Raid: The Blacksmith-Chapter 41: Live Long Enough: Part Two
"Ah Mr. Raid. You’re back." Said one the guards. Going by the nametag on his uniform, his name was Carl.
"Yeah." I replied.
"Oh, but the Dungeon Gate isn’t closing. Does that mean that you couldn’t clear it this time?" Asked Carl’s partner, Fred.
"Well actually, I-"
"Idiot." Before I could even answer, Carl interrupted with a jab to his partner. "It’s obvious that the Dungeon isn’t closing because the Silent Wind Party is still in there." He then added.
"Well at least Carl has some faith in me. I mean it’s odd that he seems convinced that I’m capable of clearing a Dungeon faster than a full party of five experienced Warriors, despite the fact that they even entered first. Of course I did get some help from a crazy OP A-Rank but these guys don’t know that. Then again, I shouldn’t expect anything different, considering the so called ’’unheard of’’ feats I’ve displayed so far, not to mention my cheat abilities that seem very capable of making me the strongest Warrior in history in the future."
"Oh c’mon Carl. Mr. Raid is capable, sure...but to be able to clear a Dungeon faster than Silent Wind, a party that was far stronger than even the Zeke Party is just madness."
"There you go. Attaboy Freddy. See now this...this is the kinda doubt I can definitely get used to."
"Well, then you oughta expect to see more madness every time I’m involved from now on." I lightly tapped Fred’s shoulder.
"M-Mr. Raid. You don’t mean-"
"I do. Silent Wind must’ve also gotten a message that the Dungeon was cleared as soon as I did it, so they should be coming out very soon. But uh...small favor? Don’t tell them it was me who cleared it, alright?"
"Judging by the method, me and Peyton used to clear the Dungeon, I doubt we left a good number of Goblins out for them. Which means that because of us, or, since no one but me knows that Peyton was there, because of me, they missed out on a ton of Mana Crystals. I can only hope that their personalities aren’t anything like that of the Zeke Party’s, so I’m not taking any chances. And since they’re supposedly stronger than the Zeke Party ever was, they’ll definitely be more troublesome."
"A-alright..." Fred seemed like he was still trying to process things so his reply was a little out of it.
Carl, however, was smiling ear to ear and looking at me as if I was some work of art.
"Is this what it’s like to have a fan? Yeah, I definitely can’t get used to this."
"Great. I’ll be on my way now, good work fellas." I bid them farewell as I walked towards my car, entered and drove off.
"Hm...it hadn’t really sunk in before but I look terrible, my clothes are half burnt and covered in dried blood stains. Peyton told me to be at the Association in an hour. The hotel I’m staying at is close so I should have enough time to change and go there if I hurry, right?"
"Yeah, but first. Some, good ole fashioned MCA."
"Oh, who am I kidding? There’s nothing old fashioned about the way I absorb Mana Crystals... Whatever, let’s get to it."
I activated my Item Space Skill, Bladework Skill, Treasure Hunt Skill, Soul-Piercing Eyes Skill, Cultivator Skill, Fury of Dantian Skill and finally Astral Unification Skill.
"It’s insane, when I first used this absorption method, the pain in my chest was insurmountable, but now, it’s almost as easy as breathing. My development speed really is unmatched. I don’t think there’s a single Warrior out there who can get stronger at the same rate that I do."
I started absorbing. My Cultivator Skill was now B-Rank so I was able to absorb 130 of the Mana Crystals at a time. After a little while, I felt a constantly growing power surge within me.
[Report. Success! The E-Rank Mana Crystals have been successfully absorbed.]
[Mana Capacity gained from all the E-Rank Mana Crystals: 52100.]
[Extra Mana Capacity gained from each E-Rank Mana Crystal absorbed with the use of Fury of Dantian Skill: 8.]
[Total amount of extra Mana Capacity: 83360.]
[Total amount of Mana Capacity gained from Mana Crystal absorption: 135460.]
[Report. Advancements in the Subject’s overall Warrior info have been detected as a result of recent actions.]
[Now calculating advancements...]
[Treasure Hunt Skill has advanced from B-Rank to A-Rank. Treasure Hunt’s Sub-Skill Soul-Piercing Eyes has advanced from B-Rank to A-Rank. Item Space Skill has advanced from B-Rank to A-Rank. Cultivator Skill has advanced from B-Rank to S-Rank. Cultivator’s Sub-Skills Astral Unification and Fury of Dantian have both advanced from B-Rank to A-Rank.]
[Six of the Subject’s Skills, the Treasure Hunt Skill, Treasure Hunt’s Sub-Skill Soul-Piercing Eyes, Item Space Skill, Cultivator Skill and Cultivator’s Sub-Skills Astral Unification and Fury of Dantian have all entered the A-Rank realm and above. A-Rank Skills and above have a significant temporary effect on a Warrior’s stats. Now processing the effects of the Skills on the Subject...]
A-Rank Treasure Hunt Skill: Effects When Active
• Health +18000
• Intelligence +21000
A-Rank Soul-Piercing Eyes Sub-Skill: Effects When Active
• Mana Capacity +20000
• Health +15000
• Intelligence +16000
A-Rank Item Space Skill: Effects When Active
• Mana Capacity +24000
• Health +19000
• Intelligence +17000
S-Rank Cultivator Skill: Effects When Active
• Mana Capacity +37000
• Strength +31000
• Speed +30000
• Health +33000
• Intelligence +33000
A-Rank Astral Unification Sub-Skill: Effects When Active
• Mana Capacity +27000
• Strength +19000
• Speed +20000
• Health +21000
• Intelligence +22000
A-Rank Fury of Dantian Sub-Skill: Effects When Active
• Mana Capacity +33000
• Health +25000
[Weapon Fanatic’s Sub-Skill Bladework’s effects on the Subject’s Stats have increased. Effect on Strength has increased by 10000. Effect on Speed has increased by 10000. Effect on Health has increased by 15000 and effect on Intelligence has increased by 16000. Now redesigning the effects of the A-Rank Bladework Sub-Skill on the Subject...]
A-Rank Bladework Sub-Skill: Effects When Active
• Strength +19000
• Speed +19570
• Health +24260
• Intelligence +28720
[Furthermore, Mana Capacity has increased by 150000+135460. Strength has increased by 17000. Speed has increased by 17000. Health has increased by 20000 and Intelligence has increased by 24000.]
[Now redesigning overall Warrior info...]
Name: Raid
Surname: ???
Affiliation: Awakened Warrior
Class: Blacksmith
Skills:
...
• Treasure Hunt A-Rank: Can expertly locate mines with products and minerals for crafting within a 2400 kilometre radius.
•• Soul-Piercing Eyes A-Rank: Exponentially increases sensory perception, allows one to spot every weak point in any opponent of weaker or equal strength and how to utilize them and even see many various hidden secrets of nature.
...
• Item Space A-Rank: A space the size of a large system to store equipment, weapons, armory, products, minerals, etc... Space is now habitable.
...
• Cultivator S-Rank: Possesses an incomparable level of mastery in Mana manipulation, through the use of a Dantian. Can draw out untapped potential, power and prowess by purifying one’s Source Mana.
•• Astral Unification A-Rank: Allows one to unify all known aspects of oneself through breathing for the purpose of increasing sensory perception, Mana manipulation efficiency and overall amount of Mana.
•• Fury of Dantian A-Rank: Large sized Dantian that acts as the Mana Source of the Subject. Can temporarily increase Subject’s Mana Capacity seven-fold. Significantly increases Mana manipulation efficiency. Adds 170% extra Mana Capacity when absorbing Mana Crystals.
...
Rank: F
Level: Locked
Mana Capacity: 387340
Strength: 42290
Speed: 42183
Health: 43084
Intelligence: 50000
"Yeah. I can definitely dog walk an A-Rank now." I couldn’t even begin to calculate how much stronger I’d gotten. I just knew I had become a total powerhouse.
"I now only have one E-Rank Skill, and that’s only because it’s still pretty new. My Physical Related Stats have all entered B-Rank. My Mana Capacity Stat instantly went passed the D-Rank Minimum. All-in-all, though they aren’t low, my Stats aren’t what contributes most to my being as strong as a high level A-Rank... It’s my Skills. After all, I’ve got six A-Rank Skills now. Something a D-Rank Warrior can only dream of. Furthermore, Cultivator...I thought it’d easily become A-Rank due to that hint but instead it jumped straight to S-Rank and I can roughly figure out why. It’s because of that Unbreakable Skill I got from the Goblin Lord that Cultivator merged with. From my understanding of the Skill, it allowed one to increase the quality and quantity of their Mana by purifying it with willpower alone, and in doing so, draw out great power from within, one fueled by the strength of their spirit. Since the concept of obtaining an S-Rank Skill and above works similarly in that regard, my guess is that, that specific aspect of Unbreakable is what acted as a catalyst for the Cultivator Skill to reach S-Rank. Now the icing on the cake is that Cultivator specifically was the one to reach S-Rank since it’s one of only two Skills that temporarily increase all my Stats including Mana Capacity. Then there’s the Item Space, it says that it’s habitable now, which means that I should be able to go inside it. I’ll see about that after I deal with that Association fiasco."
I decided to not go and change after all and just go there as I was.
"I’m practically being forced to do this anyway, so why the fuck should I give a shit about presentation?" I retorted in the seclusion on my own car.
And so I drove straight there. Begrudgingly so if I may add. I then parked my car after arriving and immediately entered the building. I made my way to the Registered Warrior Service section then headed to the same table I headed to last time when attended Peyton me. This time though, there was a different girl there acting as the receptionist. There was no line. In fact, the entire reception hall wasn’t as crowded as it usually was.
"Must be because it’s gotten a bit late." I thought.
I turned my gaze over to the receptionist. Hazel. She was busy with her computer and therefore couldn’t see me.
"Hey there."
"Oh hello." She replied. "How may I be of assist---it’s you." She added as she looked up to me, as if noticing an old acquaintance.
"Uhm-"
"It’s really you! Raid, the Blacksmith!"
"Ah, shit. Here we go again."
