I spent the last two days testing the limits of [Dark pursuer], pushing the skill to its extre. BY letting it copy each of my skills at least once, I wanted to see which skills it synergised with and which ones were less effective. Without going into an excessive amount of detail, I ca to the conclusion that my offensive skills got the largest increase in power when they were copied.
Sword arcs were larger and flew for longer, more explosive orbs were summoned than I thought possible when the elental copied [Overloaded orbs] and even [Breaking swipe] saw a large improvent. Above all others, [Sword laser] was the most dangerous skill I could let the pursuer copy.
Technically the evolved version of [Sword arc], letting this skill be copied ant that the elental would be capable of using both. Unfortunately, it wasnt using them in a very tactical way. I had asked Ash to act as a target for a bit, hoping that the summon would learn as the battle continued, but was left disappointed.
The pursuer acted like an enraged beast, with no regard for timing or rhythm. Instead, it brutishly attempted to smash its opponents. Only when that didnt work would it escalate to its copied skills. Thankfully, there were upsides to the whole ordeal, too. That aforentioned empowernt, for example, increased the size and power of every skill, even the defensive ones.
As an experint, I had let the pursuer copy [Dark embodint] one ti. The result had been astounding, since the empowered version of my most powerful skill made the elental almost invincible.
Ash had unleashed all of his skills and tricks on the beast, to no avail. Every attack that took of a limb was ignored, said limb being replaced by an identical replacent within a second. Apparently, the replacent limbs that [Dark embodint] provided were the exact sa thing as the dark pursuers natural body, making the distinction pointless. On top of that, the pursuers strength and speed rose drastically with this skill copied, making it a legitimate threat, even to a tier 5, borderline tier 6 like Ash.
Unfortunately, I wasnt sure whether I would ever use this skill synergy in battle. [Dark embodint] had kept alive throughout all of my struggles, always giving a chance to fight another day. Without it, I felt naked. The threat of death beca far more distinct with the skill deactivated. Feeling pain after all this ti reminded of the danger that most other people faced on a daily basis. I wasnt sure if taking this risk was worth it, when there were other skills for the pursuer to copy. For now, I decided to think of it as a last resort. A tool for ambush, perhaps.
With that finished, my ti in the between lands was swiftly coming to an end. It had been nice to see how the balance of this place had shifted during my ti away, but unfortunately, there was a pressing matter that needed all of my attention. After a swift goodbye to the generals and grumpy dismissal from the dry man, the ti to depart had arrived.
I pulled out the long-distance transmitter that Dalius people had loaned and pushed so mana into it, activating the contraption. re monts later, a mirror-like portal had appeared, eagerly awaiting my arrival. I gave my friends a final wave, before stepping back into Dalius camp. As I did so, I also taphorically re-erged in the escalating conflict that was occurring in Alterian.
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It took a few more days for Eri to join , her own dungeon delve taking a bit longer than expected. Seeing her again, however, I noticed that her presence had beco a lot more heavy, so to speak. My mana sense allowed to feel far more mana gathered around her than before. For a mont, I wondered whether she, too, had advanced to the next tier.
How did it go? I asked after a short greeting. She gave a small smile, standing a little straighter and giving away how proud she actually felt about her progress.
Not bad, Id say. Im level 83 now. You? she asked, a competitive glint in her eyes.
I decided that this was the perfect mont to tease her. Level 83? Thats seriously impressive! But that cant be all there is, right? Your mana has grown so dense all of a sudden? Your level growth couldnt have been the sole cause for that, right?
So youve noticed, have you? I suppose the three skills that I evolved are responsible for this change. That being said, I cant help but notice that youve dodged my earlier question. Any reason for that? she asked with a wry grin, homing in on a perceived weakness. Her eagerness to surpass almost made think that I had been the one to win our last spar in the tournant.
I simply didnt want to hurt your feelings, Eri. You see, during our ti away I decided to advance to the next tier. I half whispered, delighting in the way her face changed from one of smugness to one of shock, eventually settling on an accusatory glare.
How the hell did you- she shouted. I had to stop her by covering her mouth with a hand. If she had said that too loudly, all of Dalius n would have beco aware of my progress, which I wanted to avoid for now. Neither Eri nor I trusted them, after all.
Sorry for that, I said as I released my hand. I just wanted to keep that fact hidden for now. Best to keep so cards close to our chest, you know.
She nodded stubbornly, but was rightfully angry at my behaviour. Fine! Now tell how you did it!
The way I always do things. I get lucky. I replied, laughing at her reaction.
I quickly shut up as her glare turned murderous, making fear for my life. I acquiesced and told her about my adventure, before she made good on her implied threat.
I described the dungeon I had delved and how I had dealt with the creatures within. Eri grudgingly admitted that she would have a tough ti replicating my strategy, as she didnt have a solid healing skill to survive such a battle of attrition. While her single target skills were more powerful than mine, she would be able to outlast the creature.
I decided to trust her with the information that the dungeon itself had provided , too, even promising to take her along when I inevitably returned to delve it again. The news of a sentient, multi-floor dungeon had co as a surprise, despite Eris education, hitting ho just how rare these things were.
Eris own dungeon hadnt been a doozy, either. The undead-centred dungeon she had delved had prided itself on having entire armies of undead animals to direct at any unlucky explorers. As Eri described it, the main threat of the dungeon was that all nearby monsters would be alerted when you destroyed one of their kin. The more you killed, the further this ssage would travel. What could have been a simple dungeon quickly turned dangerous. If it werent for Eris inherent advantage of having a holy affinity, she would have been overwheld by half the dungeon swarming her. Her talent and powerful skills wouldnt have been enough, in that case.
While Eris affinity made it easy to break through the waves of monsters as they ca, her lack of AOE skills also ant that it took ages to actually wipe them out.
Once she finally did, the dungeons boss, a giant undead eagle, had used a variant of [Corpse explosion] to turn half the battlefield to dust. It would then fly into the fake clouds, reappearing elsewhere to repeat the sa course over and over again.
All of this combined ant that Eri had had a rough ti actually cleaning the dungeon up and getting the most out of the monsters there, leading her to be a few days late.
I would have felt even worse for her if my own experience hadnt been so wrought with difficulties and hurdles. In the end, we had both overco our respective challenges, though. With our newfound power, we stood a larger chance of succeeding in conquering the final two statues. Worse ca to worse, we would be able to escape with our lives intact.
Eri and I caught up so more, as I described my week in the between lands. Initially, she was hesitant about the friends I had made there. In her mind, those with a dark affinity were usually more than a bit insane at best, and horrific murderers at worst. While that rang true for the most part, I was reasonably confident that the dry man and his generals wouldnt succumb to their ntal weaknesses. At least not in the near future. To be fair, admitting otherwise would be quite difficult for , as I would have to start second-guessing myself, as well.
Thankfully, Eri was happy to give them the benefit of the doubt, saying that her adoptive father had always taught her that blind justice was no justice at all. As Eri described it, that ant that she would withhold judgent until she t them herself. A part of was relieved to hear it, though I hid the loss of tension well.
An hour or so later, Eri and I were called to the command tent, where a map of Alterian had been spread out. Five spots on the map were highlighted, of which three had already been crossed out. The final two, the locations of the two final statues, shone with a dull light.
Youve returned. Dalius greeted, not looking up from the map.
How is the situation, Dalius? Were ready to strike whenever. Eri assured him.
Not good, Im afraid. Their defences have only slightly waned over the duration of your ti away. We expect heavy resistance at both locations. To make matters worse, one of the cardinals has taken interest in this case and is personally supervising their defences. If we strike either of the two locations, theres a chance that even the pope might beco involved. At that point, well be left without options.
Eri sputtered, thinking of anything to say to change this grim outlook.
So what are you trying to say? That were done? That its over? That our efforts were for nought?!
Im saying- Dalius interrupted her, That I can only see one path forward.
And what is that path? I asked, before Eri could protest.
Dalius breathed in deeply, sighing.
We have to hit both locations at once.
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