Chapter 16

Nick had seen his parents spar occasionally. It happened whenever Elena needed to show them a specific maneuver that would only transfer well with an opponent, or even when Eugene had enough free time to dedicate to their lessons. Those spars, however, were limited to specific demonstrations. They were flashy enough that Nick could glean some of his parents' abilities, but not nearly as serious as they both could get.

The talk with his father about Prestige showed that he still had a lot to learn about how this world worked, and especially how the System granted its power. He had yet to build a working theory of its existence, much less how it granted its users their classes and subsequent benefits.

What he was witnessing was enough for Nick to reassess what little he knew.

His five-foot-six mother, who he knew to be a fierce, wonderful woman who dedicated herself to nurturing her two children, was smacking four grizzly bear-sized thunderhooves around like they weighed nothing.

It honestly bordered on ridiculous. A little hysterical giggle left his lips while Devon's eyes bugged out.

No, there was no realistic way to replicate the feat of strength. Elena went so far as to grab one of the beast's horns, ignoring the electrical discharge strong enough to burn a mundane man to a crisp and using it as a weapon to smack the others down until only two remained unscathed.

She then proceeded to let go, smack the thunderhoof on the head hard enough to crack its skull and walk away while patting off the dust that got on her clothes, fresh as a daisy.

It was the most intimidating thing Nick had ever seen anyone do, much less someone who was technically a retired housewife.

Loud clapping and whistling interrupted his spiraling thoughts, and Nick turned to see that his father didn't share the same opinion. He felt the opposite, probably, given the heated look he gave his wife, which she gladly reciprocated.

Feeling more disturbed by the image than he wanted to admit, Nick turned back to the two remaining monsters, who, to their credit, hadn’t run away. Herd mentality at its best. “Should we fight now?" he asked, as much to interrupt the awkward moment as to get confirmation.

"Yes, yes. Deal with them. They are young, so they shouldn't be too much of a problem, but your father and I will be around to intervene in case you need it." Elena replied distractedly, walking towards Eugene with the gait of a stalking jaguar.

"Ugh, gross." Devon rolled his eyes and unsheathed his sword, not wasting any more time.

Nick privately agreed but kept quiet, taking another moment to assemble a battle plan. He was nowhere near as resilient as his mother, which meant a direct confrontation was out of the question. The thunderhoof was also much larger than the last creature he fought, and he didn't have a conveniently placed grove of trees nearby to use.

No, he needed to attack it directly. This went against all his instincts from both lives. He had gotten into so much trouble the first time he used a spell that he was understandably hesitant about doing so again, especially in front of his parents, who knew enough to differentiate between a first attempt at a spell and the use of a polished one.

But Nick hadn’t asked to go on an expedition just to gain more experience. That was the primary goal, yes, but it wasn’t the only one. He needed to get his parents’ approval to use magic. To do that, they needed to see him using it safely. The problem with that, of course, was that he had been forbidden from casting anything without supervision.

Still, that didn't mean he could conduct a ritual. Not only would that be a terrible first impression to give his parents of the kind of magic he wanted to develop, but it also wouldn't fit with the image of the typical Mage class he had been posing as.

While he was busy considering his options, Devon had already reached and engaged his target. The two were locked in a serious battle, as the boy was forced to step back whenever the thunderhoof unleashed its charge, while the beast didn't dare get close enough to hurt him, likely too spooked by their mother's brutal showing.

Nick’s brother was doing surprisingly well for someone who had only participated in schoolyard fights. Suspiciously so.

Given how it was slowly retreating from the duel, the remaining monster looked likely to run away. That went to show that these creatures possessed a level of intelligence significantly above regular animals. Nick would have loved to research them properly, but now wasn't the time.

“Nicholas Crowley! I did not bring you all the way here so that you could twiddle your thumbs. Now show me what spell you’ve been working on in secret, and I might not punish you!”

Nick felt his eyes widen in surprise and turned to meet his mother’s gaze. He opened his mouth, and yet nothing came out.

“What, did you think we punished you just because you used magic? Everyone knows that once a kid gets their class, they won’t be able to help themselves from playing with it.” Seeing that he wasn’t getting it, she sighed, “You were punished because you ventured deeply into the forest. And because we needed you to learn a lesson. Your father and I know you are a smart kid, but recklessness has been the bane of many a mage.”

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Now show us what you can do before your brother takes both prey,” Eugene concluded, and Nick decided he’d have to think of the implications later.

With a snap of his fingers, several rocks lifted into the air, and he directed them to hover around the thunderhoof with a flick of his wrist.

While not outwardly aggressive, the move was enough to halt the beast in its tracks. Its dark copper eyes followed the jagged stones cautiously while the hum of latent electricity increased in intensity as it prepared to attack anything that got too close.

Without any hint it was coming, one of the stones shot out of the circle and hit the thunderhoof just below its eye, eliciting a bellow of pain and an unfocused discharge of electricity.

Nick didn't let up. As soon as the first stone connected, he sent another aimed at the creature's flank. The thunderhoof bellowed, and a wild surge of electrical energy sparked across its legs, giving it enough speed to avoid a direct hit. Though the stones didn't do much physical damage to the massive beast, they were enough to distract it, keeping its focus away from Nick and steering it toward the dip in the ground he'd identified.

While his mind tracked the creature's movements, Nick's focus split. He began weaving the second spell, which required more finesse. It was based on Roberta's preservation spell, which she used to keep her diary intact by reinforcing its structural integrity.

He had yet to begin mastering its principles, much less manage to cast it, but Nick had learned enough to be able to flip its formula, crafting a simpler version that did the opposite: weakening the structural integrity of whatever it was cast upon. He wasn't an expert at it yet, but it was enough to work in this circumstance, and he suspected a successful cast would give him recognition from the system.

The concentration needed to maintain both spells simultaneously was significant, but Nick welcomed the challenge. Thanks to his increased INT, his mind handled the dual tasks efficiently. It would have left him exhausted only a few weeks ago, and he considered it impossible as Old Nick. Now, he just had to put in some effort to keep the two streams independent—another boon provided by .

The ground around the thunderhoof kept softening, the dirt beneath its hooves loosening bit by bit while it fought against the stones.

Though bleeding from minor wounds, the beast was far from finished. It snorted angrily, stomping with its hooves as more sparks flared around it. Nick knew he didn't have much time before it grew too enraged to control. Devon was still locked in his fight with the second thunderhoof, somehow always knowing when and where to be to avoid the electrical discharges, and he didn't want to risk interfering.

His breath quickened as he realized he had only three stones left. What he wouldn’t give for a proper earth spell…

Still, he gathered them together, making them hover just before the creature's face. It paused, snorting in confusion that quickly morphed into anger.

Nick unleashed all three stones at once. They hit the thunderhoof squarely in its muzzle, chest, and leg. The beast staggered, its balance thrown. It reared back in a fury, intensifying the sparks around its horns as it prepared to charge now that nothing stood between the two of them.

Just as Nick had hoped. Pushing as much mana as he could into the new spell—which admittedly wasn’t much—he did his best to visualize matter collapsing onto itself, the chipping away of a worn sword, and the videos of cars disappearing into a hole in the ground. There was some resistance, but the earth here was soft and muddy thanks to the many underground aquifers.

Its front hooves slammed into the ground, but rather than serve as a launching point, the earth gave way with a loud crack, forming a sinkhole that swallowed the thunderhoof whole, head first. It let out one final, enraged bellow before it disappeared, crashing down into the hidden pit. The thud of its heavy body hitting the rock below was followed by a wet, unsettling sound.

Nick stood there, panting from the effort, his heart racing even as a ding informed him that its neck had snapped as he had planned.

A familiar pulse of energy washed over him as his experience points surged, and the notification of a new level flashed before his eyes.

He couldn't suppress a triumphant cheer, fist-pumping. The thrill of success coursed through him, and he felt lighter, stronger.

SYSTEM ALERT

New Spell Developed:

Mastery: BeginnerExperience Gained: 1200

Devon was still locked in battle across the field, but Nick could see his brother gaining the upper hand. With a final cry, Devon allowed an arc of electricity to strike him, saved only by what looked like a strange shimmer around his skin, and drove his sword deep into the thunderhoof's neck, piercing through muscle and bone. The beast let out a gurgled groan before collapsing.

Devon stood over the fallen creature, breath surprisingly even, his sword still lodged in its flesh. He turned to Nick, a wide grin breaking across his face. "I did it!"

Nick grinned back, feeling the rush of victory still buzzing through his veins. "I was first."

Clapping interrupted them before they could get going, and their mother appeared between them out of nowhere, "Well, now, that was almost decent."

A heavy hand ruffled Nick's hair before he could respond. He looked up in surprise to see his father grin back at him. " That was quite the plan. I have to say, working with so many Soldiers makes tactics pretty monotonous. I might have to book you for a demonstration at the barracks to show the recruits that they should always expect the unexpected."

"As long as you pay me, that's ok," Nick replied, only half joking, earning a laugh.

"Alright, kids, now that you had your fun and proved you won't run away at the first sight of blood, it's time you help me dress these bad boys." Elena grabbed Devon’s beast and dragged it away without so much as a grunt. Seeing that no one was following, she added, "Each of these is worth six silver coins. If you are quick about it, I might be convinced to give you a cut and not ask why both of you handled yourselves so well in your first battle."

That was all the brothers needed to hear; they rushed to the closest carcass, not daring to complain.

Carving up a herd of magical animals felt surreal, but Nick didn't make a fuss. He had asked for it, after all.

Luckily, it didn't take too long to work through the bodies, mostly thanks to his parents being so quick that they could have operated a slaughterhouse by their lonesome.

They left behind most of the organs and bones since they were too tough to serve as animal feed and too weak to be used as weapons, only keeping the best ones to sell in town. His father even took the time to carve up a metal-like growth from within the largest thunderhoof, but Elena’s stern gaze kept Nick from asking. Everything else they placed in Eugene's rucksack, apart from the one still in the sinkhole, which was deemed too bothersome to recover.

Watching tons of meat, hooves, and horns disappear in a space that couldn't contain them was surreal. Luckily, Nick didn't need to ask, as his father provided the information on his own, "It's an expanded space. I got it as a present from my mentor when I got to level forty and graduated. No, you can't have one yet. They are so expensive that it's not funny to joke about. No, I do not know how the magic works, but it does and will continue for decades as long as no one ruins it. A whole century is what's advertised. You can buy one in Alluria, but Prestige Artificers make these things. You'd have an easier time saving up for a house.”

And with that, he closed the flap and placed it back on his shoulders as if it weighed nothing.

"Now, kids. Let's talk about what just happened, shall we?”