Damian sensed the Highswords following behind them, stopping at a distance. His companions were relaxing on the snow within the safety of the barrier dome.
Having some free time, Damian left Sam in charge, grabbed three mana containers, and used Vidalia’s spell to fly up, determined to see what was so special about this level that it had to repeat.
The Highswords, noticing his ascent, began stirring. Some among them who could fly took off as well, closing in on him. Damian flew in a wide, fast circle around the area, scanning for anything unusual.
Two figures approached from each side. Damian recognized Silverspell, Runefather, and Hellseeker—three Highswords of note—while the others were unfamiliar to him.
"What are you doing?" Runefather asked.
"Why does this dungeon level keep repeating?" Damian countered.
Since there was no point in telling them to leave him alone, he decided to make use of their knowledge instead.
"We don’t know.. There’s nothing of value here," Runefather answered, flying beside him.
Hellseeker spoke next. "I noticed you have an interest in this dungeon. Join us, and I’ll personally guide you to Level 70—that’s as far as any of us have been able to go."
That was news to him. It seemed they were in the mood to share information.
"Is the boss Unfathomable rank or something?" he asked.
"No, kid," Silverspell replied, acting as if he hadn’t been the one calling him "brat" just hours ago. "The sun at that level melts iron in minutes. Surviving for a few minutes is tolerable, but fighting monster swarms? Not a chance."
Damian simply nodded.
"Is Level 16 the same as this one?" he asked.
"No," Runefather replied, "but Level 15 is."
Six, then 11, and now 15.. it was decreasing by one each time. At this rate..
He asked again, "There are no cold levels after Level 21?"
"No," Hellseeker confirmed. Stay tuned for updates on freewebnovel
"Have you seen any native species?"
Silverspell scoffed. "Look at the heat, boy. Nothing alive is spared." He paused, then added, "Though with that spell of yours.. If it can protect against heat constantly, we could help you reach as far as you want. Even beyond level 70."
His spell—the ice spell. Of course, it would be highly coveted in this dungeon. But they could learn it too; it was rare but not impossible to find. Still, not even third-rankers could maintain a spell’s activation for days. They assumed he could, thanks to his unlimited mana liquid.
But it also relied on his mana generators. If even metal melted here, his ship wouldn’t be able to handle it either. He could carry mana containers.. but no, those were metal too.
Why was he even considering it? He didn’t need to go that far yet. The goal of this trip was to get the Land Breaker and advance to second rank. He could return another time to solve all the dungeon’s mysteries.
He had already collected identification samples of some of the strongest and largest trees from the earlier levels.
When Damian stopped responding to their offers, the Highswords stopped pressing and simply followed him in silence as he finished scouting the entirety of Level 11. He found nothing—no remnants of civilization like in the previous levels. This place felt like an entirely different world.
That was enough rest. Once Damian landed near the keypoint, they resumed their dungeon run.
Damian kept the formation the same, continuing to fight alongside all 50 people. Level 12, predictably, brought even more heat. The temperature hovered around 39–40 degrees Celsius.
He considered using his ice spell. The thought had lingered in his mind since Silverspell mentioned it, but he held back—yes, it was hot, but still bearable.
He didn’t want to spoil everyone by doing more than necessary. This was a dungeon, after all. If anyone couldn’t handle it, they were free to leave.
The landscape had begun to change. There were fewer trees now, meaning less shade. The monsters were more aggressive. Every five to seven encounters, a King-ranked monster appeared, slowing their progress.
They fought continuously, each battle taking longer than before. Pyrestalkers, fire-infused panther-like hunters, prowled between the burning trees. Infernal Minotaurs, hulking humanoids with molten axes, emerged from the deeper regions. Ashstorm Ravens swarmed the skies, summoning blinding ash clouds, while Ember Ogres, massive brutes wreathed in flame, crashed through the battlefield with their charred clubs.
The teams had to stay on high alert. Each King-ranked monster took significantly more time to bring down than any enemy they had faced earlier in this level. With regular breaks and a slower pace, coupled with the relentless onslaught of monster hordes, their overall speed decreased significantly.
Still, two days would be enough to clear the level. They decided to postpone the final battle—the last stretch of hundreds of monsters guarding the keypoint—until the next day. Attempting it at night, exhausted and sleep-deprived, was too risky.
By now, they had accumulated massive amounts of experience points, and the pace was still reasonable.
Level 12 featured larger, broken stone structures—abandoned and clearly man-made.. or perhaps alien-made.
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The ruins were covered in murals depicting their way of life, strange symbols, and monstrous figures, each one seemingly telling a story. Among them, one particular figure stood out—repeatedly portrayed battling colossal monsters of all kinds.
Damian recognized several of these creatures: massive soot golems, a towering lizard-like beast, a multi-headed serpent breathing fire, and even a creature resembling a gigantic minotaur. Whoever this warrior was, the ancient inhabitants seemed to revere him, his deeds immortalized in stone.
Meanwhile, the auto-barrier had begun showing cracks as relentless monster attacks persisted through the night. Damian, who wasn’t planning to sleep anyway, reinforced it whenever necessary.
The students, however, were in high spirits. After a long day of battle, Damian distributed the loot they had gathered, allowing them to unwind. They had food, fresh water to wash off the grime, and even a small pool to cool down.
Adding a bit of ice to the water, Damian turned it refreshingly cold—and it was an instant hit.