(Later that same day)
As Leo logged out of the game later that day, the first thing he did was head to the MP Exchange store.
With just a few days left before his house arrest ended, Leo felt unsure of just how close he was to reaching the realm of a master? And to get a better sense of his progress, he decided to visit the store and figure out just where he was still falling short.
Having already pushed his third core skill to advanced mastery, Leo felt as if he was long overdue for the title of 'master.' Yet, for reasons he couldn't quite grasp, that official crowning moment continued to elude him.
*Ring* *Ring*
*Ring* *Ring*
Leo dialed the exchange store as usual, but to his surprise, instead of the grumpy AI voice he expected, he was greeted by a friendly attendant.
"Good morning, Sir Leo. I hope you're having a very joyful morning. This is Raven speaking. How may I assist you today?" came the voice on the other end, as for a moment, Leo was thrown off, not expecting such a warm reception.
He recalled Raven, the Elf who had visited his apartment with Raya, but he couldn't quite understand why the elf was being so overly kind—and frankly, a bit cringeworthy—today.
"Good morning… err, I have a small request," Leo replied, unsure what to make of the situation, as Raven responded immediately, enthusiastically saying "Anything, Sir. Please state your request."
"Well," Leo began, "I'm trying to figure out what I'm lacking to enter the realm of a master in the game. I feel like I'm really close to the transition but missing something critical….."
Leo half-expected Raven to quote him a hefty MP price for the information. However, to his surprise, Raven didn't ask for any payment and simply offered the help for free.
"Ah, I see. Well, Sir Leo, you're right—you're very close to reaching the realm of a master. However, you've yet to meet one small requirement: which is that you need to push your skill, (Shadowbind), to an intermediate level.
You see, Sir Leo, one of the conditions to become a master is to bring all of your skills to at least the intermediate grade, and you haven't done that yet.
So if you can push it to Intermediate, your promotion should be an almost guarantee–" Raven said, as although he didn't reveal every hidden requirement of the game's master rank, he gave Leo the crucial piece of information he was missing—and at that too at no charge.
"Ah, I see… Well, thank you, Mr. Raven. I truly appreciate your kindness in helping me today," Leo replied, still feeling a bit strange about receiving the help for free, but certainly not complaining.
Given how much he was trying to save MP, not having to pay hundreds for that information was undoubtedly a relief.
"It's my pleasure to assist you, Sir. Have a great day," Raven responded, his voice laced with exaggerated respect, leaving Leo puzzled at his eagerness to please.
After hanging up, Leo couldn't help but wonder why he'd been treated to such premium service? Yet, without fully understanding the odd behavior of an operator, he eventually let the question fade.
"So I just had to achieve (intermediate) mastery on ALL my skills. I'm such a stupid guy for learning a new one before I improved my existing one's" Leo mused, as in the end he could not believe that the final requirement was something so incredibly simple.
For days now he had been worried as to what he could be lacking, but it was something truly minor.
What he did not know was that he had been incredibly fortunate that he practiced (Shadowbind) first and mastered his other skills later, as without having the foundation of having learnt (Shadowbind) he would never have been able to push (Mirror World) to (Advanced) mastery, without which he would never be able to reach level 350.
His current level was 352, however, 25 of those levels were only because of mastering (Mirror World) which gave nearly four times the level gains of mastering an average legendary rank skill, at a usual +5 or +7 level bonus.
Without it, he would be unable to reach the minimum threshold to become a master and would have to hunt and raise his level after his isolation ended instead.
Thankfully, with how things played out though, he never had to struggle with this bit, as the next time that he returned to the game he could only focus on improving the mastery of (Shadowbind) without having to worry about anything else in the world.
*******
(Meanwhile Raven)
Raven, along with the higher-ups both aboard the Arc Ship and back on Terra Nova, had been carefully tracking Leo's progress for some time.
His rapid development and growing potential had caught the attention of some very powerful individuals, and they were keenly aware that Leo was on the verge of something significant.
Each advancement Leo made was being observed, analyzed, and reported back, as his rise through the ranks could potentially shift the balance of power in unforeseen ways.
Hence, it wasn't out of the kindness of his heart that Raven decided to assist Leo today.
Raven was no fool— and he knew that getting in Leo's good graces early could offer him immense advantages in the future.
Leo was a rising star, an individual who was destined for a position of influence in the future, and Raven understood that aligning himself with someone who would soon hold great power was a strategic move.
His overly polite and accommodating demeanor was not driven by genuine care, but by the desire to secure his place at Leo's side, knowing full well that those who helped Leo now would likely benefit from his success later.
"Captain Kid, I'm taking your advice and starting to build a connection with Leo…. These MP that I have paid out of my own pocket today, I hope I'll make them back a thousandfold someday" Raven said with a sigh, as he looked forward to the day where his investment into Leo started to pay dividends.