The moment the Great Rabbit fell, dark shadow energy surged forth, coiling around the gradually cooling corpse like a living thing. Within seconds, a brand new Shadow Rabbit rose from the shadows, its crimson eyes gleaming with loyal light.
At almost the same moment, four clear system notifications chimed in Natsuki Subaru's mind:
[Notification: Level Up]
[Notification: Level Up]
[Notification: Level Up]
[Notification: Level Up]
"Finally... I've dealt with all the Great Rabbits." Natsuki Subaru let out a long breath, a relieved smile spreading across his face as he looked at the dense swarm of Shadow Rabbits around him, which nearly covered half the wasteland. This long and grueling battle had finally come to an end.
"Four levels? I'm at level 64 now. That's a pretty good boost."
As he spoke, a thought from Natsuki Subaru brought up the translucent system panel before his eyes, displaying his stats clearly:
Host: Natsuki Subaru
Level: 64
Class: Shadow Monarch
Title: Wolf Slayer
Spirit: 306
Strength: 376
Agility: 312
Vitality: 298
HP: 12000/12000
MP: 250000/250000
EXP: 4649100/9800000
Unassigned Points: 0
Skills:
-Tenacity (Passive)
-Advanced Dagger Arts (Passive)
-Dagger Toss (Active)
-Great Spirit Candealar's Blessing (Active)
-Sprint (Active)
-Bloodlust (Active)
-Stealth (Active)
-Ruler's Authority (Active)
Shadow Monarch Exclusive Skills: Shadow Extraction, Shadow Preservation, Shadow Exchange.
"My base stats like Strength, Agility, and Mana have also seen a small increase," Natsuki Subaru noted mentally as he looked at the system panel.
After all, the base stat increase from leveling up was a fixed value. With each level providing only a limited boost, the increase in combat power gained from leveling alone would gradually diminish as his level rose.
At the same time, the experience required was increasing exponentially. If he continued to target ordinary Magic Beasts, his leveling efficiency would plummet. He would have to shift his focus to stronger enemies or calamity-class Magic Beasts.
"The members of the Witch Cult and the Sin Archbishops are actually a very good choice."
As the thought crossed his mind, Natsuki Subaru already had a clear direction.
He remembered gaining three levels from killing the Sin Archbishop of Sloth, which proved that the experience from Sin Archbishops was far greater than that from ordinary Magic Beasts.
Furthermore, as the core fighting force of the Witch Cult, killing them would weaken their organization and reduce the future threat to Emilia. It was killing two birds with one stone.
He had already killed the Sin Archbishop of Sloth, leaving five more to deal with.
Of course, this had to be done one step at a time. Haste makes waste, and rushing in recklessly would only increase the risk.
"I didn't expect to convert so many Shadow Rabbits at once."
After a brief glance at the panel, Natsuki Subaru closed it and turned to survey the surrounding battlefield, unable to stop himself from muttering under his breath.
Tens of thousands of Shadow Rabbits stood in a uniform posture, stretching from his feet to the gentle slope of the wasteland. The densely packed black figures were estimated to number close to a million.
Frankly, these Shadow Rabbits did almost nothing to improve the overall combat effectiveness of the Shadow Army. Even if their numbers increased to ten million, it wouldn't change the fact that each individual unit was pathetically weak. Sometimes, a simple numerical advantage doesn't translate into actual combat power.
"The combat power of the Great Rabbits is just too pathetic. If only I could have extracted the shadow of the Magic Beast White Whale..."
Natsuki Subaru sighed inwardly, then shook his head.
When he killed the Magic Beast White Whale, he hadn't yet changed his class to Shadow Monarch and lacked the Shadow Extraction ability. He had no choice but to miss that opportunity, and it was pointless to regret it now.
In the original story, the Great Rabbit's infinite multiplication trait made it impossible to completely exterminate. When there was no prey, they would even devour each other to maintain their numbers. In the end, they were only temporarily dealt with when beako threw them into an alternate dimension.
"But I not only completely exterminated the Great Rabbit, but also gained levels and renown, and even rid the people of this world of a major disaster. This result is more than good enough."
Thinking this, Natsuki Subaru nodded in satisfaction, his gaze sweeping over the Shadow Soldiers kneeling before him on one knee.
Not only had he leveled up, but the Shadow Soldiers who participated in the battle had also gained an average of 2-3 levels. And the Knight Commander of the Shadow Army, Igris, had gained 3 levels this time, now reaching level 12. His combat power was another notch stronger than before.
"Powerhouses like Igris are the true core of the Shadow Army's strength."
Natsuki Subaru looked at Igris up ahead, confirming his priorities in his mind. A sense of anticipation followed.
"If only I could extract a few more shadows of powerful beings like him, the army's overall combat power would surely see a massive boost."
The moment this thought surfaced, Natsuki Subaru immediately had a target in mind.
"Next time I go to a Dungeon, I have to find a way to extract the shadow of the Dungeon boss."
As the top fighting force in a Dungeon, a boss's strength was certainly far greater than that of ordinary Magic Beasts. Once converted into a Shadow Soldier, it would absolutely become a new core unit.
"I remember, after completing the Shadow Monarch job change quest, the system rewarded me with a Blessed Random Box, and I still haven't opened it."
Natsuki Subaru suddenly remembered the Blessed Random Box sitting in his inventory.
"Whether it's extracting a Dungeon boss's shadow, or just grinding monsters inside for levels and resources, I can logically give my own power a boost."
Natsuki Subaru's eyes lit up for a moment, but he quickly took a deep breath to suppress his eagerness.
"Forget it, I won't think about that for now..."
"What's more important right now is dealing with these Shadow Rabbits. Since they're of little help in improving the Shadow Army's strength, I might as well just release all the Shadow Rabbits from their shadow state."
Natsuki Subaru turned his head to look at the dense swarm of Shadow Rabbits, quickly making up his mind.
After all, maintaining the summons of nearly a million Shadow Rabbits would continuously consume a large amount of mana.
Although theoretically, as long as he had enough mana, he could summon them indefinitely. But a single Shadow Rabbit had a combat power of only 1. No matter how high the number was stacked, it wouldn't bring any substantial increase in combat effectiveness. It was purely a waste of mana.
"Release Shadow Extraction!"
As Natsuki Subaru's command fell, all the Shadow Rabbits before him instantly disintegrated.
Their dark bodies turned into fine black particles, which were scattered by the wind and soon vanished from the wasteland.
The area once covered by Shadow Rabbits instantly became empty.
At the same time, the number of Shadow Soldiers on the system panel began to drop rapidly, falling from the previous million-digit figure and finally stabilizing at [3124/3124].
"That completely solves the problem of wasting mana. From now on, my mana can be entirely focused on strengthening my core forces."
Natsuki Subaru stared at the number on the panel and nodded to himself in satisfaction.
However, speaking of which. The current number of 3124 Shadow Soldiers was still on the low side. He would have to hunt Magic Beasts in Dungeons or find other high-level targets to extract shadows from in order to further expand his army and meet the demands of future battles.
"When my level is higher and my mana pool is much larger, summoning a million-strong shadow army will definitely not be a pipe dream. I might even be able to truly become a one-man army."
At this thought, Natsuki Subaru suddenly recalled the vision the system had shown him of the first Shadow Monarch when he changed his class.
That first Shadow Monarch stood at the highest point of the battlefield, with hundreds of millions of Shadow Soldiers behind him. The soldiers were arrayed in neat ranks, stretching from the ground to the horizon, forming a black ocean. Back then, with a simple hand gesture from the first Monarch, the massive Shadow Army surged towards the enemy like a tide, instantly turning the tide of the battle.
In comparison, he currently had only 3124 Shadow Soldiers and was only level 64. Whether in terms of troop size or personal strength, he was worlds apart from the first Shadow Monarch.
"My strength is still a far cry from that of the first Shadow Monarch."
Natsuki Subaru looked down at his own hands, then glanced over the number of soldiers and the stats on his system panel, sighing to himself.
Of course, the first Monarch's achievements were not built in a day, but were the result of long-term accumulation and the tempering of real combat.
"What I need to do now is to calm down and improve steadily, approaching higher levels step by step."
Natsuki Subaru clenched his fists, clearly feeling the slow current of power within his body—the tangible result of his base stats increasing after leveling up.
Although he was now dozens of times stronger than when he first arrived in this world, he still had a long way to go to reach the true peak.
It was worth remembering that less than two months had passed since Natsuki Subaru arrived in this world.
But in that short time, he had undergone a world-shaking transformation.
From an ordinary person with no strength to protect even himself, he had grown into a master capable of single-handedly commanding a shadow army to exterminate a calamity-class creature like the Great Rabbit horde.
Such a growth rate, even in the entire history of the Kingdom of Lugunica, could absolutely be called a miracle.
Moreover, Natsuki Subaru's current strength already far surpassed that of most people in this world. Many people could live their entire lives without ever touching his current level and combat power ceiling.
The core reason for this achievement was that Natsuki Subaru possessed an advantage that no one else in this world had.
The ability to level up alone!
That's right, a system that allowed him to directly gain experience by killing enemies, without relying on others, completing his leveling all by himself.
"Subaru, are the Great Rabbits really... all gone?"
Beatrice looked up at Natsuki Subaru, her blue eyes filled with disbelief.
"That's right. Literally and completely wiped out. Not a single one is left."
Natsuki Subaru nodded affirmatively, his gaze sweeping over the empty plaza.
It had once been completely covered by the white horde of Great Rabbits, but now not even a single rabbit hair remained. After all, the system had already confirmed it. The experience points had been paid in full.
"Subaru, you're so amazing..." Emilia clasped her hands to her chest, her amethyst eyes shining with admiration. "That was one of the Three Great Mabeasts, something that even the sages of history were helpless against."
"Hey, hey, don't exaggerate so much," Natsuki Subaru said, scratching his head modestly. "I couldn't have done it alone without everyone's cooperation."
He then turned his neck, confirming the state of the battlefield once more.
There was no sign of any Great Rabbits in the plaza, and the church behind them was completely unharmed.
At that moment, the residents of the Sanctuary were emerging from various entrances, giving them thumbs-ups and showering them with praise.
"Lord Hero!"
"Lord Subaru, that was amazing!"
"Lord Natsuki Subaru, thank you so much! We finally don't have to fear the Great Rabbit breaking into the Sanctuary anymore!"
"Yeah, yeah, before, we could only hide in the church whenever the Great Rabbit appeared. Now we can finally live in peace..."
The cheers rose and fell.
Among the crowd, Natsuki Subaru even saw a few of Ryuzu's clones. They also smiled and nodded at him in acknowledgment.
Just as Natsuki Subaru let out a sigh of relief, feeling he could finally relax, Emilia suddenly reached out a finger and gently poked his cheek, saying with a smile:
"Subaru, have you forgotten something?"
"Forgotten what?"
Natsuki Subaru dodged slightly, looking at Emilia in confusion.
Emilia didn't answer directly, but quietly gestured with her eyes towards what was behind him.
"Huh?"
Natsuki Subaru turned around, puzzled.
There stood Beatrice, arms crossed and cheeks puffed out. Her golden twin-tails swayed slightly with her movements. She spoke in a deliberately dissatisfied tone, but her eyes sparkled with anticipation:
"Don't you think you should say something to the one who contributed the most?"
"Oh—how could I have forgotten you!" Natsuki Subaru realized, quickly walking over to Beatrice. He looked down at her adorable pouting face and couldn't help but smile.
"I was so busy looking at the plaza and the villagers that I almost forgot about the most crucial person."
Honestly, if Beatrice hadn't used her magic to seal the Great Rabbits within a barrier, preventing a single one from escaping, he would never have been able to wipe them all out so smoothly. Speaking of which, half the credit for exterminating the Great Rabbit should go to Beatrice.
At this thought, Natsuki Subaru suddenly reached out, slid his hands under Beatrice's armpits, and lifted her light, stiff body into the air.
"Wah! Ah~! What are you doing!?"
Beatrice let out a cute shriek, her small face instantly flushing crimson.
"Giving our number one contributor her well-deserved reward, of course!" Natsuki Subaru laughed, spinning in place with Beatrice in his arms.
"You did an amazing job! As expected of a 400-year-old Great Spirit! That barrier was absolutely perfect!"
"Wait, hold on! Put me down! This isn't a reward! This isn't what Betty wanted..."
Beatrice squirmed in Natsuki Subaru's arms, but her cheeks slowly grew redder, and the resistance in her voice faded.
"How is this not a reward?" Natsuki Subaru stopped spinning but lifted Beatrice even higher, so she could see the cheering villagers in the distance.
"Look, everyone is clapping for you! Beatrice is the best! Beatrice is the most amazing! Long live Beatrice!"
Beatrice's face was beet red, even the tips of her ears turning pink, but she quietly reached out and gently grasped Natsuki Subaru's wrist.
"It's so nice to see you two like this..."
Emilia stood to the side, watching the two of them fool around, a gentle smile on her face. Behind her, the villagers of the Sanctuary also began to clap and cheer, the sounds of applause and laughter mixing together, echoing for a long time across the empty plaza.
______
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