Black Onyx - Forgotten Magic

It was later in the day. Gerald sat on top of the warehouse.

The workers recently finished their task and returned back to their families. They were just glad to have survived the massacre that was going on just outside the warehouse walls.

The corpses were already cleared out, however, the dried blood still remained and coated the cobblestone road in a dark color.

Gerald remained sitting there with closed eyes for a few hours already. He was now just patiently circulating Mana across his body, through the heart, artery, smaller veins, and capillaries. It felt surprisingly pleasant to do so.

It somehow reminded him of that one winter where the cold wind was especially strong when he was returning home. He wasn't out for long, and yet the cold seeped into his bones.

The feeling of comfort that he experienced at that time when he came inside and laid down on the heated floor was heavenly. It was similar now, except there was no heat, just great comfort.

At first, he was just messing around, trying to see if he could somehow stumble on a special effect. Something like Combat Arts perhaps? He was just moving Mana around randomly, but then certain pathways started to feel good.

Like a young curious child, he simply explored for a few hours and figured out this rotation. It was no surprise that it followed the exact same path as blood took in his body. It seemed that the structure for ideal Mana travel was already there since the very beginning.

It was quite nice. Too bad it didn't seem to be having any effects. No increase in strength, speed, endurance, or any other myriad of things… Just a great feeling not unlike after a good massage and a warm bath.

As he was daydreaming while basking in the sun, Gerald's stomach rumbled.

"Hm?" He lazily opened one eye. "It's already so late?" It was late afternoon already, but the sun was still high in the sky.

He stood up and stretched, "Hmmm, oh this feels so nice… I feel so energized! Almost like I could go without sleep for days!"

He was joking, of course. Sleep was one of his favorite daily activities. It was the only time where his brain could shut down and cool off while getting ready for the next challenge.

Having a super active mind was sometimes great for new ideas, but most of the time it was just distracting.

That's also why Gerald learned meditation, it was to bring his thoughts under control. Now he could already be considered a master of his mind. Still, some stray thoughts interrupted his thinking, but mostly it was some random mundane stuff that could be ignored.

In any case, he decided to return back to his team.

Just before doing that though, he flew some distance away since another group of Orcs managed to force their way across the barrier and into the city.

This time about ten riders were assaulting the defenders from various angles while more of them tried to break through.

Powerful Orc Warriors were mounted on top of giant Wargs and were attacking with long swords and heavy axes.

Human soldiers were in a full-on shouting mode as they surrounded them. Despite being less experienced than some seasoned warriors, their teamwork was great.

Being weaker wasn't such a problem when tools could be used. Heavy ballistas were turned around and fired at the beasts. Long black metal arrows pierced the tough beast hide as if it was the softest of sheepskin.

The soldiers kept the beasts at bay with long spears by thrusting them towards vital parts on the face and stomach, making the Wargs retreat.

After many days of battle, they already figured out good strategies against them. Still, accidents tended to happen when you least expected.

This time was no different. Three Wargs went berserk and tore a few soldiers to pieces, ignoring the spears that stabbed them from all sides and ran into the city in different directions.

Two of them were badly wounded, but one managed to get away with just a scratch. It was bad! The beasts were really fast, and the Orc riders on top of them were no joke. The human fighters quickly sent out an alert, but it was unclear how quickly the invaders could be stopped.

"There's never a dull moment," Gerald murmured and flew after a monster pair that was in the best condition.

Wargs were strong beasts and they knew how to traverse difficult terrain with ease. This one jumped on the sides of buildings and soon it managed to climb on the roof to avoid random patrols. It then took off towards the inner parts of the city where the most people were gathered.

It was like a shark among the school of fish. Anywhere it turned there was something to eat. So much food, so much life! The Warg almost went mad as saliva poured out of its mouth in buckets.

It was just about to jump back down on a group of youngsters who were just playing around when there was a glint in the sky.

An instant later the Orc Warrior riding the beast was struck by a powerful metal spear and tumbled down. The Warg was also affected and was pulled down, losing its footing as roof tiles underneath it cracked and gave out from stress.

Both soon landed back on the solid ground with a solid 'thud' and became immobile.

Blood sprayed the stone walls.

The children saw it all and became frightened and ran away screaming, with snot and tears flying everywhere.

Shortly thereafter Gerald landed on the ground not far away. His body was pumping Mana like crazy, boosting his defense in case anything unpredictable happened.

"You dead?" he asked in a loud voice as he kept coming closer. That's when he noticed movement and a strained groan was heard, followed by a pained shout and cracking of bones.

The Warg was standing up while conveniently crushing the skull of the Orc underneath its paw.

"Heh! So much for working together," Gerald grinned. The animal then turned around and gave him a dangerous bloodthirsty look.

Perhaps it was holding a grudge for being pushed off the roof, but Gerald didn't care. He simply extended his hand and pulled Toothpick towards himself. The weapon clanged with his silver palm and then disappeared, replaced by Orc Slayer.

"So, I'll give you two options! Option A, you stay still and let me quickly kill you. It's going to be mostly painless. Then there is option B, fight and struggle until your painful death."

Gerald looked the Warg straight in the eyes, "Which one will it be?"