Might as Well - Chapter 385 (Patreon)

Sam leaned back in his seat and watched as Cynthia prowled toward the training field. Her walk had changed a bit thanks to her transformation. The game system usually didn’t do overtly forced changes, but from where he sat, he could clearly see the system subtly modifying her walk from that of an excited young woman into that of an apex predator.

If asked, he couldn’t really point out anything specific, but the feeling was there.

She reached the sand-covered field, stepped onto it, and instantly summoned her spear, which was almost immediately wreathed in a menacing aura, one he could feel even from his position. The few servants who were still present, however, all flinched back, ducking down as if afraid a large predator would spot them and eat them.

The entire dome cleared remarkably quickly.

He watched quietly as Cynthia went through several sets of spear exercises, carefully testing her newly transformed body, trying to see where she would need to make changes. Soon, she was blasting the sandy surface with all sorts of attacks as her body flowed with draconic energy.

For a few minutes, he just observed as she began to immerse herself in her new skills and abilities before shaking his head with a small smile and opening his own notification screen.

As he was once again bombarded with countless screens, and the system quietly parsed them down to one summary screen, he noticed that one of them remained unchanged, its color golden.

He left that one for last.

[Congratulations! You successfully created a ritual without any side effects, then proceeded to enact it! You gain +3 LUCK!]

[Thanks to cobbling together the ritual, you gain the title of Mad Scientist!]

[Mad Scientist: You are mad. Or so sane that it is legally indistinguishable. You ask every question and do not care what others think. Any Igor will follow your command as long as you take care of their health and give them the occasional snack. Other mad scientist types instinctively hate you.]

[You created a new(ish) race, bringing back the Dragonkin from the mists of history!]

[You gain the skill, Dragonkin Mastery, so as to be able to sufficiently care for the dragons.]

[Dragonkin Mastery: Level 0/100 (0%) (Passive) You have (re)created the Dragonkin race, making you responsible for them. You see weaknesses in Dragonkin to better show them how to improve or deal with them if they get unruly, increasing your critical rate against them by 1% per skill level. The damage you deal to and healing you provide to Dragonkin are doubled in effectiveness. When you are teaching a Dragonkin, the effectiveness of your instruction is increased. Additional note: Most dragons are counted as Dragonkin.]

Sam grinned. Increased Luck was always nice, but the Dragonkin Mastery skill would come in useful for a lot of things. And as he thoughtfully gazed at Cynthia, who was seemingly trying out her new claws on some training mannequins, he just knew who to go to to increase the skill’s level.

Returning his attention to the notifications, he continued to read the rest of them.

[Master Runecarver is now Level 77!]

[Thanks to your breakthrough with runes and rituals, you gain the subskill, Primordial Runes!]

[Primordial Runes: Level MAX (MAX%) (Passive) You touched the primordial forces with your rune works, so your runes take on the properties of the primordial. Any runic creation of yours has 1% increased effectiveness per main skill level, and has an extremely low chance to invoke the Primordial Sea.]

“Now, what the hell is the Primordial Sea?” he muttered to himself, as he hadn’t seen any mention of it in either life. Just from context clues, he had an idea what it was, but otherwise, he was completely blank on how it operated or what it could be used for.

Thankfully, it only had an extremely low chance of being triggered. That usually, to his knowledge, meant less than 0.001% chance. A simple "low" would mean 0.01%, and if the word "small" was used, it meant 0.1%.

It was still higher than he liked for triggering a completely unknown effect.

Letting out a sigh, he focused on the next part, the golden screen still taunting him in the background. Ignoring his instinct to reach for it, he continued to read what was already in front of him.

[As a gift from the God of Dragons, thanking you for bringing back the Dragonkin race, you may choose from the following skills to retain permanently.]

[Select from the following: Treasure Sense, Secondary Core, Draconic Claws, Draconic Horns, Draconic Scales, Draconic Tail, Draconic Breath, and Draconic Eyes.]

“Wow…” he exclaimed softly.

His first instinct was to go for the Secondary Core, as he had seen what it did when Cynthia shared her own, but he still wanted to read the rest. Treasure Sense was not really useful to him, so he skipped it, but the rest were fascinating.

Sam didn’t get the full skill descriptions, only a general idea of what the skills did.

[Draconic Claws: Your hands become the hands of the dragon, granting you deadly claws and more power in your hands.]

[Draconic Horns: Your head grows the same horns that made dragons irresistible, granting you better senses of mana and the space around you.]

[Draconic Scales: Your skin glows with the beauty of the scales, increasing your durability and protecting you from the elements.]

[Draconic Tail: A beautiful tail to brag about and use in battle. You gain a new appendage with everything that it entails. Capable of casting mana through it.]

[Draconic Breath: You gain the ability to mimic the breath of a dragon. The type and strength of the breath depends on your nature and skills.]

[Draconic Eyes: Your eyes transform into the eyes of an apex predator, increasing your ability to see the world and mana.]

Sam stared at the list for a while, his finger tapping on the nearby table as he thought about what to choose. For a short moment, he considered selecting the tail and learning how to cast magic properly from it.

He just knew it would be hilarious.

But that was not a decision he wanted to make right on the eve of a war. Aside from the Secondary Core, the most tempting option was Draconic Eyes. It would probably elevate his vision skills, but the uncertainty wasn’t making the decision easy.

After a few more minutes of thinking, occasionally glancing at Cynthia, who seemed to be trying to strike those training mannequins with her spear as many times in a minute as possible, he finally made up his mind. Her scaled arm was a blur, occasionally flashing with power as the mannequin staggered under the assault. Thankfully, it was enchanted to the highest degree to survive most things thrown at it.

“Ugh, I hate making decisions like this…” he grumbled as his finger hovered over the list. A choice made without knowledge of the future or what it would entail. Dragonkin were present in the game when the other Sam played, but they came much, much later, years down the line.

And even then, by the time he died, most of the high-level or important skills were pretty unknown to most people. And with him accelerating their appearance, things were further muddled.

Throwing one longing glance at Draconic Tail one last time, he selected Secondary Core. Sadly, it was the most logical decision.

[You selected the skill, Secondary Core!]

[You made the logical decision. You gain + 1 WIS!]

[The God of Dragons understands your decision but thinks you are a wuss for not going for the tail.]

“Me too, me too…” he muttered, slightly disappointed in his own cowardice, before reading the new skill’s description.

[Secondary Core: Level 0 (0%) (Passive) You have been granted a sliver of power possessed by dragons. This has resulted in the creation of a small secondary mana core hidden within your body. Whenever you are not actively using mana, this secondary core absorbs excess magic, allowing you to draw upon it when needed. Mana stored within this core does not regenerate.]

He felt his body freeze for a moment as the mana in the air rushed toward him, entering his body and creating the secondary core. Then, almost instantly, he felt the mana from his insane regeneration flowing toward the core, filling it to the brim. Then it seemed his own core continued to push the mana toward the secondary one, seemingly not registering that it was full.

The next moment, a barrage of level-up screens flashed by.

[Secondary Core is now Level 1!]

[Secondary Core is now Level 2!]

[…]

[Secondary Core is now Level 12!]

[…]

[Secondary Core is now Level 34!]

[…]

[Secondary Core is now Level 68!]

[…]

[Secondary Core is now Level 84!]

[…]

[Secondary Core is now Level 100!]

Turning his attention inward, he felt out his secondary core as more and more mana was crammed into it. It felt to him like a balloon that was continuously being filled with air, yet something prevented its expansion. Then, before he could even remotely decide what to do about it, the outer shell of the secondary core cracked before shattering into a million little pieces.

The mana beneath it rushed forward, creating a much more intricate and smoother surface as it transformed into something that could contain his mana. The only thing that caused him to frown was that he also felt the last vestiges of draconic mana he had sensed deep inside the secondary core being ejected.

[Thanks to leveling up the skill Secondary Core in one second, the skill evolved into Perfected Secondary Core!]

[Perfected Secondary Core: Level 0 (0%) (Passive) You have taken the sliver of power possessed by dragons and made it your own. The secondary core hidden within your body has transformed and evolved into a perfect variant, imitating your own core. This has caused it to eject all remnants of draconic mana. Whenever you are not actively using mana, this secondary core absorbs excess magic, allowing you to draw upon it when needed. This core cannot be sensed and still does not regenerate.]

Sam blinked as the process finished and his mana once again flowed normally, the hidden core nestled deep inside, providing an additional buffer. A perfect secret weapon against his enemies.

Letting out a deep breath, he dismissed the notification screens, leaving only the golden one present.

“Let’s see what you are…” he muttered as he brought it closer, allowing himself to read it properly.

The entire notification screen was golden, with the writing on it being tarnished silver, gleaming in the sunlight.

[Congratulations! You have invoked the Primordial forces with your ritual. Touching upon the Primordial Sea is, however, not without its risks. Just as it gives freely, so does it take without restraint.

No matter who they may be, all who wish to avail themselves of the power of the Primordial Sea must prove themselves.]

“Ahh… that’s not good,” he mumbled worriedly.

Uncaring of his anxiety, the screen continued.

[Complete the challenge posed by the Primordial Sea or let your accomplishment be consumed by it.]

Snapping his eyes toward Cynthia, who was cheerfully doing some kind of dance with her spear, Sam only had a moment to panic before bright, golden flames emerged from beneath his feet, growing with incredible speed before fully consuming him in a fraction of a second.

Despite the intensity and nature of the flames, the seat and the area where he sat were completely fine; not even a hint of damage could be seen.

At the training field, Cynthia, breathing hard but beaming with joy, stopped for a moment and looked around, a bit confused.

“Huh, what was that?” she asked out loud as she scanned the area.

However, she couldn’t see anything, not even Sam.

“Where did he go?”

The moment the golden flames died down, Sam found himself on a shaky rock platform rocking on the surface of a golden sea. The surface area of the rock was maybe around the size of a tennis court, but it looked extremely unstable.

Sam felt like even one wrong move would cause it to crumble into dust.

Before he could investigate further, a new window appeared in front of him.

[Survive!]

[1:00:00]

[0:59:59]

At that exact moment, a roar rent the air, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand up. Looking up into the air, searching for the origin of the sound, he found a dragon flying toward him. It was enormous, with a wingspan eclipsing the rock he had found himself on, and was colored dull gold with eyes that reminded him of pools of mercury.

He unsheathed his sword and took up his usual stance. One leg forward, the other angled to the side, his sword pointing downward to allow movement in any direction. His other hand pointed toward the dragon, magic already brimming.

The next moment, as the dragon approached his lonely rock on the sea of gold, he felt an aura of primordial aggression slam into him, trying to force him to his knees.

Trying to force him to give up.

To surrender.

He just gritted his teeth. “Bring it on!”