part1 · 072-ep72
Episode 72: The Path of Ten Years 2
Past floor 50, Ren pushed on into deeper floors.
Getting the 《Gravity Shoes》 had changed how he trained, too. Little by little, Ren strengthened the gravity acting on himself.
"...Heavy."
Even a single step felt heavy. On top of that came the weakening from the 《Magic-Sealing Gloves》.
He lowered his physical abilities and trained in that state. At first, his body wouldn't do what he asked.
Walking. Running. Swinging his sword.
Even those simple movements were harder than before.
But—
as he repeated them, his body gradually adjusted.
Strengthen the gravity. Deepen the weakening. Once he could move again anyway, add a little more load.
That was how Ren kept widening his own limits, little by little.
Against monsters, though, it was different. When he fought a dangerous opponent, he returned the gravity to normal and tuned the gloves' weakening to match that particular monster.
Training and real combat. Alternating between the two, Ren kept growing.
◇
Floor 51.
Beyond it stretched scenery completely unlike anything before. Giant trees reached toward the ceiling.
Roots covered the ground, and vines crept out everywhere.
"...A forest, huh."
Ren looked around. Right then, a monster burst out from between the trees.
A monster whose body was covered in a bark-like hide. Ren readied his sword.
The monster swung its arm. Tree roots came stretching up out of the ground.
"...!"
Ren leapt sideways. The roots burst through the earth.
Keeping his distance, Ren tried to feel out the monster's magic.
《Magic Perception》.
The same power he'd used learning Water Magic on floor 31. But he was not what he'd been then.
All his battles since had raised 《Magic Perception》's level too. The flow of magic was clearer to him now than it had ever been.
"...I can see it better than before."
Magic flowed out of the monster's body. Into its arm. Into the ground.
And into the roots.
Ren followed that flow. The monster moved its roots again.
Ren tried moving his own magic.
But—
"...Not easy."
It wouldn't come together into magic the way he wanted. He tried again and again.
He observed the monster's magic. Felt the flow of it. And little by little, brought his own magic closer to it.
Then—
《Survival Adaptation activated.》
From beneath Ren's feet, a single thin vine stretched out.
"...I did it."
《Wood Magic》.
A new elemental magic. Far faster than when he'd learned Water Magic on floor 31.
The growth of 《Magic Perception》 let him read a monster's flow of magic far more precisely than before.
"...Learning them is getting easier."
Ren looked at his own hand. All his growth so far was connecting, surely and directly, to the next power.
Now able to use Wood Magic, Ren cut the monster down and moved on.
◇
From there, Ren made his way through the tree-covered floors.
He fought monsters. Confirmed their traits with 《Appraisal》. Watched their magic flow with 《Magic Perception》.
And he observed the wood-attribute magic those monsters used.
With every fight, his understanding of Wood Magic deepened.
Stretching roots. Commanding vines. Raising walls of wood.
At first he could only manage small changes. But with repetition, the range of what he could do widened.
Before long, Ren could use Wood Magic in combat as naturally as anything.
And past floor 59—
Floor 60.
This floor alone was unnaturally silent.
At the center of a space lined with giant trees stood a single monster.
A monster sheathed in a hide like a massive tree trunk, its body over ten meters tall.
Both arms thick as trunks, countless branches growing from its back. Where a face should be, two eyes glowed red.
Ren used 《Appraisal》.
《Name: Great Treant》
《Type: Monster》
《Status: Good》
《Weakness: Fire attribute》
"...Fire is its weakness."
The Great Treant brought an arm down. Ren leapt sideways.
The ground shattered. Ren answered at once with Fire Magic.
Flame wrapped around the giant frame.
But—
the Great Treant did not fall.
"...Even this isn't enough, huh."
Burning, it still came at him with massive arms. Ren evaded the swings.
Then he concentrated his Fire Magic on a single point. Flame scorched the monster's body, and a great crack split its surface.
Ren dove into that opening and brought his sword down.
The blade split the fire-scorched hide and bit deep inside. The Great Treant shuddered hard.
Ren hammered it with more Fire Magic.
At last—
the giant body collapsed.
"...Got it."
Ren let out a breath. At the back of the boss room sat a treasure chest.
He opened the lid. Inside was a piece of armor.
"...Armor."
Ren picked it up and used 《Appraisal》.
《Name: Magic Armor》
《Type: Armor》
《Effect: Wreathing it with magic forms a film of magic that raises defense》
"So I can use magic for defense too."
Ren tried flowing magic into the armor. A thin film of magic spread over his body's surface.
"...With this..."
He could raise his defense and still cast.
Another new way of fighting. Donning the Magic Armor, Ren headed for deeper floors.
◇
Floor 61.
Beyond it, floors covered in earth. Rocky hills. Massive cliff walls. Countless cracks running underfoot.
The monsters here were different too. Many had massive bodies — and high attack power to match.
Ren used 《Appraisal》 on one of them.
《Name: Rock Golem》
《Type: Monster》
《Status: Good》
《Weakness: Wind attribute》
"...Wind."
Ren unleashed Wind Magic. Sharp wind scoured the monster's body away.
Cracks ran through the hard rocky frame. He brought his sword down on them.
The Rock Golem crumbled to pieces.
"...Knowing the weak point really does make fights easier."
Even so, the monsters of the earth zone were strong. Not all of them would fall easily to Wind Magic alone.
Ren caught attacks with his Magic Armor, opened gaps with Wind Magic, and finished with his sword. Every fight polished those movements further.
And just as in the wood zone, he observed the earth-attribute magic the monsters used.
Moving rocks. Raising the ground. Building walls of earth.
Each time, he traced the flow with 《Magic Perception》.
"...Different from water. Different from wind, too."
Magic pouring into the earth. Magic traveling along the ground. Magic linking a monster's body to the land itself.
Ren tried again and again. It wouldn't come.
Still he didn't quit — he kept observing the monsters' magic.
And—
《Survival Adaptation activated.》
The soil at his feet moved.
"...!"
The magic of the earth poured into Ren's awareness. The ground swelled upward.
"...Earth Magic."
A new power.
Ren kept using Earth Magic from then on. Walls of earth. Raised ground. Moved stones.
At first only small manipulations — but as the fights piled up, the scale he could handle grew.
By the time he reached floor 69, Earth Magic had become something he could use in combat without thinking.
◇
Floor 70.
Ren stood before a giant rocky hill. Then it looked as if the hill itself had moved.
That was the monster.
Its whole body was built of massive rock. Over ten meters tall, its arms alone thicker than Ren was.
Embedded in its chest was something like a dark-red magic stone. Slowly, it raised its head.
Red eyes locked onto Ren.
Ren used 《Appraisal》.
《Name: Titan Golem》
《Type: Monster》
《Status: Good》
《Weakness: Wind attribute》
"...So this is the floor-70 boss."
The golem swung down its fist. Ren leapt sideways.
The fist smashed the ground. Rock shards scattered.
"...Taking that head-on would be bad."
Ren put distance between them and unleashed Wind Magic.
A huge blade of wind gouged the golem's arm — but it only carved the surface.
"...Hard."
The golem came charging. Ren evaded.
He circled around behind it and brought his sword down.
But—
hard rock stopped the blade.
"...Still not enough."
Ren concentrated more magic, gathering wind onto a single point.
A crack split the golem's body. He drove his sword into it.
The crack widened. The golem flailed its arms.
Ren dodged by a hair's breadth, then loosed Wind Magic once more.
This time he slammed it straight into the crack. The wind that forced its way inside gouged the rocky body from within.
The golem's movements stopped. Ren poured the last of his strength into his sword.
He drove the blade into the crack.
—A deafening crash.
Countless cracks ran through the giant body. And the Titan Golem crumbled.
"...I win."
Catching his breath, Ren gazed at the fallen monster. It had been clearly stronger than anything before it.
Even so—
Ren had climbed over one more wall.
At the back of the boss room sat a treasure chest. Ren approached it slowly.
Then opened the lid.
"...And this is?"
Inside was a single sword.
Ren took it up. A blade of near-black.
The moment his hand closed on the grip, he felt strong magic radiating from the sword itself. He used 《Appraisal》.
《Name: Magic sword Black Moon》
《Type: Magic tool》
《Effect: Allows elemental magic to be wreathed around the blade》
"...Elemental magic?"
As a test, Ren flowed Fire Magic into the sword.
And—
flame clung to the blade.
"...A sword wreathed in fire."
Ren swung it slowly. Flame stretched from the blade, scorching the air.
Next, Water Magic. The fire vanished, and this time water wrapped around the blade.
"Water too..."
Then Wind Magic. Wind swirled around the blade.
"Wind works too."
Ren thought for a moment. In that case — might as well try every magic he'd learned.
He used Wood Magic, flowing it into the sword.
Wood-attribute magic gathered along the blade, and a green light ran its length.
"...Wood as well."
Next, Earth Magic. Earth-attribute magic wreathed the blade.
"Earth works too."
Ren gripped the sword anew. Every magic he had learned could be wreathed around it.
Magic and swordsmanship. Two powers that had lived apart could now be joined into one.
"...With this, the way I fight changes."
Ren gazed at the magic sword. With this new weapon, his fighting from here on would change greatly.
Magic sword in hand, Ren pressed on into deeper floors.