Chapter 67 Being Cocky Costs Me



Just as when you started the engine of your vehicle before taking off, I too started my 'engine'.

It was not the same engine as the vehicle, but a magic technique called 'mana coating'.

Covering my legs–from feet up to knees–with mana, I took the first step.

And another step as I did the first one.

It was a motion of a human walking at first. Then after a few dozen steps, it turned into a running motion.

'This is it!'

As the ground beneath my feet began to shake violently, I felt a surge of thrill go up my head. Yes, it was a thrilling feeling that I had felt, not fear nor nervousness, and only God knows why that was happening to me.

Maybe I was going crazy?

I ran like a madman on the shaking ground, dodging the falling rock and ice block that crumbled from the cave's ceiling.

Thanks to the mana coating my legs, I could run in balance and faster than my original speed at that.

If you had read or watched the show with the protagonist who had a nine-tail monster inside him, then you might know that this legs mana coating worked like a chakra.

It could balance you on any surface such as a vertical cliff, the water's surface, etc. 

Of course, it was not easy to do that. If it was easy, everyone would have been called a Spiderman or a ninja.

The difference though, mana coating would also give me an enhancing effect. Depending on what part I coated my mana, they would be enhanced by the mana.

Extra speed's movement for the legs coating, extra power for the hands coating, and extra anything for any body parts available. But one thing for sure was that the parts which were coated would be no doubt hardened, like steel.

The cave, the D-Point Ruin, the Frostheard Sanctuary, or whatever you called this place was crumbling. While this place was in that situation, dozens–almost hundred of people were inside.

The students, the heroes, and the villains were all inside this ruin.

As I made a halfway through the exit gate, someone's high, hoarse voice echoed in the air.

"That's her! That's our target!!"

Group of people–Villains showed up from the gate's direction.

Three. Four. Five…

I stopped my track as my eyes traced, following the robed figures that appeared like a black wave.

Eight in total, standing a few meters away in front of me.

Curious to as how they could manage to reach this place despite being blocked off by the heroes and students, I closed my eyes and used my skill.

Once again, and obviously would not be the last one I used this skill.

Mental images projected in my head, showing the students and heroes fighting against a massive number of robed men, the villains. 

They were equal in numbers, but that was the present case. There were a dozen of the villains' bodies scattered on the ground, not dead yet as I didn't see blood coming out from their bodies.

"Yo, brat! Why are you closing your eyes? Are you afraid? Did you pee yourself off? HAHAHA!!"

My eyebrows twitched as I heard the insult.

Opening my eyes, I glared sharply at them.

"Ooh~ Look, he's glaring at us. How scary! HAHAHA!"

I pulled off the mana on my legs, not wanting to waste them when all I did was stand still instead of running.

"Hey, dude, that kid…" one of them approached the laughing villain.

I could hear his voice because I didn't know, it was probably his intention. But, as he arrived in front of the laughing villain, he suddenly went with a whisper instead.

Occasionally, the laughing villain's expression changed from shocked to confused. When they were done with their small, private talk, the laughing villain looked at me as if he wanted to bore a hole within me with those bulging eyes of his.

He stroked his chin and said.

"You're right. That boy does seem familiar, where have I seen him?"

He was thinking, his guard was lowered. The others too, scanned at me and immediately fell deep in thought. 

If I wanted to make an escape, now was the chance!

"Ah! I remember now! That damn witch, she–"

Unfortunately for him, before he could finish what he was about to say, a knee coated with mana was flying toward his face and left him unconscious.

"You're not suited to be a villain if all you got is only a tongue and a mouth!" I yelled as I dashed, breaking their formation.

The others, realizing what just happened in a split second, chased after me.

"Chase him!" they shouted.

Their chaotic, inharmony footsteps were echoing throughout the crumbling ruin.

"Shit! How come that brat is faster than us?!"

"He might have been a magic-potent Enhanced, they were just like those bitchis wizards, good at controlling their mana, fvck!"

"I don't care whatever he is, just kill him and take our target before this fvcking cave collapsed!"

"Don't kill him! That damn witch might want him!"

Their yells and shouts went unnoticed by me, they were louder than the crumbling sound of this cave after all.

I tightened my arms around Lumi again, starting to feel the burden of carrying her around.

'Hell, this girl… I swear!'

The mana occasionally wore out every minute and was damn hell annoying when I needed to cast it immediately after that.

One minute. That was my limit to maintaining the coating after learning the method of how to use magic or mana efficiently in the Magic Specialization Course.

When it wore out, that didn't mean that I had depleted my mana but, well, you all are smart, it was just like a skill's effect duration.

After casting it two times since the escape, it meant that two minutes had passed of this chasing game. I could see the light, a vertical light from the outside. And near the exit were filled with people, it seemed a war had taken place there.

Surprisingly, I didn't find dead students among the scattered bodies.

'This is different from the story but…'

I couldn't say I wasn't relieved when I witnessed that scene.

This arc seemed to be altered, but in a good way, and I didn't mind it.

Originally, half of the students and three heroes were dead in this ruin. Lumi injured herself, and Lux went on a rampage, massacring the villains in his sight.

I guessed that it must be because I messed it up by taking Lumi myself.

In the first place, this was bound to happen after seeing Lumi act differently from the novel, she was blank and occasionally lost focus on this trip so the villains almost caught her back then.

The ambush inside the ruin didn't seem to happen either, that was what made half of the students and three of the heroes died, in this very place.

"Hey, you! Stop him! Stop that brat and take the girl!!"

A high-pitched, hoarse voice assaulted my eardrums, bringing me back to reality.

The villains behind caught up to me, and some of the villains who were fighting the heroes and students made a shifting focus on me, surrounding me on all sides.

I was trapped.

They were closing in their distance from all sides.

My eyes flickered, trying to find the spot where I could use to break through them.

'There!'

As I found the spot, I renewed the coating on my legs. But, as I did that, I could feel my mana was almost depleted. My breath became ragged.

This would be my last chance!

'Successfully slipping through them and I could leave the rest to Lux and the heroes.'

Gritting my teeth, I took a deep breath and prepared to lunge forward, toward the three-layer villains with daggers and swords.

Swoosh—!

As they closed in, I moved swiftly, dodging the first wave of a sword slash, then blocking the daggers pincher attack with my mana-coated legs, and kicked the last layer of villain in the face.

'Wow!'

I couldn't believe it!

I couldn't believe that I was moving like that earlier, it felt surreal!

"Hahaha! You can't stop me!!"

My mouth and tongue moved by themselves, speaking the words that I did not… had a little expectation would come from me.

"Because Agility is my middle name, remember that, scum!" I exclaimed, bursting out from them.

Again, it was not my intention to speak and act arrogantly like that but fvck! 

I couldn't help it!

The excitement and confidence already got me in their grasp.

But then, I heard a voice…

"Look out!!!"

When that voice reached my ears, a sudden blast of energy knocked me off my feet, sending me tumbling across the ground and hitting the pillar.

I accidentally released Lumi in the process. Now, she was lying a few meters ahead in front of me. Unconscious, defenseless, but her expression was peaceful.

I couldn't move. My body won't listen to me.

My breath was ragged. I felt suffocated as my throat turned dry and the air escaped from my lungs.

Mana Depletion.