[STT] Chapter 56: Patience (Patreon)

Hiding in shadows near the monolith, Ben stared intensely at the floating ball of mana hovering between his palms.

He was currently forcing mana into the shape of a perfect sphere without using any sort of container.

And it was taking absolutely every ounce of his mental stamina to keep the thing stable.

Ramping [Focus] all the way to its absolute limit, he wrestled with the energy. He could actually pull it off now, but it required an insane amount of effort to keep the mana from just dissipating into the air.

Remembering how completely stunned Alice had looked when she caught a brief glimpse of him doing this earlier, he knew he had to keep it a secret from others.

Or at least keep it somewhat hidden.

He didn't need to appear more interesting in their eyes.

So he had intentionally picked this shadowy spot to understand and control his mana in peace, hidden by [Lurker] which had been progressing nicely over his time in the rift.

Titles:

- [Hunter] - Equipped

- [Lurker] (29/100)

But even with his Title progressing and his mana control improving, that bad premonition from last night just refused to go away.

Things are going way too well.

He'd even talked to Alice about it. But she didn't think there was anything wrong.

"You are overthinking things, Ben. Everything is progressing smoothly."

"Are you sure?"

"Paranoia doesn't suit you. Yes, it was highly unexpected that the rift would put other groups in here with us at the exact same time, and that undoubtedly increases the overall difficulty of the rift itself. Given that we've already seen the occasional Tier 2 monster wandering around increasing in strength, the system is clearly compensating for the extra numbers. But it really shouldn't be too much of a problem for us."

At least he learned why the Tier 2 he'd fought had been easier to deal with. It had been weaker back then. 

Ben forced the mana sphere to spin on his palm, shaking his head away from his conversation with Alice.

[The Tide is starting...]

Ben blinked.

Oh, it was that time already.

###

[Tier 1 Monkey slain. Essence gained.]

[Tier 1 Beetle slain. Essence gained.]

[Tier 1 Beetle slain. Essence gained.]

[Tier 1 Wolf slain. Essence gained.]

[Tier 1 Monkey slain. Essence gained.]

…

[Tier 1 Monkey slain. Essence gained.]

When he was done killing some monsters fending off the Tide alongside others, Ben made his way back toward the monolith, wanting to give the steps another go.

[Fire Burst] had stalled a bit recently, so he'd been wondering how to fix that, and the answer that he arrived at was that he needed to use it in new ways and maybe revisit that idea of [Fire Burst] from his hands.

The Tide had grown in size, so it was a good source of essence, though the pond water was still beneficial to him.

As he wandered through the barrier he stopped near the edge of the trees, and blinked in surprise as he observed a group forming at the base of the monolith.

Walking closer, he noticed Theodore, Brian, Clarissa, and Thomas had basically walled off the entrance to the stairs. And people in their group were actively shoving away anyone trying to push past them.

…what are these guys up to now?

When he got closer he saw they were actually demanding a toll to go up.

Things escalated suddenly when a random kid stepped up and got way too aggressive about the whole situation. Grabbing Theodore by the collar, the kid clearly didn't realize who he was dealing with.

"You can't just claim the monolith! We all got dragged into this rift together, so back off!"

Smiling pleasantly, Theodore gently placed a hand over the boy's fingers.

"Oh, but I can, and I did! It's just a tiny entrance fee for your own safety, really. We can't have unprepared people getting hurt up there."

Shifting his weight casually, Theodore drove his boot straight through the kid's knee.

"Gaaah! My leg! You broke my leg!"

"Oops, you tripped. See? This is exactly why we need safety regulations! The stairs are simply too treacherous for clumsy feet."

Watching the kid writhe on the ground, Ben kept his face completely blank.

Ben knew something was wrong with this guy.

Scanning the terrified crowd, Theodore's eyes suddenly locked perfectly onto Ben.

Crap.

"Oh, Ben! Come—"

Vanishing in a sudden ripple of displaced air, Theodore bypassed the entire clearing in a fraction of a second. And he reappeared directly in Ben's personal space before Ben could even move a muscle.

"—here!"

Theodore finished, throwing an arm casually over Ben's neck.

Theodore leaned in close with that bright smile. Attempting to step away from the contact, Ben quickly realized the guy's grip was like a steel vise pinning his shoulder in place.

So he just stood his ground and stared dead into Theodore's unblinking eyes.

"Don't be so shy, hiding all the way out here in the dark! Come on, let's climb the steps together, shall we? You're a friend so you don't need to pay any tolls."

Ben didn't bother trying to wrench his shoulder free again.

"I wasn't planning on climbing yet."

"Nonsense! A strong, capable guy like you shouldn't be lingering in the dirt with the rest of these boring extras. I'll even waive your toll, just this once."

"I prefer the dirt."

"Hmm, but the view is so much better from the top, isn't it? And I just know you're hiding all sorts of wonderful surprises in that head of yours. It would be an absolute tragedy to let all that potential go to waste down here."

Reaching up with his free hand, Theodore playfully tapped the side of Ben's temple.

"You're a very interesting guy, Ben. So don't make me drag you up there by your hair." Dimples deepened. "Or do. I am curious what delightful sounds you would make. Do you feel pain, Benjamin? Or does that skill of yours block that off, too? It would be interesting to break through that."

Ben stepped forward without a word, eyes forward.

Thomas stepped aside snickering with the rest of the group to let them pass. The crowd parted like the sea, everyone staring as the two of them walked directly toward the stone stairs.

And Ben just let himself be led.

With Alice and Ethan nowhere to be seen, he was entirely on his own for this one.

So he just stared at the steps ahead, keeping his eyes perfectly steeled.

He was currently too weak to do anything about the steel grip on his shoulder. But he would do what was needed for now.

And later…

Ben stepped onto the stairway with his eyes firmed, but Theodore just kept hauling him upward, humming a cheerful little tune.

"It really is a lovely day for a climb, don't you think, Ben?"

Ignoring the insane rambling, Ben focused entirely on putting one foot in front of the other.

They made it about halfway up the monolith before the mental pressure actually started kicking in.

Ramping up [Focus] to fight the resistance, he kept moving forward. Theodore didn't even seem to notice the pressure, walking as easily as if he was strolling through a park.

"You're awfully quiet today, I was hoping for some fun conversation to pass the time. Are you not enjoying the view?"

Gritting his teeth, Ben didn't make a single peep. He couldn't stop even if he wanted to, because Theodore just kept physically shoving him up the next steps.

And that forced momentum made the pressure on his mind multiply exponentially.

Pushing [Focus] above and beyond its absolute limits, Ben wrestled with the sheer weight pressing down on his consciousness. And every single step forward felt like a hammer striking directly against his brain.

Then the physical pressure finally joined the party.

Crossing the invisible threshold between the middle and the top of the monolith, gravity itself seemed to double.

His joints physically groaned in protest. The ambient pressure was no longer just invading his mind, it was also trying to flatten his body against the stone. So he also ramped up [Warforged] and [Regeneration].

Ben desperately tried to keep his feet under him, but even when his legs gave out, Theodore kept a firm grip on him and kept him steady.

But still everything was rapidly becoming too much to handle.

"Oh, are you getting tired already? We still have a ways to go, Ben. You can't give up on me now!"

Ben blinked and found his vision blurring heavily at the edges. A sudden wet warmth trickled down his upper lip.

Reaching up with a hand, he touched his nose and brought back fingers stained with blood.

...huh?

Squinting his eyes, Theodore let a tiny, subtle smirk slip onto his face. The guy looked down at him with a gaze so entirely cold it sent a shiver down Ben's spine.

Then he just let go with that smirk slipping away.

"How disappointing."

Swept away instantly by the immense pressure and a gust of wind, Ben plummeted backward down the stone steps.

And as he fell, he watched Theodore simply turn around and casually continue walking up toward the top.

This was Theodore's first time climbing, at least as far as Ben knew.

But he was already so high up.

Hitting the dirt at the base of the stairs, Ben stumbled and rolled across the ground.

Grinding his teeth together, he felt hot blood pouring freely from his nose. The damage from being abruptly rejected by the monolith's pressure was agonizing.

Ben stared up at the shrinking figure on the stairs, his blank expression finally cracking.

Ben was a childish and petty person. He would admit that himself. And all of that was bubbling up to the surface. But he was also very patient. So he tore his eyes away from Theodore and tore open his healing mark without a second thought as he flooded his entire body with [Regeneration] alongside it.

It was going to take a lot of mana to fix this. But at least there had been benefits to all of that.

[Focus Lvl 3 > Lvl 6]

[Warforged Lvl 7 > Lvl 9]

[Regeneration Lvl 9 > Lvl 11]

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