You say that as if you''ve felt it before," Asqa said.
Sonya sighed. Her eyes stared at the far side as if looking at the bleak past.
"I have," Sonya said. "I used to be that fat girl and was called like that pig."
Asqa is surprised because she doesn''t see those marks on Sonya''s body now.
Sonya chuckled. "I tried so hard to diet and exercise to get this body."
Sonya pulled her shirt and showed her belly. Sonya widened her eyes seeing the abs on Sonya''s stomach.
"Fortunately I''m still young. So my body can still change quickly," Sonya said while covering her stomach again.
Asqa couldn''t say much. ''Maybe I should also start training my body.''
"What do you think about Clyde?"
Suddenly, Sonya asked. Aska looked up at him.
"What do you mean?" Asqa asked.
Sonya turned to her. "Why didn''t Clyde take us? And I think he''s been keeping secrets from us."
Asqa was silent and stared at Sonya for a few moments.
"I can''t understand it." Sonya shook her head. "Sometimes he can look like he wants to help us. But sometimes he gives off the impression that he might leave us at any moment."
~~~
Chapter 71 Found Jacob
?Learning what Sonya said, Asqa felt a bit of annoyance rising by itself in her heart. Asqa wanted to immediately refute Sonya''s words and say that what she said was not true.
However, Asqa immediately realized that what Sonya said actually made sense.
She also felt it when she saw Clyde turning his back on them after finishing his breakfast earlier.
She had opened her mouth a little and wanted to throw a rebuttal to Sonya. But Asqa immediately closed her mouth again.
"You do realize that, right?" Sonya asked, looking at Asqa.
"I think..." Asqa said. "I think he has his reasons."
"Yeah, I hope that reason is because he doesn''t want to see us get hurt," Sonya replied. "But I don''t fully believe that."
Asqa was silent and stared nkly ahead. She ignored her returning hunger.
While Sonya was beside her and stared at Asqa''s face which seemed to be daydreaming. She was clearly thinking about what she had
just said.
''She looks like an innocent girl who doesn''t know anything,'' Sonya thought, looking at Asqa. ''Ah, damnit. I thought it wouldn''t be thisplicated.''
They had only been together for three days. Yet Sonya already feels a kind of bond with Asqa.
Asqa looks like a little sister that she has to protect.
That''s how Sonya feels about her. Even though Sonya already knows that in a world like this, she can''t develop a bond like that with anyone.
She was supposed to be with them only for the sake of her own survival.
That''s what Sonya thought from the beginning she saw Clyde and Asqa on the subway that time. She just wanted to take advantage of them.
But it seems everything is different now.
''Ahh, whatever.''
Sonya tossed her empty bag of potato chips and sank down on the bed. Decided not to think about it any further because it would only torment her.
''I''d better sleep.''
Sonya returned to her habits. Namely sleeping when her mind is full ofplicated things that she can''t find the solution to.
Asqa only nced at Sonya but didn''t say anything.
Inside her head, Asqa was praying that what Sonya was saying - and what was now starting to make sense to her - would note true.
If that happened, how would she survive in this chaotic world in the future?
~~~
On the other hand, Clyde is fighting to kill Wendigos in that abandoned building.
Now he has arrived at the fourth floor.
Clyde stopped counting how many Wendigos he had killed.
But he remembered getting the Level up notification two more times. So now he is at Level 67.
Clyde took a deep breath after he finally finished off all the Wendigos on this floor.
He looked up and the room''s light illuminated his face which was decorated with Wendigo''s pale red blood.
The sound of his stomach sounding very loud was heard again.
Clyde took a cheeseburger from his Inventory then sat down on a chair and ced the Elderss Sword on hisp.
''I haven''t found it yet.''
Clydeined while starting to chew his cheeseburger. He nced at the clock which coincidentally still worked.
It''s now 7.41 am. Actually, it was still very early in the morning.
But once again, Clyde can''t help but feel anxious because he doesn''t know when he will actually find the Wendigo with the green, blue, and red colors.
As for the Personal Request from Agatha, Clyde is sure he can kill 1,000 Wendigo before this Chapter ends.
Now he had even killed a total of 230 Wendigos since receiving that Personal Request.
Clyde finished his cheeseburger in no time. Then he took a drink from the dispenser with a full gallon on the floor.
This building is small. So one floor is only filled by one room which is like an office. It makes things easier for Clyde''s search.
He climbed the stairs leading to the fifth floor which was most likely thest floor.
Unexpectedly, at that ce he found a Wendigo figure sitting on a chair.
Its body seemed bigger and more muscr than the Wendigo that Clyde had previously met.
The Wendigo looks like a muscr human with a bald head and yellow eyes.
The thing that made everything even more shocking was that it has dark green skin.
"Hey," the Wendigo said in the voice of a normal grown man.
The way it looked at Clyde who had juste up from the stairs was also very sane, unlike the other Wendigos who only stared with their yellow eyes that reflected hunger.
Clyde, of course, did not answer the green-skinned Wendigo''s greeting. He was busy observing with a frown of astonishment.
"Can you help me?" the green Wendigo asked. "I felt very hungry this morning. And I don''t remember what happened. As soon as I woke up, I saw my body had be like this."
Clyde was really confused. He couldn''t even reply to the words of the green Wendigo.
''What the actual fuck?'' Clyde thought in shock.
"Did you hear me?" the green Wendigo asked again.
Clyde took a deep breath. Trying to calm down as much as possible from the shock. ''Calm down, Clyde. You''ve found your target.''
"Didn''t you hear anything from downstairs?" Clyde was finally able to ask the green Wendigo again.
"I... I don''t know," it said.
Although the green Wendigo looks sane, it doesn''t look quite right.
It looks confused. There may still be some humanity left in its brain, but it''s still turned into a Wendigo.
Clyde, who had woken up from his shock, realized that there were pieces of Wendigo''s body around the green Wendigo. And the number of body parts was quite a lot.
Clyde stared at the green Wendigo. He wondered how the green Wendigo could still speak and act - almost - like a human.
"You really don''t remember anything?" Clyde asked.
The Green Wendigo shook his head. "No."
"You uhh... Have a name?"
"Jacob."
Surprisingly, the green Wendigo said its name.
~~~
Chapter 72 Finishing Jacob
?At this point, it''s clear what Clyde should do. He walked closer to the green Wendigo.
Her footsteps were slow and careful so as not to trigger it and attack him. At least before he got any closer.
[ Inspection (Lv.3) is activated! ]
Clyde tried to see how the information from the green Wendigo was.
Viewed from anywhere, that green Wendigo was an anomaly even in the midst of this apocalypse.
<<>>
[Name: Green Wendigo. ]
[ Affiliation: Undead Monsters. ]
[ Level: 47 ]
[ Skills: Scream (Lv.5), Healing Factor (Lv.3) ]
[ Stats: Strength (7), Stamina (5), Agility (7), Magic Power (3) ]
[ Weaknesses: - ]
[ Affinities: - ]
[ Rating: A (C) ]
''This monster''s Level is almost the same as the Corpse Bringer Dragon and the two huge zombie berserkers that became the BOSS yesterday, just a bit higher. So, this green Wendigo might not be a monster that yers should be able to kill.''
However, like yesterday, he would kill that Wendigo now. And also two other Wendigos which are also anomalies.
When Clyde was walking closer, suddenly the Wendigo''s eyes moved to look at him.
Those yellow eyes were piercing and now looked the same as how ordinary Wendigos stared. Lifeless and only filled with madness.
"What are you going to do?" the green Wendigo - who said its name was Jacob - asked in a sharp tone.
Clyde gripped the hilt of the Elderss Sword tightly. He didn''t say anything in answer to Jacob''s question.
Instead, Clyde lunged at it and shed the Elderss Sword with incredible speed and power.
But Jacob managed to block the de by raising its hand. The Elderss Sword''s de dug into Jacob''s green arm, pale blood flowing down.
Jacob''s yellow eyes stared at the arm impaled by the sword. Its jaw clenched and it gritted its teeth.
"You..." Jacob turned back to Clyde and let out a growl. "Why are you attacking me?"
"You are a monster, bastard. What do you expect me to do?" replied Clyde in an even voice.
Jacob''s lips parted. Clyde could see rows of razor-sharp teeth that were finally exposed.
"DIDN''T I ASK YOU TO SAVE ME?!" Jacob shouted.
Then it swung its hand to hit Clyde''s chest.
*BUAGHHH!*
Clyde was pushed back several steps until he hit a wall. When he looked back up, Clyde saw that Jacob had already lunged at him.
"HYAAARGGHH!!!"
That voice still sounded like a normal human scream. It wasn''t like a Wendigo scream with an already broken throat.
Jacob swung its fist.
*BRAAKKK!*
The huge fist made a hole in the wall. Clyde had rolled onto his side so he didn''t get hit.
Clyde who was already beside it swung his Elderss Sword. But once again Jacob raised his arm to hold his sword.
The wound caused by the Elderss Sword earlier had disappeared. Its [Skill: Healing Factor] is quite troublesome.
Clyde didn''t know how good its healing power was, which had reached Level 3.
If it proves to be able to heal Jacob''s wounds in a very fast time no matter how big the wound is, then Clyde really has to fight harder in this battle.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
Clyde stretched his hand towards Jacob then let out fire at it.
*ZWOOSSHHH!!!*
"ARGGHH!!!"
Jacob let out a loud scream. It was as if it was in pain because it had just received that burst of fire.
Clyde drew his Elderss Sword and then proceeded to sh it at Jacob again.
*SRAAATT!*
Clyde shed at its thigh. The sh knocked Jacob to it''s knees on the floor.
Clyde, of course, immediately wanted to use this opportunity to sh it in the neck.
However, Jacob stretched out his hand - which seemed to be a bit longer than before - and grabbed Clyde''s leg.
Jacob grabbed Clyde and then swung him against the wall.
*BUAGHH!*
Jacob smashed Clyde against the wall. But he didn''t finish there.
Jacob then swung Clyde toward the rows of tables and chairs.
Clyde''s body that had violently thrown shattered the table and chairs. Splinters of wood fly in all directions.
''Shit, that bastard is pretty strong.''
Clyde winced at the pain from Jacob''s grip on his leg. It turned out that the Wendigo with green skin was indeed stronger than the Corpse Bringer Dragon he had fought yesterday.
Clyde struggled to his feet again. But when he looked up, Jacob''s fist was right in front of his eyes.
*BUAGHHH!*
Clyde was thrown backward, then through a ss window behind him, and fell down from the fifth floor of the building.
Clyde fell to the ground very hard. Luckily the Dark Night Coat he was wearing lessened the pain he was receiving.
When Clyde looked up, he saw Jacob jump from the window.
''Shit!''
Clyde cursed in his heart as he rolled away.
*BOOM!*
Clyde managed to get away before Jacobnded its foot to stamp on Clyde''s head.
"Grrhh..."
It groaned. Its yellow eyes now looked brighter than before.
Jacob lunged at Clyde. Itsrge feet made a loud thump against the ground as it ran.
Despite seeing the monster charging toward him, Clyde didn''t look too worried.
That monster was indeed quite strong. But Clyde also hasn''t used all his strength yet.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*JZZRRTTTT!!!*
Bluish-white lightning came out and surrounded Clyde''s body.
Part of the lightning energy also flowed into the Elderss Sword causing the de to be filled with streams of bluish-white lightning that shed a brilliant white.
*ZZZTTTT!*
Clyde shot toward Jacob with incredible speed. In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already in front of Jacob and was swinging the Elderss Sword almost without pause.
*SRRAATTT!*
Jacob''s outstretched arms were about to catch him, flying after being shed.
Clyde who was already behind Jacob then shed its back.
*SRAATTT!*
Jacob''s pale blood spurted and the green Wendigo slumped forward.
However, Clyde saw that the arm that he cut earlier had begun to regenerate.
Even though the speed was slower than the healing of the wound just now, it still looked impressive.
Jacob charged back at Clyde even though the arm was still not fully healed. But Clyde was already moving to sh its leg.
*SRAATTT!*
The Lightning power covered Elderss Sword''s bluish de and sliced ??through Jacob''s leg smoothly. The sh also sent a stream of lightning up its body.
"ARRRGHHH!"
Jacob let out a scream of pain as part of its body was once again sliced ??open. And its body was stung by lightning.
The screams sounded like the screams of a man who was in pain.
Jacob fell to the ground. Immediately the leg that was cut off from the thigh began to heal itself. However, of course, Clyde will not let it.
Still enveloped in the bluish-white lightning, Clyde turned his body towards Jacob as he swung the Elderss Sword and chopped off its other leg.
*CRAAAT!*
Jacob let out another scream of pain. Although the screams did sound like ordinary human screams in agony, Clyde didn''t think so.
To him, what came out of Jacob''s mouth was nothing but a human-like scream that came from a monster''s mouth.
So he stays firm on what he has to do, which is to kill it as fast as possible.
"No! Wait!" Jacob said while stretching its hand which was almost fully regenerated towards Clyde.
*CRAAAAT!!!*
However, as if he didn''t see it, Clyde shed the hand again. Jacob screamed again.
Clyde jumped on top of it. The light from the bluish-white lightning that covered Clyde''s body dazzled Jacob''s eyes.
It couldn''t see anything. All it saw was a rotating sight as its head detached from its body.
Jacob''s head fell not far from its body. For a few seconds, the green Wendigo''s consciousness remained in its head.
So that it can still see Clyde standing over its body.
Clyde jumped down and deactivated [Skill: Pure Lightning].
The streams of bluish-white lightning on his body and sword disappeared in an instant.
Jacob looked up at Clyde who was staring at him from above with cold dark eyes.
"I... Asked you to help me. But... You killed me instead," Jacob said in a low voice.
"You can''t be saved anymore," Clyde said.
"Is that so? Uhh..."
Jacob''s yellow eyes closed slowly. Then closepletely. The Green Wendigo is dead and Clyde gets a notification written in pink on a ck background.
[ 1. The Green Wendigo''s killed (1/1) ]
Clyde gains no Exp from killing the green Wendigo. But he didn''t mind.
Clyde didn''t know what kind of rules prevented him from getting Exp. But since he managed toplete one Personal Request, Clyde felt that it was enough.
Of course, there was some reason Gremory wanted him to kill those three Wendigos of various colors.
Even though he knew that there was a risk that he would just be used by Gremory, Clyde decide to take it because he would also gain valuable information.
In a world like this, Clyde didn''t expect that everything would turn out the way he wanted. But at least he intended to try to reduce the risk he would face as much as possible.
Clyde felt his stomach growl again. It wasn''t even five minutes from when he finished his cheeseburger.
"This is starting to get worrying," Clyde muttered to himself as he took another cheeseburger from his Inventory.
Then he walked over to look for Wendigos again while eating.
''I can''t look for food anymore because everything has rotted.''
Actually, there is still quite a lot of food in his Inventory. However, if this hunger came this fast, Clyde wasn''t sure that there would be enough food.
~~~
Chapter 73 From Various Sides
?Lio gritted his teeth. Even now his hands clenched tightly. This was something rare because normally Lio always kept his cool.
Agatha realized that his attitude had changed drastically.
Inside her heart, Agatha also felt tensed. What if Lio took out his anger on her?
"How did it happen?"
Lio''s question which he asked in a cold and deep tone of voice made Agatha flinch.
"W-What do you mean?" she asked.
"How did he find that green Wendigo?"
"Maybe he just happened to meet it. Then killed it," answered Agatha. ''Right?''
Agatha herself wasn''t too sure either. Considering everything Clyde has done so far, it''s possible that he was able to find and defeat the green Wendigo.
"No," Lio said. "I don''t think so."
"Why do you think so?" she asked.
"I''ve been paying attention to him since you met him. He seemed to have a specific purpose when he walked out of the motel this morning," Lio replied.
Agatha didn''t say anything in response to Lio''s words. It''s just that she wished that Lio didn''t check the details when she met Clyde.
Agatha had indeed done something with the footage that appeared on the monitor when she met Clyde.
With that, what actually appeared on the monitor earlier was Agatha making the offer she should have made to Clyde.
Nothing about Agatha giving Clyde her own Personal Request. If Lio knew, he could give her even worse torture.
All of that is thanks to this very outdated Selection Stage system.
Lio leaned forward. His forehead creased and his eyes narrowed as he stared at the monitor screen.
He had his full attention on Clyde. Agatha had never seen him act like this before.
It made her feel a little scared. Because maybe Lio would notice signs that Clyde wasn''t just walking around and killing any Wendigo he happened to meet.
But after a few minutes of staring at the screen, Lio didn''t budge. He said nothing more.
Of course, Agatha didn''t know what was in his head and what he was thinking when he looked at Clyde''s figure on the screen.
"Could it be that he has encountered a Celestial figure who intruded into this Selection Stage?" Lio muttered without taking his eyes off the screen.
That possibility also crossed Agatha''s mind. However, she didn''t really care even if it was true.
A word about Clyde might indeed have spread to the Celestials Realm. And knowing that they are powerful beings, Agatha is not surprised that they can find a way to infiltrate and contact Clyde through this outdated system.
But Agatha thought that it was not too important for her to worry about.
After all, they - World Masters - couldn''t do anything if there were Celestials doing it since the Stage Selection system wasn''t very useful.
So Agatha just wants to take whatever she can get. When Clydepletes her Personal Request, she will get Tokens.
Lio leaned back on the couch and looked thoughtful.
"Maybe I should see him. If I can get a yer like him, I can use him and raise my Rank," Lio said.
Agatha turned her eyes away from him and also stared at the screen. ''It won''t be like that if I get it first.''
~~~
The ce is dimly lit. Illuminated only by the candles lining the walls. But that didn''t matter to the figure of a woman who had juste through the door.
She was already very familiar with this room. Even when she extinguished all the candles, the darkness would not bother her.
Gremory folded her bat-like wings. She then stepped foot up the short stairway that led to her throne.
She sat there with a satisfied smile on her face.
"He is good. I want him," Gremory muttered.
A momentter from the shadows behind her throne, another figure stepped out. The figure wore a ck robe that covered her entire body.
A long tear in the thigh part of her robe, and her body curve indicate that she is a woman.
"You finally found the person you wanted, Your Grace," said the woman while kneeling in front of Gremory.
"Yes, Nimue. I will assign you to watch over him," Gremory said.
Upon hearing Gremory''s words, Nimue looked up.
"What do you mean, Your Grace?" she asked.
"You should watch over him and show him the right path. With his strength, I think there will be other Celestials who will be attracted to him," Gremory replied.
"But... can I, who only a mere servant, be able to enter the Selection Stage?" Nimue asked in a worried tone.
"Ha ha ha!" Gremoryughed as if what she said was funny. "You don''t need to worry, Nimue. The system they used at the Selection Stage is trash. Even with your power, you should be able to infiltrate there easily."
Hearing that, Nimue who was worried before now smiled. If Gremory had said that, then what she said must be true.
"If you say so, I will do the job well, Your Grace," Nimue said.
Gremory nodded in satisfaction. "You can leave now. And don''t let yourself be found out. Remember, this human has a great ability. So, you should be extra careful watching over him."
Nimue nodded once again. Then she got up and walked out of the room.
~~~
Elsewhere, a man had just emerged from a golden-colored portal.
The man wore a white cloth-like garment that was wrapped around his body and a golden sash that went from his left shoulder to his right waist.
What made him noteworthy were his sandals which were golden in color and gave off a golden and white glow.
There was a pair of small wings pping at the heels. The wings stopped pping the moment the man stepped outside the portal.
As soon as he came out of the portal, the man immediately ran towards arge door decorated with golden lines and arches.
The door opened on its own as the man approached. He immediately went inside and slowed down his footsteps.
Inside the room, there was a man who was lying down and watching something from the screen above him.
The man had blonde curly hair that looked like a collection of golden clouds above his head. He was wearing white clothes that looked smooth and thick.
When the man came inside, the man with blond hair turned to him.
"What? Do you have anything to say?" he asked.
"Your Majesty," said the man with great emphasis. His eyes were wide open as if indicating that he couldn''t hold back the turmoil of the news he wanted to give.
Seeing his servant''s behavior, Hermes - the man with golden blond hair - swept his hand and the screen above him disappeared.
Then he sat up and looked at the man. "What''s wrong, Lykon?"
Hermes suddenly felt worried seeing the look on Lykon''s face.
He knew that the situation was not very good right now. The arrival of Lykon who seemed to bring bad news made Hermes get up and immediately pay full attention to him.
He''s the only one who knows about this problem. As the fastest God, of course, Hermes could notice that there was trouble somewhere much faster than anyone on Olympus.
"I just saw something good on a Selection Stage that is currently running, Your Majesty," Lykon said.
"Yeah? What is that?" Hermes said impatiently.
"There is a Candidate who looks quite promising."
Hermes breathed a sigh of relief because the news Lykon brought him wasn''t something he was worried about.
"Lykon, you know I''m not that interested in that." Hermes flopped down on his bed again.
"But this human is impressive, Your Majesty. I ask you to look at the Selection Stage itself. After that, Your Majesty can decide for yourself."
Hermes sighed boredly. "Fine. Just watch your back if this isn''t interesting."
Hearing Hermes'' half-threatening tone, Lykon swallowed his saliva. But he was sure that what he was about to show would appeal to Hermes.
So Lykon showed a show about the Selection Stage that happened in the world where he saw something that he thought was interesting.
"You were able to gain ess to the Selection Stage system that easily?" Hermes asked.
"Yes, Your Majesty. The World Masters who run the Selection Stage in that world use an outdated system," replied Lykon.
Hermesughed. "They''re still using the old system, huh?"
A floating screen appeared before Hermes'' eyes. Showing the figure of a man dressed all in ck fighting thin, gray-skinned creatures.
No, what happened on the screen is more urately described as a one-sided massacre.
"He''s pretty great," Hermesmented. "But I''ve seen one like that before. Why do you think I''d be interested in this one?"
Hermes looked at Lykon with an annoyed look. As if to say that he was wasting his time watching that man y monsters.
"That man is already at a very high Level, Your Majesty. On the third day, he is at Level 68 now.
He also has very expensive skills for yers who are only on the third day."
Hermes looked interested. "Go on."
"His weapon, is a Grade A weapon that he got on the first day!"
Hermes frowned. "Okay. That''s quite interesting."
Out of all the Selection Stages he had seen, Hermes had seen humans who were strong and able to survive well many times.
Although in the end most of them were unable to seed on the fifth day.
However, he had never known a human with such an advantage.
"You have to keep an eye on him and give me information," Hermes said.
~~~
Chapter 74 The Blue One
?"Phew..." Clyde sighed. He looked up at the dark, overcast sky.
"I''ve lost count."
He had killed enough Wendigos that he had forgotten how many he had killed.
Clyde started walking again. The day is gettingte but time is still very long for today.
And his hunger still makes him anxious. asionally Clyde would get hungry even when he was fighting Wendigos.
So he has to eat while swinging his sword. That''s actually not a problem because Clyde can still do it well. But still, it''s annoying.
But all of that worried him. Even though he was sure he could fight the Wendigos, Clyde had to face the hunger that haunted him.
Hunger is like a silent cold-blooded killer. Who always watches behind his back and strikes at any moment.
The moment when Clyde runs out of food, hunger will seed in sticking the dagger into him.
''This is bad. How am I supposed to deal with this?''
Suddenly, when Clyde was feeling very worried about it, an unexpected help arrived.
[ Private Attribute: Easy-Mode has been activated to counter the effects of hunger! ]
Clyde immediately stopped in his ce.
''What? What the hell? If it can be like that why are you just activating it now?''
Clyde can''t help but wonder. He didn''t know what really happened until now. He thought all the effects of [Private Attribute: Easy-Mode] had activated from the start.
But who would have thought that the effect was only active now?
Suddenly, there was another notification with a blue background and white text. Again, it''s a notification that seems to be outside the system.
[ We apologize for thete activation of the Private Attribute effect. Various things happened to limit our ess to the system. ]
Clyde shook his head. He didn''t know why there could be so much outside interference on the system in this apocalypse.
But then again, actually, there are still many things he doesn''t know.
''Should I answer this apology or...''
After a few moments of thinking, Clyde finally chose to just ignore it. After all, the notification definitely won''t wait for a reply from him.
So now Clyde walks with a calm feeling. His hunger suddenly disappeared instead, he felt his stomach was quite full.
Maybe this is the effect of the amount of food he has been devouring since earlier.
Clyde continues on his way to find the rest of the Wendigos of different colors that he must kill.
He searched every dark corner of the city. But all he found, in the end, was just ordinary Wendigos.
Though, Clyde wasn''tpletely disappointed with that because he was still able to finish them off toplete Agatha''s Personal Request.
Time passed and it was now almost eleven o''clock in the afternoon.
''Ahh, damnit. Where the hell are those Wendigos!''
Clyde, in the end, felt so frustrated because he could not find them.
He was beginning to feel that he would probably onlyplete one of the three Personal Requests Gremory had given.
That''s pretty disappointing. But that doesn''t mean it''s too bad because he doesn''t have to pay anything even if he fails.
And besides, he still has a Personal Request from Agatha. When ites to her Personal Requests, Clyde is sure that he will be able toplete it.
He walked more calmly now because there was no longer the influence of hunger that haunted him. A few minutester Clyde finds a pack of Wendigos in a former factory building.
Of course, he went straight in there and finished them off.
shes of bluish-white lightning were seen from inside the factory. Illuminating the darkness that previously filled it.
Within five minutes, Clyde had managed to kill all the Wendigos in there.
It turned out that there weren''t as many Wendigos in the sizable factory as he had thought.
Clyde checked Agatha''s Personal Request Window to see her progress so far.
[ World Master Agatha''s Personal Request. ]
[ 1. Kill 1,000 Wendigos. (530/1,000) ]
Clyde exhaled because he saw that there were still many he had to kill.
''No useining now. Let''s just kill those skinny gray monsters!''
Clyde, who didn''t want to waste time justining, continued to walk around the city.
~~~
Nimue, with more suitable clothes to move quickly, has now arrived in this world.
Nimue covered her head with a hood and mask. Leaving behind a pair of dark eyes that looked mysterious.
Her job now is to track down Clyde. Because Clyde was carrying Gremory''s ne, Nimue could track him more easily.
''He''s over there.''
Nimue uses her powers to hide herself. Then she jumped over the buildings to reach Clyde''s location.
''I don''t feel any pressure here. It turns out that this system is indeed so outdated. At this rate, this system can no longer even be called functioning.''
A Selection Stage system that cannot block interference from outsiders. Then the system is only useful for running Chapters of the Selection Stage and supervising the Candidates.
Even Nimue thought that maybe this system also couldn''t keep an eye on the Candidates properly.
Inwardly sheughed.
''Those World Masters are simply stupid.''
~~~
On the other hand, Lykon has alsoe to this world. Behind him, the golden portal closed as soon as he stepped on the ground.
"Okay... let''s find that guy."
The small pair of wings on the sandals he was wearing pped lightly. Then in an instant, Lykon had just disappeared apanied leaving a blurry golden trail.
~~~
Clyde was still walking while looking around. He felt that he had walked very far from the motel that became his base for a while.
Clyde feels a little bit of regret that he couldn''t drive a car. That way he won''t feel this bored because he''s just walking.
Clyde gasped at the unexpected sight before his eyes.
''Is that...a woman?''
Clyde squinted his eyes and stared ahead. Where there was a woman who was sitting on a chair.
The woman was wearing a long brown coat that covered her body. She also wore high boots.
She wears a ck mask and dark sses. As if to hide her face.
Her hair is long ck and shiny. She also styled her hair in such a way as to cover her face.
Clyde was confused. Who - or what - was that woman? Why is she dressed like that in this apocalypse?
And why is she alone in the middle of the ruined city and the monsters'' siege?
She also didn''t look like she was eating anything even though there were attacks of increasingly intense hunger.
All these questions were enough to make Clyde feel suspicious. So he held the hilt of the Elderss Sword as he approached the woman carefully.
"Hey," Clyde said.
The woman flinched in surprise and stood up. Clyde could feel her gaze from behind the dark sses.
"W-Who are you?" the woman asked.
"I''m just an ordinary survivor. Who are you?" Clyde asked.
Even so, Clyde knew from previous experience that she was most likely one of the Wendigos of a different color that he had to kill.
Her encounter with Jacob the green Wendigo made him know that there are Wendigos that can look and act like humans. Perhaps this woman was also one of them.
"My name is Candice," the woman answered. "Listen... can you help me?"
"Sure," Clyde replied. "Take off your mask and sses."
The woman named Candice seemed nervous and was reluctant to open her mask. However, when she saw Clyde staring at her firmly, Candice chose toply.
"I''ll open it. But you have to promise not to be surprised, alright?" Candice said.
Upon hearing that, Clyde became even more convinced that she was one of the Wendigos that had a different color. Now it remains to see what color she actually is.
Candice took off her mask and sses. Finally, Clyde could figure out what color the woman was.
It''s blue. The woman who ims to be Candice is the blue Wendigo.
"I don''t know what happened to me. Suddenly I woke up in this skin condition," Candice said in a trembling voice.
She looked up to see Clyde.
Candice''s eyes immediately widened when she saw Clyde already lunging at her with a sword in hand.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
Candice screamed. Then she stomped on the ground in front of her and sent hundreds of ice spikes from where she was standing toward Clyde.
The ice spikes looked like monster spikesing out of the ground.
Its crystal-clear form made Clyde see the reflection of his face when the ice spikes drew closer to him.
Clyde jumped sideways to avoid the ice spikes. But the ice spikes turned and followed him.
So Clyde shed the Elderss Sword repeatedly to sh the ice spikes.
Fragments of ice spikes flew into the air from Clyde''s sh. Then suddenly the ice spikes attacks stopped after he destroyed them all.
Clyde stood looking at Candice with cold eyes. Where she stood, Candice was also looking at Clyde. But the look in Candice''s eyes conveyed surprise and anger.
"WHAT THE FUCK YOU THINK YOU''RE DOING?!" Candice shouted at Clyde. "Why are you attacking me?!"
"Because you are a monster," Clyde answered simply.
~~~
Chapter 75 Troublesome Woman
?Clyde has to know idea why the reactions they all give are the same. They always looked surprised when Clyde attacked them.
Do they really not realize that they have be monsters like that? Can''t they see the change in their form? Clyde couldn''t stop thinking.
"A Monster?!" You think I''m a fucking monster?!" Candice asked. She took off her sses now. Revealed bright yellow eyes and blue skin.
''So she''s the blue one.''
Clyde finally got his second target. The blue Wendigo turns out to be a woman. More precisely, used to be a woman.
"I''m already turned like this. But I''m not a monster!" Candice added.
"Do you remember what happened before this?" Clyde asked.
He also wanted to know what happened about why were Wendigos with different colors and different abilities were created. And why do they always have no memory of what happened before they changed?
"I..." Candice looked confused. "I don''t know. I forgot."
Clyde had expected it. Like what he saw when meet that green Wendigo named Jacob. Candice also loses her memory.
"Well then," Clyde said. "You know where this is going."
Candice''s eyes suddenly shot up at him quickly. "So you want to kill me?"
"Isn''t that pretty obvious?" Replied Clyde.
Candice was now standing straight. It was as if she no longer wanted to run away after Clyde had dered animosity.
Clyde wonders if they are humans who were somehow turned into Wendigos, by something unknown.
And they may still have their feelings or traits from when they were human. It is something very unique. And of course so cruel.
At least those Wendigos with gray skin no longer remember anything but their hunger.
However, the different colors Wendigos probably felt very miserable because they still had human consciousness and were afraid because their bodies had be like that.
Clyde already knew that this apocalypse was something fucked up. But he didn''t know that there would be humans who would suffer such a fate.
Clyde felt some sympathy for them. But just a little. So, it wouldn''t bother him to do what he had to do.
Candice took off her mask and gritted her teeth. Clyde could finally see rows of sharp teeth that looked like spikes growing from her gums.
"Now you understand," Clyde said.
"I won''t let you kill me!" Candice threw a dozen ice spears at Clyde that shot through the air.
Clyde who didn''t expect that she could do that was shocked. He immediately activated his Skill to deal with the attack.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!!!*
Clyde''s left hand which was not holding the sword caught fire and he let out a torrent of fire toward the ice spears that were flying toward him.
Instantly, the ice spears immediately disappeared because they were melted by the power of the fire.
Candice who looked like a woman in her thirties groaned angrily. She gritted her teeth seeing her attacks countered by Clyde.
So she immediately ran towards Clyde. Her footprints left a trail of ice behind.
Candice''s hands were encased in hardened ice enveloping her fists.
Clyde who noticed Candice approaching transferred the power of [Skill: Burning Hand] into the Elderss Sword causing the bluish de of the de to glow with fire.
Then Clyde approached her without fear.
"HAAARRRGHH!!!"
Candice screamed as she threw one fist at Clyde.
Clyde blocked the fist with Elderss Sword. Then he kicked Candice in the stomach sending her flying backward.
Clyde immediately caught up with her. With his Stats already maxed out, Clyde can catch up to Candice in the blink of an eye in this short distance.
Candice''s eyes widened at his next to her. She also saw Clyde raise his ming sword and swing it at her neck.
*KRAAK!!!*
The moment the ming de of the Elderss Sword struck Candice''s neck, the sound indicating it had hit something hard was heard.
Clyde frowned in surprise. He should have been able to sh Candice''s neck. However, a hard object appeared to block the de.
''Ice!''
Clyde could see that there was already ice covering Candice''s neck.
Candice grinned at the look on Clyde''s face. She created a dagger out of ice in her hand and immediately shed it at Clyde.
*TANGGG!*
Luckily, Clyde was still able to quickly raise the Elderss Sword to block the ice dagger.
Candice then reached out her other hand towards Clyde to hold his neck. But once again Clyde was still able to avoid it by jumping backward.
Candice did not stop there. When Clyde was several meters away from her, she create ice spikes that seemed to appear from the ground at him.
But Clyde was no longer worried about that. Since his [Skill: Burning Hand] was still active, Clyde swing the ming Elderss Sword and sent an attack in the form of a curved wall of mes toward the ice spikes.
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!!!*
The wall of fire that shot out from the Elderss Sword collided with the ice spikes and melted them instantly.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.10) is activated! ]
Clyde''s body was enveloped by bluish-white lightning and he immediately shot toward Candice through his wall of fire.
*JZZZZTTTT!!!*
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was right in front of Candice and immediately shed the me-covered Elderss Sword at her with all his might. This time, Clyde used more power.
*SLASH!*
*ZWOOOSSHHH!!!*
The sh was followed by mes burning from the wound it had inflicted. The fire instantly spread throughout Candice''s body and devoured her.
Clyde already felt that he had won after seeing Candice''s body burn.
However, when he didn''t hear any screamsing out, Clyde immediately felt that something was wrong.
Sure enough, Clyde saw white steaming out of Candice''s burning body. It is a sign of evaporation.
Clyde immediately jumped back to guard and put out the mes. When the fire was gone Clyde saw that all there were a few chunks of ice left.
''It''s not her!''
Clyde nced around. Based on what he saw Candice had swapped her body with an ice clone she had created.
What Clyde attacked earlier was just her ice clone and now she''s running away.
"Where did that bitch go? !"
Clyde cursed loudly. He didn''t expect that his enemy would be smart enough to run away when she felt cornered.
Monsters that had even the slightest bit of intelligence left would be extremely troublesome.
Clyde proceeds to rush to find Candice. It wouldn''t be too difficult since there were faint ice trails she left behind as she ran.
The tracks were small and only looked like scattered bits of ice. Part of the trail had melted too but even so, Clyde was still able to track her.
Candice ran toward the narrow alley that was located between the two buildings.
He immediately went in there and didn''t think much because he was driven by annoyance that the monster had run away and made more problems for him.
It was a mistake. From above, suddenly hundreds of ice spikes fell very quickly.
"Shit!"
Clyde felt trapped. But that doesn''t mean he can''t escape this situation.
Clyde shed the still-burning Elderss Sword upwards.
The sh that sent out a burst of mes expanded upwards and grabbed the dozens of ice spikes.
In an instant, Clyde had managed to ovee the ice spikes trap that fell on him.
After all that was done, Clyde finally caught sight of Candice the blue Wendigo leaping over the building.
So Clyde chased her with a burning rage.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*JZZZYYYTTT!!!*
Clyde''s body was surrounded by bluish-white lightning again. He no longer thought that he might be wasting his Magic Power now. His annoyance at the blue Wendigo was already big enough.
He shot up and climbed the building with ease. Not long after, Clyde was already on top of the building.
Candice who was about to jump over the wall turned to him with a frightened face.
Candice also said some curse words that she said in a hurry.
"Come here you, bitch!" Clyde shouted.
Candice directs her hand towards the pool of water which is located not far from her.
From the three pools of water, three ice clones shaped like her emerged.
Then Candice sent the three ice clones she had created toward Clyde.
Clyde gritted his teeth. Then dashed with a body covered by that bluish-white lightning.
Candice''s three Clones each created two ice daggers in their hands. Clyde realized that their speed had increased more than Candice''s. He didn''t know how that was possible.
One ice clone attacks from the right, another from the left, while the other doesn''t attack. As if waiting for the right opportunity.
Even though they attack from two sides at the same time, Clyde''s speed, who already has maxed out Stats plus [Skill: Pure Lightning], cannot be matched by them.
Clyde ducked to avoid the daggers that were aimed at his head. Then spun while shing the Elderss Sword toward the two ice clones simultaneously.
*KRAAAKKK!!!*
*KRAAAKKK!!!*
The Elderss Sword that was still burning with mes cut their neck easily. However, the two clones were still not destroyed.
''What?''
Clyde felt very confused. But it was only for a moment because he finally knew what was really going on.
When he looked back, an ice clone that didn''t join in the attack earlier was already moving away from him.
Meanwhile, the two ice clones that Clyde had just beheaded regenerated and then immediately charged toward him.
Clyde cursed loudly. He regretted that he had forgotten to use [Skill: Inspection] on Candice.
~~~
Chapter 76 Finishing Candice
?Who would have thought that Candice, the blue Wendigo, could have this kind of ability?
She can even control and create ice with her own will.
Clyde thought that she could only speak like a normal human and deal with physical attacks like Jacob the green Wendigo. Because of that Clyde didn''t bother using [Skill: Inspection] on her.
Clyde thought he can handle the healing ability if he deal enough damage to her. So it''s not a big problem.
Now Clyde must bear the consequences of his carelessness.
The two ice clones were still attacking Clyde from two different sides.
Meanwhile, another ice clone was still at a safe distance and didn''t make itself within the range of Clyde''s attack.
Did Candice order her ice clones to do something like that? If that was true, then this looked like a high-level technique that was cast by people skilled at using their Magic Power.
Clyde can still fight them easily. He had managed to decapitate them a few more times since earlier.
The problem was that they continued to regenerate as soon as their heads were cut off. That''s really annoying.
After several minutes of struggling with these ice clones, Clyde finally came to a conclusion about what he had to do to be able to kill them all at once.
The ice clone that was at a safe distance from him seemed to be in charge of regenerating the two ice clones that were attacking him.
''It looks like I have to kill them all together.''
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.10) is activated! ]
Clyde immediately scattered his bluish-white lightning around. The two ice clones that were attacking him blindly were struck by the force of the lightning.
But the effect caused by [Skill: Pure Lightning] was not as big as he thought.
Even though the lightning struck them strongly, the two ice clones weren''t instantly destroyed. Only a small part of their ice body chipped and fell onto the roof of the building.
Clyde once again thought that the power of these ice clones was too great to be on this stage.
The attack did not destroy the two ice clones. But at least it stuns them for a few seconds.
It was a precious few seconds because it meant that their attacks stopped temporarily.
*JJJZZZZTT!!!*
Clyde took the chance to dart past them to head for the distant ice clone.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was right in front of the ice clone.
It immediately raised its ice dagger. However, the movement was not fast enough to match Clyde''s current speed.
*KRAAAKKKK!!!*
The me-coated de of the Elderss Sword had shed the ice clone''s neck. Separating its head from its body instantly.
*JJZZZTTTT!!!*
Clyde didn''t stop to watch the ice clone''s head fall. Before the ice head fell to the roof of the building, Clyde had disappeared from in front of it.
He returned to the two ice clones who luckily were still in the stunned stage. He shed his Elderss Sword toward their necks.
*KRAAKKKK!!!*
*KRAAKKKK!!!*
Their heads also immediately fell onto the roof of the building almost simultaneously with the head of the ice clone who was some distance away.
After that, just as Clyde had expected, their icy bodies crumbled into tiny ice kes.
"Huh!" Clyde exhaled loudly. Then, with his body still covered in bluish-white lightning, Clyde dashed in the direction Candice was running.
Clyde didn''t want to waste any more time and let Candice run further. So he immediately ran and jumped over the building while still activating [Skill: Pure Lightning].
However, he disabled [Skill: Burning Hand] in hopes that he wouldn''t lose too much Magic Power.
~~~
On the other hand, Candice who has run out of energy and Magic Power can only hide in an abandoned car on the street.
Her entire body trembled with fear. Candice''s yellow eyes moved quickly to the window and scanned the street. She scanned the street to see if her pursuers were close.
''No!'' Candice shook her head. ''He''s already dead!''
But then Candice''s mind shed back to the image of how the man had fought. He looks terrifying with that fiery sword.
Candice shook her head again. Trying to get the terrible thoughts out of her head.
However, that thought never left her head. Instead, the form of her terror and fear appeared right before her eyes.
*JJZZZZTTTT!!!*
*PRAAANGGGG!!!*
Clyde falls from above in front of the car Candice is hiding in and shatters the windshield.
The bluish-white lightning on hid body dazzles Candice. She hadn''t even had a chance to see Clyde''s form before the tip of the Elderss Sword dug into her chest.
*CRAAATTT!!!*
Candice''s eyes widened. The pain in her chest was felt throughout her body. The shock she felt made her freeze and couldn''t do anything.
But it all didn''t end there, from in front of her a hand came and grabbed the cor of her brown coat and then pulled her.
Clyde grabbed Candice and dropped her onto the road.
Candicey with wide yellow eyes staring up. She justy there for a few moments.
The wound on her chest had started to close. Clyde who saw that thought that maybe all Wendigos that have that special color have the ability to heal themselves.
Clyde walked towards her and stopped beside her head. Candice''s yellow eyes looked up at him from below. Those eyes conveyed a very clear fear.
"Please...don''t kill me," Candice said in a pleading voice.
Clyde didn''t answer and just raised the Ederlss Sword. Then swing it hard.
*CRAAATTT!!!*
Candice''s head rolled away from her body and stopped not too far.
Candice''s eyes stared at Clyde with hatred. But once again, Clyde just ignores her because, for him, Candice is just one of the many monsters he has to kill.
[ 2. The Blue Wendigo killed (1/1) ]
The notification with pink writing on a ck background appeared again indicating Clyde''s sess inpleting the Personal Request from Gremory.
Clyde deactivated his [Skill: Pure Lightning] and let the lightning slowly disappear from his body.
"Phew..."
Only now could Clyde finally heave a sigh of relief after he had finished killing Candice.
He looked around but didn''t see anything or anyone around.
Clyde walked over to an overhang and sat down to rest for a while. Even though he was resting, Clyde did not put the Elderss Sword back into the scabbard.
He stared straight ahead but his eyes seemed empty. Because actually, Clyde wasn''t looking at anything up ahead.
Even though his eyes were looking ahead, Clyde tried to sharpen his senses around him.
''Who are they?''
Actually, a few minutes ago, when he was chasing Candice and into the alley, Clyde had felt eyes watching him from an unseen ce.
Clyde tried to steal nces around when he was fighting Candice and her clone earlier.
However, he couldn''t see anyone. Yet he knows that someone - or something - is watching him.
Even Clyde had a hunch that there was more than one side observing him.
Clyde couldn''t see them. But he knew they were there.
''Who are they? Is there another Demon who wants to see me? Or another kind of Celestial?''
Those questions filled Clyde''s head. But he knew that now there was no use questioning all that.
So he then stood up because he felt his time to rest was done.
''Well, whatever. I''ll just start hunting again.''
Clyde goes out to hunt again. There was still a Wendigo for him to kill. And that red Wendigo would definitely give him a lot of trouble too.
The blue Wendigo could even use the power of ice like a skilled mage. Clyde knew from that, the red Wendigo must also have another troublesome ability.
Clyde was quite annoyed with the fact that he couldn''t use the Skills and Stat Points he had. What if he can''t use it now? Then when could he use it?
All of his Stats and Skill Levels are limited to 10 only. Though he still has a lot of Points. So it seems, all the Points are in vain for now.
''Maybeter, after this apocalypse ends on day six, these Points wille in handy.''
Clyde continued walking through the ruined city.
~~~
What Clyde felt was true. His instincts told him clearly that he was being followed.
Now, even those observing and following him were not just one party. But three parties who have the same different goals to meet him.
Nimue, jumps from the top of tall buildings following Clyde after discovering his whereabouts through the beacon in the form of a ne that Gremory gave him.
He had just witnessed Clyde kill a monster that looked different than the others in this chapter. Even so, she remembered about the monster.
Nimue, who had forgotten a bit about what happened in the Selection Stage, couldn''t forget what happened in the Second Chapter on the third day.
Wendigos. A monster created from hunger. Because she managed toplete one of the three Personal Requests that Gremory gave her, Nimue is now her most loyal servant.
One thing leads to another. And now Nimue has be a being with enough strength to easily pass through all of the Selection Stages.
Nimue thought that maybe Clyde would also be a follower of Gremory like her. Because who would be stupid enough to refuse the power that Gremory offered?
Gremory just told her to follow Clyde without knowing more about him.
But based on what she saw, Clyde was indeed quite strong.
''No wonder Duchess Gremory is interested in him.''
~~~
Chapter 77 Luccios Appearance
?Clyde continued to walk through this ruined city. Now there''s only the red Wendigo that he has to kill so he canplete the Personal Request from Gremory.
It''s not like what he had expected before. He thought things were going to be even more difficult than this.
Turns out he had even finished killing the green and blue Wendigo before the sun was up.
But something stuck in Clyde''s mind when he remembered again about how he met the two Wendigos earlier.
It was clear that they weren''t ordinary monsters. But the difference Clyde saw in them was too stark and strange.
Had he ever encountered monsters with human-like consciousness like them? He didn''t think so.
Jacob and Candice look like humans who suddenly turned into Wendigos against their will. It can be seen from the look on their faces that they wanted to ask for help when they knew that Clyde wanted to kill them.
''That is indeed strange. But there''s nothing I can do, is there?''
Clyde kept convincing himself about the impossibility of helping humans who had already turned into that hunger monsters. So that his heart is not too heavy to ept all that he has done.
After all, he had already killed two, so he was just going to keep going until he had killed the red Wendigo.
Whatever happens next, Clyde will have no regrets. He couldn''t regret it because it will only be a burden for him.
In a world that has been ruined like this, there is no choice but to fight and kill to survive.
The problem now was, the power of the red Wendigo that he would have to kill seemed to be very troublesome.
His meeting with Candice made Clyde know that the blue Wendigo could use superpowers such as controlling ice.
''Then what can that red Wendigo do? Control the fire?''
If blue is ice, then red is fire. That sounds reasonable.
However, Clyde reminded himself to use [Skill: Inspection] before starting the fight so he would know what his enemy could do.
Meanwhile, the two servants of Celestials were still following Clyde from behind him.
They use extraordinary stealthy abilities. The ability is given directly by the Celestials they serve so of course the effect is also powerful.
They didn''t think that Clyde would notice them. So, they are not worried in the slightest.
Nimue - Gremory''s emissary - and Lykon - Hermes'' emissary - didn''t even notice each other''s existence because they were quite far apart.
If they identally got a little closer, then they would eventually notice each other''s existence.
''That man is indeed interesting. He can even tell that there are hidden pieces like Wendigo with different abilities than the others!''
Lykon felt excited as he watched Clyde like before. He already knew that Clyde was exceptional for some reason. Even so, seeing her do that was not within his expectations.
''But, how did he know about a hidden piece like that?''
Lykon started to wonder after thinking about it carefully. It''s impossible for an ordinary human to know about the hidden piece. Unless he obtained help by forging a pact with a Celestial.
''So, is he already made a pact with a Celestial?''
That thought made Lykon feel worried as well. With this utterly useless system, Celestials could enter here more easily so they could meet him and make a very lucrative deal he couldn''t refuse.
With his abilities like that, it''s not surprising that Clyde has be a popr figure among other Celestials.
If that was true, the chances of him getting Clyde on his Master''s side were very slim.
It''s not impossible. But very small. Maybe the Celestials who met him were of Demon kind.
They are known for offering crazy and irresistible deals, but also at very dangerous prices.
''Maybe I should also see him soon,'' thought Lykon.
He gets permission from Hermes to do what he thinks is necessary as long as he doesn''t cross the line. So, Lykon will meet him and talk to him while reassuring his master.
Lykon quickened his pace along the top of the building to get closer to Clyde. However, when he got close and almost jumped to meet him, someone appeared from inside a building and greeted him.
''A World Master?''
Lykon canceled his intention and frowned. The man in the white suit who had just stepped out was a World Master.
''So they''re also moving to meet him?''
Lykon snorted with a mocking expression at the actions of the World Masters on this Selection Stage.
Even though he was just one of Hermes'' servants, Lykon was still more powerful than a World Master. However, this Selection Stage is the World Master''s domain. He can''t be reckless.
Lykon drew closer so he could hear what the white-suited World Master was going to say.
Lio smiled at Clyde with a smile he kept as friendly as possible. However, Clyde was not the least bit impressed.
Clyde watched Lio''s arrival with suspicion and the hand that was already attached to the hilt of the Elderss Sword, prepared to pull it out at any time.
"Hi," said Lucio. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Lio."
"What do you want?" Clyde got straight to the point because he didn''t think there was any point in introducing himself like that.
"You have already met my subordinate, Agatha," Lio said.
''Oh, so he''s a World Master too. How many are there?'' Clyde wondered.
"I''m going to say right away why I wanted to see you because I know you don''t like to waste time," Lio continued.
Clyde nodded with satisfaction. Just then, suddenly, a message sounded inside his head. It was the voice of Agatha speaking hurriedly.
[ ''You can''t say that you received a Personal Request from me. Or we''ll both be in trouble!'' ]
From his voice, Clyde could feel that Agatha sounded agitated and troubled.
But Clyde never nned to reveal what he had received from anyone who offered him anything. It was so he could get more benefits from multiple parties at once.
Of course, there was a risk when they found out that Clyde had been ying a trick on them. However, there is no good result without great risk in a world like this.
"I want to give you a key item to fight against something on the fifth day. But, you must sign a contract with me," Lio said.
Clyde frowned. ''The key item for the fifth day? It was the day the Outer God appeared just like the Regressors had said. The day they never seed then die and Regress.''
''If I can get that key item, maybe I can pass it. But, I can still beat that Outer God if I get stronger, right?''
"I feel like I can muster up enough strength to survive the fifth day," Clyde said.
Upon hearing that, Lio grinned. "Yeah, I can see why you could be so confident. Based on everything you''ve aplished, you must be sure you can get through this.
However, what you will face on the fifth day isn''t something you can handle with sheer strength."
Clyde was silent for a few moments. His expressionless face made Lio confused about what he felt.
Oddly enough, Clyde didn''t look as shocked as everyone he had met and he told him about what would happen on day five.
It was as if... Clyde already knew something about it.
''But how? No, it''s not possible.''
Lio believes that Clyde doesn''t know anything. He just kept calm and even face so as not to show his flustered side.
''I just have to continue to persuade him.''
"What''s really on the fifth day?" Clyde asked.
Lio smiled a serene smile. "It''s something out of a nightmare. All the monsters you''ve seen so far are nothingpared to what you''ll encounter that day."
"But isn''t there still a sixth day?" Clyde asked.
"Yes." Lucio nodded. "But you don''t need to worry about day six just yet. Because you can''t make it to day six if you die on day five, right?"
"Tell me about the monster," Clyde said. Although Clyde had heard that on the fifth day, the enemy he would face was something called an Outer God, Clyde wasn''t sure if it was an actual God.
Lio shook his head while letting out a chuckle. "It''s hard for me to describe it. The point is, you can''t injure it with the weapons or skills you have.
The creature came from the dark world. It doesn''t have a physical body but only a collection of mystical powers that cannot be touched by all the weapons in this world."
"But in this apocalypse, all the world''s orders regarding things that are possible and anything about magical power have changed, right?" Clyde replied.
"Yeah, you''re right." Lio nodded. "But still. That thing isn''t something you can fight with whatever you currently have.
I can''t exin it any further because that would be against the rules. However, you can trust me about everything I say."
''Trust you? Seriously?'' Clyde scoffed inside his head.
"Alright, I believe you." But of course, Clyde wouldn''t say that out of his mouth.
Lio nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Now, I will make you an offer. If you sign the contract with me, I will give you the key item to defeat the enemy on the fifth day."
Clyde wanted to refuse immediately. But he felt doubtful because he didn''t get any information about that Outer God other than the fact that Regressors always died when faced with it.
So Clyde decided to wait and see before rejecting.
~~~
Chapter 78 Disturbance
?''What is he going to do?'' Lykon frowned and squinted at the scene below.
''Is that a contract?!''
Lykon who was shocked immediately widened his eyes. He couldn''t let Clyde sign any contract except with his master.
''There''s no way I''ll let it be!''
Even though he would most likely dismantle his disguise, Lykon could not allow the World Master to give his contract to Clyde.
Because with the contract he gave, whatever the contents were, then Clyde would consider it a big advantage so the possibility for him to refuse was very small.
That''s what Lykon thought.
Lio stretched his hand towards Clyde. A momentter a new Window appeared before Clyde''s eyes. There was written a contract with only one use that he had to sign.
[ "I, the undersigned shall enter into a Binding Contract with the World Master, Lio." ]
Clyde frowned because of the strange-looking contract in front of him. Viewed from anywhere, it is the most suspicious and strange contract in the whole world.
There were no uses exining what he had to do and no agreement on what exactly they should do.
The box that Clyde guessed was where he should have ced his sign blinked as if waiting for it with great anticipation.
"What is this?" Clyde asked with disapproval. "This contract doesn''t look right."
Lio responded by smiling first. "Well, I thought you didn''t like wasting time so I cut things short."
Clyde sighed. "You didn''t exin what I have to pay. What exactly is a Binding Contract? I don''t know what will happen if I fail, and various other things that should be in a contract."
"But I can promise you a key item to fight the enemy on the fifth day," Lio said confidently. He still thought that there was no problem with the contract he gave in front of Clyde.
"How do I know if you''re not tricking me?" Clyde asked.
"You don''t know. But, you can trust me. After all, you can only get the power to win on the fifth day from me," Lio said.
Lio was sure that Clyde would ept the contract.
Even though he rejected him now out of disbelief,ter when the fifth day came when he was on the brink of despair because he couldn''t do anything to that so-called Outer God, then he would beg him to give him the contract.
"That is not true."
However, a voice suddenly came into the middle of their conversation. It was the voice of an invisible man.
Clyde and Lio both looked around to find the owner of the voice. But they couldn''t find him.
Lio gritted his teeth. ''Who''s the fucker disturbing me?!''
"Clyde, whatever that guy has to offer, I can offer something better than him," the voice said again.
Clyde turned his gaze back to Lio. He didn''t say anything but from the look in his eyes, Lio could tell that Clyde seemed to be saying to him that he was interested in the mysterious voice''s proposal.
"Show yourself," Clyde said.
"Unfortunately, I can''t do that," Lykon replied to Clyde from a ce he couldn''t see.
"Then how can I trust you? You look just as suspicious as this guy," Clyde said.
Lio''s face which seemed to express confidence now changed into something else. His jaw hardened with anger.
''That must be the servant of one of those damn Celestials!''
Once again, because of this useless system, they can enter his Selection Stage at will. Of course, Lio felt so mad about this.
"Well, all right."
After a while finally, Lykon answered. Soon a faint golden light appeared not far behind Clyde.
Lykon''s figure appeared with a smile.
Lio frowned with eyes burning with shock and anger.
''It''s Hermes servant!'' Lio gritted his teeth.
Lio could see from the white cloth and golden sash he was wearing that the man was a servant of Hermes, the God of Speed.
''That bastard even dared to show himself here!''
For Lio, Lykon''s presence was like someone who casually entered his house. As the World Master in charge of the Selection Stage in this world, he felt his pride being crushed by Lykon''s presence.
Lio suddenly disappeared from where he stood. It then appeared right in front of Lykon.
"You dare show your face here?!" Lio asked through gritted teeth. His eyes lit up with a greenish me.
But Lykon didn''t look worried. Instead, he wore a mocking grin in Lio''s eyes.
"Come on, World Master. You already know that many havee here and messed up your Selection Stage. You even broke the rules yourself by meeting a yer," Lykon said. "So why are you suddenly getting angry now? Because I interfered with your scheming?"
Lykon asked rhetorically with a smile that was so annoying in Lio''s eyes. The sh of green fire in his eyes became even more obvious.
And even though it looks rxed, actually Lykon has also prepared his strength.
On the other side from behind them, Clyde was staring with curious eyes.
''What exactly happening right now and who was that man?
Was that man one of the many Celestials Agatha said? In that case, he was also interested in him to the point of showing himself here.
''I didn''t know I was this popr," Clyde snorted with a crooked smile. ''For now, I''d better shut up and observe them first.''
Lio and Lykon exchanged piercing looks. Neither of them yielded from expressing the desire to kill each other through their eyes.
"You want to fight? Now?" Lykon asked. "You know who''s going to be at a disadvantage here, don''t you?"
Lio held his hand until it shook and his entire knuckle turned white. Lykon also realized that the pressure from Lio had increased drastically.
At this time Lykon thought that the fight was inevitable. He too had prepared himself. Maybeter he would have to exin at length to his master but it wouldn''t be a big deal.
The problem is that Lykon isn''t too sure if he can beat Lio with ease. He was sure he could win. But at a huge cost.
At this Selection Stage, the strength of a World Master is certainly greater than that of a servant of a God.
However, Lio looked away and let out a long breath. As if he wanted to get rid of all the rage that had umted in his chest and was about to explode.
Lio then turned back towards Lykon and smiled. "It''s not wise for us to fight here. How about we all stand down now?"
The pressure from Lio disappeared instantly, and Lykon also felt relief. Now, he thought that continuing this would only really lead to a fight between them.
"Alright," replied Lykon.
Lucio nodded in satisfaction. Then turned to Clyde. "I''ll see youter."
The window containing the contract in front of Clyde suddenly disappeared.
Then followed by Lio who also suddenly disappeared without saying a word.
Clyde sighed. ''This is how it ended. Though I was expecting then to have a fight.''
Clyde wanted to see how they fought so he could get an idea of ??their strength.
Lykon looked at Clyde from where he stood with a disappointed look.
If he continued his actions, then Lio would reallye back and continue the fight.
"We''ll meet again," Lykon said before he disappeared from Clyde''s eyes.
In the end, nothing happened. The two parties who met him apparentlypeted with each other and hated each other.
But for one reason or another, they chose not to get involved in a fight. They would definitely lose a lot if they fought. Therefore they chose to leave.
But that doesn''t mean all of it will end now, though.
''That''s a lot of things going on behind this apocalypse.''
After the two of them disappeared, Clyde continued on his way.
He didn''t show anything, but Clyde knew that someone was still following him. Someone smart enough not to show themselves amidst the turmoil that urred just now.
So Clyde let them in and just waited if they would approach him.
Based on what happened just now, Clyde thought the remaining party would use a more subtle way to meet him so as not to cause a scene.
What Clyde thought was true. Nimue who has seen everything decides to be more careful.
She alsoughed inwardly at what she just saw in front of her eyes.
Luckily, the servant from Hermes appeared to prevent the World Master from forming a contract with Clyde.
Thanks to him, Nimue didn''t have to bother doing anything to stop him.
He was also not aware of her existence. Nimue''s ability to hide was so extraordinary that she could even hide from the observation of a servant of a God.
''He has killed two of the three Wendigos so far. Even though those Wendigos had dangerous abilities, that man could defeat them without much difficulty. Where exactly did he get such power?''
Nimue can''t help but also wonder about Clyde''s powers.
~~~
Chapter 79 The Red One Appears
?Jk
A few minutes earlier...
"HA HA HA HA!!!"
Agatha let out a loudugh. Her voice echoed off the white wall. Luckily she was alone, otherwise, people who heard herughter would think that she was crazy.
Even Agatha''s tears also flowed down because of herugh. All because of what she saw on the monitor screen in front of her.
On the screen was being shown a very entertaining scene. That is the scene when Lio is humiliated by a servant of God.
Agatha couldn''t hold back herughter. The satisfaction in her heart was too great and the happiness when she finally saw Lio''s helpless form in front of a servant of God was truly priceless.
Agatha actually hoped that they would fight and see what happened next.
She was sure that Lio would be beaten up by the servant of God. And that will make her even more satisfied.
Unfortunately, Lio is quite wise in making decisions. Even if he was angry, he still managed to keep himself from attacking the servant of God impulsively.
Agatha''sughter finally stopped. At first, she was quite worried when she saw Lio leave this white room.
He must have finally thought that this was a good opportunity to meet Clyde.
Because of that she immediately sent a message to Clyde to keep everything a secret.
Luckily, Clyde agreed to that. He wasn''t too stupid and was aware of his position.
Even though Clyde doesn''t know anything about what''s behind the apocalypse that befell his world, he knows that there are powerful beings that he can''t mess with as he pleases.
And then Clyde saw that two strong beings were almost fighting before his eyes.
A World Master and a servant of God who is most likely a servant of God Hermes.
Nothing like this had ever happened before. Even though Agatha hadn''t been a World Master for a long time, she knew that no human could create such arge turmoil in the Selection Stage.
"That guy is just different," Agatha muttered while looking at Clyde who was now walking after seeing the unusual incident before his eyes.
He didn''t even look surprised and just walked over casually. It was as if what he had just seen was nothing important to make him surprised.
A small smile appeared on Agatha''s lips. "Maybe he will make another shocking change."
A lot is waiting for Clyde after this Selection Stage. And Agatha has a hunch that he is the start of something that could break the existing order.
Maybe the road to get there is still far away. Even though he was indeed strong, Clyde was still an ordinary human. He was still unable to rival Gods, Demons, and Angels.
"I''ll look forward to it, Clyde."
Agatha thought that she would be the observing spectator and didn''t want to involve too far. This will be a very interesting spectacle for her.
The double doors opened. Lio came inside with a scary face. His jaw was stiff and there was a kind of dark green sh of fire in his eyes.
Agatha immediately changed her attitude to silence. The image of the torment at that time was still very clear in her mind.
Now Lio''s mood is not at all good. So, there is still a possibility that he will take it out on her.
Lio threw himself on the couch which immediately absorbed his body. Lio exhaled loudly.
"Did you see what happened just now?" Lio suddenly asked.
Agatha nodded with a doubtful and scared expression.
"It''s Hermes," Lio said. "More and more impudent Celestials have entered our Selection Stage and messed it up. It''s all because of this trash system."
Even though Lio spoke without shouting, Agatha could feel the pressure in every word he said.
Agatha actually felt amazed about how Lio could still act calmly when his anger was burning inside his chest.
"We have to act to protect our yers from outside interference," Lio said as he stared at the screen with his green eyes still burning.
''Protect? You mean to keep him for ourselves and so that nobody makes a contract with him?'' Agatha thought whileughing disparagingly in her heart.
"Alright, Senior. What should we do?" she asked. ''Not that I hate that idea, though.''
Lio was silent and seemed to think for a few moments before finally speaking. "I''ll go to our Headquarters to ask for a solution. You don''t need to do anything for now."
Agatha nodded obediently. "Yes."
Li turned back towards the screen in front of him. "I won''t let those Celestials get away with it again."
~~~
He no longer felt hungry. That''s a good thing for the current situation.
But, wouldn''t that make those World Masters suspect that he didn''t appear to have eaten anything?
So Clyde ate a chocte bar snack until it was half gone. Then put it back into the Inventory.
At least he seems to have eaten something. Even if he only ate a little, those World Masters would conclude that he had run out of food and decide to save it.
''So there is more than one World Master.''
As he continued walking Clyde started to think. So many things had happened in the past few moments that he didn''t know where to start.
First, he knew that there was the other World Master named Lio.
Then a new figure appeared in an unusual outfit. The man looked like he came from a fairy tale about Gods and Goddesses.
But considering all that had happened, it was no longer something of a surprise.
One thing that became the center of his mind right now was Lio''s words that said that he had the key item to defeat the Outer God.
If that''s true, then Clyde will need it.
''But before that, I have to know what the contract actually contains.''
Lio didn''t show him anything. There was only writing that seemed to be an order saying that he had to just sign it right away.
''It must be because he was sure that I would ept it right away.''
As Clyde was walking while thinking, he felt pressure from behind him.
By reflex, Clyde twisted his body while pulling out the Elderss Sword.
He then saw someone standing on a streetmp post. He seems to be a man judging from his body build.
He was wearing a brown robe that was worn and fluttering in the wind.
Unfortunately, Clyde couldn''t see the man''s face because it was covered by a cowl that cast a shadow on his face.
Clyde could feel that the man''s eyes were looking at him from under his cowl.
He was definitely not an ordinary human because there was no way an ordinary human would stand on a streetmp post so easily.
"Who are you?" Clyde asked.
The man didn''t answer. He was still in his original position without showing any movement.
"If you don''t start talking, I''ll attack you. Don''t waste my time." Clyde gripped the handle of the Elderss Sword tightly and prepared to attack.
"Whatever, we''re going to kill each other in the end after all." Finally, the man spoke. His voice is deep and doesn''t sound natural.
Upon hearing his words, Clyde could not help but frown. ''Is he... The red Wendigo?''
The man spoke as if he already knew what Clyde was doing before this and what he was going to do next.
"Are you the red Wendigo?" Clyde asked.
The man opened his cowl. A bald and dark red blood head can be seen.
''So it''s true.''
Even though he knew that his target was right before his eyes, Clyde didn''t attack immediately. He immediately used [Skill: Inspection].
But before Clyde could use the Skill, a bolt of red lightning shed and shot toward him.
*BLARRR!!!*
The lightning destroyed the road where Clyde had been standing. Luckily Clyde still manages to avoid that fast and powerful attack.
''Red lightning? I thought he would use fire!''
Clyde is getting another surprise now. Having previously seen the blue Wendigo give off the power of ice, it was only natural that Clyde would think that the red one would have the power of fire.
However, Clyde''s expectations were missed. The red Wendigo didn''t even waste time talking or asking for help as the green and blue Wendigo did. He just straight-up unleashed his attack on Clyde.
''Alright.''
Clyde dashed to approach the red Wendigo. The red Wendigo shot his red lightning in session toward Clyde.
*BLAARRR!!!*
*BLAARRR!!!*
*BLAARRR!!!*
...
Clyde could bend his body to avoid the red lightning shots.
The asphalt on the road that was struck by it shattered and flew up creating a mist of ruins thatsted a few moments.
Clyde shot out from behind the white mist. His eyes stared straight at his target who was still standing on the street light pole.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*JZZZYYTTT!!!*
Brilliant bluish-white lightning enveloped Clyde''s body and Elderss Sword, making his already incredible speed even faster.
Clyde kicked the ground and shot at the red Wendigo. In the blink of an eye, Clyde was right in front of him and immediately swung the Lightning-shrouded Elderss Sword.
*CLANG!*
The red Wendigo also took out his sword which was red in color and seemed to be made of red lightning that hardened into a de.
When the Elderss Sword''s de collided with it, a shockwave apanied by bluish-white and red lightning spread out in all directions.
Clyde then kicked the red Wendigo in the stomach and knocked him off the streetmp post. Meanwhile, Clyde also fell back on the road.
''As expected, this will be a troublesome battle too.''
~~~
Chapter 80 Quite Tough
?Clyde and the red Wendigo face each other. Their bodies emitted lightning of a contrasting color.
Clyde was quite surprised to see what power this red Wendigo had.
He also approached him, unlike the green and blue Wendigo who waited for him toe for them.
The red Wendigo looks different. He was more like a hideous monster and came from a ce full of blood and war. He looks ready to fight him.
Besides that, the red Wendigo also had a strange sword. The sword was not shaped like a normal sword.
The de is jagged on both sides. The de looked made of condensed lightning.
''That sword is definitely not an ordinary weapon. Where did he get it? Besides, how did he know I was here?''
So many questions in Clyde''s head at this time. But he knew that he couldn''t ask the red Wendigo because the monster seemed to have only one wish at the moment. To kill him.
The red Wendigo suddenly dashed towards him. He left a trail of red lightning the moment his foot hit the ground.
In the blink of an eye, the red Wendigo was front of Clyde''s eyes. He let out a sh of red lightning that blinded Clyde''s eyes for a moment.
Clyde who felt that he was in a dire situation cursed in his heart. Then he also shot his white-bluish lightning forward hoping it would strike the red Wendigo that blinded him.
Unfortunately, his lightning only struck empty air. The red Wendigo had already jumped up and was ready to swing his red sword to slice open Clyde''s head.
Fortunately, Clyde was released from the dazzling effect of the sh of red lightning. He raised the Elderss Sword just in time to block the red sword''s sh.
*CLANG!!!*
Once again the shockwave of magical lightning spread out in all directions. The asphalt on the road that was struck by the lightning shattered and sent up debris.
Clyde and the red Wendigo were then involved in a quite fierce sword fight. They were both so fast that no normal human eye would be able to follow them.
What appeared before their eyes now were only bluish-white and red shes of lightning that shed and created devastation to everything around them.
~~~
In that white room, Agatha stared at the fight alone because Lio had already left to carry out his n.
Lio had just left a few seconds ago. Actually, he still had a chance to witness the battle between Clyde and a red Wendigo.
But Lio didn''t need to bother watching the fight because he said he already knew who would win.
"That guy will kill that red Wendigo and get his new [Title]."
That''s what Lio said just before he left this room.
Agatha thought so too. Even though the red Wendigo was an A Rank monster and had quite extraordinary strength, Agatha had seen how Clyde fought and killed two Wendigos of the same kind.
The red one will be a little more difficult, yet Agatha doesn''t feel that Clyde will lose.
Lio, of course, preferred to quickly carry out his n to go to Headquarters rather than witness a fight where he already knew the oue.
Even so, for Agatha, this fight is still quite exciting. Because the red Wendigo proved to be capable of giving Clyde a challenge. Something that is quite rare to see.
Clyde had quite a hard time against the green and red Wendigo before. He was knocked down and hit several times.
But Agatha knew that even if the attack hit him, Clyde didn''t feel any real pain. So, it''s not a problem.
But the red Wendigo seems to be making Clyde feel pain for the first time. Even though he won''t win, at least Agatha can see Clyde struggling.
"Haha."
Agatha let out a small chuckle that sounded sly. Her eyes glinted as the sh of Clyde''s bluish-white lightning shed with the red Wendigo''s red lightning.
"This is so fun to watch."
~~~
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
Explosions were created in several ces almost at once due to the movement speed of the two of them.
Debris fell and flew from the buildings and asphalt of the streets that were the victims of their fight.
The red Wendigo created an orb created from red lightning concentrated to a single point on his left hand. While his right hand continued to swing his sword at Clyde.
Clyde of course realized that his enemy was preparing an attack.
But for now, he is having quite a hard time because of the very fast swing of the red sword.
He seemed to have no space to do anything other than endure the swings of the red sword.
''Damnit! I haven''t even had the chance to use [Skill: Inspection] on him yet.''
Because the red Wendigo attacked suddenly, Clyde had not yet had the chance to find out his power and information.
The red Wendigo seemed to have finished preparing its lightning orb attack. He immediately threw it at Clyde.
''Oh fuck!''
Clyde had no chance to dodge. So he could only receive the lightning orb attack.
*BOOM!*
Arge explosion of lightning was created when the orb hit Clyde''s arm which he had raised to block it from hitting his face.
Of course, that''s not enough to remove the effects of the orb. Clyde was thrown back with such force that he shot out like a bullet that had just left the muzzle of a gun.
Clyde crashed into several vehicles parked haphazardly in the middle of the street.
Then he continued to slide until he go through several buildings before finally stopping after crashing into a container truck until it was dented.
But Clyde immediately got back up. He looked at his left arm which he used to protect himself from the orb''s attack.
There was a rip mark on the sleeve of his Dark Night Coat. It wasn''t a good sign that the attack could break through the coat''s defense.
"Turns out he''s that strong. Alright, time to get real," muttered Clyde.
Clyde didn''t know how far he had flown. But it must have been quite far since he was no longer in the city environment he was familiar with.
He knew that the red Wendigo wouldn''t stop there. And now Clyde could see he was already running towards him with great speed and a body covered in red lightning.
Clyde also continued to activate his [Skill: Pure Lightning]. He thought that even with his Stats maxed out, he still couldn''t match the red Wendigo''s speed without it.
In order to reduce the depletion of his Magic Power, Clyde decided not to use any skill other than [Pure Lightning].
Clyde wasn''t just waiting for him. He darted to meet the red Wendigo.
*CLASH!*
They collide once again. Clyde could see the look on the face of the red Wendigo who was grinding his jagged teeth. He seemed to harbor great anger towards him.
They shed swords and created shing scenes of bluish-white and red lights that collided with each other and spread more destruction around.
Clyde, who had decided to be more serious, increased the intensity of his attacks.
He stretched out his left hand and shot a bolt of lightning toward the red Wendigo''s face.
The unexpected attack left the red Wendigo unable to react quickly and could only receive the lightning bolt to its face.
The lightning that hit his face made the red Wendigo lose sight of Clyde. Clyde then spun his body tounch a kick to his chin.
*DUAGH!*
The red Wendigo was flung upwards. Clyde gripped the hilt of the Elderss Sword with all his might and sent his Magic Power into the de.
Her eyes stared straight at the sired Wendigo who was still floating in the air. Then he thrust the Elderss Sword with all his might towards him.
*JWOOOSSSHHH!!!!*
An unbelievably strong lightning energy that looked like a bluish-whiteser shot from the tip of the Elderss Sword toward the red Wendigo who was still in midair.
The energy shot hit him hard and threw him far into the air. His hand that had been cut from his body fell to the ground.
Clyde immediately followed him. He ran then stomped the ground with all his might and threw himself up.
Clyde took off and caught up with the red Wendigo in the blink of an eye.
The red Wendigo looked shocked when he saw Clyde was right above him and was swinging his sword.
The red Wendigo gritted his teeth. Then raised his red sword.
*CLANGGG!!!!*
The Elderss Sword''s sh only hit the red de and didn''t cut his neck like Clyde hoped.
The force behind the sh sent the red Wendigo crashing down like a meteor falling from the sky as the red lightning created a tail as he fell.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
The red Wendigo fell on the roof of the building and prated several floors then stopped when he had reached the ground floor.
Clyde goes down while thrusting the Elderss Sword. He fell through the hole the red Wendigo had created.
*BOOM!*
Clyde arrived at the base of the building a momentter.
However, the Elderss Sword only stuck into the cracked concrete. The red Wendigo was no longer there.
''Where is he going?''
Clyde drew his sword and stood looking around for the red Wendigo. Then he saw a gaping hole in the wall.
The red trail in the ground clearly shows that the red Wendigo has just passed through the hole.
~~~
Chapter 81 Weakened?
?Clyde immediately ran towards the hole to find the red Wendigo. His eyes nced around to find him.
But Clyde didn''t expect that the red Wendigo would be so cunning. He didn''t go anywhere and just waited beside the hole.
The red Wendigo shed his red sword at Clyde''s neck as soon as he emerged from the hole in the wall.
*CLANG!*
Luckily, Clyde managed to block the sword in time. If he was even a littlete, then the sword would definitely cut his neck.
Clyde grinned at the red Wendigo. "I didn''t know you could think of rotten ways like this."
The red Wendigo didn''t reply. His jaw clenched and his eyes stared at Clyde hatefully.
"You must be pissed off that your sneak attack failed, don''t you?" Clyde said. Then he threw a kick at the red Wendigo.
*DUAGH!*
The kick hit him in the chest causing him to fall backward. Clyde immediately jumped to approach him and shed the Elderss Sword.
*CLANG!*
The red Wendigo could fend it off. Then they engaged in a fierce battle like before.
Where Clyde''s lightning collided with the red Wendigo''s lightning in swift motions that were hard for the human eye to follow.
~~~
Asqa bit her lips. She no longer felt the hunger that stabbed in her stomach. What she was thinking right now was Clyde.
"Hey, you sure we don''t have to go and help Clyde?" Asqa asked Sonya who was seen observing the empty air in front of her.
"Of course not," Sonya answered quickly without taking her eyes off the Character Information that was now disyed in front of her.
Sonya didn''t even seem to think too much before saying that. It was as if her answer was something obvious and she had never thought of any other kind of answer.
"Y-Yeah, I guess you''re right..."
Asqa actually felt that catching up with Clyde was a stupid idea. It''s just... she felt worried about him.
Sonya nced at Asqa when she realized the restless look on her face. Sonya had already noticed this. And she has also told Asqa not to worry too much.
Clyde can take care of himself. If he can''t take care of himself, what about them? Wouldn''t their situation only get worse?
Sonya could only sigh and then shook her head. Then she continues to look at her Character Information window.
There are various kinds of information that are quite clear like those in an RPG game she used to y. Although not thatplex.
She also had seen a Window like that in the novel she was reading. A window like that is indeed something that appears to characters in survival novels.
The Window is used to show the condition of her body. Her entire body condition is shown in numbers.
Sonya was disappointed because she didn''t get 10 points for some of her Stats. That means, her potential is limited there, right?
Whereas Clyde probably has a higher maximum Stat number. Because even though they all maxed out their Stats, Clyde''s strength was still greater than theirs.
Sonya also suspected that Clyde could see their Character Information because he was the first to say that the four people were something called ''Regressors.''
In that case, that was a tremendous advantage for him.
Besides that, Clyde also has a sword that looks unique and arge number of coins.
He was so strong even in the beginning when they had a hard time surviving.
''Where exactly did he get all that?''
Sonya didn''t think about it before because she really didn''t want to think about troublesome things when she was busy surviving.
However, now when she basically doesn''t do anything, Sonya can''t help but thinks about all that even more.
Clyde never said anything to them. He kept everything a secret inside his head. That''s very suspicious.
''At this rate, it''s only natural that the Regressors would think like that about Clyde.''
Betrayal knocked at their door. Sonya had to prepare herself in case something bad happened.
Clyde may be strong but can he survive the ''stab in the back'' when all four people - who already know what will happen in the future -unch a surprise attack together?
''But should I bother helping him?''
Sonya sighed and fell down to lie on her bed. She stared at the ceiling to consider the next step she should take so as not to get caught in a dangerous situation.
~~~
White and bluish lightning can be seen sticking out from behind the building. The five of them who stared at it could only remain silent with faces filled with various expressions.
They were shocked, scared, and amazed. Seeing such a sight and the noises of destruction already made it clear that there was a fight going on there.
"Is that who was Clyde fighting there like that?" Wiley asked.
"Who else can create a scene like that?" Albert responded rhetorically.
It can be seen that Leon''s jaw tightened as he stared at the sight. But he was the first to pull himself together.
"Let''s go. We have to hide again," Leon said.
They all immediately obeyed to go back into the house they used to hide.
Coming out at a time like this was something dangerous. But they have to chase away the gray monsters that suddenlye to the house.
So they had no choice but to kill the monsters. Leon, who saw that they were still left in the courtyard, decided to kill them all at once so that they would not cause troubleter.
So they all fought the hordes of fast-moving gray monsters outside the house.
When they finished killing the gray monsters, they heard an explosion and white and red lightning dancing in the air.
Luckily, the ce where all that happened was quite far from this house.
"We gain Exp when we kill them, wouldn''t it be great if we went out and hunted those gray monsters?" Rosie suggested while eating a piece of bread.
All of his friends also started eating again. Their supplies were starting to run low but the hunger kepting, so they were quite worried.
Especially when they finished killing the monsters their hunger came again after ten minutes they had just finished eating.
"No." Leon shook his head. "Look at us, we have to eat again even though we just finished eating."
"Excessive movement must also affect our hunger condition," L said with a sad and scared face. She bit her bread slowly as if she didn''t want to finish it quickly.
Rosie, who wants to always be stronger, actually wants to keep getting Exp from that monster.
Her desire made her forget that now her stomach felt the same hunger as ten minutes earlier.
"You''re right," Rosie said. "Is there no way we can get something now?"
"I don''t think so," Albert replied. "I guess we should focus on maintaining our own conditions."
"Alber is right. This hunger can be dangerous and there is still time," Wiley said.
"But what if the BOSS shows upter?" Rosie asked. "That BOSS must be stronger than before. If we don''t get stronger too, we won''t be able to survive, right?"
"Why should you think that?" Wiley said.
"What do you mean?"
Wiley cock his head towards the window where the view of the lightning shing was still clearly visible.
"He''ll work things out," Wiley said.
Rosie also stared out the window. "Are we just going to rely on him?"
"Yeah, why not?" Wiley replied.
"What will happen after this apocalypse? If we only rely on him, how can we survive if he''s not around us?"
Upon hearing Rosie''s words, they stopped biting their bread.
It was something they couldn''t answer and didn''t want to think about.
Because it''s too frightening. They don''t know what the future holds and it''s very scary.
"We don''t need to think about that now," Leon said then continued to eat his bread.
No one else replied to his words. They don''t want to talk about it anymore. Even though the frightening future is not far ahead of them.
It''s already the third day. There were only three days left for them to see the end of all this.
Whether they will die, or meet another end. They won''t know before it happens.
~~~
Buildings and houses became victims of their fight.
Lightning shed with high intensity in all directions creating a scene as if a disaster was happening.
Clyde felt astonished at what was happening this time. He found it difficult to kill the red Wendigo even though he wasn''t a BOSS.
It''s not that the monster was so strong that he felt threatened. But that red Wendigo has ridiculous endurance.
Even though Clyde had attacked him many times, he still wasn''t dead.
As Clyde already knew from the green and blue Wendigo, this red Wendigo also has the ability to heal himself after being injured.
It made him worry about how powerful a BOSS that hadn''t even appeared yet.
The red Wendigo threw a red lightning bolt at Clyde.
Clyde swung the Elderss Sword and sent the red lightning bolt away from him.
Then Clyde darted at the red Wendigo and threw a punch to his face.
*BUAGH!*
Clyde was surprised because suddenly he could hit him this easily even though earlier he could move fast enough to avoid his attacks.
The red Wendigo fell to the ground with a loud thump. Unlike before, he didn''t immediately get up and counterattack.
Clydended not far from him and frowned.
''Has he weakened now?''
~~~
Chapter 82 Desperate
?Clyde stared at the red Wendigo with surprised eyes. His forehead also formed a frown.
Before this, he couldn''tnd a punch on him. But now he can hit him. Not only that, a punch like that could also send him flying into the air and falling a few meters from where he was before.
All of this made Clyde think that maybe the red Wendigo had indeed weakened.
Somehow, midway through the fight, his speed and strength faded away as he more and more injuries he received.
''Maybe all the attacks I''ve been doing are just taking its toll on him now,'' Clyde thought.
Since then he has indeed given many attacks that are quite strong. But the red Wendigo can still fight again. It looked different now. He even seemed to have trouble standing up.
Clyde who saw him trying to stand up of course would not give that chance to his enemy. Clyde dashed with a body still covered in bluish-white lightning.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already in front of the red Wendigo who was still in a kneeling position, not yet able to stand up perfectly.
Clyde shed the Elderss Sword. The de covered in lightning dazzled the red Wendigo''s eyes.
Even so, he was still able to withstand the swing of the sword.
*CLANG!*
The red Wendigo raised her red sword just in time before the Elderss Sword shed his head.
But Clyde''s attacks did not stop there. He punched the red Wendigo in the face causing him to fall back to the ground.
Clyde then kicked him in the face so hard that his head was knocked back.
*DUAGH!*
Clyde wanted to continue by thrusting the Elderss Sword. But suddenly the red Wendigo''s body emitted red light.
It made Clyde alert because something was going on with his body. So Clyde retreated by jumping backward.
Clyde was on full alert for what wasing next.
The bright red light continued for several thrilling seconds. Before finally being absorbed back into the red Wendigo''s body.
''What the hell?''
Apparently, nothing happened. There was no sudden burst of lightning, or the red Wendigo self-detonating as he had expected.
The red Wendigo only rose to his feet with difficulty. Surprisingly, the wounds on his face and body did not appear to have healed.
It added to Clyde''s faith in the possibilities he had previously thought of. The red Wendigo was already weakened because he had reached his limit.
"You are strong," the red Wendigo suddenly spoke. "How did you get that power?"
Clyde squinted. ''Is he trying to buy time by talking to me?''
Clyde admitted that the monster was quite intelligent. But his attempt was ridiculous.
Clyde snorted then gave a disdainful grin.
"You were the one who approached me and said that we would kill each other, right? Now, do you regret your decision?" Clyde said.
The red Wendigo tightened his jaw. It seemed he was at a loss for words to reply to Clyde''s words because it was true.
He only regretted his actions of attacking first because he thought he could win with the strength he had now.
But he didn''t expect that Clyde was actually that strong. How could he be that strong without making a deal with any of the Celestials?
''You are a special human. That''s why I gave you more power than the others.''
Those were the words of a woman who imed to be something called a ''Celestial'' before giving him powers.
The red Wendigo, who at that time was still in human form and a state of unbearable hunger, of course, immediately epted whatever she gave him.
It turned out to be a very extraordinary power. Even if it made him transform into this form, he no longer suffered from hunger.
And so he has this amazing lightning power.
''You just have to give me your soul."
The woman showed the form of a Contract on the screen floating in front of him.
Of course, the red Wendigo readily agreed with it right away.
And then he heard the news about Clyde and wanted to kill him. But now, he struggled when facing this young man.
"Okay, I''ll give you a few seconds. Tell me who made you like that," Clyde said. He deactivated [Skill: Pure Lightning] for now believing that the red Wendigo had indeed weakened.
"What do you mean?" the red Wendigo asked.
"Don''t act stupid. If you don''t give me an answer I will cut your throat right now," Clyde said threateningly.
And the red Wendigo felt the threat so real that his body shook. He nced at his crimson sword that was still in his hand.
''If you''re desperate, you can use that sword to give you strength. But of course, there are side effects that you will receive.''
The woman also did not forget to give ast message before disappearing into the shadows. It was as if, she knew that she would fall into despair when fighting Clyde.
"I''ll tell you," the red Wendigo said. "A woman came to me when I was hungry. She gave this power to me on the condition that I give her my soul."
Clyde frowned. ''A woman? I don''t know why but I have a feeling that it was Gremory''s doing. But the possibility that it''s another Celestial is also there.''
"How did she look like?" Clyde asked.
"She''s a pretty woman with a tall body and blonde hair. When she met me, she wore a ck suit."
Hearing that description, Clyde immediately thought that it wasn''t Gremory. However, he couldn''t be too sure because the Demon definitely could change her appearance.
"Alright. I think the time I''ve given is enough." Clyde raised the Elderss Sword again and made the gesture that he was going to attack.
The red Wendigo suddenly plunged his red sword into his chest.
Clyde was surprised when he saw that. Even though it looked like he killed himself, Clyde was sure that that was not the red Wendigo''s intention.
A momentter, red lightning that looked thicker than before appeared to envelop his body.
Then a wind filled with enormous magical power pressure spread to the surroundings.
Clyde had to raise his face to protect his eyes from the debris that was shooting at him. His ck coat was fluttering in the wind.
''Shit, he can do that?''
Although he was surprised, Clyde wasn''t too worried. Even when the red Wendigo got stronger than before it definitely wasn''t without risks.
Something that provides that much burst of power will kill him immediately once its maximum limit has been reached.
After all, Clyde was also sure that he could defeat the red Wendigo even though he had received a new power-up.
The wind then subsided. The red Wendigo''s body became twice as big as before and gave off the power of red lightning that whipped around non-stop.
He grinned at Clyde. "Ready for round two?"
Clyde returned him with the same disdainful grin. He didn''t say anything and just let out a snort. It was as if what happened next didn''t matter even though the red Wendigo had gained new powers.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*JZZZCCCHUUUTTTTT!!!*
The lightning on Clyde''s body appeared. The brilliance of the lightning tells the red Wendigo that what he had now would not have a much different effect than before.
The red Wendigo dashed towards Clyde. Now he who had no weapons would only use his fists to attack.
Clyde approached the red Wendigo while swinging the Elderss Sword which was covered in bluish-white lightning.
They collided in the middle in the blink of an eye. And the red Wendigo used both hands to catch the de of the Elderss Sword.
Clyde channeled more of his Magic Power into the Elderss Sword so he created even bigger lightning.
The bluish-white lightning traveled to the red Wendigo''s arm, making him grit his teeth and show a sign of clear struggle.
Clyde then stretched out his left hand and sent a lightning bolt toward him.
*JZZCHYUUUTT!*
The lightning bolt pushed the red Wendigo back and made him release his grip on the Elderss Sword.
Clyde lunged at him and shed the Elderss Sword repeatedly. The red Wendigo endured the shes with his hands and feet.
Clyde realized that all of his attacks did not have too much effect on the red Wendigo. All that appeared on his hands and feet were small cuts despite Clyde''s strong swings with the sword.
The red Wendigo gritted his teeth. His body was clearly stronger than before, but Clyde noticed that his speed was decreasing.
"HYAAAHHHH!!!"
Suddenly the red Wendigo shouted. Then that scream was followed by lightning exploding from his body in all directions.
*BOOM!*
The lightning explosionsted for several seconds and destroyed the building and everything around it. Of course, Clyde was also knocked out by the enormous lightning explosion.
Clyde''s body soared into the air and then fell hard on the road that had been destroyed.
The red Wendigo grinned and ran to Clyde.
~~~
Chapter 83 Almost End
?Lio is now inside a train car. His gaze headed outside the window where he could see the stars passing by so fast. Until the stars just look like a passing light.
He gripped his fist tightly. Everything that had happened previously made Lio feel anger that he had never felt before while being the World Master supervising the Selection Stage.
All of that started from the previous Selection Stage which failed miserably. He rmended a Candidate who passed the Selection Stage to a Demon King.
But suddenly something happened and somehow, that human escaped from the Demon King and disappeared.
Lio, as the party that rmended her, must bear the costs incurred by the Demon King with his Tokens.
Because of that he was broke and had to buy a Selection Stage system which was not much different from the trash.
He shook his head while letting out a long breath.
"Why is this happening to me?"
Li thought as if his bad luck happened in session. He even gotrades like Agatha here. A World Master who, even if she had carried out duties for several hundred years, was still considered a novice.
Lio remembered that she was the cheerful and chatty type of girl before. Everything changed when he tied her to the wall with his chains.
"Heh.." Lio snorted and chuckled remembering it all.
She looked pitiful against the wall. But Lio has no regrets because that way she can be a quieter and more obedient girl. So she can be easier to control.
"Fear is indeed the most powerful tool to control."
After knowing what would happen to her, Lio was sure that Agatha would not dare to mess around even if he left her there alone.
The train continued without a sound. Lio''s mind drifted again to the figure that caused a stir on the Selection Stage.
Clyde. A name that had reached a ce even further than the Selection Stage because he even attracted the attention of Hermes of Olympus.
Again, Lio''s fist clenched tightly. He still hadn''t forgotten how he was humiliated at his own Selection Stage by the servant of Hermes.
If he wasn''t someone who knew better than to make a bigger mess, he would have beaten the servant to the point where he regretted walking in and disturbing this Selection Stage on a whim.
But all of that only gives a small glimpse of what the future holds, which is not far away.
Clyde is an excellent yer. He didn''t know how he could be that strong.
Even Lio was sure that Clyde had even surpassed the results of thest woman who passed with such amazing results. The same woman he rmended to the Demon King and ran away.
"I can''t let him fall into the hands of another Celestial."
Lio intends to have Clyde as his own. Something he had never actually thought of even in his wildest dreams. Lio wants topete with the Celestials.
"The All Territory will never be the same again."
A sly smile formed on Lio''s face. The reflection of his face looks terrible in the window of the train.
But Lio didn''t see the reflection of his face because he was busy staring at the shing stars while imagining how his n was will work out.
~~~
In the middle of arge garden, a girl was sitting on the fine grass holding a flower she picked from a collection of hundreds of flowers next to her.
The girl sniffed the scent of the flower. Then a smile appeared on her face that described how much she enjoyed the floral scent.
The girl had the appearance of a girl in her twenties. Although her actual age is very far from that number.
Her hair is light blonde to almost golden. Her eyes are blue and she has pale and smooth skin.
Her body shape which was neither too tall nor muscr gave her the impression of a fragile cute girl who couldn''t even take care of herself. But that couldn''t be farther from the truth.
She heard the sound of footsteps from behind her. She sighed because the footsteps were headed her way and would interrupt her time enjoying this sight.
The footsteps stood right behind her. The blonde girl could feel that the owner of the footsteps hesitated when approaching her.
"What?" the girl asked, not trying to hide how annoyed she was.
A woman standing behind her flinched and heard that tone.
That girl was indeed known as a very cruel being. Because of that, even she who is her servant is afraid to meet her.
"Y-Your Majesty, I received news that two of the three soldier Candidates are dead," her servant said with her hands clenched beside her body.
The girl with bright blonde hair immediately jumped to her feet and turned to look at her servant.
"What do you say?" the girl asked with a look of disbelief. Her voice was low but her servant felt a pressure that made her spine freeze.
The servant never received physical punishment or any form of torture. But she already knew how cruel the figure in front of her was when fighting.
The aura that the blonde girl gave off was also deadly. Even when she doesn''t do anything.
"Who can kill them?" the girl asked.
"There is a Candidate who seems quite strong in the Selection Stage this time, Your Majesty."
"A Candidate? A human?"
The servant nodded slowly.
What was on the blonde girl''s face wasn''t just an expression of anger. But also confusion, as if she had heard something like that only once in her life.
"You said that human is alone?" the blonde girl asked.
The servant nodded again.
The blonde-haired girl let out a long breath. "I''ll check on that human."
After that, the girl with blonde hair walked past the servant. Her strides were long and carried her slender body away swiftly.
The new servant could sigh after she left her. She only realized that she was breathing shallowly since her meeting with the blonde girl.
"Phew... no one knew an Archangel could be so terrifying," the Servant muttered after taking a deep breath.
She then also left the ce.
~~~
The fight onlysted a few minutes. However, the devastation created by the fight between the two of them seemed so great.
The shing shes of bluish-white and red lightning made that part of the city look like it had been engulfed in a war that had been going on for years.
Clyde saw that the red Wendigo was getting tired. The wounds on his body that took the form of deep cuts began to regenerate more slowly.
Clyde knew that his victory woulde soon. But he also realized that his Magic Power had also been reduced a lot.
''I have to end here as quickly as possible.''
The red Wendigo also seemed to realize that he was in a bad state. He felt pain all over his body starting to give off a great burden.
Even so, the red Wendigo didn''t want to die now. Despair from the will to live became enough fuel to make him ignore the pain.
So the red Wendigo kept fighting and fighting. But Clyde certainly wasn''t going to sympathize even though he could see the despair and fear in the red Wendigo''s eyes.
"HYAAAAAHHH!!!"
A loud scream was heard. The red Wendigo screamed so loudly that it seemed as if his mouth might be split open at any moment.
He swung a fist covered in red lightning at Clyde. However, Clyde was able to see the fisting very clearly because the red Wendigo''s movement had be slow.
Clyde jumped sideways so the red Wendigo''s fist shot past him and hit a building.
*BLARRR!!!*
*BOOM!*
The powerful fist apanied by the red lightning smashed into the building and instantly shattered the walls and pirs.
The building copsed a momentter. Debris spread out creating a white mist that eventually covered the red Wendigo''s view.
''I lost him!''
The red Wendigo started to fall into a panic because he couldn''t see Clyde.
So he released a wave of red lightning around in an effort to get rid of all the debris that was blocking his view.
But he actually didn''t need to bother looking for Clyde because he hade to him.
The red Wendigo''s eyes widened as a bluish-white sh of lightning shot toward him. Then he saw the de of the Elderss Sword swinging towards him.
The red Wendigo immediately raised both hands quickly, trying to prevent the sword from slicing through his neck.
*CRAATTT!*
The Elderss Sword''s de prated the red Wendigo''s skin and sank into his arm. The de prated nearly half of his twice-human''s massive arm.
"Khhgg!"
The red Wendigo resisted the urge to scream because of the pain he was feeling in his arm. He saw Clyde grin as if he already knew the end of this battle.
~~~
Chapter 84 Finishing The Red
?This fight will notst much longer. Clyde knew about it, he knew that he was on the winning side of this fight.
But the end result is still unclear. So, there is still room for error.
''I can''t let my guard down until this is really over!''
Clyde continued to channel his Magic Power into the Elderss Sword. The de continued to wee his Magic Power so that the bluish-white lightning became even more intense.
"GRAAAHHH!!!"
The red Wendigo finally couldn''t help but scream from the pain.
Moreover, now the lightning also spread throughout his body.
All the cuts on his body that were inflicted by Clyde earlier seemed to scream too. Adding to his unbearable pain.
The red Wendigo looked at Clyde with eyes full of anger and fear that merged into one.
''I don''t want to die here! I can not!''
"HYAAAAARRGGHHH!!!"
Red lightning exploded from the red Wendigo''s body and spread around them. The lightning became thicker and thicker until it looked like a tentacle.
Because it was this close, Clyde could look straight into the red Wendigo''s eyes. He saw that despair and desire to live on. Along with the fear of dying which is also no less clear.
But Clyde of course knows who should be his priority now. Between the red Wendigo who is afraid of death and falls into the despair of a creature who wants to survive, and his own survival.
Clyde didn''t take long to make a decision. Of course, he wouldn''t think that the monster''s life in front of him was more valuable than his own.
Even so, Clyde felt thest effort of his enemy. All these red lightning shes manage to cause him to feel pain.
He felt pain on his face from the lightning strike. Blood started flowing down his cheeks and forehead because of the lightning that the red Wendigo released.
Clyde mustered up his strength to pull the Elderss Sword from the red Wendigo''s arm.
*SRATT!!!*
The sword was pulled out apanied by a ssh of blood which was very painful for the red Wendigo. That kept him from reacting quickly enough to what Clyde did next.
Clyde thrust the Elderss Sword into the red Wendigo''s chest.
The sword pierced through his heart effortlessly and sent lightning bolts to spread throughout his internal organs and destroy them instantly.
The red Wendigo''s internal organs were now in a mess. Everything was burned by Clyde''s lightning.
The red Wendigo spat out a profuse amount of blood from his mouth.
"BLERGH!!!"
His eyes were bloodshot red. Blood not only flowed out of his mouth but also from his nose and ears. It seems Clyde''s lightning has also spread to his brain.
Clyde then drew the Elderss Sword. He saw that the red Wendigo was helpless. His eyes are empty from pain and despair. So Clyde knew that this is an opportunity to end it immediately.
Clyde caught the pleading look of the red Wendigo onest time. But his feelings didn''t change. Clyde only returned the pathetic pleading gaze with his cold eyes with no empathy.
It was then that the red Wendigo realized that his efforts had been in vain and that his life would truly end now.
*CRAAATTT!!!*
The red Wendigo saw his vision rotate rapidly. Then fell on the shattered ground.
He could still see Clyde with lightning all over his body that was starting to subside.
But it wasn''t long before his visions werepletely ck.
Clyde stared at the red Wendigo''s head that was lying not far from his body. Even though the pair of eyes on the head were still wide open, there was already no life left in them.
Clyde looked up at the cloudy sky again. Cloud suddenly came sometime when he was fighting fiercely just now.
Now the battle had ended with the result he had expected. Although the difficulties that Clyde had to face were indeed higher than before.
He breathed into the air. Now that everything was over, Clyde could only feel that he was quite tired.
So he walked to the terrace of a building and sat leaning against a wall that was still intact.
He nced to his right and left to check his surroundings before he decided to rx his attention to rest for a bit.
When he knows that there is no danger - or the possibility of danger - Clyde leaned his head against the wall and stared at the gray clouds above him.
It was then that the notification of a sessful Personal Request appeared.
[ 3. The Red Wendigo Killed (1/1) ]
Clyde breathed a sigh of relief because finally all the Personal Requests from Demon Duchess Gremory had beenpleted.
That meant he could get three questions from the Demon Duchess which would obviously be the most valuable information he could get in this apocalypse.
~~~
On the other hand, the girl with blonde hair was staring at the monitor with eyes burning with anger.
*BRAK!*
She mmed her fists into the table in front of her. Her teeth gritted tightly.
"Damn human. How dare he kill my soldiers!"
The girl cursed despite her real identity. She is an Archangel, yet she emits an aura that is said to be more terrifying than a Demon.
Even though she was angry at the figure of Clyde who had just finished killing the three humans the souls she had taken to be her soldier, the blonde-haired girl still felt curious about him.
How could an ordinary human do that? she saw how the battle was going since a few minutes ago.
Even though she didn''t see everything from the start, she could still see how the fight was going and measure how strong Clyde was.
What she saw was very shocking because she had never known a human who could have such strength to defeat her would-be warrior.
No, it was all strange from the start because that guy obviously didn''t find the three of them by chance.
Coincidence only happened once. But the men found the three of them sessively. It was as if, he deliberately hunted them.
"How did he find them?"
An ordinary human would not have been able to know that there were three humans that he had turned into monsters specifically to be her warriors.
She had paid a lot to the Selection Stage Creators to enter the Selection Stage and made three humans - yers - into her warrior candidates.
And the different types of monsters that are created due to her contract with them will be mentioned as Hidden Pieces in the Selection Stage.
Nobody should know about that. Some World Masters might know about it but they wouldn''t do anything about it.
They couldn''t possibly be willing to go against her who was a powerful Celestial.
Then her forehead wrinkled because she realized one thing. The party that could find out about his n and decided to do something about it.
"Was that the doing of a Demon?"
The girl''s voice trembled with anger. Her fists were clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
"Right. It must be them."
The only force that would know something about the Hidden Piece he ced on the Selection Stage and decided to destroy it would be the Demons.
The girl''s red eyes stared back at Clyde''s figure who was still sitting looking up at the sky. Those red eyes seemed to be lit by the fire burning in them.
"What should I do about him?"
She wondered to herself. Should she kill him who messed up her ns?
Or she could persuade him to join her warrior ranks? With strength like that, it was obvious that he would make a very strong warrior.
"After all, that man must only be instigated by unreasonable offers from any Demon who encounters him."
Yes, humans don''t know anything. So, he only carries out the orders given to him.
With the always tempting and ridiculous rewards from the Demons, the blonde girl could understand that the man wouldn''t be able to refuse.
"If I cane up with something even bigger, then he will definitely switch to my side."
So with that, it was decided that she would visit Clyde.
The blonde-haired girl stood up from the chair and went straight out of the room to gather her servants.
~~~
''I think it''s time to move on. It''s enough rest.''
Clyde stood up and patted the dust off his pants. There is still another Personal Request that must bepleted.
The time seemed to have entered noon. The time he spent fighting the red Wendigo wasn''t that long. But he felt that he had been fighting for several whole days.
His Magic Power must have decreased a lot from continuing to use Skills nonstop. Because of that, Clyde intends not to use skills anymore toplete Agatha''s Personal Request.
After all, today wasn''t over yet and he still had to fight a BOSS that would obviously give him a higher difficulty than the red Wendigo.
~~~
Chapter 85 Good Rewards
?*SRAATTT!!!*
*SRAATTT!!!*
*SRAATTT!!!*
...
sh after sh happened. Gray bald heads flew and fell on the floor of the buildings.
[ 1. Kill 1,000 Wendigos. (980/1,000) ]
"Huuhh..."
Clyde exhaled. By now he had killed so many Wendigos that he had lost count.
But luckily he still had a Window guiding him.
"980, huh?"
Clyde nodded. "Just twenty more and I''llplete it.
He didn''t find this task troublesome at all. Because he will also get a good reward.
Besides that he will also get Exp - added by [Skill: Exp+] - So, he has nothing to lose.
Now he was Level 73. Unfortunately, he couldn''t use Stats or Skill Points anymore. That''s a really stupid rule.
So Clyde runs to find Wendigo again to finish his target.
The figure watching his every move was still behind him.
Clyde didn''t know how long he or she would hide. But if Clyde were them, he would also hide considering the situation around him.
Clyde finally found the Wendigos under the subway station just like the first time he found them.
So he continued his ughter process until finally the target he had to achieve waspleted.
Once again Clyde breathed a sigh of relief and walked upstairs.
It was now noon and the clouds were getting thicker. It didn''t take long before water droplets started to fall from the overcast clouds and hit Clyde''s face.
He immediately took shelter back to the subway.
"Maybe I should stay here for a while," Clyde muttered.
He sat down and leaned against the wall. The atmosphere bes peaceful. But this peace felt so strange after all that had happened, and all that was going on around him.
Perhaps he had killed too many Wendigos for the neighborhood to be deserted.
Realizing that this was the right time, Clyde took the ne that Gremory gave him.
"How do I call her?"
As soon as Clyde finished muttering those words, the ne gave off a faint, dark pink glow. Even so, Clyde could still see the light clearly.
Clyde shrugged. "I think I''ve seeded in summoning her."
A momentter, something appeared at the bottom of the subway stairs. It looked like a cube with transparent pink and ck colors.
The cube isrge enough for two adults to fit in it.
Then Clyde heard a woman whisper behind his ear.
"Get in."
Clyde jumped and grabbed the handle of the Elderss Sword by reflex.
"Who are you?" Clyde asked sharply.
"Don''t ask too many questions and quickly enter the cube. I am a servant of Duchess Gremory," The whispered voice from an invisible figure replied.
Hearing Gremory''s name, Clyde immediately nodded and walked towards the cube. But he didn''t let down his guard.
Clyde walked through the side of the cube. He was still in the subway. It''s just that now there is a transparent wall that separates it from the outside world.
Then a woman dressed in tight ck appeared in front of him. Clyde immediately knew that she had something to do with Gremory from her appearance.
She wore a veil that covered her hair, nose, and mouth. Leaving a pair of sharp eyes staring at Clyde with a sensual impression.
Clyde didn''t say anything. Instead, he waited for the woman to introduce herself to him.
"My name is Nimue," the woman said. "I am here to represent Duchess Gremory."
"Why didn''t shee herself?" Clyde asked.
"The Duchess can''te here often. After all, she is a higher being who shouldn''t havee to the Selection Stage in the first ce," Nimue replied.
Clyde snorted. "Okay. Whatever. I''vepleted her Personal Request so I can get answers to three questions."
"Yes. I have received a message from the Duchess to answer three of your questions."
Clyde frowned. "I''m not so sure. You''re not Gremory. Can I really trust you?"
"As I said, I am the servant of the Duchess. I will not betray you and tarnish her reputation."
Although unsure, Clyde saw no other alternative he could do. So he decided to ept this answer from Nimue.
"But, I''m curious," Nimue said. "How did you be that strong?"
"As far as I know I''ll be the one asking," Clyde replied.
Nimue gritted her teeth. But it was not visible because her lips were behind her veil.
"You''re right," Nimue asked. "Please, tell me your question."
"First, I''ll ask what exactly this apocalypse is."
Nimue bit her lip uneasily. In the end, she still felt very reluctant to tell Clyde the real answer.
She encountered unimaginable hardships when she entered the Selection Stage. Answering Clyde''s question will greatly benefit him in this Selection Stage.
Nimue felt it was unfair. Even though this was an order from Duchess Gremory which she served with all her heart.
Nimue finally sighed and decided to answer her question instead of having to disobey her master.
"This Apocalypse is a Selection Stage," Nimue answered curtly.
Clyde squinted suspiciously and his jaw clenched. ''Is this woman trying to y me?''
Clyde sighed because he would have expected a bad answer, as he had expected from a Demon kind.
Saying that this is the Selection Stage without exining anything just leads to another question. Which in the end will use up all the opportunity questions he has.
Clyde snorted. But he didn''t say anything toment on the situation and the behavior shown by this Demon in front of him.
''Alright. I''d better ask about how to pass this Selection Stage properly.''
While Clyde was struggling to contain his frustration, Nimue looked up at him with a sly smile on her lips. Yet because her lips were covered by a veil, Clyde would not be able to see it.
"How to defeat the Outer God on the fifth day?" Clyde immediately said his question without saying anything about Nimue''s vague answer just now.
Upon hearing that question, Nimue nodded her head. She had expected that Clyde would ask about it since he had heard about it from the World Master just now.
Nimue realized that she had to get Clyde to side with her master. Because of that, she couldn''t go too far with him by only giving short answers.
"You should get something called the Nightmare Orb," Nimue replied. "The orb is in a treasure box. Which you will get on the fourth day. Tomorrow."
Clyde was a little surprised because Nimue suddenly answered his question with a little bit of detail.
But to minimize mistakes, Clyde didn''t question it any further. He was just d he got such a good answer.
"What happens after this thing called the Selection Stage?"
Instead, Clyde immediately asked the next question.
"You will be transported to a ce called The All Territory."
That answer made Clyde frown. ''The All Territory?''
Clyde could tell from Nimue''s eyes that she wasn''t going to give any more answers than this. He could only sigh in disappointment.
''Yeah, at least I found a way to kill the Outer God without signing a contract with Lio.''
Other than that, he only got two names from this event. Apocalypse which turns out to be a Selection Stage, which means they are being selected for something.
Then after the Selection Stage ended, he would go to a ce called The All Territory. Clyde didn''t know what kind of ce it was but he had a hunch.
''It is likely that the results of this selection will determine my ce in The All Territory.''
Clyde gave Nimue a curt nod and prepared to get out of the cube.
Because all the questions have been exhausted so he has no more business with her.
However, Nimue stopped him by saying something surprising.
"Because you''ve done such a good job, Duchess Gremory gave you a very good reward as well.
The answers we give to your question are very limited. So, The Duchess has given you another reward."
"Oh?" Clyde looked interested.
Nimue stretched out her hand towards Clyde. Suddenly in front of Clyde''s eyes appeared a Window with Gremory''s signature pink and ck color.
[ Demon Duchess Gremory''s Gifts. ]
[ 1. Demon Essence (Grade A). ]
[ 2. Skill: Hacking (Lv.1) ]
[ 3. 50,000 Coins. ]
Clyde''s eyes widened and his lips parted slightly. What Gremory gave him was extraordinary.
Clyde didn''t know what Demon Essence and [Skill: Hacking] were for. But it''s a good thing.
Even better, before Clyde asked, Nimue had already given him an exnation.
"That Demon Essence is one of the materials you can use to upgrade your Elderss Sword. And [Skill: Hacking] will be very useful to you in the next Chapter.
Then as for Coin, I don''t think I need to tell you anything about that, do I?"
"You gave all of this to me?" Clyde asked.
"Not me. The Duchess gave it."
"OK." Clyde nodded. "This is quite a reward. May I know what the three different colored Wendigos really are?"
Nimue smiled behind her veil. "They are humans who gave their souls to a Celestial who became the enemy of the Demon kind. What you have done has thwarted the Celestial''s n to get a new warrior."
~~~
Chapter 86 Little Answers
?"Warriors?" Clyde asked the question that suddenly appeared in his mind.
''Does that mean there will be - or already happen - some kind of war between the Celestials?''
Nimue tilted her head to one side. "I seem to have said too much. Well, it''s fine since I got permission from The Duchess."
This conversation with Nimue only provoked more questions for Clyde. But he knew that he could no longer ask. So Clyde chose to remain silent.
"I think that''s enough for now. I can''t tell you anything anymore," Nimue said. "You can leave now and this cube will disappear."
Clyde only replied with a small nod. Then walk out of the cube.
"Until we meet again, Clyde."
That''s what Nimue said before Clyde got out of the cube.
When Clyde waspletely out, the cube immediately disappeared without a trace as if it had never been there.
His mood is now much better because he got a very extraordinary reward.
Demon Essence to upgrade the Elderss Sword, a skill, and an enormous amount of coins. Even if he didn''t get the answers he wanted, at least he got all of that.
''It seems she really didn''t want to give me a clear answer from the beginning.''
Clyde shook his head wearily. He shouldn''t have his hopes too high that he would get everything he wanted from a Demon.
But he managed toe up with one answer that seemed to be the limit Gremory could give him. That is, the way to defeat the Outer God on the fifth day.
''I don''t need to sign any contract with Lio.''
Clyde came out of the subway station and walked towards the direction the motel was located.
He had expected that many questions woulde his way once he returned. And that would be really annoying.
He sighed as he continued walking. "What lies should I tell them?"
~~~
The train finally stopped at a station. As soon as the door opened, Lio immediately stepped out.
There was only himself getting off the train. Because it''s rare to use the train at this time.
This is an unnatural thing. Therefore Lio''s arrival here was something that mighte as a surprise to all who saw him.
When he came out of the station, what greeted him was a cityscape that seemed to havee out of a movie and a science fiction book that told about the utopian achievements of the future human being.
The towers are smooth with no ss windows. At least that looks from the outside.
The shapes of the towers also look very different from what is on Earth. Again, it just looks like something came out of films and books of science fiction stories.
Lio entered a tower that stood tallest and biggest in that ce.
The tower was shaped like a staff which was smooth white from the outside.
There was something like a pitch-ck crystal ball at the top which was nked by four pirs.
The sight of the orb is a stark contrast to this tower and all the mostly white buildings in this ce.
Lio''s gaze was straight ahead. The dim green me seemed to always be burning within his eyes. Make people who see him not want to approach him.
Lio took the elevator to the top floor. In his head, he kept imagining how he experienced humiliation by the servant.
*Ting!*
The elevator bell that had reached its destination made Lioe back to reality.
As soon as the door opened he immediately walked out with long strides towards a room at the end of the corridor.
After knocking on the door several times, Lio went inside.
"Lio?" A man with gray hair in his chair frowned. "Why did youe here at a time like this?"
Lio''s face formed a stiff expression. Then he said. "Chief, there was a problem that urred in the Selection Stage that I managed."
~~~
Clyde had seen his motel ahead. But suddenly he saw Agatha standing against the wall in an alley.
She waved at Clyde with a smile on her face. Agatha acted like a friend who was meeting an old friend after a long time.
Clyde walked up to her. ''Is she want to give the reward from the Personal Request she gave? I suspect she will be the same as Gremory and just gonna give me vague answers.''
Clyde was already prepared to get an answer that wasn''t very useful. So he didn''t expect too much when he approached Agatha.
"Good job, Clyde. You managed to finish it well," Agatha said with a smile. "Time for your reward. Ask your question."
"How can I easily get the treasure in tomorrow''s chapter?" Clyde immediately asked the question he thought would be most useful and got the clearest answer.
After all, he only had one chance to ask a question and he knew he would get no further answers more than this.
Agatha''s eyes opened at Clyde''s question. "H-How did you know about that?"
"That''s not important. Just answer my question since I''m pretty tired after killing 1,000 Wendigos."
Agatha still couldn''t break out from surprise.
"No no. Who did you meet in the subway earlier?" she asked.
She, of course, noticed when Clyde disappeared suddenly from the monitor while she was watching him on the subway earlier.
She suspected that he had actually met someone there but Agatha didn''t expect that Clyde would get a ''spoiler'' from whoever he met earlier.
"I met a woman in ck," Clyde answered curtly.
"The woman in ck?" Agatha looked thoughtful. She had an idea about who Clyde had met.
"What else did she tell you?" Agatha asked in a demanding tone.
"I can''t say." Clyde looks firm. He looked Agatha straight in the eye and confirmed that he had no intention of giving any more answers.
Agatha sighed. Even though she wanted to know, she couldn''t force Clyde. She could make him talk him using force but that was clearly unnecessary.
Luckily, Lio wasn''t here so there was nothing to worry about.
And Clyde could be someone she could use in the future. So there''s no reason to make him hate her now.
"Fine. I won''t ask about that anymore. This Selection Stage is already a mess anyway," Agatha said. "So, you want to know how to get the treasure for tomorrow?"
Clyde nodded curtly.
"Alright, I''ll tell you in as much detail as I can because I like you." Agatha tried to smile seductively.
However, Clyde just stared at her with a straight face. So the smile on Agatha''s face vanished instantly.
She snorted in annoyance and then said. "Okay. The way to get it is to enter the Main Control Tower. There, you must enter the office of the 10th Division and then look for a Hidden BOSS named ''X-1000''.
After you kill it - which is not easy - you will get a treasure box containing the rarest item."
''And in that treasure box, there must be the Nightmare Orb that I need.''
"Thanks," said Clyde.
"Remember, don''t tell anyone about meeting me. Be it Lio, or whatever Celestials you meet in the future," Agatha said.
"I didn''t n on saying it," Clyde said. "When will the BOSS appear?"
"Since Lio is away, I''m free to decide when the BOSS will appear," Agatha said with a happy smile. "When do you want me to summon that BOSS?"
Clyde frowned. "Why you ask me?"
Agatha shrugged. "It''s just... I want to give you something else besides answering questions."
"Then make it easier for the BOSS this time. Return the apocalypse settings to their original settings."
"I think I can do that." Agatha looked thoughtful. "Though it might take a little effort."
After some thought, Agatha said. "I''ll let it out at four in the afternoon."
Clyde nodded and walked out of the alley. Agatha looked at his back with a smile still on her lips.
"It was thanks to him that I managed to get 2,500 Coins. It was very good so it seems that providing the information was worth the price."
Agatha then disappeared from the alley after Clyde left. Returning to her white room to watch.
~~~
As soon as Clyde returned to the motel, he immediately saw Rodney eating a potato chip in the lobby.
Rodney is alone. He stared at Clyde as he walked in with a slightly tired face.
Rodney also saw that there were some small rips in the ck coat that Clyde was wearing. In addition, there are also incisions on his face.
Rodney also noticed that the sleeve of the ck coat seemed torn by something. Seeing that, Rodney''s eyes opened slightly.
''What happened to him?''
Seeing Clyde''s state that looked like he had just gone through a difficult battle, even though he was the strongest among them made Rodney speechless.
What he saw made Rodney feel that what Clyde had said before leaving this motel was true. What he faced out there was indeed not something they could face.
"Where are the others?" Clyde asked.
Clyde''s voice snapped Rodney out of his daze.
"O-Oh? They''re in their rooms," Rodney replied.
"What are you doing here?"
"I didn''t do anything," Rodney replied with a faint smile.
Clyde nodded and walked past him. "I''m going to rest for a bit before fighting the BOSS."
"BOSS?" Rodney stood looking at Clyde. "The BOSS will appear soon?"
"Four o''clock. Tell that to the others. I''m going to take a nap."
''He even knows when the BOSS will appear. Did he meet the beings behind this apocalypse?''
Rodney wondered as he watched Clyde''s back disappear into the room.
~~~
Chapter 87 The BOSS Descended
?Clyde went into his room and locked the door. He felt quite tired aftering back.
The task he had to do turned out to be quite hard.
Whereas previously Clyde had never imagined that he would feel tired when all of his Stats had been maxed out.
But apparently, those three Wendigos of various colors were giving him such a hard time. Coupled with killing 1000 Wendigo.
Clyde took off his Dark Night Coat and flopped down on his bed. He stared at the ceiling for a few moments, then sighed.
"Easy Mode? If Easy Mode is like this, what if I chose to do it in Hard Mode at that time?"
Clyde snorted, then chuckled. If he chooses Hard Mode, he doesn''t know whether the difficulties he will experience are the same as when he goes through this apocalypse like an ordinary person, or goes through it with even higher difficulties.
Just imagining it made Clyde''s tiredness go up several times. So he didn''t want to think about it anymore and closed his eyes.
He needed to recover his stamina and Magic Power. After all, the BOSS monsters that Agatha would take out would be at their proper level and strength.
''I do hope so. But Agatha said that it was still quite difficult for her. So, how strong the BOSS monster is still unknown.''
Clyde only hopes that Agatha seeds in setting this apocalypse - Selection Stage - to return to its initial settings. That way, he could allow the rest of the group members to kill the BOSS and gain Exp.
~~~
The white-haired man behind the table stared at Lio with a stiff face.
That face full of wrinkles - but still exuding extraordinary charisma - was the face of the leader of all World Masters. A man who has seen much in many worlds, Luther.
"You want to add more security to your current Selection Stage System?" Luther asked with a look of disbelief. "You know that''s impossible other than by buying a new System."
"I know there is another way, Chief," Lio replied.
Luther didn''t change his expression and kept looking at Lio with the same eyes.
"Please lend me the Guardians," Lio said.
Luther shook his head. "No. I can''t do that."
"Chief, like I told you before. Celestials are going in and out and interfering with my Selection Stage process! As a World Master, you should understand how I feel."
"You know how Celestials are. They always underestimate us. That''s why we have a Selection Stage System to prevent them from doing that," Luther said calmly.
Lio slumped back in his seat. "You know I don''t have enough funds to buy a good System."
"And whose fault was it?" Luther shot back.
Lio could only remain silent and gritted his teeth.
"Listen," Luther said. "I know how you feel. But right now there is conflict in the Far East. The Guardians are on guard there for the worst-case scenario."
"But until now nothing happened, right?" Lio said. "I need them more now, Chief."
Luther sighed. Lio is a very talented World Master and always shows great results.
But because of the mistake he made at that time, he lost a lot of Tokens to a Demon King and ended up only being able to buy a very bad Selection Stage System.
Lio is smart. But sometimes his greed traps him in bad situations.
"I can give them to you now. However, if I notice the slightest hint of dangerous movement in the Far East, I will immediately withdraw them," Luther said.
Suddenly a smile appeared on Lio''s face. "Thank you, Chief."
"Is there a reason why you want to protect your Selection Stage so badly from the Celestials?" Luther asked with eyes full of curiosity at Lio.
Lio took longer than he thought to answer. Making Luther''s curiosity even greater.
"I just want to protect my pride as a World Master, sir," Lio replied. "Do we as World Masters need another reason to prevent those Celestials from acting as they please?"
Luther did not say anything to reply to his words. He just stared at Lio with the same eyes.
"Alright, I won''t bother you for too long." Lio stood up from the chair. "I''ll take my leave right now. I thank you once again, Chief Luther."
Lio bowed respectfully to Luther.
"Hm, yeah. You may leave now. But remember, I will immediately call the Guardians over when I see things getting the slightest bit dangerous in the Far East."
"I understand, Chief," Lio replied.
After seeing Luther nod, Lio turned and walked towards the exit. Luther was certainly not stupid.
Lio wouldn''t act until he hade this far and asked him to deploy the Guardians if there wasn''t something very important on his Selection Stage.
"Did he find a good yer again?" Luther muttered with a confused look on his face.
Then he snorted. "That kid has always been ambitious. I hope he doesn''t make the same mistake."
~~~
The BOSS appeared at the time promised by Agatha. Clyde wakes up with the usual loud rm sounds that herald the appearance of a BOSS.
Clyde felt very heavy leaving the arms of his bed. This felt like the old time when he still felt toozy to go to school on cold mornings. Or the morning after he stayed up all night ying games.
But not like before when he could choose to just skip sses. Now if he didn''t wake up, he would suffer immeasurable losses.
Even though he was sure that he wouldn''t die, sleeping while a BOSS monster appeared was just stupid.
So Clyde forced his body to get up. After sleeping for a few hours, Clyde felt that his body had be much better.
He also felt that the Magic Power within him had recovered.
After finishing stretching, Clyde put his Dark Night Coat back on - which was torn at the arm - and took out the Elderss Sword.
Clyde stared at the sword. "Do I have to upgrade this sword now?"
But Clyde thought again, considering the performance of this sword during the time he fought against three Wendigos of different colors, and killed 1000 Wendigos, he didn''t feel the sharpness of this sword diminish one bit.
"Maybe I can do it some other time." Clyde shrugged and put the Elderss Sword at his waist. After that, he left the room.
Outside, all of his group members were already standing with stiff faces filled with anxiety while staring outside. As soon as he came out of the room, everyone immediately stared at him.
"Are you alright?" Asqa immediately asked with a worried face.
Clyde nodded. "I''m alright. You don''t need to worry."
"Where exactly were you?" Sonya asked.
"I''m hunting Wendigos and trying to do something to bring this apocalypse back to its original setting," said Clyde.
After he said that everyone looked at him with confused faces.
"You don''t need to know the details. It''s up to you if you feel suspicious or whatever.
But I did try to return the apocalypse settings to their original settings so that everything would be easier for you," Clyde exined in an even tone. Doesn''t seem to care what they think of him.
"So... are the settings back now?" Mona asked again.
Clyde sighed. "I hope so. Although, actually I''m still not sure."
''Agatha just said that she would try and she also said that it would be quite difficult.''
"Whatever it is, it''s no use being here now," Rodney said. "In the end we have to fight and kill that BOSS, right?"
They all agreed with Rodney''s words. So they went out feeling anxious.
[ CHAPTER 1: UNBEARABLE HUNGER. ]
[ PROGRESS: A MYSTERIOUS CREATURE HAS APPEARED FROM ANOTHER WORLD. KILL THE CREATURE BEFORE IT DEVOURS EVERYTHING. ]
[ OBJECTIVE: THE MYSTERIOUS CREATURE IS A ''BOSS'' BY THE NAME OF ''THE DEVOURER'' . KILL THE BOSS TO COMPLETE CHAPTER TWO. ]
A notification appeared before their eyes. Then a ck vortex hole appeared in the cloudy afternoon sky.
The already dark sky was now even darker. Apart from that it started raining and the wind was blowing. A storm wille to apany their fight with the monster.
"That''s it..." Reed said through trembling lips.
"You know what it is?" Clyde asked.
"ording to the name. It''s called The Devourer. A monster that will devour everything if we don''t defeat it," Rodney replied.
"How to beat it?" Clyde asked.
"The monster will open its mouth when the timees. And then, it will expose the most vulnerable part of its body, its heart," Rodney said.
Tentacles emerged from within the ck vortex in the sky. Then a strange-looking body appeared.
The monster''s body seemed to consist only of ck and purplish clumps of tentacles of various sizes that moved rapidly.
There was arge yellow eye above its body. Those eyes also moved like a predator looking for prey.
The size of the monster''s body is also quiterge. It''s so big it could almost swallow a building.
"The monster''s mouth is at the bottom of its body," Rodney said. "Unfortunately there is no specific time when it opens its mouth. So, we can only rely on luck."
"GRRRRRHHHH!!!"
The monster let out a deep and terrifying growl. The Growl was so big that it created earthquake-like vibrations that shook buildings.
Once the monsters had fully descended into this world, Clyde walked over ignoring their worried calls.
[ Inspection (Lv. 3) is activated! ]
As soon as Clyde used his Skill, information from the monster appeared immediately.
<<>>
[ Name: The Devourer. ]
[ Affiliation: Abyss Monsters. ]
[ Level: 40 ]
[ Skill: Devour (Lv.5) ]
[ Stats: Strength (5), Stamina (5), Agility (0), Magic Power (5) ]
[ Weaknesses: - ]
[Affinity: Darkness. ]
[ Rating: A (B-) ]
~~~
Chapter 88 Begin The Fight
?Clyde grinned after he see the information about the monster.
It turned out that the monster was not as strong as its dreadful appearance. Maybe it''s because Agatha has managed to restore the setting of this apocalypse - Selection Stage, somehow.
Maybe because all the parties that previously messed up the setting were no longer interested and left here after seeing what happened to Clyde.
There was a man who imed to be a servant of a God, then Nimue who imed to serve Gremory, then the two World Masters who schemed behind each other''s backs.
All of that might make anyone who wants to mess up the settings so no longer interested in doing so.
Because they saw that many other parties were approaching Clyde, there was no point in messing up the settings anymore since Clyde was clear that he would be strong enough to go through everything.
''Or is there another reason I missed I didn''t know? Anyway, it doesn''t matter anymore.''
Clyde turned away from the monster and walked again towards the other.
"This time, you guys can take care of the monster without me," Clyde said.
Of course, his words surprised them.
"What do you mean?" Sonya asked.
"This monster is only a Level 40 monster."
That answer had given them everything. They were all between Levels 32 to 35. And there were six of them.
"So you can indeed see the information of the monster," Rodney said. "That''s why you can tell that the four of us are Regressors."
Clyde just nodded. "Now that doesn''t matter. You guys have to fight him to get the Exp."
Reed drew his sword from its scabbard and said. "If it is a Level 40 monster, we can easily finish it off and get revenge for causing us trouble that time."
They all saw Reed''s spirit which represented how the Regressors felt. Sonya and Asqa also felt calm seeing the four of them have such enthusiasm.
And there''s no reason to doubt the information Clyde provided.
They had guessed that Clyde could indeed see information from a monster or a yer. So, his words just prove everything.
"So you''re not going to fight?" he asked.
"I don''t want to be greedy and take all that Exp," answered Clyde.
His answer made them all think that Clyde''s Level was already so high that he didn''t want to bother looking for Exp anymore.
Actually, what did Clyde do until he could reach such a high level to hand over the Exp of a BOSS which would definitely be huge?
"What are you waiting for?" Clyde asked. "Go kill it."
Rodney shot Clyde a look full of obvious envy. ''Just what has he done and how did he get his insane powers?''
But now Rodney knew it was pointless to think about it. He stared ahead where The Devourer was hovering with tentacles waving disgustingly.
"Alright, let''s kill it first," said Rodney. "I''ll be in charge since I''m the only one of us who''s ever killed it."
There''s nothing toin about that. The Regressors saw for themselves that Rodney was the one who killed the monster first.
Even though it might just be down to luck but at least he was the one who knew how to deal with that monster the best.
The six of them walked closer to the monster. But Asqa stopped in front of Clyde and looked at him with a look that confused Clyde.
"What?" Clyde asked.
"Are you okay? I didn''t have time to ask how you were because you fell asleep right away and didn''t want to disturb you," said Asqa.
Clyde blinked rapidly a few times. Clyde could see the worry in Asqa''s eyes.
"You don''t need to worry about me. I''m fine," Clyde replied in an even voice. However, in his heart, he felt a strange feeling again.
Only this time someone looked at him with worried eyes that seemed sincere. Was it because she was really worried, or was it just his thought? Clyde didn''t understand.
Asqa smiled faintly at him. "That''s good to know. Then, I''ll go with the others to fight that monster."
Asqa walked after the others toward the monster. Clyde stared at her back from behind. Right now, Asqa''s back looks straighter than before.
Her body is indeed small but something makes her appear bigger. From the look on her face, Clyde could see a calm face that was previously only filled with fear and anxiety.
"I think she''s feeling better now."
Clyde doesn''t know how or when Asqa changed. He didn''t realize it was because he was rarely with them and preferred to go alone.
"GRRRRRHHHHHH!!!"
The Devourer, that monster, let out a growl that seemed to shake the world once more. Now its tentacles are many times longer than before.
Therge yellow eyes that were at the top of the mass of tentacles moved very slowly and finally stopped after spotting six people approaching it.
Clyde did say for them to fight the monster with their strength. However, he couldn''t possibly be reckless.
Everything may seem to be going well now. But no one will know what will happen when the fight starts.
Something could go wrong, so Clyde couldn''t rx before the monster really died. Or before the day ends.
The rain fell as they dashed toward the monster. Rodney took the lead and jumped over some copsed buildings. The others followed behind him.
As usual, Sonya and Asqa were at the back. But Sonya is no longer as protective of Asqa as she was before.
She is the one who spends the most time with her so Sonya knows that Asqa is much stronger than before. She was no longer a whiny girl who could only hide and cry.
"Cover our back," Sonya said to Asqa.
Asqa just nodded briefly. When she do that, Sonya could see the look on her face and eyes that showed determination.
Seeing her, Sonya was sure that Asqa would be fine. So she can focus on attacking.
"IT''S COMING!"
The sound of Rodney''s scream from the front made Sonya and Asqa alert. When the two of them looked ahead, they saw ck tentacles shooting toward them.
They immediately scattered in all directions to avoid it. The tentacles hit the building and the ground behind them. Its movement is slow but the strength of the tentacles is so strong that it can inflict that much damage.
Sonyanded safely on the top of a not-too-tall building and immediately drew her bow. However, she didn''t know where she should aim.
''Do I have to shoot that huge eye?''
Sonya then fired her arrow at the huge eye. With such a big target, it was impossible for her to miss.
She didn''t miss, but the shot didn''t have any significant effect at all. Sonya''s arrow was almost stuck in the yellow eyes. But the arrow immediately disappeared as if sucked in by something.
Rodney and Eric were not far ahead of her. So she immediately ran closer to them and asked.
"Hey, where should I shoot?"
"You can''t hurt it now even if you hit its eye" Rodney replied.
"So?"
"For now we just have to defend against those tentacles."
Another tentacle shot from The Devourer''s main body towards them. Rodney jumped over to the tentacle and shed his katana sword.
*CRAATT!!*
The tentacles were cut off and fell on top of the building. A purplish liquid sshed on Rodney''s face.
Rodneynded back between Eric and Sonya.
"This is easier than before," Rodney said to Eric with a smirk on his face.
"Is that true?" Eric turned to the monster. "If that''s true, this fight wouldn''t be as bad asst time."
Eric jumped to sh at another tentacle that was already shooting toward them.
"Like Clyde said, we seem to be able to handle this easily," Rodney said to Sonya. "Before that monster opens its mouth on the bottom of its body, we can only attack its tentacles."
Sonya nodded. "Alright."
Rodney then ran to catch up with Eric. Meanwhile, Sonya pulled her bowstring again and started aiming.
But Sonya remembers that Asqa is not next to her now. She immediately spread her gaze to look for Asqa with a worried look.
But it turns out she needn''t have worried. Across the other building, Asqa is healing Mona who seems to have a wound on her arm.
Asqa''s face no longer looks scared. She seemed so focused on healing Mona.
Not long after, Asqa nodded as if to say that she had finished healing her. Mona immediately jumped to her feet and prepared to fight again.
Asqa then ran away and looked for a ce to hide. Seeing that, Sonya smiled. She has nothing to worry about now.
After all, Sonya knew that even if Clyde said he would let them do the fighting this time, he wouldn''t sit idly by when he saw a dangerous situation.
Sonya turned to Clyde. He seemed to be looking at them with focused eyes and observing every detail of the fight. So Sonya was increasingly convinced that he woulde when she saw the danger.
~~~
Chapter 89 Cloudy Fight
?The appearance of the BOSS was so dreadful. Moreover, it''s descending coupled with the heavy rain that started to fall.
It''s a pity that not many people were aware of the phenomenon of the descent of a hideous monster with a body covered in tentacles. Because now almost no one is alive to witness it.
Leon''s group is one of the surviving human groups until this time. They consider themselves lucky that they can survive.
Because they know most of their sess in passing every day is due to Clyde and his group clearing out the BOSS so the Chapter can be over.
Just like this time. They could only stare through the windows of the house they were temporarily upying as a shelter.
They stared at the monsters descending from within the ck vortex that had suddenly appeared in the sky.
Judging from what had happened to them before the BOSS appeared, then they could only think that this BOSS''s strength was far greater than the zombie BOSS in the previous chapter.
They of course didn''t know that someone manipted the settings of the previous Chapter so that the monsters became stronger than they should be.
Now they also don''t know that the setting has returned to the beginning and the monster is not as strong as they thought.
But who are they? Apart from ordinary people who suddenly get trapped in this apocalypse without knowing anything and without any benefits.
So, they could only watch all the events unfold before their eyes and thank Clyde''s group for finishing everything.
Leeching? In a messed up world like this, if that was the best way of survival, then they would do it without the slightest bit of guilt.
"Whoa, I didn''t think things would get this bad," Wiley said as he looked straight at the floating BOSS.
Wiley flinched slightly when the yellow eyes moved because it felt as if they could find him at any moment.
"Yeah, yesterday we only fought zombies. Now we''re fighting something that seems to havee out of a nightmare that we never expected," Leon said.
Seeing the two of them by the window, the rest of the group approached the window and stared at the event.
L swallowed her saliva and stood behind Albert. She wanted to see the event but also felt scared.
"Do you think that group will clean it up this time too?" Rosie asked.
"I''m sure they will. Just like what happened before," said Leon. "Because if they fail, who else can we expect?"
Leon of course did not expect an answer. They knew that the group consisted of the strongest yers in this apocalypse. If they couldn''t beat that BOSS, then this world would be doomed.
So they can only hope and pray in their hearts that they will seed. Although they are not sure whether prayer and hope are enough to help them.
~~~
Back to the fight between Clyde''s group and The Devourer.
Tentacles kepting out of the monster''s body and darting toward them. As if it had eyes to see its prey, the tentacles moved after the six moving targets separately.
Even though there is only one giant eye on the monster''s body, those eyes alone were enough to move the tentacles simultaneously at incredible speed toward them.
They shed their des at the tentacles that were attacking simultaneously.
However, no matter how many tentacles they shed, new tentacles would suddenly appear near them and rece the task of the previous tentacles.
Then the cut tentacles will return to The Devourer''s body. Thene back in one piece to attack.
"How long is this all going to work?!" Sonya shouted in frustration at random.
Although random, she knew that the Regressors heard her. Sonya didn''t care who would answer her.
"I don''t t know!" Eximed Reed who was closest to her. "We never know when that weakness will be exposed. So just wait and cut all these tentacles!"
Sonya gritted her teeth in annoyance. Continuing to fight without knowing when this will all end made her feel uneasy.
She had indeed heard that they could only rely on luck as there was no certain pattern of when the monster would open its mouth and reveal its weakness.
But when she saw how these tentacles worked, Sonya couldn''t help but think that something bad could happen unexpectedly when they let their guard down. And that carelessness could cost them their life!
Sonya turned to where Clyde had been. He was still there and didn''t seem to have moved from where he had been standing since earlier.
''Is he really not going to help?''
Sonya cursed in her heart. Clyde, with his strength, will surely be able to ovee that monster easily. But he chose not to do anything and decided to watch them suffer like this.
''Is this fair?''
Clyde did say that he wanted to give the BOSS''s experience to them. But if the BOSS was this strong, Sonya wasn''t sure if they could handle it and take its Exp.
"Sonya, watch out!"
While Sonya was staring at Clyde thinking about this predicament, she heard Asqa''s voice screaming at the top of her lungs from a distance.
Upon hearing that, Sonya didn''t bother to look at what was heading her way. She just immediately jumped to dodge as far as she could.
*BOOM!*
It turned out that tworge tentacles were darting toward her. The tentacles shattered the roof of the building where he had been standing.
Sonya turned to the direction Asqa''s voice hade from. But she was no longer there. Because Asqa has disappeared again to hide.
Sonya gritted her teeth. ''I have to focus first right now. Otherwise, I will really die by that monster!''
Thinking about when the monster would open its mouth proved useless. Because it''s not something she can control. All she can do now is survive until the timees.
Several other tentacles came at her again with incredible speed. Sonya jumped nimbly and dodged everything.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
The tentacles destroy buildings with ease. The power was so great as if the buildings had just been hit by a huge wrecking ball.
Sonya chose not to attack the tentacles and just dodged. Her arrow attack wouldn''t be able to cut the tentacles.
She can destroy the tentacles by adding her Magic Power to her arrows.
However, it wasn''t a good decision since even the monster''s weak point had yet to appear. She couldn''t waste Magic Power just destroying the tentacles.
After all, with all the stats maxed out, Sonya had no trouble dodging.
Lightning and strong wind apanied their fight. Clyde who was looking from afar saw the scene of the battle as a painting by an artist with a dark imagination level.
A monster that appears to be made up of nothing but a mass of tentacles with yellow eyes on the crest of its body hovers above the dark city sky. Amidst the pouring rain, the lightning shing and the wind blowing hard.
Then, there was a group of humans who looked like small specks in the middle of the darkness trying to subdue the beast.
Maybe anyone who came up with the idea to create something like this was indeed an artist with a twisted brain.
How did theye up with the idea to trap humans in a game of survival with monsters like that?
Clyde wasn''t sure if the Celestials had created this, or if there were other powerful beings who held the power to make a reality in the human world the way they wanted it to be.
Clyde didn''t know what to feel. Should he feel angry because they made human life like a toy? Because at first, he didn''t really care about the people around him.
He didn''t care whether they were happy, miserable, or even dead.
And he had the immense advantage of going through this apocalypse on the easiest difficulty level so he didn''t feel suffering enough to really hate the Celestials.
Clyde only thinks of himself as living life in novels and games. Killing monsters, getting amazing super powers, getting cool weapons.
Something he originally read to escape reality, but now he really is in it.
This kind of life seems better than his life in the real world which is alone, bullied, and monotonous.
So, should he feel grateful instead of hating the Celestials?
*BOOM!*
The sound of an explosion broke Clyde''s thoughts. He immediately looked up and found that those yellow eyes were being enveloped in yellow lightning.
He also saw how one of the buildings that looked like it had just been hit by lightning was dropping debris. The building looks like it''s about to copse.
''Did anyone get hit by that lightning?'' thought Clyde.
The monster wouldn''t snatch up an empty building. It must be targeting someone who was originally in that building.
Clyde jumped up on the building next door so he could get a better look.
~~~
Chapter 90 Dash Forward
The debris from the building that was struck by the enormous lightning fell to the ground.
"Fuck!" Sonya swore loudly. The person who had almost been hit by the powerful yellow lightning was none other than her.
Luckily, Sonya was still able to dodge with her incredible movement speed. She is now in the building with Asqa.
Asqa, who saw that she had just escaped from the incident, immediately approached her.
"Are you alright?" Asqa asked.
"Yeah, I''m fine," answered Sonya. "You didn''t say that the monster has an attack like that!"
Sonya shouted at Mona who was standing not far from them. Mona''s eyes stared at the monster but she could hear Sonya''s angry screams.
"I was dead before that monster let out that kind of attack!" Mona shouted back. "You should have yelled at Rodney!"
Sonya gritted her teeth. She didn''t know what happened to them that''s why she just thought that they passed the moments fighting the monsters together.
In that case, this was indeed Rodney''s fault. Why didn''t he tell her about this?
Sonya turned to Rodney. He, Eric, and Reed were also fighting the tentacles that were still trying to ensnare them.
''Was he doing it on purpose? Or just forgot about it?'' Sonya thought while looking at Rodney.
"Sonya, another tentacleing!" Asqa said.
Sonya no longer felt the need to turn to make sure. She immediately jumped to avoid the tentacles.
*BOOM!*
Sure enough, tentacles were attacking where she had been standing.
Sonya once again thanked Asqa but before she could say it Asqa had disappeared somewhere.
Sonya felt relieved instead of upset. That means Asqa is aware of her position in battle.
Instead of staying and putting herself in danger, Asqa immediately hides when she sees a danger she can''t handle.
Sonya didn''t notice that Rodney was ncing at her from where she was standing.
''So she''s not dead yet?'' thought Rodney.
Even though he saw clearly that the lightning from the monster''s big yellow eyes had hit the ce where she is standing. Yet, it''s not killing her.
Rodney felt a little disappointed. But it can''t be helped.
Rodney, of course, deliberately didn''t tell about the lightning attack from The Devourer because he really wanted Sonya or Asqa to die here. That way, he can reduce the number of Clyde''s friends.
Of course, Rodney thought that Asqa and Sonya were Clyde''s friends because he was seen with them from the start.
So, if they both died, Clyde would probably be caught in a deep depression and let his guard down.
But it looks like that n can''t work now. Rodney just shrugged it off because there were still plenty of opportunities to do that.
He had to start executing a n to kill them or Clyde and his friends would finish this Selection Stage with a Grade that was better than his Grade.
They continued the seemingly endless fight against the hundreds of dark purple tentacles that kepting.
In the midst of that frustration, Sonya didn''t have time to ask Rodney because she didn''t have the chance to get closer to him. She was busy surviving on her own.
Clyde was also watching them from a distance. He also felt that this fight had no progress.
Rodney said that the monster''s weak point would appear eventually but he didn''t know when.
But is it true? Clyde suddenly felt suspicious of Rodney. He also never said that the monster could emit lightning attacks like before. Fortunately, Sonya was still able to dodge.
That made his suspicious feelings towards Rodney even higher.
He was a Regressor who had lived through this apocalypse until the fifth day.
Or, so he said. As someone who has a lot of information, Clyde is not surprised that Rodney - and his friends - will use that information to their advantage.
They will share pieces of information they want to share and will not share it if it could benefit them.
Clyde understood that way of thinking because he would have done the same thing if he had been them. Because of that, he will not be easily fooled.
''For now, I should just watch and see what they do,'' thought Clyde.
The fight continued as if without hope. As time passed, their feelings grew even darker.
"How long, Rodney?" Reed asked in a tired voice.
"I don''t know. I told you that I don''t know when it will open its mouth, right? We can only wait," Rodney replied.
Reed sighed and again shed at the tentacles that wereing towards him. For now, it seems that he can only resignedly wait until the timees.
The yellow eyes suddenly lit up a little brighter.
"That monster will shoot that lightning again!" Eric said.
When the monster decided to shoot lightning, the giant''s eyes would determine the target first. So, they only need to see where those eyes are looking and dodge.
With that size, it shouldn''t be hard to see where those eyes were looking.
Eric and Reed thought that Rodney had already told Asqa and Sonya about the lightning strike before they got into the fight. They don''t know about the truth and Rodney''s cunning n.
Several minutester passed by shing at the tentacles. Finally, a change urred to the monster''s body.
Something opened under the monster. Because they were under it, they could see it clearly.
The body that only looked like a lump of tentacles opened to reveal something like a round mouth. There were five rows of serration-like teeth in the mouth.
"That''s it!" Rodney said.
"How do we kill it?" he asked.
Actually, there was an easier way to inflict damage on the weak spot in the center of the monster''s mouth. That is by using Sonya''s power which can shoot arrows.
But that way Sonya would be the yer who killed the monster after she found out its secret.
''I can''t let that happen,'' thought Rodney.
There''s something different about the BOSS in this chapter than in previous Chapters.
Previously, rewards would be shared equally among all party members who attacked the BOSS, now a yer whonds thest hit on the BOSS will receive a [Title].
With Sonya''s strength, which can shoot arrows from a distance and perfect aim, her chances of getting thest hit on this BOSS are quiterge.
"I''ll go ahead and attack him. You guys have to protect me from the tentacles trying to get in the way," Rodney said while looking at Eric and Reed. "We have to do it together."
Eric and Reed immediately agreed on the idea. They ran and jumped to get to the top of the building where Mona and Sonya were.
Asqa was nowhere to be seen. She hid well so as not to be hit by the tentacles and create a burden for them.
As soon as the three of them got near Mona and Sonya, Rodney immediately said the same thing he had said before.
"You actually know how to kill it?" Sonya asked.
Rodney nodded. "Yes. But, I need you guys to ovee those tentacles."
Sonya stared at Rodney with narrowed eyes. "Are you sure there isn''t anything else you need to say?"
Rodney caught the meaning of Sonya''s suspicious gaze and seemed to judge him. But he just acted innocently.
"Uhm, no. You must have been shocked by the lightning bolt that came out of that monster''s eyes earlier, right? Sorry but I was too focused on dodging those tentacles that I forgot to tell you," said Rodney while making a guilty face.
"You can say before we start the fight," Sonya replied sharply.
Rodney once again put on a guilty face. "I''m really sorry. But we don''t have time to do this right now."
"GRRRHHH!!!"
The Devourer let out that terrifying growl. Its circr-shaped mouth opened even wider and began sucking in everything under it.
Buildings, cars, trucks, and all kinds of things that got under its mouth were all sucked up like dust that was powerless before a vacuum cleaner.
"We''re also going to be sucked in if we don''t do something soon," Rodney said.
Seeing the situation had be like this, Sonya decided to shake off her angry feelings.
"Okay. I''ll protect you from afar," Sonya said, pulling her bowstring. An arrow suddenly appeared on the bow.
Rodney nodded, then turned to Eric, Reed, and Mona.
"Let''s go!" he said before dashing towards The Devourer''s mouth.
At a time like this, The Devourer was activating its [Skill: Devour] to restore its strength after hundreds of its tentacles were shed.
In this stage, the monster can still carry out tentacles attacks although not as often as before. But it would still be dangerous if they let their guard down.
From behind, Sonya aimed and fired an arrow that she had coated with her Magic Power.
The arrows hit the tentacles that were heading toward Reed and instantly destroyed them because the tentacles were quite small.
With support from Sonya, they can move on without worry.
~~~
Chapter 91 In Front Of His Eyes
Sonya continued to shoot arrows at high speed. It was as if she was not holding a bow but a rifle with that amazing shooting speed.
Arrows that shot from Sonya''s bow shattered every debris thrown by the monster''s tentacles. But the monster continued to create tentacles and use them to keep attacking them.
So thebination of debris and tentacles creates a big obstacle for them to get close to The Devourer''s mouth.
Rodney continues to lead in front with sparkling eyes because he has found his goal that is so clear in front of his eyes.
There was a yellow light in the center of the circr mouth with circr jagged teeth. There, if he managed tond just three hits - or even less- he would sessfully kill that monster and im his [Title].
Rodney shed swords at the tentacles approaching from his right and left.
*SRATT!*
*SRATT!*
The disgusting purple liquid oozing out of the monster covered Rodney''s face and body more and more. The liquid smelled so bad. But Rodney didn''t see it as something that bothered him.
Eric, Reed, and Mona were also behind him following him faithfully. They sure also face the same struggle.
Their situation who was injured and covered in purplish liquid was not much different from Rodney''s. They followed Rodney faithfully without questioning anything he did because they hadplete trust in him.
For them, Rodney is a leader who can be relied upon. He was also the most powerful of them even though their strength difference wasn''t that great.
Following Rodney''s orders until now had always yielded good results. Of course, Rodney also made a shady decision. However, in a world like this, they see it as something necessary.
"Watch out!" Rodney shouted.
From in front of them, a bunch of tentacles wrapped around each other and became one shot toward them. Thanks to Rodney''s warning, they were able to avoid the tentacles.
*BOOM!*
The group of tentacles crashed into a building where they were previously standing. The building immediately lost an enormous amount of its original height.
"Hang on! We''ll be there in a bit!" Rodney shouted again.
After hearing his shout they keep moving and don''tin about all the attacks that are aimed at them.
Sonya and Asqa - who hade out of her hiding ce - saw the four Regressors running across the building to get closer to the monster''s mouth.
Asqa could judge the situation well and could see that The Devourer''s attack was now fully aimed at the Regressors who were approaching it.
The tentacles no longer charged toward the two of them. The giant yellow eyes were no longer directed at them as well. It was directed to look at the four Regressors who were getting closer to that spot.
"Are you alright?" Asqa asked when she arrived beside Sonya.
Sonya, who was busy shooting arrows, flinched when she heard her voice.
"Oh, s-sorry." Asqa feels guilty seeing that reaction.
Sonya breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that it was only Asqa who hade out of her hiding.
She nodded. "It''s alright."
Sonya then proceeded to shoot her arrows. Several of her arrows hit debris and tentacles that were about to hit the Regressors. Sonya greatly reduced their burden.
"Maybe I should go after them," Asqa suddenly said while looking at the Regressors who were advancing.
"Don''t be crazy," Sonya said. "I thought you already understood your abilities."
"I thought I could help those who were getting hit," Asqa said.
"You don''t have to bother with that. They didn''t ask you to go there, did they?"
After thinking about that for a few moments, Asqa agreed with what Sonya had said. She had previously thought of using her powers to heal them.
However, even though her stat has been maxed out she cannot match their strength which is focused on fighting ability. So the possibility of her getting hurt will be greater if she follows them.
The side of her heart that wants to help others says to follow them and help if someone gets hurt.
However, the other side of her heart which wants survival screams louder and pushed away that wish.
So Asqa decided to stand next to Sonya and watch the Regressors from a safe distance.
"We''re almost there!" Rodney shouted then jumped towards a huge tentacle that was reaching towards them. His three friends followed behind.
A tentacle shot out suddenly from under Rodney. He btedly noticed the tentacles and immediately felt panicked.
''Fuck! Even though I just need a little more!''
Rodney cursed in his heart while staring at the tip of the tentacle that almost hit his body.
*CRAATTT!!!*
However, an arrow shing with a bluish light came from behind and instantly destroyed the tentacle.
Rodney immediately felt relieved. Sonya saves him just in time. He owed his life to her, but that wasn''t enough to stop all the ns that were already in his head.
Rodney jumped through the debris after getting past the tentacles. The Devourer''s mouth was right in front of his eyes. The mouth opened showing the way to the terrible abyss.
Rodney activated [Skill: Sword sh] and shed his katana de toward The Devourer''s mouth opening.
A crescent-shaped ck sh with a total length of five meters shot out from Rodney''s sword and shot toward the center of the circr mouth.
"Cover me!" Rodney shouted while turning towards hisrades behind.
Eric, Reed, and Mona nodded and immediately carried out Rodney''s order. They spread out and protect the tentacles and debris that might lead to him.
"GRRRHHHH!!!"
After Rodney''s strike hit the center of The Devourer''s mouth, the monster let out a very powerful growl sound.
With them this close to its mouth, the impact of the growl was so painful.
Their heads ached, their hearts pounding so fast. They find it difficult to maintain their footing on an already fragile basis.
But they knew they couldn''t fail now. So they tried hard to survive in the midst of that enormous pressure.
Rodney knows that his strength is far greater now than when he faced The Devourer for the first time. So he will need less damage to kill the monster.
After better controlling himself from The Devourer''s growl sensation, Rodney continued his attacks.
He jumped over the tentacles and debris then activated [Skill: Sword s] again.
The crescent-shaped sh shot out with incredible speed and aimed straight for the center of The Devourer''s mouth.
Rodney who saw it grinned with shining eyes as if he could already see the victory before his eyes.
However, Rodney''s expectations were canceled by the group of Tentacles that suddenly gathered in front of his Sword''s sh.
What happened next was something obvious. The ck sh smashed into the cluster of tentacles and sliced ??several of them.
However, it wasn''t strong enough to break through all the tentacles that had gathered and formed severalyers.
Rodney''s sh shattered before it managed to destroy all the tentacles. Making his attacks pointless and his hopes that were already soaring high plummeted.
"Shit!"
Rodney immediately jumped in to get an even better footing.
This time it was more difficult for him to get footed because the amount of debris was already very low and the monster had already pulled its tentacles to protect itself.
Rodney jumped so he had to fall a little further down. Rodney also had to concentrate so he didn''t hit any debris or slip so he fell head first.
His friends who saw the situation had changed immediately scattered and secured themselves.
"What happened?" Mona asked in a panicked tone.
"I saw Rodney''s attack hit a bunch of tentacles," Eric replied.
"So his attack failed?" Reed asked.
Eric nodded briefly.
Reed sighed. "Where is he now?"
They spread their gaze amidst this steadily rising rain and debris. Until finally Mona managed to find the whereabouts of Rodney.
"He''s there!" Mona pointed with her hand.
Eric and Reed followed Mona''s direction and saw Rodney on the side of a building that was about to copse.
Rodney seemed to be looking up and ignoring the rain falling on his face.
"He''s fine," Reed said in a relieved tone.
"GRRHHH!!!"
The Devourer let out another growl. The Growl had the same terrifying effect as before.
Eric, Mona, and Reed ground their teeth. Due to too much exposure to The Devourer''s growls, their ears were bleeding and their bodies were trembling even more.
Rodney, who is under it, is no exception. But he was able to withstand the effects of the pain better because he was determined to get the [Title].
His ear was also bleeding a little. But this is better than how he felt in the previous turn because his Level is much higher now.
''If I manage tond one more hit at that point, I will kill it!''
With her willpower, Rosney fought back against the pressure of the growl.
A momentter the growl stopped. Rodney immediately took off and jumped again to close the distance and cast [Skill: Sword sh].
~~~
Chapter 92 Finally
"They are quite determined."
Inside a dark room consisting of metal walls, a woman with long ck hair said.
She was staring at a screen floating in front of her. A screen shows the struggle of several humans fighting a horrible monster.
She had just returned from a task and immediately watched the broadcast about the sessfully-hijacked Selection Stage.
The woman didn''t see much of what had happened before. She only thought that the four people were the strongest yers who had survived to this stage.
The screen immediately shows how they struggle. The woman didn''t bother to change her point of view so she didn''t see - yet - Sonya shooting arrows from afar and Asqa who was waiting beside her.
Of course, she also didn''t notice yet that Clyde was standing and observing the fight without any intention of interfering.
The woman watched how they struggled to survive in an impossible situation.
She remembered how she went through the same thing back then. She even had to kill her best friend to survive a little longer.
Because she suddenly remembered that, the woman immediately shook her head to get rid of the image.
She didn''t want to remember it any longer. That memory only made her feel immense rage, hate, and sadness. So, as much as possible the woman tried not to remember it anymore.
Although that memory is something impossible for her to forget.
The woman saw that the man who was at the very front of the group shot up and sent a dark crescent-shaped sh toward the base of the monster''s body.
The woman''s brow furrowed. ''Did he already know the monster''s weakness?''
Looking at him from here, she felt that he already knew where to attack and how to defeat the monster.
Unfortunately, the attack only hit theyers of tentacles that had suddenly appeared to protect the center of its mouth.
The man who had just let out that attack showed a frustrated face and then jumped to dodge.
His other friends were still trying to get rid of all the debris and tentacles that were moving toward the man. It seemed that man was their leader.
Judging from all that the man had done, the woman knew that he was a leader they could rely on.
After a while, the man tried to carry out another attack. Its eyes seemed to light up as they reflected the yellow light from the monster''s open mouth.
"What will he do? He doesn''t have much time."
The woman noticed that the sides of the circr mouth began to move too close. The man didn''t have much time left to kill the monster.
Without her noticing, the woman''s heartbeat began to get faster. It was undeniable, everything that she saw made her tense and was somehow entertaining to watch.
No wonder those Celestials wanted to keep seeing something like this.
But suddenly, while she was focused on watching with unblinking eyes, the screen distorted and turned blurry.
The woman frowned in annoyance. "What is..."
At that time suddenly a man entered the room. The woman did not notice his arrival.
"They havee," the man said.
It was only then that the woman noticed his presence and turned around. "What do you mean?"
"World Master''s Guardians."
The woman took a deep breath. She gritted her teeth in annoyance.
"How did theye?" the woman said.
"Someone." The man looked at the woman with a meaningful gaze. "Go to their headquarters and have the Chief pull the Guardians from the Far East."
The woman immediately noticed his meaningful gaze from him. "Someone?" she asked. "Don''t tell me..."
"Yeah." the man nodded. "It''s Lio."
Hearing Lio''s name made the rage inside the woman which had started to die out re up again.
The woman did not say anything and chose to leave immediately from that ce. She had to get out of there quickly to vent her anger rather than let it explode here.
When she walked away in long strides from this room, the screen finally went outpletely and only left a ck color floating in the air.
The man did not hinder her. He just watched her leave and after she disappeared the man walked to the table at the end of the room and opened a book.
The book had a leather cover with red ''RESISTANCE'' written on it that looked like it was written in blood.
The man then wrote down a report on the task he had just done before he got here.
~~~
Back to the battle between the yers and The Devourer.
Rodney saw that the mouth was almost closed and that made him even more agitated.
So Rodney no longer cared about anything and continued to shoot toward the right point to be able to deliver a fatal blow to the monster.
*SRATT!*
*SRATT!*
Debris and sharp little tentacles tried to block him and grazed wounds on his face and other parts of his body.
Yet Rodney ignored the pain and kept going.
All of his friends tried their best to get rid of all the obstacles that were around Rodney.
But because the attacks from the monsters were getting more and more fierce, Rodney was still hit by the attack.
''I''m so close! I won''t let anything stop me now!''
Because of the desire in his heart that was strong, Rodney shot through everything that was trying to block him.
The Devourer''s mouth will be shut any minute now. The yellow light that was his target began to shrink. But that does not mean there is no hope at all.
Rodney shouted while casting [Skill: Sword sh] towards the gap that was still open.
This is hisst chance. If he failed now, Rodney wasn''t sure if he would still be able to continue this fight.
Even though his Level is high, The Devourer is still a very strong monster.
After it finishes using [Skill: Devour], its power will return. While his strength and his friend''s strength will be much reduced. That would put them at a huge loss.
Rodney didn''t want to think about what if Clyde got involved. He would have been able to deal with this monster easily but Rodney didn''t want that to happen.
"HAAAARRGGHH!!!"
With an obvious struggle, Rodney used [Skill: Sword sh] once again to double his efforts.
And his decision paid off well. The first ck sh once again hit the tentacledyer of debris.
The number of tentacles that had gathered was not as much as before. So the monster used the debris to increase the thickness of its barrier.
That first sh shattered the protectiveyerposed of tentacles and debris.
But Rodney''s second sh followed behind and passed through all the remnants of the tentacles that had been cut by the first sh.
Finally, the second sh hit the spot in the center of the nearly closed circr mouth and hit something that was shaped like an orb with a yellow tint.
The Devourer''s body shook violently as if it might copse at any moment. No sound came out other than the sound of tentacles rubbing against each other.
The tentacles of various sizes then copsed one by one because they were separated from The Devourer''s body. They fell on buildings and houses and shattered easily.
The tentacles seemed to have lost their density and be as brittle as jelly as they split open the moment they hit the building. Letting out a ckish liquid that smears everything they hit.
The three Regressors attempted to sh as many of the tentacles that fell from above them as possible. The dark liquid from the tentacles smeared all over their bodies.
Rodney also did the same. But he smiled with a happy expression because this was a sign that The Devourer was dying.
Even though his entire body was now covered in a dark liquid that also entered his eyes, nose, and mouth, Rodney didn''t care and continued to stare up from where he stood.
''It''s not over yet!''
Rodney jumped again. Mustering all of his remaining energy to finish what was almost over before his eyes.
The Devourer fell down slowly as if it had no more energy to maintain its height. Rodney weed this.
Its circr mouth was still open. It seems that the monster also has no more energy to just close its mouth perfectly.
Rodney saw the yellow orb in the center of the mouth leaving only a faint glow. The orb had a pretty severe crack. With the slightest pressure, the orb will break into pieces.
Rodney certainly saw a very clear opportunity. He shot up and then poured his Magic Power to deliver a powerful attack.
Rodney shed his sword and the ck sh shot toward the center of The Devourer''s mouth.
This time there were no more tentacles or other obstructions that could prevent the sh from hitting the yellow orb and shattering it.
Rodney''s sh hit the orb hard.
*CRACKK!*
Finally, the orb shattered into tumbling bits of yellow light.
~~~
Chapter 93 A Calm Night
"GRRRHHH!!!"
An anguished growl came from The Devourer for thest time. The bits of tentacles that remained in its body started to fall over the destroyed city.
Rodney looked up with sparkling eyes because he had seen his victory. The yellow light that fell from the mouth that never closedpletely fell like fireflies in the darkness.
"Rodney! What are you doing?! Get out of there quickly!" Mona''s screams were heard from a distance and woke Rodney who was too carried away by his satisfaction.
Rodney didn''t realize that The Devourer''s giant body would fall on him any minute.
If it wasn''t for Mona''s scream, maybe she would have been crushed by the body because she didn''t have enough time to dodge.
Rodney immediately came out of his stupor and immediately jumped out of there. Meanwhile, The Devourer''s body, which had lost its life, fell slowly.
Less than a minuteter, The Devourer''s entire body had fallen over the city. As it turned out, even though the body was huge and seemed to be made up of huge lumps of tentacles, it wasn''t anything hard.
The body was instantly crushed like a giant jelly that was dropped from above and hit the city. The disgusting purple liquid sshed in all directions and dyed the city with purple and rotten liquid.
The Regressors, Sonya and Asqa had already run as far as they could from that location.
However, no matter how far they ran, they couldn''t outrun the purple liquid that was spreading fast from their distance.
"It''s over," Reed said with a sigh of relief.
Along with his words, notifications about the BOSS being defeated and thepleted Chapter rang.
[ "Congrattions to yer "RODNEY STRING, SONYA REID, ASQA STARR, ERIC HANSEN, MONA COXX, and REED RIVERA" for defeating the BOSS "THE DEVOURER."" ]
[ "Rewards for defeating the BOSS sent to Inventory." ]
[Rewards: 10,000 Exp, 10,000 Coins. ]
[ "The Second Chapter: Unbearable Hunger has beenpleted." ]
After that, there were cheers because they had Leveled up.
Clyde just watched from afar with a t expression. After using [Skill: Inspection], Clyde could see that they had leveled up to Level 43-45.
The increase was indeed quite farpared to their previous Level, but their Level was still far below him.
Clyde deactivated [Skill: Inspection] and joined them.
"Let''s go back to the motel," Clyde said.
His words were like pouring water on a raging fire, they all stopped their celebration of sess and turned to Clyde.
"Why do we have to rush? Can you let us enjoy this moment first?" Sonya said with a slightly irritated face.
Clyde blinked his eyes slightly confused. "I thought you wanted to take a shower soon."
Clyde said while looking at them all. The stinking and loathsome purple liquid almost covered their entire bodies.
But they didn''t seem to care about that because they were immersed in a feeling of relief after sessfully defeating the monster.
Among them, was only Clyde whose body was clean without being exposed to the purple liquid. It was obvious because he was just standing far away from where they were fighting and just watching.
They conveyed their feelings of annoyance to Clyde who was in that clean state. Various kinds of annoyed words came out but Clyde didn''t care about them.
Clyde shook his head, not wanting to put up with their bullshit anymore. He turned and walked first to leave the ce.
? After a while, they finally stopped the argument that was indeed not making sense. Then walk following Clyde. At this time it is better to clean themselves first.
On the other hand, while the others were walking away, Rodney remained where he was with his eyes wide open staring at the text in front of his eyes. Something that only he could see for himself.
[ Congrattions! You have aplished an extraordinary task! ]
[ You havended thest hit that killed The Devourer! ]
[ New Title Unlocked: The Devourer Killer (Lv.1) ]
[ Title Effect: Grants you the ability to absorb the power of other beings for yourself. How much power you can absorb and how long you can use it depends on the Level of the [Title]. ]
A sly smile formed on Rodney''s lips. This [Title] was something he had been aiming for from the start. With the ability to absorb the opponent''s power, he overpowers them.
"Hey, Rodney! What are you doing?" Reed shouted for him when he realized Rodney was not around them.
"I''ming!" Rodney replied and immediately walked after them.
When he walked back together with them, Rodney immediately acted as if nothing had happened to him.
He shared his happy feelings with them about how he was the one who managed tond thest hit that killed the monster in the end.
Rodney, of course, never mentioned the different rewards he got fornding ast hit on that monster. He''ll keep it to himself untilter.
Rodney''s eyes then shifted to Clyde who was walking the furthest ahead.
With his new [Title] ability, Rodney was confident that he could beat Clyde if he yed his cards well.
''He''s arrogant enough to stay out of the fight as if he''s already strong enough. He doesn''t know what he''s done.''
Rodneyughed inwardly. Soon the day woulde when Clyde could no longer act like he was the strongest of them all.
Now there was only one day left until this Selection Stage appeared. Rodney has a n for the sixth day because only he knows what will happen on thest day.
The Second Chapter is finished. They all share the same sense of relief. Even Clyde who basically didn''t do anything.
Even though they had gotten a lot of experience from a BOSS just now, they couldn''t afford to be careless because this wasn''t over yet.
So, what they are nning is the same thing. They will clean up and then take a short break. After that, they will take the Night Quest as usual.
They must be tired. But they know that they can only rest when theyplete the Night Quest.
~~~
Time just flew by. They have all finished cleaning up and having dinner now. The effects of the hunger are now gone as the Second Chapter ended.
"Let''s go," Rodney said.
They went out into the motel lobby to wait for the Quest Carrier to arrive.
After that, the same Quest Carrier as the one who came to them before arrived, and they immediately took a Quest with the highest Rank.
But even though it was the highest Ranked Quest, it was quite easy. They just had to kill all the remaining Wendigos in the entire city.
The total amount is 160 Wendigos. And the gain of Exp will be spread evenly.
Clyde also took this Quest. He thought it was better than just staying in his room.
In this Quest, they divided the team into three so they could finish it quickly. Rodney is on a team with Eric, Reed with Mona, Clyde with Sonya, and Asqa.
Nobody rejected the idea so they immediately dispatched to go scatter and kill the remaining Wendigos.
Asqa and Sonya feel a strange sense of awkwardness when they''re with Clyde.
Though they were not separated for too long. But they both felt that Clyde was a stranger they met for the first time.
They both didn''t know why they felt something like that. It felt like Clyde was already too high a ce for them to reach.
"So uhh... What did you do this afternoon?" Sonya asked to try to get rid of this awkward feeling.
"I killed some monsters. You know, the usual stuff," Clyde replied.
"O-Oh... Okay." Sonya said. "Asqa and I just heard a roar in the distance. So it was you, huh?"
Clyde turned and looked at Asqa and Sonya. A few momentster he asked. "Do you guys want to buy a new Skill?"
Sonya and Asqa''s eyes immediately opened wide.
"You know there''s a Skill Purchasing Machine around here?" Asqa asked.
"Yeah." Clyde nodded. "Follow me."
So Clyde showed him the way to where he had found the Skill Purchasing Machine at the subway station.
On the way, Clyde invites them in to check out some suspicious-looking buildings.
"You know that Wendigos like being in dark rooms?" Clyde asked.
Sonya and Asqa, of course, didn''t know about that. So they could only follow Clyde to check out the abandoned buildings.
And sure enough. They don''t even have to look too long. The Wendigos had already attacked them blindly.
Asqa and Sonya are shocked toote to move. So Clyde had to kill the first wave of Wendigos they came across.
"Careful," Clyde said.
Seeing what they were about to face, Sonya and Asqa were better prepared.
They proceed to smoothly kill all the Wendigos within the building.
After that, they went to the subway station that Clyde mentioned.
When they got there, of course, there was a Wendigo to greet them. Clyde lets Sonya kill them while he provides little assistance.
~~~
Chapter 94 Uncertain
Even though all of her Stats had been maxed out, Sonya still felt a bit difficult when killing those Wendigos.
They can move so fast and Sonya only uses a bow bound with duck tape. So when the Wendigos approached her, Sonya had to work extra hard to shoot her arrows.
Moreover, they were now inside the building which was a cramped ce. For Sonya who wields a bow, a ce like this doesn''t benefit her at all.
Clyde of course realized how much she was struggling. He also realized that forcing Sonya to fight in such a ce and condition was unreasonable.
So Clyde springs into action and shes at the Wendigos. There weren''t many of them so with Clyde''s help, it would only take them a few minutes to clear the Wendigo in this ce.
"How many have we killed?" Sonya asked breathlessly.
"About 20," Clyde answered.
Asqa who hasn''t done anything since earlier feels bad. She just silently watched the two of them struggle.
"Let''s go," Clyde said.
Sonya and Asqa followed him.
"Those monsters are really fast. I don''t think I can fight them indoors," Sonya said with a troubled look on her face.
"Yeah, we won''t be fighting any more monsters until you guys get new Skills," Clyde said.
Hearing this, Sonya and Asqa feel relieved. Sonya is sure that she can get a new Skill that will be useful against the enemies.
Asqa is also happy because she can finally choose a Skill that can make her more useful in a battle.
Soon, they arrived at the subway station Clyde said. They headed downstairs with Clyde leading the way.
As he had expected, in this subway there were also Wendigos ready to attack them. Their ws shed in front of them as they attacked simultaneously with incredible speed.
But Clyde, who was also prepared for their surprise, shed the Elderss Sword with a speed that surpassed them.
*SRAATTT!*
*SRAATTT!*
*SRAATTT!*
...
Pale blood sttered all over the walls and floor. The bodies of the Wendigos were scattered on the subway floor in a state of being torn into several pieces.
Asqa swallowed her saliva. All of this has supposed to be something she was used to. But seeing the limbs and heads detached from the body and rolled in front of her eyes still made her nauseous.
But the effect is not as big as before so Asqa can still hold it well.
"This is it," Clyde said when he arrived in front of the Skill Purchasing Machine that was shaped like an ordinary vending machine.
Sonya and Asqa immediately rushed to the front of the machine and saw the Skills list on the screen.
"We have a lot of Coins so no need to worry about spending it on a good Skill," Sonya said while looking at Asqa.
Asqa nodded in agreement.
Clyde who was watching them from behind said. "Don''t be so wasteful to spend your Coins. We don''t know if those Coins will still be usefulter."
Sonya sighed as she realized that and saw the many good Skills on the machine.
"Yeah, I know," Sonya said.
After pondering for a while, Sonya finally made her choice. She put her hand on the Coins case and selected the Skill inside her head. Not long after, a silvery tube came out from the bottom.
[ "Skill ''Ranger''s Trap'' purchased. 5,000 coins used." ]
"Your turn, Asqa." Sonya took the canister and walked backward.
Now it''s Asqa''s turn to choose Skill. She didn''t need a long time because she had already made her choice while staring at the screen earlier.
Asqa immediately put her hand on her and immediately chose Skill. She used her Coins to choose two Skills. Soon two silvery tubes came out.
[ "Skill ''Attack Up'' purchased. 3,000 coins used." ]
[ "Skill ''Dome of Protection'' purchased. 6,000 coins used." ]
"You bought two?" Clyde asked.
Asqa nodded. "Yes. I chose Skills that will be useful even if they are quite expensive."
Clyde just nodded. "Alright."
After that, the two of them opened the tube to get their new Skills.
Light came out of the tube and entered the bodies of the two of them. As a sign that they have seeded in getting the new Skills.
"Are you done?" Clyde asked.
"Yeah, I''m satisfied with this Skill," Sonya said.
"Me too," Asqa nodded in satisfaction. "You didn''t buy one?"
"No. I already bought Skills earlier," Clyde answered.
Actually, Clyde saw that there were some interesting Skills. But he had a hunch that he would use his Coins for something elseter. So, he refrained.
"Hey, why don''t we just destroy this machine and take everything?" Sonya asked while looking at the tempting Skills list.
"We''re not supposed to do that. If we do, we might not be given the chance to buy Skills again," Clyde replied. "And, are you sure that after we destroy that machine, all the Skills that are in there can still be used?"
Hearing Clyde''s words, Sonya fell silent. This Purchasing Machine Skill must have been made ording to certain rules.
Whoever set this apocalypse in motion wouldn''t be that stupid.
So, if they attempted to attack the machine to take the Skills inside it by force, they would suffer a consequence that would only leave regret.
Sonya immediately threw away that dumb idea.
After they finished buying Skills, they then went toplete tonight''s Quest. In just a few minutes the Quest waspleted.
Because they split up, their search area became wider. In the end, they were able to kill the Wendigo much faster.
This night passed more quietly than before. They didn''t see any disturbance from anyone who previously messed with this apocalypse setting.
"Everything went easier. It worries me," Sonya said.
They were currently on their way back to the motel. The night was silent and gloomy.
The clouds that brought heavy rain this afternoon are still up there and seem to be waiting to drop rain again sometime in the future.
"It seems that the beings who were referring to the setting of this apocalypse have left," Clyde said.
Sonya gave Clyde a suspicious look. "Do you know anything about this apocalypse?"
Clyde still didn''t know if he should tell them what he knew. But, after he silently thought about it for a while, he decided to say a few things to them.
His heart which was once cold and hard started to feel a little softened because he already felt what it was like to have people fighting together around him.
"I met some of the creatures that are behind this apocalypse," Clyde said.
His words, of course, shocked Asqa and Sonya. They stared at Clyde with their eyes wide open and their footsteps suddenly stopped.
"W-What are you saying?" Sonya asked.
"I met with some of them and got some information."
Asqa and Sonya stared at him in silence for a few moments. They didn''t know what to say. Which thing should they ask first? So they can only be silent with a confused faces.
Seeing their reactions, Clyde took the initiative.
"I''ll tell you what I know as I go along."
Since they looked like they didn''t know where to start, Clyde would start his exnation. Of course, he would only say the things he wanted to say.
Clyde tells what this apocalypse is all about. And said the names of some of the beings he met.
Clyde certainly wouldn''t say anything about what he got from them, and how he got it all.
"So, we are currently being selected for something?" Sonya asked. Her forehead still showed creases which shows that she was still confused.
"Yes. That''s what I know," said Clyde.
"Then actually... what''s waiting for us after this Selection Stage?" Asqa asked with a gloomy face.
"I still don''t know about that," Clyde replied.
Sonya and Asqa thought for a few minutes. They walked in silence with their heads filled with anxiety.
"Hey, Clyde." Sonya suddenly turned to Clyde.
"What?" Clyde asked.
"Are you nning to leave us someday?"
The question came out unexpectedly. Clyde didn''t know how to answer that.
Asqa looked at him with hopeful eyes. She bit her lip slowly. Her expression seemed to say that she didn''t want Clyde to leave them.
Clyde, who previously had thoughts of leaving them, was silent. Now, there was some feeling in his heart that said he should stay with them.
Is this an effect because Clyde suddenly feels the feeling of having apanion after living in solitude for so long? Is this feeling real?
Clyde didn''t know the answer to his own question.
"It''s not for me to decide about that. You know that we are just little creatures being toyed with in the middle of this apocalypse," Clyde said. He could only think of such an answer for now.
"So, you''re saying we don''t have the power to decide anything?" Sonya said.
Clyde nodded. Then said. "We can only hold on as hard as we can to survive."
~~~
Chapter 95 The Next
They didn''t need a long time toplete the Quest. Since no one was trying to mess up the setting of this apocalypse any more, everything was running smoothly.
As soon as they finished killing the remaining 160 Wendigos, they received the same notification.
They get Exp rewards that even though not enough to make them Level up. Yet it''s still better than getting nothing.
After returning to the motel, they immediately discussed what would happen tomorrow.
The seven people sat in the lobby. The Regressors started to say what they knew.
"Tomorrow, we will face an apocalypse that urred because the AI ??decided that humans must be exterminated. That''s what we will hear in the notification," Rodney said.
"We''re going to fight robots, huh?" Sonya said. "Whoever created this apocalypse doesn''t seem very creative, do they?"
After saying her sarcastic remark, Sonya drank her cold canned coffee.
Meanwhile, Clyde just saw the reason why he got [Skill: Hacking] from Gremory. It was to get him ready for tomorrow''s Chapter.
If they were going to fight theputer, then the skill woulde in handy.
"What else will happen?" Asqa asked.
"Everything will go pretty much the same as before," Mona replied. "We will face the attacks of the robots until it is time for us to fight the BOSS. But the robots won''t stop attacking until the BOSS appears."
"Damn, they''re going to attack non-stop?" Sonya looked in disbelief.
Mona nodded.
Sonya dropped her back against the back of the chair and shook her head. She was at a loss for words to express how much she hated all of this.
"What else?" Clyde asked.
"That''s it. But I guess that''s enough trouble for us, right?" Reed said.
"If that is it I will be going to bed now," Clyde said then stood up from his chair.
Clyde walked away from that ce. Rodney watched him leave. As soon as he confirmed he had entered the room with the sound of the door closing, Rodney started to speak.
"He seems very calm for such a dangerous situation we are about to find ourselves in."
"Well, he''s strong after all," Sonya said.
"You didn''t ask where he went this afternoon?" Rodney asked while looking at Sonya and Asqa.
Sonya and Asqa exchanged nces. Their eyes seemed to question whether they should say what Clyde had said to them.
But then Sonya nodded because Clyde had said nothing about keeping the information secret.
"Clyde said he met with several beings who gave him important information," Sonya said.
And then, she started to tell them about what she heard from Clyde earlier.
Reed, Eric, and Mona looked shocked. But Rodney just stared at Sonya in silence. Then he knew that it would look suspicious so Rodney immediately put on a shocked face as well.
"So we went through all of this because we were selected for something?!" Reed said, looking in disbelief.
"That''s what I heard from Clyde," said Sonya.
"I had to watch the people I love die horribly because the damn beings behind the apocalypse made the selection," Eric said with a tight jaw and a growling voice. There was a glint of vengeance in his eyes that was so obvious.
Mona on the other hand was speechless and could only stare nkly ahead with unblinking eyes and slightly parted lips.
Her expression looked like someone who had just heard the most shocking news until her whole body stiffened.
Rodney is also struggling with his thoughts.
''How did he know about all that? And who else did he meet?!''
Rodney of course already knew what this apocalypse was all about. He knew after contracting with a Celestial to obtain that information.
Rodney also believes that Clyde got the information from the Celestials because - Rodney thought - only those who made a contract with the Celestials know about it.
''So... is he also in a contract with a Celestial? No, that''s out of the question. If he manages to get that information, certainly, he is indeed in a contract with a Celestial. Or could it be, his power alsoes from Celestial?''
"Whatever happened, now everything has happened. We can''t do anything but move on and try to survive," Rodney said.
It took them a long time to absorb those words. But in the end, they agreed on what Rodney said.
Everything has happened and they can only move on even though the hatred and sadness that surrounds their hearts are so strong.
"You''re right," Eric said, looking ahead with those vengeful eyes. "We have to hold on. Until the timees when we find out who''s behind all this."
Eric has a great motivation for revenge. They understand her feelings.
After that, they all went to their respective rooms to sleep.
~~~
The next dayes, and the sound of the notification that echoes in the air sounds so loud and greets them when they open their eyes.
[ATTENTION! ]
[The Third Chapter will start now! ]
[ THE THIRD CHAPTER "TIME OF THE MACHINE" BEGINS NOW! ]
[CHAPTER 3: TIME OF THE MACHINES. ]
[ DIFFICULTY: A. ]
[ OBJECTIVE: THE TIME OF AI HAS ARRIVED. THE AI THINKS HUMANS ARE THE ENEMIES THAT MUST BE EXTERMINED. SURVIVE FROM ATTACKS ON ROBOTS AND MACHINES! ]
Clyde got up from his bed and looked once again at the notification in front of his eyes.
Now he saw that the difficulty level that should have been A had be C. It wasn''t just one level lower, but two levels.
Clyde grinned and snorted. "Whoever has given me this Private Attribute, I am very grateful to you."
Clyde then wears the Elderss Sword at his waist. Then put on the Dark Night Coat which was torn in the arm due to the red Wendigo''s attack yesterday.
But for him now it''s not a problem at all.
When he came out of his room, what greeted Clyde wasn''t Asqa, Sonya, or one of the four Regressors.
But a robot with a shape like a human skeleton. The robot''s entire body was made of shiny ck metal and its eyes glowed a bright red that was almost blinding.
"Target detected. Begins annihtion process."
The mechanical sound of the robot was heard without the robot opening its mouth. The robot then raised its right hand.
Turns out there was already a rifle in there.
*JYUUU!*
A voice that sounded like a sound effect was heard. Then a reddishser shot from the muzzle of the rifle toward Clyde.
Theser hit Clyde and he was sent flying backward against the wall.
But he didn''t fall. Instead, Clyde was still standing firmly on his two legs as if he had just been pushed by someone.
The robot aimed its gun at Clyde again.
*JYUUU!*
Clyde rolled onto his side. Then without pausing too long, he dashed toward the robot and kicked it.
*DUAGH!*
The robot was thrown backward and through the wall.
Clyde walked out of the room. He heard amotion from around him.
As it turned out, the doors of the other rooms were already open. From within the room came the sounds of screaming and themotion of fighting.
Momentster a robot simr to the one that had attacked Clyde is pushed out of Sonya and Asqa''s room.
Then an arrow came and stuck in the robot''s head.
*CZZTT!*
*SSSS...*
There was a hissing sound from it. Then the robot''s eyes immediately went out. Indicates that it''s dead.
Sonya came out shortly after and shot another arrow at its head.
"Is it dead now?" Asqa asked.
Sonya fired an arrow for the third time at the robot''s head.
"Yeah, I think it''s death," Sonya said.
Sonya then notices Clyde''s presence and the hole in front of him. "You were also greeted by robots outside your door?"
Clyde answered with a curt nod.
"I didn''t expect them to attack us so early. It was as if, they''ve been waiting for us at the door sincest night," Sonya muttered angrily.
"What about the other?" Clyde asked.
"They are also fighting robots," Sonya answered.
That''s right. Momentster robots came out of the Regressors'' room.
They immediately attacked the robots again and it didn''t take long for them to kill the robots.
Then the sound of metal feet tapping on the floor was heard. Outside the motel, they saw dozens of robots surrounding them with rifles ready to fire.
There was a frustrated sigh from Sonya. Mona who heard from behind her said. "This is just the beginning. They will keeping and attacking us when they see us."
Sonya stared at her bow. "This seems like a good time to look for a new weapon."
Sonya took the rifle that was in the hand of the robot she had just killed.
She broke the arm of the robot that wouldn''t let go of its rifle easily.
Sonya then saw and checked her new weapon. Even though the rifle seemed too big for her, she could lift it with ease.
Sonya turned to Asqa. "How do you think?"
"You look cool." Asqa nodded approvingly.
~~~
Chapter 96 Army Of Robots
Clyde also gave a brief nod indicating that he also thought Sonya, who was holding a futuristic rifle that firedsers, was looking cool.
"Let''s go," Clyde said as he drew the Elderss Sword from its scabbard.
The Regressors who saw the robot army outside caught up with Clyde.
"Will we gain Exp when we kill them?" Sonya asked while turning towards the Regressors.
"No. They don''t give Exp. They are only there to hunt us down and give us trouble," Eric answered.
Eric then walked faster ahead of the others. "I''ll go first."
Then he dashed outside the lobby. The rifles of the doom robots were aimed at him and they shot as if they had heard the same order.
With the settings back to normal, Eric didn''t seem worried. He creates a light shield in front of his body.
*JYUUU!*
*JYUUU!*
*JYUUU!*
...
The robots shootsers simultaneously and are directed at one target. Their target is definitely Eric who was charging towards them.
But all of those shots were able to be blocked by Eric''s light shield. Eric''s eyes stared at the robots with hatred.
The feelings of anger and revenge that he feltst night after hearing Sonya and Asqa''s exnation became the fuel that made Eric fearless even though there were dozens of robots in front of his eyes.
He''s charging fast. Then when he was in front of the robot army, he swung his short sword.
"HYAAAH!!!"
Eric''s sword shed straight through the necks of the three robots that were so unfortunate that they were right in the range of his sword. The other robots that saw it immediately became more aggressive.
Their eyes lit up even brighter. There was the mechanical sound of the machines as something inside them awakened.
Suddenly the robots released their rifles and attacked Eric with their hands and feet.
Eric, of course, couldn''t hold back all the metal fists aimed at him. His light shield could only cover one side so the robots that surrounded him from the other side couldunch attacks at him.
Luckily, help came just when he needed it.
*SRAAT!*
*SRAAT!*
*SRAAT!*
The katana sword shed through the necks of the robots and made them copse on the ground.
"What the fuck you doing idiot!" Mona shouted angrily at Eric.
Eric just snorted with an angry face. "I just need something to vent my anger."
"You''re only killing yourself," Rodney said. "Don''t be hasty or you''ll start over again without us."
Eric did not reply to Rodney''s words. He just continued to sh at the robots that he could see in front of his eyes.
The four Regressors worked well together. They fought easily even against dozens of robots that came to surround them from all directions.
It didn''t take long, they had seeded in killing all the robots. Leaving metal wrecks that have lost their heads and other limbs around them.
"We don''t even need to join the fight. I guess this just gets easier," Sonya said.
"Yeah, I told you before," Clyde said.
"Hey, why don''t you show them where the Skill Purchasing Machine is? Don''t they have to buy new Skills too?" Asqa asked while looking at Clyde.
Clyde was looking at the Regressors who were sighing in celebration of their sess in killing the robot troops.
"I don''t really trust them," Clyde replied.
"Why? Did you see anything suspicious about them?" Sonya asked in a whisper.
Clyde thought for a few moments. "Not really. I just had a hunch."
Sonya and Asqa looked at each other. But then, they no longer asked about it.
They are the ones who know what happened until the fifth day. If Clyde were them, he''d be leaving something he didn''t reveal as his trump card.
That''s why Clyde chose to be wary. At least he will also have a trump card that they don''t know when things are going bad.
But actually, in his heart, Clyde hoped that nothing would happen. And they can work together until the end.
''Is that too much to ask in this apocalypse?'' Clyde thought.
"Listen," Clyde whispered to them both. "If they ask where you got a new Skill, just say you found it while killing Wendigos with me. Or make up your own excuses."
Asqa and Sonya looked at each other again. Then nodded at Clyde.
The Regressors walked towards them. Then Rodney said. "That''s only the first wave. The robots can be killed by decapitating them. But theing wave will be different."
"What''s different?" Clyde asked.
"In the next wave, the robots can still move even if their heads are chopped off," Reed replied.
"What?! Then how are we going to kill them?" Sonya asked.
"We have to cut off their limbs. And their heads," said Rodney again.
"So our work will be even more troublesome," Sonya sighed wearily.
Suddenly, Clyde asked something that surprised them.
"You guys know where the Main Control Tower is?"
The four Regressors stared at him in shock. While Asqa and Sonya stared with confused faces.
"How did you know about that?" Rodney asked.
"I simply heard of that. You must have heard from Sonya and Asqa about me meeting the beings that may be behind this apocalypse, right?" Clyde said.
The Regressors looked at each other. After a while, Rodney said. "Since you already know about it, then we have to tell you."
Hearing this, Sonya and Asqa paid full attention.
But before the Regressors could say anything, another army of robots appeared from the crossroads. They lined up like trained soldiers holding rifles.
Their eyes lit up even brighter as they found the seven yers. As if they had found their target.
The steps of the robots suddenly became louder.
*DRAP!*
*DRAP!*
*DRAP!*
...
The sound of metal footsteps treading the asphalt road was heard clearly and seemed to echo among the surrounding buildings.
"We can talkter," Rodney said as he unsealed his sword.
Clyde was a little disappointed that the robots had suddenly appeared.
Seeing the approaching danger, of course, they would choose to deal with it first rather than telling Clyde about the Main Control Tower.
''I just have to destroy them quickly so I can get the answers faster.''
Clyde, then he ran towards the robot army first.
Shots from the robots starteding toward him. But Clyde immediately used his Skill.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
mes burned in Clyde''s hands. Then he kicked the ground and jumped so high. Theser shot just went through him.
The robots, of course, will not stop there. They kept shooting at Clyde who was still in the air.
Clyde then started descending. He waved his hand forward and let out a torrent of fire that was so huge and covered a wide area.
The power of [Skill: Burning Hand] which was already at Level 10 made the heat of the mes much higher than normal mes. So, the robots made of metal began to melt when exposed to Clyde''s fire.
Clydended in the middle of them and then started shing his Elderss Sword. The sword shes easily sliced ??through the metal body that was almost melted.
Sonya, who had only been watching, realized that she could not stay silent. So she raised her rifle and started aiming.
*JYUUU!*
Sonya shoots and destroys the head of one of the robots. But the robot can still move. So Sonya pressed the trigger longer to let out a barrage ofsers at the robots.
With their metal skeletons weakened by Clyde''s fire, Sonya can destroy them with her continuous shots.
Sonya managed to reduce several robots to pieces of metal that scattered on the road in just a few seconds. And Clyde has destroyed even more.
But another army of robots came from another direction. As if doesn''t want to give them a chance to take a breath.
Even this time they came with more variety. There is a robot nearly three meters tall that walks on all fours. The robot is equipped with canons and machine guns.
There are three of them. But the possibility that those big robots will appear again is very big.
The Regressors looked at each other. In a moment, they knew what had to be done.
The Regressors immediately ran towards the other robot troops that came.
They decided to tackle the newly arrived troops at once because they knew Clyde could handle it alone. Moreover, there is Sonya who helps him.
Asqa turned between the Regressors and Clyde. She was confused about who to help now.
"Just stay here," Sonya said while continuing to shoot. "Unless they get hurt."
After thinking about it for a while, Asqa decided to go along with what Sonya had said. After all, Clyde said he had some kind of bad feeling about them.
A few secondster Clyde had finished cleaning up all the robots around him.
Clyde stood amidst the scattered bits and melting metal. Despite destroying them by himself, Clyde didn''t look tired.
~~~
Chapter 97 The Location
After making sure that all the robots around him were destroyed, Clyde walked back toward Sonya and Asqa.
Clyde then saw that other robot troops were being fought by the Regressors. Without thinking any longer, Clyde immediately walked toward them.
Sonya and Asqa also immediately followed him. The two of them walked behind him like obedient followers.
"Asqa, you have that [Skill: Attack Up], right?" Clyde asked without looking back. His gaze remained fixed forward, towards the robot troops who were now also aware of their existence.
"Yes," Asqa answered.
"Use it on us, now."
So Asqa did it. She stretched her arms towards Clyde and Sonya and activated [Skill: Attack Up] which, judging by its name, was a Skill to increase attack.
A reddish glow enveloped Clyde and Sonya''s bodies for a few moments. Before finally disappearing as if absorbed into their bodies.
"How much will our attacks increase?" Sonya asked.
"Because I''ve maxed out that Skill to Level 10, that Skill can strengthen your attacks by up to 100%," Asqa replied.
"Wow," Sonya smiled admiringly at Asqa. "That''s quite a lot. Coupled with our Stats. I don''t know how much Clyde''s attack will increase."
Clyde grinned. He knows how much he is capable of. Even before he was given the buff, his attack power was already quite impressive.
Now when his attack is increased by 50%, it will make his attacks even more destructive.
"How long does this Skillst?" Clyde asked.
"About half an hour," Asqa answered quickly. That long period of time was also because she had maxed out that Skill Level.
"That''s amazing, Asqa!" Sonya said.
"You can also use your skills on the Regressors. That way we can finish these robots quickly," Clyde said.
Asqa nodded. "OK."
Clyde then ran ahead of them. In an instant, he was within a short distance of the robot army.
Clyde then kicked the ground and shot up. His eyes had already set therge robot as his target.
Just like Clyde, the robot was also staring at him with a pair of eyes that lit up in front of it. The canons beside its body started to light up, then fired four red orbs at Clyde.
*JYUUU!*
*JYUUU!*
*JYUUU!*
*JYUUU!*
All four canons fire simultaneously. The four red orbs shot towards Clyde who was still in the air with incredible speed.
Seeing the shoting, Clyde contorted his body in a swift movement in the air. So the four orbs just passed through his body and failed to hit him.
The four orbs shot toward Sonya and Asqa who were behind Clyde.
"Watch out!" Sonya shouted.
Sonya and Asqa immediately dodged to the side. Asqa can move more calmly now because she can control her fear better.
Even so when she saw the four orbs that shot out of the canons shooting toward them, Asqa couldn''tpletely calm down.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
The four orbs smashed into roads and buildings. Creates a huge explosion that throws debris in all directions.
But in the midst of all that, Sonya and Asqa were still able to save themselves.
Clyde who was still in the air activated his Skill.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
His hands were burning with a very strong me. Then he threw a fireball toward the big robot''s eyes.
*BOOM!*
Clyde''s fireball hit its left eye and destroyed it instantly. However, the robot was clearly still able to survive with one eye and could not feel pain. So, it can still attack as if nothing had happened.
Clydended back on the ground smoothly. And when he looked up at the robot, it had already started its next attack.
The mini guns beside his body started to rotate. Then fired redser beams in session and very quickly toward Clyde.
The barrage of redsers attacks Clyde relentlessly. Clyde was able to move fast to avoid some of the shots. But in the end, he couldn''t possibly avoid it all.
Even with the maxed-out Stats, the barrage ofsers thate out of several mini-guns at once is still something that is hard to avoid.
Several shots hit Clyde''s body. However, the protection of the Dark Night Coat he was wearing was really amazing so the shots didn''t have much of an impact on him.
Clyde only felt the shot that hit him like a strong shove from someone. But can''t really hurt him.
In contrast to the condition of the streets and buildings around Clyde. The sessive shots destroyed the streets and buildings and left them ravaged until there was nothing left.
Despite being constantly hit by gunshots, Clyde didn''t feel afraid or despair. He knew that all this was nothing for him.
A fireball shot out from behind the fog and debris toward one of therge robot''s miniguns.
*BOOM!*
The fireball hit one of the robot''s four mini guns and destroyed it instantly. The second fireball followed with exactly the same uracy.
*BOOM!*
Another one of the robot''s miniguns was destroyed by the fireball. The robot, as if feeling angry because Clyde had destroyed its weapon, the one eye that was still left lit up so brightly.
IItscanned the entire ce behind the debris and fog to find Clyde. But the robot still couldn''t find him.
That''s because Clyde was already right under it. Clyde swung the Elderss Sword with all his might.
*CRAAKK!*
The Elderss Sword''s bluish de pierced the robot''s left front leg and nearly broke it.
The robot lost its bnce and almost fell. So Clyde added his attacks to make the robotpletely copse to the ground.
Clyde''s sh came again and this time actually broke the robot''s leg. It fell to the ground and Clyde immediately jumped away.
*BOOM!*
The robot hit the ground with a loud thump. Clyde didn''t take too long to pause and came right back to deliver fatal attacks on the robot.
Clyde jumped on top of the robot and started shing the Elderss Sword furiously. He then opened the metal ''skin'' of the robot. Exposing the inside of it which consists of variousponents.
Then he stretched his hand which was still covered in mes inward, toward theponent that made the robot move and stays alive.
*ZWOOOSSHHH!!!*
Clyde let out a huge torrent of fire into the robot''s exposed interior.
Clyde''s fire immediately melted the robot''s internal parts in an instant. Of course, the inside of it would not be as tough as the outside which was designed forbat. The inside is the part that should be protected.
So, it didn''t take long for the robot to die because all of its parts had been destroyed and melted by Clyde''s fire.
The red eyes of the robot that had been burning brightly slowly faded and disappeared along with its life.
Clyde jumps down from the corpse of the huge robot. Without a moment''s dy, he immediately dashed toward another smaller robot troop and started shing at them.
The Regressors who were still busy fighting the robots were surprised to see the big robot lying dead in a very short time. Then they saw Clydeing and their surprise was immediately answered.
"Tell me where the Main Control Tower is," Clyde immediately said as soon as he got next to Rodney. Even he did it while killing the robot he saw in front of him.
"Why are you so eager to find it?" Rodney asked.
"From the name, isn''t that tower the center that controls all these robots?" Clyde replied.
"No," said Rodney. "The ones controlling these robots are the ones behind this apocalypse. The Main Control Tower is just standing around without having any influence."
Clyde looked at Rodney. "You sure?"
Seeing Clyde''s gaze and actions, Rodney thought that Clyde did know something that he didn''t about the Main Control Tower.
"At least that''s what I know." Rodney had to admit his cluelessness now to get that information.
"What do you know?" Rodney asked.
"I only heard that name from beings I met. So, I think that tower holds something important" Clyde replied with a convincing lie.
"Alright. I''ll show you," said Rodney. "We will get the location of the Main Control Tower from one of the big robots like the one you killed earlier."
"What?!" Clyde turned to Rodney with a look of disbelief on his face.
Rodney shed the robot in front of him. Then said. "What? I didn''t have a chance to say it before. After all, you can still look for it in the robot''s corpse, right?"
Clyde nced at the robotic corpse he had just incinerated from the inside.
"I don''t think so," said Clyde.
"Why?"
"It looks like the inside of the robot has been destroyed."
Rodney sighed. He had no idea what Clyde had just done.
But because his strength is too great, he doesn''t even need topletely destroy the robot to kill the robot.
"Let''s look for another big robot," Clyde said.
~~~
Chapter 98 Found It
The robot troops keeping. They seemed to be spawning from nowhere and suddenly appearing at crossroads or in front of them.
The number of robots in one troop is also increasing. At first, they only numbered twenty, then increased until finally one troop was filled with fifty robots of various shapes.
Now, the troops they were facing had fiverge robots armed with canons and miniguns.
Meanwhile, the small robots that looked like metal human skeletons no longer only used rifles.
They also now wore swords that seemed to be made of condensed light. The color of the sword is also red, like all things that an evil robot should have.
So, now they''re getting harder to handle. Because they can do a melee attack.
*TANG!*
The sword of one of the robots shed with the de of the Elderss Sword. Even though their swords looked very modern and belonged to a different era than the present human development, they were still inferior to the Elderss Sword.
Clyde saw no real threat from the sword. He only saw it as a sword with an attractive color. And that''s it.
Clyde then kicked the robot in the chest, pushing it backward. Then Clyde dashed with astonishing speed.
In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of the robot. Without waiting for a pause, Clyde thrust the Elderss Sword into its chest.
*KRANGGKK!*
The sound when the Elderss Sword pierced through the supposedly strong metal frame was loud. The metal skeletons of the robots seemed insignificant before the power of Elderss Sword.
But it''s still not enough to kill the robot. Clyde had to cut their limbs to prevent them from moving.
So, he pulled out the Eldgerss Sword and immediately shed the robot''s limbs. Clyde did it with a movement so fast that the robot couldn''t react.
It fell on the ground like the other robots behind Clyde. The robot turned and looked at Clyde with its bright red eyes.
Clyde stomped it right in its face and headed off to the next robot. The target is therge robot in the center of the troop. For the sake of getting the location of the Main Control Tower.
Clyde had done it many times since he found out that the location of the tower was inside the big robot.
Clyde used [Skill: Hacking] which he had maxed out to control the robot and get information without killing it.
As it turned out, the Skill had indeed proven to be very useful. But he still didn''t get the location of the tower.
While the others are battling the robot troops that are trying to kill them, Clyde cuts through the robot waves quickly.
He didn''t even need to use any skills to do it. Only with the strength of the increased Stats, Clyde can handle them.
When he was in front of the big robot, it immediately noticed his presence and directed all of its arsenals toward him.
Clyde was ready with it, he bit the Elderss Sword between his teeth and activated his Skill.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
Clyde''s hands were burned by the mes. He created two fireballs in his hands and then threw them toward the robot''s red eyes.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
The two fireballs hit the robot''s eyes and blinded it instantly. The robot lost its sight so it couldn''t find Clyde.
Meanwhile, Clyde jumps on the heads of other robots to get closer to the big robot. Then hended on top of the robot''s body.
[ Hacking (Lv.10) is activated! ]
To use [Skill: Hacking], Clyde doesn''t need to use aputer to hack the robot. He only needed to ce his palm against the robot and the skill would work on its own.
[ Hackingpleted! ]
[ Say your order! ]
And just like that, Clyde only has to say his order mentally or verbally. What an amazing and practical Skill.
''Show me the location of the Main Control Tower,'' Clyde gave a mental order.
After a few seconds, a notification appears in Clyde''s vision.
[The location of the Main Control Tower can''t be found. ]
Clyde sighed in frustration. He had done this many times, but he still couldn''t find it.
''Kill yourself.'' It was Clyde''s next order.
So the robotplied and shut itself down. It stops moving in that position.
"Clyde! What are you doing?!" Reed called out to him from below, among the robots that were trying to kill him.
"Wait a minute!" Clyde said.
Another big robot is already targeting him. Its eyes were already glowing red and determined Clyde as its target. The distance of the robot was not that far from him.
Because he was already in a high ce, Clyde didn''t have any trouble getting to the big robot.
He kicked the body part of therge robot that he had shut down until he created a deep dent and jumped toward the robot that was aiming at him.
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
The shots from the canons hit where Clyde had been standing. But he had disappeared from there so the shots only hit the big robot.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
Explosions urred and the robot rolled to the ground. Immobilizing all the human-sized robots under it.
Meanwhile, Clyde hadnded on the head of the big robot that shot him.
[ Hacking (Lv.10) is activated! ]
Just like before, Clyde immediately used [Skill: Hacking] without attacking it. Then he ordered the robot to change its target and shoot at the human-sized robots below.
The barrage of miniguns and canons destroyed the human-sized robots. What Clyde did was very helpful for the other members of the group.
After that, he asked for the location of the Main Control Tower. Clyde was ready to ept another failure. However, what he got turned out to be the result he was looking for.
[ Main Control Tower Location. ]
Below the text appears a map of the city. Then there was a blinking red dot in the eastern part of the city. Under that blinking point is a text that says: ''Main Control Tower''.
''Finally!''
Clyde smiled contentedly. Finally, he found the location after several failures.
But because he was too happy, Clyde didn''t pay attention to what was around him. When he was off guard, anotherrge robot was already aiming at him and shooting its canons.
*JYUU!!*
*JYUU!!*
...
Clyde only realized this after hearing the distinctive gunshot from the canon. He immediately jumped to avoid the shot.
*BOOM!*
Even though he had jumped, Clyde couldn''tpletely dodge the shot.
He was thrown several meters into the air. And some metal fragments from the robot that was shot hit his head.
Clyde hit the wall of the building and fell on the asphalt. He felt pain in the back of his head.
When Clyde ran his fingers on the back of his head and looked at his palm. He saw that there was blood there.
''Shit, I thought I wouldn''t be hurt like this.''
To him, this was the most severe injury he had suffered till now. While fighting the red Wendigo, he only suffered a tear on his coat sleeve.
When Clyde tried to get up, Asqa came straight at him from a direction he didn''t know.
"Where did youe from?" Clyde asked confusedly.
"You don''t have to worry about that," Asqa said and then started healing even though Clyde didn''t ask for it.
With her [Skill: healing] already at Level 10, healing Clyde''s wounds wasn''t a big problem for her at all.
In the twinkling of an eye, Clyde was no longer feeling the pain.
"Thanks," Clyde said.
Asqa nodded. Then said. "More robots areing."
Clyde immediately turned his head quickly as if being pulled by an invisible rope.
Meanwhile, Asqa has dashed away leaving him alone to hide again. When Clyde turned around, Asqa had already disappeared.
Clyde snorted. "She can take care of herself now apparently."
Not having to worry about Asqa, Clyde immediately jumped to his feet. For now, he only had to worry about himself.
A dozen robots were running towards him with eyes burning red.
They raised their rifles and started shooting simultaneously.
A barrage ofsers shot out of their rifle muzzles. Clyde tried to dodge by twisting his body.
Fortunately, the protective power of his Dark Night Coat worked well. As long as the shot doesn''t hit his head, that will be alright.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.10) is activated! ]
Clyde let out a torrent of fire from his hand. Then channeled fire to the Elderss Sword.
The torrent of fire temporarily blocked the robots'' view. So Clyde could lunge closer toward them smoothly.
Once he was in front of them, Clyde started shing his Elderss Sword.
*CRACKKK!*
*CRACKKK!*
*CRACKKK!*
Within seconds, Clyde had managed to destroy a dozen robots with thebination of [Skill: Burning Hand] and the Elderss Sword''s shes.
Now, having found the location of the Main Control Tower, Clyde immediately rushed to destroy the remaining robots so they could go there immediately.
~~~
Chapter 99 Tower To The East
Thest remaining robot has already fallen on the ground. The rattling sound of metal frames breaking one by one could also be heard from the surroundings.
Clyde took a deep breath and looked around. Now they''re done killing all the robots around here. Including the big robots with those canons and miniguns.
"Let''s go, I''ve got the location of the Main Control Tower," Clyde said to them. Then, without waiting for them to answer, Clyde immediately walked to go east.
Reed turned his head with a confused face to the group members around him.
"Where did he go? Does he know something?" Reed asked.
"He said we should go to the Main Control Tower," Rodney replied.
"But there''s nothing in that tower, right? These robots spawned and just directly attack us and the one controlling them is whoever is running this apocalypse," Reed said.
Rodney shrugged his shoulders. "I don''t know, man. As usual, Clyde must know something we don''t."
Rodney then walked after Clyde in thought. ''I also want to know what he knows.''
If possible - or if what Clyde knew was something really important - then Rodney thought he would snatch it from Clyde''s grasp.
After all, the Selection Stage will end soon. So he had to secure his chance as best he could. He had to get rid of as much of Clyde''s advantage as possible so he could get the upper hand on him.
Then, in the end, Rodney could kill him before the Selection Stage ended.
Meanwhile, Sonya and Asqa also walk with them. But the two of them seemed to keep their distance from the Regressors.
They chose to be more vignt because of Clyde''s words. After all, the two of them had also heard about how the four Regressors were talking about Clyde behind their backs.
After walking for several minutes without interruption, finally, the robot troops came together. This time with more numbers than before.
Clyde, who couldn''t wait to get to the location of the Main Control Tower, lunged at him with all his might. Faster than the others.
The other members of his group immediately joined the fight. Because they have no choice.
Asqa immediately reused her [Skill: Attack Up] on Clyde and the others. With her Skill, the fight against the Regressors bes faster and easier.
For the next thirty minutes, they would get an increase of 50% of their total attack power. It was enough to break through the wave of robots even though the number of robots was much more than before.
Clyde continues to be in front to lead them. He killed the robots faster than the others.
The fire from Clyde''s hand melted the robots and weakened their defenses drastically. Then the de of the Elderss Sword which was also enveloped in mes and extremely hot sliced ??the metal frame like a malleable object.
Unfortunately, the robot troops came as if without stopping. As soon as one wave has been ovee, another wave falls soon after. Making their troubles increase and never end.
''This is taking too long.''
Clyde was getting impatient. He had already lost count of how many robots he had destroyed. But no matter how much he destroyed them, the robots just kepting.
Their number in one troop is also doubled. When new troops appear, their number will increase. Clyde realized that clearly.
After breaking through the wave of robots for quite a long time, Clyde could already see the top of the Main Control Tower. A ck tower in the eastern sky of the city.
But the road to get there seems so far away. Because their path was filled with metal skeletons that kepting.
Now variations of the robots have also been added.
There was something that looked like a tank but with what appeared to be a metal human skeletal torso on top. And that top holds two canons in each hand.
The size of the tank robot is the same as therge robot that walks on four legs. Thus, its presence adds quite a problem for them.
But amidst all that, Clyde''s eyes saw the tank-looking robot as something he could use. With his [Skill: Hacking], he could use the robot to attack others.
So Clyde proceeds to do that. He split through the sea of ??robots trying to kill him and jumped onto the tank robot.
[ Hacking (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
A momentter the same text appeared when he had sessfully been seen. Clyde immediately said his order with his mind.
The tank robot with a metal torso in the shape of a human skeleton immediately changed its target to the robots that were previously its friends.
*JYUUU!*
*JYUUU!*
...
The shots from the canons in its hands came out very quickly. Judging from the speed of the shot, this robot takes less time to load its canons.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
Explosions were created in various directions. The skeletons of the smaller robots were blown up into the air and scattered in all directions.
The tank robot is as devastating as all the robots are as if they are nothing. It''s so easy to destroy them, indicating that tank robots are superior to other robot models.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
The robot continues to ughter the smaller robots with the power and speed of its canon fire. Clyde smirked as he was quite satisfied with the robot''s performance.
Clyde saw that the rest of the group was helped by the robot''s shots.
Then Clyde added another order to the robot.
''Kill the robots to the east!''
Without pause, the robot immediately turned its body to the east. Then start the cannon fire.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
The shot opened the way quickly. The rest of the group followed Clyde who climbed onto the robot with an expression on his face.
"Damnit! Where did he get a skill like that?!" Eric said with spacing words.
Rodney also felt that the Skill was quite amazing. Ever since the moment when he saw Clyde using the Skill to manipte therge robot before, he had already realized that he had suddenly acquired a new Skill.
''Where did he get a skill like that? I don''t remember that a Skill like that was being sold by the Skill Purchasing Machine.''
Then Rodney turned to Sonya and Asqa. Then ask. "Do you know where Clyde got that skill?"
Sonya and Asqa shook their heads almost simultaneously. As if that was the answer they had prepared.
Rodney stared at them for a few moments. Then he turned his gaze forward again.
Even if the two of them knew something, they wouldn''t say anything. Even though he kept asking, Rodney knew that he would only get an answer in the form of lies.
''He can get that Skill from a Celestial. Or it could be from the Skill Purchasing Machine.
He knew what would happen today and got the right Skill. I''m sure that he knows of other things besides the Selection Stage.''
Rodney felt he had to be careful. He previously felt more rxed because he had obtained the [Title] from killing The Devourer.
But realizing that Clyde still had something up his sleeve, Rodney thought that his rxed attitude was wrong.
He had to continue to be careful of Clyde no matter what.
They keep advancing. With Clyde leading the way while riding the tank robot.
The other robots finally realized that the tank robot had turned into their enemy. So, they started an open fire on it.
Dozens of rifles firedsers simultaneously at the tank robot. Other robots that walk on four legs are also starting to appear again. Increases the level of damage suffered by the tank robot.
Clyde realized that the robot could not survive for long. So, he jumped to find the next target.
~~~
In her room, Agatha who was now back alone was staring at the screen with wide eyes.
What''s on the screen is so interesting. Clyde once proved that he is overqualified for this Selection Stage.
"Where did he get that Skill, huh?" Agatha muttered curiously.
But then she just shrugged her shoulders. "Well, I don''t care."
Agatha now can no longer do anything to Clyde.
He even lured the servants of the two Celestials to approach him. And he was even close to signing a contract with Lio.
Agatha suspected that Clyde might have gotten the Skill when he killed Wendigo toplete her Personal Request. Because at that moment he suddenly disappeared from her sight.
A smile appeared on Agatha''s lips. "In a moment, I will give another Personal Request and get Tokens again."
The smile suddenly turned into a chuckle. "At this rate, I can surpass the number of Lio Tokens in no time!"
~~~
Back to the Battle of the yers against the robot troops.
They were getting closer to the Main Control Tower after fighting for their way through the waves of mad robots.
But a new problem came. Suddenly, drones were hovering above them and circling them.
Those yers knew that soon, they would be up against a flying enemy.
~~~
Chapter 100 The Tower Defense
Asqa looked up. She also saw the group of drones the size of a bird. Based on what happened before, Asqa believes the drones will get bigger and more dangerous over time.
She wanted to warn the other group members. But it turns out she doesn''t need to bother. They all knew about the presence of the drones.
"The fuck is that? Are that drones?!" Reed asked with a look of disbelief on his face. "How are we going to deal with that now?"
Reed was confused because, in the previous turns, the Regressors had not encountered the drones.
That was because the drones would only attack yers who tried to get close to the Main Control Tower and the Regressors didn''t bother doing that. So they don''t know about the drones guarding the tower.
But now the situation is different. Because Clyde makes them get closer to the tower, the drones became active. So, they have to fight them.
His questions and concerns make sense. What Reed asked was what they were currently worried about.
Until recently they could defend just fine against ground-walking foes. Because they could be sure that their attacks wouldnd on that enemy.
However, when their enemies are flying drones, how will they do it? No one in this group can fly.
The drones began to lower their altitude. Until they are at the right distance to deliver an attack.
The part that looks like the wings on the drones is exposed. Then something long like the muzzle of a gun appeared.
Ten drones were flying. And they prepared to fire simultaneously.
"TAKE COVER!" Clyde shouted from his spot up ahead.
The Regressors tried to split the waves of robots that were still around them to find shelter. But they know that they won''t have time to find shelter before the drones open fire.
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
...
The drones started their barrage of fire targeting the members of the group. Clyde can hide behind the big tank robot.
But the rest of the group must try to find their own protection.
Luckily, Asqa is near Sonya and Reed. So she can immediately act.
Asqa dashed towards Sonya and Reed and activated her [Skill: Dome of Protection] which she had maxed out.
Asqa stretched her arms up and a white dome appeared. The dome covered the ce within a ten-meter radius with her as the center. So she can protect Sonya and Reed from the shot at the same time.
However, the other Regressors were too far from her for Asqa to protect them.
The series ofser shots hit Asqa''s white light dome. Ripple is when a pebble falls into still water is created.
But Asqa was certain that her dome would not be destroyed by the bombardment of the shots.
She felt pride inside her after having this kind of Skill. In this way, Asqa will no longer feel that she is useless in battle.
Reed and Sonya both breathed a sigh of relief. Their eyes looked up and stared at the ripple created in the dome.
"Phew... thanks, Asqa," said Reed.
Asqa just nodded in response. Because she must continue to concentrate on holding her dome.
Sonya also feels grateful for her protection thates in clutch. It turns out that this is the Skill that Asqa bought at that time.
The other Regressors had to use their own means to defend against the fire.
Rodney uses the body parts of the robots he has killed as shields. Luckily Mona was close to the building so she could run right in there.
Eric can take good cover because he has the Skill to create that light shield. So Eric is not in much predicament right now.
They didn''t only survive the drones'' shots but also the attacks from dozens of robots. So, their situation is actually quite difficult.
Clyde saw that this situation would get worse in no time if he didn''t do anything.
Clyde wanted to use this tank robot, but now this tank robot has lost three of its canons, and only a matter of seconds until it can''t move anymore due to receiving attacks from robots around and drones simultaneously.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
Clyde plunged the Elderss Sword into the tank robot. Then lightning appeared in both of his hands.
Clyde then stretched his hands toward the drones and fired his bluish-white lightning bolts.
*JRZZZZTT!*
*JRZZZZTT!*
His lightning bolt shot hit several drones at once. The drones emitted smoke then fell and hit the robots below them.
*BOOM!*
Several explosions urred when the drones fell. Now there are only four drones left in the sky. And now they shifted their aim to Clyde. Their shots were no longer aimed at the rest of the group.
A barrage ofsers fired rapidly at him. Clyde was still able to avoid some of them by taking cover behind the tank robot''s torso. However, a few shotster the torso shattered and forced Clyde to leave.
He jumped from there and entered the building that was closest to him.
The human skeleton robots followed him. And the four drones that also came down and came looking for him.
Clyde realized that now, he had be the main target of the robot troops. So they deploy more robots to chase him than the other group members.
As soon as the robots arrived at the entrance of the building, a huge fire explosion was created and knocked them back. The drones were engulfed by the huge fiery explosion and disappeared within it.
As soon as the mes dissipated, the drones appeared to be lying on the ground with their bodies melted.
Clyde was in the building with a ming left hand.
Knowing that drones were nowing, Clyde climbed up the stairs until he reached the top of the building.
From here he could see the ck tower standing tall with its antennas constantly rotating. The antenna gave off a very bright red light.
Clyde had not seen the red light earlier. So Clyde deduced that the Main Control Tower had just activated its defense when it noticed that an enemy was heading towards it.
Suddenly, drones came out of the tower. Their number is so many times more than before. Theye out like a swarm of wasps just out of the nest and ready to find prey.
Clyde knew that the best way to fight the drones was to be on high ground. Because he can''t fly.
He started running towards the drones. The drones, who had set Clyde as their target ever sinceing out of the tower, immediately flew toward Clyde.
Their wings opened again. Then those dozens of drones started raining down on Clyde with theirser barrages.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
Bluish-white lightning shot out and enveloped Clyde''s body. He had to use that Skill again to be able to avoid the barrage of shots.
He moved so fast that he was left with only a blur of motion and a bluish-white sh. Noser shots could hit him because even the drones'' aiming mode couldn''t track Clyde''s movements.
In the blink of an eye, suddenly he was in front of the drones. Without slowing down, he shed the Elderss Sword which was also covered in bluish-white lightning.
*JRZZZTTT!!*
As soon as Clyde shed the Elderss Sword, a thin crescent-shaped arc of lightning shed out. The lightning sh was so long that it covered all of the drones.
*JRZZZT!*
*JRZZZT!*
*JRZZZT!*
...
The drones that were hit by the lightning sh were instantly scorched and lost their power. The flock of drones fell like birds that died suddenly in the air.
They explode onto other robots below. Because the number of drones is quite a lot, they can cause considerable damage to the robot troops below.
Clyde nced at the Main Control Tower. He looked forward to the drones that the tower would release again.
However, there was no movement from the tower. The antenna is still rotating. Yet nothing happened.
''Is it like... taking a break?'' thought Clyde.
Maybe the tower has used too much energy to mobilize the drone''s forces to protect itself. So, the tower has to gather power again to be able to deploy drones.
''This is the chance!''
Clyde saw a gap that probably wouldn''t open for a long time.
So he dashed and jumped between the rooftops with his body still covered in [Skill: Pure Lightning] power so he could reach the Main Control Tower in an instant.
But as soon as he almost reached the Main Control Tower, Clyde realized something.
He looked back. Then he saw the rest of the group who were having a hard time amidst the robots'' attacks.
''Are they going to be okay?''
But when Clyde took a closer look, they were just fine. The maxed-out stats make them able to fight well.
The only worrying thing is the drones. Clyde is sure everything will be alright if he can take care of the drones.
~~~
Chapter 101 Entering The Tower
In the white room, as usual, Agatha was looking at them with amusement in her eyes. Or rather she just stared at Clyde and not paying too much attention for the rest.
"He handled it pretty well," Agatha muttered.
She wasn''t too shocked by what she saw. Because Agatha already knew that Clyde would be able to walk toward the tower easily.
The skills he has are also quite extraordinary. Agatha remembered that the skill was called [Hacking]. The fact that Clyde had that rare Skill proved that he knew what was going to happen today.
Agatha decided not to think too much about how Clyde knew about it all. And just enjoy the fun sight.
Lio''s arrival surprised her. Agatha almost jumped off the couch when the door opened.
"How''s the situation?" Lio asked.
"Uhh... Nothing worth mentioning, Senior," replied Agatha.
Lio looked at the screen with serious eyes then sat down on the couch. As soon as he sat down, Lio immediately brought his hands together in front of his face, making a gesture of contemting.
But his eyes stare straight at the screen. There is no question about who is the center of his attention this time.
"They''re approaching the Main Control Tower?" Lio said, astonished. "Do they know anything?"
Lio stared at Agatha with his sharp eyes. Agatha tried to be calm even though inside her heart, there was a turmoil of fear.
"I''m not sure, senior. I''ve seen him disappear when he was on the subway," said Agatha with a calm face.
Lio stared at him for a few more moments. His brows furrowed so sharply that it made the look in his eyes a few times more frightening.
Agatha felt the urge to swallow her saliva. In the end, she swallowed reflexively. While hoping that Lio wouldn''t take it as a sign that she was nervous.
Lio then sighed and looked at the screen again. Agatha also breathed a sigh of relief silently.
"The Guardians havee. So we don''t have to worry about the Celestials trying to harm us," Lio said.
"That''s good," Agatha said.
"I will make another contract offer to him." Lio looked at Clyde who was fighting the drones on the screen.
"Are you sure he will ept it this time, Senior?"
"Why not? Doesn''t he need something to fight the Outer God tomorrow?"
Agatha did not answer. She had a hunch that Clyde already had a way to deal with that Outer God without receiving a contract from Lio.
What Clyde got from anyone he met when he disappeared on the subway is still a mystery.
And that must have been a reward from the Celestial for telling him to kill those three Wendigos of different colors. So, it''s definitely not a small reward.
Clyde also asked her about the treasure box. Agatha didn''t know what was actually in the treasure box because this system is quite old. So neither Lio nor her have aplete manual.
But if Clyde was looking for it, it would definitely be of use to him.
There was even a high chance that he would find something to defeat the Outer God tomorrow.
However, Agatha couldn''t say that because it would make Lio feel suspicious of her. Then thought that she was nning something behind him.
Lio and Agatha continued to watch Clyde and the other yers in action in silence.
~~~
Clyde was almost at the Main Control Tower. But apparently, there is something else that appears and blocks him. Something that looks troublesome.
It is a robot. But that shape gave off the impression that the robot''s power was on a different level than it had appeared before.
The robot didn''t have the appearance of a metal human skeleton. Outwardly it looks like a human wearing futuristic armor with glowing neon-red stripes.
It holds two short swords. The swords were made of red energy condensed into des.
Its heads have a V-shaped curved line that seems to indicate the location of its eyes.
Clyde used [Skill: Inspection] on it right away.
<<>>
[ Name: X-99. ]
[ Affiliation: Rogue AI Monster. ]
[ Level: 40 ]
[ Skills: Laser Beam (Lv.5), Weapon Mastery (Lv.6) ]
[ Stats: Strength (8/10), Stamina (10/10), Agility (7/10), Magic Power (-/10) ]
[ Weakness: Electromaic Field. ]
[ Affinities: - ]
[ Rating: A (B-) ]
"Tsk!" Clyde clicked his tongue, full of annoyance. He thought he could get into the tower now that none of the drones wereing.
But who would have thought that the tower still had something to guard against it?
Suddenly the robot with the name X-99 shot toward Clyde and swung the two swords simultaneously.
*CLANG!*
Clyde is able to raise the Elderss Sword in time to counter the two swords.
The robot then uses its legs to perform an upward circr kick. Clyde was able to dodge it but barely. The robot''s metal leg barely missed his chin.
Clyde jumped back and then swung the Elderss Sword in a forward arc. He sent out a crescent-shaped lightning sh like the one he used before to destroy the drones.
But even though the lightning sh went so fast, the X-99 robot managed to avoid it by bending its back. The lightning sh just passed through it.
X-99 immediately stood back up and dashed toward Clyde with incredible speed. In the blink of an eye, he had arrived in front of Clyde.
X-99 again shed the two swords from two opposite directions simultaneously. Aiming it at Clyde''s neck.
Clyde threw a lightning bolt at the robot''s chest. As soon as the lightning bolt hit its chest, X-99 was sent flying backward.
*JRZZZTTT!!*
*JRZZZTTT!!*
*JRZZZTTT!!*
Bluish-white lightning flowed through the robot''s metal body for a few moments. Making it unable to move.
Clyde used this opportunity to dart towards it and then grabbed its neck. Then Clyde ms it to the ground with such force that it creates a small crater.
Then Clyde raised the Elderss Sword and plunged it into the robot''s chest.
*CRACK!*
The Elderss Sword''s de was still enveloped in bluish-white lightning. So that when the sword de entered the body of the lightning robot, it immediately spread.
X-99, which had previously looked like a threat, was now violently convulsing. Maybe if this robot fights other yers it will indeed be a threat. But it was nothing in front of Clyde.
Clyde stood up and let the robot convulse on the ground. He walked straight toward the gate of the Main Control Tower.
But Clyde''s view remains the stay vignte because maybe the tower still has a surprise in store for him.
*BOOM!*
Clyde heard an explosion from behind him which made him turn his head. Behind them were mes rising from the toppled body of arge robot.
Clyde saw Rodneye out from next to the robot and started attacking the other robots.
Seeing that, Clyde was increasingly convinced that they would be fine. So he walked faster toward the gate.
Clyde cut through the gate and barged in. Then he met with very high double doors. Viewed from anywhere this double door looks sturdy.
Clyde felt he could destroy this door. However, he will release quite a lot of Magic Power. So it''s not a wise choice.
Clyde saw an electronic panel beside the door. Something that usually serves as a ce for security card scanning.
He stuck a hand there and activated his Skill.
[ Hacking (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
A secondter the same notification appeared.
[ Say you order! ]
''Open the door.''
*FSSS...*
With that, therge double doors began to open to both sides. Clyde immediately ran in through the open gap without waiting for the door to fully open.
As soon as he entered, what greeted him was arge and wide corridor. Clyde looked in all directions to make sure nothing was trying to attack him once he forced his way in.
Suddenly the corridor light came on. It turns out, the corridor light is a red light that makes the entire corridor filled with red-like blood color.
The intruder rm sounded. Clyde had expected this, so he wasn''t surprised when he saw a dozen robots modeled after X-99 appear around him.
They immediately attacked Clyde as soon as they saw him. Some wield two short swords like the X-99 he fought before. While others use long-range attacks with a gun.
Clyde fought them while using [Skill: Pure Lightning]. shes of bluish-white lightning danced in the middle of the corridor which was lit up in red.
Destruction was created on several sides of this corridor. The body parts of the X-99 robot were thrown and hit the wall and then died and didn''t move anymore.
After a few minutes, finally Clyde managed to beat them all. He looked in all directions but found nothing that lunged at him again. So he continued his journey.
Because of what Agatah had said about the location of the treasure box, Clyde was able to walk with a clear purpose.
"10th Division Office."
Clyde read the neon sign over a double metal door.
Clyde did the same. Sticking hands on the panel beside the door and using [Skill: Hacking].
~~~
Chapter 102 The Mini BOSS
The door opened by itself just like the main gate of this tower. Once again, [Skill: Hacking] proves its might.
As soon as Clyde entered the room, it turned out to be quite arge room.
The location on the first floor makes Clyde frown his forehead because usually, a room like this is at the top of the tower.
There is still no movement whatsoever indicating that a robot will appear and attack him. But Clyde knows it''s only a matter of time before the robots attack.
There are severalrge monitor screen panels in this room with running text. Like what you usually see in films with a theme like this.
The red light shed dimly. Even though it lit up the room with blood red, the light was not as bright as what Clyde had seen in the corridor earlier.
Based on what Agatha said, he would find a mini BOSS with the name T-1000.
Clyde was already facing X-99 whom he could beat easily because he could move so fast before they had the chance to use a troublesome Skill.
But he didn''t know about the robot this time. Based on the name, this robot should be slightly stronger than X-99.
Suddenly the monitor screens flickered quickly as if they had malfunctioned.
Clyde immediately put himself on alert. That could be a sign that something was about to appear.
Then the room shook violently, Clyde almost fell because suddenly the room was moving upwards. But soon he was able to bnce himself again.
Metal tes appeared and covered the walls.
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
...
The sound when the metal tes closed by hitting each other was very loud. And since it was a closed room, the sound was even more deafening.
The room is now a metal box that keeps Clyde inside. This of course was part of the n of whoever was waiting for him when the room stopped.
After a few minutes, the room that had be a metal box suddenly stopped. All the monitors in this room turned offpletely and then a door opened from above.
From that door, a woman wearing tight cktex clothes jumped down into the room. The woman fell to her knees and her head bowed.
She lifted her head slowly towards Clyde. A few strands of her jet-ck hair blocked her view. But that didn''t seem to matter as her red eyes stared at Clyde.
''This is T-1000?'' Clyde squinted as he stared at the woman. He had no idea why they had bothered to create such a fine female form. Did they intend to trick anyone who walked in here with her appearance?
"Hi." The woman even greeted me with a smile.
Clyde admits that she is beautiful. She also has a nice body.
But that waspletely useless because Clyde already knew she was a robot he had to beat.
<<>>
[Name: T-1000. ]
[ Affiliation: Rogue AI Monster. ]
[ Level: 45 ]
[ Skills: Weapon Mastery (Lv.6), Force Field (Lv.6), Hypnosis (Lv.5) ]
[ Stats: Strength (8/10), Stamina (-/10), Agility (8/10), Magic Power (-/10) ]
[ Weakness: Electromaic Field. ]
[ Affinities: - ]
[ Rating: A+ (B) ]
This robot will be slightly more difficult than X-99. But Clyde still feels he can handle it. Perhaps what made it even more troublesome was that skill called [Hypnosis].
From the name, if you get hit by this skill, Clyde can get caught in a dangerous situation.
The only way is to move fast enough so that the robot doesn''t have time to use its Skill. Just like what he did with the X-99 robots earlier.
"You have sessfully found this room. So-"
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.10) is activated! ]
*JRZZZTT!*
Before the robot finished saying it, Clyde had already lunged at it with his body covered in bluish-white lightning.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was right in front of it and immediately swung the Elderss Sword which was also covered in lightning.
However, the de hit a red force field in the shape of a half dome that suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
"I knew you would do that," said the T-1000.
A momentter the robot''s hand changed to resemble a futuristic gun muzzle. Then it pointed it at Clyde.
Clyde who saw that immediately jumped aside. Theser shot came out from almost hitting his chest if he didn''t dodge it in time.
As soon as Clyde was able to avoid the shot, he didn''t take a break and immediately lunged back to a ce that wasn''t covered by the force field.
But the T-1000 was already following Clyde with those eyes. Even when he was using [Skill: Pure Lightning].
Clyde noticed the robot''s eyes were following him.
''So it can see me at this speed.''
As soon as Clyde reached the part that was not protected by the force field, another force field appeared there. Just as he had expected.
So Clyde jumped back to keep his distance for a while first.
The T-1000 smiled. The robot''s smile resembled a woman''s smile. Totally realistic.
"I already know how you move and how you attack. I''ve been watching you since you started moving towards this tower," the robot said.
"I also already know what abilities you have."
Clyde wasn''t too shocked to hear that. It is a robot after all. So its ability to analyze must be very good.
"You can''t touch me as long as this force field is still there."
The T-1000 can even characterize the emotion of someone who feels they have won. Even though what was behind that victorious smiling face was just metal.
"Is that so?" Clyde asked back.
"Yes," it replied. "You also can''t go anywhere because this metal cage is extremely formidable. So you will just die here. In my hand."
"Your robot brain really thinks you''ve won, huh?" Clyde asked back in an even tone.
"I don''t just think I''ve won. I know I''ve won."
Clyde snorted. "I guess your robot mind can''t make you think past your analysis."
The T-1000 didn''t change that expression. But Clyde seemed to be able to see that theputer''s brain was trying to digest his words.
Without giving it a chance, Clyde dashed with his body still covered in bluish-white lightning. Once again the dome-shaped force field appeared.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
Clyde let out a burst of fire towards it. Instantly the fire formed a wall that blocked its vision.
The T-1000 moves its eyes to scan the area in front of it. But never found Clyde because of the wall of fire.
Clyde appeared behind him a momentter and immediately swung the Elderss Sword.
Unfortunately, the T-1000 was moving fast enough to stop the de.
*CRAAKK!*
Even though it couldn''tpletely stop the sh, it could at least prevent Clyde from chopping off its head.
Clyde clicked his tongue and then sent a fireball into the robot''s face.
*BWOOSH!*
The fireball exploded in the robot''s face and sent it flying backward.
T-1000 immediately activates a force field in front of its body to prevent Clyde from attacking it.
However, unbeknownst to it, Clyde is already behind it.
*CRAAKK!*
The Elderss Sword stabbed the robot''s back until it prated its chest. The crunching sound of metal being shattered rang out as it did.
"You can''t predict my movements if you can''t see me, can you?" Clyde said with a grin.
However, it turns out that the T-1000 is not that easy for him to destroy. The robot turned its head 180 degrees and stared at Clyde with glowing red eyes and a face that looked full of rage.
Its face which originally looked beautiful has now disappeared to be reced by a horrible facial appearance.
The T-1000 then opened its mouth very wide. Much wider than an ordinary human.
Then a canon formed in that mouth. A hissing sound appears indicating that the robot is gathering energy for its st.
Clyde immediately drew the Elderss Sword. However, the sword stuck in the robot''s back.
"Shit!"
Reluctantly, Clyde had to let go of the Elderss Sword and roll away.
"JYUU!!!*
The canon in the robot''s mouth fired. The reddish canon that shot out cut the top of Clyde''s hair a little.
T-1000 moves its head towards Clyde who is running to dodge. Theser grazed the metal wall that confined them.
The metal wall was strong enough that thesers only created long, deep scratches.
Luckily Clyde still activated [Skill: Pure Lightning] so he had no trouble dodging theser.
The Elderss Sword was now trapped in the robot''s body. And it was clear that the robot would not have given up the sword even if he asked for it nicely.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
This situation forced Clyde to keep using his skills. It made him quite worried.
If only he could use all of his Stat Points to strengthen himself, the robot wouldn''t be a problem for him.
mes red in Clyde''s hands. While lightning enveloped his entire body.
He dashed while dodging the T-1000''sser shot.
~~~
Chapter 103 Close One
Clyde sprinted fast. Lightning enveloped his body and gave him strength and speed many times over.
The T-1000 continues to firesers from the canon from its mouth. The robot''s red eyes watched Clyde''s every move and refused to let him escape its sight.
The robot also started repairing its body that had been pierced by the Elderss Sword. It pulls the metal from the metal te floor under its feet.
When the metal tes enter its body, they bond with it in a smooth motion. A few momentster the wound on the robot''s chest closed tightly.
The T-1000 is now able to move again. The canon in its mouth disappeared and it closed again to form normal human lips.
Clyde used the opportunity to get closer. Because it no longer firedsers, Clyde''s opportunity to move was getting wider.
Now the robot creates two weapons in its hands. A gun in the left hand and aser sword in the right. It lunged at Clyde with great speed.
*CLANG!*
The robot''sser sword hit the de of the Elderss Sword. Then T-1000 raised the gun in his left hand to Clyde''s forehead.
*JYUU!*
Laser shoting out of the muzzle of the gun. The shot would have created a hole in Clyde''s head if he didn''t dodge it in time.
But Clyde can duck fast enough to avoid the shot. He threw a fist at the robot''s stomach.
However, a force field appears suddenly and blocks Clyde''s fist. Clyde felt his fist hit a hard wall.
The T-1000 is now about to aim the gun at Clyde''s head again. But Clyde had already grabbed his hand and sent a wave of bluish-white lightning through it.
The lightning propagates quickly to the robot''s body. The T-1000 had a bit of a convulsion. But it didn''t take long for it tounch another attack.
*DUAGH!*
The T-1000 butts Clyde''s head and sends him backward. Then pointed the gun at him.
However, Clyde realized that quickly. He used his leg to do a spinning kick and kicked the gun away.
*JYUU!*
The shot that should have hit Clyde was off the mark. Clydended perfectly after executing the spinning kick and threw a big fireball at the robot.
*BOOM!*
The T-1000 was thrown backward into a wall. Clyde frowned because it didn''t seem like he had time to use its force field to protect itself.
There was something different since Clyde managed to stab his sword into the robot''s body. The robot somehow reacts a bit slower than before.
T-1000 got up again and looked at Clyde with a robotic face simr to the angry look of a human.
Clyde on the other hand was grinning where he stood. "What do you think? Are you still convinced that you can win now?"
Clyde was almost sure that the robot was now maximizing the calctions in its brain to recalcte its chances of victory.
However, Clyde won''t let the robot count for too long. He, with his body still covered by the bluish-white lightning, dashed at full speed toward the robot.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already in front of it. He didn''t directly sh the Elderss Sword as usual but instead fired a lightning bolt from his left hand.
*JRRZZTTTT!*
The lightning bolt hit the robot''s stomach. A split secondter the new force field appears. But it was already useless because Clyde''s attack was already connected.
''It turns out what I suspected was right. The robot is slower now.''
Being cornered, the T-1000 opened its mouth again and took out the cannon. Clyde who had expected it to do that immediately thrust the Elderss Sword into its open mouth.
Now the point of the sword is in the mouth of the robot. Clyde poured arge amount of lightning into its mouth.
*JRZZZTTTT!!!*
The robot''s body vibrates and convulses violently. Its eyes widened as it looked at Cldye as if it was in great shock.
Seeing that, Clyde grinned evilly. Maybe it''s nothing more than just one of the many human expressions that have been registered in the robot''s brain. The T-1000 didn''t take that as a sign that it would meet a horrible end.
Suddenly the T-1000''s eyes lit up even brighter and sent a signal into Clyde''s eyes.
Clyde was unable to avoid the T-1000''s ability, which was quite dangerous.
He felt like he had lost all power in his body. The stream of lightning that was previously flowing strongly dimmed and finally disappeared.
The lightning in Clyde''s body went out along with all of his senses.
''Shit! Hypnosis!''
Clyde fell on the metal floor. His Elderss Sword tumbles beside him. He sat up with a dazed and lost expression. His eyes were empty and stared into nothingness.
Meanwhile, the T-1000 also fell onto the metal floor. The robot''s body was still convulsing because of the massive lightning stream that was still present inside its body.
The state of the robot was the same as Clyde''s. It couldn''t move for a while so used its [Skill: Hypnosis] to save its life.
The two of them are now in the metal box cage with conditions that are not much different. But the T-1000 still has its awareness so it can still try to repair itself.
The robot immediately pulled the metal tes around into its body. The process was slow because the lightning that Clyde released was still in its body and slowed down its entire performance.
On the other hand, Clyde is still affected by the hypnotic signal sent by the T-1000. The signal affects his brain so that it turns off its function for a few moments.
Clyde couldn''t think of anything right now. His entire head felt empty as if it had sunk into a void.
He could no longer even feel fear or anxiety. What Clyde saw right now was only the form of the robot repairing itself by pulling the metal tes around it with nk eyes.
After a few minutes passed, the lightning on its body started to dissipate. Its convulsing stopped because the part of its body that was damaged by the lightning was fixed.
T-1000 stood looking at Clyde with cold robotic eyes. The expression on that human-like face was no longer there. All that''s left now is the cold metal that wants to kill Clyde.
Even though its body couldn''t stand straight because the fixing process wasn''t perfect yet, it was enough to kill Clyde with an empty mind and a body that couldn''t move in the slightest.
The robot got closer and then raised its hand which was still trembling. But unexpectedly, Clyde''s eyes which were nk a few moments before shifted at it.
*DUAGH!*
Clyde kicked the robot''s leg, causing it to fall to the metal floor. Then he grabbed the Elderss Sword that was not far away from him and thrust the sword into the robot''s head.
*CRAAAK!*
The sound when the metal of the robot''s head was prated by the tip of the sword, was something satisfying for Clyde.
A notification text was still floating in his vision when he saw the robot dying beneath him.
[ Private Attribute Effect Activated! ]
[ Private Attribute: Easy-Mode, has reduced the effect of Skill: Hypnosis drastically! ]
Clyde was able toe back from the hypnosis effect which almost took his life at the right time because of that. Now things are turning around so quickly.
He, who was on the verge of death had now managed tond a heavy hit on the T-1000. Clyde didn''t stop there to ensure his victory.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
Lightning appeared and flowed through the Elderss Sword into the robot''s body and shattered the metal organ it had just repaired.
Momentster the T-1000''s body parts fell apart one by one.
Then the sinister gleam in those eyes also started to dim. Those eyes stared at Clyde emotionlessly until theypletely died out.
The robot''s entire body stopped moving. Which is a sign that the robot is dead.
Clyde drew his Eldgerss Sword and breathed a sigh of relief as he stood up.
[ "You gained 3,000(x10) Exp." ]
["You Leveled Up!" ]
["You Leveled Up!" ]
["You Leveled Up!" ]
...
Level-up notification appears multiple times. Clyde didn''t count exactly how many times he had Level Up. But he could tell that he had leveled up quite a lot.
The Exp he got after defeating this mini BOSS was quite a lot. Coupled with the effect of [Skill: Exp+], the Exp he got was very plentiful.
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
The metal tes opened against each other a momentter. The room returned to normal and Clyde could see again the door he had entered.
He walked towards the door and opened it. Then found himself in a ck corridor lit by blue neon lights.
Soon a mechanical sound was heard in the corridor.
"You have seeded in killing the T-1000. Your reward has been provided in the Main Control room located at the end of this corridor."
After hearing that Clyde walked to the end of the corridor and opened the door there.
~~~
Chapter 104 A Thought
Clyde stepped into the room. When he got inside, it turned out that the atmosphere of this room was much different from what he had seen before.
This room wasn''t made up of metal walls or red neon lights that seemed to convey the sinister vibe of an evil AI.
Large windows lined the length of the room and from those windows, Clyde could see what was outside.
Aputer with one monitor screen and keyboard is in the middle of the room. On the monitor screen, there was a blue text that was blinking as if asking Clyde toe closer.
[ Main Controls. ]
So Clyde walked over to theputer. Once he was directly in front of it, the text on the monitor changed.
[ Press Enter. ]
Clyde immediately did it. The writing on the monitor changed again.
[ You now have full ess to all AI in this tower. ]
Clyde grinned. Then he started typing themands he wanted to give to all the robots in this tower.
Clyde orders the remaining X-99s to finish off other robots on the streets and help his group members. Then he also ordered the drones to do the same thing once they were ready.
From the window, Clyde looked down the street. It turned out that he was currently on the top floor of the Main Control Tower.
He saw his group members still in the middle of the robots'' siege. They can survive well but the seemingly endless number of robots will still be something dangerous if left alone for a long time.
Then a dozen human-shaped robots with amazing abilities came out from inside the tower.
They were rushed to the troops of the robots and began to carry out their actions. That is destroying the robots on Clyde''s orders.
After seeing that, Clyde nodded in satisfaction. He returned to theputer and typed something. He wanted to quickly get the treasure box hidden in this tower.
After he typed in themand, the floor in front of theputer opened. Then a tform rises to one meter.
Above the tform was a ck box with a blue neon stripe lighting up on the side of it.
Clyde drew closer to the box. Because he was sure that it was the treasure box he wanted, Clyde didn''t hesitate to open it right away.
He pressed arge button in the middle of the top side of the box. The box opened to four different sides and revealed a gray orb inside.
The orb was only the size of his palm. Clyde took the orb and stared at it for a few moments.
As far as he could observe, the orb showed nothing special. The shape is in and smooth. Out of curiosity, Clyde used his [Skill: Inspection] on the orb.
[ Inspection (Lv. 3) is activated! ]
<<- >>
[ Name: Nightmare Orb (Replica). ]
[ Affiliation: Godly Essence Replica Item. ]
[ Item grade: S ]
[ Description: This item stores the fragment of a powerful Outer God power. With the power within this item, you can have the ability to injure Outer Gods. ]
Clyde''s eyes widened slightly when he saw the information about the item he was currently holding.
"Grade S item?"
Clyde had never seen an item or weapon of this grade before. That meant that he was currently holding an item of the highest grade in this Selection Stage.
But seeing from the ability of this item, Clyde wasn''t too surprised that this item was in grade S.
However, there was something that made Clyde feel confused.
"What does it mean that this item is a Replica?" Clyde muttered in surprise. Does that mean this item is just a copy of the original item?
The quiet room made Clyde think more clearly. If this was all just the Selection Stage, then the possibility that everything here was just an imitation was indeed quite high.
Since day one, the parties running this apocalypse - most likely the World Masters - have indeed only issued one mainstream apocalypse scenario after another.
They''re just copying what''s already created in fiction.
This Selection Stage is just a big stage where they are a spectacle for all beings who see it. Whether they are World Masters, Celestials, or some other being.
Maybe all of this isn''t real. Maybe they will wake up on the sixth day when this apocalypse ends. Because everything in this world is just an imitation.
"Then, are all these powers also unreal?" Clyde stared at the reflection of himself in the window.
He was now wearing all ck, with a sword hanging from his waist. All the power he has, the Coins he has. Is it all real?
Or actually, he''s just a pathetic teenager hoping to be the protagonist of a cool fiction story. But in the end, he just had to ept the fact that he was actually nobody.
Clyde decided not to think about it anymore. Because that would only make him feel bad. So Clyde looked away from the window pane that reflected his appearance.
Clyde put the Nightmare Orb into his Inventory. Then cast his gaze around the room once more.
The room is empty except for that lonelyputer. Clyde concluded that there was nothing else he could do in this room. After all, he also got what he wanted.
Clyde ran to the window and jumped out. He broke the window as if it was nothing. Then jump down from the top floor of this tower.
Clyde felt a gust of wind against his face as he dived down from several tens of meters high. For a moment he felt calm when he did that.
In his mind came a thought. ''Perhaps this is thest sight people whomit suicide by jumping off buildings see and experience.''
Clydended on the ground with a thump. Hended on his feet easily, unharmed.
Above him came a rustling sound. Clyde looks up, he sees the drones have been released and is now helping the X-99s to destroy the robot troops.
With their help, the waves of robots that continue to spawn without stopping are much easier to handle.
The other group members are also aware of the presence of robots and drones that help them. The X-99 is superior to ordinary robots.
And the drones that attacked from above were also barely touched by their attacks. So the drones can attack freely and destroy robots quickly.
Clyde came to help shortly after. And the process to destroy the robots was running more smoothly.
After about an hour had passed, they were finally able to beat all the robots in this wave. So they can feel a bit rxed for some time.
The members of the group stood in the middle of the scattered and piled-up corpses of the robots. This ce was suddenly like a scrap metal shelter.
Sonya sat him over the corpse of arge robot whose body had been cut in half. In her hands is still the futuristic rifle that she stole from the robot that attacked her at the motel.
The others were already sitting on the corpses of the robots with tired faces.
Apart from the scattered corpses of the robots, what caught their attention were the human-looking robots wearing modern armor and the drones that were silently hovering above.
They stood still when there were no more robots for them to kill.
The yers in Clyde''s group had already seen how the robot worked. They destroy the robots with their excellent fighting skills.
Behind the robots, Clyde appears who seems to be walking casually. They saw him walking from the direction of the Main Control Tower.
"You guys alright?" Clyde asked while looking at their condition.
"Yeah, we''re more or less alright," Sonya said.
Others have given simr answers to her.
"You managed to take over these robots and drones in the Main Control Tower?" Rodney asked.
"Yes." Clyde nodded curtly. "Let''s get ready. The new wave ising soon, right?"
"If this squad of robots and drones helps us, it will be easier to get through these robot waves," said Reed. There was a faint smile on his tired face.
"Whatever you do in that tower, you do a good job, Clyde," Eric said to Clyde.
"Thanks," replied Clyde. "But today isn''t over yet. Don''t thank me just yet."
They can only rest for a short time. Because not long after that the new robot army started spawning again.
"We''d better avoid being surrounded now," Rodney said.
"I agree," Clyde said.
They decided to find a good ce to face the robot. Being in the middle of a siege and being attacked from all sides is very tiring.
They entered a nearby building. Even though the robots can still enter, at least by being in this building they can minimize the number of robots that attack them at once.
They felt they could fight better now. Now that Clyde had found what he was looking for, all they had to do now was hold on until the time the BOSS appear.
~~~
Chapter 105 A Cyborg
They survive the robot attack for several hours. Destroys wave after wave of robots that keeping without stopping.
Hours that are heavy and quite tiring passing by. They could finally take a breath after the wave of robots stopped.
But they know that the wave of robots will only stop for a while. So they can''t afford to feel too rxed.
They were now on the highest floor of the building. Here, they can more easily withstand the swarm of robots below.
Sonya now held a rifle in her hand, then another rifle that she slung across her back. And the two pistols hanging from her waist.
All that she got from the robots she just killed. Her rifle that she used from the start had run out of battery after killing hundreds of robots. So Sonya had to find a recement for the rifle and another backup weapon.
From the top of the building, Sonya dominates by firing her rifle non-stop. None of theser beams that shot from the muzzle of the futuristic rifle missed.
Assisted by the drones and robot X-99 that Clyde managed to get to help them, their task bes much easier.
Even so, their fatigue level still increased because the robots kepting without stopping.
If they were just regr yers, who didn''t have the advantage of high levels, they would have already died a few hours ago.
"What''s the time now?!" Sonya asked anyone who could hear her.
"It''s already 04.00 pm!" who answered her question was Asqa. The only ones free enough to take her time because everyone''s pretty busy.
After hearing that answer from behind her, Sonya looked up. She saw that the sun was already lower than thest time she saw it.
This fight was so intense that Sonya didn''t realize that they had spent that long.
"The BOSS should have appeared by now, right?!" Sonya asked while continuing to shoot.
Clyde who was fighting against the robot that was trying to climb up the stairs didn''t answer. Because he didn''t feel that the question was directed at him.
"Clyde!" so Sonya called him again.
"I don''t know about that!" Clyde answered in an equally loud tone.
"Ah, shit!" Sonya cursed angrily. If Clyde - as someone she expected to know a lot of things - didn''t know anything, then who could know when the BOSS would appear?!
Sonya''s anxiety is shared by the rest of the group. But in the end, they can only wait until that timees.
They continued to fight the robots for a few more minutes. The sun was getting lower now. It''s almost dusk, yet the BOSS still hasn''t appeared.
Over time, this made their minds even more agitated. Because normally, the BOSS appeared when the sun was still quite high.
This wave of robots is over. They sighed again while stretching the sore body parts.
Then not long after, their anxiety disappeared when a notification sound rang in the sky.
[ CHAPTER 3: TIME OF THE MACHINES. ]
[ PROGRESS: THE CYBORG CALLED AS ''THE ULTIMATE WEAPON'' HAS BEEN ACTIVATED! KILL THE CYBORG TO END THE CHAPTER. ]
[ OBJECTIVE: THE CYBORG IS THE ''BOSS''. KILL THE CYBORG TO COMPLETE CHAPTER 3. ]
"Finally!" Sonya eximed.
"Why are you happy? You didn''t hear the robot''s nickname?" Reed answered from beside her.
"At least now we can see the end of this chapter, right?" Sonya replied to Reed''s words.
"Yeah, I guess you''re right," said Reed.
In the midst of this exhausting and seemingly endless situation, seeing that the BOSS had appeared could be said to be some kind of hope.
Even knowing that they were going to be up against a strong foe made them more relieved. This apocalypse had turned their feelings that way.
A bright light appeared at the top of a building. The light wasing from an orb that looked like it was made of lightning.
The orb is quiterge. It was two and a half meters in diameter and lightning whipped around it.
Soon the orb began to crack like an eggshell being opened. The form of a man was visible from within.
A few momentster the orbpletely disappeared, leaving behind a man wearing all ck who stood towering two meters tall.
The man had long blonde hair and has big and tall build. His ck outfit made him even more intimidating. His ck coat fluttered in the wind.
The man looked down at his hands and grinned.
"I''m back!" he said, with a happy tone.
On the other hand, the group members who were staring at the man looked wary. They could see the look on his face because the top of their building wasn''t too far from him.
"That''s the BOSS. I clearly remember how his form and strength were," Rodney said.
"He still has a human mind. But his body has beenpletely modified into a robotic organ. So he can still talk like a normal human,"
"It doesn''t matter whether he can speak like a normal human or not. We already know he is the BOSS so we just have to kill him," Clyde said as he walked forward.
"He also talked a lot," Rodney added.
Clyde didn''t respond because he didn''t think it mattered.
The robot is aware of their existence. He turned towards them still with a smile on his cheerful face.
"Hai! Are you the survivors that I have to kill?!" The man shouted at them. He also waved as if all he just said was a warm greeting.
Sonya snorted at the way he spoke. "I could already tell he was an annoying person when he was human."
Clyde turned to her. "You can shoot him now, right?"
"Oh right!" Sonya raised her rifle and started aiming.
*JYUU!*
Without waiting for a long time, she immediately shot the cyborg. The redser shot at incredible speed toward the cyborg.
However, the cyborg just didn''t seem bothered. Theser fired by Sonya only hit the force field around his body.
"Whoa! Don''t you guys want to chat first?" the cyborg said.
Sonya lowered her rifle. Even though her shot didn''t have any effect, Sonya didn''t look disappointed because she had expected that the cyborg wouldn''t be hurt that easily.
Sonya shrugged her shoulders. "So he has a shield that seems to keep working all the time."
Clyde who stared at the cyborg could be certain that he was using the same skills as those of the robots he had previously fought. [Skill: Force Field].
It''s just, this time, the cyborg activates the skill all the time. Or it could be that his reactions are too fast so it seems that he activates the skill all the time.
"Are you ready to die by my hand?" The cyborg asked again in that unnaturally cheerful tone.
"He seems to be quite an annoying opponent," Mona was already staring at the cyborg with clenched jaws.
"We don''t need to bother replying to his words, right?" Eric said.
Clyde intends to approach him. He stepped up and prepared to jump into the building.
However, the cyborg jumped first toward them. He ejected his body after kicking the roof of that building.
*WUUSSHHH!*
In the blink of an eye, the cyborg hadnded in front of Clyde and immediately swung his fist.
*CLANG!*
Clyde parried the fist in time with the Elderss Sword. He didn''t feel any significant pressure from the fist to the point where Clyde thought he could hold it with his bare hands.
"Hahaha! You''re pretty strong!" said the cyborg.
Clyde sighed. The attitude of this cyborg looks like that of a very strong viin, who is praising his opponent he is sure he can beat if he puts out his full strength.
Suddenly, from next to Clyde, Reed, and Mona came simultaneously swinging their swords.
*CLANG!*
The cyborg blocked the swings of the two swords with its hands. There was a sound of metal against metal when the swords hit his hand.
Clyde could see the surprised look on the cyborg''s face. Perhaps he had not thought that there was anyone who could give him such strong resistance in the first ce.
Clyde then sent a kick to the cyborg''s face.
*DUAGH!*
The cyborg was blown far back and fell.
"He doesn''t seem as strong as The Devourer," Clyde said.
"Yeah, I think so too." Reed agreed to hisments.
"Don''t let your guard down. He hasn''t used all his strength yet," Rodney said.
Clyde turned to him. "Are you saying that you''re not confident you can beat him with your current level of power?"
Rodney looked back at him and then grinned. "No. I''m sure we can still win. I just said we shouldn''t let our guard down."
Hearing that, they all smiled serenely. Maybe what makes this third Chapter difficult is the swarm of robots that never stop fighting them.
As for the matter of the BOSS, it seems that the BOSS isn''t an enemy that''s too hard to deal with.
~~~
Chapter 106 His Memory
They looked down. Below there, they see a crater. That shows how heavy the cyborg''s body is. So that the fall alone can create a crater like that.
Clyde thought that he would be able to defeat the cyborg very easily. He has [Skill: Hacking] which is a bane for AI rogues like him.
Even when he''s notpletely robotic and still has human consciousness, aren''t all his limbs and organs already be a machine?
Clyde was sure that he could easily take over all of the cyborg''s body parts. And when his [Skill: Hacking] couldn''t work for some reason, Clyde could still just beat him until he died.
"I''ll leave him to you," Clyde said.
His words provoked the nces of the rest of the group.
"Are you sure?" Sonya asked. "You don''t want all the rewards from him?"
Even Sonya only considered the cyborg who was the BOSS as a source of rewards. It''s no longer a threat.
"For now, yes," answered Clyde. "Maybe I''ll join the fight if I see something interesting."
"Actually, I''m not going toin about that," Reed said. "If you don''t want to, I think we can handle it."
"You all seem to underestimate that guy." In the middle of the conversation that seemed too rxed, Rodney said.
"That cyborg might look weak to us now. However, he''s quite troublesome when he''s transformed."
Clyde turned to Rodney. "Are you the only one who knows about that?"
"Only I knew how to kill him in our previous turns," Rodney replied.
"Is it true?" Clyde asked while looking at the other Regressors.
"Yes." Mona nodded. "We just hid and left everything to Rodney."
Clyde''s forehead furrowed when he heard her confession.
Clyde wanted to ask again. However, they had been talking for too long and forgot about the figure of the BOSS that was down there.
The cyborg was already jumping toward them at an incredible speed. In the blink of an eye, he was already in front of them shing his twoser swords.
*SWISHH!*
The sword sh was so powerful that it made a sound as it sliced ??through the air in front of them.
Fortunately, the yers had already jumped up with equally incredible reflexes before the sword had cut off their necks.
Sonya aimed and then immediately shot.
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
...
Sonya didn''t just shoot once. She fired her rifle many times until it seemed that there was no pause. Her slender finger squeezed the trigger nonstop.
Yet, the cyborg can avoid all of those attacks by jumping and running on the roof of the building.
Rodney turned to Eric, Reed, and Mona. Through the look in his eyes, they could tell that Rodney was indicating for them to rush forward.
Reed, Eric, and Mona nodded. Then they approached the cyborg who was running around with a smiling face. As if thinks that everything that is happening right now is something entertaining.
"HAHAHAHA! Let''s y!"
The cyborg changed its hands which were previouslyser swords into cannons. He aimed at the four Regressors who were running towards him with their swords drawn.
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
Shot after shot from the canons in his hands shot off and hit the roof of the building. But none of them could hit all four of them.
The shots had a big enough impact on the building they stepped on. In a few moments, manyrge explosions were created until the building was in a state of near copse.
It forced them to change spots. Clyde, Sonya, and Mona move to a location that''s a bit further out.
Meanwhile, the four Regressors continued to engage in the fight with the cyborg.
"You really aren''t going to get involved in these fights?" Asqa asked Clyde who was next to her.
Clyde didn''t answer right away. Instead, he nced at the Regressors. He recalled the earlier conversation that had taken ce between them.
Mona says that they only hid when Rodney killed the cyborg in a past life. Rodney also said that he knew how strong and how to kill the cyborg.
Meaning most likely, Rodney was the one who had the most knowledge even among the Regressors.
? "Let''s just observe for the moment," Clyde said after a while.
Hearing that, Asqa did what Clyde said. She didn''t know what was going through Clyde''s mind and what he meant by ''observing'' them.
But like before, Asqa chose to obey Clyde.
What Clyde wanted to know was how Rodney fought. If he knew a lot, it meant that he could fight easily and it also meant that there is a huge possibility that he knew a lot more things.
His friends don''t seem to know that Rodney knows the robot''s weakness.
They seemed so confident in Rodney that they didn''t question his decision at all.
"I think we should act too," Clyde said when he realized that he can''t let Rodney be too strong.
Clyde was convinced that Rodney knew about a lot more things. He couldn''t let him gain more Exp. Or Rodney could have a big advantage.
His words were heard by Sonya and Asqa.
"When?" Sonya asked, instantly. As if she had been waiting for him to say that.
Clyde turned to Sonya. Then to Aska. They also seem to see him as someone they can trust to follow without questioning anything. Was it because he had saved them?
Perhaps that was also the reason those Regressors followed Rodney without hesitation.
"You guys just follow me when I move," Clyde said to them. "Asqa, you didn''t use [Skill: Attack Up] on them earlier, did you?"
Asqa shook his head. "No."
"Good." Clyde nodded. "You can use it on me when the timees."
"Alright," Asqa said.
Clyde felt a small happiness when he saw the two girls following him and willing to support him. Unknowingly, a small smile formed on his lips.
Once again, Clyde feels that having apanion isn''t a bad thing.
*BOOM!*
A huge explosion suddenly created in front of them. mes soared into the sky along with ck smoke.
From within the mes, the figure of the cyborg flew out with a wide grin on its face.
"You guys really entertain me!" the cyborg said.
The cyborg thennded on top of a house. Clyde, Sonya, and Asqa drew closer to take a closer look.
The cyborg already had several wounds on its body. His all-ck shirt was torn in several ces with cuts. It was most likely caused by the Regressors'' sword shes.
However, he seems calm. That was because all the injuries he had suffered from those cuts had disappeared. His synthetic skin closed again the moment the woundnded on him.
Clyde could see that the cyborg would be a tough opponent because of its regeneration ability.
Well, after all, he was the BOSS on the fourth day so they could be expected that his power would be this strong.
Then the cyborg turned his head, noticing the presence of Clyde, Sonya, and Asqa.
"Hey! Don''t you want to y?!" the cyborg asked them.
Sonya clicked her tongue. "Tch! He pisses me off."
"There''s no point attacking him now because we still don''t know his weaknesses," Clyde said.
"Yeah, I know. That pisses me off even more."
"How are those Regressors doing?" Asqa asked while looking at the puff of fire.
Not long after, the four Regressors shot out of the mes and headed straight for the cyborg. The cyborg himself seemed to be looking at them with an excited grin.
Clyde waited for Rodney to reveal his weakness.
They didn''t take long to reach the cyborg, once they were around him, they immediately attacked the robot with extraordinary ferocity.
The Regressors'' des shed with the cyborg''s metal arms. Then a cyborg shot aser from his eye and almost pierced Mona''s chest if she didn''t block theser with her sword.
Theser shot pushed Mona several meters before finally stopping because Eric shed the sword at the cyborg''s neck. Yet, the sword only hit the metal that was under the skin of his neck.
Then from below Reed shed his sword toward the cyborg''s chest.
*CLANG!*
Once again the sound of metal shing violently rang out. Reed''s sword was able to pierce the cyborg''s human skin however, it stopped again by the metalyer beneath his skin.
Rodney was already behind the cyborg. The cyborg nced back with a grin as if he was expecting his enemy''s futile efforts.
However, Rodney did not sh his sword or attack in any way. Instead, he just kept quiet and stared at the cyborg for a few moments.
Then Rodney said. "Do you still remember how your mother died?"
The cyborg''s expression suddenly changed when he heard those words leave Rodney''s mouth. His eyes widened instantly, and his face was deathly pale.
Rodney nced at Eric and Reed then nodded. The two of them then united to give a kick at the cyborg simultaneously.
*DUAGH!*
The cyborg was thrown backward, broke through the wall of a house, and ended up inside that house.
None of this went unnoticed by Clyde. Clyde''s eyes narrowed at the scene in front of him.
~~~
Chapter 107 Decision To Join
Clyde noticed the change even though it had only happened for a split second. Clyde''s eyes still narrowed sharply at the scene ahead.
''What did he whisper?''
Clyde could notice the minuscule lip movement Rodney made. Although the others didn''t seem to notice as they focused on other things.
The cyborg blew all the rubble out of the house that was copsing on him. Then he stood on the rubble of the destroyed house, looking up at the Regressors.
His face was not as cheerful as before when he each thought this was all something fun. The cyborg now had a sour face. His mood dropped many times after hearing Rodney''s whisper.
The cyborg walked slowly towards them. "What did you say?"
Eric, Mona, and Reed turned to Rodney. Eric and Reed who were near Rodney heard what he said. But they didn''t really understand how those words could make the cyborg caught off guard and be a bit weaker than it should be.
They didn''t know about it because they were just hiding. And let Rodney deal with the cyborg.
Rodney stepped forward confidently. As if, he is sure that he already has a clear advantage that will make him win.
"Didn''t you hear what I said? I''m sure you did, though," Rodney replied in a calm tone.
"How did you know about my mother''s death?" the cyborg replied to Rodney through gritted teeth.
Rodney grinned. "That doesn''t matter. What matters is that I know you were the one who killed your mother."
"RAAAHHH!!!"
Suddenly, the cyborg screamed as it charged toward the Regressors.
"Get ready!" Rodney said to his Regressors friends.
The cyborg and the Regressors were once again engaged in battle.
Meanwhile, Clyde and the others were still staring from a distance. Sonya had also stopped giving them support fire as she was waiting for Clyde''s orders.
Clyde himself was still standing still as he was still observing the behavior of the cyborg and how Rodney fought against him.
After a while, Clyde could conclude that the cyborg''s movements had be more reckless after Rodney had whispered something to him.
However, even though its movements have be more reckless, it does not mean that the cyborg has be weaker.
He was still as strong as before, and the attacks from the Regressors still didn''t deal any significant damage to him.
But Clyde guessed it was only a matter of time before the cyborg showed his weakness.
If Rodney kept whispering those words, the cyborg''s movements would be more reckless and he would eventually make a mistake. Whatever it is.
''I have to prevent Rodney from killing him and gain more experience. I don''t care even if it looks like I''m licking my own spit. I can''t let him have a better advantage than me.''
Clyde pulled the Elderss Sword from its scabbard. Seeing that, Asqa and Sonya turned their eyes to him.
"Are we going to act?" Sonya asked excitedly.
"Yeah," answered Clyde.
"What will we do?" Asqa asked.
Clyde turned to Asqa. "You will provide support and healing as usual."
Aska replied with a firm nod. She looked like a loyal warrior who had just received an order from a king.
Then Clyde turned to Sonya. "You don''t need to keep shooting. Just wait until the cyborg seems caught off guard enough that he can''t activate his force field."
"Alright." Sonia nodded.
"Let''s go!"
Clyde dashed towards the fight with Sonya and Asqa following behind him.
The cyborg was still putting up a tough fight for the Regressors. With a metal body that feels he looks almost invulnerable.
The cyborg also activates the force field at certain moments to repel their weapons and then counterattack.
Thebination of those two things alone gave the Regressors a hard time. The cyborg still didn''t even issue another type of attack.
And Clyde still remembered that Rodney had mentioned something about transformation. That sounds like something serious.
The cyborg turned his gaze towards Rodney. He ignored the other Regressors as if they were insignificant backgrounds.
"You don''t know anything about me!" the cyborg screamed with rage.
He swung both hands that had turned intoser swords towards Rodney simultaneously.
Due to his predictable movement, Rodney could already predict that the cyborg would do that. So he ducked his at the right time.
*SWISH!*
The two swords cut through the air in the void that had previously been Rodney''s head. While Rodney had ducked below and thrust his sword toward the cyborg''s neck.
*CRACK!*
Different than before, this time Rodney''s attack didn''t just hit the metalyer like before.
He knew that one of the most vulnerable parts of the cyborg''s body was in the middle of his neck.
It''s just a small gap that is very difficult to hit. Because of that, Rodney was only able to hit that part now when he was so close and in the right position.
Rodney grinned. Then before the cyborg could continue its attack, it rolled over and jumped away.
And sure enough, as soon as Rodney got away the cyborg let out a shockwave that blew everything around him.
Debris and dust flew up as they were blown away by a powerful invisible force.
There was an electric spark that appeared on the cyborg''s neck where Rodney stabbed him. Indicates that Rodney''s attack can cause damage to him.
The cyborg realized that too. However, he seemed unable to do anything about the situation. So, he could only stare angrily at Rodney.
Everyone present there was aware of it. Including Clyde, Sonya, and Asqa who are still on their way to approach.
Reed turned to Rodney to ask what he had just done. But the cyborg had already lunged at him so fast that it thwarted Reed''s intention to ask.
*CLANG!*
The cyborg''sser de once again shed with Rodney. This time the cyborg attacked faster and stronger. Driven by his umted anger.
Reed, Eric, and Mona also came to help attack the cyborg. But now the cyborg is not as stupid as before.
He immediately activated the same shockwave he had sent out earlier to blow them away.
He immediately grabbed Rodney''s arm before he was blown away. Because the cyborg seems to have already set Rodney as the main target and wants to get rid of him as soon as possible.
"Arghhh!"
Rodney screamed as he felt the pressure from the shockwave the cyborg emitted. And because he didn''t get blown away like his friends, Rodney suffered an even greater impact from the shockwave.
The shockwave was so strong that it sent Rodney''s leg up. He also felt his head dizzy and his vision became blurry.
Blood starteding out of Rodney''s nose which couldn''t take the pressure of the wave.
''Shit, I''m going to pass out in a second.''
Rodney felt very apologetic. He fell into this situation because he was caught off guard.
He thought that he could handle the cyborg easily because his level was already high and because he knew the cyborg''s weaknesses.
When Rodney felt that he was really going to faint in a few seconds, bluish-white shes appeared in his vision.
Then Rodney''s body fell and he was taken away by someone. Rodney fell to the ground in a dizzy state.
Clyde stood facing the cyborg who was about to charge toward Rodney. On his body, the bluish-white lightning was dancing rapidly.
"Get out of my way! I have to kill that guy now!" the cyborg shouted angrily as he pointed at Rodney.
Clyde didn''t answer. Instead, he dashed towards the cyborg. Because of his speed, the cyborg even looked shocked when he saw Clyde already in front of him.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
sh after sh of the Elderss Sword struck the metal lining and the cyborg''sser sword. Theyer of lightning that was on the de spread from the point of impact to its surroundings.
The cyborg felt the effects of the lightning starting to interfere with its movements. Once again he used the shockwave to throw Clyde away from him.
Clyde of course immediately shot away when he saw the signs that the cyborg was about to use his shockwave.
The cyborg used its shockwave and knocked dozens of objects around it. But they failed to hit its target which is Clyde.
As soon as the shockwave finished, the cyborg still focused its gaze on Rodney. While Asqa is trying to recover his condition next to him.
Clyde nced at Rodney. The shockwave turned out to have quite a terrible impact to the point where Rodney became like that.
''I guess the BOSS on the fourth day really can''t be underestimated,'' Clyde thought. ''But if I can use up all the Stat Points I have, this BOSS won''t be a problem.''
The cyborg gnashed his teeth while staring at Rodney. Then he ran towards her even though it was obvious that Clyde was still not far from him.
So, Clyde took the opportunity to lunge at the cyborg.
~~~
Chapter 108 Transformed
The cyborg''s eyes, which previously only focused on Rodney, were now aware of Clyde''s presence, who suddenly lunged at him.
He gritted his teeth even harder. "STOP BOTHERING ME YOU ANNOYING FUCKER!"
The cyborg swung his arm at Clyde. From that hand came several sharp des that immediately shot toward Clyde with incredible speed.
However, Clyde''s body which was still covered in lightning indicated that he was still activating [Skill: Pure Lightning]. Thus, the speed of the des wasn''t a big problem for him.
Clyde skillfully moved the Elderss Sword to block all the des the cyborg threw. Then he continued to continuously dash towards him.
*CLANG!*
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was right in front of the cyborg with the Elderss Sword pointed at his neck. But the cyborg still managed to cross his arms in time to block the thrust of the sword.
Clyde could see very clearly a spot on the cyborg''s neck that seemed to be sparking electricity. The spot also looks open. Unlike other parts of his body which are covered by ayer of metal.
From there Clyde could already think that the spot on the neck was the cyborg''s weakness.
He didn''t know if that part was his only weak point, or if there were other parts. But at least now he knew where to point his sword.
Realizing that Clyde was aiming at his injured neck, the cyborg looked furious.
"You think I''m going to let you stab my neck like that, you jerk?!" the cyborg said with an angry tone. "I will cut off your head and tear your body into pieces. Then I will do the same thing to all your friends!"
Clyde did not reply to his words which only contained angry curses. Instead, he opened his palm in front of the so cyborg''s face and then sent a bolt of lightning into his face.
*JRZZZTT!*
"ARGHHHH FUCK!"
The cyborg screamed. He had lost sight of Clyde''s figure for a while. The cyborg also reflexively used the hand he previously used to block the Elderss Sword to remove the lightning bolt from his face.
The time window thatsted only a fraction of a second was enough for Clyde to move to gather strength.
He gripped the handle of the Eldgess Sword with both hands, then thrust the de with all his might into the spot on the cyborg''s neck.
*CRAAKKK!*
*ZWOOSSH!*
Elderss Sword managed to stab into that spot. Then a bluish-white lightning energy shot out through the back of the cyborg''s neck until it hit the part of the building behind him.
The cyborg''s movements stopped for a few moments. Clyde also stopped to wait to see if the attack had the effect he was hoping for or not.
Even though he had managed to prate the cyborg''s neck with his stab, Clyde felt that the cyborg wouldn''t be defeated with just such an attack.
And turns out to be true. After a few seconds passed, the cyborg''s hand turned into a canon. Then he pointed the cannon at Clyde.
Obviously, Clyde immediately drew his Elderss Sword and jumped aside to dodge it.
*JYUUU!*
The shot from the cannon went straight to where Clyde''s head had been. Luckily, Clyde was gone from there.
Once there was no longer any sword at his neck, the cyborg''s head was knocked downwards. The light in his eyes dimmed but didn''t disappearpletely.
But he''s not dead. That was proven by the shot he just fired.
On the other hand, Rodney has be much better than before. All of that is thanks to Asqa''s extraordinary healing abilities.
Rodney stood up and looked at the cyborg and then at Clyde. He realized what had just happened. Clyde managed to deliver a clean attack on the cyborg from the wound he had just inflicted.
However, the sess of the attack would only be the beginning of the cyborg''s transformation.
Because that attack had killed the cyborg''s basic form, the second form would appear in a moment.
"He will transform!" Rodney called out to Clyde.
Clyde turned to him with a frown. ''So he will start his transformation now?''
Rodney said that the cyborg would be stronger after its transformation. But Clyde was quite confident that he could still handle the cyborg even though he had transformed.
The cyborg''s body began to convulse. Then sparks of lightning appeared around him but did note from his body. The spark seemed to appear suddenly from somewhere else.
The sparks turned into the same five orbs that appeared when the cyborg came. Then, from the five orbs appeared parts that immediately joined the cyborg''s body.
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
...
All the parts that seemed to have been sent from another dimension came together and reshaped the cyborg''s body.
Now, he looks like a robot knight soaring four meters high. Twice the height of his previous height.
The newly arrived parts formed ck armor with red light highlighting the arms, legs, and head.
The armor envelops his body and provides protection that looks powerful. Not only armor, but the newly arrived parts also turned into a spear-shaped weapon in his hand.
Clyde concluded that the new parts also repaired the damage he had suffered from the attack.
Everyone who was there stared in awe, except for Rodney who knew that it was going to happen.
"Hey, you said we can beat him even if it''s a bit of a hassle?" Sonya asked Rodney.
"Yeah. I believed in it and still believe in it," Rodney said. "Don''t worry. Now he might look very strong. But there are seven of us."
Sonya decided not to worry anymore. Because even if she were to worry, it would be of no use.
Clyde was still right in front of the cyborg. He who had not had the chance to use [Skill: Inspection] used it now.
[ Inspection (Lv. 3) is activated! ]
<<>>
[ Name: Cyborg Mark I (Transfomed) ]
[ Affiliation: Rogue AI Monster. ]
[ Level: 43 ]
[ Skills: Laser Beam (Lv.7), Weapon Mastery (Lv.7), Shockwave (Lv.8), ]
[ Stats: Strength (9/10), Stamina (10/10), Agility (7/10), Magic Power (-/10) ]
[ Weaknesses: - ]
[ Affinities: - ]
[ Rating: A (B) ]
Clyde didn''t see too much difference from the T-1000 he had fought earlier.
Even the T-1000 seemed more troublesome because of that [Skill: Hypnosis]. But the cyborg in front of him didn''t have that skill.
''But that armor looks pretty tough, though.''
The cyborg stared at Clyde through the red eyes that shone under the helmet. Clyde could feel the animosity that was so clear from his gaze.
The cyborg used its spear to point at Clyde.
"You!" The cyborg said in his previous voice but added a mechanical voice. "I''ll kill you!"
Clyde clicked his tongue. "You should try harder with those words."
The cyborg was about to make a threat, but the threat didn''t feel like it had any impact on Clyde.
The cyborg started to charge toward Clyde while swinging its metal spear. Suddenly, from the two points of the spears,sers appeared and condensed to form two spearheads.
But then, from behind him, Rodney came jumping while raising his sword. He didn''t just give an ordinary sword sh but instead sent [Skill: Sword sh].
The ck crescent-shaped sword sh shot towards the cyborg''s back. It turned out that the cyborg had noticed the attacking because he had looked back.
However, he couldn''t dodge because now his speed was reduced.
*CLANG!*
The sword sh was stopped by the cyborg''s thick armor. Yet, even though it couldn''t prate it, Rodney''s sword sh had created quite a deep scratch on the armor.
Upon seeing him, the cyborg shifted its attention from Clyde to Rodney. He turned his body and then thrust his spear toward Rodney who was in the process ofnding.
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
...
However, shot after shot came in an instant toward the cyborg''s hand and spear. The shot made the spear miss its target which is Rodney.
Because of that Rodney managed tond well. He then used the opportunity to temporarily get away from the cyborg.
Meanwhile, Eric, Reed, and Mona also attacked him from various sides.
The cyborg realized that, but due to their extremely fast movements and reaction speed which had been greatly reduced after the transformation, the cyborg was toote to use its shockwave.
The three Regressors also immediately sent [Skill: Sword sh] towards the cyborg simultaneously.
The ckish sword shes hit the cyborg''s neck, back, and stomach. Creates a pretty deep wound.
The three of them immediately jumped back as soon as they finished sending that melee attack.
The shockwave they had been expecting from the cyborg came out a momentter. However, the Regressors had disappeared from the wave''s range.
At that moment, Clyde approached Rodney and asked. "Now where is the weakness?"
Rodney shook his head. "Unfortunately, now he has no weakness."
Clyde looked up with a frown. "What do you mean? Then how do we defeat him?"
"We just have to attack him enough times until his armor breaks. Only then will his true core be revealed and we can truly kill him."
~~~
Chapter 109 Almost Done
Based on what Rodney had said, they now only had one n. Which is to attack the cyborg until his true core is revealed.
"Okay," Clyde said calmly. "If that''s what it has to be done, we just have to do it."
Rodney and the others who heard it were astonished. How could Clyde be so calm?
But then they got rid of their astonishment. From what they could see earlier, they could be sure that Clyde was able to act that calm for a reason.
The cyborg stood towering and stared at them. The red light that was on his head shone toward all the yers as if scanning them one by one.
"Hey, you can''t get him off guard with the words you just said?" Reed asked Rodney.
"No. Earlier, that man still had a bit of human consciousness. However, now his mind has been controlled by the program so he has no emotions," Rodney answered.
Reed sighed. "Okay then. Let''s just attack him." Said Reed who had given up.
The cyborg dashed towards them. His steps sounded loud and created a small vibration around.
The cyborg seemed to no longer want to give them time to talk to each other.
He swung his spear and pointed it forward. From the point of the spear, a reddish orb shot toward them with incredible speed.
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
*JYUU!*
...
The shot from the spearhead came rapidly toward the yers. They immediately scattered so the orbs that the cyborg shot just hit ces where they had been standing.
Clyde was the first to strike. He shot straight at the cyborg while his body was still covered in bluish-white lightning.
The cyborg had clearly also noticed Clyde''s arrival. He turned and pointed his spear directly at Clyde.
He fired aserrge enough that it looked as though aser pir was emerging from the tip of the spear.
Clyde was able to dodge the shot easily. For him, the speed at which the cyborg fired his attacks was not a problem at all.
Theser shattered the ground Clyde had been standing on as he run from the side. Clyde then swung the Elderss Sword and sent a sh of lightning toward the cyborg.
While his attack shot toward the cyborg, Clyde also dashed at full speed toward the cyborg. Until it was as if he was racing against his lightning sh.
The cyborg raised his spear to block Clyde''s lightning sh.
*CLANG!*
*WUSH!*
When the sh hit the spear, a shockwave spread around blowing up trash and debris.
Unfortunately, the lightning shsted long enough that the cyborg had to keep using his spear, or else the sh would hit him.
This was used by the others tounch attacks. The Regressors moved together to sh their swords so they could continue to damage the cyborg''s armor.
Meanwhile, Sonya also kept shooting at the scratches or dents left by the Regressors.
All of this took ce in a fraction of a second. But because of Clyde''s lightning shes whichsted long enough, they were able tond more hits than they should.
In addition, the effect of Asqa''s [Skill: Attack Up] also helps them to create great damage.
The lightning sh finally disappeared after the cyborg knocked it away with its spear. Then the cyborg spun its spear around to chase away the Regressors around it.
Clyde immediately took part as soon as he saw that the cyborg could move freely again.
The cyborg''s brain now had indeed changed into aputer brain analyzing the situation quickly. Eventually, the cyborg decided that the biggest threat to it among his attackers was Clyde.
Even though the human brain inside was still screaming that the person he should kill first was the man who said he was the cause of his mother''s death.
For now, his mechanical organs were clearly more obedient to hisputer brain than his emotionally useless human brain.
The cyborg ran towards Clyde. Clyde ran towards him while holding the hilt of the Elderss Sword with both hands.
Once they were within close range, Clyde made a stabbing motion as he had before. Then sent a shot of powerful lightning toward the cyborg who was charging toward him.
The cyborg used his spear to block Clyde''s lightningser-like attack. Because of that, the footsteps that had been running toward Clyde stopped in ce.
Clyde turned to the rest of the group. He didn''t need to say anything because they already knew what to do.
They immediately lunged back and attacked the Cyborg from all directions with even greater ferocity.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
Swords and a barrage ofser shots hit the cyborg''s body. Increases the number of wounds on his armor.
Even some parts of the armor had fallen to the ground unable to withstand the barrage of their relentless attacks.
The cyborg received a notification that the resistance of his armor was decreasing rapidly. The cyborg immediately used a shockwave to blow all the attackers around him away.
The shockwave also sent Clyde back a few meters. Luckily he was still able to gain good footing.
Meanwhile, the cyborg didn''t move immediately. He spread his gaze around at all the yers swarming him from all directions.
All the yers there began to believe that what Rodney said at the beginning was true. They would have a bit of a hassle when facing the cyborg. However, they will still be able to defeat him.
"We can''t stop now!" Rodney said as he ran ahead of the others toward the cyborg.
The others immediately followed him.
Seeing theming back to him, the cyborg immediately ran and jumped toward a building. He thennded on the top of the building and stared at them.
Clyde immediately followed him. He didn''t care even if the cyborg nned to provoke him to separate himself from the others.
The cyborg also jumped again to keep his distance. Clyde was still following him with his body still covered in lightning.
Clyde caught up with the cyborg in no time with his speed. He immediately shed the Elderss Sword which the cyborg blocked with the spear.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
Feeling that he had not dealt enough damage, Clyde immediately activated [Skill: Burning Hand] and aimed for the part of the cyborg''s armor whose outeryer had been peeled off.
The mes entered the cyborg''s inner body through the gaps in his chipped armor. Increasing the damage level on the cyborg even more.
The cyborg and Clyde then fight atop the tall buildings. Explosion after explosion was created, the damage spread as they kept moving throughout the fight.
The rest of the group followed up. Sonya was about to shoot to help Clyde. However, he couldn''t get a proper shot due to the debris and their fast-moving speed.
"I don''t have a shot," Sonya said, shaking her head.
"Don''t worry. We''ll be able to take over from here," Rodney said. "Let''s go!"
The Regressors immediately took that as a cue. So they followed Rodney who shot toward the fight.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
The sound of impact as the Elderss Sword''s transparent blue de covered in lightning struck the cyborg''s metal spear echoed around the area.
Clyde''s face was calm as he swung the Eldgess Sword with steady strength and speed.
His attacks cornered the cyborg until he finally entered a floor of a tall building and the two of them fought in an office room.
Clyde already knew that victory was near. He just needed to give the cyborg a little more encouragement. However, he can''t afford to be off guard like before.
The Regressors followed shortly after. They entered the office and started attacking so that it elerated the cyborg''s damage process.
Clyde and the Regressors attacked simultaneously from all sides, the cyborg that had already taken quite a lot of damage was now even more cornered.
His speed and strength decreased drastically. His armor wore away more and more and fell on the floor of the office.
*DUAGH!*
Then Clyde delivers a kick that instantly sends the cyborg through a window and he falls down.
Clyde didn''t say anything and immediately followed him. The other Regressors automatically also ran.
Clyde jumped down. Because they were previously on a fairly high floor, when Clyde came out the cyborg had not yet reached the bottom.
Clyde immediately threw lightning bolts and lightning shes at the cyborg. All the attacks hit him and pushed him down even faster.
*BOOM!*
The cyborg hit the ground with a loud crash and craters were created all around it.
Clyde held the hilt of the Elderss Sword with both hands as he continued to descend.
Until finally, hended on top of the cyborg''s body while thrusting the Elderss Sword into his chest which was no longer protected by his armor.
Clyde as well continued to channel lightning through the Elderss Sword into the cyborg''s body.
The cyborg''s body convulsed and bluish-white lightning shot out through the gaps in the armor.
~~~
Chapter 110 Another Transformation
Lightning shed through the gaps in the broken armor. pping out as if wanting to rebel from within the cyborg''s body.
Clyde continued to stream his lightning for a few moments and didn''t want to end it until the cyborg showed signs that he was dead.
After a few moments passed, the head of the cyborg that had been continuously convulsing stopped. Then his red eyes nced at Clyde who was above him.
Those eyes lit up even brighter and made a distinct hissing sound. Clyde widened his eyes. This is a clear sign of impending danger.
Clyde immediately drew the Elderss Sword and then rolled away. That''s when theser beam shot from the cyborg''s eye came out.
If Clyde didn''t leave in time, theser would have hit his head.
The rest of the group arrived around Clyde secondster. They stared at the cyborg who was trying to get up.
Metal limbs were growing from his back. The metal limbs looked like spider legs and immediately moved to lift his body.
After that, the metal limbs moved quickly carrying the cyborg''s body away from that ce.
"He''s going to run away!" Reed shouted.
"Don''t worry. He can''t get too far," said Rodney.
Clyde moved to catch up with the cyborg without saying anything.
All the group members immediately turned their eyes on him because Clyde was standing out with the lightning surrounding his body.
"I still remember him saying not to interfere," Rodney remarked while looking at Clyde.
"Isn''t that great? With him here, we can beat the cyborg faster," Sonya answered his words.
"Yeah, I guess so," said Rodney. ''But why did he suddenly change his mind?''
"What are you guys doing? We have to catch up with him!" Asqa said.
Asqa''s words made them all realize and immediately rushed to catch up with Clyde and the cyborg.
*DRAAK*
*DRAAK*
*DRAAK*
...
The limbs that look like spider legs stick into buildings and make the cyborg look more like a spider crawling over the walls of buildings to escape.
The condition of his armor also looks worse than before. Several strands of lightning were still visible on the cyborg''s body.
Then the further he crawled on the buildings, the armor part fell because he was no longer able to sustain the damage after the damage he had suffered.
The cyborg seemed to be hanging on by a very thin thread. Even after undergoing the transformation, he still couldn''t stand against the strength of his attackers.
The cyborg''s eyes caught Clyde''s very conspicuous arrival. The lightning that surrounded him looked so bright in the middle of the night.
The cyborg''sputer brain repeatedly shouted a distress signal. Clyde''s arrival made all the systems in his body alert.
But what can the cyborg do? The attacks from Clyde and all the yers attacking him simultaneously were much stronger than he could handle.
All the contracts he had made with that red-haired girl were now meaningless.
He has given up all his body to be cut open and turned into a robot with the promise that he will get enough strength to avenge his mother.
But, what did he get now? He was almost killed by the attacks from yers who should be weaker than him!
''Grrrhh! FUCK ALL OF THIS!''
The cyborg suddenly stopped. He is now attached to the wall of the building with his metal spider legs. His eyes nced at all the yers who were chasing him.
This situation seemed to say that he was prey and all yers were predators who could eat him at any time. No, the cyborg can''t allow that.
Theputer system in his brain kept telling him to run as far away from them as possible. However, the cyborg insisted on staying and fighting. Betrayed all the systems in his body that kept him alive.
The rage bubbling up in his human brain took over theputer brain that was trying to say that now was the time to run.
All the armor on the cyborg''s body changed shape again ording to orders from its human brain. They were no longer the armor that protected his body but turned into various kinds of weapons linked to the metal limbs.
Swords, axes, shields, rifles, and spears, are all around the cyborg''s body. The weapons were within close reach.
But it also left the cyborg''s naked main body exposed clearly. On his neck, there was still a gaping wound caused by Rodney and made worse by Clyde.
Rodney frowned. "What the hell? Why did he suddenly open his body before his armor was destroyed?"
Asqa turned to Rodney. "This hasn''t happened before?"
"No." Rodney shook his head. ''Previously I had to wait for the other yers to sacrifice themselves to destroy the armor. There shouldn''t be another transformation after that!''
The reason Rodney was able to defeat the cyborg in his previous turns was that he made use of several yers weakening the cyborg''s armor.
At that time, four yers attacked the cyborg desperately until they finally died at the hands of the cyborg. It was then that Rodney took the opportunity and killed the cyborg then killed the dying yers.
But now, it turns out that things are going a bit differently than the previous turns. Rodney turned to Clyde. Was it all because of him?
Clyde''s presence creates several changes in the Selection Stage due to his strength that exceeds the scale.
Maybe the cyborg was triggered by Clyde''s power and felt that he should be aggressive now.
If so, that''s a good thing. By turning its strongest defense into a weapon, the cyborg was no longer protected.
Even if his attack power had increased many times, that wouldn''t make any difference to the fate that would befall him with the presence of the seven of them delivering attacks together.
Clyde only nced briefly at the rest of the group. Without saying anything else, they already knew what they had to do.
"HRAAAAHHH!!!"
The cyborg let out a scream from his ravaged throat. So that the sound thates out of it sounds like abination of human screams in pain and a malfunctioning machine.
The cyborg catapulted itself toward Clyde. Sword in the left hand, and rifle in the right hand. He fired the rifle at Clyde while closing in.
Clyde is deflecting all thesers heading his way. Then the cyborgnded in front of him and immediately swung his sword.
*CLANG!*
Clyde felt that the power behind the sword swing was stronger than before. He wondered if it was because of the anger that seemed to be burning inside the cyborg.
Clyde could also see the cyborg''s eyes full of anger and... pain? He couldn''t be one hundred percent sure of what he was seeing at this moment especially when they were engaged in an intense fight.
It''s just... if indeed it is anger and pain, that means there is still a human mind left inside that cyborg.
Is he just a monster that was created to be a BOSS in this Chapter or a human that was tricked into being forced to be a BOSS?
Clyde didn''t know which was right. Suddenly he became curious and intended to ask Agatha thatter.
For now, any answer about identity is irrelevant. Because he just had to kill him.
They fought hand to hand for a few moments until finally, the others started to join in the fight.
Shots from Sonya came first to start their arrival. The cyborg can still raise one of the shields he controls through the metal limbs so that Sonya''s shots fail to hit him.
But then Eric and Mona came from the side of the shield with incredible speed. They shed their swords simultaneously at the metal limb holding the shield.
*KRAAK!*
The shield fell to the ground as the metal limb holding it snapped. After that from behind them both Rodney and Mona sent out their ckish sword shes simultaneously.
"Clyde is still there!" Asqa screamed.
Indeed, Clyde is still involved in closebat with the cyborg. And the two ck sword shes shot toward the cyborg and Clyde.
"He should be able to dodge it with ease!" Rodney replied to Asqa''s shout.
Unfortunately, Rodney''s words are not entirely true. Although in the end, Clyde was able to avoid it, he didn''t do it easily.
Clyde managed to jump to avoid it. However, the tip of the sword sh hit his waist.
Even though the injuries he sustained were not too severe due to the protection of the Dark Night Coat, he still suffered from one.
Due to that sh, Clyde also spun in the air and finally lost his footing.
*CRACK!*
Clyde''s footnded at an odd angle and he was sprained instantly.
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
Another sword sh hit the cyborg. Because of that, his attention was diverted to the Regressors who were attacking him.
Fortunately, with his Stats maxed out, Clyde can be freed from the sprains in an instant.
However, the wound on his waist was still there because it came from a Skill with a maxed Level.
~~~
Chapter 111 Last Wish
"Shit!" Clyde cursed through gritted teeth. He felt a stinging pain from his waist.
He didn''t expect that he would get injured by a member of his group. Such things had never happened before when they fought.
Clyde can''t help but think, is this intentional by Rodney or not? His suspicious nature made him immediately think of such a possibility.
Clyde nced at Rodney who was fighting the cyborg with the rest of the group. He was seemingly indifferent to his situation and continued to fight without even ncing in his direction.
While Clyde was looking at Rodney with various spections in his head, Asqa came to him with a worried face.
"You hurt?" Asqa asked.
Clyde immediately turned to her with a slightly surprised expression.
"Yes, a little." Clyde immediately showed his waist which was bleeding a little.
Asqa immediately tended to the wound without further speaking. A green light that creates a cool feelinges out from Asqa''s hands that are close to her waist.
It didn''t take long for his wound to heal. Now there was only a five centimeter long cross-cut hole in his clothes. Clyde''s skin that had been cut there waspletely covered.
"This is the first time I''ve ever gotten this badly injured," Clyde said. Even though it wasn''t actually a serious wound that was life-threatening, what Clyde said was true. Until now, that was the only serious wound he had suffered because it could make him bleed.
"It''s okay now. Thank you," Clyde said to Asqa with a slight smile.
Aska returned the smile with a slightly wider smile. "Now, you can join the fight again?"
"I think so." Clyde walked towards the fight that was happening up ahead. Then he turned to Asqa as if remembering something.
"You''d better go back into hiding now," Clyde said.
Ashka nodded. "Don''t worry. I already understand what I have to do."
Clyde nodded again. He felt no need to worry about Asqa anymore.
After that, Clyde ran to re-enter the fight he had left.
When Clyde left, the damage received by the cyborg was less than before. The cyborg even managed tond an attack on Mona who then threw her quite far from the rest of the group.
The cyborg swung twoser swords simultaneously at Eric who was closest to him.
*CLANG!*
With quite a heavy struggle, Eric managed to block the swings of the two swords with his light shield.
Even though the two swords were swung not by the cyborg''s actual hands but by their metal limbs, the force behind the swings was significant.
Reed arrives to strike the metal limbs and save Eric. However, arge ax came towards him from behind the cyborg.
*CLANG!*
Reed was forced to cancel his intention to help Eric because he had to block the ax with his sword. Because of that, he was also pushed back.
Rodney also immediately came to help. But then missile fire rained down on him from the cyborg''s rocketuncher which was also controlled by metal limbs. That made him unable to move closer to help Eric.
Even Sonya''s shots from afar are not very useful because the cyborg activates a force field which immediately counters Sonya''s shots.
The cyborg was fixing its attention on the yers now in front of it. His eyes were still burning with anger and wanted to kill them without leaving as soon as possible.
However, the cyborg didn''t notice that Clyde was running toward him at full speed.
This time, Clyde had not activated [Skill: Pure Lightning] because he felt that the cyborg was weaker. Moreover, he was surrounded from all directions.
Another reason is also that Clyde wants to conserve his Magic Power.
Clyde came from behind. As soon as he felt he had gotten enough distance, Clyde swung the Elderlgass Sword.
*CLANG!*
But there was still a spear that suddenly appeared in front of him to block his sword swing. It was as if, the metal limbs had their own consciousness to move the spear.
Because of that, the cyborg noticed Clyde''s presence. He turned and immediately pointed his rifle at Clyde.
Only then did Clyde feel that it was the right time to use his skill.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
Clyde threw a lightning bolt at the rifle and changed his aim so that the shot was far off. The attack seemed to have damaged the rifle as well. There were electrical sparks appearing on the rifle.
The cyborg diverted his attacks to Clyde so that Eric was free from his pressure. Reed and Mona had also returned to the battle. The force field that protects the cyborg from Sonya''s shots has also shrunk.
Clyde''s arrival distracts the cyborg from them. The cyborg seemed to act impulsively as soon as he saw Clyde''s arrival without thinking too much about everything.
The cyborg''s desire to kill Rodney disappeared when Clyde came and did more damage. And the cyborg really despises Clyde because he is an ordinary human who can corner him.
The human''s childish mind, coupled with the immense power he had suddenly received through the operation, twisted the cyborg''s brain in such a way that it made him extremely impulsive.
Clyde defended well against the cyborg''s weapons attacks. Then, from behind him, from a ce he wasn''t paying attention to, the other yersunched attacks simultaneously.
The cyborg swung the two swords in its hand and then also swung the ax with one of its metal limbs.
The three weapons hit the Elderss Sword that Clyde used to protect himself. Clyde gritted his teeth from the pressure he felt.
Clyde also saw the cyborg''s expression which looked strange. His eyes were bloodshot red as if they might explode at any moment. Those eyes contained the grudge buried deep within the cyborg''s human heart.
"I... Kill... You..." the cyborg let out a broken sound as he was also doing that while grinding his teeth.
Clyde snorted. "You can''t. You will die soon."
Several shes came from behind. The cyborg''s weapons fell because the metal limbs had been cut by the yers who attacked simultaneously.
Then, once they were done cutting the metal limbs, they all lunged and plunged their swords into the cyborg''s back.
*CRAAAKKK!*
*CRAAAKKK!*
*CRAAAKKK!*
Their swords sank into the cyborg''s body. This time, the metalyer that previously protected his body became much thinner as it had turned into the metal limbs.
The cyborg looked too shocked to scream as all of the swords stabbed into his body from multiple directions simultaneously. It was as if, all his air had been pulled out from within him.
The Regressors then drew their swords simultaneously. There was a bit of blood that was drawn out when they drew the sword.
Then they jumped to get away. It was then that Clyde kicked the cyborg from the front with great force.
*DUAGH!*
The cyborg was thrown backward. He rolled a few times before finallying to a stop when he hit the wall.
At that time all the users rushed towards him and thrust their swords together
*CRAAAKKK!*
*CRAAAKKK!*
*CRAAAKKK!*
...
The Elderss Sword stuck in his neck after Clyde threw it. Meanwhile, the four Regressors approached the cyborg to thrust their swords at close range.
In its eyes, the cyborg saw faces of people thrusting their swords at it. The anger inside him had subsided, now all that was left was fear because he knew death was so close.
Tears flowed from the cyborg''s eyes. His mouth opened as if to say how scared he was and ask for mercy.
However, to the Regressors and Clyde, he is nothing more than a BOSS that they must kill. And now they know they are very close to that goal.
The cyborg''s vision was already getting dark. Theputer system inside his head said that they had a malfunction.
The cyborg said hisst order and hope. It''s the only thing he can do.
''Start the process of self-destruction.''
Theputer system inside his headplied. Then, the cyborg''s vision ckened and disappearedpletely.
"Let''s get out of here! Quick!" Rodney said.
"Why?" Reed asked.
"He will destroy himself now."
Hearing that, the Regressors immediately drew their swords and left. Clyde also heard about it, and he immediately activated [Skill: Pure Lightning] to take the Elderss Sword.
As he drew his sword, Clyde heard an elerating ticking sound. It was a sign that the cyborg''s time to self-detonate was getting closer.
Clyde immediately dashed with a body covered in lightning to get away from him.
A few secondster, the ticking sound stopped. The cyborg''s body turned red like metal being heated from the inside.
And then...
An explosion was created in the middle of the city. The explosion was so big that it created mes that soared to the sky.
The shockwave from the explosion knocked down buildings and sent countless pieces of debris flying in all directions.
By the time that happened, the remaining yers had already left the scene.
~~~
Chapter 112 New Place To Sleep
They were all still running to get as far away as possible from the explosion. Even though they were far enough, they could still feel the heat and shockwave from the explosion.
Even after a few seconds, the heat and wind waves continued to spread around.
None of the buildings, houses, and nts around the st zone survived. Everything was devoured by the heat.
What is happening right now is so simr to the explosion of a nuclear bomb dropped in the middle of a city. Even though the actual effect wasn''t that bad, anyone who saw it would definitely think that the explosion was not much different from a nuclear explosion.
They finally stopped after about a minute of running at full speed dodging the st. They turned towards the st.
The hot wind was still blowing on their faces. Make them squint their eyes because of it.
Not long after, a notification saying that this chapter was finished appeared. This means, the BOSS had indeed died due to self-detonation.
[ "Congrattions to yer "CLYDE CROSS, SONYA REID, ASQA STARR, ERIC HANSEN, MONA COXX, REED RIVERA, AND RODNEY STRING" for defeating the BOSS "Cyborg Mark I."" ]
[ "Rewards for defeating the BOSS sent to Inventory." ]
[Rewards: 30,000 Coins, Grade A Weapons. ]
[ "The Third Chapter: Time of the Machine has beenpleted." ]
After the notification appeared, they could only heave a sigh of relief. Sonya, Reed, and Mona even immediately threw their ass on the ground with a sigh.
"Another day has passed," said Sonya.
The light from the explosion would undoubtedly still illuminate the night sky for a few more moments.
The fire that it causes will still burn even tomorrow. This previously quiet city has be a little more... lively. Even if it''s not for something good.
"Will our motel endure?" Asqa asked while looking sadly at the part of the city that was destroyed by the explosion.
The motel has indeed located some distance from where they fought. However, given the size of the explosion, the chances were pretty slim that the motel was still intact.
The motel is probably still standing. But the damage it had suffered must have been great enough that it could no longer be afortable ce for them to sleep in.
They all understand that.
"We have to find a new ce to sleep tonight," Mona said.
"Yeah, there''s no way the motel will be safe after an explosion of that size," Sonya added.
After agreeing, they immediately looked for a ce to spend the night. Even though they knew that they had just obtained Grade A weapons, they were more interested in finding a bed first.
Soon they found a house that seemed to be owned by a rich family before this apocalypse happened.
There is a white iron gate fence that stands in front of the house. Clyde kicked the fence to pieces as if it was nothing then walked inside.
The house consists of three stories and is painted with the predominant white color. There were traces of blood and dismembered bodies in the stone driveway that led them to the door of the house.
The door of the house itself is a carved double door. And that door is now wide open. When they went inside, the house was pitch ck.
"Are there still monsters here?" Asqa asked with a worried tone.
"I don''t think so," replied Rodney. "Once we finish this Chapter there won''t be any monsters or robots left."
Hearing that, the rest of the group felt relieved. They looked for the light switch and found it shortly after.
As soon as the light came on, it turned out that the condition of this house was a mess. The limbs and blood were strewn in every corner and gave off a sickening rancid smell.
"Ergh... I hope the rooms in this house are in a better condition than here," Sonya said with disgust.
They began to go upstairs and look for the remaining rooms.
The rooms in this house were not touched at all. Whatever incident of a massacre urred seemed to ur after all of the upants had exited.
That is great news for them. The arrangement of the rooms is not much different than before. The Regressors were in a room that somehow had two king-sized beds.
Asqa and Sonya are in one room. And Clyde still prefers to have his room.
Sonya took off all the futuristic weapons that were in her body, put all the weapons on the table, and then threw herself on the bed.
"Ahh..." Sonya took a deep breath. A smile also appeared on her face. "This bed is reallyfortable. It''s the first time I''ve ever felt sleeping on a mattress this soft."
Asqa is somewhat different from her. She kept herposure and sat by the bed.
"Yeah, I guess it''s not bad," Asqa said.
Sonya nced at Asqa after hearing her words. "I guess the mattress you used to sleep on was like this one."
Asqa turned to her, then smiled. From her smile, Sonya could tell that her guess was right.
"Ah, you are so lucky." Sonya had started to close her eyes when she said that.
Asqa was silent after hearing that. The look in her eyes seemed to say that she was thinking about what had happened to her until now.
Then, Asqa said in a low voice. "Hm. I guess you''re right. I''m just lucky."
But Sonya didn''t hear what she said. Sonya was already letting out a soft snore with slightly parted lips.
She didn''t even bother cleaning herself or taking off her clothes so she could sleep morefortably. Sonya just closed her eyes, then fell into afortable sleep.
Asqa could only smile a little. She stood up and went to the bathroom. She stared at her reflection in the mirror.
Her face no longer looked like the face Asqa recognized. The color of her face seemed duller than she remembered. There are dark circles in her eyes which indicate fatigue.
Then, looking at those eyes, Asqa saw the look in the eyes of a stranger in the mirror.
Her eyes, which she remembered were light brown and had been brilliant had now lost their shine. Leaving a brown color that looks dimmer but sharper.
"I''ve seen a lot of things."
p¨¤§ád¨¢-¨¾?¦Í¨º¦É.§ã¨®§® Asqa muttered to herself. She has changed now. She wasn''t sure whether she had be a better person or not.
But in this ruined world, Asqa knows that changing her is the best thing for her and everyone in the group.
Asqa sits on the toilet. Her eyes stared ahead without actually seeing anything.
''Are we really friends, though?''
The question started to arise when Asqa saw everything from a distance.
She, was the only person who could observe everything from a broad perspective. Because the others are busy facing the enemy with attention directly focused on that enemy.
Asqa sees something going on between them. There was a kind of invisible dividing wall, so even though they all seemed to work well together, they weren''t really doing it because they wanted to help each other.
Earlier, Asqa saw clearly that Rodney threw the ck sword sh without hesitation even though he saw that Clyde was still there.
There was still a possibility that Rodney did that because of the chaotic battle situation. However, her gut feeling told her that Rodney had done that on purpose.
Asqa sighed. If bad turn to worst, what should she do?
Then, the image of Clyde saving her first appeared in Asqa''s memory. If she had not met Clyde, she would certainly have died with body parts scattered on the streets by now.
Instead, she stillsted until the fourth day. And develop into a figure that is braver, and stronger.
Asqa nodded because she already knew what she was going to do. So, she got up and washed her face.
Asqa came out of the bathroom with a new resolve. Shey down beside Sonya and closed her eyes.
~~~
Clyde opened his Inventory and took the Nightmare Orb he got from the Main Control Tower. He studied the gray orb with a frown.
[ Name: Nightmare Orb (Replica). ]
"A replica, huh."
Clyde still thinks none of this is real. It made him quite uneasy. What if he had to let all this go on thest day?
His negative side conveys the idea. However, he had seen for himself that there were World Masters and Celestials who wanted to make a deal with him.
So, there must be another purpose behind this Selection Stage, even though none of this is real.
Clyde put the Nightmare Orb back into his Inventory and theny down on the bed. He fell asleep not long after.
~~~
The next day begins with something different. No notification sounds to wake them up.
No monsters suddenly came and attacked them. Yet they know that a new Chapter has started.
~~~
Chapter 113 Black Mist
Clyde opened his eyes. He blinked a few times and paid as much attention as he could to catch the sounds around him.
''Where''s the notification?''
Clyde sat up on the bed for a few minutes. However, nothing could be heard around him. This morning, it was suddenly so quiet.
The yellow light that was supposed to be sunlight was sneaking in from the window next to him. The light prates the thick expensive curtains in this room.
''Nothing. This is weird.''
Clyde got up from the bed and put on a ck coat and the Elderss Sword.
Even though no notifications sounded, and no monsters or robots came in and attacked him, Clyde knew that something was approaching.
This isn''t over yet. So, this silence and serenity can only mean one thing. This was all just the calm before the storm they had been expecting toe.
He came out of his room. As soon as he came out, it turned out that the sunlight looked a little different than before.
The light looks warm and bright. But as soon as Clyde stepped into the light, he felt a chill.
Not only that, but his body also felt odd. There was a sensation as if his energy was slowly being pulled out. Even though Clyde didn''t feel pain, the feeling was unnatural.
He stepped to the front door and opened it. What he saw made his forehead furrow deeply.
"What the hell?"
Outside, the sky was filled with ck mist that looked like thick overcast clouds. However, there was lightning that glowed yellowish-like sunlight that kept striking non-stop in between the ck mist.
The yellowish lightning made the atmosphere bright. But also cold at the same time. The light he saw earlier before wasn''t light from the sun. But from those yellow lightning.
Clyde had never felt the cold feeling from lightning before. Moreover, the lightning continued to strike without a sound, making its existence even more mysterious in Clyde''s eyes.
"So it''s begun."
Rodney''s voice came from behind him. Clyde looked up reflexively. Rodney walked over with a tense look on his face. Clyde could see that his jaw was clenched tightly.
Rodney didn''t look at Clyde as he walked over to him. Instead, he stared outside. To the lightning that continues to strike intensely.
Now, the lightning was striking faster and faster - though still silent without any noises. The reflection of dancing yellow light was reflected on Rodney''s face.
Clyde looked outside again. "What happened?"
"The Outer God is preparing to appear," said Rodney.
"Why are no notifications showing up?" Clyde asked.
"No notifications." Rodney shook his head slowly. "This is the time when we all should perish. So, there''s no point in giving any notification."
"So they don''t expect anyone to survive after this," Clyde said.
"Yes," Rodney said. ''Unless, not until recently.''
From behind, the sound of footsteps could be heard. The rest of the group came together to approach them.
Asqa let out a gasp as she stared outside. Her eyes widened in terror.
"What happened?" asked Asqa.
No one answered Asqa''s question because they were all drowned in the same terror.
Especially the Regressors, who seemed to be frozen with immeasurable fear of having to face the thing that killed them again.
Unlike the obstacles in the previous Chapters where they can still be more calm and courageous because they have reached a high Level.
The threat they were about to face right now was something on a different level from anything they had faced. This is thest BOSS which is arguably an impossible obstacle.
After all, what would appear from behind the ck mist and yellowish lightning was an Outer God. An entity whose power could not be measured.
Among all of them, only Clyde knew that there was a possibility that the Outer God that would appear was just an imitation.
Although it is clear that the Outer God will have extraordinary strength, it does not mean that it is invincible.
After all, Clyde had something that could guarantee that he would be able to injure that Outer God.
"When did it appear?" Clyde asked in a calm tone.
His attitude made them all look at him with shocked faces.
"I know you are strong but what we are going to face is different from what we faced before!" Reed said to Clyde in disbelief. He was sure that Clyde felt confident because he felt strong enough. But then again, the Outer God''s power was on a different level.
"So, what do you want to do?" Clyde asked Reed back.
Reed, of course, didn''t know how to answer that question. He was so scared, yet he knew that there was no other choice for him but to fight.
Rodney said. "It won''t be long now."
Rodney pointed outside. They all followed his directions.
There is a terrible change taking ce out there. Along the horizon, something like threads of various colors was rising up from the earth into the ck mist.
"What is that?" she asked.
"The Outer God is absorbing energy from the earth," Rodney replied.
"Shit." Sonya Gulped. "What happens if he absorbs all the energy from the earth?"
"I''m sure you''ve guessed it. Basically, the earth we''re standing on will slowly crumble," Rodney replied.
"Can we prevent it if we kill that Outer God?" Clyde asked while looking at Rodney.
Rodney and the Regressors wanted to make a remark about Clyde seeming to have underestimated the Outer God. But as soon as they saw the look on Clyde''s face and eyes that were full of seriousness, they canceled their intention.
It was as if, Clyde really believed that he could kill that Outer God when it appeared.
The Regressors had already seen the Outer God''s inexplicable power, yet somehow they felt certain that Clyde had a chance against it.
Seeing that, Rodney couldn''t help but think: ''Does he have something to be that confident?''
The Regressors turned towards Rodney. Then, Rodney said. "I''m not sure. It never happened before."
After hearing that answer, Clyde looked ahead and walked out of the house.
He looked up then spread his gaze. Trying to find something that looks like the body of the Outer God.
But he found nothing but a collection of ck mist and yellow lightning that seemed to rule the sky.
Seeing no choice, the rest of the group left after Clyde.
"You guys really have nothing to say about that monster?" Clyde asked one more time to make sure.
The Regressors knew that the question was directed at them. Yet, what they could say to Clyde was not far from a ''no'' answer. Although pronounced differently.
Clyde looked at them. "Alright, then. If you want to survive, you''d better also fight as hard as you can. That way we can see what happens after this monster."
Rodney is increasingly convinced that Clyde has something up his sleeve. He always acted mysterious yesterday and entered the Main Control Tower alone. So he definitely got something there.
They waited for a while in thumping hearts. Including Clyde, who, despite putting on a calm and straight face, also felt a nervousness in his heart.
~~~
In that white room, Agatha and Lio stared at the monitor screen that showed the whereabouts of the remaining seven yers.
There was a faint smile on Lio''s face that gave off a sly look. Realizing that, Agatha asked.
"Don''t you want to go up to him again and offer a contract, Senior?"
"Yeah. But the time hasn''te yet," said Lio.
"What time do you mean?"
"I''ll wait until he feels despair. Until he realizes that he can''t do anything despite having a high level and strong skills."
Agatha knew that the ''Outer God'' present here was not a real thing. However, the monster called ''Outer God'' in this Chapter was indeed something that was impossible to defeat even for max-level yers.
Because all of their Stats were capped at level 10. If they could use all of their Stat Points, then the ''Outer God'' wouldn''t be a problem.
It was intentional for the yers to feel immeasurable despair. Some of them even died less than a minute after the ''Outer God'' appeared and was immediately dered a failure.
However, there are some who manage to survive longer than others.
The yer who survives the longest will graduate with Grade A.
It was a simple selection system but also quite cruel. All their efforts up to this point would only be determined by how long theysted. Because they couldn''t possibly get away with killing the ''Outer God''.
''But I''m sure that this time will be different.''
Agatha tried to keep her smile from appearing and making Lio suspicious. She saw that Clyde looked the calmest of them all.
Clyde has the Nightmare Orb. No yer has obtaining that item before because its location is hidden and hard to reach.
''I''m so looking forward to what he''s going to do,'' thought Agatha.
~~~
Chapter 114 Descending
The strands of energy absorbed from the earth by the ck mist grew more intense. Where they were standing right now as well, they could see how the energy was being absorbed upwards from their feet.
All of that creates a very horrific scene. They saw, slowly, a certain doom before their eyes.
The scope of the ck mist seemed limitless and filled the horizon. They could no longer see the sky that was usually above them. There was only an existence that was devouring everything they saw.
Suddenly, Clyde jumps on the roof. His sudden action took the others by surprise after being frozen in terror for too long.
"What''s wrong, Clyde?!" Asqa asked in a loud voice full of anxiety.
Clydended on the roof. He looked up at a point that seemed no different from the ck mist around him. However, Clyde realized something.
"The monster appeared," said Clyde.
They all heard Clyde''s answer. They jumped onto the roof of the house and stared where Clyde was staring.
"I saw nothing but ck mist," Mona said.
"No," Rodney said. "Look closely."
So they all focused their eyes better in that direction. Soon, they could see that there were wisps of tendrils moving behind the ck mist.
"Oh shit," Reed muttered in a trembling voice.
What they were waiting for finally came out. It was obvious that the form behind the ck mist was a collection of tentacles.
"How big is that monster actually?" Clyde asked without taking his eyes off what he saw up there.
"Too big for us to handle. We didn''t even get to see its entire form before we died," Rodney replied.
"It''s even possible that the monsters haven''t finished descending when we die," Mona added.
Clyde drew his Elderss Sword. His movements still looked confident as if he didn''t feel any fear. The others looked at him with increasingly confused looks.
Not long after, the ck tentacles got bigger because they got closer to the earth''s surface.
Its form is almost simr to The Devourer''s tentacles. However, there are colorful strands along the tentacles thate from the energy in the earth that it absorbs.
Immense pressure wasing to the yers as the tentacles drew closer. The pressure made them groan and had difficulty breathing.
"Get ready!" Clyde said.
"You''re really going to attack it?!" Sonya asked in disbelief.
"What else can we do?" Clyde said rhetorically.
Then he took the Nightmare Orb from his Inventory. The rest of his group stared at the palm-sized orb that had suddenly appeared in his hand.
"What''s that?" Sonya asked.
"Something that can hurt the monster," answered Clyde.
Clyde then crumpled up the Nightmare Orb. A momentter the orb shattered and a gray mist shot out.
The gray mist swirled around for a few moments before finally sinking into the bodies of the seven of them.
The seven yers felt an unfamiliar and strange power enter their bodies.
The foreign power flowed and made their bodies feel heavier. But the new load is not a problem for those who already have Stats maxed out.
Clyde also felt his body suddenly be a little heavier. But, he was sure it would not be a big problem.
"GRRRHHHH!!!"
Rumbling sounds that seemed to ur from all directions were heard. They all looked up and saw that the mass of tentacles was descending faster than before.
"W-What did you just give us?" Reed asked, dumbfounded.
"I told you, it''s something that can make us hurt the monster," said Clyde. "Watch out!"
Suddenly, a tentacle shot down towards them. The tentacles the size of a train fell at an incredible speed.
Luckily Clyde warned them in time or their bodies would have been crushed under the tentacles.
They scatter in time in different directions. Clyde didn''t waste much time and immediately shot back toward the tentacle after sessfully dodging it.
''For this time, I don''t need to hold back!''
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
*JZZZZRRRTTT!!!*
Bluish-white lightning enveloped Clyde''s entire body. In the blink of an eye, he was next to the tentacle, within striking distance of his sword.
Clyde channeled Magic Power into the Elderss Sword and swung it with all his might. The de shed through the tentacle that was the size of a train and pierced through it.
Clyde put more power into his swing. The bluish des of the Elderss Sword that were electrified by the lightning went deeper and deeper into the tentacles.
Clyde''s lightning also spread further and further into the tentacle to erode it from the inside.
Then, something surprising happened.
*CRAATTT!*
The giant tentacles were cut by Clyde''s sh. The tip of the tentacle falls down while the base rises again.
"GRRRHHH!!!"
The strangely loud growl sounded again. Clydended back on the ground after sessfully cutting the tentacles and looked up.
And Clyde saw it. A pair of eyes that came from far away and looked so ancient were staring at him from behind the ck mist.
On the other hand, the Regressors were staring with shock very clearly on their faces.
"H-How..." Reed was speechless. His ability to speak suddenly disappeared when he saw what Clyde had just done.
His Regressors friends felt the same way. They were astonished, and couldn''t believe what they were seeing.
The figure they were so afraid of seemed impossible for them to touch, Clyde had just cut it with his own strength.
Rodney gritted his teeth. He didn''t know if Clyde could do that because he was so strong, or because of the power of the orb he had just broken.
If indeed he could cut the tentacles due to the power of the orb, then they could too.
However, there is still a possibility that Clyde can cut it because his strength is so powerful.
Clyde only said that with the orb they could hurt the Outer God. Not directly able to kill it. Then how much damage they could deal to the Outer God was probably still based on their strength.
''I still have to be careful of him,'' thought Rodney.
Then Rodney drew his sword as well. "You''ve seen for yourself that we can injure it now. Then there''s no point in being scared anymore!"
Reed, Mona, and Eric swallowed their saliva. What Rodney said was indeed true. Now, they had hope of defeating the monster that had be their scourge.
So, this is the time to fight. And get revenge for the suffering that Outer God caused them.
Eric, Mona, and Reed charged to follow Rodney who had run first. Leaving Sonya and Asqa behind them.
Sonya and Asqa looked at each other.
"We just have to do what we usually do, right?" Sonya said while raising her rifle.
Asqa took a deep breath and nodded. "You''re right. After all, we''ve been at it for four days."
Sonya started aiming. She also felt a new power gathering within her body. She drew that new power to be one with the rifle she was holding.
Surprisingly, the rifle thates from future technology absorbs her power well.
Asqa looked at the situation while trying to think when was the right moment to enter into the fight.
Meanwhile, the Outer God began to lower those giant tentacles again. This time it deployed three tentacles at once.
~~~
"What is happening?!" Lio jumped off his couch while staring at the monitor screen with a frown. His eyes gave off a cold green light.
Agatha who was next to him also felt her chest beating fast. She had expected that Lio''s reaction would be like that.
Lio turned to Agatha with those green eyes. Agatha swallowed hard and winced.
"Did you do something while I was away?!" Lio asked in a sharp, threatening tone.
"I didn''t do anything, senior," Agatha replied in a tone and expression that she made as calm as possible. And she managed to act well.
Lio stared at her for a few moments, trying to find any traces of deceit on her face. However, he did not find it.
"Then how can you exin what''s happening now?" Lio pointed at the screen showing the yers fighting the Outer God''s tentacles.
"Perhaps, one of the Celestials met him in secret while you were away, Senior. Then whoever that Celestial was, they gave Clyde clues about the whereabouts of the Nightmare Orb," Agatha answered.
To be honest, Agatha was a bit surprised too. She wasn''tpletely lying when she said that Clyde knew about the Nightmare Orb item from the Celestials.
Clyde just asked her about the treasure box so she said it. But before that, Clyde already knew that in the treasure box, there was an item that could turn their situation around in an instant. That is the Nightmare Orb.
"Damn Celestials! They messed up my ns again!" Lio shouted full of frustration. He even pulled his own hair.
The sight was something that greatlyforted Agatha. Especially because she was one of the people who had caused that frustration.
~~~
Chapter 115 Helping Hand
Lio was still staring at the screen with cold green fire in his eyes.
The longer he looked, it was as if the greenish light that looked like a fire burning inside his eyeballs getting brighter. It was a sign that Lio''s fury is also getting bigger.
"Whoever meets him, must have done it before the Guardians came. In that case, it will be very difficult to find out who the culprit is!"
Lio''s fists were tightly clenched at his sides. Even now, a dark green aura also appeared surrounding Lio''s body.
Even though the aura was thin but Agatha could feel that the pressure in this room was getting heavier.
She remembered how Lio made her go through very torturous days by tying her to the wall with his chains that tore into her flesh at that time.
Subconsciously, Agatha swallowed her saliva. What if Lio decided to take out his anger on her now?
Too scared and nervous, Agatha''s mind proposed the idea to her.
In fact, Lio wasn''t someone who wouldmit violence if it wasn''t necessary. About that time when Agatha decided to swing her weapon at him, Lio punished her because he assumed it was the absolutely necessary thing to do.
Lio''s mind was now upied with nothing but thought about how to renew his n. He sat back on the couch and massaged his forehead.
"At this rate, I might not get another chance to make a contract with him," said Lio.
"The Selection Stage isn''t over yet, Senior. It''s possible thatter an opportunity will arise," Agatha said. Trying to be someone who consoled him.
Lio turned to Agatha. She could still see the green me in Lio''s eyes who was now staring at her.
"You''re right," Lio said. "It''s possible... that opportunity wille. Even if it''s not at this Selection Stage."
Agatha''s brow furrowed upon hearing his words. Did he intend to continue visiting Clyde even after he passed this Selection Stage?
If that were true, then the obstacles Lio would face would be even more difficult.
In Agatha''s mind, Clyde would definitely qualify for Grade A. And that way he would be the target of many Celestials.
It meant that Lio would be facing the Celestials who wanted to recruit Clyde when he wanted to meet him.
But it''s different with Agatha. Clyde haspleted the Personal Request that she gave. It gave her a special kind of bond with Clyde.
Once again, Agatha grinned inwardly. Now it was clear that she had more advantages than Lio.
Agatha nced at Lio with a corner of her eyes. Lio was looking at the screen very seriously. Probably he is thinking about his next n while keeping his eyes on the course of the battle.
Agatha sighed while feeling how nice it was to have an upper hand. She now just had to enjoy the battle as an audience.
~~~
Back to the fight.
The Outer God began to increase the variety of its attacks.
It was no longer just throwing endless tentacles. It also started throwing various troublesome fire elemental attacks.
From the tentacles, fireballs flew out and shot toward the yers.
They tried to dodge by scattering in all directions. However, the tentacles were too many and they kept throwing fireballs.
So, no matter how agile they are, those fireballs are still hard to dodge.
Unable to continue dodging, they started parrying and taking the fireballs in the face.
Luckily the fireball''s attack didn''t cause too much damage. It was because their Stats had been maxed out, and because of the influence of the Nightmare Orb''s power.
''That orb is incredible!''
Clyde thought as he continued to jump and dodge every tentacle and fireball.
He had deactivated all of his Skills because he wanted to conserve Magic Power for the attacks he would unleash on the Outer God''s true body.
But Clyde could only stare up with an annoyed expression.
He gritted his teeth because the Outer God had not fully descended yet. It just lingers behind this ck mist with a pair of eyes looking down watching them.
Clyde wasn''t sure if he could break through thatyer of ck mist.
The yellowish lightning was still shing, indicating that the ck mist contained a great concentration of Magic power. Prating it definitely won''t be easy.
Clyde thought that he would most likely be able to break through the ck mist if he exerted a lot of Magic Power.
But he would waste a lot of Magic Power that he could have used to attack the Outer God''s true body. So Clyde can only wait for now.
He looked at the rest of his group. They are also struggling to avoid every iing attack. Be it from tentacles or fireballs.
Clyde knew that the max Level of their Stats wasn''t like his reaching Level 10. Therefore, no matter how hard they tried, they were still slower than him.
Suddenly, Asqa was hit by a strike from the tentacles. Her body flew into the air due to the great force. It didn''t end there, the other tentacle came to swing from above her.
Clyde rushed to Asqa. Knowing that he wouldn''t make it in time, Clyde activated [Skill: Pure Lightning] and took off at a tremendously surging speed.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already in front of Asqa and immediately swung the Elderss Sword in front of his body.
The tentacles moved swiftly towards him, then met the Elderss Sword that was enveloped in lightning.
Because the size of the tentacle was much smaller than the one Clyde cut at the beginning of the fight, now Clyde could cut it with less force.
*CRAATTT!*
The tentacle was cut in two. The other parts were thrown randomly while the other parts were retracted back to the Outer God''s original body.
Asqanded hard on the ground. Clydended a momentter after her.
"You alright?" Clyde asked.
"Yeah, I''m fine," Asqa answered while trying to get up. She can get up easily indicating that she is indeed just fine.
"Don''t you have a n?" Asqa then asked Clyde.
And then, Clyde got an idea when he was seeing Asqa.
Asqa has the Skill to increase attack power, and Clyde will definitely need that Skill when he sees an opportunity to attack.
"I got one," said Clyde.
Asqa widened her eyes, looking excited. "What''s that?"
"I''ll exinter. Now you have to stay close to me."
Asqa immediately nodded when he heard that answer.
The other tentacles came toward them as if they didn''t want to give them a chance to take a break. Moreover, the tentacles also fired fireballs at the two of them.
Clyde held Asqa''s hand so they wouldn''t be too far apart. Because he needs her to always be near him.
Asqa who realized Clyde''s tight grip reflexively looked at her wrist. There, Clyde''s wide arms gripped her small arm tightly.
But Asqa knew that the gesture was nothing more than an effort so that Clyde could get her help right away when he needed it. So she won''t think too much.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
Explosions were created behind them non-stop. Debris flew from the building being hit by the fireballs and tentacles. But Clyde and Asqa can avoid it all.
What happened now was almost the same as when they fought The Devourer. The tentacles that kepting without stopping were aiming at them as if they had their own consciousness.
But now something was different. Now there are additional fireballs thate with the tentacles.
And those tentacles are much stronger than those from The Devourer. Showing that the monsters they were fighting right now were different.
*BLARRR!*
*BLARRR!*
*BLARRR!*
...
The lightning above them shed with a loud boom after moving silently before.
"That must be a sign that something is going to happen," Clyde muttered as he kept his eyes up.
Asqa, who was next to him, was silent. Her heart pounding with fear and anxiety grew louder, because she knew that Clyde''s words were true.
The air around them also grew heavier as the yellow lightning shed loudly.
They are supposed to be paralyzed by now. However, due to the influence of the Nightmare Orb, they were still able to endure quite well.
After several minutes of only focusing on dodging, Clyde finally saw what he was waiting for.
The ck mist and yellow lightning above them split apart as if pushed by a tremendous force.
Then finally, the shape of the Outer God''s true body started to be more obvious.
"That''s it!" Clyde said. He then pulled Asqa closer to it.
Asqa, on the other hand, could only grit her teeth as fear gripped her. The sight of the Outer God''s figure getting clearer made her blood freeze.
Yet, Clyde didn''t seem to realize that and continued advancing while pulling her hand.
Asqa swallowed her fear deep into her gut because she didn''t want to be a burden to Clyde''s ns.
~~~
Chapter 116 Change Of Plan
They continued to move between all the tentacles and fireballs. Clyde''s grip on Asqa''s wrist tightened and made the girl feel more pain.
However, Asqa didn''t want to say what she felt because she knew that it would distract Clyde. Asqa bit her lip so she could keep her voice out.
Clyde now no longer activates [Skill: Pure Lightning] because he doesn''t know if he can use it while carrying Asqa. Clyde didn''t want his Skill to suddenly strike Asqa and electrocute the girl.
So Clyde only relies on his stat''s speed. Even then, he had to hold back because Asqa''s speed was iparable to his.
Clyde shed the Elderss Sword relentlessly to repel every tentacle and fireballing at them from all sides. He turned while keeping Asqa behind him.
With Asqa''s presence, Clyde felt a burden that he had not expected before. Usually, when he only moves alone, Clyde can move more freely.
But Clyde wouldn''t me Asqa. She wasn''t naturally someone fit for fighting. From her Stat to her [Private Attribute] that she has, Clyde already knows that he has to go the extra mile to protect Asqa.
So Clyde did it with all his might. He spun around to block the attacksing from all directions. He even sacrificed his own body to protect her.
All that so Clyde can keep Asqa''s body in the best condition possible. Because when the timees, he will need Asqa at her best.
"We''re getting closer!" Clyde said.
Ash did not answer. More precisely, she can''t, because she is busy enduring the pain in her wrist and the fatigue of having to keep up with Clyde''s speed.
*WOOSSHH!!!*
*WOOSSHH!!!*
*WOOSSHH!!!*
...
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
Tentacles, fireballs, and now the yellow lightning was crashing continuously at them.
The Outer God''s variety of attacks continued to increase, making it more difficult to get close to the real body.
Now Clyde could see the shape of the Outer God''s legs. The leg looks like a human leg, gray as ash.
The size of the foot is so big. The distance from the ankle to the knee alone reaches ten meters.
Even with just that part showing, Clyde and Asqa could already feel the pressure around them increase by several times.
''Looks like the more body parts that drop, the stronger the pressure in this ce will be. This is bad.''
Clyde turned to Asqa. He widened his eyes when he realized that Asqa''s face looked painful. He wanted tond somewhere so Asqa could rest for a while.
But the Outer God will not give them that luxury. Instead, it deployed more fireballs and yellow lightning strikes toward them
"Are you hurt?" Clyde asked Asqa in the midst of his difficulty dodging the attacks.
"N-No. I''m fine," Asqa replied. She tried to pull out a smile. But what came out was just a grimace that increasingly described her pain.
Clyde could see that Asqa wasn''t fine at all. He immediately spread his sights past the tentacles and all sorts of destruction to find the rest of the group.
He couldn''t do it alone if he had to bring Asqa along. So, in the end, Clyde had to go to the others to ask for their help.
Originally Clyde wanted to attack the Outer God himself.
The other group members weren''t as strong and fast as him so Clyde thought not to involve them because what he was doing was something very dangerous.
Even though he found it difficult, that means the other members of the group found it even more difficult than him.
However, Clyde felt that he should revise the n. At least he could ask the other group members to watch over Asqa and remove obstacles so he could get closer to the Outer God''s body.
Clyde - reluctantly - changed course. He, who had brought Asqa closer to the Outer God, now turned and brought Asqa towards Sonya, who was closest to them than the others.
Sonya is also dodging the tentacles that attack her. But she didn''t fire her rifle to save her Magic Power.
Suddenly she saw Clyde and Asqa approaching from a distance. Sonya immediately approached them and started firing rifles to ease their rendezvous process.
After several minutes of fighting their way to get closer to each other, they finally gote together.
"What are you nning now?!" Sonya asked with great urgency in her voice.
Clyde immediately told her about her n to attack the Outer God''s true body with the help of Asqa''s powers.
Sonya nced at him in disbelief. "Are you sure you can do that? Don''t you see how just those legs the Outer God is already giving us this much pressure?"
"It''s the only way," Clyde answered her in a calm tone. "We have to kill that Outer God to be able to finish today, right?"
Sonya, who knew that was true, knew that she could only agree with Clyde''s proposal.
"Then we should attack it together," Sonya said.
"I don''t know if that''s possible. I can see you guys are having a hard time just dodging all those tentacles and fireballs.
I''ll attack it myself and you guys will reduce the obstacle for me so I can get closer."
Sonya thought for a moment as she looked at Clyde''s face.
The man had a stiff face and his eyes showed confidence that he would indeed be able to injure the Outer God.
Maybe even Clyde could kill it.
Sonya knew that Clyde was indeed the strongest of them all. They were able to survive until now, and were able to reach such a high Level because of Clyde.
So, why should she doubt him now?
"Alright!" said Sonya. "We have to rendezvous with the others first."
After meeting the agreement, they immediately went to meet the other group members. That proved to be quite a difficult task as they all scattered quite a distance.
In a siege of tentacles and all of these attacks, it is almost impossible to get close to one another. Even standing in the same ce for a long time was extremely hard.
So it took Clyde, Asqa, and Sonya a little longer to reach them. Clyde felt this was a bit of a waste of time. If only he could attack the Outer God himself everything would be so much faster.
But he needs Asqa''s power. And Asqa needs others to protect her. Then, Clyde can also use them to pave the way for him.
Even though he was strong, it turned out that the Outer God gave him extremely high hardships. Clyde suspected that they really shouldn''t be able to defeat the Outer God.
The growling sound that was heard from all directions was initiated again.
Suddenly, from the Outer God''s body appeared dozens of tiny human-sized creatures. However, their form is so strange and only a few resemble human beings.
They have a pair of wings that look like crow''s wings with gray feathers. Their hands are in the form of bird feet and have crow''s ws. And their legs are shaped like gray human legs.
Their heads are just shaped like a collection of ck mist that clumps above their bodies. Complementing their seemingly odd appearance.
Those yers could see the strange creaturesing out of the Outer God''s feet.
They came out tearing the skin off the gray feet with the ws of their hands. Then flew after pping the gray crow''s wings.
"What the fuck is that?!" Sonya shouted while looking at the mass of creatures that started to descend to fly toward them.
Asqa didn''t answer because she was also in shock. While Clyde didn''t answer because he didn''t see any point in answering that question.
There were five strange gray flying creatures approaching them.
"I have to let you go first," Clyde said to Asqa. Clyde feels it''s okay to let her go now with Sonya around so he can fight the flying creatures better.
Aska only answered with a nod. But she also felt relief in her heart as soon as Clyde''s strong grip left her wrist.
Clyde looked at Sonya who seemed to be preparing her rifle anxiously.
"Protect Asqa and keep moving. I will open a path for us," Clyde said to Sonya.
Sonya saw no reason to argue with him. So he immediately pulled Asqa to get closer to her. In the middle of that situation, Sonya notices Asqa''s wrist turning red.
But she didn''t say anything about it. And just focus her attention on being able to move and dodge properly.
Meanwhile, Clyde shot toward the five strange flying creatures. He swung the Elderss Sword towards the closest one.
However, the creature was able to block the sword with the crow''s ws. Meanwhile, another flying creature approached from the left while swinging its w.
Clyde immediately kicked the creatureing from the left. Turns out, they weren''t as strong as he thought.
With one kick Clyde manages to send the creature flying backward several meters.
~~~
Chapter 117 More Destruction
Clyde managed to send the flying creature backward with just one kick. That proves that they are not too big of a threat.
It created relief in Clyde''s heart. Sonya and Asqa who saw this also felt relieved.
"Let''s keep moving!"
Clyde continued his steps to open the way. Behind, Asqa and Sonya followed at a pace they were trying to match with Clyde.
But in the end, even though they were trying their best to keep up, Clyde continued to lengthen the distance between them.
Clyde soon realized that they were both left behind. He looked back and saw two of the odd flying creatures flying up from behind them.
Clyde reactivated [Skill: Pure Lightning] and lunged back at them.
Asqa and Sonya only saw a bluish-white sh of lightning in front of them that move so fast.
Clyde immediately shed the Elderss Sword at the two flying creatures. His sh created an arc of lightning that hit the heads of the two creatures.
The two odd flying creatures fell down like dead birds in midair. Clyde watched how they fell just in case they both pped their wings and flew towards him again.
But that didn''t happen. The two creatures fell to the ground andy there. The absence of any movement from them indicated that they were already dead.
Clyde returns to Asqa and Sonya and deactivates his [Skill: Pure Lightning].
"I''m going to move slower now," Clyde said, looking at the two girls.
"Thanks for understanding," Sonya replied with a sigh of relief.
They proceeded to split the chaos in front of them. Clyde acts as a pathfinder and protector who protects them from all directions if Sonya feels unable to move fast enough.
They saw Rodney in front of them. He is also in the same predicament. There are three odd flying creatures that jump at Rodney from three different directions.
Clyde could see that Rodney could defend well. Even though he couldn''t beat those three creatures like him.
Rodney nced up when he noticed Clyde, Sonya, and Asqa approaching. Then he returned to fight the creatures.
Rodney''s problem is gone with Clyde''sing. A bluish-white sh passed around him.
When he realized what was happening, Rodney could see that the bodies of the three flying creatures that had attacked him were already lying around.
They just died when Clyde came. He didn''t take long, as if he was just casually passing by and suddenly the creature was dead.
Rodney is increasingly aware that Clyde''s strength cannot be underestimated. Even when he had obtained such a powerful [Title], Rodney wasn''t sure if he could beat Clyde in a head-on battle.
Clyde stopped in front of her and deactivated [Skill: Pure Lightning].
"You can see where your other friends are?" Clyde asked. The urgency was clear in his voice.
"No. We all lost each other in this mess," Rodney replied.
"Okay. Let''s go find them." Clyde prepared to start moving again.
"What are you nning?" Rodney asked.
"I will kill that Outer God." Clyde looked at Rodney with eyes full of conviction. Once again, his face showed no hesitation. He said it like how he said it to Sonya earlier.
"But... How?" Rodney couldn''t stop thinking.
"With your help," said Clyde. "Now we have to rendezvous with others first. Come on!"
Without waiting for a reply from Rodney, Clyde already rushed to move again. Although he did not know where to start looking.
Rodney gritted his teeth. In fact, he did believe that Clyde could kill the Outer God.
Rodney knew how strong Clyde was and he thought that his chances of killing the Outer God were quite high.
What Rodney was worried about was that if Clyde managed to kill the Outer God he would gain new power. Either in the form of [Title] or other rewards.
If that happened, then his chances of killing him would be even more difficult.
"Hey! What are you thinking? Come on!"
Sonya''s voice made Rodney flinch a little. He wasted no time and immediately followed Clyde. While thinking of a n on what to do when what he was worried about happened.
Clyde moved swiftly up front, shing and parrying the yellow lightning and fireballs like it was all no big deal. Asqa, Sonya, and Rodney who had joined followed behind him.
Rodney also knew what he had to do. Needless to say, Clyde was in charge of protecting the rear. Rodney immediately did that and immediately relieved Sonya''s burden and Asqa''s fear.
A momentter Clyde saw where Reed and Mona were. It was such a nice coincidence that they were together.
Clyde immediately informed the others. Upon hearing that, they rushed to Reed and Mona to fight their way through all obstacles.
It was obvious that Reed and Mona felt relieved by their arrival. But their expressions became tense again when they heard Clyde''s n.
However, they knew that there was nothing else they could do. So, they immediately joined in on Clyde''s n without thinking about it too long.
The six of them are looking for Eric who still hasn''t been found in the midst of all this chaos. They had not found him yet, and that made them start to worry.
And then, Asqa shouted while pointing down.
p¦Á§ád¦Á §«?¦Í¨º|,§ã¨°§® "That''s him!"
They followed the direction Asqa pointed and saw Eric lying on the ground covered in blood. The two crows winged creatures surrounded him as if they wanted to immediately devour him.
They were all so shocked that they couldn''t think fast. Amidst all that, a bluish-white sh was created and shot toward Eric.
Clyde has already made his move to save Eric. In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already below and started shing his Elderss Sword.
Clyde danced with overflowing speed and power. Splitting and decapitating the creatures until there was nothing left around Eric.
Luckily, the others weren''t stupid. They also immediately shot after Clyde after he cleared the flying creatures.
Asqa as well immediately swiftly approached Eric and checked on his condition. Asqa saw that Eric had serious wounds all over his body. The wound was caused by a scratch and stab of a sharp object.
Other flying creatures started arriving from above. They flew pping their crow wings amidst the yellow lightning bolts and tentacles. Creating a frightening scenery.
"Cover me!" Asqa said.
Everyone who heard her knew immediately what they had to do. They immediately formed a protective circle while Asqa used her Skill to heal Eric.
More destruction began to ur around them. From a distance, they could see the ground, trees, and buildings starting to rise up and then being absorbed into the ck mist.
The sight conjured up an image of doomsday right in front of their eyes. They immediately knew that time was running out. They may even have less time than they think.
"Hurry!" Reed turned to Asqa who was healing Eric and shouted in a panicked tone.
"His injuries are so bad. He is dying. I will need some more time!" Ashka replied.
She didn''t know why it took her longer to do this healing. With [Skill: Healing] already at Level 10, she should be able to quickly heal Eric as she did before.
''Unless...''
Asqa saw the scratch and stab wounds. Everything was caused by that strange flying creature. Could it be that the wounds they had caused dealt more damage than normal wounds?
That is a big possibility. In fact, Asqa felt that it was almost certain.
She pumped up her Magic Power even more to heal Eric. She was also aware that around them, nature was approaching destruction very quickly. But she couldn''t lose focus now.
The rest of the group is also struggling with a bigger burden now. Besides they have to dispel the tentacles, lightning, and fireballs, they also have to protect Asqa and Eric from the debris around them.
"How much longer, Asqa?!" Clyde asked.
"A little bit more!" replied Asqa. Momentster, she said. "It''s done!"
Eric opened his eyes. The pain in his whole body was gone now. But he was immediately greeted by the horror scene of doom that was right in front of his eyes.
"Get up, man!" Reed pulled Eric''s arm who was still stunned by what he saw to stand up.
Seeing that Eric had stood up, without wasting any more time they immediately left that ce.
As soon as they left, the ground they stepped on was immediately absorbed upwards along with other objects around it.
"Now where should we stand?" Sonya asked in a voice full of fear.
Clyde didn''t answer her right away because he didn''t know how to answer either. There was only one thing on his mind right now.
"We''re running out of time. Let''s start attacking the Outer God directly." Clyde spoke while looking at the other group members.
He could see the despair in everyone''s eyes. Unfortunately, he is not someone who can give a speech that can burn their spirits. All he could do was say what he would do next.
~~~
Chapter 118 Through The Destruction
The Archangel with blond hair shifted restlessly in her seat. She stared at the monitor screen that has be a ck void that didn''t disy anything.
This has been happening since a few days ago. It frustrated her because she was no longer able to observe the man.
She knows what happened. The Guardians of the World Masters were doing their job and blocking outsiders from illegally viewing the Selection Stage.
The Archangel couldn''t believe that the Chief would risk attracting the Guardians to protect the Selection Stage. Knowing that there is a possibility of conflict in the Far East.
"Does that mean he has a close rtionship with the World Masters in charge of the Selection Stage?" She muttered to herself.
But a momentter she shook her headzily. It''s no use thinking about it. Now there is something better for her to do.
The Archangel stood up from her chair. Then open the door of the room.
When she came out, the Archangel was immediately greeted by her servant who had been waiting faithfully since earlier.
"Get everything ready. I''m going to the Starting Zone," she said. Or rather, she ordered.
"You wish to personally wee the Candidates who areing, Your Majesty?" Her servant, a tall man with long blonde hair, asked.
"Yes," answered the Archangel.
"But why, Your Majesty? Why to bother?" the servant asked.
"He is a yer who can kill my three warrior candidates. He obviously did it because of an order from one of those filthy Demons. I can''t let him fall into their hands," the Archangel replied.
There was a heavy hint of hatred in her voice when she said the word ''demon''. She seemed to say it by spitting out the word.
The servant also knew about the Warrior Candidate who was killed by a single yer. He killed the three Candidates by himself, which was something quite remarkable.
He doesn''t know how that is possible. Supposedly, an ordinary human who just obtained their power couldn''t be that strong.
That made the decision of the Archangel he served to meet him face to face very reasonable.
Even though some of the other servants would makements behind her, the blonde-haired man always supported her decision even when he didn''t know the reason.
They walked towards arge building where they kept most of their treasures.
With those various extraordinary treasures, they intended to persuade Clyde toe over to their side.
The Archangel also knows that it''s not gonna be just her who starts to prepare.
With all the various achievements that man had aplished, and how trashed the Selection Stage system was, the other Celestials must have also started preparing themselves.
The Selection Stage this time seems to be a different spectacle than before. No one had ever generated this much hype from the Selection Stage.
The outdated and weak Selection Stage system also ys an important role in this event.
If the system wasn''t that weak, then the Celestials wouldn''t be able to notice Clyde''s existence.
~~~
Chaos and destruction are approaching in that world.
Everyone in that world was now seeing something that came from their deepest nightmare.
Everything around that world was now floating due to being pulled by the infinite force field.
The buildings that originally stood firm as if they controlled the city now floated helplessly, then were absorbed into the ck mist that covered the entire world.
Trees, animals, and the ground were also torn from their ces. Coalesce with the buildings to enter the ck mist.
Meanwhile, the form of a giant monstrosity was slowly descending to earth.
Those gray feet alone were enough to bring about this destruction. Now, the rest of its other body came down.
The Outer God''s stomach seemed to bulge like that of an obese man. Its skin is gray and wrinkled. Then, both of its hands were so long that they touched its calves.
There are only three fingers on that hand and they are oddly shaped. The fingers are long and wriggling. As if have a life of their own.
"GRRRHHHH!!!"
Its growling sound is hard to describe. It didn''te from its throat like a growl from other monsters usually came. Instead, the voice seemed toe from all over the ce.
The yers felt as if the growls wereing from the air around them. As soon as they heard that growl, they immediately halted their advance and were stopped by the immense pressure.
They were now standing on a building that was floating towards the ck mist. Their footing is indeed very fragile, but this is all they can have.
All sorts of things around them were in an even more severe state. In fact, this building can be said to be in the best condition because it wasn''t smashed to pieces.
"I didn''t know things would get this bad. This is the end of the world! This is the end of this world!" Reed said in a despaired and scared tone.
The fear within Reed''s voice was so great that he could no longer think as reasonably as before. His eyes spread around, widened, and reflected the dread in his heart.
"Hey!" Rodney shook his body. "Get yourself together!"
Reed stared at Rodney with those eyes filled with terror. "We won''t be able to kill that Outer God. We should kill ourselves now and start again."
Reed''s words made Eric and Mona turn towards him. For Eric and Mona, this is all too terrifying.
After hearing Reed''s words and seeing what was happening around them, they felt that dying now and starting all over again wouldn''t be a bad idea.
But Rodney is different. He had already gotten to this level of power and would not want to start over again from scratch.
"Stop whining and open the fucking way!"
Just as the attack of fear was about to overwhelm them, Clyde''s screams came and seemed to wake them up. Reed, Eric, and Mona turned to Clyde.
Clyde was already standing with a body covered in bluish-white lightning. His face was stern and his eyes fixed on them. His hand grip on the Elderss Sword was tight.
"We can kill it," Clyde said.
They felt that the truth in those words was almost certain. Even though from what they saw there was nothing to support Clyde''s words.
Eric, Mona, and Reed suddenly woke up from the terror that enveloped them. Even though their fear still hadn''t disappeared, they were now able to move again.
They gripped their weapons even tighter. And waiting for Clyde''s signal to move on.
Clyde himself did not expect that their reaction would be like that. Clyde expected that they would remain in fear and he would have to do it himself.
Yet they look ready to fight. Clyde didn''t know if there was something different from the way he had said something or some other factor. But now it doesn''t matter.
"I''m going to attack that Outer God. You guys cover me from surrounding danger," Clyde said, continuing his order. "Let''s go!"
Clyde jumped off the building first. Then he stepped on the rubble and all kinds of things that he could use to step on so he could get close to the Outer God.
Sonya and Asqa remain close together. Sonya turned to Asqa and expected the girl to cry or show something to indicate her fear.
However, the girl seemed stronger than he thought. Asqa''s eyes nced at Clyde''s back. Her jaw clenched and then she turned to Sonya.
Asqa didn''t say anything. But her gaze told something clear. They should follow Clyde now and support him.
Sonya nodded. Then, together with the Regressors, the two of them jumped over the rubble to catch up with Clyde.
Clyde looked back. He was relieved when he saw Asqa still among them and caught up with him.
Clyde could see from Asqa''s face that she is fine. It made him somehow feel proud to see how the girl had progressed until now.
Clyde turned back to the front. The Outer God seemed to turn its body towards them, it was already aware of their presence.
The Outer God releases those strange flying creatures again. This time there were far more of them than before. Maybe five times the previous amount.
The more Clyde got closer to it, his self-confidence was shrinking. He could feel the terrifying power of the Outer God and it created doubts in his heart.
However, just as he was starting to feel that doubt, a voice buzzed in his head.
[ "You can use the Demon Essence I gave you. You only need to stab your sword into that Demon Essence." ]
It was Gremory''s voice that surprisingly woke him up from the doubt that was starting to overwhelm him.
The growl came again and suddenly the Outer God stretched out both arms toward them.
Clyde wasted no time and immediately took the Demon Essence from his Inventory.
Then do as the Gremory says. He stabbed the bluish de of the sword into the red orb.
~~~
Chapter 119 An Upgrade
"Your Grace, isn''t that all too much?" Nimue looked at Gremory with a worried feeling.
Her concern is there for a reason. Gremory was now slumped in her seat. Her face was pale and there were beads of sweat running down her pale face.
"Huff... Huff..."
Gremory was breathing heavily. Because she had just done a tough task that drained her stamina to the limit.
Nimue bit her lip uneasily. She had warned her master quite persistently before she did it.
However, Nimue knows more than enough that Gremory is almost impossible to overturn her decision.
So, in the end, Nimue has to see her master exhausted like this. After doing something that besides draining a lot of Magic Powet, is also very dangerous.
"It was... worth it, Nimue," Gremory said. A weak smile appeared on Gremory''s pale face.
After looking at her even more closely, Nimue also noticed that Gremory''s lips which were previously bright red now looked a bit paler.
But upon seeing Gremory''s smiling face - even though it was weak - Nimue felt that her worry and sadness at seeing her master like that gone away.
"You think so, Your Grace?" Nimue smiled a weak smile too. "If that''s the case, then it''s really worth it."
Gremory just used her power to send telepathy to Clyde.
What she gave was an invaluable hint that could possibly lead Clyde to achieve something extraordinary. That is killing the replica of Outer God which is his final hurdle.
So far, no one had gotten this close to killing Outer God. The previous Candidates who were called the strongest on their Selection Stage died from the pressure when the Outer God replica''s leg began to descend.
However, Clyde gained a lot of things so he could survive this long. Gremory thought that Clyde would be able to kill that Outer God. Her feeling said that.
So, Gremory immediately lends her help when she sensed that Clyde was in trouble. Even though it was very dangerous and tiring because of the existence of the Guardians.
Even just by sending telepathy for a split second, the Gremory was already taking a great risk.
Luckily, she managed to do that quickly and - hopefully - not rm the Guardians. Or she will suffer a major loss.
"What are you going to do now, Your Grace?" Nimue asked.
"What else can we do but wait?" Gremory said. "We don''t need to be too hasty to get ready. I and that human already have a bond. So, I will be able to meet him more easily."
A bond that urs just because of a Personal Request is not as strong as a bond that is created because of a contract.
However, that was enough for Gremory to steal the lead from the other Celestials who might also set their eyes on Clyde.
So, Gremory wasn''t too worried. She now just had to focus on restoring her drained strength after contacting Clyde.
Nimue, who is beside her, only watches her like the obedient servant that she is. In her heart, Nimue hoped that Gremory''s hunch would give the result she hoped for.
~~~
*CRAAKK!*
The red orb shattered easily when it came into contact with the tip of the Elderss Sword''s de.
As if it was extremely fragile, even though it contains extraordinary power.
The essence that looked like a red mist that was previously trapped inside the orb now came out and enveloped the Elderss Sword.
Then a notification appeared in Clyde''s vision.
[ Weapon: Elderss Sword has absorbed Demon Essence (Grade A). ]
[The requirement for upgrading has been met. ]
The sword was filled with a red glow. Clyde felt an unfamiliar power enter his sword.
[ Weapon: Elderss Sword (Demon Form) (Grade A) ]
The sword began to change. The de which was a transparent blue color turned into a dark red color. Like fire from hell frozen with great force.
The hilt that was previously in ck metal turned into a horn-like shape with a circr shape filling it. The hilt was so pitch ck that it looked as if it could absorb light.
It''s not just the sword. The Demonic power also immediately flowed into Clyde''s body.
He could feel a surge of new, unfamiliar power in his body. But in this condition, Clyde could not refuse any help given to him.
The bluish-white lightning on his body nowbines with Demonic energy making the lightning flow red and ck.
Clyde gritted his teeth. With this, he could have more opportunities. Even so, he still couldn''t grin happily.
When he looked ahead, the Outer God''s two hands moved faster toward him.
From the two gray palms emerged two pitch-ck orbs about two meters in diameter that looked destructive.
A momentter the two ck orbs shot straight at Clyde. Clyde thought he could handle the two orbs. So he shot forward instead of dodging.please visit
The Demon power inside him screamed ording to Clyde''s wishes. He advanced getting closer until finally, he was actually in front of the two orbs.
Clyde swung his Elderss Sword that had gained new powers with all his might.
And then, something surprising happened. The Elderss Sword sliced ??through the two ck orbs as easily as a sharp knife through butter.
The two orbs shattered and then just disappeared as if they had never been there. No explosions. No shockwave or anything going on.
Clyde''s sh was like eliminating the existence of the orbs just like that.
Clyde himself was surprised by what the sword could do after being upgraded. He stared at the dark red de of the sword.
''This power is amazing!''
The rest of the group behind Clyde stared at Clyde in silence, astonished. What the hell did they just see?!
Clyde suddenly let out a burst of power that seemed to juste to him abruptly.
They were shocked to see the red color that suddenly appeared around Clyde''s body and how he split the attack that came straight from the Outer God''s palm.
"W-What just happened?" Sonya asked, dumbfounded.
Among them, Rodney was the first toe to his senses.
"It doesn''t matter." He then moved towards the strange flying creature that wasing towards them.
Realizing that Rodney had moved, they began to move again. Ignoring their feelings of confusion and amazement because now they had more important things to do.
Clyde gets a new power or rather releases a power he never said before. So what? Shouldn''t they be used to all that after a few days of seeing it?
The Outer God continues descending. The remaining parts of its body were finally revealed. The Outer God''s head is almost like a cow''s head without horns.
The monster''s eyes look like the eyes of a beast. The pupils are vertical and light yellow in color.
Then, the Outer God''s mouth opened. The mouth is as bizarre as the rest of its body because it opens to five different sides. Each part of the mouth has its row of sharp teeth.
That sight should be something that made one could go mad just by looking at it.
Well, they are actually almost gone mad. But because of the power of the Nightmare Orb, they are still able to keep theirmon sense intact, even if barely.
Clyde gritted his teeth and continued advancing while jumping over the part of nature that was torn from the earth to climb onto the ck mist.
He''s getting closer. The Outer God also noticed his arrival and paid full attention to him.
The swarms of flying freaks wereing toward Clyde from all directions. Theirrge number forced Clyde to stop his advance and face them.
Due to Clyde taking a break for a while, the rest of the group was able to catch up to him and started confronting the flying creature.
They gathered around it and killed as many of the flying creatures as quickly as they could.
Even though Clyde is still the one who kills the fastest and the most, their help is still useful to reduce his burden.
They didn''t say anything to each other. Just keep fighting while maintaining their footing so they don''t fall.
Clyde finally saw the gap between the flock of flying creatures. He bolted leaving a trail of white and red lightning shes behind.
*SWIIISHHH!!!*
*CRAAATTT!*
*CRAAATTT!*
*CRAAATTT!*
...
Clyde darted while shing the Elderss Sword at the strange flying creature he saw before his eyes. Until finally, the distance between him and the Outer God was really close.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 10) is activated! ]
Clyde''s left hand which was not holding the Elderss Sword was burned by a dark red me.
Then he created a fireball with a diameter of a meter and threw it at the Outer God, trying to see how the attack would affect it.
*BOOM!*
The dark red fireball exploded onto the Outer God''s thigh.
"GRRRRAAAHHH!!!"
The Outer God let out a sound like a creature in pain. Apparently, after the explosion subsided, Clyde could see a gaping gash on its thigh.
~~~
Chapter 120 Fall
Gremory was still in her seat. Her chest moved so quickly up and down following her breath. The sweat on her face also dripped down as if water had just been sshed on her face.
Although the Gremory hadn''t moved far from where she was since just now. She only stood a few steps away from her chair but the exhaustion on her body was so great.
Nimue is still next to her. She didn''t expect that her master would do that for Clyde who was an ordinary human.
She was even willing to use a lot of Mana just to break through the Guardians'' defense in a secret way to convey that message to Clyde.
Nimue knew that what Gremory had just done was very dangerous.
Not that Gremory - as a Demon Duchess - was afraid of the World Masters and Guardians. She was sure that if measured by strength, Gremory would have the upper hand.
But the consequences if she is caught breaking the rules are major. And the consequences cannot be ovee by her power alone.
There was a reason why the Celestials were so reluctant to break the rules of not interfering during the Selection Stage.
They can only start moving after the Candidates - yers - finish the Selection Stage and arrive at the Neutral Zone.
That was because those rules were agreed upon by all inhabitants of The All Territory.
They all made an Oath not to break the rules after an incident.
So, the weight of these rules will befall anyone who vites them with severe consequences.
However, cheating will continue to ur because the Celestials want to get strong Candidates. So the regtion underwent a slight change that was never discussed.
That change is, they willmit interference, but not get caught.
The Selection Stage system that Clyde was in happened to be a very bad system. So that made many Celestials able to easily infiltrate there.
It was also the factor that made the Selection Stage so different. They can find out about Clyde''s whereabouts and powers. Thenpete with each other to get him.
Gremory is one of the most sessful of them. She has seeded in getting Clyde toplete her Personal Request so that she now has a kind of bond with Clyde.
The bond was enough to give her a greater chance of being able to send telepathic messages to Clyde without being noticed. Though still, she had to use a lot of Mana to be able to do that.
Gremory looked at Nimue with a weak smile. She realized that Nimue had been watching her with a worried look all along.
"Nimue, have you forgotten what you saw back then?"
Nyume was silent. Clyde is indeed very strong. She acknowledged that. But seeing her master go through such hardships for a human being, made her feel ufortable.
"Don''t you worry. I''m not in as bad a condition as you think. I already have a little bond with him."
Seeing Gremory smile as if satisfied with what she had just achieved, Nimue couldn''t say anything to refute her anymore.
Nimue smiled. "If you say so, Your Grace."
After a while when she saw the way Gremory''s eyes were glinting when she talked about Clyde, there was a feeling of irritation in Nimue''s heart that she couldn''t exin.
Nimue just realized it now. She had never before felt any resistance to anything Gremory did, or wanted.
However, why did she feel that way now? Could this be a bad premonition about Clyde?
Nimue suddenly clenched her fist on the side of her body. But she immediately released her fist again before Gremory noticed it.
~~~
Clyde can grin when he saw the gaping gash on the Outer God''s thigh. That wound looks so disgusting. The pale flesh melted and charred after being hit by Clyde''s red fireball.
Besides that, it turns out that the fireball has a quite surprising effect. The mes that came from the fireball didn''t immediately disappear but burned the meat of the Outer God''s thigh.
The mes were dark red and contained Demonic energy that dealt terrible damage. Because the fire didn''t go out for some time and instead spreads around.
Seeing that, Clyde wasn''t the only one who felt that there was great hope before them. The other group members were no less delighted.
Realizing that now he could deal amazing damage, Clyde continued to move closer. The closer he attacks, the more damage he will inflict, right?
But the challenges that wille to him will also be bigger. Clyde could feel the hateful gaze of the Outer God.
The Outer God opened its mouth to five different sides. Clyde could now clearly see its throat which looked like a bottomless abyss.
Then from within the abyss, an energy shot came. The shot looked like a pitch-ck pir and headed straight for Clyde with incredible speed.please visit
Clyde with a body still covered in red lightning can dodge it properly. But he only barely evaded. His left shoulder was hit by that attack and now his Dark Night Coat had a hole in it.
Seeing that the attack could break the Dark Night Coat''s defenses and make his arm bleed, Clyde wasn''t too surprised.
He had already guessed that the monsters he was fighting now werepletely different from all the ones he had faced before.
But right now he doesn''t have time to deal with the wound on his left shoulder. The Outer God had returned to direct its mouth towards him. In no time, it fired that pitch-ck energy again.
Clyde this time moved by taking cover behind all the rubble and ruin, intending to block the Outer God from seeing him.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
The shot from the Outer God''s mouth created an explosion when it hit the floating ruins. Clyde ignored all that and kept going.
Not long after, he was right in front of the Outer God''s knee. Clyde held the Eldgerss Sword with both hands and channeled his Magic Power into it.
The power of [Skill: Pure Lightning]bines with Demonic power. Creates a dark red and bluish-white energy vortex on the de of the Elderss Sword.
Clyde clenched his teeth, then stabbed as hard as he could into the Outer God''s knee.
*JWOOOSSSHHH!!!*
The shot hit the Outer God''s knee and shattered it. Clyde was unable to puncture the knee, but he managed to inflict arge gash.
The Outer God let out a groan of pain that seemed as if it could split the sky. Then it copsed into the part of the earth that was still not destroyed.
*BOOM!*
As soon as the Outer God fell, all the ruins that had been flying toward the sky abruptly stopped. Then fell simultaneously.
This incident made Clyde and all the yers who were standing in ruin panicked.
They lost their footing instantly and fell along with the rubble. Plus, there is rubble that will fall from above them.
Fortunately, Clyde was able to quickly control himself amid this chaos. He immediately used the Elderss Sword to split the rubble and ruin that fell from above him while watching where he would fall.
Of course, it is not an easy matter. Clyde turned to the rest of the group and wondered how they were doing.
He thought ofing to save them. However, it turned out that the Outer God did not remain silent despite having fallen.
The Outer God opened its mouth again and this time instead of shooting, it let out several ck orbs that shot toward Clyde.
The orbs didn''t attack him directly. Instead moving around Clyde as if intending to attack him from multiple sides simultaneously.
"Shit!"
Clyde can''t help but curse. During this chaos, he still had to be careful so the orbs didn''t hit him.
Luckily, the jet-ck orbs didn''t seem to be targeting anyone other than himself. At least that way Clyde wouldn''t have to worry about the others.
Clyde focused his Magic Power. The Demonic power that was in his sword has now possessed him as well. On instinct, Clyde used that power to propel his body forward.
He shed the Elderss Sword at all the rubble in front of him. Clyde made his way toward the Outer God who was now trying to get back on his feet.
The orbs shot towards him from all sides. Clyde spun around and shed the Elderss Sword around him.
Dark red curved sword shes shot out every time he shed the de and they shot towards the orbs.
But unfortunately, those orbs were stronger than the orbs that Clyde had cut before. He thought he would be able to destroy the orbs but it turned out that they were still able to endure and were only pushed back a bit.
That''s enough to buy Clyde sometime so he can move closer to the Outer God. As soon as the orbs got close again, Clyde had to release another energy sh.
After being hit several times, the ck orbs finally shattered. Still, it''s not over because from within the orbses the mini form of the Outer God.
"You gotta be fucking kidding me!"
~~~
Chapter 121 From The Rubbles
All of that happened in an instant. The Outer God with its gigantic body fell onto the ground after letting out a heartbreaking and extremely loud scream.
And then, all the rubble and ruin abruptly stopped in midair. They fell to the ground following the Outer God. Trapping the yers who were in between.
Sonya and Asqa were separated because amid their downfall, being with one another was impossible.
Now even Sonya can''t worry about Asqa because she is busy staying alive amid everything that can kill her.
The Regressors also experienced the same thing. They struggle to stay in control of the situation but they can only spin in the air while falling.
Several pieces of rubble hit Reed''s head, knocking him out of consciousness.
Mona, Eric, and Rodney were not much better.
All the rubble and ruin hit them from above but they were still conscious.
While they are struggling just to survive, Clyde is also struggling to survive but with an even bigger threat.
However, he was able to keep his head cool. He didn''t know how he could still stay so calm. Maybe it was due to the influence of his [Private Attribute: Easy-Mode]. Or it could be because he had absorbed the power of the Demon Essence.
But it doesn''t matter now because the important thing is that Clyde can be sane and cool-headed enough to be able to move properly. Because when he was faced with five beings who were imitations of the Outer God in miniature, he really needed that.
Clyde fell while looking around. The five mini Outer Gods flew at him all at once. Clyde kicked a piece ofnd and shot toward one of them and grabbed it.
The Mini Outer God that he grabbed immediately opened its mouth and shot out that pitch-ck energy.
Luckily, Clyde was able to dodge it by tilting his head to the side. The ck energy shot only scratched the tip of his ear.
Clyde then channeled his lightning into the Outer God''s body. It''s convulsing. Its mouth which opened to five different sides was wriggling like a burning worm. The sight made Clyde wince in disgust.
Realizing that rocks were falling from above, Clyde pulled the mini Outer God''s body up.
*BUGGH!!*
*BUGGH!!*
*BUGGH!!*
The rock hit the mini Outer God''s back and even broke its wings. Making them both fall again.
Another Mini Outer God approached Clyde. They dodged all the rubble adroitly. When they got near Clyde, they immediately shot ck energy from their mouths.
Clyde already knew they would do that. So he turned the mini Outer God that was still convulsing in his grip towards them. Using it as a shield.
The ck energy shot hit the back of the Mini Outer God who was unable to do anything.
It writhed, and from its throat came a disturbing scream like a human''s voice with a broken throat, then a ck liquid followed out from its mouth.
Luckily, the ck energy shot couldn''t prate the Outer God''s body even though it was fired by four mini Outer Gods simultaneously from in front of them.
Clyde can cover himself from their attacks. But the mini Outer God that he made into a shield wasn''t so lucky.
It spews ck liquid continuously without stopping. And the dark red lightning that enveloped it added to the pain it was suffering from.
Clyde kicks the mini Outer God at its friends. Then he looked down. It was not too far away until he fell so Clyde looked down for a good ce tond.
But the mini Outer Gods didn''t give up and kept darting toward him. Clyde try to get away for a while as he had to find anding spot and do his best not to be hit by the rocks and falling ruins.
A great sound and vibration were created when all the rubble from the remnants of nature around it fell back onto the ground.
Clyde finally cannd excellently. He shed the Elderss Sword upwards to destroy the rubble.
Clyde''s eyes widened when he saw that the Outer God - the real one - was now standing up.
The fire that burned its knees and spread to his feet was now extinguished.
However, the severe burns from the fire did not heal and almost consumed the flesh of the leg.
Clyde could even see some of the Outer God''s leg bones, which were strangely not much different from human leg bones.
Clyde wanted to immediately run towards it and attack again. However, his n was shattered by the grip on his leg.
Clyde fell face-first to the ground as his momentum was stopped by the grip. He looked back and saw one of the mini Outer Gods clutching his leg even though it was buried in a huge boulder.
It opened its mouth and shot out that pitch-ck energy.
Clyde immediately shed their hand so that the leg could be released. But Clyde was secondste and the attack grazed his leg.please visit
"Fuck!"
Enraged, Clyde lunged and immediately thrust the Elderss Sword into the ox-shaped head. Jet-ck blood sshed out, the mini Outer God stopped moving.
Its friends came a momentter with the sound of pping wings and disturbing screams.
Clyde felt that he would not be able to reach the real Outer God without killing them first. So he lunged at them.
Clyde shed the Elderss Sword and sent three dark red arcing shes their way. Now that he had a solid footing, Clyde thought that this fight would be easier.
The three mini Outer Gods spat out some kind of ck liquid from their mouths. The liquid turned into a kind of shield that they used to block Clyde''s sword.
The shield shattered as soon as it received the sword sh.
When he felt that he had gotten enough distance, Clyde kicked the ground and shot up. He thrust his sword into the stomach of one of those unlucky mini Outer Gods.
*CRAATT!*
Clyde manages to stab its chest right in the heart was located, although he doesn''t know if it has a heart. Then he pushed the mini Outer God down.
The Mini Outer God hit the ground with a thud. Clyde pulled out the Elderss Sword and proceeded to attack its friends.
~~~
While Clyde is battling the three remaining mini Outer Gods, the rest of his group is struggling to get out of the rubble pile.
Sonya had a hard time getting out because a part of the wall of the building fell on her. If only her body was still that of an ordinary human, Sonya would have been squashed under that pressure.
Sonya pushed the piece of wall that had a size of about two square meters. She didn''t take long to get rid of the wall due to the maxed-out Stats.
Sonya looked with fear in her eyes at the Outer God who was trying to stand up. She didn''t see how the gigantic creature had fallen, but she only had one guess as to who had done it.
Sonya rushes to find the rest of the group amidst this chaos. Since the Outer God was about to rise, she had to find them as soon as possible.
She saw Rodney pulling someone''s hand. Sonya came to help get whoever Rodney was trying to free.
Turns out it was Mona. Mona gasped for air when she finally got free from the pile.
"Let''s find the other, quick!" Sonya said. Then she immediately moved.
Rodney and Mona looked behind them. Towards the sound, something huge moving rose.
"How did it copse just now?" Mona asked in a confused tone.
Rodney didn''t answer. He was sure that Mona was not stupid and could guess that it was Clyde''s doing.
''He can even knock down that Outer God.''
Something that Rodney thought was impossible for him even though he was Regressed, Clyde was able to do that in one go.
It would be a lie if Rodney said he wasn''t envious. But, this isn''t over yet. Clyde can have fun with his powers until the timees.
"Let''s go find Reed and Eric," Rodney said.
Mona nodded and the two of them immediately moved to find their friends who might still be buried under all this.
Meanwhile, Sonya is also looking for Asqa''s whereabouts. She had prepared herself in case she found Asqa in a bad condition.
But that possibility is small because Asqa has healing abilities. She should be able to heal herself, right?
And Sonya''s guess was right. Asqa is fine. Now that she seems to be healing Reed who is lying on the ground.
Sonya walked up to the two of them and saw that Reed had almost disappeared cuts and stab wounds on Reed''s stomach. Most likely because of that strange flying creature.
"It''s done," Asqa said.
Reed rose to his feet. "Thanks."
Asqa stood up too, then nodded at Reed. Then she turned to Sonya. "You alright?"
Sonia nodded. "Yeah, I''m fine."
Now, that Outer God had fully stood up. It opened its mouth and let out a loud scream, not just a growl.
~~~
Chapter 122 Come To Him
The Outer God''s scream was the same as its form. Bizarre and disturbing. It was a high-pitched voice like the screams of a woman who had been tortured for a long time.
Now the yers have gathered. They nced at the Outer God and noticed that its left leg was now almost destroyed to reveal a long gash that exposed pale flesh and bone.
"Was that wound caused by Clyde?" Asqa asked.
"Of course. Who else if not him," Sonya answered as if it were an obvious thing.
"Now, what should we do?" Reed asked. "We can''t seem to go and help him."
Reed was right. They all understood that Clyde''s power, which was already capable of causing the Outer God to fall, was something beyond their limits. If they approached, they would only be a burden.
"Let''s just wait," Rodney said.
Nobody thought that it was a bad idea. After all, there''s nothing they can do. As well as staying a safe distance and letting Clyde - the only person who could fight that Outer God - do it.
But Asqa looked worriedly ahead. In the direction of the reddish sh of light that had been continuously urring since just now.
''Please, be safe.''
In her heart, Asqa hoped for Clyde''s safety. Though she didn''t know if it would be of any use to her. But now there was nothing she could do.
Except, there is...
"I guess I should go there," Asqa said. Her words provoked nces from the others.
"What?! What do you mean you have to go there?!" Sonya asked in disbelief. She wasn''t sure why Asqa would have such thoughts when she saw for herself what had happened - and was about to happen.
"It''s not something you, or us, can handle," said Rodney.
"I know. But with my skills I can multiply Clyde''s attack power," Asqa replied.
Hearing that, they looked at each other.
"I don''t know if Clyde still needs an extra attack. You can see he can take down that Outer God, right?" Reed said.
"He said to me." Asqa stared at him with determined eyes. "Then he will need my help."
There is a belief in Asqa''s heart. Whether it''s because she feels ufortable because she can''t help, or because Clyde really needs her.
But whatever it was, Asqa felt that she still had to go there.
"I''ll go. It''s okay if you don''t want to go there," Asqa said.
She nced at the four Regressors. Then to Sonya. From what she saw they were reluctant to approach and look for Clyde.
So Asqa decided to go there alone. She had walked a few steps before Sonya caught up behind her.
"I will look after you," Sonya said. "At least I''ll be of use to you."
Again, only Sonya was beside her. Asqa smiled looking at Sonya''s presence beside her. When she looked back, Asqa saw that the Regressors were looking away from them.
Asqa doesn''t me them because they chose to stay. What she did was very dangerous. And again, they are not friends. Just a bunch of people who happen to meet and take advantage of each other to survive in this ruined world.
*BOOM!*
An explosion was created up ahead. Asqa and Sonya decided to quicken their pace.
"It looks like the Outer God keeps fixing those eyes on Clyde. It doesn''t look at us at all," Sonya said.
"That is something good," Asqa replied while continuing to fix her gaze forward.
Sonya turned to her. Inside her head, Sonya couldn''t stop admiring how Asqa had changed. Even though all of this only happens for thest five days.
But, well, Sonya admits that what happened during these five days was far more than what one could go through in a lifetime.
In the midst of all that, Asqa managed to ovee her character which seemed like a cowardly girl who could only hide behind Clyde and her.
Even though she can''t fight, Asqa still tries to be useful.
Even now, Asqa took the initiative to go first to help Clyde. Even though all the odds seem against her.
She even wanted to go alone because she saw that no one wanted to help her. Yet Sonya could not allow that. So now she apanied her and took a risk.
They both saw a figure shooting up from below. The figure was enveloped in reddish lightning that appeared brilliant under this dark sky.
There was no mistake, it was Clyde.
"Come on!" Asqa starts running seeing the increasing urgency of what is about to happen.
Sonya followed her quickly while preparing her two pistols.
From behind, the Regressors watched the backs of the two women getting further away. Their minds say different things.
Reed and Eric gritted their jaws as they felt ufortable seeing Asqa and Sonya go charged toward the Outer God. While they staying here like cowards.
But Mona felt indifferent. She didn''t mind the two of them because that way, she could be safe here.
While Rodney just stared tly. Why should he bother fighting when he could wait here while umting his power?
Let Clyde and the two of them fight and kill that Outer God. Then, when the timees, he can start to act.
Although Reed and Eric felt ufortable. In the end, they didn''t do anything and just stayed with Rodney and Mona.
While the Regressors chose to remain silent, Clyde was throwing himself up to be able tond a hit on a body part that was more vital than its leg.
Surprisingly, it turns out that the Demonic''s power can make him shoot up into the air.
The Outer God, who had previously set Clyde as its target, now waved that weird pair of hands.
Clyde kicked the air and darted to avoid the sweeping gray hand with only three fingers. Then he held the hilt of the Elderss Sword and channeled his Magic Power.
Clydeunched an attack like before again. He thrust the Elderss Sword with all his might and shot out a continuously rotating pir of red lightning.
The attack hit the Outer God''s left chest. The red lightning flowed continuously from around the wound and scorched the gray skin.
As it turned out, it proved quite easy. The Outer God seemed to be getting weaker and slower. Clyde didn''t know where the power that seems terrible had gone.
Suddenly, the Outer God''s eyes lit up even brighter. The sharp yellow light turned to be as bright as blinding sunlight.
Clyde who was charging towards it was suddenly blinded by the light.
He closed his eyes reflexively and brought his hands in front of his eyes. That made Clyde unable to see anything for a few seconds.
But those few seconds were more than enough to determine the direction of this battle. Clyde couldn''t see the movement of the Outer God who was pointing his fist at him.
*BOOM!*
The gigantic fist hit the ground and sent debris flying in all directions. Arge crater was created after the impact of that fist.
Luckily, Clyde wasn''t there. He was already a few meters from where he was originally standing.
"I saved you just in time, right?"
Clyde turned to his side. Whereas Asqa was looking at him with a little smile. Clyde seemed to also see the proud look on the girl''s face.
"T-Thanks," said Clyde. He didn''t think that Asqa woulde and save him at this crucial moment. Hell, he didn''t even think that anyone woulde to save him.
Clyde also saw that theser shots were also hitting the Outer God. Now its gray skin is not as invincible as before and those shots can injure it.
Clyde saw burns starting to form on the gray skin. And the wound became more and more as time went on. He saw Sonya shooting while continuing to dodge nimbly.
"You twoing?" Clyde asked, looking dumbfounded.
Asqa nodded. "You said you needed me when the time came, right?"
Clyde did remember saying that a while ago. But, seeing how things turned out, he wasn''t sure if he could still ask for Asqa''s help when he knew that she was also busy saving herself.
But now Asqa is really near him. That made Clyde feel a sense of emotion. Because it turns out she still thinks about him.
"OK." Clyde nodded. "Let''s do this."
Then Asqa used her [Skill: Attack Up] on Clyde. It wasn''t long before he felt that the strength within his body was growing again.
After that, Clyde walked over and activated [Skill: Pure Lightning] again. The Demonic power in the Elderss Sword flowed back to him and made the lightning around his body dark red.
Clyde disappeared from before Asqa''s eyes with a quick red sh. Asqa looked at the Outer God with expectant eyes.
In her heart, that belief arose. She was sure that this time, Clyde would be able to kill the monster.
~~~
Chapter 123 Beheaded
This time, there was nothing solid that he could use as a foothold. Even so, Clyde saw no problem in that.
It turned out that with the Demonic power he got, Clyde could step into the air as if it were a solid object and shoot toward the Outer God. Though, he couldn''t keep doing it because the ability would weaken the more he used it.
Eventually, Clyde will fall because he can no longer step in the air. He had almost been hit hard because of that mistake he didn''t know about.
Luckily, he was still able to block the Outer God''s swing with the Elderss Sword. So he was just thrown down without feeling the blow directly.
Asqa gasped when she saw Clyde hit. She was already running towards him.
But then Asqa saw that Clyde had shot back toward the Outer God almost without missing a beat. That makes her certain that Clyde is fine.
So Asqa now intends to get closer to Sonya and give her help.
The fight, which was mostly in the air, was quite difficult. Clyde is clearly the one at the disadvantage because of his size and limited time to stay in the air. So Clyde has to y carefully if he doesn''t want to fail.
Clyde threw a ball of dark red fire that was covered in Demonic power toward the Outer God''s face. However, because the distance was still far away, the fireball could notnd properly and only hit its face.
The Outer God''s hand came back. Clyde kicked the air causing his body to spin. Then he stabbed the Elderss Sword in that gray arm.
Dark red lightning shot out from where the sword had prated and scorched the Outer God''s flesh. Clyde then drew his sword and ran down its arm.
From below, they could see that dark red sh of lightning zed across the Outer God''s hand.
The Outer God used that other arm trying to hit Clyde who was in that hand. However, Clyde immediately jumped to avoid it so that the Outer God just hit its own arm.
Clyde jumped into the other hand. Then dashed again closer to its face.
The Outer God''s eyes shed yellow and noticed Clyde''s presence. For a moment, Clyde seemed to see those eyes widen and showed fear. But Clyde immediately thought that was impossible.
He kept running until he finally felt that he was close. Clyde intends to send another fireball. It urred simultaneously with the Outer God''s eyes starting to shine even brighter.
Clyde remembered how those eyes gave off a light so bright it blinded him. So he immediately created the fireball and shot it toward the Outer God''s eyes.
*BOOM!*
Luckily, the fireball managed to hit the Outer God''s eye before it had a chance to emit its light. Clyde''s gamble ends up winning.
The Outer God let out that terrifying scream again. The head was knocked back after being hit by the fireball. Exposing its neck to Clyde.
Clyde''s eyes had found a good target. He increased his speed and in the blink of an eye, he was already in front of the neck.
Clyde shed the Elderss Sword with all his might at the Outer God''s pale neck.
*CRAATTT!*
Because Clyde increased the reach of the sword with the Demonic energy he had, his shes could cover a very long area. He could almost cover the Outer God''s entire neck.
There was a dark ck, foul-smelling liquid that was supposed to be blood oozing from therge cut. The liquid hit Clyde who was so close.
Clyde immediately kicked the Outer God''s body. The Outer God grabbed its neck.
No more screams of pain came out, all that could be heard was a gasping sound like someone whose breath was simply cut off.
The ck liquid sshed out like a fountain and filled the surroundings with dark liquid and an unbearable stench.
But Clyde ignored all that. He couldn''t waste this opportunity just because of a bit of stench.
So Clydended on the Outer God''s shoulder and intended to attack again. However, the Outer God, who was in pain and cornered because he felt so close to death, didn''t let him.
The Outer God opened its mouth wide. Now at this close, Clyde could see the abyss and its five wriggling parts full of rows of teeth.
Clyde didn''t know whether to attack the abyss'' throat or dodge. But the answer came shortly after when the Outer God tried to eat him.
Clyde kicked the Outer God in the shoulder and flew backward. Even so, he couldn''t avoid itpletely. The tip of the Outer God''s teeth hit his left leg and left a bloody scratch.
Clyde cursed inside. After a while, hended on the ground. Everything he had done to get to the Outer God''s neck, had to start from zero again.
Realizing that made Clyde feel frustrated. But it''s better than being torn by those rows of hundreds of teeth.
The Outer God gripped its neck which was gaping from Clyde''s sh. ck blood that looked like ink kept pouring out of the wound and mouth.
Seeing that Clyde grinned. The suffering he saw in the Outer God relieved his frustration a bit.
The Outer God''s eyes shone brightly again. Clyde thought it would give off that dazzling bright light. However, those eyes dimmed again as if they had lost their power.
Clyde grinned again. "Not so strong now, huh?"
After being repeatedly hit, Clyde could see that the Outer God was getting closer to death.
Clyde was about to be charged again towards it. But the sting of pain in his left leg that was hit by the Outer God''s teeth made him fall to his knees again.
"I have to move now!"
There''s no time. Before the Outer God could pull something out to save himself, Clyde had to kill it. Or he will regret it.
So Clyde forced his sore leg to move. He dashed forward at high speed, then kicked off the ground again to shoot up.
A growling sound from a broken neck was heard. The Outer God saw Clyde approaching apanied by dark red lightning. That sight was reflected in those eyes that widened in horror.
Clyde kicked the air several times then dashed over the Outer God''s body. As soon as he arrived in front of those eyes, Clyde thrust the Elderss Sword into the remaining Outer God''s eyes.
*CRAATT!*
Clyde immediately streamed his lightning through his sword. He tried to pour in as much Magic Power as possible.
*JJJRRZZZTTT!!!*
The red lightning came out through the nose, ears, and incision on the neck. Dancing like serpent trying to break out.
Then, the Outer God fell backward.
*BOOM!*
A huge booming sound was created as the Outer God''s gigantic body hit the ground. Clyde hasn''t stopped pouring his lightning until he feels the Outer God is really dead.
But then Clyde felt the symptoms as his Magic Power ran low. Meanwhile, the Outer God was still not dead.
''Damnit! I need to endure a little more!''
Clyde gritted his teeth as he thought about how else he could kill this Outer God.
But his mind was too upied with looking for the way, and he also had to maintain concentration to channel his Magic Power, so Clyde didn''t notice that the Outer God''s hand was already moving towards him.
The Outer God caught Clyde''s body from behind. Then pulled him and mmed him on the ground.
*BOOM!*
"Arghh!"
Clyde was now in a precarious position, between the Outer God''s palm and the sharp ground. He felt pain all over his body. And the lightning that enveloped his body began to dim.
He knew that now his Magic Power was almost exhausted. Even he could no longer maintain the power of his Skill and Demonic power.
But he still has one more trump card that he saves for emergencies if the Demonic power and the Nightmare Orb aren''t enough to kill the Outer God.
''I have to use my ''Title'' now!''
[Title: Limit Breaker (Lv.2) is activated! ]
[All Stats (+2)! ]
[ You have be a Transcendence! ]
[ Your strength has exceeded the maximum Stat of a normal human! ]
Now, bybining the power of [Title], Demonic power, and the Nightmare Orb, Clyde''s power has multiplied.
He shed the hand that was squeezing him into pieces and then shot up. The dark red lightning surrounding his body grew even brighter.
Clyde headed towards the Outer God''s head and finished his work. The Outer God saw himing but couldn''t do anything because of Clyde''s speed.
With a scream, Clyde extended the Eldgerss Sword and shed the Outer God''s neck which was almost severed.
*CRAATT!*
The sh thatsted in the blink of an eye separated the Outer God''s head from its body.
The head shaped as a cow''s head rolled away with a mouth open to five different sides and eyes that had lost their life.
~~~
Chapter 124 Stabbed
Suddenly all was silent. It was as if, time just froze. The lightning that was licking between the ck mist above stopped. Not disappearing, but just stopping in ce.
The dust, rubble, and wind also stopped below. Makes everything feel surreal and disturbing.
Clyde had beheaded the Outer God. Now the head also stopped rolling and became a disgusting piece of cow''s head with a thick ck liquiding out of the neck lump. The ck blood stopped before it fell to the ground.
However, even though the entire environment stopped moving, the yers were still able to move normally. It was as if they were in a different space and time. Isted from the outside world.
Clyde immediately deactivated all of his Skills and stopped using his Magic Power. He is now just sitting on uneven ground with a weak body.
He even dropped the Elderss Sword next to him. Then use both hands to lean back.
He looked up at the sky with droopy tired eyes. His breath was long but slow, he wanted to expel all his fatigue with every breath.
''Is it over?''
Clyde is actually still not sure whether this is all over or not. But his body was too tired to even maintain an alert stance.
Clyde looked up from the sky and looked around. His eyes widened as he realized that everything around him had been frozen in time.
''What is going on?'' Clyde wondered. Realizing that this was not normal, he grabbed the Elderss Sword hilt and stood up.
Asqa and Sonya run toward him. Between the two of them, Asqa was the one who ran the fastest toward Clyde. Her worried face seemed to have be an expression that was always there.
Clyde didn''t know what to say other than just wait for the two of them to arrive. A momentter after they arrived, Asqa asked.
"You look terrible."
Clyde was quite surprised to hear that question because he thought Asqa would ask whether the Outer God was dead or not. Instead, she gives a remark about his condition.
"I''m fine," answered Clyde because he felt it was the simplest answer to exin his current situation. Though, he doesn''t feel actually fine.
His Magic Power was depleting and many wounds on his body continued to sting. But Clyde felt he didn''t have enough energy to exin it all.
However, it turned out that Asqa didn''t need more answers to do what she was supposed to do.
Asqa immediately held Clyde''s shoulder, which suffered from arge scratch wound until the skin in that part disappeared, leaving flesh that continued to bleed.
Asqa started the process of healing him. She didn''t even ask Clyde if he needed healing. Asqa just did it based on her concerns. So Clyde let her.
"What is happening right now?" Sonya asked while continuing to look around her.
She was also walking towards Clyde but her eyes couldn''t stop looking at the strange things going on around him.
"I don''t know," said Clyde.
Sonya looked at him, then at the giant body of the Outer God lying headless behind him. "Did you manage to kill it?"
"I think so." Clyde did behead the Outer God. But he couldn''t be so sure because there could be other surprises popping up.
Sonya''s eyes then moved to the head that looked like a cow''s head with a mouth that opened to five parts. The heady not far from the Outer God''s body with its eyes still open but having lost all life.
"I thought you killed it, Clyde," Sonya said in a relieved tone.
"Don''t get too relieved just yet," said Clyde curtly.
Sonya immediately took his words as a hint that maybe something was up. But for Sonya, it was forter.
Now, after going through many hardships and terror when the Outer God was still awake and attacking, she saw the Outer God lying helplessly with its head cut off. Sonya certainly would be relieved by that.
A momentter the Regressors also walked closer to them. But their expressions looked difficult to look straight at Clyde and the others.
''At least they still have shame.'' Sonya thought sarcastically. She immediately looked away as soon as they got closer.
"We''re really sorry," Rodney was the first to say between them. "We want to help but we''re not as strong as you. And we''re afraid that we''ll end up being a nuisance."
"It''s fine," Clyde said. He didn''t expect them to help. What Rodney said was true. They just weren''t strong enough.
Clyde even had to use his [Title] activating after using Demonic Power and Nightmare Orb. He also had to pour his Magic Power until it was nearly used up and barely beat the Outer God.
If he came to that, the Regressors couldn''t do any better. Clyde knew all too well about that. And if he were they he would do the same.
Asqa who has finished healing his shoulder is now kneeling. She immediately attended to Clyde''s feet without saying anything. Clyde didn''t even realize his shoulder had healed.
"Now what happened?" Clyde asked the Regressors.
"We don''t know either. What we experienced wasn''t so far in the previous turns" Rodney replied.
Clyde looked around. Somehow, even after beheading the Outer God, Clyde still couldn''t rest easy.
There''s still something toe. And he who knew nothing about it felt an anxiety that grew worse every second.
Everything around them became stagnant as if the world had stopped working. Then, what should they do after this?
''There''s no way we''re just going to be stuck in here, right?'' thought Clyde with growing dread.
But the feeling of fear and worry was answered not long after. A white vortex with a ck center appeared in front of them.
After that, a notification appeared in their respective visions.
[ Congrattions! You are yers who havepleted the End Times Game! ]
[ You are wee to enter the Portal to the Judgment Ground. There, all your achievements will be summarized in an assessment to determine your Grade! ]
After seeing the notification, they looked at each other. Worried about whether they should step into that suspicious-looking vortex - Portal.
But then Clyde said. "Let''s go. We''ve managed to finish everything here."
That meant that he had indeed seeded in killing the Outer God, their greatest obstacle. Now it''s time for them to move to another location.
Clyde thought that this was definitely the goal after this apocalypse. Whatever was waiting for him behind the Portal was the only way.
Rodney and the Regressors also seemed relieved to know something that seemed to be a way out of all their suffering so far.
Reed, Eric, and Mona went ahead. But Rodney chose to walk behind.
Next to them Clyde, Sonya, and Asqa also started walking toward the portal. Which will take them to an unknown ce.
Asqa seemed hesitant to enter, but then Sonya grabbed her arm and gave a smile. With that smile, Asqa was able to let go of her anxiety a bit.
Sonya nodded as a sign that they should boldly enter now. Asqa returned the nod and then turned to Clyde.
As usual, Clyde was still with his hard-to-read straight face staring at the portal. Asqa felt there was no need to worry about him.
So she and Sonya stepped first into the portal. A momentter they disappeared from that ce.
Clyde exhaled. Then, knowing that there was no destination other than the portal, he started walking.
However, before he could actually enter the portal, a sword pierced his chest from behind.
*CRAATT!*
"Urghh..."
Clyde looked down and saw the tip of the katana de pierce his chest.
He tried to turn his head with great difficulty. And seeing the faces of Reed, Mona, and Eric, they looked shocked.
"Rodney? What the fuck?!" Reed asked, in disbelief.
Rodney pulled his sword from Clyde''s chest, letting Clyde fall to the rough ground.
Clyde was still able to support his body so he didn''t fallpletely. Instead, he knelt with an expression of pain.
"We have to get rid of him if we want to get the best results in this Selection Stage," Rodney said to his Regressors friends.
"W-What?" Mona looked dumbfounded.
"I''m sorry I didn''t tell you guys. But this apocalypse is a selection to determine our ce in the world we''re going to go after this," Rodney exined.
What Rodney said was still so hard for them to ept. Clyde too, because it turns out that Rodney knows a lot more than he thought.
But now there was something more important for him to worry about. The wound on his chest was so painful. But he couldn''t just let this go.
Clyde gripped the hilt of the Elderss Sword tightly. Then using all of his remaining Magic Power.
The dark red lightning shot out again to envelop Clyde''s body and he stood up.
Rodney knew that Clyde would not give up without a fight.
"Let''s kill him. That way we can get a good reward after going through all this suffering," said Rodney to his Regressors friends.
~~
Chapter 125 Help
Clyde felt various feelings in his heart that were churning like waves in a stormy sea. All those feelings are a mix of rage, pain, and disappointment.
Most of it was Clyde ming himself for how stupid he was. He should never let his guard down one bit.
He even had his suspicions about the Regressors and thought that Rodney andpany might still have something he was hiding.
But during this chaotic situation between life and death, Clyde lost his sense of vignce. So he let his guard down and let Rodney stab him in the back like an idiot!
Clyde gritted his teeth. The blood that came out of the damaged organs filled his teeth and dripped out of his mouth.
Clde''s eyes were red like blood. Staring at Rodney who was talking to the other Regressors. If he was an ordinary human he would be dead by now because he was sure Rodney''s sword had stabbed through his heart.
"Why do we have to kill him? Weren''t we still able to get a good grade even though he''s still alive?" Reed asked. He still couldn''t believe it and couldn''t ept that they had to kill the people who had fought alongside them.
"I know a few things at this Selection Stage," said Rodney. "We will only be at the lowest level when we arrive in the next world. We will only be ves.
Only by being the best can we get rewards and the best positions. No rule forbids us from killing to get the best Grade."
"But-"
Reed''s words were cut off by Rodney sharply.
"Do you want to be a ve after going through all that suffering over and over again?!" Rodney said. "There are Celestials who came to see me. He said, if we kill the yers who are most likely to get the highest Grade together, we will get his achievement. You can get the reward you want with that!"
Reed, Eric, and Mona were silent and pondering about what Rodney had said. Meanwhile, Clyde lunged at Rodney.
*CLANG!*
The Elderss Sword''s de collided with Rodney''s de and created a spark.
The dark red lightning had indeed lost more power than before. However, for Rodney, it turned out that Clyde''s strength, which had weakened considerably, was still quite difficult to ovee.
Clyde snarled like a cornered beast. Its bloodshot red eyes could only see Rodney as its prey.
Yet, Rodney didn''t look scared. Instead, he grinned at Clyde.
"Do you feel vengeance? I know you just want to use us too. But who would have thought, if it turns out you''re the one I''m using," said Rodney?
Then Rodney kicked Clyde in the stomach causing him to be thrown backward. But, without the slightest pause, Clyde shot back toward Rodney.
*CLANG!*
However, Clyde hit a light shield that he was familiar with.
It was Eric. He stood between Rodney and him. He looked at Clyde from behind his light shield.
Apparently, they had agreed to help. Clyde even forgot about their existence for a moment as his mind was filled with rage toward Rodney.
Mona came not long after shing her sword. Clyde, who waste to notice her arrival, immediately jumped away.
"Blergh!"
Clyde spat out thick blood from his mouth. Indicates that his condition is now getting worse. Despair suddenly fell on him.
"Good," Rodney said to his friends. Then he noticed Reed who was still silent in his ce. Pondering whether to attack or not.
"Reed! What else do you need to think about?!" Rodney asked impatiently. "You know you have no other choice."
Reed looked at him. Rodney''s tone and gaze started to look threatening. Somehow, Reed had a feeling that he would be shunned from this group if he didn''t act.
Reed gritted his teeth. He felt that now he was caught between the abyss that would swallow him and the monsters that would tear him apart.
"There''s no time. Make your decision now!" Rodney said.
Reed groaned. Then gripped his sword tightly as if he might crack the hilt.
Reed ran and approached Rodney. "Let''s fucking do this, Rodney. And I hope this is a good decision."
Rodney grinned at him. "It is a good decision."
Clyde now saw that they had all decided to attack him together. He was about to face four high-level Regressors with depleted Magic Power and heavily injured bodies.
Clyde couldn''t imagine a worse situation than the current one. Could it be that everything he has done until now will end up in vain with his death?
Rodney lunged before Clyde could ovee the despair that suddenly crushed him. He thrust the sword with all his might but Clyde was still able to parry it.
But Clyde saw Rodney grin. He knew that his friends woulde and Clyde''s resistance would be meaningless.
Reed came and immediately swung his sword. Clyde was forced to move the Elderss Sword to block Reed''s de.
Suddenly the lightning around Clyde''s body disappeared. Indicates that there is no longer enough Magic Power to maintain the lightning.
Mona came soon after and shed Clyde''s shoulder which was not protected by his ck coat.
*CRAATT!*
Eric came a momentter and bash Clyde''s face from the side with his shield.
*BUAGH!*
Clyde was thrown to the ground and rolled over. Rodney felt that now he had won. Clyde was unable to get up after the attack. He also vomited more blood from his mouth.
Rodney walked towards Clyde while rotating his sword. "Where is the mighty Clyde now?"
Clyde wanted to reply to his words. But he has no more energy for it. He didn''t even have the energy to lift his head.
Clyde''s vision was getting blurrier and darker. He felt the fear of death so certain. Clyde couldn''t even hear anything after Rodney''s voice just now.
He could only see that there was a sh of blue lightning in the corner of his eye.
It was Rosie. She came swinging the hammer covered in lightning.
Rodney was taken aback. But he was not toote to block the hammer with his sword. But Rosie immediately increased the volume of her lightning so that it struck Rodney.
Rosie then punched Rodney causing him to be pushed backward.
Not only Rosie who came. Leon, Albert, Wiley, and L also came to that ce. Even if they don''t look well.
After getting pressure from the Outer God, it''s impressive for them to be able to survive and be able to stand up.
It was possible because of the items they got from the Night Quest that they took the night before.
Those items really couldn''t make them face the Outer God. However, it can make them live and survive well.
Then, with L''s precognition ability, they knew what was going to happen and rushed here.
Wiley fired his blow dart which immediately stuck a poison-filled dart into Eric''s thigh.
Albert and Leon also immediately followed Rosie to face them.
"Who the fuck are you?!" Rodney looks furious. He didn''t know where these people hade from and why they had decided to jump in to help Clyde.
"We''re just people who happened to receive help from that young man," said Leon.
Rodney gritted his teeth. "You guys made a big mistake. You should be able to stay quiet and enjoy what you got after this."
"Why did you betray your friend?" Rosie asked with obvious anger. She didn''t bother to reply to Rodney''s words.
Rodney snorted. "Friend? You don''t know anything."
"What should we do now?" Reed asked, anxious.
"You still ask?" Rodney asked in disbelief. "We fucking kill them too! What can they do anyway? Their levels must be way lower than ours."
What Rodney said was of course true. Leon, Rosie, and Albert, who heard it, couldn''t help but the feeling of fear that started to rise in their guts. They understood their strength and knew that they couldn''t ovee the Regressors.
So, their real n is to take Clyde away from here. Even though the chances of Clyde still being alive were slim and they didn''t know where to run to, they couldn''t just let him die.
Rodney charged first and sent a sword sh toward them. Leon stepped forward and used his short sword to counter the sword sh.
"Urgh!"
Rodney''s attacks proved very difficult for him to deal with. But then Albert came and used his daggers to throw the sword sh up.
Rodney approached with Mona and Reed. They swung their swords with the aim of killing so now an unequal battle was going on.
Meanwhile, L is trying to do everything she can to keep Clyde alive. However, she doesn''t have any healing skills.
"What should I do?" Sonya muttered frantically. She saw Clyde''s eyes closing and his breath fading. The wound on his chest was very worrying.
Then, Sonya remembers that she still has something. She took the orb from her Inventory. The orange orb released a thin glow in her hand.
~~~
Chapter 126 In Their Dire Situation
L could only stare at the orb that gave off a thin orange glow in her hand with a feeling of uneasiness. She bit her lip because she didn''t know what to do.
L didn''t understand what the function of this orange orb was. What she understands is that she can increase her abilities with the existence of this orb.
But right now what she needed wasn''t the ability of precognition or augmenting Magic Power. Seeing Clyde''s state, she didn''t need precognition to know what would happen if she left Clyde alone too long.
Behind her, L heard Rosie''s screams. When she turned her head, L saw Rosie sprawling next to a veryrge hole. A woman came closer to her and prepared to kick Rosie down the hole.
However, Rosie manages to shoot a lightning bolt in time at the woman''s face. The woman - Mona - seemed to have been caught off guard because she thought she could kill Rosie who was on a level far below her.
That''s what makes Rosie able tond lightning attacks easily on her face. Even though the attack didn''t do much damage to Mona, Rosie could buy enough time to move away from the hole.
L also saw that her other friends weren''t much better than Rosie. That made L panic even more. She had to do something immediately so that their situation wouldn''t get worse and cause them all to die here instead.
Amid that despair, L extended the orb in her hand to Clyde''s body. Apparently, what she did was fruitless.
The glow on the orb is getting brighter. Then an orange mist came out of the orb and entered the wound on Clyde''s chest.
A momentter, Clyde felt that his thinning consciousness had returned. Even though the pain he was feeling was still stinging, Clyde was able to process what was happening.
He turned his head and found L''s face staring at him. L''s tears came out of her eyes, depicting great sadness and anxiety.
"You awake?!" L said with a relieved look on her face.
Clyde didn''t answer because his eyes were focused on the fight that was happening behind L.
The members of L''s group were dealing with the Regressors who were facing her. And Clyde realized that they would almost certainly lose.
Clyde also realized that L and her group members intended to save him. So, at least for now, he had to take advantage of them to get away from this ce. Even if he doesn''t know where to go.
Clyde winced as he tried to look at the wound on his chest. The sight of his wound was terrible and made him wince because he was sure his internal organs had been destroyed.
However, there was an orange mist that kepting out of the orb and into the wound.
Clyde felt a little better because of the mist, at least he didn''t feel like he was dying. So basically, the orb is what keeps him alive.
"We... have to get out of here," said Clyde.
"But..." L seemed lost for words. "Where?" That''s all that could escape her lips.
"Anywhere but here." Clyde red at the Regressors hatefully. He really wanted to kill them right now. But he couldn''t do that.
"Are you able to speed up... whatever you''re doing?" Clyde asked L because apart from feeling that he hade out of the dying stage, he also felt that his Magic Power was filling up little by little.
If he could fill up his Magic Power a little more, Clyde felt he could create a distraction that could make them leave here.
"I''ll try!" L concentrated her Magic Power on the orb and wanted the orb''s processing to speed up.
Turns out, what she tried did work. Clyde felt his Magic Power being filled bit by bit. However, the wound doesn''t seem to get better.
It seemed that the orb only had a slight impact on the wound, but had more impact on Magic Power. That ability was definitely weaker than Asqa''s but now she wasn''t here. So, Clyde will just waste time thinking about her.
"I think this will do," Clyde said, then struggled to his feet.
"A-are you sure?" L asked with great doubt.
Clyde looked at her, then at the orb, she was holding.
"I have to do something first to keep them away. Then, I will return to you. When Ie, you must be ready to flow the orb again," Clyde said.
L immediately nodded. Then she stopped the flow of her Magic Power into the orb. Instantly the orange mist that covered Clyde''s wound disappeared and he felt an extraordinary sting of pain.
But Clyde held him back and dashed towards the fight. He activated [Skill: Burning Hand] and threw fireballs at the Regressors.
It seems that the Demonic power in Clyde''s body has disappeared because now the fireballs he throws only consist of ordinary fire.
Rodney and Reed who were fighting Leon and Albert were knocked out after being hit by the fireballs.
"Let''s get outta here!" Clyde said to both of them with great difficulty because of his pain.
Leon and Albert happilyplied. They rushed to Clyde and then saved Rosie who was almost stabbed by Mona.
Clyde also threw fireballs at Mona''s back and threw her forward with quite a bit of force. Albert picked up Rosie and then took her running.
After that Clyde and Leon rushed toward Wiley who was fighting Eric. In Eric''s body, several darts from Wiley had been stuck, making Eric''s movements much slower than it should be.
Supposedly, Eric had died moments ago but because of his Stats, he was able to survive much longer. The poison darts only managed to make him slow down and feel dizzy.
Because of that now Wiley became very worried. He wasn''t talented with melee attacks at all, so he was at a huge disadvantage in this fight.
Luckily the help arrived. A fireball came from behind Eric and hit his head. Causing him to fall forward and hit a sharp rock.
Wiley saw Leon wave at him. It didn''t take Wiley long to figure out what he had to do. So he dashed trying to leave Eric as far as possible.
"Where shall we go now?" Wiley asked as he ran.
"To be honest I don''t know yet," Clyde took the initiative to answer. "But for now lets just ru-"
Suddenly the pain returned and Clyde fell to the ground. Leon and Wiley immediately helped him up. But they didn''t realize that Rodney and Reed were already chasing them.
Rosie and Albert were way further ahead than L. They saw Rodney and Reeding but judging by their distance and the speed of the two Regressors, they wouldn''t be able to make it in time even if they tried to save them.
"You think I''m going to let you run away!" Rodney said, furious. He sent his sword sh toward them.
Even though he was angry, Rodney knew that they would not be able to go anywhere. He was just mad because all of a sudden there were fuckers bothering him when he almost seeded in killing Clyde.
"We can''t run!" Wiley realized their limits. Everything around them is just ruined. And they were being chased by a group of yers whose Levels were far above theirs.
Clyde didn''t help much because his wounds made it difficult for him even just to survive. L had to channel her meager Magic Power to keep Clyde alive.
It didn''t take long for the Regressors to catch up with them. Rodney shed at Leon''s back, causing him to fall to the ground and Rodney immediately kicked him.
Wiley was about to fire his blow dart. However, he still lost quickly to Rodney''s sword.
*CRAATTT!*
Rodney shed Wiley''s hand, it fell with his blow dart. Wiley whimpered in pain and Rodney kicked him to get him out of his way.
Mona and Reed move to stop Albert and Rosie from acting. Meanwhile, Rodney was now facing Clyde and L who were looking at Rodney with a frightened faces next to him.
Clyde felt that everything that happened before was ultimately meaningless. He continued to spit out blood from his mouth and his vision was getting blurry.
Rodney approached slowly. Like a hunter who has seeded in injuring his prey and seeing the prey dying slowly.
"You are indeed strong. Unfortunately, you are still young and naive. No matter how careful you are, you can still be caught off guard," Rodney said.
His words made Clyde feel like an idiot even more. And now he will die because of his stupidity.
Rodney shot towards him. L of course couldn''t do anything even if she wanted to. So Clyde is ready to ept his death.
However, a sh of light suddenly shot from a high ce toward Rodney. Rodney was forced to stop and used his sword to block something like a rod covered in red light.
''What the hell is this?'' Rodney thought in shock.
~~~
Chapter 127 Escape
Rodney gritted his teeth. He didn''t know what hade and messed up what he wanted to do.
It was shaped like a rod, or actually a spear. Whichever it was, Rodney felt that it would be quite troublesome since it could exert this much power even without anyone holding it.
Rodney immediately used all of his strength to push the thing away. He managed to do it after taking out a considerable amount of strength.
The rod flew and spun in the air. Then it returned to the hands of someone who had just stepped out of a rift.
He was a man wearing a dark purple cloak. His cloak covered most of his body. The man also wore a mask that covered his hair and mouth, leaving his eyes glowing red.
Rodney looked at the man with a frown. There was a dangerous aura that he could sense from that man. This aura feels familiar.
But that man wasn''t a Celestial even though he had a bit of their aura. This made him even more confused.
"Who are you?" Rodney asked in a sharp tone.
The man didn''t bother to answer. He moved in the direction Clyde, L, and the others were. Then he moved the weapon in his hand which turned out to be a spear and opened another rift behind them.
"Hurry in!" said the mysterious purple-cloaked man.
Without waiting for a long time, L and Albert immediately helped Clyde who was no longer able to stand and almost lost consciousness.
Meanwhile, Leon and Rosie rushed over to Wiley who was still writhing in pain after hitting the ground after having an arm cut off.
Rodney who saw that of course could not stay silent. He dashed towards Leon and Rosie who were about to take Wiley.
However, in the blink of an eye, the man in a dark purple cloak was already in front of Rodney.
"Arrghh! Get out of my fucking way!" Rodney shouted with an expression like a madman. He was so frustrated because of the man''s arrival, his desire to kill Clyde became even more distant.
The man did not answer the words full of rage from Rodney. It wasn''t that he didn''t want to repay the words of a cruel traitor like him. But because he couldn''t waste his very limited energy to say anything.
The man saw from behind that Reed and Mona had run to catch up to Rodney. Then he looked back, where only a few more people he had to rescue were about to enter the portal.
*WOOSSHH!*
Rodney''s Sword sh came when the man in purple looked away from him for a moment. But the speed of the sword sh was still below his speed.
So the sword sh from Rodney just hit the man''s spear. The force of the sword sh was enough to push him backward.
Coupled with his increasingly depleted energy, the man in the dark purple cloak felt that he was at a disadvantage.
Mona and Reed came from beside Rodney. Then Rodney said. "Stop them from entering the portal!"
Mona and Reed immediately dashed past the man in a dark purple coat who was still busy dealing with the sword sh from Rodney.
''This is not good!''
The man in a dark purple cloak immediately exerted enough force to push Rodney''s sword sh upwards. Rodney, who had been consumed by anger, immediately charged toward him.
The man in a dark purple coat only nced at Rodney, then thrust his spear into the ground. A momentter dozens of red sharp crystals shot out from the ground toward Rodney.
The man in purple left Rodney and darted toward Mona and Reed. He was so fast that it was toote for the both of them to notice before he was right behind them.
The man grabbed their necks from behind before they both had the chance to turn around to attack him. Then he pushed them both to the ground.
When he looked forward, the man already saw that thest person he had to save had entered the rift he had created.
''Good.''
Letting out a sigh of relief, the man dashed towards the portal. He reached behind him to summon his spear.
The spear shot from where it stuck as if it was so eager to fulfill the master''s call. Meanwhile, Rodney who was still dazed stared ahead.
Her eyes widened in disbelief when she saw Clyde and everyone else had disappeared. Leaving behind the man in a dark purple cloak who is now also moving toward the portal.
"HARRRGGHH!!!"
Rodney shouted in frustration. He mustered up his remaining strength to lunge at his maximum full speed.
However, that speed wasn''t enough to overtake the guy in purple who was only one step away from entering the rift.
A distinctive sound was made when the man entered the rift and the rift closed without leaving anything behind.
Rodney who shed his sword could only swallow his immeasurable disappointment as the sword only shed into empty air.
"FUCK!"
Rodney shed the rocks and rubble around him to channel his anger.
With just a little more, he can kill Clyde and those who helped him. But, the mysterious man came and ruined everything.
''Who the fuck is that? Where did hee from?!''
Many questions are now lodged in Rodney''s head. But no one could give him an answer.
Reed and Mona arrived next to Rodney a momentter. With their face still dirty from just hitting the ground.
"Who''s that?" Reed asked.
Rodney suddenly grabbed his neck and Reed widened his eyes.
"Kekh..."
"See what have you done?! You let them get away from us!" Rodney said. From his eyes, Reed seemed to see a fire ready to devour him.
Rodney then threw Reed to the ground, letting him fall to his knees coughing and gasping for air.
Mona saw what had just happened and was afraid to do or say anything.
In the end, they could only wait until Rodney felt a little better. Rodney finally let out a long breath after a few minutes, trying to drive away the feeling of disappointment and anger.
"Let''s go inside that portal."
After saying that, Rodney directly walked past the two of them. Reed and Mona followed behind. They looked at each other but neither said anything for fear that it would stir up Rodney''s emotions again.
They felt that Rodney was so different. He was no longer like the leader who had always led them.
Instead, he became like a savage man who could turn them into the target of his anger at any time.
Reed and Mona helped Eric, who had difficulty standing due to the effects of Wiley''s poisoned darts. Then, the Regressors entered the portal to another world.
The world they left behind will now only be one of those wasted worlds. Then it disintegrates shortly after its function ispleted.
Everything in this world, all life, and memories will only be annihted. As if it was all just a dream that never happened because soon it would be erased into nothingness.
~~~
Clyde felt himself being tossed around in a vast space. That ce was like a boundless void that confined him in nothingness.
He can open his eyes. But all he saw was darkness. So basically, he can''t see anything.
''Am I dead now?''
Clyde wondered, hoping some answers woulde. But there was no one here but himself.
He also had no idea how long he would be in this ce, tossed about like insignificant trash in the middle of a vast dark ocean.
[ Can you hear me? ]
Finally, Clyde saw a text sh in his vision.
[ Oh sorry. I mean, can you read this? ]
Clyde didn''t know how to respond to the text even though he could see it. But after a while, the text came back to give him rity.
[ Finally, I can find you there. Turns out you''re not dead. Don''t worry. You can answer by thinking about the answer alone. ]
Clyde felt relieved.
[ You''ve been asleep for quite a while. Now it''s time for you to wake up. ]
Clyde thought back to what happened. Because of that Clyde didn''t feel like getting up.
[ That''s not good. You have to awake and move on with your life. Don''t you want revenge? ]
Of course, he wanted revenge. But Clyde remembered how he was thest time before he lost consciousness.
Even now he didn''t know whether he was alive or dead. Or is he still able to fight.
[ You''re still alive. It''s because of me. That''s unfortunate because you were betrayed like that. But, you''re still alive. So, it''s time to wake up and do what you have to do. ]
Clyde actually just needed confirmation of that. If whatever being that sent the text said that he was still alive, then he was still alive.
For now, there was nothing he could trust other than the being behind the text. So, he decided to believe and gather his will to wake up.
~~~
Chapter 128 Weird Place
Clyde struggled to open his heavy eyes. His eyelids seemed to be stuck with glue it took extra effort to open them.
He didn''t know if this was because his body was still weak, or indeed because there was glue holding his eyelids together.
Whichever it was, it didn''t matter now. Clyde was finally able to open his eyes and let light into them.
The first thing he saw was a white ceiling with several neon lights. Nuances like this usually exist in a hospital or treatment room.
Seeing that, Clyde was sure that he was being treated by somebody. Thest time he remembered was when several people came and helped him before Rodney killed him.
He didn''t remember much because he already lost consciousness at that time.
Maybe they are the ones currently taking care of him, somehow. Clyde couldn''t be one hundred percent sure and he was just thinking random things.
He groaned, and tried to sit up but there were straps that prevented him from moving. Clyde frowned looking at all the straps.
In total, there are about eight straps that tie his chest, stomach, and legs. Not only that, as if the straps weren''t strong enough, his wrists and ankles were also fitted with metal shackles.
However, there''s something a little different about the metal shackle. There is a blue glow that keeps beating in a regr rhythm. It was as if the shackle was something alive.
Clyde dropped his head again. He felt he didn''t have much energy to do anything with this much of a noose preventing him from moving.
Clyde didn''t feel any pain in his chest or any other part of his body. All the wounds seemed to have disappeared.
But he couldn''t get too excited just yet because maybe it was just the effect of the medicine or whatever was preventing him from feeling anything.
Clyde could only stay there for a few minutes, he didn''t know how much time had passed. But thirty minutes had already passed so his time for waiting was over. However, he didn''t know about that.
The door to the room was opened from the outside and a man entered. The man was wearing sses and looked like someone who had just entered his teens. Not much different from Clyde.
He still didn''t seem to notice that Clyde had woken up. So the bespectacled man just hummed as he walked to the corner of the room and took a blue orb from inside a metal box.
It was only when he walked towards Clyde that he realized that Clyde had opened his eyes. The bespectacled man let out a surprised gasp and almost dropped the orb he was holding.
But fortunately, he was still able to grab the orb in time before it fell.
"Y-You''re awake," the man said.
"Who are you?" Clyde immediately replied to his words with a sharp question.
"Uhh...my name is James."
"Where am I?"
"You''re in the Resistance''s infirmary now."
Hearing the answer from the man named James, Clyde immediately frowned, surprised.
"Ah, you must be confused by now. I''ll get Mr. Hyde."
James then ran out of the room at a run. While Clyde was still frowning because he was confused by everything that was happening.
''Resistance group? What is that? What are they resist against?''
Not long after, the door was opened again. James came with a big tall man with long hair. There was a bit of white on the man''s temples, giving the impression that he might be at a much more mature age.
"Hi," said the man as he walked closer.
As he got closer Clyde could see the color of his eyes which were dim red like rubies in the dark.
Those eyes gave Clyde a familiar look. He stared at the man with scrutinizing eyes without trying to be subtle.
"I don''t know if you remember me or not. But I saved you and your friends," said the man. "My name is Samuel. Samuel Hyde."
Finally, Clyde came to a realization. He remembered that the man was the one wearing that dark purple cloak.
Upon realizing that he was at the ce of the person who saved him from his death, Clyde was able to put his head back in peace.
Even though he couldn''t believe it, at least Clyde knew that the man had a purpose to save him. Therefore, he wouldn''t hurt him for a while.
Samuel Hyde sat on the chair that was next to Clyde''s bed. "How is your feeling?"
"I''m like a madman being held in an asylum," answered Clyde. He was sure that Samuel Hyde knew what he meant.
"Ah, well," said Samuel. "We had to tie you up. It was a precaution."
"What precautions?" Clyde asked with a confused look on his face.
"So that when you be a monster, you are not free and make a mess."
"Monster?!" Clyde looked in disbelief.
"Yeah," Samuel nodded briefly. "Here, if you die, you will turn into a terrible monster called Phantram."
Clyde paused to think about it.
''So I did almost die.''
If it wasn''t for something texting him saying it had brought him to life, Clyde was sure he was dead by now. And became that monster named Phantram.
"But luckily, you''re alive. And you seem fine." Samuel looked at Clyde from head to toe. "Are you still in pain?"
Clyde tried to concentrate to make sure of the condition of his body. He was relieved when he didn''t feel any pain. Even his chest that he remembered had a hole in it seemed fine.
"No," Clyde replied.
Samuel turned to James who had been standing stiffly in silence. Then nodded his head at Clyde as a gesture.
James who knew what to do nodded. He walked over to the other side of the bed where Clyde was lying.
"I''ll check on you," James said. Then took a small book from his coat pocket.
James held the book in one hand. While his other hand stretched out towards Clyde.
After a while, a thin white light appeared on James'' palm. The sheet of the book he was holding also flipped by itself.
James withdrew his outstretched hand and read the pages of the book with a wrinkled forehead full of concentration. asionally he raises his dropping sses while continuing to read.
"Hmm." James nodded as if approving. "He''s in good condition, sir. I don''t know how that''s possible but his wounds are much better. Notpletely healed though."
"A wound like that bes better in a month? That is impressive," said Samuel.
Upon hearing what he said, Clyde nced at him in shock and confusion.
"A month?!" Clyde said in disbelief.
"Yes. You''ve been asleep for a month."
Clyde almost screamed and said that it was impossible. However, when he recalled everything that had happened - fighting the Outer God to the point of killing it - and how he almost died from a stab to the chest that had most likely damaged his heart, a month''s recovery time sounded reasonable.
Clyde calmed himself with a deep breath. Then ask a question. "What is this ce?"
He wanted to hear more than something called a ''Resistance'' group thing. And this man called Samuel Hyde seemed to be someone in a position of importance here, judging by how James hurriedly addressed him.
Samuel stood. "Since you don''t look like you''re going to die, at least soon, I''ll be taking these straps off."
He then proceeded to release the straps on Clyde''s body one by one. After everything was done, he and James helped Clyde into the wheelchair.
However, they did not remove the shackles on his legs and arms. Samuel hooked the shackle on the wheelchair.
"This is for security. I hope you''re not offended," said Samuel. He didn''t say that by security he meant security for this ce, not Clyde''s.
While Samuel pushed him out of the room, Clyde remained silent. He wasn''t going to waste his time asking where the man was taking him. Because eventually, he will get there.
James disappeared behind the door when Samuel permitted him that it would be okay if he left them.
Not long after, they exited through a metal double door. Clyde frowned when he saw the sight of a dark sky filled with stars that seemed so close.
Then Clyde looked around him and found that he was now in the middle of town. The building behind him was a building with five floors.
The buildings in this city look as if they were taken from different times, then put together randomly to fill empty areas.
Clyde saw a building made of stone, a small medieval castle, a modern apartment building, a house from the 1800s, then a white and clean building that seemed toe out of a utopian film.
The sight made Clyde dizzy. He felt that he was in the middle of a dream he had when he had a fever.
"This is what this ce is like. You must be confused by the whole thing, right?" said Samuel. "Don''t worry. Your confusion is justbegin."
~~~
Chapter 129 So Much To Take
Clyde looked up at Samuel who was behind him pushing a wheelchair. The man of course noticed the frown on Clyde''s face.
Samuel smiled slightly. "You know that all the suffering you''ve been through is just the beginning of something big, right?"
In fact, Clyde had known about it ever since he met the other beings behind this apocalypse. Like the World Masters and those who imed to serve the Celestials.
But Clyde didn''t know where to start. Samuel seemed to understand about that so he started exining without Clyde asking first.
"How much do you know?" he asked.
"I know that the apocalypse is only the Selection Stage," Clyde replied.
He snorted. "I heard that you already know a lot more than you should because you have met the World Masters and the servants. And that''s good."
Clyde didn''t answer. He was still busy looking at theyout of this strange city.
"You are referred to as yers in the Selection Stage, as if you are ying a game. But the Celestials refer to you as Candidates."
Clyde was silent and listening.
"Candidates exist for various reasons. Some are recruited to be warriors, servants, and even champions. Those are good possibilities.
However, some are unlucky and will only be ves. They are in charge of hardbor and sacrifice when necessary."
Clyde winced at the words ''sacrifice'' and ''ve''. He remembered hearing from Rodney that they would be judged by Grades. That''s why they wanted to kill him so that he and his friends would get a good Grade.
Without realizing it, his hands gripped tightly on the arm of the wheelchair.
Samuel, who had been pushing the wheelchair from behind, felt a huge pressure from Clyde that made him flinch.
Even though Clyde was being held down by the shackles, Samuel still couldn''t be sure that the shackles could hold him down if he intended to unleash his power.
"Calm down, why are you so tense?" Samuel asked in a tone he tried to keep as calm as possible.
"Did you know that I was betrayed?" Clyde said in a cold voice. "Those bastards stabbed me in the back and wanted to kill me after I helped them. It must be because they wanted to get a good grade."
Of course, Samuel knew about that. He was also shocked when he found out. Luckily at that time, he managed toe on time despite sacrificing a lot of Mana.
"You intend to take revenge?" he asked.
"Of course I want revenge!" Clyde said sharply. There was a heavy weight of emotion in his voice.
"You will be able to do it." Samuel nodded. "In fact, this ce is filled with people who want revenge."
Clyde blinked a few times. He still didn''t understand what Samuel was saying.
"But before that, you have to fully recover yourself first."
"Right," Clyde said. "You still haven''t told me what this ce is."
"Oh, right," Samuel said. "This ce is called the Shivagadh fortress. It is where we, the people, and all kinds of creatures called the Resistance are based."
''People and various kinds of creatures?'' Clyde frowned, surprised.
"You must be wondering, what we resist against exactly."
Since Samuel had already said it, Clyde didn''t bother to ask.
"We resist, rebel, and fight, against the Celestials."
Clyde turned his head back to see Samuel''s face. He already knew that the Celestials were powerful beings. Then, if they intended to fight those Celestials, who exactly were they?
Clyde knew that Samuel was the one who saved him from the Regressors. That shows that he is not an ordinary human like his appearance.
Samuel noticed Clyde''s questioning look. he smirked. "We are indeed quite strong. However, we are still not strong enough to challenge those Celestials head-on and can only move in silence for now."
Samuel didn''t say that Clyde being here was part of the n. Samuel knew how strong Clyde was.
He had even managed to kill that replica of the Outer God. Clyde will be something very useful to increase their strength.
But he''ll save that for now. He wasn''t going to risk Clyde thinking he was just being used by them if he heard it.
"Why do you want to fight them?" Clyde asked.
"You have no idea what those Celestials have done. They are so powerful that they see the lives of other creatures below them as mere insects."
There was a special pressure when Samuel said that. Clyde also saw his red eyes which were dim slightly sh for a split second when he said that.
"The Selection Stage was also their cruel act so they could take new toys," Samuel continued.
"We, are humans and creatures who have gone through countless Selection Stages. Then we joined here because of the same feeling, that is hate for those Celestials."
Clyde looked back up. He should have expected that something like this would happen.
Usually in novels or movies, there will indeed be resistance groups hiding in the underground because they hate the powerful rulers.
He thought back to the time when he was still on the Selection Stage, in the Main Control Tower after he obtained the Nightmare Orb.
It feels like it was just a few days ago. But apparently, so much time has passed.
At that time Clyde felt worried because he thought that at that time everything that happened was just a dream that wasn''t real. And he will only return to the gloomy days in his life before the apocalypse happened.
But it all turns out to be just the beginning of something bigger. He got into a bigger plot than before. And it seems that he remains the protagonist of his own epic story.
Even though Clyde had just been betrayed, he could still see a bit of the bright side. At least, he didn''t return to his previous boring life.
Was that any better than nearly dying at the hands of the people he previously helped? Once again, Clyde only thought of it as a plot of a story that he had to experience.
In a fictional story, there are indeed some things that readers don''t like. But, it can''t be helped if it''s part of how the story goes.
So, yes. Clyde considered his near-death experience a little better. It was also because he didn''t really die.
Realizing that his thoughts had wandered too far, Clyde returned to focus on what they were currently talking about.
"Who are the members of this group?" Clyde asked.
"Our numbers aren''t too many. But it can''t be said to be few either. We can do minor operations like saving you, but we still can''t afford to attack those Celestials openly," Samuel replied.
"There were many humans that we saved from the Celestials'' clutches after bing their ves. Several beings from other worlds, as well as several servants who defected."
For Clyde, it''s all still quite confusing. However, all of that seems too much to process right now. So he focused on the more important things for him to do first.
"I don''t think I can understand any of that for now. Do you know the way so I can recover quickly?" Clyde asked.
"Yes. But it looks like it''s quite difficult," said Samuel.
"What do you mean?"
"Your body will probably recover before long. But your power... I can''t say the same about your it."
Clyde tried to feel the change in himself. But he couldn''t feel anything. So Clyde tries to summon his Character Information.
However, all he saw was a Window with blurry and distorted text. The Character Information looks like a badly damagedputer screen.
"Are you trying to look at your Character Information?" Samuel asked when he saw Clyde''s gesture.
"Yes. I can''t see it," Clyde replied.
"Yeah. That''s what I said. We got that power from the system when we entered the Selection Stage.
Some of us only have damaged Character Information, it depends on the injury each individual has. But for you, you even almost died so¡"
Clyde understood what Samuel wanted to say. So, did that mean he could no longer use all the power and stats he had acquired? If he looks at the current condition of his Character Information, it is very likely to happen.
However, there is something he has that can create an extraordinary forte. That is his [Private Attribute: Easy-Mode].
Based on what happened previously, that [Private Attribute] of his had helped Clyde escape from a difficult situation. Perhaps, this time the [Private Attribute] would do something extraordinary again.
''Wait, could it be that the thing that sent the text to me was that [Private Attribute]?'' Clyde wondered.
"Don''t worry," Samuel wondered. "Even though you can no longer see your Character Information, you can still gain your power again by training. Just like me."
"You can''t see your Character Information either?" Clyde asked.
"No. I can''t." Samuel shook his head followed by a bitter smile. "That''s why I''m training hard so I can still fight."
''Even without his Character Information, he was able to have the power to save me by himself.'' thought Clyde.
~~~
Chapter 130 Almost Died
The strange city suddenly started to fill up with peopleing out of the buildings with all kinds of shapes.
Clyde who was still in the wheelchair could only stare at them with a frown, scrutinizing without hesitation. Because what he saw would indeed make anyone feel astonished.
Some people wear clothes like people who lived in medieval Europe. They also gave off an aura that said they really came from a far past.
Then Clyde saw people dressed the same as he saw in his everyday life. They look like modern people living in the twenty-first century. They look normal by Clyde''s standards but when looking at everything around them, they are just as odd as everybody else.
Then there are also people... or creatures that look like people. They have pointy ears and long hair. They had an appearance that was so striking in Clyde''s eyes. There''s no way he didn''t know about them.
A world-famous race in fantasy stories. The Elves.
Besides Elves, several other creatures seem toe from the fantasy world. There are Dwarves who live next door to the Elves.
Clyde was sure that there were more he didn''t see yet.
Once again Clyde felt the strange sensation as if he was dreaming when he had a fever. A strange dream that was abination of all kinds of things he had seen or read about.
Because of that Clyde didn''t stop frowning since earlier. When he finally felt that his forehead was sore, Clyde just stopped looking and massages his forehead. The shackle chain makes a creaking sound when it hits the wheelchair''s arm.
Samuel let out a chuckle when he saw it. "These are the residents in this fort. Everyone is used to it so they assume that the strangers next to them are just their neighbors in this fortress."
For Samuel, all of this may indeed seemfortable. But Clyde still had a hard time imagining that Elves and Dwarves could be neighbors.
Clyde even saw the Elf and Dwarf talking to each other happily, evenughing asionally. It seemed true, they had gotten used to it until there was no longer any hint of animosity whatsoever.
''If that''s the situation, I also have to get used to it,'' Clyde thought while looking at all the scenery around him.
"What should I do now?" Clyde asked Samuel.
"What do you mean? You still have to rest," Samuel replied.
Clyde shook his head as he exhaled. "No. You said I could train if I couldn''t gain the power of the system anymore."
Samuel nced at Clyde from behind. His eyes seemed to be scrutinizing Clyde and now it seemed as if a lot of cogs were spinning inside his head. Considering what he should do next with Clyde.
"First, take off this shackle." Clyde shook the shackles in both of his hands in an impatient motion.
Not hearing anything from Samuel, Clyde turned to him.
"What''s wrong?" Clyde asked.
"Uhh... I didn''t know about that." Finally, Samuel said. But what he said didn''t sound too pleasant to Clyde''s ears.
"What do you mean?" Clyde was starting to feel annoyed.
"Your condition can get worse at any time," said Samuel.
"You said my condition was much better than you thought."
"Yes, but... there is still a potential for you to be a danger. You will still have to wear the shackle until I decide you can take it off."
Samuel could see Clyde''s jaw tighten suddenly. His gaze on him also became sharper.
However, Samuel was not worried. As strong as Clyde was before, now he is just an injured patient.
He couldn''t use the power of the system and the shackles wrapped around his arms and legs wasn''t ordinary shackles that he could just crush.
"I''m feeling better already. Let me practice," Clyde said, insisting.
But Samuel just shook his head and gave the same answer.
"No. I can''t do that."
Clyde wants to try to fight back. But, he decided to be wiser. There''s no point throwing tempers here just because of that. After all, he also still didn''t really know the true condition of his body.
Perhaps he still had a bit of his former strength left. However, Clyde was sure that he still couldn''t fight against Samuel and his shackles.
So now the wisest thing he could do was just sit back and wait. Until he could know better.
Clyde sighed in resignation. "Fine."
Samuel smiled. "Good. Don''t worry. It won''t take long before I can be sure that you are no longer a danger. Just wait until then."
Clyde didn''t answer.
Samuel took him to a ce that seemed to be the center of the city. There is arge fountain that continues to emit water without stopping. And around that fountain is what looks like a portal.
"Where are you taking me?" Clyde asked.
"To give you an idea of ??our strength, I will take you to where our fighters usually train," Samuel replied.
Samuel pushed Clyde closer to one of the portals. As they got closer, the vortex began to change to reveal a view on the other side.
Clyde could see a glimpse of what was at the portal''s destination. It is a very broad in. Surprisingly, the scene there was bright as day with the scorching sun.
Before Clyde could ask, Samuel had pushed Clyde into the portal.
A momentter Clyde was in the middle of the wide ins that he saw. The portal was still spinning behind him.
Clyde moved his eyes. It didn''t take long for him to find people who seemed to be involved in a fight.
There was a woman who was fighting a man. The woman had short hair and was quite tall. Clyde thought the woman''s body might be the same as his and she fought with a sword.
The man she was fighting was a man with a slender build. He moved with shrewd movements as if dancing with his sword.
The two of them were fighting with swords. Clyde could see the sparks and hear the shrill sound of their shing swords even though they were quite far away.
But their movements were much faster and stronger than those of ordinary humans. Clyde immediately knew that they must be fighting using the power that the system gave them, or something simr to it.
"You can see that. They both move at an incredible speed," Samuel said as if he could read his mind. "However, they don''t use the power of the system anymore. Instead, they train the power."
"Their Character Information is also corrupted?" Clyde asked.
"Yeah, same as you. They almost died too."
Clyde turned again to the two people who were training again. It turned out that those two were not the only ones who were practicing.
Far away, on a slightly raised part of the ground that almost formed a hill, there were also people throwing something like fireballs at each other.
"What about the people on the hill?" Clyde asked while pointing with his forefinger.
"They are the same. But they have a higher affinity with natural Mana so they can use magic attacks."
Clyde frowned. "Mana? You mean Magic Power?"
"Ah, right. In your Character Information, the ability to use Mana is referred to as Magic Power," said Samuel.
Clyde nodded briefly after understanding that. Then he continued to look at the people who were practicing it.
Clyde found it hard to believe they were fighting like that without using the power of the system. It was unfortunate that his Character Information - his system power - is be broken.
''Could it be that I have to start all over again?''
But it didn''t have to be like that because there was still his [Private Attribute: Easy-Mode] which Clyde knew was still undamaged. It''s possible that if he really had to start from scratch, he would still get a big advantage.
But Clyde still hopes that the power of the system can still be repaired somehow. Because he has a lot of his Stats Points, Skill Points, and Coins there.
Clyde let out a long breath. ''Ah, I''ll figure out a way to put it all backter.''
Suddenly when he was thinking about all his possessions, a sun-reflecting object was spinning in the sky.
When Clyde looked up, he noticed that it was a piece of de spinning in the air and flying towards him.
*SWISSS!*
*SWISSS!*
*SWISSS!*
...
The de of the sword rotated so fast and headed straight for his head.
If Samuel didn''t move quickly and catch it, then the de would sink into his head.
"Sorry!"
A screaming sound came from in front of him, Clyde blinked a few times to regain his senses. Did he just almost die from being pierced by a piece of a broken sword?
When he looked up, Clyde saw the two people who had been practicing swords running toward him. As soon as they got close to him and Samuel, the man immediately looked at Clyde with a smile.
"Ah, you must be the new guy who has been sleeping for a month!" the man said.
Clyde noticed a broken sword clutched in his hand. "And you must be the idiot who foolishly let your sword break and almost killed me."
"Ah hahaha." The man scratched the back of his neckughing. It was as if what he had just done was nothing serious.
"I''m sorry," said the woman beside him. "I went too far to break his sword, again."
Hearing that, it was obvious that something like this had happened more than once.
~~~
Chapter 131 Their Practice
Clyde nced at the man and woman. They didn''t look much older than him. However, they were probably already in their twenties.
It only shows from their appearance. In a ce like this Clyde couldn''t tell if someone''s appearance really suited their age.
"It''s fine. I''m not really dead," Clyde said in an even tone.
The two of them still had guilty faces. But a momentter they tried to lighten the mood and change the subject.
"So uhh... your name is Clyde?" said the man. "I''m Wayne. Nice to meet you."
"I''m Lahn," said the short-haired woman. "I hope what happened earlier doesn''t affect our further friendship."
Lahn nced at Clyde with a warm smile. Filled with the hope that her words just now woulde true.
However, Clyde could not immediately answer her words. The bitter feeling of having just experienced a cruel betrayal suddenly felt like a sting in his chest.
That made Clyde''s eyes sharpen as he looked at Lahn. He immediately looked away from the woman so as not to offend her.
Clyde realized that the woman was not at fault. At least until proven otherwise. Clyde only felt traumatized when he saw someone kind to him.
"Sure," said Clyde. Once again, in a cold tone.
Lahn immediately lost her smile. But she and Wayne had also heard from Samuel about Clyde''s story.
Lahn and Wayne looked at each other. Through their eyes, they both seemed to say that they understood Clyde''s attitude.
"Hey, Clyde. Maybe you can''t do anything yet. But you can see they''re practicing to get a sense of what we''re doing here," Samuel said.
Clyde who had controlled his feelings looked at Samuel. "Maybe that''s a good idea."
Hearing that, Lahn and Wayne exchanged nces and nodded. Wayne then goes inside the portal. Possibility to pick up a new sword.
"Here if you want to quickly restore your strength, you have to train hard," Lahn said. "Without the power that the system gives us, we are nothing."
Clyde wasn''t sure if he had lost his system powers. But he didn''t say that.
"I''m sure Samuel already told you about Mana. To control it I need a lot of time and hard work. Even for someone like me."
Clyde nced at Lahn. She reminded him of Sonya, somehow.
Clyde knows that Sonya and Asqa were already inside the portal before he was stabbed in the back and probably has no idea what happened.
''I don''t want to think about them now.'' Clyde shook his head.
Supposedly, the two of them were fine with all the achievements they got because of him.
But clearly, they wouldn''t be higher than Rodney and his Regressors friends. Who has basically stolen whatever achievement he got.
"With your injuries, you should probably rest for another month to be able to train. Or your body will be destroyed and you will be a Phantram."
Clyde turned to her. "You talked a lot."
Lahn blinked her eyes a few times, looking taken aback.
"Ha ha ha!" Samuelughed.
Lahn clenched his jaw. "You should be thanking me since I talk a lot. You are new here, you won''t know many things so I exin it willingly to you."
"Samuel has been doing that for a while," Clyde replied.
When Lahn almost opened her mouth to say something more, Wayne came out of the portal carrying five swords.
"Alright! Let''s start again," Wayne told Lahn.
"Yes," Lahn replied with his eyes still glued to Clyde.
Clyde was not looking at her again but instead looked at the people over there who were practicing their Magical attack.
After a while, Clyde noticed that several more other groups were practicing quite a distance from where they were.
shes of lightning and fire shot out from them. Indicates that they are also fighting with Mana.
Another group trains with melee weapons like spears, swords, and possibly a quarterstaff.
When Clyde saw them, Lahn and Wayne had already walked away and got into a stance to start fighting.
Meanwhile, Samuel was back behind Clyde. he said. "Lahn and Wayne have been in this ce for years. It''s been a long time since they trained but they are still quite far from their strength when using the power of the system."
"Why is that?" Clyde asked.
"Basically, they are ordinary humans who touch Mana for the first time. So, they need to adjust for a long time."
For now, Clyde chose to pay attention to them first. He also wanted to see how the others practiced using Mana and casting magic attacks. But they are quite far away so he put that aside for now.
Lahn and Wayne shot toward each other. Then their des shed in a quick sh.
*CLANG!*
The sparks from their shing des looked like fireworks. Even under this bright sun, Clyde could see that clearly.
They had only been fighting for a few moments, but Clyde already knew who had the upper hand there.
Lahn definitely mastered the sword better than Wayne. It''s only natural that she was able to break Wayne''s sword several times.
Lahn seemed to have the basics of sword mastery. Clyde thought maybe she had been practicing since childhood, judging from her stance and movements.
While Wayne may have just wielded a sword during the apocalypse. So he only knows how to swing it as hard as he can to sh the enemy.
Clyde realized that his condition was the same as Wayne''s.
He could use the sword so easily because of the power of the system. Because of that Clyde hopes that his power of the system will return.
He spent there forty minutes until finally Samuel said he had to go back. Clyde could onlyply because he felt he had finished seeing the big picture of what he was going to do next.
After returning Clyde to the infirmary, Samuel returned to the vast ins. This time he brought his spear.
"What do you think?" Samuel asked Lahn and Wayne who were resting.
"I don''t feel any Mana in him," Wayne said. "Looks like he''ll have to be patient a bit longer so he can get his revenge."
"I agree," Lahn nodded. "He''s also quite annoying. Do you think it''s worth sacrificing so much of our resources to save him?"
"I have a good feeling about him." Samuel looked at Lahn. "Just like when I saved you from Asmodeus."
Hearing that name, Lahn''s body suddenly stiffened. Her body reflexively felt a sudden pressureing from her memory.
"Sorry." Samuel genuinely felt guilty.
"I-Its okay. I understand what you mean," Lahn said after trying to hold back her mixed emotions.
Wayne who was in front of her looked at Lahn with a sympathetic look.
He knew what Lahn was going through and all of that made him shrouded in rage. Every time he recalled it, the rage he felt towards that Demon King grew bigger.
"Anyway, let''s get back to practice," Samuel said.
Lahn and Wayne were back on their feet. This time the two of them will be together against Samuel.
"Are you ready?" asked Samuel as he spun his spear with an easer.
Wayne and Lahn had fought Samuel many times. And they have never won once. Yet, they also never give up because they know, the moment they seed in defeating Samuel is the moment when their strength is sufficient to fight at least a servant of Celestials.
Wayne and Lahn looked at each other, then they shot toward Samuel simultaneously. They stepped on the grass pulling them from the ground and sending them flying.
*CLANG!*
Samuel blocked their sword shes with his spear. Lahn spun her body quickly and directed her sh from the bottom up.
While Wayne only raised his sword and then shed it with even higher strength.
Samuel avoided Lahn''s sh by shifting his body to the side. Then hit Wayne''s sword which was still in the middle of the shing.
Samuel kicked Wayne in the stomach, sending him flying several meters back. He wanted to hit Lahn with his spear, however, Lahn was able to move fast enough to avoid that and attacked from the side.
Lahn confronted Samuel in a swift move. Wayne who saw it from the side once again regretted hisg.
He gritted his teeth. Then shook his head as if to drive the thought away. Wayne shot up to them and joined the fight again.
And then, the three of them engaged in a fierce battle for hours.
But that wasn''t over yet, even though they were already out of breath, to reach the level of strength they hoped for, there was no other way but to keep practicing.
~~~
While they were all undergoing training in a harsh and merciless fight, Clyde was lying on the bed.
He looked at the shackle in his left hand which was continuously emitting a blue glow in a steady rhythm.
"A month? Does it really have to be that long?"
~~~
Chapter 132 Surprisingly
Clyde looked down at the shackle in his hand. If he really has to wait for a month, isn''t that all too long?
He wouldn''t be able to hold back the tightness in his chest that was pushing him to do something as fast as possible.
Clyde tried to summon his Character Information again. But all he saw was a blurry Window. However, there is something a little different.
The letters in his Character Information are not as blurry as before. The letters still couldn''t be read properly, but there was a visible change from a few minutes ago.
Before, Clyde only see the writing that was so blurry, like a pencil writing on paper that had almost been erased, now the outlines of the letters became clearer.
Even though it was still unreadable, Clyde already knew what was written there.
"Can I use it already?" Clyde wondered.
He nced at his Character Information and concentrated. However, all he felt was exhaustion because it was pointless. It was like reaching for the light at the end of the tunnel that was getting farther away the closer he got.
"Well, I guess not."
With that, Clyde dropped his head again. Even though he still couldn''t do it right now, he was sure that it wouldn''t take him as much as a month to actually be able to achieve the level of strength he needed.
In just a few minutes the Character Information looks better. Maybe, he just has to wait a few days or weeks.
~~~
Three dayster Samuel removed the shackles that were entangling Clyde''s legs and arms.
Clyde finally got a taste of freedom. He rubbed his wrist and ankle several times to relieve the itchiness he had been feeling for a long time.
"Since you are an exception, then I will allow you toe to train with us now," Samuel said.
"Oh, finally," Clyde replied.
Within three days, Clyde was able to read his Name in his Character Information. As he had expected, the power of his system would most likely return with time.
"Where are my clothes?" Clyde asked.
"Oh, about that." Samuel looked guilty. "We have to get rid of it."
Clyde looked at him and frowned. "Why?"
"To erase traces. World Masters... ah, I mean the beings in charge of your Selection Stage, will be able to trace the stuff you are wearing."
Clyde just heard about it now. He thought all his stuff was just being stored somewhere until he retrieve it back.
"Does that mean you also destroyed my sword?" Clyde asked with anxiety starting to rise.
"Fortunately, your sword is different," Samuel replied. "We can''t destroy it so we just keep it and seal it in a special room."
Hearing that, Clyde heaved a sigh of relief. He couldn''t imagine how much regret he must have felt when he found out that his sword had been destroyed.
"However," Samuel said. "You cannot retrieve that sword for now. The risk is too great for the World Masters to track it down."
Clyde was indeed disappointed. But he also will not take that risk.
"Alright," Clyde said. Although he didn''t know when he would be able to get the Elderss Sword back.
After that, Samuel took Clyde to change his clothes. Once again he chose a ck shirt and ck trousers.
Then they went through the portal and entered the vast ins where many people practiced their fighting skills. Samuel also did not forget to bring his red spear.
"Since your weapon used to be a sword, how about we try a sword first?" he asked.
"Sounds like a good idea," Clyde said.
They drew closer to Wayne and Lahn who were sitting on the grass. As usual, they continued to train without stopping.
Next to Wayne were several swords lying around. It seemed that he had learned from his mistakes and prepared more swords for practice.
"Do you mind lending one of your swords to Clyde?" he asked.
"No. You can have it," Wayne said, smiling at Clyde. "I didn''t forge the swords myself after all."
So Clyde took one of the swords at random.
"Thanks," said Clyde curtly.
"Let''s try it with me." Samuel spun his spear.
Clyde nodded. "Okay."
And so they walked away from Lahn and Wayne. They both stared with excitement clear in their eyes as Clyde and Samuel walked away.
"Samuel will beat his ass," Lahn said with a mischievous smile.
Wayne snorted. "We don''t know about that yet. You know what Clyde''s reputation is, right? He can kill that Outer God replica."
Lahn recalled how terrifying the Outer God replica was. She couldn''t even imagine how Clyde could kill that horrible monster.
"Maybe he just got lucky," Lahn said.
Wayne snorted again as if what Lahn said was something funny. Then said in a sarcastic tone. "Yeah, right. Lucky."
The wind blew around them, making the grass dance in the same direction. Clyde felt how to grip a sword again like before when he was still in the Selection Stage.
''Can I still use a sword without that [Skill: Weapon Mastery]?''
Clyde felt doubtful and uneasy. The reason he was able to fight and dominate his enemies back then was because he had that Skill and the Elderss Sword. But he doesn''t have either of them right now.
''Hmm, whatever, I''ll just fight my hardest to see what I''m capable of now.'' Clyde nodded to himself.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"Yes," answered Clyde.
Samuel formed a stance. "Here Ie."
Samuel dashed towards Clyde. So Clyde also immediately approached him.
A momentter they were face to face in very close range. Clyde immediately swung his sword as hard as he could.
Samuel thought that he wouldn''t have to put in so much effort to block Clyde''s attack. However, he couldn''t be more wrong.
*CLANG!*
"Urgh!"
Samuel felt so much pressure from Clyde. He was pushed backward into the air andnded a few meters behind where he was originally standing.
Samuel, Lahn, Wayne, and even Clyde were shocked by what had just happened.
~~~
Chapter 133 White Mist
Clyde looked at Samuel who was quite far from him. His eyes opened wide in surprise.
Then Clyde''s gaze fell on his sword. His hand gripping the sword did not tremble at all. As if it had been used to wielding a sword for a long time.
His strength also came out bigger than he thought. Clyde had thought that his attack would only cause a small impact on Samuel''s spear. However, it turns out he was able to push Samuel to fly a few meters back.
''Wait, don''t get excited just yet,'' Clyde said to himself. ''Samuel is probably still holding back.''
Yes, the possibility is very big. Samuel must not have used his full strength thinking he was still sick.
Yet, being able to push Samuel backward in one hit was still impressive. Clyde couldn''t deny it even if he tried to control himself.
That means he is not as weak as he seems. Maybe even he still has all his abilities in using weapons.
"Whoa, you turned out to be stronger than I thought," Samuel said. "But don''t push yourself."
"No. I think I''m better than I should be," Clyde shot back. "Let''s continue."
"Yeah, let''s continue."
Samuel dashed toward Clyde. This time he kept his spear behind his body and looked like he was about to use his hands to fight.
Clyde also ran over to him. He returned to swinging his sword with the same force as before.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
Swords and spears sh in rapid rhythm and intense power trying to destroy each other. Sparks from shing meta sh so quickly.
It turned out that Clyde''s guess was wrong. Samuel put his spear behind his body not because he wanted to strike with his hands. But so he can create momentum for a strong swing.
Samuel swings his spear more often than he thrusts it. Clyde thought that Samuel might be holding back and not using his advantage to attack him. Or maybe that''s just how his fighting style is.
Clyde didn''t want to think about that for now. Now, he had to focus on fighting or he could be hit by that spear and would lie down on that bed again.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
They continue to fight. Clyde swung his sword relentlessly without noticing that the de had been chipped in many ces.
Clyde was also too deep in the fight so he didn''t realize that Mana was starting to flow all over his body. Even the flow of Mana seeped through his skin and created a thinyer of mist around his body.
No one was aware of the existence of the thin mist apart from Samuel. Lahn and Wayne who was watching with astonished expression from where they standing had not noticed it. Even Clyde himself didn''t realize that.
''Damnit! Is it possible?!''
Samuel himself was also shocked by what he saw. Clyde has just been in the recovery process for a month. Even three days ago he had no Mana flow at all.
However, Samuel could not see wrong. What he sawing out of Clyde''s body was a flow of Mana that was so great that it seeped out into the white mist.
''That means in three days his Mana has resurrected. Or rather, the Mana had indeed awakened but we didn''t realize it because it was still too weak. But how could his Mana increase this much in three days?!''
Even though he thought about it so hard, Samuel couldn''te up with a suitable answer. Except for the answer that kept echoing in his head that Clyde was really special.
On the other hand, Lahn and Wayne were still staring at the fight with dumbfounded expressions. Their mouths and eyes opened until they felt their eyes dry.
"What the fuck?!" That was the first response out of Lahn''s mouth.
Wayne let out a choked sound. He opened and then closed his mouth quickly as if he wanted to say something but whatever he said came back to his throat. He couldn''t even believe what he saw.
But after a while, Wayne finally managed to pull himself together.
"His physique has fully recovered. And it looks like his Mana has returned," Wayne said with his eyes still staring at the battle.
"No shit! How can he move with such speed and power if he hasn''t recovered?!" said Lahn. "But how is that possible? At that time we couldn''t even feel his Mana."
All these questions are useless for them to say because they will not be able to get the answers. At least until the fight is over and Clyde might be willing to exin.
In the end, the two of them could only stare at the battle unfolding up ahead for now. The fight was getting more intense.
Even the air pressure around them changed. This was a sign that both Clyde and Samuel had used their Mana to fight.
A battle that was originally only a test to find out how stable Clyde''s body was, became a real battle to test the strength of the two of them.
The people in the other training groups also became interested in Clyde and Samuel''s fight. The two of them gave off a pressure that was impossible for them to let go of. So those people moved closer.
"What happened? Who was it?"
"What is Samuel?"
"Who was that he fought? You guys felt their mana pressure?"
Those people also wore confused faces like Lahn and Wayne. But since no one could answer that, they could only continue watching silently while continuing to specte.
*CLANG!*
Clyde and Samuel swung their weapons at each other causing the two weapons to sh with a loud sound andrge sparks.
The impact of the sh between the two attacks sent the two of them flying in opposite directions. Both Clyde and Samuel had to immediately struggle to maintain their foot so they wouldn''t fall.
Samuel gritted his teeth. He didn''t think that Clyde had be this strong.
But inside he was cheering. That meant they didn''t have to waste too much time waiting for Clyde to be ready.
~~~
Chapter 134 After The Fight
After a few seconds had passed, Clyde finally realized that in his body now there was a new power. Clyde also noticed that his movements were getting faster and stronger.
Then when he looked down, Clyde noticed a thin white misting out of his body. Instantly he realized that this must be his Mana that had awakened.
In his heart, Clyde also felt happy. What happened now meant that he didn''t have to start all over again.
Even if his system power didn''t return, Clyde would still be able to develop his strength quickly.
Though, Clyde still wanted his system power toe back because there were various kinds of treasures that he had worked hard to obtain in the Selection Stage.
Samuel lunged again. This time he said. "Let''s level up our battle. I see you can already use Mana."
*CLANG!*
Samuel''s spear hit Clyde''s sword which he used to block his attack.
"Is that so?" Clyde asked.
"Yes. Unless you can''t hold it anymore," Samuel replied.
Clyde grinned. "I think I''m perfectly fine."
Clyde then kicked Samuel, sending him several meters backward.
Samuel snorted with a grin. "Okay then."
Samuel wanted to learn the true extent of Clyde''s potential. Maybe now he should start getting serious and not think of Clyde as a wounded person anymore.
They shed once again. This time there was even a wave of wind that spread out in all directions indicating that the battle had escted to a higher stage.
The swings of swords and spears shed against each other in swift movements that only seemed like a blur in the middle of the vast ins. All the spectators since earlier were almost speechless because of it.
Until finally, something happened, forcing the fight to end.
Suddenly Clyde''s sword broke and flew into the air. The broken de circled in the air before finally sinking into the ground not far in front of Wayne.
Clyde stared at the sword in his hand, which was now half gone, with a dumbfounded expression.
"You''ve got to be kidding," Clyde muttered in disbelief.
"Well," Samuel said. "It looks like our fight has to stop."
"I can still pick up another sword," Clyde said.
"No. I don''t think you can force your body," Samuel said, shaking his head.
Actually, he also still wants to fight longer with Clyde. But after more thought, he felt it was unwise to force someone''s newly recovered body to fight like that.
Samuel felt regretful because he had said earlier that he wanted to raise the level of their battle.
Clyde feels reluctant after hearing Samuel''s words. All the tension in his body asked for the fight to continue.
But he realized what Samuel said was true. He shouldn''t force his body which is still undergoing the recovery process.
"Huuh..." Clyde exhaled as if he wanted to release all the tension and his will to fight. "Alright."
Clyde finally noticed the spectator who had circled them. Not used to being the center of attention, Clyde just looked away from them and walked over to Lahn and Wayne.
"Sorry about your sword," Clyde said to Wayne. "But to be honest, it looks like the quality of these swords is bad. Who made them?"
"U-Uhh¡ It was the Hammer that made it. The Chief cksmith in this ce," Wayne replied.
"You should tell him that the quality of the sword is bad. The sword you use has also been broken many times, right?"
Wayne grimaced, looking ufortable with the idea. "Y-Yeah..."
After that Clyde walked towards the portal and went inside. Without realizing it, he had already left many people standing still in a dumbfounded state.
"Who is that, Sam?" one of the spectators who had seen their fight earlier asked Samuel.
"He is one of the new people," replied Samuel.
"You mean the people you saved from the Selection Stage recently?!" another asked.
"Yes." Samuel nodded.
After that, they whispered to each other. What they talked about was nothing short of shock about Clyde''s identity.
They knew that there were new people that Samuel single-handedly rescued from the Selection Stage. However, it''s only been a month since that incident so no one should be able to fight like that.
But what they clear is something real. Someone who came from the Selection Stage who shouldn''t have Mana and was seriously injured was already able to fight and ended up in a draw against Samuel who was one of the strongest fighters in this fortress.
And just like that, Clyde''s existence became something of a shock in this fortress. Some people immediately concluded that he would be a force that boosted their strength many times over.
~~~
Two days had passed since his battle practice with Samuel which was getting a lot of attention. Clyde would head straight out into the wide ins to do his training.
He didn''t visit any other ce in this fortress after leaving his living quarter other than the cafeteria to eat.
Due to his cold demeanor and the always gloomy look on his face, others felt very reluctant to get close to him.
Clyde didn''t mind. In fact, he enjoys that solitude. That way he wouldn''t have to worry too much about fake humans stabbing him in the back again because no one came close. At least they wouldn''t catch him off guard when they were far away.
Even so, Clyde was aware of those talking about him behind his back. However, he pretended not to know and assumed that it was just insignificant background noise.
What Clyde had to do now was focus on his training and then gather as much strength and knowledge as possible.
Then find a way to get revenge. But Clyde realized that to achieve that he had to be more patient.
Based on what Samuel said, Rodney andpany should now be together with the Celestials who chose them. That position gave them quite a bit of power and Clyde couldn''t match that for now.
And so, he continues to train like now.
As usual, the vast ins were always filled with people practicing. Clyde was standing alone in a corner, away from the people holding group training as usual.
He summoned his Character Information again. This time Clyde could already see his Name clearly written there.
~~~
Chapter 135 A Challenger
Clyde took a deep breath and then exhaled. For today, he doesn''t carry a sword because he intends to practice his skills using Mana.
He wanted to be able to cast magic attacks like the people in those training groups. But he didn''t want to go and asked for their help for now thinking he wanted to figure out how to do it himself. Onlyter when he finds it difficult, then Clyde will ask them for help.
''But... how should I begin?''
Clyde concluded that the magic attacks he could do were the Skills he used before. But back then Clyde just had to think about activating that skill.
However, now Clyde doesn''t think he can do that. He couldn''t even fully summon his Character Information, so he shouldn''t be able to use his Skills.
Except of course, maybe he still can.
Maybe he just had to focus his mind to use it. Just like when he could fight with a sword.
But there is one more possibility. That ability is his passive skill which means he doesn''t need to activate it for the skill to work.
It was different from Skills like [Burning Hand] and [Pure Lightning] which required amand from his brain to activate.
"Argh! fuck it! Let''s just try it!"
Clyde shook his head to get rid of those thoughts. All he had to do was try to do it. Keep assuming without a clear purpose will only lead to overthinking.
So Clyde got ready and started concentrating. He could feel the Mana flow in his body starting to move which meant what he was doing might be working.
Clyde imagined how it would feel when he used [Skill: Burning Hand]. Heat power began to gather in his hands and Clyde saw that there was smoke starting toe out of his hands.
''Maybe I''ll be able to do it just like this.''
Clyde grinned happily because he could already see the effects of his concentration without even waiting long. He thought that he might indeed be able to use magic attacks without even trying hard.
Clyde increased his concentration, concentrating his Mana into both hands which started emitting heat until they created mirages.
The smoke that came out of his hands was getting thicker and thicker until finally a fire appeared a momentter.
The fire was not too big but steady even in the middle of the in wind. Clyde wanted to add his Mana to the mes.
When he thought he had enough, Clyde decided to create fireballs in both of his palms. He also didn''t take long for the fireballs to form.
Clyde then threw the fireballs forward.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
The fireballs created a considerable explosion as they hit the grassy ground in front of him. Clyde nodded as if impressed with himself.
''Turns out it''s not as difficult as I thought.''
Once again Clyde thought that it must be because of his [Private Attribute: Easy-Mode]. Which made everything he did so much easier even when his Character Information was still broken.
Clyde could only be grateful for that. Clyde thought that he looked like a character in a story who got a very strong plot armor.
Some people might not like characters that are having that plot armor advantage. However, if that character is yourself, would you mind getting a lot of conveniences?
Clyde decided to train his strength a bit longer. For now, he will first focus on using the fire power [Burning Hand]. Then tomorrow he will try with [Pure Lightning]''s lightning power.
Explosion after an explosion was created in that ce. His voice spread across the ins and startled everyone who was practicing so they all looked at Clyde instead of continuing to practice.
"What the hell? The impact of that attack is huge."
"Is he the new person that Samuel saved?"
They are all curious. Even though they had trained for so long they still couldn''t reach that level of destruction like Clyde did.
"Let''s take a look!"
"Yeah, let''s go!"
In the end, they rushed over to Clyde for a closer look. Some of them just wanted to see how strong Clyde really was. But some others wanted to challenge him and test his strength.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
Clyde was still throwing fireballs. He also increased the size of his fireballs to test their limits. It turned out that after doing it for a few minutes Clyde didn''t feel tired at all. So he concludes that his limit is quite high.
"Hey! New guy!" a tall, blonde-haired man holding a staff called out to Clyde. However, Clyde didn''t hear him amidst all the explosions he made.
The man called for him a few more times but Clyde still didn''t hear him.
Apart from the explosions, he was also so concentrated on controlling his Mana that he forgot everything that was happening around him. He didn''t even realize that there were already many people surrounding him as spectators.
In the end, because he was too annoyed, the man pointed his staff at Clyde and started flowing his Mana.
Among all the people who had an affinity with Mana in this ce, the blonde man was one of the strongest.
Seeing Clyde who can issue magic attacks like that of course made him feel challenged. Moreover, he''s just a neer to this fortress.
The man then sent a firebolt toward Clyde. The Firebolt wasn''t that strong but it would be enough to make him aware of its presence. The man wanted to teach a lesson to Clyde who had been ignoring him with a little pain.
*SYUTT!*
But before the firebolt hit him, Clyde swung his hand which was still burning with fire. Clyde swatted the firebolt like a fly and immediately destroyed it.
The blonde man widened his eyes. Even if it''s only a weak attack, Clyde shouldn''t be able to just swatted it like an insect.
"What do you want?" Clyde asked with an annoyed expression.
"Let''s spar," said the man. "If you show off your power like that you must have confidence in your them, right?"
~~~
Chapter 136 Deadly Attack?
Clyde immediately noticed the challenge in the blonde man''s voice. He had not imagined that such a good opportunity woulde now.
Clyde felt that fighting training with someone who could both fight using magic attacks was a good thing for him. But he didn''t want to suddenly walk up to them and say that he wanted to try fighting.
For Clyde, it was a hard thing to do. He hadn''t even talked to them much and suddenly asked them to fight. It would instead raise a spark of hostility that would trouble him.
However, now some people are openly challenging him. If that''s the case then Clyde feels there''s no reason to refuse.
"Yeah, I''m quite confident," Clyde said confidently. "So what?"
"Actually, I don''t want to do this because you just came. And you might still be injured. But when you show off your power it looks like you''re already fine," the man replied. "So I want to challenge you in a fight."
"Alright." Clyde nodded curtly. "What are the rules?"
"We''ll fight until one of us can''t move."
Clyde narrowed his eyes. "Are you sure? That means I have to hurt you pretty bad."
"Tch!" the blonde man snorted. "You say it like you''re sure you can beat me."
"Don''t worry. In this ce you can recover from any wounds after drinking the Life Elixir," a man who was a spectator said from Clyde''s side. He can see from his eyes that he can''t wait to see this fight.
Even though Clyde didn''t know what Life Elixir was, he supposed that it was something that could really work to heal fatal wounds. So he immediately agreed because with that he would not kill the blonde man.
"Alright. Let''s do it," Clyde said.
The blonde man grinned contentedly. "Good. My name is Nikos, by the way."
"Clyde."
The spectators drew away from them and prepared to watch the fight from a safe distance.
"Who do you think willst longer?" one spectator asked.
"I don''t know. Nikos is a strong mage. But you''ve seen for yourself how strong the new guy is even though he''s only been here for a month," his friend he was talking to answered.
The same questions and spections were heard from other groups. They whispered to each other about the oue of this fight.
It''s been a long time since there is a battle that feels this challenging in this fortress.
Even though Nikos is known to be annoying, he has proven to be quite strong. Even Samuel acknowledged his power.
And Clyde as a new person also fought with Samuel yesterday and ended in a draw because of a broken sword.
Even though Samuel had not fought with all his might, he had already used Mana so it could be said that Samuel had exerted more power than usual.
The fight begins.
Nikos channeled his Mana into his staff so that the tip of the staff glowed red. Clyde only watched from afar and didn''t rush to attack him, even though he could because Nikos'' preparation took too long for him.
Because this is a battle with magic, he tries to act like a magic user, that is fighting from a distance.
A momentter two fire elementals with a meter tall height appeared beside Nikos.
''So he also uses fire.''
Clyde thought it would be better. Because then he could realize the power of his fire.
"Go!" Nikos shouted. Then the two fire elementals shot toward Clyde.
Clyde thought that was a good strategy. By deploying the two elementals, Nikos can keep his distance from the enemy and deliver attacks at the same time.
Clyde didn''t have that type of attack variation. He could only let out fire from his burning hands. So he will use it.
*WOSSHH!*
The mes on Clyde''s hands grew bigger like a fire that had just been doused with gasoline. Then Clyde stretched his burning hands forward and let out a torrent of fire.
"We will see a fight between fire users."
"I don''t know how this fight is going to go."
"The attribute they use are the same. So we''ll just have to see whose is the strongest."
The spectators made variousments with their eyes fixed on the fight. Now Nikos'' fire elementals and Clyde''s torrent of fire shed.
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!!!*
A wave of heat spread as their attacks shed. The grass near the center of the sh drooped and withered instantly.
Nikos covered his face with his hands because of the heat wave. Then he opened it to find Clyde''s whereabouts. It turned out that Clyde was still standing in his ce with a calm expression.
"Heh! Not bad!" said Nikos. "But I haven''t serious."
Nikos concentrated, this time he poured more Mana than ever into his staff. The point of the staff gave off a fiery orange glow like before.
After that, he pointed his palm at Clyde. Nikos started to chant a spell in anguage that was only familiar to him.
Clyde waited quietly where he stood. Like before, Nikos did take too long to cast his magic. Are all magic casters like that? Clyde wondered.
Then they have an obvious weakness. Which can be exploited by their enemy. They obviously couldn''t fight alone.
Suddenly under Clyde''s feet appeared a reddish magic circle. Knowing that this position was quite dangerous, Clyde immediately jumped to the side.
However, he couldn''t get out of this magic circle. It was as if there was an invisible wall surrounding him.
"It''s Nikos''s deadly attack. Why is he using it now?!" a woman who had already seen the destructive power of the attack screamed in distress.
But Nikos doesn''t seem to care and just wants to show his strength to Clyde, the arrogant neer. So he continued his cast apanied by a sly grin on his mouth.
A momentter mes came out from under Clyde''s feet and soared up to form a pir of fire that seemed to pierce the sky.
*BWOOOSSHHH!!!!*
Clyde is trapped inside it. All the spectators stared with wide eyes and the same thought. What if Nikos killed the person Samuel had just saved?
~~~
Chapter 137 Humbled
The pir of fire continued to soar into the sky, like a reddish spear about to pierce heaven at any moment. Everyone saw how the mes trapped Clyde inside and wondered if he would survive.
No, what they wondered more was the fact of how Samuel would teach a lesson to Nikos who had killed the person he had just saved.
They all knew how difficult it was to save someone from within the Selection Stage.
Moreover, at that time Samuel not only saved one but six people at once. Besides that, they also heard that the Selection Stage was guarded by the Guardians belonging to the World Masters.
All of that caused Samuel to use up a lot of Mana Crystals to be able to create rifts on the Selection Stage and drain his Mana to be able to survive for just a few minutes there.
Then what if Samuel finds out that one of the people he saved died because of Nikos'' arrogance who wanted to prove his strength?
The spectators were worried about that and other things. Maybe they would also be the target of Samuel''s anger when they found out that they were just be spectators and didn''t stop Nikos.
However, all of that anxiety immediately evaporated without a trace, reced by a sense of shock when they saw Clyde''s form standing in the middle of the fire. They could see it because the pir of fire had shrunk.
Even Nikos was also staring with widened eyes. He stopped flowing his Mana because he felt that it was enough. But when he saw that the fire had started to disappear he saw Clyde still standing.
Clyde''s condition looks perfectly fine. The only thing that was in a bad state inside her was his clothes which were almostpletely burnt.
Clyde''s pants were only left up to his thighs. His shirt was in the same pathetic state.
But Clyde knew that none of that was more noticeable than the state of his body which was fine as if the great fire couldn''t even make a scratch on his skin.
''Could it be because of my Stats?''
Clyde couldn''t think of any other answer. That means he most likely hasn''t lost any of his system power at all and his Character Information was just corrupted temporarily.
But now there was something Clyde said he should take care of before those possibilities. That is the man in front of him who had burnt his clothes to make him look like a beggar.
Clyde stared ahead, a savage grin appeared on his lips when he found Nikos staring at him with a dumbfounded expression.
"Looks like it''s my turn now," said Clyde.
When Nikos heard his voice, its like ice that suddenly froze his spine in an instant. The chill even made his body shudder, despite his affinity for the power of fire he possessed.
What happened to Clyde also made the spectators speechless. It wasn''t enough that Clyde had shocked them with the strength of his body''s defense, now he looked even more terrifying with his tattered appearance.
Like a wounded beast that goes into berserker mode.
*SWOOSHHH!*
*SWOOSHHH!*
mes in Clyde''s hands swelled up instantly. Then he immediately threw a barrage of fireballs at Nikos.
The fireballs looked like ming bulletsing out of a gun. And everything was directed toward Nikos, making him tremble in panic.
"Fuck!"
Nikos cursed loudly, then he immediately channeled Mana into his staff and created two more fire elementals. After that, Nikos walked backward in an attempt to keep his distance.
The fireballs Clyde threw hit the two fire elementals and destroyed them instantly. After that Clyde fired fireballs while walking forward when he saw Nikos walking backward.
Nikos intends to perform his pir of fire attack again. However, it took him a long time to cast the spell and he didn''t see that Clyde would give him the chance to do so.
Clyde kept throwing fireballs with increasing intensity every time. He felt that what he was doing was too monotonous and could be said to be less creative.
That''s because Clyde usuallybines the fire attack with the Eldgess Sword and shes his opponent with the sword covered in mes, causing a devastating effect.
However, right now he is acting as a magic caster, so he refrains from charging forward and punching Nikos in his face with a fiery fist.
Even though there was no specific rule requiring Clyde to attack as a magic caster, he still did. Because if Clyde decides to get closer, it will feel unfair to Nikos who seems very weak in melee attacks.
Nikos is getting desperate because he feels cornered. He who previously intended to teach Clyde a lesson for being arrogant now had to experience something embarrassing like this.
Fireballs from Clyde rained down on him without actually hitting him as if to be an indication that Clyde was just ying with him. So Nikos decided to deploy his ace which he shouldn''t have used.
''Fuck it! I won''t lose here!''
Nikos held his staff which looked like it was made of ordinary wood. Then he cast a spell, this time at a faster tempo than before.
The staff started to turn like wood burned from within. Sparks of fire came out from inside his staff.
Nikos pulled the staff in two different directions, then revealed a sword hidden inside it.
Nikos drew a sword that had a de glowing red like metal that had long been burnt by mes. Then, to the surprise of the majority of the spectators, Nikos dashed toward Clyde.
Nikos''s body was enveloped by a reddish aura that spread heat. His speed also increases, making Clyde raise his eyebrows in surprise.
''What the hell? He can do that?''
Clyde felt confused and dumbfounded. Suddenly Nikos changed from a magic caster to a fighter who wielded a sword and was about to attack him at close range.
If that was the case, Clyde felt stupid for holding back so long.
Clyde sighed. "Fine, then."
He also lunged at Nikos with both hands still burning with fire. He saw Nikos'' gaze which looked full of hatred at him.
Seeing that Clyde grinned. Even after Nikos took out what seemed to be his secret weapon, Clyde felt he could still handle it as easily as before.
*CLASH!*
*WOOSSHH!*
A much bigger heatwave than before was created when the two of them shed. Nikos gritted his teeth after swinging his sword with all his might at Clyde.
However, his expression changed to one of shock when he saw Clyde holding his sword with only one hand.
"Nice try," Clyde said. And then, Clyde kicked Nikos in the chest.
Nikos was thrown back ten meters and rolled on the grass before finally stopping.
Nikos tried to get up and gritted his teeth. However, the pain he felt in his chest after Clyde''s kick forced him to fall again.
*Brukk!*
"Urgh..." Nikos groaned.
His sword, which was like metal burning had be dimmer because it no longer got Mana supply from Nikos.
All the spectators who saw him like that could only be silent. Their brains are still trying to process what just happened.
Few among the spectators had ever seen the sword that Nikos drew from his staff. And they know how strong the sword is.
Yet, Clyde held the sword only with his hands which, even though they were covered in fire, is not supposed to be able to hold the sword ording to people who have seen the sword has been used.
Clyde threw his tattered shirt on the ground as he walked towards Nikos. Nikos, who had difficulty standing, could only stare at Clyde''s arrival with fear.
There was already a possibility in his mind that Clyde would beat him to a pulp. Or even worse.
After all, the mental states of people who had experienced the cruelty of the Selection Stage had changed into something violent too so they could survive.
Nikos saw Clyde''s bare feet which looked smooth without any injuries before his eyes.
"Hey, you can still move and fight again?" Clyde asked.
"I-" Nikos sighed heavily. "No. I don''t think so."
"That means you''ve lost."
Nikos didn''t answer. It really hurt his pride. But he couldn''t do anything about it because it was true.
Clyde didn''t try to say anything to Nikos who had already suffered a humiliating defeat after challenging him arrogantly. He didn''t even think about it.
Now Clyde''s center of attention is on his power which seems to have returned.
Maybe his Stat''s power had not fully returned yet. Because he only fought weak enemies, Clyde couldn''t know his limit.
Everything is indeed easier with the existence of Character Information where his power is written in clear numbers.
Clyde walked through the crowd of spectators who were still staring at him with dazed eyes. They had just witnessed someone''s shocking power.
Those people immediately praised Samuel in their hearts for recruiting that man.
~~~
Chapter 138 Curiosity
It was only a few minutes after Clyde left that ce that Lahn and Wayne arrived there.
They saw a group of people who were supposed to be practicing with their respective groups but instead gathered together and talked about something.
From what the two of them could see, those people seemed to be discussing something serious. So Lahn and Wayne immediately decided to approach them to ask.
Lahn and Wayne were of course also aware of the withered grass and some of the explosion marks. They could more or less figure out what was going on. There must have been a fight in this ce. But, who had just fought like this?
If they were just practicing, the type of damage incurred would not be this great. So Lahn and Wayne immediately concluded that there had just been a fight in this ce.
Seeing the rising smoke and the lingering heat, the two of them concluded that this fight must be between two fire-using magic casters.
"What just happened here?" Wayne asked a man who had been a spectator.
"Nikos challenged the man Samuel just saved. And then, he lost," the man replied.
Wayne and Lahn looked at each other in shock. They knew immediately who the man was referring to.
"How did Nikos lose?" Lahn asked with obvious curiosity in her voice.
The man began to tell. The other spectators who saw the incident also helped tell the story in their own way.
In the end, it all became a story that shocked both Lahn and Wayne. They heard that Clyde ate Nikos'' big attack as if it were nothing.
Clyde defended against the pir of fire that soared into the sky for a few seconds which should have been more than enough to burn him to charcoal.
However, he came out with nothing but burning clothes. While his skin is not affected by the fire at all.
"How is that possible?" Lahn frowned, lost in thought.
"There are only a few possibilities. Either he is special, or the power of his system is back," Wayne said.
Lahn immediately shot him a nce. "What do you mean he is special? Even Samuel had to spend several decades to get to his current level and he said it was a rtively short time.
And how could the power of the system have returned? Have you ever heard of that?"
Lahn was still staring at Wayne as if he wanted to get an answer to every question he had even though he knew that Wayne didn''t have a definite answer either. She just wanted to convey her frustration.
Wayne shrugged his shoulders. "I don''t know. I''m just guessing."
Lahn didn''t say anything else and continued her pondering over this situation. No matter how she thought about it, Lahn couldn''te up with any other answer other than that Clyde was indeed having some kind of special advantage.
There is an X factor that allows Clyde to heal, awaken his Mana, and reach a level of power in a very short time.
Lahn and Wayne thought the same thing and they couldn''t help but feel jealous because they had trained hard for years and yet couldn''t get to the level where Clyde was now.
"We should ask him directly," Wayne said, suggesting.
Lahn shot him a nce. "You think that''s a good idea?"
"Well, I''m not sure." Wayne grimaced. Clyde doesn''t seem like a friendly person and will answer all their questions with a warm smile. Moreover, it was power rted to his power.
However, they need to satisfy their curiosity. If indeed Clyde has something that can make them gain power, they will be happy to do it.
"Let''s do it!" Lahn said after setting her heart. Her desire to take revenge on the being who had made her suffer dispelled her hesitation about talking to Clyde.
~~~
Meanwhile, the person that was being talked about by many people had finished cleaning himself and wearing new pair of clothes. Now Clyde looks much better than a beggar or a fire victim.
He came out intending to go out for lunch because the time was already entering the early afternoon. Clyde felt his stomach growling for something to be filled.
This was something quite strange because even though he and everyone else in this fortress had powers beyond normal humans, they still felt hungry and had to satisfy it with food.
He didn''t know whether eating was still essential for their survival or just to satisfy hunger.
Maybe, they can still feel hungry but can still survive in other ways. Mana is flowing in his body which he can use to strengthen his body and let out magic attacks. Then it''s not impossible that maybe they can use Mana to ovee hunger.
Clyde finally arrived at the cafeteria. This ce is still quite calm because it''s not yet lunchtime. Clyde just got ahead of them and after all, he wanted to eat in peace alone.
However, when he sat down at the table and put down his tray of food, two people approached him.
Clyde looked up with a disapproving expression. But that expression changed to one of astonishment after he saw who wasing at him.
"Hi," Wayne greeted with a sheepish smile. "Did the fight just now make you hungry?"
"What do you want?" Clyde asked coldly.
Wayne winced at the cold reply. He grimaced and scratched his cheek then turned to Lahn as if to leave the next task to the short-haired woman.
"Are we bothering you?" Lahn asked.
"Yes," Clyde said.
"I''m sorry, but we need to get an answer from you soon." Lahn persisted until she gritted her teeth in preparation for the refusal Clyde was about to give.
However, Clyde exhaled and then started shoving his food into his mouth. He thought it would be easier to answer their questions now so they wouldn''t bother him anymore.
"You guys want to know why I''m fine after being hit by that powerful magic attack?" Clyde said because he had expected it.
"Yes," said Lahn then sat in front of Clyde. "Please tell me how you got that strong in just one month. I''ve been training for so long but I think I''m still a lot weaker than you."
"To be honest I don''t have a particr answer," said Clyde casually. "I don''t know how my body can be that strong."
Clyde, of course, won''t talk about how he got so many advantages. He had prepared a lie knowing when people saw his power they would start to ask questions.
So Clyde could answer casually as if what he said was true. After all, they had no way of knowing if he was lying at least as far as he was concerned.
And if indeed they have a way to find out if he is actually lying, Clyde will also not hesitate to fight back with the excuse that he doesn''t trust them enough to talk about it.
Clyde continued eating. The clinking of spoons and forks against trays was the background that sounded especially loud in the silence after Clyde''s answer.
Lahn and Wayne stared at Clyde in disbelief. So they are still staying here even though they don''t know what else to say.
Lahn bit her lip. Unwilling to hear such an answer, she decided to ask again.
"There''s no way. You must have something that''s still with you and didn''t disappear after the Selection Stage," Lahn said, looking closely at Clyde.
Clyde only nced at her for a moment then returned to his food as if it was far more interesting.
Although actually, Clyde felt a bit surprised because Lahn''s prediction was correct.
''She''s got a sharp feeling,'' thought Clyde. Even so, he still looks unfazed.
"It''s possible," Clyde said. "But I can''t know for sure. My Character Information has been corrupted and you all know that."
Clyde continued to eat quietly. They couldn''t see the lies in Clyde''s way of speaking. However, they still couldn''t believe it either.
In the end, Lahn stood up first and left the cafeteria. Her steps were fast and rattling on the floor indicating how irritated she was.
But Wayne still sat where he was and looked at Clyde with a reluctant look. "Sorry. Sometimes she is like that."
Clyde just nodded while continuing to chew. He couldn''t care less.
"She was tortured so badly when she was still in the ce of a Demon King. So she wanted to take revenge on him."
Hearing that, the spoon that was almost touching his mouth stopped.
"A Demon King?" Clyde asked. ''Not just an ordinary Demon or Demon Duchess like Gremory. But a Demon King.''
Wayne nodded. "Yeah. So if there''s something that can make her strong fast, Lahn will do it."
Wayne stared at Clyde as if still expecting another answer toe out of Clyde''s mouth.
"Yeah. I''m sorry to hear that," Clyde said. Then Clyde continued his meal.
Wayne showed a bitter smile. "Alright. Sorry to interrupt your meal."
Wayne stood up and caught up with Lahn.
~~~
Chapter 139 Hammers Proposal
Three more days have passed. Clyde woke up from his sleep and immediately opened his Character Information before he even got out of bed. Can''t wait to see what developments will ur in his Character Information.
However, to Clyde''s surprise, he didn''t see any change. No other parts are open apart from the Name section even though Clyde was looking forward to it.
"This is so weird."
Clyde thought that his Character Information would recover over time because he had seen the Name part recover.
But it turns out that not everything is going to go that smoothly and Clyde can only sigh.
"It doesn''t matter. Besides, I can still use my skills."
Clyde got up from the bed. His disappointment had dwindled because even though his Character Information had not recovered he could still use his skills like [Burning Hand].
Even though there is no rity about Inventory, Coins, and Stats, Clyde suspects that all of these will be solved over time. Or else he''ll find his way of getting it back.
Clyde ns to grind his fighting skills again. Because he wanted to quickly get out of this ce and find Rodney and avenge his treachery.
While he was letting the cold water from the shower run down his head, Clyde suddenly thought about Asqa and Sonya. They were both innocent and Clyde genuinely hoped that the two of them could still hold on well.
For Clyde, Asqa and Sonya are the first friends he gets after years of living in loneliness. They supported him against the Outer God when Rodney and his fellow Regressors just stayed in their ce.
That time, Clyde didn''t me the Regressors because maybe they were scared. He didn''t even expect that Asqa and Sonya woulde to help him for the same reason.
But when he found out that Asqa and Sonya hade to help him despite all the terror and fear they felt from the Outer God, Clyde felt his heart touched.
Even though he knew that in the beginning the two of them just tag along with him because they thought that their survival change would be higher if they were with him. But they wouldn''t jump into danger to help him if their feelings hadn''t changed from just that.
From just people taking advantage of him, it bes a feeling of arade.
Clyde knew that the two of them would be useful. So from the start, it was a good choice to make them strong because, in the end, they would be useful asrades who help him when he is in a difficult situation.
However, everything he had nned was destroyed by the betrayal of the Regressors while he was off guard.
*BRUKK!*
Clyde punched the bathroom wall until the concrete cracked. His teeth were also grinding tightly as if they could scrape against each other if he kept doing it.
Every time Clyde remembered that incident he felt like killing something. He had to grab Rodney''s neck with both hands and choke him with all his might. And watched as the man''s soul flew out of his body.
Only then did he feel relieved.
But to get there Clyde knew he still had a long way to go. He didn''t even know where Rodney was right now. And even when he found out, he was sure that he couldn''t just kill Rodney when he was with the Celestial who picked him up.
The Celestial who picked him up was most likely powerful since Rodney had stolen his achievement as the one who managed to finish with the highest Grade.
Realizing that he had spent too long in the bathroom Clyde came out. After he was dressed, Clyde headed straight to the avable portal in the city center.
Several eyes that noticed his presence stared at him with various looks. Some felt amazed by his strength, some felt envious because of it. And some are interested in making friends with him because it will benefit them.
However, their hopes of getting closer to him were blown away by the cold wall he always put up. Clyde''s facial expressions and gestures always showed that he didn''t want anyone to approach him and tell them to fuck off.
Clyde saw a short, brown-skinned man with a long red beard sitting by the portal to the ins used for training.
The man was much shorter than him but his body was very muscr. His biceps stick out until they are as big as Clyde''s thighs, seeming out of proportion to his body.
Clyde ignored him because he thought the man had his own business there. However, it turns out that the man''s business is with him.
"Good morning!" the man greeted with a wide smile showing rows ofrge teeth.
Clyde frowned as he realized something. The man''s features looked like one of those fantasy creatures he knew.
''Is he a Dwarf?'' Clyde thought, curious. Judging from his features and the fact that there were all kinds of creatures living in this ce, Clyde was almost certain that the man in front of him was indeed a Dwarf.
"Good morning," Clyde replied tly.
"You must be wondering who I am, right?" the man still said with the same big smile. Clyde wondered if he wasn''t tired of maintaining that wide smile all this time.
Clyde just nodded in response.
"My name is Hammer," the man introduced himself. "I am a Dwarf and serve as a cksmith in this fortress."
"Hammer?" Clyde remembered hearing that name somewhere. "Oh, you made all those swords."
Clyde didn''t want to say that this Dwarf made shitty swords that broke easily. There''s no reason to hurt someone who shows smiles this wide.
"Yes." Hammer scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile. "You know that the quality of those swords is pretty bad, right? Those swords aren''t much different from trash."
Clyde was a bit taken aback because Hammer was aware of the quality of the swords he made.
"You know why that is?"
"Of course not."
"Because the materials I got are trash too!" Hammer suddenly looked irritated and his smile turned to anger.
"So?" Clyde didn''t see what that had to do with him and why Hammer had told him about it.
"A-Ah, I know you don''t like small talk. So I''ll get straight to the point," Hammer said. Then he leaned closer to Clyde and looked around as if he didn''t want anyone to hear him.
"I''d like to ask your help in finding good materials. Otherwise, I''ll be stuck creating trash weapons and equipment over and over again!" said Hammer in a hushed whisper.
Clyde even felt that he could see the despair in those big brown eyes because he had been making poor-quality equipment and weapons for too long.
Not that it matters to Clyde, though.
"Why should I help you?" Clyde asked.
"I will make you the best weapons and equipment depending on the materials you get. At a good discount," said Hammer.
"But I don''t think I need a lot of equipment or weapons," said Clyde.
"That''s because you haven''t gone on an expedition yet."
Hearing Hammer''s words, Clyde blinked a few times. "What do you mean?"
"Sit down."
Clyde sat next to Hammer, right next to the portal.
"Samuel and the senior members of this fortress often go on expeditions to The All Territory. Their goal is usually to find materials and information about Celestials," Hammer started his exnation.
"What is The All Territory?" Clyde asked.
"That is where the world of Celestials resides. It is vast and there are various domains upied by those Celestials. Gods, Angels, and Demons are all there and coexist within their territories.
I don''t know much about that ce either. But at least I know some useful things for you."
Clyde was hearing about it for the first time. So, there is a ce where the Celestials live. That meant Rodney and the others were in that ce.
If Samuel and the senior members can go there, he must also go with them.
"How can I go with them?" Clyde asked.
"With your current strength, I think you just need to persuade them a bit. I''m sure they won''t keep you out for too long since they also need a lot of members to continue the expedition.
The journey to The All Territory was very dangerous. Every time they go there they risk their lives.
But, it''s also their fault because they never want to spare some time to look for good materials."
"That sounds stupid. If the expedition is dangerous why don''t they try upgrading their gear?" Clyde said.
"Because their members are few and they seem to be running out of time for something I don''t know about," Hammer said. "With your presence, they can have people looking for good materials."
Clyde thinks that getting good gear is important if he wants to get to The All Territory. Even though Hammer seemed intent on taking advantage of him, Clyde thought getting a discount and getting good gear for himself was essential.
"Alright," Clyde said.
"Good. You can start today. Don''t worry, you don''t have to go to The All Territory to get those materials."
~~~
Chapter 140 To The Ruin
Clyde stared at Hammer for a few seconds that seemed too long to the Dwarf. Hammer kept turning his head away from Clyde because he couldn''t bear to see his gazes that were full of piercing suspicion.
"Where can I get the materials?" Clyde asked.
"You see, there are ces called Ruins. Those are remnants of a world that was neverpletely destroyed after the Selection Stage," said Hammer.
"Among those worlds, there are some that still have good materials. And it''s even better than those worlds are no longer being watched over by World Masters or Celestials."
"You''re not trying to put me in a dangerous situation, are you?" Clyde said in a cold tone. From the way, he spoke Hammer seemed to have picked up on the tendency that Clyde would give a great amount of retribution if he tried to set him up.
"N-No! Absolutely not! Don''t worry. I''m not someone who would do something like that." Hammer immediately said by waving his hand in front of Clyde''s face to show his sincerity.
"I hope so. Alright. I''ll be leaving now." Clyde then stood up. "Show me how to get there."
Hammer jumped to his feet and then pped his hands together. "Very well. But before that, you should at least equip yourself with decent equipment. Let''s go to my ce!"
Hammer eagerly walked ahead of Clyde. The Dwarf even raised his fist with that big grin.
Clyde had not had the chance to say the question about whether the Dwarf had decent equipment because he had doubts about it.
But Clyde thought that even though the pieces of equipment weren''t as decent as Hammer said, he still had to gear up if he wanted to go to that ce called Ruins.
Clyde followed Hammer until he finally arrived at a brown building that upied arge part of thend. There was smoke rising from the house''s chimney and various sounds of metal shing.
"This is my ce!" Hammer said.
This ce looked just as he had expected. This is a smithy but it turns out the activity in it is not as busy as Clyde thought.
The nging sound came only from three hammers being swung rapidly and repeatedly. The workers there - most of them Dwarves though there were a few humans - turned to Clyde as he entered the building with Hammer.
Then a question popped into Clyde''s mind.
"You never ask for help from other people besides the senior members to find your materials?" Clyde asked.
"No. You''re the first person I asked to look for materials." Hammer shook his head.
"Why?"
"Because the other guys aren''t strong enough yet. They''re much more at risk if they go to the Ruins," Hammer said. "But you are different. Besides your body having a strong defense, you also have an enormous amount of Mana and can control it well."
Clyde didn''t say anything else because he knew it was true.
They then entered Hammer''s private room. Then Hammer showed me his proud collection of weapons and equipment.
Although actually, there weren''t many of them and in Clyde''s eyes their quality didn''t look too high. But Clyde understands because this is as far as Hammer can get with those bad materials.
"I know what you''re thinking," said Hammer. "But these are the best things I could create from all the materials I could get my hands on."
Hammer said as if he could read his mind, Clyde wasted no time and looked directly at the weapon hanging on the wall. He was looking for something he could use well.
Clyde knew that he had [Skill: Weapon Mastery] which was already at max level and he knew that the Skill still functioned properly after the battles he had before. So Clyde thought that whatever weapon he chose wouldn''t be a problem.
"What kind of world will I visit next? What monsters are there in it?" Clyde asked. He wouldn''t leave unprepared even if he had enough strength.
"Oh right," said Hammer then took a thick notebook from his desk. Hammer could lift the book with just one hand without any problem and open it with another hand.
"Let''s try with the lowest difficulty Ruins. What do you think?" Hammer asked.
"Sounds good." Clyde naturally wanted to see the description of the Ruins and what he would find there. So choosing the lowest level of difficulty is the best choice.
"I want you to look for Iron Ore on Earth #599. The ruins are the same as the Earth you came from. The monsters there are zombies and dinosaurs, and there are a few Drakes who are still alive.
The World Masters didn''t even bother to clean up that world after destroying it. So you could say that Ruins is pretty stable."
Clyde nodded after hearing Hammer''s exnation.
"Iron Ore in that Ruins can''t be called excellent. But it''s definitely better than what I can find here."
Clyde nodded again. Then he picked up two swords that looked decent among the others. Then, because the risk of the swords breaking was quite big, Clyde took two daggers just in case.
Clyde wears a set of light leather armor. Then wrapped his body with a brown coat. After that, all the preparations were finished.
Hammer gave her a ne with a rough-looking green gem pendant. The pendulum is just like a gem that is cut and tied with a rope.
"You cane back by breaking the stone. After that, you wille back to this room. Pretty convenient, right?" said Hammer with a big smile.
"So, I can also go to the Ruins from this ce?" Clyde asked.
"Of course!"
Hammer ran to the corner of the room and opened a cloth covering another portal like the one in the center of the city.
The portal seems smaller and only enough for one person. The arrangement of the runes etched on the edges also appeared to be different.
"I built this portal myself," Hammer said proudly.
Clyde walked toward the portal and he immediately saw glimpses of the shattered world across from him. The sight seemed almost identical to what it had in his old world.
Hammer gave Clyde a backpack and a pickaxe. Clyde immediately slung it on his back and stepped into the portal.
After Clyde disappeared into the portal Hammer let out a long breath. Hisrge hands sped together in front of his chest.
"I wish you good luck, young man."
~~~
Clyde set his feet on the ground that seemed to be used to be a hill in the middle of a forest. A few trees and pieces of earth were still flying about freely.
Clyde found it all very strange. He could still stand normally as if gravity was still functioning in this ce. But the trees and the ground floated freely as if not bound by gravity.
All of this seemed like a dream because it was so abnormal. But Clyde immediately ignored it all and started walking. This world is basically destroyed and abandoned so he shouldn''t expect anything to go on normally here.
He kept walking until he was intercepted by a group of dinosaurs. Based on his knowledge, Clyde knew that those dinosaurs were raptors.
There were five raptors and they noticed Clyde''s presence as soon as he stepped into their territory. Their reptilian eyes stared at Clyde with bloodlust. They immediately took Clyde as prey.
Apanied by screams akin to warcry, the dinosaurs dashed their long, slim legs toward Clyde.
Clyde drew one of his two swords from the scabbard. "Hopefully this sword doesn''t break immediately."
He lunged at the five raptors at lightning speed. In the blink of an eye, Clyde was right in front of the raptors and started swinging his sword.
Clyde thought he would be able to cut them easily. However, it turns out that the raptors are smarter than he thought. They have good fighting instincts so they can dodge Clyde''s attacks by jumping sideways.
"Oh? Not bad," Clyde threw a remark that no one could hear. Then he kicked the ground and spun in the air to avoid the two raptors that were attacking him from his sides.
As soon as hended, Clyde poured his Mana into his hand and immediately his left hand was covered in mes.
He turned and threw a fireball at one of the raptors.
*BOOM*
The Raptors were thrown away with their bodies scorched so that most of their flesh was burned. However, it''s still alive and running again to attack.
Clyde saw it all and it looked like he had to really destroy the raptors so they couldn''t get up again.
Previously Clyde could channel fire into his sword to increase the power of his shes.
But right now what he was holding wasn''t the Elderss Sword so there was a high chance that this sword would break because it couldn''t take his Mana. So he can''t do that.
Clyde let out a torrent of fire at the raptors that were charging toward him. The torrent of fire instantly incinerated them and the raptors let out a pitiful scream.
Clyde didn''t stop and pierced through the mes while shing his sword.
~~~
Chapter 141 A T-Rex
Clyde continued to advance through the wall of fire he had created himself. Since the fire was created from his mana, it wouldn''t hurt him. After all, it was only a rtively small fire attack.
After he pierced through the mes and saw the raptors wailing in pain from the mes, Clyde wasted no time and rushed to sh them.
*CRAAAT!*
*CRAAAT!*
*CRAAAT!*
...
In the blink of an eye, Clyde had killed the raptors. Their bodiesy on the ground in various conditions such as severed necks and sword wounds all over their bodies.
Clyde shook the raptors'' blood off his de then put it back into the scabbard. Clyde didn''t see any notifications which meant the power of the system that managed the Exp of the creatures he killed was still not working.
Clyde ignored that and immediately moved to find a ce where he could mine the iron ore. He was sure that Hammer would definitely send him to the closest ce to the mining spot.
After about a minute of walking, Clyde finally saw a collection of gray and reddish rocks. Based on what Clyde knew from the inte before things turned out like this, Clyde knew that the rocks was that iron ore.
So Clyde walked over there and took the pickaxe from his back. He just noticed that there were runes engraved on the hilt of the pickaxe indicating that this pickaxe had more functions than just digging ores.
Clyde ms the pickaxe against the gray rocks. Sparks that were brighter than they should appear when the point of the pickaxe touched the rock.
The runes etched to its side glowed red and a momentter something like a hard gray lump fell beside the rock.
Clyde picked it up and studied the lump for a few moments.
"This looks like Iron Ore. Is it really that easy?"
Not wanting to think too long, Clyde threw the iron ore he just got into his backpack. Then continue mining again.
The fact that it only takes one swing to mine makes things so much easier. Turns out his guess was right. The pickaxe is not an ordinary pickaxe.
He continued mining the Iron Ores until all the rocks there were used up. Not feel the time has passed for half an hour.
Even though it had been that long, Clyde didn''t feel too tired because he only needed one swing to extract the Iron Ores from the rock.
His backpack was already full until it was doubled in size. But once again, Clyde didn''t feel the burden was too heavy.
Everything was going so smoothly that Clyde could hardly believe it. The only obstacles he encountered were the five raptors from earlier.
He didn''t know whether his backpack was still enough or not to be able to load Ores again. But Clyde still decided to continue this solo expedition.
He explored farther and farther until he finally saw the ruins of the city in the distance. His curiosity gave Clyde the impetus to walk that way.
Clyde wanted to see what was left in this world that was supposed to be destroyed. Until now, what he saw was almost the same condition as thest time he saw it in his world when he fought the Outer God.
So all worlds that have be the choice of World Masters will be like this. All lives, memories, dreams, and all things that the inhabitants of this world might have were simply wiped out at the will of those World Masters.
Clyde didn''t feel a great sense of loss at all.
However, he knows that other people living in the world must find it all very meaningful. And suddenly, one day, without any warning it was all gone in six days.
He felt grateful for not having any meaningful memories or important dreams. That way he can get through all of this more easily than anyone else.
When he arrived at the ruins of this city, Clyde saw that there were still some zombies wandering around aimlessly. Some of the zombies even move withoutplete limbs. They pull themselves up with their hands, or with only the one hand they have left.
For Clyde it all was not a problem. He strolling in the ruins of the city like enjoying a walk on the weekend.
''Can I find monsters that having body parts that could be good materials?'' Clyde wondered.
He wanted to find out about it because in the novels or games he yed before, monster body parts could be good materials to make equipment.
Even though Clyde wasn''t one hundred percent sure at the moment, he still wanted to try to find a monster that looked strong and prove that.
A momentter he found the figure of the monster he was looking for. That is a monster that looks strong enough.
*ROAR!*
The monster let out a roaring sound that rattled the surroundings. Even the floating nts and ruins shook with its roaring.
Clyde drew closer to the T-Rex-shaped monster. However, there was something different about the T-Rex''s body.
If normally a T-rex had two short and almost useless arms, now that T-rex has long arms and has long ws on its five fingers.
Besides that, there are also red crystal thorns that glow with a certain rhythm on the T-rex''s back. All of that was enough to be a sign that the T-rex would be quite a troublesome challenge for him.
Clyde, who was initially excited, suddenly felt hesitant when he realized the weapon he was carrying.
''Can I fight it with these shitty swords?''
*ROAR!*
But Clyde''s hesitation disappeared when he realized that strange T-Rex had seen him. And now its lunged towards him with footsteps that made a thump and vibration like an earthquake.
''Well.'' Clyde drew one of his sword. ''I guess I have no choice but to use this shitty sword for the time being.''
Clyde guessed he had to spend more Mana when all of his weapons were destroyed. If that''s the case it''s fine because that could also be a way to test his current power.
Clyde lunged at the T-rex, approaching it with a look ready to fight. But what happened next shocked him.
The T-rex opened its mouth, the crystal spikes on its back glowed more intensely as if sending energy into its open mouth.
A momentter Clyde could see the red energy gathering in the T-rex''s throat.
*ZWOOOOSSSHHH!*
The T-rex shot it at Clyde with incredible speed. Clyde, who didn''t expect such an attack toe at him so quickly, barely had time to dodge.
The shot scratched the left sleeve of his coat and instantly tore the brown coat. Clyde''s skin also suffered minor injuries but they were not deadly.
''I can''t count on the protection of this armor against that weird T-rex either.''
Clyde scoffed in annoyance. But he didn''t think about it any further and continued running towards the T-rex.
The T-rex looks ready to shoot the red energy again at him. This time, after seeing what his enemy could do, Clyde started fighting seriously.
He elerated his run while avoiding the T-rex''s red energy shot. Behind him, damage after damage continued to ur and it seemed as if it might catch up with him at any moment.
But Clyde ignored that, his eyes focused on the T-rex with murderous intent.
He channeled Mana into his left hand that was not holding the sword and immediately lit that hand on fire. Clyde threw several fireballs into the T-rex''s eyes.
However, the T-rex swung its long arms and blocked Clyde''s fireballs targeting its face. It seems that what evolved was not only its body but also its dinosaur brain.
Even though he failed to hit its face and blinded its eyes, Clyde was not too disappointed because in a split second he had arrived at the T-rex''s ce.
*CRATTT!*
Clyde shed at the T-rex''s leg with all his might. However, the sword was only able to prate the outer skin of the T-rex. Clyde gritted his teeth as the de seemed to have reached its limit. Even as soon as he wanted to pull it out the sword was stuck there.
The T-rex was already aware of his existence near it so Clyde had to let go of the sword if he didn''t want to be swept away by its ws.
Clyde rolled away and then jumped, barely avoiding the ws that almost ripped his head off.
He pulled out his other sword and lunged at the T-rex again.
*ROAR!*
The T-rex swung its ws simultaneously but Clyde dodged them with a nimble move. The ws stabbed through the ground behind him.
Now, knowing that the sword couldn''t cut through the T-rex''s skin, Clyde didn''t bother to cut its body and chose to aim at the softer parts. Its eyes.
"Whoops!"
Clyde kicked the ground and threw his body up. The T-rex was about to w him in the air but Clyde was able to avoid it by spinning in the air.
What he did didn''t make him to avoid all the attacks of the ws. After all, he was in the air. But still, that was better than taking all those ws head on and letting himself be thrown away.
Once he got in front of the T-rex''s face Clyde coated his de with fire and threw it into its eyes.
*CRAATT!*
*SWOOOOSSSHHHH!*
As soon as the sword stabbed into the T-rex''s right eye, the fire immediately strike and spread to its eye and burned its right eyeball instantly.
~~~
Chapter 142 Finishing Blow
As soon as the on-fire sword stuck in the T-rex''s eyeball, the fire immediately spread around and scorched its eyeballs.
The T-rex let out a painful wailing so loud it shook the surroundings. Clyde even felt his head and ears hurt from its wail.
Clydended on the ground again and saw the T-rex moving wildly while destroying everything around for no apparent reason. The pain that it is suffering seems to make the monster go mad so that its movements get wilder.
The damage spreads around because of its rampage. Clyde is forced to go away so he doesn''t get hit by a random''s swing of its arms.
While continuing to move away, Clyde grinned. He felt satisfaction when he saw the T-rex covered in pain because of his attack.
Suddenly the T-rex''s left eye - its only remaining eye - caught Clyde''s presence. Those eyes were burning red with anger because the T-rex knew that the mastermind behind its pain was him.
Clyde stared at his sword still stuck in the T-rex''s right eyeball - or what was left of it. The sword began to crumble because it couldn''t handle the burden Clyde had put on it.
The T-rex ran towards Clyde with both ws ready to be moved to tear him apart.
When he moved the sword that was in his right eye it fell off and fellpletely along with the chunk of ck flesh of the eyeball that had already scorched.
Clyde now only had two daggers left so he took them in both of his hands and lunged forward. He had to put the two daggers to good use before they were crushed.
wse sequentially in quick and deadly sequences. Clyde jumped, rolled, and parried to defend against all of the attacks.
It turns out not to be a good idea to give a fucking T-rex a pair of arms equipped with ws. Especially if that pair of arms are also long and able to move extremely fast.
Luckily Clyde was fast enough to dodge and block those ws even with bad pieces of equipment. He wasn''t sure if Wayne, Lahn, or any of the people he used to see practicing in the ins could do it.
When he saw the time was right, Clyde stomped his feet to the ground and jumped into the T-rex''s hand. And then he dashed at full speed toward the T-rex''s main body with the aim of delivering a fatal blow.
Clyde channeled his Mana into his hand and used his fire ability. A momentter the two daggers he was holding were engulfed in mes.
*SWOOSHH!*
The T-rex immediately realized what was happening. There was fear and the reflection of fire that seemed to be reflected in its one remaining eye. So the T-rex opened its mouth again and shot a burst of red energy at Clyde who was in its arms purely out of panic.
However, even though he saw the iing attack from that close range, Clyde didn''t feel worried. Instead, he grins.
*ZWOOSHHH!*
Clyde jumped in time to avoid the red burst of energy. The burst of energy hit the T-rex''s arm and caused a remarkably nasty wound, almost severing its left arm.
Once again the T-rex issued a wail full of pain because of its own stupidity. Clyde, who hadnded back on the ground, took out a chuckle. He can''t believe the T-rex would do something so stupid.
The T-rex''s left arm swung around as it moved wildly as it was no longer properly intact. Clyde watched from below and waited for the right opportunity to strike again.
''Wait!'' Then suddenly a thought popped into his head. ''Does that dinosaur have the ability to regenerate?''
If that''s true, then that could be a big problem. He still didn''t know whether the crystal thorns on the T-rex''s back only served to shoot energy shots, or could also store the power for it to regenerate.
Because of that Clyde wasted no more time and intended to speed things up as quickly as possible. He dashed through the wreckage and jumped over the high ground to get to the T-rex.
The T-rex still wasn''t focused on Clyde because it was busy feeling the pain in its arm. That makes it easy for Clyde to be near it.
Clyde jumped from the wreckage andnded on the T-rex''s shoulder. He immediately bnced himself with great difficulty as the T-rex kept moving wildly.
Clyde was still holding his daggers. However, he knew that the two daggers were not very useful.
Even swords that have longer des are unable to prate the T-rex''s skin, moreover, there are only two daggers whose quality is not much different and with a much smaller size.
So Clyde dismissed the idea of ??using these daggers. And focus on using Mana.
He put the daggers back into the scabbard and then poured Mana into his hands. Instantly fire came out in both hands.
Clyde increased the volume of his fire many times, then pointed his hands facing each other. Clyde then formed arge fireball between his palm.
The T-rex finally noticed Clyde''s presence because of the heat created by the fireball. The T-rex turned its head, only to find terror that was already so close to it.
After he felt that the fireball he created was big enough, Clyde threw the fireball at the T-rex''s head while jumping backward.
*BOOM!*
The fireball exploded on the side of the T-rex''s head, and it staggered. Then it fell to the ground with an equallyrge boom and vibration.
The side of its head that was hit by Clyde''s fireball lost most of its chunk of meat and left a ck mark on the burnt flesh. The T-rex seemed to be on the brink of death.
Clyde rushed to finish it before anything happened. He dashed forward with his hands still on fire.
Then, taking advantage of the existing cavity, Clyde increased the damage the T-rex receive until finally a few momentster, the T-rex died with its head destroyed.
~~~
Chapter 143 Sobbing
"Huuu..." Clyde took a deep breath. Finally, this fight was over.
All the weapons he carried proved to be of little use other than inflicting a few non-fatal wounds. The rest he has to use his Mana to kill this dinosaur.
After seeing that the T-rex died with its head destroyed with severe burns, Clyde approached while taking his pickaxe.
Clyde looked at the pickaxe and wondered, could it be used to extract material from the T-rex''s body? It sounds absurd but that pickaxe has runes that can extract ores quickly. So maybe it can.
The crystals on the back of the T-rex fell to the ground the moment the monster died. Clyde also saw changes in the T-rex''s body, as if it had shrunk and weakened drastically.
So Clyde tried to use his dagger to cut the T-rex''s skin. And it works!
The daggers with bad quality that previously couldn''t even scratch the T-rex''s skin can now cut the skin with ease.
Clyde was pleased that he didn''t have to struggle to get rid of the skin and flesh to get to its bones.
Maybe it''s because of the crystals that can make the T-rex have extraordinary strength and defense. Clyde will certainly take those crystalster too.
After finishing skinning and getting rid of the T-rex''s flesh, Clyde started chopping its bones.
He sighed in disappointment because there was no way he could take all the bones of this huge creature back to Hammer''s ce. So he had toe back here again.
Clyde looked for something he could use for rope and tied up some of the bones and crystals. Then he broke the gem on his ne.
Instantly, his body was enveloped by a greenish light, and a secondter he was back in Hammer''s room.
Hammer was sitting on a chair. Her eyes widened when she saw Clydeing. But what surprised him, even more, was what he brought with him.
Clyde returns with arge backpack that is definitely full. Then in both hands, there is a collection of bones and crystals tied with rope.
"Hey, can you use this to make something?" Clyde asked, lifting the crystals and bones with ease.
Hammer was still reeling from his astonishment when Clyde asked. Clyde had to shout one more time before he finally came to his senses.
"Hey!"
"O-Oh..." Hammer leaned closer to Clyde and studied the bones and crystals. A wide smile appeared on his face as he noticed the quality of the bones and crystals.
"Yes. This is amazing," Hammer said in a low voice full of amazement. Then Hammer looked at Clyde with sparkling brown eyes. "How did you get all this?"
"I happened to meet a monster. So I killed it because I thought the bones would make good materials," said Clyde in a calm tone. As if meeting a monster in the Ruins and killing it wasn''t anything big.
Hammer blinked his eyes several times quickly. "What?!"
"You heard me." Clyde dropped the bones and crystals on the floor. "If you find this useful, I''ll bring the rest."
Clyde asks Hammer for the same ne. The Dwarf immediately gave the ne to Clyde before he asked twice.
Clyde returned to the Ruins after putting down everything he had brought. A few minutester he returned with the remaining bones and crystals.
Hammer once again stared with awe in her eyes. He couldn''t believe the mass of high-quality materials in front of him at this moment.
"It''s been a very long time," Hammer fell to his knees with tears in his eyes. A momentter, Hammer started to sob.
"Hey, what''s wrong with you?" Clyde asked, frowning in surprise at Hammer''s behavior. What he was doing right now seemed to be in stark contrast to his biceps.
Hammer lifted his eyes from the pile of bones and crystals to Clyde. "It''s been a long time since I got good materials to make something."
Clyde winced as he saw Hammer''s hard, often-exposed-to-furnace face filled with tears and snot. But he also understands his longing for good materials. So Clyde decided not to criticize him too much.
"Alright. Take your time." Clyde took off his coat and leather armor. "I''ll go practice first. Let me know when you''re done making something."
Clyde then walked towards the exit of this room. Hammer asked something before he walked out.
"You prefer a sword as a weapon, right?"
"Yeah. But I already have a good sword. You don''t need to put too much effort into making me a sword. Just make a decent sword that doesn''t break easily when Mana flowed with Mana," Clyde said.
Hammer nodded with determination. "You got it!"
Clyde left Hammer''s smithy and continued to the ins to practice.
Even after doing a mission in Ruin - a world that is already on the verge of copse - and killing a dinosaur filled with crystals that boost its power many times over, Clyde still feels his stamina and Mana are still full.
In the in, he see again the usual people who were practicing. Clyde walked to the emptiest spot and away from anyone else.
For today, he wanted to train his lightning powers. Previously he could use it just by activating his [Skill: Pure Lightning]. Now he has to do it manually.
Clyde didn''t notice, but most of the people who had been practicing before turned to look at him as soon as he realized he was entering into ins.
They were all looking forward to what other surprises Clyde would show them.
"Do you think he would want to train with us?" a man who still looked very young asked.
The older man beside him shook his head. "I''m not sure he wants to. You see how powerful it is, right? He is already at a level far above us."
Almost everyone thinks the same way they do. They knew that Clyde was a special case who could awaken his powers in a short time even after suffering heavy injuries.
Even the people who came with him were not as good as him.
~~~
Chapter 144 Surge Of Lightning
Leon opened his eyes. He woke up in the same room as Clyde earlier. He wanted to sit up immediately but the straps and shackles kept him lying in ce.
Leon frowned because he felt like a madman in the asylum. Exactly how Clyde felt when he first woke up.
"What the fuck is going on? Where am I?"
Leon cast his eyes around but he only saw an empty room with nothing to give any sign of his whereabouts.
"Excuse me!" Leon shouted. "Is anyone there?"
Momentster James came through the door. The bespectacled youth stared at Leon with a surprised expression on his face. But then he immediately smiled, though it was an awkward-looking smile.
"Hi, how are you?" James asked while walking towards the bed where Leon was lying.
"Uhm, I don''t know how to answer you," Leon said.
"Ah, don''t worry. It''s fine," said James.
''Then why did you bother asking?'' Leon thought in a slightly irritated tone.
James picked up what looked like a clipboard and looked at Leon from head to toe. His eyes that were behind the sses looked lit up when he saw something that Leon couldn''t see.
For this, James didn''t need to use his abilities because he knew that Leon had not reached the same stage of healing as Clyde at that time.
After a moment James nodded, as if satisfied with what he had seen. Leon can''t help but ask.
"How is my condition?"
Leon knew that James had just examined him using only his eyes. He didn''t know how it worked but it didn''t matter because Leon saw James nodding in satisfaction, so he was most likely fine. But he still had to ask.
"You''re fine. Just need a little rest," said James. Then he chuckles. "I''m not too surprised by your speedy recovery since I''ve seen someone with a more shocking recovery."
Leon frowned. "What do you mean?"
"You know, Clyde. The man who came with you is now recovered. Even now he''s probably doing training in the ins."
Leon came to a realization. Suddenly his brain, which had only been thinking about his situation and the straps pressing against his body, now remembered what happened beforeing here.
''I almost died that time. Then, the man with the dark purple coat came to save us.''
James noticed the look on Leon''s face that looked dazed as if he was remembering something important.
"You don''t need to worry. Here, you are safe," James said with a smile. "My name is James, by the way."
"James!" Leon said, suddenly. "You know where the man who was saving us is?"
"Oh, he''s away right now," said James.
"I want to thank him. We owe him our lives," Leon said.
James smiled. "We all owe our lives to someone in this fortress. And you don''t need to worry about that because you will have a good chance to thank himter."
Leon looked at James questioningly. "Fortress?"
"Yeah." James nodded. "I know there''s a lot you don''t understand."
James took a chair and sat beside Leon''s bed. "I''ll exin as best I can."
James started telling him about this fortress and everything he needed to know. At that time, the other members of Leon''s group began to regain their consciousness one by one.
~~~
Meanwhile, Clyde, who was still in the ins, had begun to grasp the power of lightning in his hands. Just like before when he wanted to use his fire power, Clyde only needed to concentrate a bit.
A momentter he felt a tingling all over his body. It''s different from his previous fire power which is [Skill: Burning Hand] which means fire only appears in his hands. [Skill: Pure Lightning] enveloped his whole body when he used it.
Several people who realized that turned to Clyde with eyes full of amazement.
"Is that lightning?"
"Yes. It''s fucking lightning."
"Wasn''t thest time he had the power of fire? Thest time he fought with the power of fire with Nikos."
"Well, he definitely has an affinity for one more element."
When they talk, lightning starts to appear around Clyde''s body. Nikos was there, being one of the people looking at Clyde.
"Hey, Nikos. Do you want to challenge him again?" one member of his group asked with a mocking tone. Those words were greeted withughter by the other group members.
Nikos, who was with his group members, already knew that they would tease him about this. It can''t be helped since he himself started the problem.
"Fuck you, man. Why don''t you try fighting him yourself and then let''s see if you can stillugh like that after that," said Nikos with an irritated tone that was clear in his voice.
"Ha! I''m not stupid enough to do that like you."
Then, his other friends responded with the sameughter. Nikos actually realized his stupidity at that time.
He thought himself to be one of the strongest people in this ce.
He genuinely thought that he was indeed strong because he had once fought Samuel and he said that he had a good affinity and Mana control.
It made him feel a little bit arrogant. However, he was suddenly humbled by that neer.
Nikos couldn''t even feel anger or grudge towards Clyde because he realized the difference in their strengths. That did not allow him to feel that he could take revenge.
So Nikos didn''t. Even he knew at that moment Clyde only used a little effort to beat him.
Nikos felt that if Clyde knew he was nning revenge, Clyde would not hesitate to roast him alive.
"Let''s restart our training." Nikos thought there was no point in thinking about Clyde anymore. He thought that not getting involved in any longer business or animosity with Clyde was the wisest choice he could make.
And after all, Clyde can be an additional force in this fortress to deal with threats thate and n attacks on the Celestials.
Just as they were about to restart their training, they heard a distinctive sound of rustling thunder. Then, shes of lights on a bright sunny day appear.
This shocked everyone on the ins and made them all turn to look at Clyde, who was the source of all themotion.
*JZZZRRRTTT!!!*
*CHYUUUTT!*
Bluish-white lightning shed and shot from around Clyde''s body. The lightning whipped wildly around and sent grass and pieces of earth flying.
Clyde felt a surge of lightning power in his body just like when he had felt it on the Selection Stage. But he felt that the power of the lightning was not as strong as before.
''What happened? Is it because I just started using it now?''
He didn''t feel the same about his fire power. Back then he could use that fire power with the same power as in the Selection Stage.
However, Clyde didn''t think too much about it and continued to practice using his lightning powers.
He was sure that with time and the more he used it his lightning powers would get stronger.
There was a big tree located not far from where he stood. He dashed towards the tree with the power of his lightning allowing him to get there in the blink of an eye.
~~~
Chapter 145 The Expedition Party
It was quite a big tree, at least one meter in diameter, and had dense leaves growing on many branches.
Clyde arrived at where the tree was in the blink of an eye. His speed shocked everyone there as if everything he was aplishing before wasn''t enough. Clyde was doing something new again.
Clyde of course ignored them and immediately strike the tree. He punched the big tree trunk and lightning sparks instantly spread throughout the tree.
Clyde''s one punch destroys a big chunk of the tree trunk. Clyde heard a loud crack. When he looked up Clyde saw the big tree starting to fall.
He quickly step out of there and let the tree fall over where he had been standing before.
"Okay. This power is still pretty good."
Clyde nodded with a satisfied expression while looking all over his body.
Even though he somehow felt that this power wasn''t as strong as before, if he could topple such arge tree with just one punch then no one would know the difference.
Clyde does everything with his lightning powers. He fired lightning bolts in all directions and destroyed areas around him.
Then he also creates lightning balls and throws them in seemingly random directions to test the level of damage he can deal.
Everyone who was training there even took a step back reflexively because they were afraid that Clyde''s lightning would strike them suddenly.
But of course that won''t happen. Although Clyde threw his attacks in seemingly random directions, he aimed them at an empty space.
However, the vibes that he gives seem to indicate that he can let his lightning strike them anytime.
After several hours Clyde finally decided to finish his training. He already felt he could put his lightning power to good use.
''After this, all I have to do is ask Samuel about the expedition they''re on.''
There was a dangerous glint in Clyde''s eyes when he thought that. He can''t waste any more time.
Maybe he wasn''t strong enough yet to challenge a Celestial. Nevertheless, he wanted to at least see a picture of their domain and start gathering strength for himself.
Clyde turned towards the portal and ignored everyone''s stares at him.
Clyde knew he was on a higher level than them by the shocked looks and what he heard around him. So it''s only natural that Clyde feels they are insignificant to him at this time.
The people he had to meet immediately were the senior members of this fortress.
~~~
They tried to run from with all their might. But no matter how fast they ran, they could still feel the presence of Lesser Cerberus behind them.
"Fuck! Why are they so fast!" A man with long hair said angrily. A fairlyrge bow that is usually his most reliable partner now feels like a burden.
"Don''t look back!" a woman screamed while continuing to swing her legs to run. Just as she had said, the woman didn''t even look back.
There were five members at the party. Two males and three females with different abilities and races. The thing that made the party survive until now was because of the rightposition that made it easier for their teamwork.
Samuel is one of the two males at the party. He served as the frontline fighter in the party. And this time he predicted that they couldn''t fight the monster in a head-on battle. Because of that, he suggested that they run first.
A Lesser Cerberus is a guardian beast in God Hades'' Domain. Yes, right now they were on an expedition in God Hades'' Domain to find some information about the God''s troops remaining in this ce.
The conflict in the Far East forced the Celestials to send their armies to deal with the threat. A threat the party couldn''t find out no matter how hard they looked.
Something that could make the Celestials tense up was of course not a trivial matter.
They, the residents of Shivagadh Fortress want to find out about it and use it for their benefit. Because of that, they increased the intensity of the expeditions they had been doing recently.
However, all this is still not fruitful. Even now they were being chased by a Lesser Cerberus before actually gaining anything.
The domain of God Hades is an arid sandynd full of skeletons of dead creatures strewn about. The sky here is always dark without stars like the most dark night on Earth.
There were only a few zing fires scattered around that could provide light. But that''s not enough for them to see things well. Because of that, they need a rare ability that is so difficult to awaken. It was an ability called Dark Vision.
"Let''s go there!" Samuel pointed at a ce that looked like a cave in front of them with his spear.
"Why?" the male who carries a bow on his back - Leyan - asked. He was an Elf and right now he was so panicked that he couldn''t think properly.
"We can attack it in there," Samuel said.
They immediately followed his suggestion and rushed to the cave. The Lesser Cerberus chased after them with three pairs of bloodthirsty eyes. Poisonous saliva dripped from its open mouth as it galloped.
The expedition party entered the cave with little difficulty due to the narrow entrance. The Lesser Cerberus crashed into the cave entrance momentster.
Its jaws opened and closed quickly but the ck-headed dog monster just tore the air. It couldn''t go any deeper so it could only bark in annoyance.
"Now!" Samuel said.
Leyan immediately drew his bow and an arrow that was twice the size of a normal arrow appeared on the bow.
Leyan released his arrow almost instantly after the arrow was created.
*SWISHH!*
*CRAAATTT!*
The arrow stuck in one of the eyes on one of the Lesser Cerberus'' heads that were sticking out.
It let out wailing sounds of pain from all three of its heads.
"Again!" the female human healer shouted.
"I know!" Leyan shouted back annoyingly. He immediately drew his bowstring again.
~~~
Chapter 146 Through The Gap
Leyan created a big arrow again in his bow. He fired it just as he got a good aim at the other eyes of the Lesser Cerberus.
*SWISH!*
The arrow flew with incredible speed through the air.
*CRAATT!*
It stuck in one remaining eye on the same head. Now one of the three heads of the Lesser Cerberus has no eyes anymore.
"Yes!" Leyan cheered happily. "If we can ovee the strength of its body, it''s not a problem."
All of his party members felt the same relief. They were almost certain that they would be able to kill the Lesser Cerberus with a little more effort.
Almost, because that didn''te true after suddenly the Lesser Cerberus rammed its sturdy body into the cave entrance. Seemingly wanted to forcefully break in.
*BRUKKK!*
*BRUKKK!*
*BRUKKK!*
...
The Lesser Cerberus mmed its body so many times with great force that it shook the walls of the cave. It didn''t even care that its entire shoulder was also suffering from the impact it continued to exert forcefully.
The rocks around them started falling from the shaking they created.
"Damnit! We have to do something fast to kill it!" one of the females who was a magician said frantically.
Her party friends immediately agreed with the suggestion.
They wouldn''t want to wait any longer to see whether the Lesser Cerberus would be injured badly enough to decide to stop, or the cave''s entrance would copse from its attack.
The female magician gathered Mana in her wand which looked like it was made of ice crystals and aimed at the cave entrance. She drains a lot of her Mana to give one powerful attack.
Under her feet, ice began to form and froze the floor of the cave she was standing on. The cold air enveloped her and spread around, making her friends shudder a little.
The woman''s hair was lifted by the flow of her Mana that overflowed all around. Her eyes were bluish and gave off a cold re.
"Freeze that fucker, Kiara!" Leyan shouted.
*WUUUSSHHH!!!*
A burst of white ice magic shot from the tip of her wand towards the entrance of the cave. The instant the ice magic attack hit the head that was visible through the cave entrance, the ice immediately spread to the Lesser Cerberus'' neck.
However, the results she expected did not match the reality that happened. The woman named Kiara, had been pouring out a lot of her Mana in hopes of freezing the entire body of the Lesser Cerberus.
But it turns out that the Lesser Cerberus has indeed proven to be a strong monster. The ice that should be able to freeze an ordinary monster stopped at the base of its neck and was only able to freeze two of the Lesser Cerberus'' three heads.
They could still hear the loud banging of the cave when the Lesser Cerberus collided with its massive body.
"You can''t freeze it?" Leyan asked with a look of disbelief.
"I guess not," Kiara replied. Her voice was starting to sound loose, as a sign that she was tired.
Leyan didn''t say anything and could only grit his teeth. At this time, they are not supposed to be losing Haru - another member of their party who was left behind in the middle of the maze-filled path back there.
He then caught Samuel''s gaze saying that they should start attacking.
Leyan nodded. After being in the same party for a long time they couldmunicate with just a nce.
Leyan drew his bow and created another arrow while Samue moved forward and channeled Mana into his spear.
Samuel thrust his spear with all his might through the narrow gap that became the entrance of the cave and directly hit one of the Lesser Cerberus'' heads. With that stab, Samuel was able to smash the frozen head.
The Lesser Cerberus let out a wailing full of pain from its unfrozen head.
The monster was moving wildly outside so Leyan could see one more of its frozen heads through the narrow cave entrance.
After that, Samuel stepped aside and allowed Leyan to carry out the next attack. The Elf aimed and fired his arrow.
*SWIISSHH!*
Leyan''s shot hit just as one of the frozen heads passed between the cracks of the entrance. The huge arrow hit the frozen head and smashed it instantly.
"Only one left!" the healer said in a hopeful tone.
"We can kill it now," Samuel said while looking at his other party members. As if asking their opinion about an idea that is in their head.
"Yes," Leyan said.
Kiara nodded. As for the healer, Samuel knew that she also agreed with that idea.
So Samuel was rushed forward with a spear behind his body. He shot out through the narrow opening of the cave entrance and immediately swung his spear.
The fewer heads of the Lesser Cerberus left, the weaker it will be. And now it''s only one head left which means, it has weakened significantly.
*CRAAATTT!*
Samuel''s spear shed the Lesser Cerberus'' neck. Then an arrow shot from inside the cave entrance and stuck in its neck.
Leyan drew closer to the cave entrance and shot his arrow quickly. Within one second he had managed to nt three arrows in the body of the Lesser Cerberus.
Dark-colored blood flowed out from every wound that was on its body. Samuel also continued to swing his spear and added to the wounds suffered by the Lesser Cerberus.
*CRAATT!*
*CRAATT!*
*CRAATT!*
...
Samuel''s swing and stab, and Leyan''s arrow shot quickly eroded the Lesser Cerberus'' life. The monster suddenly fell on the dark sandy ground and its blood flowed onto the sand and was absorbed into it.
Samuel lunged, jumped, and thrust his spear into the Lesser Cerberus'' eyes.
*CRAATT!*
Dark blood sshed onto Samuel''s face and body. However, the monster still wasn''tpletely dead.
Its ws suddenly swung at Samuel from the side and rammed him until he hit the cave and left his spear into the eye socket of the Lesser Cerberus.
Leyan who saw that immediately came out of the cave and shot an arrow even faster. While the healer rushed out to Samuel.
~~~
Chapter 147 Dead Dog
The healer went straight to work without asking about Samuel''s condition because she knew how his condition was after the attack.
An attack from the creatures that inhabit The All Territory will create very dangerous wounds for the beings that shouldn''t be in it.
Right now, on Samuel''s left shoulder and left side of the ribs, there are w wounds emitting ck smoke.
If the wound he suffers is not treated immediately, the wound will spread throughout his body and turn him into a Phantram.
However, with the healer''s rare healing ability, they can ovee the wound. The healer pressed her hand against Samuel''s wound and a blue glow from her palms enveloped Samuel''s side with warmth.
"Thank you, Kei," Samuel said.
Kei - the healer - only nodded in response because she was still focused on healing. After all, she had heard those words of thanks countless times since they started the expedition.
"Haru hasn''t seen back yet?" Samuel asked while grimacing with a face full of pain.
"No." Kei shook her head briefly. Samuel knew that Kei felt a greater sense of loss and fear than them because Haru was her friend from the same Selection Stage.
They both look like two close sisters. But now they have to be separated by a dangerous expedition and Kei knows she can''t force her friends toe back and look for Haru.
She couldn''t sacrifice her four friends just to find one of her friends.
It was a very difficult choice but Kei and Haru already knew the risks. So Kei didn''t show her feelings of sadness and fear here. Maybeter, when they return to Fortress Shivagadh she can cry for her. But not now.
Samuel also didn''t discuss Haru any further because he knew it was useless. For now, the important thing is that they survive and return home safely.
Samuel turned to the now awake Lesser Cerberus. The spear was still stuck in the eye hole and sticking out. From the wound dark blood was still flowing out.
Beneath it, Leyan was moving agilely as he continued shooting his arrows all over the body of the Lesser Cerberus that was within his reach.
Many arrows had stuck into the Lesser Cerberus'' body to the point of making it look like a porcupine. But the three-headed dog monster had not yet died and that made Leyan grind his teeth in anger.
''Why don''t you fucking die!''
Leyan shouted inside his head while continuing to shoot. The Lesser Cerberus'' movements had really slowed down now, and because of that, it couldn''t catch up to Leyan so all its attacks were just in vain.
The Elf archer needn''t worry about getting hit. However, he was very worried because the monster didn''t die even when his Mana started to run low.
At that time Leyan saw Kiara walking out of the cave and leaning against the entrance.
She looks weak but she looks like she wants to do something. Which is not a very good idea considering her Mana is also running low.
But Leyan couldn''t say his warning in time because Kiara had already raised her wand and shot an ice spear at the Lesser Cerberus'' right eye which was still functioning.
*CRAATT!*
Now the Lesser Cerberus could no longer see. It fell onto the sandy ground apanied by a loud growl full of pain.
"I''m good now," Samuel said.
Kei nodded. Then Samuel stood up and darted towards the Lesser Cerberus to end it together with Leyan.
Samuel circted more of his Mana throughout his body, making his body enveloped in a reddish light. Then he jumped at his spear and drew it from the Lesser Cerberus'' left eye socket.
Samuel jumped back. Then raised his spear and made a stance as if he was about to throw. Samuel''s mana flowed into the spear and coated it with an intense red light that was thick enough to seem to increase the size of the spear.
Samuel aimed right at the heart of the Lesser Cerberus. His arm muscles swelled with the power he mustered.
And then, Samuel threw the spear with all his might.
*WOOSHH!*
The spear shot through the air. Until finally the spear pierced the heart of Lesser Cerberus until it prated the other side of its body.
The Lesser Cerberus let out a loud wailing that apanied the end of its life. Then its head fell on the dark sandy ground. Now, the Lesser Cerberus ispletely dead.
Samuel, Leyan, and Kiara fell on their butts and panted. Finally, after all that hard fight they managed to kill the monster.
However, they know that they don''t have the luxury to rest for too long. From afar, the sound of dogs howling seemed to break through the darkness.
"Let''s go," Samuel said.
"What about Haru?" Leyan said. "Are we really leaving her here?"
"We have no choice and you know it!" Samuel said coldly. He tried to hide his frustrated feelings behind that cold tone.
When he saw Kei, Samuel could see that the woman was biting her lips with watery eyes. Yet, she didn''t say anything because she knew that they couldn''t afford toe back.
Leyan stood up. "All right. Let''s go home."
No one discusses all of that any further. In their hearts, they had epted that Haru had died here.
This was not the first time they had lostrades on an expedition to The All Territory. Yet, every time it happened it wouldn''t be less painful than before.
They had to go to a safe ce to be able to open a portal back to the fortress. Because they couldn''t use Hammer''s teleportation stone to get out from The All Territory.
After they got to a safe ce, Kei started to open the portal. Behind them, they heard the sound of many footstepsing toward them. The Lesser Cerberuses had noticed their presence and had now started their pursuit.
But the portal was already open so they immediately went inside with gloomy hearts.
~~~
Chapter 148 Dark Cloud
Night had fallen and Clyde immediately walked to the cafeteria for dinner. On the way, some people try to get closer to him by greeting him or smiling.
Clyde only answered curtly when they asked. Not wanting to reveal too much about himself.
He continued to create a thick wall around him to keep out anyone who wanted toe closer. In his heart, there is still a sense of worry about being in a rtionship with other people.
''I can''t let myself get caught off guard again.''
He walked towards one of the empty tables after picking up his food. Then eat quietly alone. That is, until three people came to his table and sat down in front of him.
Clyde let out a long breath of annoyance before he even saw who it was. He actually didn''t care who came. The fact that they came and interrupted his dinner was enough to irritate him.
"I heard from people, you can use lightning too," Lahn said, starting the conversation.
Clyde didn''t see the urgency to answer so he didn''t. And continued to put food into his mouth.
"How did you do it?" Lahn asked again.
Wayne and James who were beside her grimaced and turned to her. Their gazes seemed to be telling Lahn not to continue asking her questions.
They had both told Lahn it was a bad idea to approach Clyde. But Lahn stubbornly ignored their words and went straight to Clyde.
So, the two of them also followed her.
"I just happen to be able to do it," Clyde replied curtly.
"Tell me," Lahn said persistently.
*ng!*
The sound made when Clyde dropped his spoon and hit the metal tray was extremely loud. Lahn even flinched back in shock.
"I''m sorry." Clyde is still trying to be polite. "I told you I didn''t know. And I feel ufortable because you keep asking."
Only now did Clyde look up from his tray and stare at Lahn. Her gaze pierced Lahn, making her freeze in ce.
"We''re really sorry. We didn''t mean to annoy you," Wayne said with an apologetic face.
Clyde nodded, continued his meal, and said. "It''s okay if you guys want to stay here. Just don''t disturb my dinner with questions I won''t answer."
The three of them looked at each other. Wayne and James had hoped that Lahn would understand and not cause any more trouble.
Even though Clyde said that they could stay, he had created an awkward atmosphere that made it ufortable for them to still sit near him.
However, before Wayne saw that Lahn didn''t want to leave here. So he and James also stayed so they could watch over her so she wouldn''t cause any more trouble.
They continued eating in silence. There was only the sound of shing spoons, forks, and trays that filled the table.
Until finally, amotion was created when a group of people entered the cafeteria.
"They areing," said James.
Clyde looked up and stared at the entrance. There, he saw four people enter with a gloomy expressions. Samuel was among them. The air around them seemed to emit deep sorrow.
"Who are they?" Clyde asked.
"They are one of the parties of senior members in this fortress," replied James. "They just came back from an expedition."
"And it doesn''t seem to have worked out very well," said Lahn.
"Why?" Clyde asked.
"There were five of them when they went."
Clyde turned again to the party that was now taking the food. They didn''t say anything until they sat down at a table in the corner.
Clyde intends to meet them to ask to join the expedition. However, he doubted he would get the answer he wanted if he asked now.
Clyde took a deep breath and continued to eat his food. The three people in front of him also resumed eating but now they had something to talk about so the table was not as quiet as before.
"It seems Haru is now gone," said James. Her voice was filled with sorrow.
Clyde listened intently.
"Even for people on their level, going to The All Territory is still too dangerous," said James.
"What about the other parties?" Lahn asked. "Are they back yet?"
James shook his head before answering. "I haven''t heard about them yet."
Clyde overheard the conversation between the three of them. From what he had heard the three of them had yet to see with their own eyes how The All Territory was.
They only heard it from the stories of the senior members they met. But from all the stories Clyde can conclude the same thing. It was such a dangerous ce that the risk of losing one''s life there was too great.
''It doesn''t matter. I have to go there.''
To get his revenge, Clyde must go to The All Territory. He couldn''t possibly seek revenge if he continued to be trapped in this ce.
"Oh, right! I forgot to tell you," James said to Clyde.
"What is it?" asked Clyde.
"The people who came with you have started to wake up. But they still can''t move from their bed."
Clyde also looked forward to when they woke up because he wanted to say thank you.
They were the ones who saved him from the Regressors'' assassination attempts. If it wasn''t for them, he would be dead by now.
"Thanks for the information," said Clyde.
James nodded with a smile.
~~~
After dinner, Clyde went to the room where the people who saved him were being treated.
They are put in the same room so they don''t feel bored going through the treatment process which might take quite a long time.
Clyde came into the room after knocking on the door. When he entered he saw three other people who seemed to be engaged in conversation from their respective beds.
Their hands and feet were still shackled with the same shackles that bound him before. But they can already sit up straight.
The three people were Leon, Rosie, and L. Meanwhile, Albert and Wiley were still asleep in their bed.
The three of them nced at Clyde at the same time. Their gazes instantly made him feel a little nervous.
He stepped inside. "I want to say thank you to you all. Without you, I would have died."
Leon, L, and Rosie looked at each other. Then Leon said. "O-Oh, we were just repaying your kindness."
"I didn''t do anything for you." Clyde was confused.
"What do you mean? You''ve defeated the BOSS at the end of every Chapter. That saved us from having to fight them so our lives are still there today," Rosie said.
''Oh, so that''s the reason.''
Clyde certainly didn''t mean to protect them when he fought those BOSSes. He did it for himself. But that didn''t change the fact that he did kill the BOSSes so they didn''t have to bother fighting.
''I don''t need to say thank you after all.''
Clyde just realized that he had saved their lives many times.
"Alright then. I will go now."
After that Clyde immediately left before he could hear Leon stop him. Which indeed he will do. Leon just exhaled, disappointed that he wasn''t fast enough.
"How did he recover so quickly?" Rosie muttered in surprise as she stared at the closed door.
"You still wonder about that?" L said. "Have you forgotten how he fought before? His strength is on another level."
Rosie turned to L, then pondered at what she was saying for a few moments.
She didn''t take long to nod as she said. "You''re right. There''s something about him that makes him so strong. I guess that happened here too even after he couldn''t have his Character Information anymore."
The five of them had already received an exnation from James that in this ce, they could no longer use Character Information. Their system power was gone and their bodies had almost returned to their original body state.
Almost, because Leon is shown to still have a bit of strength in his body which allows him to recover faster than the others.
After Clyde left, they continued their small talk while waiting for bedtime toe. That was their only activity for now when they still couldn''t get rid of the shackles on their hands and feet.
James says they can turn into terrible monsters that must be killed. There was no reason to deny his words so theyplied for now.
~~~
Clyde canceled his intention to look for the senior members. He saw the bad mood like a dark cloud overshadowing them. So that''s not a good idea for now.
Instead, he went to the Hammer smithy to see the progress of making weapons from the materials he had searched so hard for.
When Clyde entered the smithy, he was greeted with smiles and warm greetings from the cksmiths. They said the same thing, they were grateful because Clyde had brought them good materials for them to work on.
Clyde says he''s only doing it because he wants better weapons than what''s in here, not for them. So, they don''t need to thank you.
Suddenly, a figure he didn''t expect would be here approached him.
~~~
Chapter 149 A Better Sword
Clyde was quite surprised to see Samuel here. Not that he didn''t expect it at all because Samuel must have heard about him going to the Ruins and returning with lots of materials.
However, Samuel''s face did not look too happy. His face was stiff and his eyes were cold.
Clyde didn''t know if it was because of an incident he had experienced while on the expedition, or because Samuel knew he had gone to the Ruins without his permission.
"I heard you went to the Ruin," said Samuel.
"Yes," Clyde answered without hesitation.
"I don''t know what Hammer said to persuade you." He shook his head. "That''s very dangerous."
"I did it of my own free will," Clyde replied. "You guys have shitty equipment and you know it. I did you a favor?"
Clyde looked at Samuel''s face to see his reaction. The man stared back at him with a look that seemed to say that he didn''t like what Clyde was doing.
Before Samuel spoke, Clyde preceded him.
"I''m already strong enough. The Ruins isn''t a problem for me. I''ve also managed to bring back a lot of good materials. You''ve seen it yourself."
Of course, Samuel had seen what Clyde had brought. He couldn''t deny that the materials were really good.
In addition to high-quality iron ores, Clyde also brings bones with good density and a collection of strange crystals that contain a fairly high concentration of Mana.
Samuel didn''t know that the person he saved a month ago from that terrible stab wound was now this strong. He entered the Ruin alone and it was obvious that he had killed strong monsters to get the materials.
Clyde''s strength increased greatly. He might even be strong enough to go to The All Territory.
''No.'' Samuel shook his head to dispel the idea. ''I can''t involve him in the expedition just yet.''
Clyde saw Samuel shake his head and immediately knew that Samuel had just pushed his thoughts away. But Clyde didn''t know what it was.
"Anyway, I''m going to go see Hammer," Clyde said and then walked past Samuel. To his surprise, Samuel followed him.
Clyde entered Hammer''s room after knocking on the door and saw the Dwarf greet him with his usual big smile. But that smile immediately disappeared when he saw Samuel standing behind him.
"Sam! I can exin." Hammer said as if he already knew that he would receive a scolding from Samuel.
But Samuel just sighed. "It''s already happened."
That''s all Samuel said. Hammer blinked rapidly because he didn''t expect it. He was expecting quite a bad scolding but it turned out that Samuel don''t seem to mind much about that.
Even though he had strictly told him not to try to send anyone to the Ruin. It was almost like a ban. Yet now, Samuel seemed to be able to ept it.
"How is your work going?" Clyde asked to break his daze.
Hammer looked at Clyde. ''Is it because of him?''
"Hey!"
"O-Oh! Right!" Hammer then ran to the back of the room and opened a big wooden box. Then he raised a sword that still had no hilt attached.
Hammer brought the sword towards Clyde and Samuel. "Look at this!"
Clyde stared at the sword. The de looked like a normal sword de. But Clyde could see there was a red mist when the sword was moved. He could also feel Mana flowing through the de.
If Clyde could feel it. Automatically, Samuel can feel it as well.
"I worked non-stop after you left yesterday. And this is the result. You can rest assured because this sword will not break easily. In fact, maybe this will exceed your expectations," said Hammer.
Clyde took the sword and studied it. "It''s pretty good."
"Hehehe." Pride was evident on Hammer''s face.
Samuel also looked at the sword that didn''t have a hilt. In one nce Samuel already knew that the quality of the sword was indeed far higher than all the weapons that had been here.
It was tempting for Samuel to ask Hammer to make a good spear for him.
"See? I told you it''s good to find materials in the Ruins!" Hammer said to Samuel.
"I know. But we can''t spare some time or members to look for materials and you know that," Samuel replied.
"Now we have." Hammer pointed at Clyde.
"I think good gears will also make the chance of survival in The All Territory even greater," Clyde said.
Samuel took a deep breath. "You have no idea what conditions we''re in right now."
"Are you going to tell me?" Clyde asked while ncing at him. "I''m also going to that ce. So I''d better have a bit of information in advance."
Samuel looked at him. There was a strange glint in the man''s eyes. "You can''t go there," he said.
"Why? You think I''m not strong enough yet?" Clyde replied in a calm tone.
"That ce is different from the Selection Stage. What you encounter on the Selection Stage is only a replica of what actually exists in The All Territory."
"It doesn''t matter." Clyde already figured out that much. "I will still go there and take revenge. The people who have betrayed me are in that ce."
Even though Clyde said this in a calm tone, Samuel could see a deadly glint in his eyes. And at that moment Samuel realized that he couldn''t stop Clyde from going there.
Samuel was sure that Clyde wanted to get to The All Territory as soon as possible despite not having been here very long. He had heard the news about his power and had seen for himself how Clyde, not only looked for materials but also in monsters in the Ruin.
Samuel sighed. "Alright. Whatever."
"I heard one of your party members isn''ting back," said Clyde.
His words made Clyde look at him with a frown. "So?"
"Are you sure she''s dead?" Clyde asked. Actually, he didn''t really care about the party members that were left behind.
However, he thinks this could be an opportunity for him to join The All Territory by taking advantage of Samuel''s feelings who have just been hit by a tragedy. He must still be feeling sad and probably wanted to retrieve the bodies of his party members who were left behind.
And he needs help to do that. But Clyde can''t expect much because Samuel - or the other members probably don''t want to take the risk. Yet, he wanted to try it.
Samuel pondered for a few moments. Then looked at Clyde. "I''ll see youter."
After that Samuel left the room.
Clyde smiled slightly because Samuel didn''t immediately reject his suggestion. That means there is still a chance for him.
"Ummm, are you sure?" Hammer asked.
"Of course. I can''t be stuck in this ce for too long," Clyde replied.
"Really? I actually enjoy living here," said Hammer. "Here I need not fear death."
"Until the timees when the Celestials discover this ce," Clyde said calmly. As if that was something that was certain to happen.
Hammer stopped in ce as if his entire body was brought to a sudden stop by some unknown force.
"Fuck," said Hammer.
Clyde stared at him for a few moments before starting to swing the sword in his hand. Clyde held the part of the de that should have gone into the hilt.
"You really think that this ce will be safe forever?" Clyde asked.
"Yeah. That''s because I heard this ce was created by Celestials too," Hammer replied.
"Really?" Clyde looked surprised.
"Yeah. You know, there is a God known as the God of destruction. He created this ce," said Hammer. "But I only heard it from a senior member. I don''t know for sure about the truth."
Clyde frowned. A God of Destruction created this ce? But what''s the reason? Why would a Celestial create a ce to live for a Resistance group tasked with fighting the Celestials?
Hammer saw the look on Clyde''s face that looked full of astonishment. Before he opened his mouth to ask, Hammer said:
"If you have any questions. You should know that I don''t have an answer to that. Like I said just now, I''ve only heard about it from a senior member."
"Who''s that?" Clyde asked.
"His name is Eorgen. One of the oldest members in this fortress. But now he is away."
Clyde jotted down his name in memory. There are still so many mysteries that he doesn''t know and Clyde must find out soon if he doesn''t want to lose some important information.
''If it''s true that this fortress was created by a Celestial, isn''t there a possibility that he also hates other Celestials?'' Clyde thought.
Clyde then handed the sword back to Hammer. "You can go on with your work. It''s pretty good."
Hammer smiled again. "Yeah, I know." He received the sword back from Clyde.
Clyde left the smithy after seeing the satisfactory progress of Hammer and his crew''s work. He returned to his quarters to wait for Samuel to meet him.
~~~
Chapter 150 Rescue Attempt
After he met with Clyde at Hammer''s ce, Samuel entered a building that looked like a small hotel building.
He entered and immediately knocked on the doors where his party members were.
"Let''s have a meeting!" Samuel said every time he finished knocking on the door.
The ce they usually used as a meeting ce was the biggest suite room. Here there is a king-size bed, kitchen, and even a swimming pool outside.
Soon they all came.
Leyan, the Elf came with clothes that humans usually wear on Earth. That is all in T-shirts and short jeans. Leyan tied his long ck hair back in a ponytail.
Kei and Kiara came shortly after. Kei supported Kiara who still looked weak and sat her down as soon as they arrived.
Seeing them, Samuel felt guilty for asking them toe. However, he must immediately discuss this because this matter is very urgent.
"What do we want to talk about? We just came back from the expedition," Leyan said. From the look on his face, everyone could see that Leyan was very reluctant to be there.
"I thought that we could still save Haru," Samuel got straight to the point.
And surely, his words made their eyes look directly at him with a look of disbelief.
"What?" Kei asked with a trembling tone. Part of her feelings told her that she was d Samuel came up with the idea. However, her other feelings told her that it was a bad idea considering what they had experienced before.
Kei bit her lips and swallowed back her words saying that she agreed with Samuel''s proposal. Even though she wants to save Haru, she realizes how dangerous the situation is there and she doesn''t want to see her friends get hurt again.
"I feel the same way."
But beyond Kei''s expectation, Kiara, who was next to her, expressed approval. Kei immediately nced at her.
"I actually also want to go back and save her," said Leyan. "But we can''t just rely on a will to save Haru. And..."
Leyan seemed to hesitate to continue what he said and nced at Kei. But then he said in a low and sad tone. "Maybe... we can''t save Haru any more."
Everyone heard it so basically there was no point in Leyan keeping his voice down. Kei bit her lips even harder, what Leyan said was also true and she knew that.
"No." Samuel shook his head. "Haru isn''t trapped in Hades'' castle but in the forest. In that forest, you know she''s very good at surviving in that environment."
"But with all the Lesser Cerberus already rmed, I doubt she canst long," said Leyan.
Samuel looked at him. "That''s why we have to move quickly."
They all fell silent when they heard his words. They thought the matter over with themselves.
Actually, they of course wanted to save Haru who might still be alive now. However, if they went there and were trapped and couldn''te back, what would happen?
Their already little strength will be less and less. And that''s not a good thing.
Samuel watched them all. He clenched his jaw tight. He could almost hear the doubts in their heads.
"If you don''t want to go. I''ll go myself," Samuel said.
"Are you insane?!" Leyan jumped up from his chair. "You want to go alone and kill yourself?"
Samuel looked at Leyan. Her bloodshot eyes suddenly gave off the resolute glint that he - and the rest of the party - had seen countless times. The glint appeared when Samuel had made a decision that was almost impossible to alter.
"Alright, then... I''ll go with you," Leyan said.
Samuel nodded approvingly.
"I will also go. But I have to drink Elixir first," Kiara said.
Kei gritted her teeth. She didn''t say anything, just looking at Samuel with a look full of gratitude.
"Don''t worry. I''ve also asked someone to help us," Samuel said.
Finally, they reached the same decision. Samuel didn''t need to spend too much time until they decided to leave. He knew that in their hearts, they always wanted to save Haru.
Especially when Samuel said that he had asked someone for help to increase their number of members.
Samuel came to Clyde''s quarter that night. He was quite surprised when he saw Clyde sitting on a chair staring at the window. He hadn''t even changed his clothes as if he was waiting for his time to leave.
As soon as he saw Samuel enter his room, Clyde smiled slightly. It was so thin that Samuel didn''t notice it.
''So he really came.''
"I want to ask you toe with us to The All Territory," Samuel said, to the point.
Clyde stood quietly. "Sure."
They left Clyde''s quarter and went to the portal. Samuel had asked Leyan to go to Hammer to get the sword he made for Clyde.
Turns out, Hammer works pretty fast. He had already finished attaching the hilt to the sword even though it had only been a few minutes.
Clyde received the sword and studied it. The hilt of the sword seemed to be made from the bone of the T-Rex he killed. Its shape is still not perfect and only in white like finely polished bone. But the hilt at least fit in Clyde''s grip.
Clyde was impressed with Hammer''s ability to bring a sword to this stage in such a short amount of time.
When he finished looking at his sword, Clyde saw scrutinizing looks from Leyan, Kei, and Kiara.
"This is Clyde. The one who will help us," Samuel said.
"Are you sure he won''t die right away?" Leyan asked with a frown.
Clyde could immediately conclude that he was an Elf. The look in his eyes made Clyde dislike him instantly. To Clyde, he seemed like a man who would suspect you at any time.
"He is still new. But you can trust him." Samuel tried to convince them. Although actually still a bit worried about Clyde.
"Let''s not waste time," Kei said. Then looked at Clyde while making a smile as friendly as possible. "Wee to our party, my name is Kei."
Clyde just nodded briefly.
They were indeed still worried about Clyde''s presence. However, now there was a person they were more worried about.
After all, Clyde must have known the risks he would face when he came with them. So, without waiting too long, they proceeded to leave.
Samuel pressed his amulet into the portal while channeling his Mana. The portal then turned into a dark scenery that made Clyde''s brow furrow deeply.
Samuel had already told him where they were going. It is the domain of God Hades. So Clyde could tell that it wasn''t a pretty ce.
Of course, Samuel had also told him that he could withdraw from this expedition after saying so many dangerous things about the domain.
But Clyde remains firm with his decision. And here he was, staring directly at the portal that would lead him to that dangerous ce.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"Yes." Clyde nodded calmly.
"Good. Let''s go."
Samuel preceded them to step inside. Clyde and the others followed right behind him.
As soon as he entered the portal, Clyde''s feet immediately entered a few centimeters into the dark sand which is the mostmon scenery here.
Clyde nced around. He was now in a gap between two enormous boulders. It was so big that Clyde couldn''t see the tips of the two stones.
"Haru - our friend - is in that forest. Thest time we saw her, she was being dragged away by a monster called Underspider," Samuel exined while using his spear to point ahead.
From where he was standing, Clyde could see an ugly forest where only ck nts grew. Some of the trees in the forest didn''t even have leaves, only branches that resembled the hands and fingers of ghosts.
"You said spiders?" Clyde asked.
"Underspiders. They have a spider body the size of an adult human with a human head," said Samuel.
Clyde couldn''t help but wince. Just imagining a spider the size of an adult human is terrible enough. But apparently not only that, but the spider also has a human head which makes it seem even more disturbing.
"Are you scared?" Leyan asked.
"I''m just disgusted," Clyde replied.
Samuel again led them to move forward. Until now Clyde could conclude that Samuel was the leader of this party. He immediately took them running.
A few minutes after they exited the crevice, an abnormally loud dog roar filled the air.
"What is that?" Clyde asked as he ran.
"It was a roar of Lesser Cerberuses," Leyan replied. "You know what Cerberus is?"
"Dog with three heads?" said Clyde.
"Well, yeah. It''s just that they are a weaker version than the original Cerberus," Leyan replied. "Even so they are still strong. We have to work together to defeat one of them before we can go home."
Clyde swallowed his saliva. Could it be that, without his system power, he would be able to fight monsters that even these people had trouble defeating?
~~~
Chapter 151 Through The Dark Woods
*TAP!*
*TAP!*
*TAP!*
...
They ran over the dark sandy ground. Each of their footsteps made a low sound as they were muffled by the sand. Grains of sand were thrown into the air behind their steps.
The roars of the Lesser Cerberuses who were busy searching for prey sounded in the air every few minutes. They are like security guards who report to each other at regr intervals.
''If that''s true, it won''t be long until they find us.''
Clyde looked around him with wary eyes. Who knows if suddenly a three-headed dog appears from behind the dark shadows lurking around them?
But Clyde wasn''t the only one who understood they had to exert caution. All the party members also looked around them.
Every step they took was filled with rising fear and anxiety. The task they have to do is so dangerous.
They have to find their friend in the middle of a forest full of Underspiders and other monsters. And they had to do it as quickly as possible before the Lesser Cerberuses found them.
No one knows where Haru has been since thest time they left her. And this forest is quite vast.
The odds are all against them. However, to save their friends who were left behind, they depend on a small hope amidst all the risks.
Clyde thought, if he had friends like this back then, maybe things would be different. He was already among the Celestials and was enjoying a different life.
Instead, he got a terrible betrayal. It was only when he felt what it was like to have apanion who walked with him through the path of a ruined world, they betray him instead.
Clyde knew most of it was his fault for being too na?ve. To wish for friends in such a world was foolish.
He had even guessed that Rodney andpany were keeping something to themselves. However, after a heated fight with the Outer God, he forgot all about that even though that was when he was most vulnerable.
Clyde immediately shook his head to get rid of all those thoughts. Thinking about it any longer would only make him more depressed. Better he focuses on the task at hand now.
"What are you thinking?" Leyan who was running beside him asked.
Clyde turned. "It''s nothing." Then he looked forward again.
Leyan still stared at him for a few moments while running. He could see a glint of something that looked like sadness or depression in his eyes.
But Leyan didn''t say anything because it was none of his business and they had only met today. Even though he knew that most likely Clyde was thinking about the people who betrayed him at the Selection Stage.
"Watch out!" Kei shouted.
Her exmation made everyone immediately alert. They all immediately noticed an Underspider shooting webs at them from above.
The five people immediately scattered to avoid the web. As soon as the web fell on the ground, it immediately clenched tightly.
''Shit! I let myself let my guard down again.''
Clyde cursed himself. Then drew his sword and began to prepare to fight. All the other party members also prepared their weapons.
The spider slithers through the trees on its eight fast-moving legs, creating disturbing rustles that make anyone who heard it shudder.
Leyan pulled his bowstring and then shot an arrow almost instantly. Clyde didn''t even have time to see when the arrow appeared.
Unfortunately, the arrow just shot past the Underspiders and disappeared into the dark night sky.
"Hey!" Leyan turned to Clyde. "Show me you''re useful, kid!"
Clyde gritted his teeth. But he didn''t say anything even though Leyan''s words sounded condescending because he saw him as a kid.
Clyde who had already drawn his sword dashed forward.
"Hey!" Samuel called out to him with a shocked expression. But Clyde ignored him.
"Uhm... I didn''t think that he would actually go," Leyan said with a guilty look.
But whatever he or the others regretted, it was useless now because Clyde was way ahead of them. He then kicked off the ground and shot up.
Clyde shed his sword at the Underspider. However, it was able to dodge quickly.
Clydended on one of the ck tree''s branches. Then flow Mana to his feet.
''I can''t stand out too much here.''
Lightning sparks appeared in the area from the ankles to the soles of his feet.
''OK. I think that''s enough.''
The power of the lightning will double his speed even when Clyde only uses a little of it. Coupled with his already extraordinary speed, Clyde is sure he will be able to catch up to the Underspider.
He kicked the tree branch and left a scorched mark. In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already in front of the Underspider.
The human face that was at the top of its head showed an expression of shock. Clyde ignored it and swung the sword he had also covered with the power of lightning.
*SRAATTT!*
The sh only managed to cut off three of its left legs as the Underspider tried to dodge. It jumped with its remaining leg on another tree and then shot aball at Clyde.
Clyde was sure that theball wouldn''t be destroyed by a sh from a normal weapon. So he poured more Mana into his de and shed at the orb.
His sword split theball and burned it instantly with lightning until it was charred. Once again, the Underspider''s human face showed shock.
Feeling that this battle would not end well for it, the Underspider tried to run away. But of course, Clyde wasn''t going to let it get away.
Leyan and Kiara were already preparing to shoot their attacks. But to their surprise, Clyde had caught up with the Underspider in the blink of an eye and thrust his sword into the monster''s body.
*CRAAATTT!*
The purple liquid that was supposed to be its blood sshed out onto Clyde''s face and body. Then, Clyde jump andnded on the dark sand along with Underspider''s lifeless body.
He used his coat sleeve to wipe the purple liquid on his face.
"It''s done," Clyde said briefly.
Samuel, Kiara, Kei, and Leyan stared at him with dazed eyes for a few moments.
"That''s impressive," Kiara said.
"Thanks."
Clyde can issue that fast speed without spending a lot of Mana. And ended the Underspider in a matter of seconds. Of course, that''s impressive for someone who just entering The All Territory for the first time.
"Let''s hurry. We have to quickly find Haru before something finds her first," Samuel who had returned from his dazed phase said.
They all ran again through the dark and terrible forest. Within this forest, it was as if all things were observing them and reporting their whereabouts throughout the forest.
Clyde had such a feeling while surveying the trees and bushes around him. He never put his sword back into its scabbard because he had to stay on standby.
"You guys have a clue where to look for her, right?" Clyde asked.
"Pretty much," Samuel replied.
"Then about how to find her after that? There''s something that should lead us to her, right?"
The answer he expected came longer than he wanted and it made Clyde uneasy.
"Not really," replied Samuel.
"So the only way we''re looking for her is bybing the woods?" Clyde asked.
"Yes, pretty much."
The four of them could hear Clyde''s long breath. But nobody said anything because Clyde had every right to feel that way.
"There!" Kei suddenly pointed in a direction while they were running. All eyes went in the direction she pointed and saw something stuck in a tree.
"This is one of Haru''s daggers," said Kei.
On the dagger was a purple liquid they recognized as Underspider''s blood.
"So, the possibility that Haru is still alive is quite high," said Leyan then looked around. "She should run to a ce where she can hide well."
They all looked in all directions to find any clues as to where Haru might be moving. However, they could only see a dark forest around them.
"Can''t you call her or something?" Clyde asked.
Samuel shook his head. "No. In this ce, our abilities are truly limited."
The roars of the Lesser Cerberuses that seemed to have increased in number rang out from around them. It was as if the Lesser Cerberuses were surrounding them and approaching from all directions.
And that situation made them even more anxious. Plus, they still haven''t found Haru.
"How about we split up?" Clyde made a suggestion.
"That''s certainly not a good idea and you know it," Leyan replied.
"But we can find her faster. Or would you prefer she is found by the dogs or spiders first?" Clyde said.
They are all pondering for a moment.
"Let''s split up," said Samuel. Of course, that decision made Leyan, Kiara, and Kei look at him.
"The three of us will be together." Samuel pointed at Leyan, Kiara, and himself. "Meanwhile Clyde will be with Kei."
~~~
Chapter 152 Found Her
They didn''t really want to agree with Samuel''s idea. However, everything that happened now made them seem to be stuck between a rock and a hard ce.
So, in the end, they agreed to split up into two groups. The risks are indeed bing bigger but they can also cover a wider area of ??forest.
"We will meet here fifteen minutes from now," Samuel said. And then, he nced at all of them as if he wanted to say something heavy. "If at that time we can''t find Haru, we have to get out of this ce."
Clyde wanted to ask about that short timeframe. But when he saw that no one questioned him, he concluded that the time Samuel said was indeed something that made sense in this condition and ce.
So he swallowed back his question. Maybe it was because of the risk that the Lesser Cerberuses were getting closer, Haru''s location that is still vague, and the forest conditions that were too dangerous.
Samuel didn''t want to put their lives at risk by increasing their search time. And his party members agreed since they understood that too.
"Alright." Samuel raised his spear after seeing hisrades and Clyde content with that state. "Let''s find Haru."
They spread in two different directions. Clyde jumped straight up into the trees and immediately moved quickly while ncing his eyes around. He really focused on the task at hand so they could quickly finish this rescue attempt.
However, he remembered the person who is currently his partner in the search group. He turned his head and found Kei stillgging behind.
So Clyde turned back towards Kei.
"Please, slow down," Kei said. "I know you''re fast but I can''t catch up with you. I''m just a healer."
Clyde took a deep breath. "Right. Sorry."
Maybe Samuel put them in the same group so Kei could support him when he got hurt because there were only two of them.
ording to Clyde, it wasn''t the bestposition but at this rushed moment, Clyde couldn''t me Samuelpletely.
A healer couldn''t possibly move alone. And Clyde thought that Samuel thought he was strong enough to protect Kei. So he put them together.
Unfortunately, Kei can''t move as fast as him and that''s quite annoying for Clyde. Nevertheless, he couldn''t me her because, once again, she was only a healer.
The two of them moved together at Kei''s speed. Clyde kept vignt eyes around even the area behind Kei because he wasn''t sure Kei was vignt enough to notice any danger or anything around her.
The roar of the Lesser Cerberuses sounded again. This time Clyde was almost sure they were right in front of them so he stopped short.
Kei immediately held her breath as soon as she saw Clyde''s signal to stop. She didn''t say anything and let Clyde watch their front for a few moments.
And sure enough, a ck shadow shot quickly in front of them.
''My feeling is right.''
Clyde realized that his instincts were still quite sharp. It was almost like precognition and Clyde was grateful for that so they didn''t have to deal with that Lesser Cerberus.
Kei''s eyes widened realizing Lesser Cerberus passed in front of them. If they went a bit further, they would definitely run into that Lesser Cerberus and after that, a disaster would really ur.
Kei stared at Clyde who was in front of her. If not for Clyde''s amazing instincts, they would be in a dangerous situation.
After a few seconds passed, Clyde felt that the Lesser Cerberus was gone.
"It''s gone," Clyde whispered then cock his head forward signaling Kei to continue moving.
Kei nodded and they moved again. After a few minutes of roaming through the dark forest with a feeling of anxiety that kept increasing, Kei finally saw something.
"Over there," Kei said in a whisper while pointing down.
Clyde turned his head in the direction she was pointing. There he saw a sprawling corpse of an Underspider with multiple stab wounds. Purple liquid oozed from the stab holes on its body and head.
Clyde and Keinded near the corpse and examined it.
"You know a weapon that can cause wounds like this?" Clyde asked. What he saw were clearly wounds created from dozens of stabbed sharp objects. Possibly daggers.
"Yes. Haru must have done it," Kei replied.
"That means we''re in the right direction." Clyde nced around for another trail. Kei did the same.
Momentster they found traces of purple liquid on tree trunks and the sand. Without thinking they followed the trail.
They find Underspider''s corpse again. But this time it had red liquid in its mouth, which was most likely human blood.
Kei gasped. The possibility that it is Haru''s blood is quite high, even close to one hundred percent.
"Let''s go." Clyde who saw the traces of human blood moved first. Kei followed him while biting her lips with fear.
Shortly after they followed the blood, they heard the noise of a fight. Clyde and Kei peeked out from behind a ck bush.
Kei''s eyes widened when she saw who was fighting in front of her.
"That''s Haru!" she said with a suppressed scream.
"And a Lesser Cerberus," Clyde added gloomily.
They could only hear the growling sound of the Lesser Cerberus and not the roars. They knew that the Lesser Cerberus patrol was around.
"How long until the other doges here?" Clyde asked.
"Less than three minutes," Kei replied. "Haru has a poison that can eliminate her target''s voice for that long. But we don''t know how long she''s been fighting and her enemy is Lesser Cerberus. So... the effect could be much reduced."
"Alright then," said Clyde as he channeled Mana into his feet. "Before the dog''s voicees back we have to save your friend. Or kill it.
I''ll go. You take your friends with you as soon as you see a chance and don''t do something stupid like leave me to be eaten by the dogs while you escape.
You know I''m more than capable of killing that monster and chasing you after that."
Kei saw the dangerous stare in Clyde''s eyes when he said that. She realized that Clyde was making threats.
Without waiting for a reply from Kei, Clyde shot toward the Lesser Cerberus with his feet covered in bluish-white lightning.
Kei was stunned for a few moments. But she managed to regain herposure and focus.
''So he still holds grudges because of the betrayal he experienced before,'' thought Kei.
Kei bit her lip. It was quite painful to be used of being a traitor tantly in front of her face.
But she then shook her head to shake off the thought and excuse Clyde''s actions. She would also feel deep wounds and have difficulty trusting others after experiencing such a betrayal.
''What''s important now is that I have to take Haru away as soon as I see the opportunity.''
Kei steadied her heart and watched what Clyde was doing.
She wasn''t sure if Clyde could really kill the Lesser Cerberus and then chase them both if she really intended to betray him. The monsters are pretty strong monsters, after all.
However, Kei of course had no intention of betraying him.
The Lesser Cerberus apparently had strong instincts.
Clyde, who previously wanted to steal a sneak attack from behind it by using his speed, had to be disappointed when the three-headed dog turned around just in time and swung its ws.
Clyde blocked the w swing with his sword which sent him flying a few meters to the side.
But the attack didn''t make him fall, Clyde was able to nt his feet on the ground to keep his body standing.
The Lesser Cerberus'' attention shifted from Haru to Clyde. Haru, who was confused by the presence of the unfamiliar figure, could only stare at Clyde in surprise.
''Who is he?'' Haru doesn''t remember seeing the man anywhere.
"Argh!" the pain in her hand which was torn by the Underspider just now stings her.
Haru fell to the ground, her vision blurred and her face was as pale as a corpse because of the blood that kepting out.
''I could really die at this rate.''
A few momentster, Haru saw the Lesser Cerberus who wanted to eat her earlier, moving towards the mysterious man who had suddenly appeared. Then, she, who could no longer support her body, started to fall.
However, someone came and grabbed her from the side.
"It''s alright. You are safe now."
Haru heard a familiar voice in her ear. When she turned, she found Kei''s smiling face with teary eyes next to her.
Kei immediately did the healing. Haru almost screamed happily if she wasn''t dying. The person she loves turns out to being back for her.
Meanwhile, Clyde, who had managed to attract the attention of the Lesser Cerberus, looked at Haru and saw that Kei had already treated her.
''All that''s left now is to kill this damn dog.''
~~~
Chapter 153 Not Much Effort
"Grr...!"
The Lesser Cerberus could only let out a terrifying growl from its three throats at once. So that multiplies the effect of that fear threefold as well.
Clyde heard from the other party members that the power of the Lesser Cerberus would decrease even more if one managed to reduce the number of its heads. So Clyde will start from there even if it sounds quite difficult.
Clyde also considered the possibility that another Lesser Cerberus wasing at him from behind the shadows of this forest. If that happened, he didn''t know if it would be possible to win from more than one Lesser Cerberus attacking him simultaneously.
On the other hand, he saw that Kei had almost finished healing Haru. It looks like soon they will be able to move and run from here.
''I don''t have to kill this Lesser Cerberus. Just need to hold it for a while and then escape too. Maybe.''
However, Clyde has another wish which is to see what his fighting skills are like. Somehow he was confident that he could beat this three-headed dog with his current strength.
But still, he had to be careful. He wanted to try to win and kill the dog but Clyde knew that he couldn''t be careless and get himself killed instead.
Clyde saw that the Lesser Cerberus'' front legs were already moving. But before it started lunging towards him, Clyde had already dashed forward with his incredible speed.
The Lesser Cerberus seemed surprised by Clyde''s speed. All three pairs of eyes widened and reflected bluish-white shes of lightning at Clyde''s feet.
Before the Lesser Cerberus could even blink, Clyde was already in front of it and was swinging his sword. The Lesser Cerberus was toote to dodge and had to give up its nose being hit by the sword.
*SRAATTT!*
Blood sshed to the side of the severed nose. Kei who saw that sight widened her eyes.
''He can really hurt it!''
Kei was really shocked. Clyde''s speed seems to have increased several timespared to before and that''s quite amazing. Given the speed before was already quite extraordinary.
The Lesser Cerberus looked angry when one of its noses was cut off. Its two heads immediately moved from the side with open jaws about to tear Clyde with their fangs.
However, Clyde was already spinning in the air by kicking the muzzle of the head in the middle and away. So that the head in the middle is knocked up.
The two heads just bit each other instead of biting Clyde.
The sharp teeth on both heads pierced each other''s jaws. Creating a disturbing parody of a kiss.
Clyde grinned at his small victory. As soon as hended, he immediately dashed back at full speed and shed the neck of the left head before the heads were separated from each other''s bites.
*CRAATT!*
However, the sh wasn''t deep enough and was only able to scratch the Lesser Cerberus'' skin. It turns out that its skin is quite strong.
The Lesser Cerberus finally managed to shake off the heads of that biting each other. Then the monster immediately turned its body towards Clyde.
Clyde whonded on the ground didn''t expect that the Lesser Cerberus could turn around so quickly. He immediately put up his sword to block the w that was swinging at him.
*BAGH!*
The swinging ws of the Lesser Cerberus threw Clyde so hard against a tree that it made the tree tremble because of it.
The Lesser Cerberus wasted no time and immediately lunged at Clyde in all four while apanied by a low growl.
Haru who heard the growl suddenly said in a weak voice. "The effects of my poison will wear off in a few seconds."
Upon hearing that, Kei looked at Haru with widened eyes. "Are you sure?"
Kei answered with a nod. With that, Kei immediately improved her healing process and channeled more Mana.
She nced at Clyde who had just been knocked over while the Lesser Cerberus approached him.
''How to tell him that the effects of the poison will wear off soon?''
Kei pondered with a pounding chest. She couldn''t think properly because she had to keep her concentration to channel her Mana to heal Haru.
Meanwhile, Clyde gritted his teeth. ''Looks like I do have to put out a lot more power than this.''
Clyde, who had not yet used all his power for fear of attracting the attention of the forest dwellers sooner, now changed his battle n.
''There''s no use avoiding their attention if I die first.''
So Clyde released more Mana all over his body. A white mist came out from all over his body as a sign that his Mana flow had increased quite drastically.
*JRRZZZZTTT!!!*
Bluish-white lightning shot out to surround his entire body and illuminate this dark forest. The surprised Lesser Cerberus stopped in its ce because of that.
Clyde used that chance to rush towards him at a speed many times faster than before. Clyde also pours his Mana more into his sword to increase its damage.
*CRAAATTT!!!*
*CRAAATTT!!!*
Blood sshed into the air. A momentter two of the Lesser Cerberus'' ¨D the right and center heads ¨D fell tumbling onto the dark sandy ground.
The Lesser Cerberus fell to the ground shortly after. Clyde who realized that the dog''s voice could already be heard from one remaining head couldn''t let it happen.
So as soon as hended, Clyde immediately lunged at the one remaining head without taking a break.
*CRAAATTT!!!*
And finally, he seeded in chopping off the Lesser Cerberus'' three heads after expending more Mana than before.
Kei and Haru stared at him with wide eyes. They were shocked and amazed at the sight before their eyes.
Previously, Kei and all her party members had to work together and experience difficulties before they managed to kill one Lesser Cerberus.
But now, Clyde can do it with almost no effort in her eyes.
''How is that possible?''
Kei was in awe. So does Haru.
~~~
Chapter 154 Noticed
Moments before Clyde killed the Lesser Cerberus. In a room lit only by a few candles, a man is seen eating his meal.
A table that is quiterge and extends to the other side of the room looks lonely because there is only one meal that it holds and there is only one chair upied. That is the meal that the man is currently eating.
He was a man with wavy shoulder-length hair. The candle light reflected in his wavy, shiny hair as if it had always been given the best care.
"Hmm~ hmm~ hmm. hmm hmm...~"
The man hummed happily while enjoying the rest of his meal. Every now and then he turned towards the window to see the atmosphere of his domain which was dark, gloomy, and almost without light.
The man smiled. "Ah... What beautiful scenery."
He always enjoyed his domain looking like that. Although the other Gods have always been reluctant toe here because of the gloomy atmosphere.
That''s exactly what makes him happy. That way, no one bothered him and he didn''t have to bother shooing away those who came.
Other Gods called his domain the worst ce in their realm. Yet the man couldn''t care less. He also didn''t bother correcting them and just enjoyed the solitude he felt in this ce.
Suddenly his form stopped before it reached his mouth.
''What is this?''
He turned towards the window but still saw nothing different other than the gloomyndscape he liked.
Then, the man got up from his chair and walked quickly towards the wide window in his castle.
His sharp eyes stared outwards and narrowed, trying to find the source of the strange feeling he suddenly felt.
''Someone tried to infiltrate my domain?''
The man''s forehead creased in displeasure. If indeed what he thinks is true, that means he has to deal with it. Which is very problematic for him.
''Wait, maybe it''s nothing.''
When he felt it again, he didn''t feel the pressure of an overpowering force that had the high possibility of breaking the peace of his domain.
They are indeed there. Yet they will not be a threat.
The ck haired man sighed. "Well, just let them be."
He thought his beloved dogs and other animals would certainly take care of any intruder stupid enough to enter his domain.
He returned to his seat and enjoyed his dyed meal.
~~~
Clyde immediately extinguished his Mana when he saw that the Lesser Cerberus was dead.
''No one should have noticed my presence.'' Clyde looked around in doubt. ''Right?''
He walked over to the corpse of the Lesser Cerberus and studied it for a few moments. That dog was indeed quite strong. So maybe he could take a part of his body to give it to Hammer so the Dwarf could make something out of it.
"Let''s go!" Kei said. She has finished treating Haru. At least until the girl can walk well again by herself.
"Wait," said Clyde. He intended to skin the Lesser Cerberus and take the skin to Hammer.
However, before Clyde could do anything, the corpse of the Lesser Cerberus started to melt into ashes. The smelting process was so fast that it made Clyde dumbfounded.
In just a few seconds, the corpse of the Lesser Cerberus had turnedpletely to ashes and joined together with the dark sand on the ground.
"Fuck." Clyde snorted in disappointment.
"All the inhabitants of this domain who die will be turned to ashes," Kei said after seeing Clyde''s disappointment.
Clyde put his sword back in its scabbard and walked over to them.
"Then, let''s get outta here," Clyde said gloomily as he walked past them.
Kei and Haru started walking behind him. After a while on the way, Haru said:
"Thanks for saving me. I would have died a while ago if you hadn''te."
"Yeah." Clyde only answered briefly apanied by a nod. He seemed to give off a cold aura that immediately froze Haru even though she wanted to thank him more.
"Don''t mind it," Kei who was next to her whispered.
Haru still doesn''t get it. She stared at Clyde''s back who was now walking in front of them.
As the roars of the Lesser Cerberus sounded again, and this time it seemed they were getting closer, they decided to quicken their pace.
The wounds caused by the Underspider contained poison which still made Haru''s body a bit weaker than her usual self.
She can already walk or run on the ground. But she wouldn''t be able to jump between the trees like they should have to get to the rendezvous point quicker.
A momentter they arrived at the meeting ce where they had gathered before. However, they still hadn''t seen a single person there.
They decided to wait here. After all, the scheduled time for them to regroup has not yet run out. It''s just Clyde doing too good a job that they not only find Haru, but manage to kill a Lesser Cerberus and return before time runs out.
Clyde realized that Kei and Haru were really close. He even had a hunch that they weren''t just friends through the way Kei cared for Haru with her warm gaze.
However, Clyde didn''t intend to address that too much so he turned his gaze the other way. And at that time, Clyde saw something that shocked him.
[ You gain 150 (x10) Exp! ]
Clyde blinked his eyes several times quickly, unable to believe the text that suddenly appeared in his vision.
''I get a notification?!''
Clyde can''t help but feels excited. He suspected that the notification must havee from the Lesser Cerberus he had killed earlier.
Even though it''s a bitte, but its a nheless notification and it''s as if Clyde can see a bright spot in the darkness.
''Does that mean my system power is back?''
Clyde hurriedly checked his Character Information. Hoping that what he thinks is true.
And it turns out to be true. Clyde could see his Character Information again.
~~~
Chapter 155 [Bonus ] Character Information Is Back?
Clyde felt his chest pounding fast as it was filled with excitement. Finally, after living in obscurity for so long, he could see his Character Information again.
<>
[ Name: Clyde Cross ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 18 ]
[ Level: 90 ]
[ Exp: 1150/5000 ]
[ Title: Limit Breaker (Lv.2), Outer God Killer (Lv.1). ]
[ Private Attributes: Easy-Mode yer ]
[ Exclusive Skills: Inspection (Lv.3/100), Weapon Mastery (Lv.10/100), Burning Hand (Lv.10/100), Toxic Resistance (Passive) (Lv.1/100), Pure Lightning (Lv .10/100), Hacking (Lv.10/100) ]
[ Skill points: 98 ]
[ yer Stats: Strength (10/100), Stamina (10/100), Agility (10/100), Magic Power (10/100) ]
[ Stat Points: 86 ]
[ Inventories: ]
- High-grade Health Potions (x3),
- Medium-grade Mana Potions (x3),
- 1,060,800 Coins.
<<===>>
Clyde this time couldn''t hold back his gasp when he saw the change in his Character Information.
''The level cap of my Skills and Stats has increased to 100!''
That''s actually isn''t too surprising. Clyde had expected that all the points he had piled up would be used one day. It turns out the points that he can use when he arrives at The All Territory.
''Wait, can I only see Character Information in this ce or can I use it in Fortress too?''
That raises a pretty important question. He could only see part of his Name when he was in a fortress. But suddenly now all parts of the Character Information have appeared.
So, maybe there''s something in the fortress that''s preventing the power of the system from activating. That''s what Clyde thought.
But he still couldn''t be sure whether the fortress was blocking the system''s power, or indeed that system''s power couldn''t function anywhere other than The All Territory.
''Anyway, to be save, I''ll be spending my Stats and Skill Points here.''
Realizing the fact that maybe his power system could no longer function in Fortress Sivagadh, Clyde chose to use all his points immediately.
He used Stat Points to level up all his Stats by 20 levels at once.
[ yer Stats: Strength (30/100), Stamina (30/100), Agility (30/100), Magic Power (30/100) ]
[ Stat Points: 6 ]
He nodded in satisfaction after leaving 6 Points out of the total 86 Stat Points he had. In this way, his strength had doubled from before.
Clyde felt a surge of power coursing through his body for a second. He nodded in satisfaction once more with a faint smile.
[ Exclusive Skills: Inspection (Lv.3/100), Weapon Mastery (Lv.10/100), Burning Hand (Lv.10/100), Toxic Resistance (Passive) (Lv.1/100), Pure Lightning (Lv .10/100), Hacking (Lv.10/100) ]
[ Skill points: 98 ]
Clyde decides to spend his Skill Points to level up the two Skills he uses the most now. He upgraded [Skill: Burning Hand] and [Skill: Pure Lightning] by 20 levels each.
[ Exclusive Skills: Inspection (Lv.3/100), Weapon Mastery (Lv.10/100), Burning Hand (Lv.30/100), Toxic Resistance (Passive) (Lv.1/100), Pure Lightning (Lv .30/100), Hacking (Lv.10/100) ]
[ Skill points: 58 ]
After that Clyde breathed a sigh of relief. He shouldn''t be in a hurry to spend Skill Points because maybeter, as time goes on, he will get more important Skills that he needs to upgrade.
"Did something happen?" Kei asked when he saw the change in Clyde''s face.
"Hmm?" Clyde turned to her. "It''s nothing."
Even though Clyde said that, Kei and Haru clearly saw a change in Clyde''s face, which was originally gloomy, and became brighter. They don''t know why it happened.
They had been to The All Territory many times but nothing had changed for them. Could something have happened to Clyde here? Or... Maybe he''s just mentally unstable to have mood swings that fast?
Whatever it is, Kei and Haru decide to get rid of that thought. At least for now.
After a few minutes finally, Samuel, Leyan, and Kiara came. Their faces immediately turned into relief when they saw Haru sitting with Kei.
Kiara immediately ran over to them while Samuel and Leyan walked more slowly behind her.
"You alright?" Kiara asked while holding Haru''s cheeks.
"Yeah, I''m fine," Haru answered with a smile as if she wanted to convince Kiara that she was indeed just fine.
Kira let out a long breath. "I''m sorry, Haru."
"No no no. You guys did the right thing. We know the risks every time we go here, right?" Haru said.
"Isn''t it about time we go now?" Clyde said standing up.
Lesser Cerberus''s roar that was previously heard from far away now seemed so close.
Even so, Clyde was actually not worried at all.
"Yeah. Let''s go," Samuel said.
They ran in the direction they hade before. Leyan carried Haru who couldn''t run as fast as them.
"Faster!" Samuel said. His voice sounded frantic.
The rest of his party felt the same panic. All of that was caused by the sounds of the Lesser Cerberuses getting closer around them.
Not just their voices. But by now the sound of their feet rapidly tapping the ground had reached the ears of the party.
Yet, Clyde remains indifferent. If his previous strength could easily kill Lesser Cerberus, then with his current strength Clyde was confident he could handle them.
Even Clyde felt he could handle attacks from more than one Lesser Cerberus simultaneously.
Maybe he was overconfident. But Clyde didn''t care. He can already see for himself how his Character Information is so he can know his strength clearly.
After several minutes of travel ¨D which turns out undisturbed by Lesser Cerberus who they expected to attack from all around them ¨D the party arrived at the gap between two boulders where they came.
Samuel took his amulet and held it. He said something in a word that Clyde didn''t understand.
Then, a portal opened in front of them. It was then that the Lesser Cerberus finally arrived in front of the rock crevice.
The sound of the dogs barking echoed through the cracks in the rock and made them tremble.
"Come on!" Kei said, almost shouting.
Leyan, who was carrying Haru, jumped first into the portal followed by Kei and Kiara.
"You go first!" Samuel said to Clyde.
Clyde didn''t say anything and went straight inside.
Samuel followed a momentter and immediately closed the portal before the w of one of the Lesser Cerberus hit him.
~~~
Chapter 156 Arrived Back
Samuel jumped from inside the portal and fell to the ground. He immediately focused his mind on looking at his back to see if there was a wound there or not.
Because Samuel remembered that the Lesser Cerberus'' ws were really close to him. The possibility that he was a little toote to enter the portal and let those ws scratch him was quite high in his mind.
"You''re okay, Sam," Leyan said as if realizing that Samuel was worried.
Samuel looked up at him. After a while, he felt that there wasn''t any pain he was feeling so he immediately stood up.
"Phew..." Samuel let out a long breath. "That was very close."
He nced at all the party members around him. They were all also giving him worried looks that slowly began to disappear.
Except for Clyde, who just stared at him tly as if Samuel''s condition was not his concern.
Some passers-by looked at them curiously. They are fortress residents who have lived here for a long time and are curious about The All Territory.
But they weren''t strong enough yet, or never be strong enough to go there. So they could only see the expedition parties going in and out of that ce.
From what they could see, the expedition parties always returned with strained faces or injured members. From that, they could conclude that The All Territory was indeed too dangerous a ce.
"I''ll take Haru to be treated first," Kei said, wrapping Haru''s arms around her neck.
After she saw Samuel as thest person returning safely, then Kei could relievedly take care of another important matter, that is Haru.
They were the first to leave there. Followed by Leyan and Kiara while Samuel was still staying for a while with Clyde.
"Now you know I''m more than capable of going to The All Territory," said Clyde.
Actually, Samuel still didn''t understand how Clyde could find Haru ande back faster than them. But the results he produces are real.
"Hh..." Samuel let out a sigh. "I think you are capable. I don''t know how you can be so strong in such a short amount of time but I am quite impressed."
Clyde nodded as if satisfied. "Next time, I''d like you to take me with you if you decide to go to The All Territory again. And I''d also like to know what problem you''re talking about that makes you in such a rush."
"About that," Samuel shook his head. "I don''t know if I can exin it to you."
Clyde remembered that there were other senior members than Samuel''s party. And they hold bigger authority in this fortress.
"You don''t have the power to say that?" Clyde asked, conveying his conjecture.
Samuel just nodded with a resigned face. "It can''t be helped. If I do that I and my party could get punished."
"What punishment is that?"
Samuel gave a bitter smile.
"I don''t know either," he said with helplessness. "No one is brave enough to go against the Senior Council so no one even knows about their punishment."
Clyde snorted. "Then why are you guys so scared? You never even know what punishment will befall you."
"I knew you would say that." Samuel still showed the same bitter smile. "You''ll know why the Senior Council are so scary once they all get back."
Samuel walked past Clyde after saying that. Clyde looked at him with a frown.
"It seems this fortress is ruled by a dictatorship." Clyde sighed. "This doesn''t look good. If I want to go maybe that means I have to use violence."
Clyde also walked away from the portals. He noticed that many eyes were looking at him with question marks from seeing him back at Samuel''s party.
But once again Clyde just ignored them and continued walking with long strides to his living quarter.
From that short trip in one of the domains in The All Territory, he managed to attain something major. It could even be said to be the biggest discovery he got after arriving at this ce.
He can use his Character Information in The All Territory. Even he can spend his Points and clearly feel the new power that is created in his body.
''Can I summon it again?''
Clyde tries to summon his Character Information again in this ce. However, the results were as he expected. He can only see the corrupted window and only disys his Name.
Clyde nodded because he had confirmed that.
''So, it''s not that I can no longer use my system power. But I can only use it in The All Territory. If that''s the case, there''s something wrong in this ce.''
Clyde cast his gaze around where many creatures of various races were gathered and huddled like neighbors.
''Actually, who created this ce and what was the purpose of creating a Resistance group to fight the Celestials?''
Clyde kept walking while thinking about that. He didn''t realize that from a tall building, a red-haired woman was watching him with mysterious eyes.
She put her hands behind her back. On the red-haired woman''s lips was a faint smile that was as mysterious as her eyes.
''So, he is the new youngster.''
The woman watched Clyde who was walking away with interested eyes as if she was observing a new animal that she wanted to catch and care for.
Suddenly, while she was busy observing Clyde, Clyde turned his head towards her.
The woman immediately backed away from the window because she didn''t want to be seen by him.
''Did he see me?''
The woman bit her lip. He shouldn''t even be able to notice her, but Clyde whipped his head at her as if he could pinpoint where she was.
The woman took a deep breath. ''I should be more careful when I was near him or observing him.''
She wanted to go back to peeking out the window but pulled her legs back again for fear that Clyde would still be there.
Opting for the safer route, the woman gave up and this time stepped away from the window for real.
~~~
Chapter 157 Three Members
Clyde still turned his head towards a window of the building behind him. His eyes narrowed until they almost formed a straight line.
The building doesn''t look too different from the other buildings around here. It''s just that its size looks taller and wider like a mid-level apartment building.
Clyde felt someone watching him from inside one of the windows. Therefore he immediately looked that way quickly as soon as he felt it.
The gazes of anyone who stared at him also seemed unusual. Clyde could sense some hidden and mysterious intent even before he could see whoever it was.
Feeling that there was nothing else for him to see in that building, knowing that whoever was observing him had disappeared as soon as they noticed that he noticed their presence, Clyde continued walking towards his living quarter.
Previously, Clyde only thought that this ce was a shelter for beings who were less fortunate on the Selection Stage like himself.
But the more Clyde thought about it, the more confusing it became.
Why did Samuel and the Senior Council bother to save them? How would they know where, and when toe to save them, as Samuel did himself?
When Clyde turned his gaze around, he saw creatures from various races interacting with their friends who also came from different races. It all feels like a harmonious and warm life.
But, it all looked weird in Clyde''s eyes. They could probably act like that thinking that this fortress would be safe forever and protect them from the Celestials. Just like Hammer.
However, with all kinds of expeditions carried out by the senior members, it was only a matter of time before the Celestials realized their existence and considered this fortress a disturbing presence. Then, the decision to annihte this fortress will arrive.
''I have to get out of here soon. But, after that where should I go?''
Clyde looked up and stared at the sky that seemed always at night. Could it be that in this vast universe, there is no ce that is safe and calm?
Clyde sighed. The matter seemed still a bit far for him to think about and would onlyplicate his goals. What he had to do now was find Rodney and his friends and avenge what they had done to him.
To do that Clyde still needs a lot of information and power. So he felt that it was better for him to focus on that first.
He arrived at his living quarter and immediately locked the door. For tonight, Clyde would sleep first and wait for a new day to start thinking things over again.
~~~
"We can use that boy for ''that problem'', right?" a man who looked to be in his mid-fifties stroked his silvery beard with one hand.
The man''s eyes swept across this bright circr room. Around him were empty chairs whose upants had not yet arrived.
But among the chairs - besides himself - there were already two other participants. One of them was a brown-skinned woman with her hair pulled up into a bun above her head.
The other one is a bespectacled male Elf who has blonde hair. He looked thoughtful as his eyes moved behind his sses.
"Maybe," the Elf said. "But are you sure he wants to?"
"We certainly don''t need to say anything about the truth," the bearded man replied. "Let''s just say uhh... he has to go to practice."
"Alone?" the brown-skinned woman asked with a thick unique ent.
"Of course not. He can get suspicious if we send him alone. We can send the boy with Samuel''s party. He found him so their rtionship should be good," the bearded man said.
"I have a bad feeling about the boy," the bespectacled Elf said after thinking for a while.
His words made the bearded man and brown-skinned woman turn towards him. It''s just a hunch that is not been proven true.
However, when that premonition left the bespectacled Elf''s mouth, it had a high degree of truth so they were willing to pay full attention to him. He had a hunch that was nearly as urate as precognition.
"What do you feel?" the bearded man said.
"The boy." the Elf narrowed his eyes as he stared ahead as if he could see something they couldn''t. "He is different. I have a feeling that we shouldn''t make him angry."
The bearded man snorted. His lips formed a crooked smile. "We can''t make him angry? Or what? He''s going to kill us?"
The bespectacled Elf nced at him. His mouth was about to open to say something but he closed it again.
"He''s just someone who has progressed a bit faster than the others and his Mana flow is returning faster. But that boy won''t be able to do anything in front of us," the bearded man added.
"Vernik is right," the brown woman added. "He''s just a boy. When Samuel came here he was also a fast-growing individual but he was still nothingpared to us."
The bespectacled Elf nced at the two of them in turn. he said. "It''s up to you. I''m just giving my opinion."
Then the Elf stood up from his chair. He didn''t say anything and walked straight towards the door.
"Hey, where are you going?" Vernik the bearded man asked disapprovingly.
"There''s no point in me being here anymore if you won''t listen to me," the Elf replied. "Oh, and don''t ever involve me in your decision to send that boy to Archangel Uriel''s domain. I already told you that I disagree with that."
Before Vernik could say anything else because of the attitude of the Elf, he had already disappeared behind the door.
"Tch!" Vernik clicked his tongue with annoyance. "He always pisses me off. Yet I never rule him out from making decisions because he is one of the strongest around."
Vernik turned to the woman beside him. "How about you?"
"Hmm..." she cocked her head to the side. "I think it''s alright. I doubt anything will happen if we piss him off.
You know, Maethion also often uses his feeling which has a reputation for being urate to his own advantage. Maybe he is doing it now, for some reason."
~~~
Chapter 158 A Solution
Hearing the brown-skinned woman''s words, Vernik was silent for a few moments pondering over it. Then he nodded as if he hade to a decision.
"You''re right. Maybe Maethion is nning something though I don''t know what it is," Vernik said. "So, we''re still going to send them to Archangel Uriel''s domain?"
"I think that''s a good idea. From the information I got, she isn''t in the best mood right now so she rarely keeps an eye on her territory," the brown-skinned woman replied.
"You know what happened?"
Vernik knew that the Archangel, who had a sweet appearance with blonde hair, was actually a very cruel being.
Her appearance betrays her hideous personality, who will not hesitate to destroy anyone who gets in her way.
Her temperament is so bad that all her servants are afraid of her. But she also had strength strong enough that no candidate would refuse her recruitment once they exited the Selection Stage.
But, they already knew about it. Yet the brown-skinned woman said it as if currently Uriel''s mood was in a worse state than usual.
"I do not know." the brown-skinned woman shrugged. "The information my spy give only says that the Archangel''s mood got worse after the Selection Stage that happened recently."
Vernik frowned, looking interested. "The Selection Stage that happened recently?"
The brown-skinned woman nodded.
There are quite many Selection Stages taking ce in several different worlds simultaneously. If the Archangel''s mood worsened after the Selection Stage it meant that maybe she failed to get her warriors.
It''s no secret at all that Uriel made a deal with the maker of the Selection Stage system at a high price so that she could choose three Candidates who she would make her personal warrior.
So when she loses the warriors, of course, Uriel will feel angry. But that rarely happened before because no Celestials would bother to pay such a high price to be directly involved in the Selection Stage like him. And there shouldn''t be any Candidates who could kill the three warrior candidates that Uriel chose.
Unless...
"Hey, Madri." Vernik nced at the brown-skinned woman. "Didn''t that boy named Clydee from the Selection Stage that happened recently?"
"Yes," replied Madri. "Why?"
"Could Uriel''s anger be caused by him?"
Upon hearing Vernik''s words, Madri tilted her head to the side. "That might happen. But very unlikely. Why should Uriel be angry because of a mere human?"
"About that... I don''t know. But could Clyde kill Uriel''s warrior candidate?"
Madri snorted with a disdainful smile. "You know that''s impossible."
Vernik then smiled as he shook his head as ifughing at his stupid guess. "Yeah, you''re right."
Neither of them knew about what happened on the Selection Stage and what Clyde was doing.
They both only found out about Clyde when he arrived at this fortress so what they knew was only limited to Clyde''s extraordinary growth.
It''s not something to rm them because Samuel and several members of the Senior Council also experienced rapid growth in strength after they arrived in this fortress.
"Then, we just need to give the order to him, right?" Vernik asked.
"Yes. Can you do that?"
"I will. We still can''t show ourselves to that boy or else he will be trouble to us."
They ended the meeting with a smile. It was just the two of them because Maethion had decided not to get involved. They don''t feel anything wrong with it instead they are happy that nothing will stand in the way of their decision.
Even though Maethion didn''t agree with their ns, he put up no resistance and simply chose not to be involved. So, it''s the same as no problem.
~~~
Clyde wakes up the next day feeling lighter than usual. Today he nned to go back to the Ruin and check what was there.
Maybe among those worlds, he could find something. He didn''t know what he could find but it was better than staying here.
While he was still in the bathroom, Clyde remembered the amulet that Samuel used to change the direction of the portal to The All Territory area.
''Where can I get an amulet like that?''
If he gets it he will be able to leave The All Territory easily ording to his own will.
But an artifact that has such an effect must be extremely essential. He wouldn''t just give it to him and most likely wouldn''t say where he could get it either.
Clyde heads to Hammer''s ce to ask about it. In this fortress, the Dwarf is the only person who can be said to be the closest to him.
They had worked together for each other''s advantage so Clyde felt that it should be easier to ask him. Hammer was also a longtime resident of this fortress so he must know a lot of things.
"Clyde! My dear friend!" Hammer greeted with his usual big smile. But this time he also stretched his arms up, showing that he was pleased with Clyde''s arrival.
"What brings you here now? I heard that you just came back after saving Haru from God Hades'' domain!" Hammer said.
"Yeah." Clyde nodded and answered dryly.
Hammer shook his head with a sigh. "I can''t stop admiring you. Precisely, what do you have to be that strong?"
"Do I have to answer it?" Clyde looked at Hammer with a mysterious look.
Hammer noticed the stares. He immediately blinked quickly andughed because he felt somehow, there was a dangerous glint in Clyde''s eyes.
"Aahaha! You know I''m just kidding." Hammer tapped Clyde on the shoulder. "So, what made youe here again? Another weapon?"
"You know the amulet that Samuel used?" Clyde asked.
"Yes. An amulet that can make you go to The All Territory," Hammer replied. "What''s with that?"
"Where can I get it?"
Clyde''s question made Hammer frown. "You want to go to The All Territory yourself?"
It didn''t take long for Hammer to realize the point of Clyde''s question. The Dwarf already knew that Clyde wanted to go to The All Territory and asking about things that could make one go there meant only one thing; Clyde wanted to be able to go there alone without the help of Samuel and his party.
Clyde just nodded with a t expression as if it was the obvious thing.
"You can''t do that." Hammer shook his head. "Maybe you are strong enough to go there. However-"
"The Senior Council?"
Hammer looked surprised when Clyde said that. He sighed and said. "Yes. You can''t leave before the Senior Council allows it. Even Samuel''s actions can be considered as a vition of the rules."
"Just tell me where I can get the amulet," Clyde said.
"You can only get it from the Senior Council," Hammer replied.
Clyde clicked his tongue. If that''s the case, it means that he can''t get it easily.
"Is there another ce?" Clyde asked with a face full of annoyance. That made Hammer immediately rack his brains for answers that might be somewhere in there.
"That amulet is made from the essence of all the domains in The All Territory so Samuel and the other party leaders can enter and leave every domain with it," Hammer said with a thoughtful face. "And you can only get that essence from the Senior Council."
"So there''s nothing I can do but ask them?" Clyde asked with a heart that was ready to ept that it was the only way.
"Not really."
But Hammer''s reply was beyond his expectation.
"What do you mean?"
"Besides the essence, the otherponents are quite easy to get. After getting the essence, even I can make the amulet," said Hammer.
"You can?"
Hammer nodded proudly. "I saw the amulet before. Samuel didn''t suspect anything because he knew I wouldn''t have stolen it to go to The All Territory.
After seeing it, I know how to make it. But I can''t possibly get hold of the core ingredient that can make the amulet work."
"The essences."
"Yes."
"Where can I get the essence apart from the Senior Council?" Clyde asked.
"The essence of the Senior Council can let you go to any domain you want. But if you only want to go to one specific domain, you only have to get the essence of that domain," Hammer replied.
Clyde was starting to see a bright spot. Then he coulde and go easily to The All Territory. It doesn''t matter in whose domain, if he can get to The All Territory, then Clyde can use the system power.
"How can I get the essence of one of the domains?" Clyde asked.
"That''s really easy. You just have to bring something from the domain, give it to me, then I''ll extract the essence," Hammer said.
"Anything?"
"Anything solid enough!" Hammer nodded firmly.
"Looks like there''s still sand left from my trip to Hades'' domainst night," Clyde muttered.
"No." Hammer shook his head. "You should bring something more solid than just sand. It will disappear in the portal as soon as you enter."
~~~
Chapter 159 New Task
Upon hearing what Hammer said, Clyde fell silent for a few moments.
Hammer just kept silent without doing anything because Clyde might talk when he was in the middle of doing something.
He could just not focus on answering it. And Hammer also doesn''t like someone disturbing him when he''s in the middle of focusing on doing something.
''I want to make a good spear. Even though Samuel didn''t ask for it - yet - but I''m sure he will ask for a new spear eventually. I saw the look in his eyes when I took out Clyde''s sword.''
Hammer grinned at the thought. His hands were itching to make a good weapon like they used to be before the Selection Stage started.
"This is going to be difficult," Clyde suddenly said. "I guess I''ll have a hard time going to The All Territory because that fucking Senior Council will block me."
Clyde folded his arms in front of his chest. He saw Hammer staring at him with wide eyes.
"What?" Clyde asked seeing Hammer''s reaction that looked terrified.
"You can''t say that about the Senior Council!" Hammer said with a stifled scream. There was a hint of fear in his voice that was clear in Clyde''s ears.
"They won''t hear us. That''s the point of this room, right?" Clyde said in an even tone.
"You have no idea how powerful those Senior Councilors are. Some of them were hundreds of years old beforeing here! And they might hear us somehow."
Clyde suddenly felt quite uncertain. His strength had indeed increased greatly before.
However, when hearing Hammer''s words about some of the Senior Council who were hundreds of years old, it seemed worrying.
With that old age, they must have umted a lot of power, knowledge, and experience.
Compared to his eighteen-year-old self, he was nothing to them. Even though he had raised his Stats several times over, Clyde doubted that he would be able to win when he fought them.
Clyde felt he had to be careful, but that didn''t mean he had to cower in fear.
"You better control your mouth before you get in trouble. I say that as a friend of yours," said Hammer.
Clyde didn''t know since when they became friends. But he didn''t bother to ask about it.
"Alright." Clyde stood up from his chair. "I''ll be going now. Have you repaired my sword yet?"
"Yeah of course. The sword only suffered a bit of damage. Based on what I can see, the damage to the sword was caused by Mana flow," Hammer said.
"I did kill a Lesser Cerberus by imbuing it with Mana. Otherwise, I won''t be able to kill it."
Hammer''s eyes widened. "You killed a Lesser Cerberus?!"
Clyde just nodded briefly as if it wasn''t a big deal.
"Lesser Cerberus is a very strong monster. If the power of the system is still there, it must be Rated B!" Hammer still looked disbelieving. "And you said you killed it?!"
''B-rated? That''s not a problem for me.'' Clyde snorted. But didn''t say anything.
"I''ll be going first. Make sure you always maintain my sword in good condition. I might use it immediately," Clyde said then turned towards the door.
Hammer could only see his back which for a moment then disappeared behind the door.
Hammer shook his head and then sighed. "That kid is always full of surprises. But that''s not always a good thing."
In just a few days when he woke up, Clyde had created amotion that drew the attention of many people to him.
But Hammer knew that the ones paying attention to him were themon residents of the fortress. Hammer still doesn''t know whether the members of the Senior Council are aware of his existence or not.
If they haven''t, then it won''t take long for them to find out about it. When that happened, Hammer didn''t know what the Senior Council would do to Clyde.
Hammer took another breath, this time a bit longer than before.
Then he took some materials that he had specially selected. Those materials he could use to make weapons of a higher quality than weapons made with the same materials.
Hammers have eyes that can see the quality of material better than the eyes of an ordinary cksmith. He could never exin it to other cksmiths even his subordinates who worked in the same smithy as him.
Because they wouldn''t be able to understand even if he tried to exin it.
So, even though they use the same materials, the weapons that Hammer makes can be better than those his men make.
He came out of his room and headed to the workshop. Get to work on making a spear.
~~~
Samuel received a telepathic call when he was practicing using a spear in his quarter.
His spear swing suddenly stopped midair and Samuel had to try to keep his bnce so he wouldn''t fall over from the sudden stop.
The telepathy did not immediately stop him. He was just so startled that the swing of his spear stopped.
''Yes, sir?'' Samuel answered telepathically.
The person who contacted him was one of the Senior Council currently inside the fortress. Samuel knew that he and the other two were still in the fortress even though the other Senior Council were away.
''Sam, I have a task for you,'' said Vernik.
''What task, sir?''
''There''s a party that just came back from a quest. The party was sent by Archangel Uriel to retrieve an artifact from one of the Ruins. I want you to take the artifact.''
Samuel''s brow furrowed suspiciously at the order. The name of Archangel Uriel created a tremor of fear in Samuel''s heart.
''Archangel Uriel, sir?'' Samuel repeated it with a doubtful tone. Hope he hears something different from Vernik this time.
But of course that won''t happen.
''I assigned you to intercept Uriel''s assigned party to retrieve the artifacts. The party hasn''t reached her domain yet so you don''t need to worry too much.''
Samuel sighed. How could he not worry too much when it came to dealing with the Archangel Uriel?
The party that Archangel sent was definitely not a weak party. And even when he managed to kill them, Archangel Uriel would surely search and chase them relentlessly for having seized her artifacts.
Which would be very risky for the secretiveness of this fortress.
''Are you sure, sir? Isn''t it very risky and could probably expose this fortress?''
''But that artifact is very important. And you know that this fortress has existed for a very long time without the Celestials noticing so you don''t have to worry about it this time too.''
Samuel didn''t know what else to say. He didn''t want to put his party members in danger anymore.
They had just returned from God Hades'' domain and had nearly lost one of their members.
Now he must bring his party to steal Archangel Uriel''s artifact. Even if the party carrying the artifact still hadn''t reached her domain, Samuel knew that the risk was too high.
''You still have time, Sam. I''ll give you a week and will send your party directly to the best ce to ambush,'' Vernik said. ''And don''t forget to bring the new kid, Clyde is it?''
Samuel was surprised when he heard Clyde''s name. It turns out that Clyde''s name has reached the Senior Council.
''You want me to take the new boy, sir? But he''s only been here a month.''
''So what? You''ve brought him along to God Hades'' domain, right?''
It turns out, they already know about it. Samuel felt stupid for trying to hide that from the Senior Council.
''You and your party won''t be punished if you bring him with you. I can turn a blind eye to that.''
Upon hearing what Vernik said, Samuel felt he had no other choice but toply.
''You still have a week anyway.''
''How do you know about this information, sir?''
''Sam, you know more than enough not to ask that. Because we can''t tell you about that,'' Vernik revised.
Samuel sighed. ''Yes, sir.''
''One week from now.''
After that, the telepathic connection from Vernik was cut off. Samuel slumped on the floor and leaned against the wall.
He was annoyed that the other party still hadn''t returned. That makes only the party avable for tasks from the Senior Council which are often dangerous tasks.
"But, to fulfill the goal of all of us in this fortress I have to do it."
Samuel gritted his teeth and the look in his eyes that had been reluctant earlier became firm again. He has the resolve and a high sense of responsibility and can''t afford to hesitate to destroy the Celestials.
Samuel immediately jumped to his feet and went to meet his party members. And one more person who seems to have caught the attention of the Senior Council.
When he heard that he had to join them, Clyde was both surprised and pleased.
He knew that most likely he would join Samuel and his party on an expedition.
But Clyde also felt suspicious about why it suddenly happened.
~~~
Chapter 160 Terrifying Task
Clyde went to the hotel building with Samuel. He was initially quite surprised because he was suddenly summoned here to attend a meeting he was going to have with the rest of his party.
Clyde didn''t say too many objections and kept his questions in his heart. What mattered now was that he was likely to be involved in something important soon. Most likely he would go on an expedition with them.
The reason why Samuel suddenly changed his mind didn''t really matter, at least for now. He, who had been against the idea that Clyde would go to The All Territory, suddenly invited him to join a meeting.
Clyde could see Samuel''s displeased look as he walked beside him. Samuel''s face was stiff and irritated as if he had to do all this against his will.
After a few minutes of walking, they finally arrived at the hotel building. Clyde studied the building for a few moments and wondered how the hotel had moved here.
It seems that the hotel is more than a decade old judging by its design. Did they just randomly drag a building from the Earth world here?
"This hotel was taken from one of the worlds destroyed by the Selection Stage," Samuel said suddenly when he saw Clyde looking at the building with his scrutinizing gaze.
"Oh. I see." Clyde nodded curtly.
"Come on in."
They both go inside. Samuel didn''t need to do the same routine as before because all the party members were awake and doing their activities.
Leyan was practicing archery in the backyard. Even though he didn''t really need to practice his archery skills, Leyan still did it for some reason.
Kiara is cooking in the kitchen. The aroma of cooking wafts almost throughout the hotel.
Kei and Haru were sitting together on chairs beside the swimming pool. They caressed each other in an affectionate gesture that was definitely indicating something.
Samuel called them all together. And they do it right away without waiting too long.
Meanwhile, Clyde was waiting in the meeting room they usually use. He sat alone and thought about what they would do.
A few minutester Samuel and his party came to the meeting room. Kiara was even still wearing an apron making her look like a housewife who was dragged before finishing the cooking process to make breakfast.
"Hey, good job that time," Leyan said with a smile. It turned out that Clyde''s prediction was wrong. The Elf lost his cynicism at once now when he saw for himself how capable Clyde was.
Clyde only nodded briefly in return.
"I haven''t had time to thank you properly," Haru said as he took a seat next to Clyde.
"My name is Haru. I am very grateful to you for saving me."
Haru said it with a sincere look and smile. Clyde could clearly feel her sincerity. Once again he felt that warm feeling when someone thanked him and appreciated what he had done with all their heart.
So he can''t help but issued a thin smile. "Don''t mention it."
Haru was still looking at him with grateful eyes, then turned to Samuel and said. "What are we going to do now?"
Samuel sighed and rubbed the back of his head nervously. From his gestures, they could tell that Samuel had something hard to say to them.
Seeing that, they looked at each other and exchanged questioning nces. But no one said anything and just waited for Samuel to say it.
"We have to ambush the party sent by Archangel Uriel."
Upon hearing what Samuel said, they widened their eyes with expressions of shock.
"What?!"
"You''ve got to be kidding, Sam!"
"Archangel Uriel?! You mean that terrifying Celestial?"
Samuel nodded. "Yeah, that one. Who else if not her?"
They all immediately slumped in their seats with depressed faces. Their gazes were nk as if they were staring at the doom approaching before their eyes.
Clyde still had his usual straight face. He had heard of the Archangel Uriel in a creed in his world long ago.
She is a very strong Archangel with a very powerful power of me. The story about her says that her me can scorch a world at once if she so wishes.
Considering what she could do Clyde thought it only natural that they would be like that. But based on what Samuel said, they wouldn''t need to face Uriel head-on.
"We just have to ambush the party she sent, right?" Clyde asked a question that made them all turn to look at him.
"That''s the same thing," Leyan said.
Clyde turned to him. "How''s that the same thing?"
"The party sent by the Celestials received their blessing. They got a fraction of the Celestials'' power."
"Fraction?"
Haru who was next to him shook her head with a frightened expression. "Even if it''s only a small fraction, the power of a Celestial is still too dangerous for us."
Clyde looked at them all one by one. He didn''t see the look of courage on their faces, not even on Samuel''s face who hade with the news.
He sighed. ''It is possible that they will refuse this mission. However, I also can''t be careless because when I see their expressions and reactions, the danger level of this mission is indeed high.''
Clyde didn''t want to be stupid even though he had the will to fight the party sent by Uriel.
The people here clearly had more experience than him and seeing how they reacted to something could give Clyde an idea of ??the degree of danger he would be in.
For now, it''s better for him to just be an observer because he still doesn''t know too much.
"No. We have to do it," said Samuel in a firm tone and a determined face.
He looked at them all. "The party is carrying an artifact that seems very important. The Senior Council said that we should retrieve the artifact."
Leyan took a deep breath as he cupped his hands to his face. "We''re going to make those terrible Celestials really angry."
~~~
Chapter 161 Same Goal
The atmosphere became quiet. The meeting room felt heavy as if the air had just been forcefully sucked out.
Clyde studied everyone''s faces which were not far from expressions of fear. He himself felt at ease but couldn''t say anything because he felt he still didn''t know much.
Clyde was sure that his strength had increased quite a lot since thest time. Because he already used the Points he saved.
But his cautious nature made him think that now it was better to observe the situation first. If indeed this mission will be canceled, Clyde will not oppose it too much.
His desire to go to The All Territory doesn''t mean he has to be reckless and instead gets into danger.
"No need to rush. We still have one week to do the mission," said Samuel.
Upon hearing that Leyan raised his face to face Samuel. But after he thought for a few more moments, Leyan said.
"It''s the same thing. I don''t see any difference in what a week could do for us against Uriel''s party."
"If we still have a week, we can make ns," Clyde who had been silent until now spoke.
Leyan nced at him with a furrowed brow in annoyance. "You don''t know anything about it so you better shut up."
As soon as he heard Leyan''s words, Clyde returned his gaze. It seemed that Leyan''s annoying nature would return when he felt panicked or scared.
"Then what are you going to do? Isn''t our goal to go rebel against the Celestials?" Clyde replied. "We still have time, meaning we still have a better chance of seeding if we n properly."
"Clyde was right," said Samuel. "Senior Council already knows which Ruin Uriel''s party will be in. So we can start preparing there."
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked while looking at Samuel.
Samuel turned to him. "Yes. The Senior Council has a way of knowing when, where, and how powerful a party or whatever Celestials are sending to do their errand before it happens."
Clyde frowned. ''It was very strange and amazing. But it does sound like they have a direct spying source close to the Celestials.''
The possibility that there was some sort of divine power that the Senior Council could use to foresee the future also crossed Clyde''s mind. But the idea that they had spies sounded more convincing now, somehow.
"Listen," said Samuel. "I know this mission sounds very dangerous for you. We''ve also just returned from Hades'' domain so your burden of fear must still be quite high.
However, we must strengthen our hearts for the goals we want to achieve. You guys still remember that goal, right?"
Samuel nced at his party members in turn. Hoping to see the resolve''s light return to their eyes.
He excluded Clyde from the stares because Clyde was basically a stranger to this party. For now.
Clyde didn''t feel offended by being ostracized because he knew his position and didn''t expect that he would get too close to them.
Clyde waited a few moments for the changes to take ce.
Finally, Leyan said. "Alright. Let''s fucking do it." The look in his eyes that had been filled with doubt and fear now returned to the look of a fighter.
Clyde is quite fascinated. Somehow, these party can be easily motivated with just the same goal, that is the resistance against the Celestials.
Based on what he saw Clyde thought that the members of this party must have gone through a lot of pain because of the Celestials. Until their hatred overpowers their fear.
Clyde remembered about Lahn escaping after bing a ve to a Celestials. And how her eyes burn every time she talks about it.
The same thing apparently happened to the members of this party. After Leyan said that he wanted to do it, Kiara, Haru, and Kei immediately agreed.
Clyde saw Samuel smiling at the reactions of his friends.
"Good," Samuel said. "Let''s go to the Ruin to start scouting and make ns."
So they all got ready to go to their respective rooms. Leaving Clyde in this meeting room with Samuel.
"You should know, Clyde." Samuel approached Clyde who was heading out the door. "Senior Council asked you to join in on this mission. Even though, I actually didn''t agree to involve you."
"That''s alright. I don''t minding along," Clyde replied.
"As you heard from them, this mission will be very dangerous. The previous mission was nothing since it was only a rescue mission. But now we have to actually fight that member of Uriel''s party."
"I''ve heard about it. Don''t worry. As long as we n well I think we''ll be alright."
Samuel stared at Clyde for a few moments. He wondered how Clyde could be so calm. Could it be because he didn''t know the scale of the danger he would face?
''That''s maybe it. After all, he has never actually fought Celestials or creatures that received their blessings,'' Samuel thought.
"Then, I''ll get ready. I''ll be waiting for you at the portal." Clyde walked past Samuel and away from the hotel. So Samuel immediately went to his room to prepare his gear.
After a few minutes, they finished preparing and walked toward the portal. Clyde was waiting beside the portal with his hands in his trouser pockets. Shows how rxed he is at the moment.
At his waist were a sword and two daggers. Clyde was wearing the brown coat he had on at the time but now there was a red hue to parts of it. Indicates that Hammer has done something to strengthen his coat.
Haru also joins this expedition. After drinking the Life Elixir, her condition recovered to normal as if nothing had happened.
Samuel ces his amulet into the portal. Instantly, a Ruin consisting of an arid desert devoid of any greenery appeared in the portal.
"This is where we should ambush Uriel''s party," Samuel said. "Let''s go."
The six of them entered the portal. A momentter they set their feet on a reddish stone that was located in the middle of the desert.
~~~
Chapter 162 Desert
?
Clyde cast his eyes around him. All he could see was a dry desert coupled with the scorching hot sun.
"Whoa, this world must have experienced some kind of massive sandstorm in the final chapter," Leyanmented after he finished looking around.
"Maybe what''s under the sand is a city," said Kiara in a gloomy tone.
Clyde looked down. In his head, he imagined the same thing as what Kiara said. There was a city that was originally prosperous and advanced, which was suddenly buried by sand that came from nowhere.
Inside the city, it is clear that there are buildings that are inhabited by poor humans trapped inside. All the buildings and their upants must also have been killed by the various Chapters in the Selection Stage.
There are also other possibilities. That the humans and buildings have been reduced to dust and sand, not buried under it.
Whatever it was, now it had no meaning because now everything was over.
"Is this where they will appear?" Clyde asked.
"Yes. I got another description from a Senior Council via telepathy," said Samuel. "They will be here one week from now and there are four of them."
"Have you ever met the Senior Council in person?" Clyde asked while looking at him.
"No." Samuel shook his head.
"Why?"
"I don''t have permission."
Clyde got the impression that Samuel didn''t want to borate more on that particr topic. He even turned his head away from him and stared ahead as if he was thinking of a n seriously.
When Clyde looked at the other party members he got the same impression. It was as if they shared the same mind with Samuel.
Clyde sighed because surely they didn''t want to talk about it, somehow.
''I''ll find outter myself.''
After a few moments of just observing, Haru asked. "Will there be monsters here?"
"Like every Ruin that exists, we have to expect monsters to appear hereter," Samuel replied. "Let''s get started. We still have to walk a bit more to get to the actual ce."
They walked on the sand which was so hot on their feet. The sun, which seemed to never move from its position at the top of their head, did not make their trip any better.
Luckily, Kiara took the initiative to use her power and created a thin ice dome that covered them from direct sunlight.
The ice dome not only blocked out the sun but also created coolness from above them. Making this desertnd more bearable.
After about ten minutes of walking, they could finally see something sticking out from the sand. It looked like the top of a building.
As they got closer, they noticed that there wasn''t one but maybe dozens of building tops sticking out of the sand.
"It is a city," said Kei.
"Yeah. There, they''ll look for the artifacts," Samuel replied.
"Why don''t we just take the artifact first?" Clyde asked.
ording to him, it is an obvious thing. If they already knew where and when Uriel''s party had appeared, why not take the artifacts first so they wouldn''t have to bother fighting them?
Clyde turned to the rest of the party. He hoped that they would agree with his idea. However, they didn''t show any reaction and allowed Samuel to answer.
"We have no information on what the artifact is or how to get it."
"The information from the Senior Council didn''t give you that?" Clyde is suspicious. They could tell when and where Uriel''s party showed up but not about what artifacts would they take. That sounds a little odd.
"If that''s the case, why should we be worried? The information provided by the Senior Council is always limited to that. And we have to fight to ovee the rest," Leyan added.
Clyde didn''t say anything else in return. If that''s the reality then it can''t be helped. He should have realized that from the start when he saw these people get scared when he heard about the task they were about to carry out.
There is no other way than to fight against the party that Uriel sent.
"Instead of us wasting time looking for those artifacts, it''s better for us to immediately prepare a n for ambushing them," Samuel said then took the lead to get closer to the ruins of the city that was buried in the sand.
But suddenly a rustling sound created from the friction of sand was heard. They immediately looked around in all directions to find the origin of the sound.
Turns out, the sound didn''t onlye from one point but from several points around them. There are approximately ten spots where the sand appears to be moving indicating that something beneath them wants to surface.
The six people immediately prepared their respective weapons. And enter into battle mode.
"What monsters will we face now?" Kiara asked. At the tip of her wand, there was already a cold bluish mist which she created in no time.
"I don''t know. I didn''t get any information about that," Samuel replied.
Clyde cursed at how limited information they had.
"Here theye!" Haru said.
A momentter from the sand appeared something like a worm with a circr mouth equipped with sharp teeth like saws.
Four long ws were growing around that mouth. Presumably to stab and pull their prey to devour inside their circr mouth.
The worm''s skin is brown like copper and looks very tough. When the worms finally jumped out of the sand in a way known only to them - as there were no visible legs to propel their long bodies - it was finally seen that their bodies were about ten meters long.
Without waiting for Samuel''s order, one by one the party members immediately fired their attacks.
Arrow from Leyan that was bigger than normal arrows shot through the sshed sand curtain that was created when the worms came out andnded on the worm''s skin.
However, the arrow only stuck for a moment and then fell. Showing that the arrow wasn''t enough to prate the worm''s skin.
Kiara shoots ice spikes at the worm in front of her. Her attack gave the same result as Leyan so she could only click her tongue in annoyance.
Samuel, Haru, and Clyde who were fighting with melee weapons lunged at the worms before they got closer to the other members.
Samuel thrust his spear with all his might. The damage he did was greater than Leyan''s arrow, but he still couldn''t hit the worm''s body. The hard skin became tough and troublesome armor.
Meanwhile, Haru swerves with her agile body avoiding the ws beside the worm''s mouth. Then she stuck her dagger and used it to pull her body up the worm''s head.
Haru studied the brownish skin. She gritted her teeth with an angry expression when she realized that the skin was proven too tough for her daggers. It''s not a surprise because her daggers are not the best quality weapons.
''I have to find this worm''s weak point!''
So Haru proceeds to look for spots on the worm''s body that are not protected by the skin. Or look for spots that have the least amount of protection.
She poured Mana into her legs to keep her body steady on top of the worm''s moving body.
On the other hand, Clyde looked calm when he approached one of the worms in front of him. His face remained straight as if he would not encounter any significant problems just because of the worms.
Clyde tightened his grip on his sword. He decided not to use Mana for now and tested how strong his body was after he raised his Stats.
Only whenter he feels unable, he will use his Mana.
*KKRRRKKK!!!*
The worm that was closest to him moved his teeth so that they rubbed against each other creating a disturbing sound.
The ws that were around the circr mouth also moved forward simultaneously. Make a stabbing motion.
The worm lunged at Clyde slithering across the sand like a snake from a nightmare. Clyde calmly sped up his run.
He kicked the sand and sent himself flying into the air. Then he raised his sword with both hands above his head.
The worm raised its head and greeted Clyde who was in a falling-down position. It should be a dangerous situation. However, Clyde wouldn''t put himself in a dangerous position like that if he didn''t know what he could do.
*SRAATTT!*
Clyde swung his sword and shed the worm''s head and made it split in two different directions. He fell onto the sand along with the worm''s lifeless body.
The worm''s body did notpletely split in two. The sh only sliced ??through its head to the midsection of its body but it was more than enough to kill the worm.
Clyde nodded with satisfaction. It turns out that his strength has indeed increased greatly. He who hadn''t even put all his strength behind the swing had already managed to kill the worm, even nearly splitting its body.
*KKKRRRKKK!!!*
Hearing the sound of another worm behind him, Clyde immediately moved again to kill it.
~~~
Chapter 163 No Effort
?
Clyde turned his head, and as soon as he turned he was immediately greeted by a circr mouth with sharp teeth and four ws around it.
He jumped sideways with such agile movements that the worm just hit the sand and then went straight back into it.
Clyde saw the worm enter very smoothly as if it only prated the surface of the water and not hard sand.
Then from behind him, Clyde heard the sound of rustling sand again. He had already guessed what he would get so Clyde immediately raised his sword in time while turning his body.
*CLANG!*
Clyde managed to dispel the ws that were on the sides of the circr mouth from drilling a hole in his body. Clyde was pushed back a few steps but the worm was sent flying backwards with much stronger force.
Clyde grinned with a snort as he watched the worm bounce off. Without wasting any time he lunged and shed his sword.
Before, he shed through the worm''s mouth which was not protected by its hard skin.
Now, he wants to test his real strength on that skin by shing it directly without using Mana.
''Can I prate it?''
He put more strength behind his swing. Until finally he got the answer to his question.
*CRAAATT!*
His de pierced through the worm''s hard skin and cut through the body that was protected beneath the skin.
The worm made what was supposed to be a groan of pain but no blood or fluid whatsoever came out of the wound Clyde had inflicted.
Clyde thought maybe that''s why they lived in this hot sand all the fluids in their bodies dried up. And somehow they can survive without it.
But because the worm is not dead yet, Clyde immediately finished it by cutting further into the body that he had cut earlier.
*CRAAATT!*
Now the worm''s body has been divided into two. It continued to wriggle for a few moments before finally stoppingpletely.
[ You gain 100(x10) Exp! ]
[ You leveled Up! ]
Clyde grinned when he saw the notification appear in his vision. Today he might be able to level up more than once by killing those worms. Thanks to his [Skill: Exp+].
He turned to the members of Samuel''s party. They appear to be struggling to fend off attacks from wormsing from all directions. They also still have difficulty breaking through the worms'' skin so they can only parry or dodge their attacks without being able to counter.
Clyde sighed. All of this felt like he was carrying the party which should be his senior in terms of the expedition.
But it can''t be helped because he does have some sort of cheat while they don''t.
Clyde proceeds to kill the remaining worms on his side. He not only waited for the worms toe out of the sand but also lured them out by jumping and poking the sand.
A few secondster Clyde had finished killing the worms on his side. After making sure there were no more worms left, he immediately rushed toward Samuel''s party members.
They were too busy surviving on their side to even notice what Clyde had done.
Samuel seems the most tired because he has to move the most to protect his party members. After all, they are all types of long-range fighters who are less skilled at protecting themselves from close-range attacks.
Clyde came with incredible speed preventing a worm froming from behind Kiara. He kicked the worm that almost stabbed Kiara''s back with its ws.
*DUAAGHH!*
The worm was thrown aside and fell on the sand. There was a small crack in its skin from Clyde''s kick. Kiara who already realized what just happened could see the crack when she turned towards the worm.
''How...''
She is speechless and her eyes widen in disbelief. Kiara saw for herself how hard it is to injure the worm''s skin yet she could see Clyde blowing the worm away easily and creating a crack on its skin.
"Focus!" Clyde shouted, making Kiara wake up from her daze condition.
Clyde immediately moved towards the worm and gripped his sword with both hands. He jumped and then descended while swinging the sword with considerable strength.
*CRAAATTT!*
*CRAAATTT!*
He shed his sword twice until the worm''s head severed from its body.
[ You gain 100(x10) Exp! ]
Kiara once again widened her eyes seeing what was happening. It was only she who was focused enough to see what was happening in that split second as the others were focused on surviving.
''He can kill that worm! Not only that, but he did it with almost no effort even though we were struggling!''
Clyde immediately moved towards the other worms to finish the job.
Leyan kept rolling to avoid the wormsing from all directions while continuously shooting his arrows. Several of his arrows could hit the inside of the mouth of the worms and he finally managed to find their weakness.
Leyan managed to kill two worms but it only seemed to inme the anger of its friends so they hunted the Elf even more fiercely.
Leyan is sure that he and his friends will be able to kill the worms. But not so fast because they have to target their mouth which is difficult and dangerous.
They have to get close to the body parts of the monster that it uses to devour its prey.
Leyan frowned when he saw Clyde suddenly hover over the head of one of the worms chasing him. Then he thrust his sword which could prate its skin easily. This made Leyan even more shocked.
Clyde finishes the worm within seconds by decapitating its head and letting it fall on the sand. Without a pause, he dashed towards another worm and started shing his sword.
''That''s impossible! How?!'' Leyan couldn''t stop thinking.
Clyde also only needed a few seconds to kill the other worm. Without sparing a nce at the shocked Leyan, Clyde was already darting toward Haru.
While Leyan turned his head towards the corpse of worms lying helplessly in front of him. The same worms that only a few seconds ago chased him.
~~~
Chapter 164 Sand-Covered City
?
Leyan still kept blinking his eyes many times while staring at the scene in front of his eyes. His mind was still screaming disbelief at what Clyde had just done.
But then he turned to see Clyde fighting another worm. He jumped and rolled to avoid the worm attacks he fought. His speed was so incredible that it seemed as if he could dodge the worm effortlessly.
And when Clyde saw an opportunity, he immediately shed his sword. The sh was so powerful that it prated through the hard skin of the worm.
In three shes Clyde had managed to kill the worm in the same way. Separate the head from its body.
"What are you looking at?!" Clyde shouted to wake up Leyan who was still dazed. "Get moving!"
Leyan immediately cursed himself for his foolishness. He immediately ran towards Samuel who was protecting Kei.
They fought for a few more minutes. During that time they could see how Clyde handled most of the worms.
Samuel was the second person in the party to kill the most worms. But the difference with Clyde is quiterge. Samuel killed five worms while Clyde killed fifteen.
Clyde nced around. After realizing that no more worms were slithering on the sand, or if there was sand moving indicating the presence of worms underneath, Clyde heaved a sigh of relief.
However, he realized that there was still arge possibility of worms or other monsters under the sand. So he can''t loosen his guard.
Clyde turned towards Samuel''s party members. When he turned around, he saw that they were all looking at him with the same expression. Everyone couldn''t believe what they saw.
Clyde had expected that he would get such a reaction. So he immediately walked up to them and said. "What''s next?"
"Wait!" said Kei. "How did you do it?"
Kei said as if representing questions from her friends. They all immediately turned to Clyde and demanded an answer.
Unfortunately, Clyde still didn''t think of an answer to that question.
"I don''t know. My body went through a sudden change like the one that happened when I recovered quickly aftering out of the Selection Stage."
So Clyde gave the answer he had told Lahn and Wayne before. He knew that didn''t sound very convincing but they wouldn''t be able to prove he was lying.
"You can cut through the hard skin of the worms. Which we can''t do," said Kiara with a thoughtful expression. "Even I''ve expended a lot of Mana with my ice magic but it still can''t prate the skin. Was it because of your sword?"
They knew that the sword Clyde was using was a sword that Hammer had just made with better material than their weapons. So they thought that Clyde could be that strong because of his sword.
"Uhh... maybe," said Clyde. "Anyway, it doesn''t matter now, is it? We should continue our journey towards that town."
Without waiting for their reply, Clyde walked towards the ruined city. The five of them eventually also started walking.
"What do you think?" Haru asked while looking at her friends.
Haru and Kei had told them about how Clyde had killed Lesser Cerberus in their previous rescue expedition.
That alone was enough to make them feel shocked and confused about how Clyde could get such power. Now, they saw for themselves how strong Clyde was before their very eyes.
"At that time he also already had that sword, right?" Kiara asked.
"It''s not because of the sword," Kei answered while shaking his head. "I saw how he used the power of lightning to make his body move extremely fast. In the next moment, we saw the head of the Lesser Cerberus fall."
They were all silent upon hearing Kei''s exnation. Leyan looked at Clyde''s back who was walking some distance in front of him. He felt higher respect for the boy after seeing him show his strength.
He felt a gaze and heard a whispering voice from behind him. It made him ufortable being the center of attention. Clyde grimaced, annoyed. But he chose to act as if he didn''t notice anything.
After they arrived at the ruins of the sand-covered city, they immediately took on a more alert attitude than before.
The window frames on the buildings looked like dark eyes staring at them. And they felt that something might suddenlye out of the darkness and ambush them with a murderous intent like those worms earlier.
Because they had encountered danger enough times, they were able to recover quickly from previous situations. And, without them realizing it, they also became calmer because of Clyde''s presence.
"We can use these buildings to hide and deliver sneak attacks on that party," Clyde said. "What do you think?"
"I think so too," Samuel replied. "Now we have to start clearing those buildings of monsters. So when the timees for an ambush we don''t have to bother anymore."
"But wouldn''t it be suspicious if we wiped out all the monsters here?" Kei said.
"Kiara is right. They will know when someonees here," Leyan added.
"I can create illusions," Kiara said. "But I don''t know if that''s enough to trick them or not. They''re the party that Uriel sent after all."
"I think that''s enough," said Samuel. "They must be much more focused on finding the artifact and will pay little attention to anything else."
They pondered over Samuel''s words for a few seconds. Based on their experience, the parties sent by the Celestials to carry out their errands always acted hurriedly.
They seemed eager to quicklyplete whatever orders their master gave them and return to report good results.
So, what Samuel said makes sense. The party Uriel had sent out likely wouldn''t pay too much attention to the reduced number of monsters around them.
"Alright. Based on what we have seen, they will indeed be more focused on their mission," Leyan said. "So now, let''s start setting some traps and killing monsters."
They started moving in unison. This time Samuel also decided that they could split up because of Clyde''s presence.
~~~
Chapter 165 Suspicion
?
Samuel divided their team the same as before but now with the addition of Haru, they are more even.
Samuel left with Leyan and Kiara. While Clyde is with Kei and Haru. Nobody opposed the division because they all already knew how Clyde fought so they could be sure about his strength.
"You just have to protect Kei. I''ll be the one at the front."
So Clyde said before they started moving deeper into the ruined city. Kei and Haru carry equipment for setting traps in their bags which they will gradually set up.
Samuel already knew quite a bit about the situation they would find themselves in. They didn''t know where the party would appear so setting traps in multiple ces was the best option.
The ruins of this city were indeed quite extensive. But they still have one week so they can do it gradually.
Clyde didn''tin about the idea. Instead, he was grateful because he could explore the ruins of this city while continuing to kill monsters to raise his level.
''At this rate, I can reach level 100 in no time.''
Clyde grinned subconsciously. But because he was in front of Kei and Haru they both didn''t notice the grin that had formed on his face. If they can see it, they will be extremely suspicious.
They decided to go inside one of the buildings on the side of the road. Once again Clyde takes the front position and Haru takes the rear. Kei was in the middle as a priest.
Just when Clyde entered the first floor he was greeted by a humanoid creature that looked like zombies. But their bodies are parched without any liquid and leaving only bones and rotting skin.
They had no eyes because they must have dried up so long ago. However, they could immediately notice Clyde, Kei, and Haru''s presence as soon as they entered.
"Get ready!" Clyde said.
He unsheathed his sword and lunged headfirst at the ten parched zombie monsters. For him now, they are just a source of Exp which would make him stronger.
Clyde dashed forward with incredible speed. This still impresses Kei and Haru to this point because they feel that is Clyde''s true speed and he hasn''t even used Mana to move that fast.
*SRAATTT!*
*SRAATTT!*
*SRAATTT!*
...
The sword moved so fast that it left only a blur of motion that reflected the light from outside.
After the shes of shes the heads of the beheaded zombie monsters flew off and fell on the floor.
In just a few seconds, Clyde had managed to kill the ten zombies. Their bodies copsed and were instantly reduced to dust the moment they hit the ground.
[ You gain 20(x10) Exp! ]
[ You gain 20(x10) Exp! ]
[ You gain 20(x10) Exp! ]
...
Clyde smiled as the notifications appeared in his vision. He then looked at Kei and Haru and saw that they were staring at the dust scattered on the floor that was previously dry, parched zombies that wanted to attack them.
"Wow." Haru let out a surprised gasp. "You can take care of them in a matter of seconds."
"The sooner the better, right?" said Clyde. "Let''s go."
Hearing Clyde''s words the two of them began to walk back following him. They started up the stairs and up to the second floor.
On the second floor, they met the same dry zombies.
"I''m sure you don''t need my help, do you?" Haru asked.
"You better watch over her. She can''t fight alone," Clyde replied.
Haru took that as an obvious answer that he really didn''t need her help. Haru didn''t feel disappointed, instead, she felt grateful because she didn''t have to bother endangering herself.
Clyde lunged and started swinging his sword at the zombies.
Haru and Kei who saw the scene in front of them couldn''t even think of it as a battle. A one-sided massacre is the right word to describe what Clyde did.
~~~
"What do you think is happening with Clyde?" Leyan asked while looking at Kiara and Samuel.
Kiara turned her head, noticing his suspicious tone. "You did it again, Leyan. Do you always have to suspect someone?"
"Don''t you see how he fights?" Leyan replied. "He can kill those worms as if they were nothing. You guys remember how hard the worms'' skin is, right?"
Samuel nced at Leyan briefly. That''s right. What Clyde did was something that didn''t make sense in their minds. Even Samuel thought so.
He didn''t know what Clyde''s background was before he saved him at the Selection Stage that time. Because Samuel only obeyed the orders of the Senior Council.
Yes, it was the Senior Council who gave the order for him to go to one specific world to save the people from the Selection Stage there.
They even pinpointed a location where Samuel should appear at the right time.
When he appeared at that time, Samuel didn''t know who he should save because the Senior Council asked him to leave in a very hurried situation.
But he didn''t need to feel confused for too long because they immediately sent telepathic messages to him telling him who he should save.
So Samuel did it without asking much about why he had to save one party and not take them all to Sivagadh Fortress.
For Samuel, orders from the Senior Council were something he had to always obey. Because he believed they could bring him closer to the goal of killing the Celestials.
"Let''s focus on what we have to do for now," Samuel said in a firm, almostmanding tone.
"You mean, you don''t feel suspicious of Clyde? You''re the one who saved him, don''t you know anything about him?" Leyan still kept asking.
Samuel sighed. "No. I''m just following the orders of the Senior Council. If you want to know more, why don''t you ask them directly?"
Leyan fell silent after hearing that. He rarely saw Senior Council and he chose to stay that way.
ording to him, the members of the Senior Council felt a bit mysterious and Leyan had an ufortable feeling when he was around them.
~~~
Chapter 166 Done For Today
?
Leyan frowned then turned his face the other way. It was as if the sight of Samuel saying that he had to speak directly with the Senior Council really bothered him.
Kiara and Samuel were aware of that.
"Why do you always react like that when you hear someone mention the Senior Council?" Kiara asked with a curious tone. Leyan was always like that and she never knew the real reason behind his reaction.
"I just... feel ufortable about them," Leyan said. He just said the same answer he always told them.
"Yeah, but why? Have you ever met them or they ever did something to you?" Kiara asked again.
"No." Leyan shook his head. "But don''t you think they are suspicious? They are the rulers of Sivagadh Fortress but we never really know what they all look like," said Leyan. "We''ve only ever seen a few of them and we have no idea what they''re really up to."
"But they have helped many poor existence like us who could have died, or lived a miserable life as ves of the Celestials," Kiara said. "Don''t you think that''s enough to make you think they are on a good side?"
Leyan paused to process Kiara''s words. What she said was true, but for Leyan... he still couldn''t ept it.
"I don''t know," said Leyan. "Whatever. Just like Samuel said, we better focus on what we have to do for now."
They then decided to end the talk about the Senior Council. That''s how the conversation always ends. With uncertainty about Leyan''s response.
They rarely talked about it because they couldn''t say anything about the Senior Council back in the Fortress. Or something bad will happen and they don''t want anything to do with it.
Samuel, Leyan, and Kiara''s party also met the dry zombies as soon as they entered the building.
"Careful!" Kiara said. After seeing how strong the monsters they met before, Kiara felt they had to be more careful.
"Yeah, I know." Not only surprised, but Leyan also felt that the scale of the danger they had to face had increased after facing the worms earlier.
Leyan created arrows and started aiming. He released the arrow to fly toward one of the dry zombies.
*KRAAKKK!*
But it turns out, they worry too much for nothing. Leyan''s arrow prated the zombie''s body effortlessly and the zombie instantly crumbled to dust in an instant.
"What? They are weak," said Leyan.
"Don''t let your guard down," Samuel reminded him as he lunged forward with his spear ready in hand.
Samuel thrust his spear at the zombie and the same thing happened. The dry zombie couldn''t even fight or dodge, it could only take Samuel''s spear attack and crumble to dust.
"See? This enemy is weak," said Leyan.
"Well, I guess you''re right," Samuel replied.
They proceeded to kill all the dry zombies in the building until Clyde did.
Both Clyde''s party and Samuel''s party killed the dry zombies that were in the building they entered. Then when they arrived on the top floor, they immediately set up the prepared traps.
When finished with one building, they move on to the next building. And so on until finally the sun began to set and the sky turned yellow.
They all exited the building and walked up the sandy path back to where they had met.
"Everything is set for today," said Samuel.
"Do we really have to put traps in all the buildings?" Clyde asked disapprovingly. "That seems like a lot of work."
"Unfortunately, yes. We don''t know where the party that Uriel sent would appear. And where they will go. So setting traps in many ces within a wide range is the best option to reduce the risks," Samuel answered.
Clyde tried to think of other ideas but unfortunately, he couldn''te up with any. Lack of information makes their options for what they could do very limited.
And based on what they said, the strength of the party sent by the Celestials named Uriel had a high chance of dangering them if they fought those party head-on.
So, this might indeed be the best way. After all, they still had enough time. Unless something happened suddenly so they had to hurry.
Clyde nodded without saying anything more.
"Then, let''s go back first and continue tomorrow." Samuel who saw Clyde nod immediately knew that he could ept the method he was using because he saw no other way.
They came out of the ruins of the city. As soon as they left and returned to the desert, they immediately put themselves on alert again to fight.
The desert was getting colder than it had been a few hours ago. A gentle wind blew the sand into the air, filling their breathing cavities.
"Remind me to bring something to cover my nose and mouth tomorrow. Ughh..." Leyanined while covering his mouth and nose with his hand.
The other party members including Clyde agreed with his suggestion.
The sand blown by the wind in this ce is endless. Especially when a sandstorm urred, it would make everything they were trying to do more difficult.
"Are there any more worms?" Kei asked with eyes that spread around her.
The answer to her question didn''te as fast as she expected because they were also looking around to confirm the presence of the worms.
After a few minutes, no worms emerged from the sand. There wasn''t even any movement from under the sand to indicate something was slithering down there.
"I thought the worms weren''t showing up anymore," Leyan said.
"For now, yes," Clyde said. "We should run in the direction where we can open the portal. There''s a chance that the worms didn''t appear because they avoiding something."
After hearing what Clyde said they felt a chill down their spine.
"Let''s go!" Kei said frantically.
Even though what Clyde said didn''t necessarily mean it was true, but such a possibility did exist. So leaving this ce as soon as possible is the best thing to do.
~~~
Chapter 167 A Possibility
?
They returned to Sivagadh Fortress after a long day. They didn''t say much because everyone felt tired after eliminating hundreds or even thousands of dry zombies and fighting giant sandworms.
So they immediately said goodbye to each other and were about to go to their respective residences.
"Hey, Clyde," Samuel called out to Clyde.
Clyde turned his head questioningly.
"If you feel ufortable with your current living quarter, you can move to the hotel we are staying at."
Clyde was silent for a few moments, thinking. But he didn''t take long to shake his head.
"No, thanks. I''m fine." Clyde turned his body and started walking again without waiting for Samuel to say reply.
Samuel just shrugged his shoulders. Then walked after his party friends to the hotel where they were staying.
"Just because he does one expedition and one rescue mission with us doesn''t mean he has be one of our friends," Leyan said.
"At least I tried. Nothing wrong with making him our friend, right?" Samuel replied in an even tone.
"You are right." Leyan nodded. "But I can tell if he doesn''t want to."
"How do you know?" Kei turned to Leyan.
Leyan shrugged. "You can see his cold stare every time and he always seems to put up a cold wall so we don''te any closer."
Leyan does have a higher sense of sensitivity regarding human feelings. It seems that Elves always has a sensitivity to something, whether it''s Mana or another''s feeling.
But even without Leyan''s level of sensitivity, they could feel Clyde''s walls. Something about him seemed to indicate that he wanted to keep his distance. Even after he took part in the mission to save Haru and earlier, the mission to set traps for the party Uriel would send.
"But why did he want toe with us without so much asining?" Kiara asked.
The question silenced them. But soon Samuel said. "He wants to take revenge on the people who betrayed him."
They all turned to Samuel.
"But the people who betrayed him must have been recruited by the Celestials, right?" said Haru.
"Yes." Samuel nodded. It was no longer a possibility but something certain.
"And Clyde wants to take revenge on those who have obtained the power of Celestials?" Haru looks in disbelief. But Samuel just nodded again in response.
"He''s mad," Leyanmented.
"I don''t know about that," said Samuel. "He is the only one who has the fastest recovery progress among everyoneing with him. And you saw for yourself how powerful he was when he killed the worms earlier."
They stared at Samuel for a few moments.
Haru said. "Are you saying that he can match the strength of those who betrayed him and has already obtained the power of Celestials?"
Samuel nced at his friends one by one with a meaningful look.
"You think that he might have a chance to stand against Celestials, not just the ones who have obtained their powers," Leyan said, deciphering the meaning of Samuel''s gaze with uracy.
Kiara clicked her tongue. "That''s impossible. He can think like that having never fought them head-on."
"She''s right. It doesn''t matter how strong he is against the monsters. The power of the creatures that have received Celestial''s power is on a different level," said Kei.
Samuel was silent. He wanted to agree with them but his feeling told him it was possible.
Leyan was also silent. Usually, this is the time when heughs at Clyde because he is too confident. But Leyan also had a feeling that maybe Clyde could be capable even though everything he knew was against that.
"Whatever is it, we should still maintain good rtions with him," Samuel said.
"You''re right. Having strong allies seems to help anyway," Kei agreed.
Samuel, who initially rejected the idea of ??Clyde going to The All Territory because he had not been here long, immediately dismissed that idea.
Seeing for himself how strong Clyde was, he knew that bringing him was the right decision.
~~~
Clyde didn''t go straight to his living quarter. He went to Hammer''s ce to check his equipment.
"Oh, you''re back. How was your expedition? fun?" Hammer asked apanied by a big smile that showed his teeth as usual.
"You already know about that?" Clyde asked.
"Of course! I can get information quickly in this ce," Hammer replied.
Clyde handed over his sword and brown coat.
"What do you think? Is the new coat good?" Hammer asked.
"I can''t say for sure." Clyde shrugged and sat down on one of the chairs in the room.
"What do you mean?" Hammer frowned.
"Well, I managed to kill any monsters I encountered before theynded a hit on me."
Hammer blinked his eyes quickly. But then he nodded. "Oh, alright."
Hammer had learned not to be surprised at what Clyde did or what happened to him after what he knew.
He just took the coat and immediately looked at it. Turns out, there really wasn''t any scratch on it. However, the condition of Clyde''s sword is different.
When observing it Hammer knew that the sword had just been worked up quite heavily. The de was chipped in many ces after apparently being used to strike something hard.
That this was a sword made with the same material he had been using. This sword must have shattered into metal bits the moment it was still in Clyde''s grip.
"What exactly were you up against?" Hammer asked with obvious curiosity.
"Worms and zombies with dry bodies."
Hammer stared at him. But then decided not to continue his question because he wasn''t sure he wanted to know the answer. Knowing what monsters Clyde faced in the Ruins could give him nightmares.
"I will repair your sword like new again. You need not worry," said Hammer.
"Good. I need it tomorrow." Clyde stood up and walked towards the door.
"Tomorrow? Where else are you going?"
"To the same Ruins."
After that Clyde came out of Hammer''s room, leaving him in a dazed state.
"What exactly are they going to do?"
~~~
Chapter 168 An Idea
?
Hammer muttered to himself in his room. There was only him and the sound of nking hammers and metaling from outside.
''They seem to be nning something important.''
Hammer was still concerned about what the expedition parties were doing in that Ruin. He knew that they had gone to a Ruin and brought Clyde along, someone who shouldn''t be going there for now.
The Dwarf knew that this was an order from the Senior Council because there was no way Samuel would suddenly invite Clyde tantly into the Ruin.
Hammer sighed. Then came out of his room to start working on Clyde''s sword which was badly damaged.
His men asked how the sword could be so badly damaged when they knew that the sword was made of good material.
Hammer just answered by saying the same thing Clyde said earlier. That sword is used to kill worms and zombies.
Upon hearing that, his men immediately looked at each other and immediately agreed that they did not wish to inquire further about what the sword had shed at Ruin.
While starting the process of repairing the de, Hammer''s mind still drifted to Clyde asionally. He was indeed an anomaly for this Fortress and the Senior Council was already aware of his existence.
Then Clyde would probably continue to be sent on expeditions and be in danger. Then, given how that boy was, Hammer was sure it wouldn''t take long for him to trigger something that would threaten this fortress.
Hammer took a deep breath. ''I''d better make better weapons for him and start preparing myself for the worst.''
~~~
Clyde looked at his Character Information while lying on the bed. He is now Level 95 after killing a lot of dry zombies in the Ruin.
He could only see the Name section of his Character Information. But Clyde had already seen how his Character Information was when he was in the Ruin earlier.
Clyde only felt a little disappointed because he still couldn''t see his Character Information in this ce. But it''s alright and it''s not a problem anymore because he already knows how to be able to use it.
In just one day he had leveled up so much. All of that is thanks to the [Skill: Exp+ ] that he has. Clyde was grateful he bought the skill and raised his level to level 10.
''For now, that''s enough. I''ve gained ten times the experience I should have. So I''ll save my Skill Points for other Skills that will be more useful.''
Clyde smiled contentedly. But there is one thing that bothers him.
It turns out, Character Information can be used not only in The All Territory but also in Ruin.
That raised a question in his mind about whether this Fortress was the one that blocked his attempts to summon Character Information.
''The core of this strange fortress is the Senior Council. If I can find out about them, I can find out what really happened.''
Clyde sighed. The problem could waitter because he knew he couldn''t suddenly find out about it now. Or he will just get into trouble.
He began to close his eyes to close today. Clyde knows that tomorrow he will just do the same thing which is not a problem. Even if that means he has to kill hundreds of zombies or even meet new monsters again.
So Clyde can close his eyes easily knowing that everything will go smoothly for him.
~~~
Clyde retrieved his sword from Hammer''s ce the next day. The Dwarf did a good job and made his dull and chipped de look like new.
Clyde praised Hammer''s work. Especially when he saw Hammer''s eyes that looked deep and sad. The traces of exhaustion visible on the cksmith''s hard face indicated that he had put in extra effortst night to repair his sword.
"If I could take my old sword back, you wouldn''t have to work up to this point," said Clyde apanied by a grin mischievously when he saw the look on Hammer''s face that looked like a dying person.
"Your sword?"
"Yes. The sword I got at the Selection Stage."
"You can''t bring things from the Selection Stage or the World Masters can track them down here!" Hammer''s sleepy eyes were now wide open.
"Samuel said it''s sealed in a special room so you don''t need to worry."
Hammer breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that. But then he frowned.
"Why didn''t the sword just be destroyed?" Hammer asked.
"Samuel said he couldn''t do it."
Hammer''s eyes widened at what he said. Something indestructible from the Selectin Stage¡ he had never heard of something indestructible when entering this Fortress.
Exactly how strong was the sword that it was indestructible and had to be sealed? Hammer believed that the sword was certainly far more powerful than anything he had created here.
Hammer''s eyes glistened at the thought of him directly touching the sword. What''s the shape? What material is used to make it? How strong is that sword?
Clyde frowned at Hammer''s strange reaction. The Dwarf''srge brown eyes glistened with something only he could see.
"What''s wrong with you?" Clyde asked.
Hammer immediately snapped out of his reverie. "O-Oh, n-nothing."
But Clyde could guess what Hammer was thinking. As a cksmith who was almost obsessed with good weapons or equipment, Hammer must have been thinking about his weapons.
"Hey," said Clyde. "If you want to see the sword, think of a way to retrieve it from where Samuel keeps it. And to do it without the World Masters tracking it down after you take it out."
Hammer stared at Clyde for a few moments without blinking. Clyde could see that he was tempted by the idea.
"I''ll go now."
Clyde took his sword and then left the Hammer room. Leaving Hammer who was still contemting what he had said.
''How am I supposed to get him out of there, huh?'' Subconsciously, he was already thinking about how to take out the sword. But a momentter Hammer shook his head hard.
"No! That''s very dangerous! I can get a severe punishment from the Senior Council and Samuel if I do that!"
~~~
Chapter 169 The Ruin Again
?
Clyde chose to walk towards the portal first instead of going to the hotel where Samuel and his party were.
He couldn''t tell exactly what time it was by looking up at the sky because there was no sun. All he could see was a dark, starry sky as if in this Fortress there was only night.
But fortunately, there is a clock in his living quarter that shows the time. Clyde had no idea how the clock worked or what its uracy was based on.
The clock was the same as the one he had found on Earth but did it show the same time? Clyde had no idea about that.
That''s quite worrying because it''s possible that the time Clyde saw was manipted.
Besides, he also doesn''t know why the sky in this ce is always dark. Could it be that the goal was indeed to make the inhabitants of this ce oblivious to time?
"Good morning."
A calm voice greeted him suddenly. Clyde looked sideways in the direction the voice came from and saw the figure of an Elf who was wearing sses, and had blonde hair.
The Elf smiled at him while approaching him. "Let''s walk together to the portal."
Clyde was still looking at the Elf with a suspicious look. He didn''t even bother to hide it.
The bespectacled Elf chuckled. "Sorry if I''m being rude. My name is Maethion."
Clyde just nodded while still looking at him as if to convey that, what he wanted to know from the Elf wasn''t his name. But why did he suddenly approach him?
Noticing Clyde''s gaze demanding an exnation, the bespectacled Elf said. "I just want to know someone who has made a spectacle in this Fortress the past few days."
Clyde started walking after hearing his answer. But he didn''t say anything.
"You really are amazing. I''ve rarely seen someone who recovers and awakens Mana as fast as you," said Mathion.
"Who are you?" Clyde asked back in a sharp tone. What Maethion said earlier did not answer what he wanted to know at all.
"I''m just another resident of this Fortress," Maethion answered.
"Really?" Clyde raised an eyebrow as he looked at him. "I don''t think you''re just an ordinary residence."
"Why do you think so?"
"Because people here stay away from me. You suddenly approach me out of nowhere so it feels suspicious."
Maethion chuckled. "So you are aware that people here stay away from you."
"Just say what you want. We''re almost at the portal," Clyde said.
"Oh, you''re right!" Maethion looked surprised. "Well, then. Instead of you asking me, I''ll ask you. Do you have anything you want?"
Clyde turned and looked at Mathion. His gaze showed that he couldn''t believe what he had just heard from the bespectacled Elf.
"I''m serious. I will try to help you," Maethion said with a smile.
Clyde of course still couldn''t believe him. There was only one possibility why this Elf stranger would suddenly offer help without asking.
"Nothing is free in this world. You ask me so I will indebted to you?" Clyde said.
"No. I''m serious." Maethion looked at Clyde with firm eyes and a glint of seriousness.
Somehow, Clyde felt that he was serious. But he just couldn''t believe it. Surely one day this Elf will ask for something in return.
"No, thanks. I''m fine," Clyde said then elerated his walking pace.
Maethion chased him and said. "How about I help you get your sword back?"
Hearing that made Clyde stop and look at him with a surprised look. "How did you know about that?"
Then remember Hammer''s words that said that there are groups who can know many things in this fortress.
"Are you one of the Senior Council?"
It wasn''t hard for Clyde to link two and two together. This bespectacled Elf came out of the blue and approached him, saying that he would offer to help, and revealed that he knew about his sword.
Maethion smiled, then raised his sses with a finger. "Yes. So you know that I have authority here."
When he turned towards the portal, Clyde saw that Samuel''s party had arrived.
He turned to Maethion. "We''ll talkter. How can I meet you?"
"There''s ake if you walk east. We''ll meet there when you''re ready."
Clyde nodded curtly. Maethion replied with a short nod as well. Then the bespectacled Elf walked away.
Clyde walked towards the portal where Samuel''s party was waiting for him. Without taking too long, they entered the portal and returned to the Ruin world that had turned into a desert.
~~~
When they arrived at the Ruin, they immediately spread their eyes around for possible enemies that mighte.
"Let''s just run and avoid all those worms," ??Samuel said.
"Can we do it?" Clyde sounded doubtful considering how the worms could move so fast and smooth in the sand.
"We can run as much as we can and fight those that are very close to us. I''m sure the worms won''t be able to enter the city," Samuel replied.
"Or," Clyde said. "I can kill them the second they appear like before so you guys don''t have to worry about anything."
Clyde drew his sword with a calm and confident face. He walked ahead of them as if he wanted to challenge the worms.
Samuel keep silent but he gritted his teeth. His eyes let out a strange red glint that seemed dangerous when he saw Clyde''s back walking in front of him arrogantly.
"Isn''t he being arrogant?" Leyan said, pouring oil into the fire.
"But you know that he can kill those worms easily, right?" Kiara said. "It was our advantage to bring him along. So I don''t think there''s a problem with that."
Kiara started walking forward, the others followed her and didn''t seem too bothered by Clyde''s attitude. Unlike Samuel who was still grinding his teeth.
Not long after that, Samuel took a deep breath and let it out. He also loosened his grip on the shaft of his spear which was tightening without him realizing it.
Samuel walked after the others with a feeling he had kept to himself.
~~~
Chapter 170 A Scorpion This Time
?
Their foot makes a rustling sound when they tread on the sand. The sun was already hot enough even when it was not too high.
''Looks like the clock is pretty urate.''
Clyde looked up at the sun and saw that his position was not very high. Based on his memory, the sun''s position was like that when the time entered 8 or 9 am.
''Maybe this time the clock was urate. But I can''t let my guard down because one day the clock in the Fortress may be manipted.''
They walked a little further from the portal without any interference from the worms. This is quite strange because yesterday the worms should have arrived and surrounded them right about now.
Even so, the six people remained vignt with the thought that worms could still emerge at any time. And they can''t afford to be too rxed about it.
Clyde was still walking in front of the group clutching his sword tightly. Because the worms had not appeared, Clyde couldn''t help but think again about Maethion, the mysterious Elf who approached him.
In Clyde''s eyes, Maethion seemed like a devious and cunning character. With eyes sparkling full of slyness behind his sses.
Clyde knew that the Elf must have other intentions and goals behind his desire to help him. He knows that nothing is free in this universe, so he can''t always escape this situation.
He is still quite weak now and he is aware of it. Even when he already has an extraordinary advantagepared to his peers.
But the opponents he has to face are people who have obtained the powers of the Celestials, and eventually the Celestials themselves.
So, it can''t be helped that he needs as much help as he can. And for that, he has to do something to pay for the help offered by those who have more power than him.
With a long sigh, Clyde thought. ''I can ept the help Maethion offers and do the work he offerster. Moreover, he was one of the Senior Councils who came to me first. If I can get his favor, it can be a good help in the future.''
Clyde finally arrived at his conclusion. It was at that moment that he noticed movement in the sand several meters in front of him.
"Watch out!" Clyde said.
Her voice instantly alerted the others to a fighting stance.
"What is it?" Kei who was behind him asked.
Clyde only replied by pointing at a ce a few in front of him where he saw the movement. Kei and the others who also saw the movement in the sand widened their eyes.
"Worms?" Leyan asked while creating an arrow.
Samuel frowned staring at the sand. "No," he said. "It looks bigger than worms."
"Oh shit!" Kiara felt her heart sink. "You''re right."
The movement in the sand expanded rapidly. Within a few seconds, the moving sand covered a radius of about ten meters, indicating just howrge something was beneath it.
"It looks like our enemy now not worms anymore!" Leyan said in a worried tone. He had already aimed his arrow and was ready to aim.
Clyde still shows a calm face even though the monsters they will face are much bigger than the previous worms. And the monster may be also stronger because the worms don''t appear. After all, they seem to be avoiding that monster.
However, Clyde only saw it as a source of Exp and a tool to test his abilities.
Samuel stood next to him and said. "How do you think? You think you can still handle it yourself?"
"I don''t know. Maybe," Clyde replied with an unchanging expression.
Samuel nced at him with a sharp corner of his eye. But immediately shifted his gaze to the front again before Clyde realized it.
The sand in front of it was burst open by a very strong force. The scene looked as if something had exploded under the sand.
Then a momentter, when the sand fell, they could see what figure had been hiding under the sand all along.
It is a giant scorpion.
The monster had hard skin the same color as the sand. Its pincers appearrger than they should be so they are disproportionate to its body size.
The giant scorpion''s tail curls over its body. And just like its pincers, the tail looks disproportionate because it''s so long.
The tail is also flexible making it look like a snake is growing on the scorpion''s back rather than a tail.
The scorpion is ten meters long, its tail is about three meters and it keeps dancing over its body.
"Shit!" Leyan cursed with widened eyes.
Only he was able to make a sound when the others were still trapped in a daze by the monster''s appearance.
Clyde was not as shocked as the others. He observed the giant scorpion monster and tried to use his [Skill: Inspection].
[ Inspection (Lv3) is activated! ]
It turns out The skill still functions properly.
<<>>
[ Name: Giant Desert Scorpion. ]
[ Affiliation: Desert Monsters. ]
[ Level: 50 ]
[ Skills: Venomous Tail (Lv.7) ]
[ Stats: Strength (9/10), Stamina (10/10), Agility (4/10), Magic Power (-/10) ]
[ Weaknesses: Lightning. ]
[ Affinities: Poison ]
[ Rating: B (D) ]
Clyde grinned. It was as he had previously expected that the monsters in this Ruin posed no threat to him with all of his Stats and Skills already far beyond the standards of the Selection Stage.
All of these monsters were created for the purpose of the Selection Stage so their Stats would only be at max level 10.
Samuel noticed that Clyde was grinning. He frowned in surprise. From what he observed on Clyde''s face the boy seemed to be able to see the entirety of the monster in a matter of seconds. And he also already knows that he can handle the monster without any problems.
''But why didn''t he say anything?'' Samuel was confused.
Meanwhile, the giant scorpion started advancing toward them. The four pairs of legs move in unison across the sand without difficulty.
However, because of its hard and thick shell, the giant scorpion''s movements are quite slow. Its long tail danced incessantly.
*CLICK!*
*CLICK!*
*CLICK!*
...
The two scorpion pincers shed together creating a cking sound that added to the party''s tension. The loud sound of the two pincers indicated how strong the pincers were.
"What''s the n?" Leyan asked.
"I don''t think we need too many ns," said Clyde in a calm tone despite the giant scorpion that was closing in with murderous intent.
"You think you can kill it?" he asked.
"Yes. I think I can kill it," Clyde replied without hesitation. "You can give me support."
Kiara, Haru, and Kei exchanged nces. While Samuel just stared at Clyde in silence with a look that was difficult to trante.
"Alright, whatever. If you feel you can kill it, you can do it," said Leyan. He was more than happy to just provide support instead of attacking the giant scorpion directly.
Clyde nodded. ''Then, I will take my Exp now.''
Clyde lunged at the scorpion monster with his sword at his side. His eyes shed, excited.
His lips also formed a grin but since he had his back turned to them, Samuel and his party couldn''t see the look on his face.
"We''re really going to let him handle the monster by himself?" Kei was worried seeing Clyde moving away from them and getting closer to the monster.
"Yes. Just let him handle it!" Leyan said. "What do you think, Sam?"
Samuel said. "Yes. Let him handle it. He said himself if he could do it. We just have to provide support. Let''s go."
They also began to approach the giant scorpion but at a slower pace than Clyde.
Now Samuel understood how Lahn felt. She must have envied Clyde''s strength. Inside her heart, the desire to be strong and then take revenge on the Celestials was bubbling.
Yet, she can''t get as strong as Clyde and can only wait for she doesn''t know how long to get enough strength.
That must have made her bitter and angry. Just like how Samuel felt right now.
Before, Samuel had never felt that way because he knew he was one of the strongest in the Sivagadh Fortress and his growth was fast. Samuel was sure that it wouldn''t take him long to get enough to fight the Celestials.
However, now in front of him was a figure who could achieve what he had trained so hard for years in just a few days. And he will surpass him in no time.
Samuel -- who wants to quickly avenge his lover -- of course, will feel envy. Especially when Clyde said that he just got his strength without him knowing it.
Samuel felt that it was all just his bullshit. He knew that Clyde must know the reason why he could be that strong and hide it for his own benefit.
While staring at Clyde''s back who was already right in front of the giant scorpion, a red glint appeared in Samuel''s eyes without him realizing it.
~~~
Chapter 171 Finish It Alone
?
*KKKRRIIIIKKKHHH!!!*
No one thought that the giant scorpion could make such a loud shriek. No one had ever heard the sound of a scorpion before nor did anyone know that the scorpion could make sounds.
But in this world, there wasn''t anything that could really surprise them anymore. So they could all quickly return from that brief shock.
Clyde is getting closer to the giant scorpion. With his Stats, he was sure that he would be able to kill that monster in a few seconds. Especially when he knows that its weakness is lightning which is one of its strongest strengths.
However, Clyde knew that he could not show his strength more than this. At least for now. He had shown too much to provoke suspicious nces and confused questions from Samuel''s party.
Clyde of course realized what was going on back there. It''s not that he is oblivious so he doesn''t mention their suspicious nces at him. But because he knew that it would be troublesome.
So Clyde acts like he doesn''t know anything and sticks to his previous reasoning. About how he got his powers, Clyde always said that he didn''t know how he got them.
Clyde saw a ssh of dark green liquid at the end of the giant scorpion''s tail.
''That looks dangerous.''
A momentter the giant scorpion shot a thick green liquid from the tip of its tail. Clyde who had expected an attack toe immediately dodged to the side.
The liquid fell where he had been standing and instantly made the sand it hit emit greenish smoke. A sizzling sound like something scalding after being hit by a hot object was also heard.
¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á---n?¦Ía| §ãom Clyde immediately knew that it was a Skill called Venomous Tail. He could see from the effect it had on the sand that the attack was quite dangerous. Even though his Stats were already high, Clyde thought it would be better if he avoided it.
Unexpectedly, the giant scorpion did something that shocked everyone there. It flexed its four pairs of legs and then jumped ten meters into the air.
Clyde widened his eyes. Those little legs turned out to be able to push the disproportionatelyrge body up so high into the air.
The scorpion was now jumping at him. About to fall on him with its hard big body.
"He can''t possibly avoid it!" Kiara said while directing her wand to the scorpion which was in the process of descending. Yet she knew that she would not have time to do it.
Clyde however, still kept a calm face as if the giant body of the scorpion wrapped in a hard shell was no big deal.
Because it isn''t.
Clyde dashed sideways at incredible speed. The scorpion''s body fell onto the sand where he had been standing, making a loud thump and sendingrge amounts of sand flying into the air.
Clyde immediately turned when he realized that the giant scorpion hadnded. His sword was gripped tightly in his hand. He shot up at the same speed as when he dodged it.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde arrived beside the scorpion and immediately swung his sword.
*CRACK!*
The de instantly created a crack in the scorpion''s skin even though Clyde only used a fraction of his strength behind the swing.
The scorpion couldn''t turn its body towards Clyde. However, the same cannot be said with its tail.
The snake-like tail shot towards Clyde very quickly with a ssh of dark green liquid at its tip. Clyde immediately raised his sword just in time to block the tail.
*CLANG!*
The tail bounced back as soon as it hit Clyde''s sword. On the other hand, Clyde just stood still, unfazed in his ce.
''It would be better if I cut off the tail first,'' Clyde thought.
He then kicked the sand to throw his body over the scorpion''s body. But the giant scorpion had already turned its body and swung its pincers towards Clyde who was still in the air.
Clyde saw the pincering. He swung his sword and sent away a pincer that was almost five times his body size.
*CLANG!*
"Did you guys see that?" Leyan asked.
No one answered his question because they clearly saw it and were now shocked.
"Damnit! I know that it''s just a monster from the Selection Stage. But it still, our strength reset once we get out of there," Leyan said through gritted teeth. "We have to train again to restore our strength. Yet it looks like Clyde didn''t experience that damn reset!"
What Leyan wasining about was true when they saw Clyde. And actually, it also represented the feelings of all of them, especially Samuel who was staring at the battle with his hands tightly gripping the shaft of his spear.
Clydended on the giant scorpion''s body. It let out a squeaky voice like before, probably feeling upset because it couldn''t do anything even though it knew Clyde was on its back.
All the scorpion could do was use its tail which could move fast enough to attack Clyde.
The giant scorpion released a torrent of dark green venom from its tail toward Clyde. But Clyde was able to avoid it so that the venom hit its hard shell.
*CSSSHHHH!!!*
Clyde turned his head when he heard a hissing sound. It turns out that the venom melts the scorpion''s shell. Clyde didn''t expect that its venom could injure its own body.
Clyde ran towards the tail while torrents of venom kepting towards him. Clyde dodged all of them with agility until he finally arrived in front of the tail.
After arriving near its body, Clyde realized that the tail was not covered by a hard shell like the rest of its body. That''s what makes the tail can move so fast.
Clyde swung his sword horizontally without much force. And shing its tail easily.
*CRAATT!*
The tail was severed from its body as green liquid sshed around. However, Clyde had backed away just in time before the liquid could hit him.
The scorpion let out a shriek full of pain as its tail fell onto the sand. Now it doesn''t have a weapon that can move fast enough anymore and killing it will be much easier.
Clyde then ran towards the scorpion''s head. Samuel''s party members stopped even trying to do anything to help him after they saw what he was doing.
They just stared dazed when Clyde fought with the giant scorpion that made them tremble earlier.
Clyde jumped and then turned his sword down. Hended while thrusting his sword into the scorpion''s shell that was hit by its venom before.
*CRACK!*
A huge crack was created instantly, a momentter the shell broke and let Clyde''s sword prate its flesh.
*CRAATT!*
*KHIIIEEEEERRKKKHH!!!*
The scorpion once again let out that shriek full of pain. No blood came out of its body even though Clyde had stabbed it.
Clyde decided to end it right now.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 30) is activated! ]
*JJRZZZTTT!!!*
Bluish-white lightning shot out around Clyde''s body and flowed through his de into the giant scorpion''s body. The lightning instantly spread to the body of the scorpion.
The scorpion was convulsing violently as lightning tried to break its hard shell from within.
*CRACK!*
*CRACK!*
*CRACK!*
...
The shell was cracking at several points. A momentter lightning broke out of the shell and streaked all around.
The giant scorpion was still convulsing violently for a while before abruptly stopping. And when Clyde confirmed that its dead, he deactivated the skill and let the scorpion''s lifeless body fall into the sand.
Clyde jumped down from the scorpion''s body. A notification saying that he had leveled up appeared.
When he turned to Samuel and his party, he saw that they were just standing still with almost the same expression.
Leyan, Kiara, Kei, and Haru seemed to widen their eyes. Their jaws look as if they could drop into the sand at any moment.
However, Samuel seemed different. He stared at Clyde with clenched jaws and sharp eyes. The grip on the spear shaft was tight.
Clyde didn''t care about their reactions and took a look back at the body of the giant scorpion that was lying helplessly.
''That scorpion shell should be able to make something good if I give it to Hammer.''
He killed the scorpion by pouring lightning into its body so there are still lots of parts of the shell left uncatched.
"Hey, you guys want some new armor?" Clyde asked Samuel and his party. "Help me remove this scorpion shell."
There are more than enough shells in this giant scorpion''s body for all of them. Of course, Leyan, Kiara, Kei, and Haru wouldn''t think too much before going to Clyde. After all, the scorpion is dead.
Samuel followed behind them with a stern expression on his face. But then he lost that expression, returning to his usual face.
They started peeling the scorpion''s shell. It turns out, it''s easier to do after it''s dead.
~~~
Chapter 172 A Little Bit Of Reminisce
?
They need to spend about fifteen minutes peeling the giant scorpion''s shell because of its size. With this many shells, Hammer can certainly make strong armor for the six of them.
Leyan, Kiara, Kei, and Haru admit that theyck good equipment. But with all the expeditions demanding their full attention, they couldn''t afford to spend time scavenging for materials.
But once they saw this opportunity right before their eyes, of course, they wouldn''t miss it. Especially when Clyde had killed this giant scorpion first without causing them any trouble.
Leyan didn''t see any problem with that. However, Kiara and Kei felt something else.
"Is it okay, Clyde?" Kei asked while looking at Clyde who was busy piling up the pieces of shells he had collected.
"What?" Clyde asked, he nced slightly at Kei but then continued his work.
"You''re doing all the work now. You even killed those worms alone before."
"It''s fine," said Clyde. ''After all, I gained a lot of experience from them.''
Hearing Kei''s words, Leyan and Samuel turned to Clyde.
"You sure?" Leyan asked. "You make us feel in debt."
"Don''t mind it. If I need helpter, I can just ask for your help, right?" Clyde said it to make the situation easier for him. If he didn''t say that then he thought they would continue to feel ufortable because of that indebted feeling.
So he said that he would ask for their help someday. That way they can feel that they will have a chance to repay that feeling of indebtedness.
While in fact, Clyde doesn''t mind at all about their feelings. He only killed those monsters out of his own will and for his own personal gain.
"We''ll pile the shells here first. Then we''ll pick them up when we get home," said Samuel.
"That''s a good idea," said Clyde, nodding.
They collected all the shells they had peeled from the giant scorpion. It left the scorpion naked and showing dry flesh ckened by Clyde''s roasting lightning.
Samuel took a nce one more time at the scorpion''s charred body. He saw the amount of damage that Clyde had caused to it.
His eyes narrowed calctingly. Just how did he get this kind of power? Samuel thought that if he wanted to know about it, Clyde would never tell him.
So he had to ask people who knew him from the Selection Stage.
''I have to ask them.''
Samuel walked after his friends towards the city and they started again the same process as yesterday.
~~~
A long sigh escaped from her mouth. Her breath turned into a mist in the morning that was not too bright.
Her eyes stared towards the horizon ahead where all she could see were gardens of flowers and lush green ins.
This sight is very beautiful, for Asqa all of this will always be beautiful. However, her sight seemed to have only been filled with ck-and-white scenery ever since she left the Selection Stage.
At that time she and Sonya waited in a room that looked like a temple. The room wasposed of brownstones that looked very old.
That time the two of them came earlier than the others. When Asqa expresses her concern about why Clyde and the others didn''te right behind them, Sonya tells her that she doesn''t have to worry because it''s all over.
So Asqa dispelled her worries. A moment after that a double door also made of stone opened in front of them. From outside there is bright sunlight in the room.
They both decide to leave the room. As soon as they came out, what greeted them was the scene of an empty and vast in.
However, the vacancy did notst long. Figures descended from the sky in front of the two of them. And since then their lives have changed.
"Asqa!"
A voice came from behind her along with fast approaching footsteps.
Asqa woke up from her daydream about the past. She turned her head and found the figure of a tall man with blond hair approaching her.
"What are you doing here?" asked the man.
"Joshua." Asqa smiled faintly. "I didn''t do anything, really. You know this view is good so I just enjoyed it."
Joshua looked ahead, in the direction where Asqa''s eyes had been. The sight of the ins and flower gardens was something he had seen for so long that he no longer felt anything when he saw them.
But of course, it was different from Asqa who had just arrived here.
"What are you thinking?" Joshua asked, not believing her answer before.
Asqa was silent for a few moments while staring at the ground. Then she answered. "Nothing."
Joshua stared at her silently with his blue eyes, trying to see into her thoughts. However, he couldn''t find anything.
Joshua knows a little bit about Asqa''s past. He knew she must be thinking about that man who suddenly failed to get out of the Selection Stage due to the betrayalmitted by the people who were supposed to be hisrades.
It made Archangel Uriel so angry that she destroyed some part of her domain when she arrived back here.
The Archangel couldn''t kill them right away when the man who betrayed Clyde was recruited by a powerful Celestials from Olympus. At least not openly.
But the Archangel saw Asqa. Based on reasons that Joshua doesn''t know about, Uriel chooses Asqa to recruit her.
And here she is, bing one of the Servant Archangel Uriel that she relies on the most. Asqa was able to show how capable she was during the one month time since she arrived. Therefore, making her a servant that Uriel acknowledges.
Joshua, as the Archangel''s most loyal servant and have been serving her for so long will support whatever his master does. So he also acknowledges Asqa and treats her well.
"You have a task to do. It''s an order from the Archangel," Joshua said.
Asqa frowned. "Task?"
"Yes." Josh nodded. "This task is important, so prepare yourself."
Asqa swallowed. She realized the scale of the task Joshua called ''important''. So she can''t help but feel nervous.
~~~
Chapter 173 Teammates
?
Asqa swallowed with a nervous feeling that started to rise in her heart. This is not the first time she has carried out assignments from the Archangel. But she has never done anything that is considered important.
"What should I do?" Asqa asked.
Joshua cocked his head toward a direction behind his back. "Follow me."
So Asqa immediately followed Joshua and they started walking away from that ce.
During the walk, Asqa still continued to feel nervous. Joshua realized what she was feeling from the look on her face.
"It''s okay. You won''t do it alone," Joshua said. "There are three other people who will be going with you. The Archangel just wants to give you more experience in carrying out missions because it wille in handy in the future."
Asqa nods but she doesn''t say anything. She had an idea of ??what happened in this ce called The All Territory.
All Celestials try topete with each other so it''s only natural that she is required to increase her experience and abilities.
Joshua took her to a hut located not far from where she had been sitting. In the small hut, there were already three people talking to each other. Two men and one woman.
One of the two men was tall and thin. His appearance is quite standard besides his pale skin.
The other man was big and wore a sleeveless white shirt so that his biceps stood out.
While the only woman among them looks small. She is only slightly taller than Asqa and has shoulder-length silver hair.
The two of them immediately noticed the approaching presence of Joshua and Asqa.
They immediately stopped their chat and changed their attitude to be more polite, possibly because of Joshua''s presence next to Asqa.
The three of them immediately stood up in a respectful manner like soldiers who saw their general approaching.
"These are your teammates," Joshua said while looking at Asqa. "They already have enough experience carrying out the Archangel''s mission so you can trust them."
Asqa showed a small smile while nodding. Then she turned to them. The two men smiled at her but the silver-haired woman just stared at her nkly.
"I will let you two get to know each other now," Joshua said. "In a few days, you will go together to carry out the mission. So, prepare yourselves well."
After saying that Joshua left from their presence. Asqa felt a little awkward with the new team she joined. But because this is the task of the Archangel, Asqa will try to carry it out properly.
"I hope we can work together well," said Asqa. "My name is Asqa Starr. Nice to meet you."
"My name is Alessio," the lean man answered then pointed at his male friend. "This is Colmano. And this one is Cuzia. d to finally meet you. We have heard of your reputation in this ce."
Asqa still wore her little smile that just looked like she was doing it out of politeness. Asqa was not the least bit proud of her good-sounding reputation. Because she feels that basically all that she is able to do now is not because of her own efforts. But because of certain someone.
"Thank you," Asqa replied briefly.
"How about we start training together? That way we can cooperate better when the time for carrying out the missiones." Alessio made a suggestion.
"I think that''s a good idea," said Asqa.
"Nice. Let''s go."
They left the ce to do the exercises. On the way to the training ground, Cuzia just stared at Asqa with a look that was hard to decipher.
Alessio said that she didn''t need to worry and think too much about whatever Cuzia said or did. Most likely she will say or do something that offended her.
Alessio said that it was Cuzia''s true nature so he first apologized to Asqa for all that. Asqa, of course, felt ufortable at first. But in the end, she could feel better after hearing Alession''s exnation.
''Looks like I have to be more patient from now on.''
Asqa had already guessed what kind of difficulties she would face in the future because of Cuzia.
But after the Selection Stage, her nature that previously couldn''t stand such a situation had changed. She was sure that she would be able to endure all of Cuzia''s annoying behavior.
~~~
Time keeps running. They went through every building and killed the monsters that were in the ruins of this city. Samuel said that they had to move as fast as possible so they moved faster.
Luckily there were no strong monsters they encountered. So they don''t need to take a lot of time beforepleting the sweep of a lot of buildings.
After that part of the day was over, they returned to where Samuel could open the portal. They didn''t forget to bring the shells of the giant scorpion they had peeled earlier.
Samuel opened a portal and went inside carrying all the shells. When they returned to Sivagadh Fortress, they went straight to Hammer''s smithy.
As they had expected, Hammer''s men who were at work opened their eyes wide at the sight of all the shells they were carrying.
Hammer came out of his room and showed the same reaction.
"What are you guys carrying?!"
Clyde exined that the hard shells were from the giant monster he had just killed. Clyde didn''t bother to go into more detail because he knew Hammer wouldn''t listen. His eyes were sparkling staring at the shells.
So Clyde and the others put all those shells in front of Hammer and his men.
"You can make us something nice with these shells, right?" Clyde asked.
"D-Definitely!" Hamme replied. Then he raised his head to Clyde. "Trust me! You will get something good!"
Hammer said it with such excitement that Clyde couldn''t bring himself to say that anything he made would be inferior to his equipment on the Selection Stage.
"Yes, thank you." Instead, Clyde said that and left from there.
~~~
Chapter 174 D-Day
?
Clyde left the room where Hammer was. But as soon as he got outside as if remembering something, Clyde turned around and faced Samuel and his party.
"I''ll go first," Clyde said. "Tomorrow, we do as usual?"
"Yeah," Samuel replied curtly.
Clyde nodded. "OK."
He this time walked away from them without saying anything else. For a few moments, Samuel was still staring at his back with an unknown look.
After a moment, Samuel shook his head. As if to expel an idea that had just crossed his head. An idea he definitely didn''t like because he immediately wanted to get rid of it.
"Hey, you can actually make something out of this?" Leyan asked Hammer who was busy sorting out the shells.
"Of course," Hammer answered curtly. His attention was still focused on the shells so all that was happening around him was just a passing background.
"How strong do you think these shells are as equipment?" Kiara asked with a curious tone.
"Hmm..." Hammer mumbled. "Strong enough. Just think about me making Grade B armor like in the Selection Stage."
Hammer gave an answer that didn''t sound too serious. Because he was still busy sorting out the shells in front of him. But that answer was enough to make Kiara''s eyes widen.
"A Grade B armor?!" Kiara said. Then looked behind her. "That''s not too bad is it?"
His gaze was particrly fixed on Samuel who clearly needed stronger armor more than her or the others. However, Kiara only saw Samuel who was lost in thought in another direction.
"Sam, you okay?" Kiara asked.
The question snapped Samuel from his reverie. "O-Oh, yeah. I''m fine." Samuel said with a smile. "We''re going to need the armor. Right now, I think now we should get some rest."
After that Samuel left first from there. Leaving his friends in a state of confusion. They exchanged nces with one another.
"What''s wrong with him?" Kiara asked Leyan.
"I think he''s fine," said Leyan. But there was still uncertainty in his heart. He wanted to believe that Samuel was just fine but Leyan had also felt something strange about him since earlier.
Leyan saw the worried look on his friends'' faces. He then took a chuckle out to lighten the mood.
"Don''t worry. Maybe he''s just a little tired because of today. Let''s get some rest first so that tomorrow we can return to the desert with full energy," said Leyan.
They finally left the smithy, Hammer. Behind them, Hammer immediately gave his men instructions to get to work.
The sound of shing metal sounded exciting despite the night alreadying. The workers at the smithy were so excited about the good materials they got that they didn''t think about fatigue and worked all night long.
~~~
As soon as tomorrow arrived, Clyde was back on a mission to prepare a wee for the party that would be sent by Archangel Uriel.
He thought back about Maethion''s invitation to talk to him. But for now, he didn''t have time to do that. Clyde of course couldn''t just walk away from this expedition or it would make the others suspicious.
So, Clyde decided to pass up the opportunity until the time came. After all, he wasn''t so sure that Mathion would help him for free. And thinking about what he should do for him so he can get his sword back makes Clyde not too eager about meeting that Elf.
Clyde and Samuel''s party entered the portal and did what they had been doing for the past two days. This time no big monsters appeared like that giant scorpion.
A few days passed just like that. They entered the Ruin in the morning, fought monsters and set traps, then returned home when it was dark.
During those few days, severalrge monsters appeared. They encountered the giant scorpion once again and Clyde was able to kill it alone like before.
Then they also met a giant mummy. The mummy was three meters tall and its arms were so long they reached the ground. Its body is wrapped in a white cloth dirty with dust so it turns brown.
The giant mummy is proven to provide a slightly higher challenge than the giant scorpion.
Samuel and his party had to start moving too because the giant mummy could attack them even when it was facing Clyde. So they work together to kill the giant mummy.
They continued to do the routine until finally, the one-week time was almost over. They decided to return earlier to be able to rest a bit more and prepare themselves for tomorrow.
"Let''s go home and rest first. I think the armor that Hammer made is finished," Samuel said.
"Really?" Kei asked with eyes sparkling with joy. She felt she would be a little safer with the new armor.
Samuel nodded. "Yes. I met him this morning and he said excitedly that the armor he made for us is finished."
"Wow, that Dwarf is so hardworking, huh," Leyanmented.
They returned to the Fortress and then went to their respective residences. However, Samuel decided to have a little talk with Clyde.
"Hey, Clyde."
Clyde who was already walking away stopped and turned towards Samuel. "What?"
Samuel walked up to him and said. "Is there something you want to say before we fight the party that Archangel Uriel sent?"
Clyde frowned, not knowing why Samuel asked that question.
"No," Clyde said.
"I have to admit that your power is amazing." Samuel looked seriously at Clyde. "Are you really don''t want to tell us how to obtain such power? We are here so desperate to get revenge on those Celestials."
Clyde was silent for a few moments. Samuel hoped in his heart that Clyde would give him the answer he wanted. Although rejection will be more likely for him to get.
"I''m sorry," Clyde said, shaking his head. "It''s not that I don''t want to help you. But I don''t even know why I got this kind of power."
Clyde isn''tpletely lying, though. He was just a student who filled out a survey given by a game developer at that time.
He didn''t know, that the three answers he gave at that time would determine his destiny to be like this. Clyde knew he couldn''t give Samuel an answer like that so he didn''t.
eaglesnov?1,§ão§® "So you don''t want to answer it, huh," said Samuel. His tone started to sound colder than usual.
That of course, did not escape Clyde''s attention. He noticed the change in his voice and looked at Samuel.
"It''s not that I don''t want to tell you. But I really don''t know," said Clyde. "So, that''s my answer. Do you still not believe it?"
Samuel sighed. "It''s not that I don''t believe it. But as I said before, we are desperate here."
"But I can''t help you."
Samuel and Clyde stared at each other for a few moments. Clyde tried to understand what was behind Samuel''s gaze. And he could only realize one thing, that Samuel was starting to have a little bit of animosity towards him.
It''s not something Clyde can afford right now. They must immediately go on an expedition and fight the party sent by Uriel. They have to focus first on that matter.
"You and your friends are strong enough. And we should focus on fighting Uriel''s party first for now, right?" said Clyde.
Samuel looked away from Clyde, then sighed. "You are right."
The short answer came out of Samuel''s mouth. Clyde didn''t know the meaning behind it.
Maybe he had given up looking for answers about his power, or maybe he decided to focus first on the task at hand, which is defeating the party that Uriel sent.
"Let''s talk about thister when we finish the mission to retrieve the artifact." Clyde turned and walked away from him. Clyde''s steps seemed to be getting faster because he wanted to avoid any questions that might arise from Samuel.
Samuel exhaled and gritted his teeth when he saw Clyde getting further away.
"He''s right. I have to focus on this task first."
And so, Samuel walked towards the hotel where he and his friends were staying. He held on to the hope that Clyde might give him something when the task was done.
~~~
Finally, the day they had been waiting for with anxiety and pounding chests came. The six people entered the portal before the sun had even begun to shine on this ruined world.
Without waiting too long, they immediately dashed toward the city as soon as they exited the portal.
No monsters greeted their arrival. Because most of the monsters had been killed.
They immediately shot towards the buildings and hid. Waiting for their target to appear.
Every second feels so long. The sun began to creep up in the eastern sky until it finally illuminated the city.
It was then that a golden-colored portal appeared. From within the portal, four people emerged fully equipped with their respective weapons.
"So the Tome is here?" Colmano asked while spreading his eyes around.
"Yes," answered Alessio. "Let''s go."
~~~
Chapter 175 Arrival
?
As soon as Asqa entered the party of three people, she found that Alessio was the leader among them.
As someone who has just joined, Asqa only has to listen and obey his orders. It wasn''t a problem for her because she was used to that situation at the Selection Stage.
''So I joined a party again, huh.''
She thought about how she had a hard time surviving and epting everything in the Selection Stage. At that time Asqa only felt that she was a burden in the group led by Clyde.
While her other friends struggle to fight monsters and protect her.
But it didn''tst long. As the days passed with increasingly dangerous events, Asqa was finally able to learn how to control herself. Until finally she can be a useful member of her group.
Asqa didn''t talk much to her new party members. She didn''t know if they would be a permanent or temporary party.
Even so, she knew that in this party she had to fight as hard as she could so as not to hinder them.
Throughout the few days of practice, Asqa showed good performance with all the support and healing skills that she has. Although from the outside Asqa looks like a clumsy and timid girl who can''t do anything right, Asqa shows that she can work well with them.
Asqa uses all the experience she gained in the Selection Stage to be able to know when to hide and when to show up to provide support. Thanks to her, the party members were confident that their fighting abilities had increased several times.
The three people got something beyond their expectations. And now they think that Asqa''s presence is something important in Their team.
"This is going to be a very, very easy mission," said Colmano. His eyes spread to gaze at the area around them.
"Why?" Asqa asked.
"You see any monsters here?" Colmano asked with a wide grin on his mouth.
"Oh." Asqa looked around her. She didn''t find any monstersing to meet them either. It was something odd rather than a sign that their mission would be easy.
"Don''t you think this is even weirder?" Cuzia said.
"Yeah, I think so too," Alessio said with a frown. His eyes darted around the same as Colmano''s. He even held his sword and was ready to draw it at any time.
But it''s not like what Alessio had expected, no monsters appeared. Even though this Ruin is supposed to be having some high-level danger.
"Huh! About time!" Colmano shouted as he raised his great battle axe forward.
Several meters in front of them, there are dozens of dry zombies marching toward them. Their movements were slow and it looks like they didn''t pose any threat.
"It''s still weird." Alessio still looked unsure.
"And why is that?" Colmano asked with obvious curiosity on his face.
"They are just weak monsters. There should be stronger monsters appearing," Cuzia replied instead of Alessio.
Asqa just watched them both. She, of course, already understood what Alessio meant, which wasn''t too difficult to understand either.
Alessio felt suspicious because only weak monsters appeared even though he had predicted that they would be up against a lot of monsters that were quite strong from the moment when they had just entered here. But since only weak monsters appeared, all of this was unnatural.
It showed that among them, Colmano''s intelligence level was the lowest even though he had the biggest muscles. Colmano also has the most raw power of them.
''I guess we can''t expect to have it all, huh,'' Asqa thought while looking at Colmano.
They cleared up the dry zombies easily and quickly. In fact, all of that was only done by Colmano alone.
They entered the ruined city. Alessio summoned a map that appeared in his vision. Within the map was a dot that kept shing in the interior of the city, indicating the location they needed to go to.
"So, the Tome is under this sand. We have to dig up this sand and then destroy the roof of the building where it is stored," said Alessio.
e¦Áglesn?¦Íel "I hope there will be monsters thate to and greet us!" Colmano shouted excitedly. He seemed to issue a challenge to all the monsters around to attack.
"Could you stop being an idiot for a while?" Cuzia looked at Colmano with an annoyed expression on her face.
Colmano shook his head apanied by a groan as if it was Cuzia who was an idiot and not him. "You don''t understand the meaning of warriors like us at all, do you?"
Cuzia gritted her teeth. But then she sighed to calm her emotions.
"It''s no use talking to a creature made of only muscle like you," Cuzia said. Then she walked away from Colmano and approached Asqa.
Her rtionship with Asqa has also started to improve because Asqa has managed to gain respect from Cuzia during practice with her abilities.
"We''d better stay away from that idiot, Asqa," Cuzia said loudly without trying to hide it from Colmano.
But Colmano just shrugged his shoulders. He felt that no one here understood his ideology which said that a warrior should always enjoy fighting. That way they can keep getting stronger. That is the essence of a warrior that Colmano firmly adheres to.
On the other hand, Alessio didn''t care at all about the bickering going on behind him. He walked forward while casting his gaze across the buildings around them.
Alessio felt a strange premonition. Not only because there weren''t many monsters, but also because of something else.
But for a few minutester nothing happened. They dug in the sand until they finally found the roof of a building that looked like a temple.
After Colmano destroyed the roof of the temple and they entered it. After several hours of searching, they finally came back out.
Colmano came outst carrying arge box on his back.
"Now, let''s go back home!" Colmano said loudly.
It was then, the people who had been targeting them all along started to move.
~~~
Chapter 176 Surprised
?
A few hours earlier.
Clyde, Haru, and Kei were waiting for the party sent by Uriel to arrive in a state of anxiety. Clyde sat leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. While Haru and Kei sat side by side in front of him.
Clyde''s eyes looked down at the sand-covered floor. His forehead creased indicating that he was thinking about something important.
"What are you thinking, Clyde?" Kei asked. Out of curiosity and because she wanted to get closer as a party member who would work together.
"It''s nothing."
However, the answer that came out of Clyde''s mouth sounded cold. Kei and Haru had expected that Clyde would answer in such a manner. They exchanged nces and smiled knowingly.
"You know you can share your worries with us," Haru said. "That way maybe all of us will be less burdened."
Upon hearing that Clyde lifted his face towards the both of them. He saw the two women looking at him sympathetically.
Clyde understood what their goal was. Yet he doesn''t know what''s the point of building a bond that is too deep with them. Everything can change in the blink of an eye, including their rtionship which now looks like a rtionship between real party members but actually not.
All that is temporary. And Clyde still couldn''t trust anyone but himself and his private attribute -- or the being behind it.
"I''m fine. Let''s just focus on the mission. I''m just thinking about how we should fight them when theye," said Clyde.
"I''m sure we''ll be fine. We have you after all," said Kei with a smile.
Clyde stared at her. Clyde thought that Kei said that because she wanted to get his favor because she knew how strong he was.
Clyde let out a small snort. "I didn''t think I could do it myself. So you guys have to help too."
Kei and Haru nodded. Stated that they would be happy to help. They both think that Clyde''s words meant that he had epted them as hisrades.
For the next few minutes, they fell into silence. Clyde returned to his contemting position while Haru and Kei spoke in whispers.
Until finally Clyde''s head shot up abruptly. Kei and Haru who saw it knew that Clyde had felt something.
"What is it?" Haru asked. By reflex her hand was already gripping the hilt of her dagger.
Clyde turned his head to the side and said. "They areing."
''He can even sense their arrival?'' Kei looked at Clyde in surprise.
In fact, even Clyde didn''t know that he could feel anything when those people came. Suddenly, he just felt a strange wave from a certain direction.
Clyde stood and watched from the window. He could see that there was a golden portal that seemed to be a bit blurry with the sandy brown color around it, appearing not far from the portal they used toe here.
"Yes. They''vee," Clyde said while looking at Kei and Haru.
The two women jumped to their feet and peered out the window. They saw four people dressed in whiteing out of the portal.
Because they were still far away, they couldn''t see the faces of the four people. But they were sure that they were the party sent by Archangel Uriel.
"Are Samuel and the others also aware of their arrival?" Kei asked in a worried tone.
"I''m sure they noticed." Clyde stared at the building in front of them. Samuel and Leyan had good senses so he was sure they were aware of it.
eaglesnov?1,§ão§® "Let''s wait until they take the artifacts first," Haru said.
So they wait for now. Clyde kept staring at the party while they chatted and dealt with the dry zombies that Kiara created with her illusions to fight them.
They were shocked when they saw only one person - the biggest among them - moving between them to kill those dozens of dry zombies. Others don''t even seem to think of them as something worth their effort.
Until finally, Clyde saw her. Standing among the party, her appearance was still the same as thest time he saw her.
''Asqa?!''
Clyde almost let out a gasp when he saw Asqa there. His lips parted slightly and his eyes widened.
If Kei and Haru saw him showing that expression, they would also feel the same shock as when they saw the partying. Perhaps the shock effect was even greater since they had never seen such an expression on Clyde''s face before.
However, Kei and Haru didn''t notice because their attention was fully focused on the party. Clyde pulled himself together before they both realized his shock.
''How did she get here?''
Many questions popped into Clyde''s head. But he had to quickly organize his thoughts for now.
''Whatever it is, I have to separate her from the rest of her party first. I need to talk to her.''
The four people walked casually while exchanging chats and bickering. Clyde, Haru, and Kei followed them, moving sneakily between buildings until the party finally stopped at a spot.
"What are they doing?" Kei asked in a whisper.
"Of course taking the artifact," Clyde answered without looking at her.
The four of them entered the hole that had been dug. It took them a long time to retrieve the artifacts from the hole they dig, causing Kei and Haru to stand impatiently. But Clyde remained calm thinking about what he should do next.
When finally the four people climbed back up to the surface, the big man who looked the most excited among them came out carrying arge box on his back.
"That must be the artifact!" Kei said with restraint.
The artifact was quiterge. But the man didn''t seem to have any trouble holding it. He even walked as if he had nothing on his back. It showed how much strength the man really had.
''They will be quite troublesome.'' Clyde gritted his teeth. ''The most important thing now is how I can separate Asqa from them.''
~~~
Chapter 177 Begin
?
The party of four walked amid empty buildings with dark windows that looks like eyes watching their every move.
Colmano and Cuzia are still involved in an argument that seems like it will never end. It was impressive that the two of them were still at the same party when they bickered too much like that.
Asqa just watched the two of them while asionally giving a response in the form of a nod of her head, or a short ''Hmm''. She wasn''t the least bit interested in their bickering even though Cuzia repeatedly pulled her into the conversation.
Suddenly, Asqa was attacked by a feeling where she felt someone was watching her. Asqa looked up at the buildings around her. But she could find nothing but empty dark windows.
But, is it true that these buildings are empty?
Asqa turned to Alessio who was in front of them. Alessio also turned to her with an understanding look. His gaze seemed to say that he also felt the strangeness that she felt.
''Are they monsters?''
Asqa bit her lips. If monsters were watching them from a distance, then those monsters were smart enough not to attack head-on. This means... they''ve set a trap.
Asqa with her quick thinking instantly discovers the dangers around them. She tried to warn Colmano and Cuzia who were still involved in trivial bickering. However, before she could say anything...
e¦Áglesn?¦Íel *JJJRRZZZTTTTTT!!!*
Waves of crimson lightning shot out from the four buildings around them. The lightning shed toward them simultaneously.
"AARRGHHH!!!"
Colmano let out a deafening scream. His eyes widened as if his eyeballs could pop out anytime. His body was stiff, he had lost all control to move his body and fall to his knees.
Cuzia fell to the ground and groaned with her teeth grinding in pain. Her face was red and the veins on her forehead swelled up because of the pain she felt all over her body.
On the other hand, Alessio was able to move with incredible speed. He could dodge all that lightning by moving faster than them. Until finally he managed to get away from the lightning strike radius.
Asqa is also still able to endure with the light dome that protects her body. The dome is a skill that she got a few weeks ago afterpleting a task given by Uriel.
The skill will activate automatically when danger approaches Asqa''s body. Unfortunately, the dome can only protect her and she cannot control it to protect her other friends.
Alessio''s face looked calm even though their situation was far from good. His gaze fell on the four buildings emitting that lightning wave.
Alessio immediately moved with his incredible speed to move into one of those buildings, intending to destroy whatever or whoever it was that had attacked them in secret.
But his steps stopped before he entered the building. His eyes narrowed suspiciously. He could have immediately walked into their trap as soon as he entered this building.
"Tch!" Clucking in annoyance, Alessio turned to his friends who were still suffering under the attacks of this merciless lightning wave. Luckily, Asqa was still able to protect herself.
There is only one way to stop this. Alessio, who felt his anger rising, thought that he wouldn''t spare anyone who had done this.
Alessio drew the sword from the scabbard at his waist. Almost immediately when he pulled out his red-ded sword, mes immediately ignited and burned the de.
Alessio raised his sword high above his head. Then channeled his Mana into the sword. Suddenly, the mes on the de shot out and formed a ming serpent swirling above his head.
Asqa had seen that skill when they did the training together. And she admits that it is one of Alessio''s strongest skills.
The ten-meter-long fiery serpent spun fiercely above Alessio''s head. What he did next was point his sword at the building in front of him.
*BOOM!*
A huge explosion was created as the serpent shot into the building. The mes immediately spread to all the buildings, devouring them instantly as if the entire building had been doused with gasoline earlier.
Incredible heat radiated around the building. Now that all the traps in the building have been destroyed, the number of electric waves that attack Colmano, Cuzia, and Asqa has been drastically reduced due to the destruction of the building.
Alessio still had a calm face but his jaw was clenched tightly. His eyes reflected fire burning in front of him. It was so bright that it seemed as if Alessio''s eyes were emitting the fire instead.
Done with one of the buildings, he directs his fire serpent at other buildings that emit waves of lightning. The fire serpent moved ording to hermand and crashed into the surrounding buildings.
It didn''t take long for the fiery serpentine to destroy all the buildings that were emitting waves of lightning. The four buildings crumbled to ashes because the fiery serpent could even melt concrete and steel. It''s not just knock them down.
After all those waves of lightning disappeared, Colmano and Cuzia were able to catch their breath after so long. Cuzia fell limply to the ground while Colmano was still in a kneeling position.
Colmano gritted his teeth and raised his eyes. His eyes shed with fury.
"Who..."
Asqa''s light dome instantly disappeared as the lightning waves attacking her body were gone. She immediately ran towards Cuzia and immediately healed her.
"Colmano, you can still stand up, right?" Alessio asked without bothering to turn to Colmano because he was looking for the culprit who was still hiding.
"Yeah..." Colmano made what sounded like a groan as he stood up.
*GRIP!*
His arms muscles tensed holding his great battle ax.
"Where are the bastards who did this?!" Colmano asked in an angry voice.
"They''re hiding." Alessio''s eyes moved quickly to find the assant. Then, his eyes suddenly widened and he whipped his head backward.
"Behind you!"
Colmano immediately turned his head and raised his sword. However, an arrow that looked bigger than a normal arrow had already stuck in his chest.
~~~
Chapter 178 Exposed
?
Asqa''s eyes widened as he saw Colmano fall on his back after being hit by the arrow. She looked at the arrow and realized that it was created from Mana and not a real arrow.
When she looked up again, an arrow was already shooting at her at high speed. Asqa, who was still focused on healing Cuzia, couldn''t dodge in time.
But Alessio was suddenly in front of her and swung his fiery sword.
*CLANG!*
A loud crashing sound was heard. The arrow flew toward one of the buildings and destroyed a portion of that building.
"We must get away from this ce immediately!" Alessio said while looking at Asqa. The urgency was clear on his face and voice.
"Yes. Let''s go!" Asqa replied then helped Cuzia up. Her healing process with Cuzia was still not finished, but for now, they couldn''t be out in the open like this.
"What about Colmano?" Asqa asked.
eaglesnov?1,§ão§® "Don''t worry about him. He''s fine," said Alessio. He didn''t even need to see Colmano to know he was just fine.
For so long they had been in the same party, Alessio knew that Colmano''s body resistance was more than enough to withstand such an attack.
"Quickly take Cuzia away from here!"
After hearing Alessio''s order for the second time, Asqa immediately pulled Cuzia''s body even tighter. A groan escaped her mouth because she had to share her concentration between continuing to heal Cuzia and carrying her on.
Luckily, Cuzia was able to regain her consciousness after continuously receiving healing from Asqa. She could carry her body on her own though Asqa still had to provide a little help.
Behind the two of them, Colmano who was still lying down pulled an arrow from his chest and then threw it to the side. He sat up with his jaw clenched.
"Protect them!" Alessio immediately gave orders to him as soon as he saw him awake.
Colmano let out a growl like an angry beast. But he didn''t object to Alessio''s order and immediately moved to protect Asqa and Cuzia.
Asqa flinched to see the look on Colmano''s face that looked terrifying. But then she breathed a sigh of relief at his question.
"Are you all right?"
"I-I''m fine. But Cuzia..." Asqa replied.
"These bastards around here mess with the wrong people," said Colmano, his eyes scanning around.
Suddenly an arrow shot from Colmano''s left side. The arrows suddenly fired from different directions making them think that there was more than one archer.
However, this time Colmano was ready with it. He raised his great battle ax and the arrow only hit his battle ax before flying towards the building.
"So you were there!" Colmano shouted. He prepared to jump towards the building where the arrow came from.
"Don''t go anywhere!"
But Alessio immediately stopped him before he took off.
"You take Asqa and Cuzia away from here first!" said Alessio.
Alessio then proceeded to scan the area for their attacker. From the iing attacks, Alessio was certain that there was more than one archer. But the number of other attackers was still unknown to him.
Colmano gritted his teeth and the same grunt of a beast as before escaped from his mouth. He immediately drew closer to Asqa and Cuzia.
"I''m taking you both off," Colmano said. And then, he proceeds to pick up Cuzia from Asqa and cradle her on his broad shoulders. He then held Asqa''s waist so he could immediately carry her too.
Colmano was about to jump forward. But of course, their attackers would not let that happen.
Once again a wave of crimson lightning emerged from the two surrounding buildings and struck them.
Luckily, Asqa, who had expected this to happen, had already prepared a dome of light to protect them all.
*JJRRZZZTTTT!!!*
The lightning hit the dome of light that Asqa released at a critical time so that Colmano and Cuzia didn''t get hit by the same attack as before. But she had to stop her healing process on Cuzia.
Fortunately, Cuzia is already much better than before. She opened her eyes and saw what was going on around her.
"Urgh..."
"I cannot continue to heal you, Cuzia. Do you have any potions with you?" Asqa asked.
"No." Cuzia shook her head. "But that''s not necessary. I''m fine and ready to start counterattacking."
Asqa''s brow furrowed hearing that. "What?"
"Ha ha!" Meanwhile, Colmano looks pleased. "Let''s get this bastard, Cuzia!"
Asqa was dumbfounded. Cuzia''s current condition is far from fine in her eyes. However, she didn''t know her actual endurance because she had only been with them for a few days.
The fact that Colmano looks excited means that Cuzia is indeed fine. He of course knows more about her real condition than her.
*SYUUUTTT!!!*
*SYUUUTTT!!!*
*SYUUUTTT!!!*
...
A barrage of arrows then came towards them from a building to the right. The arrows hit Asqa''s dome of light and made it crack on several sides.
"I can''tst much longer," Asqa said. She, who had used a lot of Mana to heal Cuzia, didn''t have too many Mana reserves anymore.
"You''ve helped me enough. Thanks," Cuzia said. She got off Colmano''s shoulder and drew her daggers from their scabbards.
Suddenly, a fire serpent shot from behind them attacking the building where the arrows hade out.
*BOOM!*
Just like before, the fire serpent destroyed the building in a matter of seconds. But Alessio didn''t stop his serpent fire in the building. He aimed his fire serpent at the building beside it.
Alessio was still concentrating on directing the fire serpent with his sword to destroy as many buildings as possible. But because of that he didn''t immediately notice someone sneaking through the building behind him with a spear ready in hand.
Samuel saw that Alessio was still focused on destroying nearby buildings with his fire serpent and decided that this was the right time tounch a sneak attack.
Samuel jumped off the building while raising his spear. He poured Mana into his spear to make the attack stronger. Then Samuel thrust his spear as hard as he could at Alessio''s head whilending.
*CLANG!*
However, the spear just stabbed into the ground and sent sand flying around with a powerful shockwave.
Samuel widened his eyes. He had clearly seen that Alessio was standing in this ce just a moment ago.
But it turned out that Alessio had dodged to the side right before Samuel''s spear impaled his head. He lunged back at Samuel and then swung his ming sword.
*CLANG!*
Samuel was able to raise his spear in time to prevent the ming sword from decapitating him.
"Finally you appeared," said Alessio while looking at Samuel with his eyes reflecting the mes of his sword.
Samuel threw a kick at Alessio who he was able to block with one hand. But that also made Alessio pushed back a few meters.
"Alessio!" Colmano shouted and intended to approach him.
"No!" said Alessio. "You stay there. They still haven''t all appeared."
Hearing that, Colmano backed away again and again cast his gaze around, waiting for the rest of their enemy toe.
''Fuck!'' Samuel gritted his teeth because he failed tounch his sneak attack on Alessio. That means he has discarded his advantage to be able to attack stealthily and must face direct confrontation.
Alesio lunged at Samuel. Samuel also shot towards him so the two of them collided in the middle with such a strong impact that sent a shockwave all around.
Sands rose and were blown away creating a curtain of sand that covered them from view for a few moments.
Colmano, Cuzia, and Asqa heard the sounds of weapons shing behind the sand. Then Cuzia turned to Colmano.
"They must be after the artifact," said Cuzia. "We have to do our best to protect it."
"Who are they?!" Colmano asked angrily.
"It doesn''t matter now. What is clear is that they have all this prepared and are waiting for us to retrieve the artifact before attacking," Cuzia said.
"Looks like we can''t leave this spot," Asqa said.
"Why?" Colmano stared at her.
"We don''t know how many traps they have set here. Without Alessio''s ranged attacks, we will only be putting ourselves in danger."
Colmano stamped his foot in a fury. While Cuzia gritted her teeth regretfully.
"I didn''t bring a lot of potions or equipment because I thought this mission would be easy," said Cuzia.
Asqa bit her lip because she felt the same regret. If she had known this mission would be this dangerous, she would have brought more Mana potions with her.
"What should we do next?" Colmano asked.
Cuzia paused to think. But while she was silent, another attack came towards them from an unknown direction.
Dozens of ice spikes shot out at high speed. Colmano, who had sharpened his instincts, realized that and immediately acted to destroy the ice spikes.
However, he didn''t expect that the ice spikes would freeze his battle ax the moment they touched it. Ice spread across Colmano''s battle ax and he felt his battle ax getting heavier.
Colmano''s movement got slower so the ice spikes were able to strike him.
*CRAATT!*
*CRAATT!*
*CRAATT!*
...
~~~
Chapter 179 Heated
?
"GUARRRRGGHH!!!"
Colmano let out a wailing because of the pain that ran through his whole body. He fell to his knees and used his battle ax to support his massive body.
Ice spikes shot again from the window of the wrong building in front of him. Colmano knew that he couldn''t dodge because of the attacks he had already suffered.
But Cuzia managed to reach him in time to stop all the ice spikes before they embedded themselves in Colmano''s body again.
Cuiza moved to block all the ice spikes that shot toward her. Her movements are so fast that only blur motion remains when she moves.
In the literal blink of an eye, Cuzia has already cleaned up all the ice spikes that were shot at her. Her eyes stared straight at the window where the ice spikes hade from and saw something moving quickly to hide.
Cuzia clicked her tongue. At this time she was really angry because she felt that they were helpless.
"Alessio! I can''t stand this anymore!" Cuzia shouted.
Despite being in a fierce battle, Alessio could hear her without any problem. Then, beyond Samuel''s expectations, who was fighting with him, it turned out that Alessio was still able to reply to her words.
"You can unleash your abilities now!" said Alessio.
Samuel felt his anxiety rising. What does it mean to unleash her abilities?
Samuel wanted to look at Cuzia about what she was going to do. But he couldn''t take his eyes off even for a second from Alessio or else he would have to suffer dire consequences.
Fire came out around Cuzia''s body as soon as she heard Alessio''s words. A grin that looked savage also formed in her mouth.
Cuzia turned to Colmano. "You heard it, right?"
"Yeah... But... I don''t want to use it yet."
Cuzia frowned as if what Colmano said was something she could hardly believe.
"Don''t tell me you want to test your body''s endurance without using the blessing from the Archangel," Cuzia said.
Colmano raised his face towards Cuzia. A mysterious grin appeared on his face amidst his pained expression.
Cuzia snorted then shook her head. "You are crazy."
Asqa had only been with them for a few days so she was still a bit surprised by Colmano''s crazy fighting nature. He has a strange obsession with fighting both the victory and the pain caused by the battles he is undergoing.
With the blessing of the Archangel Uriel, their strength was boosted several times. However, Colmano was reluctant to use it because he wanted to see how strong he would survive without the blessing.
Let alone Asqa, even Alessio and Cuzia who had been with him for a long time still couldn''t fully understand him. But that''s also a good thing because it means they have friends who aren''t afraid to step into the fray.
The mes that came out around Cuzia''s body looked like it burning her skin. But she didn''t feel the heat. Instead, she felt a great power surging inside her.
"Then, I''ll go first." Cuzia kicked the ground and shot at the building in front of her. The ce where the person who shot the ice spikes earlier was hiding.
*BOOM!*
A huge explosion apanied by fire spreading in all directions was created when Cuzia struck the building. She immediately looked for the whereabouts of the person who attacked in secret. But she did not find them.
''Where are they?''
~~~
Kiara appeared next to Leyan just in time before Cuzia found her. A t object stuck to the floor of the building was still dimly lit after she used it to teleport here.
The t, mirror-like devices were attached in several ces so they could move around quickly tounch attacks. But now one of the devices has been destroyed by the explosion that Cuzia created.
"Fuck! Did you see that just now?" Cuzia whispered to Leyan with a look of fear evident on her face.
"Of course, I saw it," Leyan replied. "They''re stronger than we thought. But, well, we already know this mission won''t be easy."
"What now? Samuel can no longer attack sneakily."
"We still have Clyde. He''s still hidden, right?"
"But why hasn''t he started attacking yet?" Kiara asked.
Leyan shrugged. "I don''t know."
Then Leyan drew his bow. "That little girl seems to be their healer. It would be better if I kill her first."
"Yeah. That''s a good idea."
~~~
"We have to get the artifact right away, Clyde," Kei said to Clyde.
Clyde was staring at the battlefield below. From the few minutes he had seen of the fight, he could tell a little about their enemy''s strength.
And they don''t look like easy people to beat.
''Maybe I have to use the Stats Points I earned.''
He had reached Level 100 after several days of killing monsters in this Ruin. He had a few Stats Points that he could use if his current strength proved to be no match for them.
But for now, he had to make sure first.
"We have to defeat them before we can retrieve the artifact," Clyde replied. He drew his sword from its scabbard.
"You want to go?" Haru asked.
"Yes. I''ll take care of their healers first."
Clyde had teleported to the building closest to Asqa before Kei or Haru could say anything to him.
~~~
Clyde appears in the building behind Asqa. Now she is only guarded by that big man. Even though the man looked strong, he was also carrying the box containing the artifacts on his back. So his movement should be slower.
Suddenly an arrow from Leyan shot toward Asqa. But a dome of light suddenly appeared around Asqa''s body and repelled the arrow.
"GRRRHHH!!!"
Clyde heard the big man growling. The next second, he jumped and dashed in the direction the arrow came without thinking about Asqa''s state of being alone.
It was stupid to leave a healer alone. But the move would benefit Clyde.
Clyde jumped at Asqa as the dome of light around her body disappeared. Then snatch her and disappear from there.
Alessio who was still fighting with Samuel turned his head. He realized the moment when someone took Asqa away even though he was the one who was furthest from her.
eaglesnov?1,§ão§® He saw Colmano jump towards the building and just followed his animal-like instincts.
Alessio gritted his teeth. It could be something bad if something happens to Asqa.
''I shouldn''t have given that task to that idiot!''
Colmano is indeed suitable as a frontline fighter and as a person who does heavy duty. But he can''t be relied on for something that requires even a little bit of intelligence.
"Where are you looking?!"
The spearhead shot from his front. Alessio immediately swung his sword to block Samuel''s spear.
*CLANG!*
Then he jumped backward to get away.
"I can''t waste time on you anymore," said Alessio.
The mes on the de of his sword grew. He swung it forward and the fire serpent leaped at Samuel.
''Shit!''
Samuel channeled his Mana just in time towards his spear then swung it towards Alessio''s fire serpent. Because it was flowing with Mana, the spear could cut through the fire serpent before it burned it.
After destroying the fire serpent Samuel immediately charged forward to attack Alessio. But he had disappeared from there.
"What the fuck?"
Samuel nced around. But he didn''t see Alessio around him anymore. ''How can he move that fast?''
Samuel realized that the enemy he had been fighting earlier had not yet unleashed his full strength. He was still able to concentrate on giving a hard fight to him while keeping an eye on his friends even giving them orders.
*BOOM!*
An explosion suddenly urred from one of the buildings. Samuel immediately knew that there, one of Uriel''s party members was facing his friends.
After deliberating for a few seconds, Samuel decided to head toward that building first. He ran and jumped towards the exploding building and found Kiara and Leyan facing a silver-haired woman with a body on fire.
Cuzia turned her head to notice the presence of one more enemy in front of her. Even knowing that she was outnumbered, Cuzia didn''t feel afraid.
"So, how many are you exactly?" Cuzia asked with a grin. "Well, it doesn''t matter because no matter how many of you there are it won''t do any good against us."
Cuzia shot with incredible speed toward Kiara. Leyan immediately shot arrows at her. However, all the arrows only hit the tail of fire that was left behind her body.
Samuel moved forward and swung his spear.
*CLANG!*
The spear shed with the daggers in Cuzia''s two hands. Samuel felt the fire hit his face. He winced because he didn''t expect the heat to be this bad.
Cuzia spun her body around andnded a kick on Samuel''s head, forcing him to back off. Cuzia didn''t stop there and immediately shot forward to thrust her dagger into Samuel''s neck.
But suddenly her leg was held by something. When she looked down, Cuzia saw that her feet had been frozen by the ice that had suddenly appeared.
Cuzia gritted her teeth. When she looked up, she saw a point of an arrow right in front of her eyes.
~~~
Chapter 180 Unexpected Meeting
?
Leyan immediately moved as soon as he found out that Kiara''s n to stop Cuzia''s movement had seeded. They don''t even need tomunicate to know what they have to do next.
So now, Leyan is right in front of Cuzia and aiming his arrows from an extremely close distance. Leyan was sure that from this close, Cuzia would not be able to avoid his arrow.
*SWISHH!*
Leyan released his arrow. But what happened next made his eyes widen. His arrow was burned by the mes that suddenly appeared in front of Cuzia''s face.
"Wha-"
"Leyan!"
Samuel shouted as he dashed to the side. He yanked Leyan before Cuzia''s dagger stabbed him in the chest. Making the dagger failed to stab Leyan''s chest and only scratched his neck.
Without a pause, Samuel swung his spear at Cuzia''s head.
*CLANG!*
Yet, Cuzia can still block the spear with her dagger. She darted in swift motions to cut the distance with Samuel. In the blink of an eye, she was already so close to him and immediately thrust her dagger.
However, Kiara let out a st of ice that hit Cuzia''s body and threw her several meters back with a powerful force.
Cuzia hit the wall and the ice around her body instantly hardened and froze her there. The mes that were originally burning around her body were extinguished by the icy chill.
"Ouch!"
Kiara continues to flow her Mana inrge quantities to maintain the ice that freezes Cuzia. She had to keep doing it or Cuzia would be free immediately, especially with the power of fire surrounding her body.
"That bitch is strong!" Leyan said with a terrified expression. "We have to quickly kill her before her friendse!"
Leyan pulled back his bowstring and created an arrow. He immediately shot his arrow before even hearing Samuel or Kiara''s words.
*SWWIISHH!*
The arrow shot. For a moment Leyan was sure that his arrow would hit Cuzia''s head. But his high hope was swiped by the presence of arge figure with a battle ax blocking his arrows.
In a state that was almost fatally injured, Cuzia saw Colmano break through the wall and stop the arrow that almost stuck in her head.
"There you are!" Colmano said with a beastly grin on his face. "I''ve destroyed several buildings looking for you all. Turns out you''re here and ying with her."
"ying?" Leyan said in disbelief. Meanwhile, Samuel and Kiara didn''t say anything because they were busy with their respective struggles.
''This is bad. Even a single one of them was already extremely strong. Now we have to fight two.''
Samuel thought about their odds. And all odds are against them.
''For now, the best decision is to team up with the rest and fight together.''
"HRRAAAAHHH!!!"
Colmano lunged at them raising his great battle ax. Samuel rushed to the front to approach him.
~~~
On the other hand, Asqa tried to escape from the figure holding her body. However, that figure is easily overpowering her so making her helpless.
Asqa has thought of all kinds of bad possibilities that will befall her. As the only healer in the party, she knew how important her presence was in battle. And Colmano was stupid enough to leave her alone.
"This is me."
A voice that whispered next to her ear seems to freeze Asqa and all of her attempts to struggle to escape stopped.
"C-Clyde?!"
"Yes." Clyde nodded. Then he stops and releases Asqa.
They were now in a building that was a bit far from where the battle was.
"You''re still alive!" Asqa said with eyes full of disbelief.
"Yes. It doesn''t matter now," Clyde said hurriedly. "Do you have a way for me to contact youter?"
Asqa was still trying to process Clyde''s presence in front of her. Someone she thought was dead is now standing in front of her eyes,pletely fine. All of that feels too much for her now so Asqa''s speed of thought bes slowing down.
"Hey!" Clyde said again. He nced behind Asqa to see if perhaps someone had followed her here. Fortunately at this time, still no one there.
"Are you listening to me?" Clyde looked Asqa in the eye.
"Yes." Aska nodded her head. "But... I''m not sure if I have anything for you to contact me."
Clyde thought for a few moments. He had to find a way for them tomunicate again. Asqa was the only contact he know that maybe could get him into The All Territory.
"Can I have something of yours?" Clyde asked.
Ash looked at him. "What do you mean?"
"Something... anything. Things you have now."
After pondering for a while, Asqa finally pulled out the silver ne that she was wearing.
"How about this?"
Clyde looked at the ne and nodded. "That''s enough. I hope so."
He received the ne and put it in his trouser pocket. Clyde still wasn''t sure what to do but he had some kind of idea.
Suddenly, Clyde felt someone approaching. He had expected that someone in those party would notice what he was doing and chase after him.
Asqa immediately knew what was happening because she also felt his presence. Its Alessio and he came so fast.
"You know what we have to do, right?" Clyde asked.
Asqa nodded her head.
"Good."
Clyde drew his sword and jumped away from Asqa. Then he dashed in the direction Alessio hade. He had to get to him before he got here.
Clyde spares a brief, meaningful nce at Asqa. Then he jumped out of the building.
Asqa looked around her. "So... how should I start making myself look like I''ve been hurt?"
Outside, Clyde saw Alessio approaching at high speed running up the wall of the building. Around his body, Clyde can see a bit of fire burning.
When he saw Clydeing out of the building, Alessio immediately sped up his run. The fiery sword in his hand red even more intensely.
''Shit, this one looks like trouble.''
Clyde activated his [Skill: Pure Lightning] and dashed towards Alessio.
~~~
Chapter 181 Realizing The Difference
?
Alessio felt shocked for a few moments when he saw the lightning that suddenly appeared around his enemy''s body. Immediately, he knew that his enemy had an abundant amount of Mana. Not only that, but he can also control his Mana well.
The power of bluish-white lightning around Clyde''s body gave him an instant boost. Coupled with his speed stat, Clyde can cut the distance in the blink of an eye towards Alessio.
Alessio was taken aback because suddenly Clyde was right in front of his eyes. Even though a moment before, he was still quite far away. Alessio who had already prepared his attack, now had no time to take it out.
*CLANG!*
Alessio used his ming sword to block Clyde''s sh which was covered in bluish-white lightning. They shed sword attacks in swift motions and shes of lightning and fire.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
Their fight spread to the surrounding buildings. Explosions were created and destroyed most of the buildings they passed.
Suddenly, Alessio stretched his left hand and shot fire towards Clyde who was in front of him. Clyde who realized that immediately kicked the wall next to him and dodged to the side.
The fire attack just passed through him and destroyed the building behind him. Clydended a few meters from Alessio.
He decided not to attack immediately. And apparently, Alessio chose to do the same. So they just stared at each other with a few meters that separated them.
''At this rate, I guess I can manage.'' Clyde thought with a hint of confidence. ''Wait, maybe he hasn''t used all his strength yet. I can''t let my guard gown. I need to see the development of this fight first.''
On the other hand, Alessio is hiding the anxiety in his heart with a straight face that seems unfazed. While in fact, he is so worried about his enemy right now.
''He''s strong. I don''t think I can beat him alone.''
Alessio knew how strong the spear-fighting man he had fought earlier was. Earlier, Alessio had not used all of his strength and still had the confidence that he could defeat that man.
But the opponent this time was different. The man in front of him had strength on a different level. Alessio even felt something suffocating against him.
''Is this Demon power?''
Alessio swallowed his saliva. If indeed that man had the power of a Demon within him then this battle would have a certain oue.
The power level of the blessing from Archangel Uriel that he and his friends received would not be able to match the power of a Demon. If it was only against normal monsters, that blessing would make them overpowered. But not this guy.
Clyde prepares to attack again. His stance changed because he was about to be dashed. And Alessio realized it. So he maximizes the power of his blessing.
*BWOOOSSHHH!!!*
The mes that surrounded Alessio''s body grew until it enveloped his entire body. That made Clyde who was already preparing to lunge forward cancel his intention because he was taken aback.
Alessio used this opportunity. He shot up with a speed that normal creatures shouldn''t be able to match.
However, Clyde can still see his every move easily. He also increased the power of his [Skill: Pure Lightning] to be able to match the strength of his enemy which seemed to have increased.
Clyde shot forward. Then a powerful shockwave was created when the two of them shed with each other.
Clyde saw the look on his enemy''s face. Before, he seemed calm but he looked troubled now. He gritted violently as if holding back the force too great for him.
So Clyde decided to increase the intensity of his attacks. The lightning around his body shed even brighter and whipped around savagely.
Clyde threw a kick at Alessio and sent him behind. Without letting too long a pause, Clyde dashed out with incredible speed and then swung his sword.
*CLANG!*
"Urgh!"
A groan full of difficulty escaped from Alessio''s mouth, showing how strong the force he received from that swing was.
Clyde also heard about it and he immediately realized that right now, he might be in an advantaged situation. So Clyde thought to make the most of this opportunity.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
Clyde continues to be on the offensive side while Alessio can only defend all of his sword shes.
The burden that Alessio was getting heavier every second. He was also certain that his de had already suffered heavy damage from all the attacks it had received.
Alessio took something from his Inventory. It was something that looked like an orb the size of a palm.
Alessio crushed the red orb with his palm and immediately an explosion of fire was created. The explosion was so big and sudden that it threw Clyde into the air.
''Shit, what happened?!''
Clyde turned again to Alessio. The explosion destroyed the building where they had fought and set it on fire.
''Is that some kind of suicide bombing?''
After he managed to regain his footing and felt no significant pain in his body, Clyde prepared to lunge again. However, he could no longer see Alessio.
The fire began to dissipate, and he saw no more of his enemy''s form. Clyde spat out a curse, then cast his gaze around. But still didn''t find him.
He only heard the sound of fighting in the distance after his battle was over. It seemed that Samuel''s party members were fighting Uriel''s other party members.
So Clyde headed straight for the fight. He was sure that Alessio was there.
~~~
Meanwhile, the others fight.
"HYYAAAHHH!!!"
Colmano''s massive battle ax swung down hard from above. Feeling that he couldn''t survive it, Samuel jumped aside to dodge.
*CLANG!*
The huge battle ax hit the ground and created a crack several tens of meters long. Samuel widened his eyes because he didn''t expect to see that much damage.
''I can''t fight him alone!''
Samuel felt that he would really die if he forced himself to fight the beast alone. But on the other hand, Leyan, Kiara, and Haru who hade to aid seemed to be in the same predicament against Cuzia.
~~~
Chapter 182 No Escape
?
"HAHAHA! Is that all you got?!"
Colmano continued to swing his great battle ax with absurd strength. Even now he hasn''t used his blessings like Cuzia or Alessio. But his strength is already this enormous.
Samuel also realized that there was no fire burning around Colmano''s body. Even though he realized that in Cuzia''s body, there was a fire burning and boosting her power several times.
It meant that even with this much power, the opponent he was facing had yet to unleash his full strength.
Samuel felt dread as he imagined what would happen if this man who looked like a monster itself unleashed his true power.
Fortunately, Samuel could also see that this beast wasn''t very smart. If he had the slightest bit of intelligence, then he would have decided to end this fight as soon as possible. Especially when carrying important artifacts.
But instead, he chose not to use the powers of his friends and fight like this.
Samuel knew these types of people. The types of people who enjoy fighting after getting a taste of power from Mana and the system.
''I have to kill him quickly before he decides to change his mind!''
Samuel, who had been dodging all along, suddenly decided to counterattack.
*CLANG!*
When the great battle ax hit the ground and dealt equal damage as before, Samuel managed to dodge it because he had expected Colmano''s track to be like that.
In Samuel''s eyes, Colmano was very predictable because he didn''t fight with his brains but only with all his muscles.
Samuel immediately jumped onto the battle ax and kicked the shaft down, causing the huge battle ax to sink deeper into the ground.
Samuel also immediately stood above it, making it difficult for Colmano to pull his battle ax back. Then with a quick movement, Samuel thrust his spear into Colmano''s head.
However, Colmano raised his hands just in time. Samuel''s spear eventually pierced his two arms which he crossed forward to protect his head.
Due to his muscles, Comano was able to stop Samuel''s spear and keep it there.
''Shit!''
Samuel realized his predicament. If he didn''t withdraw the spear soon, then he would be stuck here. And Samuel didn''t know what other attacks woulde his way.
But if he let go of his spear, that meant he would lose the only weapon he had. And that''s not much different from taking a fatal blow.
"HE HEHEH!" Augh that sounded like theugh of a madman came from Colmano''s mouth. "I''ve got your weapon!"
There was not a single sign of pain on Colmano''s face that he could see. Samuel knew right away that he was in trouble.
Colmano then swung his arms to the sides forcefully. Samuel, who didn''t want to let go of his spear, was also thrown and hit the building with a strong force.
Luckily, the spear also slipped from Colmano''s hand and was carried away with him.
Colmano grimaced. He just felt pain when the spear left his hand. But because he is very stubborn, Colmano still won''t use his power of blessing.
"Use your blessings!" Cuzia said in a tone full of annoyance.
"Not yet!" Colmano replied.
"Arrghh!" Cuzia let out an angry growl. In the end, she took her anger out on Haru, Kiara, and Leyan who were her opponents.
Samuel, who didn''t want to waste time while Colmano was still loyal to his stupidity, lunged from behind the mist and debris from the copsed building. He ignored all the pain he was in to strike back.
The wound on Colmano''s arm still hasn''t healed so he shouldn''t be able to grip his huge battle ax anymore.
It turns out, what Samuel thought was right. Colmano didn''t pick up his battle ax even though it was lying right next to him. Instead, he lunged at Samuel with a vicious grin.
So Samuel lunged at him and then swung his spear. However, beyond Samuel''s expectations, a person with a body scorched by mes approached quickly from the top of the building.
*BOOM!*
A small explosion was created when hended. The man - Alessio - scanned what was happening around him and then said. "Let''s get outta here, quick!"
Alessio immediately darted towards Colmano who was holding the artifact, knowing about the priority he had to take first.
"Hey! Let me finish them first!" Colmano let out aint like a child whose ytime had been forcefully stopped by an adult.
"Shut your mouth and let''s get outta here!" Alessio let out a re that looked deadly in Colmano''s eyes.
"Grrhh... Alright." Colmano finallyplied, though he looked reluctant.
Cuzia, who heard Alessio''s order, immediately tried to separate herself from Haru, Kiara, and Leyan.
"Where the fuck do you think you''re going!" Leyan spat out a curse while pulling his bowstring. But suddenly a huge fiery serpent came rushing at him with incredible speed.
Leyan, Haru, and Kiara knew that they couldn''t avoid it.
*JRZZZTT!!!*
*BLARRR!*
However, the huge thunderbolt that came with the person destroyed the fiery serpent in an instant.
"You guys aren''t going anywhere," Clyde said coldly.
Both Samuel, Leyan, Haru, and Kiara both felt relieved when they saw himing with a body covered in lightning.
Clyde didn''t say anything else. He only immediately charged at full speed toward Alessio.
Alessio gritted his teeth. Now it seemed they had no escape. So the only way is to fight and win.
"Colmano, use your blessings now!" Alessio shouted.
Colmano was no longer stubborn, he immediately used the power of his blessing and immediately his body was enveloped in zing fire.
"HEYYAAAHHH!"
Colmano rushed to get to Clyde before he approached Alessio. He raised his battle ax which was embedded in the ground with ease.
His speed and strength had increased many times due to the power of the blessing and now he was even more dangerous than before. Even though Colmano before using the blessing already looks like a powerful savage beast.
*CLANG!*
The battle ax hit Clyde''s sword and stopped his movement. Then Alessio also lunged toward Clyde.
~~~
Chapter 183 Ending The Fight
?
Asqa had been moving closer to the main fight since she found out that Clyde and Alessio had left their positions.
Asqa still feels shocked. She felt that Alessio was the first to decide to leave the fight. Almost as if he avoided Clyde.
She already knew that Clyde was strong but he must have been through a lot of things before he got here. So he was supposed to be weaker than thest time she remembered.
After all, he was betrayed by Rodney and his friends to the point where she thought he was dead.
Asqa doesn''t know how he ended up here and is even still able to fight on equal ground with Alessio who has activated the blessing of Archangel Uriel that boosts his strength.
But she decided not to think about it too much for now. After all, she wouldn''t be able to get an answer until she heard it from Clyde herself the next time they met.
When she got to where the main fight took ce, the battle between Clyde and her party had already started. Asqa peeked from one of the buildings and made herself hidden as best as she can.
''He can keep up with the two of them. What''s more, Colmano also used his blessing?!''
What Asqa saw made her dumbfounded. Colmano and Alessio are both already very powerful when they haven''t even used those blessings. Yet, Clyde seems to be able to keep up with their strength and speed when they use the blessing.
Asqa sees that Clyde is still using the power of lightning which allows him to move extremely fast. His destructive power is also extraordinary when using that lightning, Asqa saw how he used it on the Selection Stage before.
Right now, Asqa is in doubt. She was at a party sent by Archangel Uriel, so she should have helped members of one of her party.
However, if she does, then she will corner Clyde, the person who saved her life in the first ce when all this started.
Asqa bit her lower lip. ''What should I do?''
She nced again at the battle. The fiery mes that could scorch everything it touched in an instant shed with brilliant bluish-white lightning. Creating an amazing spectacle of two parties who want to destroy each other.
Asqa, who has not been able to make a decision quickly decides to observe the fight first for now. And let her heart decide the path she should choose.
~~~
''Who is this guy?!''
Cuzia was watching from a corner when she saw Alessio and Colmano fighting Clyde. Her eyes widened staring at the course of the fight in front of her.
Alessio and Colmano - the two who were evidently stronger than her in their party - were fighting on equal terms with that mysterious man.
She had not expected that it would be possible. Especially when Alessio and Colmano have used their blessings which boost their strength many times over.
Cuzia was looking for the time when she could get into the fight to kill the man faster. But she couldn''t find the right opening to enter.
Their fight created explosive destructive power. If she forced her way into it then Cuzia could see how she would end up. She would only die or at least be seriously injured.
So Cuzia immediately canceled her intention to join their fight. Her eyes shifted to the other party that came with the man. In her eyes, they looked even weaker than her.
Cuzia put out the fire that was zing around her body and started sneaking toward Samuel and his party.
~~~
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
Clyde could see buildings copsing one by one when he passed them. The power of the two men who were his enemies was strong enough to be able to do damage like this.
However, the person who created the most damage to their surroundings was that big man with his great battle ax.
Clyde saw that he was always fighting with a wide grin on his face. Like a madman who enjoys a deadly fight.
His movements are always excessive as well. As if he didn''t think about where his battle ax wouldnd and just swung it as hard as he could.
Clyde felt he could fight the man more easily than this tall, lean man wielding a ming sword.
Unlike the big man, he fought with a serious expression. Every swing of his sword was directed correctly, making Clyde have to put in extra concentration to ovee it.
Clyde was starting to have a hard time. His stats which had already risen to level 30 were still enough to fight the two of them simultaneously. But he could only fight to a draw with the two of them.
And he needs more than just a draw to be able to finish this fight. Moreover, he still had Stats points left.
Clyde channeled more Mana around his body and made his lightning bigger. Alessio who realized this immediately put on extra alert and pulled Colmano back.
*JRRZZZTTT!!!*
Lightning shed towards the both of them. However, Alessio was able to act quickly by grabbing Colmano and creating a wall of fire in front of them. So that the lightning doesn''t hit them.
Alessionded on the ground with Colmano beside him. Colmano still looked eager to lunge again but Alessio immediately held him before he dashed.
They both panted, feeling the fatigue start toe to their bodies.
Clyde looked no better too. The bluish-white lightning around his body seemed to have shrunk. Alessio took it as a sign that Clyde was weakening.
''Good. A little more and we''ll be able to kill-''
Before Alessio could finish his thoughts, Clyde was right in front of him.
"HARGGH!"
Colmano, who realized that a little faster than Alessio, moved his body forward.
*CRAATT!*
Clyde''s lightning-covered sword plunged into Colmano''s stomach. Clyde channeled his Mana and magnified the lightning flowing on his sword.
*JRRZZZZTTT!!!*
"URRRGGHAAAA!!!"
Colmano screamed loudly like a beast in unspeakable pain. His face was looking up with bloodshot eyes that seemed like they might explode at any moment.
"Comano!"
Alessio was dazed for a moment when he saw Clyde already in front of him. He came back to his senses when he heard Colmano''s scream.
He gritted his teeth then moved sideways swinging his ming sword at Clyde.
However, the sword only shed through empty air as Clyde disappeared from his ce with the same astonishing speed as before.
Clyde grinned. He only needed a few seconds to concentrate on using his remaining Stats Points to increase his level of Strength and Agility.
Alessio''s eyes widened realizing that Clyde was already in front of them again. Clyde red at Alessio and swung his sword.
*CLANG!*
But Alessio was still able to raise his fiery sword in time to block Clyde''s swing. A warrior''s instinct that had been trained through years of fighting experience made his reflexes move his hand first before he even realized it.
"Urgh..." Alessio gritted his teeth and let out a painful groan. The pressure he felt on his sword increased several times when he received Clyde''s sh.
''What is happening? Why did he be this strong in such a short time?!''
Alessio looked up and saw Clyde''s face which looked calm. It was as if he hadn''t even put his full effort behind the swing.
Unexpectedly, a kick hit Alessio''s stomach and threw him backward. He hit several buildings and only stopped after hitting thest building.
Blood was pouring out of his mouth and he felt several organs in his stomach being crushed. Alessio looked up only to see a shoe sole in front of his face.
*BUAGH!*
Clyde kicked Alessio in the face and stomped him on the ground. Alessio tries to revolt by pointing his fiery sword at Clyde and intends to summon his fiery serpent.
However, Clyde shed his sword at his raised hand.
*CRAAAT!*
Alessio''s hand and his ming sword fell to the ground, separated from his body by Clyde''s sh. Alessio let out a muffled painful scream from his mouth that was now under Clyde''s shoe.
Clyde raised his sword to stab Alessio''s heart so he could kill him quickly. However, he felt the presence of someone approaching from behind him.
So Clyde cancel it and turned his body.
*CLANG!*
A dagger that was about to stab into his neck stopped in front of his sword. Clyde saw Cuzia who was gritting her teeth full of anger.
Cuzia pulled her dagger and then shed the dagger in her other hand.
*CLANG!*
But Clyde was still able to move fast enough to fend off the dagger. He then swung his fist towards her face.
Cuzia moved her face to the side, letting the fist graze her cheek. Then she caught Clyde''s hand and twisted it as hard as she could.
However, Clyde released a powerful surge of lightning that instantly stung Cuzia with a painful strike.
"ARGHHH!!!"
Wailing full of pain came out of Cuzia''s mouth. Clyde let the lightning continue to stun her for a few seconds before finally shaking her aside.
Cuzia fell to the ground with a violently convulsing body. Not wanting to waste any more time, Clyde thrust his sword into Alessio''s chest.
*CRAAATTT!*
And then he poured lightning into his sword. Alessio''s body was convulsing from the violent shock of the lightning and started to be charred.
Clyde drew his sword as soon as he was sure his enemy was dead. Then he walked over to Cuzia who was staring at hising with eyes wide with terror.
~~~
Chapter 184 Death After Death
?
Somehow, Cuzia couldn''t force her body to move as fast as she wanted. The terror Clyde brought with him as he drew near was so oppressive it made her feel suffocated.
However, Cuzia, who already had experience inbat, was finally able to force her body to move. She cast aside all fear of what Clyde had just done and the fact that Alessio, their leader, had died at his hands.
The mes around Cuzia''s body that were previously extinguished became bigger again. She lunged at Clyde with both daggers thrust forward.
Clyde who had expected the attack toe just swung his sword to knock the daggers aside.
Their considerable difference in strength made Cuzia''s attacks so easy to repel. One of her daggers fell sideways after being hit by Clyde''s sword.
Cuzia immediately dodged before Clyde managed tond an attack on her.
''At this rate, I won''t be able to defeat him. The only way is to run away! At times like these where does Asqa go? Or is she already dead?!''
Various problems crossed Cuzia''s mind. She saw that Asqa had been taken away by that man, so most likely Asqa was already dead because she was their healer.
Cuzia saw Clyde''s movement toward her.
''I have to use that to get away!''
Cuzia moved a hand into her trouser pocket. But Clyde realized that.
Clyde who suspected that his enemy must be up to something, dashed towards her.
However, Cuzia had already thrown something at him. A figure d in golden yellow armor suddenly appeared in front of Clyde.
The figure looked shorter than him. There was long blonde hair sticking out from the helmet that the figure was wearing. But what looked most worrying of all were the pair of wings of fire and a ming sword in its hand.
''What the fuck is this?!''
Clyde shocked. He immediately knew that this figure was extremely dangerous. But behind that figure, he could see Cuzia vomitingrge amounts of blood. So whatever she has put out, it definitely requires quite a lot of sacrifices from her.
The me-winged figure lunged at Clyde and thrust its de.
''Shit!''
Clyde, whose attention was diverted to Cuzia, wasn''t ready for that. But fortunately, he was still able to fend off the attack in time even though he barely made it.
*CLANG!*
The pressure that figure was giving him was immense. Much bigger than anything he had received from Cuzia, Alessio, or Colmano.
Clyde knew that this figure was taken out to distract him while Cuzia would try to escape. With this much power, Clyde felt that she could escape and take the artifact with her.
''I can''t let that happen after all the trouble I''ve been through!''
Clyde stared at the terrifying-looking golden armored figure. He gritted his teeth and started pumping his Mana even more violently than before.
There''s still time to kill Cuzia while she was kneeling on the ground because of the consequences of summoning this creature.
Clyde also used [Skill: Burning Hand] so now he uses his fire and lightning powers simultaneously. mes and lightning appeared to surround his body and hands and gave off an overwhelming aura of destruction.
Cuzia who was bleeding from her mouth turned her head because of the overflowing power. And she saw how Clyde was surrounded by fire and lightning.
''He can also use the power of fire?!''
Cuzia widened her eyes. Her surprise grew more than before. She didn''t think that Clyde, the mysterious figure who suddenly appeared in front of them and managed to kill Alessio, had not used all of his strength.
''I... have to quickly get out of here...''
She already uses a replica of Archangel Uriel which contains a fraction of the Archangel''s power. Cuzia was sure that after using it, the replica would be able to kill Clyde. She was even willing to sacrifice her life energy to summon the replica.
But now when she saw and felt for herself how the changes had happened to Clyde, she no longer believed in that victory.
Right now, all that was on Cuzia''s mind was a chance to run while Archangel Uriel''s replica distracted Clyde.
''I have to go back and get the artifact!''
Cuzia forced her painful body to run toward Colmano. She hoped that Colmano had not died just because of that attack.
Clyde who was fighting with the replica saw Cuzia who was running away. He gritted his teeth in anger.
''This fucking thing is annoying!''
Clyde spat out a curse while continuing to swing his sword. Now his sword was enveloped in the power of lightning and fire, making it look like a god-destroying weapon.
Clyde didn''t think about the damage he would do to the de and its target. He just swung it with all his might fueled by his fury.
Uriel''s replica raised its ming de to block Clyde''s sh. But the explosive force behind that sword swing created an unexpected result.
*CLANG!*
*CRACK!*
Clyde''s sh created a crack in the ming de. Seeing that he managed to deal quite a lot of damage, Clyde let out a terrible grin.
He increased the speed and tempo of his attacks. When Clyde turned his head, he saw that Cuzia had gotten farther away. It adds his anger and annoyance to this replica so he attacks even harder.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
...
Explosion after explosion was created when Clyde''s attacks connected to his enemies as well as the environment around them. Lightning and mes exploded causing a spectacle like a huge disaster.
Cuzia didn''t even look back because of that. She just kept racing her body despite all the pain she felt. Until finally she arrived at where Colmano was.
However, the sight she saw froze her instantly.
Colmano''s body was still in a sitting position on the ground. But his head was not attached. Colmano''s head rolled next to his body with his eyes and mouth still wide open.
"Colmano..." Cuzia muttered his name in a sad voice. Around Colmano''s lifeless body, Samuel and his party members smiled andughed in relief.
"We did it!" Leyan said.
"No," Samuel cut him off. "Clyde did it. We''ll just take care of the rest."
"It''s her!" Suddenly Kei screamed realizing Cuzia''s presence.
All party members turned to Cuzia. They could see how badly Cuzia was hurt by her pale face and the blood in her mouth.
They also no longer saw the fire raging around her body.
Leyan who saw an opportunity wasted no time and drew his bow. When an arrow was created there, Leyan immediately let go of his bowstring.
*SWIISHH!*
The Arrow shot swiftly towards Cuzia. She - who was shocked to see Colmano''s condition, coupled with her already bad body condition - was toote to realize that the arrow wasing.
*CRAAAT!*
The arrow stuck in her forehead. Cuzia fell backward with her eyes still wide open. She died instantly without realizing it.
Lean took a deep breath. "Finally, it''s over."
"Wait, let''s make sure that she is really dead." Samuel then walked up to Cuzia in an alert manner.
"Besides, Clyde is still fighting there." Kiara stared at the ce in front of them where the explosions of lightning and fire urred.
"Is that really Clyde?" Haru asked with an astonished look.
"Who else could create such a disaster besides him?" Leyan said in an even tone. He had stopped being astonished by Clyde''s strength because he had shown shocking things many times.
~~~
On Clyde''s side of the fight.
"HAARRRGHH!!!"
Clyde thrust his sword forward with all his strength. Intertwined mes and lightning shot from the tip of the de toward Uriel''s replica.
*BOOM!*
An enormous explosion was created. The attack that looked like a pir of fire and lightning hit Uriel''s replica with a force far beyond what it could take.
The golden armor and wings of fire were crumbling slowly. Until finally it disappearedpletely like dust blown by the wind in the middle of Clyde''s attacks.
Clyde waited for a few seconds before he finally stopped his attack. Only now did he realize how much damage he had caused.
Buildings and destroyed ground formed a line like a straight tunnel twenty meters wide. While he still doesn''t know how far the damage he caused happened.
Clyde didn''t care about that. What was clear was that he had created enormous damage with his strength. He could already see how strong he was now but that wasn''t the end yet.
He can continue to level up and increase his Stats and Skill levels. Clyde didn''t know how much stronger he could develop.
He immediately ran in the direction Cuzia had run away. But what he found was Cuzia lying on the ground with a Mana arrow in her forehead.
Samuel, Leyan, Kei, Kiara, and Haru were stunned to see hering. Clyde looks like a monster now, especially after going through all those fights.
His de was eroded and dull. The damage that the de had suffered appeared to be severe.
But Clyde didn''t seem to have suffered any significant injuries other than dust and a few cuts on his brown coat.
Clyde seemed to remember something. He immediately took off in the direction he had left Asqa thest time.
~~~
Chapter 185 Take What You Killed
?
Clyde who remembered something important immediately shot towards a building behind Samuel and his party members.
"Where did he go?" Leyan asked. "Are there any enemies left?"
Leyan''s question made them all rmed again. Indeed, the possibility is still quiterge.
"It''s possible," said Samuel. "We''d better wait here."
They immediately agreed with Samuel''s words. If Clyde is indeed approaching another enemy, then it is better to minimize the risk they have to ept. Knowing how strong the enemy they are facing before.
Clyde looked back. When he saw Samuel and the rest of his party silently staring at him getting further away, Clyde heaved a sigh of relief.
''It''s good that they didn''t follow me.''
He had little idea as to why they didn''t follow him even though he was going alone. They must have wanted to have him take on the enemy alone so they wouldn''t have to bother taking the risk.
Clyde snorted. But he''s also grateful because it means he doesn''t have to bother looking for excuses so they don''t follow him. If they knew what he was going to do, it could be a problem.
After a while of searching, Clyde finally found Asqa waving at him from a building. The distance between these buildings and the battle just now wasn''t too far which means Asqa must have seen the battle.
Clydended in front of Asqa.
"I killed your party mates," Clyde said. "Is that going to be a problem?"
"Not really." Asqa shook her head. "I just have to say that they died and I was lucky to escape."
Clyde nodded with a relieved expression. "So there''s not exactly your friend?"
"We just met a few days to carry out this mission," said Asqa.
Clyde and Asqa stared at each other for a few moments. Clyde wanted to ask her a lot of things. But for now, they don''t have time for that.
Asqa saw Clyde biting his lip nervously. She said. "Don''t worry. I will be fine when I return to Archangel Uriel''s domain. But I have to ask you something."
"What''s that?"
"You have to wound me quite badly."
Clyde frowned rapidly for a moment. But a momentter that stunned expression turned into one of understanding. It didn''t take long for Clyde to understand Asqa''s goal.
"Alright." Clyde drew his sword.
Asqa gulped because every time Clyde held a sword like that he always looked like he wanted to kill something.
"Don''t kill me," Asqa said.
Clyde smiled. "Of course not. I just going to hurt you a little. At least enough to keep you from being suspected when you''re the only one back alive."
Asqa nodded. "Alright. Do it!"
So Clyde springs into action. He swung his sword carefully to deal enough damage, but not too badly.
Clyde winced when he saw that. He is now cutting the body of someone he considers a friend. But he also knows that he doesn''t have time to afford hesitation.
''This is something necessary,'' Clyde said to himself.
After a few moments of going through the painful process, Clyde finally stopped. Asqa fell on the dusty floor with wounds all over her body.
Blood oozed from the cuts Clyde had inflicted on her. But nothing fatal from all the wounds.
"I''m sorry."
"No. I need this. Or I could have gotten much worse from the Archangel."
Clyde saw that Asqa had grown very far from the first time they met. The Asqa that he saw at this time looked so strong, even she epted all the wounds on her body as something good for her.
"I''ll be back now," Asqa said standing up. She took a gold ring from her pocket.
Clyde nodded his head.
"Are you sure you''ll be able to reach me with the ne I gave you?" Asqa asked while looking at Clyde.
Clyde looked unsure. Because basically, he is not sure about it.
"I don''t know. I hope so," replied Clyde.
"What if you can''t?"
"I''ll find another way." Clyde turned to check if Samuel and his friends were approaching here. He didn''t see them. "It''s better for you to go now."
Asqa nodded her head. Then she closed her eyes while wiping the gold ring she was wearing. A momentter a golden portal appeared beside her.
"I''ll go now," Asqa said in a sad tone. She still wanted to spend more time with Clyde. However, Asqa knows she can''t do that, at least for now.
She turned and took a nce at Clyde for a second. Then stepped into the portal. Almost as soon as Asqa enters, the golden portal disappears.
After that, Clyde started to wreak havoc around the building. He released his fire and lightning to rage until it destroys several buildings. Before he finally decided that was enough and returned to Samuel and his friends.
"You managed to kill her?" Leyan asked. "I remember that there were four of them. And their healers haven''t been seen since earlier."
Clyde nodded curtly. Then said. "Our job is done, right?"
Samuel, Leyan, Kiara, Haru, and, Kei exchanged nces. Then they sighed because what Clyde said was true.
"Yeah, we did it," said Samuel.
Leyan fell to the ground. "I don''t think we can possiblyplete this mission without anyone dying."
Seeing this, Haru and Kei fell and sat on the ground. They leaned their heads against each other.
"It''s all thanks to you, Clyde," Kiara said apanied by a sincere grateful smile.
Clyde, of course, realizes that he is indeed the only person who determines the sess of this mission. He fought and cornered Uriel''s party alone, and they just took care of the rest.
But Clyde knew that if he said that, he would only offend them. Although it is true. So Clyde just nodded and forced a small smile.
Samuel walked over to Colmano''s corpse, which was still in a sitting position. Then took the big box that was on his back.
The box seemed to be burnt in several parts because of the lightning that Clyde had released earlier. But overall the box is still fine.
Samuel put the box on the ground and prepared to open it. But it turns out it''s impossible to do that. Because this box doesn''t have anything to open.
The box also seems to have no lid. It just looks like an ordinary ck block. But Samuel was sure that the inside of the box was hollow and there was something in it.
"What''s wrong?" Clyde who saw the contorted look on Samuel''s face asked.
"I... I don''t know how to open this box," Samuel replied.
They all immediately gathered around him after hearing what he said. And finally, they realized that there really wasn''t anything to indicate that the box could be opened.
"Let''s just take it back to the fortress," Kiara said.
"Yeah." Samuel nodded and stood up. He slung the rope that tied the box on his back and they exited the city area.
But before he left the city, Clyde did not forget to take the ming sword that previously belonged to Alessio. The sword looked like a good weapon so Clyde couldn''t just let it stay in this Ruin.
Samuel opened a portal after they exited the city area. When they looked back, they could see the sight of a city that had been in ruins even worse than before.
Most of the buildings have been destroyed and leveled with sandy ground. While the buildings that are still standing can only be said they barely made it. And maybe even a little stronger wind would knock them over.
Samuel opened the portal and they entered. But before going inside, Clyde received a shocking notification that made his steps stop.
[ You have killed a warrior of Archangel Uriel! ]
A notification appears. Clyde immediately knew why he was getting that notification.
He can''t help an excited grin appear on his lips. ''So, what do I get for that?''
[ You have obtained power from Alessio Pietri (Rank: Apprentice.) ]
A new surge of power flowed through Clyde''s body. He felt a warm power that resonated with his fire power.
Clyde nodded full of satisfaction. ''It turns out that I can gain power from the people sent by the Celestials I killed.''
[ You gain 500 (x10) Exp! ]
[ You leveled up! ]
If he had killed the other two, then Clyde would have gone up two levels and gained power from both of them. But instead, Samuel and his friends killed them both once he had weakened them.
Clyde slightly felt that Samuel and his friends stole his kill. But it can''t be helped.
Clyde also felt that he didn''t want to talk about it because it would potentially create a dispute. After all, he still has more advantages than them.
"Is something wrong?" Samuel who saw Clyde pensively asked.
"No. Nothing," Clyde replied. "I was just shocked to find out that I get powers from the people I kill."
"Yeah, I forgot to tell you about that," Samuel said. "Come on."
Clyde nodded and walked through the portal.
~~~
Chapter 186 Arrived Back
?
Clyde returns to Sivagadh Fortress with Samuel and his friends. As soon as they returned, they immediately started to reveal how tired they were.
Leyan, Kiara, Kei, and Haru wanted to go to the hotel where they were staying immediately. Meanwhile Samuel - being a good leader - went to hand over the box containing the artifact.
"I''lle with you," said Clyde.
"It''s alright. You can go take a rest right away if you want," replied Samuel.
"No. I''ve had trouble getting that box. So, I also want to know what''s inside the box that I have to go through such trouble to get it."
Samuel stared at Clyde for a few moments. Then he nodded briefly.
"Let''s go, then."
Samuel walked ahead of him. Clyde took a step forward until they were both walking side by side.
"You have some idea," said Clyde. "What''s in the box?"
"I don''t know. But this is obviously something important because the Senior Council asked us to take it," Samuel replied. "And you also know how strong the people who were sent to retrieve this artifact are. So, you can estimate how important this artifact actually is."
Clyde looked contemting for a few moments. Then he asked. "What reward will we get for this?"
Upon hearing that, Samuel turned to him. A sigh left his mouth and his expression told him that he was going to say something Clyde wouldn''t like.
"You might be disappointed to hear this. But, we won''t be getting any rewards."
Clyde immediately nced at Samuel. He frowned deeply as if he couldn''t believe what he had just heard.
"What? You gotta be kidding." Clyde looked stunned.
"No, Clyde." Samuel shook his head. "We''re doing this for the sake of weakening the Celestials. We don''t need any higher reward if it can cause them the slightest loss."
"After everything we''ve been through?" Clyde said.
"I know how difficult the battle was. But we have one clear goal here and we don''t need any other rewards. Sessfully stealing this artifact is already a great achievement for us," Samuel said.
Hearing that, Clyde snorted with a crooked smile. He couldn''t believe what he heard just now.
And after all, Samuel and his friends only took care of something he had finished. He almost got angry hearing that and almost said something that would make matters worse.
"Alright. Well, whatever," Clyde said in a very clearly irritated voice.
Samuel who saw that decided not to continue the conversation about the reward that they would not receive.
They walked in silence for a few minutes until he finally stopped. Clyde looked up and saw a building shaped like a white dome.
"This is where the Senior Council lives," said Samuel. "Listen, I understand how you feel. But it would be better if you didn''t mention anything about any reward when you met them."
Clyde only gave a brief nod in response. He will meet Maethionter so he can ask him directly. No need to cause a fuss now.
"Let''s talk about all thister, yeah?" Samuel looked at him. In his eyes, Clyde seemed to see that Samuel have something he wanted to say to him.
If he wanted to say it directly in a private conversation, it could be something important to him.
Clyde could already predict what he would say. In his mind, Samuel definitely wanted to talk about theck of meaningful rewards forpleting missions. And maybe Samuel also wanted to continue the question about how he got his powers.
Clyde didn''t say anything in return. He didn''t even nod his head this time.
After that, Samuel walked towards the dome while carrying the ck box. Clyde followed closely behind as he surveyed the building from the outside.
There are no interesting features of this building. It wasn''t even that tall so Clyde felt it was natural that he hadn''t noticed this building sooner.
They walked closer to the entrance. Suddenly, a man wearing a ck hood stepped out. His face was covered by his hood so Clyde couldn''t see him clearly.
"Only Samuel is allowed in," the man said. From his voice, it seemed he was a teenager.
"What?" Clyde was dumbfounded.
Samuel beside him sighed. He turned to Clyde with a regretful face. "Sorry, Clyde. You can''t enter."
Clyde gritted his teeth. "Why?" His voice sounded cold filled with disappointment.
This is utter nonsense. He was an official member of this mission.
Based on what Samuel said, the Senior Council themselves chose him. But now they treat him like an insignificant person.
"Senior Council still hasn''t let you in."
Those words were meant for him. So Clyde turned his face towards the hooded teenage boy. "They who asked me to join in on this mission."
"Yes. But you can''t enter."
Hearing his tone of voice, Clyde knew the man wouldn''t change his mind. So he just sighed because he didn''t want to create a scene here.
Without saying anything, Clyde turned around and walked away.
Samuel said nothing. Nothing he said would change the Senior Council''s decision and the annoyance Clyde felt.
"Come inside," the hooded man said tly.
So Clydeplied and walked into the dome building.
Meanwhile, Clyde can''t help but grumble and cursed in his heart. His view of the Senior Council deteriorated within seconds.
He had never thought that they were a good side. With all kinds of decisions and threats that they gave to the residents of this fortress.
But now he saw how they treated someone who had just done their errand at the risk of their life.
Clyde thought that it could not be worse, but the Senior Council proved otherwise.
To relieve his anger a little, Clyde went to the Dwarf''s Smithy Hammer. As soon as he got there, the sight of Hammer''s men was the first to greet him.
Clyde only gave them a curt nod and asked if Hammer was in his room. When he got the answer that Hammer was indeed in his room, Clyde walked over to it.
Some whispers about Clyde''s state came starting as soon as he was away.
"You see his state? What exactly did he fight to make the armor made by master be like that?"
"I don''t know, man. We''d better not know about that."
"Hmm... yeah. I don''t want to get involved in anything in Ruin anymore."
After that, they resumed their work. The materials that Clyde brought at that time had not been used up so the cksmiths could continue to be creative and channel their passion.
Clyde enters Hammer''s room. He seemed to be polishing a half-finished spear.
"Ah! My favorite customer!" Hammer shouted in a cheery voice. "I had expected that you woulde here as soon as you returned from the expedition. So, do you mind if you tell me wha-"
Hammer''s words, which sounded enthusiastic, stopped abruptly when he saw Clyde''s somber face. From one nce Hammer already knew that Clyde looked upset and angry about something.
Clyde sat down on the chair before saying anything. He only took the sword wrapped in ck cloth that was originally at his waist. Then handed it over to Hammer.
"What is this? You got a new sword?" Hammer''s mind, which was all shocked by the look on Clyde''s face, was easily distracted when he saw the sword.
"Yeah. Take a look at that," said Clyde.
Hammer took the sword and opened the dirty ck cloth that covered it. As soon as he saw it, Hammer''s eyes lit up and his jaw seemed to have almost dropped to the ground.
"T-This is..."
"It''s a sword that I took from someone sent by Archangel Uriel," Clyde provided an answer for the stuttering Hammer.
Hammer''s eye then shifted from the de to Clyde. Still with the same dazed expression.
"You killed one of Archangel Uriel''s warriors?!"
"Yes," Clyde answered simply. "That''s a pretty good sword. I know. But there might be some damage to the sword after our fight."
Hammer returned his gaze to the sword. There was indeed some crack in the de. But the damage was not severe enough.
Hammer said that to Clyde. And Clyde nodded in satisfaction after hearing that.
"I''ll repair it. A sword of this quality doesn''t require too much effort to repair when it only suffers from damage like this."
Hammer put the sword down on the table. "Anything else you''d like to say?"
"Actually, yes," said Clyde. He fished the ne that Asqa gave him from his pocket. "I wanted to ask for your help. But this is something very confidential."
Hearing that, Hammer''s ears perked up. His eyes widened enthusiastically for a few seconds before turning into one of suspicion.
"W-What do you mean?" Hammer asked.
Clyde''s eyes lead to a special portal that he uses to be able to go directly to a Ruin without using the main portal in the city.
"How do you make the portal that can connect directly to a Ruin?" Clyde replied to Hammer''s question with his own question.
~~~
Chapter 187 At The Lake
?
Upon hearing what Clyde said, Hammer blinked rapidly. He stared at Clyde for a moment only to see Clyde''s demanding look.
"Why do you want to know about that?" Hammer asked. Anxiety began to rise in his heart.
"I just wanted to know." Clyde stood up and approached Hammer. "I wonder if could youe up with something simr."
Clyde held up the ne that Asqa gave to Hammer''s face. It is a simple ne. The string of the ne is made of silver and the pendant looks like an apple which is also made of silver.
Hammer''s eyes immediately stared at the ne and reflexively followed the movement of the pendant that swayed to the right and left.
"W-what is this?" Hammer asked.
"So, I got this from someone. Can you create something so I canmunicate with the person who has this ne?" Clyde expressed his wish.
Hammer looked at Clyde with suspicious eyes. "Who is this... Person?"
"Just someone. I need tomunicate with her as soon as possible."
"I-I don''t know if I can do it or not."
"You can create a portal that directly connects to the Ruin. You said you can also create something so I can go to the domain of the Celestials.
That means you have a way to connect this fortress to what''s in the other world. Regardless of whatever happens in this fortress."
Clyde stops his words before he mentions something in this fortress that seems to prevent him from using Character Information.
"W-well." Hammer swallowed his saliva. "I-I do have some kind of way of doing that. But... I can''t do it too often or the Senior Council will penalize me."
"They haven''t done anything to you in all this time even though you have this portal," Clyde said.
"Th-that''s because they know I wouldn''t dare use it," Hammer countered. "But now, they know that you are brave enough to go to the Ruin alone. If I create something else, they might think that I helped you to rebel against them."
Clyde stared at Hammer with a sigh. "You said you could help me create a portal that could lead me to The All Territory if I brought the right essence with me."
"I-It seems... I can''t make it anymore." Hammer said while avoiding Clyde''s gaze.
Previously, Clyde thought he had seen a bright light at the end of a dark tunnel when he heard that Hammer could create the device.
But apparently, what he said at that time was just based on his impulse to create something new. Now that Hammer had thought about it - and finally realized - the consequences he would receive from his actions, the Dwarf became full of doubts.
But Clyde couldn''t let him feel doubtful now. He needed Hammer to create something he needed now.
"Hey, don''t you really want to create something new again?" Clyde asked.
"It''s not that I don''t want to. But I can''t." Hammer still avoided Clyde''s gaze.
"Come on, man. I know you can do it. You are the greatest cksmith I have met in this Fortress." Clyde pointed at a small portal in the corner of the room. "You can create a portal that can directly connect to a Ruin.
You can create a pickaxe that can extract ore in one hit. And you can create amazing weapons."
Upon hearing thepliments that came pouring down on him continuously, Hammer''s eyes seemed to emit a glint that expressed pleasure.
Seeing how Hammer reacted to his words, Clyde added. "I believe that you can create that device, Hammer. And of course, I won''t let the Senior Council know about anything."
Hammer, who originally looked away, now turned his face slowly towards Clyde. "Are you sure that none of the Senior Council will find out?"
"Yes." Clyde nodded. What Hammer saw in Clyde was more than just a desire to convince him. But Clyde nodded as if he knew it was the truth.
"O-Okay," Hammer said. "So uhh... you want me to create what exactly with that ne?"
"This ne," said Clyde. "It belongs to someone in The All Territory. I need you to create something that I can contact her with."
"But why?"
"You don''t need to know about that. The less you know, the better."
After hearing that, Hammer decided that not knowing why would be better. Hammer knew that Clyde''s business was always close to danger.
"Can you do it?" Clyde asked again, this time in a more demanding tone.
"I''ll try," answered Hammer.
"Can you do it or not?"
Hammer sighed. He contemted while staring at the ne. Clyde could see the cogs in his head starting to spin.
Then he said. "Yeah. I think I can do that."
When he said that, a smile finally appeared on Clyde''s face. "Good. As expected, you are a skilled Dwarf."
Just as Clyde had thought. Hammer would have melted quickly when he was praised for the work he put in continuously. Hammer would have no choice but to create something new again after someone recognized his prowess.
Hammer was grinning now. Somehow, the anxiety and fear that had filled his mind earlier seemed to have disappeared.
Clyde nodded. Then drew his sword from its scabbard. When Hammer saw the state of the sword, his face, which had been smiling earlier, changed to one of shock.
"What happened to that sword?!" Hammer asked in a high voice filled with shock.
"You know what happened. I use it to fight," Clyde answered simply. Then handed the sword into Hammer''s hands. "This is a good sword. It canst until the end until I can kill my opponent."
Hammer no longer heard Clyde''sst words. He was already busy staring at this very worrying sword de.
With one nce, Hammer already knew that the damage this sword had suffered was quite severe. It''s not just a lot of chips and cracks on the outer de. But Hammer could feel that even the inner structure of this sword had been damaged due to the immense Mana pressure.
The damage this sword took had increased by several timespared to thest time. That means Clyde''s power had also increased since thest time.
"I don''t think you can use this sword anymore." Hammer sighed in resignation. "Next time you should use the sword you brought earlier. Maybe it can handle your power better than this poor sword. Just maybe."
Clyde just nodded his head at that. "Alright."
Feeling that his business with Hammer was finished, Clyde decided now was the time to get out of there.
Before he walked out of the door, Clyde gave Hammer a stern look and said. "You can finish the ne as soon as possible, right?"
Hammer didn''t answer right away. He took a few seconds before finally nodding. "Yes."
"Great. Thanks."
After that, Clyde really left there. Leaving Hammer staring at the ne while racking his brains. Not long after, he begins his work.
~~~
Time psed. Clyde spentst night doing nothing. He only realized that his body was suffering from quite intense fatigue when he finallyy down on the bed.
The battle he fought in the desert Ruin was a big battle that he had just experienced after a long time. So Clyde thought that it was only natural his body would be shocked by the heavy burden that came so suddenly.
Clyde immediately closed his eyes that night without thinking too much again. He slept so soundly that night that he didn''t even wake up the entire night.
Clyde just woke up the next day, and he woke up with refreshed feeling.
After finishing his business, Clyde went straight to the ce where he could meet Maethion.
The ce is quite far from the living quarter. Clyde also had quite a bit of trouble finding the location of theke and only found it after circling for a few minutes.
It turns out that theke is pretty nice. Theke is also quite wide.
The surface of the water is clear and calm like a mirror that reflects the view of the always-dark sky above.
Clyde had no idea howrge the Sivagadh Fortress really was. But seeing how wide thiske was, Clyde felt that he wasn''t in a fortress but in an entirely different world.
There are several chairs and fields around theke. Clyde also saw that there were several beings of various races enjoying their morning time.
But unfortunately, the atmosphere that always looks like night makes the beauty of thiske less than it should be.
Clyde sat on one of the chairs. And awaiting Maethion''s arrival. At that time, the bespectacled Elf said that he would know when Clyde arrived at theke and was ready to talk to him. So Clyde just sat quietly and waited.
"So you came."
The voice Clyde had been waiting for came from behind him. Maethion who seems to havee from nowhere sat beside him.
"Thank you foring to ept my invitation," Maethion said.
Clyde turned to him. "So, what should I do?"
~~~
Chapter 188 Her Lies
?
Maethion let out a chuckle that seemed to indicate amusement when he heard Clyde''s words.
"I see you don''t really like chatting with strangers. Do you have a problem with getting close to strangers?" Maethion said.
"Well, I don''t know. Thest time I remember, as soon as I trusted a stranger I received a stab in the chest and almost died," Clyde replied in a calm tone while looking ahead.
Maethion shrugged his shoulders. "You know, not everyone is that bad. You have to start opening up to other people or you will feel lonely."
Clyde snorted. "You don''t need to worry about that. I''m used to loneliness."
Maethion stared at Clyde for a long time. His eyes behind the sses seemed to want to examine more about Clyde. There was a curious glint that had always been there when Maethion looked at him.
All of that is of course because of the precognition he got. Maethion saw the faintest glimpses of what would happen in the future and of course, he wanted to see for himself the characters who yed a key role in that event.
"Are you going to carry on such pleasantries?" Clyde doesn''t seemfortable here anymore.
"Ah, why are you in such a hurry? You don''t really want to do anything, do you?" Maethion said apanied by a smile.
"I want to practice. I''d better do that if you still don''t have anything important to say."
Clyde was about to get up from the chair but Maethion stopped him.
"Alright," Maethion said as he spread his arms towards Clyde. "Sit down. Let''s talk."
So Clydeplied. He sat back in his seat and looked at Mathion with demanding eyes.
"So, you want your sword back, right?"
Clyde didn''t answer because he was sure Maethion already knew the answer to that question.
"I can help you get it but I need time."
"What do you want for that?" Clyde asked.
"What do you mean?"
"What''s the price?"
"Nothing. Let''s just say I did it because I wanted to be your friend," Mathion said with a smile on his face.
What he saw in the Elf made Clyde wince in disgust.
Maethionughed at Clyde''s reaction. He looked genuine as if Clyde''s expression really amused him.
Yet Clyde didn''t care about that and kept focusing on what topic they were talking about now.
"I can''t believe you would do it for free. That sounds even fishier to me," said Clyde in a tone that he kept as even as possible even though he held back a bit of annoyance in his chest.
After all, Maethion is a Senior Council and he doesn''t want to upset him. Even though his words might not sound very friendly.
"Alright. I''ll ask for your helpter. But for now, I still don''t need anything," Maethion said.
Clyde was still looking at him with a look of suspicion. But Clyde chose not to demand too loud an answer.
Clyde knew Maethion must have an agenda of his own. But for now, the time is still not suitable for him to do anything.
He must have nned everything ordingly, he won''t tell anyone about his thoroughly nned agenda to minimize risk.
Clyde, who knew that he would face some kind of tribtion from that debt in the future could only sigh. It can''t be helped, Clyde knew he must continue to experience problems to reach his goals.
"I will retrieve your sword from the special storage room. I have seen it. It is a good sword," said Mathion. "There is another power there. How did you get it?"
Clyde shrugged his shoulders. "I got it at the Selection Stage. You should know the rest of the exnation about that."
Clyde tried to look as calm as possible like it was nothing big.
While in fact, he knew that Maethion must be talking about the Demonic power in the Elderss Sword. A power that he got from a special deal with a Demon Duchess. But Maethion didn''t need to know about that.
Maethion stared at Clyde for a few moments. His eyes were sharp as if he wanted to break open Clyde''s head and see with his own eyes what he thinking right now. Or what secret does he hold?
But then Mathion only sighed. He decided to believe in Clyde because his exnation did make sense.
He can get everything at the Selection Stage. Even though the kind of power he felt from that sword was something too strong to be in the Selection Stage, it was possible.
"Oh and one more thing," Clyde said. "I heard that this entire ce is overseen by the Senior Council. Is that true?"
"Yeah." Maethion nodded briefly, confirming. "Why? You feel nervous because we are always watching you?"
"Of course," answered Clyde.
"In that case, I will stop monitoring you. There''s a device that allows us to monitor everyone in this Fortress so when I enter the settings into the device, it will immediately stop monitoring you."
"Rather than me," Clyde said. "I need you to drop the surveince on Hammer."
Hearing that, Maethion frowned in puzzlement. "The Dwarf cksmith? Why?"
"I have my reasons," said Clyde. "How about it? Can you do it?"
Maethion didn''t answer right away because he was still thinking about why Clyde would ask such a thing. It''s not a big thing so there''s no reason to reject it. He was only confused about the reason behind the request.
"I can do it," Maethion said. "And don''t worry. I''m not going to put it on the list of favors you ask of me. It''s not something big."
Maethion smiled at him. If Clyde didn''t know any better he would have believed that Maethion wanted to be friends with him. But he knew that this bespectacled Elf was a cunning one, so Clyde just snorted.
"Thanks. At least I should," said Clyde. "That''s all I wanted to talk to you about."
Clyde immediately stood up from the chair without waiting for a reply from Maethion.
"You don''t want to talk a little bit. longer?" Maethion asked.
"No."
After giving that short, cold-sounding reply, Clyde walked away without turning around once. He didn''t even turn his head or nce at Maethion anymore.
"Haha," Maethion let out a bitter chuckle. "That brat is interesting. He doesn''t look scared even after knowing I''m the Senior Council."
Maethion is increasingly convinced that in the future Clyde will indeed be a figure with great influence.
~~~
"Wake up."
A voice forced Asqa to open her eyes. She knew that voice by heart because no other voice had that much power in this ce.
Asqa immediately pushed her body to get up. But the stinging pain from the wounds all over her body forced Asqa to fall back on the bed.
"Argh..."
Asqa let out a groan full of pain. She also grimaced adding to the impression of pain getting worse.
Uriel who saw her said. "Just lie down. It''s okay."
"I''m sorry, Your Majesty," Asqa said. "We failed. And... and... they all died."
Asqa tried to put on an expression as sad as possible. She even started to shed tears and looked quite natural with it.
"It''s not your fault," said Uriel. She gritted her teeth, holding back the anger that was boiling in her heart. "Tell me, what exactly happened there?"
So Asqa began to tell about what happened in the Ruin.
She didn''t need to lie too much because basically, she couldn''t do anything meaningful apart from observing.
So Asqa just tells what she saw and adds some small details to strengthen her lie.
She had thought about all of that since returning from Ruin so Asqa could deliver an almost perfect lie.
"That man took me away from the rest of the party. He almost killed me if Alessio didn''te on time," said Asqa.
Uriel gritted his teeth tighter. Even now her fists tightened until the veins in her hands bulged.
"And then?" Uriel asked as if with great difficulty after trying so hard to quell her anger.
Asqa proceeds to tell everything about how the rest of her party members were annihted by a mysterious group that suddenly came.
Asqa didn''t say anything about Clyde doing it himself. At least for now.
Asqa knew the Archangel had a special interest in Clyde just as she and Sonya came out of the temple-like building. Archangel Uriel immediately put on a confused face when he didn''t see Clyde with them back then.
Asqa knew that this Archangel could do something dangerous to Clyde so she decided to hide anything about him for now. Until she knows what is the reason that makes Uriel interested in him.
After telling it Asqa saw Uriel turn her face to the other side. Asqa saw that there was a fire burning in her eyes and seemed to burn anything she looked at.
That sight made her swallow hard and feel scared because she had lied. If the Archangel knew she had lied to her... Asqa didn''t even want to imagine what kind of sentence she would receive.
"Are you aware of anything to identify them?" Uriel asked.
Ashka shook her head. "I only saw how they fought, Your Majesty. There are six of them and they are very strong."
She decided not topletely cover it up. Or it will look suspicious.
"Who exactly are they?" Uriel muttered to herself. Then suddenly her eyes narrowed as if remembering something. "Could it be... It was them?"
Asqa gulped upon hearing that. ''Does she know about them?''
~~~
Chapter 189 New Sword
?
Asqa swallowed her saliva which suddenly felt very tough. She nced at the Archangel who seemed to be racking her brains to find an answer.
Asqa didn''t know if the Archangel knew about the group. But if that was true, then she might be able to track them down and find out the truth herself.
The room was filled with silence for a few seconds which made Asqa feel a little tight. Her restlessness and anxiety increased with every passing second.
Until finally Asqa heard the sound of a sighing out of the Archangel''s crimson mouth. Uriel turned to Asqa with a knowing face.
"I think it''s quite a good thing for you toe back alive. You saw your party members all killed."
"Y-Yeah, Your Majesty."
"The group that attacked you," Uriel said. "Maybe they are the so-called Resistance."
Asqa frowned. "Resistance?"
"Yes." Uriel nodded. "But that''s still not certain. Their existence has already be a rumor circting around here. Even so, there''s still no one to actually prove their existence."
"What group is it, Your Majesty?" Asqa asked with a curious face.
"I heard that they are a group of creatures who came from the Selection Stage and decided to unite against the Celestials. Heh!" Uriel answered then let out a disdainful snort.
"If indeed they did, then they''re just a bunch of idiots."
Hearing her exnation, Asqa recalled again about the appearance of her attackers.
They looked like a group of humans with extraordinary abilities, which seems like the people from the Selection Stage who got their power.
Asqa doesn''t know how Clyde is with them. But most likely Clyde was saved by the group when he was still in the Selection Stage.
Knowing the purpose of the group, which was stated by Uriel, Asqa was even more convinced that they were indeed aiming to fight the Celestials.
Maybe they somehow found out about Clyde''s power and decided to save him before he exited the Selection Stage.
Before he entered the domain of the Celestials and became one of the followers of the Celestials.
"They were just rumors before. No one thought that they were real. However," Uriel said. "It seems now they are a very real threat."
Asqa could hear the anger in Uriel''s voice. When she turned from her reverie, Asqa saw that Uriel''s jaw had hardened and she had tightly gripped her fist above her thigh.
Uriel might not have noticed it, but now a red, hot aura was emitting from her body. Asqa who was lying in pain flinched when she felt the hot aura touching her.
Suddenly, Uriel stood up from her chair. Her gaze was straight ahead as if she was finding a target and was about to burn whatever she saw.
"They''ve stolen mine. I can''t let that slide," Uriel said, more to herself. "Are you sure you don''t remember anything about them?"
"N-No, Your Majesty," Asqa said in a trembling voice. "I''m sorry."
Uriel nodded. "Then, just focus on your recovery. I hope you recover soon so we can get revenge."
Asqa could clearly see the dangerous glint in the Archangel''s eyes. She is a cruel and very powerful Angel. Asqa wasn''t sure even Clyde with his strength like that could fight her.
"Y-Yes, Your Majesty."
After that, Uriel left Asqa''s room without saying anything else. She even mmed the door so loudly that it created a sound that made Asqa flinch.
It wasn''t until the Archangel left that Asqa breathed a sigh of relief. She even just realized that she was holding her breath since earlier.
"Huuu... I hope all of this won''t get worse than this."
~~~
After he left theke where he met Maethion, Clyde went straight to Hammer''s ce to get the red-de sword he just got.
As he expected, Hammer had finished repairing the sword and it was now back to its best state.
"I''ve also added some materials to increase the strength of the sword," Hammer said in a proud tone of voice.
Clyde nodded in approval while examining the red-ded sword in his hand. Indeed, now there are no longer any chipped and dull parts on that sword.
Now that he saw it in better shape, it was a fine weapon indeed. He could feel a warm power flowing through the sword when he gripped it.
"I''ve also made a sheath for the sword." Hammer held out a dark red scabbard to Clyde.
"Thanks. Just tell me you''ve run out of materials," Clyde said.
Hearing those words, Hammer only let out a small smile. Because Clyde saw a much less reaction than usual, he looked up at Hammer.
"What''s wrong? You don''t like new materials?" Clyde asked with suspicious eyes.
"Of course I like it," Hammer replied in ackluster tone.
Clyde knew right away that the Dwarf must be feeling nervous about the job he had given him.
"Are you still worried about making the tool I asked for?" Clyde asked.
Hammer only answered with a sigh. But that was enough for Clyde to understand.
"Don''t worry. The Senior Council won''t be watching you. I''ve spoken to one of the Senior Council and he will take care of everything," Clyde said in an even tone.
Hammer''s eyes widened at his words. he asked. "What do you say?"
"You know someone from the Senior Council called Maethion?"
Hammer''s wide-open eyes widened again. Clyde was a little impressed because he didn''t know that was possible.
"The Elves?!"
Clyde nodded.
"You met him?!"
Clyde nodded again. Then said. "That bespectacled Elf said that he would do something so you won''t be watched by the Senior Council anymore. I think you can believe that."
Clyde didn''t wait for Hammer''s response because it seemed he couldn''t show any response anymore. After all, he was too shocked.
Clyde only snorted at Hammer''s mood. Then went out while carrying his new sword.
Seconds after Clyde left, Hammer dropped his butt on the chair.
The Dwarf''s eyes stared nkly ahead. Then, a wide grin appeared in his mouth.
"If it''s Maethion, then I can believe it. Hehehe."
Hammer knew too much about Maethion''s reputation to doubt him. But the question is, how did Clyde and Maethion reach this agreement?
A lot is going on behind the scenes, Hammer gets the feeling that something big is about to happen.
~~~
When he arrived at the wide ins, Clyde immediately went to the ce farthest from the people who were training.
He had to stay as far away as possible so as not to harm them.
What he was about to do would be something that would have a huge impact on the surroundings based on what he saw when he fought against that man who was formerly the owner of this sword.
That man''s power is now his. That meant Clyde''s fire power had be much stronger than before. Especially now that he has gotten the man''s sword which seems to have quite an amazing ability.
Because of that, he had to stay away so as not to hurt anyone. He knew that most of the residents of this Fortress were far weaker than him and they would likely be seriously injured when his attacks identally hit them.
After walking for a few minutes, Clyde finally found a suitable ce for him to practice. He drew the red-ded sword from its scabbard.
The red color on the de looked even brighter in the sunlight. As if it absorbs energy from the sun''s heat.
Clyde started pouring his Mana into the sword. The de started to glow brighter and brighter. Finally, mes lit up on the de.
*BWOOSH!*
The de seemed to have its own heat source. The holder only needs to channel Mana a little and fire immediately ignites on the de.
''It''s pretty impressive.''
Hammer was not wrong when he said that this sword is a good weapon. But Clyde still believes that his Elderss Sword is still superior to this sword.
Clyde poured a little more Mana into the sword. The mes burning on the de got bigger and bigger.
''I saw that guy create a fire serpent. Can I do that too?''
Curious to give it a try, Clyde raised the de above his head and began to use his will to create a fire serpent.
*BWOSSHH!*
A vortex of fire was created above his head. Clyde waited a few moments but found that the vortex had not turned into a serpent.
''Perhaps there is another way?''
The man''s power - his skills - belonged to him so Clyde should also be able to use that fire serpent.
However, why hasn''t the fire serpent appeared even though he had the will to appear?
''Is it because I don''t understand the skill to cast that fire serpent?''
Clyde didn''t know if that was the cause. But that''s possible because when he used the Skills he had, Clyde knew every detail of those Skills as if they were part of himself.
Because fire serpent was an unfamiliar skill to him, Clyde thought that he had to understand it before he could use it.
~~~
Chapter 190 Reasons
?
When he got an idea, about how he had to understand how to use the skill first and couldn''t use it right away, Clyde decided to immediately drop the thought of the fire serpent.
If indeed what he thought was true, then Clyde could only use that skill when he left this Fortress. He had to look back at his Character Information and see the Skill''s exnation.
Knowing that he couldn''t do that now, Clyde only focused on using the skills he could use now. Clyde can only create fire with the sword, so he tries tobine his fire power with the sword''s fire power.
It turned out, the results that happened exceeded his expectations.
*BWOOOSSHHH!!!*
Clyde raised the red ded sword above his head, flowing Mana along with his [Skill: Burning Hand]. Then a fire vortex with a diameter of ten meters was created almost instantly.
The fire vortex swirled above Clyde''s head like a cloud that was shading him. But instead of blocking the sunlight, it creates a brighter light around Clyde.
The heat created by the fire vortex was also so intense that it made the grass under his feet pushed downward. And that heat was not just felt around his, body but also spreading around.
Some of the people who were training in the ins turned towards Clyde when they suddenly felt a rush of hot wind.
"What else is that boy up to?" a man who looked to be in his middle age spoke with eyes full of astonishment towards Clyde.
"His fire power is getting greater. You don''t want to challenge him anymore, Nikos?" a young girl with a mischievous look on her face asked Nikos.
Nikos, of course, chose not to answer. He had seen and experienced a fight with Clyde. It was an embarrassing and horrific experience.
Clyde''s power has grown so much now. Nikos and the others saw how big the fire vortex was constantly spinning above his head.
They couldn''t imagine how strong the vortex was to be able to send hot air from this distance. And what would happen if the vortex hit them?
Fortunately, Clyde chose a very far ce. Nikos thought he must have realized what kind of destruction he would create if he identally aimed his attacks at them.
"Let''s just continue our own training," the middle-aged man spoke.
Feeling it was pointless to keep staring at Clyde, they started to turn their attention to the training they were doing.
*BOOM!*
But a momentter, everyone in the scene was immediately forced to turn their heads back towards Clyde as a very loud sound, apanied by a small earthquake-like vibration was created. When they turned around, they already saw a hole in front of Clyde.
The ground in front of Clyde was scorched and there was a hole as wide as the diameter of the fire vortex he had created earlier. The vortex of fire not only burned the ground in front of him but also created a hole.
They were all astonished, words seemed to leave their mouths and they could only gape with wide eyes. They had never seen such power in this fortress.
Even Clyde himself was stunned by what he could do. The reason was that he only concentrated a small amount of his Mana on that attack. But it turned out, the output of that attack looked like he was exerting an enormous amount of Mana.
Clyde nodded in satisfaction. He stared at his sword which was still burning in mes. And grinned because now he''s got a good weapon.
"So, this is what the equipment of Celestials followers looks like."
The followers of the Celestials must be very well equipped. Whatever was in this Fortress could not bepared to what they had.
To gain power. Clyde definitely needs more powerful weapons and pieces of equipment. He just realized now that he could get those powers from the Celestials he killed.
His grin turned into a chuckle. Finally, he found a sure way to increase his power. All he had to do now was figure out how to meet those Celestial''s followers.
"Senior Council," Clyde muttered to himself.
They knew about the party sent by the Celestials to retrieve the artifacts in the Ruin. One way or another.
Clyde felt that meeting Maethion was a great fortune for him. Based on their previous encounter, Maethion seems to approach him because he wants something.
That meant he had someone on the Senior Council he could turn to for assistance. Of course, Maethion will ask for something back but Clyde is ready with it.
He finished his practice today to not cause too muchmotion. He realized that everyone was already staring at him from a distance.
Clyde put the red ded sword in its scabbard and exited the ins.
~~~
A few dayster a bird approached Clyde while he was alone at the cafeteria enjoying his breakfast. The bird is small and has a green color like a leaf.
Clyde frowned when he saw a bird suddenlye to his table. But he was even more surprised when the little bird opened its beak and spoke.
"Come to theke."
After that, the bird flew away leaving dumbfounded Clyde behind. It was Maethion''s voice. Clyde exhaled and chuckled then finished his meal.
~~~
Clyde came to theke like Maethion said. Turns out, he was already waiting for him on a chair like before.
When he saw Clyde sitting next to him, Maethion handed him something wrapped in gray cloth. Clyde epted it knowing immediately what it was.
"I heard from Samuel, World Masters can trace this sword," said Clyde.
"Not anymore. I made sure that the World Masters couldn''t track it," Maethion answered with a proud smile.
Clyde had expected that much. After all, Maethion wasn''t some stupid Elf who would take the sword out of the special storage without doing anything to eliminate its danger.
Clyde opened the gray cloth a little. Then nodded in satisfaction when he saw the clear bluish de of the Elderss Sword.
"May I ask you something?"
Clyde turned to Maethion. "Go ahead."
"What were you doing before the Selection Stage?"
The question made Clyde a little taken aback because he didn''t expect to hear that question.
"I''m just a student," Clyde answered curtly. He recalls his days as a student which was not a pleasant experience.
Now he realized it. His life before the Selection Stage feels so far away. It was almost like a nightmare he had and what was happening now was the true reality.
Even though this life is like a fantasy, Clyde feels more alive in his life now than in his life as a lonely and boring seventeen-year-old boy.
Thinking that, Clyde snorted, realizing how strange his life''s journey had been until now.
"You seem to have realized something funny," Maethion said.
"Yeah. I think everyone in this ce would feel this," Clyde replied.
"What do you mean?"
"We were all just going about our normal days without expecting anything to happen. Then suddenly, the Selection Stage urred. From then on everything changed."
Hearing Clyde''s answer, Maethion chuckled bitterly. "You''re right. We never expected that something like this would happen."
"How about you? What did you do before the Selection Stage?" it is now Clyde''s turn to ask.
"I was a prince in the Elf kingdom," Maethion replied.
Clyde snorted with a grin. "Your life must have been really fun back then. Unfortunately, the Selection Stage messed things up, huh."
Maethion stared ahead with nk eyes. Clyde immediately knew that the Elf was reminiscing about his life before the Selection Stage.
"Yes. My life is quite pleasant." Maethion turned to Clyde. "The Selection Stage ruined everything so I want my revenge."
Even though Maethion was smiling, Clyde could see the dangerous shes in the Elf''s eyes. Those shes were something Clyde would imagine would also appear in his eyes when he talked about getting revenge.
Their situation seems different. Maethion wants revenge because the Selection Stage happened. Meanwhile, he was grateful because the Selection Stage happened.
The selection Stage destroyed Maethion''s happy life. As for Clyde, the Selection Stage gave him an ideal life.
So Clyde is actually grateful to whoever created this Selection Stage, and of course to someone who gave him his Private Attribute.
"Alright," Clyde said. He doesn''t want to borate anymore about his life or the motivations that can keep him moving. Or it will only make his rtionship with Mawthion strained because of their different reasons.
"Do you have some kind of mission like the one I did the other day with Samuel and his party?" Clyde asked.
"What do you mean?" Maethion frowned.
"Well, you must know about the order from the Senior Council that ordered us to take the artifacts and kill the party that Uriel sent," Clyde replied. "Do you have such a mission?"
Maethion stared at Clyde with contemtive eyes. After a while, he said. "I guess I have a few things in mind."
~~~
Chapter 191 This Really Sucks
?
Clyde wasn''t really expecting to hear anything good from Maethion. He only asked about it because he wanted to try it. But it turned out that Maethion''s answer was quite surprising.
"You have e few things in mind?" Clyde asked again with raised eyebrows. Maethion could see that Clyde was quite excited about that. But he doesn''t know why.
"Why do you ask about that, though?" Maethion asked with a frown on his face.
Clyde didn''t answer right away. He still didn''t know how much he had to open up to Maethion. Even though they had talked quite a bit and decided to be on good terms with each other, Clyde still didn''t trust the Elf.
"I want to get stronger," said Clyde. He didn''t lie about it. "In the mission, I carried out a few days ago with Samuel and his party, I killed one of the Archangel Uriel''s envoys."
Maethion nodded while making an expression to show that he understood. Maethion of course already knew about what happened in the expedition mission to Ruin to retrieve the artifact since he was one of the Senior Council.
Samuel reported everything in detail to Vernik and Madri. Then the two of them ryed the information to Maethion.
Clyde could also see right away that Maethion knew what he was talking about.
"So you want to kill Celestials envoys again and get their power?" Maethion asked.
Clyde nodded briefly and firmly.
"I see you are quite greedy with power. Be careful, it can drown you."
"You don''t have to worry about that," Clyde said. "So do you have anything I can do?"
"Yes. But I can''t give you that mission for now," replied Mathion.
"Why?"
Mathion shook his head with a troubled expression. "Not yet. And before you ask why, no, I can''t tell you why."
Maethion seemed to know enough about Clyde''s character to question something he didn''t understand. So before the question came out Maethion already said no as an answer.
Clyde just snorted. "Okay."
"But don''t worry. I can give it to you when the timees. And it won''t take long because I know something is going to happen," Maethion said. "Then, I''ll be going now. Enjoy your time with your sword. I guess you guys are missing each other, right?"
Maethion then walked away from the ce leaving Clyde. Meanwhile, Clyde decided to stay here for a few minutes and enjoy the peacefulke scenery.
Even though thiske always looked like a dark mirror reflecting the night sky above, Clyde felt that it still looked calming.
He paused here for a while thinking about his life before arriving at this ce. Realizing that he had had an extraordinary adventure, Clyde smiled to himself.
"Maybe... I can write some kind of story out of all of this."
~~~
Several days passed without anything meaningful to Clyde. He just woke up, ate, then headed to the ins to practice.
During that time, Samuel and the rest of his party continued to make expeditions to the Ruin or one of the Celestial''s domains. But they didn''t ask Clyde to join them.
Samuel said that the Senior Council suggested that Clyde not join the expedition for now. The Senior Council said that he had helped quite a lot and could rest for a while.
However, Clyde was not convinced by that reason. He had already talked to Maethion and the Elf didn''t mention anything about him having to rest.
So, maybe it was the decision of the other Senior Council members who didn''t want him to join the expedition for some reason.
Clyde didn''t say any further because that would just be a pain. After all, he knew that the Senior Council''s decision was something he couldn''t go against.
Samuel and his party members seemed to regret leaving Clyde behind. However, Clyde didn''t seem to care about that because for him it was no big deal.
Clyde was just waiting for Maethion to arrive who said he would give him his own mission. But after three weeks, Maethion still hasn''t appeared.
Clyde kept telling himself to be patient. He knew that Maethion would definitelye and give him the mission because he also wanted to get something out of it.
So Clyde just waited.
And finally, the green bird came back to him. Clyde who was in the ins stopped swinging his sword and stared at the little bird.
"Sorry for making you wait. Are you feeling annoyed for waiting so long? Haha."
Maethion''s voice came from the bird''s beak. Then came hisughter. All of that created a strange sight because the sound ofughter came from the beak of a small bird.
"What should I do?" Clyde decided to brush the weirdness off and get to the point.
"You must be looking forward to taking on that mission, huh? Unfortunately, you can''t take it on your own."
The reply from Mathion made Clyde frown. "What do you mean?"
"I want to exin in more detail. But I can''t meet you right now. You have to get at least three otherpanions to carry out this mission."
Clyde exhaled and looked away. He hates it. That means he has to interact with other people in this Fortress to carry out the mission.
"Is there no other way?" Clyde asked with a face full of annoyance.
"No. Remember, I gave you this mission in secret, especially for you. So at least don''t make this any more suspicious by setting off alone.
I know you are strong enough to do that. It''s not that I doubt your strength but I also have to secure my own position, you know?"
That was an argument Clyde could understand. Maethion was certainly no fool and created several countermeasures to ovee the suspicions that might be leveled against him.
"You have to find at least threepanions before I give you the mission."
After those words left the bird''s beak, the little green bird immediately flew away.
Clyde sighed. "This really sucks."
~~~
Chapter 192 Found Them
?
"Threepanions, huh?"
Clyde was still contemting with his head down, staring at the green grass dancing in the wind below him.
"Where should I get them..."
For Clyde, the problem of findingpanions to carry out missions is not a matter of their strength, or finding members with suitable abilities.
But that was the problem with him not being able to form rtionships with strangers.
Clyde wasn''t toofortable being in a group with strangers. Even when he was still in the Selection Stage, Clyde was only with them because he had to.
Especially now that he had experienced that painful betrayal. The guards he put up around him got even stronger.
For Clyde now, trusting others or just letting others get behind his back makes him uneasy. If he could choose, he wouldn''t want to do that.
However, Clyde also understood that Maethion also didn''t want to make himself look suspicious by giving the expedition mission to go out of the Fortress for him only.
Clyde understood Maethion''s reasoning, but that didn''t mean he would feel happy about it.
He exhaled roughly. His hands were on his waist and his eyes started scanning the ins area.
There are so many people practicing here. But they immediately averted their gaze when they saw Clyde staring back at them.
Before now, Clyde had wanted that kind of treatment because he didn''t want to get too close to anyone. Yet now a different situation urred and the treatment made it even more difficult for him.
''So, what the fuck should I do now?''
Clyde racked his brain for an answer. But no matter how hard he thought, he could onlye up with one answer. Which is, he had to start talking to them and asking for help.
But it''s definitely a hard thing for Clyde. After all, his purpose was looking for apanion to take on a mission against the Celestials'' emissaries, they would immediately run away in fear when they heard that.
It was then that Clyde saw several peopleing out of the portal. When Clyde noticed their arrival, he couldn''t help but frown.
An idea pops up in his head. ''Maybe it''s possible with them.''
The newly arrived group consisted of five people. And Clyde had met them before. His rtionship was quite good with the group because they were the ones who saved him at that time.
They were Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L. Five people who hade from the same Selection Stage and ended up in the same ce as him.
Clyde still hesitated to approach them. But at least with them, he could talk easier because of the history they shared in the past.
So Clyde walked over to them. The five people seemed to be scanning around. Their expressions were one of amazement seeing that there was a ce like this inside the Fortress.
"How big do you think this ce is?" Wiley asked without looking at his friends. Because he was busy looking into the distance to find something that was like the edge of this ce. Yet he did not find any.
"I guess there''s no use asking about that. You should already understand that this ce doesn''t make any sense."
It was Rosie who answered his questions. Hearing her answer, Wiley chuckled. After all, they''re now staying in a ce where the sky is always night. After going through a disaster that destroyed their world and gave them mysterious powers.
Now, they set foot in a world that seemed to have only been created from ins of grass and trees after entering the portal. So there''s nothing that should surprise them anymore now.
Except, the figure of a person walking towards them with those long strides.
"I-Isn''t that, Clyde?!" L exims with widened eyes.
"Yes," Leon answered. Even he couldn''t help but feel anxious seeing Clyde approaching.
Clyde saw the five people suddenly stand stiffly as he approached. It also made Clyde feel nervous. But he still walked closer.
"You uhh... have you all recovered?" Clyde asked awkwardly.
"Yeah. As you can see," Leon answered with a smile.
"What are you all doing here? Do you want to practice?"
The five of them had indeed heard that this ce was used to train those who had recovered from injuries at the Selection Stage.
However, they still weren''t sure that they could train anything so their purpose ining here wasn''t to train but just to have a look around this ce.
"Uhh, no. We just wanted to have a look," Leon replied.
Clyde bit his lip. He didn''t know where to start. So, he decided to talk directly to them.
"By the way, do you guys know about the expedition?" Clyde started.
The five of them stared at each other. Then Albert said. "You mean, activities carried out by people strong enough to leave this Fortress and carry out missions?"
Clyde nodded. "Yeah, that''s the one. So, I intend to go on an expedition. Do you want to join?"
Clyde''s words made them dumbfounded. They didn''t really like the idea of ??leaving the Fortress. Because everyone they met in this Fortress was talking about how dangerous the situation was outside the Fortress.
They didn''t answer right away. They once again looked at each other but their answers were all too clear in Clyde''s eyes.
"I know what you guys are thinking," said Clyde. "There''s no need to worry about that now. If you''re willing toe with me, you can train your bodies first to prepare yourself."
"But..." Leon said with a doubtful expression on his face. "The people here have been training for quite a while, but they still don''t dare to go on an expedition. Whereas we just got out of the infirmary about a month ago. That seems too fast, isn''t it?"
"You know my what I''m capable of, right?" Clyde stared at them with determined eyes. "You don''t need to be afraid. I''ll just be honest with you. I just need to take you guys so I don''t go alone."
Hearing that, the five of them looked at Clyde questioningly.
"So, you really don''t have to do anything dangerous."
~~~
Chapter 193 Different Training (1)
?
Clyde''s words sounded very confident. That''s because he was trying to squeeze out the words so they coulde out as if he really meant it. While in fact, he felt nervous.
Clyde gulped and looked at them all. The five people seemed to be thinking in silence.
Then, Wiley said. "Isn''t this a great opportunity?"
His friends immediately turned to look at Wiley as soon as he said that. Albert and Rosie agreed with Wiley''s opinion. However, Leon and L still felt that it was a bad idea.
"We''re not quite ready for that yet," Leon said.
"But like Clyde said," Wiley nced at Clyde for a few moments. "He will do everything. But uhh... are we going to get anything?"
Wiley asked, looking at Clyde. He also showed a sheepish smile. He seemed to be saying: ''I''m defending you. I hope you give us something worth it.''
"Of course." Understanding the meaning of that look, Clyde immediately answered firmly.
Even though he had never heard that Maethion would provide a reward, Clyde was sure that Elf had thought about it before telling him to find anotherpanion to join this expedition.
Maethion of all people must know that he can''t just give orders without giving appropriate rewards. So did Clyde.
Hearing Clyde''s answer that sounded sure and confident, Wiley''s smile grew wider.
"We don''t really understand the concept of rebelling against the Celestials yet. But we''re also not stupid to understand that something is bound to happen to this ce," Wiley said. "So, I don''t think trying to gather strength as fast as possible is not a bad idea."
Clyde nced at Wiley. Inside his mind, he nodded approvingly at the way Wiley spoke. He was smart enough to realize it all.
"So you agree?" Clyde asked again to be sure while looking at them all.
Leon sighed. Then answered with a helpless expression. "You should give us some time to train first."
Clyde nodded. "Sure. I also still haven''t received the time for us to go."
Hearing that, the five of them felt a little relieved. If the time hasn''t been set yet, it means they still have a little time to prepare themselves.
At that moment, Clyde had an idea. He thought about the idea for a while before finally deciding to present it to them.
In the end, he didn''t take long to contemte whether would say it because he really wanted to try out the truth about the idea as soon as possible.
"Have you guys nned how you''re going to train?" Clyde asked while looking at them with a meaningful look.
"N-Not really. We were nning to ask the people here first," Rosie replied.
Clyde nodded his head several times, then said. "If you don''t mind, I can help you train."
They looked at each other again as soon as Clyde said that. From what Clyde could see, they seemed pleased with the idea and weren''t going to reject it.
"If that''s the case, we''ll be happy to ept it," Leon said.
They did not need to argue long to approve the idea. Once again, they know what Clyde is capable of doing. If he decided to help them train of course they would learn an important lesson.
"Good. Follow me," Clyde said.
So, the five of them followed him like obedient children.
Clyde takes them to Hammer''s ce. Some of Hammer''s men who were present looked at them with surprised looks because suddenly there were a lot of people visiting their smithy.
Their amazement was increased by the presence of a figure leading them. Someone who has changed their fate from being bored to death to an exciting one with the materials he brought.
They smiled at Clyde''s arrival. But Clyde only answered them with a curt nod.
"You''re pretty famous around here, huh?" Wiley asked in awe.
"I''m just doing a few things for them," Clyde replied. He felt a little flustered at thepliment but disguised it with a straight face.
As soon as they entered Hammer''s room, the Dwarf immediately widened his eyes in shock at the people he had brought.
"Uhhm... May I help you?" Hammer asked.
"They need weapons," Clyde answered simply. "You still have enough materials, right?"
Hammer''s eyes shifted between Clyde and the five people he was carrying. Then back to Clyde.
"We''re always happy to get a weapon order," Hammer said with a smile. "But you don''t need to ask for more. We have created a lot of weapons from the materials you brought back then. Your good friends just need to choose."
Hammer ushered them out of his room into another room behind his men who were working. The room he used to store all sorts of things they had created.
It turned out that this room was so wide and only a third filled with the weapons and armor that Hammer and his men had created. Some of the weapons were hanging on the wall and some were just lying on the table.
Hammer made sure that the weapons with good quality hung on the wall while the inferior ones he justid on the table.
"So, my good friends!" Hammer said while spreading his arms out to the sides as if to show that he has all of this. "Choose the weapon you like!"
Clyde snorted. The Dwarf had suddenly said that they were friends even though the five of them wereing here for the first time.
Clyde turned to them. "Yes. You can choose."
Leon, Albert, Wiley, and Rosie started to scatter to get the weapons that caught their attention when they entered this room. While L just stood there because she didn''t usually hold any weapons to fight.
"You should start using a weapon," Clyde suddenly said next to her. Causing L to look up in surprise.
"A-Ah, I''m not that good with weapons," L replied with an awkward smile.
"You can''t expect them to protect you forever," Clyde said in a firm tone. "Someday you will find a time when you are left alone and have no choice but to fight to survive."
L swallowed loudly when she heard Clyde''s words. She bit her lip.
"I-I guess you''re right."
~~~
Chapter 194 Different Training (2)
?
L turned to her friends who were busy choosing their weapons. Her eyes seemed to say that she also wanted to take a weapon.
However, for someone who was always been protected by her friends and never picked up any weapons, L didn''t know what to take.
Clyde studied the girl from her side. When he was looking at L, Clyde felt her resemnce to Asqa.
They are both nervous and uncourageous girls. Asqa has indeed changed quite drastically after being with him for six days at the Selection Stage. And now Asqa has even be one of Archangel Uriel''s followers.
Clyde felt a bit of pride when he saw Asqa''s progress. Knowing that he is a person who ys a big role in her development.
Asqa also never held a weapon. But she has turned into a skilled healer. Asqa knows when to give healing and when to get away from the battlefield so as not to disturb her friends.
However, based on what Clyde had previously remembered, L''s ability wasn''t healing but she can see the future. With that ability, L can actually be a great fighter if she is able to utilize that power with her fighting skills.
"Hey, are you still confused about the weapon you should choose?" Clyde asked her, making L flinch a bit.
"Yes. I''m sorry." L scratched the back of her head with a guilty smile.
"No need to apologize," Clyde said. "Let us see... you might be good at wielding long-range weapons."
Clyde was just spouting something that suddenly popped up in his mind. With L''s power that can see the future, with long-range weapons she can have a big advantage over her opponents.
However, with the power to see into the future, one should be at the advantage of their enemy regardless of what weapon one''s equipped.
To be honest, Clyde didn''t have a clear idea about what weapon L should use because he only got his weapon handling ability from his [Skill: Weapon Mastery]. He didn''t get that ability from hard training.
However, L is a timid girl. Making her fight enemies at close range is not the right choice in Clyde''s mind. At least if she wields a long-range weapon, L can keep her distance from her enemies and use her ability to see the future better of her enemy''s movement.
"Is that so? Then... uhm... I''ll take a bow," said L.
"Uhmm, youngdy." Suddenly Hammer interrupted. "If I may make a suggestion. How about trying a crossbow?"
Hammer had also overheard their conversation earlier. And he could also see how L looked scared and doubtful.
She was also not a muscr girl who would be able to pull a bowstring quickly while in the middle of a fight. So, Hammer suggested the crossbow.
Clyde, who heard Hammer''s suggestion, nodded. "He''s right. It looks good on you."
Clyde thought to himself. ''If only there were guns in this ce.''
Maybe the presence of guns in this ce can spoil the setting of the story where everything is traditional fantasy. However, at the Selection Stage, they can get guns as weapons. So it shouldn''t be impossible, right?
''But, can Hammer make firearms? If he could, wouldn''t that be amazing?'' Clyde felt excited just imagining it.
Hammer led L to a crossbow as soon as she agreed. It was a medium sized crossbow that suited L''s thin build.
"You only need to channel your Mana into this crossbow, then the arrow will create itself," said Hammer with a smile.
"But it seems my mana hasn''t fully recovered," L replied.
"Oh about that¡" Hammer turned to Clyde.
"Just give her a normal arrow for now," said Clyde.
"Right!" Hammer took out a quiver filled with arrows. "There are fifteen arrows here. That should be enough. I''ll make you some more."
"Thank you." L epted it in a graceful manner.
Clyde saw that they had all gotten their weapons. He then whispered to Hammer.
But Hammer immediately pulled his ears away from Clyde and stared at him with eyes wide with disbelief. "Are fucking crazy?!"
"Don''t shout," Clyde said while rubbing his ear with an irritated face. "And don''t worry. They are with me."
Hammer turned to Leon and his friends. Then returned to speak in a low tone to Clyde.
"Even so, it''s too dangerous! They might die!" Hammer said.
Clyde shook his head. "I might sound arrogant. But this is the only way to convince you.
I''ve gotten stronger than thest time we met so I won''t let anything happen to them."
Hammer looked at Clyde with a troubled expression.
"Listen," Clyde said. "I''m doing something important and I need their help."
After a while, Hammer finally chose to give up because he knew he would not be able to change Clyde''s decision.
"Fine. But I won''t defend you if something goes wrong," said Hammer.
"I told you, you don''t need to worry about that. I will also bring you more materials."
~~~
A portal opens in a ruined world. The remnants of the destruction floated in this ce without being bound by gravity. This was the Ruin that Clyde had visited a few months earlier when he was first looking for iron ores for Hammer.
From the portal, six people came out with their weapons and equipment. Apart from Clyde, they all looked around with astonished looks.
"T-This is..." Rosie stuttered.
"Yeah. This is one of those worlds that have the same fate as our world. But for some reason, the World Masters forgot topletely erase it from existence so this is how this world became," Clyde exined.
They are still busy scanning around. So Clyde continued. "Here, you all will start training for the fight."
"I-Isn''t this dangerous?! Everyone warned us not to set foot outside the Fortress no matter what!" Wiley said, genuinely feeling scared. He was starting to regret that he had agreed to Clyde''s proposal.
"I''ll protect you. And I want to try something we couldn''t do in the Fortress," Clyde replied.
~~~
Chapter 195 Fact And Questions
?
Clyde said that with such confidence that it made their fear be less so. Not that their fear has disappearedpletely. Butpared to a while ago, they were a bit better.
"You want to try something you couldn''t do in the Fortress?" Albert asked.
"Yes." Clyde nodded. "But this is a secret. We can only talk about this outside the Fortress. Do you understand?"
The five of them looked at Clyde with eyes full of confusion. Clyde felt ufortable and nervous again when he got a look like that. But once again he shook off that feeling showing his usual t face.
"I want you guys to summon your Character Information."
Upon hearing what Clyde had to say, their confusion grew even greater. They looked at each other.
"What do you mean? We can no longer summon Character Information as soon as we leave the Selection Stage," said Rosie.
"That''s why I wanted to make sure," said Clyde. "That might be true. But there could be other possibilities."
"What do you mean?" she asked again.
"There is still a possibility that you can use Character Information outside of Sivagadh Fortress. So, I want you to give it a try."
Leon shrugged. "Well, we have nothing to lose if we do, do we?"
"No. You have nothing to lose. If you can''t, you will only see Character Information with blurry text," replied Clyde.
"Alright."
They proceed to summon their respective Character Information. Meanwhile, Clyde hoped in his heart.
"What the hell..." Wiley''s voice trailed off in shock.
Clyde of course noticed that. The same expression was created on the faces of his other four friends.
"I-I can summon it!" said Rosie.
s soon as Rosie said this, Clyde smiled. ''It is true. There really is something wrong with that Fortress.''
Clyde guessed that a secret like this was only for them to know because he suggested it. But strangely, why didn''t Samuel and the others notice that earlier?
Or, could it be that they are actually aware of it and are hiding it? But why did they hide that fact?
"Wow! Does this mean we can use our old powers now?!" Wile said excitedly.
"Didn''t you guys even try it when you were in the Fortress?" asked Clyde.
"No. We didn''t dare to do that for fear of hurting ourselves. That''s what James said," Leon replied.
Clyde thought again when he heard that answer. ''Could it be that Samuel and his party really can''t use the power of the system even when they were outside of the Fortress?
Or, maybe they just don''t know because they''ve never tried it? But, what about all the residents who have lived there for such a long time?''
Various questions popped up in Clyde''s head when he realized that the five people he brought out of the Fortress could summon their Character Information with no problem.
Whatever it is, all the answers are in the hands of the Senior Council. So Clyde knew who to ask next.
"You are not allowed to talk about this information inside the Fortress, alright?" Clyde said seriously.
"But why? Isn''t this good information?" L asked.
Clyde stared at her. "We still don''t know if that''s good information or not."
"Come on, L. We just don''t have to speak about it. Let''s just do it for now," Rosie said to L. Rosie seemed to understand a bit about the risk of that information.
"Okay. Enough about that. Let''s continue our training," said Clyde. Now he has a little smile on his face. Indicates his mood had gotten better after knowing that.
''That way, they can gain Exp points from killing monsters. Then they can use Stats Points to increase their strength. They could be stronger in less time than I thought.''
Clyde grinned when he saw a group of dinosaur raptors in the distance. He immediately saw a good opportunity appear before his eyes.
He turned towards the people behind him. "There are dinosaurs up ahead. Let''s kill it."
"What? Dinosaurs?!" Wiley asked dumbfounded. But then his face turned into one of understanding. "Ah, so the monsters in this world are dinosaurs."
"Yes." Clyde nodded. "They are raptors, do you know what kind of dinosaur they are?"
"I know."
"Me too."
"Yeah."
Leon, Albert, and Rosie nodded. Meanwhile, Wiley and L looked at loss.
"What''s that?" Wiley asked.
"Anyway, they are pretty fast little dinosaurs," Rosie replied.
Then Wiley turned to Clyde. "Is that going to be a problem?"
"That shouldn''t. You guys should be able to deal with them on your own. But if something happens, I''ll help right away," Clyde replied.
"Alright." Leon drew his sword. "We just have to do it the same asst time, right?"
Clyde nodded.
"Let''s go guys." Leon walked first to the front, leading his party towards the raptors.
His friends immediately followed him. The fear they felt was less and less because of the presence of Clyde who they were sure would immediately help when a dangerous time came.
But L was still holding her crossbow with trembling hands. She bit her lips hard. The girl''s entire face expressed worry and anxiety.
"Hey, don''t be too scared. I will always be by your side," Rosie who was beside her said and hugged L''s shoulder. "I won''t let them get near you."
L smiled hearing Rosie''s words and promises. "Thanks."
Before entering the portal they already talked about what they should do. They supported Clyde''s proposal about L being able to hold a weapon. And Rosie immediately volunteered to be her bodyguard.
"How are your Stats?" Clyde asked.
"Our stats look the same as thest time we saw them at the Selection Stage," Leon replied.
"So, you already know how strong you are right now, right?"
"Well, yeah. That''s right," Leon answered with some hesitation. "What level are the raptors?"
"Level 5."
"Then, maybe we will be able to ovee them."
As they moved closer, the raptors noticed their presence. A loud screaming sound rang out as they charged towards the group.
~~~
Chapter 196 Start Fighting
?
There were ten raptors running towards the five of them on their slender legs. The raptors opened their mouths and eyes wide when they saw that there was finally a target to satisfy their bloodlust.
"L, can you do it?" Rosie who was next to L asked because this seemed like the right time for L to use her crossbow.
L still looked doubtful. But she immediately nodded because she also wanted to quickly get used to her weapon.
So L started aiming. However, the crossbow was still too heavy for her because of her thin hands.
Moreover, L used her Stats Points only to increase her Magic Power level and didn''t think about other Stats. At that moment, it''s like the most reasonable thing to do.
Clyde who was behind them also realized it. He had looked up the brand''s Character Information with [Skill: Inspection] and knew that they were only at level 6.
All of their Stats were still so low they hadn''t even touched level 10 at all. But that''s only natural because they didn''t fight the BOSS or kill as many monsters as him and the people who go with him at that time.
Because of that Clyde wanted them to kill as many monsters as possible here. That way they could level up and get stronger quickly.
All of that was for the purpose of so he could get party members who were strong enough for the expedition mission that he would receive from Maethion.
Clyde walked faster toward L to help her. But before Clyde got close enough, Rosie who was next to her had already reached out her hand and grabbed L''s crossbow.
"I''ll help you. You just have to aim," Rosie said.
L nodded. Then start aiming.
Behind, Clyde nodded because it seemed that L already had good friends.
''It would be too bad if it turns out they turn traitors at some time in the future. But I hope that doesn''t happen,'' Clyde thought.
He hoped that the fate he experienced would not be experienced by others. Moreover, L, a girl who looks fragile and innocent, would immediately be devastated if her friends betrayed her.
Clyde even believes that she will not have enough strength to take revenge like him.
L started aiming more steadily now as Rosie''s hand supported her. Meanwhile, Leon and Albert moved forward to greet the raptors.
Wiley ran a little behind the two of them, but he was still close enough to hear Clyde, Rosie, and L talking. With a blowdart in his hand, he was still waiting for his chance.
*SWIISHH!*
An arrow shot from L''s crossbow. But the arrow just stuck in the tree trunk beside the raptors she was aiming at.
L let out a disappointed sigh.
"It''s okay. Let''s try again," Rosie said with a smile.
"Use your Skill," Clyde said suddenly.
Rosie and L turned to look at him.
"We can use Skills?" Rosie asked with a shocked expression.
"Yes. When you can see your Character Information, you can use the skills you have."
L and Rosie looked at each other. Bright smiles and optimistic looks appeared on their faces and eyes.
"Whoa, you didn''t tell me that before!" Wiley said.
Clyde shrugged. "I was thinking about a lot of things just now."
After knowing the fact, Wiley immediately ran to Leon and Albert to tell them. However, he had already lost that opportunity because they were already dealing with the raptors.
"Oh shit!" Wiley cursed in disappointment.
A raptor jumped toward the two of them. Leon as usual, charged forward first to take the attack while Albert hid behind him.
"HYAAAH!!!"
Leon let out a loud screaming sound while swinging his sword. But the raptors were still fast enough to raise their forelimbs so that Leon''s sword just smacked into its talons.
However, because the force that Leon released was quite big, the raptors were pushed back and fell on their friends.
"KHAAAKHH!"
What Leon did make the other raptors even angrier. They charged toward Leon simultaneously, making Leon feel worried.
"Hey! You guys can use Skills!"
Amidst his worries, Wiley''s scream was heard from behind. Without bothering to reply, Leon immediately used his Skill.
Immediately Leon felt all parts of his body flowing with mysterious energy. The energy flowed swiftly and made his body harden many times over.
The raptors pounced on Leon mercilessly. They used their ws and teeth furiously, wanting to devour Leon as quickly as possible.
However, their teeth and ws only hit the hard surface of Leon''s skin. Meanwhile, Leon just stood still with gritted teeth.
"Now it''s my turn!"
Leon shed his sword to the side. One of the raptors was actually hit by the sh so its jaw was split in two.
Seeing Leon who had started to move, Albert started his attack. He used his Skill that could put his body in a transparent state and then charged toward one of the raptors.
Albert thrust both daggers into his hands at the same time.
*CRAAT!*
*CRAAT!*
"KHIIAAHKK!!!"
The raptor he stabbed let out a scream of pain. Albert proceeds to give more stabs.
*CRAAT!*
*CRAAT!*
*CRAAT!*
...
A few stabster the raptory on the ground covered in blood and wounds. Albert proceeded to attack the other raptors.
Suddenly an arrow came and stuck in the eye of the raptor that Albert wanted to attack. When he looked back, Albert saw L jumping for joy.
''So she can finally shoot properly.'' Albert smiled proudly. He immediately looked for another target of his dagger.
"I did it!" L said, apanied by a smile full of happiness.
Rosie also smiled proudly. "Yes. Good job."
"It''s too early to be happy," Clyde said. "Keep shooting."
"A-Ah, yes." L instantly extinguished her happiness and started aiming again.
As usual, Rosie also helped her hold the crossbow.
''She should be able to hold her own crossbow. If she has leveled up, I should tell her to increase her Stats so she can fight on her own as soon as possible,'' Clyde thought.
~~~
Chapter 197 Progress
?
After hearing Clyde''s words, L returned to aiming after reloading the arrows on her crossbow with Rosie''s help. This time she was determined to make every shot hit her target.
"Have you killed the raptor you shot?" Clyde suddenly asked and immediately broke L''s concentration.
"N-Not yet. I''ll get a notification when I finish killing monsters like the Selection Stage, right?" L replied.
"Yes. Then you have to shoot the raptor to death first."
"Right."
L again increased her concentration to aim. The raptor she shot earlier only fell to the side after the arrow stuck in its eye.
Now the raptor is back on its feet. It let out a screaming sound as if it wasining to its friends. Then the other raptors around started looking at L and Rosie.
"It calls its friends," Rosie said.
L who also realized that became even more agitated. She tried to aim but the raptor was already running towards them making it difficult for her to aim.
"Don''t worry, L. I will protect you. You just have to focus on shooting them," Rosie said beside her. Rosie still has one hand supporting the crossbow while her other hand is already holding the hammer.
Clyde just watched from behind them. For now, they must try to fight on their own so they can be better prepared for threats in the future.
Given their experience, it shouldn''t take long for them to get used to it. After all, they can already fight. They only needed to strengthen their Stats and they were better off doing it on their own.
L fired another arrow at the raptor earlier. This time her arrow deviated far because she panicked. Meanwhile, the three raptors were getting closer and closer to them.
"Pull yourself together," Clyde said. "What you have to do now is learn to shoot and don''t have to worry about your surroundings because someone is already protecting you.
You can also use your Skills. So, use that Skill to help you kill your enemy."
L took a deep breath. Then focus to use her Skill.
Meanwhile, Rosie turned to Clyde with curious eyes. ''Why would he help us get to this point?''
Rosie couldn''t figure out why Clyde would want to help them. He even specially brought them here and told them all kinds of useful information.
Even though there were still many people who had been in the Fortress longer and were certainly more experienced than them.
''Maybe he has ulterior motives.''
Rosie actually wanted to think that Clyde did that because he was a good person or because he liked them. However, such a possibility sounds too good to be true.
"Rosie..." L called out because her crossbow started to go off the mark.
"O-Oh, sorry." Rosie immediately fixed her arm again after previously only focusing on looking at Clyde with various questions in her mind.
A few momentster L''s Skill was activated. Her vision turned ck and white when she used her Skill to see into the future for thirty seconds.
L saw the movement of the three raptors who were getting closer to them. She took a breath and then ended the Skill before the thirty second duration ended since she didn''t need that long.
By now, L already knew where the raptors would be in a few seconds. So she was aiming at the direction she had seen in her vision.
*SWIISSHH!*
The arrow flies swiftly through the wind. Then stuck in the eye of a raptor that she had shot earlier.
Now the arrows had pierced the raptor''s two eyes, causing it to lose sight and crash into its two other friends.
The three raptors fell to the ground from the collision.
L, who had learned from her mistakes, didn''t rush to celebrate her sess because she had hit her target. Instead, she busied herself immediately reloading the arrows in her crossbow and then aiming again.
Clyde smiled looking at her from behind. Rosie also felt proud to see how L worked so hard with her crossbow.
L shot again after activating her Skill. The arrow stuck again in the raptor on the left. This time she hit its head.
The raptor wasn''t dead yet only suffered serious injuries. L immediately loaded her crossbow again with arrows.
The position of the raptors who are still lying down after falling makes it easier for her. Coupled with Rosie who always helps her fill the crossbow.
After several shots, L finally managed to kill the three raptors.
"Haaa¡" She breathed a sigh of relief. But then she nced back to check Clyde''s reaction.
Clyde chuckled. "You can feel relieved. That''s enough for now."
After hearing that L and Rosie exchanged happy smiles. She even ignored the notification that appeared in her vision to hug Rosie.
''Did she just ask for permission to celebrate?'' Clyde let out a small chuckle again.
Then Clyde looked ahead. The fight there was quite intense. Clyde, who had been paying close attention to L''s progress, didn''t realize that Wiley had joined the battle with Leon and Albert.
''So those are his Skills.''
Clyde saw how Wiley was hiding and fired a blowdart from behind so he wouldn''t be exposed to the raptors. And when any of the raptors realized about him, Leon or Albert immediately acted to divert the raptor''s attention away from Wiley again.
Every time the darts that Wiley fired hit a raptor, there was purplish smoke rising from where the dartsnded. After that, decay began to ur and caused the raptor to weaken. When that happened, Leon and Albert were able to kill the raptor easily.
''He''s pretty useful.'' Clyde nodded in approval. ''He can tell when to shoot and when to run.
Even though he was hiding more than actually shooting, it was the right decision to make. Or maybe he''s just too much of a coward?''
Whatever it is, Clyde admits that Wiley does have quite great abilities. If he could increase his Stats, he would be an even more powerful party member in the future.
~~~
Chapter 198 Next Monsters
?
Clyde felt that he had paid enough attention to L. She can already handle herself, especially with the help of Rosie who is always loyal to apany her.
So now Clyde''s attention was on Leon, Albert, and Wiley. He had already seen their Private Attributes and Stats earlier so he could know their abilities.
Leon has a Private Attribute called [Irond Warrior]. Albert''s Private Attribute is called [Phantom Runner]. Whereas Wiley has a Private Attribute called [Toxic Enigma].
With their Private Attributes, Clyde immediately knew that the three of them were suitable to work together in a team.
Coupled with L who has a Private Attribute called [Glimpse Oracle] who can see shes of the future, and Rosie who has a Private Attribute called [Stormbringer Lady] who can make her create lightning in her body.
Clyde thought that this party was quite strong. They just needed to raise Stats and he would allow them to raise Stats here.
The fact that there was something in Sivagadh Fortress preventing them from using Character Information was bad enough. He didn''t know what would happen if the Senior Council realized that he already knew the secret.
Because of that now Clyde was thinking about hunting as many monsters as possible and leveling them up as quickly as possible. Because once he returned to the Fortress, Clyde had no idea what to expect.
It''s a shame they don''t have [Skill: Exp+] like him that can multiply the Exp they get. So they could only try hard to kill as many monsters as possible to level up.
Because of that Clyde chose not to help them. Then, he thought of something.
''Maybe if they fight that weird T-Rex, they''ll get more experience. But are they strong enough for that?''
Clyde watched them with contemting eyes. ''Maybe they should kill some small raptors first before killing the big monsters.''
So Clyde let them kill the remaining raptors until all ten of them died. They got enough experience but not enough to make them level up.
"Let''s look for another monster," said Clyde.
"Yeah. After experiencing it myself, I don''t think these monsters are that scary anymore," Wiley said with a big grin. He thenughed.
"You just hide and run," Rosie replied coldly with piercing side-eyes.
"That''s how I fight. Not because I''m a coward." Wiley just shrugged his shoulder without the slightest bit of shame even though Rosie called him a coward.
Clyde thought that they were really close enough to be bickering even though they were in a situation like this.
Wiley too must have fought like that until hisrades felt that his fighting style of always hiding and attacking from rtively safe ces was something normal.
"Let''s go find some more monsters," Clyde said, snapping them out of the small talk.
"How many more do we have to kill?" Albert asked with a t tone and eyes. Clyde couldn''t properly decipher the meaning of his unreadable facial expression.
"As much as possible," Clyde answered without hesitation. "I thought you guys wanted to get strong fast. Remember, when you return to the Fortress, you can no longer use Character Information therefore you can''t use the Stats and Skill Points you got."
The five of them watched Clyde''s words as they thought things through. It didn''t take them long to understand that they had limited time in this ce so they had to make the most of it.
"Alright!" Leon said firmly. "Where else are we going?"
Clyde gave a crooked smile seeing the others showing the same reaction and determination as Leon.
"Let''s just move on. We''ll find monsters eventually if we keep moving," Clyde said.
So they continued their journey. Clyde was always in the back because once again he didn''t want to interrupt. Because if he acted, he would only kill the monsters in the blink of an eye and they would have no chance.
A few minutester they saw a group of winged dinosaurs perched on a hill floating in the air.
"Pterodactyls!" Wiley said. "They can fly. So maybe it will be a little more difficult."
"You''re right," Leon said, then turned to L. "It''s time for you to shine, L."
The others also immediately turned their eyes to her. Getting a look like that made L even more burdened and nervous. She swallowed reflexively.
"Haha! Don''t worry. What I mean is that it''s time for you to hone your shooting skills. But we will still protect you," Leon said as soon as he saw the look on L''s face.
"I will try!" L looked determined.
Leon nodded. "Good. Then let''s begin."
Leon, Albert, and Wiley moved to the front while Rosie stayed with L like before. Nobody suggested that Clyde should help L because he didn''t look like he was doing anything.
The five of them realized that Clyde was only here to see how they were doing. They have to try on their own.
The five people also realized that Clyde''s power was far above them. So he doesn''t need to kill small monsters like this.
L aimed again. This time she could be a little calmer than before because she had made up her mind and heart.
The pterodactyls started to notice people approaching the direction where they were resting. Their wings opened wide and they shot into the air.
As they got closer, Leon and Albert noticed that there was something strange about the pterodactyls.
"Did you see that?" Albert asked.
"Yes. There is something pink stuck to their skin," Leon replied.
"What''s that?"
"I don''t know. We have to be more careful."
Albert nodded. "I''ll tell the others."
After that, Albert retreated backward. While Leon continued to run.
The pterodactyls dived towards Leon who was at the forefront and looked the bravest in their eyes.
Meanwhile, Albert decided to yell to tell Wiley what he had seen.
"You see the pink crystals on their bodies?"
"What?" Wiley then looked up. After he squinted, he could finally see the pink spots on the pterodactyl''s body. "What is that?"
"Tell L and Rosie. Tell them to be more careful!"
"OK!"
Wiley immediately returned to the back.
~~~
Chapter 199 Continue Farming
?
Clyde who heard the information that Wiley conveyed raised his head. He did see a group of pterodactyls swooping down on Leon. But if there really are pink spots on their bodies, he can''t see them because the spots are too small.
But he''s sure that the pink spots - quite possibly crystals - do exist. Because he had seen simr crystals on the abnormal T-Rex''s back at that time.
"Be careful. The pterodactyls might be a little different than the raptors before," said Clyde.
Wiley, L, and Rosie all turned to look at him with confused looks.
"What do you mean?" Rosie asked.
"Maybe they will issue a different attack. Just be careful and pay close attention." Then Clyde nced at L. "You should aim better this time."
L swallowed hard once more. She seemed to feel the air around her getting heavier after Clyde''s words.
"The pterodactyls might throw some kind of projectile too," Clyde added.
"How do we kill them?" he asked.
"Just do as usual."
Wiley nodded. Then he dashed towards Leon and Albert to convey the information he just got from Clyde.
Realizing that their time was running out, L started aiming again and still had Rosie helping her. She didn''t think too long to immediately use her Skill.
Once she has determined the target, L immediately deactivates her Skill to save her Mana. Then she shot.
*SWIIISHH!*
Arrow shot at high speed through the air. A pterodactyl hovered above Leon and opened its beak to shoot something but suddenly the arrow came and stuck in its eye.
*CRAATT!*
The pterodactyl let out a scream of pain, the arrow immediately canceled its intention to shoot something at Leon. It swayed in the air before dropping sharply and falling head first.
"I got a notification!" L cried joyfully. However, she immediately snapped from it and reloaded her crossbow. "Oh! I''ve leveled up too!"
"Good," said Clyde. "Spend some Stats point to increase Strength so you can lift your own crossbow."
L did it right away. A new strength surged within her and instantly the crossbow she held didn''t feel heavy anymore.
"I''m fine now," L said to Rosie.
Rosie nodded with a smile and removed her hand from the crossbow.
"Finally, I can jump into action too!" Rosie swung her hammer with an excited look.
"Don''t go too far from L, yet. Maybe she still needs help," Clyde said, reminding her.
"Oh right."
Meanwhile, in the battle that was happening up ahead, Leon had just been hit by the ws of one of the pterodactyls which sent him back a few meters. But Leon was still able to maintain his stance.
The pterodactyl that attacked him immediately followed up by lunging at him with its beaks united to form a sharp spearhead.
Leon didn''t dodge, instead, he also lunged forward and let the pterodactyl''s beak point hit his chest.
*DAKK!*
The pterodactyl felt as if it had hit a hard wall. Leon grimaced holding back the pain in his chest but he immediately reached out to catch the pterodactyl''s beak.
The pterodactyl pped its wings to escape but Leon didn''t let it. He thrust his sword into the pterodactyl''s neck and caused blood to spill onto the ground.
As soon as the pterodactyl fell to the ground Leon immediately attacked it again until finally it died and he got a notification that he had leveled up.
Leon immediately used the Stats and Skill Points he got without thinking too much. He already understands what his role is in the team and what is his advantage. So Leon can make decisions easily.
Meanwhile, Albert was in an easier position than Leon. If Leon had just killed one pterodactyl he had killed two by now. One dead pterodactyl was under his feet.
With his ability to make his body transparent, Albert didn''t need to dodge and just let the pterodactyls lunge at him with their sharp beaks.
Albert deliberately stood in front of a tree trunk and then let the pterodactyl go through his body and embedded itself in the tree trunk. After that, he used the opportunity to stick his daggers and kill the pterodactyl.
So that''s how Albert killed his enemy.
Meanwhile, Wiley is still with his hit-and-run strategy. He came out of hiding and immediately fired a dart that poisoned the target''s pterodactyl. The poison weakened them slowly but surely. And Wiley just had to wait for the pterodactyl to die.
Nothing to worry about the three of them
"Rosie, you should start killing too. Among you you are the only one who hasn''t killed a single one because you were busy helping L," Clyde said. "No need to protect her anymore now."
Clyde said that after seeing how L was doing.
"You are right." Rosie nodded. She turned her head and found L still aiming her crossbow. Rosie feels that she can handle herself now.
So Rosie dashed to approach the pterodactyls and started participating in their farming process.
After a few minutes, the five people finally seeded in killing the pterodactyl group. They level up again. But because she was a littlete, Rosie only leveled up twice while her friends leveled up three times.
They continue their journey. Clyde immediately started mining as soon as he saw that there were ores in front of him and told them to continue on their way.
At this stage, they don''t really need it for protection because they thought they can already protect themselves.
They encountered the monster raptors again after walking for a few minutes but soon killed them. However, that good mood was disrupted by the presence of a tremor that suddenly appear on the ground.
The five people looked around. Until finally they saw the figure of a giant dinosaur whose head rise from the top of the trees.
"I-Its a fucking T-Rex!" Wiley exims with widened eyes.
"No shit!" Albert replied. "What should we do? We want to fight it?"
"That T-Rex will definitely give us a lot of Exp once we kill it," said Leon. "After all, we are stronger than before. Let''s do this."
~~~
Chapter 200 Meeting The Bizzare Monster
?
Clyde was still in the middle of mining iron ores when he heard a familiar sound of gigantic footsteps. He turned towards the direction the sound hade from and was immediately convinced that it was the abnormal T-Rex he had encountered before when he came here alone.
"So they finally met, huh."
Clyde nodded his head. He wanted to see how the five of them would manage against that monster after leveling up their Stats. Maybe they will still find it difficult because the T-Rex is quite fast after it gets boosts from the pink crystals all over its body.
"Maybe I should help them. I can''t let them die here."
Clyde decided to finish his mining work and packed the iron ores he had obtained. Then walk towards the location of the T-Rex with long strolls.
He checked his backpack and found some health potions inside.
~~~
Leon turned towards L. "Are you able to handle yourself?"
"I can," L immediately answered emphatically. She held a crossbow in front of her chest with a stern look.
Leon nodded. "Good. Then Rosie can charge forward with us."
However, Rosie turned to L with a worried look. "Are you sure, L?"
"I''m sure, don''t worry. I''ve leveled up several times, you remember?" L replied with a smile in an attempt to convince her.
Rosie stared at her for a few moments. But then she nodded. Because right now the best decision is for her toe forward to increase their attack power.
"Besides, I won''t be far from her so you don''t have to worry," said Wiley.
Wiley''s words added to the confidence of the three of them. Wiley can attack from a medium range so he can have a wider view to keep an eye on Leon, Albert, and Rosie who are in front, and L who is behind.
"Just in case. Let''s use your ability," Leon said while looking at L.
So L immediately activated her Skill so she could see what was happening in the next thirty seconds. L ryed what she saw and their faces turned pale instantly.
"Shit." Albert cursed in a low voice.
"We''ve done this before. All we have to do is try not to let what L sawe true," Leon said. "Are you ready?"
Wiley, Albert, L, and Rosie nodded. Right, they just need to try so that the foresight doesn''te true. They had done it many times and avoiding what happened in the events L had seen was not impossible. However, they will not be able topletely evade everything.
"Let''s go!"
Leon led the forward charge. Albert, Rosie, and Wiley followed right behind him while L started aiming her crossbow.
The T-Rex walked closer to them. Until finally its whole body came out of the forest and they could see its abnormal form.
"What the fuck?" Albert stared with shock evident in his eyes. Leon and Rosie also showed the same expression.
The T-Rex had long arms and ws. Unlike what they previously knew from history books where they only had short and small arms.
On the T-Rex''s back there are also pink crystals sticking out along its back. Adds to the terrible impression of the monster.
The T-Rex noticed their presence and screamed.
*ROAR!*
Its roar shook the surroundings and made their ears buzz. Without waiting for too long, the T-Rex charged toward them with a long stroll of its giant leg.
His appearance was so bizarre that it intimidated them instantly. All the ns they had thought fell apart because they didn''t think the T-Rex would look this terrifying.
But they immediately snapped out of that dazed and shocked state because they remembered L''s exnation again. Right, L had told them about the attack pattern that wasing their way.
She said that there would be ws and beams of destructioning. So they immediately tried to control themselves and started moving.
Leon took the lead running with his jaw clenched tight. The T-Rex only took a few seconds to approach them then swept its long arms from the side.
Leon jumped but he couldn''t avoid the arm''s speed. He was thrown aside by the enormous force.
Luckily, Albert managed to use his Skill in time so that the T-Rex''s arms sweep just went through him. Meanwhile, Rosie had jumped forward in time and was lying face down.
Rosie immediately jumped to her feet and lunged with Albert.
They weren''t worried about Leon because he should be fine with his hard body.
Rosie used her Skill. Lightning began to appear all over her body and flowed through the hammer she was holding.
The T-Rex fixed its eyes on Rosie and set her as a target. However, suddenly an arrow came and stuck in its eye instantly distracting its attention from Rosie.
"HYAAAHHH!!!"
Rosie lifted her hammer. Lightning flowed around the hammer and whipped around. Rosie then mmed the hammer forward.
Lightning shot from Rosie''s hammer to the T-Rex''s head.
*BLARRR!*
Rosie retains her lightning and drains more Mana. She gritted her teeth tightly.
The lightning made the T-Rex stop moving with his head shaking because he was covered in high voltage lightning. However, a momentter Its mouth opened and a pink glow began to emerge from within it.
"Fuck! Stop it!" Rosie screamed when she realized it was something dangerous.
Albert immediately ran towards the T-Rex. His swift leg jumps between the floating debris until finally, it can reach a height equal to the body of the T-Rex.
Albert jumped while raising his two daggers to stab the T-Rex. However...
*BUAGGGGHH!*
The T-Rex''s ws swung and hit Albert, sending him flying several meters before hitting debris anding to a stop.
"Albert!"
Rosie screamed with wide eyes as she saw Albert thrown away. She felt panicked and scared. If the T-Rex''s hand could blow him away, it meant that Albert didn''t have time to activate his Skill.
"Focus on that T-rex!"
Suddenly Rosie saw Clyde dart toward Albert. At that moment her heart became a little relieved.
"Let''s kill it!" Leon said while running over. As they had thought, he is indeed alright.
~~~
Chapter 201 Killed
?
Leon came to her with gritted teeth. His expression is one of rage when he looked at the T-Rex.
Leon immediately shot towards it without saying anything else to Rosie knowing that Rosie was trying to keep channeling her Mana.
He dashed at full speed. But then the T-Rex''s hands full of ws came sweeping towards him.
This time, knowing what was about to happen, Leon was able to immediately duck to avoid the w''s sweep.
While at the back, Wiley dashed forward and brought his blowdart to his mouth. He channeled Mana into his blowdart and then fired.
*SWISS!*
The dart covered in purplish smoke was embedded in the chest of the T-Rex. This time, because the T-Rex still couldn''t move due to being trapped by Rosie''s lightning, Wiley intended to shoot as many of his darts as possible.
Unlike L, who was never using her Mana to create arrows before, Wiley was used to using his Mana to create poison darts. So even now he does it smoothly.
While Wiley continued shooting his darts, Leon was already close to the T-Rex''s legs. He shed his sword with all his might toward the giant dinosaur''s leg.
*CRAATT!*
He managed to sh the leg but failed to create a wound deep enough to cut it. The T-Rex''s skin was too tough for him.
"Shit!" Leon cursed but he didn''t give up and continued to attack while Rosie was still strong enough to continue flowing lightning. He had to inflict a fair amount of damage on this monster.
L who was behind also continued to shoot her crossbow. However, most of her shots miss.
L let out a disappointed sigh and cursed herself. But she knew that she couldn''t give up as long as there were arrows in her quiver. So L reloaded again.
"But... soon, that T-Rex will be free!"
L had already seen what happened next. The T-Rex will issue something that will free itself from Rosie''s lightning.
They all know it. That''s why they wanted to inflict as much damage as possible on it before it was able to move and attack again.
Meanwhile, Clyde is looking for Albert who was thrown violently by the T-Rex''s arm swing.
It didn''t take long to find him because he was lying on a piece ofnd floating in the air. Clyde immediately headed to that ce.
As soon as he got there, Clyde saw Albert lying down with blood pouring out of his mouth. The man''s breath was also heavy.
Clyde approached and took a health potion from his bag. "Drink this."
Clyde put the health potion in Albert''s mouth and he immediately tried to drink it. After a while, Albert''s condition got better. He can breathe normally now.
"Thanks," said Albert.
Clyde nodded. "You can fight again?"
"Yeah." Albert got up to sit down. "I think that damn T-Rex crushed my ribs and damaged my lungs. Fortunately, I had the chance to raise my Stats earlier otherwise my heart and lungs would have been crushed."
"You should have seen that with L''s abilities, right?"
"But it turned out that the T-Rex was faster than I thought."
Clyde felt a little guilty for not saying anything about that T-Rex to them.
"But now I''m fine." Albert stood. "Rosie won''t be able to hold that T-Rex down much longer."
"Yeah. You should go."
Albert nodded in thanks once again to Clyde before he darted over to his friends.
The T-Rex finally started its fight harder. It opened its mouth wider, pink colored energy gathered within its gigantic jaws.
With all the power it has, the T-Rex moves its head to aim at Rosie.
"Rosie! Go!" Leon screamed at the top of his lung.
"Ah, shit!" Rosie felt unwilling to unleash her lightning strike. But now she has no choice if she still wants to live.
So Rosie stopped the flow of her Mana and immediately the lightning attack stopped.
The T-Rex''s head immediately dropped to her. The pink light in its mouth grew brighter until finally, a pir of energy shot out from its mouth.
*BOOM!*
The energy beam was shattering the ce where Rosie had been standing. Luckily, she managed to escape in time.
Rosie rolled over after jumping. Without wasting time, she immediately jumped to her feet again and ran.
*ROAR!*
The T-Rex let out a deafening roaring sound like before. It turned its body to approach Rosie.
However, he didn''t realize that Leon had injured his leg badly enough to almost sever its knee. The T-Rex was too focused on attacking to notice it.
As a result, when it spun the T-Rex lost its bnce and fell to the ground with a loud booming noise.
That''s when Wiley''s shower of poison darts came mercilessly.
*SWISSSH !*
*SWISSSH !*
*SWISSSH !*
The darts stuck around the neck, head, and body of the prehistoric predator. The decay started to spread and keep getting worse every second.
Wiley grins because it looks like they''re about to kill that bizarre T-Rex soon enough.
However, the grin on Wiley''s face was extinguished by the shocking sight he saw. The pink crystals on its back glowed even brighter. Then the pink energy flows into the T-Rex''s body and heals all the decay and wounds it has suffered.
"Damnit! I didn''t hear about this from L!" Wiley groaned and immediately walked away.
Leon and Rosie also saw what was happening. They felt the same anxiety as Wiley.
Indeed, sometimes what L saw wasn''t always urate. She could only achieve an uracy rate of seventy percent even after leveling up her Skill.
So far, this skill can help them survive and the mistake of her foresight has never been too dangerous.
But for now, it looks like those mistakes will be something dangerous.
Albert who just returned to where they saw a surprising sight. He gritted his teeth and activated his Skill.
Albert saw Leon and Rosie running to gather so he drew closer to them.
After a few minutes, all the wounds it had suffered were healed. The T-Rex got back to his feet with ease.
The pink crystals on its back fell. The Crystals also appear dimmer than before because their energy has been absorbed by the T-Rex.
*ROAR!*
The T-Rex obviously wouldn''t waste any time. It lunged towards them with a ferocity that radiated in its eyes.
"What should we do now?" Albert asked.
"Now that damn T-Rex has no crystals anymore. That means it can''t heal itself anymore if it''s injured. We just have to attack it like before," Leon said.
"Alright!" replied Albert.
Rosie just nodded. Even though she has used her Mana a lot, Rosie is sure that she is still capable of carrying out the same attack.
"I''ll pass it on to Wiley," Albert said then immediately used his Skill and dashed towards Wiley.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
The sound when the giant''s feet hit the ground was terrible. Every time that foot hits the ground, a small earthquake is also created.
Leon charged forward with sharp eyes without the slightest fear. While Rosie immediately created lightning and she focused on her hammer. Rosie then followed up to lunge behind Leon.
The long arm of the T-Rex came from their left. Leon and Rosie who had expected that to happen immediately jumped forward and avoided the T-Rex''s deadly ws.
Rosie then mmed her hammer which was covered in lightning to the ground.
*BLARRR!*
Lightning then traveled from where the hammer hit the T-Rex''s leg and struck it. The lightning started to burn the T-Rex''s left leg and temporarily stopped its steps.
It was then that L''s arrows and poison darts and Wiley''s came consecutively.
Leon also immediately jumped and lunged forward. As soon as he was in front of the feet of the T-Rex that was burned by Rosie''s lightning, he shed his sword with all his might.
*CRAATTT!*
*CRAATTT!*
*CRAATTT!*
Leon shed the swords as fast and as hard as possible. Until finally he managed to separate the legs of the T-Rex.
The giant dinosaur fell to the ground with a thump and a great earthquake. Leon, Rosie, and Albert immediately attacked it mercilessly.
*BLARRR!!!*
Rosie fired a bolt of lightning at the arm of the T-Rex which was about to swing towards the approaching Leon and Albert and knocked it away in an instant.
Having expended too much Mana for such a powerful attack, Rosie felt her body weaken.
''Shit!'' Rosie cursed inside while trying not to fall.
But actually, Rosie doesn''t need to worry anymore. The T-Rex was much weakened after all the pink crystals on its back fell.
The attacksunched by Leon, Albert, Wiley, and L were enough to kill the bizarre monster.
Leon and Albert immediately chopped off those annoying wed hands. Wiley''s poisoned darts keep hitting its head and eyes, killing the T-Rex by rotting its brain. Meanwhile L - although she keeps missing - also keeps shooting her crossbows.
After a while, finally, the T-Rex stopped moving. The bizarre monster has died. The five people can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
~~~
Chapter 202 Worries
?
They all breathed a sigh of relief. The notification stating that they had seeded in killing the T-Rex appeared in their vision simultaneously because they killed it together.
Clyde who watched from afar nodded his head. His gaze said as if he was satisfied.
''By now they must have gained a lot of Exp.''
Clyde still hadn''t looked at their Character Information since earlier. But now that they seemed to have leveled up quite a few times, he had to make sure.
Although Clyde was sure that their Stats had gone up and they had also be much stronger than before.
''A little bit more. I have to make sure they have enough strength.''
Clyde nodded to himself. He then jumped from the piece ofnd floating.
As soon as he got close enough, Clyde heard theughter and their words of enjoyment grew louder.
He activated [Skill: Inspection].
''Ohh, that''s pretty good.''
Based on what he saw Leon and Albert were already level 9. Rosie and Wiley were at level 8. Meanwhile, L was at level 7.
Clyde wasn''t too surprised by the results because L''s contribution was the leastpared to the others. He also realized that L also miss her shots a lot.
They turned to Clyde as he approached.
Wiley said. "What do you think?"
"Not bad," Clyde replied curtly. Because his expression was t, they felt that Clyde wasn''t impressed at all with what they had done.
Clyde saw the dead T-Rex. Then said. "Let''s take its bones. We can''t take those crystals anymore so it''s a shame. But let''s take what we can take."
They were somewhat surprised when Clyde said that. But then he exined that the bones from the T-Rex would make a good weapon in Hammer''s hands.
So they immediately do it without hesitation.
As soon as they finished, they thought that Clyde would tell them to go home.
But their hopes were soon dashed by Clyde''s reply.
"You guys will be hunting again. Your strength is still insufficient and our time is limited."
Sighs of annoyance and frustration left their mouths. But it didn''t take long because the five people realized that what Clyde said was true.
They needed to get strong as quickly as possible while they were still outside the Fortress. Because they didn''t know what would happen once they returned.
So, the five people and Clyde continued their journey.
They encountered monsters again before they even got very far. This ruin seems to be packed with monsters.
And now that the huge predator in their territory was dead, the little monsters - which had been avoiding them before - began to attack even more boldly.
Just like before, Clyde just stood back and let them fight.
This time there was no significant problem. Although the number of monsters overwhelmed them, they seemed to be able to handle them well.
Aside from the fact that what they were facing was only a small bunch of monsters, their Stats had also increased many times over from before.
They continued hunting for several hours. The sun was starting to go down so Clyde told them to head back to the Fortress.
During those few hours, they were able to go up three levels so at least L could reach level 10.
Leon and Albert were level 12, while Rosie and Wiley were already level 11.
They were all grateful for the result and no oneined even though they had to undergo an exhausting hunt.
So their strength increased several times.
"Remember, don''t say anything about what happened here. And don''t use your power too much in the Fortress."
Clyde reminded them again when they were already in front of the portal.
"There seems to be something in the Fortress preventing us from using the system''s power, huh?" Leon said.
"That''s possible. That''s why we have to be careful."
After that, they entered the portal and left the Ruin with lots of materials.
~~~
When they reappeared in Hammer''s room, the Dwarf jumped at the sight of them.
Hammer''s big eyes watched them one by one. After confirming that the number of those returning was the same as when they entered, Hammer heaved a sigh of relief and sat back down in his chair.
"I thought one of you would die," Hammer said.
"What are you saying? You really think like that?" Clydeid the bones of the T-Rex on the floor. "We''re fine and you should already know that."
Not only that, as soon as Hammer looked at the faces of the new people Clyde had brought to the Ruin, he saw a look of satisfaction. It was as if they had just gotten a big prize instead of the danger when Clyde brought them there
''That''s weird.'' Hammer frowned. Couldn''t understand what was going on.
"Anyway, please make weapons for them. The weapons they are using now are quite dull," Clyde said.
"Yeah, sure."
Clyde turned to Leon and his friends. "You guys can rest if you feel tired. Tomorrow we''ll probably do the same."
The five of them nodded and walked away leaving the ce.
Hammer looked at Clyde. He could read the meaning of that look now. Clyde wanted to ask about something he was working on.
"I finished that," said Hammer.
"Where?" Clyde immediately asked him without wasting time.
So Hammer immediately stood up from his chair and walked towards the drawer at the end of the room.
He took the silver ne and gave it back to Clyde.
Then Hammer took something from his trouser pocket. It was something that looked like a bracelet with a pink color. The bracelet also gave off a kind of thin pink mist.
"Use this by flowing your Mana. You know the rest," said Hammer.
Clyde looked down at the ne and bracelet. Then said. "Thank you."
"Remember. I won''t have any repercussions if the Senior Council doesn''t like what you''re doing," Hammer warned again.
"You don''t have to worry about that." Clyde showed a smile of confidence. He seemed to have confirmed that nothing had happened before even doing anything.
And somehow, Hammer had a hunch that he could be sure of that.
"I''ll go now."
Clyde left Hammer with a pile of bones scattered in front of him.
"Well, at least now I''ve got new materials. Let''s focus on this right now."
Hammer immediately distracted his anxious mind with the thought that he would create more weapons.
~~~
Vernik frowned deeply. His face which was already hard and full of wrinkles now seemed to have aged a few more years.
"Where did the boy take them?" Vernik asked the figure with a ck hood in front of him.
"Last time I saw them they went to Hammer''s ce, sir. But I can''t go in there without being noticed," the ck-hooded figure replied.
Vernik''s eyes were twitching wildly as a sign that he was deep in thought. Then he got up from the chair and headed to a hexagonal crystal on his desk.
The crystal is white. There was a fog that kept swirling inside it as if it had been trapped from a long time ago.
As soon as Vernik ced his hand on the cold surface of the hexagonal crystal, the white mist that was previously just swirling aimlessly began to unfold.
A momentter he could see Hammer sifting through the bones with a delighted expression on his face.
"They are looking for materials to make weapons?" Vernik muttered to himself.
He already knew that Clyde had gone to the Ruin to find materials for the Dwarf. And it wasn''t a big deal because Vernik didn''t think of Clyde as someone important yet. If Clyde died then, Vernik could not care less.
Vernik and the other two only received orders to save Clyde from the Selection Stage.
He didn''t know in detail why The Oracle ordered them and just obeyed the order without thinking much. Just like he''s been doing all along.
However, now that he knows Clyde''s capabilities, Vernik feels that Clyde is not an ordinary kid.
Now, he must have another purpose for always going to the Ruin besides getting materials for the Dwarf.
Moreover, this time Clyde brought along five people who came with him from the same Selection Stage.
Vernik licked his lips nervously. ''Could it be that he already knows what happened in this Fortress? I have to neutralize them now!''
He didn''t feel the need to neutralize those people now as they were still too weak and wouldn''t think of doing anything.
But Clyde''s presence made him anxious. He didn''t know why he had asked them to go to the Ruin. Was it just to apany him? Or he wants to train them?
''It would be bad if they found out that they can use the power of the system outside this Fortress!''
Vernik turned to the ck hooded figure. "Tell Madri and Maethion that I want to hold a meeting."
"Yes sir!"
The ck-hooded figure left that ce and melted into a shadow.
"This fucking kid is annoying!"
Vernik never thought that Clyde''s presence in the Fortress would have such a big effect.
~~~
Chapter 203 One Of Them
?
Vernik pondered for a few seconds in silence in his room. He was a little regretful because he didn''t take Maethion''s words seriously at that time.
Vernik realized that Clyde''s powers had grown too fast even before he left the Fortress. But why did it happen? How could that child be different from other humans of the same Selection Stage?
He and the other Senior Council members had only heard that Clyde had indeed shown amazing results in the Selection Stage. However, they never really checked it out themselves.
But now when he is in this ce and uses his powers, Vernik, Madri, and Maethion who are the only Senior Members in the Fortress know clearly about his powers.
"Why? Did he get a unique artifact in the Selection Stage or something?" Vernik wondered. "Ahh, I should start investigating that kid."
Vernik pressed his palm against the hexagonal crystal again. This time, he channeled Mana along with his will to see Clyde.
"What''s he doing?"
Vernik saw Clyde sitting on the bed in his living quarter. He is closing his eyes tightly.
"Is he meditating?"
There''s nothing wrong with that. Someone does meditation because one wants to feel calm even Vernik often does it when he wants to imagine his life before the Selection Stage starts and destroys everything he had.
Unfortunately, he couldn''t use the hexagonal crystal to read someone''s mind. It would take up a lot of Mana and be too conspicuous for him to do it stealthily.
If Clyde realized he was being watched, then he would create an unnecessary ruckus.
Vernik was sure he could handle Clyde even though he was quite strong. But it wouldn''t be an easy fight and would only make him do something that wasted his precious time.
So, Vernik prefers to avoid doing something troublesome like that. While telling himself that Clyde definitely wouldn''t do anything other than meditate.
Vernik decided to end his spying process. Then he went to meet Madri and Maethion.
~~~
However, Vernik''s guess could not be further from the truth. He thought Clyde was just doing ordinary meditation while in fact, Clyde was trying to contact Asqa via the bracelet Hammer had just created.
He had no idea how the Dwarf could have the knowledge to do something like this. Certainly, back in his world - before the Selection Stage happens - Hammer was a respected master of his craft.
Clyde had been concentrating long enough and he had already been flowing a lot of Mana. Yet Clyde still hasn''t gotten any indication that he can contact Asqa.
With his eyes closed, Clyde''s forehead furrowed. ''Does this bracelet even work?''
He decided to try for a few more minutes. If he still didn''t get results, Clyde decided that he would cut it out, figure out what went wrong and try again tomorrow.
However, Clyde sensed something. He felt like something inside him was connected to someone.
''Clyde? Is that you?''
It was Asqa''s voice. Clyde almost jumped for joy because he finally managed to reach Asqa after tiring trials.
''Yes. This is me,'' Clyde said through his mind.
''I can''t believe you did it,'' Asqa replied in a happy voice.
''I also couldn''t believe this at first. But I have someone quite skilled here.''
''Actually... where are you now?''
Clyde hesitated to answer. Asqa might be watched by her master. And even when she wasn''t being watched, Clyde felt giving out information about his whereabouts was not a safe thing to do.
''I can''t tell you,'' said Clyde.
''O-Oh, you''re right. Sorry for asking that.''
''It''s okay. As long as you understand.''
They were silent for a few moments. Then Clyde said. ''Asqa.''
''What?''
''What actually happened at that time?''
''Shouldn''t I be the one asking about that?'' Asqa asked back. ''What happened? Why did Rodney, Reed, Eric, and Mona betray you?''
Asqa''s voice was filled with anguish and confusion. She had harbored those questions and feelings for a long time and felt breathless at not being able to ask them.
They had all gone their separate ways and might meet again because rtions between Celestials weren''t always good. And encountering followers of other Celestials only meant that they would have conflicts.
''Well, as you already know. They suddenly attacked me. I was lucky to survive long enough so the people who save me arrived at the right time,'' answered Clyde.
He then told about what had happened up until this point. About he who suddenly found himself in a mysterious ce and how now he has to struggle to gain power bit by bit.
Of course, Clyde didn''t mention a voice calling him from the dead. Everything about the whereabouts of his Private Attribute would remain a secret as long as he could keep it a secret.
There was no answer from Asqa for a few seconds after he finished saying everything. Clyde wonders what happened.
''I''m okay,'' replied Ashka. ''Anyway, what do you want to talk about now?''
''I wish we could meet again,'' said Clyde.
''I also hope so. But... it''s very difficult to do.''
Clyde exhaled. He already thought that much. It won''t be easy.
''Where are Rodney and his friends?'' Clyde immediately changed the question.
''I don''t know where Rodney, Eric, and Reed are. But I know where Mona is,'' Asqa answered.
The roar of revenge in Clyde''s chest burned again when he heard that name.
''Where is she?'' he asked.
''Mona is in God Loki''s domain. At that time the God seemed interested in her because she managed to trick you.''
Clye''s teeth grinding got tighter. So as he had expected, the four of them used him who had saved them to look good in the eyes of the Celestials.
Be it by taking advantage of his achievements, or by what Mona did, by using their betrayal in order to gain the favor of certain Celestials.
Clyde already knew that there would definitely be Celestials who liked their betrayal. It made him hate those Celestials even more.
''Alright. She will be the first target for my revenge.''
~~~
Chapter 204 Back To Ruined World
?
After saying that, there was silence for several minutes between Asqa and Clyde. Clyde thought that he might have said something Asqa didn''t want to hear. After all, she didn''t look like a girl who would hold a grudge.
''I''ll help you any way I can!''
However, to Clyde''s surprise, Asqa actually supports his intention. In her voice, Clyde could even feel overwhelming emotions.
''W-What?'' Clye is struck dumb by her unexpected reaction.
''Yes! I will help you as best I can. They''ve gone too far. How could they betray the one who saved them, and helped them through the disaster?!''
Once again, Clyde could feel Asqa''s great emotion. Sadness, anger, and of course a great desire for revenge.
Maybe because they are connected telepathically, their emotions can be channeled better than when speaking normally.
Clyde grinned. ''I didn''t think you could say that. I thought you would refuse.''
''What do you mean refuse? I can only stay silent for the past few months because I don''t know what to do. But now, we have met and talked.''
Clyde snorted and smiled. It feels good to know someone is on your side like this.
''So, what are we going to do? I can help you find information but I can''t get out of Archangel Uriel''s domain or it would be suspicious,'' said Asqa.
''Okay. You do that first. Find out as much information as you can about Mona and God Loki. Meanwhile, I will gather strength before actually taking action,'' replied Clyde.
''Alright.''
After that Clyde decided to end their conversation because he felt his Mana was depleted really fast. It was quite surprising because Clyde''s level of Magic Power had already reached level 30.
That means themunication between this ce and The All Territory does consume a lot of Mana. No one in Sivagadh Fortress should have been able to do that in as long as he has.
Asqa said goodnight and ended theirmunication. She still looks quite reluctant to end it, though.
"Fuhh..."
Clyde let out a long breath after the connection finally worked. Themunication hadpletely drained his Mana and made Clyde feel as if he had juste back from a brawl.
''So, I now have someone I can contact in The All Territory.''
Clyde nodded to himself, satisfied.
''Now all I have to do is gather power to fight them.''
Those four people must have be much stronger than before from receiving the power of their Celestials master. So it''s only natural that Clyde has to gather enough power before starting a direct confrontation with them.
~~~
The next day, Clyde and Leon''s group are nning to immediately go to Ruin again. However, he noticed something strange, like a thick feeling of being followed.
He looked around but all he could see were the fantasy creature engaged in their morning conversation.
But Clyde clearly prefers to trust his instincts. After all, anyone who follows him won''t show themselves just like that, so it''s only natural that he can''t see them amidst the crowd.
''Did they realize I contacted Asqast night?''
Clyde was starting to feel a little worried. It just might happen. He thought that he should ask Maethionter.
They agreed to meet again at Hammer''s smithy because there the portal to go to the hidden Ruin was located.
When he arrived, Clyde found Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L already there. They also had the new weapons made from the bones they gather for yesterday.
Once again Clyde praised the amazing performance of Hammer and his men.
L looked even more tired than yesterday. There are eye bags under her eyes.
"What happened to you?" Clyde asked with a frown.
"O-Oh, I... did shooting practicest night." L smiled shyly. "Sorry, you saw my ugly face because I stayed upte."
"There''s nothing wrong with your face," Clyde said dryly.
But somehow, L showed a reaction that he thought was odd. Her eyes widened as if surprised.
"What?" So Clyde asked.
L turned her face away. "N-Nothing."
Thinking it wasn''t important, Clyde turned to the rest of the group. "Are you guys ready?"
"Yeah, we''re ready," Leon answered. "Are we going to the same ce?"
Clyde nodded. "There are still lots of monsters in that ce. And from there we can also get materials for the next equipment.
I''m still curious about the whereabouts of those pink crystals. It seems, that pink crystals trigger some kind of evolution in those monsters. And we haven''t found the most powerful monsters there either."
Clyde''s words made them shudder.
"What do you mean powerful monster?" Wiley asked with a look of horror.
"You remember the fifth and sixth days of the Selection Stage?" Clyde asked.
Upon hearing that, not only Wiley and his friends, but Hammer also stopped moving as if frozen.
The terror instilled by the fifth and sixth days for them is still too great for them and makes them unable to react.
Clyde realized their reaction. So he decided to say something that would ease their fear.
"There''s no need to rush now. We can fight the small monsters first until your levels are high enough."
Even so, they know that eventually, they will also meet those terrible monsters.
"Let''s go now."
They entered the portal and disappeared. Hammer gulped when he was alone.
"That kid is..." Hammer shook his head, he lost words for Clyde. How could he talk about fighting a hideous monster on the fifth day carefree?
~~~
As soon as they arrived at the Ruin, they immediately continued their hunt just like before. Now that they knew what they had to do, they wasted no time.
Within minutes they had discovered the abnormal T-Rex. This time, with enough preparation, they could kill the T-Rex without experiencing the same trouble as yesterday.
But Clyde felt a strange feeling. He turned his head but still saw nothing.
''Oh right. This is a world that should be destroyed. So it''s not surprising if something bad suddenly happens in this world.''
~~~
Chapter 205 Dino Man
?
The strange feeling was getting more and more disturbing. Clyde stayed behind to observe the situation while the five people focused on their hunt.
He didn''t know what was following them and wanted to do something malevolent. And he wouldn''t think that it was actually just his feeling.
There must really be something lurking between the floating pieces ofnd and the debris from the ruined city.
For now, Clyde decided to walk closer to them. So that when dangeres he can act immediately.
When he watched them, Clyde realized that their fight was indeed easier than yesterday.
L can also shoot more precisely now. She no longer needed Rosie next to her to help her so Rosie could also farm Exp for herself. Since L had raised her Stats, she could lift her crossbow without any problems.
The results of hard training that she did while staying upte also produced extraordinary results. Maybe because of her strong determination, L finally mastered the crossbow.
Clyde once again nodded with a faint smile of satisfaction. ''This way, it won''t be long before they''re ready for the mission.''
The sooner the five of them were ready, the sooner Clyde could ept the mission from Maethion. And get enough power to avenge her.
The five of them had killed dozens of dinosaur monsters. Clyde used [Skill: Inspection] on them.
But then he sighed disappointed because even though they killed a lot of monsters, they only increased 3 levels from their original level.
At first, Clyde thought that they would be able to develop quickly. However, he realized his stupidity byparing their power development with his.
Of course, they wouldn''t be as fast as him to level up. They didn''t have the [Skill:Exp+] that he had.
''It looks like I have to be more patient.''
Clyde knew he couldn''t possibly show that he was disappointed because that would only make them even more down.
"Hey," Clyde''s call instantly distracted them from the happy cheers after taking care of the monster''s horde.
"What''s wrong? Something happened?" Rosie asked.
Clyde drew closer to them and spoke in a low voice. "I have a feeling something is watching us. I don''t know what it is but you guys need to start being more alert."
"Is that some kind of... uhh... BOSS monster?" Wiley asked with a horrified grimace.
Now that Wiley mentioned it, Clyde still hasn''t encountered any monsters that look like BOSS in this Ruin. Not that he worried too much about it, though.
"Maybe. Whatever it is, this could be a great opportunity for you to get more Exp," said Clyde.
They weren''t too excited about the idea because even if they would gain a lot of Exp, they would have to kill the monster before getting it.
Seeing their expressions, Clyde said. "I got your back if the situation gets worse. You just have to focus on fighting."
"Why are you helping us so much?" Albert asked. "Don''t get me wrong. I''m d you helped us and I''m grateful. But I just want to know why."
"You guys already know why. I need friends to run the expedition," Clyde replied.
"But can''t you do it yourself with your strength?"
"Well, I can''t seem to finish everything by myself even if I wanted to," said Clyde. "You guys know about the Senior Council?"
They nod.
"They won''t let me go alone."
Upon hearing Clyde''s answer, they decided not to question anything further. They wouldn''t lose from this anyway.
So they continued their journey and hunt. It was suddenly quiet as if all life around them had disappeared.
All the monsters that would normally attack when they saw their presence disappeared.
Of course, that sparked anxiety in their hearts. Those monsters must have disappeared because they were avoiding something more dangerous than them.
As soon as they realized this situation, they immediately stopped their talk and scanned around with wary eyes.
"L," Leon said, looking at her. L immediately nodded in understanding.
They stopped for a moment and waited for L. L started to use her Skill to see the masses
"Don''t use a lot of Mana yet, you still have to use itter," Rosie said with a concerned face.
L nodded and closed her eyes. While she uses her future vision ability, the others keep watching the surroundings including Clyde.
''What will appear this time?'' Clyde thought, feeling excited in his heart.
Leon saw something moving above the piece ofnd floating in front of him. He squinted, until he finally saw it.
"There it is."
Leon''s words made the others turn their heads. They saw a humanoid figure carrying a sword at his waist with arge build standing above that floating piece ofnd. They couldn''t see it clearly because it had its back to the sun.
As it walked closer and jumped in front of them, they finally realized that it wasn''t a tall human being.
Its entire body was covered with greenish skin that had the texture of a dinosaur''s skin. That face, too, was that of a raptor with a long muzzle filled with sharp teeth. But the creature has human eyes.
What made it look even more dangerous was that it moved like a normal human and have a sword at its waist.
"Shit. That''s a strong-looking monster," Wiley said with a look of fright on his face.
"I saw a powerful monster appear!" L said after opening her eyes.
"Yeah, we know," Rosie replied.
Clyde stared at the monster in the form of a half-dinosaur man. Then use [Skill: Inspection].
<<>>
[ Name: Sapionus Rex ]
[ Affiliation: Dinosaur Monsters. ]
[ Level: 25 ]
[ Skills: Weapon Mastery (Lv.5) ]
[ Stats: Strength (5/10), Stamina (7/10), Agility (6/10), Magic Power (-/10) ]
[ Weaknesses: - ]
[ Affinities: - ]
[ Ratings: - ]
Clyde guessed he couldn''t see the rating of this monster because its level was way below his.
"It''s a level 25 monster," Clyde said. "You guys can handle it with the five of you."
"You sure?" Wiley asked, unconvinced.
Before Clyde could answer, Sapionus Rex had already lunged at them.
"It''sing!" Leon also lunged toward it.
~~~
Chapter 206 Troublesome Enemy
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Leon took the lead and lunged at the monster earlier than the others. As he always did.
Without waiting any longer Rosie, Wiley, and Albert also immediately followed him. While L was behind reloading her crossbow.
''What an interesting monster,'' Clyde thought to himself.
The monsters in the form of half-dinosaurs and half-men also immediately realized that they were enemies. It''s unsheathed its sword which is a katana type sword.
The monster with the name Sapionus Rex shot with extraordinary speed to approach Leon. Its speed makes Leon taken aback and can barely fend off its katana swing.
*CLANG!*
Leon''s hand trembled as he received the katana''s sh. He grimaced and gritted his teeth at the sudden great pressure he felt.
While Sapionus Rex was focusing on Leon, Rosie came from behind Leon and immediately swung the hammer covered in lightning.
However, Sapionus Rex managed to notice the danger in time and jumped back. Making Rosie''s hammer just hit the air where it was standing.
Rosie cursed inwardly and immediately swung her hammer forward, sending a lightning bolt toward Sapionus Rex Almost instantly.
But the half-dinosaur monster used its katana to block Rosie''s lightning bolts.
"That monster can move fast," said Rosie.
"Yeah. We have to be faster," Leon replied. "I will face it head-on and you attack from the side."
Leon spoke to Rosie and Albert who were behind him. They all immediately understood and get ready.
Somehow, they got a strange feeling that the monster was waiting for the five of them to attack first. It was like... he wanted to see what they were capable of before it unleashed all of its power.
That feeling made Leon and the others feel uneasy. Meaning that the monsters weren''t just normal monsters that would attack blindly.
The monster had an aura like a desire to find satisfying fights for itself. By the way, it drew and swung its sword, they could see that the monster was very skilled at using it.
The monster human''s pair of eyes moved quickly to observe Leon, Rosie, and Albert''s movements. Its gaze looked worried when it saw Albert approaching.
"HYAA!"
Leon swung his sword with all his strength. Sapionus Rex chose to dodge backward instead of taking the sh.
Then it thrust its katana towards Leon with a speed that Leon couldn''t keep up with. So in the end the katana hit him square in the chest.
Luckily, Leon had time to activate his Skill so the katana didn''t pierce his heart. Then, Leon gripped the de of the katana very tightly.
The reckless movement seemed to be beyond the expectations of Sapionus Rex because its human eyes widened in shock.
It saw Rosie and Albert darting from Leon''s right and left with their weapons ready to use. It tried to pull its katana however, Leon gripped it tighter not letting it go.
Sapionus Rex let out a raptor scream that sounded like an angry curse. It kicked Leon''s body and let go of his katana causing it to jump backwards.
The monsternds after doing a backflip. It stared at Leon who was grinning at it with eyes full of fury.
"Now we got its sword," Leon said still with the same grin. "Let''s not waste time."
Albert and Rosie nodded. They lunged towards Sapionus Rex but the monster was not that stupid and decided to keep approaching them when it was at a disadvantage.
Sapionus Rex opened its palms towards them. Then from the palm came out a very thick ck smoke.
Sensing that it might be something dangerous, Rosie and Albert stopped their charge not wanting to take any risks.
"What is that?" Rosie asked with a worried frown.
"I don''t know. Let''s get back first!" replied Albert.
So they immediately retreated back towards Leon because the ck smoke was getting closer to them.
However, while they were running backward, Sapionus Rex sliced ??through the ck smoke and shot toward the two of them with incredible speed.
"Watch out!"
Leon''s voice came a few millisecondster than it should have. Albert and Rosie didn''t even have time to look back when Sapionus Rex''s hand grabbed both of their necks from behind.
It yanked them, then m them to the ground.
*BOOM!*
With a loud thud, Rosie and Albert''s bodies hit the ground. They let out groans of pain. While Sapionus Rex smirked with that dinosaur face, making its face even more disturbing.
An arrow flew towards it from far behind Leon.
*CRAATT!*
Because it was still lost in ecstasy after sessfully smashing Rosie and Albert, the Sapionus Rex was unable to dodge the arrow.
The arrow stuck in its right shoulder and made it bleed out. The Sapionus Rex released the two of them and jumped back to avoid Leon''s sword sh.
Wiley came a momentter and fired his poison dart. This time, Sapionus Rex managed to avoid it with its incredible agility.
It does something unexpected. The half-dinosaur monster dashed behind and got away from them.
"Did it run away?!" Wiley asked furiously. He intended to run after it, however, he immediately abandoned his intention because it sounded stupid.
So he turned back and approached Albert and Rosie.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
They said they were both fine.
"That monster isn''t just strong, it''s also fast," said Rosie.
"Yeah. Its speed is really troublesome," Albert added.
"It''s running away now. What should we do?" Wiley asked.
"I didn''t think that thing would run away," said Leon. "I think it took another weapon to attack us again."
Wiley stared at the katana lying on the ground behind Leon. he said. "That monster can even fight with a sword. I hope it won''t use another weapon."
L and Clyde came up to them.
"Just be careful, it looks like it can use more than one weapon," said Clyde which immediately made their bodies stiffen.
"W-What?" Wiley asked in disbelief.
Clyde answered him with a nod. "Even so, it won''t kill you easily with your current Stats."
~~~
Chapter 207 Least Expected
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"What do you think we should do?" Wiley asked.
Clyde shrugged his shoulder. "You already know what to do. You have to fight it and kill it. You already know how it moves and I''ve given you information about that monster.
So now it''s your job to kill it yourself."
"Argh," Wiley let out a frustrated groan. "You make us like students who are doing tests from a lecturer."
"Yeah, you can say that," Clyde replied. "It''s simple. If you want to get stronger, you have to fight, okay?"
Clyde felt a kind of cringe sting inside him. Suddenly he felt as if something was screaming in his ear: ''You''re telling them they have to fight when you have cheats for yourself? Tsk, tsk. ck. What a shameless guy.''
Clyde immediately shook the thought away. Because he realized that it can''t be helped. He can''t give them the cheats he has so what can he say to them other than they have to fight with their own strength?
"Haa¡" Wiley sighed helplessly. "Alright. Let''s kill this half-dino bastard."
Rosie and Albert were finally able to stand again.
"Let''s find that monster and fight with more caution than before," Leon said with a face full of determination.
The five of them immediately headed in the direction the Sapionus Rex had fled. Although they were a little doubtful because of what Clyde said about the monster being able to use more than one weapon.
They didn''t doubt what Clyde said because it was definitely true. They already knew that Clyde could see information from other people or monsters. And that is precisely what worries them.
~~~
Maethion sat in his room with a cup of tea still steaming. Indicates that the tea is still quite hot now.
Maethion''s gaze fixed on the scenery outside his bedroom window. However, he wasn''t looking at anything at the moment because his mind was directed towards a certain someone.
''So he invited the people who came with him to Ruin. Hmm, he put them in a difficult situation.''
Maethion tilted his head to the side unsure of his own thoughts.
''Or could it be something good instead?''
Maethion was sure that Clyde already knew about the problem in the Fortress that prevented them from using Character Information. And by now he must have told those five people about the matter.
Unfortunately, Clyde doesn''t know what consequences wille to them if they find out about this secret. For this reason, Maethion wasn''t sure if he could protect Clyde from the other Senior Councils.
Now it''s just him, Vernik, and Madri at the Fortress. If Vernik decides to contact the others toe back here and punish Clyde and the five of them, a mess will happen.
But Maethion also knows that this is all his fault. He was the one who told Clyde that he could carry out the expedition mission he gave him. So eventually Clyde recruited the five people as hispanions.
Maethion sighed. ''I have to think of a way to make this matter not get any worse.''
In the meeting he heldst night, Vernik said that they must immediately close the Character Information of the five people. Just like they had done to the residents of Sivagadh Fortress long ago.
However, Clyde, who already knows about it, definitely won''t ept it and he most definitely will put up a fight.
But maybe, Maethion thought that if he could give reasons so they could give Clyde and the five people an exception, he could solve this problem.
Maethion drank his tea and started thinking about how he could fix this problem.
~~~
They kept looking and looking. However, they have not yet found the existence of the half-dinosaur monster.
With every passing second, their anxiety grew because the monster coulde from anywhere and ambush them when they weren''t ready.
Clyde was some distance behind them. He didn''t want to get too close because the monsters might hesitate to attack with him near them.
Maybe it could sense through its instincts that Clyde''s strength was too great.
He wasn''t certain but based on what he saw, the half-dinosaur monster had enough intelligence to know its advantages and disadvantages.
The proof, the monster decided to run away rather than being rushed to attack them. That means it has preparation.
"Let me use my Skill," L said suddenly. She couldn''t stand this situation.
"No," Leon forbade her. "We don''t know when the monster appeared. Even after using your thirty seconds, it''s possible you won''t be able to see anything since the monster is still hiding."
L bit her lip and didn''t say anything because what Leon said was true. They didn''t know when the monster would appear again. Maybe even for a long time more.
However, it turns out that Sapionus Rex decided to show up when they least expected it.
It jumped from the top of the tree above Leon with a sword raised above its head.
"Shit!" Albert, who first noticed this, immediately jumped up because he wasn''t sure Leon had time to act.
In those split seconds, Albert jumps and uses his daggers to block Sapionus Rex''s sword which is aimed at Leon''s head.
*CLANG!*
The sound of shing between the two of them resounded. However, Albert''s strength still lost to it so Albert was pushed back to the ground.
The Sapionus Rex used that shocking moment to stretch its arms and let out ck smoke like before.
The ck smoke enveloped them, making them lose their vision.
"GO!" Leon shouted while dragging Albert away. They had to get out of there as fast as possible before Sapionus Rex attacked them from behind this smoke when they couldn''t see anything.
But of course, Sapionus Rex would not let the window of opportunity he had created just go.
*CRAATT!*
Suddenly, L felt something pierce her stomach. When she looked down, L saw the de of a katana covered in her own blood.
Sapionus Rex pull his katana quickly from L''s body and immediately looked for a new target.
While L copsed to the ground with a dazed look in her eyes.
~~~
Chapter 208 No More Escape
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L copsed on the ground. She still didn''t even really understand what was going on. In the blink of an eye, a katana stabbed her in the stomach. L didn''t even feel the pain a few seconds after the katana stuck.
"Blergh!"
Fresh blood came out of L''s mouth. She feltpletely panicked now. What was on her mind was only death that feels so close.
''I-I''m going to die!''
However, L was too worried without thinking about all the possibilities. She forgot that she had leveled up several times than before so her body condition was also much stronger.
Especially now that Clyde came at the right time and put a bottle of health potion in front of her face.
"Drink this. You''re gonna be fine," Clyde said calmly.
L looked at him with eyes that were still full of terror and tears were now flowing freely from those eyes.
Clyde sighed. "You won''t die. Your stats have increased, right?"
Only then did L realize it. ''Oh right.''
Seeing that L hade to her senses, Clyde immediately went to approach the others. Within this smoke, it wasn''t only her who was having a hard time.
Clyde was quite impressed because the monster called Sapionus Rex could create smoke like this to trap the five of them.
That monster is like some kind of master assassin. Clyde suspected that the yers who fought it in the Selection Stage must have had a hard time. Maybe they won''t even be able to win against it and will be instantly killed.
The ck smoke was still too thick for Clyde to see anything. In this smoke, Sapionus Rex must be hunting its prey with a wide grin on its raptor face.
Clyde decided to quickly dispel this ck smoke before it kills all the party members.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 30) is activated! ]
*JJRZZZTTT!!!*
Lightning appeared around Clyde''s body and spread around exposing the ck mist. In the blink of an eye, the ck mist disappeared as if devoured by the powerful bluish-white lightning that Clyde released.
Leon and Albert turned their heads with shocked faces toward Clyde. Sapionus Rex who had almost shed Rosie''s neck also showed the same shocked expression.
Seeing that, Rosie immediately turned her body around while swinging her hammer toward Sapionus Rex''s head.
*BUAGH!*
A powerful hammer strike hit Sapionus Rex in the head and threw the monster several meters to the side.
Its body bounced several times on the ground before finally stopping and hitting the raised ground surface.
"L!" Rosie didn''t follow up on the attack she did on Sapionus Rex. Instead, she chose to go over to L when she saw a wound on her stomach.
But now, L was able to sit up after drinking the health potion that Clyde gave her. She doesn''t look in pain anymore.
Clyde stopped his lightning because now the smoke was gone. He didn''t feel the need to act now.
While Rosie approached L with worried questions, Clyde turned to Albert, Leon, and Wiley.
Those who understood what Clyde meant immediately acted and moved towards Sapionus Rex.
The monster that realized that its life was being threatened immediately stood up even though the pain was still lingering in the side of its head that Rosie hit.
Sapionus Rex growled. Its eyes burning with anger stared at Clyde. However, deep down in its heart, Sapionus Rex knew that it couldn''t win against him.
Clyde just stood there quietly staring at it with a straight face. He didn''t even take out his sword because he felt it waspletely unnecessary. If he wants, Clyde can definitely kill the monster with his bare fist.
Because of that, Sapionus Rex chose to attack the others because he knew they were weaker than it. But if Clyde continues to be there and mess up the n, the monster won''t be able to do much.
Because of that the Sapionus Rex felt frustrated. It could almost kill them. However, Clyde came and saved them.
"Attack it before it runs away again," said Clyde.
L was the first to jump into action with that remark. She took aim and it didn''t take long for her to shoot because Sapionus Rex wasn''t moving anywhere.
*SWIISSHH!*
Arrow flies toward its head. The Sapionus Rex noticed it and used its katana to block the arrow.
*ZAP!*
However, a momentter a lightning bolt shot out of Rosie''s hammer and struck it square in the chest.
The Sapionus Rex was thrown backward. Leon, Albert, and Wiley immediately charged toward it.
*SWISSH!*
Another arrow came towards it. This time the monster couldn''t parry it and could only let the arrow embedded in its shoulder.
Sapionus Rex immediately jumped up to get rid of the pain he was feeling. It then stretched out one of its arms and let out another ck smoke.
However, Leon and Albert, who were already close to its position, immediately jumped forward through the smoke.
Sapionus Rex, who wanted to escape, was shocked by their decision and felt disappointed because he failed to escape.
So, it must attack. Because there''s no other choice than that.
Sapionus Rex lunged at them and then shed its sword at Albert. However, Albert had already activated his Skill.
The katana only goes through his body. Then Albert condensed his body again andunched a dagger sh at it.
*SRATT!*
The dagger only hit the Sapionus Rex''s cheek as it managed to dodge in time.
Leon who was so close stabbed his sword.
*CLANG!*
But Sapionus Rex could still fend off the attack. The three of them were then involved in a weapons battle.
Daggers, sword, and katana shed with each other with incredible force creating sparks and loud sounds of metal shing.
Leon and Albert had no intention of giving the Sapionus Rex the chance to emit that ck smoke. Or they will be back at a disadvantage.
Wiley seeing that Sapionus Rex''s attention was locked on Leon and Albert, realized that this was a good opportunity for him.
He sneaks up with a blowdart ready in his hand.
~~~
Chapter 209 The End Of It
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Wiley always has been a careful person. He wouldn''t get into something from which he wasn''t sure he would get out safely.
But when the apocalypse of the Selection Stage came, Wiley felt he could no longer do such a thing. How could he be too careful when every ce he entered contained monsters and dangers?
Wiley feels lucky to findpanions and to be able to work with them well.
Moreover, in his group, there is someone like Leon. The figure of a leader who doesn''t mind charging first towards the enemy and protecting the others behind.
After some time, his feelings from just wanting to use Leon so he could take cover behind safely, turned to respect after seeing how selflessly he acted to protect hisrades.
So Wiley intends to do the same for him and his other friends. So that he doesn''t be a jerk who only uses them for his safety.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
Leon and Albert were still involved in the fight with the Sapionus Rex. The sound of their weapons shing echoed in the ruined environment.
Wiley climbed up a raised piece ofnd for a good shot. When he arrived at the right ce, Wiley pressed the blowdart to his lips.
Suddenly a strong kick hit Leon and threw him back a few meters. Albert, who knew that Leon would be fine, chose to continue the attack because he couldn''t let the Sapionus Rex emit ck smoke again.
Albert gritted his teeth. The swing of his daggers got faster as he put more effort into it than before.
Rosie, who has confirmed that L is fine, immediately joins the battle. She only looked at Leon briefly and Leon told her to continue moving forward.
Rosie nodded. She dashed until she finally got near the Sapionus Rex and swung her hammer.
*BUAGHH!*
Sapionus Rex had no choice but to use his hand to block Rosie''s hammer because his katana was holding Albert''s daggers.
It was then that Wiley saw his opportunity. He aimed and then fired a poison dart that had been imbued with his Skill.
*SWIISHH!*
The dart shot quickly through the air. Then embedded in the Sapionus Rex''s neck.
"ARGHH!"
Sapionus Rex let out a scream simr to the raptors in pain they had heard before.
A momentter purple smoke started to emit from where the dart hadnded. The decay spread quickly to the area around it.
Sapionus Rex felt its body begin to weaken and the pain in its neck spread rapidly. Its concentration to face the two enemies in front of it began to fade.
Rosie and Albert who noticed that immediately elerated their attacks.
Rosie sent lightning down her hammer while Albert drew his daggers and ducked them down to stab them from below.
*CRAATT!*
Albert managed to stab his two daggers into Sapionus Rex''s stomach. Then Rosie mmed her hammer into the monster''s head.
*BUAGH!*
Sapionus Rex was sent flying again and hit the rising ground. Theirbos inflicted considerable damage on the monsters.
Rosie and Albert didn''t let the chance slide and dashed towards it. While Leon who had woken up also caught up with them.
Sapionus Rex was about to get up immediately. However, the pain that he felt spreading from his neck to his back making him fall back down.
Some of the monster''s flesh had also fallen to the ground due to decay. It can no longer get up and can only see the arrival of Rosie, Albert, and Leon.
Not only that but suddenly an arrow also came and stuck in its body. L didn''t want to be left behind with only a small contribution like before so she wanted to stick as many arrows as possible into the monster.
L reloaded her crossbow with all her might and continued shooting. She had already managed to nt three arrows before the three of them arrived.
"HYAAAHH!!!"
Rosie jumps up, raises her hammer which is enveloped in lightning above her head then ms it towards Sapionus Rex''s head.
*BOOM!*
However, the monster was still able to dodge with everyst bit of its energy left. It jumped to its feet and stretched its arms forward, intending to let out ck smoke.
But Albert came fast enough to sink his two daggers into each of Sapionus Rex''s arms.
*CRAAT!*
*CRAAT!*
...
then Albert jumped aside. Because he knew Leon wasing from behind him with his sword drawn.
*CRAATT!*
Leon lunged forward and stabbed the Sapionus Rex in the chest. With his charging momentum, he pushed Sapionus Rex backward until it crashed into arge tree.
"Urghh..."
The monster spewed blood from its raptor mouth. Leon pushed his sword deeper into its chest.
Rosie came and immediately swung her hammer at Sapionus Rex''s head repeatedly.
*BUAGH!*
*BUAGH!*
*BUAGH!*
...
Rosie hit the monster''s head until it was reduced to minced meat.
The monster fell to the ground as Leon drew his sword.
Blood kept gushing out from the wound on the chest as well as from its mouth.
The decay is also continuing and will keep happening until it eats up Sapionus Rex''s entire body.
"It still opens its eyes," Rosie said.
Leon stared at Sapionus Rex for a few moments. Then, thinking he should end the monster''s suffering, Leon stabbed it with his sword once more.
After that, Sapionus Rexpletely died and a notification appeared in each of their visions.
The five of them breathed a sigh of relief almost simultaneously. The fight that actuallysted only a few minutes seemed forever. They also earned enough Exp rewards to level up twice again.
The five of them fell to the ground where they stood. No one said anything or cheered each other for finishing the fight. They are still too exhausted for that.
Clyde let them rest for a few minutes because they deserved it.
After those few minutes had passed and they had recovered, they continued on their way. The day hasn''t even entered noon yet. So there is still plenty of time for them.
~~~
Chapter 210 A Plan
?
They continued their search after taking a few minutes to rest. After a few minutes, they decided to continue this hunt when they feel their body has recovered.
Leon and his party members encountered the same dinosaur monsters several times. But since their strength had increased exponentially, they could easily ovee those monsters.
"Why are there only raptors and T-Rex here, huh?" L suddenly asked in the middle of their journey.
Now that Clyde thought about that, what L said was true. Only raptors and T-Rex dinosaurs were attacking them and the other dinosaurs were somehow not present.
Sapionus Rex is definitely an exception because it can''t really be said to be a dinosaur with its sword skills and its instinct as an assassin.
"Maybe because they are dinosaurs that are most suitable for use as monsters," Albert answered with a shrug. He himself didn''t sound convinced and was just spouting what was in his head at the moment.
"That does make sense, though," said Wiley. "But actually, all prehistoric animals can be made into monsters. Did you know that most of the animals from that era were big?"
They all nodded and gave the same answer indicating that they understood.
"So actually if they want to make all prehistoric animals as monsters they can do it," continued Wiley. "But why didn''t they?"
"Whether there are other monsters or not in this Ruin is not certain yet, right?" said Rosie. "We haven''t explored all of these ces. Who knows, you might find a surpriseter."
"This is basically a ruined world," Clyde said suddenly. "So maybe the other monsters have been eradicated too. Anyway, we can''t predict anything in a world like this."
"Ah, you''re right," Wiley nodded. "I hope there is still a Skill Purchasing Machine left here."
Wiley''s words made Clyde flinch a bit because he had never thought of that before. If it''s still here that is a very good thing. He needs to add more Skills to his arsenal.
But Clyde immediately extinguished his already soaring hopes. He wasn''t sure but shouldn''t the Purchasing Skill be a valuable property? Then it''s possible that the World Masters have taken it.
Clyde stopped thinking about that and focused on his surroundings. It''s possible that another strong monster will appear to ambush them, so they must remain vignt.
They found nothing for an hourter. They just walked around and saw all kinds of ruins scattered both on the ground and floating unstably in the air.
Clyde almost decided they should just go back to Fortress. However, something he was looking for appeared a few meters ahead.
"That''s the pink crystal," Clyde said, pointing to where the pink crystal was.
They immediately headed there. Clyde took out a pickaxe that had been etched with the runes Hammer had given him.
"What''s that?" Leon asked with a curious face.
"A magic pickaxe," answered Clyde. He raised the pickaxe and then smashed it against the pink crystal growing from the ground.
*CLANG!*
~~~
Maethion carried a brown scroll tied with some kind of golden rope. He entered the room they usually used for meetings.
Vernik and Madri were waiting there and greeted him with a cynical look when he arrived. Maethion already knew that they didn''t really like him, especially with what he was doingtely.
Maethion always goes against whatever the two of them agree on. Since the beginning, they have never been in the good term but that does not mean they are enemies with each other. After all, the three of them are together in the Senior Council of Sivagadh Fortress.
"What do you want to say this time?" Vernik asked in an irritated tone. He no longer even hides to hide his feelings for Maethion.
Yet, Maethion couldn''t care less about their feelings even if they hated him. Maethion smiled and ced the scroll he had brought on the table.
"This is the information that I got from my source," said Maethion.
Vernik and Madri both frowned. With curious eyes, they stared at the scroll.
Maethion ran his hand over the text written on the scroll. A few seconds after that, the text turned into light of letters that floated in the air.
Vernik and Madri read the text carefully. After finishing reading a few paragraphs, their eyes widened simultaneously.
"No way," Madri muttered in disbelief.
Maethion stayed silent and waited for their reactions to finish. Only then did he continue. "You can trust this information because it is almost valid."
Vernik and Madri admitted that the information brought by Maethion through sources they did not know had a high degree of uracy.
So, even though the information seemed far from reality, they still couldn''t reject it outright.
"The Nexus of Creation," Maethion said with great emphasis. "There''s a high chance that I''ve found it."
"Let''s say that was right, what do you want to do?" Vernik asked.
"I want to send a team to go on an expedition and check it out," Marthion replied.
The idea made Vernik and Madri look at him with a surprised look.
"Who will you send?/Samuel and his party?" asked Madri.
"No. I think there''s a party better fit for that."
Vernik and Madri immediately realized who Maethion was referring to.
"Don''t say that... You want to send Clyde and the five of them?" Vernik asked with a sharp look.
Maethion nodded firmly. "Yes."
They had just had a meeting discussing ns about eliminating Clyde and the five people - who hade with him - their ability to use the system.
But suddenly, Maethion came up with that n. Vernik and Madri can''t help but think that Maethion did it on purpose to protect them. Although Vernik and Mardi didn''t quite understand Maethion''s reason for doing that.
"I can see their potential. It''s possible that they could be minions that we can use to achieve our goals more quickly," Maethion said, pushing up his sses.
"But if they fail, we have to kill them," Vernik coldly replied.
~~~
Chapter 211 Persuasion
?
Maethion had already guessed that talking to them would not be easy. Moreover, he had to convince the two of them to cancel the intention to remove their ability to use the power of the system. Or at least put it off for some time.
Maethion didn''t just want to protect Clyde and the five people. But he also wanted to protect the Senior Council and this Fortress.
If the Senior Council agrees to eliminate Clyde''s power, then Clyde will of course not stay silent. He would fight back and Maethion was sure that any resistance he put up would create a huge mess.
He still wasn''t sure if Clyde could beat the Senior Council let alone the strongest members within it who were hundreds of years old.
However, Clyde is not an easy opponent. Coupled with his mysterious power that is not yet known. The risk would be too great to let these two sides sh.
So, Maethion thought that it was he who had to act to prevent that. One way is to persuade them with information that is actually still inurate.
Although the information he brought this time was less urate than the previous ones, Maethion had a reputation that eighty percent of the time he brought urate information. So, Marthion believes that both of their judgments will be more focused on his reputation.
"We should see about that," Maethion replied to Vernik''s previous words with a faint smile and calm tone.
"We should kill them because I''m sure they already know about this Fortress preventing them from using the power of the system," Vernik was still insistent. "Or the order in the Fortress will turn to chaos."
"We''ll have to wait for all the Senior Council members to gather before we can decide on that."
Maethion and Vernik exchanged heated stares for a few moments. From within their gazes, it was as if there were already many des shing and destroying each other.
"He''s right." Madri''s voice made Vernik and Maethion turn their gazes to her.
"We can''t decide everything by ourselves," Madri added.
"The other members leave it to us to look after Sivagadh Fortress while they are away. Did you forget about that?" Vernik asked with a frown and a look of disbelief.
"But that boy is different and you know it yourself."
Clyde brought so many anomalies that the best decision to deal with him was to gather the full members of the Senior Council.
Vernik knew about it too. But he felt ufortable with Clyde''s presence. He didn''t want to make trouble with the kid because it would be troublesome. But if he has the right reason, he can borrow the power of ''That artifact'' to eliminate Clyde.
But for now, it seems that Vernik will have to put those ns on hold. He sighed and said. "Alright."
He leaned back in the chair and looked away. As if he didn''t want to stare at Maethion''s face for too long.
Maethion smiled a crooked smile. Then turned to Madri and said. "I intend to dispatch them as soon as possible. Of course, I will also give them a warning about the power of the system."
Madri nodded with a look that was difficult for him to interpret.
Maethion has now obtained approval from two members of the Senior Council apart from himself. So he was satisfied and immediately moved away from that ce.
As soon as Maethion left, Madri spoke to Vernik.
"You know it was the right decision."
Vernik didn''t answer right away. A few secondster he sighed and then issued a reply.
"You are right."
He admitted his mistake. Vernik wasn''t so stupid that he always had to be driven by his anger. Otherwise, he wouldn''t be able to reach his current power level and be the Senior Council in the only ce that offered hope of resistance against Celestials.
Madri nodded briefly to herself at Vernik''s reply.
"If they are that strong, it means we can use them for this Resistance," Madri exined again.
Vernik chose not to say anything else.
~~~
Several hours passed and they finally came out of the portal in Hammer''s room.
When they came out, Hammer was still there carving something into a spearhead.
"You''re back," Hammer said with a faint smile. Then back down to carve the spear.
Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L looked tired. But there were also traces of satisfaction still left on their faces.
Clyde ced his backpack and cloth bag filled with piles of pink crystals on the ground. Hammer nced at the backpack and cloth bag, thinking that it was just bones of monsters or iron ores.
But when he saw the pink crystals rolling out from inside the backpack, Hammer''s eyes shot wide open. He jumped from his seat.
"The Mana Crystals!" Hammer shouted.
Clyde snorted. He had expected that the Dwarf would show this kind of reaction.
"I don''t know what you can do with this. But, just do your best, okay?" Clyde said then walked away from that ce.
The other five people also immediately left the ce.
Hammer didn''t say anything to them as his eyes only focused on the pink crystals on the floor.
The Dwarf''s eyes were still wide open as if he couldn''t believe it. But when he approached and held the crystals himself, Hammer was convinced that the crystals were real.
A momentter a wide grin appeared on the Dwarf''s face. So many ideas were popping into his head right now.
~~~
As soon as Clyde was heading to his living quarters, he saw Maethion standing next to his door, smiling.
"I bring bad news as well as good news," said Mathion.
Clyde stared at him for a moment then decided that they should talk somewhere more private.
"Let''s get in," Clyde said as he opened the door to his room. Maethion followed him inside.
As soon as they were inside, Clyde immediately asked. "What is that?"
"You can already go on the expeditions if you think you''re ready."
"What''s the bad news?"
"This expedition is quite difficult," said Maethion. "But I also want to talk to you about something else. It''s about the power you get when the Selection Stage starts."
~~~
Chapter 212 Origin Of System
?
Clyde frowned. "What about it?"
"The power of the system. You call it that. You can see your power in numbers and letters," said Maethion. "But actually it''s just something to make things simpler."
Clyde decided to continue listening without saying anything first. He felt confused about what he said, what did he mean by making things simpler?
Noticing Clyde''s questioning gaze, Maethion continued.
"That power is a simplified version of the Aetheric Nexus. What arrived at your world, and our world is that, The Aetherix Nexus. Something that awakens the hidden potential of all beings in that world.
The Aetheric Nexus is something mysterious that awakens the power you usually call Mana, magic, and various other powers.
We don''t know what, and how it was created. But chances are, it''s as old as time itself.
The power of the Celestials alsoes from the Aetheric Nexus. However, they are born with it, not suddenly awakened like us."
Clyde was quite surprised by this revtion. He never thought about the source of the power of the system too much.
He thought the origin of the power was not important because usually from the novels he read, Clyde only knew how the power was used.
No one has ever mentioned ''what'' actually is the power of the system.
Clyde let Maethion continue.
"That''s why the power of the Celestials is so great and we can''t match them. The power of the system was created by a group of powerful beings called the Order of Mindweaver.
They were ordered by the Celestials to create something that would allow the creatures to adapt more quickly and easily to the Aetheric Nexus. So, they created the system that you can see right now."
''So that''s the origin of the system. Order of Mindweaver... if they were the creators of this system, then they were the ones who gave me that Private Attribute:Easy Mode.''
"However," Maethion continued. "The power of the Aetheric Nexus obtained by the system will be weaker than that of the Celestials."
"Because it''s a shortcut?" Clyde asked.
"Correct." Maethion nodded. "Because of that, the Senior Council at Sivagadh Fortress wants to manually train the Aetheric Nexus that has awakened in the bodies of the creatures that are here with rigorous training.
So we were able to reach the same level of strength as the Celestials even if it took a very long time."
"But based on what I''ve experienced, we can get enough power if we use the power of the system," said Clyde. "We just need to level up to get stronger."
"No no no." Maethion shook his head vigorously. "You thought that you were strong. However, the system is also a tool for the Celestials to prevent anyone to rebel against them."
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked.
"The Celestials also ordered the Order of Mindweaver to create a limit in the system. So that the creatures that possess it cannot have greater power than them.
With that, the Celestials can keep them in control."
Clyde''s eyes opened wide after hearing Maethion''s words. That meant, the power he had thought to be extraordinary all along was actually a shackle holding him back.
The revtion felt like a punch to his heart. Clyde felt angry at himself for used to think that he was a blessed person.
"So the Senior Council created a barrier that prevented residents in this Fortress from using the power of the system," Maethion continued. "You already know about that, right?"
"Yeah..." Clyde nodded with a gloomy expression.
"You should hide this from the other Fortress residents because if they find out there will be amotion."
Clyde nodded again.
"But for you and the five people you brought, we can provide an exception for the time being. Until youplete this expedition."
"Why?" Clyde asked, looking at Maethion.
"Because this expedition is very dangerous. With your current strength, I''m not sure you can make it through."
At first, Clyde wanted to do the mission so he could get a lot of experience to level up. But suddenly he gets a revtion that, it turns out the power of system he has is actually a shackle that will bind his strength.
So no matter how much Clyde gains strength with that power of the system, he can''t get strong enough.
"Maybe I shouldn''t have gone on an expedition," said Clyde.
"No. You have to do it. That way your power of the system will not be removed for now," replied Mathion.
"What''s the use of the power of the system if in the end I''ll just be shackled?" Clyde asked with a gloomy face.
"Because I know, your power of system is different."
Clyde''s eyes blinked a few times at Maethion''s words.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"There''s something different about your power system. I don''t know what it is... but maybe your system will lead you to a different result than the others."
Upon hearing it, Clyde''s feeling, which was full of gloominess before, felt better. Could it be that the system was indeed different due to the existence of Private Attribute: Easy-Mode?
"However, I can''t say the same to five other people," Maethion added something that wasn''t very pleasant to hear.
It was indeed quite disappointing. But in his mind, Clyde still had the belief that somehow, they could reach the appropriate level of power without having to be bounded by the system''s limit.
"Thanks for letting me know," said Clyde.
Maethion nodded then stood up. "Alright. Tell me when you''re ready to go on the expedition."
Clyde answered with a curt nod.
"Keep in mind," Maethion turned before stepping out. "You can''t tell anyone about everything I told you."
"I know."
"Then, I''ll take my leave now."
Maethion stepped outside and left Clyde''s room. After his departure, Clye slumped on his bed.
''I already suspected that my system is different from the others with that Private Attribute:Easy-Mode existence. But I don''t know the details about that yet so I can''t be rxed. It''s possible, that my Private Attribute will actually be something worse than just a limit.''
["Don''t worry, Clyde." ]
~~~
Chapter 213 Painful Voice
?
Suddenly heard, a voice that came from inside his head startled Clyde. He frowned sharply because the sound didn''te alone but was apanied by a sudden stinging pain.
"Who are you?" Clyde asked in a sharp tone. He held his head which felt pain as if someone was trying to forcefully enter his brain.
[ "I am the creator of your system." ]
The frown on Clyde''s forehead became sharper as the pain in his head worsened with every passing second.
''Do you have a way to talk to me without torturing me?'' Clyde asked in a tormented tone.
[ "Unfortunately not. I just wanted to say that what you think about your system is wrong." ]
''What do you mean?''
[ "Your system will be something good for you. You have nothing to fear." ]
''How can I trust you? Are you a member of that Order of Mindweaver?''
[ "Yes. But I served a different Celestial. My master ordered me to create a different system than the others. And now you have that system." ]
''W-Who...'' Clyde felt that he couldn''t take the pain in his head anymore.
[ "Its God-" ]
Before the voice in his head finished answering his question, Clyde had already lost consciousness. He copsed on the floor on his stomach.
The pain he felt drained every energy in his body and the end it, also took away his consciousness.
~~~
The next day, Clyde opened his eyes which felt very, very heavy. He felt the cold floor beneath him and his body ached from sleeping on the hard surface.
"Argh... fuck..."
Clyde tried to lift his body. However, he fell back to the floor. All of his limbs seemed to refuse to cooperate when the pain in his head struck again.
''What the fuck is going on?''
Clyde kept trying to lift his body. At least, if he has to be passed out again, he will be passed out on a softer and morefortable surface.
So Clyde pushed his body as hard as he could onto the bed. After extra effort, Clyde finally made it to the bed.
Not long after, he let his consciousness go again because he was unable to maintain it for a long time in the midst of that great pain.
~~~
Several hours passed without Clydeing out of his room. Finally, noon came, Clyde was only able to lift his body from the bed because the pain in his head had disappeared considerably.
He came out of his living quarter to look for food. When he opened the room, Leon was already outside his room with Rosie.
They both looked surprised to see Clyde''s pale face and the look on his face that looked in pain.
"What happened to you?!" Rosie sounded worried. She couldn''t believe that something could cause Clyde this pain. If so, then whatever it is must be something stronger than him.
"I''m fine," Clyde replied, waving his hand in the air. "What''s the time now?"
"It''s already noon," Leon answered while still watching his face. "We''re here because we haven''t seen you since morning."
"That... Uhh..." Clyde had a hard timeing up with an excuse. "I have a headache. But I''m fine now."
For now, that''s all he can say. He hoped they wouldn''t ask more because he couldn''t think of an answer right now. All this because of that damn voice that camest night.
"I want to eat now," Clyde said and walked past the two of them.
Leon and Rosie looked at each other in a daze. They finally came to a conclusion, today they wouldn''t be going to the Ruin.
Clyde ate his lunch with his mind thinking about what he had experiencedst night. A mysterious entity from the Order of Mindwever contacts him via painful telepathy.
He - Clyde assumes from his voice - contacted him after he talked about the origin of the system, then he thought about the possibility of the system that could be a problemter.
''They can monitor me every time?''
He looked unenthusiastic while stuffing his mouth. Realizing that there was someone inside his head all the time made him ufortable.
''Shit. What should I do now?''
There''s suddenly a lot of trouble happened to him when yesterday he felt that everything would be fine. What he considered to be his own ''plot armor'' was actually not that good.
Clyde exhaled and finished his food as fast as he could. He decided not to think too much about it now and focus on the task at hand. That is doing the expedition mission.
Maybe when he gets out of this Fortress, he canmunicate better with the voice from the Order of Mindweaver.
~~~
Clyde gathers Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L back for their expedition. Even though they already thought that Clyde would not go on an expedition today.
"Are you sure you''re all right?" L asked.
Clyde nodded curtly. "Don''t worry about it. Now, we have to do another expedition. Let''s do it in the same Ruin."
They headed for Hammer''s room again. When he got there, Hammer had already finished making a crossbow that was smaller than the crossbow L was using.
"Now then, youngdy," Hammer said, presenting the crossbow proudly. "I made this crossbow with the Mana crystals you brought yesterday.
You only need to flow a little Mana here to create an arrow. Even if you still don''t know how to quickly create Mana arrows, with this you will be able to do it easily."
L received the crossbow with a happy smile. "Thanks, Uncle!"
Clyde turned. ''Since when did she decide to call him uncle?''
The crossbow was slender and emitted a thin pink mist from the shaft and strings.
Unfortunately, the weapons for the others weren''t ready as Hammer focused on the crossbow all night.
The others didn''t have any problem with that since the weapons they currently had were still pretty good after Hammer and his men re-sharpening them.
"Let''s go."
They entered the portal and disappeared into the same Ruin. They hunted the remaining monsters in that world until their level was sufficient.
~~~
Chapter 214 Departure
?
The hunt in the Ruin was proceeding as smoothly as before. They ran through all the dinosaur monster hordes and ughtered them. At the end of it, their level rose considerably.
Even though they started the expedition when it was already noon, they moved quite quickly and efficiently because they had leveled up several times and were already familiar with this Ruin environment.
When evening finally came, they saw a monster resembling a pterodactyl but with a gigantic size. Its wingspan reaches forty meters from one end to the other. Leon and his friends want to fight the monsters because they will definitely get a lot of Exp.
However, Clyde suggested that they return for now because it was getting dark. He also believed that they wouldn''t be able to kill the monster quickly so they would fight until night came.
If it was him, then it wasn''t a problem. But they stillck the ability to be able to fight in the dark.
Hearing Clyde''s suggestion which made sense, they decided toply and returned to Sivagadh Fortress.
Clyde returned with a disappointed face because he could no longer contact the voice of the Order of Mindweaver member. He didn''t know how to contact him and that person no longer contacted him.
Last night was probably thest time that person contacted him. And he had to wait for another long time before they couldmunicate again.
He was quite frustrated because he had never heard of the name Celestial who ordered that individual to make his system. But for now, Clyde didn''t think there was anything he could do about it so he didn''t think about it too much.
They returned to the Fortress and immediately rested.
~~~
The day passed with the same activity for the five people.
Clyde emphasized again that they should not tell anyone about the power of the system. He also exined the origin of the system, minus the exnation about his own system and the limits set by the Celestials.
The five people showed the same surprised reaction. But it didn''t take long for them to ept it and move on. After all, they felt that there was no problem about it. Because they don''t know about the limit that will shackle themter.
Clyde didn''t say that because he thought they would be let down and scared when they found out about it. And their spirits will be down. Clyde couldn''t let that happen for the expedition they were about to embark on.
And finally, Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L have broken through level 20. Leon and Albert are at level 23, Rosie, and Wiley, 22. Then L, who can finally catch up, is also at level 22.
Somehow, she can shoot more precisely and faster after being able to create arrows with her Mana. L managed to utilize her powers to hunt monsters more quickly. Because of that, she can catch up with her friends.
Clyde asked Maethion directly about their strength. Maethion watched them closely and saw that they had enough strength now.
"I think they''re ready," Maethion said.
So, when the green light had been given by the Elf, the day for them to depart came.
~~~
Samuel was already waiting beside the portal when Clyde and his fivepanions came. Clyde frowned, wondering what he want to say.
"Can I talk with you for a second?" he asked.
They walked away from the others.
"What are you want to talk about?" Clyde asked. "Please be quick."
"Where are you going to take these new people?" Samuel asked in a sharp tone as if he couldn''t ept Clyde''s decision that he felt too rash.
"A Senior Council gave us an expedition mission," Clyde replied.
"What mission is it?"
"Investigating something. I can''t say the details."
Samuel paused for a moment and stared at her with his piercing red eyes. "You''re taking those guys who have only been here a few months and haven''t done any training?"
Clyde nodded. "Yes."
"You want them to die silly?"
"They won''t die. Don''t worry." Clyde seemed eager to leave Samuel.
"What do you mean by that? Are they strong enough to go on an expedition in just a few months?!" Samuel''s tone rose. The emotion in his ruby ??eyes was also evident.
Clyde sighed. "Yes. For more details about that, you can talk to Maethion. The Senior Council who gave this mission and approved their involvement."
Samuel''s expression turned serious. He gritted his teeth and tightened his fist.
"I''m sorry. As I said, I can''t give you another exnation because the Senior Council forbid it." After saying that Clyde walked away leaving Samuel who now looking furious.
''Senior Council must have approved their involvement since their strength is enough!'' Samuel stared at Clyde''s back. ''That bastard hides his secret to getting power quickly from me, but give it to them?!''
Samuel''s eyes were now glowing red with a dangerous gleam. He immediately walked away from there before his anger took over his body and moved to attack Clyde.
''Ah, he''s definitely mad.'' Clyde took a deep breath. ''Let''s hope he doesn''t intend to do anything troublesome.''
"What''s wrong?" she asked.
"Nothing." Clyde shook his head. "Are you ready?"
His fivepanions nodded simultaneously. Clyde then press an amulet that Maethion gave him to the portal.
The portal turned yellow like the color of thete afternoon sun. Clyde stepped in leading them and the five of them followed shortly after.
They arrived at a fairly normal ce. Precisely, they arrived on a beach.
The afternoon sun was indeed there and almost set. Even though when they departed from the Fortress, it was still eight o''clock in the morning. But they are no longer surprised because they know that time is not an absolute thing.
"Maethion said we should find a sage who lives here," said Clyde.
Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L all looked around.
"So this is just a dimension created by someone?" L asked, looking amused.
"Yes. Maethion said the person who created this wanted to have afortable ce to enjoy solitude. Let''s go."
~~~
Chapter 215 Huge Wyvern
?
They have now arrived in a pocket dimension where a sage lives here for a long time. He was a man with such powerful magical abilities that he was able to create a ce undetectable by Celestials and their followers.
But that man was Maethion''s teacher. When Maethion was able to reach a level of power that allowed him to enter the ranks of members of the Senior Council, his master had created the pocket dimension.
Unfortunately, no matter how strong the sage was, he couldn''t stop the Selection Stage or fight the Celestials head-on.
He can already reach a level of power without the power of the system and his magical ability is already reached this level.
Because of that sage and a few others who possessed the same level of power, the Senior Council knew that the other residents of Sivagadh Fortress would be able to reach great levels of strength without relying on the power of the system.
Of course, Maethion had persuaded his master to join the Senior Council and help them resist the Celestials.
However, the sage didn''t want to get involved in that anymore and preferred to be alone in his pocket dimension after losing his family in the Selection Stage.
And of course, Maethion no longer forced him after all this time. Because Maethion knew that he couldn''t change his master''s decision after he made up his mind.
But that doesn''t mean their rtionship is bad. Maethion was still on good terms with the sage so they were able to get this information.
"What''s his name?" Albert asked.
"flyn," answered Clyde.
Albert nodded. "Just from hearing his name, I can feel the ability of a sage."
"You do?" Wiley turned to him with a skeptical look.
"Yeah." Albert nodded. "flyn. Have you been with that name anywhere before?"
"No. That''s a weird name."
"Exactly. A name like that only belongs to people who have reached a certain level."
Albert and Wiley continued to engage in unimportant conversations the whole way through the woods. Leon, Rosie, and L eventually joined in. But Clyde didn''t because he was busy looking at the map in his vision.
The map was given by Maethion by sending his memory essence into Clyde''s head. Maethion doesn''t use the system but he can do that indicating that his ability is extraordinary.
After that, Clyde saw the map appear in his system. He looked at the map like a modern map one would see with a modern GPS device. On the map, he could see their position and the position of where they were going.
Maethion said something to him a few days before they departed.
''Without a map from me, it would be impossible to find his residence. But you have to be careful. He is one grumpy old man and he hates it when people disturb his solitude.''
Hisst words made Clyde wince knowing this would be a bit of a hassle. Maethion said, they just had to take information from the sage. It seems easy, it''s not something that requires them to muster enough strength.
But Clyde''s thoughts immediately changed when Maethion said the nature of the sage who likes to be left alone and hates being disturbed by people he doesn''t know.
That meant the sage would do whatever he could to keep them away from his very own pocket dimension.
So the need to level up and gather enough strength now seems very reasonable. Maybe even it has be a necessity.
When Clyde nced again at his map, he saw something shing there. Since this map was created from Maethion''s memories, it also contained his knowledge of this world. That memory is converted into data like the GPS disy that Clyde is currently looking at.
So Clyde could also see what was approaching through a part of Maethion''s understanding of this ce that also entered into the map.
"Something''sing toward us," said Clyde.
His words made them all freeze.
"What''s that?" L asked with a worried tone. She suddenly tightened her grip on her crossbow by reflex.
"I don''t know. But whatever it is, we definitely don''t want us to be here."
"The sage sent it?" Rosie asked.
"Of course. Who else wouldn''t want us here?" Clyde replied. "Get ready to fight."
They all readied their weapons and prepared for the approaching threat.
*WUSH!*
*WUSH!*
*WUSH!*
*WUSH!*
The sound of the wind being fanned by something huge rang out. At first, they only felt a small gust of wind that was not much different from the wind they had felt in this ce since they arrived.
However, a few secondster, the wind became bigger along with the fanning sound which also sounded louder. And then...
"GRAAAHHH!!!"
A gigantic flying monster soared in the sky above them. It was a red Wyvern with a body-sized fourteen meters from tail to snout. It has a wingspan of 17 meters from one end to the other.
"I-Its huge!" Wiley said with widened eyes.
"No shit!" Rosie retorted fiercely. "What should we do?"
Clyde stared at the giant Wyvern. It circled in the sky and then flew back towards them. Suddenly, it opened its mouth.
"Run! The monster will shoot something," said Clyde.
So without wasting any more time they immediately ran. And sure enough, a fireball with a diameter of three meters shot toward them.
*BOOM!*
The fireball created a devastating explosion. Trees and chunks of dirt flew into the air. After that, the fire also spread from the center of the explosion to the surroundings.
The red Wyvern was still flying in the air with its predatory eyes constantly moving around looking for its prey.
*SWISS!*
Suddenly, a pink arrow shot toward its wing. The Wyvern was able to notice it fast enough for it to dodge sideways.
Meanwhile, down in the wood, L clicked her tongue in annoyance because her shot missed her target. Beside her, Wiley patted her on the shoulder and said. "A little bit to the left."
L clicked angrily. "I know!"
The wyvern dived so it could search for them with a better view.
~~~
Chapter 216 Which One Is Stronger?
?
The Wyvern took a sharp dive. But it couldn''t find them right away because of the trees and bushes that grew thickly in this forest.
White smoke billowed from the nostrils of the Wyvern that was breathing rapidly above them. Making this already thrilling atmosphere even worse.
Under the cover of a bush, Wiley who was lying down whispered to Clyde beside him. "What should we do?"
"We have to kill it," Clyde replied.
Based on the information he got from Maethion, they had to kill whatever monster flyn threw at them. Because all those monsters are just creations of his abilities and the sage can create them again in the future.
They are not like pets which are real living things that are cared for by him. So it''s okay to kill them.
Clyde immediately conveyed that to Wiley. But after hearing that, it seems that not much has changed in Wiley''s expression.
"I don''t care if it''s a pet or not. If it tries to kill me I will defend myself," said Wiley. "But the problem is... can we do it?"
"Why not?" Clyde looked up at the Wyvern. "This is what you guys have been killing dinosaurs for all this time."
Clyde drew one of the two swords he was carrying. He still hadn''t pulled out the Elderss Sword and chose instead to wield the red-ded sword with the power of fire.
He wanted to see if this sword could have any effect on Wyverns who also had an affinity for the element of fire.
"You want to attack now?" Wiley asked with a worried expression.
"The sooner the better. I don''t want to spend too much time with that Wyern since we don''t know what else gonna greet us before we can meet the sage."
Clyde jumped out of the bushes. "If you want Exp, you have to join the fight."
After saying that Clyde immediately ran towards the Wyvern. And of course, the Wyvern immediately noticed his presence.
It shrieked with a terrible sound. The sound made Wiley duck back down in fear. However, he also wanted the Exp.
"Argh! Fuck it!" Wiley also jumped from the bush but he was not immediately rushed like Clyde. Instead, Wiley went looking for his friends while Wyvern''s attention was on Clyde.
*BOOM!*
A fireball fell again in the middle of the dense forest. Clyde who had barely managed to avoid it now jumped through the trees to get closer to the wyvern.
However, the wyvern was not just a mindless monster. It pped its wings and flew away and opened its mouth again to fire a fireball in Clyde''s direction.
Clyde scowled in annoyance then raised his sword and activated the Fire Serpent Skill that Alessio used to use.
A fire serpent appeared above his head. Clyde immediately aimed the fire serpent at the wyvern at the same time as the wyvern fired its fireball.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
The explosions from the two shing me attacks resounded loudly. The shockwave and hot wind spread around until it made the trees crouch.
The wyvern seemed surprised by the fire attacks that could match its fireballs. Its wings pped and sent a wave of wind toward Clyde.
The wind surge was so great it knocked over the tree Clyde was standing on and several other trees behind him.
Luckily, Clyde was able to avoid it in time. With his Agility already at level 30, Clyde doesn''t need to worry about his speed.
He was already in another part of the tree. Earlier he had seen how his fire serpent faced the fireball that the wyvern threw. The results showed that his fire power was not inferior to the giant wyvern''s fire power.
Clyde wants to challenge himself to make this fight more interesting. For now, he wants to test his firepower first.
Clyd jumped from tree to tree with incredible speed. Meanwhile, the wyvern also kept shooting fireballs which destroyed more portions of the forest.
However, Clyde noticed that the wyvern seemed to want to keep as far away from him as possible. For some reason.
A smirk appeared on Clyde''s mouth. ''Are you scared?''
Clyde quickened his jumping speed and created another fire serpent and immediately threw it at the red wyvern.
*WUSSHH!*
The fire serpent was slithering through the air at an extremely fast rate. The wyvern opened its mouth wider than usual to deploy a stronger attack.
At that time, Clyde dashed to the ground beneath the wyvern with eyes full of ferocity. The de of his sword red with greater fire along with the Mana Clyde pouring into it.
At that moment, three pink arrows shot toward the wyvern. This time, as it was still focused on the fire serpent Clyde, the wyvern had not noticed the arrows that were shot in its direction.
*CRAAT!*
*CRAAT!*
*CRAAT!*
The three Mana arrows that L fired pierced the wyvern''s right wing, knocking it off bnce. Shrieking sounds of pain also came out of its mouth and forced it to cancel its attack.
As a result, Clyde''s fire serpent smashed into it and immediately wrapped itself around the wyvern''s body. After that, the fire serpent spread fire on the wyvern''s body.
Clyde suddenly stopped in ce. He wanted to first see how the fire worked with monsters who also had an affinity for fire.
After a few seconds of looking, Clyde finally came to a conclusion. ''My fire is stronger. Perhaps it is because this is a power of a Celestial.''
Clyde looked at the de of his sword which was on fire. Then grinned. He might have obtained a sword as powerful as the Elderss Sword.
The Wyvern suddenly let out a roar that shook the forest. A momentter Clyde felt a wave of heat along with the fire''s light getting brighter.
As soon as he looked up, Clyde saw that mes wereing out of the wyvern''s body and burning his fire serpent. From this, it could be seen that the wyvern was on fire.
But Clyde could see that the mes burning on the wyvern''s body were it''s own because the mes were darker in color than the fire serpent.
An instantter, Clyde''s fire serpent and the mes it had spread had disappeared as they were burned by the wyvern''s mes.
~~~
Chapter 217 Punched In The Guts
?
The mes that burned the wyvern''s body spread light and waves of heat throughout the forest. Leon, Albert, and Wiley who were about to charge forward felt a sudden hesitation.
"What should we do now? If we get any closer, we''ll catch fire as well," said Albert.
Leon nced at the wyvern. Even though its body was burning, the wyvern could still fly through the air as if all the mes on its body were no big deal. Instead, the fire only adds to its strength.
"GRRRHH!!!"
The wyvern let out an angry-sounding growl. Its eyes looked down to find someone who had made it like that. It didn''t take long for him to find Clyde, standing nonchntly looking at him.
Without waiting for too long, as soon as they found Clyde, the wyvern immediately swooped down with ferocity exuding from every inch of its body.
Clyde didn''t shy away. Instead, he raised [Skill: Burning Hand] and channeled the Skill''s power into the sword he was holding.
*BWOOSSHHH!*
The mes that burned the sword became three timesrger than before. Now it''s as if Clyde is holding a club made of fire instead of a sword.
There was a sudden glint of wariness in the wyvern''s eyes when he saw Clyde''s sword on fire. The wyvern could also feel the aura of Clyde''s power even from this distance.
However, it was now toote for it to dodge so the wyvern continued its dive regardless of what happened. It also drains more Mana so that the fire that burns its body strengthens and erges.
The wyvern intended to use all of its strength for this dive. The monster was also prepared if it was going to die with Clyde.
On the other hand, the figure controlling the wyvern clenched his fist tightly.
''What? He could handle my wyvern without fear. That must be because he is quite confident in his power. Who exactly is that child?''
The sage could see that the boy was standing unfazed even when he had mobilized his wyvern for a suicidal dive.
''Let''s see now...''
At that ce, Clyde was still standing unfazed with his sword on fire in his hand. He even only gripped the sword with one hand, indicating that he had not used all of his strength.
The wyvern shot down faster and faster. It came like a meteor about to destroy the Earth.
And at that time, Clyde kicked off the ground and then shot up with incredible speed to approach the wyvern.
*BOOM!*
They shed in the air. Their sh caused an explosion that filled the sky with mes and sent a heat shockwave around that made the huge trees crouch as if they were drowning in fear.
Leon, Albert, Wiley, L, and Rosie stopped where they were for cover. The after effect of shing was too strong even for them. They didn''t expect that they already had to face such a powerful challenge when they just arrived at this ce.
A momentter a huge mass of fire fell on the ground causing a huge crash and tremor. The five of them turned towards the impact and realized that what had fallen was the wyvern with its body still burning.
However, now the wyvern was suffering from heavy injuries all over its body. That pair of wings had been cut off leaving the base of the wings bleeding.
Clydended not far from the wyvern. There were some sparks burning around his body but Clyde just brushed it with his other hand that didn''t hold the sword as if it was just dust.
"It''s dying!" Clyde said at his five encounters. "Finish it!"
They immediately came out of hiding ces withplicated faces. They didn''t seem to have done anything and Clyde had already taken care of the wyvern.
Except L who had fired her arrows and hit its wing. Even so, L still felt that she did not contribute enough.
"Is it okay for you?" Leon asked while looking at Clyde.
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked.
"We''re like leeching from you while you do all the hard work."
Clyde looked into the faces of all of them. They showed the same troubled expressions as Leon.
Clyde sighed. "It would be a waste of time if I let you fight it. And we don''t have much time."
Upon the hearing, the five of them felt like they had been punched in the guts. Clyde basically said that they weren''t strong enough to beat the wyvern quickly. They''re just too weak.
The five of them couldn''t say much because that was the truth about them.
"Now kill it and let''s continue our journey." Clyde walked past them. He went in the direction the map indicated in his vision.
Wiley shrugged his shoulders. Among his friends, it seems that he is the one who can ept Clyde''s words the most.
"Let''s kill it and gain some Exp. A monster this big will definitely give us a lot," said Wiley as he walked and stuck a blowdart in his mouth.
Others certainly will not just stay silent. Although they still feel a little gloomy, they will still kill those monsters.
On the other hand, Clyde waited for them while concentrating on getting back to contacting that someone from the Order of Mindweaver. But to no avail.
A few minutester his fivepanions finished killing the wyvern.
He turned his head and saw that the wyvern had instantly shattered into fragments of light as soon as it died. It further emphasized the fact that the wyvern wasn''t the sage''s pet sentient being.
"We''re done here," said Leon.
Clyde nodded. Then they continued their journey. And of course, they will not continue the journey smoothly.
After the wyvern, now hordes of small green creatures carrying crude weapons came rushing at them from all directions.
"What the fuck are they?!" Albert cursed with widened eyes.
"They look like Goblins," Clyde replied. "They should be weaker than the wyvern just now."
The three dozen of goblins attacked them while letting out disturbing shrieks. With that, they entered into another fight.
~~~
Chapter 218 A Sudden Fight
?
Their breaths rushed after fighting the Goblins which turned out to be hundreds in number. As soon as the wave of Goblins containing several dozens of them seeded in killing them, another wave immediately came to fill the empty ce of the dead Goblins.
Notifications appeared sequentially in the eyes of all of them. Even Clyde also gets a lot of notifications which makes him get a lot of Exp. Especially with his [Skill: Exp+], now Clyde has leveled up to level 102 for killing hundreds of Goblins.
He didn''t expect that they would still gain Exp even when they only killed creatures created by the sage. But here they were, gaining so much Exp.
Clyde looked at the five people he brought as apanion. They were still breathing rapidly with faces that looked exhausted.
"Are you all right?" Clyde asked.
"We''re alright," L answered.
"No. Let''s rest here for a minute," Albert said quickly. "We are not as strong as you."
There was some kind of sarcastic undertone that Clyde could sense in Albert''s voice. He immediately realized that Albert''s words were referring to what he had said before.
Clyde snorted without humor. "Fine. You guys can sit here while I check the road ahead."
Clyde waspletely fine even after fighting those Goblins. If the condition is like this, it means he doesn''t need to use his Stats and Skill points for a while.
Without waiting for anyone to say anything, Clyde turned and walked away from them.
"I''m going to leave a mark. You guys can follow the mark when you''re feeling better," said Clyde.
Clyde disappeared behind trees and bushes momentster.
"Is it alright to part with him?" L asked while looking at her friends with evident anxiety on her face.
"It''s alright. Besides, we won''t be able to chase him now. Aren''t you tired?" Albert replied to her.
L bit her lips. She felt quite sad hearing Clyde''s words but she couldn''t do anything because it was true. L was sure her friends would feel that too.
In the end, L could only obey her friends because she felt it was impossible to choose to chase Clyde.
Clyde shed his ming sword at the trees he passed as marking. He was sure that they would definitely be able to find the mark. Unless something happened.
Clyde felt he could handle things on his own without them. He only brought them so that Maethion would have no trouble giving this expedition mission to him.
Clyde thought of the disappointed looks on their faces after he said that he didn''t want to waste time by waiting for those who were too weak.
''Am I too much?''
Clyde looked back. They still didn''t seem to follow him. There was a slight feeling of burden all of a sudden. Even though previously Clyde thought that it was alright to just take advantage of them.
Clyde had not thought that he would feel something like this. He, who rarely associates with his peers makes himcks a sense of how to build good rtionships with other people.
''Maybe I really wasn''t meant to be together with other people.''
Clyde brushes the thought out of his head because for now, he thinks it will only hinder the mission.
Maethion said that he had to retrieve some information from the sage. Maethion did not say in detail what the information contained. He only said that it was something important.
Clyde wasn''t really interested because all he wanted to do was gather strength to carry out his revenge act.
And so far his n had worked out as he had hoped. He has leveled up and gained Stats and Skill points which he can use as he pleases.
Clyde stared at the map to the left of his vision. The ce he was going to was still at the end of this map. The spot that glowed white wasn''t going anywhere. Because of that Clyde became suspicious.
"Who are you?"
Clyde turned his head and took a stance on reflex when he suddenly heard a voice. He saw a man with long silver hair down his back staring at him.
The man had pointy ears which indicated that he was an Elf like Maethion. His eyes were golden and seemed to light up.
The man''s skin was pale white and wless. He was also quite tall with a slender body.
Clyde could feel a strong aura of powering from him. In a moment Clyde hade to a conclusion that the man was the sage he had to meet.
''Didn''t Maethion call him an old man?'' Clyde frowned because the sage looked like a man who had just turned twenty. He even looked younger than Maethion.
There is only one reasonable exnation for that. That is, this Elf has enough power to be able to maintain his youthful appearance.
"You''re flyn?" Clyde asked back.
"Wow, you turned out to be so bold. I asked you and you asked me back before answering?" said the man.
Clyde thought that provoking the sage''s anger was not a wise decision.
"I''m sorry," said Clyde. "My name is Clyde Cross. Maethion sent me and mypanions to retrieve information from you."
"Hmm... Maethion sent you, huh?" flyn nodded with a mysterious look in his eyes.
"Yes." Clyde was starting to feel a little anxious.
Suddenly, five des of light were created around the sage''s body. He red at Clyde than the swords of light shot toward him.
Clyde who was surprised immediately raised his sword that luckily he didn''t put into its scabbard yet. The de mes red more violently and formed a wall of mes in front of Clyde.
*BWOOSH!*
The swords of light smashed into the wall of fire and stopped. Because Clyde was flowing Mana, the wall of fire became denser than it was supposed to be.
''What the hell is wrong with this guy?!''
Clyde couldn''t understand why he suddenly attacked him. Could it be that he had done something to make the sage angry?
Suddenly, Clyde saw the sage hover above his wall of fire. Five swords of light were also created around him and without wasting any time, he threw them at Clyde.
Five swords of light shot out at high speed. So Clyde swung his sword with all his might to block the swords.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
"Wait! Stop!" Clyde shouted while stretching his palm forward. "Why are you attacking me?!"
"Maethion would not give the location of this ce to anyone. Not to mention a child like you," said the sage. "So you guys must be the ones sent by those damn Celestials."
"No! Maethion really sent us. I can prove it!" Clyde said. Even though he still didn''t know how he was going to prove it, he should at least create an opportunity for them to have a civilized talk first.
However, the sage did not care in the slightest. Instead, he increasingly adds to the intensity of his attacks.
*WHOSSH!*
*WHOSSH!*
*WHOSSH!*
...
"I won''t risk letting Celestials'' ves live," said the sage.
"I am not a Celestials'' ve!" replied Clyde who was getting annoyed. "Listen to me!"
Now suddenly a huge sword of light appeared above the sage''s head. The sword was 10 meters long and the sage created it instantly as if without effort.
Clyde who saw the size of the sword gritted his teeth. He immediately added the Stat Points he had because he didn''t want to take any risks when facing this powerful-looking sage.
[ Strength: 40/100 ]
[Magic Power: 35/100 ]
After finishing adding Stats Points, Clyde felt the sensation of a new surge of power in his body like he always felt before.
Then he activated [Skill: Pure Lightning]. Incredibly brilliant and dazzling bluish-white lightning appeared around Clyde''s body.
The sage''s eyes narrowed at the lightning that appeared on Clyde''s body as if he recognized it. But that wasn''t enough to stop him from throwing his sword of light.
The sage pushed his hand forward. The sword of light shot in Clyde''s direction.
Clyde knew that he couldn''t possibly avoid it so he charged forward while pulling out the Elderss Sword and then kicking the ground to shoot towards the sword.
Clyde poured massive amounts of Mana into the Elderss Sword like he used to. The transparent de of the sword shed with brilliant bluish-white lightning.
Clyde shed the Elderss Sword at the giant light sword.
*BOOM!*
The sh created a shockwave filled with light that mixed with bluish-white lightning around. Intense light and sound filled the sky.
The five people who were resting noticed it too. They turned their heads towards the bright light that appeared suddenly.
They too could feel the immense pressure from that light and lightning. They knew that Clyde must have been fighting someone very strong.
"Breaks time is over," Leon said then stood up and started running. "Let''s go!"
Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L immediately followed behind him. They ran towards the explosion.
Momentster the explosion and light disappeared, but the overwhelming pool of energy from the impact of Mana still remained in the sky and around the ce.
~~~
Chapter 219 Lets Talk
?
The five of them rushed to that ce. However, they immediately stopped when they felt the pressure from the aftermath of the sh that happened between Clyde and Olyn.
"Should we continue ahead?" Rosie stared in front of her. But all she could see was the forest that had been ruined. Sparks of lightning and light still flew over the ce as if there was still animosity between them.
"That would be stupid," said Leon. "Let''s just wait here for now."
His four friends immediately agreed to Leon''s suggestion. They seemed to be returning to the Selection Stage. This situation was the same as back then where they just waited and watched while Clyde was fighting a strong enemy.
Clyde was already too strong that they couldn''t help but felt small in front of him. His words are also cold so they always feel reluctant if they want to build a better rtionship with him.
Looking at Clyde, the five of them always felt that he didn''t want anyone near him.
The words he had spoken made them even more aware of it.
*CLANG!*
Suddenly a crashing sound between two strong objects was heard. Their eyes immediately shot to the ce in front of them and they immediately saw the source of the sound.
Clyde was crossing swords with a man with long silver hair and wearing a white coat.
The man''s coat fluttered as he moved tounch an attack on Clyde.
On the other hand, Clyde defended well with two swords in his hands.
"That sword..." Wiley said with curious narrowed eyes staring at the sword.
"That''s the sword he used in the Selection Stage," Leon replied.
"How is that possible? Shouldn''t all the things we carry with us be destroyed once we reach Sivagadh Fortress?" L asked in an astonished tone.
Leon shook his head with a sigh. "I don''t know."
A lot of things about Clyde is a mysterious anomaly. Because of that they had proceeded to inquire further and simply assumed the sword''s existence was another one of its anomalies.
Clyde fought the man with almost equal ferocity. Their strength destroys the environment that has already been devastated.
"Is that long-haired man the sage we should meet?" Albert asked.
"Most likely it was him," said Leon. Even though he wasn''t one hundred percent sure about that answer, the truth of the possibility seemed big.
The lightning on Clyde''s body was brighter and thicker than thest time they had seen him. But what was even more astonishing was the long silver-haired man who could keep up with Clyde''s speed and strength.
From there they were increasingly convinced that the man was indeed the sage.
"Listen to me!" Clyde shouted in between his sword shes shing with flyn''s light sword.
However, the answer he got was something the same as before. Which is the more powerful sh?
Clyde gritted his teeth. ''Looks like there''s no way to talk to him normally.''
Clyde had been holding back ever since. Because of that, he is still trapped in a battle that continues to be drawn.
He didn''t know whether the flyn he was fighting right now was his real self or not. Or whether he has unleashed all his strength or not.
But if indeed the sage has fought with all his might, that means Clyde - who hasn''t used all his strength yet - is stronger than him.
Clyde decided to increase his power output. To talk to this sage, he must defeat him first without killing him.
It''s the only way.
So Clyde proceeds to channel his Mana even faster throughout his body and weapons.
He activated [Skill: Burning Hand] and [Skill: Pure Lightning] simultaneously.
mes came out from swirling around his body side by side with the bluish-white lightning that had already appeared.
flyn the sage widened his eyes not only because he saw the mes that had suddenly appeared. But also because he felt a push from Clyde''s sudden burst of power.
''What is this boy?!'' the sage was shocked because of Clyde''s power surge. Before he could gather his sense from the shock, Clyde had already lunged at him.
*WOOSSHH!*
Traces of fire and lightning trailed behind him as he dashed forward with incredible speed.
*CLANG!*
"Urghh!"
flyn groaned under more pressure than he expected.
Clyde makes a circr motion with a ming sword in his right hand and a lightning sword in his left, creating a spectacle that is both stunning and deadly.
flyn endured each sh through gritted teeth. He couldn''t believe that this boy could exert such power.
That made him even more curious about who this boy really was. Was he really a Celestial harbinger?
If so, why did he say he wanted to talk to him? If he really is a Celestial harbinger he just has to kill him right away.
All of this worried flyn. In his mind, the thought crossed that he should talk to this boy.
Clyde continued to swing his sword fiercely. Until finally he brought together the two swords d in lightning and fire and then shed them together.
flyn knew that he would not have the time to exert any more power because the swords wereing too fast toward him.
*CLANG!*
An extremely powerful sh hit him and shattered his sword of light. Clyde''s swords descended on flyn''s head as if they were going to split his head in a few moments.
However, before his swordnded on the sage''s head, Clyde stopped his sword.
flyn felt the heat of the fire and the tendrils of lightning strike right in front of her face.
"We can talk now?" asked Clyde.
flyn sighed. His prediction became even clearer when the boy in front of him didn''t immediately intend to kill him.
Even though this body wasn''t his real body and he wouldn''t die even if he was hit by a fatal blow.
"Alright," said the sage.
After he heard that answer, Clyde drew his swords and deactivated all his skills.
"Now is the time to prove that Maethion sent you," flyn said and drew closer to Clyde. "I''ll check it out myself."
flyn stood in front of Clyde. Suddenly his golden eyes shone even brighter. Clyde narrowed his eyes because the golden light suddenly became too bright.
After a few seconds of doing that, the light in flyn''s eyes disappeared. His eyes returned to normal.
"I can see that Maethion gave you a fraction of his memories."
Clyde''s grip on his sword suddenly tightened. If he could prove that just by looking at him? Why didn''t he do that earlier and instead chose to attack?!
"You can follow me." flyn turned to his side. "And your friends too."
Then flyn walked ahead of him.
Clyde turned to the five people who were still hiding. "Come!"
Hearing that, the five of them came out of their hiding ces and walked toward Clyde.
"He is the sage?" he asked.
"Yes," answered Clyde as he put his swords into the scabbard. "It took a little effort to convince him but I seeded."
The five of them turned around to take a look. All this devastating state happened because of the two of them fighting which onlysted less than one minute.
"I don''t think it''s just a little effort," Wileymented as he continued to look around.
After that, they walked following the sage. They entered an area of ??forest that was just as dense as before.
flyn walked in front leading them. asionally he looked back to see Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L.
The five of them noticed the sage''s mysterious gaze. Yet they didn''t dare to ask why he was staring at them like that.
After a few minutes of walking, they could see a small hut ahead. The hut stood in the middle of arge field and a river flowed behind it.
"This is my home," said flyn. "My real body is in there waiting for you guys. You can go in now."
A momentter flyn''s body that was in front of them melted into fragments of light and disappeared.
"So, that''s not his real body," said Wiley.
Clyde is also sure that the one fighting against him is not the real body. Because the dot on his map was still shing in the distance when flyn was in front of him.
Clyde walked towards the hut followed by hispanions. He pushed open the door of the hut and was immediately stunned because what he saw inside was so different from what he saw outside.
The size of the hut was perhaps only five square meters when viewed from the outside. However, the size of the inside is so wide like a big house.
"Pleasee in," said flyn, who was already sitting on a chair at the far end of the room.
They went inside and sat in front of him like they were guests.
In front of them, there was already a lot of food and drink served by flyn with his magic.
"So, you guys want to get information about the Nexus of Creation?"
~~~
Chapter 220 A Lot To Process
?
Clyde didn''t know the answer to that question for sure. He was only here because Maethion said he had to retrieve some important information.
"Yes." Even though he didn''t know, Clyde was sure that flyn knew what they would have to take from him if Maethion sent them.
"Forgive my earlier arrogance," flyn said. "I hate it when someone bothers me."
"It''s alright. We understand," Clyde replied. He was telling the truth. Clyde really doesn''t like it when someone enters his private area and disturbs his time.
Clyde thought that he and the sage might have a lot more inmon than he thought.
However, even though Clyde said that what flyn did was not wrong, the five other people who came with him didn''t feel the same way.
Albert and Wiley shot sharp nces at Clyde who was going around saying that. Without asking their opinion.
Yet for them, they know that there is no room for them to express their opinion. So they can only ept Clyde''s answer on their behalf.
But flyn noticed that there were different looks on the faces of the five of them, he could also feel the ufortable turmoil of emotions between them.
However, flyn chose not to mention it.
"One moment." flyn stood up from his chair and went to another part of the room. After a while, he returned with a thick ck-covered book.
flyn ced the book on the table and pushed it toward Clyde.
"I recorded everything I found during my research in this book," said flyn. "This is a lot of hard work. After several hundred years, I have just found a few bright spots."
"Several hundred years?" Wiley blurted out with a look of disbelief at flyn.
"Yes." flyn nodded. "That''s why I said it was a result of a lot of hard work."
Clyde was not as surprised as the others because he knew Maethion''s acquaintances would have to be at least this old.
The sage even has the power to create his dimension without a system and is Maethion''s teacher. So knowing his efforts and his age, Clyde was not surprised.
Clyde took the book and opened it. The book was written in anguage he could not read.
"You still have your system, right?" said flyn.
"Yeah," answered Clyde.
flyn snorted and grinned. "That''s why you won''t be able to read what I''m writing."
Clyde looked up in surprise. Not only him, but his fivepanions also stared at flyn with a look of confusion and shock.
"We can''t read it with the system?" Leon asked curiously.
"No. Never. Hahaha!"
They suddenly saw a sight they thought they would see before.
flyn suddenly let out augh like she was satisfied that she had pulled a prank on them.
"That thing called ''system'' is a disgrace. With that thing in existence, many beings feel that there is no point in training as hard as they can until they die," flyn said.
"You just need to add numbers and suddenly you have power. You don''t need to train or do anything else.
As long as you kill lots of creatures, you will be able to get stronger. And in the end, you just be someone who is power hungry and doesn''t value that power."
Upon hearing flyn''s words, Clyde''s jaw suddenly tightened. Especially because he felt he was being teased for not being able to read the sage''s writing.
Clyde felt something hit him in the gut after hearing the man''s words.
However, Clyde couldn''t get too angry because it was true. He did get his power without really putting in much effort.
Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L wanted to issue a retort. But they took back the words that were about toe out because what flyn said was true.
"I don''t know why you guys still have that power of the system. Maybe it''s because Maethion was too busy and couldn''t get this information himself so he ordered you to.
But if you didn''t use that power of the system, you wouldn''t be strong enough toe here."
flyn''s words made them all reflexively look at him. From their eyes, the sage knew that what he said was true. He smirked.
"And somehow, he was able to convince a bunch of people in the Senior Council to let you guys have that power."
What he said next made Leon, Albert, Rosie, Wiley, and L flinch with something.
They looked at each other in confusion then both turned to Clyde.
"Is that true, Clyde?" he asked.
Clyde sighed and nodded. "That''s right. If it wasn''t for him, your power of system would have been lost by the order of Senior Council."
The five people immediately fell silent at the shocking fact.
"Why didn''t you tell us?" Rosie asked.
"Sorry. It will only discourage you and we don''t need that on this expedition," Clyde replied, looking at her and all of them.
Clyde just said sorry. They didn''t expect to hear that from him. They thought he was just someone cold and heartless.
The five friends think that there is still a side to Clyde that they don''t know about.
"It doesn''t matter now. I don''t really care that much about that power of the system. Except about the group that created it," flyn said.
Clyde''s ears perked up when he heard that. He looked up and saw the sage. "Do you know anything about them?"
"Not really. I know a few things. But nothing is clear and certain," flyn answered. "Now, I''m going to read you some things from my notes. But only a small part because I can''t possibly trante everything for you."
flyn began telling them all the things she had written down in the thick book. Clyde and the others paid full attention to the sage''s exnation driven by their passionate curiosity.
~~~
Clyde sat on a hillside looking up at the western sky where the sun would soon set.
He had finished hearing flyn''s exnation of the location of the so-called The Nexus of Creation and he was still trying to process everything.
The Nexus of Creation is a ce where everything is created. It was there that the multi-verses and Celestials were first created.
However, that was all that could be known from that ce until now before flyn finished his research.
He said that the location of that ce is behind the dimensions of all universes and The All Territory is located. What the hell is that supposed to mean? Clyde and the others couldn''t understand that at all.
If that ce was unreachable by anyone, then how could flyn get any records about it?
When Clyde asked about that the sage didn''t want to answer for some reason. And Clyde knew better than to force the sage to answer so he just let his curiosity go.
Right now it doesn''t matter. What Clyde was thinking right now was, if he could find The Nexus of Creation, he would automatically be able to find the origins of all Celestials and gain power equal to the power to create them.
However, it all still seems like something too far away for now. He had to be patient and take the process slowly.
Now all he has to do first is get his revenge. After that find the origin of his power of system.
Who ordered those members of the Order of Mindweaver? And why did they choose him to get that system? Was it just because he was doing a survey at that time?
Clyde felt he should at least get some answers about it all. Because all of that can be said to be his origin in this crazy story.
"What are you doing?"
A familiar voice suddenly came from behind him. Clyde turned his head and found L walking towards him and sitting next to him.
"Nothing," answered Clyde.
"You know this whole thing still feels like a dream to me," L said.
Clyde didn''t say anything and just waited for her to continue.
"I thought I would just live a normal life until I die. Who would have thought that the Selection Stage would suddenlye that day?" L continued. "I would have died if Albert had not saved me."
Clyde chose to remain silent and listen. He didn''t care much about L''s story. But he knew that interrupting her now would only make their rtionship worse.
Then came a sigh from L. "What will happen in the future? I''m afraid to imagine."
"Me too," said Clyde.
"A strong person like you can feel afraid?" she asked.
"I am not as strong as you think. This power has only been given to me for granted. I did not get this from hard training."
L felt that she understood a bit about Clyde. He turns out to be just an ordinary human who has his own fears.
"Hey," Clyde said. "I guess I should apologize for what I said earlier."
L blinked and stared at Clyde silently.
"I feel that we don''t have much time. But it turns out that, in this ce, we don''t have to worry about anything."
"Don''t worry about it. We understand," L said with a smile.
~~~
Chapter 221 A Powerful Figure
?
Asqa walked on the lush and beautiful green grass. She looked around and saw the people and other beings that were here doing their respective activities.
This garden was so wide that she didn''t know if it had an end or not.
She kept walking until she finally arrived in front of arge building that upied the horizon.
That building is the Archangel''s library which certainly contains a lot of invaluable knowledge and all followers of Uriel have the right to enter and read thousands of books in that library.
Asqa thought if there was a ce that contained information she and Clyde needed, then that ce would be this library.
She doesn''t know what information she can get here. But whatever it is, Asqa intends to share it with Clyde.
It would be better if she could find knowledge about other Celestials. Especially God Loki who is now bes Mona''s master.
Asqa also thinks if she gets knowledge to increase her and Clyde''s powers, that could be a good thing too.
Several of Uriel''s followers were in the library and reading books. They are the minority of followers who are hungry for knowledge, not just power.
Asqa greeted some of them. They were beings strong enough to be Uriel''s followers from the Selection Stage and ended up here.
This was the first time Asqa had entered this ce, so she was somewhat lost among the hundreds of shelves containing thousands of books.
"Hey, are you lost?"
Luckily, someone who was aware of her predicament asked her.
He was a man who seemed to be from an Asian region. His face was pale and handsome with straight hair neatly cut.
"Oh, yeah," Asqa replied. "Could you help me?"
"Sure." The man smiled while showing rows of white teeth.
That smile should have been able to make the woman who received it melt in awe. However, that smile lost its strength in front of Asqa. Because she already has someone.
But Asqa still returned his smile. "Thanks."
"What do you want to know?" the man asked. "Oh, I''m sorry. I should introduce myself first. My name is Hiro."
"Asqa," Asqa replied with a smile.
"Asqa." Hiro nodded his head. "That is a beautiful name."
"Thanks." Once again Asqa replied with a short thanks. "Could you show me a book about the other domains of the Celestials?"
Upon hearing Asqa''s words, Hiro immediately nced at her. His face which seemed friendly suddenly turned into one of stupefaction.
"Why do you want to know about other Celestials? Our master is a great Celestial. I don''t think you need to know about other Celestials," Hiro said.
Asqa went silent. Hiro''s eyespletely changed from before when she mentioned what she wanted to know.
That made Asqa wary and reluctant to continue her question.
From the glint in Hiro''s eyes, Asqa guessed that this could turn into a long debate. And Asqa doesn''t want to waste time with him.
"You''re right. Silly me," Asqa gave an awkward smile. "Then can you show me where I can read the knowledge about the power of Archangel Uriel?"
As soon as Asqa changed the topic, Hiro''s expressionpletely changed. He returned to being a charming man like before. It was as if he had be a different person.
"Follow me," Hiro said.
So Asqa followed him. Inside Asqa thought: ''If I haven''t been able to find out about other Celestials, I can find out about Uriel''s power and tell it to Clyde.''
Asqa knew that Clyde had gotten Alessio''s power the moment he killed him. Alessio''s poweres from the Archangel so if she can provide ways to strengthen the power that already exists within Clyde, then Clyde will gain greater power than before.
Asqa still doesn''t know how Clyde got his extraordinary power. But shepletely believes in him and wants to help him as much as she can.
"I heard... you just had a tragic experience, didn''t you?" Hiro asked with a sad face.
"Ah, yes," Asqa answered followed by a thin smile. "My party was killed by an unknown group. Then, the artifacts we had to take with us were stolen."
"I''m sorry to hear that."
"It''s okay. Besides, it already happened."
Hiro smiled. "You have such a positive spirit. I like that."
"I''m just trying not to get too sad. Not only did I fail to carry out the task from the Archangel, but all my party members were also ughtered and I''m the only one who survived that ident," said Asqa.
"If I keep thinking about it, I won''t be able to see tomorrow."
Hiro stared at Asqa with a look of awe that was even closer than before.
But Asqa did not consider that look as meaningful. She turned her head towards the bookshelves around them.
"Are we there yet?" Asqa asked.
"Oh!" Hiro immediately came back to his senses after looking at Asqa. "Yes. We have arrived."
After that, Hiro started to exin what kind of books were on these shelves. He exined enthusiastically and Asqa listened with equal attention. Because she wanted to provide the most useful knowledge for Clyde.
~~~
As night fell, flyn served them an appetizing dinner.
He said he cooks it himself with skills he has been honing for a long time.
Clyde, Leon, Albert, Rosie, Wiley, and L enjoyed dinner excitedly because it turned out that the sage was also very talented at cooking. Clyde even thought that the man''s ability to cook was almost as great as his ability to fight and use Mana.
After dinner, they were allowed to do whatever they wanted as long as they didn''t walk too far from his home.
Because out there there are various kinds of creatures that he mustered to guard. And flyn said to them. ''Believe me, you don''t want to mess with them.''
So they had nothing to do with them and just spent their time chatting in the clearing around flyn''s home.
As usual, Clyde decided to be alone and absently stare out at the ocean. It wasn''t long before flyn came up to him. The sage stood next to the seated Clyde.
"Why aren''t you with your friends?" flyn asked.
"They''re not exactly my friend," Clyde replied.
"So what exactly is your rtionship? Why would they follow you when you asked them out of the Fortress?" flyn asked with curious eyes, looking at Clyde from the side.
The five of them must have known that the situation outside the Fortress was very dangerous. The ban on leaving the Fortress was not only so that they would not know that their power of system could not be used, but also because there were many threats outside.
However, Clyde was able to convince them so there must be a strong reason behind it.
"I said that they could get stronger if they came with me," Clyde replied.
flyn snorted. "The good old persuasion. Power. You''re smart, I rarely see anyone who is reluctant when ites to obtaining more power."
Then flyn turned again to Clyde. This time, his curious gaze became even more intense as his eyes narrowed.
"But... I sense something is different about your power of the system," flyn said.
Clyde immediately looked up at him. "What do you mean?"
''Does he know about that?'' thought Clyde.
"I''ve lived long enough using Mana so I can feel a difference in your power of system. But I don''t know what it is," flyn answered. "Maybe that''s what makes you so strong. Don''t you think so?"
Clyde turned his face away. "Maybe. I don''t know."
He still didn''t believe her enough to tell her the truth.
However, flyn knew exactly what Clyde was thinking. In fact, the sage knows that Clyde actually has some clues about his power of the system. But Clyde didn''t want to say it.
flyn snorted. But didn''t say anything more. ''He will suffer the consequences of that great power. Nothing is free in this universe.''
They were in silence for several minutes. The sounds of the five people enjoying the bonfire behind them formed the background of the silence.
"Do you perhaps... know anything about the Order of Mindweaver?" Clyde suddenly asked breaking the silence.
"Of course," flyn answered instantly.
"Do you know where I can find them?"
"Why?" flyn looked at Clyde. "You want to know why your system is different?"
Clyde sighed. ''This man seems to always knows what I''m thinking.''
"You can''t find them. There is a very powerful Celestial backing them up," flyn replied.
flyn''s words perked Clyde''s ear ups. "Who are the Celestial?"
flyn looked Clyde right in the eye with a searching look. "Why do you want to know?"
"Well, I was just curious." Clyde shrugged as he said in a normal tone.
It took several seconds before flyn finally decided to answer that question.
"You know the God of Destruction, Shiva?" said flyn.
Upon hearing that, Clyde''s eyes widened instantly.
He didn''t think he''d hear that name now. Based on his knowledge - which is very limited - Clyde knows that Shiva is a very powerful and dangerous God of Destruction.
~~~
Chapter 222 The Unknown Threat
?
Time seemed to have suddenly stopped around Clyde. The name that came out of flyn''s mouth made him freeze for a moment that felt extraordinarily long.
Clyde blinked his eyes quickly as hees to his senses. Then swallow hard with great effort.
"Shiva?" Clyde said the name again in a questioning tone. His eyes met flyn, demanding an answer.
flyn nodded slowly. "I knew that you would react like that. At first, I also showed the same reaction as you."
"How did you know about this?" Clyde asked.
"I''ve done a lot of traveling and searching my entire life up to this point, boy. If I had to tell you where I got every bit of my knowledge, it would take us a few days," flyn said.
"However, I can answer it if you only asked about that matter ."
Clyde''s eyes that stared at the sage immediately sparkling with curiosity.
"I once met someone from the Order of Mindweaver. Not all members of that Order are evil beings. In fact, they can''t be categorized as good or evil."
Clyde listened to lfyn exin with full attention.
"I''ve almost died a few times. But that time was the most unforgettable experience," said flyn. "I can''t tell you the details. In essence, I was stranded in the middle of a ruined world. And someone from the Order of Mindweaver came to save me.
She says there is no exact reason for her to save me. And said that I shouldn''t feel indebted because I wouldn''t have a chance to pay it anyway.
And then we chatted, eventually she said that there was a Celestial who was backing the existence of the Order of Mindweaver."
Clyde stared at flyn without blinking as he exined all that. What flyn said was so tense and mysterious even though he didn''t say much.
flyn''s life journey seems so long and extraordinary. Clyde was sure that the sage would have a lot of stories to tell if he decided to write them down and make a book.
Clyde shook his head because he felt what he was thinking was off the track.
"What else did she say?" asked Clyde. "Did Shiva create the Order?"
"No." flyn shook his head. "There are other beings who are creators of that Order.
ording to the woman''s exnation, Shiva is a Celestial who is rted to that Order for a purpose that she cannot divulge."
flyn turned and found that Clyde was still staring at him. he said. "I can''t say anything other than that. Sorry."
Clyde was clearly disappointed. There was a feeling of unfulfillment in his heart and an overwhelming curiosity.
However, he knew that the information flyn had was extremely rare. He couldn''t possibly get it anywhere else because of the mysteriousness of the Order of Mindweaver.
So Clyde doesn''t push it. Because he can''t.
Clyde nodded at flyn. "Thanks for the information you give me."
"No problem. I don''t even know what you can do with that information. Even if I say it to someone else, there will be no difference."
He''s right. There shouldn''t be anything to glean from that information. God Shiva is behind the Order of Mindweaver, so what?
However, Clyde has a different system than the others. He had also received contact from someone from the Order. Maybe, this information will be useful for him because he has ess to the Order, although it is still very vague.
"I think I''ve talked to you enough," flyn said. "I''ll talk to your friend... uhh... your acquaintances now."
flyn turned around and walked away from Clyde''s side. Leaving Clyde alone with his mind filled with questions.
However, the more he thought about it, Clyde realized that the answers to those questions were even further away.
''It''s not the time for me to get the answer.''
Clyde shook his head.
~~~
Because their mission was over, Clyde decided the next day that they had to return to Sivagadh Fortress.
Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L didn''t object. After all, they couldn''t do anything here even though this ce wasn''t that bad.
"Thanks again," Clyde said.
His fivepanions also did the same thing.
"Don''t think about it. This might be thest time we see each other," flyn said.
"Why?" she asked.
"Because there''s no reason for us to meet again."
L looked a little sad. During these few hours, she felt that flyn was a good person and she felt disappointed that she might not be able to see him again.
The six people had already finished taking the information flyn had gathered over several hundred years for granted. Clyde thought because the sage trusted Maethion so much that he give the results of his quest so easily to the bespectacled Elf.
flyn led them all the way to the beach where they hade. They said goodbye onest time before finally entering the portal and disappearing from the ce.
As they disappeared, flyn''s mind immediately went to Clyde.
"He, somehow, is destined to do great things. Though, I''m not sure if he can endure that great burden."
A smirk suddenly appeared on flyn''s face. As if he finds something amusing about Clyde.
"Let''s just wait and see."
flyn thought that he would just be a spectator. He had lived too long and done a lot. He thought now was the time for him to enjoy the show and do nothing.
Unless, something unexpected happened.
~~~
They returned to the Fortress in good condition.
They were in a good mood after sessfullypleting the first expedition well, and they were also happy because they managed to level up and be stronger than when they set out.
Leon, Albert, Rosie, Wiley, and L said goodbye to Clyde. They went to their respective living quarters to let Clyde hand the book over to Maethion.
Clyde nced at the five people who were walking away. In his heart, Clyde felt that something was missing when they returned. But he doesn''t know what it is.
Could it be, he wanted to celebrate sess with them?
But a momentter Clyde shook his head to dismiss the idea.
"There''s no way I feel so."
He walked towards theke where he met Maethion like before. Clyde sat on a chair and waited for the bespectacled Elf.
~~~
In that ce, there were many powerful beings with hundreds of their soldiers.
That ce has be the most tense ce in recent times because of an anomaly that has urred.
It was just a barren wastnd with brown sand and ck rocks scattered randomly.
There wasn''t anything interesting to see in that ce other than the presence of the Celestials with their ring disys of power.
The Celestials were staying in their respective tents. With hundreds of soldiers always on guard and ready to fight.
All the soldiers'' gazes were directed toward a ce in the east.
There was a pitch-ck wall that stretched as far as the horizon. No one could see the end of it or what was beyond the pitch-ck wall. And that makes them even more anxious because they don''t know anything.
"How long has it been since thest appearance?" Uriel, who decided to return to this ce after several days of staying in her domain, asked a man with short and curly blonde hair.
"About ten hours ago," the man replied.
The man was someone who had arge build with prominent biceps. He was wearing a white long robe that fluttered in the gentle wind that came from the ck walls.
Uriel exhaled ufortably. "Let''s just attack it, Gabriel. I think that way this problem will be solved faster."
Gabriel - the blonde man - turned his head with a frown and a look full of disbelief.
"Are you mad?" he asked.
Uriel''s face looked restless staring at the ck wall in front of her. "I just can''t stand this situation!"
"But we can''t do anything right now. We can''t take any chances," Gabriel said. "You also know that the soldiers who die on the walls will affect us as well."
It was an extremely dire reality for Celestials. They had already sent soldiers to directly attack the ck wall when it first appeared.
However, all the soldiers that were sent stopped when they hit the wall. Then they crumble into ck dust just like that.
Even though they possessed the strength of the Celestials and were the most powerful warriors who were chosen to be here, the wall abolished them even when they just touched it.
Then, the Celestials who were the masters of the crumbling warriors were also affected by a strange influence. They feel pain as if something is hitting their soul.
Since then, they no longer sent soldiers to touch the wall and only fought the strange creatures that came out of it.
That''s why Gabriel couldn''t stop thinking when he heard Uriel''s words earlier.
"Maybe by uniting all of our strength, we can destroy it," said Uriel with red eyes still staring at the wall.
Gabriel snorted. "You are free to talk to them."
Uriel knew that convincing the Celestials to cooperate could be even more difficult than destroying the wall.
Uriel clicked her tongue in annoyance. From the moment they were created, no one could stand against the might of the Celestials.
But somehow, now there is a force that they don''t understand can threaten their very existence.
Of course, such a thing would provoke anxiety and fear for those beings who were used to their status as the most powerful rulers in the universe. Uriel and the other Archangels are no exception.
~~~
Chapter 223 Strange Creatures
?
As soon as they realized the threat, the Celestials immediately sent their representatives to this ce. The ce is in the far east part of The Nexus of Creation. Now they call this ce the Far East.
Some of them took turns guarding this ce. Some others chose to stay in this ce since the wall anomaly was first discovered.
Because of that, right now The All Territory was experiencing turmoil due to the absence of several Celestials in their domain.
World Masters know very little about this information. They only knew that something was upsetting the Celestials so they sent their Guardians to this ce as good deed. Even though the Celestials didn''t ask them to do that.
Uriel''s eyes scanned what was around her. She realized that it wasn''t only her who had a restless face and look at this situation. Several Celestials from other domains were also staring at the ck wall with eyes as agitated as hers.
"I heard you just had something bad," Gabriel said from beside her.
"Yes," replied Uriel, briefly.
"The party you sent was massacred by mysterious people?"
"Yeah. Maybe they''re from that group called the Resistance you mention before."
"Now do you believe me?" he asked.
"Yeah, after three of my followers died and the tome I wanted to have was stolen," Uriel gave Gabriel an irritated look. "Now I believe."
Gabriel turned to her and made an apologetic face. "I''m sorry."
Uriel waved her hand as if to dismiss this discussion.
"Michael isn''t here yet?" Uriel asked, changing the subject of their conversation.
"No." Gabriel shook his head.
"Why hasn''t he been here when the situation here is already like this?"
"You know we can''t guess his thoughts." Gabriel made a troubled expression. "Or... you want to talk to him? Make hime here?"
Uriel snorted. "No way."
Even for Uriel, an Archangel who is called the deadliest and fiercest Archangel, there is a figure that she is so afraid of and she doesn''t want to mess with.
He is none other than Archangel Michael. A mysterious Archangel figure who rarely does anything. However, when Michael decides to act, there will be nothing left but destruction.
In fact, it was his actions that rarely caused trouble that made all the Celestials restrain from looking for trouble with him or even just talking to him.
No one can guess Michael''s way of thinking, what things does he like, and how to make a good rtionship with him? No one knows for sure about that even his fellow Archangel.
But all Archangels acknowledge his power. He was the strongest among them. Because of that, his presence here would make the Archangels be reassured.
Suddenly, ripples formed on the pitch-ck wall. All the Celestials present were aware of that and they were alerted.
"They''reing," said Gabriel.
"Yeah." Uriel opened her wings and soared towards her troops. She unsealed her sword in the air andnded in front of her troops.
What burst out from within the walls was a horde of ck creatures as ck as the walls that took them out.
Their forms vary. Some are humanoid in shape, some others look like beasts thate from abination of several animals.
Around their bodies came thick ck smoke and mysterious tendrils of ck material.
They don''t have a figure that looks like a leader. They move based on ordersing from whatever entity is behind the ck wall.
The ck creatures just stayed in front of the wall aftering out. They fell silent and stared at the Celestials.
The absence of a face or eyes made it impossible for the Celestials to guess why they always did that after emerging from the wall. Their silence made the Celestials feel even more anxious even when they had seen it all so many times.
Some of the Celestials chose to stay silent and wait until they were charged here instead of going ahead. But some of the other Celestials who are hot-blooded and like fighting are always eager to go ahead and kill.
However, the closer they got to the wall, they felt a strange pressure that they couldn''t exin. And finally, because they didn''t know what it was, the Celestials chose to retreat.
After that, they all thought that staying as far away from the ck wall as possible when fighting those strange creatures was the best choice.
Without a clear signal, suddenly the ck creatures started running toward them. Not even the sound of their feet hitting the ground could be heard, nor was there the war cry that usually came out when arge army charged together.
This situation also made the Celestials feel even more anxious.
The Celestials readied their resistance. shes of power from various kinds of powerful beings filled the ce. Thick and unbelievably strong Mana Pressure filled the ce. If any normal creatures were in that ce, they would simply freeze or even die instantly due to the immense Mana pressure.
~~~
Clyde had been waiting for thirty minutes in the chair by theke. He didn''t feel annoyed even though he had waited a long time for Maethion. It was because he was feeling at peace after a long time as he gazed at the mirror-like calm waters of theke.
Clyde didn''t know he needed something like this. Previously all that was in his head was to keep fighting and gaining strength.
But it turns out that asionally not thinking about anything like right now isn''t bad either. He just had to stare nkly ahead without thinking anything of it.
However, that doesn''t mean Clyde wants to be in this position forever. He must act if he wants revenge and wants to know about his power of system.
Most likely, it all has something to do with God Shiva. The God of Destruction who was so renowned for his astonishing power.
He just had to know why he was chosen.
"Sorry for the long wait," said Maethion, who hade in suddenly and sat down next to Clyde.
"I see you managed to get it." Maethion looked down at the ck-covered book in Clyde''sp. "Did he give you guys a hard time?"
"Not really," said Clyde.
Clyde''s answer made Maethion look at him with raised eyebrows. "Oh? So what that old man didn''t give you any trouble?"
"He wasn''t as bad as I thought when he believed it was you who sent us."
Maethionughed. "Right. Our rtionship is good so once he knew I sent you, he wouldn''t do anything more than he already did."
Clyde handed the book to Mathion and asked. "Did you know that flyn has already met a member of the Order of Mindweaver?"
"Of course," Maethion said. "So what? Did he tell you about that too? And about the Celestials backing the Order?"
Clyde nodded.
Maethion shrugged. "And then what? Even if we know that we can''t use that information for anything, right?"
Clyde looked forward again and sighed. "Yeah."
"What are you nning?" Maethion realized that something was on Clyde''s mind.
"Nothing. I''m just curious." Clyde shrugged. His t face always made it difficult for Maethion to figure out what was in his head.
"Alright." Maethion stood up after getting his book.
"Tell me what you found in the book when you finished reading it," said Clyde.
Maethion snorted. "I''ll see youter."
After that Maethion walked away from that ce leaving Clyde who still wanted to look at theke quietly.
''Maybe a little bit more...'' thought Clyde, permeating this calm atmosphere.
He decided to spend a few minutes - maybe hours - in this ce before returning to his living quarters.
After all, there was no situation that made him have to rush.
~~~
The next dayes and Clyde wakes up with a knock on the door. He yawned and walked to the door and opened it.
Clyde was quite surprised to see Samuel standing in front of his bedroom door. When he nced at the clock on the wall, it was only six in the morning.
"What is it?" Clyde asked.
"Let''s do some practice together," Samuel replied.
Clyde frowned. "What do you mean?"
"We''ve got an expedition in a bit. I just wanted to make sure how far my strength has grown with you."
Clyde thought that it was just a waste of time. Because he was clearly going to dominate Samuel no matter how hard he trained.
"Why don''t you practice with someone else?" said Clyde.
"You are the strongest in this Fortress. I want to test my strength with you," said Samuel. "If I fight you and defeat you, I will know that I am strong enough for the next expedition."
Clyde cocked his head to the side. "And what if you lost?"
Samuel shrugged, trying to give the impression that it wasn''t a problem. "Then I just have to train even harder."
Feeling that Samuel would go on a dangerous expedition, Clyde felt that he had nothing to lose in helping him.
"Alright." Clyde nodded. "I''m going to take a shower first."
~~~
Chapter 224 Differences
?
After finishing his shower, Clyde came out of his room, feeling fresh.
"Let''s go," Clyde said to Samuel who was waiting for him leaning against the wall outside.
"Where''s that sword of yours?" Samuel asked while looking up at Clyde with demanding eyes.
"Inside, of course," said Clyde.
"Is it true that it is your sword from the Selection Stage?" he asked.
Clyde stared at Samuel for a few moments. Thinking whether he should answer with the truth or not.
"Where did you hear about that?" Clyde asked back.
Samuel could see the defensive tone in his voice. So he immediately smiled so that the tension around them would not get higher.
"I only heard rumors. Don''t have to answer them if you don''t want to," Samuel said. Then he walked first toward the exit.
Clyde still didn''t know if he could talk about the Elderss Sword and how Maethion who was a Senior Council had given it to him.
Everyone here lived knowing the rule that the items they have from the Selection Stage had to be destroyed. If they knew that he had a sword that he got from the Selection Stage, they might just make a mess of it.
Clyde followed Samuel outside. He nned to ask Maethion thatter since the secret about the sword was already known by someone other than them. That might turn out to be a bad thingter if it spreads further.
He didn''t know where Samuel had heard the ''rumor''. If Samuel could know about it, then maybe other people could too.
"Where were you go to yesterday?" Samuel asked as they walked together towards the portal that would lead them to the in.
"Some Ruin. We also pick up artifacts like we did before," answered Clyde.
Samuel turned to make sure it was true. However, for the umpteenth time, he couldn''t guess what was behind Clyde''s t face.
And Samuel also has no further proof that what Clyde said was a lie. So he didn''t ask any further.
''Doesn''t matter. Whatever he does won''t matter anymore.''
Samuel stared at his spear. The spear he used to use had now been reced with the spear made by Hammer.
However, that wasn''t the source of confidence for Samuel to challenge Clyde this time. But the new power that he got.
Even though he had just gotten this power and Samuel couldn''t be sure he was able to use it properly yet, he couldn''t wait to see how it would develop against Clyde.
If he was proven to be able to defeat Clyde, then Samuel was sure that his strength would have soared far. So he could more quickly continue his own revenge n on those Celestials.
''But... what if he turns out to be even stronger than before with his mysterious power?''
Samuel can''t help but think about that possibility. After all, he still doesn''t know the true nature of Clyde''s power.
They arrived at the in after stepping out from within the portal. Clyde immediately saw two people he had not seen in a long time.
Lahn and Wayne were sparring with swords. The sound of their swords shing could be heard quite clearly from where the two of them were standing.
"It seems Hammer has made a better sword since you brought him new materials. No moreints about broken swords," said Samuel.
"That''s good. That''s how it should be," Clyde replied.
The two of them were still sparring while Clyde and Samuel looked for an empty spot for their own sparring.
"Hey, isn''t that Clyde?" Lahn stopped his sword swing as soon as he noticed Clyde''s presence.
Wayne automatically stopped too and turned to where Lahn was looking.
"You''re right. He''s back from the expedition he was on," Wayne said.
Lahn bit his lip. And then, without saying anything to Wayne she sprinted towards Clyde and Samuel.
"H-Hey! Where are you going?" Inevitably, Wayne was chasing her.
Lahn''s footsteps got her to Samuel and Clyde''s ce quicker than she thought.
Clyde and Samuel turned. Clyde immediately realized that he would be in a predicament. He sighed seeing the determined look in the girl''s eyes.
"What''s wrong, Lahn?" Samuel asked when he saw the look on Lahn''s face that looked like he wanted to say something.
"I want to talk to Clyde," Lahn spoke while looking at Clyde.
"We want to do some training," Clyde replied curtly.
"I heard you just came from an expedition, where did you go and who did you bring?" Lahn didn''t seem to hear the reply Clyde gave him earlier. She asked with such determination that gave off the impression that she wanted to know the answer right away, and would not move from that spot before getting what she wanted.
Clyde sighed. "It''s ssified. I get orders directly from a Senior Council."
Lahn''s eyes widened at that. "From a Senior Councilor? So you''re on par with Samuel?"
Lahn nced at Samuel. Samuel just showed a small smile as if it wasn''t a problem. But his heart said something different. Suddenly his grip on his spear tightened.
Clyde chose not to answer. And turned to Samuel. "Let''s begin the training."
"Let me join your training!" Lahn said.
Clyde turned to Samuel. This training is Samuel''s training session and he is only invited. So he looked at him to ask his decision.
Samuel shrugged. "I don''t think that''s a bad idea."
If Samuel agreed, Clyde had no problem with that.
Wayne came a momentter and chose to be a spectator only.
The training session started. Lahn was already the most tired of them as she had been sparring with Wayne for an hour before Clyde and Samuel arrived. Yet she didn''t seem to want to back down or say anything about her condition. She''s just ready to fight again.
Clyde was of course aware of her condition. So he put in mind to hold his attack.
"Let''s start with hand-to-handbat," Samuel suggested. He stuck his spear into the ground.
Hand-to-handbat... Clyde felt like he had never done that in his life either before the Selection Stage or after. He had always relied on weapons to fight.
"Alright." Clyde dropped the sword he was carrying on the ground.
Lahn looked hesitant. But in the end, she agreed. She dropped her sword on the ground too.
"How are we going to train? We three just fight each other?" Clyde asked.
"I''ll fight you first!" Lahn said quickly.
Clyde frowned at Lahn. Inside his mind, Clyde thought that this short-haired girl was really rude.
He turned to Samuel. "What do you think?"
Samuel snorted with a crooked smile. "Maybe you should fight her first, teach her a lesson and then fight me," said Samuel.
Lahn shot Samuel a sharp re. He basically said that Clyde would beat her quickly.
"Alright." Clyde nodded. "Let''s begin."
Hearing that the two of them underestimated her, the determination in Lahn''s eyes grew even greater. She stared at Clyde as if she wanted to kill him now.
"You should have waited your turn," Clyde said, looking at Lahn. "By the way, why are you so eager to fight me?"
"I wonder how the strength of someone who was directly ordered by the Senior Council to carry out an expedition this quickly," Lahn replied as she put on her stance.
Clyde chose not to reply to her words.
Lahn dashed towards Clyde with incredible speed. But it wasn''t speed that was a problem for Clyde.
Lahn immediately spun her around to kick Clyde in the head. A distinctive screaming sound came out of Lahn''s mouth when she did that kick.
*BAGH!*
Clyde blocked Lahn''s kick with one hand. Lahn looked irritated when he saw Clyde block his kick without effort.
When itnded on the ground Lahn wasted no time and lunged straight at Clyde.
Clyde could feel that Lahn was starting to flow Mana through her body to strengthen each of her attacks.
*BAGH!*
*BAGH!*
*BAGH!*
...
Every attack Lahn that Clyde endured felt stronger. While Clyde just kept on parrying without attacking back.
"What the fuck are you doing?! Why! You! didn''t strike back?!" Lahn said that in between her punches and kicks.
Clyde just let out a brief thin smile. But even though it was brief, Lahn had realized it and it was enough to make her more enraged.
With gritting teeth, Lahn drained more Mana than before. Which she has been able to control in just a few days.
"HAARRRGHH!!!"
Lahn shouted loudly as she aimed her Mana-coated fist at Clyde.
*BUGH!*
The fist hit Clyde''s chest hard. However, Clyde seemed unaffected by the punch. He just stood where he was without moving.
Lahn''s eyes widened in realization. ''He''s not trying to dodge.''
Lahn looked up and saw Clyde''s face. Just as usual, he showed an indifferent expression, unfazed after receiving her fist.
"Now you know," said Clyde. "That''s how far our differences go. There, I''ve already shown you my strength."
Clyde''s words left Lahn speechless. She still stared at Clyde for a few moments with a look of shock.
~~~
Chapter 225 Strange Ripples
?
Lahn was still on her knees with a shocked expression. She looked up at Clyde.
They stared at each other for a few moments before Lahn finally sighed. She shook her head with a helpless expression.
"Shit. I thought I was a bit close to your level," Lahn said. She then took out a chuckle that sounded sad.
What Clyde saw in Lahn made him feel sorry too. But he could not give the girl anyfort.
Clyde opened his mouth to say something. Yet he immediately closed his mouth again because he realized there was nothing he could say to her at this time. After he shows the reality of their powers.
Clyde felt regret for saying what he said earlier.
Wayne gritted his teeth as he looked at Lahn who looked pathetic. He knew how proud Lahn was when she realized that the Mana in her body had awakened.
However, what happened a few seconds earlier seemed to be a hard p that made Lahn realized that she is still nothing.
Lahn stood up and walked away without another word. She didn''t even look at Clyde as she walked away.
Wayne follows her like the loyal friend that he was.
Clyde''s eyes followed Lahn who keep walking farther and farther. A sigh escaped his mouth.
"Am I being too harsh?" Clyde asked.
"Well," Samuel said. "Maybe. You don''t have to say what you said at the end."
He thought. ''I would also feel the same anger and frustration if I went through what Lahn went through.''
"But I have to tell the truth," said Clyde. And then he shrugged. "Whatever. There''s nothing I can do about it."
Clyde decided to dismiss the thought and turned to Samuel. "Let''s begin our training."
Samuel eyed Clyde for a few moments to calm himself from the sudden rush of emotions.
When he saw Clyde defeat Lahn easily with his overwhelming power, Samuel suddenly imagined that he was in Lahn''s position. As a helpless victim before Clyde''s strength.
Especially after that, Clyde said that was the difference in their strength. Those words would surely make him even more angry and frustrated.
"Hey," Clyde called out because he saw Samuel looking at him dreamily. "What''s wrong?"
Samuel shook his head, then smiled. "Nothing. Let''s start. But I hope you''re not too harsh on me. Haha." Samuel tried tough amidst his nervousness.
"Don''t worry about it," Clyde replied. "You want to fight using weapons or hands?"
"Let''s start hand-to-hand first," said Samuel.
"As you wish."
The two of them started to get into a stance. Samuel was channeling the Mana he had enhanced with the substance he got from Vernik.
Samuel felt a greater strength than he would normally feel coursing through his body. The sensation made him shudder for a moment. But Clyde didn''t have time to realize it because Samuel immediately controlled himself to end his shuddering as quickly as possible.
"Are you ready?" Clyde asked.
Samuel nodded. Then charged with incredible speed toward Clyde. In the blink of an eye, Samuel was already in front of Clyde and immediately swing a fist that was strengthened by the momentum of his dash.
Clyde who was not ready for Samuel''s speed widened his eyes for a few moments. ''How did he get that fast?''
But that doesn''t mean it''s a problem for him. Clyde tilted his head to the side, dodging Samuel''s fist.
Clyde could even feel the pressure of the wind as the fist passed his face. Shows how strong that fist really is.
Realizing that his initial attack had missed the target, Samuel sent another fist toward Clyde. In Clyde''s view, this second fist also became faster than the previous one.
Clyde chose to duck and then kicked the ground to jump backward and create some distance from Samuel.
''He developed quite rapidly in the time of a few days. What is going on?'' Clyde wondered in his heart.
However, Samuel did not give Clyde the opportunity to ponder over it. He dashed, and his eyes let out a sh of red light. From where he was standing, Clyde could see that Samuel''s eyes were full of hostility.
Frowning his brow, Clyde decided to approach Samuel and sent his blows.
*BWOOSSHH!*
Clyde and Samuel''s fists shed. The impact between the two of them sent shockwaves in all directions, knocking over the trees and grass around them.
"You''ve gotten stronger," said Clyde.
Samuel gritted his teeth seeing that Clyde didn''t look the least bit troubled after he exerted a lot of his force behind that fist. ''Does this mean I can''t keep up with him yet?''
Samuel didn''t answer, he chose not to waste time and attacked again.
Samuel sends a kick toward Clyde, which Clyde manages to block with one hand. Samuel continued to be aggressive and gave Clyde a round kick to the head.
The two of them engaged in hand-to-handbat that was fast and deadly. Their movements only appear as motion blur to those who see them.
Lahn and Wayne were among those who saw the fight. Their eyes showed almost the same admiration and frustration.
Wayne turned to Lahn. Her anger, which had been surging uncontrobly like a fire burning dry leaves, has now subsided.
Lahn realized that she was still far from Clyde and Samuel''s level. So instead, of feeling frustrated and angry, Lahn realized that she should focus more on practicing the Mana she awakened.
"What do you think, Wayne?" Lahn asked.
"What do you mean?"
"They look so strong, right? How long do you think it will be until we reach their level of strength?"
Wayne sighed as he stared at the fight again. "I don''t know. Years, maybe."
Given their conditions, what Wayne said was not an exaggeration.
"Let''s spar again!" Lahn said and grabbed her sword.
Wayne knew that the best way to recover Lahn''s feelings was to practice obeying him.
"Yeah." Wayne nodded and grabbed his own sword.
~~~
shes of fire, lightning, and all kinds of other elements filled this ce. The powerful beings called Celestials were observing the fight from a distance with restless faces.
They seemed to have forgotten their true identity as Celestials in front of the strange ck creatures that came out from within the walls.
The Celestials did not immediately charge into the battlefield ahead. Instead, they sent their warriors to fight the ck creatures.
So far, their warriors alone were enough to ughter all the ck creatures that came out of the walls without taking any casualties. However, even after seeing the obvious results, the Celestials still couldn''t rest easy.
They felt this dread feeling lingering in their hearts. It was as if they knew that sooner orter, their warriors would not be enough to hold back the ck creatures and they would have to intervene themselves in the fight.
Agatha sat on a ck rock that towered like a pir, some distance from the Celestials and definitely from the ck wall.
She was already holding her dark purple scythe in cold sweaty hands. Be prepared for whatever is about to happen.
"Shit, I hope nothing weird happens here," Agatha muttered in an uneasy voice. Her eyes stared at the battle below and were the same as before, when she looked at the Celestials Agatha saw the same anxiety she felt.
Even though she wasn''t near them, Agatha could feel it.
She cursed her Chief for sending her here and of course, Lio, who threw her under the bus so the Chief didn''t hesitate to decide on that.
After the Selection Stage ended in chaos due to their betrayal, Lio became furious because he once again failed to get what he wanted.
Agatha''s situation was not much different from his. She also felt shocked, angry, and disappointed because all of her ns were crumbling before her eyes. Meanwhile, the four men came victorious after betraying Clyde.
However, they can not do too much. Because betrayal like that is bound to happen at the Selection Stage.
They just didn''t think it could happen to Clyde. With his strength that is overwhelming and dominates everything in front of him.
They didn''t think that these people would betray, take the time when Clyde was weak, and stab him in the back.
In the end, Lio and Agatha had to swallow disappointment because they failed to get Clyde.
But it turns out it wasn''t just the two of them. Several Celestials who were waiting for Clyde toe out also had to swallow disappointment. They had gone to great lengths to recruit him but in the end, he didn''t show up.
What''s worse than that was Lio ming her for not realizing it sooner and preventing everything.
Upon hearing his words at that time, Agatha almost summoned her scythe in front of the Chief to sh Lio''s head. But she soon realized that she couldn''t do that and could only stay silent to quell her anger.
And now, she''s here, doing the tedious task of observing what''s going on in this ce.
Agatha suddenly realizes something strange with the ck wall.
"What the hell is that?"
There''s a strange ripple in the wall. An enormous ripple.
~~~
Chapter 226 Weird Sensation
?
Agatha squinted her eyes to examine the ripples more closely. It didn''t take her long to figure out that ripple was a bad thing.
The ripple was simr to the one created when those strange ck creatures came out of the wall. But this time whatever was about to emerge of the wall was taking longer than it should have.
Agatha also felt this ominous feeling that she couldn''t exin when she looked at the ripple.
She turned towards the Celestials who were observing their troops fighting against the ck creatures. They were too focused on their troops to even notice the appearance of the strange ripple.
''Did they really not notice that?''
Agatha was starting to feel uneasy. She bit her lower lip and stared at the Celestials.
"Shit!"
Agatha jumped from the high rock where she stood. Shended on the sand and blew it around. Without waiting for too long, Agatha ran towards the group of Celestials.
She headed towards Uriel and Gabriel who she thought was closest to her current direction.
"Sorry to bother you," said Agatha.
Uriel and Gabriel both turned to her at the same time. Their gazes seemed to say that they were staring at something lower, far lower than them.
Especially Uriel, who looked at her while raising one of her eyebrows.
Agatha felt annoyance swelling in her heart. She always felt reluctant to speak directly to these Celestials. For reasons like this.
Agatha swallowed her feelings so that they would not surface. Or else it would be a troublesome matter for her.
"What do you want?" Uriel asked in a curt tone.
Agatha swallowed hard and calmed herself once more before speaking. "There''s a ripple in that ck wall. I think you should take a look at it."
Agatha said it to the point without wasting any time. She didn''t want to talk too long with these arrogant beings.
Uriel and Gabriel exchanged nces. Then they turned toward the wall. But the scene of the battle prevented their vision from seeing the ck wall more clearly.
So they put out their wings. A pair of white wings appeared apanied by a blinding light, making Agatha can''t help but narrow her eyes.
The two Archangels then shot upward simultaneously.
It was only when they were floating in the air that they could see that what Agatha said was the truth. They could see ripples on the ck wall that looked abnormal.
"She''s right," Gabriel said. "What is that?"
"I don''t know. Maybe another wave of ck creatures," Uriel said.
"But why suddenly there is another wave? Before this they only sent one wave and then waited for some more time to attack again," Gabriel said.
"How should I know, Gabe!" Uriel retorted. "Anyway, we just have to kill whateveres out of those walls."
Gabriel paused for a few moments, then said. "You are right."
They descended back to the ground. When they got down, Agatha was not there. She immediately left as soon as she finished conveying what she had to say.
The other Celestials who saw what Uriel and Gabriel were doing also tried to see what was on the wall. Not long after, all the Celestials there had noticed the ripples on the wall.
Time passed until finally all the ck creatures died at the hands of their warriors. But the problem doesn''t seem to be over yet.
Several Celestials shouted orders to their warriors not to let their guard down and pay attention to the ck wall. Some of the others conveyed the order through their minds.
The warriors turned towards the wall. And their hearts immediately sunken to realize that the threat would not end even though they had fought hard.
"Brace yourselves!" Uriel said to her warriors. Even though she didn''t know what they would fight against yet, Uriel and all the Celestials present knew that whatever came out of there would be troublesome.
*WOOONGGGGHH!!!*
A strange pressure was rising from the ripples on the wall. The ripples grew bigger and let out ck smoke that floated in the air, then headed toward the direction of the Celestials.
The warriors readied their weapons seeing the ck smoke approaching.
"What is that?" Gabriel asked with a frown looking up at the ck smoke in front of him.
"Perhaps a powerful monster will appear," Uriel replied uncertainly.
A momentter, the Celestials were surprised by the appearance of a strange figure stepping out from within the ripples on the wall.
The figure wore a ck robe and walked on two legs. Its face was covered by a ck cloak. Even though there was a lot of light in this ce, all the light seemed to bow before the darkness of the figure''s hooded shadow and could not prate it.
"Who are you?" one of the warriors asked.
And then, a voice that is difficult to describe, because as if it was uttered from various beings simultaneously, came. "Your doom!"
The ck figure waved its hand forward sending a wave of ck wind towards the warrior who had spoken. The warrior automatically put a lot of alert from the start so he was already prepared when the attack came.
Even so, he couldn''t withstand that strange attack. The warrior was thrown back with such tremendous force that he flew a great distance andnded near the ranks of the Celestials.
After he fell, the warrior still groaned in pain. There is a thin ck mist swirling around his body which is probably the source of the pain he is feeling.
That warrior was one of Gabriel''s warriors, so the Archangel immediately shot toward him and stretched out his arms to the man. A soft white light shot out of Gabriel''s hand and enveloped him.
Gradually, the ck mist that was swirling on the warrior''s body subsided and disappearedpletely.
"ATTACK!"
A Celestial shouted his orders. So, the other Celestials followed suit and started giving orders to attack.
Gabriel also gave an attack order to his warriors. Even so, his thoughts were on his warrior who was still lying in front of him.
There was a suffocating feeling that Gabriel felt when removing the ck mist. A suffocation and disturbance that feels... ancient.
Gabriel whipped his head towards the ck wall. ''Could it be that the wall... No! That''s not possible!''
"What''s wrong, Gabe?" Uriel drew closer to him as soon as she saw the confused look on Gabriel''s face.
"I don''t know, Uriel," Gabriel answered in an agitated tone. Uriel could feel the anxiety in his voice.
"Then why is your face like that?"
Gabriel paused for a few seconds, then answered. "Maybe..."
He turned to Uriel. Then said something that made her eyes widen. The Archangel''s face turned pale, and she too, stared at the ck wall with an uneasy expression on her face.
~~~
The fight between Clyde and Samuel is still going on. They had rested for a few minutes, then resumed their sparring because they were still not satisfied.
Actually, Samuel was the one who felt not satisfied yet to test his strength. Clyde wasn''t too eager to continue fighting but since Samuel asked him and he had no reason to refuse, Clyde did it anyway.
"HAAAA!!!" Samuel raised a Mana-coated fist towards Clyde''s face.
Clyde crossed his arms in front of his face to block the punch.
*BUAGH!*
Clyde was pushed back. ''That fist feels stronger than before.''
Since earlier Clyde felt that Samuel''s strength was increasing but he didn''t know how it could happen.
Even so, Samuel''s strength was still notparable to his strength. Clyde only put on an act to show that he was having a hard time not dropping Samuel''s excited mood.
Clyde was expecting Samuel to lunge after the punch. However, Samuel was still standing breathlessly in his ce while staring at him.
Sweat was already flooding Samuel''s entire body. Even so, Clyde could see from his eyes that Samuel still wanted to continue this fight.
"I think you''ve reached your limit," Clyde said.
Samuel wants to reply by saying that he is fine and can continue. Yet, his body told him otherwise.
His Mana has already been drained a lot and will run out soon. He would have passed out if he continued this and did not know what consequences he would have to bear if he pushed himself to such an extent.
So Samuel decided to end this. "I hate to admit it, but you''re right."
Samuel fell down on the grass. ''He doesn''t even look tired. Was all he did just now an act?''
Clyde approached Samuel and looked at him from above. "Why are you pushing yourself like this?"
"Because I want to catch up to you," replied Samuel.
"Why?"
Samuel paused. Clyde could see the shes of red light in his eyes. Samuel said. "I must get revenge, Clyde. Those Celestials took the people I love from me."
Clyde blinked fast because he wasn''t expecting that answer. It turned out that Samuel had basically the same motivation as him.
Samuel got up to sit. "You know, I''ve hated you these past few days because you got strong so quickly. Even though I was the one who saved your life first."
Clyde was surprised to hear that.
"But then I realized that my anger was not your fault." Samuel stood up and pointed towards a shady tree. "Let''s go to that tree to talk morefortably."
Clyde followed Samuel to the tree. He didn''t know what Samuel would say. But Clyde felt that it would be a long conversation.
~~~
Chapter 227 Some Background Story
?
As soon as they got under the tree, they felt a soothing coolness. The sight of people practicing over the vast green ins under the clear blue sky is amazing scenery. Like a painting moved by some kind of magic.
Clyde wasn''t particrly eager to hear what Samuel had to say and just wanted to enjoy the sight before his eyes. Under the shade of arge tree and the cool breeze.
However, Samuel of course, continued what he wanted to say.
"I''ve never said how I was doing when the Selection Stage happened, right?" said Samuel.
"No," Clyde replied, without turning to look at him.
He continued. "I''m just an ordinary construction worker. What I make with that job is just enough for my family to eat every day. Me, my wife, and my daughter.
But we live happily. I''m lucky to have a good wife and I''m always grateful. She neverins, even though I can never make her happy."
Clyde turned his head this time. What Samuel said caught his attention, even though just a little.
Samuel turned out to be a good and loving husband. Clyde had already guessed that he and his wife must really love their daughter. It''s not like him who has always been ignored.
"We were having a pic at the time," Samuel said.
''Here we go,'' thought Clyde. He knew that this was when the floating notification of the Selection Stage appeared. And Samuel''s world got destroyed. And his family got killed.
Clyde already suspected the rest of the story. He did not feel too much empathy for him. After all, isn''t that what happens to everyone?
It''s just... He doesn''t have good memories in his old world so he doesn''t feel too sad or lost when the Selection Stage urs.
"You know the rest, the Selection Stage happened and we tried to survive. On the second day, I was faced with a very difficult situation.
When Clyde looked at Samuel''s face, he looked ahead but not at the ins or the people practicing. Clyde knew Samuel''s crimson eyes were looking back at the incident he mentioned.
Clyde saw both of Samuel''s fists clenched so tightly that the veins were showing.
"There is someone who ims to be a Celestial envoy. She forced me to choose between saving my daughter, or my wife."
Clyde''s eyes widened slightly when he heard that. He was already shocked when he heard that a Celestial envoy had approached him.
However, it turns out that the envoy did note to make an offer like what happened to him before. But to have Samuel observe such a pitiful trial.
"That evil woman forced me to choose who should live, between my daughter or my wife." Samuel turned to Clyde. "Can you imagine that?"
Clyde can''t imagine that. He chose not to answer him.
"And surely, I couldn''t choose between them. In the end, she killed them both. My daughter and wife."
Samuel exhaled loudly, as if to drive away his sadness. But of course, it can''t be that easy.
Samuel suddenly smiled to cover his pain. "I don''t know which Celestials ordered that woman to do it. That''s why I intend to look for that woman among the Celestials."
Samuel paused. The looks of determination were evident in his crimson eyes.
"She must be there," Samuel said. And then he smiled even wider, as if he wanted to brush off all the bad memories he had just said earlier.
"Sorry, you have to listen to my rant."
"It''s okay," Clyde said.
"Now you know what motivates me to keep going. Your turn, if you want."
Clyde shook his head. "I don''t really want to talk about it."
''Because there really isn''t much to say.''
"That''s alright," Samuel said. "I just want you to know, about why I''m so curious about how you got your power."
"I understand."
"You probably find me annoying, right?"
"Yes," Clyde answered without hesitation.
Samuel let out a chuckle. "I expected it. Well, now at least you know. It''s alright if you don''t want to share secrets about your powers."
Clyde thought for a few moments. And then he said. "If I knew how, I would tell you."
Clyde couldn''t pretend to understand Samuel''s feelings. Because he doesn''t. But at least he knows that Samuel must be very hurt and has a big feeling of revenge just like him.
flyn might know something. After all, he is the sage. So Clyde intends to ask him about Samuel''s problem about how he can gain power quickly when he has lost his power of the system.
Samuel stood and spoke. "Thank you for sparring with me. I realized that I''m still far from capable."
Clyde didn''tment on that.
Samuel walked away from that ce. Leaving Clyde alone in the shadow of this big tree.
He dropped his back on the soft grass and looked up at the sky. Clyde thought, this was the first time he had heard someone exin someone''s background story. Turns out, it was pretty sad.
He had never cared about that before.
His conversation with Samuel Clyde made him think about Asqa, Sonya, and the five people. They must also have their own background story and Clyde suddenly wants to know about that.
He doesn''t know why, maybe because his own life doesn''t have an interesting story.
Clyde closed his eyes and let the breeze caress him until he fell asleep.
~~~
In the center of the room, the holographic text of the book Clyde had brought from flyn floated before the eyes of the three people inside.
The three of them - Maethion, Vernik, and Madri - had spent the whole night dissecting the book. But most of the information the three of them got was only about the lore about the Nexus of Creation. There is still no certain information about its location.
"Are you sure there''s something useful in this book?" Vernik asked in an irritated tone. His wrinkled face made his appearance worse.
"I''m sure. Don''t talk too much and just keep looking," Maethion replied in a curt tone. He also hadn''t rested and focused on reading the book sincest night so the bespectacled Elf wasn''t in a very good mood either.
Vernik shot an angry nce at Maethion. But he swallowed his anger again at hearing Mathion''s tone. He sighed, some things required his energy even more at this time. That is a book containing hundreds of these pieces of information.
They kept looking and searching until finally, Madri found something.
The brown-skinned woman frowned. "I guess I found something."
Vernik and Maethion immediately looked at her.
"What did you find?" Vernik asked with obvious curiosity.
Madri waved her hand in the direction of the two of them. Then the holographic text that was created from Mana flew towards Vernik and Maethion simultaneously and they immediately read it.
"There is a gate within a certain location in the The All Territory which is the path to the realm where the Nexus of Creation is located," Vernik read out loud. "This is what we''re looking for!"
"Yes, but how do we find this gate?" Maethion asked. His eyes were still focused on staring at each paragraph of the text and he immediately realized something. "After this page, we can find clearer clues," Maethion said.
Vernik and Madri also agreed with his words. flyn must have ced lore in the first half of the book and ced how to find it in thetter half.
Their enthusiasm that had been extinguished had now risen again. The three Senior Councils read faster and faster.
Several hours passed, and they were finally able to find a bright spot, even if it was small.
"That Celestial''s domain would be too difficult for us to enter," said Vernik, shaking his head.
"Let''s find another location," Madri suggested.
They continued reading. But all the ces they found were within the powerful Celestials'' domains.
Vernik sighed as he slumped back into the chair. "Let''s send Clyde and his friends."
Maethion turned to Vernik. He wanted to refute him. However, only Clyde is capable of doing this.
They finally found something good after all this time. Maethion knew he couldn''t pass up this opportunity.
"Let''s call the other members first. This is something big and they must know," said Mathion.
Vernik and Madri thought silently. But finally, they agreed.
"I agree," Vernik said.
"Me too," said Madri.
The three of them proceed to contact other members of the Senior Council for this matter.
~~~
Clyde woke up when the sun had set and the sky had turned orange.
He opened his eyes and looked around. Many of the people who had been training had left leaving only a few groups.
''I slept too long.''
At this time, it was impossible for anyone to pay attention to him, so Clyde took Asqa''s silver ne and channeled his Mana through his bracelet.
He closed his eyes again so as not to arouse suspicion. If anyone saw, they would only think that Clyde was still sleeping.
~~~
Chapter 228 Places To Go
?
Clyde tried to keep flowing quite a lot of his Mana now. He didn''t think that someone - the Senior Council - would find anything suspicious about him. He''s just sleeping, so nothing should question him.
He''s only done it once. So for the second try, Clyde was expecting that he would still feel a little awkward about doing this.
Clyde was patient, it took him about ten minutes to get something. Until finally he could feel he had grasped Asqa on the other end.
''Clyde?'' Asqa''s voice sounded panicked. Since this was a sounding directly from her head, Clyde could clearly feel it.
''Sorry. Did I surprise you?'' Clyde asked.
''Yes. You didn''t say you were going to contact me first.''
''You know I can''t do that,'' Clyde replied.
Asqa paused. Then said. ''You are right. So, what''s going on now?''
''Have you got anything?'' Clyde asked.
''Not really. I haven''t found anything about Mona and God Loki yet. Celestials rarely keep information about other Celestials and their followers are no help either.''
''Why?'' Clyde frowned with his eyes closed.
''I do not know. Maybe it''s because they are always involved in the rivalry that they feel so reluctant to keep information about each other.''
''That''s kinda weird. Shouldn''t they be storing information to prepare if the dispute gets heated?'' Clyde said.
''Maybe it''s also because of their pride. They don''t want to keep information about the powers or abilities of other Celestials for their followers to see,'' Asqa said.
''It is possible,'' Clyde said. ''Then you haven''t gotten anything yet?''
''Actually,'' Asqa said. ''I might get something useful for you.''
Asqa''s words caught Clyde''s attention. ''What''s that?''
''You already got some power from Archangel Uriel''s fire after killing Alessio, right?'' I found a way to strengthen the power of that fire.''
The corners of Clyde''s lips lifted into a smile. News about gaining new powers always excited him.
''Tell me,'' Clyde said.
''So, I read in an old book about one way how Archangel Uriel keeps her body strengthened,'' Asqa said. ''She goes to several ces to purify her body every certain amount of time. That way she can remove all the impurities that are in her body after a fight or being injured.''
Clyde frowned. If Asqa could have seen the look on his face, she would have immediately seen how interested Clyde was in the news.
''Where are those ces?'' Clyde asked.
''I don''t know if you can reach that ce from wherever you are. The good news is, that ce doesn''t only exist in Archangel Uriel''s domain.''
Clyde was quite surprised by the news. ''So where is it?''
''It''s located in several ces. More precisely in several domains other than this domain,'' replied Asqa.
Clyde exhaled. Such an important ce definitely doesn''t just exist in random ces.
Clyde had hoped that those ces were in a Ruin or a pocket dimension like flyn''s. But of course, it won''t be that easy.
He was sure that ces were within the Celestials'' domains. No less.
''Where are those ces?'' Clyde asked. Now his enthusiasm had waned a bit because the trip to go there was sure to be troublesome.
''The ces located in the domains of Celestials that have the power of fire,'' Asqa said. ''God Hephaestus, God Agni, Goddess Pele, and God Xiuhtecuhtli.''
Clyde sighed again. That means he must enter the Celestials'' domain to get a fraction of Uriel''s power.
''Exactly, what can I get from these ces, Asqa?''
''Fire of purification. With it you can clear the impurities in your body, strengthen it, and gain greater affinity with the element of fire,'' replied Asqa. ''But this power can only be obtained if you have obtained a fraction of Uriel''s power. Otherwise, you''ll just burn yourself as soon as you step into those fires.''
Clyde had expected that. He already has a fraction of Uriel''s strength so it''s not a problem. The problem is how to get there.
However, even though it was troublesome, managing to acquire a technique to purify oneself and increase one''s affinity with the fire element was quite a good result.
Clyde already knew how strong his fire elemental was. And if his fire power manages to reach a higher level, he can give his enemy a fatal blow faster.
''Thanks, Asqa. This is all very useful,'' said Clyde.
Asqa didn''t answer right away. Clyde couldn''t see right away but in her ce, Asqa was smiling.
''You''re wee, Clyde. I''m d I could help. Although I can not give anything about those traitors,'' said Asqa.
''I''m sure you''ll be able to find it,'' Clyde replied.
Their conversation ended shortly after Asqa gave an additional exnation about the ces.
As soon as it ended, Clyde opened his eyes and stood up.
Now all he had to do was figure out how he could get to the domains of one of the Celestials.
''I have to talk to Maethion about this.''
Clyde walked towards the portal and returned to the Fortress.
~~~
Several days passed without Clyde being able to find Maethion. Somehow, the bespectacled Elf was able to avoid it and seemed to return to the early days when they still didn''t know each other.
Finally, Clyde received news that in fact, some of the Senior Council who had previously been away were now back.
They weren''t all back yet but out of the ten members, five had already returned. Making the Senior Council members in the Fortress numbered eight.
Clyde was quite surprised to hear the news. If most of them return, then perhaps something big has happened - or is about to happen - that requires them to gather.
''Maybe it has something to do with the books I brought,'' Clyde thought while enjoying his lunch. ''I''m getting more and more curious about this book. I have to ask Maethion if I can get a chance to meet him.''
Clyde continued eating his lunch. Suddenly Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L''s group came to his table.
Clyde was a bit surprised by their presence but he didn''tin. If they just want to enjoy lunch then that''s not a problem.
"You hear the news?" Wiley asked Clyde.
"Yeah," Clyde replied tly. He already knew that Wiley would want to talk about the arrival of the rest of the Senior Council.
Clyde''s answer made him sigh. "That wasn''t the reaction I was expecting."
Clyde didn''t respond and continued to eat.
"Even Hammer has never seen all the members of the Senior Council. He said, just like the residents of this Fortress, they consist of various kinds of creatures," L said.
Knowing that there were various kinds of creatures within the Senior Council, Clyde became curious.
They must also be very strong. They could be allies like Maethion, or hostiles like the other two members who had been here.
''It would be better if I made them allies,'' thought Clyde.
"But why did they suddenlye here, huh?" Rosie asked, frowning at her.
"No one really knows why," said Leon. "Except us. Maybe they came back after we took the book from flyn."
Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L all turned to Leon.
"Maybe you''re right," said Wiley. Then he turned to Clyde. "Do you know anything?"
"Not really," answered Clyde curtly.
"That bespectacled Senior Council didn''t say anything to you?"
"Not yet. But I think you guys are right. I suspect that too," said Clyde.
"Are we going to get another expedition mission?" L said.
Hearing that, Clyde stopped his spoon from reaching his mouth. ''If that''s true, then it''s possible that I could have a chance to go to the domain of one of those Celestials.''
Clyde immediately resumed eating before they noticed.
"That may be true, L," said Albert.
L grimaced at that. "I don''t know ... I hope we don''t have to leave anytime soon."
They continued their lunch with small talk after that, no longer wanting to talk about the expedition they might actually be doing.
~~~
The eight members of the Senior Council sat in the room only in silence. After quite a long discussion and debate, they pondered in silence to organize their thoughts.
Finally, a woman with long silver hair spoke.
"I want to check this as soon as possible. Send some senior residents who can fight."
"This is too risky," said a creature that hid himself inside arge brown cloak. There was something like a muzzle protruding under his hood. He spoke in a deep, deep voice as if it were made by the friction of two rough stones.
"No. I heard that the conflict in the Far East is heating up. The guard in some of those domains must be more rxed now," the silver-haired woman replied.
"I agree with Anahita," Maethion said. "Let''s send our stronger squad."
They all turned to look at him, paying full attention. Vernik and Madri exchanged knowing nces. But the two of them didn''t look like they were going toin.
"Who''s that?" Anahita - the silver-haired woman - asked.
Maethion leaned forward. "Let''s meet them and see for yourself."
~~~
Chapter 229 The Request Arrived
?
Three days had passed since Maethion''s proposal to Anahita to observe for herself about Clyde and the five people. Actually, Maethion felt that the five people were not too important for Anahita''s agreement. All she needed to see was Clyde and his abilities.
However, Maethion couldn''t say that Clyde could go on the expedition alone so naturally he had several people in his party. So Maethion also showed her about them.
He and Anahita watched every exercise they did in the ins secretly. But of course, they already knew they were being watched.
Maethion told them about it to Clyde. He wanted Clyde and the five to prepare themself for what was toe, and so they could make a good impression on a Senior Council member watching them.
Clyde gave directions to his five party members and they started practicing again. Based on what Maethion saw, they were doing well.
"What do you think?" Maethion asked.
He and Anahita were now observing Clyde and his five party members practicing on the ins via the hexagon crystals in the dark room they usually used for training.
For now, it''s just the two of them in this ce. Meanwhile, the other members of the Senior Council were away to attend to their own business.
They don''t have time to be here all the time. They woulde back when they finished their business and heard the opinions of the members of the Fortress.
Anahita frowned at him and then continued to observe the sight inside the hexagon crystal. Her eyes were calcting and she was looking at someone specifically. A young man who looked like he was only in his teens.
"He looks very strong," said Anahita. "How did he get that strong?"
Maethion didn''t want to say about Clyde''s power of the system that was still in his body. But he knew there was no point in making up the lie. So Maethion told the truth.
"No, it''s not just him," Anahita added. "You said that boy and five others have only been in this Fortress for a few months, but howe they are already this strong?"
"That''s because their power of the system still exists."
Anahita immediately turned to Maethion with a shocked look. "What?"
"You heard that right."
"Why haven''t you guys removed it yet?"
"Because we didn''t have time. I sent them quickly to get information about the Nexus of Creation from flyn. I think we should hurry and get the book before something bad happens so I send them.
"Because of the coincidence that their power of the system is still existing, so their strength is far above the level of the other people here. Only they are strong enough to take on flyn''s defense."
Anahita listened to Maethion''s exnation. As he speak, Maethion noticed the frown on her forehead and the disapproving look from the silver-haired woman had lessened.
"What do you think? Don''t we really have to retrieve the book containing the information as quickly as possible?
"flyn may indeed be a powerful mage. However, we can''t take risks let alone him living in a pocket dimension by himself."
Anita nodded. "Yeah. I think it was the right decision."
They had lost important information before due to underestimating the Celestials and thinking they would never find it. It made them regret that somehow the Celestials knew about it and stole important information from them.
Since then the members of the Senior Council have always made it a priority to retrieve information, artifacts, or anything that benefits them as quickly as possible before they experience the same regret.
"That''s why you left their power of the system. I assume, Vernik and Madri also know about this?"
"Of course. We agreed to postpone removing their power of the system," said Maethion.
"Until when?" she asked.
Maethion sighed. "Until an undetermined time limit."
It was Anahita who sighed now. She stared at Maethion in disbelief.
"You know that the power of the system will only limit them. I think we have to get rid of their system as soon as possible," Anahita spoke with determination as if she really had to get rid of their system right now.
"You have to listen to me first," Maethion said. "I feel something is different about Clyde''s power of system."
Anahita frowned at her. "What is it this time?"
"His system is different. I don''t feel the bound that are usually in other people''s power of systems," Maethion replied.
Anahita stared at him for a while with scrutinizing eyes. She knew that Maethion''s judgment was something to be concerned about because he was rarely wrong.
However, Anahita still doesn''t believe that there is a different power of system.
"Sorry, Maethion. I found it difficult to talk to you about this one," said Anahita.
"Then you can check for yourself," Maethion replied. "That way you''ll also be able to sense that something is different about his system."
Maethion said it casually which meant he wasn''t trying to hide the truth about the boy''s system.
Meaning what he said was most likely the truth. Yet, Anahita still can''t just ept it.
"I will meet him in person," said Anahita.
Maethion just nodded. He showed no resistance, in fact Maethion seemed to support her.
That was because Maethion wanted to show Anahita directly that Clyde''s power of the system was indeed different.
~~~
Clyde just stood and watched as Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie and L practiced.
Leon and Albert shed with swords and daggers while Rosie attacked with her hammer.
Wiley and L practiced to maximize their uracy. Or actually, L was the one trying the hardest with it while Wiley just sat and leaned against a tree.
Clyde didn''t really mind that because he knew Wiley was pretty good at using his blowdarts. He could tell the right opportunity and time to hide and shoot. So that he causes great damage to his opponent while minimizing the injuries he receives.
That way, Clyde didn''t have to doubt Wiley''s abilities.
The one he noticed was L. Sincest time, she had progressed a lot sincest time after sessfully leveling up her. She can already hold her crossbow without difficulty.
''If she can maximize her power to see that future, she will be invincible.''
ording to Clyde, among the five, L''s ability is the most overpowering. Unfortunately, she doesn''t have enough fighting instincts to maximize her power. The ability to glimpse into the future in closebat supposed to be greatly benefited her. Clyde also wanted to have such abilities.
Suddenly, Clyde felt something behind him. When he turned around, Clyde saw a portal open. A momentter from inside the portal came out a woman wearing a white shirt wrapped in a brown tank top.
The thing that stood out the most about the woman was her silver hair that gently blew in the wind.
Not only her hair is silver, but her eyebrows also have the same color. Making Clyde and the five people who were practicing can''t help but stare at the woman with questioning eyes.
"Hi," the woman greeted with a smile. "My name is Anahita. Nice to meet you all."
The woman''s voice was calm and wise. They could feel an aura of wisdom and a lot of experience behind her form that was standing calmly facing them.
Clyde assumed that she was definitely not just an ordinary resident in this Fortress. He even had the strong thought that she might be one of the Senior Council who returned here.
If so, of course, he had to be nice to her.
"Nice to meet you," Clyde said. Trying to swallow his nervousness about talking to strangers. After all, he must show that he is capable to gain this woman''s favor.
Anahita walked closer to Clyde. "I''m sorry for interrupting your practice."
Anahita began to channel her Mana to sharpen her senses. She wanted to really confirm what Maethion had said about Clyde.
The silver-haired woman looked straight at Clyde. Her eyes sh for a moment with white light. Even though it was brief, Clyde could still notice it.
''So he''s right,'' thought Anahita. ''There''s something different about the power of the system that this boy has.''
"What did you just do?" Clyde asked.
"I just want to confirm for myself what Maethion said," Anahita replied. "We have an important mission for you. And your friends."
Anahita turned to the five people behind Clyde. Clyde who already suspected that this would happen.
"An expedition?" Clyde asked.
"Yes." Anita nodded. "However, this is a dangerous mission. Although you must be used to danger, this one has a different level of danger than before."
"Where?" Clyde asked.
Anahita approached Clyde and whispered. "I don''t know the exact destination yet. There are several domains of the Celestials that you should visit."
Clyde knew this would be dangerous. But he has other goals that make him excited about this expedition mission. He would be very lucky if this expedition required him to go to the domain of one of the Celestials Asqa mentioned.
~~~
Chapter 230 New Informations
?
Clyde was pretty excited about what Anahita said. In fact, he was looking forward to it. When Anahita came up to him and said that, Clyde felt as if the universe heard what he was thinking and gave the response he expected.
Anahita looked at Clyde with eyes showing astonishment. The silver-haired woman tilted her head to the side.
"You don''t look worried," said Anahita. "That''s... unnatural."
Her words made Clyde realize that the expression on his face did not look natural for a situation like this. He immediately changed his face to be more serious.
"When exactly do you need us to leave?" Clyde asked, trying to distract Anahita from her reaction earlier.
"We hope soon. However," Anahita turned to the five people. "Maybe you guys need to train a little more. Or...you need more people."
"More people?" Clyde asked. "Wouldn''t that make us more conspicuous? And surely this expedition - let alone one that requires us to enter the domain of a certain Celestial - should be sneaky?"
"That''s how it should be. But we now know how to get to The Nexus of Creation. We can''t get there sneakily anymore."
"So you''re telling us to be prepared for the risk of a bigger exposure with the Celestials?" Clyde asked.
"Actually, if you look for a path to the Nexus of Creation in the domain of one of the Celestials, they almost surely will find you," Anahita replied.
She looked around. Making sure that other people were far enough away that they couldn''t hear what they were talking about.
Of course, Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L were among the people who had to listen to this conversation since they were going to be taking part in the expedition. They whispered to each other with worried tones and looks when they heard what Anahita said.
"Did you know that our power of system still exists?" Clyde asked.
"I do." Anita nodded. "I think, for now when time is of the essence, the existence of the power of system within your body is quite important"
Anahita said that they have the power that the Senior Council needs to carry out the dangerous missions they give. However, Clyde did not hear any concerns from Anahita about the risks if they continued to use the power of the system.
If they remove their power from system, then they will be freed from the bounds that will limit themter. However, they will not have enough strength to carry out the missions that the Senior Council provides.
So, in the end, Clyde and the five people were only seen as tools. Is that it?
"May I ask you one thing?" Clyde asked.
"What is it?"
"Why don''t you Senior Council members who are the most powerful beings in the Fortress carry out the expedition yourself? Why do you always order the residents of this Fortress who are also hiding from the Celestials and are weaker than you?"
Anita shook her head. "I can''t answer that."
"Why? Is it because you don''t want to endanger yourselves while ordering others?"
Anahita smiled faintly. "I understand why you think that. But that''s not the reason."
"Then what?"
Anahita also noticed the looks that seemed to demand answers from Leon, Albert, Rosie, Wiley, and L.
"I can''t answer that now. Tonight at seven o''clock, you maye to a cafe called White Caffe. There, I will answer your questions."
Anahita disappears into the portal just as she arrives. Leaving them all in question. However, they already know how to find answers to that question.
"What would you do?" Leon approached Clyde and asked.
"This could be dangerous, you hear her," said Clyde. "I don''t want to force you toe if you don''t want to."
"If we don''t participate, what will happen to our power of system?" he asked.
Clyde took a deep breath before answering. "Honestly, I don''t know."
"Then it seems we have no choice but to go along. I don''t like the idea of ??losing our power of system."
Clyde paused, thinking of a possibility he also didn''t like. "Me too."
They continued practicing again until the sun in this ce set. Then, return to the Fortress to prepare.
~~~
Clyde found the location of the cafe after asking Samuel. As it turned out, the cafe was located not far from theke that he had been using as a meeting ce with Maethion.
Clyde had never really paid much attention to what was around thiske other than the clear and calmke water. So it''s only natural that he doesn''t realize it.
He came to this cafe first after sending a message about the location of this cafe to the five of them in the living quarter. When he arrived, the cafe still looked empty but themps were already on making this ce bright.
"Excuse me." Clyde stepped inside. The interior of this cafe is not much different from the cafe in general. It''s just that, almost all the furniture in this cafe is pure white.
Clyde sat in one of the chairs and waited. A few minutester Anahita came from the room at the back of the cafe.
She smiled and asked. "What do you want to drink?"
"Uhh...just give me coffee," answered Clyde.
A few minutester, Anahita came over with cups of coffee for Clyde and herself.
"You didn''te with your friends," said Anahita.
"They are not my friends," Clyde replied, then drank his coffee. ''This is pretty good.''
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Well, we''re just... colleagues."
"Didn''t they save you at the Selection Stage?" she asked.
"Yes. It''s just... I don''t really understand the idea of ??making friends. I... Never had friends before," said Clyde gloomily. "What do you want to talk about?"
Seeing that Clyde didn''t seem to want to talk about it, Anahita immediately changed the topic of their conversation.
"It''s good that the five people... your colleague, it''s not here yet. There''s something I need to talk to you about."
Clyde frowned and waited.
"Your power of system, it seems to be created by infusing a fraction of a certain Celestial power."
The wrinkles on Clyde''s forehead deepened. "What are you talking about?"
Anahita leaned forward. "I am the only one from the Senior Council who has ever met him so I can feel his power."
"Who?"
"God Shiva."
The room suddenly felt very quiet. Clyde paused looking at Anahita''s eyes that were looking at him with a look that was hard for him to exin.
Clyde couldn''t fully believe Anahita, but what she said actually made sense.
The Order of Mindweaver - the group that created the power of system - has God Shiva on their back, so it''s very possible that God put a fraction of his power into his power of system.
"I don''t feel anything about his power," Clyde said. That was the reason why he couldn''t fully believe Anahita''s words.
"My guess is, you can''t feel it yet because the power is too much for your body right now. You''re just not ready for that great power," said Anahita.
God Shiva''s power is incredible. Based on what Clyde had known, he was a Celestial with powers of destruction.
Clyde still couldn''t imagine how terrifying that power was. He could have destroyed his own body if he received that power now.
"That''s all I want to say to you. For now." Anahita leaned back and drank her coffee. "They havee."
The cafe door opened and the five people they were waiting for entered.
~~~
Asqa walked alone towards arge field used for practice. She has an appointment with Joshua to meet today. Asqa intended to ask about Archangel Uriel''s whereabouts since she had not seen her for the past few days.
Joshua was standing in the middle of the field bare-chested. In his hand, there was a staff made of metal that reflected sunlight.
Asqa slowed her pace, wanting to see how someone who could be called Uriel''s right-hand man fights.
Suddenly, a burst of fire came out from Joshua''s body and covered his body. A few momentster the fire shrunk and became a kind of thinyer that protected his body.
Joshua''s long blonde hair fluttered above the pressure of the fire energy on his body. Making his appearance even more intimidating.
Joshua suddenly shot out at an incredible speed. In the blink of an eye, he was already in front of a dummy that was his target.
Joshua swung his staff at the same amazing speed as before. The dummy had suddenly turned to ashes without even going through the burning process. Shows how hot the fire behind Joshua''s attack is.
Asqa subconsciouslypares Clyde to him. Unfortunately, Asqa still saw that Clyde would have a hard time fighting him now.
"Ah, you''ve arrived," Joshua said with a faint smile. Joshua put out the fire immediately.
Ash walked over to him. "You are very strong."
"This is the power that Archangel Uriel gave. This is not my own power," said Joshua. "So, you want to know why the Archangel hasn''t returned yet?"
Asqa nodded.
"Well, you must have heard about the conflict going on in the Far East, right?"
Asqa nodded again.
"But you don''t know about what''s actually in there yet. What''s in there is something very mysterious and powerful. Something even Celestials still don''t fully understand."
Ashka frowned. "Something even Celestials doesn''t fully understand yet?"
Josh nodded. "Yes. This information is already known to everybody here. You should know it as soon as possible too."
"Why?"
"Because we don''t know if the threat will stay there, or will spread further to The All Territory."
~~~
Chapter 231 Assignment
?
Asqa stood in stunned silence after hearing Joshua''s words. Something that even Celestials, the most powerful beings in the multi-verses, couldn''tprehend? It sounded impossible, but Asqa had just heard it firsthand from one of Archangel Uriel''s confidants.
It shouldn''t bepletely out of the realm of possibility then. There truly was something capable of threatening the Celestials.
And that ''thing'' - ording to what Joshua said - could have gone from wherever the ce it originated was, to The All Territory.
Joshua saw the look on Asqas''s face. Her eyes widened and her jaw almost dropped to the ground after hearing what he said.
But Joshua had expected that to happen.
"I know you must be shocked. But this is what is happening now," Joshua said. "In the past, this news was only known by a small number of beings who were high ranking in the Celestials'' follower hierarchy. But now almost all of their followers already know."
"Because they have to prepare themselves for the worse?" Asqa asked.
"Yes." Joshua nodded. "That''s why I invited you to meet here. With your talents and abilities, you could be one of the important followers of Archangel Uriel."
Asqa only heard a little bit of what Joshua said because she was busy thinking about other things.
''I have to give this information to Clyde!''
"Asqa?"
Asqa came to her senses and looked at Joshua again. "Oh, I''m sorry. I''m just... still surprised by what you said."
Joshua smiled faintly. "Don''t worry. Whatever it is, we are teamed up with a very powerful Archangel. Her Majesty will definitely be able to deal with that threat."
Asqa also knew how great the power of the Archangel Uriel was. She found it hard to believe that there was a threat that could corner her.
Moreover, she is not alone. After all, it threatens all of The All Territory so all Celestials will definitely unite to deal with it.
When she thought about it again, Asqa felt that the threat was not a problem at all. But Asqa still felt that she should tell Clyde about it.
"Then, let''s start the training," said Joshua.
"Eh?" Asqa turned her head with a confused face towards Joshua. "What do you mean?"
"I told you that you could be one of the most important if a bad scenario really happened?" Joshua said.
"B-But, what should I do? I''m just a healer."
Joshua took out a small chuckle. "You are a ''Witch Doctor''. You are not only a healer but there are still many things you can do."
Asqa can''t help but frown. She never thought that she had any other abilities apart from being a healer.
"No wonder you don''t know. You''ve never known someone you could mentor all this time," Joshua said. "But now there is me. I have plenty enough knowledge."
A glint of excitement appeared in Asqa''s eyes. "What other abilities can I learn?"
For Joshua, he sees the glint as Asqa''s passion to be more useful to Archangel Uriel. But what Asqa wants is so that she can be useful for someone else. Definitely not the Archangel.
"Energy maniptions," Joshua replied. "For now, you will learn about it first. Other abilities will follow once you have mastered it."
Asqa nodded vigorously.
Joshua cocked his head towards the field and then walked first. Asqa followed him with a burning spirit in her heart.
~~~
They started a real conversation as soon as Leon, Albert, Rosie, Wiley, and L arrived. Just like Clyde, Anahita made them the drinks they ordered.
After a long time without tasting the drinks from their previous lives, the five of them immediately ordered with immense excitement. They ordered their favorite drinks.
Leon and Albert ordered an espresso, Wiley ordered an iced americano and Rosie and L both ordered parfaits.
Clyde didn''t know they liked that. What they ordered started to show a little bit of their personality.
Meanwhile, when he saw what was in front of him, there was only a cup of coffee that he hadn''t even drunk yet. Clyde again feels that his life is quite monotonous.
Leon let out a long sigh after drinking his espresso, then said. "I never knew there was a ce like this before."
"Even though you knew about this ce before, I wasn''t here so it''s just an ordinary building," Anahita replied. "I''m sorry, maybe you guys still want to rx in this ce. However, we have something important to talk about."
The expressions on the faces of the five people instantly dimmed. But they didn''tin because that was their real goal when they came here.
"So, what should we do?" Wiley asked.
"You will immediately enter the domain of one or more Celestials to find the path to a ce called the Nexus of Creation," Anahita replied.
"What''s that exactly?" Albert asked.
"It''s where everything was created. Celestials, and the multi-verses."
"Whoa! So we got a pretty big job!" Wiley exims.
Anahita nodded. "That''s why it''s also a big risk. I rmend you find another party to go with."
"We can ask Samuel''s party," Clyde said. "They will definitely be willing."
"But, they don''t have the power of the system anymore, do they?" she asked.
"Yeah but, they''re strong enough. Though they can''t be as strong as us," Clyde replied.
"However, you have to ovee the dispute that urs if they know about it," said Anahita. "How do you think you can do that?"
Clyde paused and thought for a few moments. The five people and also Anahita stared at him.
"Yeah. I think I can do that," Clyde replied after a few moments of silence.
"Alright, then. Do some practice for a few weeks first," said Anahita.
"A few weeks? Isn''t that too long?" Clyde asked.
"Is that so?" Anahita raised her eyebrows. "Well, I''m giving you that long because I thought your training would be tough. But if you feel you can be ready quicker, that''s even better."
Anahita smiles and stands up. "I have to go now. Don''t worry, you guys can stay here as long as you want. But I won''t be here for tomorrow and after."
"You don''t?" Clyde asked.
Anita shook her head. "No. You can talk to Maethion or another member of the Senior Council when you feel ready."
Anahita walks out towards the door and disappears. Leaving them inside the now suddenly very empty cafe.
Clyde suddenly stood up without finishing his coffee.
"I''m going to go see Samuel''s party to talk about this," Clyde said. "Meanwhile, you guys can probably continue with your own training."
Without waiting for a reply from them, Clyde walked out of the cafe. The five people felt they didn''t need to rush, so they chose to chat while finishing their drinks. Because they don''t know when they will be able to enjoy something like this again.
~~~
Clyde approached Samuel and his party in the hotel building. They were all surprised when they found Clyde''s arrival.
Samuel came from upstairs a momentter. And in no time, they started the meeting.
Because he didn''t want to waste time, Clyde immediately said the gist of what they were going to do. As he had expected, the reaction of Samuel''s party was one of obvious shock, fear, and all kinds of reluctance.
Leyan turned his head away from Clyde as if gazing at the environment that was always that night outside was far more pleasant than staring at him.
Kei and Haru who were sitting side by side looked at each other and then turned to Samuel. Meanwhile, Kiara fidgeted her wand restlessly.
Clyde nced at them all. He didn''t say anything after saying what he wanted to say and chose to wait.
"When are we leaving?" Samuel asked.
"Senior Councils are giving us a few weeks. I don''t know exactly how many. I''ll ask that once you''ve agreed," Clyde replied.
"What if we disagree?" he asked.
Clyde shrugged. "We have to find another party. In the end, we have to keep going."
"We can help. But we are not sure we have enough strength," said Samuel.
"You don''t really need to fight. We will face the threat directly. You just provide support," said Clyde.
Clyde is still confused, about whether he should say about the power of system that still exists or not. Eventually, Samuel and his party would definitely find out about it.
''Maybeter,'' thought Clyde with an uneasy feeling.
"What exactly is our job?" Leyan asked. "Finding the path to The Nexus of Creation? That sounds ridiculous. Where the hell do you get the information about that?"
"About that... I''ll tell you about that some other time," Clyde replied. "For now let''s focus on the important things first. If you guys are willing toe along, we should start doing the training."
"We''re in," said Samuel.
Leyan, Kei, Haru, and Kiara turned toward him. But they didn''tin because they also thought that this expedition was something important. An expedition that would bring them even closer to the Celestials.
~~~
Chapter 232 Before Tomorrow
?
Clyde showed a small smile at Samuel''s answer. His voice means so much because he represents the rest of his member''s voices. If he said he was going to go on this expedition, it was obvious that the others would too. Although apanied by a little reluctance.
"Then we can do the practice together tomorrow. What do you think?" Clyde asked.
"Yes. I think it''s a good idea. The sooner the better, right?" said Samuel.
Clyde withdrew from the hotel. Leaving the five of them to discuss this matter among themselves.
"Are you sure about this, Sam?" Kiara asked with obvious anxiety on her face.
"Yes. Isn''t this expedition going to get us closer to the Celestials?" Samuel turned to them one by one. "You heard it yourself, he said that we will find the path to the Nexus of Creation."
Kiara gritted her teeth. If they really could find the Nexus of Creation, they''d basically found the only weakness of the Celestials since that''s where they were created. If the ce where they were created is destroyed, that will automatically make them considerably weaker, if not instantly kill them.
"But the danger..." Leyan''s words trailed off. He nced at Samuel as if telling the man to reconsider it. Even though in his heart Leyan also agreed with the idea of ??finding the Nexus of Creation, the danger they will face is immense.
Samuel''s eyes turned to Clyde''s back who getting further away. He said. "There is Clyde who is leading this expedition. You already know about his power is like. Maybe even now his power has increased again after the expedition he didst time."
They all looked at each other with a contemtive look. But after what Samuel said, they no longer said anyints or disapproval.
After all, Clyde said that they didn''t need to directly fight the threats they faced. He and the other five would be fighting live while they were providing support.
"We might as well get the secret of their power now," Samuel said suddenly.
"You still thinking about that, Sam?" Kei asked.
"Of course, Kei. We need power to fight Celestials." Samuel nced at Kei. "You didn''t forget about our goal from the start, did you?"
Kei saw a red shesh in Samuel''s eyes which immediately reminded her of their goal to both seek revenge against the Celestials.
"I still remember it," said Kei.
Samuel nodded as if satisfied with Kei''s answer.
"We have to get the secret of that power," Samuel said. "Tomorrow everything will begin."
~~~
Clyde took a step back and looked down. What should he say to Samuel, Leyan, Kei, Haru, and Kiara about his remaining power of system?
If they knew about it, and knew that the Senior Council granted them a waiver for needing their strength to carry out several expedition missions a few days ago, they definitely wouldn''t be able to take it well.
For a matter like this, he had to ask Maethion. So Clyde went straight to theke and sat on the chair they usually used to meet.
Clyde was a bit dubious because he hadn''t made an appointment to meet the bespectacled Elf. But part of him - somehow - believed that Mathion would notice he was here.
Clyde waited and waited. The view of the calmke water like a dark mirror became the center of attention. He suddenly became curious as to what was inside that calmke water.
He had never seen any fish, nts, or even the tiny ripples that indicated there is life existed in theke. Yet all the beings that were spending time around theke didn''t seem concerned with the strange silence and stillness.
Clyde stood with his eyes still staring out at theke. His curiosity created an impulse to walk there, it was as if he was pulled by an unseen force into thatke.
"Fascinatingke, huh?"
Maethion''s voice pulled Clyde back to his senses. He turned his head and saw the bespectacled Elf already sitting on the chair.
Clyde immediately canceled his intention and sat back where he was.
"So you really came," said Clyde.
"I sensed your presence here so I thought you would like to see me," Maethion replied lightly.
''So it''s true he could tell I was here.'' Clyde nodded understandingly.
"What is it?" Maethion asked. "Is this about the expedition you''re going on next?"
"Of course. There''s nothing more important than that right now, right?" Clyde replied. "I invited another party toe with us. But there''s some kind of problem."
Maethion nodded in understanding. "They don''t know that your power of system is still there?"
"Yes." Clyde nodded. Maethion must have known about that from the start. "What should I do?"
"Well," Maethion shrugged, his face one of helplessness. "For now, it looks like we have to start breaking the rules one by one. For the greater good."
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked with a frown.
Maethion nced at him. "I can restore their power of system."
"What? You can do that?!"
"Of course. We took it, and we can return it to them again. Though, that''s not really a good thing to do."
"What about the other Senior Council?" Clyde asked.
"They agreed, raucously. Although this could be a bad thing for them, now we are pressed for time," Maethion replied. "You must be wondering why we, Senior Council, members don''t do this dangerous task ourselves if we are strong enough, right?"
Clyde answered with a curt nod.
"The Senior Council who isn''t here is spying on the Celestials'' domain."
The answer was quite surprising. But not something that was entirely outside of Clyde''s expectations.
About how they could get information quickly, the whereabouts of this Fortress which had been kept hidden all this time, and various other benefits enjoyed by the residents of this Fortress.
If the Senior Council were spies within the Celestials'' inner circle, that was something that was very likely.
"This is a secret. You don''t need me to remind you about that, right ?" Maethion said.
"Yeah." Clyde nodded. "So, I need them to get their power of system as soon as possible because I want to get them leveling up right away."
"Tomorrow. I''ll call you where to meet."
After the two of them agreed, Clyde and Mathion parted ways.
Clyde walked into his room feeling relieved. ''This way, I don''t have to worry about Samuel and his friends. Who would have thought that their power of system could be restored just like that? I thought their power of system would just disappear.''
Clyde smiled and closed his eyes. Tomorrow will be a long day. He just knows it.
~~~
Asqa took a deep breath after tiring practice. She had practiced for quite a long time, for an hour to be more precise, but the results she got were still not enough.
But that''s not enough ording to her own thinking while actually, Asqa''s development is enough for someone who has just used the ability for the first time.
Someone in The All Territory gains a new skill after they train it. Unlike during the Selection Stage when one just needs to buy a Skill via a Skill Purchasing Machine.
The environment in The All Territory allowed their Mana and their bodies to develop much more rapidly. Coupled with the power of system that still exists, they can reach a high level of strength in a faster time than the residents in Sivagadh Fortress or any other ce.
Joshua saw Asqa from a distance. He was still shirtless and let a thinyer of fire cover his body.
"I think it''s time to rest," Joshua said.
"No. A little more," Asqa replied through panting breaths.
Joshua smiled. "You''re so excited. Why?"
"Why, of course, because I want to be of use to the Archangel," said Asqa. She knew that she could get what she wanted in this ce by using the Archangel''s name. Especially with Joshua who looks so admiring and obedient to her. So Asqa intends to put it to good use.
The smile on Joshua''s face grew even wider. "I like your spirit. But don''t force your body for power it doesn''t understand yet."
Asqa stared at him waiting to see what he would do next.
"That''s enough for now. You can already feel the natural energy around you and put a bit of it into your body. That''s quite a development for someone just starting."
"Is that so? But... when can I use this to fight?" Asqa asked.
"Ha ha!" Joshuaughed. "Not that fast, girl. You''re just starting. There is still a long way to that."
Aska just nodded reluctantly. Maybe it''s still too early for her.
Suddenly a loud trumpet sound echoed from the sky. Joshua''s face hardened but Asqa only put on a confused face.
"What happened?" Asqa asked.
"That''s our calling. Something bad seems to have happened and we have to prepare to fight," Joshua said.
"F-Fight?" Asqa was dumbfounded.
"We gotta go!"
~~~
Chapter 233 The Calling
?
After hearing the sound of that very loud trumpet, Asqa and Joshua immediately rushed away from the field where they were practicing.
Joshua walked at a fast pace. His long legs allow him to move very quickly even though he just walking, much faster than Asqa.
Asqa, who only has a pair of short legs, tries her best to speed up her steps but still can''t match Joshua''s speed. Finally, she gave up and let Joshua go first.
Joshua turned his head when he realized that Asqa was not next to him.
"I''m sorry, but we have to hurry," said Joshua.
"Yes. I know," Asqa replied in a t tone, trying to hide her annoyance.
Despite feeling guilty about leaving Asqa behind, Joshua chose to prioritize obeying the trumpet''s call rather than waiting for her and risking a dy in his arrival. Consequently, he paid no further attention to Asqa.
Seeing Joshua who turned his head and walked faster, Asqa slowed down her steps. Why was she in such a hurry to respond to the call? Asqa is not as devoted as Joshua to the Archangel.
But she is also curious, what happened now? She had never heard a horn or trumpet or whatever it is sound like that before. Nor did she ever hear anyone say about the horn calling all followers to gather and prepare for battle.
The ongoing event was undeniably significant. It demanded the participation and presence of all the residents, leaving no doubt about its importance.
The sheer scale of the gathering implied that something substantial and momentous was unfolding.
The horn continued to sound for about fifteen minutes before finally stopping when all of Archangel Uriel''s followers in this domain gathered.
It was the first time Asqa had seen so many beings gather. All of them were wearing pure white clothes like her and had the same confused faces.
They gathered facing the white pce which was the main residence of the Archangel. An air of anticipation filled the atmosphere as they yearned for an exnation that would unravel the mystery behind the resounding horn''s purpose.
Asqa did not see Joshua''s presence around the followers who lined up below. But she saw someone she knew.
"Hiro," Asqa called out to him. Hiro turned and smiled at her, though his smile was thin and he couldn''t hide the tension on his face.
Asqa approached him and asked. "What happened?"
"This is Archangel Uriel''s summons. Something big happened. You already know what the conflict in the Far East is all about?"
Asqa nodded briefly.
"While I cannot be certain, there is a possibility that it is connected to that particr event."
Asqa is silent and has the same tense face as Hiro. Hiro turned his head and looked straight ahead. He wanted to say some words that might ease Asqa''s fear. But unfortunately, he also felt the same fear.
A momentter a woman walked up and stood on the balcony of the white pce, facing them all.
"My brothers and sisters!" the woman began to speak. Her voice was so loud that all the beings present could easily hear it. "We are facing an unknown danger. Archangel Uriel has asked us to prepare for a battle."
"As expected."
Asqa heard Hiro mutter next to her. She thought, ''Shit, I don''t know what''s going to happen. Should I pass this on to Clyde? But... I don''t know how to reach him first!''
So far, it''s always been Clyde who contacts her first in a way she doesn''t know how. Asqa didn''t even know that it was possible, and he did it without making anyone suspect it.
"You will be under the leadership of the most devoted followers of the Archangel with experience in battles. And you will start preparing tomorrow," the woman who seemed to have a strong leadership aura around her continued. She was one of those strong and experienced followers and warriors of the Archangel. Though, Asqa has never seen her.
Asqa looked around her. Everyone seemed to be wondering what threat they would face. What she saw was just a stiff face that seemed eager to immediately fight under Archangel Uriel''s orders.
So Asqa leaned closer to Hiro and whispered. "What exactly are we going to face? Monsters?"
Hiro shook his head in response. "I''m not sure. Some im that monsters emerge from anomalies in the Far East, while others believe it to be an intangible force." The uncertainty in his voice mirrored theck of concrete information surrounding the matter.
Asqa nodded while wearing a restless and anxious expression that seemed to have been etched eternally on her face. She bit her lower lips. ''I haven''t even started learning the new Skill yet. Why did this have to happen now?!''
After that, the meeting was disbanded because they didn''t want to waste time and wanted to make preparations immediately. Distribution has also been done.
It turns out that not all beings who be Uriel''s followers will jump into battle. Some who are not strong enough will stay in this ce to strengthen their defense or do things that are their job while others focus on preparing for threats.
Asqa hopes that she will be the one who stays yet she knows that it is not possible. Joshua, who was appointed as one of the troop leaders, pointed at her and immediately put her into his troop. Asqa didn''t have too many words toin about so she entered even though she was reluctant.
Within Joshua''s army were twenty beings of various races who seemed to be more experienced than her. Asqa scanned around and saw that there were Elves, Dwarves, and even something that looked like a lizard and towered over two meters.
Asqa had never looked at a race other than humans this closely because she was still afraid of creatures other than humans since the Selection Stage.
The lizard realized that Asqa was staring at him so he turned his head. Then the corners of his lips pulled up to form what was supposed to be a smile. However, the presence of small, pointy teeth made his smile appear eerie instead.
But Asqa knew that she would offend that being if she showed a scared face or frowned even a little. So Asqa forced her face to also make a smile.
"Listen, brothers and sisters," Joshua began. "You all know that what we are going to face is a threat we have never faced before. So, I expect more attention and dedication from all of you this time."
All the beings in his squad replied resoundingly. Joshua nodded in satisfaction then continued. "We''ll start preparations now since we can''t waste time."
And then, their preparations began just like that. A day that was originally peaceful suddenly turned into a day filled with tension.
~~~
Samuel, Leyan, Kei, Haru, and Kiara waited in front of Clyde''s living quarters with mixed feelings.
Some of them feel reluctant and worried. But they are united by the same feeling, that is the feeling of getting meaningful progress after years of living in uncertainty.
Clyde came out not long after while fully equipped. He was even wearing a brown coat armor and two swords hanging from his waist.
"Are we going to dobat training right away?" Leyan asked confusedly when he saw all of Clyde''s preparations. Clyde also asked them to wear their battle gear when they came here.
"If that''s possible, then yes," Clyde answered lightly as he walked towards them. "You may be surprised by what you hear. But believe me, this is for the best."
Hearing Clyde''s words, the five of them exchanged looks of uncertainty and confusion.
It turns out that there is still something more behind this.
They followed Clyde into a house styled like a pce from the eighties which was where Maethion lived. When they entered, Maethion greeted them with a smile like he always did.
Samuel and his party members already knew who Maethion was and found Maethion - as one of the Senior Council - calling them directly to his ce making them wonder.
"You must be wondering why you are here," Maethion began. "Let''s get straight to the point. I will restore your power of system."
Maethion''s words elicited a reaction that Clyde and the bespectacled Elf could have expected.
The exnation continues about Clyde and the five people who weren''t here who were allowed to use their power of system out of dire need. Maethion also immediately said that there will be consequences if they having the power of system.
Leyan and Samuel let out humorlessughs. Meanwhile, Kei, Haru, and Kiara just sat with their jaws almost dropping to the floor, dumbfounded.
"So the reason for your power is just that?" Leyan stared at Clyde with a look full of disbelief.
Clyde just nodded and decided not to tell all the truth.
Samuel felt a weight in his heart lifted. It turns out that it''s not because he is less talented or simply not strong enough. But that''s because Clyde still has the power of his system while he doesn''t have it.
"So, we will return it to you for this expedition," said Maethion.
~~~
Chapter 234 Familiar Power
?
The five of them initially felt happy and excited because their power of system would return. However, Clyde and Maethion looked at the five of them with straight faces, the five of them were probably too happy that they forgot about the consequences of the power of system. After all, Maethion only exined that there are consequences when they use the power of system but he hasn''t exined everything.
Samuel was the first to notice it. His face immediately became more tense and reserved after he came to his senses.
"You said there would be consequences for using the power of system," Samuel said, his voice stopping his friends who were still in the celebratory stage.
"You will be bounded by a limit. You all will not be able to fight the Celestials," Maethion said.
"What?" Samuel asked with a tone of shock and disbelief. "You''ve got to be kidding. What''s the use of us having that if we can''t use it against Celestials?!"
"That''s the reason we chose to remove the power from your body," Maethion said.
"But... we''ll only be using it to go to the Celestials'' domain for now, right?" Kiara asked.
"Unless Celestials know of your presence and fought you head-on, you''re safe," Maethion replied. "Only the Celestials you have to worry about. If it''s just their followers, the bounds and limits won''t work."
"So, as long as we don''t meet Celestial face to face, are we safe?" Samuel asked.
Maethion nodded firmly. "Yes."
"Are you sure? Are you sure that none of their followers use that bound?"
Maethion paused for a moment. But he immediately answered before any more doubts were created in their minds.
"Yes."
After hearing Maethion''s answer, Samuel sighed. His face, which used to be tense, was now rxed to a great extent, as were Leyan, Kei, Haru, and Kiara.
"When can we get back the power of system?" Leyan asked, there was a note of impatience in his voice.
Maethion smiled. "Then,e."
The Elf stood up and waved her hand at the five of them, asking them to follow him.
The five people immediately stood up and followed Maethion to the back of his house. Clyde also immediately followed them because he too was curious about how Maethion was able to restore the power of system that they had lost.
They entered arge room that was directly behind Maethion''s living room. The bespectacled Elf asked Samuel, Leyan, Kei, Haru, and Kiara to sit in the five seats avable there.
Meanwhile, Clyde stood behind them with his arms folded in front of his chest, observing every process that was happening before his eyes.
Maethion pushed a table towards them.
On the table were five hexagonal crystals that had been arranged in the order they were seated. Within the crystals was something like a colorful mist that was constantly moving.
"This is quite simple actually," Maethion said. "Those crystals contain Aetheric Records - your sealed power of system. We can''t destroy it and can only seal the power. Take it."
The five of them took the crystals that were in front of them respectively. When their hands touched the hexagonal crystals they could feel a kind of strange familiarity. It was as if they were holding onto an old memory they had forgotten.
It was only natural since the power of system was something that had appeared in their souls from the very beginning of the Selection Stage. And now they are reunited with it after a long time apart. Even though it was something that would limit them, still, it was the power of system that had made them survive in the Selection Stage.
When he realized that the five of them were already holding the crystals and saw their expressions, Maethion asked them to proceed to the next process.
"Crush it," the Elf said.
The five of them looked at him questioningly.
"Just crush it. The crystals may look hard but are actually very fragile. Give it a little force and the crystals will be crushed therefore the power of system sealed inside will return to your bodies."
Samuel was the first to act. He pressed the surface of the crystals with his fingers.
*CRACK!*
A momentter a crack is created. Samuel pressed the crystal in his hand harder until finally the crystal shattered into small pieces.
Multicolored light came out and squirmed in front of Samuel, before finally entering his body. Samuel felt the surge of powerful yet familiar power within his body.
The colorful light covered Samuel''s body for a few moments before finally disappearingpletely.
Leyan, Kei, Haru, and Kiara were still looking at him, waiting to see what was going on. But what they saw wasn''t as bad as they thought. Instead, Samuel smiled broadly with a bright face; indicating that he feels good things inside of his body.
"Crush it!" said Samuel to his friends.
Hearing his urge, the four of them immediately crushed their crystals. The same thing happened. That surge of power entered their bodies.
Clyde, who had been watching from behind, could feel the presence of new power from the five of them. The five of them were even strong enough to go on an expedition to The All Territory even without their power of system. Now that the power had returned, would it match their current strength or reset their body to the moment it was before it was taken away?
Clyde hopes that thetter doesn''t happen. It would be really troublesome if that happened.
"How are you feeling?" Maethion asked with a smile after seeing their satisfied faces.
"I feel amazing," Leyan replied in a dreamy voice because he was still trying to wrap his mind around the power that was returning to his body.
The other four also showed the same expression until they were speechless. However, Samuel was the first toe to his senses.
"Now all we have to do is raise our levels, right?" he asked.
"Yeah. I guess my job here is done now," Mathion replied. "You guys can go and prepare for the expedition.
"And one more thing, you won''t be able to see your Character Information in this Fortress. Even though your power of system has returned, something in this Fortress is blocking it."
They came out of Maethion''s house in a much better mood than when they entered.
Clyde was still walking behind them when they came out of the house. Unfortunately, he can''t use his [Skill:Inspection] now or he will only see blurry text. But it''s alright because he can still see itter.
"Let''s just go to a Ruin and gain some levels. Just like the old days," Samuel said with a big smile. His mood did seem much better than before and Clyde could feel it.
''Did he perhaps forget about that consequence? Well, I guess it''s better to let them enjoy it for now.''
Clyde nodded briefly at Samuel. "I''ll call the others first. Wait for me at the portal."
After that, he left them to gather Leon''s party. A few minutester Clyde came with Leon and his party to the portal. The ten people from the two different parties started to introduce themselves to one another. Of course, they couldn''t get along right away but Clyde saw that there wouldn''t be too many problems as long as they had the same goals.
"You choose the Ruin," Clyde said to Samuel.
Samuel nodded and stuck his amulet into the portal. A momentter the portal''s scenery changed to reveal a Ruin that looked like a wilderness.
"Where''s that?" Clyde frowned because he thought the Ruin would be quite difficult. The forest was extremely thick and dense, such terrain would definitely restrict their movements.
"This used to be Leyan''s world. In this ce, there are many monsters that haven''t been killed yet." Samuel replied. "Don''t worry. Leyan knows this ce well."
Hearing that, Clyde nodded. At least they had someone familiar with the Ruin so the risk of getting lost or getting in trouble was significantly reduced.
And so, they entered the portal with excited faces, especially Samuel and his party members.
~~~
It was almost noon when their joint practice finally stopped. Joshua said that they could rest now for a few minutes to recover their mana.
Asqa is one of the most grateful because of that. She had run out of Mana even though her Mana count had increased a lot from the Selection Stage.
A momentter she noticed a figure flying towards them. Brilliant white wings stretched and moved behind his back.
When hended, it was a man who was one of the troop leaders. He immediately walked towards Joshua with quick steps.
He leaned and whispered into Joshua''s ear. "We must go now. Her Majesty has asked us to assemble."
"Do you know what happened, Matt?" Joshua asked with an uneasy face. This can''t be something good if the Archangel requests their presence in a hurry like this.
Matt looked at Joshua. "Maybe... we should leave sooner than we think."
~~~
Chapter 235 Sight In The Ruin
?
Joshua''s expression turned hard when he heard Matt''s words. They were silent and looked at each other for a few moments. However, those few moments did not escape Asqa''s watch, who had kept her focus on observing them from the start.
Seeing the expressions of the two of them Asqa immediately knew that something was wrong. Or even an unexpected bad event has urred. Maybe she won''t have time to tell Clyde anything.
Matt and Joshua spoke again in hushed voices that none of the others could hear.
"So there have been warriors of the Archangel who died?" Joshua asked.
Matt gave a curt nod. "And you know that never happened. I mean, the Archangel only brought a few of the warriors with her.
"We, who are one of her strongest warriors, didn''t go there because at first, she thought our presence was unnecessary. We also thought so.
"However, somehow, the creature that appears from the ck wall can kill a few of our brothers and sisters brought by the Archangel."
Matt''s voice filled with anxiety as he said that. But Joshua has always been the calmest of the two of them.
Joshua said. "Let''s focus on our training first, Matt. After all, the Archangel hasn''t directly given orders for us to set off, right?"
Matt shook his head.
"That means the situation is still under her control. We don''t need to worry too much. For now, let''s focus on our training to prepare everyone in case something bad does happen."
Hearing Joshua''sposed words as usual, Matt also felt calm in his heart which had always been restless a few seconds ago. Matt let out a long sigh as if intending to let out all the anxiety and worries in his heart.
"You''re right, Josh. I''m sorry. I alwayse confused and anxious like this and bother you," Matt said.
Joshua smiled. "What are you saying? We should always be there for each other."
After saying a few more things, Matt pped his wings and flew away from that ce. Asqa saw Joshua smiling as he saw his friend''s departure. However, as soon as Matt moved away Joshua''s face became hard again; the restlessness and worry returned to his heart.
For thousands of years, no one has ever seeded in killing the warriors of the Archangel Uriel because of their strength. The death of the warriors of the Archangel Uriel only urred when the Archangel fought Demon Kings or other powerful Celestials.
But now, something unexpected happened. Something from an unknown origin managed to kill her warriors.
Joshua swallowed his saliva which suddenly felt so hard as he thought about it. All the expressions on Joshua''s face never left Asqa''s attention. That way Asqa could predict that the magnitude of this problem was indeed not small.
Joshua stood up and stared at his troop who were whispering to each other about the same thing. Asqa didn''t need to bother to avert her gaze because she was blocked behind the bodies of other troop members.
Joshua walked towards them and then said. "Let''s start our training. I just received word that there is a possibility that we will leave sooner than we thought. So, we don''t have much time."
All the beings in the troop let out agitated voices again. They looked at each other and exchanged worried nces. However, it didn''tst long because Joshua strictly ordered them to continue training.
Asqa, as one of five beings who have the ability as a healer, trains with four other beings. Her healer friends this time are two female Elves, a male human, and a male Dwarf.
The male Dwarf was the most senior healer among them while Asqa, of course, was the most junior with the least experience. So it''s clear that the Dwarf is the leader of this group of healers.
However, before they actually started training together Joshua came over to say something.
"Asqa, you must continue your training to master Energy Maniptions first."
After saying that Joshua immediately turned around and headed towards the other group. The four friends of her group turned their eyes on Asqa.
"You can use Energy Maniption?" the male Dwarf - his name is Havoun - asked in a surprised tone.
Asqa nodded with a small smile. "Yes. I''m not a pure healer."
The other three members of her group nodded with understanding looks. Then, Havoun asked Asqa to separate from the group of healers to do her private training.
Asqa happily walks away. This way, she at least won''t be disturbed when Clyde calls her. Asqa kept hoping that Clyde would contact her even though the possibility was small.
Asqa started her training with that hope.
~~~
Clyde and the others arrived at the Ruin and immediately moved based on the instructions from Leyan who was familiar with this wilderness.
From inside they didn''t see anything broken or strange in this forest area. Even though this is a Ruin so this ce should be ruined. But since earlier they had only seen a dense green forest like a normal rainforest.
"Somehow, this area of ??the forest wasn''t affected by the destruction. But you will see it soon enough," Leyan said in a somber tone. He answered their questions and also gave them alerts about what they would see from his tone.
A few minutester they finally came out of the rainforest and saw a sight that was quite shocking even after understanding what a Ruin was.
There is only barrennd as far as the eye can see with the ground burning red or ck filled with ashes. The crack in the ground that split apart released fire and heat that created a mirage.
There is no tree or any nt whatsoever.
However, that wasn''t the most surprising sight of all. Corpses floating in the air in various positions. The Corpses didn''t rot despite being there for a long time but their faces were pale white. Which looks no better.
They are Elves, Dwarves, and a few humans. They floated in the air and filled the sky until they were as high as they touched the clouds.
Leyan turned to his side, seeing the expressions shown by everyone there. Their expressions were as he expected. Their faces cringed with disgust, horror, and disturbed.
"Yeah..." Leyan said. "This is what happened to my world."
The response didn''te right away. Because with a sight like this, they will need more time to wrap their mind around it.
Clyde frowned deeply, his lips pressed together and his eyes stared at the floating corpses. ''Wow, the World Masters in charge of this world must have a twisted mind.''
Clyde didn''t really know whether the World Masters was making scenarios at the Selection Stage or if scenarios actually existed and they were only tasked with supervising the course of the Selection Stage. Nevertheless, they allow something like this to happen to the inhabitants of this world.
No wonder they have such a strong desire for revenge. If one is shown a sight like this, seeing their family or loved ones die and just floating in the air without a clear direction, it is only natural that their grudge is so great.
Luckily the people here were used to death and misery. Their souls had already been tempered by the rigors of the Selection Stage so this sight didn''t have too much of a crippling impact on them. They just frowned and feel sad, but they can continue.
"You alright?" Samuel asked while touching Leyan''s shoulder.
"Ha ha." Leyanughed. He tried to seem that none of this bothered him at all. "I''m fine. I''ve seen sights like this for a long time so there''s no problem anymore."
Samuel stared at Leyan for a few more moments. He had known the Elf for a long time and he never wanted to seem too emotional. Because of that he always puts on a mask as if he is tough by throwing harsh or sarcasticments.
Yet Samuel knew, deep in his heart Leyan must still feel something from the destruction of his world.
"Let''s get started then," said Samuel. "Where can we start?"
"We don''t need to go anywhere, actually," replied Leyan. "They are here."
"Who''s here?" Rosie asked with a worried frown.
"The monsters."
And just as Leyan finished saying that, ck vortexes appeared in the air between the corpses. The vortex looked like ck ash swirling as air then from the vortex ck wraith figures shot out. They may number in the hundreds appearing at many different points among the corpses.
Clyde who was staring at them thought the ck wraiths were harmless. So again, he chose to stay behind while they farmed for the necessary Exp.
The ten people charged forward to start ying the ck wraiths. As he had expected, the ck wraiths weren''t strong monsters and they could kill them easily.
Clyde''s eyes stared at the ten of them. Who would have guessed that the current him already has tenpanions? It was as if he was in a small army.
~~~
Chapter 236 Forgotten Thought
?
Samuel looked around him. When he realized what was happening, Samuel couldn''t help but marvel at how he was feeling right now.
Everything around him right now was something that previously made him afraid and worried. Every Ruin was a new challenge and the slightest mishap could cost his life and the lives of his friends.
However, he felt a huge change in his body. It turns out that the power of system directly adjusts his body''s current condition which has developed further than in the Selection Stage.
Everything he gets is processed into Exp points and then bes Level. Currently, his proficiency with all the Skills he acquired in the system had also increased; Samuel could also feel Mana flowing smoothly in every cell in his body.
When he saw them, Samuel also realized that his friends felt the same way. On their faces stered a wide smile and eyes full of enthusiasm. Their movements were much more flexible and faster than before.
A Ruin, which was usually a ce they faced with gloomy and anxious faces, now seemed to be a yground they had not visited in a long time. Now when theye back here they seem to really enjoy it.
Even Leyan who must have felt a bit disturbed when returning to his ruined world was smiling broadly as he shot his arrows. Sometimes the sound ofughter alsoes out of him, Leyan enjoys all of this just like Kei, Haru, and Kiara enjoying it.
The five others who were hunting with them watched the party with puzzled faces.
"Why are they like that?" L asked with a frown.
Leon, who happened to be next to her and was the target of the question, nced at Samuel and his friends.
"Maybe it''s because they just got their power of system back," Leon said.
"Yeah but... do they have to act like that? They''reughing while killing those ck monsters."
Leon chuckled. "You can''t understand it because you''ve never lost your power of system. We don''t know how those who have tried to reach their current power level feel. Just let them be."
L paused. Leon is right. She didn''t feel the difficulties they were facing at all, so she didn''t actually have the right toment on their behavior. Suddenly she felt guilty.
"Never mind. Focus on hunting these wraiths," Leon said.
L nodded then aimed her crossbow again. These ck monsters that looked like wraiths weren''t strong at all so L didn''t even need to use her skill for a glimpse into the future to kill them.
Coupled with her current stats, L could easily aim and shoot them.
They continued their hunt. Notifications indicating that they had gained experience kept popping up but they didn''t pay much attention to it. Moreover, Samuel''s party continued to kill the ck wraiths mercilessly with their new powers.
Clyde who was still watching them from the edge of the forest smiled. Seeing them, he was like a father watching their kids y.
While watching them Clyde thought: ''With this many members one day a disagreement will ur. What should I do when that timees?''
The smile that was previously on his face is now gone, reced by a frown. His mind became restless as that thought came back to him.
What if... the same betrayal happened to him from the Selection Stage? Clyde suddenly felt angry with himself for having been happy about a situation like this even though the bad possibility was still going to happen.
''I have to be even more careful.''
He had been a bit more off guardtely and Clyde only realized it now. He began to feelfortable with having apanion next to him without thinking about the consequences he would get in the future.
''Don''t be an idiot. You''vee this far so don''t let them betray you.''
Clyde sighed while looking ahead; towards the people who will be hispanions to carry out the expedition this time.
He would get closer to the Celestials after finding the path to find that thing called the Nexus of Creation. And after that, the revenge process will be easier.
He unsheathed his fiery sword which was called the Inferno de. Immediately, mes ignited on the de and created a bright light around him.
A dozen ck wraiths rushed at him from all sides. Clyde swings Inferno de from left to right at normal speed and sends a sh of fire that expands into a wall of fire. The ck wraiths that rushed towards him were immediately struck by the wall of fire with intense heat then evaporated in the blink of an eye.
Samuel looked back because he caught a reddish glow from the corner of his eye while ying these ck wraiths.
''As I thought. His strength was indeed on a different level. Just a little more, Clyde. I will challenge you to fight again.''
Now Samuel no longer thinks of Clyde as an arrogant person who doesn''t want to share the secret of his strength anymore.
He now sees Clyde as a rival. Clyde was someone who could be a measure of his strength; if he could defeat Clyde, Samuel would be more confident in his own strength.
Apanied by a grin Samuel swung his spear again and once again killed the ck wraiths.
After roughly ten minutes had passed all the ck wraiths in this ce had disappeared; died at the point of the guns of the ten men. Some of them had leveled up 1 because the ck wraiths were just small monsters that didn''t give much experience.
Clyde walked towards them at a leisurely pace. The fiery sword in his hand made all of them subconsciously intimidate.
"Where can we find big monsters?" Clyde asked Leyan.
Leyan nodded. "Follow me."
Leyan walked leading them. No oneined because they really had to fight monsters that were stronger and bigger to get more Exp.
"I have an idea," Wiley suddenly said in the middle of their walk.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Hunting in such arge number feels a little bit... cramped, don''t you think?" said Wiley. "We better split up into smaller groups."
"I think it''s a good idea," Leon said. Then looked towards the rest. "What do you think?"
"I agree," said Samuel.
And then, they all turned to Clyde as if waiting for his decision.
Clyde blinked getting stares from them. ''Since when did I be a leader?''
Clyde was silent and pondering for a few moments. He didn''t need to waste time thinking about that and just needed to say something.
"I think that''s a good idea too," Clyde said, nodding. "But won''t we get lost without Leyan?"
"Don''t worry. There''s only barrennd like this here, no matter how far you walk," said Leyan.
Clyde nodded again.
Samuel asked. "How about you?"
"I''ll go myself," Clyde replied.
"Oh alright." Samuel didn''t say anything else after that; in the end, Clyde was someone who wanted to be alone and kept them at a distance.
Everyone understood Clyde''s nature and then immediately dispersed with their respective parties leaving Clyde alone in the middle of the barrennd and floating corpses.
Clyde let out a sigh. "This is better."
He started walking to find his own monster prey.
~~~
Anahita walked between the bright white corridors of this pce. After walking for a while she entered into a room. Within the room were already four other people seated with stiff expressions.
"Did I miss something?" Anahita asked while seating herself on the only chair left.
"There are two warriors dead from Archangel Uriel''s troop," a man who also had silver hair but in a short cut replied.
That reply made Anahita widen her eyes. "What?!"
The man looked at her and gave a slow nod. "We must prepare for the worst-case scenario."
Anahita bes silent and thinks. She already knew about some of the details of the conflict in the Far East, as well as the other members of the Senior Councils. But she didn''t know that the scale of the matter had already risen to this level.
Two warriors of one of the fiercest Archangel have died? That hasn''t happened in several thousand years. Anahita didn''t expect that she would get news like this once she came back from Sivagadh Fortress. She has to tell this to the Senior Councils but Anahita can''t go away after justing back or it will be suspicious.
"That''s escted quickly, isn''t it? Some time ago we only knew that strange monsters kepting out of that ck wall but suddenly we knew that there were warriors who died," another woman with shoulder-length blonde hair said. She is a woman with a petite body.
"Has Archangel Michael decided to act yet?" Anahita asked.
The four people in the room shook their heads almost simultaneously.
"But we never know," said a thin man among them. "You guys know the nature of the Archangel. He could suddenly decide to act."
"You are right," said Anahita.
~~~
Chapter 237 Taking Action
?
Anahita gets into deep thought. The magnitude of this issue had suddenly increased to this level. Even though she thought that there would still be sometime before something like this urred.
When she looked up, Anahita saw that the faces of everyone in the room were not much better than hers. They are one of the many parties formed by Archangel Michael to deal with various kinds of problems. And Anahita is one of the core members of this important group.
Just like everyone in Sivagadh Fortress and everyone in the Senior Council, Anahita has good reason to be in the Resistance group fighting the Celestials from the darkness.
She had gone through various kinds of suffering in the Selection Stage until finally turning her into a cruel person. Anahita has faced ten men who have done despicable things to her.
After killing her husband, the men were abusing her sexually. And then, the feeling of revenge swelled in her heart. Anahita finds the strength to move for revenge.
That''s when suddenly a luminous figure with spread wings approached her who was slumped. The figure is a messenger from the Archangel Michael who is attracted to her, somehow. So Anahita joined to be her follower and Archangel Michael gave her extraordinary power to take revenge.
Anahita killed everyone who had killed her husband and abused her sexually. She wasn''t giving them an easy death either. She tortured them for days while going through one Chapter after another in the Selection Stage. It was only when she was satisfied that Anahita killed them.
However, after that, guilt overtook her. Her day is filled with regret, resentment, and hate for whatever it was that made her experience this terrible suffering.
After several years Anahita found the Resistance group and joined. Decided to be a spy for the obvious purpose of destroying the Celestials. Because even though she has gained extraordinary power, in the end, she still loses her husband and experiences that suffering.
Hundreds of years have passed since then but Anahita and the Resistance have yet to find any sess or the changes that could threaten the Celestials. So, they wouldn''t have expected that there would actually be an incident like this that shook The All Territory and the Celestials that inhabited it.
"Is there any movement from the Demon Kings?" Ruby - a blonde-haired woman with a petite body asked the thin man.
"As far as I know, they haven''t done anything yet and I doubt they will. They must also know that the creatures from within the ck wall can do more damage to them than before," the thin man - Ren - answered.
"So you think they''ll also be on alert?" Ruby asked again.
Ren nodded. "They will also be more worried about themselves than they are about to act aggressively."
The conversation in the room continued with their discussion of what the current Demon Kings would do. Anahita was silent and pretended to listen with interest; although she could get news about the Demon Kings from one of her colleagues at the Senior Council.
Suddenly, the door was forced open without knocking first. The five people in the room turned their heads simultaneously and they all wore the same shocked expressions. They immediately stood up stiffly when they saw who had entered their room.
"Your Majesty," said the man with short silver hair - Roman.
The figure that entered the room was none other than the Archangel Michael himself. He was a tall man with a towering height of over two meters. His hair is a long silver strand down to his back and always looks shiny especially when exposed to light.
He smiled. "You guys heard about what happened?"
The five of them nodded simultaneously.
The Archangel breathed a sigh of relief while maintaining his smile. "This can''t be real. I didn''t pay much attention to it for too long."
The five people looked at each other; wondering why the Archangel had suddenlye to see them and what was the meaning behind his words. However, they didn''t say anything and could only wait.
"You guyse with me. We''re going somewhere. Get ready," Michael said.
After saying that Michael spun on his heel and left the room closing the door, leaving them confused. However, they didn''t remain in a daze for too long as they were used to their master''s attitude like that.
The man with short silver hair sighed and then said. "Let''s just get ready."
So they started preparing. Without knowing where they are going or what they are going to do.
This makes Anahita feel uneasy. Spying on Archangel Michael is not an easy task because of his mysterious nature. Right now, she can''t contact her colleagues at the Senior Council for information and can only hope that the Archangel doesn''t do anything too massive.
~~~
After an hour of hunting, Clyde finally arrived at a fairly high ce in this Ruin. This ce was a mountain which of course consisted of ck earthy barrens with cracks emitting heat.
He had already risen to Level 103 even though he only hunted small monsters because of his [Skill:Exp+]. Clyde was sure the others must not even reach half of his Level despite their continued work during this hour.
From this mountain everything looks clearer; Clyde also got closer to the floating corpses in the air. The sight seemed even more disturbing when he saw it from a closer distance.
''When will they wake up and start attacking?''
Clyde got that thought every time he looked at the corpses. There must be a reason why they weren''t destroyed and instead floated in the air besides creating the impression of horror. Clyde was almost certain that these corpses would wake up and start attacking when the time came and that might turn out to be quite troublesome. Perhaps among these corpses were Leyan''s rtives and that could give him an even worse mental attack.
While Clyde was daydreaming about all the possibilities while staring at the corpses, something he had been waiting for appeared from a distance.
Behind the gray clouds, a silhouette of a monster was flying toward him. The monster had a huge wingspan, maybe twenty meters wide.
Clyde breathed a sigh of relief. "Finally, something worth fighting for."
Before this, he had only fought ck wraiths which were only Level 3 monsters. He had to kill hundreds just to gain one Level, but with the presence of that big monster, he will definitely be able to get more Exp.
The monster flew closer to him; Clyde finally saw a pair of pale white eyes shining from behind the gray clouds. A momentter the silhouette became clear, revealing the shape of a monster that looked somewhat simr to the one he had killed in the Selection Stage; The Corpse Bringer Dragon.
Around the monster''s body were stuck hundreds or even thousands of corpses that seemed to have been pasted on randomly; creating gruesome sights like the art of an artist with a twisted mind.
If one sees at a nce the monster does look like a dragon. It''s just that the corpses that stick around its body look disturbing.
Clyde was about to draw his Inferno de, but he held back and drew the Elderss Sword instead. The de that looked like blue ss reflected the sight of the corpses floating above Clyde.
''It''s been a long time since I actually used this sword.''
Clyde smiled. This sword helped him pass the Selection Stage easily. Clyde believes there is still a lot of hidden potential behind this sword that he doesn''t know about.
Before this, Clyde had infused Demonic Essence into this sword and gained tremendous Demonic power; the power he used to kill that Outer God replica.
The dragons are getting closer. It opened its mouth to let out some sort of gas attack. Clyde now even stopped using [Skill:Inspection] to see the monster''s information because he was sure he could kill it without difficulty.
"Let''s see if this sword''s power is still the same," Clyde muttered as he channeled his Mana into the Elderss Sword.
The transparent blue de glowed with a faint glow because Clyde only poured a little Mana into it. ''This much should be enough.''
"KHUUAAKKHH!"
The dragon corpses spewed what looked like wisps of ck smoke from its mouth apanied by a strange scream. The ck smoke immediately shot toward Clyde at high speed.
Clyde however, chose not to dodge; instead, he swung the Elderss Sword from right to left and sent a blue sh in the shape of a crescent moon towards the ck smoke.
A small explosion apanied by a sh of bluish light erupted when the two attacks collided. A momentter all of that disappeared leaving a bit of ck smoke in the air; the leftover from the corpse dragon''s attack.
The corpse dragon immediately dived toward Clyde after seeing that its attack was not working. The monster took out its ws which were covered in ck slime.
~~~
Chapter 238 His Arrival
?
The monster stabbed both of its arms with ck ws covered in ck, tar-like slime. Clyde easily dodged sideways; in the blink of an eye, he was already out of reach of the ws.
He stood with a straight face staring at the ground crushed by the monster''s ck ws. The part of the ground where Clyde was standing before made a loud sizzling sound and started to turn ck. If the slime in the ws got on the flesh of a creature, it would dpose in a matter of seconds, maybe less.
It has the ability to dpose the target. That type of monster always has the same ability,'' thought Clyde.
Not wanting to waste any more time, Clyde ran fast and then jumped; he drew the Elderss Sword forward, sending a stab of Mana towards the monster corpses dragon.
*CRAATT!*
Clyde''s Mana shot severed the monster''s right nk; making the monster crash onto the ck ground with a bang and scattering the ck ashes that created a little bit of mist.
Clyde didn''t end it there. Hended and lunged at the monster. In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of the monster''s neck. Clyde swung the Elderss Sword and immediately beheaded the monster covered in corpses.
Blood was spurting all around; Clyde immediately jumped back before the stench of blood hit him. With his current speed, Clyde could even dodge the speed of the sshed blood liquid.
He got a notification that he had killed the monster and saw that the amount of Exp he had gotten was quite a lot. Of course, after that number was multiplied by ten times with the [Skill: Inspection] he had.
He saw several rushed shadows from behind the fog. It was Samuel and Leyan. They rushed at high speed but they immediately stopped when they saw the monster they were worried about was dead.
"We should already know," Leyan said to Samuel with a helpless expression.
Samuel shrugged his shoulders. "You''re right."
They saw Clyde standing in front of the monster that had lost its head with an indifferent expression and immediately realized the difference between their strength and Clyde''s.
Then, Leyan''s eyes fell on the sword in Clyde''s hand. The sword would definitely catch the attention of anyone who saw it for the first time because of its shape and form.
"What sword is that?" Leyan asked with obvious curiosity.
"That''s the sword he brought from the Selection Stage," Samuel replied.
Leyan immediately nced at him. "What do you mean? How did he get a weapon from the Selection Stage?"
Samuel said. "You know one of those Senior Council members? The Elf with sses?"
"Maethion? Why?"
"He was the one who took the sword for him."
Leyan returned his gaze to Clyde who was now walking towards them. He had already put the Elderss Sword back into its scabbard.
There were a lot of questions in Leyan''s head right now; how could Clyde ask a Senior Council to give his weapon which should have been destroyed back to him? Then, when could he have a good rtionship with a Senior Councilor?
"How was your hunt?"
Clyde''s question awakened Leyan''s reverie. He was still reluctant enough to ask Clyde directly. Maybeter he could find out the answers to all his questions from Samuel or the five people who had run the expedition with Clyde.
"Well, it''s going well so far," replied Samuel.
Clyde used [Skill: Inspection] on them and saw that they were already above Level 20. He nodded as if in understanding; it was only natural that their Levels immediately jumped higher than Leon and his friends because they had been training longer than them. Those Aetheric Records must have instantly adapted to their current body state.
"Let''s continue then," said Clyde.
The hunt was resumed. They went deeper and deeper into the tipi dark mist rising from within the cracks in the ck barren ground. Even though the fog filled this ce but they could still see each other''s silhouettes who were hunting elsewhere.
A few minutester they finally encountered severalrge monsters at once. Clyde let the others handle one monster while he handled the other monsters alone.
When they saw Clyde fighting and killing two monsters faster than them, the ten people couldn''t help but be dumbfounded even though they already knew how strong Clyde was. When they saw him in action again he always exerted more power than before.
''Does he have a different power of system than us? Or is it just because he is stronger?'' Samuel can''t help but wonder. He thought that Clyde had not told them everything he knew. Samuel had a hunch that Clyde might still have another secret behind his extraordinary power.
*BOOM!*
The huge explosion that sent heat all around snapped Samuel from his reverie. Clyde just killed another big monster with his fire power.
Samuel also knew that he got his power from the warrior Uriel who he killed at that time. But he also knows that his power is not as strong as Clyde''s.
"Sam!" Kiara called out to him, waking up Samuel who was staring at Clyde. "Come on! What are you doing?"
The monster in front of them was still alive despite being badly injured. Samuel immediately moved to kill the monster after temporarily pushing away thoughts of Clyde.
~~~
Anahita and the others wearing full armor and weapons while following Archangel Michael towards the portal.
Their armor was made of shiny white metal. With that armor they can get very strong protection without putting too much burden on their body; allowing them to maintain agility and speed when fighting.
The Archangel himself wore armor that was not much different. It''s just that behind his armor was a long coat that reached his calves, fluttering when he walked with his long legs.
Anahita stared at the sword hanging from the Archangel''s waist. Ever since she saw what the sword could do she always felt lucky to be on the Archangel''s side rather than his enemy. She once saw how Archangel Michael wiped out an entire army with just one swipe of his sword. It was even too much for Celestials.
That reputation made Archangel Michael one of the most feared Celestials in The All Territory. There were only a few Celestials who dared to fight head-on with him.
Since a long time ago, Archangel Michael had also be a figure feared by the Demon Kings. His existence alone was able to make the Demon Kings reconsider their decision.
No one knows where the Archangel took them. But the five people could only follow him without asking further because they were reluctant to just ask.
Once they arrived in front of the portal Michael said. "We''re going to the Far East. I guess I forgot to tell you that, right?"
The Archangel turned to the five of them while chuckling. If people who didn''t know him saw that, they would definitely think that Archangel Michael was a friendly and smiling person.
"You only take the five of us, Your Majesty?" he asked.
"Yes." he nodded. "That''s enough."
The five people exchanged confused nces. Just now the news about the death of one of the warriors of Archangel Uriel came that indicated how great the danger they had to face; however, Archangel Michael said that only he and the five of them would depart.
Once again, even though the decision seemed unwise, it was given by Archangel Michael so they didn''t dare express their disapproval.
The portal opened and they immediately entered behind the Archangel. A momentter they had arrived at the battlefield - The Far East.
The environment here was a little different from back then. Here now the Celestials were staring at the pitch-ck wall in front of them with even more tense facial expressions than before.
Archangel Michael''s arrival made them all turn their heads almost simultaneously after feeling his aura. The strongest Archangel walked towards Uriel and Gabriel. They both had surprised faces when they saw Michaeling with a smile on his face.
"How are you doing?" Michael asked in a casual tone.
"We - we are fine. For now," Gabriel answered.
"So you decided toe," Uriel said, then nced behind Michael. "And you only brought these five people?"
"Yes." Michael nodded curtly. "I''m sorry for your loss. I promise to pay them back, Uriel."
Uriel pursed her lips. "Please."
Ripples formed again on the wall, indicating that a horde of strange monsters would emerge from it.
"They''reing, Michael," Uriel said while staring at the ck wall with eyes burning with vengeance.
Michael didn''t say anything in return to her. He just rushed forward at high speed; what he did left Uriel and Gabriel dumbfounded.
"Michael!" Gabriel called out to him but it was no use. Michael kept running, unsealing his sword.
*SHIINNGG!*
The sound of the sword being drawn from the scabbard echoed across the battlefield. A momentter, strange monsters came out from within the ck wall.
~~~
Chapter 239 Black-Robed Figure
?
When the sword came out of the scabbard a clear pressure radiated out in all directions. The sound of the sword echoed throughout the battlefield. It was not a loud voice that rang through the air, but it rang directly in the head of the Celestials their warriors alike.
So strong was Archangel Michael that just pulling out his sword made them feel the pressure. Now they saw that the Archangel was rushing by himself toward that strange horde of monsters.
His soft silver hair fluttered, like trails of light behind his head. The Archangel drew his pure white-ded sword; in one swing he chopped dozens of monsters'' heads all at once. The monsters that had been chopped off immediately scattered into ck ashes.
Archangel Michael didn''t stop there because he saw that there were still lots of strange monsters emerging from the ck wall. But the Archangel didn''t show a troubled expression even though this was the first time he was actually on the battlefield facing these strange monsters; as far as the others who saw it know.
Archangel Michael''s face was smiling slightly; it was as if he enjoyed all of this. He swung his white de sword again and beheaded dozens more monsters. Yet, the monsters didn''t seem bothered by the death of theirrades and just kept charging like mindless beasts.
Archangel Michael continued his massacre of the monsters. He did it with almost no effort, he swung his sword in a rxed motion but caused tremendous damage.
"Heh! How arrogant of him," a Demon Kingmented upon seeing Michael''s actions.
"Let them be," another Demon King said. "Let him go ahead and take the risk. We just need to see."
They weren''t surprised by Michael''s strength, though they weren''t sure they could easily win over him doesn''t mean they''re too much weaker than him. If they want, they can also kill him. However, they must still suffer costly consequences. They can kill him, just at a huge cost. Because of that, they are reluctant to do a head-on war.
Now Archangel Michael stepped out alone and killed those strange monsters. But it''s not the strange monsters that are the real problem. If it''s just monsters, even their warriors can kill them easily.
The one posing a threat was that ck-robed figure. It was that ck-robed figure that killed several of their warriors. It was also the one who had killed two of Uriel''s warriors which caused Michael to finallye here.
The two Demon Kings that were there stared at Michael; waiting for the moment when he faced the ck-robed figure and see how it turned out.
That curiosity was not only felt by the two Demon Kings but also by all the Celestials present there. They wanted to know what happened to the Celestials when they faced that ck-robed figure.
If it turned out that Michael was able to kill the ck-robed figure, that meant they didn''t need to worry. However, if it turns out that Michael is injured or even dies they will know how dangerous that figure is. Whatever happens to Michael they will still get results without taking any risk. They thanked the Archangel''s arrogant attitude.
However, Uriel and Gabriel stared at Michael''s back with worried eyes.
"Why is he always like that?" Uriel said exasperatedly.
Gabriel did not answer immediately. He stared at Michael who was killing the strange monsters for a while, and then said. "Let''s just hope he will be alright."
"He doesn''t even know anything about that ck-robed figure and its power. What if it appears and injures him?" Uriel said.
Archangel Michael could be said to be the Archangel with the most powerfulbat power among them. If something happened to him it would weaken the Archangel''sbat strength considerably and open up opportunities for their enemies to attack.
Anahita heard the exchange between Uriel and Gabriel from the side. She can''t help but frown full of confusion. ''A ck-robed figure?''
Then she looked ahead. Her master looked so dominating the fight that it seemed like it was all just a one-sided massacre for him. Yet, these two Archangels are worried about him. It must be due to an obvious reason that the five of them don''t know yet.
"Should we help him?" Anahita asked Dwayne.
Dwayne couldn''t answer right away. If they helped the Archangel without his order, he was worried that it might provoke his anger.
However, Dwayne had also overheard the conversation between Archangel Uriel and Gabriel and knew that the real danger had yet to emerge. That danger could make the two Archangel feel anxious, so naturally, it could be a real threat to Archangel Michael.
But, Dwayne had never seen the weakness of Archangel Michael. In his eyes he was the strongest figure who would never be defeated in battle, so Dwayne chose to believe in his master.
"His Majesty will be alright," said Dwayne. "We shouldn''t do anything without his orders."
Anahita presses her lips together. Dwayne has always been the one who admired the Archangel the most because of his strength. And he also happens to be the strongest among the five of them so make him the leader of this squad. His orders to the other four were as absolute as Archangel Michael''s order.
In the end, Anahita could only look at the fight that was almost over. Archangel Michael goes on a killing spree and has killed 80% of the monsters; in the blink of an eye he had killed 90% and he did all of that without much effort. The Archangel just swung his white sword and dozens of monsters'' heads and bodies were split or chopped.
Just like that, he single-handedly finished off that strange ck horde of monsters. However, the real battle will only begin now.
Huge ripples formed on the ck wall, sending a signal to everyone present that a troublesome figure was only about to emerge now.
"It''sing," said Uriel.
From within the ripples emerged a figure cloaked in ck with tendrils of darkness around its body. Its form was simr to that of an adult human yet the ck robe that covered its body seemed to be hiding something so horrible, it made all the Celestials feel uneasy. Moreover, added the fact that it can kill their warriors.
Something thates from an unknown origin and has an unknown power makes the Celestials, the strongest beings in the universe feel uneasy.
They couldn''t see Archangel Michael''s face clearly from behind, so they didn''t notice the faint smile that formed on the Archangel''s lips. He walked up to the ck-robed figure with confident steps as if he already knew what was going to happen.
The ck-robed figure stretched its arms toward Michael and sent out a shot of dark energy from under its hem. Michael also sent out a sh of his sword energy that was shaped like a crescent moon.
*CLASH!*
The two attacks shed together, disying a spectacle bizarre where two very contrasting types of attacks made contact with each other.
The white light from Michael''s attack interlocked with the ck energy and spread a strange aura throughout the Celestials; making them all cringed because of the weird sensation.
A momentter Michael lunged forward with incredible speed. The ck-robed figure also approached him as if not wanting to lose.
*BOOM!*
A loud noise resounded throughout the battlefield as the two of them finally shed. Michael swung his sword so fast that only shes of white light from the sword could be seen. While the ck-robed figure also continued to swing the ck energy that was gushing out from its hands which condensed and formed tentacles.
They fought intensely for several thrilling moments. Strike of white light shing with ck energy; trying to destroy each other.
The Celestials stared at all of that with almost unblinking eyes and deeply furrowed brows. They already knew that Archangel Michael was indeed very strong but what made them even more shocked was that ck-robed figure who was able to even draw with him.
However, Michael''s face did not look troubled. Even he seemed to enjoy this fight. asionally he nced back to see the faces of the other Celestials through the dust and debris of his fights.
The ck-robed figure kept whipping its ck tentacles non-stop with incredible speed. Michael who felt that this fight was getting boring decided to end this fight as soon as possible.
He poured more Mana into his sword than before. The de of the sword shone brighter suddenly. Just with its light alone, the ck energy from the ck-robed figure seemed to shrink, as if feeling scared.
Archangel Michael raised his sword, then with a strong movement he swung it down. A crescent sh that was twice as big and more powerful than before shot toward the ck-robed figure.
It tried to block the white sh by shooting out more ck energy. But to no avail; because Michael knew his attacks would not be able to be stopped.
The white sh shot through the ck energy that the ck-robed figure fired and sliced its body in two.
~~~
Chapter 240 Discovery
?
The ck robed figure''s body was split in two after being hit by Michael''s sh. It doesn''t fall right away; Instead, it remained standing in its ce stiffly.
All of the Celestials presents stared in awe, their eyes widening and their foreheads furrowing as they stared at the sight. They finally saw that a Celestial could actually kill the ck-robed figure without any problems.
The ck-robed figure was indeed quite a bit stronger than the ordinary monsters that hade out of the walls; but by no means strong enough to kill or even injure them - Celestials.
A momentter, the ck robed figure''s body which had been split in two began to dissipate into a ck mist. The ck mist evaporated into the air and flew back towards the ck wall.
Michael looked at the ck mist with an expression that was hard to read. He almost smiled, but not wide enough for anyone to notice; yet his eyes also looked sad as if he was seeing the beginning of something bad.
After that, the battlefield became silent. There were no more monsters or creatures that came out from behind the ck wall. Michael sheathed his white sword back to its scabbard and then walked back toward Uriel and Gabriel.
When he returned with them he smiled, showing a calm and satisfied face. "You see that Uriel? I have avenged you."
Everyone on the battlefield already knew that it was the ck-robed figure who had killed Uriel''s warriors. Even if it wasn''t here, even all the Celestials would already know about it.
"Thank you, Michael," Uriel said. She looked at Michael while returning his smile. She waspletely satisfied with what Michael was doing; besides he had avenged her Michael had also proven something they had been worried about all this time.
Gabriel also smiled next to her.
Michael nodded, looking at the both of them. "Now you don''t have to worry anymore. Those creatures are nothingpared to our power."
Uriel and Gabriel nodded. Now they can believe that too.
Michael nced back at the ck wall. His face turned back into a t and unreadable. Several Celestials also turned towards him with looks of respect and slight admiration; though, they always try to hide it.
Anahita, who was behind Michael stared at the Archangel with a furrowed brow and self-contained astonishment. Michael seemed calmer than he should have been; yes, he is indeed a mysterious Celestial, however, Anahita has a feeling of her own that feels like a lump in her chest.
''I need to hurry back to the Fortress before this gets any bigger.''
Alerting her colleague as soon as possible was the best thing to do now. Her uneasiness just gets bigger every time she looked around.
Her other friends had spoken in a more rxed tone now that they had seen for themselves that their master''s power was still able to overpower the ck-robed figure that had killed Uriel''s warrior.
They don''t see a problem. It might be true that the ck-robed figure was slightly stronger than the other monsters but the strength of the Celestials was still stronger than it.
However, Anahita has a different opinion. If that ck-robed figure ¨D one that was even more powerful than those strange monsters ¨D appeared and became a stronger figure, then there was still a possibility that other stronger monsters would appear.
Anahita feels... as if they will emerge gradually and it is not the end; because that mysterious ck wall still stood firm there, waiting to unleash another of its hidden monstrosity.
She didn''t know when it happened. But whenever it was, when it did, things would only get worse.
"I don''t like this," Dwayne suddenly said from beside her apanied by a shake of his head.
Anita turned around. "What do you mean?"
"The walls," said Dwayne. "It''s still there. I thought something mighte out of there again, Ann."
Anita sighed. ''It turns out that there is still someone who thinks the same as me.''
"I thought so too," Anahita replied.
Dwayne seemed to harden his jaw. He turned to Michael who was talking to Uriel and Gabriel. They didn''t look like they were worried about anything.
Anahita saw that Dwayne seemed eager to tell Michael what he was thinking but he was also hesitant to disturb the good mood that was created among the three Archangels.
Ruby, Ren, and Hime drew closer to the two of them and then started whispering. Yes, one more person in the group is someone who is the youngest there. She is a tall girl but very shy so she always decides to say a little.
Hime had been silent since earlier because she wanted to observe more. However, that''s why Hime can be one of the most observant among them. So she was also the one who realized that even when Archangel Michael had seeded in destroying the ck-robed figure the danger was not over. Maybe even just started.
"What are you talking about?" Ruby asked with sparkling eyes of curiosity.
"I thought it wasn''t over yet," Anahita revised.
And then, Anahita started exining what she was thinking to them.
Ruby, Ren, and Hime exchanged nces.
"I think so too," Hime said then licked her lips. "Did you guys see the Archangel''s face just now? He doesn''t look too satisfied."
Anahita stares at her. "That''s what I thought too. We should tell the Archangels."
The four of them immediately turned to Dwayne. As their leader, it is his duty to convey this to the Archangel and ask for confirmation. Perhaps their master also knew what they were thinking and Dwayne could confirm it so they could receive appropriate orders.
Dwayne sighed. "Alright."
Dwayne walked up to Archangel Michael. He was reluctant to interrupt him talking to his fellow Archangel, however, he still had to ask about the restlessness of his group mates.
~~~
Clyde was still walking alone in the Ruin while the rest of his party were out hunting together. Once again he was morefortable hunting alone when thoughts of the betrayal came back to him.
Now, Clyde has killed hundreds of small monsters and a dozen big monsters. He didn''t bother to count the number he had killed and only paid attention to his Level increase.
Now he is at Level 104. Farpared to the Levels of his other party members. He also still has a lot of Stats and Skill points that he still hasn''t used because everything he''s facing right now is still so easy for him.
Clyde didn''t even have to try too hard to kill all the monsters that appeared in front of him with all the Skills and Stats he had now.
He continued walking alone under the shadow of the corpses floating above him. All the corpses no longer bothered him. He was used to them and just thought they were a natural sight. Just like shadows of clouds or trees.
After walking for a few minutes, Clyde saw a building that looked like a castle. The castle was partially destroyed, as was everything here. But still intact enough for Clyde to imagine its former grandeur and size.
Apanied by various questions Clyde strode towards the castle with long strides. Several of its spires were broken and floated with the corpses above them, the corpses of Elves kind.
Clyde couldn''t help but think that maybe this was the castle where Leyan lived before the Selection Stage happened.
He went inside the castle. The destroyed inner building revealed another room underground.
Driven by curiosity, Clyde decides to descend, hoping to find something in there even though the chances are low; a treasure in the dungeons of the Elf kingdom should be a good treasure.
Clyde jumped down into the dungeon. He looked around where it should be dark. But because of the cracks all over the ce, the sunlight managed to get in here and provided enough light for Clyde to navigate properly.
As he had expected, there would definitely be monsters guarding this ce. He raised the Inferno de just in time before arrowsing from all directions pierced his body. He deflected the arrows with ease and then saw five figures rushing towards him from behind the darkness.
Clyde swung the Inferno de and spread a burst of fire around. The five figures immediately dodged agilely so none of Clyde''s mes hit them.
''Elves? No, it seems they are Elves who have turned into monsters.''
Clyde channeled more Mana into the Inferno de and made the fire even bigger so that it lit up the whole ce. He was finally able to see the forms of his five aggressors clearly; they were Elves with rotten skin and empty eyes filled with moving ck mist.
Each of the Elves was holding a bow with an arrow already nocked in it.
*SWISSH!*
*SWISSH!*
*SWISSH!*
*SWISSH!*
*SWISSH!*
They simultaneously shot their arrows at Clyde again.
Clyde could see all the arrows clearly; he immediately swung the Inferno de and sent out a wall of fire which instantly destroyed the arrows.
~~~
Chapter 241 Useful Information
?
Clyde just sighed and pitied their futile effort. ''Can I tell them that whatever they are doing will be in vain?''
Clyde no longer even bothered to use [Skill: Inspection] on his enemies because it all seemed pointless. He would kill them easily in the end.
The Elves started to change their strategy after seeing Clyde could burn the arrows they fired with his fire wall. They started to cast some kind of spell which only needed a few seconds to be cast and then unleashed it together in Clyde''s direction.
They fired magic missiles in green color; however, there was a dark color surrounding the magic missiles they fired.
Clyde once again swung the Inferno de in a circr motion and created a wall of fire around him. However, this time the magic missiles that the Elves fired prated Clyde''s fire wall and continued to fly at him.
''Oh, this is different.''
Clyde used his incredible speed to dodge all the magic missiles; causing the magic missiles the Elves fired to fly towards theirrades who were in the opposite direction from them.
In the end, the magic missiles hit the other Elves throwing them backward, back into the darkness.
''I''d better end this as soon as possible.''
Clyde dashed toward any of the Elves he could see before beingpletely plunged into the darkness and dashed. In the blink of an eye, he was already near that Elf; close enough for Inferno de''s reach.
*CRAAAT!*
Clyde stabs the Elf with the Inferno de. He could see the Elf''s dark eyes staring at him before his entire body was burned to ashes.
Clyde dashed toward the other Elves and killed them instantly. It didn''t take long for him to kill all those Elves, as he had expected. He earned quite a decent amount of Exp from them.
After killing the five Elves, Clyde looked around for anything that might appear because it seemed the Elves were guarding something. And his guess was right; precisely at the end of the dungeon, Clyde saw a door that suddenly moved to open. Without wasting time he immediately went there.
After passing through the wall Clyde saw a room that was still intact. However, the room was very small and only stored one item.
It looked like an orb the size of a baseball. As Clyde got closer he could see that inside the orb were all kinds of something that looks like nature elements swirling nonstop.
He saw fire, wind, earth, and water constantly moving within it. At one nce Clyde knew immediately that it was something that held the power of the natural elements.
''This thing must be something good since even an Elf is guarding it closely.''
Clyde immediately put the orb into his Inventory and left the dungeon.
He hunted for a while until finally he actually rose to Level 105. When the sun in this Ruin started to go down, they returned to Sivagadh Fortress.
Everyone seemed to return with satisfied and happy faces after this expedition; it was a sight that was quite rarely seen from a party that had just returned from an expedition. Several beings who saw them were also amazed.
Clyde was thest to emerge from the portal, it closed behind him with a brief hissing sound. His gaze nced ahead and saw that the ten people were now talking to each other. The initial awkwardness was now gone. Clyde didn''t know what happened or how, but that was what was happening in front of him now. The people are closer now than ever.
Clyde didn''t know why but he felt something strange in his heart. As if... he felt ufortable watching them talk without him.
''No. You have often felt this.'' Clyde shook his head. Being alone and ostracized was something she had been used to for a long time. It was supposed to be like that so he could avoid the same betrayal.
But, will he feel the same for Asqa and Sonya? They didn''t betray him just yet. He felt that maybe he could trust Asqa more than anyone else. Asqa has proven that she can be trusted. For Sonya, the important thing now is to find her first.
"Clyde!" Leon shouted from in front of him, making Clyde look up. "Come on! What are you doing?"
"What?" Clyde asked.
Leon looked at her with a helpless expression. Then said. "We will celebrate for today. Youing?"
Clyde paused for a few seconds. Then reply. "No. I got something to take care of."
When they heard that answer, the other nine people immediately turned their heads toward him. They looked at him as if he had just said something strange.
However, they immediately put on an understanding face. Clyde is just like that. Even though there is a feeling of disappointment in the hearts of those who hoped that Clyde would start to open up and get closer to them, it turns out to be not easy.
"Alright then," said Leon.
Clyde nodded curtly and headed towards his living quarter. The ten of them stared at him for a few moments until he disappeared then walked off in the other direction to do whatever celebration they wanted to do.
As soon as he entered his room, Clyde immediately put his two swords on the bed and started concentrating. He must contact Asqa now to ask about the progress of what he is doing.
Clyde drained his Mana. He began to feel signs that he had reached Asqa, however, Asqa never responded to his call.
Clyde frowned as he closed his eyes. ''Is she in the middle of a dangerous situation to answer now?''
Clyde waited a moment longer. But in the end, he couldn''t get a call from Asqa. So Clyde decided to end it now.
Asqa has never rejected a call before. Then maybe her condition is not possible to answer now.
''Did something happen in The All Territory?''
Clyde waited a few minutes thinking about what might happen in The All Territory. Though, he knew that he wouldn''t be able to get an answer from this ce.
He called Asqa again after a few minutes. This time she answered her call.
''I''m sorry, Clyde. Something is going on here,'' said Asqa.
Turns out his guess was right. Clyde asked. ''What happened?''
Whatever it was, from the tone and feelings Asqa conveyed to him, Clyde could tell that something big was going on in The All Territory.
''The conflict in the Far East is escting. Just now there were warriors from Archangel Uriel who were killed on the battlefield.''
Clyde frowned. ''Exin briefly, Asqa.''
So Asqa started to exin what she knew to Clyde as briefly and clearly as possible. After hearing it, Clyde could tell that trouble in The All Territory was growing and all of the Celestials were most likely busy with it. This could be a great opportunity to infiltrate their domain.
''I also want to say that I got a new power,'' Asqa said.
''What? What power?'' Clyde also became curious. Asqa got her powers under the guidance of Celestials - or at least people who have been followers of Celestials for a long time - so it''s certain that the powers she got wouldn''t just weak power.
''I got the power to manipte natural energy, Clyde. Isn''t that great?'' Asqa replied with a pleased tone.
Clyde smiled too. ''That is really great. Wait!''
Clyde remembered something. He immediately took the orb that he got from his Inventory.
[ Name: Pure Elemental Orb ]
[ Description: This item contains the purest natural energy. ]
''Asqa, I think I have something useful for you,'' said Clyde, looking down at the orb in his hand.
''What''s that?'' Ashka asked curiously.
''This is an elemental orb. It must be useful for your new power. I will give it when we meet.''
''Yes, Clyde.'' Even though Asqa doesn''t know when they will finally meet, she hopes that it will happen.
''Let''s end it for now,'' said Clyde.
Without waiting for another reply from Asqa, Clyde broke off their telepathicmunication. He stood up and walked out of his room to theke.
He waits at theke feeling restless with arms crossed in front of his chest. A few minutester Mathion appeared with a curious face.
"What''s the matter?" Maethion asked, sitting down next to Clyde.
"Listen," Clyde said what he had just heard from Asqa. Maethion''s face changed from curious to suspicious.
"How did you know about that?" Maethion asked.
"That''s not important. What matters is, now is the right time to infiltrate the Celestials'' domain," Clyde replied.
"No. Actually, it''s important, Clyde. You can''t say something that only followers within the Celestials'' domain can know as if it was nothing," Maethion said.
Clyde said grunting. "I''ll tell youter. I will only say it to you. But it can wait, now we have to start moving."
Maethion stared at Clyde for a few moments. Then sighed. "Alright. I''ll talk to the others."
~~~
Chapter 242 Departure
?
Maethion was confused about how Clyde knew about that. About something that should only be known by parties within the Celestials'' circle of followers.
He was one of the people who knew about it because he was in the Senior Council. His colleagues in the Senior Council are spies in the deepest circle of Celestials, some even upy high hierarchies there. Of course, he would know about that.
However, for Clyde, someone who has only been in the Fortress for a few months already knows something like that... its very strange and could be something big in the future.
But for now, Maethion thinks that what Clyde said is true. He had to start ordering them to move out on expeditions when the situation was tense in The All Territory.
"But Clyde," Maethion said. "What happened over there seems to be something different than before. After a very long time, there is finally something that can make those powerful Celestials feel threatened."
Clyde was silent and pondering over the matter for a second. Indeed, originally they only had to worry about the Celestials and their powers; but now it looks like another force ising.
"That doesn''t matter for now, does it?" said Clyde after he finished thinking about that. "We need to go to the Nexus of Creation first, find out the secrets and weaknesses of those Celestials. After that, we can worry about the new threat."
"Yeah. I guess you''re right." Maethion nodded and then stood up from the chair. "I will start the meeting again. You wait for the next news from me and tell the other members of your party."
Clyde stood up and gave a brief nod. "Yes."
Maethion left the ce. Clyde came back to say that to the ten people who were now members of his party.
''Wait, didn''t they say they were celebrating today?''
Clyde stopped in ce. He thought for a few moments before finally shaking his head slowly. ''I don''t think I need to bother them. Let them enjoy the night before going on an expedition which is likely to be quite dangerous.''
So Clyde decided to postpone the news until tomorrow. Maybe they still have to leave the next day after tomorrow because they have to get ready first.
Clyde now goes to Hammer''s ce. The Dwarf was working with his men in the open study. Swing after swing of the massive hammer hitting the reddish metal filled the smithy. The nging sound of metal on metal is the background music that never seems to stop in this ce.
One of his men told of Clyde''s arrival at Hammer who was teaching a cksmith who looked like a novice. When he saw Clydeing, Hammer smiled broadly as usual.
"Clyde!" he said cheerfully. "How are you doing? Feels like a long time since yourst visit."
"It''s not that long," Clyde replied tly. "Can we talk for a second?"
"Of course!" Hammer said, leading Clyde into his private study.
As soon as they entered, Hummer locked the door.
"What''s the matter?" Hammer asked. When he was inside - out of sight of his men - Hammer''s smile immediately disappeared to be reced by a worried look. Clyde usually always came with something to make him nervous so it was natural for Hammer to feel that way.
"The device you invented." Clyde showed the bracelet in his hand. "It''s working."
Hammer''s face twisted into a troubled expression. On the one hand, he was happy because his creation, which was supposed to be impossible, had seeded. But on the other hand, he was also worried because that meant he had seeded in doing something that was prohibited by the Senior Council and would most likely get him into big trouble.
"Aren''t you happy? You''ve just created something amazing," Clyde said, confused by the look on Hammer''s face.
"That is a dangerous thing, Clyde. I don''t even know how I survived until now without the Senior Council noticing it," Hammer said.
"I told you not to worry about that," Clyde said. "Now I have another request."
The hammer became even more pounding. But he was also still curious.
"I want you to make good armor and weapons for eleven people, including myself."
Hammer frowned. "Eleven? What are you going to do with it?"
"An expedition. A big one," Clyde replied in a serious tone.
Hammer didn''t answer right away. He looked at Clyde with curious eyes but then he shook his head in curiosity. It was better for him not to know the details of what Clyde was going to do.
"I already have enough armor. All with good quality materials you brought. Don''t worry about it. When exactly do you need it?" Hammer said.
"As soon as possible. Maybe the day after tomorrow. It''s good if you already have it but I need armor that makes it easy to move fast, not just strong," Ckyde said.
Hammer nodded thoughtfully. "I think we can modify it a bit."
"Can you finish the day after tomorrow?"
"Of course," said Hammer. "But you brought another ten people? I''ve never known a party with that many members on an expedition."
"This time we''re going to do something a little different," Clyde said. "I''ll be going now. I''ll be waiting for all the armor the day after tomorrow."
Clyde left the smithy. Hammer and his men set to work modifying the armor to Clyde''s wishes.
~~~
The next dayes and Clyde no longer dys to say that the expedition they are about to undertake has sped up. Previously they had estimated it would take several weeks for them to go, but now suddenly they had to set off.
"How is that possible? We''re not quite ready yet!" Wiley said with a worried face.
"This is the perfect time. Last night I spoke to Maethion the Senior Council, and he said now is the perfect time to go because something is going on in The All Territory keeping the Celestials busy," Clyde replied. He chose to use Maethion''s name because he said that if he himself got the information it would raise a lot of questions.
"But... are we strong enough to go to the Celestial domain?" Kiara asked worriedly.
"We''re going to do it as sneaky as possible. If something bad happens we just have to run," Clyde said. "I''m here anyway."
They all stared at Clyde. He said that confidently. He''s not only sure, he knows, that he can protect them from harm.
And they admit that too. No one disputed Clyde''s words because they had also seen how strong he was.
"Alright, then," said Samuel. "Let''s get ready."
Even though they feel a little anxious and even afraid, in the end, they still have to carry it out. The sooner they left the better, although they still felt that they weren''t strong enough to enter the domain of Celestials. However, the longer they dy, the greater the fear will be.
Moreover, Clyde had also convinced them with his confidence in his strength. So, there are more reasons for them to leave than not.
Preparations were made. They entered the Ruin to level up a little more then took the armor and weapons that Hammer had prepared.
Clyde caught up with Maethion again to hear what he had to say. And Maethion gave him a piece of great news.
"I''ve spoken to the other Senior Council and we decided that you should go to this Celestial domain first," said Maethion.
"Who is it?" Clyde asked.
"Goddess Pele. There is a path there ording to the description in flyn''s book is the easiest path to find."
And then, Maethion said about how he could find the path.
~~~
Time passed until finally the day came. The eleven people stood in front of the portal like a small army about to leave for the battlefield.
Samuel stuck his amulet on the portal and a view of a vast green in appeared in the portal.
"Where do we go for now?" Leyan asked.
"To the Goddess Pele," Samuel answered. As someone who wields an amulet that allows him to open a path to the domain of Celestials, Clyde told Samuel the location they should go sometimes ago.
"Pele the Fire Goddess?" Leyan said, licking his lips.
"Yes," Samuel replied tly. "It''s open. We can go now."
And so, their expedition begins.
They exited the portal and set foot on a wide in at the edge of the forest. There was arge mountain that seemed majestic to fill the scene in front of them. The mountain is so huge as if it is the ruler of this ce.
They''re scanning around. This ce is cool and calming with the breezy wind blowing along with the warm sunshine.
"Let''s start searching," said Clyde, his tone rushed and not wanting to waste time. "Samuel, Leyan you guyse with me."
"Why?" Leyan asked, looking confused and troubled because it seemed as if he was being ordered.
"You guys gained power after killing Archangel Uriel''s party members back then, right?" Clyde asked, ncing at the both of them.
"So what?" Leyan asked.
"Come with me. I have a way to strengthen the power you get."
~~~
Chapter 243 Entering The Domain
?
Samuel and Leyan exchanged nces as soon as they heard what Clyde said. Strengthening the power they got from killing Uriel''s warriors? That was something that was difficult for them to refuse.
"But what about the others? This will be dangerous," Samuel said. Even if he wanted to obtain that power, he couldn''t bear to let the rest of the party scatter to search for that path within this domain.
"They will be okay. They already have enough power after leveling up," Clyde said. He had indeed looked at their Character Information and thought that they were strong enough to separate. But that didn''t mean they could fight directly with the Celestials or their powerful warriors.
"You guys just have to run to my ce immediately if you run into trouble."
Maethion had given them a map in their system showing several locations where the path to the Nexus of Creation might be located. On the map, they could also see the point where they were standing and where the other party members were. So they can easily find Clyde''s location if the situation goes south.
"I think that''s a good idea. We also can''t waste time. If we split up we can search in a wider area," Leon said, providing answers that could support Clyde''s words.
In the end, they agreed to separate, if reluctantly. Even eight people apart from Clyde, Samuel, and Leyan managed to reach an agreement to split up again to find two groups of four people.
Kei, Haru, and Kiara join Leon. Meanwhile, Albert, Rosie, Wiley, and L remained at their party. After deciding that they started to separate in three different directions.
Clyde led Leyan and Samuel to enter the forest ahead of them. The forest was not too dense and still allowed the warm sunlight to fall on its floor.
Clyde had contacted Asqa again before leaving a few hours ago. On a few asions, Clyde asked about how to find a ce to strengthen his fire power.
''It''s pretty clear actually. You just have to look for a hot spring so it must be near a volcano or some short. But you can also find that ce when you see that there is more guard than the surroundings.''
That''s what Asqa said at that time. So now actually Clyde just has to walk in a certain direction. He must head towards the volcano.
However, Clyde knew that what awaited the volcano was something dangerous. He could even havended directly where the Goddess Pele was. Because she is a Goddess of fire, the possibility that she is in that ce is very big.
Realizing this possibility, Clyde chose to go find another ce to avoid trouble. He will look for a ce where there is a hot spring that is heavily guarded.
"Hey," Leyan called from behind him. "Where exactly are you taking us?"
"Look for hot springs. Or any ce that looks heavily guarded," Clyde replied without looking back.
"That doesn''t answer my question," Leyan said in an annoyed tone.
Clyde sighed and turned his head. "You just have to find that ce. There we can strengthen the power we got from Uriel''s warrior."
Leyan decided not to say anything in reply.
"Where did you get this information, Clyde?" he asked. This is certainly no small amount of information, and it shouldn''t be easily obtainable.
"Well," Clyde said. "You don''t need to know. The important thing is that you guys will get stronger after this."
Samuel and Leyan exchanged nces. They frowned; Their looks told them they were suspicious. But of course, they couldn''t say it in front of Clyde.
After sometimes walking and searching, they still haven''t found anything. Strangely enough, there wasn''t anyone or anything moving in this ce; it was as if, all the beings who previously inhabited this ce are away somewhere and ignore this ce.
''So what Asqa said is true. Maybe even the danger has escted more,'' thought Clyde.
The more he thought about it, the more Clyde felt that the troubles in the Far East were probably worth worrying about. The fact that all of the Celestials and their followers had even started vacating their domains was a clear sign. Clyde wondered if he could use the situation to find Rodney and his other friends.
"There," Leyan said from behind him. Clyde turned and saw him pointing west.
So Clyde looked where he was pointing and saw a pond guarded by five humanoid creatures. Clyde told them to approach carefully so they could finally see them more clearly.
"What''s that?" Leyan asked with a frown.
What guarded the pond were five creatures with bodies like humans but twice as big. Their bodies were reddish in color like burnt stones with several cracks running from their feet to their heads. The five creatures'' hair was long and stiff-looking, not like natural hair but more like nt roots growing from their heads.
"They look strong," Samuel said, he felt a little anxious. "What should we do?"
"We have to kill them as quickly as possible before they raise the rm," Clyde said. "I will do it."
Clyde drew the Elderss Sword. He saved his Inferno de forter because he didn''t know if it would be effective against creatures associated with fire as well.
Samuel and Leyan were finally able to see the shape of the sword at a closer distance. Its transparent blue de keeps them in awe. Even sunlight could pass through the de and only create a faint shadow. They didn''t know how a sword that looked so fragile was able to exert such great power.
"You''re going to kill them yourself?" Leyan asked. He wanted to say that it was a crazy decision, however, he immediately remembered who he was talking to. So Leyan swallowed back his words.
"Yes. You guys are probably strong enough but I''m not sure you can kill them fast enough," Clyde said. He stood up, before Samuel and Leyan could say anything he had already dashed towards the pond with incredible speed.
Clyde immediately maximized his speed. With his Stats already very high he could move so fast that the five creatures didn''t notice that he was approaching.
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 30) is activated! ]
Tendrils of thin bluish-white lightning appeared around Clyde''s body, some of it also flowed into the Elderss Sword, multiplying the power of the de.
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already in front of the five creatures. Their eyes widened, shocked to see Clyde''s sudden presence.
Clyde didn''t let the shockst too long; he shed the Elderss Sword at the unlucky creature that was right in front of him, separating the creature''s head from its body.
The other four creatures immediately reacted when they saw their friend killed. However, Clyde''s speed which had been enhanced by [Skill: Pure Lightning] outperformed them by a lot. In Clyde''s eyes, the creatures only seemed to move in slow-motion. He could deal with them easily.
*SRATT!!!*
*SRATT!!!*
*SRATT!!!*
*SRATT!!!*
...
Clyde used what he thought was the quickest way to kill them; by separating their heads from their bodies.
Blood sttered on the green grass along with the heads of the five creatures. Now Clyde has killed all the pond guards.
He got several notifications saying that he got Exp. The four creatures actually gave him quite a lot of Exp points and Clyde was grateful for that.
Samuel and Leyan walked over after seeing all the creatures die. Clyde turned off his [Skill: Pure Lightning] and the bluish-white lightning disappeared.
"Whoa, Clyde. Remind me not to get in trouble with you," Leyan said, looking at the five headless corpses that had fallen onto the green grass.
"You should have known about that by now," Clyde replied. "Let''s go."
Clyde preceded them to walk towards the pond which was emitting hot steam.
Samuel was still observing the five bodies. A momentter he said. "They are weaker than Uriel''s followers that used to attack us."
"Yes. The stronger followers seem to be being deployed elsewhere," Clyde said.
Clyde stretched out his hand to touch the steam rising from the pond. The pond wasn''t huge in size, but still more than enough to amodate the three of them together.
''Then what should I do now? Should I juste in here and take a bath?'' Clyde pondered while staring at the pond water that seemed to boil.
But he quickly realized that there was no time to think too long. So Clyde ignores everything - including his embarrassment - for now, and starts to strip. He took off his armor and clothes.
"Wait, shall we immediately strip?" Samuel asked, dumbfounded.
"Don''t waste time. We have to hurry," Clyde replied. After taking off everything and taking the Elderss Sword in hand, Clyde started walking into the pond.
Samuel and Leyan followed reluctantly. They strip and also bring their respective weapons into the pond.
"Arrgh!"
Clyde couldn''t hold back his screams the first time he entered the pond.
~~~
Chapter 244 Founded
?
Clyde didn''t expect that he would feel such a sting of pain when he entered the pond. Even at his current Level, it was not enough to withstand the onught of heat from the Celestials'' hot springs.
Samuel and Leyan who were just about to dip their feet into the water immediately stopped and looked at each other.
"I think it''s dangerous," said Leyan.
Samuel gulped. "I guess you''re right."
The two of them shifted their gaze back to Clyde who was standing stiffly in the boiling water. They could even hear a hissing sound like something being burned in hot water.
If Clyde who was that strong could even let out a scream because of this pond, what would happen to them? That was what was in the minds of the two people.
Samuel and Leyan just stood at the edge of the pond for a few moments without daring to do anything. Even though they know that they shouldn''t waste time but they want to wait until Clyde shows a sign that he is fine.
And then, the sign came. Clyde turned his head with a pained expression on his face. But the pain he was feeling was not as bad as when he came in earlier so he could turn around and talk again.
"Why haven''t you guyse in yet? We can''t waste time," Clyde said.
"You look in pain. Is this really going to work well with our bodies?" Samuel asked with evident doubt on his face and voice.
"Of course!" Clyde wanted to add that he got that information from someone from within Uriel''s domain, but that would only raise suspicion so he cancel it.
"Do you want power or not? You are supposed to be suffering to get power, have you forgotten?" Clyde added. "Don''t tell me you forgot about it."
Samuel gritted his teeth, his red eyes shing with determination again when he heard Clyde''s words.
Samuel turned to Leyan. "Let''s go. We can''t waste time anymore. Every second in this ce is precious."
Afterward, Samuel started to walk deeper into the pond. A sizzling sound rang out and the pain from the water pond started stinging his leg.
Leyan looked at Samuel with a grimace on his face. He was even more tempted when he heard Clyde''s words about getting more power. One more fact that drives it is that time is of the essence.
So Leyan started to walk deeper into the pond.
As they both entered the same hissing sound was heard. They also felt Clyde''s pain, but they did their best not to scream.
It turns out, it didn''t take long for them to feel the effects of soaking in the pond. From the pores of their skin, slime and liquid brown and ck started to ooze out bit by bit.
Clyde was the first to spit out the dirty liquid because he did get in before them. When he tried to smell the liquid Clyde immediately winced, The brown liquid had an unbearable smell.
"What is this? Why is thising out of our bodies?" Leyan asked.
"I''ve heard of this," Samuel said. "Maybe this is what is called impurities. But... I don''t know for sure."
Leyan wanted to ask further but the pain of the hot water was preventing him from doing anything other than grinding his teeth and being silent.
Meanwhile, Clyde had heard about it before. Impurities are all the dirty substances in their bodies that block the cirction of Mana, or some kind like that. The reference is, once again, fantasy novels that he had read.
But Clyde was still quite shocked by this because he thought, he doesn''t need to spit out that dirty substance anymore. His power of system - Aetheric Records - should have taken care of it and given him instant power. Yet it turns out that there are still impurities in his body.
''Then maybe there is still potential within me that hasn''t been unlocked yet.''
From what he had read in fantasy novels, after the impurities were removed, one''s body would be stronger. Clyde feels that he is powerful enough now but it turns out that he can still be even stronger.
''In that case, this pain might be worth it.''
Clyde gritted his teeth louder. He then plunged himself deeper into the hot water. Of course, the heat he felt was even more intense.
Samuel and Leyan saw what Clyde was doing. Reluctantly, they followed him.
~~~
"Are our preparationsplete?" a woman asked her servant who had just entered the room.
The red-haired woman with tanned skin that looked shiny nodded. Then she stood up from the long back chair - her throne - and walked towards the door.
"Your Majesty," the servant said hesitantly. "I''m afraid that I have heard bad news."
The woman looked up with a furrowed brow. "What is that supposed to mean?" she asked.
The servant looked uneasy. His eyes moving left and right, he licked his lips before speaking. "Im afraid... someone has intruded into this domain."
"What?!" the woman looks furious. "Take me to them."
The servant immediately nodded and the two of them walked out of the room.
Goddess Pele, is a Celestial with a female form with standard height. Her skin was brown and shiny as if some oil was smearing it all the time. Her hair is fiery red like a ze of fire. That hair alone shows her power as a powerful Goddess of Fire.
And now, the Goddess is feeling enraged. Her red hair fluttered even without any wind blowing it as she walked.
"What really happened?" Goddess Pele asked.
"We noticed a strange disturbance in the area to the west, Your Majesty. The scouts who were sent there noticed a sudden appearance of foreigners."
"Are they warriors from another Celestials?" Goddess Pele asked. If that''s true, then they''re dering war.
A war that urs when the situation is like this is not something good. Surely there would be many losses that she suffered as well as the Celestials who attacked her.
"We don''t know yet, Your Majesty," replied her servant.
''I hope not.'' Goddess Pele would be ready to take up the challenge of war if the situation in the Far East was not as it is now. The situation there should have made all Celestials even more hesitant to make moves against each other. But she knew how their minds were, so the possibility of them taking advantage of this opportunity was not small.
"Has the main force departed yet?" Goddess Pele asked.
"They have departed, Your Majesty."
Goddess Pele scoffed in annoyance. "Then, I''ll meet them myself."
~~~
"So, it''s already that long, huh?" Leon asked Kei, Haru, and Kiara who were walking behind him. He was currently chopping down tree trunks and leaves that were blocking their path in this rather dense forest.
"Yes. We almost feel like a family," Kei replied. "How about you guys?"
"Well, we haven''t been together as long as you guys. In fact, we were only together for these few months and a few days at the Selection Stage," Leon replied.
"That means... the memory of the Selection Stage is still deep in your memories," Kiara mumbled. But Leon could still hear her.
"Yeah. But that''s all in the past," Leon said with a sad smile. "Don''t worry. It''s not something we think about now. At least, not always."
They continued to pave the way following the directions on the map in their vision, walking through the forest which grew thicker the farther they went.
*WOOSHH!*
Suddenly a gust of wind blew from the front, Leon, who felt that something bad had happened, immediately put on an alert.
"Get ready. Something''sing," Leon said.
"Shouldn''t we immediately go to Clyde''s ce if something happens?" Haru asked worriedly.
"You''re right. You-"
Before Leon could finish his words, three figures fell from the trees as if they had just fallen from the sky. Theynded with a thud and immediately stood up straight.
When the four of them looked forward, they could see the shape of the figures.
They were three men with big tall bodies. Their bodies are also full of bulging muscles. Their skin is brown with intricate tattoos that fill it.
"Intruder, tell me who your master is!" therge man in the middle asked in a sharp tone.
The four of them didn''t know what to answer. But for sure they must run away from here.
Leon turned to Kiara. They had told about each other''s abilities before and now, in a situation like this Kiara''s ability seemed to be the most suitable for them to escape.
Fortunately, Kiara immediately understood the meaning of Leon''s gaze. She nodded and brandished her wand forward, sending a wave of white ice bursts toward the three men. In a moment, the torrent of ice immediately turned into a five-meter high ice wall.
They didn''t say anything and just immediately dashed in the opposite direction. Head to where Clyde is at the shing point on their map.
~~~
Chapter 245 Each Of Them
?
Leon looked back. He decided to stay at the very back of the line so he could protect thedies more easily.
When he turned his head, Leon found the three human-like creatures withrge, muscr bodies still running after them. However, one thing he noticed was their incredible speed.
''In this case, they will soon catch up with us.''
The ice wall that Kiara created could hold them back for quite a while. It took the three creatures a few seconds to destroy them and within that time Leon, Kei, Haru, and Kiara had dashed swiftly. Luckily they had leveled up a few days ago so their speed wasn''t too pathetic.
However, it was obvious that the strength of the three creatures was superior to them. So no matter how fast they run, it won''t matter.
Leon looked at the map on the side of his vision. Their distance from Clyde was still quite far. They wouldn''t get there fast enough before the creatures arrived.
"Kiara!" Leon shouted. Kiara turned around. "Use your ice to pinpoint our location!"
Kiara who turned her head finally realized how dire their situation was when she saw the three creatures approaching at an rming speed.
Kiara nodded because she understood what Leon meant.
After seeing Kiara nod, Leon stopped and took his stance. The short sword gripped in his hand tightly; he clenched his jaw and activated his skill.
Leon felt energy start flowing through his body and making every millimeter of his body harden. Then Leon dashed towards the three creatures.
''At least I''ll be able to stall for a bit.''
The three creatures looked at Leon who was daringly approaching them with stern expressions. The three of them had already felt a burning rage upon learning of intruders in their master''s domain and now he chose to challenge them. So it was natural for the three of them to put up a tough fight with the intent to kill.
The muscr creature in the middle screamed and jumped. It fell while clenching his fist to smash it toward Leon.
Leon of course saw that. He jumped back a few meters and let the huge fist hit the ground where he had been standing.
*BOOM!*
The ground cracked, and a loud thud and tremors were created as the huge fistnded. Leon gulped at the sight of the destructive power the creature was causing.
When Leon looked up, he saw that two other creatures had rushed towards him with the same murderous look. Leon steeled his heart and channeled more Mana into his body.
The fists of the two creatures shot out simultaneously from Leon''s right and left. Knowing that he couldn''t avoid the punch that fast Leon raised his arms.
*DAKKK!*
*DAKKK!*
The two fists hit Leon''s arm, causing him to grit his teeth and let out a grunting sound. However, the damaging effect that he expected was not that bad. Those two fists were strong but not something he couldn''t handle.
The two creatures looked surprised when they saw that their fists did not immediately crush Leon. But Kiara didn''t give them too long to be surprised; she had already thrown two ice balls toward their faces which instantly froze when they made contact with their skin.
Haru came a momentter, with her extraordinary agility and speed she had arrived before therge creature on the right side in the blink of an eye and immediately shed her daggers towards its neck. Haru wasted no time and shot towards therge creature on the left and did the same.
Leon immediately followed up by swinging his sword from left to right, shing both creatures simultaneously.
The two creatures let out loud pained sounds and tumbled backwards.
Seeing that the two of its friends were injured, the creature that had swung its fist at the ground became furious. It is charged with a ferocity greater than before.
Seeing that, Haru immediately moved backward behind Leon. Leon who knew his role lunged forward to face the creature head-on.
Haru, Kiara, and Kei decide to join the attack after Kiara creates a huge tower of ice that rises above the trees. Under that sunlight, the ice tower would reflect the sunlight so it could pinpoint their location. Now all they have to do is wait for their friends to arrive.
~~~
"What''s that?" Wiley asked when he saw a tower of ice suddenly form in the distance.
Rosie, Albert, and L immediately turned their heads. They had the same confused faces as him.
"It''s Kiara''s!" L eximed. "That''s the tower she created with her ice!"
"But why did she suddenly create a tower that tall? Aren''t we supposed to be sneaky?" Wiley asked.
"Unless. She has no choice," Albert said.
They exchanged nces and let the realizatione.
"Shit," Wiley said.
"We have to go to their ce," Albert said.
They immediately ran towards the ice tower reflecting the sunlight. However, before they could take any further steps from where they were, three muscr humanoid figures that were approaching Leon''s groupnded in front of them.
"Fuck!" Wiley cursed loudly.
"Intruder! Tell me who your master is!" the being in the middle asked in a hoarse and deep voice.
"Our master?" Albert said, thinking. "Wee from one of the powerful Celestials."
Wiley, Rosie, and L all turned to look at him. Their expressions seemed to ask ''What are you trying to do?''
Then Albert nced at them with a look that seemed to be telling them to strike at the right time when they saw their chance.
How could they know the meaning of each other''s gazes? Of course, they''ve been together for a long time. So they feel almost able tomunicate telepathically with each other.
"Who is that Celestial?!" the creature asked again, this time with a louder voice and a sharper look. It made Albert feel that his decision was wrong.
On the other side was the tower that seemed to keep calling them closer. Albert felt that he could no longer buy time for this.
"We don''t mean any harm, you know," Albert said. "We just want to visit."
"Visit? You want to spy on our master''s domain?" the creature asked again curiously.
Albert raised his hand, showing the gesture that he meant no harm. Then he walked closer.
"We just wanted to see your volcano. That looks like an interesting sight," Albert said.
Suddenly, even though he just said it casually there was a change in the expressions of the three creatures. Their faces and eyes seemed more... rxed after hearing Albert''s words of praise.
Wiley, Rosie, and L also noticed the change. They immediately concluded that this was the right time to start acting. The three of them began pouring Mana into their respective weapons.
''Looks like these three creatures don''t have high intelligence.'' Albert thought as he walked closer to them.
"Yeah, your volcano is very beautiful. Can I go there?" Albert asked with a smile to add a peaceful impression on his face.
The three huge creatures stared at each other. Albert was now at a really close distance from them.
*SWISH!*
He took out his daggers from inside his sleeve and then jumped when the three creatures were averting their eyes from him. With a quick movement, Albert shed his daggers toward the neck of therge creature in the center.
*SRATT!*
Blood sshed on Albert''s face. The two creatures on the right and left had shocked faces seeing what was happening. However, before they could do anything, L''s and Wiley''s arrows had already lodged in their eyes. The two of them immediately staggered because of the sudden attack.
The creature in the middle was holding its neck with itsrge hand, trying to stop the blood that was continuously gushing out. It stared at Albert with eyes burning with rage. And then it mmed its fist towards him.
However, Albert had activated his Skill and made his body transparent. The big fist just passed through his body and hit the ground, causing a small earthquake.
The fight is inevitable. The two groups now faced the same fate and they couldn''t move to help each other as they were preupied with their own enemies.
Meanwhile, while the others had started fighting the enemy, Clyde, Samuel, and Leyan were still submerging themselves in the boiling water pond. Their bodies had gotten used to the hot water and now they were more rxed, as if they were bathing in ordinary warm water.
Even so, they were still aware of the task they had to do.
"Just a little more," Samuel said impatiently.
In their vision, their power of system is disying a progress bar that has reached 90%.
[ The process of purifying and absorbing heat energy is underway. ]
[ Progress: 90%. ]
However, their anxiety was heightened by the presence of threerge, brown-bodied muscr humanoids.
"Ah, shit. Can''t they just wait a little longer?" Leyan said in an irritated tone.
The three creatures were so angry when they saw them soaking in their sacred pond. They didn''t even bother to ask their master and immediately rushed to attack.
Luckily Clyde, Samuel, and Leyan had brought their weapons into the pond.
~~~
Chapter 246 Have To Escape
?
The three creatures naturally didn''t care about the difort and annoyance that appeared on the faces of those three people. Their job here is simply to catch, or kill intruders who dare to enter the domain of their master and even enter her sacred pond.
"How''s your progress?" Clyde asked Samuel and Leyan.
"90%" Sam replied.
"Same," said Leyan.
Clyde progressed slightly ahead of them because he entered the pond first. However, he didn''t know if he would be able to finish it before the three creatures attacked.
''Or maybe, I can lure them in and fight in here?'' thought Clyde.
"Hey, they don''t seem to want toe in here," said Leyan.
His words made Clyde and Samuel turn toward the three creatures. It turns out that what he said was true. They stared at the boiling water in the pond with troubled expressions on their human-like faces.
"Get out of this pond, intruder!" the muscr creature in the middle shouted while pointing its huge forefinger at the three of them.
Samuel, Leyan, and Clyde looked at each other.
"Looks like we don''t have to worry too much. It seems like this is a sacred ce for them so they don''t dare to enter here," Samuel said.
"Yes, I can see that," Clyde said, grinning. "Let''s just wait until the progress isplete."
And so, Samuel and Leyan regained theirposure when they realized that the three creatures would not dare to attack. When the three of them were in this pond there seemed to be nothing to worry about.
The expression on the faces of the three creatures became increasingly ugly. It was evident that they were very furious, but couldn''t do anything, thus making them even more angry.
[ The process of purifying and absorbing heat energy is underway. ]
[ Progress: 97%. ]
When nearing the end, their progress bar gets faster, somehow. Clyde, Samuel, and Leyan just kept silent while holding their own weapons in the pond. While the three creatures stood stupidly on the edge of the pond with furious expressions.
But suddenly, a voice came from above as if it came from beyond the sky. The voice said:
"You can attack them!"
The sound echoed in this ce, shaking the leaves and grass. It was a voice that seemed to be that of a woman with such power.
Immediately, the three creatures spat out grins with huge teeth showing inside their mouths. They began to take big steps closer as if they couldn''t wait to get closer to Clyde, Samuel, and Leyan.
"Oh, shit. Looks like we''ve been found out," said Leyan. "Can we use Mana when our progress isn''t finished yet?"
"I don''t know," answered Clyde. "But I don''t think we have a choice now, do we?"
Leyan also saw that Clyde was holding his sword underwater. So he was getting ready to use his bow.
The female voice that had just sounded was clearly the voice of this domain master''s Celestials. She somehow didn''te directly and just sent these three creatures, maybe she was too proud to handle them.
But that was a good thing because it meant the Goddess couldn''t use her abilities to bind Samuel and Leyan.
Clyde still remembers that his power of system is different from the others. He also knew from one of the members of the Order of Mindweaver who contacted him and make his head hurt. He said, if there is no bound that can make the Celestials bound him.
Clyde will keep the secret to his advantage. Maybe, just maybe... he can kill a Celestial if he doesn''t have a bound that prevents him from fighting them.
"We have to get out of here before the Celestialse," Samuel said fearfully. He knew that his power of system would be limited as soon as he faced Celestials so he was obviously afraid to face them head on.
Leyan nodded in agreement.
The three creatures started running. Then they jumped high into the air, a momentter theynded in the pond while sshing hot water around.
[ The process of purifying and absorbing heat energy is underway. ]
[ Progress: 99%. ]
Samuel and Leyan saw their almost-finished progress. And they can take a little sigh of relief because it means they don''t have to be afraid of failure. At least if these three creatures managed to force them out of the pond, their goal had been achieved because there was only a little bit left, their progress would be finished.
However, Clyde''s progress has beenpleted.
[ The process of purifying and absorbing heat energy ispleted! ]
[ Progress: 100%. ]
[ The fire elemental power within your body has been strengthened by the energy from the Sacred Spring! ]
[ A small amount of impurities in your body has been removed! ]
Clyde felt a new power in his body. He also felt that his body was fresher than before.
The three creatures lunged through the boiling water as if it was nothing. Two of them headed towards Samuel and Leyan, while the other one rushed towards Clyde.
However, instead of being afraid, Clyde smirked. ''Come here, big guy. You will be the first to feel how powerful I am now.''
That creature that didn''t possess high intelligence couldn''t realize that it was walking toward danger. The grin that appeared on Clyde''s face couldn''t be processed by its brain, so instead of feeling wary, the creature actually quickened its steps.
Clyde also walked over to it with the Elderss Sword he still held underwater. Until finally they were near and facing each other.
The creature raised its bulky fist and aimed it at Clyde''s face. Instead of dodging, Clyde raised one hand to catch the fist.
*PAKK!*
The creature''s massive fist stopped as it smashed into Clyde''s palm. Only then did the creature reveal a shocked expression on its face.
''Hmm... this isn''t bad,'' Clyde thought.
But the creature didn''t take long to return to its original destination. It raises its other fist and plunges it into Clyde.
But this time Clyde chose to retreat so the big fist only hit hot water.
''If I waste any time here, Goddess Pele will soone and kill the rest of the party. Can''t let that happen.''
"HRAAAA!!!"
The creature let out a loud scream as it dashed towards Clyde and again swung its fist. Clyde finally channeled Mana into Eldgess Sword and lifted him from the water. He then thrust the sword into the creature''s chest.
*CRAATT!*
The Mana shot created a gaping hole in the creature''s chest. It copsed into the water, and soon a fiery red liquid likeva came out of the pond.
Clyde charged towards the creatures that Samuel and Leyan were facing and shed the Elderss Sword, decapitating them in a swift motion. The two creatures probably didn''t even realize what happened before they died.
Clyde gets a notification that he managed to kill the warrior from Goddes Pele and get a fraction of her power. He also gained a decent experience.
"Let''s get out of here," Clyde said to Samuel and Leyan.
Samuel and Leyan, who were used to Clyde''s overpowered strength, were immediately released from their dazed state. They immediately came out of the pond and then put on their clothes and armor again.
But Clyde frowned when he saw something strange in his folder.
"They don''t move," Clyde said.
"Who?" he asked.
"Our other members."
Samuel and Leyan also immediately opened their folders and it turned out that what Clyde said was true. It''s not that they don''t move, the blinking spots on their map keep moving but don''t leave that ce. It was as if, they were fighting something.
"Let''s go!" Clyde said.
They dashed towards the forest. And it didn''t take long for them to discover a huge ice tower in the distance. It''s definitely a tower that Kiara made to attract their attention.
"You two go that way. I''ll go the other way," Clyde said. Without waiting for Samuel and Leyan''s response, he had already run towards the other group of blinking spots.
Samuel and Leyan immediately ran over to Kiara''s group. With his speed, it didn''t take long for Clyde, to find Albert, L, Rosie, and Wiley who were fighting against the three muscr humanoid creatures that had just approached him.
Albert as usual was fighting at the forefront of facing those creatures. While the others attacked from behind.
Clyde sped up his run; one of the creatures noticed Clyde''s arrival and immediately lunged at him. Only to get a sh that instantly separates its head from its body.
Albert, L, Rosie, and Wiley were surprised to see that. Especially when Clyde immediately rushed toward the other two creatures and killed them instantly with almost no effort.
Without wasting time, Clyde said to them. "Go towards the portal."
The four of them immediately turned towards the portal with tense expressions realizing how dire their situation was. They had been found out and it wouldn''t be long until powerful warriors came along, or even the Goddess Pele herself.
~~~
Chapter 247 Meeting The Goddess
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Wiley still had time to look back to see how Clyde was doing. What he saw was quite surprising; Clyde just stood there as if waiting for something, the headless corpses of the creaturesy around him, looking insignificant in front of Clyde.
"Wiley! What are you doing?!" Rosie''s scream woke Wiley, who didn''t realize that he had slowed down when he looked at Clyde.
Wiley faced forward again. Without saying anything he dashed after his friends.
What Maethion and Clyde had said about the bounds in their power of systems rang in their heads. If they did face Celestials, then whatever they did would bepletely useless. So they just have to run as hard as they can.
While Albert, Rosie, Wiley, and L ran away, Clyde was still where he had been standing. He scanned around to wait if anything else might appear in this ce and attack.
But after waiting a few seconds he found nothing. Clyde decided to move, the creature might appear elsewhere to intercept his party members. They might even be waiting at the portal.
Clyde put the Elderss Sword into its scabbard and dashed backward.
~~~
Samuel and Leyan came over and made their situation reverse quickly. Leyan sniped one of the creatures from behind the trees and lodged a Mana arrow at its head. The creature fell backward and immediately died.
A momentter Samuel''s spear also came from behind the trees, shot out at high speed and enveloped in Mana. The spear had an even worse impact than Leyan''s arrow which pierced the creature''s chest, pushed it back, and nailed it to arge tree.
Now only one of the three creatures remained, dazed and confused because suddenly its friend died before its eyes, the creature was unable to see what wasing to it.
Leon with his short sword stabbed the creature''s chest with all his might. Then he immediately drew his sword, spun around, then swung the de at the creature''s neck.
*CRAATT!*
Leon managed to sh the creature''s neck until he severed it. He killed the one remaining creature.
"Come on! We have to get out of here!" Samuel shouted in a tone of obvious haste.
Leon, Kei, Haru, and Kiara didn''t bother to answer. They immediately ran away from that ce as far as possible.
They''ve been found out. They also knew about their bounds and they could be thrown into disaster if the Celestials who owned this domain really came.
They kept running until they finally came out of the forest area. An earthquake was created, then the sound of a giant volcano erupting behind them was heard.
"It can''t be good," said Leyan.
His voice reached the surrounding party members. Making them even more panicked.
"Fuck!" Leyan cursed to convey his frustration and fear. They haven''t even found the path to the Nexus of Creation yet but they should be back already.
He and Samuel had indeed gotten a new power from the Celestial''s pond hot. But is that more important than finding that path?
After a long time of running, they finally could see where their portal was. However, they immediately stopped in ce, as if their feet were nailed to the ground by arge peg.
On the grass where their portal had been, stood the figure of a female with brown skin and bright red hair.
The figure stood up and her crimson eyes stared at them one by one. She gritted her teeth, clearly feeling mad.
"Who are you?" Goddess Pele asked. However, even though she only asked in an ordinary voice, immense pressure hit the ten people and made them fall to their knees.
They winced in pain, feeling that their heads were about to explode from the foreign force that suddenly attacked their psyches.
"Hmp!" Goddess Pele snorted in disdain at their suffering. She just remembered that she was using her real voice to talk to mortals. But seeing the effect she had on them, Goddes Pele was satisfied. She could put off her question for a moment longer and watch them suffer.
Suddenly a fireball shot toward her at high speed. Goddess Pele was shocked because before she didn''t feel anything. Maybe because she was too busy watching these presumptuous intruders suffer.
The Goddess of Fire moves aside. Her speed is so incredible that it seems she is only teleporting instead of moving.
*BOOM!*
The fireball hit the ground where she previously stood. She stared at the direction the fireball wasing from to see who would dare attack her amid her pleasure. And why isn''t he or she affected by her real voice?
And then, the Goddess found him. A mannded not far in front of Goddess Pele. It was none other than Clyde who came just in time after having that bad feeling just now.
Clyde stared at the female figure in front of him with a frown. ''Is she the Goddess Pele?''
This was Clyde''s first time seeing a Celestial in person. He had to admit that their appearance was indeed quite intimidating.
When he nced at the rest of the party, Clyde saw that they were suffering from unbearable pain. This must all be because of the power these Celestials had over them. But he didn''t feel anything. This further proves that his power of the system is indeed different.
Clyde ran towards Goddess Pele. If he let this go on any longer maybe all of his party members would die.
Goddess Pele who saw Clyde running towards him with eyes as if he wanted to kill frowned. Who exactly is that man? Why isn''t he affected by her voice? And why did he dare to lunge straight at her who was a Celestial.
Goddess Pele grinned. ''Let''s see if you can still put on a face like that after I threw you into my volcano.''
The Goddess stretched her arms forward; sent a fireball toward Clyde. However, instead of dodging, Clyde took out his Inferno de and activated [Skill: Burning Hand]. He wanted to test how strong his fire power after being enhanced by the pond.
The fire on the sword is ring bigger. Goddess Pele can''t help but frown full of curiosity. ''What is that sword?''
*CLANG!*
Clyde mmed the Inferno de which was already covered in mes into the fireball that Goddess Pele threw.
Clyde felt a huge pressure pushing against him as he blocked the fireball. But it wasn''t something he couldn''t handle.
''I thought it would be worse than this.''
Clyde then swung Inferno de while increasing his power. And a momentter the fireball split open and exploded in front of Clyde.
Goddess Pele widened her eyes, unable to believe what she was seeing. How could he destroy her fireball?
There is only one possibility. Maybe it was the Celestial who sent them using their massive amount of Mana on this man so he could handle her power.
"Who is your master?!" Goddess Pele asked with her real voice. She added a bit of her Mana to let out the sound because she wanted to hit Clyde with a huge pressure wave.
However, Clyde was not swayed. After splitting the fireball, Clyde immediately shot toward Goddess Pele with incredible speed. That made the Goddess even more confused. She was beginning to feel that there was something wrong with all of this.
Clyde''s speed also shocked her. In the blink of an eye, Clyde was already in front of Goddess Pele and started swinging his ming sword.
Goddess Pele raised her hand to hold the Inferno de.
¡¤?¦Èm *CLANG!*
She could endure that sh. However, the pressure she felt from the de was greater than she thought.
Clyde didn''t stop there. He kicked the Goddess in the stomach and pushed her a few steps back.
Goddess Pele once again showed an expression of shock because of Clyde''s power. But as soon as she looked up again Clyde was already in front of her swinging his sword.
Goddess Pele who was feeling furious clenched her fist and punched the Inferno de that was swinging at her.
*CLANG!*
Clyde was knocked back by the punch. Hended on the ground with shaking hands.
''So this is a Celestial''s power.''
Clyde stared at his hands which were trembling from the punch. He didn''t use all of his strength to swing the Inferno de, but previously that much power was enough to kill monsters and make a huge impact on Uriel''s warriors. Yet now he felt his hands tremble which indicated the magnitude of the power of a Celestial.
Clyde looked back. He saw that the influence of Goddess Pele''s voice had lessened as she was now focused on him.
"Go to the portal! I will hold her!" Clyde shouted at them.
"Watch out, Clyde!" L shouted with a grave expression.
Clyde reacted immediately and raised the Inferno de just as Goddess Pele''s hand was about to reach his neck.
The Goddess of Fire finally wielded the Inferno de and yanked the sword toward her. Clyde was also automatically attracted towards him and Goddess Pele immediately shot fire towards Clyde.
~~~
Chapter 248 A Shocked Goddess
?
The Goddess yanked Clyde toward her with upromising strength. Clyde gritted his teeth, not having time to do anything to resist the pull.
Goddess Pele opened her mouth; Clyde could see a reddish glow starting to rise in her throat.
Knowing that it''s gonna be bad if he doesn''t do something about it, Clyde clenched his fists and gathered his mana there. In the split second before Goddess Pele spewed fire from her mouth, Clyde punched her in her left face with all his strength.
*BUAGHH!*
The blow knocked Goddes Pele''s face to the side; mes shot sideways instead towards Clyde and destroyed the ground it passed.
Clyde''s unexpected punch made the Goddess widen her eyes in surprise. She released her grip on the Inferno de and staggered backward.
The Goddess wasn''t staggered because she was in pain. She was only shocked about Clyde''s strength, which actually had such an impact on her - a Celestial.
Clyde, who already got his sword, kicked Goddess Pele in the chest again to throw himself away. The Goddess was once again pushed back several steps by the kick.
Goddess Pele still widened her eyes, unable to believe what had just happened. Does a lowly human just kick her? It was uneptable!
The Goddess'' reddish hair stood up and fluttered, now more akin to fire. The great volcano in the distance rumbled and erupted in mes and fog, responding to the Goddess'' anger.
Now, Goddess Pele''s whole body is covered with reddish light and a heatwave that radiates in all directions. Her eyes turned red like coals.
"HOW DARE YOU?!"
*WOOONGGG!*
The screams of the Goddess created a shockwave that spread around and drooped the surrounding nts. The ten party members who had just felt a bit of freedom now had to feel the brunt of that pain again.
They all spat out a mouthful of blood as it felt like their internal organs were being ripped apart by just that voice.
Only Clyde was unaffected by the voice of the Goddess. He stood firmly in ce while giving her a sharp re.
''Now this is going to be more serious.''
Clyde finally decided to take the Elderss Sword out of its scabbard as well. He held the fiery Inferno de in his left hand and his Elderss Sword in his right.
Goddess Pele let out a furious scream and lunged at him. Clyde used his remaining Stats Points to increase his Magic Power Level. Because for now, he feels he will need a lot of Mana.
[ Magic Power: 35 - 40 ]
[ Stat Points: 18 ]
To fight a Goddess, Clyde knew that he had to use all his strength. He is now taking a big risk by fighting a real Celestial and he doesn''t want to lose his first fight. If he has to use up all the Points he has saved then Clyde will do it.
Clyde also lunged at Goddess Pele while activating his Skills.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 30) is activated! ]
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 30) is activated! ]
Bluish-white lightning and mes which were now a brighter orange than before appeared to surround Clyde''s body.
Goddess Pele who previously attacked filled with only rage now felt astonished when she felt Clyde''s huge surge of power.
''What happened?'' the Goddess wondered. But she was so close to her target that she couldn''t stop. Instead of considering it, the Goddess increased her speed intending to issue a big attack when the impact between them happened.
Clyde also decided the same thing. He poured massive amounts of Mana into the Inferno de and Elderss Sword, making the mes and lightning that enveloped the two weapons burn even brighter and stronger.
¡¤?¦Èm Clyde gritted his teeth and swung both swords with all his might at the approaching Goddess Pele.
*CLASH!*
The two of them ended up shing with great power.
*BOOM!*
*WOOOOSSHHH!*
Explosions and shockwaves spread in all directions. The Goddess'' fire collided with Clyde''s fire and lightning power. Creates a stunning spectacle of destruction.
The spreading mes and lightning destroyed the trees in the forest and the grass that had previously grown abundantly filled this ce.
The wave also hit the ten people who were still struggling with their pain.
''What a power... if this continues we will die!'' Leyan thought while looking around. He caught Samuel''s eye.
Samuel also wore a pained expression; Leyan immediately understood what Samuel wanted to say. They must quickly go to the portal before dying in this ce.
Leyan and Samuel struggled to their feet and helped the others to walk toward the portal. Meanwhile, in the distance, the sound of the battle between Clyde and Goddess Pele could be heard.
''I can''t believe he fought a Celestial. Is he trying to sacrifice himself for us?'' Clyde stared at the center of this wave of fire and lightning. He couldn''t see what was happening because of all the fire and some lightning that filled this ce. But Samuel knew that was where Clyde was fighting Goddess Pele.
Clyde must also know about the bound that will make their power of system useless in front of Celestials. Yet now, Clyde fights her so they can go toward the portal.
In Samuel''s mind, the possibility of Clyde dying and sacrificing for them was very high. He gritted his teeth, feeling guilty.
''With my strength now I can''t help him. The only thing I can do isply with his request, we must safely escape into the portal!''
Samuel and Leyan helped the others amidst the surge of Mana that filled the ce because of Clyde and Goddess Pele''s battle.
The reason why the two of them were still able to move - even if barely - was because they had just gotten power from the pond. If not, then Samuel and Leyan would justy there with the others, waiting to die because they couldn''t stand the pressure anymore from the waves of the battle between Clyde and Goddess Pele.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
Explosion after explosion was created. Samuel, Leyan, or the others didn''t bother to turn to see what was happening as they were busy staying alive by channeling their Mana to withstand the shockwaves that hit them. From the sheer force of shockwaves they received, they could grasp a picture of the battle.
Once again they were surprised by Clyde''s strength. They already knew that Clyde was strong. But they don''t know that he is strong enough to fight a Celestial head-on.
The party members had finally entered the portal. Now it was up to Samuel to decide whether he should close the portal or let it slide.
If he closed it, then maybe Clyde would have no way of going back. But if he kept the portal open, it was possible that the shockwave from this battle could reach Sivagadh Fortress.
*BOOM!*
Again an explosion sounded. This time, something shot out from the center of the chaotic Mana surge. A momentter somethingnded and didn''t fall from where Samuel was standing. It was Clyde, who had somehow been knocked over by Goddes Pele''s attack.
However, Clyde immediately stood up shortly after he fell. Clyde realized Samuel was staring at him dumbfounded and said. "Why haven''t you left yet?!"
"How about you?" he asked.
"I''m fine. Don''t worry about me. I''ll find a way to get back," Clyde said. "If you stay here you will die. I can''t fight while protecting you."
Samuel gritted his teeth. Once again he felt angry at himself because of hisck of strength. But Samuel realized that it was useless for now.
"Go!" Clyde shouted.
Samuel looked at her and nodded. "Be careful."
After that, he jumped into the portal and a momentter the portal was closed.
Clyde nced at the ce where the portal had been. He felt a little moved hearing Samuel''s words. He looked genuine when he said that, Clyde could tell from the look in his eyes.
But the sound and pressure of Mana from afar brought him back to the situation he was in now. Goddess Pele floats in the air with a body covered in fire.
Clyde was sent flying here because he was caught off guard earlier. But he didn''t feel significant damage because he was able to withstand her attack by crossing his two swords.
Clyde dashed to approach the Goddess. mes and lightning shed brightly around his body. After increasing his Magic Power Stat, Clyde felt an increased surge of Mana throughout his body. Makes him more confident to use his Skills for a long time to give significant damage to the Goddess.
Goddess Pele, who was already burning with anger, rushed to approach him. She waved a ming hand at Clyde, but Clyde can fend it off with Inferno de.
Then Clyde thrust the Elderss Sword covered in bluish-white lightning at her. The Goddess who had expected that Clyde would do that, grabbed his Elderss Sword and squeezed it, intending to destroy the sword.
However, Clyde immediately channeled his Mana to erge the lightning in the sword so that the lightning flowed into the Goddess'' hand.
Fighting fire with fire and lightning looks like it''s not a good match. Clyde realized that too. But he only had those two elements in his Skills so he had no choice but to make the most of it.
~~~
Chapter 249 Devastating Exchange
Chapter 249 Devastating Exchange
Previously, Goddess Pele had thought that she would be able to easily eliminate Clyde after exerting a little bit more of her power. However, what she is experiencing now proves otherwise.
Clyde was able to prove that he could issue enough strength to keep up with her. That was not a good thing for a Celestial like her, and it was starting to make the Goddess feel anxious.
The lightning that flowed in her hand began to spread from her arm which was holding the de of the sword. Goddess Pele felt a sting that was getting more and more painful from the lightning. So she decided to stay away from Clyde for now.
Goddess Pele let go of the Eldgerss Sword and jumped back. However, unexpectedly for her, who thought that Clyde would also keep his distance, Clyde instead rushed towards her with incredible ferocity.
Goddess Pele gritted her teeth as she stared into those bloodthirsty eyes. Clyde covered his body with bluish-white lightning to increase his speed several times.
*ZWUSHH!*
In the blink of an eye, Clyde was right in front of Goddess Pele who wanted to get away. Then he swung the two swords in his hand simultaneously.
*CLANG!*
Lightning and firebined to deal damage to Goddess Pele. Unfortunately, she still managed to move her hand in time to block the attack.
Clyde kicked her in the stomach, sending the Goddess flying backward and hitting a rising ground. An explosion was created when the Goddess'' body hit the ground and mes spread around.
Clyde grinned, feeling every inch of his body enveloped by overwhelming power. After a long time finally, he could use all his strength.
Clyde just had never exerted this much power before because all he fought against were the creatures that inhabited the Ruin or the followers who were clearly below the Celestials in strength.
But right now he was fighting a real Celestial. So of course, even with all his might, Clyde still had a bit of a hard time.
He stared at therge hole where he had kicked Goddess Pele and grinned. ''Maybe, I really will be able to kill her. I wonder what kind of power I will get once I kill her.''
*BOOM!*
The explosion of the volcano happened again. Clyde turned and saw the fog getting thicker andva jumping from the hole at the top. Clyde didn''t have to think hard to know that the volcano must have responded to the Goddess'' feelings.
Immediately, Clyde abandoned his happy thoughts at being able to kill the Celestial. The Goddess must still have some kind of hidden power that she will use when she feels cornered.
*BOOM!*
The ground where Goddess Pele was thrown exploded, she came out of it and floated in the air. This time her body was enveloped in mes.
Previously, Goddess Pele was still keeping her humanoid form, but now she haspletely gotten rid of that form.
In addition to her entire body being covered in burning fire, her eyes had turned bright orange like ss which reflected the power of the fire in her body. Her hair is now ring upwards, just like the fire which is so strong after being doused with gasoline.
The heat was emitting from the Goddess'' body. The heat was much more intense than before which made all the grass and leaves of the nts around immediately wither, even falling from their branches.
The ce that was previously cool and beautiful has be devastated, a vast stretch of barrennd. The green turns brown. The air was filled with heat waves that the Goddess continuously released.
Clyde realized his disadvantage, he was fighting in the domain of the Goddess so of course he couldn''t beat her yet, unless with more overwhelming power.
Clyde immediately added his remaining Points to his Stats and Skills.
[ Burning Hand (Lv.30) > (Lv.50) ]
[ Pure Lightning (Lv.30) > (Lv.50) ]
[ Agility (30 > 40) ]
[ Magic Power (35 > 40) ]
After using his remaining Stat and Skill Points, Clyde felt another surge of power flowing through every inch of his body. He gripped the two swords in his hands even tighter and prepared for Goddess Pele''s impending attack.
However, Goddess Pele felt doubt in her heart. Previously, she only felt anger because Clyde had infiltrated and disturbed the peace of her domain and made her have to be in trouble like this.
Yet now, the Goddess felt Clyde''s power grow again. She didn''t know what was going on. How could a human like him have this kind of power? Could his master Celestial provide this much power?
''No. That''s not possible,'' the Goddess thought.
A Celestial also needed their power to sustain their life. No matter how strong a follower of a Celestial is, they wouldn''t be able to put up this much resistance to other Celestials. However, Clyde is different.
Goddess Pele realized that now her mind was no longer filled with anger. Clyde is different.
''I have to make sure.''
Goddess Pele focused her mind on giving a bound to Clyde''s power of system.
However, she can''t feel her power over Clyde''s power of system.
''What?''
The Goddess frowned, confused and anxious. How is it possible that the bound doesn''t work? Isn''t that the essence of the Aetheric Record - the power of system - in the bodies of all followers?
''Is that possible...''
Now, in the Goddess'' mind, a possibility arose. That Clyde might be a different entity, not just a follower of a Celestial but something elsepletely different.
Clyde frowned and looked up at Goddess Pele, who was still serving above. He was still in a stance to receive whatever attack came from the Goddess. Yet for a few seconds, the Goddess just stared at him without doing anything else.
Clyde of course couldn''t see Goddess Pele''s expression with all the fire enveloping her so Clyde didn''t know that the Celestial was feeling confused and worried.
Seeing no progress from this fight Clyde decided to attack first. He dashed with a body covered in fire and lightning and kicked the ground to dash toward the Goddess.
Goddess Pele was shocked by Clyde''s actions. It was enough to shake off all Goddess Pele''s daydreams about Clyde''s power and existence.
In the blink of an eye, with his speed, Clyde was already in front of Goddess Pele, apanied by white, bluish, and reddish raysing from her sides. It was the Elderss Sword and Inferno de that swung down at her neck together.
*CLANG!*
Goddess Pele raised her arms just in time to block the two swords. But she felt pressure and a sting that she didn''t expect to happen.
"Urghh!"
The moaning sign of struggle did not escape Clyde''s attention. When he realized that the Celestial he was fighting finally seemed to be struggling because of his power, Clyde could not help but grin in satisfaction.
Clyde drew both swords and then swung them again to hit the Goddess'' body.
simultaneously in a barrage of shes. Lightning and fire alternated to hit the Goddess'' body.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
The shing sound of both Clyde''s swords and Goddess Pele''s body resounded throughout the area. They were back in the same exchange of attacks as a few moments before. Heat, shes of fire and lighting, and a Mana storm spread around.
Creatures and followers within this domain felt the pressure of their battle.
Some were still able to stand, though with struggle. But some of the others had already copsed to the ground with expressions of pain. They wondered, what really happened? But only a few that was around the ce where Clyde and Goddess Pele fight know the reason.
In the center of the chaotic Mana storm, Clyde and Goddess Pele engage in a battle, trying to destroy each other.
Goddess Pele stretched out her hands, conjuring a searing wave of fire that rushed toward Clyde.
The intense heat threatened to consume him, but it turned out to be not as bad as he thought.
The armor he was wearing started to burn and crumble; but his body did not feel any pain. He only felt like he was being blown by warm air while in fact, it was the fire from Goddes Pele herself.
Clyde''s innate fire resistance that he got after bathing in the hot water pond created a protective aura that shielded him from the blistering mes.
Clyde grinned. Seeing that grin, Goddess Pele widened her orange, glowing eyes. It was at that moment the Goddess realized, that her fire powers weren''t too useful.
Clyde channeled his Mana into the Inferno de, making the mes on the de burn even brighter than before. And then, he thrust his sword forward with all his might.
*WOOOSSHHH!*
Clyde shot a pir of fire that shot towards Goddess Pele. A roaring fire erupted from the tip of Inferno de, spiraling towards the Goddess.
The searing mes are twisted and contorted, forming a swirling vortex of pure fire. The intensity of the ze grew with each passing moment, consuming the air and casting an ominous glow across the battlefield.
~~~
Chapter 250 Subjugation
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The domain experienced something its inhabitants had never imagined before. An incident where their master, the Goddess of Fire herself, experienced a shocking and horrible incident.
To the followers of the Celestials, their master was the most powerful being in the multiverse and no one would dare to even think about challenging them to a fight. Yet somehow, suddenly the intruders came and created a mess like this in their domain.
All of Pele''s followers groaned and moaned in their ces. They fell to the ground and writhed, feeling a sudden, unbearable stinging pain. When they looked up, they saw that that great volcano was dying out.
It lost the fire that was raging before, leaving only a thick fog that was getting thinner as well.
What had happened? The followers thought. There is only one thing that can cause the great volcano to lose its power, that is if their master also loses her power.
But that shouldn''t be possible because their master is a Celestial. And she was fighting against the intruders in her domain, so all the advantages should be on her side.
*WOOSSHH!*
Suddenly, a Mana storm came and swept all the followers to several ces considerably far from the area where Goddess Pele fought with Clyde. They did know anything that happened, however, they felt their body getting weaker and more painful.
This yellowish Mana Storm brought pain and destruction to ces in this domain and not just the followers. Seeing that, they also understood that maybe something bad had indeed happened to their master. However, they can do nothing and can only writhe in pain while wondering, what really happened in that ce?
~~~
While in the ce where they fight, Clyde''s attack which was created from condensed mes and formed a spiraling pir, hit Goddess Pele strongly.
The Goddess looked down, only to find a hole in her stomach. She then copsed to the ground with a weak body. The fire around her body was extinguished; her body was now covered in ck embers that were fiery mes before.
Clyde saw his opponent copse and smiled. ''I really have defeated a Celestial.''
Clyde almostughed with pleasure, but he held it in knowing he couldn''t let his guard down before the Goddess was truly dead.
He walked towards her with both swords still clutched tightly in his hands, ready to be swung if the situation needed it.
The attack just now not only destroyed arge part of Goddess Pele''s stomach but also devastated the realm behind her. Clyde saw the forests, ins, and mountains ripped apart by his attack. The damage only stopped after a few hundred meters.
Clyde stopped and stood beside the Goddess who was staring at him with eyes that had returned to being human. She looked confused, scared, and in shock.
"Who are you?" Goddess Pele asked. Her voice couldn''t be heard shaking despite a hole in her stomach. Clyde thought it was quite impressive.
"I''m just an intruder," Clyde said. "Tell me where I can find the path to the Nexus of Creation."
Clyde decided that he couldn''t waste time as the Goddess Pele might not have long to live with such arge wound in her stomach. So he asked directly about what he wanted to know.
"So you are not a follower of any of the Celestials," Goddess Pele said.
Clyde snorted. "No. You better tell me quickly. That way you''ll still have time to... maybe heal yourself. Or wait for help from your followers."
Goddess Pele stared at Clyde in silence for a few moments, considering her odds. If she said it then she would reveal the greatest secret to the Celestials. Which would make all Celestials, not just herself, vulnerable to this man.
However, the Goddess knows that now her life will truly end if she doesn''t say what Clyde wants.
"Come on!" Clyde pointed the still-burning Inferno de at her neck. "I will count to three."
"Let''s talk about this first," Goddess Pele said.
"One," Clyde said.
"If you wanted to go to the Nexus of Creation to destroy it that would be a big mistake. You will destroy not only the Celestials but all the multiverses."
Clyde hesitated. He stopped his count.
"I don''t know who you are, and why you want to find the Nexus of Creation. But if you do, you''re putting yourself in danger as well."
"I just want to know how to fight the Celestials," Clyde said.
"You can do it already, can''t you?" Goddess Pele replied.
"I can fight you one by one. I''m sure I can kill some but the others will just keeping. So I want to make you guys unable to fight back," Clyde said.
Goddess Pele''s eyes moved quickly for a moment as she was thinking. And then she said. "I might be able to give you a way to do that. As I said, you can''t just destroy the Nexus of Creation. With my help, you can gain immense power to take on Celestials all at once without having to destroy the Nexus."
Clyde narrowed his eyes. ''Maybe I can make use of this Celestial. If I had a Celestial as an ally or spy, wouldn''t that be great? she seems too scared to die now.''
Seeing a powerful beingying before him made Clyde feel an extraordinary sense of pride. But he resisted the urge tough now.
"Give me something so I can trust you won''t betray me," Clyde said.
"I will give you my Oath. I will swear with my power that I will not betray you," Goddess Pele replied.
"And will obey my orders," Clyde said.
"What?" Goddess Pele suddenly acted as if she was going to start fighting again. But the tip of the Inferno de that stuck to her neck and started to burn her skin extinguished that attitude.
"Give me your oath, that you will not betray me and will obey my orders," Clyde confirmed. "Or, I can kill you now."
Goddess Pele took a deep breath and said. "Very well."
Swearing to her power that she would obey Clyde''s orders was like she would be his ve. The Goddess of Fire never imagined that she would be a ve to an unknown creature.
However, this unknown creature has enough strength to overpower her and could kill her if he so chooses. Goddess Pele felt that with that in mind, the decision she would make wouldn''t be that bad.
"What is your name?" Goddess Pele asked.
"Clyde."
And so, Goddess Pele started to chant her Oath.
"I swear upon the Celestial''s Oath, bound by my power given by the Nexus, that I shall never betray you, and obey all yourmands, Clyde. With my domain as my witness, I pledge my unwavering loyalty and devotion, forever bound to your cause."
After he heard Goddess Pele say that, Clyde felt something happen to him. Foreign energy was created within him.
[ You have obtained the Oath of a Celestial: Goddess Pele! ]
[ You now have power over her! ]
[ Congrattions! You have aplished the impossible task! ]
[ You have obtained The Oath of Subjugation from Goddess Pele. ]
[ New Title Unlocked: The Celestial''s Master (Goddes Pele) (Lv.1) ]
[ Title Effect: You will gain full power over Goddess Pele even without activating this Title. ]
After getting these notifications, Clyde could heave a sigh of relief.
Suddenly, a rift appeared above the sky. Clyde felt a great powering from within the rift.
"I''ll continue you againter," Clyde said. Then he took the stone that Hammer gave him and broke it.
Momentster Clyde disappeared into particles of green light, leaving Goddess Pele inside lying weak with a gaping hole in her stomach.
She never imagined that this day would finallye. A Celestial like her who had ruled the multiverse with seemingly limitless power was finally defeated, even nearly dead, at the hands of a lower being.
A few momentster from the rift appeared a man with wavy blonde hair that reached his shoulders. He was holding a golden staff that emitted light.
"Pele!" When he saw Goddess Pele lying in such a terrible wound, he immediately flew to her.
As soon as the man reached the Goddess Pele''s side, he knelt down and brought his hand to the Goddess'' injured stomach.
"What happened to you?" God Kane - the man with blonde hair - asked in a worried tone. He hade straight from the Far East after sensing the danger in this ce. It seems he camete.
"Kane," Goddess Pele said. "Something has changed. We... are no longer the strongest beings in the multiverse."
God Kane frowned and then looked at Goddess Pele with an astonished expression. "What are you talking about?"
"You see what happened here? This was all caused by that being," Goddess Pele replied.
God Kane still doesn''t believe her words. However, everything he saw seemed to say the same thing as what Goddess Pele said.
"Who... who is it?" God Kane asked.
"A powerful being named Clyde."
~~~
Chapter 251 Back Into The Fortress
?
Clyde appeared a momentter in Hammer''s private room. More precisely in front of the portal in his room. A portal that he usually used to enter and leave the Ruin aside from the one in the center of town.
Nobody would have thought that Clyde would emerge from that portal from a domain of a Celestial. Especially after he defeated a Celestial in a huge battle that devastated her domain.
Clyde''s clothes and armor were now tattered and torn in several ces. The armor was actually quite strong but not strong enough to withstand the pressure of the fight he had just now. All the things that were created here would not be strong enough to deal with the power of Celestials.
Despite the pathetic state of his armor and clothes, Clyde''s body did not sustain any major injuries. He only suffered from burns on several parts of his body, which caused some difort. However, apart from that, there were no significant injuries.
Clyde grinned in the quiet room. Thinking back on the aplishments he had achieved a while ago. He managed to defeat the Celestial before even using all the Points he had saved up. That meant he could still be stronger than them.
And it''s not that Clyde can''t kill Goddess Pele, he could have chosen to kill her but what she has to offer is far more valuable in the long run than if Clyde killed her right away.
He managed to get his hands on the Oath of a Celestial. He felt a strange power enter his body after hearing the Oath spoken by Goddess Pele. The notification that he received from his power of system also said that he already had power over the Goddess.
This is a great start. He didn''t know what to do with this new power but having this Oath woulde in handy in the future.
Clyde came out of Hammer''s room with a delighted heart. He removed the smile from his lips so as not to get the weirder looks from everyone who saw him walking around in damaged clothes.
All the Hammer''s men who were doing their jobs turned their heads when they saw Clydeing out of their master''s room. Their reactions were the same; they were dumbstruck, staring at Clyde with wide eyes and mouths.
"Where''s Hammer?" Clyde asked.
It took them a few seconds to utter an answer. In the end, one of them mentioned the whereabouts of the master cksmith.
"H-he is in the treatment room. The news about uhh... your party who just returned from the expedition came and he immediately went there."
Clyde nodded curtly. Then he immediately went to another ce, the infirmary. Clyde knew that right now there were a lot of stares on his back. There must be so many questions on their minds by now but Clyde wasn''t going to bother exining them to them.
He walked while getting weird stares from all the residents of Sivagadh Fortress. Clyde feel ufortable with the stares so he immediately increased his walking speed. Until finally he arrived at the infirmary where his other party members were.
As he opened the door and stepped into the room, all eyes immediately turned toward him. Their expressions revealed a mixture of disbelief and astonishment as if witnessing a dreame true. Most of them were lying down, nursing their injuries, except of course Hammer who remained standing.
Even when Clyde came inside, took off his shirt, and took a white shirt that patients usually wear, no one spoke.
Since no one spoke, he finally decided to speak first.
"Yes, I''m fine."
Clyde sat in one of the remaining seats. He looked at them all; finally, after he said something the consciousness returned to their faces.
"Clydes!" Hammer shouted. "They say you fought a Celestial!"
Clyde gave a curt nod.
"How are you still alive?" Hammer asked again, this time even more hysterical.
Clyde decides he will not say that he has defeated a Celestial, the Goddess Pele, and got an Oath from her. That could be his advantage because only he and the Goddess know about that.
"Somehow, I managed to escape from her." Clyde held up the ne which had now lost its pendant. "Thanks to this, I was able to get here."
Hammer realized what he was holding. Inside his heart, he felt very relieved and happy because he felt he had yed an important role in Clyde''s safety.
Unlike Hammer who wasn''t there and felt and saw what was happening, the ten party members stared at Clyde still in shock and disbelief.
Because they know how strong the Celestials Clyde fought and how the Celestials forced them to submit with just her words. Yet Clyde was able toe back here with only minor injuries and clothes torn. It felt like something impossible for them.
"You... how did you escape from her?" Samuel asked.
"I can''t tell you in detail. My body was just struggling with all its might to keep me alive and amid that difficulty, I can''t remember everything," Clyde replied.
"I guess... it makes sense," Samuel said.
Samuel could only imagine the predicament Clyde was in. He could never imagine the true power of a Celestial let alone fight with them head-on. Yet Clyde did and he even came back with only a minor injury.
"So, what happened to those Celestials, Clyde?" he asked again. The others looked at him curiously.
"She tried to chase me but I think I managed to give her enough distraction. She must be pretty pissed right now," Clyde replied. He tried to put on a deadpan and tired face so they would be quick to believe him.
They all fell silent after hearing his answer. They looked at each other, but didn''t know what to say. Because the appearance of Clyde here alone was enough to shock them. They thought Clyde had died sacrificing for them.
Not long after, James came and he also showed the same bewilderment. Clyde said that he needed immediate treatment so that the shock would break.
James said that this room was full so he treated Clyde in another room. Hammer left with him.
The room was quiet again after Clyde left. They are still trying to digest what happened.
"How is he still alive?" Leyan asked with a frown. "You all feel the power of that Goddess. We almost died just by hearing her words."
"Why don''t you sound happy that Clyde made it back?" L asked while looking at Leyan.
Leyan turned and looked at her. "What are you talking about? I''m just asking. I''m sure you''re thinking the same thing."
L fell silent. She also thought about how Clyde coulde back in such good condition. But L was more worried about his real state than the reasons why he could be okay. L felt nobody here was interested in that.
"What''s important now is that he looks fine, right?" Wiley said. Then he rxed his body again on the bed. "We''d better worry about ourselves. I didn''t know the mental attack of a Celestial was that powerful. You guys aren''t afraid of something wrong with your insanity after all that?"
What Wiley said actually made a lot of sense. So they chose to focus on their treatment now instead of thinking about Clyde.
But even so, they couldn''tpletely shake off the thought of Clyde. Especially Samuel.
Hey down on his bed, letting James healing power that had beenpressed into an infusion channeled into his body. However, Samuel''s mind remained on Clyde. Somehow, he felt that there was something else going on besides the ''distraction'' that he managed to do to get away from the Celestial.
But Samuel doubted that Clyde would say much more than he had told them earlier. It''s just the way he is, he always seems to keep more things to himself than telling others.
Samuel wondered why he did that.
~~~
Hammer was silent while James was treating Clyde. James said that Clyde was not seriously injured.
He said that with a frown and eyes that stared at every burn on Clyde''s body full of disbelief. But no matter how far he searched or asked, Clyde''s answer was the same so he gave up and left the two of them to attend to Samuel and the others in the next room.
Hammer approached Clyde''s bed after James had left.
"What happened to you?" Hammer looked so curious that his eyes seemed to light up.
"I wouldn''t give a different answer to you, Ham," Clyde replied. Hammer looked disappointed. "But, I have something for you. Take it from my right trouser pocket."
Hammer immediately went and reached into the right pocket of Clyde''s pants which were almost shredded. And then he found it. It was a red pebble, the color of which looked like the color of molten metal.
"What is this?" Hammer asked.
"I took it from Goddess Pele''s domain. You said you could create something like Samuel''s amulet if I brought you the essence of a domain, right?"
~~~
Chapter 252 Afterward
?
Hammer was feeling light-headed now. So many things happened that he found it difficult to use his mind properly over this situation.
"What?" Hammer asked. "You not only managed to escape from a Celestial unscathed but also managed to get this pebble?"
"I have burns. What do you mean unscathed?" Clyde replied.
"It''s just minor burns!" Hammer said with an exmation. "You should be dead now!"
"But it still hurts," Clyde replied. "Let''s not talk about it right now. And don''t shout too much. Can you make it or not?"
Hammer stared at the red pebble in his hand as he pressed his lips together. Then he said. "I can make one. But why would you want to go there again after what happened?"
"Because we still haven''t found what we''re looking for there," Clyde replied.
"Path to Nexus of Creation?"
Clyde turned his gaze to him. "You already know about that?"
"Yeah, they told me about that before you came," said Hammer.
Clyde shrugged. "Well then. You already know about it so there''s no point in keeping it a secret any longer. You know now why it is important to you to build the thing."
"Samuel can take you there with his own amulet, though."
Clyde didn''t answer right away. He stared at Hammer with eyes full of hidden intent. Hammer instantly understood the meaning of that gaze.
"Is this something you want to keep secret from them again?" Hammer asked.
"Yes." Clyde nodded.
Hammer sighed. "I don''t know, Clyde. I don''t think... keeping too many things from your friends is a good thing."
"They are not really my friends and you know it," Clyde said in an even tone.
Hammer stared at him. From the Dwarf''s gaze, Clyde could tell that Hammer was confused about his insistence on putting up a protective barrier against everyone around him. Even after the fight and struggle they went through together.
"Alright alright." Hammer raised his hands, as a sign of giving up. "I will make the artifact you want."
Clyde answered with a nod and said. "Thanks."
"You have to start trusting other people, Clyde. You can''t always be alone," Hammer said.
"I have a few people I can trust. And I don''t think I can trust more than that," Clyde shot back.
Hammer nodded curtly and sighed. Then he left the room without saying anything else.
Clyde who was finally alone in the room looked up. He dropped his head on the bed and tried to findfort after the long day he had spent.
It wasn''t even evening yet. He looked at the clock hanging above the wall on the right and saw that it was only ten in the morning. Though, in this Fortress it didn''t mean much because the sky was always dark.
''Weird, though I feel like I spent a lot more time than that.''
Clyde didn''t really think about the time difference he thought and what actually happened. Because he already suspected that there might be something wrong with time in this ce.
When he was alone now and finally able to rest, Clyde finally felt exhausted. It wasn''t fatigue so great that it was unbearable, but enough to make him want to close his eyes right now.
So Clyde did. He was in a good mood after getting the Oath, and now Clyde thought he couldn''t hurt himself by taking a little nap.
~~~
A man came out of the portal in the room the Senior Council usually used for important meetings and gatherings. He is one of the ten members of the Senior Council who should still carry out his duties as a spy in the domain of one of the Celestials.
However, this time an urgent problem forced him toe back here. His expression grave and hard, the man gritted his teeth and clench his fist.
The man''s body was tall, almost reaching three meters. His hair is long and nearly reaches his thighs and is locked in dreadlocks.
His skin is brown, almost close to the color of dried earth. And that skin wrapped around his muscr body.
Overall, the man looks very much like the characteristics of the followers of Goddess Pele. Because he is.
That man immediately issued an order to summon all the Senior Council present in this Fortress as they had a big matter to discuss.
His call didn''t take long to get a response. It was his presence here that suddenly made all the Senior Council astonished and agitated. He shouldn''t be here yet he came. Something big must have happened until he could no longer dy his arrival.
Vernik, Madri, and Maethion. Three members of the Senior Council who were always here because they weren''t spies in the Celestials'' domain or doing tasks that required them to leave, came into the meeting room with the same question.
"Why the hell did youe here and call us in such a hurry, Saulo?" Vernik asked in a confused tone mixed with a hint of annoyance as he sat down.
"You said they would do it subtly!" Saul said. His teeth were still gritted tightly. He stared at Vernik with eyes burning with anger. "You know what they just did?"
Maethion frowned and leaned forward. "What do you mean?"
Saulo turned his gaze towards Maethion. "The party you sent caught Goddess Pele''s attention. They made Goddess Pele send her warriors and she even go herself to them so they ended up being involved in a devastating battle!"
His words made them all silent. This was something dire because they had finally caught the attention of a Celestial on them. And it''s not just a small concern that Clyde and the people who went there got to destroy her domain.
"Wait," Madri said, holding up her hand. "You said devastating? Did Goddess Pele not act?"
Maethion and Vernik immediately set their sights on Saulo.
"She is also fighting. She was just about to leave for the Far East but she noticed an intruder before leaving," Saulo replied.
"If so, then the Goddess should be able to stop the party we sent before they could do any damage," Madri said.
Maethion felt his heartbeat increase suddenly. He nced at Vernik and Madri who looked suspicious of Madri''s words.
The truth is, Maethion hasn''t said anything about his knowledge of Clyde''s Aetheric Records. He hasn''t said anything about the suspicion that it''s possible that Clyde''s Aetheric Records is different from the others in that it''s not bound by the bound of a Celestial.
If the other Senior Council members found out it could be troublesome.
Saul shook his head. "I don''t know what happened. But somehow they were able to put up a fight against Goddess Pele to the point of destroying the area where they were fighting."
Vernik frowned. "That''s so weird..."
"Maybe they leveled up high enough and attacked Goddess Pele quickly before she could use her bound," Maethion said, giving a suggestion to ay their suspicions.
"Yeah, that''s actually possible. But that possibility is very small," Madri said.
"That doesn''t matter now. What matters is what if the Goddess Pele tracked them down and eventually brought them here?" Saul said.
"That''s not going to happen. So far no one has ever found this Fortress," Maethion replied.
"That''s because no one is actually looking for this Fortress!" Saulo looked furious, his eyes lit up looking at Maethion. "Now, when Goddess Pele has realized that there is a force attacking her, she will not remain silent."
What Saulo said did make sense. Maethion couldn''t find a way to say something to disprove that.
However, this time it was Clyde who had to deal directly with the Goddess. Maethion believes that it was Clyde who gave resistance to the Goddess causing the domain to suffer heavy damage.
''I have to ask Clyde directly about this. Maybe he kept some kind of surprise again for this situation. I have a hunch.''
"So." Saulo nced at them in turn. "Any better idea for this problem?"
"We can lead her to another ce. Let''s put some kind of false clues when she decides to look for this Fortress," Vernik said.
"I agree," Madri said with a nod.
"That''s a good idea, I think," Maethion said. "To do that we need to make another necessary mess."
They discussed further about the n to direct Goddess Pele''s attention away from the Fortress.
The discussionsted quite a long time because it contained many things. They have to create a bait that makes sense and isn''t suspicious. But also have to be extra careful in doing that.
After the meeting ended and they were all satisfied, Maethion immediately left the building. He exhaled and wiped the sweat off his forehead.
''Time to go meet that boy.''
Maethion went straight to the infirmary where Clyde was.
When he got there, Clyde was sitting on his bed. In his hand was the Inferno de. Of course, now there was no fire on the de.
"I expected you wille here soon," Clyde said.
~~~
Chapter 253 Suspicious Again
?
"I expected you areing," Clyde said. He looked up to stare at Maethion. When he saw him, Clyde knew immediately that Maethion had note to congratte him on his return or ask about his condition.
Maethion stepped into the room with a sigh. Then he closed the door and locked it. He used his ability to seal all sounds in the room while they were talking.
"You fought with Goddess Pele?" Maethion asked straight to the point.
"Yes," Clyde answered simply. Then he looked away from Maethion to stare at his Inferno de again.
Something had changed about the sword. Clyde saw that the red de was now a lighter color. Even when he''s not channeling Mana, the sword seems to keep glowing even faintly.
Clyde wondered if the change in the de had anything to do with what he had experienced earlier. Did the sword respond to his fire elemental power getting stronger after soaking in the pond? Or because he used it to fight with the Goddess Pele, so somehow the power of the Goddess affects it?
"Why are you so careless? Shouldn''t you be doing it secretly?" Maethion asked. Annoyance was clear in his voice.
"I had no other choice. We were suddenly found out, and the Goddess sent her warriors," Clyde said.
"That shouldn''t be possible. You can''t be found out if you don''t touch some kind of sacred ce in that domain or are seen by the guards in that domain," Maethion said.
Clyde paused. He clearly remembered that he had taken a dip in the Goddess'' pond.
"You didn''t say we would be found out if we touched a sacred ce," Clyde replied.
Maethion widened his eyes, staring at him with full disbelief. "You should already know about that without me having to say anything!"
Clyde didn''t say anything this time. That made Maethion even more suspicious.
"What did you touch there?" asked Maethion.
"I was just trying out a sacred pond that happened to be there," Clyde replied.
Maethion almost strangled Clyde. He gritted his teeth and looked at Clyde with a look that could bore a hole in his head. But Maethion held back his anger before it overflowed.
"I''m almost certain that you touched the personal sacred spring of the Goddess Pele," Maethion said. "The sacred springs are an important ce for her because there she can purify the bodies of creatures that will be her followers so they are more adept with Mana and the power of fire."
Clyde was still silent. But he realized that Maethion would soon conduct some kind of interrogation on him. So he put the Inferno de back into its scabbard and started listening.
"Why did you go to that pond? Did you touch the water?"
"Actually," Clyde said. "I brought Samuel and Leyan to bathe in the pond."
Maethion looked shocked again. However, he had expected that Clyde would do something like that. He just doesn''t understand the reason.
"Why did you do that?" So Maethion asked.
"Me, Samuel, and Leyan got the power from the people Uriel sent to take the artifacts back then after killing them," Clyde replied. "It was the power of fire. So I thought that since we were about to go to the domain of the Goddess of Fire, I could strengthen the power within us."
Maethion frowned. "How did you know about that?"
Clyde shrugged. "Lucky guess. It turns out my guess is right. I got a notification that my power of fire has increased."
Maethion eyed Clyde for a good thirty seconds before finally averting his eyes. ''No matter what I do he won''t tell the truth. But maybe he did tell the truth.''
"Is there any problem?" Clyde asked.
"The other Senior Councils feel that your actions were wrong. Saulo, the Senior Council who is a spy in the Goddess Pele''s domain, immediately came here and reported it. He looks pretty pissed," Maethion replied.
"I will go there again to find the path."
Clyde''s words made Maethion shake his head. "No. You can''t go there anymore. It would be too risky since the Goddess already knows about you."
"Trust me. I know a way," Clyde said. "I will get the location of that path for you. So, please allow me to go there again. This time I''d better go alone."
After hearing his words, Maethion became suspicious of Clyde. He stared at him with narrowed eyes.
"What are you doing? Did you... talk to Goddess Pele?" Maethion asked.
Clyde took a moment to think. Then after thinking about it, he decided to tell part of the truth about what happened.
"Yes. We talked."
That was quite a surprising answer for Maethion.
"What did you talk to her about?" Maethion asked.
Clyde stared at him with determined eyes. "It''s a secret. Sorry. But it was part of the deal between us."
The atmosphere in the room turned silent for about a minute. Maethion clearly didn''t believe Clyde, and there was still a lot of suspicion. All of that was evident in his eyes.
Clyde also felt the bespectacled Elf''s searching gaze. Feeling ufortable, finally Clyde said. "Don''t worry. I''lle back and give you the location of the path."
"Did you make a deal by disclosing about this Fortress? And the existence of the Resistance?" Maethion asked sharply.
"No. I''m not going to do it. You have to trust me, Maethion. There are some things I can''t honestly say, but I ask you to believe me." Clyde met Maethion''s gaze with no less firm eyes. "I will not harm this Fortress. You can be assured about that."
Maethion shook his head. "I don''t know how to handle you anymore. You won''t say anything to me even though I always try to cover your ass from the other Senior Council."
Clyde felt some kind of sting in his heart. Maethion is right; he has done many things for him yet he still can''t trust him.
"But," Maethion said. "I decided to believe in you. So, I will keep doing so."
Maethion left the room after saying that. Finally, Clyde was left alone with feelings of guilt due to the conversation earlier.
''Maybe I should say something to him?''
He shook his head. ''No. I don''t know what will happen once I trust someone again.''
Clydey on his bed and stared out the window. The sky that was always night looked calm, like the water of theke he used to meet with Maethion.
His eyes felt heavier. Clyde once again closed his eyes to speed up his healing process. After all, there was nothing he could do now, and could only wait for Hammer toplete the artifact.
~~~
"Should we spread the word about this?" God Kane asked.
Right now, he was in Goddess Pele''s private room. The Goddess herself is now lying on her bed. The wound in her stomach has started to shrink and close but it''s not perfect. There was still arge gaping hole in it but the wound waspletely harmless.
"No. I won''t let the other Celestials know that I was just defeated," Goddess Pele replied sharply.
"But... if indeed the being you speak of is that powerful, this could be a problem other than what was in the Far East," God Kane said.
Goddess Pele was silent and stared at the ceiling of her room. She still remembers well the time when she fought against Clyde. His power ispletely different.
"We still don''t know who he is or what their goals are. With such a strong being on the loose, the risk of something going wrong is very high," God Kane added again.
"But I don''t think we''ll get in trouble with him," Goddess Pele said.
"Why do you think so?"
Goddess Pele bit her lip, thinking. After thinking about that she said. "Me and him have made a deal."
"What kind of deal?"
"A secret deal," said Goddess Pele curtly. "I can''t say that. But be sure he won''t harm us."
''Hopefully.'' Goddess Pele added in her heart.
"Alright, I trust you," God Kane decided not to ask again.
~~~
Time passed again. A week has passed since the incident. And after waiting anxiously for a long time, Goddess Pele got a telepathic call from Clyde.
''I''m going there now.''
Those words were enough to make Goddess Pele''s body stiffen on her throne. She could no longer say anything and could only clench her teeth in anger.
Never had he imagined since the beginning of her creation, that he would end up taking orders from someone. But now, she had no choice but to respond to the call.
''Yes,'' Goddess Pele responded telepathically to him.
Clyde appeared where he had appeared with the others. However, right now he came here alone. The ce of his fight with Goddess Pele is still an arid and broken in. As if just left like this without any intention to restore it.
Clyde saw a figure fly towards him with mes enveloping his body. Momentster shended in front of him.
~~~
Chapter 254 To The Path
Chapter 254 To The Path
Clyde stared at the arrival of the Goddess with a straight face. He actually didn''t know what to feel at this moment. Should he smile to greet her? But Clyde knew that she wasn''t that excited to meet him right now.
So it''s better to put on a neutral face-to-face her. They wouldn''t be here for a friendly chat after all.
The Goddess who was now in the form of a woman with a brown body and red hair approached Clyde with slow steps. From her eyes, Clyde could tell that she was looking at him with scrutinizing eyes, still trying to find out who or what he is.
"Is this alright? We meet in the open," Clyde said.
"It is alright. This is my domain. No one will disturb us," Goddess Pele replied.
Clyde nodded with satisfaction. "Good. Let''s get straight to the point. Do you know anything about the domain of the other Celestials?"
Goddess Pele frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Answer me first."
Goddess Pele gritted her teeth. She had never taken orders from anyone before. Now when she heard someone order her, the fire of anger inside her suddenly red up. The only thing stopping her was the Oath she had spoken to Clyde.
"I can do that. However, I refrain from doing it," Goddess Pele replied.
"Why?"
"We... have never been on good terms with each other."
"But I need information from the other Celestial domains."
"May I ask, what do you need it for?"
"I need to do my revenge."
Clyde''s answer made Goddess Pele flinch. She felt something hit her heart for a brief moment.
As a Celestial, she naturally knew what Clyde meant about revenge. Clyde is likely someone who survived the Selection Stage and lost everything because of it.
Goddess Pele never cared about those lowly beings. Until now, when she came face to face and felt Clyde''s power for herself.
"You want revenge on the Celestials?" Goddess Pele asked.
"Not yet. I just want revenge on the people who were their followers. Those people betrayed me and almost killed me," Clyde exined.
Goddess Pele almost breathed a sigh of relief. But Clyde immediately said something else before she could say anything else.
"You will receive it after them."
Goddess Pele snorted without her knowing it. "You can''t beat us, kid. You may be strong enough to beat me but there are many stronger than me. You can''t stand against them."
"Yet," Clyde said simply while looking at Goddess Pele. Her gaze instantly made the Goddess shudder. She thought back to how her fight with Clyde was.
The memory is still so fresh that Goddess Pele can still feel the pain Clyde gave her.
"Anyway," Clyde said. "I want you to find out about God Loki. There is someone named Mona. Find her."
"I told you that we Celestials don''t have good rtions. Especially with Loki..."
"I don''t care," Clyde said. "You have to find her."
Again, Goddess Pele felt anger explode in her heart. Clyde''s words were too much for her. Suddenly mes exploded covering Goddess Pele''s body as if she was experiencing suddenbustion. The mes coursed through her hair making it flutter upwards like a bonfire.
Clyde was a little surprised. He was already grabbing the hilt of his sword but stopped immediately as soon as he remembered that the Goddess had given his Oath to him.
"What do you think you''re doing?" Clyde asked. "Remove your fire."
Goddess Pele wanted to direct her fire toward Clyde with as much power as possible. However, the Oath forbids her from doing that.
The fire all over her body went out as suddenly as its appearance. Goddess Pele looked down with her hands clenched at her sides. Inside her, she said some curses to Clyde.
"Listen here, Pele," Clyde walked closer to her. "You said yourself that you wanted to give your Oath back then, wasn''t it? In exchange, I spared your life. Why are you acting like that now?"
Goddess Pele still didn''t raise her eyes.
"Don''t do that again. Because I have your Oath and I think I can do what I want with it," Clyde added his threat. "So you will do as I tell you. Find someone named Mona in God Loki''s domain. That''s to start with.
Then, for my next request, I would like you to show me the path to the Nexus of Creation."
The Goddes'' eyes widened at Clyde''sst words. She looked up and finally could see his eyes.
"W-What?" the Goddess stuttered.
"Path to the Nexus of Creation. Where is it?" Clyde asked again. This time in a demanding tone.
"H-How did you know there was a path here?"
"You don''t need to know about that. All you have to do is tell me where the path is."
Goddess Pele pressed her lips together. There are many things that make her not want to say where the path is. One most obvious thing is that by knowing the location of the Nexus, Clyde is tantamount to knowing the weaknesses of the Celestials.
And information about the path that allows beings other than Celestials to enter the Nexus of Creation should only be known to Celestials and very few followers who are in the highest hierarchy or the inner circle of a Celestial. That information shouldn''t be avable to a creature like Clyde.
Unless he has allies who are traitors in the deepest circle of certain Celestials.
"Can I ask something first?" Goddess Pele asked.
Clyde shook his head briefly. "No. Tell me where is the path."
Goddess Pele took a deep breath. She couldn''t fight against Clyde who she gave Oath to her. She could only obey his orders.
"That ce is quite far from here," said Goddess Pele. She thought that if she had experienced this kind of suffering, then the other Celestials should also feel it.
"Take me there. And don''t mess around," Clyde said firmly.
Goddess Pele just nodded. Then she stretched her arms to the sides. A yellowish light appeared and created a dome that enveloped the two of them.
Clyde looked around while cing his hand on the hilt of the Elderss Sword. Be prepared if so Goddess tries to do funny things to him.
The scenery around them changed very quickly. Clyde immediately noticed that they were moving inside this light dome so he refrained from pulling out his Elderss Sword.
"Don''t worry. I will take us down that path and have no intention of doing anything else," Goddes Pele said.
"You''re smart enough to understand that," Clyde replied.
A momentter the light dome stopped. Now they are in the bowels of a volcano. Lava flowed beside them and emitted hot smoke.
"You said it was quite far," Clyde said.
"If you think that this ce is inside the volcano you saw, you are wrong. This ce is very much on the other side of my domain."
"Oh, okay. So where is the path?"
"Follow me."
Goddess Pele went first. Clyde followed behind her with wary steps.
The sound of boilingva filled Clyde''s ears. The hot air inside this volcano also makes it hot. He thought that actually, this heat was much hotter than what he was feeling right now but due to his Level and the fire elemental power in his body which had been strengthened, the effect did not make him suffer. Even when he is in the volcano of a Goddess of fire.
Goddess Pele took him deeper into the volcano. The deeper he went, the darker and narrower the path became. Clyde felt a suffocating, ustrophobic sensation.
"Is it still long?" Clyde asked.
"No. In a moment," Goddess Pele answered curtly.
They then entered a downward path. The narrow passage finally opened but it did no better for Clyde.
He was indeed on an open road but to his right and left were very far ravines. Beneath the abyss was boiling redva.
Clyde grimaced. He gripped the hilt of his sword tighter, prepared for whatever happened. If Goddess Pele wants to do something for her, this is the right time for her.
But apparently, she didn''t do anything even when they reached a door. The door was simple looking, made of smooth in ck stone.
"This is the path," Goddess Pele said. "What are your ns after finding the Nexus?"
"You don''t need to know," said Clyde. "I''ll go inside. How do you open it?"
There doesn''t seem to be a handle or anything. The stone didn''t look like a door either.
Suddenly, a light appeared that enveloped Clyde''s body from all sides. The light was golden like sunlight and felt warm.
When he turned his head, Goddess Pele just stood staring at him with a stiff expression. As if waiting for something to happen anxiously.
"What did you do to me?!" Clyde asked. He pulled the Elderss Sword from its scabbard.
But a momentter the light grew bigger and enveloped his vision. Teleporting Clyde from that ce.
~~~
Chapter 255 Surprise Attack
?
The light enveloped Clyde''s entire body and covered his vision. He was blinded by the light so within seconds Clyde felt panic.
''Calm down. Think about everything with a cool head. You still have power over that Goddess,'' Clyde said to himself too. After he did that now his mind became more at ease.
Clyde closed his eyes intending to reduce the blinding effect caused by this light. He had also drawn his two swords and gripped them tightly while channeling his Mana. Clyde was already preparing for a surprise attack that he knew wasing his way.
A few momentster he saw through the lids of his eyes that the light was getting less and less. Clyde tried to open his eyes, he immediately saw a scene that was almost the same as the volcano earlier but he was clearly in a different ce.
A man was holding a golden staff in front of him. He was tall and slender, his body tanned like the goddess Pele and his eyes glowed yellow like the sun.
Clyde frowned. The figure of the man in front of him was clearly one of the Celestials. Based on the characteristics of his body, hees from the same ce as the Goddess Pele.
Without saying anything the man shot towards Clyde with incredible speed. He left a trail of brilliant light behind him.
The man seemed to be able to move at speeds the normal eye couldn''t follow and looked almost like he was teleporting. However, Clyde could still see him well enough to withstand the impact of the golden staff.
*CLANG!*
Clyde crossed his swords to block the staff. Light came out of the staff and blinded him again.
''This is annoying!''
So Clyde activated [Skill: Pure Lightning] and then moved to escape the man''s attacks. As he had expected, the man had indeed intended to attack after closing Clyde''s vision. He stretched his hand towards Clyde''s neck but could only catch a bluish-white trail of lightning.
''He''s fast!'' God Kane gritted his teeth. He had seen how this being named Clyde defeated Goddess Pele and made her domain devastated like that so he hade to think that he should not underestimate Clyde.
Clyde appears a few meterster at the edge of a canyon filled with boilingva. His jaw clenched. ''Alright. If this is what you want, I will serve you.''
Clyde activated [Skill: Burning Hand] so now fire and lightning were covering his body simultaneously. God Kane also felt the aura of Clyde''s power explode against him.
So, the God of Light covered his body with bright gold light. Clyde also felt the power of the God hitting him.
''He feels stronger than Pele,'' thought Clyde. ''But I think I can still survive. Well, if I manage to get one more Celestial to give his Oath to me that would be great.''
Clyde lunged at God Kane, the Celestial lunged at him with all his might.
*BOOM!*
A violent explosion was created when the two of them finally shed. Two forces that are almost as strong that trying to destroy each other.
Theva was bubbling and churning as if something inside was alive and trying to struggle its way out, feeling the impact of the fight above.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
...
The shes between the God''s golden staff with Elderss Sword and Inferno de continued and each time they shed a destructive Mana shockwave was sent out into the area around them, knocking over rocks and dirt within the volcano.
With his lightning power, Clyde can move slightly faster than God Kane. He ducked to avoid the swing of his golden staff then thrust the Lightning-shrouded Elderss Sword from below.
*SRRATT!*
Clyde''s stab could directly stab God Kane''s throat if he wasn''t quick enough to dodge. But now the sword only grazed the tip of his chin because he managed to back his head in time.
God Kane gathered light in his left hand and then sent a punch covered in light toward Clyde. Clyde managed to hold with the Inferno de but it still managed to push him back a few meters.
God Kane stared at Clyde with piercing eyes that shed with golden light like moltenva, reflecting the raw power he wielded over the elements. With a sweeping gesture, he summoned torrents of scaldingva from within the abyss and sent them hurtling toward Clyde with relentless force.
On the other hand, Clyde doesn''t want to be outdone by his fire power. He channeled Mana and made the mes covering the Inferno de even bigger. Then he made a shing motion toward the hurtlingva and split it before it hit him.
God Kane didn''t look surprised by Clyde''s disy of power because he had expected it. So he again sent waves ofva after summoning it from the abyss towards Clyde.
He kept doing it without giving Clyde a chance to rest or move elsewhere to escape. Clyde realized that too. He gritted his teeth in frustration.
God Kane gave him no other choice but to use an even higher speed than the one he released before. Of course, until now Clyde had not used all of his power.
He no longer shed at theva sent by God Kane instead he made a forward thrusting motion. All theva that God Kane sent toward Clyde turned to hurtle toward him.
''As expected, he still hasn''t used all of his power. I find it hard to believe that there is another being that can match a Celestial''s power besides another Celestial. Until now, when I see him myself.''
God Kane easily split theva, allowing it to divide into the rocks around him. However, he immediately widened his eyes when he saw that Clyde was no longer in his position.
When he looked up, God Kane saw that Clyde was already in a downward arc after jumping. He made a stab motion in the air toward him with the Inferno de.
A torrent of spiraling mes surged forth toward God Kane, propelled with great speed and power. The searing inferno carved a zing path through the air in the short distance.
God Kane raised his golden staff in time but the force from those torrents of spiraling fire proved to be quiterge. He was pushed down and almost fell on his back if he wasn''t flowing more of his Mana.
Clyde suddenlynded next to him. God Kane''s eyes widened with surprise.
*CRAATTT!*
Clyde thrust the Inferno de into the side of the Celestial''s body. Blood was pouring out of his mouth.
"GRAAAHHH!!!"
God Kane shouted, mustering his strength to shake off the torrent of fire in front of him then swung his golden staff towards Clyde.
Of course, Clyde managed to dodge in time so that the staff''s impact only shattered the ground he was standing on and a few meters ahead of it. The damage from the staff impact also traveled up the cave wall and knocked over several rocks.
Clyde stood not far from where he was and looked at God Kane to see if he was weak enough to offer to give him an Oath.
However, what Clyde expected was still far from reality. God Kane stood up using his staff, blood was pouring from his wound and mouth. After that, his body was enveloped by a brilliant golden light. And after the light disappeared, his body returned to good condition.
Clyde sighed. This will be a long fight if his enemy has the ability to heal himself.
"How did you get such power?" God Kane finally spoke up.
Clyde snorted. "How do you still dare to ask after ambushed me?"
"You asked for this."
"Because what I did to Pele? I did it out of self-defense," Clyde said. "It turns out, I''m stronger than her. That''s good, right? Now she can feel what it''s like to not always be on top and just enjoy other people''s suffering."
God Kane snorted then let out a disdainful grin. "You want to take revenge on us for making your life miserable. It''s useless. You should realize that lower beings like you can''t hurt Celestials like us.
"Let me tell you some advice. If you kneel here and beg I will consider sparing you and epting you as my servant."
Clyde can''t help butughs. He then said. "You''re really shameless. You''ve seen what I can do to your fellow Celestials. She begs for her life to give me her Oath.
"It is more appropriate that I will give you advice instead. Give your Oath to me and I will spare you."
When Clyde said that, the God of light''s anger burned even more. His eyes were burning even brighter and his hair was zing like fire. His body as well as his golden staff erged to five meters high in a single second.
"You should know, filthy being," God Kane said in a voice that had also be deeper. "I am stronger than Pele."
~~~
Chapter 256 Triumph
Chapter 256 Triumph
His eyes were burning even brighter and his hair was zing like fire. His body as well as his golden staff erged to five meters high in a split second.
"You should know, filthy being," God Kane said in a voice that had also erged. "I am stronger than Pele."
Clyde felt God Kane''s power increase many times over. Now Clyde could feel for himself how powerful these Celestials were. He said he was stronger than Goddess Pele and Clyde believed that.
However, Clyde hasn''t put out all the strength he has for this fight.
[ Strength: 40 > 43 ]
[ Stat Points: 0 ]
Clyde uses his remaining Stats Points to increase Strength. Then he used his Skill Points to increase his two strongest Skills.
[ Burning Hand (Lv. 50 > Lv. 64) ]
[ Pure Lightning (Lv. 50 > Lv. 64) ]
[ Skill Points: 0 ]
Another surge of power flows through every cell in Clyde''s body. The God of light also felt that new power that made him perplexed.
''So this is what Pele said. This being can increase his strength in the middle of a battle.''
But all of that wasn''t enough to make God Kane feel fearful and choose to retreat. Clyde had left a wound that tarnished the name of the Celestials by defeating Goddess Pele. And not only that, he also forced her to give him an Oath. That is something unforgivable.
God Kane spun his gold staff in the air, a brilliant golden light spread around in an instant and blocked Clyde''s view.
''Shit! I have to get out of this volcano!''
Clyde channeled his Mana into both of his swords. Lightning and fire burned stronger on the swords and his body as well. He scattered the lightning and fire attacks around.
*BWOOSSSHH!!!*
Clyde''s unexpected attack hit God Kane who was in a dashing position towards him for an attack after releasing that light. Automatically, the light also disappeared, swept away by Clyde''s strong Mana flow.
Clyde saw God Kane stop where he was holding his stomach. He saw an opportunity to strike, Clyde lunged and swung his swords simultaneously.
*CLANG!*
God Kane still managed to use his golden staff to block the attack. However, Clyde''s increased strength proved to be putting significant pressure on him.
"Urghh!"
God Kane groaned while grinding his teeth. He nced at Clyde and saw the smirk that seemed to mock him. Burning with rage, God Kane swung an arm to push Clyde away.
His speed had indeed increased from before so the hand swing hit Clyde, throwing him towards the cave wall. But Clyde was still able to nt his feet on the cave wall to support his body.
The attack was indeed quite fast but it was not as powerful as Clyde had expected. he smirked. ''You''re not that strong, though.''
God Kane flew up and pulled theva from the abyss towards him. Golden mes engulfed his entire body. He created dozens of golems from theva in a few seconds and sent them attacking Clyde from all directions.
Clyde still had one thing to prioritize at the moment. That is a must get out of this volcano. That way this fight will be more favorable for him.
Clyde sent out crescent-shaped shes with both swords in his hands. The bluish-white lightning and me attacks struck theva golems and managed to cut them in half. However, in a split second, they could immediately recover because of the flow of Mana from God Kane.
Even if it was only a split second, it was enough for Clyde to open a way out.
*BOOM!*
After heunched that sword shes attack, Clyde immediately dashed to the side and shattered the wall that had been cracked by God Kane''s attack earlier. With his swords, he hit the cave wall until it shattered.
God Kane cursed under his breath and saw Clydee out of the volcano. He moved as fast as he could to catch up with her but Clyde was even faster.
*BOOM!*
Another explosion urred; from the explosion in the great mountain, Clyde shot out covered in mes and lightning. Not long after, God Kane also followed at almost the same speed.
In the blink of an eye, God Kane was right behind him and immediately swung his golden staff.
However, Clyde turned his body before the golden staff smacked into his back.
*CLANG!*
*WOSSHHH!!!*
The staff shed against Clyde''s two swords, creating a wave of Mana storm around the domain. The two of them again engaged in a mid-air battle. Lightning and fire shed with the golden light, creating an intense sight.
The fight continued until finally one of them was thrown down. It was so hard to know who had fallen behind that raging storm of Mana. But before long, a gigantic figure covered in golden light fell onto the ground and shook the realms of the domain.
Clyde followed shortly after; Unwilling to allow his opponent to recover himself, Clyde lunged at God Kane with incredible speed.
Suddenly giant roots appeared from the ground and entangled his body. Afterward, God Kane came out of the fog and debris where he had fallen towards Clyde.
Clyde tried to draw his two swords to block God Kane''s attack, however, the roots entangled him so tightly that Clyde couldn''t move.
God Kane came before Clyde and grabbed his neck. "You think by leaving the volcano you will win? This is my domain!"
God Kane raised his golden staff, about to crush Clyde''s head in one hit.
"If you die, the Oath that Pele gave you will be erased."
"You said ''If''." Clyde grinned.
God Kane who saw the grin, frowned. There was a sudden uneasy feeling he felt. God Kane immediately moved his staff.
[Title: Limit Breaker (Lv. 2) is activated! ]
[ All Stats (x2) ]
Clyde''s eyes were slightly surprised to see the notification. Not just +2, but now it''s x2!
God Kane could feel Clyde''s burst of power in a split second. Clyde stamped his hand and all the roots were immediately destroyed.
God Kane was thrown backwards; he shot through the forest destroying the trees for several tens of meters before finally falling into theke.
Clyde felt an extraordinary power flow in his body. This sensation was even more so when he added Stats Points. This happened because all the Stats he had became two times stronger and not just two points added.
He immediately ran to catch up with God Kane. The God of light came out of theke water with water covering his body.
He came out with an expression full of rage but he wasn''t ready when Clyde was suddenly in front of him when he just came out.
Clyde gripped both of his swords tightly and shed as hard as he could. The sh hit God Kane hard and threw him backward again until he destroyed the forest.
Clyde rushed towards him and God Kane who was already standing came over to him.
Thendscape cracked with the residual energy of their sh, mirroring the intensity of their battle.
God Kane''s divine mes roared, casting an otherworldly glow upon his chiseled features, while Clyde''s body cracked with lightning currents.
The wind howled, whipping around them, as the domain trembled under the weight of their powers.
Clyde''s lightning-infused Elderss Sword shed against God Kane''s golden staff, the collision sending a shockwave that upturned the ground beneath them.
Their movements were blurred, each anticipating the other''s strikes with preternatural foresight. Clyde''s agility and precisionplemented God Kane''s fierce strength and divine prowess.
Bolts of lightning and fire shot through the sky, illuminating the battlefield with their brilliant glow, while torrents of golden fire surged like a relentless tide, consuming everything in their path.
The wilderness bore the scars of their battle, the once lush foliage now reduced to ashes and smoldering embers.
As the battle intensified, Clyde tapped into the depths of his newfound power, weaving lightning and fire into a harmonious symphony.
God Kaneunched a devastating assault, engulfing the battlefield in a sea of ??mes and light. But Clyde, undeterred, countered with a cascade of his lightning and fire.
In a moment of supreme rity, Clyde executed a move that transcended mortal boundaries. With a lightning-infused leap, he soared high above God Kane, his body surrounded by a celestial ze of lightning. He descended upon his enemy.
God Kane raised his golden staff to meet Clyde''s final strike, but the divine weapon shattered under the impact, and God Kane staggered back, his invincibility fractured.
With thest of his strength, Clyde unleashed a torrent ofbined lightning and fire, enveloping God Kane in an explosion of elemental energy.
When the brilliance finally subsided, only one figure remained standing amidst the smoldering aftermath. Clyde stood tall, his body scorched and battered. God Kane, defeated,y before him.
The domain fell silent, as if paying homage to the valiant warrior who had triumphed against a God. Clyde''s victory sent ripples through the celestial realms, a testament to the unyielding spirit of humanity against the mightiest of beings.
~~~
Chapter 257 Another Impossible Feat
?
He let out a long breath as he gazed up at the sky, which remained filled with the chaotic storm of Mana from his battle with God Kane just a moment ago.
[You Leveled Up! ]
[You Leveled Up! ]
[You Leveled Up! ]
...
Clyde gets a notification that he has leveled up ten times in total. He grinned. It was natural because he had killed e Celestial.
Clyde looked down and saw the lifeless body of the Celestial, his form mangled and crushed, a testament to the ferocity of the battle. He deactivated [Title] and all of his [Skills]. It was then that Clyde just felt fatigued in his body. However, the fatigue wasn''t enough to make him feel weak. If the situation is needed, he can still fight again.
[ Congrattions! You have aplished an impossible feat! ]
[ Title: Limit Breaker (Lv.1 > Lv.2)
[ You have killed a Celestial. ]
[ New Title Unlocked: The One Who Killed Celestial (Lv.1) ]
[ Title Effect: (+5) all Stats when fighting a Celestial, grants you resistance (Lv.1) against the power and influence of Celestials. ]
Clyde felt once again as another surge of power flowed through his body. Heughed loudly enjoying his victory. But apparently, it wasn''t finished, a few secondster Clyde got another notification saying that he had gotten the power from God Kane.
[ You have killed a God of Light, nature, and creation, Kane. You get his power. ]
[ Your body is still not strong enough to use the full potential of a Celestial power. ]
[ The Celestial power that is in your body can only be used up to 50% ]
''Oh, it wasn''t that bad after all.''
Clyde thought that he would only be able to use about ten percent of the Celestial power he got. But it turns out he can use it up to 50% which is a lot considering this is the power of a Celestial.
''Now there is one thing left to do.''
Clyde felt that his stamina, health, and Mana had begun to regenerate due to the new powers he had obtained. Because of that, he felt that he could go back and look for Goddess Pele who had set him up.
''Can I fly now?''
Clyde tried to make his body float like God Kane. Turns out, he could do that easily almost as if the ability was naturally present in his body.
Clyde flew forward to take God Kane''s gold staff which had been broken in half and put it into his Inventory. Then he flew higher to figure out exactly where he was now.
Clyde couldn''t find a clue because this ce looked different. There were more dense forests surrounding it, unlike Goddess Pele''s domain where there were lots of clearings.
So he chose the easier way. He called Goddess Pele directly through his telepathy.
''Take me back to where I am.''
~~~
In her ce, Goddess Pele jumped in surprise when she heard Clyde''s voice in her head. She had known that God Kane had died at Clyde''s hands and she had been crying for a few seconds after realizing that.
She was also sure that the other Celestials in their respective ces also felt the shockwave because of God Kane''s death.
After all this time no one had managed to interfere with the Celestials'' position as the strongest beings in the multiverses. However, everything changed from now on.
''Did you hear me?''
"Arrghhh!!!"
Goddess Pele groans at her ce - in the volcano where she had led Clyde into her trap. She groaned with a pained expression because her head felt like it was being stabbed with hundreds of needles continuously. All of that is happening because Clyde willed it.
''Yes, I-I hear... You... P-Please s-stop...''
The pain stopped, for now. Goddess Pele immediately obeyed her orders before Clyde decided to torture her again.
Momentster, Clyde reappeared at the same spot where he had vanished before. Goddess Pele''s gaze met him, taking in his torn and tattered clothes, a visible sign of the intense struggle. Clyde looked at her with a stiff face, he didn''t look happy.
"You set me up," Clyde said in a cold, even voice. It gives chills to Goddess Pele''s spine.
Goddess Pele did not answer. She just looked down and hoped Clyde didn''t kill her too.
She heard Clyde sigh. Clyde said. "But, it turned out to be a good thing. I managed to kill him and get new powers. So, I can forgive you."
Clyde looked at the Celestial who looked scared in front of him. It made him feel immeasurably satisfied. One of the most powerful beings bowed before him who was originally an ordinary human.
"Do you have another n to kill me?" Clyde asked. He of course didn''t ask that just to get an answer. He asked to confirm that no matter what Goddess Pele thinks hurting him will only end in vain. Even she could have given Clyde new powers like what happened now.
"No," the Goddess replied in a low voice.
"Good." Clyde nodded. "Now show me the path."
Goddess Pele immediately stood up because she didn''t want to feel Clyde''s torture anymore if she didn''t move. The Goddess swallowed her sadness and guilt because she was the one who caused God Kane to be killed to face Clyde.
She walked towards the in ck b of stone with a stiff face, pressed her hand then channeled her Mana into the stone. Not long after, the stone turned into a white and ck vortex.
Clyde could feel another strong source of power from within the vortex. Which makes him sure that this is indeed the path to the Nexus of Creation.
Clyde wanted to step inside immediately but his gut feeling told him that what he would encounter inside was not something he could handle in his current condition. So he decided to retreat for now.
"I''ll be backter. Keep the path open," Clyde said in a firm tone to Goddess Pele. "Don''t even think about saying anything about what happened to the other Celestials. Shut down ess to entry and exit from my domain. Do you understand?"
Goddess Pele nodded.
"And one more thing. You should keep finding out about God Loki and the details of his domain."
After he said that Clyde grabbed his green stone amulet and broke it. Clyde''s body split into particles of green light and then disappeared from there.
After Clyde disappeared Goddess Pele slumped to the ground and started weeping. Alone in this volcanomenting her sadness and guilt.
~~~
Clyde reappears in Hammer''s private room. This time he was not alone. Hammer was there with Maethion. The two of them seemed to be having small talk, but Clyde''s appearance made them jump from their seats together.
"Clydes!" Hammer eximed, his eyes wide staring at Clyde''s state. "What happened to you?"
Maethion frowned, looking at Clyde through his sses. ''He looks like he just had a serious fight. I''ve never seen him battered like this.''
Clyde sighed then threw himself on thest remaining chair in the room. He said. "I''ve got the path''s location and how to ess it."
"I think you need to go to the infirmary now, Clyde," Hammer said.
Clyde shook his head. "I''m fine. It''s just my clothes are torn and I''m a little tired."
Hammer and Maethion studied Clyde''s clothes. Through the holes and tears in his clothes, they could see that there really weren''t any wounds on his skin. However, all the armor he was wearing had been destroyed, all leaving a bit of fabric that was at least enough to cover his body.
Something clearly happened. Hammer knew how strong the armor he had created for Clyde was. Seeing all of his armor destroyed indicated that Clyde had just fought a very strong opponent.
"You got the path? How?" Maethion asked.
"I fought the Celestials guarding the path."
It answered all the questions the two of them had about what happened to the armor and clothes. Hearing that made Hammer let out a soft gasp.
"You fought Celestials?!" For Hammer, it was something unimaginable.
However, Maethion didn''t feel too shocked by that because he had expected it.
"You beat her? Goddess Pele?" Maethion asked.
Hammer turned with wide eyes at the Elf. Then turned back to Clyde to hear his answer.
"Yes," Clyde answered simply. "I have no choice."
That answer made Hammer even more shocked that he had to sit back down because he couldn''t support his own body. Clyde just fought a Celestial and not only that. He also beat her.
Maethion stared at Clyde silently. Her hunch at that time turned out to be correct; Clyde is going to be part of something great. Hell, it''s not just great but impossible. To beat a Celestial ande back with the news that he has found the path to the Nexus of Creation by himself is another impossible thing.
''I didn''t make a mistake by making him an ally.''
"Alright," Maethion said. "Now you should rest first. After that, we will discuss the next n."
~~~
Chapter 258 Wave Of Grief
Chapter 258 Wave Of Grief
A wave of grief and a sting of pain could be felt by all the Celestials who were in their respective ces at that moment. The Celestials who were enjoying the luxury in their domain immediately stopped and groaned. Likewise with all the Celestials who were in the Far East watching the strange creatures that came out of the ck wall with a feeling of anxiety.
The wave was created when God Kane died. They didn''t feel it simultaneously but there wasn''t too long a gap between them. Some feel it a few moments earlier than others. But in the end, what they felt was something inmon.
The death of a Celestial finally happened.
Most of them don''t believe it. There was no way anyone could kill a Celestial apart from another Celestial. However, now the Celestials are preupied with what happened in the Far East, so they don''t have the energy to inme each other.
So, who killed the Celestial? No one can find out information about who died. They could only feel the grief and pain without knowing who had perished.
Agatha frowned her gaze at the surprising and strange sight below. She was still on top of the tall stone pir in that ce to see what happened and reported it to the Chief. But suddenly something strange happened.
The Celestials below had suddenly fallen from their positions of sovereignty due to something. Then they groaned in pain, some of them even cried. A very rare sight for those Celestials.
''What the fuck is happy now?!''
Their warriors and followers didn''t seem affected by whatever the Celestials feeling so they continued to fight against the strange ck creaturesing from within the walls. But some followers who were near them were confused and panicked.
''There is something affecting these Celestials simultaneously. Does it have something to do with the Nexus of Creation? Or is there something else entirely?''
Agatha feltpelled to immediately report this to her higher-ups. If there was something that could cause Celestials such pain, it must be something big.
Agatha is not allowed to open portals by herself. There must be someone from the World Masters who opens the portal first and visits her to request a report. But now Agatha didn''t think about the forbidding because what happened here looked quite worrying.
A purple vortex appeared before Agatha, but before she went inside she heard screams from those strange ck creatures. When Agatha turned around, all the creatures stopped attacking and screaming.
Their screams sounded like a choked throat, hoarse and rough, but somehow still loud. For Agatha, who heard them, they sounded quite disturbing.
But... there is one more thing that can be seen from these bizarre creatures; they look like... they''re celebrating something.
The warriors who were fighting them immediately felt something was wrong. They didn''t continue their attack when they saw their enemy stopping their attack. Instead, they stared with confused expressions.
''What is happening right now?''
Agatha decided to watch a little longer because there must be something else going on and she had to see everything before reporting anything.
"Who is it...?"
Agatha heard one of the Celestials speak. His tone sounded filled with fear and shock. "Who killed one of us?"
Agatha''s eyes immediately widened when she heard what the Celestial with that enormous body said. The Celestial''s red hair seemed to flutter. His eyes moved wildly as if searching for the figure he questioned.
''W-What...'' Agatha couldn''t believe what she just heard. ''A Celestial has been killed?''
When Agatha looked down there again, it turned out that not a single Celestial had replied to his words earlier and said that he was wrong. That meant¡ a Celestial had indeed been killed.
"B-But h-how..."
Agatha, who was too shocked by the news, froze in her ce while the portal was still open. She was no longer thinking about the portal.
But a few momentster Agatha shook her head to drive away those thoughts for now.
''I have to quickly report this!''
She jumped into the still-open portal and disappeared from that ce.
~~~
Meanwhile, among Archangel Michael''s followers, Anahita looks the calmest. When even the Archangel Michael who was usually never surprised by anything now had that expression. His eyes and mouth were slightly open and his gaze was unfocused.
Anahita watches him from the side. But unlike the other, in his mind right now there is something else.
''No, it''s not possible...''
Anahita only thought of one thing. It was Clyde.
He and his party members should be on a mission to find the path to the Nexus of Creation by now. A path that non-Celestials can enter. They were indeed carrying out a dangerous mission that had the possibility of them being discovered by followers of Celestial when intruding into their domain.
Did Clyde and his party kill that Celestial?
''No. Clyde is indeed quite strong, but to kill a Celestial...''
However, no matter how hard Anahita tried to reject the idea, what was in front of her eyes said otherwise.
''Maybe it''s something else.''
Anahita decided not to believe what she just thought because it was hard to believe. Until she actually gets solid evidence about Clyde''s involvement in this event.
Archangel Michael seems to have recovered from his shock; he gritted his teeth and his eyes burned with silvery fire.
"How is that possible..." Archangel Michael said in a low voice. Then he looked up, staring at the ck monster army that looked as if they were celebrating something.
Archangel Michael clenched his mrs even tighter and the silvery fire in his eyes grew even more intense. He, who had only watched while the other Celestial warriors ughtered all those ck creatures, now decided that he couldn''t stay still.
He drew his sword from its scabbard. Once again, the sound of the sword being drawn filled the ears of all around the Archangel.
Anahita saw the de of the sword sh with a white light that was brighter than before when Archangel Michael took it out. As if responding to the anger that was now burning in the Archangel''s heart.
Archangel Michael started to step forward. All of his followers including Anahita could feel a threatening and bloodlust aura from him as if Archangel Michael knew that what killed one of them was those ck creatures. Or, actually, he just wanted to vent his anger.
"HYAAAAARRRGHH!!!"
A loud voice rang out from another corner of the desert. Anahita turned and found one of the Celestials with a fat build covered in lightning screaming. God Thor started to move from where he always sat while lifting his hammer.
Not only he, but the other Celestials in this ce also started to move into action. They seem driven by the same thing. Anahita and their other followers don''t know what happened or what their masters felt.
Why did they move together to attack? Did they know anything about those ck creatures, or maybe they just wanted to vent their anger by ughtering them?
Whatever the reason, the followers see no chance to stop their masters. There were very rare times when their masters were fighting the same enemy instead of each other.
Anahita bit her lips silently. Busy with her own thoughts while staring at the sight of carnage ahead. A disy of the power of the Celestials attacking together. The warriors who had been fighting earlier knew that they had to retreat if they did not want to be affected by the destruction and suffer the same fate as those strange ck creatures.
Seeing that, Anahita felt fear grow in her heart. What if it turns out that Clyde was the one who killed the Celestial? She only remembered giving an order for them to infiltrate the Goddess Pele''s domain. If the Celestial that died was her, then it is almost certain that Clyde and his party killed her.
''What if it''s true? Clyde will be the target of all these Celestials.''
Imagining it sends a chill down her spine. She couldn''t bear to think about that.
"What is going on?" Dwayne''s voice woke Anahita from her reverie. When she turned Anahita found Dwayne staring ahead with a frown, seemingly trying to think about what was really going on. He didn''t direct the question to anyone but himself.
Anahita also saw the other members of her party enter the same daydream. This was a great opportunity for her because she was too nervous to say anything in response to their questions.
''I have to hurry back to the Fortress to confirm this. I hope what I think just now was wrong.''
Meanwhile, the Celestials continued to obliterate rank after rank of the strange ck creature.
Another wave came out from within the ck wall and reced their destroyed friends but in the end, in the blink of an eye, the Celestials also destroyed another wave that came out.
The ughter continued until finally, the figure d in the ck robe appeared.
~~~
Chapter 259 Spreading Chaos
?
The chaos in that ce was getting worse. All of the followers could only stare from where they stood as all of their masters were going rampage to annihte all those strange ck monsters.
The appearance of the ck robed monster that was previously a threat to ordinary warriors now became nothing in front of the Celestials. It disyed the attack of the ck tentacles and increased the size of several ck monsters around it; however, it did not provide any significant resistance to the Celestials with their exhibit of power.
The ck-robed figure was obliterated within a few seconds of its appearance. The Celestials seemed not satisfied with all that so they continued to destroy all the ck monsters with incredible ferocity.
In fact, they were almost advancing toward that ck wall and wanted to destroy it right away. But they still managed to restrain themselves before actuallyunching an attack toward the wall, realizing that they didn''t know anything about it and could probably suffer damage. In the end, all the rage was extinguished before the fear of uncertainty in front of them.
There were no more ck monsters left; they have all been destroyed. Upon realizing that, the Celestials could only stand still amidst the destruction they had created.
"HAAAARRRHHH!!!"
Some of them couldn''t stop themselves from screaming as the wave of grief hit them again. Even though they continued to quarrel before, they now felt strangely sad when one of them finally died.
The Celestials had no idea they would feel this way because never before had any Celestials died even after they went through all kinds of battles. The same can''t be said for their warriors and followers. The Celestials wouldn''t feel so lost if the followers died fighting to fulfill their wishes.
However, when one of them dies, it turns out that they will feel a wave of grief. Even the Celestials just figure that out now themselves.
Anahita could only watch as the Celestials rampaged as if they had been swallowed up by a wave of madness. All of her friends in the same squad are also in the same daze state as her.
They keep seeing their tantrums. The ck monsterse out from within the walls again as if to continue serving their anger.
No one knew how much time had passed since the Celestials first went on a rampage. Suddenly all the ck monsters stoppeding out of the walls, causing all the Celestials to just stay where they were.
The loyal followers who had always seen the Celestials as powerful beings and beyond their understanding as mortals were now shocked to see the changes that had urred to their master. Now those Celestials looked no different from beings who were going through grief after losing their dear families.
Now some doubts arise in the hearts of the followers. Were they really looking at the Celestials they had been serving all along? Why do they look so fragile like that?
Some of the Celestials flew backwards, to where they had been waiting before. Their faces looked as if they were holding back embarrassment because they had just done that tantrum. The wave of realization had almost washed away all the rage they had previously felt.
"Let''s go back!" One of the Demon Kings said to all of his retainers. Afterward, a portal opens there; The Demon King and his retainers entered and left the ce.
Following the Demon King, arge number of Celestials also started to leave the ce. Archangel Michael, Gabriel, and Uriel returned to their ces.
"You saw that earlier, didn''t you?" Archangel Michael said with a smile.
Anahita and the rest of her squad didn''t know what to answer, so they just kept silent and lowered their heads.
"It''s pretty embarrassing. I know. But... One of the Celestials has died." Archangel Michael said that through gritted teeth as if suppressing his anger. "I never thought that this day would finallye. It feels... so sad."
Archangel Gabriel and Uriel share the same expression as her. In front of their followers, it was the first time the Archangels had shown this kind of expression.
"I will leave here for now," Archangel Michael said to Archangel Gabriel and Uriel. They both immediately turned towards him.
"Where are you going?" Archangel Uriel said.
Archangel Michael gritted his teeth before answering. He looks angry, but his anger is not caused by the two Archangels. Anahita who saw the Archangel''s gaze made a brief frown appear on her face.
Archangel Uriel and Gabriel who saw those eyes immediately nodded in agreement.
"We will continue to be here for a while then," Archangel Gabriel said.
Archangel Michael replied with a short nod then created a silver-colored portal. He signaled to the five followers he brought to follow him. They disappeared from the ce a momentter.
Archangel Gabriel and Uriel had no intention of having any conversation. They immediately sat back on their respective thrones and contemted what had happened to them earlier. The two of them, like other Celestials, still couldn''t believe that Celestials had died. However, the feelings they had earlier were very real.
~~~
Meanwhile, at Sivagadh Fortress, Clyde who was asleep in his bed jerked awake when he heard a strange voice in his head.
''Shit, looks like I''m going to get another headache,'' Clyde thought grudgingly. Thest time he heard a voice he didn''t recognize, Clyde copsed because of the unbearable pain in his head.
[ "Don''t worry. I''m not going to torture you like I didst time." ]
It was the voice of one of the members of the Order of Mindweaver who contacted him at that time, the one who created his system. But Clyde is grateful because what that being said is right; Clyde now doesn''t feel any pain in his head.
Clyde breathed a sigh of relief and then asked the voice in his head. ''What''s going on now?''
[ "A Celestial has died." ]
Clyde paused.
[ "Do you perhaps know anything about that?" ]
''Yes,'' Clyde answered without hesitation. After all, if he is indeed the creator of his system, he will surely know about it sooner orter.
[ "As I expected," ] the creator said.
Clyde waited until he said something more.
[ "You just did an amazing thing. You know that?" ]
Clyde of course knows that. But he didn''t want to be full of himself when he found out that other Celestials would soon be hunting him with all of their resources.
He killing God Kane was something he had rushed and had not nned. Because Goddess Pele was the first to set him up, Clyde had no choice but to kill him.
''What do you want to do about it?'' Clyde asked.
[ "You don''t sound happy." ]
''No. I''m not happy.''
[ "Good. It means you know that what you''re doing isn''t exactly a clever decision." ]
Clyde sighed in exasperation. ''Just answer my question.''
The creator was silent for a moment. And then, he said something surprising to Clyde.
[ "I think it''s time you meet my master and know the truth." ]
Clyde''s eyes widened at that.
''What do you mean?''
[ "I''ll contact you again. We need to make some preparations to wee you here so as not to arouse the suspicions of the other Celestials," ] the creator said.
Clyde could only remain silent for a few moments. He didn''t know how to respond to all of this. He was finally able to meet the master of the Order of Mindweaver, who had created the power of the system.
As Clyde knew from flyn, the Celestial behind the Mindweaver Church was a God of Destruction. Clyde didn''t know who it was but surely he or she is a powerful figure.
[ "I don''t need to say anything for you to keep this a secret, right?" ] the creator asked.
''No.''
[ "Alright. Enough for now. I will contact you again as soon as the preparations areplete." ]
After that, the connection between them was lost. Clyde was nowhere to say anything before the creator cut the connection.
Clyde turned his head towards the window which cast his eyes on the starry night sky. All of this went beyond his expectations and Clyde wasn''t sure what to feel. Or do. After he actually kills a Celestial
Clyde sighed. "I guess I should just get on with this. This already happened, after all."
Clyde nced at the clock on the wall and saw that it was almost midnight. Not wanting to think about anything anymore, Clyde chose to just sleep again.
~~~
When the next day came, Anahita finally had a chance to sneak out of Archangel Michael''s domain to go to Sivagadh Fortress.
She came without saying anything to the Senior Council members who were here. After leaving the portal, Anahita went straight to Clyde''s living quarter.
As soon as the silver-haired woman arrived at the door of her living quarter, she immediately knocked on the door rapidly.
Clyde opened the door shortly after. He frowned.
"May Ie in?" she asked.
Clyde already guessed what she wanted to say.
"Sure."
Clyde invites Anahita into his living quarter.
~~~
Chapter 260 Rushed
?
Anahita enters Clyde''s living quarters. The ce was so simple, there was only one round table and two chairs in the corner of the room. Then on the left, there is a door that leads to the kitchen and toilet.
Anahita doesn''t want to waste time. "Did you kill that Celestial?" she asked.
"Yes." Clyde didn''t think to waste time either. He''d better get this over quickly. He answered with a straight face.
Anahita closed her eyes to hold something back. She couldn''t really be mad at Clyde because what he did was something incredible. But it was also something beyond measure that she didn''t know what to do to solve the problem Clyde had caused.
"I need to sit down." Anahita sat on one of the chairs in the corner of the room. "Why don''t you sit down too?"
Clyde obeyed her to sit and wait for her next words.
"First, I have topliment you. You did something amazing," Anahita said in an even tone. She was having a hard time with what she should be feeling right now. Should she be happy or worried?
Clyde also didn''t smile or show any pride after hearing Anahita''s words. Even he knew that the Senior Council in front of him still had other things to say.
"However, do you realize what kind ofmotion you are creating?"
Clyde shook his head. "What do you know?"
Anahita then proceeded to tell what she saw in the Far East about the Celestials who were wailing, grieving, and being hit by great rage. She said how they were rampaging like something she had never seen before.
Clyde frowned, feeling surprised and amazed at the same time. He never imagined that powerful beings would be sad and even cry when one of them died. Don''t they hate each other? And they should be the most powerful beings in the multiverse who surpassed theprehension of mortals yet now, based on what Anahita said, they showed something almost the same as mortals.
"So?" Clyde asked while looking at Anahita as if waiting.
Anahita understood the meaning of that look. He wanted to know what they would do next now that the situation had be like this. A long sigh left Anahita''s mouth.
"Honestly, I don''t know. You have killed a Celestial. Now they will find out about you and hunt you endlessly. I can only hope that they can''t find this Fortress," said Anahita.
"I found the path. We can use it," Clyde replied.
Hearing that Anahita''s eyes widen. "Really?"
Anahita could barely believe it. Besides Clyde killing a Celestial, he also managed to get the location to the path.
"You''ve been to that ce?" Anahita asked with a shocked attitude that was still clearly visible.
"No. After the fight, I feel quite weak and I don''t know what I will find there. So I don''t want to take the risk to enter that ce for now," Clyde replied.
"I think that makes sense." Anita nodded curtly. She was silent and contemting for a few moments.
Clyde has found the path to the Nexus of Creation, where the power of the Celestials is centered. If they can size that ce then the strength of the Celestials shouldn''t be a problem.
However, a ce as important as that would definitely not be left unattended. There''s something guarding the ce, that''s almost certain. Clyde''s decision to leave and not continue to enter the ce was a good one.
"What are you think in there?" Anahita asked.
Clyde frowned. "Shouldn''t I be the one asking you that? Aren''t you the one who bes a spy in the Celestials domain?"
"We, followers, even those in the deepest reaches of the Celestial circle, have never heard of any information about the Nexus. Even after several hundred years with the Celestials we still don''t know anything." Anahita shook her head.
"But you can even kill a Celestial, alone, I thought you''d figure something out," she added while looking at Clyde with eyes full of anticipation.
"No. I don''t know anything," Clyde said.
Anahita did not immediately believe what he said. The white-haired woman looked at Clyde with the same expectant gaze for a few seconds waiting for his answer. But Clyde didn''t give anything as an answer so Anahita sighed in disappointment.
"Well, then no one knows what''s in there," Anahita said then shrugged her shoulders. Somehow, she was able to feel better after talking to Clyde. Though she should be feeling even worse because the threat from the Celestials was bing more and more obvious now.
"I''ll find out, then," Clyde said.
Anahita looks up and looks at him. "How do you n to do that?"
"I have my way," said Clyde.
Anahita eyed him for a few moments with a suspicious look. "Like how can you kill a Celestial by yourself?"
Clyde answered with a curt nod. Seeing that he had nothing more to say, Anahita sighed.
"Alright. Whatever it is, I hope you''ll say something before doing anything big."
"I can''t call you, though."
Anahita takes out a ring. She stared at it for a few moments with eyes that were somehow full of affection.
"Use this." Then - with obvious reluctance - Anahita gave the ring to Clyde. "That ring has a special connection with me. Just concentrate on contacting me and we will be connected."
It worked the same way as the bracelet Hammer created so Clyde immediately understood. He epted the ring.
"You don''t look surprised by such a thing," Anahita said.
"I''ve heard Hammer mention artifacts like this," answered Clyde lightly.
Anahita doesn''t question it anymore. She stood up and said goodbye. Clyde closed the door when she left and sat on his bed.
He put on the bracelet and then began to concentrate to focus his Mana to reach Asqa. Clyde felt he had not contacted her in too long.
A lot of things must have happened especially after he killed God Kane. Clyde wasn''t sure this was the right time to call her as he felt Asqa might be busy right now. But Clyde feltpelled to ask immediately about the situation there so he could find out how bad the mess he had really made was.
Even though he wanted to contact him immediately, Clyde couldn''t do that easily. Clyde tries one more time and decides to end this if Asqa still doesn''t pick up his telepathic call.
But it turned out that Asqa picked it up at thest second. Her voice sounded frantic and rushed.
''Clyde. I''m sorry. I can''t talk to you for long now,'' Asqa said.
''I understand. Just give me a quick description of what happened there,'' Clyde shot back.
Asqa paused because she felt something strange from Clyde''s answer. He sounded as if he already knew what was going on.
''Don''t tell me...'' Asqa said.
Clyde thought there was no point in withholding this information from Asqa for too long.
''Yes. I did it,'' Clyde said.
Clyde did not hear a reply from Asqa for a few moments. She must be trying to wrap her mind around this truth.
''I-I see...'' Asqa said. ''Everyone here is busy trying to find information on what happened after hearing the news that a Celestial had died. But most of us are just scared. Others think that what happened in the Far East has something to do with this.''
Clyde nodded without Asqa seeing him. he asked. ''Anything else?''
''I''m sure some of the followers of Archangel Uriel who are at the top of the hierarchy have other thoughts. But I don''t know what it is.''
''Alright. You''ve given me a lot of information. Thanks.''
''Clyde,'' Asqa called.
''Yeah?''
Asqa hesitated. ''You must be careful. The Celestials might decide to hunt you together now.''
Clyde clenched his jaw. Of course, he knew all too well about that.
''You don''t have to worry about that. I''ll be fine,'' Clyde said.
After that, their telepathicmunication was cut off.
''I have to move quickly.''
~~~
The next day, Clyde told Mathion to quickly gather people to go to the Nexus of Creation. He said it was urgent. However, Maethion''s answer was quite disappointing, yet Clyde had expected him to say that answer.
"It''s impossible. It''s too much risk if we send a party there now," said Mathion.
Clyde sighed. "Is it really impossible?"
Maethion nodded with a firm expression.
"Even so, I can''t dy any longer before things get more chaotic. I''ll go there by myself," Clyde said.
"What?!"
"The Celestials are hunting me down. It''s only a matter of time until they find me." Clyde looked at Maethion with the same stern look. At this moment, Mathion knew that he couldn''t stop it.
Clyde stood up from the chair. "I''ll be going soon. I''ll be right back after finding something."
After saying that Clyde walked quickly away from Maethion. While Maethion looked at her who was getting away with a troubled expression.
"Shit..." he cursed softly. "What do I have to do now? Should I just let him go?"
~~~
Chapter 261 Go Together
?
Maethion was conflicted. Should he continue to let Clyde go alone and then make an unexpected mess? Who knows what else the boy could do when he was alone?
Maethion chased Clyde who was walking farther and farther. When he was behind him he said. "I will go with you."
Clyde turned his head with a surprised expression. "What?"
"I can''t let you go off on your own anymore. You could have made a worse mess," said Maethion.
Clyde felt like he was a bad boy who was always getting into trouble. Though, based on what had happened in the past few days Clyde could understand what had motivated Maethion - and probably everyone else on the Senior Council - to think that way about him.
However, Clyde couldn''t keep many secrets to himself if Maethion was with him.
"Sorry, Maethion. But I don''t think I-"
"That''s not a request, Clyde," Maethion cut him off. "After everything you''ve done, we don''t think we can let you go off on your own again."
"It''s not like I did it on purpose. The Celestial wants to kill me so it''s only natural that I defend myself, right?" Clyde said. "Then, after that incident, I thought bringing too many people would just cause trouble."
Maethion remembered what happened to Samuel and the others at that time. They would almost all die if Clyde didn''t act.
But Maethion is different. He is a Senior Council so of course he is not as weak as those people.
"You think I''m weak just because I never showed what I can do, huh," Maethion said.
Clyde looked at Maethion appraisingly. He is right. But as the Senior Council that governs the Fortress, Maethion should have a certain standard of strength. But what about the secret?
"I''ll be honest with you," Clyde said. "I don''t want you toe because I don''t trust you."
Maethion snorted. "I knew you would say that too. But well, you never trust anyone so I don''t take it personally," said Maethion. "I did it for our own benefit. I knew you would cause trouble so with me around you I could at least do something. Hopefully."
Hearing Maethion''s words, Clyde sighed. Maybe he couldn''t deter Mathion too much longer or the Elf would feel more suspicious.
''I just have to hide about what happened between me and Goddess Pele.''
"Do whatever you want, then," Clyde said. He quickened his pace and Mathion followed behind him.
''He must be hiding something.''
Maethion didn''t know what Clyde might be hiding. He also refused to think that Clyde was hiding anything bad. If Clyde really wanted to do bad things to this Fortress he wouldn''t bother to hide anything. He just has to do it with his current strength.
~~~
Archangel Michael came out of the silver portal behind him. His shiny metal shoes stepped on a ck stone filled with a thick, tar-like ck liquid.
The Archangel grimaced, his face revealing obvious distaste as he met the sight that greeted him.
"This ce is as vile as ever," Archangel Michael muttered to himself.
He tucked the ne with a jet-ck gem pendant into his clothes. It was the artifact he used to get to this ce.
The Archangel took out a pair of wings that emitted brilliant white light from his back. Then he shot up into the air leaving a trail of light like a tail that extended behind him.
Archangel Michael flies over a grotesque and strange ce filled with ck tar liquid. Several creatures whose shapes were unknown came out of the sea of ??tar, poking and writhing suspiciously. The viscous liquid covered most of their forms, obscuring their true bodies and making that sight even more terrifying.
However, the Archangel didn''t faze. It''s not something important to him or a threat to him. He kept hovering above all of it without even batting an eye. His goal was a castle that stood alone in the middle of this sea of ??tar.
Archangel Michaelnded smoothly and then removed his wings. Once again this ce was also filled with ck liquid but nothing could stick to the Archangel''s metal boots.
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
Archangel Michael pounded on the castle''s metal door three times before it opened simultaneously on both sides. He entered the castle with a stiff expression on his face.
After walking through the castle, Archangel Michael finally arrived in a dark room. He lit up the room with light emitting from his body, causing all the slimy dark creatures that were there to squirm.
"Why did you kill one of us?!" Archangel Michael''s voice echoed against the ck walls of the room.
"What are you talking about?!" another voice shouted back. The sound seemed toe from all the slimy dark creatures simultaneously.
"You know exactly what I''m saying! One of the Celestial died without me knowing. Didn''t you promise to wait until I said everything was ready?!" Archangel Michael continues to voice his anger.
"Like I said," the creatures replied. "I don''t know what you''re talking about. I didn''t kill that Celestial."
"Stop your lies! No one can kill a Celestial but you."
"Are you sure?" the creatures asked.
The question made Archangel Michael''s brow furrow. "What?"
"Maybe there are other beings out there who can kill your kind."
"That''s not possible!" the Archangel roared again.
"Your kind has been having fun as the strongest being in the multiverse for too long. Are you sure that no one will surpass your strength sooner orter?"
What the creatures said made Archangel Michael ponder.
''No. It''s not possible.''
It was hard for him to ept that there would be another being that surpassed Celestial powers. So far he has only seen other beings in the multiverse as lower beings who are not even worth his attention. Could it be that among them there will be someone who has the power equivalent to a Celestial?
"You''d better investigate this fact first, Archangel Michael. Before you waste your time venting your anger here," the creature said.
Archangel Michael hesitated after hearing its words. The creature won''t bother to dodge if it''s the one doing it.
The Archangel turned his body and immediately left the ce without saying anything.
The mysterious creature that was in the room shook violently. It felt imaginable anger because of what Archangel Michael said. But it can''t kill the Archangel now because it still needs him for its n.
~~~
Two dayster Clyde finally decided that it was time to set off on that path. After he felt that his entire body had recovered from the wound he had suffered from the battle with God Kane.
It turned out, there was more than just the physical injuries he had suffered after that battle with the Celestials. His psyche also felt pressure and pain that he could not exin. And after that, he got something as well.
Clyde found it hard to breathe suddenlyst night after his encounter with Maethion. He continued to lie down for several hours without being able to move until finally his power of system told him about what was happening to his body.
[ You have obtained the power of God Kane. It will take some time for your body to adapt to the power. ]
[ God Kane''s power adaptation process: 10% ]
That''s the message Clyde gotst night. He waited sleepily and when Clyde woke up in the morning the process wasplete.
[ Adaptation process: 100% ]
[ You have now gained the full power of God Kane. ]
Clyde grinned at the message. He got up to sit up and felt his body much fresher than before. Another strong power is now flowing in his body and that is the power of a Celestial.
Clyde is more confident to ovee obstacles that might appear in front of him. And it is clear that the obstacle will appear, maybe even sooner than he expected considering that he will soon go to that path.
Clyde found Maethion standing next to his bedroom door as soon as he came out. Clyde took a deep breath.
"Are you ready?" Maethion asked. Clyde saw that there was already a bow on the Elf''s back.
Clyde looked at Maethion with a look that clearly expressed his annoyance. Now Mathion couldn''t be stopped anymore so Clyde felt he had no choice but to let him know everything.
He was too tired toe up with any usible excuses. If he tells a lie then he has to invent another lie and that will be annoying.
"Are you sure you want toe?"
"Of course," Maethion answered confidently. He even smiled as if proud of her presence here.
"Alright. I won''t stop you. But you have to promise not to tell the other Senior Council what you saw."
Maethion frowned. ''Why did he say that? What exactly has he been doing besides killing a Celestial?''
Clyde walked first, Maethion followed with a confused expression.
They finally enter the portal leading to Goddess Pele''s domain.
~~~
Chapter 262 Entered The Path
?
The figure of a red-haired woman who had been observing Clyde''s movements from the beginning now saw that he was leaving with Maethion. She watched them from a high window in the building so she could get a good view of the surroundings.
"Where are they going now?" The woman frowned deeply. She knew that a Celestial had just died after hearing the news from her master, and she was almost certain that Clyde was the one who killed the Celestial.
After observing them for a while, she could gauge Clyde''s strength herself. The woman noticed that Clyde was growing stronger in an unusual way. Even after she knew that Clyde had received power from her master, Demon Duchess Gremory, she considered his strength to be too great for him now.
The red-haired woman once again reported to Demon Duchess Gremory about Clyde''s departure, as she had done many times before. Unfortunately, she couldn''t follow them, or she would appear suspicious. She still had to continue her task of spying on Clyde and couldn''t afford to raise anyone''s suspicions about her.
Fortunately, entering this ce wasn''t difficult. She just had to blend in with all the beings here and behave like someone who had just passed the Selection Stage. If she could continue to maintain her facade, no one should suspect her.
She saw Clyde and Maethion heading towards the smithy. The woman knew that there must be another portal inside the smithy, aside from the one in the middle of the crossroads. She had observed Clydeing out of there several times, looking like he had just been through some kind of fight. Now both of them must be going to another ce.
So she immediately contacted Gremory, just as she had been doing all this time. The woman took a ck-ded dagger and cut her finger. Her blood flowed onto the de of the dagger, and not long after that, she was connected with Demon Duchess.
"What will you report to me now, Mari?" Demon Duchess Gremory asked telepathically in Mari''s red-haired head.
Although she should have been isted from anything outside in this ce, with her dagger and blood, Mari could easily contact her master without any interference.
"Clyde Cross seems to be going on another expedition, Your Highness," Mari said.
"Is that so? Then, I should start moving now."
Mari exined a few more things she had discovered at the Fortress for a few minutes before the call ended. Afterward, Mari fell onto her bed, all the energy in her body seemed to evaporate in less than five minutes. This happened every time she finishedmunicating with her master.
Mari now had no energy at all to even move her body to a morefortable position. So she could only wait in that position for the next three hours.
But it''s alright for Mari. It was a small sacrificepared to what her master had done for her. Mari epted this condition with happiness and considered it a blessing from her master.
~~~
Clyde and Maethion arrived at Hammer''s location while he was working on a sword. As soon as they saw Clydeing with Maethion, Hammer and his men couldn''t help but widen their eyes.
"We need to talk," Clyde said.
"Y-Yes, sure!" Hammer immediately went to his private room, inviting them in and locking the door.
Once they were inside the room, Hammer tried to avoid Maethion''s gaze. He also suppressed the questions that were pushing toe out from the depths of his throat.
"We are going on an expedition," Clyde said. "Yes, the two of us. We will exin the detailster, so hold off on your questions for now."
Hammer let out a disappointed sigh because it turned out he had to restrain his curiosity for even longer.
"Well, alright," Hammer said.
Clyde nodded to Hammer and then turned to Maethion. "Let''s go."
Clyde attached his amulet to the green portal. Then the view of the domain of Goddess Pele appeared behind the portal. Clyde entered the portal, and Maethion followed him without asking many questions.
Hammer saw both of them disappear into the portal and immediately scratched his head. "What the hell?"
What Hammer saw was too confusing for him. He felt like he was seeing Maethion, a Senior Council, following Clyde like a subordinate.
"Is it just my feeling?" Hammer muttered to himself. "Ah, whatever. Clyde always does that."
Hammer decided to go back to his work.
~~~
The view of the clear sky and gentle breeze weed Clyde and Maethion to this domain. For Clyde, this was a familiar sight. However, there was a sight that seemed to mar the beauty of nature. And that was the destruction that had urred several kilometers away from where they stood.
Trees that once filled the forest had fallen and turned to ashes. Hills in the distance were split apart due to an extraordinary force.
"That''s where I fought with Goddess Pele," Clyde said in a t tone.
"Right," Maethion replied. Up to this moment, there was nothing left to surprise the bespectacled Elf, as he had already suspected it. "So where is she now?"
"She''ll be here shortly." Clyde had contacted Goddess Pele toe to this location.
After a few minutes of anxious waiting, Maethion could finally see a reddish point resembling fire moving on the horizon. He suspected that Clyde somehow managed to coborate with Goddess Pele, aside from sessfully killing another Celestial. He didn''t know how Clyde did it, but it was another remarkable feat.
As Goddess Pele drew closer, Maethion felt the pressure of her power. The bespectacled Elf grimaced, but being sufficiently powerful, he managed to withstand the pressure.
Finally, the Goddessnded very close in front of them, and Maethion couldn''t help but let out a struggling groan.
"Urgh..."
Clyde turned his head upon hearing this. He then addressed Goddess Pele, "Can you ease your pressure? He seems to be in pain."
Goddess Pele didn''t say anything, but sheplied with Clyde''smand. Shortly after, the mes that had been engulfing her body subsided, and the pressure that Maethion had felt disappeared as well.
"Did he justmand this Celestial?" Maethion clearly heard the tone ofmand in Clyde''s voice, but he still wasn''t entirely sure.
"Take us to that path," Clyde said. This time, Maethion could discern themanding tone in his voice.
Goddess Pele eyed Maethion suspiciously with her reddened gaze. "Who is this?"
"He''s with me. Don''t worry about him," Clyde answered.
Goddess Pele gritted her teeth. She could see the confusion on Maethion''s face and understood the cause.
Now there was another being who knew that she had be Clyde''s pawn. As a Celestial, her pride was severely wounded. Not only had Clyde enved her, but he also brought another person to know about it.
"What are you waiting for? Hurry!" Clyde said sharply.
Upon hearing that, Goddess Pele averted her gaze from Maethion and opened another portal beside them.
Clyde instructed Goddess Pele to enter first. After she went in, he and Maethion followed through the portal.
"Be careful," Clyde said to Maethion. "These Celestials can be quite dirty. Last time, she set me up. But I killed her friend and showed that whatever they do will end up in vain."
Clyde intentionally spoke loudly so that even Goddess Pele, who was walking ahead of them, could hear him. He intended to warn and threaten her to refrain from any more funny business she had in mind.
In front of them, Goddess Pele didn''t change her walking pace or show any reaction. However, her face which looked upfront clearly disyed her anger towards Clyde.
But she couldn''t act recklessly because Clyde now held power over her.
Maethion looked back and forth between Clyde and Goddess Pele. What he had just heard confirmed his suspicions; Clyde indeed possessed some kind of authority over the Goddess.
''Unbelievable,'' Maethion thought.
A few minutester, they arrived at the stone block. Goddess Pele opened the path, revealing the mysterious void that Clyde had seen before.
"Let''s go inside. Pele, you''reing with us," Clyde said in amanding tone.
Goddess Pele, who had anticipated this, didn''t say anything and simply obeyed Clyde''s order. She stepped into the void.
Clyde rested his hand on the hilt of the Elderss Sword, ready to draw it when the situation required.
"Get ready. We''re about to enter uncharted territory," Clyde said to Maethion.
Maethion gripped his bow and nodded. "I''m ready."
Afterward, they entered the path.
As they entered, Maethion and the others felt a strange pressure mming into their bodies. It was as if it conveyed a clear message that they were unwee here.
Maethion experienced the pressure more intensely than Clyde. He even struggled to breathe and clutched his chest.
Clyde noticed Maethion''s distress and gritted his teeth. ''Could this be too challenging for him?''
"Pele! Remove this strange pressure!" Clyde shouted.
At this moment, Goddess Pele was nowhere to be seen, and Clyde started to feel a bit anxious. But he knew he couldmand her even without seeing her.
A momentter, the strange pressure vanished as they suddenly stepped onto a ck floor.
~~~
Chapter 263 A Twister
?
The tremendous pressure that Maethion felt finally dissipated after he endured it for a few seconds. He let out a long sigh of relief.
"What was that?" Maethion asked.
"I don''t know either. This is the first time I''ve experienced this," Clyde replied. His face bore an anxious expression, and his eyes darted around, checking their surroundings.
"Pele!" Clyde yelled, calling for the Celestial. But she didn''t respond. ''Don''t tell me she''s done something to trap me again.''
Clyde was on the verge of drawing his swords to unleash his power to destroy this ce when Goddess Pele arrived just in time.
"I''m here. I had to check this ce first to make sure there were no other Celestials here," Goddess Pele said, her voice tinged with panic.
Clyde observed the Goddess for a few seconds before deciding to trust her. Clyde nodded. "And you didn''t see them here?"
"No," Goddess Pele shook her head. "But we need to hurry."
"Alright, show us the way," Clyde said, then turned to Maethion.
The Elf was on his knees, grimacing in pain. Clyde asked, "You good?"
"Yeah," Maethion nodded, then stood up. "I didn''t expect to feel a power this strong."
"You probably thought you''d be strong enough because you''re a member of the Senior Council, didn''t you?" Clyde asked, grinning.
Maethion replied with a brief nod, feeling helpless.
"That''s why I thought it wasn''t a good idea for you toe here," Clyde said. "Now it''s toote to turn back. Let''s follow the Goddess."
Finally, Clyde and Maethion followed Goddess Pele, who had been waiting for them. Maethion wanted to ask how Clyde could make the Goddess obey him like that.
But he resisted his curiosity, knowing that Clyde wouldn''t answer. He had noticed these signs before they came here; Clyde had told him that there were things he couldn''t reveal.
They ventured deeper into the strange ce. Goddess Pele walked with confidence and at a precise pace as if she knew exactly where she needed to go.
While Clyde, who was behind her, continued to cast suspicious nces at her. He wouldn''t allow anything to take advantage and sneak up on them. Even if Goddess Pele no longer intended to betray him, there could be other Celestials who wanted to attack when they entered this ce.
Another vortex appeared in front of them. Goddess Pele ced both her hands on the vortex, with about half of her hands disappearing into it. Not long after, the vortex began to rotate in the opposite direction.
"We can go in now," Goddess Pele said, looking at Clyde. Shepletely ignored Maethion, as if his presence meant nothing, which Maethion noted.
"You first. We''ll follow right after you. I''ll remind you again, don''t do anything funny," Clyde said firmly to her.
Goddess Pele nodded, then walked into the vortex.
Clyde waited for a few moments before deciding to enter as well. Maethion followed from behind, ready to fight, never letting his guard down, because he never knew what could happen in this Celestial territory.
They entered a short tunnel. At the end of the tunnel, there was something that looked like swirling dust.
"That is the Nexus of Creation. It''s where we were all created," Goddess Pele said.
Clyde and Maethion stared ahead. Their hearts raced in their chests. Although Clyde knew he would enter the Nexus of Creation, when he was actually in front of it, he couldn''t help but feel both amazed and anxious. Maethion, standing beside him, felt emotions much stronger than Clyde''s.
Meanwhile, Goddess Pele watched anxiously from the side. In her heart, she hoped that Clyde wouldn''t decide to approach the Nexus. She didn''t know what he could do, but she knew it would be terrible for them, the Celestials.
"Alright," Clyde suddenly said, breaking the silence and making Goddess Pele involuntarily swallow hard.
"Let''s go there and see it," Clyde continued.
"Are you sure? That ce contains an incredibly high concentration of Mana. Something might happen to you if you get too close," Goddess Pele cautioned.
***
"We''re here. Of course, we have to proceed," Clyde said. "Besides, if something bad happens to me, it could benefit you, right? You should have taken us there directly."
Goddess Pele gritted her teeth but didn''t say anything. She spun on her heels and walked ahead toward the end of the tunnel.
Clyde sighed, then turned to Maethion. "You okay?"
"I don''t know," Maethion shook his head. "There might be something bad happening there, Clyde."
"Maybe," Clyde admitted. "But as I''ve said before, I''vee this far, so I won''t back down."
Without waiting for a response from Maethion, Clyde walked after Goddess Pele. Maethion sighed. Although he was anxious, what Clyde said was true.
"I don''t want to go back aftering this far either."
Finally, after a long period of guesswork, he could see the Nexus of Creation for himself. His feelings were a mix of excitement and anxiety.
They stepped out of the tunnel and arrived in an open space. The tunnel they had entered was, in fact, situated on a floating piece ofnd in the middle of the void. Several other floatingnd masses were scattered around them, their numbers countless.
Clyde looked forward after scanning the area. He saw an enormous vortex of Mana spinning at a moderate speed, almost resembling a Mana twister. The beginning and end of the vortex were invisible as it merged with the void. All thend pieces around them, including the one they were standing on, revolved around the vortex as its center.
Maethion fell to his knees. Beads of sweat formed on his suddenly pale face.
"Hey," Clyde approached him. "You alright?"
"I''m..." Maethion swallowed hard. "I''m fine."
Clyde turned to Goddess Pele. "Do something for him."
"I can''t do anything right now. Everything here is under the control of the Nexus."
Hearing this, Clyde had no choice but to escort Maethion back into the tunnel. There, the pressure that had caused Maethion to copse faded away.
"You should wait here for now," Clyde suggested, then stood up and walked back out of the tunnel.
Maethion wanted to protest and follow him. However, his body felt powerless, and even making a sound seemed incredibly difficult.
In the end, Maethion could only watch as Clyde walked out of the tunnel and approached the Nexus of Creation.
"I''m not strong enough to get closer..." Clyde walked casually to the edge of thendpiece where they stood, with Goddess Pele standing anxiously behind him.
"I want to go in there. How do I do it?" Clyde asked.
"You can''t enter there. You''re not a Celestial," Goddess Pele replied.
"Are you sure?" Clyde turned to her and gave her a t look.
Goddess Pele just furrowed her brow, unsure of what Clyde meant.
"I''ve gained power from God Kane. A Celestial."
Finally, she heard him. Goddess Pele''s anger suddenly surged upon hearing this. Clyde had killed God Kane and now possessed his power, which made him one of the Celestials.
Goddess Pele wasn''t sure how that worked. She had never heard of anyone being able to take a Celestial''s power and be counted as one of them, as no one had ever killed a Celestial before him.
However, what Clyde was saying seemed to be true. Goddess Pele could see it in his eyes.
"Take me inside," Clyde said again, this time more like giving an order.
So Goddess Pele had no choice but toply. She began to step toward the edge of this floatingndpiece. Not long after her feet touched the void, a path instantly formed beneath her.
"Follow me," Goddess Pele said.
Clyde followed her from behind. Every time Goddess Pele stepped into the void, a new path would immediately form, as if not letting her fall.
As they ascended toward the Mana vortex, Clyde felt the Mana pressure intensify.
"If Maethion had decided toe with me, he would have already fallen into this void," Clyde thought.
Goddess Pele seemed unfazed. Clyde figured he was feeling the pressure because he hadn''t fully absorbed the power of the Celestial God Kane, so technically, he wasn''t yet aplete Celestial.
A few momentster, they reached the pinnacle of the path. Goddess Pele nonchntly stepped into the wall of the Mana twister, and Clyde followed suit.
Inside the twister of Mana, there was another incredibly vast room. There were hundreds of translucent orbs floating around them that had been shattered on one side by something, but their forms still stayed.
Clyde furrowed his brow while scanning the room.
Goddess Pele, seeing his puzzled expression, provided an exnation. "These are the orbs where Celestials are born."
Clyde nodded. "I see."
"Now that you''re here, what do you want to do?" Goddess Pele asked.
"This ce is simpler than I thought," Clydemented. "Where is the primary source of your power?"
"We don''t know," Goddess Pele replied promptly, knowing that Clyde would ask, so she answered quickly.
"I don''t believe you."
"I''m elling the truth. We don''t know how we''re born or how we obtain our power."
Clyde sighed. He still didn''t believe that answer.
~~~
Chapter 264 The Powers
?
Clyde still couldn''t believe Goddess Pele''s words. They were beings with extraordinary power. Yet, they imed to have no knowledge of the source of their abilities.
"Don''t lie to me," Clyde threatened, using the power of the Oath topel Goddess Pele to speak the truth.
"I am being honest with you. There''s nothing I can know about the true source of our power," Goddess Pele replied. "We were simply born this way and granted power without understanding why."
It didn''t sound fair to them, the mortal beings. Clyde and the other humans had to fight fiercely to survive in the Selection Stage, scraping together fractions of the Celestials'' power little by little. Yet, here he was, hearing that they were born with this power effortlessly.
"Do you have any idea how challenging it is to endure the Selection Stage?" Clyde asked with a cold tone, sending a shiver down Goddess Pele''s spine.
"Answer me," Clyde demanded.
"No," Goddess Pele replied curtly.
Clyde nodded. "I know you''ll never understand that. All you know is the pleasure you derive from the suffering of those far beneath you, isn''t it?"
Goddess Pele remained silent. Her jaw clenched. She could see the hatred in Clyde''s eyes.
"Perhaps this is the reason for my existence," Clyde clenched his fist. "I will make you experience suffering that is far from enjoyable."
Hearing that, the Goddess stiffened. Her entire body felt frozen by something, and she couldn''t move or respond to Clyde''s words.
It was fear, an emotion she had never felt before meeting Clyde. But ever since his arrival, she had experienced fear more frequently.
Clyde averted his gaze from Goddess Pele and began scanning their surroundings.
"There''s got to be something hidden here," Clydemented.
Clyde continued to walk forward. The floor in this ce was dark and ck like it was made of obsidian, making every step feel like walking on ss. There was a slight worry in Clyde''s mind that perhaps the floor he was treading on would shatter and send him plummeting into an endless abyss.
Meanwhile, Goddess Pele stood still, staring at Clyde with mixed emotions.
She had honestly shared what she knew about this ce. There seemed to be no way to obtain power from the Celestials, even though this was where they were born.
It sounded like a lie, but that was the reality, at least the one that Goddess Pele knew.
However, Clyde wouldn''t give up on finding out. In his mind, there had to be something he could take from here. He needed to gain the power to control or confront the Celestials before they found him and attacked him together.
He continued walking deeper into the ce. Yet, all he found were orbs with one side cracked.
Clyde felt frustrated and raised his hand to his hip while scanning the area again.
"Could it be..." Suddenly, a thought urred to him. "Maybe these orbs are the key. After all, they are where they were born."
Clyde approached one of the orbs at the bottom. It turned out that the orb was made of an stic material, not ss as Clyde had initially thought.
A notification suddenly appeared in Clyde''s vision, startling him. "So, these orbs do have some sort of purpose. Otherwise, a notification like this wouldn''t appear."
''But what should I do with this?'' Clyde wondered. Driven by curiosity, Clyde tried to insert his hand deeper into the orb.
The orbs had a diameter of about one meter and were clear in color, allowing Clyde to easily see his hand inside.
It didn''t take long before something happened. The orb lit up, and light from inside the orb crawled over Clyde''s hand and entered his chest. Another notification appeared.
[ You have absorbed the source of power from the Demon King, Malphas! ]
[ Due to level limitations, you will only receive 50% of Malphas''s power. ]
A smile began to form on Clyde''s face, gradually widening.
It wasn''t a big issue at all, even if he could only get 50% of the power of a Celestial because that was still their power.
Clyde''s eyes darted to the other orbs. There were so many orbs there, each holding the very essence of a Celestial''s power.
Clyde reached for another orb that was closest to him at the moment. He immediately gained power from the other Celestials.
Goddess Pele, watching from a distance, began to realize that something strange was happening.
''What is he doing?'' she thought. ''Don''t tell me... Has he found what he''s looking for? A way to obtain power from the Celestials by touching their Cradle?
''But that''s impossible. I and the other Celestials have touched the Cradle, and nothing happened.''
The Goddess''s feelings became even more chaotic as she realized that Clyde might have indeed found something they had been unable to do. She walked towards Clyde, her heart racing with anxiety, worried about what might happen.
Clyde noticed her approaching steps. He turned and said, "Stop right there."
This time, Clyde not only gave themand but also used his power over her Oath to make her stay.
Clyde didn''t say anything more. He continued to touch all the Celestial Cradles he could reach.
Meanwhile, Goddess Pele could only watch from where she stood, her heart pounding with worry.
Clyde continued, but unfortunately, he could only take so much before he had to give in, as suddenly his body felt heavy.
''What the hell happened to me?''
His vision became blurry as well as if he had just exerted an enormous amount of energy for a very long time. It didn''t take long for Clyde to realize what had happened.
Absorbing the power of the Celestials must have greatly burdened him. He had been so ted to obtain it that he had forgotten something crucial.
''Maybe this is my limit.''
Clyde turned his body and approached Goddess Pele.
"We''re leaving now," Clyde said.
Goddess Pele eyed him for a moment with a questioning look.
"What do you see?" Clyde asked.
Goddess Pele could see signs of fatigue in him. His face looked paler than before, and his eyes appeared droopy. He had clearly done something with the Celestial Cradles that had depleted his stamina.
''Can I take down him now?'' The thought crossed Goddess Pele''s mind as she observed Clyde''s condition.
"Let''s go," Clyde said again, impatiently.
"Yes," Goddess Pele replied with a nod.
Clyde walked ahead in the direction they hade from. Despite feeling tired, there was a smile on his face, indicating how happy he was at this moment.
He had obtained the power of the Celestials without having to kill them. However, his levels of power were now too weak to harness all of that potential.
He only needed to level up again, and he could ess another Celestial power from this ce. With this newfound confidence, Clyde believed he could face a Celestial, or even several Celestials at once, with all the power he had gained. So, even if all the Celestials decided to confront him, he didn''t need to worry too much.
Goddess Pele, who watched Clyde''s back from behind, still pondered whether she should attack now while Clyde was weakened. However, she abandoned that idea because she didn''t know what Clyde had done earlier.
It was possible that he had acquired a new power after touching the Cradles and had be stronger than before. If she attacked him, she might end up dead.
They descended the same declining path they hade from, with Goddess Pele in the lead. When he descended back to the piece ofnd they had been on before, Clyde saw Maethion standing in the tunnel but dared note out. His face looked hopeful when he saw Clyde''s arrival.
"What I had to do here is done for now. Let''s go back," Clyde said.
~~~
The endless war in the Far East continued unabated. The strange ck monsters kept emerging from the wall and attacking them tirelessly. However, the warriors felt a weariness that the monsters did not.
The Celestials also became aware of what was happening to their warriors. Some of them began entering the battle to assist. However, they currently face another problem, one they did not anticipate.
One of them had met death, and they did not yet know who or what had caused this death. This issue left them all restless, and they eventually vented their frustrations on the relentless monsters.
Amidst all this, one of the Celestials had found an answer. He was one of the most powerful Demon Kings, Asmodeus, who happened to be present at the scene.
His brow furrowed as he suddenly received a telepathicmunication from Demon Duchess Gremory. ''Lord Asmodeus, Ie bearing news of utmost importance for you.''
''Speak,'' Demon King Asmodeus said.
''I have discovered the identity of the man who killed one of us.''
The crease on the Demon King''s brow deepened. ''A man?'' he asked.
''Yes, My Lord. The one who killed a Celestial is a man. A man who escaped the Selection Stage.''
~~~
Chapter 265 Curious
?
Demon King Asmodeus clenched his teeth upon finally learning who had killed one of the Celestials. However, now a different feeling enveloped him, and that feeling was curiosity. He halted his conversation with Demon Duchess Gremory because he wanted to contemte this matter on his own for now.
''How could a mere man kill a Celestial? That''s not possible,'' he pondered.
If he considered it impossible, then there was only one possibility left - Gremory had lied to him. However, that seemed unlikely because Gremory knew that Asmodeus could easily eliminate her if she had deceived him. She understood this possibility, so it was improbable that she would be so foolish as to lie to him.
This meant that what she had said was the truth - a man had indeed killed a Celestial. Demon King Asmodeus nced around; all the Celestials nearby were still clueless about this information. Asmodeus decided to investigate this matter first. If he truly found the man who had managed to kill a Celestial and recruited him, he would gain a powerful warrior who could surpass their current warriors.
Demon King Asmodeus informed his fellow Demon Kings that he needed to leave for a brief moment to attend to something important. Apanied by their curses, the Demon King departed from their location.
~~~
The Demon King entered his domain, a mixture of curiosity, frustration, and wonder clouding his thoughts. However, all his questions would soon find answers if he could locate that man.
Seated upon his throne, he ordered all his servants to leave the room. Once alone, Demon King Asmodeus contacted Gremory again.
"Yes, My Lord," Gremory responded almost instantly as if she had been waiting for Asmodeus to reach out.
"How did you learn about that man?" Demon King Asmodeus inquired.
"Luckily, I had him undertake my Personal Quest, and I also provided him with my item, so you could say we are connected," Gremory said with a hint of pride in her voice.
"I see... So you already knew he might be a problem?" Asmodeus remarked. He wasn''t particrly interested in the Selection Stage, unlike the other Celestials. He only checked it asionally, every few centuries, to seek out new warriors. This was because his current warriors were exceptionally strong, and he felt no need to search for new ones.
Consequently, the Demon King had not heard news about what was happening in the Selection Stage or what kind of creatures emerged from it for a long time. It turned out that one of the individuals who had emerged now possessed the power to kill a Celestial. That was something worth noting.
"Has he be your warrior now?" Demon King Asmodeus inquired.
"No, my Lord," Gremory replied. "He is in a ce we cannot ascertain."
"What do you mean?" Celestials were supposed to know everything. Gremory''s statement left him puzzled.
"Have you ever heard of a group called the Resistance?" Gremory asked.
"The Resistance?" Asmodeus questioned. "You mean the group that opposes us? Isn''t that just a rumor?"
"Apparently, it''s not just a rumor," Gremory stated. "The man is a part of that group."
"Hmm..." Asmodeus grumbled and rubbed his chin. "I don''t care about that group; they can''t do anything to us. However, this man is different."
"I agree, my Lord."
"Can you arrange a meeting with him?" Asmodeus asked, now significantly more interested in this man.
"I might be able to. However... I''m afraid it won''t happen quickly," Gremory replied.
"It doesn''t have to be quick. But I also can''t wait too long, Gremory."
"I understand, my Lord. I will do my best to arrange a meeting with him as soon as possible."
"Good. I think that''s enough for now. Contact me again once you have good news."
"Yes, my Lord."
With that, their telepathic connection ended. Asmodeus gazed ahead, his brow still furrowed, and his mind filled with curiosity.
"A man who managed to kill a Celestial..."
Demon King Asmodeus was intent on recruiting him. If this was true, with his presence, he could attain a level of power greater than the other Celestials.
~~~
Clyde opened his eyes. He then paused and gazed at the ceiling for a moment before finally rising. Standing in front of the mirror, he examined his shirtless body.
His muscles had clearly grown significantlypared to when he lived a normal life. However, those muscles hadn''t be overlyrge. Clyde understood that his power couldn''t be solely measured by his muscles, so he had never really paid attention to them. He was somewhat surprised by what he saw now.
Clyde smiled as he reminisced about something silly. "If I were still in my previous life, I''d probably be able to attract so many girls with this physique." It was simply a foolish thought for him to entertain now, but deep down, Clyde was still a teenage boy, so such thoughts naturally crossed his mind.
As he contemted, a realization struck him. He sighed and looked out the window at the unchanging ck sky. "It''s about time now," Clyde murmured with a t tone.
He exited his living quarters, carrying his two swords on his left and right hips. When he arrived outside, Clyde scanned the area, observing the inhabitants of the fortress going about their daily activities, unaware of what was unfolding.
Clyde walked aimlessly, not sure where to go, but he had a feeling that something significant was about to happen. He had absorbed a considerable amount of Celestial power from their Cradle yesterday. With his current level, he didn''t think he could do it again.
"Maybe I should head to the Ruins... But I won''t find monsters strong enough there to give me experience points. I''ll look elsewhere for experience. But if I have no choice, I''ll go to the Ruins and spend time there."
As Clyde walked and contemted, someone approached him from the side. It was Mari, the woman with red hair. "Clyde."
Clyde looked up and saw her smiling. He asked, "What?"
"I''d like to talk to you."
~~~
Chapter 266 Information
?
Clyde thought that he had seen the red-haired woman before, but he couldn''t remember her well. He furrowed his brow and observed the woman. She was clearly not just a simple woman, approaching him in such a mysterious manner.
"Who are you?" Clyde asked.
"My name is Mari," Mari said as she approached Clyde. She still had a wide smile and approached Clyde with a very cheerful demeanor. All of this only made Clyde more suspicious of her true identity.
"That doesn''t answer anything," Clyde replied in a t and cold tone.
Mari tried to lean towards him, but Clyde immediately stepped back reflexively. He didn''t bother hiding his suspicion either. In a situation like this, it was natural for Clyde to be cautious, especially with someone he had just met.
Seeing Clyde move away from her, Mari didn''t get angry. Instead, she smiled and then spoke in a whisper, "I am a follower of Demon Duchess Gremory."
Upon hearing that name, Clyde couldn''t hide his surprise. His eyes widened as he looked at Mari. It had been a very long time since he had heard the name Gremory.
"We can''t talk here," Clyde said.
"We can go to my ce," Mari replied. She then began to walk, and Clyde followed her.
As they walked, Clyde looked around to make sure no one was following them. Some beings stared at them with curious looks, but then they quickly averted their gaze, not seeming too interested.
So far, Clyde felt that Mari was a very strange figure. First of all, why would there be a follower of Gremory in this ce? Thest he knew, this fortress was a very safe ce where beings who disliked Celestials and wanted to hide from them lived. So, no Celestial could find them here.
Yet, the figure in front of Clyde right now was a follower of Gremory ¨C a Celestial. And she is a Demon Duchess at that.
Mari led Clyde into the apartment building where she lived. The apartment was arranged in such a way that it seemed Mari had been living there for a long time.
"Exin to me," Clyde demanded.
Mari turned to him and smiled. "Would you like something to drink?"
"Not really. I''m not thirsty. Just answer my questions."
Mari sighed. "You''re being mean to me. Rx. We are friends because we are both followers of Demon Duchess Gremory."
"I''m not her follower," Clyde said.
"What?" Mari looked puzzled. "But... you''ve alreadypleted a Personal Quest for her."
"Yes, but I didn''t make any agreement to be her follower."
Mari appeared even more confused. Her forehead furrowed, and she nced around as if seeking answers on the walls or in the furniture of her apartment.
Seeing her looking so perplexed, Clyde decided to say something.
"You don''t need to worry about that now, do you? I may not be a follower of Gremory, but I do have a certain connection with her," Clyde said. "How did you end up in this ce?"
Mari snapped back to reality. "I was rescued by Samuel when I was unconscious. I had be a follower of the Demon Duchess back then, but suddenly, my consciousness faded, and I woke up in this Fortress."
"And you can still contact her?" Clyde asked.
"Yes," Mari nodded simply.
"How?"
"Well, I use my soul tomunicate with her. Every time we establish a connection, my soul gets chipped away little by little," Mari said. She stated it as if it weren''t a significant issue, even smiling. Clyde couldn''t quite understand this girl.
Mari let out a chuckle at Clyde''s expression. "You must be wondering why I would do that. Well, Her Majesty provided me with assistance in the Selection Stage. I''m just repaying what she did back then."
Clyde decided not to dwell on that topic any longer. Essentially, all the problems they were facing stemmed from the same source ¨C the Selection Stage, created by the Celestials.
It was somewhat ironic to say that Mari owed something to Gremory. But when you were in the depths of despair, it was only natural to consider anyone who helped you as the good side.
"What did you want to tell me?" Clyde asked.
"Please sit."
Clyde took a seat on the plush sofa near them. Then Mari began to speak.
"You''ve caused a lot ofmotion by killing a Celestial. Up to now, they still don''t know who that deceased Celestial is, but it won''t be long."
"They''ve also begun a search to find out who actually killed the Celestial. One of them already knows it was you."
Clyde''s heart sank when Mari said that. However, it didn''t take long for him to regain hisposure.
"Who is it?" Clyde asked with a t tone.
Mari blinked. "You don''t seem afraid."
"There''s no point in me being afraid. They''ll stille, won''t they? I''d better prepare myself as best I can," Clyde replied.
Mari looked at Clyde with a different expression now. There was a sense of respect and admiration in her gaze. "As expected. You''re just as Her Majesty described."
Clyde had briefly wondered what Gremory had said about him, but he pushed that question aside because it wasn''t important now. What mattered most was who the Celestial was that knew about him.
"It was the Demon King, Asmodeus," Mari said.
Clyde, who had been calm before, now began to feel anxiety creeping into his chest. A Demon King knew about him. Despite knowing that he had acquired various powers from the Celestial Cradle, Clyde still saw that name as a threat.
"Do you know anything about him? What are his powers?" Clyde asked.
Mari shook her head.
"Does... your master know about it?"
"Yes. She said she would tell you everything when you meet."
"So, she wants to meet me too, in the end," Clyde said to himself. "When and where?"
After that, Mari proceeded to exin how they could meet. Clyde left the apartment after hearing everything, feeling the urge to increase his Level before the confrontation with Demon King Asmodeus urred.
Clyde went to Hammer''s ce to repair his swords and request a new set of armor.
As usual, Hammer asked where Clyde was going and what he would do. But Clyde remained silent about it, and Hammer didn''t ask any further questions.
~~~
Chapter 267 Meet Again
?
Hammer could only stare at the door where Clyde had left, his brow furrowed with questions. He didn''t know what Clyde was going to do, but based on what he had done before, Hammer was sure that he didn''t want to know more.
The Dwarf cksmith felt that something significant had happened in the past few days. He didn''t exactly know what it was, but Hammer was certain that Clyde was behind it. When he saw them emerge from the portal inside his workshop, he immediately knew they had just aplished something significant.
Hammer shook his head, as if trying to dispel the curiosity he always felt when dealing with Clyde and his dangerous affairs.
"I''d better follow his request and stay out of his business."
Hammer began to examine Clyde''s two exceptionally beautiful swords, storing incredible power. He still couldn''t fathom where he had acquired a sword with a translucent blue de that looked like ice or ss. Although the sword appeared fragile, Hammer could tell that it held immense, perhaps boundless, potential.
Hammer smiled. "Maybe... I''ll add something to this sword."
And so, Hammer proceeded to do his job. There was a smile on his face because he felt excited at the thought of enhancing Clyde''s sword to make it even more formidable.
~~~
After handing over his weapons to Hammer, Clyde felt that he needed to test his physical strength. He had to know how he could fight without using weapons.
Because of this, Clyde went ahead to the Ruin to carry out this testing. Through the portal in the middle of the city, he intended to enter the Ruin.
However, a familiar voice called out to him from behind, causing him to pause.
"Clyde! Where are you going?" L said as she ran up to him.
Clyde, who had been dealing with many problemstely, almost forgot about their existence. He rarely spoke to them, so he had almost forgotten about the people who had embarked on the Selection Stage with him, the people who had saved him.
"I''m going to the Ruin," Clyde replied matter-of-factly.
L stopped in front of him with a puzzled expression. "What for? Are you looking to level up again?"
"Well, yes," Clyde said. "Alone?"
"In a while, Albert, Leon, Wiley, and Rosa will being. We''re nning to train in those vast ins."
"If you also want to train, why don''t you just join me?" Clyde suggested.
"That''s actually a great idea!" L said excitedly.
Not long after, all of her friends arrived. Clyde waited patiently. Spending time with them again felt refreshing amidst the pressure of the Celestials who would be hunting him.
Although he couldn''t truly blend in and spend time with them like a friend, Clyde felt more at ease observing their progress. Someday, they might be hispanions who would help him fight against the Celestials.
That moment might not be far off. Yes, Clyde hadn''t thought about it before, but if he could make them strong enough, then they, along with Samuel''s group, could be a great help for what awaited him in the future.
***
"You look great," Leon said.
"Thanks." Clyde nodded briefly. "Are you all ready?"
They all gave nods indicating that they were prepared. And so, Clyde attached his amulet to the portal, revealing a shattered world beyond it.
Clyde stepped into the portal first, and they followed, their hearts pounding.
~~~
The Ruins looked the same wherever they were. There was no discernible difference; they only saw ruins and death floating in the air or around them.
"Hey, Clyde. Are you sure you''re not going to use any weapons?" Wiley asked.
"Yeah, don''t worry about me," Clyde replied. His usual rxed demeanor put them all at ease. Even without weapons, they were confident that he could fight better than them.
"Alright." Wiley shrugged his shoulders. Like the others, he believed that Clyde was stronger than him, even without his swords. "Where are the monsters, by the way?"
"I''m sure they''ll show up soon. Just prepare your blowdart and your hiding ce," Albert said with a sneering tone.
Wiley could sense the sarcasm in his voice. "What is that supposed to mean? Are you mocking me?" Wiley asked.
Albert shrugged. "I don''t know. What I do know is that I''m not the one who likes to hide and run when a fight breaks out, then steal another person''s kill."
Clyde could clearly sense that Albert was being sarcastic. It seemed that something had happened between the two of them while exploring the Ruin not long ago.
''Odd,'' Clyde thought. ''This should be past the time when they bothered each other.''
Albert should know how Wiley fought. He wasn''t a closebat fighter who would attack directly. As for him stealing kills, Clyde had anticipated that would happen when in a group with someone like Wiley.
"Stop it, guys. I don''t want to hear your quarrels anymore. Let''s hunt again for now. Then, you can go back to trying to kill each other once we return to the Fortress," Leon said.
Clyde smiled a little. And as usual, Leon made a good leader for them. If it were Clyde, he might simply let them kill each other.
Not long after, they felt the ground beneath them tremble. After that, a few meters in front of them, they could see a mound of earth rising, indicating something was about to surface from underground.
"That''s your monster, Wiley!" Rosie said.
Wiley didn''t respond. He immediately prepared his blowdart and channeled Mana into his weapon.
"Clyde, are you going to let us kill it like before?" Leon asked.
Clyde just shrugged. "I don''t know. This monster might be too strong for you."
Finally, the creature emergedpletely from the ground. It was a giant ground rat, erged by the influence of Mana to about three meters in size. Dozens of small crystals protruded from its body.
The giant ground rat stared at them with its dark green glowing eyes. It brandished its long ws and charged at them.
~~~
Chapter 268 Hunting Together Again
?
The earth rat locked its gaze on them as prey the instant it emerged from the ground. The monster seemed as though it had been waiting for a long time to feast on something, starving even, despite its massive size.
The rat lunged toward the six of them with incredible ferocity. It swung its ws haphazardly and opened its mouth wide. What shouldn''t be present in an earth rat was now there on this monster, and that was two rows of sharp teeth within its gaping maw. These rows of teeth resembled roughly crafted spearheads, adding a terrifying aspect to the monster''s appearance.
"Well, what about it?" Wiley asked. "Are you going to join in on the attack?"
Clyde gazed at the earth rat, which was approaching them with a menacing aura radiating in its surroundings. He used his [Skill: Inspection] to check its stats and found out it was just a Level 56 monster.
"No. You guys can handle it," Clyde said.
Wiley snorted. "I thought so."
Upon hearing Clyde''s words, they all charged toward the giant earth rat. L fired her crossbow with much improved uracypared to before. She had clearly progressed rapidly since Clyde had remembered it.
Wiley fired a few momentster when he was closer to the giant earth rat.
Leon and Rosie, as usual, attacked from close range. They both drew their swords and daggers and then struck with swift yet precise movements.
Albert, on the other hand, circled the giant earth rat to find its weak point. His ability and fighting style made him look like that of an expert assassin.
L''s arrow struck the giant earth rat''s eye. She aimed for its weakest point, demonstrating that she had grasped and honed her own fighting style.
Meanwhile, Leon was tanking the giant earth rat with his almost invincible body. He epted all the scratches and bites as if they were nothing, although, with its rtively high level, the giant earth rat managed to inflict some wounds on Leon. However, he seemed unfazed by it.
Rosie attacked with her hammer, infused with lightning. She seemed to be generating even more lightning than Clyde had previously recalled.
They fought the giant earth rat excellently. Watching them up to this point, Clyde was confident that they no longer needed his help.
"They''ve be much stronger than before. What about Samuel''s party, though?" Clyde thought. It was possible that Samuel and his party were even stronger than them. From the beginning, they had been more powerful.
An idea crossed Clyde''s mind. Could they also gain Celestial powers if they could touch their Cradle? But then he remembered how Maethion struggled just to stand near the Nexus of Creation. The burden Maethion alone couldn''t bear would undoubtedly be much heavier for them. There could even be more severe consequences for them, so Clyde knew he couldn''t take that risk.
"Better to let them be strong the usual way. Like this."
After several minutes, the giant earth rat finally fell to the ground with various wounds on its body. The decay that Wiley had inflicted caused several parts of its body to crumble. The decay continued to spread even after the earth rat died, producing a nauseating odor.
Clyde regarded Wiley''s ability as the most terrifying among his party members. He had also mastered how to leverage the situation and shoot his blowdart effectively, allowing him to attack both efficiently and effectively.
Clyde also couldn''t imagine what would happen if Wiley''s blowdart were to hit him. He didn''t want to envision his body slowly decaying like all of Wiley''s victims.
Leon sighed. "It''s finally dead." Then he turned to Clyde as if waiting for his approval.
"Good job," Clyde said simply, as he thought it was fitting for the moment. He walked toward the earth rat and was about to suggest that they should retrieve the green crystals from the monster''s body.
However, it turned out they already knew what to do, and they began extracting those green crystals from the earth rat''s body. They worked rtively quickly, apanied by a fewints, but they eventuallypleted the task.
They then stashed those green crystals into the cloth bags they had brought along since the outset. Their preparations seemed adequate, Clyde thought, and it was good that they knew what to do once they set foot in the Ruin. That was a good thing.
After finishing the process of packing the earth rat''s body, they continued their journey to hunt down other monsters. It didn''t take long for them to locate more monsters, as they were plentiful in this area.
Clyde eventually chose to join in killing these monsters because he couldn''t just stand by, having already entered the Ruin. Although the monsters here were far below his Level, it was better than doing nothing at all.
Besides, he had the [Skill: Exp+], which doubled all the Experience he gained. If he killed enough monsters in this ce, he could at least gain one Level.
They spent their time hunting for monsters in the Ruin. Some of the monsters were strong enough to overwhelm Leon and his friends, but Clyde could handle them easily, even without his swords.
During their time in the Ruin, Clyde still refrained from using the power he had obtained from the Celestial Cradle. Doing so would only make them suspicious and possibly terrified.
"I can''t go on any longer. I need to rest," Albert said, sitting down against arge rock. Albert had some bruises and cuts on his body from fighting the monsters, just like his friends. The only one who remained unscathed was Clyde.
They all agreed, and they finally took a break in that spot. However, Clyde remained standing. He leaped to a piece of elevatednd that provided a better vantage point.
''There''s nothing special in this Ruin,'' Clyde thought after scanning the surroundings.
Suddenly, a rumble emanated from the sky, startling them all. When Clyde looked up, he found a dozen meteors falling at high speed.
But upon closer examination, Clyde realized that they weren''t meteors. There was a reddish portal in the sky.
~~~
Chapter 269 A Couple Of Demons
?
Clyde furrowed his brow. Above the sky, there was a portal that had suddenly appeared. The portal seemed to lead to somewhere sinister, from the brief glimpse Clyde could catch.
''What the hell?'' Clyde wondered. However, he quickly realized that the portal was not a good sign. His intuition and guess told him the same thing; this was all rted to the Celestials who had decided to hunt him down after he killed God Kane.
If that was true, then maybe there was a spy who had reported to whoever the Celestial was that sent their forces through that portal. This could be bad news for Leon and his friends. This fight was almost certainly beyond their capabilities.
Several explosions echoed a few dozen meters ahead as a dozen meteorsnded among the ruins. Clyde immediately descended from his vantage point and approached Leon, Rosie, Albert, Wiley, and L.
"We have to go, now," Clyde said firmly.
From the anxious expressions on his face, the others could tell that something was seriously wrong.
"What''s going on? Are those meteors?" L asked.
Clyde looked at her. "It might be some creatures summoned to attack me."
The five of them exchanged nces. Something attacking Clyde? What had happened?
"What have you done?" Wiley asked.
Clyde returned his gaze. "I can''t tell you, for now. But it doesn''t matter. You have to get out of here. Now!"
Clyde took out his amulet and was about to open a portal. However, something snared his body and yanked him backward with tremendous force. Clyde was pulled away so quickly that he didn''t have time to say anything to them.
"CLYDE!" L shouted, trying to run after him. But three creaturesnded in front of them, forcing them to abandon their intentions.
The three figures had bodies with a dark red hue, like blood. They stood over three meters tall and had a pair of spiraling horns on their heads. They wore armor that appeared to be made of dark-colored, crude yet robust metal. In their hands, they held three different weapons: a mace, a sword, and an axe.
The creatures looked like the demons they had heard about in stories and religious mythology.
Without saying a word, the three demons began to attack them. The demon wielding the axe swung it toward L, who had been about to run.
Fortunately, Leon arrived just in time in front of L and halted the massive axe with his sword. The pressure from the axe''s swing made Leon groan.
Rosie, Albert, and Wiley immediately realized they were targets and had to fight back. Wiley fired his dart at the demon that had been menacing L.
The dart pierced the demon''s left hand, and decay began to spread. However, something unexpected happened.
The demon with the sword severed the left hand of the demon with the axe before the decay could spread too far into its body. The hand fell to the ground, apanied by dark red fluid.
The demon with the sword hissed at the demon with the axe, its gaze warning him to watch himself if he didn''t want to die.
"HYAAAAA!!!" Rosie screamed, unleashing a massive amount of lightning at all three demons simultaneously.
Fortunately, Rosie''s lightning attack managed to throw all three of them backward, giving them time to recover.
"What the fuck?! Who are they?!" Albert cursed, feeling terror as he looked at the appearance of the three figures. His friends seemed to share the same sentiment.
"They must havee here to attack Clyde. Unfortunately, we''re caught up in this situation," Wiley said.
"The creatures look like... Demons," L said, her expression filled with fear.
"Perhaps... They are indeed Demons," Rosie said, her entire body disying the same fear as L.
"Let''s focus," Leon said, rubbing his sore hand from blocking the Demon''s axe swing. "We need to get Clyde''s amulet so we can leave. The amulets we have can only take us back and forth to the Ruin we nned, but right now we''re in Clyde''s chosen Ruin. We can only leave with his amulet."
"Don''t we have to help him?" L asked.
"We''ll help him by getting out of here. You know Clyde. He''s strong enough to handle his own problems, but us? We''d just be a burden if we stayed," Leon replied.
L bit her lip but had to admit that what Leon said was true.
And so, with no other viable options, the five of them decided to attack the Demons and assist Clyde, at least until they could retrieve his amulet.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Clyde was in his own predicament. Five Demons surrounded him after snatching him from his group. They relentlessly attacked him, not giving him a chance to counter.
One Demon grabbed his leg and repeatedly mmed him into the ground until the earth was shattered. Then, he was thrown upwards, and another Demon was ready to m his fist down to send Clyde back down.
Clyde crashed into the ground, creating a small crater. Shortly after, three Demons descended upon him and used all their might to pummel him.
However, it didn''tst long. Clyde suddenly unleashed a force that sent the Demons flying away from him.
Clyde emerged from the crater. The armor and clothing he wore were torn and battered in ces, but his body was unscathed.
He gazed at the Demons surrounding him. "Who sent you?" he asked.
The Demons didn''t respond. They only exchanged nces with expressions that Clyde couldn''t decipher.
Clyde observed them. They were clearly sent by one of the Celestials, probably the Demon King. But why did that Celestial send only a small force to attack him? Did they think it was enough to kill him?
Clyde snorted. ''They certainly don''t know about the new powers I''ve gained.''
"You don''t want to answer?" Clyde asked.
The five Demons surrounding him only emitted angry growls and stared at him with bloodthirsty eyes. From their gazes, Clyde knew they had only one goal, and that was to kill him.
"So be it." Clyde lunged at them first.
~~~
Chapter 270 Againts The Demons
?
Clyde lunged at them first with his fists clenched, throwing his fist towards a targeted Demon.
Thanks to his speed, Clyde managed tond a punch to the Demon''s chest, sending him flying into the air like a bullet just fired from a gun. Not wasting any time, Clyde immediately attacked another Demon that was next to the one he had thrown earlier.
However, because the Demon had already seen Clyde''s previous movements, he managed to raise his shield just in time.
*CLANG!*
Clyde''s punch struck the shield and pushed the Demon a few steps backward. The other Demons in the vicinity didn''t just stand and watch; they began to attack as well. They came at Clyde from various angles with their respective weapons, not intending to give Clyde any openings to escape.
A greatsword descended on him from his left side, while a hammer came from his right side. Clyde could also see a spear heading towards his back as he nced behind.
With a sudden exertion, Clyde sent a shockwave from his body, sting the Demons away from him. The shockwave was so powerful that they were all thrown into the air and tumbled on the ground. But of course, it wasn''t enough to stop the Demon forces.
They could stand up almost instantly, their teeth grinding, and their expressions furious. Their previously bloodshot eyes now glowed even redder, with a kind of fire gleaming in their eyes.
Clyde smirked. He knew he could take on these Demons even with his bare hands. He even felt that he didn''t need to use his skills.
The five Demons charged at him again simultaneously. It seemed like they had some kind of strategy or tactic for attacking him. Clyde couldn''t tell if it was because they were foolish or if they were too confident in their strength.
The Demon holding the spear hurled his weapon towards Clyde''s back. The spear was suddenly enveloped in mes from his hand.
Clyde turned and swung one of his hands to p away the spear. The ming spear shot off in another direction and exploded as soon as it struck the ground, creating a massive explosion.
The Demon who had thrown the spear widened his eyes in surprise when he saw Clyde simply p away his spear, which he had imbued with his mana and the power of very potent hellfire. Normally, only Demons and Celestials could handle the power of hellfire. Yet now, he witnessed Clyde, who was supposed to be an ordinary person with system-granted abilities after the Selection Stage, deflecting the spear as if hellfire was no serious matter.
The other Demons immediately reconsidered their decision. They no longer blindly attacked Clyde with their raw strength. They could see clearly that Clyde couldn''t be defeated with just that.
Those who had initially intended to rush him suddenly halted, hesitating. Then, they began telepathicallymunicating with each other.
Clyde grinned, watching how their enemies immediately changed their minds upon witnessing his disy of power. They must have been shocked when they saw him casually deflect the spear with one hand.
It didn''t take long for the Demons toe to a conclusion. They charged at Clyde again without showing any change in their tactics.
This made Clyde suspicious, but he didn''t worry too much about it. He epted their attacks as before and engaged in an intense one-on-five battle. Of course, Clyde hadn''t unleashed his full power yet.
When the Demons saw Clyde very focused on receiving and countering their attacks, one of the Demons signaled another.
Suddenly, above Clyde''s head, a blood-red magic circle appeared. When Clyde looked up, it was already toote. Chains of blood-red color descended towards him, and the hooks at the ends of each chain immediately attached to Clyde''s hands, feet, back, and chest.
"ARGHH!!!"
Clyde groaned in pain as the hooks caused considerable pain, enough to make him grimace.
The Demons sneered, thinking their n had seeded. Clyde also believed their n had worked to trap him, except for the fact that he had absorbed a lot of Celestial power and could withstand their attacks better than they expected.
The pain was sharp and came suddenly, but it didn''t bring Clyde to his knees.
''None of them seemed to be chanting something or preparing for these chains. That means... There''s another Demon hiding as their backup,'' Clyde thought.
These Demons weren''t as foolish as he initially thought.
Then, the Demons began to attack Clyde brutally. They swung their weapons relentlessly at Clyde''s body, apanied by sinisterughter.
However, it didn''t take them long to realize something odd. Clyde''s body wasn''t being destroyed even though their weapons struck him. All they saw were bruises.
Clydeughed, raising his head, which had been bowed. "Are you done?" He said. "Then, it''s my turn."
Clyde activated both his [Skill: Burning Hand] and [Skill: Pure Lightning] simultaneously. He also added the power he had absorbed from the Demon Kings.
The Demons were startled by the sudden surge of power from Clyde. Then, fire and lightning erupted from his body and mercilessly struck them, hurling them away.
The fire and lightning also immediately burned away the chains and hooks that had bound him. There was something different about Clyde''s fire and lightning now. They were a reddish color, like blood.
This was the first time Clyde had used the power he gained from the Celestial Cradle, and he had to admit that it felt incredibly potent.
He lunged at one of the Demons, grabbed his neck, and mmed him to the ground. Clyde channeled both fire and lightning into the Demon, causing him to scream in pain.
Another Demon came to aid his friend. Clyde, who had noticed his approach, simply waited. As the Demon swung his hammer, Clyde raised one hand to catch it.
The Demon was shocked. Clyde then channeled both fire and lightning through the hammer and directly into the Demon. Now, his fate was no different from his friend''s.
~~~
Chapter 271 Killing Demons
?
The Demon felt extremely shocked when he saw fire and lightning start to flow rapidly on his hammer. The Demon knew that he had to let go of his hammer but he couldn''t make himself do it. As a result, he was struck by the fire and lightning.
The two Demons felt Clyde''s strength until they couldn''t move and endured the incredible pain. They gritted their teeth and let out a strangled scream.
Not long after, their friends came, seeing what Clyde was doing to the two of them, the three other Demons immediately dashed by drawing their weapons.
Clyde, who realized they wereing, activated another power of Celestial that he got. That is the power of the wind. He immediately released a powerful wave of wind, sting them away from him while he continued to channel his fire and lightning toward the two Demons he was holding.
After several seconds of painful moments, finally, the two Demons in Clyde''s grasp died. Their bodies were destroyed by being hit by fire and lightning simultaneously.
Clyde received a notification that he had killed the Demon Messenger of the Demon King Asmodeus.
''Asmodeus?!''
Clyde was quite surprised by the name. It turns out, the Celestial who hunted him first was him. A Demon King. Based on what he heard, Demon King Asmodeus was quite a dangerous Celestial.
But how could he find it here?
Before Clyde could think further, the three Demons he had knocked out earlier ran back to attack him. Their bodies suffered from wounds from the wind waves he released but they didn''t seem to care.
Clyde turned his head when he heard an explosion from the other direction. The explosion came from where Leon and his group were. They must also be fighting other Demons.
Then, Clyde remembered that they couldn''t leave this ce if he didn''t open a way for them. His amulet was the key to them being able to leave but now they are separated.
''I have to get them out first before they end up dying here.''
Clyde turned around and ran towards the explosion which was still going on. He thought that he hoped it wasn''t toote and would instead see Leon and his group dead when they arrived at their ce.
*BOOM!*
However, the Demons who were targeting him would not give him a chance to help them. The three Demons would not let Clyde escape their sight after he killed two of their friends.
With incredible speed, boosted by their rage towards him, the three Demons were very close to Clyde and started swinging their weapons.
Clyde tightened his fist and then withdrew the Celestial power within him. He doesn''t need to use any Skills for this.
With his bare hands, Clyde deflected their spears, swords, and daggers until they staggered. Not wasting time, Clyde immediately hit their bodies with his fist and once again threw them away.
After that, Clyde continued running towards Leon''s group. As soon as he arrived there, what he saw wasnd that had been burned in various ces. The small crater which is still emitting fire can also be seen clearly.
In the midst of it all, he could see Rosie lying on the ground with burns. Clyde immediately approached her and it turned out she was still conscious, although in pain.
"What happened to you?" Clyde asked.
Rosie looked up and looked at him. There was a hint of relief on her face when she saw Clydeing.
"The Demon got me," Rosie said in a weak voice.
Unfortunately, Clyde didn''t get the healing power from the Celestial Cradle so he couldn''t ovee the wounds that Rosie suffered.
"Can you stand up?" Clyde asked.
Rosie tried her best, while grimacing she was able to force her wounded body to sit up.
"Good." Clyde then uses his amulet and opens a portal. "Get out of here and get help. I''ll bring your friend in a moment."
Rosie believed Clyde then he staggered towards the portal he opened. After the portal closed, Clyde immediately went to save the others.
Leon is facing a Demon with L while Albert is together with Wiley. They also suffered from injuries but they were still able to stand and fight.
The Demon that attacked Leon and L only had one arm but he still gave both of them a hard time.
"CLYDE!" L looked happy and relieved when she saw Clydeing to them. However, her eyes widened immediately when she saw three other Demons chasing her.
However, she didn''t see Clyde looking worried. Instead, he ran towards them with a calm face. As always.
"LOLA! FOCUS!" Leon shouted at the top of his lungs.
L snapped her head back towards the fight and used her skill. She saw a glimpse of the future. She always did that to be one step faster than the Demon, but the Demon turned out to be able to move very quickly to suppress them so she couldn''t use her skills for too long.
But now, what she saw made her mouth widen. And then, she smiled.
Leon didn''t have time to see L''s expression because he was busy defending himself. But it didn''t take long for him to know what L had seen.
Leon felt a strong push of air from beside him. Then he saw the Demon''s head explode above him. The Demon''s dark blood smeared Leon''s face.
It was Clyde who came and delivered a blow. He effortlessly destroyed the Demon head, a monster that already made them feel like they were on the verge of death.
"Wait here," Clyde said to Leon. Before Leon could say anything, he dashed towards Albert and Wiley.
Clyde turned his head briefly to see the distance from the three Demons chasing him. They were still twenty meters away and were getting closer.
''That''s enough.'' Clyde thought.
He increased his running speed and arrived in front of the Demon who was attacking Albert. The Demon seemed surprised because of Clyde''s sudden arrival, he shed his greatsword at him and ignored Albert.
Clyde deflects the greatsword with his fist like the attacks he received before. And then, he punched Demons'' chest until his fist prated his chest.
The Demon released liquid from his mouth and made a death-gurgling sound. Clyde didn''t waste time. He pushed the Demon and then ran in another direction to approach the Demons who wereing this way.
~~~
Chapter 272 The Meeting
?
Clyde sprinted towards the three Demons approaching him. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of them, unleashing his power.
He battled them for a few moments with incredible intensity, destroying anything in the area of their fight.
Leon and L hurried over to where Rosiey to help her. After L administered a healing potion to her, Rosie managed to stand, although she still felt pain throughout her body.
Following that, Leon and L quickly moved her away from the battle between Clyde and the three Demons, which was spreading further. They regrouped with Albert and Wiley, trying their best to find a ce of shelter.
"Did you guys see that? He just killed the Demons we were struggling with so easily with a single punch," Wiley eximed.
"Is this the first time you''ve seen him do that?" Albert replied. "It''s Clyde. He''s done things like this before, hasn''t he?"
"Yes. But I think he''s even stronger now," Leon said, looking towards the battle.
The others agreed with his statement. Clyde used to require much more effort to defeat opponents of this strength, although he eventually seeded. But now, he could kill them with a single blow, and it was just a punch from his bare fist.
Something had clearly happened during the days when they didn''t meet him, and whatever it was, it had boosted Clyde''s strength to another level. A level beyond what they previously thought was unattainable.
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
Explosions continued to ur everywhere, destroying the floating ruins in the air to the point of being unrecognizable. Finally, something shot out from within the explosions.
It soared into the air andnded a few meters in front of Leon and his group. It was a torso, a torso that had been ripped apart by some powerful force from the rest of the body. The horned head of the Demon was still attached to the torso. Its eyes widened, realizing that its death was imminent.
Leon, L, Rosie, Albert, and Wiley swallowed hard, staring at the gruesome sight.
*BOOM!*
Another explosion ensued. All they could see were shes of red lightning and fire, as well as debris flying through the air from the battle. Clyde moved so swiftly that their eyes couldn''t keep up with him.
After several tense minutes, the battle finally ended. Clyde stood over the body of a Demon whose head he had crushed.
He leveled up once more after killing the three of them. All the Demons turned out to be high-level warriors of the Demon King Asmodeus, so he gained a considerable amount of experience points from defeating them.
Clyde took a deep breath and checked his condition. What he felt wasn''t fatigue; instead, he sensed that his stamina had increased.
Then Clyde nodded to himself, satisfied. He had gained enough strength now. He almost felt grateful to Demon King Asmodeus for sending them to him.
"You''re quite strong."
A voice emanated from the corpse of the Demon beneath his feet. Clyde bent down and saw the Demon grinning.
Clyde immediately leaped backward, alert. There was another force inhabiting the Demon''s body, probably the Demon King deciding to speak with him.
The Demon''s corpse stood with its torn body. Then it looked at Clyde with a single remaining eye.
"You''re quite strong. It seems you''ve surpassed a mere human," the Demon corpse said.
"Who are you? Asmodeus?" Clyde asked, staring at him sharply and demanding an answer.
The corpse grinned, its almost destroyed face making the grin even more horrifying and disturbing. "Yes," he said. "I am Asmodeus. You''re quite audacious. I''d prefer you watch your tongue when you speak to me."
Clyde could sense the displeasure in the Demon King''s tone. Clyde supposed the Demon King was ustomed to being treated with respect by all creatures.
"You attacked me first. Why should I be polite to you?" Clyde retorted fearlessly. Although he knew that the Demon King was a powerful Celestial, he now possessed the strength of several Celestials, albeit only 50%. Clyde had even killed a Celestial before, so he was confident that he didn''t need to act like a lowly creature in front of the Demon King.
The grin on the corpse''s face disappeared, reced by a scowl. The corpse''s remaining eye glowed red, and an oppressive aura emanated from its body.
This aura caused the air around them to seem as if it had vanished, making Leon and his group feel suffocated. Several floating pieces of earth shattered and fell because of the aura.
The Demon King was clearly furious with him, Clyde knew it. However, the destructive aura that exerted tremendous pressure in the vicinity had little effect on him.
Clyde remained standing tall with a slight frown on his face, staring at the Demon King.
"Are you trying to threaten me?" Clyde said calmly.
"Heh!" the corpse ¡ª the Demon King ¡ª snorted. He seemed impressed. "You keep proving to be impressive to me."
"Let''s get straight to the point. What do you want to do? Do you want to kill me?" Clyde asked sharply.
"Yes," the Demon King replied. "But I think there''s a better solution to this problem."
Clyde frowned.
"If you be my warrior, then you''ll gain incredible power far beyond what you have now. And the best part is, you won''t die."
"I don''t want to be your ve," Clyde replied.
The corpse grinned again. "You and all of your kind are destined to be ves. But some of you can be better ves than others."
Clyde felt his anger rising.
"Many of your kind have sold friends, even family, to have a slightly better life as a ve," said Demon King Asmodeus. "You are one of the luckiest because I''vee to you directly. And you''ll be my ve in a high position in my domain."
"I refuse," Clyde said quickly. Then, in the blink of an eye, he was in front of the corpse, throwing his fist and instantly shattering the corpse.
"YOU DAMN FOOL!" an ear-shattering voice echoed from the red portal in the sky. "HOW DARE YOU REFUSE ME! I WILL COME AND TEAR YOU APART MYSELF!"
~~~
Chapter 273 Unknown Reason
?
The booming voice could still be heard within the ruins, shaking every part of the floating structure.
Clyde gazed at the still-open red portal in the sky for several minutes. The portal eventually closed, having served its purpose.
But that didn''t mean his problems were over. Clyde knew that his real troubles were just beginning. He would soon be facing Demon King Asmodeus.
This made Clyde feel uneasy. He couldn''t help it. How could he not feel uneasy about battling a Demon King of such power?
Clyde swallowed hard. ''I need to get stronger.''
He descended and walked toward Leon and his friends, whom he had unintentionally put in danger.
''Who could have told them I was here?''
This question made Clyde somewhat suspicious of them. However, his suspicions weren''t too strong because, as far as he knew, they couldn''t contact the outside world from Sivagadh Fortress. At least, not as far as he knew.
The only one who might have been able to contact the outside world was Mari, the red-haired girl. Clyde felt that he needed to find herter. She had been suspicious from the beginning.
"How are you guys?" Clyde asked Leon and his group.
"We''re fine, mostly," Leon replied.
"What the hell was that?" Wiley demanded, looking at Clyde as if demanding an answer. He knew, after hearing that sound, that whatever creature had attacked them had a problem with Clyde. The creature sounded very angry.
"A Celestial," Clyde answered.
Their eyes widened.
"A Celestial sent their warrior here directly?!" L eximed in surprise.
Clyde nodded. "It''s over now. Let''s go back."
"Wait," Albert said. "How could that Celestial know we were here?"
Clyde stared at him silently for a moment, then answered, "I don''t know. They''re Celestials, after all."
Clyde seemed unwilling to provide any more answers. He turned away from them and opened a portal to return to the Fortress.
Leon, Albert, Wiley, Rosie, and L exchanged nces. However, they didn''t say anything more, as it was clear that Clyde didn''t want to discuss it further.
Once the portal opened, they entered it and disappeared from the ruins.
~~~
Demon King Asmodeus is furious. He exits his throne room and stands atop his towering spire. He gazes out over his domain, a harsh, volcandscape.
ck rocks and boiling rivers stretch out below. In ces, volcanoes continue to spew fire, withva flowing down their sides. The volcanoes rumble ominously, as if ready to erupt at any moment.
Despite his anger, the Demon King doesn''t immediately unleash it on his domain or his servants. That would aplish nothing. The only one who will feel his wrath is the man named Clyde.
Asmodeus smiles, making his face appear even more sinister.
"Interesting."
Just how strong is Clyde to dare reject his offer? He''s certainly powerful enough to effortlessly defeat his own high-level warriors. But that doesn''t mean he''s strong enough to be arrogant and refuse.
The Demon King feels that he needs to teach Clyde a harsh lesson after he defeated his warriors.
He turns and enters his pce again, instructing his most loyal servant to prepare something.
~~~
Clyde instructed Leon and his group not to tell anyone about what they had seen and heard earlier because he didn''t know what might happen.
They all nodded in agreement. Besides, there was nothing to gain from sharing their experience with anyone else.
Afterward, Clyde left them, and the five of them decided to rest for a while before doing anything else. What they had just experienced had left them in shock, and they shivered at the memory. Plus, their wounds needed attention.
Clyde went straight to the apartment where Mari lived. He knocked loudly, but there was no answer from inside, which irritated him.
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
*BANG!*
Clyde knocked harder, and only then did he hear someone respond from inside, apanied by approaching footsteps.
The door opened, revealing Mari in nothing but ck underwear. Her red-haired face looked pale, and her eyes were sad, but she still managed a smile.
"Oh, hi, Clyde," she said.
Clyde immediately pushed the door open and entered the apartment, closing the door behind him.
Mari was slightly surprised by Clyde''s actions, but she soon smiled again and approached him with a seductive gesture.
However, Clyde only gave her a cold, piercing look. "Did you tell Demon King Asmodeus about my whereabouts?" he asked.
Hearing the question, Mari immediately stopped her advance toward Clyde. She pressed her lips together, appearing uneasy.
"So it is really you," Clyde said. "Do you realize that you''ve just endangered the lives of others?"
Clyde''s tone grew colder and more dangerous. Mari quickly responded, "I didn''t say anything to Demon King Asmodeus. I don''t even have any connection with him."
Clyde narrowed his eyes.
"But... maybe The Duchess did it," Mari said.
Clyde blinked. She''s right. Mari could only contact Gremory from here, and she had to do that by sacrificing her soul. So it''s more likely that Gremory contacted Asmodeus after hearing the news from Mari.
Clyde fell silent for a few moments, deep in thought. What he needed to do now was find Gremory and ask why she had given away his location. Was she trying to trap him?
"Contact Gremory now. I need to speak with her," Clyde said. He wasn''t particrly concerned about Mari having to sacrifice her soul to contact Gremory; she had been doing it for a long time, after all.
"I''m sorry," Mari shook her head apologetically. "Her Majesty cannot be contacted right now. She told me that when wemunicatedst night."
"Why?" Clyde asked, his brows furrowing tightly.
"I don''t know the reason," Mari replied.
Clyde clicked his tongue loudly. His suspicion that Gremory intended to betray him and deliver him to Demon King Asmodeus was growing. She must have known he would ask Mari to contact her to inquire about what had happened, so she said she couldn''t be reached.
"I think," Mari said, and Clyde turned to her.
"I think, you''d better prepare yourself to face the Demon King instead of worrying about Her Majesty."
Clyde sighed. What Mari said was indeed true.
~~~
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