Mercenary System: I can increase innate potential !-Chapter 142: Eternity is...

[Eternity is going to close!]

[User Maxime Valdreuve will be logged out shortly].

Real world.

Maxime opened his eyes abruptly, his blurred vision capturing the familiar ceiling of his bedroom. Natural light shone through the half-open curtains, bathing the room in a clarity he had almost forgotten.

For a moment, he lay disoriented in his bed.

His bed was comfortable, so he could stay in it for a long time, but that wasn’t why he stayed in it.

It was because he felt weak, very weak.

As if he’d fallen ill or worse.

He quickly looked at his statistics page, and saw that he had lost over a point of physique, or 25% of his strength.

At this stage, it was even worse than being sick: the stat points represented his strength and his future.

"System, can you explain to me what’s going on?"

[Level 2 authorization detected]

[The host has the right to know this information.]

[An alien god has placed a restriction on this universe, making ascension extremely difficult.]

[The restriction starts at 3 physics points; once this limit is reached, every step becomes extremely difficult].

[To increase by one physics point, you actually need 10 physics points].

Maxime opened his eyes wide at this, and finally understood a few things.

"So that was why the teachers said it took tens of thousands of gold coins to reach 4 points!"

"I wonder if the teachers are aware of this information?"

Ding!

[Only individuals with level 2 clearance are allowed to know the origins of this limit, others will have their memories automatically erased if they obtain this information via sources other than the system].

[Note that some level 2 information can be released to other individuals under certain conditions, but not this one].

Maxime nodded at this.

"Specifically, how does this system limitation work?"

The robotic voice echoed in his mind.

[In the real world, once your physique reaches 3 points, you need one point of statistics to increase your physique by 0.1].

[A host with a physique approaching 5 points in Eternity, counting class bonuses, would then have a physique of 3 + 2x0.1, i.e. a maximum of around 3.2 points].

[Without bonuses, the host has a physique of 3.95 points in Eternity, i.e. a physique approaching 3.1 points in the real world].

An immediate 25% reduction in his physical strength, no wonder he felt uncomfortable in his body.

But suddenly he connected with this information, opened his eyes wide in surprise.

"That was it."

"That was why leaders of men were particularly valued."

"Once you’ve reached 3 physics points, it becomes extremely complicated to improve in the real world."

"So to improve one’s strength in the short term, it becomes logical to try to hire men, particularly knights."

"With their vital seed, they represent an additional weapon against the aliens and above all they all have formidable combat experience."

"Successfully hiring a knight when you reach this limit means multiplying your combat power by at least 2 times in one go."

"It is therefore much more profitable for many people to invest in mercenaries than in themselves once this limit has been reached."

However, Maxime still had a question running through his mind.

[System, are my talents restricted?]

[They aren’t, except for the active effect of the talent from God Nox. Instead of increasing your physical strength by 50%, it will increase it by about 5%].

Maxime was shocked, but at the same time it seemed logical, as it correlated with the limits imposed by this famous foreign God.

If his talent wasn’t affected, it would be far too inconsistent.

"But what could be the purpose of this foreign god to impose a restriction on our universe?"

Ding!

[The host does not have the necessary level of authorization to access this information].

"Well, I kind of suspected, it looks like a big secret," Maxime murmured, albeit with a little disappointment.

After all, it had to do with the history of the universe, its rules and the gods. It was bound to make one very curious.

At the same time, his phone vibrated, showing that he had just received a notification.

Maxime reached out to grab it. A notification appeared on the screen:

[10:42 AM] Where are you? The boss is going to kill you if you don’t get here before 11. - Hugo

"Shit...I’d forgotten I had to work this Sunday...and here I was thinking I was going to check in with the boss tomorrow, and now I’m shooting myself in the foot." he muttered, his voice slightly panicked.

He’d been so excited about getting back into Eternity two months ago, he’d completely forgotten he was going back to bartending this morning.

"What an idea to go into Eternity just before going to work," he muttered to himself, though he regretted nothing.

He leapt out of bed, hastily pulled on a pair of black pants and a white sweater, then ran madly down the stairs to the house.

"What’s got you in such a hurry?" asked Andréa, his mother in the kitchen, confused at seeing her son rushing around like this.

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"Work!"

"Ah, good luck son!"

"Thanks, Mom!"

Maxime grabbed a leftover croissant from the dining table and bit into it with vigor.

Then, while chewing, he put on his shoes with phenomenal speed.

Then he quickly left the house.

In the street, the sound of horns and excited chatter echoed. Maxime ran down the street, taking care not to jostle anyone.

Seeing his speed, some people looked at him with admiration.

Among most civilians, it was already correct to reach 1.5 physique points, which represented a level 2 or 3 class depending on original physique and class.

There were many people who reached 2 physique points, but generally this was the ceiling for ordinary people.

After that, many people were reluctant to put their lives further at risk in Eternity.

For Maxime, meanwhile, the transition back to everyday life was no easy matter after a session in Eternity. Over there, he was a mercenary leader, he was often in contact with many nobles, having just befriended the heir to a duchy, for example, and he had even danced with the princess of the kingdom.

But here, he was just another employee. He was ordinary.

As he passed a billboard, an image caught his eye: a promotional poster for Eternity. The slogan read:

"Eternity - More real than life itself".

Immediately afterwards, several men and women dressed as soldiers appeared on the promotional poster.

"The army is recruiting! High pay, privileges for you and your family, training and investment and many other benefits!"

"We’re also training reserve soldiers! In the event of an invasion, you’ll have the power to defend yourself! Training funded by the Ministry of Defense."

"More real than life..." he repeated, ironically.

Ding!

[Eternity is as real as the world in which the host resides].

"What the hell? Eternity is a real world? But how is that possible?"

Maxime was more than shocked to hear this information.

Everyone on the Internet was debating whether Eternity offered real worlds to every player or whether it was just a game.

Logic dictated that it was impossible for a world to be created for each player and then literally paused every time the player logged out.

So those who said it was a real world were seen as those who believed in flat Earth in the 21st century.

Ding!

[The host doesn’t have enough clearance to know how it works].

"Yes, I’m sure," Maxime commented, murmuring and looking up.

Simultaneously, his phone vibrated again. He groaned when he saw the message:

[10:51 AM] Seriously, you’re dead, man. Say your prayers. - Hugo

He sighed and quickened his pace.

Maxime arrived in front of the bar, breathless. His shoes crunched on the pavement as he stopped dead in front of the front door. He glanced at his phone: 10:59.

"One minute... That should be enough."

He entered hurriedly. The inside of the bar was already bustling with the first customers enjoying their coffee or reading the paper. Behind the counter, Hugo, his colleague, gave him a half-mocking, half-compassionate look.

"You’re in luck, the boss hasn’t come down yet. But you’d better get changed, fatso."

Maxime nodded, blowing out a quick thank-you, before scurrying off into the back room.

He quickly opened his locker and put on a black shirt, which was the rule in this bar for all bartenders to show a minimum of professionalism.

As his boss used to say:

"We’re not at the fair here."

As he pulled on his shirt, a squeaky voice sounded behind him.

"Valdreuve, you’re late."

Maxime’s heart sank. It was the boss, a portly man with a stern face, staring at him with an annoyed expression.

"Sorry, Monsieur Lemoine. But I’m here, ready to work and give it my all."

"You’d better be. If I catch you coming in late, it’s out the door."

Maxime nodded quickly and went to the counter to work.

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In this world he needed money, and this job was the only one where he’d been accepted despite numerous CVs sent everywhere.

It was also thanks to this job that he’d been able to buy a watch, otherwise his mother, who looked after him and his brother alone, would have had to take out a hefty loan to do so.

On the other hand, the boss, despite what he said and what he gave off, was a very altruistic person.

He helped many young people in financial difficulty like Maxime, so that they could help their families feed themselves, find decent housing, and above all, have a future by buying a watch.

Because in this world, not having a watch to access Eternity meant being much weaker than the others.

And since looks were linked to productivity in most jobs, it also diminished their chances of being hired at any company, and even if they were hired, their chances of promotion would be very slim compared to others who had been able to go to Eternity many times.

After all, living in Eternity was also a skill that was valued by many companies.

Indeed, living in a period comparable to the Middle Ages, with dangers everywhere, was no easy matter, and even less so when dying meant losing one’s life expectancy.

So having a good physique meant having courage, but also a few skills.

As Maxime cleaned the glasses and prepared the first orders, his mind wandered. The information received from the system was still echoing in his head.

"Eternity is a real world."