The Pillar of Enera

[Book II Chapter 100] DAWN: Facing off against Stannis Gilron

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Dawn appraised Stannis Gilron with careful deliberation. He was wearing a serious, irritated expression, and his dark suit of armor was covered with scratches. Only the gleaming long sword in his hand was free of blemishes. It must possess an amazing sharp edge to slice through the tyrant’s bones and hide. Her own ice blades had only inflicted surface cuts.

As his companions landed besides him, Stannis swung his weapon again through the undead’s midsection. He then kicked the lower half towards them. “You take care of this.” He ordered.

Silently, each side worked to dispatch the dungeon’s final boss. Split into pieces with twice the number of opponents, the formerly threatening foe failed to pull itself together. Dawn observed Stannis’s companions as they fought. All ten appear competent.

Once it was over, both groups gathered in the center of the crater where the tyrant had slept. “Congratulation on getting past me.” Stannis said snidely. “Unfortunately, this leaves us in a precarious position.”

The nearby temple entrance had opened, and ten tiles were glowing orange below where the horned dark knights stood guard. “So only ten can claim the rewards.” Valrie deduced. “And everyone else must retreat.”

Normally in a case such as this, we’d each send forwards five representatives. That isn’t an option though. Their mission was to prevent Stannis from collecting any of the loot. The understanding of this was clear on everyone’s face as weapons were readied.

“You should’ve let them fight longer.” Alana, the necromancer behind Stannis, reproached her leader. “Our numbers are too evenly matched.”

Stannis brushed off the comment. “Too risky. We couldn’t let them get credit for the the kill, not without understanding this dungeon’s mechanisms.”

“I suppose.” Alana grumbled. “But this will be very bothersome.”

“Actually…” Raphael, the other group’s handsome necromancer, cut in. “I have a suggestion. Rather than a large messy brawl, why don’t we decide this with a duel: our champion against theirs. The victor takes all.” Dawn’s heart jumped at these words.

“While I find the idea acceptable,” Alana responded. “How would we trust them to honor the result?”

“Both sides have two necromancers.” Raphael explained. “As long as they swear to retreat, that should be enough.”

Stannis shrugged. “If you can get them to agree to it, that’s fine by me.” The three then looked towards them expectantly.

Valrie frowned. “Give us a minute.”

They formed a circle, shielding their conversation. “I can’t fight human opponents right now.” Zentrias revealed. “It won’t end well.” The man had been putting on a brave front, but he looked ragged, covered head to toe in bandages.

“And Noor is missing a hand.” Cindy added.

“Which is in my backpack.” Dawn added. She’d thoughtfully scooped up and frozen the limb.

“We’re all wiped out,” Valrie admitted, “And our chances of prevailing in an all-out confrontation are low. That said, I’m not sure we have anyone who can match Stannis one-on-one.”

This is simply perfect. “I’ll face him.” Dawn announced.

Everyone stared at her with an off-putting amount of skepticism. “No offense, but I’d rather send out Ezekiel.” Valrie stated.

Dawn nearly winced. The knight was too close to her level for her to object.

“No, Dawn is the better gamble.” Rose pitched in. “Remember, she has the ability which crippled Sion Gale.”

Dawn was surprised and thrilled by her sister’s support. I could hug her. She could see Rose’s words winning over her companions.

“How confident are you?” Valrie asked.

“Losing is unthinkable.” Dawn declared. This drew looks of wonder around her, except for Rose who groaned.

Valrie studied her with a mystified expression. “Alright, we’ll put our faith in you.” She eventually said.

They ended their conference and revealed their decision. After all four necromancers were done making their oaths, everyone cleared out from the crater, leaving Dawn and Stannis at the center.

Ever since the two liches, she’d stopped praying for greater adversity. Unlocking her sublime vagary at the cost of her companions deaths would leave a bitter taste. Instead she’d pinned her hopes on this confrontation, and it was delivering beyond her wildest expectations. No one is in danger but me.

“Since this advantages me,” Stannis said. “I won’t berate your foolishness in facing me.”

He held up a wish seed. “Grant me power.”

Dawn did the same. “Grant me power.” She felt her strength swell but didn’t let it go to her head. Her opponent was experiencing the same.

“Let’s see how well you handle my ‘Ruthless Efficiency’” Stannis smirked, flicking his hand. A wave of gravel rose up and swept over her like an avalanche. She gritted her teeth enduring the pummeling. Right… he’s got earth affinity.

“You pick the worst setting to challenge me.” Stannis mocked.

I knew this wouldn’t be easy. That’s why I’ve been looking forward this. She pushed through the rocky storm and threw ice kunai. Her opponent didn’t bother moving, letting her blades bounce of his armor.

Dawn grimaced. Figures his defenses would be as formidable as his sword. Unsure what approach to take, she activated her Sapphire Blood technique, hoping its gradual strengthening would offer her the opportunity to land a meaningful blow.

Dodging more rocks, her foresight suddenly went crazy. She instantly sprang back, guarding with two short sword. These shattered colliding with Stannis’s sword, whose tip continued to tear through her torso’s ice armor. It’s sharper than Sion’s spear.

Dawn grimaced. Stannis’s Ruthless Efficiency amplified differences in strenght and it was clearly affecting her. He’s faster than I am, and I can’t block his attacks. She tried conjuring a frosty mist to buy some time, but a hail of pebbles swept it away. Her foe lunged again, thrusting his blade through her heart.

Damn. Ignoring the pain, Dawn teleported as far away as she could, leaving behind a snow flurry. There goes my one substitution.

While she’d maintained the guise of a ninja since the Isle, her dedication to the aesthetic had been faltering, so her abilities hadn’t evolved since then. Perhaps if I’d made more of an effort to cover my face… In any case, her one emergency escape was spent, and she was in the dire straight she’d longed for.

Yet an uncertainty gripped her. Kneeling and chanting wasn’t an option this time. She could attempt reciting while fighting, but this seemed too crude to work. Besides she’d tapped into the power twice already without the theatrics. I have no choice but to survive until Myriad Calamity Crystallization activates.

Fortunately, Stanis had returned to battering her with waves of rocks. As she struggled to deflect them, her eyes fell on the sword in his hand. If only she could block it…

The memory of this exquisite blade piercing her chest swept through her mind, and she had a flash of insight. Maybe if… Without hesitation, she conjured another short sword, pouring more and more power into it. She guided this overflowing energy in a manner she’d just dreamed up until it solidified into a stable state.

She was so consumed by her efforts that she didn’t notice Stannis’s approach. When he swung his sword, she frantically blocked with her own creation and was violently thrown back by the impact. Recovering back to her feet, she saw her blade chipped, but not broken. That’s a start, but I can do more.

Leveraging the principles she’d just mastered, Dawn channeled another layer of magic into the enchantments hardening her bones. With this reinforcement, her muscle could safely exert themselves more, providing faster movement. This is good.

With her new weapon and speed, Dawn somehow held her own against her foe’s assault. Again and again, she was knocked around and bludgeoned by stones. Despite this, her cracking armor held together. Then strangely the battle became less oppressive.

At first, she thought it was her imagination. However, she soon spotted a nervous frustration on her opponent’s face. Ironically, this caused his attacks to take on an urgency which made them easier to parry. A horrifying realization slowly gripped Dawn.

I’m going to win this without relying on my ability? Are you kidding me? She’d been anticipating this for days. It was supposed to be her chance to finally unlock her sublime vagary. Is it because of my breakthough just now? I got stronger so his Ruthless Efficiency became less effective?

Gripped by anger, Dawn went on the offensive. Pieces of her short sword flew off each time she struck out, but she didn’t care. Before the mad onslaught, her opponent was forced on the defensive. Then, with the affects of her Sapphire Blood near its zenith, she finally knocked him to the ground.

Rising to his knees, Stannis glared up. “Don’t think you’ve…” The man went quiet as he noticed the fury on Dawn’s face.

“How…” Standing above him with her damaged sword and broken down armor, Dawn vented all her resentment. “HOW COULD YOU BE SO DISAPPOINTING!!”

As she cried out, a massive column of frost fire exploded behind her, dropping the temperature to arctic levels. When it faded, a towering block of ice was left as a monument to the power her fury unleashed.

That display was selfishness on my part, Dawn admitted. Despite all her attacks, Stannis remained uninjured, protecting by his impressive armor. If she’d directed Sapphire Blood’s pen-up energy at the man instead, she could’ve caused some heavy injuries, but she’d forsaken this for her own priorities. Now that Sapphire Blood’s strengthening affects are back to zero, Ruthless Efficiency should work on me again. There might still be an opportunity——.

“I concede.” Stannis raised a hand in defeat. What?

Mouth open in shock, Dawn was confronted by the grim reality that she had won.