Chương 61: Cleansing the Curse?

Aaron's entire right arm burned as he held the dagger. It was an uncomfortable mix between pain and numbness. His body wasn't used to wielding this level of magic. Pale blue particles trickled down the dagger as Aaron held it by his side. They flowed off from the hilt down the blade like water and vanished into nothingness an inch away from the blade. Giddeon was lying on the floor holding his ribs, eyes tightly shut in pain. Selezar really wanted the old man dead.

He must have been intensifying the corruption in Tim to force Aaron's hand. It was an ultimatum; kill or lose Tim forever. Aaron disliked the old man, but he had only acted in a way that he thought was best for the world. He was selfless in his own twisted way. Aaron had promised himself that he would draw a line at harming innocent people and helping those who deserved it, and Giddeon certainly wasn't innocent. But he didn't deserve to die.

He was fighting against the very being that was threatening Tim's life, and deep down Aaron thought of him as an ally, despite their differences. His cold, numb fingers throbbed as he clasped the dagger as hard as he could. There was no time to think. It had to happen now. With two hands, Aaron swung the knife down hard and drove it into the side of the metal staff. It still sat there shiny and unharmed by the fire spirits. There was pushback before the knife even reached the metal.

An invisible force repelled him, preventing it from contacting the staff. But Aaron persevered. His wrist strained as he pressed his weight through the blade. Drawing on his soul, Aaron forced more mana into the knife. The mana in the staff was defending itself, but his Scourge Mana was disrupting it. [Teratogenesis talent increased] Corruption Mastery: Rank 2 Reassured by the increase in rank, Aaron pushed on. It felt slightly easier as he was able to drive the dagger further towards the staff.

[Teratogenesis talent increased] Corruption Mastery: Rank 3 Inches away from clashing with the metal relic, the dagger slowly glided down. Aaron felt as if he could have lifted his feet and put his entire body weight down, and the dagger still wouldn't move any faster. He had much more mana to work with now, compared to last month. He still felt strong and revitalised, so he reached for more power. He willed his spell into the bone dagger and started to unpick the mana defending the staff.

Sweat dripped down from his head and repelled off the side of the mana shield, landing towards the far edge of the stone plateau the sceptre was balancing on. [Teratogenesis talent increased] Corruption Mastery: Rank 4 Aaron's strength was waning, but he felt close. With the Corruption Mastery increase, he felt the mana give way, and the dagger slipped down an inch. It caught just a fraction of a hair's breadth from the surface of the relic. Selezar's voice had gone quiet, which was surprising.

Perhaps the spell was disrupting his ability to communicate with him. Maybe Tim was breaking free already. He didn't have time to look or lose his focus, so he brushed the thoughts aside and buckled down. With one final push, Aaron channelled freezing cold mana through his dagger. He lost his breath for a moment as if he had plunged into a freezing lake. [Teratogenesis talent increased] Corruption Mastery: Rank 5 With that final rank, the knife finally overcame the barrier, slicing down into the metal below.

Not only did the Scourge Mana spell cut through its defences, but it also seemed to disrupt the integrity of the metal. It was either that or the properties of the corrupted talon which made up the blade of the dagger which allowed it to break into the staff. With a flash of blue light, Aaron was knocked off his feet and thrown backwards. He managed to catch himself by staggering his stance. The relic was broken.

There was a cut in the middle, and fine blue particles were haemorrhaging out of it onto the rock around it, creating a pool of blue mist. Where Aaron could feel the strong presence of Necromancy from the relic, the same power that allowed him to guide the party to it, it now felt shattered and disrupted. It didn't hum and resonate in the air around him, it crackled and fuzzed.

"Aaron, help, quick!" Alex shouted. Aaron's stomach filled with dread. He turned to look at his brother. Alex had laid his coat on the floor supporting Tim's head. He had talons on his hands, but his arms had returned to a near-normal size and the black veins around his eyes were less pronounced. His tunic was nothing more than a rag draped around one shoulder, stained with blood. His body was broad and muscular now, with abdominal muscles that looked like they could crush an apple in half. He was injured.

He held his hands over his side, and blood trickled down, forming a small puddle on the rocks below. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Tears and snot streamed down Alex's face.

"I didn't mean for this to happen. He told me this is what he wanted. He'd rather be killed than hurt you," he sobbed. Aaron didn't care for his reasons. He was angry, but not necessarily at Alex. And it didn't matter anyways. The only thing that mattered was stopping the bleeding. Running over to Tim, Aaron readied his True Sight. He jumped down to the floor and put his hand on Tim's stomach. He was badly wounded.

There were four stab wounds on his back, three of which had healed nicely, but Aaron could feel scar tissue in the wounds. Nothing was causing any issues, however. The fourth wound must have happened after Aaron damaged the staff. The wound was on his right flank. It went through his side and into his left kidney. Aaron felt how the kidneys needed a lot of blood to work effectively, hence the heavy stream of red leaving through the wound. He was losing blood fast.

It was enough to kill him before the end of the hour.

"If you use your Necromancy, those creatures will come for us, Aaron. Don't do anything stupid," Giddeon said, barely recovered from the blow he took to the chest. It sounded like every word he spoke was painful. Aaron had no intention to do anything stupid. He had already used Scourge Mana, and nothing came for them. Selezar surely had the power to summon corrupted creatures to their location if he wanted to. And if it did attract attention, he didn't care.

What would be the point in all of this if Tim died of a stab wound? Aaron used Manipulate. The difference in power was startling. Mana flowed through his fingers effortlessly and grabbed hold of the injured kidney. He barely needed to focus on where to direct it— it responded to his will directly. [Skill proficiency increase] Manipulate: Level 7 The first job was to stop the bleeding as quickly as possible.

Aaron could feel Tim's heart working twice as hard to pump the small amount of remaining blood around his body. If he lost much more, it might stop reaching his brain and affect his consciousness. A small blood vessel in the kidney had been nicked by the dagger. A wrong move here could damage a nearby vein and cause even more damage. He was confident, though. His journeyman rank made it feel magnitudes easier to cast with precision, especially as he only manipulated one thing at a time.

He grabbed both ends of the broken arteriole with his mana and pulled them together, melding them back into one again. He had learned this trick by experimenting with Augmentation. The bleeding stopped in an instant. All that was left to do was repair the wound. Aaron closed the small wound in the injured kidney together, making it whole again, then proceeded to merge the skin and seal it shut. It was fast and effortless. [Somatomancy talent increased] Flesh Mastery: Rank 7 A deserved rank, Aaron thought.

His proficiency and speed were satisfying and made him proud of the progress he'd made. And more importantly, his brother was saved. Tim's breathing calmed, and he relaxed, putting his hands by his sides rather than guarding his abdomen. His proportions were back to normal, but the talons remained on his hands, albeit smaller than they were a minute ago. Aaron could still sense the curse in him, although it was wounded.

The staff was still haemorrhaging glittery blue mana, so perhaps it would take some time before the curse would leave Tim and return to help its master. That was, if Giddeon's theory was correct.

"How do you feel, Tim?" Aaron asked, although he imagined being stabbed didn't feel particularly nice.

"Like I've just been stabbed," he chuckled. It was good to hear his laugh again. Tim left his sense of humour back in the farmhouse. The relic had been making him withdrawn and paranoid since they entered the camp, and even worse, the further they delved into the mine. His laughter was like a breath of fresh air.

"I mean your curse," Aaron corrected.

"Oh, I don't know. I don't feel any different. How did I get stabbed anyways? I don't remember anything," Tim said. The amnesia explained why he had been so cheery. He'd just turned into a beast and attacked his friends.

"You had an episode again," Aaron said. Tim was sensitive and the guilt of attacking his friends would have eaten him up. He was careful not to reveal too much. Tim looked down at his ruined tunic. It was draped over one shoulder with a thin band of fabric attaching diagonally across his chest. He grabbed it with one hand and pulled it up over his head and threw it aside. He looked down at his ripped, muscular chest. Thick veins ran down over his hulking biceps.

He raised his arms and inspected it, frowning as if it didn't belong to him.

"When did this happen?"

"You attacked us. Alex stabbed you. Aaron damaged the relic. Now everyone's okay. Now can we please get back to what's important and get the Ouromor out of here?" Giddeon drawled. He had now dragged himself to his feet and was rubbing his chest where the stone hit him. Aaron turned to his brother "Tim, I was…" Tim smiled softly, "It's fine. Let's just get to safety. Go and help Gideon." Aaron forced out a smile, then turned to Giddeon.

"Let me take a look at that."

"No! I won't contend with your dark magic. And I don't want to risk attracting those beasts. You've done enough already," Giddeon snapped. As he spoke louder, his voice caught in his chest and he coughed a couple of times. The clanking of plate mail and heavy marching footsteps echoed from further back in the mine. It was hurried and loud, almost at the speed of a jog.

"We've been found," Paige said. Not that there was much they could do now. The pit and nearby section of the mine were surrounded by a wooden wall. There was a gap over the top to climb, but it was covered in metal spikes. The only other exit was the door from which they came, but this would lead them directly to the oncoming peacekeepers. They didn't have any choice except to stand and fight.

"Ready your weapons," Giddeon commanded. But Aaron already had his knife out. Even Tim stood up and bared his claws. His cane was on the other side of the room, but he didn't seem to need it. If it was the same guards, there would be a mage, three soldiers and Thomas. They were outmatched in number and training. Aaron didn't fancy his chances. Especially not with Giddeon cradling his chest in his hands with a broken rib. A terrible shriek pierced the tense air around them. It was neither distant nor quiet anymore.

The humanoid bat landed on the wooden wall behind them. Its claws crunched into the wood, spewing splinters and shards of timber into the pit below. It stood tall, with its freakishly large, finger-like toes gripping onto the wood. It flapped its four wings in an intimidating display and howled at the party below, showing its rows of jagged teeth. It was too late now to hold off using his magic. It had attracted the corrupted creatures already. There was no point holding back anymore.

Now was the time to see what journeyman necromancy was capable of!