"...Mr. Rex?"
'???' Rex hadn't expected Ais to recognize him just by his voice. He had assumed she would freeze up after assuming he was a talking monster—especially since they likely didn't know about the Xenos yet. He had been prepared to explain who he was and why he looked like this, but seeing as he didn't need to, he lowered his hand.
"At your service," he replied.
Ais lowered her sword, sheathing it, though her expression remained unreadable. "You look like a monster."
"Indeed." Rex nodded, pointing at his face. "It's my magic."
"Well, I'll be…" Gareth muttered, scanning Rex from head to toe. "Thought you were some new species. Gave me a bit of a spook, lad." He let out a low laugh. "You would've been gutted if Ais hadn't recognized your voice."
"That's exactly why I've been avoiding others," Rex said, glancing at the blonde girl. "How did you even recognize me? I don't think I left much of an impression on the Sword Princess for her to know me by voice."
He had only met her twice—once on the 18th floor when he saved Bell and his party, and again when they caught him selling their stuff. Sure, he left an impression, but he doubted it was strong enough for her to pick out his voice. Especially since it was definitely muffled and altered by his mask. Maybe the War Game, because he was strong, but that alone shouldn't have been enough.
Ais didn't respond immediately. Her gaze lingered on his mask.
"You sound like him," she said finally.
Rex blinked. "...Like who?"
"Bell." Ais added, as if that explained everything.
He paused. "...Huh?"
"So why're you down here, lad?" Gareth straightened with a grunt. "Wanderin' the lower floor alone's not smart for a Level 3." He gestured at Rex with his head. "'Specially not looking like that. It's a good way to get killed by a party."
Rex wanted to say the 'truth'—that he was a Level 5—but didn't think it was the best idea. He doubted they'd report him out of spite or anything like that, but was it smart to just say that outright? If he claimed to be a new Level 4 after the War Game, that could also be suspicious. New Level 4s struggled to solo this region, especially nearly naked. Then again, with his transformation magic…
All these thoughts crossed his mind in a split second. After using Scavenger, he replied, "I just became a Level 4." He raised his right hand, clenching it into a fist. "With this new magic, I don't have to worry about much except a large monster party or Amphisbaena."
"...That so?" Gareth scratched his beard as Ais walked past Rex to go brutalize the blue crabs that had been charging at him. "Were ye already Level 4 before the War Game or was that just a skill? The punch on the wall, I mean."
"Ah, yes." Rex nodded. "That was just a skill," he replied. It was the same answer he'd given the Guild, who had also questioned whether he was already Level 4.
"You were already throwin' punches like that as a Level 3, and now ye've got magic that makes ye look like a monster from the lower floors?" Gareth gave a grin. "Heh. Ye seem like a proper Level 4 to me."
"I kind of have to be," Rex shrugged. "I prefer to go solo—so I have to cover all my bases. Tank, striker, mage… Might as well carry the whole team if I'm the only one on it."
Gareth let out a deep laugh. "One o' those lone wolves, eh?"
"You could say I am..." he paused, glancing at the 'camera' to his right. "Solo Leveling."
Gareth blinked at his action then grinned, "I like you, lad." The dwarf said as he slapped Rex heartily on the arm, nearly knocking him off balance. "Best keep yer head on straight down here, eh? Wouldn't want to lose a good laugh like you to a damn crab."
"Noted." Rex nodded. "So, you guys just came back from the Deep Floor?"
"Aye, just got back." Gareth thumbed over his shoulder. "Passed a bag on the way. No blood, no sign of battle. Armor laid out nice and neat. Looked like someone just stripped down and walked off near butt-naked."
"Ah, right, that's mine," Rex coughed awkwardly.
Gareth turned slowly, eyebrows raised in surprise.
"I can only use this magic without the interference of armor," Rex quickly explained, sensing the dwarf's confusion. 'That don't make sense but he wouldn't try to pry.
Gareth nodded thoughtfully, stroking his thick beard, and like he thought, the dwarf didn't continue asking. "Well, don't want to hold you up any longer." He smiled warmly. "You seem like an interesting kid. Why don't we meet up one day and have a drink together, get to know each other better?"
Rex chuckled, glancing at the dwarf with amusement. "You just want a chance to drink the real Soma, don't you?"
Gareth burst out laughing, picking up his axe leaning against the wall next to Rex's bag. "You got me, lad!" He grinned broadly. "But I really do find you interesting and want to know you better, Rex."
Rex thought for a moment. 'Well, can't say no to that.' Getting close to one of the Loki Familia executives would definitely be beneficial for him, and Gareth seemed like the perfect candidate.
Finn was too intelligent and too cunning—Rex was sure Finn would somehow uncover all his secrets within hours. He could use scavenger to evade all of the man's investigation, but it would be a chore and he rather not deal with Finn.
Riveria, on the other hand, was well… Riveria. She was a woman. A woman elf. Did he mention she was a High Elf, royalty among elves? Approaching her would be tricky, especially considering he wasn't very good at talking to women. And even if he approached her, getting close to her would be another problem.
'Wait, can't I use Scavenger to get close to her?' he thought, but quickly dismissed the idea.
It would create an insincere relationship—one that could crumble with a single mistake. If he truly wanted to build something genuine, he had to avoid relying on Scavenger. That kind of manipulation would just become another burden. At most he can use it here and there but not all the time.
Gareth, though, seemed like a chill drinking buddy—simple, straightforward, and the perfect choice.
All these thoughts went through his mind in a split second, and he replied, "Alright," he nodded, "When are you planning?"
"How about the evening after tomorrow?" Gareth replied after a short thought. "Say, eleven at night?"
Rex nodded without hesitation. "I can do that."
Gareth's grin widened as he extended his hand. "Well then—" Rex took the dwarf's hand. "—we'll see each other then."
'!!!'
Suddenly, Gareth squeezed Rex's hand with incredible force. Rex grinned, meeting the challenge and clenching his hand back tightly. With a loud boom, the ground beneath them cracked, spiderweb fractures expanding outward and causing ripples across the river.
Gareth looked slightly surprised, but quickly increased his strength. Rex matched him again, the cracks at their feet spreading towards the walls, which started to fracture as well. Spiderwebs cracks snaked up the wall, rushing towards the high celling as a noticeable pressure emanated around them.
Rex, already using most of his strength, briefly considered activating Strong Body—but held back. He was already exerting strength close to that of an early Level 5. And Scavenger confirmed Gareth assumed he was using the same ability he had used to punch through a wall during the war game—an ability that allowed a Level 4 to match a Level 5's strength.
If he activated Strong Body now and pushed himself to mid-Level 5 strength, Gareth might start thinking he had been lying about his level and was a level 5 all along.
'No need to show all my cards just yet.' With a quiet exhale, his body eased, the tension draining as his form seemed to deflate.
Gareth laughed heartily as they released each other's hands. "A powerful grip you have, lad!" he said, waving goodbye cheerfully. "I can't wait for our meeting in two days!"
Rex laughed, nodding. "Likewise~" He tried to wipe the sweat from his forehead, only to realize his mask was still covering his face.
"AIS!" He suddenly roared to the sword princess who had disappeared somewhere to hunt down monsters while they were talking. "Get back here!"
After the brief encounter with the two Loki Familia executives, Rex returned to what he had originally planned. First, he hid his bag and belongings using Scavenger to find a safe spot, then shifted his focus back to playing around as Swampfire.
Even at his base strength, Rex was already overpowering the monsters on the 25th floor of Water City, so with this transformed body, it had become so easy it wasn't even fun anymore. Still, after nearly half an hour of tearing through monsters, he finally obtained the magic he'd been aiming for:
[Siren's Scream (Magic/Active): The user amplifies their voice using mind into a devastating supersonic scream. The intensity and destructive force scale with mind usage and the user can shift into ultrasound, allowing for precise echolocation. The user gains high resistance to extreme decibel levels and ultrasound.]
"Doubt I'll ever use this much, but it's good to have…" he muttered as he walked through the large room filled with rivers. Screaming like a banshee in public didn't exactly sound cool or manly, but the skill had its uses beyond just yelling and echolocation.
You see, Goliath's Roar worked on everyone who heard the roar—ally or enemy—and it didn't have a target cap. That meant if he screamed loud enough and all of Orario heard it, everyone in the city would get buffed. That was ridiculous. Utterly Overpowered.
As expected of the ability of a Monster Rex.
And yet, it still wasn't in his S-tier picks because it didn't affect him, and as a solo player, he wouldn't benefit from it much. The only time he even saw himself using it would be during the familia expedition a month or two from now. And with this scream, he can assure that everyone would hear it to get buffed.
"Anyway, now I should brutalize some Light Quartz to get their light beam magic," he decided. Their magic looked interesting and would probably become one of his most used, right up there with Fire Breath and Overgrowth.
"Speaking of Overgrowth..." he mumbled just as a thick, thorn-covered tendril lashed from his back, skewering a fish mid-leap with a wet crunch.
It thrashed once, then more roots erupted from his spine, stabbing into its body like spears, splitting it apart in mid-air. Blood sprayed, staining the surface of the water before meat and bones crumbled into dust, leaving only a single shimmering scale, which plopped into the water and drifted away with the current.
'Shouldn't I spend more time coming up with plants that can use my other magics?' he thought. Maybe even a plant that could use Siren's Scream for him—applying Goliath's Roar without him having to scream like a madman.
"Hmm…" After thinking it over, Rex decided to slow down for the day and try to create at least one plant that could use Fire Breath.
Afterall, that magic was still his most destructive aside from Berakh HaKele, and one of his most used overall. It might not be useful in the Water Capital, but he still wanted to 'upgrade' it as soon as possible to boost his overall combat potential.
"I already tried Fire Lily, and it wasn't that." He sighed.
Fire Lily had been too obvious, and it didn't resonate with the magic. Even Red Hot Poker, Firewheel Tree, and Fireweed—plants that looked like fire and literally had 'fire' in their names—hadn't worked. So what else?
"I mean, there is sunflower, but if the others didn't work, then I doubt it would." Rex mumbled, reaching to massage the bridge of his nose only to be blocked by his mask. "Haah~. Scavenger, would a sunflower work?" He asked, already knowing the answer but needing confirmation and—
It was, in fact, yes. A sunflower will be able to use his fire breath.
"Bruh," he muttered with a long sigh. "Why the fuck would fire breath resonate with a sunflower and not other flowers literally called Fire Lily that looks like fire?" He decided not to waste more time theorizing and just went with it.
Using Overgrowth, roots burst from his boots and dove into the ground, digging through it with a sharp rumble. A few meters ahead, the stone floor cracked as thick vines erupted upward in a spiraling and weaving together midair, forming a thick, towering green stalk nearly eight meters tall.
At the top, the sunflower bloomed—its petals unfurling like a spinning wheel. A massive disk of dark gold sat at its center, large enough for Rex to lay comfortable like a bed. Bright yellow rays flared outward, forming a blazing ring, the head itself locked onto the far wall, aimed like a cannon.
Rex grinned at the sight and roared, "Sunflower!" He pointed forward. "Use FIREBEAM!"
Of course, the flower didn't respond to voice commands. However, since he was still connected to it, he could use fire breath through it, similar to how he can use Scavenger through his roots. And as he activated Fire Breath through the plant, bright orange-yellow flames began to swirl inward, drawn to the center, the swirling mass pulling in air with a low, rumbling growl.
The orb grew rapidly, layer by layer, until it ballooned to the size of the entire center disk—easily larger than Rex's whole body, far exceeding any fireball he'd ever produced. Then it erupted into a massive bright orange firebeam, thin at the bud and widening as it tore across the chamber. It streaked over Rex with a deafening whoosh, the sheer force of the heat ruffling his clothes and washing over him like a furnace blast.
It slammed into the far wall nearly a quarter kilometer away with a thunderous boom that echoed through the stone, dust falling from the ceiling as the shockwave rippled outward. The firebeam kept pouring from the orb for several long seconds, the roar of it shaking the tree trunk and rumbling through the stone beneath Rex's feet.
Then the beam began to waver, its edges flickering as its intensity dropped, the beam narrowing and dimming until only a shimmering trail of light hung in the air. From the far wall, a violent hiss erupted as cracks spiderwebbed through the stone, with water spraying from the cracks, turning that entire end of the room into a rising cloud of steam and mist.
"He-Heheheh!" He giggled like a gremlin at the sight of the sunflower that went limp.
It felt like a real extension of his body and firing Fire Breath through it was almost no different than using his mouth. But unlike with his mouth, he could channel both Internal and External at once—effortlessly. And since he could still use Body Furnace, that meant he could channel his Blue Dragon Fire through the sunflower.
"Come to think of it, I haven't used my ultimate fire magic since the Goliath incident." He muttered, wondering how fast he could push it to blue again—or maybe even purple. But then, something hit him.
An epiphany.
He let the massive sunflower wither into ash, then thrust out his right arm. Vines snapped to life, spiraling up from his forearm and wrist, weaving tightly into a compact stem about 25 cm long with its sunflower golden face angled skyward.
A manic grin spread on his face he gripped the stem with both hands then unleashed his Fire Breath. With a blast, a beam of yellow-orange fire erupted from the center disk, a focused thin column of flames shooting ten meters into the air with a sharp roar.
"Yes." He narrowed the stream, shrinking its length but not its intensity—10 meters… 7… 3… until it stopped at 1.5 meters.
"Yes!" Then, he shaped while intensifying its heat. Fire twisted and solidified into the shape of a blade of pure, whistling yellow-orange flame.
"YEEEEEE!" He roared at the flaming Zweihänder with a green hilt and a flower guard.
He couldn't remember the last time he'd been this excited. Was it the first time he reached Mythical Glory in Mobile League back on Earth? No. That didn't even come close.
As for how he shaped the sword?
[Fire Breath+ (Magic/Active): Use mind and air in lungs to release a breath of fire. Can also use the heat in the surrounding to form a fire breath in front of the opened mouth. Strength, size, heat, shape depend on mind usage and control. No chant.]
He has always been able to shape his fire breath—once molding it into a lance fired straight from his mouth—but it was clunky and inefficient. Sure, it looked cool, but fireballs were quicker, hotter, and easier to control. Now though, with Overgrowth and the sunflower, the magic flowed like it was always meant to.
What kind of man wouldn't want to run around with a flaming sword?
So that's what he did. Rex went wild in the dungeon, his fire sword blazing as it carved clean through monster after monster while also changing the weapons—twin fire daggers, trident with flaming prongs, and a hammer with a head of fire.
Of course, it took serious focus. Keeping the fire weapon and his Swampfire form going at once meant using two minds from mental compartment, so three minds in total. The mind drain was also intense, and he could only keep the weapon active for about twenty minutes before nearly hitting Mind Zero.
Now, he stood barefoot without his Swampfire armor in a room on the 27th floor, surrounded by scorched stone and smoldering craters. Steam raised from the blackened pits where monsters had been pulverized beneath the force of his flaming hammer, the heat still radiating from the cracks.
"And I can even use Berakh HaKele on the flaming weapons." he mumbled while looking down at his palm.
He hadn't tested it yet, but Scavenger had confirmed it. Since the weapon's grade could change with fire intensity, he could already make a high 2nd-class sword by adding his body furnace—same as his Blue Dragon Fire.
However, even at full Mind, he could only currently use Berakh HaKele on a low 2nd-class weapon. So, if he wanted to use it on this fire sword, he would have to dial it back to a low/mid 3rd-class weapon because it would take too much mind to keep both of them active. But that was fine.
Berakh HaKele enhanced all weapon attributes. If he launched a fire blast from the sword while firing Berakh HaKele as a beam… would that basically be Karna's Vasavi Shakti from Fate?
'Wait. What if I use Heptathlos on top of it?' That moment, Rex realized—he had just created another ultimate.
Indomitable Will + Overgrowth + Fire Breath + Berakh HaKele + Heptathlos = Nuke!
He couldn't add Fire Body yet—that would raise the weapon's grade to a high 3rd-class. But once he hit Level 4 or 5, then maybe—
"Wait."
Another epiphany.
"Can't I fly?"
If he entered Swampfire form and created sunflowers on his feet and hands, couldn't he just launch himself like a rocket? Not only that, he could put sunflowers on his fists and punch fireballs at people. In Swampfire, he could basically become a firebender.
"Hehehehe~" Rex was ecstatic. So ecstatic that—
He had a boner...?
"..." He looked down at the twitching bulge in disbelief. "I… I need to calm down..."
[Author's Note: How do you like the combination magic Rex created? Overgrowth + Fire Breath seem pretty overpowered, and I think they deserves a Rank Up after this event.
Because of the event that transpired in this chapter—with Overgrowth + Fire Breath—I have come to the ultimate decision. Scavenger would be getting a limit. I feel like if he keeps collecting abilities, it would take interest away from the one he currently has and it would push some to the back, making them useless.
Currently, he has 17 abilities under Scavenger, and I am still deciding what the limit would be. Probably 20 or 25. Maybe after reaching the limit, Scavenger would become able to 'delete' abilities so he can replace them and then he can start building himself instead of going 'got to get them all.' If you think this is a bad idea, you can say argue why and I might consider it.
Next chapter will be the chapter about his current status and stuff. Just my personal opinion, I don't like when spoilers like status screen are at the very top in the Auxiliary Volume. So I am not planning on putting it as an Auxiliary Chapter.
Anyway, thank you for reading and I, Lelouch vi Britannia, order you to give me your stone! （︶^︶）]