Gacha Leveling

When Matthew looked around the people in the police station, he saw Sarah there covered in blood. His mind went blank, he rushed inside making way through the cops, who were trying to ask him questions, screaming for his sister:

"Sarah!"

Sarah got up from the place she was seated and looked at Matthew first with surprise, then with relief and lastly with anger.

"Shut up!" She said hitting him on the head. "You're scaring the children screaming like that."

"Sorry…" Matthew said surprised by her reaction. Then he looked down upon her clothing, a white T-shirt, a black leather jacket and a tight leather skirt, covered in blood and asked: "You're not hurt?"

"No!" Sarah said looking at herself. "This isn't my blood." She said with a sad smile. "I was helping the wounded."

"I see…" Matthew said looking surprised at how well she was taking that situation.

"Oh! I picked the Healer class to help some people with their injuries." Sarah said explaining herself. "I ended up leveling up again after I started to heal the wounded. What do you think I can do to help?"

"I would pick Mage and get the Project Mana skill. That will allow you to heal people from afar." Matthew said rubbing his chin. "But remember that the farther you are from someone, the more mana it will consume."

"Ok. I'll keep that in mind." Sarah said while picking her new skill.

"Your girlfriend?" One of the cops asked Matthew after understanding his urgency.

"My sister!" Matthew was quick to correct him.

"Ewww!" Sarah pretended to throw up.

"Sorry. But now I understand why you forced your way inside." The cop said laughing. "You were using unholy mana out there. Are you a necromancer or is it an item?" He asked with hope. Necromancer was a tier 3 class, the adventurer needed to be over level 20 to pick it. If that was the case, Matthew would be really strong.

"It's…" Matthew took a while to ponder how to respond to that. "It's my unique skill. I'm only level 12."

"That still makes you the stronger adventurer around here." The cop said. "Me and Douglas are level 5." He said pointing to the other cop who was guarding the front door. "Captain is on the roof, he's level 8. The others aren't adventurers." He added.

"My party should be on the way. We have a trump card that will save us all." Matthew assured the cop talking about Lumi. "Let me call them and tell them about our situation."

Then he picked his phone and called Vanessa.

"Matthew? Did you find her? Are you safe?" Vanessa asked in rapid succession.

"I found her. We're safe. Almost." He said.

"What do you mean "almost"?!" Vanessa almost screamed.

"We're unharmed, but we're surrounded by Gnoles and trapped inside a police station." Matthew informed. "You still following Sarah's signal?"

"Yeah. We're close now. In 5 minutes we'll be there." She said. "Tell Eric to keep you all safe."

"Eric isn't here." Matthew informed with a nervous laugh.

"WHAT?!" Vanessa screamed.

"We separated to search for Sarah, he went to the gate while I searched the neighborhood."

"Can you hold them off on your own?" Vanessa asked worried. "Just 5 minutes, kid."

"There's some cops here to help. I'm sure I'll handle." Matthew tried to calm her down.

At this moment, a window broke and a Gnole got in knocking down the barricade that was covering the window.

Douglas and the other cop opened fire on it, but their bullets weren't effective.

Matthew hung up his phone and hurried to a position to open fire safely. His bullets were enough. 4 this time.

After the threat was down, he gave his spare gun to Sarah.

"It's enchanted, shoot if they get too close." He said and darted towards the window to barricade it again.

When he got nearer, another Gnole jumped in.

Now that he was close enough, he decided to use his sword instead of shooting. At the same movement that he drew his blade, he slashed the creature's throat making its blood gush out over Matthew.

He did not have much time before another Gnole tried to climb inside the station using the opened window. Matthew shot that one another 4 times.

The two cops then ran to help him by pushing the barricade made of office furniture back to cover the window while Matthew used his last bullets to keep the window clear of other Gnoles that were trying to get inside.

Matthew replaced the clip of his gun as soon as he got time to breathe.

"They won't stay out there for long." He said. He remembered when he was in a similar situation back in the Blue Moon Gate. If wolves could enter that building that was made to resist an assault, that police station surrounded by humanoid creatures had no chance.

"We know." The cop whispered to him. "But there isn't much we can do."

"Get everyone to upstairs. Take them to the roof if there is no space. I have an idea. Clear the first floor." Matthew said.

The cops complied. Fast and orderly they guided everyone upstairs. Leaving Matthew alone in the first floor.

"What you're going to do?" Sarah asked.

"What I need. We just need to hold them for 5 minutes." He said urging his sister to go up.

"I don't like this plan." Ffyr commented flying out of his pocket. "That first time you used that shitty mana it burned me!" She complained to him.

"I'm sorry. I forgot that it would hurt you." Matthew apologized. "But this time you'll be safe."

"You know that, if you die, I die with you. Don't you?" Ffyr said looking at him sideways.

"I'm not going to die." Matthew said positioning himself close to the stairs to the second floor. "Just use your wind to keep the miasma away and we'll be fine."

"This is stupid." Ffyr protested, but positioned herself on the stairs behind Matthew.

Not long after that, the windows and the front door were broken into by the Gnoles. Dozens were crawling inside while the cops on the roof tried to shoot them down from their position.

Matthew looked at the Gnoles and waited for them to get closer. When they were close enough, Matthew released his unholy mana creating a black mist around him.

The Gnoles stopped on their feet seeing Matthew become a barrier of miasma protecting the stairs. And that was when Ffyr used a wind spell to blow the miasma in the direction of the monsters and away from upstairs where the civilians where.

The Gnoles retreated when the black mist started to create ulcers on their skins. But the Gnoles behind those in the front, couldn't see the miasma. They pushed the ones in front of them in the direction of the mist trying to get to the stairs. This made the Gnoles in the front to be pressed between their allies and the deadly mist. Therefore, they saw no other way out if not forward.

Matthew took out his eye patch. A smile crept into his face. His eye turned red as he allowed the demonic mana to take over.

"Let's fucking dance." He laughed opening fire to the first ones that charged against him.

Matthew was soon out of bullets and with no chance to reload. Therefore he took his other sword out holding both in his hands. He used the narrow passageway to the stairs as an advantage point preventing himself to be surrounded by Gnoles. Empowered by both demonic and unholy mana, he was several times stronger than the creatures in front of him and could hold them easily.

However, as his fight with the Dullahan showed him, a stronger opponent can be overwhelmed by a mass of weaker enemies. Every punch, every claw, every spear that hit him sapped away his Vital Shield a little. He knew he could not hold them for long.

But all he needed was 5 minutes.

Just 5.

With that thought in mind, his head was hit by a club making him a bit dizzy and a small stripe of blood to run down his face. His Vital Shield was already depleting.

That's when he heard a laugh inside his head. It was Ffyr. He glanced at her and saw that the small ball of green light was now the same red hue as his glowing eye. Did she take a piece of his demon soul with the pact? Or was he affecting her by using the demonic mana?

It didn't matter at that time.

Ffyr conjured two fireballs around her and threw them at the Gnoles causing two big explosions that shook the building.

"HAHAHAHAHA!" She laughed. "Burn! Burn!" She screamed.

"Yes! Let's kill them all!" Matthew laughed with her.

"Forward, Matt! Attack!" Ffyr ordered him.

Matthew stepped forward killing every Gonle he could not caring if they surrounded him.

Ffyr was flying behind him blowing flames like a flamethrower with a conjunction of her wind and fire spells.

"Burn! Burn!" She screamed while laughing.