Endless Leveling Done Right!

Chapter 552: My Hearing Is Not As Good As It Used To Be

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Alex sighed in relief the moment the last of the Ogres fell in battle.

It had been a while since they had fought as a team. Judging by how the battle ended, their teamwork had not turned rusty.

Everyone, including Charles and Renard, had reached a level where they could win against these powerful monsters if they fought together.

But truth be told, Charles surprised Alex the most.

If their group were a deck of cards, Charles would be the Joker.

His tale should have ended in the Dungeon of Beginnings, but he managed to survive that turning point in his life.

Alex had played ELO for years, so he had an idea about most characters’ future. But not Charles. It was simply beyond his understanding.

For all the Main Heroes and Main Heroines, regardless of the path they chose, Alex would be able to plan ahead to complement their actions.

But Charles’ future was a blank slate—a mystery that no one... not even the Deities of the world of Arcana could predict.

’The Void-Touched must be behind this,’ Alex thought.

Originally, he didn’t know why Charles wished to go to the Mistral Weave Forest.

But he could vaguely infer what might’ve happened after he noticed that the monsters no longer seemed to be in their normal state of mind.

While there were many characters in the game who had the power to tame and even control monsters, Alex believed that the person responsible for this was one of the members of the mysterious organization led by Morax.

’It should be Diona,’ Alex concluded as he rubbed his chin. ’She’s the only one who can control hundreds of monsters below her rank with ease.’

The young man could even guess why she hadn’t sent more reinforcements after seeing them defeat the first wave of monsters.

’She might have been able to do whatever she wanted if we weren’t in the Mistral Weave Forest.’ Alex casually opened his map to check his surroundings and confirm his theory.

A big green dot the size of his thumb was blinking on the map, showing the location of the Beast Sovereign that ruled the Mistral Weave Forest.

Another smaller blinking yellow dot could be seen at least a kilometer away from their location, making Alex smirk.

’So there you are.’ Alex narrowed his eyes.

And just as he expected, the name Diona was also attached to that yellow blinking dot.

Usually, Alex didn’t open his map, not wanting to be overly dependent on it to detect enemies.

Still, he wasn’t that stubborn, especially when he understood that they were facing an opponent that was stronger than them.

’Right now, Diona should be a Rank 7 Beast Master.’ Alex glanced in the direction where he believed the young lady with the black snake tattoo was.

Suddenly, Alex remembered something very important.

’Oh... sh*t! I completely forgot!’

Just as the young man was about to warn the others and tell them to retreat, the yellow blinding dot on his map moved towards them at a very fast rate.

Before he could even reach Lumi’s side, a young lady landed at the center of their battle formation.

”Hah... I’m so annoyed right now.”

Everyone’s gazes landed on the tall young lady clad in rugged leathers layered with charms made of fang, claw, and bone.

She looked like an Amazon Warrior. Her messy ash-brown hair was tied loosely to keep out of her face.

Even then, it was more bird nest than hair.

Her emerald-green eyes gleamed with mischief and predatory intelligence.

She emanated the presence of a wild beast that could pounce on them at any moment.

This made the members of the Endless Horizon Club raise their guard subconsciously.

”You must be Charles Lambert,” Diona said as she moved close to the young man, eyeing him curiously. ”Well, you’re at least above average, I guess.”

She then playfully placed a finger under his chin, raising it a bit so that he would be forced to look at her in the eyes.

Charles tried to resist, but for some reason, he found himself frozen in place. He couldn’t move his body no matter what he did.

He was like a rat staring at the face of a snake that could end his life in a heartbeat.

To everyone’s surprise, Diona lowered her head to kiss the young man’s lips... or at least, tried to do that.

But the thing that she kissed wasn’t Charles’ lips but the back of Nessia’s hand.

”Don’t even think of kissing my boyfriend so casually,” Nessia said firmly.

Hearing his lover’s words, Charles finally broke free from his paralysis. He then pulled Nessia behind his back and glared at the stranger who had tried to take advantage of him.

”Oh?” Diona arched an eyebrow. ”So you have a girlfriend, huh? Not bad. At least you have a bit of backbone... both of you.”

The Beast Master turned her attention to Nessia, observing her closely.

”Who are you?” Charles demanded. ”Are you the one calling out to me?”

Diona smirked. ”I don’t usually introduce myself to people, but since you and I share the same destiny, I guess telling my name is the least bit of courtesy that I can give you.”

Still wearing a mischievous smile on her face, Diona placed her hand over her chest and gave Charles a playful bow of greeting.

”My name is Diona. And... I find you, Charles Lambert, very interesting. Right now, you’re still too weak to become my Mate. But I believe after a year or two, you will undergo explosive growth that will leave your peers in the dust.

”That is the fate of the Void-Touched. Beings who break the laws of the world. But you can only do that once you overcome your weakness. Still, looking at you now, it seems that you already know what kind of power you possess, am I right?”

Charles didn’t answer Diona’s question, which made the latter shrug.

”It doesn’t matter. You can’t run away from your destiny.” Diona crossed her arms over her chest. ”Sooner or later, you will belong to me...”

”I will never...” Charles wasn’t able to finish whatever he was going to say because a finger pressed over his lips, stopping him midway.

”Hush.” Diona smirked. ”Never say never. You are far too weak to negotiate anything with me. Or... do you want me to break that girl behind you before you understand how powerless you are?”

Diona was confident that even if all the teenagers were to attack her at the same time, she would be able to easily subdue them without too much trouble.

Unfortunately, she was at the wrong place at the wrong time.

”Diona, stop messing around.”

The Beast Master frowned before shifting her gaze towards the one who spoke to her.

”Excuse me. Are you talking to me?” Diona eyed Alex as if she was about to snap his head.

”Who else am I talking to?” Alex replied fearlessly. ”Are you deaf?”

”Hahaha! It seems that you have some very funny friends, Charles.” Diona clenched her fists, creating cracking sounds. ”You see, when I see someone trying to be funny, I have the strong urge to break them until they realize that they have messed with the wrong person.”

”Yes, you have messed with the wrong person,” Alex retorted. ”Isn’t that right, Sir Lex?”

As if waiting for that moment, an old man stepped out from behind a tree while chewing on some beef jerky.

The old knight was still wearing gangster sunglasses, prompting the little bun to also put on its matching glasses.

The moment Diona saw the old man, her instincts screamed at her that this was an opponent that she couldn’t defeat no matter what.

”What did you say earlier, young lady?” Lex asked good-naturedly after he finished eating his beef jerky. ”My hearing is not as good as it used to be.”

Seeing the old knight appear, Lumi sighed in relief. Among the students, she was the only one who truly knew how strong Lex was.

”Who are you?” Diona asked warily.

Her instincts were telling her to flee, but she fought this strong urge to run with sheer willpower and stupidity.

”I’m just your friendly neighborhood old man,” Lex replied. ”Now, please answer my question. Who do you plan to break until they realize that they have messed with the wrong person?”

Originally, Lex hadn’t intended to interfere. He had simply stood aside and watched the teenagers fight against the monsters.

But when Alex had opened his map, he had also seen the old man hiding a short distance behind them.

If not for that, the young man wouldn’t have had the slightest idea that his guardian had followed him the moment he had entered the forest.

This was why he decided to put a stop to Diona’s bullying. The young lady could talk as big as she wanted, but Lex would not sit still and let her break all of Alex’s bones under his watch.