Level Up: Voidwalker

When Atlas saw the number of Void Raptors left to kill, he was pleased as it lowered. He knew it would take a few more times to clear, but he knew he had to keep trying to complete level one to be able to use the Void Raptors.

He then turned his attention to the calm sea and witnessed Zahidul and Azadul lighting up the world. It was quiet and peaceful, making Atlas want to chill out, so he started looking for somewhere to relax.

That's when he saw a few crates nearby and sat against one, looking up at the beautiful moon as he spotted something silently passing over the ship and heading north, which confused him.

'UFO? No way that is a thing here,' he mused while watching the small dot vanish into the night sky.

Atlas continued watching the night sky as colorful stars lit up the world. After that, he remained outside for another hour until fatigue set in, prompting him to return inside and join Amethyst and Lilith, who were still asleep.

As he slipped under the sheets, both instinctively held onto him and settled comfortably. Atlas soon fell asleep, and the following morning, he was awoken by numerous explosions that shook the ship.

He looked around and noticed that no one was in the room except Lilith, who was still sleeping beside him. Atlas stood up and stretched, then set out to find the girls. As he stepped out of the room and went to the deck, cannons rang out, making his ears ring.

Atlas struggled up the stairs only to see Artemis at the top looking down at him with a smile. ''Aetos! We have a chance to test out our ranged spells. A pirate fleet is attacking, and the cannons can only hold them back for so long.''

''Okay,'' he said before rushing up and stepping onto the ship deck, only to see a dozen ramshackle ships surrounding them.

Without wasting time, Atlas rushed to the ship's edge before casting Void Blast at the closest pirate vessel, causing the azure projectile to slam into the metal hull and rip through it with some effort.

After that, Atlas started casting Void Bullets that peppered the damaged ship, causing explosions to rip the metal apart; while doing that, he noticed Artemis running toward the ship's gunwale before leaping over.

She transformed into her Siren form and splashed into the water as the battle raged around them. Atlas shook his head and looked for the other girls, only to spot Amethyst soaring overhead while casting Cosmic Blasts and Bullets into the pirate ships.

While those two were busy, Atlas looked for the others and found Estelle defending the sailors from the spells raining down. Grishna targeted the pirates using Earth Bolts and Metal Bullets, which caused chaos on the other ships.

Atlas watched the unfolding battle while casting his spells, just as something slammed into the ship they were on. Sudden screaming was heard as dozens of pirates poured onto the deck.

When seeing this, he scanned the closest ones to gauge their strength.

[Bob]

[Race: Human]

[Level: 72]

[Rank: Apprentice]

[Cedric]

[Race: Human/Orc]

[Level: 99]

[Rank: Apprentice]

[Rico]

[Race: Wolf Demi-Human]

[Level: 121]

[Rank: Adept]

He whipped out his dagger and went to work, using Void Step to appear in the middle of the enemy formation. When Atlas reappeared, he cast Void Wave, which sent them all flying forward in shock.

Atlas rushed after them and stabbed the pirates as the Argoinians, Estelle, and Grishna joined the melee. The orc girl skillfully dodged many attacks while striking out with her spear before throwing one of her metal marbles at another group of men.

A shrill erupted, which caused the pirates to hold their ears as Estelle slammed into them using Shield Bash that sent most stumbling, allowing Atlas to move into the group while stabbing and slashing their legs.

Enemy fighters dropped all over the deck while he stabbed one pirate after another while rushing toward their ship and leaped onto as Lilith joined him. The duo landed on the enemy's deck, shocking all the sailors who spotted them.

With an evil smile, Atlas started spamming Void Arrows at any person he spotted, and the azure missile pierced dozens of men's and women's torsos, which sent them flying backward as they were hit with Void Bullets that exploded on impact.

The battle continued for a while. Pierre and Juliette managed to push the pirates off the ship, which helped Artemis destroy even more vessels as the enemy panicked; while this was happening, Amethyst burned any enemies she could see.

Once it was over, the four girls rested on the deck, with Lilith in the middle of them, covered in blood as she slept. Atlas sat on the edge overlooking the ocean below, cleaning his dagger while waiting for the ship to start sailing again.

As Atlas ran a cloth over the blade, it snapped in two, causing him to frown, 'Why has it broken already!' he thought.

He stored the broken weapon in his Dimensional Storage and checked his status after killing fifteen Apprentice and ten Adept pirates.

[Level Up: 53→59]

[Experience: 980/2000]

[Experience Gained: 6000]

[Mana: 1560→1580]

[Strength: 416→424]

[Stamina: 442→444]

[Intelligence: 366→368]

[Core Points: 9300→12550]

[Core Points Gained: 3250]

[Void Sight: 0→1]

'Amazing, but I've noticed the higher rank and level I go, the slower its going to take,' Atlas mused. 'That's why there are monsters; I can just kill even more.'

While the group rested, they noticed Pierre and Juliette approaching them with grateful expressions as the older man said, ''Thank you, young ones. Without your help, the pirates would have taken the ship with the numbers they had on their side.''

Estelle smiled, ''No problem, Uncle. We all benefited from the fighting and leveled up from all the kills. Especially Le Messie Élu, who went up six levels,'' she said while motioning toward Atlas.

He nodded, which shocked Pierre. The man was just about to speak, but Juliette interrupted, ''What level and rank are you, Atlas?''

''Level fifty-nine and apprentice, why?'' he answered.

''Seems you're determined to level up,'' the blonde woman said. ''Only those with the drive to get stronger level up as quickly as you have.''

Atlas looked baffled, but Estelle explained, ''I told her that you started with a fresh status due to nearly dying.''

''Yes. I've been killing monsters and other people since leaving Ironclad Pass on Echo Isles,'' he said with a chuckle.

Following that, the group went to the galley to get something to eat after Pierra shooed them away so the sailors could clean up the deck, but Atlas broke away and started looting the pirates he killed.

Ten minutes later, he rushed into the ship and met the girls and Lilith in the galley, causing them to laugh at his greed. Atlas managed to get 13 gold, 20 silver, and 147 copper coins that he quickly stored away.

As they started eating, Juliette appeared and said the ship had to divert because of a storm that appeared between the Everglade Kingdom and Volantis. Thanks to the mana engines working overtime, Atlas discovered it would take a few days to reach the city.

The days passed slowly as the vessel dodged storms and other pirate fleets that roamed the Stormwrath Sea. While traveling, Atlas learned the Aqua Lung and Light skills, which he found useful.

Atlas was resting one afternoon when he heard the girls stir as they played card games. Amethyst stood up as she declared, ''I can smell land!''

The brunette Artemis nodded, ''So do I, Little Bird.''

Following that, the group made their way to the top deck; when Atlas stepped into the sunlight and saw Volantis, he was in shock as it was an island city with a large wall circling it, but he noticed it was built in the water, which he found odd.

They were made from beautiful white stone gleaming under the afternoon sun and towers dotted with mana cannons positioned to defend against attacks. Atlas was amazed until he saw a gigantic metal sea door that allowed ships to pass through.

Atlas noticed the thousands of knights patrolling the walls while keeping an eye on their vessel. Their black armor looked durable and covered all the vital points, allowing them to move quickly.

They all used a combination of sword and shield like a standard knight, while he looked at them Estelle leaned forward and whispered in his ear, ''Those are soldiers of the Argonian Army, some of the best knights on Astoria, its the reason we won the Emberfall War.''

He turned to the blonde with sparkling blue eyes and questioned, ''What is this war? You said you'd explain when it was brought up before.''

Estelle explained that the Thalassia Empire had invaded northern Argonia through the Emberfall Wastelands. After regrouping, the kingdom launched a counterattack, pushing the Dark Elves back into the wasteland and driving them off, thanks to the efforts of their knights.

''You should get some books from a shop to learn about the lands you'll find yourself in Le Messie Élu,'' she said with a kind smile.

Atlas nodded, ''I will once we dock in Volantis; I also need to buy some new weapons.''

''There's plenty of stores in the city,'' she informed him. ''Make sure you don't cause any trouble; the Argoina city guard will throw you in a cell for a few days.''

''I won't cause any trouble, Estelle. All I want to do is explore dungeons and become an adventurer to complete quests,'' Atlas commented as the city gates opened once the guards spotted Pierre.

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