4. I Dominated The Nightmare Difficulty On My First Try [1]
They just kept on dropping new features. Neutral zones. But if Revet left his domain unprotected, another summoner could attack it while he was gone. Since he did not know the strength of the barrier, that was not a risk he was willing to take. But they could not just create neutral zones and expect them to leave their domain cores unguarded.
'Yo, Aria. Is there a way I can carry my domain core around?'
[It's like your second heart, of course! There's a way to carry it around. You just have to absorb it and integrate it into your being. In razor language, touch it with your hands and it becomes a part of you.]
'That seems fair enough.'
He had to challenge those conquest taverns. Based on his gaming experience, those rewards and drops would contain the materials needed to level up his domain. But he could not go out like this. He was just wearing a plain shirt and trousers. Not to mention the fact Duran had nine huge tails floating around and a pair of fox ears.
They needed disguises, at the very least something that would reduce attention. He did not want to be the center of attention. It made it hard to observe, and if he could not observe, he would not be able to come up with proper strategies.
'Duran, can't you do something about your tails and ears?'
"A trivial task for a being of my calibre."
He flicked his wrist, and the nine tails on his back and the ears on top of his head faded into flames and disappeared.
[It doesn't look like an illusion. So what the heck did you do!?]
"Consider this a privilege. I simply returned them to the flames." He smirked.
He was a hundred percent sure Duran was well aware that they did not understand a thing he just said.
All that was remaining was to pick a neutral zone and disguises. He channeled his spirit energy into his domain's core.
Hoodie, face cap and masks, casual wear and sneakers, he said in his mind.
[Fabrication successful]
Everything he mentioned appeared on the floor.
'Duran, do you want the hoodie or the casual shirt?'
"The casual shirt is blue, so I will take it, along with the face mask, trousers, and a pair of the black sneakers."
He collected them from the floor.
They needed somewhere enclosed to change.
'A normal bedroom.'
[Fabrication successful]
To his surprise, it actually worked. But he felt exhausted. He must have depleted a lot of his spirit energy making this.
Finally, there was a roof over his head to block the intense sun rays. The room looked exactly like he imagined it. Sliding windows, a wooden door, floor carpet, an extra-large water bed, and air conditioning—even down to the toilet.
This ability was super comfortable, no cap.
He touched the domain core. It transformed into a stream of green energy and flowed into his palm. Some kind of emerald symbol formed on his shoulder.
[Domain core integration completed]
After a few minutes they were done changing.
'Duran, we have to start walking down the cliff,' he said as they stepped out of the room door.
"Revet! That's not going to happen, 'cuz we are going to jump down." He turned back.
He always knew Duran was crazy. Not everyone was a god like him.
"Worry not. I can feel the flames within you."
He walked closer.
That was true. Summon link allowed him to inherit the abilities of his summons. From Duran he inherited only flame manipulation. That must have been the reason he sensed some of his power inside him.
'Do you plan to teach me how to use flame manipulation?'
He tapped him on the shoulder. "Consider this a privilege of being my master."
So he actually had a calm side to him. Interesting.
They walked up to the edge of the cliff.
[This is going to be super fun to watch.
Watch you guys fall, that is!]
He turned to him.
"Forget the feeble voice."
[Hmph!]
He held him by the arm, gripping him tightly.
"Don't worry. Even if you fail, I won't let you fall."
'So what do I do first?'
"Just imagine the flames within you pouring out."
'Like this?'
He surrounded his hand with blue flames.
He began to laugh.
"Amusing! You conjured a blue flame on your first try!"
He dragged him across the edge.
"Now turn those flames into a standing platform."
He was hanging 40 feet above ground level. If he should fall, he would turn into a bloody mush.
'This is easier than you make it sound, Duran,' he exclaimed.
He created his own standing platform.
"Someone is getting cocky. I believe I don't have to explain the next part to you."
He dispelled his standing platform, letting go of him, and started to fall toward the ground at high speed.
He saw what Duran did as he approached the ground. Flames started to emerge from his body and he vanished, just like in the battle with the undead legion, and reappeared on the ground barely a second after.
"The technique I just showed now is called Heat Haze," he exclaimed loudly. "Now it's your turn."
[That sly fox! I'm rooting for you, Revet-san.]
He watched him closely just now. This technique required precision and sufficient time management, but no matter. If he was able to parry the attacks of deadly assault bosses, this should be an easy task.
He dispelled the flame platform and started to fall toward the ground. He drew out the flames from within.
[Rev—]
Just as he was about to hit the ground—
'Heat Haze!'
He disappeared.
'How was that… sensei?'
He reappeared behind Duran.
"I would have expected nothing less from my master." He smirked.
After covering himself with flames, the intense heat radiating from his body caused a brief mirage that deceived the eyes and made it look like he had disappeared. Then he used a burst of flames to accelerate, making it easy for him to avoid collision and change his position.
'Arstrea Map.'
A huge screen panel displayed before him, similar to the actual world map of Earth.
There were several dots—he guessed these were for domains. His location was currently covered by some dark clouds on the map. It was probably due to the effect of Obscure.
'I have found a neutral zone not too far from here.'
It should take about 30 minutes on foot.
'Duran, let's get going.'
"Don't order me around," he exclaimed sarcastically.
[Don't forget! I'm also here. Hmph!]
After roughly thirty minutes of walking, they had finally arrived at Neutral Zone: K.
[Woohoo. We are finally here, guys.]
"There she goes mouthing off, when you didn't even walk with us," he scoffed.
[You pompous bastard! Hmph.]
'You guys should chill out.'
It looked like an open park. There were multiple benches scattered around, tall trees, and gateways with signposts in front. As expected, there were a lot of summoners there.
He began to hear whispers.
"Nobody has challenged the nightmare difficulty yet."
"Who in their right mind will risk their lives just for some reward upgrade?"
"My summons aren't that well suited for
combat. You want to party up?"
The environment looked really unsettled.
Now that the chance presented itself, he looked for a tavern conquest to challenge.
[Tavern of Wealth]
[Rewards: Domain level-up materials]
"We are going for nightmare difficulty, right?" Duran asked.
'Why not?'
[This is going to be fun.]
[Would you like to challenge the nightmare difficulty?
Time allowed: 30 minutes]
[Yes / No]
'Yes.'
Whoosh—
The sky was a mix of several colours, with broken rocks floating around. A typical desolate world. It looked abandoned—from the shattered cars to the broken roads.
[It must be one of those forgotten worlds.]
'Forgotten worlds?'
"They are worlds that the gods didn't favour and were later consumed by an apocalypse," Duran answered with a soft tone.
Bam!
A blue light descended from the sky.
A Fenrir. A massive Fenrir. It stood before him like a mountain, emitting a mystical glow.
"It's just a pup," he exclaimed.
He realized it was not even an adult yet.
[Yeah! Usually they are much bigger than this.]
"So what's the plan?" He turned toward him with a bloodthirsty look on his face.
'We kill it, of course.'
[The challenge has begun]
The Fenrir lowered its head.
Its glowing eyes locked onto him.
The ground cracked beneath its claws.
Then it stepped forward.
[Defeat the Fenrir]