Episode(23): The journey continues
SOVEREIGN OF DEATH~(23)
『You have killed level 150 wolf king. Your level increases』
『You have killed level 120 wolf General. Your level increases』
『You have....』
『You have.....』
Nagisa sat against a tree while the wind blew strands of his hair to the side. His eyes were closed and he meditated while ignoring the fanfare exploding in his mind.
After a while, he let out a breath before opening his eyes with a smile. The notifications that kept popping up made his achievement of defeating the boss all the more exciting.
He almost died but so what? Nagisa clenched his fist feeling that the fight was worth it.
It was thanks to that battle that he ended up with a lot of gains even if he almost died for those said gains.
Also-
[Thanks to that fight I finally was able to achieve the state of 'Oneness']
Recalling the feeling of enlightenment Nagisa didn't hesitate at all. The next moment he opened his status window and looked at it with expectant eyes.
[Kanata Nagisa–(Lv.63) ]
[Class– Ruler of Death]
[Trait – Art of Death (EX-2), Master (EX), Reluctant (EX) ]
[Mana–8010/11400]
"Skills"
[Perception(S+)] [Swordplay(SS)] [Martial Arts(S-)] [Kanata Footwork(S+)] [Body Control(SS+)] [Oneness(A-)] [Mana UP(B+)] [Mana Manipulation(B)] [Weapon Craft(C)]
Seeing his current stats, the corners of Nagisa's lips couldn't help but raise. Not only his mana, but even his levels and skills proficiency all went and shot through the roof! It was all so explosive that Nagisa couldn't believe it at all!
Just moments ago his stats were still that of a beginner and now just look at what he had become! An expert!
It was the proof that overcoming trials and tribulations would give explosive benefits. Nagisa felt it was indeed the right choice not to retreat in the face of death but to continue fighting.
While he definitely could have went back to the safe zone during the fight, he'd log forgotten about it and he was glad. That left him with no route to retreat and as a result he grew explosively so quickly!
'And man are the gains sweet!'
Nagisa smiled. But soon the smiled faded and he frowned.
He was happy that all his skills grew and his mana had been increased to such a high level as well. However, the amount of EXP and his current level was slightly disappointing. After all, he did put his life on the line, but he only gained a few levels? He couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.
If it was like this then how long it would take to reach level 100 or 500 or even 1000? It might even take a few thousands of years if there was no high leveled monsters to fight. He sighed.
But soon he shook his head. His level was too low to even be thinking about that so he would just place it to the back of his mind for now.
'Reality is cheap after all'
It wasn't too much of a loss since he did indeed have a lot of gains so there was no need to stress the small stuff.
For now he didn't have to worry about anything aside from advancing through the dungeon and staying alive. For that, he looked at the object in his hand.
『Key to the 31st floor』
Nagisa didn't see a door even after spreading his perception so he was a bit worried how to get to the next level. However this key just appeared as loot all of a sudden giving him a fright.
He read the details and after a while he figured out how to use it. All he needed to do was hold this key while saying 'transfer' and he would automatically be brought to the next level.
Since he now had a way to go to the next floor Nagisa decided to not advance as yet. He wasn't done checking his gains after all and he wanted to make sure of everything that could be a weakness or a strength before fighting higher leveled monsters.
After this fight Nagisa wouldn't underestimate monsters so he needed to know what was in his arsenal before charging into enemy territory.
He first looked at the swords in his hand. One was the wolf slayer and the other was the ice slayer sword. Both of them had suddenly floated in the air moments before this.
Nagisa was stunned and thought his babies were leaving home to live their own lives. But then he saw the two swords shine with a bright light and their forms had changed afterwards.
He was relieved they were just evolving but the fact that they could evolve made Nagisa overjoyed as well. Although he had decided not to stress about the weapon, who would say no to a stronger weapon in the end?
As soon as the bright light receded, Nagisa saw the two swords one black and one white hovering silently in the air.
On the surface, nothing seemed to have changed aside from the fact that instead of bone blades there were actual blades. But Nagisa felt it.
The black wolf slayer had a dark aura wrapped around it while the ice wolf slayer was like a cold star had descended to freeze everything in its surrounding regardless of what it was. With stronger auras like this how could he not know that the two swords were now stronger than ever before?
He looked at the two swords lovingly with shock and awe and an excitement. He couldn't wait to try the swords out on monsters!
Of course he couldn't forget to name them as well. He couldn't just keep calling them 'wolf slayer' forever.
So the moment he laid eyes on the swords, it was like the names had already been decided. Nagisa was in a daze as he said the words.
[Night....Fall]
Ding!
『Sword has been granted a name by the creator. The sword Nightfall shall receive special privileges 』
Nagisa realized that he had reflexively said those words but he wasn't opposed to the name at all. Rather he was surprised at his naming sense. Did he usually have a knack for naming things? He might actually a talent for these things.
While praising himself, he also glanced at the ice sword. It was the same as with 'Nightfall'. The name immediately popped up in his mind and he said without hesitation at the next moment.
[Sword of white!-Hopeless Widow]
『Sword has been granted a name by the creator. The sword of white-Hopeless Widow shall receive special privileges 』
Nagisa listened to the voice in relish as he felt the changes in the sword in his hand. After a while, everything had finally been finished and he sheathed both 'Nightfall' and 'Hopeless'.
'Should I just get going now?'
He wanted to move on to the next floor. His energy had mainly recovered and he didn't think there was much to do in this place so he thought it better to move on quickly.
However he felt like there was more to do on this floor. He pocketed the key and took a final glance around before his gaze landed on the wolf boss and all its subordinates. The corpses were all just lying there asking to be used as materials.
His eyes lit up after a moment of thinking.
[I know I'm being greedy but, I wonder if this might work?]
Nagisa stuck 'Nightfall' into the ground before he gathered the corpses of the wolf boss, the stealth wolf, the shadow wolf and all the other wolves except the ice wolf around the sword. He then sat down, closed his eyes and concentrated the same way he did when he was creating the sword.
As he focused deeply, Nagisa's 'Art of Death' activated and with the assistance of weapon crafting he felt like he was actually forging a sword.
He added the materials one by one while his fingers danced in the air like a choir conductor controlling the song. Soon, all the monster corpses had vanished leaving behind nothing but the ice wolf corpse that was far away.
As Nagisa began to shape the sword in his mind, an ominous and dark aura exploded from the sword. Everything in the surroundings except for Nagisa and the white sword were all blasted away. It was as if it knew and accepted Nagisa as its lord and wielder.
He opened his eyes and stretched out his hand grabbing the sword. Instantly, the explosive aura calmed down as if everything just now was a fantasy.
Nagisa ignored the destruction and looked at the sword with a gleam in his eyes.
『NightFall』
[Rank: Legendary]
[Options:
~Increases strength and speed 60% at night or when it's dark.
~Shadow movement and shadow sword can be used in dark spaces.
~Stealth Increases 30% and 65% in the dark
~Forces Impact against collision and disables an opponent's defenses
~Regeneration Increases 30% in the dark]
[Requirements: Nagisa Kanata]
Amazing.
Nagisa had no other words. He just wanted to wield the sword this very moment.
He beamed a happy smile like a child receiving a new toy. He was extremely happy at this moment with the feeling of this sword.
Not able to hold back his excitement, Nagisa tried the same with Hopeless. Unfortunately, it was only able to fuse with a single corpse and didn't have that big of a change. Although it also became a legendary sword with options, it wasn't as explosive as nightfall.
Nonetheless he was satisfied.
[Now I can use the freeze status longer]
Nagisa didn't immediately leave and took the change to forge new armor from the lesser wolf corpses as well. If he went to the other floors like this he might as well be asking to die a horrible death.
Since he didn't want to be a paper soldier that had high attack but low defensive strength he needed armor!
This fight also told him that he couldn't just depend on his body alone to withstand the attacks of these monsters and their abilities. Since he didn't know what type of law defying skill he might face next, it was better to be prepared!
After a while of back and forth checking what he had and what he needed.
Alright––
He looked at himself with satisfaction. Using the remaining corpses he created armor to guard all the important parts.
Although they were only rare rank, Nagisa didn't plan on becoming a punching bag so it was a good enough level for him.
If possible he'd wanted to make invincible armor but with the current materials there was no way to do such a thing unless he was really blessed by the god of luck and made one by mistake.
For now the best he could do was rare rank armor.
He then looked at the remaining materials with a pained expression. He didn't want them to go to waste and wanted to carry the but he didn't have space.
Maybe some way along the way he would learn storage magic but for now it was just impossible. He sighed and shook his head regretfully.
[Well then, I have nothing left on the floor so....'Transfer']
He didn't hesitate. Even if there was something left it was likely too insignificant to make a difference.
The next moment, a light flashed and a huge door appeared out of nowhere. Nagisa looked at the door with an expectant and excited gaze.
Although he didn't know where this door would lead him in the end he was sure of one thing. From here on, his journey to become the strongest would continue!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Kanata Nagisa–(Lv.63) ]
[Class– Ruler of Death]
[Trait – Art of Death (EX-2), Master (EX), Reluctant (EX) ]
[Mana–8010/11400]
"Skills"
[Perception(S+)] [Swordplay(SS)] [Martial Arts(S-)] [Kanata Footwork(S+)] [Body Control(SS+)] [Oneness(A-)] [Mana UP(B+)] [Mana Manipulation(B)] [Weapon Craft(C)]
『Nightfall』
[Rank: Legendary]
[Options:
~Increases strength and speed 60% at night or when it's dark.
~Shadow movement and shadow sword can be used in dark spaces.
~Stealth Increases 30% and 65% in the dark
~Forces Impact against collision and disables an opponent's defenses
~Regeneration Increases 30% in the dark]
[Requirements: Nagisa Kanata]
『Hopeless Widow』
[Rank: Legendary]
[Options:
~Frost bite–induces the freezes status on damaged targets.
~Frost blade–Blade emits a strong wave of Ice element. Attacks like Frost slash or Frost wave can be activated by pouring mana into the sword.
~Blue Rose Blooms within wounds inflicted by the sword and has a 40% chance of activation. Drains life force of targets 20% per 30 seconds]
[Requirements: Nagisa Kanata]