Archer felt a mixture of worry, pride and frustration as Fran's fight with the Demon raged on.
Worry that his master was facing a monster who's strength approached that of a Servants. Indeed, with 100 points in a stat being comparable to the normal human limit Archer was familiar with, the Demon's 1108 MGC was within the realm of E-rank, with his other stats not so far behind. And that was without considering his other advantages.
Despite what the goblin seemed to believe, he was most definitely toned towards close quarters combat [Darkness Reinforcement], [Magic Barrier], and [Hardened Skin] skills turning him into a hard to cut bastard. No mundane sword would be able to even put a scratch on his skin without supernatural levels of technique behind it. Meanwhile, he possessed a spell capable of letting him teleport to any shadow within his line of sight and his above average swordsmanship meant that a single moment of weakness could result in death. Then there was his most dangerous weapon, [Skill Taker], an ability nearly as frightening in single combat as some Noble Phantasms that Archer had seen, capable of completely nullifying one of their advantages, as well as strengthening the Demon, if used properly.
He was a natural born Magus Killer with all the power needed to kill Archer's new Master in an instant, and yet…
Fran was doing well. Her predictions were spot on. Her reactions were quick. She was learning how to deal with such a difference in raw power even as she struggled against it. She was fighting against an opponent which no man had any right to be fighting against, even with the level of support Archer was giving her, and she wasn't just surviving, she was winning. Even if the blew she dealt the Demon wasn't an instant kill, it was a lethal wound all the same. Archer couldn't help but well up with pride as she not only used the strategies and techniques that he had taught her during their training, but made up new ones to fit the situation.
Yes, he was feeling worry and pride for his little Master, where his frustration was directed solely at himself.
Archer could have ended this fight in a heartbeat. He could have used his [Body Split] skill to manifest a Noble Phantasm and strike down the demon in an instant. He could have used it to guarantee his master's safety, instead of letting her risk her life. However, he held back.
The [Body Split] skill was his last trump card, the greatest ability he currently had in his arsonal. Using it could certainly mean victory in this fight… but then what? One day is a long time. If he burned it now, what would he do if another situation arose, one even more bleek. Old habits made him hesitant to use his trump card, leaving Fran in danger.
However, the situation was about to take a turn for the worse.
"[Skill Taker]!"
The Skill would have normally been invisible, but [Magic Control] granted them enough magic sight to see it coming, not that they had a chance of dodging it. It simple moved too quickly. Archer nearly swore as the burst of magical energy passed through Fran and himself.
He had targeted their [Recovery Magic].
While this wasn't too big of a loss for them, as they would still possess [Healing Magic], the Demon would have gained the ability to recover from even lethal injures. This was about to become a match over who can score an instant kill first, as all other injures would be immediately healed. With the Demon's overpowered defenses and his huge strength, he had the overwhelming advantage in such a contest.
There was no longer an option. Archer would have to create a Noble Phantasm to finish the job.
Name: Brahmastra
Race: Noble Phantasm
Attack:9000 Mana: 2500/2500 Durability:10000/10000 Mana Channel: SSS
Skills:
Anti-Demon, Tracking Throw LvMax
While a Demon, the beast was not in actuality evil, however, Brahmastra wouldn't care. So long as it was a Demon, the Immortal Sword of Rama would be more than happy to kill it. Indeed, it came to Archer's mind so easily, that it was almost as if the arrow turned sword was eager to be used against the Demon.
But before Archer could let it rip and use his [Body Split] to manifest the blade, he noticed something odd. The Demon's status had not updated to show that he had [Recovery Magic]. In fact, Fran and Archer still had their [Recovery Magic].
"Tch, looks like it failed." The Demon said with an annoyed grunt. "Fuckin' RNG."
...It failed? It can do that?
{[Skill Taker] Lv6: User has a 60% chance of stealing 1 named [Skill] of Rarity 6 or less from a target within 6 meters. 6 day cooldown.}
{Due to Wielder Fran's [Favored of the Goddess of Chaos] title, all percent chance [Skills] targeting her must roll three consecutive successes in order to take effect, rendering [Skill Taker]'s chance of success 21.6%.}
[What the?] Archer said, confused by the sudden influx of information. This was different from everything else he had experienced thus far, as both Appraisal and Self-Evolution required him to actively call upon the related [Skills] in order to receive the information. Meanwhile, this had come involuntarily, as if someone else had responded to his question.
But at the same time, it had felt as if the information was coming from himself.
"Well, no point crying over it." The Demon said before starting to chant, holding his arms out. "[Darkness Lance]!" The bolt of dark energy came towards Fran, but this time, Archer was ready for it. A trio of blade appeared in the air around them and intercepted the blast. "S'… you can use that… that skill defensively too. Well, let's see if you can keep up!"
Fran began to dance around the volley of attacks that the Demon started to launch against them, with Archer offering his assistance in blocking any attack that would push them into a corner. They didn't need to push forward. The wound was deep and the Demon was bleeding out fast. It was only a matter of time before they won by bleed out.
"[Black Bomb!" The Demon created a massive ball of dark energy, twice the size of Fran's [Flaming Sphere] and set it up into the air where it shattered into a hundred smaller pieces that rained down on Fran.
[|I Am The Bone Of My Sword|!]
Consuming 500 MP, Archer created hundreds of blades to intercept the enemy attack, protecting his Master.
"Fuckin' hell… That skill… It's the [Blessing of the Sword God], isn't it?" The Demon said, chuckling between pained breathes. "Bless by both the Goddess and the Sword… You're somethin' else, brat."
A point of the ground behind the Demon began to glow, and from that spot another goblin appeared, holding a staff in its hand. "Quickly! Heal him! Before it is too late!" The odd Goblin Leader shouted at the newly summoned goblin medic, pointing towards the Demon.
A quick [Appraisal] told Archer that the new goblin was versed in [Recovery Magic], but before Archer could take action to stop him, the Demon himself raised his hand. "[Dark Lance]."
The blast of power might not have been as powerful as the shots he directed at Fran, but the attack still turned the goblin medic to ash.
"What are you doing!? That was an ally you buffoon!" The goblin shrieked.
"Shut… the hell up." The Demon said between pants. "This… is my fight. Stay out of it."
"You idiot! Do you have any idea what will happen if you die here!?" The goblin shouted in near hysteria.
"The dungeon will be conquered... Just as is should be." The Demon said, shocking the goblin. "You never understood… the purpose of a dungeon. The dungeon doesn't exist t' give worms like you a means... t' create your own personal army t' conquer the land." The Demon spat out a mouthful of blood before continuing. "The dungeon exists t' give motivation and means for those who are worthy t' become strong."
"Wh… what?" The goblin was speechless as the Demon held himself high, ignoring his wounds.
"I am a dungeon monster. So if this brat slays me… drains me for all the EXP I'm worth... and uses my hide to make herself a goddamn pair of boots… then I will go to the Goddess's side… having fulfilled my purpose." The Demon said, throwing the goblin a withering glare that sent the creature away, trembling in fear. "I don't give a shit about you, or your stinking goblin kingdom. I will not let anything... stand in the way of me and my purpose."
The Demon stretched out his wings and focused as much of his power as he could, using his [Darkness Reinforcement] to push himself forward, using the raw power to hold his wound closed and slow the bleeding as much as he could. He was only delaying the inevitable, and burning vast amounts of Mana to do it, but he didn't seem to care. "Brat, my time is short... prove t' me that you are worthy!"
(Archer?) Fran said to the sword as she tightened her grip.
Archer could feel what she wanted. It was stupid. They only needed to wait and watch as the Demon bled himself to death. However, he understood the sentiment. [I am your sword. For you goals I will fight.]
"Nn!" Fran nodding her head sharply.
"Ha… ha… Tell me brat… what is your name?" The Demon asked.
"Fran."
"Fran… I'll remember that." The Demon said before giving a roar and charging forward to meet the girl in battle.
Injured as he was, his strength was far greater than before. He was using his magic to reinforce his body to a beyond reckless degree, knowing full well that he wouldn't live long enough to suffer the consequences. It didn't matter to him that his body was breaking down from the strain of his attacks. One way or another, he would die.
Fran fought back, doing her best to hold her ground until a hard blow from the Demon launched her up into the air. "[Darkness Lance]!" The Demon shouted, firing his burst of power towards the airborne girl, only for her to dodge it though the use of [Flash Step] and Archer's [Telekinesis] and [Wind Magic].
"~Dance, O flickering lights, [Flaming Sphere]!" Fran shouted her own spell, calling on a second ball of fire, placing it directly between her and the Demon.
The Demon grunted and shielded his eyes from the sudden light. He backed away, looking left and right of the sphere, preparing to fire his own spell as soon as the girl made her move.
However, to his shock, she didn't come from either side of the sphere, but through it.
Archer charged up his [Telekinesis] as hard as he safely could as Fran launched her 8th level [Sword Technique], [Dragon's Fang]. It was an attack that manipulated the flow of energy around the point of impact to pierce through defenses.
The Demon didn't have time to react and the pair slammed into his chest at high speeds, Archer's blade digging deep into the monster's chest, cutting into his Magic Stone, quickly draining its energy away.
The Demon let out a soft gasp of shock… and then he died. His final laugh frozen on his face.
After rolling off the Demon, Fran was quickly doused in water using [Create Aqua], before healing her burns. Looked up, having beaten her greatest opponent, a distant look in her eyes. It was clear that victory didn't taste as sweet as she wanted it to.
Archer watched as she stepped over to the Demon's body, reclaimed him from within his chest. Then, the girl went down onto her knees, clasped her hands together… and she prayed.
"Thank you." She said softly.
(Fran's level increased from 19 to 26. New title(s) unlocked: Big Game Hunter, Demon Slayer)
"Inconceivable. Inconceivable!" The goblin repeated to itself as it backed away from the monster disguised as a human-like child.
How could his Demon, his B-rank threat Demon, a beast who should have been able to single handedly bring an entire country to its knees, loss to such a small, insignificant being?
'You never understood.'
When the goblin had become the Dungeon Master of a brand new dungeon, he had believed that he was chosen. That he had been chosen to lead his people out of the shadows. To kill off the kingdoms of man and create a new kingdom, a Goblin Kingdom. When he had managed to draw one of the ultimate Fiend-type monsters in a random draw, he had believed it to be destiny… but now...
Was the Demon right? Had he not been made Dungeon Master in order to lead his people, but rather to simply so him and his army could die so that one of his hated enemies could grow stronger?
"No! I refuse to believe it! It can't end like this!" The goblin had pushed himself all the way back to the wall, bumping into the Dungeon Core.
His eyes widened as he accessed the core and saw that his Goddess Points had increased. The death of the Demon inside of his dungeon had refunded him enough points to perform another random summoning.
...Could it work? Could he summon a creature capable of turning this all around? The odds were against him. The chances of summoning a Demonic Beast of B-rank or higher was less than 0.07%. More than likely, he would just get another army beetle, or something of similar rank.
But what did he have to lose? Nothing he could summon from normal means would be worth anything at this point. It was time to put his luck to the test. It was do or die.
And so, the goblin triggered the random summoning.
The entire world seemed to shake as a magic circle, nearly a quarter the size of the final room appeared in the center of the stone floor. The intruder stopped in his strange praying ritual and the Demon's body seemed to vanish into thin air as the creature grabbed its sword and jumped away from the circle.
The goblin couldn't help himself. He just started to laugh as the massive frame of a dragon pushed itself up out of the circle.
"Yes! Yes my Servant! Destroy the intruders!"
The dragon didn't respond with any of the backtalk that the goblin had gotten used to hearing. It only let out an earth trembling roar.
The goblin's luck hadn't run out yet.
Moonlight Dragon Lv 57/70
Race: Dragon (Demonic Beast)
HP: 13813, MP: 6404, STR: 5270, END: 5723
AGI: 2652, INT: 2636, MGC: 2908, DEX: 2028
Skills:
Water Magic LvMax, Ocean Magic Lv2, Wind Magic LvMax, Gale Magic Lv2, Ice Magic Lv4, Moonlight Magic Lv8, Claw Techniques LvMax, Claw Arts LvMax, Divine Claw Techniques Lv3, Divine Claw Arts Lv4, Abnormal Status Resistance LvMax, Night Vision, Automatic MP Recovery, Automatic HP Recovery,
Innate Skill:
Dragon Arts Lv6
Extra Skill:
Principle of an Element(Mirror) Lv7 , Moon Phase Empowerment LvMax
Description:
Being a Dragon with a deep connection to the Moonlight Goddess, the Moonlight Dragon's power waxes and wanes with the phases of the moons. When the largest of the world's seven moons is full, this Demonic Beast's power triples, causing it to be one of the most powerful A-rank threats in the world. It is thought that if all seven moons were full at once, the Dragon would become an S-rank threat. It has a nearly perfect defense as half the force of any attack made against it is negated and rebounds upon the source. Magic Stone Location: Heart
Self-Evolving:
(Rank 9 | Memory 75 | Points 128) → (Rank 10 | Magic Stone Value 4521/5500 |Memory 89 | Points 178)
ATK: 478 → 524 MP: 2500 → 3000 Durability: 2300 → 2800 Mana Channel: A+
Skill Unlocked: Shape Shifting
Wielder Status Up (Low) → Wielders Status Up (Intermediate)
For those of you that are talking about it, in order for the Demon to have become Fran's familiar, they would have had to get around the rule that Dungeon Monsters die when the Dungeon Master dies. They would have had to somehow get him the Shape Shifting skill and the Appraisal Blocking skill. And then even after they did all that, he still has his Control Immunity skill, so they would have no way of stopping him from killing every unworthy person they met, in accordance to his goddess's wishes.
He is a viking. You just can't keep a pet viking. They are what you would get if you turned being a murder hobo into a religion.
Perhaps Fran summoning a different Demon, with a bit of a different skill set could work, but not this Demon.
The Dragon's stats in Servant lingo (The + refers to how the stats triple during a full moon)
Strength A++
Endurance A++
Agility D++
Mana D++ (Almost C++)
Luck N/A
Noble Phantasm(s) N/A
PS. Just so you know it is the new moon at this time in canon. (No, seriously.) They lucked out.
I put in what the stats of a Noble Phantasm would look like, just so you would have a good frame of reference. (That one is an A-rank anti-unit, so 50x stronger than a normal weapon(we'll say that is around 400 attack), then decrease that by about 60% because of it being recreated by [Body Split])