With his class question settled, Jay refocused on the task at hand: breakfast. He quickly gathered up some twigs and dry leaves, throwing them into his makeshift fire pit before starting a small blaze.
**Skill level increased: Fire Starting 0 - 1**
As the heat built, he held his small pan over the fire and cracked both eggs, frying them perfectly before removing the pan from the heat.
**Skill level increased: Cooking 0 - 2**
“Two levels at once, huh?” he asked excitedly. Not even needing the chip’s help to achieve that tone for the first time in a long time.
He could get used to this whole leveling thing. The rush he got whenever he saw one of the numbers denoting a skill of his increasing in level was nice. Now that he wasn’t afraid, he would be arrested at any moment. He still wasn’t certain that they wouldn’t be looking for him, but the realization that the world currently had much bigger issues on its hands comforted him.
He sat and quickly ate his breakfast straight out of the pan, adding a piece of bread to round out the meal. He set the pan aside to cool off as he extinguished the fire.
**Skill level increased: Extinguish Fire 0 - 1**
There really is a skill for everything, huh?
“You really ask that about putting out a fire and not tying a knot?” Lan asked with a chuckle.
“Hey, they are both equally nice to have a skill for.” Jay sighed as his chip changed his words once more. He had wanted to say they were equally boring, but apparently, the stupid thing somehow thought that was too angry or sad to say out loud.
“It doesn’t matter if they are boring. Every task, from cleaning to bending the laws of physics to your will, has an associated skill that makes the process more efficient with each level.”
Jay smiled, thankful there was one person in this world who could still understand his true thoughts.
“Quit being sentimental and get back to grinding skills. You’re wasting precious time! I want those better rewards, damn it!”
The smile went from welcome to forced as he once again began working on leveling his skills.
**Experience threshold reached: Level 3 - 4**
He wiped a bit of sweat from his brow as the notification finally came. He had focused on starting and putting out fires to gain the last few levels he needed. Also getting one in Pain Tolerance after accidentally burning two of his fingers when he tried burning a leaf without realizing he had positioned the flame far too close to his hand. He smiled after checking the time. It had only ended up taking about half an hour in total to gain this level. He needed ten more skill levels before he would finally get to Level 5. With nothing else to do, he began performing random tasks in the hope of gaining a few skills that he could level quickly.
**Skill level increased: Sorting 0 - 1**
**Skill level increased: Jumping 0 - 1**
**Skill level increased: Cleaning 0 - 1**
**Skill level increased: Multitasking 0 - 1**
He stopped for a moment after getting that skill. It had come while he was attempting to save time and had begun attempting to level Jump and gain a Whittling skill at the same time. Sadly, it seemed like one had to do more than just hack at a broken stick until it became smaller sticks for that one.
Hey, Lan, is that skill as insane as it sounds? he asked mentally.
“Insane, no. Useful, yes. It's almost always among the first picked up on most integrated worlds. The ability to perform two or more tasks at once at an efficient level is quite a boon. It does begin having diminishing returns around Level 50, however, and most powerful people end up merging it with a class skill or turning it into a multi-action skill. That type of skill does drain Spirit to use, unlike regular multitasking.”
Multi-action? How does that work?
“Right, you probably wouldn’t know. Hmm, how do I put it? So, let's say you were doing something like, I don’t know, washing the dishes, and you also wanted to cook at the same time. In exchange for an exorbitant amount of Spirit, multi-action creates a pseudo copy of yourself to perform the other task at the same time.”
Jay’s eyes widened. He was about to ask how the hell that was even possible. After learning that magic was now apparently a thing, though, he didn’t really question it. He was, of course, still skeptical. While Lan had said that magic was possible, and he didn’t think she had a reason to lie to him, he would have to see it himself for the reality to fully sink in.
He sighed as he turned back to the task at hand. Before committing full focus again, he asked Lan one last question that was eating at him. You said something about merging skills, but wouldn’t that set you back in levels? Is the power of the resulting combination really worth that?
“Oh, that’s not how it works, but I’m being honest even if it were. For some skills, it would be a perfectly acceptable trade if it were.”
So how does it work, then?
“It’s actually more beneficial. The new skill is gained at Level 1, and while you do lose the two skills that were merged, you don’t lose the levels that came with them. Also, there is a good chance the new skill will have an even higher rarity than the ones that were used to create it, so every level will actually count for more towards your total progress.”
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“Wait, skills have rarities? And how does that count as more if they do? I thought you said it was a flat ratio of the level multiplied by itself plus one to reach each tier.”
“I did, and it’s still true, but only if you just use common skills to level. Every level in an uncommon skill is worth two when converting to level progress. Rare three, Epic four, and so on. However, it is unlikely that you will gain your first uncommon skill before gaining a class, so I would get back to it. We only have about an hour left before the first round of rewards is given out, and you need to get as many levels as you can.”
Bu–
“If you're going to talk to me, at least start doing something else to gain levels. Put that multitasking skill to work, damn it.”
Jay shook his head and sighed, falling back into working on his skills while holding a mental conversation with Lan. Six more notifications came within thirty minutes, followed by a seventh, which made him stop and wipe his brow.
**Skill level increased: Multitasking 3 - 4**
**Skill level increased: Communication 0 - 1**
**Skill level increased: Jumping 1 - 2**
**Skill level increased: Sorting 1 - 2**
**Experience threshold reached: Level 4 - 5**
**Class Selection Available**
Tapping on the last notification to pop up brought him to another screen, continuing information on the twelve classes Lan had already run him through. After a quick glance to confirm the information was the same, he wasted little time in selecting Light Warrior.
**Primary Class Selected: Light Warrior**
**Skill Gained: Basic Blade Combat (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Basic Bow Combat (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Basic Crossbow Combat (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Basic Firearm Combat (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Stealth (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Basic Weapon Knowledge: Blades (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Basic Weapon Knowledge: Bows (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Basic Weapon Knowledge: Crossbows (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Basic Weapon Knowledge: Basic Firearms (Level - 0)**
**Skill Gained: Basic Weapon Knowledge: Basic Shields (Level - 0)**
The rush of notifications filled Jay's vision. He already found himself thankful for the levels of multitasking, which helped him to quickly and efficiently go through and close each notification. When he was done, one last notification popped up. He clicked on it, and a screen appeared in front of him.
DAY ONE COMPLETE
Leaderboard Position: 1,992,817
Reward:
Skill Unlocked: Translation: (Level - 1) - Uncommon
Level Reached: 5
Reward:
Uncommon Weapon Choice
“You have got to be fucking kidding me!” Lan yelled as he finished reading the screen.
“What?” Jay asked out loud, startled by the sudden noise.
“It took me years to get that skill. Years! And it just up and fucking gives it to you even for your shit performance. Yeah, why the hell not?”
Didn’t you get a reward, too?
“Yeah, but all I got was some lousy skill crystals — maybe enough to buy a small country on your planet, but basically chump change where I am at.” She sighed. “If only I were under Level 25. Then I could kill you, take your spot, and actually do something with that broken-ass advantage. ”
Uh, you know I can hear you, right?
“Yeah, I know. I want you to know how fucking lucky you are and how much I hate you for it!”
I'm sorry, you just called enough money to buy a continent on my planet ‘chump change,’ and I’m the lucky one?
“Yes! First off, it’s only worth that much right now because your planet hasn’t been flooded with the crystals yet. Once the first person ascends, the planet will be covered in so much of the shit that the same amount would barely buy me a cup of coffee. And don’t even get me started on how good that damn skill you just got is…”
Jay paused for a moment. He couldn’t even fathom that. An item worth an entire continent dropping to the price of a cup of coffee? There was no way, right?
That continent thing is a joke, yeah?
“Not at all.”
He blinked a few times. So what the hell does this skill do to make it better than that?
Lan sighed. “That skill gives you the ability to understand and speak any other language without even realizing that you're doing it. It normally takes an enormous amount of time, energy, and a few skills that you need to combine in just the right way to gain it. But you just go and fucking get it on your first day with the system. How wonderful.”
Okay, Jay had to agree that was pretty useful. He couldn’t count the number of times he had attempted to learn a second language during his life, only to get bored and lose interest before he could ever make real progress. Still, the amount of money Lan had just mentioned made him salivate. He needed one of those crystals. Then, who would give a shit that he’d killed Herald Winchester? He could afford to pay every merc and hired gun in the city more than enough to go to war with the justice system for him. Hell, even Herald had had enough money for that, and the amount of wealth they were talking about made him look poor. Jay would be untouchable.
Oh, shit! he yelled internally, “I'm okay!” his mouth disagreed.
His vision blurred, and he suddenly became quite nauseous, stumbling into a nearby tree. Two sudden reminders came to him. First, he had forgotten to take his liver medication this morning, and his liver was being rejected by his body. Second, he was still quite touchable. He stumbled as he moved towards the bag that held his medication. An exposed root caught his foot, causing him to trip. He had to claw his way inch by inch until he finally reached the bag. With a slight effort, he pulled a syringe from the bag, popped off its cap, and injected the solution. Almost thirty minutes passed before his vision finally returned to normal.
**Skill level increased: Nausea Resistance 2 - 3**
Apparently, he had gained a new skill during that time and had felt too sick even to notice. He sighed, pushing himself back to his feet. Normally, liver failure would be nowhere near enough to cause that level of sickness that quickly and suddenly. However, since he didn’t have a normal brain link or anything to feed him information about his bionics, combined with the fact that he had one of the cheapest aftermarket livers that money could buy. The creators decided the best way to prevent death by unnoticed liver failure was to make it feel like you were dying if you ever missed a shot.
I hate my life, he grumbled internally.
“I’m blessed to be alive!”
The want to tear his own traitorous mouth off crossed his mind, but with a resigned sigh. Before he once again began working on leveling his skills.
