Chapter 93: Experience (1/2)
”Wait, Theo! Stop!” Hontar's voice resounded in the field, warning Theo about his current situation. Yet, at the same time, his concern became his nightmare as he dropped his guard for a split second.
For a master assassin like Phyrill, this split second was the difference between life and death. He waved his sword diagonally in order to kill Hontar, but the latter managed to react, albeit barely.
He dropped to the ground before launching himself to the side, leaving his left hand behind.
”Kh!” Hontar didn't feel any pain in the virtual world, but he was covered in sweat. This was the worst-case scenario.
”You've let your guard down.” Phyrill made an excited smirk as he raised his swords for another swing.
Meanwhile, Theo was currently on the ground, laying on his belly. A huge piece of ice crystal stuck on his back, pinning him down.
”Kh!” Theo gritted his teeth and recalled what happened a few seconds earlier. When he heard Hontar's voice, everything went blank due to the freezing ice that numbs his senses and brain. The next thing he realized, he was already on the ground without being able to move his body.
It turned out Ellen could control her own magic to move according to her bidding. The spread shot earlier was just bait for him to show his back to her magic. The two on the right would turn around if he indeed came after her from the right while the left did the same in the opposite direction.
Hontar realized it at the last second and called him to stop because the path in the middle would be cleared soon, but he couldn't respond to him even with his action, reducing him to this state.
Due to the damage the body sustained, his vision became blurry as his consciousness was about to be transported back.
Before dying, Ellen actually came to him and bent her knees, patting his head a few times while saying, ”You have talent, Theodore Griffith. You've made me believe it. Unfortunately, what you're lacking is experience. I don't know if you have realized it or not, but your movement is too straightforward even with your tricks. Tricks can indeed surprise a person, but when they've prepared for it, your advantage will be gone, especially with your current movement. Keep getting stronger… I believe in you.”
Listening to those words, Theo's vision finally went blank. He arrived inside a pitch-black room, floating as if there was no gravity.
In this place, he felt empty as if there were no thoughts other than the battle earlier.
He recounted Ellen's advice from word to word and lamented his failure. ”I see… Experience, huh… I have once again failed. I have been too complacent with my own progress even though most of my experiences came from the monsters. As for my fights against humans, there were only three attempts.
”The first was my fight against Laust. Back then, I managed to beat him by using tricks, but he was unaware of my tricks. Then, the second one was with Shella and Eric. Due to my sudden power-up, I destroyed them. But…”
He suddenly realized what he lacked in the fight against the assassins from the Lange Family.
”Ah! So, that's how it was… I managed to kill several assassins due to their carelessness. They must not have enough experience to be that careful, allowing me to kill them.
”It was different when the captain joined the battle. He literally reacted to everything I threw at him and almost killed me. Even the way they moved was vastly different.”