Chapter 136

"It was recently added, boss. In fact, the experience calculation mechanic was specifically created by that Caesar bloke and he was the one to update it too. The way I see it, it's a..." Mikey explained, but was cut off.

"...trap, yes. I've already deduced as much." Darius interjected with a sigh.

He had suspected that Caesar wanted to play such a trick. The average bloke from Earth who entered this world would have likely tried any and all means to break free of Vena and the Supreme System's control at the first opportunity.

The idea of entertaining the Goddess would be the last thing on their minds as they sought to increase their personal power, telling themselves something silly like: 'Only with my own power can I decide my fate!'.

However, those self-obsessed people would be forgetting that this deity had been able to pluck a soul on its way to the afterlife to put into a world she had entirely created just for her personal fun.

That level of power required was not something one could run from, certainly not at the Amateur stage. The wise ones would do as Darius had done, play her game according to the rules to live to see another day.

Any such smartasses would have gotten to experience the shock of their lives if they actually managed to kill something much higher than themselves.

Darius shuddered when he thought back to his encounter with the Blue Troll. Had it just been one level higher, he would have received 20,480 experience, which would have instantly catapulted him over the stage cap.

Just imagine, dropping into this world, but lacking the time to research or build a foundation like Darius had - assuming one even got Transmutation - and in a matter of days reaching the Amateur cap.

The next moment, Caesar would excitedly descend and tell you that you had to complete an Impossible quest to reach the next stage.

While you listen dumbfounded, Caesar would laugh because the paths of success would be far less than the 56 which had been calculated for Darius.

Someone who followed the above-mentioned scenario would likely have - at best - 3 paths of success and that would mostly depend on their Luck.

No wonder... no wonder Caesar had been so resentful when he mentioned that Darius had 'finally' reached the stage cap and which only 60% of Faustians would ever see.

His handler had not been mocking him for taking so long, but instead had been pissed exactly BECAUSE he had taken his sweet time doing so.

While he had still been excited because he had trapped Darius, it was not as serious as it could have been. Of course, the fact that Vena had made him give Darius some tips had done nothing to increase his mood.

Darius shivered subconsciously. He had no idea why Caesar was so sadistic towards Vena's 'actors', or if it was just a dislike for him personally, but Darius was guessing it was probably due to a previous 'actor' who had come before him.

Otherwise, it'd be a bit too bizarre for Caesar to have been created hating all of the 'actors'.

Darius put away his thoughts and decided to allocate the points he and Gunner had accumulated. It was never too early to do so, as even a single additional AP could make the difference for his survival.

Darius currently had 2.7 AP and 2.7 SP. Since he could only allocate whole numbers, it meant he could only spend 2 points in each category. A pittance for sure, but even the meat of a mosquito was still something.

As for his two Ability Points, he placed them in Endurance, bringing it from 17 points to 19. This increased his HP from 255 points to 285. It wasn't much but similarly, little drops of water made a mighty ocean.

His two Skill Points were placed in Adjust for now. This brought the skill's effect from a 5% increase/decrease to 15%! This was almost at the level of the average slow spell in most RPG games Darius had played in his previous life, and it could even go higher!

Satisfied with his own allocation, Darius focused on Gunner. Since Gunner had been level 19 before and jumped to the stage cap with Darius, he gained slightly more points in both respects. He had 5.4 AP and 3.4 SP.

Darius placed 1 point into Gunner's luck, reaching 20 points. The remaining 4 points were shoved into Strength, bringing that up from 20 to 24. Under the influence of Gunner's Earth's Guardian skill, it was just a mite bit away from being boosted to 50 points.

Darius was in no rush. He gazed at Gunner's 3 points of SP and placed a single point into Earth's Guardian. What surprised him though, was that the skill did not report reaching its max, which was quite crazy to think about.

What exactly was this bloodline skill? And what were its limits? Could it reach level 100? Wouldn't it boost Gunner by almost 500% at that point? With Strength and Endurance at the Adept level, for example, boosted by 500% would mean that Gunner could temporarily reach beyond Master level?

Just the thought made Darius' face change multiple times. He looked at his Branded Servant who was gazing at him with a slight smile in silence then laughed.

"You tricky fellow, you knew didn't you?"

Gunner also laughed. "I had a hunch, but even if it's good, the mana cost will rise exponentially. In order to keep it at a suitable level, I'll need a bit of Intellect and a high level."

Darius frowned at that, understanding that this was actually a serious issue. Still, it was nothing compared to the possible gains, but Darius also needed Gunner to experience growth in other aspects.

As such, he kept Earth's Guardian at level 20 and placed the final two points in Earthen Punch. The modifier for it climbed from 10% to level 30%, which was quite good.

What was more important was that the modifier for Gunner's Earth's Guardian had climbed from 105% to 110%.

This meant that Gunner's Strength had finally reached the Adept stage, even though it was only while his skill was active.

Darius's eyes checked his character menu to see if anything would pop up. Even though it was temporary, Gunner still had 50 Strength right now, so he should obtain the Strength ability.

Not disappointing Darius, he saw exactly what he was looking for.

[Congratulations! You have reached 50 points in Strenght and have acquired the ability: Explosive Strenght.]

[Explosive Strength - Basic Ability

Cost: Stamina per second

Description: You have mastered the flow of your body's strength at your current level, and can condense it further to bring about a temporary explosive increase that does not harm and possesses no side effects. However, it takes a great toll on your Stamina, draining it faster than anything else.]