[100 Origin Coins gained.]
Alex raised an eyebrow when he saw the reward. Origin Coins. The name made him think of currency, which meant there should be somewhere he could spend them. The problem was that Alex had never seen a shop or marketplace in the System interface, so he had no idea what these coins were actually meant for.
Then another possibility occurred to him.
If Pioneers could enter the Land of Origin before Earth completed its Integration, then perhaps people from the Land of Origin could also come to Earth. If that happened, Origin Coins might be useful for trading with them.
Alex’s expression became serious. That possibility was dangerous because he could not assume that everyone who came from the Land of Origin would be friendly. Some could be merchants, but others might have completely different intentions, especially if they were much stronger than the people on Earth.
For now, Alex decided not to make any assumptions. There was no evidence that his theory was correct, and the System might simply introduce a shop later in the System interface where Origin Coins could be used. Until he knew more, keeping the coins was the safest option.
More notifications appeared before Alex could think further.
[Hidden Quest completed: Complete Tutorial Quest 6 before the first Assessment completes.]
[Gold Reward Box (2) gained.]
[Mark of Origin has leveled up. Level 1 → Level 2]
Alex was pleasantly surprised. The two Gold Reward Boxes were useful rewards, and he was even more interested in the Mark of Origin. He immediately checked its new information.
[Mark of Origin]
[Level 2]
[Origin Energy: 10/10 → 10/20]
[Inventory Slots: 5/5 → 5/10]
[Innate Skill: Return (Consumes 2 Origin Energy at Base)]
Alex studied the changes carefully.
His maximum Origin Energy had doubled from ten to twenty, while his Inventory Slots had increased from five to ten. Both improvements were valuable, especially the additional Inventory Slots because he could carry more objects now.
Alex then remembered how his Origin Energy had originally been only one.
It must’ve increased to ten after he cleared the Wild Orc Open Dungeon, which meant that dungeon had given him a much larger increase than the Titan Reef Crab Dungeon. He wondered if that was because fewer people had participated in the Wild Orc dungeon or because the dungeon itself contained more Origin Energy.
There was also another detail worth noticing. The System had clearly not counted the captured people as contributors to the dungeon’s clearance. Instead, it had apparently counted Alex, Roan, and the few people who fought during the final moments, which meant that simply being present inside a dungeon was not enough to receive credit.
Alex stored that information in his mind. He still did not know exactly how the System calculated contributions, but understanding its rules could become important in the future.
Another thought came to mind. He wondered whether this was how everyone could level up their Mark of Origin, or if there were other methods as well.
He had received his Mark of Origin as a reward from a Hidden Quest, and a specific Hidden Quest could only be completed once. If that was the only way to level up the Mark, then no one could level up the Mark of Origin anymore, which Alex doubted was true. Alex believed that the System must have other methods that he had yet to discover.
Before he could investigate further, another System screen appeared in front of him.
[Tutorial Quest 7 issued: Absorb another Faction into your Faction/Make your Faction join another Faction.]
Alex raised an eyebrow when he read the new quest. He had no idea how he was supposed to absorb another faction, but he had already experienced something similar when he thought about inviting his friends into his faction, so he assumed the System would guide him once another faction agreed to join him.
"Roan, come with me," Alex said.
The group continued dealing with the aftermath of the battle while Alex, Roan, and one of Roan’s team members, Noah, moved further inside the school. There were still injured people being treated and others trying to organize the survivors, so nobody paid much attention to them as they left the main area.
On the way, Alex noticed Charlotta sitting near one of the damaged corridors. The little girl was healing Mia, and Alex briefly looked at the faint light surrounding the cat before continuing toward one of the meeting rooms.
Once they entered the room, Alex turned toward Roan.
"What’s the new Tutorial Quest you received?" Alex asked.
"To join another faction or absorb another faction into mine," Roan replied. His gaze shifted slightly, as though he already understood why Alex had asked him to come here.
"Join my faction," Alex said directly.
Roan fell silent as he considered the offer. Before he could answer, however, Noah spoke up.
"Alex, we’re grateful for everything you’ve done for us, but we’ll have to apologize."
"Why?" Alex looked at him without a change in his expression.
"We’re planning to join the military. They haven’t arrived yet, but I’m sure they will eventually, and I think it would be safer for us to join them. We don’t know whether we’ll be able to a new faction again after this, so I think it would be better to wait before making a decision," Noah answered.
Alex listened without interrupting and then looked at Roan. "Do you think the same?"
Roan shook his head. "No, I don’t. The military might be able to help us, but look at the condition of the roads and the infrastructure around us. I doubt there’s even a clear route left for them to reach us quickly, and if a large group moves together, the monsters could attack them as well."
Roan continued, "They will come, and I trust that they’ll eventually reach us, but it will take time. With everything changing so quickly, if we don’t get stronger ourselves, there’s a chance we won’t even be alive by the time the military arrives."
"You’re saying we should join Alex’s faction?" Noah asked, a slight frown appearing on his face.
..
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