Unleashed, the System bombarded Leo's mind with a torrent of notifications. There were quite a few of them, and while the majority of the text spoke about the number of deaths that occurred i few mihere were also some more special notifications. Without hesitation, he promptly skipped right to them.

  Still, that's a shit tone of Ether. Maybe mutations are not as far off as I thought…

  Level 13 reached. Css and Racial attributes have been distributed. Please assign your 3 free attributes.

  Not surprising. I probably killed about twenty Voidlings sihe st one. And the Brute and Harpy were almost the same level as me. Leo noted, giving a brief g the notifications of said kills. Not bad... Now for the attributes...

  His trol was almost back where it used to be, so Leo really didn't o put all points in Mind. However, he still had a lot of ideas and pces to improve, so more trol couldn't hurt him, like at all.

  Besides, it took way too much time to form Decoy, even if it was the first time. Leo remembered well the initial struggle to make his Esse as it should. If it wasn't for his inner beast's support, Decoy would have probably colpsed on the first attempt. Yeah, three more to Mind it is.

  Choice made, the System processed it instantly, and Leo shuddered as the rush of power traveled through his body. The pain of gaining too much strength at once had long since disappeared, repced by an almost euphoric surge of energy.

  "Nice," Leo muttered, flexing his body and reag for the Essehin. It answered instantly, and even though the trol was far from perfect, the energy still trying tle out of his grasp, its flow calmed siderably since he first awoke after evolution.

  Better than before. I wonder if I might be able to push Essence Manipution further now... Yet ahought for ter.

  gratutions, User! You have survived aed Mirage Ambush, one of a few teiques avaible to a Crimson Mirage. The struct responsible for the Ambush is now heavily weakened. Finish it to cim a user-appropriate reward. Don't wait too long, or the Crimson Mirrage will recover.

  Leo's ent eyebrows jumped high. When he sed Crimson Mirrage yesterday, it only ever mentioned supp higher-ranking Voidlings. He definitely didn't remember anything about teiques... though there art about evolving into Special Void lifeforms.

  No, that 't be it. The description would ge, and I rechecked it when I first saw this fug thing. Leo shook his head before freezing momentarily. Shit, there is still that detail about messing with the minds of lesser beings.

  When Leo first read that, he had thought this only applied to other survivors, but with what just happened, it was obvious that wasn't the case. Three full packs of quite strong Voidlings close to each other. Crimson Mirage being the Harpy's home. The Brute esg from a building right underh the Vetilim structure...

  Now it all adds up. Hell, even my gut feeling makes more seh this... Fuck.

  Upon first gnce, Crimson Mirages seemed like annoying, possibly dangerous if given time, obstacles that could be easily avoided. Yet now, with this new knowledge, those bloody flowers suddenly got ten times more dangerous. And that was without adding the potential for them to turn into 'Special Void Lifeforms,' whatever the hell that eve.

  At least I learned about it in a somewhat trolled enviro. Leo chuckled, imagining what Tyler would say if he heard his thoughts. Like always, it could have been much worse. After all, I at least didn't have to fight against creatures from Tainted Wastend.

  Grimag, Leo sshed the notifications with his cws. He had seehing that was important there; it was time to get back to work. Or at least time to take the reward from the Crimson Mirage.

  User-appropriate, wonder what's that about. Leo mused as he scaled the wall o him. With another level, his climb became even smoother than before, wasting barely any movement and strength. It made him wonder if that was how world-css gymnasts felt in their bodies.

  Well, not ting the three tails... I doubt any human has had to deal with those before…

  Pulling up for the st time to reach the roof, Leo rose to his feet and sed the viity. In hindsight, they were a bit lucky that there weren't any more Voidlings in the area, especially the Seekers. They might be small and weak, but those damned creatures were ten times more annoying than any Sger or Scuttlejaw.

  I wouldn't be surprised if this Crimson Mirge was responsible for sg away other Voidlings. Leo's eyes narrowed. And if that's the case, we should probably get going now that it is weakened. No reason to stick around for too long.

  Nodding, Leo ran until he reached a roof almost above the resting trio. They, of course, didn't notice him, True Stealth making sure of that, so he simply snatched a small rod hurled it o the group.

  Three heads instantly soward the roof, and Leo quickly poioward the Crimson Mirage in the distance. Without even waiting for a reply, he was off. The instant gre Tyler threw at him was enough to know that their alliance was as fucked as he had expected. No point in starting anument by staying among them.

  At least the path is mostly clear now. I take a moment to figure out this 'reward.'

  And that recisely what he did. The Crimson Mirage might have been quite far away, but with the almost unnatural speed Leo now possessed, he reached the big Void pnt in a matter of seds. It almost felt like flying instead of running, each step carrying him further thahought possible.

  If I'm not past human peak yet, then I am pretty damn close. Leo mused as he stopped at the base of the Crimson Mirage. The thing was easily twice as tall as the building it grew on, and sidering that from his current position, he could see most of the area, that was saying a lot.

  Now, how do I 'finish' it? Syst…

  There are several ways to kill a Crimson Mirage. In its weakeate, its Vetilim shell is very malleable and be easily overpowered, even with a punch. Finner survivors, the System reends cutting the Crimson Mirage at its base aroying the core hiding inside.

  Huh. Leo blihat's... surprisingly helpful? Did I miss something, or is this a normal procedure?

  Getting no answer, Leo sighed as he ied the structure. Except for the slightly weaker glow of the crimsoilim veins, the Mirage didn't seem any different. Still, the System said it was malleable, so he might as well try…

  Rearing his fist, Leo threw the quickest punch he could at the Crimson Mirage's stalk. Immediately upon impact, the Vetilim burst apart like a bubble, spttering in all dires.

  Leo scowled, wiping a dark sludge from his face. "Yeah... definitely malleable," he muttered, studying the small crater he had created.

  So I just have to punch or cut my way toward the core... He g his cws. But what if…

  Some people would probably think of this as a bad idea, but sidering Leo had to destroy this huge alien pnt anyway, it couldn't hurt to at least try. And so, with a shrug, he plunged his cws deep into the Crimson Mirage, and with a single flick, he freed Devour from its cage.

  The ever-gluttonous ability dived toward its new meal like it hadn't been fed for eternity. Leo's inner beast followed with a rumbling roar, assisting Devour wherever possible.

  Almost instantly, in the er of his vision, he spotted the edges of the petals above transf to dust. Some particles scattered into the wind, while others rained upon the ground, f Leo to duck his head even harder.

  Of course, it would turn to dust too... Despite the pints, he didn't stop the process. Already Leo's reserves were full, yet Devour still took more, Esserig in waves into his body like never before. Not even the corpse of Cursed Juggernaut came close, and he remembered well what happened after he ed the Voidling.

  e as much as you , but please hurry the fuck up. Devour, of course, didn't answer; it was a skill, after all. However, the beast inside roared louder, and suddenly, the flow sped up, the dust rain turning into a downpour…

  All the while, Leo stood there, glued to his spot for a minute, maybe more. The Crimson Mirage colpsed into dust from top to bottom, yet whehdrew his hand, Essence overflowing his entire body, only a moderate pile remained after the structure.

  Fuck.. This feels weird. Leo breathed in deeply, trying to calm his ragi. Maybe he shouldn't have rushed Devour so much... Doesn't matter. The results speak for themselves.

  Gng at the System messages, Leo couldn't help but grin. Not that he even could have stopped the rea. Not when he felt like someone pumped a bucket of caffeiraight into his veins.

  Devour ed: +1 Might, +1 Soul

  Crimson Mirage destroyed. Cim your reward from the core, User.

  I think I just found my new favorite target. Leo chuckled as he stepped closer to the rge pile and reached inside. He had to fil his arm a bit, but in the end, his cws slipped over something soft, almost velvet.

  Without much thought, he gripped the material tightly and tugged, the heap of dust exploding with the movement. Shit... Leo coughed as he backed off. Could have dohat slower.

  Waving his hand to clear the dark cloud, his eyes finally settled oem in his grip.

  Going by the first touside the pile, Leo k wasn't a on. Really he didn't need more than he already had attached to his body... Yet, the moment his gaze fell on the long, bck piece of velvety material, his brow instantly furrowed.

  Bringing the item higher, Leo unruffled the fabric, still marveling how soft it felt even to his cws.

  Ah, so not just a piece of useless material. User-appropriate indeed.

  It was a cloak, a very long one, with a cowl just as dark as the rest of the fabric. Leo almost instantly swung it around his body, the clothing softly settling against his shoulders. It felt like no material before, hugging him warmly like he had just returned home.

  Hell, even the spikes on his upper back didn't pierce the fabrid that was the st straw for Leo. No natural thing should feel like that.

  Identify.

  Cloak of Flowing Darkness (Rare):A cloak created by an experienced mystical tailor. Made out of fabric attuo the Darkness, this item will be handy for Users capable of utilizing said element. This cloak will automatically adjust to the User's size and make sneaking in the darkness slightly easier. Additionally, the cowl will obscure the User's face from others at a moderate distaice: This item ot be upgraded with System honing without the necessary Job.

  Flowing Darkness... Fitting. Leo mused, running a hand across the fabric. It certainly proved the System's words about the item being user-appropriate. He might not wield the Darkness, but shadows were close enough for now.

  And it hide my body quite well... With he the cloak was, it pretty muly left the bottom half of his legs for the world to see. Eveer, Leo didn't o bother tying it together, as it magically ected on both edges, just beh his , f a seamless and smooth material.

  All in all, a very useful item that didn't eve in a way too much. Of course, the cloak definitely wasn't made for open battle, but that wasn't really a problem in the long run.

  Now if it could only hide me from Identify and cover my fapletely. That would make the meeting with the group much easier... at least in the beginning.

  Leed, pulling the hood up. Oh well, you 't have everything. This is still more than what I expected.