Path of the Slayer B1 C24. Free Nomad

I made it rain all the remaining oil canisters from my storage ring, which forced Elric and Taver to hesitate. The anger and hate I saw through their open visors should’ve bothered me. Instead, it motivated me to keep going.

In for a copper, in for a gold.

“I’m going to crap down your neck when we take your head,” spat Taver.

Elric remained silent and deadly, ready to strike at a moment’s notice.

The Storm Arena had no effect on them. The longer I remained, the more it would cost me.

Forst covered my body. The air became thinner for me. Little electric shocks appeared to zap me, as if to paralyze me.

I’d allowed some of that to go through, making me look weaker and desperate, while conserving my boosted Path Energy.

I chose my next words carefully.

“Thank you for separating yourselves from the half-giant,” I said.

My attention veered toward the one who responded the fastest – Taver. The dwarf turned in the direction slightly behind him as he yelled out Lara’s name.

Elric must’ve caught on to what I did, because he was lunging at me when I threw all of my remaining oil-canisters in the direction Taver yelled toward.

Finally, I drew my Fallen Slayer Greatsword. I used both hands to meet Elric’s Radiant Blade, which sent me crashing down to one knee.

His Vitality-enhanced strength and flashy magic were powerful! No matter, though. I was smiling under the shadow covering my face as my trap lit up for a two-for-one deal.

The explosion sent me and Elric tumbling wildly as the Storm Arena tore apart with a cry. I smashed into a few stakes broadly, which was lucky for me until I hit one edge first with my thigh and suffered a cut there.

If the cursed stakes were of a higher Rank, they would’ve torn my entire leg off.

By the time I landed, I checked my logs for notifications and didn’t find a slain version for the dwarf or the half-giant. But I did sense blood was spilled.

“Damn you!” Elric shouted, his body awash in golden light from shielding himself and activating his own healing power. He was unfair like that – high offense, solid defense, and great healing for himself and his friends.

That was why I activated Apex Fervor and Relentless Surge before throwing myself away from him with Path Magnetism.

I used the metal stakes that were still embedded in the street to pull and push myself like a curving bolt. My vision focused on the specific prey that was spilling blood.

Taver appeared in the smoke and flames. The dwarf was shaking his head and getting to his feet when my energy autosaw slipped the gap between his gorget and helmet.

I sliced down into his collar, straight through his rib cage, and pushed the energy autosaw out of his hip. Stuck on my cursed weapon of carnage, the dwarf twisted his head and looked up at me in horror as blood violently spewed from his mouth.

I looked back as I focused on pumping Path Energy into Hellion for more and more damage instead of trying to turn Vitality into Path Energy. The result turned the autosaw broader, the blades sharper, the rotation speed faster.

The damage delivered was horrific. Taver, the toughest of gold adventurers, couldn’t do anything against me. The pain was a paralysis of its own.

Then he was no more.

[You’ve slain a Rank 3 dwarf!]

Relentless Surge refreshed.

And Apex Fervor turned to another target – Lara.

Elric was back on me again, shining sword coming down for a powerful cut. I twisted to meet him, even though I couldn’t focus on him that well.

All I could do was put up Taver’s body, forcing Elric to cut halfway through his friend’s corpse while I used Path Magnetism again to throw myself toward Lara.

“Stop running from me!” Elric shouted desperately, yanking his sword free of the dwarf corpse to give chase.

I ignored him in favor of Lara’s tall form as she limped through the smoke and debris.

I was nearly on her when she used her power, Tempest Shield, which I’d forgotten about in my rush to get her.

Lightning shocked my entire body and threw me aside, deflecting me like I was a projectile. I struck the demolished street, bouncing and skipping, until I crashed through a wall and came to a momentary stop.

My feet settled under me smoothly. I moved with the gait of a predator as I skulked free of the rubble and circled around toward Lara. Elric came to a sliding stop beside her.

While my Relentless Surge was gone, we all knew I was set on one target at a time. Lara was the next one on the chopping block unless someone else forced their way to keep my attention.

“Run for the Portal,” Elric said.

“He killed Sylas and Taver!” Lara screamed.

“Run for the Portal before he kills you, too!” Elric demanded.

I thought about letting them leave.

And came to a sudden realization … I wanted to finish this. It was cruel. It was inhumane. It was a betrayal to the people who’d raised me up in their guild.

But this was a fight I should’ve lost, yet I was winning. It was a significant encounter for me.

If I let them go, I feared I would lose out on gaining something valuable by beating four of the best gold adventurers from my guild.

This wasn’t a fight for survival anymore.

This was a fight for my Path of the Slayer.

They started this.

And I was finishing it.

“Yes, run, and leave me with Elric,” I said, masking my voice still.

The golden hero narrowed his eyes, knowing what I was doing. It was too late. Lara clenched her jaw and set her mind on staying with Elric.

Two-on-one. 

No more tricks.

I walked forward, my half ripper growling on my right, my greatsword hanging low on my left.

No more running.

Elric gave Lara a look that spoke a lot between two companions who’d worked together for years. If I wasn’t so focused on finishing this fight, I would’ve found that touching or worth being jealous over.

My Path was a lonely Path, yet I walked it anyway, drawing closer toward them as they made their own preparations.

Lara hovered her hands over Elric’s sword and used a minor version of her Arc Lightning and Aether-manipulation to ignite his weapon with lightning. Then Elric fed his Radiant Blade into the lightning coating his sword and fused them into Radiant Lightning.

A mix of blue and gold lightning whipped and crackled around the shining greatsword and part of Elric’s form. He really looked like the truly mighty imperial hero I’d read about when I was a child at Lady Tiffany’s home.

I used to dream of myself as such a hero.

I turned the greatsword broadly toward me, activated Gear Modder Speed. I quickly inscribed runes for a cheap and easy sharpening enchantment the greatsword didn’t really need.

I did this with a half ripper claw.

Elric and Lara didn’t press the attack, overly cautious after facing so many of my tricks. There were no more tricks. I simply turned the greatsword slightly cursed, even if it was a temporary measure.

Then I gripped the handle with both my left and my right. Autosaw energy traveled up the entire greatsword. Red blades appeared on the edges. They moved up and down the length like they were running on a chain.

Elric broke out into dark laughter. “Who the heck are you?”

“A free nomad,” I replied, raising my cursed autosaw greatsword in contrast to Elric’s radiant lightning greatsword.

Elric spat. “There is no freedom outside of the empire, you ungrateful dog.”

I didn’t reply. He clearly didn’t know there was far more out there. He represented the old ways, the old knowledge, the old pressures that held me down. It was only through him that I could truly break free.

“I’ll keep going,” I said, my voice filled with truth and mystical power.

There were many things that separated a Pathwalker from a Ranker. And one of those things was keeping the same Epiphany while Leveling Up.

Rankers had to rediscover their Epiphany again and again as they Ranked Up. They couldn’t even recall it after the Rank Up.

Elric and Lara could only look back in confusion at the strange magic in my words. By that point, I dropped Apex Fervor to expand my focus before stepping forward to meet Elric head-on.

I wasn’t his equal in swordsmanship.

But I was a Pathwalker, and my Path Energy was stronger than usual.

I abused the hell out of that by smashing down at him with hard and crushing blows. Sparks flew between us, with his gold and blue radiant lightning meeting the running crimson edge of my cursed autosaw energy.

Little bolts of lightning kept shocking me, sapping at my Path Energy. As a trade-off, Hellion’s cursed and edgy magic sent harsh vibrations down Elric’s arms and forced his blade out of alignment with each collision.

Lara remained out of the fight, her focus trained on maintaining the lightning enhancement to Elric’s sword. She also threatened me with her Tempest Shield flickering on and off when the fight drew too close to her.

I kept her in mind, but I wasn’t focused on her anymore.

All that mattered was exchanging sword strikes with the golden hero, the best adventurer of my city. I was fighting someone who I wanted to be when I thought my aspirations ended at being the best of the empire.

“I’ll keep going,” I muttered again, my voice ringing with mysticism.

It didn’t boost me or give me extra power. But my confidence soared whenever I said it. I felt more aligned with my Path, which made all of my moves smoother.

I flowed from strike, step, strike, pivot, strike, parry, strike, and so-on.

Even with the extra powers at play between radiant lightning and my cursed autosaw, the basics of combat and two men meeting sword to sword remained at the heart of it all. And in combat, anything went.

I smashed Elric’s sword aside and before hitting him with an elbow to the open visor. His nose crunched from the blow, blood spurting, which was my cue to activate Apex Fervor.

I didn’t come out of the exchange without taking a slice to my thigh that left it sizzling while seizing up somewhat. But that activated Pain Eater Gluttony for certain.

Elric’s eyes widened as I went back at him as if his cut did nothing to me. My next series of strikes landed so fast and hard, Elric was sent stumbling backwards while blocking in desperation. He had no idea that I was now aiming to meet his sword on beat until – there – Barbaric Musician Grace was now activated.

With Apex Fervor, Pain Eater Gluttony, and Barbaric Musician Grace – my agility, dexterity, and striking prowess shot up so high that Elric seemed a step too slow. Each of his blocks came out more desperate and more ill-timed and more breakable until I slipped past his guard on time with the music I was dancing to alone.

I struck his breastplate with a ringing clang and shower of sparks, leaving a ragged gouge. The blow still transferred through even if I couldn’t cut into him right away. His desperation grew even further, coming out as a severe cut for my leg, which I suffered on purpose.

Pain Eater Gluttony refreshed.

Then we were back to me beating on him, breaking his guard until I could land two consecutive hits on his breastplate, rattling him.

He stopped holding back.

Radiant light shone from his body, hardening him, raising his conditioning, boosting his Vitality and his recovery. He healed from the injuries even if all he suffered were bruises. But that meant he could strike back as fiercely as if he was still fresh, disregarding all the damage.

The guy was a monster.