However, this brought another thought.
“To think 270 attribute points in intelligence for a human is just 153 for a High Human.”
It should be noted that the higher the stat, the greater the difference.
Just how weak was the human race compared to High Humans?
Immediately, Michael understood the power difference between races.
His race would also provide him attribute points just like his class would.
If he were to depend solely on his class, which gave 4 attribute points per level up, even if he and another human had their stats reduced to one, did they really have the same starting points? No.
Michael of before knew he was very powerful.
However, if his former self were placed in front of him now to battle…
Michael felt conflicted to admit it, but…
It might not take ten blows to win the battle.
However, though he was conflicted, Michael was even more thrilled.
Why wouldn’t he be?
This power boost could be considered his greatest gain since becoming an Awakener—and it wasn’t an exaggeration.
This wasn’t strength borrowed from a class or granted by an item; this was his own strength.
Though he hadn’t tested it out yet, Michael felt he could stand shoulder to shoulder with Spartan, his undead High Human mage.
“It’s said undead are usually weaker than their real counterparts,” he muttered.
Michael couldn’t help but believe it might be true.
His evolution felt even more drastic than Spartan’s.
Of course, that could be due to him being an Awakener—his base stats were high to begin with.
Plus, the feedback he received from his undead’s rank advancement might’ve played a role too.
Whatever the reason, Michael felt he was at least as strong as Spartan.
And that meant only one thing—he could now be compared to an Extraordinary-rank creature.
Also, he had the power of an early-stage Rank 2 creature.
He hadn’t even reached Rank 2 himself, yet he could already contend with those who had. Just like Lucky, Prince, and Spartan.
Oh, and the undead griffin—a true Rank 2 undead.
“It takes 100 evolution points to evolve into a High Human. If the rule of five times the previous cost still holds true, I’ll need 500 points for the next evolution.”
At his current daily gain, Michael would only need ten days to reach that.
If he filled all his contract slots, he’d only need five.
“In the end, I still have too few evolution points,” he sighed.
Though he now had immense personal power—and was quite obsessed with it—Michael knew better than to ignore his greatest strength: necromancy.
That was his true advantage. He couldn’t—and didn’t want to—rely on himself for everything.
Personal strength was great. It boosted survivability. But when it came to risky things like attacking or fighting dangerous?
He preferred to leave that to his undead.
It was just safer.
Michael turned his attention inward, inspecting his body once more.
His mana pool had increased again—noticeably so.
It was larger, deeper, and more vibrant than before.
However, something else caught his eye.
Just like before, there was still a large gap between his Constitution and Intelligence stats.
That alone wasn’t surprising.
What was surprising, however, was the way mana now behaved around him.
It clung to him. Embraced him. Flowed through him with a strange ease.
Unlike before, when he was still human, Michael felt… different. Stronger, yes—but more than that, capable.
As a High Human, it was as if he had become a better vessel for mana.
A sturdier container.
It no longer resisted him—it welcomed him.
It was fascinating.
In just a few days, he had never felt so loved by mana before.
Michael exhaled slowly, rolling his shoulders. A strange urge to stretch pulsed through his limbs—one he couldn’t ignore.
The moment he raised his arms and lightly pushed his muscles, a ripple of strength surged out from his body. His foot sank slightly into the earth beneath him with a dull crunch, cracking the ground.
He blinked. Then frowned.
That… was unintentional.
His strength had increased far too quickly, too significantly. His body responded before his mind even had time to catch up. There was no natural progression to this—it was as if someone had flipped a switch and dialed him up to eleven.
This wasn’t the first time he’d experienced this. Back when he first awakened, he’d had a similar problem.
But back then, the boost had been far smaller. Manageable. Now?
It felt like he was wearing a body just slightly too strong for his instincts to handle. Every movement had to be measured, or something would break.
And that was a problem.
With his current state, Michael couldn’t afford to return to the capital. Not until he had a complete grasp on his new strength.
Even worse, he definitely couldn’t return to his real world like this. There, the situation was even more delicate.
It was then that Michael’s eyes turned to his undead—and they lit up.
“Haha, you guys should be able to give me a good stretch, right?”
There was no better way to understand oneself than to test one’s limits.
The thought struck him as he looked over his lineup of powerful undead.
Lucky. Prince. Spartan. And the undead griffin.
Each of them possessed the strength of a Rank 2 creature.
That made them perfect training partners—strong enough to challenge him, durable enough to withstand his blows.
The opposite was the same for him too.
If he wanted to truly grasp his new strength, there was no better way.
Michael first dismissed all his other undead.
From the undead insects to the armored undead orcs, he sent them all away—leaving only his strongest four.
Afterward, he ordered Spartan to remain by his side while the others distanced themselves far from them.
Oh? Wasn’t he going to fight all of them at once?
No.
No, he wasn’t.
His enhanced strength had made him more confident—not more stupid.
Taking on all four at once?
That was asking for trouble.