A/N: I was watching Elfen Lied and kind of forgot to finish the chapter. Mah bad for the missed day.****Lev had two goals for the wave. The first was to evolve Trapping, and the second was to do it in the flashiest and most confusing way possible. Hundreds upon hundreds of capable combatants were watching. He had to develop a reputation for being a distant anomaly, and what better way than to kill monsters in ways they couldn’t even see?
The bubble, massive as it was, floated over to Lev. Waves of arrows killed all the weaker monsters, clearing the stage for the bigger ones approaching rapidly. For a few seconds, he made preparations, quickly creating pillars while also forming boxes for auxiliary cores.
Those cores, four third-threshold ones, served as backup. After obtaining Spiritual Harmony, he could exert a greater pull on ambient mana, though it remained far too weak outside of powering runes. The mana from cores was no different, which made it perfect for wasteful usage.
Enchantments created a flow of mana in the boxes, inside which Lev slotted the valuable cores. It was basically like throwing money to the wind, except the end result was going to be very bright and impressive. He could lament the lost wealth later. Ambient mana was readily absorbed by the cores, then streamed into prepared orbs to be quarantined from Lev’s personal mana. Mixing the two would lower the quality of the latter by too much.
Finally, he partitioned a bit of his willpower to manipulate all the ambient mana. It required little effort, weak as it was.
Alright, he breathed in deeply and scanned all of his preparations for any flaws. Armor? Check. Stargazer? Check. Bubble? Check. Ropes? Check. Cables? Check. Shields? Check. Shieldwalls? Check. Lances? Check. Arrows? Check. Orbs? Check. Blades? Check. Cannons? Check. Willpower tasks? Check. Shadow Mana? Check. Absorption pillars? Check.
The list was getting quite extensive. He didn’t even bother going over everything that his Perception was constantly tracking in the background. Based on what he could observe, it was working just fine.
At least four third-threshold monsters are approaching quite fast, Lev noted, forming and flicking a tiny orb with his finger. It was filled with blue flames on the way and exploded amidst a horde of orcs, killing them all. Five now. I might’ve bitten off more than I can chew.
No time for regrets, thankfully. The number of monsters was rapidly swelling. Loosening his grip on Stargazer, he swiped low, cutting off a few troll limbs. Last-ditch effort punches landed on his armor, only filling up his kinetic reserves. Sharp ropes easily finished off the crippled monsters.
Here we go.
At the last moment, Lev jumped. A huge fireball landed below him, propelling him straight up. Kinetic energy was absorbed in droves, augmenting his flight as he rushed the bird monster.
Flaming feathers clinked against shieldwalls, each exploding with enough power to destroy the constructs. The monster didn’t stay idle either, overcharging its wings and preparing to dash.
Lev let it. Halfway to its location, he dove. Talons passed over his head and missed by mere inches, though he was more interested in the creature that appeared below him. Redirecting more willpower to throw ambient mana at the monsters circling the battle, he squinted.
[Veil Hunter - ????]
Now, what the hell are you?
Just to be certain, Lev sent a pulse of his aura tinged with peace and reluctance. The serpentine being belied no signs of sentience and opened its mouth, revealing a churning river of mana inside. It was a rather daunting sight, for the creature was little more than a long body of bones, covered in thick layers of a transparent film of… something.
It was like witnessing a skeleton straight out of a museum, belonging to a prehistoric snake the size of a building.
Not another case of the Hunter, at least, Lev mused, his good senses warring with his reckless side. Fuck it. I won’t get another chance like this.
He wasn’t entirely suicidal, though. Orbs and shieldwalls surrounded him just as the Veil Hunter fired its prepared attack. Raw arcane, somehow twisted to be harmful, was hurled at him in a beam. Stargazer returned the favor, releasing a sharp Fracturing Wave with twice as much mana.
The skill’s nature proved superior by far. Without any noticeable resistance, the slash sheared through the approaching beam, missing the creature as it aborted the attack to retreat underground. Lev smiled, triumphant, then decided that the monster had to go. Even though destroyed, the attack had stressed all his constructs in its vicinity. Moreover, the Veil Hunter had a lot of mana left. Letting it charge up an attack would be dangerous.
Eyes trained on the mana signature of the third-threshold creature, he hurled a shieldwall above him. It thwarted a rain of fireballs, and through the flames, a beam from his cannon put down the rather strong second-threshold bird monster.
The Veil Hunter’s presence slowly became more muffled, yet it still showed signs of high mana usage. Lev could only pinpoint its general location, though that told him enough. Arcane Intuition kept whispering in the back of his mind, alerting him to when the monster’s attack was nearing completion.
That turned out to be its undoing. For just a few moments, it stilled to align its skull. The world turned blue before it could, as the very ground was blown to bits by buried orbs. Falling uncontrollably in the middle of a huge crater, the monster still found Lev. It opened its mouth, only for a lightning bolt to dig in.
Its control proved impressive, however. The attack remained stable, but the damage was done. The bubble was already hovering over the crater. Hundreds of ropes unfurled and dove, wrapping up the creature and immobilizing it for one instant by pulling its head back and exposing the neck.
Stargazer smashed into the bones like a landslide. The very sound was loud enough to make Lev recoil, though it also accurately represented the damage done. Pure mana, solidified like barriers around its body, shattered in layers. Exposed, the monster’s skeleton body posed little resistance, and the glaive beheaded it cleanly.
And of course…
Lev’s constant grin widened when his Perception skill didn’t trigger. Tens of shieldwalls were arrayed in front of him, thwarting the monster’s final stand. Even dying, it overloaded all the mana in its bones and turned itself into a living grenade. Shrapnel of bones destroyed dozens of constructs, ultimately failing to reach the human.
[
You have slain [Veil Hunter - Level 547]
Arcane Maelstrom has reached Level 340
Mana Regulation has reached Level 2
]
All of that, just for one skill level. He shook his head. The monster was still quite strong with its stealth tactics, though it had met someone who could match just about any style of combat.
For a few minutes, there was peace. Arrows put down hundreds of monsters far and wide during that, though his enhanced senses easily ignored the loud explosions. Dozens of kilometers ahead of him, Master teams also diverted the attention of three third-threshold monsters, leaving just one for Lev to deal with.
It was a familiar aura. He didn’t need to see it to make preparations. A dozen huge lances formed above him. Augmented Carving utilized willpower and shaped durability formations en masse, followed by a single formation for Lightning Surge on all projectiles.
Round Two.
Stone spikes the size of houses flew at his location. Nets woven out of dense, enchanted cables countered them. None of the nets were hit directly, and they eventually stopped all spikes by trapping them in the gaps in their structure.
Lev’s retaliation lances were blurs to his senses. They exploded forward faster than he could hope to control. The monster was just as unprepared. Even from a huge distance, Lev keenly felt its body enhancement being pushed to the limits. Stone obelisks rose in front of it, just barely letting it dodge. Despite that, the lance dug deep into the ground before exploding uselessly.
The Nure didn’t get a chance to prepare for the next one, though. It was clipped on the shoulder, sent tumbling as the ground below it turned to stone. The third lance was dodged by the barest of margins as the monster swam underneath.
Lev strained his eyes to observe its location, but that was impossible. Being in its element thoroughly cloaked the monster’s aura and all other mana usage from his Perception skills.
Just to be certain, he sent a glance backwards. The cores in his bubble were still going strong due to their big capacities, though the resulting smoke and dust also blocked his line of sight. Still, he could feel Drakys’s gaze on him. The Exalted did not try to dissuade him, nor did he seem worried.
Can I take it now? Lev wondered, watching as a trail of stone grew in the ground, heralding the Nure’s approach. Melvine and I got our combined asses kicked last time.
He had doubts, but the rest of the wave was not exactly worrying. The title upgrade wasn’t going to be anything amazing because he was definitely not strong enough to take on the full wave by himself, but one goal had been accomplished regardless. People were going to be awed by the battle.
The Nure was still a while away, though. At least a minute off, by his estimates. Perfect for evolving a certain skill now that all of his traps were distributed and in place. He was going to keep his lances powered up, just in case.
Lev let himself fall, finally facing all of the relatively strong second-threshold monsters that couldn’t fly. Treants aimed at him first, their roots extending for hundreds of meters to skewer him. Stargazer flashed, severing them with contemptuous ease.
Right before he landed, he accelerated. A massive cloud of dust impeded the vision of everything around him, and even the constant barrage of arrows and lances filled with converted ambient mana ceased.
…This is starting to feel a tad embarrassing.
It was one thing to just fight, and entirely another to put on a show in front of thousands. Granted, the fort was still hundreds of meters away, but Adepts and Masters could see well enough from there.
Oh well, he consoled himself. I’m sure the rumors will be worth it down the line. My team will have a solid reputation to begin with. Surely that will be helpful.
Focusing back on the present, Lev gathered his slowly dwindling willpower and set it on a single task: To convert and teleport shadow mana into his constructs.
Trapping was, in his case, not a skill meant for a patient hunter. He used it to lure monsters in rapid battles, and that was the direction he wanted anyway. Stealth was not as important as long as he could create advantages on the fly, and the best method just happened to be quickly deployed traps. Speed was of the essence.
It’s show time, I suppose.
Perception slowed ever so slightly more. Lev’s eyes and mind drank in all the mana signatures. The creatures digging below him, moles and worms, the roots heading towards his face, the foxes circling him, the weak illusions created by a wraith-like creature. It all stood out in stark clarity, especially to the Trapping skill.
Frankly, what he was about to do was overkill. Severely so. Lev just didn’t want to be stuck with an incompatible skill, especially not something as integral as a passive general skill.
With a thought, the ground buckled. Lightning erupted over hundreds of meters, almost reaching the fort and the people stationed there. As if an earthquake had rolled throughout the area, chunks of dirt were uprooted. Except, many of them levitated as invisible barriers formed below them and carried them upwards. They blocked the direct line of sight from several angles, especially for the humans.
Fires appeared from thin air, setting unbalanced monsters alight. No arrows or lances rained from the skies, and as even more shadow mana was converted, unnoticeable ropes slithered through the air. They grabbed orcs, thornlings, and trolls, easily ripping them in two.
So far, so good.
Lev blasted forward, passing between the treants arrayed against him. None of them were fast enough to catch the human, nor could they, after invisible blades methodically chopped them into five.
Avian monsters like harpies and strange butterflies tried to encircle him, only for invisible darts to riddle them with holes. Orbs burst open amidst hordes without preamble, crippling them for the ropes to gore.
Everywhere he went, no monster saw its demise coming. Lev further let loose his aura, commanding even more abominations to storm his position. Stargazer remained steadily in his hand, and the destroyed ground settled down over a few seconds.
Perfect.
Then, he waited, running in circles to not be overwhelmed. When melee monsters reached him, the ground sometimes fell away. Spiked pitfalls killed those creatures. Sometimes ropes dealt with them in advance, and other times, they suddenly found themselves amidst a crater, smashed to paste. Invisible shieldwalls acted as improvised boulders quite effectively.
Tangles of thick cables smashed apart anything bulky, like a hand of god one could only feel, not see. Avian monsters found themselves unable to fly higher as their escape paths were blocked. Then they were summarily executed.
Illusions splashed on Lev’s armor. None of them were difficult to see through, but a humanoid mantis briefly gave him pause. It was imbued with intent that his Arcane Intuition picked up on, and yet, the imbued skill failed to put a mark on his armor entirely.
Blades cleaved through anything else that came close. Shadow mana even hid the blood and gore clinging to them, making it seem as if anything within a certain distance of him just died.
Well, this is great and all, Lev mused, pointedly not turning around. But you, good sir, are exactly where I want you to be.
A hundred meters behind him, a massive four-armed humanoid serpent monster burst out of the ground. It covered the remaining distance in a blink, right into a group of waiting blades.
Shallow cuts appeared on its body and arms, just as it smashed into invisible cables and came to an abrupt stop. Two cannons from his bubble fired at once, though a stone dome rose to block them. The stone didn’t do anything for the ground, though, and a massive barrier spike parted it, scoring a blood gash across the Nure’s torso.
A rattling hiss rolled through the area. All the weaker monsters turned tail and ran, whereas Lev’s face sported a small smile as a skill evolution fell into place. The rematch was on, and this time, he had a point to prove.
[Mature Nure - ????]