Aries Floor 5, The Emperor’s Ascent - 10:43 AM

  Once Glaraphel managed to put aside his ancestral hatred for anything Demonic, even a good boy like Corwin, he had become rather excited. Back in Sedona he had told me that he wanted to learn more about combat from me. Since he was a sword and board fighter, I was going to stick to what he was good at. I transformed the chariot back into its original form for the fight.

  He would also be seeing my Angel form for the first time. I hadn’t needed to use Break Free against Talafraxis since I had Coyote on my side, so this was going to be a treat for him. Now he was getting a demonstration when all he had to do was watch a kid and make sure she was safe in a land full of fluffy animals.

  Honestly, it was a really good deal for him. He had shifted his wings in a way that gave Bethany a platform to stand on. She had her arms around his neck, watching me walk towards the group of enemies. Probably the only ones on this floor, given what it was.

  I had asked Bethany and Mercury if killing enemies was going to upset her, but they both said the same thing. She knew they were monsters no matter how cute they might be. So long as I didn’t get too extreme with my violence, she would be okay. I hadn’t planned on it, especially with the style I choose to fight with this time.

  Switching the Vambrace of Wires from my right forearm to my left, I released enough of the Cable Conglomerate to weave itself into a round shield. It was held together by my will alone, and I was going to need to focus to keep it in that shape. While my khopesh was different from the shortsword Glaraphel usually used, that was fine. The skills would translate well enough.

  The weakest members on the outskirts of the herd noticed me first, bleating protest as I approached. These were the Charcoal Sheep, flammable and erratic. They backed away and mixed with the Steel Merinos, whose sparks could cause them to explode.

  I ran around the group, pushing the Charcoal Sheep back into the group. This gathered the attention of the Combustion Rams in the inner circle and the Rampards beyond them, but they simply watched for now, chewing their cud. The flock was not their concern even if the weaker members gathered around the strong in the hopes that they were.

  Once I was satisfied by the smaller ring of sheep, I retrieved a dagger from my inventory. I threw it, Pushing the weapon towards the closest Steel Merino while backpedaling. With so many Charcoal Sheep bunched together, this was going to be a big boom. It almost made me wish I had something like Bethany’s Sensory Control skill.

  The dagger rammed into the steel wool where it was the thickest, not piercing through enough to actually damage the creature underneath. Instead, a huge amount of sparks flew from the point of impact and sprayed the ring of sheep. The other Steel Merinos didn’t mind the sparks. At least, not at first.

  Several of them exploded immediately and no one was safe. The fire from the blast caught them on fire, which caused even more explosions. A loud and dangerous chain reaction was going off around the herd. Steel Merinos flew in all directions, immune to fire but certainly not the impact afterwards.

  I threw myself to the ground as one of them flew towards me, ducking under it, and grinned as my fireworks went off. It was almost a certainty that the rest of the guild would have heard it. They were going to explode anyway once the Combustion Rams got involved, so I had simply made them blow preemptively.

  Before the smoke could clear, I was back on my feet and charging in. The enemy would have a hard time seeing through the smoke cover, but I was perfectly fine thanks to Absolute Awareness.

  <<<>>>

  [[Passive]]

  Absolute Awareness

  Your vision is absolute.

  Increase the distance at which you can make out fine details by a magnification of 10. You can see through darkness as if it were daylight, and can see through magical obscurement and weather effects. Items of interest have a high chance of releasing a glow that only you can see.

  In addition, you can use your aura to see in a radius as far out as a foot per point of Wisdom. With this, you can see through walls, though some thick, rare, or magical materials may hinder your sight. Abilities, skills, spells, and passives that require line of sight will work through Absolute Awareness.

  <<<>>>

  The Support Lamb—the boss in the middle of the herd—bleated as a green glow settled around her protectors. Most of the Combustion Rams had been taken out by high speed steel wool, but the Rampards had taken the brunt of it. Despite that, they were far from out of the fight. Especially with a healer.

  I jumped over the trench the exploding sheep caused, landing amidst a couple of injured Combustion Rams. Their horns glowed as they conjured the fire needed to attack me, but I quickly put them out of their misery before they had the chance. The ones here were still in the smoke, but I Constructed two more daggers and set them to work killing the ones that managed to survive.

  While I was doing that, the three Rampards were lining up to protect the Support Lamb. Their curved horns shot fire straight up into the air as they bleated menacingly, and the flames of their wool became condensed around their torsos like armor. The grass beneath them, however, seemed to be untouched by the flames.

  The one in the middle lowered its head and charged. I planted my feet and raised my shield. Flames washed over me, but not enough to light my gear on fire as I moved to meet them. Horns met metal as we clashed, and I started getting pushed back.

  At the very end of my shield, the Cable Conglomerate snaked out and wrapped around the Rampard’s horns. It bleated in protest before stopping and shaking its head. I moved with it, but I didn’t allow myself to be thrown around, and struck with my sword against the side of its face. The beast recoiled from the pain, and I let it go to prepare for the others.

  The one on the left approached with its head down, its horns blasting out more fire that I raised my makeshift shield to catch. On the right, the Rampard reared up as if it was going to try to land and crush me. What it was really attempting to do was grab me with its gross, misshapen hands.

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  The Rampards had a lot going for them. Not only were they immune to fire damage, but they could spew it from their horns and catch on fire to deter predators. They were large, defensive enemies with a ton of hit points. To top it all off, they also had hands with three fingers and a thumb that were made out of the same material as their back hooves, which still followed the norm for sheep.

  So when those grasping digits came for me, I went with the charging Rampard without hesitation. I jumped backwards, letting it give me some extra speed by catching it with my shield. Its companion crashed, grabbing the charging ram instead of me. I brought the khopesh up high and swung.

  While tough, the wool of the Rampard couldn’t match that of the Steel Merino. Its defense was more than just sheer armor. Blood ran freely from the wound I had caused, but it quickly caught fire with a blast that was large enough to rock the creature and push me backwards. I had to activate Shield on this one.

  As I was pushed back a few feet, I checked the wound I had left on the first monster. It wasn’t fully healed, but it was healing. The Support Lamb, which had taken up a position amongst some of the corpses, was doing its job well enough. A part of me wanted to kill it immediately, but I didn’t want to be left with three raging Rampards when the next boss showed up.

  So, I did the next best thing. Satisfied that my Constructed daggers had slain everything else, I let them disappear and made a box. Then, I Dropped it on the Support Lamb. The healing stopped immediately as there was no line of sight or effect. Even though the boss bucked and tried to escape, it was easy to keep it down with my psychic powers; the little lamb’s only real threat was its ability to enhance large groups around it.

  It was cheesy, but it worked.

  Diving to the side to avoid a charging Rampard, I rolled and lunged back. I brought my khopesh to bear against the one directly in front of me, stabbing it deep before taking a step back. The blood, once again, exploded, and I Pushed my sword into the creature. Not without help, however; I sleeved it in a protective Construct to prevent it from getting damaged. The weapon was forced forward, cutting through the tough hide. More blood meant more explosion, and it went flying.

  I extended my arm and let it slam into the palm of my hand, grabbing it out of the air. The Rampard had fallen over from the explosion. It scrambled as the other two came at me. Raising my foot, I used Force Field to block one’s natural flamethrowers before stepping up onto its snout. The shape of its head made things a little awkward, but I still managed it.

  Keeping an eye on the other Rampart, I took a moment to time things just right. It reared, looking to grab me, which was when I sliced downwards. I dampened the explosion with Shield, allowing it to push me backwards, and the beast I was on stumbled into its ally. The one on its rear legs tripped, falling on top of it. Both scrambled, trying to get up.

  The moment my feet hit the ground, I surged forward with my khopesh straight towards the pinned Rampard’s face. Desperate flames came for me, and I took it. With Fire Resistance and my heritage, it wasn’t so bad. I kicked the sheep monster square in the jaw and pushed it back. My efforts only earned me a little bit of time, but it was enough.

  My khopesh slashed against the bottom of the downed Rampard’s chin, and I used Orbit to move it faster. I cut through the soft skin before reaching the neck. This part of the beast wasn’t on fire, so its blood didn’t explode. Switching Orbit to Push, I followed my sword deep into the monster before savagely pulling it free.

  The Rampard above the one I had just grievously injured brought its hand down on me. I caught it with my shield, my legs buckling from the weight of such a big creature. Instead of fighting it for long, I let myself fall backwards. At the same time, I kept feeding the Cable Conglomerate out of the vambrace and keeping the monster in the air with Lift, so while I moved the beast did not.

  Rolling back to my feet, I threw the khopesh towards the Rampard that had finally managed to struggle to its feet. I Spun the weapon as I Pushed, catching it in the legs. It fell, and I made sure the blade shifted so it couldn’t get trapped. It kept moving, maneuvering through places on the monster’s body that weren’t on fire so as to avoid the explosions.

  <<<>>>

  [[Patron Message]]

  Not to rush you, but the Patrons suspect you’re better than this. Let’s finish up quickly, Ant.

  <<<>>>

  Sweat was dripping from my forehead from the flaming creatures, and I nodded. The Support Lamb was captured and waiting for me, still fighting against the box, and the Rampards were a mess.

  I continued Spinning the khopesh, maneuvering it around to slice the throat of the beast it was terrorizing. It fought against the blade, but once it started bleeding too heavily it laid there, breathing hard. I backpedaled and Pulled the weapon back to me.

  The Rampard that hadn’t been mortally wounded chased after me, and the fire from its underbelly made contact with the blood of the one it was climbing over. A much bigger explosion took place, causing the monster to lift into the air. I timed it carefully, sidestepping to the best position, and sliced upwards as it fell.

  My khopesh met resistance before coming out of the top of the Rampard’s neck, severing the spine. I used Fae Step. There was no other choice. I came out on the other side of the Constructed box as the giant sheep monster’s entire body exploded with a much greater force than before. It caused a chain reaction, and the other two followed suit.

  I activated Force Field and crouched, redirecting the explosion from hitting me. There was only a crater left where the trio of Rampards had been, and I nodded solemnly to myself before turning my attention to the box.

  Inside, the Support Lamb had stopped struggling to get free. It knew it was alone now, and I could feel its fear in its aura. Taking a breath, I raised the khopesh and made the box disappear.

  A moment later, I was pulling both parts of the boss monster into my inventory for Ash. It was a clean kill, but not one that brought up a victory screen. I wasn’t sure if I’d get it upon leaving the floor or defeating the next boss, but it didn’t matter. Standing up, I looked around for the next challenger.

  <<<>>>

  [[Warning!]]

  The Field Boss, Support Lamb, has been killed. The Roaming Boss will now be summoned.

  <<<>>>

  “Good, let it come,” I muttered, wiping the blood off of the khopesh as I reformed my shield.

  Movement from a group of trees in the distance caught my eyes, and I froze, partially out of wariness and partially out of excitement.

  <<<>>>

  [[Warning!]]

  The Soul Shearer has marked you for death. You have been afflicted with the debuff Mark of the Reaper.

  [[Debuff]]

  Mark of the Reaper

  So long as the creature that marked you is still alive, your maximum hit points will always be equal to your current hit points. You can lose health, but not regain it.

  <<<>>>

  “Oh, that is dirty,” I said, unable to help my grin.