Chapter 30: Fight, Fight, Fight

[System Notice: Mob encounters will adjust to your Potential Level. Potential Level takes into account your Level, Attributes, Equipment, Abilities, and Class. Warning: Mob encounters can kill you.]

[System Notice: Calculating your Potential Level…: 57]

[System Notice: Your match is about to begin.]

57? There’s no way—where is the system pulling this crock of shit from? I was suddenly enveloped in an aura of white as I was transported to one side of the coliseum amidst my thinking. The coliseum, however, was empty. No one to cheer, no one to jeer. There was just silence as I stood in the empty arena.

I saw an aura of purple streamed along with black swirling across the coliseum. From within the aura, a beast began materializing. It stood ten feet tall, and monstrous horns erected from its head. The earth crumbled as it took steps, hooves pounding the ground.

[System Notice: Your match has begun.]

I took in the full sight of the beast, it's bull-like features standing out as it's data came forth.

[Crazed Minotaur, Minotaurus, Labyrinth Seeker, Lv57]

It's bronze body glistened a reddish hue as actual steam surfaced off its hide, eyes flushed red. It was quite the distance away, but considering its size and my perception, I could see clearly enough. It charged itself up as if it was the ancestor of bulls, horns held low as it stepped off with one of its legs, getting down on all fours. I didn't think Minotaurs did that, but here it was in all its glory.

I instantly got ready for the fight—immediately activating {Adrenaline} to bolster my fighting capability. I wasn't sure if I needed to use my 'Ashen Gladius' or my 'Vanquisher', but I, of course, loaded a mana bolt and fired away at the beast. It dodged my bolt as it quickly turned, rolling over into a two-hooved position and continuing its charge. I loaded another as it quickly made its way over to me. Considering its high level, I would have to rely on {Shrouded Shadow}, my shield definitely not able to resist the attack of a level 57 named and titled boss.

I let a bolt fly, instantly loading another and rapid firing where I expected it to dodge. Its body contorted in a fashion completely unimaginable to me, a ten-foot-tall monstrosity acting nimbly as its charge never once stopped, dodging both my shots as its face was in front of mine—the beast being back on four legs. Minotaurus thrust its two horns at me, and I took the opportunity to put in a point-blank shot as {Shrouded Shadow} activated.

[Crazed Minotaur, Minotaurus, Labyrinth Seeker, Lv57, takes 17400 damage.]

Completely unresisted. Minotaurus had been wide, where physically dodging the attack would take much more ability than I could cater right now. I activated {Sudden Slumber} as I landed on this wild beast's back, jumping off after the sleep was successful. Then I turned around, activating {Mana Bolt} and firing it off at the Minotaurus.

[Crazed Minotaur, Minotaurus, Labyrinth Seeker, Lv57, takes 17400 damage.]

I took a step back as the Labyrinth Seeker awoke due to the attack. It instantly twisted and kicked back as it landed on its front hooves, and I barely dodged the sudden attack.

How does it move like that? I realized I made a mistake after taking my shot while it slept. I should have let it sleep longer, and as my attack was unresisted—charged up a more powerful shot. I kept the idea in mind as Minotaurus struck again. My {Sudden Slumber} cooldown was lowered due to {Adrenaline}, so I kept myself in the shadows as the Crazed Minotaur was unable to ascertain my position. It started crashing its horns into the ground, causing small, disturbing ruptures.

The beast suddenly stopped, looking straight in my direction. It started its charge back up, running where I was currently at. I activated the blink before it could crash into me, which would have wasted one of my blinks, going up and over the Crazed Minotaur. It must have had some weird sense, as I shot a mana bolt at it, but its body once again moved strangely and dodged it.

All these missed shots… The rate at which I fired was wasting my mana, even though I had {Heart and Soul of a Troll}, I only regened mana every minute. If I kept this up, I’d eventually be pretty low on mana, and mana was what let {Shrouded Shadow} keep me safe.

I swapped to ‘Ashen Gladius’ to lower my mana usage, letting it regen as I focused on dodging where I could and {Shrouded Shadow} activating otherwise. Hitting Minotaurus with my ‘Ashen Gladius’ proved much easier as it decided to trade hit-for-hit. This boss was almost twice the level of Kritikikuku and Kaiser, and its health was definitely much more than twice those. {Sudden Slumber} came off cooldown so I decided to use it, putting Minotaurus to rest.

This is it. Minotaurus stood still as it slept, and my mana regened to 63. I needed to keep enough for another bout of {Shrouded Shadow}, so I swapped ‘Ashen Gladius’ to ‘Vanquisher’, loaded {Mana Bolt} with 50 mana, and fired the heavy bolt from the enlarged ‘Vanquisher’ at the Labyrinth Seeker. Come on, {Lucky Strike}!

[Crazed Minotaur, Minotaurus, Labyrinth Seeker, Lv57, takes 87000 damage.]

The damage was huge, but the Minotaurus still stood. Fuck ‘Potential Level’. I felt like I was put in a big disadvantage. Sure, I was strong in some aspects, but I was still Level 11. One thing that came to mind though, as I was now attempting to dodge the awoken Minotaurus, was why I wasn’t instilled with the same fear I had felt back on Floor 6. I was at an over 40 level difference in this fight, but… I didn’t feel death breathing down my back.

My dodging, however, was getting better against the Crazed Minotaur, and I slowly cut into it a few more times with ‘Ashen Gladius’ trading hit-for-hit. And finally, an anticlimactic finish happened as the beast lay dead after running itself into me.

[System Notice: You gained 240000 EXP.]

[System Notice: You gained attribute(s) through battle. Strength increased by 1. Agility increased by 2.]

[System Notice: You learned a new Ability through {Assimilation}. You learned {Labyrinthal Shift}.]

{Labyrinthal Shift} - An active ability. Once activated, you will bend space as needed to avoid all incoming attacks for a short period. No cooldown. Requirements: 100 Agility. Mana Cost: 100.

An aura of light enveloped me as I was moved back into the waiting room, noticing two other players still there—or having already returned from their own fights. I also noticed my mana and health completely regenerated to full.

That was a very large amount of experience points—almost putting me to Level 12! If I keep this up then, perhaps I could make up some lost experience. That ability though. I won’t be able to use it for quite a long time, if ever, but it's almost like an invincibility-type ability. So it wasn’t necessarily my aim.

[System Notice: Quest progress: 1/10, 0/5]

[System Notice: Currently awaiting all players. Two more players remain.]

I thought that I took a long time for my coliseum fight, but it turns out two more players were still in theirs—Nadia and Gregory.

“I would ask you your Potential Level,” Someone started speaking to me—Davorin—as he walked from the location he had been at, “But I’m sure I’ll see it, and regrettably accept my loss, when we go against one another.”

“So, players can see their competitors’ Potential Levels? That’s interesting.” I looked towards the woman with green-dyed hair, but she was in her own world. I then glanced towards Davorin. “Well, you’ve been here before—have you improved since your last time?”

He smirked, “Greatly so, but sometimes that doesn’t matter. Some people are just—”

[System Notice: A player has been defeated three times consecutively by other players and died. Awaiting the arrival of a new player.]

Davorin started speaking again, “Well, I haven’t seen that before. Strange the system never announced that being possible before. Most players that don’t make it through die due to the mobs they encounter.”

“Yeah, tell me about it. This Potential Level thing is bullshit.” Literally, I thought, as I just fought against a Minotaur. I saw another player arrive then, it was Gregory.

“Finally free of that annoying bitch,” Gregory announced as he walked over and sat where he was when I arrived.

He was a level lower, but still won—so that means his Potential Level was higher? Or did he just know how to handle his ground better? It made me think, but I didn’t want to think about it too much. However, I had to wait for another player to arrive anyways before I could get my next match. That meant that I’d be here for quite a long time.

I grabbed some food, breaking ways with Davorin. He seemed to want to keep his distance but also wanted to talk. It worked for me, as I was similar. I didn’t mind talking to people, but I didn’t want to put my trust in them either—and that didn’t just pertain to the game. From what I could tell, Davorin was pretty easy to talk with.

I ended up waiting two days before another player arrived. Davorin kept to himself, as did the green-dyed hair lady, but Gregory came up to each of us for a small chat. He definitely seemed more open with Nadia gone, and eventually, everyone kept to themselves as the last player arrived.

[System Notice: All players have arrived.]

[System Notice: Quest progress: 1/10, 0/5]

[System Notice: Your match will soon begin. Countdown: Two minutes.]

The two-minute countdown went by quickly as I was again enveloped in white as I made it to the coliseum.

[System Notice: Your match is about to begin. You are fighting a player: Player Josephine]

On the other side, there was also an aura of white, different than what had been there when I was faced against the Crazed Minotaur, Minotaurus. A woman appeared from the aura, as the aura surrounding me was beginning to vanish. She had short hair, obviously dyed green, and she held a scepter in her hand, the green jewel shining brightly, sucking in the air around her.

[System Notice: Your match has begun.]

So she is named Josephine… I took a glance as her data came in, similar to how the Minotaur’s did. I was stunned because I thought it would just say ‘Player Josephine’ as players I have defeated before had, but this was definitely more in-depth.

[Player: Tempest Weaver, Josephine Maxine, Champion of Gallant Tempests, Lv19—Potential Level: 83]

It stated their class, full name, title, and both versions of their levels. Not only was this woman some ‘champion’, but her level and Potential Level was much, much higher than mine.

I ground my teeth, sucking in a deep breath. Potential Level really is a crock of shit.