With swiftness she’d never before employed, Elaria practically flattened herself against the floor right as a brutally dangerous spike of rock pierced the space her head had previously occupied. Scary. A quick glance towards the source of the attack revealed a stonescale serpent around half the size of the others. Pushing against it with her mana, the monster actually broke her Mana Sense. The brief moment she’d been able to see its mana usage revealed that while it appeared to be a runt, it was certainly far more dangerous than the larger snakes which only had a rudimentary grasp over their magic, most likely limited to just the unreliable rock gatling.
Also, perhaps it was just her imagination, but she could swear the little beast smirked at her when it broke her Mana Sense. Smug bastard. Jumping to her feet, she decided to start with the small one first. After a quick instruction to Luna to run interference with the larger snakes, she sprinted at the first truly skilled monster she’d encountered while channelling mana into her fists. The snake was surprised, apparently not expecting its prey to charge directly at it, and Elaria could feel it starting to prepare another spell.
Unluckily for the poor stonescale serpent, Elaria was a terrible opponent for it. Against someone less gifted in the ways of mana and magic, it may have been able to emerge alive and victorious, but her senses were just too sharp and the mana itself craved her affection, nudging the aim of its second spike slightly off kilter. Not enough to avoid her completely - it was still aiming for her vital organs - yet enough that her Mana Sense could feel the approach of the spell from the rock below her feet, allowing her to jump to the side right as the jagged spike burst from the rocks in a shower of rubble and earth.
The monster seemed shocked that its attack had missed, but still felt confident that such a small human would be unable to damage its sturdy stone body. It would never get another chance to make the same mistake. It shifted to the right, still making a move to dodge, but Elaria was prepared. Maintaining the build up of Compression Blow in her fists, she did something that she’d never tried before - activating two skills at once. With just two points of mana left in her reserves she wouldn’t be able to use Compression Blow again for a while, so she activated Magnetic Pull. It wasn’t anywhere near as powerful as the previous time, but it did what she required with perfect precision.
The serpent was dragged ever so slightly back towards her and her mana empowered fist connected cleanly with the centre of its head, shattering it into a cloud of pulverised rock dust. Its body flopped limply to the floor and the kill notification popped up in her vision.
Level 18 Stonescale Serpent has been slain!
+54 XP
Heavy Stone x1
Mana Core (Common) x1
That was new. Elaria could guess what a mana core was, but as for how she was supposed to use it she had no clue. There was no harm in keeping it until she found someone who knew more, most likely at the adventurer’s guild in Cloudvale. With no time to take off her bag and store it she just thrust the mana core into her pocket. She left the heavy stone on the floor - they could collect them after the battle, if they made it that far. The drops from all the brocks were littered around the cavern still, hidden in the remains of the last battleground.
Interestingly, the mana core was graded, which presumably meant that more powerful monsters would give her better ones. The fact that a level 18 monster only had a mana core (common), which was a terrifying prospect given that even on Teron things could reach the unusual grade. How magically adept would a monster be if it possessed an unusual grade mana core? It was exciting to think about. There was little time for idle speculation, as Luna bounded past her, followed by a trail of lethal rocks that were now being fired from seven different snakes.
The extraordinarily capable beast had actually managed to defeat one of the stonescale serpents, even while running from their spells. Its rocky remains were littered around the site of a fierce battle that presumably involved plenty of brutal strikes from Luna’s razor sharp claws and teeth. The fact that the wolf was still able to take on these monsters with just her physical strength and unique body was a testament to her prowess. Elaria wondered if monsters also had access to the Chain, or if their power was simply an inherent attribute. If only Luna could talk, Elaria would have so much to ask. A problem for another time.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Twenty three serpents remained, if the pattern held true and the floor was complete once they achieved the requirements listed by the dungeon as it had with the brocks once they defeated all fifty of them. One huge problem - Elaria had run out of mana. Luna would probably be able to take down a few more snakes by herself but even the capable canine had her limits. Besides, if Elaria allowed her companion to do all the work then she wouldn’t experience any growth or snag any of that sweet XP.
Elaria had an idea, one that she’d actually considered way back the first time she’d been able to feel the flow of her internal mana and the difference between her personal reserves and the natural energy of the world. It might prove to be a fruitless endeavour, but if it worked out then she’d be able to challenge these snakes on even ground.
“Luna, I need you to cover me for a while. I’m sorry to push you this hard but I promise it won't be for long. I’ll look into getting you some magical meat if we make it to Cloudvale in one piece.” The diligent wolf simply nodded her head and growled affirmingly, before running away to take the heat off Elaria. Surprisingly, a notification rang out from the Chain informing her of a new skill, but Elaria pushed it to the side and focused on the task at hand.
Relying on the natural regeneration of her mana, which while decently impressive at thirteen points per hour, was definitely not a good way to fight. There had to be a better way. Since she was able to convert her pure internal mana into other forms when casting spells such as Firestorm or Magnetic Pull, then surely the opposite should hold true? It was worth a try. The ambient mana of the world was plentiful and if she was able to tap into it as a resource then pumping out tens of spells over the course of a single battle would be possible. She had a few theories on how to achieve the result she was looking for, but Luna wouldn’t be able to distract the monsters forever. Trusting the wolf, she closed her eyes and forced her focus deep into the intricate web of energy within her and the world around her.
Her heart beat once, and she could feel her blood pumping. The mana was different. It didn’t seem to be affected by her physical organs. The mana system that was threaded through her body was definitely a real construct, as much a part of her as her bones or muscles, yet it was also ethereal, overlaid onto her being. The pathways that the viscous mana travelled through were pristine, constructed perfectly thanks to her class. The shimmering mana that circulated her body was pure, stripped of desire or affinity. Unlike the rowdy natural mana which called out to her and guided her hand to cast devastatingly complex spells, it followed her every instruction and simply waited for her to give it form and shape.
Currently those pathways were rather empty, which made her wonder where the regenerated mana originated from. Did she have a mana core, like the stonescale serpent, or was there another mechanism at work providing her with mana to freely use? At that moment there was a pulse from her liver. Not her liver. A thread of mana trickled from somewhere around her liver into the mana veins and began to circulate. Elaria pushed her focus deeper. Her brain started to sting a little, but she ignored the pain. Then she saw it, a deep abyss. It occupied the same space as her liver, yet didn’t. It was similar to her mana veins in that regard.
She observed as the thread of mana trickled out from the abyss, as if it was being formed from the black nothingness. Elaria tried to inspect it closer, but the sharp pain in her head intensified tenfold and she immediately retracted from the strange phenomenon. That was a lot of useful information though. The abyss? She didn’t like calling it that since it made her feel like she had a black hole inside her body. Dangerous stuff. Mana well! That was a great name. It probably had some kind of proper designation, but mana well was good enough for now. She faintly noticed a notification from the Chain in the background but continued to focus on the mana.
The peek at the source of her internal mana had given her a wonderfully creative but possibly exceedingly dangerous idea. There was nothing to lose, really. If she wasn’t able to figure out a way to fight more powerful monsters more efficiently then even if they were able to somehow take down all the stonescale serpents, the kobolds, especially the kobold lord, would be sure to wipe the floor with her. Elaria reached out to the sturdy and unmoving mana that permeated the stone and earth around her. With just a slight tug, it was eagerly drawn to her and let itself be guided by her hand.
“Here goes nothing,” she whispered.
Elaria took hold of as much of the natural mana as she could and in a single move forced it all into the mana well in her body. For a brief moment she thought her plan had failed as the mana simply disappeared. How wrong she was. Like a burst dam, a huge torrent of pure mana gushed forth from the mana well, lighting up her mana veins like a firework display. It filled her all the way from zero to her limit of forty-six mana. Her mana circulatory system was full of raging mana, circulating faster and faster like white water rapids. Something was wrong. Even when her mana was completely refilled, her mana well didn’t stop pumping.
“Ohhh shit,” she exclaimed, “oh fuckity Fuck FUCK.”
SHIT.