Leveling Endlessly with the Strongest System

Knowing the risks involved, Roy decided to embark on the quest alone, without involving Delilah.

Although he didn't want to leave her in the goblin's grotto, he knew that she was in no condition to fight.

She was covered in dust and appeared exhausted, with her inner world and energy nucleus almost devoid of aura. Moreover, her stamina was almost depleted, and her energy was significantly low. If she continued to use her soul-herding ability, her soul could become destabilized, and she could fall into a coma.

Roy didn't want that to happen to her. He had endured it once, and he knew how bad it felt. The helpless feeling of watching death approach but being unable to do anything was worse than anything.

『You have called upon your First Shadow!』

To ensure Delilah's safety, Roy summoned Shadowless and entrusted him with the task of guarding her with his life.

With his hand on his chest, Shadowless promised to protect her with his life like a true gentleman, earning a nod from Roy.

『You have transferred a portion of your power to Shadowless』

Roy transferred his Mythical-level True Mage Class and Sword Creation Ability to Shadowless, which enhanced his combat ability, making him better equipped to protect Delilah. Additionally, to add wings to the tiger, he gave Shadowless the Dragon's Pond, a powerful item made from the blood of his ancestor, the Crimson Dragon Yulran. The Dragon's Pond was the item he obtained back in the Ancestral Land of the Baldwin. It could exert immense pressure, dominating anyone below the aura master stage, and even those in the aura master stage would be hard-pressed by it.

Roy's decision to task Shadowless with protecting Delilah was understandable. The fragmented world under Roy's control was badly damaged, and he sensed that gaps in its defenses connected it to Ashen Land.

These gaps acted as openings through which the mystifying and deadly inhabitants of the fragmented world could invade the Goblin's Grotto.

Therefore, Roy cut off a portion of his strength to safeguard Delilah, whom he had come to consider his woman, even though he was yet to legalize her status in his harem.

Delilah furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at Roy.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked, feeling puzzled.

"I am going to investigate the place the zombie came from, but I can't leave you defenseless in a place that's constantly under the threat of being invaded by the monsters of the ashen land. So I'm increasing security around you," Roy explained, his expression serious.

Delilah's confusion only deepened.

"But haven't you already found what you were looking for? I saw how happy you were when you got that soul shard and siphoned its powers."

"There's something important at that place. It concerns the safety of the world. I have to get it, no matter what," Roy replied truthfully.

"How do you know?" she asked.

"I have this innate ability where I hear a voice in my head that tells me things that have always proven to be invaluable. And this voice told me about it," Roy explained, making an effort to hide the system's existence.

It's not like he didn't trust Delilah. It's just that he was afraid that sharing his greatest secret might put her in harm's way.

Delilah's eyes widened in surprise as she listened to Roy's explanation, but she wasn't too confused.

There were clans of people born with mystical abilities in this world. The Baldwins were a perfect example of it.

Thus, it wasn't impossible for her to digest that Roy, on top of all his abilities, had a voice in his head that told him valuable information from time to time.

"Can I come with you? I don't want you to face any danger alone. We came to the Ashen Land together, and I want to leave it together too," she pleaded, gripping his arm.

In reply, Roy shook his head gently.

"I'm sorry, but you're in no condition to fight. You need to rest and recover. Stay here with Shadowless, and I promise I'll be back soon," he said, patting her head like always.

Delilah knew Roy was right. She knew her condition better than him. She felt dizzy and sore all over her body, and she was in no position to fight. Although she was reluctant, she could only give in to him.

Besides, even if she went, she would only be a burden.

"Must you go all alone?" Delilah asked him in a voice laced with anxiety.

"I'll be fine. I'll be back before you know it," Roy said before disappearing into the hole in the wall.

"Please be careful," Delilah called out after him.

"I will. You take care, too," Roy's voice echoed back as he walked towards the hole the zombie he killed had staggered out of.

There was a deep sense of purpose in his stride.

'Stone of history, I am coming for you!'

Roy strode confidently into the mysterious hole that was submerged in darkness, and as he took that fateful step, he felt his body begin to tingle, and then he was gone.

『Ding! Congratulation. You have entered the southern underground area of the Ashen Land!』

When he opened his eyes, he was no longer in the dark, damp cave. Instead, he found himself standing on the edge of a cliff with a breathtaking view before him.

Above him, the sky was a canvas of stars, twinkling like diamonds in the night.

Below him, there was a dense forest, its dark canopy spreading out for miles around.

Moreover, in the distance, he could see the ruins of an ancient city, its crumbling walls and broken columns standing as a testament to the passage of time.

But it wasn't just the beauty of this new world that caught Roy's attention. It was the eerie silence that pervaded everything around him.

The trees were barren and lifeless, their twisted branches reaching up like bony fingers.

The ruins below were silent, their halls and chambers long since emptied of the people who once called them home.

Even the air itself seemed to hold its breath, as if waiting for something to happen, as if waiting for that fateful someone to bring life into this Godforsaken realm!

"How can this be considered an underground area? It even has a starry sky to light up the night."

Roy wasn't expecting it.

Thus, he was surprised.

Suddenly, a chill ran down his spine as if someone was watching him. His sixth sense was telling him that something sinister was luring in the shadows, eyeing him, but it didn't intend to harm him.

He didn't like the feeling of being spied upon and intended to do something about it.

However, before he could act, a hot breath tickled his ear, and he heard a whisper,

"Welcome... to your birthplace."

"Who?!" Roy's heart leaped into his throat as he spun around, but there was no one there.