Opening my eyes I felt the urge to run from my position, to use all my will and strength to leave this very place. Infront of me was the duke and he was releasing an eerie aura that even I found revolting. You count feel the lives he had taken as if they had been incorporated into his own.
"Rise tool. It is time for your inauguration from the doctor."
Rising I followed the duke by command until we entered the same room as last time. Standing at the metal surgical table was the crazy ass doctor fiddling with a set of scalpels and a bone saw. Turning away the duke left the room and closed the door leaving me with the creep
"I know you are bound, Bound to enslavement through the power of the bracelets magic however your will still remains locked up inside your mind although shrouded through a fog of devotion. The duke has no need for a tool with emotion! With thoughts of rebellion but he does need a tool with a mind if it's own to create strategies and make decisions. Thus I have been awarded the task of breaking your spirit so that you may be a good tool in the future. And depending on your progress maybe I'll even be able to gift you something. Although I'm not so sure you will be grateful of the gift in question due to its...peculiarities.
Lay down on the table"
Laying down a full team entered the room with straps and chains. Each strap had a mundane look but once they made contact with my skin I could feel the strengthening that they had been put through from the rigid feeling of the leather and the mana coursing through them.
"Give me the key"
The dukes personal guard put a small key into the doctors hand and I could tell that I didn't like where this was going to go.
Unlocking my cuffs the doctor slowly and cautiously took them off. I didn't know how people reacted to the cuffs being taken off and that was a risk, but I didn't have time to come me up with a proper plan. All I could do is act.
The instant the shackles that bound me came off I started struggling with all my might. Thrashing my body moving my arms trying to remove the straps and chains pinning me to the table. The doctor stood back and watched with a sinister grin on his face that just pissed me off.
"I will kill all of you! Once I find a way out of these straps I will torture you until you BEG for death!"
"Heheh I'm oh so scared of the ignorant child stuck strapped to a table. There is no way to escape those binds, not even an B rank warrior could tear those straps apart let alone the chain. And even if you did the entire room has guards surrounding it waiting on my command. In other words just give up and let me do my job.
Think of my feelings in this matter. I wanted to dissect you and see what makes you tick how you survived having your everything broken but I'm not allowed. See how mean that is!"
Picking up a implant gun he placed it at the base of my neck.
"Now this is going to sting a little"
Instantly I could feel a searing pain as all my neurons were hijacked by whatever was implanted into me.
"That seems to have gone better than I expected. You must have great pain tolerance to not scream or writhe in pain. What you have just been implanted with is an special creation by yours truly. It has multiple functions of which you will come to know of as you work for us. Anyways someone untie him and send him to the pit I have research to do for his majesty."
As soon as I felt the binds restricting me loosen I pushed myself up and flared my magic going in to kill the doctor however as soon as I was close my body stopped and my spell fizzled out. I found myself on the ground being restricted by the guards that filled the room.
"On your feet"
One of the guards kicked me causing me to keel over protectively bile escaping my throat onto the pages of books spread in the floor.
Being hoisted up I was thrown into the pit once again however it felt different. There was no one observing me and I was just left alone in there. Looking around I stayed vigilant of an attack however not a single enemy appeared.
Thinking over the situation I could only think that they had left me here to wear down my morale. Being around corpses is terrible for anyone's mental state and the smell of death would eventually permeate their brain sending them into madness.
Taking the free time without any observers and without the restrictions of the handcuffs I began to search the masses of bodies for any items that could prove useful. Surely they would take them away when I would be eventually detained but I can always store the items I like now that I had magic.
There were bodies of the weak the emancipated to the strong. All must have had a reason for their untimely death in this god forsaken pit. Some may be criminals while others may have waged their lives on the promise of wealth while I'm sure many were those that have slighted the duke and were put to an unjust death.
Crawling around I found a decent sword a special ring and some high grade daggers that I genuinely liked the feeling of.
Looking down at myself I couldn't help but frown. My school uniform that had once been immaculate was now filled with holes and the blood of not just myself but of the many corpses here. I needed fresh clean clothes.
Walking across the pit of corpses I muted out the sound of squelching as I walked imagining that the floor was one of heavy mud on an English morning. The forlorn sense of unease reminded me of home and how much I missed it and how fucked I currently was in this situation.
Looking around I spotted a few corpses that looked older than the rest. This intrigued me as it meant that monsters and people alike had been avoiding these areas. Upon walking closer I understood why. The natural mana was more dense in these areas and I could feel my hairs standing on end as I came closer to the corpses in question.
Their armour was immaculate with only a few dents or scratches but they had all died the same way. Their skulls had been completed pierced through by something.
Asking for forgiveness from the skeletons I stripped them and began to weave a new outfit out of the mana rich items on their bodies. Each item of clothing was dark and ease of movement in mind but held decent strength in face to face combat and durability. Coming up to the last corpse I picked up a cloak with a hood. The cloak was still stained with blood at the ends and it was torn and ragged but it complimented the rest of the outfit I had made well.
Standing up I noticed a glint on the floor and picked it up it was a small ring that fit perfectly on my ring finger but it had an mysterious energy around it. I tried pumping mana into it but nothing happened but I decided to keep it hoping that I could uncover it's mysteries and use them to escape.
The sound of a bell rang and monsters and people started to flood into the room. Lowering my centre of gravity i walked closer to the shadows and indents in the mass of corpses. Although i was confident of my strength i didn't want to test my limits and i had a feeling that they would be tested HARD soon.
Pushing myself into the dark I felt the gentle embrace hiding my presence and slightly cloaking me. I had been using shadow magic as a crutch ever since I first received it.
Looking at the challengers they seemed stronger. Each one wore stronger more protective armour at least from the looks of it. I couldn't tell the quality of their weapons from a glance. A group of three were fighting against some wolf like creature with spider legs. Why did every monster in this world have to look as gruesome as possible.
They encircled the beast as it bared its fangs each member held their respective weapons with some flaring their magic.
The wolf made the first move as it used is extra legs to maneuver towards one of the fighters while dodging the spells of the others. It managed to bite down on the the opponents arm before he managed to block. Slaming his hand I to the maw of the wolf thing in the hope of dislodgeing it from his arm didn't work and I noticed their veins turning black as it spread up it's neck. The wolf must have some form of venom or poison laced in its teeth.
Unfortunately for the wolf and maybe luckily for the mercanary the others came into the picture as the wolf was focused on him. Using the mace in their hand they reinforced it with dirt and stone making it heavier and harder they slammed it into the Wolf head as the other used their daggers to cut off the many legs of the wolf creature.
The multitude of wounds and the crushed skull managed to kill the wolf but it seemed to be too late for their friend as they turned ghostly pale with black veins covering the entirety of their body (at least I guess from the veins showing through exposed parts of the armour) Slowly they started to sway and fall to the ground as the pain consumed then. The wailing and deep gutteral screams shattered both the mercanaries minds as they looked at the fallen Merc. Standing over him with a dagger one merk said a prayer before piercing his throat and hushing him to eternal slumber.
Deciding that j had done enough hiding I crept closer to the two standing mercenaries who were vigilantly looking out for more monsters. Perhaps they could handle it easily but I wouldn't be abel to deal with them all with my current strength. Using the shadows to my advantage I neared them both, Using the daggers I had scavenged I plunged one into each of their backs before jumping over one and while holding the blade causing them to haunch over. Using this time I pulled out the sword and decapitated him while they were both still stunned. Pulling the dagger out I threw it at the other who just about managed to block it with his mace. Using this time I conjured a shadow lance from the ground aiming for the back of the knee. It luckily managed to pierced through the armour and the knee enough causing him to stumble.
Using the chance I held the blade overhead and swung down the blade cleaving through bone and grey matter before getting stuck midway.
Swift and efficient just how I liked things going. Crouching down I extracted their blood secretly before searching them. While the material on their armour was sturdy it was brittle. Is was probably some form of boiled leather. The weapons were subpar with numerous scratches and chips across them.
Feeling an overwhelming aura I looked up at the window and there in the same chair was the Duke looking down at me.
"Flood the pit and add more opponents. The warm up has ended his will has not diminished. Force him to submit by the end of the day by any means necessary."
From the cieling two grates started to violently gush water that hit the top of the heap of bodies where it began to splash and take a red hue. Slowly the water then made its way down the pit pooling at the bottom where it became a deep red viscous blob that slowly started to rise. I estimated that I have an hour before I start drowning but I already had a plan.
Looking up at the window I gauged it's thickness. It must be able to hold back the pressure of the water so it must be reinforced magically or otherwise.
I planned on using the water to float me up to the window and then break it to escape the room although I had no plan after that. After all I had no clue where I was or how many guards were behind that window or their strengths.
Soon the room filled with people and beasts and I had no chance of hiding this time. Grabbing one dagger in my left hand in a reverse grip I held the sword I had looted in the other. Applying constellation magic to it the blade began to glow the colours of the galaxy with a line of interconnected stars forming down the blade.
Swiftly running in I beheaded a person in a swift strike while they were still adjusting before I parried a blade that was aiming for my head before rolling away as a wolf bit into my previous position. Throwing the dagger into one's head I used my free hand to cast a Tier-I shadow lance to delay the other opponent. Using the opportunity to get close I slammed my feet into the ground before swinging my sword with all my might. The opponent blocked with their blade just barely as sparks flew. Using the sparks as cover I pulled out the other dagger and stabbed them in the jugular before ripping the blade out creating a gyser of blood which I stealthily drank a few drops from before picking up my daggers and moving onto the next poor soul.
As I fought the increasing masses the water lever rose and became much darker as the new blood spilled into the pool. It was kinda gross since I would have to swim in it but I had no choice.
The room was almost completely filled and those who were left alive no longer decided to fight but focused on surviving.
Using this chance I began to chip away at the window glass using an aura covered dagger. Each hit cracked and chipped the glass slightly but it was mostly superficial damage. Soon the water would completely fill the room and I wouldnt be able to breathe. With haste I continued swinging and chipping as my body became fully submerged. Channeling all of my aura into the dagger I kept swinging and chipping until finally
*Crac-Crack-Boom-splash*
Haaah haaah haaah
"Hehehe HAHAHA I did it!"
Recovering my breath I slowly stood up my new clothes bloody but I could use blood magic to remove it.
Walking towards the only door in the room I mentally prepared myself for what was beyond it. I knew from that aura but I had no choice.
Grasping the handle I gently opened the door-
*Clap clap clap*
"I commend you on your adaptability and resourcefulness. I believe that outfit truly shows the state of your mind. Dark and undending filled with the blood of others. I believe it's time for your first mission as an apprentice for the sake of the kingdom. Kneel boy and give in for it is your only escape."
"The aura in the room left no escape no excuses. I could only kneel as the force made my legs collapse even as I tried to resist."
"Fine you want ame to kneel I will bend my knee but know that it will come at a cost that cannot be paid in normal terms."
"Hah! What sort of fool are you to talk about costs, you are a mere puppet. Gastolf he's under your tutelage. Take him out on that mission in a month until then he is to be trained for obedience and assassination. "
My consciousness faded as more overwhelming aura crushed down on me sending me to the abyss of my thoughts.