Rising up from a Nobleman to Intergalactic Warlord!!

—3rd Person POV—

Walking into the Adventurer's Guild Hall, Nicholas asked if anyone was using the training field in the back. Looking at a clipboard on the desk, the receptionist confirmed that the field was empty currently. Thanking her, Nicholas motioned for everyone to follow him as he headed toward the backroom.

"Alright Leon, here are the ground rules for our duel.", Nicholas said, leading the group through a series of hallways, "Treat this as if you were about to face a Dungeon Boss. Do not hesitate to hit me with everything you have. The duel will end when one of our Sacrificial Misanga breaks. If you break mine you win, but if I break yours you will need to figure out a different method for saving your friend."

"Sacrificial Misanga…if memory serves they are a special, one-time use item that tanks a killing blow for the wear, right?", Leon inquired, having read about them in his family library, "I do not have one of those nor have I ever used one."

"Lucoa…you never sold one to him?", Nicholas inquired, stopping in the hallway and looking back at her, "You are telling me the two of them cleared all those dungeons without one?"

"Well…you see…", Lucoa said, giving him a sheepish smile, "They needed the money more for their future and her family so I did not bother with it. After seeing how they worked together, I did not feel they needed one. Now that he is trying to enter the Flying Dutchman's Dungeon…Leon, you should really use one."

Looking at her in disbelief, Leon wondered if she had just forgotten to offer the two of them the item or misplaced her stock. Either way, the lack of a safety net helped them grow as they learned to pay more attention to their surroundings and be more cautious in fights.

"Novice blacksmiths make them so they are cheap, fifty dia per item.", Nicholas said, continuing to walk again, "Since you do not have any, I will give you one so we can quickly get this out of the way."

"Thank you, sir.", Leon replied, "Now to be clear, you are okay with me using my Lost Items for this? If so, I do not think Lucoa has accurately explained how powerful my usual equipment is."

"No, she has been very detailed on that. Blades made of superhot light that cut through anything, guns that turn enemies into goo or ash, and a suit of armor that makes you stronger than ten men, she has been very thorough.", Nicholas explained, "While I admit those items will improve your chances, they do not guarantee success. If you are overconfident in their strengths or get sloppy, any Rank 4 or 5 dungeons will kill you on the first floor."

Understanding his point of view, it was evident he had dealt with many cocky adventurers who thought they were strong. The truth was, without experience, having excellent equipment was more of a danger than a benefit. Good equipment gave the illusion of talent and skill leading people to take more difficult quests beyond their true capabilities. Unfortunately for most, they only realized how far out of their league they were when they faced certain death with no way out.

Deciding not to argue and let his effort speak for itself, as soon as they reached the training field, Leon got suited up. Running a quick diagnostic check on the Power Armor suit, he cautiously increased the throughput for several suit systems to eke more performance out of the armor. Leon gave everyone a thumbs-up once he was satisfied with the configuration. Tossing him a small wristband, Nicholas told him to put it on under his armor.

"While you can put it on over the armor, I recommend putting it under it. If you snag anything while wandering around in the dungeon, there is a chance it could break off and fall to the ground.", Nicholas warned him.

"Fair enough.", Leon said, taking his power glove off and attaching the bracelet, "I assume Lucoa or Hamilton will count us down?"

"I can do that.", Hamilton agreed, as Leon put his power glove back on, "You ready, Nick?"

"Yeah, I am ready.", Nicholas replied, resting his hands on the two mithril swords on his hips, "You good Leon?"

"Yes, I am.", Leon acknowledged, activating his Holtzman Shield, 'Good thing I fixed this before I left for the capital. I have not tested my armor against any mythical metals so I do not know how my suit will hold up against it.'

Pulling his favorite blue lightsaber out of his Item Box, Leon turned it on and held it with both hands. Having never used the Force and Power Armor in tandem before, he was excited to see how strong he was using both to their fullest extent.

"Alright, since both of you are ready.", Hamilton said, raising his hand, "Go!"

Swiftly dropping his hand to signal the start, Leon and Nicholas charged at one another. Whipping his dual swords out, the air pressure he generated tore two large gashes into the ground. Immediately going to a killing blow, Nicholas swung both swords around faster than most could see and went straight for Leon's neck. Before Nicholas' blades reached him though, his body suddenly froze.

"I can see how you earned the position of Guildmaster, without the aid of external help, you are a deadly adversary. Immediately going for a Killing Blow was a smart idea. You should have taken a moment to test my abilities first though.", Leon remarked, holding him in place, "Let me start by saying, Lucoa and Roxanne have never seen the full extent of my power and skill. I hold back quite a lot so Roxanne does not feel the need to work herself to death trying to catch up to me. I have been honing my skills in martial arts, swordplay, magic, firearms, and advanced technologies. I knew from the beginning of my life that I would face impossible odds, and now I must lay all my cards down on the table to save my most irreplaceable person. Please forgive my rudeness, but I will end this quickly."

Holding the lightsaber in his left hand, Leon steadied his breathing and prepared to hit Nicholas with his right hand. Pushing the suit to its limit and further boosting his strength with the Force, he let Nicholas go a split second before his fist slammed into the Guildmaster's face. Hearing an awful crunching sound from his face, Nicholas flew backward and crashed into the training ground's outer wall. Sinking two feet into the wall before stopping, Nicholas coughed up a mouthful of blood as his vision began to turn red.

'Fucking hell…the kid's been hiding that level of strength this whole time?! He is an absolute monster!', Nicholas thought, feeling a rush he had not experienced in decades, "Nice punch Leon! Let us contin-"

Before Nicholas could finish his sentence, Leon was already on him, throwing a knee straight into his chest. Better prepared this time, Nicholas shielded himself with his blades and prepared to use all his strength to slow down Leon's attack before it hit him. Successfully shielding himself, something slammed into his chest causing his ribs to crack and the wind to get knocked out of him. Looking at Leon, the boy had not touched him yet the force behind the blow still passed through the blades and hit him head-on.

"Fuck!", Nicholas gasped, as he momentarily lost his strength.

Seizing this opportunity, Leon sliced through Nicholas' swords turning them into letter openers. Flicking the lightsaber off, he began to pummel the Guildmaster with a flurry of deadly, well-placed blows that shattered Nicholas' defenses. Jumping back from him, Leon raised his right hand and formed a high-level magic circle.

"Hellfire of Demise!", Leon chanted, blasting the Guildmaster with a Grandmaster Class Spell at nearly point-blank range.

Engulfing the entire training ground in a raging torrent of fire, Lucoa and Hamilton dove to the ground as a magic barrier appeared over them. Shielding them from the searing fire, Leon maintained the barrier till the flames dissipated. 

"What the hell Leon?!", Lucoa shouted, picking herself up off the ground, "Since when can you use Grandmaster Class spells?! Where the hell did you even learn Grandmaster Class spells!? Those books are kept under lock and key by high-ranking nobles and the Crown!"

"Grandmaster Class Magic is only finely tuned and precise Novice Magic. They use the same building blocks so it is not hard to recreate the spells.", Leon told her, with a smug grin, "Did you think I was a prodigy in name alone? Once I learned the basic constructs, the entirety of magic became available. After knowing how to do what I desired, I began improving my mana control and efficiency. It is still not where I want it to be, but it is leagues better than it was."

"HAHAHA!!!", Nicholas laughed, as his injuries vanished and his Sacrificial Misanga shattered, "Well played Leon!! I felt something was different about you, and this fight confirmed it. Lucoa's reports were only a snippet of what you were capable of, I was an idiot for not thinking of that."

"So, I am free to enter the Flying Dutchman's Dungeon then?", Leon inquired.

"I am a man of word, you have my blessing to enter.", Nicholas acknowledged, "Go complete your preparations for your dungeon dive. While you do that, I will draw up your approval letter so you can enter the dungeon."

Happy with this news, Leon stowed his lightsaber away and leaped over the outer wall. Heading straight to the market to buy supplies and equipment, Nicholas continued laughing long after Leon left.

"Lucoa, I understand why you have so much faith in the kid. Since I took this position, no one has one-sidedly beaten me like that. Once he has matured, he is going to be an absolute force of nature. Make sure you keep corrupt individuals away from him. Our nation cannot afford to lose him!", Nicholas told Lucoa, "Now, while he is preoccupied, go get his parents and explain things to them. That will be your punishment for leaving your post."

"Ugh!", Lucoa gasped, clutching her chest.

"It is either that or I inform the palace that you let the Holfort Prodigy dungeon dive without a Sacrificial Misanga.", Nicholas said, with an angry smile.

"Got it, Chief, I will go speak to his parents immediately!", Lucoa agreed, quickly leaving the area before he tacked something else on.

—Thirty Minutes Later, Leon POV—

Buying all the food, water, and materials I needed, I joined up with the Guildmasters, Lucoa, and my family at the dock. Noticing how teary-eyed my mother was, they must have broken the news to her about what I was planning to do. Bracing myself for a lecture from them, instead, my parents remained eerily quiet about things.

"You are not going to try and sway me not to go?", I inquired.

"I…I do not deserve to tell you no after what happened.", Balcus admitted, "This is your only chance to save Roxanne. If I were in your shoes and it was Luce that needed saving, I would do exactly what you are now. All I ask is that you come back alive, Leon. We do not want to bury you, you are supposed to one day bury us."

"Yes, promise us that you will come home.", Luce pleaded with me, blowing her nose into Dad's handkerchief.

"I will be back in five to six days.", I assured everyone.

Satisfied with my answer, Nicholas handed me the approval letter to enter the dungeon. Stowing it in my Item Box, he left me with one last piece of information.

"Kid, if you clear this dungeon I will make you an S Rank Adventurer the moment you return.", Nicholas told me, "Go kick some ass and save your comrade!"

"Yes sir!", I chuckled, before walking to my ship, "Oh, and Dad, I am sorry for lashing out at you earlier. I know you were thinking of Mom, the babies, Nicks, Jenna, and I…it just hurt because I felt like things would end up like this."

"It is okay, Leon, I would do the same in your position.", Balcus acknowledged.

"Here, use this money to rent a room somewhere nice.", I said, tossing him five hundred thousand dia, "I would prefer you not stay with that bitch and her crotch spawn, if possible."

Thanking me for the money, Balcus wished me luck on my quest. Nodding my head, I boarded my boat and got underway to the Flying Dutchman Dungeon.