MMORPG: Surviving a Death Game with a Glitched System

A slight fatigue plagued Ash, but the weariness wasn’t enough to hinder him. He’d eaten and drunk his fill, and just like before, he felt as though he could sleep if he willed it. However, his body wasn’t exactly screaming out for rest.

If it didn’t demand sleep, then surrendering several hours to it would be nothing more than wasted time. Though he could probably only manage a day longer before it was absolutely needed.

Aside from contemplating Cross’s words, Ash had spent his time alone training. He’d endlessly repeated the same breathing pattern and cast [Dragon Fear] whenever it got off CD, though he’d continued to refrain from using [Focus].

The risk versus reward in using it was a bit lopsided.

In any case...

For the past hour, Ash had consistently been able to sense mana entering his body. Each clump poured into him, split into three fragments, and flowed toward a different core.

Once those fragments nestled inside his cores, a portion of his own mana was expelled. His next goal was to follow that outgoing mana, but tracking the streams emerging from all three cores at once remained beyond him. For now, he would have to focus on only one.

From there, he would follow the clump as it drifted through the air for as long as possible — or until it naturally dispersed into even smaller fragments.

It was tedious. Irritatingly so. Still, reducing an insurmountable task into smaller, conquerable steps was hardly unfamiliar to him. As long as progress existed, the time wasn’t being wasted.

A sudden voice sounded from above, prompting Ash to open his eyes and look up.

"You seem to have improved a great deal overnight despite your nescience."

’How can he even know that...?’

There should have been no way for Cross to tell how far Ash’s mana sensitivity had progressed merely by looking at him.

’Just how much information can he perceive?’

It was simply a little inconceivable to think Cross could sense Ash sensing mana.

Although both perplexed and reluctantly impressed, Ash snided:

"A lot more than I achieved with you around."

Cross stepped off the floating stone.

"Oh my... were you stalling earlier so I’d stay with you longer? I don’t know whether to be flattered or disgusted."

Ash rolled his eyes.

"I’d prefer disgusted."

"Heh..."

Cross moved a short distance away. A stone throne rose beneath him, and he settled into it before leaning back, crossing his legs, and looking down at Ash.

"I suppose I’ll give you a lesson and explain your next goals."

Ash slowly turned to face him, uncrossing his legs and abandoning the lotus-like position he’d been sitting in.

"Go on."

Cross smirked.

"If you kowtow and beg nicely, I will."

"..."

Ash sprang to his feet and lunged at Cross.

The prince’s eyes widened in horror. He backflipped over the throne, landing on a stone slab waiting a short distance behind it.

Ash kicked off the seat of the throne, throwing himself at the prince.

The slab shot upward with Cross on it while he screeched:

"Hey, hey! Alright, damn! It was a joke!"

Without even registering it, Ash allowed a faint smile to cross his face before returning to his original spot and sitting back down.

Cross breathed a sigh of relief before stepping off the slab, circling the throne, and reclaiming his seat.

"Phew..."

Ash pressed his elbow into his thigh and rested his cheek against the back of his hand.

"What an insipid prince you are. Aren’t royals supposed to have etiquette?"

Cross glanced toward the grand entrance leading into the hollow room of shadow where Idolan sat chained.

"You met the man who raised me, did you not?"

’Fair...’

After a sigh, Cross continued:

"In any case... mana sense. Being able to sense it is nice and all, but you also need to know how to utilize it. To begin, you should understand the different types of skills people possess."

Cross held up his right, and only, hand. As he turned it palm up, a stone stake formed over his hand.

"There are Conjuration skills like this, through which an individual draws mana from within their body to manifest something. You might question how these manifestations can exist under the law of conservation of matter... but that’s a whole other topic I’m incapable of sufficiently explaining."

’I’m more interested in how you know that theory...’

The knowledge itself wasn’t particularly useful to Ash, but its presence was. Cross knew concepts Ash wouldn’t have expected to exist in this world.

Cross continued:

"What I can tell you about are the other two methods: Enhancement and Utility. Enhancement skills expel mana from the core while keeping it inside the body, using it to reinforce a particular aspect of a person. Some can even transform or heal the user."

’That’s what [Focus] is.’

Or, at the very least, that was the closest classification for it.

Cross paused for a moment, then added:

"Finally... everything else is generally classified as Utility, although outliers and abilities belonging to multiple categories exist. Setting those irregularities aside, Utility abilities typically disperse a person’s mana into the environment to affect either the surroundings or the beings within them. They often cause no direct harm, instead weakening or strengthening their targets."

Cross leaned farther back in his throne.

"A prime example would be the vortex created by the Seal Guardian you fought. Although its droplets could also be considered conjurations, they functioned as both a sensory ability and a means of empowering the Guardian. The water allowed it to track every movement made by anyone it touched while siphoning small amounts of mana from you, the fiend, and Vera. Once the Guardian recalled the droplets, it absorbed all the mana they had stolen."

’I see... there was more to that second phase than I thought.’

Demitra’s involvement had made the latter half of the battle fairly manageable, obscuring how dangerous the vortex truly was. Ash had also been somewhat preoccupied with having his arm skewered by the self-proclaimed royal sitting before him.

Had the fight dragged in the first phase, the Guardian would have steadily weakened them while preparing more strength for itself.

Cross paused, giving Ash time to absorb the explanation. Once he saw no confusion on Ash’s face, he continued:

"Now, for why I’m even telling you this... As you said before, mana does indeed exist everywhere within the environment. The problem is learning to distinguish the mana that naturally exists there from the mana belonging to a living being — or being of pure mana. Before you can do that, focus on sensing sudden shifts in your surroundings. Those shifts are caused whenever abilities disturb the ambient mana. Once you can recognize them, you can follow the flow back to its source, helping you dodge, analyze, or prepare for an attack."

Ash’s gaze narrowed slightly.

Sensing mana after an ability had already manifested would hardly be enough. By then, an attack might already be tearing through his body. However, if he could perceive the disturbance at its origin — even a fraction of a second before the skill fully formed — it could provide the warning he needed.

It sounded similar to [Danger Sense], only broader and dependent on his own perception rather than the whims of a skill. Speaking of [Danger Sense]...

’It probably functions on the same principles.’

The helm warns him where the greatest clusters of mana are as well as spikes in mana.

"The level beyond that is learning to separate environmental mana from the mana belonging to a being. Once you can, you may even begin estimating how powerful someone is based on the size of their mana pool. However... at that level, you’ll also encounter people capable of concealing themselves by dispersing their mana until it blends into the environment."

"Was that how you hid from us?"

"Precisely... I’m quite skilled to have hidden from a Great Spirit, wouldn’t you say?"

Ash nodded lightly.

"Yes, you are."

"...huh? Why didn’t you insult me?!"

"Why would I lie? You are."

Cross pretended to be bashful as he looked away.

"Ah, geez... you’re making me think twice about killing you."

"I don’t need such concern. Do your worst. Still... is there a reason this lesson was so loaded?"

Cross’s expression tightened, the playfulness draining from it.

"Yeah..." He looked off to his right before continuing. "I’ll have to leave soon. Any moment now, they will fell the last chain. I have to cull some of the herd around the barrier before it falls, then I’ll keep an eye on them as they travel here."

"Not going to attack them?"

"It’s likely I’d lose... thanks to a certain someone weakening me and Vera absorbing the spirits of the Seal Guardians."

’Absorbing...?’

Let alone...

"I thought they didn’t have a spirit?"

Cross stood and looked off toward the horizon hidden behind the haze.

"Those four... They... did."

Before Ash could question his cryptic solemnity, Cross stepped onto a stone slab, then said:

"Next time we meet, I expect some level of mastery... Also, protect the temple from being invaded as best you can so father has to move as little as possible."

With that, Cross left. Flying down the stairs toward the mob of Seal Scrawlers below.

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