A Friendly Enemy

Ed didn't know if it was a monster or a human. By now, many monsters that could speak appeared in front of Ed, his companions included. He slowly turned around with a little caution. A monster wouldn't call out to someone. Unless it was an extremely friendly, or naïve, monster. As Ed completely turned around, he got a full view of whoever was calling him. A man that didn't look any older than him was approaching him while waving his hand. The man had blond hair, similar to Ed, and blue eyes. His face had a couple of freckles making him look like a cheerful and friendly person.

'He's strong…and an enemy.' Ed could feel that the man in front of him had a cultivation higher than his. He also checked the Map and noticed that he was presented as a red spot. Ed quickly recalled Sieg and the others while Raikou stood next to him. The man probably noticed the monsters, but Ed still wanted to keep them hidden. In case they started fighting, it would be better to summon them after wearing him down.

"You just came to this floor right. My name is Johan, nice to meet you." Johan extended his hand for a handshake. Ed was wary of him but still put his hand forward as well. 'If he wants to do something, it would be better if he doesn't waste my time.' Ed thought in such a reckless way.

After shaking hands, Johan started explaining about some things on this floor. Apparently, rather than a village of monsters, a village for humans was made on this floor. The humans from a long time ago decided to make one on this tenth floor because its geography made it possible. This floor was the most suitable one for building. And because the last two floors are the hardest, the village also serves as a way to relax before heading to the next challenge.

'That is stupid.' Ed wasn't mistaken to think in such a way. It was a bad idea to relax after being on edge for so long. Challenging the tower wasn't easy, so to relax one's guard right before the hardest part wasn't a very bright idea. 'Still, the humans from before were quite considerate.' Ed thought to himself. They needed to transport the materials to make buildings and such. Ed still didn't see the village, but he guessed it was a little fancy. Especially since it was created for relaxation purposes.

"You won't be able to use gold to buy things like outside. The village only accepts monster corpses that are used for materials, and also for food." Johan explained while maintaining his usual friendly attitude. Ed couldn't feel any malicious intent coming from him at all. He was now confused as to why his Map displayed him as an enemy. 'Well, the Map never lied before.' Ed believed in the system's functions.

"I'll lead you to it right now if you want." Johan offered his help to Ed. Ed guessed that he either had an ulterior motive or he actually only stopped Ed to help him.

"No need. I'll explore this floor myself, and then I will head over to the village." Ed turned him down and headed in a different direction. Johan didn't pursue him or try to stop him. Instead, he actually told Ed to 'take care' and headed in a different direction. Ed monitored him using the Map and noticed that he really did leave. To make sure no one would follow him, Ed activated Zero sign. Erasing all signs of himself, he rushed in another direction. In a couple of minutes, he was almost one hundred kilometers away from where he was.

Ed was surprised by his speed. Not only his speed but his ability to control it in such a way. He always struggled to maintain his top speed while maneuvering around, but now he could, more or less, pull it off perfectly.

"The man from before is an enemy. We'll need to be careful." Ed explained to Raikou as he got out from his shadow. Ed and Raikou didn't need to communicate to understand each other by now. As soon as Johan left, Raikou understood that Ed wanted to leave so he entered his shadow. Ed also summoned his companions and told them the same thing.

"Anyway, we need to do what we came here for. Let's hunt!" Ed checked his Map and started making his way towards any group of red dots. He had to be careful this time not to mistakenly hunt any red dotted humans. Ed hunted wolves similar to the ones from before. They weren't any harder to kill compared to when they were unconscious. Unlike the first batch, Ed didn't get any Gacha tickets. He didn't lose any time lamenting on the fact and instead headed towards the next group of monsters.

The group of monsters that Ed encountered this time was transparent like water. They were a group of slimes. These slimes were all Earth Establishment level 10 as well. As soon as they noticed Ed and his group, they looked spooked and started merging together. Soon enough, a slime over five meters appeared in front of them.

Name: Tyrant slime.

Cultivation: Heavenly Establishment level 3.

Ed swiftly used his scan function and checked the new slime that appeared. The fusion of slimes resulted in a much more powerful warrior- eh… monster.

"Leave it to me." Wanting to try out his abilities, Ed asked his companions to stand back. Shusui was in his hands as black and white light shined from it. "Providence Blade." Ed executed his strongest skill, instantly obliterating the slime. Unlike the times before, Ed didn't use all of his power. Instead, it was less than half, yet the result was almost the same as when he used it at full power before. 'Shusui amplified it even more than before…' Ed noticed that his Katana exerted more power compared to before. Curious, he scanned it.

Name: Shusui.

Rarity: Mythical.

Ed couldn't believe what he was seeing. His sword's rarity improved by itself. Ed's powers increased in an incredible way, and Shusui followed after him. Both the sword and the swordmaster were similar.

'I'll have to ask the system about this'. Ed thought as he sheathed Shusui and made his way towards the next monster group to be slain.