Chapter 20: The Next Five Days

Arin decided to start with the book of Identification. He unwrapped the book, opened it, and began to read. The book contained basic information about how the skill worked. It was an identification skill that could be used on both awakened beings and monsters, functioning only on levels up to 10 higher than the user's. It could also be used on dungeons to reveal their strength and level, again with a maximum of 10 levels above the user. This meant that Arin could now only see the basic class and level of those who were up to 10 levels higher than him. If the target creature had more than 10 levels above him, it would appear as three question marks, and he wouldn't gain any information about it.

The book also mentioned that much stronger versions of this skill existed. When the skill was used, the target person or monster wouldn't feel it, making it very useful for navigating unknown environments. Arin followed the instructions, and when he reached about the fifteenth page, he began to feel the skill being absorbed into him. During the transfer, his ring did not react, and the process went exactly as described in the book. Arin was thrilled, opened his status page, and saw his updated stats:

Level: 2 (1580/2000)

Class: Summoner

Strength: 10

Agility: 10 (+10)

Intelligence: 40

Willpower: 45 (+35)

Endurance: 25 (+5)

Mana: 450 (+350) Current Mana: 800

Health: 250 (+50) Current Health: 300

Negative effects:

Unassigned attributes: 0

Equipment:

Weapons:

Common short sword of willpower (+7 willpower)

Armor:

Rare gloves of concealment (+5 agility and +3 willpower and ability to conceal rings on hand)Basic leather armor set (helmet, chest armor, belt, greaves, boots) +5 agility, +5 endurance, set bonus: mana regeneration 1 mana per second

Accessories:

??? Ring (???)Basic Astral Ring (2 cubic meters storage space)Uncommon trinket of wisdom (+25 willpower)

Spells:

Summon Familiar (+)

Skills:

Basic Identification

Arin was delighted. He finally had his first skill.

Arin put the book away and pulled out the second one, which was the book on Magic Missile. With enthusiasm, he opened it and began to read. He learned that he could summon between three to five projectiles, which could either be split among multiple targets or aimed all at one. The number and strength of the projectiles depended on his intelligence, and it varied slightly for each class. The basic projectile cost 150 mana.

The instructions for this spell were very straightforward, especially compared to the Summon Familiar spell he had learned first. He quickly reached the end of the book, where the final steps for mastering the spell were outlined. Arin immediately got to work. He read the final instructions, and within moments, felt the spell transferring from the book into his memory. Now, he saw it among his spells as Magic Missile. His ring did not react. He checked his attributes again.

Spells:

Summon Familiar (+)Magic Missile

Skills:

Basic Identification

A huge smile appeared on his face.

Arin packed some water and bread he found, even though he knew the five potions he received would ensure he didn't need to sleep, eat, or drink. It was better to be safe than sorry. He checked his equipment to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything and took a black cloak he usually wore when it was colder or rainy outside. He threw it over himself and set off into the night city, following the same path he had taken earlier that morning. Arin pulled his cloak tight, ensuring no one would recognize him unless they really focused on him.

He arrived without any problems. Along the way, he encountered only a few people and no guards. When he reached the gate where the dungeon entrance was visible, the number of people around was significantly lower. There were only a few people, no merchants, and few guards.

Arin approached the guard who was recording dungeon entries. The guard asked for his name, but before Arin could respond, another guard leaned in and whispered something in his ear. The first guard looked at Arin and said, "You may proceed, sir," and began scribbling something in his documents. Arin thanked him and, without looking back, entered the dungeon.

When Arin opened his eyes, he was in the same place he already knew well. Without delay, he summoned two mighty wolves, which drained all his mana. The two wolves materialized, large and menacing, with sleek bodies and piercing eyes. He gave them basic commands to stay close to him. They set off toward the place where the last fight with the ants had occurred. They reached the spot in about 15 minutes without encountering any monsters or ants. It seemed the ants had indeed retreated from this area.

During those 15 minutes, Arin's mana regenerated back to 800, so he thought about what to do next. His willpower was 80, which according to his bestiary, should allow him to summon additional familiars. Arin decided to summon a massive bear first, which appeared to have seen many battles, followed by another wolf. The bear materialized in front of Arin, towering and muscular, with scars marking its fur. The second wolf appeared alongside it, just as formidable as the first two.

As Arin looked at his pack of four familiars, he realized how powerful and terrifying they were. Their formidable appearance surprised him. He thought to himself that he could use his identification skill on them to learn more. Arin focused and used the skill on the bear, but saw only three question marks. He exhaled and did the same for the wolves, seeing three question marks for each of them. Laughing to himself, he said, "This is really strange. Something is definitely not right here."

Arin sighed and stopped thinking about it. He gave his familiars a command, and they headed deeper into the ant territory. As they progressed, he noticed how the entire environment was destroyed and chewed up by the ants. There was no grass, and the area was becoming completely devoid of vegetation. The destruction was even more severe than before, turning the landscape into lunar terrain. After proceeding a bit further, they reached a clearing where all the trees had been cut down, leaving nothing but barren land. In the center stood the giant ant nest, towering at least 10 meters high and 30 meters wide, tapering to a point. Dozens of ants scurried around it, guarding their domain.

From this distance, about 150 meters, Arin could see the nest and the movement of the ants, but it seemed they hadn't noticed him yet. This was likely because their vision was not very good. He counted dozens of ants moving around the nest, preparing for what lay ahead.

Arin didn't know what to do, whether to attack the ants or retreat. There could be dozens, hundreds, or even thousands more ants inside the nest. It was a big question. As he pondered, he decided that charging at them might not be the best idea, even if the ants didn't have the highest levels. He almost forgot to use his new skill. Focusing, he used his Identification skill. Several ant warriors at level 3, some drones at level 2, and one level 4 Royal Guard came into view. The Royal Guard was much larger, standing about one and a half times bigger than the warriors and roughly three times the size of the drones.