Clang Kerchang Clang
The sounds of metal hitting one another echoed throughout the whole dungeons as swords and daggers clashed with one another. A clash which can decimate any obstacles who happened to be in the way.
Another 2 years and a half has passed since Yuna's 14th birthday, and throughout the years and months that passed by, the 2 had continued to polish their skills to the best of their abilities.
Currently, Grey and Yuna are fighting once again in the dungeon. That has been their daily routine for the time they were together, but compared to the Slimes and Minotaurs they fought in their first battle together, their enemies are far more superior in both physical and magical power.
Clashing swords with Grey were a pair of S-rank Dullahan Commanders, each with strength capable of bringing down towns in just a less than an hour. They were monsters which only people with similarly monstrous strength can match.
Unlike the monsters from two years ago, these Dullahan Commanders are capable of using sword techniques that resemble those of expert swordsmen. A monster which can use artificial intelligence to strategize and coordinate with other monsters.
Similarly, Yuna was also fighting with monsters possessing "intelligence". They were 3 A-rank Ogre Warlords that could strike fear to the eyes of the populace. But even with their monstrous strength, Yuna wasn't being pushed back in the slightest.
The three tried to perform an attack together, but even before their attacks hit the ground, Yuna was already nowhere to be seen. The three Ogre Warlords, who didn't see where Yuna went, were filled with confusion as they tried to scout the whole dungeon.
Unfortunately for them, no matter how hard they try, it would be fruitless. After all, Yuna was using the second effect of her "Nihility", it was "Physical Concealment" which allows the user to turn anything physically invisible.
By using both the first effect "Presence Concealment" and the second effect "Physical Concealment", only those with detection abilities of higher rank will be able to detect Yuna. In other words, other than Grey who possesses the "Divine Eyes", Yuna is practically undetectable to anyone else.
⟨⟨Fatal Stream!⟩⟩ ［Yuna］
With her seemingly delicate arms, Yuna unleashed down a stream of attacks towards the enemies before her. Like a violent cascade destroying everything in its path, the attack tore the flesh of the monsters, targeting their limbs one after another.
As soon as the Ogre Warlords lost their balance from the rupturing of their joints, Yuna quickly closed the distance between them and jumped in the air, just a few meters away from the enemies heads.
⟨⟨Winter Gospel!⟩⟩ ［Yuna］
Without even to defend themselves, a strong burst of freezing wind devoured their bodies completely, preventing them from making any movements. Not only their external bodies, even their insides were completely frozen.
Even the walls of the dungeon didn't escape Yuna's spell and also turned into ice. It was a high-level spell which freezes everything it comes in contact with, be it living or non-living things.
⟨⟨Icicle Shotgun!⟩⟩ ［Yuna］
Soon after the Ogre Warlords became statues of frozen ice, a barrage of ice came hurling towards them mercilessly, destroying their bodies as if they were fragile pieces of glass.
Like a goddess of ice descending into the mortal realm, Yuna gracefully landed on her feet as she saw the demise of her enemies. A figure which seemed to possess a heart of ice, not batting an eye to the monsters' fate.
Clang
Grey on the other hand was still fighting with the pair of Dullahan Commanders. Although it would be easy fighting against one, fighting a pair is on another level as they know how to coordinate with one another.
The Grey moment Grey tries to launch a surprise attack to one of them, the other will attack his back, leaving Grey with no choice but to halt his actions and evade the said attack.
Seeing Grey dodge, the two monsters then chased him and tried to perform a pincer attack on Grey, but the latter didn't even budge from his position and simply caught the two swords with both of his hands, showcasing his strength to his enemies.
"Do you need some help?" ［Yuna］
"Haha, no need. Just take your break, I'll be following soon after." ［Grey］
"Mmm... Alright, then I'll go back up and prepare dinner." ［Yuna］
"Thankー whoops!"［Grey］
Before Grey could finish his words, one of the Dullahan Commanders tried to cut him from above. Although he was talking with Yuna, Grey was still paying attention to his enemies so he was able to dodge it with ease.
Seeing Grey almost get hit, Yuna shook her head slightly and breathed out a small sigh of concern. She then carried on with her way and went up the dungeon stairs.
"You damned chunk of metal, at least let me finish talking!" ［Grey］
Venting out his frustration, Grey thrusted a punch towards a Dullahan Commander's torso, sending it flying towards the walls.
⟨⟨Twin Spiral!⟩⟩ ［Grey］
Flowing with the momentum, Grey fired off a spear of wind which seemed to be made of two tornadoes. The moment it came in contact with the Dullahan Commander, it tore apart all of its armor pieces and shredded everything into dust.
Without sympathy towards its "comrade", the other Dullahan didn't waste the chance when Grey was facing away and tried to strike from behind. Unfortunately for it, Grey already noticed its attack.
Third effect of Grey's "Divine Eyes", "Heaven's Eye" allows him to see everything within a certain distance around him as if he's watching it from a bird's eye view. It was an effect which prevented enemies from doing a sneak attack on Grey.
Before the enemy's sword could touch his shoulder, Grey easily caught it with his left hand, and with a little twist of his body, he struck a blow towards the Dullahan Commander's head, sending it flying and stuck towards the ceiling.
"Farewell. ⟨⟨Howling Thunder⟩⟩!" ［Grey］
Like a meteor crashing towards the ground surpassing the speed of sound by multiple degrees, Grey's right fist produced a strong explosion the moment it connected to the Dullahan Commander's body.
Being hit by such a powerful force, the Dullahan Commander's body was completely obliterated upon impact, not leaving even a single speck of dust to be seen.
"Phew... I think that's that for today. I wonder what Yuna is cooking." ［Grey］
As if the scene of an S-rank monster getting obliterated into oblivion was a normal scene, Grey didn't pay any heed towards what happened in the dungeon and simply went home.
While these may be just a daily occurrence to Grey and Yuna, just the thought of fighting monsters all day long was a bizarre thought for any normal person. Not to mention that these monsters were of A and S ranks.
Threat levels were placed not only to group things who have similar combat power, but because souls have a limit of how much combat power it can contain. Once the soul reaches the maximum limit, it will move up a stage to increase its limits. These stages came to be known as the standards for "Threat Level".
Of course, each threat level has different limits, and starting from the bottom is H-rank which has less than 20 combat power, followed by G-rank for those who reaches a combat power of 20, F-rank (50), E-rank (100), D-rank (250), C-rank (500), B-rank (1,000), A-rank (2,500), and S-rank (5,000). These are the 9 ranks which "normal" people are divided into.
Upon reaching 10,000 combat power, those beings are not considered "normal" anymore but "transcendent". They are divided into 3 more ranks, which are Calamity Class (10,000), Disaster Class (20,000), and finally, Catastrophe Class (50,000). Giving a total of 12 ranks from H-rank to Catastrophe Class.
For "normal" people, reaching E-rank already means you're strong. And upon reaching B-rank, you will become someone people will look up to.
As for our two protagonists...
"Umm, Grey..." ［Yuna］
Grey was about to finish washing the dishes when Yuna suddenly barged into the kitchen. Her eyes filled with a curious and expectant look.
"Hm? Is something wrong." ［Grey］
"It's been a couple of months since... you know... the last time I saw my status. I was wondering if you could check it..." ［Yuna］
Yuna timidly requested as she fidgeted with her fingers. Something Grey found cute and fascinating at the same time. Especially since Yuna's elven ears were bobbing up and down as she played with her fingers.
While the two may have lived together for almost three years, Yuna still did her best not to request too much from Grey. Although she considers Grey as her closest friend, she still doesn't want to impose too much on them.
Though contrary to her beliefs, Grey was actually quite happy when Yuna requested something from him. Something about being relied on filled him with a sense of accomplishment.
"Haah... Alright. ⟨⟨Appraisal⟩⟩!" ［Grey］
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[Salferine]
[Name] Grey Silverdrake
[Race] Human
[Sex] Male
[Age] 18
[Status] Healthy
[Mana Capacity] 3,579 [Mana Quality] A
[Combat Power] 7,732 [Threat Level] S
[Attribute] Wind [Magic Proficiency] Advanced (82%)
[Class] Brawler [Weapon Proficiency] Advanced (79%)
[Physical Enhancement ]80%
[Ability] 『Divine Eyes (Divine)』
『Divine Mind (Divine)』
『Subspace (Divine)』
-----------------------------------
[Salferine]
[Name] Yuna
[Race] Elf
[Sex] Female
[Age] 16
[Status] Healthy
[Mana Capacity] 2,418 [Mana Quality] B
[Combat Power] 4,619 [Threat Level] A
[Attribute] Ice [Magic Proficiency] Advanced (76%)
[Class] Assassin [Weapon Proficiency] High (72%)
[Physical Enhancement] 74%
[Ability] 『Nihility (5☆)』
-----------------------------------
"Oh... You've improved quite a lot." ［Grey］
"But I'm still far from S-rank..." ［Yuna］
Seeing her combat power, Yuna felt a little crestfallen. Her upset face was really adorable as she unconsciously puffed her cheeks slightly whilst being so.
At first Yuna wasn't able to see the status screen Grey can see with his "Judgement", but in honor to Yuna's request, Grey had started utilizing Illusion magic to show Yuna what he can see.
The first time Yuna saw the status screens, she acted like a child who just got a new toy. Grey thought she was really cute at the time, seeing as how her eyes sparkled brighter than diamonds.
"Now, now, don't get too upset. I'm sure you'll achieve it sooner rather than later." ［Grey］
Grey cheered up Yuna as he gently patted her head like he was consoling a little child, shifting Yuna's mood from upset to happy.
While for Grey, such actions were just normal, to Yuna, it had a wholly different and special meaning. Although simple, they were actions which calmed her down and made her heart flutter.
The two had been living together for almost three years, and because of that they had seen many sides of each other. It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to say they knew almost everything about one another.
In those times, slowly but surely, Yuna developed an interest towards Grey which turned into affection then love as time passed. After all, for a man and woman who had been living under the same roof for years, it isn't surprising if one develops feelings for the other.
Grey, on the other hand, was a different case. Ever since he had arrived in Merusia, he had always been fascinated about concepts of fantasy foreign from Earth. To him, his feelings for Yuna were nothing but fascination towards the fantasy creatures called "Elves". In other words, he had yet to develop the deep affection that Yuna feels for him.
To make things worse, Grey is unaware of Yuna's feelings, making him do things that one could easily misunderstand without much thought. An example of this was what Grey was currently doing.
Yuna could try to be more aggressive and directly tell Grey, but such ways are way above her with her somewhat timid character. She would rather fight a large horde of monsters than confess her feelings.
In fact, she even uses her concealment abilities when she was about to show her feelings, afraid that their current relationship will be destroyed if Grey found out about her feelings for him.
"Ah, it's already this late. We should probably go to sleep. Goodnight." ［Grey］
"A-Ah, yes! Goodnight!" ［Yuna］
Attempting to hide her flushed face, Yuna hurriedly went upstairs towards her bedroom, leaving Grey behind in the kitchen.
Soon after, Grey also finished up all his chores and went up to his own bedroom. He then jumped on his bed, bringing him to dreamland as another night passed away.
CRASSHHHHHHHHH
Rather than being woken up by the gentle sunlight, a loud noise like crashing thunder greeted the two in the morning, compelling the two who were just sleeping moments ago to wake up and search for the cause of such commotion.
"W... What's happening?!" ［Yuna］
In front of Yuna, the dungeon which had been with her since Grey saved her was collapsing before her eyes. It was gentle yet violent at the same time, only affecting the dungeon and not those near it.
While Yuna was in a panic, Grey in contrast was very calm. It was as if the two were observing two very different scenes.
"Hey, Greyー" ［Yuna］
"Don't worry. It just reached the time limit." ［Grey］
As Grey had said, the special dungeon was only meant to last for about 3 years. It was something both he and God had agreed to. Of course, as it was a dungeon meant for training, there wouldn't be any rewards after clearing it.
To prevent Yuna from panicking, Grey calmly explained everything to her. Of course, that was "everything" except the part of his previous life, reincarnation, and meeting with God.
Although Grey trusts Yuna very much, finding the right time to tell her was a little troubling. And even if he did tell her, she might look at him like he was some kind of insane person.
Thinking back to his promise that he won't ever lie to Yuna again made his heart ache from guilt. For some reason, he felt as if he was a villain even when he technically hasn't done anything wrong.
After some time, the dungeon finally collapsed and as if it had never been there, the debris from its collapse slowly turned into mana, leaving a forested area behind.
With the collapse of the dungeon, the two immediately started to take action and packed everything their necessities. The big and numerous ones went into Grey's "Inventory" while the others went into medium-sized backpacks.
Now that they have no more reason to continue living in the forest, the two had decided to go on a journey around the world, not only so that they can explore the world, but also to accomplish two objectives.
The first one was to fulfill Grey's promise to God and conquer all the Ten Great Labyrinths. Of course, to Yuna who knew nothing about Grey's promise, it was only a dream borne out of love for adventures.
The second objective was to find out who the perpetrators were which brought about destruction to Yuna's home village. And the moment they find them, they will make them pay for their atrocities.
"Are you ready?" ［Grey］
"Un!" ［Yuna］
"Alright, then let's depart!" ［Grey］
Without further ado, the two set out on a journey to explore the world beyond the forest. For the both of them who had lived in the forest all their lives, it was an experience which made their hearts tremble in exhilaration.
It's been a few hours since the two had started their travels, and during these few hours, they have encountered various monsters and beasts along the way. Most of the beasts ran from the two of them, but monsters, which only sought destruction, tried to fight them the moment they saw them.
Unlike the monsters in the special dungeon, monsters outside drop various things from mana crystals, to crafting ingredients, and even a whole set of equipment. Of course, all of them went to Grey's "Inventory" the moment they defeated them.
The strongest monster they encountered was a C-rank Goblin King, but the battle wasn't even worth mentioning. It didn't even last a single minute.
The journey was smooth sailing, until one critical detail about traveling that Grey missed was brought up by Yuna as they were resting under the shade of a great tree.
"So, which town are we going to, Grey?" ［Yuna］
It was then that Grey was struck by an arrow of realization. He hasn't planned anything at all!
While Grey had prepared everything they needed in terms of equipment and food rations, he hadn't actually planned about their destination. It was an aspect he had completely overlooked.
"Uh... Umm, we're going to Galderia. A city in the kingdom of Alfrione." ［Grey］
"Oh? A city..." ［Yuna］
Grey quickly thought up a destination and selected the nearest city just located a few kilometers northwest from the edge of the Haltea Great forest.
And Yuna, who doesn't have any knowledge about geography nor political territories around the world, immediately believed Grey. Her eyes were even sparkling by the thought of visiting a city for the first time.
A few days passed and the two had just passed the edge of the forest. The moment they stepped out of the Haltea Great Forest, what greeted them was the green and serene Plains of Gaya. It was a place where trees were sparse and grass dominated the landscape.
Along the green plains, small horned rabbits hopped around freely as if they owned the place. Bees and butterflies could also be seen as they hovered above the variety of flowers in the field.
"Wahhh～" ［Yuna］
Seeing an environment other than a forest, Yuna became immersed in her own world as she observed every little thing she could.
The birds circling in the unobstructed sky, the sound of the grass as it rustled from the refreshing breeze, and even the brown horned rabbits burrowing inside their holes from time to time. Each and every scene graced Yuna with fascination.
As for Grey, he just let Yuna enjoy her first time outside the forest and just guided her path from time to time, trying his best to not shatter the innocent elven girl's time for herself.
"Yu... na... Yuna." ［Grey］
"H-Huh? Were you saying something, Grey.?" ［Yuna］
More than an hour has passed since the two had exited the forest and Yuna was still immersed in her own world. It wasn't until Grey called out to her that she realized how much time had passed.
Rather than answering her using words, Grey simply stepped aside and with a wave of his hand, he showed Yuna a sight which she will never forget.
As Yuna looked towards the horizons, what graced her eyes were stone walls easily reaching 20 meters in height. It was a giant which dwarfed everything within proximity. A structure which imposed an aura of strength and majesty.
It was the city of Galderia!
CHAPTER 8 END