After their spar outside, Arthas and Aldrich immersed themselves in the languages of Orcs and Elves.
The sight of the duo—one large and imposing, the other small and eager—hunched over a desk made the otherwise lonely library seem almost picturesque.
Arthas carefully wrote out the Orcish alphabet, explaining its intricacies to Aldrich. Compared to Dwarven, Orcish was simpler and would take about a week to master.
The Elven language, bearing similarities to English but with unique symbols interspersed, posed less of a challenge.
With Aldrich's sharp intellect, he could grasp its fundamentals within days.
Time passed in this manner, and after a month of diligent study and guidance from his father, Aldrich had mastered both languages.
DING!
[CHAIN QUEST: 4/4 COMPLETED]
HUMAN LANGUAGE: 1 SKILL POINT, 100 EXPERIENCE POINTS (CLAIMED)
DWARF LANGUAGE: 1 SKILL POINT, 100 EXPERIENCE POINTS (CLAIMED)
ORC LANGUAGE: 1 SKILL POINT, 100 EXPERIENCE POINTS (CLAIMABLE)
ELVEN LANGUAGE: 1 SKILL POINT, 100 EXPERIENCE POINTS (CLAIMABLE)
"CLAIM!" Aldrich mentally shouted, excitement surging through him as a new notification appeared on the bell icon in the lower-right corner of his vision.
CONGRATULATIONS ON COMPLETING THE CHAIN QUEST!
[ADDITIONAL REWARD: 1 KEYSTONE, 2 LOTTERY TICKETS, 1 WARD]
Aldrich hurried to his room, locking the door behind him.
"This is it! Claim!!!" His excitement was palpable as he accessed his status panel to view the fruits of a year's hard work.
'Not bad for a two-year-old,' he thought, a grin spreading across his face. He stroked his chin, barely suppressing a laugh.
After composing himself, he turned his attention to the lottery. "Let's start with the Keystone. I hope all options are available." He sighed, mentally selecting the Keystone option.
RANDOMIZING KEYSTONES…
CHOOSING THREE KEYSTONES…
PLEASE CHOOSE ONE RUNE BELOW:
Grasp of the Undying - LIVE FOREVER
Glacial Augment - FROZEN TIME
Fleet Footwork - QUICK AND LIGHT
Aldrich scrutinized the options, choosing one based on their name.
'Glacial is situational; it only slows enemies temporarily. Fleet suits an assassin's hit-and-run style, offering healing and speed boosts. But Grasp…' He paused, his mind racing.
'Healing and the potential to infinitely stack health? That's invaluable in the long run. With my lack of a solid defense and limited resources, having a skill that ensures sustainability in prolonged battles is critical. It's not just about surviving; it's about enduring whatever this world throws at me. Yeah, Grasp of the Undying isn't flashy, but it's the kind of edge I need to stay alive.'
With a deep breath, he made his choice.
CONGRATULATIONS ON PICKING YOUR RUNE!
THIS WILL NOW DIRECT YOUR PATH AND SPECIALIZATION IN THIS WORLD!
FIGHTER SUBCLASS UNLOCKED!
FIGHTER'S DAILY TRAINING QUESTS UNLOCKED!
BONUS ATTRIBUTE POINTS WILL NOW BE INTEGRATED!
PLEASE WAIT…
2%… 29%…
The announcements made him grin, but as the integration progressed, a bitter realization struck him. "Oh, no… here comes the pain again. Bring it on!" He braced himself.
65%… 89%… 100%…
WARNING: Host may experience minor discomfort.
"Minor discomfort, my ass," Aldrich muttered just before blacking out.
His body convulsed on the bed, bleeding profusely as black liquid oozed from his pores and orifices.
The stench was unbearable—a mix of decay and rot.
Eight hours later, he awoke groaning. As he pushed himself up, the world seemed… off.
Everything felt smaller. The stench lingered, making his stomach churn. He stumbled to the mirror and froze.
Staring back was a tall, wiry young man.
At six feet tall, he looked nothing like the two-year-old he remembered.
Even his voice, a deep rumble, startled him.
He glanced downward and blushed. 'Not so little anymore,' he thought wryly.
He ran a hand through his hair, heart pounding in his chest. 'Okay, breathe, Aldrich. Just… breathe. Sure, you blacked out, bled all over the place, and now you're… a giant. That's totally normal. Happens to everyone, right? Right?' He laughed nervously, then groaned.
'But what if this isn't normal? What if something's really wrong? I mean, I'm two years old—TWO—and now I look like I've been hitting the gym for a decade. What if I've aged too fast? What if this body can't even sustain itself?' His breathing quickened, and he forced himself to sit down.
'Okay, okay. Worst case, I find out I'm falling apart later. Best case, this is just a weird growth spurt courtesy of magic. Yeah, magic. Let's go with that. Because freaking out isn't going to help.' 'No. No, it does not. What the hell do I do now? I can't just stroll out and say, "Hi, Dad, I'm a grown man now. Pass the salt?" How's he going to react? Panic? Anger? Disbelief? Knowing him, he'll probably just stare at me like I've lost my mind, and then what? Do I tell him the system decided I needed an upgrade? Yeah, that'll go over great.'
His reflection offered no answers, only amplifying his unease. 'This isn't fair,' he thought, pacing. 'I was supposed to ease into this. Grow a few inches, maybe build some muscle, and then escape to another kingdom. Not… this.' He gestured at himself. 'I look like I've been on a ten-year training montage while everyone else blinked.'
Collapsing onto the now-cramped bed, he sighed. 'Okay, think. Think. How do I explain this without sounding like a lunatic? Maybe… maybe I say it's magic? Yeah, because that's so much more believable.' He groaned, rubbing his temples. 'I'll figure it out. One problem at a time, Aldrich. First, the smell.'
Determined to focus, he noticed the blinking notification and sat upright.
CONGRATULATIONS ON UNLOCKING THE FIGHTER SUBCLASS!
DUE TO YOUR SMALL SIZE, THE SYSTEM ACCELERATED YOUR GROWTH TO SUIT A WARRIOR'S PHYSIQUE!
GOLDEN RATIO: +2 POINTS TO STRENGTH, AGILITY, AND VITALITY
IRON MAN: YOUR BODY NOW HAS SUPREME POTENTIAL
MARTIAL PRODIGY: INHERIT THE COMPREHENSION OF A MARTIAL ARTS GENIUS
DAILY QUEST: 1000 PUSHUPS, 1000 SQUATS, 50 KM RUN
REWARD: 100 EXP to FIGHTER Subclass, +0.01 ATTRIBUTE POINTS TO STRENGTH, AGILITY, AND VITALITY
Aldrich stared at the panel, overwhelmed.
With a mental command, he opened his status panel.
[STATUS PANEL]
Age: 2 / 75 years
Class: Newbie Blacksmith Level 2 (0/400)
Subclass: Fighter Level 1 (0/200)
Health: 31.9 / 31.9
Mana: 18.8 / 18.8
Strength: 3.19
Agility: 3.19
Intelligence: 1.88
Vitality: 3.19
Skill Points: 6
Unused Attribute Points: 0.04
Experience Points: 1200
'Well, this just got a lot more complicated,' he thought, rubbing his temples.
'Gotta clean my room first before doing anything else. I don't want to let them smell the filth in my room.' Aldrich thought while slowly moving as he is still unfamiliar with his strength.