The Begotten Fiend

Chapter 17: Do It Now!

I’d been making my way through the forest for hours now. The bright, vibrant forest that’d shone with so much life was just a smidge quieter than usual.

While the pride in my recent victory was still strong, there was a certain question I still had on my mind.

’So, Zenith, why is it I keep running out of mana only minutes into my fights?’ I closed my eyes, looking inward. There it was, a full ocean of mana swimming inside. But just a few hours ago, it felt like I’d completely emptied it. ’You’re not going to convince me that I regenerate mana this fast.’

[You’re correct. You haven’t been running out of mana.]

What? That doesn’t make sense. I felt my body--the way that my vitality was drained from me. ’Elaborate.’

[Yes, I’ve been calibrating your body to each fight, simulating the many ways in which the fight could go and providing you just enough of your mana to finish the fight.]

To be honest, I was surprised. It’d truly felt as if I’d lost all of my mana, and to think it hadn’t even told me. Interesting.

’Okay, and you do all this without telling me? This is the first time you’ve done something without me asking you to.’

[On that front, you’re wrong. I’ve been nullifying your pain once it’s reached a certain point, and purging your body of any foreign elements. This is one of the autonomous function bequeathed to me.]

It’s getting smart with me.

Well, no matter. At least I know why I lose energy so quickly.

[To answer your concerns on why I’m limiting your mana usage, it’s to preserve your energy. As you’ve likely ascertained, it takes a long time to recover mana, and as such, your battling must be as efficient as possible.]

’Then I only have one question to ask, does your autonomous functions, or my word take precedence?’

Zenith didn’t say anything. Not even a groan of contemplation. Not that it really matters, since, for right now, it seems to be doing things for my safety. And it does them quite well.

’Fine, you don’t have to answer, but can you at allow me a little more mana to use in my fights? If I rely on you to be efficient, it’s going to end up coming back to bite me later.’

[Your wish is my command.]

At least I got that out of the way. Though, I lied, I don’t really care about learning to better control myself.

Really, I want more mana to test some possible battle applications I’ve thought up... though, if I keep walking through this forest without encountering anything, I may never get the chance to.

Wait.

’Zenith, you said that you’ve been autonomously nullifying my pain. Then, what about that time the rabbit ate me alive? I don’t remember you doing anything like that. Mind explaining why?’

No response.

Something rose up inside me--smoldering. My mind bounced, remember the grievous agony the rabbit put me through. And to think that Zenith let that happen to me.

’Zenith, you said you were on my side. Are you going to answer my question?’

Again, no response.

My heart trembled. To think that the one thing I thought I could trust willfully did something to hurt me. All the suffering I could’ve avoided.

’Zenith, you better--’

[Warning. Large mana signature nearby.]

Before I could give it a piece of my mind, a big, rabid beast appeared before me.

At least, that’s what I thought would happen. Instead, it was small, blue, and gel-like.

Its translucence reflected the sun back at me, forcing me to turn away from it. But even then, I’d seen it long enough to understand what exactly it was. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

A slime, sitting there without so much as a single flinch.

"Seriously, Zenith? Is this your excuse to get away from answering my question? You’re going to have to do better than--"

Suddenly, a wide, sharp razor of blue blazed for my neck. Barely, I twisted backwards to avoid it. "The hell?"

Before I could process what’d happened, the slime sliced at the air with three more of the projectiles. It popped out from the slime’s form like drops of water, enlarging to form the attack.

They moved so fast that they had their own whistle, and my body was moving far slower than my mind. I lurched my shoulder to the side, widening my arms to build momentum.

Again, I’d just managed to move out of their line of sight, but my body kept twisting back from the momentum. I caught myself with my right foot, but at that point, I was open.

"Shit," I spat. There was another one, gunning for my chest.

I need to avoid it. Move, damn it!

Like a real blade digging its way through flesh, it impacted against, and then into me. At first, there was no pain.

But once I looked down, I saw it.

A wide, deep gash etched into me. Immediately, an intense throbbing lined the cut, spreading with each beat.

It hurts, but I can’t stay focused on the injury. The slime--

But when I looked up, the slime was already gone. "What?"

The rustling of leaves stole my attention, coming to my right a few dozen feet in the air.

There it was, its spherical shape getting disfigured by bubbling mana. It was preparing something.

There was no time to get sidetracked. I lunged forward, fist behind me. I gathered mana in my leg, crouching and then leaping into the air in its direction.

The moment I left the ground, the slime unleashed another attack.

More slashed, except there were dozens of them, all chasing different directions.

My chest dropped. My firmly-gripped fist loosened. There wasn’t any hope.

I was going to get gashed all over and bleed out, and I wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.

My death hung over me like a thousand-pound weight. I couldn’t see, my vision was too blurry. Is this really where it ends?

[Do it now!] freёwebnovel.com

Like a call from the void, I gained direction. This isn’t the end.

No, not with the skills I have.

Instantly, I found the exact place to focus my mind. I thought on the skill’s effect, then materialized it. The mana swirled, then thrashed, then popped like a balloon. "Grrraggghhhhhhh!"

My surroundings all wavered, reacting to the onslaught of mana bursting forth from my lips. The slime’s attacks shook, then dissipated into liquid.

All with my new skill, Roar.

By then, I was mere feet from the slime. Keeping the mana in my fist condensed, I punched directly into it, releasing all of my power.

The slime separated in all directions, losing its form entirely. The mana I’d ejected reflected off the slime’s many parts, causing a rainbow to fill the air.