My eyes sparkled as I gazed on, completely transfixed with the skill book I held in my hands.
[Stone Skill Book: Fireball]
Today was my birthday, and even though no one celebrated it with me, I had just received the best gift possible. The skill book felt sturdy and heavy in my hands, giving off a gray glow and a slight feeling of profound knowledge.
I was walking the afternoon away, about to return to my 'home' when I stubbed my toe on the skill book which was covered in mud and leaves.
I had actually heard of this before, high-ranking individuals throwing away low-ranking items in random places after deciding that they didn't want to keep carrying them. However, I had never dared to believe such a sweet tale.
Sure, it was a skill book of the lowest rank, but even that was something that could cost tens of thousands of Dali. Here I was sulking out on random path in the woods, thinking about how no one cared about me, and now I've gotten so lucky it's almost suspicious. Maybe the universe decided to become my godfather out of pity?
If I were to learn this skill book right now, I would unlock the system. Normally only the middle class and above could afford to pay for a skill book for each of their family members, and here I was getting in on it for free. Putting aside the insane amount of benefits merely having the system brings, I would finally be able to chase my dream!
Ever since I was little I admired those peak adventurers who went into the most dangerous [Monoliths] that scared away even those high-rankers. The kind that I aspired to be the most, the:
-Armor Knight-
They are valiant heroes who both slay monsters and shield allies with their formidable multifaceted skill set.
I focused back to the skill book that held [Fireball], a common stone rank skill for mage types. Honestly, despite my fortune I was slightly bummed out by the skill not being a more warrior like one, however I figured it wouldn't matter if I started out using this skill until I got my hands on some more physical style ones in the future.
The system had a rule that you could only learn one skill per rank you increased, which made choosing your skills an incredibly important and careful process. I didn't have such a luxury however, and I would have to put up with having a mismatched skillset in the early ranks. Skills could be replaced, as it was only the skill slots themselves that were limited, so once I was Jade rank I could have 3 Jade rank skills if I was lucky enough when it came to loot drops.
The fourth rank, which required the use of a [Class Crystal] to achieve, is the level at which a badly composed skill selection would hurt the worst. This is due to class buffs that only effect certain stats or types of skills. For example, an Armor Knight might have a buff that enhances physically defensive or offensive skills in some way, and the [Fireball] skill would remain unaffected.
However, at that rank I would definitely have the funds to replace [Fireball] with a higher rank skill.
Those first three rankings are the Stone, Geode, and Jade ranks. When it comes to the ranks of [Monolith] adventurers, each rank typically surpassed the previous by an entire order of magnitude of power. Basically you could expect an average Geode rank adventurer to be 10x as powerful as an average Stone rank one, and an average Jade rank 100x as powerful as a Stone rank.
There were plenty of exceptions to these rules though, such as classes that counter another class being able to bridge the power gap in a fight against opponents they were suited to.
I threw off my hesitation and made my final decision, I wouldn't risk trying to sell this book and buy a better one, as that could backfire in all kinds of ways. I could be scammed or have it stolen, or even killed for it by some bandit. Even then I was pretty sure dirty lowlifes like myself, as a general rule, weren't allowed into the bazaars that dealt with expensive adventuring goods.
What could I have to offer after all, it would probably be assumed that I was there to steal.
I looked at the book, which wasn't even openable and carved out of solid stone, and pictured the skill book becoming one with me.
[Stone Skill Book: Fireball]
[Learn: Y/N]
"y-YES!"
[You Used A Skill Book And Unlocked The System]
[Welcome User: Einer]
"HELL YEAAAAH!!!"
I watched as the skill book began to crack all over, before bursting into a cloud of glowing gray energy. The energy swirled around where the book used to be, before surrounding my body and suffusing it with a gray glow that slowly faded away.
[To Access The System Menu, Please Select A Signal Phrase]
Most people use things like 'menu', or 'system', but I want to be a bit unique while still retaining ease of access.
"Status"
[Your Signal Phrase, 'Status', Works Both Mentally And Verbally]
[Incase The User Somehow Forgets, 'System Directory' Will Always Work Too]
I called out my signal phrase once again, this time opening the system panel.
-
[User: Einer]
[Rank: Stone]
[Level: 0]
[Stats: >]
[Skills: >]
-
"Uhhhhm? Display Stats?"
-
Stats:
AP: 0
Force: 3
Agility: 3
Vitality: 2
Wisdom: 2
Sorcery: 0
[Hidden Stats...]
-
[User Has Stats Below The Baseline, Would You Like To Be Standardized?]
"oh? OH! YES!"
This was one of the amazing benefits of the system. Anyone who wasn't at the peak physical state for their body, which was everyone if you included the sorcery stat, could increase their stats to the maximum possible for a normal human upon obtaining the system.
I felt my body buckle suddenly, and I fell to the ground on the spot. Because my body was so weak and underdeveloped, I was extremely far away from the baseline. My insides virtually liquified as I fell unconscious in the dirt.
After a few hours of my body going through strange and horrifying stages of disfiguration that were most likely beyond painful, and I woke up none the wiser. When I opened my eyes however, instead of pain, I felt energized and very, very, different.
I stood up and realized that I was quite a bit taller, enough to immediately notice. This is probably the height I would have been if I had been properly nourished as a child! I might be even be average now!
I used to be 5'3" but now I felt more like 5'7", also my figure looks muscled instead of boney! With this I was starting from the same point that even a top athlete would begin from!
On top of all that, I felt like I could think faster, and had a strange feeling as if I had become sharper and more aware.
"Status," I repeated, "show stats as well."
-
[User: Einer]
[Rank: Stone]
[Level: 0]
[Stats: >]
[Skills: >]
-
Stats:
AP: 0
Force: 10
Agility: 10
Vitality: 10
Wisdom: 10
Sorcery: 10
[Hidden Stats...]
-
I noticed that the arrows seemed to mean that a further option was available within something, so I clicked on the arrow next to the word "Stats."
["Stats": A Numerical Representation Of The User's System Relevant Capabilities, Most Effects Of Stats That Are Not Relevant To Combat Are Not Described But Still Very Much Exist]
"I wonder what each of the stats actually even do?"