“Commander, are we ready for the attack?” asked a curious Vidio.

“We?” Pausan rolled his eyes. That Master was a pain in the ass: he did not seem to be leaving, despite all his threats. He had told him many times he did not belong there, but Vidio was stubborn and headstrong, he was rooted to the spot like a tree. “You shouldn’t be here.”

The outpost had been fortified, ready to withstand the Goblin horde. Several low-level Mana Cannons had been put into place, enough to tear the life out of the chest of a Fist Phase Goblin.

The Goblin horde was almost there. Threatening columns of black smoke could be seen from the tall walls of the outpost. Those little monsters were just a couple miles off, hiding in the thick bushes.

The outpost overlooked an artificial wasteland. Over the years, Pausan had forced his men to uproot all the trees in a few miles’ range, depriving attackers of that natural shield.

The general was extremely dedicated to his job. However, unlike many other warriors, he was not mean-spirited: he had a fine sixth sense and could almost always predict the enemy’s move. And that was why at the moment he felt like something was not adding up.

Why would they attack us? The spies reported that their Commander is not above the Third Phase… What do they hope to achieve?

Pausan had received a rigid military education and had grown up studying both famous war tactics and guerrilla strategies, considered deplorable in the high echelons of the Nation of Fiercelake.

They had never been able to defeat those damn Goblins, even though they were stronger than the Parstans, just because they could not counterattack their sly tactics. They had won only once, and only with the support of the Immortals of the Mana Congregation.

The corners of Pausan’s mouth curled in a smile, remembering the veterans’ tales, the excited tone they used to recount the many times they had defeated those idiots of the Nation, to set an example for the young people. Pausan clenched his fists.

If it had not been for those damned Immortals…

Pausan stopped brooding. He mounted on the walls to take a look at the enemy army.

It would make no sense to attack. They’ll all die. Why are they doing this? This smells like politics.

Vidio had followed his beloved Commander and was now approaching him again: “Commander, do you think they are going to win?”

Pausan snorted spitefully, glanced at Vidio and put a hand on the hilt of his sword.

“Uhm, Commander…”

“What?”

“Your hand…?”

Pausan glanced at his hand on the hilt and said: “Does it bother you?”

Being refused an answer to his indiscreet curiosity, Vidio began asking other generals, hoping to get an update on the current situation.

***

Helial and Lumia had started their journey across the mountains. Helial was now strong enough to guarantee the survival of both.

The boy’s feet sank a few inches in the ground with every step he took. He had tied Curse of the Demon to his back, since he could not fit it in the Inventory anymore. It had become very heavy, but thanks to Body of the Qilin, he could carry it easily. He was just slightly slower than he would have been without the weapon.

As long as we don’t bump into someone in the Second Phase, I can take care of it.

The silver-haired girl ventured a question: “Idiot, will you be able to get rid of the wolves, now?”

Helial’s mouth corners curled in a smile. “Sure, don’t worry. You should rather worry about training and meditating, you need to be able to perceive the Mana inside your Meridians and…”

Meanwhile, in his head: Am I sure? Only idiots are sure. We will see.

He began explaining to his sister what he had done to achieve a complete awareness of his Meridians. Helial’s greatest priority was Lumia’s safety. He wanted to teach her how to condense the best Mana Seed possible, so she could defend herself, in case Helial would be far away, or worse, dead. As long as Lumia was not able to protect herself, Helial would have guarded her as his most valuable treasure, preventing her from getting even a tiny scratch.

Dawn was upon them, giving a golden sheen to Lumia’s dirty hair.

Auuuuuuuu

They had entered the area of the woods closest to the mountains, full of wolves. Usually those beasts did not venture too close to human settlements, but that was still their territory.

Suddenly, three large wolves with black fur sprang from the thicket. Their eyes were crimson and they gave off a dense killing Aura.

Against all odds, Lumia remained calm, aware of Helial’s protective presence.

The boy had untied Curse of the Demon from his back and was wielding it with two hands, a hard look on his face. His eyes shone with a fierce light.

Skill Activated:

Perception

The three wolves were at about the same level as the Goblins he had faced before finding the cave where he and Lumia had been hiding. Defeating those Goblin had cost him a huge effort. Who knows what was going to happen this time.

He began condensing Mana on the fingertips of his right hand, trying to make it as dense as possible, while with the left hand he gripped tightly Curse of the Demon.

Those wolves were brothers and had hunted together before. It was not the first time they faced humans, but thanks to their team play, they had always been able to gain the upper hand.

“Stay behind me”, Helial tried to speak to his sister in a neutral soothing tone. Actually he felt quite nervous.

One of the wolves focused on Lumia to distract Helial, while the other two suddenly pounced on the boy, aiming at his throat.

Fwoosh!

Right when one of the wolves was flying midair, a few feet from him, Helial slashed at him from the front and below, slicing the wolf in half with his left hand!

Black Wolf lost 5433 HP! You killed Black Wolf! You gained 4.000 Exp!

Helial quickly shifted his right hand in front of the wolf that was trying to attack Lumia, who was standing behind him.

Skill Activated:

Mana Pistol

Boom!

The wolf disintegrated into a bloody mist. Helial did not even notice that Mana Pistol had taken less time than usual to charge.

Black Wolf lost 8456 HP! You killed Black Wolf! You gained 4.000 Exp! One of your Skills evolved!

Helial had no time to check what had happened, since the third wolf was already way too close. Curse of the Demon was too big and heavy to counterattack, he did not have time. So, he let go of the hilt and did the unthinkable.

He punched the wolf.

The Black Wolf was frothing at the mouth, its jaws open wide. Its two brothers had been killed; he could not let go that little man so easily! The beast was sure to be able to immediately tear off Helial’s arm. Even though the boy was truly terrifying with that Longsword in his hand, he had not time to prepare another Skill nor to slash again. And sure enough, Helial had just thrown Curse of the Demon to the ground.

A regular Black Wolf had around 3.000 HP; how could a small boy hope to even just injure it?

Helial changed the trajectory of the fist, aiming it at the temple of the beast, while moving the other arm in front of the wolf’s jaws.

The air whistled and deformed as Helial’s fist flew by.

Let’s see how powerful is this Skill…

Crack

The wolf’s jaws snapped fiercely at Helial’s arm, but he did not seem to be in pain. As a matter of fact, three of the wolf’s teeth had just shattered. Helial’s arm seemed as tough as a sheet of steel!

Aiiii

Black Wolf lost 35 HP!

The wolf was bleeding from a mouth with gums that now held half of the teeth it just had a moment before.

The injured animal whimpered, ready to withdraw, but Helial did not leave him time to flee and his fist landed against the temple of the Black Wolf.

Boom!

The head of the wolf exploded at first impact. Helial had become really too strong.

If he had called himself second under the First Phase, no one could have claimed the title of first.

You delivered a Critical Hit! Black Wolf lost 3333 HP! You killed Black Wolf! You gained 4.000 Exp!

Helial took a look around, picked up the fur and claws of the wolves, then he and Lumia set off on their journey one more time.

Lumia had stayed behind her brother all that time, completely still, knowing to be perfectly safe. But that situation had left her with a bad taste in her mouth. She had not been of any use to her brother, on the contrary she felt like a deadweight. She had levelled up, but she had done nothing to deserve it. How could she hope to go on like that all her life?

“Heli, break up the group.”

“Why?” asked Helial, amazed by that demand.

“I won’t become stronger if you are here to make me level up. Rather I’ll become more and more dependent from you…” Lumia’s eyes filled with tears, but she managed to hold them in. She really felt like a deadweight. Those were tears of anger.

Helial nodded silently. She was right: he could not make Lumia level up before she could learn some Skills and grow on her own… He had to come up with a solution. At the moment, however, he could not think of anything.

…

The girl got it and you didn’t? What an idiot.

You really haven’t noticed anything yet?

…

Helial looked as if he suddenly remembered something. He opened the Skill window and checked Mana Pistol.

Skill Activated:

Mana Pistol

Lv: 4

Grade: Amplification

Damage decreases with an increase in distance.

Range: 15 yards

Damage: 3800-5000

Effects:

Cost: 500 Mana

Cast Time: 10-60 Sec

Thanks to the amplification you can condense the blow to 500% of its original power. Further condensation of Mana will require longer time.

Efficiency: 99.8%

By condensing Mana and bringing it to the highest Density that the body can endure, you can release a long-range attack of pure energy. The farther the target the lesser will be the damage inflicted.

Exp: 63%

Helial stood there, his mouth gaping. He had not noticed that Mana Pistol had levelled up! Now it was much more powerful and, what’s more, the Cast Time was reduced to one third. Now to create a bullet he just needed ten seconds. Plus, by condensing more Mana, he could obtain a similar effect to the one in the test of the Qilin…

…

Well, you are not a total idiot, after all. I hhhope you will not focus only on that stupid Skill of that Lame Dragon, Shithead.

You have a lot to learn. That little girl seems a lot smarter than you, at the moment. I’m almost sorry that Curse of the Demon has not ended up in her hands.

Kyeheheheheh

…

Lumia walked to Helial and with a filthy handkerchief, she mopped up the blood spattered on his face, then kissed him on the nose with so much tenderness to make him blush.

…

Blergh! Seriously, incest? Seriously?

You people are revolting, really revolting.

Shithead, I’m curious to see your next moves. Even though you’re a giant shithead, you have some, mpf, let’s say, mpf, mediocre skills.

The voice paused briefly.

Later you will have the great honor of meeting me and, if you will prove to be worthy of me, I could, perhaps, accept you as my pupil.

Kyeheheheheh

…