The rustle of leaves, the scent of nature, and the wind whipping against clothes in loud fabric noises echoed. Branches cracked under the unforgiving midday sun's ray at the end of the eight-month as a youth charged through a dense forest.
Alard beasts' cries resounded here and there, but he ignored them all, pushing towards his goal without rest. After a mont, his eyes sparkled as he noticed a river running down before him.
"Interface."
A soft mutter escaped his lips as a spectral window wafting billowing golden smoke appeared before his eyes. With two taps of his fingers, the densely packed numbers and information disappeared, replaced by rows of streaming texts.
[I reached the river. Where now?]
His thoughts manifested in words, making his na, titles, and a new entry appear in the boisterous chat.
Silence ensued for a mont before an answer appeared.
[Continue east for ten kiloters. You'll see those bastards' village. Please, co quickly, Protheus.]
Through gritted teeth, he answered.
[Good luck to you all. I'm going back.]
[Leave this fool behind! We'll point him to you once you co.]
[This idiot! I hope they'll select you next. I want to see your face after returning.]
[No, no! I ant Adam. Sorry if it bothered you. My tongue just slipped.]
A smile stretching his lips, he answered.
[Better. Where is the east?]
[The direction in which the sun rises?]
He rolled his eyes, gazing at the sky through the dense canopy before answering.
[Do you see it rising right now?]
[...] [...][...]
A mont of silence ensued. No one could believe he was serious, thinking he was on again with his shenanigans. A flood of "..." stread down for a mont before his twitching eyes.
'I really don't know, fools!'
As anger billowed, a na he recognised flashed before him.
[Go right... and learn how to navigate...]
[Don't have ti. See you when I return, Morgane.]
Without waiting for an answer, he closed the window and rushed right like a bullet train. The water reflected the sun in a myriad of lights as he smiled at his interface's new feature.
After enough individuals conquered the tower's first floor, they collectively unlocked a chat box, allowing them to stay connected no matter where they stood. Despite the wide range, it unfortunately only worked for the dream place's eleventh area. Well, it wasn't surprising since now he understood what the number ant and how many there were.
'Sixteen areas. One for each world.'
He concluded, hoping the earthling distributed in the fifteen other worlds had it better than those here. But he couldn't be everywhere. Therefore, he shrugged his thoughts aside and focused on a darkened patch of land registering in his vision.
The sun itself seed to shy away from this part of the forest as only a pale light pierced the darkness pervading the area. Tall half-ruined stone buildings reached for the sky amidst the trees as if competing with them despite the rubble and dust occasionally falling.
Moon symbols covered the wide arcs and ancient colones, making him understand a grand civilisation once strived in this forgotten place.
'How is that a village?'
The thought sent a shiver down his spine as he noticed fires illuminating watch towers and burly... female? Creatures?
'The heck is that?!'
His eyes enlarged at their sight as he rembered what they had reluctantly told him.
[We won't die from starvation, and they won't kill us. But sotis we wish to die, so co fast, please.]
Sohow, he didn't want to know why any more, expecting the worst. Instead, he scanned them from a safe distance.
Each of the patrolling guards reached two ters in height at a minimum, with thick veins protruding like snakes from their silvery fur-covered muscles. Long tails ending with a massive protruding bulge extended from their backs, making it a natural hamr they could swing to shatter their enemies' skulls. Sharp claws and dagger-like fangs graced their mouths and fingers, too.
'I'm starting to regret bears...'
The thought popped into his mind like a bubble as he eyed their horrible faces and the disturbing two pairs of bulging sacs rising each ti they breathed with a frown.
'No, seriously, who created those abominations?!' He thought as he revealed himself and stepped towards the ruin. If they were smart enough to negotiate, he would try to. If not... They'll join his enemies and contribute to his growth with experience points.
"I co in peace. Can I speak with your leader?"
Before the magical beasts could resound the alarm, his voice pierced the darkness, reverberating through the old building and alerting everyone present.
When they heard it, the twelve humans who asked for his help facepald simultaneously inside their cells.
Discover more stories at empire
"Why didn't he infiltrate the place and take us away silently?"
One asked, his lips twitching and eyes trembling in concern.
However, a cacophony of angry roars and loud beats soon engulfed their voices.
'Shit! They are hitting their tails against the ground! They'll attack without reserve to annihilate him!'
They all thought, recognising the creatures' war pattern as silhouettes blurred before them, rushing to et the daring intruder.
Hearing the beats too, Adam's eyes narrowed as a concentrated beam of silver energy flashed before his eyes.
"Should have guessed," he muttered, glaring at the attacker as a thick veil of dense swirling mana erupted before him, negating the strike entirely.
A vicious smile stretched his lips as the mana particle glinted around his billowing brown hair.
"Xp it is, then."
As his words lingered in the air, his fra blurred into motion as the wind howled behind him.
In a second, he reappeared behind the creature who attacked him, swinging his unard right hand horizontally.
Suddenly, a blade of multi-colored energy materialised from thin air, cleaving the wind apart with terrifying speed.
SPURT
Before the creature could turn, its head flew as blood drizzled, painting the tower's stones scarlet.
Next, his eyes lit up as he checked his kill notification. They were strong enough to fuel his progress, unlike the others!
[Tier three magical beast: Moonsilver Striker defeated. You have gained 100 experience points.]
Reviews
All reviews (0)