Over the next few hours, Ekant continued moving through the Beginner's Forest.
One monster after another fell.
Some lunged recklessly.
Some tried to flee.
Some attempted ambushes that never quite worked.
In total, 197 monsters were killed.
Though— if Ekant were being honest— most of that number belonged to the Sword of Life, not him.
His arms ached.
His grip loosened more than once.
Sweat beaded along his temples despite this being a virtual body.
Still, his experience from other games helped him immensely. His footwork was clean. His timing was precise. He knew when to swing and when to retreat.
Yet even so—
He knew this wasn't enough.
This is not what Bargaj wanted, Ekant thought grimly.
Out of those 197 kills—
111 were Blood Roses.
In terms of unique monsters, he had only killed 51.
That was far behind what he needed.
Another problem weighed on him.
If he logged out now and returned later, there was a chance the forest would judge him as unworthy— just as Bargaj had explained— and eject him before rewards could be properly settled.
Cultivating now was also dangerous.
Any monster could sneak attack him while he was focused.
And worse—
He did not even know where the nearest safe zone was.
Exhaustion crept into his movements.
His swings grew heavier.
His breathing deepened.
That was when—
A familiar warmth surfaced.
The Blaze Dog emerged from his body and stood quietly in front of him, tail swaying gently.
Ekant immediately understood.
"…You came out because I am exhausted, didn't you?" he murmured.
He reached out and patted the dog's head.
"Well," Ekant said softly, "I will cultivate for a bit. Let me know if any monster shows up."
The Blaze Dog sat down, alert and watchful.
Ekant moved into a lotus position.
〈1005 / 2000〉
〈1010 / 2000〉
〈1015 / 2000〉
〈…〉
〈2000 / 2000〉
Minutes passed.
No monsters appeared.
The forest remained strangely calm.
When the breakthrough notification appeared, Ekant opened his eyes.
〈Congratulations, Player NoName〉
〈You have broken through to: Skin Tempering – Second Level Mage〉
The fatigue vanished.
The heaviness in his limbs disappeared.
A warm current surged through his body, restoring him completely.
"…Much better." Ekant exhaled.
He stood up, feeling light, focused, ready again.
But instead of charging forward immediately, he paused.
"Sir Bargaj," Ekant said respectfully, "I want to continue hunting monsters. But I need a short break. I'd like to log out for a while."
A moment passed.
Then—
"Granted."
The voice came and vanished just as quickly.
The Blaze Dog re-entered Ekant's body.
And at 1:00 p.m., Ekant logged out.
He awoke inside the pod.
For safety reasons, he still could not stand fully on his own. The pod adjusted, lifting his upper body.
He was allowed to walk to the washroom—but only carefully.
With the pod's support, Ekant lowered his legs onto the floor and stood up slowly. A dull ache pulsed through his face, but it was bearable.
Step by step, he reached the washroom.
A minute later, he returned and lay back down.
Soon after, his mother, Dhriti, came in with food.
She fed him patiently, spoke gently, and asked simple questions.
Ekant responded with only one word.
"Yes."
Satisfied, she left him to rest.
, Ekant logged back into Eternal Arcana of Magic.
This time—
There was no hesitation.
From 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Ekant hunted mercilessly.
Monster after monster fell.
His total kill count climbed—
305.
As his body adapted, he felt it.
A subtle shift.
A microscopic unlocking.
The Sword of Life released 0.00005% of its power.
That was enough.
What had once been fights became slaughter.
Even the Tree of Life, Bargaj, observed silently— stunned.
'What kind of existence is this?' Bargaj thought.
A monster would be too small a word.
'He is wielding the Sword of Life like a toy… at such a low realm. He may actually complete the hidden quest.'
After resting briefly, Ekant broke through again—
Reaching Skin Tempering – Third Level.
Then after wondering around for a while until it was 7:00 p.m..
At 7:00 p.m., he logged out.
His father, Ken, was already home.
His mother was waiting too.
After a short rest, the family went to the hospital except Tiyan stayed at home.
They met Dr. David Hubel, who carefully removed the bandages from Ekant's nose.
No complications.
The surgery was healing well.Still he had to rest for a whole month.
They returned home at 10:00 p.m..
Ekant and his family ate dinner.
Then slept deeply and peacefully.
The next day, his routine repeated.
Breakfast.
Medicine.
Rest.
And his father, Ken went to work,his brother Tiyan went to school and his mother Dhriti followed her last day routine.
And at 8:00 a.m.—
Ekant logged back into Eternal Arcana of Magic once more.