After finding out about the path the Dwarves and Elves chose to sweep through the Arcane Apocalypse, Liam couldn't help but change his approach as well.
He wanted to save up his Arcanium and purchase something more expensive at first, but he realized now that saving up his Arcanium might actually lead to a worse result.
Consistently investing Arcanium should give him better results given that he may actually earn much more from killing more opponents and protecting more Natives than sitting on his small pile of Arcanium.
Liam had already saved up 150 Arcanium, which meant that he could make a rather big investment in himself.
'The steel battle-axe needs to be replaced but I also want to increase my stats a little bit more. Being sore and all is a nuisance if I want to go out and pull more natives inside the gymnasium…' Liam was in a small dilemma as conflicting thoughts kept bombarding him.
He didn't really like thinking too much since overthinking would inevitably lead to mistakes. At least, that was how it had been for him all the time. His first decisions were often better solutions to problems than those he came up with from overthinking.
Liam had experienced this very often, showing him quite clearly that his instincts would usually help him find a quick and long-lasting alternative that led to a better outcome. Thus, Liam began to scroll through the Elven and Dwarven shops before he turned over to the Arcane Shop where he found something that attracted his interest.
[『Dracoli Cookie』–Circleless Food/Medicine(E- Rank)–
Description: Eating the Dracoli Cookie will fill the body with vigor and life. Minor injuries and ailments may be cured by eating Dracoli Cookies.
Remark: Dracoli Cookies are considered the most common delicacy in the Dragonheart Empire.]
The cost of a single Dracoli Cookie was 0.5 Arcanium, which was quite a lot for something as ordinary as a cookie.
However, something written in the description caught Liam's eye and he purchased a bunch of them.
[7x『Dracoli Cookie(E- Rank)』have been purchased. 3.5 Arcanium have been deducted!]
Seven cookies materialized in Liam's hand as his Arcanium was reduced to just above 150, but he didn't really mind that.
It was necessary to eat something and receive the bare minimum nutrition in order to keep fighting. Paying 3.5 Arcanium for snacks was not actually worth it, but he was pretty sure that it was not a bad deal if in return his soreness and minor injuries would heal.
He guessed that the Dracoli Cookies would fill his stomach for the day since they were full of vigor and life. With that in mind, he finished them one after another before he waited patiently.
A few minutes passed in the blink of an eye until Liam felt that something within his body was changing. A sudden influx of vigor threatened to tear him into pieces as he staggered back, reeling from the after effects of the vitality that was unleashed inside him all of a sudden. The sensation was several times more intense than he expected and his eyes widened in slight astonishment.
His body tensed up and the wound on his chest began to heal, causing a tingling sensation to spread around the area of the wound. Following that, his entire body began to itch which lasted for a few minutes before the overflowing vitality seemed to have calmed down a little. He threw his head back and inhaled lungfuls of air as he forced his mind and body to adjust to the sensation.
'Has my vision improved?' He wondered in astonishment, nearly blurting his doubt out loud. It didn't really make sense that he was suddenly able to see better, but that was actually what happened.
'Did I not realize that I was injured before? That…my entire body was covered with minor injuries?' Liam had a hard time accepting that, however, the reality was different. It took him a few minutes in which he thought hard about what had actually happened before an expression of enlightenment spread all over his face.
"The Awakening!" He nearly shouted out loud as realization struck him hard. His Soultrait Awakening, the awakening that had been initiated and finished in an instant was actually the culprit.
Liam felt as if a deadweight had suddenly been lifted off his chest and the soreness that had spread all over his body was not troubling him anymore either. He felt great, much better than expected.
And that too just from eating a few cookies! The investment was certainly worth it even though Liam had actually expected something else to happen.
'It actually increased!' Liam thought as he glanced at a new notification that had popped up in the corner of his field of vision.
[The Host's Vitality increased.]
The increase in his Vitality was not as surprising as the minor wounds that had tormented his body. He didn't even know that the wounds existed, in the first place. That was already surprising enough for Liam, which grew into an even bigger surprise since an investment of 3.5 Arcanium tended to the wounds through the vigor and life that was spreading through his entire body.
'Now it makes much more sense why the Arcane System valued my combat prowess four times higher the moment my Soultrait awakening was completed. I'm actually stronger than before but was unable to make use of my entire strength…that's interesting!'
Liam had yet to invest the remaining 150 Arcanium in his possession and he was already satisfied with his purchases. The System's evaluation of his combat prowess shouldn't have changed a lot but the strength flowing through him made him feel like the Liam from ten minutes ago was a weakling!
'With the right equipment, Elite Ratatuo shouldn't be much of an issue anymore…'
Now that his body was full of vigor and his stats didn't make him feel like he was at the bottom of the foot chain, Liam's only unsolved issue was the choice of equipment.
He could purchase some accessories that had been enchanted with specific spells, get his hands on a storage item rather than a way to increase his combat prowess through external means, or he could purchase a new weapon. Something that would go well with his extraordinary control of Arcane Power would be perfect since it would make things much easier for him until the customized mission would end.
After Liam spent some time reconsidering different combat styles that may or may not be suitable for the given situation he came to a decision.
'Be a great investment and return a profit of more than 500% to me!' He spoke in his mind as he finished the deal by purchasing three different things from the Arcane System and spending the remaining 150 Arcanium.
This left him with a mere 0.4 Arcanium but a hopefully great investment!