Upgrades
Faust hurriedly finished over the blood bat, driving his saber across what he assumed was it's throat.
[You have killed a Blood Bat! You gained 120XP!]
While he was overjoyed at the prospect of one of his skills finally gaining a level, he didn't have time to check it out. After that single blood bat, more started to appear as if the first had been some sort of signal. He had brought his dagger out, throwing the torch to the ground. Wielding his dagger in his left and his saber in his right, he slowly began to fall into a rhythm. Like a dance, he would hack and slash with his saber as the bat's came down. If he missed with the saber, he would stab with the dagger.
While he rarely one-hit-killed the bats, he could mortally wound them with each strike. They gave fantastic XP for how easy they were to fight, most likely in part due to the 100% XP bonus he was currently receiving. It didn't take long before he saw a notification in his peripheral vision.
[Player has levelled up!]
Faust smiled and continued to fight. It felt like the bats wouldn't stop coming. He was killing one almost every second. He dodged, ducked, dipped and dived out of their way. And he was getting faster. Slowly but surely, his movements began to increase in speed. He was away from the source of light at this point, but he barely noticed. He wasn't relying on his vision. He began to hear the air part as the bats swarmed down from the roof of the cave, attacking him.
[New skill created!]
[New skill created!]
He had just created two new skills while in combat! He had barely taken a few scratches, but his body seemed to move on it's own. To compare to an athlete, Faust would currently be in the 'flow state', where the athlete's mind was fully immersed in an energized focus on one single activity. His mind's focus was completely on the fight.
[Player has gained a title!]
A title! Titles were embodiments of achievements, and they stayed with you forever. Titles, like skills or classes, had varying ranks and abilities.
The notifications were running non-stop down his peripheral vision and yet he didn't even notice them. This situation was eerily similar to the one with the wolves, although it seemed Faust wasn't reliant on his fury this time. His saber sliced through the bat horde like mincemeat, dripping drops of blood onto the floor. The edge shined with a red hue as he struck again and again. The dagger in his left hand stabbed directly into any that got too close. Notifications popped up without stopping.
[Player's title has advanced!]
['Strike' has levelled up!]
[Player has levelled up!]
[Player has levelled up!]
Finally, the swarm of bats started to slow down. Less and less of them attacked Faust until there was only one left. Faust didn't even look when it attacked. Like a machine, his saber raised itself high and cut the blood bat at the neck, instantly severing its head from its body. Faust's body stayed tense for a few moments. After no more bats attacked him for a while, he unwillingly was forced out of the flow state and crumpled to the ground.
[Player has levelled up! You have qualified for a class advancement!]
"Aah…" Faust's legs and hands were shaking. He felt like somebody had taken over his body and ran it through a woodchipper. Every part of him was trembling non-stop, and he could only take short, ragged breaths.
The wave of exhaustion was sweeping over him, and he wanted nothing more than to lie down on the hard ground and fall asleep.
He had levelled all the way up to level 10, and qualified for a class advancement! Leaving the best for last, however, he decided to look at what else he had gained from that insane fight.
The two new skills he had created. It is important to discern the fact that the system had said 'Created' and not 'Learned'. A created skill was different from a learned skill in that 'created' skills could be evolved further, whereas 'learned' skills could only be upgraded to their maximum level, which was 10. Thankfully he had spent such a long time browsing Dominion, so he knew all of this. Faust opened his status window to check the new skills.
[Basic Aura - Level 1]
Cover your weapon in aura. Increases weapon damage by 30%. Increases attack speed by 30%. Reduce defense by those struck by 30% for 30 seconds. As this is only the most basic form of aura, it is limited to encasing your current weapon.
Mana cost: 20 per second
[No further information is available]
[Awareness - Level 1]
Passive skill. Allows the user to be aware of their surroundings through a sixth sense.
Can be activated to drastically increase the effect.
Mana cost: 50 per second.
[No further information is available]
'Two new skills… Aura and Awareness. They're both terrifically useful, but the mana cost is steep. It looks like I'll have to increase my total mana if I want to use them reliably. Next, the title.'
Faust clicked on a new bar labeled 'Titles' in his status window. There was only one currently.
[Slaughterer of Bats]
Effect: Increase stats by 10% when in combat with any bat-type monster. Immune to any fear-based effects from bat-type monsters.
While the title wasn't incredible when dealing with regular monsters, in this dungeon it would be very useful.
'Now for the best part.'
"Show me my class advancement options."
[Congratulations on reaching level 10! You can currently select between an evolution of your current class 'Adventurer', or choose to take on a new class! Please consider carefully!]
"Show me the new class options." Faust had no interest in evolving his current 'Adventurer' class. He was playing for the long-haul.
[ 1. Swordsman]
[ 2. Berserker]
[ 3. Shielder]
[ 4. Beginner Necromancer]
[ 5. Tank Shielder]
[ 6. Dark Ranger]
[ 7. Assassin]
[...]
[...]
[ 15. Deacon of Intar]
"So it seems as though the first class change is a wide variety. Hmm… show me the information for the necromancer class."
[Beginner Necromancer]
A magus who deals with the undead. Gain proficiency in undead spells. Intelligence modifier increased to 2.5, constitution and strength modifiers decreased to 0.8. Agility modifier decreased to 1.
"While the idea of raising my own skeleton army to farm mobs for me does sound interesting, it doesn't really suit my style. I think I'm more of a close ranged fighter." Since the trembling had stopped, Faust's hand was able to stroke his chin as he pondered about what class to choose.
"Why are so many of my class options themed around darkness? Is that my innate disposition or what? Show me the berserker class."
[Berserker]
A close-combat class that increases in strength as combat continues. Gain 0.5% increase in all stats for every 1% health lost. Strength and Constitution modifiers are increased to 2.2. Intelligence is decreased to 0.5. Must use a greatsword-type weapon to use class-related skills.
"Tch. This isn't suitable for me. I'm too attached to the style of this saber." He swung his saber a few times as if to emphasize his point.
Suddenly, he heard the sound of a notification. When he looked back at the class options, there was another listed.
[Shadow Swordsman]
A rare swordsman class that uses spells in conjunction with swordsmanship. Gain proficiency in shadow spells and sword skills. Strength, Agility and Intelligence modifiers are increased to 1.8. Constitution modifier is decreased to 1.2. Gain 'Shadow Movement' and 'Shadow Bind' skills upon class change. Lose 25% total XP to accept this class. Must use a sword-type weapon.
"This… does a saber count as a sword type weapon?"
He quickly opened Dominion to see if there was any information that could help him. Searching through the forums, he finally stumbled upon a 'Classification of all Weapons' thread posted by one of the administrators. In it, all weapons were classified into several types. He learned that the correct term for his current weapon was actually a 'dao sword'. While he was embarrassed at his ignorance despite being a saber enthusiast, it was overshadowed by his enjoyment.
"I'll change to the Shadow Swordsman class!" He almost shouted at the holographic window.
[Are you sure? This cannot be changed until level 20.]
"Yes!"