In the dim, cavernous expanse, the clash between Baldassare and his formidable foes unfolded amidst the stark silence, punctuated only by the sound of echoing footsteps and the occasional drip of water from stalactites above.
"This has to hit him," Baldassare muttered through gritted teeth, his resolve unwavering as he launched his assault at Furia, expecting a swift victory.
But Furia, like an immovable mountain, simply absorbed the attack with a nonchalant ease that left Baldassare dumbfounded.
"WHAT? IMPOSSIBLE!" Baldassare's voice reverberated off the stone walls, his disbelief echoing through the cavern.
"Yummy," Furia remarked casually, his stoic expression betraying no hint of concern.
As confusion clouded Baldassare's mind, his attention was suddenly drawn to the absence of Choque, whose vibrant energy seemed to have vanished into the shadows.
A sudden breeze grazed Baldassare's neck, a whisper of impending danger as Choque, with unparalleled speed, prepared to strike from behind.
"Gah! What the?!" Baldassare exclaimed, his senses reeling as Choque's blade sliced through a mirror conjured in Baldassare's defense.
"Who is he? What is he? How did he—where did that other one go?!" Baldassare's questions tumbled out in rapid succession, his panic mounting with each passing moment.
Meanwhile, Fuyu, observing the chaos unfold, interjected with a calm demeanor. "Your face...it seems confused, are you confused about where Choque went?"
Baldassare's thoughts raced as he attempted to make sense of the situation, only to be met with further revelations from Fuyu.
"Cho who?" Baldassare muttered under his breath, his mind struggling to process the onslaught of information.
As Baldassare grappled with the complexities of his adversaries' abilities, Choque seized the opportunity to launch another assault, aiming to catch Baldassare off guard.
But Baldassare, his instincts honed by centuries of survival, reacted swiftly, conjuring a mirror to deflect Choque's attack.
"If he hits that mirror, he'll be hit right back with twice the power!" Baldassare thought, a glimmer of hope igniting within him.
Yet, Choque's blade cleaved through the mirror with ease, absorbing its essence into his sword—a feat that defied Baldassare's understanding.
"How did he?" Baldassare mused, his mind racing to comprehend the enigma before him.
Sensing Baldassare's confusion, Fuyu intervened once more, offering an explanation that only deepened Baldassare's sense of unease.
"You look confused again, let me explain. Choque's sword can essentially cut anything, anything that touches the blade turns into magic on contact, and that magic gets absorbed by Choque's sword so the next attack could be even stronger. So the bigger the target the stronger it gets," Fuyu explained calmly, his words dripping with an unsettling certainty.
Determined to regain control of the situation, Baldassare conjured a miniature dome of mirrors around Fuyu, intent on overwhelming his opponent with a barrage of attacks.
"Now die!" Baldassare declared, his voice laced with desperation as the mirrors bombarded Fuyu with a flurry of tiny lasers.
But to Baldassare's dismay, Fuyu remained unscathed, his demeanor unchanged amidst the chaos.
"Wait what? I didn't think I was fighting today. Magical Weapon Sora No Yari," Fuyu remarked casually, summoning a sky-blue double-edged spear adorned with intricate snowflake patterns.
As Fuyu's spear began to spin with increasing speed, creating a whirlwind of force that dispelled the incoming lasers and shattered the tiny mirrors, Baldassare's hopes dwindled with each passing moment.
"Wow, if just the presence of my weapon can deal with whatever the hell you had going on around me. You sir are very weak," Fuyu remarked with a hint of amusement, his confidence unwavering amidst the chaos.
Baldassare, his mind reeling from the onslaught of revelations, struggled to maintain his composure as his adversaries closed in for the final blow.
"And not imagine if that magic that was used to replenish your limbs disappeared. That's what I did," Choque's voice echoed in Baldassare's mind, a chilling reminder of his impending defeat.
Realization dawned upon Baldassare as he faced his inevitable demise—a stark reminder of his own mortality amidst adversaries whose power transcended his own.
In a final, desperate attempt to defy fate, Baldassare braced himself for the inevitable as Choque's blade descended upon him, severing his limbs and reducing him to pure magic.
"NO, THIS CAN'T BE HOW THE GREAT BALDASSARE DIES, I NEED ANOTHER CHANCE AT LIFE," Baldassare's thoughts screamed in defiance, his essence fading into the darkness as his adversaries emerged victorious.
Meanwhile, in the depths of the cave, Ryoshi and Onri continued their own deadly dance, their clash of ice echoing through the labyrinthine passages as the cave bore witness to their relentless struggle.
In the midst of their icy duel, Ryoshi and Onri's exchange continued, their voices reverberating through the cavern like whispers in the frost-laden air.
"Ice magic: Ice spikes," Ryoshi intoned, his voice tinged with determination as he summoned forth a barrage of frozen projectiles, each gleaming like shards of crystal in the dim light.
In response, Onri countered with practiced ease, invoking her own mastery over ice magic to craft a single, devastating spear that shattered Ryoshi's onslaught with effortless precision.
"Woah! What was that?" Ryoshi exclaimed, his surprise evident as he narrowly avoided Onri's lethal strike.
"The next evolution of your ice spikes," Onri explained calmly, her tone laced with the wisdom of experience.
"Really? I never knew spells had evolution's, I thought they were just one...thing," Ryoshi remarked, his curiosity piqued by Onri's revelation.
"All magic originates from a spell-book created by the evil god Gosha Daiuchu. As time went on, more and more spells got written in the book. Some spells got an upgrade, but it took time and power to accomplish," Onri elucidated, her words carrying the weight of centuries of arcane knowledge.
"I want that upgrade...but I don't have the power," Ryoshi admitted, his voice tinged with a hint of longing.
"Perfect. That goes into the next thing I have to teach you," Onri declared, her gaze unwavering as she prepared to impart his wisdom upon her eager pupil.
"What is it?" Ryoshi inquired, his curiosity piqued by the prospect of mastering new techniques.
"I have to teach you the mana burst," Onri revealed, her words sparking intrigue in Ryoshi's mind.
"Mana wah?" Ryoshi echoed, his confusion evident as he struggled to grasp the concept.
"The mana burst sounds like a power boost but it's not. It's a technique used by wizards and mages that allow them to use an unlimited amount of mana and magic for a certain amount of time, without any drawbacks," Onri explained patiently, her voice resonating with the authority of a seasoned mentor.
"No power boost? That sucks," Ryoshi remarked, his disappointment palpable.
"Some people who perfected the mana burst found a way to give you a boost in magic strength and speed, but it has a few drawbacks," Onri elaborated, her tone tinged with caution.
"Well, I'll be one of those people who do!" Ryoshi declared, his determination unwavering as he embraced the challenge ahead.
"You have to learn it first to perfect it," Onri reminded him, her words a gentle nudge towards the path of mastery.
"Yeah right...how do I- how do I learn it?" Ryoshi inquired, his eagerness tinged with a hint of uncertainty.
"The way mana burst work is that the user releases 50% of their mana from their body, the mana is also specifically a type of magic called matter magic," Onri elucidated, her words a beacon of guidance in the darkness of uncertainty.
"Oh, I know what matter magic is! Doesn't it allow you to turn anything into a certain element?" Ryoshi interjected, his mind racing with newfound understanding.
"Yeah, but instead of turning it into an element, you turn it into your own, mana," Onri confirmed, her voice resonating with the assurance of expertise.
"It? What is this it?" Ryoshi queried, his curiosity piqued by Onri's cryptic words.
"It as in air, you rapidly transform air into your mana that returns to your body but you can use it in damp areas or closed areas with not much air, or else you'll just suffocate," Onri clarified, her words carrying a note of caution.
"Wait, isn't mana that isn't in your body magic?" Ryoshi pondered aloud, his thoughts racing as he sought to unravel the mysteries of the arcane.
"Yeah, you're using the purest form of matter magic," Onri confirmed, her voice a beacon of wisdom amidst the swirling currents of uncertainty.
"Ooooh...so how do I learn matter magic?" Ryoshi inquired, his curiosity piqued by the prospect of mastering a new form of magic.
"Remember when you unlocked your destiny magic and how you had to feel a certain way to unlock it?" Onri prompted, her words a reminder of Ryoshi's journey towards mastery.
"Yeah," Ryoshi affirmed, his memories stirring within him like echoes from the past.
"Instead of that, you need to transform your destiny magic into another type of magic by thinking about how to change your type of magic into said magic," Onri explained patiently, her words a beacon of guidance in the darkness of uncertainty.
"How do I do that for matter magic?" Ryoshi inquired, his mind ablaze with newfound determination.
"Just think about your ice freezing everything then melting into some sort of energy," Onri instructed, her voice a gentle whisper amidst the swirling currents of magic that enveloped them.
"Okay..." Ryoshi replied, his voice tinged with determination as he closed his eyes, his mind a canvas upon which the secrets of matter magic awaited discovery.
For two minutes, Ryoshi stood in silent contemplation, his thoughts weaving through the fabric of reality as he sought to unlock the mysteries of the arcane.
And then, with a sudden clarity that pierced the darkness like a beacon of light, Ryoshi's eyes snapped open, his gaze alight with newfound understanding.
Ryoshi exclaimed with excitement, "I think I did it!"
Onri, standing beside him with a skeptical look, asked, "You sure? It does take a long time to learn matter magic."
"Yeah, check it out," Ryoshi said, fluttering with anticipation. A very small speck of mana emerged from his chest, barely visible.
"Ta-Da?" he added, hopeful.
Onri squinted at the tiny manifestation. "I can hardly see that thing... But you're still new to magic as a whole, so it's alright for now. I don't have enough time to particularly teach you how to mana burst, although you do have it in you to learn it while you're traveling because you're a quick learner."
Ryoshi's eyes widened with a mix of excitement and concern. "So does that mean that our training is over?"
"For now, yes," Onri confirmed. "But the only reason I'm not going to continue our training is that you need to learn stuff on your own. You need to know if you got stronger from certain battles. That's why I'm not going to help you unlock your last two skills. I'm also not going to finish teaching you how to mana burst because I know you can learn it on your own."
Ryoshi nodded slowly, absorbing Onri's words. "I understand. I'll do my best to learn and grow on my own."
Onri smiled encouragingly. "I know you will, Ryoshi. Remember, the journey is just as important as the destination. Trust in yourself and your abilities."
Ryoshi nodded firmly, his understanding clear as he absorbed Onri's final instructions. "I-I understand!"
"Now, leave and help your friends," Onri commanded with a sense of urgency.
"Yes, ma'am!" Ryoshi saluted before turning on his heel and exiting Onri's home, the chill of the snow desert greeting him once more.
As he traversed the icy expanse, Ryoshi pondered his next move. "Alright, where to now?...hm without Toi here I'm lost...well, I'll find my way to that vampire hideout eventually."
Meanwhile, in the shadowy confines of the vampire hideout, Toruri and Heunae stood before the invisible entrance, their mission poised on the precipice of uncertainty.
"Here we are, Heunae. We made it to the hideout," Toruri announced, his voice echoing softly in the cold silence.
Heunae remained silent, his inscrutable gaze fixed ahead.
"So, what now? Do I just walk in, or do I play it all stealthy?" Toruri inquired, his voice laced with determination.
"I...don't...care," Heunae replied tersely, his indifference palpable.
Undeterred by Heunae's lack of concern, Toruri pressed forward with resolve. "Walk in it is!"
As they approached the invisible barrier, Toruri sought guidance. "Where even is the entrance?"
"The entrance is invisible, just walk into that wall," Heunae directed, his tone betraying little emotion.
"Wow, thanks. I expected you to not help me in any way," Toruri remarked, a hint of amusement coloring his words.
"I'm only helping you to prove you wrong. As after I prove you wrong, I'll get my God to kill you," Heunae retorted, his words tinged with conviction.
Toruri chuckled confidently. "Your God is gonna get his ass kicked by yours truly."
"You wouldn't stand a chance," Heunae countered, his voice steady as stone.
"And that's coming from the guy that got handicapped by me," Toruri shot back, his grin widening.
"Say what you want, but once my god sees me, he's going to kill you," Heunae warned, his tone ominous.
"Keep talking, and you'll lose your other arm," Toruri retorted, his bravado unwavering.
With determination in his heart, Toruri charged forward, running straight into the seemingly solid wall. As he did, a thin hallway materialized before him, enveloping him in darkness as he ventured deeper into the heart of the vampire's lair.
Heunae's voice cut through the dim silence of the hallway, his words laden with ominous knowledge. "This hallway leads to the main lobby that has hallways that lead to other rooms. My god's throne room is the door in the middle, the prison is on the right, and the hall of chaos is on the left."
"Hall of what?" Toruri interjected, his curiosity piqued.
"The hall of chaos holds all of the vampires, over 900 of them, and they don't even stay in that room. They wander the lobby and sometimes even eat prisoners," Heunae explained, his tone matter-of-fact.
"Well... I can take them!" Toruri declared confidently.
"I believe that they all are fodder anyways," Heunae remarked, his voice carrying a hint of disdain.
"Uh... okay, let's go," Toruri responded, his bravado slightly shaken.
"I can see the fear on your face," Heunae remarked, a smirk evident in his voice.
"You just—shut up," Toruri retorted, a mixture of irritation and determination in his tone.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the cavernous depths, Sukesan and Sumajo continued their relentless pursuit of the relic.
"Where is this RELIC!?" Sukesan's voice echoed through the cavern walls, his frustration palpable.
"We're getting close to it," Sumajo assured him, her tone steady despite the danger that lurked around them.
Sukesan sighed heavily. "Are we? It felt like we've been searching for this relic forever. The only thing other than skating through this cave that I've done is dealing with these vampires."
As if to emphasize his point, 20 vampires descended from the ceiling of the cave, their hunger evident in their bloodthirsty gazes. With swift precision, Sukesan dispatched them with the bottom of his skate, each strike delivering a swift end to their existence.
"I think I found it," Sumajo announced, her voice tinged with excitement.
"Where—oh my," Sukesan gasped as his eyes fell upon a giant red glowing heart covered in vines.
"So... what now?" Sukesan queried, a sense of unease creeping into his voice.
"I'll destroy it, and if it's not the relic, I'll get Furia to destroy this place," Sumajo declared, her determination unwavering.
"Good idea, but I think we should still destroy this place regardless," Sukesan agreed, his gaze fixed upon the ominous artifact.
With practiced precision, Sumajo shot a red string from her arm, wrapping it around the heart. "Tighten."
As the strings tightened, the heart crumbled into bloody chunks, the once-glowing red fading into darkness.
"Ew, blood," Sukesan grimaced, his distaste evident.
"Should be about it. Let's leave and wait for the others," Sumajo suggested, her voice filled with a sense of finality.
"Yeah, alright," Sukesan agreed, his thoughts already turning towards their next move.
Meanwhile, amidst the chaos and bloodshed, Fuyu and Furia stood their ground, ready to face whatever came their way.
"Come out, vampires! I'm ready to bathe in your blood," Furia taunted, his voice dripping with contempt.
"They're just hiding at this point," Fuyu observed, his tone calm despite the carnage around them.
"Yeah, they're scared of us," Furia remarked confidently.
"I would be too," Choque chimed in, his presence adding to the tension in the air.
Before they could react, a vampire lunged forward, sinking its teeth into Furia's right leg, eliciting a growl of pain from the formidable warrior.
Apologies for the oversight. Let's correct that.
Furia's growl of anger was interrupted as five more vampires rushed forward, sinking their teeth into his right leg with savage hunger.
"You little—" Furia began, his voice cut off by the onslaught of attackers.
"Oh no! Furia is a vampire now," Fuyu exclaimed, his tone tinged with concern.
"No, that's only if he got bit on the neck. But he wouldn't convert anyway; vampires only vampirize humans," Choque explained calmly, his voice steady despite the chaos around them.
"Yeah, I know, I was just joking," Fuyu replied, his relief evident as he realized the situation wasn't as dire as he had feared.
Furia's hair flashed red, a sign of his impending transformation.
"Run!" Choque shouted, his urgency clear as he motioned for the others to flee.
Without hesitation, everyone except Furia bolted from the cave, their footsteps echoing in the darkness as they raced to safety. Moments later, a red explosion erupted from within, obliterating the cave.
"Well, I'm glad I wasn't in there," Sukesan remarked, his voice filled with relief as he surveyed the destruction from a safe distance.
"Yeah..." Fuyu murmured, his thoughts already turning towards their next steps.
As escaped vampires burned up in the sun, Sumajo couldn't contain her excitement. "We did it! Yay!"
"Let's head back to Negative Point. Furia can catch up later," Fuyu suggested, his gaze fixed on the horizon.
"Yeah," Choque agreed, his expression solemn as they began their journey back.
Meanwhile, in the confines of his cell, Kuroshi plotted his escape with determined resolve.
"I'll break out of here soon. They can't keep me here for long," Kuroshi vowed to himself, his determination unwavering.
"Hey you, are you my cellmate?" a voice called out from the darkness, interrupting Kuroshi's thoughts.
Kuroshi turned to see a man clad in sunglasses, a cyan hoodie, a white scarf, jeans, a blue face mask, a backward blue baseball cap, black stomping boots, and black leather gloves standing before him.
"Am I?" Kuroshi replied, a spark of curiosity igniting within him.
"Not for long. I know I just met you, but I have a plan to escape this place," the stranger declared, his voice filled with confidence.