Azimuth: The Elden Throne

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"I think it's too late for that." Dale added as he grabbed his spear, placing it against the ground

/Thud.../

He also quickly took out his bag, throwing it near a tree on the side.

"Still… Is it not possible to just leave?" He asked as he turned to Testros

"Not quite, if we could Muddan would've already done so."

"The Opicus bird is highly territorial and will pursue any invaders even after they leave its territory, it'll only stop when some conditions are achieved."

"And from those, we only have two options available to us right now."

"We either fight it and force it to retreat… Or we kill it."

"All other options aren't accessible unless you believe you can outrun one of those birds out of their territory." He said with a sly smile

"... Guess we only have one option then…" Dale replied as his expression turned dark

'I guess I could outrun it... But on a flatland where I can run with everything I can, the ground would also have to be strong, otherwise, I would just slip as if trying to run on mud...'

/CAAAAAAAAW!/

From the skies, a thunderous war cry echoed as a mighty bird approached, taking Dale out of his thoughts.

It was about the same size as the one before but it had different colored feathers atop its head, neck, and tail.

"Humph."

Despite its overbearing presence, Tina didn't seem concerned in the slightest.

Instead, she smiled.

"This is a good opportunity." She said with a slight smile as she tapped her right cheek

She turned to Dale.

"Go, deal with it."

"P-Pardon? You aren't going to join?"

Dale was momentarily shocked, his eyebrows twitched, making Tina chuckle to herself mentally.

"Why should I? Are you telling me you can't? You already defeated creatures more abnormal than those big chickens."

"..."

'You call that a Chicken?...'

"I'll give you 10 minutes." Tina said in a domineering tone as she turned around, unwilling to hear any refusal

"If you don't finish it by then… Hum… I'll think about it later." She said with a dark smile

"One… You better start moving, three…" She added as she started counting

"I… Shit!"

"No swearing, one less minute."

"!"

Dale turned his gaze to Testros, but he only gave him a nod.

It was a simple gesture, but it was full of confidence and understanding, together with deeper emotions.

Right, he was trying to convey something very simple.

That this was a warmup.

Dale understood that, he just felt that… Honestly, he didn't know why he felt the way he did.

He didn't feel intimidated, it was closer to saying he was… Troubled?

But there was no base for him to feel like this, he had already trained so much…

Perhaps… It was the way this animal presented itself, being this massive bird several times his size?

It was the first time Dale was fighting an airborne enemy, this sense of newfound discovery might've shaken him a bit.

Many warriors fell to enemies they could easily take out due to a slip-up or lack of confidence.

Presentation is a form of strength as Morale and Mental stability are also key parts of a fight.

[Stable Emotions 3-Star has been activated]

[Fighting Spirit 4-Star has been activated]

As his skills activated, his expression turned stale.

'Right, this shouldn't be a problem.'

'Given how surprised they are, this creature is likely from deeper down in the forest, if I can't take it out now, then when the time comes I'll just die.'

'I'll end this quick then.' He thought as he grabbed Caldgolg

It had always been beside him, floating horizontally to the ground with its grip close to his right shoulder.

He left it in this position so he could always grab it and slash forward, and now was the time.

There was no need to worry about energy consumption since Caldgolg's floating ability was passive, what tired his head was making it move.

But if he tied it to him like this, having it float at a constant pace behind him, the mental consumption became completely and utterly negligible, to the point he even forgot it was there.

It was like wearing glasses.

/Step…/

But Dale wasn't going to fight with Caldgolg this time.

It would be too easy… Even if that may sound arrogant.

A Level 43 player was saying it would be easy to defeat a Level 90+ monster?

Not just any Level 90 monster... But one whose combat power might rival a monster 30 to even 40 Levels above it.

Would anyone be able to boast like that?

But to Dale… This was only a warm-up.

/DASH!/

Caldgolg took to the skies with Dale atop it!

They didn't make any complex moves, bee-lining to the flying bird in the distance!

/CAAAW!/

Finally, being closer to the beast, Dale could now properly inspect its Challenge Level.

[Alpha Sky Opicus

Challenge Level: 90-100

*Elite Variant*

*Boss*

*Special*

Affected by:

#Vitality Outburst

]

"!"

'It's even stronger than the other one.'

Dale immediately realized this bird wasn't the same as the other female Opicus Bird.

Not only was its base level higher, but it also had a higher Exceptional Rank than its mate, being 'Special' rather than 'Unique'.

He didn't care about the other Stats, he expected nothing less from what he saw in its mate.

/CAWW!/

"?!"

As Dale and the bird got closer to the sky, it suddenly stopped by rising upwards, flapping its wings to take a better look at him.

But when it did so, it instead, screamed loudly, making Dale's ears hurt as he remembered a familiar scene…

[You've been affected by the Skill, Roaring Presence]

[Your body's Constitution flares...]

[You can only partially resist the Skill's effect]

[While in the Sky, All Base Stats -10%]

/Thunder…/

While all of those notifications played in his mind, bolts of lightning started to form from within its head feathers.

The lightning spread to its wings and talons, completely changing the beast's appearance.

[Alpha Sky Opicus has used the Skill, Tempest Ruler]

[Its body is reinforced by lightning, adding its properties to all of its attacks and Skills]

[Alpha Sky Opicus Passive Skill, Bird of Pray has activated]

[When confronting a single identifiable target, Movement Speed in the Air X2]

/CAWW!/

Suddenly, the massive bird flapped its wings, moving back in a very awkward movement.

But behind it, a mass of clouds formed, hiding its presence within.

[Alpha Sky Opicus has used the Skill, Cloud Walk]

[Mist and Clouds will be gathered around the target, while inside, hides the user's presence]

[While flying in the Clouds, Dexterity +50]

[Alpha Sky Opicus Passive Skill, Lightning Barrage has activated]

[When both Cloud Walk and Tempest Ruler are activated at the same time, lightning fills the surrounding environment, masking the Sky Opicus presence]

[If the target tries to leave the center area under the effect of Cloud Walk, it'll take lightning damage until it leaves the total area of the Skill or until it returns to the center of the Skill]

[While the target is under the effect of Lightning Barrage, all external Lightning damage is boosted]

/THUNDER!/

All around Dale, multiple clouds and thick mist started to form, blocking his sight, making it hard to even see the ground.

After flying this high, he should've been only about 40 meters above ground, the fall wouldn't be a problem, but he had bigger issues than physics to face.

/FWOOSH!/

Dale's guard was at its maximum, allowing him to notice any hidden movements in the clouds around him.

As such, he could hear the air being cut from time to time as a massive object flew around him, like a shark in deep waters…

It was looking for a chance to strike.

/FWOOSH!/

"!"

'Above!'

As he expected, the bird decided to strike from above, and with good reason.

[Alpha Sky Opicus Passive Skill, Keen Eye has activated]

[The target's weak point is revealed]

[Alpha Sky Opicus has used the Skill, Falcon Dive]

But Dale did not have the time to process those notifications…

/BOOOM!/

Before he even had the time to hear the sound coming, the Bird had already reached him!

Dale quickly found himself in an incredibly bad spot as he wasn't wearing his armor.

This wasn't due to arrogance, well, at least not entirely so.

Walking in the forest while wearing 60 kg heavy armor isn't ideal, and it's certainly not covert either…

So he didn't even wear it, favoring his Forest Explorer Set he received from Adamante and Barme.

It was just a Rare grade, but it provided several bonuses for his task of traveling through a forest.

Bonus move speed, decreased chances of triggering "traps" and so on…

And he barely had any time to take his clothes off and put his new armor on.

He may have 'shared' his inventory with them by creating a believable excuse, but something else was to equip and unequip things on the fly…

That was already in the realm of Magic.

Of course, this didn't mean he wasn't wearing his Accessories, he wasn't that reckless.

Thanks to that, Dale could still see the birds' movement… With ease at that.

His problematic situation wasn't due to his lack of armor or the speed of the creature, it was his lack of footing.

He was over 40 Meters high atop Caldgolg, and even if he were to kick it to jump away from the bird's attack, he would only be delaying the inevitable while also putting himself in an even worse situation.

Freediving in the sky against a beast whose entire set of abilities was meant to One-Shot him wasn't exactly ideal...

Or that was how he saw it at the very least.

Even then, since Caldgolg's strength was limited while flying in the sky, if he were to kick it, Caladgolg may be unable to support his leg's full strength and he may once again put himself in a terrible situation.

So in a split second, Dale arrived at one conclusion.

That he wouldn't jump.

So… He went for his other choice.

"HUPP!"

Face it head-on!

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Notes

The first fight of this Arc.

And I plan to add many more as we go on.

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