Mash decided it was a good time to check his status and see what he had gained. Unlike the others, he would have some permanent benefits from eating the demons, not to mention all the levels from decimating an army. Despite the sad scene behind him, it couldn’t completely shut out his eagerness.

Name: Mash Stellumbra Class: Draconic Thunder-wood Imitation

Level: 64 → 78

Health: 1800 / 1800

Energy: 3110 / 3110

Fortitude: 163 → 174 + 6 → 180

Endurance: 100 → 111

Strength: 115 → 121 + 9 → 130

Agility: 120 → 127 + 23 → 150

Intelligence: 160 → 163 + 37 → 200

Wisdom: 83 → 90

Charisma: 76

Free Stats: 0 → 75 → 0

Skills: Hunt, Thunder-wood Creation, Inhuman Hibernation, Monstrous Transformation, Thunder-wood Imitation, Draconic Domain, Adaptable Monster Core, Monstrous Humanity, Wooden Body, Mimic’s Avarice

Draconic Domain (Passive): Your eyes just weren’t enough. Sense the changes in the mana around you. Connect to the mana in your space and inherently understand the nature of the mana. Your presence suffuses the space, weakens the magic of enemies beneath you.

Current Range: 17 feet → 21 feet

Mash was right about one thing; he had gained a lot from the fight. His intelligence and wisdom didn’t change that much despite the numbers of demons that he ate, and he guessed that was mostly since most of the creatures didn’t seem to be focused on those stats. Only the black and purple ones felt particularly intelligent. It was clear that most of the gains from his skill went to his physical attributes. He wondered if at some point they stopped giving him any improvements, as there would certainly be diminishing returns as his level increased.

Fourteen levels were significant, but it felt a little low considering what he did. He had killed hundreds of demons, most of which he guessed was around level sixty. Not to mention the black and purple ones that were way stronger. Though, he didn’t kill the purple one but expected to gain something from it. Well, he had gained some things from the creature. The anti-magic affinity that Priscilla had been able to take advantage of would become a huge strength. At the very least, he knew what he was going to practice next. While the black flames and lightning were useful, he didn’t think either was better than his lightning. He also needed to see what the forms would give him, but he would heed the king’s advice and test it later, away from the eye of the public.

He used his free points as soon as he saw how many he had. He still believed that there were other thresholds that needed to be passed and took the opportunity to raise his intelligence to 200. Also, he realized he needed to take better advantage of his dragon form. It was the only way he could compete with higher-level opponents. It boosted his physical abilities, and he assumed it would be proportional to his base attributes. He decided that he should invest in his physical attributes, and after losing to the demon knew he needed to improve his speed and strength. His speed was the more important of the two, as he needed to be able to keep up with things to hit them. The high-level demon showed him where he was lacking. He didn’t expect to magically become it's equal, he just needed to do what he could.

Also, he needed to deal with the additional body of Priscilla. If he left it as it was, he would come to rely on the boost it gave, but he was planning on leaving it with his family. Summoning one of Priscilla’s true bodies, he made her hang around his neck like an accessory for now. He had noticed when it had been completed, the improvements to his mental capacities were noticeable. He didn’t want to get used to it since he planned on leaving it here. Even if he was leaving, he wanted some way to keep in contact, and giving one of Priscilla’s bodies to Arthur or Luna would work. That’s where he wanted to go now. They were both still in the castle, and it shouldn’t be too hard to find them.

As he left the room, he was a bit surprised to see a knight posted outside of his door. Mash couldn’t make out any details, as the man was wearing a full set of armor. It looked like he was guarding the door, and he seemed a little surprised to see him moving. Since the man was just standing there, Mash took the opportunity to question him.

“Do you know where my siblings are?”

The knight turned to him at his words before nodding firmly. After which, he started heading down the hall, and Mash followed behind him. Was he not able to speak? It was rare for people to have impairments like that, but it wasn’t impossible. Mash didn’t really know how to act around someone like that, nor did he want to press for answers as that sounded like the wrong thing to do. Silently, the knight led Mash to a much larger room. The halls were long, and the doors varied in size and form. The room he was taken to was behind a set of double doors, and Mash guessed it was a communal room of some kind.

As he opened the wooden doors, Mash was greeted by a dining room. It was larger than the one in his brother’s place, and the table could easily seat twenty or thirty people. However, only five seats were taken currently. Alex wasn’t there, though he guessed that Luna didn’t need a watcher when in the castle. Mash took a seat beside his sister and proceeded to tell the others of what the king had said.

“That’s not fair. You can’t be blamed for it.”

His sister’s indignation made Mash feel a bit better, but he still blamed himself. It wasn’t out of logic, but he couldn’t avoid thinking that way. Even if his presence only slightly sped up the event, he would still believe that he was to blame.

“I don’t know how the king knows, but he is right to take the precaution. Even if it is unfair, I can understand the decision.”

Mash tried to appease his sister since she looked like she would go and try to yell at the man. While Mash doubted that the king could actually punish Luna, he didn’t think he wanted her to do something like that. Plus, Mash was telling the truth, knowing that he would make the same decision in the man’s position. Mash slowly turned his head to the others, though he didn’t get to say anything before Jill spoke.

“Before you say something stupid, I’m just going to tell you that I’m sticking around. After the fight yesterday, I think I can confidently say that I’m pretty invincible. And, for what it's worth, I think Red is too, at least kind of.”

She sounded absolutely certain, so Mash didn’t try to protest. She had been able to avoid the purple demon, even though she had less stats than it. Not to mention, that she had gained her fair share of levels. How many demons had she killed for her to have gained so many? Mash turned his attention to Red as Jill finished speaking.

“Fine, I’ll tell you. If the king knows so much about you, then there isn’t really a point trying to hide information here. He probably has a way to find out whatever he wants. I’m an undead now and will survive so long as some of my blood remains.”

She sounded almost casual as she spoke, but her voice cracked as she said the word “undead.” Mash spoke without thinking.

“You died!”

His mind raced with the implications. Red had died in the previous battle, and someone had brought her back to life. That was supposed to be taboo though, and naturally, his gaze fell upon Luke. Even without saying anything, the uncomfortable way that Luke was looking had let Mash understand the situation. Not wanting to push the subject Mash let his mind wander as he contemplated what that would mean for them.

“I think leaving the city, sounds like a good idea. And something we would have needed to do even without the King’s request.”

Red didn’t sound sad, in fact, she seemed eager. However, he did notice her gaze kept glancing down on her chest. Mash didn’t know what had happened but wasn’t so dense as to not be able to read the signs. Mash decided to move on, and change subject to something away from Red’s condition. Mash let the body of Priscilla uncoil from around his neck and handed it to Luna.

“Keep her with you. This is one of her bodies and can tell you if I’m safe or not. Also, will let me know if you guys are in trouble. She can’t talk to you yet, but I might be able to figure something out. Plus, she should be able to do things like write. The communication won’t work when I’m in a dungeon, but the safety part should still work.”

Priscilla sent Mash a simple confirmation and suggested that he might have an affinity for mental magic from the cat thing he fought. She explained more in another message.

“Mental affinities tend to be weak against most intelligent creatures. However, learning something like mental communication shouldn’t be too difficult. It just wasn’t a priority.”

Priscilla’s thought process made sense, but he still wanted to learn the skill. Being able to understand beings that he couldn’t speak to would do a lot to help him understand what creatures were evil. Plus, it would have let him learn more about the demons. He still remembered how the thing had tried to communicate with him, and he wished he knew what it had said.

Luna accepted letting the body of Priscilla run up her arm. She whispered something to it, and Mash watched as it coiled around her arm like a bracelet. Currently, Priscilla’s scales were extremely dark shades of blue and green, though the colors were more pronounced when the light hit them.

“I think this might be better than your previous gift.”

She still didn’t sound happy, but her mood did seem to improve. Mash didn’t consider what level Priscilla would be considered to be now but figured that his sister had a very high-level accessory. As Luna stared at the new bracelet, her eyes went a little wide. She stood up abruptly.

“I will see you later, I can get something for you too.”

Luna rushed out the door, and Mash wondered what she was talking about. Mash was curious, but he was also aware that his brother had remained silent thus far. Mash wanted to know what he was thinking and turned to face him while speaking.

“I don’t think I will be here till my contract runs out.”

Arthur rolled his eyes, before giving Mash a response.

“Don’t bother, I know you didn’t plan on staying. However, I would like to hear what your plans are.”

His gaze swept over everyone, and they spent the next half an hour discussing what they planned on doing. Two days ago, Mash would’ve wanted to take a break. To find some time to relax, but now, all he wanted to do was get stronger. Honestly, Mash couldn’t stop. Even if becoming high level at such a young age would be annoying, he wanted to be strong enough to protect those around him. That was the only way he could live freely. He advocated for visiting more dungeons, preferably ones with altered time. He wanted to get older quickly, though that would mean that he would miss years of his sibling’s life. That thought was depressing, but he knew that the longer he stayed with them, the bigger the risks they faced.

The others mostly agreed with the plan, but only after Luke and Jill had handled some details with Arthur. Arthur would inform their families of the situation and help Luke’s family get situated in the capital. Apparently, Luke had found the time to purchase a house and were on their way to the city. Jill’s family didn’t plan on moving yet but would consider it now that they were allowed to return. Red didn’t say anything, she probably felt like Mash did. Neither of them could really live in cities as they had before. After they had set some of their plans, Mash realized what the implication of the conversation was.

Each of them was preparing to be gone for years and taking care of their families if any of them died. The others could return when they wanted, but Mash was not going to come back for years. He needed to be a lot stronger if he wanted to be around his family. Jill would eventually be able to teleport even more freely, and visiting her family would become simple for her, but even that was probably years away. Honestly, of the three of them, her desire to travel with him was the most confusing. While Luke and Red would have some issues living in cities, Jill was beyond any of those restrictions or worries. In fact, with her skills, she would be able to succeed with almost anything she did. Mash didn’t bring that up though, as she seemed determined to join them for some reason. With all that out of the way, they could relax a bit, knowing that they had a plan for the future.