Novel 8-Preparations for the Competition Part 1

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---

"... Everyone's doing fine." He muttered to himself as he checked his chatgroups

'It seems they've all done what I did, enter Planes and Level Up. Although it seems some of them went prepare for the school camp.'

He looked a little down as he said that, realizing he had abandoned all of his friends due to his momentary shock.

'They're concerned… I was a little popular I guess, they're all speaking about each other and bla bla bla… That's what happens when you're in several of these chats.'

'Some of them seem to be making fun of me as well according to some friends… Ha, its in situations like these people begin showing their true selves, when they're given some degree of superiority.'

'I won't reply to them, there's nothing to be gained there… For my true friends, however. I'll give them something to think about…'

[I'm fine everyone, sorry for the worry. I already solved my issue. Luckily, I got a Golden Box in the Plane I visited this morning, and now I'm cool *Image Attached*]

He sent this message to his main chat group, turned off the phone, and returned to his shower.

The photo was just a simple image from the Plane recording he deleted.

The Ring he received before he entered the Plane not only collected and stored the Physical Data of monsters, but it also recorded his path and movement. This was one of the reasons why he didn't wear it.

He didn't know if it recorded his Skills and levels or even if it recorded his entry in the Special Dungeon, but he didn't want to test them out.

As such, before he returned, by using what he knew about the ring's technology, he deleted everything to avoid having people learn about his abilities, but not before making a copy of it all and sending it to the phone he had in his inventory before entry.

It was an over-the-top thing to do, but for now, the more he kept himself hidden, the better.

Because in 10 months, the City Competition would begin. That was when he wished to display his abilities, not now.

/Shuaaa…/

/Scrub scrub…/

He focused solely on his bath, scrubbing himself again… And again… And again… Until the smell of blood was somewhat manageable.

"Sigh… I'll have to buy one of those bath bombs… I'll purchase one now actually. I can't go to bed with this smell…"

Blood had a persistent smell, and without proper cleaning products, it would stick to the skin for a long time…

Everything in line, Samuel lay on bed and closed his eyes…

/Growl…/

But barely a few minutes later, his stomach began to rumble, and he ordered some takeout.

A nice burger for a nice day of work.

"Oh yeah, I didn't check… How much did I make today?"

He opened his bank account through his phone, and the value shocked him.

[... Bank Amount: 223387 Shards]

"... Did I make over 100 thousand Shards in one day? Thats like… The price of a nice car…"

Samuel had a lot of money he gathered over years of part-time work and sensible investments, it was quite the amount, given he wasn't even of age yet.

Still…

'Being in Awakener… It is quite profitable. Maybe now I can finally afford a High-Grade Awakener's Watch…'

"A nice house would be good, I don't need anything big, just something convenient."

"They say food cooked from materials within Dungeons are great… Man…"

"I don't care about fame or wealth… But I wouldn't mind being popular with the ladies."

/Chuckle…/

"Haa…"

'I can't wait to go shopping for stuff tomorrow!'

After he finished ordering his bath food and bomb online, he put his phone aside and sat down on his computer, researching.

The hours rolled by, his food arrived, and so did his bath bomb. And after yet another shower to take off the blood, Samuel could finally lie down and nap.

As such, time passed…

…

/Later that day…/

"... And this, sir is our newest AW Aqua 7, it has increased elemental resistance compared to its predecessor while also possessing greater computing power." A male clerk said as he showed Samuel a rectangular watch built like a bracelet

Samuel was currently inside a large shop with quite a few people inside.

Before him was a male clerk in white blue clothes behind a transparent counter.

"It's quite good looking, but my priority is the Simulation function. I would like a Watch that maximizes that aspect so I can train, plan, and above all, map out my Skills and abilities in advance."

"I see, so you're looking for a technical watch. We have those here as well." He said as he turned around

He went for a small terminal built into the smooth white, marble wall and typed a few things…

/Fwoosh!/

The white wall parted open in multiple sections as small robots delivered tiny boxes onto the counter before Samuel, putting them all in line so he could inspect him.

The clerk turned bak to face Samuel, pointing at the first three boxes.

"These are our top of the line AW Watches, these two are our 'Smart' line, and these last two are from our 'Slim' line."

"I'll have to apologize, but we're out of the Slim lines, but I can make a reserve for you, better yet. You can purchase the Watch here and have it delivered for your address for free or take it yourself today if you're interested."

"Thank you, but let's have a look at them first…"

'If I'm not mistaken, the Smart line is just their budget versions with less features meant to push us into buying the expensive watches, while the Slim versions are the true fancy ones meant to be more powerful or equal in power while being smaller.'

'The usual practices where they sometimes slow down development to make people pay a premium for their outdated technology…'

'I'm not a fan of this company, "Pear", but their products are the best in this field… Even if they're expensive.'

"... This one right here from our newest 'Hunter' series, it's made to hold all necessary tolls to assist a hunter in the field, be it in a Demi-Plane or elsewhere."

"Heat resistant up to 300 and -20 degrees, it can also resist sudden temperature fluctuations and retain most basic functions even if its stress threshold is surpassed."

"From Air quality analysis to blood sample verification and health diagnosis, it possesses 8 Terabytes of built-in guides and manuals to assist you in any situation. Including 8 Terabytes of extra storage in case you wish to update it."

"Its robustness comes from its Adaptive, Ether-infused titanium casing, which protects its top-of-the-line Re-Ex SS-Grade Processor Core."

"All of the past functions of our watches are present in this one, and above all, you may come at any time for our shops to discuss adding or removing features; it's included in the manual and warranty."

"For your requirements, our AW Hunter 1 possesses enough processing and computing power to simulate monsters to Level 99 and assist you in pathing your Class Skills up to the fourth transformation or Level 80. Although it would be more precise to say it goes up to the threshold of the fifth transformation, Level 99."

"It can also collect Data on any creatures you encounter to later create models and expand its internal library. On that note, the AW Hunter 1 also siphons information from our database to assist you during Raids."

"The AW Hunter isn't dependent on the Web to function."

"The AW Hunter will not share your information with us without a clear, prior warning. But we do trade for models and information if you're willing."

"Its total battery life is 580 hours if fully charged. But it will end sooner if you begin taxing operations like Simulation and other equally taxing calculations."

"The AW Hunter can be connected to your inventory to help manage items and the like, we once again would like to state that the AW Hunter does not collect your data and will never send such back to us."

"There's still much to be said, it's one of our leading products after all." He said with a smile as he showed the watch to Samuel

"It's truly incredible. Do you have a manual or… ?"

"But of course, here, I'll send it to you." He said as he tapped the counter, causing a system window to manifest before him

/Fwoop!/

He swiped his hand to Samuel and his phone beeped as something was sent to him.

"Great, what about these others?..."

"This one is the AW Hunter Scout. It's a lighter version of the AW Hunter that…"

"..."

The clerk talked and talked and eventually, Samuel asked:

"What about this one?"

"Oh! This barely hit the shelves… It's the AW Hunter Pro."

"..."

'Of course…'

"What about the prices?"

"It's 110 thousand Shards for the AW Hunter 1. 84 thousand for the AW Hunter Scout. And 150 thousand AW Hunter Pro."

"Quite steep." Samuel said as he looked at the watch

'That's almost the cost of one of those famous Super Car or an entrance for a good house…'

"I'll take the AW Hunter Pro." Samuel said after he thought for a moment, giving his bank card to the clerk

'Tomorrow I can make it all back, I just need to prepare enough for it…'

'It feels so extreme, spending this much… But for something like this. It's worth it.'

"... Marvelous! I'll get everything ready!" The clerk said with some surprised after he hesitated for a moment

Obviously, he didn't expect Samuel to actually buy anything. He looked like any other curious kid.

Honestly, he didn't mind sharing info about the items on display to passing customers, it was good for him since it helped him practice.

It also helped with his Boss since it made him look busy, and above all, it was distracting.

And if he did manage to sell it… Well, then it was a fat bonus for his paycheck.

"... Sigh."

'Father would kill me if he learned I bought this. But then again, I made most of its cost in one day of being an Awakener.'

'Obviously, that was an inflated price, most Awakeners won't make that much. The Plane I went had been left alone for a few days and there were only students there, most Planes in these parts are always full of Hunters making a living. Only higher-level class holders would make that much a day, probably second advancement Classes at the minimum.'

"Here you are sir, everything's been processed smoothly, would you like to divide it?"

"No need." He replied as he checked the payment be confirmed

"Okay… Hm? Sir…"

"Is there a problem?"

"Not at all, it's just your age, you're a recently Awakened individual, aren't you?" He asked as he checked Samuel's info on the cash register

"Yes? Is that important?"

'Am I missing something here?'

"Of course it is! During the National Awakening week, our products all go into a discount for those under 19 years old. In your purchase's case, it's 5%."

"We'll send it as cashback for your account."

"That's great…"

"We'll need your student ID, sir."

"Oh… Here." He said as he took a golden ID from his back pocket

"...! Oh! You're a High Sun student!"

"?"

"We have a partnership with the High Sun Academy, all students receive an extra discount! In the case of this watch, it's an extra 5% discount."

"Really? Is there anything else if it's up to me, I'll forget it." Samuel joked as he took back his ID

"Unless you work for some corporations or possess a discount/special code, that's all."

"Anything else I can get for you? In purchases above 200 thousand, you can get up to 15% discount!"

In truth, that wasn't a thing, he made it on the spot just to sell him more, but thanks to the profit margin, he would be fine even if he did it.

"No, thanks. I'll only take the Watch for today… But do you know where I can buy Basic Equipment?"

"Planning on Raiding? Then I can recommend a few in the area…"

…

Once he purchased his watch, Samuel went around the street and the malls to buy some equipment before returning home.

He quickly ate dinner made by his mother before entering his room, only exchanging a few words with them before leaving.

He didn't want to be cold to them, but he was swamped with stuff to do, and they understood him.

They were young too, after all.

…

/Shine…/

[Thank you for trusting Pear. Welcome to your new…]

"Bla bla bla, skip skip…"

Sitting in his table, Samuel opened his new watch's box and began configuring it.

"Okay… How do I use this?..."

[Aside from the small guidebook present in my box, I can also present you with a simple guide of my Systems. Would you like a quick rundown of everything at my disposal?]

"Yes."

[Then first…]

…

/Half an hour later…/

[... And that's all]

"... Open Simulation."

The watch suddenly sparked with light and his entire room… Vanished from view.

Samuel was now alone in a white space with nothing but his bed as a point of reference.

[Which type of Simulation you would like to run?]

"Status. Simulate my Status at Level 1."

[Processing…]

[Din!]

"... That was fast."

[Name: Samuel Necrom D'Lurge

Age: 17 Years & 11 months…

Class: Warlock E / Lunar Phantasm O

Level: 1

Life Force: 100%

Flowing Ether: 1000

Attributes =>

Physical(+): 10 -> 25

Mental(+): 20 -> 30

Spiritual(+): 10 -> 40

Ether: 5 -> 25

Skills (⍺) ->

Crescent Bullet Lv 0

Bound Warp Lv 0

Stygian Exposure Lv 0

Vile Harvest Lv 0

Necrotic Volley Lv 0

Soul Conduit Lv Max

Skills (ꞵ) ->

Astral Craft Lv0

Celestial Anchor Lv0

Nebula Renewal Lv0

Maledic Arrow Lv 0

Toxic Lance Lv 0

Skill Points: 35

Upgrade Tokens: 4

Traits:

Essence of Strength

Essence of Happiness

Essence of Devotion

Essence of Self

…

]

"... This is ridiculous. In one Level, my stats are almost as high as they were before I reset my Level."

'So let's see… Bot adding the five points I get from my Traits…'

'I gain around 10 points of Physical, 5 points of Mental, 25 points of Spiritual, and 15 points of Ether per Level…'

'Within 2-3 Levels, I would literally surpass my past self stat-wise, and with the Skill Points I have, I can regain my full power right then and there.'

'If I was already strong enough to take those Level 55 Lizardman with my ordinary attack. Even if they were trash mobs for their Level, what would that make the current me?'

'With this difference in Level… Maybe I can trigger another super reward from the System, but for that, I would need access to a High-Level Dungeon… Which is hard.'

'Anyhow. I also gain around five Stat points per Level, that's as high as some unique S Grade Clases.'

'Two points for E and D grade Classes. With one Upgrade Token every Five Levels.'

'Three points for most C and B grade Classes. With one Upgrade Token every Five Levels'

'Four points for most A and S Rank grade Classes… With two Upgrade Tokens for every Five Levels.'

'To go over that, you'd need something akin to an S+ or S++ Class or a Talent that gives you such.'

'They aren't rare, but certainly not common. Even if someone has one, it merely increases the number of Skill points they get per Level by one. If it's two, then it's an insanely powerful Talent.'

'Skill Points may be even higher on the list of priority for an Awakener than Stats.'

'On that note, this means I have an extra Max Level Skill every five levels compared to most S Grade Awakeners. Although it remains to be seen how many Tokens I can get.'

"Now, for the intrinsic analysis of my Class…"

'From the Stat distribution, there's a heavy emphasis on Spiritual and Ether. Which would make me akin to a Caster… But then, I get more Physical than Mental, which is odd.'

'This destribution is extremely strange, as of the 55 Stat points I get, 40 goes to two Stats unrelated to what I would expect from a Ranger Class.'

'Even if mutated, there's a protocol to follow here isn't there… Which leads me to my theory. Since this was originally a Warlock Class, it has retained a greater portion of its original Stats.'

'Not that it's bad, it just indicates this Class may be reliant on Ether to cast its abilities more then usual.'

"Above all, most S Classes have less then 30 for their total Stat gain per level."

'I make almost double that… Not counting the extra 20 points I gain from my essences.'

"Not totally balanced, but the essences make up for it." He said with a nod as he moved on

"Simulate my Status at Level 5."

[Name: Samuel Necrom D'Lurge

Age: 17 Years & 11 months…

Class: Warlock E / Lunar Phantasm O

Level: 5

Life Force: 100%

Flowing Ether: 4200

Attributes =>

Physical(+): 25 -> 85

Mental(+): 30 -> 70

Spiritual(+): 40 -> 160

Ether: 25 -> 105

Skills (⍺) ->

Crescent Bullet Lv 0

Bound Warp Lv 0

Stygian Exposure Lv 0

Vile Harvest Lv 0

Necrotic Volley Lv 0

Soul Conduit Lv Max

Skills (ꞵ) ->

Astral Craft Lv0

Celestial Anchor Lv0

Nebula Renewal Lv0

Maledic Arrow Lv 0

Toxic Lance Lv 0

Skill Points: 55

Upgrade Tokens: 7

Traits:

Essence of Strength

Essence of Happiness

Essence of Devotion

Essence of Self

…

]

"Ho… It's not two like the others, but three… Ha…"

'For a moment, I expected to get four. But we take what we can get… I feel so snobbish saying it like this.'

"At level five alone I'm afraid I'm stronger than most Awakeners out there."

'Awakening is an easy process. Maintaining your momentum is something else.'

'Not all can Hunt, not all have the means to plan a Plane attack, few have the money to Raid, and even less have the resources to buy Skills and Items when the time's right.'

'Climbing from the bottom like I did today isn't easy, and the expectation would be for my speed to decrease over time, especially once the National Awakening Week ends and everything returns to normal.'

'Of course, there are other ways to Level Up. Working in any kind of job, achieving excellent results in other fields and even sleeping can give experience under the right circumstances.'

'Some think you can endlessly Level Up to make up for their ability, to reach a state where they can finally quickstart their career!'

'If only it was so easy…'

'You awaken at 17-18, but once you reach your 20s… Things change.'

'Everyday, the experience required for the next level increases slightly, and at first, its unoticible.'

'From Awakening till your twenties, experts say the amount of change doesn't add up to even 50% extra experience. It's already a lot but not meaningful…'

'But this amount keeps increasing until it reaches around 200% once you become 24, and after that, it explodes.'

'Within a year, it'll reach 300%, and in another, 500%.'

'By the time you're 30, you're suddenly having to grind tens of times more than your younger self to Level Up even once. And after a certain point, no matter how hard you work, you won't be able to keep up with the natural growth of your experience bar.'

'Unless you have a large team or is part of Clan/Corporation, be it the government or other houses, it's impossible to keep up with the rate of growth.'

'Even then, everyone has their limit.'

'That's why they say you hit your hayday once you're 30 and that's better to retire from leveling unless you plan on hitting a new plateau.'

'At my rate of growth, I shouldn't have to worry about anything other then enhancing my combat abilities and Skills. But for that, I need the space to train…'

'Eventually, I may be obliged to either go the criminal illegal path… Or join an organization that can back me up.'

'I'm not worried about joining anyone because I know very well of my power, the stronger I grow, the lower the influence a group has on me.'

'They may take my family hostage, but if I become a super high Level individual, what will they do then?'

'Anyhow, those are merely my powertrips fantasies… I'm okay with the way I am now.'

"It doesn't change the fact I have about 6 years to reach my limit."

'They say that after you conclude your fifth transformation and reach Level 100, you can be free of this restriction somewhat… I'll set that as my goal.'

'Level 100 before becoming 24… It's a ridiculous goal, especially with an O Rank Class that likely drains experience like a sink…'

'But I'll get there, I can feel it.'

"All of this aside… Time to test my Skills and form an optimal path."

"... Stop simulating my Status. Instead, I want you to simulate my Skills and give me their evolution paths until the third transformation. You may simulate my Status as well to complement it. But I want two evaluations, one for Level twenty and another for Level sixty."

"Compile everything at once and turn it into a file. Give me an overall report of the skills you think suit me best, and then move on to give me the most suitable path for them and why you believe they're the best."

"I'll transfer some of the data from my Last Plane Raid, study it, and then evaluate the Skills accordingly." Samuel said as he opened his phone

"Notify me once you're done. But until then, let me play around with my Skills as well. I need something to pass the time."

[Understood, beginning simulation…]

The watch shone with light, and the room changed back to its usual appearance.

As for Samuel, his Status screen changed a little. And soon enough, he realized he could see all of his Skill Trees up to a certain point.

Albeit the watch was still making calculations, it was impressive how well it was doing.

'... The power of technology… How utterly frightening. I barely fed it 8 hours of video footage and it has already studied it all?'

'Well. It seems the watch will take some time… Might as well read the new Skills descriptions… And then use the Skill Books I bought.'

'They're definately valuable for the watch's calculations, but I'll add those variables later. After all, the more permutations I add, the longer this will take.'

'I don't think it'll last until tomorrow, but I need the battery to last till then. It would be awkward if it ended midway through that.'

'Now that I wouldn't be able to raid a Plane with my current arsenal anyway….'

Samuel open his Status and checked his first mutated Skill again:

[Crescent Bullet Lv 0

Type: Ranged Projectile/Arcane

Cost: Life Force

Cooldown: N/A

Range: 75 Meters

Description: Condense up to 15% of your Life Force into a crescent-shaped projectile that pierces through multiple targets, jumping to the closest target in quick succession.

Ether may be infused into the bullets, causing them to leave behind a path of burning Ether that deals 10% of their total damage every second for five seconds.

Cost -> Flowing Ether: 100

Enemies struck are slowed by 20% for 3 seconds. The projectile slowly dissipates after traveling 75 meters, vanishing at 90, or piercing 3 enemies.

Crescent Bullets can jump back onto already struck targets if there are no other targets nearby, but cannot strike a lone target twice.

Crescent Bullet will pierce an additional enemy when under direct moonlight.

]

'The essence of Life Bullet is still there, but it became immeasurably stronger.'

'It's like a miniature version of Crimson Thorn, but it's likely weaker given Crimson Thorn was an evolution. Still, it's not likely by much.'

'But the special characteristics are quite good, just reading about them makes me excited.'

[Bound Warp Lv 0

Type: Dislocation/Teleportation

Cost: Flowing Ether (25)

Range: 15 Meters -> 5 Meter AOE

Cooldown: N/A

Description: Disperse into particles and instantly reappear at a location within 15 meters. After warping, moonstone spikes erupt from your previous position, piercing all enemies within a 5-meter area.

Each spike deals 5% of your current Life Force, and enemies may be pierced by multiple. The spikes will actively seek out targets as they form.

You may also proactively define Warp Points, allowing you to jump to the Warp position as long as you're within 30 Meters of it.

Creating a Warp Point drains 50 Flowing Ether and lasts a minute.

There can only be three at a time.

Warp Points can be collapsed after five seconds, granting the caster phasing movement for three seconds, five if under direct moonlight.

While phased, you're intangible to most physical attacks and may phase through solid structures.

]

'Smoke Skip completely changed, but part of what it was remains.'

'I don't know if I like it as Smoke Skip went from a continuous movement ability to a teleport, but overall, I should count this as an evolution.'

'I'm still on the fence, but training with it should reveal everything I need to know about it.'

[Stygian Exposure Lv 0

Type: Ability/Debuff/Hex

Cost: Flowing Ether (100)

Range: 100 Meters target -> AOE of 10 Meters

Cooldown: 45 seconds

Description: Invoke a fragment of the Stygian realm to reveal and curse all enemies within a ten-meter radius.

Enemies within the area are marked with the "Stygian Curse", decreasing their resistances by 30% and increasing damage taken by 25% for 15 seconds.

Enemies suffer from "Exposed" and thus cannot hide for the duration of the Curse. Attempting to hide will trigger another instance of the Stygian Curse with the offender at the center, resetting its duration and stacking its effects.

All attacks against Stygian Cursed targets have a 50% chance to ignore their evasion and magic defenses.

Stygian Exposure may be focused on a single enemy, purging them from all effects for two seconds.

]

'This is much, much better then before. Condemn the Cowardly was a strong Skill, but its single target nature made it hard for me to use.'

'It was good against Bosses, but I often saw the Stat difference from the Skill negligible.'

'Still, this problem was solved with this iteration, and even if its cooldown is long, as I level it up, it'll likely decrease over time as its duration increases.'

'The uptime will likely more then double.'

[Astral Craft Lv0

Type: Ritual/Alchemy

Cost: Life Force

Range: Self

Cooldown: N/A -> 24 Hours

Description: After preparing an Altar, sacrifice a portion of your Life Force to forge items.

The caster may channel the light of the Moon to craft items with astral properties.

Once every moon, the caster may sacrifice a possession to forge an Astral Artifact.

]

'Nothing much changed regarding this Skill, and I'll have to use it on field to test it.'

'Unlike its previous evolved form, I can't just materialize an Altar. I'll need to prepare it, and I'm not in the mood to dirty my room with ritual circles.'

[Celestial Anchor Lv0

Type: Sorcery/Arcane

Cost: Flowing Ether (150)

Range: 60 Meters -> AOE of 8 Meters

Cooldown: 2 Minutes

Description: Invoke a wide pillar of light that'll root or slowdown all targets within its range for ten seconds.

Targets are completely "Suppressed" throughout their duration.

Suppressed -> Target cannot use Class Skills.

Effects triple when in direct moonlight.

]

'Another long cooldown, but it doesn't matter as I imagine the cooldown will decrease once I level it up a few times.'

'Another great addition to my arsenal. Although it lost the resistance reduction from before, I didn't need the extra damage.'

'This is much better as it allows me to attack my target more consistently without them doing something like named Boss and dispelling everything. Or worse, using their dirty Skills on me.'

[Nebula Renewal Lv0

Type: Hex Sorcery/Arcane

Cost: Life Force (50)

Range: 70 Meters

Cooldown: N/A

Description: Sacrifice your Life Force to mark a target. Marked targets transfer 2% of their maximum resources back to the caster upon death and increase resource regeneration rate by 10% for 1 minute.

If the regeneration goes beyond the maximum threshold of the caster, 10% of its value will instead linger as a progression meter equivalent to the total value of the caster's resource.

Once the meter reaches 100%, it may be consumed to fully regenerate Life Force or Flowing Ether once, resetting the progress.

The meter decays slightly every second(0.5%), healing the caster for a portion of this total value (25%)

Once the meter reaches 100%, it'll remain full for ten minutes. Once the timer hits zero, the effect above is applied instantly and the meter resets.

If the target is fatally wounded, Nebula Renewal will activate automatically.

Under direct moonlight, Nebula Renewal will activate thirty seconds post the caster's death if the meter is full.

Mark Duration -> 15 Minutes.

]

'Everything else is great, but this one… Takes the crown.'

'Everything here is better than its base counterpart aside from its cost, but that can remedied by leveling it up, which I may need to do given I'm still low level… Who am I kidding? I'll obviously level all of my Skills Up before entering the next Plane…'

'All of these extra options make what was an already strong supporting Skill into an immortal engine.'

'What made me as strong as before was Life Bullet and Revitalization. Now, with both of them like this…'

'The automatic use is great as well… But a second chance at life?!... Now, that's invaluable. No matter how close I am to them, I can't let anyone know of this until the time I need it comes… But I hope it never does.'

'It has the condition of me being under moonlight, but that's not bad. It's half of an entire day anyway…'

'Most Planes and Dungeons follow the day and night cycle of the real world. Aside from a few, I shouldn't have difficulty putting all conditions together.'

'In fact, most of my new Skills seem to have these conditions… It's likely because my class is closely related to the moon.'

'Classes that have such gimmicks aren't uncommon. A Sun Priest and Sun Paladins are examples of this.'

'These kinds of conditions are normal, which is another thing I can't let anyone know about.'

'If they know my Class works best while under moonlight, wouldn't that just take away of its intrinsic advantages?'

'I'll keep this to myself until someone figures it out.'

"Most of my Skills now also have increased costs… And quite considerable costs at that…"

'I can't complain, it won't make a difference anyway. Once I level a few times and enhance their levels, will any of this even matter?'

'I'm afraid not… But I'll need to Level Up at least once to use everything in my arsenal at once. And a few more times to do it consistently.'

"Six 'new' Skills… Welcome."

'With the other Skills I got and the items I have now…'

'Maybe I'm unbeatable in my Level?'

/Chuckle…/

'Let's not get ahead of ourselves, just like me, another crazy guy could be out there, growing his power.'

'For now…'

"Maybe I can research more about Warlock and Ranger Skills to acquire, and maybe find a place to sell the items and Skill Books I got…"

'It's barely been a day, and I'm packed with things to do…'

Focused and happy, Samuel spent much of the night awake before going to sleep.

He would be up early tomorrow.

…

/Next morning…/

/Chirp…/

"... Yawn… I need more sleep…"

Samuel slowly woke up from his slumber, taking his first steps of the day.

A simple shower and breakfast… And he was off after putting on his newest equipment.

His parents were still sleeping, the usual of waking up before 6 Am.

On the bus, he opened his phone, sending a message to his close friends:

"Does anyone have access to a High-Level Plane?"

The reason he did was because his friends were all rich or children influential individuals.

High Sun was the most prestigious academy in the city and maybe even the state, being among the top few in the nation.

Samuel got admitted to it not through connections or money but through high grades and other admittance programs.

He made many friends over the years to try and maintain connections, so he was confident in saying he wasn't hated by many. He imagine that most saw him favorably.

That was why he asked them for this. If they had access to a Dungeon, his leveling speed would skyrocket.

Even if this meant revealing his abilities somewhat, it didn't matter much for him.

"... They probably won't read it immediately. It's a little too early anyway."

'I'll see how far I can Level Up today, but regardless, I should be able to surpass my classmates.'

'At most, even the most talented and resourceful of them should be around Level 5 to 10. As no matter how rich they are, there is a limit to strength.'

'I didn't hear anyone awakening ridiculous talents like mine, but there were several A and S rank individuals… They'll likely receive much support from their friends, family, and the Academy itself.'

'I'm strong, but if I don't step up my game, they'll catch up to me… Or I'll end up losing the little chance of doing the same…'

'Whatever I can buy with money, so can they, and it's likely that they can buy things with an extra zero or two to aid them.'

"It's a bit unfair… But there's nothing wrong with parents aiding their children succeed."

'It would be selfish to think otherwise. Even if they're second or third-generation magnates, it doesn't change anything.'

Samuel rested his head on his seat and looked at his reflection through the window.

'... It's not bad.'

The new equipment he bought was a mix of white and red robes like those of a priest, but with a little more armor and tightness to it.

'I had to spend over two hours yesterday walking around the city to find this. But it's worth it. I likely won't change it for anything for a while.'

[Priest of Rejuvenation Set

Each 1% of Life Force lost increases self-regeneration by 1%

Each 2% of Life Force lost decreases all Skills cooldown by 1%

Healing Amplification -> 100%

Once per hour, you may double all resource regeneration for one minute

]

'This Set is actually quite famous. That was why it was so hard for me to find.'

'However, it's not famous for its specs, no… It's famous because there's a High Ranker that uses it, but not this version, of course, the version they use is on another level.'

'This is more of a… Fan product for those wishing to cosplay.'

'But for me… It's everything I could ask for. I don't need Stat points or anything of the like, what I need is sustainability, as the stronger it is, the better.'

'Once I reach a point I don't need to sustain myself… Then I can look out for things like cooldown reduction and Skill amplification. Maybe other traits too.'

'This is a world where everything you can imagine has likely been done by someone somewhere. I'm not too sure how everything's made, but maybe I can look into a crafter to make me something that suits me down to a T.'

'But that's for later.'

Samuel also had a weapon, albeit he kept it in his inventory as it was too morbid for him to take out in public…

[Galala Kituxwa's Skull

All Hex-type Skills have their Level increased by five but cannot surpass ten.

All Arcane-type Skills have their Level increased by three.

Using Hex-type Skills has a 25% chance of triggering Galala's Mastery.

Galala's Mastery -> The Skill is cast a second time without cost, and its cooldown is immediately refreshed.

Using Skills has a 5% chance of triggering one stack of Kituxwa's bloodline Grudge.

Kituxwa's bloodline Grudge -> Immediately takes 1% of total Life Force as damage but grants 5% amplification for Hex-Type Skills for two minutes.

Further stacking refreshes Kituxwa's bloodline Grudge's duration.

#One Skill may be chosen to be granted the Hex-Type semi-permanently. But only one at a time and with a 24 hour cooldown in-between#

]

'This is an insanely powerful item. Especially since it doesn't seem to have intrinsic conditions like only affecting Basic Skills and such.'

'The stacking grudge can be concerning given that if it stacks ten times, while I would be receiving a 50% amplification for my Skills, I would also be taking 10% total damage every time it triggered.'

'In dangerous situations, I could end up killing myself with this. That was why I went after an item that could help me offset its downsides.'

'And that's it for my equipment. A little lacking since I'm essentially only carrying a Skull around. But it'll do.'

'Once I make more money, I can think about finding something to hold with my other hand.'

'There are also two other items I bought in the Dungeon…'

[Finger of Corruption]

[Conjure Darkness]

'Two Skills, right in time for me to absorb them.'

'Time to eat them~'

[You have learned the Skill, Falling Comet]

[You have learned the Skill, Manifest Moonlight]

[Falling Comet Lv 0

Type: Ritual/Concentration

Cost: Flowing Ether (Undetermined)

Range: Undetermined

Cooldown: Undetermined

Description: Concentrate your Ether on a single point and release it with an arrow. A constant flow is necessary to maintain the Skill's form.

There's no limit to how much Ether may be condensed.

The Skill's Range and Cooldown are proportional to the Ether spent during it's formation.

]

[Manifest Moonlight Lv0

Type: Arcane/Concentration

Cost: Flowing Ether (200)

Range: Centered on Self -> 20 Meters

Cooldown: Continuous Cast

Description: Manifest moonlight around you.

Enemies within the Skill's range are blinded.

]

'Concentration Skills? That's unusual.'

'A Concentration Skill requires complete attention to be used, and often makes it impossible for the caster to do anything else aside from focusing on it, only those who trained for a long time can use them while doing something else.'

'The second one is quite good, especially given how reliant on moonlight most of my abilities are.'

'As for the second one… Its interesting. At the very least, I have somewhere to drain my Ether once I snowball my Skills.'

"... Excelent." Samuel said with a light smile as he opened his Status page again:

[Name: Samuel Necrom D'Lurge

Age: 17 Years & 11 months…

Class: Warlock E / Lunar Phantasm O

Level: 0

Life Force: 100%

Flowing Ether: 200

Attributes =>

Physical(+): 10

Mental(+): 20

Spiritual(+): 10

Ether: 5

Skills (⍺) ->

Crescent Bullet Lv 0

Bound Warp Lv 0

Stygian Exposure Lv 0

Vile Harvest Lv 0

Necrotic Volley Lv 0

Soul Conduit Lv Max

Skills (ꞵ) ->

Astral Craft Lv0

Celestial Anchor Lv0

Nebula Renewal Lv0

Maledic Arrow Lv 0

Toxic Lance Lv 0

Falling Comet Lv 0

Manifest Moonlight Lv 0

Skill Points: 30

Upgrade Tokens: 4

Traits:

Essence of Strength

Essence of Happiness

Essence of Devotion

Essence of Self

…

]

'I'm essentially ready, the last thing for me to do is to distribute my Skill Points.'

'And after that… There's not much on my to-do list. Aside from selling the things I brought with me from the Plane.'

'I'm essentially all set.'

Samuel closed his eyes and relaxed on his way to his next adventure.

…

/Later…/

"... Name?"

"Samuel Necrom D'Lurge."

"... Age?"

"Seventeen."

"... You're almost eighteen… Sigh."

"..."

"Reason for entry?"

"Leveling Up?"

"..."

"Are you an orphan?"

"No!"

"Are you bullied in school?"

"... Is that necessary?"

"..."

"I'm not…"

"ID please."

"Here."

"... Hmm… Everything checks."

"Here's your ring."

"Thanks… Is that all?"

"Yeah. Try to return before 11Pm, if you don't, we'll assume you died or got lost. There won't be a rescue party at least within the first two hours so try to return within that time."

"... Very well."

'What a laid-back place… Exactly what I wanted.'

Samuel was on the city's outskirts in a facility undergoing heavy construction.

'I found this place by chance thanks to the Hunter's Watch. It's a newly discovered Plane for Awakeners around Level 10 to 45.'

'Most people won't know about it because it doesn't appear in the usual databases students would use. So I'm sure I'll be here alone for a while.'

'This Plane was found around a month ago, and it hasn't been thoroughly explored yet. In fact, the storage ring doesn't function properly either, so there's no way for me to be extracted from inside if trouble brews.'

'But the greater the risks, the better the rewards.'

'Unexplored means that there could be hidden treasures, the monster density is a little higher, and so is their quality.'

'Mutants, Elites, Unique, and Named monsters are more frequent, leading to extra opportunities for items and rewards.'

'Everything is here for me to make money!'

'Still, that wasn't the main reason why I'm here… It's merely because its the highest place I can get to before I become Level 20. Once I reach that threshold, I can go to Planes with a higher ceiling.'

'My plan is to reach Level 20 here before moving on to another Plane, although I don't think that'll be possible…'

'I was thinking about it and… Maybe for me, the strategy I should employ is to seek out Bossess, kill them, and move on to another Plane.'

'Normal creatures don't give that much experience even with the Level difference, and the time I take to process the loot is not efficient, so it's better for me to slay one powerful entity and move on.'

'There problem with this is certainly the time it takes to go from one Plane to the other, but if the time ends up being slower… Then I may have something on my hands.'

'I'll see if this tactic is viable, but if it is… I'll begin my Boss rush strategy.'

'Before the others can hunt them, I'll do it myself and reap all of the early rewards.'

'Another reason this Plane is special is because, according to the law, I can apply to be an explorer despite my low Level.'

'As long as I sign the contract, even with my low Level, I can enter it.'

'I have my parents' approval as I'm not of age, although they aren't aware of what I'm doing…'

'Better not tell them anyway…'

/Crunk…/

The portal looked like a time machine. Dozens of tubes, engines, and moving parts worked together to open a hole in space for him to cross.

It was clearly unstable, but there wasn't a need to fear anything, as even if the entrance closed, they could open it again in no time.

/Cross…/

Samuel crossed the portal and arrived on the other side.

A vast blue sky opened up before him… Together with the echoes of construction in the background.

'It's quite busy…'

He didn't waste any time, moving to a shabby room on the side.

"How may I help you, sir?"

"I… Hm?"

Instead of a person, Samuel was welcomed by a speaker atop a table.

'It seems this place is remotely operated by artificial intelligence… Fine by me.'

"I would like some information…"

…

/Later…/

"Okay. Time to work."

'Before I start… Time to Level Up My Skills.'

[...

Skill Points: 30

Upgrade Tokens: 4

…

]

'Invest five points into Crescent Bullet.'

[Crescent Bullet Lv 0 -> Lv Max]

[New choices have opened in your Skill Tree]

Samuel already had his evolution path selected.

[Crescent Bullet Lv Max -> Crescent Glaive Lv0]

[Crescent Glaive Lv 0 -> Lv Max]

[New choices have opened in your Skill Tree]

"We're just getting started."

[Nebula Renewal Lv0 -> Lv Max]

[New choices have opened in your Skill Tree]

[Nebula Renewal Lv Max -> Nebula Rebirth Lv0]

"I don't need more regeneration… But once I get to a higher Level, things will change."

[Astral Craft Lv0 -> Lv Max]

[New choices have opened in your Skill Tree]

[Astral Craft Lv Max -> Astral Alchemy Lv0]

[Astral Alchemy Lv0 -> Lv Max]

[New choices have opened in your Skill Tree]

"This is fun…"

[Stygian Exposure Lv 0 -> Lv Max]

[New choices have opened in your Skill Tree]

[Stygian Exposure Lv Max -> Stygian Banishment Lv0]

"That's about it for my Skill Points… Now for my Tokens…"

[Manifest Moonlight Lv 0 -> Lv Max]

[New choices have opened in your Skill Tree]

[Manifest Moonlight Lv Max -> Moonrise Lv0]

"Since most of my Skills are being influenced by this Class, improving this one will enhance my overall power."

'I didn't have a lot of time to simulate things since the battery on my watch was getting low, but now that I'm in the Plane, I can further simulate things.'

'This time, I'll simulate everything until Level 100!'

"Now though, I have better things to do."

[Vile Harvest Lv 0 -> Lv Max]

[New choices have opened in your Skill Tree]

[Vile Harvest Lv Max -> Corpse Reclamation Lv 0]

"Hm… This is enough for now."

'I'll keep two tokens in case of emergencies, but I'm between raising Bound Warp and Stygian Banishment since it's my strongest control Skill now.'

'I could go for Corpse Reclamation and Nebula Rebirth for more sustainability, but it's not a priority right now.'

'Lastly, Celestial Anchor and Necrotic Volley. Celestial Anchor is decent, but most things tend to die before they even move, and the same logic goes for Necrotic Volley.'

'There are my two other skills, Maledic Arrow and Toxic Lance, but I've barely used them due to their restrictions on needing a bow. Besides, they are underwhelming compared to the rest.'

'If I'm to raise a bow Skill, then it'll be Falling Comet.'

"I'm ready now… Where was the first Boss again?"

[Calculating your current position… Displaying results]

Samuel's Watch flashed with light as a small map manifested before him.

A red line was quickly drawn through the map, stopping at several points along the way.

[Route travel time: Four hours, ten minutes]

"Perfect… I should finish this before lunch, then I can go to the next Dungeon and move on."

/Point…/

One of Samuel's ethereal hands pointed to the North, that was where his first target was located.

"Time to kill some Bossess… Hopefully, I can get another Golden Box… Maybe even a Platinum Box…"

Treasure boxes were divided into multiple layers, but even finding one was hard.

The first was Iron, the second was Gold, the third was Platinum, and the fourth was Gemstone.

There were higher versions, but they were legendary in status.

What was contained within each box was a mystery and oftentimes, their rarity did not reflect what they contained, such as the Plane Key he received.

Given its contents, including the chance to get an S Grade Class, Samuel would put that Golde Box amidst the ranks of Platinum if not higher…

This also, to some degree, included those two Golden Boxes with a stronger gleam. Their brightness and details determined their quality. Differentiating them from their own grade.

He took a step forward, opening his profile Status one last time:

[Name: Samuel Necrom D'Lurge

Age: 17 Years & 11 months…

Class: Warlock E / Lunar Phantasm O

Level: 0

Life Force: 100%

Flowing Ether: 200

Attributes =>

Physical(+): 10

Mental(+): 20

Spiritual(+): 10

Ether: 5

Skills (⍺) ->

Crescent Glaive Lv Max

Bound Warp Lv 0

Stygian Banishment Lv 0

Corpse Reclamation Lv 0

Necrotic Volley Lv 0

Soul Conduit Lv Max

Skills (ꞵ) ->

Astral Alchemy Lv Max

Celestial Anchor Lv0

Nebula Rebirth Lv0

Maledic Arrow Lv 0

Toxic Lance Lv 0

Falling Comet Lv 0

Moonrise Lv 0

Skill Points: 0

Upgrade Tokens: 2

Traits:

Essence of Strength

Essence of Happiness

Essence of Devotion

Essence of Self

…

]

'Time to hunt.'

…

/Sha sha sha…/

[Nashax Level 58]

"Phew… Almost 60… I guess this will be the highest I'll even be able to face realisticaly. A shame it isn't rounded." Samuel said out loud as he looked at a large scorpion clinging to a small mountain

A massive red scorpion clung to the red stone, remaining completely and utterly still.

Its camouflage was highly lifelike, almost making it blend thoroughly with the stone.

The sole characteristic that gave way its position was its blue sting. However, it wasn't like that for no reason, as it evolved to look exactly like the hanging fruits of nearby trees.

"A named Boss, it must've mutated over the last few days… No wonder the Ether density in this area was higher."

'I made the right choice coming here first.'

"Alright… Just stick to the plan and we'll be fine."

'First, you two get close and deploy a Bound Warp point next to the Boss.'

'We'll create a Warp path leading there, this way, we can cover thirty five meters in an stance.'

Twenty meters from Soul Conduit's range plus the fifteen meters of Bound Warp's.

Albeit to use it, he'll have to create another Warp Point given the thirty meter max range from the Skill.

'This should be enough for me to get into range and cast everything I have onto it.'

'I'll cast Nebula Rebirth, followed by Moonrise to activate my Skill's special effects.'

'The evolution I chose allows me to cast Moonrise without Concentration, albeit for reduced effects, regardless, I only need the moon buff to my Skills, nothing else.'

'Then I'll have my ethereal hands cast Stygian Banishment and Celestial Anchor at the same time while I drink potions to recover my Ether.'

'This will root the monster or at least slow it down for a very long time. And considering I'm focusing Stygian Banishment on it. There's no way it'll resist the attack due to the purging effect.'

'It could resist the purge itself from the difference in Level, but the Skill quality is immense, it shouldn't be able to resist, and even if it doesn, it won't reach 100%'

'I would be surprised if it reached even 20%...'

'Finaly, it should be safe enough for the hands to cast another and the last Warp Point directly next to the monster.'

'At this distance, each can cast Corpse Reclamation on the Boss, reducing it's Life Force while debuffing it and rooting it for a while.'

'I'll also grow stronger, but it doesn't matter since prior to this, I hunted a few monsters to raise my Stacks of Robustness from Corpse reclamation to twenty, which gives me a 500% increase to my total Life Force.'

'Doing all of this should take less then two seconds if not one. And by then, the Boss will be greatly startled by everything that's happening.'

'I'll then Bound Warp outside of it's range just in case and finish it with a triple Crescent Glaive with the assistance of my Ethereal Hands.'

'If it lives somehow. I'll have more then enough time to drink another potion while my ethereal hands cast Crescent Glaive again and again.'

"This much should be enough. It isn't much stronger then the other Bossess I faced before, it shouldn't resist this at all."

/Thumbs Up/

"Great… Then before we move on, I'll drink a few potions…"

Even if he lost his previous Skill, Samuel still have many potions he made with the help of Graywood Apothecary, Hunter Suplies previous Evolution.

With them, he increased his Max Stats slightly, giving him a little more room to cast his Skills without needing to drink extra potions.

"Huu… I feel full… Burp!"

"Haa… Time to hunt."

Samuel took out the distorted Skill of Galala Kituxwa, ready for action.

/Crack!/

The ethereal hands cracked their non-existent knuckles, ready to fight.

/Grasp…/

The hands moved to their maximum distance before the right hand pointed at a distance, and onl for him, a beam of moonlight shone in that area.

[Bound Warp Lv 0]

Samuel then looked at the ground before him and activated the Skill:

[Bound Warp Lv 0]

"Activate Skill, Nebula Renewal…"

[Nebula Rebirth Lv6]

Because Nebula Renewal was an Arcane and Hex Type Skill, it benefited from both effects from the Skull, increasing its Level by 6!

The scorpion was marked by a small, ethereal pale symbol above it's head.

[Bound Warp Lv 0]

/Teleport!/

There was no need to activate the Skill to teleport to the Warp Poing.

/Grasp…/

[Moonrise Lv 1]

The Left Hand raised it's palm, and immediately after, the moon's projection fell upon the scorpion.

A pillar of light blinded it, almost burning its multiple eyes!

/SHAAAA!!/

/Pop… Drink!/

Samuel began to hastily drink potions, trying to keep up with the consumption from his Skills…

Meanwhile, both Soul arms began casting their Skills:

[Stygian Banishment Lv 5]

[Celestial Anchor Lv 1]

The sky semed to break appart to reveal a starry cosmos…

From within this fragment of outer space the scorpion was violently drawn inside. It's very image and existence slowly vanishing under the emptiness of the vast universe.

At the same time, a weaker but still bright pilar of light fell onto it, silencing its abilities and suppressing it even further.

[Bound Warp Lv 0]

/Teleport!/

Samuel drew closer to the from the scorpion, and his two ethereal hands were just at the right distance to attack its body.

[Corpse Reclamation Lv 0] x2

[Bound Warp Lv 0]

/Teleport!/

[Bound Warp Lv 0]

/Teleport!/

He quickly drew distance from the beast, worried about a potential retaliation.

But maybe his worries were unfounded, as it seemed the beast was far gone with just the control Skills he used on it…

Nevertheless…

[Crescent Glaive Lv 11] x3

On his right hand, a large, crescent moon-shaped projectile manifested, growing bright by the second as his Life Force was drained violently.

Above him, the two Soul hands also condensed two other projectiles…

This was the moment Samuel was going to test just how strong he truly was.

Would his efforts be proven ineffective against the might of Levels, or would he prove the world wrong and shape a new record?

Well… He wasn't sure just what was the record for the highest difference between a Hunter's Level and the beast they slew, but it shouldn't be much higher than this, right?

/Throw!/

/FLASH!/

While Crimson Thorn was loud and domineering, Crescent Glaive was silent and cool…

However, as it was thrown, it flashed with light, almost instantly approaching it's target.

/Manifest…/

Just as this happened, the Skull in his right hand ignited and two more glaives were thrown against the Scorpion!

The 25% chance to have a Hex Type Skill be used again, reseting it's cooldown.

And although Crescent Glaive wasn't of such Type, Samuel change it with the Skull's ability, allowing it to go beyond its Level, and by far!

Five Levels from it's Hex Type and one from it's Arcane Type!

Although the five Hex levels couldn't surpass Level 10, the Arcane boost could!

And thus, a horrific Level 11 Skill was born. Surpassing his level by quite a bit…

/CUT/

Five flashes of light passed through the Scorpion…

/SLASH!/

And then, the mountain it clung to was cut…

/Booom…/

In the blink of an eye, the giant scorpion and the mountain it clung into were cut into pieces.

They all soon fell on the ground, shaking the earth…

[Level Up]

[Level 0 -> 2]

[You've been given ten Skill Points]

"Haaa… I can feel the energy rushing into me. I feel alive!"

Excited, he opened his Status page:

[Name: Samuel Necrom D'Lurge

Age: 17 Years & 11 months…

Class: Warlock E / Lunar Phantasm O

Level: 2

Life Force: 100%

Flowing Ether: 2800

Attributes =>

Physical(+): 10 -> 40

Mental(+): 20 -> 40

Spiritual(+): 10 -> 70

Ether: 5 -> 45

Skills (⍺) ->

Crescent Glaive Lv Max

Bound Warp Lv 0

Stygian Banishment Lv 0

Corpse Reclamation Lv 0

Necrotic Volley Lv 0

Soul Conduit Lv Max

Skills (ꞵ) ->

Astral Alchemy Lv Max

Celestial Anchor Lv0

Nebula Rebirth Lv0

Maledic Arrow Lv 0

Toxic Lance Lv 0

Falling Comet Lv 0

Moonrise Lv 0

Skill Points: 10

Upgrade Tokens: 2

Traits:

Essence of Strength

Essence of Happiness

Essence of Devotion

Essence of Self

…

]

"Great, I shouldn't have to rely on potions anymore, which is good given I'm already full."

'With these Stats, I'm already stronger than I was at Level 20, maybe a little behind in some areas, but my Ether reserves have already surpassed my old self by quite a bit.'

'With three more… No, just two more Levels, my Stats will essentially equalize to mine when I was Level 20.'

'From there… It's a new height of power with every step.'

"Haha… It's a bit greedy of me, but if I was lucky to find an S Grade Class change for rangers… Maybe it would be possible for me to reset my Level again…"

'And gain a whole new O grade Class…'

'Just thinking about how strong I could get… And the pain it would be to Level Up…'

"It took me a Named Boss almost sixty levels above me to make me level twice, that's utterly ridiculous. An S Grade Awakener would be around Level 9 by now… Maybe a little less, like 6 to 7 instead. And that's assuming they soloed it."

'The difficulty to Level a Grade O Class is ridiculous, although it could be due to the influence of the Warlock Class.'

'Dual Classes take longer than their counterparts, regardless of the Grades they are composed of.'

'If I turned myself into a dual O Class Awakener… I would likely only Level Up by defeating enemies with such overwhelming Levels when compared to mine.'

'I would be a monster from the get go but I would still suffer to Level Up…'

"To cry over success… How plain… Anyhow…"

'I have a few Skill points to spare. But I'll leave them be for now.'

'There isn't really a need for me to keep them since I'll get more Skill points every 20 Levels then I'll be able to spend given my current Skills, but there's always the chance for me to get new Skills and opportunities. Leaving some for those cases won't hurt.'

'And then again… Where else would I even spend them on?... I could raise Nebula Rebirth to max I guess… But is there really a need to?...'

'... If it gets to a point I'm starting to feel overwhelmed, I'll use them, otherwise, they're better off sitting quietly in my inventory.'

/Step…/

Samuel approached the scorpion's body and raised his right hand.

"This is the first time I've destroyed a body this much… I think… That it would've died with the Crescent Glaives alone…"

'I can't hand over a body in this state, so I might as well collect the loot.'

Samuel could wait a few moments for the body to decompose naturally, once that happened, the System would give him his due reward.

It was what most Awakeners did, and also the reason why the rings were made. But he had better plans… Or better put, he never had a need to wait. At least not for long.

He could just accelerate the process.

[Corpse Reclamation Lv 0]

/Shine…/

The Scorpion's body was devoured by his Skill and processed into usable parts.

He had no use for its body parts, but what he cared solely about was the reward the System would give him for slaying it.

/Light!/

"!"

Above the Scorpion's body, a white chest manifested amidst glorious platinum rays…

"A Platinum Chest!"

'I've heard about them on news and books, but I never thought I'd see one!'

'Everyone seeks Treasure Chests as even normal ones can bring great wealth to an individual.'

'A Golden Chest can change someone's life… A Platinum Chest can alter a person's Fate!'

'Or so they say…'

'As for Gemstone chests… Keep dreaming.'

'Last year, I can count on one hand the number of scenarios where Gemstone chests appeared, and most of their contents were kept hidden by the parties involved.'

'The world is full of opportunities… Sigh, I'm wasting my potential here.'

"If only I could enter one of those darned Dungeons… I should be strong enough to face most Level 70 monsters!"

'Yet here I am… It's so frustrating!'

/OPEN!/

To relieve his anger, he opened his treasure chest.

/LIGHT!/

"Arg! Flashbanged!"

White light burned his irises as his ethereal hands tried to shield him from the light.

/Plop…/

A small item jumped from the chest, falling on the ground before him.

"Arg… Just what… Hm?"

'This is…'

A small round object with a rune inscribed in it.

[Red Skill Stone]

"!!!"

'No way!! I actually got this!'

A Skill Stone, it was a type of item with a variety of uses.

There were many items with the name, however, it was the color that mattered.

All of them were ultra rare, but white Skill Stones were the most common.

It lets someone Copy their own Skill and pass it onto the item, allowing someone else to learn it.

Or if they were feeling fancy… To learn it again, giving them two copies of the same Skill.

You may imagine that its easy for a rich person to abuse such an item for their benefit, and you'd be right. They can. But Samuel thinks there isn't a family out there that is rich enough to give their rising son the chance to use it.

Giving it to a senior member of the Family so they may copy one of the strongest Skills would likely be for the best.

Another example would be Blue Skill Stones that allow someone to add or remove types from their Skills.

Rarer ones like the Golden Skill Stones are said to allow a user to alter the intrinsic characteristics of their Skills, and Black Skill Stones allow someone to raise the Level Cap of a Skill to ten. Not only for their current form but for all Evolutions…

There are also Green Skill Stones which can directly evolve a Skill to the next stage. In a similar way to what happened when Samuel's Skills mutated from his Talent and the Class change, but in a more straightforward manner.

And those are just some of them…

"Red Skill Stones have the unique ability of allowing someone to directly copy someone else's Skill without their knowledge."

'It was also known as the Taboo Stone, it was an illegal item… But as if I would report it.'

'Being able to steal anyone's Skill and it to my arsenal… Of course, there are limitations, but the possible outcomes are endless!'

'First of all, I shouldn't limit myself solely with Skills from S Grade Classes, I should focus my gaze on all!'

'But… I'm a Human being and instead of aiming for everything at once, I should instead try to be realistic.'

'Given my arsenal as someone who works around dealing damage and recovering my resources, what Skill would I need?'

'I don't need damage dealing Skills… Control? Movement? Defense?...'

"No, I don't need those… What I need is… A Conditional Ability… Passive Skills… Or maybe even, Unique Skills from exceptional Classes."

'... I have some ideas of what I would want, but this will take a while… Actually!'

"Watch!"

[By your command]

"After you finish your simulation of my Skills at Level 99, run a diagnosis for me."

"If I were to acquire a Red Skill Stone, hypothetically speaking… Which Skill do you think would suit me best?"

[Command received, adding to the processing list]

"Heh, great… Time to move."

'The day's barely begun, after all.' He said with a smile as he dived into the distance

"Also… I should deactivate this Skill…"

'Moonrise allows me to bring forth night around me, it's but a projection but its strong enough for what it was meant to be.'

'The reason I picked this Skill was because I believed in the mutation brought by its original form, and I stood corrected.'

'A gamble, but a worthy one.'

'The Skill by itself is good, but it's a little too high profile.'

"Being low profile isn't exactly how you should act as a Awakener, given many opportunities rely on showing your talent to the world, but I have no need to invoke unnecessary attention at the end of the day."

Once the Skill dissipated and the world returned to its natural state, Samuel moved on to his next target, hoping it would be as strong as the scorpion was…

But he would likely be disappointed.

…

/Around two hours later…/

/SLASH!/

[Level Up]

[Level 3 -> 4]

[You've been given five Skill Points]

"Hum… Disappointing."

'I've killed a total of fifteen monsters. Three Normal Bosses; Nine Elite Bosses; and Three Named Bosses.'

'And this isn't counting everything I took out on my way. There were several Elite monsters spread all around.'

'Since this place isn't consistently explored, all of them were over Level 45. Still, in total, counting the Platinum Box I received before, I got a total of thirteen Golden and two Platinum Boxes.'

'The second Platinum Box came from one of the named monsters I took down.'

'And counting the few Elite monsters I took out, I also received seven Iron boxes.'

"For around two hours of work, I'd say this was a great haul."

'The only thing left now is opening them all and leaving this place.'

"I'll start with the iron Boxes. At most I'll get items or materials related to the monsters, at best I may get a consumable or Skill."

"Before that!... I'll pray."

'For all the Gods above! Bless me today!'

With a few extra words of devotion, Samuel proceeded with his loot box opening.

…

/Later…/

/Shine!.../

"... Dammit! Another armor set, I don't need these!" He said with a frown as he opened his last Golden Chest

'Because of the Level difference between me and the Bosses, the equipment items they drop are all mostly geared towards third evolution Awakeners.'

'Some are quite good, I can tell that even amidst those in the market, they're extremely valuable, but I don't need them!'

'This is probably due to my achievement of defeating high level Bosses as a low level scrub, but I don't need a shield or a sword… Maybe I can keep them for my Ethereal Hands, but they're much better off casting Spells than using those no matter how strong they are.'

'I don't have Any Skills to complement those nor do I plan to acquire any. So they're better off being sold.'

'Aside from equipment, I got some Skills and Accessories as well.'

'Of the Skills, only two matter to me.'

'And of the accessories, I can wear them all but I don't quite need to. Aside from one that is.'

Accessories are just like ordinary equipment. It's a naming term for smaller items such as rings and necklaces.

"Everything else isn't decent… I got some consumables, but I don't need any…"

[Power Pill -> Increases Physical by twenty as long as it's lower than one hundred by Level 10]

[VItal Core of a Great Vulture-> Doubles Ether Ratio but it cannot surpass 1:30]

[Turtle's favored Jade -> Increases Life Force by…]

"Just a bunch of useless items I can't use. They would've been great for the past me, but now… They're not good at all."

'They'll probably be perfect for some high grade Awakeners, especially since these items are so rare.'

'Not all S Grade Classes can get certain stats to surpass 100 by Level 10, in fact, I'm afraid most can't.'

'All of mine will, but that's thanks to the essences I took. Which alone are extremely powerful. Surpassing some S Grade Awakeners by themselves.'

'Although I can't use them… Selling them will net me a gargantuan sum.'

'Killing Bosses sure is the way to go. I would've still been killing lower grade scrubs while not making anything in the process. My Level may have even been lower…'

"There's only the Platinum Box left… Hm?"

/Touch touch!/

As he was distracted, one of his ethereal hands descended from the sky, touching his shoulder to warn him about something.

To open his boxes, Samuel hid in a nearby oasis, using his hands to scout the surroundings as they had excellent senses.

And since they were partially immaterial, as long as they hid next to something, like the canopy of a tree, they would become near invisible to the naked eye.

"Someone's approaching?..." He asked as he interpreted the hand's gestures

/Thumbs up/

"Are they young? Or are they one of the working hunter groups around?"

The right hand raised its index finger.

"The first one… Hm… I thought I would be the only one my age here."

'Seems like I wasn't the only one who found this place, no matter. I'll leave.'

"Let's avoid them for now. There's no need to interact with them."

'I'll open the box elsewhere.'

…

/Meanwhile…/

"... We're almost there Lord Ferdinand." A woman said as she checked their location on a virtual map

"Is that so?... Why does the Ether feel so… Still?" Ferdinand replied as he held a long sword on his shoulder

Ferdinand looked like a traditional knight, his face hidden behind a helmet.

"I've noticed that too. The Ether readings are… Off, much lower than expected compared to what we read yesterday." Another one of his crew replied, this time, a man holding a large staff

"... Could it be that someone else took it down?"

"That would be unlikely. It's only the third day of the National Awakening day and this Dungeon is still under restriction."

"If any of the workers on sight took it down, it would've been logged on their systems. The only ones who could take it down are other recent Awakeners like us."

"Other young Awakeners under twenty are allowed to enter the Plane, but given the two year military obligation for all Second Evolution Awakeners… I'm afraid there are none here unless they're attending University."

"But there's no need for a University attendee to be here given everything it's given to them…"

"Nonetheless, I can't think of anything else. Otherwise, no one under twenty would be strong enough to take down a named, Level 50+ Boss at this stage."

"But the chances of one being here are… Slim to say the least."

"Hm… Send someone to the Plane entrance. If the monster's body is sold there, just make sure to hold onto it." Ferdinand said after he put in some thought

"I need its material, get it at any cost. Even if you have to buy it from the handling team at ten times the cost."

"Very well, I'll notify our processing team."

"..."

Ferdinand looked at the distance, his eyes sharpening.

'Could it be them? One of the Stars?'

The Newborn Stars was a Title given every year to the most prominent youths in the city, as they were often guaranteed to rise to a position of fame and power throughout the entire Nation and even the world.

The Title of a Star was usually given based on fame alone, but some were recognized for their ability and talent regardless.

Not merely strength but their capability as well.

Some of the young Stars could take down enemies two dozen levels higher than them alone. And although that was still far from the necessary to take this beast on, it was close enough to make him doubt it.

Ferdinand wasn't one of those Stars but if he could finish what he came here to do, then he would have a chance to compete against them.

No… Maybe even triumph over them!

… Most at least…

…

"This should be far enough."

'But… Those people… Were they going for the Boss area?'

'This entire plane is mostly a rocky desert with a few oasis in between, there is a forest near the edges of the plane, but I didn't go there as it's mostly unexplored territory.'

'From their angle, it seems they were going to face one of the Bosses…'

"Would it be too obvious if I were to sell the corpses at the store?... Not that it would make too much of a difference…"

'Hm… I don't like this, I have a bad feeling.'

"I'll just open this one and leave…"

/Crunk…/

/Open!/

/SHINE!/

From within the platinum chest, a small parchment rose to the air.

/Grab…/

[Class-Specific Item Schematic -> Allows for the construction of a Class Item]

"... This is quite odd."

'It's not something I see mentioned every day… It's super rare but… Odd.'

'A schematic or receipt is a type of item that allows an ordinary person to create an item as long as they gather everything within the list.'

'They usually lead to the creation of some great items, but with the development of technology and culture, most of these have become redundant.'

'There is much research on them so most of them have already been decoded and transformed into ordinary items one can find online or follow to craft them.'

'And aside from a few high class schematics which aren't available on the market or are far too hard to be replicated by the common person with ordinary skills and tools, most aren't worth pursuing.'

"A Class Specific Item should be decent. I'm not exactly relying on gear right now, but preparing for the future shouldn't be a problem."

'This is because Class Specific gear usually tend to last longer compared to others, so if I can finish it now, I may be able to use it for a while.'

"Okay, I'm done now."

'Time to leave.'

…

"... Everything went smoothly." Samuel said as he took a seat on the subway

'I sold the corpses and kept a few materials. But my inventory is getting a little bloated.'

An Awakener's personal inventory can only hold a limited amount of resources and of a certain size. And right now, Samuel's was filled with equipment and materials.

'It seems it's time to pass by an auction house.'

'Usually, I would just sell them online, but give the nature of the items I have, its better to give them to a professional even if the commission fee will end up being 20% or higher.'

'They may be sharks, but if in the end their intervention makes me more money then if I had tried to host my own auction online, then so be it.'

"I already know where to go as well."

'And while I'm waiting… Time to learn those Skills.'

[Scout]

[Wild Call]

'Two Skill Books for Rangers. A little underwhelming, but there's a catch here, a positive one.'

'Scout is an ordinary Skill for most Ranger-Type Classes, it allows someone to Scout ahead and eventually detect things like traps, monsters, and so on.'

'Fairly weak all things considered.'

'But this version that came from a Golden Chest… Isn't that Scout.'

'This Scout skill allows me to read a target's information. Which makes this Skill THE Scout, a legendary Skill that's not often seen.'

'It's not legendary in rarity, but it has quite the fame for its uses… If you know your enemy's information, it's over from a certain perspective.'

'It isn't uncommon for Skills to share names so I was quite surprised when I saw what it truly was.'

'Meanwhile, Wild Call is a rarer Skill for Rangers as it's a Passive!'

'Passive Skills are extremely rare as they're always in effect and cannot be silenced. Not to be confused for continously activated Skills some monsters I faced before had.'

'The only way to deactivate a Passive Skill is to apply the abnormal Status "Break" or to possess some specific Skill to counter them.'

"Both Skills are quite rare…" He muttered to himself as he looked outside

'Above all, once I learn them… They'll mutate.'

'It's a shame they'll mutate into the Warlock Class, but I have little complaints.'

[You have learned the Skill, Imp Eye]

[You have learned the Skill, Nether Surge]

[Imp Eye Lv 0

Type: Summoning/Sensory/Illusion

Cost: Flowing Ether (50)

Cooldown: 2 Minutes

Range: 150 Meters

Description: Summon a small Imp that hovers above the battlefield, granting the caster heightened vision of an area.

Its eye can pierce through magical concealment and is able to peruse a target's information.

The Imp Eye is proficient in Illusions and is able to conceal itself from observers. If revealed, it can unleash a potent Illusion to confuse its targets and invoke fear in all who lay their eyes upon it.

The caster may manifest a portion of the imp's gaze through their vision, heightening their senses.

]

'As expected, it transformed in quite the bizarre way…'

'Warlocks are known to deal with Demons and the like, but that's for higher Level Awakeners, not a beginner like me…'

'It's just an Imp Eye, but if people are like me and ignore it… Then they'll be in for a surprise.'

'But how do I use this?'

"!"

Just as he thought about using the Skill, Samuel's eyes turned dark as a strange pattern formed around his irises.

'Woah!'

And then, the world grew extremely bright.

'I feel as if I can see everything!... How much is this? Ten times magnification? Twenty?...'

'But most importantly…'

[Name: Anderson…

Age: 39 Years & 2 months…

Class: Construction Worker E+

Level: 32

]

'I can see their Status! Not everything but this much is already exceptional.'

'Still, I have to be careful. If someone notices me using this Skill, it could be taken as offensive or worse… And above all, it's very obvious when I'm using it.' He thought as he looked at his reflection in the window

'A great addition to my collection.'

[Nether Surge Lv 0

Type: Passive/Domain

Cost: N/A

Cooldown: N/A

Range: 80 Meters

Description: In areas where death and decay linger, the caster's abilities are enhanced.

Death fuels the Nether Heart, granting increasing stacks of Surge the more enemies fall around you.

Surge -> Surge strengthens all Skills. Reducing total cooldown by 0.25%, cost by 0.5%, and casting speed by 3%

Ten Stacks of Surge increases all Skill Levels by 1.

When in proximity to large groups of enemies or significant sources of Ether, the Warlock receives a steady flow of power, regenerating resources faster and occasionally triggering an automatic, low-cost Hex on the nearest enemy.

Resource Regeneration amplification -> 5% upon meeting the minimum threshold and up to 25%

Chosen Hex -> Crescent Glaive Lv Max

The caster also may exert their influence over weaker beings, causing lower level enemies to feel a constant sense of dread. This makes them more likely to falter and fail at casting Skills and maintaining composure when clashing with the caster.

If the target's total Stats are lower than the caster's, the Skill suppression may still take effect even if their Level is higher.

Enemies that are fearful of the caster are more susceptible to the Skill's effects and have their Skills suppressed. The greater the fear, the greater the suppression.

]

'!! A Domain Skill?! Wild Surge became a domain of all things?'

'Domains are meant to be things belonging solely to extremely high Level Awakeners beyond Level 100… Maybe this is just a very weak one, or this is another secret I wasn't meant to learn…'

'It does a lot of things. But this is clearly meant to be a Passive to assist me in group fights.'

'I'm certainly able to fight individual opponents, but my strength comes in prolonged fights against multiple targets at once, if not entire armies… If I'm allowed to dramatize it a little.'

'I'll have to be careful of this. It's a good thing I seem able to deactivate the fear effect of the Skill, otherwise… I could say goodbye to my social life.'

"... I still need more Skills." He muttered to himself as he closed his eyes to visualize his Status again:

[Name: Samuel Necrom D'Lurge

Age: 17 Years & 11 months…

Class: Warlock E / Lunar Phantasm O

Level: 4

Life Force: 100%

Flowing Ether: 5200

Attributes =>

Physical(+): 40 -> 70

Mental(+): 40 -> 60

Spiritual(+): 70 -> 130

Ether: 45 -> 85

Skills (⍺) ->

Crescent Glaive Lv Max

Bound Warp Lv 0

Stygian Banishment Lv 0

Corpse Reclamation Lv 0

Necrotic Volley Lv 0

Soul Conduit Lv Max

Imp Eye Lv 0

Nether Surge Lv 0

Skills (ꞵ) ->

Astral Alchemy Lv Max

Celestial Anchor Lv0

Nebula Rebirth Lv0

Maledic Arrow Lv 0

Toxic Lance Lv 0

Falling Comet Lv 0

Moonrise Lv 0

Skill Points: 20

Upgrade Tokens: 2

Traits:

Essence of Strength

Essence of Happiness

Essence of Devotion

Essence of Self

…

]

'I've progressed quite a bit… With this, maybe it's time to tell the truth to my parents.'

'Not everything, just enough for them to feel at ease and understand what I'm doing…'

'But all in due time.'

'Next would be… My Accessories.'

[Boulder Snake's Spirit Bead

Spiritual +60 as long as the wearer is under Level 30

Can be activated to form a barrier before the user with a strength equal to five times the wearer's Spiritual Stat.

]

'A necklace with a rather simple design with a simple marble at its center. What it does is pretty simple but what I need.'

'A defensive option is just what I needed, and above all, the shield doesn't have a cooldown, it likely regenerates over time instead.'

'It's a fairly strong item. For an ordinary person, this would be a lifesafer. It's worthy coming from a Golden Box.'

'It's quite the coincidence that its equivalent to two levels of mine… Even so, two levels worth of Stats are quite decent.'

[Bolt Ingot Ring

Physical Stat +1 for every hour the user doesn't physically engages in combat to a maximum of +100

Upon taking damage, triggers "Rush" and resets Stack count.

Rush -> Doubles Physical Stat for the intent of running for ten minutes. Counting all previous Stacks.

If the enemy is over twice your level, triples the boost.

]

'This is a fun item, but its uses are quite decent.'

'Just by wearing it, my Stats increase.'

'And let's say I suffer an ambush, then not only having increased Physical helps with keeping me alive, it also enhances my counterattack options.'

'For ten minutes I would have increased Stats, even if they only affect my running speed, that alone is life changing.'

'With these, I have two items tailored for defense. And if I count my clothes, then three.'

'It'll probably be everything I'll need for now. At least until I go through my first advancement.'

With a silent nod, Samuel kept his items inside his inventory before returning to his idle thoughts.

…

Samuel would eventually leave the subway after a few stations, taking to the streets and calling a cab before arriving at his destination, an hour later.

"Quite the grandiose place."

-The Infinite Realms Auction House-

A large stone palace rose from the streets, a relic from an older time, maintained to perfection, centuries later.

'Although it says Auction House, this place is more like a commercial center for all kinds of things then just that.'

Without further ado, he got inside.

…

.

Notes

章節 22: Novel 8-Preparations for the Competition Part 1

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章節 22: Novel 8-Preparations for the Competition Part 1

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