Hey!
“What? Am I wrong?”
No, but you could have put it nicer.
Jay felt a glare coming from somewhere, but he couldn’t place it.
“Anyway, as I was saying, your innate class represents your unwillingness to quit even when you know you're losing. That manifested in that new skill of yours.”
Huh. Jay rubbed his chin in thought. I guess I never really asked what happens when a class tiers up, other than that I need to do so to get to Level 15, but does anything else happen?
“Did I not tell you about that already?”
No.
Lan let out a sigh. “For a normal class, a tier up will give you three to five changes you could make to your class based on the skills you’ve leveled. You, for example, with your current levels, would probably get some stealth classes--some that focus on guns, and maybe even a mage class, with how heavily you have been going into Spirit Control. That would only be for Tier 2 and Tier 5, then every 10 after that, though. The tiers in between normally just give you a flat stat boost, or move a few skills to being class skills.”
Jay nodded as he looked over his skills once more and thought about what he wanted to focus on. Is there anything that can show me what the options are, based on my skills?
“Not really. The most basic options can normally be predicted, but there are so many variables as to why rarer classes appear. Even a Diviner who has spent their entire life focusing on the skill couldn’t correctly predict the options someone will receive more than 30% of the time.”
How accurate could someone like that normally predict things?
“When predicting someone’s action if the person isn’t informed of the action. Nearly 100%.”
Jay shrugged. Oh well, I’ll just get what I get, then. So, if that’s what tier up does for a normal class, what does it do for an innate class?
“That depends.”
On what?
“That’s still not fully understood, but there are a few common paths it could take. You could gain a new skill each tier, upgrade the effects of the original skill, or even do something else that breaks the normal rules of the system, such as gaining a new stat. I’ve even seen someone who gained another class for every three tiers in their innate class.”
That seems crazy.
“It was.”
Was?
Lan sighed. “A lesson for you, Jay, if you're going to flaunt something that gives you an innate advantage over others, make sure you can actually defend yourself when others get ideas.”
Oh. I’m… Jay paused, letting out a sigh. I’m sorry, Lan.
“It’s… It’s fine. Anyway, you should get back to leveling. We only have a few days left before all the leaderboards open up. I don’t know about you, but I would like to push for some better rewards.”
Jay pushed off the counter he had been leaning on while talking to Lan and made his way towards the bathroom. He needed a shower--badly. From head to toe, blood clung to his hair, skin, and clothing. With a sour expression, he discarded the ruined garments in a crude pile. He turned the water on and jumped in before it even had a chance to get warm.
It was like a murder scene--which he supposed was about right, considering the fight he had just had. A stinging pain radiated from his leg, and a gnarled scab revealed itself as the blood covering his body washed down the drain. The wound had slightly reopened during the intense scrubbing, and it stung worse than he would have suspected. With a pained groan, he used his new Spirit Healing skill, following the instructions Lan had given him the night before. He watched as the wounded scabbed over once again, but didn’t heal any further than that, no matter how much Spirit he pushed into it.
Sighing, he turned off the shower, dried off, and got dressed in a fresh plain gray T-shirt and some jeans. He placed his weapons back in their holsters and put on a dusty leather jacket his mom had given him years ago that he had almost never worn. It covered the weapons nicely, and he didn’t have to worry about shaping the weapons to hide them anymore. The jacket did that well enough on its own.
With a frown as he thought about the day he had gotten the leather garment, he made his way to the door. Pushing the dresser out of the way, he made sure his Obscuration was running at full blast. Even if it was a constant drain, he spaced the fact that cameras existed far too often to take any chances right now.
He had never been good at remembering them, even back during some of the hardest days when he wasn't sure where his next meal would be coming from. He had attempted to shoplift twice, but had been caught both times.
Damn things are just impossible to spot.
There were always several fake cameras that were large, bulky, and meant to stand out as a deterrent, but the real ones had become so hidden in recent years that it was almost impossible to find one unless someone knew exactly what they were looking for or had a tool to detect them.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
Now that he thought about it, that honestly wouldn’t be a bad implant for him if he could find one--which was unlikely. The things were highly regulated, which led to only enforcers or government officials having access to them.
I haven’t really seen any enforcers around. Maybe I could raid one of their stockpiles. Probably still some good shit lying around.
He frowned. He liked the idea of finding a stockpile and probably would execute on it, but the thought of implants was still sore for him. His arm, his liver, that damn chip in his head, and the failed company that caused all of it.
He shook his head, pushing thoughts of the past away. It was all but meaningless now. Even if the world was still catching up, society had ended. If its death throes still didn’t subside before the month was over,an alien invasion sure as Hell would put it permanently to rest.
Walking down the building's staircase caused him to clench his teeth. His leg had felt fine until that shower had shown him he was still wounded. Now, the damn thing wouldn’t stop throbbing.
Hey, Lan, is there any way I can heal this better? It’s a pain in the ass, almost literally. I would prefer not to get into another fight like this, Jay said with a groan as he descended another flight of stairs, cursing that he had avoided the elevator.
“Not until you get your new healing skill to Level 15. It's just going to scab up any wounds and stop you from flat-out dying--unless someone completely cuts off your head, of course.”
**Skill level increased: Pain Tolerance 7 - 8**
The stinging sensation lessened slightly with the Level Up. It was enough to allow Jay to almost completely ignore the pain and push forward, making it out of the building. He jumped as he exited the back door and came face to face with a man dressed in a tank top tucked into a pair of blue jeans, revealing a chiseled body that Jay was sure had to be the result of some heavy steroid use. His blond hair was combed to the left side of his head, and tattoos covered most of his neck and his right arm. Jay was sure they probably would have covered the left, as well, but it had been replaced by a bionic arm similar to the one he had.
“Can I help you?” Jay asked after looking at the man for a few moments.
“That depends.”
“On what?”
“Do you know anything about the fight that happened in the building you came out of?”
“Who is asking?”
“Wait, did I not introduce myself?” the large man slapped a hand against his forehead. “Silly me!” he offered the massive hand to Jay for a handshake. “The name’s Jett. Jett Navarro.”
Jay’s eyes went wide. He had heard that name before, but he couldn’t quite place where. Not wanting to anger Jett, he took his hand and introduced himself.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Jay Anderson. Should I know your name? It sounds familiar.”
Jett grinned as a screen flashed into Jay’s vision.
Leaderboard
- Isabella Rossi - Level: 14
- Jett Navarro - Level: 14
- Nova Callis - Level: 14
- Chloe Morales - Level: 14
- Zane Mercer - Level: 14
- Zira Vox - Level: 14
- Vega Arcturus - Level: 14
- Corin Vale - Level: 14
- Althea Veymar - Level: 14
- Phoenix Valez - Level: 14
…
Jay’s eyes widened, and a second screen flashed into existence.
**
Jett Navarro has challenged you to a duel.
Do you accept?
Y/N
**
“What the hell is this?” Jay asked.
“Oh, sorry. I probably should have asked first, but would you be up for a spar?”
“A spar?”
“Yeah, you know, a quick exchange of blows.”
Jay shook his head. “No, I know what it means. I—”
“Great! So, would you be down for one?”
Lan, what the fuck is this screen?
“The man already told you. It's a request to duel. A fight with system-enforced rules, so... like he said. A sparring match.”
Should I accept?
“That is up to you. Just don’t wager anything. He may not have broken through to Level 15 yet, but there is no telling how close he is.” She paused for a moment. “Actually, accept and make sure to fight with your gun and dagger. This is a perfect chance to train some of your combat skills, and hopefully your knowledge skills, as well.”
Jay sighed and ran a hand through his hair before mentally pressing on the screen. It disappeared, and another menu appeared.
**
Please select a duel type:
Friendly
Show
Grudge
Death
**
Several more screens appeared, asking about specifics of the duel.
“Uhh.”
“Just select all the top options. Friendly, no bet, no injury, all that. I just wanna see what you’ve got. I like fighting, but I prefer not to permanently hurt others whenever possible.”
Jay nodded and proceeded to read every top option before clicking them. In the end, one final screen popped up.
**
This will be a friendly duel with–no wager, no injuries, and no killing–It will end when one side forfeits or a blow that would have been debilitating or lethal without intervention is struck.
**
“Alright! This is gonna be fun!” Jett said, slamming his fists together with a manic smile as two brass gauntlets formed around his fingers.
**The duel will begin in: 3, 2**
Jay wasn’t as enthusiastic, but, like Lan had pointed out, this would be invaluable for leveling his combat skills. While he could level the knowledge skills without fighting, the actual practical abilities seemed to only really improve when he used them seriously. Sure, he could get a bit of progress by just firing his gun, but it didn’t really amount to much.
**1**
He drew his gun with rapid speed and fired three shots, slamming the hammer back each time as Jett moved to close the distance.
**Skill level increased: Basic Weapon Knowledge - Firearms 6 - 7**
**Skill level increased: Basic Firearm Combat 7 - 8**
Jett crossed his arms, and a boom echoed out as the brass expanded into a full-body shield, blocking the three shots. The barrier melted back, covering his hands once more just as quickly as it had appeared. He exploded into motion again, rushing Jay. Two more bullets went off, both harmlessly blocked by that same shield, but the distraction gave Jay enough time to draw his dagger and go on the offensive.
Jett’s eyes went wide as his shield once again reformed into gauntlets and a descending blade aimed right between his eyes. A manic grin spread across his face as Jay drove the attack down with all the might his Spirit Empowerment could grant him.
His hunch had been correct. This fight was going to be glorious!
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