Endless Evolution As A Skeleton In A Game-Like World
Chapter 9: [9] Saving A Beauty And Robbing A Beast

Chapter 9: [9] Saving A Beauty And Robbing A Beast

Ark had to analyze his situation before foolishly investing his stats. He was a mage, which meant the best thing to do would have been to invest in his mana and agility.

Focusing on class-related stats was the general rule of thumb when investing stats. But improving his mana would be useless in this situation.

Not only were his cast times too long, he could not risk hitting any of his teammates. And so he invested in the stats that would currently help him the most. Strength and Agility.

Although it might have been a good idea to invest in his Defense, Ark was already well able to dodge their attacks. Unless it was a team effort, or a sneak attack, he would be able to handle it.

What he needed now was to be a one man wrecking machine. He needed to be stronger than the goblins, and fast enough to tear through their ranks.

Strength: 1 + 5 = 6

Mana: 40/100

Agility: 1 + 2 = 3

Defense: 2

The moment he upgraded his stats, it was as though a rush of fire had burned through his marrow.

His body felt lighter, and his bones felt several times stronger. What he had just done was multiply his strength six times over, it was no wonder he felt like an entirely new person.

As the remaining goblins rushed towards him, Ark strolled towards them, his eyes taking everything in, from their elaborate actions, to even the most minute movements, he took note of it all.

Just because he was stronger did not mean he would be lax. In Eden, laxity meant death, and one slip up was all it took to send you to an early grave.

The first goblin swung. Ark did not dodge, neither did he deflect the strike. There was no need to. He simply batted it away like a minor inconvenience, before splitting its head wide open with his crowbar.

Watching their friend fail so miserably apparently wasn’t enough to dissuade the remaining goblins.

Like rabid beasts, they rushed forward, and one after the other, Ark fell them like logs.

[You have slain a level 5 goblin! +10 exp]

[You have slain a level 5 goblin! +10 exp]

[You have slain a level 5 goblin! +10 exp]

Ark let out a breath as he stared at the bodies, his bones slick with blood. His battle had barely lasted five minutes, and yet it had taken so much out of him.

He went to where his staff was and easily yanked it out of the goblin’s belly.

"I need to get back to the—"

[Olivia’s health is at 50%! All stats will be affected]

[Charles is bleeding. His health will continually be depleted over time]

[Nolan is bleeding. His health will continually be depleted over time]

Ark stifled a curse as he sprinted towards the clearing. If he had killed ten goblins, that means there were still forty more back at the clearing!

It took a minute for him to arrive back at the camp, and his eyes hastingly scanned the area, hurriedly searching for Olivia.

He caught sight of Soo-jin ripping goblins apart, each move executed with practiced efficiency. She was nearly done, only two goblins remained with her.

Isabella seemed fine as well, the lower part of her face was covered in blood, and there was not a single scratch on her body, while Charles and Noah were working together to fend off the goblins.

But as for Olivia... "Where is she?"

Ark glanced at the point they had been ambushed at and froze, his eyes glowing brighter.

"Damn it!"

About seven goblins had swarmed over her, pinning her to the ground. Although harpies were vicious, they shared a common disadvantage with their avian friends...

Their bones were hollow. This meant that harpies were far lighter than regular humans, their physiology designed to permit flight.

Normally, the goblins would have been easy pickings for her, but they had been ambushed from above. With seven of them atop her, she could not move an inch.

Worst of all, the goblins were savagely attacking. Some drove their daggers repeatedly into her wings, while others tried to smash open her skull with a rock.

They would have killed her by now if she hadn’t shielded the back of her head with her hands, and due to the toughness of her feathers.

But it seemed Olivia’s luck had run out. A goblin raised its dagger, positioning it at the nape of her neck just before driving it down—

Squelsh!

Blood spewed into the air. But it was not Olivia’s blood, as there was a wooden staff firmly planted in the goblins head.

All the goblins froze and turned in the direction the staff had come from, only to see a gleaming ball rushing towards them—

"Skazahhhhh!"

Vwooosh!

The head of another goblin exploded as fire engulfed it, peeling away flesh and revealing blackened bone.

Then finally, Ark arrived. The goblins were stuck between wanting to remain atop Olivia and stopping him, but it was not like Ark would give them time to think.

The nearest goblin sprang up to its feet, and drew its bow, its arrow head aimed at Ark, but Ark launched his robe into its face, blinding it.

The goblin let loose, but the arrow flew harmlessly into the sky.

Ark’s feet skidded to a halt, sliding towards the goblin as it struggled to remove the cloth. He swung, and at the same time the cloth finally fell off the goblin face, its eyes wide and frantic when it realized just what was about to happen...

Ark was not swinging for its face.

He had gone low.

A popping sound rang through the air as the crowbar dug into the goblins crouch. Tears formed in its blood shot eyes as it bit its lip, drawing blood.

[Achievement unlocked. Ball crusher...

Ark ignored the notification and jumped back. That was the last goblin on Olivia’s right wing, meaning her right wing was now free...

Tzzzz!

"YOU FUCKERS!" Olivia screamed as her body trembled. Yellow lightning surged through her free wing, racing across her body.

’A body enhancement skill? Interesting...’ Ark mused. It would have been useless if she still had seven goblins on her, but now that the weight had been lessened, maybe she had a chance.

One of the goblins quickly leaped at the wing, trying to pin it down, but Olivia curved the wing underneath her body, and then she blasted herself off the floor and into the air.

The lightning raged around her, her blood burned as it met the currents, and the air howled like a ravenous beast as she fixed her eyes on the four goblins below.

Olivia waved her hand in the air and summoned a glaive.

When Ark saw the gleaming weapon, he laughed and took a few more steps back.

He had almost forgotten... Olivia was not a regular mage, she was a battle mage.

The difference between regular mages and battle mages? Battle mages were not only proficient with magic, they were also effective in combat.

Swish!

Olivia descended like a tempest, her body twisting in the air, just before her wings lashed out, skewing two goblins from head down.

Her claws caught another by the head, lightning encashing them just before all four talons sunk into its skull.

Then her head snapped towards the last goblin that was already hot on its heels. And taking a page out of Ark’s book, she launched her spear at it.

The glaive tore its chest open from its back, killing it right on the spot.

Just like that, all four goblins had been gruesomely killed.

As the lightning died down, Olivia was breathing heavily, her entire body covered in wounds. Then in one sudden outburst of frustration, she screamed, her voice sounding more beast-like than human...

A brief silence descended upon the camp, just before Ark broke it, walking towards her. Olivia’s eyes snapped in his direction and then—

Swish!

Air blew past Ark as Olivia was in front of him in seconds, her eyes boring into his own.

There was no humanity left in them, her bird-like pupils stared at him with predatory intent, and a few feathers had sprouted in her hair...

’Don’t tell me she has gone crazy?’

It was not uncommon for players to lose their humanity and completely give in to their race, a phenomenon known as racial corruption.

But after a few seconds, she blinked and staggered forward, falling into him.

Her HP was likely as low as forty percent, and her whole body was bloodied all over. Standing must have been difficult, but—

"Get off me." Ark hissed, already getting irritated.

She was lucky that the others had finally taken care of the goblins, if not, he would have pushed her off already.

"S-Skelly?" Her voice was hoarse and came out with effort. But even that could not mask the confusion in her tone.

"Did you..." Her voice trailed off when she noticed the blood that had painted his bones red, then her eyes widened slightly.

It was as though she could not even fathom the thought of him saving her.

"Yes. I did." He said curtly, answering the questions she did not ask.

There was no thank you. Instead, Olivia tried to pull back, only for Ark to suddenly hold her in place.

"H-huh?" She stuttered, her cheeks brightening up. "I... I thought... I thought... you wanted me to get off you..."

Why was she sounding so polite now? Olivia had mocked him openly countless times, poked fun at him because of his class and even called him a one hit wonder.

Why was she now speaking in that tone, instead of the snarky, disrespectful one? Ark felt a bitter taste in his mouth, but he forced out his most cordial voice.

"You lost a lot of blood. Allow me to help you back."

"..."

Olivia remained silent. Was this not the same person that had told her to get off him a few seconds ago? His words only deepened her confusion.

Ark did not even wait for her approval, he just slung her arm over his shoulder and started walking towards the others.

While Olivia focused on the bodies that were strewn all over the battlefield, a dark look appeared on his Ark’s face, or at least he would like to imagine that it did.

Of course, he was not helping her out of the goodness of his heart. He had saved her already, she could crawl back for all he cared!

Ark stared at the space in front of his eyes and chuckled internally.

The real reason he was helping her was because of one simple thing. The notification that had appeared in front of his face—

[Possible target for Reaping detected. Player, do you wish to use Dark Harvest?]

Ark smirked.

[Yes]