They ate a congratulatory meal before setting out despite Caille’s best advice.
“We’ll be fine!” Igna insisted. “Look, we’ve got a raid planned for tomorrow – we can’t spend the night here!”
“We can do the raid later, like… at noon!” Caille protested, only to be shot down by her guild leader again.
And as such, despite Caille’s protests, they set off. Players rarely travelled at night, and their sleep schedules were a very small part of the reason. This world was a whole lot more dangerous at night. More powerful creatures left their dens, and visibility was incredibly low. Even Kyle’s raven wouldn’t help at this time because it wouldn’t be able to see anything.
Despite all that, Igna was sure they would be fine. As Caille and Igna took the lead and rode out, Luke made sure keep the same pace as Kyle, following the girls from a couple of meters behind.
The sound of the arrows, bouncing off of the large, spherical golden barrier surrounding the group was a small relief.“We are screwed.” Caille hissed. “I don’t even have half of my mana.”“Show yourselves!” Igna’s booming voice surprised both groups. She was back on her feet, her hand resting on the hilt of her blade. “Or are you so cowardly that you can’t even show your faces?!”Kyle gulped as silence reigned for a good minute before the sound of armoured footsteps sounded. Then, an awfully familiar person entered their view from the woods.“Jeffrey!” Igna hissed, her fists clenched. “Couldn’t handle your defeat?”Luke stepped up, standing at the forefront, and Caille retreated towards Kyle. She shot him an awfully worried glance before turning her attention back towards the rich knight and Igna.“That defeat doesn’t matter.” T
The night sky was covered with a blanket of dark clouds. Before that backdrop, a blade, as sharp as it can be, glittered with magical light. It hung in the air for a split second, before Jeffrey the Knight shouted, and brought it down on Kyle.The young summoner drew a sharp breath as he desperately tried to cast a defensive spell. But he didn’t have enough time, and the strengthened pull of gravity had him locked in place. He couldn’t move fast enough, he couldn’t get out of the way in time!As the blade approached him, time seemed to slow for him. He watched everything move in slow motion. And then immediately, his remaining strength drained from his body, like it had been siphoned away by the wizard still unseen, somewhere in the woods.Then, an armoured hand reached from behind him, and caught the blade with no hesitation, a split second before it reached Kyle’s head.“I think this has gone on for long enough, mortal.&rdq
Jeffrey’s shouts echoed in his mind. They were causing a headache. Kyle clenched his fists and forced himself to get up as the knight continued shouting. As he staggered towards the Demon, Droigheann shot a quick glance at Kyle. His helmet wasn’t on, and his expression showed a mix of disgust against Jeffrey, and curiosity as Kyle reached for his hand.Kyle took the blade in the Demon’s hand and approached Jeffrey.“I almost killed you one, I will-“ The young knight continued to shout. Kyle’s expression twisted. He pulled his hand back, then struck the Knight’s chest before he could react.Jeffrey’s eyes widened with shock. He looked down at his own chest, only to see the dark blade sticking out of it. Kyle pulled the blade out, and as the knight’s body disintegrated to be respawned at Arceum, he handed the blade over to Droigheann. “I think…” He muttered as the wind howled through the wood
Igna gasped. “That wasn’t him at full power?!” She exclaimed.Kyle and Caille immediately shook their head. “No, his aura would have been enough to stop any and all attacks.” Caille admitted with a sour expression.Kyle couldn’t help but nod. “So, is there no way to stop him from just appearing when he wants?” He finally asked. Caille shrugged. “I don’t think so. He was right – you are equals at worst. I don’t think he’s going to be content with that though.”“Neither am I!” Kyle protested, rubbing the wounds on his arm, where Droigheann had drawn blood.Caille shrugged. “I think the only thing you can do is try and become powerful enough to actually be able to control him.” She fiddled with her long, green braid as she pondered a while. “Your summons now also gain power, right? I wonder if you can even outpace the Demon’s growth…
There was nothing special about her words, but the way she said them… It sent Kyle’s mind into a spiral. Her crimson eyes watched his intently as he staggered, unable to come up with a lie. He shook his head, forcing a chuckle, damning the haze that had taken over his mind.“Stuff like this happens when you’re like me.”“Like you?” Vis tilted her head, not even blinking as she peered into his soul. At least it felt like it.“An adventurer.” Kyle said with a forced smirk. “I’m ok, there’s nothing to worry about.” He lied again, then rolled down his sleeve to hide the wounds, the dark amber tattoo, and the bruises. He had forgotten about them. Had he remembered, he would have pulled his sleeve down earlier.“Besides, what are you doing so far away from the village? It’s not entirely safe around these woods, you know.” Kyle felt the haze lift from his mind ever s
It was the very first time Kyle ever saw Cacophus so completely speechless. Baffled, the lich’s jaw moved up and down wordlessly. The green glows in his eye sockets were burning so brightly, it was almost enough to illuminate the room.“A Lich?” Droigheann commented. “Now that is… unique.” He walked past Kyle and approached Cacophus. “How did a powerful being like you end up serving such a weak human, hmm?” Towering over the Lich, the demon leaned forward, bringing his eyes to the same level as Cacophus’.“HE IS HARDLY WEAK.” Cacophus finally spoke. “THOUGH YOU SEEM TO LACK UNDERSTANDING OF HOW POWERFUL A HUMAN CAN BE.”The Demon of the Nightbloom chuckled. “Perhaps. It is annoying when my own powers are limited by his incompetence.”Kyle gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. As correct as that was, hearing those words still got on his nerves. He was doing his b
“No!” Kyle protested as the Demon of the Nightbloom stretched his large, feathery wings. “Let go of me!”Not even a couple of hours later, Kyle found himself leaning against the cliff wall at the bottom of the chasm, panting and trying to collect his composure.“Much faster than using a horse, don’t you think?” Droigheann asked with a faint, mocking smile on his lips.Kyle took out some bandages from his inventory and wrapped them around his left wrist. “Listen to me, demon!” He hissed. “I already told you – your being out in the world is too exhausting. I can’t do any fighting when you’re here!”The Demon of the Nightbloom rolled his eyes. “Please – we both know I made you grow stronger overnight. You’re able to stand, no? Last time I took your blood, you collapsed.” He smirked. “Besides, you don’t need to do any fighting. That’s
Droigheann cut the webs like they were nothing, then kicked the door down, only to gasp immediately afterwards, and step aside, pulling Kyle along with him.A web shot across the room, out the now open door, all the way across the hall, and hit the wall way in the back.“Hmm.” Droigheann muttered as he stepped towards the door once more. “That’s a nuisance.”Kyle shuddered, his eyes were wide open. Had he been hit by that… No, now wasn’t the time to think about any of that. He pointed into the room and whispered. “Sunburst!”The spell took effect almost immediately. Waves of golden light illuminated the room, revealing the monstrosities attacking them.Skeletons. Dozens of them were lined in the room, and they all crackled and moved towards Droigheann as soon as he stepped through the doorway. Immediately, Kyle’s spell began damaging them. Even if he hadn’t cast the spell, they woul