Maki: 17 years old. – Ruby Rank.
ABILITIES:
Death Sharpness (IV) – Level 25 – Level 28
Warlike Architecture (IV) – Level 24 – Level 28
Deadly Arcane Construction (IV) – Level 24 – Level 29
Personal World (IV) – Level 16 – Level 18
Thundersnow (IV) – Level 22 – Level 26
Dimensional Step (IV) – Level 11 – Level 12
Advanced Vital Synthesis (IV) – Level 21 – Level 26
Gravity Overload (IV) – Level 16 – Level 22
Crushing Tempest (V) – Level 3 – Level 5
Laws and Pseudo-Laws:
Yin-Yang Law: Life and Death
Heavenly Dominion Law: Space
Dragon Law: Gravity
Absolute Frost Law: Ice
Eternal Edge Law: Sharpness
Self Rhythm Law: Electricity
Pseudo-Law of Perception.
Draconic Dominion (Special Banner) – Rank 3
A grin stretches from ear to ear across my face as I look at my updated status after countless battles. Pushing my body to the brink of collapse countless times has paid off, and forcing my brain to its limits is reflected in every level I've gained.
All those levels came from facing people or monsters one rank above my own strength, always being pushed to the limits of my abilities to avoid losing, evolving by leaps and bounds during every confrontation.
The last one especially pushed me until I nearly passed out. The only thing keeping me on my feet was my desire to kill that bastard; a single second after I relaxed, my body collapsed as if someone had cut the strings of a puppet.
Even the ability that has always kept me alive and made me proud was terribly affected. I never thought my healing ability could be disrupted like that. I'd never encountered a moderately skilled life mana user before, so I don't know what might happen if I ever come across someone truly talented and capable.
I have several abilities on the verge of Level 30, but I don't feel like I can take them to the next rank anytime soon. I feel trapped at a bottleneck. Two of those abilities are completely related to my armor and ranged constructions; I need to study a little more or come up with something ingenious to take them to the next level.
The other one is related to my pure close-combat offense. It's the ability I use the most when fighting with my swords and the one that causes the most death damage with every strike. I know its penetration power has fallen a little behind, but thanks to the momentum from gravity, I can break through or overcome barriers that should otherwise be impossible.
My healing and mental abilities have also been pillars of my strength. Both have grown alongside me ever since I was trapped in that dungeon for so many years. I don't feel like they've stagnated, but I don't think I can easily push them to the next rank either. I still need an extra push.
Should I go find someone strong and fight them to the death? That's the best way to gain levels and obtain some enlightenment. I discard the idea. My body has already been through enough, and my cube is quite sensitive; I don't want to overexert myself in a dangerous situation right now.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
That leaves only one ability, one I've been using constantly ever since I obtained it. It's always been my favorite in battle and the one that has given me the boost needed to break through barriers I wouldn't have been capable of overcoming under normal circumstances.
Gravity Overload has been an enormous blessing for my fighting style. Being able to enhance my movements has allowed me to overcome the powerful defenses of Grade 5 monsters and the solid constructions of Diamond Ranks.
The cost of breaking my body doesn't matter if it allows me to become powerful enough to defeat them. It seems a little stupid knowing that I'll still be damaging my body in order to improve, but at least I won't be in a situation where a single mistake could cost me an arm or, in the worst case, my head.
At the same time, my mind will be working on the smallest details, so my mental ability might receive a boost as well; my healing ability will also benefit from being in constant use.
I shoot off from the roof of my house into the sky and head toward a place where I can find a good replacement for Cokue. I can't train with my companion because he's currently in the middle of leveling up. According to my calculations, he should awaken in a few more days. Once that happens, I'll go train with him.
When I reach the designated place, I'm surprised when I pass through several barriers that have been set up. Curiously enough, they don't belong to our territory. Did they install their own defensive measures? The Brissy group really is something else.
One of their members is already staring at me wide-eyed while alerting the others. Each of them rushes out of their house at incredible speed to greet me. They're all scanning me. I don't sense any malice, just curiosity and a little bit of... admiration?
“It's a pleasure to see you again.” Gink greets me as I land. “To what do we owe the presence of the village's most beloved noble?” His voice sounds warm, and I can sense his curiosity.
I would've been annoyed if I'd sensed any kind of falseness, but he genuinely seems to believe what he's saying—or he has excellent control over his Imra. “Nothing, I just came looking for some training partners.” I reply with a broad smile.
I hear shouts and whistles, almost all of them raising their hands to train against me. A chuckle escapes my mouth. These people really are crazy about fighting. They're pretty entertaining.
“Do you want anything in particular? Close combat? Long range? Or maybe you simply don't like the face of one of these barbarians... pick whoever you want first.” Gink looks equally excited about being chosen.
“Oh, looks like I explained myself badly.” A somewhat ferocious smile forms on my face. “All of you come at me at the same time. I'm the kind of person who likes interesting challenges.”
“That's even more interesting. We also wanted to fight you as a team. We want to know just how far behind you we are.” A fierce smile forms on all their faces.
“I just want to apologize in case I disappoint you... I want to practice one specific ability, so my overall power will be considerably reduced.” I don't want them getting excited thinking I'll be going all out.
“That sucks...” One of them complains. He's the chubbier one, with brown skin and hair cut short on the sides; he's also one of the shortest.
“I thought you'd take us seriously.” Another looks a little disappointed and angry. He's the shortest of them all, but he seems pretty cheerful; I think his name is Taifu.
“That's no fun. I'm already losing motivation...” Another complains. He's the tallest in the group, with a very athletic and defined body. He also looks like quite the heartbreaker.
“Don't be disappointed, guys. I promise I won't be weak, and you'll have a lot more fun than you think.” My strength will barely decrease, only a little. What will really become weaker are my defenses and long-range attacks; in close combat, I'm still a beast.
They look much more enthusiastic now. Gink introduces me to everyone present, and they all show off their manners. Each of them makes movements worthy of people who've taken etiquette classes. At least they're not as brutish as they look.
“Let's go somewhere more suitable.” I suggest, and everyone agrees. We're going to go pretty wild, that's for sure.
There's a place near where we live that we use to train the soldiers. The rocks are much tougher than normal, and there's almost no animal or plant life we could affect; it's a good place to train.
They're all now wearing devices capable of preventing fatal blows, while all other damage will be felt just as it normally would in battle. These devices are quite expensive to use, costing several cores to keep active for just a few minutes, but at least the cost is reduced if they only have to block fatal blows.
“You don't need one, Young Lord Maki?” Taifu asks me, two daggers in his hands. He looks pretty fast and agile.
“I don't need one. I'll be fine.” His eyes turn slightly serious, and not just his—the entire team's do. “I'm not looking down on you. I have my own way of healing myself.” I clear up the misunderstanding. Looks like I stepped on another sore spot.
“We're ready. We start in five seconds.” Gink shouts. There are eight of them, and they all look very strong. Only two seem to fight at long range, while the rest have different kinds of roles. Before I can finish analyzing them, I have to tilt my head back a few centimeters to dodge an invisible slash. A smile appears on my face, and they look extremely surprised to see me dodge it.