Noel had some time before lunch, so he checked all his progresses during the past few weeks.
Weapon: Ardagan Sword
Main Medal: Military Service Merit III (Spiritual Energy +2%)
Status: Stamina +1.7%, Constitution +1.7%, Sword Mastery +1.7%, Spiritual Energy +1.5%, Rune Mastery +0.5%
Low Quality Crystal - 109/5000
Mid Quality Crystal - 2/3000
"This is quite good. The more percentage I can accumulate, the bigger my progress will be." Noel smirked. After learning more about Ardagan in the past two weeks, he realized that he could also negotiate with Ardagan to make the system more convenient.
Ardagan had said to him that he would support him, so changing it to match Noel's preference was better.
And for Noel, this was the best way to track all his progress.
"Still, Spiritual Energy +3.5% in total… If I can accumulate it to 50%, with the fact that I can absorb twice of the amount of crystals due to two spirits residing in my body… it means I'll have an additional spirit. And if I can reach 100%, it means I'll have four spirits worth of Spiritual Energy. This is the best improvement I can get.
"No wonder my ancestor can rise to the very top. That's why I need to be careful when using my power. If the royal family knows this power, they won't hesitate to kill me.
"I thought about using the Ancient Demon Tree as the entrance for my second identity, but did I make the wrong choice when making that deal? I was too angry at that time." Noel scratched the back of his head. "Well, I shouldn't cry over spilled milk. Instead of focusing on the past, I need to think about my plan for the second identity."
After shaking his thoughts off from the unnecessary matter, Noel continued to his other progress.
Skill: Swift Strike (1/5), Ardagan Swordsmanship (3/15), Mega Slash (2/5), Rune Mastery (1/10), Increase Agility Rune (1/3), Strength Blessing Rune (1/3)
"Well, I will only use my rune abilities when using the second identity, so I'll need to defeat the Ancient Demon Tree with Swift Strike and Mega Slash. I have 9 Honor Points right now and with the demon extermination, I can get more Honor Points before the fight against the Ancient Demon Tree. If push comes to shove, I can level up Mega Slash or use runes."
Noel nodded with a serious expression. "Alright. That's all. I really wish I could prepare more, but there's a time limit. This might be the test that Ardagan has to test me whether I'm qualified or not to wield him. He wants to see if I have the potential to be someone like my ancestor… No, for my goal, I'll surpass my ancestor."
After finishing his preparation, Noel went to the training ground to get the tent and other stuff. He had agreed to share the stuff with Anna, so he only brought one person worth to lessen the burden.
As expected, Anna had been waiting for him in front of the gate with her own luggage.
"We're good to go?" Anna smirked.
"Yes. The time limit is five days. We'll return here after killing as many demons as we can."
"The Ancient Demon Tree will appear within these five days then?"
"I have no proof but it should be like that."
"I wonder how do you know all this?"
"I wonder if your family account book can give me some secrets to expose." Noel rolled his eyes.
"Hehe." Anna chuckled.
Despite the hatred in Noel's eyes, their conversation had surely mellowed down. At the same time, after being with Noel for almost a month, she realized that Noel wasn't a bad guy down there. The hatred was the one corrupting him.
As long as she could solve the hatred between them, he was a very reliable ally. In fact, she admitted that Noel might be her strongest ally, even stronger than her who had the future memories. That showed how strong Noel's potential was.
In their past lives, if Noel attacked her a few years later, he might have become too strong for her to handle.
Since their main focus was on the Ancient Demon Tree, they immediately headed straight to the lake and set a camp there before night came.
Only after this they could roam around to kill some demons.
"Have you finished setting up the tent?" Anna asked while looking at the soup she currently made.
"Yeah. It's done. We'll be switching every four hours." Noel looked around and asked, "By the way, I want to ask you something."
"What was the reason you wanted to kill my family?" Noel's face was solemn but there was no trace of killing intent coming from his eyes.
Still, the question came out of nowhere. Even Anna was stunned for a few seconds.
After contemplating for a while, Anna answered with another question. By using doubt, she could shift Noel's direction from that matter and eventually, he would reach his own conclusion. "Have you ever learned about your family's history?"
"…" Noel couldn't answer the question because he never had any interest in it. All he did was just lazying around every day. Even though he didn't harm any citizens or his servants, he also did nothing.
In the end, Noel looked away as if he didn't want to say anything.
Whether it was fortunate or unfortunate, a demon's howl echoed near the lake, interrupting the awkward situation.
Noel and Anna followed the sound and saw a black-colored wolf standing twenty meters before them. The monster was bigger than a normal one and the bloodshot eyes made it look like it had become a demon.
Before Anna took out her sword, Noel had already unsheathed Ardagan and said, "I'll take care of this."
Noel stepped forward while focusing on his internal body.
"Spiritual Energy…" Although it was not as strong as Anna, Noel felt the Spiritual Energy surging from the Spirit Seal on his right hand flowing to his entire body, strengthening his muscle. This was the first Spirit Technique he learned.
When his eyes released his killing intent, the demon charged forward. Noel also jumped forth while swinging his blade as quickly as possible.
Noel's body tilted to the right as he still precisely struck the demon's neck, severing it in an instant.
"Hoh?" Anna was impressed. "That strike never killed a demon in one stroke before, but with the muscle enhancement, he increased his speed and strength to amplify that attack, allowing him to cut a demon in one strike. It's similar to what I showed him the first time we met…"