CHAPTER 267: CHAPTER 267 - TEMPEST DADDY RISING

"Vienne?"

Atlas froze, his eyes wide as he loosened the wrap holding his baby. In a rush, he lifted her up in front of him.

"Pa... pa..."

Atlas blinked several times in disbelief. Vienne... his baby! Why had she suddenly grown so fast?

The little girl, who had looked like a newborn, now appeared closer to a three-month-old. Her hair had begun to grow, and the clothes she wore hung loose, suddenly too large for her body.

She laughed brightly, repeating the word again and again.

"Pa... pa... pa... pa..."

"Vienne, did you grow because you gained shared experience points from that monster?" Atlas asked, a breath of laughter slipping through his shock.

He wasn’t sure whether to be thrilled or unsettled. Carefully, he sat the baby on his lap, just as he noticed more monsters charging toward him across the sands.

But he wasn’t too worried.

Because the next instant, figures dropped down around him. Severed heads burst into the air, spewing fire that lit the night like daylight. A violent cyclone swept through, shredding the horde and flinging the monsters away.

Then came the sound of blades tearing through the battlefield, cutting everything down behind him. The others had arrived.

Morganna stepped up beside Atlas. When Vienne turned her little face toward her mother, she spoke again.

"Ma... ma... ma... ma..."

Morganna leaned down, reaching out to take the child from Atlas’s arms. She cradled Vienne with ease, her expression calm and sure.

Atlas rose to his feet, the acrid scent of charred flesh hitting his nose as he looked around. The battlefield was nothing but ash and ruin now, the monsters burned away by the dragonkin head summoned by Dullorak.

"Whoa... Vienne, you’re so big already, hahaha," Kate said with delight, teasing the baby as her tail flicked with excitement.

Atlas glanced at Morganna, his brow furrowed in confusion. "How?"

"It’s because of your synchronized progress," Morganna explained simply. "Be grateful to my baby. You managed to finish this training in just one day."

"Yes, sure... thanks a lot, Vienne," Atlas replied with a small laugh, shaking his head in disbelief.

Atlas reviewed his progress once more, and yes, every requirement had been fulfilled. It wasn’t quite what he had originally hoped for, but perhaps his target had been too high from the start. At the very least, he had successfully raised his Earth affinity to Medium.

On top of that, he only needed to defeat around ten more monsters to reach level 100. That would be simple enough, once he allowed himself to use every resource at his disposal.

Later, he sat down to discuss and review the situation with Dullorak in his wiser form, along with Kurogasa.

"My lord," Dullorak said carefully, "there may be an even greater opportunity if you are willing to wait. If Lyrassa succeeds in ’birthing’ her child, you might gain an additional boost to your basic elements."

"But do we have any estimate of when that will happen?" Atlas asked, frowning in thought. "Lyrassa herself told me it would be at least three to four months."

They laid out the possibilities in detail, weighing the timing against the class options Atlas would have once he reached level 100.

Kurogasa then spoke. "In truth, my lord, this would be ideal if you could also secure affinity with the Light element during this phase. However, I am convinced that delaying your class advancement for another affinity will not be as effective as ascending now, and then perfecting your affinities during your next advancement."

"That was my thought as well," Atlas admitted with a small nod.

Dullorak added his opinion. "If you feel satisfied enough with Tempest Warden as your base, with potential combinations of Dark, Shadow, or Blood, then we can move forward, my lord."

Atlas considered this, then nodded again. "Yes. I wanted perfection, but..." He glanced at Kurogasa.

Kurogasa bowed slightly toward him. "In this moment, perfection would only cost you progress, my lord. I am confident your class can still be refined and adjusted after this advancement."

"Agreed." Atlas exhaled slowly. The decision was made.

If he insisted on waiting for Lyrassa, or on unlocking Light affinity now, he risked missing the chance to reach rank-2 lord this season. He had already used too much time, Lord Battle Season was nearly two months in. From here, he would have to push hard.

He would not allow his battle opportunities to go to waste, especially with the chance that the system might introduce new and interesting battle formats for lords with the highest scores.

Atlas took some time to recover his strength. When he was ready, he summoned his full armor and the Wavebreaker Spear into his hands.

He exhaled deeply, relief washing over him. Damn! He had spent the entire day running, chased endlessly by monsters without being allowed to fight back.

The pressure had been immense, especially with Vienne in his arms the whole time. Well... Morganna’s methods were far from something he could agree with, but the results spoke for themselves.

Still... if anything had happened to Vienne, without Lyrassa here to intervene... Would the vampire queen really have trusted him that much? Perhaps. And yet, Atlas was certain they must have been close enough to step in if disaster struck.

Not that he would ever allow anything to happen to his daughter anyway. That resolve alone might have been what pushed him to complete the training so quickly.

He cloaked his body in a swirling aura of water and lightning. His form glowed in the darkness, arcs of electricity crackling across his armor. Then, with explosive speed, he shot into the air.

The sky above darkened, veiling the moon and stars. Thunder rolled. Lightning tore across the heavens.

A surge of water spears and bolts of lightning rained down in relentless waves, smashing into the desert below. Explosions rocked the night, each strike shaking the earth.

System message after system message flooded Atlas’s vision as monsters were annihilated one after another.

"Well... die, all of you," he muttered with a grim smile.

He had only needed ten more kills, but he made sure every creature in the area was erased under his massive storm of destruction!

[Level Up!]

[Atlas of Gacha Haven has reached Level 100.]

[All requirements fulfilled. You have been promoted to Scout Rank. ]

[New Structure Options Unlocked]

[..]

[Rewards Granted:

[Arcane Shards x3600]

[Unique Equipment Voucher x1]

[Requirement Met:]

[You have fulfilled the conditions for Class Advancement.]

[Proceed to select your next evolution path.]

[..]

Atlas descended back to the ground after confirming everything. It was done, he had reached Scout Rank! A deep wave of relief washed over him.

The Gacha Haven had also unlocked a new feature: long-distance communication with every resident of the island. And now, he was finally ready to choose his new class! Though for the moment, Atlas decided to hold back and not rush into studying all the details.

They returned to Gacha Haven, where the whole place was bursting with euphoria. The Mind-Link Projection quickly filled with chatter:

[Mira: "Whoever steps on my carrot garden, I swear I’ll roast you in the oven!"]

[Dullorak: "Fear not, for I, Dullorak the Legendary, will soon return to Gacha Haven! Admirers, prepare yourselves!"]

[Edrik: "Anyone caught peeing in random corners will be punished with a thousand push-ups!"]

[Karian: "If someone drops food, don’t waste it! Just give it to me, I’ll take care of it."]