n

n

n

n

"To the ancient ruin?

" Amanda asked, confused.

n

"Oh,

" Souta raised his eyebrows, realizing he had forgotten that only a few people involved in the mission knew about the ruin. He carefully explained its location to Amanda.

n

"Hm, so Elder Hanmi is there? And I need to find the Ninth Head of the Dragon Council?

"

nSouta nodded.

n

"Alright, I'll do it,

" Amanda agreed.

n

"Also, you can train there for a while. There are plenty of high-level resources. You can use our share,

" Souta added.

nA few minutes later, Amanda and Isabella departed, heading straight for the ancient ruin. Souta hoped that Alexander was still there.

nShaking his head with a smile, he said,

"That girl Isabella... She's growing too fast. By next month, she'll probably catch up to Eilish.

"

n'You don't have to talk like that. Your improvement is just as fast. When you first entered Athena's Champion, you could barely fight someone at the First Shackle. But now... there's no one at the Sixth Shackle who can match your strength. If that's not fast, then I don't know what is,' Saya remarked.

nLeaning back in his chair, Souta nodded to himself. Saya was right. When he first joined Athena's Champion, he was weak. But his strength was growing-and he would only get stronger in the future.

n

"My lord, Lady Kessa and Yuko are-

"

nBefore the voice could finish, the door slammed open, and two figures burst into the room. Bang!

nA soft body collided with Souta, knocking him to the floor. He felt a snake coil tightly around his wrist.

nSouta glanced toward the door and calmly said,

"You can go now.

"

nThe subordinate bowed and quietly left the room.

n

"Master...

" a soft voice whispered in his ear.

n

"I know, I know...

" Souta forced a smile. Glancing down at Kessa wrapped around his wrist, he asked,

"What happened in the Dream Realm?

"

n

"Dream Realm?

" Kessa tilted her head.

n

"Yeah, Dream Realm-Vanko Land.

"

n

"Um... yeah, we couldn't defeat Rank 1, so we returned,

" Kessa replied.

n

"Hmm...

" Souta stared at the ceiling, thinking about Vanko.

nThe Rank 1 Sovereign was still there, and it would be troublesome to take him down. The dream power of that monster was too strong, even for Kessa.

nSouta glanced at Yuko and Kessa. Both of them had gained the power of dreams, but it wasn't enough. In his opinion, Dream Power II and above would be more reliable.

nA piece of paper on the table floated up and into his hand, as he couldn't stand because Yuko's massive body was pinning him down. He read the reports.

nGragas was steadily increasing production output, which was good news.

nAs for the monsters on the other side of the portal, there had been some progress, but it was slow. Not everyone could advance like Souta, who reached the Fourth Stage in just a few years. Doranjan didn't interfere much in the affairs of the monsters; he simply observed and reinforced the fact that Souta was the overlord of the land.

nMost non-evolved monsters had low intelligence, driven primarily by instinct. First-stage monsters weren't much better, but they showed some improvement. The real focus was on the second-stage monsters, especially those nearing the third stage.

nHowever, they hadn't been here long enough to reach the third stage. Not even a year had passed since their arrival, so it was nearly impossible for them to advance that quickly. Even Souta needed several months to progress from the second to the third stage, and their growth was slower than his.

nThe next day, Souta stood before the portal.

nSouta glanced at Torkez, who stood behind him, and said,

"I'm heading out now. I'll leave everything in your hands.

"

n

"I understand,

" Torkez nodded.

nSouta waved before stepping into the portal, followed by two warriors from Athena's

nChampion.

nOhm!

nThe surroundings shifted, and Souta found himself standing between towering buildings. He had arrived at the headquarters of Athena's Champion in the Champion's Den.

n

"You're here,

" a man said, stepping forward with a smile, extending his hand.

n

"Good to see you, Grain Leader Carmel,

" Souta replied, smiling as he shook the warrior's hand.

nCarmel stood beside him and asked,

"How have you been?

"

n

"It's the same. I'm still training to increase my strength,

" Souta replied, glancing at Carmel.

nHis vision had partially returned, but the effects of his Galaxy Eyes still couldn't be used. However, he could vaguely sense that Carmel had reached the Fifth Shackle Realm.

n

"It's good to see you haven't lost your drive. Keep it up, and you'll reach even greater heights,

" Carmel said with a smile.

n

"Thank you.

"

nSouta briefly recalled what Vandal had told him.

nAround them, some of the warriors glanced in their direction, recognizing him.

n

"Hey, isn't that the Hero Candidate?

"

n

"You mean the Blood Lightning Monster!

"

n

"Yeah, that's him! I saw him at the Panathenaic Festival!

"

n

"It's really him!

"

nA crowd of warriors gathered, their murmurs filling the air as they looked on. Souta, Carmel,

nand the two other warriors walked past, drawing even more attention.

n

"You've become quite famous,

" Carmel said with a laugh.

n

"It's only natural, especially after the festival announcement was seen by so many warriors,

" Souta replied, waving his hand dismissively.

nOn the path of strength, fame was inevitable. He knew he would face and defeat increasingly powerful opponents in the future. Even gods, back when they were still mortal, had their journeys to godhood heard by countless people.

n

"What are you planning to do?

" Carmel asked, noticing the determined look on Souta's face.

n

"Me? You haven't heard?

" Souta raised his eyebrows in surprise.

n

"The Chief Captain only mentioned that you were likely to arrive here, nothing more. He

ndidn't say anything else.

"

n

"I see... seems like the Chief Captain wanted to keep it a surprise. I'm here to prove my position as the Hero Candidate.

"

nCarmel's eyes widened.

"You mean...

"

n

"Yeah,

" Souta nodded, a confident smile on his face.

"I'm going to speak to the higher-ups about claiming the title of Hero of Goddess Athena. I believe I've earned it.

"

nSouta was ready to prove himself.

nCarmel was taken aback. He knew this day would come eventually, but he hadn't expected it to

nbe so soon.

nHe remembered when Souta was just a normal squad leader in his Grain. Now, Souta's status in Athena's Champion had surpassed his own.

nSouta had created legend after legend, and his name had spread like wildfire, capturing the attention of countless people.

nSoon, the group arrived in front of a building. One of the two warriors accompanying them stepped forward and gently knocked on the door.

nThe door opened, and a guard stepped out, his gaze sweeping over the group. He did not conceal his aura, which was at the Fourth Shackle level.

nHe recognized both Grain Leader Carmel and the Hero Candidate Souta.

"What can I do for

nyou?

" he asked.

n

"I want to meet the higher-ups. I need to prove myself,

" Souta said.

nThe guard's emotions shifted. He knew that Souta had only recently become a Hero

nCandidate, and yet he was already eager to prove himself. It seemed rather rushed.

nHowever, the guard didn't question him. After a brief, thoughtful glance, he said,

"Follow

nme.

"

nSouta nodded and stepped forward.

nCarmel watched him go and waved his hand,

"I'll stay here and wait for your news.

"

nThe two accompanying warriors also remained behind. As Souta entered the building, the guard slowly closed the door.

nInside, the building was illuminated by the soft glow of an exquisite chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The light flickered gently, casting long shadows across the marble floors.

nSouta raised his hand, sensing the change in atmosphere. He smiled to himself before stepping forward. His footsteps echoed through the vast, empty space as he walked deeper into the hallway. Exquisite paintings lined the walls, each exuding a strange aura.

nSoon, he arrived at another door.

nHe raised his hand and gently knocked. A soft voice responded from within.

n

"What do you need?

"

n

"I need to meet the Division Commanders,

" Souta replied.

nThe door cracked open, revealing a woman with short brown hair. Her blue eyes sparkled like

ngems, her skin was as pale as snow, and her features were sharply pointed, reminiscent of elves. She wore silver-colored armor, with a pair of swords hanging at her waist.

"You're...

" The woman raised her eyebrows, recognizing him immediately.

n

"I am Grain Leader Souta of the Third Set Pallas Division, and also a newly appointed Hero Candidate of Goddess Athena,

" Souta introduced himself, raising his hand.

n

"I am Chief Captain Eleni of the Second Set Pallas Division. It's a pleasure to meet you,

" the

nwoman said, shaking hands with Souta.

nA Chief Captain.

nIt was a position higher than Grain Leader. Furthermore, the Second Set of Pallas Division was generally considered stronger than the Third Set, even across other divisions of Athena's

nChampion.

n

n