And so, Emilia rushed toward the five oncoming Death Wolves! She swung her black-flame-imbued sword, the fire roaring like a beast. With a single slash, two wolves were decapitated at once, their heads flying as their bodies collapsed in smoldering heaps!

The remaining three flanked her from different directions, snarling as if to avenge their fallen kin.

But Emilia moved faster. She spun, blade blazing.

FWOOOM!

Her sword whirled so fast it was like a cyclone of steel and fire, tearing through the wolves and reducing them to burning chunks of flesh in an instant.

"MREOWWWW!"

HELL YEAAAAHHH!

Mimi screeched in wild excitement

Emilia grinned too, exhilarated by the carnage.

But even as those five fell, a dozen more wolves emerged from the shadows of the forest, red eyes glowing. They just kept coming.

"ALRIGHT, BRING IT ON!" Emilia roared, her voice echoing like thunder.

And with that, she charged again, plunging headlong into the tide of undead, her blade carving a mad, fiery slaughter through the swarm.

***

Two hours later…

The rain still poured relentlessly, pounding against the earth with a deafening roar. Above, the moon hung heavier in the sky, its crimson glow growing redder, brighter, more maddening with every passing moment. It was as though the heavens themselves were bleeding, weeping scarlet tears across the endless night.

And down below, the scene mirrored that same hellish vision.

A mountain of corpses sprawled across the clearing. Lesser Death Bears, Lesser Death Wolves, Lesser Death Stags—hundreds of twisted carcasses now lay in heaps, torn apart, scorched, and broken. Their blackened blood seeped into the ground, turning the soil into sticky sludge. The stench of decay and burning fur was unbearable, filling the air so thickly it made breathing feel like swallowing filth. Even the river nearby no longer ran clear, its current poisoned by the undead blood until it flowed like a dark, murky swamp of gore.

And yet, standing amidst that grotesque carnage was a single girl... and her small Noctifelis companion.

The girl's short light-blue hair clung damply to her cheeks, her clothes soaked not only by the rain but also by layers of blood—some hers, but most belonging to the beasts she had slain. Her slender frame trembled under exhaustion, her arms heavy from endless swings, yet her grip on the flaming sword never faltered. And her face… her face bore a grin wide and wild, the kind of grin that came only from straddling the line between triumph and madness.

Then it came, the thing they had both been waiting for.

The system notification!

"Yes! I'm now level 32!" Emilia exclaimed, pumping a blood-slick fist into the air, her voice raw but ringing with exhilaration.

Mimi's eyes widened, her little heart pounding in disbelief.

This… this leveling speed is insane!

In just a few hours, Emilia had gone from Level 22 to Level 32. That was a whole ten levels gained in such a short span! TEN!

Now, the first mission of the Rite of the Dragon Vein was this: Reach level 40.

Only eight more levels. Just eight! And with the entire night still ahead of them, Emilia could actually crush that goal right on day one!

"Meow!!" Mimi cried, her tiny chest swelling with excitement.

Way to go, Master!

But it wasn't only Emilia who had gained. Mimi herself had also leveled up by… two whole levels! Now she was Level 4.

Haha… two levels... yayyyy!

Mimi laughed bitterly to herself, feeling a little bit envious.

The difference was barely noticeable, as expected. Her stats remained miserable, her growth pitifully dog shit, and aside from the faint glow she felt for a fleeting moment when she leveled, there was almost no change in her body at all.

Anyways, Flamme had skyrocketed to Level 15 after absorbing a buffet of soul energy from the undead!

Sure, there were no new skills yet, but the power of its existing ones had grown massively. With higher levels, its Fire Bolt damage and Fire Enchantment bonus damage had been boosted significantly!

And even though things looked the same on the surface—Emilia still cutting down enemies with one-hit slashes—it was actually far better than before. Why? Because now, that single hit required far less force from her. Each swing cost less effort, meaning she could keep going longer without exhausting herself.

The difference was night and day. At the start, when swarms of ten or more enemies rushed her at once, Emilia had struggled. There were even moments where she had to push herself right to the limit just to survive.

But now?

Things felt so much easier!

And that wasn't all.

"Woah! Mimi, I got a new skill!" Emilia shouted suddenly, her face lighting up with shock.

"WHAT??" Mimi's eyes widened at once. She scrambled to check Emilia's stat window.

And true to her words, there they were!

Not one, not two, but three new lines! Not skills though, but titles!

Undead Killer!

Unyielding Will!

Terror of Death!

***

In this world, titles could be earned when a person achieved something truly remarkable—like divine achievements bestowed by the gods themselves, impressed by mortal deeds.

Unlike skills, which had to be trained or learned, titles were recognitions. They acted as permanent badges of honor, each carrying unique effects.

[Undead Killer]

Description: Deal +5% damage to all undead monsters.

[Terror of Death]

Description: You are truly terrifying! Something about you unsettles even death itself!

Skill Unlocked: Terror of Death Aura: When activated, release an oppressive aura that drives enemies into overwhelming fear.

[Unyielding Will]

Description: You possess an unbreakable will, able to overcome impossible odds. In battle, you know no fear!

Permanently gain +1% to all damage.

Special Trigger: After 1 continuous hour of combat, Unyielding Will activates: Pain taken reduced by 50%. Stamina consumption reduced by 30%. Fatigue stack gain reduced by 2

***

"WOAAAH! These are really, really nice titles!" Mimi exclaimed with sparkling eyes.

However, Emilia didn't seem the least bit impressed. In fact, she pouted and frowned.

"Huhu, what the hell are these ugly titles? I'm not that scary!!!" she cried.

At that, Mimi narrowed her eyes.

Yeah, yeah… not scary indeed…

Said the very same person who just massacred an entire population of undead monsters!!!

Master, you are seriously shameless, aren't you?!

"Haizz…" Emilia let out a long sigh. "Still, I guess these effects are pretty handy. I can already feel it. My body feels stronger!"

"Meow!" Mimi nodded.

Of course!

Master feeling stronger… it has to be the effect of reduced stamina consumption from her Unyielding Will title!

In this world, stamina was also one of the pillars of survival, standing right beside HP and Mana. Without it, no matter how much health or mana you had, you were as good as dead.

Stamina was mainly influenced by Strength and Defense, much like HP. If Mana was like the magical fuel that powered spells and sorceries, then stamina was the physical fuel that kept your body moving, with every swing, every dodge, every step taken in battle consumed it.

And the penalty for losing stamina was quite brutal actually.

Once stamina dipped below 70%, the Fatigue debuff would begin to gnaw at the body. And the worse it got, the harsher the punishment became. Because for every 10% drop past that point, another stack of fatigue piled on. And every single stack increased damage taken by 5%, boosted mana consumption by 10%, reduced damage output by 5%, and slowed movements by 10%!

Imagine trying to fight while feeling heavier, weaker, slower, and more fragile, all at the same time… that was fatigue! And once it started spiraling, it would be almost impossible to claw back.

That was why Emilia's new title was nothing short of a blessing.

With Unyielding Will lowering the number of fatigue stacks by 2, she now had a much greater margin of safety. In other words, Emilia wouldn't even start suffering the effects of fatigue until her stamina dropped all the way to 50%!

No wonder she already felt so much stronger, so much lighter. And with her stamina consumption reduced on top of that, her body had more breathing room to recover.

So basically, this would allow her to drag battles on for far, far longer without collapsing!

"With these buffs, I can keep fighting for days!" Emilia declared confidently.

Still… there was no reason to push things too far.

Now that Mimi thought about it, once Emilia's stamina dropped to around 30%, that would be the signal to retreat. Otherwise, they'd risk running themselves straight into death!

Currently, Emilia's stamina was still at 57, which meant she had plenty of fuel left to keep going.

SLASH!

Another monster fell beneath Emilia's blade, its corpse collapsing onto the growing pile beside her.

Then another came forward. But this time…

Emilia didn't do anything. She simply turned and glared at it.

And instantly, the Death Wolf whimpered then retreated! Running away with its tail between its legs!

Mimi's eyes widened.

Holy shit!

Normally, undead monsters… they weren't supposed to feel anything. Not pain, not fear. They were empty husks, driven only by instinct to kill and devour.

But now… this wolf was fearing Emilia?!

Is this the true effect of her new title… Terror of Death?

That realization sent a rush of thrill through Mimi.

Damn!

This changes everything!

With this effect, things just got so much better. Because if they ever needed to rest, Emilia could simply activate her Terror of Death title, releasing that terrifying aura. No undead would dare come near! And if they wanted to keep farming EXP, all Emilia had to do was turn it off again.

So convenient!

Suddenly—

"Wait, Mimi, you hear that?" Emilia exclaimed, her tone sharp.

Mimi's ears twitched, perking up instantly.

Oh, yes! She heard it too.

A voice.

A female voice, screaming, raw with pain and desperation, echoing through the rain-soaked forest.

There was also the unmistakable clash of metal against claws and fangs, the strained grunts of a human locked in battle against the furious roars of undead beasts.

Someone else was fighting out there. But judging from those panicked, bloodcurdling screams, it was clear… they were losing!

"Oh no! Mimi! Someone is in danger!"

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

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