"Luck below the average level… so I really am cursed with bad luck after all…"
Staring at the clearly subpar Luck stat on his card, Ren Kuroda wore a helpless expression. At last, he understood why nearly every lottery pull he'd ever made ended with useless junk.
So this was the root of the problem.
"Is there any kind of item that can increase this so-called Luck stat?"
Since it could be measured, that meant it had to be improvable—right?
At that moment, Ren looked exactly like a terminally unlucky player desperately searching for a smuggler's ship to the land of the lucky elite, gazing at the generously endowed receptionist with hopeful eyes.
If he could max out his Luck stat, wouldn't that mean he'd become a guaranteed jackpot winner every time he pulled?
"I'm very sorry," Runa said apologetically."While adventurer attributes can increase as your level rises, certain stats—such as Charisma, Luck, and Intelligence—are fixed and cannot be raised."
"So, Mr. Ren… your Luck will probably remain exactly as it is."
The excitement that had just ignited in Ren's heart instantly froze solid.
Every unlucky soul dreams of escaping their fate—but cruel reality reminded him once again that becoming the chosen one was never that easy.
"Still, you really don't need to worry too much about it," Runa quickly added."Your other attributes are the highest I've ever seen in my entire career.""Honestly, I've never seen a human whose base stats—and Charisma—are both this close to the maximum."
"Luck can play an unexpected role in certain situations, but overall it's far less important than your core attributes.""With your current stats, you qualify for nearly every rare class—mage, warrior, and more.""When you think of it that way, doesn't the Luck issue seem a little more acceptable?"
Seeing the dejected look on Ren's face, Runa sighed internally.
As a guild receptionist, she tested attributes and registered adventurers daily. She'd seen plenty of people fall into despair when their stats failed to meet expectations.
Normally, she'd offer some comfort.
But this time… she genuinely didn't know how to console him.
Because to her eyes, Ren's attributes were practically divine. Anyone else would be drooling in their sleep over numbers like these.
And yet, this young man still looked dissatisfied—completely hung up on a Luck stat that was merely below average.
Hearing Runa's attempt at comfort, Ren could only give a bitter smile.
For ordinary adventurers, Luck merely affected monster drops and materials—nothing critical.
But for Ren?
Luck directly determined the outcome of his system gacha pulls.
Still, thinking it over, he knew better than anyone that the System would never allow such an exploitable loophole. If Luck couldn't be raised, then he had no choice but to accept the reality—
He was, indeed, unlucky.
Once that internal struggle settled, Ren looked back down at his adventurer registration card and found himself facing yet another decision.
Just as Runa had said, his attributes were too good—so good that he qualified for nearly every rare class available.
Since each adventurer could only choose one class, Ren now hesitated between pursuing a magic path or a warrior path.
And then—
Among the many rare classes listed, one unusually distinctive option caught his eye.
"…Are you absolutely sure you want to choose this class?" Runa asked carefully."Wouldn't you like to reconsider? Quite a few people have chosen this class in the past, but I've never heard of anyone who became truly strong with it."
"Some of them even ended up weaker than adventurers with ordinary classes."
When Runa saw Ren's selection, she couldn't help but smile bitterly.
Among so many powerful rare classes, he had chosen the one most adventurers looked down on.
Magic Swordsman.
An advanced rare class—and Ren's final choice.
It was a warrior who used magical power to fight.
On paper, it sounded incredible—magic and melee, offense and defense, a perfect hybrid. Almost too good to be true.
And indeed, many adventurers in the past had been drawn in by that promise and selected this class.
The result?
They faded into mediocrity.
The problem lay in skill points.
While the Magic Swordsman possessed a vast array of abilities, the number of skill points gained per level was limited. Dividing them between magic and combat inevitably led to half-baked mastery of both.
Jack of all trades. Master of none.
That was why, in the late game, Magic Swordsmen often performed worse than even standard classes.
Warriors specialized.Mages specialized.
Magic Swordsmen did neither.
As levels rose, the gap only widened.
That was precisely why Runa had tried to warn Ren—she didn't want someone with such extraordinary talent to waste it.
"I really appreciate the advice," Ren said calmly,"but this class suits me best. Please proceed with the ceremony."
Seeing his resolve, Runa could only sigh.
As a receptionist, she had no authority to interfere with an adventurer's decision.
Reluctantly, she completed the class transfer.
Even the adventurers who had gathered to watch gradually shook their heads and dispersed.
"What a waste of those stats… wouldn't a Crusader or Archmage be better?""Yeah. Must be some clueless noble kid. Just chasing aesthetics.""Magic Swordsman skills look flashy, sure—but when you're fighting monsters for your life, who cares how pretty it is?"
The surrounding adventurers looked positively heartbroken.
If they had stats like that, they'd already be hunting the Demon King, marrying a princess, and living happily ever after.
Ignoring the ridicule and dismissive glances, Ren remained unfazed.
He hadn't chosen Magic Swordsman out of stubbornness or contrarian pride.
It genuinely suited him.
He already possessed refined swordsmanship, monstrous physical strength, and—after acquiring the Complete Compendium of Oni Arts—his magical proficiency was far from lacking.
That was exactly why choosing between warrior and mage had troubled him so much.
And then this class appeared.
Ren didn't care how powerful the Magic Swordsman's flashy abilities were—he already had enough techniques of his own.
What drew him to the class was one specific passive skill.
When using melee abilities, stamina consumption was reduced.When casting magic, mana consumption was reduced.
Compared to the dazzling combat skills others focused on, this understated passive was what truly appealed to Ren.
After fighting Abe no Seimei, Ren understood all too well—
Stacking multiple buffs and states while switching between swordsmanship and oni arts placed an immense burden on his body.
Even if he didn't know exactly how much the reduction was, among all available classes, Magic Swordsman was the most compatible with him.
"Now that I'm officially an adventurer… I can start taking commissions, right?"
With the procedures complete, Ren glanced toward the quest board plastered with request notices.
Since the world mission still hadn't triggered, he suspected he might be stuck here for a while.
Which meant—
A stable source of income was essential.
"Huh? You want to accept a commission already?" Runa blinked."But I don't currently have any quests suitable for beginner adventurers…"
Normally, new adventurers would familiarize themselves with their skills, find teammates of similar strength, and then start taking commissions.
Someone like Ren—registering and immediately wanting work—was exceedingly rare.
Still, remembering his outrageous attributes, Runa sighed and began searching.
"No need to look for something too easy," Ren said with a faint smile."Despite appearances, I'm fairly confident in my abilities.""Please try to find something that pays well—even if it's dangerous."