Nox and Akira had been journeying for quite a while now. After the encounter with the Valkyries, there had been silence between the two, and neither took the initiative to break it.


    From time to time, Akira sneaked a look at Nox from the corner of her eye and bit her lip. So far, they had note across any monsters, which made the walk feel extremely long and boring. Akira nced at the horizon, noticing the nket of darkness slowly chasing the sun away.


    Night wasing.


    And it would be frigidly cold.


    Akira cursed in her heart at the absence of any beasts. If one of those vile creatures had shown up, at least they''d have something to upy themselves with.


    After a while, her chest rose and fell as she exhaled deeply, suddenly stopping in her tracks.


    "Thank you." Akira''s voice was soft and hesitant.


    "It''s nothing," Nox replied casually, his tone dismissive yet calm. "You''ve helped me a lot, so it''s only natural that I help you as well." Continue reading on empire


    After the short conversation, Akira felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted from her chest. They resumed walking shortly after, and if one paid attention, they''d notice the slight hop in Akira''s steps.


    It didn''t take long before they arrived at the base of a jagged, half-snapped mountain that stretched into the dark sky.


    Akira suddenly came to a stop. Nox also did, raising an eyebrow as he sensed a powerful presence nearby, but after ncing around, he couldn''t spot anything, which made his eyes sh with confusion.


    Nox narrowed his eyes. Something is wrong, he thought to himself, still ncing around. After attuning all his senses, he noticed that the disturbance wasing from the path leading to the cave located at the base of the mountain.


    "That''s it." At that moment, Akira suddenly spoke, her tone shifting into something more serious. "The boss room of this dimension."


    No wonder.


    Nox stopped, his eyes scanning the cave entrance. After Akira''s revtion, the air around it seemed to grow thick with oppressive energy, and faint growls became much more audible.


    "Did you just say boss room?" Nox raised an eyebrow as a grin split his face. He had never fought a dimensional boss before in his life. But why would Akira bring him here? Nox turned to the nation-topping beauty beside him and saw a smirk on her pretty face.


    Something wasn''t right. He frowned. Why was she smirking?


    Sensing Nox''s gaze, Akira said with a confident posture, "I''m curious about how you''re going to deal with a dimensional boss. I know you''re strong, but how strong are you really?"


    An oppressive aura poured out of the cave and lingered in the air like an unweing guest. Although Nox and Akira stood several meters away, they could sense a pair of menacing, blood-red eyes staring at them from within the cave.


    Nox chuckled and said in a confident tone that almost sounded arrogant, "All this while, I''ve not even used 50 percent of my true power."


    Akira''s eyes trembled in shock as she heard this. Not even 50 percent? How strong was this kid? she mused to herself. Gradually, her shock morphed into a wide smile on her beautiful face.


    "Good then, that means you''ll be able to pull it off," Akira suddenly said, her eyes curving into crescent shapes as a beautiful, mysterious smile appeared on her face.


    Dimensional bosses were very rare and terrifying creatures. Their very existence was a mystery, which people believed was tied to the system statuses all Awakened could see.


    When one beast was defeated in a dimension, it didn''t simply die—it dissolved into a burst of dimensional energy. When this happened, a ce known as the reward room would be unlocked. In here, one could find a powerful treasure trove of rewards: magical items, skill books, rare materials, and sometimes even fragments of the boss''s power that could be absorbed by the victor.


    But there was more to the story.


    Dimensional bosses, also known as gatekeepers, were preserved for a reason. ording to his grandpa, they were anchors, stabilizing the delicate bnce of the dimension. Killing one could potentially lead to catastrophic events—copsing rifts or even theplete disappearance of the dimension. For that reason, killing a dimensional boss was heavily frowned upon unless absolutely necessary.


    A frown appeared on Nox''s handsome features. "Pull off what?" After learning this, one could understand Nox''s confusion and why Akira would bring him here.


    The dimension wasn''t only a livelihood for most towns and cities—it also aided Awakened in growing their strength. Although Nox didn''t know how Valha, the Valkyrie kingdom, worked, he figured it was most likely the same for them.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    So why would Akira want to cut off their livelihood? It just didn''t make sense.


    "I know the dimension would cease to exist if the boss is killed, which is why I want you to beat it and make it your pet. That way, we could not only preserve the dimension but also get the rewards." Akira exined with shining eyes, as if this was the brightest idea. "No worries, I''ll aid you even if you can''t defeat it."


    She summoned her radiant sword, and her aura red. "I''ve always wanted to feel the thrill of facing a dimensional boss and see what this reward room looks like."


    "What dimension level is this?" Nox asked. The mostmon beasts he had encountered here were King-Tier, which meant this dimension was most likely a Level Three or Four.


    "This is a Level Four dimension," Akira imed, her expression unreadable. She pointed out in a serious voice, "The dimensional beast in there is no joke. It''s likely an Emperor-Tier at minimum. Even with your strength, it''s a gamble."


    "Life is all about risks." Nox chuckled. In truth, he had also thought about taming the boss of the dimension. If he did this, wouldn''t the dimension literally belong to him?


    Akira opened her mouth to say something, but a sudden, almost imperceptible shift in the air around them made her freeze.


    Nox sensed it as well. His smirk disappeared, reced by a hard, focused expression. At first, he thought it came from the boss room, but that wasn''t the case.


    "Someone''s here," Nox said in a low voice, a fierce light in his eyes.


    Before Akira could respond, figures began to emerge from every side. One by one, armored warriors stepped forward, each wearing silver armor that gleamed under the night sky. The radiant holy glow radiating from their weapons made it clear they were Valkyries.


    At their center was Erin, her jet-ck hair tied into a tight braid that fell over her shoulder. Her piercing, deep-set emerald eyes locked onto Nox with an intensity that made Akira instinctively step back.


    Nox remained motionless, not even a trace of surprise visible on his face. Although his expression was unreadable, his sharp gaze darted between Erin and her squad, assessing their numbers, positioning, and auras.


    Erin raised a hand, signaling her squad to stop. The faint scrape of their boots on the ground ceased instantly as she said with a smirk on her face, "Princess, thank you for luring this vile intruder to this ce."