SSS Awakening: I am the First Legendary Mage

’This place follows the rules of computer games to some extent. If I clear the dungeon, I might gain a huge amount of progress in my level. It could even push me directly to Level 10.’

The advantages were obvious. Unfortunately, the disadvantages were just as clear.

’The first disadvantage is the monsters themselves. If they’re too strong, I’ll die here.’

He calmly considered the second problem. ’I don’t know what the deeper parts of the dungeon look like. For all I know, the area ahead could be a maze that traps anyone who enters until the dungeon is cleared.’

There were only two disadvantages, but both were significant. Even so, Alex didn’t panic and he thought them through.

Titan Reef Crabs were slow monsters. Even if the stronger variants were much more powerful, escaping them should still be possible. Joseph and Yulia had already proven that.

The monsters had broken their barrier, yet those two still managed to escape. As long as he could protect his own life, Alex was willing to take the risk.

After reaching his conclusion, he looked at the others. "I’m going deeper to continue searching for Joseph and Yulia."

The group stared at him in surprise. Even Frank looked uncertain, despite being the kind of person who wanted to help others whenever he could. He didn’t look he wanted to go deeper.

Alex didn’t think Frank was being hypocritical. The man had a young daughter waiting for him back home. If he died here, she would have nobody left in a world that was becoming more dangerous by the hour.

Alex was worried about his own family as well. The difference was that he believed taking risks now would give him a better chance of protecting them later.

Sarah bit her lip before asking, "Why are you willing to do this?"

"Don’t misunderstand. I’m not doing this only for Joseph and Yulia. I want to level up, and I also want to find out what happens if someone clears a dungeon. More than anything else, I need to return home as quickly as possible," Alex replied.

Sarah lowered her gaze without replying. Despite knowing the benefits of going deeper, she could not easily decide to do it.

Frank remained silent for a few moments before speaking. "You said your family is waiting for you. Shouldn’t protecting your own life be more important than leveling up?"

"I am prioritizing leveling up because of my family," Alex answered calmly.

The others looked at him with confused expressions. Alex took a slow breath before continuing.

"We’ve already confirmed that it’s possible to return to Earth. We just don’t know how yet. The real question is what happens when people begin returning with the strength they’ve gained here."

Nobody interrupted him. Everyone quietly listened.

"What if one of those people is a criminal? Or someone who enjoys hurting others? We’ve only been here for a few hours, and we’re already strong enough to punch through concrete walls. How strong will people become after a month? Or after a year?"

Silence filled the tunnel.

"When those people return, Earth is going to fall into chaos. Whether we want it or not, our families will be caught in that chaos. If we want to protect them, then we need to become stronger."

Sarah’s eyes widened as she understood what he meant. Frank’s expression also became much heavier than before.

Emma was the only one who remained calm. She must have already reached a similar conclusion herself, which was why she had been eager to fight every monster they encountered.

Alex looked around the group before speaking again. "Becoming stronger isn’t enough. We need to become stronger faster than everyone else."

There was a selfish reason for Alex’s choice. He had always hoped for a bright future, but he couldn’t have it in the previous world.

However, now the rules of the world were changing. If he acted fast, and took this opportunity, he could have a bright future, and much more.

Nobody answered immediately. The group quietly reflected on his words.

"Take five minutes and think about what you want. If you want to keep leveling up, come deeper with me. If you don’t, you can leave while it’s still safe," Alex said.

Without waiting for a reply, Alex walked toward a large rock near the wall. He sat down and placed his sword on the ground in front of him.

His decision had already been made. He was confident he could escape if his life was truly in danger, but he had no intention of running unless there was no other choice.

To defeat stronger monsters and continue leveling up, he needed to become stronger before the next battle. Doing nothing but worrying wouldn’t accomplish anything.

Alex activated Mana Thread. His concentration immediately sharpened as he compressed mana over and over until a pure white blade extended from his fingertip.

The Mana Thread had reached nearly nine inches in length.

When the spell had been much shorter, hardening it required very little concentration.

At its current length, however, nearly half of Alex’s focus was devoted to keeping it rigid. If he relaxed even slightly, the thread would sway like a loose string and might even slice his own wrist by accident.

Alex quietly stared at the white thread.

He had been thinking about an idea for some time now. If it worked, he might be able to stop focusing on keeping the Mana Thread hardened while still maintaining its straight shape.

Freeing a portion of concentration used for hardening Mana Thread would allow him to focus on increasing the total length of the Mana Thread. It was only a possibility, but it was worth trying.

He formed a fresh Mana Thread and laid it against the sword’s blade instead of letting it float freely.

The idea came from creeper plants. You placed a stick beside them, and they wrapped themselves around it as they grew, using it as support instead of bearing all the strain themselves.

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