Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix

After a couple of weeks, rumors about battles began to spread around the city. Still, Leiah left to gather them when Rain was sleeping… which left him with little to no chance of hearing what was happening.

"She is probably worried that the mood and possibly bad news will affect me… I suppose it can't be helped," Rain thought.

With fewer worries, Rain had the chance to focus more on his daily grind. Two months after his father's departure, Rain confirmed some things.

(The human path reached level twenty.)

(All Parameters increased by one.)

(You learned the skill of Appraisal.)

(You reached the necessary requirements to unlock a new path.)

(Apprentice Path - Unlocked due to the proficiency in mathematics and critical thinking. This path centers around practical skill development, hands-on learning, and mentorship.)

(The Apprentice Path: Intelligence, Wisdom, and Dexterity + 02 per level up.

Level 1: Basic Training - Provides foundational knowledge and skills necessary for the chosen craft or profession, granting a 5% bonus to related tasks per level.)

"I guess this path is supposed to help people learn their crafts and develop their basic skills," Rain thought. "In any case, let's see what Appraisal can do."

(Appraisal - Ability to assess and evaluate items, revealing basic information about their nature and properties.)

Rain tried to use Appraisal on a bunch of things, and it worked, but it didn't seem that useful at low levels.

Chair: it is a chair.

Table: it is a table.

Door: it is a door.

"No shit, Sherlock…" Rain thought and then sighed.

After using the skill in several things, Rain got some experience, but he began to feel a headache thanks to it. Moreover, when he tried to use it on his mother…

Name: Leiah

Level: ???? (????)

Current Path: ????

"I guess I should have known… the level of the skill has some demerits, and some people can counter it for some reason, probably because they have skills that can do that," Rain thought. "Still, if everyone can learn this, why didn't my parents ever realize my unnatural growth?"

Rain couldn't explain that. In any case, he had a new skill to level up, and it was granting him some experience and bonuses in other parameters.

Name: Rainendall

Level: 07 (230/700)

Current Path: Human (Lv 20 - 310/2000)

Health: 220/220

Mana: 200/200

Stamina: 280/280

Strength: 17

Dexterity: 15

Intelligence: 15

Vitality: 17

Wisdom: 15

Endurance: 17

Luck: 15

Free Points: 30

Main Skills:

[Language Lv 38]

[Body Motor Skills Lv 20]

[Running Lv 08]

[Mathematics Lv 09)

[Appraisal Lv 01]

Support Skills:

[Basic Conditioning Lv 06]

[Basic Training 01]

[Slot 3]

[Slot 4]

[Slot 5]

"I honestly can't tell if my growth is fast or not… either way, I feel way less bored than I was supposed to at this age," Rain thought.

Although Rain was focused on the grinding, at some point, he had a hard time doing that… in the blink of an eye, six months passed, and then he noticed that the belly of his mother had become quite big. The new baby was supposed to be born in one or two months, and Roan wasn't around. Rain also didn't hear much about the war, but the atmosphere in the city wasn't good.

"Speaking of which, I am two years old now, but who cares?" Rain thought. "Maybe my mother already decided the name of the kid, and thanks to that, Roan's death flag was definitive."

Just when Rain thought about that, things got noisy outside, and then rumors that the war had ended began to spread… that had been relatively fast. Or maybe not… during that time, they didn't hear a single thing about Roan, even though Rain knew that letters were a thing in that world.

The next few weeks passed very slowly… perhaps the last six months passed faster than that. When rumors about a massive army approaching the city began to spread, the tension began to increase… the soldiers and others that left for the war finally returned. Still, a gloomy atmosphere also took over when the news about the deaths of some people began to spread.

Leiah crossed her hands and closed her eyes; it seemed that praying was a thing in that world too. Come to think of it, and Rain recalled seeing a cathedral when they arrived in the city.

A couple of hours later, Roan actually arrived at the house… without one leg and with his face filled with scars. Rain was left speechless while Leiah quickly moved and hugged him.

"... Isn't this kind of bad?" Rain wondered. "His family treated him that bad before, and without a leg… he can't work as a soldier or guard."

"I am home…" Roan said and then sighed in relief. "It has been a while, Rain. You grew a lot while I was away. Don't worry about this; I will fix my leg in a couple of months. I just need enough money to pay a high-ranked Healer."

Lost limbs could actually be restored… Rain was left speechless again. That world was more than just crazy; it was bat-shit insane. Still, while they didn't have a difficult life, Roan worked hard for that. It seemed that his parents didn't want to help him recover his leg… using that to teach a lesson to their son seemed beyond unreasonable.

"I guess I will never get along with them," Rain thought and wondered if he could learn healing magic fast enough to help his father.

At first, Rain thought that he wouldn't get along with his new parents no matter how much time passed… but he couldn't not recognize hard-working people.