08 Concluding the Minotaur Dungeon
Slowly, the woman was being pressured, suffering injury after injury; now her openings were clear, and with Alex's sword control, he could better see the gaps in her technique.
Alex was at 10% of his HP and only 8% of his MP. Knowing this, his attacks became increasingly fierce, destroying the hall. With each strike, he stained the woman's beautiful naked body with fresh blood.
The woman's HP dropped to zero when Alex's sword pierced her chest in a cold and cruel blow.
Throughout the entire battle, neither of them spoke a word. Alex bowed, expressing gratitude to the woman for his learning.
When the adrenaline left his body, Alex trembled, horrified at the thought of having killed someone, bowing profusely in respect. But to his surprise, the woman's body glowed, illuminating the entire hall in purple, transforming into a sword with curved, thorned blades.
Adding to Alex's shock, the system sounded in his ears, opening a holographic window before his face, filling him with delight.
Congratulations, user, you have completed the first test.
The user is rewarded with: Level +5, Stellar Level 01, a prototype of the majestic King Arthur's sword, Excalibura class change item.
The Stellar Promotion will double all your attributes and grant you new abilities. Do you wish to be promoted?
Yes/No.
Alex was jumping with joy at the huge surprise. Just as he was about to click to be promoted to Stellar, his other hand stopped him. Since his attributes would be doubled, he first had to allocate the points from his level-up. Pushing the promotion window aside, he opened the attributes window.
NAME: ALEX
LUCID BEING
AWAKENED
AUTHORITY: GRAVITY
Active Skills = Gravitational Manipulation, Basic Swordsmanship
LEVEL = 18
Gravitational Defense = 11
Gravitational Manipulation = 11
Intermediate Swordsmanship = 12
STRENGTH = 15+5
AGILITY = 30+5
HP = 100/100
MP = 100/100
Do you wish to be promoted?
Yes/No.
Now that his points had already been allocated, his fingers clicked "Yes." His body was enveloped in an aura that slightly distorted the gravity of the hall. The process took about 26 hours to complete, during which his body underwent significant changes.
He now appeared more robust, with well-defined muscles, and his black hair had a slight purple hue. Looking around, Alex realized he was no longer in the test chamber.
With a thought, the window displaying Alex's attributes appeared before his eyes.
NAME: ALEX, LUCID BEING, AWAKENED
AUTHORITY: GRAVITY
Active Skills = Gravitational Manipulation, Intermediate Swordsmanship
LEVEL = 18
Stellar Level = 1
Gravitational Defense = 22
Gravitational Manipulation = 22
Lightning Step = 1
Intermediate Swordsmanship = 24
STRENGTH = 30+5
AGILITY = 60+5
HP = 200/200
MP = 200/200
System Notice: Your time has ended. The user will be returned, initiating the session to the god's dream.
Session successfully initiated.
Alex could only remain in the Earth of 3025 for a limited time, and as that time had elapsed, he was automatically expelled and returned to the parallel reality.
The moment death embraced Alex's soul, the temple was engulfed in a crimson light, the door slammed shut, the priest's smile returned, and all the stone minotaur warriors began to move. Joaquim and the girls trembled in fear.
The priest's eyes fired two beams of crimson energy that instantly carbonized Agent Joaquim into two pieces of minced flesh; the terror before his death could still be felt even after he had perished.
Mónica and Mimi closed their eyes, embracing each otherthey were convinced that, at the very least, they were together. After some time, they opened their eyes, confused, as death had not come for them as they had so anxiously awaited.
Looking around, all the statues had returned to their original positions, and the red light that had illuminated the entire temple changed to a calm, light green.
In the area that activated the temple's safe zone stood a man. His black hair exhibited a mystical purple hue, his black eyes glowed faintly with a purple tone, and the upper part of his uniform was completely torn, revealing his well-sculpted body.
The arm that had been severed was back in place, and a clear look of disappointment could be seen on his face.
Seeing the door open again, displaying the number 1, the thought that one of them might survive brought a small measure of relief to his heart. Many questions about the man filled the minds of the two girls.
Suppressing the force of their thoughts and concentrating on themselves, they decided who would go through that door.
When the two girls were just a single step away from the door, the man's figure vanished in a purple aura, and when he reappeared, both of them had their necks firmly pressed against the temple floor.
The impact created a crater in the stone ground of the temple. With this action, the doors closed, and the temple was bathed in red, bringing the stone minotaur warriors to life.
Having just returned from the Earth of 3025, Alex had harbored hope of returning to his original reality, but to his disappointment, he remained in this parallel reality.
Alex's cold eyes turned toward the approaching minotaur warriors. Unlike before, they emitted no oppressive aura. He had to restrain his strength, yet the two girls were completely wounded, and another attack could have left them either dead or gravely injured.
Using his 65-point agility, Alex appeared before the minotaur warriors. With a single swing of his sword, one warrior was cleaved in two, shards scattering across the floor.
Two more warriors attacked in unison with their massive axes; however, Alex took no damage. His 22-point gravitational barrier blocked both attacks effortlessly.
The two girls lying helpless on the ground could hardly believe their eyes. To them, the minotaur warriors had always seemed absolute monsters of immeasurable strength, only to be treated now as if they were mere children under Alex's weaker limbs.
Another who seemed incredulous was the minotaur priest, who watched in shock as his warriors were defeated as though they were nothing more than dust.
Alex paid no mind to the astonished stares directed at him. Calmly, he assumed a stance and activated his intermediate-level swordsmanship at 24 points, combining it with his other abilities.
His right foot planted firmly behind him and his left slightly crouched, his dominant arm curved the system-provided sword. The force exerted through his feet cracked the ground beneath him as he launched forward like a missile.
The warriors were destroyed so swiftly that they were almost impossible to track; their stone bodies offered no resistance to Alex's agile blade. As all 42 statues witnessed the scene at his feet, a system notification appeared:
Level +1
Alex looked across the altar at the minotaur priest, challenging him to battle. The priest's eyes released a crimson beam of energy that struck violently toward its target.
Drip.
A drop of Alex's blood fell to the ground, and he smiled, gazing at the minotaur.
"Is that all you can do?"
The minotaur priest shed his stone robes, replacing the stone slabs that had been his warriors with two massive axes. The ground trembled as he leaped in front of Alex, exuding a crimson aura.
"You must think highly of yourself just because you defeated my brave warriors, huh? Know this: I am many times stronger than them."
With that, the priest's aura filled the room, forcing the already injured girls to gasp blood and faint from the pressure.
"Show me the strength you're so proud of," Alex said, increasing his aura to match the monster before him.
The creature moved first, its eyes glowing crimson. Alex dodged the threatening beam of light, appearing in the blind spot of the minotaur priest and slashing with his sword.
Recoiling from the impact, the minotaur twisted his massive body to stabilize and counterattacked with both axes. The blows were extremely powerful, posing a real threat to Alex's life. Yet, with his 65-point agility, he evaded each strike.
The clash was fierce, and Alex recognized the true strength of his opponent. When his sword collided with an axe, he could feel his hands go numb from the feedback. For a long time, the battle seemed evenly matched, though Alex was slowly gaining the upper hand.
Recognizing that his enemy was indeed extraordinarily strong, Alex decided to test his new weaponthe king's sword, Excalibur. He wanted to see if this prototype truly lived up to its legendary power.