Chapter 8 – Swinging The Chain

Meanwhile Lily woke up, though she was left speechless after seeing the status and skills of Hall. She couldn’t believe that she was now part of something that would be worth writing books and songs about. She was a little scared but mainly excited and incredibly happy she met Hall.

When she heard Grim’s explanation about their shared mana pool her heart jumped in joy. She wouldn’t hold Hall back and could even fight together with him.

When Hall noticed that Lily was awake he went up to her. “I hope it is ok with you that I accepted the class and the responsibility that comes with it.” Of course she was, so she nodded furiously with an excited glimmer in her eyes.

“All right, then please show me your status window and skills.” She was a little worried her skills wouldn’t hold up to his, still she also was curious if she had somehow changed. She wanted to, badly, she was sick of being weak, wanted finally to be able to really support Hall.

“Show Status window and skills.”

Status WindowName:LilithAlignment:DeathLevel:12Class: Familiar of the Harbinger of DeathRace:Human (Spirit)Gender:FemaleTitles:Lady in Black-Health:0 / 350Health Regen:0.5/ SecMana:7030 / 6015Mana Regen:29.8 / SecStamina:-Stamina Regen:--Strenght:32Agility:34Vitality:25Luck:29Intelligence:261Wisdom:311-Attack:3Defense:-Magical ResistanceFire:10%Water:10%Wind:10%Earth:10%Lightning:10%Illsuion:40%Light:10%Darkness:40%+ 15 added to all stats

+ Intelligence and Wisdom stat raised by 20 points

+ Magical Resistances raised by 10%

+ Resistance to Illusion and Darkness Magic raised by an additional 30%

+ Unaffected by physical attacks if not in corporeal form

+ Increases magical damage if the target is affected by the magic of the Harbinger of Death

+ Soul bound to Hall, the Harbinger of Death

+ Unknown

Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:Soul Meets BodyBeginner10%After restoring part of your soul you are able to regain your body for a short amount of time.

Effects:

You can affect your surroundings

You are able to deal physical damage

You are able to receive physical damage

Invisible and untraceable until corporeal

Cost: 8 mana / sec

Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:Angels don’t killBeginner10%To avoid harming innocent souls you are able to create mana chains that pin down the enemy without harming them. You are able to conjure three chains at the same time.

Effects:

Mana chains have 200 health

If the mana chains are destroyed they will cause a shockwave stunning the target for 1 second without dealing damage

Range: 30m

Duration: if not destroyed a chain has a lifespan of 3min

Cost: 60 mana / chain

Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:Spiritual HealingBeginner10%As a spiritual being you are close to death. Having a contract with the Harbinger of Death allows you to transform mana into health.

Effects:

transforms 1 mana into 1 health point

transformation rate 5 mana / sec

Cost: 5 mana / sec (will be transformed into health)

Spell has to be channeled

Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:Voice of the SoulBeginner10%Your voice gives your allies strength. In times of despair you can give them hope. In times of grief comfort and in times of battle courage.

Effects:

Allies can only hear you if you are corporeal

Your soul bound partner can hear you anytime

Cost: depending on the subskill used

Only one song bonus can be active at the same time

Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:The Sound of Perseverance (Subskill of Voice of the Soul)Beginner10%In dire situations this song will grant the strength to persist when others fall.

Effects:

Willpower (Fighting Spirit if Willpower stat is not available) raised by 7.5%

Endurance is raised by 5%

Effect duration after the song is finished: 10min

Cost: 80 mana

Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:I will follow you into the Dark (Subskill of Voice of the Soul)Beginner10%Although betrayed before, you are finally able to trust again. When you sing only for the one who thawed your frozen heart you lay bare your very soul for him and only he will be able to hear your voice.

Effects:

Stamina consumption is reduced by half

Endurance and Willpower is raised by 10%

Effect duration after the song is finished: 5min

Cost: 120 mana

Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:Prayer for the Dying (Subskill of Voice of the Soul)Beginner10%In the midst of battle there is always hopelessness and fear. Those dying cry out for salvation which you can grant.

Effects:

Allies gain courage and a higher morale even if confronted with great obstacles

Enemies that hear your song will have a reduced will to fight

Effect duration after the song is finished: 10min

Cost: 60 mana

Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:Tears of HeavenBeginner10%You had to endure incredible hardships, your soul was tormented, your heart felt sorrow and your companion was punished for staying by your side. The souls of the dead cry for you. A rain of tears will fall from the heavens and annihilate your enemy.

Effects:

devastating Area of effect damage

Area of effect can be controlled with a maximum radius of 2m

Range: 25m

Casting time: 25 sec

Cost: 100 mana / sec for every meter of radius

Spell has to be channeled

Silence spread between them as they were all speechless. Her stats weren’t that surprising, her intelligence and wisdom were off the charts but she spent decades in a tower with nothing to do but study and read. Back then the now destroyed books must have been intact and who knows what kind of knowledge they contained. It was the skills that let them stare in wonder.

Grim was the first one to speak.

“This is…unusual, familiar spirits shouldn’t be affected to this extent by the class of their contractor.” But then she sighed and smiled while shaking her head. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised anymore when it comes to you two.”

Hall and Lily had to agree, those skills were pretty amazing and Lily was glowing with excitement. She would be more than useful this way. Meanwhile Hall was already thinking about ways of fighting together.

It was almost as if there was one more player by his side, of course he would only gain half the experience from killing mobs as the other half would go to Lily but that was a price he’d pay gladly.

After they regained their composure after what had happened these past minutes Grim looked a little bit sad. “It’s time to part ways now, as I said, I will monitor your growth and I will visit again when my duties permit it, for now I have something to ask of you.

North of here there is an abandoned mine. Over a thousand years ago it was used by the Sorian people as a testing ground for their alchemy and a variety of dark spells. After the churches ordered their destruction there was no one left to keep the experiments in check so the magic ran rampant.

When a group of goblins made the mine their new home they were corrupted by the dark powers left behind. They began to use black magic to turn the wild animals of the forest into undead slaves, something I cannot allow.”

*Ding*

Quest: Master of PuppetsCorrupted and changed by darkness a group of goblins killed and enslaved the souls of countless innocent animals of the forest turning them into mindless beasts. Show them who really rules over death.

Difficulty: D

Quest requirements:

kill all goblins in the abandoned mine

free the enslaved souls of the undead creatures

Rewards: Closer relationship with nature

Failure: abandon quest

Failure will result in increased activity of the goblins. If left alone for too long they will attack the nearby villages.

This would be a good opportunity to test his skills and as the enemy seemed to use dark magic he would have an advantage with his high resistance.

“Of course I will help you, though could you tell me a little more about the location of the mine? It would also be really helpful to know if there is a village nearby, I really should get a weapon and maybe some armor.”

Quest accepted

Grim seemed relieved, another problem would be taken care of, even if it was only a miniscule matter considering the state of the world. But she had to be careful, no matter how impressive her new confidante was, he was still very weak.

“Thank you, as I said the mine is north of here, if you follow the road leading away from the tower you will find a crossing within a few hours, follow the dirt road that leads straight north. It’s easier than running through the forest. After around three days you will come across a small village of hunters and farmers.

The mine you seek is around five days further north, you just have to follow the road. The people there will probably know about the mine so you could ask them for a map.”

With a smile on her face and a little sadness in her eyes she started to wave at them. “Now then, goodbye and Godspeed my friends, oh and you should take care of those before they get too close.” She pointed at three skeletons crawling out of the graves beside the tower ruins.

They finally respawned after getting destroyed by the rogues in Belinda’s party weeks ago.

Hall welcomed them with a grin, but before that he had to say goodbye to Grim.

“I hope to see you again soon Grim, I’m really grateful for your help and I will do everything in my power to not disappoint you.” Lily also smiled as she said her goodbyes and waved at Grim before they both turned around to face the skeletons.

Meanwhile the girl who was death showed a somber smile, happy she found such amazing companions and sad for what she had to put them through. ‘I hope you won’t curse me Hall, I’m sorry but I need you…’ With this thought she disappeared like a shadow in the sun.

Meanwhile Hall unwrapped his chains and imbued them with soul energy. The dull black chains, thick as a forearm and each link around the size of a fist, started to glow in a blue light, pulsating as if alive.

Every now and then there was a spot of black, soiling the somewhat beautiful sight. Hall wasn’t sure but guessed it was because his soul energy was tainted by the remaining magic of the tower, he just hoped it wouldn’t interfere with his power.

“Lily, bind the two skeletons in the back with your mana chains, I want to try to fight a single one first.”

They were around ten meters away when Lily used her spell and yellow glowing chains shot from the ground entangling the feet of her targets and making them unable to move. When the third one was close enough Hall used his Soul Perception skill, trying to get some information on the skeleton.

He felt…nothing. Although clearly standing before him it was as if no one was there. It seemed like the skeletons weren’t undead bound to this world but just a bunch of bones tied together by magic. ‘Interesting, I guess not all undead have a soul.’

He started to swing his chains, waiting for the skeletons to come closer. When it reached the range of his improvised weapons he swung it with full force aiming from the top, trying to crush the skeleton’s skull and missed it by half a meter. ‘Guess it won’t be that easy, hm?”

This time he swung the chain on his left arm from the side, aiming at the chest area. It hit.

With the force of a full swing it crashed several bones, smashing the skeleton against of what remained of the tower walls, resulting in a rain of bricks falling on the skeleton on the ground.

He felt slight pain the moment the chain imbued with soul energy hit the enemy, but it wasn’t so bad and at least he could raise his endurance not only when defending but also while attacking, even if it was only by a little.

Its legs were shattered, the arm that was hit by the chain was nothing but bone dust and half of its skull and its thorax caved in after being hit by the falling stones. Yet it still tried to move forward, his remaining hand clawing the ground before him, moving inch by inch closer to him while moaning pitiful.

He felt almost bad, so when he approached the half destroyed enemy he swung with both chains at the same time, trying to crush it from above. And missed again, pummeling the broken bricks into dust.

After another failed attempt he slowly got the hang of it, so he adjusted his stance and let the chains fly, not only gaining force from his arms but from his whole body. When both chains hit the skull and the rest of the skeleton at the same time he heard a brutal smashing sound.

The remaining bones were shattered into bits and scattered into all directions by the pressure wave caused by the combined force of the chains. ‘Alright, that’s not so hard, I think I got it.’

He signaled Lily and as soon as the mana shackles disappeared she cast them again on only one of the remaining skeletons. It again only stood unmoving as the chains bound it. A mindless tool to kill, not even trying to free itself.

Hall used the other skeleton as target practice again but without delivering crushing blows as he wanted to get used to the chains. When countless cracks appeared on most of the bones and it could barely move anymore, he set out to finish it off. “Lily, how about a song, you are not using a lot of you mana right now and leveling your skills is just as important as leveling mine.” She nodded and started to use her Voice of the Soul while he continued.

It had an obvious effect on him and although it was not necessary he felt even more determined to fight.

Again he swung both chains at the same time closing in on the skeleton from different sides. While the left chain wrapped itself around the skeletons legs, the right chain was winded around its neck. “Mana Drain.”

It showed no effect as the skeletons probably had no mana and he couldn’t drain the magic that was used to keep them moving, not yet anyway. He suspected he found a downside to his skills. After Mark of Death and Soul distortion also failed he was sure.

Without having a soul, without the capability to fear, an enemy would be immune to many of his skills. ‘It’s alright as long as they are this weak but I have to be careful if I meet stronger types.’

Hall didn’t know the skeletons he fought were almost twenty levels higher than himself, but his powerful class allowed him to toy with them.

Shrugging with his shoulders he yanked the chains in opposite direction, ripping apart the heavily damaged skeleton, again scattering bones everywhere. He nodded barely noticing and turned to Lily while pointing at the last skeleton.

“Alright Lily, please let me see your Tears of Heaven skill.” She nodded, closed her eyes and started to cast her strongest attack spell.

When she was almost done Hall opened his mouth in awe as he watched her. She was floating a meter over the ground with her arms stretched to the heavens, a white glow seemed to radiate from her, while her mouth formed the last syllables of the spell.

She looked so peaceful. Like an angel praying for those that died in battle. He had to tear his eyes off of her to observe the effects of the spell.

In a small area around the still chained skeleton the cloudy sky seemed to be torn asunder while glowing drops of light rained down on the monster. Every time a drop hit the enemy a magic explosion shook the skeleton, breaking bones and shattering its skull in front of their eyes and after only three seconds it was completely destroyed.

The last drops rained down on the scattered ribs, skull, legs and fingers and continued to damage the lifeless bones. It was shocking view. Beautiful, sad and cruel. “God job Lily, we’ll train that skill, but you should be careful. It’s incredibly powerful, but also drains your mana very fast.”

She agreed as she trembled slightly after she saw what kind of devastation she just caused, she didn’t even want to think about what would happen if she would unleash it on a wider area full of people.

When all skeletons were destroyed Hall picked up a few bones they left behind as loot and looked around. He gathered a few berries and nuts just to have some food for emergencies.

He looked at the rusty gate he came in with Belinda and her friends. It wasn’t even that long ago, still it almost felt like another life. He had to remember that this was a game, he seemed to forget that sometimes.

Before they left the area he logged out again after telling Lily and this time actually took two hours to train his body. He ate and showered and even thought about leaving his room for the first time in several days but decided against it.

The plans concerning time management he made before he started playing were gone, so he would just go with his gut. He took a nap before checking online for new information he might have missed but didn’t find anything that made him gasp.

He read something about rare stats other than his own as there was nothing written about willpower. There seemed to be more common ones, usually accompanied by a class, like Honor or Art and rarer ones like Perception or Finesse. There was also barely anything about those.

So when he didn’t find anything interesting he ate a snack, logged back in and greeted Lily who was happy as always to see him.

Hall was already about to head to the gate when he remembered the weird flowers he saw at the gravestones, so he went to collect them and although Lily had no idea what they were, he still put them in his inventory as they seemed…special.

When he approached the gate to leave this cursed place he felt excitement. He would finally go out into the world. When he arrived at the wall he noticed a fidgeting Lily and asked her if there was something wrong.

She looked at him a little nervous. “You know, it’s the first time for me to see the world outside the tower for centuries. My family long dead, no place to call home, I think I’m a little scared”

Hall sighed and turned to her, thinking what a fool he was for not thinking about her. “You don’t have to worry Lily, as long I’m here you always have a place in this world as well as a family.”

Lily smiled with wet eyes, nodded and even went ahead of him. When they actually crossed the threshold between the cursed land and the world they wanted to travel they let out a deep breath.

It was as if they were letting go of their worries and their pain, like finally breathing fresh air after spending too much time underground. It was liberating and elevating.

*Ding*

Quest: Rest for the WickedQuest complete

The quest that was given to you under false pretense and that was part of the ploy to betray you and leave you to die was deemed impossible to solve. Against all odds you did it.

The Banshee’s soul found peace at your side because you set her free and gave her the ability to trust again.

Reward: Because you not only completed the quest but also broke the curse, those that profited from the betrayal will have their benefits revoked.

You have leveled up!

You have leveled up!

You have leveled up!

Hall and Lily looked at each other and started to laugh. They laughed so hard they he had to sit down and so loud they chased away any animals around them.

*Ding*

Quest: Carry on my Wayward SonQuest complete

You and Lilith managed to lift the Grand Curse of Shattered Trust and to leave the area after destroying the tower.

Rewards: Part of your soul has been cleansed. Soul Energy has become stronger.

You have leveled up!

You have leveled up!

You have leveled up!

You have leveled up!

Quest Part 2 Unlocked

*Ding*

Quest: Carry on my Wayward Son – Part 2After lifting the curse, Lily’s soul is still not complete. Dravan, who made the curse, still holds part of it after draining her soul energy for so long. Rip it from him.

Difficulty: C

Quest requirements:

Succesfully lifted the Grand Curse of Shattered Trust from you and Lilith

Rewards: Unknown

Failure: abandon Lily

Without hesitation Hall accepted the quest, they had to defeat Dravan anyway, so this was like killing two birds with one stone. Maybe he could even get another quest concerning Dravan from Death. Although it would probably take a while for them to get to Dravan so it was better not to think about it now and concentrate on the task at hand.

So they followed the dirt road leading into the forest. Hall hoped for some battle with wolves or foxes as he read online those were some of the animals you met inside a forest but for some reason they didn’t find a single one no matter how hard they looked.

When he asked Lily why that was she at least had a good guess. “That’s probably because animals have far better instincts than most humans, they feel you possess power that is beyond them. That’s a little different from the people who try to hide from us in the bushes over there.”

She pointed at the crossing ahead. ‘Probably the one Grim mentioned, wait, people?’

Hall didn’t notice them as the crossing was still around fifty meters away. “How do you know Lily?” It wasn’t like he didn’t believe her, he was just curious.

“You do know I fly in the air right? I can see them ducking behind some bushes, I can see three but there are probably more.” Of course he saw her floating about a meter above the ground, so he rolled with his eyes as he thought it was something a little bit more special.

“Alright, them hiding means probably that they are bandits.” ‘Isn’t this a pretty worn out stereotype? Meh, doesn’t matter.’

“Just have to destroy them then, hope you don’t mind Lily?” Although he was very low level he was sure he could take out a couple of bandits in some backwater kingdom. He might even get some weapons and armor.

Lily shook her head, she always hated those that did bad things to other people for their own gains. After what happened to her she was even more convinced. Evil must be punished.

Knowing what was to come they stepped into the crossing. The leaf cover of the trees surrounding them let them glimpse into a bright blue sky. Hall hadn’t seen the sun in quite a while and for Lily it had been longer by far. So although there was some around the area of the tower it had somehow seemed dimmer than usual.

So they both enjoyed the rays of the sun, smiling, while in front of them four men in shabby leather armor lined up after crawling out of the bush work. Hall was disappointed, there was no way he would wear clothes and armor this dirty, who knows what they did with them.

He could also hear a few people coming up from behind, but couldn’t really tell how many as they were out of his Soul Perception range. “Three from behind, so seven in total.”

Thankfully Lily told him.

One of the bandits that seemed to be the leader stepped closer to him. He was half a head taller than Hall, who was already pretty tall, his clothes were stained with blood, dirt and more stuff he didn’t even want to know. His hair long and unkempt. His leather armor was mismatched as is was obviously put together without much thought and was already seriously damaged.

The only imposing thing beside his height and his figure was the huge rusty two-handed sword on his back.

His appalling grin showed dirty and partially rotten teeth. “Well, hello there young traveler. All alone in a dark forest? That is not very safe you know, there are unruly fellows in these woods.

You are lucky you met good folk like us who will escort you to the next village for just a small fee.” Hall rolled with his eyes again. ‘Soooo clichéd…’

He looked around and noticed that all seven of them hadn't pulled their weapons yet. So they were pretty confident in dealing with a single man. Of course they didn't know he wasn’t alone.

Compared to their leader the rest of the men seemed to be even dirtier and worse equipped, even when Hall had no idea how they managed that. It was almost like they soiled them on purpose. When their leader spoke his men chuckled, it seemed to be something of a joke to them.

Though they wouldn't laugh much longer. Still, Hall had to be careful, he was very powerful for his level but he couldn't tell how strong his opponents were. They seemed to be used to battle as their weapons showed traces of use, they were cheap, had notches and jags all over but they also were covered in dried blood.

When his men stopped their laughing the captain continued to talk with an evil grin. “Now then, why don't you drop everything you have on you and I can almost guaranty you, you won't be killed by cruel bandits within the next hour.”

After he activated his Soul Perception to sense the bandit's soul in front of him he started to frown. It was somewhat disgusting, he couldn't get a clear grasp as his skill level was still too low, but it was enough. It was as if a mix of red and black sludge was oozing out from the man's body.

It felt like death and suffering, but not a tormenting one, it was as if he could hear evil laughter and smell blood. He was sure, this man enjoyed spreading pain. 'Let's see how he likes to experience it.'

When the other bandits entered his range of Soul Perception he could feel similar things from them, pain, hatred, torment, hostility and overall lay the joy in dominating others by bringing them pain. It was revolting and made him angry.

Lily knew from looking at Hall and felt it from their connection. Today they would become death. Their bond was useful as there was no need to talk in front of others, no need for explanation. Only during battle they still needed some coordination as they just weren't used to it yet.

Hall let the chain on his right arm drop to the ground while the left one remained wrapped around his hand and his forearm. He wasn't sure he could coordinate two chains while watching out for seven men at the same time, so he decided to use one chain for defense and the other to attack.

“Now, why don't you drop everything you have right now or do you want me to help you with it?” The leader stepped closer to him, releasing a decent amount of killing intent. A normal person would probably be impressed and intimidated but Hall didn't even flinch.

The big man was irritated and started to get angry at the still motionless Hall. “You little punk, you ignoring me hm? I'll show you...” He released even more killing intent, enough to make a decent fighter tremble in fear. Though Hall still wasn't fazed, he thought he should take him more seriously. Someone with that kind of aura had probably done his fair share of killing.

The other bandits also took out their weapons, although they didn't show any tension, as Hall was alone. Instead they started to grin, expecting to get some fun out of torturing and killing another victim. Lily looked at them in disgust.

Hall got ready to fight and whispered. “Lily, put some shackles on the boss here and the two next to him, then pick a nice song, please use your heal if my health drops too low.”

Without waiting for Lily's confirmation he put a Mark of Death on the bandit closest to his back and imbued his chains with energy.

Within the blink of an eye the serene forest transformed into hell.

Hall turned around and jumped, swinging the thick glowing chain with his right arm at the enemy and smashing it in his confused face. Blood and teeth painted the bandit next to the headless body into a bizarre red figure. The bandits eyes went wide and the moment they realized what happened Halls left fist, strengthened by the chain around it, slammed into the jaw of another bandit, breaking it, every single tooth and the neck in the process.

It was a frightening scene. A man clothed in nothing but cheap linen, a man they considered a victim, suddenly summoned frightening chains around his arms and just killed two of their comrades in the blink of an eye, but it wasn't their first battle. They soon regained their composure and started to attack coordinated while covering each other.

Hall knew that, so he purposely picked those weakest looking to reduce their number and inspire some fear. It was a little bit of a bluff, hitting a standing target is one thing, but during a fight it would be different.

The leader and two others didn't notice the mana chains at their feet, so they stumbled and fell flat on their faces when they tried to run to him. Only one of the four approached him with a raised sword and at the same time the bandit beside him that was left out of the group of three that tried to close in from behind started to attack him with a mace.

Hall ducked under the spiked club, slamming his left fist into the bandit's gut,forcing him to the ground.

Out of the corner of his eyes he saw a sword cutting the air beside him. Barely managing to raise his left arm he blocked the swing with the chains around his arm.

It hurt as his soul energy blocked the strike, but it didn't do any damage as soul energy couldn't be cut through worldly means.

Still, Hall grunted under the force of the swing. He may have a lot of health for his level but he was almost unprotected and an attack like that would take a good chunk of his HP.

He barely had time to think about the enemy’s level as from behind two other guys approached. They had cut the mana chains and were now approaching him quickly.

“Lily when your song is done, tie down the arms and legs of one of them with all three chains and recast them when they are broken.”

Right now they had enough mana left and he couldn't fight against all of them at once.

Their leader somehow decided to not join the fight although he already cut his chains. He was still confused where those shackles came from and looked around for Hall's companion.

In the meantime Hall managed to put some distance between himself and the sword fighter.

It didn't look too god for him. One enemy was luckily tied and out of the fight for now, another one lay one ground vomiting blood, but far from dead. The leader checked the surroundings and two other guys were attacking him.

He was dodging left and right, blocking their attacks when he could. Only defending he got irritated and made a mistake. Thinking he saw an opening he shifted his stance to gain more momentum for a full swing. In the same moment the second vagabond launched at him from a deep stance, burring a dagger deep in his side.

-200 hp

'Crap!' The pain was bad, but nothing he couldn't handle. Jumping back he unwrapped his left chain. Both were tangling from his arms while he looked at the grinning bandits who thought they got him where they wanted. “Give up boy, those chains won't do you any good, just let us cut you to pieces.” He licked the knife with Hall's blood and shivered with excitement.

Instead Hall looked at them with piercing eyes. His chains slowly swinging by his side. It was almost like the bandits heard a melody that moment.

Hall, captivated by Lily's song, swung his chains lightly, in the rhythm of the melody. They started to resonate, exuding pressure of their own. It was a different song from Lily’s, darker, more threatening. Hall noticed the effect but now was not the time to think about it.

The bandits frowned after feeling fear creeping up on them, fear they couldn't explain.

Hall decided. Now or never. “Soul Pressure!” He jumped at the two, raising both chains at the same time, overwhelming them with his pressure. They lost all their color. Their lips trembled. They thought death was coming to take their souls.

Weeping and soiling themselves they raised their weapons without any power or conviction.

Halls chains crushed them both at the same time. They came from above like the hammer of the gods, shattering their weapons, their skulls and spines as Hall put in all his force.

He noticed, his chains could deal incredible damage if he put in enough strength, but if he hadn't or without the proper aim, he would hurt the enemy's limbs at best. But overwhelming the enemy's mind with his pressure, freezing them for a second, gave him the means to deliver a fatal blow.

Before the bandit leader could stomach seeing two of his men be utterly annihilated in a second, Hall swung his chain to crush the one that almost recovered from his body blow and splattered his brain all over the ground.

Well, he couldn't really tell if it was the brain, the realism stopped there to not attract the wrath of moralizers and whatnot. Hall just liked to think of it as the brain, after all, where the head should have been, there now was his chain rammed in the ground, covered in red.

Hall exhaled after he took a deep breath. Lily was still singing while he looked around. The mana chains on one of the bandits just disappeared and he looked at Hall with wide, fearful eyes, trying to get on his feet to run away.

The leader was nowhere to be seen. Of course Hall could, thanks to his skill, feel his presence in a bush four meters on his right. He probably waited for an opportunity to ambush him again.

Hall just shrugged, he had won the battle, now it was time to clean up the rest.

He ran to the now fleeing bandit, swinging his chain. When he let it fly it was wrapped around the bandit’s leg, yanking it back with full force, crushing bones and muscle. The man fell square on his face, screaming from pain.

Hall approached the wailing bandit slowly, using his soul pressure to instill fear and terror. The man's face grew even paler, his screams of pain changed into pleads for mercy, tears and snot ran over his face.

Hall stood over him like death ready to reap a soul. “Pitiful, a murderer and a thief, tormenting others for his own enjoyment and now look at you, you make me sick.”

His face contorted in disgust as he raised his arm to finish the miserable creature.

“W..wa..wait, do.. don't kill me, I'm a so...so...soldier of the ki..king.” Sobbing he tried to extend his life and seeing Hall hesitate, he continued talking.

“Yes, you know what happens to anyone who attacks a soldier of the king.” Lying on the ground he grabbed something inside his chest pocket and gave it to Hall now with a glimmer of hope inside his eyes.

At the same time a throwing knife pierced his throat. Hall, surprised, threw himself around, instinctively ducking under another knife aimed at him.

He saw the leader leaving the bushes, holding two new knives in his hands. “Man that fool, going against orders and spilling the beans just because he's a little scared. Because of him I had to give up on surprising you with a cute little knife in your neck, not that it was necessary.”

The man didn't seem to be saddened by the death of his subordinates, instead he put away his knifes and drew his big sword from his back and stepped in front of Hall.

Hall meanwhile frowned at the man who just killed one of his own without so much as a bitter face. Still, he took up a fighting stance again, wrapping the left chain around his arm and grabbing the right one.

The leader just stood there, casually holding the huge sword, letting it rest on his shoulder.

“Now before we continue, why don't you give me that thing you got from my subordinate? I'm afraid I can't let you have it.”

Hall was a little bit irritated at the calm and casual demeanor of the guy. Didn't he just witness his men being annihilated? Something was wrong, but it didn't change what he had to do.

He swung his chain without hesitation to crush the bandit leader who leisurely sidestepped the attack and ducked under the next one. Hall, now close enough, threw a punch, connecting with his chin.

The punch, which before killed a guy now only caused the bandit to grin. He stepped back, brought his hand to his face and wiped away a little blood that trickled from his lip. “Not so bad kiddo, no wonder you dealt with my men so easily, but you really should have tried to run.”

Now Hall was asking himself why this guy ever bothered to hide at all. 'Maybe he wasn't hiding, have to check it later... if I survive that is.’

Hall barely noticed the sword coming from above and dodged only by a centimeter. Jumping back he tried to sweep the blade with his chain but just hit the flat side of the metal, leaving a nasty gash in it.

The man frowned. “What a crappy weapon. I'll have to have a serious talk with some people when I get back.”

Hall was angered. Mostly with himself, he had an amazing class, a great helper and still couldn't deal with trash like this.

His Mark of Death at least slowed him down a little bit. Irritated over his drop in speed the bandit swung the sword now faster and stronger, without leaving any breathing time for Hall until finally he couldn't dodge anymore.

Instead he received the blade with his chain wrapped arm, blocking a blow that would kill him certainly. It still threw him back several meters, his arm was throbbing with pain. Although the chains protected him, he still lost over 200 hp blocking the heavy sword. His soul energy may be impenetrable, but blunt damage through sheer force still could harm him.

Still dizzy he saw the bandit running at him with ridiculous speed. Barely able to react he raised his left arm again. Three devastating blows rained down on him. Again he received serious damage with each hit.

-196 hp

-209 hp

-188 hp

‘Ah crap, I still have over 10% health, but he'll kill me with the next blow, so my last resort skill won't kick in.' Lily tried to heal against the damage but it dropped insanely fast.

With a last ditch effort he swung his chain at the enemy's legs. The man didn't bother to stop it as he raised his sword for the killing blow.

Hall's weapon wrapped around his legs a second before his sword would make contact. “Soul distortion.”

Through his Soul Perception he figured out how to throw him off and managed to distort his soul balance as soon as his chains made contact. The bandit screamed more in surprise than from pain and diverted the sword so it pierced the ground next to Hall’s head.

He was a lot stronger than Hall had given him credit for. Just because Hall had a great class now he thought he would be invincible, what a fool he was.

Still, he was determined to win this battle. Who cares if the odds were against him?

Lying on the ground he kicked the tall man's chest with both legs and all the force he had left, pushing him a meter away.

Hall let the left chain unwrap and swung it at the unbalanced vagabond, winding it around his neck. “Mana Drain”. Grinning he sucked the mana out of the fuming man, who approached him with a roar. He was furious, Hall made a mockery out of him. He who was one of the strongest of his clan, he who never lost a battle.

But Hall used Soul Distortion again, throwing him off balance and by pulling the chains he knocked him to the ground. He actually wanted to question him, but he was too dangerous to be left alive.

Instead he whispered coldly. “Death found you, as it will find all evil. Lily, let tears fall.”

Hall wasn't sure his chains could damage him fast enough so he decided to play it safe.

The bandit started to struggle as he saw Lily casting her spell, but it was useless. As soon as he was almost up, Hall just knocked him back down.

He was screaming, squirming and roaring in rage. When he fell on his back again, drops of light started to fall on him. He stopped struggling as he watched the beautiful sight.

When the first drop touched his face his eyes went wide, he tried to fight the chains again and his mouth opened, screaming in agony. The tears falling from the sky continued to damage the bandit each time they touched him. Soon enough he stopped struggling, then he stopped screaming, stopped moving and in the end he stopped breathing.

You have leveled up!

Hall let his chains disappear and breathed heavily, lying on the ground while Lily stood over him to restore his health.

“That was way too close for comfort, Lily, I wonder what level they were...and what did that one guy say? They were soldiers of the king?”

Before getting the loot he took out the parchment given to him and started to read. His eyes went wide in shock and then he started shaking with anger.

Back to Main Page

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Author’s Note:

Really hope you liked the new chapter

Well, we got our first fight and it was also the first time I ever wrote a fighting scene, so I’m sure it’s far from perfect but I’ll try to improve, promise

:grin:

Oh and as always, please tell me your opinions, suggestions and point out any mistakes you find, I really appreciate your support

:bye: