Chapter 268: New Skills of the Death Knight

Luke sat inside the crumbling shell of a house. Hours had passed since Charlie’s massive leap in levels, and so much had happened that he hadn’t had a chance to stop and check her updated stats, let alone the new skills she had unlocked.

Her system interface was cluttered with notifications, but one stood out above the rest: new skill options. He had talked with Charlie about choosing them. From what it seemed, she had already looked through the list and only one had caught her interest, a Pugilist skill related to fire. That meant he was free to choose whatever he wanted for her from the remaining options.

“Jerry!” a voice croaked.

The raven familiar swooped in through a crack in the roof and started pecking at Luke’s leg.

“Hey, give me a minute, featherbrain. I’ll head out soon, but I need to handle this first.”

“Jerry!” the bird cawed again, irritated.

“Keep that up and you’re turning into roast chicken.”

The raven froze, tilting its head as if offended, then flapped its wings and shot back outside with a final, sulky squawk. Luke smirked faintly before returning to the glowing screen in front of him.

“Let’s see… new pugilist skill.” He tapped the icon, and five options unfolded.

The first one made him whistle under his breath.

[Protective Dome (Rare)]: The pugilist channels mana into their fists and releases it as a translucent spherical barrier, forming a protective dome around themselves or nearby allies. The dome blocks incoming attacks for a limited time or until it absorbs enough damage.

He immediately thought of the Spectral Barrier skill, rectangular shields that absorbed blows, but this dome seemed like an upgrade, wrapping everyone inside with layered protection.

“Maybe it won’t soak damage as efficiently,” he muttered, “but it’s still an extra wall between her and whatever’s trying to kill us.”

It was tempting. With this, Charlie would already have two different ways to protect herself and others. He moved on to the next.

[Blade Fist (Uncommon)]: As the pugilist prepares the strike, they cloak their fist in an ethereal blade of mana, turning the punch into a blow that can cut and pierce as well as deal physical damage. A combination of brutality and precision.

It was clever, dangerous even, but Luke shook his head.

Not worth it. She already had Force Infusion to empower her sword, and that new blade she picked up was more than enough. Why waste a slot on something weaker?

The third option caught his eye.

[Defense Aura (Rare)]: The pugilist radiates a protective aura of reinforced mana, temporarily increasing both physical and magical defenses. Ideal for withstanding ambushes or enduring prolonged battles.

At first glance, it seemed less impressive than the dome. But as he read again, something clicked.

“Ah… that’s the difference.”

The dome locked Charlie and her allies inside a sealed defense, safe but unable to strike back at whatever was outside. This aura, though, strengthened her directly, letting her keep fighting while still resisting incoming damage. One was group defense with a trade-off. The other was solo resilience in the thick of battle.

“This one wins,” he decided.

Then came the fourth.

[Flame Fist (Rare)]: The pugilist draws upon the power of [Flame], engulfing their fist in searing fire. Each strike deals additional fire damage, with a chance to ignite flammable objects or inflict burns on vulnerable enemies.

Luke leaned back, considering. “Not bad… this must be the fire option Charlie wants.”

So that power born from the fire of love turned out to be useful after all.

More raw offense. And Charlie already hit hard enough as it was.

Could it stack with Iron Fist? Maybe not. But Power Punch? That combo had potential.

He remembered Mason’s words, how he had explained the devastating effect of stacking skills in the right way. Using the golden fire from his bloodline to amplify damage, fusing it with his blacksmith’s epic skill that boosted both casting speed and the raw power of fire, and then channeling it all into something as basic as Fireball.

The result was brutal efficiency: a rapid-fire barrage, each spell slamming out like bullets from a machine gun.

That was the real strength of synergy. Simple pieces, combined in the right order, becoming something far greater. It had been right in front of Luke all along, and he’d never noticed. The last option appeared:

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

[Seismic Impact (Uncommon)]: Striking the ground with concentrated force, the pugilist unleashes a localized tremor that destabilizes the terrain beneath enemies’ feet. It can cause imbalance, knockdowns, or interrupt spellcasting.

He was almost sure he had seen this before, one of the options that had shown up for Charlie earlier. He had even watched Dustin use it against the Warden Captain. Solid, practical, undeniably useful.

Luke stared at the list of skills for a long moment.

“Lay the foundation first, then the walls, then the roof,” he muttered, comparing skill selection to building a house.

Too many times he had picked skills on impulse, because they looked flashy or because he needed a quick fix in the moment. He had always viewed them in isolation, never as parts of a greater structure. Two minutes of conversation with Mason had left him feeling like an amateur.

At least I managed to stumble into a combo by accident, he thought, remembering how Botanical Bold, Plant Manipulation, Plant Growth, and Thorn Mutation had ended up meshing together.

[Princess Charlie has acquired the Second Class skill: Flame Fist]

“Good thing Charlie wants this skill, she really loves fire.”

A faint smile tugged at him. “With Berserker Fire Mode and Power Punch on top of that, her damage output’s going to skyrocket.”

But the system wasn’t done yet. A new notification pulsed. Charlie had reached level 40 as a Death Knight, unlocking her first major milestone skill, and she had already pushed to 45, which meant two choices waited for him.