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Path to Prosperity - B2 Chapter 7
🕑 Added 2024-08-03 10:00:06 +0000 UTCErik and Tarlekt got expelled from the Wintermoon estate for the day. They didn’t want to tell Percy what they’d done to be thrown out, but given Tarlek’s expression, the situation was not yet done. The brothers were bound to get punished.
Percy was curious, but he wasn’t going to pry. Erik was happy and led them outside the clearing in no time.
“Is there a specific monster you want to hunt?” Tarlek asked while Erik slowed down to eavesdrop on their conversation.
“I’m not hunting a specific Monster Card, if that’s what you’re asking,” Percy responded, “I don’t particularly care what we’re going to hunt, but it would be best if the corpse is valuable. Also, I think I must tell you what my Ego can do.”
Before Tarlek could say anything and dissuade Percy from revealing his Ego’s powers, Erik jumped forward with gleaming eyes, “Tell me!”
Percy smiled while Tarlek rolled his eyes, “My Ego doesn’t help me in battle, but it consumes corpses and other valuables as long as they’re in my possession. The consumed objects and corpses transform into Prosperity points, which I can use to grow stronger in various ways.”
He tapped the enchanted Silvron Sword with a knowing smile and walked ahead.
“You can enchant weapons with your Ego? That’s crazy, dude!” Erik exclaimed while his brother studied Percy, “Is that why Lady Reeze hired you and why the Glacia Knights have been training you?”
“Lady Reeze and I have some…history. But I think she keeps me along because of my Ego. She initially didn’t know about my Ego, but her attitude changed slightly before we arrived at the Wintermoon estate. I haven’t seen her since then, but she gave me an Elite Monster Card and ensured the Glacia Knights treated me nicely. Not that they mistreated me at any point, but…my relationship with the Glacia Knights changed after that.” Percy shrugged, not going further into detail, yet the brothers could tell how upset he was.
Everything would have been much easier if Melissa had never talked to the Glacia Knights. Well, that only means I will separate from them once their business in the Wintermoon estate is over.
“We don’t have any storage devices, so how about we leave the monster corpses to you?” Tarlek offered, which Percy accepted with a thin smile. The corners of his lips curled upward.
Maybe everything will be better with them?
It didn’t take long before the trio discovered a group of River Boars. They were massive creatures with a height of more than two meters and massive ocean-blue tusks radiating mana. Their tusks were filled to the brim with mana, which they could release at any point to take their enemies by surprise.
“The tusks are treasures. If we can kill them cleanly before they release the mana within them, your Ego will be having a feast,” Tarlek explained in a whisper. Erik cracked his neck, while Percy licked his lips in excitement as Tarlek laid out a simple plan.
They didn’t waste any time going further into detail and finished their preparations after a few minutes. Erik and Tarlek jumped into action immediately, Tarlek unsheathing a broadsword while Erik’s palms burst open. Blood gushed from his palms, shaping into two bloody yet solid war axes.
He smiled from one ear to the other as he roared into the Moonlight Forest. Tarlek rolled his eyes at his brother’s excitement but didn’t intercept. He channeled mana into one of the two runic enchantments engraved on his Elite Sword Artifact, which released an impulse of mana into the surroundings.
The River Boars were hit by the impulsive and turned around in unison. Four River Boars, all massive creatures with tremendous charging power, squeaked angrily and charged ahead.
A silver sheen manifested all over Tarlek’s body, and he jumped into action. The brothers retreated several steps and split up. They disappeared behind two towering moon trees and skulked through the thicket while the River Boars charged ahead. They bulldozed the thicket in a single charge and turned around, only to hear a pained squeak from further away.
One of the River Boars collapsed to the ground, blood-red spikes impaling its legs and abdomen. Tarlek and Erik appeared next to the squeaking River Boar with swift strides and attacked. Tarlek’s broadsword cleaved down with great momentum and beheaded the River Boar while Erik’s bloody war axes shot down, cutting the River Boar’s body apart.
The River Boar couldn’t even squeal one last time. However, what it could do was transform into a massive blood bank for Erik, who absorbed the River Boar’s blood. Fountains of blood gushed from the River Boar’s head and cut-open abdomen, but it didn’t spurt around uncontrollably. The blood transformed into streams, which led to Erik, who annexed and formed the blood, creating a red armor that covered his entire body.
Another pulse of mana burst from Tarlek’s sword, which seemed to enrage the remaining River Boars more than Erik’s actions. They charged again, their fury pushing them to circulate mana through their bodies and accelerate.
That was what Percy had been waiting for. Two River Boars were stronger and thus faster than the rest. Their full charge, controlled by wrath, led to a gap between the strongest River Roars and the remaining – only slightly weaker – River Boar.
The three monsters were too focused on the brothers to notice Percy as he made his move. He emerged from the thicket; his timing couldn’t be any better, and he swung the glowing Silvron Sword the moment he appeared beside the River Boar. The River Boar heard the rustling bushes and saw a flash from the corner of its eyes, but it recognized the potential danger too late. A whitish arc flashed as the enchanted Silvron Sword cut through the River Boar’s neck.
The River Boar tried to respond, but the blade severed the River Boar’s head cleanly, perfectly hitting the monster’s weak point. Percy shuddered at the magnificent sensation. Never did he expect the Silvron Sword to cut this easily through the River Boar’s neck. He was certain the River Boar’s tough hide would resist the blade slightly more. River Boar hide was known to be tough. Even the weakest parts of the River Boar’s hide could be used to produce excellent Common Artifacts.
But the River Boar’s hide failed to protect the monster. Percy’s blade cut through its neck, and it would have beheaded the creature if the blade had been a little longer. That didn’t change the River Boar’s fate, though. It collapsed to the ground and stopped moving. A puddle of blood formed around the River Boar as a massive amount of blood gushed out of its neck, but Percy relied on his Ego’s notification to make sure the River Boar was dead.
[River Boar – Mature – 19,835 Prosperity]
That was more Prosperity than Percy expected, but he wouldn’t reject it. Still, he focused on the remaining River Boars and turned to the brothers to help them.
However, they didn’t need any help. A massive crimson wolf appeared next to Erik, who transformed the dead River Boar’s blood into weapons that coated the Crimson Wolf’s claws and fangs. The remaining blood gushed into the Crimson Wolf’s bloody eyes and started glowing. The Crimson Wolf expanded and shot forward with terrifying velocity. It surpassed the River Boar’s speed within seconds without losing its flexibility. It shot to the side, twisted its body to evade the mana-infused tusks, and ripped through the monster’s side, gutting it open simultaneously.
The blood coating the claw gushed into the River Boar’s open gut and did…something. Percy had no idea what kind of witchery Erik practiced, but it worked out. The Crimson Claw didn’t have to attack again. It disappeared into the thicket, where its bloodthirsty eyes studied what remained of the one-sided battle. The gutted River Boar collapsed and squeaked in pain and anger, and it was about to unleash the mana infused into its tusk to take Erik with it when he approached it. But Erik was prepared for that. He was faster. His Ego wreaked havoc with the River Boar’s system, taking the monster out long before it could unleash the mana compressed into its tusks.
Percy circulated mana through his body to help Tarlek when he saw the older brother struggling to evade the River Boar’s attack. At least, that was what it looked like at first glance. Tarlek avoided getting impaled by the River Boar and…started glowing.
The silver sheen covering his body glowed brightly suddenly and evaporated. As the silver sheen evaporated, Tarlek’s momentum skyrocketed. His speed doubled, and the broadsword whisked through the air.
Percy could barely follow the weapon’s trajectory with [Hawk Eyes] active. He froze and swallowed hard, watching the strongest River Boar of the batch be sliced into two halves.
What in the seven hells was that?!?
