Two mana projectiles created thanks to [Armament] and [Mana Manipulation], hover over my shoulders as I dodge the charge of a weredeer. The monster doesn't seem too pleased and charges at me again.

[Mana Surge] blazes up, and I shoot one of the projectiles at the monster's head.

The weredeer ignores the wound and continues to charge, so another projectile hits it, finally making it stagger a bit.

A wildly oscillating blade made of mana forms in my hand, and I slash it through the monster's head, dodging just in time to avoid its dead body and the splash of blood.

[You have defeated a Weredeer - lvl 34]

[Oscillation - lvl 8 > Oscillation - lvl 9]

[Lvl 34 > Lvl 35]

Now, without any hesitation, I put all the stat points into mana. If I had any before, now there is none. I wipe the rain from my head and look at the cloudy sky. It just can't stop raining.

"Hey! We're done here!"

I just nod and let the mana flow through my body. In the palm of my hand, a weird circular shape made of mana forms with the use of my [Armament]. I try to imitate Ruby's master and continue to move it, reform it, spin it, make it denser or less dense, and almost transparent. I find it to be good practice for my shaping skills, but it must look somewhat silly.

I slowly enter the clearing, which is occupied by a group of ten hunters, all of them on a mission or quest, if you will.

This time, I was extremely careful and picked a group that looked somewhat reliable. Sure, I'm not expecting them to sacrifice their lives to save me, nor do they expect the same. But at least I know they won't stab me in the back out of nowhere.

Probably. Look, it's difficult, okay? A man's got to eat. Eat and pay a ton of money, and this expedition is paying super well.

The main objective is to kill as many weredeer as possible and take care of their boss, who is leading them while hiding somewhere in this area.

Are they out of quests where I would have to guide someone super slow walking to some distant place? They don't need anyone to collect a certain amount of some material?

Anyway, the group thinks I am at a higher level than I really am, thanks to my unusually high mana.

Obviously, I joined even though it's dangerous and might be too risky for my current level.

The reason? Ruby's master.

I just can't get the image of her mana out of my mind, and to reach her level is impossible without putting my life at stake to grow stronger. Playing it safe won't get me there. It's as simple as that.

"Nathaniel, how many did you get this time?" our vice leader asks me.

"Three of them this time."

"That's pretty good. You're doing well," he gives me a small smile. "You might really save up enough money in a few years to restore your arm."

Yup, that's the story I'm going with. I lied to make it easier to get into the group.

"Thanks, Bram. That's the goal," I try to act nice. The man is fairly competent, and he has two skills that I really like, so it's better to stay closer to him so I can observe them. Obviously, it would be too rude if I did it with my perception and he felt it, but I may be able to ask for some pointers while thinking about the rest on my own.

Soon, more and more people from our group join us, having finished their part, and I start getting uncomfortable as so many people talk at once, some of them even talking to me.

At first, it's bearable, but I quickly feel my social batteries drain.

Darn, I miss Tess and maybe even Hadwin. They are both much better than me at dealing with people. On the other hand, I don't mind sitting to the side and only listening without having to open my mouth.

I don't think that will ever change. I've tried multiple times, but no matter how much I try, I start feeling uncomfortable when talking to more than one person after some time.

Fortunately, we start moving again as the rain becomes stronger and the wind picks up. A few times, I try to use my [Kinetic Redistribution] to absorb some kinetic energy from the wind, but I fail miserably. It's still way too difficult for me. The raindrops, on the other hand, are much easier, and I can even absorb some energy from swaying trees.

Well, it's only a matter of time until I come up with a solution. Later, I might even become able to absorb different kinds of energy. As of now, I can think of something like [Mana Redistribution] - that sounds like an overpowered skill. And how about absorbing sunlight, gravity, or thermal energy? The options are immense!

Also, soon I might be able to upgrade one of my skills after finishing one of the side quests:

Focus (Dual Focus) - Lvl 13Mana Manipulation - Lvl 14Mana Perception - Lvl 12Oscillation - Lvl 9Kinetic Redistribution - Lvl 9Armament - Lvl 8Mana Surge - Lvl 4Disruption - Lvl 4

Three skills are close to level 10. Sure, there will most likely be some bottleneck, but I can do it. But which one should I upgrade after that?

The skill I'm considering upgrading the most is [Mana Manipulation], but if I get some enticing options for [Mana Perception], I might change it up. Lately, I rely on it a lot to learn new skills by watching other people's usage of mana, so even if it hurts me in my current situation, it might be a good option.

Heck, even [Kinetic Redistribution] could get amazing options for an upgrade.

Darn, it already makes my head hurt. I'll get what, 20 options to pick from? Nice.

"Nathaniel?" I hear.

Oh, darn it, not again. Lately, it's easy for me to get lost in my thoughts even as I keep running Perception to check for danger.

"Sorry, I'm coming."

I quickly rejoin the group. This time, I am careful to stay with the group and train my [Kinetic Redistribution] for fun.

I've found a new way to practice it. I try to absorb energy from a single raindrop out of the hundreds of them that are around me.

I don't even have to explain how crazily difficult that is.

A few minutes later, one of our group members dies.

His head explodes as a mana arrow hits it, also evaporating half of his chest due to the speed of the projectile. The remaining half of the body falls, and panic sets in.

No one felt anything, not even our scouts, who are most likely well over 50, and their area of Perception is much bigger than mine.

The arrow just came flying so fast and from so far away that they were unable to sense it forming.

We continue to look around, with a few stronger and faster members rushing towards the direction the arrow came from, but even they come back empty-handed.

"I say we get out of here and go back!" one of the men screams, a tall bald man.

"There's no need to be so rash. We made a mistake, and we know how to counter it now. Eamon can create a web of mana far around us with his gift. It can slightly change the direction of a projectile if it enters his area," says the leader of our group, looking around. He's a skilled hunter seemingly around Hadwin's age.

"Simon and Ivar will continue to run their [Detection] at full power, and we will have our vanguards nearby so they can block any attacks."

His voice is calming, and even I almost start believing him.

"We know what we're up against now, and we will be ready."

It sounds so easy.

Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to join this expedition.

A few hours later, and after a few fights with a normal weredeer, the leader dies.

This time it's not a ranged attack; it's something much more amazing.

An idle mana projectile was hovering in the air in the crown of a tree.

No one was able to sense it; that's how firm it was and how little mana leakage the projectile had.

We were only able to detect it as we passed under it.

Someone crossed a hair-thin thread of mana, which triggered the mana arrow, sending some impulse, and then, as if it were a homing missile, it flew right at the leader.

The vanguard didn't even have enough time to try to stop it.

The mana around the leader flared up, and in front of him, a barrier made of mana appeared at incredible speed, followed by another and another. The man was amazing, able to create a five-layered barrier in a split second.

Yet the projectile tore through them all of them.

Half of the man's chest disappeared in an explosion of innards, blood, and bones.

He died instantly.

That's when I decided it was time to leave, and I wasn't alone.

We immediately started moving back the way we came, but what awaited us made it all seem hopeless.

Dozens, probably well over fifty weredeer, were blocking our way back, with more of them around us. Even I could feel their mana.

So we just stood there in the rain, which continued to strengthen, and in the strong wind that kept hitting our bodies.

Threatened by mana projectiles and surrounded by monsters that we could hear roaring even through the wind, rain, and thunderstorm.