บท 20: Unpleasant surprise
In the deepest parts of his heart, Ethan wished that things could have played out in a different manner, but he knew that was just his wishful thinking. When the army he was accompanying finally reached one of the many farms it had been attacked by the demons, he saw for the first time those creatures.
The creatures were red monsters that were even smaller than five-year-old kids. However, they could fly, and they also had point years and a tail with a tip in a triangular shape. With a single look, only one world could describe them: demons.
Even the army didn't have time to prepare themselves. The nearest farm was already on fire because the little devils could breathe fire just like they could breathe air. Still, their endurance was solely lacking. They could cause a lot of chaos and destruction, but due to the numbers, they died like insects.
Ethan was sweating bullets while watching the sea of fire caused by the monsters. However, the commander of the army still smiled at him and almost tapped on his shoulders to encourage him. The commander knew that Ethan was just a boy, he was to become a real hero in the future, but at that moment, he was just a boy.
"Don't worry, you can do this. You are strong enough to deal with them."
After saying that, the army commander charged toward the horde of gremlins. The soldiers also followed him while shouting as if that would be enough to make them survive. Ethan only woke up from his daze when he saw some kids even smaller than him equipped with some cheap armor and weapons pass by him. They weren't summoned heroes; they didn't have amazing powers that defied logic that was granted by an unknown entity. Yet, they weren't afraid of dying. In fact, they looked as if they would gladly die as long their deaths could protect their country.
The army's morale also filled Ethan with energy, and he charged toward the horde of demons as well. Some gremlins were stupid enough to try to attack him barehanded, but Ethan didn't hesitate in cutting them one by one in the blink of an eye. His iron sword seemed weirdly sharp that day.
However, things changed when the gremlins saw their allies being cut down left and right by the humans. As if they had been controlled by someone, they stopped doing whatever they were doing and formed several lines facing the army.
Ethan didn't like that, nor did the commander, but neither of them gave the order to retreat. Make the soldiers stop now would only end their momentum and put them into a vulnerable position, causing even more deaths… in the end, the commander was the first to charge, followed by Ethan. Seeing the commander and the summoned hero charging toward the monsters, it only made the soldier's blood boil even more.
Unfortunately, even though some soldiers developed a resistance against magic, none of them had skills as convenient as Ethan or sturdy defensive gear like the army commander. So, due to that, many soldiers got burned to a crisp.
At that point in time, even Ethan was in a frenzy after killing so many gremlins. Seeing them being cut in two and then agonizing to death awakened something in him. A fury that he had never felt before. Ethan and the army commander, who was an experienced knight, decimated the army of gremlins in a few hours. Surprised by that development, the lich decided to retreat and regroup with his few soldiers that were still alive.
The human side won; Ethan won. However, after seeing the pandemonium around here, he didn't feel like a winner. If anything, he felt like vomiting while seeing so many corpses, be they demons or humans, the result of a battle like that made Ethan feel a pitch-black hole inside him. He had never seen anything similar, the faces of those who died amidst the battles, full of hatred, fear, and agony. That single battle would make Ethan unable to sleep for several weeks.
Suddenly, Ethan woke up. The dream finally ended, but Ethan didn't feel alleviated by it. He was sweating like crazy, and his breathing was haggard. As if that wasn't enough, several light blue screens appeared in front of him.
Congratulations! You learned the skill Heat Resistance!
Effects: Decreases the power of area of effect fire attacks by one point per level.
Lv 01 – 0/100
Congratulations! For learning a new ability without help, you received one thousand coins.
Congratulations! You learned the skill Frenzy!
Effects: Increases the power of your physical attacks the more wounded you get. For one percent of health lost, you will receive one percent of strength bonus per level.
Lv 01 – 0/100
Congratulations! For learning a new ability without help, you received one thousand coins.
Congratulations! The skill Fire Resistance has leveled up!
Congratulations! For leveling up the skill you learned by yourself, you obtained ten coins.
Congratulations! The skill Fire Resistance has leveled up!
Congratulations! For leveling up the skill you learned by yourself, you obtained ten coins.
…
"No, no, no…" Ethan muttered in shock. "This can't be happening."
Ethan could feel it. It was the hero class that gave him those skills. He could clearly remember that he obtained those skills on that day, so there was no doubt in his mind that something was off. Ethan lost almost all his powers, so it didn't make any sense for them to return like that. Unless the dream had been the trigger to make him recover those memories and thus grant him those skills. Only a really real dream would have such effects, but everything was suspicious.
"Is it because I learned magic today?" Ethan questioned himself while biting his nails furiously. "That would make sense… I heard that certain events can trigger some realistic dreams. So, perhaps… learning magic or trying to recover my powers isn't a good idea."
That was a really big problem. If Ethan's hypotheses were correct, he would obtain more skills in those dreams, and the more he trains, the more often they will happen, forcing his powers to grow. However, if he doesn't train, he won't find a way to control it. Thus, Ethan would be forced to live a life without human contact.
Not even in his wildest dreams would Ethan have thought that such a productive day would make him feel so worried at night. Ethan had slept only a couple of hours. Still, after having such a dream and worrying about the possibility of having others, he couldn't bring himself to fall asleep again.
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