Unnamed

I looked at the three skills carefully. Each of them were great in their own aspects, and I would need to word hard to obtain all of them.

[Blood Sacrifice] was the only active skill of the three, and it also had the biggest increase in offensive ability. This was not because of its high bonus to damage, [Mind over Matter] would actually provide more in the long run. The reason this skill was the best was because of its ability to deal true damage.

True damage was something that complelty disregarded immunities and resistances. For example my iron skill made me resistant to known magical attacks. True damage could bypass this, even someone with a spoon could potential kill me if they dealt true damage.

[Mana Heal] was a skill that I desperately wanted. It would allow me to use the massive mana pool I would gain to heal my wounds. While not surpresed I could heal from almost anything. The skill would also be able to cancel out the bleed damage caused by [Blood Sacrifice]. If I could pick two skills I would pick these two without hesitation.

Unfortunately I was only able to select a single skill, and this caused my eyes to fall upon the final book. [Mind over Matter]. It did not provide much of an immediate gain. The damage increase I would gain was only 5%. But, because I would focus completely on my intelligence stat this would increase by 5% every 2 levels.

In comparison [Blood Sacrifice] would increase my damage by 10% every 6 levels. It was only 2/3 of the bonus damage [Mind Over Matter] gave me. Further there was absolutely no cost to this skill. It was a passive ability that was always active.

All three of the skills were amazing. I was only allowed to get a single one for free. I sighed as I selected [Mind over Matter]. I could survive without the other skills for now. I never knew what would happen in the future, and it was best to select something that had an immediate benefit.

The bear woman nodded as she handed the book over to me. "The skill you have chosen is a common ability. Most of the arcane warriors have learned the skill as well. It is taught to almost every student in this accademy."

I looked over at Serena who nodded, pulling a copy of the book out of her bag. "I have not learned it yet as I have been focusing on other things, but I do have it."

The bear woman waited for Serena to be done speaking before she spoke again. "That being said, I did say you would only be gifted a single book by the accademy, I never said you had to choose one of them.. One is a gift from the Headmaster, While the last is a gift from your cute girlfriend here."

I looked at the three books. They were all mine? Why would she put my heart through that?

"My name is Mary and I will be your instructor. This was a test. A test of your character, how you would react when you were shown 3 abilities that suited you extremely well, but only being able to pick a single one."

"Each of the three books were also a test. Each skill represents a different path a warrior can take. [Blood Sacrifice] when chosen by itself would show you to be reckless. The power it grants its high, but it has a cost."

"[Mana Heal] would have shown you to be cautious. To put your own safety above above your fighting potential."

"[Mind over Matter] shows a single mindedness. You know the attribute that brings you the most benefit, and you will stubbornly stick with the path you have chosen."

"None of the three choices were wrong. A reckless fighter has its uses, and when paired with the right party can be an asset. A cautious fighter might take longer to defeat an enemy, but they are more likely to see the end of the day."

"The single minded fighter is not flexible. They focus on their path and will stubbornly continue until they reach their goal. The follow a single path, and follow it to the pinnacle. They are the hardest of the 3 to train, as they will not deviate from what they believe to be right."

I nodded, her words did seem to be correct. I had chosen the last option for a reason. A sword Master could only focus on their blade. Everything else was secondary. It did not take fancy skills, or fancy moves. A single attack was all it took to kill an enemy, or for an enemy to kill you.

The other two skills were truly just fluff. Skills that added on, but did not really serve my purpose. My goal was not long protracted battles, nor was it to heal myself from any of my wounds. My goal was to be a swordmaster, and even if my sword was in the form of claws, I would pursue this path until the end.

She said my choice was that of a single minded warrior. And she was right. I needed to be single minded if I was to succeed on this path of mine.