ALL NOVEL Chapter 7: Struggle and Objective (4)
Michael managed to turn his head right as something slammed into him. He smashed into the opposite wall, and coughed as the air rushed out of his lungs. Thankfully, he had cast Mana Shield in time.
“Fuck!”
He coughed two other times before looking at his attacker with tears in his eyes. The beast was already approaching him. It looked like an oversized mole. It was as if a mole had grown to the size of a very large dog. It was stronger than one would have expected from an animal that size. The beast seemed to have been surprised at the man’s survival, but it had already discarded the emotion. Michael quickly gathered his thoughts as the mole barreled towards him. He hurriedly cast Mana Shield again. The enemy hit him like a freight train. His Shield shattered once he hit the wall; gritting his teeth, he pointed the wand at the mole, which was still very close to him.
Instead of letting the System automatically take the wheel, he forced himself to speed up his mana flow and increased the amount of mana used. A Mana Sphere the size of the mole’s head was created in just under a second and a half.
“Mana Sphere!”
The sphere shot toward the mole, but with surprising speed, the beast jumped backward, avoiding it. The Skill drilled into the ground, piercing through solid rock for almost ten centimeters before dispersing. This filled Michael with the conviction that so long as he properly hit the enemy, this battle would be as good as over. He looked at the mole, using Analyze.
[Mole, Level 7.]
There’s a gap in Levels.
This was the fourth time in Michael’s life that he was fighting for his survival, putting his abilities to the test against those of an enemy willing to kill him. That’s right, this was an enemy. His mana was already being significantly drained, since he had used more of it than usual to cast the Skills. He needed to kill in order not to die. It was that simple. The fact that it was higher-leveled didn’t matter.
With determination in his eyes, Michael created another Mana Sphere. He tried to condense it to its limit, forsaking the area of effect for concentrated damage. It was also an attempt to minimize his mana expenditure.
[Your proficiency with the Mana Sphere (F) Skill has risen.]
The mole screeched in rage, completely unafraid. It rushed toward him as an important realization hit him: he couldn’t keep up both a Mana Shield and a Mana sphere at the same time. It was likely possible, but he was unable to do it. This was something that he had noticed before but hadn’t focused on too much, since he had managed to fight his way through the battles so far without dual casting. It was a dangerous oversight. Regret filled his chest, but it was no time for that.
He cursed in his mind, firing the Sphere and hurriedly attempting to conjure up a Shield. The attack only grazed the mole’s left shoulder, seeming to merely make it angrier. He barely finished casting his Shield in time before the mole slammed into him once more, pushing him against the wall. Instead of backing off, it repeatedly used its claws to scratch at the Shield, putting Michael at an impasse.
If he dismissed his Shield in order to cast a Sphere, the mole’s claws would tear into him. If he didn’t, however, the beast would eventually get through his defenses and achieve the same result, as he would be unable to attack it. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Nevertheless, he still knew that there was only one course of action. Without attacking, he would never win. He needed to believe in his Constitution’s ability to heal him. Michael let the shield fall apart. He sped up his mana flow just as the mole ripped into his chest.
“Mana Sphere, fucker.”
The large Sphere shot at the mole, which was once again quicker than Michael expected. He had been certain that his attack would end the fight, but the enemy instead jumped up. The Mana Sphere seared a hole in the left side of its torso, but the mole was still approaching his face at frightening speed. Michael did the only thing he could think of. He protected his head with his hands and kicked the beast in its stomach. The mole was pushed away, but not before injuring both of his arms. It lay on the ground, emitting its death throes. Michael took several deep breaths, before letting out a sigh and shooting a Mana Sphere at the animal’s head, ending its life.
[You have slain a Mole (Level 7.)]
[You have reached Level 4.]
Surprisingly, the mole was even higher-leveled than the lion he had fought. It made sense, however. The thing was much bigger than any mole had the right to be, and if Michael hadn’t been quick in attacking after he put down the Shield it would have torn him to shreds. He let out a breath. Thankfully, the level-ups seemed to have healed him a bit.
This won’t do. Shit.
It was the second time that he had to remain defenseless as he attacked. It would be more than reckless of him to proceed any further without finding a solution. At the same time, he needed access to food and water. Should he return to the surface and lurk around the river? But that would mean that his journey underground so far had achieved nothing and gone nowhere.
He had a strong hunch that the true Tutorial would happen underground based on his experience with games and novels, but it was only that: a hunch. He could be completely wrong, even though the underground seemed to be the only path; if he were correct, backtracking would be a waste of time. Simultaneously, continuing on could result in his death or more severe injuries than the others he had gathered up so far.
He attempted to cast both Mana Shield and Mana Sphere simultaneously a few more times, but his progress didn’t even budge.
This is all I’m going to manage for now. I need water.
He didn’t have the luxury of being able to spend hours or even days practicing using both Skills at the same time, not when he hadn’t found a way to reliably get even the most basic resources. He needed a safety net first before truly dedicating himself to training. At the same time, his mana pool was nearly empty again. If he were to continue in his descent, it was highly likely that he would find more enemies. He needed to stop and rest, but spending time doing so would increase his need for resources. He was at another impasse, so quickly after the first.
“Goddamn it.”
He sat down, leaning on the wall he had been slammed on. Time passed by slowly as he focused solely on breathing. His torso still hurt from the fight against the lion. Every time he lifted his wand to cast a spell, he was racked by agony. He hadn’t met a Healer, nor had enough time to heal. Even in such circumstances, he needed to keep going. Once his mana pool reached around half its maximum, he stood up again. He barely managed to walk another one hundred meters before he was attacked once more. He was forced to spend his barely-recovered mana.
What followed was a sequence of fights. Michael survived a battle by killing his enemy and sat down to recover, only to have to fight again once he continued on his way. Even his lower body and the lower part of his robe had suffered. Thankfully, he still had clothes underneath. As for his upper body, it had taken even more punishment.
His consciousness was hazy and his eyelids were heavy. Every step gave rise to a series of complaints by his body in the form of pain and trembling. His mana was half-full once more, but he couldn’t keep this up forever. Every fight proved to be more perilous than the last due to his tired mind. He would collapse long before reaching any sort of objective.
But he needed to keep moving.
One foot in front of the other.
He needed to survive. He had people he wanted to find and a vision he wanted to achieve. A better world to create for his loved ones. He couldn’t let mere exhaustion weigh him down.
[Your blood continues to burn.]
At that moment, as if on cue, the ground vibrated. It was a sign he had become familiar with not long ago.
Michael barely had enough time to cast a Mana Shield before two different creatures crashed into him, almost sending him flying, slamming his body on the wall next to him. He coughed up a bit of blood, yet didn’t even have the time to ponder the severity of his injuries. He unhesitatingly rolled forward, his body complaining by flooding his senses with pain. He heard one of the two moles smash into the wall, but the other still went after him.
[Your blood continues to burn.]