Chương 89: B2 Chapter 11

Evading a monster that was not only faster but hit even harder was taxing, to say the least. It was not possible to escape all attacks, so Hakon used fractions of a moment to determine which strikes had to be avoided at all costs and what attacks wouldn't kill him. His perception was at a level that made it possible, and it would have been even easier if [Evasion] had improved throughout the fight. Alas, [Evasion] stopped growing and no matter what Hakon did, the Skill wouldn't improve.

There was no Skill Upgrade, forget about Skill Fusion, to exploit, leaving him with no other choice. Either he had to use mana to forcefully elevate [Evasion] to the next level, adapting the Skill, turning it into something it was not, or he put the Skill to the back of his mind to focus on his other Skills. Hakon opted for the latter. He maintained [Evasion] with his other Skills but focused more on bursts of [Dash] until that too drained too much mana. To survive a bout of attrition, something had to change.

Hence, his attention shifted to [Running] next. Experimenting with [Running]'s weave in the spirit form had changed the Skill quite a bit, but that was not necessarily a bad thing. His stamina was burning through, yet it felt like he could go on for a long time as long as his mind and mana reserves could last long enough. He was not as exhausted as he should have been. Why? Because [Vitality Stream] worked its wonders.

It knit his body back together, stopped the blood flow of several bad-looking wounds, and it filled him with something that was not unlike mana. But while [Vitality Stream] was soothing and rejuvenating, the things he started to feel throughout his body were different. More vigorous and also destructive… yet not. Focusing on the sensation thoroughly, Hakon grew increasingly confused. The energy felt like it belonged to him.

It was not in his Core either but spread throughout his body, lodged in his muscles, pathways, flesh, and bones. It… nurtured him and filled him with energy as soon as [Vitality Stream]'s soothing warmth passed by. Whatever the energy was, it was either closely tied to [Vitality Stream] or it was influenced by the passive Skill. Is that what Ava said about the human Knights? Hakon recalled, twisting his body out of a descending claw's way.

The tip carved across his chest, leaving a red line behind, but the damage was negligible. Leaning more into [Running], the myriad perception-enhancing Skills at his disposal, and [Evasion], he escaped imminent death and closed in rather than retreating. Entering the Young Drake's dead angle, a dagger flashed in his hands, but he was forced to leap to the side before he could ram the blade into the monster's weak spot. A tail whipped past his neck with the force of a hundred Terror Deer, making him wince.

One bad hit, and not even [Vitality Stream] would be able to heal him. Knights… He remembered Ava saying something about them, yet it hadn't sat right with him at that time. The human woman had heard about the Barbarians' Lifeblood, but her understanding of their power was lackluster. All she knew was that Barbarians used Lifeblood and that Shamans relied on mana. Hakon told her that the energies were the same, but that was not exactly true.

Maybe it was the same for young warriors, but after seeing his father fight other powerful Barbarians, that sentiment no longer rang true in his head. The chieftain's power was on a whole different level, his blade deadlier than any he had seen before. The crimson presence, Hakon murmured, sweat trickling down his body. [Running Lv. 17 → Lv. 18 Dash Lv. 14 → Lv. 15 Sensory Expansion Lv. 14 → Lv. 15 Split Focus Lv. 19 → Lv. 20 Aether Spiral Lv. 9 → Lv. 10] He barely had the time to check the first two lines before the Young Drake leaped at him. With an effort of will and a burst of mana, Hakon dove to the side. Rolling over the ground, he pushed to his feet in a hurry, only to see the Drake coming at him again. The fight couldn't go on like that. He would lose if nothing changed. Crimson presence. His father's power manifested in the form of a crimson hue, which had a presence of its own.

It didn't feel all that much like the energy spread throughout his body, so why did Hakon think that it was the same? No, not the same. The term 'presence' didn't sit quite right with him either. Something was slowly coming together, yet he was not quite there yet. Hakon shook his head, channeled Enhanced Comprehension, and took hold of the energy within him. The pain that raced through his head as he did was unbearable. However, that was exactly what he needed. Strength.

Pain being weakness leaving the body meant that he did something right. That whatever he was doing should – maybe – not be possible, but whatever it was, he could do it. Not for long, but the details did not matter. What mattered were the pieces coming together and that something told him that he'd been too focused on mana. That he paid mana too much attention to forget what made out Barbarians. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Forcing more energy into his lower legs, Hakon split his attention just enough to maintain [Running] and [Dash]. As soon as mana raced down the pathways in his legs, something inside him seemed to crack. It was a quiet, insistent sound that evolved into a cacophony of terror as soon as his mana came into contact with the thing he'd sent down his legs. Enhanced Comprehension rattled as his feet dug into the ground. A moment later, he rocketed across the ground, moving much faster than he deemed possible.

[Bloodline, Wildborne Lifeblood, has awakened.] The moment the Scripture flared to life, time seemed to come to a crawl. Hakon's vision sharpened, his muscles bulged with motes of power that had only been waiting for this moment. Power rippled through him like the embrace of a long-lost friend. It was almost as if he had just detected potential he never knew existed. Whatever it was that [Vitality Stream] did to his body, Hakon could sense it. The energy inside him obeyed Hakon more easily.

It was not yet instinctive, but what had been near-impossible a moment ago felt much easier all of a sudden. I am growing weaker. His eyes narrowed at the realization. It wasn't correct, because he felt stronger than ever, but escaping the Young Drake's charge had been far more exhausting than it should have been. Not much mana was used, but Hakon knew that he wouldn't last long using the unknown energy. It saps at my strength. Makes me more exhausted.

He realized this, which was confirmed by Enhanced Comprehension. But there was a lot more the Ancient Power revealed than the fact that using the energy drained him more than mana. Doors Hakon had only ever faintly perceived before swung open. The Young Drake turned around to charge again, but Hakon did not move closer to attack or prepare for a counterattack. He took a glimpse at his spirit form to confirm his suspicion instead.

[Running]'s weave flashed vibrantly, yet [Dash]'s weave drifting toward [Evasion]'s weave pulled his attention away. The weaves burned brighter than the Monolith during the Battle of Generation, which should have worried him. Instead, Hakon embraced the sensation, leaned into it, and used the Skills together with his newfound energy. It was instinctive, almost like he'd always wielded it. It was… part of his Bloodline? That felt right, yet something about it felt strange.

His eyes snapped open and he shot forward with surprising speed. The Young Drake snapped at Hakon, but he sidestepped the monster's attack, his hand reaching for a dagger. Retrieving it in a smooth motion, he rammed it into the Drake's side, smiling even as his body screamed at him. He was strong, yet the power such a simple movement had cost was tremendous. He gasped, chest heaving up and down, as Scriptures materialized before him. [Will's influence has been detected. Skill Mutation initiated.] [Skill, Swiftstep, has been created.] [Evasion] and [Dash]'s weaves unraveled and changed. Parts of their weaves faded into the ethereal spirit while the rest realigned. It combined, unlike a Skill Fusion, which used the existing weaves and merged them into something greater. It created something new that only faintly resembled the old Skills. [Swiftstep – Lv. 21] [Evasion] and [Dash] no longer existed.

The former's passive effect was still present, etched into Hakon's muscle memory, yet [Swiftstep] was nothing like [Evasion]. Nor was it like [Dash]. He instinctively knew that the Skill could be further augmented with mana and the new energy, but that wasn't necessary. Triggering [Swiftstep], traces of the new energy were siphoned from throughout his body. The mantle of exhaustion grew heavier in tune to his actions, but he reached top speed in a moment.

Then he went faster and nearly caught up with the Young Drake's speed. That, however, was still not enough. His mind was being pricked with instinctive knowledge that ought to help him navigate [Swiftstep] more easily, but pain raced down his legs the moment he tried to infuse it with mana. While he could have tried again, knowing that the Skill should work with mana, experimenting too much while besting an Extreme Threat was not the right thing to do.

Instead, he maintained [Swiftstep] and the other Skills to evade the next few incoming attacks. He even managed to land a hit on the Young Drake, but its scales were too tough to penetrate. Hakon tried reaching the damaged scales but was forced backward. A bad gash covered his body, which was the last warning he needed to understand that he was still too weak. That was when it was time to rely on the sensation of his body being used as a resource. It was nowhere near perfect, but it was good enough.

Pushing through with [Swiftstep] affected his body greatly. Like [Dash], but much more strenuous. So he lowered the output for a moment, focused on [Running], and pumped more of his body's unique resource into it. A single glance at the spirit form earlier had shown that [Running] was as much affected by the energy as [Evasion] and [Dash] had been. Another glance revealed the weave unraveling as well, but not like before. [Basic Skill, Running, has mutated. [Accelerate] has been created under the Will's influence.] Knowledge flooded his mind, showing him all there was to know about [Accelerate]. Enhanced Comprehension digested the information in record time, which was needed because he triggered it immediately. [Accelerate] was nothing like [Swiftstep]. The latter enhanced his evasion not unlike [Evasion], whereas the former focused solely on Hakon's speed. And he could focus the Skill on certain body parts as well, mind included.

The strain was much greater, though, as he triggered [Accelerate], siphoning a considerable amount of his body's resource. As weird as it was to watch his Skills mutate and become something completely different, it was helpful. Very helpful. The corner of his lips curled upward in understanding. He was dead tired, his body screamed at him, raging that it was being sucked dry, but how could he not be happy and smile at what unfolded before his eyes? Pain was temporary, and so was exhaustion.

A savage smile bloomed on his lips, one that filled even the Young Drake with dread.