Nikolai pressed the arrow next to the words The Faᵵe System. A new panel appeared in front of him with nothing but a few words.

[Evolve.]

[Requirements: 15 Fate Points.]

‘This system is so greedy.’ Nikolai felt scammed because 18 Fate Points were all he had after investing in his awakening. ‘I still want to see what new things the system would have after it evolves.’

Nikolai pressed Evolve, and the fate he stole was consumed. There were no flashy announcements or sparkling light, only a bar that appeared in front of Nikolai.

[1%, 2%, 3%…]

Nikolai felt a change within his Dantian and closed his eyes. He dived through the darkness to find the cube rotating. It kept spinning faster and faster the more he looked at it until cracks appeared on its sides, but the cube suddenly froze.

[Evolution is underway.]

[A choice needs to be made.]

[You can choose one Bloodline Talent to unlock.]

–      [Stars of Travelers.] 

–      [Hidden Fate.]

–      [The Luck Within.]

–      [Wise Choice.]

[Warning: Each Bloodline Talent consumes different amounts of Fate Points and has varying cooldown periods before you can use them again.]

Nikolai was confused, but the system didn’t demand an immediate response. Thus, he decided to see what these ‘talents’ were before he made a choice.

[Stars of Travelers: Use fate points to determine in which direction fate lies, regardless of it being fortune or misfortune.]

‘Hm?’ Nikolai’s eyes widened. He didn’t think that he can use fate in this manner. However, this didn’t mean it would guide him to more fate points or treasures but might also spell disaster. ‘But it can also help me avoid danger.’

[Hidden Fate: receive an alert when there’s a treasure with high fate or a Fate Fragment nearby. Fate Points need to be invested beforehand, and each alert consumes a small amount of them.]

‘Ah, this is getting more difficult to decide.’ Nikolai craved this talent as well, but it also had a drawback that it might never be helpful to him. ‘I already know enough shocking items.’

[The Luck Within: Obtain the Luck stat, increasing your base probability using fate points. The increase is permanent, but at a considerable cost.]

‘WHY ARE THEY ALL SO GOOD?’ Nikolai felt like he was being torn apart. ‘And why are they all so vague? How many fate points do I need to use for each of them?’

[Wise Choice: Use Fate Points to know whether a decision would bring you benefit or harm in the near future.]

‘This is so overpowered…’ Nikolai’s mouth gaped as he read the talent’s description.

Every one of these talents was so valuable for him: one for travel, another for scavenging, a stat for farming stats, and one that would resolve uncertainty. All of them were things he never thought were possible using Fate Points.

‘This evolution was well worth it.’ Nikolai took back what he said about the system scamming him. ‘The only question is… which one should I choose?’

They were all useful for different scenarios, but he can only choose one for now. Stars of Travelers might lead him to doom if he was greedy. Even though fortune was on the other side of danger, he didn’t want to walk toward his demise.

Hidden Fate was helpful if he ever goes into a market, as a simple trip might make him rich. However, that was all there is to it. He might end up with nothing, and he didn’t exactly need this in the middle of the wilderness.

‘The Luck Within…’ This talent was the one Nikolai needed the most at the moment. If he can increase his base probability, then he would consume fewer Fate Points in the long run. The problem was that it needed many Fate Points, although he didn’t exactly know how much.

Wise Choice was the ideal talent for resolving the issue with Yuxi and Sergio, as he could just know if trusting Yuxi would harm him. However, that didn’t help him become stronger, like The Luck Within did.

It also made Nikolai question whether any choice he made using this was indeed his own or some higher deity’s desire. He was sure now that his system was related to his bloodlines, even though Dark Fae and Fate weren’t precisely the same.

Nikolai’s finger hovered over the choices he had. He didn’t need Hidden Fate or Stars of Travelers at the moment because the future has yet to change beyond recognition.

The only two remaining talents were Wise Choice and The Luck Within. As Nikolai’s finger hovered above the two, ready to choose one of them, his ears twitched as he heard a sound from behind him.

“You like sneaking up.”

Nikolai turned to look at the archer, but her face was pale. She was breathing rapidly, pointing toward the cave.

“What happened?” Nikolai’s eyes turned cold. “Where is Sergio?”

‘Sick.’ She flinched when she saw his eyes but still gestured. Nikolai released her, darting toward the cave as fast he could.

He was in the cave in an instant. As he walked in, he found Sergio lying on the ground while breathing heavily.

“What happened to you?” Nikolai frowned as he crouched beside him.

“Ah, Bossman. I don’t know. My body is a mess, and I can’t move anything.” Sergio opened one of his eyes as he winced in pain with a slight smile. “I shouldn’t have eaten that berry; I knew it was bad news.”

‘There’s no way he can get poisoned from a berry.’ Nikolai frowned heavily. Whatever caused this was something else, but what was it?

“Don’t resist.” Nikolai pressed his hand on Sergio’s dantian. As he was about to use his mana, something familiar pulsed from Sergio’s body.

‘This familiar feeling…’ Nikolai’s eyes widened. ‘Why is my darkness within his body?’

Nikolai retracted his hand instantly, fearing he might harm Sergio any more than this. It was his darkness that ate away at Sergio’s mana, wreaking havoc in his body.

‘How did it get there?’