I Can't Move It

Leonar felt his entire body on the verge of collapse. Every muscle seemed to scream in protest, the accumulated fatigue from the recent battle and exertion had left him in a pitiful state.

His breathing was erratic, his limbs trembled, and a sharp pain coursed through his back.

Even thinking had become a monumental effort.

"Were you a hunter?" asked Rita with a firm voice, though a slight tremor betrayed the tension behind her words.

Leonar tried to answer, but a wave of exhaustion stopped him.

It was true he had just awakened as a hunter, but... how was he supposed to answer that question?

As he searched for the words, he realized his mind was just as wrecked as his body.

Suddenly, a floating message appeared before his eyes:

[Access to this floor will disappear in 14 hours and 30 minutes.]

Leonar blinked, confused.

'What's that?' he thought, seeking an answer from Eleonora.

"I'm not entirely sure," she responded in a neutral tone.

'What do you mean you're not sure? Aren't you supposed to control the system?' Leonar retorted, irritated.

"I enabled you to use it, but that doesn't mean I fully understand it," she replied, her tone carrying a faint hint of amusement.

Ignoring the conversation, Leonar let himself fall to the ground.

The cold floor did nothing to ease the pain in his body, but at least he no longer had to support his wobbly legs.

Meanwhile, Damián cautiously approached the icy door. The frosty mist emanating from the portal chilled his face, but he didn't look away.

'How long will it take for me to recover?' Leonar asked.

"A good few hours," Eleonora replied.

'I don't think we have that kind of time,' he murmured, glancing at the icy door.

"I suppose you're right," she admitted.

'Then… why didn't you do something like this before?' Leonar weakly raised a hand, pointing at the frozen door.

"Try moving the fingers on your right hand," said Eleonora.

Leonar obeyed, but he noticed he could barely move his fingers.

"What…?"

"I told you, your body's a mess. Freezing something so simple almost made you lose your fingers. What do you think would've happened if I'd tried to freeze all the water here?"

Leonar swallowed hard.

The thought of losing his fingers forever… was terrifying.

"If you're a hunter, why didn't you do anything earlier?" asked Rita, her voice frustrated, her eyes welling up with tears. "If you could do something like that, you could've fought the goblins before!"

Damián stepped in before Rita could continue.

"I don't think he had those powers before. If he had, he wouldn't have joined the guild as a scavenger; he would've gone straight in as a hunter. He probably awakened at the brink of death."

Rita bit her lip in frustration, but her gaze remained fixed on Leonar.

"If that's the case, can you use those powers to look for other survivors? Maybe someone else managed to hide like we did."

"Bad idea," Eleonora interjected, speaking directly to Leonar. "If you keep pushing your body like this, you might end up permanently disabled. Unless, of course, you want me to cut off the damaged parts and regenerate them later."

Leonar stiffened.

'You have regenerative powers?'

"Of course," she replied, sounding smug. "Regenerating a human body isn't a big deal. Most of it's just water."

'Then why did you say that about my fingers earlier if you can regenerate them?'

Eleonora sighed.

"Are you even listening to yourself? Sure, I can regenerate you, but the pain will still be there. And with how weak you are right now, even healing your surface wounds is taking effort."

Leonar noticed that, while the pain was slowly subsiding, the crushing fatigue remained.

'If the price for using your powers is temporary immobility… I'm willing to pay it.'

"Are you insane?" Eleonora sounded incredulous.

'Maybe,' Leonar replied with a weak smile. 'But if that's what it takes to get home along with other people, I'll do it.'

Eleonora sighed again, resigned.

Meanwhile, Rita was arguing with Damián, though he defended Leonar firmly.

Leonar, however, ignored the argument.

With effort, he stood up and approached the icy door, his trembling legs barely supporting his weight.

"Do what you have to do," Leonar said quietly.

Suddenly, Leonar's eyes changed color, shifting from brown to an intense red. Rita and Damián stared at him in shock as he whispered:

"Sacrifice."

A message appeared before him:

[What would you like to sacrifice?]

"My left arm," Eleonora answered without hesitation, using Leonar's body to speak.

Immediately, Leonar's left arm turned pale, as if it were withering.

[Mana restored.]

[Stats reduced by 20%.]

"Release," Eleonora whispered.

Another message appeared:

[Eleonora's power has been released.]

[Warning: The user's body is in terrible condition. Continuous use of the power will cause permanent damage.]

[13 seconds until the ability deactivates.]

Leonar's hair turned snow-white. He extended his right hand toward the icy door, and it shattered into pieces instantly.

Before the water could flood the room they were in, it veered off to the sides and froze at the ends, sealing both stairway exits.

Leonar dropped to his knees, gasping as his hair and eyes returned to their original colors.

A guttural scream escaped his lips as he writhed on the ground.

Once again, everything had happened so quickly that none of them understood a thing.

How could a human wield such power?

Damián rushed to his side.

"What did you do?"

"Check… the other doors," Leonar murmured with difficulty as he regained control of his body.

Letting Eleonora take over his body, only for her to give it back… was a strange sensation, like falling asleep and waking up in a completely different place.

Rita, though she wanted to help Leonar, decided to accompany Damián in the search for more survivors.

Meanwhile, Leonar lay on the ground, barely able to breathe, confirming his worst fear.

He couldn't move or feel his left arm, and the fingers on his right hand… were headed down the same path.

This power, despite its promise to restore parts of his body, was terrifying.