'Heavy…'
The thought he would never voice occurred in Ren's mind as he was carrying Aria through the forest.
'I'm being carried!?'
Aria's outwardly calm face didn't match the fluster in her mind. This fluster was partly due to the person carrying her, but also because she was touching another person.
'When was the last time… ugh, I need to focus on absorbing this.'
The two or Ren had been running for about an hour. Ren was pushing his body to its limit, while Arira was desperately trying to absorb the mana in the crystal in her hand, her other arm was around Ren's neck, and her staff was now attached to his back
'Tsk… It's not budging in the slightest.'
Compared to the pale rank 1 crystal, the dark blue rank 3 crystal had mana that was much harder to access. Not only was the mana inside both large in density and quality, but it was also refined by a creature much stronger than Aria, leading her to have difficulties using it herself.
Although mana crystals were a good source of mana, that was only if you could access them!
Rank 0 mana didn't have a form, rank 1 was gas-like, rank 2 was like liquid, and rank 3 was solid. It was clear to anyone that Aria's rank 0 formless mana didn't have a way to break the solid rank 3 mana.
'It's like trying to break a rock with just your stare.'
The dense mana crystal had become less of a reward and more of a troublesome nuisance, a nuisance that needed to be solved if they wanted to survive.
'I can make my mana gas-like, maybe even liquid, but solid? It's impossible, no matter how skilled I am. I need to think!'
To break through the solid rank 3 mana, she also needed to solidify her mana to pierce through the hard outer layer of the crystal.
'Even though rank 3 crystal is hard, that's only the outer layer! The inner portion is pure absorbable mana! If I can make a crack, then it's possible, but to make a crack, I also need to solidify my mana.'
It was possible to change mana from gas all the way to solid, but Aria's mana wasn't gas; it was at an even lower level called formless mana.
Like before, it was a problem of both mana capacity and rank; without the mana core that exponentially boosted a person's magic capabilities and allowed them to solidify mana, she wasn't going to taste the rank 3 mana any time soon.
'I need to rank up, but to rank up, I was banking on this crystal, but I can't use it, and monsters are chasing us. Can't this useless system help us?!'
Similar to Ren, Aria also didn't have a good opinion of the system, since she, too, didn't get rewards from the system. As thoughts of the system appeared in her mind, they soon drifted away, replaced by her focus on the shimmering mana inside her body.
Energies churned inside her body, natural mana of vibrant colors entered through her pores or her nose and mouth when she inhaled.
The process of refining the colorful mana was as natural as breathing.
During this process, the colorful mana shrank as it moved towards the center of her body; furthermore, its various colors turned into a singular golden light
This mana, now refined and golden, gathered at the center of her body into a round construct of mana. It was a sphere that was only half completed, and to Aria, it would be her mana core for the foreseeable future.
She had started creating the core ever since she woke up, but due to the need to conserve her mana as well as concentrating on other things, she didn't have time to fully focus on building it, leading progress to be slow.
'But for a rank 0, this is pretty good, no?'
She was currently halfway done, but if an ordinary rank 0 were to create a core, it would take them much, much longer. Aria stared at the rank 3 mana crystal, deeply in thought.
'Hah, if I could use the crystal, I would be rank 1 by now. Unless… should I do that instead?'
An idea came to her as she stored the crystal in Ren's duffel bag; she tapped Ren's shoulder.
"Ren, I think I can walk now."
Ren, who was looking ahead while breathing heavily, turned his head to the side to look at her. As expected, Ren was reaching his limit. His breathing seemed steady at first, but soon he started to gasp unevenly, with sweat pouring down his face.
Aria slowly moved her sleeve to wipe the sweat off his face, his eyes closed at the touch, before he turned his gaze towards her.
He stared at Aria in his arms, scanning the girl for a couple of moments before he shook his head in refusal, causing her face to light up with a teasing smile.
"Am I so beautiful that you can't let go? I didn't take you for such a lustful man, Mr. Night."
Ren smiled back, his heavy breathing stopping him from speaking coherently,
"May- hah, Maybe."
"Oh?"
Aria could only respond with an amused stare before giving him a questioning look; even without speaking, her gaze held a clear question.
'So why did we stop?'
"A break and…"
He didn't finish, moving out of the cover of the trees, he turned and faced ahead, causing Aria to turn with him, both their eyes glowing at the sight.
"That…"
"Huh…?"
Through the previously unseen gaps of the forest leaves they saw a tree with beautiful brown bark that twisted up, its leaves a vibrant green similar to the many around them, but different from the rest, these leaves glowed a bright light, bright enough to make the night feel like day, similar to the sun, yet soft and eye-catching, and not at all harsh on the eyes.
But all those details weren't what caught their attention; it was instead the size of the tree. It was colossal, so tall that it seemed as if it could touch the stars in the sky, so wide that it was more of a mountain than a tree.
As the pair stared in awe, Ren opened his mouth first,
"So, should we go there?"
Aria frowned, pulling herself slightly closer to him while speaking in a tone of disapproval.
"That's obviously a boss arena, isn't it? If it's defending such a large tree, it would probably kill us instantly."
"Come on, Ms. Star, not every conspicuously large area has to be a boss battle. We might even find shelter!"
A roar cut through the forest shortly after Ren spoke. With a sigh, he started running once more. They switched to messaging through the system.
Mr. Night [I don't hear any monsters in that direction; it really might be a safe zone.]
Ms. Star [A safe zone? Isn't that too optimistic?]
Mr. Night [What else can we do? Run all night?]
Ms. Star, [But exercise is good for your health, Mr. Night.]
Mr. Night [Exercise? But I'm carrying you!? This taxi needs some rest, you know?]
Ms. Star [Pfft, taxi? I said I could walk, didn't I? If you don't like it, put me down then.]
Mr. Night[Hmmm No! Focus on building your mana core.]
Ms. Star [You could tell?]
Mr. Night [I would be an idiot if I couldn't, if we get somewhere safe, you'll have an easier time, right?]
'Ah, so he wants to go there for me.'
He was correct that if she were in a safe area, creating the mana core would be much easier. His reasoning caused her to smile inwardly, but she shook her head in response.
Ms. Star [I can focus just as well here as anywhere else, and that tree, even if it's quiet, couldn't that also mean something is deterring other monsters? It could be something dangerous.]
Mr. Night [But it can also be something that isn't.]
Ms. Star [Mr. Night…]
Just then, the system window popped up in both their views.
[Mission: Reach the Tree]
The pair looked in silence at the proclamation and new mission that told them to go to the tree. Though they didn't like the system, it had always guided them towards the best outcome, so it was a given that, at the very least, they would listen to its words.
Mr. Night [So… wanna go?]
Ms. Star [I…]
Mr. Night [It's because of that 'thing', isn't it?]
Aria paused, staring at the message. The issue that had plagued her past life might still affect her in this life, causing excessive paranoia. Having known each other for many years, they shared many secrets, so she had also talked to Ren about this problem.
Though she didn't go into detail about it, she mentioned it in passing, phrasing it as,
'Everything that can go wrong will go wrong, isn't that what she said?'
The memory came to Ren as he ran. First, he believed she was naturally, for better or worse, cautious of everything around her, but as the years passed, he found her friendly demeanor far from that of an untrusting individual.
Of course, he had known her for many years, so it could be said that she developed a trust towards him, but her attitude towards others wasn't filled with suspicion and caution, but more goodwilled interest.
Ms. Star [Yes, it is because of that]
Ren took a glance at the message, focusing mainly on running through the forest; thankfully, the part they were at was just the perfect size for them to traverse, while bigger creatures such as the furred monster would have a hard time moving through.
Mr. Night [Do you trust me?]
Aria's face paused, looking at the message before replying with a curious look in her eyes.
Ms. Star [Trust you? I do, why?]
Mr. Night [Then trust my decision to go to the tree.]
Ms. Star [I..]
Aria's face changed from frowning to pondering, then to a scrunched expression, and finally back to a smile, letting out an exhale.
Ms. Star[Fine! But I still don't trust it though!]
Mr. Night [Hehe, don't worry, I will bring you there safe and sound!]
Aria stared before sighing, seemingly accepting the arrangement before laughing, tapping Ren's back several times in affirmation,
Ms. Star [Go horesy go!]
Letting out an amusing neigh, Ren sped up, changing directions and running towards the bright tree, cutting through both the night and the forest.
…
The tree was much further than they believed; its huge size made it feel near, but that was far from the truth. They had already run for another hour, yet the tree seemed just as far as when they started.
Mr. Night [Barrier?]
Ms. Star [Yes, it shines so brightly, but we couldn't see it on the cliff earlier. It must had some kind of veil. It might deter monsters.]
They were talking about the view of the tree and how, despite its large size, they didn't see it when they were running earlier, especially when they were at the cliff and had a higher point of view of the forest.
In addition, they had not heard any monsters since spotting the tree; whether this was a good or bad thing was yet to be seen. But if that was the case, why were they still running? Well, even though things were quiet and calm, there was still a problem that was chasing them persistently.
Mr. Night [Monster still chasing.]
Cutting through the quiet was the loud sound of a falling tree, which was then followed by a roar that echoed throughout the forest. The monster was still following them; in fact, they had gotten a glimpse of it several times.
It was similar to its brown furred relative, other than the fact that it was much stronger. Thankfully, the thick forest prevented it from charging the pair and instantly reaching them, but its superior physical capabilities meant that eventually…
It would reach them
About another 30 minutes passed as the pair entered a natural forest clearing. Ren gently let Aria down before he collapsed to his knees; his breathing was ragged, his clothing drenched with sweat.
The only reason he had not collapsed was that Aria held his chest, propping him up. Her face was full of worry for the past 30 minutes; their conversation became shorter as Ren focused more on running, responding only with a couple of words.
"Mr. Night…"
"I-I'm fine.."
'Everything hurts!'
His ears were ringing intensely, he felt his heart beating out of his chest, for better or worse, he couldn't feel his legs, and worst of all, his lungs felt shredded. He gritted his teeth, enduring the pain, but it was useless as a coughing fit took over.
'It really is shredded!'
Looking down at the hand he coughed in, there was his own bright cherry red blood; he could only smile, remembering his training from his past life as well as the words of his grandfather.
[Get up, punk! We still have another mountain to cross!]
[You're.. Insane!]
As he chuckled, he heard a heavy stomping ahead, causing the pair to look up. There stood another furred monster; it was tall, standing over double Ren's height at 4 meters, and it let out a furious growl, eyes filled with a thirst for vengeance.
Ren looked towards Aria, asking her an important question,
"So did you finish it yet?"
His question was about her mana core, but Aria was silent; all Ren could read was her expression. An expression that caused Ren's eyes to sparkle, his smile grew.
Aria stepped forward with her staff in her right hand, and in her left was the brown fur that Ren retrieved from the body of the dead Bigfoot. She glanced at the fur in her hand, her eyes looking at the mana inside.
The mana was a dark blue, similar to the rank 3 mana crystal, but compared to the impenetrable layer of the crystal, this fur, although tough, flowed out, and this mana moved towards Aria to absorb and use.
'Compared to the crystal, the amount is small, and I need to focus a whole lot more to pull the mana out.'
Mana from the fur, although it was easier to flow out, needed immense precision to separate from the fur. She had to first touch upon the mana, then gently guide it out of the fur, after that she had to turn her mana into liquid that shot out like a pressure washer to cut the piece of mana off the fur.
This three step process demanded crazy concentration, and one mistake required her to start the process over again. If she pulled too much mana out, it would be impossible to cut with her mana; if she was too slow at cutting the mana, it would return back to the fur.
These difficulties made failure natural; in fact, she failed multiple times before even succeeding once.
But compared to the untouchable mana in the mana crystal, she could touch the fur's mana, which made the possibility of ranking up a reality!
Obviously, the majority of the rank 3 mana would be in the crystal; the fur only amounted to a small fraction of the total mana that Bigfoot had.
'Yet even this residual amount is enough… enough for me to rise to rank 1!'
Aria smiled, focusing on the crystal in her body. The half sphere that was there a mere hour ago was now a complete sphere that glowed gold, shimmering inside her body.
Aria felt a sense of euphoria as her mana jumped in density and amount. Golden mana flowed rapidly throughout her body, yet it was still connected to the core at the cetner granting her higher control. That control didn't slow down that mana either, as she breathed, she felt mana rapidly expanding and contracting in rhythm with her breath.
"You wanted a fight, right?"
With a smile on her lips, the brown fur in her hand was emptied of mana, so she threw it forward, landing on the ground in front of the monster as if mocking it.
It stared for a couple of moments before roaring in anger, charging towards Aria.