"...I'll kill the beast instead."
When the words come out from my mouth, I have every intention of keeping them, but a few seconds later I erupt into laughter.
Negotiations didn't work so I decided that I would fight. When I actually think about what I just said, it sounds pretty barbaric.
But I guess that's just what I needed cause now, I'm way more enthusiastic than I was a moment ago. Forty five, no forty six deaths now, would drive a person to depression.
Anyway, all jokes aside, what plan do I actually have to beat Onyx?
I'll be blunt, there no way I can beat him in a one on one fight, that's just insanity, and I don't think using my soldiers will make a big difference.
Well, they won't make a big difference in a direct fight. I plan on using everything to my advantage including my soldiers. I'll even take advantage of the Death Count if I have to. If that's what it takes then that's what I'll do.
Ok, now let me think.
In all honesty, I've only seen Onyx either use his sword or that first time we met when he stabbed me through my chest with his bare hands. Aside from that, I haven't even seen him use any skills.
One thing I will say though, through every death, his speed was the most terrifying thing. He moved so fast that even if I focused my mind on his sword and only his sword, he'd still be too fast to see.
And just cause I'm talking about his speed doesn't mean his strength is anything less to worry about. To be able to cut through the atmosphere and split the sky apart with a single strike is nothing to underestimate.
With these two thing in his hands, it makes sense why he doesn't even need to use any of the skills he has. That alone is enough to conquer this whole world.
Well, now I know what I must do.
I've gotta make him reveal all his skills.
Easier said than done though.
He doesn't need to move to kill me.
So if I want him to reveal all his cards, I'm gonna have to deal with that annoying speed of his.
But as I try to think, no idea comes to mind.
I mean, let's face it, I'm significantly slower than him and that's just a fact.
But, maybe there is a way around it.
Or at the very least fix…my perspective of his speed!
That's it!
All I have to do is change my perspective.
If I can increase the amount of information my mind can take all at once, and increase the rate which I can process it all. In short, stop time, or at least slow it down for myself.
The only problem with this is how much mana I have to put into this. To slow down my mind so I can perceive an attack at his speed, I'd need to put more than 70% of my mana into my brain. Even then I'm not so sure it would work.
I take a look at my mana stat.
[ Mana: 130 ] [ MP: 9999/9999]
Not good.
If I had to guess, I'd have to use about 6,999 MP.
Which means, I've only got about, 3,000 mana points left to spare.
Just got to hope it's enough.
The soles of my feet begin to emit light and in seconds, I'm back on the battlefield.
Alright then.
I begin to run towards the stone structure. It doesn't take me more than a minute to arrive, but this time I hide behind some corpses of the sliver-skinned creatures.
...Oh, almost forgot.
It's only a guess, but up till now Onyx there has been able to find me way too easily. The only theory I have right now is that he's tracking me through my mana. If I want the element of surprise, then—
I begin to suppress my mana.
I feel the energy flowing through my body start to withdraw, sinking deeper and deeper into my body until it becomes little more than a faint ember.
After taking a second to get use to the feeling of being left exposed in a way, I stay still for a minute.
Then two, and before I know it three minutes have passed yet Onyx still hasn't made a move.
Is my theory correct?
No. Even if my theory is correct, Mana might not be the only way he's been tracking me. For someone like him, there could be other things like bloodlust or maybe he can detect presences.
At the very least, I've taken away one means of detecting me so that's gotta be something, right?
Anyway, I've gotta do something. Just standing here isn't gonna do anything.
Alright, let's see if this actually works.
I begin to redirect my mana to my brain.
At first nothing happens, mana just flows through my magic circuits like normal but my perception of time doesn't change.
So I pour more mana, and more and more and more until—
"Ack"
I can feel the wind stop but I guess it would be more accurate to say it slowed down. Slow enough that I can see a tiny particle of ash drifting in the air.
The flames in the distance begin to move like paint on a canvas, steady and slow with simple movements. Even the sounds of the cackling flames become distorted. Almost like the sounds of a whale crying through the ocean.
…it worked
I actually managed to slow down time (for myself). If I'm being honest, I didn't actually think it would work, at least not this well.
With this, I should be able to dodge any attack coming for me.
But just as I start to indulge in my success—
The particles of ash which are slowly drifting in the air begin to speed up and the wind gradually begins to pick up speed.
What!
What's happening? I'm still sending mana to my brain so why is time speeding up again.
Wait. It's just a thought but what if?
To confirm my thoughts, I clear my mind of all unnecessary thoughts and slowly but surly, everything starts to slow down again.
Ok, that confirms it. If I want to maintain this state then I'm gonna have to keep a clear head at all time.
Any strong emotion can turn this state off.
Alright, I think I've got the basics of this.
I attempt to get up but something happens that makes me stop in my tracks.
I can't move.
At least, I can't move at normal speed. It takes a second but then it dawns on me.
Yes I accelerated my mind so yes I can assume I can perceive his attacks. Don't know how accurate that is though.
But through it all, I forgot to take one factor into consideration.
Accelerating my mind means I can see his attacks but in exchange for that, if I try to move my body, nothing happens.
Perception means nothing If my body can't keep up. In other words, this plan is a…no guess I can't say that.
My intention was to see if I could accelerate my mind. It worked, so I guess I can't say it was a complete failure.
But, I'm gonna have to come up with something if I wanna—
My though is cut midway when I feel a powerful air wave blast through me faster that I can see.
The air wave is powerful enough to make me airborne.
As I rotate through the air at a surprisingly high speed, I notice a sharp pain in my left arm.
My eyes seem to move just fine even with my accelerated mind.
I look to the left side of my body and from my shoulder below, my left arm is gone, and the wound is still gushing out blood.
It's no mystery who did it.
I look down and I see a black armored figure staring up at me. It's golden eyes seem to pierce my very soul.
Guess I was right then. There's more than one way for him to track me.
Onyx, from my perspective, draws his black sword from its scabbard.
How?
My mind is supposed to be accelerated but for some reason, Onyx seems to be moving at a normal pace. He's going fast but not to the point where I can't see him like usual.
His black sword begins to glow as particles of golden light begins to gather around his blade.
I can see the mana circulating through the weapon, the tightening of his grip, the lowering of his stance, yet all I can do is watch.
Onyx pulls his sword back…
…and releases.
A beam of light is shot through the battlefield causing the ground to split apart as it makes its way towards me.
There's nothing I can do but wait for the light to kill me.
But through it all I smile, because for the first time, I've finally made progress on something, and most importantly, its given me an idea, a plan to be exact.
But If I want it to work, I'm going to need more information, but that's fine. I'll take all the time I need.
After all, In this trial, not even death can stop me.
The light finally reaches me and everything disappears into darkness.
[ Death Count: 47 ]