"<Hah, I win again! I believe that makes it seven to four in my favor>," Declared Luxuria smugly.

"<Tch, I was so close...>," Muttered Invidia, grumbling under his breath as he got back onto his feet.

"<Yeah, sure you were>," Smirked Luxuria condescendingly.

"<Are you sure this is safe, Kai? I know we're deep in the forest and all, but this could still end up drawing attention>," Remarked Superbia warily.

"It's fine, we've got Acedia keeping watch above, and we're a good distance away from our hideout, so I don't think it's a problem.

And besides, since you guys don't have a way of boosting your power, it isn't a bad idea to sharpen your skills and techniques," I pointed out thoughtfully.

It's been over half a year since I ended up in the Monster world. It's the 15th of June, 2170 on Earth, and I've been making pretty steady progress with growing more powerful.

I've attacked over twenty swarms of Monsters over these six months, targeting about three or four every month, making sure the timing and locations of my attacks didn't adhere to any patterns that would help the enemy predict my next target.

There have been a lot of Demons, Greater Demons, Archdemons, Wyverns and Dragons flying around the forest over the last few months, but this place is pretty massive, and I haven't had any trouble hiding from them.

I picked up some tricks on stealth and laying low from Invidia, and I'm able to conceal my presence pretty well.

I was spotted a few times, but I easily killed the Monsters that noticed me before they could alert anyone.

Over the last week or so, the number of Monsters searching the forest for me has reduced pretty significantly, and I haven't spotted any at all in about three days.

It's been a couple of weeks since my last attack, when I wiped out a massive horde of Goblins, Hobgoblins and Ogres, and I'm thinking it's about time I launch my next attack.

We've mapped out a good portion of the continent of Xostra at this point, about sixty-five percent of the area.

The map has also helped me stay hidden more effectively, I've noted down areas with little cover or hiding spots, and avoided them.

I usually just stick to areas with lots of trees or rock formations, and the vast majority of Monster species tend to make their territories in such areas, very few live in open areas.

I've been powering up at a pretty solid rate, I've made a point of avoiding Calamity Level Monsters since its risky to go after targets that would likely take more time and effort to defeat.

At this point, between me and my four Apostles of Sin, we can mow down anything at Critical Level or below pretty quickly, so we attack, wipe out the Monsters as fast as possible, I then proceed to use Ravage to eat them up at top speed, and then leave before anyone else shows up.

And Aria's provided me with a handful of Calamity Level Monster corpses through Treasury as well, which has definitely made a difference.

I tried making copies of those corpses, but consuming the copies didn't boost my stats at all, only the original bodies do.

Anyway, I've progressed by leaps and bounds over these six months, my current stats in comparison to what they were when I first ended up in this world are:

HP: 1155 -> 1828

MP: 2409 -> 3000

Strength: 1155 -> 1825

Agility: 1665 -> 2700

Vitality: 1155 -> 1831

Perception: 1665 -> 2700

Power Level: 1,534,000 -> 2,314,000

As of about two months ago, I maxed out my MP, this is as high as my Mana capacity is going to get.

And my physical stats are at about ninety percent of their ceiling, my Strength and Vitality have a bit more room for growth than the rest of my stats, but not by much.

I've decided, I'll maintain the status quo until I've fully maxed out my stats.

It'll probably take another month or two, but I'd like to be as well-prepared as possible before I make my next move.

Anyway, I was currently somewhere in the forest, in an area surrounded by tall cliffs and a dense grove of trees. I was having the Apostles spar against each other to hone their abilities.

Acedia volunteered to keep watch, and there's no doubt he only offered so that he wouldn't need to spar.

He is the strongest of my Apostles, but the others are capable of holding their own against him if it's at least two on one, so I'd like him to sharpen his skills too.

Among the other three, Luxuria's got the edge over Invidia, though there's not a whole lot of disparity between their capabilites, Luxuria's main advantage lies in the fact that she can fly while Invidia can't.

Well, he can propel himself around with burst of Negative Energy, but he can't fly as freely as Luxuria can, since she has wings and he doesn't.

Other than that, they're pretty evenly matched.

As for Superbia...

"<Alright, it's my turn. Here I come, Luxuria>," She remarked with a smile, forming a glowing green spear in her right hand before she shot forward rapidly.

Luxuria began to fly up, before Superbia swiftly leapt towards her, a slight burst of wind erupting from her heels.

She discovered that, by unleashing her Mana in pressurized bursts, she can trigger bursts of wind.

They're not quite strong enough to use as a real attack option, but they generate enough force to boost her speed in short bursts.

Superbia whipped her spear across, inflicting deep gashes across Luxuria's shins before she could get out of the way, before she gritted her teeth and swung her claws down at Superbia.

Superbia swiftly raised her spear, blocking the slash and backing away a few paces as Luxuria shot up into the air and got some distance, the two of them eyeing each other warily...

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