Chapter 145 Hurrying Up

When Aion saw the mouth, he tried to jump, but the mouth approached him even faster. In the end, the creature closed its massive jaw when half of the prey's body was already inside. Still, Aion's legs prevented the monster from closing it. Regardless, Aion felt goosebumps while looking at the teeth and the interior of the mouth.

"A fucking earthworm… just what I needed now…" Aion thought. "Disgusting little bastard, don't treat me like I am your snack. I will make sure that you won't forget this lesson, for the rest of your few seconds of life."

Guardian Lv 19

Health: 404/404

Mana: 212/608

Stamina: 88/88

Strength: 11

Dexterity: 11

Magic: 21 + 60

Endurance: 21 + 74

Resistance: 21 + 50

Speed: 11

Status: 00

Protector's Sword and Shield Refinement Lv 20

Bonuses: Endurance + 50, Resistance + 50

Skills: Devotion Lv 19 (Speed Lv 54), Frozen Shield Lv 01

Passive: Stone Skin Lv 12

Improvement Points: 00

Accumulated Experience: 0

Coins: 572.800

Inventory:

Absorption: 0/1000

Processing: 0/1000

Reset

The Guardian's build wasn't suited for attacking, but Aion still could use some magic. While Aion wanted to save his mana, his legs were starting to lose the battle of strength, so he was forced to fire an Ice Spear toward the interior of the monster's mouth… the beast flinched for a moment but soon began to tremble violently… it didn't work the way Aion had expected.

The strength of the monster's jaw increased even more like the creature could use Rage or something. While clicking his tongue, Aion created an Ice Saw and made it spin down while cutting one of the sides of the monster's mouth. A lot of blood came out from the wound, but the strength of the jaw decreased, and Aion managed to jump away from it.

You obtained 450 experience points.

"Hmm… this wasn't half bad," Aion thought. "Let's see what materials I can get from this."

Aion didn't have time to waste, but since that class wasn't that good for combat, he would need that kind of power-up. If Aion could change his class, he also would be able to tame or turn that kind of monster into a minion and help him move faster, but that wasn't possible…

It has been seven days since Artemisia was captured, and Aion didn't suffer any damage. Still, he now and then would feel sleepy. The enemies knew that Artemisia was strong, so they kept her unconscious during those seven days… Aion knew that the enemies couldn't kill her as long as devotion was active, but once they targeted her, he would begin to suffer serious damage, and it will be only a matter of time before something happens.

Aion had never heard of that, but the desertic area was filled with those giant Earthworms. Aion was attacked by one of them every five minutes, and he couldn't help but almost be devoured every single time. It was the easiest way to make them drop their guard, after all. Still, that slowed down his movement speed.

"It is annoying that the only things I can use on their bodies are the leather and their teeth," Aion thought. "The teeth can be used to enhance the protector's sword and shield, but the materials aren't that good… Regardless, where does that fucker come from?"

Aion was certain that at least three dungeons were spawning those monsters. Otherwise, it would be too weird for them to get on his way so often. Since that area wasn't being used anymore, the dungeons appeared, and no one found a reason to manage them. Few people would be able to do so. That was another factor that made even more nonsensical the attack of the bandits of that country. They basically were trying to annex a land filled with monsters when they weren't good enough to deal with them. Their specialty was assassinations and ambushes. Skills that were useless against monsters most of the time.

After traveling for a full day, Aion finally found a giant oasis in the middle of the desert. The vegetation suddenly seemed so full of life, and the weather wasn't hellish hot. One could only think that such a thing was only possible by magic.

In the middle of an oasis, one was supposed to find a massive fountain of crystal-clear water. However, even from far away, Aion saw a city in ruins that had been built over a giant lake. Thanks to the war, even the lake that was supposed to be that magic fountain had been polluted beyond repair… Aion also found several camps around the area, fortresses, and watchtowers… That was his mother's homeland…

"Son of bitches… Someday, you will get what you deserve," Aion thought.

Aion was in the mood to cause some destruction, which would be great for stress relief, but he had work to do. Besides, someone attacking those guys and then a suspicious individual asking for information on their territory soon after would be suspicious.

Once Aion returns with his mother, they will have the chance to trash the enemies from their backline, and that will probably be very refreshing. In any case, Aion felt relieved that he didn't have to fight the Earthworms for a full day. Still, after another day of travel, the desert returned, and so did the monsters.

The same thing happened again and again for two more days until Aion reached the former border of the Wartiria country. The land was pretty green and full of life. However, it was a land filled with internal conflicts. Instead of a single leader, many feudal lords controlled smaller territories, and they always fought one another to obtain supremacy. Those who wanted power, and that was the vast majority, they would fight numerous battles and try to become bandits and then one day take over the territory of an enemy.

Meanwhile, only ten percent of the people there cultivated fields. Thanks to that, the mercenaries and feudal lords often attacked their neighbors for food, money, and weapons…