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“Where are the Mist Pearls?” Erin asked.

The Necromancer, Baal, guffawed coarsely with an incredulous look. “You think... I would tell you this... easily?”

“It’s beyond that wall over there,” Aedan said and pointed towards a wall at the corner of the relatively large room.

“How did you know?” Erin questioned with a slight frown forming on her brows.

“Picked up the mint and blueberry smell? That’s the smell of Mist Pearl Flowers.”

Erin sniffed the air. “Oh, that's what it is.”

“So what if you know... where it is now?” the Necromancer sneered. “You think… you can just walk over there?” He took a step forward, allowing Erin to appraise him since he stepped into the range of her Appraisal.

“So, you are indeed a Goblin,” Erin said, eyeing the Necromancer with scrutiny.

“So what if I am… a Goblin?” Ba’al asked in a strained voice. “Do you find my kind… repulsive?”

“Nay,” Erin answered. “I find Goblins a tad gruesome but you, as an individual, aye, I find you repulsive, extremely so.”

The Necromancer, Ba’al, being a Goblin was already something she expected but what surprised her was how human-looking Ba’al was. Goblins generally had a slight hunch and the height of the average child but the Goblin in front of her bore a resemblance closer to humans than its kind. Furthermore, she didn’t think she would get any result from Appraisal but she did.

Ba’al - Goblin Shaman

Age: 4 months

Level: 30 | Status: Undying, Severe Exhaustion

Might: 5 | Arcane: 60 | Finesse: 9

Magic Arts

Shadow Magic Lv. 5 | Death Magic Lv. 10 | Fire Magic Lv. 2 | Alchemy Lv. 2

Innate Skill

Undying Lv. Ex | Crimson Lotus Lv. Ex | Miasma Resistance Lv. 10 | Night Vision Lv. Ex

“Erin,” Aedan whispered. “Did your Appraisal go through?”

Erin nodded. “It did. Strange, I would expect his Patron God to put some sort of safeguard on his stats information.”

“I was thinking the same thing.”

“And… Something’s strange about him. I can’t quite explain it. He just doesn’t seem… whole.”

“His soul is breaking down. That’s the result of a mortal playing with divinity, even if it’s just a small piece.”

Erin raised an eyebrow. “But I don’t feel any different?”

“...Perhaps your divine gift is merely a gift from a divine but the gift itself isn’t divine. Unlike our dear Necromancer here that had divinity infused into his soul.”

“He looks like he could be breathing his last any moment now.”

“He’s essentially fighting a war by himself and commandeering forces on many fronts. I would be surprised if he didn’t look like he had half of his leg in his grave.”

“Is this it?!” Ba’al screamed. “You are just going to stand there and make a mockery out of me!?”

“No such thing,” Aedan scoffed. “Your existence in itself is a mockery. Why would we bother with the extra effort?”

Erin stifled a laugh as she looked away to hide it.

“Impudent!” Ba’al shouted. He raised his shadows. He drew air into his mouth. A vermilion magic circle appeared in front of his mouth. He spat his breath out and spread his shadows. His breath turned into streams of flames as it passed through the magic circle. The flames tangled with the shadows he spread and raised. Tides of shadow-clad flames rushed towards the two.

Erin whistled a tinge of amazement and admiration before conjuring up three Arcane Aegis in front of her. “Aedan, get behind the shields!”

“There’s no need for that,” he simply said as the sea of shadow flames engulfed him.

The sea of shadow flames broke through all of Erin’s Arcane Aegis but it was enough to weaken the spell for her to endure it with Arcane Armor.

“Conjuration of two spells of two different kinds of Magic Art. He’s a coward but he’s certainly adept in magic,” Aedan praised, who was unharmed by the shadow flames.

“You’re unhurt...” Erin gasped.

“Level differences, remember?” Aedan said. “Unless he struck me directly with the divine power given to him, nothing will be able to penetrate my skin.”

“What about your clothes? How come it isn’t burned?”

“These trousers and tunic that you see, are actually my battle clothes. They’re made out of plant fibres that grow at the foot of volcanoes. Highly resistant to heat and the toughness is correspondent to the wearer’s Mana.”

“Um… you have any more of that?” Erin asked, hopefully.

“Nope, this is all I have. Just so you know, I didn’t make these clothes. They were… parting gifts.”

Erin clicked her tongue.

“Don’t sulk. The robes you’re wearing are already— Incoming!”

Erin quickly cast Thunder Shell and blocked sharpened tendrils of shadows aiming for her head. The Thunder Shell glowed and shot out bolts of lightning at the Necromancer.

Three Chimeras leapt into the lightning bolts’ path. The three abominations were instantly charred into cinders.

[Experience gained +3% - Level Progression: 29%]

“Using its own thralls as shields… not unexpected,” Aedan remarked.

“And those thralls aren’t worth much for experiences,” Erin added. “Did he create them purely for the sake of having meat shields?”

Aedan shrugged. “I did say he would sink lower.”

Ba’al bellowed in a huge laugh. “If it’s to kill you, so be it! I would sink lower! As low as I have to.” He waved his arms and red lightning spread to the ceiling from where he stood.

“What the...” Erin gasped as she finally looked up at the ceiling. “What the hell are those? Cocoons?”

The red lightning coiled around these cocoons. Along with the crackling of the lightning, the cocoons began to flail around and undulate.

“Cultivation pods for the Chimeras,” Aedan said with certainty in his tone.

“You are—!” Ba’al spat out blood mid-sentence but he wiped it off and continued. “You are correct, Dragon. You are too perceptive… for your own… good!”

The cocoons directly above them unravelled themselves, spitting out the Chimeras within. The Chimeras had red lightning crackling all over their body.

Erin’s primal instinct was to quickly cut them down but she hesitated when her Sixth Sense opposed her primal instinct. She widened her eyes at the Chimeras’ status that read; Overcharged.

Aedan grabbed Erin’s wrist and leapt away from that spot without sparing a single word. The next second, the three Chimeras glowed brightly in red before exploding with a range of a few meters.

“T-thanks,” Erin managed to say.

“Don’t mention it. That’s what I’m here for.”

Erin decapitated a Chimera’s head off but its body was still glowing more intensely with red lightning. She uttered a brief curse and kicked the headless carcass away just in for it to explode with Erin out of its range. “Great… killing it won’t even stop it from exploding.”

“Die, you maggots! Die!” Ba’al shouted vehemently as he sent more of his suicide bomber Chimeras at the pair. “You called yourself an Apostle but I don’t sense a single trace of divinity from you!”

“He’s right, you know,” Aedan said, dryly. Unlike Erin, he had no worries about the Chimeras’ attack. “Unless one is as sensitive as I am, no one could sense the divinity in you.”

“How in fuck’s name is that going to help our circumstances!?” Erin screamed in response as she dodged the explosive Chimeras with her life.

Aedan shrugged as a reply.

Erin’s popped a vein on her forehead. “This fucker…!” But her rage lasted only a second. She was more focused on avoiding the Chimeras that exploded in proximity. The more frustrating fact was that she couldn’t gain any experience from the Chimeras self-exploding.

“Oi, Baly. Is this all you have to offer? I’m disappointed,” Aedan taunted.

“Fuck you, Aedan! What will you do if he—”

“Fine, Dragon!” Ba’al shouted. “I’ll show you! I not as stupid as you think I am!”

The cocoons all hatched at once, instantly filling the room. Every one of the Chimeras was overcharged with red lightning.

Erin glared sharply at Aedan who looked away from her with a drop of sweat rolling down his temple.

“You are invincible but what of your lover?” Ba’al sneered.

“I ain’t his lover, damn it!” Erin retorted.

Aedan snorted, his gaze directed at Ba’al. “Are you going to bite anytime soon or are you gonna keep barking?”

“Hmph,” the Necromancer huffed. “So be it, foolish Dragon! You will regret this mockery.”

“Pfft,” Aedan blew his lips in response.

The Chimeras all converged to Erin, even the ones who had encircled Aedan.

Instead of a frown, a grin adorned her natural alluring expression. “It’s about time you reveal your tricks, Aedan.”

“Ah, I was seen through, huh.” Without putting in any effort, he traversed through the swarm of Chimeras and arrived beside Erin.

“You’re an asshole but… I trust you.”

A glimpse of shock swept past Aedan’s expression but a smile replaced his shock. “You a natural, dearie. Sometimes I wonder, how many hearts have you broken unaware?”

Erin rolled her eyes. The Chimeras swarmed them. “Cease your infernal yapping and do something already!” she shouted.

“Alright, alright,” Aedan muttered nonchalantly and took out a scroll from his subspace. He undid the seal on the scroll and unfolded it. The scroll glowed intensely and disappeared into glitters.

The Chimeras exploded all at once. The room, tunnels, the entirety of the cave, trembled with a violent force that even shook the monsters above ground. The clouds of dust shrouded the room housing the now-broken throne of the Necromancer.

“Dragon! Come out!” Ba’al shouted in a rasped voice. He took a few breathers before continuing. “I know you’re alive. I doubt the explosion had even left a scratch on you. I know the Fox-kin lives. She’s hard to kill but it will take her quite a while to resurrect.” After his last word, blood came pouring out from his mouth. He fell to his knees but he refused to let his whole body collapse.

“Whatever tricks you have left in your sleeves, it won’t work against a Dragon, especially a Dragon with a level difference of more than fifty,” Aedan said, sauntering out of the smoke unscathed. He made his way slowly to the Necromancer.

“You... can’t do anything to me... If you used your magic, I… would have been dead… already. You didn’t use your magic… you can’t use it...” Ba’al chuckled. “Which means… you can do nothing to me...”

“I still have my fists”

Ba’al tittered. “Irrelevant... You can destroy my... corporeal form but... you can’t kill me...”

“But I can incapacitate you until Erin comes back from the dead.”

“If she comes back, that is.” Ba’al burst into laughter.

Aedan furrowed his brows.

“I am a practitioner of… Necromancy... Death Magic. My thralls and familiars... could do nothing against her but me… I can simply harvest her soul… now that she is within the range… of my Necromancy… while she is still… dead.”

“Counterpoint, if she’s dead, that is,” Aedan said.

Ba’al was confused at first but his eyes widened at the realization. He glanced over to the spot where Erin’s corpse was supposed to be but not even a trace of her blood could be found.

“You’re as dim as this cave is, Ba’al,” came Erin’s voice from his back but it was all too late for him to move. A blade went right through his chest from behind, a single-edged blade made of silver-steel. The blade was clad in Arcane Edge and lightning.

“H-how did you survive…?” Ba’al asked as blood spouted from his mouth. “With your level… that’s impossible...”

“Magic scroll, dumbass,” it was Aedan who answered. “I came prepared, to a certain extent. The magic scroll contains my Spatial Magic spell, Domain. It isn’t as powerful as the one I conjured but it lasted long enough to protect Erin from all the explosions you unleashed in a single instance.”

“Y-you… tricked me...”

“Wasn’t that hard. You are nothing but a frog in a well, a Goblin that has never left its cave. Now Erin, would you do the honours?”

“Pleasure,” Erin answered and unleashed Aura Shot with her blade still stuck within Ba’al. The Aura Shot ripped right through him and completely scattered his upper body into bits. The remaining bottom half of Ba’als body collapsed to the ground and the red lightning within spilled to the ground before dissipating.

“This feels… therapeutic,” Erin muttered with a slight smile.

Aedan stared at the ground. “Don’t let your guard down now, Erin. It ain’t over yet.”

“I know,” Erin said. “I didn’t receive any experience. What do you think it’s going to happen now?” She used Life Sense but without the presence of Spirits, it didn’t work. “Welp, it was worth the try.”

“Did you notice his Innate Skill, Crimson Lotus?”

“I noticed. What is that skill? Appraisal wasn’t able to give any information regarding it.”

“I could be wrong but it’s most likely a more potent form of Crimson Arc.”

“Crimson Arc?”

“It’s a skill most commonly used by the kings in the east. You could say it’s something akin to pseudo-immortality. It converts one’s soul into pure magic, allowing one to transfer their soul into another body but the Crimson Arc I know it’s a convoluted skill. The transfer of the soul takes plenty of preparation, not something people can do just willy-nilly.”

“Willy-nilly?”

“It means random or at a whim.”

“You think Ba’al found a way to make the transfer process simpler?”

“I don’t think he did anything with it. That could be his divine gift. In simpler words, he could use the carcasses in this room as its vessel.”

“Then how do we kill it? How do we kill… magic?”

“Mystic Blade, you can’t use that?”

“That’s not an option right now.”

“Touche.”

“Touche? Oh, that means “understandable”, right?”

Aedan nodded. “If you can’t use that… then we only have one more option,” he said and scattered cyan-coloured powder around them.

“The Spirit bait?”

“Most of the miasma has been absorbed by the Necromancer, leaving the air clean enough for the Spirits to dwell if someone can invoke them.”

“That someone is you?”

Aedan nodded and sat on his knees, closing his eyes. He took a deep breath. “Cover me. When the Spirits are invoked, use Essence Flare to burn that bastard into crisp.”

“You sure you can do that without… breaking your seal?”

“This is not a spell. Just an invocation. It doesn’t require me to use my Mana, only my affinity with Spirits. And make sure I’m not disturbed. I need to be still for this.”

“You have got to be joking, A—” A movement in the corner of her gaze caught her attention.

A carcass of a Dog-head Snake Chimera in the distance rose from the ground with red lightning crackling all over it.

“Well, Aedan… be quick about it. I doubt I could keep up with someone who’s undying.”

“I have utter faith in you.”

“You could have at least left me some scrolls first.”

“Nothing that could help your situation. Plus, these scrolls aren’t easy to come by. I have utter faith in your abilities.”

As soon as he said that, a red lightning bolt was fired from the Chimera’s mouth, towards Aedan. Erin moved into the lightning bolt’s path and blocked it with an Arcane Aegis. She raised an eyebrow at the slight crack on her Arcane Aegis. A small grin appeared on her lips.

Erin sighed and distributed her ability points to Arcane and Finesse fairly.

“Welp… round two it is.”

Erinthea - Faerie-kin: Five-Tailed Fox-kin

Level: 31 | Status: Mild Exhaustion

Might: 22 | Arcane: 41 | Finesse: 36

Magic Arts

Spirit Magic Lv. 8 | Arcane Edge Lv. 5 | Arcane Armor Lv. 10 | Lightning Magic Lv. 10 | Arcane Aegis Lv. 7 | Mystic Tail Arts Lv 1

Combat Arts

Sword Art Lv. 8 | Fleet Foot Lv. 5 | Brawler Lv. 5

Innate Skills

Appraisal Lv. Ex | Night Vision Lv. Ex | Sixth Sense Lv. Ex | Toxin Resistance Lv. 8 | Lust Deviant Lv. Ex | Mana Harvest Lv. 1 | Lightning Resistance Lv. 1

Unique Talent

Mystic Blade Lv. Ex | Revenant Lv. Ex

Level Progression: 29%

Remaining Skill Points: 2

Remaining Ability Points: 0