{Goblin Killed}
+200 exp
{Bloodline Skill 1: Hardened Scales}
{Proficiency:} Beginner {3%}
Kyle went through a few messages he had been ignoring since his battle with the goblin. The experience points gained from killing it were nothing impressive. However, his attention was instantly hooked when he noticed that the proficiency of his bloodline skill had increased by 3% overnight.
'It took me three months of setting traps and killing hundreds just to move my Pitfall Trap proficiency up by 10%, yet I was able to achieve a 3% increase for Hardened Scales in a single night.'
Kyle raised his head and looked at the mana ripples constantly pouring out of the earth flower formation. He didn't dare imagine what would happen if he spent an entire month here. He was certain he could push his Hardened Scales proficiency past the beginner stage.
"My personal gains from last night's hunt are nothing exceptional. If it wasn't for the fragmented mana node and this backpack, I would've considered the entire thing a waste."
Kyle kicked the crooked dagger stabbed into the ground beside him before shifting his attention back to the backpack.
Now that he was done checking the system updates, it was time to see what was inside.
Unbuckling the pack, he flipped it open, only to find two books. One was a small, palm-sized diary, while the other was a thick tome. There were also several herbs he couldn't recognize, along with two circular flasks. One was filled with a rich red liquid, the other with an azure-blue one.
'This is a lot.'
Kyle's face bloomed with excitement.
Instinctively, he ignored everything else and reached straight for the tome. The moment his fingers touched it, a familiar notification bell rang in his head, followed by a new set of messages appearing before his eyes.
{Fire Ball Spell}
{Tier:} 0
{Cost:} 5 MP
{Requirement:} 5 INT
'Yes!'
Kyle exclaimed inwardly but didn't dare make a sound. Not when massive bugs were feasting on a corpse just a stone's throw away. The last thing he wanted was to draw unnecessary attention.
{300 experience points required to learn this skill. Do you wish to proceed?}
{Yes/No}
"You know, your stinginess doesn't surprise me anymore."
Kyle wasn't moved by the shameless system demanding experience points for an ability he clearly met the requirements for. He selected yes.
The tome in his hands erupted with orange light. Strange runes matching the tome's color briefly appeared on his forehead before fading away.
{Tier 0 Fire Ball Skill Learned!}
{New Milestone Reached: Path of the Mage}
{Congratulations on learning your first spell.}
{+300 exp & 3 Talent Points}
With that, the tome lost its glow and went silent.
"God, I have so many questions. But I know you won't answer them, so what's the point of asking?"
He set the tome aside and lifted the flasks, inspecting them one after the other.
{Lesser Health Regeneration Flask}
{+30 HP and +3 HP regeneration for 60s}
{Lesser Mana Regeneration Flask}
{+30 MP and +3 MP regeneration for 60s}
"This person must've been an alchemist."
Kyle came to that conclusion after examining the flasks and the herbs in the backpack. This time, the system refused to reveal any information about the unique grasses. It was annoying, but Kyle didn't dwell on it for long.
Eventually, he focused on the last item: a diary with the name "Diary of Thomas Carlegar" boldly written on its cover.
"A human noble?" Kyle muttered, intrigued.
The items alone had already piqued his curiosity. Finding the owner's diary only made it impossible to resist.
Without hesitation, he flipped it open.
To his surprise, it was written in English.
This would've been useless in the goblin's hands, but to Kyle, it was a heaven-sent opportunity to view the world through the eyes of someone from Earth.
"This is my first entry.
I have chosen to record my thoughts not for vanity, nor for legacy, but for clarity. While others of my age rush to participate in the world, eager to test their strength or prove their worth, I have chosen a different path. I wish to understand the world before I act within it. Only by understanding power can one ever hope to wield it without being consumed.
I am twelve years old.
That fact alone would make most dismiss what I write here. Yet because I was born into House Carlegar, my world has never been limited by my age. I have sat in halls where generals spoke of war as if it were weather. I have listened to mages debate theory with scholars who had lived twice my lifetime. I have spoken with cultivators whose presence alone bent the air around them. Men of repute. Men of status. Men the world calls strong.
I asked them questions.
Not about techniques. Not about spells. Not about secrets they would never share.
I asked them what they believed power truly was.
Their answers differed in words, in tone, in arrogance or humility, but a pattern revealed itself the more I listened.
The weak see power as something external.
They chase weapons, artifacts, bloodlines, titles, spells, and borrowed authority. To them, power is something to be acquired, something granted, something that exists outside the self. When it is taken from them, they collapse with it.
The strong see power as something internal.
To them, tools are merely extensions. Titles are meaningless. Even magic is only a method, not the source. Power is cultivated, refined, understood, and embodied. It cannot be stripped away because it was never external to begin with.
This realization struck me harder than any lesson ever could.
Perhaps that is why some mages remain fragile despite their spells, while sorcerers can stand unarmed before monsters and not falter. One borrows power from the world. The other reshapes the world through themselves.
I do not yet know which path I will walk.
But I know this: until I understand power at its root, I will not rush forward blindly like the rest. Observation precedes action. Understanding precedes dominance.
If power truly comes from within, then I must first learn how to look inward.
This diary will be my witness."
Reading just the first entry was enough to hook Kyle completely.
His eyes returned to a single line, and he read it aloud.
"Perhaps that is why some mages remain fragile despite their spells, while sorcerers can stand unarmed before monsters and not falter."
Those words struck deep. Along with the descriptions of both paths, they brought with them countless questions.
Excited, Kyle prepared to turn the page—
Rustle.
The sound of leaves shifting snapped his head up instantly.
Finally.
Someone else had come to take his spot.