Chapter 495 - Power Difference

Chapter 495: 495 - Power Difference

The living armor from before had already been extraordinary protection, but now, with his evolution, the layer of gelatin covering her body was in another category.

The armor had evolved into a multilayered structure, one elastic on the outside, another rigid beneath, another able to harden instantly at the exact point of impact, and the sensation of wearing it was both lighter and more solid, like putting on a second skin that was tougher than steel.

That was the advantage of the Level 21 evolution, instead of just an ordinary level evolution where skills become subtly stronger, by evolving this way practically all of Lohan’s skills were improved, and since he could use all of his skills at the same time whenever he wished, that only made the gain even greater.

"Wow, Halon... I’m still going to have to get used to this new armor..." she commented, stretching her paws and rolling her neck. "I can barely feel the weight of it."

’I’m feeling it too,’ Lohan answered over the link. ’My membrane now spreads the energy of blows across the whole surface with even more ease. If a bear hits you, you’ll feel a tickle.’

"A one ton tickle."

’A one ton tickle.’

The first group of bears appeared between the trees about five minutes later, three of them, all huge, with claws the size of machetes and small, cruel eyes, and before Lisa had time to charge, Lohan’s tentacles shot out beside her like translucent whips and wrapped around all three at the same time, pinning their paws, their snouts, their shoulders.

The bears roared, and tried to break free, and couldn’t.

Lisa watched it with a kind of fascination, because this was how he had always helped, but the difference in intensity was absurd.

Lohan’s filaments, which before used to hold for a few seconds before starting to give way, now held with a firmness that not even the strongest bears could shake, and even so he made a point of not hurting them, not piercing, not draining. They were just restraints, perfect and motionless.

’Go,’ he said, and she could hear the smile in his voice. ’They’re all yours.’

If the difference between Lisa’s Base and monsters of the same level was large, the difference for Halon, with a Double Mythic Base, was even greater.

Then Lisa charged.

Her white flames gained, the instant she moved, a much more intense golden core than in earlier hunts, because the Sacred Light that Lohan transferred through the armor now had even more power, and the fire that came out of her claws, which without his help would probably have made only a small cut on the huge creature, was now able to open a deep wound in the monster’s thick fur.

Taking advantage of the fact that the Bear couldn’t react, Lisa didn’t slow down and, using maximum speed, carried out a dozen cuts in sequence, mutilating the living bear, spraying blood everywhere, but ending the creature’s life in a few seconds.

The second and third fell right after, with the same ease, and the swamp terrain filled with a white and golden light that tinted the stagnant water.

[You defeated a Swamp Bear, Level 21]

[Experience gained: +28,640]

[You defeated a Swamp Bear, Level 20]

[Experience gained: +15,980]

[You defeated a Swamp Bear, Level 22]

[Experience gained: +37,410]

Lisa blinked at the numbers, and then at Halon’s body, which was settling back onto her back, calm and satisfied.

"It was just one fight," she said, "and I’ve already gained over eighty thousand experience."

’Hehe, I told you we could handle this in less than three days,’ he replied, with a soft laugh. ’With this new power of mine, I’m going to help you a lot more.’

"You being able to do this without directly causing damage is absurd!"

Lisa was silent for a moment, and her white light, which he could feel with a clarity that still surprised him, grew a little warmer.

The whole morning passed like that, at a constant, almost hypnotic rhythm, with Lohan restraining the bears and Lisa cutting them down, and the two chatting between each fight, about things so insignificant and so important at the same time that he almost forgot to count the experience points.

They talked about the melted soup, about the new taste for strange food he had developed, about how much he had improved at controlling the needles and the possibility of her trying his needles, and Lisa laughed so hard she missed a strike and hit a tree, which fell into the mud with a crash, to the shock of both of them.

At one point, near midday, a bear’s claw managed to get past the defense and hit her flank with a dry crack, and Lohan’s armor absorbed most of the blow. But he, by reflex, stayed still for a whole second, tentacles tense, and when the fight ended, he asked, too quickly:

’Are you okay?’

"I’m fine, Halon," she answered, with a gentleness that left no room for laughter. "I barely felt anything. The armor took practically all of the impact."

’I know. But I...’ he stopped, and searched for the words. ’I worry.’

"I know," she said, and her tail, in a completely natural way, passed over his back and pulled him a little closer. "I worry about you too. So we look out for each other."

’We look out for each other,’ he agreed.

When the sun of Elysium began to sink, tinting the swamp orange, Lisa looked at her experience bar and saw that it had advanced more than a third, which, for three days, was the perfect pace.

"We’re above target," she announced, satisfied.

’And that’s because I’m still getting used to my new power, we can probably speed this up even more tomorrow,’ he reminded her.

"You’re right," she agreed, with a half smile. "I’m so excited for that!"

They returned to the headquarters at dusk, side by side, their bodies touching with every step, and when the tree’s gates opened, two figures in the lobby raised their heads at the same time.

Dylan and Alice, sitting side by side on a bench, with two steaming mugs in their hands, exchanged a smile so knowing that Lisa, who had just come through the door, stopped halfway, suspicious.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Nothing," the two answered at the same time.

Lisa narrowed her eyes, and Lohan, who felt her light vibrate with suspicion and a touch of embarrassment, did the one thing he knew would work: he changed the subject.

’We need to stop by the desk to turn in the clone report,’ he said, out loud, over the guild link. ’I think Dylan will like the numbers.’

"I’m going to love them," Dylan confirmed, with an even wider smile.