Chapter 11 – Injured (1)

Chapter 11 – Injured (1)

The spectral chains around him answered his call, but they weren’t just ghosts any longer. Sold metal links clanked and ground against each other as they shot towards the soldier, snaking their way around its chitinous armor. Then, Rowan clenched his fist.

The ant’s armor strained under the pressure, but it still held. Then, the steel links began to fracture—first one, and then another. Soon, fissures had appeared all across the shifting chains.

Realizing the clock was ticking, he moved. Rowan crawled on all fours, crying out in pain as he slid open wounds across the rough stone floor.

He reached out with a shaking hand and felt the cold metal of the mace in his palm.

As he turned around to attack the ant, the first chain shattered. Shards of metal burst apart, only to dissipate into blue particles as the shell of steel fell apart, leaving only links of ethereal light, a mere ghost of what once was.

Yet, despite its dire injuries, the soldier strained further, and another shattered.

Rising up on a shaky, bloodied leg, Rowan hefted the mace. He brought it down on the cracked armor of the insect’s head.

Then, he did it again. A third chain broke. Only two remained.

Even as the ant rose to meet him, no longer fully constrained by the chains, he let out one final cry of defiance, stabbing the mace into the ant’s eyes again and again, each thrust forcing the weapon deeper into the insect’s head.

[You have slain Soldier Ant – Level 6]

—

He was assaulted with wave after wave of pain the moment he regained consciousness, tearing him from the warm embrace of sleep.

Clenching his teeth, Rowan opened his bleary eyes, trying to take stock of the situation. He was lying in a pool of bodily fluids—a mix of his own blood and the milky yellow ichor of the ant in which his mace rested as well.

The liquids had already soaked through his pants, but it didn’t really matter; they were ruined anyway.

After confirming there were no immediate threats, he turned his attention back to his own body. His torso and arms were fine, but his legs…Rowan cringed at the sight.

They were mangled almost beyond recognition. Sure, they still looked like legs, but a good half of his legs were barely visible beneath a layer of red. It seemed like every few inches, another chunk of flesh was missing.

“Fuck…” Rowan let out a growl as he tried to shift his body, eliciting a jolt of agony.

When he remained still, the pain was manageable, but when he moved, it was far, far worse.

At least it looked like the bleeding was coming to an end. Most of the smaller wounds had stopped altogether, with the larger ones still trickling blood. It seemed that his stats were doing him some good.

Taking a few deep breaths, he went over the notifications he’d received during and after the fight, searching for anything to take his mind off the pain.

[Mana Manipulation lvl 3 → Mana Manipulation lvl 4]

[Bind lvl 1 → Bind lvl 2]

[You have slain Soldier Ant – Level 6]

[Level 2 → Level 3]

Rowan blinked in surprise. He hadn’t realized [Bind] had leveled up. He supposed it made sense, but he’d missed it in the chaos of the fight.

Looking at the final notification, he felt a small smile creep onto his face. That level was probably what’d stopped him from bleeding out. Leveling up automatically put points into vitality and toughness. If it had instead given him purely free points, he doubted he’d be alive.

Name: Rowan Crowe

Race: Human

Class: Chained Lord (Inheritance)

Level: 3

Stats:

Strength: 9

Dexterity: 7

Toughness: 10

Vitality: 9

Mana: 7

Free Points: 1

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Active Skills(2/10):

Bind lvl 2

Mana Manipulation lvl 4

Passive Skills(0/10):