Chapter 1276 – An Evolution Full of Class

Jake was happy with his profession evolution, and all the possibilities for alchemy he now had to explore while in B-grade. He liked alchemy and the challenge it provided, just because he loved challenges in general. However, alchemical challenges lacked one crucial thing:

Risk.

Sure, Jake risked losing ingredients when crafting, and there were instances where he tried to do perhaps overly risky experiments, but it really couldn’t be compared to when he was staking his life in a hunt against a more powerful foe. Nothing could compare to the thrill of facing an enemy capable of killing Jake should he slip up for just a moment.

That’s why, even though he liked alchemy and his profession evolution, he was still personally more interested in his class evolution. It probably also played a role that Jake felt that his class was more ”his” Path than his profession, even if he had now begun to deviate a little from the Legacy of the Malefic Viper with this recent evolution. He was now treading new ground with both, though for his class, he’d done so for far longer.

Also… he was the Primal Hunter, and not the Primal Alchemist, right? So, it really shouldn’t be surprising that Jake felt more invested in his class evolving.

Sitting comfortably on his now more durable bed, something definitely caused by Jake liking to chill on it while evolving, he got his third and final B-grade evolution going as the prompt popped up.

Class Evolution Requirements Met

The Horizon stretches endlessly before you, remaining infinitely distant, yet you feel as if you’ve moved closer to it. At the very least, you now perceive more than ever, having gone as far as to glimpse the Event Horizon – a feat that only further spurred on your curiosity and desire. In your pursuit of the horizon and power, many have fallen before you, including the Usurper known as the Celestial Child, and even a True Dragon was unable to escape your ceaseless pursuit after it had been designated prey. You continue to gladly use any means possible to succeed in your hunts, embracing both powers born from deep within, while not shying away from learning through the Legacies of powerful beings who came before you. No matter the means, no matter the obstacle, your Path will continue, and all who dare try to stop your progress will learn that no one escapes the Primal Hunter; it’s just a matter of when they will become prey, not if.

Begin evolution now?

Y/N WARNING: Postponing evolution for too long may have adverse effects, and no further class experience can be earned before the evolution is complete.

Once more, the system really loved praising Jake as the goodest boy there was. It even called him Primal Hunter, which Jake always liked. It was always fun reading the system’s evolution messages somewhat recapping his journey through C-grade, surprising Jake a little by specifically mentioning him taking down Ell’Hakan. Jake knew Ell’Hakan had been a genius and someone with a lot of Records with a bright future ahead of him, but it seemed that he still underestimated the guy. Oh well, too bad he’d been born in the same generation as Jake and been so stupid as to provoke him, because as the nice system message said, no one escapes the Primal Hunter.

He was also a little surprised it didn’t allude to Nevermore or his fight with Valdemar more, though, then again, he didn’t even have a class when fighting the image of the Primordial. It also didn’t talk about the Gate of Enlightenment, but he didn’t question that as much.

Anyway, rather than question what the system wanted to highlight, Jake just gracefully accepted its praise and moved on to the actual evolution options on offer. After his profession evolution, he had high expectations, and honestly? It started out pretty good.

Lone Arcane Master Hunter – On the endless hunt for power, you have chosen a solitary route, wishing to become a master hunter all on your lonesome. Is it a lonely Path? Yes, but to you, it’s the right one, and in the end, you know that to reach the apex, the only one you can fully trust is yourself. With a bow as your primary tool for hunting, supplemented by your powerful arcane affinity, you continue to chase down progressively more powerful foes, facing them on your own to satisfy your innate craving for a challenge. When you are alone, you shall grow stronger than ever, accepting of the fact that should you foolishly stray from your chosen Path, it will only be a display of weakness. Fortunately, you are no fool, but a lone hunter with no one worthy of recognition as your equal. Stat bonuses per level: +175 Perception, +150 Agility, +125 Strength, +100 Endurance, +50 Intelligence, +50 Willpower, +50 Wisdom, +125 Free Points (825 total)

Was Jake ever going to take this option? No, obviously not, but it gave a lot of stats. The maximum number of total stats a B-grade class could offer was 900, so already being at 825 boded well for the upcoming options.

Regarding the actual class on offer, Jake really didn’t have much to say. This class clearly leaned into his Lone Hunter skill, definitely far more so than Jake would like. Did he prefer to fight alone? Yes, obviously, but he also liked fighting with others once in a while, and knew that sometimes not fighting with others wasn’t an option, so picking a class like this that would clearly come with consequences should he do so would be very silly. Unless he wanted to cut himself off from everyone, that is, but, yeah, Jake wasn’t planning on doing that.

Seeing no reason to waste further time on this obviously bad option, Jake moved on to the second class on offer, and it was way better already.

Apex Monster Hunter – The job of a hunter is to hunt down foes, and you? You have chosen to hunt down the most powerful monsters the multiverse has to offer, claiming their Records as your own in the process. Taking inspiration from slaying a True Dragon in solo combat, you wish to continue this streak, hunting down monsters that most fear. With a bow and the powers of your arcane affinity as your primary weapons, few foes are worthy of your arrows, but when you find one, their fate shall be sealed. As you hunt down True Dragons and other powerful monsters, you adapt yourself and absorb their Records, allowing you to take on the properties of monsters to improve yourself as a hunter. No matter what your vessel becomes, no matter how much you change, you know that all is done in the service of standing at the apex of all existence, with all monsters nothing more than prey before you. Stat bonuses per level: +150 Perception, +150 Agility, +125 Strength, +100 Endurance, +50 Vitality, +50 Toughness, +50 Intelligence, +50 Willpower, +125 Free Points (850 total)

As a small confession, Jake had expected to get a Dragonslayer or Dragonhunter class or something like that during his evolution. It just seemed thematic and like something that would happen.

This fit the bill, though it wasn’t quite what Jake had expected. Evidently, this skill had come from Jake killing a fair number of powerful monsters, including, but not limited to, a True Dragon, though the True Dragon was definitely the core part of the Apex Monster Hunter class. Not to say it wasn’t a lot more and definitely better than just a Dragonhunter class.

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