Of course, it was not so simple. The combined damage of the two stacking debuffs swiftly overwhelmed [Regeneration]. With his health falling precipitously, he rushed to eat and drink to reset the debuffs. A moment of contemplation passed before he resumed the process anew. On the second cycle, he allowed himself to drink, choosing to focus on Starvation for the time being.
Starvation was debilitating, but there was one upside. Since the debuff reduced the effectiveness of his stats, every additional stack of the debuff reduced his maximum health. That, in turn, reduced the amount of damage that Starvation dealt to him. The amount was insignificant, but Jason was thankful for every tiny advantage he could get to sustain the damage better.
Even still, he was nowhere close to maintaining the debuff continuously. The first day was the worst. Jason fought sleep for hours as he cycled starvation on and off. It was a grueling, painful process. Grinding in the ultimate sense. It wore on him, but at the same time, there was something primal about his rising stats protecting him from the damage.
'ding!' '[Flesh Resistance] has reached level 6'
...
'ding!' '[Flesh Resistance] has reached level 8'
'ding!' '[Curse Resistance] has reached level 6'
...
'ding!' '[Curse Resistance] has reached level 8'
Going from level nine to ten seemed to take significantly longer than any other level. Or at least it felt that way. [Regeneration] stubbornly refused to level up for the longest time. And that was when it worked day and night to counteract the infinite stream of Starvation damage. Eventually, however, it ticked over.
'ding!' '[Regeneration] has reached level 10'
‘ding!’ ‘[Regeneration] has reached the limit of the first Saf. Choose another skill to guide its evolution’
Jason’s skill interface appeared, and his eyes were drawn unnaturally to his four existing resistances. He squinted, shaking off the compulsion to choose as he organized his thoughts.
[Regeneration] appeared to be...evolving? At least he'd reached some kind of threshold upon hitting level ten. That the skill was doing this was unexpected, but it wasn’t surprising. Many games had similar systems in play. It was more common to beat some boss or consume some item to evolve a skill, but whatever.
Jason glanced at each of his four resistances, wishing the Tutorial had more damage types he could level. Stab resistance was his highest resistance, but if the skill he chose would guide [Regenerations] future, then he felt that Flesh resistance was the only real option. [Flesh resistance] protected him against Starvation, his short-term goal. Flesh was also the medium that [Regeneration] applied to.
Jason dismissed the interface and focused on grinding again. There was no indication that the level of [Flesh Resistance] mattered for the upgrade, but it felt stupid to use a skill that was not maxed out as a guide.
'ding!' '[Flesh Resistance] has reached level 9'
'ding!' '[Flesh Resistance] has reached level 10'
‘ding!’ ‘[Flesh Resistance] has reached the limit of the first Saf. Choose another skill to guide its evolution’
'ding!' '[Curse Resistance] has reached level 9'
'ding!' '[Curse Resistance] has reached level 10'
‘ding!’ ‘[Curse Resistance] has reached the limit of the first Saf. Choose another skill to guide its evolution’
Jason snapped open his interface and selected Flesh resistance as the ‘guide’ for [Regeneration]. A shiver rolled up his spine as a slew of notifications rolled across his vision.
‘ding!’ ‘[Regeneration] has evolved into [Flesh Regeneration]!’
'ding!' 'Congratulations! You have learned the skill [Flesh Regeneration]'
Flesh Regeneration: Grants permanent
First Saf: [Flesh Resistance]: You have chased after and survived the ceaseless rot of Starvation. For every minute of taking continuous damage, you increase the effect of all life recovery effects on you by 1%. This effect stacks up to 100%.
‘ding!’ ‘[Flesh Regeneration] has reached level 1’
Jason shuddered as he felt the battle taking place inside his body intensify. Starvation rose like a dark god and started tearing into Jason’s body. His health bar flickered, dropping rapidly as [Flesh Regeneration] struggled to keep up with the damage. Jason jumped toward his stockpile of moss, but even as he did so, he felt his new skill leach an iota of strength out of Starvation.
'ding!' '[Flesh Regeneration] has reached level 2'
“So it resets the skill,” Jason murmured quietly several minutes later. Except for that minor detail, the evolution looked like a strict upgrade. Once he leveled Flesh Regeneration up a bit, it should be much easier to sustain Starvation. Twice as easy, in fact.
Jason grinned, settling back into the grind once again. By now, falling into meditation was as easy as breathing. The hunger faded into the background. Debuffs started stacking, and the interface started ringing.
'ding!' '[Flesh Regeneration] has reached level 3'
...
'ding!' '[Flesh Regeneration] has reached level 8'
Since Flesh and Curse resistance were capped at level ten, Jason switched to training with Dehydration. The process ate into his moss supply and was more difficult due to his low levels. His improved skill was up to the challenge. The First Saf of [Flesh Regeneration] capped out and managed to push the stacking debuffs more and more.
'ding!' '[Blood Resistance] has reached level 5'
...
'ding!' '[Blood Resistance] has reached level 10'
‘ding!’ ‘[Blood Resistance] has reached the limit of the first Saf. Choose another skill to guide its evolution’
Jason let his mind fall out of meditation. He pulled up his skill list and saw the other skills that could be used to guide blood resistance. It was strange that resistance skills could be upgraded like this, but—
Jason froze as a sense of foreboding crept up on him. The System no longer allowed him to use [Flesh Resistance] as the guide for any other skill. That was expected, in a way. Many games had exclusivity rules like that. What wasn’t expected was the missing option to evolve [Flesh Resistance].
There was no option to choose a skill as a guide. The skill was dark. Empty. Unselectable.
Which effectively meant he couldn’t level Flesh Resistance beyond level ten.
Jason frowned and got up.
He went to the Grothlit farm to kill some of the creatures while he considered the situation. The more he thought about it, the less he liked his choice. While [Flesh Regeneration] was better overall, additional improvements to [Flesh Resistance] would be better if all he wanted to do was sustain Starvation.
He chewed his lip, vowing to choose more carefully next time. He didn’t beat himself up over it. Nothing could be done about it, and a certain amount of fudging was necessary since the System messages weren’t verbose.
He set his mind on culling the Grothlit population, letting them stab him whenever his health filled. Eventually, Jason exited the farm and blocked up the stalagmite wall. He flicked open his interface and let the notifications flood over him.
'ding!' '[Stab Resistance] has reached level 10'
‘ding!’ ‘[Stab Resistance] has reached the limit of the first Saf. Choose another skill to guide its evolution’
That was expected. It took way longer to get that very last level, but even against the weak Grothlits, it was only a matter of time before the skill capped out.
'ding!' '[Flesh Regeneration] has reached level 9'
...
'ding!' '[Flesh Regeneration] has reached level 11'
What was much more surprising was the improvements to [Flesh Regeneration]. The combined damage of the Grothlits and the steadily rising Starvation debuff meant the skill shot up. It blew through the level ten limit and continued on unimpeded. Its power also grew proportionally. By now, the skill was far beyond regular old [Regeneration].
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
'ding!' 'Congratulations! Your level has increased to 10. 5 stat points awarded'
‘ding!’ ‘You have reached the limit of the first Saf. Choose an attribute to guide your future skill options’
The last notification gave Jason pause. The system urged him to choose either strength, constitution, dexterity, intelligence, or wisdom. He pushed aside the compulsion for now. There was no telling what would happen if he made a choice. Sure, choosing Constitution might grant him a tank-focused skill, but it might also lock him out of investing points into the attribute.
Making a decision now was...reckless. Also, it wasn’t necessary. Nothing in the Tutorial could harm him, nor did he need a new skill to kill some unbeatable enemy. Right now, the best option was to save the choice for when he had more information.
----------------------------------------
Jason groaned as he stiffly woke. His back ached from sleeping on the layer of dried moss that composed his bed. He blearily looked around, noting the familiar, unchanged surroundings. His eyes eventually settled on the swirling portal on the far side of the room. It swirled peacefully, depicting the static scene of his dorm. A gentle pressure behind his eyes reminded him of a few notifications waiting to be reviewed, and Jason turned his attention to them.
‘ding!’ ‘You have been afflicted with the Starvation X status ailment’
'ding!' '[Flesh Regeneration] has reached level 12'
...
'ding!' '[Flesh Regeneration] has reached level 30'
‘ding!’ ‘[Flesh Regeneration] has reached the limit of the second Saf. Choose another skill to guide its evolution’
Jason licked his dry lips and drank as he mentally explored the tenuous balance within his body. [Flesh Regeneration] fought desperately against the final stack of Starvation. His health bar flickered but held. It held.
He no longer needed food to survive.
So why was he...bored?
Jason flopped back down onto his bedding. Meditation had grown exhausting, and the Grothlits had lost their charm. He had all the water he needed, and all his skills were capped. He refused to evolve his class or any of his available skills. There was no point, and he wasn’t ready to pay the cost if such a thing existed.
In a strange, weird way, Jason had won.
He’d explored every inch of the Tutorial rift. He’d discovered the secrets of mob spawning, and built a moss farm that could almost sustain a single person indefinitely. He’d leveled all possible skills to their supposed maximums.
He’d won.
All there was left to do now was log out.
Jason found himself standing before the swirling portal once again as he tried and failed to crush that intrusive thought. He’d stared into the fuzzy scene of his dorm room countless times. Each time, he’d turned away, refusing even to entertain the idea of jumping through. Yes, his friends were there, but so were all the other shitty things that had made him want to blow his brains out.
“What are you doing, Jason,” Jason croaked softly to himself. “What are you even doing? This is the best thing that has ever happened to you, and you are thinking of throwing it all away.”
So what if there was a chance that all this was a dream? So what if everything ended? So what if he was stripped of his skills and stats when he jumped through?
Wasn’t there also a chance that all this would continue on the other side of the portal? So what if there was a whole lot of bad on the other side? If strange and alien monsters started roaming the countryside, wouldn’t that more than make up for it?
Wasn’t part of the excitement the fact that he didn’t know?
Jason stared at the portal, the light reflecting dully in his gray eyes. The defeat in his posture melted away, replaced by the steely determination that had been so easily accessible recently.
What if the geography of Earth had been permanently altered? Or what if there were now dungeons appearing randomly all over the world? Or more of these...rifts. Pocket dimensions! Didn’t that imply that the fundamental forces of the universe had been altered? Even if that wasn’t the case, there were bound to be dozens of strange or unique creatures worth fighting and studying.
Staying stagnant in this time-locked cavern forever was a crime. If there was even a chance that Earth had systemically changed due to whatever had happened, he had to explore it to its full extent. He had a responsibility to do so. If not to himself, then to his roommates, family and friends. To humanity in general.
In principle, his stats were higher than any other person's. He needed to join the rest of humanity and figure all this shit out.
Yes it was true that he had beat the Tutorial. But that didn’t mean he had to log out. There was a whole slew of DLCs available to dive into.
“Goddamnit, Jason,” Jason growled, stepping up to the portal. He touched the swirling mist with a single trembling hand. “Put your big boy britches on and jump. Jump! Damnit!”
Jason jumped.
The swirling portal washed over him, filling him with a spinning sense of vertigo and disorientation. The feeling lasted only a fraction of a second but was enough to cause him to stumble into the living room.
Time resumed.
Corinne and Tyler stumbled into each other’s arms. Tyler grabbed Corinne in a bear hug and buried his head in the nape of her neck.
“Mrumpffh!” Tyler’s words got lost in Corinne's hair. His massive, linebacker arms nearly buried her smaller frame.
“We did it!” Corinne crowed, hugging Tyler just as fiercely. “Are you alright, Tyler? Jason and I were sent to this strange cave pocket dimension that was called a tutorial, and there were these mons—”
Tyler looked up then and let loose a bone-chilling screech that cut off Corinne’s tirade of words.
“Skeleton!” Tyler screamed, pointing a shaky finger at Jason. Corinne jumped, then squeaked as Tyler dragged her forcefully behind himself.
Jason blinked and looked behind himself. The portal was gone, and no, there wasn’t a skeleton there. Then, as he glanced down at himself, a realization dawned.
“Holy shit,” Corinne gasped, putting a steadying hand on Tyler’s bicep. Her eyes narrowed as they flickered behind Jason, then landed directly on his face. “Jason? Is that you?”
“Oh yeah,” Jason chuckled, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. “Don’t mind...all this.”
Jason gestured vaguely to his emaciated frame. Tyler’s mouth fell open as he heard Jason’s sore voice, and Corinne’s eyes lit up like they were about to explode with all the questions she wanted to ask. Before either of them could bombard him, Jason rushed over to the window and looked out into the night.
It was still winter. Still cold, with intermittent snow drifts and a gently howling wind. Streetlamps flickered. They left cones of light over the dorm parking lot adjacent to their building. Jason’s emaciated frame was the only sign that anything was wrong.
Jason scrunched his eyes closed and summoned up his interface.
————————————————————
Jason Mendel
Level: 10
————————————————————
Strength 15
Constitution 25
Dexterity 15
Intelligence 10
Wisdom 10
Unspent Stat Points 20
————————————————————
Health : 100% |█████████████████████████| 90/90
Stamina : 100% |█████████████████████████| 70/70
Mana : 100% |█████████████████████████| 40/40
————————————————————
- [Flesh Regeneration] [30] Grants permanent
- - First Saf: [Flesh Resistance]: You have chased after and survived the ceaseless rot of Starvation. For every minute of taking continuous damage, you increase the effect of all life recovery effects on you by 1%. This effect stacks up to 100%.
————————————————————
- [Stab Resistance] [10] You have been impaled repeatedly by a Grothlit’s claws. Your body hardens and grows more resilient against such attacks in the future
- *[Flesh Resistance] [10] You have sought out and survived the clawing hunger of Starvation. This skill will help you resist the withering degradation of the flesh
- [Curse Resistance] [10] You felt the weakness of starvation and still chose to embrace it. The curse of starvation drains you of attributes. This skill will make you more resistant to such effects
- [Blood Resistance] [10] Few creatures chose not to eat. Even fewer abhor the drink. It composes all that you are, and still you refrain. Your blood has changed so that it can flow even when it grows as thick as sludge
————————————————————
Jason released a shaky sigh of relief and slowly counted to ten under his breath.
His eyes snapped open, homing in on that tiny patch of darkness at the edge of the parking lot where one of the streetlamps had gone dark months ago.
A blubbery, snakelike beast covered in dark scales curled around the base of the broken streetlight. Four pyramidal heads sprouted in a rough spiral along the main body of the creature. They waved in the breeze as if they were mushroom fruiting bodies after a storm. Even as Jason watched, one of the pyramidal heads opened, revealing dozens of tiny winged insects that spread wings and started buzzing around.
Jason grinned.