***
Felt like I had to edit it, as I was cringing at how bad the grammar and spelling were. So here's the edited chapter. Sorry about posting the unedited one yesterday, I was too tired and wanted to sleep.
-TheManCandy
***
Denki gulped as he felt the overwhelming mana released by August. "H-how is he this much stronger?" he muttered, his voice in utter disbelief. And he was right...
Helga unconsciously lost her firm grip on her claymore. She knew that the boy standing in front of her had a level advantage. She knew that she was way below her league. But this... This is too much.
Lysander was nailed to the spot, unable to move. The pressure August exuded was pushing him down. His heart beat fast, and chills ran up and down his spine.
Bors, who had just gotten up, fell back down on his knees. The veteran could hardly breathe.
Eira, the most sensitive of the bunch when it comes to mana, couldn't stop shaking. Her eyes held a look of disbelief. She had never felt mana as dense as this coming from a mortal.
Thorne's instincts screamed at him, warning him to run, to leave. Then they screamed at him not to move, that if he does... He'll be cut.
But perhaps the most affected out of everyone facing August was Katty. She was hiding, her skill "Stealth" allowing her to avoid detection as long as she concealed herself and hid her mana. She had planned on taking August by surprise, slipping away and hiding when the fight started.
But all of that was thrown out the window when she felt his mana. She dreaded imagining what would have happened if she had gone with her plan.
All of them could feel the grasp of death clenching their hearts, its scythe aimed at their necks. And what's worse is the realization... They all knew it as well... He was still holding back.
"He's not serious, right?" Thorne asked, his voice shaky. "T-This has got to be some kind of test."
Denki gritted his teeth, trying desperately to control his breathing. He willed his mana to move as his katana glowed an orange autumn hue. "No... He is serious," he said, looking at the team he had now grown to trust. "Weapons ready," he issued his command.
Thorne shook his head, chuckling as he gripped his daggers forward. "You're as crazy as your captain," he muttered.
"If you don't have any plans on coming," August's voice entered their ears, snapping them to attention. They all gripped their weapons tightly, their eyes peeled at their captain.
And in an instant, August vanished from where he stood, appearing in the middle of the bundled-up group. "Then I'll be coming to you," his voice carried a frightening chilliness, making the hair of the group stand on the back of their heads.
Lysander was the one who moved first. Due to his gladiatorial days, he was quick to adapt to every situation. He slashed forward, aiming for August's shoulder.
The two level 3s had sprung to action as well, with Denki stabbing his katana forward, while Helga pushed both Eira and Thorne back, opting to protect their two weakest -Physical- fighters from August, while also slashing her blade upwards, aiming for August's chest.
"Great reaction time..." August complimented. He then moved his spear to block Denki's blow, took a step forward making Lysander hit him only with his wrist and not his blade, while also lifting his right foot up, placing his boots at Helga's hand, completely blocking her attack.
He blocked and negated all three attacks at the same time, but by now, the group was not surprised by such a feat. They knew just how strong their captain is.
"HELGA!!! SHIELD!!!" Denki's voice boomed as he pulled her blade back and spun right behind Helga.
"GOT IT!!!" Helga didn't even think twice. With a quick and precise motion, she sheathed her claymore and took her shield out, placing it in front of her.
Lysander, at the same time Denki moved behind Helga, also did the same.
'Great coordination... It would have been perfect even, but they failed to account for one thing.' August had an approving smile on his face, but it quickly turned serious as he loaded his spear with mana. "Have you forgotten? You're facing a level 5!"
He swung his spear forward, straight at Helga's shield. To be honest, he could have easily moved behind them, but he didn't want to break their spirits. A flash of red light erupted as a violent boom resounded, making the ears of the trio ring.
Helga could feel the bones of her arms shaking at the force, she could feel her organs rattling, her feet lifting off the ground.
Denki and Lysander, who were behind Helga, tried to support her, pushing forward, but the force was too much. The three were sent flying, crashing to the ground, and Helga's shield cracked and bent, just from one hit.
August nods, 'They took it quite well.' He thought. He then sensed mana forming at his left, he turned, seeing Eira changing her weapon, from a sword to her staff, pointing towards August.
"Freeze over as though the eternal permafrost, untold blades. Your envoy beseeches you, Undine. Incarnate of water. Queen of aqua... ICICLE EDGE!!" Eira quickly finished her chant, and with a yell of determination, she unleashed her spell straight towards August.
August widened his eyes in surprise, not because the spell was powerful - it had all the power of a level 2 mage - but because of the nature of the magic. 'Is that spirit magic?' he thought to himself. "Well, isn't this a surprise?" He chuckled to himself.
But, as said, the spell was just at the level of what the caster is capable of, and as it is now, it wasn't even a threat for August. With a simple slash of his spear, August turned the barrage of ice spikes to dust, slowly moving forward towards the azule-haired girl.
Bors and Thorne moved while August was preoccupied with Eira's spell. Their weapons glowed as they attacked with coordinated precision. Bors from below, targeting his legs, and Thorne struck from above, aiming at his head.
"Naive!" August slammed his spear to the ground, yanking the earth below. A huge chunk of soil flew in the air, on which August kicked straight towards Eira. The girl had no choice but to cancel her spell and roll to the side.
While in the air, he grabbed Thorne by his hand and slammed him straight towards Bors. The two adventurers cratered in the ground as August landed on both of them, kicking them at their abdomen, knocking the two unconscious.
But as he landed, Denki smiled... 'All according to plan!' "KATTY NOW!!!"
Katty, who was hiding since the fight started, grimaced. She really didn't want to even come close to that monster. She got out of her hiding spot, her face growing furs as she entered partial bestiality. She pulled a dagger out and aimed it straight towards August's back. She moved as fast as she can, with the aid of her hume bunny trait, she moved like a blur, beaming straight towards her captain.
Her dagger was wet from the paralyzing potion she had soaked it with while she was hiding. And her timing was perfect; her dagger, a mere inch away from making contact. But suddenly, her vision darkened. And all she could remember was the ground moving closer into her face.
Denki and the rest of the crew that were still conscious grimaced. That was their plan, to catch August by surprise and stabbing him with a dagger soaked in paralyzing potion. But in one swift move, he turned that plan to dust.
Just as Katty was about to stab August, he twirled and struck the hume bunny at her nape, knocking her out in one hit.
"Woah. Well, that was a surprise," August chuckled as he stared at the peaceful face of Katty, who was knocked unconscious. "A skill that could even avoid detection form the mana dome, huh... I got to say, it was a well-thought-out plan." He then shrugged as he smiled sinisterly towards the rest of the crew. "It would have worked, but..." He picked up the dagger and sliced himself at his palm. "You forgot to account that level five adventurers have a natural skill to deal with this sort of plan. Not that it would have worked even if I didn't have that skill. As you can see." He gestured towards Katty.
Denki, Helga, Lysander, and Eira gulped. They could feel August's killing intent enveloping the area. "And you made another crucial mistake... Didn't I tell you guys," his voice turned cold as he glared at the remaining four adventurers that were still able to fight, "to come at me with an intent to kill."
They took a step back, wanting to create as much distance away from August. "Well then, it seems you guys need a valuable lesson in following orders." He vanished and appeared right in front of the four, red lightning coiling around his body. "Let's continue... Shall we?"
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Not even a minute went by, as all of the members of Heracles familia lay on the ground, some groaning in pain, while some are unconscious.
Meanwhile, August had a refreshed smile on his face. "That's a good welcoming if I do say so myself." He said happily to himself. "Now clean this mess up before heading back inside... I'm and by the way, when the other two return, we'll be welcoming them as well... You guys will be joining them, of course."
"GO TO HELL!!!" Denki screamed angrily while holding his abdomen on which August slammed his spear into.
"I see you still have more energy to spare. We'll be resuming this later once they arrived." August's playful voice made the others shudder in fear. One thing is for certain though, they now fully agreed when Denki once told them that August is a demon.
August marched inside the house with a jolly smile, heading for Heracles' office; he wants his status to be updated when he welcomes the other two as well. 'I'm such a great captain for training my familia like this.' He firmly believes what he was thinking with all his heart.
August feels proud of himself; he felt like he did a good job as being a captain. This is after all what he learned when Heracles was training him, so if you really think about it, it was all Heracles' fault.
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- At Heracles' office.
"Y-you've got to be shittng me!" the god couldn't believe his eyes. 'How was this even possible?'
He stared at August's status, bewildered and in utter disbelief. 'Fucking prodigy!' he cursed to himself.
***
Name: August Kaiser
LVL: 5
Stats.
STR: 999 -S
DEX: 999 -S
AGI: 999 -S
MAG: 999 -S
END: 999 -S
Magic:
Endless Battle: The user enters a state of pure concentration in fighting, giving him a temporary boost in stats. The longer the fight continues, the higher the user's stat rises. This magic can only be activated once the condition has been met.
+Conditions
: The user must wield Beowulf.
: The user has to slay or injure the opponent for blood to be absorbed by Beowulf.
: The user must be fully immersed in Battle and nothing else.
: Due to the recent battle experience, the user can now use the magic instantaneously as long as the user is fully immersed in battle.
-Note
: If the user stops Endless Battle in any way, shape, or form, the Stats resets back to its original, and the user may enter mind zero depending on how long the use of endless battle is.
Gáe Bulg Beowulf: an extreme Magic unique to Theïkó óplo, it allows the user to channel a vast amount of Mana into Beowulf, the attack will always hit the targets' heart, it will not miss, it will not falter, its aim always true. The mana inside Beowulf will then destroy the target from the inside out starting from the heart. This magic will always bring death to the target.
+Conditions
: The user must wield Beowulf to use the magic.
: The user must be in the state of Endless Battle to use the magic.
: The user can only use the magic once a day.
Skills:
Survivor's Drive: If the user survives or wins an unsurvivable situation, the user will receive a permanent boost in stats. (Boost may vary on how unsurvivable the situation is)
Beowulf's call: The ancient weapon Beowulf has chosen the user to be its master, it allows the user to use (at a limited time) all the skills and experience of the previous user of Beowulf using mana at the process. with every kill the user does with Beowulf, the user receives a portion of the slain mana back. As the battle goes on and more mana has been absorbed the user will activate the magic Endless Battle.
Beowulf Greed: The user can only use Endless Battle and Lethal Tempo if the user uses Beowulf, The effects of lethal tempo are dependent on the user's level.
Monster Slayer: Heavily increases all abilities when fighting monsters, potentially making the user stronger than his actual level when fighting them.
Adaptability: the user adopts with every battle he faces, gaining new experience which would trigger growth in existing skills and magic.
Theïkó Óplo user (Primal spear Beowulf): the user is granted enhanced status when using the Primal spear Theïkó Óplo Beowulf, the amount of excelia the user will gain is also enhanced, it also grants the user the use of healing power and spirit healing when the user holds the spear. The effects of this skill are double when the user uses Endless battle.
Lightning's decree: the user's body is filled with a high amount of electricity, allowing the user to move in a split second on instincts alone. This could also make the user perform more faster and efficient as the effects double with the use of Endless battle.
Development abilities:
Hunter: Hunter improves the user's abilities against monsters the user fought before and gained excelia from.
Lethal Tempo: The User gains Temporary DEX and AGI with every hit the user makes. Can only be used if the user is wielding Beowulf. The effects are dependent on the user's level.
Charge: The user AGI and STR stat increase temporarily when going in for an attack against multiple enemies or enemies that are stronger than the user.
Abnormal Resistance: Resist the effects of abnormalities such as poison.
Strong Body: The user has an extremely strong body due to training.
Mana Manipulation: The user has full control over his mana and can wield it with high mastery.
Healing power: the user gains a healing factor that automatically rejuvenates the user's body. The condition for the skill is in proportion to the user's status.
Spirit healing: the user's spirit continues to heal as the user fights, automatically beginning to regenerate the user's mind and mana at a low rate after using magic. The condition for the skill is in proportion to the user's status.
***
Heracles gulped. 'Just what did he do inside the spear's dimension?' He lost count of how many times he had asked this question to himself.
"Is everything ok?" August asked, "Wrap it up already; I heard that Denki sent the other two members to get a feast from the hostess."
Heracles sighed, with a serious tone he opened his mouth. "August... Congratulations on reaching level six." Heracles leveled him up as a bright white glow enveloped the whole room.
Even August had his most wide open. He couldn't believe it, 6 months, that was all it took for him to reach level 6. He then sighed as he remembered that he spent 70 years inside that fucking hellhole. 'I really don't want to admit it, but his fucking training worked.' he inwardly cursed Beowulf remembering the nightmare he went through.
Heracles just stared at August, wondering what was running inside his head. He was sure that the primal spear had already told him what it was. 'Should I talk about it?' he shook his head. 'No... I didn't break the oath with Ganesha even when the truth was known by the others...'
August stood up and turned towards Heracles, a big smile plastered on his face... "Well, aren't you gonna praise me more?" He asked teasingly.
"You do know that this would only bring me headaches at the next denatus, right?" Heracles deadpanned; he then chuckled as he tapped August on his shoulder. "But nonetheless. I am proud of you, August."
The two smiled at each other, not as god and familia, but as father and son. By now Heracles had already considered August to be his own, and the same could be said about the child.
"Now off you go. I'm sure the others are waiting for you now."
"Thanks for everything, old man. Be sure to show your face at the fest." August nodded and headed to the exit; the smile on his face couldn't be removed. He was happy; well, who wouldn't be? He was now, after all, a level 6.
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Chapter 101 is now complete. How are you all enjoying the story so far?
Please leave a comment, review, and feedback to help me improve this fanfic. Every little thing helps me understand your preferences and will contribute to writing a better fanfic for you all to enjoy.
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Have a good day, everyone. Love y'all.