ShanDeRad
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Chapter 35
🕑 Added 2024-04-20 18:04:19 +0000 UTCShaun decided he would look through each option one by one and try not to rule any of them out until he had read all of the options in depth and had weighed the pros and cons of each. However as soon as he read the first one he started to have doubts.
[Advanced] Shadow Assassin: The Shadow Assassin is a class focused on one on one sneak attacks, using the shadows as a key element in their build to take down targets unaware. This class relies on knowing your target, choosing when and where to attack and staying anonymous. With a high reliance on stealth the Shadow Assassin gains additional power at night, the assassin also gains bonus experience from completing a job successfully. Stats per level: +1 Str, +5 Dex, +1 End, +5 Per, +3 Int Note: some skill may be upgraded or lost if this class is chosen.
He could see the benefit of this class, it was a straight upgrade from his current rogue class, high focus on stealth and sneak attacks just with more shadow description mixed into it. The part about gaining additional power at night was beneficial, maybe the one upside to the class, as the rest of it wasn’t really something he was interested in. Assassinating targets and doing jobs for others was not ever going to be on his to-do list, it was an advanced class though and the stats were good, nearly double what he was already getting.
[Advanced] Elemental Mage: The Elemental Mage through a reliance on items to be able to use different elements and a strong connection to their affinity, focuses on ranged attacks and defence. The class is a full mage build and does not utilise melee weapons but rather staffs and wands to help focus their potent magic. Stats per level: +2 Per, +2 Wil, +3 Int, +8 Soul Note: some skill may be upgraded or lost if this class is chosen.
This one was so much better than his last option, the Elemental Mage incorporated so much of what he had been working on, it had a reliance on elements and affinity, something he now had two of, not to mention that the stat gain was pretty great. The big downside to this was that he couldn’t use melee weapons, that would mean no more swords or daggers, that in itself would have an impact on the way he fought, it was something he could adjust to in time but he wasn’t sure if he wanted to risk it. The fact that some of his skills could be lost, and he had a gritty good idea that some of them would be, was a big drawback to picking this one. Still better than the assassin class though.
[Advanced] Earthen Warrior: A class focused on the element of Earth, capable of utilising the rocks, stone and metal around them to cause wide scale attacks as well as form near impenetrable defences. The Earthen Warrior can turn the very earth against their opponents while strengthening their allies, uses a multitude of different weapons, shields and armour in their pursuit of battle. Stats per level: +4 Str, +2 Dex, +3 End, +4 Vit, +2 Soul Note: some skill may be upgraded or lost if this class is chosen.
The Earthen Warrior was a great balance between melee as well as using his earth affinity, it would further incorporate the two into a class, something he had already started to do with his Stone Skin skill. The idea of using large scale attacks was also pretty appealing and being able to use different types of weapons, not just short blades, was another bonus in its favour. But it might be a little too specialised, it just focused on earth as an element and he had just obtained fire which he really didn’t want to ignore or forget about, especially after everything he had gone through to get it. His heritage was another factor that came into play, the mage class he had been given the option to choose would play well with all elements, this one not so much.
[Advanced] Elemental Blade Slinger: A class focused on utilising all types of bladed weapons as well as infusing their attacks with the power of the elements, the Elemental Blade Slinger is a balanced build that incorporates both physical and magical attacks in battle. With a heavy reliance on items to be able to use elements and a strong connection to their affinity, the Elemental Blade Slinger is usually on the front lines of any battle, capable of turning the tide of a fight in their favour. Stats per level: +3 Str, +2 Dex, +3 End, +3 Vit, +4 Soul Note: some skill may be upgraded or lost if this class is chosen.
This was the most perfect, balanced class that he could have hoped for. It incorporated the elements and it also allowed for him to continue using a melee approach in a fight, not just short blades but all bladed weapons as well. He didn’t mind being on the front line anymore, he had been doing it since he was alone, even before that if he was being honest with himself. The stats were great, a nice focus on the physical and magical, he had a good idea of what skills might be upgraded and even had a inkling on which he may lose, but he didn’t mind. He was pretty confident this was the one, but he still had one more to look at.
[Basic] Rogue: One of the starter classes provided to the newly integrated. The Rouge is a versatile class and focuses on calculated sneak attacks that take their opponents unaware. Relying on stealth the Rouge can utilise short bladed weapons like daggers for both close and ranged attacks as well as short swords but lack defence. Stats per level: +1 Str, +3 Dex, +1 End, +3 Per,
What a pointless option, who would not choose an upgrade? Keeping the same class at this point was just ridiculous, he would lose out on nearly double the stats and all of the other upgrades that came with an advanced class. He immediately ruled it out, he knew what he was going to choose so wasted no more time in debating or looking over his options.
*Congratulations, you now have the Class: [Advanced] Elemental Blade Slinger*
*Your skill [Basic] Short Blade (Level 25 - MAX) has been upgraded into [Advanced] Blade Mastery (Level 1)*
*Your skill [Basic] Empowered Strike (Level 23) has been upgraded into [Advanced] Elemental Strike (Level 1)*
*Your skill [Basic] Stealth (Level 25 – MAX) has been lost*
He had expected something like this to happen with his Short Blade skill from reading the description of the class, but the Empowered strike upgrade was unexpected, especially considering he hadn’t hit level 25 in it yet. Losing the stealth skill was annoying, but also something he had expected to occur given that the class had absolutely nothing to do with stealth but instead leading from the front. The first thing Shaun did was check the descriptions of the upgraded skills.
*[Advanced] Blade Mastery: Provides a higher level of skill and understanding of all bladed weapons, through training and use of the skill become a master of the blade in your hand.*
It was pretty straight forward, very similar to his Short Blade skill but instead of being limited to certain blades it encompassed all of them, similarly it removed all traces of basic understanding and now allowed for him to master his ability to wield a blade.
*[Advanced] Elemental Strike: This skill allows for the ability to infuse an attack with mana attuned to an element, dealing increased damage at a level dependent on the mana infused into the strike. The Elemental Strike attack does not need physical contact to cause damage and instead can also be used as a ranged attack by first infusing a weapon and then launching the attack at a target.*
The Empowered Strike skill had changed a lot more than the blade skill. The change from just using mana to now using elements in the strike was great, something he had already been playing around with, but the fact he could now use the skill without having to make physical contact? That was a game changer. He imagined being able to power up his sword and with a swing send his attack through the air at a monster, causing much more damage from a distance.
With looking over his new skill and upgrading his class now complete, there were a few things he needed to try out before moving on in the dungeon. He needed to test his new skills to make sure he was comfortable with how they worked, but he had yet to try out some aspects of the fire affinity that he couldn’t help but give try.
The first thing Shaun did was make sure that he was still capable of using his sword with the same, if not with a better ability, than he could before the skill upgrade. He spent about five minutes battling imaginary monsters and found that he could use the skill with no issues, he was even able to incorporate a few new moves that he thought might be useful in the coming fights.
He moved on to the Elemental Strike skill, he powered it up like he had done previously but also focused on using his earth affinity while doing it. The sword in his hand started to glow with an earthish tint, the same colour as the earth mana motes he had seen when he had taken the elixir, he knew is he was to attack physically that it would have a very similar impact as his old skill had, although much more powerful. What he wanted to do though was see how it worked to launch the attack, it wasn’t something he had ever done before and wanted to see how difficult it would be to do in a fight.
Turning to face the cavern wall he swung his sword through the air with the intent to send the attack flying. As the sword cut through the air it released the energy that had been built up from the attack, the glow from his sword was sent through the air in the same direction as he had swung the sword and when it hit the wall the entire cavern shook from the impact, leaving behind a massive crater at the point of impact.
Shaun stood in shock as he had seen just how much damage the attack had caused, it was multitudes stronger than he imagined and also much easier to use than he had expected. If he had this skill in the previous fights, especially with the lizards he would have been able to finish off the dungeon so much quicker.
With a smile, he started to power up the attack again, this time though instead of using earth he wanted to see what his fire affinity could do. His sword started to glow red this time and when he had put in the same amount of mana as he had with the last attack he repeated the same motion to let the attack fly. When it had hit the same spot as he had aimed the earth attack an explosion of flames erupted, it was a more condensed strike but the heat that came off of the eruption was as hot as the lava around him. It may not help him in this dungeon but the next one? He was pretty optimistic about being able to clear it a lot more efficiently than this one.
There was one more thing Shaun really wanted to try, lowering his sword, he lifted his other hand and focused on trying to form a ball of fire, it was something he had never done before but if he could do it, it would be a dream come true for him. What child didn’t dream of being able to throw around fireballs? It was one of the most popular magic attacks in mainstream media after all. It took a while before he noticed anything occurring, at first it was just a spark in the air above his hand, but it started to multiply and grow until he had a ball of fire the size of a marble in front of him. He continued to focus and put more energy into it until the ball grew to the size of a basketball. He couldn’t help but laugh at having accomplished what he had set out to do and with all the excitement he felt in that moment, threw the fireball at the wall. It didn’t do as much damage as the Elemental Strike did, but if someone didn’t have any resistance to fire, the fireball would cause a lot of pain.
Checking over how much mana he had used he was down to less than half, he still had some time to walk to the next cavern to recover it though so he wasn’t too worried. He had forgotten to loot the King Crabs body after all the excitement of a class upgrade and new skills, he didn’t get anything exciting though, some of the spikes of its back and some shell, so didn’t bother taking any of it out of his inventory to identify it.
Shaun made some preparations for his next fight. He had his daggers and sword but also now made sure to equip all of the poisoned arrow heads, hoping that they may be useful against the next monster type. Once all of that was done he walked towards the new exit tunnel and started moving his way towards the next cavern. It took about an hour before he reached it and in that time he had regained a decent amount of his mana and was ready for the next fight.
When he got close enough to the opening of the cavern he tried to slip into stealth before remembering that he didn’t have the skill anymore, it was going to take time to adjust to that change but with his increased attack power he wasn’t so worried. Rather than even try to be sneaky he just walked up to the opening and looked inside.
What he saw was a lot different to the last caverns, if he could even call it that. This one had different platforms running up its wall, as if the rock had been carved to allow for the monsters that were currently spread out along the walls a height advantage on any who came into their space. There was still lava present in the cavern but rather than pools spread out around the area it was instead flowing down from the peak of a mountain in front of him. Looking around at the monsters present he identified one.
*Wildfire Lioness – Level 23*
There were a dozen lionesses spread out around the cavern, all of them the same level. If he was going to take a guess, as soon as they noticed him they would all attack as a group and if these cats had anything in common with the jaguar he had fought, they would be quick, strong and would always go for the kill.
There was one thing different about this cavern though, at the peak of the mountain at the furthest edge of the cavern, directly across from where he would enter, was a different monster, one where, when he identified it, made him doubt his ability to win.
*Flame Pride Lion – Level ??*
This was the boss, but it wasn’t hidden and waiting for the other lioness to die, it was already here, waiting, keeping watch over the others. He couldn’t see its level, it had to be too high for him to be able to identify, meaning that it was, without a doubt, the strongest monster he had ever come across. If his assumption was correct it would be level 25, and from his own experience, when you hit level 25 you get stronger, a lot stronger.
Before he had a chance to back away from the opening one of the lioness saw him and let loose a roar that echoed through the chamber, alerting every single monster present to his location. He didn’t think that these monsters would be trapped in their cavern, if he ran they would be able to follow. He no longer had any choice in the matter, he had to fight.
