Raj had ultimately decided to eat and sleep, not wanting to risk anything else. His stomach wound had reopened when he had been getting chased, and it had gotten significantly worse. When Raj woke up the next day, he ultimately decided to adopt a training routine, similar to the one he had followed after his fight with the gorlax, for the next couple of days. He would rather be hunting, and he felt the pressure to get stronger. He knew that he had to abide by basic logic now and then however, and his grisly wound needed to heal. Enhanced VIT and healing could only do so much, and he ultimately found himself helpless as the only thing that could heal his wounds was time. So, Raj trained.

His sword forms and attacks had been slightly rusty at first, due to the insane mental and physical changes he and his body had undergone over the last few days. He had always been sure to frequent the HEMA practice sessions however, so he quickly adjusted to his new and improved body. He would still need to continue practicing, as his body would constantly change. As Raj was training, however, he had made a discovery.

Raj’s swordsmanship was simply better. Far better than it should have been after only a few days. The only explanation he could come up with was that he had actual experience. Raj had trained a lot with swords, true, but most of it had been done in a safe, controlled environment with no danger. Since the start of the tutorial, Raj had been thrust into increasingly dangerous situations, which had forced him to adapt and evolve his skills with the sword in order to survive. The effects were apparent when he noticed, not only his increased skill, but also the change in how the sword felt in his hand.

Before, Raj had seen the sword as a tool, and moved with it as though it were one. Now, however, Raj almost felt as though the sword was an extension of his body. He could practically feel the sword, as though he was one with the weapon. This has got to be the most cringe shit of all time, but it fucking works, so why not? Raj wondered in amazement. With that final thought, Raj turned back to his training.

*****

Raj was sitting, eating the remaining pieces of his boaralo corpse after his second day of training, when he pulled up the tutorial panel.

Welcome to the Tutorial

Information: The Tutorial will proceed for 30 days. The only required criteria for completion is survival. Anything else is extra and will thus be rewarded for.

Countdown: 24 days, 17 hours and 57 minutes

Tutorial Contribution(TC) will be given to all participants for any actions that impact the tutorial or the beings inside it. This includes slaying monsters or other humans, as well as completing or contributing to the completion of objectives. The leaders in terms of TC will be given rewards at the end of the tutorial in accordance to the amount of TC they have. TC is not visible as points by the participants.

Objectives: A power lurks in the grassy plains to the East of the forest. Defeat the monstrosity and its 3 most powerful subordinates to complete the objective.

Damn, Raj thought. I have spent over five days in this hellhole, but for some reason…time almost seems to be flying by. Raj recalled his previous thoughts from just before the tutorial. I guess I was wrong, he mused. I can survive out in a LitRPG world, at least so far. I severely underestimated humankind's ability to adapt in dangerous situations. Well, that and a lot of luck.

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Raj knew that today was the day that he would set out once more. And, if he was being honest with himself, it was probably the last time he would be in the clearing. As safe and nice as the clearing was, he simply was too isolated. He had not met anyone, and had not gotten any closer to solving the objective. Raj felt a little sadness start to well up within, but he was quick to crush it. He could not let himself get distracted, as he knew that the monsters had returned. He had seen multiple curious sets of eyes peeking through the thick foliage of the forest surrounding his clearing recently, and he knew he had to be prepared to fight.

Raj heaved himself up and off the ground with a sigh, ready to pack up his things and leave, before stopping. Wait, all my stuff is in my ring. I can just leave. As he was saying that, he was already walking towards the forest line once more, back turned to the clearing that had housed him for the past few days.

He had just summoned his sword to his hand when he suddenly stopped. He squinted his eyes and peered at the distance, and then opened them in shock. Is that… smoke?

Raj was about to take off running before he calmed himself and started thinking. I am not sure if I should make a beeline for the smoke. I don’t know anything about the people there. Hell, I don’t know if they are even humans, and to top it all off, it is not at all a short walk. Raj pondered his situation for a moment before ultimately coming to a decision. He knew that he still wanted to investigate the area, so he would slowly make his way towards the smoke, hunting as he went. He would make sure to arrive at the smoke by sundown, so that he could investigate with some visibility, but still have some darkness to hide in. With a goal in mind, he started walking once more, eager to get stronger once more.

*****

Raj glanced up at the sky as he sat on his latest kill, which had been a large chicken-looking animal that was called a pecker. It had been at level six, and it had given him just enough EXP to get to level nine. He pulled up his Status while noting the fact that sundown was fast approaching.

Status

Name: Rajeev Narayanan

Race: Human(H)

Class: Warrior[(Common-H) lvl 9]

Profession: None

Titles: Giant Slayer, Vitality I

HP: 370/370

MP: 100/100

SP: 170/170

Stats

Strength: 25(24)

Agility: 24(23)

Vitality: 37(36)

Endurance: 17(17)

Intelligence: 10(10)

Wisdom: 8(8)

Free Points: 0

Class Skills: Mana Slash(Common)

Profession Skills: None

General Skills: Identify(Common)

After some momentary internal deliberation, Raj had opted to throw 1 Free Point into AGI, and 1 into INT. He had to keep his MP up, after all. With his stat allocations finished, he closed his status and looked back up at the sky. The sun crept over the western horizon, growing closer, as though it was about to disappear. Raj got up, storing the weird chicken animal corpse into his ring, which was full of all sorts of creatures he had hunted. He turned, facing the direction from where the smoke had originated. With a sigh that masked a myriad of emotions, he started walking.

For better or for worse, he thought, my isolation ends today.