Endless Leveling Done Right!

Chapter 623: A New Adventure Awaits!

The sound of clashing weapons reverberated inside the training room as Alex and Fran sparred with each other.

Fran’s gauntlets were a menace in their own right. She was already very strong and could beat nearly everyone in the academy whether they were First Years or Fourth Years.

The rank up she gained inside the Shadow Forest was nothing short of miraculous. Despite her youth, she was already Rank 5.

This was a feat not many could achieve. Most students graduated without ever reaching Rank 5.

Alex did his best. But even though he focused on defense, he was still outclassed by Fran’s monstrous strength.

Every punch rattled his body, every blow made his arm numb. And frankly, if Fran hadn’t been holding back just a tiny bit, Alex would have to worry about broken bones.

"Let’s end today’s session," Fran said with a smile. "You’ve improved a lot, Alex. You can now tank a few of my punches."

"It’s still not enough." Alex sighed as he sat on the floor. "I thought I was already strong enough when I reached Rank 3. But the meeting with my other self proved me wrong."

The fact he had been defeated by a single blow still gnawed at him. Also, he had noticed some alarming changes to his body.

Two weeks after his return to the academy, he had yet to return to his full strength.

He had even gone to the infirmary to ask Lin and Rin what was wrong with him. By right, he should have already recovered. After an examination, the twin nurses told him that an unknown power had entered his body.

"Your body is trying to adapt to the situation," Lin explained.

Hearing this, Alex shuddered. The memory of his defeat flooded his mind, forcing him to recall the sensation of Reverse Alex’s blue flames seeping deep into his bones as he had slipped out of consciousness.

The flames seemed to have some kind of property that could keep his body in a weakened state.

As to exactly what sort of power the blue flames were, he really didn’t know. All he knew was that the Reverse Alex hadn’t seemed to have any malicious intentions.

If he had been serious, there was no way Alex could have survived that encounter in the Shadow Forest.

Besides, as time passed, Alex felt more and more like his old self. By now, he had mostly recovered from the "penalty" of losing the fight.

Lost in thought, he didn’t realize that Fran had been lightly patting his shoulder for a few seconds. She giggled as he blinked a couple of times, but she could tell something was weighing heavily on his mind.

"People treat getting stronger as a race," she said. "I understand there are times when we feel so helpless. But if you recklessly chase that path, it can also lead to ruin."

"I know, Fran." Alex kissed the back of her hand like a knight would do to a princess. "But I just feel uneasy recently. I feel like something is going to happen, and if I’m not strong enough to handle it... I’ll probably end up regretting it for the rest of my life."

Fran kept her silence, understanding what Alex was referring to. Their fight against the Demon King proved that sometimes, they had no choice but to get stronger if they wished to survive.

"You already have a plan, right?" Fran felt that Alex was merely waiting for his body to recover fully before doing something risky to raise his rank quickly.

"Yes," Alex replied. "I plan to go on a dungeon expedition."

"Alone?" Fran frowned.

"Dim Dim is coming with me," Alex assured. "Don’t worry. I won’t bite off more than I can chew."

"Reckless people say the same thing." Fran wasn’t too happy to hear this, even if it was true that Alex technically wouldn’t be alone since Dim Dim would accompany him.

She still couldn’t help but feel a little anxious. Based on Alex’s history, she feared he would challenge a monster that outranked him if that was what it took to get stronger.

"Fran, I plan to spend this lifetime with you." Alex held her hand gently and looked at her eyes. "I don’t want you to spend your life in loneliness again. So don’t worry. I promise to take good care of myself. Do you remember our promise back then?"

Fran blushed. How could she forget? However, since she had been a fairy and he had been a human, it had been an impossible dream.

But now, it might just become possible.

"Since you’re determined to go, I won’t stop you," Fran replied, her cheeks getting redder and redder. "But you cannot go with only Dim Dim. Bring someone else with you. How about Renard?"

Alex blinked once, then twice. Of all the people that Fran could recommend, it just had to be Mr. I-Have-Trust-Issues!

Although Renard’s trust issues had gotten less severe as of late, teaming up with him might not be the best idea.

Fran giggled because Alex looked like he had just swallowed a fly. "Aren’t you and Renard friends now?"

"We are?" Alex tilted his head. "Well, I guess you can say that we are now friends. Yes, Renard and I are friends."

As if waiting for that moment, Renard stepped into the training room, looking thoroughly disgruntled.

"Why do you sound so sarcastic?" Renard demanded. "It’s not like I want to be friends with you. Don’t get the wrong idea, okay?"

"Oh sh*t," Alex muttered. "Not this trope again."

"Excuse me?" Renard had no idea what the heck Alex was talking about. When it became clear that Alex had no intention of explaining, Renard glared at him until he averted his gaze.

"Renard is now Rank 4," Fran revealed. "He can take some hits from me now."

Fran sounded like a proud elder sister who had seen her little brother grow up stronger.

However, since the top of her head only reached Renard’s chest, she looked more like his younger sister instead.

"If you guys are going on an expedition, you can’t possibly leave me behind!"

The three teenagers turned around, only to be greeted by the sight of a "dashing" young man casually flipping his hair like it was the most normal thing to do in the world.

"You’ll join us, Chuck?" Alex asked.

"Yes," Chuck replied, patting his chest. "My friends are going on an adventure. How can I not be there to witness their moments of glory?"

Renard scowled.

"What’s the real reason?" Alex asked, also feeling suspicious.

Chuck batted his eyelids. "That’s the real reason! Do you doubt my love for my friends?"

"Yes," Alex replied as he crossed his arms. "Tell the truth."

"X-Xenia and Mary! Both of them are scary!" Chuck closed his eyes and shivered. "Yesterday, they asked me if I wanted to stroll around the city with them and enjoy the evening breeze. Halfway through our stroll, they said it was actually a date! They tricked me! But it didn’t end there. They took me to an inn against my will and..."

"And?" Alex prompted. "Don’t stop there, you punk."

"And they asked me to read them a romance adventure story. They didn’t let me go until ten minutes before curfew!" Chuck whined. "Also how was I supposed to read properly if they both held onto my arms and rested their heads on my shoulders? I almost got a stiff neck by the time I finished reading that damned book!"

At this point, Fran could only smile politely.

"But I have to agree it was a good story," the troublemaker continued. "It was about a magician, a princess, and a maid who ventured out to join this Fellowship of the King. Then they fought against the forces of MohrrDorre."

"Poor you," Renard commented.

Chuck nodded vigorously. "After I finished that book, they told me there’s a sequel called The Two Powers! They’ve been pestering me to read it to them too!"

Renard and Alex exchanged a glance before clicking their tongues in unison. Chuck’s words sounded like complaints, but his eyes twinkled with delight and he couldn’t stop smiling.

There’s a word for this kind of behavior: Humblebragging.

"Hey! You traitors!" Chuck exclaimed, instantly aware that the two weren’t going to let him join their trip. "I’m coming with you! In fact, I bring good news. Since the plan is to go to a dungeon, what do you say we explore the newly discovered dungeon in my father’s territory?"

"Are you talking about the Dungeon of Beasts in the Duchy of Emberholt?" Alex asked.

"Eh? How do you know the dungeon’s name?" Chuck blinked. "They only discovered it a week ago."

Alex’s expression turned serious. Things were indeed proceeding faster than he expected. The Dungeon of Beasts should only appear just before the end of the first school year. In the game, it was the last major challenge the First Years faced before becoming Second Years.

There was nothing Alex could do to change what had already happened. Instead, he decided that he must make the best use of this. He would go to the dungeon at all costs.

After all, there was an item hidden inside the dungeon that might help him raise his rank to Rank 4. But since they had to enter the Duchy of Emberholt to reach the dungeon...

"Fine, let’s go to that dungeon," Alex said. "You’re coming with us right, Chuck?"

"Of course," Chuck replied. "But we better keep this under wraps so the other clubs don’t try to follow us. Let’s leave before sunrise tomorrow. The sooner we leave, the better!"

"Sounds good to me." Renard nodded. "I’ll take my leave then. There are a few things I need to prepare. I will apply for expedition leave for all of us too."

Chuck also bade Alex and Fran goodbye. "I must go," he said with a dramatic sigh. "Xenia and Mary insist that I must accompany them for dinner tonight."

Alex rolled his eyes. "Just go already."

"Stay with me tonight, okay?" Fran said after the troublemaker left the training room. Now that the two of them were alone again, she wrapped her arms around Alex’s waist.

"Okay." Alex hugged her back.

He didn’t want to dismiss her concerns. It’s true that the mission might get a little dangerous. What sort of boyfriend would he be if he couldn’t even spend some time with Fran to put her mind at ease?