Chapter 37 - Calmness Magnar was happy that he had gained someone with rank A battle power as his ally, and couldn’t hide it as he talked to me and the rank A hunter with the huge beast that had stepped in to end the fight If the fight had continued, I was pretty confident of coming out on top, but it would have taken quite some time. I could keep on casting my newly gained rank A skill until the Admiral was tired out, but the chance was gone. I also wasn’t planning on going around and making it a habit taking down famous hunters everywhere I go I knew there was a grudge between me and the Admiral now, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to kill him for it. He was a peak powerhouse of the Empire, and would be needed for the battles of the future with these unknown enemies. Unless I could become strong enough to be able to do everything by myself, I won’t go around snuffing out others with similar power to me. If he ever comes for me again though, that is a whole different matter The rank A hunter Elizabeth left after we spoke for a few minutes, saying she now had to go deal with other matters that popped up because of this, and that she would come by when she was free. My gaze lingered on her slightly as she flew away on the black eagle It was now nearing the evening, and more soldiers and hunter medics were on the scene helping those that were injured from the aftermath of the battle. I wasn’t sure when the Coliseum would be open for business after this After giving out orders and leaving someone else in charge, I left with Magnar in tow back to the military sector. I was planning on spending the remaining hours of the day diving in [Mangrove Swamp], feeling more pressed to clear the dungeon and luckily obtain other rank A skills Going to the highest-ranked Dungeon at the empire’s capital, Blessed City, wasn’t an option as a team of A rankers led by Steel Mikhail was clearing it. Unless I rapidly increased my power to be able to rival multiple rank A hunters, I wouldn’t touch that dungeon alone as of now Farming rank B dungeons for the possibility of a rank A skill dropping was the safest and most efficient way, as I would also pay back Magnar by giving him the items and skills I wouldn’t need while grabbing some from their inventory. This was also what some of the rank A hunters spent their day doing, clearing rank B dungeons repeatedly in the Empire’s capital and other core defense cities. Every now and then a rank A skill would drop, and this was the case for the [Flight] skill that Lightning Hand was holding on to. Why he did what he did by giving it away still eluded me, but I would find out in time now that my power was matching his. Whether it was with malicious intent or out of the goodness of his heart didn’t matter now that it allowed me to get another one so fast with the rapid progression of events. The events these past few days played in my head as I asked myself if there was actually a conspiracy, or just unintended effects from one man’s actions The Vice Admiral went to handle communications for the incident today and I went into [Mangrove Swamp] once again. My speed at clearing the dungeon had increased even more with the advent of [Frigid Impermanence] as it cleared droves of alligators the moment it was cast. This area of effect skill exploded with a destructive blast of ice elements that completely destroyed anything in their range. Something that was noteworthy of mentioning was the [Adept Staff] that I took from Andrei, as it slightly boosted the damage of skills when it was equipped After using [Frigid Impermanence] for a while, my mind was filled with ideas on how to improve its damage even more after I recalled some rank B skill books I had seen in the military inventory that I read through before The idea floating in my mind was to find support skills that were providing boosts specific to the skill type to further increase the damage. An example was a [Lightning Penetration] skill I had seen before that amplified damage dealt by lightning type skills. If I could absorb and keep active cold type support skills, it wouldn’t be too far of a dream for the [Frigid Impermanence] skill’s power to exceed rank A. As for the rank beyond A...well nobody knew of this as of right now I was able to clear the dungeon rapidly, making the number of times I’ve dived into it 18 times in the last 6 hours. It was nearing midnight so I was planning on calling it a night. The rate at which I was clearing the dungeon was still kept hidden as I only turned off [Shadow Veil], [Stealth], and [Camouflage] after every hour, making it seem as if I had cleared the dungeon only 6 times This was still an unbelievable clear rate that every time I visibly transferred in and out, the soldiers standing guard would cheer. I gained a variety of [Skill]s, [Item]s, and a ton of [Core]s, but I wasn’t lucky enough to get anything of higher rank from the dungeon. The useful skills I could learn reduced, as many were either weapon-specific for Knights or Berserkers. Some support skills like [Giant Strength] and [Windrider] had even dropped again, giving me duplicate skills that I couldn’t absorb Only two usable rank B support skills came out of these 18 runs, one being [Emboldened Ferocity- An imposing presence emanates from you, granting increased damage to affected foes] and [Eagle Eyes-Focus your eyes to view as far a mile around you]. The remaining were rank B [Item]s that fully upgraded me from the lower-ranked items I had been wearing. [Noah Osmont][Occupation: Hunter] [Vitality: 250+40] [Focus: - ] [Strength: 250+60] [Skill(s): [F][E](D-Flames of Torment-100)(D-Safeguard-57)(D-Danger Sense-100)(D-Rough Skin-100)(D-Fleeting-100)(C-Arcanist’s Sphere of Protection-100) (C-Camouflage-100) (C-Aura of Haste-100)(C-Explosive Rune-100)(C-Life Essence-100) (C-Increased Penetration-100) (C-Regeneration-100) (C-Whirlwind-95) (C-Smite-98) (C-Gracefulness-100) (C-Precision-100) (C-Adamant-100) (C-Sharpen-100)(C-War Cry-100) (C-Retaliation-100)(C-Kings Rage-100)(C-Military Tactics-100) (C-Unpredictable-100) (C-Elemental Damage-100)(B-Giant’s Strength-88) (B-Stealth-77) (B-Miniature Tornado-45)(B-Golden Halo-33)(B-Doom Bolt-37) (B-Lightfoot-23)(B-Windrider-23)(B-Rigorous-22)(B-Shadow Veil-22)(B-Wild Heart-21)(B-Emboldened Ferocity-3)*(B-Eagle Eyes-3)*(A-Flight-11)(A-Frigid Impermanence-5)*] [Equipment: (3x C-Ring of Storage)(B-Scale Armor)(B-Adept Staff)*(B-Dual Coated Boots)*(B-Striking Cap)*] The addition of items besides the staff was a helm that was in the form of a baseball cap and heavy boots that shone a dark green color. Both provided increased defenses and protection I carried the rest of the [Core]s, [Item]s and [Skill Book]s in my storage rings and went to the Vice Admiral’s castle. I thought about everything he had done for me before deciding to trust him a little bit more about my strength When the door of the office was locked and it was just me and him, I took out more than 20 things that were filling up the space in my rings along with a glistening pile of stones. These were a collection of items, cores, and skills from today’s dives and yesterday’s. The Vice Admiral looked at the items in shock as he gave me a questioning look "I clear the dungeon much faster than what I am currently showing. I continue to want to keep the extent of my strength a secret though, so I will be counting on your discretion as we go forward. This is also my way of thanking you and giving back for what you’ve been doing for me recently" Magnar looked at me with an unreadable expression before he got up and bowed his head towards me. I reached out to stop him as he began talking "You are somebody that has already surpassed someone of my rank, thank you for treating me the same way even now" He kept his head down as he continued "Just the resources you have taken out right now surpass what our department usually gets in a week. This may not seem like much to you, but it is a tremendous help to us and will enable us to raise multiple rank B hunters. Confidentiality is a must, so you can be sure that nothing about this will come to light, and everything will be distributed discreetly" I listened to the older man that was bowing in front of me before I pulled him up. I smiled and said to the Vice Admiral, "We’re all in this together. We’ll face the approaching enemies together and make sure lives are not senselessly lost like when all of this began" I was saying this more to myself as I was reminded of the deaths of my parents and many more people at the hands of these beasts. I reminded myself once more that I was doing all this to never experience the feeling of cowardice and powerlessness again. If continuing to grow my strength was the way to do that, then I will continue rising until I reach an unshakable position Magnar gave me a light smile as his sight turned to the many things I had taken out, shaking his head in an amazed expression as he laughed and said, "It’s been a tiring day for you, go ahead and relax. I’ll order for even more food and...other delicacies for you to enjoy back in your quarters." I shook my head with a smile as I heard this and said "I’ll also need your help acquiring specific skills that may still be in your inventory" I let him know of the skills I saw before that I wanted to grab now, and also told him to keep a lookout for any other cold type support skills that other hunters brought in. He nodded boisterously that he would have everything for me tomorrow morning and for me to go take a break for now I left the Vice Admiral’s office and went to relax after a very long day.