Dragon's Wrath: The Cursed Returnee

Somehow, Ivan left by flying alone even though he had a small amount of mana in his body. Still, Anna and Ian didn't seem worried, so Ethan decided not to think about it. It was pretty boring to do nothing, and since Ian's annoyance was back in full blast, Ethan decided to use Zen. Aside from a few level-ups here and there, Ethan didn't progress much. He had forgotten about it, but Emily taught him the most basic spells. So, for the good or the worse, Zen would only be useful to train the skills he already knew, which was fine by Ethan since, despite the fact that he could do many things, he would rather swing his sword around without worrying about strategy.

"Now that I think about it, that weird feeling was probably my instincts warned me that something was about to happen. Similar things happened many times while I was on Hedo… which reminds me maybe I should use my power on the devourers. It isn't my style, but the possibility of attacking without revealing myself is quite appealing."

With some luck, Ethan could even learn the skill to make things incredibly hard, like their carapace. It seemed like Hardness at a very high level, and which its effects were far more powerful. By using that, maybe Ethan won't have to worry about the durability of his weapons, and for someone who fights like a tornado, that would be very useful.

Much to everyone's surprise, Ivan returned pretty soon. Although he was Ian's father, as a leader, Ethan could think of a few names which could be as good as him since he didn't like to waste time with pointless things.

"I confirmed that those symbols are on their camps," Ivan said. "We don't know what their use is, but it certainly has a meaning. Regardless, that meaning disappeared because the monsters are heading toward our location."

That wasn't supposed to be a good surprise, but Ethan was pretty satisfied with the development. Why? Because it would be easier to fight the devourers in that area. At night, the monster would be able to hide everywhere. Still, without the obstacles that were three and rocks, things wouldn't have become as chaotic as they could.

ραпdα nᴏνa| сom Much to Ethan's surprise, most people shared his feelings. Only the Clannian looked worried about fighting an endless army of the devourers without an escape route. That was quite weird since that was a battle much more important for them.

"Who could have thought that mages and warriors would feel the same about the same battlefield," Ethan said.

"Well, even if you are a mage or not, having a clear vision of the enemy is always useful," Emily said. "Besides, I will feel less worried knowing that I can see everyone fighting since I can assist them in case something happens."

That was true. If something happens and their forces are divided, gathering information on the battlefield would be difficult, much less helping those who may need it. Regardless, what they had to do was obvious: kill as many devourers as possible before they could get too close. However, Ethan wasn't that good at causing damage with a long-range attack, at least not yet. He learned some techniques in the past that would come in handy right now, but all of them were beyond his current strength. It was annoying, but it looked like Ethan would have to focus on causing the area of effect damage. He had some coins to buy a new weapon, a crossbow worthy of two hundred thousand coins would definitely help, but Ethan wanted to save them for his next sword.

Although he was one of the strongest, Ethan didn't have much to do before the battle. Aside from him, only Ian was waiting without doing anything. Everyone else, even Ian, was working and doing something. Anna was organizing her best potions; Emily was using her magic to make some traps, and the mercenaries were putting all the mines they still had in position. Surprisingly enough, Ivan approached him to talk.

"You seem satisfied now that it looks like this mission is about to end," Ivan said. "Still, even though we will have the high ground, this isn't a battlefield where you can show what you can really do."

Ethan frowned when he heard. Ivan was talking as if he knew what Ethan could really do as if he had seen with his own eyes. Although he wasn't wrong, it was weird. Just like he did it in Hedo after noticing the true might of his powers, Ethan would be more efficient if he just rushed ahead toward the enemies' army without worrying about his sides or his back. Still, doing that with his current strength was close to madness. Even if Ethan uses his skill points to make a single skill become extremely powerful, it wouldn't be enough.

"Just like you, I also think that someone is controlling the devourers to a certain extent," Ivan said. "As such, we can't let a single devourer alive, and we have to exterminate them until the last one. Otherwise, they will be able to multiply and, in a few years, they will cause problems again."

"So, you want me to rush ahead and slay the monsters in the middle of their army even though I am strong enough?" Ethan asked. "Sorry to disappoint you, but not a single person in the entire cosmos will convince me to sacrifice myself for others. I will only sacrifice myself if the time comes for my family."

"Worry not," Ivan said. "You don't have the strength, but you have the skills and the confidence. So, I will give you the strength to pull that off."

It was evident that Ivan was hiding something. After watching him for a while, Ethan concluded that he was using some sort of device made thanks to the combination of Earth's technology and from the magic of many fantasy worlds. Still, what Ivan gave him was something else… a crimson, single-edged sword that was large and long as his cursed sword. However, the quality was far different… it was the same level as the black sword Ethan gained after defeating the demon king's son.

Doomsday Sword (Legendary) (+19)

Attack: 1500 – 2400

Durability: 1000/1000

Effect: (Absolute Vampirism) It divides the damage caused by you to restore your health, mana, and stamina.

Requirements: 1500 STR, 500 END.

"It is just a loan," Ivan said and then turned around. "Don't get too attached to it."