It was time to level up.
That was the only thought in Xien's mind when he saw his status—one that the goddess also nodded to confirm.
His attributes were extreme enough to astonish all of Orario—an outcome bought with sweat, blood, and brutal experience. And more importantly, they were the capital that would let him perform even greater miracles and accomplish the "impossible."
So.
Level up.
When an adventurer levels, their "vessel" is refined and elevated, and the divine blessing may awaken a new Development Ability—a so-called D.A. These are random, with rough categories like Hunter, Smithing, Poison Resistance, Magic Guidance, Healing, Mystery, and so on.
What appears is related to what the adventurer experienced before leveling. For example, if you've been exposed to poisonous plants or toxin-emitting monsters before leveling, you might gain Poison Resistance. But the exact conditions for Development Abilities still aren't fully understood.
Astraea looked over the results.
"Let's see… after leveling, your possible Development Abilities are: Hunter, Magic Guidance, Luck, Pharmaceutical, and…"
She paused.
"…Hero?"
"…Huh?" Xien froze. "Hero? What kind of Development Ability is that?"
He'd never heard of it. Did the original story even have something like that?
"Interesting," Astraea murmured, eyes narrowing with curiosity. "This is the first time I've seen it too…"
The sacred text didn't make mistakes. If it was truly named Hero, then it had to be rare—possibly extraordinary.
In all of Orario, the only one commonly associated with the word "Hero" was the leader of the Loki Familia: the Level 6 prum, Finn Deimne.
But that was Finn's title, not a Development Ability like this.
"So?" Astraea asked. "Want to try it? If you ask my recommendation, it's this one."
"Even if the effect is unclear, it should be strong. The name alone screams 'powerful'."
And she was right—this was a world that worshipped heroes. In this city that pursued heroism, the closer something was to the definition of "hero," the more potent it tended to be.
Xien nodded once.
"Then I'll choose it."
"Let me see what this so-called 'Hero' really is."
"Alright."
A few minutes later—
Xien
Level: 2
Strength: 10 | Endurance: 10 | Dexterity: 10 | Agility: 10 | Magic: 10
Development Ability: Hero I
Magic: Touch of Abundance, One Thought—God or Demon
Skills: Blazing Heart Revealed, Body of Abundance, Way of Life
Congratulations to the host. Strength increased. Interference Value +1000.
Finally, it had happened.
After more than half a month of grinding and countless trials, Xien became Level 2.
That meant a qualitative leap—real, fundamental change.
He'd finally stepped into the small group of adventurers on Orario's "other side."
After Astraea's head-patting, a quick embrace, and a "keep it up" encouragement that left him bursting with energy, Xien returned to his room.
"Alright, Orange Cat… is it enough now?"
He wanted to push his strength even further.
"Of course, dear host," the cat purred. "Transparent World costs 6000 Interference Value. This kitty will accept payment."
Starlike motes drifted into Xien.
As expected, a new ability appeared in his status.
Host: Xien
Class: Abundance Walker
Condition: Healthy
Mana: 2000
Skills:
Flow State
Adventurer Swordsmanship (Advanced)
Archery (Advanced)
Bajiquan (Intermediate)
Sun Breathing (Intermediate)
One Thought—God or Demon
Touch of Abundance
Body of Abundance
Way of Life
Combat Intuition
Fire Magic (Intermediate)
Sharingan (Two Tomoe)
Transparent World
He'd grown without even realizing it.
Looking at the packed skill list, Xien felt a deep, clean sense of accomplishment.
But he didn't rush anything.
After petting the Orange Cat for a while, he collapsed into bed and fell asleep.
A New Morning, A New Body
At dawn, he woke up refreshed.
The world felt different.
His senses. His body. Everything.
He applied a little pressure—
and the wood near the bed creaked inward, leaving a mark.
Light. Smooth. Effortless.
The post-level reinforcement had finally surfaced.
The expansion of his "vessel" showed up as an all-around increase in combat capability—though how much depended on talent and how deeply you'd mined your stats before leveling.
Like a kid with a new toy, Xien hurriedly got ready and ran to the training ground. He needed to familiarize himself with his new strength as soon as possible.
He'd planned to train alone.
But someone was already there.
A slender figure.
Kaguya. Kaguya
"Oh?" she greeted, smiling. "Little Xien. You're diligent—training this early?"
She was unusually warm.
After Xien's previous "teach-without-holding-back," her impression of him had improved.
"Yeah," Xien admitted, scratching his head. "I leveled up last night, so I wanted to test the effects."
"I see… figures…" Kaguya's eyes sharpened slightly.
That technique—she'd already seen what it could do.
She just hadn't expected him to reach Level 2 in under a month.
It was absurd.
And honestly… it made her want to fight.
"So," she said, voice light, "how about a spar? Let's see what you can do now."
"Really? Wouldn't that get in the way of your training?"
Xien was visibly excited.
A proper "sandbag" to verify his new strength beat swinging at air any day.
Kaguya chuckled. "What a cute reaction. Don't worry."
"Because you asked so politely… I'll be gentle."
"At least gentler than that dumb elf."
"…Ah." Xien coughed awkwardly. "H-haha… okay."
He couldn't exactly argue. They were comrades.
"Then," Kaguya said, raising her katana, "come."
Xien's expression sobered. He lifted a wooden training sword.
Perfect time to test the new skill.
He activated Transparent World.
Unlike the original version, this state had become an active skill—something he could switch on by will.
Kaguya's relaxed expression changed instantly.
Because she couldn't feel him anymore.
He was standing right there—
but he vanished from her perception completely, like he'd been erased.
Her posture tightened.
She didn't know what he'd done, but instinct screamed that it wasn't good.
And Xien?
He felt something difficult to describe.
A kind of total mastery.
If he used full power… he thought he could kill Kaguya in one strike.
The world changed.
Everything else fell away.
Only Kaguya remained.
Her breathing, her state, the movement inside her body—
even the actions she was about to take, the force she'd apply, the timing and speed—
all of it was laid bare.
It was unfair.
Not only her.
He could also "see" himself—his true bodily condition, like he had two viewpoints at once: player and avatar.
Absolute control.
Xien inhaled—
and disappeared from Kaguya's sight.
"…What?" Kaguya's eyes widened.
She lost him completely.
Then—
Xien appeared in front of her.
A single fast, precise strike landed on her katana.
He'd aimed deliberately.
If he hit her body, she'd likely lose mobility instantly.
Clack.
Kaguya was driven back several meters by the recoil before she could stabilize.
Cold sweat formed.
"Hey, hey, hey—what was that?" she snapped, breathing hard. "That's Level 2? That speed just now—what the hell?"
Xien was already standing where she'd been, looking far too relaxed.
Kaguya's instincts screamed "problem."
But she couldn't let a junior look down on her.
So she went all-out.
The katana flashed.
Fast—faster—sharp, extreme speed.
She chained countless tricky slashes into a flowing sword form designed to apply relentless pressure.
But—
Xien was cheating.
Those slashes that ordinary eyes couldn't track looked like slow motion to him.
With his newly "qualitative" speed and power, all he needed to do was adjust his body angle slightly—
and the cuts passed harmlessly by.
With Transparent World active, he had reached something like the peak of human martial technique.
Still… he didn't want to crush her confidence.
So during the final burst of faster exchanges, he didn't dodge.
He blocked lightly, meeting blade with blade.
Kaguya's expression improved—just a little.
After thirty minutes, they stood facing each other.
The scene was… strange.
Xien, a Level 2, casually twirled his wooden sword, looking comfortable.
Kaguya, a Level 3, was panting, locked onto him with fierce focus.
Sweat soaked her clothes, tracing her body's lines—damp fabric clinging, showing faint, teasing outlines.
Compared to Ryuu, Kaguya undeniably had more "capital."
But Ryuu was special.
So Xien still found himself looking a few extra times.
"X-Xien…" Kaguya breathed, incredulous. "Are you really Level 2?"
"Absolutely," he said. "But… I'm a little different."
"I awakened a very special skill yesterday."
He held up two fingers to show "just a tiny bit."
But while he looked relaxed, inside he was tense—
because he noticed something terrifying:
His mana had dropped by two-thirds.
Two-thirds.
In half an hour.
From a mana pool that, after leveling, should have been "massive."
Enough that he could run Sun Breathing at maximum output all day without blinking—
and yet just one skill had eaten most of it.
Why did he only notice now?
Because the drain didn't become obvious until he turned Transparent World off—his mana seemed to evaporate for a moment.
It nearly made his heart stop.
"So that's what's going on?" he thought.
"Meow," the Orange Cat answered in his head. "It's the pinnacle state of human technique. One step beyond is the realm of gods."
"If you're forcing it without fully understanding it yourself, you pay a price."
"So it consumes my mana."
"Yes, meow."
Xien exhaled slowly.
"Then it makes sense."
"This stays my strongest trump card for now."
"It's too powerful not to be a finishing move."
The cat added, "Honestly, you could just take the normal path…"
Xien narrowed his eyes. "Meaning?"
"If you can experience it early, then you're probably only a matter of time away from truly comprehending it yourself."
"…Right."
"So that's another thing I need to do."
None of that showed on his face.
Kaguya, meanwhile, smiled—thin and strained.
"This is humiliating," she said. "Losing to you… people will laugh."
But inside, anger churned.
She couldn't accept it—losing to a freshly leveled newcomer felt like denying all her effort.
Xien shook his head.
"That's not it, Kaguya-nee."
"It's just that this skill is beyond common sense."
"When it's active, I reach the 'limit of martial technique.' Everything you do is inside my grasp."
"That's the truth."
"If I don't activate it… there's no way I can beat you with my current fundamentals."
That was honest.
His weapon skill wasn't yet equal to a katana specialist like Kaguya—especially when she hadn't even used her own skills.
Kaguya blinked.
"A skill… that ridiculous?"
"…So that's what it is."
She still didn't fully believe it.
Skills that produce temporary combat leaps existed—but what she'd just felt was excessive.
Then Xien smiled.
"Kaguya-nee."
"Want to learn it?"
"—Huh?" She frowned. "What do you mean?"
"My breathing technique actually fits your weapon type."
"If you combine it with mana, you can do the same kind of elemental coating attacks I do."
"Do you want it? I can teach you."
Kaguya stared.
"You… really don't mind?"
In her homeland, that kind of directly power-boosting technique would be locked away as clan secrets.
And he was just… offering it?
Xien tilted his head, genuinely puzzled.
"We're comrades, aren't we?"
"Why would I mind?"
In this world, divine blessing upgraded the body from the root.
Breathing techniques lost their "shortening lifespan" drawback here.
Even reaching a state like a heated blade would, for someone at her level, only cause temporary discomfort—nothing life-draining.
So teaching others was fine.
And besides…
If anything happened, he was right there.
The one thing he never lacked was life force.
....
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