Apocalypse healer a litr.., p.24
Apocalypse Healer: A LitRPG Adventure, page 24
Can they sense us? Ah, fuck it!
David accelerated again, his mind split to check on his Holy Sea and to keep checking the surroundings. The cultivation replica and the Recovery Serum weren’t enough to fuel his Holy Sea. Not when he was tending to this many people.
Faint glimmers of crimson motes came to light near his Holy Sea, but David didn’t reach them immediately.
The crimson motes consume something – but what? Is it a good decision to use the crimson motes to take care of the remaining patients when the real battle has yet to start?
David considered overexerting the Holy Sea, but he couldn’t afford to damage the Holy Sea just yet, either. It was needed against the Demon Horde.
“It’s not enough. This is not going to work like this!” David grumbled while accessing his status. He glanced at the Attribute Point he’d acquired from the Fang Den’s clearance reward and put it to good use.
[One Attribute Point has been used to enhance the User’s Soul.]
Low(Basic) → Low(+)(Basic)
Holy power surged into David from all directions. He didn’t know where it came from, but it was there, flooding his body. It surged through his energy pathways, altered the natural Aether, and affected the ambient Aether in the surroundings simultaneously. Holy power flooded his Holy Sea as it expanded. The sensation was liberating, exactly what he needed.
He accelerated again, his hands glowing vibrantly.
[Cleanse] remained active, steadily draining David’s recovering holy power, but he didn’t mind. Within a minute, his Holy Sea stopped expanding, and the flood of holy power ceased. Still, David kept tending to the final batch of patients.
Some patients, on the verge of madness, lunged at him, but he easily evaded their attacks. He touched them lightly while escaping their blades and projectiles and kept moving.
His entire body was sweaty, and his Holy Sea was as dry as a desert when he was done. However, his work was done. With his allies freed from corruption, a pair of gratifying notifications appeared.
[Proficiency of Cleanse reached 100%.]
[Tier-0 V] → [Tier-0 VI]
[Your Rank increased by one.]
[Iron VIII] → [Iron IX]
[One Attribute Point has been added.]
“I wanted to upgrade Body to the next level to squash the Demons…” David grumbled under his breath while checking on his Holy Sea and energy pathways once more.
His energy pathways were already in a sorry state. Pushing them too much wouldn’t do any good, but it wasn’t like David could listen to the voice of reason.
A horde of demons appeared, their grotesque, squishy hides gleaming under faint light. David’s stomach twisted at the sight of their twisted wings and hollow eyes.
David could make out all these details about their enemies—the Darkai—for one simple reason: the first group was fast and already about to pounce on a well-armored man.
Isn’t that Torb?
He kicked off the ground and shot forward, unsheathing the warrior longsword to reach Torb, when another familiar face entered his sight. Melach approached Torb slowly. The ground around him was shaking, the air crackling. David’s hair stood up to its end as Melach raised his wand. The mana within the elf was surging. He had never sensed it before, but now he perceived it instinctively.
A surge of energy—mana, David assumed—crackled from Melach’s wand, forming a formidable projectile of blue light. He could feel its intensity as Melach released the blast.
The surge of mana died down, and a single droplet of sweat trickled down Melach’s temple as the [Arcane Blast] exploded amid the group of Demons. Grotesque screams filled the surroundings, but David’s eyes were trained on Melach and Torb.
Torb remained tense, his stance defensive, but no Darkai emerged from the [Arcane Blast]'s explosion.
David’s heart drummed wildly as he closed the distance to Torb and Melach.“You really did it?” He heard Torb asking.
“Did what?” He asked curiously, stepping closer only to be ignored.
“We needed strength,” Melach commented lightly.
“You won’t make your family proud by dying a stupid death,” Torb snorted, turning away.
That was a low blow, but David didn’t think Melach minded.
Melach turned to him and nodded subtly, “You did a good job there. The other Clerics reacted too slowly.”
“And there is no need to worry. I won’t die. I took a risk but was rewarded for it,” Melach added. He must have seen the confusion on David’s face.
But what did Melach do? He was curious, but the Darkai were thirsting for blood, and they didn’t waste any time trying to quench it. They charged ahead, forcing him to react quickly.
Body is nice, but the Soul is better.
[One Attribute Point has been used to enhance the User’s Soul.]
Low(+)(Basic) → Middle(-)(Basic)
The improvement to the Middle threshold was far more potent than a rank increase of the same threshold. His body was again flooded with holy power, but it seemed more potent. Almost purified.
Power surged through him, his Holy Sea swelling to meet it. David took a steadying breath, feeling the weight of his longsword in his grip, and fixed his gaze on the nearest demon’s hollow, void-like eyes.
His heart thundered like a war drum as he stepped forward to face his first enemy.
It was suitable. Perfect even.
A war was exactly what David needed.
It was what awaited him.
Bloodshed and death.
He dashed forward, facing his first enemy head-on.
The Darkai wore hideous grimaces, their disfigured faces giving them a dull, brutish look. David doubted they were intelligent, but he wouldn’t underestimate them. If anything, he would take the Darkai more seriously than the Fangs.
At least the Fangs resembled wolves, making it easier for David to gauge their speed, agility, and durability. But these demonic creatures were unknown territory—a blank sheet.
That might have been for the best. David didn’t freeze in shock when the closest Darkai’s maw opened wide, releasing a searing hot ball of fire. The black fireball whizzed through the air and would have struck David in the chest if he hadn’t reacted in time. He twisted his body, narrowly sidestepping the worst of the impact. An explosion resounded behind him, but he pressed forward.
He appeared before the Darkai, coated his blade in [Holy Touch], and slashed. Black blood spurted through the air.
David cursed as the Darkai’s severed claw hit the ground with a thud. The creature was agile but only slightly faster than him. Nonetheless, he was certain the demon could have evaded the attack in time.
Instead, it sacrificed its claw to block the incoming attack. It screeched in pain and pushed closer, already swinging an arm at him.
David frowned but activated [Shield of Faith]. A small semi-translucent golden shield formed before David, blocking the incoming attack. The shield didn’t break. It rippled and lost some of its golden luster, but [Shield of Faith] didn’t crumble after the first attack. The golden shield only crumbled when David’s focus faltered.
His feet dug into the ground, propelling him through the golden shield as it dispersed. A black blade formed in his hand, and David slashed out like he’d been wielding the Obsidian Blade for decades. The black blade slit the Darkai’s throat cleanly and disappeared after consuming a few droplets of black blood.
David kicked the Darkai in the stomach just as a dark fireball formed in its maw. He raised his blade to strike, but the cut in its throat tore open, and the fireball exploded. The creature slumped to the ground and never moved again.
[You have defeated Darkai(Iron VIII).]
The Fangs’ kill notification looked different. This looks like the Kobold’s notification.
The Darkai weren’t labeled as [Common] or [Uncommon] like the Fangs and Infected. They were different. Why?
David wanted to know more, but the explosions all over the battlefield pulled him back to reality. Now was not the time to start experimenting. A few arrows hurtled past him. Some must have struck a Darkai or two as their pained screams rang out.
However, David pulled back and got back into position. His heart was racing, beckoning him to fight, to drench his body in wounds and warm blood, but there was no way he could deal with the Horde alone.
He could hardly count how many Darkai charged at them. There had to be hundreds – maybe even a thousand.
David’s eyes drifted to the others. He used [Oasis of Harmony] on Melach and a few other Mages who were too close to the frontlines and activated [Bless] several times in a row to apply its instances on himself and two dozen Warriors. He found some Warriors wielding daggers and light armor and used [Oasis of Harmony] on them as well.
The heavy-armored Warriors would hate him for that, but everyone would be happy if one of the light-armored Warriors could kill a few more demons by being off their radar.
[Oasis of Harmony] didn’t last long. It was a low-ranked Skill Rune that hadn’t been leveled much. Still, David liked it. A white, almost pristine, Dove the size of a flying mouse hovered over the targets’ heads. It looked nice and leveled up decently fast as the Darkai near the Skill’s targets ignored them.
[Proficiency of Oasis of Harmony reached 100%]
[Tier-0 II] → [Tier-0 III]
His status appeared suddenly, taking up David’s view for a moment.
Name – David Stears
Class – Cleric
Rank – Iron IX
Body –Middle(+)(Basic)
Mind – Middle(Basic)
Soul – Middle(-)(Basic)
[Skill Runes]
[Cure Wounds] – [Tier-0 IX]
[Cleanse] – [Tier-0 V]
[Holy Touch] – [Tier-1 VI]
[Bless] – [Tier-0 V]
[Shield of Faith] – [Tier-0 IV]
[Oasis of Harmony] – [Tier-0 III]
Attribute Points – 0
Don’t pop up if I don’t call for you!
He closed the status sheet in a hurry and not too early. A pair of Darkai rushed toward him. They simultaneously released fireballs. The distance between the fireballs wasn’t big, but it was enough to make a dive to safety impossible.
David’s mind rattled, considering using [Shield of Faith] to block the fireballs. He cursed and responded instinctively. [Holy Touch] coated the warrior longsword as it flashed through the air. It left behind a pristine trail as it cut through the fireballs. They exploded and threatened to burn David’s hand. However, instead of panicking, he used [Cure Wounds] preemptively. The Skill Rune’s healing reached his hands when the black flames spread everywhere.
He returned to peak condition and healed as the injury came into existence.
The Darkai pair lunged through the explosion, catching David off-guard. He barely raised [Shield of Faith] in time to block one attacker. The Darkai to his left crashed into the shield as it appeared, while the other Darkai’s claws slashed across his chest. This time the attack connected.
David instinctively used [Cure Wounds] and pushed forward, his strength amplified by [Bless]. [Shield of Faith] dispersed, but David didn’t pause. He drove the warrior's longsword deep into the Darkai’s chest as it clawed him again. His muscles bulged while blood oozed from his chest in bursts, but the Darkai to his right was dead. Its crippled wings flapped once or twice before it collapsed to the ground.
The Darkai to his left barely gave David time to react. Thanks to [Bless], he was a little faster than the average Darkai, or at least it felt so, but their fireballs were still faster. A dark fireball impacted heavily and burned his shoulder before it exploded. Searing pain hit him heavily as he was hurled back. The explosion was more painful than he expected. His skin was gone, and the flesh covering his bones was charred black. It was agonizing.
One [Cure Wounds] wasn’t enough; his shoulder throbbed, barely mending even after he forced the Skill Rune to overclock. Still, it showed David that he was still alive.
Pained screams echoed around him, and he fought the urge to help. He would hardly be of help with a Darkai still coming after him.
Damn it!
The Darkai pounced on him, clawing David with one arm while pinning him to the ground with the other. A fireball was already charging in its maw at the same time. It was trying to blow David’s head apart.
He groaned and conjured the Obsidian Blade when another claw mark had been engraved on his chest. Each strike hurt like hell, but the Darkai held back from delivering a killing blow.
It could have pierced his heart with its razor-sharp claws, yet it felt like the demon wasn’t even thinking about doing something like that. The Darkai was certainly thirsting for blood; its dark, hollow eyes glinted with a twisted bliss and excitement.
Its savoring this—the hunt, the torture.
David shuddered at the thought, but he jumped into action nonetheless. The realization was even more reason to eradicate the Demon Horde before they could do anything worse.
The Darkai raised its claws again to strike him when David’s arm shot upward. The Obsidian Blade manifested out of nowhere, leaving no chance of escape. The blade pierced the demon’s heart, or where David presumed to be its heart, and twisted in the Darkai’s chest. Blood ought to spurt from the wound, but the Obsidian Blade absorbed it all.
[You have defeated Darkai(IX).]
[You have defeated Darkai(VI).]
David kicked the dead Darkai aside and cast [Cure Wounds] again. He circulated [Holy Touch] through his body and used [Oasis of Harmony] on himself for a moment. The Darkai charging at him turned to the side and aimed at other combatants instead.
At least, that works.
David sprang to his feet, holy power crackling around him.
He barely defeated three Darkai and helped a few more fighters with [Bless] and [Oasis of Harmony], yet his Holy Sea was already down to two-thirds.
This is not going to be easy.
He looked up and around, scanning the surroundings as he approached the warrior longsword.
The battle against the Horde was never supposed to be easy, but this was beyond everyone’s expectations.
Not even David expected the fight to be this deadly.
He didn’t even have to look far to see a dozen corpses. Eight were Darkai, but the rest belonged to Protectors. The numbers didn’t add up. The protectors died too quickly and didn’t kill enough enemies.
David surveyed the chaos unfolding on the battlefield. Mages unleashed relentless barrages of Mana Bullets, feeding dozens of Darkai. Nearby, Hunters fired arrows in rapid succession.
He noticed that while some Hunters appeared ordinary, their arrows still pierced the demons’ thick hides with ease. Others released three arrows in five seconds, their accuracy unaffected.
It was a beautiful sight and would have put David at ease if the Darkai weren’t bloody dangerous. The Mages’ [Mana Bullets] were fast and lethal, but the Darkai shielded their vital organs by sacrificing non-essential body parts when evasion failed.
Some arrows and Mana Bullets hit the mark, eliminating more than a dozen Darkai, but most merely sustained light to mild injuries. Melach and a few other Mages used stronger Skill Runes than the others. Their attacks inflicted more grievous wounds and were more likely to eliminate a Darkai, sometimes even two or three at once.
But it was not like the Darkai weren’t retaliating. They had their share of fairly powerful demons on their side.
David hadn’t encountered any of those powerhouses, but the desperate screams and death throes around him hinted at their presence. Something was off, and it was most certainly not the mass of ordinary Demons charging at them.
Torb pushed past David, charged a Darkai, and stunned it before splitting its head with a fierce swing of his mace. The dwarf twisted his body as a barrage of black fireballs came his way. His large shield shifted quickly, protecting Torb from the worst damage. His [Block] Skill Rune must have leveled up considerably. The exploding fireballs didn’t affect Torb. He pushed through the fireballs and charged at the grimacing Darkai.
David used [Bless] on himself, Torb, and several nearby Warriors before surging forward. Another instance of [Cure Wounds] mended his wounds enough to focus on the battle ahead.
Torb blocked four Darkai simultaneously, but a fifth got him. Its claws scraped across his plated armor without leaving an injury. A scratch was all that was left. However, Torb seemed to be angry enough about this. He roared at the top of his lungs, bashed the nearby Darkai away, and crushed the head of the Darkai who had been daring enough to scratch his armor.
David stepped up beside Torb, beheading a Darkai in one swift motion. He dismissed the kill notification without a glance.
He spun around, coated the sword blade with a thin [Holy Touch] layer, and used the accumulated momentum to leave a deep gash in the closest Darkai’s chest. The attack would have killed the demon immediately if it hadn’t sacrificed its arm to slow David’s strike.
The demon’s arm split smoothly in two before David’s sword cut into the Darkai’s chest. David’s eyes narrowed, and he pushed forward. He ignored the claw coming his way and released the sword’s coat of [Holy Touch] inside the Darkai. The demon froze as [Holy Touch]’s pure, holy power invaded its insides. It rattled and screamed at the top of its lungs before its legs caved it. David rammed his blade deeper into the Demon, but that seemed overkill.
The Darkai’s kill notification popped up even before David could finish his attack.
Wait a moment!
David let go of the warrior longsword to make a smooth dive to the side. A black fireball exploded where he stood a moment ago. The explosion reached him and must have nearly set his pants on fire. The searing heat was tremendous. It momentarily overwhelmed David, but he still jumped to his feet. A slightly larger Darkai emerged before David. It clawed him and shattered the golden shield that materialized before David as if it were made of glass.
The golden shield shattered, but the Darkai’s attack didn’t end there. Its claws dug deep into David. He screamed in pain and defiance as Torb jumped into view. The dwarf accelerated suddenly and bashed into the demon with his shield first. The Darkai froze for a quarter of a second, which Torb used to smash its head. However, instead of dying, the Darkai regained control of its body and blocked the incoming attack.
