06 - Hike

The tents and supplies were quickly and efficiently packed away inside canvas packs. Theo carried Sarah’s so her quiver wasn’t obstructed. He didn’t find it heavy anyways, so he didn’t worry about it. He had his gym bag in his left hand and his staff in his right. They were walking in a line, heading west through the thick forest.

He looked over at Conway, who was at the head of the party with a spare sword, whacking away at plants and vines that were in their way. Apparently, they were following a trail, but it seemed rather unkempt according to Theo.

He could tell that Conway was in good shape, since he'd walked for hours in his heavy armor. In fact, he noticed that none of the group had much fat to them. They were either muscular or slim.

He had been walking at the back of the line, not saying a word.

“You good, back there?” Called out Sarah, who was right in front of him.

Surprised by the goodwill, Theo replied:

“Yeah, I’m fine. How about you?”

“Bored out of my mind. Got anything good to talk about? These guys are rather dull so I have to squeeze them dry for any conversation.”

Ignoring her last sentence, he pondered for a bit.

“Do you have any skills?” He asked her.

“Don’t you?” She replied, slightly confused. She shrugged. “Usually, information like this is confidential, but I think you're trustworthy. We’ve spent nearly two hours walking and I haven't felt any menacing pressure coming from you. One of my skills is [Sixth Sense].”

“What does it do?” Theo got excited at the mention of such a powerful skill name.

“You’ve never heard of it? It’s my best skill, but it’s not very unique. It allows me to sense the space around me.”

Isn't that overpowered?

“I could tell that you hardly even looked at me,” she added, somewhat sadly.

Theo got psychologically hit in the face. Attention seeker.

“I’ve recently learned a skill,” he started. “[Jump].”

He trusted her too, to some degree, but she said that skills are something that should be hidden. He didn’t particularly want to inform her of the skill he got in an unorthodox way. The old man looked human no matter how he recalled it.

And it might be special, he hoped.

[Rift] was the only lead he had for returning home. He hadn't thought of anything else yet. Maybe the system would teleport him back? He would try, but he doubted it would happen. He had learned [Rift] after killing a "monster of unknown origin", so gaming logic told him that it was a powerful skill.

She nodded, debating if he had just declared that randomly or if he would continue.

“But how do I use it?” He asked.

Sarah was clearly shocked, but soon collected her thoughts. Theo figured she thought it was common knowledge.

“Skills are understood by instinct. If someone has the [Run] skill, they’ll be able to amplify their leg power for running faster. You could also try to launch [Fireball] out of your hand, or use [Cleave] when you attack with a sword. You said you have the [Jump] skill? Try jumping, then.”

Theo looked at her oddly before looking down. He bent his knees, feeling his muscles tighten, but unlike the normal burning sensation, he felt alive. The flexing turned his blood into liquid power as he started to push himself upwards. The dirt beneath his sneakers exploded out as he launched into the air.

What the heck?!

Theo had been in weird situations before, but none of them consisted of an uncontrolled flight path. The wind slapped his face energetically. He soared upwards, nearly reaching the top of the trees forty feet in the air before starting to fall back down.

Thankfully, he landed a few feet away from Sarah when he dropped. His unnaturally powerful legs made it easy for him to land since they could negate the fall's momentum.

My spine didn't break!?

“Oh yeah; every time you level up, you gain one Skill Point. You can use them to upgrade your system skills. Just concentrate on a skill in your status.”

That’s one thing I haven’t tried. Stupid me.

He opened his status.

SYSTEM - STATUS You are currently at [Level 5] with [26%] progress to the next level. Skill slots [2/2]: [Rift] [Jump]

He stared at [Jump]. It worked, because soon two other windows appeared next to the first one.

SYSTEM Every level, you will gain a Skill Point. They can be used to buy Subskills, or upgrade characteristics of your current skills. Subskills do not use a skill slot. SYSTEM - STATUS - JUMP [Jump] You currently have 5 Skill Points. Traits: 1SP: [Agility: 1] 3SP: [Power: 1] 6SP: [Extra Jumps: 0] Subskills: 3SP: [Slam] 4SP: [Hover]

Woah, that’s interesting. Adding more power to that jump? If I only have five points, I’ll need another level up before getting an extra jump. What is with all of these possibilities?

He closed both windows and opened up the one for [Rift].

SYSTEM - STATUS - RIFT [Rift] You currently have 5 Skill Points. Traits: ??? Subskills: ???

That’s just great.

“Hey, Sarah? Is there any way I can learn more about specific skills?” He asked.

“Yup. Well, there’s a skill index, if that’s what you mean,” she replied. “A book; written by humans. The Bestiary is where we keep all the records of the known skills. As reports come in, it is updated. You get a lot of money if you report a new skill, but they’ll know if you’re trying to cheat them. Anyways, thousands of Bestiary Annexes are circulating around, all of which are copies of the original. The newer it is, the more it’s worth.

Churches and libraries tend to have one, so you can always ask there for information. I happen to have one, but I didn’t pack it for this expedition and it’s quite outdated.”

Theo couldn’t help but become excited.

Maybe the Bestiary keeps information about [Rift]? It’s the only lead I have...

Sarah tried keeping the conversation going, but Theo wasn't really listening anymore. There was a kind of fatigue plaguing his body. Was it perhaps from the skill use?

“Speaking of Bestiary: at some point, a large trade network for animals and monsters was active. Adventurers would go out in the wild, collecting animals with specific skills to sell to the nobles or craftsmen. For progress or for skills, the poor creatures would get killed after being weakened enough.”

Like bullfighting, he half-mindedly thought.

“It worked very well for a few years, but the system shut it down. All over the world, the people had a message pop up, saying: The system is not for cheaters. The dealers and a few buyers disappeared that night so the market has been down ever since.”

Well that's a downer...

They all returned to peaceful walking after that.