Chương 84: (B2) Chapter 11 - Brief respite

Ethans breath came out in ragged gasps, his sword feeling loose in his grip, the blade coated in a thick sheen of blood. At his feet was his latest challenge. The large beast was slowly beginning to disappear. It had been his most difficult fight yet. The Orc was a massive, overpowering creature, and had been the first fight that had actually used a weapon. It had pushed him far further than he had expected, leaving him both injured and out of breath.

The plate on his shoulder was dented inward, the orc's massive mace caving in the material and leaving his arm badly damaged. A quick use of [Aura Overload] had helped, but the dent wasn't allowing him to completely heal. As the creature completely disappeared and he officially passed the fifth level, Ethan decided this would be more than enough for one day. He could probably keep going, but saw little point in it. He would prefer to get his armor sorted and have a rest while consolidating his gains.

He could tell it had been a fruitful endeavor. He had felt the influx of power as he leveled. It had helped that after the second level the opponents had started being of a higher grade than him.

"And another one bites the dust! Care for more? I can keep them coming all day!" the announcer shouted. Ethan snorted, the whole thing was seeming a little artificial now. Between the crowd and the announcer, he didn't know which seemed more fake. Sure, when you looked at them with a glance you'd assume they were real, taking away the completely different race, that is. But still they sat there, cheered, shouted and drank. But when you looked closely, it was like they were programmed.

Quiet when there's little action and loud when things got intense. Even the announcer, with his over-the-top manner and his never-ending flattery or jabs. It was all a ruse, and it was beginning to wear on Ethan.

"I'll stop here," he said, dismissing his sword back into storage as he declined the notification to continue.

"Ah… too bad," the announcer said, just as Ethan was ejected from the dungeon. He had only cleared up to the fifth level. Tomas had told him they assumed there was twenty. Though the highest clear they had gotten so far had only been seventeen. The issue was the class level caps on dungeons. And this particular one was sitting at level thirty-five, meaning someone as powerful as Tomas or any one of the other elites couldn't enter and finish the dungeon.

But it also gave Ethan ample time to clear the entire thing and slowly work towards his first clear out of the ten he needed to exit this level and head to the next stage. Not that it would be anytime soon. But there was nothing wrong with progress. The world materialized back around Ethan, revealing the quiet town, that currently was in the later stages and beginning to shut down for the night.

The moon hung high in the sky, its glow illuminating the pines surrounding them and giving little light wherever the lanterns' glow couldn't reach. The two guards were still stationed beside the enterance, but there were no longer any lines of people seeking to enter and challenge it.

"Good, you're back." The younger guard spoke up when he noticed Ethan arrive and scope out the place.

"Yup, that'll do me for the night."

"Fair enough. How far did you get? If you don't mind me asking, sir."

"Passed the fifth challenge," Ethan said with a shrug.

"Ah, not bad. Pretty good for your first attempt actually." He looked over Ethan, eyes lingering on his arm, where his armor was currently dented.

"If you're looking for a repair, head down to the armorers, they are in the center of town, Ryan will sort you out."

"Thanks," Ethan said, "I'll do just that." The guard nodded, as Ethan moved out of the way and began his short walk back to the single-street town. The path was lined with lanterns that hung from the branches of the pines that outlined the route. After a short moment, in which Ethan decompressed and went over each interaction, he entered the town once more, before looking for the armorer. The shop was relatively easy to spot.

Even though most the buildings were identical, the armorer had weapons on display in the windows, and at the back he could see an anvil, the coals still simmering with heat. Unfortunately, like the town itself, the shop seemed to be closed for the night. Ethan stood there for a short moment, before letting out a sigh. It must have been later than he realized. Though it made sense if he thought about it. He had likely been in the dungeon at least an hour or two.

That last battle especially, had taken up a large chunk of time in order for him to put the Orc away. The thing didn't want to die. So it took one cut at a time as he pieced the thing to ribbons before it finally gave up and accepted its fate. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Now, he looked down the street and shrugged, it was a nice calm night. The stars were high in the sky and well…

quite frankly he had nowhere else to sleep and nothing else to do. Ethan walked back down the path and towards the towering pines that covered the entire island. He didn't head too far out of town, but when he was at least out of the way, where no one would notice him, he walked off the path and into the trees, before finding a nice spot that was lined with a small patch of moss. He let out a breath, removing his armor and relieving the pressure it applied on his injured arm.

He rested his helmet beside him and called on [Aura Overload] once more to finish healing the damage that had been missed due to the dent in his armor. The rest of his internal damage disappeared as his aura got to work. With a relieved sigh, Ethan stored his armor and put on a pair of pants and a hoodie, before finally relaxing and laying his back against the towering tree. Finally he allowed himself to check his notifications. Skill leveled [Steadfast Lv. 16] Skill leveled [Keen Sense Lv. 12] Skill leveled [Keen Sense Lv. 13] Skill leveled [Mana Infusion Lv. 8] Skill leveled [Aura Overload Lv. 2] Skill leveled [Aura Overload Lv. 3] Congratulations! You are now [Knight Lv. 28] Str +2, End +2, Ag +1, Per +1, Will +2 It was great gains all things considered. He had only challenged up to the fifth level and had already made good progress. It just reinforced how important this level was. Another notification was fighting for his attention, so he turned to it, prompting the words to show themselves.

Skill learned: [Molten Release] Do you wish to incorporate this skill? Yes / No Ethans thoughts came to a halt, in truth he had expected something like this, he had proved he could use magic and the system had rewarded him. However, despite how happy he felt at his plans coming into fruition, Ethan was hesitant. Was this skill really going to be good? Was it what he needed? Sure it was great, and could work as a ranged attack to catch people off guard. But Ethan wanted more.

He thought of Thane and his ability to cause widespread destruction. He thought of all the other mages who had been casting spells during the guild war. Could this skill do something similar? Not as it was now, it definitely couldn't. But maybe, maybe when he leveled it further it could turn into something just as destructive. However, his skill selection was on the horizon, he only needed two more levels until he could select something.

And with his PO hoarding from clearing level one and fighting monsters during his trek to the mirage, Ethan was confident he could get a better skill at that time by topping up his knowledge with his potential. The thought of that confirmed his decision. So with a sense of dread and a feeling like he was making a mistake on a gamble, Ethan selected no and watched the skill disappear. If there was a god out there, he hoped they would be watching over him and return the skill to him in a more powerful form.

Even the thought of it made Ethan chuckle. He looked up at the tree canopy as he heard an owl hooting. Then he felt a yawn coming on. Maybe it really was quite late. The island was quite beautiful, the mix of trees and wildlife brought a certain amount of calm to him. This level really was eye opening.

If the first level was to prove that you were worthy then the second level felt a lot like it wanted to show you how amazing life in the system could be, while also giving you ample opportunity to grow and keep proving yourself. Ethan just had to keep his focus and not allow himself to fall into the trap. These trials were anything but beautiful. They were dangerous, far, far more dangerous than anyone imagined. He wouldn't lose sight of that anytime soon, especially after the reminder from the mirage.

Ethan pulled up his status, he was tracking well, gaining levels with a steady pace. Name: Ethan Carter Level: 28 Class: [Knight] Cultivation: • Core — [Molten] • Body — [Poisonous] Titles: • Dual Awakening Initiate Attributes: • Strength: 62 (3) • Endurance: 53 (10) • Agility: 38 (2) • Perception: 40 • Willpower: 48 Skills: (7/10) • Steadfast Lv. 16 (Common) • Advanced Sword Mastery Lv. 14 (Uncommon) • Keen Sense Lv. 13 (Common) • Oath Lv. 5 (Rare) • Mana Infusion Lv. 8 (Uncommon) • Aura Overload Lv.

3 (Uncommon) • Aura Field Lv. 3 (Rare) Ethan dismissed his status, noting that his Titles option was now on display. He needed to add more, and the sooner the better. Even Dual Awakening Initiate had helped him tremendously. And that felt more like a basic title. If he could upgrade it somehow, what would happen with his two energies? No one had ever really wielded the two together in tandem, they either selected to use one or the other. Most focusing on mana, to avoid the pain of body cultivation.

But Ethan wasn't prepared to give up aura. In fact he still believed it to be extremely powerful. So he was forging a new path. One where aura and mana worked together. He hadn't been sure if it was even really possible. But his title was telling him it was. So he would see it to the end and hope he was right. The owl still hooted up in the trees, Ethan listened for a moment, feeling his body relax. He still had plenty to do. He wanted to clear this dungeon.

Wanted to get to level thirty and select his first external magical skill. But first he would need to get his armor repaired. So with tired eyes, Ethan rested his head in the moss. Everything was going to plan. He just needed to keep putting one foot in front of the other. He just needed to keep growing.