Chương 16: Colony (3)

Rowan let himself collapse, falling to the cold stone floor. His muscles burned. It was as if both his legs were aflame, and the exhaustion was beginning to set in as the adrenaline faded. So he lay his head back on the floor and let his body relax. Then, a droplet hit his head. Blinking in surprise, he looked up at the stone ceiling. The cave roof was covered in a cobweb of small cracks and fissures. And every few seconds, drops would fall to the floor.

Usually, they would land atop the stalagmites, which made sense, but occasionally, they would drip onto other parts of the floor. Realizing just how thirsty he was, Rowan opened his mouth to catch the droplets; he didn't want to waste the water he got with his rations. But he stopped himself at the last moment. What if it was coming from the lake he'd originally fallen into? Forcing himself to wait, Rowan observed the water droplets pooling on the floor.

There were just a few, so it took quite a while, but eventually, there was enough to actually be able to make out details about the liquid. Inspecting it, he realized they didn't seem to share the same luster or dark color as the lake. Even if it had the same poisonous properties, his stats had saved him last time. And now, they were far better, so he would probably be fine. He spent several minutes catching water droplets in his mouth, slowly chipping away at his thirst.

It was slow going, but it was better this than to waste what little he had left in his waterskin. Though the dripping water did bring up a question. Where was it coming from? There were stalagmites and stalactites scattered about, sure, but nowhere but here had there been so much dripping water. If there were some kind of underground river or lake where he could get fresh water, that would be perfect. Alas, even if it was probably just meters up from where he was, Rowan had no way to get there.

Once he'd finally gotten his fill, he sat back down. There didn't seem to be any negative effects from the water, and he was still tired. After making sure there weren't any ants on his side of the stalagmite wall, he relaxed, ready to let both his mind and body rest. But, after just a few minutes of blissful rest, he was jerked back to consciousness by a deafening crash and the sound of cracking stone. Before he could even react, he was pelted with shards of stone. Thankfully, none managed to break his skin.

Pushing himself upright, Rowan glanced around in alarm. With his mind exhausted and eyes still bleary, it took him longer than it should've to spot the source, but a few seconds later, he saw it. It seemed the ironclad ant had decided the best way of getting to him was not to find another way to the tunnel he was in, but to go straight through the stalagmites. And to his horror, it was working.

The cluster of stalagmites was several layers thick, but a single blow from the colossal insect had sent fissures through several stone spikes, and some of the smaller stalagmites had split in two, unable to stand up to the ant's might.

"For fuck's sake…" Rowan muttered, rubbing his eyes.

"Can you just… not?" Shaking his head, he moved away from the crumbling barrier. It wasn't quite a run, but his already exhausted limbs were doing their best. His arms were getting tired as well from holding his mace. It'd been especially bad during his flight from his ironclad pursuer, and he'd needed to switch hands several times to continue holding it. Still, he dragged his battered body onward, refusing to give up. He'd made it this far; he wasn't just going to give up because of exhaustion.

If he could get far enough away that the creature lost his trail, he could rest. But for now, he would push on. So he continued, marching ever onward. Stolen novel; please report. As he stumbled through winding tunnels, Rowan realized he'd barely seen any ants since he'd slipped through the stlagmites. He'd only seen a few workers scattered about, but he'd taken special care to avoid them. He took a moment to try to puzzle out why, but his mind was simply too exhausted to form any kind of complicated thoughts.

He'd gotten the briefest flash of sleep just earlier, but if anything, it had made his current exhaustion worse. Thankfully, though, he'd managed a few hours before his encounter with the ironclad ant. Still, it'd been ages since he'd had a long period of uninterrupted rest. His stats lessened his need for sleep, but no matter how hard he fought, it was bound to claim him eventually. It was with that thought that Rowan felt his legs give out beneath him.

Then, he collapsed, unconscious before his body even struck the stone floor. — He yawned, stretching his aching limbs. He had no idea how long he'd slept for, but his mind felt replenished. But his body… Rowan gritted his teeth as he moved his legs, bending and stretching them, trying to regain his range of motion. The run had been brutal, though it seemed like his body was recovering. As he stood up, he looked within himself, observing his mana reserves.

They weren't exactly full, but they were far better than they'd been immediately after he'd fled from the colossal ant. He'd be able to cast [Bind] a few times without worry, though he didn't intend to fight anything. For now. He still had to kill more enemies to earn rations from the System, but that could wait. Until then, he would rest his legs and maybe have a look around the oddly barren tunnels. After stretching his aching legs for a bit longer, Rowan walked around, ignoring his body's protests.

Only once he'd made sure there wasn't anything waiting to kill him did he sit down, leaning against the tunnel's wall. He knew it was unlikely for anything to be lying in wait, especially after he'd just slept for who-knows-how-long. But still, given the constant dangers he'd faced since being forced into the Tutorial, it was better safe than sorry. Sure, he might've become a bit paranoid, but rather that than dead.

With his mana restored and his mind fresh once more, Rowan began cycling mana, practicing his control. Already, it was becoming second nature to him. He already had absolute control over the mana within his body, and while it was harder to control it outside, he could still do it with relative ease. But he'd seen the dangers he was trapped in the caves with, and he was sure the ironclad ant wasn't even the strongest creature around. So what if he could control the mana outside of his body? So what?

How did it help him survive? He kept improving his control, but nothing came of it; all they did was make his activation of [Bind] incrementally faster, and at this point, the only thing that was really holding him back was his reaction time. Rowan clenched his teeth, repeating the question in his head again and again. So what if the System said his skill levels were going up? What did that even do? He couldn't use the mana for anything! What did some rampaging beast have to fear from some wisps of blue?

He had to push further. He couldn't be satisfied with what he had. That would only mean all of the time spent practicing his [Mana Manipulation] had been a waste. Rowan let out a grunt of defiance as he condensed the cloud of mana forming before him. He would push further. No matter what. He had to do it. For his survival. For Coco. For the first time since he'd entered the tutorial, thoughts of Coco floated across his mind, and he didn't push them away. He'd feared that thinking about her would be too much.

That the thought that he would never see her again would break him. But what if he would see her again? The System had never said what happened to the rest of Earth. The wildlife, the pets, everything but the humans. What if they were all alright? It wasn't like Coco couldn't fend for herself; he'd found her when he was still on the streets, barely scraping by. Through all the hardships he'd faced, through everything, the cat had been there, by his side. And she'd caught her own food, cared for herself.

Offered her companionship and taken nothing in return. Perhaps, in the end, it had always been she who found him, and not the other way around. He had no way to know whether or not she was still out there, but until he knew for certain what had happened, he would cling onto the hope that the System hadn't done anything to her and the rest of Earth, if only to keep himself sane. So, focusing on the faint hope that she might be fine, he continued.

The mana floating before him compressed as Rowan pushed down on it with all of his might and willpower. And, slowly, the mana went from but a faint mist to something tangible, real. When Rowan finally opened his eyes, he found himself looking upon not a wisp of energy but a solid, opaque blade.