Chapter 5: I Don’t Want to Set the World on Fire
"Of course it was goblins," Frank murmured to himself as he walked away from the barracks. According to the paper he had in his hand, he would have three days to kill a whole settlement of goblins.
For a level one it was a momentous task, one that Frank could easily do. The reason? It was because scouts reported the goblins taking over a mine which meant he could smoke them out.
The plan was nothing fancy, but it was sure to be effective. Ideas already started to form in his head, he wouldn't even need much—just an axe to gather wood and the use of two of his recently acquired skills.
Frank counted the amount of silver he had left and realized he most likely wouldn't have enough. So instead, he would have to rely on gathering fallen branches and twigs. It would make it a little harder, but wouldn't be a major setback.
Before he set off towards the location of the goblins, Frank opted to buy some rations just in case he ended up staying out longer than intended. As he walked to what a passerby described as 'a store that has a little of everything,' Frank opened up his status and took a look at [Arcane Crafting].
The walking stopped as Frank stared at the skill, a grin forming on his face. The book had neglected to mention the skill had additional options for him to select. He was required to choose two items that he would instantly learn how to craft.
It was actually twofold; it included enchantments that he could temporarily bestow on items or artifacts he could permanently make. The permanent items currently listed were nowhere near the level of use as the enchantments but they weren't temporary.
Frank continued his walk as he browsed the frankly long list. There were a lot of options, but by the time he had arrived at the general store he already settled on two options. The first was a Chemist's Jug, a rather large jug that could magically produce liquids once per day.
The materials would take a bit of time to gather or purchase with his paltry savings, but Frank already had some ideas on what types of liquids to produce. The other option he selected was an enchantment, [Arcane Armor].
Although it was listed as an enchantment it was a semi-permanent one. That meant as long as he had the armor equipped the enchantment would last indefinitely. However, this only applied to him. Normally the enchantment would last 24 hours, which was still useful.
While Frank did not have any armor, he did have clothes that technically fit the bill. Frank entered the general store and once he found the rations he recoiled a bit. It would cost him five silver just for a day's worth of rations.
He only had seven left, so Frank decided to bite the bullet and just head toward the goblins. Trekking through the forest on the outskirts of the town, Frank decided to make good use of his time by attempting to add his new enchantment to his clothes.
Following the instructions that had appeared in his mind, no doubt thanks to the skill, Frank carefully applied mana in the form of runes to everything he was wearing. It was a little difficult to get the back, but he managed to finish applying the enchantment by the time he neared the mine shaft.
With the final bout of mana entering his armor, completing the enchantment, Frank quickly noticed the difference. Firstly, the fabric felt tougher. It was hard to explain, but Frank was sure it wouldn't be easy to tear. Not only that, but his movements stopped making noise.
And that wasn't even the best part. He moved faster. So far, Frank thoroughly enjoyed his class. It might not have given him much in the way of combat, but its utility was so high he could honestly overlook it.
The added effects would aid Frank in sneaking, something he was going to attempt since the entrance of the mine was in sight. As he stealthily approached, Frank noticed a single goblin standing guard. The small creature was about the size of a toddler with light green-yellowish skin, a giant hooked nose, and a wart-covered face.
Calling it hideous would have been kind; just looking at the creature caused Frank to shiver. The monster was dressed in only a loincloth, which was typical for the media he consumed, and carried a sharp wooden stick.
Frank's problem was how he was to kill the lookout. If he took too long he would alert the rest and his plan would fail and none of his current abilities allowed him to kill with swiftness.
Suddenly, Frank had an idea. It would be risky, but it could work. To set his plan in motion, Frank began to sneak around the entrance and attempt to get on top of the hill. The entrance to the mining shaft was embedded into the side of a rather large mound so if he could get to the top he could drop something heavy on the unsuspecting creature.
With the aid of his enchanted shoes, Frank was easily able to scale the side of the hill and get into a good position. The plan was simple. Use the [Shape Earth] spell to excavate a 125 cubic foot block of dirt and drop it on the foul monster.
If this worked, it would make [Shape Earth] an absolutely broken spell. Frank wasn't sure exactly how large 125 cubic feet was, but he was about to learn. Focusing on the dirt beside him, Frank began to move his mana as the skill directed. As the earth moved under his command, it slowly floated and formed a rough cube.
Eventually, its size passed Frank's own and he began to smile; he knew he could continue to pour more mana into the spell and lift more earth, but this amount should work perfectly fine. If a block of dirt that was larger than him wasn't big enough for the spell to stop working, he imagined the actual max would be terrifying.
With a sadistic grin, Frank moved the dirt completely over the goblin. It looked up at the strange shadow and before it could even let out a yelp, Frank dropped the mass onto its head. There was a thud and the ground shook a tiny bit but the notification was all Frank needed to see that his idea worked.
[Goblin lvl.3 slain]
It took Frank a second to realize the noise was louder than he intended so he moved with a quickness that disregarded any and all stealth he had before. Before anything could attempt to check out the source of the noise, Frank reached the entrance and began to use [Shape Earth] once again to block the entrance.
Paranoia filled Frank's bones and he ended up using every last drop of his mana, indicated by the fact he couldn't move any more dirt, to cover the hole. The hill was ruined, but at least it would be a while before anything could try and escape.
With step one complete, Frank got to work on collecting wood. A task that would get what he required and allow him to regain some of the mana he spent. About half an hour into his gathering, he heard movement at the covered entrance. It sounded like the goblins were trying to dig their way out.
"Crap. Do I run? No. You can't, Frank. Don't be a wuss. Carry on with the plan." Frank calmed himself before he could fully panic, and created a small tunnel which he would use to vent smoke into.
It didn't take long since the short break gathering wood was enough for him to recover fully. Out of dirt, Frank constructed a furnace with the top connecting to the tunnel. Filling the bottom with firewood, Frank took a moment to step back.
Taking a deep breath and focusing, Frank held out his hands and cast the [Flames] spell. From his palm a torrent of flames shot forth, igniting the wood. Now, all he had to do was wait and reinforce his dirt wall.
The thought of the goblins breaking out plagued him which caused Frank to tunnel vision in his attempts to use [Shape Earth] to compact the wall and add more and more dirt. He had run out of mana three times before he finally stopped. Out of his trance, Frank finally noticed his long list of notifications.
[Goblin lvl. 4 slain]
[Goblin lvl. 2 slain]
[Goblin lvl. 5 slain]
[Goblin lvl. 2 slain]
[Goblin lvl. 3 slain]
…
[Level up!]
[Level up!]
[Level up!]
[Level up!]
[[Shape Earth] has become lvl.2]
[New skill available]
[New spells available]
[[Arsonist] title acquired]
"Well then…I guess the system thinks I wanna set the world on fire."