_____________________________
Name: Tusko Vagar
Level: 30
Race: HighBreed
Class: Barbarian
Title: Frenzied Berserker / Champion / Kinslayer
Experience: 27000 / 175000
[Status]
- H.P: 4050 / 4050
- M.P: 50 / 50
- S.P: 5700 / 5700
- Fatigue: 32%
- Defense: 3850
- Offense: 3900
[Skills]
- Berserker Rage: Level 5
- Bloodlust: Level 4
- Cleave: Level 6
- Frenzied Assault: Level 7
- Intimidating Presence: Level 5
- Rampage: Level 5
- Raging Roar: Level 3
- Reckless Swing: Level 7
- Whirlwind Strike: Level 6
- Tactical Awareness: Level 5
[Abilities]
- Cannibalism: Unlocked
- Feral Instincts: Unlocked
- Unbridled Fury: Unlocked
- Indomitable Will: Unlocked
- Raging Bull: Unlocked
- Resilient Endurance: Unlocked
- Bloodthirst: Unlocked
『Expand』
_____________________________
At this point, surprise had become a distant companion.
I barely reacted when a new notification popped up, signaling the arrival of yet another intruder. But as I zoomed in, my eyes caught something strange, the same red dot. The one representing the lone Paladin had vanished.
And in his place, standing tall and unscathed, was a Barbarian.
His class had changed again. His stats were restored to full health, full mana, full stamina. It was as if he had been reborn, a brand-new warrior stepping into the battlefield. Yet, he wasn’t new at all.
No, this was still him.
The Swashbuckler who became a Paladin had now shifted once more. But despite his new form, three things hadn’t changed.
His name, one that was now etched into my mind.
His fatigue level, which had been slowly accumulating since his first transformation.
And, of course, the missing authorities.
_____________________________
[Death Paladin (Guarding Spawn, Enhanced), Level 31, slain by HighBreed, Barbarian, Level 30]
_____________________________
_____________________________
[Death Paladin (Guarding Spawn, Enhanced), Level 31, slain by HighBreed, Barbarian, Level 30]
_____________________________
_____________________________
[Death Paladin (Guarding Spawn, Enhanced), Level 32, slain by HighBreed, Barbarian, Level 30]
_____________________________
Most of my spawns had already been wiped out, first by the swashbuckler, but mostly by the paladin. His talent for tearing through my ranks was obvious, especially with that shiny title of his. The few left standing were my stronger ones, mostly high-level Death Paladins. And even though they did not go down without a fight, they still fell to the newly transformed Barbarian.
Stolen novel; please report.
Watching the whole thing unfold through my interface, I was hit with a reminder I had almost forgotten. Death Paladins were stronger than most verdenkind or Highbreed at the same level. Their raw power and defense were nothing to scoff at. But once skills, abilities, and titles came into play, things that could vary wildly from one person to another, that edge did not matter much. And so here we were, in a fight that was more like a slaughter.
“Poor spawns of mine. I really need to rethink our strategy when this is over,” I muttered, letting out a tired sigh.
Still, there was a more pressing problem. This invader was not going to be stopped by what I had left. Which left one big question hanging in the air: What was he going to do next?
***
_____________________________
[Death Paladin (Guarding Spawn, Enhanced), Level 32, slain by HighBreed, Barbarian, Level 30]
_____________________________
_____________________________
Name: Tusko Vagar
Level: 30
Race: HighBreed
Class: Barbarian
Health: 63%
Status: In Combat
『Expand』
_____________________________
After some time, it was finally over.
All my available spawns in the area had been wiped out, leaving only one standing.
Him.
The lone invader. The last red dot on the map.
But something was different. Unlike before, when he had charged forward without hesitation, this time, he didn’t move.
For a moment that was neither brief or long, he simply stood there, silent, motionless.
I imagined the scene beyond the interface, a lone warrior, standing in the midst of a mountain of corpses. For dramatic effect, I pictured him breathing heavily, surrounded by the fallen, exhaustion weighing on him.
But that was just my imagination.
Eventually, just as I began to wonder what his next move would be—He sprouted into action.
_____________________________
[ ???'s Interface ]
System Notification
Intrusion Report:
One entity has invaded your dungeon domain. G.P safety compromised.
Suggestion:
Secure G.P, put an end to the invasion.
Intercept and Slay the invaders
Estimated Reward:
- 27087 G.P
- Authorities: Authority Gathering
/ Ethereal Echo
_____________________________
_____________________________
Name: Tusko Vagar
Level: 8
Race: HighBreed
Class: Mage
Title:
[Status]
- H.P: 220 / 220
- M.P: 480 / 480
- S.P: 10 / 10
- Fatigue: 15%
- Defense: 90
- Offense: 220
[Skills]
Fire Magic: Level 2
Lightning Magic: Level 2
- Elemental Infusion: Level 3
- Healing Magic: Level 2
- Mana Shield: Level 2
- Restoration: Level 4
- Mystic Barrier: Level 5
- Identification: Level 5
- Appraisal: Level 3
[Abilities]
- Arcane Insight: Unlocked
- Enhanced Learning: Unlocked
- Arcane Precision: Unlocked
- Acolyte's Grace: Unlocked
『Expand』
_____________________________
"Tsk, again?" I muttered, irritation creeping into my voice. "Just how many alternative classes do you have?" At least it was a title-less class at a level my spawns could easily defeat. Unfortunately, I no longer had any spawns available within reach.
I watched in growing confusion as the lone invader went about his business, whatever that was. "What is he doing? Huh? Is he...?" And then, through Otherworldly Synergy, I understood.
He had activated something, something that directly affected his H.P. It increased, while his M.P. decreased. But since his current H.P. was already full, the extra healing went nowhere.
At first, I was about to dismiss it as waste of M.P, as it kept decreasing, until he did it again. He shifted classes, reverting back to Paladin and just like that, his health, which my spawns had fought and died to bring down by 20%, was restored.
This bastard… He was undoing everything my spawns had died for.
"Hell no. Hell no! This is cheating! How is this fair?!" I watched, helpless, as the Paladin’s health steadily increased. He repeated the process, swapping classes, using the same trick over and over. After three cycles, he had nursed his Paladin form back to 41% health.
And then, suddenly the healing stopped.
For a brief moment, I wondered why, and then it hit me.
The Mage was out of M.P.
"Hahaha, serves you right!" I grinned, reveling in that small victory.
At first, I had feared the worst, that he’d be able to fully restore not just his Paladin and Barbarian forms, but even the Swashbuckler. If that had happened, it wouldn’t just be cheating anymore, it would be outright hacking.
But now? Now, I watched carefully, my tension rising, as he switched back to his Barbarian class. And this time, he started moving.
Deeper. Deeper into my domain.
"Pfouuu…" I exhaled, my eyes narrowing. From the looks of it, he didn’t have any more healing tricks left. Or at least, I hoped he didn’t. Because in the direction he was heading... there was only one thing waiting for him.
My Domain Guardian.
***
One thing that is to be known about a dungeon guardian is that, unlike any other spawn chosen from, there can only be one. While there can only be one, there are only two behaviors that can be assigned to them: guarding or spawning behavior, with the latter involving mostly immobile behavior. With these choices, a perimeter, a mini-domain, a sanctum as I call it, is established inside my domain.
For my dungeon guardian to be able to do anything, that mini-domain must be invaded by the invader, something that my lone invader was, I believed, a few steps away from doing. But for some reason, he didn't. He stood there as if contemplating his next course of action. Watching this through the interface, there isn't much I could do except to pray that he would take that step forward into the dungeon mini-domain, for us to put an end to this all.
A tense while went by of complete stillness. "What are you doing?" I began to seethe, "waiting to recover some of your H.P? If you wait, you'll not be the only one recovering; my spawns will respawn, so do it. Take that step. Do it."
At that moment, as if hearing my taunting words, a move was made. Fortunately, it wasn't one in which he turned his back after his rampage, but rather a bold move that brought him into my guardian’s domain. "Hahahaha, you're brave, I'll certainly give you that, hahahaha," I laughed frantically as a notification popped up in front of me.
___________________________
Dungeon Core Interface
System Notification:
[ Guardian Room Invasion Detected ]
Level: 30
Invader Race: HighBreed
Class: Barbarian
Warning: Boss room integrity compromised. Dungeon core defenses activated.
Defensive Countermeasures:
- Spawn Dungeon Guardian
- Choose Guardian Protocol
- Initiate Combat
___________________________
“Hahaha, yes!”
