Too Stubborn to Die

A satisfied smile crept across Aaron’s face as he watched the thal’kesh enjoy his cooking. It was a pleasant sight, though it didn’t last long. Hunger panged as he felt his reserves depleting, and he urgently started stuffing more food down his throat as he desperately powered the crystal.

The constant supply of food was a solution, but an absolutely exhausting one.

Mate, this is a lot even for me! Aaron thought as he stuffed meal after meal down his throat.

A moment later, the crowd began to dissipate. The thal’kesh had eaten quickly and returned to the walls for the next stage of the wave, ready to fight. Just the cue he needed to get back to work.

I need to focus. There has to be a better way to get through this.

As nice as it was to see his cooking appreciated for a change, and not after having gone to great lengths to alter it for human tastes, Aaron needed to make the most of this opportunity.

He couldn’t stop cooking, though. The draw required to power the constant demand for energy coming from the crystal needed to be fed. But he knew he needed to improve. Cooking all this food was more of a band-aid solution to his problem, and if he really wanted to take advantage of the opportunity, he needed to use it to improve his energy efficiency.

He closed his eyes again, drowning everything around him out. The moment he felt calm, he split his consciousness, allowing himself to focus on energy control as his body mindlessly cooked and consumed.

He focused on all of his energy organs, including all of his anchors. He felt the energy flowing through him and considered how his energy resources reacted and recovered. How he endlessly cycled and converted them as necessary.

He felt the aether drawn into him, turned and shaped into different forms of energy as required, all pumping away like a magnificent organic machine.

And he used these senses to go in search of methods to tighten and improve any inefficiencies he found. And it was the perfect environment to do so under the magnificent strain of the crystal. It was like a magnifying glass was placed over all of his weaknesses.

Taking a macro glance at the problem was all good, but he had to zoom in if he really wanted to improve. He needed to focus and isolate…

That thought brought him to the crystal and how it was powered. Mana was at the heart of it all, and that was where he needed to start.

After all, no matter how hard he tried, there was always going to be a cost to conversion. Nothing was 100% efficient, and that meant that the best method for feeding the crystal was improving mana control. In fact, the more he focused on his energy, the more he was reminded that converting energy was really best used as a backup and not the cornerstone of one’s foundation.

His thoughts traced back to the trash world. Back then, he had already made some minor insights into mana control when he placed his new anchors on his feet, and he wanted to expand upon those feelings.

His thoughts narrowed, concentrating on the flow of mana. Consciously, he felt the mana flowing through him and into the anchors. The more he focused, the more he could feel the inefficiencies as mana seeped from his body, and it frustrated him. He could feel how much his mana had weakened by the time it reached his anchors, and was drawn out into the crystal.

This wasn’t good enough. It was a strange sensation. Once upon a time, he had felt like a genius when it came to energy control. But now, he felt like his mana needed great improvement.

His brow bent, and he focused on restraining his mana in a desperate attempt to slow the leakage. It was as if he was using his inner mind to plug up holes, like he was trying to seal a leaky bucket. And despite the crudeness of it, it actually worked… to some extent.

But what he was doing was a strenuous, conscious effort. In a situation like this, it wasn’t a bad improvement. If he desperately needed to hold his mana a little longer, this method would work. But Aaron knew he could do better. This was amateur hour. An improvement that wouldn’t help at all in a fight, and therefore, he was not impressed in the slightest.

Snorting, he refocused his attention on his mana. He was a damn prodigy, the System said so, and now was the time to prove it.

But he had a feeling he was looking in the wrong place, and so his attention drifted, eventually focusing on his creation of mana.

As he ate, and his ogre belly converted food into energy, he felt it cycling and spinning through his core before being transferred to where it was needed.

He couldn’t mess with the core itself. It was already beyond him. The C-grade generator was a precarious thing already, and he was worried he might make the thing explode if he went tinkering with it.

But he could help his energy get from his core to his mana anchors more efficiently, and that was exactly where he decided to focus his attention.

Mentally, he aimed to draw the mana from his core into his anchors as quickly as possible. The faster it moved, the greater its energy efficiency was, and the less was lost in the process. This was it, he realized, and he narrowed in on his target as he cycled through the steps, feeling it come in and directing it to its target. And moment by moment, he gradually felt minor improvements coming along.

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Again, it was far from perfect. Just like before, this was a conscious effort, and he needed it to become natural. But he kept going. Because, unlike before, he felt like he was onto something. And so, he kept refining the technique. Like a martial artist throwing the same punch a thousand times, he directed his mana to his anchors, over and over again.

It happened quickly, and his mind was completely consumed by the simple task. Within moments, he was losing track of time, and the world around him faded away. It was just him, his core, and the mana flowing into his anchors. His mind was entirely focused on a single task. Repetition ingraining itself into the very fiber of his being, so much so that nothing made sense anymore.

But he kept going. Cycling through the loop over and over again. Back and forth. Single-minded repetition. He no longer even focused on the details of what he was doing. It had fully consumed him. Nothing mattered, not even whether or not his efficiency was even improving. His mind had one goal, and it was completely focused on it, a clear slate that had become obsessed with the single task it had been given.

And soon, he had become one with the flow of mana traveling between his core and his anchors.

He forgot about his body, his companions, and even the dungeon. He might as well have been in another universe far away, so far lost in the flow of his own mana as he was.

And yet, through it all, his body continued to cook and eat. Fueling the very mana that his mind had drifted away with.

Soon, hours had passed. Waves of monsters had clashed against his companions in the background, only his subconscious barely aware of what was going on, even as new, exotic, and rather disturbing monster corpses had begun to pile up beside the kitchen.

Everyone bore witness to Aaron’s absence, coming and going to drop food off as they killed wave after wave.

But they too were great champions of the multiverse in their own way, and knew that there were certain elements that set the top rankers apart from the rest. And even if they didn’t entirely understand his methods entirely, they respected Aaron and left him to his own devices.

As they came to drop off meat, they kept quiet around him. Tip-toeing around him as he mindlessly cooked and ate.

But then, breaking the silence, something echoed far in the distant corners of his mind. Aaron barely even noticed it at first, but something deep within him told him to wake and to see what it was.

It took him a moment to remember who he was. He was so far gone that it was a confusing and disorientating feeling to remember his own body, but the moment he did, he realized what was going on, and he saw the System message before his eyes.

You have gained insight into a possible upgrade path for Mana Anchors. Currently discovered upgrade paths:

Streamlined Mana Anchors (5%)

Aaron blinked and muttered under his breath. “Streamlined?”

In truth, he hadn’t had any conscious consideration about what path to take for his mana control. He didn’t even know there were paths, not that the discovery surprised him too greatly. He had just wanted to become better at mana control, and he felt that he had, to some extent.

But now, as he looked at the notification, he wondered what paths could one take their mana? Or energy for that matter. The simple mention of paths indicated that there were multiple directions he could take his mana anchors, and he had to stop and consider that.

“Streamlined?” He breathed again.

The name made a lot of sense. That was exactly what he had been doing. He had been streamlining his mana. Directing it straight from his core into his anchors, and from his anchors into his food. And this path represented that.

But was that what he wanted?

If it had been something else, he might not have thought too deeply about it. But energy was quickly becoming a cornerstone of his entire path, and he didn’t want to rush into something as important as it. And the wording of the System message implied there were other upgrade paths available to him. Was Streamlined really the best for him, or were there others that suited him more?

He wished desperately that he could talk to Yendal, or Oozagh for that matter. Either of them would no doubt be able to at least tell him what the other options would be. He was sure Oozagh would recommend something that increased his output, and Yendal would tell him to pick something that increased his precision, but even just knowing what those options were and how to unlock them would be enough for now.

Not that an answer was urgent. He was only five percent of the way to the competition on this version. And he had delved deep to get that far. This was going to take a while.

I had better take this into consideration as I fight and control my mana…

But of course, it wasn’t just about mana control. If mana anchors could be upgraded into different paths, it stood to reason that all of his energy organs could be.

This is an interesting discovery…

As he was pondering his thoughts about mana anchors, he realized that a bunch of other notifications were pending, and he blinked again as they appeared before him.

Experience rewarded for discovering a recipe!

Experience rewarded for discovering a recipe!

Experience rewarded for discovering a recipe!

Experience rewarded for discovering a recipe!

Ding!

[ Ogre Gastronomist ] has LEVELED UP!

79 → 86

Purchasable Skill Available!

Aaron quickly flicked through the notifications, checking the recipes he had come up with while his mind was off channeling mana. None of the recipes were particularly interesting. They were basic. Barely useful dishes his subconscious had thrown together.

He groaned. It was less than ideal. He had a Skill to purchase now, and his mediocre performance was no doubt going to influence what he got. After all, he hadn’t pushed himself.

Then again, it was the end of the world. Skill slots were in short supply, anyway. And he had no free spots for his Profession until he hit D-grade.

Whatever. I can do better next time.

Dismissing his irritation, he glanced at the dungeon floor timer.

Time until floor completion 15:32:07

It felt like he had been gone longer. Then again, he wasn’t complaining. His insights had been great. But it would be nice if he got the chance to cook at least one good dish. And maybe, if he had time, he might even get the opportunity to revisit his mana anchor pathways and see if he couldn’t get insight into another path.

Aaron smiled; he still had plenty of work to do.