Chapter 34: *Weaknesses*
When he was clean again and both of them were dressed and equipped, Kevin asked, looking curiously at the ore that was still trapped in the rock, "Is it another ore?"
Axel replied with a smile, "No, babe, it’s the same, but the one you see there is of better quality than the one you saw on the surface."
Axel added, while hugging Kevin from behind, "I haven’t finished extracting it yet, as you can see, but it’s definitely worth the time spent here."
He looked into Kevin’s eyes and continued, "Kev, in two months, there is a very important tournament in the capital, and I know someone there who can craft us the weapons we want with this ore. If you become powerful enough by then, you may be able to introduce the lightning element into our weapons."
Kevin asked, surprised, "You don’t want to sell it anymore?"
Axel caressed his face and replied, "We’re going to sell the lower-quality Nerudium and keep this one for ourselves. The weapons we can create with it are priceless; trust me, okay?"
Kevin nodded and asked, "Can I do my stretching exercises while waiting for you?"
Axel nodded but added hastily, "But only stretching exercises! No workouts, no running, no meditation, understood?"
Kevin smiled at him and said to calm him down, "I know, I know—I’ll be a good boy, I promise."
Axel kissed him and returned to extracting the Nerudium. Before starting his stretches, Kevin decided to take a look at his Skills menu. It had been a while since he had checked his skills, and he remembered that skills were very important in the virtual reality games he had played in his home world.
The holographic screen appeared, and his innate skills had not changed. His Warrior Spirit was still at level 1, so he quickly moved on and was pleasantly surprised by what he found afterward.
[ PASSIVE SKILLS ]
Perception level 2: Allows you to see your opponent’s level and stats if it is not more than 40 levels above yours. Allows you to see the grade and stats of items and the grade of boxes.
Soul Force required to activate: None
Recovery level 2: 20 minutes of rest allow you to recover 50 Soul Force points. 30 minutes of meditation allow you to recover 150 Soul Force points.
It was great; now just by meditating, he could regain a lot of Soul Force points. But the next line caught his attention even more, and he smirked when he saw the new skill that had appeared.
[ ACTIVE SKILLS ]
Observation level 1 (see more)
Vital Points Targeting level 1: All vital points become immediately visible regardless of the opponent’s level.
Soul Force required to activate: 50
This skill was going to be really useful for him. He was already an expert in targeting vital points on the human body, but he had realized that monsters did not necessarily have the same weaknesses as humans. This skill would allow him to be much more effective at killing them.
He then checked if he could use the new spell he had just learned; it really intrigued him. Being able to fight using magic and casting spells remained a complete mystery to him.
[ MASTERY OF THE ELEMENTS ]
Lightning element level 5: 5,015 / 20,000
Spell: None
Water element level 3: 1,221 / 5,000
Spell: None
Wind element level 1: 332 / 1,000
Spell: None
Earth element level 1: 12 / 1,000
Spell level 1: Throwing Stones (Soul Force required to activate: 20)
Fire element level 0: 0 / 200
He figured out that he would only have to think of that spell to activate it. As long as he had enough Soul Force points, he could use this spell. If his guess was correct, then it was just too cool.
Kevin was really pleased, and he finally closed the holographic screen and began his stretches. He observed Axel extracting the Nerudium and felt his cheeks getting hot and his heart racing when he thought back to what had just happened.
Axel, who had noticed the change in Kevin’s heartbeat, turned his head in Kevin’s direction to see what he was doing. When he looked at Kevin, Kevin blushed even more and turned to the other side to hide his embarrassment.
Axel bit his lower lip to prevent himself from laughing; he didn’t want to upset his man. Kevin was just damn too cute. How this man, who was a war machine, could remain so innocent, it was a real mystery to him. But he was also very happy about it. Knowing that he was Kevin’s first boyfriend made him jubilant, and he would do anything to be the only one for the rest of his life.
Thirty minutes later, Axel finally sighed with relief; he had just finished mining the ore. Kevin came up to him and asked with a smile, "Have you finished?"
Axel nodded. He had placed the lower-quality Nerudium with the bodies of the monsters and the higher-quality one in Kevin’s magic bag. He said while handing Kevin his magic bag, "We can continue now. We’re done on this side; we have to return to the first gallery and take the other path."
He got closer to Kevin and put a hand around his waist. Leaning slightly, he quickly put his other arm behind Kevin’s knees and lifted him into his arms.
Kevin cursed and struggled, "Fuck, Axel, I’m not a girl! Put me down!"
Axel kissed him to silence him and then said, "I like holding you like this, and we are the only two people here; no one will see you."
Kevin stopped struggling and asked instead, "Why are you carrying me?"
Axel’s smile widened as he told him, knowing that Kevin would be delighted by what he was about to say, "I haven’t had a chance to test my new speed with the help of my swords’ stats yet. I’m curious about how fast I can move now."
Kevin’s scowling face immediately lit up, and Axel could see his eyes sparkling with excitement. He told Kevin while hiding his victorious smile, "Babe, put your arms around my neck and hold me tight."
Kevin did so immediately. Speed was one of his weaknesses, and the fact that Axel liked to carry him like a girl had completely vanished from his thoughts.
Axel said again, "Just keep your eyes open, Kev, to enjoy the speed, and don’t worry—I’m holding you tight; I won’t let anything happen to you."
