RoR: Chapter 4

Sip—

But, he was still a bit late. The arrow struck his shoulder blade, passing right through. Zach was shocked by the power behind the arrow. No longer having the luxury to worry about Authority expenditure, Zach’s traits were already working full throttle. 

The first thing he was supposed to feel was pain, followed by panic. But Zach was having none of it. [Inhuman Adaptability] quickly dulled the pain and stopped the bleeding while total [Obsessive Control] and [Insight] made sure his mind was fully focused on analyzing the current situation. 

Damage: One hand out of combat. Not fatal. Heart injury successfully avoided. Mobility 95%

No. of enemies: 1, so far

Type: Archer

Equipment: Basic

Level: Above 25

Also, current status, poisoned. 

Even when analyzing, Zach was already running in a zig-zag pattern. He suddenly slashed randomly in the air. 

*Ding*

An arrow whizzed past him after getting deflected by his sword. But it contained so much power that he also lost his sword after his fingers broke. 

New observation. Opponent’s level: Above 30

Inference: I might be fucked.

Zach had lost his weapon, one of his hands wasn’t fit for combat, and he was poisoned, meaning part of his authority was focused on dispelling the poison through [Inhuman Adaptability]

Zach didn’t throw away his life by trying to go back for the sword. Instead, he continued running, putting mana in his legs. 

Another arrow was launched, but now, having already calculated the enemy’s rhythm, Zach was already expecting it. He took a sharp turn before the arrow was even released. 

And his bet paid off, as an arrow flew past the area he had been. 

‘Gotcha!’ This was all the time Zach was going to give his opponent. Before the next arrow could be launched, Zach reached the target, which had been hiding behind a one-meter thick tree. 

Zach quickly ducked towards the other side of the tree. Alarmed, the enemy quickly peeked towards the other side, only to see… nothing. 

The person let out a curse, knowing he had been tricked, he suddenly rolled forward, dodging Zach’s claw’s which were about to go for his neck. He managed to fire another arrow mid-roll. 

Zach had to accept, he was surprised even though he had already predicted that as the enemy’s most-likely move. Zach had already jumped to the side, hiding behind the tree. 

Blood spurted out from the back of the enemy, causing him to clamp it shut with his hand in surprise. Zach grinned, mana extending from his fingers. Even if the guy dodged his fingers, he didn’t dodge the mana blade. 

This was also the first time he got a good look at his opponent. Like Zach, he was also covered from head to toe. Most of his face was hidden by a cloth, but Zach could see that he had blue skin. 

‘Blue skin… loose attire… and those skills… fuck! It’s actually a Kukarian!’ 

Zach recognised the characteristics of the person. Kukarians come from the planet Kukar and are natural hunters. The harsh and underdeveloped environment makes them gain various skills like hunting, shooting, poisoning, and combat, 

Now knowing his opponent’s characteristics, Zach was even more alert, knowing that his opponent was far more skilled and experienced than him. 

‘What the—’

But before Zach could capitalize on his advantage, the Kukarian had decisively turned around and disappeared behind the trees.

‘Ran away?’ Zach didn’t know whether to be annoyed or relieved. He really wanted to give chase but quickly gave up the idea. The enemy is faster, stronger, more experienced, and he has range, meaning it’s really easy for him to ambush Zach. 

Zach waited for a while, but then he realized that the man had really run away. 

But thinking about it from the enemy’s point of view, that really was the best option. Having predicted Zach’s level, he must have been aiming for a one-shot kill to get easy points. That’s why he didn’t even bother climbing the tree for a better sniping spot. 

Unexpectedly, Zach turned out to be much, much more difficult to kill than he had predicted, and the Kukarian even got a serious injury from the confrontation. If the fight continued, even after winning, he would have had to pay a heavy price, which is not really worth it considering that this is just the start of the tutorial. So, running away was really the best choice. 

Zach slowly adjusted his breathing, still feeling the adrenaline. “So, this is ror.”

This could be called as Zach’s first serious fight. He doesn’t have much in the name of combat experience. He was in the research division at the academy and then he got locked up at the RoR. 

Most of his so-called combat experience is from the simulations he had created in his mind from the fights he had watched in the RoR broadcasts. 

And after the fight he had just had, he had to accept, it was far from enough. He almost got killed in the very first fight.

His first mistake was being too relaxed, just almost getting his heart pierced. After that, he managed to predict the arrow’s trajectory, but he forgot to strengthen his hand when intercepting it, thus losing his weapon.

After these two mistakes, it’s really luck that he’s still alive. 

On the other hand, it can also be considered his luck that he got such a high level, high-skilled opponent right from the start. 

‘That guy was real.’ 

Poison arrow, high accuracy, high firing rate, excellent judgment, high combat experience… This guy actually has a shot at clearing the tutorial, meaning being the top 100. 

And Zach ended up meeting him right now. This can only be called bad luck. 

But still, it was a good experience. This is just the tutorial, but the real RoR only has the best from each world. So, in order to survive, he should get used to facing beings like this, 

Zach groaned, as he sat down and leaned against the tree. Every part he had used mana to strengthen was throbbing now. Mana is like cancer for his body. And trait [Inhuman Adaptability] acts like chemotherapy, 

Minor amount of mana is fine. But just now, when running, he had used up a huge amount in order to quickly reach the Kukarian. Right now, under his clothes, red lines were spreading out throughout his body, the clear symptoms of mana cancer, 

But he didn’t rush to use his trait on it. First, he checked the gaping wound in his shoulder. 

‘This was really going to kill me,’ he thought, looking at the damage. Fortunately, he had moved in time, or this hole would have been in his heart. 

[Uncanny Insight]

Zach assessed his injury. Fortunately, he had managed to avoid the major nerves. And the soft tissue damage could be healed.

Right when the injury had happened, through [Inhuman Adaptability] and [Obsessive Control] he had blocked the blood vessels to stop the bleeding and also stop the poison from spreading, then he induced blood clotting, followed by inflammation to remove the damaged cells. 

This made sure that he doesn’t lose more blood or make the wound worse. So, overall, the injury would take a while and some authority to heal, but there should be no permanent damage.

[Inhuman Adaptability] 

[Obsessive Control]

First, he boosted cell regeneration, causing muscle fibers and fibroblasts to start growing at a visible speed. To protect the newly forming tissues and ensure optimal healing, he then rigidified the structures surrounding the injury, stabilizing the area to prevent wear and tear. 

Carefully, he reshaped and reformed any lost or misshapen tissue, ensuring that the muscle regained its original form and function. 

Lastly, he focused on fine-tuning the nerve connections within the repaired muscle, enhancing the reconnection and ensuring that every sensation and movement felt as natural as before.

This is how he usually heals himself, by making use of his medical Insight and body control to accelerate the body's natural healing, rather than just forcing [Inhuman Adaptability] to heal the injury on its own. 

In this way, he can dramatically decrease the amount Authority spent on healing. 

While he was healing himself, his viewers were already going bonkers over the confrontation he just had. 

[—What?! What did I just see?!” 

—Check that dude’s level!

—31?! How does a level 9 face against a level 31?!

—Facts: His opponent was actually a Kukarian! They’re extremely skilled warriors! A level 20 Kukarian can even hunt down level 30 opponents. Also, their blood is toxic. 

—CRAZY!!!

—How did he not fall when he was clearly shot through?!

—How did he dodge those arrows?! I couldn’t even see them in slow-mo!

—Who IS this guy?!

—Trait! It must be a Trait!

—What kind of trait allows you to fight like that?! Is it actually above S?!

—He’s actually healing himself! The gap is closing!

—Healing too?! 

—I don’t care! I hereby declare, I’m a fan!

—+1

—+2

.

.

.

—+10000

—@everyone! Come here!

—@everyone!

—@everyone!

—@everyone!

—@everyone!

—@everyone!]

Zach’s viewer count suddenly skyrocketed as the viewers began calling out everyone in their friend list to his broadcast. 

But Zach had no leisure to check it, too busy fixing his wound. 

Finally done, Zach breathed a sigh of relief, finally getting some relief from the pain. But now, he was really spent. Health, stamina, mana, authority, everything was low. 

‘Right, the level up.’ 

Due to the sudden attack, Zach completely forgot that he had reached level 10. Level 10 is the first advancement stage, where you can change your class. The new class is usually an advanced version of the previous class, with new possible specialities based on your action. 

‘Let’s check it out.’ Zach opened the list of choices he had for his first advancement. 

[Advanced Bladewielder [Common]

Berserker [Common]

.

.

.

Gladiator [Uncommon]

Vanguard [Uncommon]

Assassin [Uncommon]

Weapon Master [Rare]

Blade Dancer [Rare

Spellblade [Rare]

Arcane Thief [Epic]

Runesword [Epic]

Survivor [Inherited]

‘So many?’ 

The first thing Zach noticed was just how many options he had. The usual number of options at first advancement is 2. So it was quite abnormal to see so many options. 

But the real surprise came when he read the names of the classes. 

‘Rare Classes? Epic?! And there’s an Inherited one as well?!’ 

Among the classes, there were a few classes which shouldn’t be offered to a human, especially in the first advancement. 

But Zach quickly got over his surprise. Classes are offered based on traits, skills, and achievements. Zach has waited so many years for the first advancement and he also has 3 unique traits, so it is obvious that his options would increase. 

It’s not something to be too happy about. The 3 years of the best leveling period he lost was a big price to pay for this.  

Classes are divided into common, uncommon, rare, epic, and legendary, and so on. Other than this, there are (I) Inherited and (U) Unique. 

Unique classes can be a wild card, being great or ordinary or even bad. And for Inherited class, these classes are special unique classes which have been left behind by legendary figures. 

For his advancement class, Zach decided to only consider epic and above. 

Runesword (Epic)- This class focuses on the mystical enhancement of weapons through the use of runes. Runeswords can imbue their blades with various magical effects, such as fire, ice, or lightning, and often have knowledge of arcane lore.

Intelligence: +1.5

Mana: +1.5

Strength: +0.5

Dexterity: +1.5

Arcane Thief (Epic)- Highly skilled in both the arts of thievery and the use of arcane powers, making the person formidable in situations requiring cunning, subtlety, and versatility

Agility: +1.5

Dexterity: +1.5

Intelligence: +1.0

Mana: +1.0

Survivor (Inherited): A class inherited from a powerful entity. It is only offered to those who have proven themselves worthy of survival. 

Constitution: +2.0

Strength: +2.0

Intelligence: +1.0

Dexterity: +1.0

Rune Blade seems like a great class. During his academy days, Zach had studied Runes well. Runes are versatile and if used correctly, quite powerful. 

But the problem with this class is, Zach is currently in a tutorial. Runes, at least at the basic stage, require materials, tools, and preparation to be truly effective. He can’t really afford that right now. 

Then there was the Arcane Thief. This class was a more powerful version of Assassin class. Zach knew why he got it. 

Before arriving here, he had assassinated many high level individuals and stolen many potions. And due to [Obsessive Control], he can control his body and mana to a high degree. So, it’s understandable why it was offered to it. And Zack had a feeling that the skills of this class would be great too. 

The only problem is, he can’t use much mana. If he chose this path, his leveling speed would be even lower. 

And lastly, Survivor. It is not surprising that Zach got this class. Whether it was bullying at the orphanage and the academy, mana cancer, or the gruesome experiments at the research facility, Zach has had to struggle a great deal in order to survive. 

Recalling it all, Zach involuntarily clenched his fist. So, the name of the class resonated well with him. 

Right now, survival is the most important and most difficult factor. The stat increase was generous too. 

The only problem was, he had no idea what kind of skills the class would entail since the information given was limited. 

So, what to do?

Zach didn’t waste time to consider. 

‘There was never a choice.’ 

The moment he had seen it, he knew he had to choose it. 

[You have chosen the Inherited Class: Survivor]

[+4 Constitution, +3 Perception, +3 Strength, +3 Agility +1 Mana, +2 Dexterity]

As soon as his level increased, a familiar searing sensation filled up every part of his body and he felt nauseous. A Level-up increases the concentration of mana in the body. It is said that it is a blissful experience. But, for someone who has mana cancer, it’s just hell. 

[You have gain the skill: Endure the Elements]

[You have gain the skill: Survival Instinct]

Zach was surprised, looking at the skill [Endure the Elements]. Usually, the name of the skills is straightforward, based on exactly what you’re getting. Like Swordsmanship, Mana Control, etc. 

But there are also skills which don’t really explain their function. These skills are not ordinary and are really difficult to get. Since they don’t exactly explain their function, most of the time, their use is much more diverse. 

[You have received a message from the Class Originator]

[Receive/ Reject]

Zach’s body had barely adapted to the changes when he got the sudden notification.