(A/N: here we go, info dump. You can skip the details if you don't want to think that much about the system and only focus on the plot.)
Nathan slowly relaxed in a luxury tub filled with hot water and enjoyed the warmth against his skin.
The bathwater was heated by a magical element, which allowed the water to be hotter than normal.
Nathan loved the feeling of the heat against his body. He also enjoyed the smell of the steam rising from the surface.
The tub had an advanced feature, allowing the user to control the temperature of the water by voice and an even more amazing effect which was to restore someone's Stamina and Mana faster.
He watched as Luna floated above his head, but then the girl sank down until she was floating on the water beside him with just her head out from the surface.
"What do you think, Master?" She asked, "Are you ready to start the upgrade process?"
"I think I'm ready." He grinned brightly before turning towards the door, which opened itself silently.
A black wolf stepped through first, followed by Polly. They looked around inside the large room when they entered.
Nathan ignored them. He was used to whatever the two beasts usually did around him.
"Okay, Luna. Let's check the last notification from the system."
"Alright...." she answered.
[Congratulations, the tier 2 skill has been unlocked.]
[You can create skills with more significant potential than before.]
[The influence of the blessing of the sloth has brought upgrades to the system]
[The rewards of class quests will be highly increased and enhanced]
"I'm glad to hear that, Master."
He closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "I think you're right. I'm really curious about what kind of upgrade it would bring to my quests?" He asked quietly. He didn't want Polly or Fang to hear any of this conversation.
Luna nodded and smiled. "Then maybe we can start by checking your class quest?"
"Okay, then. Skill creation route quests." He muttered.
[Skill Creation Route Quests]
[Barbarian Champion 2/10]
[...]
[Solo Kill 5 Elite Monsters]
[Progress: 3/5]
[Rewards:]
[70,000 Skill Points]
[1 Skill Slot]
[Bonus Rewards:]
[Barbarian Skill Tier 2 - Bloodlust Empowerment]
"Now I feel like I can't complain about the quest rewards. I feel like I've become a monster hunter now. Hahaha, I am quite happy about this." He chuckled.
"It's really good, Master. I'm impressed with how fast you advanced."
"Previously, I thought that killing 2 elite monsters at my level was absolutely impossible, and now this quest asks me to kill 5. I should say something like, 'This is so awesome' but instead I'm going to just go with an 'Okay.' But I can't complain if the quest rewards me with a free skill, and I think this one is a good one." Nathan whispered with a grin. He turned back to the door while saying that last sentence, noticing Polly staring at him in confusion. She looked away immediately after he caught her eye, though.
Luna nodded, "You did great on the previous route quest too!"
"That was only creating two skills related to the class, Luna. You praised me too much there..." He said, smiling wryly.
"Well... I still feel you deserve more praise than that, Master." Luna giggled happily and then continued. "Let's continue?" she asked curiously.
"Sure," He nodded.
[Treasure Hunter 2/10]
[..]
[Own 2 Elite Artifacts]
[Progress: 1/2]
[Rewards:]
[70,000 Skill Points]
[1 Skill Slot]
[Bonus Rewards:]
[1 Tier 1 - Skill Remover Token]
[2 Tier 1 - Skill Upgrader Token]
[1 Tier 2 - Skill Combine Tokens]
"There you go, Master. This one is a lot easier than the last one."
He couldn't help but chuckle. "Now this is exciting. It's a great reward, and it will definitely help me advance faster and create stronger spells in the future. What do you think, Luna?" The AI girl grinned at him before nodding enthusiastically. "But why do I only have 1 Elite Artifact? I remember having more than one cool artifact, and I don't remember about this kind of grade on the artifact before. Am I missing something?" Nathan muttered quietly to himself, looking confused.
"Not really, Master. Actually, the system will be upgraded according to the tier of the user. I mean, this is something that is natural for most people. The higher one's tier, the more things they could do. Why don't you check the information on your artifacts?" Luna explained patiently.
He blinked a few times and then turned back to Luna. "Ah! Okay, it makes sense now." He replied while smiling broadly again. "Let me check my battle gear."
[Cloak of Wisdom]
[Grade: ???]
[Durability: 85/100]
[...]
[Misfortune Cursed Sword]
[Grade: ???]
[Durability: 35/100]
[...]
[The Sword of Disidia (Growth Type)]
[Grade: Elite]
[Durability: 19/100]
[...]
"Okay, these are interesting as well," Nathan said, turning back to Luna and smiling widely when he saw her eyes shining at him. "It looks like all three have newly added information, grade, and durability. And why do the two of them have an unidentified grade? And even the sword Disidia is only at an elite grade?" He asked curiously.
"This is normal, too. The sword is a growth type, which means it can grow. You need to unlock its potential to increase its grade." She answered in a matter-of-fact tone.
He looked away from her, frowning lightly. "But, do you have any explanation why the other two don't have a grade, Luna?"
Luna hovered above his head with curiosity in her eyes, but she didn't answer him. Instead, she turned around to face Polly, who was standing next to Nathan, "Well." She chuckled. "That would be sad for me, because I don't have an answer for your question, Master."
"Okay, then I think getting a new artifact with the Elite grade won't be too difficult. I just need to come to the auction and buy them. The reward from this quest is also very tempting!" He laughed loudly while pointing towards the list of rewards on top of the interface.
"I have a few questions about this skill token thing. For the upgrade, for example, wouldn't it be better for me to use this token for a high tier skill? I would get a huge amount of skill point savings?"
Luna immediately shook her head, "No, if you use the remover skill, the slot used will be returned to you. As well as the combined skill. Of course, if you upgrade a skill, you also have to pay for the required skill points." She chuckled. "This token only gives you the freedom to upgrade your low tier skills that have very high potential to the higher one."
Nathan sighed, "That's fine, so what about the next quest?"
Luna pointed down to the list of tasks on the screen, where there were many more detailed explanations.
[Beast Tamer 2/10]
[...]
[Tame 1 Elite Spirit Beasts]
[Progress: 1/1]
[Rewards:]
[70,000 Skill Points]
[1 Skill Slot]
[Bonus Rewards:]
[1 Rare Spirit Beast Upgrader Token]
[Claim Reward]
He was happy that there was actually a quest that he didn't realize he had successfully completed. "Okay, claim the reward."
[_]
[Congratulations, the 2nd Beast Tamer Route Quest Cleared]
[You've got a reward of 70,000 Skill Points]
[You've got a reward of 1 New Skill Slot]
[You've got a reward of 1 Rare Spirit Beast Upgrader Token]
Nathan felt a sudden burst of happiness and joy and grinned broadly.
"This is great news," Nathan muttered and grinned. He looked at Luna and asked again with an excited voice. "Luna... So that means I can upgrade Geen to Elite grade?!" He asked curiously.
Luna smiled at his excitement. "Yes, Master." She answered while nodding. "I think you could consider it as good as done." She said cheerfully. "Geen would be happy to hear this, too."
He grinned again. "Okay, let's see what other quests we can do after this." He replied in a hushed whisper. "It feels weird talking like this when we are not alone anymore." He frowned slightly and then added quietly, so the two beasts couldn't hear him.
"My beloved Polly and Fang, why don't you go out for some fresh air and come back soon?" He whispered as he waved them away, feeling bad about making everyone leave after such a long session of being together in private. They all left the room silently before they closed the door behind them.
[Flame Sword Warrior 2/5]
[...]
[Kill 100 Monsters (the same tier) using Fire Element]
[Progress: 35/100]
[Rewards:]
[70,000 Skill Points]
[1 Skill Slot]
[Bonus Rewards:]
[1 Fire Element Enhancement Token]
Nathan's eyes widened at the reward listed on the interface. "Now, what is this element enhancement token? What does it do?" Nathan asked curiously.
"It will enhance your element, and further unlock an advanced element of your current basic element, Master." Luna explained. "This should help increase the strength of your spells."
He nodded. "Alright, that sounds like something I want. This thing is so important that I need to find time to upgrade my skills first." He said excitedly.
He took a deep breath and continued, "I'll kill a hundred monsters at tier 2, each with a fire element attack or a spell that has a fire element in it." He decided while moving his hands across the interface with newfound enthusiasm.
Luna smiled at his excitement. "I think it would be good for you to try it out." She said cheerfully.
He looked at her in surprise. "Of course, but not so soon. I'll be busy for a while with the preparation for CEHA."
"Do you mean lazy?" Luna asked.
"I am very good at holding back this laziness, I've done it for weeks now, you know, Luna?" He replied with a serious face.
Luna just smiled broadly in response to Nathan's words.
"Okay, next quest." he continued.
[Dimensional Traveler 1/10]
[...]
[Visit 3 Worlds]
[Progress: 2/3]
[Rewards:]
[70,000 Skill Points]
[1 Skill Slot]
[Bonus Rewards:]
[Low Affinity of Ancient Spatial Element]
"Now, this is the most interesting one. How have I visited two worlds in my life?" He murmured thoughtfully to himself.
He turned to Luna. "Can you please give me a reasonable explanation for this, Luna? You know more than anyone else in this world." He asked.
Luna smiled happily and then nodded.