volume 3 - Chapter c244 (1/2)

The Pendulum

The sound of footsteps became louder, accompanied by the clanging of metals. A towering silhouette appeared from the shadows. It was the height of two grown men, and nearly as wide. A cold metallic face came into view, bearing no expression on its unchanging surface. Its face was adorned with crystals, trailing down its neck to its shoulders, forming tumor-like protrusions. It wore a cloak lined with metal, sc.r.a.ping against the ground. A metallic arm could be seen beneath the cloak, holding a bronze staff as thick as a man’s arm.

The creature stopped near Brendel. Unfortunately for Brendel, the spot where the creature stood was right beside Halran Gaia. Now that the creature had ceased its movement, Orthylss and Brendel could clearly make out a rhythmic ticking sound, similar to that of a beating heart. It was the sound of clockwork mechanisms. Beneath the cloak was a giant pendulum that seemed to be driving the creature’s movements.

It was the guardian of the ruins of the Tower of Babel, The level 92 Pendulum Golem. Brendel’s expression changed. The Tower of Babel was so far away, how could a creature such as the Pendulum Golem appear here? Has the world been flipped upside down? Furthermore, the Tower of Babel was introduced in the seventh major patch. The Pendulum Golem’s prowess could be considered the strongest in all of Kirrlutz. Even 3 Veronicas would not be able to defeat it.

Brendel swallowed.

Orthylss seemed like she wasn’t familiar with the creature. However, she could sense that the creature’s hostile intentions and could detect the changes in Brendel’s psyche. She asked, “Do you know what this thing is?”

“It’s a Pendulum Golem.” He paused for a moment, trying to describe the creature’s prowess. “Bottom line, it’s extremely powerful, we are no match for it. The only good thing is that it's a lifeless object, it doesn’t have any Element Powers. Do you have a plan to escape?”

“Don’t treat me as your savior, it does nothing to help you grow,” Orthylss replied curtly.

“Who cares about growth now? We’re dead if we can’t escape from here!” Brendel thought.

However, the Pendulum Golem looked as if it couldn’t see Brendel, or at least chose not to. Instead, it stared coldly at Halran Gaia by its feet and reached towards it. A chain snaked down from its cloak, wrapping around Halran Gaia, then threw it towards Brendel. Halran Gaia clanged to the floor at Brendel’s feet, stunning him for a while. What does this mean? Could it be that the Pendulum Golem still believes in chivalry, so it cannot kill an enemy who is unarmed?

Does this mean that if I don’t pick it up, it won’t attack me? Brendel felt a surge of relief. However, the giant Pendulum Golem wasn’t like any other, especially the crystals on its face and shoulders as normal Clockwork Men did not have any accessories on them. However, it still wasn’t good news for Brendel. No matter if it was an Elite or a Boss, meaning he still could not hope to defeat it.

To be truthful, he wouldn’t even be able to defeat a regular one.

After tossing Halran Gaia at Brendel’s feet, the Pendulum Golem opened its mouth and said in a cold and mechanical voice, “You’re a Planeswalker apprentice, yet you still use stuff like this. Truly disappointing.”

“s.h.i.+t!” Brendel started sweating. It had enough confidence to speak lightly of Halran Gaia. Brendel picked up the sword, after all, it was impossible for him to defeat the creature, the enemy had no reason to use any underhanded methods against him. “Are you a Planeswalker?”

“It seems that you misunderstood me for one. Planeswalkers are superior beings, they do not need to rely on useless items like these.” The Pendulum Golem ignored him, instead of pointed at the sword in his grip. “I am not a Planeswalker, but the master I am following has a power that you could never have imagined.”

As he spoke, he waved his bronze staff around. A card floated around in midair, before opening a light gate. From within the gate appeared a group of Marionette Swordsmen. These soldiers had bodies made of bronze that gleamed. Their limbs and torsos were covered with rivets. They held foils in their hands, on their backs were thin wires. There were 20 of them in total. Once all of them had pa.s.sed through the gate, the Pendulum Golem brandished its bronze staff, “Attack! Chase the invaders out---”

“It claims that it’s not a Planeswalker, yet it's using a Card of Fate! Where’s the logic behind this?” Brendel yelled in panic while retreating. Those puppets were called Marionette Swordsmen, they were monsters whose levels were higher than 40. However, there were too many of them, and there was the Planeswalker-like Pendulum Golem at the back to worry about. Brendel could only hope to retreat.

However, the Pendulum Golem had other plans. “Coliseum of Fate.”

It slammed its bronze staff into the ground, causing a loud thud to reverberate throughout the vicinity. A card fell from the skies and drew a light circle with a radius of 1 mile on the ground. Brendel was going too fast. He ran head-first into the edge of the circle, causing his head to bleed.

Brendel started to see stars. Thankfully he didn’t faint, but he immediately received a warning:

-Coliseum of Fate

-None of the combatants will be allowed to leave the arena before a winner is decided

Even though he was stunned, he had enough of his wits to yell out, “I surrender!”

To everyone’s surprise, the light circle flickered, then went dark completely.