Lev awoke to the first rays of sunlight illuminating his mentor's suite. He stretched with a yawn, noting how fresh he felt despite only sleeping for five hours.
This alone makes all the points in Constitution worth it.
He took care of his morning routine, enjoying the feeling of lightness in his body. He had read about the profound of each physical attribute on other physical attributes but this was his first time noticing it. Each point of Constitution improved his Strength and Dexterity marginally, and the other two attributes did the same. So despite putting points in only one attribute, the other two also benefitted slightly.
His mentor was nowhere to be seen in the suite, probably to make him go out by himself. Donning the Illusion armor, he wondered how he would open the door when he returned but he could just find another inn to stay in if Alec was out.
Unlike the people of Earth, the bustle of crowds never truly went away throughout the day. The System ensured that they could stay out at night, and Lev beheld all manner of people going about their day.
He rarely saw Classers like himself away from The Hunters Guild, which made him curious. Did so many people hold off on starting a family, or were their kids growing up somewhere in a safer environment?
Lev's wandering lasted all of ten minutes before he marched to the inner wall, ready to level his skills as much as he could. The guards, or well, hunters stationed at the gate stopped him for the reason to cross. He summoned an Iron badge and handed it to the large man in front of him.
The guard didn't even bat an eye at an Iron rank having a storage ring, checking the badge for a few seconds before letting him pass. Lev's initial fear of the ring getting taken by force, much to Alec's confusion, was turning out to be unfounded. He still wouldn't reveal the huge storage space of the ring just in case, but he could use it anywhere without expecting trouble. Many people used them in their daily lives, even if the quality of an average ring was much lower.
Stepping back into the grassland, Lev turned back after a few dozen meters to look at the humungous wall behind him. He had to crane his neck all the way to look at the top. The sheer size made him feel small, like a fleeting idea brimming with potential, yet to be realized.
I wonder if this place will feel small at one point. Perception improves my eyesight noticeably, and the ability to fly would make distances feel much shorter.
As it stood, the thousands of kilometers of area walled off surrounding The Pit was more mind-boggling than anything. Lev put such thoughts out of his mind when he saw a few goblins in the distance.
That's quite close to the wall.
Summoning his bow, he shot two of them down before they could even get close, and the other two were killed by sharp disks. With increasing control from the Intelligence attribute, he felt comfortable forming three of them with his Illusion armor. The heavy armor still required a lot of mental effort to properly move around but it was getting easier with time.
Setting off to the rocky terrain, he ran instead of slowly jogging there like last night. It took some time for the jagged ivory boulders to come into sight and Lev had to admit, they looked pretty in the sunlight.
The stone seemed to gleam under the sun, casting minimal shadows and creating a beautiful environment. It was only marred by the monsters he could see from afar, and Lev would do his part by ridding the world of them.
He slowed down his decently fast sprint when the shape of the closest monster became distinguishable. The foe was a troll with a huge 8-meter-tall frame imposing even from that distance. Lev considered if he could take on one and decided to give it a shot. The Illusion armor would stop the blows if the worst came to pass.
He was just too curious to test the limits of his disks and Stargazer. From how easily he had beheaded the Prowler last night, he was convinced that his class was far more formidable than Lev recognized.
Noticed from over two hundred meters away, Lev hastily summoned Stargazer and filled her blade as the distance between them vanished him and the troll vanished at an alarming pace.
Shooting it with arrows would be useless, for the wounds would regenerate and push them out before the monster reached him.
Lev tried to calm his wildly beating heart as the tall monstrosity neared him. Identify triggered when it was within his manipulation range, and he started to regret attracting its attention.
[Troll - Level 83]
It's fine. Lev gritted his teeth. I need to take advantage of this safe training ground while it lasts.
The looming troll did no favors to the circumstances, so Lev was rightfully scared. It was holding a wooden club almost as large as he was, and Lev was caught unprepared when the troll threw it at him.
The sudden triggering of his Opportunity skill was what saved his skin, letting him react in time by yanking himself to the side. Now weaponless, Lev closed the remaining distance to keep it away from picking up the club again.
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Up close, it looked even more menacing with its disfigured face and bloated green body. Lev ducked under its wide sweeping arm and slashed at its thigh. Stargazer penetrated several inches into the limb, eliciting a roar of pain.
He pulled up the glaive back in time to block a punch with its haft and was thrown back several meters for his trouble. The troll packed far more strength than he had expected yet the glaive held up admirably.
This is doable. Lev thought amidst deep breaths, trying to keep his breathing even. That thing isn't too fast despite the huge strength difference. The cut on its thigh-
Lev belatedly realized the wound was almost completely healed up, only the wet blood indicating that there was a large cut, to begin with. Mentally tsking, he dashed backward to keep the troll away from the club. He should've stored it in his ring but it was too late for that.
Lev summoned three disks above him when he realized he didn't know how to take it down with just Stargazer. Darting in and out to deliver cuts was mana-intensive, with moving around being the most expensive part of his class.
Down to 90% already.
Keeping track of his mana pool, Lev went in again to try and deliver a similar cut. Fire would've been ideal to combat the regeneration but disks would suffice. Sidestepping another punch, Lev slashed at the right knee just as all three disks flew in from behind. He jumped back to avoid the frantic flailing while the disks continued to cut deeper, eventually lopping off the limb.
The troll lost balance and toppled sideways, and the fight was pretty much decided. Or so Lev thought until the troll dashed at him with all of its prodigious strength using its arms, crashing into him hard enough to send him flying back for nearly a dozen meters. His grip faltered, Stargazer slipping from his hands and falling a few meters away.
The much squishier body underneath the illusion armor was rattled, and Lev felt the taste of blood from accidentally biting his tongue during the impact. It took several precious seconds for his dizzy mind to snap back to reality, and he dashed away just in time to avoid a crushing hug from the troll.
Fine, I might have overestimated myself a bit here. Should've stayed at range. Lev admitted to himself as he kept his distance from the frantic troll. The thing was tenacious but the leg had already turned into a stump, showing no signs of regrowing.
With no weapon in hand, Lev decided to end things quickly. Forming the largest disk he could manage, which turned out to be over a meter wide, he dumped as much mana as he could. Holding 20% of his mana pool, the barrier was already destabilizing. At 30%, it was violently vibrating to all his senses, the large amount of mana begging for release.
Lev launched it at the troll's face, releasing his hold on the mana the moment it made contact. The pent-up mana reacted violently, exploding like an overcharged fireball, not unlike Lucy's spells. The shockwave washed over him, sliding back a little due to the proximity.
Testament to the troll's constitution and regeneration, he had yet to receive a notification. The fire cleared to reveal it still very much alive if charred and bleeding, struggling to find its bearings. Lev didn't give it the chance, grabbing Stargazer from a few meters away and beheading the monster with a few overhead chops.
[
You have slain [Troll - Level 83]
Arcane Sentinel has reached Level 49
…
Arcane Sentinel has reached Level 57
Arcane Brawling has reached Level 5
Arcane Brawling has reached Level 6
Barrier Armor has reached Level 5
Barrier Armor has reached Level 6
Nimble has reached Level 5
45 Free attribute points
]
Lev sighed as he scanned the notifications. It seemed he had hit the limit for free skill levels. Five of the free attribute points went into Constitution, ten into Perception, and 15 into Intelligence and Wisdom each.
"That was pretty ridiculous, you know that?" came a familiar female voice. "Trolls are one of the strongest dormant monsters, meant to be taken on with a full team. You have a pretty stupid class to win that fight."
She doesn't know about my title and just how much mana I used in that explosive attack. It probably seemed like most of my pool to her.
"I now understand that very well. Maybe try to warn me before I fight something stronger than expected next time," Lev retorted.
"Nah," Inna happily replied. "I wanted to see you fight. The sharpness prevailed again. Robbing the troll of its mobility was a good idea if you were further away."
Lev acknowledged the advice, noting it told him nothing he hadn't figured out already. "I just wanted to check if fighting with Stargazer was viable. Now I know it is, I just lack the training to use it."
"Yeah, that was almost painful to watch. You weren't even holding it properly." She agreed, squinting her eyes at him. "Why would you even fight without getting any training first?"
Lev coughed at the question, thanking Monarch for letting the mask hide his embarrassment. "I, uh, didn't know where I could find a trainer."
Inna stared at him for several seconds before she burst out laughing. Lev had to bear with her uncontrollable laughter as he headed to the rocky terrain.
Lev whirled around when another aura suddenly appeared to his left. It belonged to a man with a stoic face, with an additional aura of no-bullshit radiating from him. It didn't come as a surprise when the man looked at Inna with exasperation in his eyes.
[Ranger - ???]
Another one of the guardians? Lev hazarded a guess.
"Is everything fine, kid?" He asked while looking at Lev.
"Yes sir," Lev replied, not risking being casual with a man who obviously cared for respect. The stiff posture reminded him of military people, always ready to snap to attention.
The man nodded once before vanishing from his eyes, only the pathway formed in the grass by the man's speedy passing any indication of movement.
The inspections were brief. Lev thought with an amused smile. What was even the point of that visit?
Inna had stopped laughing too yet she didn't seem to be worried, or caring about what had just transpired.
"What was that about?" Lev asked.
"That's the normal procedure," Inna snickered. "I'm probably the only one who doesn't ask if everything's alright."
Lev decided to test the waters of her casualness, to see if she was as friendly as she portrayed herself to be. "So I'm stuck with a faulty guardian," He stated with a confident nod to himself. "Don't worry, I'll entertain you."
Lev suddenly found himself staring at Inna's face next to his, a very terrifying smile on her face. His hair stood on end as her terrifying aura washed over him for a small moment.
"I'm sorry ma'am. It will not happen again," Lev wasted no time in bowing his head and apologizing.
She scrunched up her nose, trying to play it off with a more natural smile. "You better make sure of that, or this Master will not shy away from teaching you a lesson."
Lev took those words to heart. Inna was oblivious to Lev's sensitivity to auras, which let him see that she was genuinely pissed off.
So it's fine if you laugh at me but not when I joke about you? Lev thought bitterly with a deep breath as the tension drained away, remembering what he had learned in the orphanage. This serves as a fantastic reminder about treating Masters with respect. I have been incredibly lucky with finding casual high-level people so far.
"Do you even have enough mana to entertain me?" Inna asked teasingly, trying to lighten the mood after Lev fell silent.
Still around 40% left. I can probably fight for hours if I only use disks. Though I wonder if I want to show her how much mana I have still.
"Not much but I'll try," Lev answered, still shaken from her reaction.