Astaroth's body shone brightly inside the cave, alone with Genie.
He heard loud notifications in his ears.
*Ding!*
*You have consumed a legendary potion. Congratulations on being the first player to use a legendary consumable!*
*Ding!*
*You have consumed an Exp Potion. Exp given is calculated in function of the Grade of the potion. Calculating Exp given!*
*Ding!*
*Calculations are done! Three million Exp points gained!*
*Level up! Level up! Level up!... You are now level 30. From leveling; you gained 9 skill points, 27 free Attribute points, and all Attributes increased by 9.*
*Ding!*
*Congratulations, you have achieved the required level to join the 'Tournament of Heroes'*
*Ding!*
*World Announcement!*
*All thousand spots for the 'Tournament of Heroes' are now filled! Congratulations to all future participants! May the strongest win!*
With all these notifications, Astaroth just sat there, mouth agape in astonishment.
'3 Million points! So much Exp!' He thought to himself, his brain still reeling from shock.
He had expected it to give a decent amount since it was legendary, but that was way beyond what he had imagined.
He had shot straight to level thirty, and when he looked at Genie's and White Death's status windows, he could see it didn't stop there.
Genie had also shot to level thirty, and White was now level twenty-seven! The stat gain from these levels alone would render him capable of moving alone in the zone much faster now.
Plus, he could easily calculate that he would be monstrously stronger when spirit melded with White now.
This was great!
Then he looked at the tournament attendance window again. He could see his entry number on it.
He was the nine hundred ninety-eighth participant. Some players were close to taking all the spots.
His taking the potion barely secured him the spot. He was thankful for the way Kloud treated him.
Now, he could go to the national stage and try to make his mark. Of course, it wouldn't be easy by any means, but he was ready for the challenge.
Still celebrating in his mind, he looked at his status screen to distribute all the points he had earned.
Status:
Name: Astaroth
Race: Ash Elf
Level: 30 (157'735/559'950)
Stats:
HP: 3'825/3'825 MP: 1300/1300 Stamina: 100
Mana Regen: 1/second in combat, 5/second out of combat
Strength: 39 (+20) Agility: 39 Constitution: 39 (+20)
Intelligence: 39 Wisdom: 31
Attack Power Str: 295 Attack Power Agi: 195 Magic Attack Power: 195 Healing Power: 155
Natural Defense: 5.9% Armor Defense: 14%
Luck: 0 (Stat unaffected by Level up and free points)
Available stat points: 27
Available skill points: 9
Physical Condition: Normal
Mental Condition: Normal
He put all his free points into his damage stats, so he dropped nine points into strength, agility, and intelligence, respectively.
That brought those three stats to forty-eight and boosted the damage numbers by an extra forty-five points in all three.
He also brought the skill 'Mana Skin' to max level, before leaving the remaining 5 skill points to sit for now.
Mana Skin: Lvl 1 -> Lvl 5 (Max) (Mastery Lvl 0/5)
Damage Reduction: 10% -> 20%
Repelling Chances: 20% -> 25%
Mana Cost: 50 -> 150
Duration: 2 minutes -> 5 minutes
The overall change was more of a time upgrade, but it still satisfied him. That meant he wouldn't need to cast it as often.
While he was doing all this, Astaroth was also walking in the path towards the old man's abode.
It took him a little longer than usual since he was focusing on his status screen, but he made it shortly after.
Once there, the old man was sitting in his chair next to the opening, waiting for him to return. He eyed him critically.
"I see you gained the strength you desired so badly. Hmph! All that just to flaunt it to your peers. What a shame. I thought you were less vain." Aberon told Astaroth, with a slight look of disappointment.
"It is not about vanity, sir. Doing this gives me the chance to live a better life in the real world." Astaroth tried to justify himself.
"What do you mean, real world? This is the real world, boy!" Aberon replied.
*Sigh*
"It is too hard to explain. There are many players like me in the game, and we have a tournament to determine who is the strongest coming up. I really needed to take part." Astaroth said, trying to sum it up for the old man.
"Boy, I know about you Players. However, we call you Abnormals, not Players. We know you come from another world, and that you have weird customs. But it doesn't make our world less real!" The old man said with conviction.
'They really gave it their all in the emotion AI' Astaroth thought, raising his thumb to the creators mentally.
"I still consider it to be a vanity contest." Aberon harrumphed.
"That doesn't change what I just said, sir." Astaroth said, shrugging his shoulders.
"How much time until your pissing contest?" The old man asked, not even looking at him.
"I have a week before the tournament." Astaroth replied with a chuckle.
"Hmm. That should be enough time." Aberon said, brushing his hand through his beard.
"Enough time? For what, sir?" Astaroth asked, becoming curious.
"Enough time to get you to the capital and pass your coming-of-age ceremony." The old man said, looking at him.
"Umm… My what now?" Astaroth questioned, confused.
*Sigh*
"Your coming of age ceremony, boy. The ceremony where you unlock your racial trait. All Ash Elves go through it once they get to level thirty. That is our custom." Aberon said, looking at Astaroth like he was stupid.
At that moment, Astaroth got a notification prompt in his vision.
*Ding*
*Your gaming pod has used up its IV reserves. Please log out soon to refresh them and make sure you rest properly.*
'Huh. How convenient.' Astaroth thought.
"Excuse me, sir. But I might need to leave for the rest of the day. Can we continue this conversation tomorrow?" Astaroth asked, trying to leave as soon as he could.
He could tell the old man was not happy with his recent choices and actions. He needed to do all those and wouldn't hesitate to make the same choices again.
"Tch. Fine! I'll prepare your trip while you are gone, who knows where. But be here early tomorrow!" He shouted, throwing his hands in the air.
Astaroth bowed and left in a hurry. He ran to his alcove and lay down before logging out.
If you liked my story, add it to your library!
This story is in the Fantasy Carnival, so it needs Power Stones to up-rank. If I get into the top 100, I will drop an extra 2 chapters that day. Another 2 chapters for top 50. I will up the stakes at 5 bonus chapters for top 20, and another 5 for top 10! Please vote for me! :)
Also, I drop an extra chapter on Monday for every 100 PS I accumulate in the event!
We are still 48th! The next spot is still a bit away, but I have faith. Top 20 is our next goal! Let's keep this going!
If you like the novel so far or think something could use work, don't be scared to leave a review :)
Alexander woke up in the Pod. His body was sore after laying down for almost five days.
His body was sweaty, and his bowels were excited.
He got out of the contraption and ran to his bathroom.
He felt liberated as he left the bathroom, since his body had been holding it in for days.
The next order of things was to eat a solid meal. He wasn't hungry that much, being on IV fluids whilst in the pod, but his body still needed some proper food.
As Alexander ate a bowl of cereal, he scrolled through the game forums with his cell phone, trying to find anything of interest.
He read a post about a function someone had found in their pod—phone linking.
The person found out by fiddling in their pod options they could link their phone to it and receive messages in-game from the phone.
It could even receive calls, although time dilatation issues were making the calls awkward for the person on the outside.
Alexander finished eating and went back to his pod, trying to find that option.
It didn't take him much time, as the post author had explained the setting location clearly.
Once he found it and linked it to his phone, he grinned. That would save him from being unreachable for days.
He wasn't able to test it because he was almost out of IV bags. There were only two left.
Alexander opened up the pharmacy's online platform on his phone, going to the medical portion.
He scrolled till he found the IV bags and gasped. The price increased from the last time.
The bags were now marked at two hundred and fifty dollars apiece. He bit his lip and ordered eight of them.
He tapped the delivery option and looked at the estimated delivery time. It would be six hours before he got them, so he filled his time up.
He looked online for Gamer Guilds, as the community called them. They were companies that had formed around in-game guilds.
If you wanted a sponsorship, they would be the ones to join. The companies paid players to push their brand into new games.
Most of them needed you to interview, and they all had strict hiring standards.
Alexander hated being under a microscope.
He still applied to all the ones in his current vicinity and decided he would bite the bullet if the need arose.
Alexander then went to take a shower to cleanse his sweaty body. He felt sore, like he had run a marathon, but he couldn't understand why.
Had he not been laying down for five days? He attributed it to being immobile for so long and discarded it as simply numbness.
He took a long hot shower, letting the heat relax his muscles and soothe his aches.
Once he was out and dry, he sat down in front of his television, watching the news a little, waiting for his delivery.
The news displayed was quite grim. People were fighting for pod supplies. The rich were trying to monopolize them.
The poorer, who couldn't afford even the cheapest pod, were still staying dangerously long inside the game with the helmet.
Some players had even died, because of health issues, caused by dehydration and injury.
Alexander felt like things were getting out of hand. If players started dying, the game would have to shut down, for safety reasons.
But the next bit of news threw him off even more.
While he was inside the game, 'Evo-Gaming' had opened up new shares on the market, on which many businessmen and women had jumped, to gain a piece of the pie.
The pricing on the pods enticed them so much. If more and more gamers bought them, then the return on investment would be monstrous!
The company had also given a press conference, announcing something else that would be a game changer.
They were introducing a currency exchange! Now players could trade their hard-earned money for in-game gold!
This would force a major power shift in the player community. The poorer players, even if good, would now have to compete with money to get better gear from merchants and auction houses!
He was lucky to be out of that struggle for now, as there probably weren't many players in the Ash Elf zone, anyway.
But that wouldn't last very long, as he would eventually have to venture out of that zone, to explore the wider game world.
Most of the higher-level zones were out of any countries if he believed what he could read online.
It was a matter for other people to wrack their brains with, since he didn't have any money left to spare, anyway. For now, he was mainly concerned that he wouldn't be able to make adequate preparations for the tournament.
He didn't have access to merchants at all in his starter village. But he most likely had an easier time leveling up.
The monsters here were a gold mine for low-level players, after all.
But that was beside the point. He needed to see if he could find gear for the tournament.
And skills, or spells, to bolster his arsenal. Finding a trainer that suits his needs would be tough too, unless he stuck with Kloud and Aberon.
He was almost certain that the only thing he would have time to do was the coming-of-age ceremony Aberon had mentioned.
As he watched the news and contemplated his options, time flew by. His doorbell eventually rang.
He rose from his couch and walked to the intercom. On the screen was a man in a delivery uniform, tagged with the pharmacy's logo.
He pressed the button to talk to the man.
"Hello."
"Hi. Is this Alexander Leduc's residence?" The man asked, looking at the camera.
"That would be correct." Alexander replied.
"I have a delivery from the pharmacy to your name. Can I come in?" The man said, showing his D/O.
Alexander buzzed him in and waited at the door for his order.
Once he had received it and signed off on it, he closed his door and went to set the bags in place.
He would return inside the game soon, to make as many preps as he could for the upcoming tournament.
He cleaned a little around his apartment and then got ready to dive again.
As he lay down in his pod, he heard the electronic voice welcoming him.
"Welcome back, Player Astaroth."
"Log in" Alexander simply replied, closing the lid on the pod.
*Launching 'New Eden'*
*Logging in*
*Welcome back player Astaroth*
If you liked my story, add it to your library!
This story is in the Fantasy Carnival, so it needs Power Stones to up-rank. If I get into the top 100, I will drop an extra 2 chapters that day. Another 2 chapters for top 50. I will up the stakes at 5 bonus chapters for top 20, and another 5 for top 10! Please vote for me! :)
Also, I drop an extra chapter on Monday for every 100 PS I accumulate in the event!
We dropped to 49th! We have barely been passed, but the next 2 spots are still relatively close. Top 20 is our next goal! Let's keep this going!
We have reached a cumulated of 400 PS! So you get a free chap on Monday, Gratz!
Also, since it's been 4 weeks straight that we reach our goal, I am upping the stakes. From now on, it will be 1 free chap for every 100 PS in the same week! So keep those stones coming! I have faith in you!
If you like the novel so far or think something could use work, don't be scared to leave a review :)
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