As Milo finished up the last of his chores in record time, he grabbed a big bucket and jogged over to the designated area where his family would be plucking weeds for the day.
He opened up his status screen on the way there.
Status, he thought.
[Name: Milo, Son of George]
[Age: 12]
[Class: Farmer (Ordinary)]
[Title): None]
[Level: 5]
[Strength: 11+2]
[Vitality: 10+5]
[Endurance: 11+6]
[Agility: 10]
[Dexterity: 9+2]
[Charisma: 8]
[Intelligence:13]
[Wisdom: 10]
[Free Attribute Points: 0]
[Abilities: None]
[Skills: [Farmer’s Wisdom], [Enduring Work], [Improve Cultivation] [Farm Tools (Novice)]]
[Free AS Points: 0]
[Eternal Perks (Hidden): [Workaholic (1)], [Sturdy Body]]
Two slow years of gruelling labour under the merciless sun had passed. The innocent-looking boy had turned into a youth with a determined look on his face wherever he went. Work and family were always on his mind.
It was a simple existence. But it was gratifying and fulfilling for Milo.
With his [Workaholic (1)] working in the background, he was just as productive as his older brothers who were several times his level. His father was like a hawk and quickly noticed the discrepancy. The only way he could explain the matter to his father was by lying. He told him that he had a “unique skill”.
It wasn’t the truth but wasn’t far too removed from it.
His father had only been briefly shocked before erupting into smiles and thanking the Gods for whatever fortune had befallen his son and by relation, the family.
Within his first year, Milo had levelled three times. The following year, he snagged another two, bringing him to level 5. When he reached level 5, he earned an AS point. AS was an acronym that stood for “Ability-Skill”. AS points were granted every 5 levels and when it came to one’s status, were the most important decisions one would have to make.
After careful consideration and advice from his family, he chose [Farm Tools (Novice)] out of all the other options he received. His previously sloppy technique made an overnight transformation. It felt like his arms were flying as he used the hoe to till the fields. With only three or four cuts, the sturdy Eesht plant would be felled. Previously thick, earthen soil that refused to yield to his shovel would now split apart like a spoon to a tub of cream.
But he still had a long way to go in this aspect. And more levels to earn.
As for his father who had [Farm Tools (Master)]. One word described him: effortless.
No amount of endurance or strength could match the graceful manner in which George moved. Like a ghost travelling across a battlefield, slaughtering his enemies, he could harvest more Eesht than both his brothers combined. When he tilled the field with his rake, the perfectly parallel lines would mesmerize him.
There was one other thing that he would never tell a soul—not even his own kin.
It was a faraway goal but one day; One day, Milo aimed to become as great a [Farmer] as his father. He knew. It was silly.
His other three skills were simple. [Enduring Work] applied a 1.25x endurance multiplier while he was on farmland. On all land that Milo cultivated, [Improved Cultivation] enhanced the growth and strength of crops, increased the fertility of the soil, and granted the crops extra resistance against disease, weeds, and insects.
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When it came to his attributes, they weren’t anything special. They were quite ordinary actually. The only thing that would raise an eyebrow was his 13 intelligence. All of his other base attributes were within the normal range and when his sister saw that his natural dexterity was only 9, she almost fainted. All she could do was grind her teeth together in frustration, cursing his cheat-like and so-called “unique skill” that the system had gifted him. Her pride would never be able to recover.
***
“I can’t believe I never thought to search this place!” Heath, the exalted [Empyrean] exclaimed.
Walking alongside him on the mountain path, her curvy hips bouncing from side to side with each step, the grey-skinned drow harrumphed. “You really are as dumb as your cock.”
Heath retorted as he suddenly pulled her into his embrace and breathed in her face, “Then how did this dumb oaf find a way to squeeze himself between your pretty legs?”
She reeled back in disgust and pushed him away, “You hairy monkey! You could be dead in an hour and you’re still thinking about my body.”
“Countless women have sat upon this father’s crotch, and never once have I met a woman with a mouth as vile as yours. I’m simply putting you in your place. You should be grateful that I decided to bring you along in the first place. If I hear another peep out of you we’re heading back.”
“Cocksucker…” the insult that she had tried and tested over hundreds of years died in her throat. A pair of eyes pierced through her, a dark expression on his face.
She gave a wry smile and the two continued on their way without any further disruption.
The mountain path was perilous and filled with many places where one could tragically slip and fall down several meters. It was awfully steep too. But for the high-levelled drow and [Empyrean], it was like a walk in the park.
As they approached the crest of the mountain, the drow lady had somehow fallen over a nearby cliff.
“Save me!”
Her scream alarmed the several [Inquisitors] who were stationed nearby in advance to scout out the area.
Heath’s voice stopped the red robe shadows from taking action.
“The drow’s just playing around. Ignore her,” Heath said, completely uninterested in whatever shenanigans she was up to.
Right as the drow lady had seemed to plummet to her death, a grey hand reached up from below. Pulling herself up from a nook in the cliff she had spotted from earlier up the path, Estha pouted.
“You’re no fun!”
Heath rolled his eyes. It was too late for them to head back. He had hoped that she would be serious once they entered the valley at least.
Shortly after, the [Royal Inquisitors] gathered before Heath and Estha. There were twenty-five of them. Every single [Royal Inquisitor] of the Grecia Empire was right here.
The Inquisitors were the law above the law. They could massacre an entire village and no one could do a thing to stop them.
***
Two years ago when Heath started his search, he set off with the mindset that he would search every single nook and cranny. No stone would be left unturned, and even the most unassuming [Farmer] would be scrutinised.
He travelled to remote lodges of individual families, visited reclusive hermits, logging camps, deep underground caves, three dungeons, and every single commoner that was noteworthy in any respect. He stripped down entire manors, inspected abandoned wine cellars, searched every single beach along the region’s coast, and delved into the deepest mines. If it weren’t for the sake of national security, he would have come into correspondence with others that would have solved many of the problems he had.
By that point, he had become a well-known figure; the poor wizard that was looking for his lost son. That was, of course, a complete lie to misguide the common populace and provide a coverup for why he was searching their region so thoroughly.
After a year, he would’ve thought his quarry would’ve heard the rumours and left. He was losing hope with each passing day, but as his magic proved time and time again that he was still here, he began to rethink his approach. He thought that maybe the class of [Empyrean] had been misplaced on him.
But when he discovered that there was a place called Kirkstead that was not considered an official part of the Greenlodge region and thus not drawn on the map, something that [Bright Inquisitor] Phillip had failed to mention, he butchered the man and sent his dismembered corpse off to the Inquisitor Academy as an example to the students of what would happen to them if they failed to be useful. The Grecia Empire did not tolerate such incompetence.
He was an annoying prick anyway.
***
Once purple dyed the sky, revealing hundreds of stars alike, and the moon illuminated the world in a white hue, Heath, the drow and his unit of [Royal Inquisitors] descended the mountain north of Kirkstead.
Heath made all the preparations. A two-thousand-year-old [Greater Smite] scroll taken from the royal treasury if the opportunity arose. Twenty-five [Royal Inquisitor]s to prevent a fight from breaking out. If all else failed, he would drain the drow’s life essence and teleport himself away.
And in the case of his death, his corpse would be rigged to explode with enough force to topple a mountain. That wasn’t all either. He had a few other tricks down the sleeves of his magic robes if need be.
But it was only a minute later that Heath encountered a strange problem.
Everyone came to…a halt.
It was unanimous, sudden, and there was no reason for it. No one had said anything either.
Heath immediately went into survival mode. His first thought based on the situation was—
Something brushed against his soul. It calmed him down. He forgot all about his quest. It soothed him. It replayed his traumatic childhood. It told him he was safe. That he was loved and cared for. That he should instead turn back and head back home. That what he was searching for wasn’t in this place. It was elsewhere.
“Maybe I should visit his parent’s gravestones and—”
He snapped out of it and woke up.
“Mind control!” He cried.
He layered three protective barriers over himself and readied an array of deadly spells alike to trigger at but a single thought.
“That was close,” he thought. His body wouldn’t stop trembling.
Floating off the ground to fend off an attack from below, he waited for several moments in anxious anticipation until an older [Royal Inquisitor] groaned in annoyance.
“I really don’t feel like doing this. The walk back up is going to kill my back. I wish I was back home with the mistress.”
Another voice spoke in agreement. “I’m with the other guy! The people that live in that valley never hurt anybody anyway. They’re just minding their own business.”
“We’d wake up the babies. It’s the middle of the night!”
“What do you all say we just head back and grab a couple of beers from the tavern down at Greenlodge. It’s a shit little hamlet but it’s better than—”
“Silence! What has gotten into all of you!?” Heath exclaimed.
He looked at Estha. Even she was affected. She stared into the stars with a blank look on her face—
No—he corrected himself. She was just yawning.
“Humans are sooo fucking stupid. How do you and your guys fall for such a low-level illusion?” Estha’s sly insult hit him hard.
His face turning red and blood boiling, the [Empyrean] forcibly shook his men out of the illusion by physical means. He then fixed up a spell on the fly, dispelling them from the illusion that had beguiled them, and wrapping a barrier around their souls that would protect them.
Embarrassment was shared around by all once they realised that they had fallen for an illusion. After everyone was sorted out, Heath told everyone to stand back while he tried to find whatever array, formation or trap had done them all in.
After a few minutes of messing around with a magic stone tablet, he found the array. It was…gigantic. He had to take in a big breath of air to calm himself down. Through the vision granted by the All-Seeing Astral Tablet, he saw a dome of waving green light encompassing the entire valley.
Heath’s eyes turned wide and his grip on the tablet loosened.