Chapter 39 - Flare Peak Fitness Camp
Atlas broke into a sprint down the hillside, the blistering heat of the scorched earth burning through the soles of his bare feet. He couldn’t afford even a heartbeat of distraction. One misstep could send him tumbling dangerously close to the glowing river of magma below. A fall like that wouldn’t end with bruises, it would be fatal.
[Name: Atlas Blackthorn]
[Level: 44]
[Strength: 170 | Agility: 94 | Intelligence: 49 | Constitution: 68 | Stamina: 75]
Though he had reached level 44, his stats were still fairly unremarkable. Altogether, he had 456 stat points. Kurogasa, on the other hand, stood at level 55 and commanded an overwhelming 788 stat points.
The gap between them wasn’t just significant, it was vast. With numbers like that, Kurogasa’s power edged close to that of a level 78 fighter. It was a glaring reminder of just how wide the gulf was between them.
Level alone wasn’t what defined a fighter’s true strength. Real power came from the art of distributing stats wisely, mastering unique skills, and honing individual talents. And even when all those elements aligned perfectly, they still weren’t enough on their own. Strength lay in understanding, knowing the exact moment to unleash a skill, when to push forward, and when to fall back.
There were so many variables, so many moving parts. This path he’d chosen offered no easy victories, no shortcuts. Surrounded by figures of immense power, Atlas was resolute. He would study them, learn from them, and absorb every shred of wisdom and technique they had to offer.
Imagine it! Experience was everything. Someone like Kurogasa had stood against hordes of high-grade beasts and survived battles that most people couldn’t even fathom. His mental toughness and battlefield intuition were already leagues beyond anything Atlas’s future enemies could hope to match.
Levels and skills might set the rules, but experience? That was how you broke them. How you stretched past your limits and did what no one thought possible.
Just like now.