Jeanne, as commander, was overseeing everyone as they carefully checked their combat readiness.
Rose, as the party's head steward, was as usual diligently taking inventory of supplies and provisions.
The work was tedious, but she did not let a single detail slide. Any insignificant little thing could become everyone's lifeline at a critical moment.
At the very rear of the party, Leon stood hooded, head slightly lowered, his gaze resting calmly on his open palm. He was fully absorbed, feeling out all the changes that came with reaching Lv.5.
...
First:
Naturally, the sublimation of the "vessel." To other people this sort of mysterious thing could not be seen with the naked eye, and it offered no concrete feedback. But Leon was different. He had a cheat.
So he could clearly sense exactly what the sublimated "vessel" amounted to:
Namely... after the level up, the potential ceiling of this frail garbage body of his had risen by another tier across all Basic Abilities, that is, by 100 points, finally landing somewhere around 600+ to 700+.
It still could not compare to those freaks with extraordinary talent who could hammer their Basic Abilities up past 900, but next to his original sorry state of barely 200-odd points, this progress was enough to satisfy Leon.
Although for him now, 200+ or 600+ or 700+ made no essential difference. At most it meant spending a bit more Excelia and "money power."
But human nature worked that way. The more you lacked something, the more you craved it.
Leon was human, so he was no exception.
He had once been desperately short on potential, so even though potential no longer posed an obstacle, in the deepest part of his heart he still cared a great deal about raising it.
Precisely because he had once had none, he treasured it all the more.
He wanted to have it, so he paid attention to it.
...
Second:
The changes to Magic and Skills.
The vast majority of his magic and skills had only been simply strengthened a little. Not much change.
For example his first magic, Genesis Origin. After several rounds of upgrade enhancement, it could now not only view his own potential but also view other people's potential. How to put this ability? Better than nothing.
After all, Leon's main channel for recruiting Familia members was the Familia Invitation, and anyone who could be invited over would hardly have especially poor potential. On top of that, the Beloved's Crest had been strengthened too and its effect was better now, which made this ability look even more useless.
Besides the first magic, the other changes were small as well. The second magic, Heaven and Earth: Fortune's Blessing, became safer after strengthening. Without Leon's own consent, whether it was a Status Thief or another god forcing divine power on it, viewing a Familia member's Falna was flatly impossible. Not one word of it.
The third magic, Leon Hart's Magic Notebook, had wider channels for recording and learning. Leon even had a faint feeling that even this world's one-of-a-kind magic, the kind a Falna digs out of a single individual, could be recorded so long as the other party was willing to teach it.
As for actually learning it, that depended on Scholar's Heart.
On the skill side, the Beloved's Crest had not changed much. Besides a stronger bond effect, the disguise effect had become even more flawless. Divine lie-detection and soul-piercing effects were now completely nullified. What they saw was only what the Beloved's Crest wanted them to see.
The rest of the skills, Scholar's Heart, Demon Lord's Crest, Hand of Omnipotence, the True Essence of Fist Technique, and Arcane Ward, all changed about the same way, their respective effects slightly strengthened on their original basis according to the level increase. Nothing that affected the big picture.
Only Proof of Traversal produced a qualitative change out of the quantitative one, achieving an effect that left Leon wild with joy!
...
Proof of Traversal
A property that deviates from common sense and differs from ordinary understanding. (System attribute breakthrough, magic quantity limit breakthrough, increased number of selectable Development Abilities)
Free allocation of Excelia, or limit breakthrough in combination with offerings;
Drastic reduction of the high-quality Excelia needed for level sublimation;
Reduced requirement for obtaining full Excelia
...
Reduced requirement for obtaining full Excelia
"Heh heh heh..."
Leon lowered his head and put a hand to his brow, shoulders shaking.
"Hahahahahaha!"
What followed was a manic grin, unrestrained roaring laughter!
What did "reduced requirement for obtaining full Excelia" mean?
Translated into plain words: before Lv.5, he had to defeat or kill enemies of his own level to gain full Excelia, and now that Proof of Traversal's quantitative change had turned qualitative, he only needed to defeat enemies of Lv.4 to gain full Excelia.
Full Excelia acquisition requirement lowered by one level!
With a surprise like that, how could Leon not laugh like a madman?
"Never would have guessed, never would have guessed. Reaching Lv.5 came with a bonus like this!"
"It really is the dividing line between the strong and the ants. No wonder Lv.5 is also called Hero Candidate..."
Leon took a deep breath, calmed himself down a little, then turned his gaze to the status panel again.
The sublimation of the "vessel." The strengthening of Magic and Skills.
...
Last:
The additional Development Ability slots gained on reaching Lv.5.
At Lv.2, as a bottom-rung adventurer struggling to survive, Leon's first priority had been to raise his immediate combat power fast so he could handle the challenges coming one after another. So he had chosen Hunter, Mage, and Abnormal Resistance without hesitation.
Hunter raised subjugation efficiency and damage output.
Mage directly strengthened the power and effect of his magic.
Abnormal Resistance was an indispensable hard guarantee for surviving the Dungeon. Without it you could not take a single step.
On rising to Lv.3, Leon's survival pressure had not eased, it had grown. To strengthen his resistance to every kind of risk, he had put all three slots into life-preserving abilities without hesitation.
Strong Body raised physical endurance, Magic Resistance hardened him against spells, and Escape provided the mobility to break out of danger at the critical moment.
These days, if your frame is not tough and your escape methods are not practiced enough, how are you supposed to get by in Orario and the Dungeon, where danger waits everywhere?
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