[Tutorial completed]
[Companion module unlocked]
[Inventory unlocked]
[Random Box received]
[Do you wish to open it?]
"Hell yeah," Luke said aloud with a chuckle, feeling a little spark of excitement bubble up inside him.
As soon as he clicked yes, a bright, swirling golden light filled his vision, like the kind of glow you see in games when you get something really rare. It wasn't flashy or over the top, just warm and steady—like a quiet promise that something good had just happened.
[Congratulations! You have received the passive skill: Heart of the Infinite Well]
[Heart of the Infinite Well]
[Type: Passive]
[Effect:]
[ Increases maximum MP by 10× (1000%)]
[ Increases MP regeneration by 200%]
[ When MP drops below 10%, MP regeneration spikes to 350% until MP recovers above 10%]
Luke let out a low whistle, impressed but trying not to sound too excited. "Holy fuck, this? Heart of the Infinite Well?" he muttered to himself, a grin slowly creeping onto his face.
This was the legendary passive skill of the Legendary Archmage class—the evolved form of the Mage profession. The Archmage wasn't just any class; it was the pinnacle of human mage classes, the ultimate expression of magical power.
At their peak, Archmages were said to have the ability to unleash spells so powerful they could destroy entire planets. Yeah, that's how insanely strong this legendary class was.
Luke's current class, Combat Mage, was powerful in its own right—but it was still a beginner-level class that hadn't gone through its first major upgrade yet. It had plenty of room to grow, though.
As he leveled up and met the right conditions, his Combat Mage would eventually evolve into more advanced classes. But let's save the details of those advanced classes for another time.
Right now, Luke was more interested in testing just how broken this passive skill really was.
This passive was one of the reasons the Archmage class was so ridiculously broken in the game world.
Ten times the maximum mana pool?
Two hundred percent faster mana regen? And when mana dropped dangerously low, regeneration would spike even higher? That was insane.
It might not sound game-changing at low levels, but Luke knew better. At higher levels, when mana could reach into the thousands, this effect meant his mana pool could soar into the tens of thousands, and his regeneration would be near-instant. He'd be a walking mana fountain—practically unstoppable in a magical fight.
Then he opened his status window, eyes immediately scanning for the MP bar.
[MP: 1900 / 1900]
'Heck yeah!' Luke practically shouted in his mind, grinning like he'd just won the lottery. That was almost ten times what he had before. With this much mana, he could use his basic skills around 250 times in a row without even thinking about running dry.
And that was before factoring in the 200% mana regeneration boost from Heart of the Infinite Well. Which basically meant his MP was now coming back so fast it was like having an auto-refill soda machine strapped to his soul.
In other words… infinite skill spamming mode unlocked.
Luke could already picture the scene: standing smack dab in the middle of a chaotic battlefield, enemies swarming in from every angle, and him just letting loose spell after spell—fireballs bursting, flame waves crashing streaking through the air—non-stop until the other side gave up, worn out from trying to keep up.
And the best part? Even if his MP somehow dropped to dangerously low levels, that passive skill would kick in with a crazy 350% regeneration boost whenever his mana dipped below 10%.
Meaning, unless he was actively trying to burn through all his energy at once, running out of MP was practically impossible.
Of course, this was mostly amazing when dealing with weaker or mid-level foes. Against lower-level enemies, his basic skills would tear through them like a hot knife through butter, and he could just keep going without a break.
But Luke knew better than to get overconfident. If he ran into high-level enemies—think of those with skin tougher than iron or magical shields strong enough to shrug off basic attacks—then no matter how many fireballs or stone spike he spammed, it'd be like scratching an itch with a feather.
The damage from his basic skills would barely register against those big, tough enemies. All that infinite spamming? It wouldn't mean much when facing the heavy hitters. So, no matter how much he spammed, Luke knew he was still pretty weak compared to the big guys in the Marvel world.
Then he switched over to the newly unlocked Companion Module, curious about what it would show.
[Selene can be added as a Companion]
Luke blinked. "Wait… seriously?"
He knew the system's rules—normally, for someone to be eligible as a companion, their Favorability value had to be at least 70, which was basically best friend territory in game terms. And Selene had somehow reached that mark in just a few hours?
'What the hell did I do?' Luke thought, genuinely baffled. Sure, he'd saved her once, and he'd told her the truth about her parents' killer—so maybe the classic "save the beauty in danger" move worked on her.
Without wasting a second, he hit the button to add her. The Companion Module was honestly one of his favorite features when he'd been developing the game.
Companions leveled up alongside the player, their stats improving in sync—a perfect little sidekick system that made the journey less lonely. The catch? The companions themselves couldn't see the interface.
Why? Because Luke had been way too lazy to code that part. He figured, "Why bother giving companions full control when they're just a bunch of code with a set list of moves and dialogues? The player can manage them all anyway."
So, the system was designed as a "player-controlled" setup—only the main character could see and handle the companion's growth. It was like managing your own secret team, but keeping the playbook hidden from them.
And as for why he was adding Selene in the first place—do you even need to ask? Without adding her as a companion, she'd have to stay behind in this world. How could Luke, a warm-hearted and kind man deep down, just leave her there? He wasn't made of stone.
No way.
He wanted to give her a good life, a safe home, and yes—a good bed. Yep, the plan was simple: pack her up as his wife and bring her home with him.
Because if he was going to survive this crazy adventure, having someone like Selene by his side was worth more than any loot or XP. Adventures were lonely without companions, so he planned to save beautiful women from various worlds.
And why only beautiful women? Well, do you really need to ask? He was a man, after all—it was basically his duty to save women. As for men, well… they could pretty much fend for themselves.
Luke knew exactly how most men think. If you suddenly encounter two strangers who need help—one woman and one man—99% of guys would rush to help the woman first. The other 1%? Well, they were like diamonds among men.
And Luke? Yeah, he was proudly part of the 99%. So yeah, he only really cared about women.