In a reversal of roles, it was now Aldrich that charged the Striker, sprinting at the monster before it could build up speed for its own charge. He determined that the only way for the Striker to escape its situation was to charge Aldrich and force him to dodge, thereby giving it a clean getaway path.By charging first, Aldrich removed that option, though this was far riskier for his own personal safety. Regardless, he wanted the EXP and undead from the Striker.The Striker snapped at Aldrich when he got close, managing to close its jaws around his shoulder. Because Aldrich had not leveled his vitality, the durability of his body was still similar, and the Striker, even as a E-class monster, had bite force capable of tearing apart metal.Aldrich felt his shoulder bones shattering and his flesh tearing like paper, but he held the Striker off with his arms while Adam and Elaine pounced on its back, tearing the Variant away and throwing it to the ground.“Do me a favor and kill this t

Aldrich then distributed his stat points. He reviewed to himself how exactly the stats worked.Strength was a measure of physical power.Agility was a measure of physical speed and coordination.Vitality measured the total health pool and the durability bonuses a character got from wearing armor. Every point in vitality raised total health by 3.Magic raised the mana pool and was the scaling stat for most spells. Every point in magic raised total the total mana pool by 3.Attunement was a stat that indicated how many skills, spells, or units a player could have at any given moment of time. Every five points in attunement allowed a player to attune an additional spell, skill, or unit.High levels of attunement were also required to even begin to access summoning stronger units.For fighter type classes, attunement increased the refresh rate of the skill charges they could use per day, but this was not really relevant for Aldrich who used spells that costed mana.Perception increased ac

Adam and Elaine grunted at Aldrich because that was all their zombified vocal chords were capable of.Light enveloped the group, blinding away the Nexus and teleporting Aldrich back to the forest. He checked his wristwatch.10:10 P.M.Barely any time had passed.Good. Aldrich needed some time to get ready.He materialized the [Staff of Stilling Pollen] in his hands. It looked like a two-meter-long bamboo shoot that split off into three branches at the crown. A yellow, seed-like bulb the size of a baseball drooped from each branch, and the surface of each seed was scattered with tiny hairs and bright yellow pollen.Each of these bulbs had a cast of [Pollen Cloud] embedded within them, making them noxious gas grenades that could be remotely detonated.A near perfect tool for what Aldrich wanted to do –==“Stop me here,” said Ghost from the comfortably cushioned backseat of a commercial hovercar. He was the only passenger in a car that had enough seating space to fit in six, and he abus

Aldrich closed his eyes and sighed as he looked up to the pale moon above. Glowing waves of green energy flowed around him as he leveled up, wrapping him in an aura of power born from Ghost’s suffering.He heard the sounds of ravenous chewing, flesh tearing, and bones crunching as Adam and Elaine finally had their fill of Ghost. Their fill of vengeance. He let them eat up Ghost’s corpse to nothingness as a well deserved reward for their suffering, and also because Ghost had dropped a Soul.Aldrich would use the Soul and craft something out of it. If it retained Ghost’s powers, then an item, perhaps a cloak that could activate Phase, was going to be far, far more useful than a dumb zombie that could not reliably use the reflex and thinking intensive Phase power.In the meanwhile, Aldrich stabilized his newfound power by distributing his stat points. He started to invest more heavily into Attunement now as he had obtained the [Tome of Dark Arts Rank 2].The [Tome of the Dark Arts] were

"We have to leave this place soon,” said Aldrich. He gave a lingering look at the Sign he had inscribed. He could not stay here even if it meant abandoning the Sign and the safety of the Nexus.There would be investigations about Ghost’s death soon enough, and this part of the Variant forest was shallow enough that search parties would roam here.For the next several days at least, Aldrich needed to vacate this place.That meant no easy access to the Nexus.No quick refills on his [Restoration Flask] and access to crafting.Not until he got another Sign which he would get upon completing the first Trial Quest.“You three,” Aldrich clapped his hands and commanded the Strikers. “Scatter some of Ghost’s remains here and there. Litter this place with your tracks and claw marks.”Like this, Aldrich could ensure that anybody that found this place and Ghost’s remains would just think he had died to Variants. There would be no additional line of investigation past that.Beyond that, Aldrich h