The sheriff let out a long drag and looked over to the dark castle in the distance. It was situated in the middle of the forest, looming ominously over the surrounding trees.
Above the cloud, there were storm clouds just hanging over it like a dark blanket, and it was the only part of the forest that had storm clouds.
"That’s the castle of the Great Evil."
Kiernan said, then he thanked the sheriff for taking him here and started making his way over to the castle.
"Good luck. I will get a tombstone ready for you, and even though we cannot retrieve your corpse, we can lower it empty to the ground.
"What’s your name for the tombstone?"
"I’m not dying, so I am not telling you my name."
Kiernan said, and he then jumped—flying like a majestic eagle—and he crossed the distance between him and the rageful castle in a single bound.
The sheriff just chuckled, dropped the cigarette butt, and stomped it under his boot.
With his footsteps echoing down the castle’s hallway, Kiernan saw the double doors of the throne room in the distance.
He formed a fist with his right and punched through the double doors.
The double doors flung open, revealing a long-cloaked, hunchbacked man sitting on the throne, his eyes stitched close and a toothless smile on his face.
"Who dares to come to my castle?"
The Great Evil asked.
Kiernan said, and unleashed his dominating aura that made the castle shake right down to its foundation.
With teeth missing, the Great Evil let out a sinister laugh that echoed through the halls. His laughter was ugly.
He stood up from the throne. It was already clear from the moment that Kiernan laid his eyes on him that he was tall.
About five meters tall, broad-shouldered, with a big body, and wearing a dark cloak that covered most of his body.
There were five rings on his right hand and five on his left hand. They were all different colored.
In his right hand, there were blue, red, green, yellow, and black rings.
On his left hand, there were purple, orange, pink, white, and silver rings.
"You’ve waltzed into the wrong place, brat."
With an ugly laugh, the Great Evil formed a fist with his ring-wearing fingers, and then he pointed that fist at Kiernan.
In that moment, his red ring started glowing, and a flame erupted from it, spraying towards Kiernan.
It looked like the fire spat from a flamethrower!
The Great Evil hadn’t stopped laughing even for a moment.
Instead of backing off, Kiernan jumped straight into the flames, and at that moment, his claw-looking right hand swiped at the fire.
"Mastered Iron Style, Flaming Rox!"
As if the flame were under his control, he grabbed the fire, twirling it around in circles like a fiery lasso.
Then, he turned around, stared straight at the Great Evil with a cold look, and threw the fire back at him like a spear.
The Great Evil laughed, and in that moment, his blue ring started glowing, and he sprayed water all over the incoming fire, successfully putting it out.
A thick steam rose in front of him, and through the steam, Kiernan jumped through and speared his fist towards his chest.
The Great Evil brought his left hand close to his chest, and his silver ring started glowing. Silvery armor cascaded over him.
The fist clashed with the powerful silver armor, and still, Kiernan’s fist was able to make a slight dent in the armory!
With a slight grunt of pain, the Great Evil was forced a step back, his eyes widening in shock.
"No one has been able to damage the Great Silver Armor of Destruction, Annihilation, and Evil before. It has been forged in the flames of Mt. Evil and imbued with the strongest magic in all the land."
The Great Evil exclaimed.
’...What kind of name is that?’
Kiernan’s mouth twitched in ridicule, and he almost burst out laughing after hearing ’Mt. Evil.’
It was so stereotypical, and whoever made this world as part of this test definitely had a sense of humor.
"I’ve had enough of this world, so can you please let me leave?"
With a shout, Kiernan swung his fist upward and collided his fist with the Great Evil’s chin. The punch was so strong that his head was sent flying across the room.
The impact of the punch went through the castle and even speared straight through the storm clouds above.
The storm clouds dispersed, and the Great Evil collapsed on the ground—dead.
The world around him cracked like a mirror, and at that moment, it all broke apart, and he disappeared from the dark castle.
In that moment, the shouting of pedestrians, the honking of cars, and shoes shuffling down the sidewalk all entered his ears. This text is hosted at NoveI-Fire.ɴet
It sounded familiar. Very familiar.
Kiernan looked around at where he was.
He was in a back alley of sorts. A street lamp stood beside him, flickering with a dim light. There was still sun in the sky, so he couldn’t understand why the light was on.
It was most likely malfunctioning.
[Downloading completed!]
[System Level has been increased!]
[You have unlocked Master Dungeon!]
[The system is now able to manifest as a hologram in the real world]
Kiernan let out a surprised "ah" sound, and in that moment, from the corner of his eye, he was able to see a holographic figure walking down the alleyway pavement ground, touching the puddle, but not making a single splash.
The holographic figure was a twintailed girl. She looked young, like she was still in high school, but her eyes held a wisdom beyond her years.
She was wearing a school uniform that seemed strangely out of place in the dark, empty alleyway.
A white and blue blazer with a matching skirt that fluttered in the wind.
When she turned around, Kiernan was able to see her pretty face. A face that resembled a doll. She looked at him with wonder.
"Congratulations for passing the tests. And congratulations for reaching the Expert level with the system. This is the last level that the system has been designed to reach."
She didn’t sound like a robot anymore but like a real girl.