It was as if he had exploded. Blue mana with a golden hue pushed against the lizardman’s, creating an absolute space around Michael, who jumped to the side as soon as the weight lessened. He avoided the incoming orb and focused on expanding his domain. His mana pool decreased at a noticeable rate, but in exchange, his territory became larger. His method was clearly less refined than the lizardman’s; what he was doing consisted of nothing but making his vast mana reserves clash against the lizardman’s with sheer brute force.

Soon, the space was divided. Half of the room was flooded with the lizardman’s mana, while the other half was dominated by Michael’s. Standing up straight, he met the Boss’ stare.

“Now, let’s do this again.”

He couldn’t use any other Skills while keeping the Mana Field up, but based on the Boss’ abilities, it was possible to attack with it. The lizardman bared its teeth. Michael remained standing in place, trying to control his Mana Field and make it gather into orbs, or to make it heavier. It was difficult. He had gained the Skill by simply forcing his mana out of his body in an instant burst and trying to mimic the Boss. It meant that his proficiency was lacking.

Three orbs of condensed mana coalesced above the Boss and shot toward him. He blinked. His body and soul acted before his mind. The mana in front of him gathered, creating a crude shielding layer. The orbs slammed into it, making it tremble. Gritting his teeth, Michael focused, but it was too late. The barrier shattered. He only had the time to create resistance against the orbs and slow them down before shifting his body. One of the orbs missed due to the resistance, while another grazed his left arm, creating a large wound. The third orb, however, hit him dead-on.

He only had the time to turn his face to the side before the sphere slammed into the front of his body, pushing him backward. The damage went beyond the impact; it burned everywhere it touched, destroying the upper part of his robe and his skin. Michael screamed as his muscles boiled. A halo of light appeared above his head as he forcefully sent mana into the orb, making it collapse. He heaved, grinding to a halt. The pain was unbelievable, but his Clarity Skill helped him think.

I can’t cast Minor Heal while keeping up the Mana Field.

The enemy was already readying another attack. He could only believe in his Dragonheart and Cleansing Skill to patch him up. Luckily, he hadn’t lost an eye, even though the entire left side of his face was burned and injured. His upper body had become a mess. The pain was enough to slowly override even Clarity’s effects. His arms trembled. If he had acted any later, the injuries would have been too severe to recover from. Thankfully, he was backed by his high Constitution.

Patches of burnt skin fell to the ground. He gritted his teeth, rubbing the blood off. Two more orbs of dense mana flew at him. This time, his defense was better. He managed to form a solid barrier; the orbs collided with it, trying to push through, but dispersed.

I can’t just defend. Fuck, this hurts.

Mentally thanking his Clarity Skill for allowing him to still think and act, he tried to mimic the Boss’ orbs. He attempted to gather his mana, condensing it to its limit. It was difficult. Just emitting his mana and keeping up the Mana Field was trying enough, but he also had to manipulate the emitted mana and make it follow his wishes. He had never considered that he had poor mana manipulation, but at least when it came to this Skill in particular, he was worse than the Boss.

Concentrate!

He threw all useless thoughts aside. All that remained was the will to kill his enemy. He imbued his mana storm with that intention alone. The mana around him took the shape of a large sphere.

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Go!

It flew toward the Boss, which discarded the orbs it had been creating and formed a barrier. The sphere crashed against it, attempted to drill a path through it, and then dispersed.

“Fuck.”

As new skin slowly crawled over the damaged and burnt parts of his body, Michael wiped the blood off his hands.

In this divided world, Michael and the lizardman stared at each other as their mana clashed.

***

James, Dylan, Anthony, and Thomas entered the room, quickly closing the door. Each walked toward their bed with a tired expression. James walked to the center of the room.

“Nothing?”

The other three were silent, but they shook their heads. Anthony spoke.

“It’s hard enough to obtain information about Lohann while remaining inconspicuous. It doesn’t help that people avoid talking about him like the plague.”

Thomas nodded.

“It’s a strange atmosphere. They’re afraid and I don’t blame them. How do we get around this?”

Dylan shook his head again. It was clear that he was out of ideas. James sighed within his mind. He wasn’t disappointed in his friends; they had done what they could. Instead, he was concerned about this whole situation. Because of Elizabeth’s words, Michael had gone off to Level up. While he knew it was the best course of action, he still felt fear, since he was outside Michael’s sphere of protection. The memories of what he had been through when he got captured haunted him. He spoke in a tired tone.

“I’m struggling a bit to find someone related to Yellowbright’s organization, too. It’s not like they would announce it while infiltrating another Village.”

Silence reigned for a few seconds. Dylan was the next to speak.

“Let’s just go to sleep. We can think about that stuff tomorrow. We’re all exhausted. Our task isn’t easy.”

The others nodded. James did the same with a sigh. Silently, everyone lay in their beds. As he closed his eyes, James felt dread. He could only hope not to have any nightmares, but he knew he would. The pain of having his fingernails ripped out was fresh in his mind. He still distinctly remembered how it felt to have a blade tear through his skin and muscles.

Curled up and completely still, he shivered. In an attempt to distance himself from those memories, he thought about Michael. Even now, he was worried about his friend’s safety. Michael had said that he would tackle a Dungeon; it was something that James had never attempted. He could only hope that it would work out. He let out a breath.

We were never too close.

They had been ordinary friends, but now, in the Tutorial, they relied on each other. It wasn’t a bad feeling. As his thoughts reached this point, James felt his racing heart gradually slow down.

We’re going to be fine.

All he needed to do was find a way to contact Yellowbright’s organization. It was his duty. Lost in his thoughts, James fell asleep. His nightmares haunted him; he woke up feeling more exhausted than before he went to sleep. He looked around. The others were also waking up, but there was no way to tell what time it was, since they were underground. James dragged himself to his feet and spoke.

“Alright, let’s go.”

The others nodded. Together, they left the room and walked towards the dining hall. After a meal, the day would truly start.

I’m definitely going to succeed today.

He tried to contain his rising anxiety. He would be more prone to making mistakes if he let it take hold of him. Right now, he needed to stay calm and stick to the plan. There was no margin for error. Lohann needed to be taken care of as soon as possible. At that moment, as he walked, it was impossible not to notice a commotion. People were either walking or outright running towards what seemed to be the same destination.

The town square?

They rushed, tripping over themselves as if running after a treasure. Or, away from something. James and his friends stopped walking. Anthony spoke.

“We need to check this out.”

The others nodded at the same time. Together, they chased after the running people with hurried steps. Soon, they arrived at the town square in the middle of the Village. Truthfully, it wasn’t much, consisting of a large square space with a fountain in the middle. It was the central area of Redglow Village and the one most heavily watched by the dwarven guards. It was the only area in the Village where the ground wasn’t simple dirt. All the dirt roads in the Village led to it.

A large crowd had gathered around a man on top of a wooden box next to the fountain. The man was speaking in a loud voice, as if delivering an announcement. In front of him were tens, perhaps even hundreds of people. They filled the square. James and the others arrived just quickly enough to hear the end of the messenger’s speech.

“-And as such, because of this transgression, fifty Redglow villagers will be executed in a random fashion. It must be said that this isn’t an act of terrorism or insanity; it is a mere consequence and response to the people who killed our leader, Derek.”