Monster Tide: An Odd Decision

Surprisingly, rather than beat around the bush and remain tight-lipped regarding the method as to how he was able to dish out that much damage, Valyr instead shrugged his shoulders, opening his mouth to explain he had done so. Naturally, both Tristan and Myst went wide-eyed at this decision, not expecting the man before them to give out his secret that easily. "Well, it's not really too difficult to figure out how I did that if you knew what I was doing."

"I'm sure both of you have heard of [Pierce], right?" Valyr looked at them, waiting for them to respond. Obtaining light nods from the two, Valyr nodded back. "Well, what if I told you that was the skill I was using to kill those monsters?"

Hearing that, Tristan and Myst looked at each other for a bit, knowing very well that such a skill wouldn't be deal that much damage in the hands of a Rank 0 class holder. Just as they were about to tell Valyr this, a light grin appeared on his face as he knew what they were thinking. Noticing the light grin on his face, the two decided to remain silent, allowing Valyr to continue speaking.

"Of course, it's obvious that you two wouldn't believe me." Valyr lightly chuckled. "After all, such a skill shouldn't be able to deal that much damage."

"But what if I told you there was a way to make it do just that?"

"Let me tell you beforehand that I have no buffs whatsoever. If I did, I would've told you that already." Placing his hands behind his back, Valyr waited for the two to figure it out for themselves.

Fortunately, he did not have to wait that long as everything clicked inside Tristan's mind, prompting him to look at Valyr with a hint of surprise. "Did you… did you spend points on that section?"

Flashing a smile at Tristan in response, Valyr nodded. "Exactly. I spent a couple Technology Points on the Combat section of the Technology Tree."

"Eh?" Surprisingly, Myst tilted his head in slight befuddlement as she heard the term 'Technology Tree' come out of Valyr's mouth. "Shouldn't the Technology Tree only be accessible to those with Rank 1 classes and above?"

"Normally, that would be the case." Valyr nodded in agreement. "However, you can have someone unlocked your Technology Tree while still being at Rank 0. Though, that's only as long as you're willing to give a Rank 1 class holder free reign over your mind for a bit."

"What do you mean free reign over your mind?" Tristan scoffed. "I just sent a bit of my mana into your body. You exaggerate too much."

"Hehe." Naturally, Valyr could not help but chuckle. "Anyways, unlocking a couple advancements in the Combat section upgraded [Pierce] to [Strong Pierce], which is more or less the reason I could dish out that much damage."

"Now does that answer both of your questions?" With his explanation, Valyr looked at the two, wondering if they were satisfied with his answer.

In response to the question, Tristan nodded at him. However, from how Myst was still looking at him with a hint of confusion, it seemed that she still had something more to ask. "Why did you unlock your Technology Tree early, though? Surely that's not the only reason why you'd do such a thing, right?"

"Progressing into the Combat section was more or less an afterthought," Valyr said in response. "As for the main reason why, you're better off asking Tristan about it."

With that, Myst looked at Tristan beside her, who shrugged his shoulders as he looked back. "He wants to become a blacksmith."

"Speaking of blacksmith…" While Myst looked at Valyr with a face filled with surprise, Valyr asked Tristan. "Mind if I could borrow a forging hammer and a knife?"

"I could have someone bring it to you in a couple minutes, but what do you need those for?" Tristan raised his eyebrow, curious as to what Valyr was going to do with the items he requested.

"Well, I've been thinking of upgrading my spear." Saying those words, he extended his bloody wooden spear towards the two, prompting expressions of confusion to appear on both Tristan and Myst's faces. What they didn't know was that, all this time, Valyr's wooden spear was still at Level 1, which meant that he was nine levels over the recommended level to wield the weapon. Fortunately, blacksmiths had a method to circumvent that problem, which was more or less one of the reason why weapon bonds were placed with great importance in the later versions.

The solution? Enhancing the weapon.

To enhance a weapon was to increase the weapon's recommended level. With that in mind, Valyr was going to increase the weapon's recommended level to his current level, his mind imagining the potential damage he could deal once he had so. 'Thankfully, I don't need to upgrade [Basic Equipment Enhancement] right now. All the upgrades to that skill do is just reduce the time it takes for me to increase the weapon's recommended level by one.'

Gazing at the battlefield, he noticed how their side was somewhat struggling against the monsters, yet still gained an edge as a whole. Inwardly nodding, he returned his gaze back at the two before him. 'Well, I think I have enough time to do that.'

"Upgrade your spear? Would upgrading your spear really change anything?" After getting over his initial confusion, Tristan wondered if Valyr had a plan in mind.

"Can't you just change to a better spear instead?" On the other hand, Myst didn't know why Valyr continued to use the wooden spear.

In response, Valyr scratched his head for a bit before tossing his spear to Tristan. "Go ahead and use [Analysis] on it."

"Alright?" Although confused, Tristan's eyes gained a light blue tint around them as he stared at the spear Valyr gave him. Soon after, his pupils shrank as he looked back at Valyr with widened eyes, expressing his great bewilderment. "You've been wielding something like this all this time?!"

After saying those words, a hint of excitement appeared on Tristan's face as he gave the spear back to Valyr. Soon after, he dashed back towards the entrance of the village, presumably to obtain the forging hammer and knife Valyr requested.

Of course, such a drastic change in behavior had left Myst at a loss for words, making her wonder what was so special with the spear Valyr was wielding. Noticing the curiosity still written all over her face, Valyr used [Analysis] on the spear before turning the screen around to face Myst.

With that, Myst read through the weapon's description, her eyebrows raised once she noticed that there was something special about it. "A weapon bond?"

"Yeah. That's the reason why I haven't changed into a different spear." Valyr nodded in response.

"I see…" Myst went silent for a bit, pondering as to what weapon bonds might be. Eventually realizing she had no clue what they were, she looked back at him, changing the topic of their conversation. "What's the reason behind wanting to become a blacksmith?"

"That's something I'd rather keep to myself, sorry." Valyr bitterly smiled.

"Well, I had a feeling you'd say that." Myst shrugged her shoulders, expecting Valyr to give her answer along those lines. "In any case, deciding to upgrade your spear in the middle of battle is… an odd decision, to say the least."

"This won't be the last of those odd decisions, I'll tell you that much." Valyr let out a hearty chuckle in response, only for him to stop as he heard footsteps heading in their direction.

Turning around, both Valyr and Myst saw Tristan running as fast as his legs could take him, bringing along with him a somewhat crude forging hammer and a slightly rusty knife.

"This was the best I could get, considering the current circumstances," Tristan said as he panted, gasping for air. Taking a deep breath, he looked at Valyr. "Would this be enough?"

In response, Valyr nodded with a smile.

"More than enough."