Chapter 188 Prelude: A Moment To Remember



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/Fire.../

""!""

As the flying beast opened its jaws, the embers of doom ignited in the depths of its throat, signalizing the end of everything Testros wished to recover.

'No... Not again...'

Images of a past he wished to forget flashed in front of his eyes as he remember that fateful day…

The day he ran away without turning back as he gasped in fear.

"No!" He exclaimed, his own eyes opening in disbelief 

Would he let his own redemption vanish amidst his fingers? After everything he had done?

Decades of training all led to this moment only for it to turn to ash under the flames of this beast?!

No… That wasn't what he desired.

But what could he do, he was still hundreds of meters away from the creature and Ubuk was unwilling to descend any further.

He couldn't fly, he couldn't assault the creature from afar… Nor had he any substantial long-range attack.

At least, nothing that would stop that beast in time...

Just like Dale before, he was helpless.

"Urg..."

His eyes turned red, light started to condense in his fingers…

Something was about to happen, and it didn't look good…

/Jump!/

"?!"

But before he lost his composure, Dale jumped, riding Caldgolg as it pierced the air with tremendous speed.

"I'll take care of it." He said as he pierced into the sea of leaves beneath them

But his voice felt like the whispers of the wind as by the time they arrived at his ears, Dale was already far beyond his reach.

"..."

'That's right...'

'I'm not alone this time.'

Reason returning to his eyes, Testros' expression turned solemn as he maneuvered the bird into a nearby location.

He couldn't let the boy fight on his own, not like this.

/CAWW!/

Perhaps feeling the dangerous emotions swelling within Testros, Ubuk uttered a mighty War Cry, flying into the sea of leaves as well, albeit in an opposite direction to Dale.

The mighty bird might be a Ruler of the Skies, but the beast that prowled the woods beneath it was a King amidst Kings...

Merely maintaining its composure was already proof of its tremendous training.

…

/FWOOSH!/

Caladgolg ripped through the air as a cone of mist formed around Dale's body.

And as it moved, the sound followed...

/BAM!/

Right now, Dale was faster than sound!

'Hurry...' He thought to himself as he blinked for a small moment

Next time he opened his eyes, he saw the beast's full figure, flapping its wings slowly above a wooden settlement next to the Old's Trunk, a small city built around its ancient Roots and Stem.

"!"

'Is that it?'

In front of Dale, the situation unfolded.

A massive reptile with a wingspan of over 10 meters in the air stood proudly in the sky as fire gathered in its throat.

It passed two wings and two legs, together with a crown made of Horns.

It was a Dragon through and through but not quite like it.

A Wyvern was its name, a beast of colossal power.

/FLAP!/

/SCREAM!/

In front of it, on the ground, a middle-aged man held a sword as a torrent of blood fell from his left shoulder, a deep gash could be seen beyond his ripped shirt.

He tried to put up a fight, but in the end, there wasn't much he could've done.

Many days of constant fights left him exhausted, and protecting his beloved also left him with a deep wound.

If he could hear his thoughts, Dale would hear the regrets and memories of the man passing through his mind as he saw death approach his body.

For a moment, he cursed the survivors for having left the shelter without his permission, but just as quickly as the thought came, it vanished.

Because he couldn't bear to do so... Not as he saw the tears in the eyes of the girl that bandaged him up time and time again every time he trained and returned from an Expedition.

Alas, Dale could not hear them, and even if he could, he would pay them no head...

Because, right now… Dale was behind the Wyvern!

An opportunity created by the man's sacrifice!

As the Wyvern opened its jaws to unleash its definite blow, Dale pierced the skies beneath its wings, arming the sharp end of his wrath at it!

'This is my only chance.' He thought quickly as the world around him slowed down

'This… Isn't a monster I think I can defeat in a one-on-one battle.'

'I'll pierce straight through its neck!'

He had little time to put thought into his actions, so despite their recklessness, this was already the best he could think of.

To capture this moment of opportunity, he had to be fast and sharper than ever before!

[Red Wyvern 

Challenge Level: 185-195

*Elite Field Boss*

*Apex*

Affected by:

#Vitality Outburst

]

Two classifications he had never seen before, at least in presence, much less combined.

An Elite Field Boss, even on the Forums, sightings of such creatures was rare.

Field Bosses were already the strongest kind of Monster known, above Normal and Elite Bosses...

But an Elite version of a Field type?I think you should take a look at

If Dale were a normal player, he might've despaired from just looking at its health bar, but he cared little about that.

He only needed only hit to connect properly.

As for being an Apex, it meant this Wyvern was the best his species could possibly muster, it was the direct upgrade from a Special monster, which is in turn, the better version of Unique.

At least, this was everything he knew about these as the players need more time to research them.

Either way, Dale didn't take those into consideration when he dashed below, he only had the time to think about where to land his blow!

This was an extremely powerful monster whose combat power was several dozen levels above what it was shown, a beast of incredible power that might've served as an End game Dungeon Boss for even the previous game!

Right now, within one month of Azimuth's release, Dale was fighting against an End Game Boss of a game that lasted over a Decade...

He knew he only had only one chance, so he went with everything he had from the start.

All of his Skills that could be activated were layered atop each other as he readied his spear forward... Which weren't many...

Dale lacked active Skills, not that it was a problem.

HardCore players lacked help from the System, so it was just normal for him to have almost nothing within a month of the Game's release...

But if only he had 10 Active Skills to use at the same time...

Well, a man can dream.

...

/PIERCE!/

Caldgolg flew with incredible speed, aiming at the creature's neck.

The scales in there were extremely thick, it was definitely a well-protected area…

There were no flaws, all of the scales connected perfectly, shining with all their glory.

He saw no weak points, no previous injuries, no deformations like bad formation or scars...

This was definitely not the place to strike if he were a proficient hunter, since compared to that, the wings were much simpler and more manageable.

There were fewer scales in there and in the joints, there were very clear gaps to aim towards.

If he wished, removing a wing would've been a piece of cake... 

But where else should he aim if he wished for a quick kill?

Its head might as well be as difficult to pierce as the neck if not harder.

While its back could end up leaving it alive afterward.

Dale didn't believe he had what it took to pierce all the way to its heart from its back, and if he were unlucky, wouldn't the Wyvern still release its attack?

[Red Wyvern is channeling the Skill, Draconic Breath]

[Red Wyvern Passive Skill, Burning Blood has activated]

[Red Wyvern Passive Skill, Ancient Majesty has activated]

[Red…]

Multiple notifications played in his ears as the Wyvern unfolded its true power and as Dale approach its influence zone.

But Dale had no time to care about them.

Many notifications were playing in his eyes, likely the clash between his Stats and the creature's abilities...

/Raise.../

To that, he raised his spear and kicked Caladgolg, flying even faster than before.

With its awkward position, the Wyvern had nowhere to escape, it could either choose to release its breath forward and finish what it had started...

Or it could try and evade Dale's attack, regardless, as long as the Survivors were safe, Dale would have won this fight.

He only needed to buy enough time so everyone could work together and finish it off.

He didn't believe that they had no chance against it, were it like this then what would even be the point of the Quest?

To make fun of him?

Were the difference so significant, then the Quest would either tell him to run... Or nothing would've appeared.

Just like when he fled from the Wall.

After all, why would the System reward a player for running away from a challenge? Unless it was pre-programmed.

"Hupp!"

'Arrogant Fucker!' Dale thought as he pulled his spear back, his muscles tensing

The Wyvern had definitely realized he was there, approaching it at high speeds.

Its eye moved in the air, almost as fast as his descent...

But it had confidence in its scales, after all, it only needed to resist one single attack…

After that, it would rip apart whatever had dared to bear its fangs at it!

/ROAAARRR!/

The Wyvern unleashed a roar as a torrent of flames rushed out of its mouth like the gates of Hell!

...

"... Fir..." Wuril mumbled as he closed his eyes

He could feel the heat rise...

/FWOOSH!/

/BAM!/

"?!"

But suddenly, the Wyvern plunged into the ground!

And the flames... Never came.

"Wh... What happened?" Wuril asked as his eyes trembled in disbelief 

As he regained his sense, he took a step, his will to live slowly kicking in as his instincts of survival recovered from their impending doom.

He was supposed to be dead, but he wasn't.

'Something... Fell atop it...'

'Another beast?' He thought as he looked at the dust

/Splurge.../

The thick smell of iron filled the air, he couldn't tell where it was coming from anymore...

But he knew what the sound signified.

Flesh was being torn apart...

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Notes

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