Chapter 15: Irregular

Chapter 15: Irregular

A faint light filtered through Hans' closed eyelids.

By a stroke of luck, the sole ray of light in the whole cave fell precisely on him, jolting him awake.

[..ou have leveled up!]

[You have leveled up!]

The gate was about to close, leaving those left inside in an uncertain fate, nonetheless, Hans was sure it definitely wouldn't turn out to be pleasant.

Before departing, he grabbed the charred white snake's body by its tail, dragging it along as he made his way out of the gate.

All the smaller ones had been melted into oblivion by Hans's flames, leaving nothing behind, so this time, he would have to settle with just the boss.

Outside the gate, a truck was already waiting for him, ready to collect his spoils.

The team in charge loaded the snake's corpse on the truck and departed.

[You have closed the E-Rank gate: {Snakes' Den}]

[You have obtained the spell tome { Ice Spear}]

[Due to the gate's danger level being above the norm, you have been rewarded with an extra item: {Moonlight Python's Egg}(Rank-C)]

Only then did Hans feel a bit relieved and shed some of the stress that had accumulated over the day.

He had truly gone all out, but that feeling, the satisfaction of victory through his strength made it worthwhile for him.

Although it was only 6 p.m., the sun had already fallen.

It was October 27th, with winter approaching and bringing shorter days.

He returned home after taking the bus and was quite irritated by the fact that he had to wait almost half an hour before he could find one.

"I can't be going around in a bus my whole life, I should take my driver's license... and I don't even have anything better to do."

"I can clear about one Rank-E Gate every day if they all don't turn out like the last one, and for the rest of the day, I will have to wait for my mana to recover.

I might be able to stretch myself and clear two gates every day, but the fatigue would eventually accumulate and force me to take a break, so I'm better off not overexerting myself."

"Simply not fighting is enough to recover my mana, so I should make the most out of my free time."

With that, he started studying for his driver's license and spent the rest of the day reading books and searching for information about the awakened and the gates.

Since the egg showed no signs of change, he just left it unbothered.

Unfortunately, the normal books he had seemed to no longer help him in increasing his wisdom anymore, so he decided to start learning {Blizzard}.

After being exhausted from practicing the spell for a dozen hours just to cast it for the first time, Hans retired at 2 a.m. and after that, the temperature in his room remained cold all night.

He couldn't even warm himself with fire since he was afraid of burning down the building.

The following morning, he went to the association yet again because this time they had summoned him to discuss the materials they received from his previous day's hunt. Apparently, there was something that had to be discussed in person.

He asked for directions at the reception and was guided to a wooden door.

A couple of seconds later, the door opened, revealing a tall woman dressed in a suit.

She had dark hair and green eyes, her mere presence and stance radiated a feeling of comfort.

Smiling, she greeted him, "Good morning."

"Ah! I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," the boy apologized, saying it as if he had done something that was deserving of the death penalty.

"Here let me help you," Hans offered, feeling responsible for bumping into the kid since he was the one on his phone.

"Y-you don't have t.. well thank you for your help," the boy stuttered, quickly gathering the papers and hurrying away in Hans' opposite direction.

Out of habit, Hans activated his skill {Piercing Gaze}.

[Name: Aiden Everly

Age: 14

Class: Potion Brewer (COMMON)

Title: None

Lvl: 6

Strength: 2

Dexterity: 3

Endurance: 6

Wisdom: 19

Current Status: Exhausted and unhappy due to long working hours.

Description: Currently a candidate to become the holder of the unique class: {Master Alchemist}

Evaluation: An Rank-F Alchemist.

Has the potential to become a Rank-C without any special class, if he is to be chosen as the unique class successor, it would raise his potential to at least an S-rank.]

Without thinking twice, Hans grabbed the boy's arm and asked, "How about changing jobs?"

Intimidated by the question, the kid stood there.

"W-what do you mean sir, I didn't mean to cause you any trouble, please do not," he almost dropped to the floor and begged, fearing that he had pulled himself into some great trouble.

"Hey hey hey, get up, I didn't mean it like that..." Hans forced a smile and shook his head before proposing, "How about working for me?"

"A-are you joking?" the boy asked, incredulous.

Hans' face remained dead serious.

"What for? " asked the little boy, changing his attitude a bit.

"Would you believe me if I were to tell you that you have the potential to become a star," Hans tried to convince the guy.

"Just like those awakened you see every day online or on the posters."

"..." the boy stared at Hans blankly before answering firmly.

"No, I wouldn't!"

—————

{Unique Class: {Master Alchemist}

A class specializing in potion making, enhancing the holder's strength based on the potions created and consumed.

Condition to advance: Complete the brewing of a potion two ranks above your current without anyone's assistance.}