Shrieek!
The heavy sword, a crude slab of iron, Sera's father's keepsake named 'Grave Digger(S),' sliced through the troll's leathery hide. A gash opened, oozing thick, black blood that smelled like wet earth and burnt hair. Its skin, a mottled green-grey, parted reluctantly, revealing bone.
"Damn, their skin is tough," I grunted, my breath misting in the cool valley air. Another troll, a hulking mass of muscle and malice, charged. Its eyes, twin pits of yellow fire, fixed on me, a low growl vibrating through the ground. It sought vengeance for its fallen comrade.
Black tendrils of mana, thick as oil, layered around Grave Digger. The sword hummed, a low thrumming vibration that resonated deep within my bones.
"Damn! This is sucking out my mana," I bit out, a sharp sting behind my eyes. A crimson pulse of aura, flared around me, supplementing my untrained muscles. It pulsed, lending a false strength to my weary limbs.
Nexar, his voice surprisingly calm amidst the chaos, called down. [That's what you get for trying to fight a B-rank threat with mana abilities using a blunt, heavy sword!]
I ignored him, my focus locked on the charging beast. The valley wall offered purchase. I stepped onto an uneven edge, then another, launching myself higher.
The troll's arm, thick as a tree trunk, formed a fist, driving towards me, a slow-motion avalanche of fury. I spun, a whirlwind of motion, Grave Digger a shining arc in the dawn light.
Each turn, the blade bit deep, tearing at the troll's arm. Its blood, warm and viscous, splattered around, drenching my spinning body in crimson. I landed on its shoulder, the beast's hide rough beneath my boots. Grave Digger pointed at its eye. I was ready to launch.
BAAAAHHH! The troll screamed, a guttural roar that rattled the very stones of the valley. It shook its arm violently, a frantic tremor. Black and red spikes, pulsed out from my arms and legs. I launched myself off its shoulder, gravity pulling me down, accelerating my plunge.
I drove Grave Digger into its eye. The troll staggered, its momentum carrying it sideways. KABOOM! It slammed into the valley wall, a thunderous impact that sent a cascade of huge rocks and debris splashing down.
"Sera, watch out!" I yelled, my voice hoarse, warning her of the incoming boulders. She was busy dealing with another troll.
She glanced up, her eyes, usually serene, wide with alarm. She slid back from her troll, a dancer's grace in retreat, creating distance just as a car-sized boulder crunched where she'd stood moments before.
I felt a pang of pity for the troll she faced. It had become a pincushion of ice spears, each one a crystalline spike driven deep into its flesh. As the ice melted, rivulets of blood, thick and dark, splattered from the new holes, mixing with the already flowing gore.
Sera, with unnatural agility, dodged the remaining debris, a blur of motion against the falling rocks.
I tightened my grip on Grave Digger, still buried deep in the troll's eye. I dragged it down, tearing through its eye and the soft skin beneath.
BBAAAAHHHRR! The troll screamed again, a raw, tormented sound that echoed through the valley. Its remaining arm flailed frantically, punching its own shoulder in a desperate attempt to dislodge me.
I slid off its fist, a practiced motion, then pointed the sword towards where its heart should lie.
"Darkbeam," I whispered, the word a rasp in my throat. The dark mana, which had been clinging to Grave Digger's blunt edges, now coalesced, gathering towards its tip, forming a ball of obsidian light.
Then, a sharp, piercing sound, like ripping silk. PSHHH! A beam of pure shadow shot from the tip, tearing through the troll's skin, its muscle, its very heart, emerging from the other side in a spray of black blood before slamming into the valley's ridge wall, leaving a smoking crater.
Blood splattered all over me, hot and sticky. I landed with a practiced technique, sliding just enough to avoid being sandwiched between the ground and the falling troll's colossal body. THUD. The earth trembled.
[DING! MP reserves low. Available MP: 17.] The system's pop-up, a glowing blue rectangle in my peripheral vision, warned me.
"Yeah, I know," I muttered, my head throbbing, a dull ache behind my eyes. My mana felt like a squeezed sponge, dry and brittle.
I looked at Sera. She was still fighting that single troll. Its mana-surged fist, glowing with a sickly green light, drove towards her.
"Frostwind," she announced, her voice a cool whisper, barely audible over the wind. She slid out of the fist's path, a blur of motion. A whirlwind of frost and the valley's sand erupted between her and the troll, stinging its eyes, forcing it to close them, creating a crucial gap.
Ice spears, sharp as daggers, formed in the air around her, shimmering with an ethereal blue light. Sera took her stance, a picture of deadly grace, and launched herself forward, a human projectile accompanied by a volley of frozen death.
Before the troll could regain its vision, the frost spears dug into new spots, creating fresh holes in its body. Blood, a fountain of dark liquid, escaped, mixing with the already spilling gore.
[Dude.. That troll looks like a drum with multiple holes, leaking water.]
"I feel pity for the big guy."
With her icy-cold grace, she covered the distance in an instant, her movements fluid and deadly. SHWING! Her sword, a blade of pure ice, sliced through its left leg clean off.
The wind, a chilling current that seemed to follow her every move, made the hair fall before her eyes, a silver curtain. Her skirt swayed gently, a whisper of fabric against the harsh stone, lending grace to her deadly movements.
The troll, unbalanced on a single leg, screamed, a gurgling, hopeless sound, and fell to the ground. THUD! The impact drove the frost spears deeper, one of them piercing its heart with a sickening crunch.
The wind generated from its fall made her frost-colored hair sway gently, a halo of pale light against the deepening twilight. She sheathed her sword, with a soft click.
W-wha… R-Rune, her voice a cracked in surprise as my arm, warm and heavy, curved around her from behind, fingers brushing the soft swell of her breast.
"Common, there are monsters everywhere," she mumbled, a slight tremor in her voice as she tried to shrug me off. Her movements were sluggish, a telltale sign. She took two faltering steps forward, then lurched backward, her body swaying. I tightened my hold, catching her before she tumbled. The thin fabric of her tunic stretched taut beneath my palm.
"Now do you understand?" I murmured, my lips brushing the delicate curve of her ear. A shiver rippled through her. She pouted, a soft, almost imperceptible tilt of her lips.
System's window, visible only to me, confirmed my suspicion: [MP: 6/67]. Six mana points left. Of course she felt wobbly.
"Let's rest for a bit," I suggested, my voice low. She nodded, her cheekbones flushing a soft rose.
"Nexar, let's buy a mana potion," I said silently.
[Would a basic do? Since you will be resting and don't need immediate mana replenishment.]
I shook my head, a slow, deliberate motion. "Buy the advanced. We'll have company soon." My gaze swept over the path we'd just cleared, littered with the still, grotesque forms of D and C-rank monsters. Their scent, a mix of damp earth and decay, hung heavy in the air. "After all, we stirred too much."
[Oh! Right.]
"Then," I turned to Sera, "let's share the mana potion and recover." Sera nodded again, her gaze unwavering. I guided her to a smooth, moss-covered rock, easing her down.
[Ding. Purchasing Advanced Mana Potion.]
[Required Stat Points: 45. Remaining Stat Points: 0.]
[Converting Affection Points to Stat Points.]
[Current Affection Points: 132. Converting 45 Affection Points.]
[Remaining Affection Points: 87. Remaining Stat Points: 45.]
[Advanced Mana Potion purchased.]
[Remaining Stat Points: 0.]
A surge of warmth blossomed in my palm. Oh, shit, a sudden realization hitting me. I forgot to make a bowl.
"Sera, can you make a bow—" My words caught in my throat. Her hand, cool and slender, wrapped around mine, guiding my fist, now a glowing orb of liquid mana, to her lips. Her eyes, half-lidded, met mine, a playful challenge sparking within their depths.
Slowly, deliberately, her lips touched the edge of my fist, parting just enough to let the shimmering blue liquid flow. She drank, a slow, sensual consumption. Her gaze never left mine, a silent conversation passing between us.
She pulled away, a faint blue sheen clinging to her lips, and then, with a sudden, lithe movement, she drove into me. Her chest, soft and yielding, pressed against mine. The impact stole my breath, a delicious shock. Her lips, still slick with potion, found mine, claiming them with an urgent hunger.
The taste of mana, sweet and potent, exploded on my tongue, a shared sacrament. I held her, my arms crossing behind her, pulling her tighter, tighter, until no space remained between us. One hand splayed across the small of her back, the other cupped the firm curve of her ass, molding her to my body.
"Mmph", a soft moan escaped her lips as the mana potion, a warm, liquid fire, exchanged between our mouths, our tongues dancing, swirling.
She struggled, a delicious friction, to find her footing, leaning heavily into me, her weight a sweet burden. I caught her tighter, feeling the soft rise and fall of her breasts against my chest with every ragged breath she took.
Our kiss deepened, a swirling vortex of desire and connection. My tongue traced the delicate contours of her mouth, savoring the subtle sweetness of her saliva, the lingering taste of the potion. Her fingers, small and strong, tangled in my hair, pulling me closer still.
Her hips began to move, a slow, grinding rhythm against mine, a silent invitation. My hand on her ass tightened, pulling her flush against the hard ridge that was already pressing against her.
Ding. [MP: 17 -> 88.]
[I didn't know you could do it that way—] But his words were interrupted, by a sudden, sharp realisation.
[Rune!]
I felt it too, a subtle shift in the air, a prickling sensation on my skin that had nothing to do with Sera's touch. My muscles tensed. I drew Sera's sword from its scabbard at her waist, and pushed her gently, yet firmly, behind me. The polished steel gleamed, reflecting the muted light.
"Rune, what is it?" she asked, her voice hushed, already taking a defensive stance, her body coiled and ready. My aura flared, a crimson haze rippling outward. Dark, sinuous mana threads, like veins of shadow, coiled around the C-rank sword, infusing it with raw power.
Before us, an elderly, short figure stood. He came out of nowhere. His skin, a mottled green, seemed to absorb the light. He leaned heavily on a gnarled walking stick, its wood dark and ancient. A tattered coat, adorned with an assortment of dentals and small, bleached skulls, danced in the faint breeze. His hands, gnarled and surprisingly strong, gripped the stick as if it were the only thing anchoring his ancient form to the earth.
"An orc?" Sera whispered beside me, her voice laced with surprise. "I didn't even sense him coming." I allowed a faint smile to touch my lips. Of course you couldn't.
The old, short orc coughed, a dry, rattling sound. "Do not worry about me," he rasped, his voice surprisingly deep despite his frail appearance. "I am just a passerby." He coughed again, a wheezing sound. "If you don't mind, may I know the purpose of your visit to this valley?"
Sera, sensing no immediate threat from his gentle demeanor, began to relax her stance. "Oh! We're just here to meet some old friend—." I cut her off with a raised hand, a subtle gesture.
My gaze locked with the orc's eyes, ancient and green, shimmering with an unsettling depth. "That's a nice disguise you've got there, Tugnier."
A slow, knowing grin spread across his face, the wrinkles around his eyes deepening, then smoothing out as if wiped away. His green eyes, which had seemed so benign, pulsed with a sudden, thundrous aura, a raw power that made the very air crackle.