Chapter 49: Drop Rate Skill
’It’s a shame I was rewarded with no skill points after this. This definitely didn’t feel like a Rank 1 trial,’ Darien thought as he watched his weapon devour the remains of the Nightmare Warden.
About the skill points reward, he wasn’t wrong to think so.
It truly felt unrewarding to walk away without a single skill point, all because he was of the same rank as the monster.
And that itself was unbelievable.
To think that this powerful subdungeon BOSS monster was classified as Rank 1, and Gareth the Crusher was Rank 3, was absurd.
But the system of this world was strange, and it appeared that locations shifted the scale of power.
A Rank 1 being in the main world was nothing compared to a Rank 1 monster in the Primordial World—and worse, nothing when set against a Rank 1 BOSS in a subdungeon!
This variance was a demerit just like now, but at the same time, it was a merit too, because Darien could claim the same skill points for slaying equal-ranked beings from a weaker Cursed area!
Darien was still satisfied with this trial because he had gained something that skill points couldn’t acquire.
"Sword Will..." he whispered to himself.
The warrior wasn’t a novice to these concepts.
He knew what this meant; what a comprehension was, and how Sword Will was instrumental to his knight class as a Swordsman.
"Status," Darien instructed.
[Mage Rank: Beginner 0/250]
[Knight Rank: Proficient 94020/100000]
[HP: 408>>420]
<Stats
[STR: 71>>73]
[AGI: 21>>23]
[DEF: 47>>49]
[VIT: 79>>81]
[STA: 78>>80]
[INT: 80>>82]
<Primordial Energy: 460>
<Skill Points: 10200>
<Innate Skill: Ancestral Weapon Ascension>
<Comprehensions: Sword Will>
<Skills: 100x SP Multiplier, Perfect Stealth, Inventory, Divine Sword Art, Critical Expose, Gravion Control, Frostfang Javelin, P.E Recovery, Solar Purge, Omnilingua, Instant Assimiliation, 100x XP Multiplier, Totem Bastion, Energy Bolts, Seismic Clutch, Abyssal Fracture, Phantom Cloning>
With a new column for "Comprehensions," Darien smiled, knowing this meant there were more arts he could add to the list.
Demanding <Sword Will>, he received:
[Sword Will]
[Level: (1-star)]
[Description: An inner realization of the sword’s essence, refining the warrior from within.]
[This comprehension allows the swordsman to unlock and evolve weapon mastery skills, increase weapon precision and damage, and manifest the sword’s true power.]
’So, <Sword Will> is internal, hmm?’ Darien thought. ’Aggravates the weapon’s power and also helps evolve and unlock blade-related skills? Not bad.’
But Darien knew he was only going to utilize <Sword Will> to better his melee damage and also grasp sword art concepts.
He wasn’t too excited about the skills part, because he had that covered if he wanted to.
"What do we have here...?"
He muttered to himself as he looked down at his weapon and the transformation it had undergone.
The blade looked sleeker now, slightly longer, and its shaft flowed like molten metal with a radiant orange glow, pulsing with life.
(Item Name: Hellheart)
(Type: Weapon/ Sword)
(Rank: Epic)
(LV. 2)
(Description: A magical sword that radiates intense warmth and flame. Deals high damage. Deals burning damage when activated. Devours the essence of whatever it strikes to grow stronger and can consume anything the user wills.)
(Skills: Blazing Edge → Molten Edge, Infernal Devour, Soulfire Feast)
Immediately, Darien saw the changes that had taken place, and he could hardly recognize his own weapon.
’Soulfire Feast? Can consume anything by command? Living or non-living, slain or untouched?’
With <Soulfire Feast>, Darien could slay some monsters without actually swinging the sword!
Just by willing so, his weapon would unleash a gush or tendrils of flame toward the target, consume it, and spaghettify its essence back to the blade.
Satisfied, Darien concealed his newly evolved weapon to take a look at the loot dropped by the Nightmare Warden.
He ended up being disappointed by what was dropped.
[You can retrieve:]
[Warden’s Oathblade (Epic) Nightmare Essence (Rare)x3 Stealth Cloak(Uncommon) Return Pebble (Common)x5 Skill Book (2-star) Life Core (Lv.1) Shadow Dust (Common)x2]
Darien inspected the most valuable items as he suspected this couldn’t have been all if it were a full-drop system.
(Item Name: Warden’s Oathblade)
(Type: Weapon/ Sword)
(Rank: Epic)
(LV. 2)
(Description: A jet-black greatsword forged from nightmare steel. It radiates a chilling aura. Delivers great damage. Delivers DoT damage.)
(Skills: Shadowrend)
--------
(Skill: Phantom Step)
(Type: Active)
(Rank: 2-star)
(Description: Allows the user to shift briefly out of phase, leaving behind a faint afterimage. Greatly increases evasion and speed for 5 seconds.)
---------
Darien was content with Hellheart and also <Perfect Stealth>. He didn’t really need the Warden’s massive weapon, nor <Phantom Step>.
So, he put everything in his Inventory, including the Life Core.
With his inventory space nearing its maximum weight capacity, he also needed to unload and sell soon.
But being encumbered was the least of Darien’s problems.
If he were actually getting the valuable loot he wanted, there’d be no reason to store them away for sale in the first place.
’I need to increase my drop rates,’ he thought ambitiously.
Confident in his skill points, Darien was only wary about his intelligence matching up to make a skill with such profound potential.
But then, he recalled how he had been rewarded successive attribute points upon leveling from Intermediate to Advanced and then to Proficient.
With his fingers crossed, Darien hoped that was enough as he summoned the Creation Panel.
[Ding!]
[Skill frame established]
[Name: 1000% Drop Rate]
[Type: Passive / Special]
[Level: (4-star)]
[Description: Increases the chance of item drops from defeated enemies by 1000% with 10% rarity increase.]
[Cost: 4700 SP]
Excited with his success, Darien immediately confirmed the skill frame!
[Successfully created a new skill!]
[You have acquired new skill: <1000% Drop Rate>]
After making this new passive skill, Darien wondered if he was just as capable of making the others that he had wanted to earlier.
But instantly, he recognized his reality.
Still in the subdungeon BOSS lair full of shadows, Darien remembered that he was short on time to leave the main instance before the magical door closed!
Quickly, he grabbed a Return Pebble from his Inventory, which was a soft, grape-like crystal that burst when thrown to the ground, opening a short-lived portal back to the last location of the warrior.
Without hesitation, Darien threw the item to the ground.
It burst with a sharp crrrkkshhh!, unraveling into a glowing portal that shimmered in the darkness.
Five seconds were all it would last, and Darien didn’t waste a second jumping in.