Abyssal Flames

'Multiple Non-human Race detected.'

Elliot froze and waited for something he didn't want to see.

After hearing what happened to Connor, he suspected that Connor wasn't a normal human anymore.

One by one, he looked at his friends.

<< Edward >>

Race: Otherworldly Dweller

<< Connor >>

Race: Human ( Reawakened )

A tear slipped past his eye.

Connor was indeed tortured and killed.

"Elliot?" Lance called but Elliot couldn't hear anything anymore.

The anger consumed him, flashes of Connor getting beat up, wounded, and bloodies played in his mind. They were all horrifying.

And it pushed Elliot past the edge.

'Do you want power?'

Yes.

'Do you wish to relieve your wrath?'

Yes.

'Do you want to surpass level 100?'

Yes–

"Elliot!"

Elliot was pulled from his thoughts. It was all of his friends' voices that reached through him.

"Elliot, are you okay?" Connor asked.

Elliot looked at him with nothing but sorrow in his eyes. "I'm sorry."

"What?" Connor asked.

"Let's talk later," Elliot took a deep breath and gripped his sword. "We have a beast to kill. Hasty Aspire."

"Mons–"

The nymph wasn't able to finish its words that it kept on repeating when Elliot had pierced its arm. The large amputated body part flew up in the air before it rolled down the ground.

"Monster!"

'Hasty Aspire Level Up'

<< Hasty Aspire 2 >>

// Boosts Strength and Speed by 200% for 10 seconds.

When Elliot reached the ground, a swarm of vines followed him. He could see every vine that was attacking, feeling their aura, analyzing it and dodging them all in a split second.

Hope and Ed dashed for the nymph. Hope's Morph had already ceased its activation. They attacked the legs of the nymph that was as tall as Hope.

"This beast is one big woman," Lance tried to joke but no one was buying it.

The atmosphere was too thick and intense.

Lance sighed, "We really have to talk later. Connor, boost Ed."

"Yes!" Connor answered. "Luminous Dexterity!"

"Ed, jump!" Hope yelled, lowering his sword for the other to use as a boost.

Ed ran to him, leaping up and landing on the sword, only to be catapulted up. Connor's buff had reached already reached him, making him feel stronger. He flipped mid-air and dashed his sword, thrusting it to the nymph's chest.

"Prepare for Rage!" Lance yelled.

The nymph took a few steps back, screeching with the pain. Lance brandished his swords, "It's here! Everyone, cross!"

Elliot ran diagonal to Lance's direction. He had to slide and jump over the vines that were twice as fast and as strong as before. Ed and Hope ran diagonal to each other, surrounding the nymph.

Looking around and feeling surrounded, the nymph drew a sharp scream.

'Nymph's Voice activate.

'Nymph Trance blocked.'

"Now!"

"Luminous Dexterity!"

"Dragon

"Hasty Aspire!"

"The King's Retribution."

The four launched themselves, crossing over each other and hacking their blades through the nymph. It released one screech of pain before it fell to its knees.

"M-Monster." Was its last words before it succumbed to its death.

'Frost Mother Nymph killed. +100,000XP.'

'Level up.'

'First Nymph killed. +50,000XP.'

<< APRIL >>

Level 59

The battle was over. But instead of celebrating, the group stared at each other. Each of them had something to say but no one had to courage to say it.

"Let's start with Hope," Lance finally broke the silence that was slowly suffocating them. "Do you have something to say?"

"I-It's about Mr. Ed," Hope scratched his nape and shyly turned to their friend. "Do you have any other spells that could raise your stats? Mr. Goodfather's skill uses a lot of his mana, one eight to be exact. And he still needs to attack too. I wonder if you have other skills."

Ed shook his head slowly, "Sorry. I don't think I have any skill apart from my Nullification. And it activates randomly too."

"Oh," Hope said, looking around with nothing to say. "O-Okay. I guess your Nullification nullified all your other skills."

"I'm sorry," Ed sighed. "I'm just a bandwagon and I can't contribute much. I even have a debt. This is so embarrassing."

'Quest [ A Gift for Ed ] available.'

Elliot quirked his brow up.

[ A Gift for Ed

Reward: Level Up one skill

// Craft the Skill Stone << The Nymph's Lullaby >> and give it to Ed as a welcome gift. ]

Isn't it already too late for that? Elliot thought.

"Don't worry," Elliot said. "I think I have a Skill Stone at home. I could give it to you. I have tons of buffs anyway."

"Really?" Ed's eyes shined in hope. "But no. I can't accept that. I already caused enough trouble."

"Don't be silly," Elliot smiled. "Without you, we wouldn't be able to form the cross attack. Consider it as a welcome gift."

Ed nodded, "Thank you."

Lance cleared his throat, breaking the two apart. "Ed? Do you want to say or ask something?"

Ed froze and scratched his nape. "I'm sorry for this, even after the offer too but, Elliot. I saw blood by the entrance. When we came in, it wasn't there. And the guards suddenly got wounded. W-What happened?"

"My answer will lead to my question," Elliot said, his smile falling from his lips. "Connor, why didn't you tell us about your previous guild?"

Connor's eyes widened at the confession. "Wh?-What?"

"I saw them. I saw Donald and his guild," Elliot said. "I–"

"Killed them," Ed finished. Everyone turned to him. "Why?"

"They're from a Dark Guild," Elliot reasoned. "It's not a crime to slay Adventures from Dark Guilds."

"But it's inhumane to kill," Ed muttered. "It's not normal to just kill someone just because they're from a–"

"They killed me!" Connor couldn't help but scream. Lance, Ed and Hope gasped, eyes wide as plates. "T-They used me as their plaything. They tortured me, killed me, revived me and do it all over again. Over and over. Every month I died…"

Connor fell to his knees. "I barely had the courage to face my parents after what happened to me. If Elliot wasn't there… if he didn't saved me… I don't know how many times I died and returned."

Ed was silent. Hope was silent. Lance was silent.

No one dared to talk.

The thick atmosphere they had before got even thicker. If one would trail a knife in the air, it would cut it like butter.

"I don't know how to bring it up," Connor sobbed. "How do you tell your friends that you're not human anymore? That you've been killed couple of times before. That only because I saw the light that was my friends, I regained my humanity slowly. I was a lonely soul roaming the Earth until that certain strike where a hand was offered to me."

Elliot couldn't help but wrap his arms around the crying boy. "Shh, it's okay."

"I don't want to change anything between us," Connor cried. "I was afraid that you'll treat me differently if I tell you."

"No matter what you are," Elliot muttered. "You'll still be the Connor that's cheesy, awkward, and cute. Often clumsy and sometimes annoying. That'll never change."

Connor nodded. "I have one more confession."

Connor broke free from the hug and stepped back. "I have seen the underworld more so than a regular human. And everytime I go there, they take part of my soul and replace it with a flame from a raging cauldron in the pits of the Underworld."

"You mean–"

Connor took his robe and his clothes.

"Hey, we don't do that here," Lance joked. When everyone chuckled, he had a smile on his lips. "Ah, that's what I wanna hear."

"So…" Connor trailed of and took a necklace from his neck. He was panting before his body burst into flames. The fire was yellow, then it turned red, then finally, it turned blue.

"What in the hell?!" Elliot yelled.

When the flames died down, Connor had a different form. He had six horns that adorned his head from his temple and to the back. He was significantly taller too, almost as tall as Hope. His skin was tanned, adorned with tattoos that resembled flames.

"True Form: Abyssal Flames."

'Infernal detected.'

<< Connor >>

Class: Caster

Subclass: Keeper of the Flames

Occupation: Guardian