Three weeks had passed since Eis was trapped on the 59th floor. In that time, his routine had become a monotonous cycle: gathering just enough food to keep his body strong, studying the sleeping boss''s jagged, hulking form, and cultivating the surrounding geists.


    Gathering this much, I should be able to at least lure the boss.


    Eis had finally decided to move. Walking through the surrounding mountains that encircled the boss, he made his way toward the highest peak.


    For the past few weeks, I''ve been studying the boss''s structure, and I think I''ve found its weak point. There''s a massive crystal embedded in its back, caved in just enough to expose the source of its flame. I don''t have the strength to destroy it completely, but hitting it should be enough to provoke the boss.


    As Eis circulated his geist throughout his body, his eyes turned a sharp azure, glowing with energy. Lines formed beneath them as if it were cracking. A surge of power rippled through him, electrifying every nerve.


    Leaping from the edge of the mountain, Eis felt the strong winds tearing at his skin, the rush of air biting cold against him. Each second stretched out, his nerves frozen with fear as he plummeted through the sky. His father''s words echoed in his mind "Bravery doesn''t mean being void of fear." Clinging to that memory, Eis steeled his resolve, tightening his grip on his sword as he drew it.


    The silence of the boss''s sleeping grounds was shattered by the sharp clang of metal striking crystal. The boss let out a deafening roar, its slumber disturbed, and began to rise from its resting place. As Eis pulled back, he glanced at his sword—thin cracks across the blade.


    "You won''t even chase after me huh? I didn''t expect much, but to think my best strike only amounts to an alarm clock—it hurts to see..."


    Eis dashed toward the boss, his movements a blur. In response, the boss swung a massive fist, aiming to crush him with a single blow. The ground shook from the impact as the boss raised its hand, expecting to see Eis''s lifeless form beneath—but instead, it was greeted by nothing but a cloud of dust, swirling in the air.


    "Thankfully you''re slow."


    Eis stood balanced on the boss''s massive shoulder, he then leaped down. His blade slashed across its thick armor, attacking different points with relentless speed. Sparks flew with every strike, the boss letting out a roar.


    "Annoying, right? Based on my observations over the past three weeks, I''ve noticed small tubes connected to your crystal core. You use them to spread your flame throughout your body, don''t you? If I attack those points, my geist will seep into your core, and you''ll feel that annoying flame of yours dwindle."


    With that being said, against the boss''s intense flame, my geist won''t last long—it''ll just disperse almost instantly. But still, it should be enough to provoke the boss.


    Furious, the boss intensified its flame, causing the surrounding air to heat up. With a powerful punch, it struck the ground, cracking the floor and sending a tremor rippling through the area. Eis stumbled for a moment, losing his balance, but quickly regained his footing just in time to see the boss launch a blazing fireball toward him. Running with all his might, Eis managed to dodge just in time, but the impact sent him flying. Not finished with its assault, the boss retracted its flames back to its core, then looked upwards, unleashing a barrage of fireballs into the sky. The air crackled with heat as the fireballs began to rain down, scorching the ground around him.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    Focusing his geist circulation toward his legs, Eis dodged the fireballs swiftly. After narrowly avoiding the fiery rain, he shifted his focus back to the boss, relentlessly attacking it. Irritated by Eis''s persistence, the boss slammed the ground with both hands, creating a tremor that sent shockwaves through the air, halting Eis''s assault mid-air. With no footing, Eis had no choice but to block the incoming punch with his nearly shattered sword. The force of the blow struck him hard, sending him crashing into the mountainside, his sword splintering into pieces.


    The blow left Eis sprawled on the ground, shivering in pain. As the boss took its first step, closing the distance to finish off Eis, he caught sight of the entrance to the 60th floor. Enduring the pain, Eis gritted his teeth and pushed himself up. With all his geist focused on his legs, he positioned himself like an athlete ready to sprint on a track.


    Realizing what Eis was about to do, the boss spewed flames from its mouth, creating a wall of fire. Undeterred by the inferno, Eis dashed forward with incredible speed, breaking through the wall of flames. As he closed in on the entrance, the boss unleashed a torrent of lava in a last-ditch effort to stop him. In the final moment, Eis managed to slip inside just as the lava hardened into obsidian, sealing the entrance behind him.


    "That was close, my body is battered." Letting out a sigh of relief, Eis felt his muscles relax. "Wait a minute, why is it so dark?" Confused, he scouted the area, using the wall at his side as a guide.


    As he walked, Eis suddenly bumped into a wall, realizing he had reached a dead end. Standing in a daze, he was startled when a luminescent ore lit up, illuminating the entire area.


    Eis froze mid-step, his breath hitching in his throat. The heat of the lava-turned obsidian pressed against his skin, but it couldn’t thaw the icy dread curling around his chest. His gaze darted frantically across the cavernous space.


    Something is not right. The entrance to the 60th floor…


    Eis turned his gaze to the left, steering his legs toward where the shadow stretched. “It’s there. I’m right. I’d even argue that my memory is one of the best in Segenreich,” he muttered to himself. But as he came to a sudden stop, his eyes widened.


    “What...?” His voice barely escaped his lips. His knees buckled, slamming onto the ground as Eis gazed at the imposing dead-end wall of the cavern. Memories of the books he had studied flashed across his mind as he realised his mistake.


    It’s on the right side… How the fuck did I mistake the one the boss is guarding for the entrance to the 60th floor?


    Gritting his teeth, he scraped his nails across the dust-covered floor. Memories of mocking laughter and whispered words behind his back flooded his mind. His fist clenched tightly before slamming into the ground. Blood covered his knuckles, but to Eis, the physical pain was the least of his worries.


    “All those years of trying to ignore those bastards, focusing on my own goal... Was it all just so I could end up stuck here and die? Not even at the hands of an enemy or a monster, but because of a fucking mistake?! FUCK!!” Eis'' words echoed across the cavern.


    The entrance is sealed. My sword is broken. I’ve exhausted every ounce of energy I had. With no food or water, I might last two weeks at best—if I use my geist to sustain myself.


    Maybe they were right after all. Maybe I really wouldn’t amount to anything. I should just give up…


    As Eis gave in to despair, a light shimmered within the walls, illuminating a swirling pattern. At the end of the pattern loomed a dragon head.


    "A dragon?" Eis exclaimed, his eyes widening. At the end of its tail lay a liquid-like geist, and beside it rested an orb. "It looks like the ones used during the system ceremony. Are you supposed to pour geist here?" Pouring his geist at the orb, the geist in the dragon''s tail increased.


    That water dripping... I could carve the floor into a bowl-shaped to collect those and purify it with my geist.


    .


    .


    With nothing to eat and only water, a week passed. The dragon was filled halfway. Eis''s routine consisted of filling the dragon with his geist for an hour while he was awake, then conserving his energy, relying solely on water for sustenance, and sleeping to help his exhausted geist recover, no matter how small the gains. For another four days, his routine remained the same. However, with each passing day, Eis felt his strength continue to dissipate.


    On the fifth day of the second week, Eis managed to fill the entire dragon. However, his exhaustion finally caught up to him, causing him to lose consciousness. The glow of the dragon carving intensified, illuminating a blinding light. Eis''s surroundings trembled as dust fell from above. Cracks formed in the walls, and a cold, mist-like geist seeped through, reaching him. A sudden surge of strength washed over Eis, waking him up. As he stood, the walls in front of him crumbled, and the sight of what lay beyond made his eyes widen in awe.


    "What the…?”