3 - Cue the training montage.
Everyone in the house was asleep, but not me. I was preparing myself for what I had to do.
"Do I absolutely need to kill something? Can I just knock them out? Would the system count it as a win? Possible. But last time it said specifically 'killed'. Would it penalize me for showing mercy?" I shook my head. "No sense in just thinking. I'll have to test it out. If it doesn't work, then I'll just have to suck it up and finish them. They're just animals, anyway."
With my mind made up, I slowly started sneaking outside. Painstakingly, I controlled where I put my weight, doing my best to avoid any creaking floorboards. I breathed only when absolutely needed, and stepped very slowly. Bit by bit, I got more comfortable with that gait, and started to pick up speed. It was definitely slower than a normal walk, but noticeable.
Skill evolved!
Sneak (minimal) -> Sneak (basic)
Sneak (basic) - passive - no cost
* Your movements are quieter and more careful than most.
* +10% chance to be ignored
* +3 DEX
"Huh. Nice."
Soon after, I had left the house, and went on to the edge of the Everfree. Just as I got there, the Game reared its head again.
New quest - Trial by fire
* Objective 1: find a dungeon.
* Objective 2: gain 10 levels.
* Bonus 1: gain 15 levels.
* Bonus 2: level up two classes.
Reward: 150 Bits, 25 Chaos Points
Bonus 1 reward: 50 Bits, 10 Chaos Points, +5 to one stat.
Bonus 2 reward: one (rare) item for the secondary class.
"The rewards are… pretty nice, admittedly. I may as well go after them. Plus, it mentioned a dungeon. If it's like an actual game, it will have endless enemies. Thus, the enemies are probably fake. As such, there shouldn't be problems with me killing them!
With that moral conundrum solved, I readied to take my first step back into the forest. First, though, I remembered something important.
I fished out the 'Beastly medallion', and Analyzed it.
Beastly medallion - Rank: Unique
* An old medallion made of parts better not specified. The mark of a true hunter.
* DUR: Indestructible
* Ench: +20% DMG to beasts
Considering what I was planning to do, it was for the best to wear it momentarily.
With my preparations done, I took a deep dreath to calm my rising apprehension and entered the Everfree.
For a while, I wracked my head, trying to figure out where a dungeon could be.
"So, what is a dungeon? A place with lots of monsters, normally either a structure or a set of caves. There are exceptions, but for now let's go with the main two. I don't know anything about structures around, except for the castle: that's a no. I searched pretty much all of it. The only other possible choice would be something like a den." I clapped my hands. "Let's get tracking!"
While I wasn't a hunter, or anything of the sort, I had an idea of what to look for: broken branches, footprints… excrements, if needed. I was probably missing something, but I didn't have a book about tracking on hand.
I did my best to stay silent, and keep a close eye on my surroundings. Most importantly, I tried to gauge what beings would be at an affordable level for me. Cockatrices, I observed, could petrify with eye contact, so I chose to stay away from those. Manticores… maybe another time.
I wasn't exactly sure about all the beings which lived inside the forest, but I got a surprise when I stumbled upon what seemed to be a very old tree. I was going to turn away, and search in another zone, but a series of sounds caught my attention. I crouched down to hide, and observed the zone. From my 2 o' clock, a group of beings that could only be called wood-wolves poured out from between the trees. From amongst the wolves, a much bigger one emerged. I would say that the normal wolves were between 4' to 4'6" tall, while the big one, probably the leader, was 5'3".
Name: N/A
Age: N/A
Species: Timberwolf (As long as MP remains, the body can repair itself)
LV: 8
HP: 580/580
MP: 470/470
STR: 16
VIT: 18
DEX: 20
INT: 7
WIS: 6
CHA: 3
LUK: 5
Name: Arbore
Age: N/A
Species: Elder Timberwolf (As long as MP remains, the body can repair itself)
LV: 30
HP: 1.860/1.860
MP: 1.750/1.750
STR: 32
VIT: 36
DEX: 40
INT: 25
WIS: 45
CHA: 5
LUK: 2
The elder was way over my capabilities, but the smaller ones could be doable. If they had a den, it might have been registered as a dungeon. In that case, the elder might be the boss.
I made no move, of course. They were way too many for me to even consider. And even then, what would I do? I didn't want to fight them. I was somewhat alright with the dungeons, but this? No.
Meanwhile, the elder had moved closer to the tree, and a soft green light emanated from the tree's roots. The elder leaned down, towards the source of the light. When it pulled back, another timberwolf rose alongside it. I was sure it wasn't there before, so maybe that was how they reproduced? The pack surrounded the new timberwolf, and they started moving.
I didn't want to be left behind, nor did I want to get too close. My best choice was to give them some time, and then follow their tracks. After about a minute, I started moving again.
It took about five minutes of sneaking around, but my luck held up and i found the timberwolves' den. When I got close to it, a new window popped up.
Warning! You are approaching a dungeon!
* Time won't pass inside a dungeon.
* You won't be able to contact anyone outside of the dungeon.
* Recommended level: 8+
Are you sure you want to enter? (Y/N)
I pondered my chances. On one hand, I had some decent equipment. On the other, my level was lower than recommended. But I needed the levels…
I shook my head. I would try, and if things were too hard I would get out, rest, and try again.
I pressed the 'yes' option, and the world shuddered around me. When things calmed down, I found that my surroundings had changed: the trees looked much more ominous, the den's entrance was much bigger, and the sky was barely visible anymore.
You can escape from a Dungeon by leaving its borders, or saying 'Dungeon escape'.
I tested both ways for safety. Once I was sure that they worked, I made my way towards the den. It was dark in there, but my Telekinesis cast enough light to navigate; it wasn't optimal, but I could make do until I had a better way to make some light.
Something moved at my right, and I only had time to put my sword between myself and it, before the timberwolf slammed into me. I was slammed into the ground, wolf following along. The wolf was impaled on my sword, but didn't seem to even notice.
When we'd fallen I had lost concentration on my spell, causing our surroundings to fall into darkness. My sword was stuck in its abdomen, so all I could do was punch the wolf. It barely budged, but it gave me a bit of leverage. I rolled around, shoving the wolf away from me.
I couldn't see my sword, but I could see the timberwolf. It was circling me, waiting for an opening. I took my chance to levitate a pebble, and spotted my sword: it was still stuck inside the wolf. I had an idea.
I flung a stone at the timberwolf. It avoided it, but I expected it; while it dodged I charged it, and threw my strongest kick at its jaw. Its head flew back, and I took the chance to flip the timberwolf on its back. I presses with all my weight on its neck, and pulled out my sword. I kept stabbing and slashing at its body as much as I could, even though I couldn't see it anymore, I kept going only when I didn't feel it move anymore.
And even then, I heard no chime, nor did any notification appear to tell me I had won.
I then remembered what the timberwolves' ability was: they regenerated. I threw an Analyze at the timberwolf underneath my foot.
HP: 217/580
MP: 253/470
I immediately resumed my stabbing. No sense in letting it recover.
It took almost a full minute, but finally the wolf crumbled away.
Battle log
Timberwolf LV: 8 slain
Gained: 75 XP
Class Leveled up! (1 - 3)
+4 STR, +4 VIT, +2 DEX
Well, I definitely felt the increase in power.
...I had a long way to go. At least, with the increased stats I would have less of a problem for when I inevitably tried to fight more of them.
I left the dungeon, rested up, and went in once more.
An hour or so went by like that: get in, kill as many timberwolves as I could manage, get out, rinse and repeat.
Just five wolves had increased my level by three, my status showing:
Name: Nicholas Pascaru
Age: 23
Species: Human (+5% effect to all skills)
Class: Fighter [lv 6] (40/120)
LV: 11
HP: 770/770 (+38/min)
MP: 640/640 (+32/min)
STR: 18 (+1) [19]
VIT: 22
DEX: 10 (+3) [13]
INT: 8 (+1) [9]
WIS: 16
LUK: 15
CHA: 5
Killing timberwolves had definitely become much easier, but the lower mobility was a big problem for me. I could get around that somewhat by using Blade rush , but it still bothered me. I also needed a better way to light things up, as it would've been much easier if I had constant light without having to split my attention.
So, I had a new idea: retreat for now, learn a light spell (or buy a lantern), and return at a later date. I had no actual time limit on my quest, anyway.
Quest complete - An apple a day…
Rewards: +10 Xp, +5 bits
The morning had gone by without much trouble. Sure, I had slept a bit less than I would've liked, but I could deal with it: I'd listened to lectures while running only on coffee and three hours of sleep more often than I'd want to remember.
Applejack was impressed by my sudden increase in strength, but chalked it off to me having recovered from my time in the forest. I said nothing, and let her believe it. She was too damn observant; why couldn't I have gotten someone more distracted?
No matter. With my work done, some extra coins in my pocket, and one extra STR, I was ready to accomplish my goal for the day. 'Magic for dummies' had nothing more that could help me, so I went to the library to give it back.
This time, it wasn't Spike who answered the door. This time, it was a young woman, about my age. She had long purple hair with a magenta stripe in it, which matched with her eyes. Her glasses gave her a nerdy look, which actually fit her. She was actually pretty cute, all things considered.
"Hello. May I help you?"
"Yes, I wanted to return this book, and if possible borrow a new one."
"Of course, please come in." She gestured for me to get inside. "What kind of book did you need?"
"Well, I needed a spell to light up my surroundings. A torch spell, if you will. If there's more than just that one, I'd also appreciate it."
She adopted a thoughtful expression for a moment, then levitated a book from a higher shelf towards me.
"There it is. 'Utility spells for the adventurous magi'. It has a number of spells that you'll probably find useful. If not, it has what you need at least. Although, I'm curious as to why you would need to learn that one: it's a basic spell, every magi learns it by the time they're ten."
I avoided answering the last part. I just thanked her, and made my way out. That is, after sending an Analyze her way.
Name: Twilight Sparkle
Age: 22
Species: Magi (+25% effect to all magic-related skills, +50% MP)
LV: 38
HP: 2.050/2.050
MP: 4.275/4.275
STR: 15
VIT: 15
DEX: 20
INT: 95
WIS: 15
LUK: 20
CHA: 10
Either a nerd without any common sense, or a mad scientist… neither sounded too good for my health and/or sanity.
The torch spell was so easy to learn that it was downright embarrassing, but at that point I was too stubborn in my desire to learn magic to care.
I picked up also a couple more simple spells, like the 'show me' spell: it pointed me the direction where something was in relation to me. Pretty much a glorified compass, but still useful. The other spell was 'magic blast': the name says it all.
There were a lot more spells on the book, but they required a level of control I lacked. Literally, if I tried I'd get a pop-up saying 'you do not meet the requirements for this spell'. It was either my low INT score, or my low-ranked Mana affinity .
Well, nothing to be done about it for now.
I'd recovered some sleep in the afternoon, so I was fine to go again that night. It went much easier, with me able to see my enemies. Sure, I was not a seasoned fighter in any way, but I could swing a sword and hit things. It got much easier when I reached level 10, as I gained a new skill and my Sword mastery increased in rank.
Drain stab - active - 75 MP
* Healing trough suffering.
* DMG×1.5
* Half of DMG is added to your HP
Sword mastery (basic) - passive - no cost
* You can swing a sword with decent coordination.
* +10% damage with swords
* +3 STR
With the extra damage, and the chance to heal myself, fighting timberwolves became so much easier! I decided to change classes too, so that I could increase some other stats. Magic fuckery, here I come!
Class set to: Mage
Skills gained:
Mana affinity (minimal) - passive - no cost
* You can use some mana, if you concentrate a lot.
* +5% spell damage
* +1 INT
[Skill already obtained! Changed to +1 INT!]
Telekinesis (minimal) - active - 50 MP/item/minute
* Move things without touching them! Spooky!
* Maximum weight: 1 Kg
* Maximum items: 1
[Skill already obtained! Changed to +1 INT!]
Well, that was a letdown. But I wasn't going to say no to extra points, anyway.
Another hour and several levels later, my quest was finally complete!
Quest complete - Trial by fire
Gained: +150 bits, +25 Chaos points
Bonus 1: +50 bits, +10 Chaos points, +5 to one stat
Bonus 2: Focal ring
Focal ring - Rank: Uncommon
* A ring made to help newbies to the arcane arts focus their magic.
* DUR: 20/20
* Ench: Focus (spell effect ×2)
Congratulations on exceeding level 20! From now you can use Chaos points! They have various uses: you can get 5 extra stat points by spending one Cp, you can improve your skills with them, or you can spend them to create new skills (only those that you can't learn from leveling up, though).
Firstly I put the extra five points into DEX, as I really needed more mobility, then thought on how to use the Chaos points…
It seemed that I could only improve rank-less skills, so my Sword mastery, for example, was off-limits. Looking over my skills, I decided to improve Drain stab and Mana blast for 10 Chaos points each and leave the remaining 25 for later use.
Drain stab (+1) - active - 300 MP
- Healing trough suffering.
- DMG ×6
- Half of DMG is added to HP
Mana blast (+1) - active - 100 MP
- A war-mage's best friend.
- DMG: (INT)×4
With two overpowered skills at my disposal I felt much better about my chances, both in the dungeon and in future. Sure most of the populace had the raw stats to take me on and wreck me, but I operated on game logic, so as long as my damage output was big enough it wouldn't be a problem.
I was walking back to the farm to catch some more sleep, but a new window popped up in front of me.
Well, I'll be damned kid! You really went all-out in this short time! I'm impressed, honestly. Now, pleasantries aside, I told you not even four days ago to not trust the denizens of this world, and what do you do? You move in with them!
I'm disappointed. What could have possibly possessed you to do such a thing?
While I was glad that the entity was back, I was a tad miffed. "What else was I supposed to do? Take my chances in the Everfree, where so many things could kill me? I know what you told me, but what other chance did I have? And besides, who even are you? You may say you're an ally, but you could be some random villain using me as a pawn for all I know."
Hm… I suppose that you're not entirely wrong, you're still a mortal after all. And as for me being the good guy… I'm not, plain and simple. I'm not exactly evil either, though.
You need to understand how this world works in a metaphysical sense. The two main forces in this world are Harmony and Chaos… cliché, I know, but bear with me here. Most beings here on Equus try to maintain Harmony, but just don't seem to understand that chaos is just another part of the world, labeling it and all that comes with it with 'evil'. Normally, I wouldn't concern myself with their opinion, but as it happens I am kinda stuck as a garden ornament, and Harmony is going rampant. I can't do much here, but I could muster the energy to call another chaotic entity here… it seems I had to be more specific, as I didn't summon a chaotic being, but a being that thrives in chaos.
Bah, same difference. Point still stands: you need to cause enough Chaos to counterbalance Harmony. At least until I can get out and return to my job. Of course, you could choose not to, but that would spell doom for the world. Take it as you will.
I shuddered at the last line. I didn't trust this being entirely, but... did I really want to take my chances? No.
"That's all well and good, but… what does 'causing chaos' entail? I mean, what am I supposed to do?"
Ugh… I'll have to guide you trough this, don't I? Fine. As a general guideline, whatever you'd consider 'abnormal', or even 'illegal' works. I'll even throw in an incentive.
Before I could even ask what the incentive was, a quest appeared in front of me.
New quest - Rules are meant to be broken
* Objective: Cause as much chaos as possible within one week.
* Bonus: Throw a whole town into chaos.
Reward: Bits and Chaos points depending on your actions.
Bonus Reward: 10 levels spread randomly throughout your active classes.
I hummed. The deal seemed good, but there was one detail that we hadn't touched upon.
"And when am I going back home?"
Ok, how about this: you do as we agreed, then, when I'm free and if you still want to, I'll send you back home. I'm a God of Chaos, but I'm also a man of my word.
Without much else to go on other than the 'God''s word, I had to take his promise.
"One last thing. What should I call you by? Say, if I had a question for you?"
Every 'pony' calls me Discord. You can do that too, I suppose. Although, I'd prefer 'your Godliness', 'Lord of all things Chaos', or even 'Master'.
My face sharpened at his implied request. "I refuse."
Wha-
"The thing I love most to do is to say no to those who believe they have power over me. So I will not by calling you by any of those self-appointed titles. Now, I am off to sleep."
Either Discord had remained baffled by my impertinence or he just didn't care, as he did not respond anymore, letting me go back to sleep easily.
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9795984
I remember it toke me till level 34 or 36 to figyer out how to unlock dragon shouts
9872881
Now, if I understand correctly what you're saying, you mean that he schould be manually training his stats instead of leveling up... and that wouldn't be wrong. The problem is Nicholas himself: he wants strenght. He may try to uphold the morals he grew up with, but he's greedy and impatient. He's basically somewhere between Lawful Neutral and Lawful Evil.
He does not want to hurt others, and will end up regretting it if he does so, but he will if he must in order to obtain what he wants. I'm trying to portray a person that would basically take the faster path to profit. I may not be doing that in the best way, but I'm writing to learn.
P.S. The whole 'training to increase stats' shtick will be completely useless relatively soon anyway, the stats will rise like crazy.
This is one solid story. Glad I managed to notice it in the new updates the other day. I look forward to future updates, you're doing well so far and the concept is quite appealing. I might even have to contribute, someday.
9872900
Only a few can continue making chapters to stories like this. Thank you por uploading the chapters and staying with us.
9879141
You're welcome, mate. I actually enjoy writing this, even though I have to switch focus from this to another project every now and then. I honestly work better like this.
Ok, so basically "daga kotowaru" right?
9895895
I wanted to write just that, but I felt like putting in the effort of translating.
9936916
I thought it was funny. I'd choose red as a class simply to see what it is.
i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/589/967/785.jpg
9871319
I beat dark souls not knowing I could lock on to enemies.
Keep up the good writing, I'm lookin' forward to more chapters
9976207
You'll have to wait a bit, unfortunately. I've made... a good amount of mistakes while writing this story.
I took the time to think, and this story isn't really going the way I wanted it to. I won't call this story dead, instead I'll be revising all the chapters (thank goodness it's only three) and fixing the stuff. I'll be mainly altering Nicholas's point of view, as he is... quite the little bitch. Need to fix that.
9976211
I would say to continue with the story and gradually change him, making him more courageous as he gets stronger and more familiar with his powers and the world, but, hey! It's your story for you to write and me to enjoy... (though stories less than 100k tend to be short to me)(don't look at me like that! I really like long stories(yet twilight isn't my favorite pony... Go team Luna!!!) ignore that I was rambling but as I said, that is what I would do, anyway good luck with your story
1 cp = 5 stat points so why doesnt he just give himself 125 stat points and use or save them?
9977178
That isn't their only use. It'll come later in the story.
9978021
Ok. Im curious as to where this will go.
9978194
I just realized when re-reading this chapter that I already made mention of the other uses for Chaos points during this chapter. We only illustrated the first two uses, but the third wasn't explored yet. Sorry to have involuntarily decieved you.
Uhhh, are you changing his name all of a sudden?
9951337 Neat.
10128365
My bad. Got confused with another story I was writing on another website.
That answer is the exact thing Discord wants from him and he did not understood that...
Chaos Chaos Chaos
There should be a ability call time stop what a person has to say the world or as Dio says it za warudo every time he has to use it it makes it funnier heck even discord might agree