One of a Kind Above T0

Those men in black had not expected to be hit by a brutal blow the moment they emerged.

Combined with the Druid's cards, it was as though they had been trapped inside an elevator.

"Everyone, push forward!"

A clear voice rang out. "The sole Elemental Mage, if you want to fall in with the group, do it now. If you don't, then don't try to join us later either. Don't disrupt our formation!"

Caroso turned his head and saw a woman with long white hair and purple eyes, wielding a greatsword.

She was not especially beautiful, but she possessed an air of distinction, giving off the impression of someone tempered by countless battles.

And those battles had been on the battlefield—don't get any crooked ideas.

"You are...?" Caroso raised a brow.

"My name is Teresa Alekseyevna, princess of the Presia Empire." A bright, open smile appeared on the woman's face. "Hello, Caroso Kolia. I am willing to call you one thing: a strong one!"

If Azure Wolf Province was the most barbaric province in the Perus Kingdom, then Presia was the most barbaric empire!

It could be said that everyone in Presia was a soldier.

It bordered Azure Wolf Province and lay in a land of bitter cold, where the conditions for survival were extremely harsh.

Moreover, this was a warlike people, and their current relationship with Azure Wolf Province was somewhat ambiguous.

[Holy crap? Teresa and Boss Caro were in the same class?]

[She might be a year ahead of Boss Caro]

[Going by age, she was exactly one year older than Boss Caro]

[She was only Tier 4 at this point?]

[Hahahaha, Teresa has appeared]

[Teresa, forever the GOAT!]

[Empress Teresa, one of the few in the later stages who could go head-to-head with Boss Caro]

[Sister Lei's character art is average, but she's genuinely strong!]

[One of a kind above T0—when in doubt, deploy Sister Lei]

Teresa?

Caroso remembered that name.

The barrage had previously said that when he faced an aircraft-carrier-load of experts alone, he would have been finished if not for someone named Teresa coming to his rescue.

Back then, he had wielded the Sword of Flames and still been stopped. That showed just how powerful that person was.

Who would have thought she was someone from the same era as him?

Caroso's competitive spirit had been stirred. He truly wanted to see just how strong this woman was.

"You were the one who gathered them together?" Caroso asked.

"Of course. Because I'm strong too." Teresa's eyes smiled. "I've survived this kind of dungeon twice! And I started challenging dungeons when I was nine."

"Not bad." Caroso replied flatly.

[Hahahaha, Boss Caro started challenging them at eight!]

[She'd already cleared this kind of dungeon twice? Sister Lei was something else back then]

[Damn, this tiny dungeon actually hid both a crouching dragon and a fledgling phoenix? One is the future emperor of the Delos Empire, the other the future empress of Presia]

[Wait, did they know each other at this point? From the story, Boss Caro and Sister Lei don't seem to have met as children]

[Don't forget the butterfly effect. With Boss Caro's normal strategy, he might have led one group through it while Sister Lei led another, with the two of them each fighting their own battle]

The two were not merely chatting. While they spoke, they had already led the others to the elevator entrance.

A large group of Paladins and warriors glared like tigers watching prey at the cultists inside the elevator.

The cultists were utterly dumbfounded. They had only come up to seize someone, yet the instant the elevator arrived, they were subjected to a barrage of attacks. Even with something as convenient as cards for casting spells, they had not had a moment to use them.

They had only just dispelled some of the spell effects when a whole pack of burly men appeared before them!

"Warriors, charge!" Teresa swung her longsword and rushed toward the gray-clad cultists.

The formation opened a gap, and several warriors charged into the elevator like wolves and tigers, hacking away.

"Ah! Ah!"

"No, no!"

"Don't come any closer!"

"Quick, call for reinforcements... Ah!"

"Don't stab there..."

"I-I can't take it anymore..."

"Lord!"

Until now, they had been fighting at range, and the warriors had been conserving their strength, already holding in a bellyful of frustration. At last, they had room to show what they could do, and they hacked away with sheer exhilaration.

Caroso did not lag behind. He stayed at Teresa's side, and the two attacked the cultists from the left and right.

"Can I entrust you with my back?" Caroso asked Teresa.

"Of course!" Teresa flashed a confident smile.

"Then I'm going all out!"

This time, Caroso did not use any cards. He only had ten base points left, including two Hand of Greed cards and two Thank You cards.

Even with the three cards here added in, Caroso's mana consumption was becoming a little excessive. He still had to maintain Bintink's Flaming Sword.

That was why not everyone could necessarily use up their entire deck—their mana might give out first.

At a time like this, Caroso obviously had no way to meditate and recover mana.

Back to the matter at hand.

Caroso's sword struck a black longsword. Teresa ducked low and thrust her blade straight through the enemy's chest.

Just then, another cultist took advantage of Teresa being unable to pull out her sword and swung an axe at her. Caroso slid his longsword over, smoothly blocking the axe.

Teresa freed up her hand and swung again, cutting him in half at the waist. His intestines and the like spilled all over the ground.

Though it was their first time working together, their coordination was flawless, as if they had been fighting side by side for ages.

The cultists, their formation thrown into disarray, were utterly unable to withstand them. With teammates around as well, the two of them slaughtered the cultists in a one-sided massacre!

[Holy crap, a dream crossover!]

[Both fandoms are ecstatic!]

[Who feels stronger?]

[They're equally strong.]

[Then Boss Caro is a little stronger. Boss Caro is a year younger than Teresa.]

[And besides... although Sister Lei came to the rescue and stopped Boss Caro in the future, that was after we had already fought Boss Caro once.]

[In terms of story power level, Boss Caro is currently the strongest, no explanation needed.]

[Yeah, being able to clash head-on doesn't mean you can win.]

[Survivors: 97]

Some people from Mal Magic Academy watched Caroso's back, their thoughts beginning to stir.

They had all been hired. If they failed to do anything to Caroso and still got out unscathed, things would become difficult after they left.

Of course, the best outcome would be to get out alive even after dealing with Caroso.

A priest and a druid exchanged glances.

"This is the perfect moment."

"Make a move?"

The moment they said that, waves of chill ran down their backs.

Several of Teresa's subordinates had slightly turned their heads, eyeing them with ill intent.

This was a third-tier dungeon. Only the people on Caroso's side were all students; in the other groups, quite a few were battle-hardened veterans.

The two swallowed. No, this was not the right time to act. They needed to wait a little longer!

Otherwise, these people would have perfectly legitimate grounds to kill them. Killing those outside one's own faction came with rewards too!

"Watch out!"

Right then, a warrior rushed up behind Caroso and used a sweeping slash to cut down a cultist in one blow. Yet as though he could not stop his momentum, his blade continued toward Caroso.