Chapter 13: Priest (1) (1/2)
The Chief Priest wore a tall head guard, beautifully decorated in all sorts of bright feathers and fabrics. His chest was bare except for the cape that hung across his collarbone with finely polished jewels and precious metals. His lower body was covered by a skirt which first wrapped around him like a loin cloth before extending into two long pieces between his legs that stopped just below his knees.
He had no weapons aside from the crude sacrificial dagger that seemed formed of obsidian. However, he still felt like the most dangerous opponent he had ever come across.
The Priest began to speak words Leonel had no ability to understand. Still, the latter's nerves remained tight, whatever senses he had honed to this point being pushed to their upper limits. The strain even caused blood vessels in his eyes to burst, coloring his whites in red.
With little more hesitation, Leonel knocked another atlatls dart. This time he used more power, pulling back with as much as 50% of his strength.
Out of habit, he hadn't gone all out with the first strike because the physical stats of the Priest were so low. But now he knew this wasn't a normal enemy.
Seeing that his attempts at communication failed, the Priest's brows furrowed as he raised his dagger once more. But this time, he aimed it toward Leonel, chanting with a calm rhythm.
The nude young lady strapped to the table watched on blankly, her gaze, once filled with fear, turning dull. She seemed to believe that no matter how this all ended, her fate was already sealed.
Leonel's spear shattered against an invisible barrier once more, but this time Leonel could faintly feel it condensing. It wasn't a feeling as sharp as his touch, sight or hearing, but it was there.
'A sixth sense?'
Suddenly, Leonel dropped down at his fastest speed. A moment later, a loud boom shook the Sacrificial Room's wall, leaving a deep impact.
A cold sweat matted Leonel's back as he hopped up, sprinting to the side as he knocked another dart.
He dove forward, sliding his arm across the air sideways and causing another dart to whistle across the air with a sharp sound.
'Dammit, I thought I would only have to fight normal humans in this place. Could it be that ancient humans found these awakened abilities too? Or maybe is it that these Sub-Dimensional Zones aren't as historically accurate as I originally believed?'
[Anomaly detected… Recalculating…]
[Sub-Dimensional Zone detected: Mayan Tomb. Spanish Invasion]
[Sub-Dimensional Zone grade: C]
[Clear requirements: Enter Chief Priest's Sacrificial Room (Complete). Save Chief Priest]
[Side Quest: Unable to detect. Scope of system too limited]
[Side Quest: Defeat 100 Spaniards (Complete) … Reward pending]
[… Recalculating…]
[Side Quest: Unable to detect. Scope of system too limited]
[Side Quest: Defeat 1000 Spaniards (Complete) … Reward pending]
[… Recalculating…]
[Hidden Quest: Defeat the Chief Priest]
[… Recalculating…]
[Reward Upgraded]
[Reward: Unable to detect. Scope of system too limited]
[It is recommended that subject, Leonel Morales, complete this quest with a minimum of three other individuals. Subject's D-grade ability is too low]
For a moment, Leonel almost forgot his rage toward the Priest. He wanted nothing more than to throw this broken watch across the walls till it broke. How was this considered a system? How could it be anything other than a jumbled mess?
Instead of telling him that he should enter in a team of 4, it waited until it was already too late to tell him. Instead of telling him what the side quests were, it waited until he had already completed them to tell him. And, it couldn't even get the grade of this Sub-Dimensional Zone right. What absolute bullshit.
'Forget it! Focus.'
Leonel's father's note told him that his father had to suppress his awakening during his youth. What if other people besides him had experienced this as well? The only problem with this theory was that his father had also said his constitution was different than others… But who was to say there weren't others like him?
Leonel's dart was blocked once more, but his sharp senses caught the fact the Priest was forced to slide back, albeit a minuscule amount.
With a flip, Leonel took advantage of his own centrifugal force, landing on his feet and not losing a single dart carried on his back.
'I only have 47 more darts. If I can't see any results by the time I have 25, I need to take the risk and get closer.'
Leonel maintained his strength perfectly, never using more than 50%. He realized that this Priest was entirely reliant on his odd energy. The old man getting on in years didn't make any large movements. Aside from shifting his feet every so often to face Leonel and raising his arms, he did nothing else.
'It can't be endless, I don't believe that he can do this forever.'
Suddenly, Leonel felt a strong sense of danger from his back.
Immediately he knew he had made a mistake. He dodged the Priest's last strike, but he hadn't heard a loud boom to his back like he had heard every time previously. He hadn't accounted for the possibility that the Priest could control the trajectory of his attacks!
Leonel managed to leap out of the way just in time, but his pack of long darts didn't survive.
The sound of splintering wood followed the ugly expression Leonel wore. Just like that, the 40 some odd darts he had left were shattered to pieces, leaving the Priest grinning an ugly yellow toothed smile.