Gregory started spending his time between forging during the day, and going to the dungeon at night. After the third night, he had finally gained a modification for his protected space. He was now able to open the strongest dungeon he had met inside of his protected space, with the added bonus of being able to get out at any time as long as enemies were not nearby. This new ability allowed him to start focusing on training his VIT and END over just his rushing through the dungeon to get back at a reasonable time. His AGI had been growing far slower since it reached past 60, barely reaching 65 with the opponents he was currently facing. His STR had reached 61, but it had also started requiring far more of a specific action to raise it. The one good thing, is that he had managed to raise his SPD and DEX to 57 and 63 respectively by running instead of blinking there and back at night along with the other actions done in the dungeon. His speed had gained a new skill for him as well, for having passed 50 it allowed him to run faster for the stat value just as strength had worked.

By having made the ring with the copperhead’s respite, Gregory had also managed to raise his VIT to 57, bumping his health up substantially due to the double health gain per point in VIT. While he kept wearing the ring, the bonus it gave toward raising VIT was minimal after passing 55. END and his party healing were also raised because of the ring. END had reached 49 before Gregory’s VIT reached 50 and then doubled his health and also the amount of health he got a second. He was only barely able to get 50 END before his stats would no longer challenge his END to raise it anymore with the copperhead’s respite ring. His regen rate on health was at 5%, meaning that he gained 57 health back a minute. In fact, the ring stopped dealing any real damage at all once reaching 50 END. It had been doing 50 damage a minute previously, which was serious for Gregory, but most people he found out were far healthier than him when it came to HP. Almost everybody had the naturally 1 to 20 VIT/HP ratio, as well as a ratio that raised it further for levels gained. He seemed to be behind in that regard, only gaining it through stats meant that he would be weaker than other people his level as far as health went. However, party healing had made it all the way to level 95 through all the healing due to the damage being done by the ring alone before 50 END. Needing to heal in the dungeon was just icing and brought it all the way to ADVANCED PARTY HEAL. This skill had two benefits to Gregory, the first being that it healed double of Party Heal’s level 100 version at level 1, and the second that it worked on recognized allies in a radius around the user.

While the second benefit meant it could work on more people, it also meant he could hide his unique skills from all of them, and just heal Charles, George, and Elizabeth as they needed it.

However, the most important thing now though, was that he was able to enter dungeons inside of his own protected space, a space that existed outside of time. It meant that he could run through it infinitely until he could no longer get anything beneficial from the dungeon. This could be anything beneficial to him from drops to skill and level growth.

Spending a full month in his protected space on just the dungeon after that point had Gregory reaching a level of 129, and also not growing levels until at least two runs through the dungeon. Still though, he had managed to reach his physical skills to higher levels, his AGI reaching 82, DEX reaching 84, SPD being at 79, STR getting up to 79 as well, END making it up to 80, and VIT ending up at 85. He also decided to spend most of the now 814 stat points to boost his combat proficiency. He used 500 of those points on WIS, giving him a full 100% boost to skill growth because of the passive he got at level 500, a total resistance to mana-based attacks, and the ability to regenerate 100% of his mana ever minute. Still though, the people he saw that were obscenely strong were casting multiple spells consuming his maximum mana ever minute, meaning that their actual mana pools were beyond Gregory’s current imagination. For reaching 1000 WIS, Gregory also gained a new passive skill that would prevent any debuff spells from affecting him due to the influence of his WIS on controlling his body. On top of this, there was a system message that popped up upon reaching this WIS value.

MAXIMUM WIS STAT REACHED. FOR BEING THE FIRST IN HISTORY TO REACH MAX WIS, PERK “THE WISE ONE” HAS BEEN ADDED. PERK “THE WISE ONE” GRANTS FULL KNOWLEDGE OF ALL CURRENT ABILITES, AND THE ABILITY TO TEACH OTHERS KNOWN NON-UNIQUE SKILLS.”

It was amazing, but there was still an error when it came to how people could possibly perform so many high-tier spells right after the other. There had to be ways to raise mana aside form INT, but they would be ancient ways, since even Elizabeth had average mana for her INT. The other possibility is that their spells system allowed them to cast their spells for far less than Gregory was due to how powerful his skills were in the long run. Despite probably being the most powerful magical being right now, he was mostly likely using more mana per spell cast because of how his gamer system controlled the ability to cast spells. Usually MP is just a term for Mana Points or Magic Points, but what if there were multiple forms of energy used to cast spells? What if there is raw mana or magical energy, but then there is also nature energy, transcendent energy, and a physical energy. Since his Mana is in one great big combined pool, it may be possible that generic magical energy is usable by all subforms, but then spells are only usable inside that subform. In that scenario, it would be possible that Elizabeth was charge far less since she doesn’t need to specify the type of mana that is being used to for the spell, her body can only control the one type of form. If that were the case, she’d likely be able to far better control how much energy is spent, regardless of whether there is such a thing as skill level for normal people.

It took but a moment to decide where to place 300 of the remaining 314 stat points, raising LUK to 1000 was probably far less of a decision than raising WIS to 1000 once he had obtained the perk of “THE WISE ONE.” Upon placing and accepting the stat point placement, Gregory was gifted one last LUK skill. It was another passive, “I SHOULD BE THERE” which gave Gregory a passive evasion chance equal to a rate of 1/40 of his LUK stat. He also got another system message for luck similar to his message for WIS, but with a perk called “ULTIMATE LUCK.” This perk also gave two abilities related to luck. The first was that his luck related skills doubled in power, or effect based upon the ability. The second ability was something crazy, but technically still made sense. It allowed him to use his luck to on another person in addition to himself. If he would focus on somebody, that person would be “cloaked” in his luck while the focus was maintained.

Amazing, two new skills and two very powerful perks. Makes me wonder which is more powerful. The perks and skills are both amazing, but those perks just seem to really pop in power compared to the skills. Then again though, that is to be expected from abilities that are so unique. Even if they weren’t unique, they are perks, which is something that even “THE WISE ONE” can’t teach to others.

The remaining 14 stat points were left, being saved for when he had a clear goal in mind on how to use them. While nothing he was doing right now could really raise his stats, there was likely something else that could raise his physical stats that involved a harder dungeon or more impossible workout. The only problem would be how to do a more impossible workout when his DEX allowed him to regenerate past the energy spent to move and perform actions. The only way he could think of would be to learn physical skills that would require a combination of mana and stamina, or find physical skills that would directly require stamina to perform. It would have to be something that wears him out in order to gain experience from it, that is something he learned from leveling up so far. If it isn’t challenging, he cannot make gains off of it. This was why he was never growing passively stronger in magic, the enemies he faced couldn’t challenge his magical talents. DEX was something that could still be trained through combat, but at a slower gain than if it was combat and overuse of stamina. AGI could still be raised through acrobatics, but again at a slower pace than if he was actually losing stamina.

Now done with training and using his newly obtained stat points again, but unable to really level up without going through the dungeon multiple times now, Gregory left his protected space. His powers were definitely incredibly strong now, and even his body wasn’t nearly as weak as it was before. Though he was technically weaker overall than the other people that would form the dungeon hunting party, he was much stronger in a one-on-one fight than almost any magic user he would encounter. Not because he could do so much damage to them, but because they could do no real damage to him with the 100% resistance to magic damage. Of course, many of the people he met did seem to have higher physical stats than he does, even those who were supposed to be magic users. Elizabeth, the girl who he had instantly fallen for, had physical stats that made his look weak still, on top of having magic that could easily trap Gregory for an eternity, since he found out that his teleportation and blink could not go through another person’s magical energy. This made the teleportation and blink spells very hard to use against those who could control magic. If she were to use her magic to cause an earthquake and trap him in the crust, he could never escape for as long as any of her magic remained in that rock. Also, she could open it to the lava in the earth’s core, which would deal him deadly damage and he’d have no way to prevent it. Natural fire and heat aren’t magic, and that means that he’d have no resistance against them as far as protection goes.

What he really needed now though, despite the fact that he was a mage, was a way to train his physical abilities. He would need to think of skills he could develop for increasing his physical abilities without needing to fight monsters that could kill him up-close. He knew that skills like a dodge would work to increase his DEX and AGI, possibly even double on both if it took enough stamina up per use, but that was quite unlikely given the fact that he had no moves yet that could really spend his stamina. It was also possible that he could start wearing heavier gear, that something heavier could cause his DEX and AGI to go up depending on how much he were wearing. Of course, that also meant he wouldn’t increase his END or VIT as quickly since he would be taking less damage wearing full plate armor. The full plate armor he had originally made for himself, he started altering for George to use. He also started working on a suit of armor for Charles, since it was important to effectively protect his party. In that same line of thought, Gregory had been further working on his Tailoring and Enchanting skills. He had managed to reach level 5 advanced in tailoring, and intermediate 58 in enchanting.

Working the remaining day before leaving to go meet his new party once again, Gregory was at his forge, when a large man came in to purchase a suit of armor. Using reveal on him, Gregory saw his ridiculous stats. While his actual level was hidden, it was visible to him that he had a STR of 972, an AGI of 957, and a VIT of 963. A strength stat that could literally wipe out all his health in a single hit anywhere to his body, an AGI high enough to dodge virtually any attack that could be thrown at him, and a VIT so high that he was almost immortal. On top of this, his race was solely human, not even a combined race like he was now. This reminded him though, he had been ignoring Sophos for quite some time, and should try talking to him.

Sophos, I know I’ve been ignoring you for a while now. I’d like to apologize and ask for your forgiveness.

Only silence met these words, and then the man with ridiculous stats spoke up expecting to get the measurements on his body taken so that the armor could be made.

What could this man even use armor for? His body is likely almost indestructible. Even my strongest attacks would likely do little to nothing in terms of damage to him.

Gregory stepped over, taking the measurements of his body so that he could start working on the armor for this man. He wanted to do his best job, but not use the best materials available to him. If he used the best materials, it was quite possible that this man could kill whoever he wanted to without resistance. Upon getting his measurements taken, he paid up front for the armor, saying that he’d be back in a week to collect it. The amount he paid was more than the king paid for three suits, but he also specified how he wanted it made, requiring rare gems in specific places. These would likely be used for after purchase enchanting. It was something Gregory doubted the man could do, but knew that he must have a connection that probably could enchant with much greater skill than he could.

Still though, the man had left, and it was Gregory’s last chance to try and learn some physical skills for close-up combat. As he was trying uselessly for hours, staying out of his protected space since he didn’t feel like being away for days or weeks, Sophos finally spoke up, but with laughing.

Hahaha, you seem to be struggling with gaining new physical skills. Did that man really frighten you so much? You are a dragon now, yet you reject it by hiding it. Yet you wonder why I am so distant from you right now? You have basically abandoned me, leaving me alone for over a month while you go around hunting monsters that are so far beneath you. Well, technically beneath you with my power. Do you even know how much I have helped you already? Even while you were hunting, I have been trying to speak to you. Now that you finally raised your wisdom, it seems you remembered me. Still though, you are definitely the most unique and curious human I have ever met. You still seem to care about me, despite leaving me alone and forgetting about me as soon as you learned those new skills. I do have a piece of advice for you though, if you want to learn some new physical skills, try to think of something that is done separately from a style. Judging from your knowledge and systems in place, skills would only be something that would be separate from a regular style or otherwise passive skill. If you want to learn a sword skill, why don’t you try something in the dungeon, swinging your sword in a way that is more powerful but is less natural or slower to start. That would more likely be a skill. Anyways, I will communicate with your subconscious for a bit. It seems that once you raised your WIS, there are some parts of your mind that function far better than you realize and can hold a very intelligible conversation with me without you realizing it. That is more why I had ignored you at first than anything else.

As the next day came, Gregory headed out to London’s gate, carrying the two suits of armor. He was struggling only slightly, due to the weight the suits did possess. As he made it to the gate, he saw the other three already waiting for him. Still though, when they saw him carrying the two bags, they were somewhat shocked. Charles spoke up as soon as he saw Gregory, making a small wave above his head when he saw him.

Looks like you found something, may I ask what it is?

Made it actually, a couple suits of armor. One for you and one for George.

Seems you are working above and beyond your required task. Still won’t stop us from wanting to see your healing abilities. Although, depending on how good it is, we may need to have you make all the armor we need from now on. Elizabeth doesn’t use armor, as you could probably guess. If you do want to make something for her though, she does use robes. After this raid is over, perhaps we can see what we can all do to help each other out. For now though, I want to see what kind of person you are before we place full trust in you. Once we get out of London a ways, I will want you to show us the healing skill, but the major public either doesn’t know of the existence of magic, or hates it. We are an exception, and only because George and I need it to help slay many of the stronger monsters and dungeon lords. I know of some people who make the two of us combined look weak, and could totally destroy us without even trying.

Gregory nodded when he heard this. He had just seen a man fitting the description of making them look weak combined. It wasn’t pretty, and would even place Gregory in danger of death. They all began walking, Gregory wearing rather plain clothes, while Charles and George were wearing suits of mixed armor and Elizabeth was wearing a robe over rather elegant clothes with the label of “Clothes of a Sage.” Getting to be about three miles from London, running after hitting a mile away, Charles looked to Gregory.

A demonstration of your skills would be good now. We all have some damage from a raid we did without you just before getting to London. Why don’t you heal us all and we will determine how strong your healing magic is.

Closing his eyes, Gregory thought the words ADVANCED PARTY HEAL before his magic flooded out of him and covered all of them with extremely potent healing magic. It was enough to leave Charles, George, and Elizabeth gaping. It was at least twice as much power as they expected to see from anybody at around their level of strength and power.

I hope that was enough of a demonstration, I really don’t want to disappoint any of you with my lack of skill.

His total honesty in regards to the unbelief in his skills led them to think he had been adventuring and hunting with an incredibly strong group previously. They all thought it would make sense as to why he was capable of handling such a monstrous dungeon almost alone before they made it to the dungeon lord’s room. Elizabeth also started feeling some feelings toward Gregory at this point as well though. She felt as if he was somebody she could trust and wanted to spend time with. Charles knew only one thing from this.

How about you take leadership of the group in this next dungeon? We could use somebody with your skills orchestrating the attacks, it has been said that the wise are best at healing magic. It would make sense for you then to lead us into battle.

Alright, I will do my best. I can’t guarantee being as strong a leader as you, but I will definitely do my best to meet your expectations.

His modesty was very refreshing, something that they had not seen in anybody near their level of strength without being very specialized and weak in actual combat.

Charles began walking toward where people had reported a dungeon entrance while getting into the armor that he had been given by Gregory. He also started speaking to Gregory about where they were going.

We are heading to a location where people have gone missing or been found dead. These kinds of locations are where most dungeons lie. It seems many were just regular villagers, though some were supposedly hunters themselves. We should be careful in there ourselves, you will probably be a major assistance to us in there Gregory.

The truth is, they wouldn’t be trying this dungeon at all without Gregory. Groups without a healer were far weaker, and now that they had a healer that could restore about a quarter of each party members health, they were definitely ready to start conquering many of the harder dungeons out there.

Here is the updated Status Window so as to keep everything organized and open.

NAMEGREGORY NEAL FROSTCLASS/CLASSESTHE LEGENDARY GAMER, LEGENDARY GREAT SAGE, LEGENDARY LUCK MASTERRACE/RACESANCIENT ICE DRAGON, HUMANTITLENOVICEAGE19(16 APPEARANCE)LEVEL129HEALTH1700/1700MANA5000/5000STAMINA1640/1640STR79END80VIT85AGI82DEX84SPD79INT250WIS1000CHA93LUK1000UNSPENT STATUS POINTS14