This… this must be what it feels like when your soul is under attack!
But why?
My resistance skills should be really high by now… Could it be that this thing can bypass all defenses and directly strike my soul?
If that's the case… then I'm probably done for.
I quickly looked inward to check my soul to see if there was any chance of turning the tables. What I found wasn't that my resistance skill was useless—it was actually blocking most of the Dark Power outside. But still, a small portion had slipped through and was relentlessly attacking me from within.
Looks like the problem is my skill hasn't reached its max level yet, so there's still a fatal gap.
Still, if it's only a small amount like this, I can endure it. I might even be able to take advantage of this and level up the skill!
...Though the pain is still insane!
I lay on the ground, rolling around and enduring the agony that I had no idea how long would last.
After holding out for a while, I noticed something else—the amount of Dark Power being blocked outside was steadily increasing, putting immense pressure on the barrier that protected my soul.
This barrier, not yet perfected due to my skill level, had begun to crack.
Now things were really getting serious!
Come on!
Hang in there!
Level up already!
It hurts so much!
No matter how much I screamed and shouted, the situation only got worse. At this rate, I was going to die right here.
"Crack!"
The sound of shattering glass rang out—that was the sign the outer barrier had been completely breached. All that Dark Power surged at my soul like a predator who'd finally caught sight of its prey.
I'm done for.
I'm still too young to die!
I shut my eyes, awaiting the end… but it never came.
...What's going on?
I'm… still alive?
I peeked inward and discovered that the Dark Power was now being blocked by another barrier.
Huh??
Where the heck did this come from?
I didn't dare move a muscle—afraid that even the slightest twitch might send me to the afterlife.
Watching closely, I saw the new barrier was glowing with a faint golden light, continuously purging the Dark Power trying to invade.
What… is this?
It actually has the ability to nullify Dark Power?
Wait a minute.
I suddenly remembered what Suzu had once said—[Holy Magic] has a strong countering effect against Dark- or curse-type powers since they are polar opposites. And right now, that exact phenomenon was unfolding.
But… I didn't cast any skill??
I didn't know why, but at any rate, I'd miraculously clung to life.
After that, I just lay there, doing nothing but wait for the Dark Power to be fully erased.
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Nai wa!
It finally evolved!
God, I waited forever, but at long last, this skill has both leveled up and evolved!
Yahooo!
Escaping death only to be hit with good news right after—this must be the work of some divine luck, right!?
Wait... but why doesn't it have a level anymore? Could this be its final form?
I wasn't sure, but the barrier had reformed.
What's more, as the Dark Power was being cleansed, a portion of it suddenly tried to flee. But right at that moment, my skill leveled up and the barrier reformed—so it ended up being trapped inside.
It kept hammering the barrier to break free, but this time, the new shield created by the skill was rock-solid. No matter how hard they hit, it didn't budge one bit.
Now that's what I call a top-tier skill!
In the end, the trapped Dark Power was wiped out completely. And then, just as suddenly as it appeared, that mysterious inner barrier vanished without a trace.
Why do these weird things keep happening to me...?
Setting that aside, I turned to examine the cocoon I'd taken. I opened it up and, sure enough, there was a person inside.
Yes! A real human! ...But are they still alive?
I checked their pulse and breathing—both still there, but extremely weak. I used [Appraisal] and found their HP was hanging by a thread—could die at any moment.
Since I needed information, I decided to try healing him. Unfortunately, it wasn't very effective. I didn't have any good healing skills. The ones I had were mostly magic—and Suzu had forbidden me from using magic right now. So all I could do was patch up the physical injuries with spider silk and use soul recovery-type skills on him.
After that, I sat down and waited for him to wake up. In the meantime, I started thinking about that Dark Power again.
Last time I almost died because the skill wasn't maxed out, but now… what would happen if I accepted the Dark Power once more?
It can't hurt me anymore… but what if I could control it instead?
This might be a huge opportunity!
The guy still hadn't woken up, and I had nothing better to do—so I returned to the area where the Dark Power was still spreading.
Oh wow, it's almost spilled out completely by now.
I hadn't gone far before I saw a black zone ahead. It looked like a path into darkness, beckoning me forward—and I didn't resist. I just stepped right in.
Immediately, torrents of Dark Power flooded into me, targeting my soul just like before—but no matter what they tried, they couldn't get through.
I stood perfectly still, focusing on the sensation of this new power flowing through my body. I didn't know how to control it yet. For now, I let it do its thing while I entered the [Virtual World] to experiment.
Inside, I used my memory to recreate the Dark Power and study it carefully. Suddenly, I remembered the method I'd used before to control mana—so I tried applying that too.
Hmm... some progress, but it's tough.
This stuff is even more chaotic than mana. Still, after much effort, I finally got it to obey.
That counts as success, right?
After testing in the [Virtual World], I returned to the real world and started applying the same method—starting with the Dark Power already inside my body.
I tried guiding it into my [Mana Vein], but it fought back fiercely.
So I had to separate out a small portion and train it first. My goal was to have it blend into my Mana Vein and boost its power—because that's what this stuff could do.
Once…
Twice…
Three times…
…
Eighty-three times… and finally, I succeeded!
My [Mana Vein], which used to have only one stream of mana running through it, now had an additional black stream—representing the Dark Power. But this was just a small part. I still needed full integration, enough to transform the entire [Mana Vein].
So I kept going—splitting off pieces and forcing them to merge. It got easier the more I did it, as my technique improved.
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Oh, it leveled up too??
Let's keep going!
I don't know how long it took, but eventually I managed to fully merge all the Dark Power in my body into my [Mana Vein]. I could feel something transforming inside me.
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There's even an announcement!
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Nai wa!
I did it!?
Even made the skill transform completely!
But what does it actually do?
Hmmm...
After testing for a while, I couldn't pinpoint anything specific—but I did know that Dark Power boosts my strength, so I went ahead and absorbed every last bit of Dark Power spilling out in the area.
The path that was once shrouded in darkness was now cleared, and I felt like I'd just finished an incredibly satisfying feast.
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Nai wa?!
So that's what it does!?
If I divide it, that means every 100 Dark Power gives me 10 MP?
Ohhh!
Is there more!?
I rushed to another spot and sliced open more areas—but no more Dark Power spilled out.
If not here, then somewhere else!
I need more!
All of it must be mine!
I ran to another section and began slashing at tree roots.
Just as I hoped—more!
Dark Power kept gushing out, and I devoured it greedily, leaving nothing behind. Once one spot dried up, I moved to the next. All the roots I cut withered up afterward.
Mine! Mine! Mine!
Hahahaaa!
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Amazing!
I didn't expect the benefits to be this huge so soon.
Free stuff really is the best!