John quickly changed his clothes in the last stall, taking off his black shirt stained with goblin blood, and smiled helplessly at his baseball cap now sporting a hole. "That swordswoman, her swordsmanship is pretty impressive, and it seems she was using a dueling rapier..."
Among the Awakeners in school, John knew only a few, but couldn't recall any who were adept with a sword at that moment.
Changing back into his pajamas, John went to the sink to wash his face.
As he did, he reminisced about the recent encounter. The moment he stepped out of the portal from the other world, it seemed he had locked eyes with a tall, burly man.
That officer had exceptional vision and seemed to have spotted him.
But it wasn't a big issue.
The activation of the portal had disrupted the electronic devices near the courtyard, rendering the surveillance cameras there inoperative - making it impossible to review the footage. Finding him in a university with over three thousand people was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
The only concern was whether the [Awakening Crystal] had been discovered by them. If an Awakener emerged among those people, handling the subsequent matters would be easier.
After washing off the goblin blood, John exited the restroom and made his way back to his dormitory.
His roommates were still sound asleep, completely unaware of the monumental events that had just transpired. John smiled faintly, thinking that protecting these people was precisely the purpose of an Awakener's existence...
He returned to his bed and opened his system panel.
[Host: John]
[Profession: Poison Alchemist]
[Level: 10 (670/1000 points)]
[Constitution: 8]
[Spirit: 8]
[Strength: 7]
[Agility: 8]
[Skills: C-grade Healing Potion +5 (can add toxins), C-grade Painkiller (can add toxins), Potion Vaporization]
[Talent Skills: S-grade Poison Resistance, S-grade Toxic Penetration, S-grade Toxin Extraction, S-grade Toxin Fusion, A-grade Potion Crafting]
[Remaining Points: Attribute Points 3, Skill Points 4]
Removing the Agile Boots, John's agility returned to 8.
He now had 3 attribute points and decided to max out his constitution and agility first.
Even though equipping the poisoned dagger and Agile Boots would overflow his agility points, John felt it was necessary. After all, in some situations where he wanted to conceal his identity, it was better not to reveal his equipment, as other Awakeners could recognize it at a glance.
The remaining point was allocated to strength.
After all, with limited potions in the early stage, close combat was inevitable.
[Constitution: 8—>9]
[Agility: 8—>9]
[Strength: 7—>8]
As for the skill points... there was no need to think too hard. Just allocating all to the healing potion skill was the way to go. A potion master's professional skills required points to shorten the cooldown time.
[-grade Healing Potion +4—>C-grade Healing Potion +9]
[Cooldown time reduced by 4 hours]
John opened his class change quest to see if there were any changes after activating the hidden profession of Poison Alchemist.
[Alchemist Class Change Quest]: Collect C-grade Monster Core x1
[Poison Alchemist Class Change Quest]: Collect C-grade Monster Core x1; Ingest a toxin not present in one's body.
John looked at his job transfer task panel with a slightly surprised expression.
He had simultaneously received two class change quests!
This differs from choosing a class change path. And it's two separate and independent tasks.
This means I can complete both class changes simultaneously!
John was somewhat excited. Initially, he thought the Poison Alchemist profession was merely an extension of the Alchemist, with the added feature of being able to mix poisons.
But now, it appears to be an entirely independent profession!
That makes himslef a "dual-class Awakener"!
In the legends before John was reborn, there was only one dual-class Awakener, and very little was known about him. It was said he awakened both the Mage and Cleric professions and vanished from this world after completing five class change quests.
Rumor has it that he might have ascended to godhood.
Because completing five transformations as a dual-class meant he underwent ten class changes in total. Each class change represents a significant leap for an Awakener, a qualitative leap.
So, this rumor could very well be true. John clearly recognized he might have this potential. However, this also means he needs to complete double the class change tasks.
The early tasks are relatively simple; a C-grade monster core can drop from any monster above level 10. With a bit of luck, it might drop after a dozen or so kills, or I might have to buy it from someone else if I'm less fortunate.
But the later class change tasks will become increasingly difficult... even tailored to individual Awakeners by the system.
At that time, John's task as a sixth-tier Alchemist was to endure 72 hours in a portal filled with flames, using his potions to ensure not a drop of blood was shed. Any injury would reset the timer.
It took him twenty-two attempts to complete his sixth class change.
Reflecting on the past, John lay back on his pillow, a nostalgic look on his face.
The companions who were with me back then, I wonder where they are now... But it won't be long before we meet again.
Gradually feeling sleepy, John yawned and slowly closed his eyes.
...
The next morning. John was shaken awake from his sleep by Dino, the club president, who exclaimed, "John, wake up, wake up, something big has happened!"
John opened his sleepy eyes, grumbling, "What's with the alarm..."
Dino said in a panic, "Last night, the portal in the west of University Town suddenly moved to our school! It's on the sports field, and the goalposts and turf have disappeared!"
"What?" John feigned surprise, "Did any monsters escape?"
Dino shook his head, "The armed officers have sealed off the area. It seems no monsters got out, and the portal there has already closed."
John gave him an exasperated look, "So, there's nothing to worry about. I'm going back to sleep..." "No, what if a portal directly appears in our dorm? You should get up now, and if something goes wrong, we'll run away." Dino was quite cautious. He even stockpiled a lot of food in the dorm and prepared two baseball bats, just in case.
"Hahaha, John is as calm as ever." Dino couldn't help but laugh as he scrolled through short videos on his phone, forwarding an interesting one to the dorm group. "Hey, check this out! It seems that there are awakeners who specialize in dealing with monsters appearing."
Hearing this, John also opened his eyes and took out his phone to watch the video in the group chat.
In the video, a cute, petite girl with short hair in a Lolita style appeared.
"Guys, I think I have superpowers!" she said excitedly, lifting her hand towards a wall. Energy fluctuations surrounded her palm, as if something invisible was gathering there.
Then, with a "boom," she shot a fireball from her palm.
The fireball was powerful, creating a small dent in the wall and causing flakes of paint to fall off. "Look! I've become a mage! I swear on my family's life, this is not special effects!" The cute girl jumped excitedly, feeling like she was chosen by destiny. "If the country needs me, I can cooperate with the investigation. I believe my superpowers are related to the portals to other worlds. Maybe I am the chosen warrior!"
John recognized the girl in the video. Her name was Jill, a small internet celebrity on TikTok. She liked to make funny videos. Although she was pretty, she didn't have many followers.
John found it hard to comment on her. In a way, Jill could also be considered a "genius."
She was the first to use magic to stabilize the electromagnetic signal of cellphones, even neutralizing the interference from the portals to other worlds, allowing people inside to establish contact with the outside. This discovery solved the communication problems between Awakeners and the outside world.
Actually, Jill's initial goal—
Was merely to livestream from inside the portals to other worlds, exploiting ordinary people's curiosity about these portals to broadcast the battles between Awakeners and monsters live.
This would naturally bring her massive traffic and a high income from virtual gifts.