Chapter 5: Reflection
[Your dormant skill, Embodiment of Venom, has awakened.]
[You have received new titles.]
[The Player (???)]
[Serqet's Vanquisher (SSS)]
[Venom Virtuoso (SSS)]
Upon awakening, Nith received more titles than he had expected, one of which couldn't even be evaluated by the status.
Status was the otherworldly system of the world, accessible to everyone.
Even non-intelligent monsters could see their titles, and those who luckily developed some intelligence could change their lives by becoming humanoid monsters.
Since humans needed seven titles to rank up, Nith's path to the Second Grade was already halfway completed.
One could argue he received too much, but Nith had spent twenty years as a manaless human, which was extremely dangerous in a fantasy world. Had he not met Kyouka, he might have awakened in a dilapidated room, forced into some kind of heavy labor.
"You should carefully think about your path now," Kyouka said, as if sensing that Nith had briefly thought about her.
Nith nodded. "I know. It's because titles can't be removed."
Kyouka smirked in a way that irritated Nith. "Titles can be removed. It's just expensive and requires a lot of connections."
There was no telling how she knew about such methods, as Kyouka swiftly shifted the topic back to the titles and their influence. Obtaining a title required hard work and talent, but there was no mention of the latter in the status.
No one knew their talents, so the chances of obtaining unwanted titles while working toward a desired one were high and often foiled one's plans.
"About dinner," Nith blurted out. "How about we postpone it to another day and go to the low-danger zone together instead?"
"It's your day, so you're calling the shots. I'll have to apologize to my friends, though… and here I thought I'd look better than the queen and princesses…"
"You're not that bad, and you know that," Nith shrugged.
Aware that he didn't pay much attention to appearances, Kyouka stuck out her tongue at him. She finished her sandwich in one go and went to prepare for a short adventure, where Nith would test how his poisons worked.
It was rather ironic that he had waited twenty years for a poison-related skill…
As Kyouka's concerned glance left his mind, Nith checked the first title that intrigued him the most.
He wanted to know what his Player title did and why its concept couldn't be assessed. With a thought, he clicked on it and expanded its information.
Upon reading the screen, Nith choked on his sandwich.
[The Player (???)—The title given to players who have crossed worlds and taken residence in Aldrion. The meaning of the players' existence is limitless and unrestrained progress. This title allows you to handle titles as you wish and grants you simple features of the previous player system (Minimap, Party, Inventory).]
[You have received three new skills from The Player Title: Minimap (SSS), Party (SSS), Inventory (SSS), all of which naturally develop along with you.]
'Now we're talking about leveling up in this world and going to the top,' Nith murmured inwardly as a wide smile spread across his face.
Waiting twenty years for these skills didn't sound so terrible anymore. There were two more titles he couldn't wait to check.
[Serqet's Vanquisher (SSS)—The title given to those who had a major impact in Serqet's demise. The meaning of Serqet's Vanquisher is to stay on guard against his and his zealots' schemes, preventing them from coming to pass. Your immunity against poisons is further enhanced, and your skills' potency is stronger against anyone and anything related to Serqet and his lineage.]
[You have received two new passive skills from the Serqet's Vanquisher title: Higher Poison Immunity (SSS), Toxin Demon Hunter (SSS).]
Slamming his hands on the table, Nith stood up and screamed, "Don't fuck with me! Return? His return?!"
He stared blankly at the table.
Memories of the last boss battle flashed in Nith's mind, compelling him to recall the demises of NPCs and players—the latter returning as quickly as possible to continue pummeling the demon and his forces.
It had been a long and demanding struggle, worthy of the moniker the final battle.
Could the same feat be repeated in this world?
'I'm fucking retarded… I really wanted to mess with the sanctuary's blessing just to advance in this world through poisons like I had done in the game! Am I really that narrow-minded? Or do I lack perspective?' Nith clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. 'Since NPCs were real, I killed many people… I struggled with that part and excused myself… until I no longer cared. The same excuse—that this is just how the world is—nearly led me to help that Serqet bastard and his people! I actually believed that people would somehow cope without high immunity to poisons and that I would be able to rake in profits!'
Just thinking that Kyouka could have been a victim to poisons—which would work even more powerfully due to Nith tampering with the sanctuary—churned his stomach.
He saw the world through cynical eyes and didn't trust people, yes, but he had a soft spot for those he liked. In his defense, the world hadn't treated him kindly until now, and he had spent most of his adult life in the game, where responsibilities weren't fatal.
He even thought of ranking up in this real, fantasy world as if it were just a game. But this was no longer the case as Nith realized the kind of world he actually lived in, the dangers lurking in the shadows, and what his role was.
[Venom Virtuoso (SSS)—The title given to the single entity, Nith Vase Elz Uzume, for his achievements in poison mastery and for becoming the Embodiment of Venom. The man, though briefly, stood at the pinnacle of poison craft, surpassing even Serqet. This title grants him a single skill—Immunity Violation (SSS).]
[Immunity Violation (SSS)—Depending on your rank, you're able to lower the immunity of anything and anyone to toxins.]
Nith smirked. 'I'll dance with you, Serqet's zealots. Your daddy ain't coming back.'