After Rejoke went through all the treasures he had obtained by defeating the blonde man, he returned to Aurora's side.
With a quick nod, the two began to walk in a random direction. The day was about to begin, but that didn't bother the white fox at all. All she wanted to do now was lie down and sleep. After all, she was way too exhausted, even if her SP was basically full.
It didn't take too long for the two to find a nice place to sleep. It was just a plain clearing surrounded by trees, but thanks to the high, wide leaves of the trees, the ground in the middle of them was devoid of snow.
Aurora wasted no time and immediately lied down on the grass, falling asleep in an instant. On the other hand, Rejoke didn't go to sleep. He merely sat down next to the sleeping fox and stayed vigilant in case an enemy appeared.
It wasn't until the whole day had passed and the morning sun of the next day had begun to rise that Aurora woke up. She slept for almost a full day, something she hardly ever did. Though it hardly mattered, as sleeping didn't mean just wasting time dreaming.
No, now that their connection was strong enough, every time Aurora would fall asleep, her consciousness would just move into her soul, where she would spend the night chatting with Yuki. This meant that even the time she spent sleeping wasn't wasted.
It wasn't any different this time. As soon as she fell asleep, Aurora appeared inside her soul. Yuki was already waiting for her, and as soon as she appeared, the small white fox waved her paw cutely.
With a quick and simple nod, Aurora sat down in front of her sister, and after chatting about some small and insignificant matters, the two moved on to a bit of a pressing issue.
"What's the next step in the plan, sis?" As that question left Yuki's mouth, both foxes switched into their serious mode, as it was obvious that it was time for the real talk.
"Hard to say. The appearance of the two humans certainly changed the plans a bit. Not to mention that now that we're level 30, it's going to be much harder to go any higher." Aurora shook her head softly.
"Basically, only beings above level 40 can help us in any way. And that's also probably just about two levels per one." Yuki nodded in agreement. It was quite clear that they needed to change their plans a bit.
"Now that I think about it... to reach the max, I'll probably be forced to fight more rank 2 enemies, won't I?" The sudden thought made Yuki's eyes go slightly wide as the words she was about to say got stuck in her throat.
Indeed, what Aurora said made sense. If enemies ten levels above them only gave them around two levels, then by the time they reached the max level of the first rank, they would have to beat at least a few more rank 2 enemies.
"You're right... but it's not going to be that bad. Don't forget that we are now much stronger than before. With the new title and bunch of the treasures we got, fighting rank 2 monsters shouldn't be impossible." In the end, Yuki could only try to stay positive.
Actually, the system wasn't unfair or anything. Aurora was really strong, thanks to her race being unique. If anything, having a unique race was a huge thing. While it may be very difficult to level up, the boost she receives just from having the One and Only title was absurd.
Basically, she was the definition of quality over quantity, and while that may not be as powerful in the early game, it would become absolutely broken later on. It was just that she would need to survive and evolve further. Only then would she be able to reach the true turning point in her potential.
"Right. Speaking of the title, why didn't it evolve when I defeated Aurelius back in the dungeon? If I'm not mistaken, I defeated him without help, right?" Aurora decided to move on from the matter of levels, asking a question that suddenly popped up in her mind.
"Oh, that? Well, you used the Flame of Burning Desire, which wasn't and still isn't really a part of your own strength. It's still a mystery how you managed to even use that thing, so the system probably counted it as external help." Yuki theorized, and although she wasn't sure, her answer was very probable, so Aurora just nodded.
"Anyway, we need to think. Moving right now isn't a bad idea, even with the increased level. However, unless the new area has rank 2 monsters and beasts, it probably won't last long." Aurora shook her head with a sigh.
"You're right about that, but what else can we do? I mean, it's not like we have many options. Staying here won't do us any good. Not even Rejoke can level up here anymore since his level has probably risen a lot with this fight." Yuki also shook her head.
Yuki's words made perfect sense. They really didn't have much of an option, now did they? The realization made both of them heave a complicated sigh.
"In the end, the plan stays the same, huh? We move then!" Aurora exclaimed, shaking off the negative thoughts and emotions crawling on her back.
Yuki giggled when she saw her sister's sudden burst of excitement. It was nice that at times like this, Aurora was always able to keep her head straight as well as keep her enthusiasm all the time.
Staying positive was a good thing. Negative thoughts tend to cloud one's judgment, something that could even lead to one's demise. And if there was one thing Yuki definitely didn't want was Aurora falling so soon. No, actually, she didn't want her to fall at all.
"Right. Let's just keep moving forward. Plans change all the time, but our goal always stays the same at the end." In the end, Yuki nodded with equal excitement to her sister.
It was at this moment that Aurora's image began to slowly fade.
"Oh, it seems like I'm waking up. I'll talk to you once I'm back in my body." Aurora quickly waved her paw, disappearing the next moment.
...
With a lazy yawn, the small white fox stretched its cute little body, waking up from its slumber. Aurora's vision was still a bit fuzzy as she had just woken up. However, as her eyes regained their clarity, she found herself staring upwards.
Glancing at the orange sky visible through the gaps between the leaves, Aurora's brows furrowed. Immediately springing back up onto her feet, she ran up to a tree and quickly climbed all the way to its top.
As her eyes fell on the rising sun, confusion struck her like a truck.
'Morning? What? Wait, wait, wait. Did I sleep for a day straight!?' She exclaimed internally, not expecting herself to sleep for so long.
Aurora quickly jumped off the tree, landing right next to Rejoke. Giving the wolf a quick and simple nod, she immediately set off in a random direction at moderate speed.
The wolf quickly followed suit as he sensed his alpha seemed to be in a hurry. Although he had no idea why she was panicking so much despite just waking up, he didn't care much either.
As so, the two began their new journey. Days passed by, but no new area seemed to be in sight. The white snow plains went as far as the eye could see. The only difference was the severe lack of trees in comparison to the place they were in days ago.
The snow-covered forest was now more of an icy wasteland, completely covered in layers upon layers of snow and ice. Random pillars of thick blue ice stuck out from beneath the snow, reaching several meters above it. The place looked very similar to the first floor of the dungeon the two had cleared.
The monsters here were also many times more powerful, averaging around level 40, some even reaching what was probably the peak of the first rank at level 50.
By the time the two even reached the place they were at today, Aurora had already reached level 38 from all the monsters she had killed. And although she had no idea what level Rejoke was at, he probably wasn't far from 50 already. After all, the wolf could easily face level 50 opponents without any troubles.
'For how long will this go on?' Aurora shook her head, her eyes overlooking the distant horizon.
"Good question. We've been wandering around for a week already and have found basically nothing. Who knows, maybe all that's left in this direction is the same frozen wasteland." Yuki merely shrugged her shoulders in a human-like fashion.
'Tsk, there's no way, right? Not to mention that those two humans had to come from somewhere.' Aurora clicked her tongue, voicing her disbelief.
"As I said, in this direction. They might have come from the completely opposite direction. Actually, they might have even been on their way here, but due to the old man's interest in you, they have met an early end." Yuki reason, to which Aurora has no way to refute.
In all honesty, she knew that Yuki was most probably correct. It was just that she simply didn't want to accept such a reality. They were bound to find something if they went far enough! Such were her thoughts. And it wasn't like them wandering like this was a problem. They were able to level up without staggering much, so they were making progress at the very least.
However, this wouldn't last long. The monsters here would either become too weak, or the ones forward would become far too powerful. There was no middle ground, and that was a problem.
This was something Aurora had noticed quite some time ago. The farther they went, the more powerful the monsters and magical beasts became. But that wasn't the only thing. The farther they went, the bigger the jumps in power became.
For example, a week ago, the monsters averaged around level 30. Two days later, the average became level 32. But then, two more days ago, the average jumped to level 36. Yesterday, it was already ranging from level 40-41. And today? Let's just say that it wasn't anything pleasant.
'Tsk, these annoying bastards.' Aurora clicked her tongue, shooting out a spear of fire and blowing the head of a lizard-like creature apart.
[You have defeated the Ice Spike Gecko level 50.]
[You have reached level 39.]
[You have reached level 40.]
"Two more left. Let's finish them off quickly!" Yuki exclaimed excitedly, enthusiasm Aurora couldn't share.
At the moment, she was fighting against three identical beasts, all of them at level 50. Meanwhile, Rejoke was fighting against about a dozen smaller beasts, all averaging around level 43. Thankfully, the wolf's high strength was enough to decimate such opponents with ease.
Overall, the fight wasn't very difficult for either of them, but it wasn't the fight that made Aurora worried.
The jumps between levels got really high the farther they went. From now on, even level 50 monsters of the first rank wouldn't be a rarity, which meant that there was a decent chance of some even stronger monsters appearing. Namely, rank 2 monsters.
[You have defeated the Ice Spike Gecko level 50.]
[You have reached level 44.]
'Finally, that's the last one.' Aurora sighed, slumping down on the cold snow.
"What are you being dramatic for? They weren't even a challenge." Seeing her sister act like that, Yuki scoffed. But she wasn't wrong.
'We can't go on like this. Even if I'll soon reach level 50, which should allow me to safely fight against early rank 2 enemies, there's still no way I'll be able to fight those on the level of Aurelius.' Aurora shook her head helplessly.
'And from what you said, I'm not going to be evolving anytime soon.' She sighed heavily, feeling a lot of complex emotions.
"Mhm, the evolution to the second rank should already present you with some requirements that you need to complete. It's a sort of test to see if the individual is capable enough for the evolution they chose. As for us, I'm afraid the evolution requirements will be anything but simply considering the nature and power of our class." Yuki confirmed her doubts, causing her to sigh heavily again.
"So, what now, sis?" Yuki asked, quite curious how their plans will shape now.
'Nothing changes; we move ahead. Even if there are human settlements in the opposite way, it's not like they'll do us any good. No matter what, I'm still a magical beast, not a human.' Leaving those words behind, Aurora quickly went through the loot she got from the three lizards.
Finding nothing noteworthy, she merely resumed to walk once again. At the very least, she recovered her stamina by leveling up.
The future was truly mysterious, and Aurora knew she had no rule over it. Even her own fate wasn't in her hands. Not yet, at least. But that wouldn't be the same forever, and she definitely wouldn't let someone else dictate her fate.
So, with steps full of confidence, the small white fox decided to face any difficulties along her path head-on. And as for those who stood in her path? She couldn't care any less.