"Do that again and I might erase you from existence, got it?"
The impeccable, demon-like face of his teacher scowled, which was cutely adorned by her two little protruding black horns and a fierce blush painting her little face. But Kazuma did not dare to admire them. Until now since he read about his teacher, the words 'Extinction Maker' keep repeating themselves in his mind. Her threat seems to accelerate its realism.
Torturously, constantly reminding him that he cannot act carelessly in front of his teacher.
At last, he could only bow his head obediently, with beads of cold sweats drenching his back, like a protégé, er, terrified protégé he should be, "I-I understand, Teacher. I-I was just tempted by the new lines that I formulated for my beloved person back home. So in impulsiveness, I decide to test it out on Teacher without further consideration. Please, do forgive this idiot of a protégé."
At last, he decided to take advantage of what she assumed of him. Somewhat, it worked quite well, to actualize a person's assumption of oneself.
«The host succeeded in making Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum [ Rank AAA ] agitated!»
«Receive 100 Affectum Points!»
Kazuma turned puzzled when receiving the notification, but his teacher's piercing glowing eyes shook him off of it, "Oh? Test it on me? So you treat me like a test subject now, eh?"
"No, Teacher. Er, well, you know-"
"Enough. Just go to the registration table and sign yourself up. I have to check up on whether you're qualified for me to teach or not."
With no chance to refute, not that he wanted to, Megumin, in all of her menacing, small form, imposed him to go to the plateau before him. The staff, who had a pale complexion after Megumin confronted her hastily utilize a strange rectangle-shaped device, looking at him to ratify that the registration table was ready for him to take up for it.
Nodding, Kazuma stiffly walked forward under the menacing gaze of his teacher, who still adorned a fierce blush on her face.
Yeah, he definitely wouldn't do that again. It was easy points but the consequences were a little bit too much. Presumably, he could be a little bit smart about it so he admit, he was too hasty!
Still...
[ Affectum Points: 10300 ]
With this, it's enough!
"Sir, please place your hands upon this device to proceed with the registration."
Under the professional visage was a trembling soul full of fear for demise. Kazuma pities the staff member a little bit, who was obviously ignorant towards Megumin's extinction maker spell. Perhaps he would be the same, if not worst, without the absolute information the system provided him.
Casually, Kazuma puts his hand above the rectangle-shaped device. The device then shined, shooting up a transparent beam of light that draped his hand. With a hint of interest under his gaze, the beam drags itself to the side, as if scanning its subject. After its disappearance, thus, it signifies that the procedure has been completed.
Immediately, the rectangle shaped device generates some foreign texts on its surface... that he was able to read?
Stuck in this new revelation, he did not realize that Megumin already scooted over beside him, reading the strange text that he now just understand was his personal information! Specifically, his stats!
[ Satou Kazuma's Status ]
«Strength › 136»
«Agility › 123»
«Vitality › 143»
«Charm › 96»
«Talent › 174»
[ Class: Swordmaster ]
[ Skills ]
[ Sword Wave Lv. 3 ]
[ Sword Strike Lv. 2 ]
[ ??? Lv. 1 ]
[ New Option Unlocked › [ Status ] › [ Number Patterns ] ]
«Now, your stats can be identified through numbers, a more intricate form!»
[ Comparison ]
«1-25 : F-rank»
«26-50 : F Plus-rank»
«51-75 : E-rank»
«76-100 : E Plus-rank»
«101-125 : D-rank»
«126-150 : D Plus-rank»
«151- 175 : C-rank»
«Reach higher ranks to discover their number forms!»
However, they were formed in different manners.
"Strength, Agility and Vitality are alright. Huh? What a high Charm you've got. And it seems like your talent is not bad. But it was a pity, if only it reaches the threshold of 200... Still impressive to upgrade your skills at a such young age... Hengh? What's this? An unidentified skill?"
His teacher intently observes his exposed stats. Her gleaming eyes shifted from top to bottom, and it was quite intense, especially when they were glazed with disappointments when they set themselves on his talent stat. Kazuma could increase it of course, but a gut feeling told him that it would be too eye-catching.
Do remember that his teacher's feeling development only reaches [ Acknowledgement ]. Yes, it was the furthest development he managed to form, but it was, nonetheless, not a stage where secrets could be exchanged easily. Her identity as the cousin of the Crimson Magic Demon Clan's Heiress was exposed to him probably because of the girl's scheme or something. With Megumin's overly intelligent and observant traits, it wasn't impossible.
Besides, he got that 'mysterious' unidentified skill, which was a skill specialised for him by the system. Somehow, it makes sense to be unidentified by the device. Hence, seeing her reaction, it seems like it would be enough for a temporary bargaining chip. And by the time it was revealed, if it can in the first place, hopefully, he would be able to increase his talent stat beyond the current one.
Though, it was quite a certainty if he was being honest.
[ Upgrade Points: 2 ]
[ Would you like to buy »Archaic Roots« for 10000 Affectum Points? ]
Kazuma was being urged by his excitement, but there was a sense of warning, that instead of using such an op item now, why don't use it when he already maximises everything that he got towards his stats? He wasn't in any dire condition in any way.
After pondering and being accelerated by his teacher's staring, he finally decides to delay the Archaic Roots usage. Maybe when he got enough spare time or when the current condition was already solved.
Spending such a huge amount of points cannot be done hastily.
"My Protégé, your stats are above average at best, albeit your exceptional Charm, but it seems like you've got yourself a secret."
"Eh? A secret?"
Shockingly not noticing his fabricated confused tone, Megumin's gaze steadily focused on his [ Skills ], "Indeed. You possessed an unidentified skill in your possession. In most cases, it was supposed to be an unawakened bloodline or some sort. And despite harbouring an unknown, unawakened bloodline, you already have stats that were averaged over 130, comparable to those 'geniuses' of those kingdoms in your age, excluding talent and charm."
Inwardly, Kazuma was astounded by the statement. A thing like unidentified skill was a sign of unawakened bloodlines?! He didn't expect it to be that great! He hadn't grasped clear information about this world yet, but it could be guessed how important bloodlines were, as such an aspect was one of the most important factors to unlock mana.
To think it would become this way... Kazuma felt elated. This unintentional circumstance was truly a blessing in disguise!
"With this, there is nothing for you to be worried about qualifications. From today onwards, I hereby accepted you as my official Protégé!"
«Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum [ Rank AAA ] acknowledgement has increased!»
[ Acknowledgement Lv. 2 ] » [ Acknowledgement Lv. 3 ]
«Congratulation on the achievement!»
«Reward of Achievement › 15000, An Upgrade Point»
The amount of Affectum Points, for the current him, was humongous. Not to mention the notification he got about receiving [ Upgrade Point ]. He was beaming with happiness and satisfaction, which coincidentally occurred after he received Megumin's acceptance.
Megumin, who saw his reaction, contemptuously smiled. She felt extreme satisfaction seeing how he reacts to her words, "I understand your current predicament. After all, it is only right to be in extreme delight when a Crimson Demon, especially me, the number one of my generation, accepts you as my Protégé!"
"Thank you for accepting me as your official Protégé, Teacher! Please take care of me!"
"Hemph, of course!"
It was just for formality. Still, it puts quite a strain on him. No matter how hard he tried to ignore it, this teacher of his was rather... small. Still, a Crimson Demon is a Crimson Demon, he guesses.
The sudden change in the mood before and after they arrived at the registration table was somehow mind-boggling. The exhausted staff member stared at their departing figures, complaining to herself, 'Tsk, who would expect that a female Crimson Demon which was petite would appear here today? Rumours said that they were always voluptuous damn it! Ah, my luck is quite bad...'
Thankfully, Megumin wasn't there to look at her. If she was then...
-‹›-‹›-‹›-‹›-‹›-‹›-‹›-
"Teacher, I want to know about how stats were determined."
"Can you elaborate?"
The student-teacher duo were walking throughout Axel, enjoying the exceptionally comforting atmosphere it held.
"Well, I noticed that you seem to say that my Charm stat was exceptional albeit it was my lowest stat, and how you seem disappointed even when my talent stat was the highest."
"Oh, you meant the standards?"
Kazuma nodded at her. Megumin was good when it comes to wording her statement.
As they watched over a bunch of children playing tag with each other, his teacher chomped the skewered meat that she bought earlier and earnestly answered, "Then, let me explain."
"If we talked about standards then it would be varied. Normal people deemed the material stats such as Strength, Agility and Vitality as constitution, which averaged 80 when it comes to a healthy adult male and 70 for a healthy adult female. But if you wanna be a qualified Adventurer, you have to be at least over 125 on average. Unless you have exceptional talent, like how you are my Protégé, who was comparable to Sword Grandmasters alike if not for your lacking stats."
"Ah, then how about talent and charm?"
"I'm getting to them."
Chomping yet another skewered meat, which was now her sixteenth, Kazuma sweated as the petite demon threw her sixteenth skewer away and was prepared to devour her seventeenth.
"Average people would possess only 30 points while exceptional looking ones could increase it up to 80. So unless you have an inborn charm or exception bloodlines then it was impossible to go past that."
"How many are yours, Teacher?"
With her impeccable traits and overloading cuteness, Kazuma was somehow curious about her Charm stat. The only reason that he hadn't succumbed to her cuteness was that his heart lies on the silhouette that would occasionally show its perfection.
Even his impeccably cute teacher still can't be compared to those flowing silvers and those majestic, captivating violet gems. Or maybe it was his sight that exaggerated Eris's looks because it was his first time witnessing such perfection.
Still, where a heart lies can't be comprehended logically.
"Eh, somewhere past 200... I forgot."
'Fuck!'
Still, what a huge amount of Charm stat!
Seeing his astounded look, Megumin blinked her large eyes as she secretly snatched her twentieth skewered meat. His reaction seems to signify that he actually notices her exceptional charm this whole time but decided not to care about it.
'My tiny figure perhaps?' That thought alone makes her fume but as a wise, respectable Teacher, Megumin refused to be agitated in front of her protégé. Instead, she clears out how her charm could be so high indifferently.
...Not that it mattered.
«The host succeeded in making Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum [ Rank AAA ] agitated!»
«Receive 250 Affectum Points!»
'Huh?' Kazuma thought in puzzlement, but got his focus bought by his teacher.
"As Demons, specifically the female variant, we naturally possessed higher charm than most life forms. Not to mention my venerable bloodline, the Crimson Demon Magic Bloodline, which makes me possess superior charm even if compared to other female demons. The reason is because we, Demons, originated from the pioneers of Sins, specifically the sin that represented Lust. So it is only normal for female demons to have extreme charm."
"Oh, so that's why you always hooded yourself!"
"Yes, or else the consequences would be severe if I were to travel with my face on exhibition. Particularly if they can't recognize my special traits as a Crimson Demon. You understand."
Seeing that her protégé nodded in understanding, Megumin sighed in relief. It seems like despite being young, this protégé of hers is not as naive as she thought he would be. Satisfied, she gulped down the twentieth skewered meat. Forgetting that she was just 15.
"How about talent stat?"
"Foremost, it was the most controversial one. You must've noticed it as well."
The fact that B-rank Talent stat, comparable to 200 Talent stat according to his speculation, was the requirement for his [ Magic Status ] to be unlocked was enough to show how significant and important it was. It was the decider whether one could harbour mana or not!
"Mana is the most prominent factor of all when it comes to this particular stat. Because it was the source of magic, a power sourced from our very soul that generated the purest of force that was able to manipulate what this world had induced. From elementals, natural disasters, and even apocalyptic catastrophes, even laws of the world themselves! Could be manipulated by such power. In comparison, no, can we even compare those who have no power over these supernatural capabilities with ones who can?"
Megumin skillfully toned her voice that could be perfectly heard by him yet others could not. Of course, the fact that they were sitting side by side on the same bench was advantageous for her to do so. And perhaps, in Kazuma's speculation, because she was a good-natured person, but her voice seems to hold a tint of pity. And was controlled to protect the feelings of normal villagers around her.
"The only way for a person to harbour mana is to have Talent over 200, or have a special constitution and bloodline. Average people only have about 70 points and even some exceptional ones could only have 170 at most. For you my Protégé, you have an unawakened bloodline, so in most cases, you shouldn't be worried too much. Your pure talent already exceeded 170, do combine with that, and you do not have to be worried."
Talking about Talent stat, Kazuma looked at his teacher's clear crimson eyes. He was somewhat intrigued. As the indisputable number one of her generation, how many talents stat that she had?
"How about you Teacher? How many points do you have?"
Megumin's complexion took a drastic change. After a little bit of silence, she looked at him with her solemn crimson eyes.
"...My Protégé, are you sure you want to know? As my official Protégé, you do have the right to know, but if it was leaked out that you know my exact Talent stat, well, in summary, you would be hunted by the whole world. This is confidential information, and I did not reject your request because my clan has a tradition that a Teacher has to at least trust their Protégé by giving them a very, very, very! Confidential information! So you have to understand the consequence!"
«The host succeeded in making Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum [ Rank AAA ] agitated!»
«Receive 200 Affectum Points!»
There was a hint of excitement and caution, and yet fear, as she ended her warning. Excitement to show off, caution by what would happen and fear, if her Protégé actually betrayed her and leaked it all out for profit or some sort.
As he looked at her face, Kazuma understand something. Her face... resembles a person. That excitement her eyes held and the uncontrollable desire to share the secret she clearly stated as confidential.
Right now, she genuinely resembles an innocent girl who just wanted to show off her attainment. Who wanted recognition, praise and most importantly, acknowledgement. Even if it meant showing what she must not show.
How could he not realize the fact that she was but a 15-year-old who experienced life in her powerful clan most of her life this whole time?
'Right, she didn't even present a contract or some sort to seal our deal for me not to leak it out...'
Without it, legally, he could freely spread it. Of course, it would be morally wrong. But he could. Not that he would, and even if he did, her classmen would cease him from existence.
He could also extort more information from her without her realization and plunged her clan into demise through the information that she could leak. She was the cousin of the heiress of the clan, and that fact alone was proof that she was a high-positioned member of the clan.
Kazuma can imagine what would happen to her if she meet some unscrupulous people. At least, they would be scared by her background and back off, at worst...
A shiver of disgust went through his spine.
Some people don't care about anything but their desires and what lies before their eyes.
Kazuma experienced it firsthand in his previous life.
If he thought about it all, it seems like he was too overwhelmed by her 'Extinction Maker' spell and her overly proud nature that he overlooked these important factors...
Of course, even with these revelations, he would still treat his guide, er, teacher, with respect.
But now, he gotta look out for her. Inwardly, Kazuma could only smile wryly. He had to remind himself that his teacher is essentially a 15 years-old. Well, maybe she wasn't as naive, looking at her indifference at the bloody view when he fought those female orcs.
And with her exceptional observant and intelligent traits, she would be alright, most of the time.
Still, he had to look out for her. Her immature desires could overwhelm her reasons at times. That was a dangerous moment to have. Hopefully, it wouldn't happen.
"Well, if it was that confidential then I think Teacher should keep it for herself."
Kazuma, after determining these things, decides to let it confidential for the current moment. Maybe when her feelings were developed enough that he would point out her wrongs.
Even with these revelations, that 'Extinction Maker' spell still exists. He doesn't want to look like he disregards her position as his Teacher.
As he said before, he refused to take any chance!
He refused!
"Eh, it wasn't much. Only 600 points, I think, but in my case, it was called Aptitude, as I was a demon born to learn magic, so Talent was called Aptitude," Then Megumin proceed to expose it casually, with a proud smirk on her face.
As soon as her words entered his ears, Kazuma froze, with several notifications going up to his face at the same time.
«Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum [ Rank AAA ] acknowledgement has increased!»
[ Acknowledgement Lv. 3 ] » [ Acknowledgement Lv. 5 ]
«Congratulation on the achievement!»
«Reward of Achievement › 45000 Affectum Points, 2 Upgrade Points»
«Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum [ Rank AAA ] is willing to tell her stats to host!»
«Host now could freely look at Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum [ Rank AAA ] stats!»
[ Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum's Physical Status ]
«Strength › 57» [ E ]
«Agility › 98» [ E Plus ]
«Vitality › 210» [ B ]
«Charm › 240» [ B Plus ]
«Talent › 258» [ A ]
[ Megumin Ostensionem Daemoniorum's Magic Status ]
«Mana › 301» [ AA ]
«Soul › 358» [ AAA ]
«Control › 309» [ AA ]
«Power › 452» [ SS ]
«Aptitude › 638» [ SSSSS Plus ]
[ Skill(s) ]
[ Explosion Magic Lv. 9 ]
[ Class: Archwizard ]
[ Bloodline: Crimson Demon ( Regardless of how many Talent stat they were born with, they would still unlock [ Magic Status ] with immense Aptitude nonetheless. Increase Aptitude by three ranks ]
[ Title: One In A Thousand Years Genius ( A legendary title bestowed upon Demi-gods level figure. Potentially Gods level figure. Increase Talent and Aptitude by two ranks ) ]
...
'Ah...'
SSSSS with a plus.
Yeah, this girl is definitely the indisputable number one of her generation. Kazuma feels a sense of helplessness as he looked at her [ Magic Status ]. AA-rank was considered as the lowest there...
He glanced to the side and saw the huge amount of his points.
[ Affectum Points: 60750 ]
[ Upgrade Points: 5 ]
Compared to her stats though...
'I know she was meant to be the number one of her generation, but isn't it a little bit too ridiculous?'
Even with his seemingly huge points for him to utilize, it was so hard to be impressed with it, even when he was supposed to, because of how ludicrous his teacher's Aptitude was.
It was SSSSS! With a damned plus!
Eventually, he could only accept this absurdity. Resigned to his vastly superior teacher. There was a part of him that said as long as he worked hard enough, he could also reach the same height of Aptitude, hell, maybe even Talent.
And perhaps even surpass that.
Still! This wasn't what a newbie like him who only experienced adventures for only hours supposed to see!
"How it is? Am I amazing?"
His teacher just had to salt his wound by smirking contemptuously. As a good Protégé, he could only praise her, "Yes, you are very amazing, Teacher."
"Huh? What are you thinking right now? I could see a hint of helplessness, hmph, that's normal. I am the number one of my generation after all, so it is only right for you to feel a little bit of helplessness after you know my peerless Aptitude!"
He looked over and saw the smirking, glazed tiny pink lips of his teacher, who just swallowed her thirtieth skewered meat. Then, a sense of powerlessness washed over him, leading to him questioning his pitiful existence.
At last, Kazuma sighed helplessly.
'Damn, my standard is screwed.'
An: a lil bit short, yeah, I understand.
yeah yeah, 'Hey man I know stats and points are cool and all but where the fuck is the action?'
Be patient. I'm building up smth.