Crimson h.e.l.l was strong enough to give me trouble even after I grew stronger through the Beast King. They appeared from anywhere in the dungeon floor and put in great efforts to try and a.s.similate me.
However, I already learned how to fight against them on the 81st floor. Using Death Knight"s skill, Breath of Death, I created chaos flames wrapped in death energy. The moment they touched these flames, they were dyed grey, losing their mana and evaporating.
"I hate how they"re so quiet."
They didn"t make any slimy or watery sound. They simply popped out of nowhere, a.s.saulting me. What annoyed me the most was that just being in this place sucked mana out of me. Absolute Soul actively held its defense and protected my mind, but it couldn"t stop them completely. It was a true h.e.l.l.
[I am Dortu. Reinforcing Master"s equipment.]
At that moment, Dortu suddenly muttered.
"Reinforce?"
[I am Dortu. Reinforcing all metals.]
Immediately, Pure Black Desire shone with a faint light. Small symbols appeared on its surface along with tiny b.u.mps. It was the same for Chaotic Spear. The spear became slightly longer and a red symbol was engraved above the spear blade.
"Dortu, you…"
[I am Dortu. I did well.]
"Yeah, you did."
It felt like he wanted me to compliment him, so I did. I still didn"t know how he strengthened my equipment, but I soon found out.
First, Pure Black Desire"s defense went up. Not only its physical defense, but also its magical defense and mana resistance. This meant that Crimson h.e.l.l was now stealing less of my mana. Wait, strengthening Pure Black Desire? Even though it was already a Legend grade item?
[I am Dortu. Effect is temporary. Dortu can change it permanently by staying in it for a long time.]
"Dortu… You"re the best."
Chaotic Spear, on the other hand, had its reinforcement focused around its aura. The amount of aura I could draw out using the same amount of mana doubled. Crimson h.e.l.l seemed surprised by my sudden change, as they backed off before coming together into a giant wave. These d.a.m.ned cowards!
[They"re below us too, Master!]
"Sharana! We"re going to break through!"
d.a.m.n, why did I have to run through waves while climbing the dungeon!? With my spear held out front, I activated Wind King"s Rage.
"Sharana!"
[Yes, Master!]
Just by having their names called, my elementals became happy and displayed greater power. Starting from the tip of my spear, a fierce whirlpool covering my entire body rose up. Sharana meticulously and elaborately strengthened this whirlpool, and flames the Chaotic Spear let out with an ominous light decorated the whirlpool.
"Uaaaaaaaaah!"
I screamed at the top of my lungs and charged forward into the wave of Crimson h.e.l.l!
"Don"t be so c.o.c.ky when you"re not even the real thing!"
The wave rolled towards me. After clashing with the flaming whirlpool, most of it evaporated and fell apart as they were dyed grey. Although I could only see the fiercely spinning whirlpool in front of me, the sizzling sound of Crimson h.e.l.l put a wry smile on my face.
"If you suffered this much, you should know you aren"t strong enough!"
Of course, with their ma.s.s, it was hard to maintain this whirlpool. But if I stopped, I knew I would only get engulfed. As such, I tightly shut my mouth and charged forward quickly. Absolute Soul, Peruta Circuit, and Dortu and Sharana"s power. This might be the first time I put this much concentration into manipulating so many powers.
[You cleared the First Dungeon"s 82nd floor. You obtained the qualification to challenge Beyond"s 32nd floor.]
[You obtained 5 bonus stats.]
After running with Wind King"s Rage for some incalculable amount of time, I stopped reflexively in response to a familiar message. As the whirlpool surround my body subsided, I could finally see around me once again. Some distance away was a staircase, and closer by was a black shade, the gate leading to Beyond. There was also Loretta, who was staring at me with a surprised face from the Floor Shop"s stall.
"Shin-nim, you changed your armor and weapon? Did you go see Lin?"
"Ah, no, it"s my elemental."
"Elemental? … An elemental that can transform a Legend grade weapon and armor? Mmm…"
I didn"t think too much of it, but it seemed Loretta thought differently. However, after looking like she was hesitating, she didn"t say anything more about it. Instead, she smiled and changed the subject.
"Good work. Worlds" enemies aren"t easy to deal with, right?"
"Of course."
"Come here, I"ll give you a ma.s.sage."
"I feel like you"ll ma.s.sage me in inappropriate places."
"Don"t be a wimp. Ehehe."
I felt like Loretta forgot all about running the Floor Shop, but seeing her face, I couldn"t refuse her.
"Uhuhuhu, I prepared a mattress in case something like this ever happened."
"If you touch me in weird places, I"m going straight to Beyond."
Contrary to Loretta"s suspicious manner of speech, she really gave a genuine ma.s.sage. When I lied down on the mattress with my armor and spear back to its bracelet and choker form, she got on top of me and pressed her thumbs down on my sore muscles. An ordinary person would have had his bones shattered, but I was now strong enough to withstand her strength. Every time she pressed her fingers down, a cool breeze seemed to flow into me. I even got these messages.
[Your magic stat increases by 1.]
[Your magic stat increases by 2.]
[Your luck stat increases by 3.]
[Your const.i.tution stat increases by 2.]
"it"s a special energy only the Elf Queen can use. I can"t use it very often so you should enjoy it now. So? How is it? Refreshing, right?"
"Mm, my stats are increasing permanently… Isn"t this abusable?"
"… Normally, this technique can only be used on an Elf Queen"s spouse, so don"t tell other elves."
I grinned and fully relaxed my body for her ma.s.sage. When I closed my eyes and untensed my body, Loretta laughed as she continued her ma.s.sage.
"Heh… Yep, if it"s Shin-nim… Huhu."
"Did you say something?"
"I said I love Shin-nim."
"Mm… I love Loretta too."
"… Hiing, I didn"t record it again."
Loretta frowned while she continued to ma.s.sage me diligently. I also laughed lightly.
I knew that wasn"t what Loretta initially said. I knew she was still hiding something from me, but I didn"t ask.
She was an Elf Queen that had lived for over 2000 years. She wasn"t obligated to tell me everything she knew, and even if what she wasn"t telling me was related to me, I knew she had my best interest in mind. This level of trust was already fully ingrained between the two of us.
A pleasant silence flowed, and soon, we moved on to a different topic.
"Did Kain properly enter Shin-nim"s guild?"
"Yes. He decided to cooperate with me for a common goal."
"Really, I thought I knew everything about Shin-nim… Before I noticed, Shin-nim has been finding out about things even I didn"t know about, and Shin-nim can now easily do things that seemed so hard for me."
Her way of talking sounded like a mother proud of the children she raised. I couldn"t help but laugh.
"You don"t like it?"
"No, I think having a secret or two can be more charming. I don"t plan on interrogating Shin-nim about it."
"Loretta"s charming too."
"Uuu, meanie."
Loretta became quiet. I continued the story about Kain.
"I think Kain might have lingering feelings for Loretta."
"I thought so. I"m very pretty, you see."
"Wow."
"Wow!? What does that mean!?"
"It means I love you."
"That won"t trick me!"
Loretta"s acupressure got harder, but I simply laughed. If I hadn"t obtained the Beast King"s power, my bones would have broke undoubtedly.
[Your charm stat increases by 3.]
[Your luck stat increases by 3.]
"Ah, this is enough. Just how much power do you plan on using?"
"But—"
"We can do it again next time. I have to go now."
I got up and stretched. Her ma.s.sage made me feel refreshed like the time I reformed my body. I lightly patted Loretta who seemed to want more and jumped into Beyond without even wearing my armor.
Then, in just 30 minutes, I jumped out of the gate. Loretta, who was yawning at the Floor Shop, widened her eyes in surprise. After examining me from head to toe, she called my name with a dumbfounded voice.
"… Shin-nim?"
I waved my hand at her and ran up the stairs.
"I"ll see you on the 83rd floor, Loretta!"
"… Eh? Shin-nim! Shin-nim! What was that!? You went into Beyond, right!? How are you going up to the 83rd floor? What"s going on!?"
Even after I fully stepped into the 83rd floor, I felt like I could hear Loretta"s panicked shouts. I found it very interesting.
From the 81st floor to the 85th floor, I could practically skip Beyond, so Crimson h.e.l.l was the only obstacle I had to deal with. Thankfully, Crimson h.e.l.l on the higher floors didn"t come with strange added effects. They were simply stronger in the amount of mana they sucked in and the amount they appeared in.
I was increasing my skill proficiencies more by fighting the Crimson h.e.l.l than I was by training in Beyond. From what I felt, Absolute Soul seemed to be growing the most. It reached level 8 during my break through of the 83rd floor, and in the 84th floor which had a wider hallway and increased aggressiveness of Crimson h.e.l.l, Absolute Soul finally reached level 9. Even I couldn"t believe it.
"Huu… So it"s not just my imagination. Peruta Circuit"s efficiency is increasing too."
Absolute Soul aimed to achieve the perfect soul. Its ability to absorb mana was a natural effect resulting from the increased league of my soul, but after it reached level 9, not only did it steal mana from monsters, it also naturally absorbed mana from all things in the universe. When I used Peruta Circuit to absorb mana, its efficiency even multiplied severalfold.
Moreover, I was getting more familiar with Dortu, who was born not too long ago, and I could now use his ability more efficiently. I also became more adept at using Peruta Circuit, which was too complex to be described as "mastered."
"Crimson h.e.l.l might be the fallen state of an lifeform that tried to reach for a higher league."
Perhaps, the pitiful creature might still be thinking it"s reaching towards a whole soul.
It wasn"t just Crimson h.e.l.l. The worlds" enemies I"ve met were all continually evolving. What was their ultimate goal? Was it perfecting themselves like Absolute Soul? But even a world"s power couldn"t…
"… Ugh, I almost thought of something again."
It was probably too abstract for me to answer definitely. For a moment, however, I felt my heart drop and beat loudly. My instincts seemed to be telling me that I was walking the right path. That if I continued, I would be able to run quicker than anyone else.
But… Why? Why only me?
I didn"t know. I wasn"t allowed to know the answer right now, so I could only go on. One day, when I arrive at the destination, I"ll be able to know.
I kicked open the giant door in front of me. It was there waiting for me.
"Fight me, Crimson h.e.l.l!"
The 85th Floor Master battle was now beginning.