I watched as Vaelix's body started to break apart, his form slowly dissolving into thin mist before turning into pure Essence particles. They drifted toward me like glowing dust merging with my body.
A series of notifications echoed in my mind.
[Level Up!]
[Level 302 → Level 310]
I let out a quiet breath. The increase felt nice, but not as much as I had expected. Vaelix had sacrificed his levels earlier to save himself, and that sacrifice had weakened him and reduced what I could gain from him.
Then something caught my eye. Right where his body had vanished, a faint symbol glimmered in the air. A rune.
It floated there, spinning slowly, radiating a faint red light mixed with golden streaks. I focused on it, trying to read the structure of Essence within it, but before I could make sense of it, the rune pulsed once and darted straight toward my chest.
