[Trantor - Kiteretsu]


    [Proofreader - Kyros]


    Chapter 51


    In front of an E-ss Dungeon Portal Gate.


    Hundreds of individuals were gathered, forming formations while meticulously checking their equipment.


    “Commander, everyone is ready.”


    “Good. Elsabar Civil Squad! Move out!”


    The Elsabar Civil Squad was a cavalry force operated by the eldest son of the Oine Ducal House. Among the cavalry units under noble families, it was renowned as the most elite.


    And for good reason.


    Not only did it offer the bestpensation in the industry, but the unit also deployed arge-scale knight corps to ensure the safety of its affiliated Meisters.


    Lioness watched the knights entering the dungeon and spoke to the rugged knight standing beside him.


    “Brother Guntrian, the preparations seem excessively thorough for an E-ss dungeon.”


    Guntrian de Oine was the second son of the Oine Ducal House and themander of the Elsabar Civil Squad. Though hecked magical aptitude, his talent as a knight was unparalleled, reaching the realm of a Knight Meister.


    “No, look closely at those going in. Almost all of them are knights.”


    “Ah, I see.”


    “Nowadays, knights are as cheap as dirt. Better to use a hundred knights than to let even one Meister get hurt.”


    Guntrian, himself a knight, spoke disparagingly of his own kind, then nced at Lioness with a grin.


    “Of course, since you’re here for field training, we’ve made extra preparations.”


    “Thank you for your consideration, Brother.”


    “Don’t mention it. I n to put you to good use, after all.”


    “Haha, feel free to use me as you please.”


    Thud. Thud.


    Hundreds of knights entered the dungeon first, followed by Guntrian and Lioness.


    “This one’s an Orc Dungeon, huh?”


    As soon as they entered, Guntrian frowned.


    Among the monsters that appeared in E-ss dungeons, orcs were some of the most troublesome.


    “Damn it. We’re going to lose quite a few men.”


    “Are orcs really that bad?”


    “They are. And this dungeon’srge too. They’ll spread out and surround us in no time.”


    Orcs, humanoid monsters with green skin, were significantly more irritating than typical instinct-driven creatures. Unlike others, they demonstrated rational judgment.


    They were well-known for employing strategies to scatter widely and encircle their enemies, likely as a counter to the overwhelming firepower of Meisters.


    They would relentlessly target Meisters from a distance, using bows and throwing axes.


    “Knights, form a defensive line!”


    “Yes, sir!”


    “Lioness, eliminate them before they can spread out.”


    “Understood. …Explosion!”


    Lioness’s body burst into mes, and—


    Boom!


    A massive explosion erupted in the middle of the clustered orc troops.


    “Graaaah!”


    “Grr… Grrah…”


    In an instant, dozens of orcs were engulfed in mes, the fire spreading rapidly—N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Whoosh! Whoosh!


    The orcs quickly dispersed from the explosion site, scattering widely.


    “The orcs’ mobility is surprising. Are they usually like this?”


    “They’re not usually this agile... but for some reason, they grow stronger in dungeons. Now, they’ll focus their attacks on the Meisters. Stay alert.”


    “Understood, Brother.”


    An E-ss dungeon raid wasn’t much different from a war.


    Thousands of orcs surrounded the knights from all directions, while the Meisters concentrated their firepower on the orc units under the knights’ protection.


    Among the Meisters, the most prominent was, of course, Lioness. Equipped with an A-ss Mana Suit, she unleashed the bulk of the offensive power.


    “...Reload. Fire Wall.”


    As if to regroup the scattered orcs, a wall of fire surrounded the expansive interior of the dungeon.


    The intense heat, seemingly capable of incinerating anything nearby, caused the orcs to hesitate and retreat into a corner.


    The overwhelming mes repeatedly cornered the orc units. Once enough of them were herded together, Guntrian issuedmands to the Meisters.


    “Good. Focus your firepower!”


    Boom! Boom!


    Magical attacks rained down on the orc units, and the sounds of explosions signaling the battle''s conclusion echoed through the dungeon.


    The final blow came from Lioness.


    “Reload. Fire Wave!”


    Then, a massive wave of fire swept over the clustered orcs.


    Whoooosh!


    The entire dungeon was engulfed in mes.


    “GRAAAAHHH!”


    The orcs couldn’t resist the devastating area-of-effect magic and werepletely consumed by the fire.


    “Phew…”


    Shhh…


    Lioness dispelled the inferno and took a deep breath.


    There was a stark contrast between simted training at the Magic Academy and an actual dungeon raid.


    “Well done, Lioness.”


    “You too, Brother.”


    “This dungeon raid ended quicker than usual. The casualties were far fewer than I expected—all thanks to you.”


    “How many casualties were there?”


    “Thirty-seven. Thankfully, none of the Meisters were injured. At this rate, it’s safe to call this a wless victory.”


    Thirty-seven.


    Despite the one-sided nature of the battle, that was still considered a small number.


    “…Even E-ss dungeons aren’t easy.”


    “Exactly. Dungeon raids are war.”


    Swish.


    Guntrian flicked the orc blood off his sword.


    “Especially those damned orcs. They’re a real pain.”


    “When I first acquired the A-ss Mana Suit and Assimtion, I thought I could raid a dungeon on my own…”


    “What do you think now?”


    “It’s impossible.”


    Even though Lioness had burned down more than half of the dungeon, he shook his head.


    “No matter how strong you are, a support unit is essential.”


    “Exactly. Assimtion isn’t foolproof. Whether your concentration slips, or your mana consumption suddenly spikes… even partial dispel will expose your physical body.”


    “Indeed. I felt it earlier as well. Maintaining Assimtion duringbat isn’t as easy as I thought.”


    “It’s the same for you, so imagine how it is for others. Many have died or been crippled because they recklessly relied on Assimtion and charged forward without caution. Hah… I don’t understand why they don’t let the knights handle the shielding as they should.”


    Guntrian let out a small sigh, and Lioness responded with a brief chuckle.


    “By the way, there’s a Civil Squad that’s caught my attentiontely. Have you heard of one called Meier?”


    It was a squad known for its small size but its rumored ability to clear dungeons rapidly.


    At this, Guntrian frowned.


    “I know of it. But it’s nonsense.”


    “…Is it?”


    “If their performance is real, then they’re hiding something. I’ve heard they’re affiliated with the Tower of Faeries. Maybe they’ve got elves secretly apanying them as escorts.”


    He waved his hand dismissively, making his stance clear.


    ***


    “Solo dungeon raids? Absolutely impossible. As the captain of Elsabar’s squad, I can tell you with certainty—those iming such feats are nothing but frauds.”


    The journey to the Starn territory was a long one, long enough to pass several dungeons along the way.


    “We’ll clear this E-ss dungeon before moving on.”


    In a remote mountain ravine, green-skinned humanoid creatures—orc monsters—had established a base around a dungeon portal.


    Alkas scratched his head and remarked, “Orcs… These monsters are a real pain.”


    “That’s right. Orcs form groups and maintain formations, making them particrly troublesome.”


    Swish.


    Kaylen stepped down from the carriage, his body shifting into a liquid state.


    “But they have a fatal weakness.”


    “Weakness?”


    “They can’t cut water with swords.”


    Kaylen’s Assimted body gradually dispersed. Soon, his physical form disappeared entirely, leaving behind about ten water spheres the size of heads in his ce.


    [I’ll take care of the portal. Follow me at your own pace.]


    Bounce. Bounce.


    The ten water spheres began bouncing along the ground like balls, disappearing into the mountain path.


    Momentster—


    “Guh… Gah…”


    “Kuaargh!”


    “Grrrrr…!”


    The orcs’ anguished cries began echoing from all directions.


    When Alkas and Myorn followed the trail, they found orcs writhing on the ground, unable to breathe, their heads encased in water spheres.


    Bubble. Bubble.


    The orcs tried desperately to open and close their mouths, attempting to breathe inside the globes of water. But their efforts were futile. One by one, their bodies went limp.


    “…What is this?”


    Myorn covered her mouth in shock.


    Meanwhile, Kaylen’s voice,ced with dissatisfaction, came from the direction of the water spheres.


    [Ten won’t be enough.]


    The water spheres began to split.


    Ten became twenty, then forty, then sixty.


    As the number of water spheres grew to sixty, the orc legion''s annihtion elerated rapidly.


    “Ku-eek!”


    Nearby orcs tried to break the spheres by swinging axes and punching them, but—


    Ssh.


    The water sphere would briefly lose shape, only to multiply and engulf the head of the attacking orc.


    “Gah, gah!”


    The spheres spread like an epidemic.


    In less than 30 minutes, the orc unit stationed at the mountain foothills waspletely wiped out.


    Alkas, with a stunned expression, asked, “Is it possible to use Assimtion like that? I’ve never heard of such a method before.”


    “…Theoretically, yes,” replied Myorn.


    But it was just that—a theory.


    In practice, most Meisters struggled to even maintain a humanoid form. Even if they managed to reshape their body, separating it into parts was considered impossible.


    “Then how does our lord…?”


    “Who knows? Could even a Sword Master pull that off?”


    As Myorn pondered in disbelief, the scattered water spheres merged back into one, reforming into Kaylen’s human shape.


    “It’s certainly more mana-efficient for Guardian to do this than casting spells,” Kaylenmented.


    “Well, that much is obvious… but how did you do it? How can you still move after separating your body?”


    “…? Is that supposed to be impossible?” Kaylen asked back, looking genuinely confused.


    “It’s so simple.”


    Swish.


    Kaylen’s hand turned to water and separated, floating midair. The small water mass transformed into a sword, then into a star, freely shifting its shape.


    “How is that even possible?”


    “Why wouldn’t it be?”


    “You’re detached from your body!”


    “It’s still my body, even if it’s separated. Of course, I can manipte it.”


    Even process-Assimted elves likely couldn’t achieve such a feat, Myorn thought, feeling her very understanding of the world upended.


    I can’tprehend this man. He’s unfathomable.


    Sometimes, he seemed like a Sword Master.


    Other times, he shook the world by disying the talents of a six-circle Meister.


    And now, his Assimtion surpassed even that of elves.


    “This doesn’t make sense! No one, not even elves or dwarves, can handle Assimtion like that. At best, they can manage it briefly.”


    “Hmm. Not even those two races?” Kaylen’s eyes lit up with interest.


    He had assumed that process-Assimted elves would easily be able to utilize such abilities.


    Is it because of the Mana Body?


    As he pondered the possible cause, Myorn stomped her feet in frustration, unable to find an exnation.


    “This is so obvious to me. I can’t even exin it properly,” Kaylen said with a shrug.


    “Sigh… This could revolutionize mana suit development,” Myorn muttered.


    Kaylen chose not to borate. It wasn’t the time to discuss the Mana Body yet.


    “Let’s head into the portal. I’ll clear the way using the same method.”


    “Tsk. Fine. But do you really need to conserve your strength?”


    “Yes. I wanted to help with your Spirit Power training today.”


    A Mana Suit of Water?


    Myorn raised a questioning brow, clearly perplexed. Kaylen simply smirked.


    “Let’s start by breaking the dungeon core.”


    “Enter the portal in an hour,” Kaylen instructed Myorn and Alkas before stepping into the dungeon portal alone.


    “Do you think he’s really going to use that same method again?”


    “Seems like it.”


    “But there are far more orcs inside the dungeon, and they’re much stronger.”


    “If it weren’t our lord, I’d bet my entire fortune that no one could pull it off.”


    Exactly one hourter, they entered the portal. All around themy the bodies of orcs.


    Each one was untouched by des or burns—every single one had suffocated to death.


    Alkas muttered in disbelief, “I thought this might happen, but… to clear an orc dungeon this effortlessly...”


    He recalled stories from his academy seniors. Many who joined escort squads for Civil Squads struggled in orc dungeons, with few returning.


    Unlike monsters that acted purely on instinct, orcs were highly organized, making them a nightmare for even seasoned knights.


    Following the trail of corpses, they soon found Kaylen sitting casually near the dungeon core,pletely unharmed.


    “Myorn, you brought the old ‘Normal’ Mana Suit, didn’t you?”


    “Yes.”


    “Alkas, put it on and try to break the dungeon core.”


    The Prototype Normal Suit, an early version capable of outputting 1.5 times the standard aura, fit snugly over Alkas.


    Crackle.


    Aura surged from Alkas’s sword like an explosion.


    “Haaaahp!”


    With a sharp swing, his de struck the dungeon core directly.


    ng!


    The sword seemed to bite into the core briefly but was quickly repelled.


    “Again.”


    ng!


    “Strike the same spot.”


    ng! ng!


    “Aura output is dropping. Focus. Again!”


    ng! ng! ng!


    Under Kaylen’s guidance, Alkas continued to strike relentlessly, but the dungeon core remained unscathed, deflecting each blow with ease.


    “That’s enough. It’s still beyond your ability,” Kaylen finally dered.


    “Aura alone won’t work. To break the dungeon core, you need simultaneous,rge-scale explosive damage to weaken its defenses. No matter how sharp aura is, it’s limited in its impact points, allowing the core to regenerate instantly,” Myorn exined.


    Her reasoning was sound.


    It was this very trait that sidelined knights and elevated the importance of mages in dungeon clearing.


    Kaylen listened silently, then extended his hand.


    “Alkas. The sword.”


    “Yes, my lord.”


    The de in Alkas’s hand slowly dissolved into water, spiraling and transforming as mana surged around it.


    What formed was an Aura Sword—but not the familiar golden hue Kaylen usually wielded. This one glowed with a vivid blue light.


    Seeing it, Myorn’s hair stood on end.


    “An Aura Sword… of Water?”


    With a smooth motion, the blue Aura Sword passed cleanly through the dungeon core.


    In an instant, the core dimmed and split into two perfect halves.


    “My lord… you’ve be even stronger!” Alkas eximed.


    “No, it just resisted less than usual. Your attacks seem to have weakened it.”


    “Ah…”


    “Yes. But…”


    Kaylen picked up one half of the split core, his brow furrowing.


    Where the usual infernal script marking it as “Colony” was inscribed, a new word had been added.


    [Colony – Caution]


    [Trantor - Kiteretsu]


    [Proofreader - Kyros]