Ed walked through the crypt with eye sockets peeled. The cracked walls adorned by eerie torches were starting to become a boring sight. Nevertheless, Ed easily persisted. It was an environment he had grown used to.
As he continued to walk after the tracks, Ed finally came across signs of life. There were two individuals slowly pushing a cart forward. This cart looked simple at first glance but Ed could tell it wasn't by the fact that it was in a dungeon.
[Broken Magic Cart (Low Grade)]
{ A magical transportation device often used by the rich or by organizations to help settle in dangerous areas such as dungeons. }
This cart seemed heftier than even the ones Ed made of earth. Ed suspected the robust appearance was attributed to making space for some sort of magical engine or just runes. This made it a work of interest for Ed.
'My skills might level up if I get to research them' Ed also wanted to level up his transmission skill which… was the wrong kind of transmission and didn't have anything to do with magic carts.
'Ahem, though it would be nice if it levels up' W had also leveled up but was unfortunately not present. Ed thus had to focus on the present situation.
The two knights had yet to notice him so hitting them with a surprise attack seemed like a wise decision.
[Kiano (Swordsman)]
[Mons (Shield Knight)]
Ed did a quick assessment on the two to formulate a basic strategy. As the two were both close-range fighters, Ed felt confident with using magic to deal with them.
Just as Ed was about to manipulate the earth to deliver his surprise attack...
[A group of trespassers has entered your floor]
His bony hand which he had lifted as a formality was brought to a halt by a message.
'New intruders on this floor?' This alarmed Ed and changed everything. Ed wasn't actually that far from the entrance-
'No, wait. Since the safe room is broken the entrance might now be considered to be much further' The trespassers as the dungeon still labeled them were in that case actually rather far. This meant that as long as he was quick enough he could eliminate the knights in front of him and the broken cart.
The main reason why Ed didn't want to risk encountering any other humans was that they were likely reinforcements. Depending on the number they could mean trouble.
'My goal should be to allow them to run wild on this floor while also occasionally coming to kill some' That was the only way to ensure he could level up at a good pace. His consciousness was currently at level 8 and he had just discovered mind power.
Ed didn't think it was unlikely that the discovery of mind power was related more to his level rather than the time-lapse he watched. The skills like thought manifestation had already been received early perhaps in order to train his mind.
His mind had grown stronger. But it was evident this was just the beginning. All in all, Ed had to grow stronger. This was a conviction he had made multiple times to himself.
This was a weird world. Only with strength would he ever be able to figure out the mystery behind his transmigration as well as recover his lost memories. Much of these memories had returned but they felt foreign.
They didn't touch on his life. They felt like the viewpoint of a spectator which made them unlikely to form the core of his being.
'Enough of that' Ed thought before the ground quickly turned into sharp spikes.
"Mons!" Kiano shouted to his companion noticing the danger. The knight was however not any slower than Balin in his reaction. He gripped his shield and whipped back towards the imminent attack.
The earthen spike thrust against his magic iron shield pushing Mons' back against the cart he had been pushing. Kiano who also received an attack simply stepped aside and pressed his sword against the spike sharpening it in the process.
Ed's reaction to this was not very expressive solely because he didn't have a face. But he didn't flinch, never mind relent. The initial spikes were likely to fail anyway so he shot off some more.
The ground also caved under the duo causing both to fumble. Kiano tried his best to coat his long sword with water to cut apart the strikes but it was not perfect execution.
Mons on the other hand was almost cleanly skewered. If it weren't for the fact that he could try and control the earth as well the spikes would have directly hit his vitals.
"M- MONS!!!" Kiano shouted his expression turning right down ugly. Mons however only flashed a morbid smile.
"Run…" He said with a cold breath. Just because most of them stopped before the vitals it didn't mean he wasn't skewered by sharp chunks of earth.
Kiano however only grit his teeth and coated his whole body with mana. This caused his entire body to give off a blue sheen.
"Kiano! Run!" Mons repeated feeling distressed.
"Stop that!" Kiano shouted fending off some more earthen spikes. Among his swings sharp jets of water that took the form of a blade also shot towards Mons and the other spikes that threatened to finish him.
'Crap!' Ed thought seeing the sudden stalemate. Mons was keeping himself alive by preventing Ed from forming other spikes on the spikes in him using his own mana and Kiano was somehow fending for himself and his companion.
"F*ck Kiano! Run! We hardly even know each other!" Mons repeated feeling his mind grow increasingly dizzy as blood continued to seep out of his egregious wounds.
"It's embarrassing!" Kiano shouted in continuation as the sheen on his body turned a deeper shade of blue.
Kiano was not just any Swordsman. He was a peak B-class swordsman capable of harnessing fire and water. He was a person that pioneered a couple of movements in Fog swordsmanship. A lame-sounding technique passed onto those capable of learning it.
These moves included the invisible slash, Razor Smog, and other aptly named techniques.
"I'm so close!" Kiano added as his body started to give off a thick gray mist.
The A-class was characterized by their lethality. Simply put for swordsman it was about developing a killing strike that drew upon your strengths or covered your weaknesses.
The moves he created? They were better geared for prolonged battles and or assassination.
The invisible slash was nothing more than the rapid expulsion of mist from the blade that masked the direction of the strike while the Razor Smog was just a mix of fog and smoke that suffocated the opponents. The pain was the equivalent of swallowing razors into your lungs though perhaps that was a biased statement.
The invisible slash was for all intents and purpose, a regular slash and the smog was not impactful enough to immediately stun opponents.
Whenever Kiano was ranked as part of the kingdom's mandate he would class at 999. Only he and a few others had this "privilege".
But no matter how close he was, he wasn't there.
"AAARGH!!!" Kiano grunted after a dagger coated by reinforced earth struck him squarely.
'I still go it' Ed thought summoning some more weapons from his storeroom. He coated them with mana and tossed them towards both Kiano and Mons while simultaneously controlling the earth.
Ed was starting to feel something.
[<Thought Manifestation> is in effect]
'This is mind power' Ed thought. The axe he hurled which was about to be blocked by a slippery swing suddenly curved and managed to land directly on Kiano.
Ed continued to walk closer and closer before finally.
He withdrew the dragon blade Vient and rushed forward.
"Kiano! Forget it! Run!" Mons screamed seeing Ed's bony figure rapidly dart towards himself. The sleek green blade reminding him of the terror of death.
"Mo-" Kiano's legs were grappled by the earth and his whole body was suddenly dragged down. A moment of distraction could mean eternal rest.
Ed's sword then arced towards the thickly armored Mons who was still holding on strong. This armor was however no different from a sheet of paper in the presence of his blade.
It slid through Mons body cleanly.
[Swordsmanship has leveled up]
Blood spurted out and Ed's pristine bones were tainted by their red color. Yet his sword remained clean and untarnished.
The place which had been chaotic only a moment ago went silent.
[Bosque Steel Chest plate]
{ A chest plate formed from a special composite created by the Bosque Kingdom to forge armor for a special few. }
Ed ignored the cart for now and started looting the body of Mons who had died a pitiful death. His body which had been sliced in half was funnily enough still being held up by the earthen stakes that had drilled into him.
'It's good that I had enough mana' The earthen spikes he drilled into Mons pierced closer to the joints. In reality, the armor of Mons would have likely fend off his strikes even without Mons' interference.
Ed could tell simply because of the slice he had performed at the end. It had been clean but Ed did still feel some resistance.
If Mons had played his cards wiser, he might not have ended up trapping himself. Even if he took a strike at one of his vitals he would have at most lost an arm or leg. It all depended on his choices.
A battle was nothing more than a series of unforgiving choices.. The moment you choose the wrong one, you might not recover.