Chapter 212 — Under the Watcher's Gaze
After escaping from the goblins and their Shaman, Evan continued moving deeper into the mountain passage.
One hand remained tightly pressed against his torso.
Blood had soaked through his clothes.
The arrow that had pierced through him had already been removed. Leaving it inside would only cause more problems, but pulling it out hadn't exactly made his condition any better.
His torso was still bleeding.
Using his ice element, Evan repeatedly froze the damaged flesh around the wound, slowing the bleeding and temporarily sealing it.
It wasn't healing.
Not truly.
It was merely keeping him from bleeding to death.
His stats had already been heavily suppressed by the curse, and the battle outside had pushed his weakened body dangerously close to its limit.
But at least one thing had changed.
His HP was no longer dropping.
That was enough for now.
Evan dragged his exhausted body forward.
'I got lucky.'
He glanced behind him.
'Those green heads aren't following me anymore.'
His gaze slowly shifted upward.
Dark clouds covered the entire mountain range.
Lightning flickered constantly within them.
The deep rumbling of thunder echoed across the silent mountains.
'At least now, the only thing trying to kill me is the lightning above my head.'
His lips twitched faintly.
That wasn't exactly comforting.
As Evan continued walking, his mana slowly began recovering.
For the first time in a while, he wasn't constantly consuming it.
The pathway itself was strange.
Tall stone walls rose on both sides, creating a narrow rocky passage leading deeper into the mountain range.
The ground was uneven and filled with broken stones, as if nobody had walked through this place for centuries.
Evan couldn't help but wonder how such a path had been created.
'Did the goblins make this?'
It was possible.
But something about the place felt unnatural.
Too quiet.
Too empty.
He opened his Trial panel.
The mission was still active.
[Mission: Escape.]
No completion.
No reward.
Evan sighed.
'Hah... I wonder what exactly this thing considers an escape.'
He jumped down from a large boulder.
The sudden movement sent pain shooting through his torso.
His expression immediately darkened.
"Sh*t..."
He pressed his hand against the wound.
Blood was beginning to seep through again.
A layer of frost quickly formed over the damaged area.
The cold numbed the pain slightly.
But Evan knew this was only temporary.
His recovery rate had been drastically reduced by the curse.
At his original strength, an injury like this would have been much easier to handle.
But now?
Every wound mattered.
"I seriously need to do something about this curse."
Evan glanced at his status.
The numbers were still disgustingly low.
"If this continues, surviving this Trial might become harder than fighting those green heads outside."
He continued forward.
One step.
Then another.
Time slowly passed.
An hour went by.
Then more.
Yet the end of the rocky passage remained nowhere in sight.
Even though the information acquired through the Mask indicated that no beast or goblin claimed the mountain, Evan didn't lower his guard.
A place without living creatures wasn't necessarily safe.
Sometimes...
It was the opposite.
Throughout his entire journey, he hadn't sensed a single presence.
Not one.
No insects.
No animals.
Nothing.
It was as if the entire mountain range had been abandoned by life itself.
A true no-man's land.
After another half hour of exhausting travel, Evan finally noticed something.
The narrow stone passage was beginning to widen.
His eyes sharpened.
'The end.'
The rocky walls gradually separated.
Beyond them, he could see a faint outline.
The foothold of a mountain.
Evan's tired body moved faster.
Ignoring the pain, he hurried forward.
Then finally...
He stepped out of the passage.
And froze.
"...What the hell?"
The scene before him was completely different from what he had imagined.
He had expected to see a massive mountain directly ahead, perhaps surrounded by forests and steep cliffs.
Instead...
An enormous barren plain stretched before his eyes.
The ground was covered in countless rocks and massive boulders.
It extended so far that Evan couldn't even see where it ended.
And in the center of that desolate land...
Stood the mountain.
Only then did Evan understand why it was called SkyPeak.
It was unlike any ordinary mountain.
A single colossal structure rose from the center of the plain.
Straight.
Sharp.
Towering toward the heavens like an enormous spear attempting to pierce through the sky itself.
Dark storm clouds circled around its peak.
They concealed the upper portion of the mountain from sight.
Lightning constantly flickered within them.
BOOM!
A bolt descended.
The ground trembled.
A large rock was instantly shattered into fragments.
Evan's eyes narrowed.
Another bolt fell several hundred meters away.
CRACK!
The stone exploded.
Fragments scattered across the barren plain.
Only then did Evan fully understand why no creature lived here.
'Hmm...'
His expression became serious.
'Now I understand.'
No beasts.
No goblins.
Not even flying creatures.
Anything attempting to settle here would probably be killed before it could survive long enough to claim the territory.
The entire place was a natural death zone.
Evan stared toward the towering mountain.
A strange feeling began creeping into his mind.
Then—
He stopped.
Something was watching him.
Evan's body immediately tensed.
His eyes snapped toward the mountain peak hidden behind the storm clouds.
His instincts were screaming.
There was something there.
Something looking down at him.
His fingers slowly tightened around Crimson Edge.
'Is this just my weakened body playing tricks on me...?'
He stared into the clouds.
'Or is there really something up there?'
The feeling didn't disappear.
Instead...
A cold chill suddenly crawled down his spine.
Evan slowly raised his head.
The clouds above him were changing.
The lightning inside them became increasingly violent.
His pupils contracted.
"Not good."
Without hesitation, Evan rushed toward the nearest stone wall.
His hands pressed against the earth.
Mana surged.
The rock quickly shifted.
A small hollow opened within the stone.
Evan threw himself inside.
The next second—
BOOOOOOM!!!
A massive bolt of lightning descended exactly where he had been standing.
The entire plain trembled.
The explosion shattered nearby rocks.
A violent shockwave swept across the area.
Even though Evan wasn't directly struck...
The weakened state of his body couldn't withstand the aftermath.
The stone covering the entrance collapsed.
Darkness swallowed him.
His consciousness faded.
The lightning outside gradually became quiet.
As if nothing had happened.
Inside the small cave...
Evan lay unconscious.
His body was covered in blood.
Dark burn marks had appeared across his skin.
The shockwave had worsened several of his injuries.
Then...
A faint light appeared before him.
One panel.
Then another.
Several System notifications silently emerged.
But Evan couldn't see them.
His consciousness had already faded.
The small cave returned to silence.
...
Several hours later.
Evan's fingers twitched.
His eyelids trembled.
Slowly...
His eyes opened.
"...Argh."
Pain immediately rushed through his body.
He was lying awkwardly against the rocky ground.
Blood covered parts of his clothes.
Darkened marks remained across his skin from the lightning's aftermath.
His legs were partially buried beneath fallen stones.
Evan stared at the ceiling for several seconds.
Then sighed.
"Why does this always happen to me?"
He slowly raised his hand.
"First those annoying goblins..."
His expression darkened.
"And now this damn mountain."
Using Earth Manipulation, Evan pushed against the surrounding rocks.
Rumble...
The stones moved apart.
He crawled out from the small cave and inspected the surroundings.
Everything looked normal.
The barren plain remained silent.
The mountain still stood in the distance.
Lightning continued flashing within the clouds.
But nothing appeared to be watching him.
Evan narrowed his eyes.
"Was that really a coincidence?"
His gaze shifted toward the mountain peak.
"Or was something actually staring at me?"
He didn't have an answer.
And honestly...
He wasn't in a condition to investigate.
Evan returned to the partially destroyed shelter.
He sat against the stone wall and opened the System.
His eyes immediately searched for the Trial mission.
Then—
His expression changed.
[Mission:Escape.] ✅
[Mission Rewards are being calculated...]
[Detected... Several Slain enemies... Curse Penalty Detected.... Restless Pursuit... Information Gathering.... Summoner Tactics...]
[Mission Rewards have been Calculated....]
[Mission:Escape.]
[Description: Escape the enemy encirclement, survive the lingering curse, and recover your strength.]
[Reward:
• +5% Curse Effect Subjcated.
• Next Linked Mission Granted.
• +4 Selection]
Evan stared at the rewards.
His eyes slowly widened.
"Four Selection Points..."
His expression changed.
Without wasting another second, Evan opened his Status Panel.
He wanted to see exactly what had changed.
__
[<Nexus Prime System>]
◇ Name: Evan Ravencall (Evan Windstone)
◇ Race: Human (100%)
◇ Age: 18
◇ Title:[Limit Breaker], [Holder of Monarch Physique], [Death Scholar]
◇Physique:Death Monarch [🔒]
◇ Rank: Tier 0
◇Level: 100 [ 1,65,000 / 165,000 ]
◇ Bounded Item: Mask of concealment (??), Veyr'Zhal, the Warden Chain Fragment (??)[🔒]
◇ Class:
-Necromancer (SS)
-Mage (E)
-Weapon Master (F)
__
◇ Talents:
- [Nightstep] (A+)
◆ HP: 3,170
◆ MP: 5,610
◆ Strength (STR): 58 {+32 Red} [358]
◆ Agility (AGL): 44 {+35 Red} [390]
◆ Vitality (VIT): 84 {+28 Red} [317]
◆ Intelligence (INT): 00 {+51 Red} [561]
◆ Endurance (END): 03 {+27 Red} [297]
◆ Stamina (STA): 85 {+28 Red} [317]
◆ Spirit (SPT): 86 {+6 Red} [75]
◆ Unassigned Stats: 600 [🔒]
◆ Attack Power: 897.6 (Physical) | 841.5 (Elemental)
◆ Defence: 614
◆ Storage Summon:4,958/6,860[🔒] [13/750]
[Abilities]
➤ Elemental Manipulation (SSS)
[Skills][🔒]
➤ [Class Skills]
Necromancer (SS):
Raise Undead (Lv.Max), Necro Heal (Lv.Max), Undead Storage (Lv.Max), Death Bolt (Lv.Max), Bone Armor (Lv.Max), Undead Summoning (Lv.46), Death March (Passive) (Lv.Max), Dark Veil (Lv.Max), Bone Cage (Lv.Max), Corrupting Touch (Special, Active), Dark Art Mastery (Lv.Max, Hybrid), Pyre Mark (Lv.4), Corpse Flame (Lv.65), Mana Siphon (Lv.Max), Dark Slash (Lv.51)
Mage (E): [🔒]
Weapon Master (F):[🔒]
Items:
[Crimson Edge – Erith Rank | Tier 0 | +3]
__
Evan looked at his status and felt a faint sense of relief.
Some of his strength had returned.
But as he examined the numbers more carefully, his expression gradually changed.
'Hmm... shouldn't my stats have recovered by around ten percent? Why is it slightly higher?'
He narrowed his eyes and began going through the notifications again, searching for something he might have overlooked.
Then his gaze landed on the description of the mission he had just completed.
Escape the enemy encirclement, survive the lingering curse, and recover your strength.
Evan stared at those words.
"I escaped the encirclement and survived the curse..."
His eyes narrowed.
"But the mission wasn't completed until after I got struck by that lightning."
His thoughts immediately returned to everything that had happened before he lost consciousness.
The lightning.
The strange sensation.
And then...
His gaze dropped toward the charred bruises scattered across his body.
His pupils contracted.
"Wait..."
Evan's expression slowly changed.
"Does this mean... my strength recovered because the lightning weakened the curse?"
The possibility sounded absurd.
Yet it was the only explanation that made sense.
The curse had suppressed nearly everything about him.
His attributes.
His recovery.
His mana regeneration.
Even his overwhelming reserve of power.
But after the lightning strike...
Some of that suppression had loosened.
Evan slowly looked toward the towering mountain outside the cave.
A complicated expression appeared on his face.
'If that's really the case... then this cursed mountain might actually be capable of helping me break through the suppression.'
His gaze then shifted toward the four glowing Selection Points.
And finally...
Toward his battered body.
His HP was far from ideal.
His injuries had stopped worsening, but they were still severe enough to become a problem.
He didn't hesitate any longer.
A panel appeared before him.
[Talent: Radiant Sanctum (S)] [Requirement: 1 Selection Point]
Evan immediately selected it.
The panel disappeared.
A new talent entered his status.
Without wasting another second, Evan activated it.
[Radiant Sanctum - Sanctum Pulse]
A gentle green and golden radiance spread across his body.
The energy felt completely different from the cold and violent mana he was used to manipulating.
It was warm.
Comforting.
Almost sacred.
The aura washed through his battered body.
His exhausted muscles gradually relaxed.
The pain in his wounds began fading.
Even the fatigue that had accumulated after hours of running, fighting, and nearly dying slowly disappeared.
Within minutes, Evan's condition returned close to its peak.
He exhaled slowly.
"That's much better."
Then suddenly...
A strange sensation passed through his body.
It felt as though something tightly wrapped around his existence had loosened for a brief moment.
Evan's eyes sharpened.
But before he could investigate further, a notification appeared.
[Detected a higher-grade Curse, Na@%e S@i!@# W$!th (Tier ##). The curse's effect is beyond the removal range.... Effect disintegrated.]
Evan stared silently at the notification.
Then sighed.
"So even an S-rank talent can't remove it."
Radiant Sanctum possessed the ability to suppress and cleanse certain curses.
Yet against the curse currently affecting Evan...
It could do almost nothing.
The difference in their levels was simply too great.
Still, that brief loosening sensation hadn't escaped Evan's notice.
'It couldn't remove the curse... but it did affect something.'
His gaze slowly shifted outside.
Toward the SkyPeak Mountain.
Toward the storm clouds.
Toward the lightning that had nearly killed him.
Evan swallowed.
'So I really have to let that lightning strike me again if I want to weaken this curse...'
The thought alone sounded insane.
He had survived the previous strike mostly because he had escaped the direct impact at the last moment.
If the lightning struck him head-on...
Even Evan wasn't confident he would survive.
He waved away the panels.
The remaining Selection Points were far too valuable to waste carelessly.
Then he remembered something else.
The final reward from the mission.
A new panel appeared.
[Mission:Escape.] ✅
[Next Linked Mission has been Granted.]
[Mission:Eradication.]
[Description: Escaping the enemy encirclement with great courage and tactics and swearing to eradicate the settlement next time.
The Trial remembers everything.
Words spoken before an enemy should not be empty. Prove those words were not the cries of fleeing prey. Return to the Goblin Settlement and fulfil your declaration with blood.]
[Reward:
• +3% Curse Effect Subjcated.
• Next Linked Mission Granted.
• +2 Selection]
Evan stared at the mission.
His eyelid twitched.
Once.
Then again.
'You expect me to eradicate an entire settlement consisting of more than three hundred Goblins in my current state?'
His mouth twitched.
'Even if I did say those words... I don't exactly have the strength to back them up right now.'
He stood there silently.
Then suddenly stopped.
His expression gradually became calm.
A dangerous glint appeared within his eyes.
"Fine."
Evan stepped toward the entrance of the cave.
"I wasn't planning to leave them alone anyway."
He walked outside.
The area surrounding the cave remained devastated by the previous lightning strike.
Massive cracks covered the rocky ground.
Several boulders had been reduced to fragments.
Even now, faint traces of heat remained within the scorched earth.
Evan slowly raised his head.
His gaze travelled toward the towering mountain.
The enormous peak disappeared into the dark storm clouds above.
Lightning flashed intermittently between the clouds.
Illuminating the mountain for brief moments.
Evan narrowed his eyes.
He was certain now.
There was something there.
Something hiding above the mountain.
Something that had watched him since the moment he entered this place.
Just as he was trying to sense that presence again...
A terrifying pressure suddenly descended.
It lasted only for an instant.
Yet Evan's entire body froze.
His pupils contracted violently.
His breath stopped.
The pressure vanished.
But Evan remained standing in place.
His fists slowly clenched.
His teeth ground together.
There was no fear in his eyes.
Only rage.
A deep, instinctive fury that he himself hadn't expected.
"I was right..."
His voice came out cold.
Evan slowly raised his head toward the clouds.
"That presence up there..."
His expression twisted.
"It carries the markings of..."
His eyes burned with suppressed fury.
"A Dragon."