When I reach the bus, only three goblins are alive.
I hit the head of the goblin that is fighting with Jacob first. He is the bravest one of the bunch, so I don't mind helping him first.
The goblin's head dents, and he falls down, twitching and screeching, so I step on his neck, and something cracks.
[You have defeated the Goblin, lvl 3]
Another goblin is about to attack an older lady when a corgi attacks him and starts biting his leg.
I see that the goblin is about to kick the brave dog, so I dash and hit the goblin's head. This time, I use mana, and his head explodes.
Hmm, am I not getting too predictable?
[You have defeated the Goblin, lvl 2]
After that, I finish off the goblin that is kept at bay by Lily and a few kids who keep poking their spears and sticks at him so he can't get closer.
[You have defeated the Goblin, lvl 2]
That went pretty well, all things considered.
Jacob and a few people look severely wounded, but the only corpses are the ones I saw at the start. A few people are still inside the bus, so I make sure to remember their faces.
On the other side of the clearing, everything seems to have gone well.
Tess is not wounded, Kevin's armor is dented, and Hadwin also seems fine. Sophie, on the other hand, appears unconscious, and I would swear that Leon is missing one or two fingers.
I check my status and don't find anything new, so I look up at the sky once again.
The sky is inky dark with no stars at all. The only sources of light are the bright green, blue, and pink lights that swirl slowly in the sky, reminding me of polar lights, just much bigger and brighter.
I find it really beautiful.
Colors, movement, all are mesmerizing and provide enough light for us to see. The light is at the level of a dim morning, but it's much better than the pitch-dark darkness we went through just a few minutes ago.
How do you even get rid of two suns?
Anyway, it's almost certain that the suns we saw were fake, yet I can't even begin to imagine what is actually going on.
A fake sky and some kind of projection?
I guess it could be. We just started to learn to use mana, and from looking at all kinds of skills, mana seems fairly versatile.
"Nathaniel…" Tess comes closer.
Darn, I didn't even notice that I started spacing out while thinking about all of that.
"I'm out of cigarettes."
Well, that must suck.
But what a weird thing to say at a moment . Just say what you wanted to say.
She slowly breathes in, a hint of emotion visible on her face.
"Jason and Miss Miranda died. Leon lost one finger, and there are many wounded people…"
I didn´t know them at all so there is no way I am going to mourn their death. She should know that.
Tess pauses for a long moment and looks at me as if trying to read my mind. She shifts slightly on her feet.
"Never mind, I'll keep watch…"
Now, let's talk with Sophie.
She is already back and inside the bus, her sister next to her. She's already awake but still looking really tired. There's a lot of dried blood on her lips, chin, and under her nose and her sister keeps crying while Sophie caresses her hair.
A few people step away as I walk in and stop in front of her.
Sophie hesitates for a moment but then slowly stands up, "Wait here for me Izzy." her voice is soft as she whispers to her little sister.
We walk outside, just far enough away so other people won't be able to hear and then we start talking.
"Name of your skill?"
"Manipulation," she answers instantly.
"Your level and level of skill?"
"I am level 3, and the skill is also level 3."
Huh, what a weird name.
And she does so. It looks like her manipulation is what I thought it was. She can manipulate the emotions of other people, monsters, and animals. She can make emotions stronger or weaker, and if she spends enough mana or gets to touch her target, she can instill a feeling that the person didn't initially have.
Her other skill allows her to infuse mana into living beings and objects. She doesn't know what it does for now, other than wasting her mana. It could strengthen some items or share her mana with others, maybe?
What's most interesting is that she started on the 1st floor with her manipulation at level 2 and her mana with 3 stat points.
Even the system is playing favorites?
I did get [Focus], which only allows me to… well, focus.
I want [Manipulation] or [Psychokinesis] too. Even [Reflection] seems to be cool as heck.
Anyway, the system is clearly playing favorites.
In the end, I also want to ask Sophie what she did to me so I can't even think about killing her, but I decide against it. During our whole conversation, I came to the conclusion that she doesn't even know about that, so it might be better not to let her know that I can't do much against her.
Before I leave, I get a promise from her that she won't try to manipulate me or people around me.
My kids, my underlings, my minions.
My meatsmokers, my biological binoculars.
Obviously, I don't believe her that much, but it should at least make her think twice, especially now when I can feel her using mana.
That's what I get for saving her sister, and we are now back to a cold war.