The night came alive in a way Morgan had never imagined. He had a much stronger sense of smell. He was picking up subtle smells from the air. The smell of the water in the river, the rich smell of the forest floor. It was intoxicating, but he could also dissect the odors and recognize small things in them. He could smell a dying fish in the river 50 feet away. He knew there was a deer upwind somewhere. Unfortunately, this also made him aware of how he smelt. This was most likely how the worg had known he was coming.

  Morgan spent the rest of the night chasing monsters. He closed three more rifts, and he hit level 11 and was 54% to level 12. For his level, he chose from the following skills.

  ::Uncommon - Sixth Sense - When activated, allows you to sense nearby hostile entities::

  ::Rare - Bulwark - You can harden anything you touch, making it impervious to damage for a short time.::

  She answered sadly.

  ::Skill Granted - Bulwark::

  For his one rift skill, he chose from.

  ::Epic - Blade Storm - You attack all nearby enemies multiple times - uses 15% of stamina::

  ::Rare - Mana Boost - Increases your mana pool by 33%::

  He asked.

  ::Skill Granted - Blade Storm::

  He received one ability point for leveling and two for closing rifts.

  ::Your current attributes are Str - 14, Dex - 19, Con - 13, Wis - 11, Int - 11.::

  ::Your current attributes are Str - 16, Dex - 20, Con - 13, Wis - 13, Int - 11.::

  The 20% increase in his strength made him feel a rush. It was almost as if his body swelled for a moment. To test out his new attributes, he spent a few moments doing handstands, handstand pushups, and backflips. He felt superhuman. He had never been much of a gym rat. He didn’t even know his bench press weight, or whatever they called it. If he had been able to lift 200 pounds before, he could now lift over 300. It boggled his mind.

  If this is how it feels now, how will I feel in 30 more levels?

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  Sophia said hesitantly.

  Sophia continued, only pausing for a second.

  A large web of circular nodes filled his vision, and then zoomed in to a section that showed multiple sizes and colors of nodes all interconnected by crisscrossing lines.

  Sophia explained.

  Sophia said timidly.

  Sophia trailed off.

  She replied confidently.

  Morgan thought, standing and stretching his back with a feline grace.

  Morgan asked sheepishly, turning slowly, realizing he was lost. Sophia did not respond, but a simple white house icon appeared, nestled in the small lines at the top of his vision.

  As he bounded through the forest, testing the limits of his acrobatics, he turned the trees into his own personal trapeze. Once he hit the city limits, he used his leap skill to bound onto rooftops and effortlessly sailed across the blocks on the way back. The run was relaxing, but the arrow that pointed toward the trolls was larger than it had been when he started. That was not good.

  He could smell a moldy and fetid scent like clothes left in the washing machine too long. That must be the troll scent. They were moving toward the Academy, but how far away? The scent was floating in the air, so it didn’t help.

  He became conscious of his own scent again. 900 meters was a long way to be able to smell something. If they were upwind, something could know they were coming and set up an ambush like the worgs had.

  She chortled,

  He checked his little wallet at the bottom of his vision. 751CT, 72UT, and 18RT. He would still need some epic tokens to craft the interface for his cores. Next phase, he only had four days to get to level 20, and prepare for the elites and champions Sophia had warned them of.

  As he leapt over the wall of the Academy, landing noiselessly on the other side, he could hear the sound of the survivors waking. The scents of fresh bread, coffee, bacon, sausage, and eggs being cooked made his stomach rumble noisily. He could tell there was banana bread and cornbread, as well as oatmeal, being prepared. This new smell ability was great. However, he could also smell the unwashed bodies of people, the smells of burnt hair and flesh from the pyres, and the stench of blood that had seeped into the ground. Not everything is roses and rainbows.