Chapter 91: It's your turn

Chapter 91: It's your turn

"Hello, Nathaniel," Kim says quietly. From his stance, it's easy to see how nervous Ruby's master makes him.

Moreover, is she collecting us like Pokémon? At this rate, she'll collect us all in no time.

The gray-haired woman's eyes scan me over, and her brow furrows a bit.

"Ruby," she says simply while walking outside. The red-haired woman gestures for us to follow her as well.

There, the older woman swings her arm and a tear in the air appears with a sound akin to tearing iron. Inside the tear is a different place, and I notice monsters.

[Ember Serpent - lvl ?]

[Mireblood Troll - lvl ??]

[Thornclaw Lynx - lvl ?]

And there is also this one. [Vortexfang Hydra - lvl ???] Oh boy, I guess that makes her stronger than a triple question mark.

Then my eyes move back to the Hydra. The scales, a haunting blend of deep green and blue, are practically pulsating with mana, a tangible aura of energy that sends shivers down my spine. The air around the beast crackles, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

The way it moves, with a grace that betrays its enormous size shows its strength. The ground shakes with each step it takes, and I can see the raw power in the way its muscles ripple under the scales.

It's too strong, way too strong. I've faced my share of monsters before, but this is on a whole different level. I've got a sinking feeling that I'm way over my head here.

[Focus] I activate my skill and look away, still breathing heavily and relieved that there is an even stronger monster between me and the Hydra. Ñøv€l--ß1n hosted the premiere release of this chapter.

That monster, resembling an older woman, steps inside the tear, and the Hydra immediately attacks her only to be killed a moment later.

I don’t even know what happened, but Hydra dies as if someone much bigger grabbed it and tore it to pieces. Pulling out its heads, its legs, and pieces of its body in the same way you tear paper to pieces. Once again, I am reminded of how terrifying the woman in front of me is.

She then reaches out with her hand and throws one monster through the tear, where it lands just steps away from us, also terrified and not even thinking about attacking.

[Thunderhowl Warg - lvl ?]

Its body hums with a subtle but distinct mana. It's certainly powerful, maybe even more so than me, but it doesn't feel impossible, unlike the Hydra. The air around it tingles with the electricity it generates, and every time it quietly howls, it's like a crack of thunder that echoes through the air.

The woman steps back through the tear and closes it. I feel a hint of mana from her towards Ruby.

“Have him fight the monster until I am back, short pauses only. Similar level to this thing,” she looks at the warg that just squeals and steps even further away from her, “after a while, pick stronger ones.”

She then slashes her hand through the air and disappears into another tear.

[You have defeated a Thunderhowl Warg - lvl 84]

[Lvl 51 > Lvl 52]

Quickly, I glance over the notifications and invest my stat points.

[Focus - lvl 21 > Focus - lvl 22]

[Mana Manipulation - lvl 25 > Mana Manipulation - lvl 26]

[Armament - lvl 21 > Armament - lvl 22]

[Oscillation - lvl 15 > Oscillation - lvl 16]

There is also a new side quest:

Side quest:Reach level 75

Rewards:Upgrade token

Huh? Not skill upgrade token, just upgrade token? Does it mean I can upgrade anything I want? Class? Skill? Trait? Maybe? Interesting. Very interesting.

“Another one?” Ruby asks a small smile on her lips. I guess she was bored too.

“Do you have to ask?” I throw back at her and the smile becomes bigger. She knows me at least that much.

“I tried to be nice, I was told that I was acting like an... well, as something unladylike, I refuse to repeat such a word. You might know the guy who told me that.”

Obviously, I know him. It was me!

The air in front of Ruby ripples and a monster appears out of nowhere, confused and looking around. The redhead woman's skill is much more delicate and relies on technique instead of the brute force of her master.

[Thunderhowl Warg - lvl ?]

The warg slowly starts looking around while letting out quiet growls. Electricity starts flickering on its fur and a sense of danger fills out the surroundings.

“Hadwin, it's your turn.” I turn to the man.

The older man's eyes look as if they are about to fall off, and even though he does that, I feel him charging more and more mana, also getting ready to fight.

I will help him, but for now, it will be better to try to make the man stronger as it will help me on the third floor as well or even at the end of this one.

But hey, why are you looking at me like that? We had a deal, didn't we? Well, we missed the regret bus. Next stop: Acceptance!