Chapter 599: Something Scary

Chapter 599: Something Scary

Who are you? the metalin asked, its voice sounded unnaturally deep, as if talking through a tuba.

Whats it matter? Dallion asked, filling his voice with notions of confusion and recklessness. To no surprise, no connection was achieved. The tendrils of music bounced off the metalin as if it were made of nothing.

You arent permitted to remove the restrictions.

Dallions response was to burst into instances, then strike at different parts of his enemy. If the metalin engaged in combat splittingas one had to in such circumstancesDallion was going to force the outcome that was best for him.

No such thing happened. Even slowed down, the construct attempted to evade the attacks, yet without creating instances of its own. The movements were scarily precise, yet even they werent able to block all attacks.

Sparks filled the corridor as the harpsisword struck parts of the armor, vibrating at each hit. Alas, despite the pressure Dallion was putting on, he found that he was unable to deal any actual damage.

Harp, can you keep this up? Dallion doubled his effort, splitting in twenty instances each blow.

Maintain the pressure, the dryad replied.

Im not doing any damage.

Despite the number of hits the metalin didnt seem in the least bit phased. It kept retreating backwards, swinging its dartblades to both defend and attack. On a few occasions it even shot a bolt at one of Dallions instances. Naturally, Dallion was quick to drop that instance before it was hit; he had no intention of making the same mistake twice.

The bolt flew through the air, hitting a wall. The moment it did the entire corridor shook.

Told you not to hit anything, dear boy, Nil said, very much to Dallions annoyance. Better finish this quickly.

Stay the course, Harp insisted. You can manage, you only need to figure out how.

In his mind, Dallion paused. There was two choices he could make. Harp was the oldest guardian he had. She had saved him several times and given good advice dozens of times more. Before he had hooked up with Euryale, Dallion considered her a mother of sorts. And ever since he had become a hunter, he had asked for her advice less and less. In a way, it almost felt like he was moving out of his parents house to be with his fiance.

The effect wont last forever, Nil urged.

Letting go of his dartblade, Dallion then summoned the Nox dagger. That had the power to slice through the armor for certain.

Dal, Harp said. Trust me.

Seconds remained before the metalin regained his full speed. Dallion had a split second to make a choice, and he did. The harpsisword struck the constructs shoulder, bringing it off balance. Dallion followed up with a second attack right in the breastplate.

FATAL STRIKE

Damage dealt is increased by 500%

The dagger shattered through the metalins breastplate. The construct froze. Its empty helmet looked down at the spot of the hole, as if refusing to believe what had happened.

Not wasting a moment, Dallion struck again in the base of the metalins neck. Another red rectangle briefly appeared, before being replaced by a blue one.

SOMETHING SCARY

(+1 Body, +1 Reaction, +1 Mind, +1 Perception))

Youve killed something new and scary that doesnt exist. Dont make it a habit, there wont be any rewards next time.

For several seconds Dallion stood there, combat splitting as if expecting something to jump out from the end of the corridor. The metalin had been tough, although nowhere near some of the opponents he had fought. The way it fought reminded Dallion of the Stars echo he had faced in the fallen south. The achievement rewards were also similar.

You could have succeeded, Harp said. The sound vibrations she used to speak couldnt convey whether she was disappointed, but Dallion had the feeling she was.

Sorry, Harp.

It was the right call, Nil countered. Your goal isnt to improve, its removing Havocs restrictions.

He could have done both.

Its here, Nox purred. Its very thin.

Moving closer, he saw what the familiar was saying. Without a doubt, there was an outline of a doorway. As thick as the width of a piece of paper, a line made its way seven feet up starting from the floor, then three feet across, before falling back down. If it hadnt been for the crackling, Dallion wouldnt have even noticed it.

Whats your usual level? Dallion slid the fingers of his left arm along the line.

I cant tell you.

Whatever it was, youll get it back when I create the opening. No idea if your skill will be back, though.

Traits will be enough or a start. After that we can fight together. Just like back during the chainling hunt.

That didnt fill Dallion with confidence. Havoc had done precious little that battle, even if his advice had been spot on. It was looking like this might be a repeat of the situation. Hopefully, this time he wasnt going to get wounded so easily.

The crackling split into four versions of himself. Two of them jumped up, sticking their claws then slid down, slicing it like a curtain. Meanwhile, the other two took turns leaping and slashing at the wall so as to create the horizontal connection.

Thats strangely adorable, Havoc said. How did you get a crackling as your familiar?

Long story. Dallion tightened his grip round the harpsisword. What do you think is out there?

Dont know. Maybe when I get my level back up, Ill have an idea. I cant link to anything at level three, not even most of my realm.

A loud hissing sound filled the room, as the carved out a section of the wall poured down to the flood like sand. An archway had appeared, leading to what appeared to be a mountain range.

Whats that? Dallio glanced at Havoc.

What can I say? I was born in a mountain village. I like mountains.

Any change in level?

This was the moment of truth. Dallion had unsealed the powers of a few people so far. In those cases the people werent cursed, so no changes were expected. There was no guarantee that Havoc would get his level restored, but it would be a huge advantage if he did.

Nothing I can feel. The man shrugged.

Not good, Dallion thought. Nox, look around for other doors.

The four cracklings snarled, annoyed, then split up running off along both sides of the area. As they did, Dallion approached the arc to get a better look at what was outside. Based on what Havoc had said, the realm was supposed to be a mountain. In a way that was goodit allowed him to use line attacks again.

I can use line attacks, right? Dallion asked just to be on the same side.

Yes, although I wouldnt recommend it, the echo replied. Rely on Nox, hes your winning ticket in the situation. Just be quick. Metalins are fast learners.

COMBAT INITIATED

Crap! Shield! Dallion yelled, raising the armadil shield in front of him.

The shield extended just in time to block over a dozen projectiles. The sound was different from the bolts the previous metalin had used. That didnt make them any less deadly.

Havoc, get back in the corridor!

A pair of daggers flew over Dallions head, just above the end of the armadil shield.

Wheres the fun in that? The large man grinned.

Found another opening, Nox said. Want me to open it?

The second sealed doorway was to the side of the arena, right behind the painting of a moon wolf. An interesting place for an exit. If Dallion had to guess, it had to be a link to one of Havocs items. When the man had been delevelled, he had also lost the ability to link to items. That suggested that unsealing the link would allow the man to summon a better weapon.

Unseal it, but be careful. He burst into a hundred instances.

It was time to check the outside of the realm.