How To Survive A Calamity

A few minutes ago...

"Haah...i should get ready, too." I sighed deeply as i stared at the onyx black mask in my hand.

With my current state, it was a big chore trying to struggle against the insidious influence of Mumur's Mask as i held on to it and openly stared at it from this close.

The damned Artifact kept whispering and ushering secrets and suggestions directly into my mind.

Slowly i raised the mask to my face and felt the murmurs and whispers grow even louder directly inside my mind.

It made my head thrub and the suggestions were tantalising and inviting, like a Demon's whisper from the side of your shoulder.

I stared at the inside of the black onyx mask — at the dark, silver markings carved around it...

My throat moved, i gulped.

Slowly, my hand holding the mask moved.

...If i could just put on the Mask then everything...all of it, I'd know... everything.

'Ah...how diabolical.'

I gulped dryly and bit my lower lips before lowering the mask and looking away from it, disturbingly.

"...Not yet."

Instead, for now, i focused on recovering as much strength as possible as i could.

My Ether reserves were at their lowest, but i actually wasn't really worried about that.

When it came down to it, i still had enough reserve to spare for unforseen circumstances.

The Hoarder Enchantment of the Ring of Solomon.

I never got much reason or chance to try it out in the past, but this Enchantment not only devoured my Ether, or energy, almost endlessly, but also stored them for eventual use.

Up until now I've never been in a situation like this where my Core was almost empty, so I've never once tapped the reservoir of the Hoarder Enchantment and have only left it to keep draining and devouring more and more energy over the last one year.

'I could use it to speed up my recovery.'

But i knew that still wouldn't be much.

I was in one of the worst shape I'd ever been in a long time.

It was taking all i had to send threads of Ether throughout the fibers of my Being, flesh, bones and muscles amd fixing them.

It would be a better option that I'd rather keep my reserve of Ether until I've found Alexander.

I might need then more than i think i do now.

I swayed slightly as Hamlet raced through the passageway.

'We need to hurry.'

Hamlet raced swiftly and navigated the passageways deftly and impressively.

It was almost as if he knew just where he was headed.

'How though?!'

The thought, for the right and obvious reasons, plagued me.

At first, it was purely instincts and on impulse, but i trusted Hamlet would somehow be able to find Alex.

Now the large wolf was moving through like it was the familiar layout of its front yard.

With such confidence...

Still, i was growing more and nore concerned — impatient.

'What do you think Hamlet is doing?'

In the end, i could only ask internally.

The familiar deadpan voice rang through my head.

[You ordered the Slime to find Alexander. And here we are.]

The moment Meta concluded those words, Hamlet came to a halt all of a sudden.

'What...'

My eyes widened and i looked forward as a turbid breath broke from my lips.

Suddenly my throat felt even more drier as the very air seemed to burn and prickle my skin.

Sitting on top of Hamlet and still holding on tightly to his fur — as tightly as i could anyway — i swallowed at the sight before me.

'What is that...?'

It was an indescribable scene of a maelstrom of white flames seaing through the air like a rolling storm.

[We've arrived.] I heard Meta say.

But, what the hell was this?!

'Those flames...'

Sitting untop of Hamlet from a distance and watching such a spectacle, my eyes glimmered slightly.

I recognised the colour of those white flames.

—Alex.

It seemed like i — Hamlet had indeed found Alexander — or something, after all. On one hand.

On the other hand.

It looked like some kind of shattering battle was happening.

My thoughts raced and trailed naturally as i heard the escaping sounds of collision and felt the heat sneer at my skin.

—Was i late?

Did i make it in time?

Was Alex still alive?

What about Chelsea?

And Nico — the Demon?

'Those flames are similar to the one from the vision, so that means Alex is still alive, right?' i desperately thought.

But.

There was only way to find out.

With that thought, i had Hamlet continue to carry me forward and clenched my fingers nervously.

Eventually, taking shade from a reasonable corner, i was soon able to get a visual grasp on what was happening.

The scene unraveled into the sight of Alexander — shrouded with transparent pure white flames— facing off against the intimidating figure of a black Demon with a single massive upside down wing came into view.

Alexander seemed to be walking forward as the burning white fire around his body seemed to dispell the unnatural darkness of the Demonic figure — somewhat.

But that was it.

The situation didn't seem like it was favourable at all.

Alex was pale and looked exhausted.

Onyx boack chains materialized from pitch darkness and surged at him relentlessly from multiple directions, but Alex swerved, dodged and struggled to evade them.

Alas, he's efforts were greatly limited with the odds all stacked against him.

I hesitated on the spot a bit.

I had finally found Alexander and the rest, and it also seemed like i did so before Ceres' group did, but i couldn't carelessly throw myself into the fray like that.

That would do the opposite of saving Alexander and possibly getting all of us killed at once.

'Appraisal isn't working...'

My palms were sweaty and my throat felt dry.

Damn.

I thought i could manage to get an idea on the strength of the Demon, but apparently it's at a level Appraisal can't even decode.

That was the strength of the enemy i had to make sure Alexander survived against.

'I wasn't expecting an Instant Rank up quest to be easy.'

I almost wanted to laugh dryly at myself.

When...?

When was it ever so easy?

When had it ever been?