Given the variety of skills available in the game, some were naturally themed «see the future». The main example was Regret Clock Hands, a rank one skill that could be found on the ninth floor. Its operation was simple. When a partner died, the text «Memories of Repentance Go Back in Time» would appear on the screen, sending you back in time to the decisive moment just before their death occurred.
Calling it precognition ability didn't do it justice, as it did much more than allow you to see the future, but while it might seem too powerful, it also had obvious cons. For one thing, it only activated if you and the target were connected by a Bonding spell. Additionally, the ability had a cooldown of months, and that was months in the city, not the maze. Furthermore, it could only be used a maximum of three times and never against yourself.
This is clearly in es esa habilitidad.
Ainar and I weren't Linked or would have shown up in the same place when we got here, and based on what he just said, he had already used his ability at least twice. So it can't be the Hands of Repentance Clock.
So the most plausible candidate is... Yes, it must be that one.
It didn't take long to narrow things down to the next viable contender: Prophet of Misfortune. It was a rare rank six skill that was difficult to acquire, and when activated, a text box appeared randomly showing you information about the future. For example:
[A vision of misfortune has appeared before the Prophet. In the not-too-distant future, Bjorn Yandel will lose his life at the hands of Captain White, Dreadfear. Don't rest on your laurels just because it's out of sight, as it will never stop chasing you].
Personally, I classified this skill as an information gathering skill. I often used it to gather information mid-game, as it was great for revealing traps and telling you what types of monsters were waiting for you when you entered uncharted territory.
But in real life it must work differently.
What in the game was nothing more than a few lines of text could be seen through someone's eyes.
Huff… Huff…
«...Laugh, do I see myself dying?»
Again, she didn't answer me, but the way she shuddered spoke for itself.
So that's why it doesn't stop...
I kept my mouth shut. No matter what he said at the time, it wouldn't change her mind. There was little I could do.
«Left»
Well, I could give him directions while he carried me on his back.
Squeeze.
I could clench my jaw too. It was the only part of me I could move.
«Behel-aaaaaa!»
Otherwise, I could only stand there, helpless and limp against Ainar's back, as she made her way through the soldiers without even a shield to protect her.
Stabbed!
An arrow sank into his leg.
«Die!»
His skin was torn by spearheads and swords.
And all the time, all I could do was watch.
«Catch her! This is our chance...!»
«Ahhh!»
«...W-what strength!»
Ainar finally stopped only after another desperate charge. We hadn't reached the exit yet, far from it, but she couldn't run anymore. Instead, he left me on the ground and prepared to protect me.
Hit.
His wounds were building up with every group of soldiers we encountered and he had finally started to go too slowly to leave them behind. The soldiers following us had finally managed to catch up with us, and were now almost on top of us. Ainar let out a sigh and picked up his gun.
«No... you worry ».
And he charged like a bull towards the soldiers, while I sat leaning against the wall, unable to look away.
One, two, three, four, five, six...
After his seventh death, an ax stabbed into his arm.
Thirteen fourteen fifteen sixteen seventeen...
When he killed his eighteenth soldier, a spear sank into his collarbone.
Forty-three, forty-four, forty-five...
When the forty-sixth fell, an arrow pierced his left eye.
Seventy-one, seventy-two, seventy-three...
As time passed, the corpses on the ground continued to pile up, until-
Hundred.
A momentary silence took over the cavern. He had arrows stuck in every part of his body and blood gushing from his wounds. However, it still stood, an inflexible and immovable wall in the soldiers' path.
The silence did not last long.
The soldiers ran towards her again with their weapons raised. «She's getting tired too! Don't back down».
At one hundred and thirty, Ainar apologized to me.
«I'm sorry... My body can't...»
Then, he collapsed on top of me like a wireless puppet.
¡Tos! ¡Khh!
It shouldn't sound like that, was all I could think of. Those sounds shouldn't come out of my teammate's mouth.
I felt like I was trapped in a nightmare. My mind was blank. My ears were ringing. I wanted to vomit.
¡Tos! ¡Khh!
And all the time, those horrible noises didn't stop. I was trapped in my own body, unable to do anything but watch her slowly die on top of me.
Elbow.
Then suddenly my fingertips moved and I was finally able to move again.
[Your health has reached 30%. The Paralysis status effect has been removed].
My hand reached out, grabbing the first weapon I touched. I pushed Ainar's limp form and stumbled to my feet.
¡Fwoosh!
I brandished my gun. The soldiers backed away instinctively, clearly surprised. I took advantage of her hesitation to put Ainar on my back, and immediately ran, carrying Ainar as she had carried me.
«Ahhhhhh!»
I ran through the cave, making my way through the soldiers who crossed our path.
«Stop them!»
They used all the weapons at their disposal to stop me. With every step I took, wounds large and small accumulated on my body. However, I did not stop to block or prevent their attacks. I sacrificed my body to protect Ainar's as I forcibly forced my way through them like the mindless tank I was, no matter how many attacks I received or how long I ran.
[Your health has fallen to less than 15%].
My restored health had fallen again, but that wouldn't stop me.
Huff… Huff…
In a brief moment of respite in which no soldiers appeared, I rushed forward and checked on Ainar. «Ainar! You're OK?! Wake up! You can't fall asleep now! You have to wake up...»
«B-Bjorn...» A faint voice brushed my ear. «You have to survive...»
«You're alive! I know you must be tired, but you can't fall asleep! Just ten more minutes. No, eight. Just stay up eight more minutes for me!» If she could do that, then we would be home free. That said, there was no guarantee that leaving the cave would mean passing the level. However, since the difficulty of escaping from this cave was so high, there was also a high probability that doing so would come with some kind of healing effect attached. «You have to...!»
You just have to trust me and hold on, just a little longer.
But before he could utter the words, Ainar murmured: «...Let me go».
What was he saying? I had probably heard it wrong, since we were both in bad shape, so...
«Let me... go...»
It doesn't matter, I didn't hear her wrong. I was furious that he suggested that, but I couldn't yell at him in the state he was in. Not now. Instead, I decided to ignore her. «It seems like blood loss is driving you crazy».
She remained silent.
«Just hold on. That's all you need to do».
He didn't know if his silence meant he agreed or if he simply didn't have the strength to argue. In any case, he didn't say another word.
...She's not dead, is she?
I swallowed, trying to contain the anxiety that ran up my throat, and continued running even though my heart threatened to faint at any moment. When the cave entrance appeared in the distance, I smelled fresh air and foliage. Light filtered through the opening and illuminated the path. Very soon, the long-awaited entrance was in front of us.
«Ainar! Ainar! Wake up! We're almost there! Answer me!»
«…T-Be careful.»
What was he saying? Well, at least I knew she was still alive. Now we just had to get out of here.
However, before I could break through the cave entrance, I stopped. I wasn't sure how I knew, but... something was wrong. Instinctively, I extended a hand and my fingers collided with some kind of invisible barrier.
¿What ocher?
The entrance was completely blocked.
«...You have to be kidding.»
If the goal wasn't to escape outside, then what was it? It wasn't like we had any chance of defeating a boss monster with impossibly high stats and super-powered abilities in a head-to-head fight.
«But then... what the hell were we supposed to do...?».
The hope I had been holding on to crumbled.
«B-Bjorn...»
Still, I smiled for his sake. «A-Ainar? Don't worry. I'll break through this barrier and get us out of here right away».
When you faced a wall, you destroyed it. That was the barbaric way.
Crush! Hit! Wham!
So I raised my fists and slammed them against the force field as hard as I could.
«B-Bjorn...»
Unfortunately, the barrier did not give way. Fortunately, being a barbarian also meant not knowing when to give up.
«P-To…»
Fist. Foot. Head. I used everything I could, every ounce of strength I possessed, to break it. I lunged at him, threw my weight on him, slammed my shoulder against him...
Hit!
Was there something about this thing that made it impervious to physical attacks?
Okay, then I'll move on to plan B.
I changed my strategy and aimed at the wall next to the barrier. No matter how resistant an iron door was, the stone wall that surrounded it could be broken. That had to be what I had to do.
«High…»
Hit!
«Go away... Before he comes...»
I couldn't take it anymore.
Hit!
I slammed my forehead against the wall in a fit of anger. However, it didn't make me feel the least bit better. After all, I was still trapped inside this horrible cave, drowning in a sea of frustration and despair.
«There...!»
Suddenly, soldiers appeared behind us. Already? I didn't think they would be able to catch up with us so soon. However, instead of overthinking it, I immediately turned around and stampeded towards them.
¡Zas!
I slammed the man in front against the wall before grabbing his gun.
And then I proceeded to slaughter them all.
«...]Diablo!»
«Don't stop attacking!»
«¡Por el Empire ...!»
One, two, three, four...
There are already five.
Six seven eight...
...How many were there?
I did not know. I had to start over. One two three...
¡Whack, whack, whack!
When I came to, everything was silent. Not even the most superficial of breaths could be heard from the bodies littering the hallway. They were all dead.
Lately remembering what I had fought so hard to protect in the first place, I turned around. «...Ainar.» Fortunately, when I ran to his side, he was still breathing. The sound, however, was faint and choppy, as if stuttering to a stop.
«B-Bjorn...»
Sensing my presence, he struggled to open his eyes.
I couldn't speak.
Everything will be fine. Don't worry. We will be home soon.
I should have said something like that.
«Bjorn... son of Yandel.»
But all I could do was stare at her, unable to form a proper thought.
Ainar's misty eyes met mine, and the corners of his lips twitched. «My... beautiful... friend...».
I could have stuck a huge stake in my heart. How could she call me her precious friend right now?
«You... will become... a... a... great... warrior...»
The dam inside me that contained everything began to collapse. Between the painful truth or a kind lie, it was obvious which one you should offer someone on their deathbed.
Precious friend...
However, before I could stop, my mouth opened on its own and a mixture of confession and apology came out. «I... I am not...»
I wasn't the real Bjorn Yandel. It was just an evil spirit that had taken over his body, one of the same evil spirits whose skulls you had to open as soon as you saw them. That... that was what I really was. As I looked at Ainar, whose eyes were slowly blurring, my lips moved, forming words I could barely hear.
At some point, I came to my senses and had to face the truth.
Ainar was no longer breathing. His eyes were still open, staring at me, but I couldn't deny it.
[The third Pilgrim has died].
Ainar had died.
[Statistics for surviving Pilgrims have increased by +400.]
My stats went up again and I finally knew what I had to do.
[Special Condition – Unbreakable Bond has been fulfilled. All stats have increased 3 times].
[Defeat Captain White, Dreadfear.]
I was finally clear about the objective of this secret level.