A mage in the making: Unlocking my mage system-Chapter 40: The red zone pt 2

The entire cohort had been facing a series of disagreements and problems. It got to the point that neither Erik, nor Kaiden really cared about the fact that Chuck was responsible for the murder of three students, but that was just how the world worked — kill or be killed. The current system was so corrupt and rotten to the fact that murder had become a common thing. Sure, if one was found to have committed murder, the penalty would be severe. But then again, the government really didn’t give two shits about lowborn families.

Chuck still had some guilt, albeit the students were sent after him. The mastermind in question, Bobby, had not been heard from by Chuck, nor did he know where his whereabouts were.

Chuck had to disperse those morbid thoughts as he was now entering a valley that might very well be the end of him if he lost even an inkling of focus. He could see a large build of forestation in the distance, the greenery was so thick that it seemed like the trees were emitting their own light, not a reflection of the sunlight.

Amidst the nervous conversations about how the group were going to coordinate themselves into killing an evolved beast, Chuck decided to open his system interface, trying to determine if what he possessed in his arsenal was enough for him to stand against one.

[ Name>> Chuck Nectar ]

[ Race>> human ]

[ Class>> mage ]

[ Stage>> neophyte ]

[ HP>>20/20 ]

[ level>> LV 2 ]

[ Exp>> 70/400 ]

[ Skill>> ]

[ Infernal shroud: LV 2]

[ Infernal craft: LV 2 ]

[ Forced absorption technique LV 2 ]

[ Harelm energy pool>>> 150/150 ]

[ Mana pool>>150/150 ]

"Everything is on pause. I’m not growing stronger, maybe I should stop locking my energies for the Harelm guide."

[ Daily quest updated ]

[ Slay a living creature ]

"Slay a living creature? Did the system really acknowledge the fact that I was responsible for the death of three students? Does it want me to kill more people?"

[ Reward: 150 exp ]

"But the reward is pretty high though. All I have to do is kill a couple beasts... not humans, and I’ll level up quite quickly."

But the underlying problem was the fact that Chuck wasn’t going to fight against the regular beasts that were fairly easy to kill, depending on the tactics being used. He was going to have to kill an evolved beast which was much more powerful than a regular beast. The only thing he could do was to deliver the final blow when the group engaged with one.

He dismissed the system interface, now wanting to attain extreme focus, as the cohort were now at the entrance of the forest. The trees in their views were a colossus, ranging from 200 feet to 300 feet in height. This staggering height made it impossible for them to see the sun, making the floor of the forest fairly dim. They were all shrouded by the shadows of the trees, giving the entirety of the forest an eerie vibe.

"I don’t like this one bit," Erik said as he walked on the dry leaves with deliberate steps.

"The red zone is covered with nothing but greenery... what an irony," Lance replied, also feeling a little bit scared.

"Let’s just keep a tight formation, with our eyes sharp. We will be okay," Kaiden said, trying to lessen the fear that crept up their beings.

They headed deeper into the forest facing a couple obstacles such as large boulders, and a few fallen trees. They also noticed a large river flowing towards a particular direction, far off in the distance.

"I bet if we follow the path of the river, we’ll find ourselves some cute evolved beasts," Xin said, walking alongside Erik.

"Pfftt... obviously," Kaiden replied with disgust. She still didn’t feel great about Xin being part of their group.

The cohort changed their direction, following the path of the massive river. They walked for several kilometers, getting their feet stained by the muddy soil. The forest seemed mostly quiet, with the only sound being the little chirps of the crickets around.

"At this point I’m starting to think that there are not many beasts in this zone. Maybe the staff were trying to scare us or something," Chuck said as he kicked a rock in his path.

The tiny rock flew with speed, arcing through the air before it landed on what seemed like a large boulder. The rock smashed against the boulder with force as it broke apart into three rough pieces. Chuck didn’t think anything of it as he walked on, kicking anything on his way.

"Don’t jinx it Chucky," Erik said with a slight crack in his voice, "we do not want all the beasts in this zone up on our asses."

"Fuck off," Chuck replied in annoyance.

They kept on walking at a steady pace, still following the path of the river. Chuck heard a sudden shift behind him, which startled him a little. He turned around, almost subconsciously activating the infernal shroud in the process.

"What is it? Don’t tell me that your brain is making you hallucinate," Erik said.

Chuck didn’t acknowledge his comment as he looked around, trying to determine the cause of the sound he had just heard. He shifted his gaze steadily until his eyes rested on a particular figure that caused a chill to run down his spine.

He saw a boulder, but it wasn’t just any boulder. It was the exact boulder that Chuck kicked the tiny rock on — the boulder had the exact same tone, shape, and structural make of the last one. The group had traveled a reasonable distance since Chuck projected the little rock at the boulder, so it should have been impossible for the same boulder to be right behind them.

This realization made Chuck’s pulse quicken as he stood in fear.

"Uhm guys, I think you all need to stop whatever the hell you’re doing and focus your attention on this boulder right here," Chuck said, pointing at the unmoving towering rock.

"Is there any problem?" Kaiden asked in a concerned tone.

"I could’ve sworn that I saw that exact boulder a few hundred metres back," Chuck said in a shaky voice.

Kaiden looked at the boulder with a sharp gaze, she walked towards it with a slow motion, trying to know if Chuck was just being delusional. The boulder stood still, not moving an inch as Kaiden crept towards it.

"Well there’s only one way to find out!" Kaiden yelled as she ran forward.

When she was in a close enough range, she raised both hands towards the boulder. Large sparks of electricity were conjured out of thin air as they danced around her arm like a predatory serpent. She shot both hands forward simultaneously, releasing several bolts of lightning.

*Crack!*

Thunderclaps could be heard as the lightning bolts traveled towards the boulder with speed. The attack made an impact with the rock as an explosive sound reverberated across the forest. The residue bolts from the attack ricochetted, bouncing off, hitting nearby trees, setting them ablaze almost instantly.

The attack didn’t seem to move the boulder in the slightest as it still stood there, unmoving.

"Well it seems like it’s just a regular boulder, nothing to worry about," Kaiden said with a sigh of relief.

But her moment of relief was short-lived. The group noticed that the unmoving boulder began moving slightly. It all started with a subtle vibration, but the whole structure of the towering rock began to move slowly. Vibrations could be heard on the ground as the boulder rolled to the side, crushing everything in its path.

Chuck activated the god eyes as he tried to look past the rock itself, and see what was beneath. He closed his eyes, changing his vision. He could see waves of energy in the atmosphere, and when he turned his head to face it at the boulder, the initial fear he had only got worse.

He could see the energy flow of an entire creature. The red energy that ran through its being burned brightly, the structure of the beast was so massive, that it seemed like it was struggling to stay under the rock that concealed it. The boulder seemed to be a shell that covered the beast, and the fact that Kaiden’s attack didn’t do anything to faze the beast meant that the shell was extremely durable.

"Guys, there’s a fucking beast underneath that rock!," Chuck yelled as he took several steps back.

"Ready yourselves!"

[ Infernal shroud has been activated ]

Chuck being lit up as golden flames engulfed his being, illuminating the dimly lit forestation with a golden beam. The rest of the cohort stepped back as they conjured their attacks, readying themselves for the incoming beast.

Shrieking sound suddenly emitted from the boulder, making the vibration they felt on the ground increase. The next second, the shell rolled over as an overwhelming creature emerged forth, baring its 8 feet fangs at them.

Just then, Chuck received a system message.

[ Quest: defeat the evolved beast before you ] 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

[ Reward: instant level up]

"I hope we make it out of this alive."