2022-02-05 05:00:20With each hit of the scythe he blocked, he felt his whole body shake. He couldn’t stand his ground anymore, nor did he feel like he could dodge the boss’ strikes anymore. They were too fast, too swift, and Kyle felt too sluggish, as if someone had lined his clothes and filled his boots with lead.
He wanted to steal a glance of Igna, but he didn’t dare take his eyes off of his enemy. He was already at enough of a disadvantage as it was. One misstep, one single strike that passed through his defence, and he was done for.
Distant shrieks sounded again, and Kyle gritted his teeth. His shoulder still hurt. His now cauterised wound was making it quite difficult to properly use his right arm.
“Get down!” Igna’s shout echoed. Kyle didn’t hesitate, he blocked the boss’ next strike, then threw himself to the ground just at the nick of time as a wave of flames passed over his head. He heard the boss shout something, but he couldn’t quite make out the words over the sound of roaring flames.
As soon as the flames vanished, Kyle forced himself to get up and scurry away from the boss.
When he looked back at the boss and Igna, he drew a sharp breath. She was on the offensive. Her blade glowed with the power of the sun god. Every swing of her blade left a trail of flames behind it. The sound of metal hitting metal echoed in the crater as the distant shrieks only grew closer with each passing second.
Kyle watched with his heart racing as the Igna’s strikes whittled down the boss’ health. She chipped away at him, one strike at a time. Her motions were graceful, and every move she made was deliberate.
Kyle looked up as a shriek sounded from right above him. His eyes widened as he noticed a griffin descending. It’s wings folded halfway, it’s gaze and attention was focused solely on Igna
“Look up!” He shouted at the top of his lungs as he forced himself to run towards them. The boss had only a tiny bit of health left. A few more strikes and she’d kill him!
Igna looked up, then threw herself aside moments before the griffin touched the ground, raising a cloud of dust. Kyle drew a sharp breath as the cloud obscured his view. He looked around, his gaze desperately searching for the top ranker. Where was she?
His heart felt like it could burst out of his chest at any moment. They were so close to killing the boss! If she died now…
A low scream sounded, then some cursing before something dashed out of the cloud. It was the griffin, who had Igna in between its front paws. The top ranker held her sword in a weird way as they flew out of the cloud, then plummeted to the ground with a loud thud.
Kyle shot the Boss a quick glance. Only a sliver of health remained on his health bar – a single hit. He would die if someone so much as sneezed at him.
Igna grunted, and Kyle quickly turned to look at her. The griffin had pinned her to the ground from her shoulders. He could see the damage marks all over her. She was clearly not in pain – players weren’t supposed to feel pain after all – but she couldn’t shake the creature off of herself. As he watched, her gaze focused on the boss, and she grumbled something and threw her blade at him.
Kyle ducked under the blade and heard a low clunk as the boss blocked the attack with his scythe. His heart sank as the griffin screeched again, and clawed Igna’s chest, finally depleting the last bit of her health.
Kyle gritted his teeth. Her body had begun to dematerialise already. Soon, her weapon would fade away as well. He dashed at the sword laying on the ground, ducking under the boss’ strike, grabbed its hilt and swung it towards the armoured boss with the last drops of strength he had left.
He felt the searing blade hit the armour, his heart skipped a beat as he felt it press against it. He feared it would bounce back just like his own, ordinary blade had, but then he felt it cut through the metal armour and pierce the skin and flesh below.
‘Orelon, Lord of the Beasts and Mountain, Summoner King of the Old World, Defeated’
The system message appeared in the air just as Kyle collapsed on the ground. Not a moment later, he heard the rustle of clothes.
“What the fuck?” Igna shouted at the top of her lungs. “You killed him?!” She exclaimed.
Kyle flinched. How was she alive? He had just seen her die! “Wait, how did you…?”
“I revived myself with the sword.” She muttered, quickly opening her interface. “Oh, phew, I got the experience, but not the achievement.” She pursed her lips in disappointment as she raised her hand. The blade laying on the ground flew to her hand, which she then sheathed.
“You survived.” She stated.
Kyle nodded. “I did.” He muttered. His head was spinning. He had lost a lot of blood.
That thought quickly gave birth to another; why on earth was he even able to bleed? He reached for his shoulder and carefully touched the cauterised wound.
“Yeah, about that.” Igna said with a cautious tone. “Are you sure you’re a player?” The dark undertone of her voice sent a shiver down Kyle’s spine. “Because as far as I’m concerned, players don’t bleed, nor do they feel pain. You seem to be the exception.” She stepped closer, her hand resting on the hilt of her blade.
“I’m human!” Kyle insisted with a desperate voice. “Look, my interface is the same as yours!” he swiped his fingers in the air, and the interface appeared before him. Igna placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned down to see better.
‘Achievement Gained: Topple the Mountain Lord’
‘Special Class options unlocked: Summoner’
‘Level up’
DweiaHeya! First of all, thanks for checking out A Lich's Master! Secondly, We've got a Discord! You can find links to all of my other books there, as well as a roadmap of all current and future projects! Come check it out if you want to read more of my work, or just want to chat. Here's an invite:https://discord.gg/smeCbFjSAN Take care and stay safe!
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The Lich's Master Chapter 21: A New Path Revealed
‘Kyle – Lv. 22 Unclassed INT 10 | WIS 10 | DEX 10 | STR 10 | CON 10 Available Points: 22 Achievements: Lich Killer, Topple the Mountain Lord Player Kills: 6 Glory: 30’ They both stared at his interface for a moment. “God damn it,” Igna eventually exclaimed. “I didn’t get the achievement because I was in the middle of reviving!” Her frustration was audible. Kyle felt her hand squeeze his shoulder. “So annoying.” Her eyes then suddenly widened. “Wait, back to the subject at hand.” She said with a harsher voice. “Your interface is basically identical to mine though, yeah…” She muttered, mostly to herself. “The why do you bleed like the mobs do?” Kyle flinched. “Did you start doubting me again?” he exclaimed with a defeated tone. He had no energy left to try and convince her all over again.
The Lich's Master Chapter 22: So.... What Do I Summon?
‘Kyle – Lv. 22 Summoner INT 10 | WIS 10 | DEX 10 | STR 10 | CON 10 Available Points: 22 Achievements: Lich Killer, Topple the Mountain Lord Player Kills: 6 Glory: 30’ “Twenty two points…” he muttered to himself as he dusted off his clothes. Now, most mage classes needed to focus on a mix of intelligence and constitution. From what he read in the ridiculously long text, the summoner needed plenty of wisdom as well. He pursed his lips, pondered for a short moment, then let out a deep sigh. ‘Kyle – Lv. 22 Summoner INT 20 | WIS 17 | DEX 10 | STR 10 | CON 15 Available Points: 0 Achievements: Lich Killer, Topple the Mountain Lord Player Kills: 6 Glory: 30’
The Lich's Master Chapter 23: Magic Skeletons
The wind blew his hair back as he watched the raven soar through the air. A smile appeared on his lips. “Come back to me,” He said softly. Almost as if the bird had heard him, it folded its wings and descended, only slowing down when it reached his raised arm. It landed on his arm, and cawed. “Nice,” Kyle said with a smile. “Alright, you can go now.” He muttered, and the raven vanished in a silver mist. He continued his descend down the mountain path, his heart still beating fast from the thrill of casting spells and using magic. Summoning, maintaining, or dismissing the raven used no mana whatsoever, meaning he wasn’t just going to be a commander standing in the back, he was going to be aiding his summons in battle with his own spells as well. He smirked. That would show that stupid knight! Of course, his first order of business was going to be getting some more powerful creatures under his control. Ideally, he wanted something good at tanking, though he ref
The Lich's Master Chapter 24: A Visit to the Orchard
Kyle spent the night in Cacophus’ cave again. Laying on a fur bed made specifically for him, he fell asleep immediately after placing his head on the soft pillow. After a dreamless, refreshing sleep, he woke up. Ready and excited for his next adventure, he got dressed and left the small bedroom the Lich and his skeletons had prepared for him. He bid the Lich farewell and warned him not to go after any humans that happened to pass by, then hurried outside after a quick breakfast. His destination was the elves’ orchard, and he was eager to meet with their leader again. His fast paced steps carried him across the woods and over the hills as he muttered softly. “Come forth.” He pointed on the ground ahead of him as he spoke, and a silver mist appeared there before the raven materialised. “Go on then,” He said with a smile. “Alert me of any nearby enemies or humans.” He ordered the bird. The raven cawed twice, then with a couple of strong beats of
The Lich's Master Chapter 25: You Want Me to What?
A gentle wind ruffled the leaves of the crystal fruit trees. Kyle listened to the elven leader’s words his mouth agape. Was this guy serious? “Would you do this for us?” The elf finished his words with a hopeful question. A notification popped up at the corner of Kyle’s eye. ‘New Quest Chain unlocked: Saving the Elven Orchard’ Kyle let out a sigh. “I will try.” He said, knowing that he definitely didn’t want to miss out on whatever rewards the quest would give. And also, because he had grown somewhat fond of the elves. “Can I take some more fruits with me when I’m done?” He asked, suddenly remembering Cacophus’ request. The elven leader chuckled. “Of course!” And just like that, Kyle found himself walking the stone paved grass that followed the deep, raging river. The elves’ request wasn’t something he thought he was easily going to be able to do, but he had an idea still. A plan, so to speak, though it relied more on luck rat
The Lich's Master Chapter 26: A Mind Fully Lost
“I’m nowhere near that level!” Igna protested. “And you’re even further! What kind of a quest is this that you got it so early? This is ridiculous!” Her voice was filled with annoyance as her eyes burnt with anger. She was still staring at the pond. “Igna, it’s been an hour.” Kyle reminded her. How long was she planning on standing there and watching the water? It wasn’t like the boss was going to just suddenly die on its own. “So what?” Igna hissed. “I need to kill that thing somehow.” Kyle shot her an odd look. “You do realise I’m the one with the quest, right? And I can just wait till I’m high enough level. There’s no need to rush.” He calmly spoke, but his words seemed to have the opposite effect on Igna. The fire in her eyes burned brightly as she looked at him, eyes wide open. “Do you have any idea how much stuff it would drop if we killed it while we’re so many levels down?” She asked, her voice filled with excit
The Lich's Master Chapter 27: A Plan That Works
“Hey!” Igna’s voice echoed across the rolling hills. Her fiery eyes were focused on the muddy, green water. “You ugly plant! Come out!” She raised her arm and threw a small, red bottle into the lake. The water’s surface rippled for a moment before a very ugly, very disgusting creature burst out of the water. It’s moss covered mouth that had no teeth, but plenty of sharp barbs opened up and caught the vial mid-air before it returned underwater. “So now what?” Kyle asked, covering his nose as the smell of moss and rot reached his nostrils. “Nothing happened.” He was standing atop the hill, while Igna was only about ten meters away from the water’s edge. His job was to fire spells, and make sure the raven didn’t mess up. Igna, on the other hand, preferred to stand at the forefront, her net in her left hand, ready to throw it. A few moments passed, then Kyle spotted a red and yellow flash inside the water, deep within the lake. Bubbles of air reached the
The Lich's Master Chapter 28: Awakened Pondweed
Everything happened so fast, he could barely follow the events. The Awakened Pondweed broke the net and freed itself from the glimmering white ropes. Igna’s eyes widened, she turned around and swung her blade while shouting a skill to protect herself. The weedy tendrils closed in on her, only to be burnt away by the flames radiating from her blade. The plant reached for the lake with its remaining tendrils and pulled itself back to the water. “Oh, come on!” Igna protested with a frustrated tone. Kyle narrowed his eyes and glared at the pond. The health bar of the Awakened Pondweed was still perfectly visible. “Wait, it didn’t reset!” He shouted, drawing a surprised glance from Igna. “Oh.” She muttered before that fiery determination returned to her eyes. “Ok then!” She ran to where the creature stood before and grabbed her somewhat torn net from the ground. She didn’t seem to care about it breaking, so Kyle also pushed it to the back of his mi
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Chapter 277: The Locust Demon Arrives
The serene white light changed as soon as they stepped into the garden. It grew brighter, lighting up even the darkest corners of the garden. “Finally.” Azazel whispered. He calmly stepped towards the bright white light. “It’s been so long.” He and the rest of the group arrived before the tree. The Fallen Angel reached for the tree, only for his fingers to touch a barrier surrounding it. The yellow-brown barrier rippled as soon as the Fallen Angel’s fingertips touched it. Azazel flinched, and pulled his hand back as a look of disgust appeared on his face. With furrowed brows and blazing eyes, he turned around, and shouted at the top of his lungs. “Show yourself, Demon!” Droigheann flinched. “He’s here?!” The Demon of the Nightbloom asked wide eyed as he unsheathed his blade, and put his helmet on without hesitation. Luke stepped forward, making sure to stand in front of Caille and Kyle. Igna tightened her grip on the hilt of her blade, while Cacophus’s bony fingers rummaged through
Chapter 276: The Ancient City of Necron (4)
The fully armoured knight dropped his sword and tried to grab the slimy goo with both of his hands. The goo only latched onto his helmet further as he struggled. The man started to stumble a few moments later.Kyle couldn’t help but laugh a little, though his near brush against death kept him from enjoying Jeffrey’s suffering. The knight soon managed to grab onto the goo properly, and threw it away, only to be met with Kyle’s light magic.“Bolt of Light!” The young man shouted, then as the Knight raised his hand to cover his eyes from the bright golden light, he dashed towards him, blade in hand. He hadn’t used a sword properly in ages, not since he’d gotten his Summoner class, and started summoning powerful people such as Aoris, or Irena. But Aoris and Irena were busy protecting the cathedral, and Droigheann had his hands full with the remaining group of enemies.And he had a particular hatred against Jeffrey and his constant stupidity. He grabbed the hilt of his blade with both his
Chapter 275: The Ancient City of Necron (3)
“Oh for fuck’s sake.” Kyle rolled his eyes as the enemy charged at him and his allies. Jeffrey’s ridiculous accusations and ignorant behaviour was the last thing he needed at the moment.Droigheann unsheathed his blade and struck the ground with it. Black veins spread across the grey marble plaza, originating from his blade. They leapt off the ground, reaching for Jeffrey and his allies.“Fire storm!” A voice boomed. Kyle flinched as a whirling storm of flames burnt away the roots and veins. Droigheann gritted his teeth and removed his swords from the ground. “Damn mages,” The Demon grunted as he stepped forward. His helmet materialised in his hand, and he promptly put it on.“SHALL I DISPATCH OF THEM, KYLE?” Cacophus’ sudden question surprised him. “Yeah, please help Droigheann.” Kyle hissed as he pointed at the group. “We shouldn’t waste much time on them.”As he spoke, several shards of crystallised light formed at his fingertips. He fired them at the man leading the charge.“AS YO
Chapter 274: The Ancient City of Necron (2)
Kyle took the first step down the grey marble staircase. As his feet touched the ancient slabs, he involuntarily flinched.Azazel and Droigheann followed just a step behind, along with Cacophus, who chose to float next to them.“AMAZING, IT HAS BEEN PRESERVED PERFECTLY!” The Lich exclaimed, pausing just a few steps in, and carefully inspecting the waist high walls preventing them from falling off the side. “LOOK AT THIS CRAFTMANSHIP!”Kyle shot a glance at the waist hight wall. It was covered in intricate carvings from top to bottom. Just a few meters of this wall must have taken weeks to create, if not more. “Yeah, it’s amazing.”“Just like the legends.” Droigheann carefully ran his finger along the carvings. “A city of ancient wonders, housing powers beyond imagination, made from the most beautiful materials by the best craftsmen ever to grace the face of this world.”“Seems about right.” Azazel pointed at the buildings. “Any one of these would have taken months to perfect, if not y
Chapter 273: The Ancient City of Necron (1)
The Necronomicon’s pages turned on their own. Kyle waited patiently for the book to settle on a page. Once it did, he read through the spell. It was a modified dispel spell.“Stand back, just in case.” He said to the others. Everyone took a few steps back, even Cacophus who had just arrived. The Lich didn’t speak, but the green glows in his eye sockets glimmered and lit up brightly with excitement.Kyle’s lips curled up with a faint smile for a moment before he turned his gaze back to the Necronomicon. “Open thine gates, lift thine veil.” He recited the spell’s words clearly. “Allow me passage to what is rightfully mine, as I hold the Book of Ancient Secrets!”A moment passed before the spell fully took effect. The barrier around the Ancient City of Necron began to lower as Kyle felt his vitality drain with alarming speed. He looked down at the back of his hand with a panic as the few locks of dark hair dangling before his eyes slowly began to turn white.The mark of the Evertree glow
Chapter 272: The Records Restored
The elderly woman took the two pieces of the hourglass in her hand. A faint, almost mellow smile appeared on her lips as she closed her fingers around the pieces of the hourglass. “I am in your debt, Azazel, young man.” She whispered as she clenched her fingers further. The muffled sound of something cracking sounded. Then, a fine dust flowed from between her fingers. The cool breeze caught the dust, carrying it away from the patio. The elderly woman smiled. “No, come back.” Her voice was calm, almost as if she was speaking to an old friend. “I’m right here.” The wind whirled, suddenly changed its direction, and blew the dust right back at her. She closed her eyes and smiled. Kyle braced himself for… something. “It’s alright now.” Her motherly voice reached his ears. “It feels good to be whole again.” She turned her gaze towards the sky. “It is a beautiful day, isn’t it?” Kyle disagreed. Dark clouds covered the sky. “It is good to have you back, Record Keeper.” Azazel bowed his
Chapter 271: The Hourglass
It was a misty morning and getting out of bed felt like a huge chore. He still dragged himself out of bed, albeit slowly, and staggered towards the hot spring. He paused in front of the mirror for a second. The bite marks on his neck were awfully visible. Vis had definitely taken some of her frustrations out of him last night.He let out a sigh and went to take a bath. She was rightfully upset, and he didn’t care about how he looked too much. He bathed, then got dressed and opened the door of his room, only to see Droigheann standing there, leaning against the wall.“I didn’t realise you’d come out.” Kyle said as he fixed his cloak and hair before the mirror.“You were asleep.” Droigheann explained with a faint smile. “You found the second half of the hourglass.” He stated with a hint of curiosity in his voice. Kyle nodded. “We did. We almost died for it too.” He shuddered. “I’m never going back to the Celestial Plane.”Droigheann laughed out loud. “That is indeed a good idea.” The De
Chapter 270: The Waking World
His eyes shot wide open, and he stared at the grey ceiling above him. A couple of moths were walking in rough circles. One of them tried to fly, only to continuously hit the ceiling afterwards.He blinked a few times as he tried to figure out where he was.“You’re awake!” A panicked voice reached his ears. “Rhealis, they’re back!” It took him a moment to recognise Vis’ voice. A cold hand pressed against his forehead as he slowly began to notice the numbness around his right arm. There was a mild pain too.Footsteps approached as Kyle tilted his head to look at Vis. “Did something happen while we were gone?” He asked with a crusty voice. He licked his dry lips. He could use some water right now.“Your arm got charred!” Vis hissed wide eyed. Was she angry? “And the Fallen Angel’s wings started bleeding!”“Indeed,” Rhealis approached them with a glass of water in her hand. She helped Kyle sit upright, then gave him the glass. He drank it without hesitation. The water passing through his
Chapter 269: The Wasteyard of Heaven
Azazel led him through the distorted landscape in a hurry. “They can’t see as well here.” The Fallen Angel explained as soon as they walked through a cathedral door and fell upwards. Kyle hit the ceiling with a muffled thud. A thick, soft carpet had broken his fall.He moaned with pain still. Constantly falling somewhere was slowly taking its toll on him. His back couldn’t take many more falls. “Why?” He asked as he sat upright and rubbed his sides.Azazel flew up and closed the cathedral’s door. “Because of the distortions. They don’t see things as you do. They see what something is, can be, and was.” The Fallen Angel hesitated upon seeing Kyle’s confused expression. “You don’t understand, do you?”Kyle shook his head. “Nope.”Azazel’s shoulders dropped with disappointment. “When you see something,” The Angel said, speaking slower th
