Draft: 51 Stealthy Skill Selection

Her trip back to home base was uneventful. She might have noticed the goblins giving her some extra attention if she had any ability to care, but… she didn’t. She just wanted some sleep.

Now she was all snuggled up in her treehouse, the orange mana veins threading through it, providing more warmth than ever. It seemed like every time she came back to the tree it had nurtured its abilities even more. In turn, her treehouse became more and more homely, something she increasingly cherished with all her misadventures. That first glowing dungeon, the weird goblin attack centered on her, and now this latest odd experience at the abandoned cabin.

Scrunched up under the blanket, her toes curled underneath it, James stared up at the stars through treetop. How her world had changed! Even now, looking up, she still knew what was below her. At least mana wise. Closing her eyes and resting her head on the pillows she tried to fall asleep. But for all her exhaustion, she couldn’t do it. Something was holding her back. Focusing on the blue dot in her vision, she indicated for it to open.

Would you like to start your Skill Selection process now?

With eyes heavy with sleep, she indicated yes. She just wanted to get this process over with and fall asleep. James was just too sleepy to think about the implications of making this decision while being so tired.

Huddle Up [inferior]: you’ve found yourself in weird huddles recently, haven’t you? Marginally increases defensive abilities if in a huddle position.

Well, that was just insulting. So what if all her goblin encounters ended with her in a weird huddle? That didn’t mean that she wanted to repeat the experience. It always left her so dirty! Even if she now had an entire closet of clothes (from a boutique no less!), she still only had so many. Besides, she didn’t like it. She didn’t like being in huddles. Continuing on to read the next Skill, she hoped it would be better.

Glowing Ram [inferior]:getting rammed by glowing monsters shouldn’t come without rewards. This Skill lets you show how much skill you lack as you ram into your opponents while glowing. Due to high number of incredulous responses to this Skill, it is noted that this Skill is entirely real.

The Skill might have been real, but James had never read anything more ridiculous in her life. Or something that suited her less. She was not a person that ran headfirst into battle. At least she didn’t want to be, though she had to admit recent experiences displayed a different side to her. Beyond that though, what part of her would willingly draw attention to herself by glowing? She’d sooner pick Huddle Up than this Skill. Moving on, she hoped the Skills presented would be better suited to her. She wasn’t disappointed.

Stealth [inferior]:your whole life you’ve tried to melt into the shadows. Now’s your chance. Activate Stealth and blend into your surroundings, never to be seen again (this effect is only possible at higher levels of Skill).

This Skill was practically tailor made for her. If she took it, nobody would ever see her again. She could just imagine how she’d never get bothered by anyone or have to wonder what everyone thought of her. You couldn’t have opinions about someone you’ve never met before, after all. James knew a better Skill couldn’t come along, but she forced herself to read the rest of the options. She was tired, but not totally lacking any clarity about what she had to do during a Skill Selection.

Mental Resistance [common]:you’ve experienced mental magic and resisted its calling. This Skill lets you fight and identify such effects more effectively. Effect increases with Skill level.

While the Skill was interesting, and certainly helpful, James didn’t care much for it. It might have been a short-sighted outlook, but she had already defeated the mental magic once. And while she didn’t particularly care for the experience, she was sure she could repeat it again. With the rest of her Skills, she didn’t see how helpful Mental Resistance could be. To be completely fair, she probably would have liked the Skill a lot if Stealth hadn’t already been offered, but life was full of crossroads. And this wasn’t one of them. Stealth trumped Mental Resistance for her every time.

Looking past the notification into the stars, James wondered at her future with Stealth. She had been posed the question in the past of what she would do if she could turn invisible for a day. It was one of her favorites. She had always answered that she would get some ice cream with her brother, Jason.

While ice cream wasn’t her favorite dessert, Jason had always loved it, making their parents buy him cartons of different flavors from different brands. For his birthday one year he had even gotten an ice cream maker, which quickly became the most used appliance in their home. Yeah, if James were invisible for a day, she would treat him to a day of ice cream.

Looking at the sprinkling of stars through the leaves, she wondered if she could do that with Stealth. After all, it wasn’t Invisibility. If she were truly stealthy, nobody would know she was there at all, including Jason. What would the point be then? And could she get the Skill to a high enough level for her to turn invisible. Would she even turn invisible? It was an assumption after all. James sighed; the System created as many problems as it solved.

Reading the last Skill, she inhaled sharply. If there was one thing that could make her give up on a day of ice cream with Jason, this might be it.