ChaseR

Lessa's order didn't enthuse Chase all that much, but he didn't say anything. It was all done with good intentions, so he'd take it- better enjoy the meeting than try to rain on her parade more. The whole levels matter seemed to have filled in for that as much as anything else he could say wrong. "... Yeah. Levels aren't the most important thing, but you can't rely on others all the time. I'm not strong enough to do a floor raid no matter my level, so it's not enough."

It sounded like a far fetched request, and it really was. He knew no progress would ever get him that far. "I'm just looking to be able to control what's going on around me. Kill monsters with no trouble and keep people safe. And from killing me or others. It's scary that there's killers here. Even now.", he ranted slightly more before sighing, looking down at the counter and remembering about that night terror in his house, when he'd thought someone broke in and couldn't do anything. Even waking up from that nightmare was horrible. "I've been on my own, few friends here. Stuck to doing quests as a distraction, so now I'm feeling pretty... alone? Done? Not sure how to say it."

"English- what easter egg, what's a donkey kong and what's a katzoo?", he groaned and asked him, giving him a somewhat tired glance. At least it was easy to see that he himself wasn't being outright aggressive. Even if his attitude really was there after all, it was more so cause effort only gets you so far. The rest needed time, so here's to hoping the two got along well enough to make room for said time.

The two were in combat before Chase could even understand it himself, looking at whatever Freyd made show up in his hand. Now there was a huge question that took precedence before anything else. "What in the mother of fuck happened to your sword?". His weapon still seemed the same- blue's, that is- as he launched an attack to the bandits, the light forming his blade only for the final slash, resulting in three bandits being wiped out. The survivor tried to take his chance and sneak an attack in, but Chase was able to move to the side at the last moment, groaning. "My armor is now cloth and we don't get SP but EXP, so skills are limited. Not sure what I can pull with this- our HP is tiny, too.", he kept the conversation going very idly, watching more bandits come out from the camps and rush towards the duo.

The last thing that Chase wanted on top of an update that was looking to wipe out what little gamer he'd managed to birth in himself, was Freyd. And there he was in all his glory, sliding right into his inbox and getting a groan out of him. He looked at the message for a short while, considering deleting it, maybe just opening it and closing it before he could read any of the garbage written down inside. His frustrations with Freyd were far back enough that he didn't even care about that much- he was more bothered with Raidou and the rest, considering how they handled the whole matter. And involved Mari into it, too.

Menacingly glaring down the mail for a short while, he ended up making his mind and opening it up, reading it in full. Silence. He wasn't really sure what he could type in response, what to say and/or do. "... F-Fucking annoying, god damn it.", he grumbled in the back of his mind and made sure to equip his newly tiered up gear, grunting and exiting his estate as he began to move towards the ninth. And upon reaching the settlement, there he was, Zoro himself. "... There's plenty of monsters just as annoying as you. I wish you'd get out of the way, but that means more annoying monsters for me. Let's get this over with.", he growled lowly and huffed, knowing that just being angry at him all this time wouldn't cut it. And even though he did give Chase the chance to literally stab him in the back during the raid, he'd never take that route. Nobody was better left dead than alive, even if he wished there was an exception for him specifically, deep down inside. "They've changed the monkey quest too. Everything is different.", he tried to share what little he knew about the new system to Freyd, stuffing both of his hands in his jacket's pockets. "Any idea what the hell EXP is and how we get it?"

With the closing of the window, that meant the quest was over. He hadn't seen any confirmation of a new extra skill like Shatter being learned yet though. That's when Sewallus surprised him by getting up, dusting himself and holding his axe by the very end of its hilt, using it to almost balance himself as he closed his eyes and let out a deep exhale. "I did, before we engaged in battle with the Monkey King, promise to help you learn how to use my skill. Shatter. You didn't get to see it in battle today, but it's an ability that helps me in battle by lowering my opponent's mitigation upon landing a hit successfully."

Now, he straightened up. This was the part where he wanted to keep his ears on the ready, and his body too in order to learn. "Can you show me?", he asked the warrior, and there was no response. Instead, he picked up his axe and turned to one of the trees around them left in tact, letting out a sigh and assuming a battle ready stance. With his eyes closed, he inhaled before exhaling and opening his eyes, focused and with a stable look before he swung his battle-axe right towards it. Parts of the tree came out, as they should have, and a lot of the splinters from the log got chipped off violently, flying away. What gave the skill's usage away was a faint, pink trail that the attack left behind. "The destructive power of my hit was amplified by the Shatter skill. Try it yourself.", he urged Chase, and he accepted. With some neck stretches, he prepared to get down to business and try this out, holding his sword in his own stance- whatever made him feel most comfortable should work. "Anything goes, right?"

There was no doubt about that last point he made. Sewallus was looking to get killed more than anything if his behavior served as any form of an indicator. He wasn't weak, but he was definitely taking risky moves that were unnecessary, too. High risk and low reward don't go hand in hand together. "... I believe I'm already better. I... Apologies. I didn't mean to.", he replied with a hint of shame in his voice even now, but not at the monkey- more so himself. The only way to make it up to Chase now, was to not repeat that with anything else in the future.

"C-Come on, cut the apologies. It's okay. Just... don't do that again.", he tried to settle him down as best as he could, doing his best for what was his worst ability- calming down people and trying to comfort them. "I will not. Now, Remington can enjoy the eighth again. Get back to studying about Florenthia and tell us all we need to know about the beasts and animals around the settlement so we can stay protected.". Way to always look at the bright side, at the very least. He wouldn't be able to do too well with a depressed hulk next to him, either way. Not that there was much to do, although one thing really did come to blueberry's mind as soon as he began to think about it. "Say, could-", he started to ask only to get interrupted. The paladin stood up and coughed, looking at the boy. "Before you say anything... Thanks. For helping me take down the monster- as if you didn't do that alone- and saving my life. I owe you.". And with his grateful thanking, came the window with the rewards for the boy. Just the quest's consumable, he'd already gotten its SP before the change was made to what seemed to be... EXP? What really was even happening anymore?

Funny enough, it were as though the sword answered his pleas. When he needed it the most for once during his stay in Aincrad, it woke up to the sound of his voice and began to glow brightly, its form restored to what seemed like an even bigger blade than before- and it ran right through the monster's body, cutting it sideways in half. The beast stood still with its hands ready to slam down on Sewallus and put an end to him, but it seemed to have been too slow. Or unlucky, depends on how one looked at this situation.

Now the real question. Who was more surprised now? The King, Chase, or the half dead paladin? More than half dead, given how low his health had dropped. Rolling up his sleeves, Chase groaned and sheathed his blade, looking at the man in the heavy armor who returned the glance in awe. "... You... just vanished it with a single strike..?", he asked and fell back on his rear, dropping his axe next to him and laying down on the ground. Although the bluehead wanted to shout at him and throw a fit at his stupidity, at least this whole scenario was over. What was it, that he was an NPC and couldn't think straight, or was he just that stupidly stubborn? "Yes, that's why I asked you to stay to the side for a bit. I have around double your health and a little more, I could take the blows with ease. You put yourself in a lot of danger, Sewallus. You'd get... killed, you know."

Things really were black and white for the both of them. Chase had to protect Sewallus, and Sewallus had to either take the hits or cease to exist. At this rate, he was ready to cease to exist as was. The monkey was about to start moving again, and that's when Chase noticed a cooldown back off to available. "If I knew that the moment I try to learn this system better is the moment some guy's life is on me, I wouldn't have ever accepted it in the first place.", he groaned and charged right at the boss once more, missing his strike despite the multiple attacks he threw at the king.

And as if things couldn't get worse, what did Sewallus do? But of course, he would howl and try to get more of its attention. Now he was beyond any form of saving from the two handed sword user. "I seriously can't save you any, it's going to kill you-". He stopped. The pressure from feeling the ground thud at the forest's ruler suddenly taking a step forward, roaring and beginning to rip out another tree straight from the ground. With ease, it was snapped in two and thrown right towards the both of them, sending them back- but it didn't serve as a stun. "I'm still... standing...", he proclaimed, and that made the boy worried, and relieved too. "Stay to the side for two seconds, damn it! Do your stupid shit sword, just cut this damn thing and let this be over!"

Finally, the stun wore off the both of them. The knight got up and looked over at Chase, holding his axe firmly. "It got me good, but I'm still standing. I don't know if I'll make it past another hit, but... I thank you for allowing me to go down this way.", he gave Chase a half-assed thanks and ran right towards the ape, managing to land a strike- or so it seemed, before his axe met with the ground and had a passionate kiss, before being pulled out. The primate almost smushed what would have been the ex-guard lead, but at the last second, the swordsman ran right at the monster and stabbed his sword into its muscular form, lightning coursing through the blade and successfully stunning him.

"I understand you have some stupid pride on the line but stop trying to fucking die all the time!", he shouted alongside his strike, turning his sword for an extra bit of damage before jumping back and making sure that Sewallus was behind him. The monster was going to need to recover, but looking at its health, things were seeming to be horribly bad so far. "At this rate, I can't manage to kill it before it gets another hit on you. Your armor is too heavy and the thing is too fast, if you can't dodge it and keep taking its attention, there's nothing more that I can do to protect you.", he hissed at Sewallus, only to hear him bark back in response. "It's not just about my pride, it's about my obligation to the town! I need to help you fell it from the front, not just stand back and watch you fight your life away from the sidelines, cheering on!". There it was, that stupid sense of 'I must do everything alone'. A trait that the both of them shared, in the end. But it wasn't that apparent to the bluehead.

There was, sadly, no response from Sewallus. But that wasn't because he was dead- more so because he had been stunned, just as Chase. Where he knew he was in no real danger himself, the bluehead had trouble getting up, feeling his muscles weak and having given up on him. He groaned and grunted, but despite his best efforts he failed to get back on his feet and up to beat the boss down like he normally would be able to.

"S-Sewallus...", he groaned and tried to reach out for him, but that didn't help any even when it ended up working. What was worst, was the Monkey King wouldn't take any time to give them breaks. He raised his arms into the air and with a jump, landed on top of the paladin, slamming them both down to drop his health to below half. He was going to be in real trouble very soon, and Chase knew there was little to nothing he could really do about it. Was he going to fail the NPC that asked him to join after all? If only he didn't Howl at the start, then they would have been able to get through this with both of them perfectly in tact- bar the tree, Chase would have taken the other hits and been alright due to all of his external healing.

It wasn't even a few seconds after Chase had given the heads up to the warrior that the monster showed up. Big and towering like the last time they met, it stood there with a sharp, red glare in its eyes, directed right towards the bluehead. No point in losing time. He hadn't communicated what to do with Sewallus beforehand, but it was best if he didn't waste much time, charging right in with his attack ready. The Galaxy Destroyer he was all too familiar with, that is.

Maybe charging wasn't the best idea though. He moved too quickly and almost successfully landed his strike, being stopped by the monkey suddenly ripping a tree out of the ground. It put his balance off and resulted in him stumbling, groaning. Sewallus then howled too- a howl?! Was he looking to get killed? "Sewallus, stop that-", he tried to warn him before the Monkey King's head snapped right towards the paladin. "This is the only way for me to no longer feel any guilt, ChaseR! Let me do what I have to.", he told him and got a 'tsk' out of the boy, who suddenly flinched by the tree being thrown at the both of them, sending them tumbling back. "G-Gah, you okay?!", he asked his companion filled with worry, seeing the massive blow to both's health. "What the fuck is happening with this update?! Why does this monster deal so much damage out of nowhere?!". This couldn't be right, in the older system. the Monkey King was nothing but a joke- King of the fools maybe at worst.

"Yeah. You're right. Always someone getting in the way, monster or man.", Chase sighed lowly, although Sewallus did hear him loud and clear. The knight just chose not to comment on it, and with the two wandering out of the forest for a fair while now, they were starting to see signs of the boss' destruction around the forest. Broken trees, the ground shattered and dry at parts, and water going throughout random spots where dense groves used to be.

"Seems like we're getting close. I heard you have an extra skill- Shatter. It sounds useful.", he made his advance while the two continued to explore, hearing a short chuckle and exhale from Sewallus. "Let me guess, you want me to teach you it? I will. As soon as we're done taking care of this issue of mine. And Florenthia's. I'm guessing you don't live here, so it's not really your problem.", the guard pointed out and heard a low laugh. "You're right. I'm far, far away. My house is in a cave.". By now, the paladin must have been thinking Chase some form of troglodyte for living in the caves like a troll. "Thanks though. We'll kill the king and make sure everything is fine for you all.", he tried to reassure the embarrassed guard, resting a hand on the hilt of his blade. He could already feel a heavy thudding in the distance, so he knew they were getting closer to the king much faster than they thought. "Keep your guard up."

"Since seeing that monster, Remington hasn't left the town once. I'm certain as soon as you help me take care of it, we are going to see him start studying the environment again from within- no longer sheltered by the town's walls, he'll feel safe again to be outside, wandering about and running his researches.". It almost sounded like Sewallus was as sad as he was ashamed, and that was definitely something that Chase could get behind. There wasn't any way he was going to die to the Monkey King in the first place, but now he definitely couldn't fail.

"So... Your axe. You really get comfortable swinging that thing around?", he asked Sewallus somewhat awkwardly, keeping his broken sword hoisted up at his hip. Pretty ironic, him questioning people's comfortability using items that were less than conventional when his own weapon was broken apart. "It's been with me since long, long ago. Can't get rid of my axe after all the trees I've felled with it. If the town had soldiers better than I, I'd have long now gone back to the simpler times. All I'd have to worry about would be my daily hunts and work. But the Monkey King isn't letting me get a break, is he?". He had a point. Maybe it really was easier to just sit by idly and do nothing but set up a house and wait. He wasn't really waiting though, was he? Nothing was going to happen even if the players cleared the game for the NPCs, things would continue as normal, without the intrusive adventurers.

And so, a prompt emerged for Sewallus to join the party. Chase accepted it, and quickly saw the name and extra health bar added down right below his own. That's about when he noticed how little his health seemed to be now, groaning and scratching the back of his head before he looked to the side. "Let's get a move on. How did you manage to escape?". The one thing both of these smooth talkers seemed to have in common was how straightforward they were- the one thing they didn't, was that one managed to often be insulting with it, while the other failed in that regard. A victory for Sewallus, overall.

"I'm not sure. There must have been something else- the monster got distracted or something disrupted it. If it were up to us being fast enough, neither would be back here, alive and well as we are.", his reply concluded, carrying his war axe with him. A big and heavy weapon, just like his armor, but he seemed very accustomed with it. "... I see. Think something else might be lurking in the forest?", he asked the paladin to hear a chuckle in response. "I doubt it. If it were something strong enough to get in the king's way, we'd have picked it up by now. At best it must have been hungry and found easier prey.". That was where the blue boy was heading with his assumptions too, but it didn't hurt to ask now or ever. "Sounds like you've been struggling with the monster for a while now. Has it been long since it started showing up?", he asked Sewallus and was disappointed by the lack of a definitive answer. "Not too long. Although it surely feels that way. The shame I've had to put up with after knowing I ran from a fight and put the rest of the town in danger. Exits haven't been the same. Few people leave and return almost immediately, the rest remain inside. Like Remington."

[ChaseR is now partied up with Sewallus!]

A nod, a shake of their hands and relief for finally getting away from that stupid virtual cancer inducing smoke. The intel he got was enough to make him unable to get angry at the NPC though. Smoker or not, he'd definitely done Chase a service in understanding what had changed with this boss fight being over. People must have still been waking up and getting used to the sudden blackout, but the world around them wasn't the same as before. The NPCs seemed to have gotten more talkative, and quests had a lot more fluff to them. Just what he and Itzal were talking about when hunting down the King, huh?

Now walking up to the man with the heavy, golden armor, Chase made the same gesture Remington had with his head, getting his attention. "I saw you speaking with Remington. You wouldn't happen to be here to help us out with the Monkey King, would you?", he questioned almost too quickly, getting a small grin from Chase. "That's the reason I've actually come here. Remington said you could give me some more information for the boss I can use against it.", he worked as best as he could on his social skills, moving the dialogue forwards and being as much of an extrovert as possible. "I know as much as he does- he might have been able to get some information out of the encounter, even. But I'd like to accompany you in your effort to take the beast down. Running away from it was... wrong. Even if I'm alive now, it feels wrong. I have to make it up to myself, so please. Allow me to escort you.". That was... surprisingly straightforward. Hell, this form of speech was more than most would give credit to NPCs for. "I work better alone. But I'm certain I can kill the boss. More help never hurts."

"I haven't messed with the beast too much. Only seen it once- me and the guard's leader, Sewallus, were out on a field trip to scout for what had been taking down half of the forest's trees on the daily. Before we knew it, we'd found the primate. I didn't get too good a look at it because as soon as we found it, we started to run. That thing is massive- and it acts like an ape. Hence the name. It's way aggressive and won't let go until what it's looking at is dead or truly out of reach. It'd bust down half the city just to get you, if it could, I bet."

"You ran from it? Couldn't fight it at all?", Chase asked only to receive a nod in return. "Sewallus, wasn't he strong enough to put up a good fight?". Remington laughed a bit, lowering his cigarette and straightening his expression for a moment. "Nah, not even close. And he's plenty strong. Just so you get a good picture of it- we ran and ran, but we never got far away enough. It was always right next to us, hot on our tracks, and every tree in the way, got wrecked. Hell, there's more craters than trees in its path, and there's rivers where there were forests. That thing is a natural disaster.". That didn't make too much sense though, if it had been here for long enough to cause this much destruction, there would probably be no eighth floor by now, right? "I see. Anything else I should know?", he concluded his questions and scratched the back of his head, seeing Remington shake his own. "Nothin' else I know. Tell you what. Go kill it, and if you fail, come back with at least some form of weakness for it. If you need something, Sewallus can help. He's the guy right there, the stud in the armor."

The moment Chase began to approach the zoologist, he'd already turned his head and cocked up an eyebrow, crossing his legs as he sat back against a house's railing and waited. "... Y-Yo.", Chase waved at him only to receive a small gesture of the man's head in return, letting out a sigh. "What may I help you with, dear traveler?". Great, the sarcasm was already oozing out of this one- exactly what he loved the least out of Freyd. Already getting off to a good start.

"... There's a monkey. Somewhere in your forest. I want to take care of it.", he awkwardly worded it only to see the zoologist brighten up. Just where he thought he'd be told details for the quest, Remington grinned and clapped his hands. "Excellent, we've been looking for someone to adopt it a while now! Join the line-", he abruptly stopped and huffed some more smoke, getting a hiss out of the boy. "T-Tch, I mean kill it. It's been a pest to you and your village, right.". Although he seemed somewhat 'insulted' by the defensive stance, Remington gave a nod. "... Was just messing with ya. Yeah, the 'Monkey King'. I'm Florenthia's zoologist, Remington. I'm guessing you've already heard about it with the rumors making their rounds, but I can give you some more specifics before you go out to hunt it.". Right after that offer had been made, the accept quest window appeared in front of Chase. A neat change of pace, sure... He accepted it, and then began the info dump.

<<Monkey King>>

Maybe it was about time to start getting used to all the changes. What piqued Chase's interest more than anything else, was actually the fact that extra skills seemed to be much more now- plentiful and different than before. Instead of being bought with SP after completing quests, they would appear upon meeting certain conditions while carrying out said quests. The one that got his attention before anything else was 'Shatter', it apparently lowered mitigation. That was something he could definitely get behind, regardless of its energy cost. 

"Seems like I have to fight the 'monkey king'... I almost forgot that quest existed.", he grumbled to himself and shrugged, starting to head out. And so, he arrived over at the eighth. He was somewhat surprised, because as same-y as the floor was, the one thing different was a few NPCs that stuck out. The first one was some form of youngster, just like he, who held a cigarette in one hand and huffed in smoke before letting it back out with deep exhales. Already off to a great start, the bluehead wasn't too keen of smokers at any given point in time. "So I'm guessing he must be the quest NPC... Seems eccentric enough."

Just as everyone else woke up, so did Chase. And it was a day most confusing. Just minutes ago, he could swear that he and the rest of the frontliners were fighting the Shadow next to Orgoth. But out of nowhere, they all blacked out. At least Chase knew he did. He was starting to worry if maybe, his physical condition was getting worse and it started affecting him in Aincrad too. How long had it been after all? But as soon as he sat up, he realised that wasn't the case at all.

"I was just getting to learn the system and had written a whole basement filled with notes on its inner workings, and now...", he groaned as Cardinal's warning system informed him of the complete overhaul of multiple mechanics, opening up his menu to check all of them and groaning. Cooldowns? What the fuck was that supposed to mean? Or Focus, Delay, AoE- no, he knew that one. Cloth armor??? That's not even armor, what- "This is a fucking fever dream, give me a break.", he huffed and checked his armor, noticing it was now classified as cloth armor- made sense, it really was a jacket and pair of shorts after all. Everything else seemed pretty much the same, give or take. He had a weapon drop from the raid, and that was about it. His levels were all fucked up, but... Maybe talking with someone else would help shed some light on what the hell was going on. He was the least tech-savvy, let alone game savvy compared to everyone else trapped in Aincrad. And so, he sent a message to Alkor, groaning and tapping his foot on the ground impatiently as he waited for an answer.

Current Level: 87
Current SP: 524
Link to SP Tracking: [Here]
Item Upgrades:

Notes:
Got a lot Light Armors with Savvy, as well as Auras. Here you go:

• Snow Cloak (T3/Light Armor/Perfect): Frost Aura I, LD II -> HBS I, MIT II | [ID: 163016b]
• Tattered Blue Robes (T3/Light Armor/Perfect): Frost Aura I, LD I, LM I -> HBS I, EVA I, LM I | [ID: 168480a]
• Haephestian Cowl (T3/Light Armor/Perfect): EVA I, ANTI-FREEZE, Flame Aura I -> EVA I, ANTI-FREEZE, ENVNM DEF I | [ID: 173620c]
• Suit of Flames (T3/Light Armor/Perfect): Flame Aura I, LD I, LM I -> HBS I, EVA I, LM I | [ID: 173732a]
• Thunderstruck Badge (T3/Light Armor/Perfect): PARALYTIC IMMUNITY, LD II -> PARALYTIC IMMUNITY, EVA I, MIT I | [ID: 174369d]
• Sanguine Sleeve (T3/Light Armor/Perfect): V. DEF I, EVA I, LD I -> V. DEF I, EVA I, MIT I | [ID: 174393a]
• Cerberus' Blessing (T3/Light Armor/Perfect): FIREPROOF, EVA I, LD I -> FIREPROOF, EVA II | [ID: 174395d]
• Moving Tundra (T3/Light Armor/Perfect): Frost Aura I, SAVVY I, EVA I -> HBS I, EVA II | [ID: 174408d]

I'd love to have put V.DEF in place of a few Frost Auras but it would be too strong imo and outrageous to ask for, so I avoided it. If possible though, please tell me (in a PM) beforehand.

Reward Choice: SP
Loot Reward: <<Orgoth's Legacy>> T4 2HSS: HOLY, PHASE, ACC

ID#187496 LD: 6

• Character Name: ChaseR
• Character Description: Ene Takane (Genderbend) [Kagerou Project] - ChaseR is a two handed sword user, trying his best to get along with the new world he's found himself stuck in, and make it out as soon as possible. Although not quite as good with words as most normally are, he makes up for it by being reliable and putting others before him most of the time.
• Character Journal: [ChaseR]

• Character Name: Sv3n
• Character Description: Arthur [Divine Gate] - A blonde con-artist, Sv3n is a very peaceful individual. After being confronted by ChaseR, he's given up tricking others and decided to start running a cooking stand around the first floor, taking orders and doing his best to not let down. One always for mischief, but at least he does things as honestly as one can now.
• Character Journal: [Sv3n]

She seemed to be cheery as ever, and not in any trouble at all. Honestly, a wave of relief brushed over him as he nearly slumped his back and gave her a thumbs up. Her offer was nice, it's just that he'd need to be sure the bosses they were going to be fighting wouldn't smack Nep around or poison her like they did today. "Yeah, sure thing. Tell me when you need me to come over, and I will.", he accepted her proposal and with the two heading for the settlement again, as they got closer, Chase lifted a hand to start rubbing the back of his neck. "So... Good night. I hope I helped out.", he waved her goodbye and began to head towards the teleporter, taking it to the twenty first as soon as he got on and disappearing towards his home. Not a long day, but a day with enough food for thought for him to reevaluate how lax he really could be, even with lower levels where he had everything under control.

And with Itzal's departure, Chase stood there quietly. For the meeting, he must have confused him with someone else- he was still pretty much getting started by the time the meeting was going on. As for the 'hunting down PKers' comment, it had him somewhat tense, thinking back to the PKer he cared about the most- Mari. "Y-Yeah, 'till next time.", the youngster gave a nod and waved him farewell, turning around and looking at the battlefield silently. "... She's been safe all this time. She'll keep being safe then. And I'll be there for her too so nothing happens to her, even if it means I have to stop Are from doing anything.". Better not think about the bad side of everything. So he shook his head, tried to clear his mind and began to go on his merry way, picking Blizz back up on his shoulder now that they'd cleared the boss monster. "Let's get you home little guy."

Chase simply raised his shoulders and began to laugh awkwardly as Itzal was hit with the realization they wouldn't get anything in return. Not to say that the bluehead was any happier for it, but he didn't feel surprised any. With all his luck spent on the holy proccing turn after turn and attack after attack, no wonder he didn't even get one of the crappier drops the King was meant to drop. The other one was very rare, he wasn't even sure what players had gotten it and if they were even active to this very point- were there even any? "N-No, I'm fully decked out. I'd give it to you and ask you to just be there if I needed you in the future, probably. But the item's rare anyways so... it's alright. I'd already done the quest but this was a good test dummy to beat up and check out my performance in a longer battle. Get a feel for attacking the same target. I've a feeling it'll come in handy for the floor boss raid.", he managed to hold up a conversation properly for once, chuckling and scratching the back of his head. "It should be a whole level or so. It's a LOT of skill points."

The target was right there, and a very clean one at that. With a bit of preparing, Chase took a deep breath and started to run right towards it, charging for what would be the last time. The king attempted to swat him out of the air, but in true, dramatic story fashion, the boy's attack landed first. And by the time that it fully dug into the wound, the boss had shattered into tiny crystals, fleeting towards the ceiling of the cave. The fight was longer and more strenuous than what he remembered it being the last time he took it on with Freyd and Jomei, but it was finally over and the two could call it a day. Itzal had gotten his fair share of SP, and so had Chase, taking into account his earlier rounding up of the slimes back at home in his farm. "Ah, sorry. Eh, I dunno. At least we took care of this guy.", he gave a small nod towards the hooded swordsman and sheathed his blade, stretching his arms and groaning. "That was tiring, mmgh."