Chapter 183 Moment Of Reproach
Name: Northern Longguard
True Name: [Nameless]
Attributes: [Formless], [Spawn of Void], [Limitless Void], [Vestige of Chaos and Void], [All Eyes], [Chaos Thread], [Flames of Chaos]
Soul Rank: [Drifter]
Talent Fragments: [84/2000]
[Copied Talents]: [1/2]
[Owned Talents]: [1]
[Attribute Abilities (Active/Passive)]: [9/10]
[Owned Items]: [Mortal Blade], [Eternal Twilight], [Silver Sword], [Death Glare] and 4 others.
—
Northern stared blankly at the panel floating before his eyes.
They were evidences of his weakness.
He had no talent, no soul core, no edge on fundamental learning. To put it in a word, he was trash!
That was what he just got reminded of.
His entire experience in the rift, he focused on just one single thing: survival.
He tried to protect himself a lot by not fighting.
Even times when he did, he was overridden by madness. Perhaps this much of his growth was owed to the fact that he was insane.
If he was sane, would he have fought as much, would he not have given up or ran away?
Because all he cared about was surviving.
He thought that was the only way to fight, to fight to survive. Even when he wanted to grow stronger, it was to have a higher stake of survival.
The only case he fought out of pure grudge and necessity to overcome was when he fought his nemesis—Night Terror.
And it couldn't as much be called a fight.
The poor thing was in a weakened state. And luck was a vital play in how he won the fight.
While he had hauled himself a little by persistence, he had been carried all through by luck.
It didn't matter whether it was true or not.
It was how he felt right now.
And it made him utterly disgusted at himself.
Everyone in that hall probably had it easier than he did, even if they didn't, they at the very least were not alone.
Yet they turned out to be strong in their lane.
And he, who strived in a hell, living every day without knowing when his end might be, given every opportunity and environment to let go of his fear of death and become stronger,
found strength in fear of death, embraced it as a powerful tool for survival.
Seeing these party leaders made him want to take a reproaching stance on everything.
'I have been complacent... too complacent.'
He dislodged his dagger from the Corpse Eater lying lifelessly on the ground.
'And there is no use sulking about it...'
He lifted his gaze to the others that were beginning to slowly move back, his eyes shimmering with a terrifying blue hue.
Something was getting ignited inside of him.
Maybe the monsters could see it, maybe they could just perceive how increasingly dangerous he was becoming.
But they sure saw something.
And that something made them cower in fear.
Northern looked at his blood-stained hands, this time, he wasn't putting on the gloves.
He dismissed the daggers and summoned the Mortal Blade. Just after the weapon materialized into his hands, two clones appeared on his left and right.
Each of them equipped with a dagger each.
He looked to his left, he looked to his right, then he looked straight forward.
Wham!
Northern's legs scuttled across the clearing, leaving his clones in its wake.
He appeared before the foremost Corpse Eaters, perceiving him so close, the creature shot its neck forward, clasping crude jagged teeth on Northern.
Only for the image of its target to slowly dissipate into thin air, Northern from the side, swung a full-blown arc, separating the monster's neck from the rest of its body in just one swing.
[You have slain Hazardous Savage - Corpse Eater]
[You have gained +2 talent fragments]
Before he was done with the monster, with complete awareness of his space, he had perceived two more coming at him.
As the Corpse Eater fell, Northern's free hand shot forward, blurring as a ghostly blade weaved itself to reality and impeded the monster ahead.
Northern wrenched the blade free and with a forward twirl, dealt a double, diagonal slash on the third target.
He twirled the ghostly blade and stabbed it into the already standing Corpse Eater then plunged Mortal Blade deep into his last slay.
He wrenched both swords free in a spill of black blood that smeared his face and armor.
Then he turned to look at the two clones.
'Oh, wow, they are doing well.'
Although their movements and skills, if he could put it into words: they were somewhat diluted compared to when it was just the clone that later became a body for Dark Terror.
Northern paused and thought for a moment.
'Could there have been a chance that the reason why Dark Terror is so skillful is because of the clone itself?'
Northern's Singularity clone had been seared with so much battle experience, but Dark Terror was as much terrifying so he didn't really give it the thought before.
But seeing these ones now, he couldn't help but permit the notion.
Dark Terror is truly an amazing monster, no doubt.
Northern tried to remember Dark Terror's first fight after he took over the clone.
It was the definition of a menace.
The grin it gave to those humans.
'Crap... it really has to be the case. There's no other explanation.'
However, something else bothered Northern.
He swung his hand, rendering a vertical slash to the monster that lunged towards him.
The creature reeled back like a log of wood but quickly recomposed itself and dashed at him again.
But Northern was already in motion, meeting the monster before it barely counted four steps and plunging the ghostly blade into its mouth.
He skillfully turned the Mortal Blade and buried it into the side of its neck.
The monster wriggled voraciously and fell too.
[You have slain Disastrous Savage - Corpse Eater]
[You have gained +2 talent fragments]
[Your clone has slain Hazardous Savage - Corpse Eater]
[You have gained +2 talent fragments]
[Your clone has slain Hazardous Savage - Corpse Eater]
[You have gained +2 talent fragments]