The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 69

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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 69. Spoils of War (1)
My stats were rising not merely dramatically, but explosively.
Thanks to escaping the Infinite Labyrinth, the effects of my title 【Ruler of the Northern Region】 were now fully manifesting, making my stats absolutely insane.
My agility stat alone had reached a staggering 84.5.
With that came an extraordinary surge in my ‘nerve reaction speed’—
“Kai, whenever you’re ready. Attack me with your sword without warning.”
“Huh? What do you suddenly mean by—”
Whoosh—!
…The bastard didn’t hesitate for even a moment.
Well, Kai knows about my Regeneration [B+] ability.
Even if I got hurt, I could regenerate with [B+], so there was no reason to hold back.
The fact that he didn’t use aura could be called considerate, I suppose.
I twisted my body instantly—
Kai’s sword grazed past my shoulder by a hair’s breadth.
“…!”
Kai’s eyes widened in shock.
Even without aura, it was a sudden, unannounced slash.
Moreover, Kai is no ordinary human.
He possesses the absurdly broken ability Adopted Muscle Memory [A-].
No human could match Kai in pure physical capability.
Add to that the refined, delicate senses honed through reaching the Master tier.
My shoulder should have been severed without any reaction whatsoever.
Yet I reacted and dodged.
Using only biological reaction speed—without any mana enhancement whatsoever.
“…Did you predict it?”
Kai’s astonishment was natural.
Still, I hadn’t completely evaded; the blade grazed me. In other words, I was only marginally faster than Kai without aura.
‘About 20 milliseconds, I’d say.’
That seemed about right.
In other words, I could react to any stimulus within 0.02 seconds.
But what if I used Metabolic Overdrive [U] on top of that?
Assuming I burned 50,000 kcal, my agility stat would skyrocket to 126.75.
And if I further increased my agility through leveling up?
I could surpass 0ms and reach -1ms in speed.
In other words, I could enter the realm of ‘foresight.’
It sounds absurd, but I saw it clearly with my own eyes.
‘That’s what Ian does.’
Ian is the one who has touched that realm of foresight.
Ian reacts before his opponent even moves.
As if he already knows when and how his opponent will strike.
At first, I thought Ian possessed genuine precognitive abilities. But that wasn’t the case.
At the time, Ian told me:
-It’s simple. Observe the minute muscle movements of your opponent and discern how they’ll act.
Ian went further, adding that one could even touch upon ‘Lumen Pax’ by advancing beyond that.
The ultimate state of being—Lumen Pax—where one perfectly synchronizes mind and senses to clearly perceive all surrounding environments, including the opponent.
But that’s easier said than done.
I wondered how it was even possible.
It wasn’t something achievable through superior reflexes alone.
One had to train not only dynamic visual acuity and various neurological abilities to their limits, but also the physical capabilities—strength and stamina—necessary to execute responses.
Moreover, mental discipline was essential.
It was something impossible even with my Predation [S+].
But with Ian’s abilities—Solo Leveling [EX] and Player’s Will [EX]—could I?
I didn’t know what Ian’s stats were at that time, but—
‘I can do it.’
If Ian did it, then so can I.
My agility was supported by strength and stamina stats that had risen evenly to 87.4 and 93.6 respectively.
With that came an immense sense of power and stamina coursing through my entire body.
My growth was incomparable to before entering the Infinite Labyrinth.
‘At this rate, I’ll catch up to my past self soon, won’t I?’
With just a bit more growth, I felt I could match the combat power I had during my Predator days.
That’s why it was quite regrettable.
If I’d stayed in the Infinite Labyrinth for just another year or so, I could have surpassed my Predator-era combat strength.
And if another decade had passed there?
Perhaps I could have grown to stand shoulder to shoulder with Ian.
After all, time wouldn’t flow outside anyway.
With Player’s Will [EX], my mental fortitude would be infinite.
I wish I could have trained endlessly for ten years, a hundred years, infinitely…
Huff, huff… hess…!
Unfortunately, Avarus’s mind couldn’t hold on.
His consciousness seemed completely absent, as if his spirit had entirely departed.
With that, the ominous and grotesque appearance of the rulebook from before vanished without a trace. Now it was merely a talking mass of flesh, or rather, a crude lump of meat.
Still, one never knows.
If he regains consciousness, he might be able to activate the Infinite Labyrinth again.
I approached Avarus and patted his mass of flesh repeatedly—pat, pat!
“Hey, come to your senses.”
Consciousness?
“Yes, come to your senses.”
Cherry senses?
“Not cherry senses—come to your senses.”
Senses… master?
…This guy’s completely lost his mind.
He’s the bread. The big bread.
He claims he’s bread.
The big bread.
At this point, it wasn’t just losing his mind—his entire psyche had shattered.
Two hundred and forty-one days of agony and torture had obliterated his sanity.
Unlike me, Avarus’s mental fortitude wasn’t infinite.
And while my Regeneration [B+] ability could block pain, Avarus’s infinite stamina couldn’t.
In essence, Avarus was as good as dead.
However, his stamina and mana were infinite.
Physically, he hadn’t died.
‘Still, the Infinite Labyrinth’s disappearance must have been due to the absolute rules.’
Infinite Labyrinth [Absolute Rule] Number Two.
The Infinite Labyrinth must always have an [Administrator].
But when the [Administrator] Avarus’s mind completely collapsed, the Infinite Labyrinth determined that Avarus could no longer fulfill the [Administrator] role.
It no longer recognized Avarus as the [Administrator].
The Infinite Labyrinth is a being fused with Avarus.
It’s merged not just with his body, but with his ‘consciousness’ itself.
Therefore, as Avarus’s sense of self collapsed, so too did his identity as the [Administrator].
With the [Administrator] gone, the Infinite Labyrinth’s existence vanished according to [Absolute Rule] Number Five—or so I could deduce.
The bread is hungry.
The bread is hungry.
What kind of administration could there be in such a state?
In other words, Avarus as a self and as an existence had met a certain ‘death.’
◆Sudden Quest [Ambushes Are Supposed to Be Sudden!] Cleared!
The ‘assassination’ condition for clearing the sudden quest had been achieved.
◆Kyioooooooooot!!!!
And as always, the ostentatious message appeared.
This time, its intensity was particularly extraordinary.
◆Pay the price for daring to lay hands on my beloved Sister!!!!
Somehow, things were escalating beyond all reason—
◆You didn’t just slay the punk trying to steal away your Sister, who you love so dearly you’d take a bullet for her—you annihilated his entire house!!!
…The hyperbole had reached nearly insane levels.
◆Of course, the real Beneron family was already wiped out long ago.
◆So you weren’t fooled!
◆Ah, it’s a fake Baron Beneron!! Plot twist! The fake Baron Beneron incident!!
◆You exposed Baron Beneron’s true identity with a bang!
◆You crushed Avarus to smithereens!
◆You devoured the Infinite Labyrinth whole!
◆And even exposed all the Dark Merchant Company’s secrets!
◆You’ve lost it! You’re completely insane!
◆Your incredible Achievement has left me utterly astounded!
◆My eyes are wide as saucers—wide as saucers!
◆You, who performed such an astounding deed!
◆For you, an equally astounding reward awaits!
◆Come now, anticipate it!
◆My heart races—throbs and pounds, muscles flexing! The suspense is killing me!!
“….”
What in the world was this nonsense?
The messages had long since transcended mere hyperbole and descended into absolute madness and hysteria.
But setting that aside.
◆You have acquired 3,373,800 Quest Experience!
…The reward experience was staggering.
A full 3.37 million experience points.
It was incomparable to what I’d gained from the Lycanthrope.
So the ‘massive experience’ listed as the Quest reward was no exaggeration whatsoever….
◆Your level has increased! x20
A whopping +20 level increase.
‘This is insane.’
The word escaped my lips unbidden.
Honestly, I’d wondered how much ‘massive experience’ could really be—.
‘So they weren’t exaggerating when they said massive experience.’
And when I added the stat increases from training in the Infinite Labyrinth to this?
This single Quest had granted me a total of +133 levels.
Growth so explosive it bordered on runaway acceleration.
I was now truly within striking distance of surpassing my past life’s Predator form.
And right then.
“Adrian.”
Kai suddenly called out to me.
I barely had time to wonder what it was about.
“Thanks to you, I was able to survive. I’m grateful.”
Kai suddenly bowed his head to me?
“…What?”
“What do you mean, sir?”
“Didn’t you hate me?”
“I won’t deny it.”
“Yet you’re thanking me?”
“My dislike of you and the fact that I survived because of you are separate matters, are they not?”
Well, when he put it that way, I suppose he had a point.
“Do you doubt the sincerity of my gratitude, sir?”
“I’m not in a particularly good mood.”
“Then I shall withdraw my gratitude. However….”
“However?”
“I am truly grateful that you stepped forward for Seraphia and the Whitewolf Territory.”
It was the moment Kai bowed his head to me once more.
◆Kai’s affinity toward you has increased!
The affinity increase message for Kai suddenly materialized before my eyes.
◆Kai’s affinity toward you is now in the [Trust] state.
◆A person in the [Trust] state places complete faith in you, relies on you, and follows you in all things.
◆Kai would willingly bear any loss for your sake.
Kai’s affinity had already reached the [Trust] state.
It was hard to believe this was the same person who had started in the [Hatred] state.
In any case.
Since I wasn’t paying attention to Kai’s affinity at all, I didn’t bother dwelling on it.
In truth, my mental fortitude was already quite exhausted.
Two hundred and forty-one days in the Infinite Labyrinth.
Though only a single day had passed in reality, I had spent 241 days there—and without a moment of sleep, I had trained relentlessly upon myself.
Thanks to Player’s Will [EX], my mind hadn’t shattered, but mental fatigue was an entirely different matter.
Had I lacked experience from my time with the Allied Forces, I would have surely collapsed.
I casually waved my hand, dispersing the affinity message.
And in that very instant.
【8… 7… 6….】
Avarus suddenly began counting backward.
【5… 4….】
It looked like some kind of self-destruct signal.
It appeared to activate automatically when personal danger approached him.
Come to think of it, even while in a transmog state, Avarus had designed himself so that shield magic would activate on its own.
The likelihood that he had prepared for such emergencies was overwhelming.
【3… 2….】
It was too late to evade now.
Kai would likely endure it with Dependent Immortality [E].
I too possessed Regeneration [B+], but I couldn’t rely on that alone.
If the explosion reached the level of instant death—heart and head obliterated—then Regeneration [B+] would be utterly useless.
I had to withstand it with Dragon Skin [U].
But Dragon Skin [U] lasted only five seconds.
I couldn’t activate it carelessly.
I had to activate it at the precise moment of detonation.
I quickly invested all twenty stat points from the level-up into agility.
My agility surged instantaneously.
Endocrine hormones erupted through my body, and my entire frame trembled in rhythm with my racing heartbeat.
A nervous system in overdrive.
It had been heated to a fever pitch, primed to respond instantly to any stimulus.
【1….】
And the moment the counting finally ended.
【0… 9… gone….】
Zero and nine don’t exist.
Which means there is no eternity.
Now I understood why I’d started counting from eight.
…Damn it.
【Hehehehe….】
Avarus had completely lost his mind.
His sanity had shattered so thoroughly that it seemed it would never be restored.
It was no coincidence that the assassination condition of the Quest had been fulfilled.
In any case, it was fortunate.
Kai also exhaled a sigh of relief, as if grateful.
With this, Avarus as a self and as an existence had been completely annihilated.
What writhed before my eyes now was nothing more than a lump of flesh, and yet I felt no compassion or pity whatsoever.
Avarus is a mad alchemist.
He severed human limbs under the guise of experimenting with artificial mutations, then stitched them back together in wrong positions.
He removed eyes, ears, tongues, and noses under the pretense of conducting sensory experiments, observing the results.
He forcibly injected hallucinogens and toxic drugs, forcibly impregnated women, induced multiple abortions, and researched changes in reproductive organs, and so on and so forth.
He conducted human experiments so horrific that merely imagining them was sickening.
The number of sacrificed people and fallen Allied Forces soldiers was beyond counting.
In terms of sacrifice and suffering alone, Avarus was worse than the Beast Legion Commander, Lycanthrope.
Though that was now the past and a matter of a previous life, it made no difference now.
He is a madman who has transformed all the people of Beneron Barony into homunculi.
Thinking of all those sacrificed for homunculus synthesis, I felt not a shred of sympathy for Avarus, nor any mercy toward him.
And when I consider what Avarus did in his previous life?
I wouldn’t mind devouring him whole right now.
With that in mind.
I moved into action immediately.
Then Kai asked with a confused expression.
“…What are you doing?”
“I have something left to eat.”
“Something left to… I beg your pardon?”
Kai’s face contorted visibly.
“You have something left to eat, sir?”
“That’s right.”
“But you’ve been eating without rest for all 241 days.”
“I have.”
“But you’re eating again?”
“A course meal was served—shouldn’t we finish it all before leaving?”
“A course meal? You mean there’s still a dessert course left?”
“Who knows? I won’t know if it’s dessert or the main course until I taste it.”
“Huh…?”
Kai’s expression twisted into something bewildered, but I brushed it aside and examined Avarus’s flesh mass intently.
Both its form and its essence.
‘It’s like an entirely different creature.’
Perhaps that was why.
‘I can’t even see a heart.’
Even using Predator’s Instinct [S] and Weakness Detection [U], nothing revealed itself.
‘Is this a body reassembled through The Abyss Lord’s authority?’
In other words, Avarus is no longer human.
Completely transformed into a new species—or something indistinguishable from a monster.
Which meant that if I devoured [S+] Avarus, I could acquire the corresponding abilities.
It seemed only fitting to call this the ‘main course’ now.
An extraordinary main course that could only be consumed after finishing all 241 days of appetizers.
In any case, since I couldn’t identify anything resembling a heart.
‘I’ll just eat the whole thing.’
I opened my mouth wide toward the flesh mass—.
“Wait, surely you’re not about to—!”
Along with Kai’s sharp cry from behind—.
Crunch!
The chewy texture of the flesh mass spread across my palate.
And before my eyes, translucent text materialized.
◆Kai’s favorability toward you has boarded the express carriage to rock bottom!!
Kai’s favorability plummeted in an instant.
◆Kai’s favorability toward you has shifted to [Friendly] status!
◆Those in [Friendly] status display a warm and positive attitude toward you.
◆Such individuals actively provide assistance or cooperate, allowing you to receive support in combat or specific situations, and to request aid during crises.
Kai’s favorability, which had been in [Trust] status, immediately dropped one tier back to [Friendly].
Honestly, back and forth like this.
But every time I devour [S+], he does this.
‘Is it really that revolting to watch?’
◆What are you doing, you monstrous—!!
…I wonder why he keeps doing this.
Regardless, ignoring them both, I continued eating the flesh mass—.
◆Are you actually in your right mind—!!
Now the translucent text appeared before my eyes, practically fainting—.
◆You have devoured the genetic material of the entity designated ‘Z’thulonak’!
My prediction struck true.
Not the name Avarus—a human designation—but rather another entity’s true name surfaced in my mind.

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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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