Chapter 4: Double Kill
The stone pillar leaned tilted against the pit wall, about four or five meters in diameter, with an uneven surface providing plenty of places to climb.
‘About ten meters or so.’ Anse roughly estimated the distance from himself to the top of the stone pillar.
He couldn’t see from this angle if there was anyone above, but either way, he had to go up. The stone pillar could collapse at any moment, and he didn’t have much time left.
He took off his broken boots and stepped barefoot on the protruding stones. The touch was ice-cold but not painful. Draconic Resilience plus the Tough feat made him far superior to his former self.
Taking a deep breath, he climbed upward with alternating limbs, his movements skilled, agile, and light, like the most experienced climbing expert.
“Whew, that was thrilling.”
He looked down at the pitch-black abyss below, his heartbeat involuntarily quickening.
He was a little scared, but it was no big problem. He knew Feather Fall, and if he fell, he could Quick Cast it with his Reaction to ensure he wouldn’t be smashed to death.
However, what truly surprised him was the “Basic Actions” granted by the Character Card after becoming a Professional.
Attack, Dodge, Dash, Disengage, Hide, Jump, Climb, Swim…
In the game, these were just unremarkable basic abilities, but now they turned Anse into a well-trained Athletics elite.
Combined with Acrobatics and Athletics skill proficiency, he could stably perform at the peak of his physical attributes.
His movements were crisp, proficient, and dashing. Not to mention ordinary people—even most Professionals couldn’t match that.
After a few meters, the stone pillar’s angle approached perpendicular, so he had to circle around it to find better footholds.
But as soon as he circled the stone pillar to a new angle, his peripheral vision caught another stone pillar, where a young man at the top was staring at him in stunned amazement.
‘Holy shit!’
Anse tensed up mentally, pressing his body tightly against the stone pillar, and looked upward.
No one was peering down; everything seemed normal.
He glanced sideways. The young man had already looked away, kneeling on the ground with his side facing Anse, one hand holding a sword while the other subtly pointed diagonally upward.
‘Smart.’
Anse nodded slightly and continued climbing upward, more cautiously, pausing every few steps.
The young man occasionally communicated with him using Adventurer gestures, and for a moment, they coordinated seamlessly.
There were two enemies, one of whom was probably that Duergar, status unknown.
As he neared the top, Anse grew even more cautious.
The last three meters!
The young man suddenly stood up and threw a stone toward the top of Anse’s stone pillar.
“Pa—”
He threw it accurately; the stone landed on the stone platform with a crisp sound, drawing the enemy’s attention.
“…”（Goblin）
Footsteps and sharp curses rang out in succession.
Anse got the message and immediately circled to the other side of the stone pillar.
The young man kept throwing stones and cursing loudly, with a somewhat hysterical feeling that didn’t sound fake.
After pausing for a few seconds, Anse climbed upward with all his might and leaped onto the stone platform.
His gaze quickly swept over it: the platform was four or five meters in diameter, with two short Shadow Figures.
One sat in the middle, short and stocky, bald, with grayish-white skin, a warhammer placed beside him.
The other was near the edge of the stone pillar, back to Anse, less than a meter tall, with pointed teeth and ears, gray-green skin, waving a scimitar to intimidate the young man.
The sudden Shadow Figure startled both of them.
The Duergar grabbed his warhammer, turning sideways toward Anse, but didn’t stand up—instead, he shouted loudly.
The Goblin cowered and didn’t rush forward immediately.
By now, Anse had already activated Metamagic, gripping the crystal at his chest with his left hand, focusing his mind, and instinctively sensing and guiding the surging mana to construct a simple spell model.
About a second passed.
“（Dragon Speech）
Accompanied by a resounding Dragon Speech like clanging metal, a burst of light and shadow shot from his fingertips, instantly crossing more than two meters of space before exploding with a piercing Thunder that smeared across the Duergar’s face.
Cantrip: Sorcerous Burst-Thunder!
Though it was his first Spellcasting, facing an immobile target, Anse didn’t miss.
The Duergar grunted, his face covered in blood, and fell backward.
At the same time, dice spun wildly in Anse’s mind, and a text prompt flashed through his heart.
【You cast Sorcerous Burst on the Duergar. The enemy is in Frightened and Prone status.
The Duergar is hit, taking 15 points of （Critical Hit） Thunder damage. Current Life 4/26…】
Anse was delighted; the dice had this function too.
But now wasn’t the time to explore it. The Duergar wasn’t dead yet, and the opponent had Spellcasting ability.
He took a few steps to the Duergar’s side, stepping on his warhammer with his left foot and stomping heavily on his neck with his right.
【You perform a melee attack on the Duergar. The enemy is in Prone, Panic, and Deafened status.
The Duergar is hit, taking 4 points of （Critical Hit） Bludgeoning Damage. Lethal strike. Target Death. Gain 200 Combat Experience…】
Anse relaxed inwardly and immediately turned to face the Goblin.
In just a few short seconds, the most threatening Duergar was dead, leaving only the terrified Goblin.
‘So slow-witted, never heard Thunder before?’ Anse gripped the crystal and cast again.
The Goblin belatedly roared and charged over.
“
Thunder erupted violently, flipping the Goblin over. It lay on the ground, howling and clutching its bleeding ears.
The distance was too close; Anse’s eardrums buzzed.
Enduring the discomfort, he quickly picked up the warhammer—it was somewhat heavy, so he gripped it with both hands, took two quick steps, and smashed it down on the Goblin’s head.
【…The Goblin is hit, taking 6 points of （Critical Hit） Bludgeoning Damage. Lethal strike. Target Death. Gain 50 Combat Experience…】
Anse scanned the area, confirming no danger before sighing in relief.
“Whew… that was thrilling!”
Actually, the Goblin’s Challenge Rating was only 1/4, with 7 Life. Even in melee, it could be handled. But this was his first real fight, so how could he not be nervous?
‘This Sorcerous Burst is really handy.’ Anse remarked.
Sorcerous Burst was the Sorcerer’s exclusive zero-ring Spell, Evocation school, Casting Distance 120 feet （≥36 meters）, dealing 1d8 （1-8） damage on hit, damage type chosen by the Spellcaster: Acid, Cold, Flame, Lightning, Poison, Psychic, or Thunder.
If it deals maximum damage once （8）, the spell energy will burst again, and at higher levels, it can chain explode for considerable power.
Anse recognized the Duergar and knew he might have resistance to Poison, Psychic, etc., but probably not Thunder resistance, so he chose Thunder with good results in actual combat.
Actually, his strongest attack Spell was the First Ring Spell Prismatic Spray, but it required a Diamond （≥50 Gold Coins）, which he didn’t have.
Moreover, First Ring Spells had higher Casting Difficulty and could fail amid Magic Net turbulence and emotional tension.
‘Good thing I performed steadily.’
Looking at the corpses on the ground, he felt a bit uneasy, especially those two pairs of eyes stained with blood, as if staring fixedly at him.
He kicked the corpse’s head aside and began collecting Loot. He didn’t have much time left.
Notes:
1. Critical Hit is a Critical Hit. Original damage 1D8, Critical Hit deals 2D8, i.e., rolling two eight-sided Dice, damage 2-16 points （damage ranges will be noted in text）;
2. Why are all damages in a single range? This actually fits reality quite well.
Take a slingshot as an example: if your slingshot skill is +5, it means high proficiency, so high Attack Roll and hit rate—others dodge purely by luck.
Assuming slingshot damage 1D6 （1-6）, hitting a bird: it still dodges but gets hit on the claw for 1 damage, wing for 2 damage with no Flight status, head for Critical Hit （2D6）, instant death.
Where it hits often depends on luck, hence the Dice system.
This is a simplified case; reality is more complex. When you’re strong enough （high skills, high attributes）, luck factor compresses, and hitting vitals becomes probable.
2. Spells used will be explained; for more info, check the work-related 《Spell List》;
3. Feet in Faerun are about 0.3 meters.
