Sid POV

  Sid took a moment to gather his thoughts, his gaze fixed on Rohan. He could feel Varun’s stare from the side, sharp and impatient, but he forced himself to finish the thought properly before responding. “I value my life over someone I don’t know.” He glanced at his two remaining teammates before proceeding, keeping his tone steady. “That one stat point could be the difference between life and death for me.”

  Varun’s jaw tightened, a vein standing out near his temple as his eyes narrowed. “You were always talking about running back to camp,” he said. “Didn’t even help collect the crystals and now you want to give away your share.” He emphasized the last word, dragging it out in a mocking tone.

  Rohan had been instrumental in pulling off the raid on the Matriarch’s lair, first as a light source when visibility was almost nonexistent, and then with the scaffolding that allowed them to enter the cavern safely.

  Sid could see that Varun was upset, more than he was himself. However, that didn’t mean Varun could brush off Rohan’s contributions. Sid couldn’t allow that to stand. If he did, it would signal that effort only mattered when it came from the loudest voice.

  “Could you take on an army alone?” Rohan had his gaze fixed on Varun. His tone was calm despite the aggression directed his way. Then, he shifted towards Sid, eyes steady. “Could you?”

  The question lingered. Rohan took a slow breath before resuming. “The only way we can deal with the goblin army is if we have more people on our side.” His voice did not rise. It did not push. It simply stated a conclusion.

  Rohan turned to Pallavi next. “Don’t let the actions of a few people affect your judgment of everyone at the camp.” He straightened his back as he spoke, a quiet confidence settling into his posture. “Long term, we’ll be better off having more skilled people than a few high leveled individuals.”

  Sid sighed quietly. That was conventional wisdom talking. Strength in numbers. A concept that stayed relevant in the new world because of inertia, people clinging to ideas that had once kept them alive. The world at large had only realized the paradigm shift when they finally saw someone capable of destroying cities single-handedly. Like every new lesson on power, we learned it at a terrible cost.

  “If Sid absorbs five crystals for five levels, he’d gain two, maybe, three stats.” Rohan’s voice had an even cadence, mirroring the way Sid spoke when he explained things under pressure. Rohan glanced at Varun, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. “If we give those crystals to five others, they’d gain at least five stat points each, besides the skill. Isn’t that a better trade overall?”

  If Varun noticed Rohan’s attempt at finding common ground through optimization logic, he didn’t show it. Sid found that surprising. Rohan usually challenged Varun’s fixation on numbers, pointing out the gaps it created due to ignoring real-world constraints.

  “Why do we have to fight the army?” Varun’s tone was much more mellow now, the sharp edge worn down. “We could just run away from tough battles.”

  Sid watched the shift closely. Rohan had found a way to de-escalate things with Varun using something Varun respected. Cold, hard logic. Using authority or emotion would’ve made the situation worse. Sid was glad Rohan had realized it on his own, if only because it made Sid’s role in the conversation easier.

  “We need more people if we ever fight that army,” said Sid, matching Rohan’s tone. “There’s no way the four of us could take them out alone.”

  “However, I’d rather give out skills once we are strong enough to defend ourselves.” Sid noticed the confusion flicker across Rohan’s face and continued without giving him time to interrupt. “You saw how fast the camp turned on us after the two deaths, how little support we had there, how I had to threaten Aditi for her to heal Varun.”

  “Most of them were mad because we kept all the weapons and the skill crystals,” mumbled Rohan. There was no conviction in his words. His eyes dropped to the cavern floor, shoulders hunched.

  “Exactly,” said Sid. “I’d rather not reward such behavior.” He paused and looked at each of his teammates for a beat, making sure they were listening. “If anyone want these skills for yourself, I’ll give them up. Otherwise, I’m taking it all.”

  Sid didn’t think there was anything unfair in his actions. The memory of recent fights surfaced unbidden. He couldn’t claim any skills, even if he wanted to, and had surrendered all crystals to his teammates. He refused to compromise now just to make Rohan feel better.

  “Yeah.” Varun couldn’t resist taking one last shot at Rohan. “If you want to give away skills, do it with your Mana Web. Don’t tell the rest of us what to do with ours.”

  Rohan gave a short laugh, shaking his head. “I was going to do that. I don’t see any benefit other than watching some numbers tick up in my status.”

  Sid clenched his jaw. He knew better. Every stat point was important in its own way. The effect of intelligence might not be as apparent as strength or even agility. But only a fool would disregard the importance of a single stat point, let alone skill levels, which were directly tied to your Tier.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  With his guidance, Varun—and perhaps Pallavi—could realistically evolve a skill to Tier 2 before entering the hidden realm without using skill crystals.

  Rohan lacked the aptitude and attitude to achieve the same. He burned out quickly when improvement slowed and lacked the stubborn endurance Pallavi showed every time she failed and tried again.

  Sid had planned around that weakness. Skill crystals to push his level to fifty, then a controlled combination to form a rare rank skill. It wouldn’t be optimal, but would be effective.

  Now Rohan had rejected that future himself, guided by principles rather than outcomes. Sid doubted he could convince him otherwise.

  “That’s about half of our total stash of uncommon skills.” Varun pointed to the largest pile of crystals, shock plain in his voice. “You can’t give away that many skills.”

  Varun’s eyes found Sid, searching for support.

  “Do you guys want Mana Web for yourselves?” There was a competitive glint in Rohan’s eyes as he looked at Varun and then at Sid. “If not, I’ll take them all.” Sid noticed Varun’s lips part, then press together again. His jaw flexed as he worked through responses he clearly decided against. His face flushed deeper with every passing second.

  Rohan had turned their own arguments against them. This line of discussion was no longer productive. It was time to cut their losses before Varun said something he could not take back.

  “Sure, let’s give those skills away,” Sid said. His words made Varun snap his head toward him in surprise. “But we as a team will decide who gets them.”

  Although Sid phrased it that way to avoid sounding arrogant, it was mostly going to be his decision. He was confident that Varun and Pallavi would go along with his judgment, even if they disagreed initially.

  “You can’t give all eight skills to one person.” Rohan’s eyes widened, his posture straightening as realization struck him. “That defeats the purpose. I want to raise the overall combat power of the camp.”

  Sid followed Rohan’s line of thought without difficulty. He was probably picturing Naga absorbing every skill crystal. That idea never even crossed Sid’s mind. Skill crystals were currency in this new world, and eight uncommon skills represented a fortune at this stage. Sid intended to spend that fortune to get the maximum return.

  “That’s fine by me,” Sid said, before turning his gaze toward Pallavi. “Anything you’d prefer?” He gestured toward the arrangement of skills laid out between them.

  Rohan’s proposal had already caused friction. Sid wanted to move the distribution forward before the discussion spiraled again.

  Pallavi reached forward and lifted one of the uncommon skills. “What do you think Chitin Reinforcement will do?” She hesitated before saying the name, eyes unfocused as she read the system message.

  “Will it change my face?” There was a trace of fear in her voice. “Like that guy who threatened us before we left camp.”

  Sid thought back to Tony and his boar tusks. A classic case of incompatible absorption. Everyone at camp treated it like a permanent curse, but Sid knew better. Using an under-leveled incompatible skill as a supplementary component during evolution usually resolved the side effects.

  “Does the skill message say incompatible?” Sid pointed at the crystal in Pallavi’s hand. His gaze swept across the remaining skills. “Do we have any incompatible skill crystals here?”

  He already knew the answer. None of them were. Still, he needed to maintain appearances. That was the question anyone without future knowledge would ask under these circumstances.

  Sid leaned forward and began checking the nearest crystals, turning them slowly as if searching for warnings he knew were not there.

  “I didn’t take any incompatible crystals,” said Varun, a small smile tugging at his lips. “There were even a couple of uncommon skills I had to throw away.”

  Humanity had learned to value function over form long before the world changed, and that mindset had carried over into skills. As people adapted, the stigma around physical alterations caused by incompatible skills weakened. There were even some incompatible skills which people, especially men, actively sought and bought for exorbitant amounts of money.

  “I think it’d work like George’s Bark Skin.” Sid dropped the crystal in his hand and leaned back against the ravine wall. “It’ll trigger once you are attacked.”

  “Or your hands might become claws.” Varun sent a sideways glance at Pallavi with a teasing smile. The moment his eyes met Rohan’s, the grin vanished, replaced by a more guarded expression.

  “Are you taking that?” Rohan asked, his tone neutral. Sid could tell he was trying to redirect the group away from the friction that still lingered beneath the surface.

  Pallavi looked at Sid and held his gaze, waiting. She did not rush the decision, nor did she look at the others. She was asking for his judgment without saying it out loud.

  Pallavi was an assertive person. She spoke clearly and stood by her decisions. For skill development, though, she valued input, especially Sid’s. Even Sid wasn’t sure why she trusted him that much.

  “It’d work well with your current skill set.” Sid kept his tone light. “You’re our frontline fighter. We can’t go wrong by improving your defence.”

  Pallavi’s existing skills enhanced her agility and strength. Chitin Reinforcement would add endurance, balancing her build. Sid’s thoughts moved ahead to evolution paths and supplementary skills, already planning the next steps.

  Pallavi nodded and absorbed the skill without waiting. Light flared around her, scattering motes across the ravine floor. Rohan and Varun leaned in, eyes wide, waiting to see if anything would go wrong.

  The glow faded within seconds. Pallavi ran her hands over her head, then along her face, checking for unfamiliar shapes or textures. She let out a relieved sigh.

  “Your fingers?” Varun pointed at Pallavi, one hand flying up to cover his mouth. The shock in his voice was obvious.

  Pallavi lowered her hands and examined her palms and nails, her brows knitting together. She shot Varun a glare that promised retaliation.

  Varun grinned back at her, unrepentant.

  “Let’s move on, guys,” Sid said. “Varun, what skill do you want to pick?”

  Varun’s gaze locked onto Sid, the humor draining from his expression. “I think evolving Tier 0 skills is better than absorbing a Tier 1 skill. What do you think?”