Sora stood where he had paused before, receiving the familiar chime of a notification in his mind. A new class had been unlocked.
Class Unlocked: Mana Amplifier (Level 1)
The moment he read it, a surge of curiosity hit him. He knew every class came with its unique set of skills, and he had been waiting for this. His previous experience as a swordsman, combined with his newfound understanding of mana, would only be enhanced by this new class.
A second notification popped up.
[Skill Unlocked: Amplify]
Type: Buff
Description: Amplifies the target’s mana-based ability or physical action. The Mana Amplifier sacrifices their own mana to provide a boost, increasing the target’s effectiveness by using extra mana on their behalf. The amount of mana sacrificed scales with the amount of mana used by the buffed target. Mana is absorbed from the buffer after the buffed target uses their skill.
Sora read the description carefully, processing the details.
"Interesting," he thought, tapping his chin as he walked down the bustling streets of Córdoba. "I’ve seen this skill used before during raids. Some Amplifiers could work wonders, turning weak party members into powerhouses. Others though... didn’t know what they were doing, and the skill became useless."
He remembered the different ways players used the Mana Amplifier class. Some focused on self-buffing, channeling their skills inward to make themselves stronger. They relied on a delicate balance between boosting their abilities while conserving enough mana to keep fighting. Others, the more team-oriented Amplifiers, would channel their mana into the strongest member of the party, making one player ridiculously overpowered for a short time while conserving mana.
"And then there were the insane ones, the top-tier Amplifiers with massive mana pools and regeneration. Those were the ones that kept the whole raid alive," Sora mused, recalling the skilled players. "They could buff multiple people at once without breaking a sweat. Mana regeneration was always key for them. Otherwise, they’d be tapped out after a few minutes of buffs."
But then Sora smiled, realizing something crucial—[Amplify]wasn’t just a good skill for normal players. It was practically overpowered in his hands.
With his [Loved by Mana] trait, mana practically danced around him, always available and ready to help. His mana recovery was off the charts. For others, using [Amplify]meant carefully managing a finite resource. For Sora, it was a different story altogether.
"Just this one skill makes the class worth it for me," he muttered as he walked. His thoughts shifted to how he could amplify not just his allies, but also himself. The possibilities seemed endless.
Leaving the training center behind, Sora made his way towards the Auction House. With all the gold he had accumulated—nearly 345,000 gold—he was prepared to gear up for the next leg of his journey. He wasn’t planning to hold back now.
As he approached the massive, ornate Auction Hall, he thought back to how easily he could grind for gold with his HR Assistant job. But gold wasn’t his ultimate goal. What he wanted was raw power.
Inside, he quickly made his purchases. He bought five full sets of gear—one for levels 10, 20, 30, 40, and a final set for level 50. Although he was currently only level 29, he immediately equipped the level 20 gear. His training gear was also upgraded, which could be stacked on top of his regular armor.
Training gear was different from regular equipment; it allowed players to train their bodies and abilities while offering no stat boosts. For Sora, who had begun to see the limits of his old gear around level 25, the new gear would allow him to push his body harder and train more efficiently. Every upgrade would help him grow.
Once his armor and weapons were taken care of, he splurged on something only the wealthy could afford—[Monster radar]s.
"Amazing," he said, looking at his sword glowing faintly with the remaining traces of [Amplify] . "For me, this class is way more than it could ever be for others."
He hadn’t even used Mana Mirage Blade in this fight. One True Mana Strike, one Mana Sweep, and one Mana Pierce were enough to destroy level 35 monsters. As he leveled up, he was receiving less experience, even as the level difference rose.
"I could keep going like this for hours," Sora muttered, wiping the blade clean as he scanned the horizon for more monsters.
Having used six skills in a few minutes, his mana was already full again.
He continued hunting for several hours, systematically cutting down packs of monsters with ease. Every time he activated Amplify, he marveled at how effortlessly his mana replenished itself, allowing him to maintain a high output of power with no real downside.
As he leveled up, more skills would unlock, and the potential synergies between them would open up even more paths for him to explore.
By the end of the day, Sora had gained considerable experience, leveling his Mana Amplifier class, and unlocked his next skill: [Echo Strike]. He read the description as it popped up.
[Skill Unlocked: Echo Strike (Level 1)
Type: Offensive
Description: The Amplifier channels mana into their weapon to deal increased damage. The more allies the Amplifier has buffed, the more powerful the strike becomes.
Effect: +10% damage per ally who has one of your buffs.]
Sora’s lips curled into a smirk. "So, the more people I buff, the stronger my strike gets? Not bad at all."
The potential of Echo Strike immediately sparked ideas in his mind. He could already imagine being part of a full raid, buffing an entire team, and then channeling that amplified energy to land devastating blows. In a group setting, it could scale his power immensely. Echo Strike would turn him into a powerhouse, growing stronger the more people he supported. But... was it just useful for large parties?
"I need to test this." He looked ahead and spotted a wandering beast, an easy target to experiment on.
With a swift movement, Sora activated Echo Strike and channeled his mana into his weapon, driving it into the monster. The strike landed solidly, but as he expected, its impact was relatively underwhelming. At its base level, [Echo Strike] was on par with a beginner Swordsman’s [Sword Strike}, and much weaker compared to his [True Mana Strike]. Still, he analyzed it critically. It was only level 1, after all.
"Alright," Sora muttered as the monster fell, "this might be weak now, but if I buffed even just a few people... What if I buffed ten players? That would double its strength."
He tapped his sword thoughtfully. "Sure, it’s not going to match my strongest skill yet, but in a group setting, this could stack up pretty nicely." The possibilities unfolded in his mind. With each ally he amplified, Echo Strike would become exponentially stronger, potentially turning into one of his most powerful attacks during large-scale battles.
For now, he noted its potential. It wasn’t about the immediate impact—it was about what it could become.
"Yeah, this one has promise." Sora’s excitement grew as he moved on, eager to see how much more he could push his new skills.