Two years later-

Within a small shared room-

A young teen sat cross-legged on his bed, quietly meditating, a small crystal in his hand. His body was powerful, having a muscular yet athletic build with pronounced lean muscles. At a glance, anyone could tell that he was a fighter. If not for his childish face that has yet to grow facial hair, one might mistake him for a 16-year-old youth.

After a while, the crystal dimmed before crumbling to dust, and the young man opened his eyes and sighed.

"Hah... the technique is having less and less effect on me. It seems like I need to switch to a better one soon." Maximo shook his head.

And then, he looked out of the window, looking at the city, his eyes feeling complicated.

"It has been two years already, hah? Time sure flies..."

In the last two years, Maximo hasn't wasted even a day.

He studied under several adventurers, learning multiple subjects. Among them were reading, writing, calculating, training his body, swordsmanship, archery, hand-to-hand combat, first aid, map reading, riding, survival, and memorizing various monsters and plants.

One would expect an adventurer to be a boor, but they were far from boorish. By all means, it was a multi-faceted, skilled profession, and it unlocked multiple classes and abilities! While anyone could become an adventurer, which was why they often had a bad reputation, to be a good adventurer, you needed to specialize in various things.

Additionally, he learned two more things. These included a low-level, balanced warrior technique for absorbing crystals, and he was also taught how to meditate, sense, and manipulate mana despite having no affinity to it.

For crystal-absorbing techniques, there were apparently several types, including those that focused on certain aspects while neglecting others.

When using them, the effects were almost immediate on the body. His body immediately got a bit stronger after using the technique, and it could be used once a day. However, low-level techniques could only absorb weak crystals, and the amount was small, being dependent on both the technique mastery and the user. As the user became more saturated, the technique would gradually lose its effectiveness, requiring them to seek out higher-quality techniques.

He also obtained three G-rank crystals, worth over 10 MCP each, every day, absorbing two with his Gift, while the third via the technique. It was the optimal formula for his current growth stage, after all.

As for mana manipulation, it was to try and see if he could unlock Magic Affinity.

The answer was both a yes and a no. Yes, because it was possible, and no, because he didn't meet the prerequisites set by the system!

 

 

Maximo didn't quite understand why it was like this, so he inquired and discovered that those who had exceptional meditation skills and focus could theoretically increase their Magic Affinity by a small margin.

Apparently, that theory was correct.

However, Maximo didn't even have a single class or ability at lvl 100, let alone 200! And if he focused on Concentration and Meditation, he would be neglecting the rest of his foundation!

Helpless, Maximo could only postpone dabbling in magic, as other skills were far more practical and immediately useful to him.

With the daily upkeep rising to 20, Maximo could now raise 3 abilities simultaneously, each receiving 8 exp, meaning his total improvement tripled from 8 total exp to 24 exp.

Naturally, there was a catch to receiving the invested training resources, food, lodging, equipment, and tutelage. When he grew older, he needed to give up a fifth of the money he got from jobs and monster drops until he covered his debt to the guild. Specifically, the amount stipulated was 5,000 silver coins. At first, it might sound like a ridiculously large sum, but it really wasn't. Just the Magic Crystals he absorbed over two years were worth over 1,000 silver coins, and food and lodging were not cheap! He was also being tutored by adventurers, wasting their time. They didn't teach him out of charity. After all, the Adventurer's Guild was a business! And there was also the risk factor, where he could die while adventuring... or decide to run away.

Either way, the two years proved very fruitful...

 

 

As Maximo promised himself, he raised Health to 100, assuring him that he wouldn't die from a random plague. Now, he never gets sick anymore. It also made him more energetic, which enabled him to train harder.

For the rest, Maximo improved them all to 50, as they were all important skills. However, from here, he planned on focusing on Concentration, Meditation, Strength, Endurance, and Agility, until they all reached 100. After all, his body was his foundation, and he wanted to learn magic one day!

While Maximo was stuck in his thoughts, a young voice entered his ears.

"Hey, Erosyialium to Maximo! Wake up! Snap* Snap*"

Maximo turned his head and saw a cheeky kid, around his age, but with an immature body befitting his age, looking at him with annoyance.

"What is it, Darnell?" Maximo asked his roommate and fellow rookie.

The kid was Darnell Bell, a peculiar guy born with white, shaggy hair and golden eyes. He had the makings of a handsome man, but he tended to be impatient and snappy. Like Maximo, he was also Gifted, having stealth powers, and apparently, he was a local orphan in the city who happened to get scouted and recruited into the guild. Specifically, he specialized in sneak attacks, trap detection, and lockpicking, being trained by rogue-type adventurers.

While he didn't hunt anything, there was apparently a screening test in the city, where they brought a weak Magic Crystal for kids to hold. If the kid absorbed the crystal, that meant he was Gifted. From there, if he were a Commoner, olive branches would extend to him, wanting to recruit him. Darnell happened to choose the Adventurer's Guild, especially since it had a strong presence in this dungeon city.

When Darnell heard him, he rolled his eyes.

"What is it, he says... Did you forget we agreed to do a final training session with Lilly and Abigail in the afternoon before going to the dungeon for the first time tomorrow?" Darnell asked, feeling exasperated.

"Geez, this guy zones out sometimes..." Darnell pursed his lips.

"Ah, right..." Maximo remembered, noticing that Darnell was wearing his gear, and got up.

When Darnell saw Maximo's height, towering over him by over a head, he couldn't help but inwardly curse.

"Damn, are we even the same age?! You could pass for being 16 or 17!"

If it weren't for seeing how Maximo grew like a bamboo shoot, widening the gap between them by half a head in the span of two years, he really wouldn't believe it.

After Maximo got geared up, the two young teens exited their room and headed downstairs, entering a living room.

The place they were in was a boarding house affiliated with the guild, offering discounted prices to long-term stays, potentially for years. This was very convenient, as many adventurers were unmarried and needed affordable food and lodging, yet couldn't buy a house, as they might leave for extended periods of time.

As they approached the entrance, they saw a pretty 14-year-old girl sweeping the floor while humming to herself. She was a typical girl-next-door, a slightly freckled brunette, the house owner's daughter, Shannon.

"Ah, hello, boys. Dinner will be ready in about two hours, so don't be late!" Shannon kindly reminded.

"Thank you, Shannon!" Maximo smiled.

"We will be back on time." Darnell nodded.

As the two left, they didn't notice that Shannon had a strange look in her eyes, especially when looking at Maximo's large and strong back, and bit her lips.

"It is hard to believe he is only 12... I wonder if he is into older girls?"

.

.

.

Minutes later-

Maximo and Darnell entered the guild, seeing the blond Kristin at the reception desk. She appeared slightly more mature, which only added to her charm, and was currently flirting with another adventurer.

Over the last two years, Maximo learned the truth about why Kristin, who was a peak C-rank adventurer at the time, agreed to be a guild clerk... It was to find a husband, get married, and retire, as simple as that. However, considering that Kristin was actually 27 now, the age was more than appropriate and could even be considered slightly late.

Not wanting to disturb the humanoid gorilla... er... the beautiful lady from her love life, the two boys quietly went down to the guild basement, the training center.

Among the training adventurers, there were two young girls their age.

One was a red-haired girl with blood-red eyes, and the other was a golden-haired girl with blue eyes and curly hair, looking like a young Kristin. Both girls were budding beauties, bound to become beautiful when they grew older. This was a common trait of the Gifted, as they tended to look more handsome and beautiful.

The red-haired one was Lilly, a Gifted from the boonies who unlocked sorcerous fire magic as her innate gift. She didn't speak about her past, so Maximo didn't know what her earlier childhood or family were like.

Meanwhile, Abigail was Kristin's niece, born to a knightly family, yet she decided to follow her aunt's footsteps. And as it happens, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, as she was also a humanoid gorilla... er... a refined lady. Her vastly improved strength and endurance made her a natural shield warrior, and she was twice as strong as Maximo despite her looks.

Together with Maximo and Darnell, they had a swordsman/archer, a shield warrior, a rogue, and a fire sorceress, which was a relatively balanced team.

"Took you guys long enough! Making two girls wait..." Lilly pouted, her hands on her hips.

"Maximo daydreamed again." Darnell helplessly shrugged.

"Sorry..." Maximo awkwardly rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, it doesn't matter. Let's start our last training session before we go dungeoning tomorrow." Abigail said.

"Ah, hang on a moment. I want to check my Power Level." Maximo said and walked to the measuring pillar.

Taking a deep breath, Maximo threw a punch.

Bam*

The number quickly rose, before settling at 1,282.

"Hm. It rose a bit." Maximo lightly nodded at the result before returning to the others.