“What did you learn from the fight?” asked Kazuki.
“My saber struggled to pierce its scales,” Gallad reported.
The forr instructor nodded, eyes on the shredded corpse of the amphiptere. The winged serpent had ambushed the two hoplites as they explored the city. Knowing his rival had a penchant for slaying draconic creatures, Kazuki had first tried to repel the beast before realizing it was rabid and killing it was necessary.
“Draconic talents are formidable.” The Hoplite Champion had no trouble breaching the creature's defenses, but his build was tailored for armor-piercing. “What else?”
“Considering the size of this beast, it's not an adult. The creature Blueberry is cooking is at least four tis larger... This world is dangerous, even for Titan-class warriors,” Gallad said, frowning. He was disappointed but too disciplined to deny the truth. “Yet, data from the Reunion suggests I should be able to handle most Tier 1s without issue.”
“I felt more resistance piercing this serpent's scales than Eleha's skin,” Kazuki said, kneeling to touch the amphiptere's scales. They were still tough, but much less so than during the fight. “The harsh environnt forces the inhabitants to push their limits to reach Tier 1. It's good training for us.”
Gallad nodded. “We will fight to pave the way, sir. What's our next move?”
“Let's keep exploring. We can't leave such powerful enemies near the rift.”
If Priam had wanted to kill every amphiptere, he would have done so. The two hoplites continued exploring the ruins for almost two hours without encountering any new adversaries.
“According to the Guardian of Secrets, draconic creatures breed like rabbits, yet this city is empty,” Gallad noted.
“It's possible a certain density of aether is needed for these creatures to reproduce easily. Or sothing is culling them,” Kazuki replied, eyeing the two buildings at the city's heart.
The warriors headed toward the first building, which resembled a temple. Priam had likely visited it already, as two enormous winged serpent corpses lay inside. After analyzing the hall to better understand the amphipteres' strengths and weaknesses, they moved to the second structure. Its double doors were titanic, nearly ten ters high, but dwarfed by the edifice's towers, so of which reached two hundred ters.
Pausing at the entrance, the warriors surveyed the lobby. The monuntal room was tall enough to comfortably fit Log-a-rhythm and nearly a hundred ters long. Colorful statues and purple tapestries filled the space. Besides the opulent decor that had weathered ti well, Kazuki's eyes were drawn to the hundreds of skeletons littering the floor.
“Amphipteres died here,” Gallad stated the obvious.
“The question is: were they hunted or did they co here voluntarily?”
Kazuki scanned for traps and found nothing.
The corpses were scattered haphazardly, so piled on top of others. Only the staircase at the lobby's far end, leading to the building's core, was free of remains.
“Permission to scout ahead.”
“Permission denied. Go inform Hyshana and bring back all the soldiers on break,” Kazuki ordered. “Tell them to bring their chs.”
Gallad saluted, then left without another word. The hoplites weren't obligated to help Priam invade this world, but compensation might tempt them. Sothing tells this building hides interesting secrets...
Kazuki surveyed the lobby without stepping inside. The doors could shut behind him, and he refused to die foolishly.
His gaze returned to the remains. While the flesh had decayed, leaving only traces on the floor, the bones had endured. Kazuki noticed they were far from intact. So had been crushed, sliced, pierced, or burned... others had simply vanished.
Each amphiptere had perished in violent conflict. But against what adversary?
A faint noise alerted Kazuki, who leapt back. The doors slamd shut, nearly pushing him inside. A trap.
Summoning his spear, the hoplite prepared for battle.
Five minutes passed with the doors remaining closed. The enemy was cautious.
Kazuki pointed his spear at the heavy stone doors. In a fluid motion, he channeled maximum energy from his feet to his shoulders and struck the stone. The air vibrated, and the shockwave swept the ground before the building.
The door remained intact.
Kazuki's face showed no disappointnt or frustration. Mobilizing Micro II and Spear Mastery II, he repeated the attack. The impact shook the ground, and a fragnt of stone chipped off the door.
Stretching his wrists, sore from the shock, the Spear Virtuoso contemplated improvents. He could enhance penetration by focusing his Mastery on the spear tip rather than the blade. With a stationary target, he could plant his feet firmly, drawing more power from the ground. Agility was unnecessary; the strike needed to be powerful, not swift. Micro II could overclock other muscles while reinforcing his wrists.
I could also take inspiration from Priam and his high-intensity barrage...
Kazuki resud his stance and attacked again. The ground trembled, his spear vibrated, and a fragnt of stone sublimated, transford into gas like a flint being struck.
Three tries later, he doubled the fragnt's size with each strike. Ten tries later, he developed a new epic skill for destroying hard materials. Forty tries later, a fist-sized hole was visible in the right door.
Sweat beaded on the tiny scales covering his skin, but the warrior was satisfied. His spear skills made progress, and that was what mattered.
When the hole reached fifty centiters in radius, having penetrated half the door's thickness, the invisible enemy had enough. The double doors opened again, revealing a statue at the lobby's far end. Descending the stairs, the stone figure locked eyes with Kazuki.
“After all this ti, the Concepts send soldiers... Isn't the fate of this fragnt cruel enough?”
Rather than answer, Kazuki took a defensive stance. His instincts told him this mysterious foe was at least as powerful as Eleha. His chances of victory were slim, but the Champion refused to back down.
His defeat against Eleha had confird that the only way to protect his people was to beco stronger.
[Symbiosis - Knightmare], [Odyssey - Legendary].
As his armor materialized around him and his Story unfolded, Kazuki identified the stranger.
[Multi-Analysis]
[Stone Sentinel - Tier 1 - Earl] - A sentinel controlled by a vengeful spirit.
The sentinel leapt. Breaking the sound barrier with its acceleration, it arrived in front of Kazuki in an instant, swinging a warhamr. The hoplite parried instinctively and countered with [Odyssey - Legendary Thrust].
His third legendary skill, boosted by Odyssey, struck the sentinel's neck. The blow sent the sentinel flying like a puppet hit by a missile.
According to his AI, the combo created by the two skills was powerful enough to decapitate Eleha if the Tier 3 allowed herself to be hit. The sentinel stood up and nded the crack with a wave of its hand. Kazuki tightened his grip. The fight would be tough.
That was precisely what he wanted.
Status:
PHYSICAL:
Strength 725
Constitution 1 105
Agility 864 ( 22)
Vitality 1 058 ( 18)
Perception 767
NTAL:
Vivacity (D) 592 ( 22)
Dexterity 657
mory 842
Willpower 1 163
Charisma 692
TA:
ta-affinity 801
ta-focus 409
ta-endurance 624 ( 7)
ta-perception 340
ta-chance 274
ta-authority 216
Potential: 13 637 ( 32)
Tier 0
Sun points: 1 481 193 ( 89)
[He Who Eludes Death] charge: PRID
[Tribulation]: Five Tribulations pending.
Future Tribulations delayed until:
Ti: 153 days 11 hours 9 minutes 40 seconds.
Next thresholds: 12 attributes > 600 / 6 attributes > 900 / 1 attribute > 1 200
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