I stared at the glowing words floating in front of me.
[Skill Unlock Available!]
Choose one:
Shadow Step – Teleport a short distance instantly. Cooldown: 10 seconds.
Stone Skin – Reduce damage by 20% for 5 seconds. Cooldown: 15 seconds.
Quick Heal – Instantly recover 25 HP. Cooldown: 20 seconds.
My body still hurt from the fight with the Forest Golem. My knees were dirty, my hands were shaking, and my head was spinning. But somehow, all I could focus on was that word:
Teleport.
"Shadow Step, huh…" I mumbled, rubbing my chin.
Kairo leaned over to read. "That looks useful. Instant movement? You could dodge enemy attacks or sneak behind them."
I raised an eyebrow. "You saying I should be sneaky?"
"No. I'm saying you can't take a hit. I saw you cry when a branch hit your face earlier."
"It scratched my eye!"
"It hit your nose."
"Same thing!"
Patch floated above us, spinning in slow circles. "You two argue like an old married couple."
I threw a rock at him. It passed through his hologram body. Again.
"You do know that never works, right?" Patch sighed.
I turned back to the skill list. "Alright, I've made up my mind."
I clicked Shadow Step.
[Skill Learned: Shadow Step]
Use: Instantly move to a spot within 10 meters. Cooldown: 10 seconds.
You feel a strange sensation in your body...
The second I selected it, I felt a cold rush through my legs. Like wind wrapping around my muscles. My body felt... lighter. Quicker.
Kairo watched me. "Feel any different?"
"Yeah," I said, cracking my neck. "I feel like a ninja."
"Please don't try to do a backflip."
I didn't try. Mostly because I knew I'd break my neck.
Patch floated in between us. "Now that you've unlocked your first skill, you'll be able to unlock more as you level up. Also, skills from different classes will show up depending on how you fight."
"So I'm not locked into a single role?" I asked.
"Exactly," Patch said. "You're Unbounded. You fight how you want. The system watches, then gives you skills that match your style."
"Huh…" I rubbed the back of my neck. "What if I wanna mix them all? Like, I throw a fireball, then heal, then jump behind someone and stab them in the back?"
"Then the system's gonna think you're insane," Kairo said.
Patch nodded. "And it might just give you insane skills to match."
I grinned. "Good."
We started walking again. The jungle trees were beginning to thin, and I could see sunlight through the branches ahead. It looked like we were nearing the edge of this zone.
"By the way," I said as we walked, "how long have you been stuck here, Kairo?"
He sighed. "About two days, I think. Hard to keep track. I spawned in the jungle like you and didn't get a guide AI. No Patch. No skills. Just... a wooden stick and confusion."
"Dang," I said. "How'd you survive?"
"I hid a lot. Ate weird fruits. Got chased by angry frogs. You know, normal stuff."
"Wait—fruits?"
Kairo pulled a red fruit from his bag. It looked round and juicy.
"You ate that?" I stared.
"Yeah. Why?"
I grabbed it, sniffed it, and immediately tossed it.
"That's not a fruit, dude! That's a monster egg!"
"…Oh."
Patch burst out laughing. "And you wondered why your stomach hurt last night."
Kairo looked sick.
I patted his shoulder. "You're a strong man. If I ate a monster baby, I'd cry for three days."
"I did cry," he muttered.
The trees finally opened up, revealing a wide clearing ahead. A few broken stone ruins stood in the middle, surrounded by glowing flowers and soft grass. It was peaceful. Too peaceful.
I didn't trust it.
Patch stopped floating and buzzed a bit.
"This is a resting zone," he said. "Safe for now. You can recover, check your inventory, maybe even practice your new skill."
"Ooh," I said, rubbing my hands together. "Time to teleport like a boss."
I walked to the middle of the field, took a deep breath, and focused on a spot about five meters away.
"Alright," I whispered. "Shadow Step!"
My body vanished.
Then—BOOM—I reappeared right where I aimed, landing perfectly.
[Shadow step: Used]
[Cooldwon: 10 seconds]
I blinked. "Did... did it work?"
"You teleported," Kairo said, clapping slowly. "I'm impressed."
Patch nodded. "No broken bones. That's a win."
I grinned. "I'm basically unstoppable now."
Then I slipped on a glowing flower and fell face-first into the dirt.
"Unstoppable," Kairo repeated, not even trying to hide his laugh.
"Shut up," I mumbled into the ground.
After I got up, we sat and rested for a bit. The air was fresh. The sun was warm. And for once, nothing tried to kill us.
"So," Kairo said, lying back on the grass, "what now?"
I looked at the sky. "Now? We level up. We fight smarter. And we find a way to beat this messed-up game."
"Sounds simple enough."
Patch floated higher and pointed toward a path leading out of the clearing.
"The next zone isn't far. It's a forest town. Maybe you'll find other players there… or enemies."
"Town, huh?" I stood up and stretched. "Maybe they'll have real food. And toilets. Please tell me there are toilets."
"No promises," Patch said.
We started walking again, me in front with my new Shadow Step, and Kairo behind, still chewing on his mistake-fruit.
We didn't know what waited in the next zone.
But whatever it was, I knew one thing for sure—
I'd be ready.
With my sarcasm, my sword, and my fancy teleport skill…
The world better watch out.