The secret, Dray knew, was not just the quality of the stones. He had a trick from his father, which seemed to work. His father had started him on it, and he had carried on for himself afterwards, so he couldn’t really tell how much stronger he was than he should be, only that he was a bit stronger than the average. It was impossible to add a higher Level stone into a lower Level bar. But, his father had found, if you were to ground that higher Level stone into dust, that would do the trick.

Pour the dust over the stones before forming the bar, and you’d get a superior Level bar. That’s what Dray called it, a Superior bar. He had seen other bars, and his Superior bars did seem superior. His father was able to get him up to Third Black Level with no problem. That was seen as the starting point of most jobs, and the bars weren’t worth much. But from there, he had to take care.

That night he began to form his Superior Level bar. He had ground down a Black Level 8 piece, and mixed it in with the Black Level 7 pieces he had been carrying. Then he added more Black Level 7 pieces to it. Once it reached critical mass, the bar would form. There was a slight glow, which Dray was careful to cover with a blanket. After removing the blanket, he saw his Black Level 7 bar sitting in front of him.

Grabbing it quickly, he lay down on his cot. Holding the bar to his bare chest, he absorbed it. Closing his eyes, he allowed his consciousness to fall into his body. His awareness found itself in a black void, with an image of his human body laying there. The body had highlighted areas where it had been improved before. Dray knew he had only a certain amount of power to improve himself, and could not waste it in one direction.

Since his father died, he’d had a powerful awareness of his own mortality, so he would always improve his body’s health and regeneration. But now, he was in a dangerous place, and he had to make sure he could fight and survive.

He gave a portion to his regeneration and fortitude, then some to his stamina, which was important to a miner who had to work all day. And now he diverged from a typical miner construction. He fortified his nerves and senses to help him notice and react faster to danger, and added speed in order to handle it.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Once he awoke, it was just before dawn, so he got up and began to stretch. Stretching was important, but especially so after Leveling up. Your body might not work as you were used to, so now was time to adjust to it. Dray ran through the standard exercises for post-leveling. Slowly his sense of body came back to him. He hopped, trying to see how agile he was. A few times jumping in place, springing from side to side on the balls of his feet told him he was noticeably quicker and faster. With a smile on his face, he went out to face a day’s work.

A soldier reported seeing another scout. It was bad news, that meant the enemy force was close. The commander suggested that the enemy wasn’t going to be a large force, but it would likely have fifty to a hundred men. In order to get there so quickly. Luckily the final third wall was being completed. With a rush they could complete it in two days, if everyone helped. The miners stopped mining in order to focus on helping finish the wall, and assembling Leveling bars for the soldiers. That night, many of the soldiers went to their cot with a Leveling bar, now most were mid to high Blues.

The commander stood on the newly finished gatehouse, his mouth frowning as he watched the incoming enemy forces set up camp just into the edges of the woods. He looked out and then turned to converse with his officers. Dray couldn’t hear what they were talking about, still only being a Black Level.

However, they seemed to come to a decision, and spread out to begin giving orders to the soldiers. Action stopped as a man stepped forth from the forest. He slowly walked to the gate. Standing a short distance away, he looked up at the commander and waved. “Hello, up there!”

The commander looked down, “what is it?” he asked with a steady voice. “I have heard you have a mine there. I have been ordered by my king to take it. Would you be willing to leave peaceably?” The commander stiffened, his frown grew deeper. “I would not sir. I have been ordered by my king to hold this mine. I must also mention you are trespassing onto sovereign territory and ask that you retreat to where you came from.”

The speaker in front of the gatehouse smiled. “Ah, I thought it would wind up like that. Well, I’m afraid then, all we can do is fight. Are you sure you wouldn’t be willing to walk away?”

“No sir!”

“Ah well,” the man wiped his brow, “It is what it is.”

The man turned and walked away. The commander was tempted to put an arrow in the man’s back, but resisted. If he lost, and his men fell into their hands, they would seek revenge. As it was now, it was simply warfare between fellow soldiers