The lich cast a glance at the skeleton mage, it nods, signaling the start of the third trial.

  Zaed nudged Greo awake. As the lich’s shadowy hands touched Greo’s shoulder, his whole body shivered, making him stand up, readying his daggers instinctively.

  “Oh, it was you. Sorry,” regaining his senses, he returned his daggers to his waist.

  Please, don’t be, Zaed’s voice echoed in his mind.

  “We will now begin the third trial!” the skeleton mage announced, as soon as the Undead King reappeared on its throne.

  The third trial is another battle, but this time, it’s Greo and Zaed against seven skeletons—far more powerful than last the skeleton on his first trial.

  At the rear is a duo of skeleton mages, both exuding an enormous amount of mana. In front of them was a trio of skeletons—a bow-wielding skeleton archer in the center, flanked by dagger-wielding skeleton assassins. Leading in the front are two skeleton swordsmen, with their gleaming swords pointed at Greo.

  “Their numbers and power increased more than twice? This might be troublesome, but I’m counting on you, Zaed.”

  I will not let you down.

  The two then went into formation, with Greo taking the lead and Zaed at the rear. The sight of a summoner wielding two different daggers with a sinistrous lich looming behind him struck fear into their enemies.

  Using the same earth bullet as the first trial, the skeleton mage signaled the start of the third trial.

  Unlike his previous battle, Greo did not immediately rush in nor cast any enhancement magic. As though copying the duo, the skeletons are all observing them, anticipating their next movements.

  All of a sudden, Zed raised his staff and cast a spell.

  [Orb of Darkness!]

  Four orbs of condensed darkness materialized over Greo’s head, streaking toward the seven skeletons. The skeleton archer, reacted instantly, shooting four fire-infused arrows that shattered each orb mid-air.

  Before the last arrow struck, two skeleton assassins darted forward, closing their gap between Greo. Zaed noticed their approach and swiftly cast a protective spell.

  [Malignant Barrier!]

  “Thanks, Zaed. [Body Enhancement: Strength!] [Body Enhancement: Speed!]”

  The skeleton assassins’ blades clashed with the barrier, halting their movements. This gave Greo an ample amount of time to cast two buff magic on himself. As Greo made his move to counterattack, the skeleton assassins abruptly leapt back, making way for the incoming assault of [Ice Javelin] and [Flame Spear] hurtling toward the barrier, producing a loud explosion and steam upon impact.

  Such weak magic. None of them could ever hope to penetrate my barrier.

  Despite the tremendous output that the spells had, Zaed’s barrier remained unscathed.

  Beneath the swirling smoke, Greo burst forward at breakneck speed, driving his dagger toward the skeleton swordsman on the right side. Steel clashed as the skeleton parried the strike with its blade.

  Before Greo could press the attack, the second swordsman loomed overhead, its sword arcing down towards his neck. Reacting instantly, Greo twisted his trapped dagger free, swung it upward, and met the descending blade with a shower of sparks. Seizing the opening, Greo lunged in, his left dagger flashing in an upward arc. Bone cracked and the skeleton’s skull flew from its shoulders, clattering to the ground.

  Before Greo could have the chance to retreat, the skeleton archer fired an arrow infused with wind magic, followed by the same powerful [Ice javelin] and [Flame Spear] from the skeleton mages. As if that wasn’t enough, the two skeleton assassins flanked him from behind, cutting off his escape.

  “This is ba—“

  A cold, rumbling voice echoed in the chamber.

  “[Teleport!]”

  All of a sudden, Greo was engulfed in a black mist and disappeared—reappearing in front of Zaed, above a magic circle.

  The [Ice Javelin] and [Flame Spear] that would’ve otherwise hit the skeletons, disappeared mid-air—dispelled by the skeleton mages and the arrow was simply flicked aside by the skeleton assassin.

  “What the!? Was that your spell, Zaed?”

  Yes. Although only at a small proximity, I could teleport anything.

  “That’s amazing… That saved me, thank you.”

  It is my pleasure to be of use.

  An idea came into Greo’s mind.

  “Hey. Can you use it again?”

  Yes, however, it will take three minutes before I can use it again as it is a powerful spell.

  “Three minutes… Alright, for now, follow my lead,” Greo commanded as he charged toward the group of skeletons.

  As you wish.

  Greo fired [Earth Bullet], [Water Ball], and [Mud Ball] consecutively, but it was all either blocked by a barrier or slashed by a blade of the skeletons.

  Zaed, I’ll get the attention of the three melee skeletons, you take care of the other three, Greo ordered telepathically.

  Understood.

  Greo stopped his barrage of magic and bolted in—without a care about the incoming projectiles. He had only summoned Zaed a few hours earlier, but he knows that he can trust him. That is not to say that his trust to Zaed is as deep as his trust to Hollo’s, but even so, he’s confident that Zaed got his back.

  With such thought in mind, he continues forward.

  Incoming spells met counter-spells mid-air, while arrows burned to ash before reaching him. Magic walls shattered, and towering pillars of fire and ice crumbled in the chaos.

  Now, the skeletons mages’ and skeleton archer’s animosity are now shifted onto Zaed. They understood that no matter how much they attack Greo, all of it will just get interrupted as long as Zaed stands.

  In no time, Greo reached the skeleton swordsman and the swing of his dagger was met with a blade. Greo grew in a short amount of time, even if he was fighting three agile and powerful skeletons at the same time, he was able to parry, dodge, and do a counterattack, albeit barely.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Sounds of blades clashing and magic going off filled the chamber, with each and every explosion shaping the floor of the bone-clad made-up arena.

  As the skeleton swordsman swung its sword downward, Greo shifted his body to the right, narrowly avoiding its attack. He attempted to cut the skeleton swordsman’s neck but his dagger was blocked by a skeleton assassin behind it.

  Sensing danger behind him, a sudden chill run down his spine. Instinct kicked in—he spun and delivered a sharp kick, sending the skeleton assassin staggering.

  Greo Astral… The Undead King silently observed, intrigued. His strikes are becoming sharper and his movements becoming more refined. Just like his father—given the right circumstances, he grows at an exponential rate.

  Greo immediately followed up with “[Swamp!] [Mud Ball!] [Mud Ball!]” to the staggering skeleton assassin, trapping it in place.

  “Zaed!” Greo shouted.

  Zaed hurled a colossal ball of water, fire, earth, and wind towards the skeleton mages and skeleton archer then cast [Ice Prison!], encasing the two skeletons, that Greo was fighting, in a cage of ice.

  Greo cast “[Earth Bullet!]” consecutively as he made his way towards the trapped skeleton. The skeleton assassin easily deflected each and every earth bullet, not noticing that Greo was already in front, ready to make a horizontal slash at its neck.

  A resounding clang echoed as their daggers clashed with one another. Without removing the pressure on his right dagger, he delivered a kick to its side that was blocked with its bony hand. Using the dagger on his left hand, he cut the skeleton assassin’s head in a flash, leaving it rolling on the floor.

  Greo thought of drinking a mana potion for a moment before dismissing the idea.

  My armor can regenerate my mana for me in the meantime, he thought.

  Finally, the remaining skeleton swordsman and skeleton assassin broke free from the cage of ice the Zaed made. As soon as they got out, they immediately dashed towards Greo. Once again, their blades clashed.

  Now that their number has been reduced by one, Greo has some leeway now to implement magic on his attacks. A slash is then followed with either a [Mud Ball] or [Earth Bullet], sparingly to save his mana.

  Greo’s repertoire is limited up to tier two magic when it comes to offensive, defensive, and buff spells due to him being a summoner. But Greo doesn’t let this hold him back. If one of his masters, Victoria, sees him in a pathetic state, he would never hear the end of it.

  With such thought in mind, he leapt back and hastily recast “[Body Enhancement: Speed] [Body Enhancement: Strength]”

  As he finished his buffs, the two skeletons caught up and simultaneously attacked him. Greo noticed something unusual, their strikes are much more powerful now compared to their strikes earlier. Their blows are heavy and their movements are faster. It’s as if he went back to fighting the three of them earlier.

  My deepest apologies, master. I accidentally let the other skeleton mage cast buff on those two, Zaed apologized.

  “So that’s what it was.”

  Don’t worry about it, keep stalling them for me, Greo commanded. Since they were too far apart, he communicated with Zaed telepathically.

  Understood.

  Greo was a little bit occupied that he did not notice the swing of the skeleton swordsman aimed at his torso. Barely reacting on time, he was able to block the assault with his right dagger. What he did not expect was the skeleton assassin that popped up behind the skeleton swordsman, digging its dagger on his left shoulder.

  “Agh!” Greo cried as the dagger left his hand, distancing himself.

  Blood gushed out of his shoulder, crawling down to his arm. The attack left his arm immobile, unable to move even by an inch.

  The skeleton swordsman didn’t let up and pursued Greo. Sending strike after strike after strike at him. The flurry of attacks left Greo covered with numerous cuts.

  Before the skeleton swordsman was able to swing down its sword, Greo was able to cast “[Earth Wall]” between the two of them, interrupting its attack, giving him a chance to increase their distance between them.

  He briskly took a health potion from his magic bag. It will not restore the movement of his arm, but it will at least alleviate the pain, stop the blood from spilling out, and close the small cuts he sustained.

  As he was about to bring the potion to his mouth, a dagger flew toward his direction, broke the vial, and grazed his fingers. He looked towards the direction where the dagger came from and saw the skeleton assassin standing behind the skeleton swordsman standing in place.

  “Heh… Not letting me ease the pain, I see,” Greo’s body shook, putting his dagger back to his waist. His entire demeanor changed and anger took over him. “You’re dead!”

  His speed and strength increased drastically. It’s not a skill nor a spell, it was just him simply driven by anger. He had tried to stay calm throughout the whole trial to assess things clearly, but there’s a limit to how calm he can be.

  In the long years of his training throughout different masters, Greo was not entirely fond of the martial arts he learned. It was not because he despises it, but because of the harsh training that he went through that he developed what you would call a trauma. That’s why he only kept the basics and shelved the rest of it at the back of his brain and continued on using dagger.

  He wasn’t angry at the skeletons that they were able to wound him so badly, he was angry because they pushed him far enough for him to use the martial arts he tried to forget.

  Maybe it’s time to face it head on…, he thought.

  In the blink of an eye, Greo closed the distance between himself and the skeleton swordsman. Spinning from left to right, he delivered a powerful kick, sending the skeleton swordsman crashing into the skeleton assassin behind it. He kicked off the ground and went into pursuit and cast “[Earth Wall!]”—but instead of the usual vertical wall, he made it erupt from the ground diagonally, flinging them back toward him. Greo abruptly stopped, raised his right leg overhead and when the skeletons were hurtled close enough, he brought his heel down with bone-shattering force.

  The kick was powerful enough to create a small crater with the skeletons in the center of it. Dust accumulated and Greo leapt back, waiting for it to disperse.

  A few seconds after, the sounds of bone clattering came out of the dust and there, he saw the skeleton swordsman barely standing. It lost its right arm, its skull has cracks, and its rib cage was missing bits. Greo nonchalantly fired six consecutive [Earth Bullet] at it. The skeleton swordsman, being able to barely lift its swords, was hit with all of Greo’s bullet, shattering its skull, arm, legs and spine.

  Without any enemies left in front of him, Greo was able to chug two health potions and one mana potion.

  When he glanced at the place where Zaed was fighting he noticed that one of the skeleton mages was missing and that the remaining skeletons are now floating, likely because of the skeleton mage.

  Zaed... He’s not trying to attack them even once. All he’s doing is interrupt their magic and arrows mid-air. Then, was it because of the four element spell that he hurled at them earlier? He asked himself.

  Greo cast “[Earth Spike!]” beside him and a few jagged rocks protruded from the floor. He kicked each and every spiky rocks at its base until he accumulated a total of three rocks.

  Greo tossed two mid-air and kicked them one by one at their bottom and hurled the last one with his hand—sending them toward the skeleton mage and skeleton archer at an incredible speed and immediately followed behind it.

  The skeleton archer noticed the rocks flying at their direction and loosed three magic-infused arrows.

  Greo smiled and shouted. “Now, Zaed!”

  [Teleport!] Zaed sent Greo in the air behind the skeleton mage, it was then followed with [Earth Wall] that quickly shot up behind Greo.

  When Greo’s feet touched the wall Zaed cast [Air Blast] at the same time Greo kicked the wall. The extreme wind pressure immensely increased his speed.

  It all happened in an instant.

  Greo tightly clenched his fist as he approached the skeleton mage.

  The skeleton mage turned its head, but it was all too late. Its skull was greeted with Greo’s fist, breaking it into pieces. Whilst still mid-air, he used the skeleton mage’s body as a foothold and jumped toward the skeleton archer.

  It pulled its bowstring and infused the arrow with fire magic. Before it was able to let the arrow fly, both of its arms and bow was hit with Zaed’s [Ignition] a fire spell that shoots out like a wide laser in a straight line.

  “It’s over!” Greo yelled as he grabbed the skeleton archer’s skull and pushed it down the ground.

  The earth slightly shook upon impact, smoke and dust kicked up. When the smoke cleared, the skeleton archer’s body that was demolished—not just its skull—became visible.

  Of course, the stunt he pulled also left him hurt and panting. “Ha… Ha…” He fell into his butt and raised his hand into a fist to Zaed who immediately came over him. “Hahaha… Nice work.”

  Zaed was stunned for a few seconds before realizing what the gesture meant. He curled his shadowy hand into a fist and met his master’s hand.

  For some reason, even though he should not be able to feel anything, this interaction felt warm to Zaed.

  “Ahahaha!” The Undead King’s laughter roared. “Beautiful performance, Greo Astral. You continue to exceed my expectations. But…”

  The dungeon started shaking.

  “It seems like our time is up. Take this,” the Undead King sent an envelope on his way. “Do not open it until you get to the surface.”

  “What!? What’s happening!?” Greo asked, confused.

  “I would’ve loved to continue nurturing you here, but your love one doesn’t feel the same,” the Undead King looked up.

  Does he mean Aelee…? Damn it! What’s actually happening here?

  “Worry not, Greo Astral. Whoever is pulling you out from here will give you an explanation.”

  Greo did not notice it due to the confusion, but Zaed made his way and entered his shadow.

  It didn’t take long before a brilliant light shone on him, pulling him up.

  “Well then, Greo Astral. I bid you a farewell,” the Undead King watched as Greo getting pulled up. “It’s been fun.”

  When Greo looked down, he did not see the usual shadowy figure that he once saw, but rather, a face of man.

  A human with a scar that went across his nose.

  “Huh…?”