The Glacial Cascade erupted around Lee, enveloping all nearby monsters within ten meters. The first contact with the biting cold caused the Goblins to be slowed. They were slowed for only a single second before they were frozen solid, becoming blue and green-tinted ice sculptures in the process of feral rage. The bloody crimson grass beneath his feet was immediately coated in frost and crunched on his final step.

Lee took in the effects of his strongest spell, a spell that cost nearly half of his mana. Lee had only used Glacial Cascade once before, and it was well before he had obtained his class. The 50% bonus granted by his class transformed his already powerful spell into a torrent of wintery death. He only had a moment to take in the effects of the spell as a Hobgoblin charged through the Goblin ice sculptures in indignation, shattering them and causing rock-solid chunks of flesh and bone to blast about.

Club in hand, the Hobgoblin plunged its weapon down from up high, aiming to crush Lee’s skull in one fluid motion. With instincts he didn’t know he had, Lee instantly cast Gale Burst. The galing winds buffeted the club, knocking it back up high and throwing the Hobgoblin off-balance.

With little mana remaining, Lee cast another Gale Burst, this time aiming for the ground beneath him. The spell launched him backward, out of reach of the Hobgoblin’s weapon. Once distanced, Lee began casting Earthen Strikes, pummeling the Hobgoblin with the icy earth underfoot.

Lee took a moment in between casts to use Identify.

It was worth a shot. Lee thought.

Then, Lee had an idea. He cast another Gale Burst toward the Hobgoblin, who was shielding its body with its large, stocky arms, and then focused on his skill, Medical Attention.

YES! Lee thought, as he threw yet another Earthen Strike while backpedaling away.

That’s not much damage. It must be a fairly high level.

The Hobgoblin realized that it was at a disadvantage and decided to forgo blocking. It rushed directly at Lee with all that it could muster, then threw its club straight at Lee while it was mid-charge.

The club flew at such a speed that Lee was unable to react. It impacted Lee’s chest with enough force so that he was launched back, tumbling toward the ground. Unable to keep any resemblance of balance, Lee spun through the air, crashed to the ground, and struggled to catch a breath. His mouth rapidly opened and closed, trying to withtake some air.

The Hobgoblin's eyes nearly bulged out of its skull in ecstasy, its toothy maw spread wide in a malicious grin, and its arms were splayed outwards, its blackened sharp nails begging to be used as it charged relentlessly at its downed opponent.

Unable to breathe, Lee started to panic. He began clawing away at the frosty earth in an attempt to get away from the bloodthirsty Hob.

It didn’t work.

Lee let loose a blood-curdling scream as the Hobgoblin stomped down upon his left calf, breaking his fibula and gouging his calf muscle with its sharp black toenails. Lee’s panic instantly faded, being replaced by grim life-or-death determination. Gritting his teeth through the pain, Lee flipped over and shoved his hand forward, praying he had regenerated one mana. He couldn’t allow the Hob to heal by being in contact with him. He tried to cast Icicle Spear.

A shard of ice materialized inches from the Hob’s elated face and launched itself straight into the Hobgoblin's left eye socket. The Hob grabbed the exposed end of the ice shard as cold, chilling blood poured out from the wound, coating Lee in even more gore. It screamed in agony and tried to pull the icy lance free.

It was do or die. Lee chose ‘Do’.

Lee spun onto his back fully, raised his right leg, then kicked the sharpened ice spear deeper into the Hobgoblin's skull. At first, there was resistance, but then, just like a dam breaking, the ice shard hastily slid in deeper, causing the Hob to drop like a sack of stones onto Lee’s body.

The Hobgoblin must have weighed over 300 pounds. Its full weight fell upon Lee and trapped him underneath. The chilled blood continued to pour from its face, coating his formerly white robes a dark crimson.

Lee focused on himself and used Medical Attention, aiming for a diagnosis of his injuries.

Fuck.

As soon as Lee finished reading the diagnosis, a popping sound and sharp pain blossomed in his chest. The sharp pain gradually turned into a searing white hot burn. Lee grits his teeth at the start but is unable to cope with the pain. He attempted to scream, but no sound came out through his trembling lips. His bloodshot eyes frantically shot about, searching for some way to stop this unbearable suffering. Lee felt another shifting movement from within his chest, and his screams manifested themselves to the world, letting everyone near hear what pure anguish sounded like.

The pain slowly began to subside, and Lee's screams of torture turned into soft whimpering sobs. Lee lay there underneath the Hob’s body, mind reeling from the traumatic experience he had just endured. The whole process took fifteen seconds. Teary-eyed and numb, Lee looted the Hobgoblin’s body to untrap himself.

The body slowly faded away as if it had never existed, leaving some silver and copper coins, as well as a small, circular wooden knot. Lee stored the items in his Hidden Cache and raised himself to his feet.

Glancing about, he could see small pockets of ongoing fighting happening all about the open field. The monster funnel was still working, but the defensive lines had been broken. Monsters swarmed over a small hill of dead bodies as Lee numbly checked his HP.

Ahh…

Lee had put two and two together. The pain he experienced must have been his Healer’s Touch slowly resetting his bones and fixing his pierced lung. Looking down at his leg, it appeared completely healed, with the only indication that he had been injured in the first place being the torn cloth of his robe.

Lee checked his mana.

Lee looked back to the entrance to Neldam with a thousand-yard stare. The entrance was secure with its battlements. He could spot the unclassed launching arrows into the open field in the hopes of getting some contribution experience.

I could go back…

With dead eyes, Lee looked away and focused on those around him. Spotting the bloody and beaten classed members of the Dark Elves fighting for their lives. One Dark Elf female was fighting with twin shortswords, her dark leathers coated head to toe in blood and gore, her white hair tainted with the crimson streaks of war. She was fighting back to back with a younger male elf, bruised and weary. He moved sluggishly with a large war hammer.

Or I could continue to make a difference…

Lee began to jog in their direction. The jog transitioned to a sprint, and during the process, Lee’s emotionless face changed into one of determination.

A decision was made.

At the start, Lee had said he would defend Neldam because they had saved him, but he discovered that he was missing a core component in his thought process. It was something so obvious that he was ashamed of his past self. He realized that these were people, people who fought tooth and nail against monsters because their lives depended on it. Did he really need a reason to help them? Would he let fear get in the way? Would he really be a healer if he wouldn't try to save all those he could? His goal is to save lives, not to abandon them.

Blood rushed through his body as the sprint began, a warm fire burning bright within his chest. Filled with a newfound tenacity, Lee jumped into action.

Lee cast Swiftness on the female, determining that she probably had the dexterity to cope with its effects. He then cast Blindness on the Goblin, whom the male with the war hammer was fighting. The female jerked in response to the spell taking hold, then unleashed a maelstrom of steel, quickly overpowering her Goblin adversary. The male noticed the Goblin's yellow beady eyes turn black, which caused the Goblin to flail and shriek in confusion.

During Lee’s sprint, he noticed that he was moving much faster than he would have normally expected. Lee knew his dexterity was one of his lower stats, with it being a 10, so he chalks his improved speed to his title, Miracle Worker.

When he arrived at their side, he shouted out over the sounds of battle. “I’m out of mana, but I can still heal you! Come, you just have to be around me!”

The male Elf swung his war hammer down with a shout, caving in the skull of the blind Goblin, splattering its brain matter across the purple and red grass. He then looked up at Lee with a blood-covered face, then started to limp over. Lee met him halfway and wrapped his arm around his shoulder, giving him some support. The female circled around, eyes focused and searching for any incoming monsters. Lee looked at her and spoke while turning on Healer’s Beacon. “Are there any plans? I’m out of my fucking depth here.”

The female spoke while keeping her vigilance. “We fight our way back slowly. Once they start sending the Giants and Trolls, we will need to be within the defensive walls. Until that point, we survive.” She paused for a moment, then spoke again. “We should stick together. What are you capable of?”

Lee nodded immediately, as having someone to watch his back was something he very much needed. He wasn’t confident in quickly killing a monster when he was out of mana.

“I was supposed to be combat support, but once the defensive line broke down, I froze… Used all my mana killing a group of monsters. I can still use basics, mostly walls. I gave you a buff that should last five minutes and I have a blind which I used to help this guy.” Lee nodded, gesturing toward the elf he was supporting. “Also, I can heal like this forever.” Lee said.

The male chimed in with a gruff voice. “We should gather others and regroup. I’m level 22, I can take a group of Goblins, but those fucking Hobs are a problem.”

The female spoke once more. “Sounds like a plan to me. I can hold a Hob for awhile, but I don’t know if I can kill it myself. I’m a level 25 Twinblade.”

Realizing that levels were being shared, Lee felt it necessary to add his own. “I’m level 6. Though, I thought I should have leveled more than once by now.”

The male grunted and began to support his own weight. “Once we get back to the fortified entrance we should get our experience. In large battles you are spared from prompts until you’re out of combat and in relative safety.”

This made sense to Lee. Getting spammed with messages mid-combat would be a detriment to most. “So I'm going to be level 6 until we reach the entrance?”

The female bluntly replied. “Yup.”