^^ Necromancer ^^
— James —
Zoken stepped forward, again, as the creature prepared itself; he had an unfortunate complex of having to fight to protect his comrades, like some idiot from a legend, -which, sadly, made sense: the Hero Seed was likely a reflection of that attitude...- He had started as weaker than them, but because he hogged the Lion's Share of the XP, he was catching up to them quickly, and would overtake them, at this rate.
I snuck a peek at the Death Knight, just to see its stats, and nothing else. The distance was too great for me to get much more than that without revealing my presence.
<Individual: Hellion
Race: Death Knight
Ur: 5th
-
Strength: 60%
Speed: 30%
Stamina: 100%
Defense: 40%
Intelligence: 0%
Weapon's Skill: 20%
Unarmed Skill: 5%. >
'Huh... pretty high level, there... and how about you, Zoken? How've you improved?'
<Individual: Zoken Katachi
Race: High-Oni (near evolution)
Ur: 6th Form
-
Strength: 40%
Speed: 75%
Stamina: 20%
Defense: 75%
Intelligence: 75%
Weapon's Skill: 40%
Unarmed Skill: 30%.>
'Good, he's improved quite a bit... and that armor helps his defense a bit, hmm?'
<Incorrect: Defense is reflective of physical resistance to damage, and overall Health Points, concurrent with Stamina, which reflects endurance of physical attack and fatigue, and Intelligence, which reflects resistance to mind-altering magic and remaining Mana Points as well.>
'Oh... Huh. So how do I know how good the armor protects him?' I asked.
<Item: Sage's Disciple Robe
Type: Armor, Magical Item.
Effect: Shapeshifting
Effect: Defense x2
Effect: Stamina x2
Effect: XP x2
Mana Depository: Store unused Mana
Beguiling Smile: Charisma Bonus.
Mage Armor: Defense against Magic x2>
<Item: Sage's Staff
Type: Weapon, Magical Item
Effect: Shapeshifting
Effect: Attack Success chance x2
Effect: Speed x2
Mage Killer: Attack against Mages x5
Demon Slayer: Attack against Demons x5
Duelist: Attack Success Chance w/out shield x5
Authority: Opponents Falter before your Gaze.>
<Item: Rusty Plate Armor.
Type: Armor
Effect: Defense plus 5%.>
<Item: Rusty Skeleton's Sword
Type: Weapon, Magical Item
Effect: Necrotic Damage to wounds
Curse Wounds: Healing Effectiveness x-5.>
'Huh... I may have given them some very powerful items...' I mused.
<Correct.>
The Knight made a move, darting forward and swinging his sword in an overhanded chop at Zoken, who nimbly dodged with the least possible movement, and raised his sword; filling it with his Ur and striking down in one masterful attack, which I was quite proud of.
The sword struck a magical barrier of ice that formed over the Knight, and shattered it, but the impact had harmed his swing's trajectory; even correcting it, he only managed to stab the knee of the Knight, and set Fire to his right leg.
The creature didn't even look at the wound, lurching forward and swinging at Zoken with a ferocious intensity, each attack sending forward a small wave of ice. His skill was decent, but robotic; he didn't react well to his opponents dodging his attacks.
Zoken seemed to have a plan: He was luring his opponent into wasting his Ur, or Mana, I wasn't sure which was powering that attack.
<Answer: Mana from a separate Source. Skeletons don't have Mana.>
I narrowed my eyes and looked for the source, while they were distracted by the match. I found thousands more low-level skeletons, (each about level 100,) and then a few more Death Knights, each about 250, though their stats were still lower than the students.
Finally I found a creature I couldn't Identify, and made my way towards it. My students could handle the Death Knight, after all, and if they couldn't, I'd revive them and train them even harder, until they could destroy them.
As I got closer, the creature's status became less Mosaic and more ???'s, which was a good sign. Though I'd have liked to see his stats first, I did take advantage, staring at the ???'s and concentrating, in an attempt to power-Level my Identify Skill.
After about five minutes, Zoken defeated the Death Knight, and the group was swarmed by his allies, from where the group jumped in and assisted him properly, and I decided to watch this Creature that evaded my Identification, and wait for them to challenge it.
The creature seemed to be meditating, sitting on a stump with a glowing red English broadsword across his armored knees. Plate armor and a ratty leather hood was an odd mix, but I was more focused on that Sword.
<Item: Horn of the Ogre King
Type: Legendary Weapon (special class)
Current Kill Count: 1,852 = 18.52 multiplier.
Effect: Daze Enemy on Block
Effect: Burn Enemy on Block
Effect: Dispel Magic on Block
Fog of War: XP Multi per Kill
Fog of War: Strength Multi per Kill
Fog of War: Speed Multi per Kill
Fog of War: Endurance Multi per Kill
Fog of War: Stamina Multi per Kill
Hellish Smite: Once per Day, Attack X100.>
<Item: Armor of the Necromancer
Type: Magical Item, Armor
Effect: Necromantic Summon Stats x10
Effect: Defense x2
Effect: Mana Cost of Summoning x.01
Greedy Master: Leech XP of Summons Kills.>
I frowned slowly, and then pulled my Chi back, actually moving it to a different area for now, then dissipating it, so my position wouldn't be triangulated. It was a loss of energy, but a gain of anonymity, so I called it Fair Trade.
The students cleaned up the skeletons, finally, and began roving around, hunting down the skeletons in the edges of the forest before moving slowly inward. Each time one died, the hooded figure twitched, and I nodded, sure now that he was the Necromancer that was King of this little Dead Wood. He had likely gained so much XP from the Greedy Master Skill, and used that to strengthen himself so much.
<Update!
Item: Sage's Robes And Sage's Staff have gained Curse Slayer: Immune to Lesser Curses.>
I glanced at them, curious, and found Zoken's sword had eaten the Death Knight's Weapon and Armor, and distributed the effects to all of us, apparently. 'I'll have to be sure that I didn't give them too many abilities in my own travels... or not, who cares? It's not like they're not working for the power, no one can say they're being given a free ride.'
When I glanced back at the clearing, the Necromancer was standing, and walking in the direction of the Students. He wasn't nearly as patient as I'd thought, it seemed. I checked the status of the walking person, to make sure it wasn't a fake, and raised an eyebrow slowly at the blank status. 'An illusion... huh.'
An instinct had me ducking, and a bolt of energy vaporized the tree where my head had been. I leapt into a different tree, hiding behind the trunk and shimmying down to a different level, and hummed. "I don't suppose you'll wait and fight my students, will you? I'm rather curious-"
I leapt to a different tree again as that one turned to Ashe. "-about their skills versus yours, you see? I'm attempting to empower them and teach them Battle Skills, and-"
Another close dodge, this one grazing my foot, and causing a small itch on the exposed skin, but otherwise not bothering me. "-they could really use the experience! So nice of you to play along!" I grinned, letting out my Chi like a beacon, and I felt the students instantly sprint towards me.
The Necromancer, though invisible, chuckled softly, and didn't speak out loud, but rather telepathically. 'Your hiding and dodging skills are rather good, but you honestly wish children to fight me?'
"Oh yes, see, you're quite pathetic, compared to them, though they're currently Sealed... I wonder if they can defeat you without releasing them? This is all a training exercise, you see." I explained calmly, and sat down on the tree branch, staring at the Invisible Necromancer.
'Hmph... you'll make a decent Skeleton, I think. A Sage? I've never had a Skeleton Sage before, that could be interesting.' He hummed.
"I'm sure it could, but you should focus; if you lose, you die." I glanced at my students, who had arrived in a hurry, armed to the teeth. "Well it took you long enough." I commented dryly.
"Sorry, Master? Uhm... where's the enemy? I can feel it, but- aha!" Maze shot an arrow at the invisible Necromancer, and he blocked with his sword, the weapon becoming visible for a moment as it dispelled her arrow.
'How rude... it doesn't seem you're afraid of me, but it can't be that simple, that you want your students to fight me... can it?' He hummed, and I kept my eyes on him as he leapt to another vantage point.
I noticed Hallox and Zoken glance at my face, then the direction I was looking, and then back at each other, before nodding quietly. "It is indeed that simple. I could fight you myself, and honestly I relish the challenge, but today was supposed to be their training, not my own, and I'm not selfish enough to steal their Prey." I shrugged.
'Curious. Well, I suppose I'll ignore you for a moment, then, if you don't mind?' A trio of energy bolts streaked out from his new position, aiming at Hallox, Jerrod, and Maze, and they leapt into action swiftly.
Jerrod blocked the bolts with a dark red shield, and then fired his own, igniting the surrounding trees. "I hope that you're alright with me burning down a Curses Forest?" He asked Maze, chuckling.
She frowned, and surprised me by adding her own flames, spraying the area around us with a white flame that incinerated almost everything. Soon, only two trees remained within a 50 meter radius; mine, and the tree the Necromancer had been in, both shielded by our Auras. "Not at all. It's in need of cleansing, after all, so go wild." She answered, smoothing back her golden hair, the ever-burning ends flickering brightly.
'How rude... honestly, can't an opponent ask for a little Respect? This is my home, after all, and you're the ones trespassing.' The Necromancer huffed, irritated, and then an illusory self suddenly became visible, behind Jerrod.
Hallox and Zoken feinted as if they were leaping away from the fake one, then Hallox turned and chopped down the tree with one swing, while Zoken threw a blade of black flame up into the branches.
The Sword again became visible, as it parried the blast of Oni Flames, and Maze shot the face of the creature above the sword, aiming for the gap in his defense.
Instead, the sword moved, and casually blocked both attacks. 'Cute... but what is this Seal your master tells me about? Is it a magical effect that restricts your movements? You're rather arrogant, having something like that whilst challenging an entire forest full of Demons.'
'Demons?' I narrowed my eyes.
<Answer: Skeletons are considered Demons, of the Lesser Variety, Averaging Lvl 100-150. Death Knights are considered Demonkin, the second tier, averaging Lvl 150-250. Lich are considered Demons, the third tier, ranging from Lvl 250-350.>
'So this guy... he's not stronger than me at all, he's just got really good hiding skills and probably some decent stats?'
<An Assumption, but a measurable one.>
'And is there a way to steal his skills, as well as XP?' I wondered.
<Answer: several... would you like a list?>
'I've got time.' I shrugged, as the Necromancer began throwing more and more magical attacks at the others, but never using the sword to attack, I noticed. He carried it like a burden, moving it only to block, and then it was back to its resting position.
<Alright...
1: If he had Blood, and you were a Vampire, you could gain his abilities that way.
2: if you evolved into a Slime or Sphinx, two races that kill and eat their enemies, gaining their abilities.
3: if you found an enchanted item that stole abilities.
4: if you were Blessed by the god of thieves, Hermes, you could use his blessing, 'Theft', to remove one skill from an enemy.
There are many more, but listing them would be useless, as most involve actions taken at a lower level to evolve into certain creatures, or require certain starting races.>
'Hmm... Sphinx, isn't that in my evolution Path choices?'
<Correct. Two evolutions in the future, actually. You don't need much in the way of experience to manage it, actually, if you choose that path. Would you like you? You'll diverge from the Spirit Guardian Path And go towards the Legendary Spirit Path, is that Alright?>
'Sounds good.' I nodded, and hummed, tilting my head at the necromancer's peculiar tactics. 'He seems to be biding his time... do his Skeletons regenerate?'
<Every Day at Dawn until he's killed, and then whoever kills him gains control of the Skeletons, as well as gaining the ability to summon them; it's an Inherited Position.>
"Stop playing with him and kill him! Toying with your enemies is dangerous arrogance!!!" I snapped, and the students instantly kicked their assault up a notch, with Hallox and Zoken attacking him physically and with their flames, while Jerrod shielded Mika and Maze, who were firing magic arrows at him and keeping an eye on the surroundings, as well as screwing with his footing, which I applauded Mika for.
Flames bathed the arena regularly, washing off of the other students, but slowly chipping away at the icy aura that the Necromancer summoned to defend himself.
I realized that his strength wasn't actually that great, after a few moments. His speed was impressive, but he was not strong at all; the sword, which he couldn't properly use, upped his strength, but 18.5 times 1 is still only 18.5... he was a weakling, compared to them.
He was faster, though, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt, for now, as they slowly began to overwhelm him.
'Jerrod. Cease Defense, leave that to Mika, and engage. Your physical warfare is still sloppy, and needs refinement. Strike the killing blow.' I frowned, sending to him swiftly.
He glanced at me, and nodded, sprinting forward and almost instantly summoning his black spear, then merging it with his wooden staff, to create a heavy lance/spear, like the one Waylon used as a Dragoon.
Zoken parried the sword up, and Hallox followed up with a slash to the chest, leaving the necromancer's armor ripped open and his heart exposed; Jerrod dove in to the middle of them and stabbed the heart with his spear, muttering a quick spell.
I flinched when the corpse exploded violently, scattered to pieces, and he fell to one knee, wheezing for air. "That was... overkill, which I appreciate whole-heartedly." I chuckled, and hopped down into the Charred and Frozen clearing. The sword, when I picked it up, pulsed gently, then faded to a dull red. The kill-counter reset, it seems.
I shrugged and took both it and the armor which had magically reconstituted, carrying them with me, then smiled at Jerrod. "That was well struck and well fought... had he been stronger, I would have even called it a perfect boss-battle, but judging from the fact that none of you are wounded, and he was killed inside of twelve minutes, I will simply say well done, for now. Now go, and destroy the rest of the enemies in the Dead Wood. They'll be reborn in the morning, as Jerrod's Summons', as he's just inherited the position of King of the Dead Wood." I nodded and patted his head calmly, walking off a bit.
They all nodded, collecting themselves, and jogged off into the wood again. I kept an eye on them for a bit, from a distance, more to analyze their form than anything else. They were doing very well, that was true.
Satisfied with their continued safety, I sat in a tree nearby, and looked at the Ogre King Sword. My own bokken tried to eat it, but it simply took the shape of the sword, a bit larger than before, with silver coloring instead of black, and their stats merged.
'I'll give this to Hallox, maybe... he deserves something for his hard work. Or-' I flinched as it turned back into my bokken, and the entire network (me and the students,) received the notification that the sword was now at their disposal, summonable by anyone in the group, and its stats were displayed. I did the same with the armor, knowing Jerrod's skills would get stronger by the use of it.
<Item: Silver Horn of the Ogre King
Type: Legendary Weapon (special class)
Current Kill Count: 0 = 0 multiplier.
Effect: Daze Enemy on Attack
Effect: Burn Enemy on Attack
Effect: Dispel Magic on Block
Effect: Shapeshifting
Effect: Attack Success chance x2
Effect: Speed x2
Curse Slayer: Immune to Lesser Curses
Mage Killer: Attack against Mages x5
Demon Slayer: Attack against Demons x5
Duelist: Attack Success Chance w/out shield x5
Authority: Opponents Falter before your Gaze.
Fog of War: XP Multi per Kill
Fog of War: Strength Multi per Kill
Fog of War: Speed Multi per Kill
Fog of War: Endurance Multi per Kill
Fog of War: Stamina Multi per Kill
Hellish Smite: Once per Day, Attack X100.>
<Item: Black Mage's Robes
Type: Magical Item, Armor
Effect: Shapeshifting
Effect: Defense x2
Effect: Stamina x2
Effect: XP x2
Effect: Necromantic Summon Stats x10
Effect: Defense x2
Effect: Mana Cost of Summoning x .01
Curse Slayer: Immune to Lesser Curses.
Greedy Master: Leech XP of Summons Kills.
Mana Depository: Store unused Mana
Beguiling Smile: Charisma Bonus.
Mage Armor: Defense against Magic x2.>
A few hours of hunting later, the sun was on its way down through the sky, and I got another, larger and more official-looking Notification, to my surprise.
<Pseudo-Dungeon, [The Dead Wood] has been cleared by Party of Five, [Zoken Katachi, Mika Katachi, Jerrod Kylan, Hallox Mars, and Maze Lily,] And XP has been rewarded!>
Immediately, several updates hit me all at once.
<Update!
James Taaliyah, Level UP!
James Taaliyah, Ur UP! (15th Form, High Spirit Class.)
James Taaliyah's Class (2): Class: Ancient Sword Art Saint, Great Spirit Sage, is Maxed!
Evolution (2) to: Awakened Spirit Sphinx (Legendary Evolution Path) will begin at Dawn!>
<Update!
Zoken Katachi's Level Increased!
Zoken Katachi's Ur Increased! (7th Form)
Zoken Katachi's Loyalty Increased!
Zoken Katachi's Class (2): Clan Hero, Hero Seed, Reached Max!
Zoken Katachi Evolves (2) into: Goryō (Honorable Spirit) (Ultra-Rare Evolution Path, 6th), at Dawn!>
<Update!
Mika Katachi's Level Increased!
Mika Katachi's Ur Increased! (5th Form)
Mika Katachi's Loyalty Increased!
Mika Katachi's Class: Saint Seed, Reached Max!
Mika Katachi Evolves into: Mōryō (Mountain Spirit) (Ultra-Rare Evolution Path, 3rd), at Dawn!>
<Update!
Maze Lily's Level Increased!
Maze Lily's Ur Increased! (7th Form)
Maze Lily's Loyalty Increased!
Maze Lily's Class: Spirit Archer, Reached Max!
Maze Lily's Evolves into: Elder Charred Dryad (Ultra-Rare Evolution Path, 4th), at Dawn!>
<Update!
Hallox Mars' Level Increased!
Hallox Mars' Ur Increased! (5th Form)
Hallox Mars' Loyalty Increased!>
<Update!
Jerrod Kylan's Level Increased!
Jerrod Kylan's Ur Increased! (8th Form)
Jerrod Kylan's Loyalty Increased!
Jerrod Kylan's Class: Hades Cultist, Reached Max!
Jerrod Kylan Gains Title: King of the Dead Wood!
Jerrod Kylan Gains 1,852 Demon summonings!
Jerrod Kylan Evolves into: Black Dragon (Ultra-Rare Evolution Path, 4th), at Dawn!>
I raised an eyebrow slowly, and re-read my notification. 'Wait... why is my Evolution counter reset?' I asked slowly.
<Answer: you have evolved 13 times, and reached a Precipice of Power!... Essentially.>
'Essentially?' I frowned.