Primordial: Leveling Up

From her tone, something that shouldn't exist.

[New Ability Gained: Predatory Instincts]

The moment this ability settled into my being, it felt like gaining a new limb—natural, instinctive, an extension of myself that had always been missing. My awareness expanded not through conscious effort, but as naturally as breathing.

'I can sense everyone in the manor now. Not just their locations, but their essence. Cassandra's fire burns steady and warm, like a cozy hearth. Lyanna's ice core gleams like a frozen star, beautiful and sharp. And Mother...'

'Mother's magical signature defies description. She's simultaneously a brilliant star radiating infinite light and an endless abyss that could swallow galaxies. Ancient. Powerful. Something that transcends normal understanding.'

'I can even sense beyond the manor. Guards, servants, people in the town—all of them glowing like little candles in my expanded awareness.'

"This is better than any RPG mini-map I've ever seen. Advance to Level 3."

[LEVEL ADVANCEMENT: 2 → 3]

[Cost: 2,000 IP

Remaining Balance: 7,450 IP]

[LEVEL 3 ACHIEVED

Health Points: 220 → 320

Mana Pool: 380 → 480]

[New Ability Gained: Battle Resonance]

The ability flowed into me like it had always belonged there, a natural extension of my being rather than something foreign. My spiritual pathways reorganized themselves to accommodate this new sense, and suddenly I understood combat on a level I never had before.

'This isn't just enhanced reflexes. This is like having a built-in combat computer that's part of my soul.'

'It's like I've been playing this whole life with input lag, and now everything is perfectly synchronized.'

"One more level, then we're maxing stats like there's no tomorrow. Advance to Level 4."

[LEVEL ADVANCEMENT: 3 → 4

[Cost: 3,000 IP]

[Remaining Balance: 4,450 IP]

[LEVEL 4 ACHIEVED

Health Points: 320 → 420

Mana Pool: 480 → 580]

[New Ability Gained: Presence Manifestation]

Like the others, this ability integrated seamlessly into my being, becoming as natural as sight or hearing. I could feel how my spiritual essence now projected itself into the physical world, creating a tangible aura that others would instinctively respond to.

"Alright, now for the fun part. Time to max out everything like I'm min-maxing a character build. Starting with Strength because I'm tired of feeling like a delicate flower."

"Purchase Strength upgrades: 15 to 100."

[STRENGTH: 15 → 100 = 85 point increase

Cost: 850 IP

Remaining Balance: 3,600 IP]

The transformation began in my spiritual foundations—the metaphysical framework that connected my soul to my physical form. I could feel my essence becoming denser, more substantial, like my very being was being forged into something stronger.

'My bones feel like they're being reinforced with mithril. My muscle fibers are reorganizing themselves into something that shouldn't be physically possible.'

I flexed my hand experimentally and heard the air whisper past my fingers. When I gripped the edge of my desk, the solid oak groaned under the pressure. Another thing, level advancement through buying levels with IP didn't improve my base physical stats. 

At least as far as I know for now

But right now, I could probably punch through steel walls now. Take that, gym bros from my old world.

"Purchase Agility upgrades: 18 to 100."

[AGILITY: 18 → 100 = 82-point increase

Cost: 820 IP

Remaining Balance: 2,780 IP]

Lightning-like essence flowed through my spiritual pathways, enhancing the connection between thought and action. My reflexes sharpened until I could perceive individual dust motes floating in the air, could feel the precise rhythm of my heartbeat, could sense the exact moment each breath began and ended.

I shifted my weight and felt like I was floating. This is what being a ninja must feel like—if ninjas had magical enhancement and protagonist privileges.

"Purchase Stamina upgrades: 20 to 100."

[STAMINA: 20 → 100 = 80-point increase

Cost: 800 IP

Remaining Balance: 1,980 IP]

This enhancement touched something deeper—my life essence itself. I could feel my spiritual vitality becoming a vast reservoir, like I was connected to some infinite wellspring of energy.

Exhaustion then just became a foreign concept. I could probably run a marathon, fight a dragon, and then spend hours in exercise without breaking a sweat. The perfect trifecta.

"Purchase Magical Perception upgrades: 22 to 100."

[MAGICAL PERCEPTION: 22 → 100 = 78-point increase

Cost: 780 IP

Remaining Balance: 1,200 IP]

This was the most disorienting enhancement yet. My spiritual senses didn't just improve—they transformed and flowed out entirely. I could now perceive magic not as abstract energy, but as living, breathing patterns of elemental force woven through reality.

'The protective wards on my room aren't just spells anymore—they're geometric constructs of crystallized mana intent, beautiful and complex like magical circuit boards. The ambient mana in the air flowed in slow currents like an invisible ocean of power.'

'This is what magical sight without using my Divine eyes must feel like. I can literally see how spells are constructed, how energy moves through different materials. It's like having magical X-ray vision.'

"Purchase Charm upgrades: 25 to 100."

[CHARM: 25 → 100 = 75-point increase

Cost: 750 IP

Remaining Balance: 450 IP]

And for the grand finale...

This transformation was the most profound of all. I felt reality itself shift around me, like the universe was suddenly paying attention to my existence in a way it never had before. My reflection in the mirror still showed the same face, but somehow it was... more.

'More compelling, more perfect, more impossible to ignore. But there's something else underneath now. Something that wasn't there before.'

The beauty was still there—enhanced beyond what should be possible—but now it carried an edge. Like a blade wrapped in silk, promising both ecstasy and danger.

'According to the System, my previous beauty was apparently just 'adequate' by supernatural standards. Now I look like someone who could start wars just by existing.'

'Perfect. Completely broke but maximally powered.'

[Final Mana Pool: Mana Pool: 580]

The enhanced mana capacity sent waves of pure magical energy through my Primordial core. The mysterious crystal pulsed like a star, cycling through energies I couldn't even identify with perfect efficiency.

'I can feel the magic flowing through me like liquid starlight. This is what it must feel like to be a walking magical nuke.'

I stood and stretched, marveling at how every movement felt perfectly controlled, graceful, powerful. When I walked to the window, each step was silent despite my enhanced strength, fluid despite my increased mass.

'I went from Level 1 nobody to Level 4 supernatural badass in one shopping session. This is definitely the most productive character upgrade montage I've ever experienced.'

Looking out at the manor grounds, my enhanced senses painted the world in new colors. I could sense magical signatures stretching far beyond the estate—the town below, the forests beyond, even hints of the great cities in the distance.

'Meeting prospects with Empress Aurelia just became a lot more interesting.'

The thought carried real weight now, backed by genuine power rather than just wishful thinking. I was still weaker than her—Level 4 versus her estimated Level 180+—but I was no longer the helpless Level 1 she expected to evaluate.

'I'm something new. Something that doesn't fit into her neat little categories. Time to show her what happens when the game changes and nobody bothered to update the rulebook.'