But I'm No Gamer

by DanzyDanz

A guy isekaid himself to the world of Arcadia, a world where your everymovie fantastical creatures and races exist, Gates and Dungeons are forged in the outer wilds, spewing Monsters like a factory. Said guy was given the option to be the most powerful Race in Arcadia, but instead opted to remain Human. Nyx receives headache. Shenanigan ensues. (Gamers rise up)

2. Death is My Bitch

#DanzyIsStillAHack™

I think this is the chapter that makes it or breaks it for most. I put considerable amount of effort and squeezed my brain juice for this chapter. I hope you all like it. If not, then screw you ( ͡° ʖ̯ ͡°)

Wh-what are you looking at? I'm not crying, you're crying!

also it's real fucking cool that ff's doc manager keeps resetting my format and I have to recheck the document constantly and re-Bold my cool menu looking stuff. Real fucking cool

also this is probably the longest chapter i've ever written. 16k words, i think. It's a special chapter, so don't expect i write this much ever again because my god, my fingers and brain hurt

so you BETTER enjoy it

or i'll get SERIOUSLY mad

and then cry about it and post it on tik tok for pity views

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But I'm No Gamer

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[Chapter 2]

⦕Death is My Bitch⦖

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In his entire life, which wasn't that long if he only considered his current one, the Nightblade had never dreamt a day where he would head into a Dragon's lair with five other brave Adventurers, swords and colorful magic in hands, shouting rousing battlecries and incantations at the top of their lungs as they dished it out with the Dragon.

Today was not that day.

There was no triumph.

Only screams.

As he entered the lair's entrance, just barely poking out from its shadows, what he saw was not a glorious battle of men against monsters, but a massacre. The Knight that talked to him earlier was in the middle of running away. His longsword was abandoned elsewhere. Yet he had been frozen still as though winter itself had come for him. The Mage and Healer had parts of their body missing, their corpse strewn across the craggy red earth. The Bard had his head caved in, and his body was contorted as though he had been squeezed like a wet towel.

The stench of death rose. A putrid smell invaded his nose. People never really mentioned the fact that when you die, your bowels loosens.

The Dragon let out a sky-shattering roar, as it swooped down from the air, and swiped her claw at him, and ripped him in half.

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Congratulations. You died.

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The Nightblade came to life with a gasp, and his hands clambered to his chest. It was there when it should be torn into five pieces. He took a deep breath and sighed, thankful that his death was painless and not meaningless.

He was standing in the same room. A room inside a cave, and he could still hear the Dragon's howl of warning resonating from the deeper cave.

It was huge.

It was blue.

It was stupidly huge.

The size of its horn was his entire body height and width.

He briefly wondered how much that'd sell. Elephant tusks sold for quite a lot in his old World. If not, then why did people poach those fat oafs illegally? At least he was fairly certain of it despite the holes in his memories of his past life.

"That was something," he muttered mostly to himself as he looked around, expecting his earlier party members, but only found nothing but the coalish walls of a cavern and his own echo. "...Guys? Guys?"

"They're dead," a voice spoke to him. A woman's voice. Nyx's voice. "It's fine though, they are meant to die just as you did.

He turned around to face her, startled, and before he could speak or launch his words at her, the midnight blue screen slid into his vision.

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[-⦕ Tutorial Stage⦖-]

⦕Task Completed⦖

⦕Your Objective⦖

Die ( 1 / 1 )

Welcome to Arcadia

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Again, before he could talk, the screen flashed as the letters blinked, forming new words.

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[-⦕ New Quest Alert⦖-]

Tutorial: Stealth

⦕Your Objective⦖

Scavenge the equipment of your lost comrade.

They won't be needing it anymore.

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"...What… What do you mean my 'lost comrade'... I don't even know these people. And they're dead? Fuck outta here," he finally bashed the screen with his hand, wiping it away without ever making physical contact with it. "What do you mean they're dead?! You said people can't die!"

"In a Rating Game, where they can revert the damage done with Time Magic and their ample supply of Phoenix Tears and medical advancement, but a Dungeon is a Dungeon. Health and safety procedures don't exactly apply in this place," Nyx said without remorse or a baggage of guilt. Those souls meant nothing to her. "This can be a game. For you. For everyone else, this is their life. It is their struggle."

He couldn't just accept half-assed reasoning like that. "But I just got here… And they're already here… for my tutorial?! You saying those people were meant to die?"

"They sealed their fates the moment they thought this was a mere C-Rank Dungeon. The Monsters above were weak, and they were, according to the scouts. But that too is the deceiving nature of a Dungeon… A lesson you should keep in mind in the future."

The Nightblade gripped the Night's collars, his earlier warm and friendly hazel brown eyes now dripped with anger. What was warm and sweet like honey before now looked as venomous as poison.

"You… Son of a bitch… You sent those people here to die."

Nyx remained unmoved and simply floated away from him, letting him grab the air as he pleased. "They chose to take this quest. They are not my puppets nor am I responsible for their actions and decisions."

He gritted his teeth. His gloved hands clenching to a fist. It didn't make any rubbery sound like they do in movies.

"So what's that gotta do with me dying then."

"To show that death is no longer something you should fear and that time does not revert. Every decision you make before your death will still applies, along with the consequences. The dying part can be quite painful, however."

He was still upset. Even after hearing her explanation. "...I just want you to know that this is still a fucked up 'tutorial'. You could've sent me here alone after those people died…. Spare me the mental damage for fuck's sake."

"It's so that you will still remain careful when you have your own party members, or in an adventuring party yourselves."

"Why would I bother going with anyone if they just die. Strangers dying is one thing, people I know? That's trauma."

"Of course, you can always fly solo," Nyx proposed. "...You're reacting to this rather well, all things considered."

He glared at her. "Look, I'm no saint. I do feel bad for them but not that bad… And pretending that I care more than this is… well, pretentious. But… Damn it. Those people are gonna have their families looking for them. They're the ones I feel bad the most. Those were someone's daughter and son. …I dunno why I'm this pissed off. Is it because of my past life?"

"Perhaps."

The Nightblade sighed drearily. "I wasn't ready for that."

"...I… I do admit this was, again, not the ideal beginning scenario for you. That… person you spared," she said as he only had bits and pieces of his former life, "had a simpler, admittedly more callous outlook and willingness to accept their death as nothing more than, what I believe he'd refer to as NPC deaths."

"NPC…? What is he, ten?"

"Their deaths are inconsequential. Why are you so bothered?"

"Well I happened to have a bit of a heart in me," he scoffed. "...Inconsequential my ass… Tell that to their parents. Gah…. whatever," the Nightblade griped as he turned his back against her, heading into the same cavern.

Nyx herself was thoughtful, pensively wondering if she had done wrong. She supposed she didn't expect him to be this angered over the demise of people he barely even knew. But such was the complexity of the human minds. Death of a few is a tragedy, a million is a statistic.

In the long, dark, craggy corridor, another screen appeared before him as he mulled over what he should do. He had never been in combat, but he admitted that being rooted in one spot was insanely frustrating. Sure he was faced against a Dragon, but to stay still and watch like a deer in a headlights?

That would be difficult to live down.

'What can I do here…' he paused his walk. He could see the light at the end of the tunnel, which, for some strange reason, kept growing brighter and brighter as well as colder and colder until he realized; the Dragon had unleashed her breath attack, as the fury of winter itself came after him.

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You died.

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He woke up already standing and this time, without a gasp. In the same cavern. The same pre-boss room.

"Fucking— I wasn't ready you fat lizard!" he shouted into the tunnel, receiving a bestial roar in return. "Yeah!? Well FUCK YOU! Get some Tic Tac you giant air conditioner— oh shit."

As the light grew brighter once again as blue and black ice surged through the tunnel, the Nightblade dived away in time, nearly smashing his head into a boulder and possibly knocking himself out in an embarrassing way.

"You missed, bitch."

Because faced with grave danger, what better way to calm his nerves than to insult said danger?

Still, he needed a way to get to her and get to those people.

"Might I suggest using one of your Abilities? Your… custom one?"

"Hm?" he swiveled around, and saw the gothic lolita lady was sitting atop a miniature dark cloud. Just the perfect size for her. It looked like a very comfortable cushion. "...I'm still angry at you, you know."

"Why? For something that I didn't do?"

"I know it wasn't you but I needed someone to be the target of my anger and you're the only one here."

"What about Tiamat?"

"She's too big and has killed me twice in a row."

"Fair enough," Nyx tittered.

"Don't laugh! This ain't funny!"

"People die everyday, young man."

"I know that! But I don't see people dying in front of me everyday. That's the fucked up part, you get it?"

Nyx cockd her head to one side, smirking nonetheless. "You'll get used to it."

"That's even more fucked up. Friggin' giant lizard blasting ice…" he grumbled as he entered the cavern again, and once again, he was frozen in an instant and brought back to the entrance.

"GODDAMMIT."

Nyx's chuckle grew a bit louder. "You have Abilities don't you? Use them."

He sighed deeply. "...How do I use them?"

She shrugged. "Just… think of using them. Just like how you'd move your hands and your legs to walk."

"...Alright," his reply was gingerly said as he activated his ⧼Terror from the Shadows⧽. He waited for a moment, waiting for an effect, waiting for his hands to turn invisible. "...I don't think it's working."

"It is working," Nyx said, amused. "Obviously you can see yourself, and I as well."

"...You're not lying to me, are you?"

"Why would I?"

He narrowed his eyes, suspicious.

"Don't you think it would be strange if you can't see yourselves? Your eyes will always remain open because your eyelids would have turned invisible too."

"...That's actually a good point," he acknowledged. He never thought of it that way.

With that in mind, he cautiously sauntered into the hallway of death once again. The black frost didn't last that long, luckily for him, otherwise he'd have to mind his step lest he'd slip and slide. But the Nightblade didn't have to worry about all that, because another stream of blizzard immediately invaded his peripheral vision.

"Oh come on—"

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Please note that there is no consolation prize

no matter how many times you died

Not dying is advised.

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"GOD FUCKING DAMMIT," he cursed wildly, taking off his glove and slapping it to the ground in frustration. "You tricked me ya bastard! And what's with the post-death messages?!"

"No I didn't," Nyx said with an innocent smile. "Did you forget to check Tiamat's Abilities? Have I mentioned that she has Enhanced Senses? She doesn't need to see you to smell you, boy."

"ARRGHGFSSHHH—" he brought his hands to his face, pulling his face down in absolute exasperation. "She's too far. I can't see her from here. Can't use my Squint move… Hell am I supposed to do then…?"

"You can always leave. I never said that you must complete all the quests. They're there for your guide."

"...But this is literally the tutorial."

"One you are allowed to postpone. You're still in control of your life and how you decide how to live it. These 'Quests' are simply… a tracker for you. A stepping stone. Something to guide your path if you're feeling lost on what to do next. A reminder that there is something you can do if you have time to spare."

"..." Nyx observed him with raised interest as he approached her, and her eyes widened when he suddenly spoke to her, "Scoot over. I wanna sit."

The audacity of this Human— "There are plenty of rocks around for you to sit."

"They're rocks. They're uncomfortable and they're rocks. This cloud looks big enough for the two of us. What, you want to sit on my lap? I'll sit on yours if you're okay with it."

"Wait wait wait—" Nyx panicked as he turned around. He really was going to do it, the brute… "Wh-what are you doing! Sit over there! That rock is flat enough!"

"I agreed to play your sick game! I've died four-five frickin times! Can't you at least be compassionate and offer me some comfort?"

"...Fine! Fine!" Nyx sputtered as she extended her cloud. "…Here…"

"Thank you," he grumbled as he hopped on. The warmth of his body was apparent even with his basic leather armor and gears. At least he didn't bring the stench of death along with him…

Nyx watched as he placed his knuckles on top of his mouth. His black eyebrows scrunched and his nose wrinkled. For a man, he didn't look half-bad. She had seen worse and seen better. Not the most handsome nor would he star in any fashion magazines unless it was an advert for a full-face helmet, but he had that rugged roguish look to him that might turn a few heads. He could do without the beard, though. It wasn't thick nor was it thin, but it made him look like an Assassin from one of the Nomadic Desert Tribes.

Hashashin, she recalled.

Nyx noticed a tiny pink slit on his lip; a scar. It looked relatively fresh and in the middle of healing. 'His accident' Nyx remembered, as she then shuddered in disgust because he started nipping at it.

He seemed to have noticed her reaction as his eyes traveled to hers. "What?" he asked impudently. "Captured by my enchanting features already?"

He grinned jokingly, but Nyx wanted to punch him. "...Why don't you go ahead and get yourself killed again?"

"Damn, am I that ugly?"

"No. Your words disgusts me."

His grin molded into a smug smile. "Ah, so you confirm that I'm not ugly."

Nyx shut her mouth and turned the other way. This damn upstart… making her cheeks red again like this like it was nothing… She should have convinced him against putting most of his points into his Charisma. What was he going to do with it? Talk to the Dragon?

"...Alright then," he hopped off her floating substitute couch. "Wish me luck."

"What do you plan to do?'

"What I do best; talk," he told her as he stopped to hide on the wall next to the cavernous hallway. Nyx couldn't believe her ears. "Time to see if those stats- thing mean shit… HEY! LIZARD-FACE!"

Tiamat let out an aggravated roar. Nyx wanted to tell him that the Dragon was getting angry because he didn't stay dead, and was surprised to hear him again, but Nyx knew how to control herself. She should, otherwise, these spectacles might be taken away from her and be given to someone else. She couldn't have that.

"Look, I know we got off the wrong foot, but can't you at least give me a damn chance?! Let me face you fair and square! Face to face! Mano o Mano! Man to… er… well… Dragon!"

Silence reigned for a moment, and Nyx found herself holding her own breath in suspense.

"APPROACH ME THEN, IF YOU DARE," the Dragon said, her voice deep and rumbled the earth beneath him. "I SHALL GRANT YOU A SWIFT DEATH."

"Oh I dare alright…" the Nightblade sighed, and swiveled on his leather combat boots to point his index finger towards the Goddess. "Watch this."

And he marched away, into his death.

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You died.

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"Okay. Maybe charging straight ahead wasn't a great idea," the Nightblade muttered as he got up from death. "Man… have you seen the size of her claw? It's like this big…" he stretched his arms as he entered the hallway, and faced his death bravely.

This time, however, he knelt down just at the edge of the corridor as he yelled out, "One sec! My boots got untied!" Then he untied his boots. The Dragon's visage was visible, and he activated his other Abilities by literally squinting at Tiamat.

'C'mon, c'mon… Lil Squint… don't let me down…'

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[-⦕ Tiamat⦖-]

《 Name: Tiamat》
《 Race: Chaos Dragon》
《 Disaster Level: Ultimate Dragon (SSS)》
《 Challenge Rating: 30 》

STR: 30 (SSS) | DEX: 10 (B+) | CON: 30 (SSS)
WIS: 26 (S+) | INT: 26 (S+) | CHA: 19 (A-)

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Hit Points:

Head: 1500/1500
Neck: 1500/1500
Wings: 2000/2000
Torso: 4000/4000
Left Front Leg: 2500/2500 | Right Front Leg: 2500/2500
Left Hind Leg: 3000/3000 | Right Hind Leg: 3000/3000
Tail: 1000/1000

〖Title〗
⧼Chaos Karma Dragon⧽
A Gargantuan-sized Dragon. Nicknamed as the 'Rookie Eater' due to her unexpected appearances in falsely labeled Dungeons.
A constant looming threat for all greenhorn Adventurers and an annoyance to capable renowned parties as she never lingers for long. Yet to be slain.

Her specific location and reason of arrival is yet to be determined.

Running is strongly advised.

Passives:
Damage immunities: acid, cold, fire, lightning, poison, necrotic
Damage resistances: bludgeoning, piercing and slashing from nonmagical attacks (halves the damage)
Condition Immunities: blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, poisoned, stunned

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〖Traits〗

⧼Discorporation⧽
When Tiamat drops to 0 hit points or dies, her body is destroyed but her essence travels back to her domain in the Nine Hells; Karmareign.
She is unable to take physical form for 100 cycles.

⧼Limited Magic Immunity⧽
Unless she wishes to be affected, Tiamat is immune to spells of 6th Tier or lower.

⧼Magic Weapons⧽
Tiamat's attacks are magical.

⧼Regeneration⧽
Tiamat steadily regains ⅛ of her health as she rests for an hour until she is fully healed.

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〖Abilities〗

⧼Heightened Senses⧽
She'll track you down no matter where you are, no matter how you hide, no matter if you are invisible.
You can hide. Or at least try to. Don't expect much success, however.

⧼?⧽

There are more, but your level is too low. Run away and grind.

〖Attacks and Spells〗

⧼?⧽
Your level is too low to determine her attacks.
Either watch her fight or study her in your nearest local library.

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"You've gotta be shitting me," was his immediate reaction. "Immunities? Resistances? What is she, a Drago— wait… yeah she is…"

All his Skills were countered by her. He couldn't tiptoe in on her to activate his ⧼Terror from the Shadows⧽'s Sneak Attack, and he couldn't use someone as a bodyshield since those people were all quite unalive. ⧼Uncanny Dodge⧽ wasn't any better either. Even if he halved her frontal attack, he'd still get squished like a bug. His combined Health Points didn't even reach 100.

Not to mention, the only Spells he knew were two Cantrips; [Mending] and [Prestidigitation], neither of which inflict any damage or particularly useful in a combat scenario, but at least he could shoot out tiny fireworks when he died for the fifth consecutive times and more.

And her health… By Jove, her health. She didn't only triple, quadruple, but centuple his own. 100 times more Hit Points than him.

"This is bullshit. How am I going to beat her…?"

"WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO, FOOLISH HUMAN?"

"I erm… uh… M-myself!" he shouted back. "I talk to myself when I'm nervous, see… especially when in front of me lies a being as great and terrible and… actually quite a beautiful Dragon. …Huh, would you look at that."

And he wasn't just trying to please her; she was stunning. Even with those viscera and blood dripping off her gigantic claws. Tiamat appeared as a traditional western Dragon with a slim, upright body structure. Her scales shone a unique crystalline blue light. An icy mist shrouded her entire body. A stark contrast to the shoddy reddish cavern walls that had become their arena and likely his tomb if he wasn't immune to death. She had a tiara-like crown of small horns resting atop her head. Her leathery azure wings were covered by darker-colored black frost, and her lance-like tail was strong and sharp enough to pierce any armor.

"FLATTERY WON'T SAVE YOUR LIFE."

"I know, I know…" he said, standing up. "Hey uh… can I… Do you mind if I test something?"

"...?"

The Dragon eyed him suspiciously with her icy blue eyes. She was about to attack him when he drew out his dagger, but she relented, granting him the benefit of her doubt. What could a lost pup like him ever hope to do to her? Still… she was… quite enthralled. Were the ones before his clones? Could he be a Spellcaster and that his leather equipment was intentionally to mislead his foes?

"WHAT," she demanded.

"Nyeh—!" he made a noise as he struck her with his puny dagger. It let out a shrill 'ding' upon hitting.

The two paused and looked at each other.

In front of his eye, floating above her head, a number flashed only for him. 2496/2500.

Tiamat widened her eyes, unable to believe what she was seeing. Did this Hume just waltzed up to her and attacked her when she had granted him the chance to speak?

"...Seriously? Just 4? How does this calculation even work…?"

To put it simply, he had caught her by surprise and inflicted double the damage, which was then halved anyway.

He hit her again, much to her surprise.

2495/2500

It reduced to one. His attack. A solid 1. And that was just one of her four legs.

"I think we might be in here for a while..."

"YOUR INSOLENCE WILL NOT GO UNPUNISHED."

Tiamat lifted her attacked leg, and squashed him like an apple.

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You died. No one was surprised.

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"Why did I start out with crappy stuff?!" he yelled in frustration as he chucked his lame dagger to the ground. Then picking it up again because it was his only weapon. Nyx didn't expect him to welcome death this easily, if she was to be honest. It was almost impressive… and disturbing. "How much damage does this thing even do…"

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⦕Basic Dagger⦖

A Basic Dagger. It has a thin blade, it has a hilt. It's a very Basic Dagger.
A staple emergency weapon for all starting Adventurers.
A depressing mainhand weapon for the economically challenged.
Usually paired with another dagger to dual wield or used as a throwing weapon.

〖Damage: 1-4〗
〖Damage Type: Piercing, nonmagical〗
〖Item Rarity: Standard〗

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"One to four. Great. Just great," His shoulders slouched. He had three pieces of this sad junk. Next time, he swore to remember to always check his gears first. "I've been scammed. I'm literally a kid with a NERF gun sent to stop a tank. Or a Chinese protestor."

"You did say you wanted a challenge," teased the Goddess. "Your actual starting gears are still in there, on those corpses. Along with money and items."

"I know what I said!" he grumped at Nyx, who didn't even bother to mask that his deaths were amusing to her, the sick fuck. "...How does the damage calculation work? What're damage resistances?"

"It means you deal half that kind of damage to her."

"Perfect." His night just kept getting better. "What about the damage calculation? How does that work?"

Nyx shrugged. "Ask my Father. I just took over when He was done playing."

"You're kinda useless aren't you."

"...T-take that back!"

"Or what? You gonna kill me? Ship me off to another Realm?" He snorted through his nose as Nyx couldn't say a thing against that. "Yeah. Didn't think so."

"Y…y-you… you dare…?" her cheeks swelled as her fists curled and shook. "W-well… you're… you're stupid!"

"Takes one to know one, galaxy hair!" the Nightblade countered as he, for one more time and likely not the last, headed inside Tiamat's lair, leaving a petulantly upset Nyx as she threw a rock in frustration.

Galaxy hair… how dare he…

As he walked out of the passageway, grumbling to himself and the unfairness of this World and the bullshit hands he was dealt, the Chaos Karma Dragon briefly lifted her right hand to check the ground beneath it, and noticed the severe lack of crushed body and mangled flesh. There was a puddle of blood, but that was all that remained of him.

"...? YOU? ...WAS THAT ANOTHER ILLUSION?"

Tink.

She felt the dagger bouncing off the tip of her main horn that jutted out from the edge of her great maw.

He just lobbed a dagger at her.

And it hit her with the wrong side of the blade; its handle.

"Come on then you oversized gecko," the tiny Assassin shouted from the ground. "I'll bash your head in."

"YOU… YOU DARE RIDICULE ME?!"

Her wings wafted. With one powerful beat, white mist surged in their wake as Tiamat took flight.

"...Now wait a minute… That's not fair." He didn't expect her to actually fly again.

"PERISH! FOOL!"

"Uh oh—" he dived to his right, but Tiamat read his move and unleashed her tail. A terrifying jab that easily ripped through his clothes and body and flesh and ribcage, impaling and killing him that instant.

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Better luck next time.

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"These death messages are grinding my nerves I swear… Who the hell wrote these death messages? You?!"

"...Those were yours," Nyx said, much to his disbelief. "Those are the ones your mind created. Something deep inside of you. Your subconscious, that sort of thing. Mind you that I can't see those 'death messages' you mentioned, though I can picture it."

"...So I'm basically mocking myself… Great," he grumbled, but supposed it wasn't that bad if it was just him. "...That… does make it a bit better. Like self pep-talk. Except in a much more annoying way… Why am I giving myself tough love…?"

"You don't have to fight her, you know," she then told him, lifting a leg above the other, mindful that he wouldn't be able to see the insides of her gothic lolita corset jumper skirt.

"Maybe I don't but I want to," he replied as he was about to re-enter the passageway. "That bitch just killed me. Five times. I think."

"...What? This… Fighting her is never a part of the tutorial," Nyx reminded.

"Screw your tutorial."

"What do you mean?! All you have to do is loot their equipment! You don't have to take all of them, just—"

"I am taking their stuff," he said, adamant, still walking deeper.

"Then why don't you?"

"See, the weird thing is," he popped his head from the edge of the cavern entrance. "...if you hadn't noticed - there's a Dragon in there. And Stealth tutorial? She can smell me you idiot! Did you even think about that!"

"W-well..." Nyx actually forgot about that. "...I... I knew that this Dungeon has a powerful Monster but... I didn't expect it would be Tiamat... I only realized that when we got here but that's because I've been waiting for so long. S-still! You've managed to talk to her once! Utilize your high Charisma!"

"Screw that! I'm not talking to her until she's dead!"

"But you'll die!" she shouted. "Over and over again!"

"Who cares? I don't, so why should you! I can't stay dead so I might as well try to bring her with me!"

"B-but!" Nyx swelled her cheeks and tried to think of something smart to say to him, but it was all too late. He had gone ahead yet once more. "URGH— but my tutorials! There's still more of them you... you dumb...person!"

And then... a shout from the depth of the passageway.

"Your insult sucks!"

"SHUT UP! GO DIE!"

.

.

.

"YOU AGAIN?" Tiamat exclaimed, actually surprised. She had sensed him from his scents alone, but she genuinely thought that was from his dead body — which had disappeared without her ever noticing because of how meaningless his death was.

With a brusque manner, she turned around her whole body to face him.

But he had gotten past the point of being afraid of death. Way past that point where he simply stared at her under his hood with challenging eyes.

"I didn't hear no bell," he drew out his dagger. "Square up, jackass. About time I get serious."

"YOU HAVE BEEN HOLDING BACK YOUR STRENGTH? INTERESTING. SHOW ME YOUR TRUE POWER."

She snarled and let out a guttural growl, before swiping her wing and unleashing a hail of icicles that dislodged themselves from the wing. She watched his attempt to dodge. And she watched his blood gushed out from the holes on his body, and she watched his entire body disappear — another illusion.

Sure enough, he re-emerged from the shadows.

"This time for sure…"

"I WILL KILL YOU! YOUR ILLUSION CAN'T SAVE YOU."

The Nightblade stayed on his toes and waited for her attack, only for his feet to be frozen as she had turned their entire battleground into ice. She swung around and lashed her tail, and his head was pulverized in the first impact, combusting to pink mist.

But again, he returned.

"You got lucky."

"GRRRRGH…"

It was a never ending cycle of death and more deaths, and yet he never stopped appearing. Over and over and over again… No matter how she struck him, no matter how she froze him, no matter how she melted him with a beam of ice and fire, even after eating him whole — the Assassin simply refused to stay dead.

Necromancy, she had thought, but he wasn't an Undead. He was a Human. Tasted like a Human. His death rattle was like that of a Human.

…But no Humans should be able to come back to life. Not after the Calamity. Then what is he? What is his purpose? Why does he keep coming back here only to die?

This didn't make any sense to her. He didn't make any sense to her. Tiamat had fought thousands and slain thousands, yet none had ever perplexed her so.

She maintained her gaze at him. Once it was from caution, now it was replaced with a strange kind of interest. Intrigued, she realized. This man had her intrigued about him.

"DON'T YOU FEAR DEATH?" she asked, her voice echoing throughout her lair.

"Death? What death. I don't see no death."

Did he not realize he had died?

…Rather…

…Did he actually ever die…?

Without him knowing, he had successfully caused an Ultimate Dragon threat to second guess herself.

"...ARE YOU A GHOST? A LOST SOUL? A SPECTER?"

"Dunno what nonsense you're talking about but I'm about to turn you into a ghost alright."

And he threw another dagger. This time it didn't even reach her as it tumbled embarrassingly to her legs.

"You didn't see that."

She puffed. Amused.

"DOES DYING AMUSE YOU SO? HOW LONG CAN YOU KEEP THIS UP? I HAVE SLAIN THOUSANDS OF YOUR KIND, AND THEY ALWAYS OUTNUMBERED ME TWENTY TO ONE. I HAVE BROUGHT NATIONS INTO RUINS. IF THEY CANNOT DEFEAT ME, WHAT HOPE HAVE YOU?"

"Well they ain't me." The Assassin cracked his knuckles and neck, stretching his legs and then doing several straight jumps. "Come on. I was just warming up, now I'm ready. For real for real."

What a madman. Whoever was that controlling him, she will find them, and she will end this nonsense once and for all.

"TELL ME, MORTAL. WHAT DO YOU FEAR?"

"There's only one thing I fear in this World and that is having no money and no food. Or a bespectacled middle-aged woman with bright-colored hair demanding to meet my manager for some reason— but enough talk! Let's Tango! I bet your eggs make great omelets!"

"HOW ADMIRABLY BRAVE OF YOU… OR IS IT SIMPLY STUPIDITY?"

"Don't know, don't care," he hurled another of his dagger that had teleported back to their scabbard everytime he died. This time, it lodged itself right between Tiamat's scales, penetrating the softer, though still robust, part hidden underneath her natural armor. "HAH! Gotcha now!"

But she didn't feel anything. Not even an itch.

"HOW FASCINATING… I COMMEND YOUR BRAVERY. BUT YOU SHALL DIE BRAVER THAN MOST WITH NO ONE TO REMEMBER YOU BY."

The Nightblade dashed to his side as a stream of winter's fury enveloped the ground he was standing earlier, continuously freezing everything as Tiamat directed her neck towards him. He was fast, but not any faster nor was he fast enough to outrun her breath attack and he knew he was about to be frozen again. But that didn't matter. He rushed after her, drawing out his other dagger out of its scabbard as he leapt into the air.

Tiamat simply raised her neck, and the Nightblade and his dagger remained still, as they both crashed into the ground, and shattered into a million pieces and blocks of frozen chunks of flesh.

She snorted cold air out of her nostrils. Another victory, and yet… it tasted as bitter as ashes.

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You died. Stop sucking.

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A jolt suddenly struck her hind leg.

"HM!?"

Him again?!

Pulling out his dagger, the Assassin managed to give her a grin before she swiped him with her tail, severing his body in half.

And it kept on going.

He eventually started to come in quick succession that Tiamat had begun to wonder if he had a clone army of himself. Each time she mauled him to death, he'd reappear behind her, as if he was her own shadow. But Tiamat did not waver… she only got angrier. If he refused to stay dead, then she simply must kill him endlessly.

And so she did.

Every minute, the Nightblade died in her hands. Then it shrank down to every fifty seconds. Forty. Thirty… then twenty… and ultimately, every five seconds. Until his daggers finally broke, but he only grabbed the weapons from his earlier unknown party members, and continued his death cycle.

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You died.

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Seconds turned into minutes, and minutes into hours… and 18 hours had passed.

During that time, he noticed she had gained a new Condition called [Mild Exhaustion], which lowered her accuracy by 20%. Good enough. He still kept dying, but no longer as fast. Then that [Mild Exhaustion] grew into [Moderate Exhaustion]. Effectively halving her accuracy. He still got hit quite often and she still hit him hard, but he managed to land one to two lucky hits on her stupid face before he was smashed.

He knew he could win this.

He could beat her.

It was only a matter of time before he kicked the shit out of her.

She couldn't remember how many times she had killed him. How many times he had shown up with a quippage that relit her fury.

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You died.

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Yet still… He had no intention of backing down.

He might only have one in ten chances of hitting her, and even fewer to penetrate her armor, but his attack on unsuspecting enemies was a guaranteed hit, and he had abused it without mercy as he had practically swarmed her, running straight down the tunnel every time he respawned. It was a good thing that he was refreshed each time he died, otherwise this would be an impossible feat.

He stopped bothering with armor since a hit from her was always a certain death, so he had stripped most of his leather protection, leaving him only with his dark cloak over a simple tunic. Ditching his armor didn't do much to increase his speed, but he had no need for them anyway. He only kept the cloak because he thought it was cool. At least until Tiamat yanked it when he was running and killed him again. Then he had to ditch the cloak with a heavy heart.

"It's been a day…" Nyx said to him, staring at his back as he speeded inside the tunnel once again. He didn't reply to her but even Nyx couldn't be mad. "...What… what is this fool doing…?"

Nyx had not once, but plenty of times tried to scold him. Desperately trying to get her point across into his thick skull that he couldn't beat the Dragon. She even started pleading with him so she could move along with her plans, but the Nightblade refused to listen to the Night herself. He was going to beat that scaly-face no matter how many times he had to die. No matter how many hours had passed.

This was personal.

So he met his demise. Over, and over, and over, and over, and over again… Did it stop him? No. Did it dither his spirits? Hell no. He was a man of focus, commitment, and sheer will… because he remembered he had watched John Wick, and Edge of Tomorrow. If Tom Cruise could land Emily Blunt through his persistence, then he could kill this asshole with enough tries, even if every hit he dealt only hurt her a meager one or three damage. Four if he was lucky.

…And sure enough…

Bit by bit…

Deaths after deaths…

For every bone she crushed, every step he took under her ireful eyes, every halved slashing and piercing damage he caused…

He still died. Repeatedly.

But she was hurt, and unlike him; she needed a break.

"Tired, eh? I could do this all day all night. Which I just did."

Indeed. 24 hours had passed in total, and he saw that her Exhaustion level had worsened once more. Before him was Chaos Karma Dragon on the very verge of her death. He noted that her [Moderated Exhaustion] had just worsened into [Severe Exhaustion], effectively halving her accuracy, her effective HP, and her Attributes. That took away a huge chunk of her health. No wonder she looked worse for wear.

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[-⦕ Tiamat⦖-]

Hit Points:
Head: 420/1500
Neck: 112/1500
Body: 99/4000
Wings: 870/2000
Left Front Leg: 167/2500 | Right Front Leg: 815/2500
Left Hind Leg: 396/3000 | Right Hind Leg: 912/3000
Tail: 467/1000

〖Active Condition〗
⧼Severe Exhaustion⧽
-50% Accuracy
Effective HP is halved
Base Attributes effects are halved
Receives 2x damage

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'...' he realized that was still a lot of numbers, and maybe it would be smarter to hit a body part over and over again — the problem was, Tiamat never stopped moving. He had to make do with what he could stab. Her wings were practically always out of his reach and he was surprised he managed to even get a hit.

Then again, he had been slashing and stabbing away. Whenever Tiamat struck him with her wings, he probably was holding his daggers out and got a lucky hit on her.

Nevertheless… 'Ninety-nine huh…?'

"Im… Impossible…" Tiamat staggered on her legs. He was the one that had died over and over. Splatters of his blood had hardened when they made contact on her scales, but those weren't only his own. He had whittled her down, little by little. Slowly but surely.

The Nightblade twirled his short sword, courtesy of the Knight. Thanks to her, he had not only raised his Dagger Proficiency, Dual Wielding Daggers Proficiency, and Shortsword Proficiency to one higher level. It had gone up from Unskilled to Basic, which wasn't much considering he had been swinging these steel forever. But it was through honest work and stubbornness so he wasn't going to complain about it. Besides, he was only wildly flailing them and not doing any sort of graceful maneuvers.

Still, none of it mattered. As long as he got what he wanted; that sweet, sweet, ice cold revenge on this mobile snow-machine of a Dragon.

A couple of dozens more times, and he'd have her head. Though he wasn't sure how he was going to carry it or cut it off her neck. He might just leave her here, actually… Maybe take a picture with it to show it off to people.

"Why… How do you keep coming back?" she hacked a thick clot of blood, her black claws grasping her bleeding neck. Her voice was no longer as authoritative as it used to. "These friends of yours…? Does vengeance fuel you with your power?"

"Friends?" he tilted his head, his quiff-styled fleecy wavy-not-curly black hair tipping to one side. "They're not my friends. I didn't even catch their names. I don't even know how I got here with them, but they ain't shit to me, ya hear? I'm not doing this for them, I'm doing this for me."

"For you? Then… then why…? To kill me?"

"Honestly at this point I'm just doing it out of spite," the Nightblade lunged at her and Tiamat swiped at him with her claws. But now she had been injured enough that he was able to slide underneath her black talons, but only narrowly. He brandished his sword and plunged it right through her chest, at the same spot where his dagger landed several hundred deaths ago.

Tiamat growled in pain, one of her eyes wincing, but she was able to catch him while his sword was still lodged in her, and grasped him tightly.

"You…" she breathed, seething frosty air.

"Me…!" he coughed. Blood poured from his mouth and nostrils and eyes as she began to crush him. "RRGH— just— you— wait…! I'll… I'll make you my b—"

She tightened her grip, and the Nightblade was crushed under her immense pressure.

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You died.

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She picked up light footsteps and she felt him skittering on top of her, using her tail as a ladder. She jerked her body and he slipped from the thin sheet of ice still covering her. She swung her arm and bashed him in a brutal backhand that sent his lifeless body flying through the lair, embedding itself into the cracked wall before it vanished yet again.

"This is madness…" Tiamat griped just as he ran out of the passageway. Why was she still fighting him?! "You're insane!"

"Yea probably!" he shouted back as the wind rushed against him. "But I'm not leaving until I make YOU my bitch!"

Their battle waged on.

For another three extra minutes.

Because he noted that Tiamat was inflicted with [Extreme Exhaustion].

This time, after another death because that damned Dragon decided to fall on his face and mushed him flat, the Nightblade stepped outside of the corridor. He flashed his pearly whites in a grin as he noticed the Dragon wasn't getting up, looking like a very large cat that was lying down on its side. He approached her with a rejuvenated, light, pompous gait on his step.

"What's the matter?" he mocked, twirling shortsword in his hand. It slipped through his fingers and clinked on the ground, but he pretended as though he meant to do that. "Feel like giving up?"

Tiamat snarled, but nonetheless her body and neck refused to listen to her demand. She couldn't lift herself up.

Seeing her this weakened, he crouched right next to her face. A shit-eating grin painted across his face. He squatted like a person who was born in the coldest wasteland of Siberia, with the soles of his black boots fully flattened to the ground. He was only missing his tracksuits with white stripes.

In his mind, he demanded for her remaining hit points.

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[-⦕ Tiamat⦖-]

Hit Points:
Head: 105/1500
Neck: 27/1500
Body: 23/4000
Wings: 217/2000
Left Front Leg: 39/2500 | Right Front Leg: 203/2500
Left Hind Leg: 99/3000 | Right Hind Leg: 225/3000
Tail: 116/1000

〖Active Conditions〗
⧼Extreme Exhaustion⧽
-75% Accuracy
Effective HP is cut into fourths
Base Attributes effects are quartered
Receives 4x damage
Inflicted with [Immobilized]
Disables [Regeneration]

Is essentially dead meat.

Will recover after a long rest.

⧼Immobilized⧽
Cannot move, but can still perform actions as long as the target is within their range.

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"Weeell... would you look at that. What's the matter? Did someone stay up way past their curfew? Would you like some warm milk?"

Tiamat tried to lift her head off the ground, but all her strength had left her body. Wounds and blood covered her once pristine figure. She no longer emanated her icy mist cloak, and seemed to be bathed in her own blood. Her crown had been shattered by his stubborn strikes, and her right front leg was completely drenched in red. The scales were chipped, and red slashes and deep gashes decorated her chest.

She attempted to unleash her cold and necrotic fury, but nothing but blood came out from her throat. The day-long fight had completely depleted her magic. She raised her right hand/fore leg, but the Assassin simply jumped back whilst crouching, letting her pound the ground in front of him.

"Yea right. Nice try, hot stuff," he snorted. "Do it again and I'll carve your eyes out. I'm not kidding. I'll literally carve your eyeballs out and barter 'em on the market. For an apple. Not even two apples, just one."

Tiamat growled, but she was aware she was completely at the mercy of this... insane Human. Selling her eyes...? For an apple? Really? A Dragon's eye could buy a house, let alone the eyes of a Dragon Queen. How badly did he intend to humiliate her?

"How could you…" she croaked, "how could you fight… for this long…? Without needing a rest…?"

"Sleep is for the weak," he boasted — though he didn't doubt he hadn't been needing any sleep because he only lived for 20 seconds at most before getting that annoying blue screen message. "I might be as weak as an ant and you might have defeated me. A lot of times. But I won the battle of attrition. I win the war, you hear me? I win."

"Y…you… you've bested me…?"

"Yes. I have bested you," he replied, all smug and proud. "Sure it took me like a day, but I told you, didn't I? I'll get you. …Little shit."

"How… could this be… How did you evade death…? So many times… I've killed you so… so many times…" she croaked, the exhaustion settling in deep in her. "And yet… yet you've cheated death… Every time. It's… it shouldn't be possible… It makes no sense—"

"Sorry to say, Miss Dragon Lady, but death is my bitch." He grinned as he delved a hand inside his cloak, and Tiamat closed her eyes, surrendering her fate. "As shall you…"

"I see… If a Human like you isn't mortified by death, then I too, shall face it with dignity…"

"...What…? What're you on about?" he scoffed, looking offended.

Tiamat reopened her eyes, and saw that he was glaring at her with more anger than he did before.

"You WISH I'm just gonna let you die, dipshit. You've killed me like a million, billion times! And if I kill you, you're just going to come back after… like what, 100 Cycles? What is that, a hundred years? YEAH RIGHT."

He laughed, and Tiamat felt a rather, worrying uneasiness looming inside of her.

"Kill you? Pft- no. Ho no no no, buddy. I've got a way better plan for you… and for me. Most importantly me. Since apparently people die when they are killed around these parts - aside from me - that is, and therefore… Hang on. Where on earth is that goddamn thing…"

Tiamat eyed him as he patted his back and the pockets of his pants. The Nightblade then thought for a moment until he remembered where he had stored his stuff because they only dragged him down.

His inventory screen popped open before him.

Tiamat blinked in confusion as he drew out two vials with blood-like red liquid in them, as well as one Peerage Piece; midnight blue in color, seemingly made of glass. A Queen Piece. Not because of the items, but her confusion stemmed from the fact that he took these items out of… well… out of nowhere. It was as if he plucked them from an invisible tree.

"...Where was I…? Oh right. People and death," he continued. "Since I blow up every time you sneeze at me, you are going to be my mobile tank and distraction while I stab assholes in the back, capeesh?"

Her eyes widened in realization, and she saw another being hovering behind him, sitting above a dark cloud.

"Y…you did it…" Nyx stammered. "Y-you actually did it!" she then laughed. "You… you beat the Chaos Karma Dragon! Alone! Without skills or tactics! Ha... haha... You're an absolute caveman!"

"Fuck yeah I did," he smiled maliciously, grinning like a person that was up to no good. His physical health might not be affected by his many deaths, but his sanity had taken quite the plunge, Nyx realized. This might be bad.

He turned to the Chaos Karma Dragon, raising a hand and pointing at her with his finger. "And you… you, missy, are going to serve me for the rest of your unnatural Draconic or Dragonic-whatever-nic life, as a penalty for bashing me and kicking my ass far too many damn times."

"I... I choose death-"

"Nope. You're not allowed. You're not allowed to chicken out."

"I rather have my dignity in death, rather than serve a Human..."

His eyes twitched, and the Nightblade grabbed the base of her broken horn, and dragged himself closer to her because he wasn't strong enough to lift her gigantic head that was the three times the size of his body.

"Now you listen here, asshole," he seethed. "You think killing me a thousand times is dignified? You think killing those people is dignified? Do you honestly take pride in squashing creatures weaker than you? You destroyed a nation so you brag about it? Why? Because you're strong? Or because you're a jackass who destroy everything because they have 'cool powers'? Is that really what you consider as dignity? Because if so; fuck your dignity."

"I... But... but I was... I'm a Dragon and that's what-"

"Blah-blah-la-fucking-blah. I don't care if that's what Dragons do or what Monsters do. If all the Monsters decide to jump off a cliff, are you gonna jump off as well?"

"I have wings, why would I-"

"It's an analogy!" he slapped her horn, hurting himself in the process because it was harder than bones. "Jesus Christ, what are you even made of...? Rocks? Well anyway, I ain't hearing none of your pathetic excuses. You are going to serve me, and you are going to make me help make this frickin' World a better, comfortable place for me, understand? And I'm gonna make you watch Spider Man for a lesson about power and responsibilities. And then maybe... juuuust maybe... I'll consider we're even."

Nyx couldn't deny and say she wasn't impressed with his tirade. He really just scolded a Dragon into silent, thoughtful mulling, like a child that had been told of for the first time in their life and genuinely felt awful about what they've done.

"...But what I've done are simply the natural order of things. Humans have hunted Monsters, and Monsters have hunted Humans. And other Humanoid species. In return, they hunt us for... mere equipment and gears to make them stronger. What would you have done differently if you were me?"

"I'd bugger off and find another stinkin' planet, or not kill anyone. That works. Gain their trust and noble things like that. But going along with the system? No. I'm my own man and I control my destiny. Or fate. Whatever."

"Destiny..." she muttered, as if tasting the pretentious word in her mouth. It tasted pretentious as she had suspected, and quite minty.

"Look I'm just spitballing there, but don't you wanna try out different things? Like I dunno, explore the worlds, make friends... make enemies; although I guess you've nailed this part down but still. There's more things to do out there than hanging out in... moldy places like this, just waiting for some loser to enter your belly."

"I... I don't know..." Tiamat muttered with uncertainty. "I suppose I've never had that kind of thought across my mind."

"Well now it has and I'm telling you; it's a good kind of thought. Not all changes are bad. They can be terrifying, but that's why you have me; so you can protect me from those terrifying things and feel better about yourself for protecting someone who's weaker than you."

Tiamat looked absolutely confused. She was following him until that last part. "...?"

"Look. Just tag along with me, alright? I'm making you my Queen and that's final."

"...I..." she stammered, appearing pensive. "I need time to consider this."

"I'll give you five minutes."

"But… but this wasn't in the script…" Nyx then muttered to herself, in a voice low enough that only she could hear. Tiamat was too distraught by the searing pain to focus on other noises. "...W…will this be alright…?"

"What're you on about. What script. This isn't staged is it? Or I'm gonna be very pissed."

"Nothing!" Nyx said hurriedly. "Uh… erm… congratulations, I guess… Though I don't think you should've done that…"

"What do you mean I shouldn't have done that?" the Nightblade placed his arms on his hips. "Didn't you say I'm in control of my destiny or fate or whatever BS you spat out while you just sat and watched twiddling thumbs?! Damn useless Goddess—"

"I told you I can't help you!" Nyx cried. "As for your statement… yes. Yes you are the one making the decisions but…" she must consult with her guide book. A certain book from his former World. A book with many digital hand-drawn pictures depicting the transportation of a soul into another World. She was sure that he shouldn't be able to do… well, all the things he just did. What if he derailed development?

Meanwhile, Tiamat gawked at him, wordlessly.

He died so many times.

And yet here she lied before him… Beaten and broken. Defeated.

A mere human like him…

To humiliate her so…

And yet... managing to bring other perspective...

"I… I surrender…" she huffed, panting her breath. "For choosing to spare me, I owe you my life… But it is because you have granted me a new standpoint that I will serve you as my Master…"

"What's that? I didn't hear you."

She gritted her teeth, but swallowed her hurt pride. "...I said; I submit. I, Tiamat, shall abide by your words."

He grinned. "Pf... Heh… hehehe… hahah… hahahaha! HAHAHA! Yess… Yes you will…" the Nightblade's manic laughter had Nyx thinking she might have accidentally brought a villain into this world instead of a hero.

This was quite worrying.

Even more so if he decided to raise an army of Monster and forge his own empire.

"...So… how do you use this thing," he calmed down relatively quickly, much to the Goddess' relief, as he studied the blackish blue chess piece between his thumb and index finger. "...Do I just ask her to be my Queen or…?"

"...I accept."

The Queen Piece began to glow, and faded away from his eyes. Apparently this was normal judging from how unsurprised these two beings reacted.

"Huh well that was easy…."

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[-⦕ Peerage Update⦖-]

Through sheer determination, commitment, brute force, and persistence,

You have recruited:

⸢Tiamat, The Chaos Karma Dragon, The Queen of Dragons⸥

Into your family

Henceforth, they will serve you as your:

〖Queen〗

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.

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[-⦕ Relationship Update⦖-]

Tiamat, The Chaos Karma Dragon, The Queen of Dragons
now considers you as her:

〖Master〗
You have earned her respect and her servitude, but not her trust and neither her friendship.
She's icy and cold. She is bound by her words and is unlikely to leave your side, but don't order her around too much.
Likes to eat any meat. Hates vegetables. Despises broccolis.
Attempting to feed her one is highly unrecommended unless you have a death wish.

Trust: Low
Betrayal Chance: Extremely Low

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.

"Awesome. My first servant-thing-stuff..." he muttered, devoid of emotions or even excitement. Dying that many times had drained his energy to feel anything other than madness. "Now help me loot their things," the Nigthblade sighed as adrenaline had started to leave his veins, pushing his knees to get up as he placed down his health potions on the ground. "Drink these. Probably won't help you much but eh…"

"I… I don't need them."

"Just drink it. Or… pour it on your legs or something... Whatever you wanna do with it. Helps me feel better about myself."

"...I see…" It was then the mists from before began to gather around her in a vortex, causing him to believe she was going to attack him once again.

"OI! What's the big idea! I spared you and now—" the Nightblade quieted down as he saw the mist wasn't attempting to freeze him, but instead covering her entire body like a shell, as the Dragon before him minimized in size. Deciding he wasn't eager to die again and have his moment spoilt, he took several steps away as precautions.

When the light died down, what lay before him was not an injured Dragon, rather a beautiful woman with bright blue colored hair. As blue as the daylight skies. He noted that her eyelashes were very long and pretty to look at. Her skin was a tone lighter than Nyx, and was marred by battlescars. Gashes covered nearly her entire body; arms, legs, chests, back, torso, you name it, as the Nightblade had been attacking her in any spot he could reach before being turned into mulch.

"...Okay. Didn't expect that," he said blandly at the unclothed woman. "Now you can get into town easier like this… I was thinking about how I should contact you if you're still a Dragon, but this will do. This will do nicely," and he took his cloak out from his mystical storage and draped it over her without waiting or making any comment. He still stared at her though. Not because she was attractive, but because of the wounds he dealt.

Tiamat replied his stare with her own, mystified one. There were flickers of defiance even in those tired icy eyes of hers, but those cinders were snuffed away rather quickly the moment he handed her his cloak.

"...That's a lot of scratches. Don't think Band-Aids can help you with that," he said, actually concerned. "You gonna be okay? You're not gonna die are you?"

"I shan't," she replied. "...You've brought me closest to my death's door. Nobody has injured me this badly. Not since the Calamity took place."

The Nightblade lowered his brows. "Hell's a Calamity…"

"It's an event," Nyx chimed, happy to explain the lore of this World to her peon. "The Old Gods waged war on one another and—"

"Oh it's history? Yeah nah. I just died a thousand times. I don't wanna listen to some history. Not yet. Save it for tomorrow, 'kay?"

The Night sulkily crossed her arms and glared at his head and his stupid hair.

"So… just to be clear," he said to the Dragon-turned-lady, "you are the Dragon right? Tiamat or whatever? Or were you eaten by that thing? In which case, I'm gonna have to ask you to return my chess piece. Those things are apparently hard to get. Limited edition or something."

"...I am Tiamat, Master. I am the very Dragon you've defeated," she said, still with her labored breathing. "I am a Dragonborn."

"She's what you could have been, you know."

"Uh-huh, don't care," he shrugged Nyx away. She took full offense to that and was quietly wishing he didn't save that boy. "Why don't you just walk around in... this form then? Because you don't have clothes?"

"B-because Dragonborns are considered as a threat. They are far more powerful compared to the other species, comparable to the Gods of old. But since the Age of the Gods have ended, we have become the strongest... and..." for a reason that would be apparent after her next word, Tiamat looked embarrassed.

He tapped his foot. "And? Don't leave me hanging here."

"We... might have attempted to take over the world..."

There was it again. That strange, long, uncomfortable silence as he did nothing but stare at the Dragonborn. Nyx didn't like this kind of silence, she realized that much.

"So it's justified."

"...I... I would never say it's ever justified to kill my entire races, but..."

"And how many people have you killed?"

"..."

Tiamat went quiet. She knew killing them to become their ruler wasn't exactly the most noble of cause either. But continued because she felt obligated. "I'm… As far as I am aware; I am the only Dragonborn remaining. The only one out of the Five Dragon Kings."

"...What Dragon Kings… What is this, Dragon Balls? And there's more of you? And hang on a fuckin' sec," he turned to Nyx. "Didn't you want me to be a Dragonborn, did you?"

"Oh," Nyx squirmed on her comfy seat. "Erm... maybe...?"

"You space gremlin- I would've been hunted down like a dog!"

"...S-space gremlin!? A-and no you wouldn't! I-I could have certainly camouflaged you and make you seem as though you're fully Human! And you would've been extinct anyway, and everyone would be fascinated rather than terrified by you!"

"Oh so ME being a freakshow is any better?!"

"...I mean... you'd have wings... Don't you think it's quite rad..."

He considered it for a moment. He decided that having Dragon wings were indeed, quite rad. "...I guess, but I don't want that kind of life. If I was a Dragonborn, I'd be a hermit," he then paused, and looked over to Tiamat. "You're still coming with me though."

Tiamat only nodded once.

"...Anyway..." he eased down. Dying four thousand times had really driven him over the edge, the edge might as well be a dot. "You were saying?"

"The Dragon Kings, yes... Only three others remain. Vritra is sealed inside a Sacred Gear, preventing his rebirth. I am the strongest… Or… at least until I recover my strength," Tiamat tried to push away from the ground, but her injuries bested her. "...U-urngh… For me to be this meek… I have never…"

"Alright, alright. No need for theatricalities... I think I've had enough loredump for now... Just stay here and I'll go collect their stuff," he said as he stepped away to collect the fallen's Hunter Cards; which was exactly like an ID Cards with a different name and different details. According to Nyx, it showed their Adventurer ranks as well as their address in case they couldn't bring themselves home.

"...What? But I wasn't—"

"He's a fool. Don't pay him any mind. I believe he's telling you to take it easy. He's cranky but oddly nice like that."

"...Oh."

"That said, welcome to his Family, Lady Tiamat," Nyx tittered, perfectly enjoying herself and the gallant display of insanity he had shown, trying not to get bothered that he essentially had beaten one of his few penultimate quests. She wanted him to get a taste of defeat from Tiamat, so he would train hard and so that the next time they met, his victory would taste sweeter.

Not this kind of result…

She really hoped this wouldn't have as much impact as she'd expected, but she severely doubted that kind of outcome…

"...Thank you, I suppose…" Tiamat muttered, unsure. "Might I ask who you are? He said you were a Useless Goddess?"

"I am a Goddess but I am NOT useless!" the Goddess of the Night stated. "I am Nyx, his… Goddess," she sighed, calming herself down. "I look forward to seeing how you'd fare by his side."

"Goddess Nyx… The Night herself," Tiamat glanced up at her, still finding it hard to breathe even after drinking the health potions. "And I thought the Gods have died..."

"Well... you're not wrong," the Gods of this world had indeed perished. Why? Because they discovered they were just her Father's playthings and thought it was wise to bring the fight to Him by mocking His name. In return; He lobbed a meteorite into this World and wiped them all because He got annoyed with them. Thus creating the event known as Calamity. "...I'm just... not one of those Gods."

"Are you... perhaps, stronger than them?"

"But of course," Nyx puffed out her chest, crossing her hands. All proud and smug. "Were I not, then..." ...and then what? "...then... then I wouldn't be here...?"

She was worried that she had said something poorly, but Tiamat only nodded in response as though her explanation had carried certain weight. "...I see... It must be important for you to be here."

Not really... she was here to watch, in all honesty.

"Of course," lied Nyx through her teeth. "I am here to... witness my Chosen's growth and influence." Yeah. That sounded believable enough.

"I should have known. A Human chosen by a Goddess of the Night... I should have known he was never talking to himself in that cavern. And why he was beyond the reach of death itself."

Smug pride swelled in her chest. After all, the Nightblade was hers. "Ohoho~ and while he is indeed immune from the final cold embrace of death, he has taken you down with mere sticks and stones, so don't assume it was all me; he did most of the work."

"...Indeed..." Tiamat agreed, clutching her arm and then wincing in light pain again. "I've... I've never met someone like him..."

"You most certainly have, my Dragon Lady, but always killed them five seconds after meeting you," Nyx pointed out.

Tiamat blushed a little. "...Well I... I was simply protecting myself..."

"No you weren't. You can't lie to me. You wanted to fight them. You've tasted their blood and can't get enough of it."

"...I... I... I cannot disagree."

Nyx sighed. At least the girl seemed repentant, although not fully. Nyx wouldn't expect her to suddenly do good even with that crazy man around. She doubted he could control her, but she supposed she shall see.

"Nonetheless, you mustn't tell a soul about my identity. No mortals shall know a Primordial remain, and that she walks among them. Unless they are part of his Peerage then it's fine. …I'd presume," she said worryingly. Since Chaos hadn't come and taken away her toys, Nyx assumed this much interaction was perfectly reasonable… "I can trust you on keeping your mouth sealed in this regard, yes? I doubt I have a need to question a Dragonborn regarding their sense of honor."

"Of course. You have my word."

"Excellent. Now you shall rest here, while that blithering idiot collects whatever he wishes."

And the two stayed there, waiting for him to finish looting. Nyx had the urge to tease the proud Dragon of her defeat, but she decided to wait until she got better. The satisfaction must feel greater then.

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[-⦕ Quest Completed⦖-]

Tutorial: Stealth

⦕Your Objective⦖
Scavenge the equipment of your lost comrade.

〖Rewards〗
The equipment you scavenged.

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"The equipment you scaveng—" he couldn't finish reading without getting mad. "These dang quests of yours have given me nothing but trash so far... I'm being scammed... I swear I'm being scammed. You're lucky you didn't have Terms and Agreement I should sign, otherwise I'd be looking for ways to sue you."

"Calm down, it's merely the tutorial. What are you going to do with all of those?" asked Nyx. He had taken away all pieces of armor and equipment that wasn't a part of their clothes, it seemed he refused to strip them naked out of respect. Good for him, she supposed, though she suspected he didn't take them because it had been rendered useless by the damage. "Are you going to sell them?"

"Nah," he said, gruffly. Again, confusing the Night. "Imma… I'll give these to their family if they live around here… If not then guess I'll mail them or something. Give them some closure, y'know."

She tilted her head slightly. "...? Why do you care so much? You don't even know their name."

"Sure I do," the Nightblade said, checking the identification cards he picked earlier. "That guy there is MacAllister, that dude there is ...Brad?" he cocked an eyebrow. "…That one Mage is Riz…. Rizealyn… Hell is with this naming sense...? Last chick sounds like her name would show up as an answer in a chemistry exam."

"Lucifash is one of the largest cities around. Obviously people from around the world gather here to make their name," Nyx rolled her eyes.

"Lucifash... that sounds..."

"Satanic? Well of course. It's a city built by the Devils."

"Oh."

"Before you get judgmental, they're just like every other Race. Some are good and some are bad, but most are... just trying to live their life."

"Okay," he muttered. He had never met any of them anyway so he supposed it wouldn't be fair of him to label them as bad people. Either way, "Huh... The Rize... Rice girl here is actually a Devil."

"They make excellent Mages. I'm not surprised," Nyx replied. "Either way, you don't know any them. And I thought you have respect for the dead."

"I do. I just make crappy jokes about everything, dead people be damned," He plonked those ID Cards in his inventory bar, seemingly throwing them into an invisible portal in the air, which greatly confused the Chaos Dragon. "Can't be offensive if I'm offensive to anyone."

"That makes no sense whatsoever," Nyx blew air through her nose. A mocking scoff. "Why are you going that far for them? What are they to you? You even said you didn't do any of this for them, no?"

"'Course not, you crazy? But since I'm the only one here, then I might as well. Let's say if I ever died… like, for real, I'd hope someone would do the same and didn't just take my stuff and pawn them off…"

"Ah…" Nyx muttered, understanding. "I see… You're quite sentimental, aren't you?"

"I've got feelings, what can I say?" he shrugged. "And someone better not take away my shit if I died and my stuff didn't come back to me."

Nyx misjudged him again it seemed.

He walked to rejoin her and his newly-acquired Queen, and crouched down in front of the Human-formed-Dragon. "Come on, you. Hop on. I'll carry you."

There was a moment where Tiamat's face washed blank with confusion, like her brain cogs couldn't turn fast enough to take in the information from her widened eyes. Once it registered in her, she still found it hard to believe.

"Th… there's no need. Given enough time, I will recover—"

"Baaah don't give me all that modesty crap. Tiamat or whatnot; you can't walk, you're naked, you're apparently extremely exhausted, and I'm extremely starving. So hop on or I will literally drag you out of here like a sack of 'taters if I have to."

"I… it's not modesty it's just… I don't…"

"Just listen to him," Nyx ushered. "There's no use arguing with him and this is coming from me."

"But…? Very well…" Tiamat whispered ruefully as she awkwardly stood up, trembling her way to his back, nearly falling flat on him because of how weak she was. "...This humiliation… I will bring this to my grave."

"Yeah, yeah. Don't you ever dare to plan dying before I give you my permission. You're going to be on wash duty and you're gonna wash my clothes and dishes after we get home… and after we get you treated I guess. Wait, do I even have a home?" he then asked Nyx, who seemed to be in the middle of casting something since her arms were drawing circles in the air like she was conducting an invisible band. Either Nyx had lost her mind or she was really casting something.

"...The hell are you doing?"

"Tearing this place down," Nyx said with the casualness of someone describing the weather. "Normally, a completed dungeon will immediately kick you out after you defeat their Guardian and destroy itself. But seeing that you recruited her instead, I'll have to destroy this one manually."

The Nightblade worriedly looked around, and noticed the cracks in the wall had gotten wider and more noticeable. Small rocks began to fall from the tall ceiling as the ground beneath them began to rumble.

"Maybe consider doing that after we're outside."

"You've died more than four thousand times; I counted. One more shan't hurt."

"Except you're not only going to kill me, but her too. I'm not losing my Queen when she hasn't started her first day on the job. …That's kinda weird… 'My Queen'... ew… Feels icky saying that out loud."

"It implies a different meaning in this world. Don't be a worrywart," Nyx assured. "I'll get you both home. I just need a second."

"Oh, so I'm not homeless?" Good news at last. He really did expect to sleep under the stars because she was 'the Night' or whatever.

"No. You have a reasonable house with reasonable rent. It's a standard for low ranking Adventurers, which you are," Nyx said. "By morning, you should head to the Academy."

"...What academy… I'm not doing Uni again. I've had enough annoying Professors handing out unreasonable tasks with unreasonable deadlines for a lifetime."

"...I can't guarantee they won't make demands as such, but Lucifash Academy is the most prestigious Academy for adventuring purposes. It specializes in adventuring and the like," Nyx explained lazily. It was a horrible explanation but she didn't feel like talking to him since he had rudely interrupted her lecture earlier.

"...Specializes in adventuring and the like... You serious? Did you even try?"

"I'm not in the mood."

He blew air through his nose in a mocking fashion. Not so much of a snort because he made no snorting noise whatsoever. "Yeesh, okay. Was it something I said?"

"Yes."

"Well then I'm sorry. I probably didn't mean it. Probably."

Nyx frowned. This wasn't fair. He wouldn't even let her stay mad for five minutes. Was this because of his Charisma? But those Attributes shouldn't be able to affect her... She was a Goddess. These numbers held no meaning for her.

"A-anyway..." Nyx cleared her throat, only to be rudely interrupted again.

"You're blushing," he pointed out.

"No I'm not. Silence your mouth."

"Sure but why are you blushing though."

She decided to ignore his stupid tease, and she definitely was not happy with whatever he just said and his apology remained hanging in the air.

"Y-you'll meet new people there. Aside from that, your tutorial is over," she said, slightly disturbed now that she heard herself saying it aloud. "Well… it hasn't, but we'll skip the boring introduction; you've defeated a continental threat alone for the Primordials' sake… Suffice to say you've far surpassed your goal. Still, fighting her for twenty-four straight hours was beyond my wildest expectations. I can't tell which one's the Monster; you or her."

"Neither," the Nightblade said, gingerly stepping to his side because that stalactite looked like it was eager to impale his head. "She's mine now, isn't she? That came out bad— sorry, I don't mean I own you as in… like my property or assets."

"I understand, Master…" Tiamat whirred, hovering between her consciousness. "...I am yours…"

"We just met but okay," he shrugged. Nobody got his joke. This misfortune happened quite a lot in the future. "And don't call me Master. I have a name. Which I'll tell you after I make sure I won't get in trouble because I know you," he turned to Nyx while Tiamat remained more confused than before. "There's gotta be a law written somewhere, right? If I stroll into the city or wherever, I won't get jumped by people that want to kill her because she's a Dragon, right?"

"Dragonborn," Tiamat said.

"Dragonborn," he corrected himself.

"Relax," assured Nyx as the earthquake intensified. "It's not rare for strong, sentient Monsters to be part of a Peerage. You're not the first person to tame a Monster... Except… Well technically she isn't a Monster. But… it doesn't make it any better that you have her in your Peerage, but there's always a first, I suppose…"

"Why? What's wrong with her? Oh Jesus Christ—" he nearly tumbled because of the intensifying quake. Larger boulders were starting to rain around them. "Actually can we leave? Like right now? I've been flattened enough time for a day, thank you."

"She's an Ultimate Dragon threat, that's what's wrong."

"And? She said she won't destroy nations again, right? Right?" He checked over his shoulder, and saw that she was fast asleep. "She dozed off. Great. I'm in grave danger and she's dozing off. But who cares? She's with me now, and I don't plan on becoming a human-version of Russia and make enemies from everywhere. Did that once in HoI. Bad mistake. Was fun though."

"...HoI?"

"It's... a stupid map painting game, just ignore it. What I'm saying is; she's with me and I won't let her kill things without my permission. She's a Humanoid or whatever but it's obvious she hasn't been in a society."

"...Still, normally people don't have Dragons in their Peerage, let alone a Dragon Queen."

"But am I breaking any laws?"

"...You're not, but… You might cause a new law to be written… Nevermind," she sighed. All actions have consequences, and he'd do well to deal with them. It's his problem. "You won't have much time after this, so let's end your tutorial. Today is Monday and you'll have your inauguration in…" she paused, checking the time by thinking about it, "Five more hours. It'll be at eight o'clock in the morning. You don't want to be late, is all I'm saying."

"Great," the Nightblade wrinkled his nose. It was not, for a fact, great. He wanted to sleep for the whole day and be lazy. He didn't have a job, sure, but that's the great thing; freedom. As for money, he supposed he'd have to ask Nyx to loan him some. If that was allowed.

"...By the way, why haven't I leveled up yet? I defeated a literal Dragon. I thought you get EXP for things like this."

"Technically; you never killed her."

"..." The Nightblade had never been faced with such bullshit before. He was so angry that he couldn't express his anger. Even the mildly embarrassed Dragon behind him started to feel bad for pretending to be asleep, even if she didn't understand what he meant by EXP. Must be one of those Adventurer things. "One of these days I'm gonna jump off a cliff."

And he probably would, if not for a familiar blue screen that sparked in front of his face.

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[-⦕ Dungeon Cleared⦖-]

SSS Rank Dungeon

⦕Hidden Lair of the Dragon Queen⦖

〖Rewards〗

Firelink Greatsword, Firelink Armor Set
15000 gp have been transferred to your account
For beating an SSS Rank Dungeon whilst severely underleveled,
you have been promoted to level 5

Welcome to Arcadia

...you freak...

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"YYEEEESSSSS. NEW STUFF! Oh wow these looks cool..."

Tiamat was startled as her new Master cheered in joy looking at his inventory that only he and Nyx could see. Unfortunately, it was not until sunrise where he learned of one cruel fact regarding the importance of Attributes: he didn't have the requirements needed to wield or wear any of his newly gained equipment. Forcing himself to wear those would only sap away his energy quickly, and be as effective as a child in heavy armor for an adult.

Nyx knew this, of course. And the rewards were supposed to be much more than that since this Dungeon was meant for a party of at least ten. But if she gave him all the rewards, then she feared nothing would be a challenge for him anymore. She didn't want him to not enjoy this World... and besides, she kinda wanted to pay him back for saying her insults sucked.

Tiamat might be a problem though… She was ridiculously strong even outside of her Dragon form. If he relied on her, what could she do here to keep him motivated…?

A plan must be devised, Nyx understood.

But for now, she let him celebrate. He at least earned it.

---

To be continued…

---

Tutorial? Fuck your tutorial. I'm the gamer now. Can't you see? I'm gaming. - Him, probably

Give him time and he'll eventually turn into Deadpool

As usual, I took Esdeath as Tiamat's human appearance, while basing her dragon appearance as Velkhana from Monster Hunter: World. GOD I fucking love that game. I beat Fatalis in two weeks because playing it activated my autism

Movie sucks ass tho. Tried too hard to be serious for a goofy series like MH where you can wear the almighty〖WIGGLER HEAD〗

NOT DYING is a stupidly fun overpowered trait. Overpowered? That's pr obvious. But FUN? Fun? In my OPMC GAMER story? What nonsense are you talking about Danzy?
Well, let's say he jumps off a building
SPLAT
and then he comes out from the closet
behind everyone who is looking out the window in shock
Just so he can sneak out from class
5DChessGalaxyBrainmoment

That was just an example. I have 100 more scenarios in my smooth brain (not really. i have like 15 rn and my brain is so smooth it's basically a pink ball)

LONG AUTHOR'S NOTE AGAIN AHOY

(it's pretty important so pls read)

Nyx is like the DM that wants to control a chaotic party member but doesn't because she wants to be a good DM and let her players have fun, but she also wanna give them this cool storyline she had lined up

I didn't go with the standard single hp bar, like HP: 2000/2000

because it's kinda hard to make sense if you really think about it

For example, you get hit on your leg. Specifically just your leg. With a single hp bar, if you get hit enough time, you'll die. Idk, maybe the last hit suddenly grows some aggressive tumor that attacks your brain or something… It's like getting knifed in CoD but on your toes.

See what I mean? So i spread out the health thingy to each limb, where hits to the head are USUALLY the most fatal, and therefore heads have the least hitpoints.

There's an armor system, which is the same thing. They have their own HP or rather Armor Points (AP) and takes reduced damage from some types of attacks depending on what they are

That's it. Pr simple right?

As for his Proficiencies. Why didn't they go up more even though he literally spent 24 hours of swinging and slashing?

Well, because he's not practicing any skilled movements. All he did was go UNGA BUNGA STAB STAB REEEEE on Tiamat's ass until she got beaten by exhaustion. Practice makes perfect, yes, but someone can't become a master swordsman in a day just by swing and pray

Unless he's your average isekai hero i guess. Because repeating the same downward slash translates to 2000 exp and a raise in mastery level. If it's just that easy, then everyone is a grandmaster swordsman

Yeah nah. Proficiencies are increased by actually sparring, dedicating time and effort in learning the techniques.

Also swords are overrated. So are dual weapons. You know what isn't? helicopter insect glaives.
capcom pls buff the damage pls i beg :pepehands:

Btw did you notice the lack of numbers? Like, gamer numbers? Damage popups, I mean. The "YOU DEALT 25 DAMAGE" thing.

Well that's because I think they're nothing but distractions in combat scenes. I tried using them before, but they were just too distracting that it took away the important bits, which is the damn combat.

I didn't make it turn-based like dnd because… well, outside of the game; it's kinda stupid to wait for a guy to roll his dices. And adding short pauses between turns so that the MC can think and come up with a plan in that pause, a plan that he'd otherwise have to take a steamy shower, a nice nap, and a hot cup of coffee to devise is just plain unfair and takes away the tension and sense of urgency

Combat should be written like it's happening in real time. You don't get to think much when someone's about to kick your teeth in

Now I ain't no pro in writing combat scenes, or really just writing in general. Let's not kid ourselves here. But i do think it's preferable to keep the combat flow naturally rather than have pauses. It's like Taken 3. Have you seen how they shot the action scenes? It's fucking horrible. Idk what was going on with the director's head or if he just had a fetish for camera cuts. Seriuosly, 15 cuts for Liam Neeson jumping over a fence? FIFTEEEN?

ahem

Next chapter is the setting: it won't be a vaguely medieval time or some cliché shit like that. Nah. It'll be in the modern times, except there's no automatic guns or jet planes or goddamn tanks. Why? Because magic that's why, and because I've already done fantasy type setting in The Last Guardian, which I discontinued because of the insane amount of lore I have to prepare. No more of that, thank you very much. I'll just be lazy and use the modern time settings, with blackjacks and hookers

There are still flying ships tho, and flying bullet trains, which also means Sky Pirates! Woohoo!
I WONDER if someone from fate/go have a big armada of ships and big pair of Bleach tits... HMMMM. I WONDER.

So that's pretty rad right? Right?

Say that it's cool or I'll frickin do nothing and cry

Also I'd want to add some protagonists and his "harem" companions from other popular isekais. Namely KAZUMAA and the shield hero guy. I don't think they'll get a major role so don't hold your breath.

No i'm not stealing their haram harem and give it to this nightblade guy, i just want some friends for our boy. why? because the boys in DxD are goddamn lame. Except Sai and Azazel. Sai is pr cool. Everybody loves Saibro "Chadman" Bael and Azazel "All these Fallen Angels were once in my balls" InsertLastNameHere. Gasper is alright i guess

The others? Well they just don't have that much character and the selection is way too few, which is understandable. dxd is a booba-centric show so why bother with dudes with dicks

Review, follow, and stuff ( ͡ʘ ͜ʖ ͡ʘ)
because I put way too much effort in this fuckin thing, and I deserve it.
pls.

pls im beggin you. if you don't follow and review, i'll die from heartbreak. (i won't but i'm gonna pressurize you anyway)

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Some actual math for you nerds if you wanna know that I didn't just arbitrarily reduce Tiamat's HP and pat myself in the back

I actually calculated it. Assume that every minute he dies 3 to 4 times and lands only 3 hits. 7 damage on her on average. Each time he dedded, motherfucker just ran in Leroy Jenkins style. Tiamat's total HP is 21000
7x60 = 420 (blaze it) dmg/hour = 3360 dmg in 8hr. Give or take a couple of hundreds

Then he gets more hits on her because of her accuracy debuff from Mild Exhaustion, let's say he died 2-3 times then every minute. Allowing him to land 2 extra hits in that minute. Upping his unga bunga suicidal charge to 10 damage/minute
10x60 = 600/hour = 4800/8h

Then after 16 hours, Moderate Exhaustion. 30% acc malus. He didn't last much longer, but dying only 1 time per minute is pr dope. 13 damage/min.
14x60 = 780/h = 6240/8h

In total 14400. Roughly ¾ of her HP gone after 24 hours. Then I chip away her health with that number distributed logically throughout her body parts. Wings and tail are harder to hit while her body and front legs are easiest, and her neck, because dragons have long neck which means they can suck on this dic-

yea you get the point