Among the gods who were unaware of the full truth, those who did not understand the extent of Ottar's strength or Leon's recent achievements, none of them believed that Leon had reached Level 8. At most, they assumed that Leon was still Level 7, just significantly stronger than Ottar. But that belief was now crumbling.
The current situation laid everything bare. What was once a suspicion had turned into certainty. Leon's strength had undoubtedly stepped into the realm of Level 8, perhaps even surpassed it.
Back then, during the legendary battle against the One-Eyed Black Dragon, the gods had peered through the Divine Mirror, desperate to witness the outcome. It was during that era they first discovered that beings of great power could distort and shake the Divine Mirror with their very presence.
The Empress of the Hera Familia and Maxim of Zeus Familia had been the ones to cause that phenomenon. One stood at Level 9, the other at a perfected Level 8—beings whose strength touched the edge of divinity.
Now, Leon's battle was causing that same level of distortion.
To the gods, it was unmistakable.
Leon had reached a tier that echoed the strength of those bygone legends.
And the truly terrifying part? He'd done it in just over two months.
Decades of training, battle, and growth had taken the Empress and Maxim to that stage… and Leon had caught up in a fraction of the time.
Even the gods, beings who had witnessed countless miracles and disasters, couldn't help but feel shaken.
"If he continues at this pace for a few more months… will he become a god himself?"
That thought crossed more than one divine mind.
Had Lucifer not already been judged to not have done anything, many of them might have believed this rapid growth was the result of forbidden intervention. But there was no such interference. This was all Leon.
"…Could it be?"
Hermes narrowed his eyes as he stared into the Divine Mirror, his expression complex. "Is Leon the one destined to slay the One-Eyed Black Dragon…?"
It was a thought that disturbed him.
Until now, Hermes had placed his faith in Belle, the last legacy of the fallen Zeus and Hera Familias. Belle's growth had been extraordinary. She was the final hope, the final seed entrusted to the world.
Even with Leon's rising fame, Hermes had never wavered in that belief.
But now…
Now, watching the titanic battle unfolding on the 21st floor, Hermes' convictions began to tremble and he wasn't alone.
All across Orario, gods who had once placed their hopes on Belle now turned their eyes toward a new light.
Leon.
The adventurer who stood alone against the corrupted spirit and the Dungeon itself. The one whose radiance now rivaled the legendary heroes of the past.
"Hestia… you've found someone truly remarkable." Hephaestus said softly, standing in the dim glow of the library, her gaze fixed on the Divine Mirror.
She had come to accompany her long-time friend, but even she could not take her eyes off the spectacle.
"Hehe... My taste is impeccable, isn't it?" Hestia puffed up her chest with pride, her voice full of glee.
But that joy didn't last. Her brows slowly furrowed as realization set in.
"…Wait a minute. This isn't the artificial labyrinth. It's the 21st floor of the Dungeon."
She blinked in confusion. "Wasn't Leon supposed to be inside the artificial Dungeon?"
"When did he run off to the real one and who is he fighting?"
"Well… why not ask Ouranos?" Hephaestus offered with a smirk and a shrug. "Or better yet, ask Leon yourself when he returns."
Unbeknownst to the gods who now placed their hope in him—
Leon himself was completely unaware that all of Orario's deities were watching him. Right now, his attention was solely locked onto one thing.
The corrupted spirit before him.
Although the humanoid demi-spirit wasn't stronger than Leon, it possessed something else, something just as valuable as power.
It could use instant magic and not just casually. It wielded its magic with precision in close-quarters combat, something rarely seen even among the most gifted mages. This made it a uniquely formidable opponent.
Leon had the upper hand in strength, yes but he made no move to end the battle quickly because the opponent held something Leon craved:
Magic mastery.
For all of Leon's overwhelming strength in melee combat, his magic was lagging behind. It remained stuck at the Level 7 threshold. Despite his best efforts, even through constant discussions and training with Riveria, progress had been minimal.
And therein lay the problem. Riveria, though revered as the strongest mage in Orario, was still only Level 7 herself. Her insights could no longer push Leon further.
But the corrupted spirit?
It had devoured countless other spirits. Its magical knowledge was vast.
To Leon, this battle wasn't just a fight. It was an opportunity, a treasure trove of magic. And he would seize every bit of it.
"As expected of a spirit who's absorbed so many others… magic of every element and form, all seamlessly integrated." Leon murmured as he parried another spell with a flash of his own.
His eyes gleamed. "This… this is too good to pass up."
He didn't need to say it aloud, but he felt it in every fiber of his being. This was the breakthrough he'd been waiting for.
His magic had hit a wall but now, it could evolve.
Although he could have ended the corrupted spirit with ease, he didn't.
Not yet.
Not until he'd taken everything he could from it.
Leon, with his terrifying potential in both physical and magical combat, needed something greater to ascend again and this was it.
Their battle raged on, minute after minute.
While most would have collapsed under such pressure, Leon was thriving.
He was stealing techniques mid-combat and converting them into his own.
Every time the corrupted spirit unleashed a new spell, Leon's expression would brighten ever so slightly.
He was copying it and not just in magic. The intense battle had his World's grace burn. His back burned with divine heat, far stronger than anything he'd experienced before.
His growth was accelerating, far beyond normal parameters.
Even the corrupted spirit seemed to sense something unnatural about Leon but it didn't retreat. Instead, it doubled down, unleashing its most powerful magic, combined with close-quarters martial techniques it had inherited from long-dead heroes.
The two clashed again and again, the sky above the 21st floor lighting up with violent brilliance.
Eventually, the battle reached a point where Asterius could no longer remain nearby. Even the mighty Minotaur was being impacted by the sheer destructive force of the clash.
His massive body trembled with frustration. Then, without a word, he scooped up the White Wolf demi-spirit he had been dueling and charged straight toward the 22nd floor, leaving the 21st to Leon and the corrupted spirit alone.
Leon, who was still tracking everything with his Veins of Light, noticed Asterius' sudden movement. And when he saw the faint twitch of annoyance on the Minotaur's massive face, Leon, mid-battle, almost burst into laughter.
The bull-faced warrior's "I've had enough of this" expression and dramatic charge to the next floor nearly made Leon chuckle aloud. But he quickly regained composure. His focus locked back onto his opponent.
The theft continued. He absorbed more and refined his magical arsenal.
Ten minutes after the battle had begun, the entire 21st floor had sunk.
Literally.
Under the weight of their duel, the massive floor had caved in several meters. The tree labyrinth had become a wasteland of broken roots, shattered ground, and scorched stone. Not a single corner was left untouched.