Berserker: A LitRPG Urban Fantasy Adventure (Apocosmos Book 1) by Dimitrios Gkirgkiris (books for 20 year olds txt) 📗

The third snake was already making its escape. Leo, however, didn’t seem to think the battle was over as he launched his Gale Blast on the beast, painting the earth around that spot red. I tried to raise my hand in thanks to him but suddenly felt dizzy as the redness in my sight started to disappear.

Leo ran toward me, casting a different spell. A green aura enveloped me and the burning sensation in my wounds seized.

“I cast Cure Poison on you,” he said once he’d reached me, “but we need to heal you and I’m almost out of mana. Can you walk?”

I nodded. With his help, and with Louie’s emotional support, I staggered away from the opening of the forest and we sat on a low hill.

“That was a close one,” I said and started petting Louie, who wasn’t concerned with running around anymore.

“I didn’t really expect the snake to drag you away,” Leo confessed. “This was supposed to be something like a tutorial. My father was right. I’m not fit to teach you anything. You should meet with him. My family… they’re all great warriors.”

“Wow,” I said, shaking my head in denial. “I don’t want anyone to teach me anything. I thought this was just you giving me my birthday present…”

“It is, but your level is so low. I doubt you can finish the quest without any skills.”

“What do you mean by skills? I need to have skills to enter the forest?”

“You don’t need to, but I think there are stronger enemies in there than the cobras. Hold up, I’ve got enough mana to heal you now.”

With that, he stood up and started casting his healing spell. I stood up as well as the familiar warm glow rushed over me.

“Why did you stand?” he asked with a smile.

“I don’t know. It seemed like the right thing to do.”

“I only stood so that I could perform the somatic components of the spell,” he explained. “But your HP and MP Regeneration Rate is higher if you’re sitting.”

“Well my HP is full now, and I don’t need MP, so I might as well stay alert.”

“Suit yourself,” he said and sat back down. “I prefer sitting to restore my mana.”

I looked at him with the intention of scanning his stats.

Name : Leonardo DiFiore

Race : Elf/Human

Class : Mystic

Level : 19

HP : 379/379

MP : 62/273

I could see his MP increasing by the second.

64/273

67/273

69/273

“Are you going to keep staring?” he asked.

“Sorry. I was looking at your MP total,” I confessed. “I can see your HP and MP now too.”

“Yes, well, there’s no reason to hide them from you,” he said. “Man, I’m so sorry I let this get out of hand. Maybe we can leave this until my father talks to you about skills.”

“No, no,” I replied, dreading the thought of even more forced socializing. “It’s fine. I wasn’t paying attention. After all, I’m okay now. Just tell me what I need to know.” I sat down on the soft grass next to Louie, who was licking his paws, and smiled at Leo, prompting him to continue.

“Alright. Well, there are two kinds of skills you can earn,” he said. “Active and passive. I think those are pretty self-explanatory.”

“Passive ones provide bonuses as soon as I get them, while active ones need to be used?”

“Exactly,” he replied. “Many of the active skills can be used as soon as you level up, and the passive ones take immediate effect.”

“But how is that possible?” I asked, honestly puzzled. “Are they downloaded into my brain à la Matrix?”

“Something of the sort. Dark Energy reacts to your class. You need to remember that all of the knowledge is already in the Dark Energy so once you gain a level, it reveals the knowledge of the skill to you. Unless, of course, you need the appropriate skill book or training to be deemed worthy, but that’s a lesson for another time.”

“I see. Okay. What level do I need to be to get my skills?”

“I guess level three is when most melee classes earn their first skills. What’s your… Oh GG, man. Congrats on your new level.”

I had no idea I had earned a level, but I guessed the fight with the snake was difficult enough to advance me, especially since my initial fight with the thugs had brought me two-thirds of the way there.

“Let’s get you set up,” Leo said as he circled his hand in the air in front of him. “Before any more snakes attack you.”

The circle he had traced shone with a purple light and his hand disappeared through it as if it was a portal. Before I was able to express my astonishment, he had pulled out a leather shirt and a pair of leather pants. Their stats hovered above them as he threw them in my face.

Name : Leather Shirt

Type : Upper Armor (Light)

Rarity : E Grade

Physical Defense : 43

MP Increment : 0

Durability : 149/170

Weight : 1230

Description : A shirt made of cattle leather. It provides some protection without hindering movement.

Name : Leather Pants

Type : Lower Armor (Light)

Rarity : E Grade

Physical Defense : 27

MP Increment : 0

Durability : 136/160

Weight : 1730

Description : A pair of pants made of cattle leather. They provide some protection without hindering movement. Not very easy to remove when you’re in a hurry to visit the bathroom though.

“Is that—?” I said, momentarily not finding the words. “Is that some kind of inventory wormhole?”

“I keep forgetting how new all of this is to you,” he said, laughing. “Yes. Kind of. Costs a pretty penny, but it’s a good investment. Now put those clothes on and get your sword back. You dropped it over there.”

“What’s wrong with my clothes?”

“Do you see any stats when you examine your System of a Down T-shirt? Does it say something like ‘Legendary T-shirt of the metalhead, S-Grade’ and the like?”

“Okay, okay. I get it,” I said and started to take off my shirt. “Give me a bit of privacy?”

“Oh, I’ve seen better,