The last bandit, tripping over a discarded velvet mood board, vanished into the undergrowth with a yelp. A final squeak of terror, then silence. Just the rustling of leaves. And the faint, lingering scent of lavender-and-chamomile-scented glitter mist.
Keldric let out a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding. Which was probably a mistake. The air still shimmered faintly with Strut's "Poise & Panache." He coughed. Delicately.
Well. That was… a thing. Non-lethal takedowns via existential crisis and extreme makeover. Pretty sure that's not in any Isekai strategy guide I've ever read. At least no one important died… I think Jerry the Ankle Weight might need a chiropractor though. And probably therapy. Lots of therapy.
A flickering notification window appeared right in front of his face.
Achievement Complete!
Ambush Averted: Roadside Bandits Defeated!
Successfully navigated a classic "broken wagon" bandit ambush, resulting in their utter demoralisation and retreat due to overwhelming absurdity.
Reward:100XP,[Dreadful Reputation: Bandits (Unique - Passive)]Skill Acquired!
Keldric blinked. His heart did a little jump. Yes! An achievement! A real, actual achievement with XP and a reward! It's happening! I'm not just some random guy who got teleported; I'm a Player! This is my Isekai story starting for real!
A wave of fanboy glee washed over him. He almost couldn't contain his excitement. Wait a sec. 100 XP? For what? My expert-level standing-around-and-looking-confused technique? I barely did anything. The gang did all the... Well, whatever that was. Does that mean... is there a party system? Shared XP?Of course there would be! That's a classic Isekai feature! As the 'Hero' and designated protagonist, I must be getting a cut of all their XP gains just for... existing, basically.
Oh, this changes things!. This changes everything! If so, I can totally take advantage of that. Let them do all the heavy lifting, the weird fashion interventions, the existential breakdowns... and I can just... supervise. And collect the rewards. It's the perfect system! A hero's work, without the actual work! Genius!
Hold on. He mentally scrolled through his System windows. Status. Skills. Achievements. Inventory... No 'Party' tab. No list of members. No shared health bars. Nothing.
So... I got shared party XP from a party that the System doesn't even acknowledge exists? How does that work? Is the feature just hidden until I complete some friendship quest? Or is something else going on here?
Either way, doesn't matter because XP is XP, and it came with a new skill! Let's see what this shiny new thing actually does. He focused his intent on the new skill, and a new window materialised.
[Dreadful Reputation: Bandits (Unique - Passive - Level 1)]
(Effect: Low-level bandits (Lvl 1-5) become hesitant and unnerved in your presence. Intimidating or bizarre companions amplify this effect. Lvl 2: Grants a moderate persuasion bonus against such bandits.)
Level one, huh? Figures. And it only works on low-level bandits. So, no scaring off a bandit king with my sheer presence. He reread the description. 'Amplified by intimidating or bizarre companions'. Bizarre companions? That's the understatement of the century. The System is basically admitting my party is a walking circus of weirdos and that's the actual source of the intimidation. My reputation isn't dreadful; my entourage is just profoundly strange. I'll take it though. And a persuasion bonus at level two? Maybe I can talk the next group into just giving me their stuff instead. Every little bit helps when you're as statistically challenged as I am.
Before he could fully process the implications of his new bandit-baffling aura, another window flashed up, even brighter.
XP: 25/25 (+75)
LEVEL UP 1 -> 2!
Stat Points Awarded: 1 (1)
---
XP: 50/50 (+25)
LEVEL UP 2 -> 3!
Stat Points Awarded: 1 (2)
---
Level 3!
XP: 25/100
Level three! YES! Finally, some actual progression! Two whole levels in one go! I am on my way to becoming an OP Isekai god! He mentally pumped a fist. Then his gaze fell on the '2 Stat Points'. Oh. Right. Just two. Still. Two is infinitely better than zero. Progress!
He pulled up his status screen, bracing himself for the familiar feeling of hope and crushing reality.
STATUS
KELDRIC - Level: 3XP: 25/100
Stat Points Available: 2
|STR: 4/99| + |DEX: 6/99| + |INT: 8/99| +
|CON: 5/99| + |CHA: 7/99| + |LUCK: 3/99| +
Okay, Keldric, think. Deep breaths. Don't blow this. Two precious points. Standard Isekai logic: Strength (STR) if I ever want to lift anything heavier than a particularly dense comic book. Dexterity (DEX) if I plan on dodging all the things my companions will inevitably throw, set on fire, or accidentally summon. Intelligence (INT) for… well, my Intelligence (INT), which is already my 'best' stat at a whopping eight. Maybe push that to double digits? Feel like a real big brain for once?
He tapped a mental finger on CON. Five. My Constitution (CON) is five. That's not just 'low HP' like in a game. That's an open invitation for every fantasy plague and weird magical fungus to set up shop in my lungs. With five Constitution (CON), a simple scratch from a goblin's rusty dagger could fester and kill me a week after the actual fight. Talk about an anticlimactic ending.
As for Chad's 'light workout' involving me as a human dumbbell... having a high Constitution (CON) might not stop him from dropping me, but it might mean I actually recover from the strain instead of being permanently sore for the rest of my short, pathetic life.Yeah, maybe not dying from a splinter is a solid short-term goal. Survival first, OP godhood later. Much, much later, at this rate.
He then mentally scrolled through his unique skills, trying to connect the dots. [Cards]This one could be huge. Gear, summons, spells! What makes cards good? LUCK? pulling rares is a staple in every TCG or gacha system I've ever obsessed over. And if I get spell cards, Intelligence (INT) would be key. But since I have no idea how the card shop or drops even work yet, investing heavily now is a gamble.
[Miniatures]'Artistic ability directly affects army effectiveness,' the System says. That usually means Dexterity (DEX) for fine control, maybe Intelligence (INT) for complex designs. My Dexterity (DEX) is a pathetic six, Intelligence (INT) is eight. Could nudge those.
[Die of Desperate Measures]My current panic button. My only real 'active' unique skill. It's basically praying to the RNG gods. And what pleases RNG gods? LUCK. My LUCK is three. Three! That's practically an anti-luck field! Every point in LUCK must make those 'Critical Fail' outcomes less... critically life-ending.Or, thinking like that assassin from 'Shadows of Regret' who maxed Constitution (CON) first, maybe I should boost Constitution (CON) just to survive the inevitable backfires from a bad Die roll? But then again. Increasing LUCK should lower the chances of a bad role. Nullifying the need for a high Constitution (CON), However, pairing these two definitely seems like the correct way to go?
[Achievements] and [Isekai Intuition]Both passive. Don't seem like they'd directly benefit from any point changes.
Right. So, the Die is my only sure thing, skill-wise. It desperately needs LUCK. My life desperately needs Constitution (CON). Intelligence (INT) is... well, it's my least awful stat at eight. Two points. It's not going to make me OP overnight. It's barely going to make me 'adequately prepared for a gentle stroll'.
What if I'm not thinking properly because my Intelligence (INT) is low? Would leveling that up, make me be able to solve problems easily, and also create OP Meta builds on the fly?
Every Isekai has the MC max at least one stat. Do I want to do that though? Equally dispersing it doesn't seem appropriate either. Gotta sacrifice something. Constitution (CHA) is definitely needed, Charisma (CHA) for the ladies (Obviously), Intelligence (INT) for problem solving and magic. LUCK for the Die, and possibly the Cards as well.That leaves me with just Strength (STR) and Dexterity (DEX) as my sacrifices.
But I don't want to give up Strength (STR), I don't want to be weak. Who wants to be weak in a fantasy world?
Fine. Think. Given everything that has happened so far, and especially my adventuring party. The best plan of action would be to... increase LUCK to a five.
STATUS
KELDRIC - Level: 3XP: 25/100
Stat Points Available: 0 (2)
|STR: 4/99| + |DEX: 6/99| + |INT: 8/99| +
|CON: 5/99| + |CHA: 7/99| + |LUCK: 3/99| + | - +2 (5/99)
He mentally confirmed the allocation. A small chime, almost inaudible, echoed in his mind.
LUCK: 3/99 -> LUCK: 5/99
A tiny part of him felt a surge of reckless hope. The rest of him was still bracing for the inevitable next disaster, now with slightly better odds of it being a funny disaster. So that's it, then. My path is chosen. I'm officially the luck-based protagonist. The guy who wins by tripping over the solution.
I wonder if the System has a respec option later on? A 'Potion of Skill Reallocation' or something? There's almost always a respec option in the late game. I hope...
Once I'm done playing 'Luck-Man' I'm cashing in. Respeccing everything into Strength (STR) and Charisma (CHA), So I can become the super strong and charismatic protagonist I was always meant to be. An absolute lady-charmer! Yeah. That's the dream.
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