Cultivating Talents [LitRPG Mana-cultivation]

"You want us to keep these Earthen Moles distracted, while you and Jodie drag a few corpses back here?" Emela asked. The blonde-haired girl crossed her arms, her eyes moving to the floor in thought.

A small sense of guilt wormed its way into Hector's chest. He glanced at the others. Nyx, Jodie, Lincoln, and Marcus, their shadows playing on the floor as the fireplace at the centre of the camp crackled.

"Not necessarily distract, but keep them off us while we do what we need to do," Hector said, drumming on his thigh. The last thing they needed was to be overrun while trying to bring the corpses back. "Though, if I'm honest, I think your job will actually be quite easy."

"How's that?" Emela raised an eyebrow, crystal blue eyes sweeping over Hector.

His eyes shifted, snapping to Lincoln. Hector gestured towards his confused friend. "I passed the [Mud Barrier] Talent to Lincoln the other day. We can use that to block off the tunnel and, if need be, redirect the Earthen Moles to a different area. All I need you to do is stop any that get past his wall."

A thoughtful look crossed Emela's features. She seemed to consider the idea. "And is this the best option we have? Couldn't we wait until these moles have calmed down and then go collect the bodies?"

"Not if you want to meet the tanner's deadline," Marcus said, glancing to the side. He shuffled on the cavern stone, shifting his gaze to Hector. "I, for one, support Hector's idea. It's the quickest and easiest one we have."

A round of laughter came from behind. Sitting by the fire, Mirae and Pippa chatted merrily, with Harry sitting a few paces away, concern etched across his features. Pippa's mother sat near a tent, a variety of tools in front of her, their metal surfaces glinting in the firelight. After Jodie's butchering of the last Earthen Mole, Hector had thought it best to use more specific equipment.

A sigh escaped Hector's lips. They were running out of time; even when they brought the Earthen Mole back, it still needed to be butchered. He brought his attention back to the group. "We need to decide now. After we resolve this tanner situation, I want us to go to that door."

"I agree with Hector," Jodie said, casting her gaze around the group. "We're running out of time. Food supplies are low at the moment, so even if we get a contract with the tanner today, we will still have to spend the remaining silver."

"Of course you agree," Lincoln said, narrowing his eyes at Jodie. He brought up an accusatory finger, jabbing it at her. "You aren't the one who's going to have to stand right in front of those beasts, hoping that a flimsy mud wall will stop them from tearing your head off."

"You got a problem, Lincoln?" Jodie asked.

"I—"

"If you don't like it," Hector said, "I can give the Talent to someone else, and they can do it. I don't want to put you in a situation you can't handle."

Lincoln fiercely shook his head, a look of fright crossing his features. He lowered his head, falling silent, and after a breath, spoke again. "I can handle it. I just don't want to be left hanging if something goes wrong."

"Lincoln's right," Emela said, causing Hector to raise a brow in surprise. She shrugged, levelling her gaze at Hector. "He needs to have assurance that he will be safe. And I think the best way to do that is for the two of you, who've had the most experience fighting these Earthen Moles, to be the ones defending him."

Jodie groaned, lolling her head back. She grumbled briefly under her breath before turning to Hector.

He nodded.

Jodie and I are a lot more comfortable fighting them than the other two. If we fought them, it would lower the risk of mistakes happening.

"I can agree to that," Hector said, raising his hand and scratching at the back of his neck. He turned his head, glancing towards Mrs Strongmail. "But that also means I'll need you two," he turned back, his gaze shifting between Emela and Nyx, "to take the butchered remains to the tanner with Marcus."

Colour seemed to drain from Emela's face, the apparent disgust causing her to squirm. She glanced down at her white tunic, pulling at its edges before looking at Hector. "I didn't think about that part."

—- —- —- —-

The Earthen Mole screeched, clawing at the air. Hector took a step back, its claws slicing by, scraping against the small entrance in the mud wall. Bringing his heel up, Hector slammed it down onto the creature's skull. It cracked, fragments and blood spilling out as its teeth crunched against the stone.

Another mole just behind it scraped against its body. It clawed at its kin's flesh, trying to climb over it to get at Hector. His eyes levelled at the beast, and he turned his head slightly to the side. "You're sure this wall's going to hold, right?" Hector asked Lincoln.

"Well, you can never be too sure, but, for now at least, they aren't getting through," Lincoln replied. He kept his hands firmly pressed against the stone. Letting out a small breath, Lincoln glanced back. "Do you think those two are far enough back yet?"

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Before Hector could reply, an Earthen Mole launched out of the mud wall opening, clawing at his face. A clawed hand thrust in from the side, jabbing straight into its throat with a wet squelch. The mole slumped to the ground, the wound in its neck leaking blood.

Jodie stood there, flicking her hand off to the side, droplets of blood splashing against the stone. Her eyes moved to the entrance in the wall where another Earthen Mole clawed at its kin's corpse, trying to squeeze past.

"We need to hold out a little while longer either way," she said, brushing her ginger hair back with her clean hand. She gave Hector a nod. "The last thing we need is to pull back and realise that we haven't given them enough time. Then we'll be stuck scrambling."

Hector nodded, clenching his jaw. He'd been about to say the same thing himself.

Besides, this is the perfect chokepoint. If we can block up this tunnel with a few corpses, then when Lincoln's Talent runs out, we can use the bodies as a filter.

The scent of decay and rot mixed with a heavy helping of blood wafted up Hector's nose. He stepped back, eyes lingering on the corpses of the Earthen Moles. The plan was all well and good, but would they be able to stand the smell?

"Can't you guys just throw some fireballs at these things or something?" Lincoln asked. His legs shifted as he tried to reposition himself. Staying squatted like that couldn't be comfortable.

Hector shook his head. "I used up most of mine earlier. And I want to save the last few I have left just in case something a bit more dangerous comes along."

"Did you see something else in that cave?" Jodie asked.

Another mole scrambled free, and Hector rushed forward, purple static sparking to life in his palm. He cracked his freshly formed knife up into the Earthen Mole's large front teeth, knocking its head back. Then, before it could recover, he twisted the knife, thrusting it through its neck and pulling back. The skin gave way with ease, a tangled mess of flesh spilling blood as the Earthen Mole slumped forward onto its fallen ally.

Hector hopped back as another Earthen Mole tried to climb through the now much smaller opening. One of its claws gripped the wall, while the other scratched at the flesh of the dead one below it, trying to remove the spiked ridges on its back.

Hector cringed, frowning at the sight. Though he had to admit he was rather thankful for the Earthen Mole's ridged-spiked back. It was the perfect obstacle once they'd killed one. "Not that I remember. But that door was giving off mana. If these things have been basking in it all this time, a few of them should have made it past rank one."

"This wall won't hold if something stronger than a rank one comes," Lincoln said, his voice cracking a little.

The soft blue glow emanating from the mana stone tied to his waist played in Hector's vision. He couldn't say for sure if something that strong would come this far. If it did, that meant something stronger had pushed it out. Hector gulped; the thought of anything stronger than a rank two coming at them was frightening.

That freak at the Collar Gang's safe house was Gravity Forging-Seven—equivalent to a rank three. If something that strong came at them, then getting hides back to the tanner would be the least of their issues.

Hector glanced behind as Earthen Moles continued to scratch. The shadows played at the edge of their oasis of light, and he could make out a faint blue deep in the darkness beyond; a light that no doubt belonged to Emela and Nyx. They'd made it pretty far, with both of them each having dragged a corpse down the tunnel.

"We'll get on the move soon," Hector said, glancing up at the Earthen Mole that was squeezing its way out of the small space, scrambling over the broken ridges on its dead kin's back. Shifting his gaze to Jodie, Hector gestured with his head towards it. "Do you want this one?"

A smile peeled across her lips. She made to move, but as she did, something heavy slammed into the mud wall. Once. Twice. And then a third time. Cracks splintered into the wall, running up it like snakes branching away from each other. The mud groaned, bits of it tumbling off.

"I can't hold it," Lincoln yelled. His eyes shifted frantically around, moving from the wall to Hector. "What should I do? What should I do?"

Hector cursed. The Earthen Mole that had just about finished squeezing through let out a panicked squeal as the wall continued to shake. Gesturing for Jodie to step back, Hector did the same. Whatever was behind the wall was no rank-one beast.

"Lincoln," Hector snapped, pulling at the back of his mind. A pool of fire bubbled to life just in front of the wall as his gaze flickered to his panicked friend. "When I tell you, I want you to drop the wall and run. You got that?"

Lincoln nodded, his eyes steeling as a second pool of fire bubbled to life next to the first. Hector shot Jodie a look and mouthed the words, 'On my signal.' The girl's fists clenched, her knuckles whitening as she turned her gaze to the slowly crumbling mud wall.

"Steady," Hector said, fixing his gaze on the collapsing mud. "Steady."

"Now?" Lincoln called, fright dripping from his voice.

Before Hector could answer, a set of glowing brown claws, twice the size of the Earthen Moles they'd been fighting so far, punched through the mud.

"Do it now!" Hector yelled.

—- —- —- —-

Several sparks of red light erupted in the darkness, like candle flames lighting up before quickly going out. A moment later, a rush of heat and a low boom blew by, warming Emela's cheeks. She blinked, dropping the forelimb she was holding with a squelch, and turned to Nyx.

"What was that?" she asked. Her heart leapt in her chest as her eyes widened.

As Nyx went to answer, a shout echoed down the tunnel. Emela jerked forward, her feet slapping stone as she broke into a sprint. Nyx said something behind her, but Emela didn't hear. She just ran.

Her boots beating against the stone, Emela's breath rose and fell in a steady rhythm, the wind brushing against her fringe. As she drew closer, the sound of combat grew more intense, and a moment later, she made out Hector, shrouded in a blue light.

Lincoln was at his back, stumbling backwards with each step. She frowned. What was he doing? She made to call out to him. The words lodged in her throat. A split second later, a shadow sailed past her and crunched into the wall on her side, bouncing off, hitting the floor before rolling to a stop.

Emela's boots skidded against the stone as she swivelled. A cry of pain exploded from Jodie's mouth as she coughed up a splotch of blood, the warm liquid flowing down the side of her face. Emela's heart leapt into her throat. She considered going over to the girl… but Hector.

The choice battled in her mind until a moment later, Nyx was there, kneeling at the girl's side, ginger hair spilling through her fingers as she cradled Jodie's head. The decision had been made. Emela turned around, her eyes finding Hector, a bubble of tiny snakes of electricity twirling around him as he faced down something, knives in both hands.

What is that?

Emela took a step closer—fear flooding her veins—her feet weighing her down as she moved. There stood an Earthen Mole, at least twice the size of any she'd seen before. Large spikes ridged the creature's back, pulsing with a deep brown light. Two razor-sharp front teeth chattered in its mouth as it let out a stale breath, rot rolling off in waves, filling the air.

"Hector," she called as the creature's sizable claws dug into the dirt. "Is that?"