The difference in stats between Scavenger Rat and Brawler Rat, both of whom looked identical to each other, hinted at another unspoken aspect of the game—no two creatures may be the same, even if they were from the same species, or the same group.
Euri didn't think this was necessarily a bad thing. He had a feeling that the affixes for these creatures had a bigger role here than what he could perceive. As long as the same affix appeared on multiple creatures, he wouldn't need to worry about having too many subdivisions among his future army of beasts.
Since the core had another ten hours left to recharge itself, and all three of his beast familiars were cultivating, Euri couldn't mess around in the game anymore. He logged out and started simulating the future pathways in the game on a piece of paper, hoping to identify the route with the maximum benefits under minimal time.
His parents wouldn't be home until the evening. And the school wasn't going to chew him out for missing a day. Studies weren't exactly the biggest priority for most people of his category in society. In this respect, Euri was quite different from his friends and associates.
He had little attraction towards exciting careers, fame, or the thrill of exercising power and influence over others in the unsavory lines of work that swallowed most young men around his age in this part of the district.
The only reason he was pursuing a corporate career was because he could find a job there that wouldn't keep him occupied 25/7. Just like his parents, he could clock in and out daily while spending the rest of his time in some relaxing hobby, or even simply sleeping.
In the afternoon, he received a call from a classmate he was on good terms with.
"Euri, is your head injury too severe? Why did you skip school today?"
"No, what's wrong?" Euri could sense the anxiety in his tone.
"Did you forget what day it is? We're scheduled for the diploma scholarship test! You're gonna miss out on the opportunity to become a superhuman!"
"....Ah shit, I totally forgot. Fuck my luck." Euri cursed profusely for a while, but his face held no countenance remotely close to lament. Rather, he was grinning while eyeing his miniscreen, where the icon labeled as [ Sacred Ground Administrator ] was clearly visible.
After consoling him for a bit, the classmate said the test was about to start in fifteen minutes. Euri wished him good luck and put the comcell down, only to see another incoming call a minute later. This was from a close friend of the same neighborhood.
"Euri, my man, where are you at? Shouldn't have skipped today, man. Something important is on schedule today!" Jaakie's voice was so loud that Euri had to hold the cell a couple of inches away from his ears.
"Jaakie! Didn't think you'd be so eager for scholarships, brother! Do you even know what topic they're gonna test you on? You haven't even bought half of those textbooks yet."
"...What scholarship? There's a test today? Shitface Shenna never mentioned that in the chat! I'm going to beat that son of a skunk up someday, man, I swear!"
"Yeah, yeah, as if you'd be grabbing a scholarship if the class rep informed you one year in advance." Rolling his eyes at this buddy who was boasting things like this every day, Euri couldn't help asking, "If it's not the scholarship you're so eager about, what else did I miss on today's schedule?"
"The protection fees, man!" Jaakie sounded apoplectic. "Baldy Bennet is in our class today. His boys and girls are collecting like a bunch of crazed zombies. And he's definitely not in a good mood either.
"I told him you got beaten up badly yesterday, and it pissed him off even further. You're under his protection, after all. That's like a slap to his face. Told me he's gonna send someone down by your house this evening. Tell'em who did it. You wouldn't let that beating slide, right?"
Euri considered the idea, truly tempted. Baldy Bennet might come off as a low-level thug because of his fee collection habits in school, but that was just due to his age.
His father was a well-known figure in the nearby communities, a man who knew how to make trouble and solve trouble without troubling the law enforcers. Bennet was following his father's shadow even in the school he was being forced to study.
"I guess he can at least help me learn their identities," Euri said in the end. "Taking the revenge is another matter. Those guys are also probably members of a big party, judging by how reluctant the police seemed in pursuing their tracks. Baldy Bennet might not agree with what I want to do once I get them in a sweet spot."
"Hmm? What do you mean?" Jaakie was confused. There were very few things Baldy Bennet might not agree to when it came to exacting revenge.
"Nothing. Let's see how things turn out first. You go ace that test, my man."
"Wait, Euri, were you serious about the test? There really is one schedule today?" Jaakie asked in panic. Snickering, Euri cut the line immediately.
The rest of his day passed by without incidents. Euri ate, took his medicine in time, and exercised a little, which left his head with a dull throbbing. But since winter was coming, he didn't want to leave any muscle area untapped. The aching after irregular exercises in winter was too damn annoying.
By the evening, the Sacred Ground Core was recharged to its regular capacity again. Scavenger Rat managed to reach his cultivation checkpoint very quickly once the vitality gas started coming out at full power.
But Brawler Rat, who had been cultivating for a longer time, took another whole hour before ending the session.
Clearly, their ability to cultivate was not similar. Or perhaps the variable factor was the nature of their special attributes.
[ Scavenger Rat ]
[ Rank-0 Lifeform ]
[ Physique: 0.28 ]
[ Special Attribute: Hyperosmia (1) ]
[ Brawler Rat ]
[ Rank-0 Lifeform ]
[ Physique: 0.3 ]
[ Special Attribute: Combat Instinct (1) ]
Scout Dog, however, showed no signs of stopping anytime soon. There wasn't even any notice of the estimated time for his next checkpoint. Ignoring its existence, Euri chose to trigger the next hunt, and Sol-Wa jumped out of the well to bonk the dog awake from its stupor.
Watching the cutely drawn animation, Euri couldn't help but laugh.
"Hahaha, this girl sure holds a grudge, just like me!"