New Level, Old Habit

I've been using the Gacha aspect of my Gift for a while, but I was having a hard time deciding what I should do next.

The amount of alternatives did not work to make things easier at all.

For starters, classifying it is a challenge. I've been using it to strengthen myself through the [Skills Banner], but to say this Gift is combat-oriented would be a stretch.

It seems to be able to help with anything I decide, and it just so happens that I've decided to participate in dungeon raids.

So until now, this has been the best option for me.

However, the last time was a disappointment.

It's not that it made me think the banner is worthless, it clearly is not, but it made me rethink if I should really put all my eggs into the same basket.

Especially considering the quality of what I was getting through it seemed to be decreasing.

This feeling was what motivated me to change and try a new banner. A little careless of me, but I would have had to test the other banners one day anyway.

The thing is... If the [Companions Banner] works the same way as it did last time, it will present quite a few problems, especially considering I lack tools to control whoever comes out of it.

And yet, with the introduction of the ability to share skills, as well as the power Licia added to the group, this banner became way more interesting than even skills or weapons.

But that's if we're talking only about increasing power. Truth is, if I summon someone else, I have no guarantees that it will go as smoothly as it was with Licia.

And this is something that worries me quite a bit.

When I summoned Licia, I was honest about my lack of understanding. The fact that I was also shocked must have helped her believe me.

Not to mention, I wasn't much stronger than her, and in case we fought, if not win, she could at least escape me, so knowing she had some control of the situation might've also played a factor in allowing her to listen to me before doing something rash.

This made the [Companions Banner] a good option, but one I'd have to consider and prepare before using.

Another good option is the [Weapons Banner].

However, since we'll be fighting the floor boss, I'd like to try to defeat it without relying on strong weapons first.

Becoming dependent on one might actually be an obstacle on deeper floors. If we're unable to deal with an opponent by ourselves, when the weapon we rely on fails, then that will be it.

This banner will also become better as time goes on. If we manage to get somewhat deep into the dungeon, we'll find fewer people, which makes it less risky to carry strong or flashy weapons around.

Putting Licia and future companions in the equation also increases the effectiveness of this banner. If I'm able to trust them completely, having a bunch of people with strong weapons would be intimidating enough to dispel the risks of carrying one while being alone.

One other enticing banner is the [Spellbooks Banner]. I have Licia's [Mana Control], and I could also acquire her [Ice Magic]. With some luck, I might learn a spell for this element.

It would also give a use for [Reading Speed Up].

The last option is the old and not-so-reliable [Skills Banner].

Although it let me down, as long as I keep at it, I'm bound to get something useful.

And it is also one of the banners that benefit from the ability to share skills. If anything, it's the most straightforward to invest in if I go at it with the objective of sharing skills.

In the end, I decided to give this one another chance.

Having more skills and getting stronger myself would also be useful to prevent newly summoned [Companions] from acting out as soon as they are summoned.

And out of all the banners I could try, this was the safest for the most part.

Having decided on it, I used the tickets I had to perform 3 rolls with this banner, and as is always the case, that strange feeling assaults my mind once again.

It's like an out-of-body experience, but thankfully, it only lasts for a single moment, if not for how different I feel, I wouldn't even notice it happen.

Somehow, it seems like the effects of doing this are also decreasing. Either because I'm getting stronger, or because I'm getting used to it.

It was still enough for me to end up worrying Licia though...

Licia: "Are you alright? For a second it seemed like you were knocked out cold."

Miwen: "I'm fine, it happens all the time I use my Gift."

Licia: "I do remember that you seemed out of it when we first met, but I was also quite dumbfounded at the moment so I thought it to be a normal reaction given the situation..."

Actually, that was due to a variety of reasons. It would be a lie to blame this effect since just remembering that still makes me lose focus as I cannot help but think about her naked figure.

Her having brought that up stuck the image in my head, and things became a little awkward. She was attentive, so I could only hope she hadn't noticed the state I was in after thinking about her body.

Although natural, I didn't want to be gross around her, so I distracted myself with the new skills I had acquired.

In order, I got the following:

[Faster Tree Climbing

As the user already has this skill, its level has been increased to 2, allowing even faster tree climbing. Please note that this is a passive skill, and therefore it's always active unless the user decides to deactivate it, which can be done at any time.]

[Unending Determination

The user's determination is increased, thus allowing for an extremely low chance of resisting fatal attacks. When training, the user has a low chance to enter a [Determined] state, allowing for increased benefits and less tiredness, as long as the training can be affected by the user's determination. Please note that this is a passive skill, and it's always active, however, the user may deactivate it whenever he wishes.]

[Sight Enhancement

Allows the user to better perceive fast-moving objects, see things further away, and also see more details when close to an object. Any sight-related illness is alleviated and may be cured when acquiring or improving this skill, depending on severity. Please note that this is a passive skill, as such, it's always active without costing any mana. However, the user may choose to deactivate it at any time.]

Two of those skills sounded pretty good.

Although I hoped I would never receive a fatal strike to rely on [Unending Determination]. Still, the other effect more than made up for what would otherwise be pretty situational.

The other skill, [Sight Enhancement], was useful in basically any situation, as it directly improved one of my five senses. It also had some chemistry with [Movement Speed Up].

However... there had to be a spoiled one among them...

I decided to pretend I didn't even read it.

As for how I'd classify these results... I guess my faith in the [Skills Banner] was restored to some extent.

To end the day, I had one last experiment I wanted to do now that I had acquired [Mana Control] from Licia.

I've been trying to increase my mana pool by using the [Mana Banners] even though it isn't providing anything especially good, but perhaps I could exploit [Mana Control] to roll on it without suffering from the effects of mana depletion.

However, my hopes were shattered almost instantly.

The cost to make a single roll had not changed, and since I didn't want to suffer from mana depletion due to Licia being around, I decided to postpone using this banner until I had enough mana to do it safely.

Thus, I sent Licia back to my room, turned off the lights, and enjoyed another good night's sleep.