Chapter 52.3: August at Level 15: The New Party System in Full Effect
Year 0003, I-III Month: The Imperium
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The Arborwyrm
**NAME:** [ARBORWYRM]
**LEVEL:** 20 (45)
**RANK:** COMMON(*)
**RARITY:** ADVANCE (BLUE)
**TITLE:** N/A
**JOB:** N/A
**HP:** 10,350/55,125
**MP:** 25,100/55,125
**DAMAGE:** 13,781
**DAMAGE NEGATION:** 13,781
**STAT/SUB-STAT:** 1,125
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Death Throes and a Brief Recap
August and Erik crouched in a prone position, concealed atop a massive boulder. Their eyes were fixed on the wailing beast below—an Arborwyrm, weakened and bloodied, its body covered in deep scars. The creature's pitiful moans echoed through the dense forest. From the severity of its wounds, it had likely encountered a far stronger predator in these woods and barely escaped with its life.
Several kilometers back, August had activated his newly acquired [PARTY SYSTEM] and sent an invitation to Erik. Though August had warned him beforehand not to be startled by any sudden holographic displays or telepathic communications, Erik couldn't help but be surprised when the ethereal interface materialized before his eyes.
"So what do you see? Did you receive anything?" August asked, watching Erik's expression carefully.
Erik flinched slightly, his serious demeanor momentarily disrupted as he processed the otherworldly phenomenon before him. Like August during his first encounter with the [SYSTEM], Erik instinctively tried to touch the interface hovering in the space before him, only to find his fingers passing through the intangible display. To anyone observing from the outside, he would appear to be grasping at empty air.
"Ermmm, I dunno if this is what you told me about beforehand, but something did appear in front of me, with a bunch of text written on it," Erik replied, his voice hushed with wonder. "It says: [Welcome, Erik Rubbard, you have been chosen by the Host August Finn as companion, you are now eligible to join his party. {YES/NO}. Press Yes if you accept and No if you deny such request, the choice is yours to bear.] Uhhh, so what do I do now, Gus?"
He glanced at August with a mixture of confusion, anticipation, and uncertainty. This was entirely new territory for him—something truly magical and enchanting. Could this be the source of August's extraordinary powers?
August listened attentively, noting with interest that the [SYSTEM] had offered a choice rather than forcing membership. The [PARTY SYSTEM] seemed to respect individual agency, which August appreciated. After a moment of contemplation, he shared his thoughts.
"Hmmm... well, it is up to you in the end. I just wanted to see how this new thing works. It seems like a pretty good power," August said, leaving the decision entirely in Erik's hands. Though he didn't say it aloud, Erik was essentially his test subject for experimenting with this newly unlocked [PARTY SYSTEM].
They remained motionless for several minutes, safe from wandering beasts thanks to Aetherwing's protective presence nearby. Erik weighed his options carefully, reflecting on all that August had done for him and the village. August had consistently elevated everyone around him to heights they couldn't have imagined before. Whatever this strange power was, it must be beneficial.
"Hey Gus, I think I am going to accept it now," Erik finally decided, returning his focus to the floating window.
He pressed the {YES} button, and immediately a golden-blue ethereal light enveloped his entire body, illuminating the shadowy forest around them. When the process concluded, Erik felt a strange yet familiar sensation embedded deep within him—something foreign that hadn't been there before, but somehow felt like it had always been a part of him.
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First Party Member
[DING! CONGRATULATIONS MASTER!
YOU HAVE JUST ADDED YOUR FIRST PARTY MEMBER. 1/15 PEOPLE ARE NOW AVAILABLE ON THE PARTY.
YOU CAN NOW INSPECT PARTY MEMBERS INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATE WITH THEM THROUGH THE 'PARTY CHAT' SYSTEM MESSAGE!]
August smiled with satisfaction at the notification, his curiosity immediately piqued by the mention of [PARTY CHAT]. Eager to explore this feature, he decided to test it immediately.
[PARTY CHAT]:
- 2/16 MEMBERS ONLINE -
[August: Hello?
...
...
...
...
...
Erik: Huh? What?!? What is this????!?? ]
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One Surprise After Another
Meanwhile, Erik was still processing the transformation. After the golden-blue light had faded, he'd been congratulated by a system message and was now trying to make sense of the interface that had appeared.
When August's message suddenly materialized before him, he nearly jumped in surprise. He hadn't even consciously formulated a response, yet his thoughts had manifested as text in the chat. His head throbbed with the overwhelming influx of new information and capabilities that seemed to integrate into his consciousness with unsettling immediacy.
Closing the interface mentally, Erik shut his eyes and focused on his breathing to calm his racing heart.
"Deep breaths... Deep breaths, that's it," he whispered to himself.
**Hooo!!! Haaa!!! Hooo!!! Haaa!!!**
Once he'd regained his composure, he turned to August with a reproachful look.
"You could've told me about it beforehand, you know," he said, shaking his head in disbelief
"Uhhhh, well, this is also my first time..." August replied with a sheepish grin. "So I got a bit too curious about it. I'm sorry; I'll try to warn the others next time."
Erik could only sigh deeply in response.
Curious August proceeded to use one of the new features of the party system, the [INSPECT] function to view Erik's [OVERALL PERSONAL PANEL]—a summarized version of his companion's stats. Unlike his own detailed [PERSONAL PANEL], this interface showed only the finalized equivalents of Erik's statistics. August was pleased to see that Erik's capabilities were respectable, if still developing.
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Erik Rubbard
**NAME:** ERIK RUBBARD
**LEVEL:** 1 (0/1,000)
**AGE:** 13 YEARS OLD 2 MONTHS AND 1 DAY
**GENDER:** MALE
**RACE:** HUMAN CENTUURIAN (ARKANIAN)
**CLASS:** (LOCKED) Level 5
**TITLE:** (LOCKED) Level 5
**JOB:** (LOCKED) Level 5
**HP:** 21,780/21,780 HP
**MP:** (LOCKED) level 5
**DAMAGE:** 2,119
**DAMAGE NEGATION:** 2,119
**STAT:** 427
**EQUIPMENT:**
[NOVICE BOARAT GEAR] - (CLASS I - NOVICE)
**GUARDIAN BEAST:** N/A
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Back to the Present
Returning to their current predicament, they went out of the boulder to enact their planned attack. Attacking the wounded Arborwyrm from its flank would be Erik's duty and the injured sides would be Augusts.
Erik distracted the beast with an arrowed shot, despite the initial boost of his enthusiasm and confidence, as he truly felt August's skill and the system's enhancement run through his veins and power dwelling inside him. The arrow he fired on the other hand, barely registered and simply bounced off its hard barky-scales.
August, ever so careful with his words not to hurt his friend's confidence, asked Erik again, "So what do you think of it Erik? Should we continue hunting it or should we leave it to its own fate?" August asked.
Erik, despite gaining a huge boost in his confidence, as he was acutely aware of the buffs he received from the [PARTY SYSTEM] and August's skill. He was faced with the reality, he wasn't powerful enough, no, not yet, to slay such a formidable opponent alone he would have to be on par with August's strength.
"Maybe? I don't know; I couldn't even dare to kill it if I wanted to or even leave a dent on it," he admitted after his arrow bounced off the beast's thick armor. After a pause, he added, "Well, as you can see my arrow just bounced off of it despite the given system enhancement and your skill buff."
August understood his friends disappointment, this Arborwyrm's armor is stronger than that of the K'tharr's chitin that they faced a few weeks back.
"I see, can you distract the beast for me for a second?" Asked August. To which Erik simply nodded in agreement.
With practiced ease, Erik knocked another arrow and drew his bowstring to full tension. Once he felt the perfect balance at the apex of his draw, he released the projectile toward the distracted beast. While Erik aimed for what he hoped would be a vital spot, August took his bow and knocked an arrow and also fired an arrow of his own, targeting the creature's limb. If their attack failed, they couldn't risk having an enraged Arborwyrm charging through the forest on a rampage.
*Puik!!!*
Erik's arrow struck the Arborwyrm's body but merely ricocheted off its thick scales once again, bouncing harmlessly to the ground. While August's arrow pierced through its limb.
"Ah, well, I guess this one is too strong for me right now," Erik muttered, disappointed but not surprised. "You can finish it off with ease, Gus; your arrow pierced straight through its defenses."
It seemed that despite the [PARTY SYSTEM]'s enhancement along with August's skill buff it wasn't sufficient enough to overcome the beast's natural armor. August's arrow, however, had embedded itself deeply in the creature's forward limb, causing it to thrash about in increased agony.
Recognizing it was time to end the creature's suffering, August channeled his newly acquired skill a mid tier [CLASS - V - ADVANCE - LIGHTNING's EDGE], coating his spear with crackling energy. Going up on top of the boulder once again, in one fluid motion, he leapt down from the massive boulder and descended upon the beast's head with devastating force.
A massive rumble shook the ground as the Arborwyrm collapsed on the cold hard ground, finally released from its misery. August's spear had pierced through its thick skull with much ease, the electrified tip emerging from the underside of its jaw.
[DING +1,125 EXP POINTS, DIVIDED EQUALLY BETWEEN HOST AND PARTY MEMBER ERIK, AND ADDITIONAL +15% EXP WOULD BE ADDED ON RECEIVED REWARDS. THE BEAST SCALES AND CLAWS WOULD BE A GOOD MATERIAL TO USE IN EQUIPMENT UPGRADE MASTER, PLEASE SECURE IT.]
A satisfied grin spread across August's face as he reviewed the notification.
"Hmmm, so this is how the party system goes into effect," he mused, extracting his spear from the beast's skull. "This would be a good way to level up in a huge group with easy-to-kill prey."
Erik nodded in agreement, already envisioning the possibilities this newfound power of August represented for their small group of villagers. With August's guidance and the [PARTY SYSTEM]'s benefits, perhaps they could truly overcome the harshness of the forest.
"Let's go back home for now," August suggested, wiping the blood from his weapon. "Maybe we'll hunt a few Boarats on the way back and see how it goes. We also need to replenish our supply of fresh meat."
As they headed back toward the village, they encountered and efficiently dispatched several Boarats, gathering valuable experience and resources along the way. By the time they reached the outskirts of their settlement, the sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows through the trees.
And so ended the third month of the year—with new powers discovered and new possibilities on the horizon.
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Information Panel
[INFO PANEL]:
[SKILL]:
It will now be divided into 4 categories:
**LOW TIER:**
Base Damage/Damage Negation (30-50) Per Tier Increase
MP CONSUMPTION Rate—(10-30 MP) Per Tier Increase
**MID TIER:**
Base Damage/Damage Negation (50-100) Per Tier Increase
MP CONSUMPTION Rate—(30-50 MP) Per Tier Increase
**HIGH TIER:**
Base Damage/Damage Negation (150-300) Per Tier Increase
MP CONSUMPTION Rate—(50-100 MP) Per Tier Increase
**DIVINE TIER:**
Base Damage/Damage Negation (50-100) Per Tier Increase
MP CONSUMPTION Rate—(500-1,000 MP) Per Tier Increase
[WHEN RANK/CLASS IS INCLUDED, DAMAGE & DAMAGE NEGATION ONLY]:
**NOVICE (CLASS 1-5):**
+5 damage/damage negation increase per class level
**ADVANCE (CLASS 1-5):**
+15 damage/damage negation increase per class level
**EXPERT (CLASS 1-5):**
+25 damage/damage negation increase per class level
**MASTER (CLASS 1-5):**
+50 damage/damage negation increase per class level
**GRAND MASTER (CLASS 1-5):**
+100 damage/damage negation increase per class level