A System That Beats Death

Hiding in the shrubbery, the goblin quivered in fear. At first, it couldn't believe its luck, there was a summoner foolish enough to call upon a hundred of them and actually expected them to obey. Not only was the mana used to summon them weak, but it had a sense of desperation to it as if they were the only creature they could summon and were their last salvation in a damning situation. Desiring to take advantage of the situation, they volunteered only to realize that there was no desperation. They had mistaken exhilaration for desperation.

One. Two. Four. Seven. Ten. A dozen. Twenty. Forty. Seventy. A hundred. Even two hundred.

Evenly distributing the magic required to summon the Golden Mane towards dozens of different summoning circles, he could call upon far more creatures. Even if a decrease in mana used drastically decreased the quality of the summon, he was aiming for quantity. It was one thing to be overwhelmed by quality, but it was another thing to be overwhelmed by quantity.

One need only match or slightly surpass their opponent if it was regarding quality. However, when the situation was about quality, one must be above their opponent by a considerable margin. It was not enough to just be better than them. You must be able to trample them, or another will arrive in their place to strike you down. One could provoke while the other ambushes. One could plan while the other strategizes, another analyzes, and a third prepares. A group allows leeway when it comes to individual weaknesses, allows specialization, and can bolster every member despite each being individually incompetent.

As someone that is always traversing realities, life was one of solitude. He did not have the luxury of having others cover his back for him and would inevitably come into conflict with groups. After all, even if he tried, inevitably he would have to leave them. So, he decided to train for when such a situation would occur. For when he would have to face a group alone and without allies.

Learning from Aster that his mana barely reached the requirement needed to summon a Golden Mane, he realized that using less mana not only lowered the success rate of a summon but might also guarantee their hostility. Upon seeing their glares, he knew he was correct in his conjecture.

As the green troglodytes naturally coordinated with their kin to surround the human in front of them, their excessive numbers started to encourage them. Unlike in the stories, they did not yell out their moves or attack one by one. They did, however, screech and then charge with as many as they could.

As this was the twentieth trial, he was incredibly proficient at fighting multiple foes simultaneously. They were much weaker than him though, so he tried to compensate with far greater numbers. Currently, he was against over two hundred of them. As his mana was depleted considerably due to summoning them, he would not use any magic.

He started by activating Intimidation. Temporarily, the ones charging flinched and slight fear was shown. However, they believed that with their numbers, even an apex predator could be surmounted. Continuing the charge albeit, at a lower volume, he then capitalized on their mental disorientation by causing a physical one. Raising his leg, he stomped with enough power that it generated a shockwave comparable to a transient magnitude 6 earthquake. Unable to properly run, some of them fell and he then truly began. Unsheathing yet another generic blade, he started the onslaught.

He did not worry about the blade dulling or proper execution of skill. He merely followed his instincts and swung in a sweeping and devastating fashion. With brute force alone, he cleaved through the skulls of dozens and then crushed several more by using their skulls as literal steppingstones. Their instincts heightened once they realized the reality of their situation and they felt the urge to escape.

However, they then decided that their failure could be due to the momentary disorientation, so they continued, refusing to face reality. Gaining proper footing, they then continued their attack. Some threw their clubs, some charged, some leaped at him, and a select few ran away.

His blade was fast enough to dissect all of them but that was not good enough for him. Sheathing his blade, he heightened his senses.

[Enhanced Perception Activated]

His perception of time slowed to a halt as he absorbed all the information. The flow of mana in the air, the position of every creature and the trajectory of every single object, and the action to take. Time then returned albeit at a slower pace and he snatched a spiked wooden club by the nonlethal end.

He struck the one nearest to him which set off a chain reaction as it collided with the one right beneath it and its blood began spraying like a leaking water hose from its cranium. Partially blinding a few, he then threw the club downwards. When the one behind him neared, it swiftly pulled a dagger and tried to carve a mark on his back. When the dagger met thin air, the goblin blinked in confusion. A flurry of spikes from the shattered club then blinded its vision.

"This is how he's been training?", Eliza asked in disbelief.

Aster nodded hesitantly. People usually trained by honing techniques, learning new skills, and with practice. Even when the training was for something dangerous, they tried not to put themselves in harm's way and just hoped for a lucky opportunity that would allow them to have a breakthrough. However, Atlas actively sought death as if he was immortal or death was inconsequential to him.

Aster admitted to himself that he did the same to an extent but never went above what he believed he could not handle. However, what Atlas did seemed to lack consideration entirely. As soon as he was able to complete one milestone, he immediately moved onto the next without considering the gap between the one he had just completed and the next one had just set.