Chapter 369: Dread
The Fox-Clone Belladonna, in her transformed state, was a force to be reckoned with. Even if its stats were diminished by 50%, her transformation boosted her stats so high that the 50% reduction still put her above the average players stats.
But numbers alone weren’t enough to kill this many people. It was the cold, psychopathic attitude of the Fox totem and it’s lack of self preservation that truly threw these players through a loop.
One time someone managed to spear it through the chest from behind, a surprise attack when it was distracted gutting someone else like a stuck pig. But before the player could shout in joy that he got her, the clone simply swiped its wing back and sliced open the players throat with the wings talon.
It pulled the spear straight out of its chest, much to the horror and despair of everyone around it. The gaping wide hole left by the weapon was oozing not blood, but what looked like melted mud-like clay. But it didn’t last for long, as the wound quickly closed.
That was the copied Vitality stat at work, which still worked even on a non-living creature like this. As did her transformations ability to extend its time and increase its strength through consuming the blood of its victims.
A discovery that many of the guild players were horrified to discover after they had the genius plan of letting the lower level, and less important, non-guild associated players throw themselves at this mysterious monster as cannon fodder.
Every life the ’monster’ culled, the stronger it grew. It welcomed the fodder and eagerly devoured it. It was just a shame that the golem in the shape of Belladonna would not be able to keep that increase in power, nor did it transfer to the real woman herself.
Still, it was more than enough to prove the point, and by the time they did eventually put the ’monster’ down, their numbers had been reduced by more than half.
Worst of all, at least for these players, there was no loot to gain for it in the slightest. When the clone finally fell, its body simply dissolved into a puddle of grey sludge.
The one who felled the monster was a Dwarven player in black leather armour with muted colours, and a duster coat that he had specially made from monster materials. He also had an eye-patch over one of his eyes, although he never kept which eye it covered consistently as it was just for the look and not for any other reason. It constantly switched eyes.
He was ’Dread Pirate’ the leader of a guild called Dread, one of the top five guilds in the region. Dread Pirate glared at the puddle of mud, his eye twitched whilst his bushy beard bristled with a barely contained anger.
"What do you think it was? An ability? An Item?" His second in command, Dread Knight, asked from a safe distance, so his boss didn’t hit him if his rage broke containment.
"Humiliation. How it happened doesn’t matter. That’s all it is. This type of power was supposed to be mine, it was rightfully mine, and it was stolen from me. Not only that, but they use it against me. If this isn’t a direct spit in the face by Golden Princes, then what is!"
Pirate shouted, whipping his head towards Knight who actually experienced a spit in the face from all the spittle flying from his boss’s mouth.
With spittle still on his face, Knight took a moment to calm himself before asking,
"I... I don’t see how this is Golden Princes doing. I mean they weren’t even here..."
"EXACTLY!" Pirate spat again, "They aren’t here! Why not? Why would they not come for this perfect opportunity? A bunch of noobs get my rightful reward and are stupid enough to let everyone know?
It was the perfect set up. Yet they are the only ones in the area not here, and you expect me to believe they are training?!"
"Y-yes...?"
"NO! It was a set up! A trap, made just to lure me in because they are afraid of me. The noobs must have been new recruits they were training up. Just you wait, I’ll show that arrogant prince just who he’s messing with." He spat some more, before his anger twisted into a cocky, arrogant smirk.
"I doesn’t matter though. Because I know something he doesn’t. You know my father works for Rift Diver, right?"
"You’ve mentioned it once or twice." Knight said with a restrained sigh. In fact Pirate mentioned it nearly twice a week, although he claimed he never did.
"Well he does, and he’s pretty high up if you didn’t know. But since he works there, I know exactly when the games first guild competition is going to happen, and I bet my life that Golden Asshole doesn’t know that!" He cackled to himself, as he kicked at the pile of grey mud before turning and walking away from the dungeon.
It was boring now someone else had already beaten it.
***
As the group was walking through the forest happy and unbothered, talking away to each other about their plans, Belladonna looked down at her arm as she felt a small shift in its weight.
Glancing at her wrist, she saw the bracelet she was wearing had changed.
The bracelet in question was grey ceramic, yet looked incredibly soft and fluffy as it was styled like the tail of a fox. It was previously just a tail, but now it had grown a head at the ’end’ of the tail that would usually be attached to the body.
The head was biting the other end of the tail, like a fox Oroborus.
Belladonna smirked at the appearance of the head and chuckled to herself. That was the sign that her Golem had died and had reverted back to its dormant state to recharge. She could only imagine the chaos it had caused.
The fact that she could let it loose until it died and not have to worry about it, was such an amazing part of this relic and part of why it earned the name of Relic.
"So, when did he say this guild competition was? In a month?" Belladonna asked as she raised her head.
Saige nodded as he tapped a glass vial against his palm, knocking a small candy sized chunk of metal from the vial before tossing it into his mouth like it actually was candy.
"Roughly, the exact date might have changed because of, well everything we’ve done. But Revenant gave us a month to prepare for it. Should be plenty of time."
"Yeah, which means it’s gonna be a long and hard month. I can’t wait." Belladonna cackled