I still can't tell whether Esdeath's or Akame's appetite comes naturally or as compensation for intense training as i watch Esdeath erases all of the shashliks under 15 seconds. Because shashlik alone can get boring so i also made kompot from an abundance of berries and some honey i found in a bee nest. Today, i plan to make a knight for Esdeath to train with and several more to guard the area while Sergei and i would look around for any dungeons that could be around here. Since this is only sparring, i have the knights hold a wooden sword and shield instead of actual weapons to not seriously hurt Esdeath. There will come a time for that but she has only began learning.
Me: Alright Esdeath are you ready?*she nods* Your opponent will be one of my knights. He will be using wooden weapons but remember, do not get hit for in a real fight that would be more than just a bruise. Sergei and i will go exploring so i'll have more knights watch over you. Take breaks if you need to, no need to push yourself too hard.
[about 2 hours laters]
Dirt, trees, hill, leaves... DUNGEON! Oh wait that's just an oddly shaped boulder. Hmmm, maybe there's something in this cave? *ROAR* And that's a grizzly bear *SPLISH*... which Sergei just crushed. There has to be something in this acre of land. There's no danger beasts or even their trails in the area which means there is something scaring them off. That could only be a dungeon or whatever is at the end of a dungeon since i have already searched everywhere for signs of a giant monster. The only thing i haven't checked is this fist sized rock on the ground, no way that this little thing could lead to the dungeon right? *click* Gears are heard turning the moment i touch the rock as a secret trapdoor opens up behind i bush that i cut off before. Are you fucking kidding me? Hidden in fucking plain sight and i missed it. Whoever designed this place knew what they were doing, no one would look for a dungeon under a tiny piece of rock instead of a cave. Well whatever, this is not the most embarrassing moment i had. The worst one was when i thought my little brother's science project which was a cup of dirt and mung beans with water to be a cup of coca cola. Climbing down the revealed ladder i was once again disappointed by the lack of any lighting inside. Having Sergei lead the way while being on fire to act as a torch, i come across a large clearing with a small pond, a tree next to the pond and a slab of stone with writings under the tree. Oh and also an ominous black door with skulls painted all over it. The slab contains a riddle which read:
"At night they come without being fetched. By day they are lost without being stolen. What are they?"
My answer is... MAGIC BITCH! Channeling an all out elemental blast of wind, water, earth, fire, electricity, nature, ice, darkness and light energy i completely obliterate the door. I was never a brain over brawn type of guy. Ah i can already taste the killing intent coming from inside. The soul there is also abnormal, it looks twisted with murky vines encompassing the core yet from within still burns a flame of determination. Let's fucking do this. A vast empty chamber awaits us, empty save for a figure kneeling on a raised pedestal of finely carved marble. Taking in its appearance, a sense of familiarity washes over me. It stands tall at 9 foot wearing a set of charred decrepit armor adorned with a tattered flaming cape. Furthermore, the coiled sword held in its hands makes it undoubtedly the infamous soul of cinder. So similar yet so different. Black goo oozes from the crevices of its armor and from within the helmet shines a sinister scarlet glint of death. I suppose that explains quite a few things. It was the abyss that brought it here and it was the abyss that corrupted it. It rises from the ground as it unsheathes the firelink greatsword buried in the ground and lets out a thundering screech.
Soul of darkness
Level 107 spirit
Hp: 22770
Atk: 4239
-Play {Soul Of Cinder's theme)
Sergei, you're absolutely outmatched but i believe in you. Sergei needs to work on his own for exp and i'll only intervene if he's about to get fucked. The soul starts the battle off by going for a spear charge which Sergei easily dodges by rolling to the side. However, the soul predicted it and used wrath of the gods sending Sergei flying into one of the marble column and hit him with a crystal soul spear. The spear pierces through Sergei's torso with ease but he's not out of the fight yet. Recuperating his strength, Sergei goes for a fake out attack that the soul falls for. He made it looked like he was going for an overhead smash and the soul tried to parry it with the now curved coiled sword. At the last moment before he gets parried, Sergei lets go of his hammer which was sent across the room instead of him getting staggered. The soul hasn't recovered from the swing and was punished by Sergei stabbing it in the guts with 2 lightning bolts. Gravely injured from the effective attack, the soul retreats to the far side of the room. It casts crystal soul mass and toss great fireballs all around creating a ring of lava while attempting to heal. Unluckily for it, Sergei also knows earth magic as he appears from beneath the ground it was staying on and once again hit the soul with more lightning bolts. In a last ditch effort, it tries to use power within but got cockblocked by you guessed it, another lightning bolt to the chest. Being inherently weak to lightning, the soul is now nearly dead and was forced to switch to its second phase. Unlike the original, the soul instead of lighting itself brighter with flames, the soul grows 2 pus of man larger than Gundyr's on both of its shoulders. Sergei will not survive the relentless assault from those so i decide that it's time to intervene. Ordering Sergei to focus firing, quite literally, on the abominations as i clash swords with the soul. What's surprising is that the runic blade seems to be breaking from the pressure instead of the firelink greatsword. *crack* That's a lot of damage, this thing will be beyond repair after the fight anyway might as well make it count. Using all of my might, i push the blade as much as i can. The sudden force shatters the runic blade while disarming the soul of its greatsword. Sergei himself is already finishing up with the pus and i call him back for a final combined attack. Though uncomfortable as it may be, i have Sergei cover me in the strongest flames he could summon and seismic toss me towards the soul. The final blow of course is the iconic THUNDER CROSS SPLIT ATTACK! With the pus of man being weak to fire and the soul being weak to lightning... it goes without saying that they didn't stand a chance receiving the direct hit. And with that, the fight is concluded with Sergei being the victor. What intrigues me is that the pus turned into dust for both me and Sergei to absorb and also leaving behind a skillbook but the soul's body is still there on the ground. I check it again to see if it's still alive.
Soul of cinder
Level 107 spirit
Hp: 21
Atk: 432
Wow, it survived the attack with under 1 percent of its health left. At this moment, i feel something that i thought i have long lost... The desire to catch them all from playing Pokemon. And now, a legendary with next to no health is in front of me... Wait hold on, does the soul of cinder have free will? Sergei was a mindless skeleton knight when i caught him so it didn't matter but if i catch something with free will would they be assimilated and the act would be considered slavery? I know for a fact karma exists out there so i'm not taking any chances. Walking to the near death soul on the ground, i crouch to its level before quietly asking it.
Me: Do you wish to pledge an oath of loyalty and serve under me?
The soul can barely moves but it was still able to slightly nod and let out a hoarse groan that i assume to be a yes. Well i guess that settles that, i cast soul-bound familiar and watch the spell works its magic. Instead of a white light like it was with Sergei, a rose red light engulf the soul as its wounds start patching themselves up. A short while later, the light dies down and reveals the new soul. I expected shinier armor, longer sword or wings but the soul just looks like the original and it even has the same stats. But unlike what it was meant to do, the soul is in phase 2 permanently. Guess i must evolve it for more prominent changes. Eh? Why is there another light glowing brightly behind me? Sergei? Glancing at where he was i see that Sergei is evolving. His frame got way larger than before now roughly the size of a berenike knight. A pair of crow like wings start unfolding themselves on Sergei's back and his hammer begins to turn into a long sword... with an eye? The light dies down as it reveals the new Sergei wearing pitch black adamantite armor with gold engravings, multiple bone spikes on the pauldrons, forearms, boots, gauntlets and torso. His hammer is now a 48 inches long sword with a ruby in its pommel. Oh and it also has an animate eye on the ricasso. Huh, he turned into Nebotus, the worst legendary in monster legends but that's compared to other legends, let's see his stats.
Sergei
Level 130 armor demon
Hp: 420212
Atk: 3724
Okay his attack is absolute garbage but his new set of skills and chunkiness makes him an excellent support. Now that's out of the way, let's see the loot. No gold but it's not like i need any and a skillbook. Oh right i haven't checked what the soul was guarding. Walking up to the marble pedestal now demolished after the fight, i spot a small jewelry box with a decorative stone dragon on top of the lid. Inside laid a singular golden gauntlet with the shape of a dragon's head and 2 dazzling jade where its eyes are.
{Primordial's wrath: Damascus}
Rarity: Legendary
Description: A gauntlet made from the remains of the ultra class dragon danger beast Jedariel who is considered the predecessor of the infamous Tyrant. The gauntlet can enhance the user's strength by 3 to 5 times and is unbreakable by normal means. It can also spits an inextinguishable flames that can be only stopped by Demon's Extract. The trump card of this Teigu is dragon form, effectiveness depend on the user's strength and willpower. Weak to medium users only have another boost in strength. Strong users can grow scales on their skin and wings. Though it is not yet recorded, someone who is strong enough for the gauntlet to respect them will be able to fully transform into a dragon at will. The usage of the weapon also has side effects like mental strain, first to third degree burn, heavy exhaustion and a chance to lead to insanity but they can be negated if the user is powerful enough.
[Abyssal Grasp]
rarity: epic spell
Description: channel abyssal energy into the user's palm and on contact will drain the opponent of their humanity and health. One successful attack will only inflict negative emotions and disorientation, 2 successful attacks will paralyze the opponent and 3 successful attacks will start severely affecting the opponent's health. Any more attacks after that each has an increased chance to instantly kill the opponent.
I'm not much of a brawler but this give me an excuse for my powers and that i don't have to show off my magic during every fights. Not to mention how badass it would be if i summon another Sparky and double team some unfortunate asshole. The abyssal grasp is better off used for subduing people, i have way better means to kill someone. Almost forgot to name the soul hmm... I'll call you Victor from now on. I wonder how Esdeath is doing?
Heading back to the camp, i notice that it was dead silent, not even the sound of crickets chirping could be heard. It's only late noon so there's no way Esdeath has already fallen asleep. Plus the knights haven't informed me of any threats so what the hell happened? Peeking over the shrubs surrounding the camp i see Esdeath peacefully sleeping... with over 13 bruises on her body. The knight i asked her to spar with was keeping watch with an entire arm encased in ice though it doesn't seem to mind. And the wooden weapons are reduced to splinters lying on the ground. It's probaly for the best if i personally train her. I start a fire using pyromancy and have Victor go hunting along Sergei as i prepare to make lunch. However, something still bothers me... How in Lord's name is Esdeath sleeping in the middle of a tropical rainforest wearing a large fur coat?
Total inventory:
Ascended Wraith set
Primordial's wrath: Damascus
Diadem of supreme arcane might
76 copper 53 silver 39000 gold
Current familiars:
- Sergei the Armor Demon
- Victor the Soul Of Cinder