Raphaeline snapped her fingers, and a rectangular section of the floor slid open once again, and the chanical platform rose just like last ti carrying Void-Weighted Constructs.
"I thought we did this?" Albedo asked, and Raphaeline smiled as she heard that.
"Yeah, but this is gonna be a little different. Co put them on." Raphaeline said, and Albedo quickly equipped all the gear that were now matched to his Mid-Silver level power.
Then, he took control of the six orbs of mana, having them orbit his head at a steady, clockwise pace. He looked at Raphaeline, who stood leisurely at the edge of the platform, arms folded beneath her chest, eyes glowing faintly with amusent.
"So," he said, a trace of suspicion in his voice, "what's different this ti?"
Raphaeline grinned like a wolf. Then she snapped her fingers.
~BOOM~
Albedo didn't even see the runes activate before the weight hit him. It was like sothing crashed into him with a thunderous force, and he imdiately realized what it was.
Gravity!
The gravity in the area had increased, at least by four tis, causing Albedo's body to be slamd downwards with a venomous force. The floor cracked beneath his boots. His knees buckled involuntarily, and a strangled breath escaped his throat as he staggered under the pressure.
The sudden disruption of balance sent a shock through his mana threads, and the orbs noticed, and what Albedo was most worried about ca true.
~Wzzzzttt~
The first orb stuttered.
~BOOM!~
It detonated, sending a ripple through the pattern that caused all of the remaining orbs to all explode, just like Albedo was worried about.
~BOOM~BOOM~BOOM~BOOM~BOOM!~
The chain explosion blasted him off his feet. The combined shockwave slamd into his body like a runaway beast.
He flew backward, hit the ground hard, and skidded across the reinforced stone tiles, smoke and sparks trailing him as the Void-Weighted Constructs sparked with interference.
"Jesus." Albedo muttered to himself as he looked above to Raphaeline, who didn't even move, just standing there staring at him. He so wished he could give her the middle finger, but he just groaned.
His body twitched as pain fired through every fiber of muscle and bone. His back arched as he forced himself onto one arm. Then two. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
His body shook.
Gravity still pressed on him like the wrath of a mountain and he barely managed to stand up after two minutes, shakily with his knees quaking under the pressure. He had quickly adapted, especially thanks to his power increase, but it was still painful.
And Raphaeline's smile deepened as she saw all of this.
"You're improving," she said, a hint of approval beneath the sarcasm, "The last ti soone tried that, they passed out before even two explosions."
Albedo spat blood onto the floor and glared up at her through gritted teeth, "Sadistic maniac."
"You'll thank when you're alive and everyone else is dead," she replied sweetly.
He straightened a little, muscles still trembling, the Void-Weighted Constructs now feeling like anchors fused to his limbs, "Alright. What's the goal now? Another batch of orbs?"
Raphaeline raised an eyebrow.
"Yes but no. We're past that now."
She quickly spawned the orbs and Albedo took them under his control, barely managing to control them and then she snapped her fingers again.
~CLACK~KRRRRNNNNKKKK!~
A sigil-laced gate at the far end of the chamber shimred into life, arcane energy flowing through its engraved runes in jagged, unstable patterns. From the rift erged a low, guttural growl, one that sent a primal chill across the room.
Albedo's eyes narrowed.
A massive panther-like creature stepped forward, its fur pure black, almost absorbing light. Its eyes glead silver with runes etched into its irises. A mist of shadow rolled from its paws. Its very presence distorted mana in the room.
Albedo imdiately used his appraisal skill on the creature.
[ Night Prowler - Low Silver Rank ]
Raphaeline's voice turned silk-smooth, but beneath it was steel.
"Your goal, Albedo, is simple."
She gestured toward the beast she had released.
"Maintain perfect orb rotation. No deviation. No explosion. Do all of that…" her lips curved into a sharp grin, "while surviving an attack from my little pet."
The Night Prowler snarled, lowering itself into a hunter's stance, claws igniting with threads of dark mana, eager to pounce on Albedo and enjoy a delicious night-ti snack.
Raphaeline stepped back and added, almost as an afterthought:
"Oh, and if you fail again? The Gravity doubles until it hits the maximum. Have fun."
and with that, the beast lunged at him.
***
"Fuck Off."
Albedo grunted as he dodged, pain wrecking his entire body. The world at this point felt like a coffin.
No, heavier. It felt like the very bones of the earth had risen to crush him. He couldn't even feel the tips of his fingers due to the strain, he was moving on pure willpower at this point.
Every breath he took was like dragging shards of glass through his lungs, and his vision was extrely blurry. He was relying purely on his mana sense at this point, his sight was too unreliable.
And yet…
The six orbs still spun, though barely. They floated in an unyielding clockwise dance around his head. Each was tid to the breath. To the second.
"ROAR!" The Night Prowler roared and lunged at him, its howl was a banshee's scream through the dark, but Albedo's ears had long gone dull to the sound.
Albedo moved.
He didn't dodge so much as bend the very rules of motion to sidestep by an inch. The Night Prowler's claws scraped the air behind his back, slicing off strands of his hair. He slid low, chest scraping the floor, and the constructs tried to retaliate.
The mont he pushed off the floor, the Void-Weights reacted, spiking in mass. One mistake. One greedy movent. That's all it took. The shoulder brace pulsed like a dying sun.
~CRACK!~
His left shoulder imdiately dislocated, not the first ti that had happened that night, but he was so numb he barely realized, only biting down on his tongue until he tasted more copper.
He locked eyes with the Night Prowler, that growled at him, and then vanished in a ripple of space.
Albedo didn't panic however, he had seen this attack multiple tis before. He just closed his eyes and inhaled, slowly and deeply, with perfect stillness.
After 3 seconds, he turned his neck two inches to the left.
~SHRREEEEEEKKKK!!~
The beast ca from behind, but that slight movent had allowed Albedo to dodge the attack, and then he quickly spun on one heel, shifting every particle of weight into his other leg.
A move that cost him seconds of pain and earned him ters of breathing room as the Night Prowler's second wave of attack scraped across his chest, tearing his skin and causing him to bleed.
Albedo stumbled to one knee, breathing heavily and noticing one orb begin to tremble, causing his eyes to widen with panic as he quickly cald his breaths.
Inhale~Exhale.
The trembling slowed, and the orb quickly cald down. Albedo opened his mouth and muttered, barely above a whisper, "Not… yet…"
From above, Raphaeline's eyes narrowed. For the first ti, her arms unfolded as she stared at him, curious as his adaptation.
'This boy no, this monster in training, was adapting.' She thought to herself, a sly smirk appearing on her lips as she leaned against the railing.
She knew, the battle would end soon.
Back on the ground, the Night Prowler was circling Albedo again, like a predator stalking its prey, but Albedo was already moving, but he didn't step back, he moved forward.
Every motion now calculated to avoid triggering the Constructs' wrath. Every punch controlled. Every dodge practiced with near-perfect muscular mory.
He didn't attack the beast, instead he continuously shifted his weight, dodging attacks using as minimal energy as possible.
When the Prowler pounced again, it was not t with resistance, but with absence, as Albedo was already elsewhere.
He was like a ghost on the battlefield, continuously dodging all of the attacks. And when the beast lunged again, Albedo finally struck.
A palm to its jaw. The impact was minimal. Just enough. Not to wound.
But to mark. A crimson rune etched in mid-air as the mana swirled through his veins. He spun again, weaving backward, the orbs never once breaking rhythm.
The Night Prowler growled, but its paw wavered.
It was bleeding as the rune had pierced its outer defense, and now it was second guessing. An easy al had hit back, and now it was fully on guard, looking out for any sudden movents Albedo might make.
As for Albedo, he was smiling through the pain. His entire body was collapsing in slow motion, but he'd bought a single, golden truth.
The beast was not invincible.
And he could still fight.
One second. Two.
Three…
~SNAP!~
From above, Raphaeline clapped once.
The Night Prowler froze. Then slinked back, its shadows dispersing as it lted into the portal it had co from.
The room fell still.
The platform dimd.
The gravity returned to normal.
And Albedo…
Fell forward.
Flat on his face. Too exhausted to break the fall. His body slamd the ground like a corpse.
But the orbs?
They spun.
Even in unconsciousness. The mana threads embedded into his nervous system still carried them. They whirled above his unconscious body like silent sentinels.
Raphaeline descended the stairs and stood above him, her shadow falling over his body.
She didn't speak.
Not at first.
Then, softly, almost proudly, she whispered:
"…You did it."
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