Chapter 66: Fracture - Twilight Maze (13) (Patreon)

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***

“Mr. Lock.  W-Was that, was that what I think it was?”  Aurora hissed, waking the others.  Then she scrambled to her feet, green eyes wide with disbelief.

I stared at my katana which had been surrounded by a black and gray hue moments before, equally as shocked.

That was…

That was [Aura] wasn’t it?

There were two requirements to unlocking Aura.  One was the level and stat requirements which –as long as you didn’t play a Mage– reached pretty easily.  Mages were naturally locked out of their racial traits.

The second requirement… was having someone teach you.

It was almost impossible for your character to learn it on your own.  Only those with both the [Savant] or [Genius] preset had a chance of learning it on their own.  That was part of the reason why the order of Knights existed in the first place.  Only those who were inducted into Knighthood would be taught the secret or you had to pay an exorbitant amount of gold.  Even then you were sworn to never teach it to anyone else.

That’s why [Aura] users were so rare, even among the higher grade adventurers.

I had been prepared to wait until level 30, then planning to find a Knight or someone to teach it to me.  Yet… now I didn’t need to.

I already had [Aura].

To see if it was a fluke, I kept my eyes open this time.  Swinging the blade, I effortlessly went through the mental exercise Arrosh had taught me.

Once again, a flickering hue of [Aura] surrounded my sword; rounded at the edges and dissipating like smoke.  The  closer it was to the sword, the darker it was –nearly black– and faded in color the further it got; gray to white.  Most [Aura] tended to be a representation of what school of swordsmanship you belonged to; but Black [Aura]... as far as I knew, only one character in the entire world of MSS had ever used it

Nearnigh the [Sword Saint].

Arrosh Bloodedge.  He’d taught it to me.

Finally, I noticed Aurora staring, her mouth agape.  

“Mr. Lock, you… you can use [Aura]?”  She said, like she had just received a holy revelation.

“I… guess I can.”

A multitude of emotions went through her face.  Disbelief.  Disappointment.  Envy.  Jealousy.  Greedm then finally settling on a mixture of distrust and awe.

“Are you lying to me?”  She whispered.

“What? No.”  I stowed my katana away.  I wanted to test it out some more but the look in Aurora’s eyes was starting to freak me out.  I thought she was accusing me of lying that it was [Aura], but it was something else entirely.

“You told me that an orc taught you your swordsmanship.  But an orc cannot teach how to wield [Aura]... how is it that you can? Have you always been able to use [Aura]? Can your master use [Aura]?”

She didn’t doubt my use of [Aura].  She doubted my origins.

“Aurora… calm down.”  She was firing off questions much too fast for me to follow.

She cleared her throat and composed herself.  Aurora was a noble through and through, I was sure she had some training or other regarding social protocol.  

“Mr. Lock, I simply ask because you told me you were a Slave and don’t remember anything about your life before that.  But could it be that you were a member of a family of Knights?”  Her eyes no longer wavered, deep and green like the color of evergreen leaves.  Unmoving.  Unshaken.  

“Or… perhaps you are a Scion.”

Of course.  Aurora had no idea of knowing my circumstances; neither what I went through or who Arrosh was; a disciple of the [Sword Saint].  It was right for her to be suspicious.

But that didn’t mean I had to reveal the identity of my Master whom I had yet to find.

“I am not… as far as I know.”  I deflected her questions by asking her one of my own.  “I’m surprised at your reaction… I thought you’d have been plenty of [Aura] users.”

“I have.  But never one as young as you.  Never.  Not even among my own household and the Vetilius are known for producing Knights.”  Aurora shook her head then stared at her hands.  “Many would kill to be able to use [Aura], Mr. Lock.”

“...You haven’t received such training?”

She didn’t answer.  But the silence was answer enough, her usually stoic expression holding the pain of memories that I couldn’t fathom.  Whatever Aurora’s story was, it must’ve been a painful one.  Of course… the bastard of a Great House wouldn’t be allowed to learn [Aura].  If I were them, I’d only train her just enough to make her useful.  Not enough to make her a threat to the actual descendants.

“He hasssss not.”

Skaris was awake, his reptilian eyes open from his bedroll.  For that matter, so were Eltis and Kyrian.

“Skaris-” I began, then decided to address everyone.  “You all should be resting.”

“Honey, you should have thought of that before working up poor Aurora into a snit.”

“I didn’t-”

“Ms. Eltis, I was not in a, as you called it, ‘snit’.”  Aurora gave her full attention to Skaris.  “But I’d like to hear Mr. Skaris’ opinion on this.”

Even Kyrian seemed interested.  I had forgotten because I tended to wrap up my slave experience into one, but Kyrian wasn’t there most of the time.

Skaris shrugged.  “Not much to sssay.  There are few like Sssslaveborn, born with natural insstinct and a tassste for battle.  Asss ssssoon assss I ssssaw him, he wassss like a beassst.  All rage.  Instinct.  Sightlessss anger.  No focusss.”

His attention sharped on me like a knife and I could’ve sworn the temperature in the little room rose a few degrees higher.  “Dangeroussss. Deadly.  He was inexperiencsssed back then but now… he hassss awakened.”

“You could tell?”  Aurora asked.

“A cub may be young but cannot hide their nature.  It was plain for all to ssssee.”  Skaris got up and began to fold his bedroll.  “It wassss the sssame with Ssslaveborn.  In the beginning he wassss unpolished.  Young.  Yet it was there.  The markings of a hunter.  A warrior.”

He met my gaze.  “That wassss one of the many reassssons why I gave you my life debt.  Your sssstrength was undeniable.”  

“Are you saying you knew that he would be able to wield [Aura], Mr. Skaris?”  Aurora was still stuck on the [Aura] aspect.  “If that is true, are you able to look at m-”

“No… not [Aura].”  Skaris shook his head.  “Jusssst that he would awaken into hissss strength.  That he’d be sssstrong one day.  Excsssseptional.”

“Either way,”  Kyrian interrupted before Aurora could launch another question.  “Congratulations are in order Lock.  I can count on one hand the number of non-scions that could awaken [Aura] and be elevated to knighthood.”

He frowned, thinking.  “In Turina, you’d be getting a lot of attention for it once word got out; not sure what would happen here in Jayu.”

“Oh, there'll be a stir alright.”  Eltis confirmed.  “I imagine old Yousef and dearie Marc will want to sink their claws into you even deeper than they already have.  If the other guilds, Eretia, Hemter or Grigios hear of this I imagine they’ll get in touch with you too.  That’s not to mention the various clans, parties and even what passes for nobility in Jayu trying to be a friend with you.”

“There are plenty of others who use [Aura].”  I countered.  Yes, [Aura] was special and hard to unlock.  But it certainly wasn’t a trait exclusive to just me.  Hell, it was just a racial trait. When it came down to it, and all the races had their own and none were better than the other.  Orcs could enhance their [Physical] stats and gain skills –both passive and active– through [Totems], becoming Berserkers.  Beastman gained mastery over a chosen element through [Evolution], one of the least versatile racial traits but extremely potent in elemental builds.  The Dwarves had [Transmutation] and their counterparts, the elves, had [Core Dominion].

The sixth and hidden race; Ne-

“But you might be the only adventurer not loyal to the Empire that could use [Aura], Mr. Lock.”

What?

“What do you mean by that?”

“Honey… you really have no idea about what’s going on in the world do you?”  

“Lock.  The Turina Empire is a country of humans.  They wouldn’t let other countries possess a weapon that should belong to only themselves.”  Kyrian explained.  “They forbid the passing of [Aura] knowledge to anyone who’s not a Turina Citizen, and [Aura] is limited to the Great Houses and Knights.  To be honest, I’ve never heard of an adventurer not affiliated with Turina in some way using [Aura]...”

“There are rumors.”  Eltis side-eyed Aurora whose expression was downcast.  “That the Turina Empire hunts down people who awaken [Aura].  Nothing but rumors of course.  But everything that dearie Kyrian said is true.  The Church of Light, Flame and Shield would never let a human not loyal to the Turina Empire use [Aura].”

“But there must be others who use [Aura].  There’s no way.”

“I’m sure there are.  But far too few of them in the world to make a difference.  Hence, why rumors like that pop up in the first place, dear.”  Eltis got to her feet and took out a waterskin from her Dimension Ring, taking a short drink.

That explained a lot more about Aurora’s reaction.  If those not loyal to Turina were truly banned from using [Aura]... then she had no connections that could teach her Aura.

Except me now.

Hell… could I become rich teaching people how to use [Aura]?

Even thinking of the possibility sicked me to the Core.  Because to me, using [Aura] was what Arrosh had left me; his inheritance.  It wasn’t just the fact that I wanted to keep his teachings to myself; but abusing what he taught me in confidence hoping that I could succeed the memory of his own master to get rich? Not even becoming more powerful but for gold coins?

No.  I couldn’t do that to Arrosh.

“It doessss not matter Ssslaveborn.  Turina thissss, humanssss that.  We are in Jayu; the sssstatessss of freedom.”  Skaris was waiting by the door.  “Do you not wissssh to test out your new abilitiesss?”

That was all Skaris said.  Following his lead, everyone else had packed up their belongings as well.  They stared at me expectedly.

In this way; gamers and adventurers were of one mind and one body.

If you got a new toy; naturally the next step was to test it out on monsters.

***

At my behest, they allowed me to sleep for two hours; just enough to push their patience and get me rested at the same time.  On the dot, we left the Temporary Shelter; we shouldn’t stay in one spot too long anyways.  We were in luck because just around the corner was a lone Ice Dokkaebi ; three horns on his head.  Unlike the others the monster was completely naked, barring the giant hammer in his one hand and the gourd for [Ice Wine] in the other.

“Mr. Lock; how do you want to do this?”

“You and me.  After I test out my [Aura], Skaris can join in and help us finish him off.”

No one talked after that.

[Ice Dokkaebi], grade 7.  I was going to tackle with just Aurora, no buffs, no anything.

Just [Aura].

A jittery sensation traveled down my spine; traveling through my arms.  My heart was caught in my throat as my head began to spin; my vision narrowing and the thumps of my heartbeat roaring like thunder in my ears.  This wasn’t a regular fight; this was a test.  A test to see if my [Aura] was real.  I had seen it, I had felt it, my heart knew that it was real.  But my head cast doubts.

I wasn’t one of them.  I wasn’t born here; my soul came from somewhere else.

What if what Arrosh had taught me wasn’t [Aura]? What if it was something else altogether?

What if I was getting my hopes up for nothing?

“Idiot.  Just do it.”

Before I knew it, I sprinting across the snow; my sword in my hand.  The jagged katana was familiar to me as a body part by now; I knew the worn handle like the palm of my hand; my fingers easing into the grooves and instinctively knowing how to angle the blade so that it was close to my body yet not so close that it’d cut into me while I ran.  My legs moved at a familiar rhythm, bunching themselves into a preceding movement to jump towards the giant monster.

Aurora got their first and it was only then that I realized that she had been using a skill all along, [Dash].  A simple enough skill to learn; but infinitely useful.  No wonder she could move faster me even while dragging all that armor.

Aurora slammed into the creature’s fat belly; churning it like the creature did a belly flop against 200 pounds of armor and woman.  The Tower Shield that Aurora carried dug into its belly folds and pushed it back and the Ice Dokkaebi roared, slamming its maul into the ground and casting its signature ability.

｢ [Ice Dokkaebi] casts [Impaling Rime] ｣

The warrior did not move aside; that wasn’t how tanks reacted to abilities.  She dug her shield into the ground and held as knife sharp columns of eyes rose all around her, trying to stab into her armor.  But most of them above upon contact.  Aurora didn’t lose a moment of time; she saw the delay between the ability and the Dokkaebi’s recovery time, jabbing her lance at its face.

I stopped less than five paces away as the Dokkaebi went into its standard pattern, drinking from the groud in its left hand.

Ice crystallized an inch above the Dokkaebi.  The Ice Dokkaebi was already a hulking demon made from the nightmare of asian folklore but with its ice armor; it looked outright otherworldly.  The Ice-Dokkaebi was a creature from Korean Folklore, that much I knew from my research about the game online, and the armor drew its influence from that history.  Interlocking scales that formed around the body and shoulder; drawing influence from japanese Samurai armor.  A rounded helmet that had strands of fur at the top; the Ice Dokkaebi wore a [Chalgap] made of ice.

Activating [Aura], I thrust forward.

Before, I hadn’t even been able to make a dent in its ice armor; chipping against it.

Gray-black aura came to life; and my sword stabbed through the ice like needle through a balloon.

I didn’t even feel the initial breaking point.

It was so smooth.

The creature roared in pain as my katana sank deep into its thigh, only stopping once its hilt was caught by the ice armor.

Hell, this wasn’t even its final form.  This was only Stage 1.

Instead of taking the sword out, I swiped sideways and my sword cleaved through the ice like butter; opening up its thigh like a piece of ham on christmas day.  The meat opened up and showed me its bone; a clean cut through it.

I didn’t feel any resistance at all.

The nervousness was banished.

The Ice Dokkaebi continued to roar and brought its maul down, trying to crush me in two.  I stepped neatly to the side and watched the wound begin to freeze over; one of its passives, [Put Ice on it!].  One of the few abilites that could counteract a [Bleed] status effect.  But I didn’t need a [Bleed] to kill this guy, I had [Aura].

Before it could lift its hand again I slashed downward with both hands, putting my entire weight into it.  Again, the katana went through through both the armor, flesh and bone as easily as the other and cut its hand off.  

“KUUUUURRRAAAAAAHHHH!!!”  The creature roared once more; holding its wrist while its maul fell to the ground.  It would dissipate into light as soon as I slayed the creature.

Lunging forward I ran behind the creature, leaving long gashes along both its ankles where I approximated the achilles tendon would be if the creature were human.  The anatomy must have been similar because it fell to the floor on its knees, trying to bring the ice wine to its mouth.  From what I could see, the neck was shielded by ice armor several inches thick; thicker than any other part of the armor.

My katana stopped halfway in.

Ok, so ignoring 50% of defense wasn’t enough to pierce through the thickest parts of the armor.

But it was plenty enough for everywhere else.

Aurora joined in with her shield, knocking the creature’s face and giving it the [Groggy] state.  I continued my work by hacking away at where the armor was thinnest; blood flowing freely and being frozen over as soon as I cut into them.  But the important thing was that whenever I did damage; 2% of my damage was true damage.

The monster had the vitality of that of an insect with its head cut off, especially since it didn’t bleed.  But eventually, Aurora and I succeeded.

I stared at the drops it had left behind.  A gourd which was the same as a mana potion and its horns which could be used as materials.

“Lock, what’s next?”  Kyrian asked.

The [Aura] had changed everything.  Our party’s offensive power had just gone through the roof.  I could se the realization in Kyrian’s eyes as well as Aurora’s.  Me unlocking [Aura] had just changed the playing field entirely.

Skaris had been doing the work of two DPS roles in this party against these ice-based monsters.  But now…

“We’re going to hunt the Inuho-oh.”

***

[Aura] (Stage 1) - Ignore 50% of Defense. 2% BONUS True Damage.

Example: 100 Damage Done = 100 Damage + 2 True Damage = 102 Damage Total