Prestige Grinding : I Can Reset My Level

After chatting with his parents for a while, he heard a knock at the door and went to open it. Standing there was Kara.

Though she looked much the same as she had a week ago, he immediately sensed a new atmosphere around her. Her kind smile had faded, replaced by something different. Her eyes, which had once been warm and innocent, now held a tired, lonely look. Glancing at the level indicator above her head, he was stunned to see Level 122. ’What the hell? What did she do this week?’ he thought.

Noticing his expression, Kara smiled. "For the first time, I think I’m stronger than you. It was worth the time…" she said, activating the [Soul Link] that had disappeared when he left the [Time Space]. Instantly, Sora was struck with an overwhelming surge of Life Force coming from Kara.

Shocked, he blurted, "You… don’t tell me you spent the whole week in there?!"

Kara’s emotions flickered across her face as she briefly explained it was only around half that time. Sora quickly did the math: With the new time ratio of 2,000 to 1, a week outside is nearly 40 years in there… She’s been alone, with no one to talk to or see for almost 20 years?

Words failed him as he took in her weary expression, on the verge of breaking down. Without hesitation, he pulled her into an embrace. "Don’t ever do something like that again… please."

Kara, unable to hold back her tears any longer, returned his hug. She hadn’t seen him in almost 20 years and had missed him more than anyone else. After a moment, she gently pulled away and murmured, "Thank you."

Marie and Henri, who had followed Sora to the door, quietly slipped away when they saw him hugging Kara. Henri leaned toward Marie with a grin. "I told you she’d be our future daughter-in-law. And look at him, bold as can be! Guess he’s taking after his old man, capturing the heart of the most beautiful girl in town."

Marie, who usually scolded him for his jokes, just smiled. "Kara is indeed beautiful and so kind. I don’t think Sora can find anyone better to spend his life with."

With their enhanced senses, Sora and Kara caught every word. Embarrassed, Sora whispered, "Maybe we should come back another day…"

Kara laughed softly, her expression slightly better, "We can’t leave now! I haven’t even greeted your parents. Let’s at least have breakfast with them."

Reluctantly, Sora led her inside. After a pleasant breakfast together, Sora and Kara excused themselves to discuss their progress. They entered the [Time Space], where Sora was immediately struck by the changes.

Two massive houses now stood in the middle of the realm, each with sprawling gardens teeming with life. The vibrant greenery, small creatures roaming freely, and the landscape filled with mountains, a lake, trees, and even wild beasts between levels 50 and 100, left Sora in awe. What happened here? he wondered.

Kara noticed his reaction and smiled. She explained how, over the years inside, she had spent a significant portion of her gold enhancing the [Time Space].

"But didn’t you say it costs millions just for a basic house and furniture? How did you afford all of this?" he asked.

Kara explained that after he’d left, she trained for a while and eventually began hunting monsters to test her strength. Upon reaching level 90, she unlocked a new effect of her [Time-Bending].

[Skill Effect 3: From inside the [Time Space] or when using [Time-Bending], gain access to the outside world.]

Sora raised an eyebrow. ’What exactly does that mean?’

Kara elaborated, "From inside the [Time Space], I can interact with the outside world in several ways. I can absorb mana from there to sustain the [Time Space], reposition the [Time Space], or even lure monsters by releasing a disguised life force as bait. From time to time I would go to London to sell my items, as the best hunting grounds I found were in the Great Britain region. I even became a VIP in an Auction House! I’ll tell them to make you a VIP if you want, it makes things easy"

Seeing Sora take his [Auction Mailbox] out, Kara was surprised, and smiled. Indeed, it seemed like he did not lag behind in this aspect.

Kara continued describing her training. Reaching level 100 had greatly enhanced her time perception and control, allowing her to manipulate her innate skill to a new level. She’d spent years inside, attracting and defeating monsters to level up. The only limitation was the quantity of monsters, as she barely had enough to keep herself busy for a few minutes every few hours.

"I should have come to visit you from time to time..." Sora, looking at her tired eyes, couldn’t help but say.

"You also had your own training, it is alright. I’m still alive and kicking" Kara, smiling, responded.

"Next time you need to train in the Time Space, I will train with you". Thinking of a solution, he suggested.

"I’ll be happy to. I even prepared a house for you, see ? Now it’s your turn to tell me about your adventures. How did this week go?" Kara was happy about the care he showed her.

Just like Kara, he explained his week of Prestige Grinding and paused to wonder how he could explain his new Innate Skill effects.

He explained that after his Talent Level was limited after reaching prestige 20, he farmed Soul Pearls because he believed such a resource would be useful in the future. Indeed, when he reached level 90, he unlocked a Soul Forge that gave him the opportunity to use his Soul Pearls.

"Do you have such a Soul Weapon ? That sounds quite cool !" Kara asked.

"Not yet, I’m thinking of reaching level 100 before spending my [Soul Pearls], you never know. Do you want to get a few Soul Pearls and see what it can do for you?" He then added "What about you ? You didn’t tell me about your fourth Skill Effect. Is it good ?"

"Regarding the Soul Pearls, I’ll gladly try a few if you do not mind. However, I’d prefer if you reached level 100 first."

Hesitating, Kara paused before showing him her skill panel.

[Skill Effect 4: Gain the power to harvest time and access your Time Palace.]

Sora’s mind raced. Time Palace? Soul Palace? Could she have had a similar experience? He wanted to know more, so he casually asked, "Time Palace? What’s that? Can I take a look?"

Kara hesitated. "It’s just a small place here in the [Time Space], but I can’t really show it to you… "

He nodded in understanding, then added, "I have a [Soul Palace], but I can’t show it either…" He gave her a meaningful look, hoping she’d catch his hint.

Kara’s eyes widened as she pieced it together. "You… you know?"

He nodded, "I have a vague idea. If that’s the case, it’s likely other Innate Skill users above level 100 know part of this truth as well."

"Maybe… But I don’t know how many of us there are. Are there hundreds? Thousands? Millions ? I remember a report from the early days after the update, mentioning how the top player who triggered the update, Roméo, revealed he had an Innate Skill. Back then, it was why he was leagues ahead of everyone. But after that, news about Innate Skills became less and less common, fading as if it became taboo. So, when I reached level 50 and unlocked mine, I hid it too."

Sora nodded thoughtfully. "That could mean many Innate Skill users know the truth, but if there’s some restriction on sharing such information, it explains why we don’t hear anything. Then, the players I killed... they may still be alive, somewhere"

Kara also had such a thought, "I have been wondering about that too, but it seems like we can’t know for sure if we are in a-"

Sora suddenly interrupted her "Maybe it would be better to change topics before we say things we’re not allowed to."

Kara nodded, realizing she almost blurted the truth.

Impressed, Sora felt his competitive side rise. "How about a duel? It’s the best way to see each other’s progress."

Kara grinned. "You’re so happy to see me that you want to fight me already?" She noticed Hiyoko trembling behind Sora. "Why is Hiyoko hiding like that? Did I kill her parents without knowing?"

Hiyoko, who had previously boasted about surpassing Kara, was now quaking in fear. Chirp chirp chirp chirp She thought to herself. Hmmm.. It meant ’Was she some sort of hidden deity pretending to be weak before?’

Sora, remembering her earlier arrogance, smirked. "Hiyoko wants to duel you, too. She’s so excited she’s trembling!"

Kara laughed, standing up. "Alright, let’s fight then!"

Hiyoko immediately bolted, trying to escape but finding that the [Time Space] was too small. Sora and Kara both laughed at her reaction.

Sora then stood, sending Kara a dueling request, eager to test his strength against hers, with no idea just how far she had truly come.