Viel couldn't stop firing his throwing knives. Even though he knew they wouldn't make a lot of damage, all of it was needed.
Throwing knives were not Viel's preferred weapon, it was the sword. But right now he didn't have the stats needed to equip the sword he has and as he had a good mastery over most weapons, these rare-rank throwing knives were good enough.
So after pondering about it for a while, he decided to give Ferto his Bleeding Shield. With it, he could mix the shield's abilities and his own skills. After all, every attack of Ferto would be infused with fire attribute and the cost of his skills would be almost halved.
Also, with Jör skills and his passive Soul Venom, all of Viel's enemies would be greatly weakened.
Viel observed not only low-tier Undead but also stronger ones among the Undead Swarm which had now gathered at the base of the village's protective walls.
"Foreigners, aim for the Skeletons and Zombies in front!" Aron ordered. "The rest, aim for the Draugrs! Kill as many as you can. Don't let them get past the walls of the village!"
The Draugr were similar to zombies, but with one clear distinction. They had blue skin and wore lightweight armor. They were stronger than the regular undead and were Rank 1 Monsters, which were equivalent to Grade D Apostles.
Knowing that he was no match for the creatures, Viel focused on targeting the Skeletons and Zombies that he could eliminate with his throwing knives and Jör's help.
As the minutes passed, a pile of bones began to accumulate at the base of the protective wall. Viel barely had a moment to catch his breath before he gasped in shock as the undead began to use the bone pile as leverage to climb the relatively short three-meter wall of the village.
The undead resorted to using each other as a ladder to breach the defenses.
Aron shouted orders repeatedly to halt the undead's advance, but his efforts were in vain.
Vieñ heard a scream from a nearby dwarf and quickly turned to investigate.
A Draugur had scaled the ramparts and fatally stabbed one of the town guards.
Aron hurriedly charged at the Draugr and sent it flying back towards the Undead Army with one powerful strike of his Mithril Hammer.
The Town's Guard that had been stabbed got lucky because the sword didn't pierce too deep due to his armor.
Viel didn't let himself get distracted and continued killing undead.
'It's going to be difficult to survive for an hour.' Viel thought as he and Ferto marched towards the ramparts, where the monsters had climbed up to engage them in close combat.
The Town's Guards, Colette and her party members, and even young Dwarves who were essentially children, were all fighting with every ounce of their being.
The Town's Guards, in their effort to protect the children fighting alongside them, suffered grave injuries and, in some cases, even died when they were overwhelmed by the Undead who had breached their first line of defense and were attacking together with the children they were trying to protect.
As the number of zombies increased, Colette and Matty found themselves being pushed back, while the Town's Guard directed their efforts towards the Draugr who posed a serious threat to the Foreigners, who were only capable of handling the low-tier undead.
Aron had no alternative but to order a retreat and employ guerilla tactics against the Undead, as it was evident that continuing to fight in a current manner would only result in further casualties.
"Have the villagers already evacuated?" Colette asked one of the Town's Guards who was assisting them in retreating from the frontlines.
"Aye, lass." the Town's Guard replied. "They are now in the underground shelter. Relax, they're far safer there than we are out here. So, hurry along, and don't let the Undead bite you!"
As the Defenders clashed with the Undead, minutes ticked by. Despite some of the villagers not having escaped to the shelter, they bravely fought against the Undead by shooting crossbows from their rooftops.
Viel was fighting some Skeleton Soldiers when suddenly, he found himself in front of a Draugr that had just killed one of the Town's Guards. Although the Rank 1 Monster was missing an arm, it was still a monster that was stronger than the Half-Elf. So he fought with everything he had.
He ordered Jör to use Poison Shot inflicting the Draugr with Soul Venom, incapacitating it in the process.
He resummoned Ferto in front of him and made him tank the Rank 1 monster as he activated the skill from the Bleeding Shield, Tine Growth. Successfully inflicting it with the Bleeding effect.
Being quite weakened, Viel took his chance and began stabbing it while throwing him knives as he activated the skills from the Zephyr Fangs. He moved so fast that when he constantly threw the knives, his arms blurred.
Against all expectations, the Draugr entered a state similar to Berserk. It was understandable, after all, he was nearly killed by a human who wasn't even an Apostle.
Fortunately, a Dwarve Guard appeared and cut the Draugr's head, turning it into dust, before it could attack the exhausted Viel.
"You did fine boy. What is your name?" asked the guard.
"My name is Viel. I arrived at Leaf Village two years ago."
The guard took the Beast Core the Draugr dropped and threw it to Viel.
"Use it. You are the rightful owner of it." The guard said as he left, impeding Viel from refusing it.
Viel took out from his Storage Ring some Honey-Flavored Leaf Candies from Grandma Annie's shop and swallowed them, recovering fifty Mana and Health Points.
Sighing, he looked at the blue Beast Core.
—-
< Ding! >
< Do you wish to consume the Rank 1 Beast Core? >
< Yes / No >
"Yes." Viel said.
After choosing yes, two more options appeared in front of Viel.
—--
< Upgrade Stat Points >
< Upgrade Skills>
—--
'Upgrade Stat Points,' Viel ordered and the Beast Core in his hand was consumed.
—--
< Upgrade Stat Points has been chosen >
< Are you sure about your decision? >
< Yes / No >
—--
Viel said yes to confirm his decision. Immediately, the Beast Core turned into particles of light and was absorbed by his body.
Several rows of text appeared in front of him, showing him the results of the Beast Core Consumption.
—--
Obtained 5 Free Stats Points
Obtained 10 Body Constitution Points
You have acquired the Skill Slash
< Slash >
Active Skill: Requires 2 Mana to use
– Slash at your enemy dealing +20 Physical Damage
< Skill Evolution [EX] detected a new Skill. >
Slash Skill will be upgraded into Fury Slash once the requirements have been met.
< Fury Slash >
Active Skill: Requires 5 Mana to use
– Slash at your enemy dealing +40 Physical Damage
– If your target has less than half of its health remaining, deals an additional +40 damage to your attack.
– Requirements to upgrade: Use Slash 100x
– Progress ( 0 / 100 )
—--
'It seems that I obtained the only skill available from the Beast Core and it evolved in the same manner that Lux's one did.' Viel though.
Without wasting a second, Viel summoned his Soul Book and used his Stat Points.
—--
Name: Viel Von Kaizer
Age: 16
Race: Half-Elf
Rank: (None)
Sub Class: Blacksmith
Health: 85 / 85
Mana: 115 / 115
Strength: 15
Intelligence: 23
Vitality: 17 → 19(!)
Agility: 14 → 15(!)
Dexterity: 11 → 13(!)
〚 Luck: 9998〛
Soul: 355
Special Abilities: Jack-of-All-Trades [EX] Blessing of the OGU [???] [Absorb (4/5) Devour (Unused) Copy (3/4) Steal (3/3)] Blessing of the OGH [???] Gaming Energy-Ticket of Eriol [Divine] (150/5000)
Animancer Skills: Soul Creation [Ex] (0/100) Animate Object [Ex] Soul Familiar [Ex] Soul Order
Sub Class Skills: Master of Metals [Ex] Heat Resistance [Ex]
Skills: Slash(!)
—--
Special Body Constitution: Crimson Canvas' Legacy (31/100)(!)
Title: Apprentice Blacksmith
—--
Now that he reached 13 points in Dexterity, he could equip his bow, Whisperer. But he didn't plan to use it right now.
He took a sword from the ground and appraised it. It should be from a deceased Guard.
—-
Rarity: Rare
(Sword)
Requirement: Strength 15
– When defending, this blade grants the wielder a small boost in defense against physical attacks.
– Attack: 12-15 physical damage
—-
'I know that it shouldn't be done, but I need to be more efficient and evolve the skill Slash.' Viel thought.
He threw himself to the battlefield again alongside Ferto and Jör.
He wanted to evolve his skill in the fastest way possible, so with his mastery over the sword, which was far from basic, started killing undead left and right.
'I need to get 100 combined Stat Points to get a Class as fast as possible.'
Just like in games, there was also a Job Class Change mechanic in Elysium. They could use this function by going to the Adventurer's Guild, Temples, or Shrines that were scattered all over Elysium.