Losing an eye doesn’t bother me as much as I expected.
My body is almost completely healed at this point. I manipulated my aura to cover only my injuries to speed up the healing process and it worked. I found that Aura of Vitality isn’t perfect though.
(Aura of Vitality) has leveled up! (4 → 5)
(Aura of Vitality) has leveled up! (5 → 6)
(Mana Cycling) has leveled up! (1 → 2)
My body is scarred. I have only been in this world for about two days, I think, and already my body looks like it has been through a hundred battles. I nod gratefully that Aura of Vitality auto aligns bones so they heal right.
Healing a destroyed eye is outside what's possible to heal with Aura of Vitality. I would be lying if I said it didn’t bother me, but not by much. It’s annoying at most.
I did manage to get a few hours of sleep. I caught Toulif looking at me as I was about to pass out. I thought he might try to attack me while I was asleep, but after throwing him a glance he tensed up and his soul dimmed.
I smiled at that. It reminded me of Eva. So, I betted that nothing would happen and I was right.
I woke up with Geltor curled up on my lap like a cat. I thought he didn’t need to sleep?
“Yo! Wake up!”
Geltor pounces on all fours in a panic, before slowly standing to look at me. “Oh, hey.” He yawns.
“Were you… Asleep?”
Geltor blinks at me. “Yeah. Everyone was doin’ it.”
I scoff and push him off me. I stand up and he immediately jumps back up on my shoulder.
The party quickly packed up the camp and we set out once more. I noticed that Eva’s soul had stopped moving again, so we should close the distance in maybe 3-4 hours if she stays still.
I told Toulif this and I felt relief throughout his soul. With Magical Aura Perception at this level, I’m practically an empath at this point.
In the meantime, I had some new things to look at!
“Status.”
Name (Tiffany Day) / Age (23) / Race (Human)
Alignment (Chaotic Neutral)
Class (Monk) / Level (21)
Stats / Stat Points (15)
Strength (30)
Durability (56)
Agility (10)
Endurance (10)
Intellect (24)
Soul (35) (-2)
Intrinsic Status
Vitality (100%)
Stamina (94%)
Sanity (85%)
Mana (100%) (max 94.3%)
Traits
(Interloper)
(Serial Killer)
(Ydri’s Jester)
(Sadistic)
Skills
(Quick Thinking) level 5
(Pain Tolerance) level 6
(Observe) level 2
(Mana Cycling) level 2
Class Skills
(Obscene Presence) level 1
(Magical Aura Perception) level 7
(Magical Aura Manipulation) level 6
(Aura of Strength) level 6
(Frost Breath) level 4
(SoulFire) level 4
(Aura of Vitality) level 6
(Aura of Durability) level 6
The first thing that I check is my new trait I got in the fight against the Roach Gladiator. Like when I got Serial Killer I was kinda hesitant to acknowledge its existence, but if it has some kind of effect, I want to know about it.
Sadistic / Rarity (Rare)
(Time and time again, you have inflicted great pain onto others for nothing other than your own sick enjoyment. You are abhorrent. That said, you have gotten very good at it.)
The more pain your target is in, the more effective you are at damaging them.
The system insulted me again… Why does it do that? I shake my head as I feel a small sense of shame. I sigh, at least the effect it has is fucking broken.
I don’t know how much more effective I will be, or what the rate of more pain to more damage is. I think this is something I’m going to have to test out.
Up next is distributing stat points. I put 4 into Durability, and 5 into Strength. I then put the remaining 6 into Agility. I wanted more agility because I was really wishing I had invested more into it in my last fight. If my agility was just a little better, I probably would have both my eyes right now.
I think back on that fight fondly. It was so fun.
My mind wanders as I remember its soul. I have been taking mental notes on how souls work in this world. That Roach Gladiators soul had an outward flow of mana, like the cultists. The Abominable Moles and Abominable Serpents had an inward flow of mana, like my soul.
I didn’t really understand what that difference meant until I started to deeply study my own soul. This is what I found.
Having an inward flow of mana and having an outward flow of mana depends on only one thing. Where the bridge of where mana flows from is located. For those that have an inward flow of mana like me, the bridge connects to every edge of the soul. For those that have an outward flow of mana like the cultists, the bridge connects to the center of the soul.
So for me, the mana literally flows from the outside in, and for them, the mana flows from the inside out.
The two ‘configurations’ of the soul each have their drawbacks and advantages. Having an inward flow of mana lets you cast magic within your own body very easily, but casting magic on the outside world becomes hard. Having an outward flow lets you cast magic outside of your body easily, but casting magic on your own body becomes hard.
This is true for almost all the fights I had except for the exceptions. When the roaches teleported.
They had outward flow, but they teleported their bodies.
This is the current conundrum that has been invading my mind for the past 30 minutes. They were casting their magic onto the world too, I could see with the blue lines that they carved into the air. But their bodies were the ones affected by the magic.
The reason I’m thinking about this so hard is pretty obvious. I wanna learn how to teleport too.
I think back to the magic they casted to teleport. I try to remember every minute detail I can. There has to be some secret I'm missing.
I need to fight more roaches. This is starting to become an obsession.
I watch Toulif take out another group of Abominable Moles. They were around level 20 and they were simply massacred. If I sense another roach, I'll intercept it before he can interfere.
Sure enough, after a little while longer I sense something. A dark green flame all the way at the edge of my perception.
“Toulif, I’m gonna break away from the group for a bit.” I take a hard left and Geltor falls off me as I start walking down a seemingly random path. “You’re about an hour walk away from Evan, so don’t wait up! Just give him the mushrooms and tell him they were from me!”
Toulif looks at me, but I don’t gauge his reaction as I start sprinting towards another fight.
As I start to get closer, I see a few more souls pop into view. Oh, this is gonna be a group battle? That’d be interesting.
I get even closer and even more souls start to show themselves. And more, and more, until they’re dozens of them. My pace starts to slow as I start to get second thoughts.
A giant green metallic ball glints brightly as I stop myself. This seems more and more like a bad idea to fight them. I think back on what I’m trying to achieve.
I really wanna learn how to teleport. I start slowly walking around another corner. Around the next turn I should be able to see them.
I have no plans for fighting them now, I just want to see them. I hear the chorus of thousands of bugs and the clashing of mandibles as I inch closer to the path leading into this massive nest of monsters.
I slowly poke my head around the corner and see a massive cavern. The biggest open space I’ve seen so far. There is a ravine in the ceiling letting daylight seep into the dungeon.
Looking down I see an ocean of insects-
(Roach Legion)
(Roach Legion)
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
(Roach Legion)
…
(Roachling / level 3)
(Roachling / level 2)
(Roachling / level 4)
…
(Roach Centurion / level 9)
(Roach Centurion / level 6)
(Roach Centurion / level 7)
…
(Roach Ambassador / level 18)
…
(Roach Gladiator / level 27)
(Roach Gladiator / level 29)
…
(Roach Brood Queen / level 26)
(Roach Brood Queen / level 25)
…
(Observe) has leveled up! (2 → 3)
(Roach Empress / level 50)
This is definitely too much for me.
I turn around and start walking away silently. My adrenaline is spiking, but I keep a calm demeanor. I place a hand on my chest and look back at the corner. That’s terrifying.
I turn back around and face a new notification waiting for me.
New Objective / Extermination!
-
Kill the Roach Empress(0/1)
-
Reward / New Gear!
I bite my lip. You bitch!
How am I supposed to kill that thing! It’s 30 levels above me!
You notice yourself subconsciously start putting together a plan to slaughter the roaches and I stop myself. No! I’m not insane!
I look back up at the notification and I ask it in a whisper “Can I really kill that thing?”
Yes, I think you can
I stare at the notification and my one eye goes wide. My heart rate starts to climb and my body feels warm inside. I shouldn’t do this. This is suicide. You're insane. They were right. You’re going to die…
You’re a bad person-
I spin on my heel and start walking back towards certain death. You’re grinning ear to ear. My aura shifts to my legs and I activate Aura of Strength. A piece of my soul shifts to my hand and I activate SoulFire.
The SoulFire is changed. It isn’t a raging black fire, but it’s now like a sharp dark blowtorch.
As soon as I turn the corner, I crouch as low as I can. I find the nearest Roach Gladiator I can see. It hasn’t noticed me yet.
I launch myself off the ground and the rock beneath my feet explodes. The roach turns around at the noise, but doesn’t react fast enough. My flaming hand stabs through its skull and I grip. I grab onto its shoulder and pull back, ripping its head from its neck.
You have slain a (Roach Gladiator / level 26)
-
More experience rewarded
You have leveled up! (21 → 22)
-
You have earned (5) stat points
(SoulFire) has leveled up! (4 → 5)
I throw the flaming head to my side. I’m knee deep in Roach Legions, but they haven’t reacted yet. A few of the roach souls are dimmed with shock, others are bright with rage. My perspective shifts to my own soul. Your emotions are unreadable.
I look up at the Roach Empress. Its body is massive, like a giant translucent sack of organs. A long protrusion sticks out of its side that extends for over a hundred feet. At the end is a torso of a human woman with 6 insect limbs sticking out where its arms should be. She has mandibles hanging out of her mouth and her hair is black. She is wrapped around her own sack-like body.
Unlike the rest of her roach brethren, she isn’t angry or shocked. She stares at me with indifference.
I smile “Obscene Presence!”
You have slain a (Roach Centurion / level 9)
-
Little experience rewarded
---
You have slain a (Roachling / level 2)
-
Little experience rewarded
(Obscene Presence) has leveled up! (1 → 2)
I keep Obscene Presence up long enough for my mana to drop to 50%. I receive dozens of notifications, all of them are Roach Centurions or Roachlings. Most of the Roach Brood Queens and Roach Gladiators are screeching to themselves as chaos breaks out all around me.
I let out a powerful Frost Breath boosted by Magical Aura Manipulation. I swing my head around me as thousands of Roach Legions die.
You have slain a (Roach Legion / level 0)
-
Very little experience rewarded
---
You have slain a (Roach Legion / level 0)
-
Very little experience rewarded
(Frost Breath) has leveled up! (4 → 5)
I have Magical Aura Perception focused in a 30 foot sphere around myself. Everything except for the Roach Empress, I completely ignore. I sense the soul of a Roach Gladiator appear right above me.
My aura coats my right arm and with Aura of Durability I block it. I quickly wrap my arm around the swung blade to hold the roach in place. My aura shifts to my left and with Aura of Strength and SoulFire I stab through its chest. The Roach Gladiator explodes in green blood and black flames.
You have slain a (Roach Gladiator / level 27)
-
More experience rewarded
You have leveled up! (22 → 23)
-
You have earned (5) stat points
I split my aura between my arms as a Roach Brood Queen flies directly for me. I throw the flaming carcass at its face. As soon as the queen shakes the dead Roach Gladiator off its head, a ball of black fire flies into its mouth.
I jump onto the top of the Roach Brood Queen to run along its back and I use Magical Aura Manipulation to pull the soul fragment with me. The queen's insides are torn apart as SoulFire rips through the entire length of the monster. Its back end explodes open in a shower of organs and green slime.
I rejoin with the soul fragment as I start tearing apart more Roach Legions.
You have slain a (Roach Brood Queen / level 27)
-
More experience rewarded
You have leveled up! (23 → 24)
-
You have earned (5) stat points
(Magical Aura Manipulation) has leveled up! (6 → 7)
(SoulFire) has leveled up! (5 → 6)
(Quick Thinking) has leveled up! (5 → 6)
My mana starts to get low, so I split a piece of my soul and start spinning it with Magical Aura Manipulation and Mana Cycling combined. I drop all my current stat points between Strength, Durability and Soul. That's 5 each.
I rip apart another Roach Brood Queen that has completely lost its mind with my bare hands. You’re awful, It couldn’t even fight back.
You have slain a (Roach Brood Queen / level 25)
-
Moderate experience rewarded
(Aura of Strength) has leveled up! (6 → 7)
I feel my mind fold in on itself as two Roach Gladiators appear on either side of me.
(Quick Thinking) has leveled up! (6 → 7)
(Quick Thinking) has leveled up! (7 → 8)
(Quick Thinking) has leveled up! (8 → 9)
Teleportation! That spell isn’t teleportation! It is not just one spell, but two. It casts the magic, not on its body, but on its soul. It inverts the direction of the flow of mana for a split second and then it activates its skill!
I know what that feels like-
And I know what I want-
The Roach Gladiators blades clash into each other and they blink at themselves. Confusion fills their souls.
My flaming hand bursts out the chest of one of them. Green blood splatters onto the other as it stares in horror. I bisect the roach completely and blow Frost Breath at the other.
It tries to dodge, but it's still halfway caught in the blast. It tumbles as one of its wings breaks apart. I jump at it and with Aura of Strength coating my leg I kick it. The Roach Gladiator is sent flying apart in a gory spectacle.
You have slain a (Roach Gladiator / level 27)
-
Moderate experience rewarded
You have slain a (Roach Gladiator / level 29)
-
More experience rewarded
You have leveled up! (24 → 25)
-
You have earned (5) stat points
You have leveled up! (25 → 26)
-
You have earned (5) stat points
(Frost Breath) has leveled up! (5 → 6)
Congratulations, you have unlocked a class skill
-
(Instant Position)
Alert / (1) Class Skill slots remaining
Congratulations, for reaching level (25)
-
Strength (+20)
Durability (+20)
Agility (+15)
Endurance (+15)
Intellect (+15)
Soul (+20)
Oh, so that's why they are so strong. You're dangerous. I’m amazing.
The Roach Empress watches on with an complete lack of interest to the continuing slaughter-
