The moment Airmid left him alone in the room, Rex decided it was time he left the hospital. Two days was a long time to be lying around, especially with his main source of income—Ishtar—on the line. And now that he could level up, he didn't want to waste any more seconds being a Level 3.
Picking up an apple from the fruit basket with his messed-up right arm, he pulled off the small wooden stem before returning the apple to the basket. His eyes glowed green for a moment then the stem rapidly expanded, reshaping itself into two wooden sandals. Tossing them to the floor beside his bed, he slipped them on as he stood.
'This shouldn't draw too much attention.' Paired with his white hospital 'gown'—which is more like a long-sleeve tunic that reached his calves—and white pants, he didn't look like a hospital patient.
'Yeah, good enough.' He thought as he walked to the open window. 'Time to leave.'
Sneaking out of the Dian Cecht Familia's main hospital wasn't that hard, especially with the help of Scavenger and the fact that he could move faster than the eyes of Level 3s and below could follow. After getting out, he avoided the main street of Orario while returning home as he didn't feel comfortable walking around in white. It was too bright and it drew too much attention that he don't need right now.
As he walked through the alley, he took a deep breath. The afternoon was calm. The air was fresh. Everything was nice—except for the damn pain in his right arm.
With a sigh, he clenched his right arm. The sudden blood rush intensified the pain, which was quickly suppressed by Indomitable Will. 'If I keep doing this, I should be able to use this arm normally.'
Since Indomitable Will would suppress the pain once it hit the threshold, he could use the arm for high-stress activity. But low-stress tasks that still caused pain—but not enough pain—were still going to be a problem.
Thankfully, using the arm it wouldn't worsen the injury, since there was no injury in the first place—just an arm with a deformity of permanent pain. Though his right arm was now much weaker than the rest of his body, it could still output the strength of a mid to low-Level 4. It was still far stronger than what a Level 3 adventurer should be able to manage, so it wasn't that bad of a injury brought by using Berakh HaKele on it.
'Let's just hope Airmid can make something for it.' From what she said, it seems like she was going to aim for an item that might permanently suppress the pain. Which, honestly, was good enough for him. 'Or should I just cut the arm off and make a new one for myself?'
The prosthetic arm Airmid made for Naaza was one of the best in Orario—mainly because it could grow with the user as they age, that's why it had cost them over 100 million to buy. And this arm was made 6 years ago, and with time to grow and learn, Airmid is probably now able to make prosthetics that also grow with the user's strength.
'Nah, she isn't.' Scavenger just confirmed she isn't able to, but it also confirmed that with his help she could make that breakthrough.
Meaning, Rex could cut off his arm and replace it with a prosthetic that would forever match his left arm in strength and capability. He could even later switch it out for an overpowered magical prosthetic arm created using his Spirit Blood, Crozzo Blood, and future Mystery DA.
But the thought of cutting off his real arm for something 'fake' didn't sit right with him.
'Yeah… let's just stick with finding something to suppress the pain,' he thought, glancing down at his right arm, wrapped tightly in bandages from shoulder to fingers.
He saw no reason for the bandages, really—the arm was already healed—but he didn't remove them. It did look cool, he admitted. Like Naruto's right arm in Boruto. And honestly? He wouldn't mind rocking that look for a while.
It didn't take long for him to arrive at Cupidinem, and just like sneaking out of Dian Cecht Familia, getting in was just as easy. Even sneaking into the main mansion was so effortlessly easy it annoyed him.
'We need to do something about the security of this place,' he thought as he climbed in through an open window. 'Imagine how easy it would be for an assassin to get in here and just kill Soma or someone else.' The thought made him sigh.
This was the bad part about being the only strong one in the Familia. No matter how overpowered he was, when he was away, there was no one else to ensure the Familia's safety.
The strongest person right now was Hyakinthos, and if he remembered right, the guy had been pushing hard in the Dungeon trying to reach Level 4 after the humiliation he received during the War Game. But even if he made it to Level 4, it wouldn't change the Familia's overall strength much.
'Yeah, I need to strengthen this Familia.' Rex decided as he tip-toed passed a kitchen where some level 2s were cooking while talking.
So the Familia Expedition coming up was a must. If Hyakinthos hadn't leveled up by then, it would result in the birth of one Level 4, about seven Level 3s, and dozens of Level 2s. Still not enough to compare with even some A-Rank Familia like Hathor's or something, but they would become much stronger than the trash they are now.
'I could overgear them, right?' He had his Spirit Blood and would soon get Crozzo Blood, so he could craft weapons for the executives that would let them fight above their level. 'Like a weapon that carries fragments of my Caelum Veil magic.'
That thought reminded him of an anime he had almost forgotten—Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic. More specifically, the idea of making weapons with a portion of his magic brought to mind the concept of Metal and Household Vessels.
A Metal Vessel is a powerful item that contains the essence of a Djinn—a magical being obtained by conquering a dungeon—allowing the owner to use the Djinn's power. Household Vessels, on the other hand, contain a portion of the Djinn's magic, enabling allies to wield limited versions of its abilities.
Using Spirit Blood and Crozzo Blood, he could 100% create his own version of Metal Vessels—items infused with magic like Caelum Veil, Overgrowth, Poison Release, or Fire Breath. Weaker members could then be given sub-weapons with portions of those magics for Household Vessels. Their combat ability would skyrocket, and he wouldn't need to worry so much about recruiting new Level 4s—which was impossible anyway. No god would willingly let go of a Level 4.
'I still don't get how that William Massachusetts guy managed to leave his old Familia and join the Maich Familia,' Rex thought as he walked down the fourth floor hallway, watching dust motes drift through the beams of sunlight filtering in from the windows. 'I'll ask him about it later.'
He stopped outside Zanis' office and knocked once before pushing open the door. The entire room was brightened by sunlight from the open windows and refreshed by the afternoon air. And, as usual, Zanis sat behind his desk, surrounded by stacks of papers which he worked on.
"I feel like all I ever see you doing is paperwork and drinking," Rex said, closing the door behind him. "It's starting to make me feel guilty."
"And your days consist solely of descending into the Dungeon and sleeping." Zanis replied without looking up from his work. "Guilt is unnecessary when we each serve our purpose in this Familia—especially as your role as our vanguard carries far greater risk than my own."
"Aww~" Rex smiled at this as he made his way toward Zanis' shelf, reaching for his long-awaited Soma drink. "But that's beside the point. You know the drill—how've things been during my absence?"
Zanis didn't look up from his paperwork as he spoke, his tone matter-of-fact. "While you were down in the Dungeon," Zanis replied as he picked up a new paper and instantly ripped it, tossing it into the trash can beside him, "The only noteworthy event was Kaede, Momiji, and Coco reaching Level 2."
'Ah… Right.' He had completely forgotten that when he went into Knossos, those three had entered the Dungeon with Daphne, Cassandra, Lissos, Chandra, and Hyakinthos to attempt leveling up. 'Makes sense they succeeded.'
When he met them a month ago, they already had surprisingly high stats—Bs in their main stats, and Momiji even had an A in Magic. Those stats were remarkably high, higher than most adventurers ever achieved before leveling up. The only reason they hadn't leveled earlier was because they lacked someone strong enough to watch over them while they gathered high-ranking excelia.
'Wonder why they never asked me for help,' Rex thought.
All Kaede had ever requested was training, which he'd declined since it was too time-consuming. If they had asked him to help them level up—which would have only taken an hour or so—he would have agreed instantly. But now that he thought about it, he kinda understood why.
'Guess they were trying to hit all the next ranks in their stats before leveling up, since they were already so close.' The last time he checked, Coco and Kaede had A-ranks in Strength and Agility, respectively, while Momiji had reached an S in Magic. Meaning they were amongst the stronger newly level 2s in Orario. 'Guess I have to reward them now.'
With that out of the way, Rex asked aloud, "You've always wanted to see my status, right?"
Zanis's pen halted mid-stroke as Rex stepped away from the shelf with the used glass. "Well, now's the time," he spread one arm with a grin. "I'm getting my status updated—and I'll be leveling up too, so you'll finally get to see it for yourself."
The captain promptly dropped his pen and pushed back his chair, finally looking up from his work and adjusting his glasses. Ignoring Rex's odd, entirely white attire and the fact he'd finally cut his hair short to his neck, Zanis rose from his seat.
Zanis didn't hesitate and stood smoothly, rounded the desk, and picked a blank sheet of paper from a nearby stack. "No need to delay," he folded the paper neatly before walking toward the door. "Let's go."
Rex raised a brow at the man's impatience. "Damn, you're more excited about this than I am."
Zanis ignored his statement as he opened the door. "Soma should be in his garden around this time," he said over his shoulder. "Wash that cup and meet me there."
And just like that, he stepped out, his footsteps already fading into the corridor.
'He really can't wait anymore, can he...' Rex thought as he stretched his arm over his head, with his stomach growling. 'After this, I should head to Ishtar then find a good restaurant and enjoy myself before returning to the hospital.'
He picked up the used glass and left the office, shutting the door gently behind him. He took a brief detour to the kitchen to wash it, and as he stepped back into the hallway, he crossed paths with Zanis, who was now carrying Soma's golden ceremonial dagger.
Without a word, the captain continued down the hallway. Rex followed in silence, his right hand clenching and unclenching in a steady rhythm—keeping the pain sharp enough for Indomitable Will to suppress it. And soon they reached the garden without encountering anyone where they found Soma squatting in front of a berry bush, inspecting it with a slight frown.
"Lord Soma," Zanis announced their presence, but the god continued staring silently through his heavy bangs at the bush. "Rex has come for an update and to level up."
Soma remained silent, still focused on the berry bush. After a few lingering seconds, he stood and turned, wordlessly extending his hand for the dagger. Zanis passed it over as Rex pulled off his white hospital tunic and only then did Zanis notice the bandages tightly wrapped around Rex's right arm.
'...' He inspected it but said nothing, quietly assuming it was the price Rex had paid for acquiring high-rank excelia.
Rex got on one knee with his back to Soma so the god could easily access it, while Zanis stood quietly beside the god. Pricking his finger, Soma allowed a drop of his blood to fall onto Rex's bareback, and the Soma Familia emblem faded into view, surrounded by the hieroglyphs of Rex's status.
Zanis's eyes narrowed behind his glasses. 'Isn't this too much?'
Though he couldn't read the language of the gods, he could clearly see the sheer volume of text. It was far more extensive than anything he had seen before—at least ten times as many words as the combined words on Kaede, Momiji, and Coco had when they leveled up. Rex's entire back was essentially covered in intricate script.
A gentle glow appeared on Rex's back as streams of red and white hieroglyphs slowly rose from his skin, like smoke twisting upward in a weightless swirl. The crimson symbols formed themselves into divine script, with pale white numerals forming next the red letters.
'…What is this?' Zanis's gaze swept over the symbols, settling on the only part he could decipher—numbers. 'One thousand four hundred ninety-nine?'
He knew what they meant. Stats. Just like how Momiji's Magic had reached 901 when she leveled, but this... this was something else. 1499? That number was absurd. He blinked, as if it might vanish on second glance, then shook his head.
'No, that can't be right.' A small, disbelieving chuckle escaped him, though nothing about what he saw felt funny.
Soma's gaze fixed on the display, his expression bored as he silently studied the information. "Ability." He simple uttered and without hesitation, Rex replied,
"Apex Hunter."
Zanis blinked, taken aback. 'What kind of Development Ability is that?' First it was Predator, then Luck, and now this? He tightened his jaw slightly but said nothing, opting instead to watch silently.
Soma continued moving his fingers around the floating hologram of numbers and words and Zanis watched as the white number moved towards Rex's back, and then a new number appeared, all 0. THis confirmed that those numbers were indeed Rex's stats, but Zanis still refused to believe it.
Then, beneath his stats, new red and white letters began to swirl into existence. The hologram shifted downward on its own—the top fading out of sight while fresh lines emerged from below.
'These can't be skills… right?' Zanis let out another soft chuckle, though it came out more strained than amused. 'Y-yeah. No fucking way.'
His eyes tracked the scrolling projection as more lines continued to drift upward, the sheer volume starting to feel surreal. How long is this thing gonna scroll? Ten? Fifteen skills? Then, it finally paused as new words materialized...
Only to scroll again as more appeared into view.
Zanis stood in silence, unsure what to think as the projection finally reached the bottom—only for more shimmering script to fade into view, filling the last space with yet another line of divine text.
"…The paper…" Soma's slightly exasperated voice interrupted his thoughts, and Zanis finally noticed the god's outstretched hand. Quickly, he handed over the parchment he had brought and Soma glanced at it. "Get me more—"
Zanis was gone before the god had even finished speaking, returning moments later with three more sheets of parchment. Taking them without a word, Soma took his time transcribing the divine script from Rex's back onto two of the papers—both front and back—before handing them to Rex, who gave them a quick scan before holding them out for Zanis, who immediately took them and began reading.
— — — — — — — — — —
Rex Magnus
Level 4
[Strength] SSS1292 | [Endurance] SSS1499 | [Dexterity] SSS1259 | [Agility] SSS1277 | [Magic] SSS1203
[Predator] G
[Luck] H
[Apex Hunter] I
[Magic]
"Door To Somewhere"
—Teleportation magic that allows the user to open a door that lead to somewhere else.
[Skill]
"Scavenger" — Harvest stats, skills, magic, properties, or treasure from corpses and evaluate quality.
(Skill: Strong Body, Body Furnace, Tremor Sense, Heptathlos, Jack Bird Dash, Vouivre Rage, Green Dragon Body, Goliath Roar, Iguazu Dash, Magic Sense, Earth Crush, Spirit Blood)
(Magic: Blue Papilio Powder, Fire Breath, Berakh HaKele, Poison Release, Overgrowth, Siren's Scream, Meteor Swarm, Caelum Veil)
(Physical Property: Sharp Retractable Claw, Nictitating Membrane++, Green Dragon Teeth+++)
(Development Ability: Abnormal Resistance (G))
"Indomitable Will"
— Grants immunity to mind-based attacks, enhances physical and magical growth through trials, enables multitasking and rapid skill mastery, and in dire moments, suppresses pain, boosts mental fortitude, and significantly increases all stats.
"Dragon's Bane"
—Massively increases all abilities when fighting any dragon-type monsters.
"If I Change into a Swimsuit..."
—Grant the user the capability to survive underwater while increasing their combat capability underwater.
"Go Beyond…"
—Passively and constantly boosts the abilities of all allies within a certain range. The strength and reach of this buff depend on the user's stats and level.
—"Plus Ultra": When activated, amplifies the buffs on those allies by stacking them multiple times. The number of times the buffs are applied increases with the user's level, granting a massive temporary boost. The skill's cooldown is affected by how many allies were enhanced.
— — — — — — — — — —
There was silence as Soma concealed Rex's status, returning his back bare. Standing, Rex took the ceremonial dagger from Soma, who promptly returned to squatting beside his berry bush, inspecting it carefully once more.
"You've always been curious." Rex asked as he turned to Zanis. "Tell me, is your curiosity settled now?"
Zanis stood motionless, his gaze locked onto the first sheet of paper. Sunlight reflected sharply off his glasses, turning the lenses completely opaque, masking his eyes and leaving his expression unreadable.
"Shocked speechless, huh?" Rex said lightly, stepping closer to pat Zanis on the shoulder. "Well, I suppose that's understandable—" His hand froze mid-air, his voice trailing off as he caught sight of Zanis's eyes beneath the reflective lenses of his glasses.
They were... pure white.
'No way...' he thought, blinking hard as the silence stretched. 'This reaction is too exaggerated, isn't it?' His gaze lingered on the captain's unmoving form. Not even a twitch.
Zanis Lustra had fainted.
"Zanis!" Rex barked, slapping his hand across the captain's cheek with a sharp backhand.
Zanis jolted upright, blinking rapidly as clarity returned to his eyes. He glanced around, disoriented, then fumbled to adjust his glasses. His gaze landed on Soma, still squatting by the bush, and then on the shirtless Rex and watching him calmly.
"Oh... I was dreaming," he nodded to himself with certainty.
It all made sense now—or at least, it would if it were a dream. That explained the madness he had seen. It was like staring at a glitch in the very fabric of Falna. Indomitable Will and Dragon's Bane were already pushing the limit of believability. But the others?
That wasn't just excessive—it was impossible. Yeah, this had to be a dream. There was no other explanation.
"Lord Soma," Zanis called to the god, who ignored him completely. "Rex came to have his status updated—"
"You weren't dreaming, my brother." Rex said flatly, nodding toward the parchment still clutched in Zanis's hand. "What you saw was real."
Zanis gave him a slow, vacant glance, as if his brain was still buffering, and with a heavy sigh, he lifted the 'blank' sheet. At the sight, his fingers tensed slightly. Then, without a word, he adjusted his glasses, the lenses shifting opaque once more as his eyes scanned the lines in silence.
After finishing, Zanis slowly lowered the sheets, his lips parting with a muted, mechanical murmur. "I see..."
"Normal, right?" Rex asked as he casually put on his shirt.
"Indeed." Zanis gave a shallow nod, voice flat. "It's quite... Normal?"
Then, without warning, Zanis's composure snapped like glass. "NORMAL!?" he exploded, his mad gray eyes locked onto Rex.
"What the fuck do you mean normal!?" He hurled the parchment down onto the paved ground with enough force to send it fluttering before slamming it underfoot.
"Go Beyond? Door To Somewhere!? Scavenger?" He roared as he stomped the page into the stone. "SCAVENGER!?" He ground the paper under his heel before looking up at Rex who remained frustratingly calm.
Taking a deep breath, Zanis forced himself to continue more evenly. "Strong Body, Body Furnace, Fire Breath, Overgrowth…" he calmly listed off the skills beneath Scavenger. "Any single one of these skills could turn an ordinary adventurer into a great one." But whatever composure he had managed to scrape together crumbled in an instant.
"AND YOU HAVE TWENTY-ONE!" he screamed, lunging forward and grabbing Rex by the collar with both hands. His glasses slipped slightly, revealing bloodshot gray eyes that vibrated with outrage. ""HOW GREEDY CAN YOU BE!? Why do you need them all!?"
Rex tilted his head. "What can I say?" he replied with complete sincerity. "I was brought into this world for the sole purpose of killing the One-Eyed Black Dragon. Of course I would be overpowered."
"Hmm…" Zanis nodded slowly. "Makes perfect sense—"
Then his voice cracked. "No it DOESN'T!"
He shoved Rex back with both hands, stumbling a step before collapsing to his knees. His breath came hard. Shoulders trembling, he stared blankly at the ground as genuine tears welled in his eyes.
"This… this isn't fair…" he muttered. "We're all struggling just to get even one skill. I've suffered, bled, gone through sleepless nights for nine years just to afford a single grimoire for my first magic… and you—"
He looked up at Rex, voice breaking as tears spilled down his cheeks. "You have eight of them? Just picked up off corpses?" Rex continued watching the man with not a hint of guilt or smugness on his face. "What's the point of even needing thirty abilities? When will you ever get the chance to use them in battle?"
He laughed at himself, looking up at the sky, tears flowing down his cheek. "Wh-what kind of world is this…?" He murmured, a broken laugh escaping him. "Maybe you really were made just to fight the Black Dragon."
"You really are... the honored one." Zanis concluded.
"Indeed," Rex stepped forward to rest a hand on Zanis's shoulder, calmly looking down at the kneeling man, the sunlight behind his head like a halo. "Listen and listen well." He began.
"I am a being far beyond any mortal. A creation forged by the world itself to slay the One-Eyed Black Dragon. I am His Immortal Majesty—also known as HIM. There's no reason for you to compare yourself to me."
He paused, tone flat and honest. "After all… do ants compare themselves to humans? Do shadows envy the flame? Does a raindrop question the ocean? I was born to be exceptional—so your envy is natural, but unnecessary."
He then removed his hands and turned to walk away. "I will be visiting Ishtar now." He waved behind him. "Rest well, my brother."
[Author's Note: How was the chapter? You might be curious why I gave him that magic, and honestly, it's simple.
First, I wanted something kind of like an 'inventory,' as someone suggested. But the magic 'inventory' just sounded trash and too straightforward to me, so instead I gave him teleportation magic that could also work as an inventory. You'll see why this magic is good later—no spoilers. I actually thought about giving him transformation magic at first, but I felt like it was too early for that. It would quicken his growth way too much and it will make the plot boring so I'll wait.
Now, about the skill—yeah, I know. It doesn't buff him at all which many might see as bad or trash. But I felt like the MC already has enough stat buffs, and adding more would just write me into a corner, especially with how overpowered his SSS stats already are. So instead, I gave him something that matches the inspiration he gave to the Loki Familia in his final moment of that arc. A skill with two parts: a passive and an active.
The full details of the skill weren't revealed in this chapter—you only got the brief description shown in his Falna. Look forward to seeing the real description from Scavenger later. And another reason I gave him this skill is because I wanted to give him a skill that would outshine a skill that he has under Scavenger so he could replace it later, lol. Bye-bye Goliath Roar~
Anyway, thanks for reading, and the author hopes you have a good day~ o(￣▽￣)ブ]