Hollow brought his closed fist against his upper chest with a saluting gesture, “I…follow…liege’s command.” The weak connection from his telepathy entered my mind, bringing a smile to my stone face.
(Thank you, Hollow. You're a really great knight, you know that?)
With the small distance we created between us and the Rose Cutters, my floating hands retreated back to my side. I placed one on Hollow's nape, and the other remained floating beside me.
(I’m going to attack them head-on again. When I give the signal, activate your Camouflage skill and attack their blind spots.)
Based on the description of the skill, it meant that it only worked when he wasn’t moving his body. It never said anything about me moving his body around. I only hoped it worked!
(Veyra, I’m counting on you to snipe from the rear. You’ll be the distraction that keeps them from taking out Hollow. So aim true!) I sent the message through our shared channel, and everyone nodded in agreement. (Alright, everyone, let’s get through this and clear these damn ruins!)
Ploughing through my nerves, I charged ahead and closed the gap between the Rose Cutters and myself. My jaw opened for a bite, but they dodged it with an effortless side step. Their claws slashed into me with more hits than I could count, and my HP bar dropped significantly. I fought through and swiped at them with my claw, but hit the open air. They read my attacks perfectly and adjusted their position accordingly.
No dice, huh? Darn it, I was hoping I’d be able to get one on my own, but I guess I’ll have to stick to the plan for this. It looks like they haven’t noticed him yet, so maybe this really will work.
(Hollow, now!)
With my signal, Hollow slowed his motions and came to a complete standstill. His body slowly disappeared out of sight, and it became harder to make out exactly where he was at all.
He’s only a bit hidden with that skill when you know where he is, but when your attention’s divided… he’s practically invisible!
I controlled the arm attached to him and raised him into the air. Luckily, his skill affected the hand too, and both of them flew towards the Rose Cutter in front of me.
(Now!)
The area above the Rose Cutter warped and Hollow suddenly dropped down, his blade enveloped with a white gleam as he cut into the monster's neck. It raced back in a panic, blood trickling down its spine, but I caught it before it could get far.
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You really think I’d let you get away? It struggled under my grip, but there was no way it’d escape. I was confident in our strength difference after all. I wonder if I should rather let Veyra get this experience?
(Veyra! I’ve got some delicious experience points here for you!)
With a swift release, the arrow pierced the Rosey colour of its face and left the mantis dead in my hand. A second later, I was greeted with the notification from the system, and its death was confirmed.
{150 Exp Gained}
When I looked again, the other four Rose Cutters had gone on the defensive, and Hollow was out of sight. He did well, but he still wasn’t managing to make a clean hit on them. I knew I might end up having to finish them off after his surprise attack, but a small part of me hoped he’d pull it off.
(Nice, if we keep this up, we should be able to clear them all out!)
We tried the same plan again, with me leading in with the attack, Hollow delivering a sneak attack, and Veyra pinning down the ones that got through. It was a pretty scummy way to fight, but effective. Better yet, it meant we’d survive.
We finally came down to our last Rose cutter, and it had a pretty gnarly wound across its torso that continuously bled. It staggered back, barely able to lift the smashed-up claw it clung to, and Hollow had his Camouflage activated.
No matter how you saw it, we had won. It was a perfect situation for us.
I brought my claw forward and pinned it in place, but with the last of its energy, the Rose Cutter lunged past my hand and towards my body. Its jaw split open into two separate ends, and in a terrifying display, it went for my face. I backed away, prepared to bite off its head if it came to it, but honestly, I was dreading the experience.
Crap, I let my guard down–
Swish!
An arch of deep purple raced past my face and split the Rose Cutter in two, killing it on the spot. The notification flooded through, and Hollow was left standing behind it. I had no idea he was there until he attacked. I hadn’t even moved him with my hand, so I had no idea how he got there with Camouflage.
{400 Exp Gained}
{Level Up}
{Party Member
Whoa, he levelled up quite a bit from all that! What was that move just now? Maybe I missed something about his skill, let me have a look again. I focused my gaze on Hollow, and his skill tree popped up in a separate window.
Skills:
{Straight Edge}
{Moon Cutter}
{Stealth Step}
{Unyielding Stance}
I brought my face closer to the screen, unsure if I was seeing things or if there really were two new skills in his skill tree. Not only had camouflage been replaced, but an entirely new skill had also popped up there as well. His growth was completely broken.
Damn it, he got the edge on me again and even got a cool skill out of it! I’m seriously jealous of the spirit species. Maybe I should’ve been born a spirit instead of a Golem!
I lifted my arms in protest, still seething at the skill under Hollow’s skill tree. After seeing my stone hands, I calmed down a bit, and a smile cracked on my face.
No, on second thought, I’m pretty content with my body now. It’s just right for me~
It wasn’t an easy road to get here, but I really meant it. Still, Hollow was growing really fast. More than I expected him to. He was only a few levels behind me, so if I wasn’t careful, he’d surpass me in no time.
(That move just now, was that Moon Cutter?)
Hollow nodded politely, still silent. His stoic front never ceased to amaze me, even at times like this. I planned to ask him a few follow-up questions, but I ultimately decided against it. It seemed like a waste of time…
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