The great introduction!

Tim was astounded by the concept of magic. The fact that it was available in this world, was the only thing that kept him from being suicidal. This world simply promised a lot!

The talk about magic brought back some memories, even, he said. “A protective spell, huh? I think you mean a deflective spell, system. When I was a human, I remember playing a video game of some sort, one about dragons, and it had a bunch of these deflective spells, they were pretty cool.”

Tim was feeling nostalgic, it was difficult not to be. However, the system snapped him out of it right away, as she made another promise.

[Video games? Oh, they’re available in this world too, in the mildly advanced civilizations at least. This world is very vast, and it’s difficult to get into a good civilization, however, if you do get into one, then you can play plenty of video games there. The highly advanced civilizations have even better games, hyper-realistic ones.] The system followed along.

Tim was confused by some parts of what the other said, so he asked. “Advanced civilizations, in a magical world? I expected to see kingdoms or shit like that, not skyscrapers, system.”

The other was quick to answer that, she said. [There are plenty of kingdoms too. As I said, this world, this planet is really vast, huge! Ghosts have their own dynasties, animals do too, the sea is very unique on its own, and also, there are plenty of humanoids across the planet as well, of distinct species! Some creatures are even beyond what you can imagine right now, trust me.]

Furthermore, she added. [The categories of species are vast. Due to these vast differences, there are also huge gaps in terms of technological, and magical progression, across the hundreds of civilizations on this planet! In due time, you'll get to experience some of these things first hand.]

“That sounds like a big headache, er, for me.” Tim expressed, “Can’t believe I’m saying this, but maybe there’s too much to explore in this world. I don't want to see skyscrapers again.”

Tim was still eager to explore the world, but now, he understood that he had to prepare himself, as best as he could. Since this planet was so expansive, it could also be equally dangerous as well! He didn’t want to die as soon as he walked across the lands out there, and in order to prevent that, he had to be strong and prepared. It was mandatory!

With that in mind, he insisted. “Gotta play it safe… Can we talk about the other upgrade options, system? I want to go out and swim as soon as the sun rises, and I need some motivation to do that. Give me a reason to hunt for points, please.”

[Certainly,] She answered, [Your third purchase option is to densify your bodily durability by 120% ~ There’s no exact way to measure this type of durability, but for a body as soft as yours, any increase is good. This one costs only 80 system points, since your durability is horrible to begin with.]

“Now that’s a way to survive!” He said.

Durability and an increase on it sounded very interesting! When Tim thought about it, he pictured himself withstanding many bullets at once, without suffering as much as a scratch! It was very unlikely that he’d face a line of rapidly shot bullets around here, because fish probably didn’t carry any guns, however, it was fun to imagine things like these! His fantasies weren't limited to this stingray form.

Anyway, the system didn’t care to talk about this matter, as she continued to introduce the few of the other upgrades. The rest of them were quite interesting as well.

[The fourth purchase option is to upgrade your emotional intelligence by 10 whole points.] She said, [This one will cost you 130 system points, which is expensive, but it’s an intelligence-based upgrade after all.]

“An intelligence upgrade, again? System, I still feel queasy from the last one.” Tim complained, he didn’t look forward to anything like that again. "Go easy on me."

[Upgrades like these are essential for you, especially this one that is based on your emotions. After you buy this upgrade, you'll be less likely to make dumb decisions, also, you’d fit in within social crowds a lot easier; It’s essential for your survival.] She answered.

Afterwards, without waiting to hear Tim’s opinion on this, she continued to introduce the last purchase option. This one was the most expensive, and perhaps, the most important upgrade so far!

The system introduced, [Purchase option number five = Unlock and deepen your internal mana pool, for it to accept 300 points of low-quality, magical mana, exclusively. This one costs 400 system points, but it will fully introduce you to the world of magic!]

“Oh, I can’t afford that anytime soon… but at least it’s something to look forward to.” Tim followed along.

There were still plenty of more hours to kill before the break of down, however, the system gave him a lot to think about. Though he still needed plenty of points to buy anything, he still wanted to spend some time thinking, in order to decide which upgrade he was supposed to get first! He had to prioritize the most practical one, whichever one that may be!

Since the system was done with her introductions, she now had some time to talk with Timothy. The system understood how confused and yet excited he was, so she wanted to help, even if slightly.

She said, [You should prioritize either the durability buffing, or the upgrade on your bodily strength and speed. They're both cheap, and they'll help you avoid most threats across this shallow reef. In terms of practicality, it's a no brainer; Speed and strength have always been the centerparts of survival… intelligence comes second.]

Tim agreed with that, however, he had to argue. "Hm… but wouldn't that deflective spell help me survive as well? It's expensive, yeah, but magic is much harder to dodge. I don't want to end up as a toasted, sea pancake."

[That is also a very good point,] She said.