The estate was quiet. Too quiet. My mother and sister were safe in the new house, the wraiths and Kaelen watching over every shadow. Darian oversaw the training grounds, coaching recruits and keeping them disciplined. Everything ran smoothly. Almost too smoothly.
Which meant it was the perfect time for me to vanish.
I left a single note for Kaelen: "Five months. Don't destroy the place without me."
He smirked at the understatement, though I could feel his amusement from the distance — the man knew my tendencies all too well.
The first few days were… brutal.
I entered dungeons daily. Catastrophic, extreme, some even bordering on something no classification should touch. Monsters that moved faster than eyes could follow, abominations that warped reality around them, traps that could tear the body from the soul in a single moment.
The system barely whispered at me. This was survival on instinct alone — 100% of my own skill, 100% of my storm, 100% of my will.
I learned to master the Wrath of Silence. My Judgment Spark became sharper, faster, almost reflexive. Storm Veins now flowed constantly, an undercurrent of lightning that enhanced every movement, every strike.
And then… one dungeon appeared.
[New Dungeon Detected: Abyssal Spiral – Beyond Catastrophic]
[Time Limit: 72 Hours]
[System Assistance: 10% Only]
[Objective: Destroy Core of the Spiral]
I almost laughed. A dungeon beyond catastrophic. Even the system hesitated to provide support.
It was merciless. Creatures I had never imagined poured out from every shadow, feeding from one another, evolving as I fought. Every hour pushed my body closer to breaking. My veins burned with lightning, my muscles screamed, my mind screamed louder.
I nearly didn't make it.
But when I finally shattered the core, lightning and storm energy colliding with its essence, the dungeon quaked and collapsed. Silence. Exhaustion. Triumph.
[Rewards: Class Mastery – Storm Sovereign Level 2]
[Abilities Learned: Storm Convergence, Lightning Wraith Ascension]
[Passive Bonus: Tempest Instinct – reflexes and reaction speed doubled during combat]
[Reward: Elixir Ingredient – Heart of the Abyssal Spiral]
Meanwhile, back at the estate, Kaelen and Darian had not wasted a moment.
Kaelen pushed the recruits harder than I would have, forging their combat instincts, teaching them coordination and survival in my absence. Selvara honed her berserker abilities, evolving her strength, control, and instinct.
I occasionally felt it in the storm — small echoes of their improvement, the pulse of their growing energy. Each pulse reminded me: my guild was no longer a handful of trainees. They were warriors in the making, pieces of a storm I could trust to fight beside me.
Five months passed in what felt like days. When I finally returned, body battered but stronger than I had ever been, I was not the same boy who had walked out of Hollow Maw Fortress.
I walked through the training grounds, observing my guild. My eyes softened, just slightly, as I saw Kaelen nodding approval at a young recruit who had finally mastered a maneuver I had been too busy fighting dungeons to teach. Selvara's aura had grown denser, more controlled, her raw power now tempered by instinct and technique.
"Not bad," I said quietly, letting the storm hum faintly around me. Purple sparks flickered in greeting.
They looked up, recognition and respect in their eyes. "You're back," Kaelen said simply.
"Yes," I replied, smirking faintly. "And if anyone thinks they can survive me at full strength… I suggest they don't test it."
The storm within me settled slightly, but the hunger remained — the desire to push further, to master what the system had given me, to prepare for whatever the world, the dungeons, and rivals had in store.
And soon… six months and two days would arrive. Lysera, the world, and every storm waiting for me would see exactly what it meant to challenge Ashura Bellet.