Double Kill

The stone pillar leaned against the wall of the pit. It was about four or five meters in diameter, its surface uneven, with plenty of places to climb.

"About a dozen meters." Anse quickly estimated the distance to the top of the pillar.

From this angle, he couldn't see whether anyone was up there. But no matter what, he had to climb up. The pillar could collapse at any moment, and he didn't have much time.

He took off his ruined boots and stepped barefoot onto the raised stones. They felt cold, but didn't hurt; Draconic Resilience and the Tough feat had made him stronger than before.

He took a deep breath and climbed, alternating hands and feet. His movements were practiced, nimble, and light, as if he were a seasoned climber.

"Whew, this is thrilling."

He looked down at the dark abyss below, his heart beating faster despite himself.

He was a little afraid, but it wasn't a problem. He knew Feather Fall Spell; if he fell, he could cast it with a quick reaction and make sure he didn't die on impact.

What truly surprised him, though, were the "Basic Actions" granted by his Character Sheet after he became a Professional.

Attack, Dodge, Dash, Disengage, Hide, Jump, Climb, Swim...

In the game, these were unremarkable basic abilities. But now, they made Anse an Athletics Expert.

Combined with his proficiency in Acrobatics and Athletics, they let him reliably push his physical abilities to their limits.

His movements were crisp, fluid, and graceful. Ordinary people couldn't do what he did—not even most Professionals.

A few meters up, the pillar's angle approached vertical, forcing him to circle around it in search of a better foothold.

But as he rounded one side, the corner of his eye caught another pillar. A young man at the top was staring at him, dumbfounded.

"Holy shit!"

Anse tensed, pressing himself tightly against the pillar as he looked up.

No one was looking down. Everything seemed normal.

He turned his head. The young man had already looked away and was sitting on the ground with one knee raised, facing sideways. He held a sword in one hand, while the other subtly pointed diagonally upward.

"Smart."

Anse nodded slightly and continued climbing, more carefully now, stopping every few steps.

The young man occasionally communicated with him using Adventurer hand signals. Before long, they were working together seamlessly.

There were two enemies. One of them was probably the Gray Dwarf, but Anse didn't know what shape he was in.

As he neared the top, Anse grew even more cautious.

The last three meters!

The young man suddenly stood up and threw a stone toward the top of the pillar Anse was climbing.

"Clack—"

His aim was true. The stone landed on the platform with a sharp crack, drawing the enemy's attention.

"Enemies..." (Goblin Language)

Footsteps and shrill curses followed one after another.

Anse understood at once and quickly circled around to the other side of the pillar.

The young man kept throwing stones and cursing loudly, sounding almost hysterical. It didn't sound like an act.

After a few seconds, Anse gathered all his strength and climbed quickly, then leaped onto the platform.

His gaze swept over the platform. It was four or five meters across, with two short figures on it.

One sat in the middle: squat and sturdy, bald, with gray-white skin. A warhammer lay beside him.

The other stood near the edge of the pillar with his back to Anse. He was less than a meter tall, with sharp fangs and pointed ears, gray-green skin, and a scimitar in hand. He was waving it to threaten the young man.

The sudden appearance of another figure shocked them both.

The Gray Dwarf grabbed his warhammer and turned sideways to face Anse, but didn't stand up. Instead, he shouted.

The Goblin cowered and didn't charge at once.

Anse had already activated "Innate Spellcasting." He gripped the crystal at his chest with his left hand, focused his mind, and instinctively sensed and guided the surging magic to form a simple spell model.

About a second passed.

"Magic Burst." (Draconic language)

With a sharp, metallic ring to the Draconic words, a ball of light shot from his fingertips, crossed the two-meter gap in an instant, and burst with a deafening thunderclap right in the Gray Dwarf's face.

Cantrip: Sorcerous Burst—Thunderclap!

It was his first time casting a spell, but with an immobile target in front of him, Anse didn't miss.

The Gray Dwarf groaned, his face covered in blood, and toppled backward.

At the same time, the Dice in Anse's mind spun wildly, and a line of text flashed through his thoughts.

[You cast Sorcerous Burst on the Gray Dwarf. The enemy is surprised and prone.

The Gray Dwarf is hit and takes 15 points of thunder damage (critical hit). Current hit points: 4/26...]

Anse was delighted. The Dice could do that, too.

But this wasn't the time to investigate. The Gray Dwarf was still alive, and he could cast spells.

Anse strode over to the Gray Dwarf, planted his left foot on the warhammer, raised his right foot, and stamped hard on the dwarf's neck.

[You make a melee attack against the Gray Dwarf. The enemy is prone, frightened, and deafened.

The Gray Dwarf is hit and takes 4 points of bludgeoning damage (critical hit). Fatal blow. Target is dead. You gain 200 Combat Experience...]

Anse felt a weight lift from his chest and immediately turned to face the Goblin.

In just a few seconds, the most dangerous enemy, the Gray Dwarf, was dead. Only the terrified Goblin remained.

"You're so slow. Never heard of a thunderclap?" Anse gripped the crystal and cast again.

The Goblin belatedly realized what was happening and charged with a roar.

"Magic Burst!"

Thunder exploded, knocking the Goblin over. It lay on the ground, wailing as it clutched its bleeding ears.

They were so close that Anse's eardrums were buzzing, too.

He endured the discomfort, quickly picked up the warhammer, and found it heavy enough that he had to hold it with both hands. He hurried forward two steps and struck the Goblin's head with the hammer's pick.

[...The Goblin is hit and takes 6 points of piercing damage (critical hit). Fatal blow. Target is dead. You gain 50 Combat Experience...]

Anse scanned the area, and only relaxed once he was sure there was no danger.

"Whew... That was thrilling!"

The Goblin's Challenge Rating was only 1/4, and it had 7 hit points. He could have handled it in melee, but this was his first real fight. How could he not be nervous?

"Sorcerous Burst is really useful," Anse remarked.

Sorcerous Burst was a Sorcerer-exclusive Zero-Ring Spell from the School of Evocation. It had a range of 120 feet (at least 36 meters) and dealt 1D8 (1–8) damage on a hit. The caster chose the damage type: acid, cold, fire, lightning, poison, Enchantment, or thunder.

If it dealt maximum damage (8), the spell's energy burst again. At higher levels, it could trigger a Chain Burst, dealing considerable damage.

Anse recognized the Gray Dwarf and knew he might have resistance to poison or Enchantment, but he probably didn't have resistance to thunder. So Anse had chosen thunder, and it had worked well in practice.

His strongest attack spell was actually the first-level Prismatic Sphere, but casting it required a diamond worth at least 50 Gold Coins, and he didn't have one.

Besides, first-level spells were harder to cast. With the Weave in disarray and his emotions running high, the spell might fail.

"Good thing I performed consistently."

Looking at the corpses on the ground made him uneasy, especially those two pairs of eyes stained with blood, which seemed to stare straight at him.

He nudged one corpse's head aside with his foot and began gathering the spoils. He didn't have much time.