Understandably, Michael was taken by surprise. He needed a few minutes to reconsider Nicole’s offer.

She didn’t rush him. A faint smile tugged at her lips, her fingers still idly playing with his hair while Michael’s expression turned thoughtful.

’A Titan tier portal is no laughing matter. Participating in it will lessen humanity’s losses in the long run and grant me benefits later on... However, for this, I must tread alone. The crew, and the entire Indomitable Alliance, for that matter, are too weak to challenge such powerful beings.’

He had sent the crew away because they weren’t ready to encounter a Monarch. A Titan was something several times more dangerous than that.

Although they had encountered one when they fought to seal the breach in the asteroid belt, at the time they hadn’t been the target of the Titan’s attention.

’I barely saved Ruby from the clutches of a Monarch, and even that cost me losing myself... This isn’t something I can repeat with a Titan.’

While he was debating whether to go with Nicole or remain with the crew, his body naturally continued to cultivate.

Eventually, Ruby woke up from her exhaustion. Her ears twitched, her nose detecting a familiar scent.

Practically jumping to her feet, her tail stiffened as her eyes searched for one man.

"Michael!"

Hearing his name being called out, Michael acted on instinct. Rising, he dashed toward Ruby, pulling her into his embrace faster than a heartbeat.

"I’m glad you’re okay." He whispered, loud enough for her to hear. "At the time, I wasn’t—"

Ruby didn’t seem to pay attention to his words, returning his embrace.

"I know, it was all to save me from my foolish mistake." She murmured, her tail wrapping around him. "But please, never push yourself to that state again."

The two stood motionless for a few seconds before finally letting go.

Ruby’s lips parted, about to speak, only to be startled by a stunningly beautiful face observing them both.

"N—Nicole?! Is something the matter?" Ruby felt her heart stop for a moment. In all her life, she hadn’t expected the most powerful Lord to stand so close to her.

"Making sure that you have recovered." Nicole said, tilting her head to the side as she observed the feline woman.

Ruby paled, realizing her lack of respect. Her regret was only deepened by the fact that Nicole had been the one who brought Michael back.

"Thank you for helping Michael! If there is anything I can do to repay you, don’t hesitate to ask!"

Nicole arched an eyebrow, her eyes shifting toward Michael.

He shrugged.

Getting the confirmation she needed, Nicole reached out and placed a hand over Ruby’s head.

Under normal circumstances, Ruby would have been too stressed to enjoy any sort of petting, yet Michael’s scent lingering on Nicole had a calming effect.

Purr~

Soon after, Robert woke up as well.

Michael proceeded to give them a rundown of the events.

"This isn’t even worth discussing!" Ruby pouted adorably. "Missing a chance like this would be stupid! You can’t refuse!"

Crossing his arms, Robert nodded. "I wholeheartedly agree. Everyone from the crew would feel terrible, myself included, if they knew you had turned down the opportunity to face a Titan just because you were worried about leaving their side for a little while. It would signal that, even after all your teaching, you didn’t have faith in us!"

Taking their words to heart, Michael made his choice.

"Okay, I will participate in the battle against the Titan tier portal." He declared, his eyes shifting toward Nicole with unwavering determination. "However, there is still work that needs to be done here. I can join you only once it’s completed."

Nicole giggled. "Naturally... I was actually planning to tag along until then."

Before heading to the surface, Michael took advantage of the Monarch’s corpse, squeezing every boon he could.

[You have achieved a breakthrough!]

[Radiant Lord → Transcendent Lord] 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Name: Michael

Soul Realm: Transcendent Lord

Cybernetics: Indomitable System, Archwarlock, Lightning Surge, Perfect Senses, Spirit Radiance, Riftstep, Bypasser, Parallel Sight, Fade, Psychokinesis, Authority Manifestation, Demonic Form

• Strength: 14,000 → 20,000

• Agility: 13,500 → 19,000

• Stamina: 14,000 → 20,000

• Spirit: 10,000,000 → 20,000,000

• Mind: 1,000,000 → 1,500,000

Skill Points: 5,000 → 0

(A/N: This time I showed the before-and-after stats. You can let me know if you prefer this format or if you like the earlier method of only showing the final status.)

The breakthrough granted Michael 4,000 points to his basic attributes. He also redistributed the free Skill Points he had been saving and gained an additional increase to his Agility by taking several bites of the slain Monarch.

While he was still studying his new gains, Nicole’s eyes narrowed in pure shock, observing him.

Considering she had known him since he was a simple Grandmaster, she was astonished by his progression speed.

The average time to climb a stage in the Lord realm was multiple years, yet Michael had done so in mere months.

His rapid gains could partly be attributed to his Epic cultivation technique, Spirit Radiance, and his mindset. Regardless, the more Nicole observed that man who had never left her thoughts since the first time they met, the more she felt he was extraordinary.

"Who would have thought a day would come when we would be at the same stage?" Robert chuckled. There was no jealousy in his words. He was truthfully feeling happy that a friend was capable of advancing so fast.

"Do we head towards the surface?" Ruby’s eyes sparked with newfound power, bearing the aura of a Late Grandmaster.

Michael wasn’t the kind of man to hoard all the power to himself, allowing those close to him to cultivate alongside him.

Of course, since the process lasted for days, they had sent a message to the crew on the surface that they were fine and would meet up with them once they recovered fully.

"Before that, there is one more thing I want to do." Michael summon Devil, shifting his gaze towards the soul weapon in its sword form.

[Devil]

[Sword Form]

[Rank: Supreme]

• Sharpness: 5,000 → 20,000

Nicole was stunned once more, instantly recognizing the value of the weapon simply by observing the aura its blade emitted.

Michael nodded, observing the improved sharpness of his sword.

"Come out." Michael commanded, his voice sharp. Devil stayed eerily silent. "I’m curious to see how you’ve changed since becoming Supreme."