Chapter 33: Chapter 33
The skill description for Analyze was pretty straightforward: [Deduce the characteristics of any item or person. The effectiveness of this skill is based on the Intellect stat.]
Going by the description, this skill was more like the Itemancer in the show he had seen, and it was definitely the aspect of this class that tied to the existence of the System Brand.
It was pretty logical. In order for Darius to choose who he should contract under the System Brand to obtain a method of growth unseen in Faust, he would first need to know their strengths and weaknesses!
The Analyze skill was his tool for such a purpose. The second half of the skill's description was even more interesting, stating that the effectiveness of the skill lay on his Intellect stat.
This, combined with the fact that the skill in question did not display a percentile value for its effectiveness, led Darius to believe that its utility was apparent no matter what level the skill was at.
However, he still decided to dedicate his next level's skill points to the Analyze skill in order to properly investigate what changes it could manifest when strengthened. For all he knew, there might be some hidden aspects at higher levels.
Speaking of his next level…
Darius sighed and ended his bout of relaxation. He was checking the utility of the Analyze skill, so he needed to go out and use it on people to ascertain how it worked.
Once that was done, he would have to resume his efforts in raising his level and honing his skills. It was imperative that he did so if he wanted to avoid getting overwhelmed by an enemy in the future.
The reason he had not gone all out to reach a higher level previously was because he had lacked a set home base. Living in the wilderness had been a real problem for him, no matter how calm he seemed about it.
With that in mind, Darius departed his room and walked through the decorated hallways of Shanks' manor. In truth, Darius knew he would have easily gotten lost if he did not have the mini-map to assist him in the back of his mind.
When he did exit though, he saw Portia talking to her brother Derek. Portia wore an aggrieved expression while Derek wore a comforting one, so Darius didn't need to be a genius to tell what they were talking about.
As he walked over to them, Darius first used Inspect.
[Derek Torniam - Level 1 Spearman
HP: 30/30 MP: 7/7]
[Portia Torniam - Level 1 Scholar
HP: 15/15 MP: 13/13]
'So their last name is Torniam, huh?' Darius noted.
He shook his head at how barebones the details given by the Inspect ability were. This skill had come as part and parcel of the Supreme System, not affiliated to any class or specific mechanic.
It only gave the name, level, class, HP, and MP of a target. This, Darius was used to. Now, it would be time to see the difference between the generic skill which was most likely included for all other classes, and his Itemancer specific Analyze skill.
[Detected target is of a Neutral affiliation. Displaying details accordingly.]
[Name: Derek Torniam
Race: Human
Class: Spearman
Sub-class: None
HP: 30/30
MP: 7/7
Level: 1
Strength: 6
Agility: 4
Endurance: 5
Intellect: 7
Charisma: 9
Luck: 3]
[Detected target is of a Friendly affiliation. Displaying details accordingly.]
[Name: Portia Torniam
Race: Human
Class: Scholar
Sub-class: None
HP: 15/15
MP: 13/13
Level: 1
Strength: 3
Agility: 2
Endurance: 5
Intellect: 13
Charisma: 11
Luck: 5
Physical Status: Healthy
Mental Status: Sad
Affection: Friendly lvl 3]
Darius was intrigued by the wealth of information, and the accuracy of it too. The first thing he noticed was that their HP and MP were calculated the same way his were.
Did that mean every 'NPC' of this world featured the same methods he did, assuming they were put under the sharp eye of the Supreme System? That was an exciting piece of information.
It would allow him to accurately gauge the strength and weaknesses of his foes as well as his allies. No to mention, it was a handy tool to find out how those around truly felt about him, whether they were loyal or just putting up a front.
Darius was already versed enough to detect such things on his own though, but having a sure-fire way to find out was much better than a gut feeling, or in Darius' case, deduction through behavioral analysis.
So, Portia was more intelligent than Derek, but Derek was more mobile and stronger physically. How stereotypical. At level 1 though, their stats were far worse than Darius'.
Another thing he noted was that their levels were shown, yet there was no mention of their Experience Points, Ability Points, or Skill Points, though Darius felt that the reason for this should be obvious enough.
Such things required the hand of the Supreme System!
'Hm, so it seems that the normal way to grow is to work hard? But how can people break past the limits and hunt monsters, fight dragons or even go above level 20 then?' Darius pondered.
This was the main question that bothered him. How did people in this world become stronger traditionally? So far, he had made many guesses, but that's all they were, just guesses.
Because looking at Darius' own growth, by level 20 he should be at least thrice as effective as the average man. Since this world had people from the Amateur stage to the Grandmaster stage, barr only the Supreme level beyond that, how had they acquired their power?
Was there a central system of power/growth that every native of Faust used? Or did every country or locale have its own system of power/growth that was unique and impossible to mimic?
Darius needed to know this as it was the only way to verify if the Supreme System was truly overpowered in how it handled Darius's growth, or if it was just average as Darius suspected it to be deep down.
After all, it made little sense for Vena and Caesar to give him something so powerful if they claimed he would struggle to even reach the Adept level. Not only that, but his struggles were precisely supposed to be their source of amusement, so him breezing through every obstacle that came his way just seemed unlikely.
Darius sighed and greeted the siblings. He decided that before anything else, he should quickly raise his strength and then acquire servants under his System Brand to follow him around.
Chapter 34: Chapter 34
Portia spotted Darius and almost jumped. Her bitter expression was quickly wiped away as she wore a weak smile, while Derek's eyes slightly narrowed. Darius noted their reactions with interest.
"Hello, Master Darius. Do you require any help?" Portia stepped forward to ask.
Darius smiled gently at Portia, making the young lady's heart speed up a little. "Thank you very much for the thoughtful offer, dear Portia, but I am currently headed out to perform some experiments."
Portia's curiosity suddenly burned up. Darius had shared with them that he was here to do some experiments in the area, which was how he even got permission to stay.
Even more importantly, they were very likely to be magical experiments! Darius had shown himself to be a Mage and Portia had read a lot about Mages and how they advanced their craft.
It was through the universally-approved Magical Method!
If Darius was actually going out to advance his powers as a Mage by using the Magical Method, then that would be a sight worth seeing! She would actually be able to watch a Mage draw up spells firsthand.
"I would like to accompany you, Master Darius. I'm a Scholar, and I have a real fancy for magic. Might it be possible for me to learn from you?" Portia asked with a rush.
Derek's expression twisted as his sister rudely requested to become an apprentice to a Mage without even paying a fee or doing anything of note. He was more worldly than his sister thanks to the time he had spent in the towns with his father on errands.
Portia, who had spent her time nosing through books was not too adept in reading negative social cues occasionally, like now. Her intellectual curiosity got the better of her, leading the young woman to make a social gaffe that even a non-Mage like him was aware of.
Derek sighed internally and spoke before Darius could reply. "Please forgive my rash sister. As she admitted, she has quite a fancy for magic and has a tendency to let her curiosity override her better manners. I can assure you, we shall both wait for you to complete your experiments and will await your return."
Darius, who was about to deny Portia kindly, was surprised by this young lad's astuteness despite being more of a physically focused person. As such, Darius simply nodded with a smile and walked away.
Portia, who realized her gaffe after being called out on it, became even sadder. Derek hugged his sister gently while chiding her, to which Portia nodded her head while tearing up.
After comforting her, Derek looked towards the direction Darius left with a strange gleam in his eyes.
* * *
Darius passed by the broken carriage he had spent the night in and walked past it while checking it out idly. He reminisced on his journey here fondly. From that small wooden cottage in the glade to Poleria's homestead had taken him 2 or so days.
He had gone from level 1 and was now level 3, not a bad growth cycle given that he was not really given much in terms of combat minus one starter spell.
Darius wasn't disrespectful though. He understood well enough that receiving that starter spell alone was a boon that would likely shake any knowledgeable Mage.
The ability to skip weeks and months of training, lectures, and tests to achieve basic mastery in anything he learned through skillbooks was not something Darius could describe as a 'mere' boost.
It was downright unfair and overpowered. Compared to people who woke up every day, paid fees for tutelage, and suffered through harsh reprimands from their trainers, he just had to tap a book and would achieve all of that.
This was something that made the Supreme System really important to Darius despite how barebones and unappealing version 1.0 of it was.
Of course, for every benefit, there was a detriment. The Skill Points mechanic. This was something that didn't just limit the utility of the skill system, but also had hidden psychological effects that must have been designed to damage the user over time.
For the time being, Darius was immune to it thanks to the fact that he had identified the effects as well as his high Intellect... but he also realized that it could not last forever. As long as things stayed this way, he would eventually be struck by the mental afflictions until he caved in.
He did not want that.
This was why he was currently walking towards the river he had crossed to arrive at the homestead. It was 23 kilometers away and would take him half a day to get there if he jogged, but he opted to walk and explore a little.
Last time, his singular goal had been to reach a place of civilization to create the first point of contact as well as to establish a homebase. Both had been achieved, so now his aim was to start mapping the area around Poleria's Homestead.
Derek had already given him some information on the wildlife here and from what he had heard it appeared like a good opportunity to raise his level before heading for one of the 20 towns. Once there, he would not have as much freedom to gallivant as he pleased.
About 4 hours later, Darius came upon a strange sound. It was a sound that he could not mistake, but he also could not possibly believe what he was hearing due to the absurdity.
He took a deep breath and steeled his heart, creeping around the trees on the side of the footpath and heading deeper into the forest. The deeper he went, the louder and clearer the sounds became, and the more Darius' face twisted.
At this point, he almost lost the will to go forward, for what he would see wouldn't be worth satisfying his curiosity, unfortunately, this was a part of his purpose in leisurely strutting through the area.
Darius secured his back against a tree, which was only a few feet from the sound which was now as clear as day. After angling himself quietly, Darius turned to peek around the tree and saw something that nearly burned itself into his retinas.
A 10 foot tall blue Troll was currently wrestling with a tanned lioness, trying to pin the beast down for reasons Darius despised.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
Ranking 
6 Power
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