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….
Percy eyed the Draugr cautiously. It looked mean. The bones were yellowed with age and etched with deep scratches, battle scars from a life, or perhaps a death, of constant violence. This thing had experience.
Percy gritted his teeth and hoisted the heavy bronze shield, shuffling forward. The skeleton responded instantly, drawing its chipped sword with a dry hiss of metal on bone. It didn't hesitate. It lunged, closing the distance in a rattle of armor, and slammed its shield against Percy's.
CLANG!
The impact vibrated through Percy's entire skeleton. He gasped, his boots skidding on the brick floor as he struggled to hold the line. The Draugr was strong, stronger than him. He was losing the shove match.
Thinking fast, Percy stopped pushing. He suddenly relaxed his left arm and stepped back. The skeleton, expecting resistance, stumbled forward, off-balance.
Percy didn't waste the opening. He swung Riptide in a tight, glowing arc.
The Celestial Bronze didn't just hit the skeleton; it passed through it like a hot knife through butter. The blade severed the ribs and the spine in one clean motion. The magic of the blade flared, and the skeleton shrieked, a sound like snapping wood, before crumbling into a pile of dust.
Percy stood alone in the flickering corridor, chest heaving.
"That's it?" he whispered, lowering his sword. "That's all? Seriously?"
He looked at the pile of dust. Resting on top of the gray powder were two items. Did he... did he just score loot?
He picked them up. A crumpled five-dollar bill and a jagged shard of bone.
[Bone Piece]
[Type: Crafting Material]
[Description: It's a piece of bone. What do you want it to do? Sing?]
Percy rolled his eyes and pocketed it. He inspected the bill next. It felt crisp. Real. He shoved it into his inventory.
[Money: $55 / 10 Drachma]
"Holy shit," Percy muttered, a grin spreading across his face. "This money is real."
He looked down the dark corridor. The fear was gone, replaced by the dangerous, intoxicating greed of a Gamer who had just realized the potential of an infinite money glitch. If all the skeletons were this easy, and they all dropped cash...
"I'm gonna be rich," he whispered.
He lifted Riptide over his head, pumped by adrenaline and stupidity. "AHHHH!" he screamed, charging into the darkness.
….
Five minutes later.
"THIS WAS A MISTAKE! THIS WAS A HUGE MISTAKE!"
Percy was sprinting back down the corridor, his lungs burning. Behind him, the darkness was alive with the clatter of hundreds of bones. A literal horde of skeletons was hot on his heels.
He had run into a burial chamber, expecting maybe two or three enemies. Instead, he'd woken up a United Nations of the undead. There were Roman legionnaires, Confederate soldiers, Napoleonic musketeers, all united by the singular desire to turn Percy into a shish kebab.
He risked a glance over his shoulder. Three skeletons, runners, wearing light leather armor, had pulled ahead of the pack. The main horde of twenty or so was lagging behind, but these three were right on top of him.
Percy skidded to a halt, turning on his heel. He didn't have time to duel.
He swung Riptide horizontally, aiming for the legs. The skeletons, crowded together in the narrow hallway, couldn't dodge. The blade shattered tibias and femurs, sending them crashing down. A quick follow-up strike turned them to dust.
Percy snatched the loot from the floor, an instinct he couldn't control, netting another $20 and a gold Drachma.
But the rest of the horde was closing in. The heavy footsteps of the armored ones shook the floor.
Percy reached into his inventory and ripped out a water bottle. He twisted the cap off and focused.
"Water Control!"
The water shot out of the bottle, hovering in the air. Percy didn't make a ball this time. He visualized a blade. A crescent moon, razor-thin and shimmering in the torchlight.
"Eat this!"
He thrust his hand forward. The water-blade slashed through the air, expanding as it flew. It slammed into the front row of the horde.
CRASH!
The impact was devastating. The high-pressure water shattered breastplates and skulls alike. Ten skeletons dissolved into dust instantly.
But there were still more. And Percy was out of water.
He spun and scrambled for the stairs. He hit the steps on all fours, scrambling up a dozen feet before turning to make his stand. It was a bottleneck. They could only come at him one at a time.
The first skeleton, a rusty knight, charged up the steps. Percy waited. When it swung, he ducked under the clumsy blow and thrust Riptide upward. Poof. Dust.
The next one tried to shield bash him. Percy kicked it in the chest, sending it tumbling back down into its friends like a bowling ball.
He hacked and slashed, Riptide a blur of bronze light. One by one, they fell. It was a meat grinder.
Finally, the last skeleton crumbled.
Percy dropped to his knees, gasping for air, sweat stinging his eyes. His arms felt like lead.
'Ping!'
[You have Leveled Up!]
[+5 Stat Points!]
[+50 Max HP]
[+25 Max MP]
The rush of energy was immediate. The exhaustion vanished as his health and mana topped off.
Percy pulled up his status screen.
[Percy Jackson]
[Level: 5 (EXP: 475/2400)]
[HP: 250/250]
[MP: 125/125]
[Race: Demigod]
[Stats:]
[STR: 6]
[VIT: 4 (+3 racial) = 7]
[DEX: 4 (+3 racial) = 7]
[INT: 9]
[WIS: 5]
[LUC: 6]
[Points: 5]
[Money: 75$ / 11 Drachma]
[Status: Demigod Physiology - Grants +3 VIT, +3 DEX, water breathing, enhanced strength, and general awesomeness.]
Percy paused. His racial bonus had gone up. It used to be +2. Now it was +3.
It must scale, he realized. Every five levels, my demigod blood gets stronger.
'Ping!'
[For deducing the mechanics of your racial progression, you have gained +1 WIS!]
"Convenient," Percy muttered.
He stood up and began the best part of the job: looting. He swept the stairs, gathering every bill and coin. A total of $100 and 12 Drachmas. It was incredible. If he kept this up, he could pay for his own tuition. He could buy his mom a dress. He could get them a real apartment.
He stashed the cash, and then his eyes landed on an item left behind by the final skeleton. It was a helmet, bronze and battered, with a ridiculous bright red horsehair crest.
'Observe.'
[Helmet of Troy]
[Rank: Common]
[Durability: 7/10]
[Description: A helmet worn by a Trojan soldier reborn as a skeleton. The bright red crest is designed to draw the eye, making the wearer a magnet for attention.]
[Effect: 20% increased chance to distract enemies and draw aggro.]
….
If you want to read ahead by 20+ chapters you could take a visit on my patreon Or check it out.
http://patreon.com/SageOf016