Arin had finally recovered from the asteroid—
sorry, the "falling rock"—that nearly cracked his entire planetary body.
He floated calmly now, watching magma rivers flow like glowing veins and firestorms whirl across his surface.
But then…
A familiar ding echoed in his mind.
[Notice: Host is continuously moving.]
Arin paused.
"…Moving? I'm a planet. I don't move by myself."
But the system wasn't done.
[Notice: Host is running in circles.]
Arin froze.
"…WHAT!?"
Before he could react:
[Notice: Host is rotating rapidly.]
[Host is also revolving around a large fire-element object.]
"YOU MEAN THE SUN!?"
But the system interpreted it differently:
[Host has been running around a fire-element monster for many days.]
Arin nearly exploded—literally.
"I AM NOT RUNNING AROUND THE SUN LIKE SOME ATHLETE! I'M ORBITING! EVERY PLANET DOES THAT!"
[…]
The system ignored him.
Instead, it began listing records:
[Recording collected: Running ×9999+]
[Recording collected: Spinning ×9999+]
[Recording collected: Circling a fire-element enemy ×365+]
[Recording collected: Host's legs must be very strong.]
Arin felt his mantle convulse.
"I DON'T EVEN HAVE LEGS!"
But the system continued calmly:
[Notice: Sufficient movement-related records accumulated.]
[Generating skills…]
Skills.
Plural.
Arin braced himself.
"Please… PLEASE don't let them be stupid…"
The system chimed proudly:
---
Skill 1 Generated: Running
{Effect: Host moves 1% faster while reducing stamina consumption by 1%.}
Arin stared into space.
"…I DON'T MOVE! The SUN pulls me! I don't have stamina!"
---
Skill 2 Generated: Spinning
{Effect: Host spins 1% faster while maintaining perfect balance.}
Arin blinked.
"I'm a PLANET. I've been spinning since birth!"
---
Skill 3 Generated: Orbit Mastery (Beginner)
Arin perked up.
Hey… this one actually sounded cool.
{Effect: Host maintains circular running path more efficiently.}
His excitement died instantly.
"…Running path. Running."
[Host runs around the fire monster very smoothly now.]
Arin's internal temperature spiked.
"THAT'S NOT A FIRE MONSTER—IT'S THE SUN!"
[According to golem physiology, all large fire-element objects are classified as monsters.]
"I— I— YOU— YOU KNOW WHAT, I GIVE UP!"
He felt volcanoes erupt in pure frustration.
Magma bubbled angrily.
Fault lines cracked.
Firestorms intensified.
The system beeped again.
[Notice: Host appears to be sweating lava.]
[Recording saved.]
Arin screamed mentally:
"THAT'S JUST MY SURFACE MELTING!"
[…]
No response.
Of course.
Arin eventually calmed himself and examined the skills again.
Running.
Spinning.
Orbit Mastery.
They were stupid.
Embarrassing.
Insulting even.
But…
He did feel slightly more stable.
His rotation felt smoother.
His orbital path seemed more controlled.
His volcanic eruptions even felt a bit… rhythmic?
"…These stupid skills actually work?"
His planetary eyes widened.
The skills might be absurd…
But they were helping him evolve.
A tiny grin formed in his planetary consciousness.
"Fine. If the system wants to think I'm a running golem, let it."
He looked at the stars with fiery determination.
"If absurdity makes me stronger… then let the universe bring it on."
He didn't realize it yet.
But the next "record-based skill" he would receive…
Would be even more ridiculous.
And even more powerful.