CH 46: Nephalem Summons
(A/N: Sorry for not updating for a few days, me and my family were on a vacation. Daily updates are back though!)
Natasha smirked :"I'm pure evil."
Alistair smirked :"(Oh, really? How evil are we talking?)"
Natasha :"Whenever I see an occupied public restroom, I make sure to repeatedly try to open the door to give the person inside paralyzing anxiety."
Alistair :"*Confused screaming*"
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"(Alright, now let's check out this baby!)" Thinking about the Skill, Alistair had to admit that he was excited. After all, he was a loyal fan of Solo Leveling and Sung Jin (Drip) Woo. Strength lied in numbers as well, so this Lunacy Skill was going to be amazing.
'If this Lunacy Skill is actually good, it will be a lot more helpful than just summoning some backup to help out. After all, according to Natasha, these guys don't need to be stuck to me 24/7.
If I'm lucky, I may be able to send them to hunt monsters for me! Hahahaha, that would be amazing! I'd be gaining Stats 24/7! Hmm, but they're supposed to be weak at Lunacy Manifestation Lv 1 though.
Oh well, I'll work on them like a dedicated gym coach so they can hit the grind like their papa!'
As he was about to power up the Seal of Lunacy, Natasha spoke up :"Ah, but you need a summoning command to summon them though. So go ahead and choose a word."
'... What is this, Solo Leveling? Well, I mean I can summon creatures now... but it's different! Right, I don't summon the dead, I summon the... the... the souls of the dead in the Abyss? Yeah... totally different...
Anyway! But if I'm going to give a summon command, what should I say? Arise sounds the best, but no way. That classic is only for Sung Drip Woo, and I'm not gonna disrespect the Chad who got me into reading eastern comics!
Then what?'
"(What do you think I should say? Do you have any suggestions?)"
"Of course I do. But how about you think a bit and choose one for yourself instead?"
"(Hmm... What to do, what to do? How about... *Serious* Resurrection. Oh, hell no. Hmm... *serious* Erect.)"
"*Confused* Wh-wha- huh? E-excuse me?"
"(Oh, you know, erect. To put together. Erect a building. Like, erect an army.)"
"O-ooh! Y-yeah, I knew! Yup, definitely knew that."
"(*Side eye* Of course you did. And I'm ugly. But yeah, this isn't good either. Sounds too sexual. What am I doing, arousing the spirits of the Abyss? Yeah, I'm so charming I can seduce the dead hahaha!")
"Hahahaha! With the rate your Charisma Stats are rising, I don't think that's gonna be a joke in the future!"
"(Hahahaha, I don't even know if I should be concerned or smug about that! Haaah, but anyway, back on the subject. Hmm... Wakey wakey!)"
Natasha wheezed :"It's time for school!"
Alistair wheezed back :"(This is so stupid hahahaha! Hippity hoppity your soul is my property!)"
"Hahahaha, why is that actually a good one?!!? If you stay dead, you're gay!"
"(Gyahahahaha!!)"
As he fought to breathe, Natasha couldn't help but fall on her back as she gasped between laughs, both of them wheezing.
After laughing to their hearts' content, Alistair wiped the tears in his eyes, still laughing a bit :"(Alright, alright. Ahem, alright, enough joking around. I got an actual good one.)"
Smirking, he raised his left hand as the Seal began to glow :"(Heed my call.)"
(Alistair's energy color image:)
Purple electricity began to crackle in front of him before a black and dark purple portal appeared. As Alistair watched in amazement, a man clad in slick black and purple armor, with black wings sprouting from his back and white hair long enough to reach the small of his back flowed down from the back of the helmet covering his head, while holding two long katanas —Odachi, same as Sephiroth's sword from Final Fantasy— in each hand. What seemed to be a coat, which looked like another layer of light armor, waved around with each step. (Image:)
His glowing dark purple eyes set on Alistair, gaze serious but not hostile. Looking at him, Alistair couldn't help but feel a sense of familiarity from the knight. The winged knight lowered himself to kneel on one knee, setting his blades on the ground on each side, as he bowed his head respectfully with a hand over his chest. His large wings coming down to lay on the ground as well.
"(Whoa...)" The baby dragon looked amazed before Natasha smiled :"Alistair, congratulations on meeting a Nephalem. They are one of the three guardian races that protect the Three Eventualities."
"(Guardian races?)"
"Uh huh. They are the Angels of Heaven, Devils of Hell, and Nephalems of Abyss. The Seal of Lunacy, which connects us to the Abyss, allows us to summon the guardians of Abyss. *Smirking* Pretty awesome, right?"
"(*Amazed* Yeah, really awesome...)"
Turning to look at the kneeling Nephalem, he waited for him to get up. But he simply stayed in position. Alistair to Nat :"(Why isn't he getting up? Am I supposed to do something?)"
Natasha smiled :"He's waiting for you to name him. It's a custom where the first summon of every Level of Lunacy Manifestation should be named, since it appoints them as one of the generals of your army.
He will be your first general. After your Lunacy Manifestation reaches Lv 2 and you are able to summon Nephalems with strength compared to F-Class monsters, you'll name the first summon of your new troops to make him another general.
It will go like this for every Level, until you have 9 generals. Oh, let me clear up some things. One, you can make another summon your general instead. But you shouldn't, because the first summon is always, always the strongest of your available troops.
Two, your Nephalems' strengths aren't permanent. Once you upgrade your Lunacy Manifestation, their strength will also rise. This Nephalem's strength is G-Class now, along with the other 9 Nephalems you can currently summon, but their strengths will rise to F-Class after your Lunacy Manifestation reaches Lv 2.
Also, the strength of all your appointed generals will be one Class above the rest of your Nephalems."
"(Ooh, I see! Then I should name him now, right?)"
"Yes, you should. *Smirking* What, need help with choosing a name too?"
"*Smirking* No, I actually have something in mind."
He turned to the Nephalem again, who was waiting patiently for his name.
'Looking at his long white hair, coat, and especially his swords, I immediately remembered Sephiroth from Final Fantasy.'
Alistair smirked :"(From now on, your name shall be Seph. I hope you'll aide me well.)"
They didn't miss the way his eyes glowed brighter before returning to normal. As he bowed his head even deeper, a Status Screen showed up above him.
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[Seph Info]
Name: Seph
Species: Nephalem
Class: G-Class -> F-Class
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[F-Class Nephalem Physiology]
Lv: 1
Stats: 6
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[Skills]
Nephalem Physiology Lv 2 (F)
Ethereal Physiology Lv 2 (F)
Abyssal Force Manipulation Lv 2 (F)
Soul Absorption Lv 2 (F)
Immortality Lv 2 (F)
Knight Lv 2 (F)
Samurai Lv 2 (F)
Melee Fighter Lv 2 (F)
Longsword Proficiency Lv 2 (F)
Peak Katana Proficiency Lv 2 (F)
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(A/N: In case you've forgotten, Physiology means everything that they're all physically capable of doing. Like flight, or enhanced strength and such.)
"(Whoaaa... is this supposed to happen?)" Alistair pointed at the Status Screen unsurely. Natasha looked confused for a moment, before realization hit her :"Oh, you talking about his Status Screen.
Yeah, you can view the Status Screen of your summoned Nephalems. Only you though, so no need to worry."
"(I see.)"
Feeling awkward for letting Seph continue kneeling, he coughed :"(Seph, you can get up now.)" nodding, he stood up. Back straight and imposing, awaiting further orders.
"(You didn't tell me they could Level Up though.)"
"Didn't want to info drop everything on you. But yeah, they can Level Up. However, they can only do it by killing. Mana Cultivation or Mana Circulation isn't possible for them, unfortunately.
The exp they'll get isn't divided though. No matter how many of them participate in a hunt, all of your Nephalems, along with you, will get the full amount of exp. Also, their Skill Level and Class will rise with their own Classes."
"(Oh? I'll get exp too? Even if I don't participate or help?)"
"Nope. Since they're your summons, even if you let them hunt on their own, you'll still get exp. You'll also get Seals, by the way. It's why me and my mom always have our Nephalems hunt on their own to get more and more Seals."
"(Ooh, now that's awesome!)"
"Heh, of course it is. They're going to be weak for a while for now, but once they get going, it'll be like a small snowball rolling down the mountain and turning into a giant snowball.
Oh, by the way, you don't need to worry about them dying either. That Immortality isn't actual Immortality, it's talking about them being unkillable as long as they're fueled by your Lunacy Mana. You're basically their HP and Mana."
Alistair chuckled to himself, shaking his head in amusement :'Hahahaha, isn't this basically Solo Leveling at this point?'
"(So what will happen when I cancel the summon? Will Seph return to where he came from?)"
"No, actually. Since he has answered your summon, he'll stick by your side and reside in your Seal. Along with all the other Nephalems that you call upon."
"(Oooh! That's neat! Speaking of the other Nephalems,)"
He raised his hand again, having too much fun according to his giddy smile :"(Heed my call!)" the same purple crackling appeared, before 9 portals the same as Seph's appeared, with 9 more Nephalems walking out with discipline.
The newcomers looked like Seph, but lacked the coat, white hair and great katanas, along with not matching the intimidation he let out.
But although they lacked the awesomeness that Seph possessed, they weren't to be dissed at all. Especially not with the long blade each of them was holding. Their slick black armor clung to their bodies like a bodysuit, the dark purple lines running through them like menacing veins. (Nephalem soldiers image:)
As both of them looked at the group of Nephalems that got on one knee, with Seph joining his brethren, Natasha chuckled at Alistair's amazed and shining eyes :"A dragon with an immortal army. What kind of a bad joke is that?"
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[Nephalem Soldiers Info]
Species: Nephalem
Class: G-Class
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[G-Class Nephalem Physiology]
Lv: 1
Stats: 3
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[Skills]
Nephalem Physiology Lv 1 (G)
Ethereal Physiology Lv 1 (G)
Abyssal Force Manipulation Lv 1 (G)
Soul Absorption Lv 1 (G)
Immortality Lv 1 (G)
Knight Lv 1 (G)
Samurai Lv 1 (G)
Melee Fighter Lv 1 (G)
Longsword Proficiency Lv 1 (G)
Peak Katana Proficiency Lv 1 (G)
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- (Next day)
"Alright, we do it as discussed?" Natasha looked at Alistair and Serenity as they walked out of the village in the morning.
Serenity :"Yeah, I'm cool with that."
Alistair :"(Same)"
Natasha :"Alright then. We'll look around the village separately, and when we find a clue about where the Orcs are, we'll tell each other using the Communication Earrings I'm wearing and have given you two, alright?"
The two nodded, the earnings on the girls' ears and Alistair's horn glowing under the sunlight. Natasha nodded :"Alright then, let's spread out.
And remember, since we're doing this quest to see if we're compatible as a party, let's do this together when we find where they're stationed at."
"(Yes, ma'am!)" The two saluted playfully, causing the redhead to chuckle in amusement :"Alright, let's go. And Alistair, be careful, alright? Quickly call for help if anything happens."
"[Yes, yes.]" His flames turned into words as he rolled his eyes playfully :"[Now let's go already!]" And set off quickly. The girls chuckled at his excitement before going their separate ways themselves.
Alistair smiled a growl, his eyes turning vicious :'Let's see what I've actually got now that I have the chance, by seeing if I've lost my touch in cooking bacon or not!'