"Selene" Seran repeated, as if unwilling to forget her name.
"Selene" as if trying to etch its sound into his mind.
Satisfied with finally giving a true name to his fortune, he returned to his apartment.
Throughout the entire walk, a smile that refused to fade remained on his face.
Once the door closed behind him, Seran stepped inside and pulled out the black Ferrum container.
He didn't hesitate this time.
He opened it.
Inside, two swords rested within their sheaths.
Even before touching them, he could feel it—
These were on a completely different level from anything he had ever used before.
He reached in and drew the first.
A longsword.
The blade stretched to roughly one hundred and ten centimeters, forged in a clean, refined silver that caught the light without glare. Its surface was flawless, yet not lifeless—there was depth to it, a subtle texture that hinted at something far beyond ordinary metallurgy.
The hilt was wrapped in elegant black leather, minimalistic yet perfectly balanced in his grip. No excess. No decoration. Only purpose.
He set it aside with care and picked up the second.
Shorter.
Around seventy centimeters.
A companion blade.
It shared the same silver tone, the same precise craftsmanship—but felt faster, lighter, made for closer, sharper exchanges.
A matched pair.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
Tier 2 material…
Even without being told, he could feel it.
These weren't ordinary alloys.
There was resistance inside the structure itself—a faint density that didn't belong to conventional forging. Something more resilient. Something almost… alive.
Claws.
It clicked instantly.
These weapons had been forged from the remains of a T2 Evox.
A faint smile formed on his lips.
Ferrum hadn't held back.
He tried coating them in mana.
The flow was smoother. Cleaner. Less energy was wasted.
A direct result of the blade's superior quality.
"Now there's nothing left but to test them," he thought, staring at his weapons.
A forest was being crossed by a young man, the grey and black tones of his equipment blending into the environment as he moved.
Every T0 Evox in his path didn't even have time to understand what was happening before the light in their eyes went out.
"Where are you? I have a debt to settle" he muttered as he ran.
He pushed deeper into the forest for another two kilometers, reaching the place where that T1 had stolen his prey.
"I hope you're still alive… and that no one has taken this pleasure from me…"
His senses finally caught it.
A presence that stood apart from everything he had encountered so far.
A feline the size of a school bus.
Two sabers of bone protruded from its maw. Its eyes burned orange, matching the striped pattern of its fur, black lines flowing across its body like living ink.
It was feeding on the remains of a smaller prey.
Playing with it.
"There you are" Seran murmured, excitement rising within him.
The mana radiating from the creature confirmed it—it was already on the verge of becoming a T2.
He decided to face it head-on. No gadgets. No external support. Just him.
I will kill you with my own strength… and my blades.
He dropped from the tree and revealed himself.
His new longsword appeared in his right hand.
Sunlight slid along its edge, scattering cold reflections.
The beast didn't react.
It swallowed one last bite.
Its mouth and claws still dripping with blood.
Its orange eyes locked onto Seran's silver ones.
The air tightened.
As if the world itself was holding its breath for the clash between Tower and Evox.
The ground shifted beneath them.
And then—
It began.
Both shot forward at the same time.
"Chrono Cognition."
"Myoforce Resonance."
Seran activated his two personal techniques.
In his fractured perception of reality, the beast's body ignited with an orange aura.
It, too, was fighting at full output.
The impact of sword and claws shattered the air around them.
Muscle met muscle. Force met force.
And both were pushed back.
Neither yielding even an inch.
They moved again.
Seran pulled mana through his body, accelerating his internal rhythm.
His silver aura turned faintly red.
With a horizontal slash, he tore through the creature's left flank.
Flesh split open.
First blood.
The quality of his new blade was undeniable—cutting through flesh as if it were nothing.
Like butter…
But the T1 reacted instantly.
Its tail, previously used only for balance, stiffened.
In an instant it transformed into a whip of muscle and fur, striking toward Seran.
He raised a mana shield.
The impact exploded outward.
He was pushed back only a few steps.
A grin formed on his face.
And he dove back in.
Compared to a month ago—when he had been interrupted mid-fight against a primate—Seran was an entirely different Tower.
Colder.
His blade tore through the beast's right ear, stunning it mid-roar.
More focused.
A compressed mana shot pierced its left shoulder, shattering the joint.
More skilled.
He evaded each claw strike with precise timing, rhythm, and control.
If that earlier Seran fought this one, he wouldn't last a second.
And then—
He activated his final technique.
"Time on Edge."
A silver field with faint blue flickers expanded around him—five meters in radius.
The moment the T1 stepped inside it, its movement slowed dramatically.
What had once been a threat even to F1s was now reduced by half in speed.
Its momentum was cut short by a cold blade that cleanly severed its neck.
Its head fell away from its body.
"Thud."
Gravity claimed the corpse as Seran's aura faded.
He cleaned his blade with a pulse of mana, then looked down at his fallen opponent.
"I have changed… while you did not. And that is why you died."
"The past follows us. But the future is what awaits."
He said it as if engraving the moment into reality itself.
A moment forged from change, choices, sacrifice, risk, and effort.
Calmly, precisely, he extracted the core.
An orange core—denser than a normal T1, almost saturated with energy.
A clear sign that if he had waited longer, this creature would have become a T2.
He stored both the core and the carcass in his ring, then continued his solo expedition to gather more resources.
While moving, he thought:
I am an F1 beyond the standard. I don't think anyone with only one month of activity could kill an Evox of this level alone… most of it is thanks to my affinity…
Hours passed.
Eleven T1 and dozens of T0 had already fallen.
While extracting the twelfth core, still focused, a sudden disturbance in mana slammed into his senses.
And instinctively, he twisted his torso—
A blade aimed at his back, one that would have pierced his lung or heart, only grazed his right shoulder.
A man stood there.
A red bandana covered the lower half of his face. His equipment matched its color. Black eyes and black hair framed a cruel, almost feral expression.
He ran a finger along the blade, collecting Seran's blood, and stared at it for a moment before speaking.
"I thought I'd end this quickly… but it seems you prefer suffering."
His eyes twisted with killing intent.
"I've been watching you for hours, extracting cores meant for me. Empty your ring, and I'll end you swiftly."
His voice shifted mid-sentence, unstable, as if even his mind couldn't maintain a single tone.
Seran thought:
Who the hell is this bastard… and what does he mean he's been watching me for hours?
Impossible I didn't notice him… unless he's lying. Or maybe… he isn't.
But his thought was cut short.
"You're mine!!!"
The red figure moved.
His dagger ignited with a dark aura—almost black, yet not fully.
A wave of condensed energy was released.
At this distance, there was no time to dodge.
But for Seran, time was never just time.
It was something else entirely.
Something he controlled.
"Time on Edge"
The world slowed.
The dark wave sank into a field of blue light born from his silver aura.
And Seran slipped past it effortlessly.
But—
The man was gone.