Free Web NovelChapter 13: New Weapon
For a split second, Alex lost consciousness. Yet the momentum of the swing continued, and by the time he regained awareness, the stone had already connected.
The Netherclaw Prowler died instantly as its skull caved inward before it even understood what had happened.
The final monster immediately lunged at him. It was too close. Alex forced more mana into his arm and back despite the warning signs coming from his body. His mind felt as though it was being torn apart by the strain, while his heart burned painfully inside his chest.
Even so, he gritted his teeth and continued.
This was the last one. He couldn’t—wouldn’t—give up here.
The monster snapped its jaws toward him. Alex stepped forward and slammed his fist into its jaw with every ounce of strength he had left.
The impact launched the creature through the air before it crashed heavily several meters away.
Alex blacked out. When he came to, he was on his knees. His entire body trembled as he struggled to breathe, and blood dripped steadily from his nose. A terrible pain radiated from his chest, so intense that it almost felt like he was suffering a heart attack.
Still, he forced himself to stay conscious.
The level-up notifications hadn’t arrived yet.
The monster growled and struggled back to its feet.
Its lower jaw had been shattered, leaving blood, saliva, and broken teeth spilling onto the ground, yet it was somehow still alive.
The creature looked as if it intended to kill Alex before finally dying itself.
’Dammit, I should’ve gone for the head.’
Alex cursed internally, but he had gone for the head. His exhaustion caused him to miss.
He tried to gather mana once more. His body barely responded, and even controlling the small amount he had left felt difficult.
But Alex refused to give up.
At that moment, Emma moved.
Her face had become pale from blood loss, and blood continued pouring from the wound on her thigh.
Despite that, she dragged herself toward the corpse that still had the broken spearhead lodged inside it and pulled it free.
The surviving Netherclaw Prowler never noticed. Its attention remained completely focused on Alex, and by the time it sensed danger, Emma was already close enough.
She drove the spearhead directly into its eye.
The sharpened tip penetrated deep into its brain. The monster collapsed instantly, and Emma fell with it as her remaining strength gave out. For several seconds, neither of them moved.
The battlefield finally became quiet except for the sound of their labored breathing. Alex slowly relaxed as the tension drained from his body.
A few moments later, notifications finally appeared.
[Level 7 Netherclaw Prowler killed.]
[Level 4 Netherclaw Prowler killed.]
[Level 4 Netherclaw Prowler killed.]
[Level 3 Netherclaw Prowler killed.]
[Level 3 Netherclaw Prowler killed.]
[You have leveled up. Level 3 → Level 4]
[2 stat points gained.]
[Mind: 10 → 11]
[Body Reinforcement Spell has leveled up. Level 5 → Level 6.]
Alex stared at the notifications in surprise. He hadn’t expected so many messages to appear at once, though the level seven monster explained why the larger Netherclaw Prowler had felt so much stronger than the others. The realization made the fight seem even more ridiculous in hindsight.
Warm energy spread throughout his body. The pain in his chest gradually faded, his headache disappeared, and the bleeding from his nose stopped. Most importantly, his exhausted mind recovered and his mana reserves refilled.
He felt grateful that he had invested all his previous stat points into Mana. Without that decision, this fight might have ended very differently.
Alex released a long breath. Across from him, Emma’s injuries were healing as well, and the torn flesh on her thigh visibly closed.
Color slowly returned to her face as she pushed herself into a sitting position.
Then she suddenly grinned.
"That was awesome!"
Alex looked at her as though she had completely lost her mind. They had nearly died, and not just once during that fight.
Emma had been forced to lure multiple monsters despite being weaker than him, while Alex had pushed his mana so far that he nearly collapsed before the battle was over.
’Crazy girl.’
Only now did he realize how costly it had been to strengthen his arm, back, and mind at the same time. If the battle had lasted even a few seconds longer, he probably wouldn’t have had enough mana left to keep fighting.
She simply smiled at him and pushed herself to her feet. After taking a deep breath, she pointed at him and said, "Hey, what’s with that accusing look? You were enjoying the fight just as much as me. You had a small grin while fighting those monsters."
Alex blinked.
He had been smiling?
The question caught him off guard. The entire fight had felt like a desperate struggle for survival. He had been exhausting his mana, pushing his body beyond its limits, and coming dangerously close to death.
Yet when he thought back on it, he couldn’t deny the possibility.
The rush of battle had felt exhilarating, forcing him to think faster, adapt faster, and improve faster.
Then there was the satisfaction that came afterward, when the notifications appeared and his efforts translated directly into growth.
’Did I enjoy the fight?’
The answer was obvious.
He had.
Maybe not the danger itself, but everything surrounding it. The challenge, the improvement, and the feeling of becoming stronger were undeniably addictive.
"Sorry about your spear," Alex said as he stood up.
"It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. We wouldn’t be standing here if we were worried about a broken spear." Emma waved her hand dismissively.
Alex nodded, and the two of them quickly moved through the battlefield, collecting the Gene Potentials from the corpses.
Neither intended to use them immediately, but there was no reason to leave valuable resources behind.
Alex wrapped them in his shirt alongside the Sweet Smelling biscuits before slipping his slippers back onto his feet.
As they finished, Emma glanced at him curiously.
"Are you from the marines? I already thought your reaction speed was unusually good, but the way you threw those slippers was remarkably accurate. It looked like something you’ve practiced before. It must be from shooting practices, right?" she asked.
Alex maintained a neutral expression. Internally, however, he was burning with embarrassment.
Should he tell her that the slippers were actually items? Somehow, that felt more embarrassing than admitting he had military training.
More importantly, why had he received slippers while she got a spear and a trap?
The unfairness still bothered him. Then again, he also got good things.
In the end, Alex remained silent. As for his reaction speed, he had no intention of revealing that much of it came from strengthening his brain with mana.
Emma noticed his lack of response and didn’t push the issue.
The two of them walked toward the area where the monsters had been feeding.
They needed to determine whether the corpse belonged to another participant and whether there was anything useful left behind.
"How did you use mana? I thought you were a Ro—"
Alex stopped speaking.
The corpse came fully into view. The man’s eyes were still open, and his chest had been torn apart.
Dried blood stained the ground around him, causing Alex’s stomach to twist even though he managed to suppress the reaction.
Emma wasn’t as successful. Her face immediately turned pale, and she looked away. For a few seconds, neither of them spoke.
This wasn’t like fighting monsters. It wasn’t even like nearly dying themselves. Looking at another participant who had failed to survive made the danger of the Land of Origin feel much more real.
Alex gritted his teeth and forced himself to examine the area. A sword lay beside the corpse, and he picked it up.
[Sword (F Rank)]
[Hey! Hey! Hey! This is grave robbing! Show some respect for the departed!]
[Effect: Sharp sword]
..
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