Fantasy System

Chapter 97: Breakthrough

"Suuuususususu!!" Raikou and Suika were laughing hard. Suika was even producing some cute sounds. Looking like her stomach hurts from laughing. Even though she didn't have one. Ed got up and rubbed his forehead. "Stupid rock" He grumbled while walking ahead. This time he was being extra careful not to fall down. Ed didn't know how much time he would be spending on this floor, but he didn't plan to stay long. At least not if he could help it.

The Labyrinth was made of corridors. Each one was tens of meters wide, and the walls looked much sturdier than the second floor's. When Ed checked the Map earlier, he noticed that the number of monsters on this floor was high. Although not as much as the second floor, it wasn't a number to underestimate. Especially since the cultivation of the monsters was bound to be higher.

Ed kept walking like a blind man. Although people would usually put their hands in front of them to try and feel their way, Ed didn't need to. He could generally sense his surroundings thanks to his other senses. 'A presence' Ed noticed the presence of something or someone in the next corner. He put his guard up and moved up ahead. The closer he got to the source of the presence, the clearer it became to him. In that corner, a monster existed, not a human. Ed ran ahead and reached the location of the monster. The monster noticed him and started moving.

"Kasa Kasa" Ed could hear the movement of a shell-like substance. 'This is probably a bug' The only type of creature that Ed knew could produce this sound was bugs. He focused his senses, even more, trying to get a clear picture in his head before the monster could reach him. 'It seems to have many limbs' Ed' sense of hearing allowed him to perceive such details. The monster in front of him was a centipede. Ed didn't waste a lot of time before he could figure it out. The centipede is a poisonous monster. it would paralyze its victims before eating them. Its venom is considered very dangerous. So fighting the centipede usually required great caution. At least such a thing was common sense for the people of this world.

Ed didn't remove his blindfold even when faced with the centipede. He tried to analyze its movement patterns, and counter accordingly. The centipede used the walls to move around. This gave its attack an unpredictable trajectory every time. However, this still wasn't enough to overcome Ed's intuition. Anyone who could see him dodging right now would doubt the effect of the blindfold. Ed was trying to get a good grasp of Observation Haki. But, this didn't mean that he would throw his life away trying to achieve it.

He was not messing around anymore. As much as blinding himself was dangerous, it served a purpose. But him forcefully binding his abilities was considered overly reckless. Especially in this floor, where Earth Establishment monsters would be roaming around. Ed's movements were getting better and better. He too was getting into a state of complete concentration. In his world of darkness, only he and the centipede remained. This time, he could see the complete form of the centipede.

Ed didn't know if it was the true form, or simply his imagination. But this was certainly a step in the right direction. His improvement was neither slow nor fast. It was the pace that suited him best.

The centipede seemed to be getting restless. It tried to bind Ed with its body many times but to no avail. There was no difference in having the blindfold or not right now for Ed. He could react to it much better than in the beginning. Soon enough, Ed noticed that the centipede wouldn't help him improve anymore. He swiftly withdrew Shusui from his Inventory, and in a single motion, the head of the centipede fell down.

"Let's go ahead" Ed spoke to Raikou and Suika who were watching from behind. The Labyrinth was huge, so it would take them a long time to explore it. Ed didn't remove his blindfold. He kept walking ahead in that state, neither blind nor able to see perfectly. If someone were to study Ed's state right now, he would find it similar to animals that use sonar. Ed met up with a lot of monsters on his way. Snakes, Spiders, and even Bats. All kinds of monsters meant different types of attacks. This meant good experience for Ed.

Ed removed his blindfold since he was going to be cooking. He tried to cook with it on, but Suika and Raikou stopped him. 'What would we do if he mistakes sugar for salt'. If one were to look at their expressions right now, they would be able to guess their thoughts. Ed checked his Stats while cooking. He noticed that he only needed a single strong monster to be able to break through to Earth Establishment. A monster of that realm would be enough for it.

This caused Ed to feel excited. He couldn't wait to finish his food and search for the monster. He was so excited, he decided not to use the blindfold when hunting for this monster. Ed finished his food quickly and made his companions rush as well. "Let's go!" Ed rushed away in order to find the suitable monster.

"System, can you handle the scanning? I don't want to kill more than one monster," Ed's thought process was weird but understandable. It was frustrating to level up after killing two or three monsters in a game in order to level up. Especially in case, you thought only one was needed.

"Not you. Not good enough" Ed was speaking while running in the corridors of the Labyrinth. His speed was much greater than monsters could react to. He was using Ren while running to achieve great effects. "You're the one!" Ed decided upon a monster about 50 meters in front of him. The monster was a lizard-man, but unlike Ellie's race, it was a monster. It was an Earth Establishment level 3.

Ed used a short teleport to instantly appear behind it. With Shusui in his hand, he delivered a powerful slash, enhanced with his Ren and all of his physical strength. The lizard-man couldn't react and was split clean in half.

Acquired 4000 Exp.

Acquired one Gacha ticket.

Ed checked the notification. But before he could digest the information, he felt a change in his body. He finally broke through to Earth Establishment!

Author's Thoughts

Shigun

Hello everyone! Ed finally broke through King Establishment! Hope you enjoy the chapter.