CHAPTER 42

After having finished two laps without seeing Ava or Hert, Leon ventured outside the normal gate and approached the Tutorial Forest. The trees he’d first felled when he’d tried to increase his strength had almost grown completely again. Leon approached the yellow and green trees and sat on a round stone while looking through the new skills tab.

The four of the five new skills stood in bold letters, and he selected each in turn, skipping over the Double Wield since he’d read that one.

Cross-strike

Cross-strike allows you to unleash a powerful attack with two weapons. Deals: Base strength x 1.5-2.

Command to activate: Cross-strike Cost: 3 MP

Leon opened up his status page. Since he had 12 MP, he could use the skill four times, just to practice it, but he didn’t just yet. If he used everything at once, he wouldn’t be able to try out the others until he’d slept. So, he shut down the page and opened up the next skill.

Berserk

Berserk is a passive or active skill that fills you with fury and allows you to disregard your fatigue and mental statuses, and gain a varied amount of strength for a maximum of two minutes. The cost is that you will disregard your safety while doing so, and have a narrowed focus on your enemy, gaining tunnel vision.

Command to activate: Activate Berserk

Cost if the skill kicks in as a passive: No cost

Cost if you activate the skill verbally or mentally: 7 MP

Leon looked at it. It was unusual to have a skill that could be triggered both passively and with intent, at least from what he’d experienced in the games he’d played in the real world. Considering that the skill was basically a double-edged sword, it was surprising how expensive it was to activate, and he wondered what he needed to prompt it in a passive way. Maybe that had already happened, because when he fought, he had little to no other thoughts and didn’t notice the boxes that came up until he got out of the fights. If that was the case, it would only be beneficial, since he’d also get strength combined with the narrowed focus. The only problem would be if it was difficult to prompt when he needed it, since it was so expensive.

Call of the Wild

You can call on monsters close to your area that are of a lower level than you.

Command to activate: Call of the Wild (bring out random monsters in your area) or your best impression of a sound belonging to the kind of creature you wish to call. Example: A howl. Cost: 1 MP

Leon stared at the description. A howl, really? That wasn’t much better than what he’d done previously when calling for the wolves, but he supposed it was slightly less embarrassing. Besides, he could just think about the name, which would save face, if necessary. That aside, it would probably be one of his most frequently used skills, especially if he and his team decided to power-level. It would be the fastest way for them to reach their goal of getting out of the tower.

He sighed as he thought about the floors they had left to climb. He’d taken more than a month to prepare for the first floor, because he didn’t know what he’d face. Now, two months in, he’d just cleared it. He had two years in total to find the potion that could heal his mother, and he’d wasted two months. With twenty-two months left to go, he had to complete at least two floors per month, and three in some.

His head spun. It was too short. At least if the information he’d gotten from the scarred man was true, and the tower held fifty floors and each was harder than the previous one. Leon slapped himself, bringing him back to the forest. Focus. He needed focus. And now, he didn’t have to worry about leveling up too fast, because they’d already cleared the first floor. It would be okay. They had gotten the most challenging first floor that had ever come up, and they’d beat it. They’d do the same again. They had to.

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Leon opened up the last skill, just to get his mind off those thoughts.

Loyalty (U)

Loyalty is a unique skill within the Leader Skill Tree that can only be unlocked through performing a special action. Further development of the skill is required to unlock boons and more information. Keep honing your skills as a leader and work well as a companion to your friends, and it will be well worth it.

Rank: F

Current loyalty status: 8

Loyalty status requirement to increase rank: 25

Command to activate: N/A Cost: N/A

Well, that was one weird skill. The name in of itself explained parts of it, but not enough. Not that it mattered much. It wasn’t a skill he’d focus on. Loyalty was great, but what he needed was strength and stamina enough to beat whatever he faced in the tower. That came above all else, and he’d strive for it, with or without a party.

Leon went through all skills in his head. There were only two that he could make use of right now, without getting into a fight, and that was Cross-strike and Berserk. He looked an extra time at Berserk. How would that one affect him if he didn’t have an enemy to actually fight against? Would he just chop trees at an alarming rate, or would something else happen?

Call of the w—he stopped the thought and changed it; the calling of monsters skill would come in handy, soon enough. But first, he might pick up Ava and Hert. Leon sighed. That would take time. That was the problem with individual schedules. He might as well try it out, since he was so close to the gates that he could make a run for it if he needed. Besides, the wolves that would come would be of a lower level than himself.

It only took him a second to decide. Leon closed down the skill window, lifted his hand to his mouth, and cleared his throat. He tried howling, and warmth crept up his neck and face as his voice sounded through the woods. He activated his insight-skill while he opened up his inventory to take out his weapons. If his sense was correct, he’d meet three wolves soon. He grabbed his short sword, and as he reached for the dagger, Trouble jumped out of her own volition. The rabbit grew as it exited the cramped space, and landed beside Leon, shaking her head.

“What are you doing?” Leon asked, staring at her and then the surrounding woods. “The wolves will be here soon! Get in again.”

She jumped a few steps from him and looked away. Leon rushed after her, taking off his backpack. It was halfway down his arms as the first two wolves appeared, both level 5. Leon expected Trouble to run, but instead she stretched out her body, ready to leap toward them. There was no time to convince her, so Leon stepped forward, shoving the backpack up on his shoulders again. As the wolves launched, he kicked out, hitting one in the shoulder.

“Cross-strike!” He hit the second one with both blades, and though it didn’t die, it yelped and fell.

He turned toward the second one as it launched again and swung his sword and dagger. They hit it in the side of the head and flung it aside, but it still kept on its feet. As Leon prepared to run at the one he’d struck before, Trouble ran past him, and slammed her front paws onto the wolf’s chest. She opened her mouth wide and bit down on its skull, and the crack that came after sent a chill through Leon’s body. She shook the wolf’s limp figure to the side.

Leon barely had time to block the fangs of the wolf that came at him, since the scene had taken all his attention. He crossed the weapons just in time to catch its jaw and elbowed its head. It landed on the ground and haunched down to leap again. The giant rabbit jumped, and stomped down her hind legs on the wolf, then landed a few feet away. Taking the chance, Leon pierced the weapons through its chest and finished it. Three more wolves came running out of the woods, one level 6, and two level 4. He’d hoped to try out the berserk skill, but he didn’t want to risk hitting Trouble. He took a stance and swung his weapons at the first one, and stepped aside to hit the next. The third one ran directly at the rabbit, who jumped and kicked out, sending the wolf backwards and dealing 21 damage.

With Trouble’s unexpected fierceness, they made quick work of the monsters, and when all five had fallen, they disappeared into multicolored pixels that flew into a pile.

Leon approached it after rubbing Trouble’s cheek. Of all the things he’d expected of a rabbit, it being a willing and quite competent fighter wasn’t on the list. As he bent to pick up the coin, fangs, and claws, Trouble pushed her head into him, almost making him fall over. He chuckled and turned to pet her some more, then pocketed the items.

He considered using the call once more, but a look at the time convinced him to go to Hert, to see what he wanted to do. The five wolves had only raised his level percentage by one, meaning it would take a lot of work to get them all to level ten, since they shared the experience from monsters. It would go a lot quicker if they worked together.

“Come,” Leon said with a smile, and lifted the flap of the backpack. Trouble turned her head away. “I don’t like the way people look at you in the city when you’re outside the pack.”

She ignored him.

“Look, Trouble. I think you’re beautiful, but others might get scared or will try to harm you. Please? I’ll let you out once we’re outside the city again.”

Trouble turned to look at him, then tilted her head. A moment later, she contracted her hind legs and took a leap toward Leon’s backpack. As the paw touched it, she shrank and disappeared.

“Thank you,” Leon said and hauled the pack up on his shoulders.