CH670

“You really are trying to turn yourself into a monster, you know that?” Myriad sighed. “Nobody awakens skills after only a couple days of having them Ben, nobody.”

“Sure they do, I’m right here. Besides, if I’m really under a fourth-tier job then a second-tier awakening has to basically just be like raising any other level to skills that apply to it. Honestly, with how easy getting it was, getting material manipulation to the third tier might not be an unreasonable dream either.”

“You are never going to get anything done if you keep raising your list of goals.”

“It’s not a goal, just a thought, don’t worry. I was already thinking about how I might try and lift my mind skills to that level in the next few years if I survive, it’s the same thing there.”

“Just how powerful do you want to become?”

“Hey, as long as I don’t die in the process, if we win then I’ve got over a century of life ahead of me after all of my current awakenings. More if Thera keeps trying to extend my lifespan with her magic and I’d extend it even further with even a single third-tier awakening. Do you really think I wouldn’t take advantage of that time to try and grow more? Heck, with all of that time, I could aim to raise some other skills too, I certainly wouldn’t say no to seeing what a third-tier inclination would look like or maybe my intelligence enhancement given how much growth I’m already seeing in that attribute after awakening it only a couple days ago.”

“...Just keep that musing up here away from other prying ears,” Myriad told him. “Honestly, the sort of nightmare it looks like you have the potential to grow into, I can only wonder how things would have turned out if the demon’s invasion had held off for another decade?”

“God, I wish.”

With that much extra time to grow, he felt confident he could have been a contender in a few more skills by then, even if he wouldn’t have necessarily had the same drive to awaken them. It wasn’t like he wouldn’t have wanted to or had it as a goal but the threat of obliteration was a powerful motivator, one he could feel even then.

“Well, ignoring your quest for horrifying levels of power, the other gods have accepted your offer to produce your new tools in exchange for getting to see the mythic items of the world. It’s not something we’ll be able to do immediately seeing as how they’re currently getting some heavy use as I’m sure you can imagine but I’ll let you know when they’ll make them available.”

“And in that case, after I’m done tomorrow I’ll drop off what I already have at Anailia’s church so her people can handle distribution and then focus on making more when I have time.”

“Not exactly like it takes you long since you’re materializing then all in one go. I’ve told you you’re horrifying before, right?”

“A hurtful number of times, yes. Doesn’t matter, I’m useful. Anyway, I should probably head down and start the day.”

“Fine, fine. Let me know how your potion affects your attributes after you drink it I guess.”

“...”

“What. What aren’t you telling me?”

“Nothing.”

“You’re getting your results for how all of your tests turned out when you leave and tomorrow is the day you’d be drinking your strengthening potion anyway. What was with the pause, what the hell are you about to do?”

“The lack of trust hurts so much, you know that, right?”

“Ben, tell me so I don’t feel compelled to watch you all day.”

“In that case, just feel compelled to watch me while I’m in Stonewall and you’ll see.”

“You are the worst and are on the edge of giving me a panic attack. It’s only been a few days since you got back and you’ve already done so much, what the hell are you going to do?”

Not giving another word, Ben left the realm for the night, not wanting to have the talk he knew would ensue if he explained himself as he instead ran away, leaving with the feeling that it would be easier to ask for forgiveness while his god fell into despair.

---

“Hot damn, this is better than I was hoping for. Like, a lot better.”

Going over all of the results from his various potions, only three recipes were weakened for his experimentation along with a few people who got only three point bonuses but across all of the data, there was far more to see.

Interestingly, there were a few potions that seemed to raise a few attributes more than others and there were a handful that doubled the expected result, giving a dozen people lucky enough to get them attribute bonuses of six to everything.

Any one of those would have been good enough to invest in, if not for his holy grail. The single recipe he’d found among them all that raised all attributes by seven for the few volunteers who drank it, threatening to make him break out into a wide grin for all to see while he was busy dropping off the new bracelets to Anailia’s church.

Assuming the effects of defiler of ambrosia kept up the same way they had after eating Jagal’s fruit, that meant he’d be getting fourteen points for each one, a monthly bonus that others would kill for.

There really is nothing better than being so compatible with magical steroids. He thought happily as he passed through his gate back to Stonewall, with Myriad picking that exact moment to pop into his head.

<Yes yes, you’re extraordinarily blessed so what exactly are you going to do already? Tell me so I can stop panicking.>

You’re exaggerating.

<I’m feeling levels of anxiety that even the invasion doesn’t cause me. There’s nothing more worrying than you not telling me what you’re up to Ben!>

I have no clue what I could have ever done to cause that sort of feeling in you.

He got less of an answer to that than he did a pained scream but for the most part he ignored it to instead set up the shop for potion making, using the recipe that had pulled the best results as he pulled out ingredients he had prepared from the day before, carefully measuring everything out to make a large cauldron of the stuff by the end before divvying it out across a few hundred bottles and repeating the process to make more.

He was creating it for himself, his friends, and the entire dryad village. It was important to make sure he got everything he needed to finished for the months to come ahead of time, but Myriad didn’t see it that way.

<You’re stalling. You’re stalling to make me suffer.>

“I’m really not.”

<Then just do whatever you’re going to already!>

“Fine, fine, just let me finish up here and I’ll get started.”

With hundreds of potions made, Ben gave them a look before storing them away, thinking out loud.

“You know, I can’t just call these strengthening potions anymore, can I? It’s a different recipe and the effects are more than doubled, what do you think of calling them divine potions?”

<FINE, SURE, WHATEVER. NOW WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?>

“Ah, just one more second.”

Taking the last potion he had out, Ben raised it to his lips, holding the bottle there for a second without pouring it back before putting it away with a grin.

“Okay, that one actually was to mess with you.”

<You’re a monster.>

“Gotta live up to my titles. Anyway, I’m actually starting now so stop fussing, you’ll get to see in a minute.”

<I don’t even know if I want to.>

“You probably don’t but after all of that, you don’t get a choice. Just think of how awful the pain of not knowing would be.”

<Ugh, I want to be sick.>

“Well, hold it in for a bit, this won’t take long.”

Pulling out some smaller tools that were still for alchemy, Ben carried out much the same process he had before, using the same ingredients to by and large make a single serving of the same potion he had before by all appearances, with Myriad suffering all the more for it.

<Ben, if you’re making the exact same thing again just on a smaller scale then I’m going to kill you. I don’t care about however many levels of sacrilege you have, I’ll find a way to make it possible.>

“It’s going to be similar but different. Don’t you worry, this really was my goal for the day.”

With those words he spent some of his power, pulling out two additional ingredients to replace some of what would have gone in instead. An acid to bring a certain something into a solution, the sort that would be weak enough to be safe for consumption and become all the more so after it was added to the other ingredients, and other than that a tiny few pieces of bone, looking to be from a small knuckle of an animal which Ben had been hanging onto for about two years of his life, waiting for the perfect moment to use it but always suffering under both his indecision on the matter and his belief he would become better able to take advantage of it in the future as his skills grew, with Myriad gasping once he understood what was about to happen.

<Ben, I know when you were given that you were told that you could use it how you like, but the expectation really was that it be put into some sort of weapon and after we would find it a good owner.>

“Damn, a shame nobody ever clarified that and now it’s too late.”

He ran his mana through the pieces, breaking them into dust to fall into the acid and swirling it until it had completely dissolved while waiting from there for the right time to add it to the rest of the small potion before pouring it in and continuing on, with the one piece of a forbidden god he’d been allowed to keep for himself finally getting its use.

He couldn’t deny he was worried about it, god bones were used for weapons, not potions, and he’d already boiled the hell out of it anyway to make some potions for Sonya too. He didn’t know how effective it would be, nor if that was a smarter choice than making it into a tool or weapon for himself.

If he really was going to have to somehow go against Oaun, what would be more important, the internal strength that came with growing his status or the external benefits to be had from the things he could make?

In the end he’d picked the first, and without waiting for it to cool he picked it up the second he was done and drained it down his throat, feeling its warmth the entire way down.

“Now all that’s left to see is how much my attributes grow with that.”

It wouldn’t happen instantly, being the sort of thing he’d need to check in the morning, but even as he stood there he felt power coursing through him, a sure sign that there was at least some effect like he’d hoped.

<You know, if you were going to do that then you could have waited a bit.> His god sighed, not bothering to hide his complicated emotions on the matter. <That potion would have likely let you get through king of intelligence too. Hell, you probably would have been able to make a decent dent in a lot of people’s jobs again, even if it wouldn’t necessarily finish them like last time.>

“Bah, there’s no point worrying about that when I still don’t know how I’m going to finish my current one so better to do it now before anyone thinks to try and get me to use it for someone else,” Ben sighed. “And why does it always come down to me to help other people get through their jobs, huh? Why can’t someone else become an adventurer and help poor, stuck, Ben… Wait.”

<What?>

Ben didn’t hear him. He was clutching at his head but his eyes were lighting up while his thoughts exploded, a realization and ideas coming to him in droves as he thought aloud.

“Holy shit, holy fucking shit! I’ve been way too laser-focused, I’ve only been thinking about what I can do for others but this entire time I’ve had the solution right in my lap! And not just one solution, if this works then I’m going to be able to do, well, everything! Who cares what my other jobs are, how strong or weak doesn’t even matter at that point!”

<What? Ben, what are you talking about?>

“Myriad, everything I’ve done until this point, every job I’ve gained and all of the experience I’ve earned from it, it means nothing compared to what I’ve just thought of. You thought I’d been breaking the job system before? If I’m right, I’ve just destroyed it. It will never be the same again. Oh my god, I think I’ll actually be able to finish this stupid job in a month and then from there, I’ll be able to finish all of them in a matter of days, maybe even hours depending on how lucky I get. I’m totally about to clear my list. Holy crap, the world is not ready for me right now, I’m about to boost my growth rates even beyond what they currently are and get whatever skills and levels the system is willing to toss me. This is going to be so fucking good!”

<The worst part of hearing this is that I believe you. How?>

“First of all, by finding an adventurer.”

Author’s note

This chapter brings up something that hasn’t been mentioned in so long I feel compelled to cite my sources so you can find the first instance of Ben getting his god bone in chapter 325. You can expect another note like this soon.