Level 1 to Infinity: My Bloodline Is the Ultimate Cheat! Chapter 22: A Woman’s Beauty Doesn’t Matter

Ethan checked the tir. He calculated quickly and sighed with relief, it should be enough. The last thing he wanted was to get booted offline mid-battle when the ga's mandatory rest period hit. That would be a waste.

Although bosses didn't regenerate health overnight, leaving the job half-finished would an losing an entire refresh cycle. If he finished the kill today, tomorrow's server reset would spawn a fresh one.

Ethan kept hamring away, mindlessly grinding through the sa repetitive motions. Thankfully, he was using the system's free beginner skills. If he had to chant spells and trace hand gestures for every cast, he'd have gone insane.

Bored out of his mind, Ethan opened his friend list and sent a video call request to Lyla.

The screen flickered, and her familiar face appeared. Her attention was elsewhere, though, her focus entirely on the ga. Ethan couldn't help but stare, montarily distracted by her profile.

Lyla had chosen the Elf race. The pointed ears suited her delicate, sweet features, giving her an ethereal beauty that made her character look like it had stepped out of a fairytale.

Curiosity got the better of him. "Lyla, what are you up to?"

"I'm leveling up, duh. Whew, finally killed it!" Lyla spun around to face him, dimples flashing as she grinned.

Ethan caught a glimpse of her surroundings. She was grinding in a Level 5 area. "Wait, you didn't go to that spot I told you about?"

Lyla launched another volley of arrows before replying, her hands busy. "I did! Took down that Wolf King, Hossman. It took two hours! So boring. And it drained my wallet, I'm nearly out of money for arrows!"

Ethan sighed. Not everyone could tolerate the soul-crushing grind. He could hardly bla her. After all, here he was, wasting ti on a video call instead of focusing.

"What level are you now? Did it drop anything good?" Ethan asked, knowing that Hossman, a Level 5 leader-tier boss, had a guaranteed first-kill drop.

"I'm almost Level 6. The kill boosted by two and a half levels! Oh, and check this out!" Lyla held up a silver bow shimring faintly under the in-ga sunlight. Its elegant, wing-like design curved into a graceful arc.

Ethan whistled. "A Silver weapon for your class? Damn, you're lucky."

He wasn't exaggerating either. For a beginner, managing to solo a leader-tier boss, even with guidance, was impressive. His praise made Lyla's cheeks turn red, and she shot him a playful glare.

The teasing look sent Ethan's heart racing. He quickly covered it with a joke. "Alright, back to it! Don't go shooting random teammates again."

"Ethan! I only misfired because you distracted !" she hissed in a whisper, glancing nervously at her party. Her earlier accidental shot had drawn so good-natured grumbling from one of them.

Ethan couldn't stop laughing. "Sure, sure. Jealous of their beauty, weren't you? That might have been deliberate!"

"Hmph, I'm ending the call!" Lyla cut him off with a mock glare before shutting down the video call.

Smirking, Ethan turned back to his own grind. With Lyla close to Level 6, he couldn't afford to slack off. His XP bar sat at 98% toward Level 5. He opened the leaderboard. His na still topped the charts, with the second-place player trailing at Level 4 with 70% progress.

Of course, these rankings were only temporary, limited to the Starter Zone. The leaderboard would expand to regional statistics once the first player left the zone, eventually unlocking a national ranking system after the first major faction war.

Ethan eyed the nas below his own. None rang a bell. From what he rembered, Zone 1314 hadn't produced any standout players in his previous life.

Ding...

[You have a new friend request. Please check]

A system notification popped up.

Curious, he opened it. It was a friend request from Skyblade.

Ethan hesitated for a mont before accepting. He wasn't exactly surprised. Being the only Druid in Zone 1314 made it pretty obvious who he was.

A ssage followed almost imdiately:

Skyblade: "Hey! Um... Legend. Why'd you tell to switch to a Shield Tank?"

Ethan winced at the title. Legend. Everyone had called him that during his first life, at least in the early days. Later, most people couldn't wait to see him fail.

Ethan replied curtly: "Follow your instincts."

It wasn't like he had a personal vendetta against Skyblade playing sothing else. In his previous life, he'd just gotten tired of hearing Skyblade complain nonstop and had offhandedly suggested the change.

"Alright, I'll do it. Shield Tank it is," Skyblade replied.

Ethan was about to suggest that Skyblade think it over more carefully when another ssage popped up.

Skyblade: "Um, we're setting up a guild. Wanna join?"

The words hit Ethan like déjà vu. Skyblade had said the exact sa thing to him in his past life. Back then, Ethan had been a rogue, and their initial encounter hadn't exactly been friendly. Skyblade had been flirting shalessly with a girl who looked... less than appealing. Ethan, thoroughly disgusted, had almost punched him.

Sohow, that had evolved into Skyblade tagging along and dragging Ethan into his guild plans.

The timing had been different, though. Last ti, this hadn't happened until most players reached Level 10. Why the sudden rush this ti? And back then, Skyblade's crew didn't include Slashblade either. Was his rebirth already causing ripple effects?

After a mont's thought, Ethan replied: "Fine. But the guild na can't be Avalon Vanguard, and I'm the leader. Also, are you about to ask for money?"

Skyblade froze when he read the ssage.

"Leo, what's up? Did the guy say yes?" asked Williams, the Paladin in their group, jabbing Skyblade's side.

Slashblade leaned over, equally curious.

Without a word, Skyblade shared Ethan's response in their party chat.

For a mont, all three stared blankly at the screen.

Just minutes ago, they'd been brainstorming their guild na and settled on Avalon Vanguard. They had marched straight to the Guild Registration Hall, only to discover it cost five gold coins to register a guild.

Pooling their funds had left them with less than one gold coin. That was when Williams had suggested sending Skyblade to sweet-talk Ethan into joining them.

At first, Skyblade had refused outright. But then Slashblade, with a threathning expression, leaned in and said, "You'll go, or I'll have my sister co and deal with you personally."

Skyblade froze. He didn't need the reminder of just how terrifying Slashblade's sister could be. Sure, her curves were impossible to ignore, generous in all the right places, but everything else about her made him want to bolt. Built like a tank and radiating an aura of sheer dominance, she was more than just intimidating; she was suffocating.

To Skyblade, beauty was a fleeting distraction, easily erased when the lights went out. But curves? Curves had staying power. They had a certain utility, an undeniable allure that transcended fear. Yet even his steadfast motto felt shaky when it ca to her.