Chapter Seventy-Nine.

(Zack)

Our team comes across a Class 3 first, as it walks down the street several hundred yards away. Immediately, I scale a building as they prepare for combat, and I sneak around on the roofs to move closer as they do.

I don't draw too close, though, in case their fight spreads out. That might be dangerous.

As they sneak towards the Fallen Adventurer, keeping to the shadows of buildings and moving silently, I find a high vantage point, then strip off my chest armor and tunic, sending them into my Inventory.

I'm already wearing Zack's Blood. Luca and Braden aren't observant enough to notice that I was wearing something different, so I felt it alright to wear it today rather than changing once I split with the twins.

With those in my Inventory, I shift my sword to my hip. It's not as comfortable for me, but I don't like having it strapped across my back and chest without a tunic on and it'll be in the way of the wings if worn on my back, which is the reason for removing my tunic and chest armor in the first place.

The quintet reaches the Fallen Adventurer, Kayla using a Binding Darkness on it before Sam and Eric charge forward, Liam and Louise casting buffs on the Dark Knights, whose swords clash against the Barrier erected by the Fallen Adventurer.

It's dressed like a warrior, completely with armor and a sword, much like the first one I fought. Looks like this one had a magical Class as well. Kayla's Binding Darkness suddenly shifts, a tentacle lifting up and moving into its mouth.

"Thirty-eight seconds!" She calls out.

Is that how long it'll take for-

Something's moving around here, and it sounds humanoid. Goblin? No, it's larger. Goblin Giant?

Shrinking down into the corner I've wedged myself in, I slow my heart and breathing. Looks like the nearby Class 1 decided to move out of its usual zone, it's a few blocks from the border. This one's a spellcaster, though I don't think it came from a Class. Nik said that Fallen Adventurers seem to be able to learn things, even if they don't grow stronger. Nearly all Fallen Adventurers have a small set of Skills, even if they had none when they died.

It shuffles around the street for several minutes, and I keep my eyes closed, focusing on what I can hear and feel while tuning out the battle from the Fallen Hunters. Does it know I'm here? I could've sworn I was concealing myself. Maybe I should've used Conceal?

Nearly ten minutes pass before the Fallen Adventurer shuffles away, and as soon as I'm sure I'm clear, I let out a sigh of relief.

That was close.

Slowly, I stand as I open my eyes, fixing my gaze in the direction of the fight. They're on a roof not far from me, Kayla blocking an attack with her sword as the other two Dark Knights move in. All three of them have blood on them, but their Health is back to full, so I'm guess the Paladins had to do some emergency healing from the roof they're standing on.

Suddenly, Kayla pushes with her sword, causing the Fallen Adventurer's blade to shift away from her, and she spins, her sword turning into a glow as it enters her Inventory. What's she doing?

As she swings back around, a new sword appears in her hands, the glow fading just before it connects with the Fallen Adventurer's sword from above.

That… was so fucking cool. She sent her first sword into her Inventory so she could change her grip quickly in combat while also changing her stance, and pulled out another sword at the same time. That is so fucking cool.

Her new sword even cut into the other's one's blade a bit. As the Fallen Adventurer attempts to recover, Eric and Sam run it through with their blades and a pair of golden missiles of magic pierce into its head, the Paladins throwing around some holy attacks.

The Fallen freezes up, then crumbles away, much like the one I'd fought did. I guess that's a normal thing for them.

The five of them then start looking around, searching, and after a few seconds, I realize they're searching for me. Carefully, I move off the roof, and they spot me as I move from roof to roof to reach them.

"Where were you?" Kayla asks.

"On the building over there," I gesture to my hiding spot. "I was mostly concealed, though I think I got detected for a few minutes."

"By what?" She asks.

"The Class 1 we're going for next," I answer. "It may have come off to investigate the fight? But it didn't participate, so… I dunno."

"Why'd you take off your armor?" Sam asks.

"What happens if you manifest your wings without taking off your tunic and armor?" I ask.

"The tunic likely rips up," he answers. "And the armor generally either breaks off or breaks the wings – usually both – from what I've heard."

"My Demon Form has wings," I say. "And I'd rather not have them break, especially since, unlike Demon Wings, they manifest and unmanifest automatically, rather than by choice. Which means I won't be able to keep them out until they heal from the breaks, and I don't want to test to see if they'll still be broken when I switch back."

"That's logical," Kayla says.

"By the way," I say. "I think the Class 1 Fallen Adventurer we were going to next decided to investigate the sounds of battle."

"Why?" She asks.

"Something sounding like a person moving around," I tell her. "Was here while you guys were fighting. I hid myself while they passed, but I'm pretty sure it's the Class 1. It favors spells, though that shouldn't be an issue for me."

"Why not?" Louise asks.

"All of his armor is forged with a little Spook Ore by a Master Blacksmith," Kayla explains. "And a touch of Primordial Essence, allowing the full property to be drawn out. His armor draws magic into it and dissipates it, which is useless when you're bare-chested."

"My sword has that, too," I tap the weapon on my hip. "And once we approach the thing, I'm going Demon Form to bolster myself. I've killed a Class 1 before, and that was without Demon Form. With it, I should both have an easier time and gain more Experience."

I think part of the reason I'm gaining an abysmal amount of Experience is because most of my killing? Has been done without using Demon Form, which is really my only Demon-specific Skill right now.

Well, there is that one, but it'll take awhile to Level it, and I'm pretty sure it takes more than just having it active to acquire Experience.

I could always try for Demonic Aura, but that one induces a bloodlust into everyone in its range, and I'm not sure I'd want to risk getting these guys involved in that. I mean, they'd probably be safe since it only affects those with a lower Willpower than a certain percent of my own, but that's kind of irrelevant.

I just don't want to try using it in a new situation, and certainly not against a Fallen Adventurer, not without knowing its full effects from experience.

"You ready to go after it?" Kayla asks, and I nod. "Alright, let's track it down."

"I'll sniff the way."

They laugh, but we head off in the direction the Fallen Adventurer had traveled. All of us can smell it – our Perceptions are high enough, after all. It only takes us around five minutes to find the thing, which is hanging around an alley.

Probably intentionally.

"We'll make sure nothing interferes," Kayla tells me. "Do you want to challenge it in the alley?"

"It's not ideal," I shrug. "But I can handle it. We'll probably end up out of the alley, anyway."

"Are you sure?" She asks. "The alley will make it harder to avoid spells."

I stare at her.

"Kayla, I'm not just a kid," I remind her. "I'm a Dark Knight with combat experience and a decent Level. I know I can jump over the spells."

"Are you going to?"

"Probably not," I shrug. "I'm going in."

I walk over to the alley and began walking down it, the Fallen Adventurer turning to face me. He's pale, like all Fallen Adventurers, and his eyes are just as black as the others', though this one's hair is a matted brown, and he's dressed in a tattered tunic and pair of pants. Barefoot. There are a few wounds on his body, all of them trickling a steady stream of darkness that dissipates once it falls off of him.

"Demon Form," I trigger the Skill, feeling my body change, the wings extending out of my back.

"Magic Bolt," the Fallen Adventurer lifts a hand, a bolt of blue magic flying at me, slamming into my chest.

-7 Health!

Damn, that hurt!

Not!

I lunge forward as it throws several more Magic Bolts at me, and draw my sword when I'm about to reach it. The Fallen Adventurer erects a barrier, which my blade cuts through, slicing through the front of its tunic and sending a spray of darkness into the air.

"Acid Blood," the Fallen Adventurer taps its chest, then flings its hand forward, throwing that darkness at me.

I jump, flapping with my wings, which barely fit into the alley. I'm not sure how powerful that attack is, but I'd rather not risk getting struck by it.

The 'blood' actually retains form as it flies out, and starts to eat away at the stones of the alley and the buildings around it. The Fallen Adventurer looks up at me, and I soar down, swiping at it with my sword. This time, it casts three Barriers while jumping backwards.

My blade, naturally, cuts through it – they're magic, after all, and my sword neutralizes magic. It does miss the Fallen Adventurer, though.

As soon as I land, I lunge forward, my sword cutting into the Fallen Adventurer's side. I slice upwards as it casts several Fireballs at me, which impact against my torso as it howls in pain. They barely do more damage than the Magic Bolts, so it's not that bad. The light burns heal as I spin to reorient myself, then I thrust forward again as it attempts to stop me with a mix of Magic Bolts and Fireballs.

Unfortunately for it, my blade passing through its neck is the final straw for its third life, and the Fallen Adventurer crumbles into dust. I sheathe my sword, then grin.

That fight net me nine percent of the Experience needed for Demon Level 2. Depending on how things go, I might reach the second Tier of Demon here.

Demon Form is still active, since the fight took less than a minute, and I exit the alley and look around. The Fallen Hunters are gathering up, staring at me.

"You look kind of intimidating," Sam says.

"I know, right?" I grin. "I see a few weaker beasties, give me just a second, and I'll be back. I have only another minute before this ends."

I flap my wings, taking off into the sky, and soar towards the group of Goblins that came to investigate the sound of fighting. They start running, but they're too slow. When I reach them, I rip through the things as if their bodies are made of clay that's still soft, tearing them to pieces.

Eager to get as much Demon Experience as possible, I charge down a street branching off of this one to kill a Goblin Chieftain. It's only a regular one, so punching through its barriers and ripping its head off of its shoulders is relatively easy.

Well, the latter part does take some effort for me, but it's not much. I then butcher the goblins with it and move on to some Goblin Knights walking down the street, ripping through their armor and pulling out their hearts while sending them flying.

My Demon Form fades, and I swiftly draw my sword and cut off the last goblins' heads, then look at the Fallen Hunters, who are looking at me cautiously.

"Does going into Demon Form make you stupid?" Kayla asks.

"No," I huff, flicking my sword so the blood slides off faster, then sheathe it. "I didn't go stupid, Kayla. Using Demon-related Skills is pretty much the only way for me to actually gain Experience for this Class, and I wasn't going to let my Demon Form only get half-used."

"And if you'd run into a stronger Fallen Adventurer?" She asks.

"The only Fallen Adventurers near us right now," I say. "Unless one's moved here, are Class 1 Fallen Adventurers. I knew you guys were following me and would step in if I were in danger. There are no Bounty Beasts near here that I can't handle outside of Demon Form, and all regular monsters in Talorn are easy for me outside of it. And before you say 'you don't know that', consider my stats and Level. Then consider the reason I was able to Ascend was because Alexander had an army of over a thousand Goblins attack me. Attack me while I was alone. I slaughtered them, the only one giving me any trouble being the one that could create zombie goblins."

I guess I went on a bit of a rant there? It's not like they know I try to assess situations and act only if I'm sure of survival. Only in accidents, unexpected situations, and scenarios where I'm saving someone else do I typically find myself with any real danger to me.

"That wasn't stupidity," I tell the Fallen Hunters. "That was just me being me. Now, I've got about nine more minutes before my Mana's restored enough to take on Demon Form again. I'll wait a couple of more minutes past that before going after the next Fallen Adventurer, just in case I need to use Skills for it."