Home at last.
After the grueling journey, the inn had been a true sanctuary. Indulging in a warm, hearty meal and a languid, hot bath, Sam had slept the deep, dreamless sleep of the truly exhausted. When the first streaks of dawn laced the sky, she had already saddled Sunblaze, and the two-day ride home with her tames was mercifully quiet and stress-free.
Now, she was finally back on her own patch of land. She gave a quick, reassuring wave to Terrance, before sinking onto the wrought-iron bench in her backyard. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and late-blooming jasmine, and the distant, familiar thrum of the city was a comforting white noise. After a quick scratch on the top of their fuzzy little heads, she sent her eaglets back to their beast space, watching their forms dissolve into shimmering light. She took a deep, satisfying breath, then finally turned her attention to the mountain of gains from her first, terrifying trip into The Lab.
She first called up her status screen, quickly scrolling past the familiar stats.
{Operator: Samantha "Sam" Foreman
Age: 18
Species: Human
Tier: Purple
Level: 18
Experience: 19,556/98,315xp
Health Points: 350/350HP (w/armor 450HP)
Mana Points: 1,070/1,070 (w/armor 1170MP)
Mana Control: 50 MC (w/armor 60 MC)
Mana Regeneration: 107MP/sec (w/armor 117MP/S)
Stats:
Strength (S): 27
(+15 *Armor*) = 42
Agility (A): 25 (+2 Ring) = 27
(+10 *Armor*) = 37
Perception (P): 25 (+10% Pendant) = 27.5
(+10 *Armor*) = 37.5
Vitality (V): 35
(+10 *Armor*) = 45
Intelligence (I): 50
(+12 *Armor*) = 60
Wisdom (W): 107
(+10 *Armor*) = 117
Charisma (C): 27
(+11 *Armor*) = 38
Luck (L): 11
Available Stat Points: 24
Available Skill Points: 99
Resistances:
Fire - 0%
Heat - 0%
Ice - 0%
Cold - 0%
Fear - 10%
Bleeding - 10%
Sleep - 20%
Mental - 50%
Pain - 40%
———————————————
Individual Coins:
69,810 Copper
19,325 Silver
679 Gold
Reduced Coin Amount:
10 Copper
173 Silver
719 Gold
———————————————
Primary Class: Beast Tamer LVL 3
Active skills:
Beast Command LVL 4
Bond Healing LVL 3
Animal Empathy Surge LVL 3
Beast's Insight LVL 3
Shared Senses Activation LVL 1
Beast Bond Boost LVL 1
Passive skills:
Animal empathy LVL 3
Keen senses LVL 3
Beast Familiarity LVL 3
Enhanced Bond LVL 3
Night Vision LVL 1
Natural Camouflage LVL 1
Tamed Beasts: 12
- Sunblaze LVL 8
- Tempest LVL 8
- Ignite LVL 8
- Syndrome LVL 8
- Abe LVL 6
- Nox LVL 8
- Nyx LVL 8
- Jel LVL 14
- Vixen LVL 11
- Cern LVL 15
- Mothra LVL 8
- Appa LVL 16
Beast Bank Level: 10
Beast Bank Balance: 48,452/51,200xp
———————————————
Secondary Class: Enchantress LVL 2
Active Skills:
Enchant Item LVL 3
Stat Enchantment LVL 3
Mana Enchantments LVL 2
Elemental Enchantments LVL 2
Passive Skills:
Enchant-opedia LVL 3
Runic Inscription Index LVL 3
Mana Charge LVL 2
Arcane Conservation LVL 2
———————————————
Support Class: Master Crafter LVL 4
Active skills:
Item Creation lvl 5
Accessory Weaver lvl 3
Human-forge LVL 4
Mana Hands LVL 7
Weapon and Armor Smithing LVL 4
One Size Fits All LVL 4
Beast Accessory Weaver LVL 2
Beast Armor Smithing LVL 2
Passive skills:
Material Manipulation LVL 6
Waste Not, Want Not lvl 6
Efficient Crafting LVL 5
Material Identification LVL 6
Recursive Inspiration LVL 3
Mana-Forged Crafting LVL 3
Enhanced Durability LVL 2
Ambient Workshop LVL 2
———————————————
General Skills:
Advanced Skills:
All Tongues* (Passive)
Double Double* (Passive)
Inspect LVL 3
Movement LVL 3
(Walking, Running, Sprinting, Jumping, Dodging)
Communication LVL 3
(Reading, Writing, Talking)
General Cleaning LVL 1
(Sweeping, Mopping, Tidying, Dusting, Surface cleaning)
Survival LVL 5
(Hunting, Gathering, Skinning, Tracking, Fire starting, Water gathering)
Animal Husbandry LVL 2
(Feeding, Rearing, Harvesting, Butchering)
Knowledge LVL 2
(Math, Physics, History, Geography, Science)
*These skills have no level advancement
Basic Skills:
Cooking LVL 7
Baking LVL 5
Mending LVL 6
Healing LVL 9
Herbology LVL 9
General Crafting LVL 10
Construction LVL 5
General Weaponry
- Knife LVL 9
- Dagger LVL 10
- Short Sword LVL 10
- Short Bow LVL 10
- Spear LVL 10
- Axe LVL 9
- Pike LVL 6
Unique Skills:
T.O.U.S LVL 1
Water Manipulation LVL 1
Necrotic Touch LVL 1
Achievements:
Realm Traveller
Second Life
Sneak Attack! (Or Not)
One-(Wo)man band
Unintended Consequences
Wait, That Doesn't Go There}
"Not bad! Level 18, nice. Damn, that's a lot of coin. Very well done, team. I definitely need a little more knife, axe, and pike training, then I'll be able to upgrade General Weaponry to... I assume Advanced Weaponry, Jarvis?"
{"Correct, Sam. The required proficiencies have been met."}
"Okay, sweet. And now for that sweet, sweet loot."
Instead of bothering Jarvis for an exhaustive list, she simply projected her personal inventory and the bag's inventory as twin, translucent blue screens hovering side-by-side above her lap. "Okay, let's see what we got," she said, her hands practically vibrating with anticipation as she rubbed them together.
The raw resources were about what you'd expect: slabs of meat from the various animals, along with jagged teeth, needle-sharp fangs, and curving claws. There were various hides—thick fur, brittle scales—and then the unsettling piles of skin. That last one made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up; she wasn't certain what anyone would ever do with a bolt of tanned goblin skin.
She scrolled past smooth river stones and damp, earthy moss from the golems, along with more bleached bones. Tangled vines and vicious-looking thorns from the Vine-Spitters on floor five sat in their own neatly stacked columns. The more humanoid monsters had actually shed a surprising amount of cloth, but the majority of it was tattered, slick with grime, and probably only good for scrap.
Then came the weapons. Most were of basic quality and unenchanted, fit for little more than being crushed and melted down in her personal forge for the raw metal. The bosses' chests, naturally, were where the better quality rewards were found.
She had already checked out the first floor's weapon, a pitted, rust-colored blade. The loot from the next two floor bosses were of the same meager caliber: a simple dagger from the zombie boss and a dull, grey chest piece that resembled the segmented armor the skeleton boss wore. Both were labeled "Good Quality" but held weak, disappointing enchantments.
The fourth floor's lesser demon boss provided a slightly better offering.
{Runeblade (Knife) (Common)
Quality: Basic
Description: Engraved with ancient runes, this blade enhances skill casting and magic resistance.
Effect: 10% reduced casing speed, +25% magical resistance}
There was also a frayed mage's robe that aggressively reeked of sulfur and spent brimstone that Sam absolutely would not be trying on. It also had a magic resistance enchantment along with a paltry 5% boost to Wisdom. Certainly not enticing enough to literally stink like hell for.
Killing off the Ancient Moss Sentinel rewarded Sam with another piece of armor. This time it was a helm.
Made of stone.
Sam rubbed her temples, genuinely questioning the sanity of the S.I.S.T.E.M. Who in their right mind would willingly wear a solid rock helmet? It resembled the golem's own heavy, segmented head, and she was pretty sure it would cause severe neck compression.
"How is this a reward? I mean, yeah, I'm sure it's pretty tough, but still. It looks like a fossilized pumpkin." It was definitely destined for the 'To be sold immediately' pile.
Sighing and shaking her head, she continued. The boss level rewards were seriously lacking in her opinion. Sure, they didn't have completely useless enchantments, but who would be desperate enough to put a literal granite boulder on their head? Or equip the deeply peculiar item she had received from the ninth floor?
{Enchanted Hydra Collar (Rare)
Quality: Good
Description: This collar allows an operator or their tamed beast to manifest up to three heads depending on the mana they possess.
Effect: adds additional, semi-independent heads to wearer.
Mana Cost: 50MP per head (up to three) | Mana Control Requirement: 75MC | Duration: 3 Minutes | Cooldown: 5 Minutes | Range: Variable
Warning: Semi-independent nature of additional heads may cause accidental injury.}
"Well... that's not completely terrifying at all. You'd think if it requires someone to have an intelligence stat of seventy-five, they'd be smart enough to not use it." she muttered, her voice laced with heavy sarcasm. She gently shifted the Hydra Collar into its own newly created, ominous category: the 'Potentially needs to be destroyed' pile.
The Hydra's treasure chest also contained a couple of vials of its sticky, shimmering poison, along with the necessary antidote, stored in a vial of clear, glowing liquid.
The final chest of the tenth floor—the biggest reward, the true prize—was what Sam was really looking forward to. She had glimpsed the covers of some books in the flash of light before the items were automatically drawn into her bag by her inventory enchantment. Books. As in plural.
The final tally turned out to be five items, plus the ten gold coins scattered like bright crumbs at the bottom of the container. The two non-book items were a weapon and a set of armor pieces. Technically, the armor was a pair of items, making the final count six major acquisitions.
The descriptions sprang into view:
{Gloomstrider (Staff) (Uncommon)
Quality: Great
Description: A rod of polished, obsidian-like wood that seems to absorb all light. Strikes fear into enemies, reducing their morale and attack power.
Effect: Applies fear debuff reducing morale and attack power by 15%
Mana Cost: 15MP| Mana Control Requirement: 15 MC | Duration: 10 minutes | Cooldown: 30 minutes | Range: 5 metres}
{Bracers of Shifting (Rare)
Quality: Great
Description: Crafted from articulated steel plates that seem to flow like water when examined closely. Temporarily allows the wearer to shift their hands and arms to suit their needs depending on the environment or combat.
Effect: Variable
Mana Cost: 10-50MP/s | Mana Control Requirement: 40MC | Duration: Varied | Cooldown: 1 Hour | Range: N/A}
"That... wait. What? Shift? So, what do they actually do, exactly?" she asked, leaning forward, genuinely baffled.
{"Well, like the name and description states. You can change the shape of your hands to help in your environment or in combat. For example, growing razor-sharp claws to strike your opponent or adding webbed skin between your fingers to aid in swimming. Whatever the situation needs."}
"That... sounds profoundly painful."
{"There shouldn't be much or any pain involved. The S.I.S.T.E.M. handles the biological changes gracefully."}
"Yeah, I've heard that before," Sam said, rubbing the phantom ache in her own joints.
{"You're never going to let that one go, are you?"} Jarvis huffed, well, as much as an AI could, considering he didn't actually possess the lungs for it.
"Whatever. Anyway, let's see what the books are," she said, dismissing the screens and physically summoning the tomes.
The three books materialized with a faint thump on her lap. They were bound in thick, smooth leather that felt cool against her worn pants. The leather was unmarked except for the titles, which were etched in guilding, script-like gold across the cover of the first book.
"Basic Level Skill Book For The Element of Air: Offensive Skill - Wind Shield," Sam read aloud, tracing the elegant lettering with a fingertip.
"Well, that will certainly come in handy," she smiled, already feeling the potential utility. She placed her entire palm flat against the cover and focused her intent, thinking the word 'Absorb'.
Like the low-level dungeon books before it, absorbing the knowledge caused a S.I.S.T.E.M. notification to blaze into existence before her eyes.
{You are attempting to absorb the knowledge of a Basic Air Skill book. Would you like to proceed?}
{[Yes] / [No]}
Sam mentally clicked [Yes], the notification screen vanishing as the knowledge flooded her mind, and then she immediately used Inspect on her new skill to see the full description.
Sam pulled the first book's knowledge into her mind and immediately inspected the detail that appeared in her vision.
{Skill Book: Basic Level Wind Shield
Description: When activated, this skill will produce a circular, shimmering barrier shield of elemental wind that can block all incoming magical and physical damage up to 20% of the user's magical and physical damage ability. Percentage, shield size, and duration increases with level.
Mana Cost: 10MP | Mana Control Requirement: 10MC | Duration: 5 seconds | Cooldown: 5 seconds | Range: Two meters in diameter}
{Ding! Your skill Inspect is ready to upgrade. Would you like to upgrade at this time?"}
{[Yes]/[No]}
"Wow, that one took a while." Sam said, while confirming the upgrade.
{Your skill Inspect is now lvl 4. It has gained the ability to reveal the two weakest stats of the person or entity you are looking at.}
"Handy" Sam said, getting back to the books.
Satisfied with this foundational defensive skill, she sent the book back to her inventory with a mental command, the cool leather vanishing from her lap. She then picked up the next one.
{Skill Book: Basic Level Blood Echo
Description: When user's health is low, this skill deals extra damage based on lost HP. Damage: Base +10%, plus 1% of missing HP as bonus physical. (Scales with level)
Mana Cost: 25MP | Mana Control Requirement: 15MC | Duration: 5 Minutes | Cooldown: 10 Minutes | Range: N/A}
"Okay, cool effect but eww, gross name. What the hell class is that from, Jarvis?" Sam wrinkled her nose, tilting the spine of the book away from her slightly as if the name itself was contagious.
{"I believe it's a skill used by Warlocks or Bloodreavers. Both are types of dark mages. The former specializing in curse skills, the latter uses their own and their enemies' blood to inflict damage."}
"Great, so I got an evil skill book," Sam said, giving the cover a truly disgusted look.
{"This one is quite mild compared to some of the others. I wouldn't consider it 'evil' per se. Any skill can be used for good or bad. It depends entirely on the user's intent."}
"I suppose you have a point," she conceded, letting out a heavy sigh. It was a decent skill to have, a great comeback mechanic for a nasty fight. She placed her hand on the book and concentrated.
{You are attempting to absorb the knowledge of a Basic Curse Skill book. Would you like to proceed?
{[Yes] / [No]}
Sam mentally clicked [Yes]. Despite her misgivings about the "curse" label, she couldn't afford to be squeamish about valuable combat utility.
Stashing the dark tome away, she looked at the last book—a welcome change.
{Skill Book: Basic Level Healing Rain
Description: A rain of blessed, vital water that heals all allies within the area of effect over time. The water also cures poison and diseases. Heals 10 HP/s over duration for a max of 100 HP.
Mana Cost: 20MP | Mana Control Requirement: 10MC | Duration: 10 seconds | Cooldown: 10 seconds | Range: 5 metres}
"Well, that one's a lot less creepy than the last one," Sam said, a genuine smile returning to her face. This was a utility skill she could feel good about. She quickly absorbed the knowledge, feeling a comforting, cool sensation spread through her head as the information settled.
She leaned back in her chair, the hard edge of the iron no longer bothering her, feeling a deep wave of satisfaction wash over her. Her arsenal of skills were upgraded, and her mind was fuller.
{"There are also skills that have reached the experience threshold for advancement. Shall I list them for you?"}
"Yes, please, Jarvis," Sam replied, ready to turn her attention from loot to self-improvement.
{Skills ready for upgrade.
Beast Tamer Class
Active skills:
Beast Command LVL 4
Bond Healing LVL 3
Beast's Insight LVL 3
Beast Bond Boost LVL 1
Passive skills:
Keen senses LVL 3
Beast Familiarity LVL 3
Enhanced Bond LVL 3
Natural Camouflage LVL 1
Master Crafter Class
Mana Hands LVL 7
Advanced General Skills
Movement LVL 3
Unique Skills
Necrotic Touch LVL 1 }
After using fourteen SKP to advance her skills she decided to use those stat points she'd been neglecting. With twenty four of them to use, she distributed them mainly to have nice even numbers. By the end they looked like this:
{Strength (S): 27 (+3)
(+15 *Armor*) = 45
Agility (A): 25 (+5) (+2 Ring) = 32
(+10 *Armor*) = 42
Perception (P): 25 (+5) (+10% Pendant) = 33
(+10 *Armor*) = 43
Vitality (V): 35 (+5)
(+10 *Armor*) = 50
Intelligence (I): 50
(+12 *Armor*) = 60
Wisdom (W): 107 (+3)
(+10 *Armor*) = 120
Charisma (C): 27 (+3)
(+11 *Armor*) = 31
Luck (L): 11}
Sam gave a final, firm nod, happy with her skill distribution. The new magical armor and accessories had slightly messed with her whole aesthetic plan of achieving neat, even numbers, but she just had to live with it—utility trumped symmetry. With the inventory complete, she pushed up from the wrought-iron chair, the gentle breeze of the backyard falling away as she made her way into her workshop.
The workshop air was entirely different—thick with the dry, metallic scent of iron dust and cured leather, and the faint, earthy aroma of the forge. She moved immediately to the sturdy, slotted shelving units to put her resources away.
As she organized the loot—shoveling piles of the unsettling goblin skin into a dedicated bin, stacking the jagged monster teeth, and hanging the flexible, brittle sheets of hydra scales—she began to contemplate a major life change: opening an actual store.
A shop would solve several problems. The main two being she'd have dedicated space to properly display her goods, and a concrete reason to manufacture more items beyond personal need. All she had to do was find a viable location. She may be flush with cash, but she was sure those premium shopfronts around the main city marketplace cost a pretty penny, or maybe a pretty copper in this worlds currency. "Cute copper," she muttered, testing the phrase. "Meh, it doesn't have the same ring to it."
Her mind wandered over the city map. She recalled a fairly good-sized, unoccupied stone building near the gate leading to the rift dungeons. That might be a brilliant place. It would be perfect for adventurers rushing out who may have forgotten to stock up on arrows, and equally perfect for adventurers staggering back who now had coin and a desperate, immediate need for enchanted items or quick repairs to gear that had been shredded in their dungeon run.
Sam dragged a hand across the nape of her neck, the thought of bureaucratic hassle instantly tiring her. Another trip to the cold, echoing registration office.