Pain.
So much pain.
Agony consumed me.
Ever since I had arrived in this world, I had been battered and broken, only to be pieced back together time and time again. My healing abilities were undeniably my greatest asset, yet they brought with them the inescapable companion of pain.
Yet, what I was experiencing was an entirely different magnitude of suffering. Each nerve in my body screamed, protesting the relentless torment as I struggled to move.
It wasn't a fleeting discomfort like that of a broken arm. The pain was a pervasive, unyielding agony that left no part of me untouched. It coursed through my entire body in one colossal wave, leaving no part of me untouched. My toes throbbed, my eyes burned, and even my teeth felt as if they were on the verge of shattering within my skull.
The pain was so unbearable that I longed for the sweet release of death. I had no idea where I was or what was happening, but I desperately needed this torment to end.
My body's natural reactions only served to amplify my misery. Each breath I took felt like inhaling liquid fire, filling my lungs with blood that triggered a violent coughing fit. I tried to expel the blood through my mouth, but as it moved up, it escaped through the holes in my throat, leaving me gasping and spluttering.
“What is going on?!” I thought, panic surging through me.
I was horrified to feel my skin sloughing off with the slightest touch. The tissue clung to my body like a fragile film, and lumps of skin lay on top of it, resembling the texture of cottage cheese. The merest contact seemed to create new wounds, leaving me even more vulnerable and exposed than I already was.
Panic was rising as my lungs were continuously filling with more blood, and I worried I was going to drown in this misery.
“We don’t have time. You already have negative health,” Rabbit said in a rushed voice in my head. “I need you to deal with the pain for another 15 seconds. Do not, I repeat, do not spit any more blood out or move as best as you can. When those 15 seconds are up, I need you to cough all the blood you can out of your lungs and cast the Healing Spell. I will repeat, do not spit out any more blood until then.”
Negative health? It sounded like a state beyond death itself. But in my situation, it probably meant that I was going to die, but my body just hadn’t caught up to that fact yet.
The idea of following Rabbit's advice seemed far from appealing. I craved the relief of death and an end to the tormenting pain. However, as my body continued to disintegrate, the horrifying prospect of a slow, suffocating end loomed over me. So, with a heavy heart and gritted teeth, I decided to listen to Rabbit, clinging to the faint hope that his guidance might save me.
“Twelve…” Rabbit was counting in my head.
My body’s reflexes fought against me, urging me to expel the blood that had pooled inside.
“Eleven…”
I wondered briefly why my vision hadn’t yet been impaired. I had a hood over my face before I teleported, but in that moment, I could see the room around me.
“Ten…”
I realized my eyes were hurting, although my vision was clear.
“Nine…”
For the first time, I noticed explosions in the background. The panic quickly pushed the sounds out of my mind.
“Eight…”
My body began to shake involuntarily, signaling it was giving up.
“Seven…”
My lungs were drowning in blood. Fighting the reflex to breathe caused not only pain and burning but also a desperate struggle from my body trying to save itself.
“Six…”
I couldn’t stop the spasms, but I focused on relaxing my lungs to prevent them from forcing out the blood. Moving caused pain as if needles ran down my back.
“Five…”
My blood felt like fire searing me from the inside.
“Four…”
I couldn’t withstand the pressure anymore and started to cough up blood. The agony made it impossible to restrain any longer.
“Three…”
I stayed on my back to keep the blood inside, but it gargled out of my mouth and a hole in my throat.
“Two. Get ready.”
I turned onto my side and prepared.
“One. Do it now.”
I mustered all my strength to exhale, but the blood clogging my airways stubbornly refused to leave in a single attempt. It took two desperate, gut-wrenching pushes to expel enough blood to utter a word. The effort left me coughing violently, each convulsion sending fresh waves of pain coursing through my ravaged body.
With grim determination, I turned my thoughts to the spell, Minor Heal. I forced the incantation past my bloodied lips, the words oozing out thick and viscous, like honey tainted with the metallic taste of my own life essence. My lungs continued to bleed, each breath a torment, but I soldiered on, clinging to the hope of healing. In my mind's eye, I envisioned the images of my lungs I had seen in books, drawing upon every detail to guide my spellcasting through the haze of pain and suffering.
As my focus intensified, I could feel my lungs starting to mend. I coughed up the remaining blood that had pooled inside them, and relief washed over me from being able to draw a breath again.
Still, my bones ached as though they were splintering from within, each jagged fragment threatening to pierce through my flesh, and every cell seemed to be disintegrating before my very eyes.
“What is happening? Why am I not healing?!” I pleaded internally, hoping that Rabbit would have more answers.
“You are healing, but you are also being destroyed at the same time,” Rabbit replied. “It seems there was something wrong with my calculations.”
“You think?!” I shot back, barely holding on.
“Maybe I was off on more than one aspect. First, you didn’t have enough mana. Once your mana was depleted, it began to draw on your life force. That’s one of the reasons you’re almost dead. Also, I didn’t account for lightning striking you during the teleportation and your use of mana to enhance your strength while moving.”
As Rabbit explained, an explosion erupted in the background, loud enough to muffle any normal conversation. Fortunately, we were communicating telepathically, undisturbed by the external noise.
“I feel like you're hinting at something. Why am I not healing properly?” I pressed.
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“Well, you probably don’t want to know,” Rabbit replied sheepishly.
“Just tell me,” I said, my voice raw with fear.
Another explosion echoed, and I realized it was the Goblins in the electric hallway. After I teleported out, they had become the new frontline, targeted by the lightning.
“The Biodium fused with your body. Your body isn’t designed to accept Biodium, so it's destroying you at the cellular level. Your bones and skin ache because they've merged with the metal. Your skin is literally peeling away as it loses cohesion. Your cells are exploding, all while you are healing rapidly. Essentially, you are dying but slowly,” Rabbit concluded grimly.
“What about the Healing Spell we just used? Can't I just slowly heal myself until there's a balance?” I asked, grappling with denial.
“Yes, if there wasn’t a cooldown, your mana could potentially keep you alive. But there is a cooldown, so that won’t work. You do have mana now, but that might not last. We’ll come back to this,” Rabbit replied, then paused to think. “Actually, I could try to create a new spell for healing. If I can devise one that retains some basic functions but modifies others, perhaps it could bypass the cooldown. Hmm. That’s a plan. Would you be willing to try a new spell?”
Considering he almost killed me and could probably finish me off with this spell, I wasn’t willing to try something new unless all my other options were done for.
“Then why did I heal my lungs? If what you're saying is true, they'll deteriorate, and I’ll drown in my own blood again,” I thought, frustrated, the reality of my situation slowly sinking in.
“Well, I have an idea. You hear those explosions in the background? Those are the Goblins, panicking and dying. My guess, and it is only a guess, is that some of the Goblins pressed forward knowing they had the numbers to reach this control room. The first one in the group is always the lucky one to get struck by lightning. That means that others probably ran back, knowing they wouldn’t have the speed to escape unless those ahead of them got hit twice and died. I’m pretty sure it’s pure chaos, and all of them are going to die unless they work as a unit. The point is, all those kills are going to be credited to your actions, maybe to some other Goblins that panic and turn on each other. However, your status sheet should accumulate experience. I hope we can level you and put all your points into Constitution,” Rabbit explained.
His idea sparked a glimmer of hope within me as he laid out the potential benefits of the dire situation.
I forced my attention back to the loud explosions in the distance. Each detonation represented a chance for me to survive, an opportunity to gain the experience I so desperately needed. With resolve, I summoned my status and character page, hoping to find a glimmer of hope amidst the chaos.
You have developed a new spell within the field of Spatial Magic, Melding Self Teleport. You have also learned that teleportation is not without a cost.
You have created the spell: Melding Self Teleport. Cost: ?? Mana. Cast Time: instantaneous. Cooldown: N/A. Range: 1 feet-25 feet.
Melding Self Teleport: You can teleport yourself and any normal objects connected to you. Any objects teleported with you are merged with your physical form and may cause detriment or benefits to you.
Your body has been fused at a basic level with Biodium. While this has increased your protection, it has also caused your body to reject itself. The effects of this melding are such:
You have become fire-resistant up to the temperature of 1,761 degrees Fahrenheit, and anything above that temperature reaches the melting point. Additionally, since your body is now composed of metal, energy transfer will be enhanced.
75% resistance to Lightning Magic.
200% attraction to lightning.
Increased weight caused a 17% reduction in speed.
Increased piercing defense by 26.
Bone structure defense increased by 20.
Metal poisoning and cellular rejection caused 10 points of permanent damage.
If you survive, this will be the first alteration of its kind to live, and as such, you will be awarded double the rewards and half the penalties.
Experience:
One level 24 Goblin. You have gained 28,980 experience points.
Sixteen level 13 Goblins. You have gained 24,464 experience points.
Thirteen level 14 Goblins. You have gained 24,843 experience points.
Fourteen level 15 Goblins. You have gained 32,928 experience points.
Five level 16 Goblins. You have gained 14,280 experience points.
Two level 17 Goblins. You have gained 6,854 experience points.
Congratulations, you have leveled up! As a Grey Elf, you received 1 ability point in Agility, 1 in Intelligence, 2 in Constitution, and an additional 2 points to distribute each level in any category. You have reached level 29 and received a total of 2 freely distributable ability points.
You have gained levels 11 through 12 in Swordsmanship.
You have gained levels 2 through 5 in Fire Magic.
Skill points earned: 72.
Total Skill points: 567.
You have gained level 4 in Tracking.
You have gained levels 10 through 16 in Spatial Magic.
Skill points earned: 473.
Total Skill points: 1,040.
You have gained levels 2 through 3 in Life Magic.
Skill points earned: 26.
Total Skill points: 1,066.
You have gained level 23 in Time Magic.
Skill points earned: 119.
Total Skill points: 1186.
I thought about it and allocated all of my distributable ability points to Constitution, and immediately felt a little relief from the pain.
“Am I still going to die?” I asked.
“One second. And there we go,” Rabbit replied, and I felt a rush of feeling even better, but I didn’t know why.
“What happened?” I inquired curiously.
“You leveled up again. You need to distribute those two points into Constitution. Let’s get you as strong as we can.”
Pulling up my character screen, I examined it, and he was right. It seemed the Goblins were still dying, giving me the experience that I needed.
Experience:
One level 18 Goblin. You have gained 4,070 experience points.
One level 13 Goblin. You have gained 1,529 experience points.
Congratulations, you have leveled up! As a Grey Elf, you received 1 ability point in Agility, 1 in Intelligence, 2 in Constitution, and an additional 2 points to distribute each level in any category. You have reached level 30 and received a total of 2 freely distributable ability points.
I pushed my points into Constitution, and my body wasn’t as bad as before.
Stats
Max Health: 740
Max Mana: 390
Attributes
Strength: 38
Perception: 10
Constitution: 74
Charisma: 24
Intelligence: 39
Wisdom: 10
Agility: 49
“We have passed the equilibrium,” Rabbit announced with a delighted tone. “Your health is no longer negative. It has been declining since you healed your lungs, but now you are gradually recovering. If it weren't for your natural health degradation, you'd be recovering much faster.”
“Naturally?” I questioned, puzzled by his choice of words.
“Not right now. I mean, when you first arrived in this world, you were naturally losing health,” he clarified, and my mind filled in the rest.
When I first arrived, my health had inexplicably started to drain. It was a major issue back then since I was only at level one. I nearly perished until my First Learner skill evolved into a faster healing regeneration. I had almost forgotten that something had been subtly siphoning my life since then, but my enhanced regeneration usually compensated for it. Right then, when I was caught in a delicate balance between healing and deteriorating, the issue seemed more relevant than ever.
Originally, I had planned to investigate the cause of my condition. Rabbit had speculated it might be related to my not being from this world, which seemed plausible when I learned about summoning. However, after discovering that everyone was a descendant of travelers, I began to doubt that it was the root cause.
"Let's wait until your cooldown has passed and get you fully healed before you end up dying. But we shouldn't overdo it, or you might end up with some permanent disabilities," Rabbit cautioned.
"What do you mean?" I asked, puzzled by his warning.
"Read this prompt," he replied.
You have been afflicted by severe mana drain. This only occurs when more mana is used than is available. By using the body’s natural mana, this will cause permanent damage. Unless more mana is introduced into the body soon, the damage may or may not be reversed.
"What? Does that mean using my spell to heal myself could cause lasting damage?" I asked.
"Maybe. However, I think you might recover naturally if you don't overdo it. Remember your training sessions with Jack? I'm almost certain you experienced this same issue before. The others called it Mana Sickness, but it's really just mana overuse. They were panicked, thinking you needed a mana potion and healing spells to recover. But ultimately, you healed on your own. Still, if your regeneration isn't as strong anymore, who knows? But it’s either use the spell or risk dying,” Rabbit reasoned.
I saw his point. His advice was still solid. Even if using my mana resulted in damage and I couldn't cast spells in the future, it would be unfortunate, but at least I would be alive.
“There is some good news. Now that you have entered this control room, it seems you can claim this city. Do you want to pull up the prompts?”
Even though I was on the verge of death and in pain, there was nothing else for me to do. Indulging him seemed like the best way to take my mind off my problems. At that, I pulled up the prompts for this place:
Control ring has been detected. Do you wish to soul bind this Labyrinth City to you? Be warned, while soul bound objects do not shape your soul, your soul will shape your bond.
Yes or No.
