Absurd Status

— Ding!

⟨The human registered as "Liam Maximilian" has been selected as the first assimilator⟩

⟨You have been granted 80% assimilation!⟩

⟨Starting Assimilation...⟩

⟨Error!⟩

⟨Error!⟩

⟨The Assimilation process has been halted for 61,368 hours⟩

⟨Rebooting... Reconnecting... Retrieving IGO avatar data...⟩

⟨Error... Unable to perform full data retrieval!⟩

⟨Error!⟩

⟨Error!⟩

⟨Creating modification... data reassembly... success!⟩

⟨Performing Pseudo Assimilation⟩

"!!!"

As the final panel appeared, a searing, white-hot pain exploded in Liam's head.

It felt as if his very skull was being split open from the inside. He gritted his teeth and curled up on the floor, clutching his head.

A minute of agony.

Just when he thought he might black out, the intense pain suddenly subsided.

Liam slowly opened his eyes, drenched in sweat. As the throbbing in his head finally ceased, the thing that greeted him was a notification panel.

⟨Pseudo Assimilation successful!⟩

⟨Congratulations! You are now a full-fledged Player⟩

⟨Generating Status Info⟩

[Status]

Name: Asher Beltran

Class: Apprentice Alchemist

Level: 5 (0/100%)

Strength: 5

Magic: 5

Physique: 5

Agility: 5

Perception: 5

[Alchemy Skills]

⟨Modified Apprentice Potion Brewing:

The ability to brew D-rank potions with a 100% success rate.⟩

⟨Modified Apprentice Elemental Manipulation:

The ability to manipulate and refine fire and water mana types with a 100% success rate.⟩

⟨Modified Apprentice Enchantment:

The ability to enchant lesser-sized material with a 100% success rate.⟩

[College of Metalchemy]

⟨Modified Apprentice Forging:

The ability to forge D-rank artifacts with a 100% success rate.⟩

⟨Modified Apprentice Golem Creation:

The ability to create D-rank Golems with a 100% success rate.⟩

[Operational Phase Skills]

Amassing

Refining

Converge

Merge

.

.

.

.

.

Crush

---

Liam, still catching his breath, was speechless after seeing how messed up his stats were.

Normally, a level 5 player should have average stats of 10, but it seemed that wasn't the case for him. It was as if he was still at level 1, the usual level for a normal person.

The second reason why he thought his status was so messed up was because of how unusual and incoherent his skills were.

Firstly, even though his rank was still Apprentice, he already had skills typically reserved for higher-ranked Alchemists.

For instance, Elemental Manipulation was usually for Juniors, Enchantment for Masters, and even his previous skill, Metalchemy, which would only be possible at the Grandmaster rank after creating a College, was on the list.

'Could this have happened because I got 80% assimilation? But where are the rest of my skills?'

Liam was confused and couldn't help but make numerous assumptions. In the end, he concluded that the modification made by the system might be responsible. He inferred this from the abnormal description of his skills.

For example, his potion-brewing skill. Having a 100% success rate was unheard of in the entire IGO.

Usually, Apprentice Alchemists had a maximum 50% success rate for D-rank basic potions, even with the help of items and stat attributes.

All his skills had a 100% success rate. However, there were still certain limits to what he could do, such as being only able to manipulate fire and water elements or to create tools and golems of D rank.

'But does this mean I can make anything?'

Even though there were limitations on the rank of what he could craft, there didn't seem to be limitations on what he could actually make.

His potion brewing ability description, for instance, did not specify what types of potions he could create.

In the game IGO, potions were categorized as Basic, Intermediate, Advanced, Elite, and Legendary.

Apprentice Alchemists could only make two basic potions: Health and Mana.

Upon reaching the Junior stage, the game would reward the alchemist with new operational phase manuals and the ability to create another set of basic potions.

However, if a player decided to produce a type of potion not included in the set provided by the game, they could still attempt it.

These recipes could often be found as rewards for quests, clearing dungeons, or killing certain enemies.

If such potion recipes aligned with their Alchemist rank, the success rate would be good, around 30%.

On the other hand, the success rate of potion recipes whose requirements exceeded their current rank was abysmally low, at best 2%.

So it was entirely not possible for an Apprentice Alchemist to craft an Advanced Potion.

But if he had a 100% success rate in brewing, does this mean he could now make any kind of potion, from basic to elite, including the legendary rank potions?

The thought of making even a D-rank Legendary potion while still an Apprentice ignited the fire of hope inside Liam.

'This would be a significant advantage for me to start anew!'

If this was possible, the only thing he would need to do was work hard to collect the necessary materials.

Even with a 100% success rate, it might be adjusted dynamically based on the situation.

In the game, the success rate generally assumed that all other conditions were met properly. The game system might check for these conditions before applying the success rate, so getting the right materials was still necessary.

According to Asher's memories, all the rifts, or at least the rifts he saw on the news, were locations from the game IGO.

So if there was no difference in the game, and IGO had truly merged with the world, Liam could confidently assume that the materials and techniques used for Alchemy were still the same.

'I wonder if all the places in IGO are present.'

From what Liam could gather from Asher's memories, the rifts seemed to house different types of zones. There were dungeon zones, town zones, country regions, and even ruins.

What if he needed a material that only came from a specific place, but that place wasn't present in the rifts? That could be a problem for him.

As Liam contemplated these things, a sudden, tiny voice interrupted his thoughts.

"B-brother!"

Turning his head toward the source, he saw a child in shabby clothes standing in the doorway, tears streaming down her face.

"M-mom is... hic!"