LEVEL UP

STRONGER OPPONENT

“Who was that boy?”

“I know him…” a boy shorter than his age stated.

“I heard it was because of him—his family died, and their house got burnt,” the boy continued.

“That’s not possible. Who would kill their own family?” the scratchy voice came from a boy who looked like a round ball.

“That’s not what I said. Rumors said the boy is cursed. How will a whole family die and leave him alive?” the short boy furrowed his eyebrows. He hated when people twisted his words.

“He was pretty strong,” one of the boys said in a low voice.

“He wasn’t that strong. Look at the way he struggled during the fight,” one of the bigger boys scoffed.

“No… look at his last move. He must have been holding back,” the round boy said. He believed Roshan was far stronger than he had shown.

“He must be a lot stronger than Bahr,” he continued.

“WHO SAID THAT!!!!!!!” A loud voice boomed, scattering the entire gathering. Loud footsteps could be heard walking confidently toward the crowd.

The short boy immediately pointed to his nemesis, ready to get revenge for arguing with him.

A tall boy with broad shoulders came into view. He had no shirt on, and his muscles glistened with sweat, showing he had been training intensely.

He stepped forward and looked down at the round boy.

“Repeat what you said. Who is this boy?” His dark eyes shone as he examined the chubby boy.

“Uhhmmm… I didn’t mean it like that, Bahr. The boy was a little stronger, but he is definitely not stronger than you,” the round boy stammered. Fear was written all over his face.

“I know. How can he be stronger than Bahr?” The tall boy smiled proudly and hit his chest.

“Now everyone should return to their training center. I don’t want to hear any commotion,” he said, turning around and leaving.

The crowd immediately dispersed.

But the lingering thought in everyone’s mind was the same:

‘Who was that boy?’

---

Roshan lay on his bed, thinking about the events of the day.

It had been a valuable experience, fighting that dummy. What if he could get his own personal fighting dummy?

He wouldn’t have to visit the training ground anymore.

He looked at his status again.

[HOST LEVEL: Level 12]

[HOST RACE: Greater Human]

[CURRENT ABILITY: None]

[STRENGTH: 23]

[AGILITY: 23]

[SPEED: 23]

[STAMINA: 22]

[‹Mage Status›]

[Mage Level: 1]

[Mage Abilities Activated]

[Poison Element: 6]

[Mana Control: 0]

HP: [250/250]

EXP: [0/250]

[Skills Unlocked]

[Energy Absorption: Level 3]

[Refill: Level 3]

[Crystal Iris: Level 3]

SP: [250/250]

He was a mage. No one must find out.

He closed his eyes and fell into the Land of Zs.

---

Somewhere on another planet:

“It starts in two weeks’ time. Are you ready?” Emerald eyes shone in the dim area.

“Yes, Father. I am ready,” another pair of emerald eyes replied.

“Good… Make sure you let them know the true meaning of fear.” A faint smile appeared.

“Now… dismiss.” The body turned and faced the cold night.

The younger pair of eyes walked out.

‘Urggggghh… he doesn’t even care.’

“I will prove to him that I am indeed worthy,” he said, clenching his fists.

‘No matter what…’

---

[Quest Received]

[Stronger Opponent Detected]

[Quest: Defeat the Opponent]

[Quest Reward: Overall Level Up]

Roshan arrived at the training ground in the late afternoon and set the training dummy to a higher level.

Right now, he faced a Level 13 opponent. He was too fearful to set it higher.

He took a fighting stance and readied his sword.

He leapt forward, raising his sword to strike the dummy. This time, he didn’t hold back, pouring all his strength into the attack.

In a fraction of a second, he landed in front of the dummy. The attack was blocked by the dummy’s sword but pushed it a step back. Its face showed no emotion.

The android dummy raised its head at the person who pushed it back and ran forward, closing the distance in mere seconds before swinging its sword down at the surprised boy.

Roshan raised his sword just in time to block. He had clearly underestimated this robot.

The robot gave him no breathing room before slashing again. Roshan raised his hands above his head to block the attack, but even an opponent one level higher was far stronger. The strike brought him to his knees.

His hands went numb from the aching pain.

A tingling sensation surged, and he jumped back. In the spot he left, a huge cloud of dust flew from the impact of the dummy’s sword hitting the ground.

“Shit… I could have died,” he muttered as he looked at the small crater left behind.

“It’s time to get serious,” he said, standing slowly and gripping his sword tighter.

“Hey, can you see what’s going on?” a boy asked the person beside him.

“I can’t… they’re moving too fast,” his companion replied, rubbing his temples.

Unknown to Roshan, his match had gathered a crowd. Everyone had stopped what they were doing just to watch.

“What is going on here!!” A tall, shirtless boy marched to the front of the crowd. No one tried to stop him—he was Bahr, feared by all.

Bahr walked to the front and saw a skinny figure fighting a training robot. He could not understand what was special about it. He had trained with many robots, but no one came to watch him.

“Hey you,” his cold voice barked at the boy beside him.

The pale boy flinched. “Y…y…yes?”

“At what level is the robot?” Bahr asked, glancing at the fight.

‘Pathetic,’ he thought.

“Uhhmmm… H… he’s fighting a Level 13,” the boy stammered, shrinking back into a corner.

Bahr’s eyes widened briefly.

‘A Level 13…’ he thought, but seeing the skinny boy being thrown around, he smirked.

‘He bit off more than he can chew,’ Bahr thought, chuckling.

On the field, Roshan struggled for his life. He bit his lips as he swung his sword, but it was easily blocked. He grew dizzy, his vision blurred, yet he didn’t lose focus.

He jumped a few meters backward to regain strength.

The dummy leapt forward, bringing its sword down at an incredibly quick rate—an attack that would knock a grown man unconscious.

Roshan steadied his feet and received the blow. The impact shook his right forearm and pushed him back. Blood flowed from his mouth. His vision blurred. His legs shook. Yet he didn’t give up. He had to win.

During the fight, he heard annoying sounds in his head.

[HP is being depleted]

[HP: 150/250]

[HP is being depleted]

[HP: 100/250]

[HOST IS IN CRITICAL STATE]

Roshan didn’t want to think about what would happen if his HP reached zero.

He needed to finish this.

He stood upright and pointed his sword at the dummy.

It was just a stone he needed to jump over to reach his goal.

[Host is weak]

[All stats will be halved]

The annoying sound echoed again as he spat a mouthful of blood onto the floor.

He took a step forward, only to fall back to his knees. Yet a smile appeared on his face.

‘Why is he smiling? He should be crying,’ a shirtless boy with broad shoulders thought, furrowing his brows.

While others thought:

‘He’s smiling like before again.’

‘It’s that creepy smile.’

Roshan wiped the blood from his mouth, gripping the sword hilt with both hands.

He ran, slow at first.

He picked up his pace, speeding toward the dummy.

“I will defeat you!” he shouted, leaping into the air and bringing his sword down. The robot raised its sword to block, but immediately another strike came to its side. It blocked again.

Then attacks poured as Roshan squeezed out all his strength.

[Warning: Host is in critical condition]

[HP: 50/250]

“Damn it…” he cursed. His muscles ached as if carrying the weight of the world.

The dummy sustained many attacks. Its body was scratched, but the damage was minor.

[HP: 20/250]

Then it clicked…

“Refill!!” He tightened his grip on the sword.

[Refill: Level 2 activated]

A refreshing sensation washed over him. The blood in his mouth stopped, and his limbs felt lighter.

He jumped back to absorb the effect.

[HP: 250/250]

He looked at the dummy. Everything was in place.

With a kick to the ground, he rose up.

Hands raised high, he brought his sword down with full strength.

«CLANGGGGGG»

A huge mushroom-shaped dust cloud engulfed the scene.

“What happened?” a guy in the middle of the crowd asked, breaking the silence.

“Let me through! I can’t see!” Those at the back pushed their way to the front.

As the dust dispersed, a boy could be seen on one knee, supporting himself with his sword stuck in the ground. In front of him, the dummy stood, sword raised, ready to strike the fainting boy.