Chapter18-First Clear Rewards, A Significant Power Boost!

"Lily..."

"I—I think Helena is a trustworthy ally, so I just..." Lily stuck out her tongue sheepishly.

"Alright, actually, I found out by accident. At first, I hadn't really thought through what class to pick. As I leveled up and reached level fifteen, the system informed me that I could become a special class, so I chose it."

"There are hidden classes too? How lucky can you get?"

Exiled Immortal furrowed his brow, clearly incredulous.

Before his job change, he had hesitated too. After all, the offered classes were limited—a warrior was too brash, hunters weakened in the later stages, and mages took too long to develop. Most classes didn't catch Exiled Immortal's eye, and he reluctantly chose the archer class.

And now he was just finding out about hidden classes?

"So, besides Alchemist, what other hidden classes are there?"

"Alchemist, swordsman, those are the only ones I know of."

"Damn, that's a huge loss!"

Hearing the word "swordsman," Exiled Immortal's expression twisted in agony.

Swordsman, swordsman!

Hadn't he named himself Exiled Immortal because he wanted to be a swordmaster who wielded his sword across the heavens, cutting through all the injustices of the world?

Exiled Immortal had never imagined that he would miss out on his lifelong dream, which seemed so close yet so far.

"Can I change my class now, is it still possible?"

"That... I'm afraid not."

John shrugged, about to say something more, when the Basilisk suddenly charged in their direction. Helena quickly grabbed John by the collar and tossed him to the side, while she herself quickly pulled Lily away to safety!

Exiled Immortal rose on the breeze, his demeanor relaxed and at ease.

"Let's kill this beast first, we can chat later."

Exiled Immortal stood poised, as the breeze beneath him lifted his form. Behind him, more than ten arrows floated up from his quiver, each one passing before him and getting coated with a lethal toxin.

"Go!"

Exiled Immortal, his fingers shaped like a sword, casually flicked them forward. The arrows shot towards the Basilisk like a tempest, striking precisely into its already shattered pupils. The poison buff accumulated rapidly, accelerating the loss of HP!

"John, how about you deliver the final blow?"

"Forget it, I don't want to draw so much attention. We all get the first clear rewards anyway. You take the kill."

"If you dawdle any longer, I'll take the first kill."

Exiled Immortal curled his lip in disdain, urging them on. Helena no longer hesitated; as the Basilisk's HP neared depletion, she drew her rapier and thrust it deeply into the center of its forehead, finishing it off!

[Server Announcement! Congratulations to player Helena for slaying the dungeon boss Stonehide Basilisk. The team has earned the dungeon's first clear rewards!]

[The first clear rewards will now be randomly distributed. Please check your inventory!]

[First clear rewards have now been distributed!]

One announcement followed another, and John immediately opened his backpack to check his first clear rewards.

"Holy smokes! Epic gear? For real? This must be the first piece on the server!"

Before John could fully inspect his own rewards, Exiled Immortal exclaimed in surprise, pulling a shortsword from his backpack that was nearly as long as his forearm. The sword's light weight contrasted sharply with its evident sharpness and durability.

The serpentine design of the blade made it look exceptionally exquisite!

Exiled Immortal merely waved it slightly, and it seemed one could faintly hear the sound of the blade slicing through the air!

[Firewalker Dagger]

Quality: [Epic] from the [Firewalker Set]

Traits: [Slight increase in heat resistance and agility, attacks may inflict burn damage.]

Undeniably, this was a piece of quite remarkable epic gear.

Even in his past life, John had used dual Firewalker Daggers as his main weapons for a considerable time, attesting to the rarity of this dagger.

But...

"This doesn't seem very useful to me..."

Exiled Immortal scratched his head, somewhat helplessly.

If it were a piece of gear or a weapon suited for an archer, it could have taken his abilities to the next level.

But it was a shortsword. For Exiled Immortal to abandon his current attack methods for a shortsword seemed like putting the cart before the horse.

With this thought, Exiled Immortal could only sigh lightly, stowing the [Firewalker] back into his backpack, and then turned to Helena.

"Boss, what special reward did you get?"

"[Legendary Alchemist Orlando·Barry's Notes] Quality: [Epic]. It contains some of the legendary alchemist Orlando·Barry's newer and bolder experiments in alchemy."

As she spoke, Helena casually tossed the worn diary to John.

"Too bad, I can't use it, and we don't have an Alchemist in the team right now, so it's yours."

"Thank you, I'm willing to trade something else for it!"

The experience of a legendary alchemist was undoubtedly the most valuable thing for John.

Learning powerful alchemical techniques from the notes could potentially compensate for his current shortcomings in combat power!

With that thought, John no longer hesitated and took out his first-clear reward from his backpack.

"[Lord Michel's Breeze Armor] quality: [Epic]. It seems more suitable for you?"

John merely glanced at the item's description and thought of giving the armor to Exiled Immortal in exchange for the [Firewalker Dagger].

On one hand, [Lord Michel's Breeze Armor] would significantly enhance Exiled Immortal's [Windwhisper] talent.

On the other hand, the [Firewalker Dagger] was indeed something John desired.

"Exiled Immortal, this armor is for you, consider it a thank you for Helena giving me the notes."

"I won't be shy then, it just so happens I can use it."

Exiled Immortal nodded slightly, accepting John's gift and then turned to Helena.

"Boss, are you keeping this dagger?"

"I can't use it, give it to John. He's missing a handy weapon since his bone dragger got stuck in the Basilisk's scales. Consider it compensation."

"Are you crazy, boss? This is an [Epic] quality weapon, probably the only one in the entire server right now. Even if we can't use it, we could sell it to someone else!"

"Rather than leaving it for others, better to give it to John as a favor. Besides, you've taken his stuff, you should at least show some gratitude, right?"

Helena lightly tapped Exiled Immortal's forehead, spread her hand open, and continued, "Come on, hand it over."

"I... Boss, didn't you already give me the notes? Why do I need to contribute something else?"

"The notes are most useful in John's hands; keeping them would be pointless for me. Besides, the better John's alchemy skills, the better for us too.

I'm sure John will give us a discount on the potions he concocts, right?"

Helena looked meaningfully at John, her eyes twinkling warmly. John nodded and smiled, "Of course."

"Jo, Johnny, the item I got seems a bit different from yours?"

Just then, Lily, who had been quiet for a while, stepped forward, pulling a pure white pill from her backpack.

[Dreamweaver's Mercy] Quality: ???

Effect: [Effective on first use, resets current level and class, limited to one use, subsequent consumption will have no effect.]

"It looks like we can make a fair trade now."

After John saw the unique properties of the [Dreamweaver's Mercy], he turned to Exiled Immortal, who was already too excited to speak, his eyes filled with hopeful anticipation.

"This must be valuable, right? It's my first time seeing an item of this quality. Is it really okay to just give it to Exiled Immortal?"

"The fundamental principle of alchemy is equivalent exchange; I've always adhered to this belief. So, Exiled Immortal, take it, it's yours."

Watching the pill tossed his way, Exiled Immortal's heart nearly leapt to his throat, not calming until the pill was securely in his palm.

"Might as well use it now, reset your level and class. You'll get an experience reward once we exit the dungeon," Helena suggested.

"But that means all the equipment I've gathered would be a waste..."

Exiled Immortal had invested considerable effort and resources to assemble his current gear. Resetting his level and class would mean all his initial investments were squandered.

"What's there to worry about? I'll always have your back, and it's just a set of equipment. I'll buy you a better one!"