[Fiona's POV]
To have been recognized as Fateless by the Tower… just thinking about it felt unreal.
A title so strong that merely signing the contract had granted me another one. Absurd. Completely absurd.
I didn't recall anything like this happening — not on any of the first three hundred Floors. Maybe it occurred on higher ones, but for it to happen on the second? Ridiculous. And yet… a part of me already knew.
This was going to be one hell of a ride.
I opened my status screen again. The words glowed faintly, and I found myself reading them over and over.
---
[Title: FatelessBound]
Tier: Unique
Status: Active
Bound To: Max (The Fateless Being)
---
Description:
Those who bear this title are eternally bound to the one who stands beyond destiny — the Fateless.
Neither slaves nor servants, they are the Echoes of the Unbound Will, walking paths unseen by gods and mortals alike.
---
Effects & Privileges
▸ [Fate Immunity — Partial]
Immune or resistant to all fate-binding, destiny-based, or prophetic interference.
▸ [Guidance of the Fateless]
Subtle intuition manifests when following the will or intent of Player Max.
▸ [Unwritten Evolution]
Classes, Titles, and Traits evolve through Unwritten Pathways — unrestricted by conventional systems.
---
My old title — Discordant Vessel — had simply vanished. Replaced, erased, overwritten by the sheer presence of this one.
I took a deep breath, shutting off the stream of panic, and followed him in silence.
Minutes later, we arrived at the edge of the Domain — a shimmering barrier marking the boundary.
As we stepped closer, glowing words flickered to life.
---
[Domain Name: Fangstep Plains]
[Terrain: Rocky Grassland]
[Area: 40 km²]
[Monster Ranks: E to E+]
[Domain Boss: One-Headed Hydra]
[Recommendation: Party of 15+]
[Domain resets in 20 minutes]
---
We were far from other players. Max hadn't said much — just a few words about the contract and entering the Domain. Nothing personal. He didn't seem like the talkative type, so I stayed behind him quietly.
But when ten minutes remained and no one else showed up, my nerves finally cracked.
"Boss Max," I asked carefully, "are we… going in alone?"
He didn't even turn. "Only Max is fine. And yes. We are. Just follow closely and don't get left behind. I'll handle the rest."
…He was serious.
I nodded like an obedient child, but inside, my mind screamed. WHAT!? We're soloing this Domain?
I wasn't built for this. My combat skills were barely decent. Still, I decided to trust him and roll with it — I wasn't exactly in a position to argue.
Ten minutes passed in a blink. The barrier shimmered, then dissolved.
It would stay open for an hour — after that, it would reappear unless the boss was slain or twelve hours passed.
He walked forward casually. I trailed behind.
A few steps later, the first wave appeared — ten or twelve E+ monsters, Stonefang Serpents.
I braced myself for battle. Max didn't even blink.
Ten glowing orbs appeared around him, burning like miniature suns.
Before I could react, beams of light erupted outward — and every serpent in front of us fell lifeless.
In two seconds.
I froze.
He collected the bodies calmly, as if nothing had happened.
"You coming?" he asked.
I blinked out of my daze and hurried after him. "I—I'm sorry. Please continue."
From there, it was a massacre.
No monster survived longer than three or four seconds — regardless of rank or number.
Toxic Horned Hares, Grasscoil Wyrmlings, Venomback Lizards, Fangstep Basilisks, Plains Venom Mantises — all fell the same way.
The orbs floated around him like burning moons, shifting from beams to blades, to arrows and fireballs. Each strike was precise, devastating, and silent.
I didn't even lift a finger. Just watched.
His hands stayed in his pockets, his face calm — almost bored.
The terrain shifted — from rocky plains to ridges, cliffs, narrow valleys.
We barely stopped, moving faster than any raid I'd ever joined.
Two hours passed. Then we arrived at a large pond, its surface glowing faintly green — venomous.
A new system prompt appeared before me.
---
[Boss Arena – One-Headed Hydra Lair]
[Area: 1 km Diameter]
[Hazards – Poison Pools | Collapsible Cliffs | Periodic Toxic Fog]
---
"Stay a little back," Max said. "I want to test something."
His golden eyes caught the light — sharp, serene, dangerous. I nodded.
He stepped forward. The fog thickened, and I caught sight of a massive silhouette — serpentine, coiled, sleeping.
Four Mistfang Drakes and three Rockhide Boas guarded the lair's perimeter.
Before I could blink, they were all dead — vaporized before their cries even escaped.
And then the Hydra stirred.
Its enormous head — five, maybe six feet wide — rose from the mist. It screeched, and the sound made the cliffs tremble.
Max didn't move.
The Hydra's jaws opened again, spewing green gas toward him.
I panicked — the attack was direct, fast, lethal — but Max just stood there, motionless.
I prepared my healing spell, ready to rush in if needed.
The poison struck.
I squinted, trying to see through the cloud — but before I could, a bright orb shot toward me and burst into a wall of fire, blocking my vision completely.
Three seconds later, the flames faded.
The orb streaked back to him, and I finally understood — he had shielded me.
That… felt strangely comforting.
Through the haze, his voice reached me, calm and cutting.
"For having that instinct to try and kill me the moment it saw me… I should give you a little respect."
He raised his right hand. The orbs moved.
Ten spheres of fire gathered around the Hydra's head and unleashed a storm of energy.
The beams melted its scales, tore through muscle, and didn't stop.
Then the orbs realigned — forming a ring around its neck.
Ten lights connected, spinning faster and faster—
—and in the next moment, the Hydra's head fell.
Just like that.
I stood frozen. I had stopped guessing which skill he was using long ago.
Whatever that was — it wasn't a system move. It was creation itself.
And then… he smiled.
That smile was terrifying.
This man was rising through the Tower — with a smile on his face.
[Player Max and Player Fiona have killed the Boss Monster of Fangstep Plains]
[You have cleared more than 50% of Dungeons, Labyrinths, and Domains]
[You are eligible for transfer to 3rd Floor]
The panels floated before my eyes, confirming what I was watching wasn't an illusion.
He stored the corpse of the one-headed Hydra in his inventory—just kept storing every monster without pause.
I couldn't even guess how many slots he had. Two hours... and I still couldn't form a single opinion about him.
He walked toward me, calm as ever.
"Do you need to rest? If not, we can proceed toward the 3rd Floor."
Rest... Rest for what? Watching you toy with every monster?
The thought screamed inside, but I bit my tongue.
"No, I'm ready to go," I replied quietly.
He nodded.
A magic circle flared beneath our feet, and in the next second, I was swallowed by the light.
When my feet touched ground again, I looked around at the new scenery—my body already tensed for another round of massacre.
---
[3rd POV]
All across the 2nd Floor, Players froze mid-battle.
Those fighting in groups or clearing Fangstep Plains rubbed their eyes, unable to believe what they'd heard—someone had killed the Boss Monster within two hours of the Domain resetting.
A squad of thirteen Players, already en route to the lair, halted as the announcement echoed.
At their front stood a man wielding a staff forged from metal and wood, wearing a reddish long coat over a cream shirt.
He glared at the distant lair, then slammed the staff's end into the ground.
"Who the fuck killed the Boss?! I need to climb, not get blocked on the damn 2nd Floor! Within an hour, we would've reached the lair—Goddammit!!"
One of his teammates stepped forward.
"We're probably the strongest team on this floor... hell, maybe even this planet at our level. Should we ask the system? If price is high, We'll have to pool together."
The leader's jaw tightened. "Yeah. Let's see. System, who killed the Boss Monster of the 2nd Floor just now?"
[5000 Myth Coins]
He drew a sharp breath.
"How much can we pool together?"
"About 5000–6000 Myth Coins, I think. Why?" The Player blinked, confused. Questions like this usually cost a few hundred at most—not thousands.
"The cost's 5000 Myth Coins. Should I ask? We'll be broke—no potions, no tonics."
Silence spread.
Then one by one, they nodded. They needed to know.
The leader accepted. The air froze as the system's response appeared, flickering cold across their vision.
Confusion hit first. Then rage.
[You do not have the qualification to know about the designated Player]
=====================
[AN: I will try to show the lower floor fights from Fiona's POV because from Max's POV, the fights will be too boring.
Please leave your suggestions]