Chapter 145: Lucky Break

Chapter 145: Lucky Break

Dallion played the strings that resonated with the guardians fear. Despite that, no marker appeared. There was no mistakethe bladicorn was completely immune to music. Maybe that was specific to the creature itself, or possibly it required a higher skill proficiency. Even so, Dallion wasnt worried.

Dripping the harpsisword with both hands, he spun the weapon and threw it in the direction of the beast. Unfortunately, the attack did far better in his mind than in practice. The strength was there, but not the aim, making the harpsisword miss its target by over two feet. It seemed that throwing wasnt considered an attack skill. To be reliably successful, he was going to have to master athletics. With luck, that could happen at the end of this battle.

Without hesitation, Dallion drew his dartbow and aimed for the bladicorns front hoof. Holding his breath, he squeezed the trigger twice. Two bolts propelled forward, both of them stopped by a torrent of grass upon approaching the creature.

Nice save. Dallion tossed the weapon to the ground, then reached for the sheath on his back. As expected, the harpsisword had emerged there again. Close combat it is, then.

The guardian snorted, digging into the ground before it with a hoof. It was clever enough not to attempt another attack, giving the initiative to Dallion. As soon as he moved forward, though, blades of grass filled the air.

Shield! Dallion extended the armadil shield forward. The metal segments extended, providing full protection from the ranged attack. Once the metallic rattling stopped, the shield reverted back to its standard form.

Were in a stalemate, Dallion thought. The bladicorn, as large as it was, couldnt win in a direct battle, so it resorted to keeping its distance and using ranged attacks. By all accounts, it looked like this was going to be one long battle. It wouldnt be a surprise if it ended up being a battle of attrition, just like when Dallion had first become an awakened. Unlike then, though, he didnt have the desire to waste time.

Battle stances went through his mind. Attacking from a distance was useless, so the only alternative was for Dallion to charge forward, to provoke the guardian into action.

Here we go, he gripped his sword and darted forward.

Odds were that the bladicorn would either retreat or launch another wave of blades. After several steps, it appeared to be the former. With a sudden turn, the guardian galloped off, increasing the distance between them. That didnt discourage Dallion, though. Determined to see his attack through, Dallion pressed on, running as fast as his legs would let him. His speed wasnt enough to catch up to the creature, but kept the distance from increasing too rapidly.

If this were Earth, humans were capable of outrunning any animal. Here, things werent so clear. Even so, after a minute the bladicorn launched another wave of glass projectile behind it. This was what Dallion was waiting for. On the surface, the sharp green projectiles seemed ideal for wounding enemies from a distance, they also provided an opportunity for Dallion to use his guard skills.

Before the markers could appear, he held his shield in front, protecting the entire upper half of his torso.

MINOR WOUND

Your health was reduced by 5%

MINOR WOUND

Your health was reduced by 5%

A few blades pierced Dallions right leg, but that wasnt of significance; he had managed to complete the sequence, reaching the first-time freeze. Taking advantage of the fact, Dallion leapt forward, starting his second sequence.

Thats what you get for taking me lightly, he thought.

Each guard sequence for him closer to the guardian, while also increasing the distance he could leap to while time was being slowed down. After his fifth uninterrupted success, the familiar green rectangle appeared.

ESCAPE TRIGGERED

If you wish to escape combat, smash the window.

Escaping, however, was not on Dallions mind. Instead, he used the time stop to breach the gap between him and the guardian and swing at its damaged hoof.

Music, Dallion thought, while simultaneously playing a chord. Maybe music couldnt be used to control the guardian, but there was no way it could ignore an emotion vibrating directly into its head, especially since the emotion in question was pain.

The bladicorns eyes glowed brighter. The creature rose up on its hind legs, throwing Dallion up into the air. Simultaneously, Dallion let go of the harpsisword and drew his dartbow. A single bolt targeted the guardians front left hoof.

FATAL HIT

Dealt damage was increased by 500%

At this distance it was impossible to miss. The hoof fractures. Another bolt followed, shattering it to pieces.

FATAL HIT

Dealt damage was increased by 500%

LEG SEVERED

Enemy will no longer be able to make use of its LEFT BACK LEG.

Thats two down, Dallion thought.

Less than forty percent of health remained. Normally, Dallion would be suspicious of the ease with which he had dealt with so much damage. The voice of doubt kept whispering in the back of his mind that there had to be more to it. Surely this all had to be a trap.

Not this time, Dallion said, and targeted the remaining front hoof. And just to be certain, once the bolt had been launched, Dallion let go of the dartbow, drawing the harpsisword from its scabbard once more.

Attack, he thought. A series of attack markers appeared. The blade followed the path of the weapon.

FATAL STRIKE

Dealt damage was increased by 500%

Even before the blade made contact, both participants knew that the battle was over. In that brief moment, a sense of achievement resonated in both. Dallion was pleased that he had managed to pass the trial; the bladicornthat it had helped him pass it. In the end, that was the purpose of the awakening shrinenot only to determine who had the skills to continue on to the next level, but also display what the participant was lacking. The guardian had done everything it could to find a weakness it could exploit, and it had failed; or rather it had been slower to do so than Dallion.

Second by second, clusters of grass detached from the beast, floating slowly towards the ground. The front legs disappeared, then the head, the body, and finally the last hooved leg. The beautiful majestic creature that Dallion had faced was now reduced to a single cluster of grass in a clump of earth.

Thanks for the battle, Dallion said. He hoped hed get a chance to see another guardian of that type at some point in the future. Hopefully, then he wouldnt have to fight it. For the moment, though, the trial held priority.

You have broken through your tenth barrier.

Finally, the coveted rectangle was there. For over ten seconds Dallion kept staring at it, savoring the moment. From now on he was technically a double digit, even if he had to pass the official trial.

You are level 10

Choose the focus you value the most.

The familiar five rectangles appeared underneath. To Dallions pleasant surprise, all of his attributes, with the exception of mind, were at level ten, as were all his skills. The only other exception was the grey rectangle that remained, displaying five out of twenty. As much as Dallion wanted to invest more points there, the uneven number of visible attributes annoyed him to the point that he tapped on mind. Now he had ten everywhere, just like Falkner. However, one final step remained.