It's a beautiful morning. Birds are singing, and flowers are blooming. On days like these, it gives me hope. Not today though. Today could very well be my last if I'm not careful. I have to hold my resolve though. I can't let death scare me; otherwise, I'll never be able to grow.
I still have a date to go on after this. I can't allow myself to die. I remember her face when I woke up from the coma; I won't make her cry again. On my way to the training area, I ran into Merlin. "Did you study the books I gave you?" I gave him a thumbs-up. "I studied the book I could read."
"Well, that should be enough for you to survive. Lance said he would not try to kill you. Only injure you. Though knowing him, he's bound to go overboard eventually." I could only look at Merlin with a blank stare. "And you agreed for me to spar with him? What is actually fucking wrong with you?" A blue flame suddenly appeared in his hand. "Are you sure you want to talk to me like that?"
"I don't feel like dying yet, so I'm good." The blue flame eased away from his hand, dissipating it completely. "Wise choice." We started walking to the training area together. Alice jumped at me the minute she saw me. "Damon! Are you ready for our date later?" She's too close. "Firstly, personal space, please. Secondly, yes, I'm ready for our date later."
"If he survives his sparring match with Lance." Of course Merlin had to butt in. Why did Merlin have to butt in? I blankly stared at Merlin. "Why would you agree to that, Damon?" She's looking at me with pouty eyes. Why is life this unfair to me? "I didn't have a choice. They arranged this without my knowledge."
"That's so unfair. Lancelot is an Ace. Meanwhile, you've only had 3 days of training." Well, 3 days and however long I was in the Realm with my supporting deity. "Why would you do that to him, Merlin?" Merlin's expression changed from blank to, scared? Merlin could actually be scared? "W-well, he was improving so fast, and I thought that him getting some combat experience would be good for him, so I asked Lance to go easy on him in a fight, and he agreed."
For how scary Merlin was earlier, he really got scared like a girl. Wait, like a girl, never seen his hair, wears a baggy cloak at all times, magic blurs most of his face. "Merlin, are you a girl?" The blue flame reappeared in her hand. "I am, so what? Do you have a problem with that?" I shook my head vigorously. "No, no, no, not at all."
"Good, now shut up and follow me to the sparring area." I shut up and kept following her. We eventually made it to the area. Lancelot was already waiting for us. More specifically, he was waiting for me. The militia of the capital were here as well. Guess they wanted to watch a show. They weren't the only ones watching. [Live Feed Opened, Watching Deities: 1k+]
They could at least be civilized with the chat. [The Hammer of Lightning and Thunderbids you a good trip to Valhalla.] [The King of the Underworldsays he will await your arrival.] Most of them are hoping I die. That definitely fills me with hope. [The Great Sage Equal to the Heavensclaims the God Candidate will overcome this obstacle.]
There's only one person who gets that nickname across all gods. The Monkey King, the Great Sage Equal to the Heavens, Sun Wukong. Sun Wukong had said I would overcome this obstacle. [Many Deities are calling the Monkey King an idiot.] [The One with a Soul of Chaos expresses his support in you.] [All Deities in the stream are stunned by the presence of The One with a Soul of Chaos.]
I've never heard about this one before. I'll have to ask him about them later. "The match rules are simple. You have to land one clean blow on me to win. The fight ends when either you are no longer standing or you hit me, understand?" I nodded to him. "I understand." I still can't believe that Merlin got me into this mess. That'll be the last time I let her make any plans for me. I should take out my sword and get ready then. [All Skills Activated]
[Many Deities are surprised that you can use so many spells and skills at once.] "Looks like you trained hard for this fight. Don't let your efforts be all in vain. Give me your all!" 5 minutes. That's as long as I can keep all of these spells up with my current Mana. Let's see how this goes. "Ready? 3, 2, 1, go!"
Game plan: dash towards him, punch him in the face, and end the fight. Wait, where did he go? I look around for Lancelot, not being able to see him anywhere. Suddenly, he dashed out of nowhere towards me. I parried his swing and started swinging at him. The sound of swords clashing being prominent. "Nice sword you got there, Damon. Where'd you get it?"
"None of your business." [Fireball] "Try dodging that!" He swiped it away with his hand and backed off. "You seem sure that you'll be able to land a hit on me." He started motioning his hand towards himself. "Come get me." I dashed at him, sword in front of me. Swing. Another clash, and then another. 3 minutes left.
The fight couldn't keep going like this. I needed a new spell, one he hasn't seen me use yet. [Waterball] I'll hold this in my hand for now." A Waterball? That's a decent spell, but it won't be nearly enough. [Obtained New Spell, Ice Blast] [Replacing Old Spell] [Ice Blast] He blocked the spell with his sword, but it covered his sword in ice. "That's new, but you'll need more than that."
Dammit, there's 2 minutes left; I have to try as hard as I can. I dash towards him again. He parries all my attacks. Not even the shockwaves from the swings made him flinch. [Many Deities are laughing at your efforts.] "You really aren't letting up. I applaud your efforts, Damon." 1 minute left. "And I won't give up until you kill me."
He swings his sword at me, pushing me back. He started to go on the offensive now. This is bad, really bad. I can't beat him like this. I did so much work and trained so hard just to get nowhere. [All Skills Deactivated] He swung towards me; I barely blocked it. I can't let myself die here. No matter what, I have to win. "I won't allow myself to lose!" I swung my sword at him. He parried the blow and sent my sword flying.
"Looks like you lose. You did well." [Many Deities are waiting for your demise.] [The One Who Knows All tells you to try harder.] [One Private Message received] [I have an offer for you since I didn't sponsor you before. I will become your supporting deity and give you my story skill if you can overcome this obstacle. Fail to do so, and I receive your soul as payment. Do we have a deal?] Lancelot swung his sword, slicing my chest open. I fell over on my back, coughing from the pain. "Deal."
[System Message: You have met all requirements to evolve yourself further. Would you like to proceed?] Well, call me a lucky bitch. Proceed with the update. [System Updated, 2.5% Mana Unlocked] [All Skills/Spells have leveled up from such an increase of Mana] [Passive Healing Level 7 Reactivated] [Passive Regeneration Level 6 Reactivated] [Mana increase evolved Spell: Tempest Cloak to, Tempest Armour] [Mana evolved Skill: Sword Dance to, Sword Song] I started to stand up. I could see the green aura around me, but before I could react, Lancelot dashed to me.
"You really should've stayed down." [Mana Armour Level 5, Tempest Armour Level 1 Activated] This blade stopped completely when the swing was about to touch me. "Let me see you GRIT THOSE TEETH!" I threw a punch at his face while he was still in shock. He didn't dodge this time. He got launched straight into the wall of the training area. [All Deities sit there silently, stunned you overcame such an uphill hurdle.] [All Skills Deactivated]
I can't believe I actually won. He may not have been trying, but it was still incredible. I threw my hand up in victory. [System evaluating achievement] [Global Message: Damon Asiren is the first God Candidate to achieve Divinity.] "I achieved Divinity?" [System Report: Defeated an Ace in combat; restrictions include: Not a fight to the death, Ace held back tremendously; Reward 1x Divinity]
[Status Window]
[Demigod, Name: Damon Asiren]
[Level: 68]
[Grade: 3]
[Divinity: 1]
[Strength: 145]
[Agility: 165]
[Defense: 158]
[Stamina: 188]
[Magic Aptitude: 100%]
[Mana: Immeasurable, 2.5% active]
[Many Deities are impressed with your achievement.] [The One with a Soul of Chaos sent a gift: Bringer of Chaos.] That's right, we made a deal. I had forgotten it in the heat of the moment. [Private Message: As were the terms of our deal, I am now your supporting deity. Use my skill properly.] I will certainly try.
"You did well, Damon. You've earned this victory. Next time I won't go easy on you, though." I stood straight and tall. This feeling, it's pride, isn't it? "Next time? Are you sure you want to go again after that punch?" He burst into laughter. "I'll let you go on that one; you did earn it."
"Damon! You really did it!" Alice grappled me from behind. "Yeah, I guess I did. Let's go on that date now." She jumped in excitement. "Yeah! Let's go to the tavern close to the castle. It has some really good steak." "I'll just have to trust your word on that Alice. Let's go."