Day XIV: Sharing some Secrets

The Sphere pulsed 26 times. There was a slight pause after three, as if to let me know the rest between 3 and 26 are different. In the end, I calculated that the fishmen were each worth 120 points.

[3 060]

[180]

....

[3 240]

I immediately thought of my eyes and face. It was still incredibly painful.

[11 540 points]

"For fuck's sake!"

Needless to say, I was pissed.

"Then how much for just the eyes?"

[4 500 points]

If I could roll my eyes, I would. If my face cost 7000 points to fix, then it must have been severely disfigured. Maybe I shouldn't fix my eyes until I can fix everything else? All this also made me wonder just how much points Marcus had to have when he healed himself from the Owlbear attack. My face could also be more expensive to heal because the anatomy is more intricate? I had no idea. It it wasn't for my peak constitution, then I would probably be dead.

If it weren't for my mind stat, then I would probably just rush to fix my appearance, but I should think what is best in the long run. Tomorrow morning, if I could get another 3000 points, then I can fix my vision. Then I should go to the mountain and grind the yellow goblins down to fix my face. I could even explore the cave by then.

[Echo Sense]

I previously upgraded the frequency four times, and now it took 6 seconds for me to charge my mind and use it again. I never knew how long it would take to charge if it were never upgraded. I decided to push a few upgrades into it and find out.

By a few upgrades, I meant that I went as far as I could. In the end, I could only upgrade it six more times before it got maxed. It cost me 1 800 points.

[1 440]

Then I grabbed myself [Essential Nutrition] for 200 points. I actually wanted [Good Nutrition] because I felt better overall when I took it. Unfortunately, I really needed to save.

My mind left the dream-like state, and I woke up to the soundless forest.

——————————————————

"So not enought yet?" I heard Ben's voice as I sat up from the ground.

"It costs 4000 points to fix my eyes. I only got a little more than 3000 points from yesterday."

"Damn thats expensive" I heard Izak's voice.

"The lightbulb shouldn't ask that much points for such a mediocre face" Samuel made another unwelcome joke which made many giggle. I wanted to punch him even though I almost laughed.

"Everyone ready to repeat yesterday? Everyone should be much stronger now." Ben asked.

I used Echo Sense and saw everyone's faces, they all looked proud.

"Huh?" My mouth was probably open with surprise.

"What is it?" Izak asked.

I sent another pulse with Echo Sense. Tian stood closer than the rest and waited for my answer.

It wasn't even two seconds and my mind was charged up with concentration to make another Echo Sense pulse.

'A little less than two seconds…' I thought.

"Nothing, I just forgot what happened yesterday. My head is killing me."

I didn't lie. My head felt like bursting with all the pain. Tian said something that really surprised me.

"Guys, when I wanted to upgrade my dexterity last night, it cost me 1000 points instead of 30. Any idea what is going on?"

Samuel looked shocked, but some didn't.

"The same for me. I still have about 5000 spare points now, with my strength also costing 1000 per upgrade. It's ridiculous." Izak followed up.

"It seems that we have reached some type of threshold. I presume Jack has reached the same with his stamina or constitution" Old Man Ben said, and everyone looked at me.

I hesitated, but I decided to partially reveal my invested stats. Everyone nodded and seemed curious when I looked through my Echo Sense.

"Yes I did. I think that the threshold is what's genetically or humanly possible to achieve through life-long training. At least, that is what makes sense to me. I feel like a marathon runner with my stamina."

Right now, my Echo Sense was like a pulsing radar, where I didn't see everything, but felt it. It's a really strange experience.

We made our way to the pond in the clearing again. Ben with his grey beard stood in front.

We assumed the same fighting stance as before. This time, I wanted to get a lot more kills than yesterday. I wondered if there are any severe weaknesses to these fishmen, but I gave up on the idea because we were all a lot stronger than them.

I was sure of one thing: I would hate to see these things with my own eyes. They looked absolutely disgusting through my Echo Sense.

I decided not to play around this time and focus om killing as much as I can. This will most likely raise suspicion on my Echo Sense, which is what I want.

My reasoning is: they will soon figure out what the Sphere upgrade does. If they hunt together here regularly, then they would reach 10 000 spare points very soon.

Would I rather have supernatural powered people who trust me, or ones that don't? I'm playing the long game by revealing my cards.

"After this, I will explain one of my secrets. But this time, you don't have to guard me." I was sure they all looked confused, and wanted to protest. I simply spoke before they could.

"Samuel, stand and fight next to me. Let's all form a circle around the pond and keep them boxed in. Just stay about 5 meters away from the pond. Trust me on this."

"I have no idea wether you're stupid or if you have lost your mind, but fine. If all goes to shit, then everybody run" and everyone affirmed Old Man Ben's orders. He went forward, touched the water, and then ran back.

I heard water bubbles, and waited for their entrance to start using Echo Sense.

A spray of water erupted before I used Echo Sense. The first wave of 8 fishmen were leaped out in the air, their slimy forms catching the light of dawn. Limbs flailed in jerky, unnatural motions, their bodies coiling like snakes in the air.

Once I heard them land, I could use the next Echo Sense again. There was on directly in front of me.

I swung wide upwards. My club met something firm—its skull. The crunch vibrated up my arm as the creature dropped in time for another Echo Pulse. It was gurgling in its own blood. Another landed nearby, clawed feet slapping against the mud, and I twisted mid-step, Echo Sense already showing its arm raised for a swipe. I ducked, smashing my weapon into its ribs, feeling bones snap.

My Echo Sense was pulsing about every 1 and a half seconds. It was so much easier to keep track. In a strange way, it was easier to notice their movements and strikes with Echo Sense in comparison with my eyes.

To my right, Izak was a blur as his muscles were pumping with power, his club slamming into a fishman's stomach before he spun and cracked another's jaw. I only saw it in flashes of Echo Sense, almost like going to a nightclub with a bright flashing light.

Samuel fought like a brawler, each of his strikes backed by sheer brute force. A fishman leaped onto his back—he roared and slammed himself backward into the dirt, crushing the thing beneath him.

The fight exploded into chaos.

Echo Sense pulsed. More fishmen were spilling out of the pond, some crawling on all fours, others leaping at us like deranged frogs. A distant crack told me Ben had just shattered a skull, unfortunately it was outside my Echo Sense range.

Tian ducked under a clawed swing and drove his club up in a brutal uppercut smash, sending his enemy twitching to the ground.

Another fishman rushed me. I barely had time to angle my body before it jumped onto my shoulders, its slick hands clawing at my face. I twisted with the momentum to get my my shoulders out in front of him, slamming my elbow into its stomach. It gurgled and I used the chance to throw him into the ground. My club came down, ending its struggle.

Samuel cursed as two lunged at him at once. One clawed his shoulder while the other tackled his legs. Before I could move, Tian was there, his club cracking against the back of a fishman's skull. Samuel shoved the second away and finished it with a heavy blow to the temple.

We fought like desperately, but still in control. It felt great, comforting, and empowering to fight as a team.

Fifteen dead.

Echo Sense fired off. Another pulse. More shapes formed in my mind. The fishmen were adapting. They weren't blindly charging anymore. Instead, they spread out, circling, testing. A deep croak rumbled from the pond, and another wave erupted—at least twenty this time.

Ben barked orders, but we barely needed them. We all saw the danger.

Izak was fast, weaving through attacks and retaliating with brutal efficiency. Tian fought methodically, his strikes precise. Ben fought like he'd done this a thousand times, his club snapping bones with every calculated swing.

I sensed one behind me through Echo Sense, I didn't even hear him. I spun, swinging low. My club connected with its knee, and it collapsed with a shriek. I ended it with a stomp. Another came at me immediately, lunging for my throat. I sidestepped, barely, and smashed its temple before it could recover. I dashed to kill four more that were surrounding one of the guys I had yet to learn the name of.

Forty dead.

The fight was turning savage. Blood and mud mixed beneath us, our feet slipping in the mess. Echo Sense painted a world of movement—figures swarming, weapons swinging, bodies dropping. Every second mattered.

Unfortunately, my head started to pain. My face was constantly in pain and discomfort with the swelling, but this new pain was like the fatigue from yesterday.

More fishmen crawled out of the pond, but their numbers were thinning.

Samuel took a claw to the forearm but roared through the pain, bashing his attacker into the dirt. Izak rolled under a lunging fishman and cracked its spine from behind. Ben caught one mid-leap, using its momentum to swing it sideways into another.

Sixty dead.

I exhaled. The world pulsed in my mind again, accompanied with pain. My breathing matched the rhythm.

I sidestepped a claw swipe. Cracked a skull. Twisted. Smashed another. Moved again.

We were a machine. But I realised some were already growing tired from the constant battle. Samuel looked more tired than the rest. I still felt fine stamina-wise.

The last twenty came in desperation, but we were also desperate to end this.

One tackled Tian, but Samuel's club sent it flying before it could bite down. Izak jumped onto a fishman's back, using the extra weight to drive his club down into the skull. He had to bash the fishman's head with the club while they were on the ground. It was almost like looking at someone making mashed potatoes.

I moved around as I finished a few off. I saw Ben swing wide, breaking two skulls in a single stroke. He looked dead tired.

Eighty dead.

The last of them screeched. They hesitated.

They knew.

One tried to retreat into the water—I chased it. My club found its spine before it could dive. Another turned, but Tian was already there, caving in its ribs.

I caught the final one mid-sprint. It lunged. My club met its open mouth. Teeth shattered. It collapsed.

One hundred dead.

Silence..

Echo Sense pulsed one last time, and for the first time since the fight began—there was nothing except us and a hundred bodies. It was weird, since my entire Echo Sense range was a floor full of fishmen bodies. It looked really rediculous, like some grand battlefield.

Sill and lifeless.

I exhaled and moved away from the group of dead bodies. Echo Sense showed that everyone did the same and went to the same side.

I sat down, and stopped using Echo Sense. Samuel fell next to me, completely spent if I listen to his breathing.

"So, about that promise…"

I could hear their baited breath. Their panting halting momentarily for my words. I knew they were astonished by my performance. No blind, injured person can fight like I did today.

"Once you reach 10 000 points. Upgrade your Sphere. You get a few options between some powers. I just call them skills since its like a game. I chose a power that lets me sense my surroundings, but I had to upgrade it to reach this level of efficiency"

No one talked, probably from disbelief. I heard someone mumble, but Izak was the first to speak.

"WHAT!!! WHAT POWER? WHAT ARE THERE TO CHOOSE!"

I could swear that Ben hit him over the head, because I heard a smacking sound, before his grunt.

"I got 10 options. I don't know if you'll get others. But essentially, don't pick Echo Sense. If I knew you could upgrade your skills further, then the other options would give you major advantages to survive. You'll know the basics of the power when you upgrade. Every power has a plateau as far as I confirmed. I could't upgrade my max sensing range past 10 upgrades."

Everyone was silent. It made me nervous, so I used Echo Sense, with some pain, to see their faces dimly.

Luckily, some looked excited to get powers, but I could see concern on Ben's face.

"This would cause trouble when Travis learns about it. I know you're buddies with him, and I understand why, but please tell me that you haven't tell him yet." Ben's question sounded like a plead.

I confirmed to him that I haven't by shaking my head.

I heard him exhale loudly.

"Please don't tell anyone there for now. I'm afraid things are going to get a lot worse after what Tessa did."

"Do you know who were the others that helped her? Frankly speaking, I want to avoid that clearing after what happened." I responded to him.

I could hear the other guys talking to each other, discussing names and trying to figure out who could be in on it.

"I don't know for certain, only a few faces. How about we form an alliance? I may seem like the leader here, but we all take part to protect each other and make decisions."

It sounded hypocritical, after he made a call yesterday in order to hide i formation of the mountain cave after opposition of the idea was squashed by Izak.

"I'm not to keen on any formal things like that. But I won't backstab any of you or sell you all out if that's what you're afraid off."

"Sure. Are we fine with that?" I assumed he talked to the rest.

I heard everyone affirm and say yes. So that was sorted.

Eventually, we all got up. We went to drink some water at the pond. Luckily, no blood seeped into it, but there was really a lot of blood in the mud everywhere between the bodies. There were even a few blood puddles.

After we drank, we they did something I never considered. They were bathing themselves in the water.

"Are you guys sure?" I asked. If I had eyes and a forehead, my brows would have been raised.

"Just get in already! Just careful for the tunnel in the middle" Izak and Tian grabbed me and threw me it. I was about waist deep all around, according to my Echo Sense. I couldn't see the end of the curved water tunnel, but it was wide enough to swim through.

I bathed and got all the blood and mud off. I felt like a new person. To be honest, it felt amazing.

"This is fucking awesome" I relaxed into the pond.

After almost an hour of bathing and chilling in the water, we got out.

Now, we would have to go and confront the people at the first Clearing…