Nameless King

"Well, it looks like I have an important choice to make." Gisle muttered, looking at the options.

"It's strange. Mine and Vineta's trials were very different. It seems to be because I gave you some of the energy of the World of Darkness."

"Maybe, I don't think it matters right now. What do you think I should choose? Luckily, the list is pretty varied."

"Huh, it's up to you, but I think we both already know the answer. However, don't forget that I won't be able to help you. I'll be in a spectator role, and the World of Darkness won't let me interfere with your trial."

"Of course, I wasn't going to ask for help. That's not my style. If I can't do the test myself, then I'm mediocre." Gisle said seriously and chose the fifth option.

[You chose to take the fifth test, strategy.]

Whooooooosh.

The next moment the dome of dark mist shook, and they were transported to another space. It was a massive cliff, on whose slope stood a tall tower. Behind it was a vast sea, over which Wain floated. Dark Mist moved him there.

Gisle stood in front of the tower at this time. It looked like an ordinary tower where people and soldiers defended themselves during battles in the Middle Ages. 

The tower consisted of large stone blocks, had several narrow windows suitable for archery, as well as a crown-shaped top. Opposite the tower was a steep slope down into a dense forest.

Gisle nodded and headed forward. He opened the gate, and inside he saw an altar on which lay a green orb. Then a message appeared before him.

[You have entered your tower. Your task is to protect the orb and kill all attackers. There will be one wave of monsters in total. You have thirty minutes to prepare and develop a plan. You can choose twenty warriors to your squad, but no more than ten of the same type].

Wain also saw this message. The World of Darkness was not oblivious to the audience, and at the moment, Wain felt as if he were sitting in an empty movie theater in the best seats.

'Twenty warriors... Hmm, I wonder if Gisle can find out what the enemies will be?' Wain thought.

"Warriors... What strength will they be, and how many enemies will attack me?" Gisle asked.

[Your warriors will be comparable in strength to the low end of Primary Chronicle. Your attacking monsters will be comparable in strength to the highest limit of Primary Chronicle. There will be a total of thirty attackers].

'I see. After all, this is a strategic test, not a test of physical or magical strength. However, I am in a rather difficult situation.' Gisle pondered.

[Also, you cannot fight. At the moment, your strength is severely diminished. Enemy warriors will kill you in one second, and then the ordeal, as well as your life, will be over.]

'I get it.'

[In that case, the test has begun. You have thirty minutes to choose your warriors, as well as to devise a plan.'']

The next moment an hourglass appeared high in the sky, which abruptly flipped over, and the countdown began.

Wain watched Gisle's actions with interest. He was confident that Gisle would find a way out of this situation. 

He was losing in both quality and quantity, but he had one advantage, he was the one being attacked. It was always easier to defend than attack when it came to a tower siege.

First, Gisle decided to see what choice of warriors he had. He concentrated, and five cards with different creatures appeared in front of him.

The first card showed a knight in armor, with a brass shield and a steel sword. Each card had three stats at the bottom, Attack, Defense, and Speed. They were rated from one to five stars.

The knight had three stars in Attack, three stars in Defense, and three stars in Speed. His stats were average across the board. It wasn't a bad unit with no flaws, but no serious advantages either.

'Hmm, the knight isn't bad, but it's not what I need.' Gisle thought and moved on to the next card.

It showed a huge ogre, at least four meters tall. The ogre had a massive club in his hand, and his skin was partially covered with protective plates.

The ogre had four stars in Attack, four stars in Defense, and one in Speed.

'This is already much more interesting. Maybe I'll need some ogres for my plan.' 

Gisle moved on to the next card. It showed a small goblin, it had red skin and a crazy smile. The goblin had several bombs in his hands, and he also had a barrel full of explosives behind his back. 

This warrior was ideal for firing at enemies from above the tower.

The goblin had 5 stars in Attack, 1 star in Defense, and 3 stars in Speed.

'Great, it gets better every time. Given their high attack rate, the bombs will create massive explosions. Their defense is low, but they don't need to engage in open combat. However, I might have a problem if the enemy has flying opponents.' Gisle pondered and moved on to the next card.

On it was a massive dog, about two meters tall. The dog had dark skin, a long red tail, and eyes that burned with a flame. The special thing about this warrior was that the dog could spew fire from its jaws like a dragon.

This warrior had four stars in Attack, two stars in Defense, and four stars in Speed.

Gisle nodded and moved on to the last card. It showed a skeleton with a massive bow and a large quiver behind his back. 

The arrows were unusual. Their tips charged with lightning energy and created a lightning pulse when they contacted enemies.

'Alright, looks like I've decided what kind of squad I'm going to have.' Gisle thought and began his preparations.

He smiled and headed for the green sphere on the altar. Gisle already knew how he would proceed and that he had already won. There was no way his enemies would be able to take over his tower and orb.

At that moment, Wain did not see what Gisle was doing. A barrier of dark mist appeared in front of him, blocking his view. The fog did not disappear until thirty minutes later when everything was ready.

'Hmm, looks like Gisle decided to concentrate on protecting the inside of the tower.' Wain thought, looking at the fact that there were no monsters in front of the tower.

At that moment, thirty enemy warriors appeared near the forest. Among them were knights, golems, ogres, trolls, and several massive bats. Dark mist-like energy emanated from the monsters, and their eyes shone with a bright purple light.

It was a strategic challenge, and Gisle's enemies did not behave like mindless barbarians. They had a formation of their own. 

The ogres with massive shields marched ahead, just three of them. Behind them were ten knights. Next to the knights came seven Trolls armed with long, curved swords.

Behind them were five archers and five bats. They had everything in balance, both attack and defense, and speed. What's more, the enemy warriors were stronger and outnumbered by half, a critical situation.

Wain tried to figure out what Gisle had in mind. He thought the best option would have been to take a few ogres for protection and lots of archers and goblins to defend the tower from afar. 

However, Gisle decided not to do so, and that worried Wain.

The monsters slowly approached the tower, and then the ogre kicked the main gate with a powerful blow of his shield. They went inside and headed for the altar, but after a few steps, they stopped.

The enemy warriors were shocked. A long katana with a razor-sharp blade was thrust into the altar with the green orb.

The monsters were baffled. Their main task was to capture the orb, but it was not in place. At the exact moment, Wain began to grasp Gisle's plan. His eyes widened wide, and then he smiled slyly.

"Huh, I should have expected Gisle to bet everything not on strategic advantage but territorial." Wain muttered.

Whoooosh.

The next moment, two ogres fell on top of the invading monsters. They were not going to fight. That was not their goal. 

The ogres covered the passage with their massive bodies and waited for their commander to begin the operation.

In fact, there was no one else in the tower except the ogres. All the warriors and Gisle were elsewhere, by the slope below the tower.

Gisle chose two ogres, four archers, four firehounds, and ten goblins to his squad. Gisle's most important task was protecting the orb and killing all enemies, so the orb was now in his hand.

He didn't need to defend the tower. It wasn't in the rules, so he could sacrifice the structure if necessary.

"Alright, let's go!" Gisle said, smiling as he looked at the hundreds of bombs stacked under the slope. 

Also, among the bombs neatly lay the lightning arrows. They did not touch the bombs so that there would be no unplanned explosion.

After Gisle gave the order, the monsters stepped back, and the firehounds opened their mouths wide. 

Bright flames headed toward the bombs and arrows, and there was a deafening explosion. Massive shards of rock flew apart, and the slope on which the tower stood tilted.

The enemy warriors tried to get out, but the ogres brushed them aside with their clubs and held them back. 

At the last moment, the ogres jumped aside and grabbed the edge of the cliff, watching as their tower, and their enemies tumbled down.

The only ones who could dodge this attack were the bats, but when they wanted to attack the ogres, the archers used the rest of the arrows and eventually killed the monsters.

Gisle chose some archers to counter the flying enemies if necessary. Also, the lightning arrows were a great catalyst to amplify the explosion.

The monsters fell into the water, but some survived the fall from such a height, but it was not a problem. The firehounds approached the slope and began to shower the survivors with flames.

In a few minutes, the battle was over. The corpses of the enemy monsters turned into a dark mist, and the katana flew out of the water and back to Gisle.

[Congratulations, Gisle Enge, you passed the World of Darkness test for the best score. For that, in addition to the Seal of Darkness, you will also receive a reward. Choose what you want, weapon, armor, skill, or consumable].

'Huh, I want a weapon.' Gisle made his choice, and the next moment a dark, long, two-handed katana with a red hilt appeared before him.

A scarlet, bloodthirsty aura emanated from it, which simultaneously spoke of the weapon's peculiarity as well as its Rating.

"Not bad, now I want to get what I came here for."

Whoooooosh.

A dark mist appeared in front of Gisle and penetrated his glabella. Then his eyes glowed brightly, and a Seal of Darkness appeared in his Soul Altar.

Crackle.

Space began to collapse, and Wain, along with Gisle, returned into the space gap.

"What do you think of the show?" Gisle asked smiling.

"Excellent. I wouldn't expect anything less from you. Although, I would have chosen a different challenge anyway."

"Huh, okay, so now I can go through this gate and get into your Void?"

"Yeah, you'll be fine for sure now." Wain uttered, and a shard of ice flew out of his body again and headed for Gisle.

Nothing unusual happened this time. Wain smiled and headed forward, but before entering the gate, he stopped and said, "Gisle, I am the owner of Void, and I have an alias. In my Void, you can call me by my name, but if we find ourselves somewhere else, you can call me Nameless."

"Okay, I hear you."