Seed of Titan-Chapter 70: Checking Out the Skills

Just by looking at the next skill’s name, Drai was sure that he should have received this skill a long time ago if not for his class restrictions.

[Skill: Training Freak]

[Description: This is already past the point of obsession for training.]

[Effects: Increases the effects of excessive training by 20%]

[Cost: 1 SP]

Drai fell silent upon reading the skill. If he were a more emotional person, he would have teared up already from having his years of dedication and struggle acknowledged.

’System, what’s the criteria for ’excessive training’?’

[It is training that goes beyond the limit of the user in any single aspect, such as damage threshold or duration.]

’Will the increased effect stack with the accelerated development from the previous skill?’

[Yes. They are additive and undiminished by each other.] 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

’Damn... Having both of these skills will definitely raise my progress rate a few levels higher. Jian will probably hate me if he knows about this, hehe.’

Drai read the skill a few more times, basking in self-satisfaction and anticipation.

’Just these first two skills are already worth the pain that I had to undergo from the procedure. Professor Ravi wasn’t wrong. It’s such a miraculous concoction that defies the System.

’I wonder if I would ever have access to these skills if I had never been involved in Professor Ravi’s research? Maybe the skill restrictions would eventually be lifted when I evolve my class, but that’s just a baseless speculation. Thankfully mom and dad hadn’t rejected Professor Ravi’s offer.

’Anyway, let’s check the next one.’

[Skill: Pain Tolerance]

[Description: Years of self-abuse have wearied your pain receptors.]

[Effects: Increases pain tolerance by 30%]

[Cost: 1 SP]

’Huh? This skill is not very useful, isn’t it? Wait, let’s make sure of it first.

’System, will this skill also reduce the damage I receive by 30%?’

[No. It only reduces the pain you feel and nothing more.]

’It’s just like what I’ve thought then. Hmm... I don’t see any immediate benefits by getting this skill. And won’t it make it harder for Training Freak to trigger since it increases my pain threshold?

’It would’ve been handy if I had it for the procedure earlier though. I still remember that awful pain in my head. It was a bit too much even for me.

’Anyway, I think I’ll put aside this skill for now, especially since my SP are very limited.’

Following this, Drai closed the skill details and opened the next one.

[Skill: Basic Magic Resistance]

[Description: Often bombarded by magic, you have developed slight immunity against it.]

[Effects: Increases base magic resistance by 10%]

[Cost: 2 SP]

’This one seems useful, but I feel like 10% doesn’t matter too much and it costs 2 SP too. There should be an upgrade for skill since it has ’basic’ in its name, but I wonder if it will get unlocked automatically or if there’s a prerequisite for it.

’Well, onto the next one.’

[Skill: Basic Combat Sense]

[Description: The art of combat is intricate, but you have begun to comprehend its substance.]

[Effects: Increases combat learning speed by 15%]

[Cost: 3 SP]

’Hmm... I’m not sure about this one. On paper, it doesn’t look too powerful, but this 15% will accumulate over time. And the time I save on combat learning can be used for more learning, which will then save even more time. Shit, why does it actually sound pretty powerful now?

’System, does this skill also stack with the increased development rate from the titanic physique skill?’

[Yes. They are additive.]

’Then I guess this might be a good skill to take. The problem is the cost... If I get the titan skill, I won’t be able to afford this one. And I wonder if it’s just better to get three 1-cost skills than just a single 3-cost skill.

’I still should look at all the skills first before making the final decision. But with all these percentages stacking with each other, doesn’t that mean I’ll someday be able to get a 100% increase in one aspect? If I get 100% increased learning speed, wouldn’t that make me a super genius?’

Drai pondered over the matter briefly before looking up the next skill.

[Skill: Scholarly-Pain Relief]

[Description: Routine headaches from lessons have triggered your defense mechanism. With a small cost, be free from study pains.]

[Effect: Expend stamina to cure the negative side effects from studying. Stamina expenditure varies depending on the ailment’s severity.]

[Cost: 1]

"..."

Drai immediately closed the skill’s details and proceeded to next one.

[Skill: Intimidation Aura]

[Description: Your recklessness and prowess have intimidated your contemporaries. Be bold and embrace your fearsomeness.]

[Effects: Increases the chance to intimidate friends and foes alike. The stronger the user is compared to the target, the higher the chance.]

[Cost: 1]

’Huh??’

Drai was quite surprised by the skill’s description. He didn’t know that there were people who had been intimidated by him. He felt that he had been minding his own business all this time, mostly studying and training.

’System, can this skill be turned off?’

[No. It is as stated by the description: ’Be bold and embrace your fearsomeness.’]

Drai scratched his head helplessly.

’I think this skill can be useful in the wilderness, like the time when I was confronted by the huge tiger back in the jungle. It may also help me avoid unnecessary fights in the future.

’But what if my friends stay away from me because of this? And isn’t this a bit similar to Jian’s cursed mouth skill?’

Drai mulled over the matter and eventually decided not to take the skill, at least for now. He then opened the last skill on the list.

[Skill: Beginner Lab Rat]

[Description: Spending hours on the operating table have slightly altered your physique to be more susceptible to experiments.]

[Effects: Experiments on user have a 15% increase in effectiveness and 10% increased chance to produce beneficial results]

[Cost: 1]

Drai was speechless upon reading the details of the skill. He didn’t think his participation in Ravi’s research would grant access to such a weird skill.

’If only you appeared before I went through the procedure,’ Drai slightly lamented, smiling wryly.

’This skill isn’t bad, but it’s not like I’ll ever become an object for another experiment. And the 15% effectiveness increase is a bit worrying since it also affects the bad results.’

Drai pondered over the skill a bit more, but he still couldn’t see how it would benefit him in the near future unless he really went out of his way to apply for experimental treatments.

’I guess I’ll also put it aside for now. Finally, the last skill...’

[Skill: Ranged Fister]

[Description: Relentless rock fisting finally bears fruit.]

[Effects: Slightly corrects the trajectory of fisted projectiles]

[Cost: 1]

’The name sounds so wrong, but the skill effect itself is actually decent. It probably wouldn’t matter that much with Rock Smash since it covers a large area, but if I ever decide to use a single projectile instead, this will come handy. But I don’t think I need to get this skill now.

’So is that all the available skills?’

Drai went through the list once again, making sure that he hadn’t missed any skills.

’Having my restrictions lifted is great, but why are there only a few that look really useful? Should I have done more things other than physical and combat training? But Professor Paul said that we can’t force a skill to appear by intentionally engaging in specific activities for that particular purpose, so I guess it would be quite meaningless to do that.

’Anyway, from my understanding, the must-have skills are Lesser Titanic Physique, Training Freak, and Basic Combat Sense. All three of them increase my progress rate, so it’s best to get them early.

’Basic Magic Resistance is definitely useful, but now that I think of it, won’t it also make Training Freak harder to trigger just like Pain Tolerance? I guess the difference is that Magic Resistance is useful for real fights while Pain Tolerance doesn’t really matter unless I get hit by something that is as painful as Professor Ravi’s procedure.

’Aside from that, Ranged Fister is also useful but not so urgent. I can get it whenever I want to add another ranged attack to my arsenal. But it’s limited to fist attacks, so I don’t think it will work with flinging rocks that I tried to do back in the jungle.

’As for the other skills... Intimidation has its uses but also drawbacks. I may have to consult the others about this skill, but I have a feeling that they’ll treat it similarly to Jian’s forbidden skill. And Beginner Lab Rat also has its uses and drawbacks, but it will only be useful if I ever participate in another research. So if I get it preemptively, there’s a chance it would just be a waste of SP.

’And there’s that scholar-something skill... I really don’t want to think about it since I feel like it’s mocking me. And shouldn’t the lectures be more bearable now with my 14 int? I’ve basically doubled my brain capacity. If the skill were free maybe I’d try it out, but no way I’m paying any SP for it.

’Now let’s see...’