Chapter 21 – Bloodspawn (4)

Chapter 21 – Bloodspawn (4)

Rowan hissed as the rot continued to eat away at his wound, the flesh of his forearm turning black.

With the adrenaline fading, the pain hit him, and it was agonizing.

After a few moments of just staring at the small gash in his arm, hoping it would miraculously stop, he realized what he needed to do.

Glancing at the fading blade of mana in his hand, he brought it to his arm. He couldn’t hesitate; if he did, the blade would dissipate, and he didn’t have nearly enough mana to create a new one.

So, Rowan sliced into his own arm, screaming through clenched teeth. But his flesh was durable. Frustratingly so.

And then, finally, after what seemed like an eternity of pain, his blade sliced through. A moment later, a chunk of flesh fell to the cave floor.

Rowan panted, clutching his bloody arm. But somehow, despite the wound growing in length to several inches, it hurt less than before.

After a few seconds, he looked about, searching for something to bandage the wound with. But his clothes were in tatters, most of them already gone. Even the few parts with enough fabric to properly bandage something were soaked with blood and ichor.

He muttered a curse and gave up on the idea. He would just have to live with it for now.

Leaning back against the cave wall, he grabbed his waterskin, allowing himself a sip of the precious liquid within that had somehow managed to become even more valuable just a few hours earlier.

With his arm injured and out of mana, he wasn’t in condition to be fighting anytime soon. So, with nothing better to do, he sat down and observed the infected flesh he’d separated from his body.

—

A few hours later, Rowan stood up. His arm’s bleeding had been reduced to a trickle thanks to his vitality.

As for the chunk of flesh, it had continued to wither away, and now, it was only half the size and completely blackened.

His mana was also recovering, and while he’d only regenerated about a third of it, he had enough to use his chains and a mana blade or two.

Speaking of his mana constructs, he’d decided to try making and controlling multiple at the same time once his mana was full.

Until then, he would keep moving. With his water situation more dire than ever, he needed to either find more enemies or, even better, find a water source.

As he walked, he ate from the bag at his waist. He’d already determined which of the dried fruits and meats were his favorite, and had been carefully rationing them.

But, after the last fight, he figured he could reward himself by having a few of the best fruits. He had yet to find a fruit that he could recognize, but Rowan just shrugged. It didn’t matter; they still tasted good.

He continued through the tunnels, checking every vine he came across for vine stranglers and straining his ears for the sound of more bloodpawn.

Then, after hours of wandering, he heard it. Not the cries of the fleshy amalgamation of the caves. No, when he truly focused, he could hear the trickle of water.

But, in his distraction and elation, he didn’t see the beast charging him until it was nearly too late.

As the doglike Bloodpsawn leaped through the air, soaring towards him, he swept his mace upward. The weapon caught the beast under the chin with a sickening crack.

Then, the Bloodspawn flew into the wall with another crack.

Rowan readied himself for the creature to charge him once more, but it didn’t.

[You have slain Fungal Bloodspawn – Level 2]

That had been…anticlimactic.

Still, it was nice to see what his power could do to a lower-level enemy. Rowan shook his head. To think that just days earlier, the creature would’ve posed a massive threat to him.

But he couldn’t get complacent, even against such weak enemies. The Bloodspawn still had the poison on their claws, and if he hadn’t noticed the beast in time, he could’ve very well lost his life.

Before he could turn his attention back to the water, he heard screeches coming from far ahead. Humanoid Bloodpsawn.

Glancing up, Rowan summoned a blade of mana as the two beasts charged him. Quickly, he focused on them, trying to see their levels before they were upon him.

[Fungal Bloodspawn – Level 7]

[Fungal Bloodspawn – Level 5]

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Immediately, chains sprang to life, leaping towards the two beasts. But the moment the creatures saw the steel links, they slowed down, advancing far more carefully.

Rowan tilted his head. The other pair of Bloodspawn he’d fought hadn’t reacted like this to his chains. In fact, they’d practically ignored them until they were already bound. Still confused, he extended the chains further, the links snaking towards the humanoids.

But, as the chains approached, the two creatures retreated, claws held in something resembling defensive positions.

It was actually a relief that he could hold them off and take some time to think before engaging. But that relief was far outweighed by something else: the thought that the Bloodspawn were smart enough to know and avoid the danger of the chains, even if the last two he’d fought hadn’t.

And though the bloodspawn were kept at bay, he could by no means keep this up; the duo was far enough away that maintaining the chains was devastating his mana pool.