On the battlefield, Rand cut down an orc with one swing, but failed to reduce the enemy's numbers.

The orc rose, roared, and charged again behind its shield. Fear showed in its eyes, but there was no hesitation.

Sudden footsteps sounded. Rand glanced from the corner of his eye and saw two figures approaching from the rear.

His eyes lit up, and he shouted, "Reinforcements are here! Everyone, hold on!"

It was a tactic. He did not believe two people could have much impact; he merely wanted to raise morale.

The human side was indeed reinvigorated, though most of them had no time to see how many reinforcements had arrived.

At the edge of the battlefield...

Anser slowed. The chaotic melee made it difficult for a spellcaster to enter the fight.

When he noticed the low slopes on both sides, an idea struck him. He changed direction, took a running leap, and began climbing.

The slope was not steep. He quickly climbed six or seven meters, found stable footing, and stood to survey the area. The battlefield lay just over twenty meters ahead, fully exposed below him.

'Perfect!' Anser was delighted.

Bratt had just entered the battlefield and was looking back. Only after spotting Anser on the side slope did he relax.

Anser nodded to him, then cast Mold Earth, creating a thin wall a full meter high in front of himself.

His actions looked like a waste of time, but he was actually "creating advantage."

The high ground gave him an advantage on his attacks, and people or obstacles would not block his spells. The wall provided cover and made him harder to hit. Simple and practical.

His gaze swept across the battlefield and locked onto a goblin archer.

Sorcerous Burst—Fire!

In less than half a second, a mass of sorcerous energy erupted from the end of his staff. It streaked over everyone's heads in the blink of an eye and slammed into the goblin's chest.

"Bang-bang—"

The goblin flew backward as though struck by two heavy hammers and smashed into the ground. Its chest caved in, blood streamed from its eyes, ears, nose, and mouth, and after several twitches, it stopped moving.

[You cast Sorcerous Burst on the goblin... The goblin is hit and takes 13 (8 + 5) Fire damage. Fatal Blow. Target killed. You gain 50 Combat Experience. Level increased...]

He had leveled up!

Luck had favored him this time. The spell triggered a chain burst, instantly killing the goblin with only 7 hit points.

On the battlefield ahead, Rand was delighted by what he saw.

Spellcasters were not rare, but one who could cast efficiently and accurately while the Weave was unstable was exceptionally uncommon. Even Rand found Divine Smite strenuous to use, let alone lower-level classed individuals.

Anser paid none of that any attention. He crouched and immediately summoned his character sheet.

After leveling up, a classed individual could either advance an existing class or multiclass into another—specializing deeply or learning broadly.

Anser decisively chose to increase his Sorcerer level.

[Level Increased: Level 2 Sorcerer! You gain two new class features. You can learn a new spell.]

With no time to inspect the class features, he quickly selected a new spell: Magic Missile.

Magic Missile—jokingly described as a magical guided missile—created three glowing darts of magical force. Each dart dealt 1d4 (1–4) + 1 Force damage to its target. Its base range was 120 feet (at least 36 meters), and the force darts tracked their target and never missed.

The most frustrating problem lower-level spellcasters faced against stronger opponents was simple: they could not hit them!

High-level classed individuals had better attributes, more features, and more skills. They could dodge and sprint. No matter how powerful a spell was, it meant nothing if it missed.

Magic Missile solved that problem perfectly.

Anser stood. Magical light shimmered in his eyes as every sensation and insight associated with Magic Missile surged through his mind.

Several seconds later, he locked onto Bratt's opponent.

It was a bugbear, half a head taller than Bratt. Although it was not as strong as Bratt, its hide armor, shield, and mace allowed it to suppress him.

(Magic Missile)

Three glowing darts flew almost simultaneously, tracing strange, unpredictable arcs through the air before howling toward the bugbear.

Caught off guard, the bugbear barely managed to raise its shield, but it was too late. The darts struck its head, chest, and arm in succession, each impact bursting into a spray of blood.

[You successfully cast the 1st-level spell Magic Missile. You gain a deeper understanding of your innate magic and receive 1 Class Experience...]

[You cast Magic Missile on the bugbear... The bugbear is hit and takes 12 Force damage. Current Hit Points: 9/27...]

'Only 1 experience point for casting?' Anser was speechless.

On the battlefield, Bratt froze for an instant, then reacted. He lunged forward, driving his longsword beneath the unbalanced bugbear's arm and straight into its heart.

[Target killed. You gain 31 Combat Experience...]

The human side's morale surged. These armored bugbears were a major problem, and eliminating even one greatly reduced the pressure.

The duergar in the rear shouted several commands. A few orcs and goblins tried to rush over and kill Anser, but Bratt and the human fighters held them back.

"Watch out—" Rand turned and shouted.

Anser looked up and saw a speck of black rapidly enlarging before his eyes. His scalp tightened, and he abruptly crouched, hiding his entire body behind the low wall.

"Whoosh—"

A javelin shrieked past half a foot above the wall, making his heart pound.

"Fuck!"

He immediately leaned out from the side and looked toward the battlefield.

A tall, powerful hobgoblin with red skin, pointed ears, and half plate armor was drawing back for a second throw.

Suddenly, an arrow flew in from above and to the side. The hobgoblin hurriedly dodged but was still struck in the arm.

Anser looked up. A human archer had appeared on the slope at some point and was nocking another arrow.

Enraged and humiliated, the hobgoblin shifted its attention to the closer archer.

'Good opportunity.'

Anser sprang to his feet and mentally locked onto the hobgoblin.

(Magic Missile)

Three glowing darts crossed the battlefield with a nerve-rattling whine, moving far faster than the javelin.

The hobgoblin rolled to evade them. The darts adjusted their trajectories slightly and arrived in an instant, slamming one after another into the backside he had exposed during the roll.

"Awooo—"

The agonized howl made fighters on both sides instinctively clench their rear ends.

[You cast Magic Missile on the Hobgoblin Captain... The Hobgoblin Captain is hit and takes 20 Force damage (Critical Hit). Current Hit Points: 35/58...]

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—three arrows arrived one after another.

The Hobgoblin Captain rolled across the ground by instinct. Its plate armor deflected the arrows, though one struck its leg and sprayed a trail of blood.

(Magic Missile)

By the time the ringing, forceful Draconic incantation reached the battlefield, Magic Missile had already arrived.

Knowing it could not evade, the hobgoblin raised both arms and endured the darts head-on.

"Boom-boom-boom—"

[...The Hobgoblin Captain is hit and takes 7 Force damage. Current Hit Points: 24/58...]

'So tough.' Anser panted lightly as he calmed the turbulent mana within him.

An ordinary sorcerer would already have exhausted all spell slots or fallen into a state of depletion, leaving them helpless against this opponent. Fighting an enemy two levels higher was extremely difficult.

Fortunately, Anser was anything but ordinary. After leveling up, he possessed 11 mana, enough to blast the enemy to death.

At that moment, Rand finished his opponent and crossed the distance to the Hobgoblin Captain in several strides. One slash knocked its guard aside, and a second took its head.

[Target killed. You gain 190 Combat Experience...]

'So much experience.' Anser was overjoyed.

Unfortunately, the kill had not been his. He discovered that failing to land the killing blow greatly reduced his experience, though personally participating in the battle was enough to earn some.

With the threat removed, he held his staff in one hand and stood against the wind, transforming into an emotionless spellcasting machine. Spells flew one after another, fast and accurate.

"..."

His mana was limited, so he relied on Sorcerous Burst whenever possible, targeting archers in the rear and unarmored goblin grunts. Occasionally, he also helped relieve the pressure on Bratt.

Cantrips did not track targets, and moving enemies were difficult to hit. It was risky to intervene directly in close combat; striking an ally in the chaos would devastate morale.

"Boom—"

One unlucky goblin grunt triggered a chain burst. Its face was smashed apart, and it toppled stiffly to the ground.

[...Target killed. You gain 37 Combat Experience...]

By then, at least six or seven goblins had died directly or indirectly by Anser's hand.

Such an opportunity was exceedingly rare. Wave after wave of experience felt as satisfying as gulping an ice-cold drink in 104-degree heat. It was addictive.

Note: Under D&D rules, Magic Missile hits automatically and makes no Attack Roll, so it cannot score a critical hit.

Reality is different, however. A strike to a vital point will cause serious injury or death, so critical hits have been introduced for greater plausibility. Thank you for understanding.

Magic Missile

1st-Level Evocation (Sorcerer, Wizard)

Casting Time: 1 Action

Range: 120 feet

Components: V (verbal), S (somatic)

Duration: Instantaneous

You create three glowing darts of magical force. Each dart hits a creature of your choice that you can see within range. A dart deals 1d4 + 1 Force damage to its target. The darts all strike simultaneously, and you can direct them to hit one creature or several.

At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the spell creates one additional dart for each slot level above 1st.

(End of Chapter)