The Extra System: Summoner of Shadows

As the Vine Serpent inched closer toward Cedric, assuming it was invisible, he used his Observe Skill to get a more accurate assessment of the monster. The narrator informed him that the serpent had two skills: Camouflage and a skill called Venomous Bite.

[Vine Serpent (Level 15)]

Given his current vitality, Cedric realized that a single bite might kill him. He did not wish to be poisoned twice in less than a week. Thus, he decided to keep an eye on the serpent as he reaped his rewards from the Trial of Lies.

[Do you wish to open the Mysterious Box (Bronze)?]

"Open it," muttered Cedric as the serpent approached. He would soon be in range of its attack, and the serpent would think of him as prey. He would strike then.

[You have opened a Mysterious Box (Bronze)!]

A small box appeared in front of him, floating with a bronze light. Cedric grabbed the box and felt a stream of energy enter his body while another coiled around his little finger.

[You have obtained the following rewards:]

- Dimensional Ring (A)

- Puppeteer Skill (C)

- Restart Elixir (S)

A ring appeared around his little finger, looking unimpressive without any gems. Cedric focused on the ring and somehow became aware of a larger dimension inside, where he could store items.

"What the hell is a puppeteer skill? As a performer? As a second-rate villain?" Cedric questioned if the system was trolling him, but he didn't have time to study it. "There's even an S-rank consumable…"

The serpent was close now and about to launch an attack on him. The box did not give him any combat or extra skills, so Cedric had to rely on his Observe Skill to defeat this monster. His heart trembled with excitement and a little bit of fear as he acted oblivious to the incoming threat, baiting it.

As expected, the serpent did not take long to lunge at him. Its giant maw opened to bite Cedric's back, but he was too prepared for the attack. He side-stepped before the monster even reached him and slashed with his sword using both hands.

Although his eyes couldn't see anything, his skill allowed him to perceive the sword colliding with the serpent, which had vines and thorns protecting it. Cedric had managed to kill the Dire Hare with a single slash, but this monster was more resilient.

The serpent hissed as the sword cut through its scales, flicking its tail toward Cedric, too fast for him to dodge. He managed to get the sword between them, but the whiplash sent him flying through the air.

Cedric slammed into a tree as the serpent rolled on the ground. Although his body ached, he knew this was an opportunity he couldn't miss to finish the monster. He pushed off the ground with his legs as he ran toward the monster, which lunged at him again.

This time, Cedric jumped and rolled forward, letting the serpent miss once more. He rolled on the ground, turned to face the serpent again, and bolted forward. This time, he managed to reach the snake before it could react and decapitated it with a single swing.

[You have slain Vine Serpent (Level 15)!]

[You have leveled up!]

Cedric collapsed on the ground, leaning against his sword as he tried to catch his breath. Although he was uninjured, his stamina was too low for such an intense fight. His back also ached, and he saw that it had a bruise using his Observe Skill. Then, as he rested, he opened his status menu.

[Status Menu]

- Name: Cedric Everhart

- Age: 18

- Level: 15

- Health: 134/180

- Mana: 20/33

- Reputation: -371

- Class: Summoner

- Affinity: None

- Physique: None

- Titles: Vain Prince, Deadbeat Son

[Physical Stats - Allocation Points: 2]

- Vitality: 18

- Strength: 20

- Agility: 22

- Endurance: 23

- Dexterity: 20

- Willpower: 14

- Intelligence: 33

- Charisma: 16

[Class Stats – Allocation Points: 2]

- Attraction: 8

- Duration: 2

- Projection: 2

- Link: 2

- Harmony: 3

As he sat beside the slain monster, which began losing its invisibility, Cedric studied his stats. Seeing them rise as he grew stronger made him feel satisfied. However, he had yet to use his allocation points and decided to do it now.

To use the Observe Skill to its full potential, Cedric needed to be fast enough to dodge attacks and counterattack. This made him decide to invest the two points into Agility for his physical stats.

As for his Class Stats, they were a mess. Cedric allocated two into his Link, hoping it would let him control the summoned creatures. The previous prince had actually spent time meditating to allocate these stats into Attraction, making his entire class unstable. Cedric was hoping to fix that when he remembered one of the items he obtained before the fight.

After looking through the system, Cedric realized that the consumable was not inside his system but inside the ring. He rubbed the ring twice, expecting it to open or a genie to come out, but nothing happened. Once he focused his attention on the ring, the space inside appeared in his mind, containing only a single golden bottle, which he took out with a thought.

[Restart Elixir (S): A legendary item capable of reallocating stats as the consumer wishes. It can only be used once per person.]

The explanation was rather short, but it was clear enough. Cedric was excited and wanted to consume it right away, but then he realized something. Did this elixir also include the stats he obtained from leveling up?

Every person in the world grew stronger once they leveled up. However, they could only allocate a fraction of that strength according to their desires. The rest would strengthen their entire body without discrimination.

Cedric looked at the golden bottle with a frown. If he used this now, his stats would be reset according to his wishes. But what if he let this thing rest inside his dimensional ring and used it once he reached level 100 or even level 1000?

"Eight times a thousand times eight…" muttered Cedric as he began making some rough calculations. "I would have sixty-eight thousand stat points to allocate? What the—?"

Cedric hated cursing, but it was a bad habit. His mind was blown by the number. If he poured all of those stats into a single one… then he would become an abnormal creature. A human who runs faster than light or crushes mountains with a palm. And if he poured those stats into mana and tried summoning…

The thought sent shivers down his spine. Cedric realized why summoners were so feared and hated. If he indeed had such intentions, the world would be in trouble. He placed the bottle inside his dimensional ring and decided on his long-term retirement plan.

"Level up like crazy before I use this thing!"

Cedric picked up his sword and cleaned it before using his Observe Skill to find the mana gem. His skill saved him tons of time since he didn't have to dissect the entire monster for its gem. After throwing the gem into his ring, Cedric did the same with his sword.

Then, he summoned it with a thought into his palm.

"This counts as a stealth skill, right?" muttered Cedric with a smile as he placed the sword back into his ring. Then, he remembered that he had obtained another skill from the system, which offended him.

[Puppeteer (C): A powerful passive skill that lets the user control others using tactics like persuasion, manipulation, or temptation. Enhances charisma when telling lies, depending on the level of the receiving party. Can be enhanced with dazzling performances.]

"Is there something you would like to tell me, system? Hm?" Cedric questioned with a twitching eyebrow. "I won't get angry if you just tell me, I promise. Just tell me!"

His little outburst, of course, earned no response from the system. The skill itself wasn't bad, but if the system rewarded him based on his performance, then its opinion of Cedric is at rock-bottom!