Chapter 266 - A Good Fight (Patreon)

Zeke tore through a pair of kobolds with a backhanded blow that filled the air with the sound of cracking bones. They were nasty, little creatures that reminded him of the adolescent trolls he’d fought so long ago. Certainly, aside from their bestial demeanors and scaly skin, they weren’t that similar in appearance; however, Zeke couldn’t help but feel a sense of déjà vu. For one, he only had the durability of his body to protect him, which hadn’t been the case for quite some time. Armed only with his club, he felt like a man pitted against the entirety of a hostile world.

And he loved it.

Long ago, Zeke had been forced to acknowledge that he enjoyed fighting. There was just something about standing against hordes of foes that got his blood pumping in a way nothing else really did. Of course, he wasn’t some battle-crazed maniac; he could acknowledge the downsides. He’d lost count of how many times he’d been injured, and he could scarcely wrap his brain around the pain he’d experienced since being reborn. But coming out on top after a frantic battle? That was the good stuff.

Zeke hefted his mace – or perhaps it could better be classified as a hammer, now – and brought it down in an overhand attack that crushed one of the kobolds flat. It never had the chance to dodge, and it certainly couldn’t endure such a blow. None of them could, which was a little disappointing, if Zeke was honest. He’d been itching for a fight that these small creatures couldn’t really provide. In truth, it was more of an extermination than a battle, even if a few of them did manage to clamp down on him with their sharp teeth and strong jaws.

Even that wasn’t much more than an annoyance.

He had begun to wonder why people avoided the so-called Rainbow Forest – after all, he wasn’t so deluded as to think that he was the most powerful person in the mines; he knew he wasn’t. He’d sensed the power in some of the higher-ranking slaves, and he knew he couldn’t even begin to compare. In fact, a few of them reminded him of that overwhelming pressure he’d felt when confronting the wyrm queen.

Any one of those powerhouses could easily traverse the Rainbow Forest. Some of them might have been powerful enough to dissuade even the horde of small kobolds from attacking. So, Zeke wondered why the path was so infrequently traveled.

And then he felt the earth tremble, announcing a new arrival.

The ground shook as something huge thundered through the brush. But Zeke continued in his extermination; after all, regardless of what was on its way, he knew it would be easier to confront with fewer kobolds muddying the waters.

Even so, Zeke was a little surprised when, for a long minute, no new threat presented itself.  Had his class’s connection with the earth affected his senses as well? Perhaps. He hadn’t had the time or opportunity to truly explore his abilities. And given that he’d already been surprised at how easily he’d activated [Metallurgical Repair] in combat, he expected that he’d continue to discover new changes.

With the trickle of earthen energy constantly flowing into him, Zeke was able to stave off the effects of fatigue. It reminded him of [Leech Strike] in that, unless he focused on it and stood still, the skill was only sufficient to heal small wounds and fight off fatigue. The result was that he felt almost machine-like in his ability to keep going.

Slowly, the slight tremble in the earth resolved itself into something far more noticeable. It built and built until, finally, a creature that looked like a dinosaur burst through the brush. With it bearing down on him, Zeke couldn’t get a proper look, but he did pick up a few quick details. For one, it was four-legged, with a blunt face, and iridescent scales that reflected the glow of the surrounding forest. For another, it was huge, towering over Zeke with a size reminiscent of an elephant, albeit without the ponderous gait of the old-Earth animals. Instead, it was obviously a predator, judging by its sleek form and sharp teeth.

Zeke dove to the side, narrowly avoiding the creature. He rolled, coming to his feet a second later to see the monster pivot off of the nearby slope of the basin and turn toward him. That gave Zeke a better look at the monster. Or more importantly, the creature on its back.

It looked like all the other kobolds, at least in its basic features. It was still scaly, with the same sharp snout filled with pointed teeth. However, where all the other kobolds were relatively small – the biggest hadn’t even reached Zeke’s shoulder – this newcomer was at least a head taller than Zeke. In addition, its body was densely packed with bulging muscles that rippled with power.

The new arrival was armed with a metallic spear and a diamond-shaped shield that looked like it had been made of animal hides. On its surface was painted a few glyphs that Zeke felt were on the verge of recognition. They were clearly tied to some enchantment native to the shield, but without further study, he wouldn’t be able to pinpoint the actual effect.

And time, it seemed, was in short supply.

Zeke barely had an opportunity to use [Inspect] before it lowered its spear, aimed it at Zeke, and unleashed a beam of molten energy. Once again, Zeke had no choice but to dive to the side, but even then, the heat was so potent that it left his skin blistered. If it had hit him, it would have melted him where he stood.

“So much for my fire resistance,” he muttered, noting that the beam of fiery energy had rendered the ground into a slurry of molten rock. That it had accomplished that feat in only an instant told Zeke just how powerful that beam had been. Perhaps his resistance was the only thing that had kept him from bursting into flame when the beam passed him, though.

In any case, Zeke didn’t have any opportunity to hesitate. Instead, he turned his dodge into a sprint that quickly took him towards the oversized kobold. The creature seemed surprised to find that Zeke hadn’t been incinerated, but before it could react further, Zeke reached them.

Then, enhancing his own weight to anchor himself to the ground, he swung his weapon in a two-handed baseball-style swing. It collided with the four-legged monster’s front leg, but it wasn’t thrown aside like Zeke might have expected. Certainly, he heard the sound of cracking bone and scales, but it wasn’t nearly the devastating strike he’d hoped it would be.

It let out a screaming hiss as it bucked into the air. A shower of pink blood fell upon Zeke’s head, telling him that some of the bones had broken through its tough hide. But Zeke was far from finished. He stepped underneath the pained monster, then brought his mace to bear in a thundering uppercut that found a home in the monster’s chest. More bones cracked. More screams filled the air.

Zeke was only just getting started.

His next target was the monster’s back leg, which he attacked with a spinning swing that hit home with all the force Zeke could muster. It cracked like all the others, and the monster finally lost its balance, tumbling to the side under the weight of yet another of Zeke’s thunderous attacks. It had all taken less than two seconds, but Zeke had thoroughly dismantled the creature.

It still posed a threat, but robbed of three legs, it wasn’t an urgent one. The kobold on its back, though, was a different story altogether. It proved that by leaping from its mount’s back and landing lightly a dozen feet away.

The huge, dinosaur-like monster fell, kicking up dust and debris with its immense weight. It tried to bite at Zeke, but even its long neck was ill-suited to the task. It only found air as Zeke strode forward, his every muscle humming with a need for violence.

The huge kobold, which more resembled the lizardmen Zeke had seen among the slaves than one of the lesser creatures he’d already killed – rose to its full height. Zeke took an instant to look at the results of his use of [Inspect]:

Kobold Legionnaire – Level 42

Zeke rolled his shoulders. That meant the thing has seventeen levels on Zeke. In raw stats, it was probably his superior. However, Zeke had no real context for how much his stat-tiers meant. Judging by the way it moved, though, the legionnaire wasn’t a creature to be taken lightly.

The creature hissed, the sounds resembling words. But if it was speaking, Zeke had no way of understanding it. In any case, he used the brief interruption to study the monster. Unlike the smaller kobolds, it wasn’t naked. Instead, it wore a leather loin cloth that hung loose between its legs. Around its waist was a thick, leather belt studded with various gems and lined with white fur. Its chest was bare, revealing its mottled green-and-brown scales.

Its head resembled those Zeke had seen on the other kobolds, the difference lying in some unquantifiable sense of intelligence. Its head was studded with a crown of rigged scales that flowed into spines on its back.

The creature would have been intimidating if Zeke hadn’t fought much more fearsome monsters. When compared with Zila, the demoness who’d guarded the Portal of Ascension, the kobold’s aura of power was woefully inadequate.

But Zeke knew better than to take it lightly. After all, that skill it had used to lob a beam of molten energy his way was still in play, as far as he knew.

Speaking of which, Zeke’s shirt had caught fire when the beam had passed him by, so he ripped the smoldering garment away, baring his own chest. It hadn’t been more than an annoyance, but he couldn’t afford the distraction.

The smaller kobolds had already begun to flee the moment the legionnaire had arrived. Apparently, they were smart enough to know that they didn’t belong on this battlefield.

Zeke hefted his mace. No – it was a hammer, now, and he needed to start thinking of it as such. In any case, he raised his hammer in a salute, then said, “Are we going to do this? Or are you just going to keep glaring at me. I don’t have all day.”

Nearby, a cascade of rocks told Zeke that Jasper was also scrambling to safety. Likely, he didn’t want to catch one of those beams of energy.

The kobold legionnaire clearly couldn’t understand Zeke’s words, but it was obviously capable of deciphering their meaning. So, it lifted its spear and banged it against its hide shield. Then, the monster – or was it a person, given its clear intelligence? It didn’t matter. Regardless of its classification, it had attacked, which made it Zeke’s enemy.

It roared.

Zeke did the same.

And then, the creature burst into white flames, surprising Zeke enough that he cut off his warcry. Still, if the legionnaire expected Zeke to shy away from flames, it had another thing coming. After all, Zeke was a cambion. Fire wasn’t nearly as frightening to someone like him.

Taking the initiative, Zeke leapt forward, sprinting toward the legionnaire. The huge kobold leveled its spear once again, but Zeke had already seen that trick. Even as the molten energy erupted from the tip of its spear, he was already dodging to the side. However, he kept moving forward as well.

The fiery beam lanced out, carving another line of devastation into the terrain. Zeke thundered ahead and engaged the giant kobold the moment its skill winked out. His hammer arced out in a horizontal swing, but the legionnaire was ready. Hammer met shield, sending a shockwave of force through the area. Dust billowed into the air, small rocks were thrown aside, and the wind of the shockwave’s passing bent the trees and bushes to the ground.

But the shield held, even if it was only barely.

The legionnaire was caught by surprise, but it wasted no time before jabbing out with its flaming spear. Zeke was ready for it, swaying to the side and sending another attack at the kobold’s exposed leg. When it came close, it was Zeke’s turn to be surprised, because the creature lifted its leg just enough to avoid the swing, the shield bashed Zeke in the face, sending him sprawling to the ground.

Another lance of molten power followed, forcing Zeke to roll to the side. Still, he felt the now-molten rock splash onto his back. With the combined effects of his pain tolerance and fire resistance, he had no trouble ignoring the embers burning into his back. However, his surprise still simmered in his mind.

The legionnaire was no simple monster. Like the troll warlord, it clearly had the advantage of advanced technique.

But so did Zeke.

He’d spent uncountable hours honing his fighting ability, and he’d been tempered by hundreds of life-and-death battles. Zeke suspected that the legionnaire, no matter how powerful, could boast the same. It wasn’t just a monster, but it wasn’t his equal, either. He knew that right down to his very bones. He just needed to switch tactics.

There were distinct differences between fighting a horde of monsters – like the flood of kobolds that had assaulted him in the beginning – and matching up against a skilled opponent. And that shield bash that had taken Zeke by surprise was a good reminder that he couldn’t take anything for granted. Monster, the legionnaire may be, but it was more than that, too.

Zeke climbed to his feet, barely acknowledging the bubbling hiss of the molten rock to his side. Then, he nodded at the monster, acknowledging his respect. Like the warlord had been, it was a worthy opponent.

So, to fight it, Zeke was going to have to go all out.

He grinned at the prospect, embracing his force path. When he did, green energy joined the tendrils of earthen mana connecting him to the ground. The kobold might be skilled, but Zeke had a lot of tricks up his sleeve. So, it was with some anticipation that he stepped forward, eager to see how much impact his class had had on his fighting ability. The kobold provided a perfect opportunity to test himself, after all.

The legionnaire raised its spear to the sky, and hissed a shrieking warcry. Zeke answered it with a roar as he sprinted back into battle.

Maybe it would be a good fight, after all.