Level Up: Voidwalker

Chapter 53: Five Ways

Following his chat with Estelle, Atlas made his way over to the orc girl who was scanning the forest. When he arrived, Grishna said without taking her eyes off the trees, ''Little Grak'Thar Gromog'ar, are you ready to move?''

''Yes, Grish, but can I see your status before we go?''

The orc girl's green eyes turned to him, her eyebrows raised, and she replied with a smile, ''A bit bold to march up to a girl and ask for her secrets, but yes, you can look.''

Name: Grishna Brokentooth.

Age: 18

Race: Orc

Class: Warrior

Level: 113

Rank: Adept.

Experience: 4920/5000

Affinity: Earth – Metal

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Attributes:

Health: 932

Mana: 2820

Strength: 2216

Stamina: 1528

Charisma: 590

Intelligence: 412

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Spells:

Attack: Lv-1: Iron Fist (8) Lv-1: Metal Bullet (7) Lv-2: Earth Bolt (3) Lv-3: Razorwind Blades (2) Lv-3: Silver Shriek (3)

Defence: Lv-1: Ironclad(7)

Support: Lv-1: Body Enhancement(10) Lv-1: Dust Cloud(2)Lv-1: Minor Healing (4)

Utility:

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Skills: Hand-to-Hand Combat (7) Spearmanship (6) Survivlist (9) Cooking (10) Tracking (6) Intimidation (7) Shield Mastery (5) War Cry (4) Lock Picking (7) Ransack (1) Hunting (3) Trapping (2)

'Grishna's strong, weaker than Estelle but not by much,' Atlas thought before instructing her to check on the other two.

Atlas went to find Artemis, chatting with Amethyst about the surrounding forest and its monsters. Once the two noticed him, the brunette turned to him and asked in her unique Greek-like accent, "What's up, Aetos?"

"Can I see both of your statuses, please? I want to compare them against mine to gauge my strength to see where I am," he asked.

Both girls nodded, and Artemis showed hers first, followed by the phoenix girl.

Name: Artemis Olympaea

Age: 17

Race: Siren

Class: Argonaut

Level: 123

Rank: Adept

Experience: 4640/5000

Affinity: Earth – Thunder - Water

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Attributes:

Health: 1334

Mana: 2120

Strength: 2408

Stamina: 2104

Charisma: 500

Intelligence: 1050

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Mana Core:

Core Rank: High Novice

Core Points: 13750/30000

Body Tempering Level: Bronze Body

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Spells:

Attack: Lv-1: Lightning Bullet (7) Lv-1: Water Arrow (7) Lv-2: Thunder Punch (5) Lv-2: Aqua Bomb (3) Lv-2: Earth Spike Lvl-2: Lighting Slash (5) Lv-3: Arc Lightning (2)

Defence: Lv-3: Gaia's Embrace (2) Lv-3: Shockwave (1)

Support: Lv-1: Gaia's Glide (8) Lv-2: Enhancement (4)

Utility:

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Skills: Swordsmanship (7) Survivlist (4) Hand-to-Hand Combat (9) Foraging (6) Stealth (5) Eaglevison (2) Lockpicking (0) Appraisal (2) Treasure Sense (2) Sling Expertise (8) Leviathan's Call (0)

'She's strong for her age and would be able to defend our rear and Amethyst,' Atlas mused. He took a moment to examine their statuses, feeling more confident about their chances during their adventures.

Name: Amethyst Flameheart

Age: 13

Race: Cosmic Phoenix

Class: Cosmic Mage

Level: 36

Rank: Novice

Experience: 300/1000

Affinity: Space

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Attributes:

Health: 312

Mana: 1524

Strength: 334

Stamina: 568

Charisma: 326

Intelligence: 264

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Mana Core:

Core Rank: Low Novice

Core Points: 9600/10000

Body Tempering Level:

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Spells:

Attack: Lv-1: Cosmic Bullet (2) Lv-1: Stellar Arrow (3) Lv-2: Cosmic Blast (4)

Defence: Lv-1: Cosmic Barrier (4)

Support:

Utility:

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Skills: Phoenix Form (Locked) Cosmic Wings (2) Cosmic Sight (1)

When Atlas saw Amethyst's status, he was amazed, realizing she would become even more powerful as she aged. He hugged the phoenix girl, who melted into his arms, speaking quietly, "I'm glad the others joined us; now we can explore most of Astoria."

Atlas nodded with a smile before kissing her on the forehead, which sent her scuttling back with a bright red face. Then, Grishna called out for them to leave. The group left their camp and traveled east.

After a few hours, Atlas took point because he wanted to kill some monsters to level up. The group was soon at the base of the Twilight Titan Mountain, where Atlas felt something watching them.

He spun around and sput dozens of cave entrances littering the side of the mountain, making him shiver. Lilith raised her head and growled while looking at the closest cave. The girls stopped walking when they noticed Atlas staring into it.

Grishna approached and touched his shoulder, "Grak'Thar Gromog'ar, never step into a cave without us. Many of the world's nightmares dwell in the dark."

''It feels like something is watching us, Grish,'' Atlas said while turning to the orc. ''Can you sense it?''

"I do, little one. But don't get too close; they might be Dark Ones waiting to pounce," Grishna cautioned before they continued.

Amethyst appeared beside Atlas, speaking nervously, "There were two monsters inside the darkness. They were watching you, Azhar'Zul, and gave off the same feeling as the Lost Prince."

'Are they part of the Chaos Army? Maybe the king sent forces ahead of the main force,' Atlas mused as he took Amethyst's hand.

The five pressed on through the forest, encountering three Rank E Forest Boars that charged at the group. Atlas swiftly drew his dagger and launched several Void Arrows at them. As the monsters closed in, he sidestepped their charge and lunged forward, plunging his dagger into the largest boar.

Atlas dragged the blade across the creature's body, swiftly ending its life. In the meantime, his Void Arrows found their mark, striking down the other two boars. Once the monsters were dead, he looted the 3 orange Monster Cores and some meat that Grishna pointed out.

They continued trekking through the thick forest until they reached a clearing. Grishna motioned for them to stop moving, but Atlas crept forward and saw a small camp of twenty soldiers.

Estelle knew who they were and whispered, ''Those are Everglade mercenaries. Maybe the king hired them to track Le Messie Élu, as they only see him as a devil.''

The other girls nodded, but Atlas commented excitedly, ''Let's attack them. What rank are they?''

"Most are Apprentices, while a few are Adepts like me, Grish, and blondie," Artemis remarked with a smile.

"My name's not blondie! It's Estelle," the blonde knight protested.

Everyone chuckled before Atlas stroked the hyperactive Lilith. "Me and the demoness will hit from the north. Grish, you take the south," he directed, then turned to the remaining three girls. "Amethyst, you stay here and sling spells at them. Artemis, attack from the west, and Estelle, come in from the east."

Atlas looked at the four girls, who nodded in agreement as he continued, ''I will rush in with Lilith and cause chaos. When I've got their attention, you rush in and attack from the rear.''

''Good plan, little one,'' Grishna said before heading south.

The other girls agreed and went to their spots. Atlas and Lilith went north and saw several men passing by as they patrolled the edge of the camp. Once the honey badger spotted her first victim, she darted out as the excitement was too much.

Lilith lunged at the shocked man as Atlas sliced the second man's ankles before firing a Void Bullet into his skull. The little monster tore the first soldier's throat out, and blood splattered over everything.

Following that, the duo stormed into the Evergladian camp. Lilith lived up to her namesake and became a demon that brought death to the soldiers. Atlas spammed Void Bullets while stabbing and slicing the surprised soldiers, but they soon regrouped.

They finally pushed him back using their advantage of numbers, only to have a Cosmic Blast fall upon them, causing a massive explosion. He skillfully used Void Guard to block incoming attacks while dodging and parrying strikes with his dagger.

Once this happened, the other girls charged in. Grishna threw a marble that shrieked as it hit the unsuspecting enemies, causing some soldiers to clutch their ears. She then moved in with her spear and killed them with several powerful thrusts.

Artemis burst out from a bush while using her sling to send mana stones slicing through the air. When the projectiles connected with the soldier's bodies, they looked like Swiss cheese before the brunette took out her sword and finished off the rest.

The Phoenix Girl rained down more Cosmic Blasts and Cosmic Bullets, peppering the enemy soldiers. Meanwhile, Estelle's shield bashed two of them, throwing the bandits off balance and allowing Atlas and the girls to take the rest out.

By the time they were finished, Atlas was breathing heavily before collapsing to the ground as he felt the experience pouring into him. Amethyst appeared from the forest and approached him with a smile.

When Atlas saw this, he returned the smile with one of his own before speaking, ''How was the fight, Amethyst?''

''It was nerve-racking but also exciting at the same time,'' she responded while holding her hand for him.

Atlas took her dainty hand and helped him up just as Grishna and Estelle approached, their eyes scanning the surroundings. The orc girl remarked, "What's the plan for the spoils?"

"We split it five ways," Atlas replied with a smile. "It's only fair since we're a team now."

Afterward, the group scattered to loot whatever they could find. While Artemis and Estelle collected coin pouches, Grishna gathered a bundle of decent swords to sell at the next city. Amethyst discovered a stash of potions she found hidden in a barrel.

Atlas sat down to rest, watching the others work, when Lilith limped over to him. He jumped up and gently scooped up the injured honey badger, who yelped in pain. Quickly, he pulled out one of the better Health Potions, coaxed her to drink it, and then poured some on her injury.

The wound began to heal almost immediately, causing him to release a breath of relief and pull Lilith into a tight hug that she happily accepted. That's when Amethyst approached them with a smile, ''You truly care for her, don't you?'' she said.

"Of course I do, just like how I care about my pigeon girl," Atlas said with a cheeky smile, earning a half-hearted punch from the phoenix girl, who giggled as a smile appeared.