Chapter 128
Meanwhile, inside Bahamut's room, Nikolaos couldn't suppress the growing grin spreading across his face.
He had been quick-witted in the earlier confrontation, and now the third-fastest spot was his.
Bahamut watched him in amusement, having overheard everything Vasiliki had said.
The commotion had been right outside her room door, after all.
‘Sigh, can never underestimate that girl,’ Bahamut thought, shaking her head.
Refocusing her thoughts, Bahamut pricked her finger with a clean needle, letting a drop of her divine blood fall onto Nikolaos' back.
As expected, his status board appeared, and Bahamut began the process of his level-up.
"Hmm, what an ominous-sounding skill," Bahamut murmured, inspecting the available development abilities for Nikolaos.
“Huh, did you say something?” Nikolaos asked, having heard what she murmured.
“It’s nothing important” Bahamut replied.
Grabbing a piece of paper, she quickly jotted down the options and handed it to the eager young boy.
Nikolaos eagerly snatched the paper, his eyes scanning the details with unbridled excitement.
Bahamut could see how thrilled he was, his tail fluttering restlessly and slamming repeatedly against her skin, tickling her slightly.
"No magic?" Nikolaos asked, his ears drooping and his tail coming to a halt as he inspected his status sheet.
“This boy..” Bahamut muttered under her breath.
“It won’t show up till you actually level up” Bahamut replied.
Nikolaos expression quickly brightened up upon hearing this, but Bahamut immediately crushed his expectations.
“Don’t get your hopes too high, magic is very rare to obtain” Bahamut said.
Nikolaos was a bit downcast, but he quickly recovered, realizing that there was still a chance now and in the future.
Refocusing on his status sheet, he observed his options with a keen eye.
Abnormal Resistance: Negates the effects of abnormalities such as poison.
Hunter: Improves abilities against monsters that the user has fought before and gained excelia from.
Bone Crusher: Increases strength and agility between 1% - 10% of current stats against enemies with bones. The larger and more bones the enemies have, the closer to the maximum value boost is provided.
Heavy Handed: Increases the user's strength when wielding a heavy two-handed weapon.
Nikolaos fell into a dilemma, for all the options were tempting in their own way.
However, there was one skill that resonated with him, almost like the call of a siren, and it was - the Bone Crusher skill.
Something about the name just felt right, as if it would roll off his tongue perfectly.
‘Ugh, how troublesome,’ Nikolaos thought, aware that the safer options were either the Hunter or Heavy Handed skill.
However he couldn't deny the allure of the Bone Crusher skill, even though it would be limited against opponents without bones, such as plants, slimes, and several other types.
There was also no guarantee that the skill would recognize the bones of dungeon monsters.
The only thing stopping him from immediately making a decision was the thought of how the others might react, especially Draco, if he made a horrible choice.
Once a person picked their development ability, there was no going back.
Bahamut observed him silently, patiently waiting for Nikolaos to reach his conclusion.
This was a choice that Nikolaos had to make for himself, and Bahamut understood the importance of allowing him the space to do so.
After several minutes of deep introspection, Nikolaos finally came to a conclusion.
The bone crusher skill, with its clear and substantial buffs to two important stats, seemed to offer the greatest potential for growth and impact.
Considering how its effects would compound over time, Nikolaos became increasingly certain that this was the right path for him.
"Have you made up your mind?" Bahamut asked, her keen eyes picking up on the resolution in Nikolaos' expression.
"Yes," Nikolaos replied, his voice steady and confident.
"Please select the bone crusher skill." he requested.
Without wasting time, Bahamut updated his status, and Nikolaos became the 3rd level 2 adventurer in the Bahamut familia.
…………………………………………………………………………..
Outside Bahamut's room door, Vasileios sat on the ground, his posture tense as he eagerly awaited Nikolaos' emergence.
Initially, he had planned to confront Nikolaos for cheating him out of the chance to become the third fastest adventurer to reach level 2.
However, he soon realized the futility of such an action – Nikolaos had already secured that position, but the fourth to eighth spots were still up for grabs.
With this in mind, Vasileios settled in to camp the door, determined to seize one of the remaining positions.
Beside him, Michalis also waited, his eyes filled with a fierce competitive spirit.
He had no clear reason for his sudden drive to outperform the others, but the mere mention of rankings had ignited a fire within him.
The thought of Nikolaos' smug expression as he exited the room spurred Michalis on, and he was determined not to be the last among the boys.
The girls – Clair, Dimitra, and Eleni – did not seem nearly as interested in rushing to level up first, which only heightened the wariness of Vasileios and Michalis.
Were they planning some sort of sneaky tactic by feigning disinterest?.
The uncertainty kept the two young boys on high alert, both towards the girls and each other.
In reality, Dimitra's lack of enthusiasm stemmed from her understanding that this was all part of Vasiliki's scheme.
Knowing this, she opted not to participate but observe, finding the reactions of the others rather amusing.
Eleni, on the other hand, was more interested in unraveling the secrets of the conversation had between Vasiliki and Clair awhile ago, her curiosity overpowering any desire to compete for a spot.
Clair, too, wished to participate, but Eleni's constant probing kept her distracted.
Vasiliki and Draco observed the unfolding scene with a mixture of amusement and concern.
Vasiliki chuckled inwardly at the easy response of the boys to her ploy, but she was frustrated by the girls' lack of interest.
‘Fufufufu, I didn't think the boys would bite at it so quickly, but the girls... aren't so responsive. Damn Eleni, she should just leave Clair alone,’ Vasiliki thought.
‘Well, the girls are just that much harder to deal with,’ she mused.
‘Now, what should I do to involve them when Nikolaos exits the room?’ Vasiliki pondered.
Seeing Vasiliki's impish expression, Draco swiftly brought his hand down on her head in a firm reprimand.
He could tell she was up to something mischievous.
Thwack!
Vasiliki immediately clutched her head in pain, turning around with eyes pleading to Draco, silently asking what she had done wrong.
"You play too much," Draco scolded.
"Stop thinking about silly things and go do something else." he added.
As amused as he found Vasiliki's antics, Draco knew he had to rein her in.
She tended to go too far sometimes, even if her intentions were good.
He could tell what Vasiliki was trying to accomplish with her silly actions - she probably wanted to take everyone's mind off the emotional roller coaster of events during the day and help them unwind.
Before Vasiliki could respond, the click of Bahamut's door opening drew everyone's attention.
Vasileios and Michalis, their ears perked up, prepared to slip into the room as soon as the door opened.
As Nikolaos fully stepped out, he was met with Vasileios and Michalis tightly clinging to each other’s clothing at front of the door.
With a smug smirk on his face, Nikolaos used his shoulder to brush past them, much to their annoyance.
The way he smiled and walked was just so infuriating.
He even had the gull to pause mid-stride, turn around, and dangle his status sheet in their faces.
Vasiliki doing something similar to them once before, was enough.
The boys weren’t allowed be rough with the girls in the family, except during practice and duelling - that was the way Draco had brought them up.
But with Nikolaos, it was different.
He was a boy, so without hesitation, Vasileios and Michalis jumped him from behind before he could reach Draco.
The three boys soon fell to the floor in a mild, playful tussle.
Underneath the playfulness, there was an undercurrent of seriousness, but not harmful.
Bahamut just let out an exasperated sigh, watching them from inside her room.
‘Why can’t this children do anything normal’ she wondered.
While the boys tussled on the floor, and everyone was distracted by them.
Dimitra quietly got up and entered her room, locking the door behind her, much to everyone’s shock.