Skills available for evolution:

Mighty Strength [Cost: 6 Skill Upgrade Shards (Uncommon)]

Potent Wisdom [Cost: 6 Skill Upgrade Shards (Uncommon)]

Relentless Training [Cost: 5 Skill Upgrade Shards (Uncommon)]

Stone Grip [Cost: 5 Skill Upgrade Shards (Uncommon)]

Calculation [Cost: 6 Skill Upgrade Shards (Uncommon)]

Quintessential Charisma [Cost: 6 Skill Upgrade Shards (Uncommon)]

Critical Experience [Cost: 6 Skill Upgrade Shards (Uncommon)]

Exceptional Palate [Cost: 5 Skill Upgrade Shards (Uncommon)]

Ronan read through the list of uncommon skills that he could upgrade with just 6 shards. It was limited, but any skill upgrade was a permanent boost to his arsenal and worth doing.

All of his stat skills were available to hit the next rarity, as well as critical experience which he'd already upgraded from common. The choice was tough, but in the end, Ronan chose to go with mighty strength.

Strength was the stat that he reached the highest amount of on a regular basis, so increasing the number of 'free' points he could earn in the stat was well worth the cost. He didn't delay in confirming the upgrade.

[Skill Upgrade Shard (Uncommon)] x6 has been consumed!

[Mighty Strength (Uncommon)] is evolving…

[Mighty Strength (Uncommon)] has evolved into [Mighty Strength (Rare)]!

Mighty Strength (Rare): Gain +1 to strength for every 7 points of strength you possess. Does not include stat bonuses.

Wait, fuck! Damned system stole my upgrade. It was 10 (-1) before and now it's just 7? What a scam, Ronan inwardly cursed.

Having discovered a potential pitfall of evolving already upgraded skills, he vowed to be more cautious in future. Despite the annoyance, it was still better than before, even with the lost boost.

All that remained now was the epic endless treasury token. There was little fanfare as he used it, simply wanting to get it over with and receive his item.

Having experienced the power of the skill-stealing mirror, Ronan was excited to see what overpowered item he would receive next. The notification startled him.

[Endless Treasury Token (Epic)] has been consumed!

You have received [Miraculous Tenacious Tomato (Epic)]!

Miraculous Tenacious Tomato (Epic)

Sharp and crunchy, this tomato gives the consumer the tenacious fortitude to push through adverse circumstances. This miraculous specimen grew in incredible conditions and outgrew the other fruits in its crop, strengthening its capabilities and enhancing its taste.

+21 Tenacity

Ronan wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. Tenacity had been his highest base stat, and for good reason. He was a stubborn bastard.

Finally discovering the stat fruit for it was a nice surprise at the end of this iteration, but he was frustrated because he would lose over half of the effects. Hard work bears fruit only allowed him to gain 10 of each stat permanently from consuming fruits. Then again, I did want to test what happens if I go over the limit… No better time than now. Hoping for the best, Ronan bit into the bright red tomato that was as big as his fist.

Juice dribbled down his chin as he savoured the taste. As promised, the fruit was crunchy but soft in the centre—perfect texture for a tomato—with a slightly sweet yet sharp taste that made his tongue tingle.

Once he'd finished eating and wiped his chin, Ronan pulled up his stat fruit page in his status, wondering what the result was. Hopefully he could cheese the system somehow, but even if he couldn't, it wasn't the end of the world.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

[Hard work bears fruit]

Bloodstained Berry (5/10 Vitality)

???

Apple of Wisdom (0/10 Wisdom)

???

Staunch Lemon (5/10 Resistance)

???

Kiwi of Quickness (5/10 Agility)

Orange of Intelligence (5/10 Intelligence)

Dexterous Date (5/10 Dexterity)

???

Tenacious Tomato (21/10 Tenacity)

Lucky Banana (0/10 Luck)

Majestic Mango (5/10 Charisma)

His fruit collection had expanded, with just four left to collect before he had discovered them all. To his surprise, tenacity registered the full 21 points, but still had a 10 point limit. Hopeful, he went back to his main status page and checked his tenacity, only to sigh in defeat.

In his stats section, his tenacity had only increased by 10 points. Well, I suppose I shouldn't complain. That it at least stores the excess points is a win. When I get enough merits to upgrade hard work bears fruit, I'll get the points right away.

Satisfied with the outcome, Ronan closed his status page. There was nothing left for him in this iteration. All that remained was ending this life. He was ready for the next tutorial difficulty.

Your difficulty has been set to [Normal]! If you believe this is an unsuitable assessment, you are free to voice your complaints. Stage 1 will begin in 5…

I want a harder difficulty. Not hard difficulty though, the one above it, please, system assistant. He phrased his complaint with a little more politeness this time, remembering Shneevol's previous rebuke. He didn't want the threat of system violence hanging over his head.

Your complaint has been received!

Please hold while it is being reviewed…

This time there was barely a delay between his complaint being received and the response getting pinged back to him. The chime rang in his mind a few seconds after.

Administrative Assistant Shneevol has reviewed your complaint!

Your tutorial difficulty has been adjusted from [Normal] to [Harder]!

Assistant note: I'm not sure how you know the tutorial difficulties. If you have received information or contact from extra-terrestrial forces prior to integration, please disclose it now. You will not be punished, but any benefits you have gained from them will be seized.

Ronan was stumped. Despite his politeness he'd still managed to draw the ire of the administrative assistant. This time the reasoning was absurd, but on second thought he supposed it made sense.

As a citizen of a newly integrated planet there shouldn't be a way he was aware of the specific order of the tutorial difficulties. Next time he'd have to be a little more sly about how he phrased things. For now, he would have to deal with the problem.

I don't know what you're talking about. I just guessed that the next one might be hard, but that still felt too easy for me. Is that a thing? Forces beyond our world? He hammed up his naivety, hoping it would get Shneevol off his case.

Your difficulty has been set to [Harder]! Scans indicate you are telling the truth, but be warned, abuse will be punished heavily. Stage 1 will begin in 5…

Worried about the kind of scans the system was doing on him without his knowledge, Ronan glanced down at his body and shivered. Still, it seemed as though he'd accomplished the task of throwing Shneevol off his case.

A few seconds later, he was whisked away from the empty start zone and transported through the shifting void. Rather than an empty clearing, he found himself standing in a forest.

Thin, curling wisps of fog hung in the air, obscuring his vision. The nearest tree had rough bark, dark brown in colour. Looking upwards, his gaze travelled all the way up the towering trunk, taking in the details.

Pine trees.

Not quite what he expected, but the scenery didn't particularly matter. All he needed to do was kill the monsters that the system pitted against him.

On guard, he formed a dagger using conjure weapon. A shortsword might be more lethal, but in a forest he felt that stealth and assassination were more favourable tactics. If he could get the drop on the monsters this would be easier than expected.

Looking around the forest, there were no enemies in sight. With the fog, it was hard to see further than fifty or so metres, but he managed as best he could. There would be a shadow in the mist if something approached, anyway.

Turning his gaze to the ground, Ronan searched for any tracks that might lead him to his foes. There were none.

Rather than sit around and make himself an easy target for any wandering monsters, he picked a random direction and decided to move towards it. The tutorial wouldn't make it impossible to find his enemies. Moving forward was always better than standing still. A lesson he'd learned from his time with the juggernaut class.

As he moved, he thought about classes. Sorcerer was proving its worth, but he realised he'd been leaving a lot on the table. After discovering his breath skill, Ronan had used it to defeat the goblin rogues and shaman in the dark fog, but he hadn't experimented further with it.

To start with, there were likely many forms of internal magic he could use beyond the breath. If skills could boost his stats and other physical attributes, why wouldn't magic be able to do the same?

In this first harder tutorial iteration, Ronan decided he would venture down a new class path that he hadn't explored previously. There were many new classes he'd unlocked but sometimes going back to basics was the best way to proceed.

His train of thought was broken by the sound of crunching leaves. Freezing, he pressed himself against the nearest tree and turned his gaze to the direction the sound came from. Looks like I've found my targets.

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