On the return trip, Ur splurged a little.
He spent money to ride a carriage back to the guild.
Main reason?
The gift Grandma Isse gave him wouldn't survive long in this hot weather. If he didn't hurry and get it to the guild in time, it'd spoil, and he couldn't let that happen.
"System, show yourself!"
Taking advantage of the carriage ride, Ur wasted no time and summoned his ever-reliable system.
Now that he had some money in hand, even his tone had become a little more confident when calling the system out.
Dingdong!
[Penguin: Turning Money Into Happiness!]
[Would you like to top up your balance, Host?]
Ur: "…"
"I'm topping up, alright?!"
He was truly speechless at this system. Out of all the systems he'd ever read about, none of them were this obsessed with money.
"Hey, system. Why are you so in love with cash? There are so many other good things in this world."
This question had nagged Ur for a while.
After all, most systems in other stories chased after sacred beasts, divine artifacts, or mythical energy…
But his system?
It had the soul of a corporate banker. It loved money—cold, hard cash.
For a moment, the system screen seemed to pause, almost stunned.
Then, a line of text slowly appeared.
[???]
[Is there anything better in this world than money?]
Ur: "…"
I have… nothing to say.
Dingdong!
[Host has successfully topped up 15,00J. Level 2 Membership activated. Congratulations! You've earned 1 free spin!]
[Would you like to spin now?]
While Ur was still dazed, the system had already helped itself to a full deposit.
As soon as he saw the message, Ur's face darkened. "You bastard! Who told you to top up the entire reward?! How am I supposed to survive the next few days!?"
Ur had asked about the upgrade before. To go from Level 1 to Level 2, all he needed was 10,000J. He was only planning to spend that much, leaving the rest to cover food and lodging.
But this damn system just sucked his wallet dry, using up the entire 15,000J reward from his last mission!
[System Default: Top up will use the Host's total assets. Please specify the top-up limit in advance.]
Even though the system didn't have voice functionality, Ur could feel the cold, emotionless tone just from the text alone.
"Heh! Systems are all two-faced pigs after all…"
"Whatever! Just start the draw already!"
He had no choice.
As much of a jerk as it was, the system was still his lifeline.
Without it, Ur was just a broke orphan with a good appetite.
No way around it—he had to live with it.
And while this system was a scammer, at least it was a diligent scammer. So the moment Ur gave the order, the system immediately began the lottery spin.
The screen transformed into a swirling black vortex. A familiar light shone down on Ur's body…
Lines of text began appearing on the system screen.
[Congratulations, Host! You have acquired the passive ability of Hero: Lava Behemoth, "Lava Body"!]
[Passive Skill – Lava Body: Greatly increases affinity for earth and rock-element magic. Grants minor natural armor growth…]
Compared to Void Hunger, this passive's description was quite concise.
But that didn't mean it was simple.
Ur narrowed his eyes as he stared at the text.
The first part was easy enough to understand.
"Greatly increases affinity with Earth and Rock magic" likely meant he had a much better natural aptitude with those elements now.
But the latter half—
"Grants growth in armor over time…"
That part was far more intriguing.
With a frown, Ur called up his personal status panel.
Invincible Passive System
Host: Wei Yi (Ur)
Passive Abilities:Void Hunger, Lava Body
Health 13
Magic Power: 13
Mental Strength: 17
Magic Resistance: 0%
Armor: 1%
Every time Ur unlocked a new passive, his body received minor enhancements.
Normally, the improvement was too minor to notice, but the system panel recorded everything. So seeing slight increases in Health, Magic Power, or Mental Strength was expected.
But now?
Armor: 1%.
That caught his attention.
Both Armor and Magic Resistance were extremely rare among humans.
Take dragons, for instance. They were so powerful because their dragon bodies had innate magic immunity, giving them an overwhelming advantage against most mages.
Even the most elite warriors only had 1–2% armor or resistance after extreme training.
It was a biological limitation. Unless one became another species entirely, you were stuck.
But now?
Ur's Lava Body gave him the potential to grow his armor stat naturally.
That…
"Might change everything."
Meanwhile, the carriage was far faster than traveling on foot.
It had taken Ur three hours to get to Grandma Isse's house. But now, it took less than 30 minutes to return to the guild.
And with that, an awkward problem arose.
He didn't have money for the carriage fare.
"...Damn you, system!!!"
Fortunately, the carriage had stopped right at the guild entrance.
Bang!
He shoved open the doors and dashed inside under the shocked gazes of the other members.
He ran straight to Makarov.
Makarov blinked, then broke into a hearty grin, "Hey there, Ur! Welcome home! Was the mission—"
"No time to explain, Master!" Ur cut him off, panting.
"Lend me some money—fast!"