Rubbing his face tiredly, as the absurd theory seemed to drain the energy from his body, Alden turned his attention towards [Abyssal Entropy] and its five Stages.
He wondered briefly what kind of power he would hold once he unlocked the second stage of his Magic Class.
Would it increase the potency of his decay?
Fine-tune his control?
Could it grant him more methods to apply the insidious power from the Abyss?
The possibilities were endless in Alden's mind.
Each individual had a unique condition they had to meet before gaining access to the next facet of their power. Some could progress through simple comprehension, while others had to risk their lives and let the pressure of life-or-death combat help them unearth what that prerequisite was.
Alden was a little curious about what his would entail… if he lived long enough to find out.
He hoped it would not be very harrowing.
Shifting slightly, Alden winced.
The strain from the past few days - fighting Beasts and running away from more powerful Defiled - was not kind to his body. He vividly remembered the backlash he had received from overusing [Haste], and shivered, the memory of searing pain burned into his muscles and bones.
It had been so bad… that Alden almost wished a Defiled would have come and swallowed him whole.
He had desperately wished for relief from the painful torture.
Somehow he had pulled through, but it was not an experience he wanted to repeat. After enduring what felt like hours of agony, Alden had been immobilised for most of the night and a significant chunk of the next day, trying to rest and restore his body to a semblance of its former state.
With so much free time, he had to find a way to put all of it to good use.
And make it worth his while he did.
Alden had spent it looking over all the skills in his arsenal - which, granted, was not much - and analysing their strengths and weaknesses, as well as any severe limitations he had to be aware of. For example, [Haste] was quite mana-intensive compared to [Shield], while [Dark Tentacles] was leaning towards the former and not the latter.
Additionally, the time it took to activate the skills varied.
[Haste] was the fastest, followed by [Dark Tentacles], and finally [Shield].
Another consideration he had made was how effective they were.
For example, [Shield] was good at repelling things from point-blank range, but struggled against attacks that could gather enough power and momentum. [Dark Tentacles] excelled against numerous enemies, however, there was a limit to the number he could control and manifest simultaneously, not to mention the relatively short range of the skill.
Any more than four and Alden would find that using [Dark Tentacles] would quickly become unsustainable.
The mana expenditure was no joke.
He also couldn't split his mind anymore to control another thread.
He had tried once and received a crushing headache and a nosebleed in return. Four was the most logical ceiling for him, and even then it was still taxing and very gruelling.
Finally, [Haste] shone when used in extremely short bursts. It would keep Alden from using too much mana and lessen the strain on his body.
Applying the skill for long periods was not recommended.
…He had learned that the hard way, after all.
Allowing his facial features to relax, the white-haired young man took a deep breath and softly shook his small familiar awake. Ignia cried sleepily through their bond, and Alden felt a little bad for interrupting her deep sleep.
His desire to keep moving trumped that, though.
'Sorry, little one. We have to move. I want to reach the Waterfall as soon as possible.'
Ignia blinked at him and slowly straightened.
A second later, she flapped her wings and ascended into the air. Alden gathered the metal disk and stored it back in his bracelet.
Keeping the Runic Item active for long periods drained his mana reserves, so Alden wanted to conserve a little in case he had to fight.
What he did not expect, however…
Was for a large howl to suddenly tear through the night.
He had turned off the disk a few times before, and nothing had happened. At least, nothing had attacked him as soon as he had deactivated the Runic Item.
Why did it occur now?
Alden snapped his neck in the Defiled's direction, his face paling.
He only had time to instruct his bond to flee, before a swift shadow lunged at him from the dark.
Alden's eyes widened.
He brought his dagger up to his side just in time.
A crushing force crashed into Alden.
He screamed as his body shot through the air. In the next moment, his back slammed into the bole of a tree.
A slightly metallic taste appeared in Alden's mouth. He groaned and spat out the blood, wiping his mouth.
His expression twisted, his back radiating a world of pain.
Nonetheless, Alden had to get up…
For just then, his senses detected the approaching form of a four-legged abomination.
His face turned grim.
Alden recognised its aura.
Weaker than a Djinn and stronger than a Beast, this group of Defiled was not to be looked down upon just because they were closer to the bottom of the barrel in rank. They more than made up for what they lacked in intelligence or supernatural power with physical might.
Alden groaned again and cursed his luck.
He had consciously tried to avoid abominations like these in the past few days.
At his current level, he was no match for a Devil.
After all, those in the [Apprentice] rank were only qualified to fight a Beast.
They had no right to punch above their weight.
That would be what he was just about to do.
Alden stood up shakily, his hands and knees trembling from the earlier blow.
The young man inhaled a deep breath and winced, staring at the Devil with a hint of fear.
He gripped his dagger tightly and straightened, shaking off his momentary paralysis.
A solemn and valiant air now surrounded his figure.
Alden slowly raised his knife toward the abomination.
Sparks of resolve ignited in his eyes.