Chapter 14: I Want Power (Part 2)
Arthur:
"Claude"
An angry voice was suddenly heard.
"Sir… Sir… Sir Deputy Commander, what brought you here?!" I turned with difficulty and saw him speaking with a frowning and frightened face.
I was able to see who he was speaking with, a man wearing brown clothes protected by a silver chest plate and shoulder and elbow guards.
From his appearance, he seemed to me to be a swordsman.
"Claude. Do you want to be punished again? We do not have many laborers, and here you are now trying to reduce them."
He said with his voice changing and his face darkening, his thick brown eyebrows pressing together.
"Given the lack of laborers, I think I will intervene and make some members work… we have many of them."
"Please… forgive me, it was my mistake. This is the last time I will do such a thing, please spare me." Claude said as he hurried crawling to his deputy's legs.
"How long will you continue like this, huh???" After saying this, the deputy commander pulled back his leg so his shoe would not get dirty from his subordinate's snot.
"Ugh… Fine, I will grant you one last chance."
Upon hearing this, Claude's eyes sparkled and he sincerely thanked the deputy leader.
The deputy commander of the camp looked around and noticed that the slaves were no longer working. He lowered his head, and the aura around him changed to display a brilliant color.
"Go and continue digging, or I will come and dig out your heads."
Upon hearing that, the slaves moved their butts and started digging at an incredible speed.
The deputy commander turned towards the exit after reprimanding his subordinate.
After that Claude did not say a single word except to warn the slaves not to stop working and to keep watching them.
At that time, I took the poor old man to a rocky wall and let him lean on it.
"Are you alright, Grandpa?" I asked.
"Cough… cough… Thank you for saving me. There was no need to bear the troubles of this dying old man… cough… cough… I don't have much time left. I have become too old to work here after spending 20 years in this mine." The old man spoke while suffering.
"Don't worry, I like to help those in need."
Wow, twenty years?? That is miserable. How will I escape from here? I began to think of a very bleak future.
[Alright, my lord hero]
[Because of your beautiful thinking and heroic performance, for the thousandth time I stop your skill from working to prevent you from collapsing motionless on the ground. You need the energy now, and my thanks.]
Thank you.
The old man looked at me and began to cry.
I was shocked: "Sorry… sorry, did I say something wrong?"
When the old man looked at me he smiled and said: "Nothing, I just remember the nostalgia when I was young and still had status and power. Until the day came when I thought I had died since then."
An expression of hatred and extreme loathing appeared on the old man's face as he continued talking:
"Noble scum… they know nothing but their filthy rank and their arrogant stance. My wife was beautiful, just a normal villager I met when I was 15. Since that day until now, I have always loved her. We married at 18, and I was blessed with two children from her. A boy and a girl — they were my eyes."
His tears began to fall heavily once more as he continued:
"Until one day, a noble passed by the village. I was the village chief and he was the lord of the domain. Thus he came to visit my house. And there, the bastard took notice of my wife and also of my sharp sword. I killed him, how dare he look at my wife as he pleased?! She is the apple of my eye."
He clenched his teeth tightly, his eyes close to popping out, clearly recalling certain scenes.
"That was truly the end of my life. My wife was raped before my eyes by the followers of the noble's brother, and my children were slaughtered. And my fate ended in slavery. The world is truly darkness… ahahahahahaha…"
Hearing this, I consoled the old man for his miserable life, and I saw that I was in the same situation as him, without a family — even worse and harsher. That made the old man's condition improve.
"Hey… what are you doing?? Do you think that after I was scolded you will be spared and do whatever you want?" Claude appeared behind us after losing his patience as he had been watching from afar.
Hearing that, I became angry and said: "The old man will not work, let him rest a little or else he will die. You know that if anything happens to him the blame falls on you."
"You…" Veins appeared on Claude's hand that was holding a whip, but he could not do anything to us.
He gave a sinister smile: "Fine… so be it. I hope he does not die of hunger then… hahaha, because he will not be able to eat if he does not work."
"I will take care of him. This is none of your business."
I stood up and approached Claude until the distance between us was about 10 centimeters. My serious black eyes met his.
As soon as I looked at him, his expression changed and he turned away. "Hmph, show me how you will provide food for both you and him."
I turned to the old man and told him: "I will go and exchange the points I collected for food."
I went to the line to get food. In the line I noticed something strange.
Among those I was waiting with was a group with good muscles and who looked very healthy. Wow, they had strong muscles, they must be collecting a lot of gems.
After waiting a long time, it was finally my turn. I looked at the board above the man distributing the food:
– 3 points: Rock-hard bread
– 5 points: Yesterday's bread
– 5 points: Water
– 10 points: Soup
– 15 points: Vegetable soup + bread
– 20 points: Vegetable soup + bread + water
– 25 points: Meat soup
– 30 points: Meat soup + bread + water
– 35 points: …..
– 40
– 45
I thought carefully about the order. Only 10 points really gives nothing. Well, balance is most important.
I will take rock-hard bread, and yesterday's bread.
"Give me the slip." I gave him a slip and he checked it, then handed me two breads.
I took them and left the line to go to the poor old man.
I gave him yesterday's bread, and I took the rock-hard bread.
"Here you go, Grandpa… this is what I was able to provide today. But the situation will improve in the coming days."
"Thank you, young man. Don't worry, don't trouble yourself with an old man already dead." He wanted to return the bread to me.
Seeing that, I pushed his hand holding the bread back towards him.
"No no… please don't embarrass me by refusing, I am only doing this to satisfy myself."
"What a kind young man you are." He started nibbling at the bread, tears falling.
Well, I ate bread like stone. Every bite was torture for me, as my saliva could not soften it. But even so, I had to finish it.
After finishing eating, I swear my gums bled in some places.
I grabbed my pickaxe and with strong will began digging.
Dig… dig… dig…
I collected 10 gems plus 2 more. I now had 12 Mana gems.
[Helper System]
[You have gained 10 Experience Points]
[Level 3 (400/100) —> Level 3 (400/110)]
And my skill [Skill I Miner (Level 1)] evolved as well.
[Skill I Miner (Level 4) —> Skill I Miner (Level 5)]
[Increase +1 Strength permanently]
[Skill level has increased]
[Skill I ----> Skill II]
[You have reached the limit of Skill I evolution]
[You can choose between the following evolutions:
– [Professional Miner]
[Description: A great increase in the rate of obtaining Mana gems]
– [Warrior Miner]
[Description: You are a miner, but no one dares to approach you.
Permanent increase of +5 Strength.]
]
It's a difficult choice, one helps me now, and one helps me permanently.
Hmm…
Alright, I have made my decision. I will mine and will not stop.
[Skill II Warrior Miner (Level 1)]
[Description: You are an honorable miner, no one dares to speak to your muscles]
[Level 1 —> Level 2
Condition: Strike 100 times with the pickaxe.]
Suddenly I began to feel heaviness in my body and my clothes became tighter. Wow, my arm muscles had become massive.
I was astonished, but that was not my goal, I turned and continued digging for gems.
Until I reached 20 Mana gems. And I also gained a new skill.
[Helper System]
[You have gained 10 Experience Points]
[Level 3 (400/110) —> Level 3 (400/190)]
[You have met the requirements to activate your ability]
[Your Body Learns]
[Skill]
[Skill I Muscle Strain (Level 1)]
[Description: Your muscles have torn many times from the excessive work; your cells learn a way to adapt from that.
Permanent increase of +5 Strength.]
[Level 1 —> Level 2
Condition: Strain your muscles until they tear]
—---------------------------
[States]
[Character:
– Name and surname: Arthur Field
– Ethnicity: Human
– Ability: Learning – Rank S
– Level 3 (400/190)
– Statistics Points: 0
]
[Properties:
– Strength: 13 + (15)
– Agility: 5
– Defense (Vitality, Resistance): 4 + (20)
– Intelligence (Mana): 10
]
[Skills:
– [Skill I I'm not thirsty (Level 1)]
– [Skill II Stacked Damage Resistance (Level 1)]
– [Skill I Sword Art of the Field Family (Level 1)]
– [Skill II Rapid Cell Evolution (Level 1)]
– [Skill I Burning Hand (Level 1)]
– [Skill II Warrior Miner (Level 1)]
– [Skill I Bleeding Resistance (Level 1)]
– [Skill I Pain Resistance (Level 1)]
– [Skill I Muscle Strain (Level 1)]
]