SSS Ranked Awakening: All My Skills Are at Level 100

Leon moved quietly through the earthen chamber, careful not to disturb Seraphine's peaceful rest. She lay still, her breathing deep and even, exhaustion having finally claimed her after the intensity of their time in the morning was exhausting for her weak body.

She needs this rest, he thought, channeling his life element with practiced control.

A soft, green-gold energy flowed from his hands, wrapping around Seraphine's sleeping form like a protective cocoon. The life energy would accelerate her body's natural recovery. The glow was gentle, warm but not hot, carrying the essence of vitality itself. It sank into her skin, suffusing her cells with renewed energy even as she slept.

After several seconds, the glow faded, and Leon carefully pulled a blanket from his spatial storage, tucking it around her with surprising tenderness. The fabric was soft wool, still carrying the faint scent of home from when he'd stored it. Her purple hair spread across the earthen pillow he'd shaped for her, and for a moment, he simply watched her breathe.

Rest well, he thought. I'll check on the others.

He knew she would wake up in half an hour at most after his life energy.

Leon stepped outside the chamber, and immediately, the atmosphere hit him like a physical weight.

Gloom hung over the dungeon site like a funeral shroud. Where before there had been nervous energy and anticipation, now there was only exhaustion and grief. The late afternoon sun, which should have been warming, felt cold against the palpable despair in the air.

Something went wrong, he realized, his eyes quickly scanning the area.

The numbers told the story before anyone spoke. He had sent one hundred people into this dungeon. Now, gathered in scattered groups around the entrance, he counted perhaps seventy. Maybe seventy-five if some were inside the makeshift shelters that had been erected.

Not as catastrophic as my own awakening, he thought grimly, remembering when only he and Liora had survived. But still... twenty to thirty people lost.

The survivors bore the marks of their ordeal. Some sat in silence, staring at nothing with the thousand-yard stare of those who'd seen too much. Others nursed injuries – gashes that wept blood through makeshift bandages, burns that had charred skin black, limbs that bent at wrong angles. The metallic scent of blood mixed with the acrid smell of healing salves creates a distinctly medical atmosphere.

Several figures lay unconscious on improvised stretchers, their breathing shallow and labored. These were the ones barely holding on, hovering at the edge between life and death.

Leon moved without hesitation.

He knelt beside the first unconscious figure, a young woman whose left side was covered in savage claw marks. The wounds were deep, showing white bone beneath torn flesh. Infection had already begun to set in, giving the wounds a sickly sweet smell.

Without immediate treatment, she'll be dead within hours, he assessed.

Green-gold light flowed from his hands again, but this time with far more intensity. The life element surged into the woman's body, and immediately, the wounds began to change. Infected tissue purified, torn muscle fibers reconnected, skin cells multiplied at an accelerated rate. The woman's breathing deepened, color returning to her pallid face.

Gasps arose from those watching.

"He's... he's healing her completely," someone whispered.

Leon moved to the next critical patient, then the next. A man with internal bleeding that darkened his abdomen. A boy whose leg had been shattered, bone fragments floating freely beneath swollen flesh. An older warrior whose skull bore a depression that spoke of massive trauma.

Each one received the same treatment – life element flooding their bodies, repairing damage that should have been fatal, pulling them back from death's door with an ease that seemed almost casual.

This is draining more mana than I expected, Leon noted, though his reserves were still nowhere near depleted. But these people are mine. I sent them in there. Their injuries are my responsibility.

As he worked, the atmosphere began to shift. The crushing despair lifted slightly, replaced by something like awe. They had seen healing magic before, but nothing like this – nothing so complete, so effortless.

After stabilizing all the critical cases, Leon turned his attention to the walking wounded. These he healed more efficiently, using less mana but still ensuring full recovery. Broken bones realigned, cuts sealed, burns faded to pink new skin.

Finally, with the immediate medical crisis handled, Leon's attention was drawn to two specific figures standing apart from the others.

The giant man with abyssal affinity stood like a monument, unchanged from when he'd entered the dungeon hours ago. His massive frame showed no signs of injury, no evidence of the trials he must have faced inside. His expression remained as emotionless as ever, those dead eyes surveying the scene without apparent interest.

Beside him, the blue-haired girl – now definitely a teenager, her features more defined than when she'd been a toddler clinging to his side years ago – watched Leon with bright, curious eyes. She seemed uninjured as well, though her clothes bore tears and scorch marks that suggested she'd seen combat.

They survived, Leon thought with interest. And seemingly without serious injury, both of them must be strong...

He focused his detection ability on the giant man, and immediately, a transparent golden screen materialized before his eyes.

[Name: Garrett]

[Race: Human (Corrupted)]

[Class: Abyssal Knight (S-Rank) (Unique)]

[Affinity: Abyss (Rank 5) Death (Rank 4)]

[Level: 10]

S Rank Unique Grade class? Death affinity Leon's eyes widened slightly. And he started at level 10? That's... that shouldn't be possible for class awakening in the lower domain.

What is wrong with his level and death affinity...

The information continued scrolling:

[Special Traits: Emotional Suppression, Pain Immunity, Abyssal Constitution]

[Warning: Subject exhibits signs of deep abyssal corruption. Mental state may be permanently altered.]

So the corruption is part of him now, Leon realized. Not just an affinity, but something that's changed his fundamental nature. That explains the emotional deadness, the lack of normal human responses.

The blue-haired girl noticed Leon's attention and smiled brightly, giving a small wave. The contrast between her cheerfulness and Garrett's absolute stillness was jarring.

"Thank you for sending us in there!" she called out, her voice carrying genuine gratitude. "It was amazing! Scary, but amazing!"

She seems unaffected by whatever happened to the others, Leon noted. Either she's remarkably resilient, or she didn't experience the same trials.

The sun continued its descent, painting the dungeon site in shades of orange and red. The portal still hummed with energy, stable and waiting, though Leon doubted anyone would want to enter it again soon. Not after whatever had happened to cause such losses.

I need to find out what went wrong, he thought. People were well-trained, which is why so many people died. Was it the dungeon itself, or something about the people I sent in?

His guess was that about five to ten people would die inside the dungeon, no more than that.

But those questions could wait. For now, the immediate crisis was handled. The injured were healed, the dying saved. The survivors would need time to process their trauma, to grieve their losses.

And Leon needed to understand what Garrett had become.