Inside the human Oasis, in a wooden house closest to the water source.
The wooden house Lyle was currently in was said to be the place where that former human hero lived.
After observing it curiously for a while, Lyle lost interest.
Based on the information he had gathered, Hilde's grandfather being able to step into the Hero Realm wasn't due to any items or mysterious treasures, but entirely due to his own Talent.
Or perhaps with the enhancement of a Talent.
Inside the wooden house.
"Awoo." The Ghost Hound finally transformed back to its original form from the state of a goshawk, comfortably stretching its body.
Meanwhile, Lyle sat cross-legged to the side, eyes slightly closed. His mind focused on the status panel, looking at the experience points.
Combined Rank: 37Lv
Mad Mage: 1Lv
[experience bar: 782262/120000]
"It's time to increase my Rank." This thought flashed through Lyle's mind. The experience gained this time was massive, enough for him to level up several times in a row.
Level up!
Combined Rank: 38Lv
Mad Mage: 2Lv
[experience bar: 662262/140000]
Lyle's body shook slightly as he immediately felt the increase in mana and life force within him. Even the magic elements in the air became clearer at that moment.
Level up!
Combined Rank: 39Lv
Mad Mage: 3Lv
[experience bar: 522262/160000]
Level up!
Combined Rank: 40Lv
Mad Mage: 4Lv
[experience bar: 362262/210000]
The black tight-fitting suit on Lyle's body billowed slightly with the fluctuations of aura generated by the Rank increase.
As his Rank got higher and higher, Lyle felt more and more the changes in his life stage every time he leveled up.
Glancing at the information on the status panel.
Lyle was suddenly taken aback.
If he wasn't mistaken, previously, for each Rank increase, the experience required by the experience bar should have increased by 20,000 on top of the previous base.
But now, after reaching level 40, the experience consumption had actually increased by 50,000 on top of the previous base!
"Why did it increase so much?" Lyle narrowed his eyes, his expression somewhat surprised.
Recalling the changes in experience growth since the very first Rank increase, Lyle suddenly realized that every ten Ranks, the value of experience increase would undergo a major shift.
Level up!
Thinking of this, Lyle chanted in his heart again.
Combined Rank: 41Lv
Mad Mage: 5Lv
[experience bar: 152262/260000]
In the blink of an eye, he reached level 41.
The aura emanating from Lyle's body expanded once more, invisibly forming a pressure wave that vibrated within the room.
The Ghost Hound shrank its head and retreated into the corner; this certainly wasn't the first time it had seen this, though it was much more intense than before.
Faintly.
That kind of presence emanating from a higher-level being made it impossible for the Ghost Hound to harbor even a hint of resistance in the depths of its heart.
"Finally reached level 41. Just two more levels and I can break through the Domain of 'Outliers'."
Lyle sensed the surging mana within him, as well as his vigorous stamina and spirit, and murmured to himself.
"The higher the Rank, the stronger this aura on my body becomes. It didn't matter when I was weak, but now I probably need to find a way to conceal it."
Lyle clenched his fist, lost in thought.
Since stepping into the Hero Realm, Lyle could faintly sense the strength of others' auras. Presumably, people of the same Rank could also sense this. Especially that Ancient Red Dragon he encountered before.
It had even faintly detected the power of the 7th Tier Magic he had stored using the [Mad Mage] passive.
If he were to come into contact with the people of the Slane Theocracy in the future, he would probably have to pay even more attention to this.
The maximum limit for humans was the level of an "Outlier." If one's strength exceeded that of an "Outlier," they would likely be suspected by others without even doing much.
Lyle did remember that the Bone King mastered magic means like "False Data: Life" and "False Data: Mana" that could hide one's true strength.
He would likely also need to prepare some methods of this kind to hide his own strength and Rank.