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Shouldn’t my consciousness start to fade by now?

Well, the vision was blurry at first, but it’s getting crispier. The pain also started subsiding as numbness slowly took over. My thoughts aren’t disoriented anymore to realize I’m not dying anytime soon!

Frantically looking around, my eyes settled on a gory stump littered with weapons.

Okay! A red geyser flowed out from my neck, and I was on my knees! The trolls were busier to fight among themselves.

I watched with horror as the blood and muscles started to reform around my neck; vessels, bones followed.

It was disgusting, so much that I felt my stomach squirmy even without a stomach! Everything started to rebuild from my neck in fine detail. And more importantly, my vision started paling!

Mustering the last bits of consciousness before it swapped places, I concentrated. The strands that bound my sense of feeling were severed.

Reattaching them was much harder than I first thought to be, and it was even worse with the last bits of my consciousness. Bits by bits, inches by inches, one of the strands connected, sending ripples of pain.

The first one is always the hardest, and with a bit of persistence, the strands were back how they were supposed to be. I relaxed as the growth spurt stopped!

Moving my body was the trick. Minutes later, I finally got the hang of the strands. I felt like a marionettist! It was precise and subtle. Honestly, it was hard!

Although I pulled to thread with perfect synchrony, my headless body just bobbed in place, then splattered on the puddle that formed underneath it, drawing the attention of the nearby trolls!

Seeing no more movement, they continued! This time, I let go of all the strands, only keeping the ones of my right hand. Slowly, moving in an angle similar to a push-up position, I left it like that.

Next, I focused on my left leg to crunch, trying to get more surface to distribute the weight on. And finally, with a tug, I dawdled on both of my feet!

My brain almost stopped working due to lack of oxygen, and breathing wasn’t helping! I was meters away from my body, and unfortunately, the trolls had already noticed my headless body, which teetered under my strenuous effort.

I sighed out in defeat as I felt a piercing pain. My body was now few feet above the ground. A troll impaled me with a sword, effortlessly, and from its shouting expression, I was sure it was a shout of victory!

The strands started snapping rapidly with my fleeting consciousness! The idea of growing a new head grossed me out!

But a flame of hope rekindled in me as the troll tossed my headless body towards me. It crashed few feet apart from my head in a loud splotch!

Sure, it was much closer, but still, it seemed really taxing given the situation. Once again, I started grasping the strands and slowly fixed them. It was easier this time, and I didn’t have the luxury to register the pain, so I pushed my intent, making the body crawl inch by inch.

Minutes felt like an eternity, as I made it stealthy crawl towards my head! But they picked up movements soon. And this time, our eyes locked apparently, both of our eyes went larger!

I cursed inwards! Fuck! I’m not gonna make it! The troll sprinted, gaining on me faster than I could think.

Fuck! Fuck! Fuckkkkkk!

I reached out my hand to scoop my head. Right when I was inches away, I winced as a spear pierced my heart. I looked at the troll who was still twisting the spear, its eyes locked with mine in a deadly stare!

Its lips curled very slightly, but I knew it was grinning. It plucked out the spear in one swift motion and proceeded to skewer my head next.

The spear-point darted forward, only to be stopped dead hairs away from my glabella. My control on my body was now almost normal, as it was inches away from me.

The spear was still held in my hand, and after a second, my body performed a sick flip kick, sending the troll stumbling backward. I bend downwards to scoop my head and put it where it belonged.

Ah~ how I loved the itch!

I shouted at the top of my lungs, “Feels good Motherfuckers!”

It surely did attract a lot of attention. The strands rebuilt faster than ever, but I still kept the strand of hearing severed. I indeed would feel obnoxious hearing all their gut-wrenching battle cries!

With renewed vigor, I galloped towards the troll army. But instead of going closer, I was getting far from them. I checked myself to realize my head was turned abnormally.

Uh... I took in a breath, holding my head firmly. Another sec later, I twisted it a total of 180 degrees... it sounded and turned so wrong under my hand!

“Fucking Motherfucker, that hurts like hell!” I shouted. I shouted few minutes, cursing, as I stabled my nerves. Certainly, you don’t feel okay after twisting your head like that!

The ground was now almost reverberated as the army rushed forward. I felt happy for a moment. I appreciated my hydra-like vitality and cockroach-like tenacity!

Resolute, I shouted on the top of my lungs, making the trolls halt for a moment! I instantly knew they were afraid, and I learned something new!

They didn’t halt for long, breaking out of their fear-induced state, darted forward. So did I, jumping in the frontlines, my body resonated with something. The ground was calling me!

I could feel malevolent pulsing within me. I sidestepped, dodging a piercing stab of a short-sword, spinning inwards. I hopped, digging in my clawed, yup, I’ve got sick, sharp claws that I just noticed... in the troll’s eyes, and gouged them out in a blur!

Before it could even react from the brunt of it, I dug my free hand in its throat. Naked flesh fell apart against my sharp claws. I swiped my hand downward, making a deep gash, till my fingers stuck in the troll’s jugular notch.

I jumped again to dodge few slashes and took few steps back after landing. I didn’t want to get surrounded! Choosing my next target, I leaped towards it. The troll was bare-handed.

When it was in range, I performed a dropkick square on its solar plexus, making it flyyyy! A few other trolls also stumbled under its weight.

The first victim was mine still breathed. I instantly closed to it and plucked the short-sword out of it. And stabbed its vital in a flurry of blows.

Each strike resonated with malevolence. The troll finally stopped writhing as I wrung the short-sword in its heart. Pulling out the short-sword, I assessed the situation. Trolls were now tackling me. They formed a semi-circle. Most of them had weapons like mace, spear, and machete.

I focused, mustering all my power on the tip of my feet, lunging towards the troll, which aimed to maim me. Instead, I jumped over the low slash and avoided the troll totally.

Without slowing, I approached the spear-wielding troll almost in the mid of the line. It saw me coming, instantly worked to intercept me. But I was faster, dodging the forward and predictable thrust. I slit its throat, and warm purple blood sprayed all around!

Two more swift stabs, one in solar plexus and another in heart, settled it. I needed another short-sword or dagger. It was much easier to wave around, and I felt like a natural-born fighter for some reason unknown.

To be honest, I was more of a pacifist back on earth, never trained in any sort of sport. All I did was running regularly for half an hour, and in my younger days, I did a bit of calisthenics, which I stopped in my early 30s. So, I’ve no idea how I felt natural while fighting. Superior Genes!!?

The malevolence grew stronger with each fallen troll. Another fact I just learned, malevolent will grow stronger as my victim count increases. Scary...Huh!

My heart was beating faster from excitement. Something instinctual, more primal, and sinister took over me as the time slowed, and we prepared for a deadly waltz!

I breezed through the army, slitting and slicing vitals along the way. It was going perfectly. Most of them were still alive, thanks to their superb regen.

I was about to slit another one when I felt mana. It oozed bloodlust. I tried parrying the oncoming slash with the short-sword, which didn’t resist even a second. So, I had to duck and attempted a sweep kick. The katana-wielding troll easily dodged it and, sheathing the katana, instantly unsheathed it to perform an overhead slash. Rolling, I performed a hand-flip to get on my feet.

There was a tense air in between us. The troll was smirking. It sheathed its katana again and disappeared. Time slowed! But I knew the katana-wielding troll was not the cause. I looked back to see the wickedly sharp edge of the battle-axe glint red sinisterly, only a breath away, from cleaving me in half.

Experiencing it first hand before, my reaction timing got far faster. I somehow managed to sidestep both of the blows. The time unfroze. I saw sparks as the edges collided. Normally, the katana would’ve already wielded under the weight of the battle-axe, but the troll wielding katana parried it with practiced ease!

And they exchanged blows, which gave me a hard time to see. The movements were almost blurry. I missed popcorn!

I was so engrossed in their battle...

Oh, I forgot to mention one crucial thing, I guess. The dungeon was corrupted so were the spawns. Usually, the spawns of dungeons only saw outsiders as enemies. But in a corrupted one, they had a permanent berserker status. Giving them crazy buff, in strength, and speed, and for the trolls, they had freaking overpowered regeneration, which made them a pain in the ass! But the best part was, they attacked anything they saw, be it other dungeon spawns or outsiders.

So, yeah, I was engrossed in their brilliant display of fighting, that I took a full blow of mace, on my left, caving the ribs under it, I yelled in pain. I was too slow to see it coming!

Lungs pierced, not that it mattered! Not when I can even survive without head. But it sure did slow me down a bit!

The next swing, I easily dodged jumping towards the mace using troll. And pushed the broken short-sword in its under-chin, shoving it all the way to the hilt. At the same time, I pounded its forehead with the palmar side of my head. Two more thwacks later, its skull broke, and the tip of the short-sword protruded slightly.

It tried breaking my vertebra, but I didn’t care since it’ll heal in moments. The pain was nothing compared to the pleasure I felt from killing the troll!

Now I stand beside the troll, triumph! I Cracked my neck, checking my surrounding. My eyes went wide in panic. I pivoted on my left, spinning 360 degrees. The tip of the spear pierced the air in a blur where I was standing!

Dodging another blur of spear attack, I caught the wrist of the troll. I tried ungrasping my clutch but failed. Seeing me overpower it in brute strength, it attempted to break free, throwing few basic punches.

Letting go of the troll, I avoided the punches. It shouted to charge forward, but I leaped indarted my right hand in its open mouth. Claws digging deep in soft flesh.

It flinched, trying to bite my fingers off, but using the same momentum, I tucked both of my legs, shifting my weight backward, and kicked the troll on its chest. It rocketed back, so did I.

The mandible was still clutched in my hand. I dodged a horizontal slash, bending backward to form a back-bridge position, and tucked my legs, launching myself towards the saber-wielding troll.

And there goes another one flying. Tsk~ it would’ve been better if it left the saber. I sprung to my feet; my senses tingled. One gigantic troll darted forward with a.. uh... cartwheel? Anyway, it was a monster of 3m, and it was freakishly fast.

When the troll was in range, I tried dodging it, but the swing was massive, and the swings were fast. So, I was quick-stepping backward in an attempt to evade. Another wide swing later, I closed in to land a few blows, which was a mistake.

The troll held the cartwheel vertically and swung it in the last moment, sweeping an insane area. Despite the slowed time, I knew I wouldn’t be able to dodge it whole. So, I guarded myself, forming an x with my forearms.

When time continued, I rocketed backward, my forearm broken into pulp. I started skidding backward when my feet touched the ground. It only came to a halt when my back hit against a rock!

The troll wasn’t standing still and made way for me. I ran for it as fast as I could. Something strange was flowing in me. It’s like the ground below me was pulsating, as if it was alive. Each pulse resonated with my own!

My speed increased dramatically, everything blurred, time slowed. Not because I was in danger! Cuz, I was moving fast, freaking fast, that everything seemed slow.

In an instant, I was in front of the troll. It still held the cartwheel backward, planning its next attack. I leaped to gain height over it. Grabbing hold of its head, I slammed it to the ground, with all my strength and already built-up acceleration!

The ground crackled, forming spider-web-like cracks in a few inches deep craters & sending a huge shock-wave all around! When time flowed normally, its head was already a mush. My right hand was warm with gore.

If any trolls didn’t show interest to me, they sure did now!

But I was enjoying it! Enjoying it very damn much! And the last moment of speed burst was exhilarating! I wanted to feel it again!

Picking up the cartwheel, I threw it in a wide-angle towards the army of trolls that was currently rushing towards me! And started sprinting in the hope of experiencing it once more!

The cartwheel disabled some unfortunate trolls, but it wasn’t even close to crippling any of them. Once again, I felt the ground pulse, and this time too, time slowed. As I darted forward, killing the trolls, lessening the number as fast as I could!

Punching a hole through their hearts or tearing their heads off was getting real slow fast. And time continued in its normal flow. Finishing off another troll who had a huge saber. I picked the saber, I breathed in, the pulse of the ground felt more natural!

One breath later, time almost froze as I vanished, appearing few meters ahead and cleaving the troll in front of me in clean halves!

But the moment the upper half of the troll slumped with a wet plop, time convalesced. And I felt my muscles tearing for a moment, rendering me vulnerable!

A spearhead, pierced through my lungs, tip protruding my chest. And gash ran in my stomach, as a dagger sliced through! The next blow, I managed to dodge half. The side of the mace brushed my shoulder, breaking it!

The spear wound and the gash were already healing, and so were my muscles! I took few more blows since the pain was overwhelmed by the rush of adrenaline!

Wait a sec... do devils secrete adrenaline?

Who cares? Phew~

I think I need to do some workout to move at such insane speed continuously.

I was abruptly shot out of my thought as I felt crackling mana. I turned to check but was greeted with a bolt of electricity, sizzling my skin and cramping my muscles for the faintest second! It burned, though!

Two more bolts tore spaces... not actually! The electric bolts were just extremely fast!

Hopping in between them, I tried to make way for the mage-troll, but few muscle heads intercepted.

They put up a much better fight, as it took me few seconds to finish them off. The saber is my favorite weapon for now! It’s durable and cleaves too!

I swung it in the air to shake off the purple gores!

A head-sized orb, glowing red, made its way for me. It was slow, far slower than the electric bolt. I wanted to dodge it, but it felt like the power of the orb was calling me!

I greeted it with open arms. The moment it met me, it burst, throwing me away. A side of me was charred. Despite my superior flame resistance, it was devastating!

But now I know what the pulsating sensation was. It was elemental mana. Fire, earth, air, water, lighting, and whatever elements are pulsated differently! But I didn’t feel any from the electric bolt! Affinity, I guess!

I closed my eyes, trying to focus, and suddenly the pulsating sensation of the ground calmed, beating more rhythmically. It resonated with something within me. I was so close to discovering it when my mind screamed.

I ducked, sidestepped, and jumped to dodge three consecutive blows. I knew it was the katana-wielding troll. It greeted me with a faint smirk playing on its black lips.

This time I made the first move, vertically slashing the saber. It spun left, attacking with the same momentum. Our blades clanged, and sparks flew.

It used my strength to slide its katana through my saber’s edge and made a low slash! I performed a soft jump to dodge. The troll performed two quick slanted slashes, one from left another from left, which were deflected in sparks by my saber.

After parrying another overhead slash, it leaped backward, so did I. we circled each other. The troll sheathed its katana, and I knew the next move, so I followed the gesture.

We both lunged at the same time, and time didn’t slow this time! I whistled in excitement! The troll was fast. We both ran, exchanging blows after blows creating sparks, and cleaving any troll that was on the path!

With each blow that we exchanged, the troll's speed increased slightly, and after a while, there was a nick in my cheek, drawing a drop of blood.

A few more exchanges left me with thin cuts on my skin which regenerated almost instantly! The troll was using wind-based mana! With each strike, it left sharp broken wind-blades that grazed me even after parrying the attacks!

I stopped abruptly, shocking the troll who was still sprinting! With the troll's speed, the distance grew significantly. Focusing my breath, I gathered all my strength on my toes, the ground resonating with my heartbeats.

The next beat later, the world slowed, confirming my suspicion. I blinked, the troll's eye grew wider, almost bulging out of the socket. The troll moved its katana to intercept my blow, but it was slower by a fraction.

When I reappeared in front of the troll, I swung the saber in a slant, hacking it in clean half from shoulder to stomach.

The sheer force sundered the ground and few unlucky trolls which happened to be in the same trajectory.

Time convalesced. The troll was still in one piece. It sluggishly swung the katana in a vertical slash. The blade of katana dug in my shoulder. The troll coughed blood, separating its upper part. A geyser of entrails and guts stuck all over me!

The troll was still breathing slowly. I removed the katana that was sticking out of my shoulder. And drove the katana through the trolls’ heart, granting it death!

The troll was a good opponent! I pulled the sheath out of its belt and sheathed the katana. The katana was as normal as it could be, but its master was respectable. At least I respected the troll!

I spoke in a soft voice, “I’ll take good care of your blade. Rest in peace!”

That said, I turned around. The air was humming with mana. It was dense and almost overwhelming.

The source was a troll. It had a glowing lightning tattoo running across its chest. It was chanting something!

The mana resonated with me as if it wanted to flow within me! I left the trolls to their schemes. Now only a few dozens of trolls stood, despite being in berserker state. They treaded me cautiously!

I closed my eyes! My surrounding resonated, pulsating like my own heartbeat. I breathed in; the beating calmed. My surrounding turned cozy as if I was in a boundless ocean. It was calm and surrounded me whole. It was everywhere! It wanted to flow within me, be one with me...?

No......it was asking for something. I focused harder!

The earth... it was calling me! I opened my eyes. Suddenly I had the urge to lie down flat on the ground and hug it tight. It promised me love, warmth, solace!

It called me once more! I couldn’t resist! I squatted down, placing both my hands on the sullied ground. It was dyed in filthy troll blood. I dug my hand in the ground, trying to grasp it.

Something burned, buried deep in me, in my very consciousness. It was a kindling spark. It was sad yet majestic, warm yet cold. It was pure, unsullied, brimming with life. It had the sweet aroma of fresh spring mixed with rain-washed earth. It soaked me in its sweet pacifying scent, overfilling me with vitality, purity. It also carried the faintest scent of motherly affection and sacrifice!

I let it soak me, soak my entirety. For the briefest moment, I felt one, one with the earth. It was tiring and dying, but it still burned, burned the last bits of it, to enrich life!

.

I opened my eyes in a daze. My cheeks were warm, eyes burning! I was sitting in a dome, leaning against its smooth spherical surface. The whole dome was teeming with life, vines, and flowers of various colors and scents.

The vines and leaves glowed in muted gold, the flowers in soft notes of pink, lighting the dome in faint warm light. The whole dome shook, causing more vines to grow, and the previous ones turned to miniature trees, with brilliant azure flowers!

The last drop of tear rolled over my cheek and fell on the viny ground of the dome, giving rise to a single tri-petal flower. It was pink, scentless!

The dome was protecting me. I appreciated the moment for a second! The dome disappeared in a speck of golden-green, leaving me amidst a crater teeming with green sprouts!

The air still buzzed from the remnants of lightning essence. The world looked much brighter and crispier, and it was a massive influx of ambient mana!

I smiled at the remaining trolls, showing my teeth. Finally, I can do magic!