LRAB Chapter 437: Internal Conflict
Chapter 437: Internal Conflict
Chapter 437: Internal Conflict
You really should get some sleep, dear boy, Nil reminded.
Dallion didnt respond. He had been laying in bed for the last few hours, and yet he couldnt sleep a wink. Just thinking about this trip caused him physical pain. This was the last trip the hunters would have. It would see Jirohs departureto her own world or a distant part of this oneas well as the destruction of a cloud citadel at the hands of Dallion himself.
Banishing the thought from his mind, Dallion turned to the other side of the bed. This was one time he was grateful that Eury wasnt here to see him. No doubt she had issues of her own to deal with.
Staying awake wont solve a thing, the old echo went on. Itll only make you feel worse.
What do you suggest? Dallion snapped. Do exercises until I become exhausted? Go to the forge to make another item?
Level up, Nil said. You have the time for it, and itll make you more tired than any exercises could. Not to forget that theres a chance that you deal with the core issue that affects you.Th.ê most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m
The idea wasnt bad. It was definitely going to get Dallions mind off things, and who knows, maybe Nil was right about the rest as well?
Laying on his back, Dallion closed his eyes.
PERSONAL AWAKENING
Bright sunlight poured down, making Dallion shield his eyes. If nothing else, the atmosphere here was much better than Neorsal. Sitting on the stone bench in the middle of his henge he stared at the portraits of skills that decorated the slabs of white stone. There were quite a lot of themseveral dozen distributed among eight stone constructs, each representing a set of skills. In the center of it all, the blue rectangle had become similar to a holographic beacon, displaying his awakened level, along with all trait and skill values.
Thanks, a voice said nearby. Im quite pleased with the result, myself. Gen approached and took a seat next to Dallion.
Still poking in my head?
I dont have a choice. Not that I want to. Its been getting dark in there. He tapped the side of Dallions head. Nils right, though. A quick level up is the way to go.
It wont be quick.
Thinking about it, this was the first time Dallion would go through a trial since the transformation of his realm. He was just about to ask Gen where it was supposed to take place, when he rememberedhe was the one creating the realm. If that were so, a trial could occur anywhere he wished.
Dal! Lux popped into existence a few feet in the air. Want me to fly you anywhere? Im really good at it! Very fast too! Faster than sis even.
Its fine. Dallion stood up. Ill walk.
Sure. But Im really fast! The firebird would constantly change location, poofing from one place to another. The flat-out rejection had clearly done nothing to diminish his enthusiasm. Ultimately, Dallion continued on his own.
Feeling in a dark mood, he decided that the best place to have the next try was underground. No sooner had he thought of that, than a stone path emerged, leading down into a cave beneath the ground. No light whatsoever could be seen deeper in the cave, just darkness leading to the unknown.
Perfect, Dallion thought, and walked down the stone steps.
If you dont, this is where youll remain. You need to make hard decisions without breaking. If not, you're not ready to move further along.
Another brick wall, Dallion thought. He knew perfectly well that he could win this. It was just a trial, after all. Nothing that happened here would affect the real world. However, he also knew that hed be going through similar situations in real life, and not only once. The task with the cloud citadel came to mind, but that was just part of the big picture. The deeper truth was that Dallion would remain being a hunter while following the path of the empath. There would be times when hed have to, by definition, hunt creatures and not all of them were going to be Star spawn.
Tough choice, the white figure said.
Before Dallion could answer, three more arrows flew his way, all of them easily avoided thanks to his combat splitting. It made another thing clear: as painful as it was for him to take the heart of his opponent, she had no qualms about hurting him.
Down, Dallion told Lux. The firebird obeyed.
Upon reaching the level of the swamp, Dallion focused and performed a horizontal line attack. Unburdened by reality, the line of destruction spread through the half-sunken city, slicing what buildings remained like blades of grass. Swamp water splashed up, quickly pierced by a new array of arrows.
Dallion quickly covered himself with the shield. Knowing exactly what its owner was doing, the object extended, causing all the arrows to bounce off. It was at this point that Dallion combined two skills he hadnt in a very long time.
Taking a deep breath, he pulled the shield towards him, then thrust it forward in a point attack. Both his arms felt slightly numb, though it was nowhere nearly as bad as it had been in the past. Like everything else, he was starting to get used to doing such types of attacks.
The force continued forward like a bullet, hitting the woman faster than she could react. Normally, this would have been the end of the trial, though not in this case. The figures entire body burst like a pillow hit by a large caliber bullet. However, the white fluff didnt fade aware. There were no red rectangles indicating the damage done, nor was there the green rectangle marking the end of the trial. Instead, the cloud fragments moved together again, recreating the woman.
Youre a cloud, Dallion said, as his shield shrunk to its normal size.
Surprised? the figure asked.
Not particularly. I knew you werent human. He did think she might be a fury, though.
A single thought was enough to get Lux to boost Dallion forward. Seeing that, the cloud flew forward as well. A foot before coming in contact, both stopped, at which point the actual battle began. Dallion burst into two dozen instances, attacking his opponent in a wide array of strikes. Despite being unable to split, the woman proved to be more than his match when it came to speed. More importantly, each time Dallion would slice through her body with his harpsisword, the blade would simply pass through. It was as if he was fighting air, only this air could fight back.
You know what you have to do, Nil said.
Dallion ignored him, doing a point attack thrust right through her. The strength of the attack was enough to reduce her to fine mist. However, even that didnt deal any actual damage.
You cant harm her that way. You know that. The only way to win is to use it.
No, Dallion said.
You dont have a choice. You either use it, or end the trial. Theres nothing in-between.
Im not using that butchers tool! Dallion shouted. His voice, full of bitterness and anger at his own helplessness, echoed throughout the swamp.
This was what was stopping himthe simple internal conflict. It was nothing new, Dallion had seen it illustrated in many movies, games, and comics: a character that was good at something that he hated. Now, more than then, he realized that it was an impossibility. Nil would have called it a living paradox. There was no way someone could become good at something he hated so much. Either they didnt really hate it, or they werent as good as they were made out to be. Right now, in this trial, it was Dallions moment to make the unpleasant choice: whether to give up on what he was doing or learn to live with it.