The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 266

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 266. Rule Breaker (2)
The distant presence.
The moment that name reached his ears.
Marzen’s body went rigid.
His mind felt as though it were crystallizing, hardening into stone.
The weight of that name—the presence—had done this to him.
Marzen swallowed hard.
Then, with utmost caution, he opened his mouth.
“You mean… all of the Imperial Secret Service agents?”
“Indeed.”
Marzen’s eyes finally flooded with shock.
The Imperial Secret Service.
Those who directly executed the presence’s will were creatures that could scarcely be called human—monsters.
Each individual possessed combat prowess capable of annihilating an elite knight order single-handedly.
Intelligence gathering, assassination, infiltration, sabotage—
They were versatile specialists who excelled at everything without exception.
Therefore, Marzen had never known of such a thing.
Never had all the monsters of the Imperial Secret Service been summoned to one place at once.
If they all gathered together?
Without exaggeration, they could annihilate four or five kingdoms.
“Might I… ask the reason?”
“An unforeseen variable has emerged.”
“A variable, you say?”
“That much is beyond your need to know.”
Alaric answered with a cold gaze.
Marzen sealed his lips shut.
Anything beyond this was forbidden to him.
Prying further might well result in his head being severed from his shoulders.
Marzen swallowed once more and spoke.
“…When do you depart?”
“Immediately.”
Alaric turned on his heel.
“See that the restoration of Caravana is completed as planned.”
And then.
Engulfed in shadow, he vanished without a trace.
A silence so profound it felt as though the very air had collapsed.
-The rune steel transaction must proceed exactly as scheduled.
Only Alaric’s voice, lingering like an echo, reached Marzen’s ears.
* * *
Iliana, unconscious and collapsed.
Broombar stood frozen like a statue.
Both heroes had lost consciousness from the overwhelming power of Rilsein.
Fortunately, one entity (?) remained awake.
Yggdrasil, the World Tree.
Eeeeeek?!!?
The vines and branches draped throughout the room trembled as if in shock.
It seemed Yggdrasil was also quite startled by Rilsein—
Screeeeeek?!!?
…No, it was more like horror.
Still, it hadn’t lost consciousness.
“Could I ask you to look after these two?”
Nod nod nod nod!!
Yggdrasil nodded frantically.
Not that it had a head to speak of, but the entire trunk swayed desperately in all directions.
…Anyway.
I entrusted the two to Yggdrasil and left the room.
The moment I stepped outside—
—Ahhhhh! It’s an earthquake!!
—The walls! The walls are collapsing!! Don’t touch them!!
—The children first! Get the children out now!
—Kyaaaaaaah! The building’s coming down!!
The entire Whitewolf Territory was in chaos.
It appeared the massive energy from Rilsein was causing the ground to collapse and buildings to crumble.
I turned back around.
And I spoke to Yggdrasil, who was tending to Iliana and Broombar.
“…Could I also ask you to look after the Whitewolf Territory?”
Nod nod nod nod!!
Yggdrasil nodded reassuringly.
Its entire trunk swayed up and down.
Thump!
Vines extended to wrap around the crumbling buildings.
Roots filled the collapsed ground.
Leaves shielded the people from scattering debris.
—Hey, those leaves just protected me!
—Incredible!!
—Wow, amazing!
And just like that, the Whitewolf Territory regained stability.
‘This is incredibly convenient.’
Long live Sephiroth, truly.
…Anyway.
I entrusted everything to Yggdrasil and returned to my chamber.
There, I calmly assessed my physical condition.
Power that surged with each pulse of my heartbeat.
With every beat, tremendous energy burrowed deep into my cellular tissue.
I opened my palm, and a dark crimson luminescence bloomed from within.
It moved at my will.
This energy was neither unstable nor runaway—it was perfectly controlled.
“No wonder.”
I felt power overflowing through my entire body.
No, overflowing was an understatement.
It felt as though I could shatter anything.
An Ogre? A dragon?
Such things were merely within a single punch’s distance.
“Perhaps not quite that far?”
There was some exaggeration mixed in.
But it wasn’t mere bluster.
“Rilsenium.”
The final substance adorning the end of this world.
More precisely.
According to Arcanis Rilsein’s magical framework, it was the ultimate substance theoretically possible to exist.
A substance that could only exist in theory.
Yet it could be synthesized through Super-Orbital Material Synthesis [S].
“The synthesized quantity isn’t much, though.”
Merely 1 milligram.
In other words, 0.001 grams.
Yet the caloric content it possessed was absolutely insane.
◆81,500,000,000 Kcal
A staggering 8.15 billion calories.
This approached the theoretical maximum energy release possible when matter converts to mass-energy.
In simple terms: pair annihilation.
Energy release on that very level.
In other words, my entire body had become an “annihilation reactor.”
“And this is only the energy that was lost.”
During synthesis, most of the energy dissipated as heat and vibration.
One of those dissipated energies was the great earthquake that shook Whitewolf Territory.
And the reason the energy was lost.
“My body couldn’t withstand it.”
…Even after raising my stats so dramatically.
The ultimate form of biological evolution.
I was certainly among that tier.
Even so, I couldn’t fully contain Rilsein’s immense energy.
“If I tried to absorb it all right now, my body would rupture.”
Iliana’s assessment was precisely correct.
Energy that was itself a ‘law-breaker’.
It was a power that even those at the pinnacle of ultimate forms couldn’t handle.
“Still, I’m no longer constrained by caloric limitations.”
Energy metabolism and absorption became irrelevant.
Even efficiency became meaningless.
My body contained 81.5 billion calories equivalent to 1mg of Rilsein.
And Dragon Blood Torrent [L].
A skill that wrings out every last ounce of energy I possess.
If I activated it in my current state?
“I could establish absolute superiority even against a Lord.”
And this wasn’t even the end.
I could grow further from here.
Ian’s ability—Solo Level Up [EX].
My ability—Predation [S+].
With these two abilities, I could continuously transcend the limits of living creatures.
Through that, Rilsein.
If I could contain all the law-breaker’s energy within my body?
“I could reach it.”
The Emperor.
The Lord of all things.
Even the existence beyond that was no longer an unreachable realm.
Therefore, the single letter resting upon my desk.
[…Preparations for the Runesteel transaction are complete.]
All preparations to enter The Empire and see The Emperor’s face were finished.
* * *
The trading city of Caravana.
Marzen walked slowly through the streets.
Caravana’s streets were extraordinarily bustling.
As the city recovered its function as a trading hub, goods from across The Continent began circulating in earnest.
“Come, come! Fresh pumpkins just arrived from the south!”
“Hey there! Isn’t that your shipment?”
“Wait! That’s transit cargo! We’re not supposed to sell that here!!”
Street vendors shouted.
Porters moved back and forth.
Merchant Guild banners fluttered here and there.
As people from across The Continent gathered, information from across The Continent gathered as well.
Among it all, what dominated people’s conversations most was this.
“Do you know how Whitewolf Territory achieved victory?”
It was news of Whitewolf Territory’s triumph.
“From what I’ve heard recently, there was a Death Knight involved!”
…No, it was a bizarre rumor connected to the victory.
“What?! There was a Death Knight in Whitewolf Territory?!”
“That’s what they’re saying!”
“The Death Knight that attacked Caravana?!”
“According to the rumors, Adrian summoned it himself!!”
Gossip passed from mouth to mouth.
People grew fervent and believed it.
Thus the rumor grew increasingly grotesque, gaining flesh with each retelling.
“That’s impossible! How could anyone face such a monster!”
“Who knows! Anyway, someone saw it firsthand! Silver armor, a black cloak billowing─!”
By any measure, it was an absurd tale.
Yet here was the thing.
‘This isn’t merely a false rumor.’
Marzen was left in astonishment.
In any case.
While Caravana was once again thriving as a trading city.
Marzen turned into a dark alley.
Unlike the main street, not a single shadow of another person was visible.
Marzen proceeded cautiously, remaining alert to his surroundings.
And at the alley’s end.
He carefully opened the door to an old warehouse.
Creak.
The rusty hinges groaned loudly as the door swung open.
The warehouse interior was silent.
With neither light nor people, only the metallic scent in the dust-laden air assailed his nostrils.
Yet Marzen could sense it.
Someone was here.
And that someone had been waiting for Marzen─.
“You’ve arrived earlier than expected.”
Marzen’s hands shot up reflexively!
They rose instinctively.
He shielded his face, bracing for impact, but naturally no fist came flying.
Only an absurd voice reached his ears.
“…Why do you keep doing that every time?”
Marzen slowly lowered his hands.
And then he could see the man.
“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”
The merchant guild master of the Raven Dung Merchant Company.
Kim Fujiwara Bloodhound.
And yet.
No matter how many times I saw him, his beauty defied all logic.
Shall I be honest?
Even the Elves, the race of beauty itself, did not possess such appearance.
To put it bluntly, the definition of the race of beauty should be redefined not as Elves, but as Kim Fujiwara.
“Is there something on my face?”
“…No.”
Marzen averted his gaze.
If he continued staring, it felt as though his every thought would be laid bare.
And fearing his thoughts might be exposed.
Marzen quickly broached the main subject.
“So, the item you wished to show me?”
“This way, please.”
Kim Fujiwara moved forward.
Marzen hesitated briefly before following in his wake.
A compartment secured with iron locks.
Kim Fujiwara came to a halt before a vast pile of cargo draped in cloth.
And then, with a whisper.
As the cloth was drawn back, a weighty presence emanated from within.
Bearing a grayish-white luster.
“Fifty thousand tons of Runeiron.”
“…!!!”
Marzen’s eyes widened dramatically.
The shock stole his breath, leaving him momentarily speechless.
“…Is, is this all of it…?”
“Runeiron. To be precise, fifty-two thousand three hundred forty tons of meticulously refined ‘Runeiron Ingots.'”
Marzen’s mouth fell open with a sharp gasp.
It was incomprehensible—
The sheer scale was almost impossible to fathom.
“Is, is this truly real…?”
“Verify it yourself.”
Kim Fujiwara stepped aside.
Marzen slowly approached and lifted a single Runeiron Ingot in his hand.
And as he drew upon his mana.
A deep hum resonated.
A rejection reaction manifested.
The inherent property of Runeiron—the nullification of mana—was perfectly reflected.
In other words.
“…So it’s true.”
The truth was unbearably heavy.
The enormous quantity of Runesteel ingots laid before me.
This wasn’t mere trade goods—it was a strategic asset capable of upending the entire balance of war.
“How well have the preparations been made?”
“…Sufficient.”
“Then we should move immediately. Have you secured the transport route?”
Marzen nodded.
“We’ll use the abandoned mine passages in the Western Region’s outer reaches. The path is already cleared.”
“Well, I trust you’ve handled it competently.”
Kim Fujiwara shrugged his shoulders.
Marzen watched him for a moment before speaking.
“But wouldn’t it be easier to store it in your subspace and transport it that way?”
Kim Fujiwara wielded an extraordinary subspace magic.
He possessed the capacity to store even fifty thousand tons with ease.
That would have eliminated the inconvenience of transportation—but.
“Precisely because it is ‘subspace,’ sir.”
“…?”
“Runesteel is difficult for me to store as well.”
“Ah.”
Marzen understood immediately.
Subspace was advanced ‘magic.’
And Runesteel possessed the property of neutralizing mana.
In other words, Runesteel could not be stored in subspace.
Not even the Grand Mage could accomplish that.
Arcanis Rilsein couldn’t either.
This meant, in turn.
Kim Fujiwara Bloodhound.
His subspace was magic, and he was undoubtedly a mage.
And this further meant.
‘Fifty thousand tons of Runesteel brought here without any exposure whatsoever….’
Since Runesteel couldn’t be stored in subspace, it could only be transported directly.
Yet such an enormous quantity.
And such a precious strategic resource as Runesteel at that.
Had been brought all the way to Caravana without leaving a single trace?
Cold sweat beaded on Marzen’s forehead.
He swallowed involuntarily.
…Once again.
I could grasp the reality anew.
“Why do you hesitate? We must move swiftly.”
…who Marzen would be sharing a boat with.

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