The golden blade in my hand whistled through the air, gleaming in the shade of the overcast forest. It pierced through the fur of the bear and shattered into motes of light a second later.
[====]-[===]-[====]
|| [-100]-[Health Points] ||
[====]-[===]-[====]
The great beast fell forward onto its four limbs, a powerful roar erupting from its maw and shaking the ground beneath me. It turned to face me, only to be met with another two daggers of light.
It broke through the first with a snap of its teeth, and the second with a wild shake of its head.
[====]-[===]-[====]
|| [Herald of Fear]-[Activated] ||
[====]-[===]-[====]
A sudden pressure built within my head at the Systems words. It was a small, barely noticeable sensation for me. Not so much for the bear.
It flinched, a full body jerk that I didn't hesitate to exploit. My steps were quick but measured, my mind consumed with the battle art I had learned from [Astral Melody].
The fear didn't hold, but I didn't expect it to. The bear met my approach with a growl and a swipe of its mighty right arm. Its sharp claws seemed to almost gleam in the setting dark.
I didn't meet its strike head on, instead utilizing the movements I had learned to stop my approach, twist my entire body with the motion, and avoid the attack. My blade sang as it pierced through the flesh of its right arm.
The pain from my slash didn't stop the hulking beast.
It lunged forward, its large mouth, filled with razor-sharp teeth, nearly enveloping me whole.
[====]-[===]-[====]
|| [Herald of Fear]-[Activated] ||
[====]-[===]-[====]
Again, it flinched, its entire body lurching. It gave me the time I needed to take a step back and close my eyes. My left hand, already full of the pearlescent cloak, swept up.
The mana I had been building surged.
A blinding light enveloped the forest.
It lasted for only a second, but it had dazed the bear, left it reeling back and confused. I could only imagine the stars it must have been seeing. My feet shifted, Milady rose above me, and I swiped down with all the strength I had within me.
[====]-[===]-[====]
|| [Critical Hit!] ||
|| [-1500]-[Health Points] ||
[====]-[===]-[====]
The great beast lost an eye.
It lunged at me, a hateful roar leaving its snout as fresh blood coated its scaled face. It was driven entirely by instinct. Hate and revenge, filling it with enough motivation to strike at me blindly.
I tried to make some distance between us, a golden dagger trying to manifest within the palm of my hand, before I had to abandon it and quickly raise my arm.
[====]-[===]-[====]
|| [-200]-[Health Points] ||
[====]-[===]-[====]
It nearly tore my face off with a wild swing, but instead it only struck against my arm. A hiss left my lips as I heard something cracking, my skin fracturing and splintering, as if it was true marble.
The force it used had sent me flying, my feet left the ground for only a moment before I was on the ground and using the momentum to roll. It lurched towards me, its singular remaining eye open and filled with hate.
[====]-[===]-[====]
|| [Herald of Fear]-[Activated] ||
[====]-[===]-[====]
I lunged forward, my entire body crackling with electricity as [Blinkbolt] nearly activated. It recovered from the sudden mind hex quicker than before, but I was ready for it.
My left arm ached as I lifted my cloak once again and closed my eyes. A bright flash of light echoed through the forest again, and my momentum pushed me directly into its reeling body.
It stood on its hind legs, a howl of pain leaving its snout from the light. Milady drove into its stomach, guided by my hand and the very stars themselves. For a brief moment, it almost seemed to glow a dark blue, before it entered the fleshy stomach of the bear.
My blade met no resistance as I tore sideways across its body. I didn't linger as the Red Bear tried to fall onto me. My vision was cloaked with a surging bolt of golden lightning, and then I was away, my back crashing into the bark of a tree.
The System sang.
[====]-[===]-[====]
|| [Critical Hit!] ||
|| [-3000]-[Health Points] ||
|| [Status of Red Runebear] ||
|| [Bleed] Has taken effect!] ||
|| [-2%]-[Health Points Per Minute] ||
[====]-[===]-[====]
'That was stupid of me.' I calmly thought, looking at the lightly growling bear. My mind was silent of any thoughts that weren't focused on the battle.
It felt strange, honestly. Where every novel I had read explained fights to be either exhilarating or terrifying, I only felt a cold sort of detachment. I bore no hate for this bear, after all.
I was held together by an otherworldly calm. It kept me focused, pulled me away from distractions like panic and fear, and made me methodical in my approach. The bear had to die, and so, I would kill it.
My vision flashed with lightning once again, and I avoided the jaws of this mighty king. Milady sang in my arms, a royal blue coating its blade as I swung it into the beast's side.
It flashed through the air as I avoided a swipe from the bear's claws. My body moved almost instinctually as [Astral Melody] received level after level during this deadly dance.
My footwork began to change, my body began to become more fluid, slightly quicker, slightly faster. I took a step back from another powerful bite, created a dagger in my left hand, and grunted as my right leg suffered a crack from the raging beast.
I drove the golden blade into its left arm and vanished in a spark of lightning.
The System flashed, a new set of numbers on it, displaying both my own health and that of the Red Runebears. My own Health Points were still at seven-hundred and fifty, the additional points provided by my cloak having taken the brunt of the damage.
The Runebear on the other hand had dwindled to sit at fifteen thousand nine-hundred and twenty points. A combination of the bleed status effect from earlier and my own slashes beginning to take their effect.
I still had a long way to go, but I was getting there.
My cloak sparked with light as I grabbed it, and the palm of my hand began to build with a golden light.