These blue spiritual powers belonged to Adventurers.
Mixed among them were a few red spiritual powers, all originating from the Zanpakuto he had forged.
Kuchiki Rukia once noted that a Shinigami's spiritual power was red, and only high-ranking Shinigami could perceive them.
At Level 1, Rayleigh could not see them.
Ordinary people had white spiritual powers, Adventurers had blue, Gods had gold, and Shinigami had red.
Gazing at the countless ribbon-like spiritual powers before him, Rayleigh felt a sense of wonder.
Touching these networks would allow him to track their owners' locations.
From a close distance, he could glean basic information like their gender and age.
"Rayleigh, what's wrong? You look frozen," Hephaestus said, nudging him and pulling him out of his spiritual vision.
He shook his head. "I'm fine. I was testing my new abilities after leveling up."
"By the way," he added, "could you hold off on reporting my level-up to the Guild for now?"
Even with the Hephaestus Familia's backing, the constant harassment would be annoying.
Ais had set the record for reaching Level 2 a few months ago, and the city was still buzzing.
Announcing his advancement to Level 2 in half a year would feel like a deliberate slap to the Loki Familia.
It offered no benefit to the Hephaestus Familia.
Revealing his level-up would only satisfy his vanity and it was completely unnecessary.
Hiding one's level was common among Adventurers.
"If that's what you want, I'll agree," Hephaestus said.
....
After leveling up to Level 2, Rayleigh gathered his party.
The group of six arrived at the Flame Bee Pavilion in the South District.
The members who had reached Level 3 had been waiting for him to advance, planning to celebrate together.
At the celebration, when Rayleigh revealed he would delay his public announcement, Alise asked with disappointment, "You're not going to announce it?"
Ryuu said, "I think Rayleigh's choice is correct."
Kaguya added, "The useless Elf is right, but dense-headed Alise probably cannot accept it."
Alise blinked, confused.
Ardi also looked disappointed.
Rayleigh said, "I'm not the only one hiding my level. Adventurers have leveled up faster before, they just never announced it."
"Who? Who was it?"
Rayleigh fell silent before answering, "I don't know, but there must have been some."
Ais was incredible for reaching Level 2 in a year, the fastest on record.
But in Orario's past, there had been two groups of monsters.
Zeus and Hera.
Those two Familias represented the absolute peak since Orario's founding.
A Level 8 Champion, a Level 9 Empress, and a multitude of Level 7 and Level 6 Adventurers.
Level 5s were considered non-combat units in their familia's, unworthy of even carrying the baggage.
Among those monsters, it was impossible that no one had leveled up within a year.
Take Alfia the Silence, for example. As the embodiment of all talent in the Lower World, even her nephew, Bell Cranel, might not even compare to her.
She was not chosen by heaven, she was envied by it.
In a system where Level dictated everything, the Level 7 Alfia could defeated the Level 9 Empress and slew the sea tyrant, Leviathan.
As a survivor of her Familia, she had left Orario but was expected to return soon... though that remained uncertain.
This world was real.
And because it was real, countless possibilities existed.
Alfia had a younger sister, and that sister's child was the destined hero, Bell Cranel. Whether Alfia chose to meet Bell would determine her future fate.
If she chose not to, she and Zald would be hired as mercenaries by the God Erebus, the so called "Absolute Evil," to participate in his attack on Orario.
And die.
If she met Bell, her love for her family and sense of responsibility would compel her to stay, raise him, and refuse Erebus.
'It's getting closer.'
The Great War, from which no one could escape!
'Before that, I have to get stronger.'
"Everyone, I have a proposal," Rayleigh said, drawing their attention.
"We can do it now. Let's subjugate the Floor Boss," he declared.
Hearing his proposal, the girls exchanged glances. There were no objections since they looked as if he had read their minds.
"Let's subjugate it!"
"That's right."
"It's just a Floor Boss."
"Let's take it down!"
Clink.
"Cheers!"
Pfft.
As Rayleigh and the others clinked their glasses, mocking laughter erupted from the next table.
"Hahaha, did you hear that? These brats are talking about taking down a Floor Boss."
"Heard it, heard it! That's hilarious, hahaha!"
"Hey, hey, this is a friendly warning. You better give up. You will not have time for regrets once you are dead."
It was a group of four male Adventurers.
Their equipment was ragged, their armor was a mismatched collection, and they carried an air of decay.
Rayleigh had seen plenty of Adventurers like them.
Most were men who had lost their drive or abandoned their dreams. They descended into the Dungeon each day to earn enough for their next drink.
They were still living, so one could not dismiss them as "decadent."
They just were not "adventuring" anymore.
Alise stopped Lyra who was ready to start a fight, and smiled at the men. "Thank you for the advice, old men."
'Old? Old men?'
One of the drunkards froze.
He hurled his cup at them while shouting, "Who are you calling old men?! I'm only twenty-three!"
Ryuu's gaze turned cold.
Her thumb, resting on her hilt, pushed the blade from its scabbard.
"Haineko."
As she whispered the Zanpakuto's name, an invisible barrier formed in front of Alise.
The cup shattered the instant it struck, its contents splashing outward without a single drop touching Alise.
The red-haired girl did not turn around. "Thank you, Ryuu," she said.
Ryuu sheathed her blade.
"Wh-What did you do?!"
Seeing the cup reduced to dust, the man scrambled to his feet and stumbled back.
He felt a heavy weight on his shoulder.
Rayleigh appeared behind him. With a press of his hand, he forced the man back into his seat.
"Calm down, will you?"
"Shut up!"
The man's companion threw a punch.
Rayleigh tilted his head to dodge, used his elbow to block the arm, and followed with a palm strike to the chin.
The man spin in the air before crashing to the floor with a pained cry!
The remaining three took a moment to react, then roared, "Get him!"
They flipped the table and charged.
Rayleigh smiled, raised his index finger, and drew a horizontal line in the air.
The next moment, all three men's arms wrenched behind their backs.
"Bakudō One: Sai."