Bro, I'm not an Undead!

POW!

Skullius flew across the room after receiving the punch of his discount life!

There was a terrible flash after the blow, and the next thing he knew, he had blasted into the solid wall!

The burly man who had been so 'kind' to him at first was now donning a fierce visage as he glared at the Discount Human. He had been the one to throw the punch just now and when he saw Skillius attempting to rise from the ground stubbornly, he was surprised.

"Hmm? You're still alive after that? The one who came before you was already half dead after a single hit. You seem more capable but you're too stubborn and foolish to recognise a point of mutual interest!" the burly man barked.

He really wished that he had the authority to force this idiot to do his bidding, but the harmony of [Evil Darkness] and [Just Light] around him disallowed that.

Skullius rose, watching the people in the hall close in on him and his attempts at maintaining his composure were immediately broken.

'Okay... this is reaaallly bad! This is the worst situation I've been in so far! There's too many of them and my skills probably won't do any damage. They are not bound like the others!' Skullius' mind churned frustration after frustration as he tried to figure out how to escape this predicament.

There had to be a way, right?

As he expected a dramatic procession before he was beaten to death-ish, a foot pounded against his shoulder making him drop to the ground again, a deep crater boring itself on the floor under Skullius' face!

Skullius coughed, a red substance coming from his mouth!

The substance released a fizzy sound as it splashed onto the ground, white bubble-like froth forming around it. (It might have been soda, in another world.)

Before he could fully comprehend the level of damage the previous attack would have caused, another horrendous attack blasted against him from a distance.

A torrent of flames like a tornado surged against the furniture and ceiling, leaving molten and charred remains in its wake. It mercilessly attempted to roast Skullius alive when it reached him.

For a few moments, Skullius disappeared under the brilliant eminence of the flame.

One wouldn't have believed he could come out of it alive.

As the fire died down, an old man who was adorned in an expensive-looking red robe smirked at the sight of the destruction.

"Heh! Pathetic. Youngsters from the generation of the outside world must have grown ten times more foolish. Pride and arrogance is all I see from this filth," he said.

"Indeed," a curvaceous woman at the side with long, leather black hair that brushed against her short and dark revealing dress spoke. "Perhaps we should have tried appealing to his lustful desires instead."

The smoke cleared, revealing the full extent of damage.

"You socketholes are crazy!" a voice boomed.

The figure of a young man in a broken golden red armour appeared.

A magnificent looking helmet was perched on his head, bearing two crimson wings on either side, glittering with spots of mana. It spotted a looped, star-shaped visor that faintly projected a blue radiance, a beautiful ruby-like gem visible above it.

Skullius had, in the heat of the moment (no pun intended), remembered that his new (though broken) armour could store things like he had seen with the magical rings that Benzard and friends had.

Donning the helmet had helped him, warding away some of the damage that he felt even on spots that didn't have the coverage of the armour!

~~~

[ArchLight Generational Keeper]

An armour forged by ten of the royal blacksmiths of E'kald. It is made with extremely rare materials and carved with countless runes and mythic circles so as to hold the power of at least a 100 Incandescent Stage experts. It can store mana through a pocket core built into it, and can also store items within the subspace it was forged with.

-Defense-

2400

-Durability-

10/3500

-Special Effects-

• Can store pieces of the armour set

Currently stored – (None)

• Can store mana from willing participants

Current mana limit – (34,466/21,000,000)

• Can reflect 50% elemental and physical damage

~~~

'My luck still wants me to live!' Skullius was touched. Perhaps the streak of bad events that spontaneously occurred from time to time would finally cease.

"Of course you're still alive," the old man in the red robes scoffed. Hints of mirth registered on his old, wrinkled face. Mana surged with a thicker ooze of mana. "You ought not to die so easily. I intend for you to suffer a little more."

Skullius' survival didn't seem to shake any of the beings in the hall at all, much to his own surprise.

"His armour is quite powerful. He suffered even less damage than I imagined," one of them commented.

"Perhaps he has some unique qualities too? He did qualify to reach this place."

"Look at him. The only unique quality he has is his negative charm. How can you be born with a face like that and choose to live on?"

"You're right. Fulgardt's screening must be lax."

Skullius grew nervous.

Gaining the interest and attention of these people wasn't something he was particularly happy about. They were dissecting him like some crude play.

He was particularly unnerved by how they noticed that his armour had offset some of the damage from the fire.

How long before they discovered it was supplying him with mana he desperately needed?

"I hope, for your sake, that you do not think you will survive for much longer, though," the old man with a robe said and waved his hand, prompting for a large influx of mana to gather, forming something grand. "As you are a fresh audience, I'm compelled to show off. Watch what kind of magic a frustrated old man can pull out."

A massive double wheel, like a runic circle of some kind, appeared right before the old man.

It had 14 segments that each held a different coloured sigil within them, burning with an ethereal light.

Skullius felt the air change the moment this magical construct appeared.

The old man's eyes flashed with frightening light, and then he spoke.

"Deconstruct."

HUM!

One of the sigils on the wheel produced a deep hum. It shot off a staggering radiance, and then something phenomenal happened to Skullius!

Thick red chains appeared from thin air and began to wrap around his body. Small white runes could be seen over the surfaces of the chains, seeming to enhance their binding powers.

However, this wasn't all.

The chains started to sink into Skullius' flesh as if they were assimilating into him.

They also dug into his armour, moving along its steel body as if it was a liquid instead!

Skullius felt something go wrong within him immediately.

Something important deep inside the very core of his being began to unravel, unable to handle whatever effect the chains were imposing.

It was then that Skullius saw a few disturbing notifications!

[The Absolute Magic spell 'Archemperal Wheel: Bind' has begun to interfere with all active skills]

['ArchLight Generation Keeper' is being deconstructed]

[Your skill 'Flesh It Like You Mean It' is being deconstructed]

[Your mana is being deconstructed--]

[The Doom Factor, 'Disowned' has caught up]