Apocalypse Healer - Path of Death

"How did you do that?" Zachariah asked, pointing at the grazing Xenoceratops. They kept to themselves and didn't attack, even after the last Velociraptor had fallen.

"I'm not sure what you want me to say. I just did what you told me to do," David said with a shrug, pretending to be oblivious to how far-fetched his explanation sounded.

He noticed Zachariah's brows furrowing deeply as he stared at him.

"You said I'm a Healer," David continued, pointing Zachariah in the right direction. "So…I'm healing, protecting…supporting, like you said."

Zachariah's eyes widened before a chuckle escaped his lips. It quickly escalated into a thunderous laugh that left David momentarily stunned.

"You are a fucking nutjob, and you know it!"

David shrugged again. He hadn't healed the Xenoceratops because Zachariah told him to, but it was true the regressor's words had planted the idea. In the end, he'd acted on his own. It might have been a little insane, but Zachariah had also told him Xenos would attack those who hurt their kind. That meant they were likely to ignore you if you helped them. If you healed them.

At least, that's what David had hoped when he treated the Xenoceratops. And it worked, ensuring the monsters wouldn't attack.

"So you looked at the Xenos as equals…that's some interesting progress," Zachariah commented, but David only frowned.

As equals? They were monsters—nothing more. Shaking his head, he finished healing the Xenoceratops in silence. The creatures bleated in his direction once he was done and walked away.

"Beautiful creatures," Torb said, marveling.

"As beautiful as they're deadly," Zachariah responded smugly. "They're probably all at the peak of the Bronze rank."

David stepped between them and cleared his throat. "How about we collect the Velociraptors' corpses? We're in a hurry if we plan to make full use of the Blessing of the World."

Zachariah and Torb moved away, snippets of their conversation about the beauty of the prehistoric age drifting back to him.

"Weird," David muttered, catching Melach watching him. "What?"

"It's interesting how you consider others weird when you're like…this. The epitome of weirdness—madness," the elf replied, shaking his head. "But you're strong. Zachariah is one thing. I don't know what's going on with him, but either he knows the future or has some sort of Ancient Power that grants him access to the system library. Either way, his knowledge is shocking, to say the least. So is his display of power. Is that really a native from a newly integrated world?"

He sighed, his face hardening. "But you, a crazy, oblivious fool…you're also strong. And it's only a matter of hours—maybe days—until Torb joins your ranks. The moment Torb becomes Fortress' Champion, you guys—"

David cut him off, noticing the harshness in his tone. "If you act like that, the gap will only widen. You know more about the System and the Pantheon than I do. Sure, I've done things others consider crazy, but that's how I defeat enemies where others would retreat with their tails between their legs. I was rewarded for my craziness—for surviving and overcoming challenges."

He wasn't sure what Melach was after or what he was supposed to say, but the words kept coming. "All you have to do is figure out what you need to do—how to work the System—to get the results you want. Do you want to become a Champion? Gain their attention with your actions. Pick a few gods you understand well enough to know their likes and dislikes and act accordingly. Do what they would approve of…and kick the butts of those they loathe."

Melach frowned at the last part but offered a wry smile. "Thanks for comforting me."

It worked? David hadn't expected his rambling to make sense, but maybe it did to someone like Melach, who held the Pantheon and its gods in high regard. Shrugging, he turned his focus back to the corpses around him as the elf walked away.

David gathered a handful of corpses and spoke a few Words of Power to drain the Essence left in them. Filling his body with crimson motes didn't take long, though it felt strange. Despite knowing the crimson motes weren't meant to remain in his Energy Pathway for long, David left them there for his Source to absorb. While he waited, occasionally inspecting his Energy Pathways and Source, he collected the remaining corpses alongside the others.

"They don't have many valuable parts," Zachariah commented when David arrived. "I recommend we collect the valuable pieces and leave the rest behind. Or you store some of them for their Essence."

Torb grunted, his face twisting in frustration. "Let's just take all of them."

"No." Zachariah's tone was sharp, leaving no room for argument. "David's spatial storage drains his energy reserves. The more we force upon him, the greater the energy consumption. That means we either have to rest more often, or he'll run out of Blood mid-battle."

Zachariah fixed a hard stare on Torb. "You don't even need money. I couldn't care less about your debt, but even if it were important to me, these corpses wouldn't make a difference. You need to establish a Sanctuary. We're currently helping you with that, and we need David at full power to achieve it. Or do you want to fight the Mini-Bosses and the Rift Boss here without David's healing and protection?"

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Okay. Okay. I get it," the dwarf responded meekly.

David nudged Zachariah in the side. "Calm down a little. I don't like all this talk about money either, but we need it. Not to establish the Sanctuary but to purchase magical armaments, Skill Slates, and other essentials."

Zachariah looked like he had more to say—his angry look suggesting it wouldn't be pleasant—but David cut him off before he could speak.

"Don't you think more merchants from all over the transcendent organizations will flock to the Earthen Union now that gods, infernal beings, devils, and others are extending their influence? Everyone's investing in the Earthen Union's growth, so why wouldn't merchants take advantage of that opportunity?"

The regressor remained silent.

"I guess so," Zachariah said at last, glancing at Torb. "Sorry about that. I'm a bit… tense these days."

Torb said nothing, but David didn't mind.

Clearing his throat, he said, "I think collecting the most valuable parts is a good idea. That way, I can remove corpses, drain them mid-combat, and leave them behind without having to feel bad."

Taking their silence as agreement, David conjured the Obsidian Blade and began working. "What parts are the most valuable?" he asked.

Zachariah unsheathed his sword and slashed at a nearby corpse, removing several pieces. "Those."

"Good," David said, smiling at the regressor. "Since you've already started, you may as well continue to help me."

The regressor groaned but agreed. They worked swiftly, storing the half-dissected bodies in David's necklace. Halfway through the process, David noticed something.

"There's no more Essence in their bodies."

It looked like they took too long to preserve the bodies. Keeping them stored like this wasn't worth the effort. David was sure they could still collect and sell the more valuable parts, but he could see the impatience written all over Zachariah's face.

The regressor nodded and turned away from the corpses. "Let's go then. We shouldn't waste any more time."

***

They proceeded to the Rift but were stopped by another flock of Velociraptors. This time, they didn't have any Xenos to act as meat shields, but that made no difference to David. They sustained several wounds, some more grievous than others. However, all injuries were healed before they finished harvesting the most valuable parts of a dozen prehistoric monsters.

"How about we pay attention to stronger monsters instead of looting these weaklings?" Zachariah asked, handing David three Fragments of Power. "They drop decent stuff, but it's still not worth it."

"Fine," David agreed while his attention lingered on a few system notifications.

[Proficiency of Blood Patch reached 100%.]

[Tier-1 V] → [Tier-1 VI]

[Proficiency of Blessing reached 100%.]

[Tier-1 III] → [Tier-1 IV]

[Proficiency of Blood Bullet reached 100%.]

[Tier-0 I] → [Tier-0 III]

[Proficiency of Slash reached 100%.]

[Tier-0 I] → [Tier-0 III]

[Proficiency of Eagle Eyes reached 100%.]

[Tier-0 I] → [Tier-0 II]

[Proficiency of Healing Light reached 100%.]

[Tier-0 I] → [Tier-0 IV]

He smiled, pleased with the rank-ups, but a familiar question surfaced as he double-checked the notifications.

"How exactly does proficiency increase of Skills work?" David asked, even though he'd already formed a few assumptions that seemed close to the truth.

Zachariah slowed and turned to him. "You probably know the answer already, but it's relatively simple. There are multiple ways to increase your Skills' proficiency. Repetitive usage of a Skill is one way to increase its proficiency slowly. You usually do that in an Aether-dense area if you don't have the means to use the Skill as intended, which is the second method."

He pointed at his arm, which one of the squeaky Velociraptors had clawed earlier. "For example, [Healing Light] is supposed to heal others. Using it to mend wounds will increase its proficiency faster than the first method. The more you heal with [Healing Light], the more its proficiency will increase."

David noticed Melach and Torb pause as the elf cleared his throat to add, "Another method would be to use Skill Slates. It's useful if you have the means to collect lots of Skill Slates, whether through bartering or hunting. But personally, I prefer another method. The System recognizes your efforts to increase proficiency with the other methods but rewards something else far more generously…"

The elf glanced at Zachariah, who nodded.

"The fastest method to push your Skill Runes to the next rank or Tier is to study them. You need to analyze how the Skill works, what components make it what it is, and experiment with it. Think of a Skill as a chain code, and ask yourself how to improve it. Whether it's increasing the Skill's efficiency, potency, or something else doesn't matter. Your Skill will gain proficiency depending on the extent of your revelations and the enlightenment you achieve."

That must be why the Enlightenment Orb pushed Skills to the next rank—it mimicked natural enlightenment. David nodded, intrigued by the explanation.

Unfortunately, the prehistoric creatures in the area weren't inclined to give him the time he needed to process this information.

A cacophony of thunderous screeches tore through the air, snapping David's attention to several larger creatures.

There were more raptors, but the newcomers were larger and faster. They grew visibly as they closed the distance, their massive forms towering several meters tall as they reached the group.

"Mature Utahraptors…this will be a mess," Zachariah sighed, unsheathing his weapon. "They're Elite Monsters and strong enough to rival Silver Ranks."

David heard Zachariah mutter something under his breath about needing a Tamer, his tone tinged with regret.