As destructive skills continued to be cast all around me, new ones that met requirements were combined.

The addition of [Spear of Destiny] and [Combusting Spears] gave the A+ ranked

[Relegator’s Spear]

. [Pain Resistance] and [Ultra Regeneration] produced the A+ ranked

[Immutable Regeneration]

that provided even faster regeneration while boosting my tolerance to pain.

The new skill made me excited to try out. I also wanted to see just how great the healing effects of the S+ ranked [Saint’s Return] was when applied to summons like the Virulent Abomination that always continued to be injured. If the resistance buff and healing was high enough, the summon might even be able to withstand attacks of that EPIC ranked beast while dealing its poisonous damage before being completely destroyed.

I watched as the numbers rose for many of the skills, as well as another two particular S rank offensive skills that were just a few digits away from being combined. Another skill that was rising slowly while active was [Summon Virulent Abomination], but I made sure to make full use of the deadly explosion that occurred when I casted it while it was already on the field to also raise the skill even faster with continuous casting.

It seemed like it would be compatible with [Profane Eruption], so that was one thing I was also actively rising. A few hours passed like this, until I felt mentally drained from continuing to multitask and repeat this process so much. I looked around the messy floating pentagons as well the blank darkness below in this dungeon that would be terrifying for anyone who didn’t have the ability to fly.

Hundreds of monsters had died, but not even their bodies remained with the constant use of [Profane Eruption]. I went out of the dungeon to find the procession of wagons fully ready to go, with Princess Adelaide being kept company by the same plump man that received her.

I used [Silent Communication] to let her know I was done, and she said a few words to the plump Count who nodded with vigor, with her heading towards the carriage right after.

While remaining fully hidden from prying eyes, I was back in the carriage with the princess that seemed to have become exhausted after moving around these past four hours.

"You took your time, Sir Osmont. Are you sure you’re good to go to the next location right now?" 𝙗𝒆𝙙𝒏𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡.𝙣𝙚𝒕

From what she told me earlier, the next location would be the Shadow Dukedom with an S rank dungeon nearby. It would take a few hours to get there, so I told her we were good to start the journey now.

It neared evening, and I was able to serenely relax in the comfortable carriage after spending the last few hours incessantly casting skills. As we left behind the Valen County, we were surrounded by a scene of white as snow fell down even harder along the unpaved road.

The white horses that were a tad bigger than ones I was normally used to did not seem bothered by the cold even one bit as they pulled the wagons and carriages forward. The Royal Guards occasionally became statues of snow as they continued to surround our carriage, with a few more protecting the wagons in the back

We hadn’t come across anything so far, but the Princess exercised great caution as usual. I was curious about her unique skill she mentioned before and asked her about it.

"The Unique Skill I hold is a special skill that can be passed down to those of your blood. My mother used the skill to become a powerful woman that commanded a great number of forces. Half the reason that my father was so successful as a king was due to her. She passed the unique skill down to me before she passed away years ago."

A semblance of sorrow could be felt from her voice when she mentioned this. It seemed the possibility of skills being passed down occured very rarely with strict conditions. She talked about the effects of the skill, and how she made many of her plans based on it. . I praised this girl’s ability to get where she was at now depending on this one skill.

I also didn’t want to overinflate my ego, but it also allowed her to find someone like me. If her skill is to continue to be trusted, it means I will be making big moves in the future. To protect her from someone that was meant to become the next ruler of the Frozen Kingdom as well as the calamity of demons she continues to mention.

If her skill gave her confidence in passing through these events by keeping me close, then...I smiled at the thought of the people I would be facing and the impact that would come from defeating them. I had to take things as they came though, and not play too much when I have yet to obtain an EPIC ranked skill. I found the pressure of the possibility of my death weighing heavily on my shoulders the moment I thought about its impacts.

This was why I had searched for and learned so many defensive skills, as keeping my life was the first and foremost important goal. The many rank A defensive skills were rising very well, and I would most likely be able to make them A+ in another few days.

The tone in the carriage was light as the Princess talked about the areas we were passing and the places surrounding the kingdom. The Valen County that we just passed was one of them, and we were heading towards the Shadow Dukedom right now.

These places depended on the protection of the Kingdom’s forces, and there was much tension right now as the forces of demons neared the cold lands. People from Valen County and the Shadow Dukedom that were worried enough even made their way towards the Frozen Kingdom with all of their life savings to settle down there.

"In this dukedom, they have a specialty of different types of food that are unique to their location. I think you’ll find it fun to spend the night there."

The Princess seemed to have caught on to how much I enjoyed the food here, and made it so that we would spend the night enjoying the delicacies of this new location. We arrived half an hour later to the dukedom that was lined by huge walls. The procession of carriages and wagons were welcomed with enthusiasm as they saw the banner on the carriage we were in.

I could already see a huge monolith rising up in the Dukedom with [Regal Archer’s Eyes], and it was more than twice as huge as the rank A dungeons I had normally seen. This was the rank S dungeon,

[Waterworks]

that I would dive into tomorrow. Both this one and the rank A [Floating Pentagons] had the same black color on their monoliths, not adopting any of the usual blue, orange, or red I’ve been used to

It was a hectic night as the merchants and guards moved around to unload a few things, and the princess was led to a manor where she would spend the night. We came to an enclosed area in the Dukedom where a small castle stood.

After the introductions with a valiant knight that had a red mohawk who was the Duke of this place, among the few words that the Princess let out, food was one of them. The Duke was surprised when he heard the request of the princess to provide her with even more different types of delicacies than the ones they had prepared, and he agreed nonetheless.

He knew the Princess preferred to spend her time alone so he didn’t intrude too much, leaving after sucking up to her as much as he could. Guards were placed where they were needed as the doors to the small manor closed, and I finally lifted the effects of a few skills as well as the rank S veiled suit.

"Please help yourself, I know you must be tired from delving into the dungeon and listening to me talk the entire day."

The Princess said this as Night flashed by not too far away and took her position outside the door of the room we were in. I was courteous and allowed the Princess to sit down on the extravagant seats first before we enjoyed the delicacies of the Shadow Dukedom. It would be a nice ending to this eventful day as I waited to combine a large number of skills tomorrow.