L.E. Miranda
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B2 Chapter 6: Progress (6)
🕑 Added 2024-10-04 22:39:00 +0000 UTCMichael cast Shroud and entered the molehill. It was a type of precaution. He didn’t know how many moles still remained within the hill and had no reason to risk getting overwhelmed by sheer numbers. The moles were stronger than Lohann’s brainwashed warriors. If there were hundreds of them, it could prove to be troublesome. Outside, he had defeated over a hundred. It wasn’t far-fetched to consider that the hill could contain more than that number. The only problem with that logic was the hill’s size. It didn’t look like it could accommodate that many enemies.
Not getting caught up in his thoughts, he continued. The inside of the large hill was composed of interwoven tunnels that led into chambers with even more pathways. It reminded him of the underground of an anthill. Once he reached a particularly large chamber, his suspicions were proven right. He quickly stopped walking and slowed down his breathing. Around fifteen meters in front of him, a big group of the creatures could be seen. At first glance, there were more than two hundred. It was to the point that made Michael reconsider his perspective about the hill’s size.
After a more careful look, he realized why. The moles were virtually piled on top of one another and only moved when it was time for them to head down a specific tunnel, occupying the least amount of space possible. This made Michael hurriedly move out of the entrance of the path he’d come from, avoiding the possibility of a mole getting too close and seeing through his spell. However, it was a futile effort. There were far too many tunnels leading to the chamber. He couldn’t avoid standing in front of one; his only choice was to hope that a mole didn’t head his way before he finished analyzing the situation.
His eyes narrowed into slits. He had seen a large shadow through the gaps between the moles, but the gaps were too small to allow him a clear view. Nonetheless, he had a good idea of what it was.
The Boss is in there, huh?
It meant that he would need to fight his way through two hundred moles and then a Boss that was likely stronger than the Great Mushroom. In spite of that, Michael felt confident. It wasn’t arrogance or hubris, but belief in his abilities. In the short period of time since the Tutorial’s start, he had become someone incomparable to before. His Level had spiked after battles against higher-Leveled enemies, while his mastery over his Skills had developed. He felt no tension. There was nothing to be afraid of.
Naturally, that didn’t mean he would jump into battle without a plan or throw his life away, but it meant that he had an accurate grasp of his own capabilities, even if not completely. This Dungeon would also serve as a way for him to test his limitations.
From killing over a hundred moles outside the hill, he also knew their level of power well. However, he hadn’t fought such a large group, and the Boss’ abilities were still unknown.
For some time, Michael stood in place, unmoving, while thinking of a plan.
The Boss is right in the middle of all of them. There’s no way to reach it directly without killing the moles in the way. None of my spells can be hidden by Shroud.
He would expose himself the moment he tried to attack.
I can’t get surrounded.
There was a limit to his body’s durability – though he hadn’t yet discovered it – as well as to the angles of his attacks. He had no omnidirectional Skills except for Mana Shield and Mana Field. As his thoughts reached this point, he relaxed. That’s right; he still had Mana Field, his Skill with the highest mana consumption but also the highest usability.
Even if he were truly surrounded, there was a way to deal with it. Yet, he didn’t wish to use Mana Field right out of the gate. There was no harm in keeping it as a last resort while he trained his other, more basic Skills. As such, he slowly walked to the front of the single place with the least tunnel entrances. It was the closest thing to a wall that he had. An idea crossed his mind. Without thinking too much, he took a few steps into the nearest tunnel.
Against a large group of enemies, chokepoint them.
Michael let out a breath. His Dragonheart revved up its engine. It was fully activated, without any drawbacks. The effect was much greater than before his Constitution surpassed the threshold. Pure energy flooded his veins. There was a small commotion in the group of moles, but it was too late. The young man’s staff drew a line in the air.
“Mana Wave.”
Twin Casting was used, creating two crescent-shaped blades of mana. He had used much more mana than standard to make them as big as he currently could. It was a way of finding out how far he could go. The twenty-meter-long Waves shot towards the group of piled-up moles, which were too busy trying to find footing to climb down and rush towards him.
In an instant, the Mana Waves tore through the outermost layer of enemies, immediately killing almost sixty of them and searing the space’s walls. Their formation fell apart. The quickest moles were already running towards Michael, but he had no reason to be afraid. The size of the tunnel he was in meant that the moles could only reach him in groups of five. Even if they stayed back and tried to protect themselves, he only needed to fire spells from a distance. Ranged combat was his specialty.
A screech hit his eardrums just as two other Mana Waves killed the approaching moles. Yet, he had been prepared for sound attacks; his experience with the eagles in Eagles Peak had been enough to burn this lesson into his brain. His Constitution supported his intentions; his ears weren’t injured. More moles managed to head his way. His Heart thumped heavily in his chest.
Michael stared at the black mole while firing another round of twin Mana Waves. Finally, it had come into view. Standing on its forelegs, it screeched again, but this time Michael was ready. He didn’t know how to block sound attacks yet, but his body was now strong enough.
By this time, the small hill made of piled-up moles had come completely undone. They rubbed shoulders against one another as they struggled to reach him, but he had picked a prime location. At this time, he heard a sound coming from behind him. A slight chill went down his spine. He realized that he had overlooked his enemies’ very nature. Moles were, originally, creatures that could dig through the earth. If the moles had created the hill’s current state, it was only natural to assume that they could dig through the walls.
He couldn’t allow the enemies to approach him from behind. It seemed like the Boss’ loud screech had called back the moles already outside of the molehill. Michael’s full-moon Waves carved him a bloody path. Stepping over the shredded and broken corpses of the moles, he left his position and put his back against another wall. In a few moments, enemies erupted from the tunnel he had been in, as well as the tunnels next to the wall.
As he expected, he heard the sound of stone and earth being pushed aside and giving way to something else. He ducked before claws burst out of the wall, piercing through the spot where his heart had just been.
Michael dashed away from the wall as it completely fell apart, revealing a group of more than ten moles. They mindlessly rushed towards him, just like the others. However, because he had been forced to move forward, there was another group of enemies in melee range. He shouldn’t prioritize the new enemies.
Twin crescents seared through the nearest enemies. Every time they were fired, the twin Mana Waves butchered dozens of moles, but there was a large number of enemies coming from the outside, despite how many he had already killed.
Calm down.
All he needed to do was to keep accurately casting large Mana Waves. The group would be easily mowed down as a result. The developments had been surprising, but he wasn’t in any danger. His Clarity Skill ran on overdrive. He was now veritably surrounded and prioritized casting Mana Waves over Mana Shield, but none of the claws that touched his body drew anything more than white lines on his skin. He had become greater than this. Michael felt the beating of his own Heart. It calmed him down. That’s right. He could overcome this.
He spun in place, firing twin full-moon Mana Waves, effectively shredding all nearby attackers. By this point, the group of moles had been reduced to less than a fourth of its original size, despite the new additions from the outside. Meanwhile, he had sustained virtually no injuries.
I should use other Skills.
His training couldn’t stop. A Mana Blade took shape on top of his staff, making it look like a spear. He needed to know what he could do with his physical capabilities alone, now that most of the enemies had been killed.
The Midnight Mole King roared
