Looking at the completely unharmed Amphisbaena, Cain finally understood what Hestia meant being targeted by dungeon.
A thin membrane that neutralized Afterglow.
A serpentine body whose physical strength surged after Hardening.
A regeneration speed comparable to High-Speed Regeneration.
With three abilities that should not normally coexist, Amphisbaena's survivability had been drastically enhanced, allowing it to withstand Afterglow head-on.
"Do you need my help?"
Ottar's voice came from behind.
"No, I can still handle it."
Cain refused Ottar's assistance.
Although this mutated Amphisbaena was extremely powerful, it was not invincible.
Within the Spirit Devouring Barrier, as long as he could inflict damage on his opponent, he could weaken it while strengthening himself.
In other words, if he could drag Amphisbaena into the Spirit Devouring Barrier and repeat the process from before, victory would eventually be his.
"Haruhime, give me a buff."
"Yes!"
Already prepared, Haruhime raised her staff.
["O golden light that illuminates the heavens, bestow blessings upon this humble one."]
Her clear chanting voice echoed across the lakeshore, and the glow of magic power illuminated Ottar standing beside her.
He raised his head to look at the radiant hammer forming in midair, a thoughtful glint appearing in his eyes.
Ottar was already familiar with this magic.
When he first fought Cain, Haruhime had used it to strengthen him.
At first, Ottar believed it to be a standard enhancement spell, but he later realized that was not the case.
Uchide no Kozuchi was far superior to ordinary enhancement magic. It existed on an entirely different level.
["Become strength, become power, grant this wish and elevate their might."]
["Uchide no Kozuchi!"]
As the chant concluded, a brilliant light hammer descended from above, enveloping Cain.
In an instant, Cain's power broke through its limits, reaching a higher realm.
A tangible aura burst outward in all directions, and even Ottar felt a faint pressure from it.
"As expected..."
Ottar confirmed his suspicion.
This was not enhancement magic, but Level Boost magic.
A never-before-seen ability capable of forcibly raising an adventurer's level by one.
"Ottar, protect Haruhime."
Cain's voice sounded from the front.
"Understood."
Ottar gave a slight nod and guided Haruhime to the rear.
Now that his suspicions were confirmed, he finally understood why Cain placed such importance on Haruhime.
She truly possessed that level of value.
Even as a Level 1, as long as she could use the Level Boost magic Uchide no Kozuchi, Haruhime could play a decisive role.
However...
"Level 1 is still too low."
"Eh?"
Haruhime, who had been nervously watching the battle, froze for a moment and turned to look at Ottar beside her.
"Mr. Ottar, did you just say something?"
"I said Level 1 is too weak."
Ottar replied expressionlessly, "On a real battlefield, someone with your current strength could easily be severely injured by the aftershocks alone."
"Moreover, your Mind is too limited. A Level 1's mental capacity cannot sustain repeated spellcasting."
"If you want to play a crucial role in decisive battles, you must at least reach Level 3."
"...I will work hard."
"If necessary, you can come to Folkvangr."
Ottar made the offer.
Folkvangr, the training grounds of the Freya Familia, was essentially a massive colosseum where only the strongest survived.
Although it would be extremely harsh for a Level 1 like Haruhime, her growth rate would increase dramatically if she trained there.
However, the mental burden would also be immense. Not every Level 1 could endure it like Bell.
Leaving the choice to Haruhime, Ottar shifted his gaze back to the battlefield.
After receiving the Uchide no Kozuchi buff, Cain once again relied on the propulsion from Current Drive to charge across the water, just as he had during the first subjugation of Amphisbaena.
Like an arrow released from a bow, a streak of golden light crossed most of the lake in an instant and arrived directly in front of the monster.
At such close range, the creature's towering thirty-meter body loomed like a mountain, exuding overwhelming pressure.
With a thunderous roar, four of Amphisbaena's heads locked onto Cain simultaneously.
Pale blue flames descended head-on, while the water of the lake surged upward to form a cage, cutting off Cain's retreat.
Immediately afterward, a blood mist capable of suppressing magic descended into the enclosure, and a deep purple liquid merged with the water, transforming it into a toxic prison that emitted a foul stench.
"So it really does possess eight abilities."
Cain confirmed his suspicion.
The original Amphisbaena had two heads, corresponding to two abilities, flames and blood mist.
This mutated Amphisbaena had eight heads, each representing a different ability.
Fire, water, blood mist, blue light membrane, metallic defense, regeneration, toxin attacks...
"There is still one more ability that hasn't been revealed."
After counting the abilities Amphisbaena had displayed, Cain drew his blade and swung it downward, an Afterglow descended with a thunderous roar.
The sword aura, infused with lightning and Dismantle, was corroded by the blood mist and began to shrink continuously.
After cleaving the incoming flames in two, the sword aura, now reduced to only a few meters in height, struck the blue light membrane.
With a sizzling sound, like flames being extinguished by a torrential downpour, the Afterglow vanished without even penetrating the membrane, dealing no damage at all.
However, Cain had already anticipated this outcome.
At the moment the Afterglow was released, he propelled himself into the air.
Explosions rang out one after another, and arcs of lightning erupted beneath his feet to serve as propulsion. He ascended rapidly, breaking through the blood mist and arriving directly in front of Amphisbaena.
Afterglow: Raikiri!
After a brief charge, another slash descended.
But unlike the previous two Afterglow strikes, this time the surface of the attack was not enveloped in lightning.
Sizzle!
A sharp tearing sound echoed as the Afterglow pierced through the blue light membrane without resistance, ripping apart the metallic shell.
"As expected."
Cain grasped the principle behind the blue light membrane.
Just as he had speculated earlier, the Dungeon had produced a monster specifically designed to counter his lightning-based abilities.
That was correct, the blue light membrane did not nullify magic in general, but specifically countered lightning-attribute attacks.
By altering the composition of Afterglow and no longer using Current Drive as its carrier, instead relying solely on Dismantle...
The nature of Afterglow shifted from a lightning-infused slash to a pure, attribute-less sword aura, rendering the blue light membrane ineffective.
Although its raw power was slightly inferior to the original form of Afterglow, the effectiveness of the attack had improved significantly.
"Next comes a battle of endurance."
Feeling the surge of strength within his body, Cain evaded Amphisbaena's attacks and moved to the opposite side.
But at that moment, the injured Amphisbaena raised its heads. All eight snake heads roared simultaneously, and a tangible killing intent surged toward him.
As if he had ingested hallucinogenic poison, the scenery in Cain's vision twisted violently, and a wave of nausea rose from within.
"A mental attack?!"
Realizing the situation instantly, Cain decisively altered the effect of the State of Selflessness, shifting the enhancement from his physical body to his mind.
The nausea disappeared at once, his vision stabilized, and flames entered his sight.
"Lord Cain!"
Haruhime cried out in alarm.
From her perspective, Cain had suddenly halted mid-air during his movement, and in the next instant, he was struck by flames.
"A mental attack?"
Nearby, Ottar seemed to perceive something, his brows furrowing slightly as he prepared to step in.
But in the next moment, the flames in the sky exploded outward, and Cain emerged from within, his body surrounded by lightning.
"Defense, regeneration, toxins, mental interference... these newly awakened abilities of yours are quite troublesome."
Activating both Reverse Cursed Technique and High-Speed Regeneration simultaneously, the burns covering Cain's body healed instantly.
"Now that I think about it, I have been getting burned quite often lately."
After silently complaining that he might develop fire resistance at this rate, Cain's figure vanished from sight.
Amphisbaena's final ability had been revealed. All that remained was a battle of endurance.
...
The twenty-fourth floor of the Dungeon.
After traveling through the night, Fels successfully guided the Xenos to their destination.
"Everyone, are you all alright?"
A figure adorned with golden wings descended from the sky.
Lyd, the lizardman, also stepped forward from behind.
After briefly checking on the Xenos, his gaze shifted to the skeleton who had removed his hood.
"Fels, thank you."
"There is no need for thanks. I only guided the way. The one who truly rescued them was Cain."
"Cain... I have already heard of him. That adventurer named Cain disguised himself as the enemy leader, infiltrated the dangerous Knossos, and rescued them."
Although he lacked a clear understanding of Knossos, Lyd still recognized the difficulty of such a feat.
"Fels, when you have the time, could you arrange a meeting for us? I would like to thank him personally on behalf of the Xenos."
"Meet Cain? I can try to ask."
Fels did not dare to guarantee anything.
He was still somewhat wary of Cain. After all, during their first meeting, Cain had practically emptied half of his possessions.
If he made decisions on his own, his remaining reserves would likely be taken as well, and that was not something he could afford.
Buzz!
At that moment, a vibration came from his chest.
Fels, who was about to continue speaking, paused and took out the Occulus from within his robes.
As he infused it with magic to establish the connection, the image of an old god seated upon a stone throne appeared.
Knowing that the other party would not make contact without reason, Fels spoke directly.
"Ouranos, is something wrong?"
"The Dungeon has gone berserk."
Ouranos replied in a grave voice.
...
Re@d adv@nce ch@pters on p@t
guilt_free_daoist
Jo!n d!sc0rd I!nk in synops!s.
GIVE ME YOU POWER STONES.