I was prepared to run until my body refused me to keep going, not looking back and creating as much distance between me and the soldier as possible. Even with my stamina run out, I would crawl and grovel for even another step away from that monster.
However, as if ignoring all of my desperation, a system notification forced itself into my vision. There shouldn’t be any reason for a message from the system, and when I curiously read its contents, my body froze in shock, causing me to miss my next step and tumbling face-first to the ground.
Not even the pain from my broken arm or ribs was enough to tear me out of my stupor. I rolled onto my back, confirming the information I had just received, but even after multiple times, the contents remained unchanged. I was left blinking, too stunned to move a muscle.
You have slain [Exapoda Soldier | Lvl. 44]. Experience will be awarded. Bonus Experience for defeating a higher-leveled enemy will be awarded.
[Novice Witch] has leveled up! Stat points have been allocated! 1 Free Stat Point acquired!
[Novice Witch] has leveled up! Stat points have been allocated! 1 Free Stat Point acquired!
[Novice Witch] is now Level 23.
I felt like I was in a trance, reality slowly sinking in. The soldier was dead. Not only that, I killed it. But… how? I mean, the only thing I could imagine to have done the deed was the liquid I tossed at it. It was the only thing that even seemed to bother the soldier, but killing it? Just like that?
Just what was that liquid and how dangerous must it have been to kill a level 44 creature just like that?
I shuddered, imagining what would have happened if the container broke while still in my pouch. Why would that human—Johanna—carry something like this around in belt pouch, where something as frail as glass could break anytime?
Ironically, my unfavorable opinion of the human woman aside, if she hadn’t carried this—way too dangerous—liquid around, I would have breathed my last a while ago. And while she already had, even after her death, she had saved me. I was saved by a human. Again. I shouldn’t make that a habit.
Well, my life was saved, but the question was if it would remain that way. Exapoda had a tendency to form groups and there were certainly more soldier squirming around somewhere in this lair. Without any more of that liquid, I was out of chances. And in my current state, another encounter would be my last.
My arm was broken, my eardrums shattered and I had cracked at least two ribs, probably more. On top of that, the lack of stamina and exhaustion from running was catching up to me, as the adrenaline escaped my body.
Fully conscious, and in pain, I waited until my breathing calmed and my stamina recovered. I was lucky that I had not wasted all of my mana during my encounter with the soldier, so there was enough to restore my eardrums without emptying my entire pool.
As sound returned to my eardrums, I finally heard my own breathing and heartbeat again, relieved that those were the only sounds in my vicinity.
I had given up any plans to engage in battle for now. My arm and ribs were not as important as my hearing. Now, I would at least know ahead of time when something planned to attack me.
I was left with six hundred mana, but when I tried to stand up, the pain in my torso was too overwhelming and I felt bones piercing into things they shouldn’t pierce into. The damage had already been done now and I was left with no other choice than to fix my ribs. Only two hundred mana remained now.
That mana would probably be enough to mend my fractured arm—at least to a degree—but it was a reserve I didn’t dare touch. Not only because it was basically my life force, but because it was my only means of defense, now that I had lost even my last mandible.
And regrettably, the circumstances were not allowing for me to meditate. My own paranoia and caution, too, kept me from meditating. Who knew when another drone or soldier decided to take a stroll in this tunnel. If I died, I would at least want to be present.
Therefore, for the time being, I had to accept that my left arm would be out of the picture for a while longer.
With some time on my hands now, I decided to take a look at my equipment. I had taken quite the blow, but apparently, my clothes were more durable than my own body. The damage was minuscule. The cloak ripped in a few places, the moss and dirt had left some stains on it. Not a single piece was in a state where I would need to throw it away. I was actually a little surprised, and fascinated, by the durability of these pieces of cloth.
In opposition, my own fragility was turning into a problem, a bigger one than it already had been. Until now, everything the Exapoda threw at me was something I could deal with, but the soldier broke that rule. It was proof that I needed to get stronger, and not at the same pace as I did until now. I needed to get as strong as possible, as soon as possible. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to keep up with my opponents.
With that in mind, sitting around and doing nothing was oddly frustrating. It would be unreasonable to risk anything by venturing forward now that I was weakened and running low on mana, but could I really afford not to? I was unarmed, wounded and exhausted, no shape to fight at all, yet, doing nothing seemed like the wrong choice, a waster opportunity.
This place, this lair, it was unpredictable. So were the Exapoda. There was no telling what I would be faced with next nor how things would change from here on out. I should at least get my weapon back, just so I could utilize my entire skillset. And walking was something I could do even with a broken arm or mana.
The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
With a quiet groan, I pushed myself to my feet and leaving my left arm dangling, I started walking towards the place I had ran from just a few moments ago. The soldier was dead, and it was time to see what had become of it.
Honestly, the soldier was still sitting at the back of my mind, the noise it made as it tore through the lair’s walls and what was behind them. And even though it was so quiet, my body refused to relax and even my mind tried to mess with me, fear gnawing at me, warning me that any time another one could appear.
Strangely enough—probably through Iron Will—I looked at these emotions with a strange calm. The fear was present, no doubt, but it was reserved, not consuming me. In recent times, I hadn’t given the skill much attention, but it was as useful as ever. And probably the only reason my legs were still carrying me forward and not in the opposite direction.
Things stayed calm on my walk back and there were no incidents. And, although this was kind of crushing, the way back was really short. I had run away with all I had, as fast as I could, pushing myself over my limits and yet the total distance I actually ran was a joke. Only after a couple dozens of steps, I already found the soldier corpse lying ahead of me and the hole it had made in the wall a short distance further back. After that, it did not take me long until I reached it.
Its corpse was in a lot worse of a shape than I had anticipated, to a degree that it was shocking. Its entire head was gone, melted away by the liquid. This was just a rough estimate of what I had seen, but it had reduced the body by about a third. That still left roughly 20 feet of bug, and, surprisingly, four mandibles. Well, two of them were quite damaged, leaving only two that looked to be in good condition. Both were double the size of a drone’s mandibles, still covered in yellow bristles and free for the taking. And who was I not to take advantage of this opportunity.
Reaching for the mandibles with Telekinesis, I expected to grab the closes one, but to my surprise, it enveloped both of them. Confused, I pulled on the connection and both of them responded, moving closer to me.
Upon further inspection, it seemed like my skill was not considering them as separate objects and my intent was shared between the two. Any attempt to control them separately ultimately failed, but this was still an improvement. If I managed to increase the number of objects I could wield with Telekinesis, it would boost my combat capabilities a lot. And that was definitely something I was looking forward, too.
But these new types of mandibles had a problem. They did not have the same sharp edges the drone mandibles had, but only a sharp tip. This took away the ability to cut and left only stabbing, well, and clubbing. Quite strange why soldiers had mandibles less designed for murder than their smaller and weaker brethren. Must suck to get screwed over by evolution.
Jokes aside, the bristles on the mandibles had to have a purpose and I was determined to find out what that was. Last time I touched them, I felt a sharp pain, as if my hand was pierced by a hundred burning needles, but was pain really the only effect? After all, the soldier I found previously seemed to have died quite some time ago. It would be better to test a fresh one, just in case. And I would do so now, rather than having to find out in the midst of battle. No harm in learning more about my enemies. Unfortunately, the only one who I could test them on was myself.
My arm was broken anyway, so it would not matter as long as it was only pain. Worst case scenario, I still had Regeneration. It was probably still stupid to test them on myself, but what could I do, my curiosity had to be stilled.
Dropping one of them, I let the other one brush against my left arm slightly, the bristles barely grazing my skin. The instant it touched my skin, a sharp sting of pain traveled through my arm, spreading from my shoulder to the tip of my fingers. I fell on my knees, dropping Telekinesis completely. Keeling over, I grabbed my arm, grit my teeth and endured the pain, but then the pain vanished, slowly it retreated, or more precisely, it dulled. And then, all of the sensations in my arm disappeared. It felt as if it was not there, as if my entire arm was gone.
“Shit,” I spat as I sat on the ground, running my hand across my paralyzed arm.
The pain was worse than before and I was correct. The bristles had some kind of paralytic effect. Since the first soldier did not paralyze my hand when I touched it, the effect probably weakens and eventually vanishes after the soldier’s death. Good to know for my new weapons.
This experience was worse than expected, but the result made it worth it. If these paralytic bristles worked on the soldiers themselves, I just had gotten a huge upgrade. At the same time, this meant each and every one of the soldiers currently living in this lair were capable of killing me with one attack. I already thought my situation was bad, but it just go worse.
Actually, now that my arm was paralyzed, it was also numb to pain, which actually was quite nice. By the time it wore off, I had recovered a hundred mana and started the recovery of my arm. I made the process slow and steady, rather than burning all the mana at once. That way, I could stop just in case. Also, my healing seemed to cure the paralytic effect—apparently I could do that.
Not long after, I could finally move my arm again without too much pain. My mana was at an all time low, with only fifty remaining, which came with a headache and nausea, but at least my body was restored.
The soldier attacked me just once and that almost screwed me completely over. The recovery required a lot of time and mana, and to recover the mana lost in the process would cost even more time. It did not feel great to be left with this much trouble, even after the soldier’s sudden death.
But, as frustrating as it was, I had to wait again. Unfortunately, I still wasn’t ready to risk meditating. But the time I remained sitting here, essentially doing nothing, I got a chance to think about a few things. Especially my recent improvement in Telekinesis. And when I thought about it, I got an idea I wanted to test out.
Two hundred mana in my pool was when I decided to take action. Patience was never really a strong point of mine anyway.
I reached for one of the mandibles with my right hand, telekinetically, of course. The mandible rose into the air, my intent guiding its movements. Then, I extended my left hand and did the exact same thing. And it worked.
The second mandible rose into the air, not connected to the other one, but as its own object.
“Fancy,” I said as both mandibles twirled around before me.
It was slightly strange, moving both at the same time, having separate movements for each, but it was not much different from moving both hands at the same time, although more straining on the mind. I didn’t think I would be able to fight that way yet, not without giving up movement, but it was a step in the right direction.
Once I was satisfied, I returned the mandibles to my belt, securing them without touching them. The bristles did not penetrate through my tunic or trousers, so there was no risk of me paralyzing myself. I did need to be careful with my hands though, but it was better than constantly using Telekinesis on the side.
As for my next course of action, there was still the giant hole in the wall, made by the very soldier, who was at fault for my recent sufferings. It was still wide open, creating a new path in this tunnel. Inside, there grew now moss, nor were the walls, ceiling or ground made of bark. Just dirt and earth. But as interesting as a newly made path was, it also created a new risk, one I would rather know gone.
My plan was simple. Grab some dirt from the ceiling and force a collapse of the hole. How effective it was sealing it was another question entirely, since soldier’s apparently did not need a pre-existent entrance to pop out of the walls, but I still preferred it close, rather than risking something coming from behind later on.
I raised both of my hands, channeling Telekinesis, but my skill stopped, when I looked ahead into the darkness, I expected nothing but black, but instead, I found two shining, green orbs floating in the dark.