"Is it worth the risk of exposing myself to try to create a different identification for this form?" Alexander asked himself upon seeing the guards showed no hostility. "Better not... at least not for now. I'm not far from evolving and this form's appearance will change."

  Satisfied with the test, he looked for a place with no one around and returned to his human form. But as he wanted to be sure no one would appear out of nowhere and observe his transformation, he used |Water Barrier| together with Ocean to hide while changing form and clothes.

  Back in human form, Alexander entered the city and went to the blacksmith Mary had recommended to him the day he arrived. According to her, his temperament wasn't the best, but his skills and reliability made him one of the main partners of the adventurer's guild.

  Upon entering the blacksmith's shop, he saw no one, but could tell someone was in the back, as he could hear the loud and strangely harmonious sound of metal striking metal.

  Looking carefully, Alexander found a polished metal bell on the shop counter. At first glance it seemed very simple, but upon looking closer one could perceive how well crafted it was.

  When he pressed the bell, the mental sound against the metal ceased and a dwarf dressed in a work apron appeared.

  "I'm sorry to interrupt you," said Alexander. "My name is Alexander and I came here on the Guild's recommendation."

  "I'm Jayce," replied the dwarf. "What do you need?"

  "I want to know how much it will cost to make a dagger like this one. But a bit better," said Alexander, handing him his dagger. "I need it to have the capacity to resist the abrasion of poisons and to conduct energy and mana."

  "I also want to know the cost of a staff that strengthens spells up to Tier II and aids in launching magical attacks," he added upon remembering what he needed. "And lastly, I want to know the cost of combat needles that are capable of penetrating well into 2nd evolution creatures."

  After hearing the requests, Jayce became thoughtful for a few moments while stroking his beard. "I have a scepter mold that meets your needs, and I can make the others. But the cost will be high, as your request requires a magical catalyst and the items must be of (Unique) grade."

  "What will the total value be if I provide you with the magical catalyst?" Alexander asked while taking out his [Wooden Staff from the Mana Tree] for Jayce to evaluate.

  Upon confirming the [Wooden Staff from the Mana Tree] could indeed be used as a magical catalyst, the blacksmith determined the price: "The staff will cost 3 small gold coins, the dagger 4 small gold coins, and each combat needle 1 large silver coin."

  "If you confirm and pay for the order now, I can deliver it tomorrow morning," Jayce encouraged. "And I of course guarantee quality."

  With a "pain in his heart," Alexander agreed: "Alright. I'll take the scepter, the dagger, and 10 combat needles... But I will really need them early tomorrow morning."

  "No problem," Jayce assured. "You can come tomorrow morning."

  "Then it's all settled," Alexander agreed. "Here are the 8 small gold coins for my order."

  With his heart still "bleeding" from the loss of almost all his coins, he returned to the Guild, paid for a room, ate the meals offered to him, and went to sleep to recover from the physical and mental fatigue.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  When he woke up the next morning, Alexander was back to his best condition, but as he didn't want to risk failing the academy exam, he decided to reserve his [Survivor's Set] and use his growth points to improve some skills, spells, and his class.

  Ding!

  [You used 4 growth points to maximize the skill |Gift|]

  [|Invigorate (Peak)| leveled up to |Invigorate (MAX)|]

  [You used 3 growth points to maximize the spell |Minor Lightning|]

  [You used 3 growth points to maximize the spell |Water Cannon|]

  Ding!

  [Your class {Water Mage} leveled up to {Elite Water Mage}]

  [Leveling up the scalable water element skills, which are not at maximum]

  [Leveling up the skill |Mana Control|]

  *[+50% power in all spells, skills, and the like related to the water element]*

  *[+25% base magical damage]*

  Ding!

  *[+1 Growth Point]*

  *[+20 points to Intelligence and +10 points to the other attributes]*

  *[+40 Mana]*

  *[+20 HP]*

  *[+10 Energy]*

  *[+10 MP]*

  [Strengthening mana recovery capacity]

  [Strengthening regeneration capacity a bit]

  [Strengthening energy recovery capacity a bit]

  Ding!

  [The evolution process was successfully completed]

  [The requirement to master the {Mage} class is to maximize all spells, obtain the class enhancement, and possess |Mana Control (MAX)|]

  Ding!

  [Your (Intelligence) has reached its maximum possible level for Poisonous Goblin]

  [Your mana reached the maximum possible for a poisonous goblin.]

  [Your body received an amount of mana that exceeded your limit. The excess was used to increase your mana recovery.]

  Ding!

  [Your mental power reached the maximum possible for a poisonous goblin.]

  [Your body received an amount of mental power that exceeded its limit. The excess was used to increase your MP recovery.]

  Thrilled to have managed to fulfill one of the prerequisites for the evolution he had chosen, Alexander decided to try to fulfill the other one soon. And for that, he put all his free attribute points into (Vitality).

  [16 points added to Vitality]

  Ding!

  [Your (Vitality) has reached its maximum possible level for Poisonous Goblin]

  [Your HP reached the maximum possible for a poisonous goblin.]

  [Your body received an amount of HP that exceeded its limit. The excess was used to increase your regeneration.]

  Ding!

  [Your energy reached the maximum possible for a poisonous goblin.]

  [Your body received an amount of energy that exceeded its limit. The excess was used to increase your energy recovery.]

  [Your body received an amount of mental power that exceeded its limit. The excess was used to increase your MP recovery.]

  "Interesting... It seems even my 'overpowering' talent has some negative points," Alexander analyzed. "It brings me various possibilities, but also limits me to the species/race of the metamorphosis."

  "What a contradictory feeling," he pondered. "I can feel I am more powerful, but I also feel limited by some kind of restriction."

  Feeling uncomfortable with this, Alexander used |Mana Control| and |Energy Control| to circulate the power within his body. And after circulating it a few times, he felt better and more relaxed, but still felt the restriction deep within his being.

  Unable to resolve the situation at the moment, Alexander cleaned himself up, had a meal with Ocean, and went to the blacksmith to pick up his orders.