Extra Pages: The Author's Odyssey

Yato chuckled, "Yes, it\'s a rare trait. Some individuals are naturally attuned to certain magical abilities, and for me, mana manipulation came naturally. But don\'t let that discourage you, Lucas. Your progress is remarkable for someone learning it consciously."

Despite his encouraging words, a lingering frustration gnawed at me.

The world is cruel, how can he be so overpowered? I mean from my perspective he is a cheat item that shouldn\'t have existed in the world.

But he did!

Also, I shouldn\'t be talking about cheat items after all I also have cheat items that in the world no one should have.

What cheat team I\'m talking about? Well, Luminor crystal shard, with that shard I got my limiter removed and that is the reason for how fast I can learn the fundamentals of Mana Coating.

After all, Yato already said that learning just fundamentals takes almost months.

So in that sense, I should not talk about Yato\'s existence because in the upcoming years, I will be stronger than him but with Yato\'s help, that process has been fastening.

Everything is perfect but there is still one problem remains, the problem is that Joantha hasn\'t contacted me since I told him I want the information about those 3 people.

\'I wonder what taking him this long to get that information.\'

-Clank!

-Clank!

Anyway, I threw away two glass bottles of Mana potion and stamina recovery potion after drinking them.

As I discarded the empty glass bottles, the frustration with Yato\'s overwhelming abilities lingered. However, a moment of introspection reminded me of the advantages I possessed—my own set of "cheat items."

The Luminor crystal shard, a potent artefact that had removed my limiter, played a pivotal role in accelerating my learning process. Despite Yato\'s natural affinity for mana manipulation, my progress was propelled by this otherworldly aid.

Taking a deep breath, I acknowledged the peculiar balance of strengths and circumstances that shaped my journey. The world, with its twists and turns, often revealed unexpected facets of power.

As the clinking sound of discarded bottles echoed in the snowy meadow, I couldn\'t shake the lingering concern about Joantha\'s prolonged silence. The promised information about those three individuals remained elusive.

\'I hope he\'s alright. Maybe there are complications in obtaining the information,\' I speculated, attempting to ease the unease that tugged at the edges of my thoughts.

"By the way, are you feeling hungry?" Yato said breaking my chain of thoughts.

"...Uh, I guess?" I responded, slightly puzzled.

What\'s with the sudden question?

"Good. Then let\'s go on a hunt," he declared.

"Okay? Sure." I said still in puzzlement, I thought he would going to train until I was dead door but I guess he had some humanity inside him too.

***

I take back what I said about \'Humanity\' I did of Yato he didn\'t have one beat of Humanity inside him.

"You know, master, when you mentioned going on a hunt, I thought we were going to hunt a fox or something," I remarked.

Yato chuckled. "Where\'s the fun in that, my dear disciple?"

I raised an eyebrow. "So, the epitome of fun for you is hunting down an entire pack of Frostclaw Bears?

As of now, we had ascended to the peak of the snow-covered mountain that we were on earlier.

As soon as we arrived, from our vantage point, we spotted a cluster of caves nestled in the mountainside in the distance and a pack of white polar bears living there.

Only these polar bears were unlike any I saw on National Geographic in my past life.

They towered twice the size of the polar bears back on my Earth.

Yes, they were mana beasts, and they were known as Frostclaw Bears.

Any monster or beast reaching the [D-] rank, possessed the ability to wield a few Ice magic spells.

And I\'m sure they must be at [C-] rank.

Currently, we were hidden within the cover of the nearby woods, out of their sight and undetected by their senses.

From a rough estimation, I counted their numbers to be around thirty.

"No, my dear disciple, the epitome of fun for me is watching my dear disciple tackle the task of hunting down the entire pack of Frostclaw Bears alone."

...Huh? Wait! Hold on, hold on, hold on! Is he seriously expecting me to hunt them alone?! What?!

"...No! Wait a minute, absolutely not!"

"If you think you\'re in trouble or you\'re about to die, just shout for help," with that said, Yato grabbed the back of my neck.

"No! Master, I will die! Please don\'t do this–!" As I was in the middle of begging him to let me go, Yato tightened his grip on my neck.

With a surge of strength, he pulled me backwards before lifting me off the ground and forcefully throwing me forward into the air.

As I soared through the air, my protests echoed in the snowy expanse. Yato\'s nonchalant demeanour and his insistence on this audacious solo hunt left me grappling with the impending danger.

"Master, this is insane!" I shouted, my voice barely audible over the rushing wind.

Yato\'s distant voice carried back, "Show me what you\'ve learned, Lucas! Adapt to the situation!"

In midair, I frantically assessed the pack of Frostclaw Bears below. Thirty pairs of cold, calculating eyes fixated on me as I hurtled toward the impending challenge.

Summoning the mana coating, I enveloped my body in a protective layer, preparing for the inevitable impact. The moment my feet touched the ground, the bears responded with a collective growl, the frigid air thick with tension.

Without hesitation, I evaded the charging bears, my agility heightened by the mana coating.

Quickly jumping back I continue to evade the attacks of Frost\'s claw bear.

Their number is too high for me to take them head-on.

\'Damnit.\' gritting my teeth I duck my head as the claw of a bear comes near my neck.

-Thud!

A giant tree was torn apart into shades as a claw hit the tree, if that attack had hit me then I would have been a goner.

"Astral Dash!"

Knowing that there was no way for me to save myself from them I activated my movement art.

With a swift activation of Astral Dash, I blurred through the snowy landscape, evading the relentless assault of the Frostclaw Bears. The speed granted by the movement art allowed me to manoeuvre through their ranks, creating disarray among the massive creatures.

Coming stop, I hide behind a giant bolder and try to catch my breath.

Because of Mana Coating, I\'m not freezing to death but I know that soon enough I will freeze to death if can\'t change my situation.

\'There is only one way for me to kill them all without getting near them.\'

-Swoosh!

Thinking so I took out my Nightshadow bow from the smart bracelet and was ready myself for round two.