I, The Anomalous God

Chapter 16 Durano, the Half-Orc

John travelled for more than an hour after his encounter with General Tampoff. “The Dark Elves are not friendly! Not friendly! I knew Dark Elves are not to be trusted but what did I do? Dammit!” he mumbled.

“Hm?”

Ting! Danger! 

His Danger Sense skill flared. Something was coming at him from above. He hurriedly leaped forwards to dodge.

Boom! A small dust cloud scattered in the air. “Ho!? You were able to dodge!” Said a man’s voice. It was a familiar voice.

“The hell? Eunich?!” John was startled. It was the butler to the King.

“You think you can easily escape us?” Eunich said to him. “A human child like you is truly dangerous to be left alone, therefore, I am going to end you here!”

“Ha? Wait! I thought you were told to bring me back?” John asked. The Dark Elf General wanted to bring him back, but this Eunich says differently.

“I was told to, yes. But nipping a potential threat from the root is a great contribution as well. Besides, I can just report that some beasts, unfortunately, killed you while on the run.” Eunich said smiling.

“Appraise!” John secretly thought.

Ting!

Name: Eunich Te’alino

Nickname: Butler Executioner

Level: 124

Race: Dark Elf

Class: Assassin

Age:  227 years

Health: 5100

Mana: 1750

AP: 34700 (+500)

DP: 6850 (+150)

Strength: 500 (+500)

Dexterity: 160

Intelligence: 50

Vitality: 255

Wisdom: 50

Agility: 660 (+500)

Active Skills: ??

Passive Skills: ??

Title: Butler Executioner, ??, ??, ??

Title Skill: ??, ??

Status points: 0

Ting! Appraisal skill leveled up!

John did not mind the level up announcement because he was surprised at his opponent’s stats.

“This is crazy!” He muttered. “His nowhere close to mine but his AP is way freaking high! There is also 200 points disparity in our Strength and Agility stats!”

“What are you muttering about? Oh, right, humans pray when they are about to die! Kehehe!” Eunich slowly walks towards John.

“Hightened Sense: Sensitivity, Sight, Intuition, activate! Shadow Spike!” John made use of his four skills, mana manipulation, dark control, energy control and imagery to create spikes from the shadow.

Ting! Four-skill Combo success!

Ting! Skill Creator title in effect. Skill creation success. Will you name the skill?

“No time for that! Sprint!” John thought.

Ting! Coward title in effect. Running speed increased by 5%.

“Heh! That surprised me a bit! You really are strong for a human child! The more reason to kill you!” Eunich said from above the trees.

Woosh! Eunich disappeared from his spot above the trees and directly appeared in front of John. “Stop running!”

Bam! John was punched in the face. “Fu—argh!”

John was pushed far back and smashed onto a tree.

“Gah! That’s an insane damage!” Just with one punch, John’s HP went down almost half.

“Time to end this!” Eunich unsheathed his dagger and appeared next to John. “Goodbye, kid!”

“Shadow Hunt!”

Swish! John was able to dodge the s***h by sinking into his own shadow.

“Tsk!”

“He is too fast to have my attacks land! His strength is higher than mine as well! I only have a little more than half of my HP, another hit and its over for me!” John thought while he travelled inside his shadow. “I need to escape!”

=============

“Eunich! You did not capture him as well?” General Tampoff pointed when Eunich arrived at the village gate.

“I was close. He dove into his shadow and escaped. If I had those light balls, he wouldn’t have escaped me like that.” Eunich replied.

“Tsk! Having Svaltar’s skill made him slippery!” The General complained. “Whatever, her highness, Thasia is on his tail. Diving into his shadow or what, he won’t be able to escape her.”

“Hm. Even so, I feel the kid has some cards hidden. Her highness might find him troublesome as well. However, you are right. He can’t escape her.” Eunich commented.

=============

John was still riding his shadow while escaping. “I need to get away fast!” Is what he only thought.

“Area Sense!” His mind view of his surrounding changed. A three-dimensional image of the terrain appeared in his mind.

“Freezing Arrow!”

“Huh?” He heard a voice from atop the trees.

Swoosh! The arrow plunged into the ground where the shadow of a tree was cast. John was there. Sensing the danger, he leapt out from the shadow.

“Force Shield!” John made a 10-layered shield around him.

Swoosh! Tang… tang… c***k! Three arrows hit the shield and broke them. John slid back due to the impact.

“Oh, you managed to block my Piercing Arrows.” The voice said.

“Miss Thasia, I never thought you’d be this clingy. You chased after me!” John quipped.

Thasia emerged from behind a branch, atop the tree. “Don’t make things difficult for me, will you? Come back with me to the village. I promise you won’t get hurt, well, at least not too much.”

“Che, you Dark Elves are a scamming bunch! Especially that Svaltar! f**k, if I just didn’t listen to his request, I won’t be in this mess!” John complained.

“Sucks to be an i***t, but hey, we are grateful that you came, you know. We are so grateful someone convenient came just in time. So, will you come back to the village now?” Thasia smiled evily.

“Shadow Spike!” John made use of his newly acquired skill to surround Thasia with spikes made of shadows.

Ting! Skill name Shadow Spike confirmed.

Unfortunately, he hit nothing. Thasia was gone from the spot she once was. “Too slow!” She whispered in John’s ears.

“Sprint! Shadow Hunt!” John bolted away and dove into a shadow.

“Oh, that move again. It won’t work on me, you know. Light Arrow!” Thasia shot an arrow made from mana onto the shadow where John was.

Ting! Danger!

John’s danger sense alerted him, so he hurriedly jumped out of the shadow and just in time, the light arrow exploded. It extinguished the shadows.

“f**k! If I am going down, I am going down with a fight!” John thought angrily. “Appraise!”

Ting!

Name: Thasia Elmswood

Status: Enhanced α

Nickname: Shadow Huntress

Level: 87

Race: Dark Elf

Class: Hunter

Age:  118 years

Health: 12400

Mana: 17850

AP: 54200 (+700)

DP: 30250 (+550)

Strength: 10 (+500)

Dexterity: 510 (+1000)

Intelligence: 10 (+500)

Vitality: 120 (+500)

Wisdom: 10 (+500)

Agility: 360 (+1000)

Active Skills: ??

Passive Skills: ??

Title: Hunter in the Dark, ??, ??, ??

Title Skill: ??, ??

Status points: 0

John felt despair when he saw her status. It was insanely high. “How the hell is that possible? She’s only level 87!” He grimly thought.

“Did you just look into my stats? Are you surprised?” She snickered. “With that, you know you cannot escape me, right? Come back with me quietly.” She ordered.

“Her base stat is not high but those additional stats, that’s insane!” John mumbled. “What can I do in this situation?”

“So, how about it? Will you still struggle, or will you come back quietly?” She asked.

“Screw you!” John made a 20-layered Force Shield around him. “Dark Control! Flame Shot! Water Shot!” Darkness spread 10 meters from him and emerged like a dome. He also fired his flame and water spell at the same time making a smokescreen.

“Imagery! Doll Make!” Five golems that looked like a modern-day robot emerged from the ground.

“Hoh? A smokescreen and some puny golems, boring! Exploding Arrow!” She shot at the golems. The arrows exploded along with the golems.

John took the opportunity and jumped up. He immediately floated and used his telekinesis to fly into the sky.

“Wow! You have that kind of skill? But that still isn’t enough to escape from me. Freezing arrow!” She fired at John who was flying speedily to the sky.

“Force Shield!”

Tang…. tang...tang…crack…

One by one, the shields broke easily. “Air Shot!” John fired his wind spell to abruptly change his direction and dodge the freezing arrow. Thasia was chasing him on the ground. She was leaping from tree to tree and firing arrows at him.

“Squaawwk!” A large bird monster dove down and tried to attack John but was mistakenly hit by Thasia’s freezing arrow. The large monster bird immediately turned into an ice block and fell.

“Dammit!” John decided to dive back into the trees. He was an easy target in the sky. He dove into a tree’s shadow.

Thasia fired another volley of arrows. There was a light arrow mixed in that made John to leave the confines of the shadows.

He sprinted and made use of his parkour skill to skillfully bypass the hurdle of trees and branches.

“Run fast, but you can’t still escape from me!” Thasia called, still chasing after him.

Ting! Sprint skill leveled up.

Ting! Parkour skill leveled up.

The chase lasted for more than two hours and on their trail is a line of dead monsters.

“Aren’t you tired, kid?” Thasia called while still firing some freezing arrows at John.

“Leave me alone!” John was beginning to tire out. His mana is quickly depleting with his constant use of skills.

Swoosh!

“Ah!” John was finally hit on his thigh with a freezing arrow. He fell off the tree and dropped hard on the ground.

“Caught you!” Thasia smiled.

===========

Not far from where John and Thasia was, a bulky man emerged from a small, tattered house. “Why is it so noisy?” He complained.

“Oh? A dark elf came into my place?” He muttered when he saw Thasia from far away. “What is she doing here?” The man walked towards Thasia’s direction slowly. “I told to that old prick to never trespass within my land. Tsk! Well, it’s been too long since I have pummeled a dark elf!”

While speaking, he suddenly jumped forwards and vanished. The next moment, he was already 100 meters away from Thasia, hidden behind a thicket.

“A human child?!” He thought surprised when saw John.

“I told you, you can’t escape me.” Thasia said to John.

“Argh!” John groaned in pain. His thigh was slowly freezing.

“Should I help?” the bulky man thought.

============

“I am screwed!” John thought.

Ting! Pain Resistance skill leveled up.

Ting! Cold Resistance skill acquired.

“Yeah, as if announcing that would help me out of here!” John complained in his mind.

“I guess I have to knock you out or you won’t come back with me quietly, no?” Thasia said while she raised the bow made of mana and aimed it at John.

“Tsk! You Dark Elves sure are violent. You even dare to point that thing to a child.” The bulky man emerged from the thicket and berated Thasia.

“You!” Thasia was surprised when she saw the man. “Dammit! I did not notice I entered this man’s territory!” She thought grimly.

“Should I send you away or will you leave on your own?” the man gave Thasia options to choose.

“Wait, Durano! It was not my intention to barge in your land. I am only here to get this child!” She told him. “Even if I am enhanced like this, I still won’t be a match to this freak!” She warned herself.

“Hm?” Durano stared at John.

“A human?” John thought when he saw the bulky man who arrived. “Appraise!”

Ting! Appraisal impossible.

“Huh?” It was the first time he heard that announcement. He heard announcements like his level was not enough to appraise something, but never did it say impossible.

“Oho! Did you just try to appraise me, kid?” Durano said to John. He slowly walked towards him and when he arrived near John, he squatted and touched his head. “That is rude, you know.”

“Durano, my father will give you compensation for me unknowingly barging in your land and disturbing you. I just need that child and I will be gone.” Thasia explained.

“Hm… alright. Go, leave.” Durano answered.

“But… I need that child to come with me.”

“Okay. You stay here then.” Durano stood up and was about to walk towards her.

“F-fine! I will leave. However, I have a request.” She said to him.

“What is it?”

“Do not let the child leave. We will come back for him.”

“Oh? Whether this child leaves or not, I don’t care, he is not my property. Now, leave.” Durano answered her.

=============

“Svaltar, will the Wood Elves welcome us?” Arus asked in doubt. The Wood Elves and Dark Elves are not on friendly terms, despite being both elves.

“We have no choice but to gamble. The Wood Elves are the closest elven tribe to Darklia. If they hear what the King is planning, I am sure they will act to stop him.” Svaltar answered.

“I hope you are right, Svaltar.”

Soon, the group arrived at the Wood Elves Village gate. “Halt! What business do you have here, Dark Elves?” The guard on the gate asked.

“My friend! I am Svaltar Fleur of Darklia! I wish to speak to your King. This matter is of much importance! Please, relay my request!” Svaltar answered.

After a few moments, the village gate opened. “You may enter!” The guard called.

At the entrance, another guard blocked the group and told them, “Please leave all your weapons here. We assure you; we will return them when you leave.”

The dark elves looked at each other and to Svaltar, “Let’s follow their rules. Leave your weapons!” Svaltar said to them.

The group of 8 dark elves followed the order and left their weapon. “Svaltar, are you sure about this? We’ll be defenseless!” Arus whispered.

“For them to trust us, we must trust them first. Let’s go!” Svaltar’s reply.

===========

“Father!” Thasia stormed inside the Dark Elf’s King’s hall.

“Thasia, you are back.”

“Bad news, father!” She kneeled in front of his father, King. “The human child entered Durano’s territory. I was caught by him chasing the child. He kept the child inside his land.”

“What?!” The Dark Elf King blurted.

“I told him we will compensate him for my trespass, and we’ll get the child back.” Thasia reported.

“Hm… that man will not be easy to handle. Even if I appear myself, he will not yield! Dammit!” The King muttered.

“What do we do, father?”

The King stood up angrily and left the hall.

=========

In Borina Cave, “Kafhlear!” The communication crystal ball lit up and the voice of the King was heard.

“Oh, my King! You seemed to be in a bad mood, what happened?” He asked.

“The kid found himself a shelter in Durano’s land!” The King answered.

“What?! The kid escaped and landed in Durano’s hands! This is quite… bad for the plan.”

“How about Svaltar? Did you take care of him?”

“Ah… about that…” Kafhlear was hesitant to tell the king that Svaltar escaped as well and the soldiers he sent were vainly killed.

“What is it?” The King urged him.

“He escaped…”

“What?! This i***t!” The King blurted in anger.

“Good news, though, the first batch is ready!” Kafhlear changed the subject to his experiments.

“Ha… ha… ha…” The King panted in anger. “Send me the device! We’ll test it on Durano!”

“Aye, right away, my King!” Kafhlear hurriedly answered.

========

“Thank you.” John said to the bulky man.

“What are you thanking me for? I did not do anything.” Durano answered.

“…” John hesitated. He wanted to ask the man if he is able to stay in his land for a bit, but he was afraid. He was sure the man is insanely powerful.

“What is it?” Durano asked as if he knew that John wanted to ask him something.

“May I stay in your territory? Just until I recuperate.” John finally asked.

“Do not pick the berries. I am saving them for someone.” Durano said and left.

“That was a yes, perhaps?” John thought. “Ah, this hurts so much!” He groaned as he tried to move his frozen thigh.

“Appraise!” John tried to find out if there is any information regarding how to unfreeze his thigh. The ice was still moving and if left alone, soon, his left leg will be frozen.

Ting! Freezing. Resulted to a hit from the Freezing Arrow. Freezing progress every minute. Consume Defrost Pill or use Cure spell to heal.

“Damn, I don’t have those! Should I really cut my thigh?” John thought grimly. But that is when a small paper ball was thrown into his lap.

“Eat that.” Said the bulky man to John. The man then left again after.

“What’s this?” John opened the paper ball and found a pill. He hurriedly appraised the item.

Ting!

Name: Defrost Pill

Grade: Rare

Quality: High

Description: A pill made from an herbal mix of Frost Heart petals, Summer Tail, Volcan Spring water and Peach. It can cure freezing status. Effects will show 10 minutes after it is consumed.

“Thank you, sir!” John called out when he read the appraisal. He hurriedly consumed the pill. After 10 minutes, the pill was taking effect, the freezing stopped progressing and his thigh started to regain its normal temperature.

By morning, John found his thigh completely normal. The freezing was gone, and he can move normally.

“Finally!” John stood up and was about to leave the area when he thought, “If I leave now, Thasia or the other Dark Elves might come again for me.” He glanced at the direction where the bulky man went yesterday. “I should ask him if I could stay here for a bit.”

John turn back and walk towards the bulky man’s direction. Soon, he saw a small hut. The bulky man was chopping wood on the side.

“You are still here.” The bulky man greeted.

“Ah, yes. Good morning, sir, and thank you for that pill.” John greeted back and give his thanks.

“I am John. May I know your name, sir?” John tried to ask.

“Hm? Me? I am just a nobody.” The man continued chopping wood.

“Ah… I see…” John was loss for words. It was an awkward moment. The bulky man continued chopping without giving any attention to John. He was left to stand there. He got the urge to just leave but his feet refused to move.

“Have you eaten yet?” The bulky man suddenly asked.

“Ah…no, not yet sir.” He answered.

“Go inside. Help yourself, there is still stew in the pot.” The bulky man offered.

“C-can I, sir?” John asked to confirm.

“Go.” The bulky man answered without looking at John. He continued chopping wood. John went inside and found himself in the kitchen. He helped himself of the food the bulky man offered.

After a while, the man came inside the hut. He sat down oppose to John. “Tell me, why is a human kid like you in this place?” the man asked.

“…” John took time to answer. He was trying to decide what to tell the man. He knew this man is powerful. If he found that he is lying, the man might snap and attack him.

“A-aren’t you a human, sir?” John asked instead of answering the man’s question.

“Oh? I am not entirely human. I am a half-orc.” He answered. “My name is Durano.” The man finally introduced.

“G-greetings, sir!” John said, although he thought the order was a bit incorrect.

“Its alright. Sit down and continue eating your food.” The man said to him. “Back to my previous question, why are you here? In Avalund?”

“Ah, that… I do not know, sir. I just woke up inside Borina Cave.” John decided to tell that story.

“Hm… so someone, purposely brought you to Borina Cave and left you there?” The man was skeptical but accepted the story at the end.

“And what is it with you and the Dark Elves? What do they want with you?”