Chapter Ten: Rune Fal

In a cave with simple bends,Neo moved the fire to a makeshift stove nearby, then spread dry soil in its original spot and added dry grass—thus completing the temporary resting place for the wolf.
As for his own resting spot, it was between the wolf’s limbs, along its side, beneath its belly. Out of consideration for his companion, ‘Liang’ reluctantly agreed to letNeo rest in her arms. It had to be admitted—there was enough warmth there. When it came to warmth, no stove could compare to the furnace of life.
Before resting to regain his strength,Neo still had a few things to do.
There was firewood and dry grass stored in the cave from earlier, but he still needed to cut more wood and gather a plant called “iron-thread hemp.” This plant ripened best on the coldest days; now it was only barely usable.
Among the small tools left by Adrian were a short axe and a hand saw. Combined with the sharp dagger he took from a strong man he killed in the wolf den,Neo’s efficiency soared. In just half an hour, he finished gathering everything needed.
Bark, thin branches, and the outer skin of iron-thread hemp could all be used as firewood after drying. Through processes like scraping and drawing fibers,Neo obtained thick strands of iron-thread hemp and wooden spears.
The tips of the spears were properly heated in the fire to prevent warping or splitting and to make them sharper. ButNeo went even further—he applied a white, oily sap from certain root plants, then smoked them over the fire, repeating the process several times until the triangular tips acquired a smooth, polished shine, as if worn over many years.
Next, he cut shallow grooves under the spear tip and at the tail end, tightly wrapped them with iron-thread hemp, and coated the spear shaft with oil, briefly heating it to ensure the oil penetrated evenly and sealed out moisture. Thus, a simple throwing spear thatNeo often used was completed.
In addition to making the spear,Neo selected a rope about the thickness of his index finger, unwrapped it, mixed it with iron-thread hemp boiled in hot water, and rewound it tightly. This greatly increased the rope’s carrying capacity, givingNeo confidence that it could be used reliably.
After preparing the tools,Neo began checking the small items he already had—some obtained from the necromancer, others taken from the strong men and wardens after the battle in the wolf den. Aside from the exceptionally sharp dagger, the most valuable items were magic scrolls and some magical objects thatNeo couldn’t identify. With the right channels, they could be exchanged for money. But for now, they had to be set aside. Useless items weighed nothing, and besides, the mage’s items were dangerous for non-professionals.Neo didn’t want to bring trouble upon himself.
As for money,Neo counted it: he now had 19 dinars, 44 dirhams, and 176 balins. It was the largest sum of money he had ever possessed. Indeed, as some said, money from the dead was easy to come by.

There are also rings, gems, commemorative coins, and similar items. The value of such things depends on the individual. For example, Neo has a wolf emblem with a roaring wolf head on one side and the number XII engraved on the other. The emblem isn’t finely crafted and is made of black iron, but it holds great significance for Neo—his first kill, his first recognition as a gladiator… It’s a memento, not only because it symbolizes the beginning of a bloody life.

To Neo’s surprise, he discovered an Abrasive Rune. Abrasive Runes are products of an ancient energy manipulation system whose lineage is believed to have been lost. Perhaps Serpentius, the Rainbow Dragon, has detailed information on it, but in this era, people can only obtain such items through archaeology or other non-productive means.

Neo has a rune book, though the important parts related to rune creation have been torn out. Still, it gives him some understanding of the rune system. Or rather, it’s the most he knows so far about magic-related systems in his current situation.

Fal—Neo can roughly decipher the name of the Abrasive Rune. Since Abrasive Runes share the same origin as modern metal runes from various schools, Neo roughly understands that they are related to power.

“What a great treasure,” Neo murmured, touching the egg-sized stone fragment, which lacked sharp edges. A faint sense of joy filled his heart. Although Abrasive Runes have various shortcomings compared to metal runes, they are the most suitable for him right now because they are already finished products—only embedding and activation are needed. Most of the popular metal runes today are fixed directly onto objects through magical engraving. For example, the famous “Thunder Sword” knights of the Frey Alliance have runes on their armor and weapons, tied to their bloodline. Even if others obtain them, they can’t use them unless they can decipher the rune mechanisms.

Neo currently lacks the tools to create slots in weapons and armor, but he can weave iron wire into belts, wristbands, headbands, or similar items—as long as they’re close to the body. This is because Abrasive Runes need to be activated with mental energy, and Neo, having no relevant training, can’t project mental energy and can only trigger them by keeping them close to his body.

The characteristics of Abrasive Runes are similar to many magical items—they reduce the user’s mental energy limit. If the limit is 100, using an Abrasive Rune leaves only 90 available. If the mental energy drops below 10, the person may fall into a coma or never wake up. The truly usable amount is 80.

For Neo, using an Abrasive Rune poses no burden. His mental energy is strong enough, reaching the level of a first-tier mage, and its purity is even slightly higher than that of ordinary second-tier mages. Unfortunately, he lacks elemental affinity and can’t cast spells. Even though the “Wolf Bloodline” consumes mental energy, it also requires considerable physical strength, so he still has plenty of mental energy left. Being able to gain some extra abilities through Abrasive Runes is, of course, a great deal.

Some were eager to bind ‘Fal’ to the inner side of their forearms near the wrists. Neo held his breath and focused, activating the runes. The symbols of ‘Fal’ gradually brightened until they settled into a faint, hazy golden glow. Judging from the color of this light, it seemed to absorb free earth element energy to enhance the effects for the user.

Power—Neo felt an overwhelming surge of strength, so immense that it seemed capable of shattering huge rocks with ease!

Neo knew this was an illusion resulting from suddenly gaining such great power. He had experienced a similar feeling when he reached Warrior Level 3 before, but this time it was significantly stronger. He reasoned that this was partly because the power came from outside and was sudden and intense, and partly because it brought about an extraordinary increase in strength.

Neo got up and went outside the cave, performing a series of tests to assess himself. To his surprise, in terms of strength alone, he was already close to the level of a Level 5 warrior. Of course, his skill in using that strength was still far from perfect, and there was still a significant gap in other aspects as well. Overall, although ‘Fal’ had granted him roughly 10 units of strength according to his self-assessment, he could barely be considered a strength-based warrior at Level 4.

“Very good. I finally don’t have to be the ‘poor little guy’ anymore,” Neo murmured with a smile.

Charging, ramming, blocking, grappling… In Neo’s understanding, being a warrior was a profession suited for those who thrived in battle. In this regard, the bold and straightforward werewolves had a clear racial advantage. Even Neo carried this passion for fierce combat in his blood; otherwise, he wouldn’t have done such crazy things as using his body to block an opponent’s attacks.

With strength at the level of a Level 4 warrior, he could charge around like those ordinary Vidennis werewolves in their wolf form. For him, this didn’t mean recklessness—it meant having a wider range of tactical options and the ability to deceive opponents.

When he woke up, it was nearly midnight. After packing up, Neo left the cave alone. His understanding and connection with ‘Liao’ were still superficial, so he decided not to involve it in stealth hunting. He needed to rest more, as it might be necessary to have it carry him for escape at a critical moment. After all, Millien, who worried him the most, was a noble lady with combat strength close to zero.

For ordinary people, walking through the dense forest on a moonless, dark night was a foolish and dangerous task. But for Neo, it wasn’t a problem at all. In his human form, his night vision could reach over ten meters, similar to walking in a foggy morning. Moreover, as a dark werewolf, he was already an excellent jungle hunter. Even when running fast, branches and thorns that could blind or pierce feet, as well as roots and crevices that could trip or break legs, posed no trouble to him. In the jungle, Neo was like the wind—capable of moving silently or swiftly, but always with fluidity!

It was mostly a path that followed the cliff face southward. On this secret route, aside from the cold and silence, there was only the scent of death carried by the wind.
“Those evil bastards!” Neo cursed inwardly.
Normally, there should be beasts roaming in this forest at night, but now, not a single animal—big or small—was in sight. This alone indicated that there was something in the forest that made these beasts wary.
Ordinary skeleton zombies also emitted the unique scent of death associated with the undead, but their simple-minded nature wasn’t enough to scare wild animals. Thus, among the lower-level undead suitable for patrolling the forest and posing a serious threat to beasts, wandering spirits stood out prominently in people’s minds. Moreover, considering that the Dark Claws had taken over Tulip Town, if they could create skeletons and zombies, then wandering spirits were surely within their power as well.
It had to be said that what Neo dreaded the most now were these formless creatures, as he lacked the techniques to harm them. On the other hand, the spiritual attacks of wandering spirits could quickly drain a person’s strength and even exhaust their mental energy, leading to death in despair.
Fortunately, when setting up these wandering, formless undead, the Dark Claws focused mainly on that forest path and its surrounding areas. Neo’s secret route was spared. Even so, he pulled up his scarf and tried to hold his breath as he passed through that region. After all, the main way for wandering spirits to detect targets was through “vital energy”—the scent of living beings. Though their eyes, like faint flames, seemed bright, their vision wasn’t much better than Neo’s own.
The presence of wandering spirits forced Neo to abandon his original plan. Initially, he thought that although the Dark Claws were more active and powerful at night, at least he could approach Tulip Town smoothly. After all, there were vast fields outside the town, endless open plains during this season, making it extremely difficult to approach during the day.
But with these wandering spirits around, approaching Tulip Town was just as difficult, if not more dangerous. If more than half of the people in Tulip Town had died, then the Dark Forces would have enough wandering spirits stationed along the forest paths and near the town to keep watch at night. Unless he had a fully sealed, airtight suit, Neo didn’t think he could infiltrate the town unnoticed amidst those wandering spirits.