Tower of Paradise

The knight turned around with mechanical movements and unsheathed the sword he carried at his hip. Just as I had done moments before, this "knight" had no intention whatsoever of letting me escape alive.

After feeling his intense hostility, my gaze sharpened like steel.

Before the enemy could make his move, I launched an attack. I evaded the hasty blow of the knight's longsword and drove my own blade into several vulnerable points in his armor.

Unfortunately, I failed to inflict significant damage. The armor was too thick and resistant. Not only that, but its surface was also extremely smooth, so that when I delivered a direct blow, the sword simply slid to one side without penetrating.

It was at that precise moment when the knight wielded his sword in a wide and powerful arc.

I ducked and narrowly dodged. The sword passed a centimeter from my head, cutting a few loose strands of my hair. Such a wide movement inevitably left a considerable opening exposed.

I approached the knight with feline quickness and concentrated all my strength in the arm holding my sword.

Crack!

The tip of the sword finally pierced the armor with a satisfying crunch.

Did it work this time?

However, he must not have suffered serious damage, as he swung his sword vertically with great force, completely ignoring the sword embedded in his side.

I quickly threw myself backward, avoiding the counterattack.

Metallic sound!

The blade crashed against the ground and sparks jumped in all directions, briefly illuminating the shadows.

I stepped back several paces and corrected my defensive posture. My sword had been left attached to the knight's side like a useless trophy.

— It's not actually that strong, is it?

I muttered, clicking my tongue with disdain. This was my sincere assessment after observing his movements.

Probably due to all that heavy armor, his movements were slow and predictable, and his attack pattern was quite simple. His only real advantage was his exceptional defense against cutting weapons.

I got serious, abandoning all arrogance and surrounded my fists with ice, increasing my striking power or, alternatively, allowing me to use them to block stronger attacks than I could otherwise. My seemingly relaxed behavior stemmed from my vast experience in similar situations. Compared to the goblins that almost killed me, this thing is nothing...

A slight smile slowly formed on my lips, as that was a rather pleasant memory to recall, despite everything.

The knight charged clumsily again, perhaps blindly trusting in the protection his armor provided.

I easily evaded the attack aimed at my shoulder, smoothly slid behind his back, and caught him in a flawless headlock.

Craaaack!

Since his neck area was also protected by reinforced armor, he wouldn't choke to death, but that wasn't my plan from the beginning...

The muscles in my arm visibly expanded and the veins swelled under my skin. I never intended to strangle the knight.

And then...

Accompanied by a frighteningly brutal noise, the helmet was cleanly torn from the shoulders. This was the moment when my strength statistic manifested all its accumulated power.

I got it!

The knight collapsed lifelessly to the ground once his head separated from his body with a dull, hollow thud.

[You killed the knight (E).]

The tower's voice, as always, announced the end of the battle with its neutral and dispassionate tone.

What the hell? There was a skeleton inside?

A skeleton's head remained inside the helmet I held in my hands. In short, I was facing skeletons armed to the teeth, a clear difference compared to the first wave we received in the morning.

Just when I had reached that conclusion, two more knights rushed out from the abandoned houses in the village. It seemed they had belatedly perceived the battle that was developing around them.

Clank, clack!

The knights discovered me immediately and, as if they had previously planned their strategy, unsheathed their longswords in unison. I threw away the empty helmet with disdain and loosened the muscles in my neck and shoulders, preparing for the next confrontation. Now I knew exactly how to fight these creatures.

— So, this is the real beginning, huh?

I observed the knights running toward me with suicidal determination.

During the next two hours of the early morning, I encountered four different types of undead, each with their own characteristics and weaknesses: knight skeletons, mage skeletons, assassin skeletons, and archer skeletons.

Is it stealth this time?, I thought when an assassin type suddenly disappeared from my senses.

I didn't give in to panic and extended my perception to the maximum, exploring every corner of the space around me. Soon, I detected the presence stealthily approaching my back with murderous intentions.

Whistle!

I powerfully struck the assassin's dagger with my reliable sword and, taking advantage of the opening created when the monster was pushed back by the impact, I thrust forward in a deadly and precise attack.

The sword landed exactly in the center of the target's chest.

Stab!

[You killed the assassin (E).]

The assassin, receiving a fatal and irreparable wound, fell to the ground with a thud, its existence extinguished forever.

It was when... A flash of blinding light exploded right in front of my eyes without warning. A mage had hidden in the shadows and had silently completed a light magic spell.

Boom!!

A deafening explosion resonated in the air, making my eardrums vibrate. However, I was already far behind the mage when this happened, having anticipated the attack.

The mage felt my presence at his back and visibly shuddered while hastily reciting another magical chant. Too bad I didn't waste this golden opportunity and wielded my sword in a perfect diagonal cut.

The mage's body also collapsed lifelessly on the ground. To defeat the different types of monsters, I needed to use different combat statistics.

For knights, brute strength was indispensable. For assassins, sharp perception. For archers, extreme agility. And, lastly, for mages, mental resistance was crucial.

Everything seemed to have been organized in such a way that if any of the corresponding statistics didn't reach a sufficiently high level, I would face enormous difficulties in eliminating the individual monsters.

If my strength were insufficient, I wouldn't have been able to cause significant damage to the knights; and if my perception were too low, I would have gone through real hell trying to locate the elusive assassins among the shadows.

At this point, my fatigue was visibly increasing. My muscles ached and breathing became increasingly laborious.

Could there be no end to this massacre?

Would we have to protect the stone of this village throughout the endless night?

I left the empty canteen on the ground and placed my hands on my hips, trying to stretch my sore back. More than three hours had passed since the second wave of attacks began. Both my body and mind were experiencing extreme exhaustion.

— Should I take a brief rest? —I asked myself quietly.

I sat with my back against the rock wall. I urgently needed a short nap to recover some energy and decrease the overwhelming fatigue that enveloped me like a heavy blanket.

I rested my head against the cold surface of the stone. Sleep came to me almost instantly, like an irresistible black wave.

I was so exhausted that, even finding myself in an environment as dangerous as that cursed place, I needed no effort at all to fall into a deep sleep.

However...

Whistle!

The sharp sound of air being cut by a projectile reached my ears. Time seemed to slow down around me as my body reacted instinctively. With millimeter precision, I caught the flying arrow with my right hand before it could reach my heart.

Grab!

My eyes snapped open, completely alert and clear.

I spotted a skeletal archer already preparing another arrow from a distance, aiming again in my direction.

— So, it's still too early to fall asleep, isn't it? —I said to myself ironically.

I summoned my sword once more and rose like a star that illuminated even the darkest nights. I gritted my teeth as I felt the cold power of ice spreading through my veins, revitalizing me.

The archer drew his bow, aiming directly at my heart. A defiant smile formed on my lips.

Not even this army of undead could stop me. After all, I had survived rejection from the living, what could the dead do to me?