Chương 46: The Earthwyrm

Earth and rocks sprayed outward, splashing into Evan's face. He wiped the dirt out of his eyes, and his vision cleared just as the head of a giant scale-covered worm emerged from the hole that had just appeared a few feet away from him. [Earthwyrm - Rank 4] The head had two ridges of spikes over a set of four small yellow eyes. The most worrying part was the gigantic maw that opened as more and more of the creature slithered out of the tunnel and toward Evan.

It was filled with hundreds of small, sharp teeth, aligned in several concentric rows. Faced with this absolute nightmare creature, his body was flooded with adrenaline, pushing his terror to the back of his mind and sharpening his focus. The Earthwyrm was sliding toward him with alarming speed. Evan scrambled to his feet while his friend shouted unnecessary and unhelpful warnings at him. The monster reared back as if it were preparing for an attack.

Evan saw it coming, pulled out his sword and thrust upward just as the Earthwyrm lunged forward again, maw open wide. Aiming right for the open mouth, his blade cut the monster's wet, writhing tongue. It screeched in pain, jaws snapping shut, and with one angry whip of its head, the Earthwyrm ripped Dawnfire from his hand. With one violent jerk of its head, the monster flung Evan's sword across the forest.

It landed somewhere in the bushes, at least twenty feet away from him, leaving him completely unarmed and with his back against a shoulder-height tree trunk. The Earthwyrm refocused its four beady eyes on Evan, rising off the ground and reeling back for another attack when Oliver came rushing in. He whirled his sword above his head and closed the last few meters in a reckless charge, putting himself between Evan and the monster. The creature's head whipped around, maw opening again.

Strings of green-tinged saliva stretched between the rows of teeth. Oliver held out his hand in front of him.

"Earthen Bulwark!" Evan gasped, Jasper's advice not to try a new skill in combat for the first time flashing through his head. But the earth answered Oliver's command. A ring of compact soil and stone surged upward, surrounding Oliver and Evan both. The earth rose above their heads, building a jagged wall. The Wyrm's head crashed down, right into the bulwark. The impact was violent. Dirt flew everywhere, cracks spider-webbed across the surface of the barrier.

Oliver took half a step back, but the snapping jaws didn't reach him. For a heartbeat, the bulwark held. Then the wyrm shrieked, a high, grating sound, and drove forward again. This time the wall shattered. Chunks of hardened earth burst apart as the creature forced its way through, its armored head punching through the barrier in a spray of debris. One of its spined ridges clipped Oliver's shoulder and sent him stumbling to the side. Evan watched his friend go down and reacted almost instinctively.

He pushed off the tree, heart hammering, and raised his empty hand toward the Earthwyrm. Mana gathered in his palm, more than he'd ever managed to channel into his [Comet Shot] before. With an angry shout, he unleashed it. The bright, glowing ball of condensed mana erupted from his hand and slammed into the Wyrm's face before it could recoil. Bright light and a shower of sparks engulfed the monster's head, and a moment later the smell of burning flesh filled the air. The Wyrm's shriek cut off into a choked howl.

When the [Comet Shot]'s glow faded, all four of its eyes were gone, burned into blackened pits and charred tissue. It thrashed around in pain, its massive body twisting in wild panic. For a moment, Evan was shocked by the gruesome effect his magical projectile had had on the creature. Oliver didn't share his sensitivity. He scrambled back to his feet, despite blood pouring from the tear in his shoulder pauldron, and attacked again.

The Wyrm lashed out, probably sensing the vibrations of Oliver's boots on the forest floor, but without its eyes, the attack missed him by a wide margin. Instead, the monster crashed headfirst into a tree. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it. Oliver lifted his sword over his head, gripping the hilt with both hands, and slashed down. The blade cut a few inches deep right behind the head.

Oliver pulled the blade back out, using his foot for leverage, and struck again. And again. And again, until the final blow severed the monster's head completely. Dark blood sprayed out of the severed stump, covering Oliver from head to toe. The body convulsed weakly, then went still. Oliver dropped to the forest floor, exhausted, but Luca pulled his arms up and cheered.

"Woah, Oliver, man, that was awesome!"

"Quiet!" Jasper hissed, but Luca ignored him. He rushed through the underbrush, breaking through the bushes without care.

"Show me your wound. How's your health looking? Should I use Refreshing Mist on you?" Oliver looked at his shoulder as if he'd just noticed the large bleeding gash.

"Uh… it feels fine actually, but my health is down to half or so, so maybe a bit of healing would do me some good." While Luca worked on Oliver and Jasper was still staring into the forest like he expected another attack, Evan took the time to check the system notification. [You have killed 1 Earthwyrm] [You have earned 46 experience points] [+1 Dexterity] [+1 Spirit] [You have looted 92 mana stones] Evan went into the thicket to find his sword.

After scratching his hands and arms on thorny bushes, nearly tripping over a root and stepping into something soft and brown he didn't want to think about too long, he spotted a glimmer behind a bush. Dawnfire, his sword. He rushed over to pick it up. With relief, he saw that it had survived its encounter with the Earthwyrm's jaws unbent and even unscratched.

It looked as shiny and flawless as the day Agatha had given it to him, which made him wonder if one of the glyphs etched into the blade was some kind of durability enchantment, like Maya had added to Oliver's weapon. After he'd stored his sword away, he walked over to Oliver, who'd struggled back to his feet.

"Thanks for the help. Without you and your Earthen Bulwark I would've been Wyrm breakfast." Oliver smiled, although Evan noticed it looked a little forced. His friend was pale, and the wound on his shoulder, where the spike had torn open his armor and the flesh beneath, was still bleeding.

"That was one tough beast, but it was totally worth it. Evan, I broke through to Rank 4!"

"Hell yes! Congratulations, man. What are you going to do with your attribute points?" Oliver's gaze became unfocused, then he blinked.

"Uh… I don't know. I'll spend them later. It's a little hard to concentrate right now. I feel dizzy." Evan's good mood dissipated quickly.

"Are you going to be okay? You don't look so good." Oliver rubbed a hand over his face.

"It's weird. I can hardly feel my shoulder; it doesn't hurt nearly as badly as it looks, but the rest of me… feels a bit weird. Maybe it's the blood loss?" Jasper came closer, a frown on his face.

"Have you checked your ledger?" he asked, voice tense.

"Any status notifications?" Oliver's gaze became unfocused for a moment as he accessed his menus.

"Uh… it says poisoned."

"Oh no, that's not good," Jasper said, blanching.

"Not good at all." Evan looked at Jasper, then at Luca, their designated healer. Both looked seriously concerned.

"Can you fix this, Luca?" He shook his head.

"My refreshing mist boosts aren't nearly enough to keep up with the rate the Earthwyrm poison makes his health plummet."

"What about a healing potion then? We brought some, right?"

"We have three, but they're only a temporary fix too," Jasper said.

"They're healing potions, Evan, not cleansing potions," Luca added.

"So what then?" Evan asked.

"Back to Silvercreek?" Oliver himself shook his head.

"Silvercreek has a healer, but he's only rank 2. He won't be able to deal with high-rank monster poison either."

"There has to be someone who can help us. Jasper, use one of your messenger birds and send for someone. There must be a high-ranking healer in the Monster Hunter Guild, right?"

"It would take days for them to arrive. Oliver doesn't have that long. Even if we keep up his health with potions and Luca's boost, he would succumb to the poison long before anyone reached us." With increasing frustration, Evan raised his voice.

"So what then?" he snapped.

"If you brush off all my suggestions, I would like to hear an idea from you guys now. Or are we just going to let Oliver die?" Tense silence stretched between them for a long moment. Luca bit his lip, seemingly out of ideas, and Oliver looked scared. Evan, however, felt only growing frustration. He would not just stand around waiting for the Earthwyrm poison to drain Oliver's health.

"Come on, guys. You can't be serious. There has to be something we can do. Someone who can help him." Jasper shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

"There might be someone…"

"Within reach?" Evan asked.

"I think so, yes." He clapped his hands.

"Great, let's go there then." Jasper didn't move. He looked at Oliver for a moment, face scrunched up in worry.

"It's not that easy. The Forest Folk could help him, but—" Luca sucked in a sharp breath.

"They're cannibals!"

"They are not cannibals," Jasper said with a hint of annoyance.

"But they don't like visitors. Not at all."

"But they could help Oliver?"

"Yes, I think so. They are known for their powerful healers, and they live alongside the many monsters of the Old Forest. If anyone knows how to deal with Earthwyrm poison, it's them."

"Well then, we'll have to put on some friendly faces and talk them into helping us. We have money and valuable gear that we can trade. That should help our case." Luca closed his eyes and shook his head as if Evan had just said something very stupid.

"They don't care about money, man. What would they spend it on?"

"But surely they have use for gear. Weapons. Clothes. That kind of stuff?" Jasper discarded that idea too.

"They have better quality of everything we have with us. Forest Folk are famous craftsmen. They have no interest in trading with us. They have no interest in having anything to do with us at all. In fact, they might kill us on sight." Evan gritted his teeth, forcing himself to take a few calming breaths before he continued.

"Okay, fine, I get it. We still have to try. If seeking out these Forest Folk is the only chance to keep Oliver alive, I'm going to do it." He looked at Jasper and Luca.

"You two don't have to come along if you're scared, but I will take Olly there. Just point me in the right direction."