"Thank you."
"What do the rest of the cards say?" I got straight to the point.
"Of course."
Two of the cards descended from their floating state and landed with a loud thud.
"This one [The Hierophant] reversed it means that your rebellious nature will truly shine. And the last card [The Tower] tells of a destined disaster on your path. I'm afraid it's certain now, the curse you were born with, will bring great destruction to this world, and the only way to avoid it is…" She spoke slowly.
"Sacrifice myself? Been there and done that more times than I can count. It means nothing and even if I have to grab Vederviti and the sisters of fate by the neck!"
I stood up to leave, annoyed by the ever-foul destined future.
"Wait! I must tell you this. Your child, the first one. You must end her the moment she is born or the world will burn and the clawed beast Maharjanam will descend!" She went into a full fanatical breakdown at the end.
I couldn't bother with her any longer and left.
'*Sigh*.'
[Quest complete!]
[+35 points.]
[+Inventory function.]
"Inventory?"
[A tutorial with bonus items will start.]
As I called the inventory screen, a translucent interface appeared before me, filled with neatly organized icons. Each item shimmered faintly, labeled with its name and description. I was intrigued as I scanned the contents:
• Healing Potion: Restores injuries slightly.
• Iron Dagger: A dagger.
I could easily swap items, taking out the dagger and taking things out and placing them inside. The empty squares could hold anything I wanted.
"Finally something good! Status!"
[John Gray]
[GIFT]-[The Heart]
[SWORD RANK]-2⭐️
[MAGIC RANK]-3rd Circle
[STATS]: PHYSICAL-98 MANA-92
CHARM-34 Aura-74
[POINTS]-75
[SKILLS]:[Status Check],[Cold Heart], [Dragon Heart], [Golden Tongue], [True Martial Physique], [True Aim].
"Pretty good for six months! 20 to CHARM, 30 to Physical, 20 to Aura, 5 to Mana"
Instantly, explosions of energy flowed into my body.
"Pheeew~"
{Your classes are about to start!} A notification came from my personal terminal.
'Let's go have some fun.'
First was the [Combat Mastery Class], and I arrived just in time. The six students in the class were, Jean, Ian, Marcus, Stelle, Sean and Liam. Astel believed his sword skills were sufficient for combat.
"You're here, John, you'll be dueling today. All of the students prepare, and one by one you'll face John. If he defeats all of you, and the guards he passes the class."
"Fifteen duels? Isn't that too much?" I complained.
"Not just that, you have to change your weapon every 30 seconds and when a duel ends, and if your opponent lasts 2 minutes it's your loss." The instructor chuckled.
"Instructor Dupont, that's a bit much," I complained again.
"Nonsense, you're a monstrous guy, this only makes sense. Now start!"
Marcus picked up a large axe and walked onto the stage to face me. I sighed and picked a spear to start.
"Begin!"
Marcus ran towards me with his burly body and held the axe above his head. He had talent for sure.
"Come here, street rat!"
His Aura covered axe descended with the weight of a mountain. I responded with soft force and parried with my spearhead and leaped into the air to end it in one attack.
"Drop it!" The instructor shouted as she tossed me a dagger.
I quickly discarded the spear and caught the dagger. My heavy descending attack switched to guard break and slip into close range. The edges of the weapons were dull, so I went for the back of Marcus's neck and struck him heavily after attacking his sides with the dull edge to distract him.
"Next!" The instructor shouted as she tossed me a staff.
I quickly switched as my opponent Ian rushed in with a rapier.
"Let's see how fast you are!"
He came at me with speed and accuracy and forced me to dodge on the edge several times. I used the staff to attack his vitals but his light physique and mastery of the rapier allowed him to slip through.
It was no longer interesting, so I decided to switch staff style and end it in one hit.
"Catch!" The instructor tossed me a bow with dull-tip arrows.
I quickly tossed away the staff and took the bow.
In an instant, I unleashed my arrows and cornered him before landing the knockout hit.
"Next!"
Stelle ran in with her long scythe, a distance fight was what she wanted.
"Switch, John!" The instructor tossed me a pistol.
"Easy."
I loaded my Mana into it and as Stelle rushed towards me using footwork to be illusive and an unhittable target, I unleashed a bullet.
*Boom!*
One second, one headshot, knockout!
"Next! Three at once!"
Three guards ran in, one had a spear, the other an axe and the last one had dual swords.
"Catch, John!" The teacher tossed me a sword.
The moment I caught it, I flashed past the guards, and with a strike to the back of the neck, all of them fell over limp.
"You're too monstrous with a sword! Drop it!" The instructor tossed in a Heavy Greatsword.
Sean rushed in with his signature dual short axes. But once I caught the Greatsword and struck down he stopped in his tracks. Merely the compressed air from my descending fallen mountain strike scared him.
"On second thought, drop the greatsword!" The instructor threw me a whip.
I grabbed the whip and unleashed it in one smooth motion. It erupted like a serpent and not only disarmed Sean but knocked him down with a strike at the knees.
'This is taking forever, should I get serious?'
Next was Jean…