Chapter 40: Gaelith's Darkness

  Dark Axul let out a chilling screech, making the air itself tremble. Even the surrounding monsters froze in place. While I was greeted by an annoying System message that accompanied the chill that ran down my spine.

  [Condition Applied: Fear lvl.5 – Max Fear level. Paralysis inflicted. Agility reduced by 100%.]

  Great. Just when I thought I was getting stronger…

  Me legs refused to move. Even my hands were trembling, Silverfang feeling too heavy suddenly.

  Gaelith, however, stood firm. His sword glowed even brighter as if it was reacting to the creature’s darkness, trying to illuminate it away. “You’re too far gone.” He told the creature, his voice steady. “I must take you down now.”

  Dark Axul responded with an unsettling growl. A sound that was likely a mix of laughter and countless sharp knives scraping against the floor together. He raised two of his shadowy arms, and the air around him darkened as a vortex formed. Nearby monsters – both dead and alive – were drawn into the swirling mass. Their bodies twisted until they were consumed by the growing energy. Between his other pair of hands, a massive dark orb began to take shape.

  Gaelith moved immediately, charging forward with his sword. But before he could reach Dark Axul, a shadowy barrier materialized, rippling like liquid darkness and blocking his path. The knight smashed his sword against it, but the barrier held firm, refusing to break.

  I could only watch, still paralyzed, as the dark orb between the creature’s hands continued growing. Then, once he deemed it large enough, he hurled it directly at us.

  “Move!” I shouted to Gaelith. “It’s fine if I die – I’ll just reset.”

  “Don’t be foolish.” Gaelith responded, his voice calm but resolute. There was a strange hint of optimism in his tone that caught me off guard. “I’ve yet to prove my usefulness to you and your God of Time.”

  He raised his radiant blade high, and light poured from it, surrounding and enveloping us in a protective barrier. The dark orb collided with the radiant barrier, and the resulting explosion was unlike anything I’d seen - or heard - before. Light and Darkness clashed, sending shockwaves tearing through the chamber. The ground itself cracked beneath us, and the deafening roar made my ears ring.

  My heart froze as the barrier began to fracture, cracks of darkness spreading across its surface. Gaelith strained, his body visibly trembling to hold it intact. Then, with a shattering sound, the barrier collapsed, and the orb continued its trajectory toward us.

  Gaelith jumped forward without hesitation, placing himself directly between me and the dark orb, and blocked it with his sword. The explosion engulfed him as he absorbed the impact, protecting me.

  “What are you doing…” I barely managed to whisper, finally coming out of the Fear condition.

  [Condition applied: You are no longer afflicted by Fear. Movement Speed restored. Agility restored]

  As the dust settled, Gaelith was still standing. His HP bar dropped to roughly 50%, but he remained strong.

  The dark robe that he was wearing all this time was gone, burned away by the explosion. Beneath it, clad in his legendary armor was a young man with short jet-black hair – his youthful face seemingly untouched by the passage of time. It was the same face I had seen in the memory of him and Kaelstrife, from a thousand years ago. Somehow, Gaelith hadn’t aged a day.

  He turned to me, his armor slightly fractured, giving me a reassuring nod. “I promised to help you, didn’t I?”

  I appreciated Gaelith’s sacrifice – of course, I did – but he really didn’t need to go that far.

  “I told you, I would just reset…Look how injured you are right now.” I said, sounding exasperated despite trying not to.

  He straightened his posture, and suddenly, a soft glow surrounded him. His HP bar began to fill itself steadily.

  Dark Axul, of course, didn’t wait. The shadowy figure lunged toward us, all four of his arms swinging cosmic blades at Gaelith. The knight dodged skilfully, and then, in one swift motion, he swung his radiant sword twice in quick succession.

  Dark Axul blocked the first strike with all four of his blades, but the second strike broke through, sending him hurtling into the wall behind him, crashing it completely. How the hell was this floor yet to collapse?

  As Gaelith seized the moment to continue healing himself, the surrounding monsters seemed to be under a trance, not attacking us, just…standing there. Even Stinger remained unresponsive.

  “You don't seem to consider the possible reality of your situation.” Gaelith said. “Of the time loop, I mean.”

  “And you do?” I shot back, surprised by his words. “You literally learned about it a few hours ago from me!”

  “Perhaps, perhaps not.” He countered oddly, his voice growing firmer. “What do you think happens to our world each time you die? What do you think your reset actually does?”

  I was about to answer until I realized...I didn’t have a clue.

  I had never actually asked Chronos about this. And if I did, he probably made me forget it. So, I just took the reset for granted - everything goes back in time as if it never happened.

  Gaelith continued, sounding slightly frustrated. “Do you think this particular world where things happened in this particular way, and we met, would just cease to exist after you die? Revert back to its original state? What if it doesn’t, and I’m left here to fight this on my own?” he sighed heavily, turning visibly calmer. “I might be wrong – I can’t pretend to understand all of it. But I do understand some things. One of them is knowing what’s right and what’s wrong. Treat every loop and its people with the outmost respect, Aidan Dar. Fight for it like it’s the last one, because for some of us, it might just be that.”

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  I stood there, stunned in silence, his words sinking deeper. I immediately wondered how many Yanas out there had to watch me die. How many of them experienced being left behind by me, before dying to Erebus and his monsters all on their own? Did they feel left out? Betrayed? The thought was unsettling.

  Gaelith knocked me out of my thoughts, signaling with his head toward a mountain of rubble and chains at the far end of the chamber. “Help your friend over there. We might need more manpower.”

  I nodded, rushing over to Goren.

  Wait, help Goren? Am I crazy? I have higher odds of being killed by him than by Dark Axul!

  And still, something gnawed at me. Perhaps Gaelith’s words made me too emotional than I’d care to admit.

  Maybe Goren would appreciate it. Maybe he’d help. He has to!

  I ducked down, spotting Goren’s hand sticking out from under the rubble. I hesitated once more but eventually gave in and began clearing away the debris.

  In the distance, Dark Axul stirred, rising from the wreckage of the wall, his HP mostly intact. He lunged at the now-fully-healed Gaelith, his four arms swinging together, accompanied by a barrage of magical projectiles.

  Gaelith met the assault with his sword, clashing against the cosmic blades while dodging the magical strikes. The chamber erupted with blinding flashes at each collision of their weapons. Each strike sent shockwaves rippling through the air, vibrations so intense I felt them over at the other end of the chamber. Sparks from the impact ignited small explosions, consuming the nearby monsters that had remained on standby.

  Despite the level disparity, Gaelith matched every strike. But I wasn't sure if he had what it takes to win all on his own.

  Meanwhile, I finally unearthed Goren. He was barely conscious, his body battered and bloodied, but he was alive. His HP bar was as low as 5%.

  “Wake up! He needs our help.” I shouted, grasping the chains binding his arms and legs, inspecting if they could be broken with magic or Silverfang.

  Goren’s eyelids fluttered open, his voice weak and raspy. “I…I can’t.” he whispered. “I’m too injured. This loop was a fucking waste…fucking Kelltins...”

  “I’ll shove some healing potions down your throat, and you’ll be good to go.” I said urgently, striking the first chain. It broke easily under Silverfang's power.

  “It won’t matter.” Goren coughed, his voice bitter. “Kelltins’ magic – it made me respawn here, but it left me empty. All my possessions…gone for this loop. A total waste, I tell you. You’re better off killing me, really.”

  I stared at him, anger boiling inside me. I couldn’t for the life of me remember him from the previous loops – it was practically the first time I’d seen the guy – but I knew who he was. That he had killed me eight times for fun and XP. And now he had the audacity to give up?

  “Shut the fuck up!” I snapped, yanking the conduit from his gut in one sharp pull.

  He screamed in pain. “You motherfucker! I'll – “

  “You don’t get to sit there and play the victim!” I cut him off, furious. “You killed me eight times. For shits and giggles. And despite that, I’m helping you. So get your ass up and help us, because I don’t have time for your bullshit!”

  Goren’s eyes widened slightly, surprise replacing the pain he felt moments ago. For a moment, he said nothing as I broke the second chain. Then, he smirked. “Maybe I misjudged you.” He murmured. “Maybe you’re not useless.”

  “Yeah, I don’t care what you think about me.” I shot back, breaking the third chain. “Just help god damn it.”

  He nodded weakly, the smirk fading. “I’ll repay you for this.”

  I broke the final chain and handed him the last two healing potions I had, stepping back to let him recover.

  But as I turned to check on Gaelith, a sharp tug on my arm stopped me. I spun around to see Goren gripping my arm tightly, Silverfang buried deep in his chest.

  “Goren, what the fuck?!” I shouted, stunned.

  His HP bar vanished completely as he fell to his knees, his voice barely audible. “I’ll find you…at the start...of the next...loop…”

  [+0 XP]

  I stared in disbelief as his lifeless body crumpled to the ground. “What the fuck, Goren…”

  But the sounds of battle snapped me back to reality. I had no time to process what just happened. Instead, I turned and rushed to Gaelith’s side, Silverfang in hand.

  He was doing better than I expected. Each strike of his radiant sword caused Dark Axul to stagger slightly, his HP bar dipping lower and lower. He was dealing a lot more damage than before.

  But just when I thought it was winnable, Dark Axul unleashed another ear-piercing roar, his shadowy form releasing a wave of darkness that rippled outward. The force knocked Gaelith back, his boots skidding against the floor until he stopped just beside me.

  Gaelith steadied himself and turned to me. “Your friend – what of him?”

  “He didn’t make it.” I replied, leaving out the crucial details.

  Gaelith simply nodded, his expression neutral. “Then it’s up to us.”

  Meanwhile, Dark Axul summoned another vortex. Some of the remaining monsters were pulled into the swirling mass of Darkness, regenerating his HP back to 100%.

  “What the - ?” I began, but there was no time to finish. Dark Axul swung all four cosmic blades in wide arcs, releasing dark crescents that hurled toward us.

  Not trusting Wind Wall to save me, I used Wind Rush and chained together a series of Dash Steps, narrowly evading the crescents as they slammed into the ground. But the explosions that followed sent me sprawling. My body hit the stone floor hard as my HP settled on 33%.

  My health potions…I gave them to Goren…

  Fuck you, Goren!!!

  Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to my knees, trying to select a different healing consumable, but Dark Axul already shifted toward me, his four blades raised for a finishing strike.

  Gaelith’s radiant sword intercepted just in time. Sparks and shadows erupted from the point of impact as Gaelith held his ground, giving me enough time to get on my feet.

  Was Gaelith right? What would happen to the Darknessbound Core if I died here? Would Dark Axul just pick it up like a simple piece of loot, making me lose it in the next run? Or will the world actually reset at that moment?

  Gripping Silverfang tightly, a thought crossed my mind: fight all out. I couldn’t know for sure what would happen and there was no point crying about it. Perhaps Gaelith’s earlier words had stirred something within me – a recklessness I couldn’t suppress.

  Normally, I wouldn't stand a chance against someone as strong as Dark Axul. But with some buffs, and a legendary knight by my side, we might actually be able to pull this off. Either way, I just needed to do enough to stir the fight in our favor.

  I activated Overlord, recalling the glaive’s buff ability grew stronger when my HP dropped below 50%. Silverfang began to glow with a purple aura.

  Not stopping there, I activated Battle Cry to boost my Strength stat for the next minute.

  Those two together already pushed me over level 100 in stats. At least for the next minute.

  With my body and weapon brimming with power, I charged forward, darting around Dark Axul and attacking his rear. He was quick to react, sending two of his arms to block me, but it didn’t matter – I had shifted the momentum.

  Gaelith seized the opening, attacking even faster. For a moment, we were in perfect sync – Gaelith and I blocked, dodged, and attacked in complete understanding, getting closer to victory. Whenever Dark Axul attempted to gain distance to use his magic, or knock us back, Gaelith struck him down, not even giving him a chance to use the idle monsters around to heal up again.

  But then it came – a deafening screech that pierced the air, echoing everywhere around us.

  This time, it wasn’t Dark Axul, and Déjà vu made sure I’d know that for sure.

  I'd faced it before. Definitely.

  [Condition Applied: Fear lvl.5 – Max Fear level. Paralysis inflicted. Agility reduced by 100%.]

  Can’t. Move. Again.

  “He’s here…” Gaelith whispered, sounding defeated.

  A different creature entered the broken chamber. It looked similar to Dark Axul and yet it was also different. It was more evil, more sinister. Seemingly made of darkness itself. Its form was mostly humanoid, but twisted - giant teeth gnashed from an empty face, and its legs morphed into writhing, dark appendages, whole lot of them. It’s title and level appeared above it: Gaelith’s Darkness, level 154.

  Déjà vu screamed in my mind.

  This was it.

  Erebus.