[STT] Chapter 78: Tier 2 (Patreon)

Martin POV

Grinding his teeth, Martin kept his back straight as he walked away from the commoner. He was not some brainless brute, and he was certainly not a spoiled child throwing a tantrum over a bruised ego: he was the scion of a Noble House, and he had just done something completely unprecedented.

He had actually gone to the boy in person. Nobody from his House ever did that for a mere commoner. Usually, they just sent a retainer with a drafted contract and expected a signature on the dotted line.

He admitted he had honestly expected this to be a quick trip. Reviewing the interaction, he went over the sheer absurdity of the offer he had just made. It was a golden ticket handed straight down from the heavens. A guaranteed and permanent place in his House, for crying out loud!

Adding it all up, he had basically offered the kid the world. He threw in top tier gear, elite combat training, and protection from every single noble who didn't like watching a nameless peasant outshine them. So he had walked to him expecting gratitude.

Instead, he got treated like an annoyance. Frowning deeply, Martin wondered if he'd hallucinated the whole thing. The kid was a commoner, not even fifteen years old. Tier 1, no less. Looking at the facts, the boy had absolutely nothing. No House to name of, and certainly no family name, hells he didn't even have a single guard on the off chance it was some noble scion with odd proclivities of hiding as the lessers.

So the boy was definitely a commoner, yet he hadn't even tried to bargain for a better deal or ask for a few days to think it over. All he could do was snort in disbelief. The kid didn't even look him in the eye properly. He said no and looked away like Martin had already left.

Nobody in that position turns down a Noble House unless somebody else already owns them. And that meant the kid was already claimed.

Thinking of Theodore and the other high-ranking nobles lurking around the camp, the puzzle pieces finally snapped together. So that was it. Somebody else had already swooped in and picked the boy up in secret. It was a smart play by whoever was pulling the strings, but it was incredibly aggravating to deal with on the ground. The commoner clearly thought that secret backing made him untouchable.

Nodding to himself, he settled on that explanation as it was the only one that made sense. The boy probably thought his hidden master would protect him from the consequences of disrespecting a higher authority. Ben was an ignorant Tier 1 commoner who had no idea what he had just been handed. The kid literally did not know his place in the world.

Coming to offer genuine help, Martin had lowered himself to visit him personally. And he had been treated like a traveling merchant trying to sell cheap trinkets at the back door. It was insulting. It was entirely unacceptable.

The boy needed to learn some basic respect before he ever stepped foot inside the academy, or he would suffer.

And Martin was going to be the exact person to teach it to him, so he headed straight for the large blue pavilion where his friends were currently lounging. Or his lackeys, if he was being completely honest with himself.

They were lesser nobles, useful idiots who followed his lead for scraps of influence. So when he talked about what had happened, they were outraged like the clowns they were.

"Can you believe the sheer arrogance?"

"Who does he think he is?"

"He thinks Theodore is going to save him from us? He's probably just a new toy for that sick bastard."

"We gotta teach him some respect."

Smiling thinly, Martin watched them react exactly the way he wanted them to.

###

Ben POV

Wiping his bloody hands on a towel, Marcus tossed the last jagged shard of glass into a metal tin. Then he channeled a soothing wave of healing into Ben's stomach as he finished patching him back up. Ben picked up the healing [Regeneration], and just like that, the slight pain was completely gone.

Looking down at his torso, Ben saw smooth skin that had now blemishes. He honestly couldn't get over how ridiculous healing magic was.

"So. Are you going to advance now?" Marcus asked.

"Yeah. I've been sitting on this essence for way too long." Ben replied.

Marcus leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, taking in a long breath.

"Alright. I'll look over you for the time being then."

Blinking in surprise, Ben stared at the older teen. Marcus smiled faintly at the confusion written all over Ben's face.

"Good luck, Ben. I'll stand guard for you in the meantime."

"You really don't have to do that."

Frowning, Marcus shot him a thoroughly unimpressed look. "Don't be stupid. You are about to push your soul to a higher tier inside a crowded camp full of jealous nobles. You need someone watching your back while you are completely defenseless."

And honestly, he had a point.

Ben realized how incredibly vulnerable he was about to be. As far as he knew advancing took time and focus, leaving him blind to his surroundings. So having Marcus here sounded great.

Nodding in agreement, Ben sat cross legged on the bed.

"No no you're not doing that on the bed, trust me." Marcus interrupted, making Ben pause. "Do it on the ground so I can have an easy time cleaning with a small use of my skill."

Ben was confused but he did as he was told and sat on the ground.

He closed his eyes and immediately pulled his focus inward, reaching out to the heavy pool of essence sitting dormant in his core.

His core was fully saturated and ready for the advancement. It was finally time to hit Tier 2. Taking a breath, he mentally grabbed all that essence and initiated the process.

[Initiating evolution…]

Holy crap.

Gasping, he felt a wave of heat explode outward from his chest. It didn't hurt per se but it was incredibly uncomfortable. It felt like his entire body was being stretched and compressed at the exact same time.

Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to stay perfectly still as the raging energy scrubbed through his veins.

###

[Advancement Successful: Tier 2 Reached.]

[All base attributes increased.]

Smiling widely, he dismissed the notifications with a quick thought. He had finally done it! He didn't feel any different though. Did he gain access to his soul space? He didn't feel any new mental additions to access that space though, but still, he was no longer a complete novice anymore!

Standing up from the ground, he stretched his arms and enjoyed the satisfying pops echoing from his joints.

Then he smelled something terrible. His nose wrinkled as he glanced down at himself.

"You're absolutely disgusting." Marcus commented dryly.

Ben's nose wrinkled further. "What is this black goop? Why do I smell so bad?"

"Well, you are technically breaking down your body and rebuilding it into a stronger form. It's only natural for there to be a... residue."

That made a twisted sort of sense. "So, this is the painless equivalent of the shedding phase for Tier 1s?"

Marcus nodded as he looked at the mess on the floor. "Pretty much. You should just get used to this. The higher tier you reach, the more potent the effect. Well, at some point it stops happening I guess. The earlier tiers are the worst offenders"

"Awesome. I think I'm going to go get a bath right now. You said you will take care of this? I'm sorry. I didn't know this would happen. I can clean this.

"That's a good idea. The bath, I mean. And no, trust me you can't clean this. Let me handle this, it needs a skill or the smell won't go away. You would probably just smear the mess around more."

Ben nodded at that, and he left the room in a hurry, searching for a bath as fast as possible. It was going to be a long and stinky journey. He was curious to figure out changes to his body though! Was he stronger now?

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