The blood loss and exertion had left me dizzy and stunned. Noah and Johann brought me to the medical area where Ciara took a look at my wound, but by then it was mostly closed. Mrs Aya cleaned me up while the rest of the group handled their own affairs.

I decided to take this opportunity to review my advancement in agility. I knew I had hit the ten threshold, but I didn’t have the time to check and properly consider my choices.

[Your attribute (Agility) has reached 10. Please choose a deviation.]

[Improved Acrobatics]

Increases reflexes and speed when performing movement related feats.

[Improved Evasion]

Increases reflexes and speed when dodging, ducking, avoiding, sidestepping and rolling.

[Improved Strike]

Increases reflexes and speed when attacking with or without weapons.

‘Interesting.’

If I understood the information correctly, my options were increased three dimensional movement speed, increased defense and increased attack. Defense in the form of evasion and attack through increased attack speed.

They all sounded good. Although Improved Acrobatics felt underwhelming at first glance, there could be a lot of value to be taken out of that. I had never practiced parkour, but I imagine it would be something extremely fun and useful.

I must admit, though it sounds cool, it is kinda underwhelming when compared to increased evasion, which will help me survive, and increased attack speed, which will help me overwhelm my opponents. If I’d had one of the other two during my fight with Maccurach, I would probably have dealt with him much easier.

Well, I did gain two upgrades fighting him, probably because of how hard the fight was. If it had been easy, I doubted they would have happened in such a short battle. He really did push me to the limit. Fucking maniac. I can’t shake the feeling that letting him live was a mistake, but I don’t see what I could have done differently.

The fight was hard and I didn’t think anyone besides Sarah had the ability to join in without being at risk of being quickly overwhelmed by him. That guy was incredibly fast, ganging up on him would only put the lives of the weaker members of our group in risk. Even if we did manage to kill him, some of us would be severely injured or even dead.

I sighed.

‘There is nothing I can do about it right now. I need to prepare for whatever he can do to us, because I have no doubt he will be back.’

Before I made a choice on my deviation, I had to consider the future as well. Twenty or even thirty points in a stat might take a while, and I am not even sure if it will give me a second deviation, amplify the one I chose, or do nothing at all, but I wanted to be prepared in case it did.

With that in mind, what would be a stronger version of acrobatics? Increased jump height? Double jump? Flying? I must admit to myself, double jump sounds very cool, and flight, amazing. Somehow I doubt that flying will come out of something like Agility, but I can’t really be sure. As much as it’s fun to make such conjectures, it’s of little weight in my decision. I am only doing it for the sake of doing it, if I am being honest.

Improved evasion could eventually become something like sensing an attack, maybe even predicting it. That sounds extremely powerful and broken, but can I really put limits on this place? We have been here less than a week and things are getting increasingly more fantastic. Lastly, improved attack. Maybe I could get fast enough to do a hundred strikes in a second?

I chuckled.

I don’t think that sort of thing is up my alley. I would prefer a few precise and powerful strikes than a kill by a thousand shallow cuts. To be fair, it also says increased reflexes, not just speed. I am sure that would help me overwhelm defenses, and ultimately the decision of how many strikes is up to me and my fighting style more than my attributes.

Ultimately, it’s really a choice between attack speed or evasion. During my fight with Maccurach, I was unable to do much in the beginning because every opportunity that presented itself came with a promise of retribution. If I was fast enough to avoid, or even reduce the damage he could inflict on me, I could have punished him without paying much of a price. Also, I like the idea of increasing my chances of survival. I am quite the reckless fighter.

I took a deep calming breath, letting the decision sink in and trying to bring any counter argument against choosing evasion. I couldn’t, not any good ones. I chose Improved Evasion and took a moment to analyze my ever changing status sheet.

[Level] 4

[STATS]

[STR] 7 [VIT] 10

[DEX] 7 [AGI] 10

[WIL] 8 [MAG] 0

[DEVIATIONS]

Improved Regeneration (VIT); Improved Evasion (AGI);

[SKILLS]

Throwing (Initiate); Hand-to-Hand Combat (Beginner); Dodge (Proficient); Running (Proficient); Submission (Proficient); Club Fighting (Initiate); Swimming (Initiate); Spear Fighting (Proficient);

[MAGICAL ABILITIES]

Language(Passive);

My sheet has been coming along nicely, two ten stats and another three getting there. The zero in magic continues to be my sore spot, but I doubt anyone besides Ani can really raise that without spending points. Speaking of which, I still have one point left from my reward. I really want to spend it on magic, but I should talk to Ani about it first.

Mrs Aya was already done cleaning me by the time I opened my status sheet. And although we exchanged a few quick words, I had been much too dizzy to speak at length. I felt better now, and after a good stretch of my sore body, I went down looking for Ani, Sarah and Noah.

Johann was talking to Will and some other people. I weaved through the crowd to avoid them. I felt like I had done my part and whatever the group decided from now on, I trusted Johann and Will to reach a sensible decision. If there was any big decision to be had, I am sure they would communicate to the group in the daily meeting.

I wouldn’t be as extreme and depraved as Maccurach, but being the strongest here must come with its privileges. In my case, I wanted to be above the politics and management of the group. I will train and fight, but let others handle the day to day of the group.

‘We should do that in which we excel, right?’

I assured myself I wasn’t being a dickhead and avoiding responsibilities while I left them with a messed up situation for which I was partially responsible. 

‘Slightly responsible. Almost nothing.’

I found the people I was looking for having a conversation with Gabriela outside of the building.

“If I knew that,” Sarah said. “I wouldn’t have left. I thought he was just some crazy guy… to think he was that far gone.”

“Don’t worry, Leo handled it well.” Noah consoled her. “Oh, speaking of the devil. Here it is, man of the hour. Savior of damsels and blokes alike!”

“C’mon, dude. Don’t joke around like that.” I told Noah.

“Sorry mate, it’s instinctual.” He grinned at me. I sighed.

“How is Hannah doing?” I asked no one in particular.

“She is fine now,” Ani answered me. “It was a lot of trouble helping her calm down, but she is resting with Francesca.”

“That’s good. She will be safe here.”

“Leo, I am sorry. I didn’t know what was going to happen here today. I should have.”

“What? No.” I told her firmly. “You can’t know everything, right? You told us that yourself. Don’t worry about it, we need to learn how to deal with unexpected circumstances, we can’t always rely on you.”

“Thanks for understanding.”

“See?” Sarah bumped Ani on the shoulder lightly. “I told you no one would be disappointed in you.”

The conversation lulled for a moment. Sarah grinning at Ani, who seemed slightly uncomfortable with the topic. Noah was apparently quietly amused by the whole thing, and I felt eager to try my new ability.

Seizing the moment, I told them about my new power up and steering the conversation to more training. Noah and Sarah were supportive and encouraging, but Ani, surprisingly, not so much.

“You just had a tough fight, you can’t push yourself like that.”

“It wasn’t that hard…” I said. “And I rested. I am ready to get the ball rolling!”

“You had two power ups during the fight.” Ani spoke sternly. “It wasn’t an easy fight, Leo.”

“Ok, fair enough. But still, this place isn’t going to stop for me to rest, right? I need to keep pushing in order to stay ahead.”

“He does have a point, Ani.” Sarah pointed out.

“At least start with meditation to help with your magic, that shouldn’t be too taxing on your body.”

“Great!” I celebrated. “Let’s get this ball rolling guy and gals.”

We all moved out of the base and toward the same building in which we trained the day before. Sarah and Noah ahead, me and Ani at the back. I was suddenly painfully aware that it felt like a double date or something. Before things could get uncomfortable between me and Ani, I told her about my unspent point.

“You want to spend it in magic?”

“Yes, I do. You don’t think it’s a good idea?”

“No, it’s not that.” She paused to think of something. “It’s a good idea. The first point is the hardest, because you are trying to feel something new. After the first until the fifth it’s quite easy, then it gets increasingly more time consuming.”

“It’s a good idea then, right? We will save time and I can start getting more levels in the coming days.”

“It’s not so straightforward, Leo.” She crossed her arms. “You are basically exchanging time for a point. Which do you consider more important?”

“Hmmm, now that you put it that way. I believe points are more valuable than time.”

“Exactly. If it takes you one day or two to get your first point in magic, is it still worth it to exchange for a point? When you get to eight or nine points, it takes a week or longer for you to raise through training. Isn’t your point better spent there?”

“If what you are saying is correct, then yes, it would make sense for me to keep it and spend on higher attributes.”

“How is your status sheet looking?”

I told Ani about it, including all skills and deviations.

“You will have to increase your willpower to ten soon. It should be fine with three deviations before ten, but you don’t want to take chances, believe me.”

“After seeing that Maccurach guy, I believe you. That is the system, isn’t it?”

“Partially, I think. The system doesn’t transform you, it just amplifies the things you feel and think. The impulses and tendencies are still your own, just amplified.”

I decided not to question how she can know so much about the system. If she ever wants to tell me about it, she will do so. So far she had been good to me, and I had no reason to doubt her intentions, even if I doubted her explanations.

“So, no spending my unspent point in magic.”

“That would be my suggestion, yes.”

“What do I do with it then? Save it for Willpower?”

“That is one possibility, the other is trying to raise one of your other stats to nine and then spend it. From eight to nine should take a long time, but with all the fighting you have been doing, it should happen in the next two to four days.”

“Two to four days doesn’t sound like much, but considering we only been here for a little over five days, it’s quite a lot.” I said. “The days have been so filled with experiences, good and bad, that my sense of time is a bit funky. It doesn’t feel like we have been here for five days, it feels like a month, or even a year, sometimes.”

“War tends to do that.” Ani said softly.

“Have you been to war?”

“Yes.” Ani’s voice was almost a whisper.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”

“It’s okay, but I would prefer if we didn’t talk about it.”

“Happy to oblige!” 

I said with a smile, to which she smiled back at me. In moments like these, I couldn’t help but admire how pretty she was. I looked away before I got distracted and ended up going down an alley that I wasn’t sure was good for me. 

She already had enough power over me, for me to open myself that way, I didn’t trust her yet. I knew I wouldn’t be able to separate things, not in this situation, with everything that had been happening. I knew I was emotionally vulnerable, and I learned what happens when you get involved with someone in that way. It isn’t easy, or pretty.

We made small talk the rest of the way and before long we were preparing for our training. Sarah decided to help Noah with some close quarter combat skills. Mostly dodging and some footwork, while I sat down to meditate and try to unlock magic.

“Ready?” Ani said as she put her hands on my back.

I took a deep breath and relaxed as much as I could.

“Yes.” I said with confidence.

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