Bell was a good kid—Duncan could say that without hesitation.
But sometimes "good kids" don't necessarily do good things. Or rather: what Bell thought was helpful didn't look helpful at all from Duncan's perspective.
Like right now.
Duncan was willing to bet that the moment he'd finally escaped Chardo's demonic grasp—no, maybe before he'd even truly escaped—he'd already been delivered straight into Alfia's wolf den.
And Bell stood there with a face that screamed "Praise me!" making Duncan grit his teeth so hard it itched.
As if on cue, just as Duncan's thoughts spiraled, the three of them filed in through the door that hadn't been shut.
Chardo saw Duncan awake and let out a booming laugh first.
"Oh? You woke up earlier than I expected. Looks like you're recovering well!"
Compared to Chardo's hearty cheer, Alfia wore her usual calm, unruffled expression—like nothing in the world could stir her emotions.
Duncan forced a strained smile.
"So… does that mean I completed the 'adventure'?"
"Hahaha—still got the energy to talk about that? Good. You've improved," Chardo said, amused. "You were still a few days short of one full month, and I did have to carry you back. But you killed the leader of the monsters in that stretch of the Great Tree Sea. As a Level 1, you took down a monster with potential at Level 2. Even Maxim wouldn't deny that achievement."
Chardo nodded toward the bedside table.
"Your latest status sheet is there. You passed."
Then he hoisted up a large burlap sack and gestured with it.
"And this is what you earned over the month. You buried the magic stones underground to hide their presence, but piling that many together is like lighting a bonfire in the dark as far as monsters are concerned. Especially underground—there are many monsters in the Great Tree Sea born from the influence of the leylines. The Dungeon works the same way."
He spoke like a veteran giving fieldcraft lecture.
"The best method is storing them in a special container that blocks magic power. Otherwise—get off the surface."
Judging by the shape of the sack, it wasn't just random loot.
It definitely included the Wolf King's magic stone.
Since Duncan couldn't sit up, Bell hurried over, lifted the paper from the bedside, and held it up for him to read.
The yellowed, rough sheet clearly showed the divine imprint of his Falna.
Duncan
Lv. 1
Strength: SS 1057
Endurance: SSS 1379
Dexterity: SSS 1311
Agility: SS 1101
Magic: 0
Skills:
Walker Beyond the Domain
Lucky One?
Air-Step (Treading the Void)
A page full of S-ranks—Duncan didn't need to know the market to understand these numbers were absurd.
Thinking back on two months of inhuman suffering, he felt the strange satisfaction of finally seeing the clouds part.
Chardo spoke bluntly, eyes bright.
"Even our captain Maxim never had numbers like this. Breaking past the S-rank limit—so far as I know—only Alfia's ever done it. Kid… you're seriously beyond expectation."
If Duncan weren't half-dead in bed, Chardo would've slapped his back hard enough to rattle his bones. As one of the last remnants of Zeus Familia, Chardo had long since fallen into resignation—but watching a new sprout rise at this speed made something stir in his deadened heart.
Familia was family.
He was genuinely happy.
Zeus, unusually serious, stepped in to correct Chardo.
"The Guild records show many Familias hide their true strength. I know of at least three who surpassed the S-limit—though they're all dead now. You and Alfia are the only remaining 'exceptions.'"
He pointed irritably at Chardo and Alfia.
"Your feat is already sufficient. I wanted to 'Ascend' you earlier so you'd recover faster, but these two kept stopping me."
Chardo responded like it was obvious.
"Don't say stupid things, old man. A man's first real adventure—and his first Ascension—should happen while he's conscious. Doing it half-asleep—what's the point?"
Alfia nodded lightly.
"It's not like we're short on time."
Duncan, still flat on his back, tested the waters.
"Then… now?"
He was curious. Even from what he'd heard, Ascension wasn't some explosive transformation—more like expanding one's "vessel," resetting values, and turning hard-earned experience into something the body could reproduce naturally. Movements that once required thought became as smooth as breathing. The body remembered the adventure.
No one objected.
Zeus rolled Duncan over with practiced efficiency. Duncan clenched through the pain and let Zeus drip divine blood onto his back.
A blue light rose.
Zeus traced several motions in empty air with his finger—like drawing invisible lines.
Then the glow faded.
Satisfied, Zeus peeled the paper from Duncan's back and handed it over immediately.
Chardo leaned in, impatient, but didn't snatch it—because an adventurer's status, skills, and magic were secrets tied directly to survival. Even within a Familia, you didn't casually expose them.
Even if Duncan currently looked like a wet paper doll, Chardo still kept that line.
"So?" Chardo pressed. "How is it?"
Duncan stared at the new sheet, expression turning strange.
"Stats reset to zero. Development Ability gained 'Keen Senses'… and I got a magic."
He hesitated.
"…'Finger Wag'?"
Chardo froze, then looked to Alfia.
"Finger wag? Like Finn's weird habit? You ever heard of that?"
Alfia opened her eyes, heterochromatic gaze settling on Duncan. Even she looked genuinely curious.
"No. Never heard of it. What does it do?"
Duncan answered, still wearing that off expression.
"Effect unknown. It consumes all my magic power to build up a single strike. Refreshes once per day."
He looked almost offended.
Because as a transmigrator, he knew that name far too well.
This wasn't some sacred spell—it was a Pokémon move.
Why was this ridiculous random-effect magic attached to him?!
Zeus, as if reading Duncan's mind, gave the likely explanation.
"It's probably influenced by the Lucky One? skill."
He shrugged, half-amused, half-exasperated.
"Some of those bastards up above are looking forward to your performance. This kind of skill exists to entertain them. Randomness is unknown—unknown is what they crave."
Then his grin turned sharp.
"But given how nasty they are, they probably won't make it exceed your magic limits. They wouldn't want their favorite toy to die by accidentally draining itself dry."
Duncan swallowed hard.
"…That's a thing? You can die like that?"
"It's rare, but not unheard of," Zeus said casually. "Magic scales with the user's magic capacity, but there are exceptions. Some special spells devour enormous amounts of magic, and if you don't have enough, they'll consume flesh and blood instead—life-or-death magic. Others explode if you can't maintain them."
He waved a hand like he was listing common household dangers.
"Magic is dangerous. It's powerful, but you must always watch your magic reserves. Plenty of adventurers have fainted from magic depletion and gotten killed by monsters."
Zeus's smile widened.
"But you? You probably don't need to worry."
"Since you can only fire it once a day."
Duncan's eye twitched.
In his head, he ground his teeth so hard it felt like sparks might fly.
I am not a one-shot man.
-------
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