As time flew by and the Sun continued on its way toward the horizon, Leo and his band of monsters painted the streets of Wolford in blood. More than once, a group of stronger Voidlings tried to stand in their way, but between him and Nyx, they all fell like a house of cards. The normal Voidlings in this small city were just too weak.

Nonetheless, with his kill count climbing by dozens, he managed to reach level eighteen quite fast. Quite a lot of that experience gain had to be attributed to Nyx and his minions, but it didn't change the fact that a level was a level...

Like last time, all free points went straight into Soul. Leo and Nyx quickly learned that if they wanted to be able to utilize more shadow techniques, bigger Essence reserves were a must. As such, he settled for a mostly reachable goal as the few points per level weren't enough, at least in the long run.

Soul's ascension.

Just like with Mind and Grace, it should propel him to another rank when it came to Essence reserves. And if his calculations were correct, he would only need level twenty to reach this goal. The forty percent additional efficiency definitely helped here...

With the decision made, Leo continued on his path of slaughter, finishing random tasks that didn't require too much effort. However, now that he had leveled up, a problem he had almost forgotten about appeared once more.

No experience from most Voidlings.

Before, the System warned him about no rewards for his kills only a few times. Now though, almost every dead Cursed Human earned him the same message. To make matters worse, even some Runners and Crawlers stopped giving anything. Not even a single Ether.

It should have been a sign, a sign to call it a day and go visit Adam and Ava. However, with about an hour left of daytime and Tainted Wasteland close by, Leo couldn't leave yet. Something inside his head just wouldn't let him back out now.

And so, with Nyx, two brutes, and a single Harpy at his back, he decided to act. They all traveled as fast as they could towards the Wasteland, stopping at its edge, hidden from its denizens.

This is risky. If anything goes wrong, we can run out of daytime. Leo spoke through the link.

'Then we should abandon this task. We can always come back later,' Nyx nudged him with her snout. 'But I wouldn't worry. Without the Juggernaut, no Voidling inside there poses a threat to us. Only your minions might die.'

"Still risky," He muttered, considering her words.

For the most part, the feline was right. The Tainted Wasteland housed Voidlings stronger than those outside it, but he still had at least four or five levels on all of them. Add to that, he didn't really care if his minions died. After all, unlike him and Nyx, they couldn't level up for some reason.

Still curious about that...

Leo shook his head and peeked around the corner, observing the Wasteland ahead.

Alright, let's do this, but we're not rushing in like before. He explained, extinguishing Nyx's sudden excitement. I will have my minions bait out small groups toward us. Only then can we kill them. No way in hell I'm fighting an entire horde of Brutes, Screamers, Apexes, and... what in the flying fuck is this?!

Among the groups of Tainted Voidlings, Leo spotted a new creature, one that definitely wasn't there a few hours ago. It possessed a humanoid build, but that was where the similarities ended, especially with its long and deformed face.

Cursed Reaper (Tainted Voidling) | Rank: E- | LVL: 15 | Type: Normal, Grace, Blade, Surface

The thing walked on two tiny feet with talons instead of fingers. Its legs, like the rest of the monster's body, barely had any fat or muscles. Yet it still stood a head or two taller than any other Voidling on the field, its long, scythe-like fingers raised high.

Well... we got ourselves a brand new evolution...

Race: Voidling | Subspecies: Cursed Reaper
Expected Potential: E- to E+
Weapon of choice: Claws, Paralyzing Saliva
Known weaknesses: Fragile Body
Cursed Reapers are a common evolution among the base Cursed variants. Their speed and cutting power can easily make any fight a pain, and it's advised to approach them with caution. The Reaper's tongue is always full of their special saliva; a single hit from it can spell disaster for most survivors. Additionally, despite their fragile bodies, those monsters won't care about the loss of a limb. They will fight until death takes them.

Apex variant: Apex Cursed Reapers are capable of spitting their saliva in ranged attacks. Additionally, their bones are much harder to cut through.

Yeah... Let's stay clear of this thing. Leo raised his hand when he felt Nyx's disagreement. I know we can kill it, but it's an unknown. I never fought against it and don't want it to mess up anything.

'As you wish,' Nyx nodded and quickly scaled the wall beside them, getting on the rooftop. Leo repeated her actions, leaving the two brutes on the ground while the Harpy took to the air.

The plan really was simple. Their air support would swoop in, anger a small pack of Tainted Voidlings, and lead them to the Brutes. They, in turn, just had to tank them for a moment while Nyx and Leo descended upon their backs.

As long as we don't collapse a building or two, we should be fine. He grimaced, the memory of his previous trip into the Wasteland still fresh. Okay, Harpy, the three normies closest to the edge first. Attack once and back to Brutes.

With that simple command, their battle began, the cries of Voidlings filling the evening.

---

The controlled Harpy swooped right beneath them, a single Apex Cursed Runner and normies fast on its heels. Yet, before they could even reach the two Brutes a bit outside of the Wasteland's border, Leo and Nyx jumped.

They descended upon the monsters' backs, claws, blades, and tails, plunging into the soft, dark flesh. The Voidlings tried to screech, maybe alert the rest of the area, but the two assassins cut off their heads a moment later. The fight ended before it could have even begun.

And that's enough. Leo announced through the link as they hid outside the Tainted Voidlings' sight. They had been doing this for some time now, and if he still wanted to talk with Ava and Adam before nighttime, they had to go. Besides, he doubted they could bait more Tainted Voidlings to them. At this point, they were all too close to each other for the Hapry to do it properly.

Pitty, no leve... Never mind. He blinked as serval notifications appeared. One of which he had been waiting for.

You have contributed towards weakening a Tainted Wasteland. Bonus experience and 147 Ether granted. Weaken the Wasteland further to receive better rewards.

Level 19 reached. Class and Racial attributes have been distributed. Please assign your 3 free attributes.

Nyx! I got what I wanted after all. How is it going on your front? Leo called out while assigning all the free points to Soul at the same time.

'See for yourself,' Nyx purred, smugness filling their link.

Dismissing all the notifications, he looked up at the large feline sitting next to him. Going by her overwhelming emotions and the wildly swinging tails, he had a suspicion of what had happened.

Apex Shadow Claw | LVL: 18

Huh, you really did level up again. Leo smiled, ignoring the fact that the System identified Nyx like any other survivor. They had already talked about this, and nothing concrete came out of it.

'Together, we might stand a chance against a Collector now,' Nyx licked her teeth. 'Just think about it, Leo. A beast like that all for us to consume without the help of the Sun.'

He snorted. Yeah, no. Hide those claws, Nyx. We ain't hunting any Nightmares... at least not yet. Now, come on. Time is running out.

---

With his remaining Brute and Harpy settled for the night, Leo dashed back to ReachHope. He knocked on the backdoor to the warehouse and waited, this time only the hood hiding his face.

Quite fast, maybe after a minute or two, the door swung open, and a mop of red hair appeared in his sight.

"Leo! For a moment there, I thought yo..." Clara's eyes widened. "Bloody hell, what? Nineteen? Like how?" She shook her head. "Never mind. I don't even want to know. Come in; they are inside the kid's room."

Chuckling, he stepped past the woman.

Unlike any time before, the warehouse had plenty of people inside. They all carried something, be it a box, weapon, bundle of clothes, or other stuff. Sometimes, their gaze strayed to him, yet apart from some silent gasps, no one tried anything.

With Frank coming, Holden might have finally warned people about some unique arrivals. Wonder how they would react if I lost the hood...

"Go ahead. I will wait here," Clara declared when they paused near Adam's room. "Oh, one more thing. If you don't plan to stay the night, you better hurry."

Leo nodded and knocked on the door. "I will. Thanks."

As a shout from the inside reached his ears, he turned the handle and stepped in. Almost instantly, another body impacted his own, small hands sneaking around his torso.

"Hi, uncle!" The little boy chirped, gazing up at him with shining eyes. "Mum and me have been waiting forever for you!"

Leo chuckled as he gently picked the boy up. "Mum and I, Adam, not me."

The child pouted and threw his hand forward, removing Leo's hood. "I don't care... Will you teach me now, uncle? You promised!"

Sitting down on the mattress right next to Ava, he sighed. "Sorry, kiddo, no can do. Not today, at least. We have a big day tomorrow, and you will need your strength."

"So it's really true?" Ava asked, her eyes narrowed. "We are moving to a safer place?"

"Yeah," Leo nodded, tickling the boy on his lap so he would stop clawing at his cloak. "Holden plans to do it in groups. Probably three or four. He promised me that you won't be the last to go. And I will be there, so don't worry."

Ava released a long breath. "Thank God. I trust Diana and Tony, but to have you confirm it..."

"I know," he smiled before looking down when Adam nudged him. "What is it, buddy?"

"Look what I can do!" the boy chirped, raising his hand, palm up. Slowly, a black construct began to form there, its shape pretty much unrecognizable. "See? I made a kitty!"

Leo quirked an eyebrow. "A cat, you say?" He squinted. "Yes, I think I can see it," he chuckled, raising his own hand and summoning a bit of Essence. "What do you think about this?"

Adam squealed, watching the shapes change into different animals. It all brought a broad smile to Leo's face, the memories of better times fresh in his mind.

I might not have hours to spend with you, but it doesn't matter. As long as you are alive, those few minutes are enough for me.