Chapter 18. As the night settles….

"Huff…Huff…"

I was panting for breath after continuing to run for the entire battle. That was a big group, probably the biggest we had encountered since entering the grounds. The first hour was mostly spent on picking our targets and as we slowly got hang of it, we picked up pace in the second hour, helping Mr. Haley reach level 10. Ben had the most difficulty to level up and was stick in the single digit levels for an hour after Mr. Haley, where we started to gather stronger and larger groups allowing his skill to shine. He was still not adept at using his skill, if you ask me.

It had been four hours and we were just done fighting with one of the biggest groups and that left only 3 groups of abominations in the ground.

All of us were out of breath and with the sun setting, I was busy ruling out the not-so safe places for us to hoard for the night.

All of us made a massive improvement in our levels, including me, though it was not as significant as Abigail.

I pulled out my interface to get a look at it while thinking of places that we could crash at. We were currently resting in open space in the garden, making use of the only space that was still alive with trees after facing several superhuman fights.

I sat there, leaning against a tree with Abigail, while Ben and Mr. Haley were on the lookout for the monsters and other humans. Given the situation, we were prone to danger from both the groups.

I expanded my stats tab to get a better look at my current stats while distributing the left-over stats. I currently had 6 points stored up and I wasn't sure if it was right for me to assign all those points right now.

LVL. 21

Daniel H Martinez

HP: 100%

MP: 100%

Stats +

Skills +

Equipment +

Inventory +

Strength (STR) – 38

Agility (AGI) – 39

Intelligence (INT) – 83

Mana – 4

Vitality – 40

Freely assignable stat points – 6

I placed one more point into agility, making it 40 and closed the interface.

We had learned a lot during these four hours and our ability to use our skills was upped by a lot. I had to take into account the new strength spectrum of our party to decide the place that would be the safest for us through the night.

We had improved a lot during battle, thanks to the experience and also the level ups. I had become more adept at using my skills and the trinkets were a great boost, allowing me to experiment more with 'Lightning Steps'.

Abigail was now able to heal multiple targets at once, though the effects are divided as well. She claims that she would be able to produce more results in a day if we continued to let her heal, but none of us was fond of the idea of getting hurt to increase her ability.

Ben could now make proper use of the slight gap that the monsters gave when he used his skill and also the damage reduction ability saved him from several serious injuries. His item upon reaching level 10 was a one-time use voucher, but that was what made him so formidable during our last fight.

He received a 'Skill-upgrade voucher' from the system. Though, it wasn't the best of the rewards when you compare it with us, I should say that was the only reward he needed at the moment. His application with his skill before was abhorring to say the least, considering its potential.

Skill upgrade voucher (consumable)

A one-time use voucher that can upgrade a single chosen skill of yours by a level under grade-A. If the skill is already of grade-B, then the upgrade will make the skill more compatible with you and increase one aspect of the skill.

Note: The voucher will have no effect on skills above grade-A.

Though Ben was quite disappointed at his reward, the upgrade really made him a lot stronger than before. Even he could be seen appreciating the new effects of the skill during the previous battle with the abominations.

Roar of the Valiant (enhanced)

You can let out a mana-induced roar that sets out every enemy that hears it into a state of confusion followed by a state of mindless frenzy.

This is a skill used by the valiant warriors. Don't falter even under the aggro of all those affected by the skill.

For 30 seconds after the roar, the damage you receive will be reduced by 25% and you will be able to find the weak spots of those affected by your valiant roar.

Each roar will consume 60 MP. {1 stat in mana = 10 MP}

During the course of the battles, we got closer to share the details on our skills and rewards, so now I had an idea of how everyone can move to improve our survival. Even Mr. Haley shared the details about his skill.

Flames of the Phoenix (S):

Possessing one of the purest flames in the world, the Phoenix is a legendary being that could almost be dubbed as the incarnate of the Fire God.

The one inheriting the flames of the Phoenix can gain absolute mastery of the flames, altering the shape, size and also the properties of the flame.

The flames of the Phoenix are known not only for its tremendous destructive power but also for its unmatched efficiency in healing. However, if handled with insufficient mastery, the flames could very well consume the soul of the recipient and so, you are advised to proceed with caution in your attempts of healing.

Mastery is not achieved overnight! To be able to truly master the flames of the Phoenix would require tremendous amounts of skill and practice.

The cost of the skill reduces with increase in mastery. You can summon stronger and bigger flames by adding more mana into the skill.

A manipulation skill of the finest quality. A flame manipulation skill, the flames of the phoenix to be precise, that could be upgraded. I couldn't help but gasp in awe when he revealed his skill.

Although he said that his mastery was only indicated as a level one by the system, I knew the potential of his skill. He wouldn't need any other skill as long as he improved his mastery over the flames.

During the second hour of our battle, and just as expected, Mr. Haley received his reward for reaching level 10, which was one of the items he needed the most. He received a flame essence from a descendant of the phoenix that would help improve the destructive properties of his flame.

Flame essence of a descendant of the Phoenix (consumable)

The essence of flame collected from the blood of a descendant of the phoenix known for its flames of destruction. Consuming these will allow your flames to inflict more physical damage to your target. The consumption of mana is slightly reduced due to increase in mastery while causing destruction.

Note: The flame essence can only be consumed if you possess a greater affinity towards fire. There is a high possibility of being devoured by the flames in the essence if you do not meet the affinity requirement.

Being the possessor of its ancestor, Mr. Haley was the perfect person to consume the essence. After absorbing the essence, his flames were no longer just a source of pain but also a messenger of death, should he will it.

This was the reward given to the fifth fastest person in the zone and if my guess turned out to be true, the student council president, Julianne Romero, and the vice president, Remley Mitt, should be the ones who reached level 10 before Mr. Haley and they should have probably figured out that we were the first and second ones to reach level 10. I was really expectant on witnessing their battle prowess when we meet the next time, and also vigilant of the fact that I had to be stronger then.

After I was done taking in all the information that I had about the skills of us four, I began deciding the necessities that the place we needed our night's shelter to have.

"Won't most of the survivors be gathering around the student council? Isn't it better to go there? It would be safe with so many people around you." Ben suggested, leaving his post as the watch.

"What would you do if the abominations decided to attack that place due to high concentration of humans?" Abigail retorted.

'They started to banter to again!', I thought but before they could go on further, I heard footsteps around the corner of the block.

They were heavy and multiple. It didn't seem like those of a human.

"Can you hear …." I started, but Mr. Haley quickly rushed in and shushed us. Hiding behind the tall bushes that surrounded this part of the garden, we held our breath while anticipating the entry of something grand.

<<Slliiiiiickkk…>>

I heard a sharp, high-pitched sound break the silence of the mild darkness that settled around us and a sharp sword emerged from behind the curve, scraping the walls of the building.

Multiple such weapons emerged slowly along with their wielders as they made their way to the football field that was the closest to our location.

It was the appearance of the strongest group of abominations that I had encountered until then. Their menacing appearances and their fearsome weapons weren't on a level that we could match with our current party size.

They now possessed more intelligence than ever along with weapons retrieved from either the defeated humans or the system itself. The situation was more serious than it seems because once the intelligence of the abominations ripens enough to form an organized group with a head, then what would ensue would be a direct confrontation between the two races.

If we failed to build a similar organization of our own with all the survivors, then the confrontation would have only one conclusion: OUR LOSS!

The student council wasn't trustworthy, but it was the closest solution to an organised party. Would it still be possible to join hands with them considering the presence of Mr. Haley?

As I was contemplating the graveness of the sight I just witnessed, Abigail delivered another important news to us.

"The mana has been stabilised into our environment."