Chapter 8 (Bard)

Congratulations!
You’ve unlocked the Mana Control Skill!
Mana Wielding: Novice Rank 1
—Mana Sense: Novice Rank 1
—Mana Control: Novice Rank 1

I swiped the screen away as a wave of exhaustion washed over me. Whatever recovery the goblin spirit caller had provided with his magic, the penalty from Coward’s Brand had washed away. My head throbbed from the exhaustion too. It felt like I had just finished a fifteen-hour workday over the grill.

Brawn: 2
—STR 1| VIT 2
Control: 1
—DEX 1| ARC 1
Wit: 1
—INT 1| CHA 1

On the bright side, the system rounded up all decimal points. I didn’t need a lot of Charisma for the current situation, but every Vitality unit appeared to count. I didn’t dare risk using the sceptre’s spells again. The price was much too high. I worried that losing more of the attribute would knock me out.

“What are you waiting for?” The spirit caller asked, summoning another swarm of bats. This time, only three appeared. The fiery aura around his staff and eyes had faded too. “We need more Mind Spikes!”

I desperately glanced between the pursuers and our allies. Of the six mounted goblins, only four remained. One of them had passed out on top of their warg, and the foam around his mouth suggested he was gone or on his way out. We had lost two goats as well: one medium-sized adult and a kid.

“There has to be another way,” I mumbled to myself, studying my options. Now that I knew the trick activating Mana Sense was much easier the second time. The sceptre’s crystal lit up with much brighter lights than before. Hearing and sight both lit up, helping me track the source of mana. Unfortunately, analysing the runes covering the sceptre didn’t give me any answers.

The mana within the crystal continued to slosh around, but its volume had decreased significantly. It wasn’t just the spell that had depleted it. The leak’s size had increased too. The pink and purple energies drifted into the air before diffusing. Then something curious caught my attention. A strand of mana flowed from the cracks to my guitar. The colours swirled around the clear stone’s exterior but failed to penetrate it. When I brought the weapon and my instrument together, a new notification appeared.

Sasha the Second wishes to feed on Mind Mana, making it a permanent part of her Core.

She will gain the power to influence the mood, morale, and focus of people around her based on the tone and tempo of the song played.
Increase your Charisma and Arcana to improve your control over Sasha’s power.

“Well, that’s a freebie,” I whispered, pressing the two crystals against one another. Sasha sucked all the purple and pink out of the sceptre into herself, and two little wisps appeared in her Core. The system didn’t tell how exactly the ‘influence’ would affect others, but it was better than nothing.

Sasha the Second has started her journey towards becoming a Champion’s relic!
Declare who you want to affect, friend or foe, before fingering the strings. Alright, big boy?

The system’s overly familiar tone took me by surprise, but I didn’t ponder on the occurrence for long. Instead, I shed the sceptre and focused all of my attention on Sasha. The goblins and their mounts were starting to look tired, and the kobolds were gaining on us. They needed a significant boost, and two options popped into my head: ‘Eye of the Tiger’ and ‘Thunderstruck’. It didn’t take me long to make up my mind. Even though the former had a powerful riff, the build-up was much too long. I also believed AC/DC would appreciate me empowering goblins and their ugly mounts more. After all, they let superhero films make the most of their music.

When I started, the soul caller glanced at me with his eyebrow raised, but then a kobold slinger struck his shoulder, drawing his attention away. It was for the best. Even though I had a fair bit of experience with open mic nights, I didn’t want eyes on me when trying Sasha’s new ability. It only made me more anxious.

The mana in the crystal went wild as the individual notes joined into Thunderstruck’s distinct melody. Unlike with the sceptre’s energy, I didn’t have to wrestle control. It didn’t try to slip out through the gaps between my fingers like with water. Instead, streams extended from the core following my will and twined themselves around the strings. Then as I strummed them, a faint pulse radiated out from me, washing over the spirit caller and driver. Both glanced at me, but I closed my eyes and focused on the song.

“In the middle of warg rider’s pack, I looked around!”

Even though it was tempting to get carried away with the song’s lyrics, I held myself back. Answering questions like ‘what are railroad tracks?’ would get me into trouble later. There was no guarantee of what world or dimension the goblin shaman was from, but if he had any brains, it wouldn’t take him long to figure out that I wasn’t a native of Arena Disk.

My mind wandered for a moment as questions of language popped into my head. It felt odd that the goblins and I understood each other perfectly. We hailed from different Universes and cultures. I came up with two possibilities. Either hill folk and goblins spoke the same language, or the system had granted me the ability to speak and understand all of the world’s languages. Hill folks’ description also said they travelled the lands as merchants. Perhaps halflings were well versed in tongues due to their frequent travels? A stone skittered off the trunk between the spirit caller and me, forcing my attention back to the music.

The cart picked up speed and more heat radiated around me. Then, finally, one of the goblin riders let loose a mighty war cry, and our ascent up the mountain road continued. Kobold screeches and cooing sounded not far behind us, but I ignored it too. All that mattered was the song. I could sense it reaching out and affecting the soul caller and driver. The other goblins and their mounts were further away, but the surrounding tone suggested the music was helping them too.

Just as the crystal’s essence started running thin and the necessary effort to draw on it increased, the whoops and screeches got distant. The sounds of clashing weapons and stomping hooves faded too, and before long, I heard nothing but the cart’s wheels turning and heavy breathing.

Finally, I opened my eyes. All the conscious goblins attention were on me. All five of them wore broad smiles and looked at me with raised eyebrows. The stretched nerves and sweat on the spirit caller’s face had reduced. Even though the other goblins and their mounts appeared bloody and battered, they seemed to be cheerful too.

“I don’t know what you just did, but it saved our lives,” the spirit caller said. He offered me his hand, and I let go of the strings to shake it. “I’m Gark, son of Kreg. If it wasn’t clear already, I serve the shaman of Grog’s Table. Believe me. I’ll put in a good word for you with him and Chief Grog. They’ll be keen to hear your music.”

“Where’s that song from?” One of the goblin rider’s asked, wrapping rags around his bleeding shoulder. “I’ve never heard anything of the kind, but it sure feels good.”

“I suppose that’s bardic magic,” I answered. “I’ve seen my master use it plenty of time and gleaned over his books, but he never gave me the opportunity to learn or practise Mana Wielding mastery. It was the key to figuring the rest out. How do you feel?”

“Immortal like I’ve just downed a flagon of mead, and neither lightning nor thunder can bring me down. It’s fading, though. So perhaps once we’re in the city’s safety, you can entertain us with more of your tunes.”

“Of course!” My attention drifted to the injured rider and the nameless faces that had fallen to the kobold attack. The retreating reptilian force strung their bodies up to their mounts before dragging the goblins and their wargs downhill. I didn’t know them and probably never would.

Trial of Control complete.
You have survived the kobolds but once again failed to stick to the trial’s parameters.

However, you’ve displayed excellent Dexterity with your guitar-playing skills.
Dexterity + 3

Despite your lack of prior experience, you’ve gained an understanding of mana and used it first to repel a foe and then empower your allies.
Arcana + 3

Musician Mastery boosted due to prior knowledge and practise!
Musician Master has progressed to Apprentice Rank 9!

Display more of your prior knowledge for additional growth.

I felt a rush of energy in my solar plexus. It felt warm and comforting, and Mana Sense helped me understand that it was my personal mana. Unlike the power in Sasha’s crystal, it didn’t have any colour or character. Instead, it felt like a tranquil puddle of water sitting in a vast arid desert. In my current state, the goblin shaman would have no trouble squashing me. However, I now had a tool to start my journey towards his defeat. The poor sap would become my first steppingstone towards might and glory.