Taking a deep breath and floating up in mid air to avoid causing a commotion with his strength, Michael returned his senses to the sky.
A part of him now felt he could face them.
Michael was quite cautious in nature but when the time came to be decisive, he often did so with surprising resolve.
As he couldn't enter the void, Michael couldn't join his undead there.
But he knew that as long as he made a movement, those monsters would descend.
And so he did. Michael made a move.
Michael drew back his arm, and shoved.
The dome wall screamed under his push, light fracturing into jagged seams before tearing apart with a thunderous crack. The ground quaked as Michael's body surged upward, bursting free of the barrier in a rush of displaced air.
For the first time since his evolution, he stood fully outside, his presence no longer hidden.
The forest reacted instantly.
Every monster's head snapped toward him.
One of them-a boar-like beast the size of a fortress-broke from the void first. Its tusks jutted like mountain peaks, its bulk shaking the air as it launched forward with terrifying speed.
But Michael... didn't feel fear.
If anything, he felt strange. His eyes locked on the charging mass, and to his surprise, the creature's movements looked sluggish,
Michael fingers rose, mana surging. The first thought that came to his mind was to halt the beast charge.
The first spell that came to mind was Magic Arrow. A simple attack. One he had cast a thousand times and was already nearing advanced mastery.
Michael's hand moved on reflex, fingers sketching the familiar circle in the air. But halfway through the motion, something clicked. His instincts shifted. Reasoning that wasn't his-yet was-slid into place. And before his circle could fully form, the mana moved on its own. A spear of condensed light ripped itself into existence before him, humming with power. He hadn't finished drawing. He hadn't even focused. It was just... there.
Michael's eyes widened. The arrow shimmered with raw mana, but before he could even release it, something stirred in his chest.
Almost on instinct, another reasoning flowed into his mind-alien yet natural, as if it had always been there waiting for this moment. Without conscious thought, he channeled it.
Mana bled darker, the radiant spear dimming until its surface turned pitch black. It didn't lose its brilliance; instead, it carried a suffocating sharpness that made the air itself recoil.
If Gale had been there to witness it, the griffin would have stared in shock. Because threaded through that arrow wasn't just mana anymore-it was a trace of law. And not just any trace, but one frighteningly close to his own severing wind.
The black arrow vibrated, its edge humming with a resonance that bent the air. Each flicker across its surface carried a promise of division, of cutting through not just flesh but the very essence of the target.
What was even more shocking was the sheer size of the arrow.
Michael had used no more mana than usual-about the same amount
he had always funneled into the spell. Yet the result was utterly different. This was no slim projectile of condensed force, but a spear-like arrow, longer than he was tall and as wide as a man's torso, its edges jagged with black light.
It wasn't more mana. It was purer mana.
Michael didn't hesitate. He hurled the spell towards its intended
The black arrow screamed through the air. It didn't whistle like ordinary projectiles-it tore space apart, a low, keening shriek
The charging boar-monster bellowed, tusks lowering to meet the strike head-on. Its body glowed with law, a crust of hardened earth forming over its hide.
But when the arrow struck-
The beast's law-shield fractured like glass, shattering into shards of dim light. The arrow did not slow; it sheared straight through flesh, bone, and soul alike, the boar's massive body skewered from snout to
For an instant, silence.
Then the boar toppled with a thunderous crash, its bulk smashing through trees, tusks gouging trenches into the ground before it stilled. Its body convulsed once-and then fell lifeless.
Michael's chest rose and fell, his expression unreadable. Nᴇw novel chapters are publɪshed on 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹•𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑒•𝙣𝙚𝙩
A simple spell. One he had cast countless times. Yet with nothing but instinct and this new body, it had become something else entirely.
The forest around him quieted for a beat. Even the Rank 3s in the void hesitated, their gazes sharpening, flickering with unease.
Michael looked down at his own hand, fingers trembling faintly.
"...So this is what it means," he murmured, his voice low, "to defy the
[Your understanding of {Magic Arrow} has increased significantly]
[{Magic Arrow} has reached {Advanced Mastery}]
[Through refinement of mana and a flash of enlightenment, you have comprehended a new skill: {Death Arrow}]
Michael felt overwhelmed but he didn't have time to think as two
other monsters emerged from the void by his side in a coordinated
A serpent-beast with scales darker than midnight slithered from the tear, its fangs dripping poison that hissed against the very air. To his left, a lion-shaped abomination burst forth, its mane a crown of flame that twisted into spears with every movement. Both struck in unison -one lunging for his upper body and the other for his lower body.
It was like the two just wanted a bite of him.
Michael's body moved before his mind caught up. His fist clenched and he swung.
The punch didn't strike the serpent or the lion directly-it struck the
The world shuddered. Space rippled outward like shattered glass, and both monsters froze mid-attack. The serpent's body convulsed violently, scales cracking as invisible force ruptured its insides. The lion's paw halted halfway, bones in its limb snapping like twigs before its entire frame was hurled backward.
Both monsters exploded in unison, their bodies torn apart in a storm
of blood and fragments. The shockwave rolled across the battlefield,
uprooting trees and rattling the air, as if Michael's punch had demanded the world yield before him.
Michael blinked, staring at his trembling fist. He hadn't cast a spell. He
hadn't summoned a circle.
He had simply... punched.