System Nemesis 43 Chapter 43 : Berserker
The ma.s.sive group of people finally arrived at Akata. The journey was filled with hardships and lurking dangers, resulting in 20 deaths, even with the best efforts of Derrick to prevent it. The group ended up with 700 people left, which was honestly better than expected.On top of it all, the logistics of the trip had been a nightmare because he had agreed to let everyone bring whatever they wanted, and there were no roads to speak off. He had done so for other villages, but this one was different, and he had felt to account for it. Since it had been built earlier, people had way more luggage, which made them travel very slowly.He silently cursed under his breath that it turned the 8 kilometers into 7 days, but now that they were finally here, it felt all the more worth it. Plus, every monster he had killed had been too weak for him to get stronger, so he had fed them to his three companions."We've finally arrived!"The entire group was awed by the sight that welcomed them. In the middle of the thick forest they had just gone through were vast occupied lands. Everyone looked like a busy bee. Derrick looked around and found no guards, meaning that they were probably in training.It wasn't a small group, so as soon as a villager spotted them, he immediately ran off and went to get the people in charge.After a few moments, a trio appeared on the horizon, hurrying in their direction. It was Jack, Lacha and the villager. Once she arrived, Lacha graciously bowed and welcomed the crowd."Welcome to Akata. My name is Lacha, and I hope you can serve our Lord to the best of your abilities. You do not have to be scared, as we're sure that your very own eyes will prove that he hasn't deceived you"Moira, Julio and the others were still dumbstruck by the scene in front of their eyes. This was a proper town, in the middle of nowhere! This was something they had strived to achieve, and a complete stranger that had come out of nowhere had already accomplished it. When Derrick was about to walk forward and demand a report on the overall progress that had been made, a prompt flashed in his mind.[Enslaved Subordinate Eloise Tornomi's life is in danger! Death probability if no action is taken : 100%]Without asking for any more detail, Derrick re-summoned Io and instantly flew in Eloise's direction. Since she was his slave, finding her location was a cinch for Derrick.What he couldn't figure out was what could threaten her and basically guarantee her death. She wasn't weak at all, but it seemed like her opponent was on another level.After a few seconds of flying at maximum speed, Derrick arrived at the grounds for the new Military Quarters. He saw a small crowd encircling what looked like a beast and his now bloodied General.Eloise's state was truly pitiful. Her red hair were soaked in blood and her pet.i.te figure was battered so much that she couldn't stand straight. Her fiery air was gone, replaced by one of acceptance. One that accepted that she was overwhelmed by the opposition.
*BANG*With a brutal landing that caused dirt to fly around, Derrick immediately jumped in the fray. His General's life only hanged by a thread, so there was no time to lose. The soldiers that had tried containing the battle were all stunned before loudly cheering. Their General was saved!They had seen the beat down she had gone through, and they were disgusted by the fact that they couldn't do anything. Even Atta had been forced to the side, gloomy and enraged at his own lack of strength.Derrick came to Eloise's side and shouldered her. She couldn't hold up any longer, and she crumbled right away when she felt the rea.s.suring presence next to her. Her vision had already gone hazy, only able to see shapes. Even with that, she knew that it was Derrick next to her due to their bond."You've done well, now go rest and recover. I'll take it over from here..."She weakly nodded and Derrick ordered a few close soldiers to come and get her out of here. She needed to go see Lacha to make sure that no permanent damage would last.With everything out of the way, Derrick finally took a good look at his opponent, and he was surprised. Its humanoid figure and its ridiculously buffed appearance displayed strength that he had yet to encounter so far. On top of that, its eyes made it clear that it wasn't thinking logically and was only trashing for pleasure. Such brute strength was outstanding."Appraisal"[Thomas - Berserker State (Unhinged)][Strength : 2?][Agility : 16][Endurance : 16][Vitality : 5][Magic Power : 1][Trait : Berserker (A tank-type cla.s.s that specializes itself in pure, unrestrained brute strength. Its might is incomparable and the vitality displayed is frightening. The backlash of such a cla.s.s is their inhuman blood-l.u.s.t that makes them lose their rationality)][Weakness : Cannot strategize]My G.o.d... These fighting stats were absolutely horrifying. How the h.e.l.l was Eloise still alive?! He couldn't even see the strength of this thing!When Derrick was about to devise a plan to put it down, a scrawny and badly injured walked guy forward. It was Jojo."My Lord, he was my opponent during a bout. When he was about to fall, he transformed into this... I don't know what's going on, but it's definitely not him anymore"All of Derrick's ideas about killing him instantly vanished and a large grin appeared on his face. He had thought that it was an enemy attack, but it was instead a major blessing! A hidden gem had been forced to its limits, and its outer sh.e.l.l fell, making it shine through.Now that his decision was taken, the real fight would start.Meanwhile, the Berserker was simply standing there, looking at the small fries around him. It knew that they were beneath him, so far beneath him in fact that they could be ants. Even with the arrival of Derrick, it didn't feel any pressure. In its mind, it was the king of the battlefield, the ruler of these plains."Thank you for the information! You've done your part, now go rest"Derrick then turned around and took in a cold mouthful of air before shouting."EVERYONE, LEAVE! I DON'T WANT YOU TO BE COLLATERAL DAMAGE!"The soldiers understood and quickly all left, without ever turning their back to the monster. They weren't chaotic and seemed organized, which surprised Derrick. They could definitely be molded in something interesting.The Berserker turned its bloodshot eyes to Derrick, narrowing and emitting pressure. It seemed that this little twig was the commander, which meant that he was the strongest fighter of this place.Seeing the intense and challenging stare, Derrick responded with a disdainful laugh. While the soldiers were leaving, he had asked specificities about the Berserker cla.s.s.[Berserker Cla.s.s : The first transformation of the Berserker Cla.s.s occurs when its body is submitted through intense physical and mental strain. It will keep fighting until it meets an opponent worthy of following, which it will do afterwards until its last breath. It will never betray what it considers to be its brother-in-arms.The Berserker will always find the strongest fighter on the battlefield due to its proud warrior's nature. This is why it is considered a trump card by many, but also one of its downfalls. Commanders aren't always weak, which results in a high death rate of such a cla.s.s]"You ugly thing, I've decided to use you for my own ends. You'll be what I want you to be!"The Berserker couldn't understand a thing, but it felt the mockery in the tone of his opponent, which made it roar to the heavens, shaking the ground and sending ice throughout Derrick's veins.If a newly awakened Berserker was this strong, it appeared that Derrick still had a lot to learn about the world.