Chapter twenty-one - There's a f*cking level cap?

Locke was lying on the bed with his arms crossed behind his head, his eyes roamed the cracks in the ceiling while his mind worked at full speed.

"Are you feeling better?" Tia was lying on her chest, a perfect copy of Locke's position.

"...Yes..." Locke stood up slowly, the fairy slid down his chest until his stomach, falling into his lap. He sighed "There is nothing I can do about it now... But one day I will find out who did this to her."

Locke got up and started to stretch, he opened the system screen "I got level twenty... My status have increased a lot... Hmm?" He noticed that next to his level there was an exclamation mark. "What is this?"

[Level limit reached, reach the evolution requirements to proceed ...

Requirements: Complete the mission: Blood Thickening (Increase your Dragon Blood concentration), improve the mana circuit to medium level and create an evolution matrix in a suitable location.]

"Level Limit? There's a f*cking level cap? I have to Evolve? What I am? A p*kemon?" Locke was confused.

"Why the surprise? You reached the limit of a human, it was only a matter of time before you that..."

"So what? Am I going to stop being human? What the hell am I going to become? How am I going to explain this to Hanna?" Locke's face was scared.

"Don't worry dumb head! Your appearance will remain almost the same! You will only become a true half-dragon!"

"Ou... Are you sure? Ok... So, how do I increase my dragon blood concentration?"

"Don't you father left you a Library? Have you thought about using it?" Tia flew back to the bed, she lay down on the pillow. "Go study you moron!"

Locke went to the corner of the room and sat in the lotus position, he accessed the system library with his mind.

Locke analyzed all the files that explained about dragon blood, his father had a lot of accumulated knowledge, and after a some time of analysis Locke summed up his possibilities in two options:

The first option was a natural way, it's a list of herbs and plants that when consumed could help Locke slightly increase his concentration of dragon blood, the problem with this method is that most of these plants did not exist on earth and the few that did exist had a very low effect. Locke could look for the most diverse rifts hoping to find some of these plants, but it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. Of course, he could 'cheat' and use Tia's power to get these plants, but for him to achieve any significant effect the expense would be monumental.

The second option was easier in theory, but far from easy in reality, to increase the concentration of dragon's blood, the best way was to prey on other species that also had draconic lineage, the problem is that Locke had only found one single being with draconic lineage, the Raijū, and even with the increase in his strength Locke still did not know if it was enough to face that kind of enemy.

"If I can't raise my level, can I continue to raise my status through training?"

Locke started to meditate, meditation had already become part of his daily life and he spent at least two hours meditating per day, making his mana cross his mana circuit at high speed, forcing it along the roads and paths, increasing the passages slowly, this daily meditation had given him a few more points of spirit.

To Locke's delight, after meditating for twenty minutes, he received the pleasant warning from the system that his spirit had increased by one point, he smiled, he completed his daily meditation circuit and stood up.

"New plan, increase the status as much as possible, raise the mana circuit, buy all the plants related to dragon blood that I can on the internet and ... Make that damm horse pay!" His smile turned shady.

***

Agent Alexis Durand was in her hotel room, there was a keyboard in front of her, It was projecting a floating screen in the air, where she was typing her report.

- Field Report, 06/29/20XX, Agent Alexis Durand, Badge: 06011926-XX

Confirmed activity of the Apocalypse Cultists in a school in the city, threat neutralized by the primary target, unknown number of civilian casualties, I request the implementation of a specialized squad, I believe that the witches can offer support against the cultists, but they refuses to help with the primary target. They advised us to give up the primary target.

I request an increase in the potential threat level of the primary target, we confirm that the target has intelligence equal to or greater than human intelligence, appears to have the ability to enter secondary dimensions without the need for a ritual, or has the necessary equipment for it, confirmed that the target faced a level 30 mutated apparition made by the cultists and defeated it without the slightest difficulty, the target also demonstrates the ability to block divinations, prophecies and other forms of tracking. I request the return.-

About five minutes later a message was received back.

-Agent Durand, The Bureau will dispatch the Δ-3 squadron - 'Hunter of Heretics' to deal with the threat from cultists, we also inform the Church, as stipulated in pact #62963, and they will be sending a support unit to our squad, 'The God Hound's', your return request has been denied, a special team will be sent to complement your team, we request that you serve as a bridge between the Church and the Witches, preventing conflict, since your particular ancestry gives you a certain credibility with the both groups.

We are temporarily increasing the potential threat level of the primary target from 22 to 55, details on the primary target should be omitted for the Church, continue the target's research laterally and decide whether it can be a tool for the Bureau or a threat.

Agent Garrard is free to decide whether to return or continue accompany you. -

"Oh sh*!" Durand buffou.

"Problem?" Garrard asked, concerned.

"The church!" Durand burst. "The Bureau want me to deal with the Church!" She punched the table, splinters of wood flew everywhere. Durand took a deep breath and started to force herself to calm down, she turned to Garrard and said; "You can go back Bomani, they will send a new team..."

Bomani Garrard approached Durand and put one of his hands on his shoulders, "Staying," he said.

"Are you sure? Neither the church nor the witches likes you ... It will be complicated for you here ... "

"You."

Durand was silent, she put hold of Durand's hand with her own. "Thanks Bomani! There is no better partner than you! Good thing we didn't accept the Merchant proposal, it would be hell if the Church found out a deal with a demon... The Bureau wants us to deal with the primary target without the church finding out, this is going to be difficult. "

Durand started to pack his own belongings, "Come on, I have to warn the witches!"

***

In a certain gym in the city, people watched t a certain figure without believing, a relatively young and muscular man was lifting 300kg on his bench without difficulty, even the strongest figure in the gym watched with disbelief.

"I don't think it's working, the weight is too low ..." Tia commented. "And you are drawing too much attention..."

Locke noticed that someone had taken out a cell phone and was about to start filming, he got up and put the weights out with indifference, he went into the locker room and took a shower, he stopped in front of the counter, paid the price for a month and canceled his registration.

"I need to find a place where I won't get anyone's attention ... I think I know the perfect place!"

Locke returned to the abandoned building in the slums and crossed to the mountain rift, he looked around admiring the view.

The entrance of the rift led straight into a shallow cave, when leaving the cave he was in the middle of a mountain, near the abyss in which he had dropped Sean, he looked and saw that there was nothing but broken bones and dried blood marks remaining. The montain was surrounded by other mountains in a shape like that of a bowl, theres a valley meters below in the 'bowl' center with a big lake, and theres a huge forest with no apparent end in the outside of the 'bowl', the forest extended until the end of his view, Locke could see some villages in the distance, and in the most near he can see some little green creatures.

"Are you going to hunt? Won't it be a waste?" Tia asked

"I didn't come here to hunt, I came to train" Locke walked to the side of the mountain, in the inner part, he can't see no villages in the inner part, Locke finds some plane zone betwin two montains and grabbed a huge boulder, he used all his strength and lifted the stone with some difficulty. "If there are no ways to train in a modern way, let's do it rough!"

From that day Locke started a new training routine.

He woke up in the morning and ran in camouflaged to the slum, he entered the rift and ran up the mountain while carrying boulders, he crushed rocks with his hands, he used his mana to the maximum to increase his control and meditated to recover his mana and stamina, and at night he read all the files he could to increase intelligence stat.

Locke practiced this routine for a week, increasing the size and weights of the boulders, only by stopping to meet Hanna sometimes in the week.

During that week Locke found, and was even by attacked, by some creatures, but most of them fled when Locke emitted his aura of fear. He encountered harpies, who watched him from a distance, two goblins who fled the moment they saw the size of the stone he was carrying and the only thing that didn't escape, but chose to attack him, It's was a group of creatures that looked like a giant bear-gorilla thing with a deer skull covering its head, Wendigos, Tia call them Wendigos.

But after Locke launching the huge boulder his carried like a missile turning one of them, the biggest one, into a bloody paste against the mountain wall, the others decided that Locke was too much for them to face.

The training gave results, he raised all the statistics, minus the charm and luck up to 100, But it was when the training stopped bringing results, apparently there was a limit to how much his status could improve in his current form.

At the same time some of the herbs he ordered online arrived.

Hylocereus undatus, huernia keniensis, Begonia cinnabarina Hook and Aeschynanthus speciosus these were the only herbs that Locke managed to find, they had almost no effect, but anything was already a help, Locke followed the recipes described in the library and transformed some leaves and flowers in a tea, the dragon fruits was eated raw.

Locke did not achieve much, his status had no increase, but he felt that his mana was slightly different, and his control had improved slightly.

That afternoon Locke met with Hanna.

"You look different," Hanna said with her head on Locke's chest.

"What do you mean?" Locke smiled, they were both in a city park, at a picnic

"I don't know... Something feels different about you... the feeling that I always feel coming from you seems... bigger..." Hanna smiled, her fingers making small circles on Locke's chest. "So, the girls are planning to go to the beach next weekend... Do you want to come with us?"

"For all that is most sacred, say yes!" Tia had a scary face. "Say yes or I swear, I will beat you up!"

The image of Hanna in bathing suits popped into Locke's mind, "Sure! count on me!". 'I'm not just going to see you in a bathing suit! I am a gentleman! A gentleman!' he thinks to himself.

They kissed and cuddled some more until Aliyah picked up Hanna. They both said goodbye to Locke and got in Aliyah's car.

"Did you ask him to come with us?"

"Yea..."

"Hey hey, girl! Will you want a room just for you two?" Aliyah scoffed.

Hanna lowered her head, her face flushed. "...perhaps..."

"Holy sh*t! Are you seriously? " Aliyah was surprised. "How long have you been together? Half a month?"

Hanna stayed silenty.

"I'm not going to say what you should or shouldn't do, girl, but are you ready for this?" Aliyah ask.

Hanna looked out the window. "I do not know..."