Construction Mage - Chapter 45: Unease

AN: As promised, another bonus chapter, restoring the Patreon to be 20 chapters ahead.

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I may have gotten a little too hasty earlier…

As soon as Clay was alone, worry crept in. He had confidently claimed a few low-level oozes were not a problem to assure his friend, but to be honest, he wasn’t sure if things would be that easy. Throughout his time in the new world, waves of monsters attacking the wall were a weekly occurrence. Sometimes it would happen a few times a week, while other times it only happened once or twice a month. Nevertheless, the close proximity to monsters made it a common topic among the workers, and he gleaned a lot from those conversations.

However, the people at the worksite weren’t Delvers. They simply regurgitated second-hand information and hadn’t seen many of the monsters they spoke about before. That meant Clay only knew about the general appearance of oozes and that they were found in the first few layers in some dungeons, far away from Ravenhold.

He had no idea what these oozes were capable of, and with him being only level five, it was hard to feel assured. Regardless, he was the only Delver on the scene. Sending him would be the safest option.

Surely, with how much the church invested in this place, their guards won’t be foolish enough to let the wyverns completely distract them. I just need to hold on for fifteen minutes or so, maybe even less.

According to most video games, oozes are similar to slimes. They should have a core somewhere, and unless I hit it, most physical attacks won’t be that effective. I can try using magic, but I’m not sure if an Earth Blast counts as a physical attack or not. I mean, isn’t it just launching something hard? If that’s the case, it’ll have to hit the core.

No. I have more cards up my sleeve now. I can do this!

Firing himself up, he cut through the colorless corridors of the left-wing building, straight into the main hall of the church. Coming out into the open space, he first threw down the pile of planks and other supplies he still held onto before surveying his surroundings.

The place wasn’t furnished yet, so it was just a spacious stone hall with empty windows above the sanctuary in the back. The main doors were at least closed shut, but the entire right wing had numerous openings for the monsters to slip in.

He didn’t get a chance to scan the place for long before the first ooze crept in through the opposing corridor. The surface of the green monster bubbled as it sped up upon noticing the human. Despite being more than a dozen meters apart, it didn’t hesitate to shoot a stream of viscous green sludge at him. Thankfully, it wasn’t that fast, arcing across the room. There was enough time for Clay to duck back into the corridor for cover.

The attack landed on the stone floor with a vicious sizzle, corroding anything it touched.

Shit! My planks! That better not have reached my stuff! 

Clay had to take a deep breath to prevent himself from rushing out.

Calm down, me. I can’t just rush in against an unfamiliar enemy. There’s no way I want to charge at something like this!

With no protective gear, there was no way Clay wanted to risk taking a hit. Going through his options, there was naturally only one response he could make in this situation.

“By Lestionora’s name, heed my call,

Let your power take shape for me.

By sacred vow and binding light,

Rise from the void and lend me your might.”

The familiar earth elemental materialized before him and rushed off into the main hall without delay. Clay was in full control of its movements, and the open space free of obstacles made it easy to navigate. He only needed to poke his head out to lay eyes on the enemy and he could command the golem to do the rest.

The bulky elemental rumbled forward, prompting the ooze to launch another attack. With how cumbersome and wide the golem was, there was no way it could dodge out of the way. The stream of acid landed right on target, covering its entire torso with the green sludge. It bubbled violently, but that was it.

The golem continued charging, unfazed by the acid eating away at it. Why should it, when its body was so large? The acid wouldn’t be able to burn through it in a short time, and it wasn’t like the golem could feel pain.

As a result, it strode right up to the ooze and stomped down on it. The elemental’s thick feet easily crushed down on a third of the ooze’s body. Unsure if it was by luck or not, it managed to eliminate the ooze in one move.

[Ding—Level 17 Ooze Spawn slain.]

[Ding—Skill: Summon Elemental(I) has leveled up!]

[Ding—Skill: Summon Elemental(I) has leveled up!]

[Ding—You have leveled up!]

[Ding—You have leveled up!]

Woah!

Seeing all the messages, Clay quickly opened up his status screen.

Status:

Name: Clayton Stratton

Age: 30

Class: Earth Mage [Apprentice] - Level 5 -> 7

Profession: Staffmaker, Alchemist

Resources:

Health - 100%

Stamina - 98/112 [1.6/min]

Mana - 66/100 [4.6/min]

Stats [Mage]:

Stat Points: 0 -> 10

Strength: 15 

Endurance: 16

Agility: 17

Dexterity: 11

Intelligence: 10

Wisdom: 23

Skills:

Spell Manipulation(I): 4 -> 5

Earth Blast(I): 4

Meditate(I): 3

Summon Elemental(I): 3 -> 6

From just one kill, he had leveled up twice. It was a far cry from all the grinding he had been doing in recent weeks. It made him question if he had been doing it wrong all along, but he quickly shoved those thoughts aside. It wasn’t common nor safe to target monsters of a much higher level.

While levels weren’t absolute, it was a good guideline in terms of strength. It was suicidal behavior to actively seek out monsters that were much stronger.

Nevertheless, Clay was ecstatic about his new gains. Unfortunately, he didn’t get much time to bask in his joy as another stream of acid suddenly crashed into his golem.

Shit! Don’t lose concentration now—of all times, Clayton!

As Clay sent out the mental command to his elemental to go intercept the new foe, he also realized that his mana wouldn’t last much longer at this rate. With help still nowhere in sight, he swiftly began to use his Meditate skill.

Come on. Please activate—without me needing to close my eyes! Empty my mind while keeping watch.

Having deployed the golem in the dungeon for a few days, Clay had tested the limits of what the earth elemental could do, but the short amount of time spent also meant he hadn’t mastered any of the complicated maneuvers and combinations. One such combination was to use the Meditate Skill while keeping his eyes open. It was to address the issue of directing the earth elemental while meditating, allowing him to reap the benefit of a higher mana regeneration while commanding the golem. Whether by luck or the urgency of the situation, Clay had somehow managed to do it at this moment. 

The drain on his mana instantly slowed down as his regeneration skyrocketed. The previous level-up helped as well, as each level in Summon Elemental reduced the consumption of mana.

With the mana problem temporarily solved, a lone ooze had no hope of destroying the golem in time before it closed the distance. By then, the only question was whether it would take one, two, or three stomps to crush its core.

[Ding—Level 16 Ooze Spawn slain.]

[Ding—Skill: Summon Elemental(I) has leveled up!]

[Ding—Skill: Meditate(I) has leveled up!]

[Ding—Skill: Meditate(I) has leveled up!]

Having vanquished two oozes in a short time, the earth elemental began to crumble away. The acid had continued to eat at its body, but more importantly, Clay decided to stop the spell for now. It was to conserve mana, as he could always summon it again when needed.

With the fighting over, the main hall turned uncomfortably quiet.

Clay could only keep close watch for signs of any more oozes while in his meditative state. He had nothing but the sound of rain and distant shouting to keep him company. The weather outside hadn’t improved at all. The areas where windows had yet to be installed were all drenched. 

If he wasn’t meditating, Clay would’ve definitely begun worrying about his house by now. After all, it was made from simple hardened earth and mud mortar. Not exactly the most waterproof of materials. He previously hadn’t worried too much about it because rainfall was supposed to be sparse until spring. Even when it did rain a week or two ago, the thatch roof managed to shield it from the worst of it, and the house only needed some minor repairs. However, the level of rainfall that day was nowhere near today’s.

As if he subconsciously realized this, the moment his mana was fully restored, his gaze snapped in the direction of his home.

I’ve got this bad feeling about how my house will stand up to this pouring rain. It’ll undoubtedly need some repairs. Maybe I should splurge on some better materials this time. At least with proper lime mortar, and with whatever idea Garrick was trying to give me.

Thinking of Garrick, I guess I lost the bet. He’ll be laughing at me for naively believing magic will solve everything, huh? Well, he was right. I should’ve listened to all his advice all along.

Thinking back on his previous shortsightedness, Clay shook his head, disappointed in himself. The urge to do better grew more intense as he watched the rain fall.

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