Aolai Empire, the greatest city of mankind, gathered here the most outstanding Mages and Warriors, and was acknowledged as the strongest human empire.
Within this empire, there were many academies dedicated to nurturing the next generation of Mages and Warriors.
The most renowned among them was Xingyao Academy. It was said that a hundred years ago, the Principal of Xingyao Academy slew a Dragon, earning the title of the First Dragon Slayer among humanity.
At this moment, as classes ended, students of Xingyao Academy gathered in the Academy Cafeteria, eating their meals while discussing the latest rumors circulating the academy.
“I heard that our Principal has taken in a new disciple recently,” said a student dressed in a white academy uniform.
“You mean that young master from the Leimon Family?” Another student, also clad in white, replied indifferently.
“Speaking of which, the young master of the Leimon Family has had quite a tragic fate. It’s said that his Magic talent was incredibly high, with over sixty Magic Elemental Affinity in all five elements—he was the most outstanding among the younger generation of imperial nobles, sure to lead the Leimon Family to new heights in the future. But who would have thought the Territory guarded by the Leimon Family would be invaded by a High-rank Monster Species, with nearly half of its human population wiped out. Only he survived, and even then he suffered Magic Corrosion, his Magic talent basically destroyed. If not for the Principal’s friendship with the Leimon Family, he wouldn’t have been taken in as a disciple at all.”
“Why pity him? Even if his family was wiped out, he still became the Principal’s Direct Disciple. Even if he never improves in Magic again, no one would dare bully him. Look at us—after graduation, we’ll return to our families just to be common soldiers, with no chance to stand out.” With that, he sighed.
“That’s true. No matter how down and out he is, he’s still better off than us. Maybe he’ll spend his whole life enjoying wealth and glory in the Aolai Empire. What’s there to pity?” Another chimed in.
Suddenly, someone asked, “Wait, I heard the young master from the Leimon Family is the Principal’s fifth disciple!”
“I thought the Principal only had three disciples?”
“It’s normal you don’t know; you enrolled late. The Principal’s Fourth Disciple is also someone with barely any presence. He’s been in the academy for years and only just mastered Second-rank Magic. Not one of his elemental affinities is above five. His Martial Skill talent is average, and he never participates in any real combat training, lazing about all day.”
“Hey, now that you mention it, I think I’ve heard others talk about this person before.”
“With such poor talent, he shouldn’t have even passed the Academy Assessment. Maybe his family background is powerful, and that’s why the Principal accepted him as a Direct Disciple?”
“Whether it is or isn’t has nothing to do with us. He’s not anyone important anyway.”
The group’s lively discussion naturally overlooked the young man sitting not far away, who was devouring a chicken leg with great relish.
This youth also wore a white school uniform. His features were quite handsome, yet he was astonishingly unremarkable—no one noticed him at all.
As the young man ate, the chicken bone suddenly slipped from his hand and fell to the floor.
A familiar mechanical voice sounded in his mind.
[Divine Choice System at your service. Host, please make your selection as soon as possible.]
[Choice 1: Rush up to the group, smile and say, “Classmates, I am the Fourth Disciple of the Principal you just mentioned, Yize! Gossiping isn’t a good habit, you know!” Difficulty: E. Reward upon completion: Protagonist Value +10]
[Choice 2: Pick up the chicken bone from the ground and hurl it fiercely at the group, then stuff it into your mouth, saying fiercely, “Your father is the Principal’s Fourth Disciple Yize. You trash aren’t even qualified to discuss your father!” Difficulty: E. Reward upon completion: Antagonist Value +10]
[Choice 3: Silently pick up the chicken bone from the ground, then toss it in the trash and leave. Difficulty: F. Reward upon completion: NPC Value +10]
[Hint: Every 100 Protagonist Value can be used for a random draw of ultra-rare High-rank Magic, Martial Skill, or equipment. Every 100 Antagonist Value can be exchanged for Monster Species subordinates or Monster Species bloodlines. Every 100 NPC Value allows a random boost to host’s abilities or talents.]
[Hint: Difficulty is ranked from low to high as E, D, C, B, A, S. Please choose carefully, Host.]
Yize was long used to such prompts from the System.
After arriving in this game world for so many years, every now and then the System would pop up, forcing him to make choices. Each of the three choices led to a different fate.
One was the protagonist route, one was the antagonist route, and the last was the NPC route.
Usually, protagonist choices meant actions and words full of righteousness, the antagonist route was evil and unfriendly, and the NPC route was just a background character.
What’s more, the Magic and Martial Skills gained on the protagonist route were extremely rare—possibly ancient Magic or Martial Skills, High-rank Magic, or even Artifact-level equipment.
You had to know, the most powerful human Mages on the continent could only wield Eighth-rank Magic. Tenth-rank and above were called High-rank Magic.
Artifacts possessed unparalleled destructive and defensive power, and there were only two such Artifacts on the entire continent.
As for the Antagonist Value unlocking Monster Species, it could grant ancient Monster Species or even Demon King-level Monster Species—their power was truly terrifying.
It was rumored that the Monster Species which destroyed the Leimon Family was only High-rank. [Monster Species rankings: Low, Middle, High, Superior, Demon King.]
Whether it was the protagonist or antagonist route, the rewards given could easily let you dominate the continent.
So of course, Yize chose… 3.
[NPC Value +10]
Adding these ten points to his current total of 1000 NPC Value, Yize was just able to do a tenfold random talent point draw.
[Basic talents: Defense +4, Mental Value +2, Mana +2. Life talent: Cooking +1]
Damn, still no Attack.
Why is Defense so easy to hit?!
For someone who could only use Second-rank Magic, Attack was of utmost importance.
Whether Magic or Martial Skill, their destructive power depended on Attack.
The System’s talent point distribution really felt like a domestic mobile game’s equipment enhancement.
Over the years of adding talent points, his Mana, Mental Value, and Defense had all reached frightening levels—especially Defense, which took up nearly sixty percent of the points.
For someone who only knew Magic and Martial Skills below the second rank, he truly wished for higher Attack!
Even if he got points in Formation or Forging, those would be useful!
Yize sighed. Since it was random, he couldn’t control it anyway, so he strolled along at a leisurely pace.
Honestly, being a completely unremarkable NPC wasn’t so bad—no need to help others, no need for adventure, just a lazy, carefree life.
This was his eighth year since transmigrating. As a transmigrator with a System, Yize had absolutely no interest in being the protagonist or the villain.
The saying “opportunity and danger go hand in hand” had been proved all too well in his early days.
Whether he chose the protagonist or antagonist route, the tasks were never easy.
If you chose the protagonist route and shaped a good public image, even if you managed to scrape together enough draws for rare High-rank Magic or Martial Skills, you might not even be able to learn them. And even if you did, you might not have enough Mana to use them early on, turning them into burdens—maybe even targets for others’ greed. You might not even know how you died.
As for the antagonist route, never mind whether the Monster Species you unlock would obey. If you didn’t have overwhelming strength, they might even betray you.
And those Monster Species bloodlines—Yize didn’t want to turn into some half-human, half-ghost monster and risk losing his sanity. What use was that kind of power?
To put it simply—protagonist or villain? Not even a dog would bother!
Being an NPC—wasn’t that wonderful? Random talent points—weren’t they wonderful? If his talents weren’t high and his gear wasn’t great, he’d just rely on his stats.
Yize had been playing it safe for so many years—what situation hadn’t he seen?
As a cautious, low-key transmigrator, Yize kept his philosophy simple—follow the path of survival, always stay true to himself.
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