Jake was practically standing in the middle of nowhere, bloody, his hair and what bit of clothing he had left on his body appeared to be somewhat floating due to the white energy which now receded into his body.
His legs and torso had healed together so he could stand and walk properly without the need for the energy. He had completed the combined quest by killing all the beasts which almost cost him his life but it was worth it in the end.
He had just leveled up twice and his body had returned to peak condition in an instant. He felt even better than before and his stats had also increased due to the level up. There was only blood on his body with no wounds at all although his clothes had almost been totally ripped to shreds.
Even now, after a level up, he felt his body go through improvements like his muscles becoming stronger and more defined, his body feeling lighter which he presumed would allow him to move faster than before. He had no way to tell for sure but he knew that his looks also improved in some way as it usually would when he leveled up.
Checking the system, Jake saw the notifications and received the rewards from completing the combined quest.
[Quest Completed: Kill the variety of beasts]
[Reward Obtained: +35 Stat points, +2 level up, +40000exp]
[Congratulations you are now level 29]
[You have been rewarded with +1 to all stats]
[Congratulations you are now level 30]
[You have been rewarded with +1 to all stats]
[Jake Cayden]
[Level: 30]
[Health:670/670]
[Species:Human*]
[Strength:112]
[Speed:127]
[Endurance:116]
[Mental Moxie:87]
[Mana:54/81]
[Magic:76]
[Element: None]
[Ability: Magic mimicry]
[Exp: 59400/100000]
'Not bad at all.' Jake thought, seeing his stats increase by two. His mana was not full because he was constantly using it when he mimicked magic and when it ran out, he would lose the magic he mimicked. At his current level it takes him forty eight hours to lose his mimicked magic which is the same amount of time it would take for his mana to run out.
[Stat points: 42]
[Mimicked magic 1: Elongating Magic]
[Strength of Mimicked magic: 185]
[Mimicked magic 2: Vanishing Magic]
[Strength of Mimicked magic: 250]
[Total Magic Strength: 415]
'I wonder what happens now.' Jake thought. 'Apparently I can't leave this place because no matter how far I run, I don't seem to get any closer to anything at all.'
Trying the vanishing magic, Jake kept vanishing and appearing farther into the field, trying to find a way out but it was pointless.
The true mages had been watching Jake fight the beasts and when it seemed obvious that he was going to die, some of the elders thought it was best to lock the beasts up again so they don't kill Jake. After all, he does not need to die.
But Viesagol had stopped them from doing anything hasty. "From what we know of the humans," he had said, "have you ever seen any of them use energy in such a way that they did not need magic to use it?"
"What do you mean?" Serryl asked.
"When he ran out into the field, he obviously did not have any magic he had mimicked." Viesagol explained. "And we all know that none of the beasts he's fighting right now have magic related to energy. So the question is, how is he using that purple energy of his?"
"But we have seen that it is not enough to help him defeat the beasts." Daeriela said. "This was supposed to be a test to see how strong the boy is, not to kill him."
"You are right Daeriela. I cannot argue." Viesagol said in his husky voice. "I also do not want to see the poor boy dead. But do you think he has used the full capabilities of the energy? Or do you think the Harbinger, who I prophesied to have incredible power, is at his limit?"
"We should have simply taken him and gone through with the ritual." Mithral said. "Everything has been set up so we can still go through with the ritual and extract the magic mimicry from him."
"I agree with Mithral." Irvil, another elder, concurred. "The magic mimicry belongs to us. Why should we go through the trouble of testing a human who has our magic instead of simply getting it back?"
Some elders began to agree with what Irvil said while others began to dispute it. The argument was about to get heated between the elders, the rising intensity visible in their golden irises, when Viesagol stopped them.
"We all have our own opinions and fighting is not going to change that." he said. "Some of us want what originally belongs to us, whereas the rest of us believe that the boy should be left with the magic."
"What happens if we do agree to take the magic from him?" Serryl asked. "Do we just keep it somewhere like the enchanted armour or does one of us get to use it?"
"We cannot just keep it somewhere." Daeriela interjected. "We will not stay hidden from the rest of the world forever and when that time comes, what happens if the strength of all eleven elders is not enough? Having the Harbinger on our side would be a smart choice."
"Daeriela makes a fair point." Viesagol said, clearly pondering about what Daeriela had just said. "If allowed to grow with the magic, the Harbinger will be someone we would want to have on our side rather than against us."
"Why can't one of the elders possess the magic?" Mithral asked. "That way our strength increases and we would not rely on a human."
"And you think that person should be you?" Zedron asked.
"Zedron." Mithral said. "I am unquestionably the most powerful out of all of us. Is the best option not to make me stronger to fight against anything that might threaten us?"
Zedron obviously had a problem with Mithral. From the way he looked at Mithral with annoyance, the marking on the left side of his forehead pulsated for a second before stopping.
"We should put a vote to it then." Zedron suggested. "The elders in favour of the Harbinger keeping the magic."
Zedron, Viesagol, Serryl, Daeriela, Sevanias and Raistrel put their hands up to show that they wanted Jake to keep the magic mimicry.
"It's been decided then." Zedron said, looking at the Mithral and the four elders who had voted for the magic to be taken from Jake. "The Harbinger gets to keep the magic mimicry."