The clearing was silent, illuminated by the soft blue light of the Ethernano crystals. Axel was on his knees, gasping for breath, as the Boosted Gear retracted back into its tattoo form.
His entire body ached. His muscles burned as if they had been stretched to the breaking point. The multiple boosts—three in succession—had gone far beyond what his Vitality 25 could endure without damage. He felt nausea rising, a clear sign that he had pushed his system to its absolute limit.
Brisha, the Ash Master, lay motionless, his face turned toward the ashes of his former subordinates. Axel saw him stop breathing. The Dark Mage was dead. Axel swallowed hard, struggling to suppress the nausea and pain. He had to be strong. He had to stand up.
He spent a few minutes sitting there, simply breathing and enduring the pain, until the System reacted with a torrent of thunderous notifications, completely ignoring the physical suffering of its host.
[CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE LEVELED UP!]
[YOU ARE NOW LEVEL 15!]
A sensation of pure warmth surged through Axel's body, rapidly healing micro-tears in his muscles and heightening his alertness. Ten levels at once!
[LEVEL REWARDS:]
+10 Free Attribute Points
+10 Free Skill Points
Full Mana and Vitality Recovery
[YOU HAVE ACHIEVED GREAT FEATS!]
[EPIC ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: ENEMY OF DARKNESS]
Condition: Destroy your first Rank C Dark Guild (Winged Eye) and eliminate its Master.
REWARD:
400 PC
5 Gacha Rolls
UNIQUE TITLE: Scourge of Darkness
[LEGENDARY ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: OVERCOMING ADVERSITY]
Condition: Win a battle against an enemy with significantly higher Power Level, forcing your body beyond its limits (Boosted Gear Overload Threat).
REWARD:
RARE TITLE: Overcomer
UNIQUE SKILL: Limit Break (Level 1)
Axel blinked, the pain replaced by overwhelming surprise and a sudden influx of regenerative power. He stood up, fatigue fading away.
Axel accessed the description of the new Skill:
[UNIQUE SKILL: LIMIT BREAK (LEVEL 1)]
Effect: Allows the user, during combat, to temporarily surpass the physical and magical restrictions imposed by Attributes.
Restrictions: Extreme Mana cost. Causes severe damage and exhaustion after use (same damage caused by excessive Boosted Gear usage).
Detail: Functions as an emergency multiplier that ignores Vitality for a short period.
— Ddraig, this is… exactly what I needed. The safety net for the Boost.
— It's recognition of your survival instinct, Partner. Now you have a release valve for when you use maximum power. But don't abuse it. The cost is still high. — Ddraig warned, though there was satisfaction in his voice.
Axel now had a stockpile of resources to invest:
Total PC: 660 PC + 400 PC = 1,060 PC
Free Attribute Points: 10 Points
Free Skill Points: 10 Points
Gacha: 5 Rolls
He looked at the piles of Ethernano crystals, the recovered Healing Lacrima, and the System's jackpot of rewards.
— Risk and Reward… the risk was worth it, Ddraig. Now let's clean this up and head home.
Axel sat atop a pile of Ethernano Crystals, ignoring the macabre sight of the defeated Ash Master. With the pain gone and his mind clear, it was time to maximize the profit from his epic achievement.
He had 10 Free Attribute Points and 10 Free Skill Points. Ddraig's priority was clear: durability to use the Boosted Gear.
+5 Points to Vitality (25 → 30): Essential to withstand the overload of the Boosted Gear and the new Limit Break skill.
+5 Points to Mana (32 → 37): Essential to fuel the defense of Black Lotus Rho Aias, Black Fire, and Artificer Magic.
[STATUS UPDATED]
Name: Axel Drake
Level: 15
Strength: 17
Agility: 19
Vitality: 30 (Level-Up Increase +5)
Mana: 37 (Level-Up Increase +5)
Luck: 4
Achievement Points (PC): 1,210 PC
Titles:
The Traveler
Bearer of the Welsh Dragon
Overcomer (New, Rare): Increases fatigue recovery speed after using the Limit Break skill.
Scourge of Darkness (New, Unique): Increases damage against Dark Magic Mages and creatures (+10% damage).
Magic / Artifact
Boosted Gear Equipped – Longinus Artifact
Possession of the Heavenly Dragon Ddraig. Doubles power every 10 seconds.
Heavenly Dragon Possession Awakened
Ddraig is fully awake. Grants massive resistance and access to the Welsh Dragon.
Time to allocate the points, he thought.
+5 Points to Artificer Magic (Lv. 1 → Lv. 6):
Artificer Magic Lv. 6 allows analysis, creation, and enhancement of Lacrimas and magical artifacts. Improves creation efficiency and reduces analysis time.
+3 Points to Shadow Step (Lv. 4 → Lv. 7):
Shadow Step – High-speed movement and evasion, generates afterimages. Significant increase in speed and stealth.
+2 Points to Emperor's Eyes (Lv. 2 → Lv. 4):
Enhances Mana flow analysis and weak point detection.
Axel accessed the [GACHA] tab. He had 5 Rank B Gacha Rolls.
He spun all five at once. Light flashed in a mix of colors, but most resolved into blue (Rank C) or green (Rank B).
[ITEMS RECEIVED:]
Ice and Snow Magic (Rank B)
Detection Lacrima (Rank B): Allows detection of Magic presence in a small area.
Skill: Mana Focus (Rank C): Increases Mana concentration during complex spellcasting.
Mana Potion (Large) (Rank B): Restores a large amount of Mana.
Blueprint: Dimensional Storage Lacrima (Rank A): Diagram to create a Lacrima capable of storing small objects in the ether.
— Dimensional Storage Lacrima… This is perfect for my dimensional backpack! And the Detection Lacrima will be crucial for stealth combat — Axel murmured, satisfied.
With the upgrades complete, Axel felt unstoppable. He immediately turned his attention to looting the Winged Eye base. Using Artificer Magic (Lv. 6) and Emperor's Eyes (Lv. 4), Axel analyzed the stockpiles. He ignored low-quality materials and took only High-Purity Raw Ethernano Crystals.
[ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Resource Looting (Ethernano) – Reward: 100 PC]
Axel packed the Healing Lacrima into his backpack, along with the Detection Lacrima he had just acquired.
Axel searched the Ash Master. He found a gold ring bearing the Winged Eye symbol and a high-quality Communication Lacrima.
[ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Rare Resource (Enhanced Communication Lacrima) – Reward: 50 PC]
Axel used residual Black Fire Magic to burn the base's documents and any evidence that could link this place to him.
[Total PC Updated: 1,060 + 100 + 50 = 1,210 PC]
The 10-year-old Mage had concluded a Rank Green mission with a massive level jump, a trove of PC, and all the materials needed for his invention.