Die. Respawn. Repeat.

It takes a while, but we settle into a pattern.

It turns out that the Regrets in the second stage only know one skill—Death Fog—and as difficult as it is for me to counter, He-Who-Guards and his Breath of Life keeps us perfectly safe while the skill is running. It helps that the Regrets don't seem to be able to move while they're channeling the skill; the fight would be a lot more complicated if they tried to attack us at the same time.

Though given the way they're escalating, they might not be far off from trying exactly that. I grimace a little at the thought. I can fight at range, but not nearly as effectively as I should be able to.

For now, I take point. While Death Fog isn't in effect, I rush forward, tanking hits and punching back; even when they escalate to Rank A, they fold easily with the combined impact of Firmament Control and Phaseslip. When they hit Rank S, I fold in a little power from Amplified Gauntlet and the Knight, and they break apart beneath my fists.

All the while, I gather credits.

[You have defeated a Lasting Regret (Rank S)! +30 Strength credits. +16 Durability credits. +20 Reflex credits. +31 Speed credits. +16 Firmament credits.]

Different names now, I notice. And those credits are more than enough now to trigger another skill collection if I really need it, although I save it for now. I suspect if I tried to collect a skill now it'd offer me something akin to Death Fog, and as powerful as that skill is, it doesn't really fit in with the rest of my kit.

Something for range would be nice, though. Something that lets me deal hits from afar. Maybe if I practice a few long-distance shots, do something with Firmament Control to mimic the effect of a fireball or something similar—

"They're casting!" Guard calls out, and I immediately retreat back into the bubble of safety provided by his Breath of Life.