Prestige Grinding : I Can Reset My Level

A few moments later, One Hundred-Sixteen and Sixty read the same notifications.

After selecting [No] and choosing their respawn points, they both reappeared midair. Immediately, they retrieved a [Blood Essence] drop and consumed it, boosting themselves to level 50. Still in a daze from the shock of his death by the hand of an ally, One Hundred-Sixteen quickly added Sixty to his friend list. He quickly selected the name that had just appeared and sent a message.

[One Hundred-Sixteen: IMBECILE! YOU JUST KILLED ME.]

[Sixty: Did you perhaps have a better plan than mine?]

[One Hundred-Sixteen: I would have managed to escape…]

[Sixty: Stop dreaming. I didn't have a better option. Reaching level 200 cost me a precious level 200 [Blood Essence] drop I prepared before the battle. If all I did was buy you a few seconds to finish your task and escape, it wouldn't have been worth using it.]

One Hundred-Sixteen remained silent for a moment.

'He's right. I was wondering how he reached his max level in seconds… So he prepared a high level blood essence drop before the battle… And I managed to get rid of my [Minor Devil] debuff while I was at it.'

[One Hundred-Sixteen: Did you kill him?]

[Sixty: I didn't get a kill notification. But I added One Hundred-One to my friend list—he's in Argentina with the others. They're already level 180, but they can't gain any more levels quickly enough. The hunting zones on this continent are either too weak or far beyond our range. They should be back anytime now.]

Just as One Hundred-Sixteen finished reading the message, a friend request from One Hundred-One appeared. He accepted it. Soon, a new message appeared on his panel.

[One Hundred-One: Why are you still level 50? Do you want to die again?]

He soon received another message.

[One Hundred-One: Head toward Caracas in Venezuela or Rosario in Argentina to level up. Get to 180 as fast as possible and return. We need reinforcements.]

Having already wasted precious seconds in a daze after his death, One Hundred-Sixteen didn't hesitate any longer. He turned and bolted north, determined to reach level 180 and return to São Paulo before it was too late.

As he moved at a speed comparable to players above level 120, he heard Sixty's voice beside him. He was flying beside him.

"Our company was right. Soul Power is the key to becoming the ultimate powerhouse."

One Hundred-Sixteen nodded. "It's insane. Sora gave each of us twenty thousand [Soul Pearls], and it's enough to remove our shackles all the way to level 120. Combined with [Blood Essence], we can already overpower anyone below level 150… without a single Supreme Skill."

Sixty shook his head. "Why else do you think he bothered giving you brutes Soul Power and only kept a million for himself? Without it, we'd take ages just to regain our previous levels. That would be too slow for our tasks."

As they discussed, they passed and killed countless beasts of varying levels, crossing a dozen regions between São Paulo and Caracas. By the time they arrived, they had already reached level 140.

Caracas' surroundings were exactly what they needed—a level 180 hunting ground.

----------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, back in São Paulo.

Jut lay on the ground, barely conscious. His body ached in ways he had rarely experienced before. He struggled to open his eyes. His vision was blurry, and when he finally managed to see, it was only through one eye. Using his remaining mana, he assessed the state of his body.

'My left eye is gone… but the damage didn't reach my brain. I lost both arms trying to shield my head, and both legs when I covered my heart and vitals… I thought I reacted fast enough, but that rat appeared from a hidden dimension and self destructed instantly…'

He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to think of his defeat. There was no doubt: he had lost. And he had proof.

'He came back to life…' Jut realized. 'It's that damn Ralph Eden. I didn't recognize him because his face was different from past streams… I shouldn't have skipped the damn briefings about this world's threats.'

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Memories of past invitations to meetings surfaced in his mind.

'The kid with [Prestige], the one who escaped Abbott and Norj's ambush… He can't die.'

A chilling thought struck him.

'Their names… He made many Alter Egos? How many are they? Is this his strategy? Suicide bombers?!'

Jut growled, but suppressed his urge to curse. He had to act quickly.

'Once I kill them, I need to track them down immediately after they respawn. I can't let them level up like that lunatic from earlier.'

Closing his eyes, he focused his Mental Energy and expanded it, looking for the players he had killed. Despite his low proficiency in the field, he was level 255. His Mental Power easily covered the entire continent. But when he finished scanning, his body, or what remained of it, tensed. His one remaining eye widened in shock.

'Where is everyone? Why is the city… the region… empty?'

'Where are the prisoners? Where are our troops?!'

São Paulo was now a ghost town. He felt a terrible sense of unease and opened his friend list, only to find hundreds of names missing.

'All the players stationed in Brazil… and many from other regions. How did so many people disappear without a single message being sent to me?'

Before he could check the guild chat, a sharp pain shot through his back. Looking down, he saw a blade piercing through his abdomen, its tip protruding from his abdomen.

His arms had only just regenerated, and his legs were almost recovered, with only the skin still missing. His energy reserves were nearly depleted in the previous fight—and everything he had absorbed since then had been used for healing—but he was confident in his ability to survive. He relied on his raw physical power to fight after all.

Grimacing, he grabbed the blade with both hands and pushed it back with all his strength. The weapon was expelled from his body, and as soon as it was repelled, he turned to face his attacker.

However, his opponent was already retreating, sword in hand. Covering his body with the best gear he had, Jut spoke.

"It's you again! Ralph Eden, right? And already level 180! How brave of you and your little group to always attack from behind. Is this how the heroes of your civilization fight?"

He tried stalling. The longer he could keep his opponent talking, the better his chances of recovering enough energy to either fight or escape. He knew this particular enemy wasn't talkative, but he still attempted the maneuver.

To his surprise, One Hundred-One actually replied.

"No one ever said we had to fight fairly against invaders. Especially against trash like you, who enslaves prisoners of war."

Jut's anger flared as he heard the response, but after he managed to control it, he snorted. "It wasn't me who killed the prisoners. That was you. We never harmed them—they were merely hypnotized. We would have set them free after the war."

One Hundred-One's expression didn't change. "Set them free? You mean by killing them in this world, right?"

Jut smiled but didn't answer immediately. He let a few seconds pass before nodding. "You're right. All of you will die anyway."

By now, he was almost fully recovered.

'This idiot actually let me heal. The lunatic who self-destructed might be back soon so… It's time to move.'

But just as he prepared to run, he felt his opponent's Sword Domain activating.

'What a fool. His sword intent can barely scratch my skin,' he thought, channeling condensed energy through his body to reinforce it. In the time it took to strengthen himself, One Hundred-One had already moved. Before Jut could react, his opponent appeared above him, swinging his sword with full force.

Recognizing the attack's threat, he raised his forearms in defense but the impact was brutal.

He felt pain through his left arm as his guard broke under the strike. The blade even cut into his skin.

'Damn it! I should've bought better gear!! Who told me to save my money for endgame equipment?!'

The sword stopped just before reaching the bone, but the damage was significant. Stubborn, Jut reminded himself that he was faster and stronger than his opponent. Gritting his teeth to resist the pain, he grabbed the blade with his right hand before One Hundred-One could pull it away. His enemy's expression changed to shock but he didn't let go of the sword

Jut smiled when he saw the human was too proud to let go.

'Got you.'

With a savage grin, Jut swung his claws with all his might, aiming directly for his opponent's head.

'You're dead!!'

He could already see the result of the exchange.

'And once you're back, I'll be waiting for you. I'll be right there at your side!'

But just as his claws were about to reach the target, a warning bell rang in his head.

His senses screamed danger.

Jut's eyes moved to the side, he noticed a crack had formed in space, just a few meters away from him.

His mind raced, 'What the hell is that? A rift? A pocket dimension?'

Then, as blinding light seeped from the growing tear, he understood.

'A pocket dimension is collapsing!!'

And he knew exactly what that meant.

'Another self-destruction!! The lunatic is back!'