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An Otherworldly Scholar - 156
🕑 Added 2024-09-04 07:38:24 +0000 UTCIlya collapsed, her back hitting the snow with a soft thud. She reached down with trembling fingers and clutched the black dart embedded in her stomach. Her face twisted in pain, and her eyes wide with shock.
“Take cover!” I rushed to her side, grabbing her by the jacket and dragging her behind the pine trunk. The dart was thin, with a serrated body, and coated in a dark substance. I didn’t need to be an expert to know it was poisoned. Ilya’s breaths weakened, and her skin paled.
Wolf and Zaon took cover behind the three, but Firana remained exposed, trying to determine where the attack had come from. Zaon jumped out of cover and tackled Firana just as a second dart cut the air and ended up embedded deep in the bark. They crawled back, covered in snow and dirt.
Wolf knelt beside me, his Wind Sling ready to shoot. “Where did that come from?” He hissed, scanning the trees.
My heart rushed as I looked around. The dense thicket blocked my sight, and not even [Awareness] could catch the culprit. I focused on my mana sense. The world's colors faded away. The roots pulsated as they absorbed mana from the ground and transported it towards the stem. The vortex over Farcrest looked like an evil beacon against the sky. Wolf was a small speck of pure-white mana, Zaon looked like a silvery column, Firana was a bright red torch, and Ilya was fading away. Then, I caught a small trace of corrupted mana floating between the trees.
“Stay alert,” I whispered to the others. Then, I turned my attention to Ilya. “Hang in there. Don’t move.”
I knew we had to take the dart out, but it was going to be painful. With my bare hand, I could feel the hundreds of microscopic barbs all over the surface. Pulling it out could also damage Ilya’s body. I rummaged through my potion’s pouch for the last Health Potion we had—high grade—a get-out-of-jail-free card. Or rather, a cheat-death-once card.
“Drink,” I said, putting the vial against Ilya’s lips.
Ilya moved her head away, and her eyes shut in pain. “I’m not drinking our last potion.”
“Zaon, can you see anything?” I asked over my shoulder.
Zaon’s eyes narrowed as he scanned the forest. “Nothing. I can’t sense it either.”
“Wolf, come here. We need to pull the dart out,” I said.
Wolf nodded and shifted closer. He was on edge, his muscles tense and ready to react to the slightest sound. Ilya barely held herself upright, even with the pine against her back. Her skin had gone from pale to ashen. She gritted her teeth, fighting to stay conscious.
“Patch me up, and let me rest. Save the potion for later,” Ilya said, her breath coming in short, shallow gasps, and her arms losing strength.
I pulled a bunch of bandages we had raided from the Sentinel’s watchtower and handed them to Wolf.
“Put pressure on the wound as soon as I pull out the dart,” I said.
Wolf grabbed Ilya’s shoulders to keep her steady.
With a sharp motion, I pulled the dart free. I felt the barbs tearing through flesh as it came out. Ilya let out a weak, muffled cry, and her body tensed in pain, if only for an instant. Blood gushed from the wound. Wolf pressed the bandages against the wound as I tipped the vial to Ilya’s mouth. Despite the pain, she tried to refuse, but I pulled her head back and forced the vial through her lips. At first, she gurgled, but after noticing I wasn’t pulling back, she swallowed the potion.
I opened my mana sense and saw how the potion traveled through Ilya’s body, knitting the edges of the wound together and stopping the bleeding.
“Dammit, Robert. We are out of potions,” Ilya grumbled, but Wolf prevented her from standing. The Health Potion was working its miracle.
We were out of potions, and the attacker was still out there, but I couldn’t let Ilya die.
Zaon moved closer. “We need to move. Not even my [Sonar] can detect it.”
Just as I nodded, I felt a subtle shift in the environmental mana. I focused on the thicket. There it was. Corrupted mana slithering between the trees like a smoke trail. It was getting stronger, more concentrated. I considered our options. The kids weren’t ready to fight against a high-level enemy.
“I will draw the attack. You run to the ridge over there; it will give you better cover than this pine,” I said, pointing to the east. There were thirty meters between the pine and the depression on the forest bed. Even with Ilya in tow, Wolf could cross the distance in a few seconds.
“But you are only level eight!” Firana complained.
“Captain Kiln said I have the strength of a level forty,” I replied, pulling an antidote from the potion's pouch and giving it to Wolf. I hoped Elincia’s multipurpose antidote was enough to fight the dart’s poison, but the best outcome was not to be wounded.
I caught the Corruption in the air.
“Firana, be on guard. If the enemy is a flyer, I might need your help to ground it,” I said, channeling my mana and forming a solid shield over my left arm. “Are you ready?”
The kids nodded.
I jumped out of cover, shield high in front of me. I scanned the forest. The diffused trails of Corruption were visible to my mana sense. Whatever had shot the dart was coming close. I got the impression of hearing the buzz of insect wings, but the sound disappeared as soon as I detected it. I fed [Awareness] with more mana, and my perception of time slowed. I took everything in—the wind speed, the rustling of the leaves, the boots shifting against the snow. My brain burned like someone had shot a molten nail through my skull.
Then, I saw it—a quiver of leaves, a strange reflection of the sunlight, and the lancets flying at me.
“Go!” I yelled, and Wolf and Zaon jumped from cover with Ilya in tow.
My shield shattered. The first lancet impaled the palm of my hand, and the next two lodged in my forearm, one near the wrist and the other just below my elbow. I ignored the pain—or rather let [Awareness] suppress it—and unleashed a barrage of mana shards. Trails of blue light crossed the forest like the tracers of a Gatling gun. The shards mowed young trees and branches, but the invisible monster was too far for my attack to be effective. The more the shards moved away from me, the more energy they lost until they dissolved into thin air.
I clenched my teeth as I realized I couldn’t reliably hold the shotgun with my wounded arm.
The barrage had dissuaded the monster from attacking. My left arm numbed down, and I seized the moment to drink the antidote. The monster’s invisibility wasn’t perfect. My [Awareness] locked on the warped light around the edges of the figure. I ran forward, my mana shards gaining strength at each step.
“Firana! Bring that flyer down!” I yelled.
Firana jumped from behind the pine and propelled forward with [Aerokinesis]. The invisible creature shifted in the air, but Firana turned, almost crashing against a tree as she dodged the lancets. [Awareness] told me that Firana hadn’t seen the attack coming; she even dodged into the attack. She went by pure instinct. Firana bumped against the tree but jumped back to her feet. Then, she channeled her mana and ripped the air from under the monster’s wings, creating a low-pressure zone.
Predicting the drop, I aimed my mana shards and hit the invisible monster. The invisibility spell wavered, and patches of black chitin appeared where before there wasn’t anything. The creature’s shape became clearer—a humanoid, slender frame covered in a glossy black exoskeleton, a thin wasp-like waist, and two sets of oversized translucent wings. The creature’s abdomen ended in a black lancet, just like the one I had embedded in my arm. A viscous, dark liquid dripped from the holes the mana shards had pierced on the chitin.
Mana Stalker Lv.22 (Corrupted). Magical Abomination.
My arm throbbed with pain. The antidote seemed to kick in, but my fingers felt numb. Luckily enough, the poison didn’t interfere with my mana pool. I channeled a barrage of mana shards and pressed the attack, laying waste to the forest vegetation. The creature, however, was quick and took cover behind the trees. The bark exploded, but the tree was a centennial pine.
“Keep it grounded!” I shouted.
Firana focused, and I could feel the currents shifting. She twisted her hands, her eyes were closed, and I noticed the strands of pure white mana traveling her body. Firana wasn’t just casting a spell like the other System users I have met. She was meditating, weaving the mana, and forcing the System to bend to her desires. Maybe Ilya was right, and Firana was just a genius.
The Mana Stalker screeched, its wings fluttering wildly as it tried to lift itself again. Firana pulled the air with each wing beating, preventing the creature from creating any lift. It wasn’t an easy feat, yet Firana kept it grounded.
I dashed forward, ignoring the pain. I had to finish it now. As far as I knew, the whole Swarm already knew about our presence. I closed the distance, and the creature’s black eyes, full of rage, focused on me. It tried to contort its abdomen forward, but the lancet hit the ground.
The Mana Stalker was a threat only if airborne.
With one swift motion, I swung my mana-charged sword downwards. My blade cut through the air, leaving a bright blue trail. The Mana stinger twisted its body to avoid a direct hit, but with a quick frontal step, I buried the sword in its abdomen. The creature shrieked, and the sound seemed to pierce the sky. Then, I stepped to the side and slashed its wings.
The creature thrashed wildly, its hook-like hands cutting the air centimeters away from my face. My body felt responsive, and I pulled away before it could even touch me. Unlike with undead, wounds hindered the movement of living creatures. Completely absorbed in the fight, I found an opening and quickly slashed at the creature’s leg. Unlike movies, a debilitating hit could determine a fight as much as a killing blow.
The Mana Stalker fell to the side, using its hands to regain some sort of balance. A vortex of wind and fire suddenly roared by my side, hitting the creature. The screeching died, replaced with a low, gurgling hiss. A moment later, the monster collapsed, and its limbs curled inward like a dead spider.
“Know your place, trash!” Firana grinned.
The Mana Stalker’s corpse smoked.
The pain returned. I was bleeding a lot, so I raised my hand over my head and asked Firana to retrieve a clean bandage. The girl darted between the trees, surfing through the wind tunnels she had created until she was out of sight. I pulled my belt and applied a temporary tourniquet. We were out of Health Potions, and removing the lancets would tear my flesh, making the wound even worse. I wondered if I should cut the protruding ends and leave the rest inside.
I moved my fingers, but my ring finger didn't respond.
“Four out of five, not bad,” I clenched my teeth.
Despite the pain, my mind wandered. My dad used to make fun of me for having my ten fingers back when we went camping. I smiled. A tendon injury the product of a fight against a human-size mutant bee was marginally cooler than an axed finger bone. Suddenly, everything felt unreal. System, magic, monsters, fantasy races. I was too lost in the sauce already to notice how strange everything really was. Only the memory of my father, a pragmatic man who stopped believing in Santa at the tender age of five, brought that feeling back.
I sat down on the snow.
The effect of the antidote began to dissipate. The trees curved like spirals, and the ground seemed to tilt until vertical. I knew it wasn’t the case, and I was just suffering sensory poisoning. The Mana Stalker was my complete counter: piercing attacks plus poison. Luckily, I had Firana with me.
I wondered why she was taking so long.
“How is that saddle doing for you?” The Mana Stalker asked, squatting near my head. Its eyes were turned into two orbs of electric blue—the Lich. I couldn’t move. “I gave you a gift, Wizard. I freed you from the boundaries of your mana pool. I gave you your freedom.”
I tried to speak, but my tongue felt like a dry piece of cloth covered in sand.
The Lich-Stalker extended its hooked hand to touch me, but it stopped just above my chest. Its voice sounded like glaciers clashing against each other. Puzzled. “What did you do, Wizard?” The Lich-Stalker examined me, not with its eyes. “You met him. What a shame to see a man of your capabilities leashed like a dog.”
The same old speech from when we met for the first time. Did the Lich really believe I had a talent for magic, or was it trying to recruit me for its army of the dead? I did collapse a mountain over its head, so maybe I was. I closed my eyes and hoped for the illusion to go away.
“Get your hands off my teacher!”
A fire stream landed cleanly on the Lich-Stalker's thorax. The smell of burning chitin hit like a punch to the nose. I wasn’t hallucinating. Firana knelt by my side, the Aias Sword burning in her hand.
Undead Mana Stalker slain.
Mature Mana Stinger slain.
Juvenile Mana Stinger slain
Level up!
Level up!
Level up!
You have obtained a new skill.
[Rune Identification] acquired.
That skill should’ve been granted ten levels ago, but I wouldn’t complain.
Firana kicked the Mana Stalker’s head away from its shoulders for good measure. “Are you okay, Mister Clarke?” She was pale, and her sword hand trembled. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think it would return as an undead so quickly.”
I sat down with my arm still in the air. The blood had caked around the lancets surprisingly fast. Despite feeling quite light-headed, my mind raced. If the Lich was behind the attack, this was definitely not a ‘normal’ Monster Surge. The Lich was spreading Corruption on purpose. But why?
“Mister Clarke?” Firana called.
“I’m alright, Firana. And thank you for saving me again,” I said, standing on my feet while ignoring the pain of the lancets through my arm. She blushed. “Did you level up?”
Firana beamed, seemingly forgetting about the life-and-death experience. Low-level combatants had no business defeating a monster twenty levels above them, so experience gains were handsome. With no high-level combatants to leech experience, I expected Firana to level up as much as I did. No. I hoped Firana would level up as much as I did. If my wounds got worse, she would be the one carrying the others across the Monster Surge.
“Level eight already,” she grinned as we approached the ridge where the others were hiding. Suddenly, her smile dropped. “We are out of potions.”
“Yes. It seems we are in a pickle, but I can still fight with my right hand,” I replied, but my words didn’t seem to reassure her. In regular leveling expeditions, a wound like this would mean a premature return to civilization, but we didn’t have that privilege.
I sucked it up and continued walking, trying not to show the pain I was experiencing. At least the ‘leveling-up high’ helped to keep the pain at bay, but the sensation wouldn’t last long. I wondered if having [Awareness] shut down my sense of pain would be a good solution, but the most logical part of my brain told me that pain was essential to ensure the survival of the individual.
We reached the ridge. Ilya was lying down on the ground. The wound had closed, but her skin was still too pale.
“And now we need a potion. Who could’ve seen that coming!” She grunted.
It was good to see her so lively.
“Should we pull the lancets?” Zaon asked.
“It will tear the skin and worsen things. The barbs might even damage the muscles, the nerves, or the tendons. We must cut the ends and keep the area as clean as possible until we reach the tribes,” Wolf replied, drawing glances. “What? Orcs have lots of knowledge about anatomy. We teach our kids useful things even before they turn fifteen.”
His assessment was correct as far as my knowledge went.
“I don’t think we have anything for infections. We have antiseptic ointment, but I don’t think we can put this inside the wound,” Wolf said, checking the potions pouch. “I don’t want to be pessimistic, but we are running against time. We have a few days before the fever strikes and a couple more until the sepsis’ more serious symptoms.”
I had a bad feeling that the Lich wouldn’t let me be now that it knew I was around.
“I have bad news,” Ilya said. “I don’t think I’m combat-ready. I don’t think I can even walk straight.”
Not only were we a combatant down, but also our best scout.
“And there are a whole lot of bees and undead monsters to the north,” Firana said. “If we don’t have time for a detour, the only option will be to plow through the middle. The Juvenile Mana Stingers and their poison will become very deadly very quickly. If I can’t use my skills, I don’t think I can fight against anything stronger than a Slime.”
Forcing our way through was an option, but Firana was right. It would be risky. It only took a single Juvenile Mana Stinger to erase my [Mana Manipulation]. Even another Mana Stalker would be deadly if we were ambushed. Besides, Wolf would have to carry Ilya in tow, reducing his combat capabilities. At best, we had three and a half combat-ready members out of five.
There wasn’t a good answer.
“Your chances will improve if you leave me,” Ilya said defiantly.
“Please, stop talking nonsense,” Zaon frowned.
I hadn’t seen Zaon so angry before. In fact, I hadn’t seen him angry at all. Before Ilya could reply, he covered her mouth with a hand. Still, no new ideas popped into my mind. Even Firana remained silent.
“Screw it. We ball,” Wolf sighed, closing his eyes. Out of nowhere, a gold and green aura surrounded him. I knew what kind of crazy things people did after saying ‘we ball’, but before I could stop him, it was done.
Wolf had gotten a Class.
Comments
CrabbyCranberry
I love how they pick up slang from him lol
Ben Bass
TYFTC! Dang, that was brutal, and shows why they were conserving the potions earlier. I do agree Ilya getting the lions share of that potion was important, having an injured hand is better than losing her. Now let’s see what class Wolf chose…
ND_JackSparrow
Thank you for your sacrifice, Wolf. All that time not taking a class to live amongst his people, given up without hesitation to save his friends. Unless he can one day get rid of his class (Maybe that's a power Rob will eventually have when he starts messing with system code) he will not be accepted in their community anymore. May we all be so noble. Rune Identification as a skill is a HUGE development. As soon as they are no longer in mortal peril, it's time to decipher every enchanted item he can get his hands on. > “How is that saddle doing for you?” I had to look back at previous chapters to understand what he meant exactly lol. From chapter 49: > “The System is a saddle, Wizard, but there’s a way around it. Imagine all the things you could do without the boundaries of a mana pool. > The Lich was spreading Corruption on purpose. But why? I'll attribute this to the poison and injuries clouding his thinking, but that has been answered before. Again from 49: > “How do you even go around the System?” I asked. > “With what lesser minds call Corruption.” The Lich stepped forward. “I call it freedom.” > “You met him. What a shame to see a man of your capabilities leashed like a dog.” So the Lich is fully aware of the Man in Yellow ...
Tim Judge
balls inspector.
Trevayne
Thanks for the chapter. This great stuff. I guess the comments are on discord because I find only 2-3 comments in two weeks ridiculous for such a great story.
Slydersno
Hell yeah, fuck it we ball!
bcd051
Wolf, heck yes
