The blue glow of the Wolf core in Sebastian's hands became so intense that the room's walls seemed to dissolve into a pure mana vortex. The boy felt the Rank E energy trying to break free, to tear apart space and his own palms. However, his Luck of forty-two units acted as an invisible stabilizer. Every micro-crack in the core's structure, every flash of unstable mana somehow synchronized with the rhythm of his own heart.
He brought the core to the "Black Star." At the moment the matter touched the metal, the room shuddered with a silent explosion. The purple threads on the knife blade began to greedily absorb the blue energy, like thirsty earth absorbs water. The steel of the knife glowed white-hot, and it seemed to Sebastian that the weapon would simply evaporate, leaving him defenseless against the face of the Aegis corporation.
However, at the critical moment, when the metal structure was on the verge of destruction, the old wiring in the house failed once again. The lights went out, and a short electromagnetic pulse from the short circuit in the fuse box passed through the room. This accidental discharge of energy became the "tempering" factor that forcibly locked the core's mana inside the blade, perfectly cementing the new structure of the artifact.
When the glow faded, Sebastian nearly dropped the knife. The "Black Star" had changed. The blade had become somewhat longer and narrower, taking on a deep matte shade that now seemed to absorb rather than reflect any light. A thin blue line now ran the entire length of the knife, pulsing almost imperceptibly in time with his pulse.
[Item upgraded: Black Star (E-Rank Artifact)]
[Bonus: +10% Critical Hit Chance, Mana Conductance increased by 20%]
"Now I'm ready," he whispered. Level eleven was only the beginning. Sebastian understood that for Aegis, Rank F hunters were just cannon fodder, cheap resources for dirty work. Only Rank E gave the right to be called a fighter and opened doors to more serious tasks.
—
The next day, he visited Bruno. The old veteran was studying a map of Heloplex is a small city on the outskirts of the Aldem continent. Heloplex was considered a relatively safe place, so there were no elite Aegis squads here, whose main strength consisted of Rank C and B hunters.
"Are you really going to go beyond the wall?" Bruno asked, looking at Sebastian. "Here in Heloplex, we only have one Rank C hunter and a few Rank D guys. They keep order because stronger monsters almost never come here. But the Wild Field... no one rules there. You'll meet things there that your Rank F body isn't ready for yet."
"I need to become stronger," Sebastian replied dryly. "Castor said he'd be waiting for me in the Upper Sector. But to get on his team, I need Rank E."
Bruno sighed and handed him a disk with patrol frequencies. "The Upper Sector... the light never goes out there, unlike in our swamp. Castor is a dedicated warrior; he'll teach you how to work with that 'Black Star' if you can reach him. But first — survive beyond the wall."
Sebastian took the disk and headed to the abandoned C-7 tunnel. It was the fastest way to the city border. When he finally climbed through a rusty hatch on the other side, The Wild Field stretched out before him. It was a territory of eternal twilight, where twisted trees intertwined with the wreckage of forgotten civilizations. The mana here was different — sharp, wild, and predatory.
He hadn't even walked a kilometer when [Mana Resonance] flared with alarm. Shadows emerged from behind stone blocks. There were three of them, and they were not like the weak hounds from the sewers. They were Steppe Scavengers — monsters with long limbs and shells resembling bone.
[Target: Steppe Scavenger (Level 14)] x3
Level fourteen right at the city's doorstep. Sebastian gripped the updated "Black Star" tighter. The level difference was noticeable, and their speed surpassed anything he had seen before. However, he felt his Luck of forty-two units already starting to adjust the world for his first step into a real fight.
The Wild Field gave no time for reflection. The scavengers rushed forward simultaneously, trying to pin him in a deadly circle.