The red moon lingered low in the sky as I made my way out of the camp, its faint crimson light casting long shadows across the ground. Behind me, the Dwarves grew noisier as they woke the children and began packing to leave. The flickering bonfire light barely touched me as the warmth was replaced by the cool night air. Ahead, the trees loomed dark and foreboding, their branches swaying slightly in the gentle breeze as I moved deeper into the darkness beyond.

  With my enhanced vision, I could still see, but the silhouettes of the trees were deeper, making the darkness of the forest more of a hindrance. I realized I had two choices. I could use my Time Spell to move faster, but half-blindly, or cast my Light Spell to brighten the path ahead. I did not have enough mana regeneration to maintain them at the same time.

  “That's not entirely true,” Rabbit chimed in on my thoughts. “You still have your current mana pool. The Light Spell doesn’t drain much mana. You could move with your light on and use the Time Spell at the same time! Then, when your pool gets too low, rely on your light. Since your mana regenerates faster than the light consumes it, you can still use that while waiting for it to refill.”

  I guessed Rabbit already crunched the numbers, so I followed his plan, alternating between the two. After the second cycle, I received the prompt within less than an hour.

  You have gained Level 2 in Light Magic.

  Skill points earned: 11.

  Total Skill points: 1,110.

  “Yes, yes, yes. Drop it into your Skilled tree,” Rabbit advised.

  Since I was trying to move through the forest as fast as I could, I ignored Rabbit and closed the prompts whenever they appeared. I didn’t have to read the details, but I did need to have had enough concentration to know which of my Skills were improving.

  “I am a little busy to be managing my skill points,” I said to Rabbit.

  “I forgot your blood bag of a brain can’t multitask very well. I wonder if that is why the females of your race never seem pleased with you,” he replied mockingly.

  “What does that have to do with it?” I asked.

  “Well, I guess if you don’t even understand, it must be true.”

  “It’s definitely reasonable for me to manage my skill points now. It’s not like I have to make it to the boat soon to save Jack.” I had fallen at least a dozen times, moving too fast on slippery mud or jumping over a stone and not seeing the tree roots hidden by the forest canopy’s shade. “On a more serious note, this isn’t exactly a jogging track.”

  “I had noticed. Those Goblins must have been drug dealers because those shoes they gave you have been making you trip all night,” Rabbit cackled.

  I ignored the joke and kept going. It was silent for 30 seconds before that voice rang in my head again.

  Rabbit tried again. “I said, ‘making you trip all night.’”

  “I'm sorry, I am running out of time,” I said, emphasizing running as much as I could.

  “More like jogging,” Rabbit said with a laugh. “But to be fair with you, some things are difficult to multitask, like reading while keeping an eye on your surroundings. To fill you in, your prompt says your Light Magic has increased, and you’ve gained some skill points. Since you only need one more skill point to unlock the next level of Skilled, I figured you'd want to do that before the next day. The problem is, I’m not sure exactly when midnight is around here since these people measure time so differently, so I think we should do it sooner rather than later. It would be such a waste to lose any extra points.”

  I slowed to a stop to invest my points into Skilled X. Rabbit was right and shouldn’t have been joking about this the whole time. I had to optimize my build to improve my chances of receiving more points.

  Rabbit and I had invested every skill point into Skilled, which granted me a 10% bonus per level. I leveled it nine times, but reaching the tenth was exponentially more expensive, with the cost being the sum of the two previous levels.

  Normally, I’d need to grind for more skill points, but I had a perk that sped up the process. Because I’d jumped from level 1 to 20 in one month, the universe gave me a crucial 100% bonus for this month, giving me significantly more skill points to spend every time I leveled up. With Rabbit’s strategy, buying the next level would yield this huge boost—if it counted for the current day. If not, I'd miss out on past bonuses.

  With the Skilled talent, the Soul Fragment, and the universe’s 100% bonus, I could essentially level up my skills much faster than anyone else.

  Without wasting another moment, I opened my screen and purchased Skilled X.

  Skilled X unlocked.

  You may earn 100% extra skill points from any source and may be used in any category.

  Skill points earned from unlocking this skill: 204.

  Total skill points: 214.

  As this is the final level of this Talent Tree, you may now invest in one area on the general branch level 2, or any skill on the level 1 branch.

  As this is the final level of this Talent Tree, your Ability Soul Absorption has been modified to have synergy with Skilled. You may now absorb a percentage of skill points as well as a portion of the soul. You currently have an absorption rate of 1% for newly deceased individuals or 2% upon death.

  You have unlocked level 2 of the Talent Tree general branch.

  Level 1:

  Power: This branch enables purchases that enhance the power of any profession.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Knowledge: This branch enables purchases that enhance proficiency in all skills within a profession, thereby reducing the time required to learn each skill level.

  You may invest in any area, but you won't receive the first level free.

  Level 2:

  Synergy: Your Soul Absorption rate is currently 1% for newly deceased individuals or 2% upon death. This will increase the rate of soul and skill absorption.

  Resistance: This branch increases resistances tied to unlocked professions. Currently, you can only boost Magical resistance, but once other professions are unlocked, the same resistance will apply to them.

  Domination: This branch allows you to ignore enemy resistances tied to unlocked professions. Currently, you can only ignore Magical resistance, but once other professions are unlocked, the same resistance will apply to them.

  Unknown: The Skill Tree is as endless and varied as the stars in the sky, representing what can be. Each person’s tree is unique, shaped by one’s natural affinity. This branch lets you surpass your innate limits, expanding your potential beyond your usual reach.

  Only one skill branch may be chosen.

  This time, I read the prompt thoroughly. Once I understood the details, I resumed jogging, knowing I was pressed for time.

  “Well, it looks like we made it in time to get the bonus. What do you want me to do with it?” I asked. Not long ago, Rabbit did me a favor, and in return, I let him spend my points however he wanted for a week, which he happily took advantage of. He even kept my Magical skill branch hidden, afraid I would whine about spending the points on long-term goals instead of immediate wants.

  While having extra skills would’ve been useful, his strategy of investing everything into Skilled felt like a solid plan, especially considering I could earn heaps of skill points and had reached level 2 on the general skill branch.

  As far as I knew, no one had ever made it all the way through level 1 of the general skill branch. And why would they? It was a waste of points to try to push to the end. Grinding points for diminishing returns took too much time. It was always better to invest in your specific branches after putting just enough into the general branch to be practical. Only someone with a ton of points would invest that far into something with so little short-term payoff.

  “We should invest in your skill branch, at least some. I would continue to spend points in your general branch, but I want to see you use your Synergy, learn about its effectiveness, before making my final decision.”

  What Rabbit had been talking about was my Soul Absorption. Whenever an enemy was killed, I could pull some experience out of them. That contributed to my rapid rise in levels.

  I wasn’t a great fighter, but I had been lucky enough to absorb powerful enemies to level up and grow. Level 10 in Skilled seemed to not only allow me to absorb experience but also skill points.

  I was sure that after a couple of tries, Rabbit would figure out how many skill points we could acquire. That way, we would know if it was worth investing more into the Synergy branch rather than my magical power.

  “What about the other branches that we discovered? There’s Resistance, Domination, and Unknown. I think Unknown sounds enticing. It might let us choose options for skills we don’t even have,” I said, pushing through a thick bush.

  The route Rabbit had highlighted was clearly built for speed, not comfort. I was charging through the dense brush and rugged terrain, without even a dirt trail to follow. Branches kept pressing into me, but I didn’t get any cuts thanks to my body being fused with Biodium. But I still felt every sharp poke and scrape. If I were actually taking damage, Rabbit might have chosen a different route. But just feeling pain? That wouldn’t stop that pragmatic mastermind. In fact, it might make him pick an even crazier path just to experiment on me again.

  “Maybe, but time will allow that to happen naturally,” Rabbit said. “However, I think it is more for people who are limited in scope. When you received the Soul Fragment, it made all skills accessible, and I suspect all Abilities as well. My guess is the Unknown branch would only let you see what you are already allowed.”

  “That might be a waste,” I admitted.

  “I cannot dismiss Synergy, and we get to see what it is like, so we will hold off on that for now. Out of all of the other ones, the Resistance branch seems like the best fit for you. Right now, you’ve got lightning resistance, fire resistance, and with your armored body, solid physical resistance. Even better, you heal incredibly fast. If you invest more in resistances, you’d make an excellent tank.”

  While I pondered it, I tripped into a tree branch again. Running while thinking about my build gave me a headache. “I agree. If I could increase my resistance, it would be beneficial, such as by specializing in a specific area. However, when we increased our lightning resistance, didn’t we find out it gave diminishing returns? It was as if we could never get to 100% resistance.”

  “Oh. I totally agree,” Rabbit said brightly, “and I’m surprised you put two and two together. If we went with the resistance path, you wouldn’t get nearly as much from it because of your already high resistance. But, there is one thing you are forgetting.”

  “What is that?” I took his bait.

  “You suck at fighting. Let’s say you chose Domination. It lets you ignore some enemies’ resistances, but you would actually have to hurt someone for that to be useful,” Rabbit said smugly.

  “Hey, that’s not fair. I have killed my fair share of enemies.”

  “Okay, I’ll admit you bested the Goblins. They were half your size and had half of your strength. But is fighting kids really something to be proud of?”

  “I fought more than the Goblins. How do you think I achieved my high level?” I said with indignation.

  “Obviously, because of the great plans that I came up with. There was no way you could have killed those spiders in a frontal assault. Clever strategy exterminated them. The people on the boat back in the Black Rock Island were taken by surprise. Should I give more examples?”

  “No, thank you,” I said in between breaths.

  Rabbit smirked. “I’m not saying you aren’t getting better. That 12-year-old girl taught you a lot. I mean, if you were double her level, you might be able to beat her.”

  Rabbit was unfair, and he knew it. He purposely called her a 12-year-old girl instead of using her name to rub it in that someone so young was a better fighter than me. I brushed aside my embarrassment. “Fine, even if I am getting better, Domination might be out. At least I can invest in level 1 skills again. Hell, I am surprised there's even a level 2. No one said anything about it.”

  “I’m fairly sure that is because no one knows, or they can’t say anything about it. Remember, there is a magic that stops people from talking about specifics in the Skill Tree,” Rabbit added.

  “I know,” I said, sighing, “Information is so hard to find out here. I am the one person in the world with a computer in my head, but I’m stuck in the middle of a forest. If I were near some repository of books, maybe we could understand the Skill tree better. It was so frustrating having to figure everything out ourselves.”

  “I understand you completely. It’s hard figuring out everything myself. Look at me. I am stuck to a cockroach that thinks it has a brain.”

  “You know, I like the monkey or flesh bag nickname better than cockroach. Why do you even call me that?” I asked.

  “Because lately you have been becoming one. I mean, you are hard as hell to kill. I’m pretty sure if a giant stepped on you, you would get right back up and start skittering around like you are now,” Rabbit said as I pictured the mocking smile on his face.

  The idea was so ridiculous, I smiled too. Rabbit was a strange friend, equal parts annoying and hilarious, but he understood me in a way few did. I was glad to have him.

  That was when I hit a dead end.

  I pushed through a thicket of bushes and stepped into a narrow crevice. The area was darker than the rest of the forest, but the light from my hands cut through the shadows. The rough, weathered walls stretched upward, creating a natural enclosure. The den was about as wide as I was tall, with a floor littered with rocks and loose dirt, with only one way in or out.

  Breaking through the light, a shadow shot toward me. It was fast, heavy, and all muscle. Before I could react, it crashed into me with the force of a battering ram.

  I hit the ground, the wind knocked from my lungs as the weight of the creature pressed me down. Pain flared at the back of my neck as sharp teeth sank in. Warmth spread over my collarbone as blood trickled down.