The woodcutter’s axe shattered pathetically against Arthur’s shin, soliciting no more than a small grunt from him.
A resounding silence echoed through the battlefield, with even the wind going quiet. No one moved, and the goblin’s faces slowly turned from twisted victory to dawning horror.
“…Huh.” Arthur was the first to break the silence, studying his leg for any damage. There wasn’t even a scuff.
After the silence dragged on for a moment that lasted an eternity, Arthur attacked for the first time with a punting kick. It was the same leg that the would-be Leg Reaper had attempted to make its name with, but Arthur’s attack had substantially more success than the opposition’s. Like a football struck by a leg of a demigod, the goblin flew away with a squeak. The other goblins, stunned by the series of events, stared in shock at the fourth goblin’s short flight into a nearby fenced garden. It crashed through that fence and collided with a tree, which cracked, fell, and crushed the would-be Leg Reaper to death. After the tree fell upon the monster, Arthur swung the Aged Blade at the next nearest goblin. It noticed the hunk of blunt looking metal far too late, and it collided with its ribs.
Arthur’s strength stat wasn’t his highest, but it was respectable, even for his level. Even if it wasn’t the highest, the trade-off mechanic’s aftermath bloated his strength’s properties, making his force application reach mountainous heights. Not only that, but this was also the first time he used his Alexandrian blade. The edge seemed on the dull side, but it couldn’t be further from the truth, as it ripped through the monster’s flesh like a chainsaw through an unfortunate tree. Though monsters were made of flesh, they had no blood, making Arthur unsure of if he should be relieved to be clean or unnerved at its absence. There was another small quirk of the thick blade, however. When it collided with the monster’s body, it made a noise. It wasn’t the somber thud of steel piercing flesh, or even the screech of blades meeting, but a solid crash of metal. Like if a flashbang could sound metallic, or if a bomb went off inside of a metal pipe, the broad longsword made the blow sound thrice worse than it actually was.
The sound making it seem worse than it actually was didn’t mean the strike itself wasn’t life ending, however, and the two halves of the goblin flew apart. The cut that separated it looked like it’d been torn in half by the threshing teeth of a saw, and it dropped to the ground wetly. Arthur was slightly slowed by the surprising sound of his own weapon, but quickly overcame his startled moment to lunge at the next enemy. This goblin was quick to react and raised its makeshift shield to block the incoming attack. With the same metallic exploding sound as the first goblin, the Aged Blade bit right through the shabby-looking hunk of wood. It tore through the third goblin’s collar bone and sunk into its chest, ending its life immediately. As Arthur pulled his buried sword free, the final goblin backed away with wide-eyed fear. As Arthur turned his armored visage towards it, it turned around itself and ran as hard as it could. It stumbled, scrambling with a crawl that it managed to turn into a run once again as it made good its feeble escape.
Arthur could have caught it if he gave chase. Instead, he slid his shield back up his arm, gripped his scabbard with his free hand, and sheathed his blade. He saw no reason to hunt down the monster and kill it, as he knew it gave him little to no experience. Even if it went to grab its buddies, he would already be long gone. Taking a steadying breath, he made his way towards the campus once again.
Ema screamed for help, but none of her friends were nearby. When Gideon tried to disengage to rush to her, the wolf riding goblin intercepted him with a biting tackle. It was just as fast as him with his south Polarity, and if he didn’t have the shields of the northern variety, it would tear him apart. To his great chagrin, he was locked down. Aurora’s situation was much more mundane, however, simply being too far away to hear or see her friend’s situation.
As the myriad monsters assaulted the group of survivors trapped on the college campus, they adapted to their key fighters. Every other group on the premises had already been slaughtered, and the only one that gave them trouble was finally on their last legs. They’d been starved, dehydrated, and forced to fight for their lives for weeks. The monsters were deployed in such a way that they boxed the survivors in, keeping them from being able to run. Not only that, but they were also barred from scavenging too far from their hiding spots, if they were allowed to scavenge at all. They were under siege since the beginning of The Quine, and the monsters knew it was finally time to put paid to the annoyingly resilient gnats. They knew that after this battle, the survivors would be done.
They would start with the healer. Like the last few times, they successfully surrounded her once again, but this time, the other humans would not be there to save her. They also ensured that she couldn’t jump away again this time, courtesy of a net specifically woven for high dexterity prey. As they closed in, she attempted to fight back with her meagre body, but neither she nor her class were built for combat. The goblins waved her wild kicks away like so many flies buzzing in their faces as they grabbed her legs and hair. Just because they were required to kill her didn’t mean they couldn’t have fun with her first.
Monsters were just animate globs of meat brought to life by the System, unable to procreate or multiply in any way not facilitated by the System itself. Monsters did have egos, however, and evil existed in the heart of personality. The goblins continued to crowd in on the trapped woman, delighting in her screams like a succulent hundred-thousand dollar charcuterie board. Her hair was ripped out in clumps as multiple green and lumpy fists grabbed at it. A dagger was stabbed into her leg, soliciting a gout of blood and more cries for the monsters to revel in. They savored their moment of finally catching her, taking their time with their preperation for the “celebration”.
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As Gideon defended himself against the mounted goblin, he desperately looked for any chance to disengage and fly to Ema. He badly wanted to just go for it, but knew that he’d never make it past the opponent he currently faced, at least not alive. He wouldn’t be any good to anyone dead, so he was forced to watch periodically between lulls of his battle as Ema was cornered like a rat. During his wild confrontation, he spotted a green figure making its way towards the battle, but he assumed it was another goblin making way for Ema. He continued to look for an opening until he saw goblins flying in every direction like a battering train was making its way towards his friend. Both he and the wolven goblin stopped to stare as the last goblin that train struck practically exploded as it was sent flying, the train finally reaching its stop.
Arthur barreled towards the barely noticed battlefield, shield and blade already in hand. He’d just been about to pass by, but after hearing sounds of fighting, he’d decided to follow it. He was glad he did, as he spotted a young woman kicking at green and lumpy hands that also gripped her hair. He cursed and pushed himself harder, a familiar heat rushing through his body.
Title
[Heart of Devotion]
Activated
His armor shined with a glowing green light as his speed increased. He was already decently fast, but it hadn’t been all that much. Now, however, his speed gained a more than noticeable jump as he stampeded towards the woman. Stampede being the operative word, as he activated his Aegis Arts for the first time, starting out with the fourth method.
Method 4: Charge with your shield out front. High chance to stagger any enemy struck. You are much harder to stop during this attack. Deals high blunt damage but requires a running start.
Arthur blasted forward with the force of a cargo aircraft backed with the speed of a Lockheed Blackbird. When his stomping charge crashed into the monsters, they were blasted in random directions, flying like bowling pins on a strike hit by Voltron. Despite the attacks thrown at him, they all either bounced off or caused the aggressor to be launched as well. Arthur’s path of destruction continued until he finally reached the goblin that held the woman’s net, and he tried chaining his Arts for the first time. It didn’t disappoint.
Method 3: Shield tackle an enemy as an initiation. High chance to stagger the enemy. Deals moderate to high blunt damage but requires a running start.
The main victim of Arthur’s first test drive as a bullet train exploded, pieces flying apart with force as all the momentum Arthur built up delivered itself promptly to the goblin’s chest. As he turned to face the remaining monsters, he felt several buffs land on him.
[Empower]: Grant yourself or an ally a boost to a stat of your choice. Lasts up to 20 minutes, with mounting mana cost. Stackable buff up to a maximum of 3 stacks, with mounting mana cost.
Boost granted: STR +10%
[Augmentation]: Grant yourself or an ally increased damage and damage reduction. Lasts up to 20 minutes, with mounting mana cost.
[Magnification]: Grant yourself or an ally enhanced healing received. Intensifies buffs currently on the recipient.
Sasaki Ema’s class was a pure support, with passives that were meant for mana cost reduction and more. Her mana saving capabilities made Aurora’s class more viable, which was a welcome surprise. In this situation, however, it purely benefited the mysterious armored individual who’d charged in like an angry customer who’d asked for no pickles.
[Mana Cushion]–Passive: For every skill the [Greater Keeper] uses to enhance or heal allies, regain half the mana spent to use the skill. Every ally under the effects of the [Greater Keeper] buffs, shields, or positive effects are granted a 30% mana cost reduction per positive effect with diminishing returns.
[Wellspring]-Passive: Grants enhanced mana regeneration and healing received to allies under the effects of your buffs. Inflicts reduced mana regeneration and healing received to enemies under the effects of your debuffs.
While it would come across as good thinking for her to pile on effects on her savior, it was, in fact, entirely reactionary. She thrashed in the net ineffectually, screeching venom at the goblins who’d released her to focus on the new threat. They charged the glowing armor, swinging at it with a ferocity befitting wild predators, numerous and determined. They’re attacks were less effective than said wild predators, however, as their blades cracked and shattered against the armor’s skin. In return, they were slammed with a blade that sounded like the flaming sword of Michael whenever it connected with flesh. One by one, they fell, but unlike the goblin from earlier, they did not run. These were goblins under the direct command of their leader, and they knew that running would only mean the same thing; death. Even so, they didn’t give up, pulling out every scrap of capability they had to hammer at the interloper. They unleashed combination attacks, coordinating and strategizing in a valiant attempt to fell the mammoth before them. All the grit in the world couldn’t overcome a power gap so vast, however, and they were slain one after the next.
Ema finally popped up from her confinement, both hair and eyes wild. The radiant stranger had already dispatched all of the nearby goblins, and was sidling towards her. He kept his eyes on the monsters that had detached from the others for support, but they were wary. It was clear they were aware of what had happened to the previous group.
“Are you sure you should be here, in the middle of all the fighting?” The person in the armor asked. His voice was modulated to sound unrecognizable, like it was spoken through a series of phone filters. She would have lingered on that more, but after barely escaping death, she was slightly manic.
“Seriously?! I can’t just appear or disappear anytime or anywhere I want! Unless you want to carry me on your back, Tin Man, then this is how it has to be!”
“T-Tin Man?” Arthur stammered, shocked by the tiny woman’s hostility. The moment didn’t last long, however, as the monsters charged. Sharpening his focus, Arthur slashed at the approaching enemies, positioning himself between them and her. She stayed behind him, casting debuffing spells at a distance.
[Erosion]: Inflict decreased damage and damage reduction to an enemy. Enemy under the effects of [Erosion] is more susceptible to damage over time effects.
[Enfeeble]: Inflict a debuff to a stat of your choice on an enemy. Lasts up to 20 minutes, with mounting mana cost. Stackable debuff up to a maximum of 2 stacks, with mounting mana cost.
Debuff inflicted: DEF -3%
While Arthur’s blows were already effective, the debuffs Ema handed out like candy on Halloween took them from effective to punishing. He continued his onslaught, eventually being joined by Gideon and Aurora, the latter of which descending from up high. Ema immediately laid into Gideon like a hissing cat.
“Where were you?! They were piling on me like a damn football team! Why did I get help from a costume-wearing loon before you, Baldy!!”
“B-Baldy?!” Gideon put his hand on his full head of hair.
Arthur paused his attacks, giving the monsters a much appreciated break. “Costume-wearing loon…?”
Aurora interrupted the bickering duo. “Ema, don’t antagonize the glowing man with the exploding sword. Gideon, it’s good to see you made it.” She looked at Arthur. “I don’t know who you are but, thank you for helping Ema. She can be a lot, but don’t let her personality fool you. She’s thankful too.” She twisted in the air, facing the remaining goblins and wolves. “But we still need your help. Once we’ve finished up, let’s talk.”
Arthur turned towards the remaining monsters, still grumbling. “Sod it.”