How did it feel to kill for the first time?

Maxwell never bothered to find the answer to such a silly question. In his old life, he never touched a weapon, and knives were only used to cut his food. His hands were always at work, not crushing other people's faces.

But now he knew what it felt like, and it wasn't good.

Each person acts in different ways and suffers in different ways. He didn't hesitate at any time and even now he doesn't regret what he did. If he were put back in that cell, he'd be the only one to get out again.

Of course, that didn't mean he didn't feel anything. He couldn't sleep at night because he always had nightmares, thinking that some psychopath was jumping on him and slitting his throat. He woke up with a sweaty body, leaving his bed always wet, which caused even more discomfort and prevented him from sleeping.

The scenes kept coming to mind, the way Psycho fought for his life, flailing like an animal as his face sank with each blow. The sensation of his hands sinking lower and lower, Psycho's eyes losing focus, pieces of his brain getting stuck between his fingers. It all unnerved him, he felt like a monster.

But life went on, and the clock waited for no one.

Maxwell lowers his head into the sink and splashes cold water on his face. Looking in the mirror, Maxwell sees large black circles around his eyes. He just sighs and wash his hands with soap and water.

"Hurry up Max, you've been there a long time" Someone shouts from the other side, knocking on the door several times.

"I'm washing my hands"

"You've been doing this for almost half an hour, they're already clean, now get out of there, I need to make the one-eyed snake cry, you bastard!"

"Believe me, buddy, they're not." Maxwell's dull voice sounds muffled

"Fuck off, motherfucker!"

*BAM!

After punching the door, the sound of footsteps moving away was heard.

"*Sigh... I think it's time to leave?" After washing his hands once more, he leaves the bathroom and sets off on the day's activities.

Arriving at the appointed place, a firing range, there were few soldiers as it was still early, but Maxwell knew the price to be paid for being late, so he always preferred to arrive early for his appointments.

After a few minutes, everyone is gathered and the instructor arrives on the scene. Maxwell, like everyone else, knew what they would be learning this time, deducing it from where they were.

"*Ahem... Let's skip the introductions and go to the most important thing here." Clearing his throat, the elderly instructor takes some time to organize his thoughts and words."If the last neuron you have is working, you'll know what we're going to do now. But first, as a veteran, I have to say a few words of my own."

"Gunfights... Ahh Gunfights!"

"Gunfights are events of chaos. They don't make sense, they can never make sense. They are over in seconds. The men who fight them do so guided only by instincts that may or may not reflect training and experience."

"There are no rules. Nothing is clear, no one is heroic, self urination is quite common, which in turn is never shown in the movies. And they're incredibly loud, even if nobody's hearing is working. Heartbeats are supersonic, blood chemicals mix beyond the wildest imagination of any cocktail maker, no coherent thought forms in any brain, luck is better than intelligence, the cover is more important than concealment, ammunition is more important than heroism, and often the good die young."

"And... I almost forgot, always be wary of old people in a profession where men die young." A smile grows on the instructor's face as he says the last part. "Now enough talk, let's get down to business. Grab your weapons and go to your positions, my assistants will help you with any questions you may have."

Maxwell inspected the revolver he had received, it was a white revolver with 6 chambers and single action, fully loaded. Adjusting his position and decreasing the sensitivity of his ears, Maxwell aims at his target and pulls the trigger.

*Bang!

"Oh fuck!" Maxwell cursed as his revolver almost flew out of his hand.

"Hey! HEY! Stop shooting!" The instructor came towards Maxwell with his nostrils flaring in anger.

"Huh?" Maxwell looks strangely at his instructor, gesturing to him without saying anything. He then remembered that he had reduced the sensitivity of his ears.

After normalizing his hearing, Maxwell was able to hear the instructor.

"...don't pull the trigger, squeeze it. And don't keep your finger on the trigger unless you want to shoot." 

"Oh! Sorry, sir, I was practicing with FMJ ammunition on my own, so I don't have much experience."

"Well, at least you are sincere, anyway, ask one of my assistants for help, they'll give you the instructions more clearly."

"I'm too old for that" The instructor mutters a few things in a low voice as he walks away.

After this episode, training continued uninterrupted. Maxwell was subjected to various tests, from shooting as many targets as possible at the greatest distance to the speed with which they reloaded a gun and even the time it took to prepare their magazines with bullets.

All these tests and training required agility and dexterity with various guns, which not only increased his Dex stats but with the help and instruction of professionals, also gave him a new related skill.

[you've learned the skill: Trigger Discipline]

[Trigger Discipline: This skill represents mastery over all types of firearms. Trigger Discipline improves various aspects of the art of shooting, including:

1 - Better Grip: The ability to maintain a firm and stable grip on the weapon significantly reduces recoil and the possibility of the weapon slipping out of the hand.
2 - Trigger Control: Prevents accidental firing and avoids accidents caused by mechanical failures.
3 - Breath Control: The ability to control breathing allows the user to keep the weapon steady during firing, increasing the accuracy and consistency of shots.
4 - Intelligent Reloading: The ability to reload your weapons quickly and efficiently, minimizing downtime, as well as letting you know how many bullets are left in the magazine by weight alone.
5 - Weapon Swap: Quick and fluid switching between different weapons.]

Feeling confident, Maxwell gets back into position, regulates his breathing, and tightens his grip. He slowly squeezes the trigger and...

*Bang! *bang! *bang! *bang! *bang! *bang!

10 meters, 20, 30, 40, no matter the distance, he always hit his targets with precision.

[Trigger Discipline lv.1>2]

After acquiring the skill, his hit rate increased significantly. He realized how inexperienced he was with weapons because, even with a great strength status, he still had problems controlling the recoil, which was no longer the case.

The instructor was nodding when he saw his improvement, pleased to know that not everyone was a hopeless case.

After these gains, the following weeks were less intense. He was taught some basics about the army, survival, terrain reconnaissance, locating traps, etc. And of course, there was no shortage of indoctrination from Atlas, Maxwell didn't care much, it was all about patriotism and severe punishment for deserters, nothing new in the corporate world of Borderlands.

Eight weeks later...

Maxwell had finally finished his basic Atlas training. He was currently on his way back to his apartment to collect his things. He wouldn't be returning to his post any time soon, as everyone was given the weekend to stay with their families and then return. Maxwell had no family in this world, he knew from his memories of the body's former owner that he only had one father, who had abandoned him when he was five.

Probably went to buy milk, not that it matters to Maxwell, he has no feelings for the man anyway.

What mattered to Maxwell were only two things. One of them was a strange event that made Maxwell realize the strange growth spurt in his intelligence statistics. And the second thing was that he could make his first Regeneration.

_____

Name: Maxwell Williams

Regeneration: 0

STR: 29

END: 34

DEX: 26

INT: 22

_____

Tactical Ability: [None]

Boost: [None]

Skills: [Fast Regen lv.1] [Auditory Control lv.1] [Trigger Discipline lv.2] [CQC Repertoire]

_____

He noticed that his memory was sharper, clearly remembering all the events that had taken place over the last few weeks, even his first time killing. What he found strange was that his nights were quieter, he could sleep without waking up at dawn because of a nightmare.

Maxwell was very confused about the sudden increase, it made him realize that he didn't know much about each stat, even though he played a lot of RPGs, every game had different mechanics.

"System, please give me an explanation of my attributes."

[Certainly]

[Regeneration: It represents your level. As the pilot progresses and reaches certain milestones, they can choose to Regenerate his body to a juvenile stage, resetting your stats to 1 and gaining additional rewards.]

[Strength (STR): It represents your physical strength. This affects the general force of your blows and resistance to pushes and impacts. Additionally, it influences your maximum weight that can be carried, pushed, and lifted, with each point in STR granting an additional 10kg of lifting capacity. However, when using only one hand, the lifting capacity is halved.]

[Endurance (END): It represents the toughness and health of your body. This affects resistance to fatigue, disease, and poisons. Additionally, it influences your injuries' resistance to blunt, cutting, and piercing. As well as holding your breath for longer intervals, tolerating extreme hunger, unbearable thirst, and strong urges to sleep.]

[Dexterity (DEX): It represents the flexibility, reflexes, and motor coordination of your body. This affects your ability to move quickly, dodge attacks, and aim accurately. Additionally, it influences your proficiency with agile maneuvers and intricate tasks, such as piloting and wall running.]

[Intelligence (INT): It represents your mental capacity, focus, and retain information. This affects your capacity to resist mind manipulation, withstand psychological traumas, and enhance your understanding of academic topics. Additionally, it influences your proficiency in hacking, engineering, and other technical tasks.]

Maxwell's mind seemed to reel when he saw the explanation about INT. The key word was "withstand psychological trauma" which meant that he gained more INT when he suffered psychological trauma, and in his recovery, he increased his stats.

He had tried to increase his intelligence once, but by reading for several hours he had gained very little, which made him focus on his physical attributes, as he could upgrade all three at the same time. At least he knew there was a third option: forcing his mind to remember events or information from the past, which could give him points even while he was doing another activity.

Maxwell puts this to the back of his mind when he arrives in front of his apartment, they would be sorting out his Regeneration first.