CHAPTER 877: PREPARATIONS FOR NIGHTMARE

"With everything said, how long is it before the next Nightmare? That way I can plan out my schedule a little. Even though I’m here in mk2 form, I still have to handle things on my end." Suyin asked with a sigh.

Oh how she wished she could just drop everything and come along for the journey. And even if she can’t, she hoped to at least focus on the current situation.

But the east was still in the process of recovering from the Outer God’s attack. The surge in Eldritch energy was a pain to deal with, even with her crystals.

Despite Kazira being dead, there were still spikes of eldritch energy appearing across the nation.

A few sects even got converted with everyone inside going crazy.

There were even signs of a new disease caused by the modified form of Eldritch energy. One that heavily enhances your power while sapping away at your vitality. Far worse than what the Abyss could do with less pay off.

Sure, obtaining the power was easy. But with that ease came danger like no other.

A few Lords were already working together to form a quarantine around the affected regions but... It’s hard to tell how far the corruption had already reached.

"It should happen tomorrow night. It’ll only last a few hours from sun down to sun rise." Alice replied as Suyin folded her arms.

"So a literal nightmare huh... Alright. I’ll quickly sort out a few things so I can make time tomorrow. Just keep mk2 on you and I’ll ’wake up’ once I’m done. See you soon." Suyin grinned as Alice nodded her head.

Having said this, mk2 fell limp like a puppet without strings.

Alice quickly caught it before it could fall.

Looking at the lifeless doll in her hands, Alice shook her head with a helpless smile.

Though having someone familiar to journey with was good.

Not that she didn’t enjoy journeying with Elias. But with the dangers in front of them, having someone familiar was reassuring.

Especially if she considered Suyin’s expertise and genius. With her by their side, solving the mystery of the Nightmare realm should be much easier.

Setting Suyin on the table for now, Alice glanced towards Elias.

With a day left, there wasn’t much they could do in terms of training.

What could she even do to help him increase his odds of survival?

Tapping her finger on the table, Alice had an idea.

"Elias, we’re going for some training after all. I don’t know the kind of beasts you fought against, but I do know what I had to kill. So with only a day left before the nightmare, we’re going to do some emergency training." Alice suggested.

Elias tilted his head in confusion.

However, if everything she spoke about was true, then training was something he desperately needed to avoid dying more in the Nightmare realm.

Buying a bag in the marketplace, Alice stuffed mk2 into it before looking for a suitable location.

Closing her eyes, she activated Cayla’s power and began to sense the energy ambient in the Abyss.

Attaching some of her own energy, she scouted out the nearby areas and found a cave that was relatively deserted.

There were a few beasts crawling around the place but if they were smart, they’ll avoid them at all costs.

With the location set, Alice grabbed Elias by the shoulder and snapped her finger.

"Huh? What are you doINGGGGGGG!!!" Elias’ sentence was transformed into a scream as the floor gave out beneath him.

As they entered the Void, Alice wrapped them in energy and sling shotting them through the airspace before exiting where the cave was.

Collapsing on the ground, Elias immediately threw up as he wasn’t prepared for that kind of rough motion.

The feeling of going from standing to being flung at max speed was something his body disagreed with heavily.

"Since you don’t remember you time in the Nightmare Realm, I’ll give you a rundown. First, you are set to your base stats. Meaning no reinforcement from blood or Sigils. Your base physical stats that can only be increased through Embryos.

"Second, there are an abundance of traps and sneaky beasts looking to kill you around every turn. We can’t deal with this since we only have a day but we’ll work on sensory training later if we have time.

"Right now, our main goal is for you to not die against these trash mobs. So you, my good sir, must learn their attack patterns." Alice explained with a serious tone.

Energy started to surge from her body as she activated her Sixth Sigil.

She overlayed it on herself. But more specifically, the memory of fighting against the beasts. Their movements, attack patterns, habits and even shape.

Replacing one of her Sigils with Mirror Jester, blood started to appear around her body before solidifying into the monstrous form that was the creatures of Nightmare.

Moving her arm around a little, Alice turned to the shocked Elias.

"These are the basic grunts I had to kill. I don’t have a method of reducing you down to your base stats. So instead, I’m going to forcefully increase my own proportional to the difference I felt during my fights.

"You are not allowed to use your Sigil abilities, only your physical capabilities along with a single weapon. Memorise, adapt, respond. Those are your goals." Alice instructed.

Forcing a smile, Elias nodded his head. He was about to pull out his weapon when Alice flicked her finger and an assortment of weapons appeared before him.

"These were all the weapons that I could select for my class. I don’t know which one you picked but take your time. You should also put some failsafe’s in place so you don’t die." She warned.

In order for him to properly hone the instincts and reaction towards these beasts, the sense of death must be included. The dangers, the nervousness, nothing could be left out.

Contemplating for a little bit, Elias made a choice.

To Alice’s surprise, he actually chose a buckler and a sword. For a healer, she thought he would’ve picked something that kept his range advantage rather than something that went into close quarters.

But who was she to question his decision? All that matters is how effective he would be in combat.

"Let’s do some light warm ups so I can get a judge of your power. So feel free to go all out, I’ll match your pace then scale myself up." Alice gestured for Elias to prepare while massaging her neck.

Crouching down slightly, Alice took a deep breath.

*BANG!!!

"!!!"

Elias gritted his teeth, Alice was already in front of him.

Claws inches away from his head as he quickly slammed up with his buckler!

*CLANG!

Parrying the strike, he went in for an upwards cleave as a single bloody mark appeared on Alice’s body.

Twisting her torso, she went in for a gut punch. Her recovery was clearly beyond what Elias had expected as he tried to parry but mistimed it.

*BANG!!!

Slamming against the ceiling, Elias felt as though he just broke every bone in his body.

Quickly healing himself, he fell towards the ground. But before he could land, Alice was already in the motion of a shoulder charge.

Bracing himself with his buckler, Elias was thrown back once more.

Instead of taking his take to recover, he quickly got back to his feet and ducked under Alice’s next punch while also taking this change to land two slashes against her legs.

Despite her speed, Alice’s movements were rather predictable.

Taking his time to observe then slash when needed, a smile eventually crept up on his face.

If the movements were this simple, how did he die so much? Or did he die to traps.

"Hmm... Alright. Your stats are higher than I expected. I’ll have to sync it up quite a bit." Alice mumbled as Elias froze.

"Eh?"

Did he just hear that right?

She’ll have to sync it up quite a bit?

He was already barely dealing with it now! How much stronger did she plan on makin-

"Why are you spacing out?" Alice asked as her massive frame charged forward!

"!!!" Widening his eyes, Elias raised his buckler but it was too late.

*CRACK!!!

He felt his bones fracture from the first hit as his body was flung away like a rag doll.

Before he could even land properly, Alice was already in front of him mid swing.

Kicking Elias’ side, she launched him against the opposite wall.

To deal with the beasts in the nightmare realm, you absolutely cannot let them have the momentum advantage. Once they trap you in a cycle of recovery, death was almost guaranteed!

You had to kill them before they can reach this stage!

Slumped on the floor, Elias’ sight was hazy as there was a constant ringing in his ear.

Alice had to face this kind of threat?

And she only died twice? Not even against these beasts at that.

What kind of monstrous fighter was she?

"Stand back up. We only have a day to get you ready. The beasts are fast yes. But predictable. Observe their tells, retain your calm. Adapt to the situation and make sure you take the initiative. You don’t need to break the attack’s momentum head on, divert it to the side with the buckler.

"If there are no opening, create one. Now get back up. Compared to the training I gave my first disciple, this is nothing. He had to fight me at my best without giving him forced openings." Alice stood opposite Elias with a harsh gaze.

Gritting his teeth, Elias healed himself and took a defensive stance once more.

Furrowing her brows, Alice sighed.

This was going to be a long training session. She needed him to understand when to take the initiative and when to be defensive. Unless he can grasp that, he won’t be able to reduce the number of deaths he’ll suffer in the nightmare realm.