Path To Radiance; First Ascent

Chapter 10 - First Ascent: Part 4

We all stand still, shocked at the scene before us. It's the kind of sight that is so awful, we just can't turn away.

I look up at the boar's HP bar just above its head. Despite having small chunks blasted off his body while Tamos circles, the boar's HP is draining very, very slowly. It's still above fifty percent even after Tamos fires another Magic Bolt. This isn't going to work.

Tamos must have run out of mana because he stops casting. He's holding both of his hands out, his staff across his back, breathing deeply. I can feel the rage slipping away from him.

I step forward and point at the boar. "Brick, be ready. Tella. Go. Rina, could you start us off?"

Rina begins to spin. I have to shake my gaze loose from her elegance. Brick holds his shield up and jumps forward. Tella is already gone from sight. I get into a flanking position and move forward.

Rina releases her chakram as Brick blocks a tusk. Tella appears on one flank as I reach my dagger in on the other.

The boar's pocked flesh makes my stomach turn as I sink my blade in over and over again. That's when I have an idea. I pull out another short sword I had taken off one of the Goblins. Why not add more damage?

The King Boar jerks violently as I run both blades in as deep as I can. The short sword is yanked out of my grip because it wouldn't come back out of the Boar's body. My dagger comes right out, however, and brings a bloody chunk of flesh with it.

I reach for my second blade while slashing my dagger across the boar's flank. The sword's hilt keeps moving out of my reach as the Boar bucks again and again. After a few more moments, I'm able to get a hold of the grip. Then something strange happens.

My Soul Weapon changes direction on its own as I lung forward. It feels like someone had grabbed the tip of the dagger and is pulling it right instead of left.

My Soul Weapon crosses over my other hand, leaving a shallow cut on the back as it sinks into the boar. The small cut doesn't hurt but it does make me let go of the goblin sword. Whenever I try to grab it again, my Soul Weapon interferes by either going in the opposite direction or cutting into my hand as I reach out. I stop moving and stare at it. I'm so preoccupied I don't notice what the boar is doing. Before I get kicked, however, Tamos's yell breaks through my concentration.

"Move guys!"

He hurls another Magic Bolt at the boar after we're clear. The Bolt explodes in the Boar's face. I look up to see the final bit of his HP bar vanish. With a final squeal, the King Boar dies. His body falling over.

The familiar chime sounds but nothing appears. We stare at and around the boar, waiting, but nothing happens. Just before the Boar disappears, Tamos loots and skins the body. King Boar drops an item that requires a roll and the window opens:

Loot Drops:

King Boar's Tusks
Crafting Material

King Boar's Tusks are said to make the strongest bone weapons around.

Need
Greed
Pass

He also drops a huge stack of meat. I pass on the meat quickly with a verbal, 'no thanks'. The tusks, however, are the first drop I feel I can roll on. Due to my blunder earlier with the second sword, maybe I should only select greed? To my surprise, I win. A window opens.

Congratulations! You have won the item:

King Boar's Tusks

Do you wish to place this item in your inventory?

Yes or No

I, of course, select yes. Winning wasn't as magical as I thought it would be. Tamos just hands me the two huge tusks which I swiftly tuck away.

Did the game MAKE Tamos pass me the Tusks? Could Tamos have resisted and kept the Tusks back from me? I earmark the thought for later and move on.

We all look around for the key. While the bars covering the door had retracted, the key had not appeared nor dropped off the King Boar.

"What now?" Rina asks, giving me a pouty look.

"I say we clear these nodes." Brick said, pulling out his pickaxe. "Maybe we'll find it along the way." Everyone agrees. That is until we begin to gather the materials.

Hours pass and we haven't made a dent in the room's resources. The room is so large and has so many gathering nodes. Not to mention the job overlap.

Tella would cut down a tree. There would be a mining node where the stump was. Brick would clear that and I would get both an Earth Mana shard and a Nature Mana shard.

Rina, who hasn't gathered a single thing the entire time we have been in the Tower, pulls out an Estate Capsule. She expands it and retreats inside.

After a while, she comes out and starts a fire. Then she drags one of Tella's logs over and sits on it, looking bored.

"What'cha doin' Rina?" I ask, walking over to her log. "Mind if I sit? I need a break."

She just nods, not meeting my gaze. I pull up another log and sit next to her.

"Why aren't you working on a life support skill?" I ask as politely as I can. I don't want to sound bossy or judgmental. "I'm just curious," I add after a long moment.

She shrugs. "I chose fishing."

"Oh ok." I chuckle. "That makes sense. Need water to fish."

"I hope we find the key soon, but we should probably camp out tonight and go up tomorrow." She said, looking bummed.

"We'll discuss it. We might have to." I agree.

She just nods again.

"Whelp. No time like the present." I said, getting up and stretching. I catch her looking at me as I did so. When our gazes meet, instead of looking away like I usually do and almost did, I keep the contact going. A wickedly playful grin flashes on her face. I hastily turn away blushing as I place my log seat on the fire. I put my gauntlets back on and get back to work.