Ceaseless Horizons [A LitRPG Progression Fantasy]

There wasn't much else to explain. Lev kept the dread and terror to himself. They didn't need to know about that.

After half an hour of a few words and mostly silence, a runner was sent to fetch his team. Nobody spoke in the meantime, too lost in thought. Their perspectives were also different.

To Lev, practically no time had passed. For others, nearly a month had. His awakening was making them relive the events, and Sherron was not taking it well. She was hiding it admirably, but few things could truly conceal that lost gaze when it occasionally slipped out.

The doors opened to interrupt their silent musings. Kayla marched in first, eyes darting around before landing on Lev. Her relief was palpable, and she would've fallen to her knees if Jack wasn't holding her hand.

Jack and Amelia were also in the same boat, though their expressions were more muted. Two extremely strong Exalted were in the same room as them, and that demanded respect in most circumstances.

"You idiot!" Kayla borderline yelled, her steps finding some life as she summoned a chair next to him. "It's my job to keep you alive. Why did you leave me behind?"

Lev didn't get a chance to answer as she continued. "I know why you did! Just…"

Shaking her head, she instead focused on his body, finding it fully healed and functional. She didn't stop still, and Lev's brows rose to his forehead when the healing mana actually dug deeper, small puffs of it licking his still damaged soul.

Wait what!?

"You evolved!?" he blurted out, turning his gaze to the other two.

[Warrior - Level 108]

[Warrior - Level 108]

[Healer - Leevel 108]

"A week ago," Jack answered. "The Guildmaster trained us in your stead, since you were already delaying things for us."

"Really?" he smiled, though it trembled slightly.

"Don't you dare," Kayla spoke up immediately. "I can sense your emotions clearly. I swear to Monarch, Lev. It will hurt."

Lev raised his hands placatingly. "Now, now, there's no need for threats, haha."

"She's right," Amelia added. "I would've burned you, too. A little."

He turned to Jack, both of them sharing the same emotion. It wouldn't do well to laugh in front of their threats, though.

"Duly noted," Lev nodded. "Take a seat. We can ignore how Kayla just waltzed in this once."

The healer at least looked embarrassed, though that didn't last for long. His team was much more worried about his health, and the questions started immediately.

"The hound explicitly confirmed that?" Jack asked.

"There's no other explanation," Amelia mused, eyes glazing over as she sank deep in thought. "So, there's more than just someone pulling things your way. It originates from you too, however ridiculous that sounds."

Lev and Sherron shared a glance. It was delightfully surprising to see them care so much.

"Yeah, I mean, there was no doubt about that," Lev hmm'd. "If things are led to me, they have to find me too. We pretty much know for sure that my aura is attractive to all monsters, and that something from far away can turn monsters towards me. I really don't like that, not gonna lie. Drakys is already waiting for me outside the walls."

"There shouldn't be anything of the sort in any of your routes, and you will also be provided with higher quality stealth and concealment runes," Hakim spoke up, his serious voice cutting through the casual atmosphere. "Moreover, Drakys has already begun preparing countermeasures for such events. You will be much safer in the upcoming days than you were in front of the Dreadwoods."

Lev slowly nodded. All of that made sense, though the unease remained. The region nearby was already so dangerous; just what would be waiting for him out there?

At the same time, however, it was already proven that mana density was lower further inside. Monsters would probably be less dangerous, though Lev was also very aware of the type of jobs he was going to deal with. Without pushing himself as much as he could, there would be no hope of surviving against the next warg or hound.

Jack's hand landed on his shoulder, making him realize how tightly he was gripping the chair. The armrest was close to cracking, so he quickly let it go and breathed in deeply.

"I see," he eventually said. "What else can I do?"

"Try to stay close to Isabella," Sherron replied. "Both she and her team will work well with you, and you know how important aura mages can be during longer operations."

Lev wanted to confirm that he did, but his mind was stuck on another detail. Kayla's 'subtle' glance when Sherron mentioned Isabella was missed by no one, and it was slightly difficult to hold in his laughter.

"Kayla," he chuckled. "Just what is your fascination with Isabella?"

"She's a princess," the aura mage replied, completely unapologetic. "Why would I not be fascinated? Can I meet her someday?"

"I'm sure you will," Lev sighed. "If things go well, you all will probably also accompany her on missions. Just wait till then and don't run off to see her by yourself."

"Who do you think I am?" she huffed, staring at Jack in astonishment when he looked away to hide his smile.

"Anyways," Lev turned back to Hakim. "Before that, where are Orianna and Alec?"

"They should be done with their rounds soon," Sherron replied instead. "Orianna was not calm at all. Try not to bring this up with her, but she might just be reconsidering her stance."

Left unsaid was that she might start pushing for Exalted again. All of them fell silent at that, each lost in their thoughts. Lev still didn't know why the beautiful fire mage didn't rush to the evolution, except that there was no point in asking at this point. He had an inkling that Orianna just refused to leave the populace when her presence might be required at any moment. He understood too, to some extent.

"How are you feeling?" Amelia suddenly asked. Lev turned to her with a silent question, only to be met by expectant looks from both his team and Sherron.

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"I'm… fine. As fine as I can reasonably be. It sucks big time, except there's also nothing I can do."

He finished with a shrug, realizing the truth in his words. There were a lot of things he could've potentially done better during the confrontation, but that was just wishful thinking. Given the hound's oppressive aura and the whole hopeless situation, what he had managed was already impressive.

"Alright, is there anything I need to do before I take some time off?" Lev asked, looking at Sherron and Hakim.

"You don't want to meet those two?" the lightning mage asked.

"I'm not retreating into some cave," he snorted. "Just send them to the park, I'll be waiting there."

His team didn't ask to come with him. Lev wouldn't have said no if they did, though their expressions were only understanding, letting him leave the guild without anything weighing on his mind. Well, nothing beyond the last day he remembered.

What a fucking day, he sighed again, staring at the distance walls of Windkeep as he walked to the park. The asshole is on my list now, anyway. It's gonna be fun to kick his ass around. Asshole.

Done mentally ranting, he smiled at a little girl staring at him. She quickly ran away. Rude.

A few minutes later, he was back in his usual spot under the tree he and Beatrice used to sit under. The memories rushed in, especially of the time he had scared her with his new Master aura. That was funny, even if he wouldn't admit it out loud.

Sitting down with yet another sigh, he looked at the suns with squinted eyes.

Is there anything living on those? He idly wondered. If a Goddess lived on the moon, it wouldn't be far-fetched for something else to take residence on the sun.

Banshing that line of thought before a sunbeam disintegrated him for his transgressions, Lev opened his notifications.

[

Arcane Barrier Authority has reached 4th Level 3

Unerring Volley has reached 4th Level 2

Wrath of the Arcane has reached 4th Level 3

Wrath of the Arcane has reached 4th Level 4

Arcane Protection has reached 4th Level 3

Superior Senses has reached 4th Level 3

Superior Senses has reached 4th Level 4

Expeditous Empowerment has reached 4th Level 4

Arcane Passage has reached 4th Level 1

Mage Conduit has reached 4th Level 4

Advanced Mana Perception has reached 2nd Level 2

Advanced Mana Perception has reached 2nd Level 3

Advanced Mana Perception has reached 2nd Level 4

Advanced Barrier Carving has reached 2nd Level 2

Advanced Barrier Carving has reached 2nd Level 3

Self-Taught Beginner Glaive Mastery has reached 2nd Level 5

Self-Taught Beginner Glaive Mastery has reached 2nd Level 6

Your title has been upgraded.

]

Title?

Daunting Steps had apparently reached another threshold, adding another 10 to all of his attributes. The addition made his full status quite nice to look at.

[

Name: Lev

Class: Arcane Maelstrom - Level 264

Titles: Reinforced Mind, Extraordinary Soul, Youngest Prodigy, Goliath Slayer III, Daunting Steps VI, Champion Delver, Hunter, Seen, Survivor I, Titan Slayer, Master Pioneer, Seigebreaker I

Attributes:

Strength: 300

Dexterity: 300

Constitution: 655

Intelligence: 765

Wisdom: 955

Perception: 655

Class Skills:

Arcane Barrier Authority - 4th Level 3

Unerring Volley - 4th Level 2

Wrath of the Arcane - 4th Level 4

Arcane Protection - 4th Level 3

Superior Senses - 4th Level 4

Expeditious Empowerment - 4th Level 4

Arcane Passage - 4th Level 1

Mage Conduit - 4th Level 4

General Skills:

Consistent Mana Channeling - 2nd Level 6

Identify

Aerial Maneuvers - 2nd Level 10

Advanced Mana Perception - 2nd Level 4

Arcane Archery - 2nd Level 10

Advanced Barrier Carving - 2nd Level 3

Wanderer's Repository - 2nd Level 3

Crescent Decimation - 2nd Level 10

Self-Taught Beginner Glaive Mastery - 2nd Level 6

]

There was plenty to consider. Every single class skill had leveled, though it was somewhat disheartening to see that the new 4th rank of Arcane Passage provided no new bonuses. It was already a pretty strong skill, so he couldn't even be mad about it.

Other than that, his general skills had also seen massive improvements. The new levels in Advanced Mana Perception were already noticeable, letting him see ambient mana with unprecedented clarity.

Though useless, the mental feedback painted a beautiful image about it. Colorless and formless, the way he could perceive the ambient mana was probably how it felt to be high.

Maybe. He wouldn't know.

Moving past that, he instead scanned his mind about the changes brought about by glaive mastery. The new knowledge wasn't anything groundbreaking, as it focused on including higher elements in his strikes, while also letting him use the giant blades better. Overall, the benefit was greater than the sum of its parts, as he could do some truly ridiculous things with enough practice. That was going to be fun.

Lev remembered how Stargazer had cut through the hound's stone, where his lightning slashes were completely ineffective. Blue fire did better, though not as good as his glaive. The sharpness, durability, and power afforded by his skill, mental power, and supporting attributes were greater than his slashes.

Granted, that wasn't going to remain true for long. Crescent Decimation had been with him for a long time, but forcing the slashes into thinner, sharper shapes had pushed it closer to another evolution. Even if the power increase wouldn't be as big as the first evolution, the sheer freedom afforded by it would be a lot more useful. At this point, much of Lev's mana was used inefficiently because he couldn't customize the slashes more. It was just thrown while hoping to deal more damage.

All in all, the gains were massive, even if no new levels had been earned. Attributes were still very important, but skills were slowly but surely becoming the stronger of the two.

I'll take it, I guess, he exhaled and hugged his knees. The park was relatively filled, and his mind quickly got lost in observing the children playing around. Parents watched over them with a watchful eye, most of them Adepts. It was unlikely for any accidents to happen, though Lev still kept an eye out to prevent any mishaps using his barriers.

No thoughts went through his head during that period. Instead, he simply let himself exist, away from the memories. There would be time to deal with it later, and given how worried his team was, taking some time off to spend a week with them would also be a smart move. It wouldn't do to have them worried all the while he was gone.

This is getting ridiculous, he snorted to himself, both amused and pained. I was moments away from dying during the fight, and then came even closer on the hospital bed. And then what? Already planning to leave for the plains, where more such monsters could eat me alive.

He really liked who he was and the life he had built around himself. It gave him all the freedom he ever wanted while also making him exempt from any form of taxes or monetary problems. Moreover, the found family and his teammates were precious folks, ones he would happily die for.

The hound, however, was going to kill him just for the sake of it. There was nothing he could've done, none he could do now, and, for a long time, the powerlessness would remain constant.

It was sinking in now, the weight of what the mantle he was wearing on his shoulders. Committing to it seemed easy back then. He still had all the motivation and drive, except things were different now. Far too different.

No point in diving into the negatives, he brought himself together with a deep breath and stood up to pace around the tree. What can I do to improve the future? First off, the cannons have to go. None of them are anywhere near useful, and I know exactly what I want to create next. These small attacks won't cut it anymore.

His time facing waves in front of Windkeep and Whitefall had taught him something he should've realized sooner. While useful, none of the cannons were anywhere remotely necessary. His mind alone outperformed them by miles, and that should've been telling enough.

Instead of more firepower, what I need is another advantage. Barriers are best suited for defense for a reason, and it's about time I start making good use of that property.

Some planning was in order while he waited for Orianna and Alec.