Multiverse: by Nick Venomz (best books to read for beginners .txt) 📕

Chase wagged his finger in front of her back-and-forth. “Can’t say it yet. I don’t want anybody hearing about my plan.” He said, smiling.

Ashanti looked around. They were in her home and she doubted that anybody was near them. “Fine, then can you tell me why you truly joined the tournament? I talked with my brother and he claims ignorance. Don’t tell me that he told you something to convince you to join?”

Chase’s eyes widened. He lowered his gaze, confirming Ashanti’s suspicions. “He said nothing to me. And… ” He glanced around for a way out of the subject, finding it quickly. “I joined the tournament, so I could protect you.”

Aleshia looked away, blushing. “... Tell me your real reason. It can’t just be that.”

Chase looked up, his lips straightened. “That is my real reason. I couldn’t sit back and watch as that trio bullied you. Plus, they act overly arrogant and egotistical, which truthfully annoys me. 

Aleshia chuckled. “I see… but I want a better response. Did my brother convince you to join? I need a straightforward answer from you.”

He looked away. “Uh… h-he didn’t.”

Chase, again, confirmed her suspicions. “What did he say? What did he promise you? Because I can tell you, he won’t provide it.”

Chase shook his head. “He didn’t promise anything. I’ll get it myself.” He said.

Ashanti raised her eyebrows. “Oh, so he did say something?” She asked, tilting her head. 

Chase jumped out of his chair, turning towards the door. “It should be our turn soon. Let’s go before we get disqualified.” He said, clearly trying to escape the conversation. Ashanti shook her head disapprovingly before following him out of the door. They headed to the Uncaged Beasts arena where a battle was in progress. However, it ended quickly as a Fenrir tore the neck of a goblin apart. 

They stepped up to the arena’s door, waiting as the blood and corpse were cleaned up. The floor was squeaky clean as if there wasn’t a bloody battle between a Fenrir and a goblin moments ago. 

Then it was their turn.

“The last battle of the second round will be between Velma’s Nine-Tail Fox versus Ashanti’s Chase.” Ejak declared. “Will the bet be the same as the previous bet or have the conditions change?” He asked, staring at Velma and Chase. He left Ashanti out of the question.

“The same bet,” Chase said. “If I win, then Velma has to leave Ashanti alone. If I lose-” He looked at Velma. “She can choose what happens.”

Velma smirked. “If I win, then I get the chance to kill you on the spot. Is that okay with you?” She asked.

Chase shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t mind.”

Velma let out a loud laugh. “Man, what an overconfident boy. I’d love to see your neck being torn apart by my Nine-Tail Fox.” She let out a crackling laugh that unnerved Chase.

Ejak looked up at Ashanti. “Do you agree with the bet?” 

Ashanti looked at Chase, who shot her a nod. “Ugh… fine, I do. I agree with the bet.”

Ejak nodded, switching his attention to Velma. “Do you agree?” She nodded. “Good, then the final battle of the second round will now commence!” An alarm immediately followed after his words ended. The red squares that both Ashanti and Velma stood on were raised to a great height, keeping them out of danger. 

Chase and Nine-Tail Fox stared at each other, neither of them making the first move. Chase swiftly brandished a knife from his pocket, then two other knives. They were all laced with the poison he used against Fenrir. 

“Kill him!” Ashanti shouted. “Rip his throat out!” Nine-Tail Fox didn’t respond instantly, instead, waiting for an opportunity. It stayed in place, its eyes analyzing Chase. He did the same, his eyes squinting at its golden fur for some kind of secret hidden in it.

Chase threw a knife, watching it make contact strangely easily. Nine-Tail Fox didn’t make a move, allowing the knife to hit it. The knife hit Nine-Tail Fox before bouncing off. The knife didn’t make a single scratch on its fur, nevertheless the skin.

Well, I wasn't expecting it to have solid fur. Chase thought as he threw another knife at Nine-Tail Fox with the same results. However, this time, Nine-Tail Fox didn’t wait for Chase to attack again. It charged forward, opening up its mouth and shooting out a mist of greenish-purple color at him. 

“Ooooh, the infamous ‘Poison Breath’! A deadly ability coming from Velma’s Nine-Tail Fox within the early few minutes. It looks like Chase’s at a disadvantage here. Nobody has been able to defeat the Poison Breath except for Mikael’s Elemental Feline. Can he survive it?” Ejak narrated, watching as Chase dodged the Poison Breath. “Oh, he can! What a shock. Chase managed to dodge the Poison Breath! How will Velma’s Nine-Tail Fox do now?’

Chase had tuned Ejak out, focused on his opponent. He threw three laced knives that all bounced without effect. He noticed that the poison on the knives did nothing but spray Nine-Tail Fox with it. The poison stuck onto its coat but didn’t affect the beast. It had poison resistance thanks to its skill, Poison Breath.

Nine-Tail Fox charged forward, launching another spray of Poison Breath at him. He barely managed to roll his way out of the mist, gaining some distance away from the beast. He brandished his last knife, another laced poison. However, this one had a red tint instead of green.

He threw the poison, watching as Nine-Tail Fox allowed it to make contact with its fur. It saw Chase’s laced knives as child’s play.

“Kill him, he’s out of weapons. Rip his neck out now!” Velma shouted.

“Run!” Ashanti shouted. What is that idiot doing? She thought to herself as Chase remained in place, staring at Nine-Tail Fox who swayed slightly.

Chase didn’t move, smiling to himself. He watched as Nine-Tail Fox struggled to keep itself up. It swayed horrifically before falling to the ground, its eyes closing on itself. 

“What did you do?” Velma shrieked.

“Yeah, I’m not sure what happened,” Ejak admitted.

Chase turned towards Velma, grinning. “In my world, they call it a tranquilizer. My uncle taught me a lot about hunting and tranquilizer darts. The only thing I needed to do was replicate it in liquid form then attach it to a knife. Once it made contact with its fur, the tranquilizer spread quickly and knocked it out.” He explained, revealing it to Velma and the audience. 

“Well… That means the winner of the battle goes to Chase!” Ejak declared. The audience reacted in outrage, most angry that the person they bullied for years was advancing up the rounds and would soon be at the top.

Chase glanced at Ashanti, shooting her a smile. “I did it!” He declared.

Ashanti stared at him, dumbfounded. He did it. How…? Wait, that doesn’t matter. He did it! He survived, oh thank God he survived! She looked towards the Heavens. Thank you for keeping him safe. Thank you!

TBC... 

With Baron back in control, he pressed forward. With the Zike and its minions dead, the strongest threat in the dungeon was dead. This allowed him to reach the end of the dungeon, a treasure room guarded by two low-level demons. There was only one Zike in the dungeon and that monster was often patrolling the floors, not guarding the treasure room.

The treasure room, after Baron slaughtered the demon guards, was filled with several treasures that caught his attention. However, he ignored most of them except for one. A grand treasure known as a Piece of Eden, one of the six pieces he needed. “We’re getting there.” He said out loud.

Five more and we’re free, Gage remarked. You can finally detach from Blade. 

Ha! You think you can escape me, even if we’re split from each other. Let’s see if anything changes. Blade’s threatening voice said. Baron ignored him, grabbing the Piece of Eden, a curved strip of metal with some kind of foreign inscribed onto it, and stuffing it into his pockets. He felt the weight of the Piece of Eden, which would later form Eden, a metal circle that granted a wish to the person who reconstructed it. 

When God decided to destroy Eden in his rage, he scattered the six pieces all over the world, one of them being stuffed in a treasure room of a dungeon and the others in royal vaults, deep underground, and other places that they didn’t know about. 

Baron turned away, glancing at the treasure for anything else important but found none. He left the treasure room and headed out of the dungeon, passing by the carnage which was slowly being cleaned up by the dungeon - which was a living being that cleaned up any carnage inside it, be it adventurers or its own monsters. Everything was absorbed and turned into mana for the dungeon.

Once escaping the dungeon, Baron realized he had been in the dungeon for a day as the sun had been reset to its early morning position as opposed to its noontime position that it was when he entered. He shielded his eyes from the sun poking through the vegetation with his right hand, staring at the sea of trees in front of him. He couldn’t see far as the trees were blocking his sight of anything around him. He could only see trees and the glistening of a pond nearby. It attracted his gaze. He approached it, unsheathing his katana. He washed off the blood and other fluids from his trusted weapon, cutting off some fabric from his shirt and carefully wiping at the name imprinted onto the blade, Kaitlyn. He dedicated some time making sure the name was spotless before standing up, surveying his surroundings. He decided to press forward, heading back to the capital before noon. 

He ran at a quick speed, easily escaping the thick forest and entering the large plain that separated the forest and the capital. From there, he noticed a familiar gold-infused carriage leaving the capital and traveling down a dirt road perpendicular to him. The driver of the carriage noticed him but dismissed him from his thoughts. He continued to drive the carriage, strolling by him. 

As they passed, a young blonde popped her head out of the carriage’s window. She stared at Baron, tilting her head. “Do I know you?” She asked.

“What was her name?” Baron whispered, looking away from her.

Catie. Gage responded in his mind. She’s the younger sister. The older sister is Ashlie. Baron softly nodded, silently thanking him before looking up at Catie, shaking his head. “I’m afraid not.”

Catie frowned, clearly noticing similarities between Baron and Gage. She turned away, talking to whom Baron assumed was her older sister Ashlie that Gage mentioned. He assumed correctly as a familiar voice shouted at the driver to stop. The driver pulled on the reins, stopping the horses halfway through a trot. 

The door to the carriage opened, revealing Rock, the head of the guards, and Ashlie. She approached Baron against Rock’s insistence. He didn’t recognize that Baron and Gage were the same people, which made sense as the features and hair color differed based on the personality that ruled the body.

“What is your name?”