Joe breathed heavily, each deep breath he took was like injecting a thousand needles into his lungs. His chest caved in and his shoulders went up and down each time. He eventually fell to his knees, his exhaustion winning out. Sweat drenched his body, mixing with Ben's brown blood already soaking his face. It made his skin oily but also shiny oddly enough.
It took a few seconds before he was able to control his breathing. But the fatigue he experienced was still there. Joe doubted he could get up without monumental effort, and moving around seemed out of the question. Overusing [Outsider’s Enhancement X2] and allowing his mana pool to drop to 35 had to be the reasons.
[Current Mana Pool: 35/3,080]
Joe wasn't too worried about his mana though. He knew he had something to fall back on, he just wanted to save it for Mikey. Since he defeated both Stan and Ben without using it. He had accomplished his mission.
His eyes fell to Ben's corpse, but before he did anything else. A flurry of notifications flooded his eyes.
[You Have Slain A Human Native]
[You Have Leveled Up]
[You Have Leveled Up]
[You Have Leveled Up]
[You Have Leveled Up]
[You Have Leveled Up]
[Current Level: 33]
[Updated Attributes.]
▪︎ Mana Pool: 35/3,560
[Updates Attributes]
• Skill: 61>71(+2 Class Boost Attribute Points)
• Strength: 58>68(+10 Black Gloves Passive Boost Points)
• Speed: 60>70(+10 Black Boots Passive Boost Points)
• Defense: 49>54(+18 Black Sheep Passive Boost Points)
• Mental Strength: 45>50
▪︎ Additional Attribute Points:8
[The Mana Tool: The Black Blade Has Leveled Up]
[The Black Blade Has Reached (Lvl 18)]
[The Skill (Outsider's Enhancement) Has Leveled Up]
[The Skill (Outsider's Enhancement) Has Leveled Up]
[The Skill (Outsider's Enhancement) Has Leveled Up]
[The Skill (Outsider's Enhancement) Has Reached (Lvl 15)]
[The Skill (Outsider’s Perspective) Has Leveled Up]
[The Skill (Outsider's Perspective) Has Leveled Up]
[The Skill Outsider's Perspective Has Reached (Lvl 3)]
The notifications were overwhelming as always, but Joe was getting a little used to the flood at this point. Syr did it practically every time he leveled up. He had no choice but to accept it.
His gaze fell to his attributes first, like it always did. He formed a half smile at his progress. Things were progressing nicely. All his attributes had reached 50, it wouldn't be long before they eclipsed 100. Step by step, he was getting there.
His eyes shifted to his additional attribute points, Joe was surprised to find 8 unused points. He expected to see 4 but they were double that amount. What did this mean? He thought back to his previous level up and everything became clear instantly. During his battle with Red he didn't distribute his additional points after he leveled up.
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Considering the state he was in at that point, it didn't surprise him that he failed to distribute them. He was far too fatigued to do anything, in fact if Shelly didn't intervene. Things could've been much worse for him.
Joe shook his head, his eyes landing on his skill level ups for a second. He was surprised to find that [Outsider’s Perspective] had leveled up. It took so long he thought it couldn't level up. Did it have something to do with [Outsider's Perspective] being a unique or a passive skill? He wasn't sure. He decided to place that thought in the back burner. Choosing to focus on distributing his additional attribute points.
“Ok Syr, give 3 to my defense. 3 to my mental stenghth and 2 to my strenghth.”
Joe's mental stenghth and defense were always his go to attributes to upgrade. Every single fight he had taken part in, showed him just how vital these two attributes were to getting stronger. Joe went as far as considering them his most important attributes. So it made sense for him to upgrade them first.
The other one he chose was stenghth, this felt like a necessary upgrade to him. During his fight with Ben he lost out in a battle of strength and if it went for his quick feet, he could've died.
It might've just been 2 attribute points, but adding to the multipliers Joe had at his disposal, that 2 points felt huge.
[Updated Attributes]
▪︎ Strength: 68>70
▪︎ Defense: 54>57
▪︎ Mental Strength: 50>53
Joe dug through his thoughts trying to figure out if there was any other notification he missed after his battle with Red, considering he missed his additional attribute points. He wouldn't be shocked to find he missed something else. His memories clicked after a few seconds reminding him that he did in fact miss something. A skill, he remembered seeing something about a skill.
“Syr did I unlock a skill after my fight with Red?”
[Yes, You Unlocked The Passive Skill (Mental Resistance) I'll Provide The Description Shortly]
Joe nodded at his floating screen as he waited for the description to be displayed. It only took 3 seconds before it appeared.
[Passive Skill; Mental Resistance (Lvl 1)]
▪︎ Description: In Battle, A Strong Mind Could Prove More Valuable Than A Powerful Body. Those With The Will To Overcome Everything In Their Path Can One Day Earn The Tille Of The Strongest.
▪︎ Effect: Increases Your Resistance When Up Against Psychological Skills, Allowing You To Combat Skills That Target Your Mind.
▪︎ Note: The Skill Only Increases Your Resistance, It Doesn't Block The Skill. If A Skill Is Strong Enough It Can Still Affect You.
▪︎ Boost: +30 To Your Mental Strength Attribute When Up Against A Psychological Skill.
▪︎ MC: 0
Joe couldn't stop grinning upon seeing that notification. He couldn't ask for a better skill. A skill to protect his mind was exactly what he needed after nearly succumbing to the Gluttanor's psychological skill not too long ago. If he remembered this skill before making his upgrades, he would've given the 3 additional points to another attribute. But there was no use crying over spilt milk.
“What's done is done."
Joe's eyes fell to Ben's form. He looked at him without a hint of remorse, the only thing fueling him was disgust and fury. Decapitating guys like him was too merciful, they needed to suffer before they die.
Joe shook his head, driving away his dark thoughts. He had a job to do. He placed his right hand on Ben's chest, his palm sticking to him like gum thanks to the brown blood smeared on his clothing.
A cloud of mana emerged from his hand, it attached itself to Ben's corpse before devouring it completely..
[Soul Count: 3]
After the deed was done, Joe turned to Syr. “Hey Syr, can you give me that potion I received from grandma Dorothy.”
[You Have Retrieved 1 Mana Pool Potion From Your Inventory]
A blue light gathered around Joe's palm for a brief moment. When it faded, what was left behind was a small glass bottle containing the potion. Joe didn't waste any time, he removed the lid and chugged the potion down his throat. He absorbed every last drop before tossing it to the side. To his surprise it tasted like water. Just a refreshing drink that slid down his tongue.
Joe was slightly disappointed having wanted to taste something unique, but it wasn't to be.
[+2,500 Mana Pool Points]
His muscles surged with energy as the potion coursed through his veins. Joe's heart raced as all the exhaustion that weighed him down was swiftly washed away. He felt like a new man.
[Current Mana Pool: 2,535]
Joe picked up the Scorching Dagger he dropped to trick Ben. He stored it to his inventory. He gripped the black blade by the handle before rising to his feet.
He felt revitalized, but he also noticed that not all of his mana pool had been recovered. He first saw this with Shelly when she drank the potion. Only a portion of her mana was recovered. This was what Dorothy meant when she said it wasn't quite the best quality. But Joe was fine with that, 2500 was more than enough.
His eyes darted around the room, he saw all the bodies of the children who had died. He gritted his teeth, his hand clutching the handle of his blade tightly. Once again, he couldn't save anyone.
What was the point of getting stronger if you couldn't protect anything In the end?
A loud roar snapped Joe out of his thoughts. He could feel the entirely room vibrate. His eyes landed on the door of Mikey's room.
Before he could take a step, the door blasted past his form at insane speeds. It left a sharp breeze before smashing into a wall behind Joe. It shattered instantly, the sharp echo piercing Joe's ears.
He glanced at the door briefly before shifting his focus to the room in front of him.
A man stepped out of the shadows. Wearing nothing but black shorts, he towered everything in the room. With his impressive physique. From his biceps to his abs and hardened thighs. He looked like a complete athlete. His black smooth hair went down his neck elegantly. His piercing eyes landing on Joe.
He only uttered four words. “Who the hell are you?”
Even without him announcing himself Joe knew exactly who he was looking at. This was the guy behind it all. This was Mikey.