Chapter 173: Preparations for Advancement

Fortunately, although the Players brought by TheoryMaster69 were originally enthusiastic, they soon regained their composure.

To have been selected by TheoryMaster69 to join the Aurelius Fan Club, it was obvious that they were all extraordinary.

Therefore, after suppressing their excitement at having met their idol, they soon moved toward the matter at hand.

"Thankfully, we previously followed the President and completed enough Missions to gather EXP and Skill Points."

"Otherwise, we would have missed such a great opportunity." One of the female Players breathed a sigh of relief, and the other Players echoed her words.

Despite being in front of Aurelius, they didn’t hide the method they had used to gather the required "currency."

That was not because they were reckless. Rather, they knew that the Nova Roma Game prevented NPCs from hearing anything regarding the game itself.

Even if a Player revealed the "truth" of this world to an NPC, they would hear nothing at all.

The words themselves would change to make sense within their cognition.

As such, the female Players held nothing back.

What they didn’t know, however, was that the person they were facing was not an ordinary NPC.

Perhaps because of his Player Template, Aurelius did not face such restrictions. He was able to listen to the Players’ conversations clearly.

He immediately understood everything and nodded his head in satisfaction.

’TheoryMaster69 deserves to be the first Player to become an Awakener. She hasn’t slowed down her progress, nor has she relaxed.’

Other Players might become arrogant after bearing the title of the first Awakener Player. Yet TheoryMaster69 had used her strength to help her subordinates catch up to her.

For ordinary Awakeners, gathering and nurturing subordinates was a long-term task. But for Players, with their unique speed of getting stronger, they had a massive advantage.

As long as the Players worked together, it was only a matter of time before more powerful individuals appeared among them.

Although Aurelius had already understood everything, he appeared clueless on the surface, like an ordinary NPC.

It was only when TheoryMaster69 cleared her throat that the female Players woke up.

"The reason I asked everyone to come here is simple," she said, pointing toward Aurelius with her head.

"Sir Aurelius has recently developed several Alchemy products, some of which are going to be extremely useful to our adventure team."

"I hope that you will use this opportunity to strengthen yourselves. That way, we will be able to more easily perform Missions in the future."

The moment she spoke, the eyes of the Players shone.

Although TheoryMaster69 put it in a not-so-straightforward way, they all understood her meaning.

Aurelius had new merchandise!

They did not need any further introduction. Without any hesitation, the Players summoned Aurelius’ Shop.

They had already been mentally prepared.

However, upon seeing the new items at the top, their eyes still widened in shock.

"This... A fruit that can increase Base Stats?!"

"Mysterious Skill Book?!"

"Guys, look! There is a coupon!"

Instantly, the room erupted into loud cheers.

The previously restrained atmosphere disappeared in an instant.

The Players no longer cared about maintaining their image in front of Aurelius.

As talented individuals, they understood better than anyone else how valuable these things were.

Their Fan Club was about to take off!

--

Aurelius was already full of expectation upon learning of the Players’ arrival.

He knew that his chance to harvest a wave of EXP and Skill Points had come.

Yet the next scene left even him speechless.

"I want to buy the coupon! And three Base Stat Fruits as well!"

"I’ll buy the Sun Knight Class!"

"Should we also purchase the Mysterious Skill Book? Never mind, we will wait until later."

"I’ll take two—no, five Base Stat Fruits!"

The shop windows in the Players’ fields of vision constantly flashed.

Item after item flickered while their EXP and Skill Points constantly decreased.

That didn’t seem to make them any less enthusiastic, though. If anything, their spending spree became more and more intense.

The scene was completely different from what Aurelius had imagined.

He had originally expected them to carefully consider every purchase. Yet these Players seemed afraid that the items would disappear if they didn’t buy them quickly enough.

Seeing his EXP and Skill Points soar with every passing second and seeing that the Players had no intention of stopping, Aurelius couldn’t help but sigh.

He felt that he had made a mistake before.

He should never have targeted the most hardcore Players.

What he should have targeted were women like these!

After all, there were bound to be many such rich women in Nova Roma!

--

Although the Players were full of willingness to buy as many items as possible, their spending spree unfortunately had limits.

Before long, both their EXP and Skill Points had bottomed out.

In return, however, every Player had obtained several items that could greatly transform their strength.

Some had purchased Base Stat Fruits, while most focused on the Class Discount Coupon and then used it to buy the Class.

Originally, they were planning to stay here and try to curry favor with Aurelius.

However, TheoryMaster69 stepped forward and stopped them.

Under her authority as President, and considering that they indeed needed to consume the items to improve themselves, the Players reluctantly left.

After all, they were also excited to see their changes after everything was done.

Soon, only Aurelius and TheoryMaster69 remained in the shop.

But that was not the case for long.

The Players had benefited greatly from today’s purchases.

However, the one who benefited the most was none other than Aurelius.

His EXP did not matter for now, since he was already stuck at Level 40 and it could not be used.

However, the Skill Points were different.

Looking at the three-digit number in his Player Panel, he could no longer keep still.

"Miss Emma, I will also take my leave."

"If Mia comes to the shop, please give her my greetings."

After exchanging a few more sentences with TheoryMaster69, Aurelius hurriedly left the Alchemy Shop.

He didn’t want to waste another second.

He made his way toward the Sol mansion.

The guards were somewhat surprised to see him.

Their young Lord had been leaving early in the morning and returning late at night over the past few days, becoming extra mysterious in their minds.

Some had even wondered whether he had obtained a mistress outside.

They hadn’t expected to see him return at this time of day. However, they didn’t say anything.

After bowing, they let him enter the mansion.

Soon, Aurelius found himself in an underground room.

Considering what he was going to do next, he had no intention of returning to his own room.

After all, he didn’t know whether his next actions would cause any extraordinary phenomena.

With the Imperial City side of the Sol family perhaps monitoring the mansion, he had no reason to take the risk.

’In fact, it would have been for the best if I left the city before my transformation. Unfortunately, there is no safe place outside Blood Sun City either.’ Aurelius shook his head.

Not only because of the dangers of the wilderness itself, but also because of the likelihood of a monster riot from the Dryad Forest.

Thankfully, Aurelius had been prepared.

One of the skills he had found in the Undead Knight’s inheritance could let him erect an isolating barrier.

As long as the noise inside did not surpass a certain limit, no one from the outside would be able to hear what happened inside.

With that thought, Aurelius’ Spirit rushed out of his body.

It took a gray form and attached itself to the walls of the underground room.

Soon, a strange sense of emptiness spread throughout the room. It was as though the room had become a world of its own.

Although that feeling was only a mere illusion, it made Aurelius satisfied.

The chances of revealing any clues were minimal.

Thinking of this, he sat on the ground and closed his eyes.

After meditating and emptying his mind for several seconds, he finally opened them again.

The previous excitement and impatience had vanished. He was mentally prepared for what was about to come.

He knew he could not be careless.

As his mind stirred, he summoned the Player Panel and quickly focused on the Skills column.

Seeing the dozens of new entries, he nodded and moved toward the Skill Points.

[Skill Points: 126]

This was an absurd amount.

Perhaps it was even larger than the number of Skill Points Aurelius had obtained throughout his journey.

Clearly, the potential of "scamming" Players had begun to show.

Even so, Aurelius remained calm.

He turned back to the Skills column, focusing on a single entry.

[Synthesis Lv. 2]

Synthesis!

The most fundamental skill of every Arcanist and a great reason behind their terrifying power!

More importantly, it was the skill Aurelius’ advancement would depend on.

Looking at the (+) button behind it, he didn’t hesitate.

Without further thought, he directly pressed on it.

His Skill Points decreased.

In return...

[...]