Braun manipulated his mana with unparalleled skill as if the esoteric energy coursing through his veins were a formless limb. It was to the point that even uncommon class mages would have to respect his mana control. As he infused the mana into his enchanted hammer, he smashed the bow-shaped metal on top of the anvil, causing sparks and impurities to fly away with each strike.

His mana also floated outside of his skin to form aetheric runes in the air. Some glowed red, some glowed blue, and some glowed green; he multitasked with considerable ease, imprinting the runes onto the developing bow while casting enchantment magic to reinforce his product.

“Reinforce Steel. Establish Magic Circuits.” Blue lines glowed all throughout the metallic bow, while runes were inscribed onto its surface and string.

Soon enough, the bow took shape, becoming a magical weapon of great strength.

“You’re finally done!” Mina grinned, her darkgold great sword resting on a nearby wall. Physically transcribed runes and enchantment magic were inscribed on the great sword, and with his knowledge of magic, Braun could deduce that they were gravity-influencing enchantments and runes.

“Let me see what you two had made, eh?” Dwobug Ironhelm manipulated the two weapons to float in the air and led the two children outside and into his personal testing facility.

A dummy made out of stone stood in the middle of the dirt field, with many more backup buddies nestled in the corner. The entire field was barricaded by a stone wall, enchanted with magic and runes. There was also a barrier set up all around the field, acting as another layer of defense so no magical projectile would accidentally shoot out of the area and hit random buildings outside.

Dwobug first tested out Braun’s bow, grabbing it with the experience of a trained archer. He pulled back its string, and golden light suffused from the runes transcribed on the bow’s body. Golden light gathered to form three arrows, with a magic circle appearing in front of Dwobug’s eyes for aiming.

Letting go of the string, the three arrows adjusted their path autonomously and hit the dummy in the head and heart, exploding it from the inside with a burst of radiant light.

“Woowee!” Dwobug whistled, admiring the bow. “Uncommon Class firepower, low mana consumption, some slight projectile autonomy, assisted aiming, and basically endless arrows as long as one has enough mana.”

“Considering the materials involved and that you’re just common class…” Dwobug grinned. “You pass!” Dwobug laughed, tossing the bow back to Braun.

“I can keep it?” Braun stared at the bow, surprised. Everything, from the materials to the equipment needed to craft the bow was provided by Dwobug, so it wouldn’t be unexpected for him to keep it, but now?

“Of course you can!” Dwobug grinned. “You made it. It’s yours.”

“Oh…” Braun smiled. “That’s neat!” The boy activated his storage ring and stored the bow, while the dwarf then willed for the dark gold greatsword to land in his hand.

Grabbing its weighty hilt, the dwarf activated the runes on the great sword and found it many times lighter than before. As he swung it around like it was a wooden stick, the dwarf nodded his head and waited for a new stone dummy to position itself in place.

As soon as it did so, the dwarf crouched down and rushed forward, displaying surprising agility and dexterity. He raised the great sword into the sky, and the runes on its body glowed with a bright purple light. Its weight increased by many folds, and with one casual swing, the stone dummy was crushed into bits and pieces, with the great sword barely losing its sharpness and durability.

“Using gravity to not just offer greater movement, but also greater attack power when landing blows. There’s also the fact that the gravity can act as a way to increase the great sword’s durability.” Dwobug praised. “Mina, you truly are a great disciple. It seemed years of learning under me hasn’t gone to waste.”

Dwoboug couldn’t help but sigh. “One day, you’ll fully inherit the Ironhelm’s smithing techniques, and become a renowned magic smith!” The design of the greatsword was so simple yet so effective. It could be replicated on other heavy weapons, from clubs to maces, inspiring the dwarf with gravity-related equipment.

For example, armor that could dilate its own gravity, either reducing its weight or increasing it. Nodding his head repeatedly, the dwarf tossed back the greatsword to Mina and appraised the two youths.

“You two had passed!” Dwobug grinned proudly.

“Does that mean…” The two youths refrained from continuing their words.

“Yes.” Dwobug laughed merrily. “Dragon meat!”

“We’re eating dragon meat tonight!”

…

The two children were barely able to hold themselves back from acting like ravenous beasts as they sat around a circular table with white cloth draped on top. Plates and drinks had already been served, with their knife and fork placed right beside their plates.

Braun’s stomach rumbled with primordial hunger. Mina salivated with endless desire.

“You two had never eaten dragon meat before?” Dwobug asked curiously.

“No,” Mina mumbled through her saliva.

“Papa had focused most of the shop’s money to continuously expand it, that stingy bastard. Even if he’s already earning 450 gold a month, he still won’t buy dragon meat!” Braun growled.

“Dragon meat is pretty expensive, kiddos.” Dwobug defended Delmore, his dear friend. “Just a kilogram of it would be a hundred gold coins on the lower end, and easily over a hundred depending on the market.”

“That expensive?” Mina was shocked by the price.

“Heh, you thought they were cheap?” Dwobug laughed at the two’s naivety. “Dragon meat provides a whole lot of benefits, from increased overall physical stats, longer lifespans, and even greater mana reserves.”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

So that’s why he’s so jacked and has ridiculous mana reserves for a blacksmith. Braun was enlightened at once.

“You’re a regular here?” Braun asked.

“Yep.” Dwobug crossed his arms and grinned. “Been eating dragon meat monthly in this place.”

“Lucky!” Mina whined.

Then, their food finally arrived. A group of three nicely dressed servants arrived at their table and put down three lids. Opening them, a heavenly scent wafted throughout, putting the two children in a state of euphoria unlike anything they had ever experienced before.

It smelled like heaven.

Just a single whiff of that scent caused their minds to blackout, and their bodies moved by pure primal instinct. They shakily grabbed their fork and knives, with the waiters briefly chuckling at the sight and retreating away so the three could enjoy their meal.

Braun raised his fork, while Mina raised his knife.

Dwobug glanced at the two, and already knew what was going to happen. Turning a blind eye to their antics, he calmly cut himself a chunk of his food, and thought to himself, They’re gonna be so embarrassed about this in the future.

The dragon meat, one cooked to perfection delight, was cut like butter and stabbed like air. Saliva kept drooling down their lips as they opened their mouths wide.

One bite, one chomp—and everything turned black.

…

Braun woke up from a dazed state, his forehead dripping with sweat, a phenomenon he should have long overcome. As he wiped the liquid off his forehead, he realized they were actually impurities his body had expelled, with a warm feeling radiating from his stomach, which extended out to his heart, and onwards to his various veins.

The warm feeling brought a newfound sensation throughout his body. The warmth was comfortable, akin to a mother’s delightful embrace, or a warm stream of water that cleansed all of the clogs his body held.

His soul felt reborn, his mind sharper than before, his body more powerful.

Intuitively, he knew his body was rapidly assimilating the contents of the dragon meat, extracting all of its worth. His zenithral flame rapidly expanded in size and forced his body to evolve into a new optimal state.

Braun waited in silence, letting his body do all the hard work, and observed his companions who had also entered a similar state as him.

Mina sat on her chair, face as blank as an empty piece of paper. Dwobug, similar to Braun, gathered the draconic power stored in the dragon meat to grow his strength.

Dragons were legendary creatures, literally. They were all born as Legendary Class entities and would reach Mythical Class as an inevitability with age. A dragon, born with broken skills, usually outclassed other legendary class entities, either through sheer stat difference, skill difference, unique skill difference, or all three.

Because of that, they were, in all honesty, the most fearsome species in Arte. Born strong, grow strong, and their lifespans were even longer than the long-living elves with their status as mythical creatures.

Feeling the power get absorbed by his flesh and blood, Braun soon felt the power dry up and get completely incorporated into his heart. A draconic glint flashed in his ordinary human eyes, and an imperial urge surged from within him.

[Processing… Processing… Congratulations!]

[Unique Skill acquired: Dragon Blood]

Dragon Blood… Braun closed his eyes and observed the changes his body had undergone. Just as the name intended, he had the blood of dragons coursing through him. He was a fucking dragon.

My stats had increased by a lot. Braun felt his already ridiculous muscles and bones reach a whole new level. If Braun’s observations were correct, he was already close to having the physical stats of a physically oriented Rare Class entity, much to the young boy’s dismay who wished to live an honest, no-cheating life.

There’s also the fact that the more dragons I eat, the more I would gain the attributes of dragons. Braun chuckled. From their blood, their flesh, their bones, their organs, and soon enough, even their soul.

Dragons sure are broken. Even in death, they overwrite their eaters, transforming them closer to the species of dragons. Braun let out a satisfied burp, before lazily manipulating the magical energy flowing out of his soul and into his veins.

Mana was quite weird indeed. It had that same otherworldly taint Braun had back inside Super Universe, an esoteric energy capable of altering reality when used with magical principles. It’s basically just another form of super force energy, the same energy that powered superpowers.

And those energies are all derived from one great source—the infinite source of power, the Zenithral Force.

Letting his mind ramble on its own, time quickly passed and Dwobug had finished his short cultivation session. He eyed the two children and noticed Braun had already gotten out of his lucid state, and was brimming with more energy than before. The dwarf nodded his head over Braun’s great gains and asked the waiter for the bill.

Three hundred gold coins, not bad.

Paying the bill with a stack of paper bills, a more preferred currency used in fancy restaurants such as this, Dwobug waited with Braun for Mina to wake up from her stupor. Her eyelids twitched and her fingers wiggled, so it shouldn’t take that long, but the two didn’t have anything else to do in the meantime.

“So…” Dwogum broke the ice, sipping on his iced drink. “You’ve already mastered your class, right?”

“How did you know?” The young boy asked, surprised.

“You’ve been training diligently since you were one year old, Braun, it’s not that hard to guess and keep track of your progress.” The dwarf shrugged his shoulders. “Although when I heard you’ve become a generalist of all things as a mere child surprised me.”

“Generalists are only available when a person had tried a whole lot of things before their class selection, so a baby boy acquiring it is quite the mystery.” Dwobug rubbed his chin. “But considering you’re so smart for your age, I assume you’ve done some stuff back then to have acquired that class.”

“I honestly don’t remember much stuff from two years ago, before I acquired my class which enhanced stats.” The boy shrugged his shoulders. “I think I have the intelligence and mental maturity of someone over ten years old already.”

Dwobug laughed. “I think you do. You even act more mature than your sister sometimes.” The dwarven man then curiously inquired, “What class are you planning on taking next? While I’m not encouraging you to pick a class so early at such a young age, it’s not bad to have an initial idea in mind.”

“I…” Braun sighed. “I kind of wish to pick a class similar to Generalist. I’m still not so sure on what specialized field I should take; should I be a swordsman, a blacksmith, a chef, an artificer? Or maybe I become a fisherman, a farmer, a mage, a teacher, a scholar, or something entirely else!”

“Undecisive, are we?” Dwobug understood the boy’s struggles. “I was like that too back then, wondering if I should follow my family’s tradition and become a blacksmith or become something else, but in the end, I chose the logical path and followed what my talents aligned with.”

“And to think I almost became a Fire Mage rather than a Magic Smith.” Dwobug laughed at that ridiculous image. “But if I did become a Fire Mage, my unique skill Fiery Intuition would have made me quite the formidable pyromancer.”

“Your unique skill though.” Dwobug glanced at the young boy. “It is suited for classes like Generalist.”

“Well, you still have Rare Class to lock in on a specialized field, right?” Dwobug suggested. “So I say mess around and find out while you’re still young and all. Explore all the possibilities you could explore, and class up when you feel ready.”

Braun sighed once more. “Thanks for the advice, Uncle Dwobug.”

“No problem, Braun.”

Mina then groaned softly, awakening from her slumber.

“Looks like your sister’s finally waking up.” He grinned.

“Thanks for the meal, Uncle!” Braun smiled, the worry on his face had already disappeared.

“Yeah. I’d treat you two again next next month once I have enough money, okay?” Dwobug patted Braun on the back.

“Yes!” Braun pumped his fist, already salivating from the thought.

“So keep working hard in my smith, and make a wise decision for your next class.”

“I will.” He nodded solemnly. Dwobug was right.

Luckily for Braun, he already had a class in mind. He just needed a little bit more time to see if other classes take his fancy before he class up.