Courage

"Knighthood?! Proctor of the Fallen? Chivalry? The h*ll?!"

Haler stood dazed at the screen. Since when did his Peasant Class transform into such an extravagant class? Haler had never heard of people switching classes. Even if he did not pay attention, people would have been talking about what class they would change to in the future if that were possible. Therefore, this was not normal.

What to do? Ask the Scholar?

No.

Haler understood firsthand the evils one would commit to acquire a better class. Even if Ullrich the Scholar could not switch to it, he has a baby due soon. Even the Village Chief could not resist the temptation of a higher class much less a Scholar.

Also, there is no guarantee Ullrich would know what has happened. It is much safer to stay quiet about it and figure it out alone. Everything was much safer alone.

Haler, at a moment of rare seriousness, scanned the new additions to his profile.

The new class was a branch of the Knighthood Class Tree. This explained the addition of the chivalry system. The chivalry system could increase stats a max of 100%. It seems that he already got one point in [Courage].

'Ah!' Haler exclaimed as he immediately understood the origin of the strength that allowed for his successful hunt.

Ignoring all the stuff he could not understand like percentages and weird vocabulary, it seemed to benefit him. After all, a big number equals big strength.

To be fair, a commoner had no need in understanding things like math. Only Scholars and Magicians needed to understand mathematical concepts. The average person only needed to understand that the bigger the number, the better it is. Unless there was a minus before said numbers.

This is what the average Magic Academy taught. One could wonder how lost Haler was if the people who paid attention only learned these simple concepts.

To Haler, there was no point in being exceptional at math. When will his life depend on multiplication or division? He only needed to be fast or strong and his problems will be solved.

'Speaking of speed.' Haler immediately went into the borrow. He wanted to max his attributes as fast as possible in preparation for the graduation exam. That was the main reason he did not rest much after every death.

He thought back to the Village Chief's words.

"As long as you pass the Graduation Exam, your behavior won't be penalized."

What behavior? For the small village, disrupting classroom instruction time was considered a capital crime. Not only that, Haler single-handedly broke the greatest teacher in Burdock Magic Academy. Normally, Haler would be in prison rotting away if not for the Village Chief's protection.

For that reason, Haler did not exactly hate the Village Chief. Nonetheless, he still did not want to stay in a place that took his father's last gift to him.

[Entering the Mouse Borrow]

The familiar dimly lit cave entered his sights.

So far, Haler only met Lightning Mice. Different monsters dropped different crystals. The Lightning Mouse was heavily focused on speed via lightning therefore the greatest crystal drops would be Agility Crystals and Lightning Crystals.

Elemental Crystals are hard to come by and it could be said they were rarer than an Astral Egg. These crystals allowed for resistance, quicker casting speeds, and less energy drainage regarding spell casting.

Haler doubted he would get anything higher than a 9 Agility Crystal from the mice he fought therefore he was looking forward to obtaining a Lightning Crystal.

Haler, who almost never pays attention, knew nothing about how groundbreaking obtaining a Lightning Crystal was. He did not know that an elemental crystal is what transitioned magicians into sorcerers. Getting a Lightning Crystal would have been gaining a talent.

What Haler did know is that the Lightning Crystal would let him use [Lightning Speed] for longer. With that in mind, the hunt officially began.

Haler headed straight for the bowl. The spear-like twig would be useful for the slaughter. He realized that his lack of weaponry kept him from excelling.

He put his hand on the weakest part of the wood and gave it a good hit. Like last time, Haler needed four hits to break the stick out. Now fully equipped with both a pebble and a 'spear', Haler made his way towards a mouse.

The mouse was sniffing across the floor looking for something to eat. It was in a semi-diligent state but was more focused on the idea of food than defending itself. It continued to sniff its way towards the broken bowl as it smelled something interesting.

In quick movements, it poked its head under the bowl and tried to flick up. Before it could accomplish that however, its' brain was scrambled by a mighty stick. Without even a whimper, it fell with no drops.

Haler learned from his previous mistakes and instantly left the area. He saw a little borrow from the corner of his eyes and went in. Maybe he would find a new breed of mice. Just as he left, the hoard of Lightning Mice made a ruckus going through each nook and cranny for food.

Unlike the illuminated Lightning Mouse area, the small tunnel was extremely dark. There was no indication of an end even as Haler walked for ten minutes. Haler was not known for his perseverance, so he went to go check if the Lightning Mice left the area.

He backtracked and found the borrow almost deserted besides a few sickly-looking mice. With his 'spear' in hand, he went for the slaughter. The moment he entered the battlefield, he felt his attributes surge. A stream of dark energy funneled into Haler's heart as he faced off the forty-sum mice.

Each punch contained power that was multiple folds higher than Haler was capable of. For a second, he thought that the [Chivalry System] was coming into play before his eyes met the description of his class.

'Two increase in stats whenever fighting near the dead?! Isn't ten the max for the Mortal Sequence?' Haler was confused but he did not stop his slaughter. With his agility reaching Legendary Sequence, the mice had no chance.

Even after killing forty of these mice, no crystals or eggs dropped. It seemed like his luck was exaggerated the last couple of kills.

Haler felt the thumping of the Lightning Mouse hoard and immediately went to the dark tunnel. He wanted to wait it out again but after five minutes, he found that the mice were not willing to leave.

'So they aren't that dumb.' Haler lamented.

Seeing nothing better to do, Haler went further into the dark hole. If his strength and constitution were both at nine, then he would have not feared to charge in there. Even if he died, he would have killed a fair number of mice.

Haler did not expect to find anything for the first few minutes, so he was more patient than before. He walked for more than forty minutes before seeing light. The boredom he faced when walking in the dark was immeasurable.

Before he ran out of the tunnel, he remembered his father's teachings.

In the bushes hid him and his father. They were looking at a stuck wolf. His father's eyes glinted dangerously.

"When hunting, remember to put yourself in the shoes of your prey. Only after knowing what you want to capture, can you manipulate their death throws." He whispered to Haler while his eyes were glued onto the wolf. "Give them a little way out. Never put too much pressure. Most importantly, make them think freedom is just ahead."

Haler remembered the ending the wolf got. He remembered the basis of the trap. It was happening to him now. Except he was not the hunter. He was the wolf.