528 One Down And One To Go (1/2)

Seeing the action with his own eye sockets, both Duorda's black body and white skull were hysterical as well. ”Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!”

”So, does that mean we can--”

”Fight me, Jack!” Duorda insisted, not backing down at all. ”Though my other half is incapacitated at the moment, to fulfill my purpose, you'll have to shatter at least one half of mine. Now hurry!

Shrugging, Jack rushed to keep the initiative. Jack wasn't certain how long he could maintain his new transformation and he didn't want to find out the hard way.

Glad that he wasn't bound by game logic, Jack allowed his mind to go through some intense mental acrobatics, pondering the best way to deal with the threat before him in as little time possible. Still defending himself, Jack felt the miasma get thicker as it condensed to cover less of the chamber and followed Jack around instead. He would need to be quick as Jack cast Greater Replenish for the fourth time in that long battle and watched his health get sapped away.

Waves of powerful sword energy rocked against Jack as the black death knight didn't dare to defend. Duorda relied wholly on his draining ability to make up for his purely offensive pursuit of Jack.

The hero utilized Sudden death as an evasive tactic while pondering how to deal with the remaining half of the Yin-yang Death Knight. And hearing Duorda mention shattering one at least one half made Jack curious what would happen. It was clear to him that Duorda wasn't put at the bottom of Earthen Keep solely as a boss monster in-game. If Duorda had been on that ninety-ninth floor since before gods had ascended, Duorda's true purpose and existence had to be something key to the world's design. In that case, Duorda and his true, hidden strength had to be connected to the world's creator.

”What is Daruun to you?” Jack asked.

”You'll learn after you overcome my existence,” answered Duorda.

Jack kept asking while he evaded all attacks, ”But why did he put you down here? Does it have something to do with that door? Us heroes thought it was just decoration since you were the crypt lord yet we couldn't enter there even after defeating you. If it's not your crypt, then where does that door lead to?”

Duorda chuckled as he hurled more sword attacks at the hero. ”Defeat me as I am now and you'll learn all. That is my purpose and the purpose of that door…”

”So…” Putting his gamer knowledge together with his gained knowledge of Kartonia, Jack inferred, ”Does that door lead me to Daruun, perhaps?”

”If you say so…” Jack was smiling, feeling that he had finally figured out one of the great mysteries that Daruun had never explained. He was only a single foe away from claiming something he had longed to know of.

Jack vanished from where he stood, reappearing to flank the black death knight. However, Duorda felt the first of a few strikes cut into his back.