Online Game: Starting With SSS-Ranked Summons-Chapter 581: Charlotte reached level 10!

"Good job with your patrol work," Arthur said simply. "Keep protecting the village. These should help."

The guards stared at the very rare equipment in their hands with expressions of complete disbelief. Even top-tier players struggled to acquire gear of this quality—it required defeating powerful enemies or accumulating massive wealth through trading in the capital city. And Arthur had just... given it away. For free. To random guards he'd never met before.

"S-Sir, this is... we can't possibly..." the lead guard began, but Arthur cut him off with a dismissive wave.

"You can, and you will. Consider it payment for maintaining security for new players. Equipment is meant to be used, not hoarded."

The guards looked like they might cry from gratitude. The lead guard bowed even deeper, his voice thick with emotion.

"Thank you, Sir Fateless! Thank you so much! We... we'll use these to protect the village better! We won't let you down!"

"Your generosity is legendary," the bowwoman added, clutching her new enchanted bow like it was made of pure gold. "Stories don't do you justice..."

Another guard proclaimed. "The strongest player is also the most generous!"

Arthur made another dismissive gesture, clearly wanting to end the encounter. "Just doing what needs to be done. Now go—we have training to continue here."

The guards immediately scrambled to comply, bowing repeatedly as they backed away before turning and practically sprinting back toward the village. Their excited voices carried through the trees as they discussed their impossible fortune.

"Did you see those swords? Very rare quality!"

"I can't believe Sir Fateless just gave us this equipment for FREE!"

"Wait until the others hear about this! Nobody's going to believe us!"

Charlotte watched them disappear with wide eyes before turning to Arthur with an expression mixing awe and confusion.

"Arthur... what was that? They acted like you were some kind of leader. And you just... gave away equipment worth a fortune like it was nothing?"

Arthur shrugged with characteristic casualness. "Very rare equipment is abundant when you have guaranteed drops from every kill. I have thousands of pieces in storage. Giving away a few to people who actually need them costs me nothing."

"But they knew you immediately," Charlotte pressed. "Called you 'the strongest player on Earth.' Arthur, exactly how famous are you?"

"Reasonably," Arthur admitted with a slight smile. "I've been... visible. I have alliances with China, Palestine, France, and Canada which are public knowledge. My guild is the first officially recognized player organization. And yes, people know I'm powerful."

He reached out to ruffle Charlotte's hair gently. "Which means people will know you're my sister soon enough. That comes with both advantages and complications."

Charlotte absorbed this with thoughtful expression. "So when you said you'd protect me... you meant you literally have the power to make entire nations think twice about threatening me."

"Exactly," Arthur confirmed. "Now, ready for round two? Or do you want to process the fact that your brother is apparently a legend?"

Charlotte's grip on her staff tightened, determination replacing confusion on her features. "Round two. Definitely round two. If you're that powerful, I need to get stronger too. Can't have you doing all the protecting forever."

Arthur's smile widened with pride at his sister's resolve. "That's the spirit. Let's find you something bigger to burn."

Charlotte hunted systematically through the forest, Arthur guiding her toward appropriate targets while Aether provided enthusiastic commentary from his perch on her shoulder.

"Ooh! There's a big rabbit over there! It looks super mean!" Aether would chirp, pointing with one tiny claw.

FWOOSH! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Charlotte's fireballs would rain down without mercy, her infinite mana allowing for sustained barrages that overwhelmed creatures before they could close distance. Each kill came with experience notifications, her level climbing steadily.

[Level Up!]

A group of goblins appeared, level 9 and 10, attempting coordinated tactics. Charlotte simply created distance and carpet-bombed their position with continuous casting, the Staff of Eternal Flow reducing her cast time enough that she maintained constant pressure.

FWOOSH! FWOOSH! FWOOSH! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

"Master's sister is so strong!" Aether cheered. "The green monsters can't even get close before they go boom!"

Arthur watched with satisfaction as Charlotte's combat instincts sharpened with each encounter. She learned to predict movement patterns, adjust aim for different creature speeds, and use terrain to her advantage. Her infinite mana meant she could afford to be inefficient—missing a fireball cost her nothing, so she fired constantly until shots connected.

A level 12 wolf pack surrounded them, eight creatures attempting to overwhelm through numbers.

Charlotte didn't panic. She simply rotated in a slow circle, launching fireballs in every direction simultaneously, creating a ring of explosions that kept all attackers at bay.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

"That's my sister," Arthur murmured with pride as the wolves fell one by one under sustained assault.

[Level Up! You have reached Level 7!]

The leveling speed was absurd—reaching level 7 in under thirty minutes was something that would make veteran players die from jealousy. Most people weeks to gain that much experience, carefully managing resources and recovering between battles.

But Charlotte had infinite mana, guild experience bonuses, and Arthur providing perfectly-scaled opponents. The combination created a leveling efficiency that bordered on the impossible.

A territorial bear, level 15, emerged from its den with aggressive roaring.

ROAR!

Charlotte immediately began backpedaling while launching fireballs. The bear charged through the first few explosions, its superior-rank durability allowing it to tank damage that would have killed weaker creatures.

But infinite mana meant Charlotte simply cast more.

FWOOSH! FWOOSH! FWOOSH! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Twenty fireballs. Thirty. Forty. The bear's hide was scorched black, its fur completely burned away, flesh seared down to bone in places. Still it came, driven by territorial fury.

Charlotte's expression remained focused as she continued retreating and casting. Fifty fireballs. Sixty.

Finally, the accumulated damage was too much. The bear collapsed mid-charge, its body too damaged to continue functioning.

[You have slain a Level 15 Territorial Bear]

[Level Up! You have reached Level 9!]

"Almost there!" Aether cheered. "One more level and Master's sister gets the special milestone skill!"

Arthur nodded, already searching for an appropriate final target. Level 10 represented an important threshold—every player received an additional talent skill at that milestone.

He spotted a perfect candidate—a level 16 Stone Golem lumbering through a clearing, its rocky body offering high defense but slow movement speed. Ideal for Charlotte's ranged assault approach.

"There," Arthur pointed. "That golem will get you to level 10."

Charlotte raised her staff without hesitation, channeling mana through the crystal.

FWOOSH! FWOOSH! FWOOSH!

The golem's stone hide resisted the initial fireballs, cracks forming but not breaking through immediately. Charlotte simply increased her firing rate, the Staff of Eternal Flow allowing near-constant casting.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The golem tried to charge, but its slow movement made it an easy target. Charlotte kited it effortlessly, maintaining distance while her barrage continued relentlessly.

Cracks spread across the golem's body. Chunks of stone began falling away. Its arms shattered. Its legs crumbled.

Finally, after what must have been over a hundred fireballs, the golem collapsed into rubble.

During that time, the golem had many chances to attack Charlotte but Aether always teleported it away, calling it a 'naughty rock.'

[You have slain a Level 16 Stone Golem]

[Level Up! You have reached Level 10!]

[You have unlocked a new talent skill!]

Charlotte gasped as power flooded through her body, the level 10 threshold triggering something fundamental. Her eyes went distant as she read notifications only she could see.

"Arthur," Charlotte breathed after a moment, her voice carrying shock. "I got an epic-rank skill. It's called… Mana Manipulation."

Arthur's eyebrows rose with interest. "What does it do?"

Charlotte's expression cycled through disbelief as she read the description. "It lets me… shape raw mana into any form I want. Not just casting prepared spells, but actually manipulating mana directly. I can create barriers, weapons, projectiles—anything I can imagine, as long as I have the mana to sustain it."

Arthur felt his jaw drop slightly.

For an epic skill, that was ridiculously strong. Most epic-rank abilities provided specific powerful effects—enhanced damage, special techniques, unique transformations. But direct mana manipulation? That was essentially giving Charlotte the ability to invent her own spells on the fly, limited only by her creativity and control.

Combined with her Infinite Mana talent and Mana Control skill, it created a terrifying synergy. She had unlimited fuel, the foundational control to use it efficiently, and now the ability to shape that fuel into literally anything she could conceive.

"That's… Charlotte, that skill is incredible," Arthur said with genuine awe. "You can essentially become a completely custom mage. No need to learn specific spells—you can just create whatever magical effects you need in the moment."

Charlotte stared at her hands, mana visibly swirling around her fingers as she tested the new ability. The energy responded to her will, forming shapes—a sphere, a blade, a shield—before dissipating as she released focus.

"This is insane," Charlotte whispered. "With infinite mana and the ability to shape it freely… Arthur, I think I might actually become really powerful."