Looking at his status panel, Elwin increasingly felt like this was some kind of video game.
However, could someone explain?
Why was his Dark Arts Talent at 9?
Was it just a hair's breadth away from being maxed out?
He had always considered himself a good person.
Of course, no ordinary good person would have taken a gun at age seven and personally blown away an enemy gang leader who was trying to muscle in on their turf.
Naturally, his arm had suffered a bit because of the recoil!
Yet that didn't change the fact that deep down, he was a kind-hearted soul.
Elwin inexplicably felt that this system was somewhat unreliable.
And what on earth was that Ancient Magic business?
Elwin asked the system, but the system simply told him to explore it himself!
Elwin felt a quiet contempt in his heart. How utterly useless—making him figure everything out on his own!
After closing the system panel, Elwin communicated with the system again to open the gacha interface!
The next moment.
Streams of radiant light emerged.
Then, cards of various colors flew out into the air.
Before piling up into three separate decks right in front of Elwin.
The visual effects were blindingly gorgeous.
Yet for some reason, four words kept echoing in Elwin's mind.
*Ape God, activate!*
Elwin hurriedly shook his head.
Damn it, this whole setup was way too similar.
It was messing with his head.
Elwin quickly turned his attention to the three card decks.
[Basic Gacha:
Cost: 100 prestige points per draw, 10% off for a 10-draw!
Guaranteed blue reward on a 10-draw, guaranteed purple reward on a 100-draw!]
[Advanced Gacha:
Cost: 1,000 prestige points per draw, 10% off for a 10-draw!
Guaranteed purple reward on a 10-draw, guaranteed golden reward on a 100-draw!]
[Special Gacha: Requires special unlocking conditions!]
Looking at these prize pools, Elwin made up his mind.
The Basic Gacha was clearly meant for a poor wretch like him.
Consider it a newbie bonus?
As for the Special Gacha!
Elwin found that one rather interesting.
"System! What's the deal with this Special Gacha? Explain yourself!"
[Ding! The Special Gacha must be unlocked through special means! High quality and affordable! The Special Gacha can currently be unlocked—the Newbie Card Pool. Do you wish to activate the Special Gacha?]
Elwin's eyes lit up.
Oh? There were special perks after all!
"Activate it, open it for me right now!"
[Ding! The Special Gacha has been replaced with the Newbie Gacha! Draw limit: 10-draw! Draw cost: Free!]
Elwin was instantly thrilled.
He understood. He understood this routine all too well.
This right here was a straight-up newbie starter pack.
That's how it always went in novels.
It was the crucial turning point for a protagonist's rise.
As the system's voice faded.
The cards in the Special Gacha pile changed colors.
They slowly floated up in front of Elwin.
Elwin raised a hand and tapped the back of a card.
Immediately, a rustling sound of shuffling cards filled the air.
Then, cards began to fly upward.
Intertwining colors burst forth—white, green, and blue.
Seven cards flew up in succession.
Then, a flash of purple light abruptly cut through the air.
Elwin's eyes widened.
Purple. The purple had arrived.
Next, the cards began to tremble slightly.
Two sharp whooshing sounds broke the air.
Followed by the eruption of a dazzling golden light.
Elwin almost jumped straight out of his seat in excitement.
A legendary golden drop, and it was a double-yellow egg at that!
As expected, he was a European emperor—a true child of pure luck.
Recreating the miracle of pulling a rare dragon skin on a single roll right here in the wizarding world!
He truly was the son of destiny.
[Ding! Draw complete! Rewards acquired:
White reward: Big Knife Meat x3!
Green reward: A toy figurine from the childhood of the first Dark Lord, Grindelwald! Magic-Enhancing Potion (Shoddy Version!) x2!
Blue reward: Talent Point x2!]
Elwin's expression shifted.
What the hell.
Big Knife Meat? Spicy gluten strips? Was this reasonable? Was this the kind of garbage that should appear in a transmigrator's cheat system?
And speaking of the green reward, Grindelwald's toy figurine?
What, was it hexed? Was it cursed?
You pulled something like this for him?
Crucially, this junk was actually in the same tier as a Magic-Enhancing Potion.
Elwin had a mountain of complaints, but no words to express them.
Still, the Magic-Enhancing Potion wasn't half bad!
Legend had it that this stuff was terrifyingly powerful.
The reason ancient wizards were so formidable was precisely because they drank it.
However, once Elwin looked closer.
His face turned even darker.
A shoddy version?
Was this stuff even safe to drink? Would it kill him?
What kind of bizarre nonsense was this?
Was this prize pool serious?
He took two deep breaths.
At least he got two talent points, didn't he?
And this thing was actually just a blue-tier item?
According to the usual conventions of pay-to-win games, the value of this item probably wasn't that simple. Didn't it mean there would be other uses for it later, like upgrading to a higher tier?
[Ding! The host is quite clever! The system is very gratified. That is correct! The host's current talent cap is ten points, and ordinary talent points can raise the host's talent up to ten points! If the host wishes to continue increasing it, advanced talent points are required! Advanced talent points require one hundred ordinary talent points to synthesize!]
Elwin's mouth twitched slightly.
Fine, fine. Play it like that, then.
As expected, pay-to-win games could never shed that skin.
Elwin asked, "How about this, give me a reference point! Let me know what the absolute ceiling of this talent is so I can at least have a rough idea!"
[Taking the host's highest stat—Dark Arts Talent—as an example: Grindelwald has a Dark Arts Talent of fourteen points, legendary grade!]
Elwin understood.
So basically, while he thought he was a genius, he was actually trash.
Elwin had nothing to say.
He continued checking his remaining loot.
I'm tired, just destroy me; there's no way I'm ever maxing these out.
[Purple reward: Versatile Wardrobe! (This outfit is completely indestructible and can freely change its style and color! Grants a thirty percent resistance against all kinds of spells!)]
Gazing at this reward, Elwin had long since forgotten about the trash he'd pulled earlier.
Good stuff. This was genuinely good stuff.
With something like this on, even Dumbledore would have his spells weakened by thirty percent if he stood right in front of him.
This was practically a divine artifact.
Elwin's eyes shone with a brilliant light.
If the purple reward was this precious, what about the golden reward?
Elwin eagerly looked on to his golden rewards.
[Golden reward:
Unknown Egg: Contains an unknown mysterious lifeform! If the host hatches it personally, it will become the host's pet! Hatching method: Feed it the blood of various Magical Creatures. Current hatching progress: 0/100!]
Elwin rubbed his chin.
This looked like a gambler's item.
Still, since the system classified it as golden, the creature inside was bound to be extraordinary.
Elwin looked on to the final reward.
[Golden reward:
Special Passive Skill: Talent Category.
Mana Reserve: The host can store magic power that exceeds their maximum storage capacity from daily growth as a mana reserve, and directly draw upon it to replenish themselves whenever needed!]
Elwin was instantly overjoyed.
This skill was top-tier.
In theory, if he accumulated enough reserves,
wouldn't he essentially turn into a perpetual motion machine?
Elwin hurriedly claimed it!