Limitless Path

Beth and Blood walked through the portal together, finding themselves in a forest very similar to what they had found in the Endless Trial. Beth noticed a few differences almost right away, the biggest of which is that there seemed to be a constant, even light throughout the place. The second detail that was different was just how uniform everything was. There were trees and bushes and some scattered undergrowth, but it all seemed to repeat. It wasn't so even as to be laid out precisely like an orchard, but it was definitely more uniform than felt entirely natural.

Beth did notice something that was certainly the same, that being the lack of visible enemies. She didn't remember this being a particularly fun floor, but then again, she sort of agreed with Blood that a challenge would be a better way to progress than a free farm. The key was finding something challenging enough to foster improvement through battle, but not to the point where the threat of death loomed in every moment.

Blood had already begun pacing around the initial area with her nose to the ground while Beth observed their surroundings. It seemed that it functioned very similarly to when she had made an ant gate, where there was a certain clear area around them before ever expanding rings of enemies.

Beth cautiously moved forward from their staring location, the gate made from twin trees looming behind her still. She had become somewhat used to the experience of fighting camouflaged enemies the last time they had taken on the Mantis-type beasts, and she had her guard fully up as she moved out. It took slightly less time than she expected for the first attack to arrive, and Beth responded just in time, sliding to her left a little and hammering the mantis with her right fist.

The beast went tumbling away, but not too far, righting itself with a quick motion a handful of steps away. The beast didn’t seem very damaged or, in fact, even stunned from the hard strike, causing Beth to frown slightly. She quickly used Identify on it before it leapt on her again to check what she was up against.

Level 20 Rending Mantis

Not that her level of the basic Identify skill really told her all that much. She dismissed the notification and the errant thoughts, refocusing on the beast in front of her. The mantis circled to her left, Beth turning to track it as it did so, before the beast suddenly leapt at her with a powerful burst of speed. Beth wasn't intimidated by an opponent of this level, relying on her constant training to step into the enemy's charge and counter.

She dealt with the first mantis with a handful of quick blows, able to overwhelm it with her speed, power, and skill. They continued on from there, fighting enemy after enemy for several hours, taking advantage of their heightened END to push themselves. They eventually had to rest for a little while, Beth counting up their gains and distributing their points when they did.

Name

Elizabeth Anne Bell

Class

Brawler

Level

23

Strength

74

Dexterity

31

Endurance

57

Intelligence

20

Wisdom

22

Free Points

0

Titles

Silver Flame Empress Inheritor

Skills

Ancient World Gate[0]

Crush Copper[9]

Focused Meditation Copper[6]

Identify Copper[6]

Lightning Resistance Copper[3]

Lordly Reconstruction Copper[8]

Monstrous Blow Copper[8]

Pain Tolerance Copper[9]

Swords Apprentice[7]

Toxic Resistance Copper[4]

Unarmed Apprentice[7]

Wealth

0g 50s 20c

Emblems

CRA Copper Badge

Bonds

Blood

Name

Blood

Race

Red Wolf Queen

Level

23

Strength

50

Dexterity

63

Endurance

42

Intelligence

30

Wisdom

30

Free Points

0

Titles

-

Skills

Identify Copper[2]

Lightning Resistance Copper[3]

Meditation Copper[6]

Regeneration Copper[7]

Swift Copper[9]

Toxic Resistance Copper[4]

Wealth

14s 5c

They weren't quite satisfied with that, however, and decided to continue on for a while. They wanted to push for level twenty-four before stopping for now, at least with the mantises. They wound up moving out to the area where the level twenty-fours resided and grinding through groups of them for a couple hours, pushing themselves through to the point of exhaustion before getting the last level they were hunting. They had to rest after hitting the level before doing anything else, almost too tired to walk.

When they had rested for a couple minutes, they got up and headed back towards the gate. They did have to fight a few mantises along the way, but they had cleared out the larger groups close to their level, and the lower leveled mantises just weren't as much trouble. They eventually made their way to the gate, exiting back out into the suite of rooms that Beth had rented in the CRA basement. She checked the time, noting that a little over four hours real time had passed, the two of them having spent over twenty hours training.

"Time to wash, girl," Beth said to Blood, leading the way into the bathroom. The room was large enough, with large enough amenities, that even with Blood inside, the room wasn't cramped. The two were even able to fit in the shower at the same time, Beth having showered first before helping Blood wash off. They didn't make use of the large tub for now, Beth not really interested in a soak at this time.

Once they were cleaned up, Beth headed into the kitchen. She had used the waters during their rest breaks, and she tossed the bottles in the chute in the kitchenette meant for recyclables. She then grabbed a few nutrient packs and waters for herself before filling a bowl for Blood. There was food other than the nutrient packs in the refrigerator unit, and Beth got a large pack of meat and sauce out. It had directions to cook in the small oven, and Beth followed the instructions while going through two nutrient packs, having to refill Blood's water bowl during the process as well. When she had made the meat, she put it in another bowl for Blood and tossed the packaging in the disposal chute.

Once the two were fully fed and watered, they headed into the bedroom. Beth didn't even bother with the covers, having changed into a fresh set of her new clothes after the shower. She thumped down on the bed and scooted over a little when Blood joined her. The bed was huge, but Beth moved over to curl up with the huge wolf, the two passing out shortly thereafter.

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Beth woke up, not with a start, but she found that her new stats would allow her to wake instantly and be fully alert. She didn't experience any grogginess or lethargy in the morning, and her mind was fresh and clear. Speaking of morning, she checked the time, and noted that it had only been about four hours since they had fallen asleep. With their earlier adventures and the cycle of sleep, it was now mid-evening of the same day she had rented the room.

The two got out of bed and moved into the living room of the suite, Blood sitting on the floor while Beth headed into the kitchen. She grabbed water for both of them as well as some food; nutrient packs for her and some meat from the fridge for Blood. The two ate and drank their fill, Beth disposing of the refuse before grabbing a few extras for her pouch like she had before their last exploration.

She settled on the large couch in the room to get her bearings and go over their options, still wanting to hit at least thirty while they had the time here. She knew she could do it fairly easily with the golems as opponents, but she also knew that Blood would have a very difficult time against those enemy types. Blood's strength and speed were much improved since their last encounter with golems, but she still lacked any kind of offensive ability that would damage the extremely durable creatures.

Beth opened her interface and opened up her skill to create the gates. Nothing had changed since the last time she had browsed it earlier in the day, and she opened up the beast section to review what they had available to fight. She wasn't really sure what to go for, but in browsing, her eyes drifted to the most basic and simple of enemies for farming in video games; goblins.

"What do you think about a round of leveling with goblins? Give us practice on something more human-like and still easy to beat…" She asked, turning to her wolf companion.

Blood cocked her head to the side and flicked an ear for a moment before giving a nod to Beth, seeming to accept the idea and reasoning. Beth chose the options for the gate, picking five times for the time dilation again and setting the creatures to goblin. She picked the terrain as plains, wanting to keep this second session of leveling as simple as possible. A new arch rose in the center of the room, one made of twisted columns of a light grey stone, pitted and weathered as if they had been exposed to fierce storms in an open area for many years. Grass rose just around the base of the pillars, twined around the bottom of them more like vines, and then the gateway formed with a soft susurrus.

The girls hopped up and made ready, Beth checking that she had everything she would want in her pouch before adjusting her armor. She had her sword strapped to her hip and was planning on making use of it this time around, the goblins a much better target for her blade-work. Blood had no armor or equipment to speak of, being ready to enter after a quick shake to loosen the muscles.

The two strode forward into the gate, Beth leading the way by a step, passing through without issue or even any sensation. She still marveled at how well the power she had inherited worked, holding a hand up to her forehead to shield her eyes from the bright light that washed over the Plains biome. Her somewhat enhanced senses could pick out the nearest goblins, a loose ring of individuals spread out a decent distance from the gate.

Beth and Blood made their way to the nearest goblin, getting to within a decent range to observe the creature. Beth noted that it was a fair bit taller than the rather small and scraggly bunch they had fought the other day, with more well-defined muscles. It stood straight rather than hunched over, and it wore some kind of boiled leather pants, though it still kept its upper body bare. The rest of its equipment also left much to be desired, the only other thing visible being a crude stone knife held loosely in its right hand. Beth finished her observation of the creature by using Identify on it.

Level 25 Goblin Fighter

Beth wasn't really sure what the significance of it being labeled a fighter was. She assumed Identify was labeling it as such because it denoted some ability with using basic weapons or basic combat techniques. The only way for them to know was to find out, meaning they had to take the fight to the enemy. Beth drew her sword and got ready to engage the enemy, making sure everything was in place before moving forward.

The goblin reacted much as Beth had expected, spinning toward her and charging her as soon as she was within the range it could detect her. It snarled as it charged her, spittle spewing across its dark green chin. Beth scrunched her nose and frowned in response, readying her first strike. As the goblin drew within a few feet of her, it pulled its right arm back before stabbing forward viciously, albeit sloppily, with the crude stone knife.

Beth had to stop herself from rolling her eyes in the middle of battle, stepping to the right to dodge the terrible swing as she brought her own weapon around. Her sword slashed into the chest of the goblin, digging a deep furrow through its muscled flesh. A gout of yellowish red blood spumed out of the goblin's chest in the wake of her sword, spraying into the air as the goblin staggered back a step. For all that the wound looked serious, and the initial bleeding made it seem more so, it actually was not a grievous or impairing wound.

The goblin recovered quickly, leaping at her with another sloppy swing. Beth was already figuring out that these were not likely to be enemies she could improve her skills against. They were too stupid and un-dexterous to fight like another sapient humanoid, and they were too human-like in their form and movements to act like most beasts. They were perfect…perfect for farming some easy experience.

Beth sighed and then frowned, stepping forward and letting go of the hilt of her sword with her left hand to punch the goblin hard in the inner arm, causing its already wild strike to careen far off course. She swung her blade with one arm at the beast's head, causing it to raise its free arm in an attempt to ward off the blow. Her sword crashed into the goblin's arm and pushed it, both the arm and the creature, to the side, leaving a gouge on both the lower and upper part of the arm.

The goblin continued its rapid and ferocious series of attacks, clumsy as they may be. Beth was less impressed with it by the moment, only a little surprised by the level of toughness the creature exhibited. Even the wounds she had delivered with a heavy swing of her large blade had only torn at the skin and outer muscle where the blade had impacted. Unfortunately for the goblin, and despite its toughness, Beth knew where to hit it to maximize her damage.

The next swipe the goblin took at her she dodged with a deft back-step before stepping forward and slamming the instep of her armored boot into the goblin's knee. As the goblin staggered, entirely off balance and trying to recover, she very swiftly brought her blade around in a tight arc, infusing it with Monstrous Blow at the same time. There was a terrible rending noise, like a saw tearing through a stack of wet paper, resulting from Beth's sword ripping more than half of the goblin's neck apart.

Luckily Beth didn't relax, as even this wasn't enough to kill the goblin outright. The beast, with hot and sticky blood spewing from its throat in a turgid fountain accompanied by gurgling retching noises, lunged for her yet again. Beth blocked the strike, the edge of the knife just scraping against the back of her left armored gauntlet. She moved forward just as the energy from the creature's strike was dissipating, slamming both of her fists into the face of the goblin. She still had a hold of her sword, and as the goblin's face crunched from the impact of her full-plate gauntlets, she pulled back and twisted to her right, bringing the blade around and into the neck of the creature again. It wasn't a powerful strike, but it was enough.

Level 25 Goblin Fighter slain.

Remaining mana converted into one copper coin.