Anime: Passive Inheritance System

The Loki Familia's camp wasn't large, and news of Kai's duel with Bete spread quickly.

"Is that kid crazy?"

"Pfft, Bete, don't finish him too quickly!"

"Ah, youth… so impulsive."

On a clearing near the camp, Kai and Bete faced each other from several meters apart. Adventurers had gathered to watch.

"Kai," Bete called out, dual daggers in hand, smiling with mock patience, "I'll give you one last chance. Apologize now, and I might let this go.

"Between adventurers, each level is a huge gap. If you think beating a Level 4 floor boss makes you ready for us, you're dead wrong."

Kai frowned and muttered, "Geez, enough with the speech. Or are you afraid of getting embarrassed if I beat you?"

"You…!"

Bete's face twisted with rage. The bloodthirsty glow in his eyes flared.

"You're dead. I'll bash your face in, stomp it into the dirt, and you'll be licking my boots, Kai!"

"Fine. Come at me, then."

Kai calmly turned to the crowd and shouted, "Hey, white-haired brat!"

"Yes, senpai!"

Bell tossed the iron sword hanging at his waist toward Kai.

Reaching into the air, Kai's body surged with sword intent.

Clang!

The sword shot out of its sheath, humming as it flew into his hand like a guided missile.

The moment he gripped it, Kai's aura transformed.

No longer an average adventurer, he now radiated overwhelming presence—sharp, commanding, like a peerless sword forged in battle.

Even the wind around him felt sharp, pressing heavily on the surrounding crowd.

But Kai didn't care. He twirled the blade twice to get a feel, then pointed it at Bete.

"…"

Feeling the pressure, Bete's smug look faded. He gripped his weapons tighter—and vanished.

A Level 5 adventurer's stats easily reached hundreds. Combined with his unique skill Fenris Wolf's Rush, Bete shot forward like a bolt of lightning, covering ten meters in a blink.

Kai didn't even react.

With a sneer, Bete thought, He didn't even see me… just a rookie after all.

But sorry—I don't go easy on the weak!

His blades howled toward Kai's unguarded body.

And then—

Danger!

A chill shot up Bete's spine.

On instinct, he aborted the strike and leapt back. Landing, he looked down.

A smear of red.

Blood.

Touching his cheek, he felt it—he was bleeding.

But… when did it happen?

Kai hadn't moved at all!

Now wary, Bete kept his distance, no longer charging recklessly.

The spectators, however, didn't see the threat.

"What's wrong, Bete? Get in there!"

"He's just a Level 2. Are you scared?"

"Maybe he's toying with his prey!"

"Tch…"

Ignoring the heckling, Bete studied Kai.

That's when he noticed it.

"…Wind?"

A red aura swirled faintly around Kai. It didn't look like much, but it made Bete's instincts scream.

"That's not wind," Kai smiled. "It's sword Aura."

Sword Aura, generated by draining HP through sword intent. Enough to cut through Goliath's invulnerable scales—ordinary flesh and blood like Bete didn't stand a chance.

Even if Bete were Level 6, 7, or 8—without defense skills or gear, Kai in bloodlust mode, sheathed in sword Aura, was untouchable.

That was why he accepted this duel.

"…Sword Aura?"

Bete blinked. In his mind, sword Aura was just shockwaves caused by fast slashes—nothing that could do this.

Especially not a red aura just appearing out of thin air when Kai didn't even move.

You call this sword Aura?!

He stared at Kai like he was talking nonsense.

But it didn't matter whether Bete believed him.

Kai stood still, waiting quietly—waiting for the [Solo Player] passive to hit its peak.

As a Level 2 solo player, Kai could multiply all stats by up to six times. His strength was nearing 100. His speed—already past that.

While most adventurers capped out around 60 at Level 2, Kai had pushed every stat to its system-limit. Others might reach Level 4 with these values. But he… would soon break into Level 3.

(—All stat values are system-based, not the canon Falna values.)

Even Bete, newly promoted to Level 5, only had base stats around 300.

Once Kai's bonuses maxed out, he'd be able to fight Bete head-on.

Kai had time.

But Bete… was growing anxious.

His beast instincts told him—Kai's killing intent was only rising.

To improve stats in battle... could this be some kind of special skill too? And didn't he just reach Lv.2 not long ago? He already has multiple skills at Lv.2? Since when did special skills become this cheap!?

There was no time to hesitate...

Dry twigs and dirt crunched loudly underfoot as Bete lunged forward again, twin swords raised, charging straight at Kai.

"Burn and consume—[Hati!]"

As he rushed in, a sharp chant escaped his lips. A fiery glow engulfed his blades, distorting the surrounding air with heat.

Hati—fire attribute enchantment magic, with mana drain and damage absorption effects.

Bete was aiming to push through that faint red aura around Kai's body and finish the fight while Kai was still "weak."

What even Bete hadn't realized was that, by now, he no longer saw Kai as a low-level rookie adventurer. He had unconsciously started using his full strength, treating Kai as a powerful foe.

Kai smiled as Bete closed in.

He had waited long enough.

His mental and physical stats had reached a point where he could clearly track Bete's movements with dynamic vision, and his body could keep up with the reaction speed.

Then...

"Take your final bow."

Calm words left his lips. They reached Bete mid-charge, making his eyes widen in shock.

"Wha—"

He barely got a syllable out before he saw it.

—Light.

Countless silver-white specks gathered along the iron sword in Kai's hand, transforming the once ordinary blade into something like a weapon forged from starlight.

From a faint candle glow, the light bloomed into dazzling radiance—intense, blazing, heavy, almost tangible.

In the next instant, a slash from that sword of starlight came crashing toward Bete.

"Boom—!"

The blast was so loud it rattled the eardrums. As the sword struck, it compressed and distorted the air, tore through space itself with crackling noise. Blinding light erupted like a newborn star, dimming the world around it. A raging storm surged across the entire eighteenth floor.

Twigs, broken weapons, dirt, and stones—everything in the path of the blast was swept up into chaos.

Moments later, the radiance around the blade faded, and the swirling air finally stilled. Facing the slash head-on, Bete trembled uncontrollably, his pupils dilated lifelessly, fur on his ears and tail standing on end.

He stared at the sword hovering before his eyes, at Kai, whose entire body was cloaked in faint red sword energy. Bete had the urge to scream, but all he could manage was a trembling question: "What... what was that move?"

"Nothing special. Just a regular swing."

Kai casually answered Bete's question, then lowered his sword. As he did, Bete collapsed to his knees, gasping for air like all his strength had been drained.

"A regular... swing...?"

Struggling to breathe, trying to calm his pounding heart, Bete stared at him in disbelief.

"No way... a normal swing could never be that strong!"

"Believe what you want."

Kai shrugged, offering no explanation. It was just a normal sword swing—enhanced, of course, by the Light of Resolve.

[Light of Resolve]: A soul-forged brilliance that unleashes a strike beyond limits.

Just like the system's note described—it was a miracle blow that defied level gaps and transcended boundaries.

"This is... cheating, really..."

Kai shook his head with a helpless sigh and turned back toward the camp, ready to enjoy the spoils of his fight. But just as he turned, he froze.

"Hey, Bete... doesn't it seem like those glowing specks are multiplying?"

"What glowing specks?"

"The ones drifting down from the ceiling."

Bete was just getting up when Kai spoke. He looked up instinctively—and froze.

"They... really are multiplying?"

From the crystalline ceiling of the eighteenth floor, pale green specks were drifting down like misty rain.

Countless... almost blindingly dense.