The Hero considered Daniel's somewhat unusual challenge as he turned to face the Artificer who was currently in his transformed state. It was true that he was in his armor, with sword at his side and shield on his back. Even that wouldn't have mattered too much as he was Never Disarmed. "A duel?" he asked. It had been a good night, but the weight in his soul was beginning to drag at him.

Masika. In a cruel twist of fate it had been her prolonged incapacitation that had finally broken the chains around his heart in a way her first 'death' hadn't. The romantic in him had been unable to avoid thinking of the chance lost despite how slight it had been. He had reflected on his feelings, of course, though the sting of rejection had yet to fully heal. It was nothing as crass as the spark dying because of her wounded state, but rather that he had been given prolonged time to fear her death. When faced with that, in a way that had not required him to smother his emotions as he did in the Thormundz, the fever had finally broken. Many would mourn losing their love for someone, but in his case it had been a thorn twisted inside of him that only stood in the way of a healthy friendship, one he was ready to embrace for what it was.

If only she would wake up.

"I fear I tire too quickly this night, Sir Brant. Likewise my long stay in Eido has left my blade unsharpened. You would not find me an enjoyable partner." It was a guilty thing to say to one who had just broken through another step to the peak of power, but there was truth in it. He bit his tongue as he saw faint signs of disappointment cross Daniel's feline face and added, "Should you truly wish it, I could agree to a short bout. I simply do not see the merit to this."

"I want to learn my limits," Daniel said, and there was admirable resolve there. "Plus, there are people I have to worry about now. Hourglass', among others. When you dueled Heldren, you saw that illusion attack coming. Anything you can teach me would help."

Gadriel ran a hand through hair that had grown longer than it should during his long slumber as Daniel approached. With a thought his sword was in his hand, and he raised it to reduce the length. Less to get tangled or grabbed. The Artificer blinked at him, stopping with some uncertainty. "I find reason to take arms once more in those words. Though I warn you, even in my enfeebled state and our newfound peerage in level, I judge myself your superior in form. I shall need to withhold use of all but my most basic powers so as to not prematurely end the spar. Fast ascension that is not done at the cost of balance is admirable, but there are foundations to power that are built neither by attributes nor the blessings they grant."

"Might over magic."

He couldn't help but smile at that. "You remember. It was a lesson Heldren learned in defeat. I shall do my best to teach it to you more gently." A space cleared as the mountainous Gtoll looked on with interest, though his attention was split between the two of them and the central house for a reason Gadriel couldn't discern. "Come, then."

…

Daniel waited, tense, but all Gadriel did was hold a basic guard in that classic 'I'm going to stand here and you can't do anything about it' way most sword masters used to destroy the ego of their trainees. "Just to check, should I not use powers? My claws and teeth are as good as level 2 weapons already, if you don't block a Cleave it could take a chunk out of you."

"Use whatever means are at your disposal, Sir. I shall do the kindness of informing you that the only active powers I will make use of are Strike and Flying Sword. Do with this what you will." Part of Daniel wanted to go all out from the start, and Hunter was nonverbally egging him on to do so, but he wanted to know how Gadriel could manage what he could throw at him from a distance. Dodging swords and blocking arrows he could see, but how did the Hero deal with fireballs?

Using both Grow Feathers and Elemental Wildcard, Daniel stole Tounaki's groove by growing red feathers along his arms. The improved elemental power still couldn't be spammed, but its level 3 bonus had halved the time he'd have to wait for it to get back up. He ran to the side, throwing the feathers in such a way that they'd hit the ground before anyone else if Gadriel dodged.

Instead of trying to dodge through the cloud, the Hero took the brunt of what scattered feathers reached him and minimized the exposure of his unarmored skin. The move left him slightly injured, but in a better position to follow up if Daniel had rushed him. "See that coming?" he asked, voice pitching up slightly as the adrenaline of his hybrid form hit harder than when he was human. Level disparity to wisdom was slackening the control he'd schooled into himself.

"It would have been hard not to."

"I meant before the feathers grew," Daniel clarified impatiently.

"…yes."

Gtoll looked over from the other side of the courtyard, interested. "You haven't developed the ability to sense the mana flow of others already, have you? The fastest I've seen someone do that is late level 3. Most don't gain that degree of sensitivity until 4."

The Hero shook his head, either unaware or fine with the side conversation running out the clock on his cooldown. Daniel didn't mind either as this was what he was here for. That and a good fight. "Mana, and magic in general, still flows through the body. I need not divine my opponent's mana flow to see its effects. Muscles tense, eyes move, and weight shifts. Should I face a monster whose physique I am unfamiliar with I encounter more difficulty, but for mortals I need not identify a power to know one is coming."

"Interesting. Continue, please."

Daniel prepared a Grounding Roar, but stopped himself at the last moment as he remembered Zolyra's earlier warning about noise complaints. It sucked, but he wasn't going to be that kind of neighbor even if it took some of the fun out of it. Instead he activated Corrosive Claws, watching Gadriel for any sign that this went too far.

Receiving no rebuke for his action, Daniel summoned more feathers and charged them with ice. He threw them and committed to the attack, and like last time Gadriel accepted a bit of pain to not compromise his defense. Unlike his occasional training with Janice, he didn't see anticipation or any reaction at all from Gadriel. The Hero was just there, waiting for him to get in range.

Well, he said to hit him with everything. Daniel activated Ravaging Cross, launching into the committed attack. Gadriel had less than a second between that and when the sharpened tips of his claws would rake him, possibly causing wounds that would bleed and burn with acid at the same time. The Hero ducked, claws tracking his torso with the limited control Daniel had over the committed attack. Then he pushed with his feet and the Hero was sailing over Daniel in an elegant front dive. Gadriel caught the ground with an open hand on the other side. His shield remained raised to block Daniel as he overextended trying to let his claws reach him, then Gadriel rolled back to buy some space.

Daniel had enough fighting experience to know something was off and caught the sword out of the corner of his eye before it was too late. Soaring through the air to return to the hand of its wielder, Gadriel's blade skated across his back but was unable to fully penetrate the armor thanks to his last-minute evasion. It still prevented Daniel from activating Opportune Moment, an ability he was immensely curious as to how Gadriel would handle.

"You threw that when you jumped," Daniel said, appreciative of the move.

"And you almost missed it. Such a delay could prove lethal against a more fearsome strike." The acid that had etched into his shield began to fizzle out, barely marring the surface. His eyes fell on Daniel's claws and he shook his head. "I have no words for your technique, but as for your awareness, it must improve. With practice and time you will find yourself able to focus on your foe while not neglecting your surroundings. Attention must be paid to both."

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

I need to activate Opportune Moment and push him. Best chance is to get him to throw his sword, but he's not going to be predictable enough to do that again. He'd just have to wait for Gadriel to make that mistake, and catch it. "Let's go again."

Gadriel flicked his sword, and Daniel approached. This time he stayed at a distance, relying on Cleave's greater range to pressure Gadriel without exposing himself. The power used to have some weight to its mana cost, around 3%, but with level 3 he could spam it without quickly bankrupting himself. Gadriel blocked when he would only be hit by the spectral attack, and dodged as best he could when Daniel's claws would contact his shield and allow the rest to go through.

Then an attack came from the Hero so quickly that he was caught off guard. Strike, the most basic of attack powers, was used expertly by Gadriel as he took a single step to get Daniel in reach of his longsword. If Daniel had been able to see it coming he could have blocked with his Focus Shield and mitigated the damage. Instead, the tip cut through the armor on his chest and opened a light wound before he could pull away.

He could have committed more to that attack, Daniel thought, the moment replaying in his mind. But he gave himself just enough space to back up if I decided to take the damage full on and retaliate. He'd watched the duel with Heldren, but it was only now when fighting the Hero himself that Daniel understood why the higher-leveled Hero had lost. Gadriel had a simple, efficient fighting style that minimized the damage he took while maximizing what he could do in return, though underneath that simplicity was a complex man who knew how his body moved and used it to its fullest extent.

It was like fighting a robot that could always make the perfect move. You could beat Gadriel by surprising him or knocking him out of his flow, but Daniel only had one tool that could do that in his current form. Well he could also try flying, but something told him that would be worse than sticking to the ground.

"Hey, Gtoll, I have a handle on this but watch me just in case." Saying that, Daniel began to slip into Defiant Rage. It wouldn't give him a bonus because he was on Gadriel's level, but the boost to his physical attributes would be nice as long as he could keep it from dulling his mind. Using it here would also let him know if level disparity to wisdom was going to be a problem going forward without endangering himself or his friends.

Gadriel's guard shifted under the renewed assault. The increased speed and ferocity of the attacks did force him to accept minor injuries though Daniel took worse in turn. His newly improved Regeneration worked wonders with Ferocious Healing, though. The initial cut to his chest had long ago healed. It was a shame the second was tied to strength through his intrinsic Focus Enhancement rather than endurance, or he might have just become unkillable.

Finally, the opportunity came. Gadriel threw his sword to punish one of Daniel's overextensions, but he managed to get out of the way enough to let it continue past him. Abandoning a direct engagement, Daniel backed into the path of the returning sword and then ducked away, his hearing keeping track of it the entire time while his eyes remained fixed on Gadriel.

It passed by him harmlessly, and he activated Opportune Moment. Gadriel's eyes slowly widened as the Hero comprehended what was happening. With Momentous Strikes self-restricted, he had no way to directly counter Daniel's time dilation. The speed advantage now in Daniel's claws, he pressed and broke through the Hero's guard, scoring a long gash on his sword arm that began to burn. Daniel was considering backing off and taking a small victory when it happened.

Mind fully in the thick of battle, he watched as Gadriel moved slightly faster near the end of his power's effect. It was a Strike, only Daniel's body was already out of the way. It hadn't been a fully conscious decision, though he could clearly recall the signs he'd seen in his opponent leading up to the power's activation. It'd all happened in a fraction of a second and he would have missed it if operating in real time. His enhanced mind, aided by time dilation, had managed it.

The rush of awakening hit him before Gadriel's followup shield bash. Daniel had been caught so off guard by what had happened his concentration had slipped. If this were actually a life and death struggle he wouldn't have been hit, the lower stakes reducing his need to react with deadly force at all times. Also, this awakening wasn't like the others.

Empower Insight (Ability, Intelligence, Utility, Domain: Enchantment, Trance, Cooldown, Level: 2)

You possess the Power to enter a trance enhancing your anticipation of the use of Powers in other Creatures for a modest mana cost. This trance lasts for one minute, or until you willfully dismiss it. Creatures above your Level gain significant resistance to this ability. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

"Sir Brant, are you well?" Gadriel asked over him, holding out the injured arm to pull him up. Daniel winced more from the sight of it than his headache and grabbed on with one hand.

"Sorry about that. Let me heal you." He mentally disabled Corrosive Claws just in case, though Gadriel misunderstood his intent as him trying to avoid injuring him with the hand he was holding.

"You've awakened a healing power since we last met? Fortuitous. I admit you managed to deliver a meaningful strike here." Gadriel only winced slightly as he looked at the scratches that had already stopped bleeding. Without an actual bleeding effect to open the wound, the endurance of a level 3 could rapidly begin the recovery process even without specific powers. "By the look on your face I assume that last exchange was productive, so I shall accept some small favor in kind."

The fighting machine that was the Hero was completely surprised as Daniel savagely clawed him again, though this time the wound began to rapidly heal as Soothing Strike inverted the damage. Daniel gave the Hero a toothy grin. "Neat, huh?"

"It appears appropriate for your current demeanor," Gadriel said slowly. "If I may ask, what exactly did you discover?"

"I'm a blue mage," Daniel said, to the complete confusion of all but one other present.

…

"Ah, see Tak? The surprises just keep coming," Lograve commented to the Totem Warrior, both of whom were relaxing on chairs the Arcanist had levitated with ice up to one of the roofs to better watch the show. "If I understand him correctly, Daniel must have gained inspiration from what Gadriel was attempting to teach him, translating it into leverage used to unseal one of his unawakened powers. Do you know what this means, oh apprentice mine?"

"Hmm." Tak hummed discontentedly as Lograve hit him with a difficult question. Actually they were all difficult, but this was a spicier one than normal. Before he would've just admitted he wasn't smart and allow someone else to answer for him, if he didn't have an immediate reply that was. After Lograve had taken him under his wing, Tak was beginning to slow down and think about things more when speaking from the heart failed him. "He has been having difficulty awakening those last powers. Is it that he needs to face stronger enemies?" Tak tilted his head. "No, didn't get anything from fighting the level 4. He complained about it. Hmm. Hmmmmm." He sighed in defeat. "I am not sure."

"A good attempt either way, my feathered friend," Lograve said encouragingly. "Conscious incompetence is but the step before conscious competence, and as we both know you are well practiced in that. It could be considered a trick question as you would need to know the reference to get the hint. So far, Daniel has simply relied on allowing the flow of battle to guide his awakenings. If I am right, something that one should not assume as you very well know, he's just discovered that he can instead gain powers that mimic those of his enemy if he understand them well enough. These 'archetypes' he told me of are likely involved too. Perhaps this would only work if they relate to the ones he possesses." Lograve waved a hand. "In short, a 'blue mage' is a concept from his world where a caster can copy the abilities of monsters they encounter. You know…" Lograve tapped his chin, and Tak could already feel the next brain twister coming. "This is similar to something else he can do, which might explain this unique talent. Do you know what that is?"

This time, Tak was able to find the answer. "He can get formulae from monsters!"

"Exactly," Lograve nodded, pleased. "It's not unheard of for inspiration to strike from encountering new monsters, but that is only in the case of awakening a power you already had lying dormant. If he is instead able to forcibly train himself and steal abilities he chooses… well, it's about what I've come to expect from Daniel. Absolute lunacy. Speaking of lunacy." Lograve continued, tapping the roof of the central house below him with a foot. "One last thing and I'll let you go for the night. What's special about where we're sitting? I'll give you a hint, it's probably Daniel's new level 3 power."

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.