Path of the Slayer B1 C11: Never Give Up

The System was both cruel and gracious. How was I supposed to pick anything?

Growling a little, I rubbed my left hand over my face. I looked beyond the list of options I could scroll through in front of me. The golden light and the transformation of an entire Realm persisted in the background.

Seeing all that calmed me down.

I turned back to the Path Magic Selection and concentrated on what I currently have and what I could add to it.

My Path Magic already included Path Energy (Exquisite), Tyrannosaurus Roar (Rare), Relentless Surge (Uncommon), and Apex Fervor (Uncommon).

My Great Skills included Pain Eater Delight (Rare), Gear Modder Speed (Uncommon), Multi-Striker Potency (Uncommon), and Brutal Musician Grace (Uncommon).

My Bonded Treasures only had Hellion Half Ripper (Exquisite) so far.

With those nine magical factors, my composition as a Pathwalker was on the showy and upfront side. Less guile, more overwhelming onslaught of a loud persuasion. Putting it that way, along with the experience I have as an adventurer, I could sort of map out my future growth.

I was still missing important information and keynotes on how this all worked.

Frankly, I could wait to make a selection later.

But I didn’t trust that everything would be perfectly fine while I try to shore up my gap in knowledge. I would rather load up on as much weaponry and powers as I could until I was certain I was safe enough to investigate at a slower pace.

That and I really wanted a new power.

Which one would it be?

There were the old ones. Hunter’s Mark would be useful for knowing more about a target’s vulnerabilities. Bullish Knock Up would pair well with my showy onslaught style.

Stampeding Run seemed like a great idea on the surface, but I imagined I could run through obstacles without it. I also imagined it would get me killed if I couldn’t redirect in time.

Giant Slam was ideal. Very ideal. I could’ve used it for some last hits on the Fallen Slayer while I was on top. It would probably pair up well with Multi-Striker Potency, too.

Crashing Parry – no.

Death Flurry wouldn’t be suitable for me. I didn’t like how rooted down it was. The experience from having fought the Fallen Slayer made me value maneuverability a lot more than I already do.

What about the new choices?

Path Lightning, Path Fire, Path Acid, Path Darkness, and Path Magnetism gave me chills just thinking about them. I knew plenty of adventurers who had the fortune of getting an elemental power as their special.

Some elemental powers were strict or had specific uses while still able to pack a punch. Others were flexible and great for utility while sacrificing direct battle power.

It didn’t matter to me when I was a Rank 0 if their elemental power was for utility or battle. It was always magical and painful to see gouts of fire, bolts of lightning, or shards of ice shooting from someone’s palm.

I’d used to pretend to shoot elemental stuff in the privacy of my rathole apartment. Looking back, it wasn’t a fun highlight.

Out of the five elemental Path choices, Path Magnetism drew my attention the most. I knew what magnetism was. It would pair well with my artificing. And I’d never seen another adventurer with a power like that.

Lightning, fire, ice, and even darkness were more prevalent.

Acid was not as prevalent, but I’d seen it before.

Magnetism itself?

No, I hadn’t seen that yet. Not even from Toregrit.

There were a few issues with picking Path Magnetism, though.

It didn’t give an immediate boost to my current style. In fact, it was veering in the opposite direction by being more indirect.

I would also have to overlook both an Exquisite power and an Epic power.

“Why, System, why?” I groaned.

Obviously, the Epic power, Battle Rex, was far outside of my capabilities. It was freaking Level 61. Even the description from the System was mocking me with its temptation.

I’d rarely been around Rare Quality items or powers days before. I’d never even touched Exquisite until becoming a Pathwalker.

But Epic of all things?

Ludicrous.

With a labored sigh, I shook my head free of the greedy and insane thoughts. “It will be there when I reach Level 61,” I muttered. “By that point, I’ll probably be prepared to handle whatever challenge a magical T-Rex brings to the table.”

I would also like to know what a Tyrannosaurus Rex, or T-Rex, was before I summoned one.

Was it a special type of dragon?

That would be interesting.

Clapping my hands, I redirected my attention to my choices before my mind veered off course with imaginations of riding a ferocious dragon. I studied Berserker’s Rhapsody for a while before concluding it wasn’t exactly suitable, at least for the current me.

I didn’t like the idea of ‘losing myself’ when I needed to understand myself in the grand scheme of all these changes. Surprisingly, it was easy to cross out.

I crossed out a few others until I had three remaining.

Path Magnetism, Level 31, Rare.

Giant Slam, Level 31, Uncommon.

And Hunter’s Mark, Level 11, Uncommon.

One choice would diverge from my current composition but open up new possibilities for creativity and crafting.

Another choice would synergize immensely if I could line it up just right. I would probably kill my enemies faster with this.

And the final choice was safe, useful, and most likely cheap to use. It would also grant me further insight into a trackable target.

“Let’s be honest,” I said. “I want to feel a little more magical. I’m not just a simple brute, y’know?”

I finalized my Path Magic Selection.

[Congrats! You’ve chosen Path Magnetism: Level 31 (Rare).]

I let out a long breath. I felt no immediate magnetic energy or such. I imagine just like other Path Magic powers, I would have to activate it and pay up Path Energy.

Because of the vague description, I would need to experiment with this power the most. Hopefully, it wasn’t restricted to just utility.

“I can’t believe I have all of these powers,” I said. “It was … what … two days ago when I had none?”

I checked my full profile and smiled.

[Arden, “I’ll Keep Going,” Pathwalker

Path of the Slayer: Level 11

Path Magic: Path Energy (Exquisite), Tyrannosaurus Roar (Rare), Path Magnetism (Rare), Relentless Surge (Uncommon), Apex Fervor (Uncommon).

Great Skills: Pain Eater Gluttony (Rare), Gear Modder Speed (Uncommon), Multi-Striker Potency (Uncommon), Barbaric Musician Grace (Uncommon).

Bonded Treasures: Hellion Half Ripper (Exquisite).]

I had nine powers.

Most Rank 2s only had five.

At Level 11, I nearly had double the amount. And I had a treasure bonded to me that had its own complimentary powers, even if it was cursed. The curse wasn’t even that bad as long as I stayed stern with the half ripper.

Yeah, I was pretty sure I could face down a Rank 3 gold adventurer one-on-one as long as I could overcome their targeted Suppression. Maybe I could even take on two at the same time if I held a significant enough advantage.

Though that would depend on if I was trying to kill them.

Hm.

Did I want to fight gold adventurers?

Maybe just a little. Just to see if I could.

“Am I even going back?” I asked.

Was there an option not to go back?

Where else would I go?

Once a Realm was conquered by adventurers, there was a limited amount of time to gather resources, find a treasure chest, and exit through the Portal back to the empire. Adventurers who had taken too long to get out were never seen again.

Of course, everything that was happening to me after becoming a Pathwalker was new ground. There was the total transformation of a Realm going on right now.

Very much new ground.

Looking up, I watched as the divine golden lights faded from around me. It was almost like a curtain peeling back, revealing more of the changes the System had conducted to the entire Hell Realm.

With my left hand, I rubbed at my eyes, hardly able to believe what I was seeing. The Hell Realm looked a lot better than before, while retaining some spooky infernal features.

Great black towers stood at immense heights while scraping at a crimson sky filled with yellow clouds and orange sunballs. There was no more acid rain. But there were wide blooming fields of razor sharp flowers that smelled of iron with other dangerous-looking trees and shrubbery that sprouted all over.

The entire floor of the pit was covered in the sharp-edged flowers, many of them colored black and purple. The petals pricked at my feet a little, with my Path Energy resisting most of their nicks and cuts.

Humanoid monsters wandered into view. They shambled about like the ghouls from before, but different now. Their desiccated bodies had changed into more dignified forms with muscles and pale skin that stretched taut over their bony frames.

Their faces were narrow and sunken, with eyes of gray and black that looked with curiosity at the world around them. They all seemed like Rank 1 monsters to me. But they carried no hostility toward me as they wandered about and nicked themselves on the sharp flowers.

They didn’t seem too bothered by that.

Looking up again, I saw imps circling in the sky. None of them threw down fireballs or any sort of attack. They, too, had changed into more harmless creatures of this strange and slightly dangerous Hell Realm.

The System had called it a Passage Realm, right?

Was it safe to assume that all the monsters were made harmless, allowing safe travel? From what I could see, the only danger poised were the supernaturally sharp flowers.

If this place was now safe for travel, that could lead to a different kind of trouble for me. Before I could think further on that, the System sent more notifications that wanted my attention.

[Congrats! You are now the Temporary Realm Master of the Raining Ruins Hell Realm: Rank 2 Passage (Rare).]

[As a Realm Master, you can teleport to any location within the Realm outside of combat. You can get the Realm Monsters to assist you with most projects. You can easily find food, shelter, water, and resources in the Realm, though it is limited based on Level and what’s available. And you can sense the Portals connected to your Passage Realm.]

[Congrats! For slaying the Fallen Slayer Portal Boss and succeeding on the Realm Quest, you’ve earned two Realm Treasure Chests!]

[Congrats! The gear of the Fallen Slayer Portal Boss is yours!]

“System, can you slow down, please?” I asked.

The System didn’t slow down.

Three thumping flashes of golden light appeared next to me, forcing me into a backward stumble. Flowers crinkled under my awkward steps, failing to cut my feet.

Narrowing my eyes, I looked into the light before they faded completely. Two Realm Treasure Chests and a set of black armor with a black greatsword remained.

As for the Fallen Slayer, the corpse was gone, at least from the surface.

Nearby, there was a spot of freshly turned dirt that was cleared of flowers. At the head of the dirt mound was a simple half-oval tombstone made of granite. The words written on the face resonated with a mystical power, like hearing the perfect tune of an instrument.

A notification even popped up to confirm the written text.

[Baron, “Never Give Up,” Pathwalker.]

Something inside of me snapped.

Despite the changes, despite the Path Energy, despite my dreams coming to fruition, I could clearly recall all the struggle that led up to this moment.

The tightness returned, but it wasn’t as strong as before. My Path Energy smothered it, keeping me upright on shaky legs as I stood before the grave.

“You really were a Pathwalker,” I said. “You were like me. Or I’m like who you were.”

The implications were heavy.

One could start on and fall from the Path.

The thought of losing what I had and becoming a pure mindless monster was unnerving. Baron’s grave was a warning.

Who the fuck was the Defiled Covenant?

The tightness in my chest disappeared, and my heart hammered with a growing determination. I hadn’t gotten to know the former Slayer long, but we were both kindred spirits of the Path.

If it was possible, and I was strong enough, I would gladly butcher the Defiled Covenant if they made the wrong move against me.

“I’ll Keep Going.” Path Energy crackled around me with a vibrant flare. 

Flowers wavered.

The nearest ghouls shivered.

I turned my attention to the new loot and the two treasure chests waiting for me.