image [https://c10.patreonusercontent.com/4/patreon-media/p/post/104423275/88d48b6f7c0f4ae582606840ab33016f/eyJ3Ijo2MjB9/1.png?token-time=1717286400&token-hash=kTVXMF7fWR6IIsV9KcA6pNmSQosZDbL1tYIjlM4WDEg%3D]
I didn't have to run far. Just fifty meters from the passage, I found myself in a vast cavern. The first thing that caught my eye was the corpse of an elderly man with gray hair and a sagging belly, no younger than fifty, and a fish-man feasting upon him. The player's throat was ripped open, leaving me with no way to help. This saddened me, but what struck me most was that the man was wearing light leather armor! Why did the system give armor to warriors, but a robe to me? "Discrimination! I'll sue them for this. The judge will have a good laugh," a thought inappropriate for the situation flashed through my mind. It was just nerves; I always try to joke when I'm tense.
I didn't dwell on this scene for long. Somewhere in the depths of the cave, a woman's scream echoed, indicating there were those I could still save. Wasting no time, I struck the fish-man's head with my staff and rushed further. There were three more of these monsters in the cave. Two were devouring corpses, while the third was trying to bite through the staff of a girl who was defending herself, aiming to reach her throat.
Quickly assessing the situation, I rushed to help. My body, invigorated with life force, covered the distance to the predator and its victim in an instant, and with a swing, I smashed my staff into the fish-man's head. I overdid it. I'd gotten used to the weight of my weapon. The monster's head burst like an overripe pumpkin, showering its contents over me and the girl's face. Thank goodness the bone fragments didn't damage our eyes. Such wounds are incredibly difficult to heal. And the girl looks familiar...
As soon as I killed the first monster, the other two, tearing themselves away from their meal, lunged at me. Why didn't they attack the girl together? Did they consider her easy prey? Or did their instincts compel them to satiate themselves first?
I didn't dare leave the injured girl. It was unlikely she would be so lucky again, with a new opponent going for her staff instead of her neck.
It was good that they didn't start spitting acid, but immediately went on the offensive. I rewarded the first one with a staff to the head, while I decided not to rush with the other. As soon as the fish-man ran up, I struck him in the torso, in the solar plexus area. These creatures also had a plexus of nerve endings there, making it a weak spot. But I didn't finish him off. I decided to acquire a live specimen. Approaching the writhing monster, I touched its skin and injected properly structured prana into its body. This healing technique is usually performed with mana, but on Earth, I managed to adapt it to prana, although its effectiveness was diminished.
Ugh. It felt like a mountain had fallen on my shoulders. Still, without a conductor, such as a silver needle or a knife, directing prana into an opponent's body was quite demanding. But I'll survive, my prana regenerates quickly.
Yes, this amount of life force should be enough for the monster for about an hour. So, for now, I can focus on the girl, who still hasn't stopped screaming.
"Calm down, the danger has passed!" I barked, but to no avail. She had already thrown off the monster's body, but she continued to shriek and wave her staff around. It's dark, she can't see anything.
I didn't risk approaching the victim to calm her down. Instead, I started weaving a full anesthesia spell in my aura. In Babylon, it had a different name, something like "Blessed Sleep," but I can't say for sure. Like its verbal form, the spell's name had faded from my memory, leaving only the memory of the structure's layout in the aura and an understanding of the spell's functions.
After weaving the spell in 30 seconds, I cast it on the poor girl, whose voice had already begun to break into a rasp. It worked instantly - the patient lost consciousness, and the staff, slipping from her hands, rolled across the floor.
Whew. Now I can calmly examine the victim without fear of her harming herself or me.
According to my calculations, the spell took 54 mana, but that's not a problem. While I was walking, I managed to accumulate 343 units of magical energy. And now my balance is 289 mana points. It wouldn't be enough for absolute protection anyway, and there's no time to meditate. The girl could be seriously injured. The mage's robe, similar to mine, prevents me from assessing her health. As my memory tells me, this magic robe can restore its own damage by drawing mana from its owner, which means it could also hide wounds under the fabric from my gaze.
Approaching the victim, I habitually launched my prana into the patient's body. I was slightly thrown to the side, but I didn't break contact with her skin. Well, what can I say, there are no serious wounds; the patient, in theory, would have survived without my intervention. Her condition is not critical: claw cuts on her hands, cracked ribs from blows, and bruises all over her body. In addition to new injuries, the girl had problems with her lower left wisdom tooth, scoliosis, and kidney inflammation. There were no signs of violence; moreover, she seemed to be innocent.
I didn't want to waste mana, but staying in the cave for long was not advisable, and carrying a bloody, sleeping princess, whose scent would attract half the population of these caves, was even less appealing. So I had to spend mana. The "Heal Cuts" spell cost 63 mana, and healing the bones took the whole hundred. Most of the bruises closed up as well, but not all. She'll be able to walk, and that's the main thing. It's time to wake the victim. She still needs to wash up and tidy herself. But first, I should step back; who knows what might come to the poor girl's mind! She no longer had her staff, but I don't want to get hit in the nose with a skinny elbow.
"Who's here and where am I? What happened to that demon? Phew, it was just a dream," the girl muttered as soon as she woke up and started to get up.
"Don't be scared, but that wasn't a demon, just a fish-man, and no, as much as we'd like to believe otherwise, it wasn't a dream. Unfortunately. By the way, hi Masha." - And yes, I finally remembered this girl. She was that red-haired nurse Masha from traumatology, with freckles.
"Who are you, what's going on!? How do you know me!? What am I doing here,?! Is this a prank!? How dare you..." - the girl started chattering again.
"Calm down!" - I had to raise my voice to stop the flow of endless, meaningless questions. "I'm Alex, Wolverine, your patient from traumatology. And I know no more than you do. All I remember is an alarm, explosions, a message from the system, and here I am in these caves. The only difference is that I killed the monster that attacked me and got my first skill from it - the night vision spell, and then I started hunting and acquired a healing skill."
I decided not to reveal that I was a mage from another world and blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
Standing still was irrational, so I actively explored the cave in search of trophies. There was no loot above the monsters, but each of their victims had a set of equipment coins that needed to be found. All the corpses were male, which I noticed when I first entered the cave, judging by the shape of their cuirasses. I couldn't find a weapon near the first deceased; further examination revealed his katana was inside his ring. I suspect it will be the same with the others. Regardless of the skills the system bestowed upon them, they couldn't use them. Not everyone in a stressful situation and complete darkness can resist fear, accurately assess their strength, and offer decent resistance to predators.
"Killed? How? Did you choose combat skills? I chose magic, thinking I would become a powerful sorceress, but it's useless. It only unlocked the magic parameter in the interface," Maria said, her voice trembling with tears. "Where are the others?"
"Alright, stop the tears. I've eliminated the monsters, but staying here is certain death. These creatures are attracted to the smell of blood, and this cave is overflowing with it."
As I spoke, I removed the armor from the deceased. He no longer needed it, and a couple of sets of light leather armor could save my life. I hope the deceased will forgive me.
I didn't have to untie any knots; it was enough to touch the equipment coin to the suit and wish to store the equipment inside it.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
Most of the deceased's equipment was analogous to my own: the same ring, flask, bag, and boots, but with a marking indicating their belonging to a Warrior-Traveler. However, there was no robe or cloak; in their place were lightweight leather armor and leather trousers. Their description intrigued me.
----------------------------------------
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Equipment Coin
(contains)
Warrior-Traveler's Lightweight Leather Armor
Description:
This is high-quality, durable, and comfortable armor crafted from strong yet flexible leather, making it ideal for beginners of E-rank races. It provides basic protection from blows and scratches without restricting movement. Capable of self-repair.
Properties:
* Rare Rank Armor System: Possesses enhanced durability and heat resistance.
* Kinetic Energy Absorption and Distribution: This piece of armor is capable of partially absorbing and distributing the kinetic energy of blows inflicted upon it.
* Self-Adjustment: This armor can adapt to the wearer's size.
* Self-Repair: This piece of armor can repair itself while residing within the coin. The speed of repair depends on the extent of damage and the energy directed into the coin.
* Thermal Regulation: This garment can raise or lower its temperature within a small range according to the wearer's preferences.
Equipment Rank:
Rare (E)
Materials:
Leather, spider silk, cotton, bronze.
----------------------------------------
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Equipment Coin
(contains)
Warrior-Traveler's Leather Trousers
Description:
These are high-quality, durable, and comfortable trousers crafted from strong yet flexible leather, making them ideal for beginners of E-rank races. They provide basic protection from blows and scratches without restricting leg movement. Capable of self-repair.
Properties:
* Rare Rank Equipment System: Possesses enhanced durability and heat resistance.
* Kinetic Energy Distribution: This piece of equipment is capable of partially absorbing and distributing the kinetic energy of blows inflicted upon it.
* Self-Adjustment: This equipment can adapt to the wearer's size.
* Self-Repair: This piece of equipment can repair itself while residing within the coin. The speed of repair depends on the extent of damage and the energy directed into the coin.
* Thermal Regulation: This piece of equipment can raise or lower its temperature within a small range according to the wearer's preferences.
Equipment Rank:
Rare (E)
Materials:
Leather, spider silk, cotton, bronze.
----------------------------------------
"Blood? Does that mean I killed them?" the nurse began to burst into tears. "I broke his nose..."
I couldn't make out what the girl wanted to say or who she had graced with a broken nose – she was overcome by hysteria.
While my involuntary companion sobbed, I, after some thought, stored the cooling body of the monster's victim in his own ring and moved on to the next.
It was a young man, about eighteen years old. A slightly chubby, dark-haired boy with a bloody nose and a severed hand – most likely, he was the one who received a blow to the face from my acquaintance. I had to search for his ring and hand. The gnawed limb was lying on the side, behind a stalagmite. As I thought, this warrior's weapon was in the ring, and lo and behold, it was also a katana. I have nothing against katanas, but it's a rather specific weapon that requires careful handling, and I'm only familiar with European straight swords. The problem is also that, apparently, this will be the most popular type of weapon on Earth. Hollywood, with its promotion of Japanese weapons, has played a dirty trick on me.
This time, I didn't remove the armor from the boy. The sleeve of the cuirass was torn and currently unusable, and I had no desire to look at the body of a naked, dead young man.
The next was the elderly man who lay at the entrance to the cave. The choice of his weapon surprised and delighted me at the same time. It was a spear. An ordinary, unadorned, one-and-a-half-meter spear. Finally, at least something I can use without problems. I also hid the man's body in the ring without removing the equipment.
With every minute, Maria's sobs grew stronger, and our time was running out. Hungry scavengers and predators could enter here any minute.
The only option was to spend mana on a new spell. There were two ways to quickly overcome hysteria, but the cheapest was from mental magic. It was also the most unpleasant from a moral point of view. The spell was called "Subjugation" and was a type of hypnosis that turned a person into a zombie-like being who could only follow simple commands. With minimal mana saturation, the effect of the spell would last about five minutes. After that, the girl would be slow for a couple of days, and most importantly, she would remember every second of how her body disobeyed her. Honestly, not the most pleasant memories.
Option number two was twice as expensive and was called "Sleep of Emotions" - it temporarily cut off the emotional sphere of the human soul. Its effect turned a person into an emotionless puppet, and the sensations resembled the Buddhist meditation of "pure mind."
I didn't want to reveal my abilities or scare my future companion in misfortune, so I opted for the "Sleep of Emotions" spell, which deducted another 60 mana from my account. At this rate, I'll soon be without reserves.
After the spell, Masha continued to cry for a couple of minutes due to the inertia of perception, and then stared into the darkness with glassy eyes.
"I'm going to use the night vision skill on you now, and you'll see in black and white," I warned, to which the girl just nodded.
"Now I'll lead you to the monster, your task is to finish him off," - and again a nod of the head in confirmation from my interlocutor.
Approaching the monster, I entered a superficial meditation, activated "true sight," and handed the dead player's spear to the girl.
"Strike at the throat, we need to complete the system's task, otherwise we risk remaining in this world," my voice was firm, and my commands clear. I couldn't allow even the slightest doubt to arise in the girl's mind.
The girl failed to execute the command on the first strike, as well as on the second. The spear swung in her hands like a pendulum. But after adjusting, on the third strike, the monster's neck was pierced, and a wave of energy ran through the weapon. Entering the player's body, the energy, passing through the physical shell from the hand to the center of the chest, flowed along tiny threads towards the atman - the third immortal shell of the soul.
Still, I wasn't mistaken, this is an extension of the immortal soul. This is the kind of thing that falls under the category of "Till death do us part," and getting rid of this miracle will be almost impossible. Unless I become on par with the gods.
"Take the water flask, wash up and carefully wipe off any traces of blood on your body, I've healed your wounds, they won't reopen," I handed her my mage-traveler's flask. "I won't peek, but let me know when you're done."
The girl obediently took the water and began to remove her robe. Although it makes no difference to her now whether I see her naked or not, she will remember everything later, so it's better to turn away.
To avoid wasting time, I sat down in meditation and started replenishing my reserves.
"I'm ready," Maria's dry, emotionless voice sounded.
1.jpg?token-time=1717286400&token-hash=HogmEddCVNFXZYfNVqcb9M-OBjssyRVeZ8UjrhA9Ccc%3D [https://c10.patreonusercontent.com/4/patreon-media/p/post/104423275/eb91521ceb5c4039a4fe0be3e60d3776/eyJ3ZWJwIjowfQ%3D%3D/1.jpg?token-time=1717286400&token-hash=HogmEddCVNFXZYfNVqcb9M-OBjssyRVeZ8UjrhA9Ccc%3D]
"Let's go," I replied, equally dry and clear.
I didn't waste time or, more importantly, life force on examining the fish-men. They didn't exhibit any magical abilities in battle, and I was still a little shaky from the lack of prana in my body. I shouldn't have wasted it on that fish-man, but if there had been other survivors with severe injuries, a sacrifice for the ritual might have been necessary. Thank God I didn't have to slit any throats. I never liked rituals with sacrifices and always replaced animals with prana-saturated crystals. It was more expensive, but slitting throats is not my style.
Exiting the branch into the main passage, we were met with an unpleasant surprise…