A Novel Concept

Lvl Up: [Athletics] lvl 16
AGI +1
Lvl Up: [Fitness] lvl 10
STR +1
Lvl Up: [Dodge] lvl 3,4,5
AGI +3

Priam dodged another cannonball that crashed into the barrier behind him. He had already absorbed five kinetic charges and was calculating his options. Fighting like a brute was sometimes useful to ignore fear and trust his instincts, but Priam preferred to think. He planned to take his time and throw his spear from a distance once he had accumulated seven charges. He had little chance of hitting the Boss on the first try, his target being more than two hundred meters away. Even though Galapagos was moving slowly for Priam, the beast was still a Viscount. On its hind legs, the turtle moved at the speed of an amateur runner. Hitting a moving target at this distance was a challenging task.

Galapagos had tried several times to pin Priam against the arena's edge. Fortunately, the stadium was circular, and by circling the monster, Priam had managed to avoid being trapped. He wasn't sure he could dodge all of the Boss's attacks at less than a hundred and fifty meters.

Priam resumed his calculations. Seven charges would give his spear 14 MJ of kinetic energy. The spear weighed about 20 kilograms and would therefore be projected at 1,183 m/s. A terrifying speed, corresponding to more than three times the speed of sound on Earth. Priam didn't need that much power. A kinetic energy penetrator could pierce a tank with only 2.9 MJ. Galapagos seemed to be a well-protected Boss, but it couldn't be much more protected than a tank.

Nevertheless, Priam preferred to take the edge off. He needed to pierce the Boss completely. It would be terrible if the spear didn't come out the other side and instead got stuck in the Viscount's body. Priam would have no way to attack before the Boss bled to death. Worse, the spear might be stuck in its body if it had excellent regeneration. Priam would have to give up and lose his spear.

Lvl Up: [Physics - Energy] lvl 2
VIVA+3

Priam smiled. [Physics - Energy] was the first skill he had unlocked in the Tutorial. When the System had manifested itself, Priam had directly performed some mental calculations to verify its existence. Learning the skill had come as a shock to him. He had quickly felt his knowledge becoming more organized, but the Tutorial had not given him time to continue practicing. It had all happened very quickly. It had only been eleven days but it seemed like an eternity ago. In any case, Vivacity was helpful to him, whether he was in combat or not.

Another cannonball whistled past his ears, and this time Priam was quick enough to hit it in the air. He was getting better at predicting the trajectories of projectiles that were aimed at him. He gradually became familiar with his mist as it hid him from the Viscount's eyes.

Lvl Up: [Moon Mist] lvl 6
PERC +4
CHAR +2
META (AFFI) +3

Suddenly, Galapagos screamed, and the mist began to vibrate. For the next few seconds, no projectiles were aimed at Priam. The warrior took the opportunity to relax his aching muscles. The ultra-fast movements he forced on his body were not good for his joints and muscles. He didn't even want to imagine what would happen if his body gave out during the fight. He probably wouldn't have to worry about that for long...

The enraged Boss began bombing Priam's position again. Priam immediately noticed that Galapagos' fire rate had increased. Priam hoped this was a temporary skill. In the worst-case scenario, the change in the Boss's attitude could indicate that the Colosseum would not allow him to drag out the game and that the Boss would gradually gain power. Don't worry big boy, it's almost over.

Priam concentrated. Two cannonballs were coming very quickly in his direction. He dodged the first one by shifting his upper body to the left. The movement stretched his muscles from his right shoulder to the thigh of his left leg. Tense as a spring, Priam waited a split second before returning to his original position. In the same movement, he raised his spear and lightly touched the underside of a projectile passing to his left. The force was enough to change the straight trajectory of the ball, which crashed into the top of the barrier behind him. Priam smiled. He now had seven charges.

Priam's mist filled the arena as sand flew in all directions. The exchanges between the two fighters were happening at high-speed. Priam was already far away when the sand from the explosions fell. Heart pounding, sweat beading on his body, he was enjoying himself. His brain was pumping adrenaline like never before as Priam dodged the Boss' attacks. A mistake meant death, but he would make no mistake. Galapagos had been doomed since Priam entered the Coliseum.

Dodging a few more projectiles, Priam stepped back before densifying the mist around him. At three hundred yards, most shells had no chance of hitting him. His control over his mist only extended to a radius of two hundred and fifty meters. Galapagos was getting closer and would soon enter the active range. Priam wanted to wait for that moment so that the mist could help him calculate the exact position of the Boss.

Priam got into a shooting position. Like a javelin thrower at the Olympics, he cocked his right arm. His eyes stared at his enemy. At that moment, he focused only on his future throw and spear. No unnecessary thoughts plagued his mind. Concentrating on his objective, Priam held his breath. A second later, he felt Galapagos move into his control zone.

Lvl Up : [Focus] lvl 14
PERC +1
VIVA +1
DEXT +1

Simultaneously, several events occurred. Priam stepped forward and threw his spear at the Viscount. [Kinetic Control] allowed him to manipulate kinetic energy, and it seemed reasonable to make sure that the direction of the vector was exactly what he wanted. For a split second, he connected to his Potential, almost unconsciously, to link [Kinetic Control] and [Moon Mist]. The two skills communicated with each other. [Moon Mist] told Priam where the Boss was, and he commanded [Kinetic Control] to point the hoplite spear in that direction. The spear left his hand and went straight through the sound barrier. The sonic boom nearly deafened Priam despite his Constitution.

POT -8

Lvl Up : [Kinetic Control] lvl 14
VIVA +2
DEXT +3
META (FOCUS) +4

Lvl Up: [Moon Mist] lvl 7
PERC +4
CHAR +2
META (AFFI) +3

The atmosphere of the Moon was different from that of the Earth. Thus, Priam did not know the speed required to perform such a feat. But at more than a kilometer per second, his spear’s velocity had far exceeded that of sound. It needed less than a quarter of a second to travel less than two hundred and fifty meters. Priam was worried that the Boss could dodge the weapon with a skill.

At the same time, [Focus]'s level up increased his Dexterity to over 100. It was his sixth attribute to exceed this mark. A first tribulation was triggered when three attributes exceeded 100. A second tribulation occurred when six attributes exceeded that mark. Only Priam had initiated a second tribulation without passing the first. The System took offense.

The sky, until then black with the moon, turned scarlet gold. A terrifying aura fell on Priam as soon as he threw his spear. A primal fear seized him. An angry god was coming down and would take the life of the fool who had thought he could take a tribulation lightly. The world stood still for a moment. Priam froze in his tracks, his heart paralyzed by pressure and his conscience paralyzed by fear. He had died several times and been tortured by a devastating poison for a dozen hours. But nothing had prepared him for the wrath of the heavens. A second later, the black sky came back. The aura was gone as quickly as it had come. It was only a warning. The Concepts didn't like speedrunning.

As Priam came to his senses, he realized that the Boss had also been affected by the Concepts' descent. It had come to rest, and Priam would never know if Galapagos could have avoided its attack. The spear struck the center of the monster's torso with a force equivalent to three kilograms of TNT. Concentrated on a single point - the spear's tip - the energy was delivered optimally. The Viscount's shell didn't even slow the weapon down before it pierced the Boss and the shell on its back. Priam lost sight of his weapon as it left his misty area. The weapon's speed made it impossible for him to follow it with his eyes. Only his newfound sense of direction allowed him to perceive its path. A noise was heard as the dome barrier stopped the spear.

The weapon could have just pierced the Boss, but its shell had spread the energy over a large area. Instead of a hole the diameter of the spear, Galapagos now had a hole a decimeter in diameter right in the center of its torso. The damage caused by the spear's exit was more impressive. Part of the carapace on its back was gone, and a hole a meter in diameter had replaced it. The residual energy was enough to lift and throw the monster thirty meters backward.

As the dust from the Boss' landing slowly settled, Priam was notified of his victory. Exhausted, he sat on the ground, his body shaking.

Lvl Up : [Throw] lvl 10,11,12,13
DEXT +4

Title won! [To the Moon - Bronze] Congratulations!

[To the Moon - Bronze] - You launched a projectile at over a thousand meters per second. Faster than the thunder on your home planet. Your enemies don't hear the death knell. They are already dead.
Always faster, always further.

Skill received. [Bullet time - Rare]

[Bullet time - Rare] - After a certain speed, the senses can no longer follow your attacks and those of your enemies. Nothing is more annoying than lag, especially when the culprit is your brain. You are not stupid. You are just slow. In exchange for high energy consumption, this skill will help you keep up with the fight.
You can now see the bullets. Can you dodge them?
PERC +3

Short of breath after the intense battle, Priam was elated. This skill would be extremely useful to him. He had only been able to defeat Galapagos because of the advantageous configuration of the arena. In a corridor, in a smaller arena, or if the monster had gotten closer, Priam would never have been able to dodge its attacks. His mist had helped him escape, but he would have died if the monster had had a detection skill. He had been extremely lucky against his opponent and was aware of this. Even his final attack had been a fluke. No other configuration could have assured him of such a powerful attack. Even at the Cultist's execution, his throw had not had a tenth of the power of this one.

But Priam quickly lost his smile. Thinking back to the battle reminded him of the appearance of the Concepts. The Tribulation was not a formality. If it weren't for his proximity to death and other experiences, he would have died of terror. Literally.

He got up slowly. A tribulation was approaching, and he did not have much time left. He had to learn more. The Concepts' descent made it clear that he could not hide behind [He Who Eludes Death]. The talent would undoubtedly be helpful, but the Concepts wanted to test him. They would not allow him to use his wild card to get through all his Tribulations.

Priam went to his spear to retrieve it. He avoided looking at his prize because he would have to choose quickly before the next wave began. Priam would not participate in the next wave. The twenty-fifth wave boss would rip him to shreds. Knowing the monster's skills wasn’t useless, but Priam was in no condition to fight.

He could feel his body burning. Instinctively, he knew that his last attack had been too powerful. [Kinetic Control] did not require aether from him. The skill converted some of the energy received to function. But the energy was transferred into Priam's body and mind as he absorbed and released his kinetic charges. Absorbing 14 MJ in several rounds had been possible, but releasing that much energy at once had not been acceptable to his body.

Walking towards his spear, Priam hoped that his body would recover on its own.

"Who knows, maybe [Axolotl or Hydra?] will help me?"

As he reached the foot of the barrier, Priam looked down at his spear and winced. The hoplite spear was solid, but hitting a shell harder than a tank's armor at supersonic speed had damaged it. The tip of the spear was severely bent. The fact that the weapon was still in one piece demonstrated the excellence of hoplite technology.

Priam picked up the weapon with a sigh. I'll have to find a blacksmith. With any luck, the best one will be here or in Viracocha...

The twentieth wave had been brutal. The reward would be worth the pain. Exhausted but excited, Priam opened the reward notice.

Wave 20 completed. Congratulations!

Choose a talent:

• [Bound Weapon]

• [Eidetic Memory]

• [Space Pocket]

Status: (Average value for a Homo sapiens male before integration: PHY 10 / MEN 10 / META 0)

PHYSICAL:
Strength 86
Constitution 103
Agility 116
Vitality 164
Perception 156

MENTAL:
Vivacity 132
Dexterity 107
Memory 33
Willpower 69
Charisma 80

META:
Meta-affinity 71
Meta-focus 56
Meta-endurance 1
Meta-chance 40

Potential: 620
Tier 0