63 Fangs
'The guards you spoke of,' Kai had asked Roland, 'how strong are they?'
Roland had sniggered with such disgust that it had taken even Kai aback. 'They never went for any battle, other than their first one,' he had told Kai. 'They are just a little stronger than average humans. Perfect for a disposable force.'
These guards were the people who had given up on the hope of becoming strong. They had submitted to their fate, passing their time to waste away like any other animal.
'Kill them!' That's what Kai had thought when Stuart didn't back away at the right time. If he were to let Stuart live, then this little thing could cause him immense trouble on the upper floors. Who else knew better how one flap of the butterfly wings could become a storm?
Also, these few men gave him a timely opportunity to test out his sabers.
When Kai dashed towards the guards, they were still confused about what was happening. "To arms!" Stuart shouted, waking them up. They were weak, but they were also trained to act as a group. They all took long spears out of their Inventory. Stuart had a longsword in his hands.
'Items! All are items,' Kai thought. 'Perfect!'
Kai took a deep breath. For the first time, he was truly feeling alive. 'This is how it meant to be,' Kai told himself. 'These are my fangs. Without them, I was just a toothless snake.'
The guards charged at him, their spear points rushing at him. Stuart backed away, letting the guards take the van. The Head Guardsman's face had turned pale from the red of anger. He must have seen them. Those two menacing slits, and the heat coming out of Kai.
"Twin-Saber Style," Kai hissed, drowning himself in the words. "Dance of the Giant Serpent!"
Hisss!
One moment, Kai was coming at them. In the other, he disappeared.
The air seemed to hiss as he slithered in and out of the spears. The sabers danced, kissing one man after another. Some were kissed at wrists, some at legs, and one was lucky to even get a peck on the neck.
[Damage Done: 37 Points]
[Damage Done: 36 Points]
…
When Kai left the guards behind, he found Stuart shaking like a leaf.
"Hah!" A mad charge. Stuart lifted the longsword as high he could and hacked at Kai.
'He is Shae with a cock and a sword,' Kai thought, dancing away. One saber blurred upwards, the other across, and kissed the middle-aged man twice. Blood trickled from Stuart's shoulder and waist.
The dance was over. The world applauded, and Kai's eyes became round again.
[Elementary Snake Instinct: Proficiency 16% (+3%)]
[Elementary Slither Footsteps: Proficiency 47% (+2%)]
[Elementary Twin-Saber Style: Proficiency 40% (+5%)]
"Run!" Stuart let out a whimper, darting for the horses. The bleeding guards followed. Kai had intentionally not put his weight on his attacks, letting the cuts remain shallow. Just enough for the steel to enter their flesh.
"Haha!" Kai laughed, not worrying about the mounting guards at all.
Thud!
Then one guard fell off the horse, tumbling down like a dead weight.
Thud! Thud!!
The others followed one by one too. Stuart persisted, for a mere second longer, then he came down as well.
'What is happening? Why can't we move?' They must have been thinking. Kai stalked towards them, his steps sounding like the grating noise of death's scythe in their ears.
Kai looked at his sabers. They were pitch black, from hilt to the blade's tip. But there was just enough tinge of red hue over their edges for it to be noticed by naked eyes.
[
Item: Black-Steel Saber
Grade: Easy
Specification: A saber forged using Great Redshank's bill. The tougher red tip of the bill is used as the edge of the saber, giving it an uncanny sharpness
Requirement: Strength 11, Agility 12, Perception 11
Attributes: Base Damage 35 Points
Skill: Not Applicable
Effect: Reduce Blood Clotting by 15%
Quality: 48%
]
The saber had too many requirements. It was already bad, but their quality had turned out to be worse. 'The material was not meant to be forged into Sabers,' Roland had told him. Kai loved these less-quality sabers, though. They were his fangs, but unlike his previous life, they lacked one exceptional property.
Venom!
A stray ray of sunlight fell on the edge of one of the sabers. Kai saw an imperceptible layer of transparent liquid smeared over the cutting edge, and his lips arched up in a hideous grin. That was his venom. The Light Neurotoxin!
Kai had been painstakingly taking out drops after drops of poison since he had come to this place. This was the application of those drops; Two sabers drenched in venom. The poison shouldn't have affected the guards so quickly given its delayed effect. But these guards weren't top Contestants from the 2nd floor like Desmond, nor was there only a single drop of Light Neurotoxin in their bodies.
The rest was an ugly business.
Kai had only left them alive to see the potency of his poison-smeared sabers. When the saber parted their heads, they couldn't even blink. Only the wind screamed for them, and their horses mourned.
Kai killed the beasts all the same, anyway.
*
*
"No!"
Slash!
"Please! We are not soldiers!"
Hissss!
"You Demon! They were innocents!"
Thud!
"Huff! Huff!" Kai panted, taking his saber out of the guard's heart. The report given by the informant had turned out to be true. Only one guard at Roland's level had accompanied some 25 Contestants to gather the herbs, thinking the major fight was going on somewhere else.
They had no Items and no Skills. In a way, they were indeed innocent.
'There is no such thing as innocent Contestants,' Kai had told Roland, before descending on the Order's Contestants like darkness. The bloodbath that had ensued was nothing but plain butchery. The other six guild members had joined Kai too ultimately. But Kai was fast, and the speed at which he killed could hardly be matched by Contestants like Roland.
The poison did most of the work. It was hidden! And deadly!
When the guard took his last breath, the notification prevented the dead man from seeing the thrill in Kai's eyes.
[
Terminating Battle Sequence…
Floor: 1 (1st Set)
Kill Count: (21/20)
Sub-Kill Count: (16/5)
Battle Number: 2
Contestant Kai Stormborn, you have achieved the required Kill Count
Are you ready to leave the Primordial Tower?
Once declined, your Kill Count will reset to 0
The Choice is yours…
]
"Don't come back…" Roland said from afar. The rest were too scared to approach Kai's bloody figure.
"Yes. God knows I am more than ready," Kai said, smiling at Roland, sending him a shivery goodbye.
Kai disappeared with a blue flash, leaving behind stiff corpses. Many had their eyes open, and a few might still be alive, dying slowly. Death would claim them the same.
It was just a matter of time.
Volume 1: The Tales of Beedle the Bard - END
*******
Author's Note: Please read.
1. Those who have reached here, thank you!!! I am truly grateful for you to try out this work. Some must have found that this novel isn't a typical Fanfic. Yes, that is correct. I personally like novels, like Terror Infinity and the Ultimate Evolution, and that's where the idea of writing something like this had come from.
2. Vol. 2 will be joint mission, kind of like crossover between three worlds (Harry Potter, Pokemon, and GOT). It will over twice the length of the 1st Volume. And as I have already mentioned, it will have interaction with main-storyline characters, quite a lengthy progression, and action. Action above all. I will top all these up with mystery. [WARNING: There will be smut in this Volume.]
3. From Vol 3 onwards, MC will have the ability to reincarnate as a main-storyline character and ascend all three floors in a single mission which will last for a long time. Vol 3 will see MC reincarnating into Harry Potter World. The main theme of this Volume will be magic, obviously. It will be lengthier than both Vol 1 and Vol 2 combined.
You can decide to continue or not based on these points. I don't like to waste time, mine or my readers', and that's the only reason for me to tell this much at the end of the first Vol 1, so that you know what lies ahead. Anyway, I would highly appreciate if the current and regular readers could post a detailed review. Criticism, appreciation, and suggestions are all welcome. Thank you and let's have a blast ahead.
Enjoy! And please, don't forget to donate Power Stone. :)
