The upcoming lecture covered little. Lev observed everyone trying to obtain the General Skills while he simply listened to the theoretical portion of the lecture and practiced painting with Nolan.

  Due to having passed out earlier, Lev didn't feel tired at all. His mana was just over half full, so clearing the spiders wouldn't be difficult.

  Entering the dungeon, Lev didn't summon Stargazer. The weapon had too little use against the durable spiders. Floating up, he spotted the first solo spider and landed near it.

  Four thick shields formed behind Lev as the monster whirled around, a screech rolling through the surroundings.

  Lev took a simple stance and waited for the monster to charge with its heavy limbs.

  It feels slower, Lev noted, no doubt due to his increased Perception.

  Leaning back a little to let the first limb fly harmlessly past his head, two shields moved forward to block the rest.

  So far so good.

  The monster didn't register the ease with which it had been stopped, only glaring at the human with its beady eyes.

  Lev motioned for it to bring it on with his hands, which somehow angered it even further. Charging his lightning gauntlet with a little mana, he grabbed the first limb and released the mana inside.

  The spider spasmed for a moment, which let him grab the limb with both hands. Yanking the monster, Lev dashed closer and caved its face in with his fire gauntlet, before a small chunk of his mana released in a fiery explosion.

  Stabilizing himself in midair after being sent flying, Lev observed the aftermath. The spider was deader than dead with its brain blown to bits. Checking his mana pool, Lev had only used around 2% of his total.

  Yeah, these are not tough to kill now. Not that they were challenging before.

  ****

  Two lightning arrows vanished into the treetops in quick succession, both finding their mark.

  Piercing the gray exoskeleton, they pierced deep into the arachnid skulls before exploding in a small blast of fire and lightning.

  [

  You have slain Gray Spider [Level - 130]

  You have slain Gray Spider [Level - 131]

  ]

  Twelve down.

  Descending to the ground and idly carving open the spiders, Lev planned out his next steps.

  If I'm not mistaken, earth mana should make my barriers heavier at a constant cost while making them more durable. It fits the chain perfectly but the weight increase will still be little. Enchanting it with a simple formation to compensate should suffice.

  The idea was sound but he couldn't be too certain without trying it. Earth mana wouldn't suddenly change its functions, but the downsides could hinder their mobility too much.

  Searching for new runes will also not take long. Granted, they will all be basic but I just need enough to get started. Few weeks at most, then it's back to the pit… maybe.

  The schedule was simple. Finish the lectures, buy basic runes, and then enchant without holding back. The second rank of his enchanting skill would probably bring a worthwhile benefit, like most crafting skills did, which would be the primary goal before leaving.

  Delving the dungeon daily, as many times as he could, was the secondary goal. It was free money. The class and skill levels would also be nice, but the point was to get comfortable with his current arsenal of arrows, lances, shields, chains, and gauntlets.

  Lev wanted to utilize them together, apart from arrows. Slowly learning to match them all in a single fighting style would improve his capabilities sharply.

  Washing the cores in a barrier bowl a few meters away from him, Lev dried and stored them in his ring. Since he had around thirty percent of his mana left, a gift for the matriarch wouldn't hurt.

  Its taunts kept returning to the front of his mind, which was totally not the reason.

  Flying up for several hundred meters, a huge lance formed behind him. It was smaller than the one he had used for the threader because the matriarch was much weaker too.

  His gauntlets greedily ate up his mana, most of it converted into lightning for the required speed. In the distance, the matriarch continued to weave, unaware of the approaching death.

  When the lance turned from pale blue to bright blue with shades of red spread throughout, Lev breathed out slowly and focused his all on the projectile.

  It accelerated with a loud boom, leaving Lev's range of manipulation in an instant, but that instant was enough. Empowered to the very limits, the matriarch couldn't even turn before the lance pierced its body.

  The whole forest was devoured by a bright orange light as the explosion decimated all the monsters in the area, leaving Lev with one less expensive core to harvest but a very satisfying end to the dungeon.

  If one could ignore all the spiders rushing his way, that is. They were just extra money and levels anyway.

  Within a few minutes, he was teleported outside.

  ****

  "Now that all of you have the skills, let's focus on the final part of the lectures. These remaining two days will be used to create something of your choice. I have also brought with me several copies of a large basic rune collection. You can buy them at a small discount if you wish."

  That certainly makes things easier for me, Lev smiled as Edward mentioned the repository. He was going to look for them later but the enchanter was one step ahead.

  For the past few days, all he had done was attend the lecture, kill the matriarch in a burst to finish the dungeon, and then rest. Surprisingly. He had made himself slow down when even the guards and hunters surrounding the dungeon were becoming worried.

  Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

  Perhaps his philosophy of 'free time existed to be used' had some minor flaws, but that was fine. He could manage a bit of rest here and there.

  "How much?" Lev interjected.

  "For the basic runes, 30 silver."

  "What's the policy for sharing them?"

  "Sharing?" Edward repeated, confused.

  "Well, can I show them to someone else?"

  "No, you have to add them to your repository skill and return the notebook. I brought several just to make the process faster."

  Questions were asked before more than half the class agreed to bring the money tomorrow. Lev ignored them, noting everyone who couldn't buy it, including Nolan.

  There were seven of them. Edward's gaze lingered on them too before he sent a single glance at Lev. Understanding his assignment, Lev leaned back into his bench and crossed his right leg over the left.

  "I'm willing to pay for the entire class."

  The room was enveloped in silence in record time, and even Edward seemed surprised. Perhaps he just wanted Lev to buy the collection for all those who couldn't, but Lev was too embarrassed to be so blatant. Better off making a show of wealth instead of pity.

  "And why on Monarch would you do that?" The arrogant boy from the first day remarked.

  Lev spared him a short glance.

  "Because I can."

  The boy chortled and backed down, accepting it easier than Lev thought.

  "Well…" Edward began, "that changes things. Since the cost has been dealt with, please form five lines."

  Thus started the process of absorbing the runes into general skills. Lev stayed at the end, waiting for everyone to finish, when Nolan walked up to him.

  "You're an idiot," was all he said before joining the third line.

  …Huh? Did he guess why I did it? Lev pondered with a grin. The whole experience was weirdly amusing.

  It took a surprisingly long time for his turn. Half an hour later, Lev gazed upon the notebook with more than a hundred runes with small descriptions.

  Most of them were incredibly basic. Mana flow control, connector, different flavors of durability, sharpness, weight increase, and other runes to fit into formations and make the strain lighter. Several other combination runes were also present, such as a blocking rune to be paired with simple sound runes.

  It took several minutes to memorize enough for the skill to absorb them, at which point he could remember them with perfect clarity at any given moment.

  "Hmm, this is unexpected," a new voice commented, audibly amused, and suddenly it felt like the world itself had bared its fangs for a short instant.

  Lev whirled around, heart thundering in his chest. Gauntlets charged and armor flooded with mana, his eyes met a bald man's gaze, calmly observing him.

  He didn't even realize when barrier claws had formed on his gauntlet fingers, halfway enchanted with sharpness runes before he stopped.

  … What the hell just happened?

  Calming down with deep breaths, he held the gaze of the now smiling bald man for a few long moments before the staring contest was broken by the entire room bowing their heads.

  "We greet the Exalted."

  Uh?

  Lev also dipped his head, not wanting to seem like an idiot but his mind was still scrambled. Being scared was one thing, but to be ready to kill in an instant? What the hell had even happened?

  Dismissing the claws and cutting off mana to his gauntlets and armor, Lev spoke in a neutral tone.

  "My apologies for reacting like that. I meant no disrespect."

  "No need to apologize. It is only natural to react like that to auras as strong as mine," replied the Exalted, his gaze now roaming the class. "Enchanting, huh? Makes things easier for me. Follow me,"

  Lev stared, ignoring the man's body that glowed like a star in his mana perception for a blink, and followed quietly.

  "Before we go," The Exalted's smile vanished as he leveled a stern gaze at everyone present before settling on Edward. "Just know that the boy is under the protection of all the Exalted of humanity. There will be no second chances."

  Edward frowned, finding the courage to speak up, "If I knew what was happening I would've never-"

  "Yes, yes. That is the only reason you're standing here. Make sure it doesn't happen again," The Exalted didn't spare anyone else another glance, only motioning for Lev to follow before leaving the room.

  … I am so confused. What did Edward do?

  Bottling up all the questions, Lev quickly followed.

  The next few minutes of casual walking were some of the most tense Lev had ever experienced. His lecture had been disrupted by a random Exalted, who had also scared Lev with his aura, and then Edward was given a warning about manipulating Lev in some way.

  Now he was following the same Exalted with an increasing number of questions and no answers in sight.

  "Boy."

  Lev straightened, "Yes, sir?"

  "Do you know why I'm here?"

  "No, sir."

  "Take a guess,"

  "… Were you sent by Hakim?"

  The man exhaled in amusement, "Indeed. Why do you think he sent me?"

  Lev threw around guesses in his head for a few seconds before only one stood out.

  "He wants me to get more training?"

  "I can tell you've already met him if you're so sure of the answer," The Exalted chuckled. "I am Drakys, official title Runic Warlord. Have you heard of me before?"

  "Is that supposed to be a serious question?" Lev tried his best to keep his tone normal.

  "Nope," Drakys grinned. "You're fun to mess with."

  "… I'm Lev, by the way."

  "I know, boy."

  Lev sighed in his head. This is going to be so much fun…

  "Where are you staying? Take me there," Drakys asked, glancing at him.

  "That would attract too much attention-"

  "It no longer matters," Drakys' tone turned flat. "I will explain later."

  Now having even more questions, Lev led him to the inn he was staying in. Naturally, everyone on the road recognized the Exalted walking among them but he didn't spare the populace any attention.

  Since nobody dared stop them, they arrived at the inn shortly. The innkeeper almost passed out when Drakys nodded his way and entered Lev's room.

  "Quite simple," Drakys approved, observing the room.

  "It's enough," Lev stood in the door, waiting for the Exalted to sit down first.

  "Come, we have much to discuss," Drakys waved to the bed. "We only have a month, so best get started soon."

  "So… what do we only have a month for?"

  "Melee training," Drakys looked into his eyes. "But before that, I agreed to come here because too many eyes were looking in your direction. Someone from the merchants guild heard about you making a verbal deal with an auction director and spread the news. Long story short, Edward was subtly manipulated into asking for your help and to note your abilities. The idiots behind it have been dealt with, but the cat is out of the bag. You no longer have to hide your strength. In a short few months, you can even drop the armor."

  "Drop the armor? I still look like a kid."

  "Not really," Drakys waved away his concern. "You can pass for a 14 year old from what I've heard. Unusual, but nothing impossible. People will just assume you were prepared to get your class from an early age."

  Lev slowly nodded, it sounded reasonable. "I'm assuming you mean after we're done with the training."

  Drakys nodded. "For now, I will follow you while you do quests. If Alec's guess is correct, you've made zero progress towards gold rank. You will start with those immediately."

  Lev coughed. "Uh, right. What kind of quests do you want me to do?"

  "Whichever you want. We will train during travel or downtime in the meantime."

  "I get a choice?" Lev asked, surprised.

  "Of course. You get to choose how much you wish to train, and what for. It will also be a test to see how far you're willing to push yourself for your optimistic goals. Hakim, your teacher, and his friends think you're our best shot but I don't think so. We'll see if you're worthy of all the hopes placed on you."

  Lev grinned under his armor, the thought of backing down not even crossing his mind. "I like the straightforwardness. We shall see."

  "Don't get cocky, boy," Drakys smirked. "You have no idea what's out there. But don't worry," his smirk turned downright ominous.

  "I will broaden your horizons."