Chương 87: Chapter 92: Bruises

The cavern rumbled as we flew through the tunnels, the mountain seemed angry at us, cracks and stones rained down on our heads, only to get deflected when they met my aura. I jumped and ran, then flew, following the signs we left in the tunnels to find our way back. It took much less than when we came in; the first time the tunnels seemed endless as an army of spiders barred our way and we had to backtrack constantly. Now, proceeding at this insane speed, we managed to exit in less than three minutes.

I ran outside, enjoying the sun's rays and the fresh air. Behind me the tunnels spewed out some dust, but contrary to my expectations they didn't collapse. Maybe they did, but further in; from the outside the mountain looked the same, as if our adventure inside was nothing more than a dream.

"You can put me down now, you know?" said Rhea while still being carried over my shoulder. I gently lowered myself and put her feet on the ground, helping her to stand up. She was a bit woozy at first; being carried at that speed for sure hadn't been pleasant. I didn't even try to be gentle, so she looked a bit rattled while massaging her belly and ribs.

"Sorry about that, but at least we are out. What the hell happened to the ritual, and is the queen dead? Did you get the achievement?" She looked at me, a grimace on her face, while she sat down on the ground, then lay on her back.

"I don't know," she said while breathing hard, her voice sounded raspy and wet at the same time.

"But I have a ton of notifications blinking for my attention, give me a minute." She closed her eyes, trying to breathe in a slow cadence, but there was something wrong. I may have hurt her more than I thought. I was still in my armour, and her physical stats must not be high enough to resist the forces I put her through, so I went on one knee and put a hand on her stomach; she jolted a bit at the contact.

While she looked at me I said, "I'm going to infuse some lifeforce into you, don't resist, I think you are injured more than it seems." She nodded.

"I don't know what is happening, I feel like I can't breathe, but it's not that painful…"

"Let's not take any chances." I started taking some lifeforce from the armour reserves; with no enemy nearby I would have to use that. As I focused on making the energy flow from the armour to me, then to Rhea, I used my aura too. The world around us entered a monochromatic state while only the lifeforce energy passing through us kept its golden hue.

I could feel the energies much better when my aura seeped into the world around me; my arcane sense seemed to resonate with my aura, using it as a conduit to spread better and give me a clearer picture of how everything worked. I could feel the life seeping into Rhea from my hand; it seemed to spread everywhere in her body, but after cycling a couple of times I saw that it concentrated in her belly and the last of her ribs. It took a minute, but after that we heard a pop and a crack, then she took a big breath.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

"Oh spirits! That was good, thank you Elias, I think I had a rib pressing on my lung or something like that, now it's so much better…" She punctuated it by taking another large breath.

"Good, probably you had some bruises too, I can see the energy focusing on your abdomen as well. But open your notifications, if you got as many achievements as I think, you are in for a blast, and the extra stats will help with the recovery." She smiled.

"Ok, let's do it." I saw her eyes focusing on her interface. I couldn't see it, but I could imagine it. After a moment I could feel something from her; she was still in my aura, and I was still pouring lifeforce into her, but changes were starting to appear in the way the energy was flowing. It was fascinating, and difficult to explain. I didn't have the knowledge to understand what was going on, but the achievements she got were making a huge difference in her body.

Externally she didn't change at all, but inside I could feel like her energy was saturating her body. There was more mana, more lifeforce, her natural one; I couldn't perceive where this was coming from, but the change was impossible not to notice. She resisted the intrusion of my aura better too, without actively doing anything. There was a lot to unpack here, how the System worked and how our body was now linked to energy, mana, or whatever other form—maybe there were many more, different and better, or worse.

I didn't know, but in any case, the System was providing us with the means to become something else, to gain powers we never even imagined before. I didn't know why or how, but I was grateful for it, despite the difficulty of the challenge in front of us. The hope it gave me was something that I had never felt before. Maybe that's why my mood improved so much recently; I had much fewer destructive thoughts despite the problems we faced constantly and the annoying people at the camp.

It was good to feel the myriad of possibilities in front of me, and the feeling of growth given by the level ups and achievements was the most addictive drug that could be found. Rhea moaned in pleasure; the feeling of lifeforce plus the influx of stats was probably too much to stay silent. I got somewhat used to it, but she didn't. As I looked at her in the eyes, she came back to herself, then she blushed furiously and turned around. I chuckled, "I see you got something good, care to tell me?"

She swatted me on the arm; with the armour I didn't feel anything, but the gesture was clear.

"I-it just took me by surprise… anyway… I got a lot from this. The queen was indeed a baron, and level 99. I got a lot of achievements, for killing a baron solo, for some reason, even if I couldn't have done it without you… then for killing with a single spell, for killing more than a hundred spiders with a single spell in a single battle, and I got a couple of achievements for doing it with a single ritual… it's… it's really a lot."

She sat up, now very close to my face, then she put her arms around my neck, hugging me tight despite the armour.

"Thank you, Eli… I couldn't have done any of this without you, you gave me the means not to be a burden anymore… I swear I will repay the favour, somehow…" I retracted my armour and my aura, only my senses were still active; there was no enemy around. Then I hugged her too.

"You have never been a burden, Rhea. I don't know why you think that way, but I know I can count on you. Know that you can count on me, whatever the situation." She hugged me tighter and rested her head on my shoulder; she was crying. What happened to her in the past to give her this inferiority complex and need to prove herself? I had no idea, but I'm sure she'll get over it, and when the time was right she would open up. She was becoming too important to me to leave her fending for herself.

Because she knew my secret, and for her capabilities. Now she was the strongest person here in the group, and if given preparation time she could probably take me down too. I would do whatever it takes to keep her by my side, be it acting as moral support or more. Now I only needed to move forward. I looked up at the sky, it should be mid-morning. Then I remembered the quest countdown; since I woke up, only three and a half hours had passed.

Maybe we wouldn't be able to exit the valley, but now that Rhea was boosted by the achievements we could explore a bit more and move faster. I just had to manage to get her to detach from me… I'm sure it will be any minute now.