Chapter 194: Apparently, I have Changed

[You have finished Mana Circulation. You converted mana into Essence Mana! You gained 36 Essence Mana]

[You have finished Mana Body Forging! You have gained 0.35+ Strength, 0.35 Endurance, 0.35 Vitality, 0.35 Dexterity!]

The increase was not drastic but good enough. Red was satisfied with the increase. Then he checked his mana, and it was full.

He tried to recall how long it took him to finish the circulation. It took him around half an hour, meaning he regenerated more than 600 mana in half an hour. It was still hard to find the exact detail, but that was good enough. He regenerated 600 mana or more in half an hour.

Red continued his body forging, and he finished eight circulations. By the third circulation, he managed to shorten the time again by twenty-five minutes. Again, he didn’t want to take more risks than necessary. He was afraid of permanent damage to his channel by trying to shorten the time.

It took three and a half hours for eight circulations, and he had to stop because a hobgoblin came over. The Chief wanted to meet him. The sun was up already, and it was indeed time to meet the Chief. He had already figured out what the Chief wanted: more plans to tackle the next fight with their low numbers.

If he remembered correctly, only fifty-eight hobgoblins survived from the last. He was unsure how to win the next fight with their number. Sure, he had gone through the first awakening, but it didn’t make him drastically stronger. With his newly acquired skills, what he needed was time. He had enough mana, but he didn’t have enough time.

Red opened his Status, checking his progress after about eight hours of mana circulation and body forging.

Name: ???

Level: 27

Race: Heradin

Health: 3055 Stamina: 3055 Mana: 4600 Essence Mana: 563

[Tier 1 Might]

Strength: 308.45 (+4.55) Endurance: 305.55 (+4.55) Vitality: 305.55 (+4.55) Dexterity: 305.55 (+4.55)

[Tier 1 Magic]

Intelligence: 460 Wisdom: 460 Arcane Perception: 460 Mind: 460 [Threshold to level 28]

Trait: [Heradin Legacy] [Heradin’s Fortuitous Loot] [Heradin’s Magic Lineage II] [Heradin’s Might Lineage I]

Skill:

Tier 1 Skill: Mana Sense - Level 20, Levelheaded - Level 23, Appraisal - Level 19, Bleeding - Level 2, Fireball - Level 7, Bow Mastery - Level 9, Burst Leap - Level 2, Sword Mastery - Level 2

Tier 3: Mana Smelting - Level 6, Mana Refining - Level 4, Mana Sharpening - Level 3, Mana Repair - Level 3, Rune Medium Creation - Level 1, Spearmanship - Level 1

Tier 4: Mana Forging - Level 1, Mana Tempering - Level 3, Mana Authority - Level 8, Rune Weaving - Level 1, Rune Engraving - Level 1, Rune Restoration - Level 1, Mana Alloying - Level 1, Mana Smith’s Insight - Level 1

Tier 5 Skill: Infernal Berserk - Level 1, Mana Smith’s Boon - Level 1, Mana Smith’s Rune Collection - Level 1, Heradin’s Mana Circulation and Body Forging - Level 2 (+1), Heradin’s Essence Forging - Level 1

The gain was satisfying; he was halfway to the threshold for his Might Stat, and his Magic Stats were already at the threshold to reach level 2. Then his eyes fell onto Essence Mana.

If he guessed correctly, he needed 500 Essence Mana for Heradin’s Essence Forging. He wanted to give it a test, wanting to find out the difference between the two skills. Both were Tier 5 skills, without a doubt the highest tier he knew of. But there must be something that differentiated them, even though both skills were forging his body.

Red wanted to try it right now, but decided it was not the time yet. There was something more important to discuss: his survival. He needed them to win so the village would be safe from the kobolds. He still needed the Chief as well as the hobgoblins.

He got up and met the Chief at the biggest structure. With their reduced number, the Chief didn’t put up with some nonsense like putting a guard at his lodging. He usually found at least two hobgoblins guarding the structure, but there was none this morning.

Red entered the hall, and his steps came to an immediate halt. He squinted his eyes, scanning the hall to ensure that he didn’t see it wrong. He blinked his eyes a few times, and he ensured that there was nothing wrong with his eyes.

There were seven Goblin Champions, including the Chief, instead of four. He thought the reinforcement they were asking for had arrived, but then he didn’t see the reinforcement outside. He quickly crossed out that possibility.

Another possibility was that three hobgoblins went to their second awakening and evolved into Goblin Champions. If that was the case, then this was good news. The three additional Goblin Champions increased the chance of their survival.

Red continued his steps while observing the three new Goblin Champions. He assessed them while thinking of a name. For some reason, he expected hostility or maybe arrogance from the three Goblin Champions. Yet they were surprised by how respectful they were toward him. They nodded as their gazes met.

’They are certainly smarter than the Fool. Or maybe they are grateful to me.’

That made sense as well because he was the one who persuaded the Chief to share the loot instead of the Goblin Champions hoarding most of the loot. If they understood his role in their awakening, then that was good. He didn’t need to worry if some fools tried to kill him.

He stopped ten paces away from the Chief. The Chief beat him to say, "You have changed."

Red was caught off guard by the Chief. It was not an order, it was not a request, and it was not a question. It was a confusing statement, and he tried to understand what the Chief meant by he changed.

The Chief chuckled and tossed the axe at him. Red was alarmed at first, but then the Chief was tossing the axe, not throwing it at him.

Red got confused even more as he caught the axe. He looked at the axe, then he looked at the Chief.

’Is he giving me his weapon?’

"Look at my axe. What do you see?"

Red looked at the axe in his hand, getting even more confused as his forehead crunched. Trying to understand what the Chief wanted, he inspected the axe.

He paused when he inspected the flat surface of the blade. The axe was silver, and he could see his reflection on the flat surface. His pupils dilated, his eyes wide open, and his mouth opened into an O-shape.

He saw the reflection of his face, but not his face, not the one he recognized before. His chin became more refined, sharper. His nose seemed to be getting smaller. His eyes got sharper, a slight change in his irises. His irises were crimson-red instead of blood red. The obvious change was on top: his hair grew overnight, thicker and turned gray. Another obvious change was the small horns protruding from his forehead.