RotDG Chapter 56: Midterms V

“We have to stop this!” Emmett exclaimed as he turned to the two [Barrier Mages] standing behind him with their staffs raised. “Open the barrier!”

But the [Barrier Mages] just hesitated as they exchanged uncertain glances. 

“What are you doing?” The archdeacon stared at them with round eyes.

All the while, the spectral sentinel charged straight at Eli, producing a giant blade made of blue flames. Slashing down, the greater spirit unleashed an inferno at where the boy had been standing.

The flames struck the barrier, causing a ripple to wash over the golden bubble-like surface. Emmett and the [Barrier Mages] reeled at this as the audience of students watching from the stands gasped. 

“No—” Archdeacon Emmett started.

But as the flames dissipated, he realized that Eli was already circling around the back of the greater spirit, moving at a speed that should have only been possible if he had a [Rogue]-type Class.

Blinking, the elderly man tried to process what was happening. Even the greater spirit took a moment to realize what was going on. And during that moment where its guard was down, Eli conjured up a [Greater Fireball] and unleashed the attack onto its back.

The explosion engulfed the spectral sentinel as the arena rumbled. Archdeacon Emmett steadied himself, staring at Eli in shock.

“This is…?” He tried to work his jaw, before finishing his thought in his mind, Is this the power of a [Hero]?

As a Silver Rank, Eli should not have stood a chance against a Platinum Rank opponent. And yet, here he was, casting Skills that should have been above his Rank, while keeping pace with the greater spirit. 

But why is he doing this? Archdeacon Emmett wondered as his gaze momentarily drifted towards the staring crowd. Eli has been disguising himself as a [Healer] all this time— why would he reveal his true Class to his classmates here?

The elderly man’s mind raced with a multitude of questions, before he shook his head. 

“No— that does not matter,” he whispered to himself as he looked back towards the clearing smoke. “Because that level of attack isn’t enough to bring down a spectral sentinel. I need to end this, before Eli gets hurt.”

And right as the words left his mouth, the spectral sentinel rushed out of the smoke, its fiery blade turning into a giant maul. It leapt into the air as Emmett turned to the [Barrier Mages].

“Open the barrier right now!” he repeated his command from earlier.

But one of the [Barrier Mages] piped up, “I’m sorry, but we can’t do that.”

“What?” The archdeacon blinked.

And the spectral sentinel came crashing down, narrowly missing Eli as he slid under the soaring giant figure. But while the attack missed him, it struck the barrier, which sent another ripple across the magical dome. Some members of the watching audience screamed when they saw that.

The second [Barrier Mage] stepped forward, pointing towards the crowd of students.

“If we open the barrier now, we risk the lives of the other students.”

“For the safety of the other students, we cannot comply with your orders.”

“That’s…” Emmett pursed his lips, knowing they were right.

While he knew he would be able to defeat the spectral sentinel, he also knew it would have taken some time. And if he couldn’t instantly incapacitate the greater spirit when the barrier fell, that could result in casualties amongst the watching students.

Perhaps he could have evacuated them and called off the test entirely. But it would have taken time. And at that point, the battle could have already been over. Eli could very much be dead. So there had to be another way—

“There’s no need to intervene, Archdeacon!” Eli called out, backing up towards the section of the barrier closest to the elderly man. “I told you, this is what I wanted. So let me handle it, alright?”

Archdeacon Emmett opened his mouth when he heard this, but then he stopped himself. He saw the expression on the boy’s face. There was a calmness there that a child his age should not have had in the situation he was in. 

Was this what it meant to be a [Hero]? Did his Class— his Title as the One Anointed By Fate— allow him to find bravery in the face of death? Or perhaps, he had already exhibited the qualities of a hero, which was why he was chosen by the Goddess of Life?

The elderly man didn’t know. But he decided to place his faith in fate.

So Archdeacon Emmett just gritted his teeth and stopped himself from intervening, placing his trust on Eli. And he simply watched as the young [Hero] disguised as a [Healer] battled alone against the greater spirit.

***

Thanks to the Potion of Weaker Speed, I was given a significant but temporary boost in my [Speed] Attribute that allowed me to keep up with the spectral sentinel, despite the difference in our Rank. 

Everything I had asked for from Sister Frida and the Luna Gez Sect to provide me for this battle was to counter a spectral sentinel. Because I was familiar with both their strengths and their weaknesses. For example, even though they dealt powerful attacks with strong armor, they were relatively slow for a Platinum Rank.

So with a mere +40 boost in my [Speed] Attribute thanks to the potion, I was able to outmaneuver the greater spirit thus far. Well, even if I described it as ‘mere’, it was not a small increase for the me of right now, since it was still 50% more compared to what it was before.

However, as the Death God, I had experience with an Elixir of Haste, and the boost that came from that was what I was more accustomed to, when downing a potion.

But that was the difference between an A-grade potion and an E-grade potion.

In any case, there was a time limit to when the potion’s effects would wear off. I had ten minutes, before it came to an end. When that happened, I would lose, because even a single direct  strike from my opponent was more than enough to kill me, since it was not only a higher Rank than me, but it was known for its powerful attacks. 

Perhaps if my potion’s effects wore off, I’d ask for Archdeacon Emmett to open the barrier and aid me. But until then, I was practically free to avoid the spectral sentinel’s attacks, while unleashing my own attacks at it.

I sent another [Greater Fireball] its way, but this time, it was prepared. It raised its maul, turning it into a shield just in time to block my attack. And even though an explosion erupted where it stood, it wasn’t stunned for even a second, unlike with my previous direct hits.

The spectral sentinel sprinted forward, its shield changing back to a broadsword as I narrowed my eyes. As expected, fire was not very effective against it. 

Which was going to be a minor problem for me, considering that [Greater Fireball] was my most powerful attack right now— excluding death magic, of course. After all, it was ordinarily a Gold Rank Skill, and I was casting it at its maximum output, so it should have been able to bring down even Platinum Rank enemies. It was only because of the spectral sentinel’s fire affinity that my attacks were relatively ineffective.

However, that didn’t necessarily mean that was the only offensive Gold Rank tier spell I knew. Over the weekend, once my other midterms were over and done with, I spent all my free time learning [Aquatic Harpoon]. As its maximum output, it would deal significant damage to the spectral sentinel if it landed.

That was if it landed. 

Unlike [Greater Fireball] which was an area of effect attack, [Aquatic Harpoon] required precision, in addition to taking more time to cast, since I was still new to the spell.

So, before I could even cast it, I knew I needed to restrain the spectral sentinel first and foremost. And that was part of the preparations I made for this battle.

I reached into my Bag of Holding and produced my Scroll of Frostwind as the greater spirit rapidly approached me. It began to bring its sword down at me, when I raised the scroll, infusing my mana into the runes at its center.

In an instant, a blast of cold wind shot out, knocking the spectral sentinel back. But the spell didn’t end there. The white gusts continued to pour out, mostly targeting the greater spirit, but the residual winds also filled the arena.

A layer of sleet formed on the ground beneath me as the cold wind brushed over my skin. I could feel the chilling effects of the spell trying to freeze me. Frost formed at my fingertips, but that was the worst of it.

In addition to downing my Potion of Weaker Speed right before the battle began, I had also downed my Potion of Lesser Ice Resistance alongside my Potion of Lesser Lightning Resistance.

So while I could feel the chilling effects of the Scroll of Frostwind, I was able to resist most of it, especially since I wasn’t its target. Instead, the spectral sentinel was dealt the worst of the attack as sections of its armor froze over, while the flame burning underneath its visor dimmed. Even the sword it carried seemed to shrink in size as it struggled to even walk forward, the gust of wind too strong for it to overcome.

And as the Scroll of Frostwind came to an end, the parchment I was carrying turning to dust, the greater spirit’s movements remained sluggish as it took a heavy step forward, trying to break the ice covering its body. 

That was when I struck.

I produced my Lightningsmasher Mace as its head crackled with electricity, before dashing forward as I lit my body ablaze with [Holy Fire]. The flames didn’t burn me, but it melted the ice covering the ground, allowing me to reach my target unimpeded.

The spectral sentinel saw me coming and sluggishly swung its broadsword my way. But I pointed at it, firing a small flurry of [Water Bullets] at its face. Those attacks were Bronze Rank in tier, so they didn’t harm the giant knight armor. Rather, they served as a distraction, blocking its vision as I easily sidestepped its attack and cast [Boon Of Strength] on myself. 

I received a small boost to my [Strength]— not enough to significantly turn the tides of the fight, but still enough to make a difference.

And then I continued running forward, before striking the left knee of the giant knight armor. Sparks flew out as my attack landed, and there was a crackle of electricity that washed over the greater spirit.

It dropped to one knee as I circled around it, unleashing strike after strike with my Lightningsmasher Mace. The spectral sentinel tried to swing back at me. But each hit I landed stunned it, slowing its movements even further. I was also causing small dents to form on its armor plates.

However, I knew none of these were decisive enough blows to end the battle. They were just meant to restrict the greater spirit’s movements. This went on for a while until I was certain that it was too sluggish to hit me— its body overwhelmed by the electricity coursing through its body. And finally, I backed away.

Of course, its slower speed didn’t stop it from trying to take a swing at me. I just hopped back, dodging the attack as I panted. I nearly doubled over as I felt just how heavy my hands and legs were, practically dragging me down. I took a moment to recoup myself, staring at the giant knight armor as it tried to rise back to its feet.

Normally, I wouldn’t be this exhausted after such a brief confrontation. But this was a drawback of the Potion of Weaker Speed— that my energy drained faster. And that was why I brought my stamina potions with me.

I considered downing one of my stamina potions, but the spectral sentinel turned to face me, which spurred me into action instead. Right now was my chance, and I wasn’t going to squander it by wasting time drinking a stamina potion.

Especially when over five minutes had already elapsed in this battle. 

So I brought my hands together as a spell circle formed between them. Water began to pour out, forming the shape of a trident as I took aim at my target.

Behind me, I could feel the gazes of my classmates plastered on my back. I heard their whispering voices of both shock and awe. But I ignored them, instead focusing on the spectral sentinel as it tried to change its flaming broadsword into something else.

Unfortunately for the greater spirit, the weapon could only turn into a fireball in the palm of its hands, before I finally finished casting my spell, unleashing my [Aquatic Harpoon] straight at it.

The attack shot out, flying straight for my target. I aimed for the chest, and I struck true. The trident pierced the spectral sentinel, causing it to recoil in pain.

I grinned, watching as the water trident began to melt away while still poking out of the giant knight armor’s chest. Even if the attack wasn’t enough to finish the fight in one hit, I wasn’t finished either.

I began to prepare a second maximum output [Aquatic Harpoon]—

When the spectral sentinel suddenly lurched forward, slamming its palm onto the ground. For a moment, I didn’t realize what was happening, when I suddenly watched a blast of blazing flames explode out in all directions. 

It had slammed the fireball it had been holding onto the ground. And now, a shockwave of flames blasted out, sweeping across the entire arena as my eyes grew wide.

I backed away, trying to leap over the attack. But I felt my body being dragged down from the exhaustion I felt from earlier. And I could only brace myself as the wave of flames reached me, burning my body as I screamed in pain.

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