The stone pillar leaned against the crater wall. It was roughly four or five meters across, and its uneven surface offered plenty of handholds.

'A little over ten meters.' Anser made a rough estimate of the distance to the top.

He could not tell whether anyone was up there from this angle, but he had to climb regardless. The pillar could collapse at any moment, and he did not have much time left.

He removed his ruined boots and planted his bare feet on the protruding stones. They felt cold but did not hurt. Draconic Resilience combined with the Tough feat had transformed him.

Taking a deep breath, he climbed with all four limbs in practiced alternation, his movements agile and light as though he were a veteran climber.

"Whew. What a rush."

He looked down into the pitch-black abyss below, and his heart involuntarily began to race.

He was afraid, but the fear was manageable. He knew Feather Fall and could cast it instantly by reflex if he slipped, ensuring the fall would not kill him.

What truly delighted him, however, were the "basic actions" the character sheet had granted him after he acquired a class.

Attack, Dodge, Dash, Disengage, Hide, Jump, Climb, Swim...

In a game, these were unremarkable basic abilities. Here, they had turned Anser into a highly trained athlete.

Combined with proficiency in Acrobatics and Athletics, they allowed him to reliably perform at the upper limit of his physical attributes.

His movements were crisp, practiced, and effortless. Forget ordinary people—even most classed individuals would struggle to match him.

After several meters, the pillar became nearly vertical, forcing him to circle around it in search of better holds.

But the moment he rounded one side, he caught sight of another pillar from the corner of his eye. A young man stood on top, staring at him in dumbfounded astonishment.

'Oh, shit!'

Anser's nerves tightened. He pressed himself against the pillar and looked upward.

No one was peering down. Everything appeared normal.

He glanced sideways again. The young man had already looked away. He sat with his knees bent and his body turned sideways to Anser, holding a sword in one hand while subtly pointing diagonally upward with the other.

'Smart.'

Anser gave a slight nod and resumed climbing, now with greater caution. He stopped after every few movements.

The young man occasionally signaled to him in the hand language used by adventurers, and the two soon settled into smooth coordination.

There were two enemies. One was probably the duergar, though its condition was unknown.

Anser grew even more careful as he neared the top.

The final three meters!

The young man suddenly stood and threw a stone toward the top of Anser's pillar.

"Clack—"

His aim was excellent. The stone struck the platform with a sharp crack, drawing the enemies' attention.

"..." (Goblin)

Footsteps and shrill curses followed one after another.

Anser immediately understood and circled to the other side of the pillar.

The young man continued throwing stones and shouting curses. He sounded almost hysterical—too convincing to be an act.

After waiting several seconds, Anser climbed with all his strength, launched himself upward, and landed on the stone platform.

His gaze swept across it. The platform was four or five meters wide, and two short figures stood upon it.

One sat in the center. He was short and stocky, bald, with grayish-white skin. A warhammer lay beside his hand.

The other stood near the pillar's edge with its back to Anser. Less than a meter tall, it had pointed teeth and ears, gray-green skin, and a scimitar that it brandished at the young man.

Anser's sudden appearance startled them both.

The duergar seized its warhammer and twisted sideways to face Anser. Instead of standing, however, it merely shouted.

The goblin cowered and did not charge immediately.

By then, Anser had already activated <Innate Sorcery>. His left hand gripped the crystal at his chest as he focused, sensing and guiding the surging magic by instinct to construct a simple spell model.

About one second passed.

"" (Draconic)

With a ringing Draconic utterance like clashing metal, a mass of light shot from his fingertip. It crossed more than two meters in an instant and exploded, blasting a deafening peal of thunder into the duergar's face.

Cantrip: Sorcerous Burst—Thunder!

Although this was his first time casting a spell, Anser did not miss an immobile target.

The duergar grunted. Blood covered its face as it toppled backward.

At the same time, the die in Anser's mind spun wildly, and a text notification flashed through his awareness.

[You cast Sorcerous Burst on the duergar. The enemy is Frightened and Prone.

The duergar is hit and takes 15 Thunder damage (Critical Hit). Current Hit Points: 4/26...]

Anser was delighted. The die could do this as well.

But this was no time to investigate. The duergar was still alive and capable of casting spells.

He crossed the distance in several strides, pinned the duergar's warhammer beneath his left foot, raised his right, and stomped hard on its neck.

[You make a melee attack against the duergar. The enemy is Prone, Panicked, and Deafened.

The duergar is hit and takes 4 Bludgeoning damage (Critical Hit). Fatal Blow. Target killed. You gain 200 Combat Experience...]

Anser relaxed slightly and immediately turned toward the goblin.

In just a few seconds, the more dangerous duergar was dead, leaving only a terrified goblin behind.

'Slow little idiot. Never heard thunder before?' Anser tightened his grip on the crystal and cast again.

The goblin finally reacted and charged with a roar.

Thunder erupted, hurling the goblin to the ground. It lay there wailing, clutching its bleeding ears.

They were so close that Anser's own eardrums rang.

Fighting through the discomfort, he quickly picked up the warhammer. It was heavy enough that he had to wield it with both hands. He took two quick steps and smashed it into the goblin's head.

[...The goblin is hit and takes 6 Bludgeoning damage (Critical Hit). Fatal Blow. Target killed. You gain 50 Combat Experience...]

Anser scanned the area. Only after confirming there was no danger did he let out a breath.

"Whew... What a rush!"

In truth, a goblin had a Challenge Rating of only 1/4 and 7 hit points. He could have handled it in melee. But this was his first real fight. How could he not be nervous?

'Sorcerous Burst is incredibly useful,' Anser marveled.

Sorcerous Burst was a 0-level Evocation spell exclusive to sorcerers. It had a range of 120 feet (at least 36 meters) and dealt 1d8 (1–8) damage on a hit. The caster chose the damage type: Acid, Cold, Fire, Lightning, Poison, Psychic, or Thunder.

If it dealt maximum damage (8), the spell's energy would burst again. At higher levels, it could potentially trigger a chain of bursts and become quite powerful.

Anser knew what duergar were. He suspected this one might resist Poison or Psychic damage but probably not Thunder, so that was what he chose. It had performed well in actual combat.

The strongest attack spell he knew was actually the 1st-level spell Chromatic Orb, but casting it required a diamond worth at least 50 gold pieces, and he did not have one.

Moreover, 1st-level spells were harder to cast. With the Weave unstable and his emotions running high, there was a chance the spell would fail.

'Not bad. I kept it stable.'

Looking at the corpses on the ground made him uncomfortable, especially those two pairs of blood-soaked eyes. They seemed to be staring fixedly at him.

He kicked the corpses' heads aside and began collecting the spoils. His time was limited.

Notes:

1. A critical hit is a critical strike. If the original damage is 1D8, a critical hit deals 2D8 damage, meaning two eight-sided dice are rolled for a damage range of 2–16. The story will display damage ranges when they occur.

2. Why is all damage expressed as a range? This is actually fairly realistic.

Take a slingshot as an example. A +5 slingshot skill indicates great proficiency, producing a high attack roll and thus a high chance to hit. The target can evade only through luck.

Suppose the slingshot deals 1D6 (1–6) damage. If a bird fails to dodge, a hit to its claw might deal 1 damage. A hit to its wing might deal 2 damage and inflict an Unable to Fly condition. A hit to its head would be a critical hit (2D6) and kill it instantly.

Luck often determines where an attack lands, hence the dice system.

This is a simplified example; reality is more complicated. Once you become sufficiently powerful, with high skills and attributes, luck plays a smaller role and striking a vital point becomes highly probable.

2. Every spell used in the story will be explained. For more information, consult the supplementary Spell List.

3. Measurements called "feet" in Faerûn are standard feet, each approximately 0.3 meters.

(End of Chapter)