It had been a rough few days for Aidan, but the days eventually passed when he finally got out of bed from his fight against the Matriarch.
Throughout the days, he laid in bed while recovering from his horrific injuries. Normally, he would say they were horrific, but his mind never really considered them bad enough to feel that way. If he was honest, it felt foreign to him, as though it was happening to someone else.
Still, to be treated so well by Haley and Yin while he was in bed as the town recovered from the demonic attack was enough to teach him that it was his current reality.
Of course, despite being stuck in bed most of the time, he was still able to view the current happenings of the city around him. All thanks to Soul Meditation, he was easily able to keep an eye on everyone from the sky, so he never really felt like he was out of the loop. Sometimes he would surprise Haley when Aidan already found out about the interesting things she encountered in the city, and the stuff she had no clue about considering they were far enough away from public view.
Needless to say, it was hell on the streets. Not to the point where everything was bad, but that it was so busy that one little accident could cause a whole array of problems. Many buildings, infrastructures, and necessary implements of the city were damaged, and that included all the magical arrays that were keeping them alive with energy. In a way, it was similar to a power outage on a massive scale, where important generators were damaged due to a natural disaster. And a demonic threat definitely counted as one such disaster as there were also multiple casualties.
Still, the city never lost hope, and like every human civilization throughout history, they got to work and rebuild what was lost. Fortunately for the citizens of Forontia, their great and mighty savior saved the day when it came to handling resources and proper management.
That was none other than Nina Alcatrox.
Her name was on every person’s lips every day as she personally sent emergency support from all sides, including handling the extra lumber and stone needed for construction efforts, sending supplies of food and water for everyone starving, medicine for the sick and injured who weren’t able to get a healer by their side, and many other aspects that the common people of the city couldn’t live without.
Not only that, she supposedly sent some professionals from the adventurers’ guild to act as security when their defenses were so lax during this downtime, stopping many ongoing crimes that could’ve happened and making things worse. There were also rumors about her holding talks with other contacts outside of the city, eventually bringing in supplies for trade to keep their economy going.
Whenever he heard about this, Aidan kept reminding himself that Nina worked quite a lot behind the scenes. The reason why everyone no longer cared about her background of being ruthless and cutthroat was simple. It was thanks to him.
Honestly, he always felt embarrassed whenever they brought his name up as though he was some guardian angel protecting the city. Everyone claimed that he was Nina’s go-to man, her guardian and confidant, who selflessly acted in everyone’s best interest at the risk of his life. It only made things more believable since he got injured throughout it all. Thanks to that, her popularity skyrocketed and her work was handled easily even without him helping out.
He wouldn’t say that he felt bad since he knew more than everyone that Nina was just milking this as much as she could to get the upper hand, and would probably be put into an important leadership role within the city at one point or another. If not, then at least as a powerful figurehead of her own right, reaching the same level of authority as the gangs that once plagued the city.
As for the gangs themselves, something that Aidan was quickly interested in when he got enough energy to spy around, the Red Riot was apparently no more. The Horrors that attacked the city first arrived in the Grim Corner, particularly within the Dark Zone where the Red Riot and several other gang members around the vicinity were unfortunately hit with an attack that left them completely hung to dry.
Of course, the one who did the attack was Aidan himself when they kidnapped Haley and decided to fuck around. He did certainly plan on wiping out the gang at the time, but he was filled with so much adrenaline that he never really thought about the consequences of his actions. Now knowing that he was the reason why the Red Riot was basically wiped out thanks to the Horrors hitting them where it hurts, he felt a little…well, not guilty, but responsible.
He was definitely responsible, but it kinda hit him where he didn’t expect it to. Either way, he didn’t really care, and was actually curious about the leader named Volburn when he last checked. It turned out that he died, his body ripped apart in a hidden corner of the destroyed Dark Zone where barely anyone visited. A pitiful way to die, but expected from someone who had committed crimes on a daily basis and made a name for himself through fear.
Thanks to that, it was said that Nina personally wiped out Red Riot from existence for messing with her after constantly harassing her store and employees, making herself even more infamous, but in a good way. As for the other gangs, the Chainlords and the Stained Brotherhood, they were left hidden away from the public eye, recovering from their losses caused by the damage done within the Grim Corner.
They were definitely active, but limiting their actions to a minimum and staying out of sight from the increased security that now flooded the Grim Corner under Nina’s control. Aidan expected them to still be around, if only under Nina’s control. She aimed to keep them around to make her own dealings on the downlow, like any respectable corrupt politician would.
As for Aidan, he mostly kept his attention to the going-ons in the city, mostly keeping an eye on Haley, Van, Yin the high elf, and even the Wise Guys who took control of the clean up within the city.
Then after a few days of rest, Aidan was out and about, ready to do what he could.
As for his current state, he was still amputated, only having one arm and one leg. The initial rest was to get used to the period of weakness he had to go through due to the enhancement pill he took in order to take down the Matriarch. While he was supremely thankful to Madam Welsh for providing such a powerful and useful pill, he swore to never take another one again for as long as he lived, or at least as long as he could handle.
The period was a major bitch to go through, making him feel like every part of his body was worn down and out of energy. His mana flow was also out of whack, making him all bugged out and weird. It took him several days while laying in bed just to get acquainted with this feeling before he had the confidence to get up on his single foot to walk.
He made himself a prosthetic leg made out of earth for his missing leg, but he kept his stump for an arm bare. He didn’t particularly need any help as he could still cast his magic, even if it was out of sorts. That still didn’t stop Haley and Yin from showing a lot of concern and practically acting like nurses staying by his side.
He was thankful, for sure, but he just felt so guilty about it, even though Haley constantly mentioned that without him, nobody would even be alive right now. He didn’t even feel like that was anything to even mention, considering that he sort of had to in order to follow Nina’s demands.
His feelings aside, he knew that Nina was a competent person to fall behind, and with her vast knowledge and connections, he knew that following her would only benefit him. All he needed to do was provide the muscle she needed to do her little conquest of the entire world.
Nothing too bad.
Still, he was extremely injured after the fight with the Matriarch, even though he received a lot in return. While he gained a lot of levels from the fight, losing an arm and a leg would normally be considered pretty horrific.
But that wasn’t even the worst part. Even now, his cut off limbs were covered in a strange dark substance that covered his skin, making regeneration nearly impossible to do. He tried to cast Heal multiple times, knowing full well that he could actually recover his limbs, but thanks to this dark energy, it proved impossible to do.
Though he knew the reason why this dark energy hadn’t taken his life by now was solely due to the fact that he kept his harmony in check, keeping the energy away from his soul. If he had to call this energy anything, it would be called residual curse energy, or maybe demonic energy. Either way, it left a bad taste in his mouth from how corrupt and malicious it was.
Despite all of this, and feeling like a cripple, he wasn’t all that worried about it. Sure, the demonic energy would take a while to get rid of, but if he kept focusing his Heal on it, he'd eventually get rid of it. He was still going through the weakness period, so he might likely have to wait for his stats to return to normal in order to fully cleanse himself of the harmful substance.
Now, putting aside his wretched state, some good news. After the fight with the Matriarch, he gained quite a lot of levels.
Level Up! From Level 40, you became Level 41!
+1 Free Attribute point
+3 Free Stat points
+1 Intelligence
+1 Toughness
+1 Dexterity
+1 Vigor
…..
Level Up! From Level 41, you became Level 42!
+1 Free Attribute point
+3 Free Stat points
+1 Intelligence
+1 Toughness
+1 Dexterity
+1 Vigor
…..
Level Up! From Level 42, you became Level 43!
+1 Free Attribute point
+3 Free Stat points
+1 Intelligence
+1 Toughness
+1 Dexterity
+1 Vigor
…..
Level Up! From Level 43, you became Level 44!
+1 Free Attribute point
+3 Free Stat points
+1 Intelligence
+1 Toughness
+1 Dexterity
+1 Vigor
…..
Level Up! From Level 44, you became Level 45!
+1 Free Attribute point
+3 Free Stat points
+1 Intelligence
+1 Toughness
+1 Dexterity
+1 Vigor
…..
Level Up! From Level 45, you became Level 46!
+1 Free Attribute point
+3 Free Stat points
+1 Intelligence
+1 Toughness
+1 Dexterity
+1 Vigor
…..
Level Up! From Level 46, you became Level 47!
+1 Free Attribute point
+3 Free Stat points
+1 Intelligence
+1 Toughness
+1 Dexterity
+1 Vigor
…..
Level Up! From Level 47, you became Level 48!
+1 Free Attribute point
+3 Free Stat points
+1 Intelligence
+1 Toughness
+1 Dexterity
+1 Vigor
A whopping 8 levels in total, with 8 Attribute points and 24 stat points to spend, on top of all these glorious assigned stat points. Naturally, he did the only thing that was logical to do in his current predicament.
He spent it all on his Vitality.
Now, one would say that spending it all on Vitality might have been overdoing it. He could have spent at least some points into Intelligence not just to increase his magical power, but to also enhance his Heal spell and perhaps do away his demonic energy sooner, thus leading him to get back his precious limbs.
Perhaps spending a quarter of them on Strength and Agility might also bring his body back to a more balanced state, but in truth, Vitality was a lot more important of a stat than one realized. Not just in terms of survival, but for the effects it would bring to the body itself.
It wasn’t just harmony that was helping Aidan keep the harmful energy in check. It was also the life that was filling Aidan’s body, and if that very life was improved on a fundamental level, it would not only keep the demonic energy back, but refine his body even further on dealing with the corrupted forces.
So he put all his points into Vitality. Thankfully, his Class already provided quite a lot of Vigor points for every level, so he really focused on keeping thembalanced, at least like usual, throughout his three sub stats. As for why Vigor was important, it improved his overall health and naturally resists infections and other possible issues that could affect him internally, the perfect thing to ward off the harmful energy from festering within.
Of course, it wasn’t just levels he gained either. Along with such an impressive feat of defeating the Matriarch, he also received some nice titles.
You have gained a title!
“One against Many”
On your own, you faced thousands of foes. On your own, you survived and conquered. Huzzah!
+1 Strength
+1 Intelligence
+1 Agility
+1 Vitality
…..
“Savior”
You have risked your life to protect a city despite overwhelming odds. History will look upon you as a top-tier person for reverence!
+1 Strength
+1 Vitality
+3 Perception
+5 Charisma
…..
You have gained a title!
“Demon Slayer”
You have faced one of the demonic apostles of Hell and not only survived, but vanquished the threat. Many demons will now fear your aspiring prowess!
+2 Strength
+1 Intelligence
+2 Agility
+1 Vitality
And thanks to all of these improvements to his stats, naturally, he gained more title upgrades.
You have gained a title!
“Chunky III”
You raised your Vitality attribute to 50. Your internal structure and bodily functions are rapidly becoming supernatural, reaching beyond what your race could attain!
+3 Vitality
…..
You have gained a title!
“Meathead III”
You raised your Strength attribute to 50. To you, strength isn’t just a physical concept. It is an act to defy the will of natural growth.
+3 Strength
Seeing all of these stat improvements, even though he put most of his free points into Vitality, made him feel a lot better. In fact, that was the entire reason why he was even able to move around as much despite his heavy injuries.
He did naturally think about whether the period of weakness might interfere with him gaining any titles relating to his stat growth, but it turned out that the system would always recognize his original stats, no matter the debuff placed on them. Thanks to that, even in his weakened state, he felt drastic improvement and never felt better. Even the sting from the harmful energy went away, only leaving the inky black surfaces that were just too unpleasant to look at. To him, it might as well be completely foreign to him.
Naturally, it didn’t just stop there. During his fight against the Matriarch and the following days, his skills and abilities also improved. With one particular spell being improved the furthest.
Spell Upgraded! Rend (Iron) became Rend (Steel)!
…..
Spell Upgraded! Craft (Steel) became Craft (Silver)!
…..
Spell Upgraded! Infuse (Iron) became Infuse (Steel)!
…..
Spell Upgraded! Heal (Bronze) became Heal (Iron)!
…..
Spell Upgraded! Phase (Bronze) became Phase (Iron)!
…..
Skill Upgraded! Sense Vibrations (Steel) became Sense Vibrations (Silver)!
…..
Skill Upgraded! Soul Meditation (Bronze) became Soul Meditation (Iron)!
…..
Skill Upgraded! Multicast (Steel) became Multicast (Silver)!
…..
Skill Upgraded! Sword Proficiency (Copper) became Sword Proficiency (Bronze)!
…..
Ability Upgraded! Magic Boost (Iron) became Magic Boost (Steel)!
…..
Ability Upgraded! Channel Mana (Bronze) became Channel Mana (Iron)!
…..
Ability Upgraded! Magic Focus (Iron) became Magic Focus (Steel)!
…..
Ability Upgraded! Split Mind (Copper) became Split Mind (Iron)!
…..
Ability Upgraded! Rising Mana (Copper) became Rising Mana (Bronze)!
…..
Ability Upgraded! Area Field (Copper) became Area Field (Bronze)!
Though he should’ve expected after facing such a powerful foe, he was surprised by how much he had improved. Even his best spells and abilities surpassed Steel and became Silver, a much more valuable metal no matter the world one lived on, proving that the skill reaching this state is just as powerful. He wondered just how the skill would improve and be called in the future?
He knew Rend would improve the most, despite barely being used before. It was the backbone of his survival against the horrors and the Matriarch, so he knew that the spell would improve. His Craft, the most used spell in his arsenal, also wasn’t a surprise.
He definitely used Infuse, Heal, and Phase quite often during the fight for survival, to ensure his body remained empowered while getting away from life-threatening attacks. He wasn’t even surprised that his passive skills and abilities improved as well, with his best skills Sense Vibrations and Multicast reaching the same Silver rank as his Craft.
Soul Meditation was a little surprising, but considering he often used his swords which used portions of his soul, it was only natural that it would improve. What he was surprised about was Sword Proficiency increasing, only proving that his proficiency with the weapon would only get better even if he wasn’t using it physically.
Then of course, his best boosting abilities were also improved. Magic Boost and Magic Focus were the supporting pillars that helped his spells even make a dent in that terrible situation. And he once again found himself surprised that Channel Mana also improved. Perhaps it was inspired by the enhancement pill he took which helped immensely against the fight.
Split Mind was obvious, as it helped him keep his head focused while in such an intense battle, with Rising Mana adding onto the pile of the surprising abilities and skills that managed to rank up. Finally, Area Field was a no-brainer, considering how it helped him in that final clash against the Matriarch by expanding his spells and keeping himself alive.
Still, even with all these improvements, he knew it was still better to keep leveling up to ensure nothing like the Matriarch would get him down again. He wasn’t in any danger, but he was also excited to keep finding more ways to get stronger.
That was why he was currently outside of the city, enjoying the fresh breeze of the rolling wind passing through his skin as he enjoyed the incredible sight before him.
Swords clashed and two bodies constantly warred against each other, the sounds of clanging metal and heavy footsteps ringing out across the plains within the forest. It was only just the three of them, with Aidan simply watching and studying their forms as the combatants battled each other.
Van fought cautiously, his straining face proving the difficulty of it all as he fought against a rather young and short swordsman with incredible physical form. Van was definitely not a slouch, but he was more of a warrior focusing on keeping a turtle stance with a shield, but right now, he was only using his sword.
As for his opponent, it was none other than the young talent of the Wise Guys, Ander. His small form dashed across the field and slammed against Van with his power and momentum, but Van didn’t relent. He swerved and flipped over, taking advantage of his lithe form to keep Van constantly guessing where he would strike next. It was clear from the get-go that Ander focused more on Agility to fight faster and harder, proving to be the exact opposite of the more Vitality-focused Van.
Of course, to make things fair for Van, Ander wasn’t using his powerful talent of manipulating lightning, so he was only fighting with his physical body. But it was clear that he didn’t overly rely on his talent for his swordsmanship skills unlike a certain injured third-party.
As for why the two were fighting while Aidan watched, the answer was simple. They were training to improve themselves, and nothing was better than an actual fight to better solidify their improvements after the long and hard fight against the horrors.
At least, that was just part of the day. There was plenty more to do, and Aidan planned on doing what he could during his downtime to keep improving himself. At the same time, he might as well help his friends who had supported him this entire time, and if he did, he would have better opponents to face during his downtime to improve himself further. A win-win in his mind.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter