Yuki looked at the lines inside his upper right arm, then looked at the chart he was holding in his left hand. He returned the look to his right arm, then back to his chart.

“You don’t have to check the chart with each new level you gain. You should already know you get new skills every five levels. At level eleven it’s just your magic affinity that increases.” Aria was fed up with Yuki constantly drooling over the piece of paper in his hand.

The boy was unfazed by her rant, still looking at the chart and mumbling something to his beard.

“Level five. Skills gained: Lesser light, Lesser haste, Danger sense, Increase weight carrying capacity, Strong hands. Uses: infinite.

Level ten. Skills gained: Lesser weapon enhancement, Lesser armor enhancement, soft steps, Increase weight carrying capacity. Uses: 3 per day. Hey, how come I don’t get any offensive spells until level twenty?”

“I don’t know. It’s just how it works. It’s probably the reason why most of the population end up working the fields or as traders.”

“Huh. So, I’m fit to be a farmer right now. Cool.”

“Well, at least you look like an adventurer now. Somewhat.” Aria was referring to his new get up. Joseph provided Yuki, in his quiet manner, with a set of clothes that better suited this world and his needs as a mighty hero. Dark-brown boots with steel toe-caps, worn but sturdy and warm. They fitted nicely and were lighter than they looked. Long, black leather pants, tight but flexible, allowing freedom of movement. A simple, brown collared shirt over which a light armor with small shoulderpads was fitted. Everything was rounded up with a plain, black hooded cloak. He also got a Skill chart that went up to level forty, a weird amulet of some kind and a much needed hilt for his now shiny weapon.

It has been a week since they left Orfurt and Yuki was clearing all the lesser beasts on their way. He was getting the hang of the sword, but his level progress was slow. Too slow in Aria’s opinion.

“Where are we going anyway? Do we have a plan other than leveling up?” Yuki asked, not bothering to look away from the chart.

If you want to learn more about the sword, travel to Eliphia, to where the Idol of Nature is located. But remember, show the sword only to the ones you can entirely trust. And no one else.

“We are headed towards the northern border, to try to cross to Eliphia. There we can hope to learn more about that sword of yours.” Yuki grew fond of the weapon since its renewal. Save from the intricate hilt and the strange elvish inscription, it still looked plain and it wasn’t particularly large, but it fit his arm perfectly and weirdly, it wasn’t as heavy anymore.

“Are there any fearsome beasts I can slay there?” He unsheathed the weapon and swirled it through the air, showing off his new moves. His proficiency was little above beginner level, but for killing slimes, wolves and boars, he was a master swordsman.

“The only fearsome beasts you can slay are right in front of you.” Aria said, rolling her non-existent eyes.

A pack of hungry, skeletally thin wolves was growling at them. Their mugs wrinkled, revealing yellow, decayed fangs. Greenish saliva was dripping down their black chews. Their eyes, completely black with a red pupil stared blankly at potential prey. Something wasn’t right.

“Yuki, be careful. These are not regular wolves.” Aria’s voice turned silent and nervous. Yuki nodded his head and stood battle ready, observing the enemy. There were five wolves in total, three in front of him and two to the side, trying to outflank them from both sides. He untied his cloak with the free hand, dropping it to the ground.

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“Maybe we should use Mending. Come, let’s…”

“No. We can’t rely on Mending every time there’s trouble. I’ll be careful, just cover my back.” Yuki’s face was serious and somehow calculated. She never saw him in this light. “Okay. I got you.”

The plan was to get rid of flankers first. That’s it. He’ll figure out the rest along the way.

Soft steps.

Lesser haste.

Strong hands.

Armor Enhancement.

He stormed at the closest flanker to his right. A fast side sweep came at the wolf from nowhere, and before the monstrous canine was able to react, its head fell to the ground, rolling away, followed by the lifeless body.

Next was the other flanker. He nimbly turned around and ran past the wisp toward the next enemy. Seeing what happened to its packmate, this wolf stood a bit more prepared. He dodged Yuki’s running attack to the side and tried to retaliate by attacking from the behind.

Danger sense.

Increase weight carrying capacity.

Yuki stopped dead in his tracks, completely negating the acceleration force with his skill. While turning around he blindly swung his weapon. An unexpectedly precise blow made yet another head roll.

Rest of the pack didn’t keep still anymore. All three of them attacked the boy together.

Lesser light.

Lesser light.

Lesser light.

Lesser light.

Aria was baffled. She watched the dead serious Yuki summon countless Lesser lights with nervous curiosity and anticipation. He never used any of his skills until now. He would swing his sword, roll away, swing the sword, run away. That was his combo. In her eyes, he was still a clumsy wimp. Until now. She wasn’t sure what was happening. Yuki was using lesser, quality of life skills for combat purposes. They made him faster, more agile, more cunning.

Lesser light.

Lesser light.

But, what’s with all these Lesser lights?

Three wolves were still rushing at the boy.

Lesser light.

Yuki closed his eyes and readied the sword.

Danger sense.

The three wolves jumped in unison at the cloud of white light where Yuki was standing. They boy slid under them, ripping open the belly of one wolf. Its lifeless body fell to the ground. Yuki got up and felt his surroundings. Two remaining wolves growled inside the cloud of lesser lights, blind and disoriented.

Easy.

With eyes still closed, he jumped further into the cloud making two quick cuts. The sound of bodies dropping to the ground signaled that the fight was finished.

“Huh. Guess all that time spent playing video games did pay out.” he undid the swarm of lesser lights and looked at Aria. “What do you think?”

“Y-you did well.” Aria was trying to stay calm. That was no less than impressive. The wolves didn’t stand a chance.

“Woohoo. I am level fifteen now. What did I get? What did I get?” Yuki pulled out his chart, regressing to his goofy former self.

Stay calm Aria. It was only a pack of wolves. He has long ways to go. Don’t get excited. And for Light’s glory, don’t give him a reason to get overly cocky.

“Yuki, if my memory serves me well there is a village near here. I want to check it out and ask around it a bit. Maybe they know more about these wolves. We might also earn some money if there was a bounty for them.”

“A side quest? Sure, let’s go grind!” he mumbled, still recessed into the chart.

“And please stop talking gibberish from your world.”

_________________

Level 15

Skills learned: Hide in shadows, Lesser endurance, Haste.

Number of uses: 3 per day.