Droplets trickled down and echoed in Oscar's ears. His eyelids trembled, and a deep tiredness suffocated his attempts to open them. He couldn't move a single finger nor shift his shoulders despite the pain wrecking every inch of his body. Normally, such levels of pain would prompt even the most immobile person to react. Oscar merely laid down in silent suffering without so much as a gasp or groan.
Did he die? No. All of this pain meant he was alive, though barely. Under his back, cool w...
2023-04-02 19:44:12 +0000 UTC
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Countless red roots and vines exploded from the sides of the craters. Debris spread everywhere, crushing into clouds of dirt and dust, which blanketed the crater in a horrid fog. Within the fog, screams and cries echoed until they ended abruptly with only the sounds of chewing.
Oscar leaped upward as chaos spread over the crater like a disease, and fear ran amok even in the most stalwart Greater Elite Exalts. No one had time to think about fighting each other with the deadly red roots a...
2023-04-01 15:42:03 +0000 UTC
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Emily and Orden knocked each other away. She held her two staffs with quivering fingers, staring at Orden solemnly.
"That's some otherworldly physical power. No wonder he managed to match you with your Reis." Emily said as Susan's healing water cleaned her.
"I was about to use everything I had and hoped for the best. Your arrival is truly a godsend." Oscar spat out some blood, remnants of his internal injuries.
"If only Frederick hadn't gotten ahead of himself like that…I ...
2023-03-31 03:48:46 +0000 UTC
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Oscar deflected Orden's hammer, his bones creaking from the reverberations of Ein emanating from the blunt weapon. He ignored the slight discomfort of the rattling, spinning with the flow of Reis and countering with Orden's power. Orden proved himself a tricky opponent, matching Oscar's wild movements by using his incredible reach and height to make it harder for Oscar to land a clean blow.
Several minutes after his friends arrived to help him, Oscar fought hundreds of exchanges and blo...
2023-03-30 01:21:50 +0000 UTC
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Undying Flame Sect, Earth Core Academy, Thousand Storm Palace, and of course, the Blue Ocean Pavilion were present. The four powers of the Farsky continent finally gathered into a single large chamber. Tension increased among everyone, a tension which quickly broke like a bubble as everyone charged with all their might toward the crater.
It wasn't all uniform. Oscar noticed four large groupings of their factions with small pocket groups spread all over the place, unfortunate people who ...
2023-03-29 16:07:24 +0000 UTC
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Frederick laughed and patted Oscar's shoulders with fierce slaps. He wiped the slight tear from his eye. As they wandered through the halls, Frederick explained what had happened.
"At first, I was all alone and tried my best to find anyone or a token. Strangely, I couldn't find anyone until yesterday, and by luck, it was Emily." Frederick sent his hawk anima ahead to scout the area. "Just earlier, we found a token and weren't alone. We killed some members of the Earth Core Academy and r...
2023-03-28 03:12:27 +0000 UTC
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Celestina's interrogative tone and question turned Oscar stiff as a board, like a criminal about to approach the guillotine. His blood ran cold as ice, freezing his veins. Oscar opened his mouth but closed it again, clamped shut from the mix of shame and unwillingness. As a good face reader, Celestina had surely seen through him.
"How did you figure it out?" Oscar resigned himself and admitted his guilt with another question.
Celestina sheathed her rapier, unsummoned her dragon an...
2023-03-27 02:03:59 +0000 UTC
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Oscar followed Phillip through the grand halls of the Inner Sanctum, skipping over moats of lava and turning corners around the vast crystal trees. Awkwardly, he averted his eyes away from Esther and Simon, not wanting to be reminded of the blood on his hands.
"Are Frederick and the others there?" Oscar breathed slowly to compose himself.
"Unfortunately, no. Eleanor is missing as well, which is quite concerning. Her illusions and healing are of great asset to us. It's a pity you'r...
2023-03-25 21:04:21 +0000 UTC
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Oscar was currently searching around in the hallways, avoiding as much trouble as possible. Luckily, not many obstacles came before him. Oscar went on with Gol-4's guidance to find treasures of great quality. Benefiting from Gol-4's recovered memories, Oscar took a brief recess in another room, organizing his spoils.
"The Inner Sanctum was where I lived. I spent many years in the halls, admiring the works of my children and descendants. Over 2000 years as a Primaere allowed me to see ho...
2023-03-25 19:18:32 +0000 UTC
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"Hold on a moment!" Oscar interrupted Gol-4's recounting of Isaac's past.
"What is it? I was getting into the good part!" Gol-4 said.
Oscar leaned in closer to Gol-4, his eyes shining with wonder. In the past, someone told him something existed beyond the King Exalt realm, but he didn't know much about it. Now, for the first time, he finally learned its name, the Primaere. The word made Oscar smile, knowing the world had so much more to it he didn't know.
"What is the Primae...
2023-03-25 02:01:59 +0000 UTC
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Gol-4, or rather Isaac, started to tell his past.
Thousands of years ago, perhaps 8000 years ago, in a small village, Isaac was born to a simple blacksmith, not a fabricator, but one of the common people. He spent his younger years by his father's side and crafted tools such as sickles, shovels, and horseshoes for the townspeople.
He enjoyed those days. Smithing was straining and hard work, which didn't deter him. Isaac proved himself different from the other children, always spen...
2023-03-23 17:00:37 +0000 UTC
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Blinding light filled the room. Unable to hold up, Oscar closed his eyes and prepared for the worst, putting up Silver Sheen. He thought it was odd. The last time Gol-4 connected to a stone slab in Tectusen, the effects weren't as drastic right now. Was it the significance of the location?
"Gol-4!" Oscar shouted from within his silver shell. "Respond! What is going on?!" Gol-4's behavior was always strange. That, combined with the dismissive words whenever Oscar tried to pry for the tru...
2023-03-22 19:16:19 +0000 UTC
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Isabella frowned for the first time. Oscar finally saw a strong reaction from her regarding anything ever since he ran into her. She was shaken by the presence of the Cleaner, and rightfully so. The information on the central palace detailed all of the happenings in the past and encounters.
Oscar also frowned. The Cleaner lived in the inner sanctum, patrolling the halls to kill any invaders. Its attacks contained the full force of Greater Elite Exalts, but its defense went far beyond an...
2023-03-21 20:01:38 +0000 UTC
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Oscar hadn't seen Isabella in a long time, face to face. Rarely had he gotten even a glimpse of her because of how much he had actively avoided Gilbert. The few times he did run into her, they passed by without a word, regarding the other as a stranger. In fact, he never knew much about how she was doing and what she was up to.
Her life and her actions no longer mattered to him since the time they met in the Inner Hall to sever their faint relationship for good. Isabella had grown much ...
2023-03-20 19:57:27 +0000 UTC
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Demon dropped to his knees. The frozen wounds inflicted on him by Regis had finally sapped the remainder of his strength, especially the large wound across his chest. Drinking a healing elixir, Demon made sure to keep as much of his face hidden, lifting his helmet to expose his lips.
Healing Ein from the elixir did its job and patched up Demon's wounds. However, the deeper wounds, such as the one across his chest, remained as scars. He would need a grade four healing elixir like the one...
2023-03-19 16:12:30 +0000 UTC
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"Are you a member of the Undying Flame Sect? I've never seen anyone with your abilities while being a fabricator. The only one I can think of with such strength is Orden from the Earth Core Academy." Regis asked. It wasn't their turn yet, so they had idle time to talk. Regis seemed interested in Demon. It was natural to assume Demon's affiliation from how he killed the other three factions and to be confused about who he was.
"You don't talk at all….Shouldn't you show proper respect i...
2023-03-17 22:30:52 +0000 UTC
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'Do I know him?' Demon rolled the dice, obtaining enough moves to reach player eight. Player eight's face looked familiar. He wasn't a friend of Oscar's, yet something stuck out. Stopping a step before player eight's platform, Demon gazed without blinking at player eight's features, noticing how his target shrank in fear before him.
"PLAYER ONE, ADVANCE TO THE NEXT PLATFORM." The voice urged Demon onward, or else it would be a breach of the rules.
'So that's it…You ...
2023-03-17 03:07:54 +0000 UTC
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The status displayed the moving images of player two and player thirteen. Demon tilted his head slightly, locking his gaze on player thirteen. Due to being in meditation and training for most of his idle time, he never focused on the other players until now. Player thirteen wore the uniform of the Undying Flame Sect, brandishing two icy swords in his hands and a pair of snake-like eyes.
"Regis Hyrin," Demon said. The last visions of his dreams before waking up fully in Oscar's inner wor...
2023-03-15 20:56:34 +0000 UTC
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"PLAYER ONE HAS LANDED ON A BEAST SQUARE. THEY WILL FIGHT THESE EXALTS BEASTS. FAILURE TO DEFEAT THEM WILL RESULT IN DEATH. TO MAKE IT MORE INTERESTING, EVERYONE CAN WATCH PLAYER ONE'S BATTLE. BATTLE WILL START IN 10…9."
One of the Exalt Beasts pulled itself out of the magma. From an initial glance, Demon thought they were made of rock and metal due to their craggy faces, but a closer look revealed their faces were more akin to roots and charcoal, a form of burnt wood. The Exalt Beast...
2023-03-14 18:51:54 +0000 UTC
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"It doesn't taste like anything…." Demon chewed on the cooked steak held in his hand, dripping the grease from his hand onto the floor. An hour into his freedom on the outside, his stomach started to grumble, signaling the signs of hunger. So, he cooked up a heaping pile of steaks, according to the amount Oscar typically ate.
"Oscar eats this happily like an idiot, but it doesn't taste like anything. How strange. Don't you think so?" Demon turned to his right, where two people were ly...
2023-03-14 03:28:59 +0000 UTC
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He was always reminded of it and still couldn't help but be surprised and in awe of it. The Central Palace was too big. It was already a miracle he ran into four people from the get-go. He scavenged through several rooms and long corridors for hours, gathering all the enticing treasures. Yet, he couldn't find another person.
"A few hundred from each faction heading into a place with hundreds of thousands of rooms, encompassing a large area so vast, might as well say it's a city. I can u...
2023-03-12 22:00:14 +0000 UTC
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It had been a few hours since he woke up. Oscar ate a hearty meal, courtesy of the spider corpses that ended up in the same tunnel as him. The green blood, foul smell, and eight legs gave off the impression of horrible flavor, but surprisingly, the spiders were delicious, similar to crabs. Immediately, Oscar felt uplifted by the flavor and satisfying feeling in his stomach.
He couldn't eat the spider's white-bone hulls, keeping them away for later as they were good materials for fabrica...
2023-03-11 19:00:04 +0000 UTC
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"I didn't want to use this…." Oscar experienced the liberation brought upon by the Demon Deer Eirin Mantle. It was a truly uplifting sensation as before, in which every fiber of his being cried out in relief. Poking at his antlers for a little, Oscar turned to the queen tarantula. "I'll settle this in two minutes."
The queen tarantula let out a cry, grating on his ears. Its legs skittered rapidly on the web despite its large size and leaped in a frontal rush. Oscar took a step and dis...
2023-03-11 00:24:22 +0000 UTC
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Gail's never-breaking smile unnerved Oscar. Something must have broken within her to become this deranged and sadistic. Aunt Rosett once said his own master, Draven, underwent a procedure to handle the increasingly life-threatening power of Reis, forever changing his demeanor. Or was she this way from birth?
"Not making a move? Are you waiting for me?" Gail asked. She tiptoed on the webs, jumping from one strand to another. Her green skirt and sky-blue hair fluttered around, appearing l...
2023-03-10 03:27:21 +0000 UTC
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Oscar fell. With the rushing wind in his ears, his attention turned to the others. No one dared to start anything during this time and went along for the ride. After a few moments of falling, Oscar landed on something. It wasn't hard like rocks, nor was it smooth as the floors. Oscar felt his body springing up and down while a substance held tightly onto him.
The light from above slowly faded as the floors closed back up, leaving Oscar in the dark, but that was not a big deal. He just h...
2023-03-09 05:17:16 +0000 UTC
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The entire theater was silent. A four-way standoff was not the ideal start Oscar wished for. He glanced behind him to the door he came from. He noticed Maia had done the same. When their gazes met, she scowled, and Oscar gritted his teeth. The drawn-out silence was broken by Gail.
On the stage, Gail sat down and munched on some crackers. Every single bite, crack, and teeth grinding gnawed at Oscar's ears. It took some nerves of steel to eat leisurely in this tense moment. Either she was...
2023-03-08 01:42:35 +0000 UTC
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The wide halls of the temple, otherwise known as the central palace, were enchanting. The grandness of its architecture and the vivid engravings everywhere made Oscar think an expert craftsman carefully carved, chiseled, and shaped every single inch of the palace. The amount of time and effort to have created this place was beyond Oscar's understanding.
But not beyond Gol-4's. Oscar took out the familiar golem's head. Gol-4 woke up from its version of slumber and acted strangely. Instea...
2023-03-07 02:02:22 +0000 UTC
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"Rest well, Oscar." Celestina lifted the tent entrance and came outside. She placed her hand over her chest and heaved a sigh. Thank goodness Oscar and the others were alright. The past three were so tiring, and seeing everyone released the tension from her shoulders.
For the first time, the suffocating air of the inner region seemed to lessen. Celestina closed her eyes to feel the nice wind, tucking her silver hair behind with her hand. With her eyes unobstructed by her whipping hair, ...
2023-03-06 00:56:45 +0000 UTC
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Oscar rushed together with the mass crowd of Lower and Middle Elite Exalts. His ears rattled from the sounds of hundreds of rapid footsteps from the great host of all of his surviving peers charging through the middle region. Only a few noncombatants and guards remained behind to watch over the camps.
Their formation was set up so the Middle Elite Exalts surrounded the Lower Elite Exalts to prevent them from being picked off or losing their way in the harsh middle region. Though, with t...
2023-03-05 19:40:38 +0000 UTC
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The day was slowly coming to an end. The last of the sun's faint rays tucked behind the horizon, and out came the moon and the stars adorning the canvas of the night sky. Oscar walked up to the main entrance, his wet shoes squeaking on the ground. The guards frowned and held their noses from Oscar's rotten scent, staring at Oscar with eyes full of suspicion. They blocked Oscar and the others with their weapons and animas.
"Halt! We cannot let you enter without the proper procedures. But...
2023-03-03 18:41:53 +0000 UTC
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