Leveling Up by Executing Monsters

So this is Elolo? And this is her home?

But why is she locked in her room?

Could it be because... she wanted to run away, but her dad found out, so he...

’Dammit, what kind of sicko father is he? To tie up such a beautiful, cute girl in her room?’

But from what I remember, isn’t her father a High-ranking Powerhouse? One who enjoys fishing, researching Ancient Relics, and is skilled in engineering?

As Lloyd mulled it over, a wave of indignation surged within him, tinged with a hint of guilt.

Although it had been Elolo’s own idea to go out for a walk and see the world, and Lloyd hadn’t incited her, he had encouraged her to be ’strong’ and ’brave.’ He had even offered a little extra help. That made him an accomplice, more or less...

Fortunately, that sicko father of hers had only locked her up for now. He hadn’t yet crossed the line into complete depravity, and Lloyd saw no bruises or scars on her delicate body.

But why was she so still? And why couldn’t he hear her crying?

Lloyd pondered for another moment, then tried calling out a greeting.

But Elolo didn’t react at all. She remained just as numb and dazed as before.

Lloyd tried using [Probe] again, wanting to see Elolo’s Attributes.

But [Probe] failed. There were no results?

’Is the skill being jammed?’

Lloyd had no choice but to reach out and try to touch Elolo’s shoulder, to see if he could wake her.

But his fingers passed right through her round, lovely shoulder...

’Uh... I don’t have a physical body?’

’Does this mean I’m in some kind of Soul Emergence state? Or is it Dual Soul and Body? A nocturnal trip of the Yin God?’

Lloyd felt he was in a strange, delicate state...

Fortunately, his inspiration was still usable. He silently apologized to Elolo and then sent out more of his inspiration, intending to give her a thorough, full-body examination.

The moment his inspiration seeped into Elolo’s body, Lloyd heard a series of panel notifications:

[Ding! Madness Value +5]

[Ding! Madness Value +32]

[Ding! Madness Value +8]

[Ding! Madness Value +11]

The notification sounds were incessant. Their intensity varied, but they came at an extremely high frequency. He could see the messages on his panel scrolling past at lightning speed, like a flooded chat window.

It went on for several minutes with no sign of stopping, the Madness Value jumping up and down, from a few points to several dozen at a time.

’Why is this happening? This is even more absurd than a Karmic Demon!’

’This girl... What exactly is she...’

Lloyd couldn’t help but wonder. The girl who looked so slender and docile on the outside had suddenly become bizarre and mysterious.

But thankfully, this low level of Spiritual Contamination was still within Lloyd’s comfort zone. He didn’t feel dizzy or unwell, just annoyed by the constant noise in his ears.

Lloyd controlled his inspiration and continued examining Elolo’s body.

’Uh... So flat...’

’Even if you combined her with my sister, they still wouldn’t measure up to Weiya...’

’Wait! That’s not right!’

Lloyd remembered checking on Elolo’s condition during the meeting. He knew roughly what she looked like, but seeing her now in "person," she was even more charming and cute. Her jade-like feet were especially delectable...

But the impressive, proud curves that had left such a deep impression on him before were gone, replaced by the... broad-minded state before him now.

’Don’t tell me you edit your photos?’

Lloyd filed that question away and continued his examination.

Hmm... Her body was healthy, her organs were young and functioning normally, just at a very relaxed pace, like someone who was fast asleep.

But why were her eyes open? And why was she crying so silently?

And why couldn’t he [Probe] a body that had a structure and internal organs identical to a human’s? Why was it constantly emitting Spiritual Contamination?

Lloyd’s gaze couldn’t help but travel upward, from her straight, slender calves to her pretty, tear-streaked face. He was struck by a poignant beauty that would make anyone’s heart ache with pity.

Her brain was the only area he hadn’t examined yet.

But that was a place he couldn’t recklessly touch with his inspiration. It was extremely dangerous. The slightest misstep could easily brush against her thoughts and memories—a private Restricted Area that not even a Saint would dare to touch.

So generally speaking, unless you were an Extraordinary Being of the [Wisdom] path, which specialized in the domain of thought, it was best not to have any funny ideas about it.

But Lloyd had no other choice. He could only carefully control his inspiration, approaching bit by bit, trying to get a sense of Elolo’s mental state.

But the moment his inspiration got close, it and his uncanny Intuition went on strike together, screaming warnings at him.

Lloyd quickly pulled back his inspiration, abandoning the reckless attempt.

However, in that brief instant his inspiration drew near, Lloyd faintly heard the sound of crying again.

So she really was crying, but her body wasn’t showing any corresponding signs. It was as if her consciousness couldn’t control her body at the moment. Had her consciousness been forcibly isolated?

In this state, she probably couldn’t hear, see, or feel anything. Just thinking about such an experience was enough to make one’s skin crawl...

’Dammit, that sicko father. Does he really have to be so cruel to his own daughter?’

’Did he get Elolo by losing the 50/50 on his gacha pity pull?’

Lloyd cursed him out a couple more times in his head, then left a bit of his inspiration on Elolo to continue absorbing the Madness Value. He floated off her bed and spread out the rest of his inspiration to inspect her fairy-tale-style bedroom.

Holy hell. Under the patterns on the ceiling, beneath the rug on the floor, behind the wallpaper on the walls—all of it was covered in suppressive Orbits.

And their specifications, strength, complexity, and precision were even more robust than those on the -6th floor of Tower Nine.

Combined with the chains on Elolo’s neck and ankles, you could say the only thing missing was a few white steel spikes...

’This probably isn’t your average sicko father anymore...’

Fortunately, these Orbits weren’t active. It felt like they were just a precaution, in case of emergency.

But Elolo clearly didn’t have strong Spiritual Power. Lloyd had discovered that during his examination; her Spiritual Power level was probably just a little over ten.

Cursing inwardly, Lloyd floated toward the bedroom balcony, wanting to see the view outside.

But he couldn’t get there. It felt like something was pulling him back.

He then realized his range of movement was limited to a two-meter radius around Elolo. He couldn’t even reach the bedroom door...

’This is getting a bit tricky.’

Lloyd muttered to himself. He had no choice but to return to Elolo’s side and turn his attention to the two invisible chains.

Was this some kind of ability? Or a special craft?

Just as he was preparing to study the chains, he was suddenly hit by a strong sense of discomfort.

It was coming from his physical body, far away in his own bed...

Then, a flash of light and shadow rewound rapidly before Lloyd’s eyes. In an instant, he was back in his own bedroom, yanked from Elolo’s chambers.

A heavy exhaustion washed over his entire body, as if he’d just run a dozen kilometers and then gotten into a brawl with dozens of people. He couldn’t fight it and fell dead asleep, stiff as a board.

It wasn’t until 6:00 AM the next morning that Lloyd, prodded by his internal clock, slowly began to stir.

"Ugh... Did I... pass out from exhaustion last night?"

Lloyd rubbed his forehead, which was slick with sweat. He casually grabbed the small kitten by his pillow and used it to wipe his face.

Then he remembered Elolo and quickly returned to his [Thought Realm] to check on her.

But he didn’t hear her pitiful crying this time...

Lloyd found the puddle of silver liquid metal he had left last night. It had completely solidified into the shape of a Spiral Tower, as if branded onto the ground. It could no longer change shape, nor could it be returned to its small bottle.

He reached out to touch it. The surface was as cold as metal and somewhat prickly. He wondered if it could even be cleaned up.

But this was very strange. This was clearly his [Thought Realm], wasn’t it? Why would a physical object from reality be forcibly left behind in his own mindscape?

This question led Lloyd to a new, more terrifying one the more he thought about it:

Why can things from the real world take effect inside my [Thought Realm]?

He had brought items into his [Thought Realm] before but had never tried to use them. Last night, he’d been desperate and willing to try anything, so he’d used the newly acquired bottle of liquid metal. His consciousness had then used [Infiltration] to go to Elolo’s side, and he hadn’t had time to think about these issues.

And speaking of which, Lloyd had always felt that his Thought Realm was a bit strange, completely different from what was described in books...

Whether it was the desolate, apocalyptic landscape, the bizarre spires that seemed to be recording—or perhaps commemorating—something, the verdant grass underfoot, the small blue-and-white flowers and white coral decorations, or the increasingly sentient Tentacle Grass...

None of it matched the description of a [Thought Realm] found in books...

’So is my [Thought Realm] just different from everyone else’s?’

’Or... is this not my [Thought Realm] at all?’

The more Lloyd thought, the more questions he had, and the more confused he became. But there were too many problems to think about and deal with right now. He couldn’t spare the attention for this one, so he shook his head, pushing aside the questions for which he had no clues. He had to get Elolo out first.

But this time, as he stared at the tower-shaped pattern formed by the solidified liquid metal, the ’Dual Soul and Body’ phenomenon from before didn’t occur.

’Is it because Elolo isn’t crying?’

’Maybe she cried herself out and actually fell asleep?’

’Nothing I can do then. I’ll just have to come back and check again later.’

Lloyd muttered to himself and returned to the real world. Then he opened his panel to see how much Madness Value he had farmed last night.

Holy hell, he’d gained 3 levels?!

That was just... wow!

He remembered his inspiration had only been on Elolo for about half an hour last night, right?

And he’d received nearly 20,000 points of Spiritual Contamination?