As Colm stepped through the portal with the familiar fade to black he saw the world around him reform as he recognized the rocky terrain from his last time. He made his way back around towards the entrance and saw the guard, Mitch, that saw him earlier.

* * *

Mitch found his thoughts wandering back to the earlier encounter. That man looked interesting. I've never seen a Morvyn before, and his class—Spirit Warden? No clue what that even is. The glowing eyes and those phantoms behind him were unnerving. I wonder how he's doing in the Echo.

Mitch frowned, the memory lingering longer than he expected. Hopefully, he's as strong as he seemed confident. I'd feel awful if someone died in there alone after I let them through. Shrugging off the unease, Mitch refocused on his duties.

As the night dragged on, a few more groups trickled in. Mitch routinely scanned their mana signatures, the repetitive task almost mechanical by now. This is tedious. Feels like I've done more tonight than usual, he thought with a wry chuckle. Maybe people are finally catching on to the perks of being a night owl.

His musings broke abruptly when he spotted a shadowy figure approaching from the distance. The faint glow of blue eyes pierced through the dark, sending a shiver down his spine. Mitch instinctively tightened his grip on his weapon and cast Analyze to assess the potential threat.

Colm Arden (Level 63; Spirit Warden) – Morvyn

Mitch's jaw dropped as the results flashed in his vision.

* * *

Colm approached Mitch, waving casually. "Hey, how's it going? I'm hoping to get one more run in before heading back to the city."

He paused, waiting for Mitch's response, but noticed the guard's slightly dropped jaw. Colm chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. "Is everything alright?"

Mitch stammered, "You're already done? How? Just going through that Echo alone should take most teams at level a full day."

Laughing, Colm replied, "Oh, that. Yeah, I just wanted to test myself, so I sprinted through the whole thing. It was actually pretty easy."

Mitch let out a deep breath, visibly calming himself. He's strong—stronger than most. I wonder what tier his class is? Gathering himself, Mitch responded, "That's impressive. But just be careful, alright? Don't push yourself too hard and end up making a mistake you'll regret. If you're feeling even a little off from your last run, maybe consider coming back tomorrow after some rest."

Colm nodded. "Thanks, but I'm all good. Still feel spry and ready to tackle another one."

Mitch shrugged. "Alright, just need to see your badge again—procedure, you know."

"Sure, no problem," Colm said, pulling the badge from his inventory and handing it over. Mitch scrutinized it as usual, then gave it back with a nod.

"Here you go. You're free to go. But do me a favor?" Mitch added, his tone softer. "Once you're done this time, stop by and let me know you made it out safely. For my own peace of mind, I'd hate to be wondering all night."

Colm smiled and waved as he headed toward the Echo's portal. "Of course, will do," he said, stepping into the shimmering light.

Colm's vision adjusted to the dim cavern surroundings as he stepped through the portal. Without hesitation, he activated his abilities, summoning Carver and Lance back into existence while also engaging Rising Current. It's annoying that everything deactivates when phasing in and out of an Echo. But as always, the familiar sight of his phantoms forming brought a sense of reassurance and power that he couldn't deny.

He paused for a moment, deliberating. Should I focus on leveling my abilities? Which one? Maybe Lance? Try to push it to Tier 2?

Shaking his head, he muttered, "No, maybe the attunement ability instead?" He sighed, overwhelmed by the options. "Too many choices."

Then, an idea struck him. Actually, let's just have fun. I can always focus on abilities later. Let's book it again—this time, even faster.

Colm activated Phantom Archer as well, deciding to bring Robin into the fray. As the archer materialized, he glanced at his trio of phantoms and smirked. "Alright, here's the plan: we're sprinting through this. No stopping, no slowing down. If you're attacking something, you'd better be doing it while on the move. Don't even pause at the boss' room—full speed ahead. Got it?"

The phantoms stood silent, motionless as ever, and Colm couldn't help but laugh. "I really need to stop expecting you guys to respond somehow."

With that, he turned toward the cavern's first room, adrenaline surging. "Alright, let's go!" he commanded, officially unleashing his phantoms.

In an instant, they burst into motion, sprinting forward with blinding speed. Notifications flooded Colm's vision as the chaos began, and he couldn't help but grin. Let's see just how fast we can finish this.

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Cavern Centipede (Level 64) Defeated. Experience Gained. Bonus experience granted for defeating a higher-level enemy.

Cavern Centipede (Level 62) Defeated. No Experience Gained.

…

Cavern Centipede (Level 65) Defeated. Experience Gained. Bonus experience granted for defeating a higher-level enemy.

Colm quickened his pace, breaking into a full sprint as he tried to keep up with his phantoms. Their shimmering forms flickered in the distance, barely visible. Panting, he muttered to himself, "I should've gone right with them. Now they've got a head start."

As he dashed through the rooms, he caught glimpses of flashing lights—spectral strikes and tidal bursts from his phantoms. Notifications immediately followed, one after another, marking the creatures they dispatched.

Colm barely had time to collect himself, let alone the fallen centipedes. He only stopped to store the ones directly in his path, leaving the rest as he pushed forward, determined to stay on course.

The relentless pace left him grinning. This is what I want. This is the power I need. I never want to feel helpless again. His grin widened, shifting into a laugh. "But damn, this shows me how much I need a movement ability. Holy shit, this is tedious!"

Just as his lungs started to burn from exertion, a final notification flashed across his vision, signaling the conclusion of the chaos.

Broodmother Centipede (Level 77) Defeated. Experience Gained. Bonus experience granted for defeating a higher level enemy.

Level Up! +5 Stat Points Available.

"Oh, yes, that was fun!" Colm said, laughing as he approached the boss's room where his phantoms awaited. He quickly allocated his new stats to dexterity to have a bit more speed in his step. "I feel like we did it so much faster—that's gotta be a record." Just as the words left his mouth, a notification flashed across his vision.

[ Achievement Earned ]

Dusk Caverns Sprinter

You have accomplished an extraordinary feat, completing the Dusk Caverns with remarkable efficiency. The system recognizes your strength and rewards you for your efforts.

Stat Boost: Increases movement speed by 2%.

"I guess that's a thing," Colm muttered, glancing at the notification again. "I'll have to keep that in mind for future Echoes. Maybe I can find a bunch of Echoes and get Achievements like this? The movement speed increase is pretty nice albeit a pretty small amount. But wait, I didn't get this achievement last run? I wonder if I passed some threshold to award it this time?"

Shaking off the thought, he strode toward the Broodmother Centipede and commanded Carver to harvest it. Once the phantom finished, Colm stashed the harvested parts in his inventory. A smile flickered across his face as he noticed how packed it was. "I can't believe I'm basically carrying a closet full of centipede corpses," he said with a shudder.

"Well, I guess it's back to the city. No point in running this again if I can't store any more," he mused, stepping toward the exit portal. "Oh, right—I'll check in with Mitch, too." He glanced at his phantoms. "Let's go."

Colm turned and headed toward the exit, unfazed by the now-familiar fade to black before the landscape reappeared. As he made his way back toward Mitch, he raised a hand in greeting.

Mitch stood there, his expression one of disbelief. "What... you're already done?" he muttered. "That was even faster than before."

Colm chuckled. "Yeah, I was curious to see how quickly I could clear it this time, so I sprinted through the whole thing, just focusing on speed." He shrugged casually.

Mitch shook his head, still trying to process. "Well, I see. Thanks for checking in, at least. Looks like I had nothing to worry about after all."

Colm nodded with a grin. "Yeah, it wasn't too challenging for me. I'll have to find some other Echoes to really test myself. It was nice meeting you. Hope you have a good night," he said, turning away from Mitch and heading back toward the city.

As Colm headed back toward the city, quickening his pace as he sensed the sun would soon rise. I'll make it back in time to meet up with Luke and Tessa, he thought. Then, his thought went to his stomach, and his eyes widened. "Oh shit!" he exclaimed aloud. "I forgot to get the stew. Okay, first thing when I get back—I'm heading straight to the tavern in the guild," he muttered as his mouth began to water at the thought of a hot meal.

His thoughts wandered as he jogged down the familiar path, shifting to more existential musings. If things at my level in lower tiers don't pose a threat, just how far above my weight do I need to fight for a challenge? Or should I focus on higher-tier enemies closer to my level? I wonder what the best balance is. At the very least, I should focus on ranking up my class abilities to Tier 2. Hopefully, that won't take too long.

Lost in thought, Colm almost didn't notice when the city walls appeared in the distance. His mind snapped back to the thought of food. Okay, yeah, stew. I can't think about anything else right now, he resolved as he approached the gates.

At the gate, an unfamiliar guard greeted him. Colm exchanged a few brief words before stepping into the city. Once inside, he moved swiftly through the empty streets, savoring the quiet stillness. This really is nice. I was never one for city life, and during the day, the crowds are overwhelming. But at night? It's peaceful, and I can still interact with people without being swallowed by a sea of bodies.

As he neared the plaza where the Adventurers Guild stood, his eyes fell on the familiar building as a savory scent wafted through the air. His mouth watered, pulling his focus back to his goal. "Let's get some real food for the first time in this world," he mumbled, picking up his pace toward the tavern.

[ Status ]

Name: Colm Arden

Race: Morvyn

Level: 64

Health: 1450 / 1450

Mana: 690 / 690

Strength: 70 (84)

Dexterity: 75 (90)

Intelligence: 115 (138)

Constitution: 121 (145)

Bonded Weapon: Abyssal Ledger (Tier 3, Level 4)

Weapon Ability: Abyssal Lance (Tier 3, Level 4)

Attunement: Tide

Attunement Abilities:

- Rising Current (Level 3)

- Wavebound Surge (Level 3)

Class: Spirit Warden (Tier 5)

Active Class Abilities:

- Phantom Warrior (Tier 2, Level 2) [Carver]

- Phantom Spearman (Level 10) [Lance]

- Phantom Archer (Level 10) [Robin]

- Empty

- Empty

Passive Class Abilities:

- Lingering Vitality (Tier 2, Level 10)

- Spectral Persistence (Level 10)

- Phantom Sacrifice (Level 10)

- Empty

- Empty

Skills:

- Analyze (Level 5)

- Stealth (Level 7)

- Pain Resistance (Tier 2, Level 1)

- Hardened Skin (Level 8)

- Slash Resistance (Level 7)

- Spear Mastery (Level 10)

- Sprint Mastery (Level 10)

- Poison Resistance (Level 6)

- Stun Resistance (Level 5)

- Dual Wielding (Level 4)

- Infection Resistance (Tier 3, Level 10)

Achievements:

- Through the Rift

- Champion of the Lucent Grove

- Bane of the Undead

- Dusk Caverns Sprinter

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