First Technique • 1
I came down the tree and sat on a boulder, which was not too far from the cave's entrance. I needed to rearrange my thoughts about what I should do next.
From what I learned from Diego, him leaving me here to learn something wasn't so out of the ordinary, but this could also mean that I was a hindrance to the scouting mission, so he placed me here.
Of course, this wasn't something that I should stress about. After all, I could easily get out of this forest by using [Dimensional Shift]… but I decided not to do that.
"Let's wait for the night." I muttered to myself.
Diego could return at any moment, and the text on the cave wall might tell that, so I decided to wait and not act hurriedly.
In the meantime, "[Status Window]"
[ Ethan Hoarder
Mp: 10/10
Race: Human
Class: Dimensional Traveler
=—————=
Traits: [Advanced Learner] ~ [Adapt]
=—————=
Skills: Mirage Movement ⌜1⌟ ~ Heavy Attack ⌜2⌟ ~ Focused Unsheathing ⌜4⌟ ~ Quick Dash ⌜2⌟ ~ Swift Slash ⌜3⌟ ~ Dimensional Shift ⌜Max⌟ ]
From time to time in my free time, I would use my skills in order to level them up. This process, although very slow due to my low mana capacity, could become helpful in unexpected situations.
There weren't many things for me to do in my position. Venturing into the foggy forest, which I had no knowledge about, was both deadly and out of the question. And of course, I couldn't use my mana to level up my skills, since I might need it in an unexpected situation… but there was one thing that I could do.
I came down off the boulder, and unsheathed my sword from my belt. It didn't take me much before I could immerse myself into the formation that I used to train with Diego.
It was calming and brought me smiles, as I was swinging my sword towards the foggy atmosphere. The paths in which my blade should go were all shown to my eyes and senses, and following them was nothing short of easy… though something was bothering me.
No matter how perfectly I was following the pattern and reacting accordingly, I felt like it wasn't a success. It wasn't because of me, or my understanding… it was something external.
I continued the training for hours, as I felt my swordsmanship grow with each swing… until I heard an ominous noise.
Of course, noises weren't uncommon in a normal forest… but I wasn't in a normal forest. It had been a while since I heard anything after I entered the forest.
With a sense for danger from my many dungeon-cleaning experiences, I hurriedly went on guard, and started looking at the walls of fog, surrounding the perimeter. The branches' shadows were slowly moving around, despite no wind being made.
From the fog, small branches were slowly moving forward, much like a living being… which made me realize what I was dealing with, instantly.
Crank-! Tree Ents were D-rank monsters, that looked like small trees and bushes. Despite their lack of strength and agility, their presence was almost impossible to detect in forest-type dungeons, so even the most expert needed to keep an eye out for their ambush.
I moved the point of my blade towards the Ent that was coming towards me. I was confident that I could kill a D-rank monster with the skills and abilities I had learned, but there was a slight worry still within me.
Thud-! [ Skill "Quick Dash ⌜2⌟" Activated ]
I ran towards the Ent to be the first attacker, and met with the Ent's branches that blocked my attack and attacked me from multiple sides.
I was both dodging and attacking the Ent with the bare minimum of my stamina—not because I was hindered, but because I could. The pattern of the Ent's attacks was too easy to understand, almost too easy, and I could see the path I needed to take in order to counter it.
The lingering worry in my heart disappeared, as it was replaced with confidence by my every advantage in the battle. These were all thanks to Diego's teaching, and I knew that very well.
Slash-! It didn't take me long to cut through the wooden body of the monster in front of me with my elegant sword movements. I bent down on my knees and grabbed the mana stone that it dropped, quickly out of habit, and placed it in my pocket.
"This was easy." I said with a smile… though I said it too soon.
Not too long after, many noises started to appear from within the fog, much louder than previously. Many moving branches caused shadows on the slowly dimming fog, and were getting closer to the visible side.
A swarm of Ents, almost uncountable, was coming ahead with no means to stop.
At that very moment, my bloated confidence caused by defeating a single Tree Ent crashed down on me. One or two Tree Ents? Sure, I could deal with them. However, dealing with more than that was nothing short of suicide.
"I need to get out of here." I said, stating the obvious.
I closed my eyes, pictured the town of Arkena, and slowly muttered, "[Dimensional Shift]"
[ Skill "Dimensional Shift ⌜Max⌟" Cannot be Activated in Combat ]
Activating conditions were requirements that an awakener needed to provide in order to use a skill—like how skills needed mana, or could only be activated after a set period of time… but not all skill activation conditions were written on the [Status Window].
There were hidden conditions that one could only know beforehand, or after using a skill—just like how a magician couldn't use the [Fireball] skill in the water, or how I could only use the [Focused Unsheathing] skill by moving a blade weapon for the first time.
With my pale expression, I looked towards the swarm of Ents that were getting closer to me with each second… I knew exactly what I needed to do.
I located a path with the least amount of Tree Ents occupying it, and ran ahead without thinking too much. I jumped on the Ents' heads and dodged their attacks with everything I had. Despite some of their attacks hitting me, I couldn't do anything but run for my survival.