Magic Missile

On the battlefield, Land slashed an orc with his longsword, yet failed to reduce their numbers.

The orc scrambled to its feet, let out a roar, and charged again with its shield raised; there was fear in its eyes, but no hesitation.

Abrupt footsteps rang out. Catching a glimpse from the corner of his eye, Land saw two figures rushing in from the rear.

His eyes lit up, and he shouted, "Reinforcements have arrived! Hold the line, everyone!"

It was a tactic; he didn't believe two people could make much of a difference, but he used it to boost morale.

The human side was indeed invigorated, even though most were too busy to notice how few reinforcements had actually arrived.

On the outskirts of the battlefield.

Anse slowed his pace. The chaos of the front lines was unfavorable for a spellcaster to intervene.

Noticing the low hills on either side, a thought struck him. He adjusted his direction, took a running start, and leaped, beginning to climb.

The slope wasn't steep. He scrambled up six or seven meters, found a foothold, and stood to survey the area. The battlefield was less than twenty meters ahead, laid out in full view.

"Perfect!" Anse was delighted.

At this moment, Brat had just entered the fray. He glanced back and breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the figure on the side slope.

Anse nodded to him, then cast Mold Earth, creating a thin wall a meter high in front of himself.

These actions might have seemed like a waste of time, but in reality, he was "creating an advantage"!

The high ground provided a hit bonus, and his spells wouldn't be blocked by crowds or obstacles. The wall served as cover, making him harder to hit—simple and practical.

His gaze swept across the battlefield, locking onto a goblin wielding a crossbow.

"Sorcerous Burst" (Fire)

In less than half a second, a ball of sorcerous energy erupted from the tip of his staff, streaking over the heads of the crowd in the blink of an eye before slamming into the goblin's chest.

"Bang! Bang!"

The goblin felt as if it had been struck by two heavy hammers in succession. It crashed to the ground, chest caved in, blood flowing from its facial features, and after a few twitches, it stopped moving.

[You cast Sorcerous Burst on the goblin... The goblin was hit, taking 13 (8+5) points of fire damage. Critical hit, target killed. Gained 50 Combat Experience, level up...]

He leveled up!

His luck was good this time; he had triggered a Chain Burst, and the goblin, which only had 7 health, was killed instantly.

On the battlefield ahead, Land felt a surge of pleasant surprise at the sight.

Spellcasters weren't exactly rare, but one who could cast efficiently and accurately while the Weave was in such disarray was a rarity indeed. Even he found it quite strenuous to cast Divine Smite, let alone a low-level practitioner.

Anse paid no attention to that; he crouched down and immediately summoned his character sheet.

After leveling up, a practitioner could choose to increase their current class level or multiclass into another—one path for specialization, another for versatility.

Anse decisively chose to increase his Sorcerer level.

[Level up: Level 2 Sorcerer! You have gained two new class features, and you may learn a new spell.]

With no time to check his class features, he quickly locked onto a new spell: Magic Missile.

Magic Missile, colloquially known as the "Magic Missile," creates three glimmering darts formed from magical force. Each dart deals 1d4 (1-4)+1 points of force damage to the target. The base casting range is 120 feet, and the force is homing—it never misses.

The most awkward problem for low-level spellcasters facing strong opponents is: they can't hit!

High-level practitioners have high attributes, numerous traits, and many skills; they can dodge and run, so no matter how strong a spell is, it's useless if it doesn't land.

Magic Missile solved this problem perfectly.

Anse stood up, a faint glimmer of magic flickering in his eyes as all the sensations related to Magic Missile surged through his mind.

Seconds passed, and he locked his target onto Brat's opponent.

It was a Hobgoblin, half a head taller than Brat. Though it lacked Brat's raw strength, it wore beast-hide armor and wielded a shield and morningstar, keeping Brat on the defensive.

"Magic Missile"

Three Glimmering Missiles flew out almost simultaneously, each dancing through the air in an unpredictable arc before whistling toward the Hobgoblin.

The Hobgoblin was caught off guard and barely managed to raise its shield, but it was too late. The missiles struck its head, chest, and arm in succession, blooming with sprays of blood.

[Successfully cast 1st-level spell Magic Missile. You have gained more understanding of innate magic. Gained 1 Class Experience...]

[You cast Magic Missile on the Hobgoblin... The Hobgoblin was hit, taking 12 points of force damage. Current HP: 9/27...]

"Only 1 experience for casting?" Anse was speechless.

On the battlefield, Brat froze for a moment, then reacted. He lunged forward with a thrust, his longsword piercing under the armpit of the off-balance Hobgoblin and straight into its heart.

[Target killed, gained 31 Combat Experience...]

The morale of the human side soared. These armored Hobgoblins were a major nuisance; removing even one of them relieved a great deal of pressure.

The Gray Dwarves at the rear of the battlefield shouted, and several orcs and goblins attempted to charge over to finish Anse off, but they were held back firmly by Brat and the human side.

"Watch out—" Land turned his head and shouted.

Anse looked up just in time to see a black glint enlarging before his eyes. His scalp tightened, and he ducked violently, hiding his entire body behind the low wall.

"Whoosh—"

A javelin whistled past half a foot above the low wall, making his heart hammer against his ribs.

"Damn it!"

He immediately leaned out from the side to survey the battlefield.

A tall, sturdy Bugbear Officer with red skin, pointed ears, and wearing half-plate armor was bracing himself to throw a second javelin.

Suddenly, an arrow shot down from above, forcing the Bugbear to scramble out of the way, though it still struck him in the arm.

Anse looked up and saw a human archer had appeared on the hillside at some point, already drawing his bow for another shot.

The Bugbear, enraged and humiliated, shifted his target to the closer archer.

"Perfect opportunity."

Anse stood up abruptly, locking his focus onto the Bugbear.

"Magic Missile!"

Three glimmering missiles streaked across the battlefield with a hair-raising whine, moving far faster than any javelin.

The Bugbear rolled to dodge, but the missiles adjusted their trajectory slightly and struck him in the backside, which he had exposed during his roll.

"Awoo—!"

The shrill, mournful howl made both sides of the conflict wince.

[You cast Magic Missile on the Bugbear Officer... The Bugbear Officer was hit, taking 20 (Critical Hit) points of force damage. Current HP: 35/58...]

Swish, swish, swish—three arrows followed in quick succession.

The Bugbear Officer rolled on the ground by instinct; the arrows were deflected by his plate armor, with only one striking his leg and spraying a trail of blood.

"Magic Missile!"

As the resonant Draconic language echoed across the battlefield, the magic missiles had already arrived.

Knowing he couldn't dodge, the Bugbear crossed his arms to take the impact head-on.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

[...The Bugbear Officer was hit, taking 7 points of force damage. Current HP: 24/58...]

"He's tough," Anse panted slightly, steadying his turbulent mana.

If he were an ordinary Sorcerer, he would have already exhausted his spell slots or fallen into a state of exhaustion, leaving him helpless against such an opponent; fighting two levels above one's own was an incredibly difficult feat.

Fortunately, he was not ordinary; after leveling up, he possessed 11 points of mana, enough to blast his opponent to death.

At that moment, Land finished off his own opponent, strode a few steps in front of the Bugbear Officer, parried his defense with one strike, and decapitated him with the next.

[Target killed, gained 190 Combat Experience...]

So much experience. Anse was overjoyed.

It was a pity the kill didn't count as his; he discovered that if he didn't land the killing blow himself, he received significantly less experience, though he was at least glad that participating in the battle was enough to earn some.

With the threat neutralized, he stood holding his staff in one hand, facing the wind like a ruthless spellcasting machine, firing off spells one after another with speed and precision.

"Chain Burst!"

"..."

His mana was limited, so he stuck to using cantrips, focusing on rear archers or unarmored goblin minions, occasionally helping Brat alleviate some pressure.

Cantrips didn't have a lock-on feature, and moving targets were difficult to hit; it was unwise to intervene directly in close-quarters combat, as hitting a teammate in the chaos would be a massive blow to morale.

"Boom!"

A goblin minion, unlucky enough to trigger a Chain Burst, had his face smashed in and collapsed straight to the ground.

[...Target killed. Gained 37 Combat Experience...]

By now, at least six or seven goblins had died directly or indirectly by his hand.

Opportunities like this were rare; the waves of experience gains felt as refreshing as drinking an ice-cold beverage on a forty-degree day, leaving him wanting more.