A massive bone flew aside that was the size of a man. However, in the mountain of bones where it flew, there were many bones much larger than this one.

Next to the mountain of bones sat a man with thick black hair in front of him, burning a massive fire of dried tree trunks that made a loud crackling sound.

Even though it was a deep night, and except for the fire, the blue moon was the only light source no monster dared even to come close to the man.

"Nice. I'm sure if Ern saw me, he'd be damn jealous of me." Wain grinned as he ripped a huge piece of meat off the bone.

'Huh, in those three months, your body has used up all the resources for you to make a full recovery, but despite that, it's like you've gotten stronger.' Gladius grinned.

"Well, you're wrong." Wain uttered in a serious voice before rolling back another bone.

'Hmm?'

"They were strong, much stronger than the ones I fought last time on the Ash Coast, but I just can't stay pathetic and weak, that's not my style. If I can fight monsters and win and recover, then I have to do it. That's it. Besides, compared to those two... It's just a warm-up." Wain muttered, finished the last piece of meat, and rose.

He absorbed the soul of every monster that he killed, so Wain wanted to see what he could achieve.

[Wain Norheim

Ascension: Second Stage (21.45%)

Race: Human

Beyond: Calamity (Coelacanth)

Soul: Nameless King

Title: Savior of the Damned, Echo of Samurai, Mentor Inquisitor, The First, Soul Gatherer, Cartographer, Slayer of Goliath, Contender, Defeating One of the Four Kings, Killing the Legend, etc...

Majesty: 10]

"21.45%... That's pretty good, but it took me a few days to kill most of the monsters around here..." Wain muttered as he wondered, "Didn't I devour Amelia's soul? It was so damn big and Legendary..."

'No, it wasn't. Perhaps you just imagined it, since you would hardly have the power to absorb such a powerful Soul.' Gladius uttered.

"Yeah. Probably you're right." Wain nodded, "But... then what happened to the Soul?"

'Well, I have a theory. Most likely, the Fifth Chronicle monster absorbed that Soul, that makes sense since he wasn't interested in you, you could see that for yourself. It takes a long time to absorb such a Soul, so that's why Fifth Chronicle left this place.' Gladius explained in detail as though he was doing his best to convince Wain of this.

"Damn, I hadn't even thought of that. Okay, I can probably get more Legendary Souls in the future. If that monster decided to eat Amelia's Soul instead of me, that's a real jackpot." Wain uttered with a sigh before heading toward the massive boulders.

'Exactly.' Gladius smiled.

...

'Fuck, Gladius, I thought Blind Sorcerer was in charge of the cunning plans in our company, but it turns out you're not bad at that either.' Light Racer grinned with a dazed look.

'Well, as if I had a choice. We can't let Wain know what really happened, at least not now.' Gladius shrugged.

'Huh, you're both right.' Blind Sorcerer muttered as a sly smile appeared on his face, 'That's why we still address each other this way, even though the world has already moved. The energy of Arkan was obviously one of the catalysts.'

...

Wain devoted a whole week to battles and training. Day after day, he repeated the same chain of actions - fight - food - training. Thus Dragon Ridge quickly became a pretty safe place, even for Third Chronicles, as Wain killed several hundred monsters during this time.

"Good. I'm happy with the results now." Wain said with a slight smile on his face while looking at his reflection in the water.

Wain had regained his former form, the only difference was the amount of muscle. They were still smaller in volume than before, but they were denser, so that made him seem even stronger.

'Maybe it's time for more serious opponents than mere monsters?' Gladius asked in a playful manner.

"Sure, but I can't leave here without saying goodbye." Wain nodded, threw on his coat, and headed for the smith.

...

Bam. Bam. Bam.

Ceozi, with a serious look, banged her hammer on the anvil. No matter what happened, she always kept working, because she wanted to get as good as she could at blacksmithing.

"Hey, would you mind distracting yourself for just a minute?" Wain said with a smile on his face as he leaned against the wall.

"You're back...? It's been ten whole days!" Ceozi uttered with a dazed look as she turned to him.

"Huh, were you really worried about me?" Wain grinned.

"Of course not! Every time you started fighting, my forge shook as though there was an earthquake. Just so you know, it's not very comfortable to work when dust and small stones are falling on your head!" Ceozi exclaimed as she puffed up her cheeks.

"Ahahahahaha, well, then I owe you an apology." Wain said before waving her hand.

A huge red Soul appeared in the air that made Ceozi squeeze her eyes shut for a while because the light was too bright.

"It is the Soul of the strongest monster that I have defeated in these ten days. Without your help, I would probably have died, so consider this my small gratitude." Wain said in a serious voice.

"I have something for you too..." Ceozi muttered with an awkward look.historical

"Hmm? What are you talking about?" Wain asked in a confused manner as he tilted his head.

"One day when I went in to dress your wounds, I saw a broken white mask next to your ring, so... I decided to make you a new one. Here." Ceozi tilted her head and put her hands forward.

In the palms of her hands was a red mask with a picture of a demon's face made of red paint.

"Damn, that's beautiful. That mask looks so damn cool and dangerous." Wain smiled as he took the mask in his hands, "Well, it looks like I should bring you the Legendary Soul next time. Thank you. That's what I need right now."