The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 239

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 239. The Infinite Evolution Chamber
Muscle growth lies in recovery.
By repeating high-intensity exercise, I damage my muscles, and as the damaged muscles recover, they grow stronger.
But there are limits.
No matter how much a human trains, they cannot surpass a gorilla.
In other words, muscle growth cannot exceed the limits set at the species level.
It is an utterly natural law of biology.
I transcended that limit by devouring [S+] the Ogre’s power.
Yet limits still existed.
Because I remained, fundamentally, human.
My inherent limitations had not vanished.
My body could not fully contain the Ogre’s strength.
But now, things were different.
The Valley of Kardun.
Here dwelt the ancient force of death itself—the power of nature.
It was expanding both the species’ limits and biological constraints to infinity.
I twisted my body forcefully from a push-up position.
My shoulders cracked with a sickening crunch, snap!
The sound of my entire body tearing reverberated through my skull.
My shoulders and arms bent at grotesque angles.
My body slammed hard against the ground.
Yet all I could do was laugh.
◆Strength stat increases by +32!
An extraordinary increase materialized before my eyes.
I pushed myself upright.
My body had already healed.
In fact, it had grown even stronger.
The moment I stood, I dropped into a squat position.
I made sure to deliberately lose my balance.
Crash!
My knee joints shattered and burst apart.
My thighs split and tore in succession.
“Hehehehe…!!”
Laughter was all that escaped me.
◆Strength stat increases by +77!
I could not suppress the laughter!
“Hahahaha…!!”
I rose to my feet once more.
And immediately bent my spine backward.
My vertebrae folded in reverse.
Crack!!
My body folded like a bow before crashing to the ground with a heavy thud.
And then.
◆Strength stat increases by +64!
“Kuhhhh…! Kha…! Hahahaha!!”
Screams and laughter erupted simultaneously.
In this brief span, my Strength stat had surged by a staggering +173.
“Haah… haah…! Haha…!!”
I gasped for breath.
My body recovered almost instantly.
The pain and fatigue vanished completely.
“This is on an entirely different level from strength gained through simple physical training?”
It approached the power of Predation [S+].
My muscles weren’t merely enlarging—my entire physical structure was fundamentally transforming.
“Good. Let’s keep going.”
I relentlessly destroyed and regenerated my muscles.
* * *
The barracks of Whitewolf Territory, situated upon the Snowy Plain.
A banner bearing the white wolf’s emblem fluttered in the wind.
Though the territory’s environment had grown considerably warmer through the spirits’ aid, the air around the barracks still carried a biting chill.
Thus, thick frost settled upon the frozen stone walls.
Yet the barracks themselves, along with the bathhouse, infirmary, and latrines.
All manner of living facilities remained warm and comfortable under the spirits’ protection.
“Count. Please don’t do this and wait inside.”
Sarpedon spoke with concern.
Seraphia brushed her silver hair back lightly and shook her head.
“It’s not that cold, really.”
Sarpedon quietly lowered his gaze.
The tips of Seraphia’s fingers had grown cold.
Sarpedon withdrew a small fur glove from his pocket and offered it to her.
“Then at least wear these. If you’re going to be outside for a while, your hands should stay warm.”
“…Thank you.”
Seraphia accepted the gloves and pulled them on.
After waiting a while longer.
A column of soldiers entered the barracks from the distance.
Seraphia rushed forward with quick steps.
At the front stood Kai, a handsome man with golden hair.
Seraphia asked urgently.
“What did you find?”
“We searched the Snowy Mountain, Snowy Plain, and the Frozen Lands entirely.”
“Have you found my brother?”
Kai averted his gaze for a moment, then shook his head gently.
“I was unable to locate Adrian’s whereabouts.”
“Ah….”
Seraphia’s eyes wavered.
“You found no trace of him at all?”
“That is correct.”
“I see….”
Seraphia lowered her head.
Adrian was always the type to inform her of his whereabouts before departing anywhere.
He had never vanished so suddenly and unexpectedly before.
Well, precisely once.
Right after the previous Count’s passing and the reading of his will.
Except for that time when Adrian had abandoned the family.
And so, at some point.
Seraphia found herself recalling a conversation she had once shared with Adrian.
-Once your task is complete, you will leave the family, won’t you?
-When the task is done. In any case, you and I will have no reason to meet again.
She did not know what that task was.
Adrian had shown no intention of telling her.
But she had thought there was no need to know any further.
-I will do my part for the Territory in my own way.
-Huh?
-It means I will help you.
Adrian had returned, and now he seemed to have no intention of leaving the Territory.
But then.
Had it all been a lie?
‘No!’
Seraphia shook her head vigorously from side to side.
That could not be.
Adrian must have had an urgent matter to attend to.
So she could not waver.
If Seraphia wavered, the Territory would waver.
The Territory must not falter simply because Adrian was absent.
In times like these, Seraphia had to hold firm at the center.
She was as capable a lord of the Territory as Isolde, and she was Adrian’s impressive sister, after all.
‘I must protect it.’
Seraphia clenched her lips and lifted her head.
“You have all worked hard. Rest sufficiently for the time being.”
After encouraging the search party soldiers, Seraphia also spoke to Kai.
“Kai, take the day off as well.”
“I can continue searching.”
“No.”
Seraphia spoke again, her voice firm and resolute.
“You haven’t slept in days. Please take care of yourself, Kai.”
“…Understood.”
Kai lowered his head.
Seraphia smiled softly and spoke once more.
“You’ve all worked hard. Rest well and stay warm.”
With that, she gathered her cloak and departed from the barracks.
Kai watched her retreating figure for a moment before turning to address the soldiers.
“Dismissed, all of you. By the Count’s orders, we suspend the search for now.”
The soldiers’ tense expressions gradually softened.
One by one, they made their way back to the barracks.
Yet Kai remained in place until the very end.
Seraphia’s footsteps echoed as she departed.
For some reason, both her shoulders appeared weighted down.
“….”
Kai’s gaze never left her retreating silhouette until she vanished from sight.
* * *
I had been endlessly repeating the cycle of destroying and regenerating my muscles within the Shrine.
Now I emerged from the Shrine and ventured outside.
Perhaps The Man was nearby.
Or maybe a Draug or Revenant lingered in these depths.
“…Nothing.”
But there was no one.
I was alone in the Valley of Kardun.
“No Mungu either, it seems.”
My Quest system, including my abilities, functioned normally.
But the verbose Mungu was nowhere to be seen.
“It was the same the last time I came here.”
It appeared that the Quest system and Mungu operated on entirely separate mechanisms.
In any case.
After emerging from the Shrine’s depths.
I made my way toward the summit of the vast valley.
At the cliff’s edge.
An endless abyss yawned below.
“Let’s see.”
Without hesitation, I hurled myself into the chasm.
In that instant—boom!
Tremendous gravitational force pulled my body downward.
The acceleration of my fall showed no signs of stopping.
Normally, air resistance would cause the falling speed to eventually stabilize.
But this place was different.
There was no resistance, and the acceleration continued to increase relentlessly.
Whoooooosh!!
Immense pressure crushed against my body.
At this speed and from this height, even I couldn’t survive unscathed.
But as long as my heart doesn’t burst, I won’t die.
Perhaps in this place, even if my heart burst, I might not die.
‘But I can’t exactly experiment with that.’
Experiments that risked my life were never wise.
I focused on protecting my heart and brain.
Two vital points I shielded with absolute care.
Soon my body collided with the ground.
Craaaaaaaaash!!!
The earth trembled as a deafening explosion echoed across the landscape.
My bones shattered into fragments.
My organs were crushed, and blood and flesh scattered in all directions.
…If anyone saw me now, well.
‘I wouldn’t want to look at myself either.’
The fact that my eyes had ruptured was almost a blessing.
Regardless, my consciousness never faded.
And soon after.
As if nothing had happened, everything recovered completely.
I drew a deep breath.
Then I felt my transformed body distinctly.
My bones had become harder.
My skin had thickened to absorb greater impact.
Just as damaged muscles grew stronger upon recovery, with each fall my body evolved to withstand increasingly powerful impacts.
Thus my liver, stomach, kidneys, and other organs.
The reconstructed organs experienced explosive improvements in metabolism and regenerative capacity.
◆Stamina stat increased by +123!
“Haha…!!”
Laughter escaped unbidden.
“I do miss Mungu not being here.”
In this moment, I found myself nostalgic for Mungu’s dramatic reactions.
* * *
The bustling marketplace of Whitewolf Territory.
Where merchants haggled loudly and children cried out, a cheerful commotion filled the air.
“What?!?!”
A particularly sharp shout seized everyone’s attention.
“Adrian has gone missing?”
“That’s right!”
All eyes converged at once.
But another voice quickly followed.
“Come on, that can’t be right.”
“He’s probably just away on business somewhere.”
“Yeah. He’ll show up again with some incredible story, no doubt.”
Heads nodded naturally among the crowd.
“How could Adrian even go missing in the first place?”
“Exactly, friend.”
“I mean, is there anything in this world that could make Adrian disappear?”
The very man who had fought an Ogre head-on.
The Saint of Caravana.
“Who on earth could possibly make someone like Adrian vanish?”
Even if thrown into hell itself, he would crawl back out alive.
The residents of Whitewolf Territory showed not worry, but rather eager anticipation—wondering what legend Adrian would create this time.
Thus the rumor of his disappearance was dismissed as mere gossip and quickly faded away.
But the embers never truly died.
Not the next day. Nor the day after.
Nor the day after that.
“Adrian still hasn’t returned, apparently.”
“…Really?”
“Somehow, even the soldiers’ mood seems off lately.”
More than ten days passed, then nearly two weeks, and still the rumors persisted.
“Could something have actually happened to him…?”
“The Count’s House hasn’t said anything, which makes it even more unsettling.”
And so the unease within Whitewolf Territory spread ever wider.
“Have you heard the rumor?”
“The Saint of Caravana, Adrian, has gone missing!”
And like a rumor without legs, it spread in all directions.
* * *
Empire Central Information Bureau.
Beneath the magical lamps casting light from the ceiling, a woman exhaled softly.
Deputy Director Elwyn Barjein.
Her silver-tinged short hair swayed, and her deep gray eyes turned toward her aide.
“Adrian Whitewolf has gone missing?”
“Yes, ma’am. According to the reports we’ve received—”
“Is that rumor reliable?”
Rumors, by their very nature, were not to be trusted.
More pressingly, the Information Bureau currently found itself with its hands tied.
Despite maintaining their intelligence network in operation, the Whitewolf Territory’s defenses were so thorough that they had gleaned absolutely nothing about its internal affairs.
“It is not merely rumor, sir.”
“Then what?”
“The Southern Alliance Kingdom has unilaterally raised the transit taxes on the Predator Merchant Company.”
“…Suddenly?”
The Predator Merchant Company had recently introduced soap and peanut wine, explosively expanding its influence across the Continent.
Every marketplace from one end of the Continent to the other teemed with crowds clamoring for soap.
Peanut wine graced the banquets of nobility throughout every kingdom.
The Predator Merchant Company had become a name whispered across the entire Continent.
“To raise transit taxes on such a merchant company….”
“It was far too brazen.”
“The Southern Alliance Kingdom could not possibly be ignorant of who the Predator Merchant Company’s master is.”
Elowin’s gray eyes narrowed to slits.
“They did this knowing full well?”
“It appears they are confident the Predator Merchant Company cannot mount a response.”
“Hmm…, I see.”
A smile playing at Elowin’s lips—mingling intrigue with cold mockery.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————