The sun fell down as the moonlight cascaded over the sand, falling upon Jessie's face, which looked calm amidst the chaotic atmosphere. She was fast asleep, free from all her problems, curled up in a ball.

[1. Inspect: Allows the user to analyze living beings, items, etc.

Reveals target's basic stats, level, and known traits.

Higher Intelligence or Willpower increases detail.

Cost: None

2. Sand Step: Temporarily merges the user's steps with the surrounding sand, suppressing noise and increasing agility by 100% on sand.

Leaves no trace of the user.

Cost: 4 MP/second

3. Mana Flicker: Creates a brief illusionary afterimage made of condensed mana. Can distract enemies or mislead ranged attacks.

Cost: 15 MP/illusion.]

Ash looked at the skill choices he had received. Surprisingly, he had gotten another chance to obtain the Inspect skill. But he still hesitated — was it worth giving up a combat-oriented skill in exchange for a utility one?

He had rejected the second skill, Sand Step, without much thought. It was too limited and situational.

He wouldn't be living in the desert all his life. He paused at that thought, staring at the endless expanse of sand. Perhaps there was a chance... but still, he wanted to be optimistic.

Now he was torn between Mana Flicker and Inspect. One was purely utility-based and didn't enhance his combat ability directly, while the other — though not offensive — could help him escape a life-or-death situation.

He pondered for a long time before giving up.

Jessie had better knowledge of skills. It wouldn't hurt to take her advice — he wasn't fully aware of the true extent and uses of Inspect.

He glanced at her calm face. Not wanting to wake her, he decided to focus on his new gun instead.

He had collected some coins from the fight against the Scorpion Lord, and after that, he had killed countless D and E-rank scorpions. So many, in fact, that he was already nearing the EXP requirement for Level 13.

[73200 Coins]

He looked toward the armory and bought an advanced foregrip for the SMG.

[-12000 Coins]

Then an extended magazine, so he could load more bullets.

[-16000 Coins]

He also purchased another mana cartridge converter for his second gun, so he wouldn't need to switch between them in emergencies.

Lastly, he bought a silencer — necessary to ensure no other beasts were drawn to his fights.

After completing the upgrades, he looked at his pitiful balance.

[6700 Coins]

He had been momentarily rich, and now he was back to being broke. His dream weapons were still far beyond his reach — and he was sure that maintaining their mana consumption would also be too costly.

"Sigh…"

Ash let out a deep breath. This journey was taking a toll on his mental endurance. Walking without certainty was one of the hardest things a person could do. Was his Willpower wavering?

He looked at the stat that had recently appeared in his System status.

[Willpower: 499]

This stat was very strange compared to the others. The rest changed when he allocated stat points into them — but when he tried to do the same for Willpower, nothing happened. It was as if his will was absolute, immune to external manipulation.

This was more concerning than reassuring. If his will couldn't be influenced externally, what was stopping him from strengthening it himself? What were the methods to increase Willpower if not through stat points?

He had already begun to notice its importance in battles and skills. For instance, his King's Domain had a component that relied on Willpower — and now, even Inspect's effectiveness depended on it. The higher the Willpower, the more information it could reveal about a target.

His mind drifted deep in thought, even as his eyes scanned the surroundings for threats — his Luck stat ready to trigger a warning if any danger approached.

Time passed until Jessie finally woke up after two hours. That was enough rest for someone of her current strength.

Before sleeping, Ash asked her to light a circle of Dim Flame to raise the temperature. After that, he told her about the skill choices he had received.

"Inspect skill — any day," Jessie said without hesitation. "Your other two choices are absolute trash compared to it. And it looks like you've got a slightly advanced variant. Choose it, or you'll regret it later."

"Can you explain why Inspect is so important, according to you?" Ash asked, puzzled by her enthusiasm.

"Simple — it tells you when to fight and when to run. Think of it like chess. You can't play if you don't know which piece is which — pawns, kings, and queens all look the same to you. Inspect lets you tell the difference. It shows you when to retreat and when to take risks." Jessie explained firmly, emphasizing her point.

Ash looked at her surprised, 'so chess exist in this world also'.

In Ash's case, he wasn't entirely blind. His Luck vaguely warned him when his life was in danger against a beast. But still, it was better to have detailed information rather than vague instincts.

Ash watched as his System flickered, confirming the addition of his fourth skill.

He looked toward Jessie and activated Inspect —

[Inspect]

[Level 14

AGILITY: 6

ENDURANCE: 3

STRENGTH: 8

WILLPOWER: 499

MP: 540]

Ash raised his brows at her Willpower — equal to his own. It didn't seem that high based on her demeanor, but then he remembered the burning ember in her eyes — that relentless desire to rise above everyone.

She had grown up in a pressuring environment; naturally, her will had been forged over time. His willpower was naturally high since he had beared countless situation in his previous life.

Ash lay down, enveloped in the soothing warmth of the flames. The cold breeze couldn't reach him — filtered through the burning fire that made the air pleasantly warm.

He was exhausted from the day's battles; his arm still ached, though Jessie had used her healing ability multiple times to mend it.

All the tension — about the Glyph Seed, finding shelter, and beast attacks — faded as his eyes shut.

As he woke up around two hours later, his body felt refreshed ready to climb the mountain. His arm also felt more stable while the in the expanse of darkness, there was only one source of ligh—moon.

Actually two, the flames were burning amidst the desert. He was already thankful that it didn't attract any beasts.

It was time for the level up.

[Level: 12]

[EXP: 38360 / 40000]

Killing so many D-rank beasts, he was reaching closer and closer. Now it will only require one more batch of D-rank Scorpions.

now, it had become cake walk to kill D-rank Scorpions. The hard part was retreating beast cores from every body.

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