Summoned with an SSS-Rank Portal Skill

It didn't take long for the first wave of magical creatures to show up and attack them. Those bipedal fish charged forward, wielding all kinds of weapons—swords, spears, daggers, bows, and of course, staves to channel water magic.

They attacked from both close range and long distance. Individually, they weren't very strong. In fact, they were weaker than the creatures William had faced on the lower floors of the dungeon.

But their strength came from their numbers. There were a lot of them. William quickly counted around fifty charging at their group—and that was after exploring the city for less than twenty minutes.

William drew his sword and rushed toward the enemies. With his free left hand, he started channeling black fire magic, launching massive fireballs that exploded among the fish creatures, killing several at once.

Each black fireball was huge, and every time one hit, it caused massive destruction—taking out ten to fifteen of those bipedal fish in a single blow. Kurt kept his eyes on William the whole time, feeling glad they were on the same team.

The rest of Kurt's group felt the same way. Having someone that strong on their side was amazing. Facing him as an enemy would've been a nightmare.

They were all in the same party, so the experience points were mostly shared. The one who landed the killing blow got about 20% more EXP, so everyone tried their best to get kills.

But with William around, that was easier said than done. His spells were just too powerful, covering a huge area—he was basically the one doing most of the killing.

[Level UP]

[Level UP]

The experience he gained was enough to grant him two levels! Of course, that came after a good amount of time spent fighting monsters with the rest of the group. Just those fifty bipedal fish weren't enough for that kind of boost—especially with the EXP being shared among seven people.

Rena wasn't doing much in the beginning. She stood near the back, casting a few spells every now and then, but nothing too intense. It wasn't because she was slacking off—she was still checking how her body felt, making sure she was fully recovered before going all out.

Kurt and the rest of his group fought alongside them. They moved deeper into the city, finally reaching the area William had pointed out when they first arrived.

"This was the area you wanted to explore, right?" Kurt said, glancing around. "Let's hope it has something interesting this time. Last time we came here, we didn't find much. No portal, no treasure—just more monsters."

Apparently, that wasn't Kurt's first trip to the sunken city. In his previous runs, he hadn't found any signs of the portal, any valuable clues, or even rare loot. Still, it was worth it just for the sheer amount of EXP. With the monsters constantly respawning and swarming the streets, leveling up was fast—if you were strong enough to survive.

William liked that. The lower floors of the dungeon didn't offer nearly as many monsters as this place, so he was making the most of the opportunity. If he could grind a few more levels while looking for the portal, that was a win-win.

The streets up ahead twisted into narrower corridors, with collapsed buildings leaning into each other like old, sleeping giants. It was darker here, and the sounds of the city were more muted. But William felt it — there was something different about this part of the ruins.

Now that he was closer to that part of the city, William could feel a strange aura coming from it. Before, only Asura was able to sense something from that region. Being a magical artifact, Asura could feel mana fluctuations from way farther than William ever could.

As they kept walking deeper into that area, even Kurt started to notice something was different. None of those aquatic creatures came to attack them. The streets were completely empty.

"That's weird," Kurt said. "The city is usually crawling with monsters. Not sure if this silence is good or bad for us."

Kurt started to get worried. First, with no monsters around, they weren't gaining any EXP, which sucked. Second, just because it was quiet didn't mean it was safe.

What if the monsters were just hiding, waiting for a chance to ambush them?

William decided to check inside some of the city's buildings. There was nothing inside. Totally empty. No furniture, no signs of life, not even monsters. Which, at least, was a good thing.

Eventually, they ran into another group of people exploring that part of the city. They were outsiders too — people who had come from outside the dungeon.

The two groups stared at each other for a while. Kurt was the first one to step up and talk.

"Hey there," Kurt said, eyes scanning each of them. "Everything alright over here? Found anything interesting?"

The group didn't reply at first. They were sizing up Kurt and everyone else, probably trying to figure out how strong they were.

Then finally, one of them spoke. Probably their leader.

"You should leave," the man said. "Unless you want trouble."

The mood shifted in an instant. Things got tense. Kurt, despite usually being a friendly guy, hated being treated like that by strangers.

But he held himself back. Starting a fight with those people would be a stupid move. Kurt could tell—they were strong.

"Sure," Kurt said, forcing a smile. "We can check out a different part of the city. It's big enough for all of us, right?"

Even though Kurt said that, William had no intention of leaving.

He knew that part of the city was where he was supposed to go, and the fact that those adventurers were trying to push them away only made him more certain of it.

Kurt turned around, telling the rest of the group, "You heard them, let's go."

That's when William didn't move. Kurt noticed it.

"Everything alright with you?" Kurt asked.

William kept it short. "I'm not leaving. I know there's something good in this area. I'm staying."

Kurt got a little nervous. He wasn't William's friend — they had just met — but he already knew William was a great addition to their team.

His fire magic, wiping out large groups of enemies in seconds, was perfect for fast leveling. Kurt didn't want to lose someone like him.

He stepped closer and whispered, "Are you out of your mind? Didn't you notice they're strong too? Sure, we could fight them, but we'd lose people, and I'm not willing to risk that. Let's just go, alright?"

William was tired of people telling him what to do. "I already said I'm not leaving. But I don't want to mess things up for your group either. What do you think about us splitting up for now?"

"But what exactly do you plan to do here? You really think you can go up against that group? They've got at least five people who are just as strong as you," Kurt said.

William didn't get mad at him for saying that. He knew Kurt was just trying to look out for him.

And it was true—five of those adventurers had power that matched what William was currently showing. But William was hiding a lot. And those hidden cards could turn the tide of any fight. Just his demon transformation alone could shift things completely.

"Don't worry about me. I can handle myself. Like I said, I'm not leaving."

Kurt walked over to talk with the rest of his team. In the end, he decided to split off, leaving William and Rena behind. None of them wanted to risk a fight against that other group.

When the group of adventurers noticed that only the two of them had stayed, they exchanged a few looks. The leader stepped forward and said, "What happened? Did I break up your little party? Whatever. What I said still stands. Get lost."

William turned to Rena and told her to step back—that he'd handle them. Rena hesitated.She was worried.

She hadn't seen William go all out yet, so she didn't know what he was truly capable of. From her point of view, challenging a full group of strong adventurers was pure madness.

"Are you sure you can deal with them?" Rena asked, her voice low.

"I'm sure. Don't worry. Just make sure you stay out of their range," William replied.

He didn't bother to lower his voice, so of course the other group heard everything. The leader chuckled in disbelief.

"You've got guts, I'll give you that. Putting on a show of confidence like that, even when you know we're all on your level. I've never seen anything like it," he said.

"On my level?" William repeated, tilting his head slightly with a faint smirk. "You're overestimating yourself, my friend. Tell me… is it really worth dying just to keep us away from this part of the city? What are you hiding here?"

He paused, then added, "Actually, never mind. I'll find out soon enough—right after I'm done torturing every last one of you."

William stepped forward, slowly. Calm. Confident.

Each of his footsteps echoed through the empty, stone-paved streets of the sunken city.