The seventh floor was dimmer than the ones above it, the air felt a little heavier, the corridors themselves were dead silent.
Bell swallowed hard as he walked forward.
Compared to the noisy packs of kobolds and the goblin's clacking on the previous floors, this silence felt worse.
"So… this is the seventh floor…" Bell whispered.
"Yep." Kaelis didn't look up.
He was crouched by a wall, scraping a sample of some strange mineral like a kid picking a seashell off the beach.
"Looks pretty typical. I'm sure you'll be fine."
Bell wasn't convinced, but now he knew about the sword's special abilities, he had enough reassurance.
He gripped his sword tightly, ready when needed.
They walked only a few steps deeper before something shifted silently.
A thin, dark figure slid out of the wall like a shadow peeling itself free.
With a red glow for its only facial features, the pitch-black form stretched taller than Bell with elongated claws.
Just from its appearance, they immediately knew what monster it was…
A War Shadow.
Bell's breath hitched.
"Ah—Ka—!?"
He didn't even manage to get the full name out.
The War Shadow lunged fraught at him.
Fast.
Bell barely caught the motion, reacting more on instinct than thought.
He raised his sword, blocking the incoming claw just in time.
The impact rattled his arms and sent him sliding back across the floor until he came to a stop.
Wasting no time, he drew his blade and took a defensive stance.
"H-How strong is this thing!?"
He'd fought monsters all morning, but none had hit or moved as fast like that.
He could barely make out his movements.
"Master! A little help—?!"
Bell turned—
—and found Kaelis thirty feet away in a corner, watching the fight with a relaxed posture, like a movie.
The only thing missing was popcorn and glasses.
"Oh, it's only one," Kaelis said, waving him off. "You can handle it."
"Wha—!? One!? It almost sliced me in half!"
"You blacked it though huh? Means you can handle it. You won't die. Probably."
"That's not comforting!!"
Bell barely had time to complain before the War Shadow darted at him again.
Its movements were fast and unpredictable.
As its claws neared him, Bell managed to divert its trajectory and counter-attacked.
He swung his sword at the shadow's shoulder but missed—it was faster than him.
The claws came again.
Bell ducked.
The strike whistled past his head and carved a shallow line across the ground.
His heart leapt in his chest.
The War Shadow didn't give him even a second.
It darted forward again, its claws slicing through the air in sharp, unpredictable angles.
Bell raised his sword just in time, blocking one strike, then another, each impact sending a jerk up his arms.
"Too fast—!"
Another swipe grazed his shoulder, not deep but enough to sting and shake his balance.
Bell stumbled back, barely catching the next claw with the flat of his blade.
He could feel the creature's strength through its strikes
It wasn't just faster than him…
It was also stronger.
Much more stronger than him.
And it knew exactly how to use that advantage.
Bell rolled to the side as a claw slashed down, slashing where he'd just been standing.
He scrambled up as he drew a sharp breath but was interrupted by a heavy swing of the shadow's arms.
Ting!
Sparks flew as he braced the sword before him, blocking the strike.
But he was a bit too slow as the claws got too close to his body.
'Too slow! Come on, Bell—move!'
He forced his feet to shift, just like the forms Kaelis drilled into him. Keep centered.
Always ready to pivot.
The War Shadow strikes again.
Bell intercepted with a desperate parry, redirecting the blow by inches.
The impact still pushed him back, but he didn't fall.
Another claw came, and Bell spun away, though the tip caught his side, cutting through fabric and leaving another sharp sting on his skin.
His breaths were rough now, uneven.
He had expended too much effort into being defensive while barely accomplishing anything noteworthy.
But then his eyes—they began displaying focus.
A familiar sensation began coursing gently through his body—like a whisper that urged him to focus—to breathe.
Taking a deep breath, filling his lungs and letting it out, he began experiencing changes.
His eyes sharpened as he began noticing minor details.
His senses got more sensitive.
And the turbulence in his heart shrank low, as his pain receptors dulled.
Master's teachings…
"Staying calm in battle is the key to winning a fight. Keep your stance, don't falter and don't blink and most of all…be ready."
Planting his front foot, he flashed forward in with a clean diagonal slash, the kind Kaelis made him repeat hundreds of times.
Not reacting fast enough, the blade struck the War Shadow's torso, not enough to finish it, but enough to knock it off rhythm.
Bell followed up.
One slash—blocked.
Another—dodged.
A third—intercepted by a claw that flicked his blade aside and left a mark across his forearm in retaliation.
Bell winced but that was all as he didn't back down.
His feet moved without thinking.
Stepping inside, retreating, sidestepping.
His sword moved in arcs as his wrists snapped in twisting motions.
From over the dark corner, Kaelis watched with a surprisingly calm expression.
Splat!
His swords were flying around dismembering incoming monsters—other war shadows and some faint ants drawn in by the commotion.
Though his eyes haven't left his disciple for a second as he analyzed Bell's actions.
"…it's probably that skill," Kaelis murmured softly. "His footwork is more efficient than before. Shoulders aren't flaring as much. He's actually using the forms."
Bell had forgotten about Kaelis and was solely focused on killing the monster.
Everything in him was focused on the shadow darting around him.
Every time he blocked, he felt pangs running through his bones
Every time he dodged, the claws missed by inches. His clothes had tears all over the fabric, and his arms and legs were lined with shallow cuts.
He was losing ground. The disparity in stats was not small by any means.
But he wasn't giving up.
The War Shadow lunged again, both claws forward—fast, almost a blur.
Bell planted his feet firmly on the floor, bracing for what comes next.
"Ha—!"
He angled his sword up, deflecting the first claw, then twisted his wrist to block the second.
"Ngl…!"
The force rattled him, but he held firm.
Kaelis raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? That's new."
Bell pushed off, creating just enough distance to breathe, then immediately stepped forward again, swinging with renewed focus.
His blade traced the most basic swing, a horizontal slash—exactly like Kaelis had drilled into him.
The War Shadow bent unnaturally like it had no bones dodging, but Bell was right up on its tail with a second strike, then a third, his movements flowing together in a way they never had before.
Bell's technique was shining.
Kaelis watched silently, the corner of his mouth tugging upward.
From what he read before, skills from falna don't grant experience.
Like the development ability, Swordsman, which only increases damage with swords as it would go against the falna system.
So these moves Bell's displaying right now were simply Bell's skill when he truly locks in.
I'll be damned.
The War Shadow hummed a snarl in its soundless way, its body shifting as it prepared to leap again.
Bell tightened his grip.
Cuts burned across his arms but they were slowly healing.
His breathing was heavy now, but the blade's [recovery] eased the burn in his muscles just enough to keep going.
'Come on… I can do this…!'
Unknowingly to him, his blade had a faint glow. Faint, subtle, like a bloom of light hiding under the steel.
Just Kaelis and it seems like the monster as well.
Without a second delay, it lunged at high speed with claws extended forward, aiming to pierce him cleanly.
Deflecting the claws Bell used the momentum to spin around them the nails.
Using the opportunity when the shadow couldn't change direction, he shifted his foot forward.
Then—
He charged.
"Yaaah!"
One sharp, focused swing with everything he had.
SSHHRRIINGG!!!!
His sword flashed as it slid through the monster's torso cleanly.
A thin silver light flashed from the blade as it continued to the end of the room, leaving thin cracks on the wall.
KRRSH!!
The War Shadow froze mid-lunge, flickered like a dying shadow—
—before its red glowing eye dimmed then bursted into black smoke, dropping a magic stone.
Bell stood there trembling, panting, sweat running down his face as the adrenaline crashed out of his system.
He continued breathing in rapid succession before the oppressive aura around him dissipated.
Then he snapped his head toward Kaelis and screamed:
"MASTER!! You could've helped!!"
Chapter 64 end.
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I hate writing fight scenes. It's one of the reasons why I prefer overpowered mc who can finish the fight fast.
Let me know if this was good.
Just so y'all know, the war shadow stat was around G while bell's were still 0 cause he ain't got no update