Chapter 11: Victorious Return

Akira stood amidst the faint glow of the dungeon walls, forming a magic ball in his palm for another experiment. The results were... disappointing. "Speed but no impact, impact but no speed. Ugh, this is useless. Might as well stab them with the damn spear." Akira muttered to himself, the edges of frustration in his voice evident. The realization hit hard—his magic, at this level, simply lacked the destructive force he envisioned. It wasn't that the goblins were strong, they were pathetic. But the dungeon had an endless supply of monsters, and with his current stamina, Akira knew that mindlessly slaughtering them would drain him quickly. He needed to manage his physical reserves wisely. Without wasting more time, he pushed onward—straight to the sixth floor. The moment he stepped into the shadows of the deeper level, the scent of danger intensified. A cluster of monsters began to materialize as if summoned by his arrival. Four War Shadows lunged out of the darkness, claws glinting like the scythe of the Reaper himself. Their movements were sharp, efficient, terrifying. Akira's breath caught in his throat. Without Kaguya watching his back, his heart beat faster. Alone, the fear crawled into his chest. But he steeled himself. Gripping his spear tightly in both hands, Akira swung it to parry the double swipe from the War shadows on his left. The momentum carried the spear in a circular motion as he twisted his body and slammed the blunt end into the head of the third War shadow on the right. The force of the impact sent two of them crashing into the wall behind. Not letting his nerves win, he kicked off the ground and vaulted backward, narrowly avoiding the clawed lunge of another War shadow. Midair, he angled his spear and thrust—cleanly skewering the attacker before it could even react. But the threat wasn't over. The whistle of another claw strike echoed as one War Shadow came at him from the flank. Akira ducked. In one swift motion, he unsheathed his knife, blocked the oncoming attack, and stabbed upward with his right hand, forcing the creature back. "Two left..." Akira panted, his grip tightening. "Maybe it's time to try barehanded combat." Sliding his spear into the strap of his backpack, he clenched his fists and charged. Dodging claw after claw with deft footwork, Akira found an opening. He snatched one War Shadow's arm and slammed his palm into its chest. A ripple burst forth. A strange, compressed wave of magical energy surged from his hand. The War Shadow flew backward, and its body collided with the final enemy. There was a dull boom as a small shockwave detonated at the point of impact, blasting both creatures to the ground. Without hesitation, Akira dashed forward and ended the last one with a powerful punch. — — — The battle on the sixth floor dragged on for some time. By the end, Akira's clothes were torn and dotted with bloody patches. He had taken hits from several Frog Shooters—annoying pests that lashed out their elastic tongues from afar. Fortunately, his wind-charged spear had turned them into green paste. During a much-needed break, Akira sat against the dungeon wall and drank from his supplies: one bottle of red potion and two bottles of potion that recover the mind. "The red potion from the system really hits different... much more effective than what I get down here." He mused, wiping his mouth. He eyed the blue potions in his bag and said, "These restore magic power. I've got way more MP than I need right now. Might as well give them to the team when I get the chance." He glanced up. The light filtering down from the cracks in the ceiling told him it was about midday. Time to eat. Finding a relatively safe place, Akira pulled out the carefully prepared lunch Astraea had packed for him. The aroma hit him the moment he opened the box. Still chewing his food, he opened his status display. [Personal Information] Name: Akira Age: 13 Level: 10 Condition: Good Skills Unlocked: Ghost Flame, Teleport, Flame Shield Ghost Flame: Generates two hovering flame orbs that increase defense and can be launched at enemies. Teleport: Instantly move up to 6–7 meters in any direction. Flame Shield: A rotating flame shield that can be used for both offense and defense. Variants like Ice or Wind Shields are possible depending on element affinity. After reaching Lv 10 , Akira felt it. His connection to elemental magic had deepened. Control had sharpened. Skills like Flame shield could even be modified. Eager to test his limits, he pushed deeper into the sixth floor, eyes searching. He didn't have to wait long—three War Shadows emerged. Raising a hand, Akira used Ghost Flame. The large flame spheres floated on either side of him. In the blink of an eye, Akira teleported forward, slamming them into the enemies. The force blasted the monsters backward—one disintegrated on impact. Grinning, he reappeared safely behind a pillar. "Not bad at all... Now for the shield." He extended his palms, spiraling fire into a large, rotating wall of heat. With a shout, he hurled the 1.5-meter-wide Flame Shield at the remaining War shadows. The shield screamed through the air like a comet, slamming into its targets with a burst of heat and pressure. It exploded mid-impact, engulfing the creatures in an inferno that left only scorched earth and blackened dust. Even the magic stones had been reduced to rubble. "Oops. Gotta be more careful. This power's no joke." Akira muttered, a cold sweat forming on his temple. But the thrill of destruction had taken root. Next came his favorite experiment. Holding fire in one hand and a cyclone in the other, Akira merged the two. A whirling firestorm roared into existence—a fire tornado that screamed across the floor like a beast unleashed. It carried debris, molten stone, and one very unlucky monster that had just appeared from the passageway. The inferno twisted and slammed into the wall. Flames licked the stone until it glowed, warping the surface. The air grew thick, the heat overwhelming. The entire area had grown ten degrees hotter in seconds. Only when the flame lost its fuel and energy did Akira release the magic. "Hah... seems like I was born to be a walking turret." He chuckled, satisfied. "One last test." He wandered the floor until he finally encountered a suitable group of monsters. "Let's blow this place up and call it a day!" Without hesitation, Akira darted into the heart of the monster group. Time seemed to halt. He lifted his arms and summoned an explosion of elemental fire. Like a volcanic eruption, flames exploded from beneath his feet. A swirling inferno rose in all directions, forming a flaming prison. In the next instant, Akira teleported to safety. Within the cage, the monsters thrashed as the prison began to compress inward. Screams were silenced as the pressure reached its peak. Then—BOOM. The explosion shattered the silence and sent shockwaves in every direction. Akira staggered, conjured an ice wall just in time, and retreated several meters to avoid the heat blast. When it was finally over, the cavern was deathly silent. Ash rained from above. The ground was blackened, molten. A crater had formed where the monsters once stood. Akira returned to the site, blinking in awe. "...Yeah, seventh floor tomorrow sounds good." "I really need to work on controlling this stuff. Can't have the magic stones evaporating every time I cast." With a sigh, he conjured a sphere of water to cool the surroundings. Steam hissed into the air. "Still... not a bad haul." He looked at the monster parts and gleaming magic stones scattered across the field. Akira looked at [Backpack] and said, "Two bags of magic stones, one bag of rare materials. That's good enough." Right at that moment, he remembered something. "Oh right, I have to carry them." Tying three full bags to his waist, Akira began his slow but victorious march toward the surface. Every time a monster dared show its face, it was promptly turned to ash with a casual flick of magic.