Chapter 15 – Shadows, Screeches, and Shattered Pride
Chapter 15 – Shadows, Screeches, and Shattered Pride
“What the hell is wrong with you, Tyler?” Milo’s voice pierced the calm air as they descended from the now-silent Windy Mountains. The blizzards had subsided, the fog lifted, and not a single snowflake remained in their path. It should have been a peaceful journey down, yet a thick tension hung between the two.
Tyler didn’t turn to look at him. “We got the key, didn’t we? And a lot more. Probably wouldn’t have gotten any of it if I’d just taken the key and walked away. What if she’d come after us later?”
Milo frowned. “She surrendered. She was crying. She begged you to stop… and you killed her. That wasn’t strategy. That was… something else.”
Tyler offered a cold shrug. “It’s done. Move on.”
They reached the lower ridges quickly, the descent made effortless by the absence of blizzards. Tyler activated [Eagle Eye], his pupils narrowing as his field of vision doubled.
[Activated Skill: Eagle Eye]
“New mobs,” he grinned. “Time to farm.”
And he did. Tyler launched into a killing spree, tearing through creature after creature in the new biome. Each kill granted 10 XP. It wasn’t much, but he was relentless. The thrill of strength surged through his veins.
Meanwhile, Milo hung back. He didn’t swing his weapon. He didn’t offer advice. He watched.
His brother — no, this person who looked like Tyler — was slowly becoming unrecognizable. Had [Rage] twisted something inside him? It wasn’t the same Tyler who used to ask him about character builds and laugh about mob glitches. Now, it felt like Tyler was a blade honed solely for cutting, losing everything else in the process.
[Level Up! Tyler Level 49 → Level 50]
[Attribute Points: +1]
[Achievement Unlocked: Veteran of the Hunt]
[Grade: B]
[Condition: Reach Level 50.]
They continued walking through the dense woods until, suddenly, the world went black. Not night-black. Pitch-black. Absolute darkness. Even the stars above had vanished.
Tyler stumbled. “I can’t see anything. Milo?”
“Yeah, I— Wait. I think it’s a special field! Watch ou—”
SHRIIIIEEEEK!
Milo let out a pained yell.
[Enemy Identified: Umbravox, the Echo Bat]
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
[Level 50] [HP: 300/300]
The air turned heavy. Sound warped. The only smell was that of iron — blood.
Tyler swung wildly into the darkness. No response. Just echoes.
He fired [Spider Web] into the void, but it struck nothing.
“Forcepush!” Milo shouted.
“I know! I’m trying!” Tyler growled, frustrated.
But Forcepush required proximity, and the bat wasn’t attacking him. Tyler realized the truth — Umbravox was targeting Milo. The bat wasn’t just strong. It was smart.
Milo had already taken multiple hits. [Absolute Defence] only helped so much, especially since Umbravox seemed to wait until the skill wore off.
Tyler called out, his voice cutting through the shroud. “Milo! Come to me! We need to link up!”
After some stumbling, they managed to reach each other, standing back-to-back. Tyler whispered, “Don’t swing. Just wait. Be the bait.”
Milo muttered, “Why am I always the bait?”
But he knew the answer.
Tyler focused. Not on vision or sound. On touch. He felt the air shift ever so slightly.
“Now!”
[Activating Skill: Absolute Defence]
[Activating Skill: Forcepush]
A shockwave exploded outward.
[Umbravox HP: 300 → 280]
Milo staggered back, unharmed thanks to [Absolute Defence].
“You’re telling me we have to do this till it dies, that’s fourteen more times?!” Milo cried.
“You said it, genius. Back to position.”
And so they did.
They repeated the tactic, carefully coordinating PE regeneration and skill usage. Strike. Retreat. Regroup. Strike again.
Until finally—
[Umbravox HP: 20 → 0]
[+48 XP]
[Achievement Unlocked: Echoes in the Dark]
[Grade: B]
[Condition: Defeat Umbravox, the Echo Bat, and overcome its field of total darkness.]
[Acquired Runestone — Screech]
[Skill: Screech]
[Confuses the target, dullening of senses and reduction of accuracy by 50% for 5 seconds. PE Cost: 5]
[Achievement Unlocked: Jack of All Trades]
[Grade: B]
[Condition: Unlock five different skills.]
Tyler sees the skill description and mutters that this is probably how the bat managed to trap them for so long. It was certainly not an overpowered skill but it might come in handy against an opponent who uses ranged attacks.
Tyler sighed. “That was annoying. Almost as bad as the Dreadnest Spider.”
Milo retorted, “Says the guy who cowered under a rhino.”
Tyler growled, “It wasn’t a normal rhino.”
“Yeah yeah, 600 HP, stronger than a divine entity, blah blah. Maybe it was a bug.”
“This isn’t a game. You die here, you might not come back.”
Milo sighed. “Wow, you’re a philosopher now.”
“Shut it.”
Milo teased, “Maybe Yandeon rubbed off on you.”
“And yet you keep talking.”
But Milo watched him. Really watched him.
Tyler wasn’t arrogant. He was afraid. Of being weak. Of dying insignificantly.
Milo reminisced about Earth. About simpler times. About his brother’s annoying pranks. About walking on two legs. Even his mom’s face was starting to blur.
He looked at Tyler, still human. Still the same face. Maybe that was why he still followed him, even now.
“Hey,” Tyler said, pointing.
A crater. At the centre—a glowing cuboid rock.
“That the meteorite?”
Milo nodded. “Looks… blocky.”
“Game logic I guess.”
[Acquired Item: Meteorite Core]
[Description: A mysterious cuboid meteorite. Possibly forged by the cosmos for crafting unbreakable weapons.]
“Let’s teleport to Yandi,” Milo said.
But Tyler squinted into the distance, activating [Eagle Eye].
“We can’t.”
“What?”
“There’s something suspicious ahead. We’ll check it out first.”
Milo sighed deeply.
Tyler squinted again. “Wait… no. That’s, that’s… a giant ant?”
They watched as a massive ant marched across the clearing, carrying something — or rather, someone.
“Wait, that’s Cupcake Crab!” Milo shouted. “We have to save him!”
Tyler squinted. “That scammer who’s supposedly wanted in all the towns? Maybe he’s just paying his debts.”
“But you still haven’t gotten the mysterious item he promised for completing the seashell quest,” Milo pointed out. “Scammer or not, who knows? It might be actually useful.”
Tyler sighed, sheathing his sword. “Fine. Let’s follow the trail.”