I found myself back in a familiar basement, yet not. It was once a spacious underground laboratory, only with enough space for sparring, but now it had been converted into a straight up empty space for combat. Mom and Dad had dug a second smaller basement and moved her things there in order to prepare this space, because they knew that I needed a place to practice, away from prying eyes.

I felt a warmth at my chest at that as I looked back at the far wall where my parents stood. Both the Piss Hunters and The Harvesters were here, for I had decided to duel literally everyone. I wanted to see how far my friends had come in my absence.

First up was Therick. The man swung his wooden sword around, observing me with a forced and nervous smile.

“Go easy on me, yeah?”

I chuckled. “We’ll see.”

And then the fight began. I immediately dashed forward and then slammed my sword into Therick’s own. He staggered from the force, shaking, but he quickly recovered and stabbed at me. I managed to deflect the strike but he was already on the move again. More slashes came and I met his attacks, but I actually found myself being pushed back. Therick met my sword with his at all the right places and with impeccable timing, all while he danced around me with an agileness that was hard to keep up with.

I found a way to still meet him blow for blow of course, as I just turned my body to always be facing him. That required a lot less movement than what my opponent was doing, which was circling around. But still I found myself completely on the defensive.

It was exhilarating. I was proud of him. He’d surpassed me in pure swordsmanship in the time I’d been gone. Not that I neglected my training, and live battles certainly counted for a lot, but those were against animal-shaped creatures, and I had certainly been focusing far more on my magic and other related things rather than honing the basics swordsmanship.

At this rate, I might actually lose. Therick’s human physique had me beat in speed, and that same species had granted him unmatched endurance. He would outlast me if I let this stalemate continue.

Hmm. A dillema.

I watched my friend’s movements. My strikes were still heavier, but his were just that much more numerous and precise. It was also troublesome that I had let him set the pace already. Therick looked so happy and surprised at how he was keeping up with me now, that I almost wanted him to win.

But I didn’t want to hold back. I wouldn’t. So I dug my hooves into the ground and then charged along with my swing.

Therick was pushed back by the force, but he recovered surprisingly quickly, having somehow anticipated the move. I pressed the attack, but my friend chose to focus on defense while I tired myself out, actually managing to stave off my fury. He had truly grown since I last saw him.

The battle raged on. I tried to kick, or to grab, but Therick proved slippery. I couldn't catch him no matter what I did. I was still losing even after going this hard.

“Hey,” I spoke after a particularly intense clash. “Would it be cheating if I used magic?”

“Uhh… I’m not sure. We didn’t really talk about it…” He stopped, seeing that I intended to talk.

“I wasn’t sure if it was allowed either,” I shrugged. “Also, I don’t mean to wither your flesh or break your mind. I only mean to empower my strength and speed with it. So maybe that’s actually just part of my physical power?”

His face fell a little, but then he shook his head and brightened up once more. “What’s this, Haell? Have you been holding out on me?”

“No. It’s just… I haven’t sparred like this in a while. Well, I have, but it’s always with people… kind of a lot stronger than me right now. And they used their magic sometimes! But you haven’t used yours at all, so I thought maybe this was a magic-free spar you challenged me to?”

Therick shook his head. “No… I’m just not that good at magic, and using it with an unorthodox magical apparatus, in the midst of such an intense battle, wouldn’t really produce any good results.”

“Ah. So, can I use it?” I’d definitely lose in an hour if we just continued to fight like that. Except I did still have my demon eyes, and that wasn’t really magic. At least, I didn’t have to feed it mana… So maybe I still had a non-magic path to victory?

“Use it,” Therick sighed. “You’d just be handicapped if you don’t. And it’d be far more indicative of a real battle.”

“Alright, okay!” I brightened and fixed my stance. “Ready when you are!”

My friend nodded and also took position. The well of negativity that constantly flowed through my blood flared in that moment, conveying great power through every action. I surged forward, at the same time that Therick did, but his speed paled in comparison to my own. I slammed my sword against his, and Therick’s weapon came flying out of his hand.

He stepped back, only pausing for a second before deciding to take evasive maneuvers, but it was too late. The wooden point of my blade struck his chest.

“Ah damn…” he said, slumping. “Is it just me, or has the gap between us actually widened?”

“No, no. You’ve improved a lot!” I praised him. “In terms of pure skill with the sword, I believe you have me beat at this point.”

“I have been training a lot. Rallem has been kind enough to teach me, and I also took on a more rogue-warrior mix role in the party.” A smile crossed his face, but then fell again. “Fat load of good that’ll do me though if you can just overpower me like that.”

“Hey, no need to compare yourself to me. I’m actually able to consistently defeat level 20 opponents at this point, so you can consider me the equivalent of an evolution above.”

Therick himself was… I’d say halfway there, to level 20.

“You know what? That actually makes me feel better. Thank you, Haell.”

“You’re welcome!”

~~~

“AAAHHHH!!” Therick screamed as the full force of both my aura and my eyes slammed into him. He asked for a few more spars, and I found that while my eyes did briefly stun him in a way that could easily be fatal, he was actually able to somehow not immediately panic in the face of my gaze. That was better than what any other creature below me in level could accomplish.

When my demon eyes were used in conjunction with my aura however, my friend just had to scream. He could barely move, but he still tried.

I slammed my greatsword against his and then pressed the blade to his neck. He glared at me, unyielding til the end even against such pressures. My friend had really become a proper warrior in the time that I’d been away.

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“Well… I give up. You just keep getting stronger...” Therick panted in defeat once he had accepted it. “How much more power are you hiding?”

“I’m not hiding anything. But yes, I have a lot more to give. I’m like an iceberg.”

“An… iceberg? What…? What do you mean?” He took a deep breath before continuing. “They’re just large pieces of ice floating in the ocean, right? Are you saying you’re cold?”

“I’m cool,” I corrected. “But don’t worry about it. It’s an Earth thing.”

“Right…” Therick finally sat down on the bare ground. “It’s still crazy that you’re from another world.”

“I just retained my memories. Pretty sure everyone reincarnates.”

“Not that I’m an Angelist at this point either. But does no one go to heaven?”

“Oh. Hmm. I mean, maybe they do actually. Magic and powers are vast, so their god could be just… plucking out souls like that, if he exists, which he actually might. But I believe that people in general reincarnate. That’s what happened to me, and it’s what the elves believe. I think it’s what the countless cultures of Varyala knew as well before they were conquered.”

“Could also be lies.”

“Could be, yes. But hopefully it won’t matter. Because I do not intend to die today, tomorrow, or ever.”

~~~

“Alright, Haell,” Angerly stretched. “I’ve gotten a good look already at your current powers, but I wanna see it for myself!”

“Bring it on!” I smirked in a challenging way. The ogre woman felt like she was closing in on level 20, but wasn’t quite there yet, and this was with her head start of level 10. Not that she sucked or anything, and this was actually still a little bit above average, and I really shouldn’t be disappointed but I just expected more!

I realized some of it was due to my menace mana. It roiled at my superiority, it gloated at the failure of another where I had succeeded. I did not blame myself for those thoughts, as I'd learned not to do, but I made sure not to make Angerly feel bad about it. My friend was just doing her best, I was sure.

The battle began. Angerly charged forward, and so did I. We met in the middle, and my sword was nearly yanked out of my hand by the force of Angerly’s wooden mace. My arms went numb.

I activated my eyes, and she froze. My friend gritted her teeth and managed to move again a second later, but that was when I flared out my aura. She stopped again. She took a step back. I pushed my sword into her stomach.

“Ah, you got me!” Angerly exclaimed with a silly smile once she had gotten her fear under control. “Hot damn you’re strong. Way too fucking strong.”

I smirked. “That’s right! But you did well too! I can tell that you’ve gotten more experienced since!”

“Yeah! I’ve been going on quests with everyone else! I know I lose to you 1 on 1, but my swing was pretty fucking strong, right?”

“Oh yeah, for sure!” I admitted.

“Hehe, well. That’s what I’ve been working on mainly! I might not be the strongest in a duel, but I dish out the damage! So I’ll be counting on you to set those up for me!”

“You got it! Whenever we’re working together, it’s a damn good tactic.”

I ignored the treacherous voice in my head that insisted it was because of this attitude that she was weak. That I’d surpassed her despite my lesser start.

It didn’t matter if it were true. There was more to life than levels or fighting, and Angerly would remain a very dear friend to me regardless.

~~~

I sparred a few more times with Angerly, which only confirmed what I already knew. I found out just how much harder she hit compared to me, even with my menace magic active. Of course, I was using a wooden greatsword and her a wooden mace, and I could still push a lot more power to my body if I really needed to, but it was still impressive that she could match and even slightly exceed my common usage of menace magic.

Not that there was ever a chance for Angerly to win even if I refrained from using any magic whatsoever. She was just too fucking slow and predictable. Her swings were wide, meant to convey the maximum amount of power everytime, and she was an absolute master at that to the point that she might already be tapping into an anatomic mastery. But those super strong attacks would just never hit. They were so telegraphed, and she barely knew how to feint.

I thought that was a problem better fixed, so I decided to give her some advice.

“Hey, Angerly. I know you’re all about dishing out the most damage and all, and I am happy to help set that up for you. But you just never know what might happen out there. I think you need to get just a little bit better at protecting yourself solo.”

“Eh, I don’t think I’m too bad against opponents of my level. Beyond that, well, we can’t prepare for everything. So I’ll just put my trust in you guys! We can cover each other’s weaknesses. I know you won’t let me down!”

I scratched at my head. “Well, it’s up to you,” I affected a shrug, then sighed. “I’m not your boss.”

“Well… yeah. This is what I’ve been doing. But while you’re not my boss, you are my friend! And I’m happy for the advice!” The ogre woman pulled me into a hug. “You’re right that emergencies could happen. I’ll… try to do better, and be good enough to survive on my own. Just in case.”

“That’s all we can do. But you can bet your ass that I’m not going to let that happen while I’m around! We’ll be a terror like no other!”

“Damn. I love my ass, so you better not let me down!”

~~~

“Okay, Haell! I’m ready!”

I stood on one end of the sparring basement while Granuel took a stance opposite me. He was hiding behind this massive shield, especially for his proportions, and was wielding a large earthen staff in his other hand. I was actually wearing my armor for this one, because Granuel’s magic wouldn’t be as harmless as a mere wooden sword.

I charged forward just as the first projectiles of Earth shot out. They were weaker than a pearthguin’s, but still more than enough to injure me if they hit, so I started to map out the best path forward. More and more earthen bullets came, some big and some small to try and herd me to a more disadvantageous position.

I decided to dodge the larger ones, firm the smaller pebbles, and slash away at the medium-sized rocks. They came fast and in great numbers so I didn’t really have the leeway to dodge everything, especially with my somewhat lacking agility. I only minimized the damage, aiming to end the fight quickly with an overwhelming offense.

The distance between us shrank. Granuel’s maximum range for actively manipulating earth mana surpassed my expectations, and I felt the clumps of willfully moving magic long before I thought they’d be present. The ground underneath my feet rumbled, breaking my stream of mobility just a little. Spikes exploded out from all around me, and one hit me quite badly in the shoulder. More projectiles followed, and my armor was ran through its paces. Moonwash would have to fix it again later.

I growled, grinning ferociously, not that it could be seen through my helmet. My eyes activated and so did my aura. Granuel screamed and the stream of attacks stopped. I activated the menace mana in my legs and shot forward like a ravishing train, though I didn’t think it was necessary. I swept aside Granuel’s shield and then pointed my blade at his throat, but the ishkawtan man was still shaking from fear. He wouldn’t be able to fight for a good few seconds more, an eternity in the battlefield.

“That was…” he gulped, after a long while. I had stepped to his side and was patting him on the back. “Terrifying.” I pushed down the thrill of that statement, and the desire to terrotize my friend more. He looked back at our parents and friends watching from a side wall. “I saw you use it on Therick and Angerly. I didn’t think it would be that bad…”

He really is a lot weaker-willed than those two… “Don’t worry about it. You won’t really know how it’s like until I smash my full might into you, and my aura especially is far stronger than when I first got it. It’s weird, but the way I and Moonwash think it works is that it reacts when perceived by an enemy of mine. Or an adversary or opponent in this case. It definitely only affects those whom I want it to affect.”

“I thought I was doing well with my magic. I help out a ton during our excursions! But maybe I’m really not meant for this…”

“No, no. Don’t think like that, Granuel. You’re doing great.” He was the lowest-leveled of everyone at only past level 10, but he was also the youngest of us all. “You’re at a decent level for your age, and your skills and accuracy with projectiles are great. Just like Angerly, I’m sure you’ll have a great role to play in a team, and you’re also the one who’ll be managing the business side. So it’s all good! Play to your strengths! But also don’t hesitate to get better at your weaknesses.” I would’ve offered to help, I believed I had even stronger willpower than either Therick or Angerly, but I was aware that my methods could be… extreme.

Exposing Granuel to my aura until he developed a resistance to it and other similar things was probably a terrible idea.

“Yeah…” Granuel whispered. Then his voice grew louder, “Yeah! Yeah, you’re right, Haell! I was just a bit shaken by earlier. But I promise to do my best on everything!”

“That’s the spirit!”