"You know, I put this off for so long, and now that I'm here, it didn't take much. I was always like that when I was young. I'd procrastinate until I absolutely needed to do something and do it at the last possible moment. It's just who I am." Leila said out loud, her conversation partner keeping quiet.

"Of course, I'd spend the whole time fretting about needing to do whatever I was procrastinating on. Thinking about it with hindsight, it was a terribly inefficient way to live. But I would be so worked up by the time I started doing it that I was very effcient." She continued, amusement evident in her tone as she reclined back, looking at the stars twinkling merrily above her head.

"It was easier than I like to admit. I could have done this anytime in the past year or so. But I suppose everyone has their shortcomings, huh?" She asked, getting no response once again.

She wasn't bothered by the silence, however, and continued undeterred. "I always found an excuse because I knew things would change massively if I actually crossed this threshold. As a B-rank Awakener, I had a lot of leeway, that's true, but minimal political powers. The very fact that I had to spend so much time greasing hands and bowing my head to the directorate makes me want to vomit. But evidently, I preferred that to having the power to change things."

Leila chuckled again, though it was a bitter sound this time, nothing like the previous laugh. "I know that A-rank is not the end-all-be-all, seeing as Leonid and even that smarmy bastard Roman still have to play the game, but the weight behind their words is several times the one behind mine. I should have pushed to get here sooner, but only the danger I can see my kids being in woke me up."

For a while, the only sound through the vast, desolate swamp was that of the crackling fire her magic was sustaining and her conversation partner's slow, labored breath.

The fight had long since gone out of it. The struggling, twisting and turning as it attempted to get free from the bonds Leila had cast had only served to exhaust it further, and it was intelligent enough to realize there was nothing it could do.

A Hydra, so vast as to make the one Team 0 had fought look like a newborn, lay behind Leila, its numerous heads entirely missing as the stumps were coated in dark flames, which prevented its incredible regeneration abilities from successfully restoring it.

It was a crueler punishment than Leila would usually inflict on a monster, but she had felt the need to ponder some things, and talking to herself out loud felt too much like she was going crazy.

Therefore, she had bound the dungeon's Boss in thousands of layers with her shadows and cast hellfire on its open wounds so that all its energy would be eternally locked, trying to regenerate against the infernal heat.

"Well, that, and being told that I cannot access certain information made me very, very curious about what's really going on." She continued, good mood somewhat restored. "Now, I don't think they are going to hand over the keys the moment I get registered as an A-rank, of course, otherwise people like Marcus and Leonid would have already known everything, but it will make my investigation much easier to conduct, and any attempt to stymy me much harder to carry."

Finally, Leila placed her hand on the last remaining hydra head. It was so large that the eye she was standing next to was as big as her entire body. That very same eye tiredly shifted to look at her.

For a moment, she thought it may contain something beyond animalistic rage, but the monster still only held hatred. It wanted to kill her, and nothing, not even the suffering it was no doubt going through, could stop that feeling.

"There is always a good reason to push things to a later time." She said, resuming her previous train of thought. "I would have liked to be there for the kids as they get the experience for the Last Five, but if I had done that, I would not be here now. I would have procrastinated again, and I don't think I'll get another chance like this anytime soon."

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Leila sighed, calling upon her mana, condensing it before her hand in a tiny sphere, pushing thousands and thousands of points per second into it. "The Silent Guardian will take care of them. I'd even say nobody in the world can do a better job than that monstrous old man. Really, he was already old when the Apocalypse started, but to climb to S-rank with your bones creaking and arthritis… He has to be a real battle junkie, no matter what he tries to show himself as."

The moment the sphere she was holding reached critical mass, Leila let it go.

A flash of purple later and the sound of thunder rumbled through the Canadian plains. Birds miles away took to the air, their instincts telling them that a calamity unlike any they knew of was close.

A large, deep furrow was carved into the earth, a dozen feet deep and extending for half a mile. Of the majestic, monstrous hydra, nothing remained. Not even the mana stone.

It's a pity that these things can regenerate even from a little bit of flesh. The stone would have fetched a pretty price. Well, I don't need more money for myself, and I already own a house, but it's always nice to build a nest egg for the future, considering how things are looking.

That done, Leila turned to look at the notifications that had sprung up as soon as she released her magic.

CONGRATULATIONS!

You have defeated [Lernaean Hydra - Undying Calamity]! You have earned 62B EXP!

CONGRATULATIONS!

You have reached Level 400! You have reached a Major Threshold! Remaining EXP deferred until Rank-up.

CONGRATULATIONS!

-You are eligible for a Rank Up! As Humanity's shield, you have proven worthy of the power the System bestowed upon you.

- You have wielded your might to advance the cause of Life and Liberty.

* Thousands of Sapient lives that would have perished have flourished because of you.

* You have killed a [Plague Lord].

* You have killed a [Aether-Born Scourge]

* You have killed a [Enemy of Humanity] x3

———

Leila felt her smile grow as she read the notifications. It wasn't often that she allowed herself to feel pride for her actions, having been taught by her mentor that it would only lead to hubris. But on this one occasion, seeing the System itself recognize her, she let herself enjoy the moment.

By the time I get to the next rank, I want this list to be twice as long. It might be too much, but it's a good goal to aim for.

Knowing that the System only mentioned actions that profoundly impacted the world - when put into the context of the current rank - Leila had done an excellent job gathering high-quality experiences.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO PROCEED WITH THE RANK UP?

YES NO

This last message held a very different weight than all others. Scientists and philosophers had often interrogated themselves as to why this was the case whenever a Rank Up was offered, and the most common answer was that the System brought its attention directly to the matter, not leaving it to its side processors.

There was no way of knowing if that was the truth, but considering the pressure Leila could feel emanating from the blue window, she was inclined to agree.

With a mental push, she accepted, not wanting to delay the process any longer.

Curiosity was one emotion Leila had always felt very strongly, and considering how unique her previous Rank Up had been, transforming her FireShadow Mage Talent into what it now was, she was dying to know what she'd get offered this time.

As dozens upon dozens of new windows opened up, completely obscuring her surroundings - which had changed to the infinite white void she had become used to whenever she ranked up - Leila sat down, settling in for the long haul.

A Rank Up was a protected process. The System didn't allow anyone to interfere with it, even in the middle of a dungeon. Of course, that didn't mean that as soon as it was done, she couldn't get attacked before she got used to her new powers, but that would only be dangerous if she chose a Talent evolution that was so different from her previous one, she would need some time to learn how to use it.

I have no intention of doing that. Princess of Hell might be an edgy-sounding name, but it's also very powerful. Anything that stems directly from it can only be amazing.

The first few she looked over were decent enough, but far from what she needed to be if she wanted to shake things up.

Some offered increased mana pools by orders of magnitude, while others would allow her to expand her domain, gaining absolute control over more elements.

Leila was momentarily tempted by one option called Avatar of the Flame, which would remove her Shadow manipulation abilities in exchange for her becoming one with fire. She'd reach levels of control with the element impossible to achieve otherwise, and her power output would be essentially infinite. For as long as she was alive, she'd burn fiercely.

That, however, was not what she wanted. It took her the better part of two hours, spent reading all the options in case something special popped up before she found what she wanted.

[Infernal Queen] called like a beacon to her, and Leila grinned with satisfaction as she accepted the option.