As soon as I stepped foot inside, my Adaptability warned me as it detected danger. But from how it reacted, it's far away from where I am.
Looking around the place I just arrived at, there's no one here except a small table and chair which was probably used by that guy I just killed.
Err... From how many I already killed, thinking about it already has no effect on me. Well, it really has had no effect since the start. However, for the Heroes, they probably grew numb to it as time passed. Maybe some of them will have a story where they deliberated at first which led to a gruesome result.
Ah! There's no point digging up that kind of story anymore. Sooner or later, if Earth is really destined to awaken, I have a hunch that it wouldn't be only this Invading World who will eye our home.
Since there's only a table and a chair here, aren't they too lax on their security? Are they that confident that no one will infiltrate this area? In any case, this is a reason for me to sigh in relief.
Ah. But I should reevaluate myself later, taking that kind of risk. Was it the dark thoughts again? Did I get excited at thinking about the risk? I don't know.
Let's continue on the mission first before overthinking things.
From where I was, I could see the former shrine. The screen and the Dark Elf who was manning the entrance was situated at halfway point of the stairs.
I looked back and I could clearly see Jayna pulling the corpse of the Dark Elf to a corner before she looked to her left and right, wary of any pair of eyes that could be watching her. But that was someone I killed, for her to clean up after me…
I'll apologize to her later.
A minute after that, she cautiously approached the dark screen. Taking out something like a staff as preparation if there's any ongoing battle.
Watching her act that cautiously and in a feminine way while bearing that disguise, it's a bit hard to restrain myself from laughing.
Enduring the few seconds that felt like an eternity, she finally passed through it.
However, Jayna almost bashed my head with her staff when she found me just a few steps away, staring at her.
If I didn't call out to her and reminded her of our disguise, she would really do it. Should I still apologize?
Err… This is this and that is that.
After calming her down, we first observed what's happening below us.
The other Peak 4-leaf Dark Elf is somewhere around here. If that one detected us first then it will turn into conflict immediately. And I'm not confident at fighting someone at that level yet unless I could hit him with the Orb of Ailment. Weakening his stats to lower it to my level.
I saw the so-called Dimension Breacher next to the shrine, with a huge gun barrel-shaped rod. It was aimed at the crack in space in the middle while a dark-colored energy beam was currently shooting out of it. It's like that crack I saw back on Earth so there's no doubt that it's the current breach. It's still only at the level of a few cracks in space after all this time.
At both sides of the Dimension Breacher were two pod-like equipment that was connected to it through the same tubes I saw back in the World of System. The one connected to the Huge Cauldron and a Water Tank-like container.
I couldn't see what's inside those but it's safe to infer that there's at least one Dark Elf in each pod who became something like a battery for the Dimension Breacher, providing their Dark Energy to run it.
They're already this desperate. Well, it's not like they're dying from being drained. They'll just feel weak for a definite period of time. As to how long, I don't know. There're a lot of 3-leaf Dark Elves in the fortress, I guess they rotate them on who will become the next battery.
Why don't they use those 4-leaf though? Preserving their strength? Of course, 1 to 2-leaf Dark Elves were out of the question, they were too weak to become the battery, they might really die if they were put inside it.
"Daisuke, What will we do now?"
Jayna asked me. We already had a detailed plan for this but that was if the two Peak 4-leaf Dark Elves were drawn out by the disturbance. As to when only one was drawn out, our plan was simply to blitz it. With Jayna stopping the equipment there while I will immediately go to the breach and throw the remedy to the portal trace before picking her up and use the Orb of Concealment to vanish from their sight.
Of course, the risk in this was higher since we still don't know how many were stationed here.
Jayna told me that she has enhanced equipment given by her father that can at least block two attacks from a Noble Spirit or 4-leaf Dark Elf's.
Err... Like those protective talismans from cultivation novels.
I already noticed those since it's somehow concealing a compressed Spirit Energy. It's the pair of earrings she's currently wearing.
She only has two so I shouldn't let her put herself in risk, I have to draw the attention of any possible 4-leaf Dark Elves in this place.
"I will use the Orb of Enhancement on us, I think it will at least provide us with a 20-30% increase in our strength. It will last for 10 minutes so we need to finish closing the portal trace before it runs out or we'll be caught in a bind if we're ganged up by a bunch of 3-leaf and 4-leaf Dark Elves."
Jayna nodded while listening closely to what I'm saying. Even at this moment, I'm still observing the situation below and behind us. If someone saw that corpse, we'll have an increased enemy so we better act swiftly.
Apart from her disguise ability, she also has some offensive abilities that she can use but since she leaned on auxiliary skills, the offensive power of those were weaker. However, it could stall the enemy for someone to finish them off. In a sense, she's leaning more on being a support character who's skilled in disables.
I guess that's enough. Even if I only have two offensive skills, my maneuverability by timing my Flash Steps perfectly will compliment her disable skills if it comes down to it.
Ah. This time, I am not the Support Character.
Err… I think I already stopped being one since I joined that competition.
Still, my abilities were still geared towards supporting someone. Especially that system.
After a few minutes of going over our plan, Jayna and I stood up and started descending the stairs again.
Though still in disguise, I told her to walk normally so we could easily react to any sudden change in the situation.
"You two, how are you back here again?"
Someone spotted us and immediately blocked our way.
Looking at him from where we are, he's also the same as the one from earlier. A 3-leaf Dark Elf
I looked around him and at this moment, it was only him who noticed us.
"Jayna, let's start."
I whispered to her before I activated Flash Steps. Disappearing from the stairs, I immediately moved myself in front of the Dark Elf who had just shouted.
"What the--"
Before he could finish his sentence, my sword was already lodged in his neck as blood started gushing out from where the sword passed through.
And right at that moment, the long-awaited system message for the Sword Mastery rang out. After using the sword for so long even if it's not my preferred weapon, I stuck to it and now that paid off.
A grin couldn't help but surfaced on my face as I revel at the series of system messages that accompanied it.
[Ding! Beginner Sword Mastery has been upgraded]
[Acquired Intermediate Sword Mastery]
[Sword Proficiency Heightened]
[Unlocked a Sword Skill: Flash Draw]
[Unlocked a Sword Skill: Counter]
[Sword Skills can be activated through sheer physical force and body flexibility. Using Flux Energy can enhance its effectiveness.]
At the same time as these appeared in my mind, various pieces of knowledge about what I acquired were instantly absorbed by me, like remembering long lost memories which I have forgotten.
Well, if only my real memory about my past which Yuko mentioned to me really comes back, I will be more than overjoyed. But yeah, that's like asking for something unattainable.
When I landed on the ground, Jayna was already brandishing her staff towards the tubes that connected the pods to the Dimension Breacher.
From the tip of her staff, a River of connection materialized in front of her which transformed to sparkling green vines.
Like living vines, it wrapped itself around the tubes and with a tug, it broke the connection between the pods and the dark-colored energy beam that was directed to the breach. By cutting off the energy running it, the Dimension Breach stopped its operation.
I could've shouted praise towards her with that swift judgement but yeah, there's no time. My Adaptability already detected at least three signs of danger coming to us from above.
Those are three 4-leaf Dark Elves!
Their bodies that were obscure by that aura gave it away. Each of them was projecting a Dark Phantom behind them which immediately turned themselves illusory.
If I was a normal guy, I would've panicked seeing this spectacle but with my Adaptability forcing me to calm down at this moment, I already judged what to do next.
Accumulating the Flux Energy stored inside me, I triggered Energy Phantom. With the enhancement from the Spirit Ocean, the Phantom can now be moved at my will.
I made it move to a different direction while I closed the distance between me and the breach while I was temporarily concealed like them.
I took out the remedy Yumiko handed over to me. I already appraised it before and seeing it again, I'm still tempted to take it for myself.
Why?
Because it's a vial of Spirit Ocean droplets!
The item which Ren mentioned that could elevate one's realm instantly.
Well, I'm only tempted but I have control over my desire. That's why, without wasting any more time, I threw it at the crack in space.
Boom!
As soon as it touched the breach, the glass containing it broke and a powerful explosion of Spirit Energy happened with it at its center.
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