After a while of spying on the rats, I got bored so I went back to checking my notifications. It was then that I remembered the 2 free points that were just waiting to be spent. Glancing at my attributes, I ruminate for a few minutes on what to put them in before ultimately putting them in {Intelligence} and {Arcane} to get nice even numbers. Satisfied with my choice I move on to seeing what my two new skills did.

  {Mana Bite: Lv 1}

  {Allows the user to coat their jaws in mana to unleash a devastating bite, damage and size of Mana Bite is determined by Strength and Arcane}

  {Endure: Lv 1}

  {Allows the user to infuse their body with stamina, temporarily raising their Toughness. Duration and effectiveness of Endure is determined by Toughness and Endurance}

  “Another attack skill and a defense skill, good I actually do need a way to actively defend myself.” Done with reading, I activate {Endure} to get a feel for the skill. A yellow-ish sheen covers me when I use the skill and I could feel myself getting denser, not enough to the point of weighing me down but still significantly heavier than before. Checking my stamina, I see that I haven't wasted a single point yet, so to experiment I leave {Endure} running while I check the final and most important notification.

  {Mana Bolt can be upgraded}

  {Upgrade Mana Bolt (Y/N)}

  “So skills can be upgraded at level 5, that's good to know, better start grinding my other skills then.” I clicked yes and the prompt expanded to a list of five options, each with their own little infobox.

  Seeing the expansive array of options in front of me, I take my time and read each one carefully to make sure I get the best choice. At first, each one seems fantastic in their own right but after reading more thoroughly I eliminate both {Mana Buckshot} and {Infused Mana Bolt} as potential options. The former is more likely to put me in danger as going off of my knowledge, a buckshot is rather inaccurate at long ranges and I don't feel comfortable fighting all my battles at close range ,while the latter requires me to use both stamina and mana to shoot, which is bad because the size of my current stamina pool is abysmally small.

  Discarding those options I take a closer look at the three remaining ones. “Eh wait I still have {Endure} running, don’t I?”. Quickly checking my stamina, I see it has dropped by one point. “So 1 stamina point for 1 minute of {Endure}, quite a good trade-off but I need to use this ability in actual battle to see its performance.” I turn off {Endure} and focus back on the skill choices. After some deliberation I discard {Greater Mana Bolt} as, even though it was a good overall upgrade, the line about increased mana cost warned me against picking it. Left with only two options, I weigh each skill's upside and downsides before finally coming to my decision.

  {Mana Bolt has been upgraded to Mana Spear}

  {Mana Spear: Lv 1}

  {Allows the user to charge and unleash a spear of potent mana to pierce their enemies. Size, potency, and damage of Mana Spear is determined by Intelligence and Arcane}

  {Hiding has risen to level 3}

  My reasoning for picking {Mana Spear} over {Arcane Screech} was quite simple. I just felt like {Mana Spear} was overall the stronger skill, while it could be said that {Arcane Screech} has more utility with the {Dazed} status effect, I couldn’t really see a way I could use that effectively as I am now. Don’t get me wrong I might use status effects later down the line but for now, all I need is solid reliable and cheap damage. Done with my skill upgrade, I check to see what the rats are doing.

  Almost all of them seem to be in various states of sleep with the Alpha in particular dozing off without a care in the world. I was about to also take a nap myself cause I still felt somewhat lethargic when a hint of something green caught my eye. “Now what could that be?” I slowly made my way over to the green thing, taking care not to disturb the crown of the tree lest I want to earn the ire of the sleeping rat pack. Once I was close enough I realized it was what had originally caught my attention in the first place before I was rudely interrupted by those bats. “Huh, I didn’t know saplings could grow fruit.” I naturally used {Identify} on it.

  {Identify has risen to level 4}

  {Ruinform Berry}

  {The crown jewel of the Ruinwood trees. These berries are extremely rare and highly sought after by Toxicologists, Hex Casters, and any one else with classes regarding poisons, toxins, and hexes. Born from a steady and continuous infusion of death mana and dark mana, these berries contain a unique poison that is more akin to curse than a toxin. Has many unknown uses, may grant certain benefits upon consumption}

  Seeing the fruit up close it certainly is a fantasy-looking fruit, It has an emerald green hue and looks like a cross between a durian and a lemon. I can almost see the intense amount of death and dark mana radiating from it, making me salivate in anticipation. I think for a moment or two if I should truly eat a sinister looking fruit because a single line in its status told me I might get benefits. But ultimately I say fuck it and resolve myself to eat it. “I need power and I need it now,upgrading my skills are good and all but I need a definitive edge against the other monsters here.”

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  Finished with my inner monologue, I carefully pluck the {Ruinform Berry} off the tree and put it on a sturdy branch before trying to bite chunks out of it. Annoyingly though, the berry’s skin is harder than it looks so at a loss for options, I just open my jaws wide and devour it whole. “Tastes kinda sour, I wonder how long it takes before the effects start showi” *Blurgh* “What the fuck was tha!” *Urgh* A piercing pain starts to form in my skull and with each second it gets worse and worse.

  It quickly transitions from a simple stinging sensation to a full force throb only to once more change into an ache of unimaginable torture. I grit my teeth to try and keep myself conscious but my actions are futile as the ache sends waves of agony across my entire bony body. The sting became so unbearable I had no choice but to deactivate {Float} and let my body fall on a sturdy branch. Using every ounce of {Willpower} I have, I do everything to keep myself awake but my struggling merely delays the inevitable. I could do nothing but await whatever fate befell me as my eyes rapidly fade to black.

  …………

  “EuaGughghg” Slowly but surely I regain my consciousness. My body still feels like shit but the pain is now greatly dulled. I slowly {Float} up and check my surroundings to make sure I'm not in any danger. Thankfully the rat pack was still sound asleep and I couldn’t see any new threats yet. “Okay, now what the FUCK was with that fruit.” I mentally grumbled. I inwardly cursed the fruit and its stupid misleading status. “May give benefits upon consumption, oh yeah we also forgot to tell you it feels like your guts are being boiled alive!” After several more curses at the insidious berry, I eventually calm down and checked on some notifications that had appeared when I was unconscious.

  {You have been inflicted with [Ruinous Bane]}

  {[Ruinous Bane] can not be resisted}

  {You have taken 3 magical damage}

  {WARNING! You are on critical health}

  {Congratulations, you have gained the [Rot-Touched] mutation}

  {Congratulations, you have gained the [Aura of Rot] skill}

  {Congratulations, you have gained the [Blight Body] skill}

  “Woah! Two new skills and a brand new mutation” I thought with glee. I was slightly petrified when I read the damage notifications and the ones about me being infected but luckily it all turned out A-okay. I’m relieved to find that my health has regenerated somewhat so I’m no longer close to death anymore. Unable to contain my excitement I quickly open my status screen only to get another surprise.

  “Holy hell, 20 arcane and 14 willpower!” I’m flabbergasted just looking at the absurd numbers. Wondering how my {Arcane} and {Willpower} increased so much, I pulled up my new mutation to read its effects.

  {Rot-Touched: You have experienced the true essence of Rot thus altering your very being, +10 Arcane, +5 Willpower, Grants the [Aura of Rot] and [Blight Body] skill}

  “Hehehehe, I take back everything I said about you Ruinform berry, you were the best thing to ever happen to me.” My mood is now sky-high and after my short bout of unconsciousness, I feel well rested and ready to take on the world. I open up my two new skills to see what they're effects are.

  {Aura of Rot: Lv 1}

  {Allows the user to project an aura of decay at a radius around their body, Range and damage of Aura of Rot is determined by Willpower and Arcane}

  {Blight Body: Lv 1}

  {Grants the user a small chance to inflict [Blight] with any physical attack, Chance of [Blight] infliction is determined by Intelligence and Arcane}

  I can definitely use {Aura of Rot} right now but {Blight Body} may be a bit tricky to fit into my fighting style. “I wish I had some test dummies to try these skills on” I mentally sighed. Just then, I remembered about the rat pack right under me, the rat pack currently sleeping and absolutely defenseless. “Muehehehe, this might just work.” I think while smiling a wicked grin.