"Did someone leave behind a recording?" Niflheim questioned as he kept his eyes on the wooden training dolls. They had not made any other movement since they stepped out of the passage. Instead, the wooden dolls stood there motionless as if awaiting orders.
"A simple recording is not too unlikely. This place contains an intricate layout of magic formations I've never seen before. There's a mechanical element that should not exist beside the magic in this room, yet it does. Those wooden dolls seem to run on a similar principle. Whoever these brothers were when they were alive, their identity was not simple if they could create a place like this on a whim." Izroth answered.
"You can tell all of that just by looking around? A skill like that must come in handy quite often." Niflheim said. But, he knew that it was more than just a skill Izroth relied on. To pinpoint the things he did required one to have some knowledge of the subject.
Niflheim believed that, without a doubt, Izroth had done his research somewhere.
As for Izroth, he was more curious about the Danger Lands Resseki brought up. If those brothers perished in the Danger Lands, it must have been a place full of powerful threats. Of course, such a place could have long since ceased to exist, seeing how Izroth did not know how long this room had been here.
'If this room was casually thrown together, the two brothers must have been legendary figures—or at least close to becoming one. The wooden dolls function in the same way as a magic item, but there are novel differences between them that's enough to separate them into their own categories. Also, that power source in its chest…'
Inside the wooden dolls' chest area, covered by a thin protective layer, was an item Izroth instantly recognized—a magic core! But, it was not just any magic core. The amount of magic energy it gave off was equal to that of the Advanced Magic Core Izroth acquired from the Blood Moon!
'These things are powered by Advanced Magic Cores. If possible, I'd like to take one back intact to the Mystical Realm Palace. If given time, I'm sure those two will obtain something useful from studying it.'
Izroth felt that this area of research was best left to Valentine and Gu Chao. Even though Gu Chao was shameless at times, when it came to being a blacksmith and items that interested him, he turned into a completely different person.
When it came to Valentine, his interest in this type of uncommon or lost magic did not need to be spoken for.
"Those who wish to gain our inheritance must first pass our challenge. Though we brothers are not too unreasonable. Since you have discovered this place, it can only mean that your coming here was fated to happen. That's why we will give you an opportunity. Ten minutes. If the two of you can survive for ten minutes, then you will each receive one item that belonged to us brothers. You will also be allowed to leave this room and forfeit the rest of the challenge while keeping your price. Of course, this also means that our true inheritance will be lost forever. But, it is better to be lost forever to time than in the hands of the unworthy." Resseki's voice sounded.
"However, should the two of you decide to stay and proceed, you will have earned the right to continue the challenge and obtain our true inheritance that we left behind in this room. Think carefully before you decide. For once you make your decision, there is no turning back." Resseki's voice faded away as his last few words reverberated throughout the room.
At the same time, the eyes of the wooden dolls lit up as their focus turned to Izroth alone.
"Well, you heard him. What do you want to do? Should we turn back and give up because it's too dangerous?" Niflheim asked with a smirk as he took a defensive stance.
"I believe you already know my answer," Izroth responded as the wooden dolls began their charge towards him, the fastest of which was the one wielding a dagger.
Izroth lifted his steel sword and took up a sword stance of simplicity.
Woosh!
The dagger wooden doll swung its weapon with a great deal of precision and speed at Izroth. There was no hesitation or second-guessing behind its movements as it struck.
However, Izroth remained unmoved in the face of the attack.
Bang!
Out of nowhere, a metal shield appeared in front of Izroth and blocked the incoming dagger.
"I figured you would say that," Niflheim said as he successfully intercepted the blow.
Upon failing its attack, the dagger wooden doll momentarily staggered. Seeing this, Niflheim immediately ducked, and right as he did so, a steel blade brushed just over his head.
Swish! Crrrrck!
Izroth cleanly sliced the wooden doll in half sideways as his steel sword cut through it with ease.
Clank. Clank.
The glow in the wooden dolls' eyes went dim as it broke into various pieces and turned into a pile of wood on the ground.
〈System Alert: You have defeated a Stage 0 Training Puppet!〉
〈System Alert: Your score has increased by +1! [Score: 1]〉
'It fell easier than I expected. Though it's not too surprising considering its stage. However, I shouldn't let my guard down. Something tells me these things are only here to welcome us.'
As for Niflheim's timely reaction and follow up—it did not surprise Izroth. He had seen firsthand what Niflheim could do during the Great Sea Palace raid. Not to mention, Niflheim was acknowledged as one of the best tanks in RML, and it was not without reason. His technique, gaming sense, and perfect positioning were all top tier among his peers.
'Let's see how well you keep up.'
Izroth shifted his sword stance to the more offensive first sword form and kicked off his back foot, accelerating towards the nearest saber training puppet.
The saber training puppet thrust its saber towards Izroth, who leaned to the side and evaded the strike. In the same breath, Izroth swung his steel sword upward and slashed through the saber training puppet in one stroke!
Clank. Clank. Swoosh!
Suddenly, the steel sword training puppet arrived behind Izroth and viciously swept its weapon down with a mighty force at his back.
Bang!
Niflheim blocked the steel sword and swiftly stomped his right foot to dash off to the side.
At the same time, Izroth spun around half a circle as the blade in his hands severed the steel sword training puppet's head from its body.
〈System Alert: You have defeated a Stage 0 Training Puppet!〉
〈System Alert: Your score has increased by +1! [Score: 3]〉
'Not bad.'
Niflheim matched Izroth's timing flawlessly! Every time he blocked, he would instantly move off to a different angle to allow Izroth to strike without being interrupted.
The last to approach Izroth was the claymore training puppet. Its speed was the slowest among the wooden dolls; however, the claymore in its hands looked as if it held the highest attack power out of the four training puppets.
Unfortunately for the claymore training puppet, its mobility was too lacking. Even with his agility limited, Izroth could outmaneuver the claymore training puppet effortlessly and swiftly struck it down.
〈System Alert: You have defeated a Stage 0 Training Puppet!〉
〈System Alert: Your score has increased by +1! [Score: 4]〉
〈System Alert: All Stage 0 enemies have been eliminated! [Time: 0 Minute(s) 13 second(s)]〉
〈System Alert: Time remaining until Stage 1 enemies spawn: 17 seconds!〉
"Assuming a higher stage group of enemies spawn every thirty seconds, we may have to face Stage 19 enemies to reach the ten-minute mark. The difficulty will undoubtedly spike as time goes on. But, the main problem is the recording of Resseki never specified how many points or how long we have to survive to receive what they left buried here. We could use more details, but my gut is telling me we're not going to get them." Niflheim commented.
"Your gut is probably not wrong. However, it makes no difference. Our goal is to survive as long as possible, and I intend to do just that." Izroth stated.
In truth, Izroth was not interested in the inheritance left behind by Resseki and Kiren, but more so in the training puppets. In fact, he even hoped that the difficulty would rise!
'This is perfect. Not only is this room good for refining my current sword forms, but if I can use this opportunity to learn the final two, I can finally complete the Way of the Heavenly Sword. Only at that point can I access the full potential of my sword forms.'
