The Pinnacle Warrior

“I still want to try to kill the Leviathan.”

“Yeah, we all do, Benedict,” Astrid answered. “Problem is, we can’t really do anything except exactly what we’ve already done right now. Maybe when we’re Steel, we’ll have something that can actually trap it or kill it even faster, but there’s no way to know what kinds of Skills we will be offered ahead of time. It’s going to need to be something more than a couple more attribute points if we want to be able to deal with it before it retreats and changes its attack method.”

“But Skandr should be able to take care of it regardless of what other Skills we all take, right?” Benedict insisted. “With his Skills upgrading, he should be able to hold it still for longer, and then you can rip it apart. The whole Spectral Graviton thing should be really powerful, right?”

“There’s all sorts of guesses we can make about what might happen in the future,” Astrid threw her arms up helplessly, ignoring the question about her new Skill. “One more level worth of strength isn’t going to make our fight against the monster that can just swim out of our reach any more doable. Chances are, we won’t ever kill it, because we’ll move on to more important things once we’re capable of it.”

“Yeah, I know that,” Benedict grumbled, kicking at one of the patches of mana poisoned foliage they were clearing out, “but I don’t like leaving that scar on our record.“

“You mean the record of that time we got our Wizard, then Mage, a massive scar on his face?” Astrid asked as she bent over to pull another twisted silver plant from the ground. “That’s just a reminder to us of a time that we failed. I don’t hear you talking about going back to the gnolls to wipe them all out now that we’re so much stronger than them.”

Skandr touched his cheek, the shiny scar tissue there much less noticeable now years later, but still a reminder of times that they had bitten off more than they could chew. 

“Muti’s armor took over a week of being supplied with mana,“ Astrid continued, “before it could repair itself from that hit she took. Those enchantments are the only reason why she’s still got any armor at all. She recovered remarkably well, only because you were there. Otherwise, she would’ve died, as the potions we have aren’t enough to have helped her recover.”

“Yeah, I get it, you’re becoming a better leader by the day,” Benedict waved her off. “And I don’t think I would even really try to get back down there unless we were sure it would be safer for us the second time, so it’s just me running my mouth.”

“Something we are all used to,” Muti grinned at the Bard, though her attention was largely focused on clearing the diseased greenery. They were largely done by now, and she stood tall, tossing the refuse to the side where the Verdant Walkers demanded. 

“The end of the conversation is that we just aren’t a good match for water dwelling monsters. If there’s no good reason for us to go fight them, I’d prefer that we not and say we didn’t,” Skandr said. “Our lives are dangerous enough without inviting additional trouble, and I don’t need to introduce more risk if I can help it.”

The rest of the party largely agreed, and as they finished the clearing of the patch of infected forest, Astrid looked at Muti.

“One more sneaking trip, then you’re done?”

Instead of answering verbally, the Ambusher bared her teeth and almost vibrated with excitement.

“Then I think we’ve got a detour ahead of us before we take a rest for the day, don’t we?” Astrid asked, as if it was a question at all.

As soon as the work was done to a satisfactory level, Muti turned and ran towards the closest Dungeon branch entrance. Surprising nobody, she’d excelled in the eradication of monsters without them noticing her approach. Between Ambusher’s Aura, Shadow Leap, and her boon, the most difficult part of killing the hundred monsters that way was just finding them. On the other hand, the party wasn’t always as proficient with moving unnoticed as she was and she hadn’t quite finished the requirements for her evolution, though she was the closest.

The Verdant Walkers had fortunately become quite tolerant with little jaunts like this, not counting it as the party’s entire delve if they retreated before too long. Astrid nodded her thanks at the sentry that stood watch outside the shimmering entrance to the Dungeon, and the branches creaked in reply. Then, the Wanderers strode forward into the Dungeon branch.

This branch was different from the others the party had gone through before, as instead of a natural space like a cave, forest, or beach, the branch appeared to be a massive, sprawling building with dark, twisting halls and constant patrols of undead. As always, walking in sent a shiver down Astrid’s spine, but once the long chambers of the undead-infested Dungeon surrounded them, Muti’s pointed ears twitched, her nostrils flared, and she turned towards wherever they would all need to go.

“The monsters have relocated, we will begin hiding immediately.”

With her command, Astrid and Felix both dismissed their armor and stepped closer to her. After weeks of doing this, they’d all learned lessons. Several times, the clinking of metal armor or the shimmer of steel had given the party away, and Muti was loath to allow that to happen again. In truth, she could have been done with her evolution already if she was less stubborn, but the undead filling this Dungeon used more than just their eyes to notice the party’s approach, and Muti was taking this as an opportunity to train herself and her abilities.

The deep shadows that already existed in this branch grew thicker and surrounded each of them under the influence of Muti’s boon as soon as they were all working in tandem. Now ready, they made their way towards a hallway that Muti seemed to be convinced was where she would qualify to evolve to Steel.

Every one of the Wanderers walked carefully, Muti’s aura blessing them with an inherent understanding of how to step silently and tread only where best hidden by the shadows and Muti’s Skill. They’d done this plenty even before the quest demanded it of them, especially when traversing certain stretches of the Wandering Trials, but in the past weeks, they had finally learned to put in the effort necessary to actually understand how they could help their friend with her quest. As such, they all moved with greater confidence and care than they did before while sneaking.

As the days passed, Astrid became more aware of how much she had changed just in the past not quite year since she had entered the Wandering Trials. Some of that change was a shift in her anger from a childish, impetuous one to a more burning, deep rage about what this world was, what had been hidden from her as a child, and what reared its ugly head every time she thought she might have witnessed the depths that Humanity and her foes so comfortably lived within.

On the other hand, she’d also changed for the better, no longer was she the girl so desperate for validation that she would willingly enter a party where the Healer and leader hated her for no reason other than the color of her skin. That surety was strengthened by the understanding that deepened by the day of how to use her Skills, and the evolution that was nearly here already. She was confident in hers and her allies’ ability to take care of themselves, and was more than ready to go into the Dungeon proper for the first time once they’d all evolved to Steel.

Thoughts of the near future filled her head as she walked just at Muti’s side down the hallway. Astrid herself had gone so far as to dismiss her boots as well, so she stepped with bare feet on the smooth stone floor, the occasional jagged points failing even to make her reconsider where she stepped, given her Fortitude. Just another massive change that she’d experienced in the past years, she supposed. 

It wasn’t long before she was forcibly yanked from the wandering thoughts as they came close to a pack of wights, the monsters appearing to be a mixture between a ghoul and a skeleton. Their skin clung tight to their skeletal frames, the tendons and thin muscles that gave them their preternatural strength boasting a greater strength and posing more of a threat than they appeared to at first glance, Astrid knew.

Stepping past them, the party held their breath as Muti’s efforts in hiding the party redoubled. It was something more than just shadow, Astrid knew, but the specifics of how this particular iteration worked to hide them from the undeads’ perception were beyond her. She didn’t need to understand, anyways, and the party made their way forward without incident. Though she was within the same effects that hid her, Astrid couldn’t see Muti, though she knew the face her friend was making as they completed the task successfully.

They looped back towards the exit from the Dungeon, though they took the opportunity to re-equip their armor and eradicate the small pack of wights before they left. Felix had long since finished the first aspect of his evolution quest, to maintain a monster’s attention while another killed it, so instead of fighting like a frontliner, he had to get into the precarious position of protecting deadly monsters that wanted to kill him while his allies tried to kill the monsters. In this particular fight, he was able to progress his quest by six, blocking two quick attacks from Muti with his axe before her third one took the monster behind him head off. The other four came after all but one of the wights were killed and the last survivor was trapped in a lightning cage by Skandr.

“He’s got plenty of mana left,” Astrid said with a shrug. “We could just get this out of the way today. You’ve gotten plenty of practice.”

“We’ve had the conversation already. Try your best.”

Despite her words to the contrary, Astrid grinned and extended her hammer towards Felix as a salute. He extended his axe, the two weapons’ heads clinging together as they both got into position. The wight trapped behind him twitched, writhed, and let out incessant unholy shrieks as the duel to see how long it would survive began.

An interesting dance of sorts began, Astrid only looking to hit what was hidden behind her ally while Felix tried to stop her attacks without hurting her. Due to the nature of his quest, Astrid couldn’t hold back and still help him progress, so she attempted to shove him aside with her shield as her hammer sought a crippling blow on the monster’s center mass. Felix dropped his elbow onto the top of her hammer and knocked it low before it got close.

Another blistering series of attacks came out from there, until finally Astrid feinted hard to the right and got Felix to overcommit. His axe clanged off of her shield and she reached over him with her hammer, the head pulverizing bone in a single attack as the final kill notification flashed in her eyes.

Felix didn’t say anything, his face a little unresigned as he stowed his axe on his hip.

“What does that take you to?”

“Six hundred and forty-seven,” he answered immediately. “How many do you have left to destroy with your Skills?“

“Sixty-four,” Astrid grimaced. “Though this Dungeon branch is great for my Boss kills, the primary monsters around here aren’t particularly susceptible to Gravity, and Spectre Burst.”

Felix smirked in response to that, and Astrid waved off his silent teasing with a smile of her own. Before long, the party retreated out of the Dungeon branch and allowed Muti to go through the process of evolution. In truth, it didn’t take long, but she stood proudly before the party, and as soon as they were outside of the Dungeon branch, and, with her arms spread wide open, shared her updated Status.

Status

Name: Muti

Class: Lethal Shadow (Steel)

Total Level: 51

Attributes

Current

Per level growth

Power

489 (+32)

+20

Alacrity

438 (+43)

+20

Fortitude

258 (+36)

+10

Magical Potency

114 (+23)

+9

Self-Mastery

199 (+17)

+4

Acumen

286 (+22)

+10

Skill List

Lethal Shadow’s Equipment (Steel)

Shadow Strike (Steel)

Shadow Teachings (Steel)

Shadow Aura (Steel)

Boon of the Mana-Touched

Choice Available

None

None

Locked

Astrid hadn’t actually seen Muti’s Status in a long while, and she nodded appreciatively at it. At least this time Muti hadn’t immediately selected her Skill for reaching level 51, but as soon as the thought crossed Astrid’s mind, the “Choice Available” changed to “Shadow Touched (Iron)”

“You couldn’t wait to consult with the rest of us, huh?” Astrid chuckled, unsurprised that the Barbarian did whatever she wanted, as per usual. 

“It is a perfect Skill,” Muti explained simply. “Everything that my Class is is strengthened by it.”

“Muti,” Astrid sighed, “you never shared what all your Skills do, and we have no idea what his new one does either. Would you please give a little more information?”

“Shadow Strike grants a passive understanding of weak points and how to exploit them while also having the ability to teleport like Shadow Leap,” Muti immediately reported. “In addition, it strengthens every one of my attacks with a defence-piercing essence. Shadow Teachings allows me to impart my knowledge on another while also becoming a shade which will temporarily shroud and strengthen the individual I am teaching. Any Skill that I have can be shared with another through the use of Shadow Teachings. Shadow Aura is an aura I can activate that allows me to teleport freely within twenty meters as well as granting every ally a shadow-attribute bonus on their attacks and weakening all enemies within the range of the aura.”

Astrid nodded as Muti rattled off the explanation, and Muti continued, “Shadow Touched is a Skill that strengthens every ‘Shadow’ Skill by 50%.”

“Well, that’s an easy pick,” Astrid laughed. 

“Indeed,” Muti answered. The rest of the party came around and congratulated her, and Astrid looked at her own quest requirements before nodding. She would evolve soon too. 

“You four have it easy,” Skandr joked as he settled into a chair and pulled out one of his notebooks. “I’m stuck studying while you know how much progress you’re making a day.”

“You chose the Class about studying,” Astrid shrugged and laughed. “Why are you complaining to us that it’s exactly what you should have expected it to be?”

“Not complaining, per se,” he replied. “Just commenting.”

“And how’s your progress?” Astrid asked as she settled onto the ground nearby, looking over his shoulder at the pages covered with scribbles she couldn’t understand. 

“It’s not bad, if I’m honest,” he said. “The spell’s making good progress, and I just need some good materials to begin attempting the enchantments in earnest, though I know that my plans aren’t going to be nearly enough to actually do what I need them to.”

Astrid nodded but didn’t say anything, though she realized her breathing was hitting his neck. She apologized, “My bad, I don’t know why I try to read other people’s things without talking to them about it. Plus I don’t understand your notes anyways.”

“No problem,” Skandr replied with a smile before he turned back to his book and tapped idly on the page as he thought to himself. Something in Astrid grew frustrated at that, but she didn’t think too deeply about it, instead looking at the rest of the party. They had one Steel tier, and now it was time for the rest to follow suit. With that in mind, she walked over to her cot and got comfortable, because she’d killed five Bosses now, five remained, and then she needed to throw herself at some monsters to catch up to Muti. 

She slept dreamlessly, and in the morning, she stood tall, equipped her armor, and met the eyes of the rest of the party. Having seen what was waiting for her, she didn’t hesitate to lead them back into the Dungeon. Because becoming Steel tier? Astrid wasn’t going to wait any longer.