'Looks like I've hit the jackpot, nearly doubling my System points in a couple of hours and unlocking my first skill. Hey System, I've got some questions regarding the points earned for killing the wolves, how exactly does that work? It looks like I need to deliver the killing blow to living things to receive the points, but why can't I just be in the vicinity of the animal's death to earn the energy? Also, are a.s.sists a thing?

[Well, for now at least, you need to be the one to deliver the killing blow because doing so draws the energy towards yourself. When your actions are not the most direct cause of death, the energy will move to others, quickly dispersing due to their lack of ability to absorb it. With that, it should make sense that a.s.sists don't count for anything, but there are some exceptions. For example, if you managed to contribute a significant amount to killing something extremely powerful like a dragon. There's a chance you'd be able to absorb part of the energy released due to the fact that there is so much, some might just find it easier to head your way. It would be like the energy is taking a less attractive path because there is an insane amount of traffic in a preferred direction. However, this really won't matter in the long run.]

'How come that only applies "for now" and "won't matter in the long run?"'

[Because hopefully you'll stop being dumb and check the shop soon, I can suggest what I think would work best for you and one of the first things you should be doing is increasing my absorption abilities. It'll make it a lot easier for us to gain energy and you to gain system points!]

'Chill I was gonna check it out once the camp quieted down. I'm even more eager to see what I can get than you!'

Making it back to the center of the camp at last, Aithen noticed a few people having their wounds treated with some medicine. It looked like barely anyone had died, which surprised Aithen greatly. Listening to people talk though, he soon learned the reasons why. Apparently Sir Kenzo had probably killed a dozen on his own considering how much some of the knights were praising him.

Furthermore, those few men dressed in white robes had killed large patches of wolves with magical fireb.a.l.l.s. He hadn't seen much of them as they rarely left their carriage and never talked to anyone. Honestly, he figured they might have been mages when he first saw them, but they even refused to speak to the knights, so Aithen knew there was no way he could ask them for help. Anyways, it seems besides that huge wolf, Aithen had been on the boring side of the fight, which honestly was nothing to complain about considering he was relatively safe.

Soon, everyone was packed into the carriages, despite it being the early hours of the night. The knights and mages were probably worried that the dead wolves would attract more beasts and decided it was best to deal with a little night travel in order to put some distance between them and the site of the battle.

None of that mattered to Aithen though, because he had finally got the chance to open up the System's shop.

'System, without further ado, show me what you've got to offer'

With that thought, a seemingly endless list of everything overwhelmed Aithen's mind. There was no way for him to process what was happening, but he caught some glimpses of random potions, techniques, spells, weapons, and all sorts of equipment. There were numbers next to everything flas.h.i.+ng in his mind, which were sometimes small and sometimes incredibly huge.

'Wait system please only display the items you recommend!'

[Haha! Smart move]

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Instantly, the endless list disappeared and was replaced by a static display of several different options. At this time, he also noticed a number in the upper right of the shop function. His system points were displayed as "SP: 1510," which made him happy. He had acquired so many points recently and having seen how much the shop had to offer, he knew he was gonna have fun.

The five options recommended by the system included: Basic Absorption Ring for 800 System points, Rudimentary Body Strengthening Liquid for 200 System points, Rudimentary Recovery Liquid for 200 System points, Beginner's Guide to Trapping and Hunting for 250 System Points, Fundamental Meditation and Magic a.s.similation Manual for 500 System points, and Inscribed Leather boots that provide a flat 1 point bonus to agility for 600 System Points.

[Alright so these are some simple things you can afford that I believe would provide you the most help. Of course, if you think of anything you'd want, I can give it to you, but the price will be related to it's worth, so don't be surprised if you can't afford it. The most important thing for you is almost always going to be improving your strength and staying alive. In order to keep improving your strength, you also need to be constantly acquiring System points and raising your stats. The basic absorption ring is by far the most important thing for you to buy. It'll increase the attraction of energy during your activities. Anything that dies within a ten-meter radius of you has its energy sent to you as if you killed it. Once you begin acc.u.mulating magic power, this ring will make it much easier to bring that power into you. This means it'll act as a way to increase your strength and acquire System points. Moreover, it lasts forever and is essentially unbreakable, so you only have to buy it once for it to aid you forever. It's only the basic version, but you can always upgrade it in the future, so it's the best investment you could make. Next, the Rudimentary Body Strengthening Liquid and Rudimentary Recovery Liquid are consumables that can help you as you train on your way to the academy. The Body Strengthening Liquid would act in a similar manner to the knight's training, increasing your stats and providing immediate results, with about thirty uses. Don't forget that as your stats increase, you earn system points, so it would essentially pay for itself. The same could be said for the Recovery Liquid, which also has 30 uses. It would allow you to recover faster and even train the Shadow Star Breathing more than once a night. Personally I would go with the Recover Liquid as it just makes more sense because your body can only handle so much but this allows you to train twice as often. Okay, moving on, guides, manuals, techniques, and all things similar that are provided by the system will be learned directly. The Trapping and Hunting guide would enable you to efficiently hunt animals during the trip, which could be risky but rewarding in terms of system points. The Fundamental Meditation and Magic a.s.similation Manual would allow you to begin you're magical journey before reaching the academy, which means it would open an avenue to increase your intelligence stat. Lastly, the boots would nearly double your current agility, protecting you from many possible threats and increasing your killing potential by a substantial margin. That's all I've got to say so I'll leave you to thinking. Ask if you have any questions or want to view other things.]

Aithen thought deeply about his choices as the carriage bounced around. He took into account the System's recommendations but tried to think of any skills that could aid him. He asked about lots of possible things like pheromonal manipulation abilities that would help him complete his last quest and gain points through s.e.xual means, but those were all out of his budget. One caught his eye, but he decided against it because now wasn't the most opportune time. When he was at the academy and constantly interacting with people while surrounded by women, he'd have a much better chance of making use of such skills. However, for now, what was most important was building a strong base for when he arrived at the academy and having a steady but rapid acc.u.mulation of System points. He decided to spend nearly all of his points, thinking that the faster he grew in strength, the sooner he'd be able to earn System points at an even faster rate. There seemed to be only benefits from spending his points because it would maximize his current growth. It would be faster to spend System points now and regain them as he got stronger than to just save, so Aithen decided on his purchases.

He would buy the Basic Absorption Ring. It provided too much utility to be ignored and would help him in almost every way imaginable for as long as he had it. The reason for this was mainly because it amplified the underlying source of his power and growth, making it the most useful and ideal item for him to buy. Next, he would buy the Fundamental Meditation and Magic a.s.similation Manual. He planned on training fervently during this time leading up to the academy, and this would aid him immensely. Not only would it push him ahead of most of his peers in terms of magical knowledge and ability, which would allow him to accel in the academy but it would also optimize his time spent training. He would be able to train his intelligence stat and raise his magical power even when his body was at its limit. He would be training even when recovering. Finally, with his remaining 210 System points, he would purchase the Rudimentary Recovery Liquid as the System had suggested. It would allow him to train his Star Shadow Breathing even more often and increase the speed at which he acquired results from physical training, essentially paying for itself with his growth in stats. Coming to this conclusion, Aithen had the system send the purchases through.

He felt a wave of knowledge a.s.sault his brain and two objects appear in his pockets. Furthermore, he noticed his System point count in the shop drop down to 10, which hurt his heart a little; however, he soon felt better knowing that his purchases would be an incredible help on his path to the top.

Because he was still surrounded by people in the carriage, he didn't dare take the objects out of his pocket. Instead, he leaned back and decided to relax. There'd be nonstop intense training awaiting him soon, so he should take a moment to breathe while he still could. Thinking about everything that has happened, Aithen decided to check his status.

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//STATUS//

Name: Aithen Valore

Race: Human

Strength: 1.1

Agility: 1.2

Const.i.tution: 1.1 (+0.1)

Intelligence: 1.2

Skills:

Spells: none

System Points: 10

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