"Crap !"
This was the only thought in Auron's head as he awkwardly stumbled back.
Allowing the razor sharp teeth to close right in front of his face with a "clack"
The jagged chitinous blades it had for teeth were so close that he could clearly see bit's of blood and flesh of the Armoured Quadruped it had just killed sticking to its surface.
He’d miscalculated. Hard.
He had overestimated his own strength while grossly underestimated his opponent. Not just a little. Severely.
He hadn’t walked into this expecting an easy kill, but he thought it’d at least be feasible.
Who the hell was he kidding?
That first clash had told him everything he needed to know: the thing outclassed him. Not just by a little—but by a chasm.
It was a monster.
And he was just some idiot with a stone-skin skill and a death wish.
Auron landed on his back.
The only good news was that he was still alive. Somehow.
And that wasn’t luck—it was because of a single glowing message blinking in the corner of his vision:
[Stone Skin] skill progression: 85.6% → 85.9%
His lips twitched. Not quite a grin—closer to a grimace.
“So I just have to let it beat the shit out of me… without dying,” he muttered, coughing up a bit of dust.
Sounded like a terrible plan.
It was also the only one he had.
He was in a particularly rough spot, sprawled on the ground unable to quickly create distance between him and the attacker.
The beast maw was still hovering above him.
Just as this realization dawned on Auron, he desperately rolled to the side .
In the next moment, the maw lunged down sending small tremors through the shattered rocks.
If not for his quick reaction brought about by his agility boost, Auron's chest would have been split open.
He doubted his stone skin would have blocked the blow for him.
He was just beginning to stand when the Armoured Quadruped swiped it's paw containing it's synthe-like claws sideways. Luckily, Auron was ready: instead of trying to block or dodge the blow, he went with the flow, letting the paw collide with his outstretched hands and cushioning the blow.
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As his arms screamed in pain, Auron used the force of the blow and allowed his body to be sent flying through the air.
This way at least he could get out of the beast's range, with an added bonus.
Skill progression: Stone skill 85.9> 87.1
This time, the improvement was noticeable. Auron could feel it—feel the change deep in his body.
Like molten rock had replaced his blood.
His skin didn’t just feel tougher. It felt...denser. Heavier and more solid. The pain that had roared through his arms a moment ago was already dulling.
Not gone but manageable.
He exhaled through gritted teeth, blinking sweat out of his eyes.
Still alive and still learning.
That was the whole point of this—if he could survive this fight, even barely, the progression alone might skyrocket him to a new level of power.
The beast let out another guttural snarl, clearly not pleased it had missed. It pawed at the shattered rocks with its bladed limbs, gouging deep furrows in the rocks as if it were butter, its glowing crimson eyes locked onto him, seizing him up again.
Auron spat out a mouthful of blood, wiped his arm across his lips, staring back and muttered, “Round two, then…”
The beast charged.
It didn’t hesitate—not like the first time. This time it moved with full intent, claws digging into the stone as it closed the distance in seconds, a blur of armored muscle and death.
However, this time Auron was ready, adjusting his breath he calmed his thoughts, with calm came clarity, enhanced by his agility boost.
The world slowed around him slowed down as he observed every detail that he had missed, and that's when he noticed it, a particularly large shard of jagged rock sticking out of the shattered rocks, with this, a well crafted plan came into place and Auron didn't hesitate to execute it.
For his plan to work, Auron didn’t run.
He braced, dropped his stance, anchored his feet into the cracked earth, and braced for impact.
While, a part of him whispered: You're going to die.
And maybe he was.
But if he went down, it’d be swinging.
The beast came in low, its bladed tail slicing toward him in a horizontal arc. Auron ducked—but not fast enough. The edge grazed his shoulder, slicing through part of his [Stone Skin] and tearing a long, shallow gash.
Blood sprayed.
He didn’t flinch, not that he didn't want to but because he didn’t have time to.
Instead, he lunged forward, fist cocked back, and slammed his stone-covered knuckles into the side of the beast’s jaw with a loud crack, giving it all he had.
It barely flinched cause the impact probably jarred him more than the beast.
Still.
[Stone Skin] skill progression: 87.1% → 88.4%
He staggered back, ducking under another sweep, then rolled forward, pushing himself inside the beast’s supposed blind zone, just beneath its shoulder joint.
He struck again. A hammer-fist into the soft armoured tissue just behind its foreleg. He followed with a knee, then a palm strike—every blow reinforced by [Stone Skin].
Every blow costing him.
The beast roared, trying to retaliate. Auron barely threw his arms up in time.
Still.
The claw caught him full force, flinging him like a rag doll. He crashed through a shattered boulder, his ribs shrieking in protest.
[Stone Skin] skill progression: 88.4% → 89.6%
He couldn’t breathe probably couldn’t move also.
But still, he forced himself to get up.
Blood ran down his face. His hands shook. But something else was burning in him now.
Not just pain, determination.
No backup, no beast, no help.
Just him.
And every single blow was forging him stronger.
He stood slowly. The beast charged again, sensing weakness.
But this time Auron ran to meet it.
They clashed like two titans, and for a moment, there was nothing but chaos, armour against stone, claws against bone, shrieks and roars, dust and blood.
Auron didn’t dodge anymore.
He tanked the hits. Rolled with them. Let them land where [Stone Skin] was thickest. Let the pain feed the progression.
[Stone Skin] skill progression: 89.6% → 91.8%
He lost track of time.
Of his own screams.
Of the sound of his own heartbeat hammering in his ears.
Somewhere in the haze, he saw it, the opening he had been waiting for.
The beast reared back, overcommitting on a downward strike. Auron twisted past the scythe-like claw, got in close—and drove both fists up into its throat with all his strength.
Something cracked.
It staggered.
That was all he needed.
He grabbed the jagged shard of rock—ripped straight from the ground and jammed it into the exposed joint between the beast’s armor plates.
Once, twice and again.
The beast shrieked, twisting violently.
Auron held on. Screaming, bleeding and pounding.
[Stone Skin] skill progression: 91.8% → 94.0%
Then the shard slipped—and he was thrown, again.
He hit the ground hard and didn’t get up.
Not fully.
He pushed to his knees, blood dripping from his chin, ribs likely broken.
But this time at least he had dealt some damage.
From here it would be a battle of endurance, good thing he had leveled up his, not long ago.
The beast limped, snarling, one of its legs dragging awkwardly now. It was injured. Badly.
Auron smiled through bloodied teeth.
“Round three... asshole.”
The beast charged one last time.
Auron didn’t dodge, as he saw another opening, he waited.
Timed it.
At the last second, he dropped low, launched upward, and drove his elbow, hardened by every bit of [Stone Skin] he had left straight into the wounded leg joint again.
It crumpled and beast went down, just as he expected.
He didn’t stop.
He climbed on top of it, fists pounding, elbows crashing, smashing into the joint, the skull, the eye, whatever he could reach.
It thrashed, shrieked—but it was dying.
[Stone Skin] skill progression: 94.0% → 96.7%
Then 98.9%
Then 100%.
[Stone Skin] skill has reached MAX LEVEL. Evolution available.
Auron blinked through the haze of red.
“...what?”
The system pinged again.
Evolving [Stone Skin] →
[??????????????????]...
The pain vanished.
And his body began to shift.
Stone no longer—
Something more.
Something terrifying...
