Endless Leveling Done Right!

Chapter 94: First Meeting

After looking at the map and confirming there were no longer any monsters in the vicinity, Alex turned to Cairo.

”Master, you’re really strong,” Alex said. ”But it feels like you could’ve killed that monster much faster. Why did you hold back?”

”You might face Vraxxis in the future, so I wanted to show you how to deal with such a threat on your own,” Cairo replied. ”If it respawns during the day of the trial, we might need to kill it a second time.

”Didn’t you tell me to expect the worst when I’m with you? Perhaps I’ll be dealing with a greater threat by then, so you’ll have to fend for yourself.

”Do you at least understand how to effectively fight against it after watching me?”

”... Hahaha. Of course, Master.” Alex chuckled anxiously as he slightly evaded Cairo’s gaze. ”I made sure to note how you defeated it.”

”Oh? Then why did you pause, hm?” Cairo smirked. ”Also, is that sweat?”

The young man cranked up the gears inside his head to come up with a proper explanation to that question.

”Master, I just fought rotting treants and landed two hits on the Mini Boss,” Alex replied in a righteous tone. ”If I didn’t sweat after that kind of battle, then doesn’t that mean I hadn’t fought seriously?”

Cairo wanted to roll his eyes, knowing his disciple was trying to worm his way out of their discussion. However, he didn’t delve into it further since he was certain this wouldn’t be their last time diving in the Dungeon of Beginnings before the trial started.

Alex was currently thinking that it might be a great idea to eliminate the Mini Boss Monsters on the fourth to the sixth floor. That way, the high-ranking monsters they would need to face during the dungeon run would decrease drastically.

”Well, then, what’s the plan?” Cairo asked. ”Are we still going to explore, or should we return to the village?”

Alex pondered a bit before giving his reply.

”Let’s return to the village for now, Master,” Alex answered. ”I have had enough excitement for today.”

”Then, are we going to come back here tomorrow?”

”Of course, Master. This is a good way to farm experience points, you know?”

Cairo blinked once, then twice. They were only a year apart, but he often felt like he was five generations older. His disciple was always using strange terms that he often struggled to understand.

In the end, Cairo thought the words ”experience points” meant battle experience. He assumed Alex was talking about learning a monster’s attack patterns in order to handle them more effectively next time.

After collecting their loot, the two retraced their steps to the hidden pathway leading back to the dungeon’s first floor. Just as Alex had said, he’d had enough excitement for one day and wanted to return to the inn to rest before the Map of Forgotten Paths lost its effect.

Although it was a bit of a shame, he didn’t have the time to explore the blinking blue dots on the map, which marked the locations of hidden treasures.

While the pair was on their way back to the first floor of the dungeon, Charles Lambert was taking a short break after finishing his training.

The young man looked at his calloused hands, which had been swinging the wooden sword every day for nearly a month.

’Tomorrow, I’ll use the cheap sword I bought from the weapon shop,’ Charles thought. ’It’s best that I practice using real weapons before I fight monsters. But I am still worried about...’

His adoptive parents had repeatedly told him not to enter any dungeons because he possessed a skill that would attract monsters to him.

However, if he wanted to become a scholarship student of Frieden Academy, he had no choice but to enter the Dungeon of Beginnings. This was the only condition he must achieve to reunite with his sisters.

There was also one more thing weighing on his mind.

For some reason, he kept feeling that something was calling out to him from somewhere in the mountains about a mile away from Briarwood Village.

Each day, the feeling grew stronger, urging him to go and investigate.

’My instincts are telling me I shouldn’t go, but it just keeps on nagging me.’ Charles sighed helplessly.

It was like enduring a toothache that wouldn’t go away until you pulled out the tooth that was the root of the problem.

The teenage boy could still endure it... for now.

But he had a feeling a day would come when the inexplicable feeling would be too intense for him to ignore, which might affect his mental state.

Shaking his head, the young man decided to take a stroll in the village to clear his thoughts.

Life in Briarwood Village was very simple.

The people here farmed, fished, or hunted game in the forest.

Of course, there were also dangerous monsters in the forest, but the Adventurers of their village would clear them up from time to time to ensure everyone’s safety.

Charles didn’t dare to venture too deep in the forest, knowing that monsters seemed to actively attack him as soon as they sensed his presence.

However, he still had to build up battle experience, so he sometimes wandered to the outskirts of the forest and fought forest boars, horned rabbits, and occasionally forest wolves that roamed alone.

His adoptive father had taught him how to wield the sword at a young age, so his foundation was solid. He also practiced daily without fail, which was how he had become a Ranker.

Currently, he was close to becoming a Ranker. However, since he still hadn’t chosen any Job Class, he had yet to learn any skills aside from Slash and Heavy Slash.

Heavy Slash was a more powerful version of the Slash skill, which was Charles’ trump card.

Although he was confident that he could fight a Rank 2 Monster when pushed into a corner, it would be best that he avoided that kind of situation whenever possible.

When he arrived at the village’s plaza, he saw Alex and Cairo coming from the opposite direction.

This was the first time he had seen the pair. Judging from the presence they exuded, Charles could tell that they were stronger than he was.

This was especially true for the Catkin, whose gaze was as sharp as a blade.

To his surprise, both gave him a smile and nod of acknowledgment before walking past him.

Alex had told his Master that he didn’t plan to make contact with Charles right away.

It would be better if he got accustomed to seeing them in the village first so he would at least not be too wary of them when they decided to help him during the trial.

’Maybe they’re trial takers too,’ Charles thought, because the two seemed to be around his age.

He watched as Alex and Cairo entered the only inn in the village, which accepted guests who came from afar.

Inside the inn, Cairo gave his disciple an inquiring glance. The young man only replied with a shake of his head.

”Now is not the time, Master,’ Alex said softly. ”Let’s wait for two weeks.”

Cairo nodded in understanding.

His disciple seemed to be taking a very careful approach when it came to Charles Lambert. Frankly, he was also curious about the boy who had been given the blessing, or perhaps curse, known as Challenger’s Mark.

A skill that deliberately put its owner into harm’s way, as if the world didn’t want Charles to exist and wished to eliminate him as soon as possible.

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A/N: If any of you play BTD6, and wish to help me in competitive battles, feel free to comment on this Chapter.

I need help because I am being bullied by the other Clans xD!