Chapter 296: Chapter 296. Digging Deep, Digging Dangerously
Cough, cough. "I think using a fireball in a confined space is not a good idea," Myne mumbled, regretting his decision to employ such an explosive technique to dig the mine. He waited patiently for the dust to settle down.
Soon, an expression of disbelief and shock appeared on his face. His fireball attack, which could typically create a small one-meter-deep crater, had only produced useless dust and a pathetic dent, mere centimetres deep.
"F*ck! Just how solid is this wall? Don't tell me I'm just too unlucky, and there's a powerful rock behind the layer of this wall!" Myne exclaimed in surprise. Then, a thought occurred to him. He picked up his metal pickaxe and, with all his strength, struck the wall.
Ding!
The sound echoed, as if metal collided with something other than stone. Myne, whose hands were trembling from the impact, face immediately turned grim.
"No wonder there isn't a single halfling seen in the deepest part of the cave. It's not that they're all stupid and don't know how to mine in a good location; they just don't have the power to dig through those solid rocks here. Damn it!" Myne threw aside the pickaxe in frustration and stared at the wall with a complicated expression.
Myne then after a few moments of silence decided to cast a few wind blades at the wall, achieving little more than superficial scratches. Despair hung heavy in the air, threatening to suffocate Myne's hope.
"Should I use this skill? But if it explodes again like last time, I'll be digging my own grave for sure," Myne muttered, losing hope for mining in the deepest part of the mine. He checked his skill list, and his eyes focused on a particular skill.
"Maybe I should start with the bare minimum mana this time. This way, even if I don't succeed, at least I can practice a bit to gain some control over this skill... Let's give it a try. If it still doesn't work, I'll go up and start from the entrance like other noobs."
With a clear plan in his mind and determination to build his own grave using a skill he had little control over, Myne stowed all his mining equipment inside his storage box skill, which he reserved for mining work. He then took a few deep breaths to calm his nervousness and rapidly beating heart.
BOOM...
After completing a series of peculiar exercises that Myne considered prerequisites for sharpening his focus, he with a hesitant raised his right hand toward the wall and activated his skill, "Unique Magic・Lightning," using the bare minimum amount of mana required for its activation.
What Myne expected and what happened next left him speechless. Where he had anticipated that, with utmost concentration and his near the none control over magic-related skills which most of the time work automatically without him using his mind, a bolt of lightning would shoot from his arm, creating a sizable hole in the wall and granting him the desired result.
However, reality dealt Myne a harsh blow once again.
Not only did his "Unique Magic・Lightning" fail to work as expected, but a crackling sphere of blue lightning enveloped Myne, a stark contrast to the purple hue from the previous attempt. Within seconds, the force field pulsated with electrical energy, causing the air to sizzle around him.
Tendrils of thunderbolts lashed out, striking the ground and hitting the stone pillars Myne had created for safety purposes.
Myne himself did not escape a miserable fate due to his carelessness. Forgetting to employ his defensive skills, he assumed he could handle a small amount of lightning with minimal mana usage. As a result, he writhed on the ground like a fish out of water, emitting strange noises as dense lightning coursed through his body.
Fortunately, his "Ultra Regeneration" skill is holding his life, akin to a solid anchor of a ship in a storm, preventing his miserable demise by his own skill.
This time, Myne's luck did not betray him entirely. Using only a small amount of mana for the "Unique Magic・Lightning" skill resulted in a less impactful effect. The stone pillars he had erected remained intact, sparing him from a collapse that could have sent him to the afterlife.
Myne lay on the ground for nearly seven minutes before regaining control over his body. He stood up, dusting off his body and adjusting his straight, pointy hair. Ignoring the small hole left by the lightning strike and the large rocks scattered in the cave, he wordlessly removed the rocks blocking the entrance, and then dismantled the stone pillar and artificial roof.
Then, with a heavy heart, he retraced his steps, back toward the familiar darkness of the mine's entrance.
Once again, Myne learned the lesson that without proper control, no matter how much he bullied the weak, he could never become a truly powerful person. Regardless of the multitude of skills at his disposal, he would remain akin to a monkey with a sword, mindlessly waving it left and right like an idiot.
...
ᚺᛖᚤ, ᚹᚺᚨᛏ ᚨᚱᛖ ᚤᚨᚢ ᛃᚨᚱᛖ ᚤᚨᚢ ᚤᚨᚢ ᛏᚺᚨᚱᛁᛝᚷ, ᚨᚱᛖ ᚤᚨᚢ ᛏᚱᚨᛁᚾᚷ ᛏᚺᚨᚱᛁᚱ ᛏᛟ ᛋᛏᛖᚨᛚ ᛗᚨᚣ ᚷᚨᛚᛞ? ( "Hey, what are you doing, are you trying to steal my gold?" )
ᚺᛖᚺᛖᚺᛖ, ᚹᚺᚨᛏ ᚲᛁᚾᛞ ᚨᚠ ᚾᛟᚾᛋᛖᚨᚲᛚᛖ ᚨᚱᛖ ᚤᚨᚢ ᛋᛈᛖᚨᚲᛁᚾᛏ, ᚹᚨᚤ ᚹᛟᚢᛚᛞ ᛁ ᛋᛏᛖᚨᛚ ᛦᚹᛟᚢᛚᛞ ᛁ ᛋᛏᛖᚨᛚ ᛦᚨᛁᚱ ᚨᚱᛖ ᚾᛟᚹ ᚠᚨᛚᛋᛚᛖ ᚨᚲᚨᚨᚨᚾᛖ ᛗᛖ, ᚢᚷᛖ ᚠᚨᛖᚱᛖᚹᛖᚱᛞ, 𖦹ᚮᚱᚱᚮ... ( "Hehehe, what kind of nonsense are you speaking, why would I steal your dirt and rock? You are now falsely accusing me, ugly bastard! Don't make me angry, oth
𖦹ᚮᚱᚱᚮᚱᛖ ᚹᚨᛏ, ᛞᚨᚾᛏ ᚦᛁᚾᚲ ᚢᛟᚢ ᚲᛖᚨᛖ ᛖᚺᚨᛞ ᛚᛁᚲᛖ ᛖᚺᛖ ᚲᛁᚱᛖᛋᚺ ᚲᛁᛝᚲ ᚩᚡᛖᚻ ᛚᚮᚢᚱ ᛚᛁᚲᛖ ᚤᛟ ᛞᚨ ᚹᛖᚺ ᚷᛁᚨᛋᚺ, ᚨᚱᛖ ᚨᛚᛋᛟ ᛁᚠ ᛖᚺ ᚱᛖᚡᛚᚨ ᛏᚺᛟᛋᛖ ᛖᚦᛟᚢᛋᛖ ᛞᚨ ᚹᚨᛏ, ᛋᚺᛟᚹ ᛗᛖ ᛉᚨᚨ ᛚᛖᚱᛏ. ( Otherwise what, don't think you can climb over my head like you do with those slaves, also if you really think I am falsely accusing you, then show me your bag, let's see who is right and who
Myne, walking toward the upper layer of the mine with a desperate look hanging on his face, heard the fierce conversation coming from a random direction. Although he didn't understand what the two big guys were talking about, his previous bad habit of watching drama and taking pleasure in other people's misfortune forced him to go over there and see the picture show without any subtitles.
When Myne poked his head from behind the cave wall, he saw two big, thin, and highly similar-looking demonic humanoid creatures. They had purple, tightly-clung, glistening skin stretched over a skeletal frame like a drum. Three ruby eyes, each the size of a coin, pulsed in the centre of its brow, casting an unholy red glow across its noseless face.
A maw, more like a cavern than a mouth, gaped wide, revealing hundreds of needle-sharp, yellow teeth that glittered with a hunger for flesh.
Razor-tipped claws scraped on the ground as it stalked closer, its head crowned with a wicked blade sculpted from its own bone. Jagged horns, like twisted branches, erupted from its skull and shoulders, each point dripping with ichor, the foul nectar of its fury. Its gait was a twisted parody of grace, long limbs propelling it with surprising speed and mining ability in narrow places.
Myne, who was eagerly awaiting a big showdown where both parties would fight to the death, suddenly noticed two metal mining trolleys filled with various sizes of rocks, as well as large fully-filled leather bags on them. This birthed a weird idea in his head.
"Maybe today I'll return to my old profession... But first, let's see if I can mess with the other party or not. It would be very embarrassing to die because of carelessness," Myne mused, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
[ Name: Xyrix
LV: ???
Race: ( Lesser Demon )
Gender: Male
Age: 216 y/o
Occupation: Slave
Title: None
Status: Happy, Excited, Annoying
[Skill]
Chrono Jitter
Murmurweave
[Ability]
???
?????
?????? ]
[ Chrono Jitter (Active Skill): -
Description: This quirky skill allows the caster to briefly distort time in their immediate vicinity, causing mild disorientation among those nearby and making them confused in various ways for a short amount of time. The higher the level of the target, the less effort it has on him.
Cooldown Time: 2 minutes. ]
[ Murmurweave (Active Skill):
Description: Murmurweave enables the caster to communicate through subtle vibrations in the air, creating a whispered message that only the intended recipient can hear. It's perfect for discreet conversations but beware of eavesdropping magical creatures attuned to such vibrations.
Cooldown Time: None ]
"Hmm, it seems this guy is the one causing the trouble," Myne mused, a playful smirk on his teeth. "The way he calmly deals with the others indicates confidence, as if he could handle him with the sheer force since he lacks any powerful skills.
As for unknown abilities, most of the time they are useless compared to skills, and since both of them are from the same species, their abilities should be similar."
"Hmm, maybe today I'm going to Velvet earlier than expected," Myne muttered to himself while rubbing his hand with an evil smile, "But first, let's check the other guy's status before making further plans. Hehehe, so excited about going back to the old job..."