The Sealed Darkness
The 37th Floor, an area near the center----
In this world where only white phosphorescence provides meager illumination, a series of "click-clack" sounds occur frequently, creating an eerie atmosphere.
The source of the sound was a group of monsters whose entire bodies were trembling.
They have neither skin nor muscles; their ribs and pelvis are directly exposed. Not only are their bodies just bones, but many parts of their skeletons also have sharp, armor-like protrusions, making them look quite sharp.
These skeletal monsters, whose bodies are made entirely of bones, are officially called Earthborn. They appear in deep realms like the 37th Floor and, like other monsters such as the Barbarian, belong to the warrior class.
They possess the highest level of combat ability on this floor. Unlike their fragile appearance with their entire body made of bones, they are not only incredibly strong and fast, but also equipped with various bone weapons such as bone swords, bone axes, and bone shields. They are recognized as the strongest monsters on the 37th Floor, classified as Lv.4. Even adventurers of the same level rarely manage to defeat them in a one-on-one duel. They may not be considered boss-level monsters, but it is certainly no problem to call them the elite monsters of this floor.
At this moment, the group of eyeless skeletal monsters turned their dark eye sockets toward the group of people in front of them, shaking their bones as they raised their bone weapons and charged toward them in unison.
"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
A harsh roar, as if blown from an empty cavity, rang out, but instead of instilling fear in the enemy, it brought a flash of silver swords.
"Pfft!"
Wearing Giant Battle Suit, with his hooded cloak billowing behind him as he charged, Leo attacked with bullet-like speed. His Dragon Fang Sword slashed down head-on, striking the skeletal monster before it could raise its bone shield, cleaving it in two and killing it instantly.
"Goo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo----!"
The surrounding Earthborn attacked with bone spears, bone swords, and even bone axes slashing down from above, their momentum incredibly astonishing. However, Leo simply shifted his feet and dodged a few times, easily avoiding all these chaotic attacks, causing the bone weapons to fall into empty space.
"Coo-oo-oo!"
The skeletal monsters, still roaring in pursuit after their Leo attack, were already closing in before their second wave of attacks could even begin.
"Pfft!"
First, a horizontal sweep drew a sharp arc of light, severing the Bone Axe Hand, whose attack power and damage output were the highest.
"Pfft!"
Then came a swift diagonal slash, cleaving the bone swordsman who had silently approached from the side in two, even cutting through the Magic Stone, killing him instantly.
"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!"
Next came the Triple Slash, which, like three sword beams unleashed simultaneously, severed the arms of the three Earthborn who were raising bone spears to thrust at him, with incredible speed and force.
Leo was cutting down the Earthborn with the highest combat abilities on the 37th Floor with unprecedented efficiency and speed. His powerful performance was not like that of a Level 4, second-level adventurer, but more like that of a newly promoted first-level warrior.
In fact, they're pretty much the same.
Leaving aside the potential accumulated over the previous levels, at the current level alone, Leo's "Agility" parameter has reached SSS, breaking through the limit. The other parameters, such as "Strength," "Durability," and "Agility," are either approaching S or are already S. Such ability values undoubtedly surpass any Lv.4 second-level adventurer, allowing Leo's melee strength to be Infinity close to Lv.5, and even compared to newly promoted Lv.5, it is not much worse.
With a week of continuous research, Leo had basically figured out the combat patterns of the Earthborn. Now, dealing with groups of monsters with classification levels as high as Lv.4 would definitely not be too difficult for Leo.
Tiona, Tione, Lefiya Viridis, and the others behind them watched this scene and were speechless.
"----I said, is Leo really level 4?"
Tiona said this in a state of extreme existential doubt.
"Could he have actually leveled up but is just keeping it from us?"
This statement fully illustrates just how amazing Leo's performance was.
"Is there a difference?" Tione's eyes twitched slightly as she clicked her tongue. "With his strength, even if he hasn't leveled up yet, he should be close to it, right?"
"----You must be kidding me, right?" Lefiya Viridis stared intently at Leo's retreating figure, muttering to herself, whether in disbelief or disbelief, "He only reached Level 4 two weeks ago!"
Two weeks, which is half a month.
That's right, another two weeks.
Although it was incredibly hard to believe and they were extremely unwilling to accept it, both Tiona and Tione, as well as Lefiya Viridis, had to admit that Leo's strength had truly grown to the point where he was about to level up.
Even if they hadn't seen Leo's stats and didn't know his actual abilities before, they could tell from experience that he was currently at such a crucial stage.
Lefiya Viridis wasn't entirely sure about her Lv.3 level, but Tiona and Tione, having been through it themselves, were quite certain.
"He's probably just one final, spectacular achievement away from being promoted, isn't he?"
Tione said this in a low voice, causing a moment of silence to fall over the surroundings.
"No way?" Tiona started scratching her head and exclaimed, "Does that mean we're about to be caught?"
Once Leo has accumulated enough achievements to meet the upgrade requirements, he will be at Lv.5.
They are currently at level 5.
Tiona, Tione, Ais, and even Bete Loga, these four Loki Spring Familia cadres are currently all at Lv.5.
Although the four of them have been training at the Lv.5 level for several years and have now reached the highest level of Lv.5, just like Leo, they are only missing enough great achievements to level up. However, judging from the current situation, it seems unlikely that they will be able to level up before Leo.
If Leo levels up first, even if he's just a newly promoted Lv.5, he'll be on the same level as them.
So, they are indeed being caught up with.
"I never dreamed that Leo would catch up so quickly!"
"----Who doesn't think so? After all, that guy only received the Falna two months ago."
Tiona and Tione looked at each other, their expressions complex.
"Lv.5----"
Lefiya Viridis seemed to have encountered an insurmountable wall no matter how hard she tried, and kept muttering to herself.
As for Ais —she had already been suppressing her emotions, and she drew her sword and charged towards the Earthborn.
Her eyes didn't turn towards Leo, but the thoughts that surfaced in her mind were all related to Leo.
He finally caught up with us—
As Ais swung her sword, along with her bone shield, she forcefully severed the skeletal monster in front of her, her heart pounding with emotion.
Why was he able to grow up so quickly?
Why couldn't I become as strong as him?
Why am I so weak?!
Ais remembered that mysterious woman.
If I were strong enough, I could have stopped her from escaping back then, right?
She couldn't escape, and he would then be able to learn from her why she knew the name "Aria".
The appearance of this name awakened emotions that had been dormant in Ais's heart.
That emotion was called hatred.
Originally, Ais was already deeply affected by Leo's strong rise. Now, witnessing Leo's growth once again, she has to face the reality that she is about to be caught up with, and the memories that were deeply sealed in the deepest part of her heart have been dug out. Ais's emotions, which she has been suppressing, finally get out of control.
"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!"----
Black flames involuntarily ignited in the blonde girl's eyes, and her back also felt hot. In an instant, she seemed to be enveloped by a dark power, transforming into a black storm that charged into the monster horde and unleashed a violent rampage.
The aura she exuded became incredibly terrifying, and the atmosphere around her was no longer the same as before; it became pitch black and frightening.
Under these circumstances, Ais's combat power increased dramatically, even slightly surpassing her power when she activated [Ariel].
"Ais... Ais ----?!"
Tiona, Tione, and Lefiya Viridis, who had been keeping an eye on Leo, were taken aback by this sudden change and exclaimed in surprise.
Leo, who was engrossed in the battle, was suddenly awakened. He turned his head to look in Ais's direction, and his expression changed slightly.
"That state----"
Leo suddenly realized something, stopped, and called out to Ais.
"Ais!"
His voice wasn't loud, but it was powerful, like a blow to the head, waking the blonde girl who had been dominated by dark emotions.
!"
Ais's powerful slash, which she was about to unleash, suddenly stopped in mid-air, the force of which transformed into a shockwave that swept outwards, stirring up a cloud of dust.
It is foreseeable that if this strike lands, not only will one Earthborn be destroyed, but the entire group of Earthborn in front of Ais will be blasted to pieces along with the ground.
"Goo-hoo!"
"Ooh ooh ooh ooh!"
"Ooh ooh! Coo ooh ooh!"
The group of Earthborn were unaware that they had just stepped into the gates of hell. When they saw Ais suddenly stop attacking, they immediately pounced on her, oblivious to their own mortality.
"Boom!!!"
The next second, a thick meteor shot out, engulfing the group of Earthborn and annihilating them in Starlight amidst screams, leaving not even a fragment of bone behind.
"Ais!"
Tiona and Tione also rushed forward, one wielding a large double-edged sword and slashing wildly, the other wielding a recurve blade and hacking and slashing, cutting down a group of Earthborn who attacked from the side and protecting Ais.
Miss Ais!
Lefiya Viridis also ran over, looking panicked.
Leo quietly approached Ais and watched her silently.
Surrounded by the crowd, Ais fell silent.