"Administrator, status check," Nyt thought, his internal voice raspy even in his own head.
[Status: Level 2 reached. HP: 45%. MP: 12%. All sensory inputs are functional. Warning: Your musculoskeletal system is currently in a 'Cool-Down' phase. Moving too quickly will result in localized structural failure.]
"Good enough," Nyt whispered. He tried to sit up, but a hand firm yet gentle pressed against his shoulder, keeping him pinned to the cot.
"Don't. Your mana channels were nearly fried by that final move you made," a voice said. It was calm, melodic, and held the authority of a high priestess.
Nyt turned his head to see Riveria Ljos Alf, the Nine Hell herself. She was sitting on a wooden stool, a bowl of glowing green elixir in her lap. "You’ve been asleep for fourteen hours. We are currently in the safety zone of the 18th Floor, Revira."
"Fourteen hours... a significant loss of productivity," Nyt muttered, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the tent. His gear—the First Paradigm and the Hermes Module—was neatly laid out on a table nearby. He felt a surge of relief seeing them intact. "The Goliath’s Greatskin? Did your team secure it?"
Riveria let out a soft, rare chuckle. "You wake up after soloing a Floor Boss and your first concern is the loot? Yes, Finn had it brought in. It’s yours. But Nyt... we need to talk about what happened on the 17th."
The tent flap opened, and Finn Deimne and Ais Wallenstein stepped inside. The atmosphere shifted immediately. Finn looked at Nyt with the calculating gaze of a general, while Ais... Ais simply stared, her golden eyes filled with an unasked question.
"I see the Artificer is awake," Finn said, leaning against a support pole. "You’ve caused quite a stir, Nyt. My scouts are still talking about the 'blue ghost' that deleted a giant. I’ve never seen magic used that way. No chant, no circle—just a manipulation of the space itself."
"It wasn't magic, Captain Finn," Nyt replied, his voice gaining strength. "Magic is the manipulation of mana to produce an effect. I manipulate the physical constants of space-time using mana as a battery. It’s the difference between a storyteller and a programmer."
"A programmer," Finn repeated the strange word. "You speak as if the world is a set of rules meant to be rewritten."
"Because it is," Nyt said. He looked at Ais. "And some people are writing their scripts more efficiently than others."
Ais stepped forward, her hand twitching toward the hilt of her rapier. "The wind... you said I was fighting the air. You said I was 'inefficient'."
"Ais, not now," Riveria scolded. "He needs to recover."
"No, it's fine," Nyt said, sitting up despite the protest of his ribs. He looked at Ais with a clinical intensity. "Ais Wallenstein, your Ariel magic creates a pressurized shroud of wind. It increases your speed and power, but it creates massive drag. You’re pushing through the atmosphere like a blunt object. If you want to be faster, you shouldn't be pushing the wind. You should be making the wind part of yourself."
An hour later, against Riveria’s better judgment, Nyt was standing on the shore of the Great Lake of the 18th Floor. The sky here was a beautiful, shimmering crystal, illuminating the forest in a perpetual twilight.
Ais stood ten meters away, her rapier drawn. The rest of the Loki Elites Tiona, Tione, and Bete had gathered at a distance, watching with bated breath.
"Activate it," Nyt commanded.
Ais took a breath. "Tempest," she whispered.
A violent swirl of wind erupted around her, kicking up sand and water. She looked like a goddess of the storm, but Nyt just shook his head.
"Minerva, project the vector-overlay," Nyt thought.
"Ais, look at your left shoulder," Nyt called out. "The wind there is swirling in a clockwise direction, but the wind near your hip is counter-clockwise. They’re colliding. You’re creating turbulence that’s slowing your acceleration by 15%. I want you to synchronize the rotation. Treat the air not as a shield, but as a laminar flow."
"Laminar... flow?" Ais asked, tilting her head.
"Think of it as a smooth river," Nyt explained, stepping into her 'wind-zone'. To everyone's shock, he didn't get blown away. He used the First Paradigm to 'fold' the wind around him. "Don't fight the chaos. Order it. Tighten the spiral around your blade and your feet. Narrow the focus."
Ais closed her eyes. She tried to feel the individual currents of the wind. Usually, she just let the 'black flame' of her desire drive the magic. Now, she tried to find the 'Logic' Nyt was talking about.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
The roar of the wind began to quiet. The chaotic storm narrowed into a sharp, humming sheath of air that clung to her body like a second skin. It was quieter, but the mana-density was terrifying.
"Now, lunge," Nyt said.
Ais moved.
She didn't run; she vanished. A single crack of a sonic boom echoed across the lake. She appeared fifty meters away in a heartbeat, her rapier buried deep into a crystal pillar. The pillar didn't just break; it shattered from the sheer pressure of the air trailing behind her.
Ais stood still, looking at her hands. She wasn't panting. She wasn't exhausted.
"I... I felt the air move out of my way," she whispered, her eyes wide with wonder. "It didn't push back."
"Efficiency," Nyt said, leaning against a tree as his legs wobbled. "You just saved 30% of your mana and increased your terminal velocity by 20%. You’re welcome."
Tiona let out a deafening cheer. "Holy crap! Ais just got even faster! Nyt, you’re a genius!"
Finn looked at Nyt with a newfound respect that bordered on wariness. "You just gave the Sword Princess a permanent power-up in ten minutes. Nyt... if you ever decide to leave the Hephaestus Familia, the Loki Familia will give you anything you want."
"I have everything I need in a forge, Captain Finn," Nyt replied. "But I'll take a ride back to the surface as payment for the lesson. I have a Goddess to meet."
The journey back to the surface was a blur. The Loki Familia provided an escort that made the walk through the Middle Floors feel like a stroll in a park. By the time they reached the Northwest Gate, Nyt was walking under his own power, his mind already racing ahead to the Level Up process.
He arrived at the Hephaestus compound as the sun was setting. He didn't stop to talk to the guards. He burst into the master forge, where Hephaestus and Tsubaki were looking over a pile of broken armor.
"Nyt!" Tsubaki shouted, dropping her hammer. "You're alive! We heard rumors... crazy rumors about the 17th floor!"
"The rumors are statistically accurate," Nyt said, sliding his bag onto the table. The Goliath’s Greatskin and the massive Goliath Magic Stone spilled out.
Hephaestus stood up, her amber eye wide. She walked over and touched the Greatskin. "You really did it. You soloed the Behemoth. And you’re... you’re already Level 2."
"I need the official update, Goddess," Nyt said, his voice brimming with excitement. "I need to lock in the stats and choose a Development Ability. Minerva and I have already analyzed the probabilities."
Nyt stripped his shirt off, lying on the bench. Hephaestus’s hands were shaking slightly—a rare sight for a Goddess of Smithing. She applied the ichor, and the Falna on Nyt’s back glowed with a deep, resonant gold.
"Your stats..." Hephaestus whispered. "Because you hit the limit of Level 1 before the feat, the 'Carry-Over' is immense. Nyt, look at this."
[Nyt - Level 2]
[Strength: I-0]
[Endurance: I-0]
[Dexterity: I-0]
[Agility: I-0]
[Magic: I-0]
[Available Development Abilities:]
- Mystery (The ability to create items that defy common sense)
- Blacksmith (Enhanced proficiency in metalworking)
- Mage (Enhanced mana efficiency and spell power)
- Artificer (New Ability Unique to User: Enhances the integration of Technology and Magic)
Nyt stared at the list. Mystery was the standard path for high-tier smiths. It was what allowed Hephaestus to forge the Hestia Knife. But Artificer... that was his own.
"Mystery is a shortcut to the impossible," Nyt thought. "But Artificer... Artificer is the path to understanding the impossible and making it a repeatable process."
"I choose Artificer," Nyt said firmly.
Hephaestus nodded, her finger tracing the new rune onto his back. "I expected as much. You never were one for 'mystery'. You want to know the 'Why' behind every flame."
As the rune settled, Nyt felt a surge of new information flood his brain. His Mechanical Core hummed in a new frequency. He could feel the 'Code' of the world more clearly now—the way the mana moved through the air, the way the metal of the anvil vibrated.
[Development Ability: Artificer (Rank I) Acquired.]
[Effect: 50% increase in success rate for 'Living' gear synthesis. 50% Enhances the integration of Technology and Magic]
Nyt stood up, stretching his new, Level 2 body. He felt lighter, faster, and his mind felt like a supercomputer that had just been given a new cooling system.
"So," Tsubaki said, crossing her arms. "Now that you're Level 2 and have a fancy new title, what's the plan? More solo raids?"
"No," Nyt said, his eyes turning toward the pile of Goliath materials. "I have enough materials now to build the Third Paradigm. And for that, I’m going to need a bigger workshop."
He looked at Hephaestus. "Goddess, I’ve observed the Hero. I’ve helped the Sword Princess. And I’ve survived the Giant. Now, I want to build something that Orario has never seen. I want to build a Mobile Laboratory that I can take into the Deep Floors."
Hephaestus laughed, a rich, warm sound. "A mobile lab? You really are going to rewrite the rules of the Dungeon, aren't you?"
"Rules are just parameters waiting to be optimized," Nyt said.
“Administrator,” Minerva chirped in his mind. “I have already begun the blueprints for the 'Aegis-Module'. Suggesting we begin the extraction of the Goliath’s Greatskin immediately.”
"Let’s get to work," Nyt said, picking up his hammer.
The era of the Level 1 rookie was over. The era of the Singularity Artificer had just begun.
[Status Update: Nyt]
[Level: 2]
[Strength:D-310 -> I-0]
[Endurance: C-480 -> I-0]
[Dexterity: B-795 -> I-0]
[Agility:A-890 -> I-0]
[Magic: S-999 -> I-0]
[Development: Artificer]
[Magic: Void-Gate: Pocket Dimension, Event Horizon]
[Skills: Omniscient Architect: Minerva, Aetheric Blueprint, The Mechanical Core: Deus Ex Machina]