Chapter 3

Tō stood at the classroom door, took a deep breath, and firmly gripped the secret letter from his mother.

---

As a test, Tō picked up a small stone from the ground and threw it with all his might. He checked its flight speed and increased the [Enhancement] by one level.

>> [Enhancement] → [Enhancement +1]

Tō picked up another small stone and threw it with all his might again.

"Hmm?"

It didn't seem to have changed much.

Next, Tō tried a vertical jump. He imagined jumping up to the top of a cliff 10 meters away and jumped with all his might. However, he didn't even jump one meter high. It was about the same as when he first tried jumping.

"It doesn't seem to have changed at all. I wonder why?"

Perhaps +1 was not enough to show a significant effect. Still, each point costs 100 points, so he couldn't allocate too many points just to test the effect.

Before starting the experiment, Tō reviewed the skills he thought were necessary.

<Swordsmanship> <Magic>

It's unclear, but in this world, life might be more fragile than in Japan. It wouldn't hurt to improve <Swordsmanship> and <Magic> to protect himself.

To protect himself, <Perception> and <Thinking> were also necessary. If he acted carelessly like in Japan, he might end up dead.

The most essential skill for living in this world was <Language>. This was non-negotiable.

For the rest, he chose skills based on both interest and practicality. As he carefully examined the skills, something unusual caught his eye.

"...[Magic Sword]!"

A magic sword generally refers to a sword with special powers. In a broader sense, it can mean a magical sword. In a narrower sense, it can mean a demonic sword with evil powers.

It's unclear what properties it has, but it seems to be obtainable from the skill board.

[Magic Sword] required 5 points to master, slightly higher than the average but much less compared to [Enhancement] or [Limit Break].

"It looks really cool... but the points seem to be inviting me to take it."

This skill board was prepared by a self-proclaimed god. Gods often test humans, so there might be some hidden trap.

"But... yeah, [Magic Sword] is really appealing."

Men, no matter how old they get, are still children at heart. They are weak for things like justice, legendary weapons, and ultimate magic. Tō resisted the temptation of [Magic Sword] for a while but eventually allocated the skill points with excitement.

○ Status

Tō Minasaki

Level: 1

Race: Human, Occupation: Hunter → Swordsman/Mage

Rank: I, Skill Points: 1000 → 0

○ Basics

[Enhancement +5]

[Physical Enhancement +5][Magic Power Enhancement +5]

[Natural Recovery +5][Resistance +5][Limit Break ★]

[STA Increase +5][MAG Increase +5]

[STR Increase +5][DEX Increase +5]

[AGI Increase +5][INT Increase +5][LUCK Increase +5]

○ Techniques

<Swordsmanship Lv4><Magic Lv4>

<Perception Lv4><Intimidation Lv4><Thinking Lv4>

<Otherworldly Storage Lv4><Casting Without Incantation Lv4>

<Language Lv4><Smithing Lv4>

[Magic Sword Lv1]

It seems that the skills he obtained also influenced his occupation. As soon as he allocated points to <Swordsmanship> and <Magic>, his occupation changed dramatically.

[Limit Break] maxed out with just one point. It seems to be a skill that only needs to be activated with points.

The effect of [Limit Break] is currently unknown. Even after allocating points, he didn't feel any significant changes in his body. There was no noticeable improvement in his movement.

"I tried it because it sounded impressive, but maybe it was a mistake."

[Limit Break] costs 100 points per point. The effect, for now, is not worth the points.

"Hmm. Maybe it would have been better to level up and max out before allocating points to [Limit Break]."

He felt a bit regretful, but there was nothing he could do about it. Tō decided to let it go.

After allocating points, Tō noticed a few things about the skills.

First, the upper limit of the skill values. It's currently unknown whether the limit is 10 or higher. The skill board doesn't even give a hint.

Second, the change in the number of points required to increase skills.

Skills like [Enhancement] and [Natural Recovery] always required the same number of points, regardless of how many points were allocated.

However, skills like [STA Increase] and <Swordsmanship> required 1 point for level 1, 3 points for level 2, and 6 points for level 3, gradually increasing the required points.

Third, the notation.

Basic skills use the "+" notation, while technical skills use the "Lv" notation.

The difference between these notations is unclear.

"It would be nice to have some explanation."

The skill board is very user-unfriendly. He wanted to complain to the creator about ignoring the users.

He needed to find a way to meet the self-proclaimed god as soon as possible. Tō made a mental note of this.

After allocating points, the most noticeable change was in the technical skills.

As soon as he increased <Perception>, he began to notice subtle changes that he hadn't felt before.

Regarding <Magic>, he couldn't use it at the moment.

"How can I be a mage if I can't use magic?"

It's a valid question. However, since he used the skill board to increase his skills instead of training, he ended up in this strange situation. The problem lies with Tō, not the skill board.

He suspected that using magic required some special procedure, but as an Earthling, Tō had never seen or used magic. He was at a loss.

<Language> is self-explanatory. Without it, he couldn't survive in this world.

However, with no one to talk to, he couldn't verify if <Language> was working correctly.

"I'll be disappointed if <Language> is just a conversation skill."

It would be frustrating if he couldn't communicate with anyone after allocating points to a skill.

<Smithing> is purely a hobby. He obtained it with the hope of eventually making his own equipment.

However, he had no idea when he would be able to make his own equipment. He was slightly regretful about allocating points to it.

<Otherworldly Storage> had properties similar to the inventory in a game.

When he picked up a small stone and thought "put it in," the stone was stored in <Otherworldly Storage>. To retrieve it, he just needed to imagine the item and think "take it out."

<Otherworldly Storage> had the advantage of carrying many items at once. Whether Tō traveled the world or not, having it would significantly improve his quality of life.

Finally, [Magic Sword].

[Magic Sword] also had a plus value. It required 5 points to activate [Magic Sword].

To increase it from level 1 to level 2, it required 1000 points.

"Is there really such a big difference between level 1 and level 2?"

Tō speculated that skill points would be obtained as his level increased, as most skill-based games work this way.

However, he wondered how many levels he would need to increase to accumulate 1000 points...

He wanted to compare, but increasing the level of [Magic Sword] might not be as effective as increasing basic or technical skills.

He decided to try increasing [Magic Sword] if he had any points left after improving his basic and technical skills.

The main issue was the basic skills.

"Hmm?"

He allocated all the points he could to basic skills, but he didn't feel any significant physical changes.

He threw stones several times but couldn't confirm any increase in throwing speed.

"If increasing skills to this level doesn't show any visible changes, maybe the skill limit is 100?"

He was excited to allocate points to the skill board, but he felt disappointed that he didn't feel any stronger.

"Maybe even ordinary people have +5 in some skills."

The skill board, being granted by a self-proclaimed god, was likely a rare item.

However, the skill items themselves were not unique to Tō. The presence of irrelevant items was proof of this.

If the skills were unique to Tō, he would be concerned about the self-proclaimed god's intentions, such as including <Physical Weightlifting>.

In any case, the skill board was an item that visualized and allowed the allocation of basic and technical skills in the world.

If so, there might be other ways to increase skills—such as through training and natural improvement.

"I wonder how strong the people in this world are... Maybe there are people with skill level 100."

Tō shivered at the thought of the overwhelming difference.

Everything was a trial and error.

But, not knowing was interesting.

"Good."

The corners of Tō's mouth curled up into a smile.

Living in a world where he knew what he could do was less interesting than living in a world where he didn't know what he could do.

The ambiguity of what he could do was the same as the possibility of being able to do anything.

As Tō was getting excited about his new life in a different world, his <Perception> caught some presence.

At the same time, his heightened hearing picked up a rustling sound.

"...This isn't human, is it?"