As the adventurers discussed tactics to clear Level Two, SheCyclones unlocked an AOE skill tied to her class. She needed five thousand EXP points to unlock the skill. Earlier, she was five hundred EXP points short of the requirement. But with the help of the Exp stones that Wanyama had shared with her, she accumulated the required Exp points to unlock the skill.
The current tactic agreed upon was heavily reliant on Am_I_Me. She possessed a skill called deceit. She could deceive one's attention with mere words or actions. The plan was that they would draw every undead creature's attention with a bone helmet. She would throw a helmet, imbued with her Deceit powers, as far as possible. The helmet would attract the attention of the skeletons, allowing the crew to approach closely enough to enable Wanyama to unleash his Ground Obliterator.
SheCyclones was visibly excited by the skill she had unlocked. The skill also came with a mage's staff, which instantly appeared in her dominant right hand. The staff was fashioned from a dried brown tree branch, approximately 7 cm thick, and a vibrant green gem was conspicuously placed atop it. The staff complemented her dress perfectly, completing the elegant appearance of a dignified wind mage.
Ivan was the first to notice the change, since he was at the back of the line. He didn't utter a word, simply judging the development within his thoughts.
SheCyclones spoke up, saying, "I don't think it's necessary that Wanyama uses his Ground Obliterator. I have an AOE skill that can cause the same effect."
Onelight was the most curious of the bunch. She asked SheCyclones for the specific details of her AOE skill.
SheCyclones meticulously detailed the mechanism of action: with the help of her staff, she would create an area where a cyclone would suddenly appear. She would cast her spell, and the cyclone would manifest, shredding to pieces whatever was within a one hundred and fifty-metre range of the cyclone's epicentre. She emphasised that the cyclone had razor-blade effects and rampaged indiscriminately.
The adventurers soon reached the top of the stairs. There was a floating sign boldly written: Level Two. The adventurers walked past the sign, officially entering Level Two of the Vate Prison Realm. Suddenly, the stairwell behind them vanished. The scenery behind warped, seamlessly forming an extension of Level Two's environment. The adventurers did not miss this crucial detail.
Some metres ahead, a small group of undead skeletons were fiercely fighting amongst themselves. Some skeletons lost their arms or part of their legs in the squabble. The instant the reality warp happened, the skeletons became acutely aware of the adventurers' presence.
Following closely behind the small group of undead skeletons was a bigger wave of undead skeletons, rushing forward. Am_I_Me stepped forward, a skull helmet in hand. She imbued it with her power of Deceit and threw the helmet into the midst of the rushing horde. The skeletons halted, their eyeless skulls rotating, following the trajectory of the high-sailing helmet even until it landed on the ground in their midst.
The Deceit skill would last for seven seconds.
SheCyclones stepped up, pointing her staff at the swarm of undead skeletons. Grey clouds suddenly appeared above the adversaries, contrasting sharply with the crimson firmament and clouds of the Vate Prison Realm. Subsequently, the grey clouds parted, and a pillar of green light cast down from the gap onto the ground, marking the epicentre of SheCyclones' powerful wind spell.
"Rage!"
SheCyclones cast her spell, and a terrifying cyclone manifested, annihilating every undead within a one hundred and fifty-metre range of the calamity's epicentre. Some shredded pieces of bone dealt fatal damage to a few skeletons that stood just outside the cyclone's effect range.
"BlueBlack, follow me! The rest of you give us support attacks!" Ivan yelled instructions as he charged directly towards the adversaries.
BlueBlack followed. Troy_to_Me, the gunslinger, finally raised her rifle. Her ammunition was limited, but she could recharge it by exchanging Exp points for bullets with her system. Even though she was ranked Base-rank and her weapon F-rank, her rifle boasted a formidable damage capacity of 15 points.
Troy_to_Me unleashed a barrage of bullets on the skeletons ahead of Ivan. Her shots were all fatal, killing up to fifty per cent of her targets while incapacitating the other half. Ivan ruthlessly finished off the incapacitated adversaries.
Alita_72 also joined the fray. Although she was an Archer-class special character, she shared a similar attribute with Troy_to_Me. Their weapons dealt high damage, even though they were ranked F-rank. Alita_72's shots were one hundred per cent precise and lethal, ending any target adversary that she marked.
Sarah_Ze_Beauty, Wanyama, Am_I_Me, and Onelight were mere spectators to the gruesome fight. They weren't stationary, however. They cautiously advanced with the rest of the team, waiting for the right instances to assist in the fierce fight.
Sarah_Ze_Beauty saw her chance to act. Ivan and BlueBlack were surrounded. Alita_72 and Troy_to_Me were preoccupied clearing the adversaries that surrounded BlueBlack. Sarah_Ze_Beauty had planted a prop on Ivan before the battle began. She snapped her fingers, triggering the prop to unfold, leading to numerous animated paper figurine pigeons to surround Ivan, obstructing the skeletons from locking in on him.
Ivan capitalised on the opportunity. He swung around as if doing a hammer throw with his axe. His axe cleaved down the adversaries surrounding him. The coast was clear. He looked forward at the another wave of skeletons approaching.
"Again!" Ivan uttered, launching his switchaxe like a boomerang.
Just like it had done earlier on Level One, the switchaxe cleaved down undead skeletons that lay in its straight path. It returned to Ivan, and he caught it firmly in his hands.
New Attack skill unlocked!
Info: You have proven yourself to not be a one-trick pony, learning and using your resources in various proficient ways. Your hard work has unlocked a new skill tied to your weapon, common switchaxe.
Skill Description: Your switchaxe becomes a devastating boomerang, inflicting damage of 75 points. However, there is a catch: cooldown of 4 minutes or bypass cooldown by spending 400 Exp to use this skill.
Skill grade: C-rank grade 1
Secret mission completed!
Mission: Unlock a skill ranked at C-rank.
Info: Daring to adventure and determined to survive. You have stepped into where others would flee from. Your bravery has brought you fortune. Fortune that boosts the success of your adventures.
Reward: 100 Exp.
Ivan quickly read the information that had popped up in his perception. He was glad that this effort had become registered as a skill. He needed not worry about making mistakes when trying to use the switchaxe as a boomerang. The knowledge was now ingrained in his memories.