Chapter 23: 22. Future Arrangements

Based on the usual distance between each Troll settlement and some calculations that I made, I had about half an hour before the next group of Trolls arrived.

I brought my attention to the system screens that I’ve been ignoring for a while.

[Troll] (Uncommon) defeated x68! Host earned 9023000 EXP.

 

-Host levelled up x16!

 

-Host reached Level 42! 64 MAG, 64 END, and 192 free stat points acquired.

 

[Flame-N-Go] levelled up x3! It reached level 13.

 

[It’s fine!] levelled up x3! It reached level 12.

 

[Burn that Invader!] levelled up x3! It reached level 9.

 

[Kill Them Before They Spread!] levelled up x3! It reached level 8.

 

[Light Steps] levelled up x4! It reached level 14.

 

[Flawed State of Being] levelled up x3! It reached level 4.

 

[Plasmic Torch] levelled up x2! It reached level 3.

 

[Shadow Assimilation] levelled up x3! It reached level 7.

 

The diminishing returns for EXP are showing, I thought. I am sure that the EXP gained from each troll is within the five digits at this point.

The gains were still incredible. The skills levelled up well and so did my class; I opened my status screen as I thought about the stat that I should prioritize raising.

 

Host: Jason Stubbs	HP 300/300 (1 HP/560 seconds)
Class: Living Crematorium	Mana 2300/2300 (7.4 mana/1 seconds)
Level 42: 362165/862000	Stat Points: 248
STR: 15	VIT: 50
DEX: 15	AGI: 17
MAG: 232 (+30)	END:263 (+10)
Class Skills:	General Skills:
[Flame-n-Go]: Level 13	[Zoom]: Level 2
[It’s fine!]: Level 12	[Shut-Down]: Level 1
[Burn That Invader!]: Level 9	[Light Steps]: Level 14
[Kill Them Before They Spread!]: Level 8	[Shadow Assimilation]: Level 7
[Dismantle]: Level 1
[Plasmic Torch]: Level 3
[Flawed State of Being]: Level 4

 

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After some thinking, I’ve confirmed my decision. The best course of action was to level up END; it was already a crucial stat in enduring the pain of the flames, but its value grew now that my mental health is in danger. It was the only stat that could improve my mental resistance to the negative thoughts that accompany the usage of the [Flawed State of Being] and [Plasmic Torch] skills.

I would get a mental resistance skill later, I thought. I should be able to use [Plasmic Torch] for as long as I like by then.

I invested a hundred points in END, forty points in VIT, and left the remaining stat points in case of an emergency. My maximum HP became five hundred, which was enough as the Trolls weren’t able to use magic and the flames should deter them from getting too close.

I strolled around the battlefield in a spiraling path, dismantling all the corpses that I encountered.

It didn’t take me too long to complete my task, as I had good mobility, and my experience as a [Dismantler] helped. Their weapons and clothes weren’t worth much and didn’t deserve a place in my bag of holding.

[Host gains [Troll’s Mana Essence] x105!]

 

[Host gains [Troll’s Blood Essence] x97!]

 

The bodies disintegrated after I dismantled them, leaving their clothes and weapons behind. Their weapons and clothes weren’t worth much and didn’t deserve a place in my bag of holding.

I was glad for this side effect of [Dismantle] because leaving corpses on the ground was disrespectful and the smell of this area would get worse after a while too.

I stuffed each one of the vials that I gained into my bag of holding, pleased with the haul. I was thankful for the fact that items stored in pocket dimensions weren’t able to move around, as these small containers were fragile.

I might not be the only one with access to this area in the tutorial, but the others don’t have [Dismantle], I thought. Furthermore, I know someone who should be able to create miraculous stuff out of these things.

In my past life, many portals appeared around the globe when the tutorial ended. Sapient creatures came out of these portals, tens of millions of them. They were of all kinds of races; elves, dwarves, gnomes, and many other mythological creatures. They brought along with them material resources, knowledge, and exotic traditions. Their worlds had the problem of overpopulation and lack of opportunities. As soon as the news of a new planet joining the Intergalactic Systematic Union, they applied to immigrate to Earth.

A lot of them had non-combat classes; their goal was to make a name for themselves in a new environment. The competition was fierce in their homelands and the only way to succeed was by replacing a dying Master. Besides, resources were scarce on their planets due to monopoly; Earth was like a fresh mine waiting to be exploited.

The governments and the strong Nobles that succeeded them accepted their co-existence with humans after the new guys offered them valuable rewards and information. The immigrants’ next priority was to acquire real estate, and their targets were poor people that didn’t earn much in the tutorial.

I sold my house to a random dwarf after he offered me some regular mana stones, I thought. The funds were very useful, but renting the house would’ve been a better decision.

One could say that those aliens tricked the unsuspecting humans, but they were generous and didn’t use force or blackmail. It didn’t take too long for the economy of Earth to change. Potions, weapons, and other equipment quickly became popular, the demand was over-the-top. Mana stones also became the main global currency.

However, among all these new talents that flocked to our world, one stood out in particular. It took him over a year to make a name for himself, as he didn’t have enough funds to kick-start his career.

I’ve heard that he went homeless for a short while too, I thought. That is, until Stella found him.

The former first ranker provided him with resources and a workplace; he didn’t take too long to prove himself. His class was focused on alchemy; making potions and all kinds of consumables. I planned on recruiting him as a member of my soon-to-be-made guild because he was skilled enough to make certain valuable potions from the Trolls’ essences.

Hehehe! I’ll be making a lot of money, I thought. I have many plans for my life outside the tutorial.

A sound of rumbling woke me up from my trance; it was even stronger than the one made by the first group of Trolls. I readied myself by setting my body on fire and using the [It’s fine!] skill to increase my stats. The current temperature of the flames was one thousand two hundred Kelvin, it was hot enough to scorch the surrounding environment without direct contact. It increased each of my three physical stats by one hundred and sixty points, and I could endure the pain easily.

It’s crazy how useful the END stat is for my class, I thought. I bet that I could give an adventurer with a level of more than a hundred a run for his money.

I remembered a certain incident that happened in my past.

*

“Hey, porter!” screamed a guy wearing thick armor, the person he was talking to had no distinguishing features aside from a large backpack. On the other hand, the armored adventurer had a perfect smile on his face and his hair was stylish. There were many people in the group, but the smiling person was the central figure and he had the best armor and sword.

The porter’s facial expression got gloomier, but he nodded nonetheless and replied, “What do you want, Edgar?”

Edgar’s smile instantly disappeared from his face; he was dissatisfied with the porter’s response.

“I didn’t hire you out of charity,” said Edgar, “Come lick my boot, I need it to be clean by the time of the next battle.”

Many women in the group giggled and complimented Edgar, whereas the men sneered at the porter.

“What the hell are you talking about?” replied the porter, “Did someone shove your brain up your ass? Didn’t we agree that my only duty was to carry the bags?”

Edgar left the group and approached the porter. The adventurer was much taller, and his physique was larger than the other guy’s.

“Don’t embarrass me in front of my team,” he whispered into the porter’s ear. He punched his face and added, “Now, what do you say?”

Blood was pouring out of the porter’s nostrils, but he managed to speak, “I say; fuck you!”. He threw his backpack on the ground and started running in the other direction.

Edgar smirked and followed him; it didn’t take him too long to find the poor teenager. He broke several of his bones and made a bloody mess out of his face. Many of Edgar’s companions joined him in beating the porter. No matter how hard the beating got, the poor guy didn’t agree to the outrageous demands of his employer. He knew that the bullying would get much worse if he yielded even once.

The porter had to crawl a long distance to return to the guild, and it took him many months to recuperate.

He stopped working as a porter after that day as he became a guild clerk, but he never forgot the pain.

*

I smirked as I remembered my harsh life as a porter, I would’ve been able to destroy that guy with my current strength.

For now, I’ll just focus on the upcoming battle, I thought.

The Trolls arrived on the battlefield; their numbers were superior to the former group’s. I could see five leaders among the Trolls, and their scarred bodies indicated their experience in battle.

I didn’t use stealth this time, as I wanted to know the extent of my physical strength without the help of other factors. I sprinted as fast as my legs could go and managed to reach the edge of the group within seconds.

I am pretty sure that the distance that I ran was longer than a kilometer, I thought. The system changed our standards for everything.

The trolls seemed startled when I closed in so fast, but they didn’t take too much to regain focus. I took advantage of their confusion and started slaughtering them.

I decided to engage the Trolls in close-quarter combat without using my spells for now, but I made sure to cause as little damage to their corpses as possible.

It only took a short while for me to be surrounded by Trolls from all sides, and they were trying to hit me using their weapons. The flames that burned my body deterred my opponents from getting too close, but they were still within fifty centimeters from me at all times. Their bodies were charred, but they still attacked as if they were possessed.

Many of them used wooden clubs, but the weapons didn’t last too long before turning to ash. Despite the small space that I was afforded, I managed to avoid the majority of the attacks. My [Flawed State of Being] skill increased my understanding of their species further each time I killed another Troll, I knew of their habits and their weaknesses. At this point, I could see their attacks as if the whole world was in slow motion. I took the chance to practice my jabs, high kicks, and straight punches, but the enemies were losing spirit as time went on.

They screamed and screeched as they tried to punch me despite the excruciating heat of the flames, and I could see tears in their eyes as they looked at their fallen comrades.

They truly care about their comrades despite being from different tribes, I thought. As much as I would’ve liked to sympathize with them, I didn’t feel much given the nature of our world.

If you didn’t kill, then you were bound to get killed one day. Trolls, like many hostile creatures, attacked adventurers when they were sure of their advantage.

The battle became much easier for me as they started attacking randomly due to their rage. I didn’t waste any time and attacked with full force, even the leaders didn’t survive a single hit of mine to the head.

I am pretty sure the EXP that I got won’t be that impressive, I thought. However, the loot alone is worth the trouble!

I was dismantling the corpses on the ground when I heard something utter a high-pitched squeal from afar.

It’s about time, I thought. I better dismantle these bodies quickly.

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