noct

224. A Feast

Ike quickly grabbed Mag’s mouth before he could actually chirp. He pulled him backward. “Nuh uh.”

“Hey, Ike. Can I go nuts?” Wisp asked.

“Wait. Let me recover first, in case things get out of hand,” Ike requested.

“I think I can manage a few minutes,” she said, licking her lips.

“Could I beg you for a few hours?”

She considered, then sighed. “Yeah, sure. I could use some aether, too.”

Ike sighed in relief. “Thank you, Wisp.” 2024-11-20 15:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post

72. Giant Boss

Every piece of Levi wanted to charge in and do some damage while the boss was climbing out of the ground, but with the ground crashing in around it as it actively climbed out, he’d only fall underneath and end up caught in the landslide, dead for no gains. He sent a few of the weaker undead cannibals to slash at the boss as it rose, but as predicted, they barely inflicted surface scratches before the earth churned and dragged them down. The boss didn’t even notice their damage. It climbed...

223. A Place to Rest

They ran through the tunnels. Ike kept to the centipede’s crawl holes rather than the main tunnels. The main tunnels were full of centipedes, while the fresh holes crawled by the centipedes were abandoned after the centipede cut its way through. The centipedes were very familiar with the dungeon, unsurprisingly, but they didn’t know the holes each other had cut. Ike figured that at worst, they’d encounter one centipede in the crawl holes. In the main tunnels, they could encounter any nu...

71. Manor of Death

Levi stepped inside. The darkness of leaving the sun for the interior fell over him, and he rapidly blinked to adjust his eyes.

Mutilated bodies draped over the kitchen. Two men sat on the counter, their arms crossed. One wore all black. The other looked edgy as hell.

“Oh fuck. Abort, abort—”

Kai rose. Vox snapped his fingers. Black tendrils bound the entrance shut, blocking Isa and Colin from the kitchen.

Levi put his hands up. “Hey, uh, guys, good to see you ...

222. Lots of Bugs

Centipedes rushed at them from all direction, so many that Ike couldn’t tell whether there were any directions without the creepy crawlies. Powerful auras emanated from every direction, surging toward him. His stomach clenched. That many Rank 4s? We’re dead.

Beside him, Wisp glanced his direction. The same uncertainty flashed over her face. “We struggled to take on that first bug. Do you think we can take them all on?”

Ike pressed his lips together. “No.”

70. Serial Killing

The first house they came to had no lock on the back door. Levi pushed the door, and it swung open. A female cannibal wandered inside, working in the kitchen as she stewed down a leg. At the sound of the door creaking, she turned, snatching up a soup ladle.

Levi closed the gap in a flash. She didn’t even get the chance to scream before a knife slipped between her ribs. He caught her as she fell and eased her to the ground.

“Serial killing, just for fun. Serial killing, blood a...

221. Bugs

The centipede pushed them back. Ike dug his heels in, and still skidded across the floor. Hissing ferociously, it gnashed its mandibles, trying to slam them shut on Ike. Ike pressed his sword forward, holding it at a diagonal to block the centipede’s mandibles open. It fought against him. The sword strained, almost sliding out of its hold. Ike braced it with a hand on its flat. He pushed it forward with both hands. Still the bug fought. It rushed toward him, its feet beating against the dir...

69. Filthy

Colin stared. “What?”

Even Isa blinked rapidly, her usually unruffled expression decidedly ruffled. “You… immortal?”

“Yep. Wouldn’t have had to waste your Miracle on me,” he said, nodding at Colin.

“Gods. I can only imagine,” Isa muttered to herself.

Levi chuckled. “That was a lot of people’s reactions, yeah. Well, or, you know. They died. Because I didn’t exactly project the whole immortality thing, so lots of people found out when the ‘dea...

220. Den of Beasts

Ike plunged into darkness. The light winked out the second he fell, and the chair vanished from beneath him. In midair, Ike adjusted his stance and activated Storm Clad, preparing for a bumpy landing. He struck the ground with a thump, bending his knees to disperse the blow.

An even louder thump slammed down beside Ike. The soft hiss of extending thread passing through hands and the flap of wings sounded from either side. After a moment, the thread began to glow, and Ike could see all o...

68. Up and At 'Em!

The next morning, Levi hopped to his feet. He dusted off his hands and looked around. “Up and at ‘em! We’ve got a fresh set of cannibals to kill!”

Isa yawned and stretched, catlike in her indolence. “No rush. They aren’t going anywhere.”

“They might be! Kai and Vox are out there. Out there, killing cannibals! If we don’t get out there right now, they’ll kill all the cannibals, and then where will we be?”

“Waiting for the next respawn...

219. Victory Dinner

After the young man faded away, the servants stepped forward. At last, they delivered food and drink to Ike’s plate. He glanced around, then shrugged to himself. As long as he followed Shawn's rules, he should be allowed to eat the dinner, right? It wasn’t like he needed food, but food was delicious, and this food smelled absolutely delectable.

He glanced down the table just to be sure, in case not eating the food was part of the trial, but the other contestants were tuckin...

67. Cannibal on Cannibal Action!

Levi and Isa rushed toward the heart of the town, where the majority of the third village’s cannibal inhabitants scrapped. They didn’t directly join the fight, but turned toward the edges. The cannibals on the edge watched the fight, not quite sure where to join in. Before they could decide, Levi reared back and slashed out, striking in sync with the Armalgam. Heads flew, but in the next second, the other cannibals recovered. They closed in on Levi, swinging weapons in every direction. Le...

218. Politics at the Dinner Party

The young man smiled at him, waiting for his response.

Across the table, Ike finally made eye contact with Shawn. Shawn gestured at Ike’s partner. Talk!

But what do I say? Ike mouthed back.

Just don’t be stupid!

“It’s not very polite to be distracted,” the young man warned him. His smile drooped.

Ike snapped back to the young man. He laughed lightly. “Ah, I’m sorry. It’s just, you asked such a deep question, I had to tak...

66. So I Started Blastin'

The three of them returned to the place they’d been attacked. Levi whistled, and the large axe-wielding cannibal emerged from the undergrowth.

“Holy fuck—” Colin whirled, raising his staff.

“Hey, calm down. He’s on our side now,” Levi said, patting Colin’s shoulder.

Still maintaining a death grip on his staff, Colin stared up at the giant hulk of a zombie. It stared back at him. Its eyes glowed faintly green. Its lips turned up into a sort-of smile, which onl...

217. No Confidence

Before them, a long banquet table stretched, set with the most complex, delicate set of plates and cutlery Ike had ever seen. Servants bustled around, preparing to deliver the first course. A line of impeccably dressed nobles sat opposite the contestants, smiling blandly and waiting for them to take their seats.

A trial of manners? Yeah. We’re fucked, Ike thought, mirroring Wisp’s sentiment.

On his shoulder, Shawn took a deep breath. He gestured at the group. “Come ...

216. Verdict

“The team who scored highest was the team belonging to Rufus Estrade,” the voice boomed.

Overhead, the names reorganized into teams. Rufus’ name climbed to the top of the table.

“Alright, well, we don’t have to be first, we just have to survive,” Ike said.

Wisp nodded. “Yeah, yeah.”

“All teams who received a disqualifying score will be removed from the challenge.”

“Oooor not,” Ike said. He looked at Wisp and shrugged.

Immediately, he...

65. Approach the Village?

They retreated to a rise over the village, a little closer than the first place they’d stopped. From here, they could see into the village’s walls and watch the cannibals go about their daily lives. The trees clustered close, with undergrowth choking their roots, so the cannibals couldn’t see them. It was the ideal lookout, even superior to the one Isa had taken them to originally.

Levi sat near the edge, the Armalgam perched beside him. He plucked at the Armalgam’s withered arm...

215. The Truth of The Trial

Ike emerged from the door he’d shattered, Mag in his arms. The second they left the trial, Mag startled awake. He looked around, grabbing at Ike’s shoulders, then kicked free. Flipping in midair, he landed on his feet, then stared around, wary. “What happened? Where’d you take me?”

“Out of the trial. You really did fall asleep, birdbrain,” Ike teased him gently.

“I did not! Lies!” Mag snarled, puffing his shoulders like a bird. His hair fluffed all around his hea...

64. Axe You

The giant axe swept toward Levi. Levi swung toward it. Not trying to deflect it, but to throw himself aside. His blade struck the broadside of the axe, and he twisted his body to the side. The axe cleaved through him, but not center of mass. His arm flew off, spewing blood. A cold blast of pain shocked through him.

Ah, fuck. He had seconds until shock kicked in for real. Minutes until he died. And he’d be losing blood and slowing down that whole time.

He had one good hi...

214. Rescue Operation

“I think I need to rescue Mag.”

Shawn frowned. He looked at Ike. “Can you do that? Go into someone else’s trial, I mean. In the first place, do you even know where his trial is?”

“I don’t know, but it’s worth a try. As for where… all our doors are lined up, but only one hasn’t opened yet.” He approached the door next to his. The one to the left of his had held Wisp, and the one past this one had held Shawn. It only stood to reason that Mag remained in the onl...

63. Sneak Around and Find Out

Isa drew up to a cliff. Before them, the earth fell away, trees dropping far below them. Levi and Colin walked up alongside her, following her gaze. From this point, they had a clear view out into the hills below, where a quaint village nestled in the folds of the valley.

“It’s so small,” Levi murmured, frowning slightly.

“Size isn’t everything,” Isa replied gravely.

“Damn straight. Preach it, sister.”

She shot him a look. “Don’t underestimate the v...

213. Scare Me

A silhouette formed in the darkness, then stepped forward. Light played over them from the floor, slowly panning up. Pale shoes, white robes, clean, soft hands, a chest decorated with gems and gold, broad shoulders, long black hair. Before the friendly, handsome face appeared, Ike had already recognized the man: Lord Brightbriar.

“Okay, he is spooky,” Ike agreed. But the reason he feared the man was because of his Rank 4 or higher strength. Probably closer to Rank 5, if not...

62. Town Three

Isa led the way through the woods once more. Levi and Colin followed her single-file. The woods swayed around them. Simulated sunlight poured down, but failed to penetrate the depths of the canopy. Down here, only speckles of sunlight made it through. Colin yawned, and Levi glanced back at him. “That bored?”

“Huh, you’re right. I don’t need to yawn anymore. I guess it’s just a psychological hangup,” Colin said, touching his face.

“It’s good to stay in practice,�...

212. Face Your Fears

Ike blinked. No matter whether his eyes were open or shut, the scene remained the same: pure, brutal black, not a scrap of light to be seen. “Anyone else here?”

“Yeah, right here,” Wisp replied.

Sean sleepily patted his shoulder.

“Mag?”

“Here,” the boy replied, after a pause.

Ike pivoted on the spot. He extended his aether, but sensed nothing more than what he saw: a flat floor, a big, empty area, and lots and lots of darkness. Not another living ...

61. Guerilla Warfare

“So. How’s everyone doing?” Levi asked, looking around the camp.

Isa shrugged, leaning against the wall. “I’m fine. I didn’t even fight.”

“Why did we run?” Colin asked.

They stood in the same cave they’d hidden from the cannibals in earlier, except now there were no cannibals left who knew where it was. Neither Kai nor Vox knew about the dungeon, or at least, Isa thought Vox wouldn’t, so they were safe. And if either of the other two Champions came for ...

211. Ranking of Riders

Wisp stared, then furrowed her brows and blinked. She tipped her head. “Huh?”

“Uh. Is horse racing usually this complicated?” Ike asked.

Rosed from his sleep by the loud voice, Shawn squinted up at the sky. He narrowed his eyes. “No, not usually. What’s all this about horse quality?”

“Apparently we’re being ranked by not only how fast we finished, but also how suitable the horse was to our abilities,” Ike said.

Shawn paused for a moment, confused, t...

60. Danse Macabre

Kai charged again. On the far side of Vox, Levi threw his knife. Vox swayed back. Shadow tendrils darted out from his back and supported him as he pulled a neat backflip. Kai’s slash struck down behind Vox, beating a hole in the earth but failing to strike the man.

“He’s afraid of your sword! You’re strong enough to break through his shadow armor!” Levi shouted. He darted in himself, bending over to snatch a sledgehammer from a dead cannibal’s hand. As Vox spun back to his f...

210. A Race

It was simple math, in the end. He’d had to catch the nag to ride it. That meant he was faster than the horse, even at its fastest. He didn’t know what came next, so he’d been seeking to save his aether, but he had no more option. The nag couldn’t be enticed to run faster, so he had to run himself.

But it was a horse race, after all. Crossing the finish line without a horse might mean disqualification. Was he willing to take that risk? Was he willing to bear that chance?

<...

209. I'm Here

A horse hurtled out of the pack, closing in on Ike. It rode alone, or so he thought. It turned to the side, and a small child appeared on its back.

“Shawn!” Ike shouted in joy. A second later, he furrowed his brows. What’s Shawn going to do here? I appreciate the help, but he’s… Rank 1, for the most part.

“Hey. Don’t run ahead, you tiny mountain,” another familiar voice called. Wisp joined him, standing between Ike and the pack. She turned and threw her ha...

59. Champions

The man froze. “What?”

The Champion of Night, I’d bet. And you act as if you’re going to prevent the Apocalypse by any means necessary. You’re a harbinger of the Apocalypse, just like the rest of us! And just like the rest of us, you don’t want to die. So you put on this self-righteous act and pretend like you’re trying to save the world, when you’re really just trying to preserve your own life. Don’t want to start the Apocalypse? Bullshit. You just don’t wa...