Raito's hand trembled. "Even if I hit reject will it even let me escape?" He closed his eyes for a moment, then exhaled sharply. "No. If I run now, then what was all this for?"

Memories of his mother's final moments flashed before him. Her weak smile, her trembling hand.

"I promised her I'd get stronger," Raito whispered. "So if I start running now, then I'll never be strong. I refuse to be the weak!"

He roared, and the system responded.

[Engagement Accepted]

Raito swiped his hand through the air, summoning his weapon. The Scorpion Stinger Dagger materialized in his grasp, its blade glowing faintly with mana.

"Well then," he said, lowering his stance. "If I'm fighting this thing, I'm leveling up for sure. This might even be the last phase of this assessment."

He smirked. "Let's see what I can really do."

The Lich raised its staff high, and a surge of dark mana exploded outward. The ground shook as dozens of figures crawled up from beneath the marble floor.

Sixty undead knights emerged, their hollow eyes burning with unholy light.

[System Notification]

The Lich has summoned: Undead Legion ×60

The Lich floated midair, its gaze fixed on Raito.

He tightened his grip on the dagger, his heartbeat steadying. "So this is my next challenge."

He raised his blade, eyes glowing with determination. "Come at me."

The Lich's staff glowed ominously as the undead surged forward.

Raito's dagger flashed in his hand. With a burst of speed, he darted forward, weaving through the horde like a shadow dancing on the battlefield. His movements were precise, zigzagging between them, each slash tearing through bone and sinew.

Twenty fell instantly, their skulls and limbs scattered across the floor.

He lunged forward, his fist glowing with Holy Burst, and smashed the head of another undead, pulverizing it instantly.

Forty lay shattered at his feet.

But then, horror struck. The broken bones began to click and snap, knitting together with unnatural speed. The forty he had defeated reformed, their shattered frames restoring themselves perfectly. And that was not all. The forty multiplied. Each one became two. Eighty rose, whole and menacing, their hollow eyes fixed on him.

Raito's heart skipped a beat as he counted. "One hundred that's insane."

He leapt back, activating his shield skill. A translucent barrier of shimmering light enveloped him as the undead slammed against it with bone-crushing force.

"What the hell how do I even fight a Lich?" he muttered, voice low. "They're smart faster than humans. They can sense danger, dodge attacks this isn't a drill."

The relentless undead hammered against his shield, a hundred bodies pushing at him from all sides. The ground shook under the force, dust rising in clouds around him.

Raito gritted his teeth, his mind racing. "No, I've come this far. I won't die here."

Raito exhaled sharply. "I have to take off," he muttered.

[Skill Activated: Flight]

His body lifted smoothly from the ground, rising through the air until he reached the same height as the Lich, who floated calmly in the center of the massive hall. The creature's skeletal face was hidden beneath a dark cloak, its hollow eyes glowing faintly from the shadows.

"So that's the boss," Raito said, narrowing his eyes. "I don't care how many undead you throw at me. Even if I defeat them, they'll just keep reforming. The only way out of this is to take you down."

He raised his dagger, holy energy rippling across the blade. "S-rank, huh? I've read the reports. Liches like you usually show up as final bosses in high-level dungeons. Fine by me."

With a burst of mana, he shot forward.

The air cracked with force as Raito swung his dagger, aiming directly for the Lich's chest where its core should have been, concealed beneath its tattered cloak. The strike connected with a deafening impact.

But the blade didn't pierce.

A translucent barrier rippled outward, the Lich's magic shield, glowing with dark blue energy.

"Tch a barrier." Raito gritted his teeth, pushing harder, sparks flying as holy and dark energies collided. "I'll break this no matter what!"

The Lich didn't even flinch. It simply raised one bony hand. A black ring gleamed faintly on its finger.

Dark energy swirled around its palm, dense, unstable, and suffocating.

Then

BOOM!

A concentrated blast of pure darkness shot forward, striking Raito square in the chest. The explosion threw him backward midair, the shockwave echoing through the hall.

He twisted his body just before slamming into the wall, planting his feet firmly against the stone. Steam rose from his chest where the blast had hit, a burned circle seared into his uniform and skin.

He winced. "It burns so this is what an S-rank feels like."

Still, he smirked, eyes glowing with determination. "Doesn't matter. I'll still win."

Below him, the ground trembled.

The hundred undead that had been attacking him began clumping together, crawling over one another like insects. Bones cracked, fused, and stretched upward, forming a spiraling mass.

"What the hell" Raito muttered, watching the grotesque fusion.

The Lich raised its staff higher, its hollow eyes pulsing with power. The undead army disintegrated into thousands of bones, which spun violently through the air, creating a massive bone tornado in the middle of the hall.

The violent wind forced Raito to drop down, landing hard as he shielded his face from the debris.

When the wind finally subsided, he lowered his arm and froze.

Before him stood a colossal undead giant, its body entirely formed from the fused remains of the hundred knights. Its skull nearly scraped the castle's ceiling, glowing red veins pulsing through its bone frame.

The Lich floated above its shoulder like a dark god commanding his creation.

Raito clenched his fists. His heart pounded, not from fear, but from excitement.

"So this is your true form" he said quietly. "Good. Show me what you've got."

[System Notification]

Undead Transformation: Bone Titan

Raito stared at the enormous undead giant as it began to move.

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