Assimilate All Talents

Beams, projectiles, and other attacks flew across the room as Sol and the ten magic hands circled the Chosen Slayer, unleashing their respective attacks while dodging the cannon blasts.

“ASDIGANOS DEPRENDE! ADAPTIVUM NEUTNI: ASDIGANOS!”

“IGNAS MAGI DEPRENDE! ADAPTIVUM NEUTNI: IGNAS!”

“UMBRA DEPRENDE! ADAPTIVUM NEUTNI: UMBRA!”

The Chosen Slayer rapidly adapted, creating countermeasures and prioritizing threats by the level of danger they were to it. Pylons emitted light to banish darkness and small barrels emerged from various points, firing smaller metallic projectiles at the hands to keep up with the many attackers targeting it.

As the battle continued, Sol couldn't avoid every explosion, despite most of the Chosen Slayer's cannons being aimed at the magic hands. His body bore burn marks and cuts, but his wounds were healing at a visible rate. Thanks to [Invincible Body], most explosions only lightly wounded him unless he took a direct hit, and he would recover in time. However, his royal knight armor wasn’t as durable as he was; it had been broken in so many places that it barely functioned as clothing, much less armor.

The Chosen Slayer hadn't come out unscathed either. Dents and small holes had appeared across its metallic surface, mostly due to the smaller attacks the Chosen Slayer deemed insignificant compared to larger threats. Over time, those small attacks had accumulated, though they hadn’t yet impacted its combat capabilities.

At that moment, the light emitting pylons were shining brightly on all sides. Tired of the constant suppression of his [Umbral Domain] and dark magic, Sol drew back the string of his Pollen Bow.

Using [Guided Bombardment], he fired a barrage of arrows in a crescent formation. Mid flight, they curved and aimed directly for the pylons.

“ARC DEPRENDE! ADAPTIVUM NEUTNI: ARC!”

Upon detecting the threat, the Chosen Slayer rumbled as it emitted out a shockwave, causing the arrows to explode or go off course even with his guidance before they could reach their destination.

Sol clicked his tongue. Even with a way to repel the arrows, he continued firing to keep the pressure on, alongside the magic hands.

The fight with the massive machine dragged on, feeling like an hour but lasting only a few minutes. During that time, countless attacks were exchanged, leaving even more damage on both the Chosen Slayer and Sol. But unlike the machine, Sol could heal himself, not only through regeneration but also with health potions he had begun drinking.

Outwardly, Sol seemed fine, but the fight was taking its toll on him mentally and physically. He was juggling control over ten magic hands, magic, shadow and earth manipulation, and his own movements. He knew that any mistake would allow the Chosen Slayer to take advantage.

In one exchange, a magic hand wielding the blue chroma sent five blue blades between the shockwaves that repelled the arrows, striking two of the pylons. With a loud crack, one of the pylons shattered into pieces, while the other was barely grazed before the Chosen Slayer retracted it just in time.

With one pylon destroyed and another retracted, the light magic in the room was significantly weakened. Sol seized the opportunity to go on the offensive. The shadow manipulating magic hand moved to the dimmest area and launched multiple shadow spheres at the cannons, destroying two of them in a violent explosion.

The Chosen Slayer deployed its third pylon to weaken the shadows, but as it emerged, the red chroma magic hand, positioned on the opposite side, fired a powerful red beam, destroying the pylon in a single blow.

“Finally!” Sol exclaimed, invigorated by finally landing a major blow. Fueled by this success, he maintained his [Guided Bombardment] while chanting dark magic.

“[Grim Flames]! [Grim Flames]! [Grim Flames]! [Grim Flames]!”

Even with the remaining two pylons weakening his dark magic, the black flames flew through the air alongside the arrows, heading toward the Chosen Slayer.

“UMBRA DEPRENDE! ADAPTIVUM NEUTNI… ERRATUM! ADAPTIVUM DEFICAL!”

For the first time, the Chosen Slayer spoke something different from its usual pattern, but Sol didn’t understand and ignored it, continuing his assault.

The Chosen Slayer sent out another shockwave that destroyed the arrows, but the dark flames were only slightly disturbed and continued on their path. They pelted the machine’s exterior to little effect, but the real damage came from the flames that hit the cannons and other openings. Half of the cannons were destroyed in one go, along with the last two pylons and other extensions from its adaptive mechanisms.

Without pausing, the earth magic hand created dense stones that latched onto the Chosen Slayer’s wheels, restricting its movement. Meanwhile, an army of shadow creatures began rising to attack the mechanism. The magic hands wielding the red and orange chroma combined as duochrome came off cooldown, sending a massive red beam that began slowly burning through its thick armor.

Sol stopped running and tossed the bow aside. He retrieved the Tynamo Cannon once again and set it to maximum power. Just as he was about to fire, the four remaining cannons locked onto him, detecting him standing still for a brief moment. The Chosen Slayer, unable to adapt any further, focused on eliminating the threat.

The green chroma hand moved to shield him, blocking two explosions before being destroyed. The indigo chroma hand, with its incredible speed, intercepted another, sacrificing itself in the process. No other magic hand could reach the fourth projectile in time, but just before it got within 20 feet of Sol, a transparent white bubble appeared out of thin air. The projectile exploded upon contact, with the ensuing electric blast shocking the surroundings and the edge of the explosion still reaching Sol.

Despite the powerful electrical shock, Sol maintained his aim and pulled the trigger, sending a beam of void energy at maximum power, three times larger than before. It blasted toward the Chosen Slayer, which attempted to reposition itself to avoid the fatal hit. However, with its wheels locked by the earth magic hand, it couldn’t move.

The beam effortlessly pierced through the Chosen Slayer’s metallic body, exiting on the other side. Sol smirked, knowing the beam had struck the core at the center, finally destroying it.

The Chosen Slayer’s resistance ceased as its energy source, which had fueled it for countless years, was destroyed. In its final moments, with the last of its remaining energy maintaining internal functions, it detected something far away. Normally, it would take certain actions when detecting this phenomenon, but with its energy depleted, it could only announce it to someone who couldn’t understand.

In a low mechanical voice, it said, “Lexis... deprede... delerium... impetu...”