Theodore didn't care about solving puzzles or following the intended path.
His high stats made the game rules irrelevant.
Was the gate locked?
He simply activated his Wind Walk skill and, with a powerful, enhanced jump, easily cleared the high, wrought-iron fence.
There was no invisible wall here like in a video game; this was reality, and his stats trumped architecture.
Was the puzzle locked?
Nothing could stop him from breaking it to take what was inside.
He was executing a mini-speedrun, focused only on the objective.
Ethan followed close behind, his new weapons blazing.
The added speed from Theodore's pace, combined with the continuous, intense combat, forced Ethan to constantly improve his own reactions.
He was, unknowingly, benefiting greatly from Theodore's presence.
"It's so sad that he will die, or should I say already dead?"
Theodore muttered to himself as he saw Ethan skillfully blast a Lycan's head off.
Ethan, the main character, was already dead.
He had been infected by the Megamycete—the enormous, sentient fungus—and was essentially a being made of mold.
Theodore couldn't help but chuckle internally.
'How a creature made of mold managed to have a daughter is mysterious, even for him. Can a mushroom get a woman pregnant? Hmm... Interesting...'
Unaware of the strange, unsettling thoughts running through Theodore's mind, Ethan simply hurried to keep up with the exceptionally fast young man.
Inside the towering Castle Dimitrescu, the massive Lady Alcina Dimitrescu sat in her opulent chamber, leisurely smoking a long cigarette and sipping a glass of crimson wine.
She had been told by Mother Miranda that a challenger—a man—was coming to their domain.
She hadn't cared much, as she considered him to be no threat at all.
"Hmm,"
Alcina murmured, pausing her drink as a faint, distant commotion reached her ears, a surprisingly quick disturbance from the outer walls.
"So he has arrived, just as Mother said. Well, let him come then."
With a graceful but heavy sigh, she stood, her imposing figure seeming to fill the entire room.
She began to undress, dropping her elegant white gown to the floor. She needed to prepare.
She intended to take a bath of blood, ensuring she was in the absolute best condition—both physically and visually—for the meeting of the Four Lords.
She hated her siblings—Heisenberg, Moreau, and Donna—but she needed to be present.
For this challenger's appearance was her opportunity to prove her worth and be chosen as Miranda's most favored child.