The last Dreadclaw Howler pounced on Atlas, who was taken by surprise, but he managed to raise his arms to defend himself. But the claws of the creature tore into his chest and stomach with wild abandonment, ripping his skin to pieces.
[Health: 12/84]
When seeing the amount of health he had left, panic surged through Atlas, driving him to stab the monster in the head, causing it to go limp; he released a shaky breath, feeling the creature's weight on top of him before pushing it away.
Atlas dropped to the ground, struggling to catch his breath amidst the tension and adrenaline coursing through his veins. He curled up into a ball as the pain overwhelmed his body, forcing him to clutch his bag and pull out an Immediate potion.
Struggling to pop the cork, and when he did, he put it to his lips before drinking half and dumping the other half on the wounds that riddled his body. After doing that, Atlas curled back up and slowly started to recover.
Thirty minutes later, his health had fully recovered, relieving him of his headache. As Atlas sat up, he observed the eerie sight of the monkey-like creatures' lifeless bodies strewn around him.
Once Atlas recovered, he checked his status.
[Level Up: 7→8]
[Experience: 300/1000]
[Experience Gained: 1000]
[Health: 84→88]
[Mana: 590→600]
[Strength: 84→86]
[Stamina: 85→87]
[Charisma: 225→230]
[Intelligence: 80→82]
[Core Points: 5350→6350]
[Core Points Gained: 1000]
After that, Atlas laid back down for a little while as he wasn't used to all the fighting, which showed how his body ached. Ten minutes later, he readied his knife before cutting out the 20 black monster cores.
He stored them in his space bag before looking around and only spotting Black Mirror Lake and snow-covered trees. Atlas felt icky, so he approached the water carefully, scanning the area he wanted to wash.
Atlas's blood ran cold when doing that as three monsters lay just in wait. Their ranks frightened him as they were the strongest monsters he'd seen.
[Frostscale Crocodile]
[Rank: D]
'Crocodiles! No thank you.' Atlas thought while turning away from the water just as an explosion erupted.
He yelped but darted away only to see the giant white crocodile marching up to the Dreadclaw Howler's corpses and started eating them. When Atlas saw this, he got an idea and cast several Void Arrows that appeared around him.
Atlas held the projectiles in place while aiming them all at the same spot, which caused him another terrible headache just before he released the spell that soared through the air and connected with Frostscale's eyes.
The arrows hit it one after another, causing the monster to roar in pain before spinning in Atlas's direction. When seeing this, he checked his mana.
[Mana: 120/600]
He cast ten more Void Bullets, which used the rest of his mana, excluding twenty, before sending them flying toward the giant crocodile, which caused multiple explosions to erupt all over its leathery body.
As the dirt settled, Atlas's heart raced with fear. With a yelp, he swiftly leaped aside, narrowly evading the snapping jaws of the Frostscales, which closed just inches from where he stood moments before.
Realizing he was outmatched, Atlas knew that fleeing was his best course of action. He sprinted through the Wailing Woods until the brush got too thick for the monster to follow him.
Atlas continued to run until he stopped hearing the crashing and ended up on the shores of the Aurora Sea. It was surprisingly peaceful as the waves lapped against the beautiful beach. He looked around and realized he was in a primal forest as the trees pierced the clouds.
While scanning his surroundings, Atlas spotted buildings in the distance, causing him to approach them cautiously. When getting close, he guessed it was an abandoned fishing village with a tall wooden wall circling it for defense.
But he noticed the wood was rotten and looked like it was about to fall if a breeze hit it. Atlas stepped through the broken gates and started exploring the village, where he witnessed crumbling wooden houses and weed-covered streets.
Atlas approached one store he spotted and looked into it to see things on the dust-covered shelves. He continued walking through the village, seeing three broken docks with rotten ships half-sunk in the water.
He continued wandering until he left the village and was back in the forest. By the time the sun set, Atlas was sitting on a branch that overlooked the calm lake water, but he knew monsters hid below its dark veil.
While in the tree, he changed his clothes again before dumping the old ones in the dark water below. When his rubbish erupted into a frenzy as the monsters sensed the blood on the fabric.
Atlas watched this with curiosity and scanned the water.
[Blood Piranha]
[Rank: F]
'Am I in a horror film? Oh goddess, what dangerous world have you dropped me in,' Atlas chuckled while lying back on the branch.
Atlas ignored the monsters to read one of the books he had collected from Wildwood City. He chose 'The Valoria System: A Need To Know Guide' to learn about his system and gain the experience needed to level up.
Pulling out the thick book, he started to read and learned that everyone in Valoria had a system. The way they leveled up was pretty much the same, involving hunting monsters, training, and learning.
Atlas learned that with each Rank Up, bonuses were earned, progressively enhancing the person's attributes.
'As strength grows, enhancing stats becomes increasingly challenging due to ongoing bodily improvement during leveling,' he mused, reflecting on the author's insight that power derived not solely from stats but also from personal experiences accumulated over time.
But Atlas also understood that the same thing applied to his Mana Core. Afterward, he read about the experience and how it ties into the monsters. The book told him each creature would give him a set amount of experience, but it also depended on the rank.
He decided to check on the different Monster Ranks and the experience they gave, which would be helpful in this new life.
[Rank F Monsters -100 Experience]
[Rank E Monsters – 200 Experience]
[Rank D Monsters – 300 Experience]
[Rank C Monsters – 500 Experience]
[Rank B Monsters – 800 Experience]
[Rank A Monsters – 1000 Experience]
[Rank S Monsters – 10000 Experience]
[Rank SS Monsters – 20000 Experience]
[Rank SSS Monsters – 30000 Experience]
The author also added a list of humanoid ranks and a comparison chart, which provided valuable information about Atlas's new world, 'This is very informative. I'm glad I took these from the city.'
[Level: 1 – 50 – 1000 Experience - Rank: Novice]
[Level: 51 – 100 – 2,500 Experience - Rank: Apprentice]
[Level: 101-200 – 5,000 Experience - Rank: Adept]
[Level: 201-300 – 10,000 Experience - Rank: Journeyman]
[Level: 301-400 – 25,000 Experience - Rank: Expert]
[Level: 401-500 – 50,000 Experience - Rank: Master]
[Level: 501-600 – 75,000 Experience - Rank: Grandmaster]
[Level: 601-700 – 125,000 Experience - Rank: Arch Master]
[Level: 701-800 – 250,000 Experience - Rank: Supreme Master]
[Level: 801-900 – 500,000 Experience - Rank: Legendary Master]
[RANK SSS Monster – Legendary Master]
[RANK SS Monster – Supreme Master]
[RANK S Monster – Arch Master]
[RANK A Monster – Grandmaster]
[RANK B Monster – Master]
[RANK C Monster – Expert]
[RANK D Monster – Journeyman]
[RANK E Monster – Adept]
[RANK F Monster – Apprentice]
[RANK G Monster – Novice]
After studying the charts, he read even more and discovered that humanoids could fight monsters that rank higher than themselves and two ranks if they were in a good team. That explained why he didn't do much damage to the crocodile monster.
'I wasn't strong enough to fight it at full health,' he mused.
The next thing Atlas wanted to know was all about the spell levels, so he flicked through the pages until he found a chapter explaining them in extreme detail, which shocked him initially but brought a smile to his face.
Atlas discovered that spells were categorized into six distinct levels. While most inhabitants across Valoria wielded spells ranging from level one to three, the mastery of level four and five spells was reserved for Masters.
However, the pinnacle of magic lay with the Grandmasters, who could harness level six spells alone. This exclusive access was attributed to the immense mana requirements and the potential repercussions if a caster lacked the strength to control powerful spells.
The author added a small story about a powerful Grandmaster from the Achaemenid Empire who specialized in water magic and tried using a level-six spell. But it backfired and destroyed him as the mana went wild inside his body.
The mage's demise left no trace, stunning onlookers. Reflecting on this grim tale, Atlas realized that as spells and skills leveled up, their damage or effects increased, prompting him to recall his Void Bullet spell with a thought.
[Void Bullet - Level 1: Increases the attack power by 10%]
He delved into Aura, an otherwordly energy wielded by mages to exert an unseen force over others. The strength of someone's Aura depended on one's rank, level, and mastery, shaping the strength of one's abilities.
Each person had a unique colored aura that they could see if they were trained enough. Scholars and Grandmasters believe that it is connected with a person's soul. Mages and Magic Knights alike were tasked with mastering this power, a feat achievable through practice.
Meditation allowed individuals to tap into their inner selves and control their Aura, ensuring it remained harmless to ordinary people who it may hurt. Once learning about that, Atlas put the book away, pulled out the history one, and started reading about the Morozov Trade Federation again.
What intrigued him was that every kingdom or empire used the trains and paid the federation to maintain them, the tracks, and the stations that dot the land. A map was on one page; some stations were deep in the desert or a jungle, which confused him.
'Why would anyone get a train to a jungle? This world is so strange.'
As Atlas was reading to learn about everything he needed to know, outside forces became aware of his presence and started planning to capture or aid him in his journey.