Lightning flashed across the dark sky, illuminating the battlefield in a brief, eerie glow. Rainwater dripped from my face as I turned to face my last opponent.
The third level 9 golem was already charging, using the momentum of its massive body to try and ram into me.
I braced myself then met it head-on.
At the last moment, I ducked low, grabbing its leg, and with a single heave, I lifted the entire thing off the ground.
The sudden shift in weight broke its charge completely, and before it could react, I roared, spun, and hurled it through the air.
The golem crashed hard into the tree trolls surrounding Steve.
I didn't give it time to recover.
I sprinted toward it and jumped high into the air. Essence surged into my leg as I twisted mid-air, and then I dropped like a meteor, my heel slamming straight into its chest.
Boom!
The impact cratered the ground beneath it, and its torso exploded.
Three down.
I winked at Steve.
"Yeah, you're welcome."
He shot back, "Showoff," before rushing toward the damaged trolls, slashing their throats with precision.
'So the level 9 golems are gone. That leaves the trolls.'
I grinned and shouted. "See ya!" before dashing toward the remaining trolls.
My skill was still active, and I wanted to take down as many trolls and golems as possible before engaging the level 10s—not that I feared them.
My Essence was generating rapidly with every movement, every kill, and I could feel that I was on the verge of leveling up.
I barreled into the trolls, fists smashing left and right.
When my fists weren't enough, my legs did the work. Their defenses weren't as tough as the golems', so I tore through them with brutal efficiency, rain and gore mixing around me.
My bare feet pounded against the soaked earth in rhythm with the thunder flashing above.
For nearly twenty minutes, I kept going, relentless.
Then I stopped.
My chest heaved as I sucked in lungful of damp air, muscles aching from exhaustion and overuse. The temporary strength boost had ended, and even my skill had deactivated. A deep, continuous throbbing pulsed in my chest—maybe the constant strain of Generator was taking its toll.
A message flashed before me.
[Level Up!]
[Level 11 -> Level 12]
I exhaled and looked around.
Scattered all around me were the shattered remains of golems and the crushed bodies of tree trolls. The battlefield was a graveyard.
Then my eyes met the other duo.
King was staring at me, fire in his gaze, his grip tightening around his spear. I could already tell what was going through his head.
So, I smiled at him—bright and wide, as much as I could under the rain and darkness.
Then I turned my attention to the only true threats left standing.
The level 10 golem. The level 10 troll.
The final challenge before the checkpoint.
Around us, the remaining stragglers were still being cut down—some by Steve, others now closing in on King and Michael. But my focus was set.
I rolled my shoulders, feeling the fatigue settling in.
Time to end this.
I was already level 12, and this wasn't even a challenge anymore. I checked my Essence.
7/10.
I ignored it. No point in using it for something this easy.
Instead, I dumped all my unused stat points into Psynapse.
A subtle shift ran through my mind. The dull ache behind my eyes, probably from overusing [Psynapse Boost] earlier eased slightly, and my thoughts felt sharper.
Step by step, I moved toward the golem first. It was still busy smashing its massive fist against the checkpoint pillar.
Cracks spread across the stone where it had been hitting, but it would take much longer for any real damage.
I came to a stop right behind it.
And it didn't even notice me.
"Sure is dumb."
I raised a hand and tapped its back.
"Knock knock."
The golem froze mid-strike, then slowly turned.
We locked eyes.
I gave it a crisp military salute.
"Let's begin."
Nothing.
It just stood there.
I frowned.
"Hey, are you damaged or something?"
That did the trick.
It roared and swung its arm at me.
Predictable.
The movement was slow—at least, to me.
My boosted Psynapse made it clear as day.
I crossed my arms in front of me and took the hit head-on.
The impact sent me skidding back across the rain-slicked ground.
"Ouch."
I shook out my hands. The power gap between us wasn't huge, but my Constitution still wasn't high enough to fully tank its blows.
I clicked my tongue.
'Looks like I need to boost my Constitution. If I funnel 50 points of Essence into it, I should gain 10 permanent stat points. That should be enough to keep up.'
I grinned at the golem and stretched out my arms.
"All right, rockhead, hit me with everything you've got."
I stood my ground, letting it attack.
Each punch slammed into me with bone-rattling force, and my Generator talent roared to life, converting the energy and pushing my Essence generation into overdrive.
Not so great for my body, though.
I gritted my teeth, ignoring the deep burn in my muscles.
'No pain, no gain, Billion.'
As soon as my Essence reached 10, I dumped it all into Constitution.
The effect was instant.
A wave of relief washed through me as my body began repairing the accumulated damage. Even the persistent throbbing in my chest eased.
'I can't let my Constitution fall behind, or I won't be able to fully utilize Generator's potential.'
I cracked my knuckles. The next punch landed—
And I barely felt it.
I smirked.
"Sorry, dude. Time for you to sleep."
The golem swung again. This time, I dodged, using its outstretched arm as a springboard to leap up.
My leg shot down.
Boom!
My heel shattered its head, and the golem collapsed into a pile of rubble.
I exhaled. One left.
I moved toward the level 10 tree troll. Two solid punches later, its upper torso was nothing but pulp.
I turned and glanced at Steve.
He was still cutting down trolls, but there weren't many left.
My eyes flickered toward the mount.
King and Michael had stepped down, staring at me.
I ignored them and walked toward the pillar.
With the lightning-infused structure flickering behind me, I sat down, tilting my head back to glance up at the cube displaying our current rankings.
[Level Rankings]
-----------------------------------------------
1. Billion Ironhart : Level – 12
2. Steve Harper : Level – 9
3. King Holt : Level – 8
4. North Winter : Level – 7
5. Sarah Gibson : Level – 7
6. Mark Salt : Level – 7
7. .
8. .
9. .
10. .
-----------------------------------------------
Steve leveled up again, reaching level 9. King leveled up as well. Everyone on the list was now level 7 or higher.
I glanced at Steve. He was still fighting with only one hand—evade, strike, evade, strike. That was all he was doing.
'Looks like he didn't put any points into Constitution.'
King and Michael had also joined in, going after the remaining tree trolls.
I sat in silence, focusing on recovering while watching Steve fight. Rain pattered against my head, my soaked hair sticking to my face.
Fifteen more minutes passed before Steve finally finished. He walked straight toward me and flopped down beside me, his chest rising and falling in heavy, uneven breaths.
Neither of us spoke. We just sat there, letting the rain wash over us, the distant rumble of thunder filling the silence.
Then, I saw King and Michael moving toward us.
I lifted my head, already knowing why King was here. I didn't need to be a genius to recognize his type—I could spot people like him from miles away.
Finally, he reached us and spoke.
"Hello, Billion. My name is King Holt."