The beast lets out it's last breath, it's flame slowly slipping away.
I swing my blade in a swift arc, the blood staining the earth.
Hmmm…
「Your attribute 'Absorption' is activating」
「No applicable skills can be obtained from the target」
No dice
After my second attempt at trying to obtain a skill from an Earth Wyrm, I was met with the disappointing reality that I could not obtain skills from the same species—or at least one similar to it.
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
I tilt my body to the back a bit, letting a shard of earth pass by.
As it did, I tilt my head towards the source.
"…!!"
The beast jumped, surprised.
「Skill 'Quick Step' is activating」
In a second, I was upon the beast.
Pushing mana into my arm and shoulder, I cut the beast down.
The beast lay on it's side, lifeless.
*rustle*
…!
Sensing another beast's presence, I move with haste as I made my way to it's location.
Instead of heading straight for it, I circumvent—opting to take a roundabout route.
It took longer than normal, but I managed to find the beast fairly quickly.
I peek from the stalagmite I used as cover.
The beast was panicky, distressed by my disappearance. It looked around uncertainly from every direction, trying to judge where I would come from.
I climb the stalagmite.
Receding my mana to erase my presence, I make sure to stay quiet and focused as I made my way up.
The beast continues it's search.
I take a deep breath… and jump!
Willing mana to my limbs, I hold my sword's hilt with extreme focus as I place it overhead.
"…?!"
The beast reacts, too late to save itself.
I stab the blade into the beast's skull, piercing through it.
The beast falls.
*shatter*
The barrier crumbles, green motes raining down on me.
I take a deep breath.
Then, I recede my mana once more.
…
Noticing the sounds of footsteps coming elsewhere, I hide and follow them.
A couple of days(?) has passed since my suicidal magic failure. I have practiced since then, only to be met with the same results—I was still too weak.
「Mana Burst」 took too much out of me, not only was the technique itself painful, the effects of it were even more so.
"Focusing that much mana is highly dangerous. It would be one thing if it was more manageable, like, if you had channeled it through a spell or something. However, we're talking about raw mana here. Without the intermediary that is a spell, it is extremely difficult. For now, you should stick to 「Reinforcement」. It might be inferior, but it's at least more user-friendly."—is what the witch said as soon as I woke up.
I had to agree with hair.
Soon enough, the beasts were within my vision.
…?
Noticing the beast's, I tilt my head.
It was not that anything was amiss, it was more that I was a little confused.
Just two…? Hmm…
I kept my guard up.
The beasts stopped in their tracks, and I quickly went into action.
As soon as I do so, the emerald barrier appears again, isolating us from the outside.
It was then that a cold chill ran down my spine.
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
I leap back.
Multiple spears made out of earth jutted out of the ground, almost killing me.
「Skill 'Instinct' is urgently warning you」
From the shadows of the stalagmites came multiple — dozens — of Earth Wyrms, all of them glaring at me with their reptilian eyes.
Shit, it was an ambush…!!
I grit my teeth, mostly out of self-loathing.
I should have noticed something was off when the I only saw a pair of beasts separated from their group like that.
No matter
I focus within myself, trying to reach that state of heightened concentration with all my willpower.
I do not know if it was because of my desperation or the sheer threat that the beasts proposed, but I manage to reach that state fairly easily.
The world crumbles, everything turning black except for the beasts.
I coat my sword in darkness-enhanced mana.
The blade turned black as well, sharpening it's edges.
Then, the battle began.
A giant shard of earth came flying towards me.
I swing my sword vertically, slicing the pillar in half.
「Skill 'Quick Step' is activating」
I advance forward, deflecting and cutting down multiple earth shards coming my way.
Instead of going straight for the first beast that I saw, I search for the main casters of the group. Killing all the fodder and leaving all the powerful ones in hiding will only exhaust me after long. Thus, I needed to prioritize or risk defeat.
Soon, the beast was within my reach, only a single swing and the beast was dead.
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
However, before I could perform my attack, a group of Earth Wyrms came rushing at me.
Unlike their other brethren, these ones seemed to be more used to 「Reinforcement」.
I observe the mana traveling just under their scales. The mana illuminated, making their scales shine.
Using 「Imbuement」, I focus more mana into my sword until it began to emit a shrill screech.
I force heat into my body, slashing over and over as I dodged and evaded the beast's vicious barrage of teeth and claws.
A couple of them hit me, drawing blood in multiple places.
I fight through the pain, continuing to hack and slash as I desperately fought for my life.
Soon, the hoard thinned, and magic rained down on me.
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
I dodge this time, focusing on evasion.
Unlike the beast's fangs and claws — things I could parry easily — magic was mostly unavoidable.
Shards of earth flew towards me; compressed water threatened to pierce my body; the ground even shifted and sometimes collapsed entirely just to restrict my movements.
I power through them, using my superior speed to outmaneuver the multitude of spells thrown at me.
I approach the beasts one-by-one, killing them up-close.
I could not use my barrier, doing so would rid me of the enhancement provided by 「Reinforcement」. Without it, I would have died ten times over.
「You have leveled up」
The beasts fell, until only a handful of enemies were left.
The four beast — five including the injured one in hiding — all glared at me with murderous intent. This made me flinch for a second, however it was not enough to stop me in my tracks.
Then, spells flew.
All the physical fighters were dead or outside the barrier. Now, all I would have to face were beasts that leaned towards 「Conjuration」.
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
I moved with speed and survival in my mind. The ones that were left have exhausted most of their mana providing support for the frontline fighters earlier.
I only needed to push them further.
Soon, the barrage of spells slowed.
However, that did not mean the threat had disappeared.
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
As I dodged a lance that sprouted from the earth, a water bullet came aiming for my temple.
I dodged this one by ducking, some of my hair was sliced, but I was otherwise fine.
Then another threat appeared.
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
Then another.
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
And another.
It got to the point where I was too busy just dodging that my mind could not even think of anything else.
I have to do something about this
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
That moment of reflection cost me.
Death came from all sides, and while I could avoid them if I extend my focus enough, the threats were never-ending.
A shard of earth flew to neck, and I was too busy thinking of a solution to this problem that I did not have enough time to react, even with 「Instinct」 warning me.
Earth scraped the side of my neck and tore through my flesh. It was small, but it was painful.
「Skill 'Tenacity' is activating」
My vision blurred, my concentration sharpening to the point that I while I could see the beasts no longer, I could still feel and somehow predict their attacks.
Left
—Miss
Right
—Miss
Below
—Dodge
Right-hand side
—Parry
Below from the left
—Dodge
Front
—Die
I felt a familiar sensation.
The carnage continued.
Right
Right
Right
—Parry all of it.
Left
Below
Front
—Dodge all of it.
Front
Side
Further ahead
—Kill all of them.
It was amazing. Despite my sense of sight completely disappearing, it felt like I could see more and more.
Soon, the warnings stop.
Everything that was coming at me disappeared like they were never there in the first place.
If I have this, what's even the point of seeing?
I laugh at myself.
This way, I do not need to fear for my life again.
Then IT appeared.
The presence was bright. Despite my lack of vision, the light burned at my eyes
What is that?
Right
Left
Above
Below
Behind
Front
Warnings came from everywhere, but it was fine.
I was fine.
I easily dodge them all, and approach the rude caster who interrupted me.
Then the world stopped, and I found my body shaking.
It was not fear.
It was not dread.
It was not a threat.
It was not like anything I have ever felt before.
It was a certainty.
A feeling that, no matter what, I could never win.
My will wavered for second, and that was enough to break the spell.
…Huh?
What the heck is going on?
The witch's face was mere inches from me, fresh tears flowing from her eyes.
"Don't make me worry like that, idiot."