Narrator Pov
As Y/n gathered his thoughts, he went over what he knew so far about Jace to form a believable story. 'He cares about his people, and was cautious after I dealt with that guard. Even though I protected Mika, I can tell he is still suspicious about me, fitting for a man in charge of so many lives.' Y/n mused before clearing his throat. "My goal is rather simple to be honest; I just want revenge." He started, Jace raised a brow but remained quiet, urging him to continue. 'This perk should make this easier, glad I saved up my points.'
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[Available points]
Perk Points - 15
[Store]
-- [Perks]
[X] Silver Tongue
Increases user's odds of persuading/convincing someone
Cost: 50 PP
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"Would you like to know my past to better understand my goal? I'm willing to tell you." Y/n offered, Jace considered it before nodding his head. "I was the weakest person in my village, and I was mocked or beaten by the other kids, claiming my only use was a punching bag for them. Besides a few friends, my mother and sister were the only ones who didn't see me as worthless, even after my father left us for dead, they still cared for me."
Y/n's tone was solemn, his expression showed he was remembering old memories. "While mother did her best to ensure we were happy, my sister did her best to defend me from the others. Sadly, she fell into deep sleep after saving, so I fell into depression, and my mother was the only thing keeping me alive. A few years back, I was given a second chance by my master, he saw something in me no one else could, and offered to train me."
Y/n took a deep breath before continuing. "After saying goodbye to my mother, I trained with him for several years, becoming what you see now, but when I returned home, everything was in ruins." He clenched his fist tightly, his mana flared. "My master sensed those crystal monsters, and despite warning me not to, I attacked them in a blind rage. I killed so many I lost count, but I hesitated at one."
Jace tensed slightly, having an idea of who he meant. "It was my mother, turned into a crystal abomination, I tried to muster the resolve to kill her, but was unable to." Y/n's hand trembled, his teeth were clenched as he took a calming breath. "Since I hesitated, it took the chance to kill me, but my master saved me a steep price. He took that killing blow, and in turn killed her for me."
Even though Y/n knew it was all a lie, it was still painful to think about. "So I promised to kill every last one of them. I know it sounds impossible, but I won't stop until the world is rid of their filth." Y/n's eyes held a burning determination, his voice was full of conviction. Jace closed his eye, his mind sorting through the story. After a few moments, he opened his eye and looked at Y/n, his expression softened a bit.
"That's a heavy burden you carry. I'm sorry for the loss of your family." His voice was sympathetic, Y/n nodded, feeling bad for lying to him, but he had no other choice. "I hope we can aid each other in the near future. For now, you can roam our safe haven freely, just be careful, tensions are high as you can imagine." Y/n nodded, giving his thanks before promising he will do what he can do help them all before leaving.
Once he reached a secluded area, not sensing anyone nearby, Y/n let out a sigh, feeling guilty about lying, especially since Jace seemed like a good guy. 'What else could I do? "Oh, I'm from another world, and I came here to complete a quest" He'd look at me like I'm a mad man!' Shaking his head, he glanced at the completed quest and was surprised with the rewards to say the least.
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[Sudden Quest: Convince Jace]
Rewards: +5 to new stat, Neutral relation with survivors
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Swiping the screen away, his stat menu opened shortly after, revealing the new stat that was added. While it was his lowest one by far, it at least benefited from his current level. 'So I could gain new stats at any point? Interesting, wonder what I'll get in the future.'
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[New stat acquired!]
Charisma - Increases the effect of social skills, and the ability to persuade and convince others.
Cha - 31
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As he closed the menu, Y/n realized how fortunate it was to gain a stat like charisma, especially at this moment. 'Perhaps I can increase my relation with these people, or even learn what they need help with.' With his plan in mind, he wandered around the safe haven to memorize the layout, as well as try and find the people that were willing to speak with him.
He felt several eyes focused on him, most of them wary while others were filled with distrust. Only a handful of people greeted him, but even that was hesitant. As he reached the courtyard, he spotted a group of children eating together, but the sight was saddening. They were all rather scrawny, sharing what little food they had amongst each other, and some looked worse than others.
Looking to the side, he saw adults scattered around, presumably the parents, watching the children, making sure they were alright. Y/n knew to not treat this situation like a game, even if the System made it seem so. 'They are not NPCs, they are real, living and breathing people. Their pain is just as real as mine, and their fear is just as much. These are people I need to, WILL help.' He was so focused on helping them all, he didn't notice the screen beside him.
[Dormant blood has partially awoken in the Player!]
Without thinking, he found his way to the entrance of the safe haven, using Phantom subconsciously to slip out undetected. Yet before he could start, his attention was drawn to Mika who was sitting by himself, a sad look on his face. 'Not in rush, and I wanna cheer him up.' He thought, approaching the boy, the child remained unaware until he seemingly materialized beside him.
"Hello, Mika. Mind if I sit with you?" Y/n asked, a small smile on his face. Mika tensed for a moment before realizing who it was, his tail wagged and his ears perked up. "Y/n, yes, of course, please do. It's kinda lonely without my sister here." He replied, moving over so he had room.
"Speaking of her, how is she? Hope I didn't leave a bad impression." Y/n said, the last part was said jokingly, making Mika laugh a bit. "She's doing fine, and she's really grateful for what you did." Y/n waved his hand, saying it was no big deal. "I wasn't gonna to just stand there while he hurt my new friend, especially after sharing your food with me." He said, his words made Mika go wide eyed.
"Friend, you really think so?" Y/n nodded his head, his smile was genuine, making Mika tear up. "I-I have never had a friend b-before. T-thank you." His stutter was worse, his tears threatened to spill, but he blinked them away. Y/n was shocked for a moment, but soon placed a comforting hand on the boy's head, lightly ruffling his hair.
"We're friends now kid, don't forget that." He said, the boy nodded, smiling brightly at him. His stomach growled loud enough for both to hear, a blush dusted his cheeks as his ears and tail drooped. "Sorry." He muttered, Y/n chuckled, reminded of his original goal. As he stood, Mika asked where he was going. "I plan on bringing food for everyone. Including my dear friend." Smiling at Mika, Y/n vanished from sight, leaving the child stunned.
After covering a short distance, Y/n landed atop a tree, becoming visible once more. 'I don't know the first thing about hunting, but with my abilities, should be far easier.' He reasoned, spotting a pack of wolves wandering the forest, he shot toward them, though he believed them to be normal, his perception was wrong.
Sensing the danger, the wolves managed to evade his initial attack, but it was enough to declare him as the hunter, and they were his prey. "Guess I was wrong, oh well." Turning to the wolves, his eyes held an eerie glow as he cracked his neck. "I'll make this quick, no need to draw out the pain." He said, suspending the wolf behind him with his telekinesis.
"Despite your instincts, you refuse to run away. I can respect that, so I'll be sure to grant a swift death." As his words ended, the remaining wolves lunged at him, but the next moment, they fell to the ground dead. "I'm not heartless, so to honor you, I'll make sure everything is put to use. Your lives won't go to waste." He said, placing the bodies in his inventory, which thankfully was possible. Looking deeper in the forest, the eerie glow in his eyes intensified.
"Now, lets see what else is hiding here." And so the hunt began, the hunter and his prey.
Timeskip
Hours had passed for the guards stationed at the gate, bored out of their minds as they waited for something to happen. They would take anything, even fighting monsters, just to end the boredom. However, they didn't have to wait much longer, spotting a large silhouette approaching from the woods. "Something is coming! Arm yourselves!"
As the guards readied their weapons, the large figure finally reached the light, revealing it to be Y/n. Resting on his shoulder was a massive boar, the size was easily over two meters, another just like dragged behind him. "Sorry for the trouble, but do you mind opening the gate? I was hunting for a while." Y/n's tone was casual, ignoring the weapons aimed at him. The guards were too stunned to speak, only nodding their heads before opening the gates.
"Good, thanks." Y/n said, smiling at them as he carried the dead animals inside. Jace had been alerted by the commotion, seeing Y/n drag the dead beasts was the last thing he expected. "Y/n, what is all this?" He asked, looking at the massive boars. "Hunting, figured I should do some good, and the more food the better." He answered, placing the animals down.
"This should last us a few days, though I wouldn't be surprised if they are gone by tonight, everyone is so hungry." Jace said, shaking his head at the thought. "Oh don't worry, I have more." Before he could process what was said, Y/n pulled out the other beasts, ranging from rabbits, wolves, deer, and even a bear. Jace's jaw dropped, seeing the piles of meat, a slight grin appeared on his face.
"Y/n, you are a god send." The chief said, a few people approached the boars, their eyes widened. "Everyone, listen! We are having a feast tonight! Y/n was kind enough to provide us with this bounty, and I expect everyone to be here, and I mean EVERYONE." At his announcement, everyone cheered, their spirits were lifted at the prospect of food.
Y/n had snuck up on a Mika, his eyes nearly fell out of their sockets, seeing the massive pile. "I'll give you a minute friend, looks like your brain is rebooting." And quite literally a minute later, Mika's brain kicked back in, he stared at Y/n, his mouth opened and closed, trying to find words. "I-you-I, how? Just... How?!" He cried out, gesturing wildly to the meat.
"Magic." Was the answer given, it took a few seconds for the joke to set in, but once it did, Mika giggled before full out laughing. After he had calmed down, Y/n sat with him as preparations were being made. A few people stopped by to thank him personally, others gave him a grateful look as they continued with their duties. Jace soon joined him, a large grin on his face.
"Never would have expected you'd do so much for us, and it's only been a day." He said, looking at the food. "I promised I'd help, so that's what I'll do. Besides, it wasn't a hassle for me, nice warmup though." Y/n shrugged, scratching his chin. Jace shook his head, thanking him once more. "By the way, Rena wanted to speak with you, she's currently helping out with the cooking."
Y/n nodded, getting up, Mika asked if he could come along, which was quickly agreed to. Placing the child on his shoulders, the duo made their way to where the food was being prepped. Rena saw them and waved them over, as he did, Y/n noticed the humans kept their distance from the other races. 'Guess the discrimination runs deeper than I thought.' He mused, setting Mika down beside his sister.
"Y/n, right?" He nodded his head, the girl smiled, thanking him again. "Heard my little brother gave you bread as thanks for saving me, and before I could repay you, you did this." She gestured to the food, a slight chuckle left her lips. "Thank you, truly, we haven't been this happy for a long time." Y/n waved her off, saying he didn't mind helping, Rena simply nodded.
Not far from them, a lamia and harpy were trying to prepare a large slab of meat, but they could barely get it on the table. "Try harder, birdbrain!" The lamia hissed, struggling to lift her end. "It's heavy, stupid snake." The harpy shot back, struggling just as much, they bickered for a bit until their grip faltered. "Oh no." Both muttered, yet before the slab could fall, it was suspended midair.
Turning around, they saw Y/n, an amused look on his face as he easily lifted the meat with his telekinesis. "There you go ladies, try not to drop it this time." He said, placing the slab down gently, the two were stunned as he left. "Nice job, I can tell your decent with magic." Rena commented, having seen the scene play out. "Do you have any other magical talents?"
"Only what you've seen, though I would like to learn more." Y/n answered, the girl hummed, a slight smirk on her lips. "Then that's how I'll repay you. I know Stansen quite well, he would be willing to teach you, and even though they aren't as friendly to me, his mage friends might be willing to help." Y/n considered the offer, learning from several mages would greatly improve his knowledge.
"Very well, I wouldn't mind learning." His answer was met with a smile, saying she would get started after the feast. A little while later, the feast was underway, people were happily eating the food provided, some cried tears of joy. The atmosphere was so much different than before, everyone was happy, laughing and chatting amongst each other. Y/n had temporarily excused himself, though no one knew he was missing.
He watched them from above, smiling to himself. 'Seeing them so happy, nearly made me forget about the boss. But that can wait, there was no time limit, only quest I have to worry about is the daily one.' And with that, he promptly got finishing the requirements, his earlier hunt already finished one. As he did, two sets of eyes watched from the shadows close by, thought their forms were shrouded in darkness.
"I see the human you resided within has begun to develop. Though while I can sense your power within him, his body is unable to handle it." A feminine voice stated, her pink eyes glowed slightly, shifting to the other person, revealing her star-shaped pupils. "It has been suppressed since he was an infant, but after he tapped into it, I ensured it wouldn't overwhelm him." A deep male voice replied, his purple eyes also glowed.
"He has a long way to go than, though I wouldn't mind assisting him, but you already knew that, didn't you?" She said, her tone was smug as she slowly vanished. "Hmph, it does not bother me. Though I feel like you will enjoy yourself." And with those final words, the two beings were gone, unbeknownst to anyone.
Timeskip
A month had passed since the feast and much had changed for the better during that time. Rena kept her promise to Y/n, and while Stansen was willing to teach him, the others were more hesitant, but he eventually won them over thanks to his Charisma. Tensions were still high, but had improved greatly, Mika was able to befriend a few kids, though it took time for him to become more comfortable.
As for Y/n, his relationship with the people had become friendly, treating him like one of their own. Some of the older members even taught him proper technique with his weapon, they could tell from a glance he was a novice, but his sheer strength made up for it. His willingness to learn and listen to their advice showed his character, making them grow fonder of him.
Since their health had improved, Jace sent scouting teams to both look for survivors, and mark any areas the monsters have infested. They had managed to find a few groups and planned to save them, and to ensure their safety, Y/n would rush into the infested areas and eliminate every last monster, earning himself a few levels after doing a couple dozen.
His Daily quest hadn't refreshed the next day, which made him curious, his idea being the time dilation within the dungeon didn't affect his Daily or Weekly quests, which was both a blessing and a curse. On one side, he didn't have to worry about them, but on the other, he couldn't grind out a few and boost his stats in a single day. 'Though it does make sense, System doesn't want me to grow so powerful in such a short time.' He mused, currently sat atop a tree as he looked over the forest.
Besides his level increasing, the training he received had also increased his stats, not by a lot, but enough. It was to the point he could sense the Crystalline Chimera from where he was, and surprisingly, it hadn't moved from where it fell. 'Probably because it's waiting for me. No matter, I'll kill you soon bastard, still owe you one for cutting my arm off.' Glancing to the side, his stats were laid out with his skills, both news one and one he leveled up. After some thought, he splitthe 23 stat points he had into Endurance, Agility and Wisdom.
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Y/n L/n
Level - 30
Hp - 5550/5550 --- 6850
Mp - 4550/4550 --- 5650
Str - 76
End - 66 ---> 75
Agi - 61 ---> 68
Cha - 39
Int - 63
Wis - 61 ---> 69
Lck - 53
Sen - 55
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[Skills]
[Resilience (Passive) Lvl 2], [Sprint Lvl 3], [Mana Infusion Lvl 4], [Mana Edge Lvl 2], [Lightning Magic Lvl 3], [Phantom Lvl 2], [Bloodlust Lvl 2], [Minor Telekinesis Lvl 3], [Fire Magic Lvl 2], [Water Magic Lvl 1], [Earth Magic Lvl 1 ], [Wind Magic Lvl 1], [Ice Magic Lvl 1]
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After his stats were updated, he charged mana into his legs and shot toward the safe haven, landing a few feet from the entrance. The guards welcomed him once they noticed, Y/n returned their greetings as he entered. Making his way to Jace, he used Phantom to hide his presence, entering his room without warning everyone inside. Jace currently discussing some plans with the other leaders, a map on the table in front of him.
Y/n didn't bother announcing his presence, instead he moved behind Jace and waited patiently, which wasn't long. "Y/n, glad you could join us. I assume you're curious?" Jace said, not turning his gaze away from the map. The other leaders tensed once he revealed himself but relaxed the next moment upon realizing who it was. Y/n nodded as he stood next to Jace, asking what the plan was.
Jace looked to Y/n, his eye held determination. "We plan to take out that beast." He pointed to the general area the chimera was on the map, one of the leaders then continued. "It's been stationary for weeks, likely waiting for something. We know that if we get too close, it will attack, but the range has been increasing." Y/n's expression hardened, his hands balled into fists.
"You're worried that it will reach us, correct?" He asked, the leader nodded, the chief then spoke. "But even if it doesn't, we shouldn't leave it be. If that monster decides to move, the safe haven will be its first target. And it will not stop until we are dead." A solemn silence filled the room, his words rang true. With a sigh, Jace turned to Y/n, his hand clasped his shoulder.
"You fought it once before, and knowing you, you will fight it again. However, the difference is, you will not be alone." At his words, everyone else straightened, their determination reflected his own. Y/n smirked, nodding his head. "Alright, I take it some preparations are underway?" He asked, Jace nodded, saying he could check the forge himself.
Leaving the chiefs room, Y/n headed to the forge, it was rather empty, a single dwarf hammering away. The noise of metal striking metal was loud, his focus solely on the weapon in his hand. Being respectful, Y/n waited till he was done, using Observe to quickly revealing his name was Furgen, the head blacksmith of the haven.
Furgen set his hammer down, sighing heavily as he inspected the weapon. He was clearly displeased with the results, shaking his head, a low grumble left his lips. "Thank you for waiting." He said, not turning his attention away. "You were so focused on your work, I thought a slight distraction would ruin completely." Y/n joked, Furgen let out a laugh, finally turning to face him.
"That would certainly happen, so thanks for being considerate." The dwarf replied, taking his apron off, he threw the weapon toward the pile of other weapons he deemed failures. "Guess you're here about the preparations?" He asked, sitting on a nearby bench, Y/n nodded as he picked a sword from the pile. "Yup, was told to check them out myself." He answered, Furgen sighed, shaking his head.
"Unfortunately, most are useless. They could do well against regular humans, but a crystal monster? Absolutely useless." Furgen replied, rubbing his face tiredly, Y/n could tell what he meant as nearly all of the swords were mostly E Rank, some being D. As the blacksmith ranted about the weapons, Y/n had an idea, reaching into his inventory, he pulled out the various crystal drops he acquired and laid them out.
"What if you used these?" He asked, interrupting the dwarf's rant. Furgen looked at the items, his eyes widened. "Are these-?!" Y/n nodded, cutting him off, the dwarf approached the table, a hand gently rubbed his chin as he examined the items. "This is perfect! With these, I can forge some weapons worthy of the fight!" He shouted excitedly, Y/n was glad, pulling more drops out for him until Furgen surprised him with a request.
"Y/n, would you mind helping me? Crafting with mana crystal is no simple task." Furgen asked, surprising Y/n, he nodded his head, holding his fist out. "I'll gladly help, though I'll need some instructions." The dwarf grinned, bumping his fist with his own. "I'll simplify for you kid, while I forge the steel, you supply the cores we use with your mana. Think you can handle it?"
"One issue, while I can channel my mana into the cores, no matter the amount I use, they just shatter." Y/n said, picking one up to demonstrate, but as soon as his mana flowed into the core, it shattered apart. Furgen nodded, seeing his point, but his smile never faded. "Why don't we give this a try tomorrow? I've been forging all day and reek of sweat."
Y/n laughed, agreeing with him, the two bid each other farewell, Y/n heading to his room. As he laid in bed, he stared at a core he held, thinking of a solution. He was so deep in thought, he didn't notice the shadowy figure observing him from the corner of his room. A soft chuckle left its lips, star-shaped pupils glowed softly before appearing in Y/n's eyes, the next second, he felt something change within him as information flooded his mind.
While the pain was manageable, it still brought a hiss to his lips, clutching his head tightly before it passed. Once the feeling subsided, Y/n noticed the core had slipped from his hand, rolling toward the corner. As he picked the core up, in the corner of his eye, he saw a beautiful woman with pale blue hair smiling at him. His head snapped to where she was, but found nothing, in her place was instead a notification from the System.
[An outsider has fully awoken the Dormant blood within the Player!]
'What the fuck?' Y/n thought, a little confused by the message as he tried to detect any trace of the woman. Even though he didn't feel anything, he instinctively knew she was strong. 'Damn it! Can't I just have a normal night? Why did a stranger awaken my blood, and what exactly does that mean? Hopefully it's not a bad thing, and I won't sprout a tail or something.' He mused, a low sigh escaped him.
As he laid down, Y/n tried to ignore the information that was still fresh in his mind, but the more he tried, something kept telling him to look at it. Eventually, the need won out, and his curiosity got the better of him. Sitting up, he focused on the new knowledge, images flashed through his mind to reveal it was all magical knowledge. At a glance, it all looked so complicated.
What he thought he knew was small compared to what was revealed. Enchantments, runes, seals, magic formulas that made the ones he knew look like child's play, and the list went on. Yet instead of finding it overwhelming, he instinctively knew how they all worked, his mind was able to comprehend it all. But he knew better than to try and use it yet, knowing something wasn't the same as using it.
The one thing he was willing to try was channeling/focusing one's mana, since it was something he was already familiar with. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes, his mind focusing on the core, visualizing the flow of mana through the crystalline structure. Before he imagined it like pouring water into a vase, only since the core had cracks, the water would spill out.
Now, he imagined his mana flow around the exterior and interior of the core, acting like a seal to keep the energy contained. To his surprise, it actually worked, and subconsciously, his mana flowed into it, creating a faint glow. Y/n opened his eyes, seeing the core had begun to glow a light blue, he grinned as he saw the items name changed. "It worked."
[Mana Core (Restored)]
He repeated the process a few more times to ensure it wasn't a fluke, the results were the same. Filled with confidence, he snuck down to the forge to begin restoring the rest, to his surprise, he saw Furgen there as well. "Looks like you couldn't sleep either, huh?" The dwarf said, a small grin on his lips. "What are you doing?" Y/n asked, walking to the table and setting the cores down.
"Don't wanna waste metal, so I'm melting the steel back down." Furgen answered, gesturing to the pile. Y/n nodded before Furgen asked what he was doing, he smirked while pulling a fresh core out, and instantly restored it. The dwarf's eyes widened, his mouth slightly agape, a small chuckle escaped his lips. "Well I'll be, guess we'll be up all night."
Timeskip
As Jace did his usual check around the haven, he stopped once he heard metal striking metal, finding it came from the forge. "Its too early for this, why is the forge being used?" He grumbled, making his way over. The sound had come to a stop by the time he reached it, his expression morphed to confusion when he saw both Furgen and Y/n, the two were panting heavily from exertion.
"Y/n? Furgen? What are you two doing?" Jace asked, both were covered in soot, their hair was a mess. Furgen turned his gaze to Jace, a large grin on his face, he was barely able to lift his hand, pointing at the table behind him. "All ready." He simply said, his arm fell limply to his side. Jace was even more confused, but once he looked at the table, his expression softened, his eye widened.
Laid out were numerous weapons and armor, all brimming with power, and the source were the cores. They all glowed, emitting a faint aura of mana. "Took us all bloody night, and I'm exhausted from using so much mana, but it's worth it." Y/n commented, leaning against the anvil. "You kidding me boy, you did far more than I asked." Furgen shot back, a light chuckle left him.
Jace couldn't believe his eyes, picking up one of the swords, his eye could see the weapon was strong. 'I've never seen a sword this strong, and the fact there's so many. How?' His thoughts were interrupted by Furgen. "Y/n figured out how to restore those crystals, and we used them to strengthen everything." He explained, a low groan left him as he fell on his back, his legs felt like jelly.
"Impressive, you really pulled through Y/n." Jace said, looking at the young man, Y/n gave a weak smile as he got up. "I figured you'd need all the help you could get. What I have for myself is enough." Y/n said, Jace was confused as Furgen laughed heartedly, blaming his little creation for the extra work on the armor. As he wondered what he meant, Y/n mentally opened the System, equipping his armor.
The instant it appeared, Jace was shocked. He understood what Furgen meant, while the armor he saw before had crystal pieces here and there, this was different. Y/n's was made entirely of it, making him look like the Crystalline Humanoids, only much more human-like.
[Crystal Armor Set (Upgraded)]
[Image Here]