Chapter 39 – From Within the Chains (2)

Chapter 39 – From Within the Chains (2)

The first thing Rowan felt when he woke up was pain. It, along with what he’d experienced just before he’d blacked out, eclipsed anything he’d felt before. His entire body cried out, but two spots screamed louder than the rest. His arm and his head.

His right arm was mangled, the bones shattered and ligaments torn. But there were no visible injuries on his head.

Whatever was ailing him was deep within his mind. But for now, there was nothing he could do but wait.

—

As time marched onward, Rowan endured wave upon wave of excruciating pain. But, slowly, the throbbing in his head began to fade. And soon, it had dropped to a level where he could think properly, if by the thinnest of margins.

In that moment, still assailed by unrelenting waves of agony from his arm, he searched for something, anything, to anchor him. And he found his mana. He watched as the collection of it in his chest slowly grew, energy trickling in. He tried to manipulate it, but the pain was just too much.

—

Rowan was drawn back to reality by the sound of bloodspawn.

Cracking his eyes open, he pushed through the pain and tried to concentrate on what he was facing. A lone humanoid was making its way toward him. But it was limping, its leg already injured.

His mental state had recovered enough to somewhat manipulate his mana, so Rowan began to compress the energy within his pathways.

The bloodspawn continued to close the distance, but he waited, letting it grow ever closer.

It was only once it was already bending over to attack him that he let his mana loose.

The burst of energy struck the creature’s head, snapping it back. A crack rang out, and the beast spun backward, flying through the air. Then, it collapsed.

[You have slain Fungal Bloodspawn – Level 5]

Despite how his mind was recovering, with how exhausted it already was, the simple manipulation of mana had still been more than enough to drain him.

So he turned his attention back toward the now slightly depleted store mana gathering in his chest, watching it grow.

—

Still observing the swirling mass of energy, Rowan used its growth to measure time passing. Soon, though, he wouldn’t be able to do that for any longer. His mana pool was nearly full.

He couldn’t be sure, but that meant he had probably spent a full day just lying on the stone floor, unable to do much more than breathe.

A single creature had stumbled upon him during that time, but other than that one, he’d been able to rest in peace.

In a way, he thought he ought to thank the presence. Despite everything else it’d done to him, it had moved his body far from his destination, far enough away that there were few bloodspawn.

If the being hadn’t moved him, there would’ve been a much greater chance of other bloodspawn stumbling upon and killing him.

With that simple action, it had likely saved his life. That meant it’d done so twice now.

But he didn’t care. Even if it had saved him, it wasn’t for his benefit. Whatever the being was, it had its own agenda, and Rowan did not like it. It had tried to take over his body, and that was unforgivable.

If he was being honest, it hadn’t been until his freedom was about to be stripped away from him that he realized how much he valued the agency granted by the System.

He still wasn’t fully free, though. After all, not only did he rely on the System for his rations, but it was also the source of his power. But while it wasn’t exactly fair, unlike his bosses and most of the people in control back on Earth, he hadn’t seen it acting in its own self-interest. He could live with it.

When he’d first arrived in the Tutorial, he’d harbored resentment against the System, it had forced him into Apocalypse Difficulty, nearly killing him time after time. But since then, his views had changed. Despite all of the risks that came along with Apocalypse, there was also opportunity. Opportunity for more power.

He would’ve gained strength in the other difficulties, too; there was no doubt about that. But as much as he had here? Rowan doubted that. And if he knew how humans worked, he knew that even with the System, not everyone would be able to do what they liked.

Most would still be insects beneath those who were truly powerful. Insects to be crushed or used or any manner of other things.

And those insects would have to rely on their rulers just to live. But after everything, all they could do was hope that those above them didn’t decide that their time had come to an end.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

He didn’t want to be one of those insects. And Apocalypse Difficulty had come with more than just hardships and opportunities for power; despite the moments of despair or loneliness, Rowan had found himself genuinely enjoying himself.

Even when he was fighting with his life on the line. Especially when he was fighting with his life on the line.

If someone had gone back and told the him from before the Tutorial this, he would’ve called them crazy.

He wasn’t sure how long he’d spent in the caves, but it couldn’t have been longer than a couple of months. And still, he’d changed so much in that short span of time. Or perhaps he’d always been that way, and the arrival of the System had simply brought out the true him.

So, in spite of everything, Rowan really had no hard feelings toward the System.