Chapter 21: What A Joke
[System Notice: You used {Spin!}. {Spin!} was affected by Luck. The wheel will spin for 15 seconds.]
I clenched my hand. Affected by Luck. Fantastic. I really hoped something good would come of it. It had to work out, right? The entire world couldn’t be against me—or, perhaps it could be.
The wheel seemed a bit larger than before as it spun, and when it started to come to a halt, I could see jackpots lined up on it. I began to cast a bright smile on my face, wondering how I’d be treated.
[System: The spin has been completed. You landed on ‘Jackpot’. Congratulations! The wheel will spin again.]
“JACKPOT!” I threw my arms up in the air, instantly receiving a boost to my mood. I wasn’t sure why the wheel was spinning again, but knowing I hit a jackpot got me ecstatic.
[System Notice: For landing your first ‘Jackpot’, you have been granted the title: Favored by Tethralin.]
I checked out my new title as the wheel had yet to finish spinning.
[Title: Favored by Tethralin] - Passive effect: +5 Luck. Active effect: +15 Luck
My smile grew bigger as I read it, instantly equipping it. In exchange, I gained fifteen more luck, and my perception dropped by five. But it was well worth the trade off.
[System: The spin has resulted in ‘Jackpot: Pick Three’. Congratulations! Please review the options.]
Options
Ability: Rating [A]
Pick Ability: Rating [A]
Armor Set: Rank [B]
Attribute Point(s): 10
Weapon: Rank [A]
Divinity Points: 10,000
It was incredible, as to be expected of a jackpot. However, I quickly dismissed the ‘Divinity Points’ option. I didn’t know how often I’d have an opportunity of reaching a shrine to make use of them, even though it was quite a high amount.
I gave the rest of the options a serious overview. Well, I think I would definitely want an armor set. It’d only be Rank [B], and random, but that is insanely good as it’s a set. I will not pick my own [A] rating ability. That would probably result in some negative aftermath, such as a curse. Even though the curse, if it was a curse, would only be [B] rating due to the improved {Spin!}, that could mean another ‘Heart Snake’. A big no-no for me.
Ten attribute points, those would instantly go into Luck. Putting my Luck at a base of 42—then what, a weapon or an ability? Or don’t get the attribute points, and get both an ability and a weapon? Ugh.
Decision making was hard when these options were present. I did not know whether reaching 40 Luck would earn me a new class ability or not. Also, the weapon, armor, and ability would all be randomized. It could go well, or it could go bad.
I made my decision, and started letting the wheel spin. I first picked the random armor set. That would increase my survivability by reducing damage taken directly. I only hoped the gear set wouldn’t be dumb.
[System Notice: Congratulations! You have obtained the armor set ‘Armor of the Shallow Rat’. Please pick your second option!]
Armor of the Shallow Rat? Hmmm. I picked my second option. I decided to go with a weapon as my weapon was currently Rank ‘D’. While that was extremely good for where I was, a Rank ‘A’ weapon would go so much further. Considering I have no weapon proficiency, I didn’t care too much what weapon I got, though I may prefer a sword after having been primarily using them. The wheel spun, and spun, finally landing on the weapon Luck had chosen for me.
[System Notice: Congratulations! You have obtained ‘Vanquisher’. Please pick your final option!]
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
“Vanquisher?” Now that made my thoughts come out of my mouth. It sounded impressive, and I wanted to take a quick look, but decided to move to my final option before checking out all the new goodies. The final option I went with was an ‘A’ rating ability. The attribute points were nice, but considering I could get that in five levels, I think the decision was simple. Abilities were much harder to come by than levels. Except in my case, due to {Assimilation}.
My last wheel began to spin. I thought over which abilities would help. As I wasn’t sure exactly what abilities were considered ‘A’, I mainly hoped for something like invisibility, or a way to take care of my own presence.
Ah, it’s stopping. The wheel finally began to slow, leading to a stop.
[System Notice: Congratulations! You have gained the Ability {Troll’s Blood}. {Spin!} has gone on a four-floor cooldown.]
Troll’s—Blood? I have gained a lot from this lucky jackpot. Time to see what exactly everything is. First, I checked out the one I was most excited for - the ‘Vanquisher’.
[Vanquisher (Rank: A)] - A crossbow created to vanquish enemies of any caliber through the usage of mana. Has an attack value of 360. Grants ability: {Mana Bolt}. Requirements: 60 Dexterity, 60 Intelligence. {Spin!} has negated requirements.
{Mana Bolt} - An active ability. Create a bolt made of mana. Requires a minimum of 5 mana, more mana introduces a multiplier.
‘Vanquisher’ was a one-handed, ruby-colored crossbow. Its design seemed very high-tech, with intricate runes aligned on it. Since it was one-handed, I could use it with my shield. Interesting, a ranged weapon. Although it seems to be very strong, I would have preferred a close-range weapon. However, at least it will increase my survivability. I put the ‘Vanquisher’ away. I couldn’t equip it at the moment as I already had my ‘Ashen Gladius’ equipped, and I would decide upon swapping it out after I checked out the rest of my equipment.
Next up was my new ability, {Troll Blood}.
{Troll’s Blood} - A passive ability. You regenerate 10% of max HP every five seconds.
It was a fantastic ability. It would continue to increase as I got stronger, gaining more health points. As it was a passive ability, I didn’t need to do anything about it. If I included {Goblin’s Recovery Hymn}, I would be regenerating a massive amount of health every five seconds. It would actually go nicely with {Frenzy}!
I then checked out my last reward from my jackpot, the ‘Armor of the Shallow Rat’.
[Shallow Rat’s Face Mask (Rank: B)] - A face mask meant to hide your identity, worn and created by the Shallow Rat. Increases Dexterity by 10. Defense value of 140. Requirements: 60 Dexterity. {Spin!} has negated requirements.
[Shallow Rat’s Nagascale Harness (Rank: B)] - A harness laced with scales of the Naga. Worn and created by the Shallow Rat. Increases Dexterity by 5. Increases Agility by 5. Defense value of 220. Requirements: 60 Dexterity. {Spin!} has negated requirements.
[Shallow Rat’s Nagascale Bracers (Rank: B)] - Bracers laced with scales of the Naga. Worn and created by the Shallow Rat. Increases Dexterity by 10. Increases Agility by 5. Increases held weapon’s attack value by 150%. Requirements: 60 Dexterity. {Spin!} has negated requirements.
[Shallow Rat’s Nagascale Trousers (Rank: B)] - Trousers laced with scales of the Naga. Worn and created by the Shallow Rat. Increases Dexterity by 5. Increases Agility by 5. Defense value of 170. Requirements: 60 Dexterity. {Spin!} has negated requirements.
[Shallow Rat’s Nagascale Boots (Rank: B)] - Boots laced with scales of the Naga. Worn and created by the Shallow Rat. Increases Agility by 10. Increases Dexterity by 5. Increases defense values by 50%. Requirements: 60 Dexterity. {Spin!} has negated requirements.
[Armor of the Shallow Rat set bonus] - {Nagascale Magic Ward}
{Nagascale Magic Ward} - +50% resistance to magic.
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What a joke. I equipped my newly acquired armor set and crossbow. Power was surging through every ounce of me. I’d be strong enough to destroy any mob near me instantly. Hell, I’d probably be strong enough to ignore most enemies’ attacks. The gear I had currently was not meant for a level eight to wear. My attributes were boosted immensely, and the damage I could put out was immense. If I did end up taking too much damage, if I took any at all, then {Troll’s Blood} combined with {Goblin’s Recovery Hymn} would heal me up quickly.
I quickly pulled up my attributes. “Status!”
Status
Health: 280/280
Mana: 66/66
Name: Zeryn Felix, Favored by Tethralin
Level: 8 [EXP: 510/38400]
Class: Miraculum
Titles: Treasure Dabbler, Oathtaker: A Friend of Goblins, Favored by Tethralin
Attributes: 0 AP
Vitality: 22
Strength: 21
Dexterity: 20 (55)
Agility: 20 (45)
Willpower: 17 (22)
Intelligence: 16
Perception: 15 (17)
Wit: 15
Wisdom: 10
Charisma: [5]
Luck: 32 (52)
Active Buffs: Nagascale Magic Ward
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With my Dexterity and Agility boosted so high, my {Shrouded Blink} was capped in cooldown and blink amount. I could now blink five times, and the cooldown was only one minute. Distance was left uncapped, which could only be a good thing. Additionally, my damage scaled off my Luck now, which was at 52. My damage was unprecedented considering I was only on Floor 11.
I finally took in my surroundings, and it appeared as if I was in a small wooden shack. There was a shop button, which I ignored. I left the building, and what appeared in my vision was a wide ocean. On top of the wide ocean were ships, with a port and a city placed in front of it.
[System Notice: The stairs to the next floor have been locked. You must complete two quests before the stairs unlock. Quests will be hidden until discovered by a player.]
[System Notice: Quest progress: 0/2]
[System Notice: Current players on Floor: 4/5]
Huh? Why are there other players… “System. Explain why there are other players on my floor, please.”
[System: Five players are allowed per instance, per floor. Warning: You cannot kill other players, though players may have quests pitting one against another. Defeated players must find a new quest.]
“Thank you.” Thanking the system, I understood now why I hadn’t been presented with this problem before - I had been in a party. As such, the players were always capped as my party was a full one. So, players may fight due to a quest, but death is not going to occur—at least not from another player. Interesting, best keep my distance.
I stood at the top of the hill, overlooking the city. The shack was behind me, and I couldn’t reenter it, but it didn’t disappear. Before moving on, I finally decided to use one of my other jewels, the ‘Transfiguration Jewel’.
[Transfiguration Jewel] - After use, you can merge one item with another. The item will retain its appearance and you can transfigure the item into the merged item, at will. Merging the same type of item will erase previous item.
I used the ‘Transfiguration Jewel’ to combine my ‘Ashen Gladius’ and ‘Vanquisher. The items merged, and the ‘Vanquisher’ was the only piece remaining. I then morphed the ‘Vanquisher’ into my ‘Ashen Gladius’. It was flawless as it instantly transformed, and I held onto my sword. This would help me in case I needed to use my sword instead of a ranged weapon. I transformed it back into ‘Vanquisher’ before heading down into the city, in search of a quest.