Taboo Online

Lauren pressed her palm flat against Luke’s back as the light across her blindfold flared. A final vision filled his mind, revealing five pale knots moving through the rain.

At first, the birds seemed to arrive together, but small differences stood out. One had launched first, another would lose speed while turning, and a third planned to climb above the spear. The final two waited for Luke to choose the wrong target.

The vision ended with a dull pressure behind Luke’s eyes. If merely receiving it hurt that much, Lauren had to be suffering far worse.

Luke stepped backward until his shoulder touched her. She tapped his right shoulder, then his left side and lower back as the attacks approached.

His pulse raced.

A few days earlier, five monsters rushing him together would have frozen him. Now he could see the gaps between them.

He held his ground.

The first bird reached him, and his spear passed through the knot beneath its wing. Rather than dragging the weapon back, Luke let the swing continue and carried the blade into the path of the next attacker.

Another creature swept over his head. He ducked, shortened his grip, and struck behind himself before turning the edge through the weakness Lauren had revealed.

Their timing began to fall apart. One collapsing bird splashed across another and forced it to change direction, giving Luke time to step aside and cut through the pale knot inside its chest.

A fourth bird came at his left side while his spear remained extended. Lauren’s fingers pressed sharply against his ribs, and Luke slid one hand down the shaft before hooking the weapon across the creature’s path.

The impact turned it aside long enough for him to reverse the blade and slash through the weakness beneath its neck.

Four down. One left.

Lauren tapped the back of his shoulder.

The final bird had curved around the others and was diving toward her from behind him. Luke’s heart lurched as he turned into its path and slashed beneath the wing.

The knot split before the creature reached them.

Black water sprayed across the ground and vanished into the mud.

With the birds gone, only the Black Rain remained. It pounded against the leaves, ran down Luke’s face, and drummed against the spear in his hands.

Luke kept the weapon raised while searching the nearest branches.

Part of him almost wanted something else to move.

The thought should have bothered him. Instead, Luke caught himself scanning the branches for another target.

Nothing appeared.

Several seconds later, a series of system windows opened in front of him.

[Black Rain flock defeated: 10/10.]

[Hidden condition fulfilled: Defeat a Rain Flock without breaking contact with your partner.]

[Complementary perception skills recognized.]

[Hidden quest completed: Silent Formation.]

[Your health, stamina, and mana have been fully restored.]

[Your partner’s health, stamina, and mana have been fully restored.]

[Truth Behind Motion has reached Basic proficiency.]

[Unveiled Weakness has reached Basic proficiency.]

Warmth spread across Luke’s shoulder and back, closing the cuts beneath his clothes and carrying away the pain.

A broad smile pulled at his mouth before he could stop it.

They had defeated ten creatures without allowing a single one to reach Lauren. Better yet, Luke had not won by blindly throwing mana into Arcane Thrust or relying on Reinforce to overpower everything in front of him.

He had fought smarter.

This victory felt different. Luke had watched, adjusted, and corrected his mistakes while the fight was still happening.

He already wanted to do it again.

As the warmth faded, he looked toward the branches. A trembling leaf, water running down a nearby trunk, and the shift of weight on a branch all stood out separately.

Mercer’s training had taught him which details mattered, but until now, following several at once had been nearly impossible.

Luke wanted to test how many movements he could follow and whether faster enemies would still overwhelm him.

The improvement still felt earned. Powerforge had sharpened his training rather than replacing it.

Behind Luke, Lauren slowly relaxed. The light across her blindfold steadied, although she continued holding his belt.

His smile weakened when he felt the tremble in her fingers.

Luke read the notifications again, and the hidden condition pulled his attention away from the skill reward.

It was watching the entire time.

Powerforge had not merely counted how many enemies they killed. It had noticed that they remained connected, studied how they combined their abilities, and rewarded the way they behaved.

First, it had decided who counted as a hero or villain. Now it was judging how they fought.

What else is it waiting to reward us for?

Some of Luke’s excitement faded. He still felt stronger, and he could not pretend he disliked it.

Worse, he already wanted another reward.

Powerforge did not need to force him forward if every victory felt this good.

Luke lowered the spear and turned toward Lauren. Her breathing had grown heavier, and the fingers of her free hand still trembled slightly.

He touched the side of her blindfold and rested his thumb near her temple, checking whether the visions had hurt her.

Lauren caught his wrist and held his palm against her cheek for a moment. Then she moved his hand away, tapped his chest once, and pressed two fingers firmly against his forehead.

Luke understood the scolding. He had still thrown himself in front of an attack meant for her.

Yeah, yeah. Think before throwing myself in front of everything.

His mouth tightened. He knew Lauren was right, but remembering those claws aimed at her made it difficult to regret what he had done.

A small smile touched her lips, as though she could somehow guess exactly what he was thinking.

Luke turned her hand over and tapped her palm twice before guiding it back to his belt.

Right behind me.

Lauren closed her fingers around the leather and stepped behind him.

Luke faced the path ahead and raised his spear. He still did not trust Powerforge, but that did not stop him from wanting to test his new strength again.

He wanted to know what else he could do now.

The Black Rain hid the path ahead, but the thought of more creatures waiting no longer made Luke hesitate.

He stepped forward, and Lauren moved with him.