Chapter 8 - Frenzied Bear

I woke from the feeling of water on my face. My feet felt cold, and my back hurt. Fuck. I looked around, and everything felt different. As far as I knew, there was no light, but my eyes could perceive my surroundings with ease. The uneven surface on the wall, the ants over at the corner.

I opened my status, and I was baffled.

John Crow

Mana-touched

Level 6

Class: Crafting

Age: 24

"What's mana touched?" I asked myself.

Mana-touched

You have been touched by mana. +30% Mana affinity

I sat up in the cave. My whole being hurt, but I could live through it. I looked up at the cave opening: It had become broader, and I saw claw marks on the sides. Hell, that bear was angry. The space around me was barely enough for me to move around in, but enough to lie comfortably.

"Mana..." I felt something in the air. I tried to grasp it my hand, and a blue ball of light slowly condensed in my hand. It pulsed and warmth spread through my hand. Full of energy. I changed the shape to an arrow, homed in on a stone and threw it. The rock exploded into pebbles. Holy cow... I had no idea how I just did that. It felt...so natural to me, similar to walking.

My sword and my helmet...They were lost, somewhere, in the midst of my escape. The only remaining equipment remaining was the chest plate, which was beyond repair due being shred open by the bear. If I didn't have armor, that strike would have killed me.

I shuddered. I picked my bag and looked through the materials I picked up. Some of them got destroyed when I propelled into the cave. Finally, I found the thing that I was looking for. It was a herb. It was green tinted with bits of yellow and had a spongy texture.

Jarr moss

+ Minor healing properties

I took a fist-sized stone and began to grind the moss into a gluey consistency. Finished, I grabbed small parts of the created salve and applied them to the wound. Shit. A burning pain appeared. I bit through the pain and continued to the end.

Despite recent events, I became delighted with the success of my self-care. Probably more thankful that I had picked random herbs at sides of the road. My thoughts blurred, and my eyelids felt heavy, I knew that staying awake more would prove difficult. My assumption was right as sleep took me with the storm second after.

I awoke once again. My pain had subsided by a large margin. I was safe...for now. The forest outside was silent and dangerous. Armon hadn't bothered to mention it - It could also be that he didn't know, of course, the man had lived in solitude for a couple of years. I'll ask him if I make out alive.

Going outside without any protection would be dangerous since the bear could still be around. I had to invent something to defend myself since my sword is nowhere to see. There were no materials, however, so that would be problematic.

The arrow made out of mana seemed useful, but one of those wouldn't stop a strong beast, and I wasn't in the condition to mass-produce them either. My stomach growled. Food. Water. I had to take the risk.

I forced myself up and decided to glance outside. My eyes caught the figure of a colossal creature, and likewise, it noticed my presence. Fuck. The Bear. It growled and lunged forward in anger. I backed away from the opening.

Little did I know that the bear had guarded the Blue fruit for over two weeks. It hadn't let its prized possession out of its view for a second, and then, I, a puny human in its eyes took it away. Of course, it was angry.

The cave shook as the bear tried to claw its way in. Its black eyes full of fury. I gathered all the mana I could muster and condensed it into an arrow. I hurled it like a spear towards the bear. The creature sensed danger and tried to wipe away the projectile with its arm.

- 168

The beast roared as its right paw became a mangled mess of flesh. The pain pushed the creature into a frenzy. Its eyes turning into a deep-colored red. It struggled even more and managed to get half it's body inside of the cave. I panicked and backed away into the corner. Every second seemed like minutes as the bear got further and further into the cave. Shit. Shit. Shit

My eyes darted around until a found a stone. I picked it up and I gambled. I filled it with all the mana I could and threw it like a bomb. The rock engulfed in mana hit the cave roof above the creature, and a massive explosion happened. A shockwave threw me into the wall behind me. My wounds once again reopening. My spine broke. I sustained a head injury and countless of other unknown injuries. The cave-opening closed as the rocks rained down. A stone, twice the size of a basketball killed the bear. Its skull had cracked open like a watermelon.

Level up!

Level up!

Level up!

The first thing I noticed was that I couldn't move. I was dying. I managed to survive the onslaught of falling stones due to the shockwave. Ironic right? Staying alive just to inevitably die later. Strange. I was calm. How could I be calm? I had escaped death countless of times in the past, true, but something inside of me told me that it was the end. The real end. No chance of surviving. Maybe...Maybe it's time for me to give up? The thought blossomed into my mind. Yes..let us just give up. My eyelids shook.

John.

A familiar voice echoed in my mind like thunder on a clear and blue sky.

Survive.

*Blink*

"John. There's a whole new world outside there." My brother said to me and grinned, "Someday, you and I'll escape.."

The room was dark. I could barely see my brother's face. The air stank: A mixture of feces and urine.

"That's impossible" I alleged and looked at him with squinting my eyes, "We can never be outside, we are sick.."

"Sick or not, I don't care.." My brother patted my head and declared, "Nothing is impossible".

*Blink*

Fuck. Tears began to fall from my eyes. How could I have even have thought about giving up? The sacrifice he made...for me. So--... I stopped my thoughts of my past and cleared my mind. Nothing is impossible. Yes. Nothing is impossible. Even in death, you help me... I can't dwell on the past. Think. Think. Think. How can I survive?

I brought up my status.

John Crow

Mana-touched

Level 6

Class: Crafting

Age: 24

Attributes:

Strength: 46 (16)

Endurance: 30 (21)

Agility: 10 (18)

Wisdom: 10 (12)

Intelligence: 10 (12)

Unassigned Points: 40

What to do... The only thing that would help me was endurance. I put all 40 points into that stat. I felt the energy flow through my body. I felt my bones becoming stronger. My flesh became tougher and my blood thickened. It wasn't enough.I was still dying, albeit a slower. I couldn't move. Nerve damage? Paralyzation? How long did I have? Hours? Days? Hunger would soon kill me. I knew that the body could cannibalize on fat, and water from an elimination of fat cells. But how far would that last me?

The only thing I could use was...mana? I decided to give it a go. I tried to sense the particles in the air. I had experienced the power of an image. Imagining the creature of the blood is what made inscription possible, and the level rose with greater realism. I had a theory. I could try using mana and heal my spine.

"What's there to lose?" I thought and began moved the mana through the air. I imagined myself as a sponge. Absorbing water to survive, in this case, mana. I noticed the pain. My whole body felt like it was on fire. My temperature rose. I would have screamed if I was able to and then - I dozed off. I awoke and felt better. It worked, so I continued. I didn't know how long I absorbed mana, but a notification appeared and broke the silence.

Body Strengthening

Absorbing mana strengthens the body and increases health regeneration with the aid of an image.

Uncommon+ Due to the interference of your class, body strengthening has upgraded to Body Crafting. Body Crafting

Absorb mana and re-craft your body based on an image.

Rare+

Current bodies available: 0

"Re-craft?" I didn't have time to think random thoughts. I cast my questions aside and began using the skill. Based on the description, an image was the key. An idea sprouted in my mind. I channeled the skin and focused on a healthier me. A me who could move with ease. The pain began to disappear, and on some occasions, it flared up like a bright torch. I gasped for air and clenched my teenth to withstand the pain.The time became irrelevant. The image of me was the sole focus. The only thing in the world...

You have successfully re-crafted your body.

A tremendous amount of energy suddenly erupted from my heart and into my body. My arms and legs felt alive again, and my body functions began to work. I could finally move.

I glanced around. I wanted out. The entrance was sealed. The rocks were massive, but with newfound energy from recrafting my body and putting a huge amount of points into endurance, I began. Hours later, the first ray of sunlight hit me in the face. It was the second time in my life that I had felt the joy of being blinded by the sun. I was soooo hungry.

My body had become a lot thinner than before. My hair was almost down to my waist, and I had grown a scruffy beard. Unbothered with my appearance, I entered the forest in pursuit of food. I scanned the berries that I found, edible I ate and poisonous I discarded. I'm in the other forest. I think. There were hardly any animals at all in this part of the forest except slimes - and they were of low threat

I searched the area until I found the road. I squinted my eyes and saw the capital far away. Good. It took me about an hour before I saw the guards standing at the entrance.

"Hey..." I wasn't in the best mood. Really. Even though I was happy for finally finding my back way to the capital, I didn't want to spend a second more of time outside. It would be a while before I stepped out again, and then I had to have absolute knowledge and excellent equipment.

The lanky guard looked at me, "Who are you? Wait..." His voice shook and continued, "You're that guy from 11 days ago?"

I nodded.

Note: plus (+) symbolizes the upper level of a grade and minus (-) a lower grade.