Rumor's first choice of skill to upgrade was obvious: [ Firearm Mastery ]. It was a passive skill, and a major boost to his offensive capabilities. He didn't know about the future, but for now he relied heavily on his weapons.
Considering the extra Skill Points he had gotten from the [ Silver SP Box ], Rumor only hesitated slightly before dropping 1.000 points into the skill. Now it looked something like this:
[ Firearm Mastery lvl 5 ]
[ Rarity: 1-Star ]
[ Effect: 10% base increase to attack power when using firearms. Each level in this skill grants a further 2% increase to attack power when using firearms. Current increase: 20%. ]
[ Cost: None ]
[ Cooldown: None ]
[ Description: Passive. A skill for a beginner in the handling of firearms. You still have much to learn if you wish to become a master of hot weaponry. ]
Now, his attack power with a firearm peaked at an impressive 80 points. Theoretically, with a critical hit and stealth bonus, he could one-shot a first incursion tester, and that was without even using his other skills.
[ Hunter Sense ] was the next skill he leveled up. Although not as prominent as [ Red Blood ] or [ Grav-Leap Boost ], it had seen a lot of use throughout his first incursion, and he couldn't imagine it would become obsolete anytime soon.
[ Hunter Sense lvl 3 ]
[ Rarity: 1-Star ]
[ Effect: Highlight the traces left behind by your target. Limited to material clues. ]
[ Cost: 12 MP ]
[ Cooldown: 20 seconds ]
[ Description: Active. A skill to hunt down others. The higher the level of this skill, the more clues you can see. ]
The cost increased by 2 MP, but nothing else in the skill changed. And yet, when Rumor focused on it, he could feel it had gotten stronger. How much, he didn't know, but he thought it was worth it.
Now he had 3.500 SP remaining. For now, he skipped [ Red Blood ]. As useful as the skill had been in the Star Wars universe, unless he happened to be thrown into Alien or Starship Troopers or some other movie like that, it probably wouldn't see much use. If he had extra points, then okay, but he didn't.
In this regard, the other skill choice from the [ Xenophobic ] achievement would have been more useful in the long term. But Rumor didn't regret going with [ Red Blood ]. Without it, it was unlikely he would have survived his first incursion.
Still, that left only 3 skills for him to choose. The trusty [ Grav-Leap Boost ], or the two newcomers, [ Bacta Rush ] and [ Holo-Disguise ].
[ Bacta Rush ] was a must. The instant healing would, undoubtedly, save his life in the future.
Before he could second-guess himself, Rumor dumped a whole 2.000 points into it, bringing the skill to level 5.
[ Bacta Rush lvl 5 ]
[ Rarity: 2-Stars ]
[ Effect: Restores 15% of the user's HP immediately, and a further 7% over 5 seconds. ]
[ Cost: 28 MP ]
[ Cooldown: 600 seconds ]
[ Description: Active. Infuse the properties of the famous bacta tanks in your body, allowing for rapid regeneration of health. ]
Again, the cost had increased, but so had the effects. Now, instead of the original 7%, it instantly restored 15% of his HP, and a further 7% in the following second instead of the initial 3%.
The last skill took a while to choose. Rumor was tempted to split his remaining 1.500 SP somewhat evenly, but then it was likely he wouldn't see much of a difference.
In the end, he went with [ Grav-Leap Boost ]. [ Holo-Disguise ] was nice, but it didn't directly increase his survivability like the other skill did.
[ Grav-Leap Boost lvl 4 ]
[ Rarity: 2-Stars ]
[ Effect: Increase movement speed by 12% for 60 seconds. Each level in this skill increases movement speed by a further 3%. Current increase: 24%. ]
[ Cost: 26 MP ]
[ Cooldown: 120 seconds ]
[ Description: Active. After training in the harsh environments of the Star Wars universe, you feel gravity has lost some of its hold on you. You are able to show incredible bursts of speed. ]
A 24% movement speed buff was nothing to scoff at, and he thought it was worth the measly 300 SP he was left with. He decided to save those for his later visit to the marketplace.
Now, it was Rumor's MP which was lacking. With so many active skills, and the raised costs from leveling them up, 70 MP wasn't going to cut it. But hopefully he would find a solution for that soon.
Taking one last look at his empty room, Rumor walked towards the door. Like everything else, it was made of plain metal.
[ Current locations you can travel to: Plaza, Tower. ]
A message popped up, and he selected the Plaza. He had already heard from Xue Luo before that the Tower was useless to him for now. It was where testers went to form parties for incursions, but he could only do that from the fourth onwards.
[ Would you like to hide your identity? ]
Yes.
[ Destination set: Plaza. ]
[ Warning: Please remember the use of skills and fighting is prohibited in The Mind's public areas. There will be consequences if this warning is disobeyed. ]
Xue Luo had also told him that. Rumor ignored the warning, and told the system to send him to the Plaza.
With the distinct feeling of being swallowed by darkness, Rumor vanished from his room and reappeared a split-second later in the middle of a vast open space.
The ground was made of dark red bricks, with smaller golden ones intermingled, creating patterns which could only possibly be distinguished from high above. A whole lot of nothingness surrounded everything, like the place was hanging on the void.
The Plaza had to be the size of at least several football fields. Rumor couldn't possibly hope to see where it ended, if it ever did, especially with how crowded it was.
There had to be hundreds, if not thousands of people around. Most had their faces blurred, like a porn movie's censorship, which was how Rumor should also look to everyone else.
But even then, some had very distinct features. Their size, gender, how they walked, how they talked. Some brazenly carried their weapons in their person instead of storage, while others never bothered with hiding their faces.
The vast majority of testers was walking around the Plaza, stopping at different stalls to inspect, haggle, bargain, threaten, and, most of all, sell and buy.
The stalls in question varied. Some were little more than tarps on the ground with items displayed on them. The system stopped anyone from stealing from others here, so most people weren't worried about leaving their wares out in the open.
For those who didn't wish to do that, there were also bigger, proper stalls, with tables and holographic projections of each item and their stats.
Right away, Rumor knew he was going to spend hours here. Finding the best sellers, the most trustworthy, and the ones who shouldn't be allowed within a mile of you, was a lengthy process he was very familiar with.
He was in no rush to set his own stall. All he had to sell were the two [ 1-Star Random Skill Scrolls ], which were his most valuable wares, and then some weak items like the [ Rusted Brass Knuckles ] and [ Sturdy Staff ].
If he was being honest, consumables like the [ Delicious Unknown Fruits ] were likely to be more popular than those two.
But right now, Rumor was looking to buy, not sell. So he started wandering the Plaza, stopping at stalls that caught his attention, sometimes haggling just for the sake of it.
Soon, he worked out the system of the marketplace. Despite how chaotic it seemed, there were divisions.
One part was set for individual stalls. The testers who either were selling a myriad of random items, or just needed to make a quick buck. Just like their prices, the quality of their wares was low.
Then there were the more specific regions of the Plaza. One corner focused on weapons. Another, in defensive items like shields and armor. Another still on miscellaneous stuff. There was a portion set apart solely for summoning contracts, one for engravings, and another for skills. One for people looking to trade CP for SP and vice-versa.
There was one part, right at the center, that Rumor didn't even go in, not because he wasn't allowed to, but because it would leave him depressed. Even from afar, he could tell all the testers there weren't normal, and the glimpses of items he got left it clear they were so high-level he couldn't possibility afford to scratch one.
After strolling aimlessly for several hours, he finally made his way back to the little - in relation to the size of the Plaza - corner where skill scrolls were being sold.
There were a lot of [ Random Skill Scrolls ] on display, mostly 1-Stars. Their prices fluctuated, but stayed somewhat consistently between 600 and 800 CP.
There were also some Scrolls of higher levels. 2-Stars ones were going for about 5.000 CP each. 3-Stars were no less than 10.000.
The only [ 4-Stars RandomSkill Scroll ] he saw on display had an asking price of 70.000 CP. From the unbothered expression of the seller each time someone grumbled, Rumor figured it was just a gimmick to attract people to his stall, and get them to turn their eyes to his other wares.
There were also plenty of other skill-related items on sale. World-specific scrolls for Mad Max, The Da Vinci Code, Dexter, and a hundred other universes.
But what caught Rumor's attention weren't the random scrolls. Instead, it was a new item he hadn't seen before: [ Skill Cards ].
The cards seemed to be the not-random version of scrolls. Each of them was of an specific skill - Rumor saw pretty much all the basic masteries, and also other skills like [ Brutal Strike ], [ Fake Invisibility ], [ Stone Skin ], and many others.
His eye was instantly drawn to one: [ Stab Again ].
The name was pretty self-explanatory. A skill that allowed you to metaphorically stab your opponent again. In reality, what it did was create a fake dagger that did 50% of the damage of your attack.
Bartering for it was an ordeal. The seller wanted 6.000 CP, which Rumor absolutely refused to pay. It was just a 1-Star skill.
In the end, they settled on a trade. Rumor's two [ 1-Star Random Skill Scrolls ] for the [ Stab Again ] skill card and 800 CP.
Rumor still left with the feeling he was being fleeced, but he was sorely lacking a purely offensive skill, and that was the one which suited him best.
Before moving on, he also found someone selling a [ Blade Mastery ] skill card, which he paid 3.000 CP for. This time, he thought he was the one who came out on top. The seller seemed to be in a rush, and hadn't tried to haggle much.
Rumor didn't hesitate in putting his last 300 SP into [ Blade Mastery ]. The effect was pretty much the same as [ Firearm Mastery ], a 10% base increase, and then 2% for each level.
His next stop was the defensive items section. He roamed there for about two hours before coming out with two new purchases.
[ Red Leather Armor ]
[ Rarity: 1-Star ]
[ Requirements: None ]
[ Defense: 15 ]
[ Durability: 20/20 ]
[ Description: A sturdy leather armor made from the hide of an unknown monster. ]
[ Observation: This item originally belongs to the Maze Runner universe. ]
[ Observation: Can be brought out of this world. ]
And:
[ Shock-Absorbing Boots ]
[ Rarity: 2-Stars ]
[ Requirements: Dexterity - 7 ]
[ Defense: 11 ]
[ Effect: Prevents fall damage from heights up to 7 meters. ]
[ Durability: 25/25 ]
[ Description: Sturdy, high-quality boots that absorb shock and impacts, preventing damage when falling from great heights. ]
[ Observation: This item originally belongs to the Hunger Games universe. ]
[ Observation: Can be brought out of this world. ]
Most of his money had gone to the second item, and only because the [ Shock-Absorbing Boots ], despite having a 2-Stars rating, weren't actually that strong. Even so, Rumor had to sell his [ Rusted Brass Knuckles ], [ Sturdy Staff ], and a lot of miscellaneous items like the [ Anooba Pelts ] to the system to scrap up enough CP to afford it.
He didn't spend more time in the Plaza after that. He had no money and nothing to trade with. Staying there would only make his heart ache if he saw something he really wanted.
When he returned to his room with a single thought later, he was a lot poorer, but also feeling much better prepared for the incursion ahead. His stats looked something like this:
[ Name: Rumor ]
[ Titles: Not You (Bronze) ]
[ Prestige: Unknown (100/1.000) ]
[ Health (HP): 170 ]
[ Mental Points (MP): 70 ]
[ Strength: 10 (8+2) ]
[ Dexterity: 8 ]
[ Vitality: 12 (10+2) ]
[ Temperance: 7 ]
[ Spirit: 5 ]
[ Appeal: 6 ]
[ Attack: Physical - 50 (Strength X 5), Mental - 25 (Spirit X 5) ]
[ Defense: 24 (Vitality X 2) ]
[ Free attribute points: 0 ]
[ Currency Points: 280 ]
[ Skill Points: 0 ]
[ Traits: Desert Whisperer (1-Star), Stalking Killer (1-Star), Grease the Gears (2-Stars) ]
[ Skills: Observe, Hunter Sense lvl 3 (1-Star), Red Blood lvl 1 (1-Star), Firearm Mastery lvl 5 (1-Star), Blade Mastery lvl 3 (1-Star), Stab Again lvl 1 (1-Star), Grav-Leap Boost lvl 4 (2-Stars), Holo-Disguise lvl 1 (2-Stars), Bacta Rush lvl 5 (2-Stars) ]
[ Equipment: Standard Ottegan Army Blade (1-Star), False-Gold Shoulder Pad (1-Star), Red Leather Armor (1-Star), E-206 Renegade Blaster Rifle (1-Star), High-Powered Slugthrower (2-Stars), Cyclops-Forged Armguard (2-Stars), Shock-Absorbing Boots (2-Stars), Signet of The Scourge (2-Stars), 1-Star Summoning Contract (Massiff) ]
[ Miscellaneous: Delicious Unknown Fruit (x3), Decent Quality Military Bandages (x4), Slugthrower Magazine (x2), Thermal Detonator, Kaminoan Breach Herb, Outer Rim Guide... ]
[ Unlocked achievements: Desert Predator, Tusken Raider, Xenophobic, Extreme Xenophobia, Outlaw, Pop Goes The Bounty, Bounty Hunter, Bring 'em Down! Smuggler ]
[ Incursions: 1 ]
It was worth mentioning that his true attack and defense weren't reflected in the character sheet, since they varied depending in what weapons he was using and what items he had equipped.
Some of the stuff he had gotten in the Star Wars universe, especially the money, also didn't show up, because it couldn't be taken out of that world.
But overall, Rumor was pretty satisfied. With his current strength and vitality, he was still a ways away from being able to use the [ High-Powered Slugthrower ], but he could now equip the [ Cyclops-Forged Armguard ], boosting his defense to a whole new level, especially with the other items he had bought today.
Exhaling a deep breath, Rumor closed the window and stood on the spot, stretching his arms down to the fingertips, then doing the same with his legs and the rest of his muscles.
Then he cracked his neck and called out to The Mind.
"Start Incursion."
His room dissolved around him, and once again he was floating in the void. Text materialized in front of his eyes.
[ Amidst ancient tombs and cryptic artifacts, there's always something more to the legend than meets the eye... ]
[ Incursion type: Closed ]
[ Incursion difficulty: Low ]
[ Incursion count: 2 ]
[ Welcome, tester Rumor... To the Indiana Jones universe! ]