The water of the creek is ice cold. Well, not literally. It's neither frozen nor in the process of freezing. It is cold enough to make me gasp in shock which is not a good thing when you are trying to hold your breath. On the other side it's a good thing that the water is cold as the world beyond it turns into a hellish inferno even as the breath I have been trying to hold dissipates into bubbles above me.

The momentum of the fall makes me dive in the first bit. The pressure wave of the explosive fireworks beyond the surface drives me all the way to the bottom afterwards. I was hoping to escape it completely, but it seems I was hoping for too much. It doesn't burst anything, like my eardrums or my lungs, so I guess I get off easy in the end.

I grab a stone as I reach the ground to stay down there for as long as I possibly can, while the inferno rages above. I took the wizard's display at Riverrun for a grand feat of magic, but it seems I was mistaken. In hindsight I'd rather consider it a warm up exercise, What I get to witness now on the other hand, now that is the kind of overkill that takes the cake.

Eventually the explosive light show fades. Not a bit too early either. My lungs are already burning, as I push off the slick ground. By the time I break through the surface there are already black dots swimming around my field of vision.

I suck in the fresh air in deep gulps only to almost choke on it. The air is anything but fresh! Sure, the worst of the heat has passed, but it is still warm. Worse though, it is heavy with smoke and the smell of burnt things. Not just trees and other plants either.

The river bank beckons. With a few quick strokes I reach it. Together with my brief dive this seems to be enough to make my [Swimming] skill improve a little, even if it isn't enough for a full level. It's one of my lower level skills still, thus I'm not really surprised.

I stay there on the creek's bank for a moment or two, wheezing and coughing up some water, to regain my breath. Only then do I take the time to look around.

The woods all around are in a bad state. No, actually they were in a bad state before, with the fungal infestation choking the life out of everything. Now it's looking worse. Much worse.

There is no grand raging inferno consuming the woods, trees, shrubs and ferns alike. The explosion probably blew out most fires right away again. The force of the explosive blast pretty much defoliated everything that still had leaves though. A hole lot of trees got knocked over too. And here and there fires are springing back up.

Thus there is no grand raging inferno now, but there soon might be, if the small fires unite into a bigger blaze. I'm not entirely sure though if that will happen. The one indisputable upside, as far as I'm concerned, is that the explosion got my pursuers real good.

I already presume as much when none of them come after me while I make my recovers. I climb back up the not so steep cliff besides the creek to make sure afterwards. All I find of the horde are twisted, smoking and scattered remains. Most are hard to identify despite me knowing what to look for. Yes, the myceloids and mushroom zombies took the blast right to the face.

That's the good news and the ugly news so far. The bad news make themselves known just about then too. A loud noise, like something big creaking, shattering and bursting makes me whirl around. Then the angry and pained roar of the king boletus makes me falter.

The fungal monarch is not happy. No, he isn't happy at all. His roar draws on, making me shake in my boots. Good gods and goddesses. He is angry. No actually, he is beyond pissed.

Ediva's explosive fireworks have taken their toll out of him, that much is impossible to miss. He is scorched all over and there are deep gauges and rents where parts of his mushroom flesh have been torn or burnt away, but apparently that isn't nearly enough to take him down.

The towering giant has been blown away by the explosion too. It seems he tumbled a good ways in my direction. He is maybe still two hundred paces or a little more away, which means he is entirely too close for comfort. It's a good thing that he still seems focused on Ediva and her party or this would be a seriously bad development.

He grabs the defoliated and slightly burnt trunk of a tree and uproots it without trouble and starts to stomp in the direction of the elven wizard's party again.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

The casual display of strength sends another shiver down my back, even as my heart begins to calm back down. It is only now that I truly begin to understand how big exactly this thing is. The sad remnants of a full gown tree are a convenient club easily wielded in one hand for this lumbering giant. This close and without too much foliage in the way I can finally see how tall and massive the king boletus is too, despite the fact that some of his mass has just been burnt away. The realization of just how much he dwarfs the trees around him is sobering.

Glowing dancing embers start to appear in the sky above us again, gathering in dancing clouds. At the same time the sky above begins to darken as clouds begin to swirl. The latter is probably not Ediva's doing. That these dark clouds are the result of Griselda praying for a miracle would be my best bet.

The mushroom giant still has to cover some distance, but I'm not convinced that they'll finish with their spells before it'll reach them. And I have no idea how Barnim would even begin to slow down this force of nature. Sure, the orc warrior is large and strong, but not this large and strong. The king boletus could probably trample him without ever slowing down.

I swallow hard. Not doing anything is not an option. I may be a little out of breath right now, but I'm at full health and strength otherwise. Most importantly though, the monster is not paying me any heed.

I should be able to get in at least one good strike and, in theory, get some distance in between me and it again to avoid its retaliation. I don't have to defeat the lumbering giant all on my own. Barnim and the others can take over after that. Maybe we could alternate taking potshots, nipping at its heels like a wolf pack on the hunt? The idea doesn't sound too bad. In fact a surprising divine whisper suggests that it might be quite practicable.

[*Ding!* Your skill Tactics has leveled up to level 3!]

Well, that's reassuring, at least a little. Even better, I can feel my Mana pool expand a little. That might not be immediately useful, but in the long run it might come in handy.

Another thought strikes me, even as I get moving. I could try something different too. Something very daring and a little crazy. Something that might just turn out to be safer for me.

A grin, a slightly crazed grin, spreads across my face as I study the giants wide, cratered and scarred back in greater detail. I study the nearby trees too. With the foliage removed and any flimsy branches torn off they make for even easier climbing now.

I grasp at the hilts of both my sword and my utility knife briefly to make sure they still are there. It would have been entirely too embarrassing to find them missing later. My worries are unfounded though. I have lost neither. Hopefully it'll stay this way. I still have a crazy climb ahead of me. The most challenging so far by a wide margin.

I pump my legs to catch up with the mushroom king. I go all out. To the point I can feel my legs burn. At the same time I can feel my [Running] skill improving another little bit. I run until I'm actually about to overtake the giant humanoid mushroom.

Before I can put my plan into motion though, a bright flash almost blinds me. The next moment thunder rolls over me, shaking me to the core and making my teeth clatter. The giant myceloid thankfully attracted the lightning strike like a metal rod since he is towering over everything else. I still don't want to ever be this close to a lightning strike again.

It seems this was Griselda's spell or miracle. It's quite impressive. Not as flashy as Ediva's dancing embers but just as powerful. It seems this still isn't enough to take our chief opponent down though.

Well, at least this means that I didn't run for nothing. Making up for this slight distraction I pull ahead of the towering monster again and jump to get up to the first of the remaining branches of a particular sturdy tree. I jump and climb like a demented squirrel, barely looking what I use for hand- and footholds. It doesn't matter if something crumbles under my touch, as long as it holds long enough for me to push off to the next foot- or handhold.

My [Jumping] skill improves and so does my [Climbing] skill. Since neither results in a level up notice though I don't really pay it any heed. I just keep jumping and climbing. I keep climbing until I can't climb any higher on this tree and when I reach that point I jump again. And as I grab the next handhold it's on the back of the king boletus. The crazed grin on my face only gets wider, as I scramble for purchase with my legs. So far, so good.

Of course the lumbering brute now takes note of me. He glances down in my general direction, but seems unconcerned. Instead of focusing on shaking me off he turns towards Ediva again. To this giant I'm probably nothing more than a tick. Annoying but no big threat. The wizard on the other hand is dangerous and the giant mushroom doesn't want to get blasted again.

Just as well. This gives me the time I need to resume my climb. Thankfully the myceloids marred and scarred flesh provides ample purchase. In fact climbing him is much easier than climbing the tree before.

He knows I'm climbing up his back and he shakes himself several times to attempt to shake me off, but I won't be dislodged so easily. And I learn something else too, something I have been hoping for. Apparently he can't reach his own back with his hands. His arms are a little too short, given his wide back and they are not flexible enough either. My grin would get even wider, if it weren't so prominent already.

I reach the spot I'm aiming for, before any more spells can go off. I'm still worried a little in that regard. Hopefully Ediva can aim her spell a little better than she has demonstrated so far. If she were to detonate the dancing embers in the giant's face while I'm shielded by its mass I should be fine. Otherwise? Probably not as much. That's a problem for future me though. Right now I have to make a difference first or it might not matter at all.

I secure my feet in the moving giant mushroom's wide and rugged neck. Then I draw my sword. It's a struggle to stay perched where I am, but I manage, savoring the feeling of my [Balance] skill improving some in the process.

By now the others must have noticed me. Of that I'm pretty certain. I don't have time to think on it though. Instead I raise my sword and bring it down on the giant's scarred and burnt neck with all the force I can muster.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.