"Everybody ready?" Mike addressed the team, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.

"I'm fully recovered," Thalion nodded, his voice steady.

The others confirmed with nods as well. They had already discussed their next move. Emily had spotted sunlight breaking through the treetops to the northeast, so they headed in that direction. James and Lukas led the way, with the others following closely behind. After walking about a kilometer, they entered another clearing. Along the way, strange chirping sounds echoed above them, making Thalion think this place was much more alive than their last location.

"How do we make sure there's no hidden plant in the moss?" James murmured, eyeing the ground warily.

Lukas snapped off a small branch and threw it into the middle of the clearing. Everyone held their breath, but nothing happened.

"Looks safe," Lukas concluded. "There are even small flowers growing sporadically. If something dangerous were hiding here, it would have destroyed the smaller plants every time it attacked."

With the clearing deemed safe, they started setting their trap. Lukas drove a sturdy branch into the ground in the center, and Mike carefully attached one of the Illusive Lure fruits to its top. The air was immediately filled with its intoxicatingly sweet aroma. To amplify the scent, Mike squeezed the juice from the second fruit and poured it over the first. The fragrance intensified, saturating the clearing.

They then retreated into the cover of the jungle, hiding and waiting for their prey. The plan was simple: if a single creature came, they'd strike immediately. But if it came with others, they'd wait and attempt to take them all down at once.

For two long hours, nothing happened. Thalion was about to suggest relocating the trap when it finally happened. Four Lumina Mantas glided gracefully into view, drawn by the irresistible scent of the fruit. The ethereal creatures circled cautiously, hovering about two meters above the bait. After scanning the area for any threats, one of the mantas descended, followed by the others in quick succession.

The moment all four were on the ground, the team sprang into action. Mike, Lukas, and James burst from the jungle, enhanced by David’s buffs, while Emily unleashed an arrow, striking one of the mantas in the wing. Thalion conjured a fireball, launching it just above the creatures. The explosion scattered the mantas, sending them screeching and flailing. Two of them were hit directly by Lukas and Jason, who, unable to reach them in time, threw their shields with brutal force. One shield bashed a manta in the head, while the other shattered another’s midsection, leaving both creatures burning and writhing from Thalion's flames.

The third manta, with an arrow in its wing, dodged the fireball but couldn’t escape Mike’s sword as it came crashing down on its head. Within moments, all four mantas lay dead, the ambush a total success.

A flood of notifications filled Thalion's vision:

You have slain Lumina Manta Level 5

You have slain Lumina Manta Level 5

You have slain Lumina Manta Level 5

You have reached Level 4

Skill selection available. Do you want to choose a skill?

Before diving into skill selection, they quickly poured the last of the fruit juice over the bait to mask the smell of blood. They stowed the mantas' bodies in their spatial rings and went back into hiding, hoping for more prey to arrive.

Thalion allocated his six free stat points into intelligence, then turned his attention to the available skills:

Telekinetic Dash (Rare):

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

This skill allows the mage to propel themselves forward using telekinetic force, offering a burst of speed for offense or defense. It grants more dynamic movement in combat and can be used to quickly evade or close distances.

Mana Leap (Common):

This skill enables the mage to teleport short distances, either vertically or diagonally. It's perfect for quick escapes, surprise attacks from higher ground, or closing gaps in combat.

Magical Perception (Rare):

This skill heightens a mage’s ability to sense and interact with magical energy. It allows for detecting hidden magical auras, seeing through illusions, and sensing the presence of magical creatures, offering greater spellcasting precision.

Thalion couldn't believe his luck, two rare skills to choose from! If you go by videogame standards, those skills should be a lot better than the common ones. The ability to move quickly with Telekinetic Dash seemed incredibly useful, potentially even leading to future flight. Magical perception was also tempting, offering an edge in detecting dangers and opportunities. After some thought, he chose Telekinetic Dash because he needed a strong evasion skill.

Just then, James whispered from across the clearing, "Guys, I got a rare skill! It's called Shieldbash, and it sounds awesome!"

"Hey, genius!" Lukas whispered back from another direction. "I got the same skill!"

"My man!" James replied, and they both quietly celebrated.

Thalion smirked at their antics. But their focus quickly shifted as they heard a low, ominous buzzing that grew louder by the second.

A tempest of chittering mandibles and shimmering wings erupted from the canopy a swarm of giant grasshoppers, at least 25 strong, each a meter tall. Their mottled green and brown exoskeletons glowed faintly, and their sharp, barbed legs were ready to tear into anything that moved.

Thalion immediately identified the creatures:

Colossal Grasshopper Level 3

He quickly scanned for higher-level threats but found none. The swarm descended, tearing into the Illusion Lure fruit with ravenous hunger.

Now or never, Thalion thought. The grasshoppers were tightly clustered, making them perfect targets. He conjured a massive fireball, infusing it with as much mana as he could muster, and hurled it into the swarm.

Boom! The explosion sent shockwaves through the clearing. Grasshoppers were thrown in every direction, many of their wings ignited by the blast. Lukas and Jason charged in with wild grins, shouting, "Shieldbash!" Their shields slammed into the dazed creatures, crushing them on impact.

Mike followed close behind, methodically slicing off wings as Emily fired arrows at the grasshoppers still attempting to take flight. Her shots were precise, but the swarm was relentless. After the initial clash, nine grasshoppers lay dead, and six more were grounded by the damage. The remaining insects, now enraged, swarmed the melee fighters, leaving Thalion and Emily struggling to find clear targets for their fireballs and arrows.

James, Lukas, and Mike stood back-to-back, defending against the onslaught. Thalion conjured a mana barrier to protect Mike, who was struggling the most, but he could feel his mana draining fast. Mike took advantage of the shielded reprieve to cut down more of the attackers. With each swing of their weapons, Lukas and James smashed or sliced through any insect foolish enough to get close.

David joined the fray, casting healing and buffs on the warriors, while five grasshoppers took to the air, attempting to dive-bomb the group. Thalion quickly released his mana barrier, conjuring another fireball to intercept the flying creatures. Another explosion sent them crashing to the ground, their wings aflame.

The tide of the battle shifted. The grounded grasshoppers couldn’t keep up with the relentless attacks, and with Thalion preventing the others from taking flight, the three warriors pushed forward. After one final synchronized "Shieldbash!" from Lukas and James, the remaining grasshoppers were swiftly finished off.

"What a fight!" Mike exclaimed, fist-bumping James and Lukas.

"Did you see that one with the brown dots? It almost bit my head off!" Lukas said, laughing.

"They all had brown dots, and all of them tried to bite you," David chuckled, still drained from his healing efforts.

"Guys, check this out!" Mike pointed to his arm, where the bite marks on his armor were slowly disappearing. "It's healing itself!"

David’s eyes lit up in fascination. "That's amazing."

"David, don’t even think about talking to the armor!" Emily laughed, and the group joined in.

After catching their breath, Mike asked, "So, did we all hit Level 5?"

Everyone nodded, except Thalion, who had been busy gathering the grasshopper bodies into his spatial ring. "Give me a second," he said, opening his status screen.

His vision was flooded with notifications:

You have slain Colossal Grasshopper, Level 3

…

…

…

You have slain Colossal Grasshopper, Level 3

You have reached Level 5

Evolution available

Thalion grinned as he saw the notification. He had 29 kills and had finally reached Level 5, though most of the experience was wasted since he'd already hit the cap. Fortunately, his credit score skyrocketed from 90 to 610. After quickly assigning his points to intelligence, he turned to the group.

"So... evolution time?" he asked, grinning.

The others responded in unison, "Evolution time!”