You have learnt the skill Health Seer!

  Health Seer - Rank 1

  Health Seer gives the user the ability to see the health of other beings within their range to varying degrees. The user can see the health of a different being of up to their own level plus the rank of this spell unless that health is being masked.

  The stronger the skill’s rank, the clearer the health that is visible.

  Xavier grinned. He pumped his fist into the air, feeling giddy. Why hadn’t he acquired this skill earlier in his development? There were a thousand ways in which it might have been helpful…

  Before leaving Earth, he’d found one of the few E Grade dungeons he was aware of on his planet and had been farming it to gain this skill. While E Grades were still immensely easy for him to kill, they were far hardier than the Level 35 Wretched Frog he’d first tested this on.

  Xavier farmed the dungeon a little longer, finally able to use the skill. At first, the skill didn’t give him a percentage of an enemy’s health. It gave him a fraction.

  At Rank 1, it worked in thirds—he could tell, roughly, if the enemy had one third, two thirds, or closer to three thirds health.

  The more he ranked up the spell, the more he was able to see, until finally he could see the fraction out of a hundred—the percentage.

  He left that dungeon with the skill at Rank 40. It was strong enough for his usage case.

  Xavier hadn’t left Earth yet. Volkarin was back inside of his Companion Cube. Xavier wanted to be prepared when he left his planet.

  But he worked swiftly.

  He cast his Portal spell and had it take him straight into the middle of Fronton, to a building he hadn’t been to in some time. It was where Famarial, once an elven invader and now someone contracted to Xavier, was situated. Out of everyone Xavier knew, this elf would know the most about getting around the sector.

  More than that, he had a way for Xavier to get off Earth without even having to use his Sector Travel Key.

  Famarial received Xavier inside the top floor, penthouse apartment of the building. The elf was even more deferential than he had been in the past. Xavier had managed to gain the elf a lot more profits than he’d initially imagined, especially when he changed the terms of their contract after Xavier stopped bothering to hide his strength.

  “My profits have absolutely soared thanks to you and the items you gave me.” Famarial rubbed his hands together. “And the items from that D Grade you gave me to sell… They fetched quite the price.” He looked the image of a greedy executive in some corporate job. Xavier half expected the man to start up a PowerPoint presentation showing graphs of how the profits had risen, gesturing at it was a laser pointer.

  “Speaking of those items, were you able to acquire what I asked for?” Xavier asked.

  “Portal Stones! Indeed. I acquired fifteen world-restricted Portal Stones.” The elf clicked his fingers. One of the beautiful young female elves that seemed to constantly tend to him left the room. “She’ll fetch that for you in a moment. Now, what can I do for you? I expected you to still be in the tower.”

  Xavier felt a little disappointed. He supposed he shouldn’t have expected the elf to have any sector-restricted Portal Stones, like the pair that he had. That would have been too good to be true—they must be a great deal more expensive.

  But Xavier would still be able to make use of the portal these elves had down in the basement.

  “You don’t happen to have any sector-restricted Portal Stones?” Xavier figured he should at least pose the question.

  The elf chuckled, then stopped when he realised Xavier was being serious. “Uh, no.” His shoulders slumped. “Did you wish for those?” He ran a hand through his immaculate, long silver hair.

  Xavier shook his head. “Thought I’d ask.” He touched a finger to one of his Storage Rings. For the most part, he sold a lot of the loot he didn’t wish to keep straight to the System Shop, but he knew that this man would be likely to get him a better price than anything the System Shop would be able to get. He’d kept a few things in his inventory for that exact reason.

  The two of them spoke for a little while. Famarial detailed the profits his little enterprise had been making, profits that would soon make their way to Collinsville—especially after Xavier took one of those Portal Stones back to his base and established a permanent connection with this place.

  Xavier was a little disappointed to find that the profits the man had made were dismal compared to the kind of money he was able to make on his own now. He supposed that made sense. There was a lot more money to be earned at the higher grades than there ever would be at the lower ones. But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t still be a resource, especially as Earth grew stronger, and more items funneled through Famarial’s business to get good prices elsewhere.

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  We don’t even have a System Shop on Earth yet. He’s the only true merchant we can deal with when not in the tower.

  That was something he would need to remedy.

  “I have something to ask of you,” Xavier said, once they’d stopped talking business.

  ~

  Xavier stood in front of a shimmering portal in the basement of a large apartment building.

  Before coming here, he’d taken some time to ensure his home was in good hands. John and Alexic had increased the security back at Collinsville, making it significantly more difficult for spies to gain entry a second time. A pair of Portal Stones connected Collinsville to Fronton, helping the settlement thrive as they were better able to funnel trade through Famarial. And finally, Xavier uncovered the quests he would need to complete to obtain a System Shop for his settlement.

  The quest had been something he could complete incredibly easily now—he’d needed to hunt down a few “strong” beasts in the area in something akin to Hunt Quests, to show that his settlement had the dominant hold on the territory. If he’d uncovered that quest the last time he’d been on Earth, Collinsville would have had the System Shop a hell of a lot sooner.

  There were a million other things to do around the world, like connecting all the different settlements, gaining allies, all of that… But Xavier knew he had outgrown Earth.

  Hell, he was beginning to think he’d outgrown not just Earth, but his entire sector before even stepping into it.

  He had left one of his Portal Stones in Collinsville, so that any time in the next few months before he returned to the tower, if any trouble whatsoever faced Collinsville or the other citizens of Earth, he would be able to return at a moment’s notice.

  Famarial stood to one side of him. Rhaalir was there too. The elf kept raising an eyebrow at Famarial in some sort of silent, judgmental reproach. For some reason, he didn’t seem to like the guy.

  Xavier had left the baby dragon inside of his Companion Cube for now. If he brought Volkarin out he’d just have to listen to the beast complain about how hungry he was.

  Famarial cleared his throat. He was staring at Xavier. “I’m going to ask you this one more time. Are you, uh, sure this is something you want to do? Remaining on Earth lends you a level of protection that you simply will not have access to if you leave. You very well know that you’ve made enemies in this sector. I know you say that you can handle yourself, and by your word you have defeated D Grades in the past…”

  Xavier smiled at the elf. “I promise it won’t be a problem.”

  Famarial nodded. The elf looked pale, which wasn’t too unusual for him. But more pale than usual. Xavier could sense the fear wafting off him.

  “You’re afraid?” Xavier asked.

  He had asked the elf to be his guide. They were about to return not to Famarial’s home world, but to a planet called Garster. It was one of the more powerful planets in the sector, though it wasn’t under the Empress Larona’s control. From what Famarial had told him, it was primarily a trading planet. Its capital city held one of the largest marketplaces in the entire Silver River sector.

  It was exactly the type of place Xavier wished to go.

  “If I am to be seen at your side in public… Garster isn’t a Safe Zone, Xavier. There are very dangerous people there, and you have caught the ire of many. You’ve kept your world clear of invaders because they fear what you can do in five years, not because they fear what you can do now.”

  Xavier raised an eyebrow at the elf. “You didn’t tell me these worries the last time we spoke.”

  “I did not wish to offend you, and the gravity of being your guide had not yet sunk in. But this goes beyond that contract…” The elf shook his head. “I have thought deeply on this. I will go with you despite the danger to my own life. This is about honour, and duty. You gave me a better deal than anyone else in the sector ever would have. I would either be dead, or their slave, and so would everyone else in my employ, had I done what I’d done on someone’s else’s land… Therefore it is worth risking my life to do you this favour, when you have done me one I don’t know that I could ever truly repay.”

  Xavier inclined his head to the elf. He hadn’t expected Famarial to think in this way. Honestly, he hadn’t expected the elf to be afraid. He hadn’t realised the danger Famarial might face being by his side.

  That had been foolish. He should have thought of this.

  “There is something I should share with you, Famarial. Perhaps it will put your mind at ease.”

  Famarial nodded, though he looked dubious at that prospect.

  Xavier willed for his status screen to be shared. Not all of it. Just his level and his attributes. He didn’t need to show the elf his spells and skills.

  It took a moment for the elf to open the notification. The instant he did, his eyes widened. “You’re… You’re D Grade. And these stats…” His whole face scrunched up. He no longer looked the elegant elf. “This can’t be. Did you somehow fabricate these stats? What you show me must be a lie!”

  “I assure you, Famarial, it is no lie. The sector thinks it knows what I am capable of, but things have changed since the last time I stepped off Earth. Once they know my strength, they would not dare harm someone who stands by my side.” Xavier spoke the words with confidence, though he wondered at the full truth of them.

  There were still threats from other sectors. Threats that he was not yet able to handle. Like that B Grade that was once Alexic’s master. If Xavier had already come onto that man’s radar, the odds were he would soon be landing on others’. Especially after what he’d done on the hundredth floor. How many of those Champions would report what he’d done to people in power on their respective worlds?

  As Famarial stared at Xavier’s status screen, something else entered the elf’s eyes. Xavier couldn’t help but recognise what the dwarf Gimble had called Gold Gaze.

  Famarial blinked. His gaze shifted. The elf looked at Xavier. “If this is truly how powerful you are…”

  “It is.”

  Famarial grinned. “Then it is good to be by your side.” He gave a small bow. “It makes me wonder at what kind of business relationship we should pursue when the five-year contract is up. A powerful man like you is going to need a lot of people in your service.” The elf shook his head, the disbelief still clear on his face. “I knew you were powerful, Xavier Collins, but this goes beyond belief. You have barely been gone to the tower for two weeks, how is it something like this is possible? You have truly been blessed by the System!”

  Xavier chuckled and sighed. “I’m not sure blessed is the right word.” He glanced up at the ceiling. “Maybe cursed,” he joked, though he didn’t truly mean it.

  The responsibility the Voice of the System had put onto his shoulders by telling him that he could one day be the Weapon of the System… It had given him a purpose beyond anything he ever thought could be possible before.

  When it was only Earth that was in danger, he became strong enough to defend the initial threats toward it. When he found out it was the sector, then the universe… He did not think he would have gained even half as much power as he had if his goals hadn’t been so damned lofty.

  Xavier once more looked at the portal to Garster. It was time to step through. Time to once again journey to a different world.

  With Famarial by his side, Volkarin in his Companion Cube, and the elf spirit Rhaalir hovering in the air nearby, arms crossed, Xavier stepped into the portal.

  The city that greeted him on the other side of the portal was like nothing he had ever seen before.

  Accidental Champion!

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