Previously, Charlie had triggered rare Development Abilities that few others learned, such as Luck, Mystery, and Chain Attack. At the very least, the rarity of the Development Abilities he possessed was on par with those of the protagonists of this world.
And now, once again, Charlie had triggered another set of rare Development Abilities.
"Strong Body, Panacea, and Sage's Walk..."
There were no Main Gods who usually helped provide in-depth explanations about the Development Abilities triggered by an adventurer upon leveling up. However, Charlie wasn't too worried.
Before parting ways, his Main Goddess, Hera, had given him several sets of comprehensive encyclopedic books containing in-depth information about the Dungeon up to the 71st Floor, the various Familias that existed, monster types, details about various known Development Abilities, and so on.
Among the notes of past Hera Familia members written in the book, there were descriptions of individuals who possessed Development Abilities similar to the choices Charlie currently faced.
Quickly, Charlie flipped through his memories and the information from the book, searching for clues that could help him make the right decision.
"Strong Body, that's a Development Ability that grants the adventurer a significant increase in raw strength every time their rank goes up. It's mentioned that Zald from the Zeus Familia and Ottar from the Freya Familia possess this Development Ability."
"Strong Body is somewhat similar to the Physical Enchant I often use. The main difference is that Strong Body is permanent, providing a base stat increase each time this Development Ability ranks up, whereas Physical Enchant is just a temporary amplification of strength that is a buff."
Strong Body sounded very promising, especially for the close-quarters physical combat he specialized in. However, Charlie didn't want to rush into a decision before examining the other two Development Abilities he had triggered. He needed complete information to make the most appropriate choice in this life-or-death situation.
"Next is Panacea. One of the senior High Class Adventurers in the Hera Familia... I forget her name, but they had this Development Ability."
Charlie tried to recall the details.
"If I remember correctly, Panacea allows the user's blood to enhance health and vitality. At lower ranks like I or H, the user's blood will make them immune to diseases, increase their stamina, slow down aging, and provide small selective buffs like slightly increasing their senses or metabolism little by little."
After identifying the effects of Panacea, Charlie immediately crossed it off his list of choices without the slightest hesitation.
Immune to diseases? The Chosen Savior skill already granted him the highest rank of Abnormal Resistance, providing immunity to instant death, poisons, curses, charms, mind control, and various other negative effects, including any diseases.
Slow down aging? Charlie had eaten mermaid flesh not long ago, becoming immortal and would never age and die of old age.
For other adventurers, Panacea would definitely be a super rare and highly valuable Development Ability. But for Charlie, Panacea was completely useless.
"Lastly, Sage's Walk."
"This Development Ability increases basic combat abilities based on the battlefield where the user is fighting. For example, in an open field, it will increase agility, inside a cave the increase is divided between endurance and strength, underwater between agility and strength, and in a forest it will be dexterity and agility. The more hostile the environment, the greater the increase."
"Sage's Walk is very flexible. Under normal circumstances, I would definitely choose Sage's Walk as my fourth Development Ability. Situational increases based on the environment can be very advantageous. However, this is a life-or-death situation. A small increase based on the current environment might not be enough to turn the tide of such a critical situation."
With his maximum flying speed reaching Mach 2, Charlie was confident he could escape the Juggernaut if he really wanted to. Even so, the thought of running away didn't truly cross his mind. Of course, he didn't consider fleeing from a much stronger enemy a cowardly act.
What was the point of pride if he died?
For some reason, Charlie had a strong premonition that the appearance of the Juggernaut was somehow related to him. If he fled, the rampaging Juggernaut might slaughter other adventurers who were unlucky enough to encounter it in the Dungeon. He couldn't let that happen.
Charlie also realized that the Juggernaut's overall strength might be weaker compared to the Evil Dragon Fafnir he had defeated before. Then, why could he defeat Fafnir but feel so pressured by the Juggernaut?
The reason was simple: he defeated Fafnir through deceit.
Charlie didn't directly fight Fafnir in a battle of pure strength. Instead, he relied on his magic, Aithra Athanatos—leaving incurable curse wounds—to inflict countless injuries on Fafnir's body until the Evil Dragon slowly died from the accumulated damage.
Unfortunately, Charlie couldn't use the same method on the Juggernaut.
First, the Juggernaut's body was mostly composed of bones without flesh, so Aithra Athanatos wouldn't be effective. There wasn't enough organic matter for the curse to take root and spread.
Second, the Juggernaut always avoided direct physical attacks, except for magic replicated through Spirit Art. This meant it didn't give Charlie a chance to use Terminus Est effectively.
With these two conflicting factors, Charlie realized he had a very bad matchup against the Juggernaut.
"I'll choose Strong Body."
Charlie made his decision.
*BUZZ!*
In the next moment, the Sacred Text floating behind his back began to change, accompanied by a dim light. The transformation process happened quickly, the old text slowly fading before the new text appeared in its place in an instant.
As the Sacred Text, now resembling a dark red inscription, returned to his back and merged into his skin, then slowly disappeared without a trace, Charlie swiftly copied his new status bar onto parchment.
—+—
Charlie Avalon
Level 5
Strength: I 0
Endurance: I 0
Dexterity: I 0
Agility: I 0
Magic Power: ∞
Magic:
[Spirit Art]
[Spirit Contractor]
[Aithra Athanatos]
Skill:
[The Chosen Savior]
[Prodigy Swordsman]
[Infinite Essence]
[Triptolemus Arc]
[Dragon Slayer]
[Armor of Fafnir]
[Crystallized Wisdom]
[Six Eyes]
[Immortality]
Development Abilities
Luck: H
Mystery: H → G
Chain Attack : H → G
Strong Body: I
—+—
Seeing the words "Level 5" clearly displayed below his name, a faint yet confident smile appeared on Charlie's lips.
Now, without needing to use temporary buffs like Physical Enchant, he had officially stepped into the realm of true High Class Adventurer strength.
The only slight disappointment he felt was that he didn't awaken a new skill upon leveling up. However, he quickly dismissed that thought.
"Never mind, I shouldn't be greedy. Triggering a Development Ability every time I level up is already an incredible blessing. Besides, I already have quite a few skills."
Even so, Charlie wondered if he had unlocked all the hidden ability seals within the Karasuki Rio template he possessed. He felt there was still potential strength he hadn't fully tapped into. However, for now, his main focus was dealing with the immediate threat before him.
With Level 5 strength and the Strong Body Development Ability, he felt much more prepared to fight against the Juggernaut.