Chapter 475 - Know your place (Patreon)

(Why are the monsters not trying to cause a cave in? So deep underground we would be screwed,) Dennis wonders as we stop because of yet another cave-in.

(They are attempting. There are some monsters trying to weaken the rock around us, but the Witch is fighting against it by solidifying it,) I give him an answer and look back at another molten river we just passed over. It moves as quickly as the first one, and I think I have noticed something suspicious about its shape.

(Huh, but wouldn’t that be too much effort?)

(Not really. I don’t think she has touched the mana from her crown yet, and trust me, she has a shitload of mana stored in it.)

(More than you in your crown?)

(Ten to thirty times more than is currently in my crown.)

(You serious? You aren’t joking, right? You aren't making fun of me?)

(I'm not.)

(Isn’t that too OP? With that much mana...)

(The problem isn’t storing it. I bet there are some highly specialized mid or upper arcane items that can store more mana than her crown at the current level. The problem is channeling that much mana and using it all at once effectively.)

Aaron also joins in, (So she has a big bottle of water and can only take small sips of it?)

I shake my head, (It’s more like she has a flamethrower. You can use it for a short moment; you might get your hair burned, but you’ll be fine. But if you let it open for longer, you’ll set yourself on fire.)

(So you need to make your body powerful enough to endure the flames, the mana?)

(And mind.)

(Your metaphor sucks, Nat. A flamethrower wouldn’t burn your mind.)

(So what? Come up with a better one if you want. But overall, I’d say there’s a reason why they head so deep only once every 10 years and always with her. Her crown and the way she handles stone is a perfect combination for that kind of dangers.)

(Is she stronger than you?)

That makes me think for a moment. (I don’t think so? At least not with what she has shown currently. My skills seem to be more fitting for combat, and she’s someone who relies on her mana and crown. People like that are kind of screwed against me.)

(And Lily? Would she beat her?) Aaron asks as well.

(I think Lily would have a good chance against her on the surface, but she would need to be very quick and go all out from the start. Here underground, she would have to be very, very quick before the Witch could bury her.)

(Tsk,) our healer complains.

(No worries, Lily! You’re still our favorite terminator!) Dennis smirks and turns to me again. (And me and Aaron?)

(I think you two would be screwed.)

Aaron sighs. (Well, that’s it. Hard difficulty, here we go.)

For a moment, that seems to scare Dennis, who examines my expression before quickly turning to Aaron and punching his shoulder, followed by a quick private exchange of messages between them.

Aaron catches my eyes and smirks at me.

(I’ve noticed it before, Nat, but you often like to be passive during expeditions like this.) While the brothers fight, Lily takes a step closer to me.

(What exactly have you noticed?)

(A lot!) She fixes the giant axe on her back, the weight seemingly not bothering her much. (For most of the time, you let people around you do their thing. You often even let them push you around, and sometimes even screw up, before you jump in when things go way too wrong.)

(Is it bad?) I ask curiously.

(I wouldn’t say so? But a lot of things would change if you shared your knowledge right from the start and helped more, don’t you think? The expedition would go much smoother as well.)

(That would be annoying.) I stop her before she can continue, (Before you call me an asshole for that or something. I would obviously behave differently if it was group 4 or, let’s say, someone from Earth’s tutorial.)

(You didn’t do so during Mana Desert, but that was for Tess, right?)

(Yes. Can you wait a bit?) I ask her and tap Biscuit’s back, his bottom chin still resting on my shoulder, looking behind me. (You’re sniffing a lot. What have you noticed?)

(Food!)

(Translation, please.) Dennis, done arguing with his brother, joins.

(I think we were right, and deep below the ground is another Containment cell. And if Biscuit is right, the prisoner is of… edible kind.)

(Food! Food!) The corgi shouts in all of our minds excitedly.

***

The monsters attacking are the kind that loves the type of environment where we are.

They are slim, with only two front limbs, each ending in claws, and their bodies continue into long tails. They are often covered in spikes and use toxic attacks, trying to cause cave-ins or break through the walls to grab unsuspecting people.

[Caveprowler - lvl 222]

[Caveprowler - lvl 241]

[Caveprowler - lvl 221]

And as we head deeper, they become higher level. Among them is the kind that is the most dangerous so far.

[Rotling - lvl 302]

[Rotling - lvl ???]

[Rotling - lvl 310]

These ones are often only fist-sized to as long as a forearm. Tiny insect monsters with dozens of long legs and antennae, their mouths small but full of tiny, sharp teeth.

I watch as one jumps at the man near me, and without any resistance, it starts chewing through his sword, which is coated in mana. Long, sharp legs flicker around, trying to pierce the man.

A short, quick step, and I release a blast of kinetic energy just a moment before actually touching the monster. It flies off the man, crashing against the wall without any signs of damage.

Someone else smashes it with a big hammer, but the Rotling quickly avoids it, its long sharp legs clicking against the rock, leaving grooves as it rushes to attack someone else.

Another one pierces through the wall behind me, jumping toward my head, but its movement slows down, and the monster starts floating in the air, each attempt at movement filling me with kinetic energy.

It’s surprising how much strength that tiny body packs.

I quickly create and compress a spear, stabbing it at the monster. It resists even that and starts grabbing at it, its mouth extending and chewing on my mana.

Pulling the spear back, I strengthen it more, resonating the blade, and stab again.

[You have defeated Rotling - lvl 303]

Boosting my movement with kinetic energy, I reach another man, grabbing the insect from his back and throwing it to the floor. My heartbeat changes to fit Breaker Style, and I stomp the monster, locally releasing collected kinetic energy. The monster bursts open, and no crack appears in the rock below.

[You have defeated Rotling - lvl 304]

Another quick movement, and I dodge my head, another one passing by me. Twisting my waist, left foot buried into the ground, and my hand extending, I release energy through my palm.

[You have defeated Rotling - lvl 301]

I spot one jumping from the ceiling, diving toward a woman who is dumb enough to start casting a fire spell.

A burst of my mana disrupts her skill, the shock and horror on her face as it deactivates, and she watches the monster falling toward her. The monster and the woman stop mid-movement. The thin, long legs reaching toward her fear-stricken face.

The javelin I create bursts forth, piercing the monster and stabbing it against the wall, where it twitches until it stops moving.

[You have defeated Rotling - lvl 310]

[Lvl 291 > Lvl 292]

With that, the fight slowly stops, no more monsters coming in, and the ones that attacked are dealt with.

(Can I heal the wounded?) Lily asks through the connection.

(Do whatever you want.)

She feels surprised at my answer but smiles and, with a nod, rushes to the most wounded, closing their mortal wounds with ease, not even using that much mana nor having to use [Sacrifice].

There are a few weaker healers, each with half a dozen guards, but they cannot compare to what Lily does, and I can see the shock inscribed on their faces.

“Hey, you think it’s a good idea?” Aaron stops by my side and whispers so only I can hear.

“There are only three people in this expedition you should be worried about. The Witch, Babyface, and Mais. As long as you don’t get jumped or backstabbed, the others shouldn’t bother you at all even in bigger groups. So, look after Lily, and I’ll keep an eye on these three.”

Both of us look toward The Witch far ahead. As before, she is not talking, standing to the side, her people dealing with the annoying things.

She’s just a bit shorter than me, with the typical light blue skin of the thylarin. Unlike most, she has six arms instead of four, all slim and folded under the robe she wears. Her short brown hair frames pale yellow eyes that quietly observe everything around her. A crown floats lazily above her head, spinning slowly. It’s the same design as mine, though hers has three distinct colors.

“And be very careful of that woman,” I add quietly. “She’s much more dangerous than I thought at first.”

“What happened?”

“She used mana from her crown to blast away one of the monsters attacking her.”

“Sorry, Nat, but I don’t get…”

I don’t let him finish and explain, “In our previous conversation I mentioned there’s a small weakness about the crown if you want to call it that. To expand on it, imagine the crown as a water tank holding water instead of flamethrower, and that tank can grow. It can be as big as a water bottle or as big as all the water behind a dam.”

“That doesn’t seem that bad. So what’s the problem?”

“The hole through which you get access to that water doesn’t change. If your container is small and you want to take some water, it’s okay. The problem starts if the container is enormously big. Every time you twist that valve to get water, there’s immense pressure from all the stored water trying to get out. The size of that valve, at least for [Mana Crown], doesn’t change.”

“I think I’m starting to get it… did you say her crown holds 10 to 30 times more than yours?”

“Yup, and she opened that valve and was able to take a tiny amount of mana just to blast a small monster away from her. I would understand if she channeled it for a while to power some powerful skill or released enough to make everyone here vomit their organs out. But nope, she held all that mana at bay and, through that valve, took just the tiniest wisp of it.”

“Is it me, or are you happy, Nat?”

I wave him off, my mind thinking it over. What I just mentioned is a weakness of my crown and something I think other crowns also possess. It means the more mana your crown has stored, the more difficult it is to use.

If you open the valve too little, less mana will flow out, but the pressure will become stronger and more intense, making it harder to control the mana or avoid getting hurt by it.

If you open the valve fully, vast amounts of mana wash over you at once, allowing the crown to empty much faster, but you risk drowning in the sheer amount of mana or wasting it.

So just how scary is what she just did.

Finally, she notices me staring and turns her face toward me. Her yellow eyes radiate calm confidence, the kind that says she can handle anything—with a hint of disdain, too.

What she did earlier was a warning, a deliberate display of skill, likely meant for me—no doubt a response to something Mais told her about me, and after sensing me observing her.

To me it's a single, unmistakable message: know your place.

***

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