Chapter 24

Lightshow

The golem was slowly shaping a new arm out of crystal. The new crystals were blue instead of pink, and now the arena was cast in a mixture of hues. It had finished regenerating much quicker than Janus had expected.

He prepared for the barrage of crystal projectiles, but the golem bent its knees and charged.

Shit, it’s changing patterns.

Janus had very little time to duck down. He attempted to push the golem off course with an explosion of mana, but it simply barreled through, crushing his mana shell and catching him with its jagged knee. The impact tossed Janus two or three meters to the side. His head swam and he could feel a warm, wet sensation from his thigh.

Expecting a rain of crystals, Janus hastily erected several layers of reinforced mana. He would have to reconstruct his mana shell array later. His focus was currently on healing whatever had happened to his thigh. The pain made it impossible to stand.

He felt his first mana barrier shatter under the deluge of crystalline projectiles, but he didn’t let it distract him. He used [Lesser Healing] wincing as he felt his mana reserves dip frighteningly close to empty.

[Your Mana Burn skill has gained 1 level]

Yeah… Just what I needed…

Janus wasn’t certain if he had healed the wound completely, but he was able to crawl, shaking, to his feet. Only two mana barriers remained after the crystal assault. He could see the golem reaching towards its torso.

Oh no you don’t.

Janus was already creating another mana pearl. This one took every last bit of mana he had left in the tank. He was careful to not activate [Mana Burn]. If this pearl didn’t finish off the boss, he was worried the mana exhaustion would make it impossible to get out alive. Better to leave himself one last mana pearl through [Mana Burn].

Not waiting for the golem to finish creating another pair of offspring, Janus tossed the pearl. This one was still mid air when he turned his back and detonated it. The sound deafened him.

I forgot to cover my ears. Stupid!

Janus had hoped that last mana pearl would be enough to finish the golem completely. Unfortunately, no notification appeared in his mind.

His ears were still ringing when he looked back at the golem. The dungeon boss had been almost entirely destroyed above the waist, but that didn’t seem to stop it from regenerating. Blue crystals sprouted from its legs and started recreating its body.

The crystals were contorting and shifting in strange ways. It took a moment for Janus to realize that the golem was a lot smaller than before. Some pink crystal from its legs had shifted to reform its left arm, the rest of the crystals were blue.

The dungeon boss almost seemed lethargic as it raised an arm and began launching crystals at Janus. Many of the crystals were wildly off their mark, and Janus only had to sidestep to avoid the rest.

I’m not sure if I can run around much longer, anyway.

Janus had been so worried about mana exhaustion that he had forgotten about physical exhaustion. His legs felt like they were on fire and he gasped and sputtered, trying to get enough air.

One more mana pearl.

He wasn’t sure if he would straight up lose consciousness after dipping his mana reserves so deeply into the negatives, but the alternative was to give up. The dungeon boss appeared to be weakening, but there were at least six [Crystal Offspring] still in the process of reforming. If he didn’t finish the fight before they reformed, Janus wasn’t certain if he would get out of this alive.

The golem moved its legs uneasily. It appeared to be unused to its newly shortened appendages. Janus could see it getting into position for a charge, and he began strafing to the right. The golem launched itself off of the opposing wall, but lost its footing. It careened through the arena, sliding on the crystal covered floor, and slammed into the wall near Janus.

Now to get as far away as possible. I wonder if it can even make [Crystal Offspring] anymore.

Janus acted on his thought, jogging away from the dungeon boss. It was the fastest that his legs could carry him. Sliding into a stop, he began collecting the mana for one last mana pearl. The mana exhaustion hit him right away, but he continued to push through.

Once the shell of the mana pearl had formed, he snatched it out of the air. Shaking, he tossed it at the [Crystal Golem]. He fell to his knees as the mana pearl soared through the air. Finally, it landed with a tink and rolled towards the dungeon, boss. Before Janus released the mana within the pearl, he used [Mana Burn] to cast [Pow. Enhancement] on himself. The moment the enhancement magic finished casting, he let the explosion erupt.

[Dungeon Boss Defeated: Crystal Golem]

[You have gained 3 levels]

[Your Lesser Healing skill has gained 4 levels]

[Your Sprinting skill has gained 3 levels]

[Your Spell Weaving skill has gained 1 level]

[Your Mana Reinforcement skill has gained 1 level]

[Your Mana Reinforcement skill can evolve into Spell Augmentation]

[Your Power Enhancement skill has gained 1 level]

[Your Mana Burn skill has gained 3 levels]

-

Janus felt like he was being stabbed and prodded all along his body. He shifted positions, grunting as he rolled over. It only took a few moments after returning to consciousness for him to remember where exactly he was.

He was sprawled uncomfortably on top of dozens of jagged crystals. Groaning in pain, he pulled himself into a sitting position. The arena was now shrouded in darkness, the only light coming from Janus’ [Torchstone] that had fallen nearby. He crawled his way over to the light and closed his hand over it. The light hadn’t been helping his splitting headache. It was only after he had smothered out his light that he noticed another faint glow a dozen meters away.

It might as well have been a hundred meters with how bruised and battered Janus was feeling, but curiosity got the best of him. He inched his way towards the light, finding another chunk of crystal. He reached out, finding it strangely warm to the touch, and identified the mysterious object.

[Deepstone Crystal] Description: Rare raw material from a crystal golem.

Doesn’t really tell me a lot.

Janus shoved the crystal into one of his robe pockets. It jabbed into his ribs uncomfortably.

Where is my pack?

Squinting, he opened his palm, allowing light to shine through. Somehow, his pack hadn’t been crushed or otherwise destroyed by his battle with the dungeon boss. It was another arduous journey as Janus dragged himself along the ground to reach the pack.

Once he had finally gotten a hold of it, uncaring about his previous neat organization, he quickly upended the contents. He grabbed a bottle of water and greedily gulped down the contents. Setting the bottle down, Janus gasped for breath and fell back, lying down. The crystals dug into his back, but he ignored the discomfort and stared into the darkness above him.

I’m alive.

Janus had been close to dying several times since he had left Crow Station. This time felt different, though. He went out of his way to fight the dungeon boss. In every other case, he had been forced to fight for his life. For the first time in his life, Janus felt like he was a hero in one the stories he had read: going off to save the day and destroy the dungeon.

The feeling was unusual. He felt satisfied, but also eager and concerned. It was like he had crossed a threshold. It was difficult to not think about the mistakes he had made along the way. His greatest regret was Lenny. If he had exercised more control…

It didn’t matter anymore. Janus could only accept that the past had happened and do his best to learn from it. Destroying this dungeon was the greatest good Janus had ever accomplished in his life. Who knows how many people might have died if this dungeon had remained intact, and continued spilling monsters out into the tunnels.

Janus enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment for a few moments longer. Sighing, he raised himself to a sitting position.

Right, I think I have a skill evolution.

Janus willed for the evolution to appear.

[Spell Augmentation] Cost: 25 Mana Cooldown: None Description: You have mastered reinforcing and changing the physical properties of mana. You can augment spells that you have learned, allowing them to manifest new effects. Bonus Stats: 20 End plus 1 Int per level

Even the mana cost was cut in half.

The evolution excited Janus, and he quickly accepted it. The additional intelligence stat would offer even more power to his spells on top of the other benefits. Not to mention the potential to improve spells that he had already learned to replicate.

I might as well check out my full status. I should be pretty safe here now.

Status Name Janus Alamy Class Enhancer Level 29 Guild None Life 580 / 594 Mana -34 / 866 Stamina 400 / 662 Stat Total Base Class Skill Item Strength 53 29 0 24 0 Endurance 51 29 0 22 0 Dexterity 31 29 0 2 0 Intelligence 138 29 58 51 0 Wisdom 119 29 29 56 5 Skill Level Bonus Bravery 4 5 Wis / Lvl Writing 8 1 Wis / 5 Lvl Sprinting 10 1 End / 5 Lvl *Spell Weaving 6 20 Int/Wis + 1 Int, 1 Wis / Lvl *Pow. Enhancement 4 20 Int/Str + 1 Int, 1 Str / Lvl *Spell Augmentation 1 20 End + 1 Int / Lvl Mana Burn 20 1 Wis / 5 Lvl Staff Fighter 2 1 Dex / Lvl Lesser Healing 5 1 Wis / Lvl Empty --- ---

Janus knew that his effective strength was much higher than most people his level. Dungeons like the one he was in would usually get cleared out by an entire group of delvers.

He only gained even more satisfaction from the knowledge that he had done it himself. But he was also very aware of just how close to death he had come.

I should take my time heading back. It’s pretty clear that this ravine doesn’t intersect with the other tunnel noted on the map…

His head swam as he stood up and he stumbled a few steps, trying to keep himself upright. He bent over to shoulder his pack and his head began pounding.

Mana exhaustion. Maybe I should just sit down until it wears off.

Janus shook off the thought and began slowly making his way through the scattered crystals. Even if his pace was slow, he was more concerned with making progress than anything else. His water supply was getting low again, and the next stream could be anywhere from a day to almost a week away.

Despite his mana exhaustion, the walk back was soothing. Janus didn’t let his guard down entirely, but he was much more relaxed than he had been before defeating the dungeon boss.

-

Hours later, Janus arrived at a bloody splotch on the wall. He could vividly remember his attempt to climb out of the ravine with his wounded arm. It felt like he had climbed down into the dungeon years ago.

Turning away from the bloodstain, Janus grasped the rocky ravine wall on the opposite side. He would have to be sure to keep his ascent as straight as possible, to ensure he didn’t miss the spot where the tunnel and ravine intersected. With a grunt, he lifted himself up. He had forgotten just how difficult climbing could be, even with two functioning arms.

A while later, Janus spotted the tunnel exit above and to his left. It was a quick affair to slide over to the entrance and pull himself through. He simply laid there on his stomach, gasping in the dust.

Well, that was a bit of a detour.

Janus let out a relieved laugh. The dungeon was finally behind him. He had gotten used to the ravine stretching off into infinity, uncertain if he would find his way out alive.

After the excitement of the dungeon, being back in the delver tunnels felt mundane. The familiarity was comforting. Janus took his time and slid over to a wall. He fished out a few hard pieces of bread and hungrily bit into them.