With a smile, he shot out the tendrils, searching for the Muck Muncher. He channeled the power of the Rune of Beckoning along it, and eventually, something took the bait. With a grin, he sent all of his Void energy into that singular tendril, and expanded the tip into a wickedly barbed hook, while thickening the rest of it. Pulling on the lure, he brought in his prey, straight into a blast of Maw of the Void. A cone of nothingness blasted out through the dome of water, exposing the sky outside.
Half of the Muck Muncher’s flesh had disappeared, leaving it suspended in the water that it had summoned. With a wet lurch, the dome collapsed, leaving the monster’s corpse on the ground. The other fighters landed, coughing, next to it.
Essence rushed into Jonathan, propelling him up two levels. That fight had been somewhat of a challenge, but with his armor, he was more than up to it. Another notification waited for him.
You have gained a Pathway Skill!
Elemental Manipulation: Apprentice 8
Your element comes naturally to you, and you have experimented with manipulating its raw essence rather than using a skill to utilize it to its fullest potential.
+10 to Intelligence, +5 to Wisdom
Immediately, Jonathan felt a resonance between this skill and his other two manipulation skills. A sudden spark of intuition told him that if he got them all to Journeyman Rank, he could combine them into a greater whole.
For now, he used his elemental manipulation to clean off the muck from his armor. He turned around to see the others wiping themselves down, grumbling as the filth soaked in through joints in their armor.
The rest of the battle was going quite smoothly, and without their leader, the Muck Munchers seemed to have lost much of their resolve. Although they had been little more than dumb beasts to begin with, the presence of their leader had imbued them with a degree of primal bravery. Now, they were simply monsters.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Jonathan sat down by his allies and watched the battle progress, knowing that if he joined in, he would starve many of the fighters of their essence share. Instead, he chatted idly with Branth and Alastair about their lives before the Hells. Branth had come from a small enclave of beast folk sheltered within a hollow mountain, but apparently Telvarians were not overly fond of his race, as they had not been created by the gods, but rather had evolved over time. Eventually, the enclave had been discovered, and by a group of the gods’ chosen to boot. In fighting back, Branth had consigned himself to the Infinite Hells. It was yet another example of how corrupt and unjust this world was. In hearing this, Jonathan spotted an opening.
“Branth, if you had a chance to change all this, would you do so?” He asked, keeping his voice low. He only wanted to speak to one person at a time about such dangerous matters. Alastair had taken a break from the conversation, and was polishing his ax.
“Of course, but is that really possible? The servants of Slothari are far beyond me, and she is even farther still. Why would I throw my life away for a fool’s errand?”
“Have you not heard the rumors?” Jonathan said, choosing his words carefully. “About the state of the previous circle of Hell?”
“All I know is that there was some unrest down there, and that the powers that be want to keep that covered up. Why, do you know more about it?”
“I do. You see, someone did the impossible, and defeated the circle lord of the Ash Heaps. If that is possible, then why not Mire as well? The Ash Heaps had a far higher bar to gaining power than this circle.”
“Truly? Then there is hope for us yet,” Branth said, his eyes gleaming. “I had resigned myself to a life of meaningless battle, which would then turn into slavery to Slothari as she realized my strength. This is far better.”
“Are you not afraid of death?” Jonathan asked, trying to gauge the veracity of Branth’s statements.
“Afraid of death? Are we not already dead? We are in Hell, Joseph. There is nothing to lose.”
“Well then, I have something to show you,” Jonathan said, tensing up. With a sigh, he sent the title description for First Circle Breaker to Branth, watching as the man’s eyes lit up.
“Is this real?”
“Does the System lie?” Jonathan replied.
“Then there is hope after all…” Branth said, entranced by what he could see before him. Jonathan withdrew the System notification and fell silent as the others approached. He would attempt to sway them later, staying as patient as possible.