As I looked for suitable wood to craft a new spear out of, I explored the remainder of the mountaintop. The village only took up about half of the plateau. The other half was dominated by a massive lake which would have been much more impressive if I hadn’t seen the other, much larger, body of water the evening before.

The lake was a shining expanse of pure, clear water and I could see dozens of fish happily swimming about in the tranquil waters. Even with my mana sight, I couldn’t spot any lurking horrors beneath the surface. It truly was as peaceful as it looked.

Prior to learning the condense water spell, I would have found this great source of water nearby my shelter to be an invaluable resource. As it was, I was still quite pleased with the easy access to fish and clay.

Taking a seat by the water, I slowly started whittling down the large branch I had selected for my new spear. I didn’t mind the light rain as I let the familiar motions soothe me. After so many days of struggling for my life, it was nice to finally have a chance to sit and focus on crafting.

As the spear slowly took shape, I cast a glance at my interface.

Name: Kyo —-----

Class: Novice Mage

(4/10, 16%)

Mana Pool: 145/150

Codex: 72.46%

MR:243

TPEL:30

Boons:

System Initiate: 10

Novice Mage: 4

Emergency augmentations: 2

Environmental Conditions:

Mana level: High

System Messages:

None

The integration rate of my boons had dropped considerably since leaving the town hall. Evidently, the system considered my improved circumstances as a sign that I didn’t need quite so much assistance anymore.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

I held no delusions that danger wouldn’t soon find me yet again.

Soon enough, the shaft of my spear had taken form. Setting it aside, I started work on two chunks of flint. Knapping the stone took some time, but I was pleased with the resulting edge.

With practiced ease, I lashed the spear head onto the shaft with some fibrous plants. A few practice swings later and my new spear was finished.

I spent most of the rest of the day looking for some suitable plants to use in my next batch of sigil paint. I was able to find plenty that would suffice fairly quickly, but I wanted to use the best ingredients I could. It wasn’t every day that I got to work with titan’s blood after all.

At the thought of the titan, I once more stopped to stare at its corpse. It was still unbelievable that I had killed such a monstrously powerful creature. Even days after its death, its vile mana still permeated the area.

I froze. Was it my imagination, or was the mana a little stronger than it had been the day before? I really, really hoped that wasn’t the case.

The thought of the titan coming back from the dead to seek revenge was too horrifying to consider.

Shuddering, I decided to return to my shelter for the evening. The rain had started pouring harder, so I was looking forward to the chance to get dry.

Walking up to my selected home, I found that the runes I had carved into the ground had gotten washed away.

I spent some time carving new runes into the dirt inside when I had an odd idea. My water gathering spell basically took all of the water from a large area and moved it to a smaller space. If I rearranged the mana forms a bit, could I do the opposite?

Setting down my knife, I took off my torn and soaked shirt. The garment had certainly seen better days. Holding up the wet cloth, I tried casting a reversed version of the water gathering spell.

The results were not quite what I would have hoped for. At least some of the water from the shirt dripped to the floor, but it didn’t make much of a difference. A little frustrated, I tried forcing a bit more mana into the spell.

That proved to be a bad idea as a new tear formed on the side of the already abused garment.

With a sigh, I started a small fire to dry my clothes the old fashioned way.

For all of my advancements with magic, I still had my limits. At least I was able to use my improved invisible force spell to punch a tiny hole in a parrot bone. The hollow bones were not the best for making a needle out of, but it was good enough for repairing my tattered clothes.

As I threaded together some plant fibers for repairs, I felt a strange shift in the mana around me. Something about the way the mana all started flowing in one direction felt very concerning.

The most worrying part was the direction the mana was headed. All of it was flowing towards the town hall.

Climbing up to the second floor to get a better view, I cast mana sight. Out a window, I could see a vast amount of mana slowly flowing towards the body of the titan. Already, something sinister was forming in the mana around the dead monster.

As the mana gathered it began to grow visible even without the aid of my mana sight. It was still transparent, but I could see the shadowy outline of the accumulated mana. The twisting, contorted mana forms remind me of only one thing.

Panicked, I grabbed my jar of sigil paint and traced out sigils of concealment as fast as I could. I dearly hoped I was wrong about what was happening, but there was no way I was taking any chances.

My fears were confirmed as a terrible moaning filled the night.