"That's exactly what we're doing, Nicole." Arnold smiled, still holding Nina up in his arms, her feet dangling midair, "I'm holding her and she's holding me, so technically, we have a hold over ourselves."

Ever since starting the hunt, Arnold had been practically living with Nina for all sense and purposes. Now he only went to the base to check over things while leaving Allen and Talos, along with a third of his summons to deal with the problems shall there arise some.

​​

He either spent the rest of his time hunting monsters in the swamp along with Nina or spend whatever time he had with her and Nicole like he was doing now. He was subconsciously trying his best to make up for the time he had lost while he was in a 'coma' and having his summons was a big help for him.

Not only were they helping him to keep things under control at the Alpha base, but they had also boosted the manufacturing speed for weapons and other gears while simultaneously dismantling the monster corpses that Arnold had been storing in his domain. The automatons were also making an inventory for different materials while doing so. It was all thanks to their combined efforts on different fronts, that Arnold's ascension quest was almost complete.

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[FIRST ASCENSION QUEST] :

• SUPREME CREATIONIST :

[ INTRODUCTION ]: Your arsenal of weapons might be enough for now, but in future, they'll become useless and so will you.

[ TASK ]: Upgrade your existing weapons and build new ones and arm your helpers.

[ PROGRESS ] :

3/3 Gears repaired.

1/1 S ranked weapon created.

0/1 Relics created.

250/250 Gear made.

• HEADHUNTER :

[ INTRODUCTION ]: You've proven your worth to the 'Immortal One' and now your true training begins.

[ TASK ]: Hunt down 300 monsters as an offering to the Immortal one.

[ PROGRESS ] :

219/300 monsters hunted.

• MASTER OF BLOOD :

[ INTRODUCTION ]: You might be a creationist who can create anything he desires, but the thirst for blood is ever-growing.

[ TASK ] : Upgrade the subclass to its maximum level.

[ PROGRESS ] :

Current level 30/30.

• UNSTOPPABLE :

[ INTRODUCTION ]: Make use of your gunslinger abilities to slay a variety of monsters.

[ TASK ]: Slay the following ranked monsters with the help of [VINDICATOR]

[ PROGRESS ] :

1/1 S ranked monsters slain.

10/10 A ranked monsters slain.

50/ 50 B ranked monsters slain.

100/100 C ranked monsters slain.

COMPLETION REWARDS :

• Unlocks evolution process.

• An exclusive second class.

• Permanent rank upgrade.

• Chance to obtain an affinity.

1. First Ascension Quest

2. A Boon Or A Curse (research quest)

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'I've completed nearly all of the quests. Now all I need to do is to hunt the monsters and create a relic,' Arnold thought as he let go of Nina and placed her back on bare feet, 'I don't care about hunting the monsters, it's the easiest quest the system has ever offered to me, but this relic... it has me running around in circles.'

Create a relic.

It was one of the hardest quests Arnold had ever encountered. He was sure it wasn't that tough to make a relic, but the task was difficult because he had no clue how to take the first step to achieve so. Initially, he thought all he'll have to do was to make a replica of an ancient weapon, he tried countless times to do something along those lines but it didn't work.

Then, he got another idea. Since he knew about the existence of Gods, thanks to his trial, he thought rather than making a replica of an ancient weapon, maybe the system wanted him to make a replica of a godly weapon?

But with that came with another issue. Most of the Gods that he knew of, didn't use a conventional weapon that could be created by a human. For example, how the hell was a supposed to make Zeus' lightning bolt. Even the weapons that were craftable required special materials to do so, like the 'Uru' metal from which Mjolnir, the famous weapon of Thor, was made. All in all, he was standing at a dead end looking for ways to move ahead.

"Arnold? Arnold!" Nina shook him back to his senses, "Everything alright? You spaced out for a moment there..."

"Y-Yeah, everything is good." Arnold smiled awkwardly, "I was just thinking about what happened in the swamps today."

"By the way, Michelle sends her regards." Nicole shook the food packets she had in her hands and made herself comfortable in the room after placing the food next to Arnold's dismantled weapon, "Also, stop thinking about work 24×7, while you're here just try to enjoy yourself."

"I couldn't agree more." Nina handed everyone a can of beer, "You think too much about everything."

"It's my overthinking that saved your life today," Arnold said before chugging down the beer in one go. He didn't use to drink before, but Nina had her influence on him.

"Wait, what happened?" Nicole asked the two of them, Nina then gave her a small explanation about what happened there

"Some monster had laid a trap and I, being the idiot I am, fell for it." Nina gave them a cheeky smile, "And this idiot had a big brain moment and thankfully stopped me at the last second."

"Damn... you guys are putting your lives on the line to explore the swamps," Nicole let out a heavy sigh, "I wish I could come along with you... but here I am, swinging swords day in and day out ."

"You need to focus on your training first." Arnold replied, "Your training is more important than a scouting mission and the bright side is, you'll soon become a swordswoman like Nina, and then I'll make a brand new sword for you as well."

"I don't even know why Nathan wants me to learn sword fighting when I can turn any enemy into dust whenever I pleased," Nicole said with a smug look on her face.

"Ahem. If you're so strong, then mind telling me why the heck you couldn't stop the dungeon break by yourself?" Arnold's question wiped the smug look off her face.

"..." Even Nina was shocked how blatantly Arnold decided to point it out.

"There is a serious drawback of your power," Arnold continued, "You can't use it continuously or for a longer duration or else you'll get knock yourself out."

"Who told you about it?" Nicole shot a sharp look at Nina, who immediately shook her head, she hadn't told him anything about it.

"Don't look at her, Nicole. Listen to what I have to say first." Arnold's words were like knives, "I admit your ability is unique and you can take on any enemy regardless of its rank, but then what can you do against a horde of monsters? You'll just overexert yourself and then end up being helpless against the remaining monsters, and that's the reason you need a secondary skill to help you overcome these kinds of scenarios."

Silence shrouded over the room as Arnold explained the situation to Nicole. Whether or not she would turn into one of his enemies remained to be seen but the fact that she was his sister whom he loved more than himself was indisputable and he would do anything and everything he could to help her.

"Yes, brother. I completely understand what you're saying." Nicole put aside the beer can she was holding and apologised to him, her voice slightly shaking, "I'll put even more effort into mastering my blade."

After that, she then stood up and left.

"You had to rub it in her face, didn't you?" Nina shook her head in disappointment and chased after Nicole leaving a very confused looking Arnold behind.

"Now, what exactly did I do?" Arnold stood up as well and was about to chase after the two of them when a notification appeared on his interface.

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You have unclaimed rewards that would expire in: 05:00 minutes.

Please visit the tab to claim your rewards before they expire.

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"Right, I never claimed the rewards for defeating Amanda... it's not a great time but might as well claim it first." Arnold shrugged, and opened his interface and navigated through it, before opening the rewards tab. Rewards for a single quest flashed before his eyes. Arnold quickly selected it.

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EMERGENCY QUEST : Save yourself

• [ INTRODUCTION ] : You are under attack by Amanda White. She's out for your blood, it's time you return the favour.

[ TASK ] : Kill or subdue your attacker.

[ PROGRESS ] :

Target killed: 0/1 or

Target subdued: 1/1

[ REWARDS FOR COMPLETION ] :

• 1000 EXP

• Random reward.

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'Claim.'

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You've received:

• 1000 EXP

• Random reward

Please wait while the system randomises your reward...

Randomization complete!

You've received a

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"Forging material box? That's the first time I've heard about it and I don't remember seeing anything like this in the shop as well..." Arnold mumbled as a small box materialised in his hand. He quickly used his probe skill on it.

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OBJECT: Rank A forging material box

TYPE: Quest reward

GRADE: A

REMARK: A rare reward which can be gained only through random rewards. This box contains a rare material which can be used to as a forging material to make a weapon of the lesser gods. When opened one of the following materials can be gained:

• Adamantine (2% chance)

• Celestial Platinum (8% chance)

• Celestial Gold (20% chance)

• Celestial Silver (30% chance)

• Celestial Copper (40% chance)

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