'What?' Alden's eyes widen in disbelief.
It was just a moment ago that the system told him the truth, about how weak he actually is, and now, that same system is telling him to shoot the damn wolf? With his current strength, Alden doubts that he will even be able to damage its hide.
Sure, if he had one more hour to draw out the full benefit of the forest's blessing, his physical stats should be able to rival the opponent. However, that is just silly wishful thinking. The wolf is already very nearby and an escape from its sharp senses was never an option in the first place.
Alden is already expecting to pay an arm or a leg in this encounter, so the last thing he needs right now is false hope.
'How?' But still, he grabbed on to the bait. 'What are you planning?'
[Shooting the target 'Dire Wolf' with 'Yggdrasil slingshot' will result in success.]
'That's the great plan?' Alden was shocked, a bit annoyed. 'Are you glitching or something, that is not possible.'
He thought the great analyst might have cooked up some great plan that he failed to think of, flipping the situation on its head by using wits or something. So Alden was utterly disappointed with the crude suggestion, it seems more like a desperate attempt to him.
[Negative. The current success rate is 100%.] The system repeat, unyielding.
The reaction makes Alden tilt his head and really think about it.
But after just a second more of hesitation, Alden decided to just follow it, feeling very curious about the system reasoning. Besides, he got nothing more to lose anyway, so even a last-ditch attempt is better than simply giving up.
After settling his next course of action, Alden quickly reaches out to his thin golden bracelet and focuses on what he wished to take out. A moment later, a crude-looking slingshot manifested in his hand.
It was Idril's gift that has been named by the system. Although its primitive-looking self, made up of a simple Y-shape wooden branch and some leather wrapping the handle, Alden had already tried it out a couple of times and knew that its appearance was a facade.
It's one of his best equipment. But even with it, Alden didn't really like his odds.
'This better work, partner.' Alden steadies his breath, reaching out to take his shot.
He pulled on the empty space between the Y slingshot, and a faint golden string manifested by itself in response. It also came along with a pearl-like ammo that similarly appeared out-of-nowhere, tucked nicely between his finger.
Then, with a blank mind, Alden unhesitatingly shot. What happened afterward is a miracle.
Just as he was releasing his shot, a bird suddenly chirped right next to Alden and the silent atmosphere ever since the wolf came immediately shattered. The predator was alerted and its head snapped up, looking right at where Alden was standing. But it was a mistake.
Alden has already shot the pearl ammo, and by suddenly looking up, the wolf exposes its rare weak-point. The ammo mercilessly passes right through its left eye, destroying the brain and killing it instantly in the process.
It was a one-shot-kill.
"..."
Unable to fathom what he just witnessed, Alden's mouth gaped wide open, looking down at the wolf's carcass in disbelief.
"W-what just happened?" He spoke out loud for the first time in a while, unable to suppress his doubt.
The slingshot is indeed very good, but it does not buff Alden's attack power in any sense. It is more because of how relaxed the using condition is, as it does not need any ammo or mana, which makes it very functional and handy that Aden considered it one of the best.
But that also means that his shot would always reflect his true strength, so the scene Alden just witnessed was truly unbelievable.
[It is because you are lucky, Alden.] The system nonchalantly responded.
"Yeah, no sh*t, Sherlock."
Alden's mind is racing, trying to understand the situation. If he could simply blame it on luck, then it would hardly be this confusing. But what is causing him a headache now is how can the system predict all of this? Isn't luck suppose to be random?
However, a change happened before Alden could finish his train of thought. Quite literally.
[Alden, an abnormal reaction is detected inside your body.]
The sudden notice makes Alden tilts his head.
"What is wrong?" He asked, looking down at his perfectly fine body. "I don't see anything wrong, I didn't even have a chance to engage in combat yet. Is it a bad reaction?"
[Negative, your body is being strengthened for an unknown reason. Permission to analyze?]
"Oh?" His eyes immediately widen, it was a very pleasant surprise. "Yes, sure, granted, set that at first priority!"
[Understood, processing…]
The sudden phrase 'body strengthening' was like magic to Alden's ears.
Alden has not yet forgotten that just a moment ago, he was in despair because of his powerlessness in front of the uncrossable wall called mana. Sure, one victory might be nice, but he will still lose the war if he doesn't find a way to get over this obstacle.
So to accidentally stumble upon a new potential means of getting stronger right after, It was very good timing, and of course Alden is eager to learn more. Whatever is the cause of this positive change, he wants more of that.
Alden proceeds to swiftly slide down from the high tree, cautiously examining the dead wolf. Its mouth is still twitching slightly, but it was no doubt truly dead with the brain already destroyed. It was a gory scene but the whole thing happened so fast and played out so unexpectedly that contrary to his previous worries, Alden felt nothing but curiosity as he lightly touch the beast's grey fur.
'The only thing that could cause this sudden body strengthening is no doubt the fact that I just killed the wolf…' Alden thought to himself, still thinking of the sudden strengthening.
A rare hint of greed flashed in his eyes.
'Wolfs often traveled in packs, isn't that right?'
Alden decided to gather more samples.
***
Two hours later.
Standing on top of his 7th victim's corpse, Alden sighs, at a loss of how to react.
The first time is maybe a fluke, the second time's coincident, third time is luck, but from there onward, he has no choice but to admit it was a skill.
Alden has killed all of these wolves with his luck, and even he is feeling confused.
To begin with, encountering 7 different lone wolves in 2 hours is already very fortunate, but the way they died afterward is also nothing short of a miracle. There is no need to mention the first one, but the second one died by being too shocked, while this one died by shallowing Alden's bullet. The whole situation is making him very speechless.
It has already been more than 2 hours since he came here, so Alden has already breakthrough to the E- rank and gathered enough stat points to go one-on-one with these wolves, but he didn't even get a chance to do so.
They all simply died in one clean shot, proving how ridiculous the luck stat really is.
These kinds of victories are making the winner feel very shameful for some reason. Alden silently stood over the deceased wolf with a sorry face, giving his prayer, then storing away the spoil of war into his bracelet.
He didn't need it for food or anything, since Alden already packed enough for a month, but beast corpses are very valuable in this world. Some beast meat can give special effects when consumed, like the troll's blood that he loves so much. While other parts of it like the fur or the organs can be separated to make equipment or potions. Although all of this is happening inside the tower, Alden sure hell is still going to try taking these out with him.
'Maybe mom and dad with be less mad once they receive these,' Alden thought, smiling lightly while thinking of his family. But before that, he has to fulfill his promise and grow stronger first.
"Is this enough sample for you?" He asked the system, not forgetting the whole purpose of this hunting session.
Thus far, it has not been going so well. His partner has never taken this long to analyze anything, and even after 7 kills, there is still no reaction. Alden was forced to think that he has been going in the wrong direction and is already prepared to stop for another brainstorming.
Fortunately, 7 is a lucky number.
[Processing… Success!]
"Ohhhh?" A huge smile subconsciously appeared on Alden's face.
[The reaction has successfully been analyzed. It has been classified as a 'racial trait', and is given a name.]
[You have discovered the existence of, 'The Conqueror's Path.']
The smile immediately twisted into a shocked expression. "Conqueror? No way!"
Until now, unlike druids, the conqueror race has never been mentioned. It was not like it was a well-hidden secret or anything, everyone just seems to be unaware of its existence, even Liam. On multiple occasions in the past, he had already tried to probe for any relating information, but Alden's dad seems to just think that he himself is still a normal human being.
So for knowledge of this mysterious race to suddenly pops up here, it was only natural for Alden to be shocked.
"System, display the analysis in more detail." He asked,also feeling very curious.
===============
Race name: Conqueror.
Background: More information is needed.
Benefits: 'The Conqueror's Path.'
Strengthen the body after every successful conquer. The harder the challenge, the greater the reward.
================
It was a truly short and confusing description.
"Uhh, it this is?" He asked with a tilted head. "Why is it so vague, the one on the druids is very specific though?"
[It is because of the lack of information, Alden.]
The system replied.
[The benefit is purely the result of analysis, unlike with the race 'Druid' where information is clear.]
"Then I have to say your naming sense is really…" Alden pointed out, his cheeks a bit red from looking at the embarrassingly imposing name. But he quickly changes the topic to a more urgent matter.
"Anyway, this is too vague. Can't you analyze specifically how is my body being strengthened?"
[The effect can be put in form of stat points.]
"Oh? Now that is better, so how much did I gained from the 7 kills?'
[0.7 points.]
"WWHHAATTT!?"
Alden almost falls from the huge shock, immediately opens the status window to confirm.
===Status===
Name: Alden Dane Drukas
Status: Blessed by the Forest, Titania's Protection (8.8 hours remaining.)
Age: 6
Race: Conqueror/ Druid
Title: 1st Apostle of Adventure
Gift: Undetermined (Time remaining: 27 days)
Overall Rank: F > E-
Strength: 5.109 (+15) / 100
Dexterity: 4.81 (+15) / 100
Stamina: 5.25 (+15) / 100
Intelligence: 23.87 (+15) / 100
Mana affinity: -10 / 100 [Fix]
Luck: 90 / 100
==========
"N-no way, it's true!!" Alden's mouth was wide open. He was suddenly 0.4 points stronger, 0.2 faster, and 0.1 more resilient. He was shocked to the point of pinching himself for a reality check.
It was obvious, for the mere 0.7 points that he just gained in 3 hours is something he used to work nearly 2 months for in the past. Even a whole week of intense training used to only result in less than 0,1 points, so to earn 0.7 stats this easy, Alden was out of his mind!
"Perfect timing." he mumbled in a low voice like a mad man. His eyes dashed around the surrounding environment, looking for a new prey.
"We got nothing to do really, so let's gather more samples first."
The Trial of Dominion suddenly turned into a treasure hunt.