For the second time that day, Lukas sat exhausted after a fight—though this time it was after almost getting crushed to death on multiple occasions, as opposed to nearly drowning. Thankfully, he wasn't sitting in mud this time around, instead resting with his back against the trunk of a large tree.

His whole body hurt and felt more like one large bruise than anything else, especially his stomach. Lukas wasn't entirely sure what to expect from the badgermole going in, but it hadn't been earth magic, which it was surprisingly adept at. He quickly learned that staying in one spot for too long was a good way to get a rock thrown at you.

Multiple times during the fight, the badgermole had tried to trap or ensnare Lukas by making his feet sink into the ground or trying to encase him in stone. That hadn't even been the worst part, as the beast would constantly make the ground shift beneath him, breaking his stances and nearly forcing him to do the splits.

Fortunately, Lukas caught on quickly and was able to adapt his approach. Even then, the fight had been a tricky one—though interesting and fun in his eyes. It had been a decent challenge, one that allowed him to push himself and test out a few things. Sure, there were a few close calls, but how was he supposed to find his limits if things were too easy?

His new poisons and Akira's teachings were a huge help—not to mention his new armor—and while he'd only been training long enough to pick up the basics, those basics had saved him from a few additional injuries and allowed him to make more powerful attacks. Had Lukas fought the badgermole a few weeks back, he would've had a hard time, and even if he couldn't see himself losing, it would have been a close one.

He would've had to use far more poison on the resilient beast to bring it down, drawing things to avoid serious injuries.

In the end, the battle had lasted for around ten minutes and taught Lukas a thing or two. That wasn't the only thing he'd gained, though.

You have slain [Badgermole - lvl 43] – Bonus experience gained for killing an enemy above your level.

Level gained: [Rogue of Night] has reached level 26 – Stat points allocated.

Level gained: [Human (Outworlder)] has reached level 28 – Stat points allocated.

Level gained: [Rogue of Night] has reached level 27 – Stat points allocated.

You have looted [Badgermole].

38 [Copper Mana Coins] have been added to your inventory.

10 [Shards of Earth] have been added to your inventory.

[Badgermole Claw (Rare)] has been added to your inventory.

Two class levels and a race level weren't bad, and he could even feel that he was close to another in both classes thanks to the prior fights. Even if he didn't earn the levels from the remaining contracts, he was confident he'd clinch them after a round of consolidation and meditation.

Happy with his gains, he pulled out the Badgermole Claw curiously. Sure enough, it was a claw just like he'd seen on the beast—black and the length of his forearm, thin and cone-shaped, coming to a sharp tip. Not entirely sure what the thing was for, Lukas identified it.

[Badgermole Claw (Rare)] – The claw of a fallen badgermole. This item contains earth affinity mana.

"Huh."

"I'm actually impressed," Akira admitted as she wandered over. "I was skeptical at first, but you actually managed to do it."

"No need to sound so surprised," Lukas grumbled, storing the claw back in his inventory.

"But I do, and I am—because you were terrible. There were multiple attacks you could've dodged and openings you could've exploited."

Lukas was about to interject in his defense, but Akira kept talking.

"That being said, you're improving quickly. During the entire fight you used the things I taught you, and not once did you fall back into old habits, which is good. You've still got a long way to go, but I have no doubt you'll make it. Your rate of improvement is startling—and not just in combat. What drives you to push so hard?"

"Outworlder, remember? I've got a long way to go if I want to rely on my own strength instead of someone else's."

"But you enjoy the work," Akira pointed out. "I've been watching you, and you don't train, learn, or study like someone desperate for power. Even if you weren't an outworlder, all things being equal, you'd still be advancing quickly."

"Well, it's like you said—I enjoy it, so that makes it an easier pill to swallow, even if I barely have time for it all. I study magic theory because it's fascinating—I mean, it's magic. Why wouldn't I want to learn it? And while alchemy might be a class and I have to progress by doing alchemy, I still like it. It's like a puzzle—trying to figure out how all the ingredients and herbs fit together to make a concoction. As for combat, I just think it's fun, and I want to see how far I can go. In the end, I just want to climb to the top and leave my mark. Don't you want to do the same?"

Akira opened her mouth to speak, but frowned. "I…"

"You don't know, do you?" Lukas asked with a raised brow.

"I've wanted to be an adventurer my whole life. The day I finally joined the society was one of the happiest days of my life. The following weeks I went through contract after contract, grinding them out until my mother stopped me and forced me to rest…"

Lukas watched Akira as she stood there silently, mulling over his question, looking as though she were close to an existential crisis.

"Do you enjoy it?" he asked her.

"Of course. There's nothing more satisfying than advancing, taking down a beast, completing a contract, and keeping people safe."

"Well, there you go. You don't need some grand reason like me. You can just do it because you enjoy it—and because you want to keep people safe."

"Yeah, it still feels like I should have my own motivations and goals though…" she said tentatively, before shaking her head. "Anyway, back to the fight. I recorded the whole thing so we can analyze it later once we're back home. For now, let's talk about where you can improve."

For the next half an hour, Akira walked Lukas through the fight, going over every detail with him. She ruthlessly pointed out the flaws in his approach with excruciating detail, but made up for it by giving him pointers and ways to improve going forward. She also asked him why he had done certain things during the fight, scolding him when he couldn't offer more than a shrug or vague explanation.

It stung to be torn into like that, but Lukas knew it was necessary if he wanted to push past his limits and grow. So, he'd eat it and take in the tips.

Once she was done tearing him down, Akira had Lukas meditate so he could internalize everything. He didn't circulate his mana or consolidate his gains—instead, he simply let his mind calm after the fight and tried to absorb everything they had gone over.

Fifteen minutes later, the pair were on the move again. Three hours later, they had completed two more contracts. Well, Lukas had completed them while Akira watched and assessed from the sidelines. Neither battle had been particularly exciting—Lukas ended both without much trouble. One was against a beast a few levels above him, though not enough to pose any real threat. The second fight was against a small pack of rodent-like creatures the size of a medium dog. They hadn't been very strong, but their numbers had been slightly annoying to deal with.

The only things of note came in the form of an unexpected notification halfway through the second fight, as well as a strange prickling sensation all over. Once the rodents were all dead, Lukas took the time to go through the notifications, and it didn't take him long to find what he was looking for.

Ability (Shadow Lurker) has reached lvl 1.

Lukas had to admit, he was a little surprised the level had come already. He'd expected it to take a few more weeks at minimum, as he'd had his Amber Eyes ability for quite a while before it finally leveled up. Then again, Lukas did move through the shadows a lot—not just during combat—while he mostly used his vision power during alchemy. Or maybe his Amber Eye ability needed more experience because it had a wider range of use?

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

He had a feeling it was the latter. It wouldn't make much sense if a niche ability required the same amount of experience to advance as one that could be used often and frequently. Whatever the case, Lukas was just happy with the upgrade and promptly began testing.

Nothing had really changed, but the ability did feel… smoother? Zippier? It almost seemed like it activated slightly faster, allowed him to move through the shadows more smoothly, and increased the personal time dilation. It was hard to tell, and he suspected he wouldn't find out until he upgraded the ability further.

While Lukas tested things, Akira just watched him like he was some crazy person as he zipped through the shadows all around her. When she finally asked what he was doing, he told her that his ability had improved and shared his speculation regarding it.

"That sounds right," she nodded. "When an ability levels up, they improve slightly, and as you noticed, they don't improve by a large amount. You really only notice the change once the ability is close to ranking up. Now, are you done? We have one more contract, and I need to get you home by a certain time. My mother won't be happy if we're late for your aura practice with her."

"You're right. Let's go."

Truthfully, Lukas had completely forgotten about the one-on-one aura training session he was meant to have with Kora. He'd been rather hoping to get back to his residence and spend what was left of the afternoon and evening relaxing. Well—he said relaxing, but it would've just been him meditating on the day's events, doing more reading, or practicing with the puzzle box he still hadn't had much time with. Thinking about it, it definitely would've been in that order.

Half an hour later, Lukas and Akira were on the trail of their last contract. To Lukas' surprise and delight, this contract wasn't for him. Akira would be the one doing the beast killing this time around, finally giving Lukas a chance to see what a real adventurer looked like in action. If he were being honest, he wasn't sure what to expect. Akira had been telling him over and over just how far he had to go, and he was excited to see what someone at the top of their game looked like.

Soon enough, Akira pulled Lukas to a stop and signaled for him to get down and follow her. Crouching, Lukas snuck through the brush right behind her, letting her lead the way. He wasn't sure what the sudden change was for, but assumed it was because the contracted beast was nearby.

Sneaking up behind a fallen tree that was almost as tall as Lukas, he was able to peer over and confirm his assumption. On the other side of the log, a few dozen meters away, was a spider the size of a compact car in the process of weaving a web. Its hairy body was colored in light shades of red, violet, and gray, reminding Lukas of a rainy sunset. Its mandibles were sharp and slick with saliva, as though it were already imagining the meal its new web would catch. The web itself was nearly impossible to spot, and Lukas only noticed it was there because he was watching new threads emerge from the spider's back end. All in all, it was not something he wanted to be within a hundred miles of.

Shuddering, Lukas forced himself to identify the beast.

Dusk Weaver – lvl 74

The thing was strong. Really strong. Nearly fifty levels higher than Lukas. Of course, a part of him wanted to fight the beast—though that was not the part he listened to. No, instead he listened to the voice that told him he would die if he were noticed. Fighting stronger beasts was something Lukas enjoyed—he wanted those titles, after all—but he also knew his limits. He couldn't jump from killing a beast twenty levels higher than him straight to one fifty levels stronger. He had to work his way up.

Thankfully, this wasn't his fight—it was Akira's. But when he glanced at her, he noticed her furrowed brows. "Something wrong?" he asked quietly.

She glanced at him, hesitant to pull her gaze from the monstrosity before them. "It's stronger than I expected. There shouldn't be a beast this strong around here—it should be further south."

"Is that a problem?" He frowned.

"Not… not necessarily," she started, "I'm just not sure if I'll be able to take this thing on."

Realizing what she meant, Lukas identified her to see what level she was.

Elf – lvl 63

She had gained a single level since they'd met almost two weeks ago. He wasn't sure if that was considered impressive or slow. He knew leveling got harder the higher you were, but he felt like a single level in that time wasn't exactly impressive. Then again, he didn't think he was a good judge of leveling speed, seeing as he went around killing things dozens of levels above him.

One thing was for sure, though—Akira needed to fight this thing. If she could kill it on her own, it would potentially net her two titles, assuming she didn't already have one for killing a beast five levels above her.

"You have to fight it," Lukas urged.

"I don't know," she said hesitantly, not willing to take her eyes off the spider. "I've never faced something this strong before."

"And how do you think I'm able to take on beasts with so many more levels than me? I built my way up. There are bonuses and rewards for pushing yourself beyond your limits."

Akira finally tore her gaze from the beast and gave Lukas an inscrutable look. "You can see what level a beast is? And what do you mean rewards?"

Lukas' gut twisted and heat rose in his cheeks. He hadn't meant to give that away, but he was holding onto so many secrets it felt impossible to keep them all under wraps.

"That's not important," he deflected. "Just get out there, kill it, and you'll see. You have to kill it on your own though—you can't get any help, not even from another beast."

Jaw clenched, she studied Lukas' masked face before huffing. "Fine, but we'll be talking about this later. And if I die fighting that thing, I'll kill you."

Standing, she reached into her bag and pulled out another recording crystal, holding it out to Lukas. "Record the fight and we'll go over it later."

Taking the crystal, Lukas flipped it over in his hand, examining the sigils and scripts etched on the purple surface and inside the crystal itself. "How do I use it?"

"Just infuse some mana into it and lightly toss it into the air," she said, double-checking her armor and spear. "It should float just over your shoulder."

Doing as she said, Lukas was too preoccupied with the crystal to notice when she left. Once the recording crystal was hovering gently over his shoulder, he glanced around, finding himself alone behind the fallen tree.

"Sometimes I wonder if you're purposefully trying to get found out," a voice said from right behind him.

Jolting and nearly swearing aloud, Lukas turned to see Sera grinning at him. Scowling, he was very aware of the crystal recording everything. He wasn't sure if it could record sound, but he wasn't going to take the chance.

"What the hell?," he hissed through his blessing, "are you trying to get me to give myself away?"

The goddess snickered and came over to stand beside him, looking out at the Dusk Weaver. "As if you need my help in that regard. You're the one who told her you could see what level beasts are—which I can assure you is not something people can do, and will only lead to other questions."

Lukas grumbled through the blessing, "It just slipped out. I was trying to convince her to go for the kill. She probably won't even remember I said that when she's done."

"That's assuming she lives."

Lukas gave her a frowning side glance. "You don't think she will?"

"No idea. I've never seen her fight, but it's obvious she's never pushed her boundaries all that much—so it'll be tough. Most don't try killing things out of their league until late bronze. That just makes you even more of an anomaly, you freak."

Ignoring the last part, Lukas focused on what else she said. "Most people don't go after beasts with higher levels than them? Why not? It's a great way to get experience."

"Safety," Sera shrugged. "There's no point rushing for levels and power if you can take things slow and steady and end up at the same place anyway. Besides, going too fast can lead to an unstable foundation. That whole 'slow and steady' thing only lasts for a few ranks, though. After that, you put in the work or you don't go anywhere."

"Should I slow down then? To try and secure my foundation—whatever that entails?"

"Hmm? Oh, no. Your foundation is surprisingly deep for someone who's only been here a few months. Those titles of yours are a big help—providing extra stats at your level is crazy. Your understanding of mana and study of magic theory only help. Besides, you have some other bonuses related to your outworlder nature."

"Well, that's good to hear—but what's this about my outworlder nature?"

"When you got sucked from your home world to Adona, your magically barren body came into contact with mana for the first time. Not much is known about the whole outworlder process since there are so few of you, but coming into contact with magic changed you on a fundamental level. Hence your shiny new racial abilities. It's also known that outworlders have shockingly few impurities in their bodies and souls, as well as some improvements to constitution. Granted, that could just be how your people are in non-magical worlds—with scholars attributing it to the outworlder process to make themselves feel better. Anyway, it makes later advancement far easier for you due to certain rank-up requirements."

Lukas stood in silent contemplation, going over what Sera had just told him. He'd heard about this ephemeral "foundation" and wasn't really sure what it was or what it encompassed. Now, he had a slightly better grasp of it—and was relieved to know he was in a good spot, all things considered. What he found interesting was Sera's mention of impurities in the body and spirit, which made some amount of sense to him. It was also interesting to learn that a lack of impurities was important for later advancement. What that looked like, he had no idea. He only knew that to get to Iron rank, he had to reach the level requirement and rank up his abilities. What came after that was a mystery to him.

He wanted to ask the goddess more questions, but before he could, she looked up into the trees above the Dusk Weaver.

"Oh, it looks like she's about to start."

Following her gaze, Lukas looked up just in time to see Akira leap from a branch down toward the massive arachnid, spear in hand.

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