Her Determination

…

The next day they woke bright and early, ready to repeat the process. Tokko’s body still ached and her arms trembled with fatigue, but she powered through, clinging to the goal of earning the targeted skill and securing a class advancement that would finally please Joseph.

Unfortunately, whether through lack of talent or sheer bad luck, the entire day ended with only a single new skill earned—and not one additional class option added to her list.

…

On the third morning of hunting, she felt worse than before. Her body was heavy, her movements sluggish, her head fogged, and her eyes unfocused. She lingered in bed too long before forcing herself upright to get ready.

No matter how much she hurt, she knew what was expected of her—and she would not betray that. She worked through Joseph’s mandated morning stretches, her face tightening with each pained movement, shaping the grimace into something that might pass for determination.

Joseph read the strain behind her façade, but his desire for results—and to test his theories on extreme growth through exhaustion, stress, and desperation—outweighed concern for her state.

He told himself that unless she faced a fatal strike, he would not step in with a barrier. For now, he would watch, take notes, and let her fight for survival.

Tokko faced four Blubberhides, their name given by Han. Stubby, fat creatures standing just under two meters, weighed down by folds of grey skin that shifted with each strike.

Blubber and loose flesh absorbed shallow slashes and spread out the force of light stabs, making them nearly useless unless she drove her spear deep enough to stretch the flesh taut.

Their swings were slow, but the crushing weight behind them made every blow dangerous. Long arms turned clubs into hammers, and more than once the beasts aimed low—snapping at her legs or stomping down with surprising accuracy, knowing that pinning her movement would end the fight instantly.

The battle dragged on for over an hour. Tokko’s dodges became ragged, surviving by hairsbreadths as heavy clubs tore through the air close enough to distort it.

Her face was plastered with dirt and bloodied sweat, her body trembling, while the Blubberhides bore only shallow cuts across their folds of flesh.

Joseph kept watching from above, hoping she might experience some sudden breakthrough—an awakening moment straight from stories and movies. But reality was harsher. Her body was too weak, her mind too frayed. That moment never came.

Both sides were eventually running on fumes. Two of the Blubberhides had collapsed—one dead, the other unconscious, as their bone-dry, thick skin prevented them from sweating.

The last two pressed forward with their remaining strength. Tokko, at one point stumbled over her own legs, and the monsters charged with feverish eyes looking to end it.

Joseph waited until the very last moment, saw no sign of change, then snapped a water barrier into place around her. Heavy clubs smashed into the warped sphere and rebounded, the monsters staggering back a few steps before collapsing into wheezing heaps.

With a gesture, Joseph raised a concrete wall around the four exhausted creatures. He descended with water, food, and medicine in hand, crouching beside Tokko. She kept her eyes down, unable to meet his.

“You did good,” he said. His tone was even, steady. “I’m proud of the performance you gave.”

Her throat tightened at the words. Emotion welled up, but she swallowed it back, forcing herself upright with new energy as she devoured food and drink. Joseph pressed medicinal paste into her scrapes—she didn’t flinch once.

He met her eyes, steady and intent. “Think you’re up for round two after a bit of rest?”

She nodded sharply. No hesitation.

With a trace of spirit energy, he reinvigorated her body—not healing, but giving a sharp jolt of vitality, like adrenaline, a new trick he picked up over the last few days of testing.

Returning to the tree line, face void of expression, he recorded notes as the blubberhides emerged from the walled-off area.

Disappointment tugged at him, followed by acceptance as the stalemate match continued. His words hadn’t sparked a dramatic surge of power, but at least she kept moving forward. ‘Novels really like to exaggerate how spontaneous growth, words of encouragement causing extreme effects, and all that happen, don’t they.’

Eventually, through sheer attrition, the Blubberhides collapsed from exhaustion. Tokko, drenched in blood and sweat, used her full body weight to drive her spear into their chests one by one.

Even if she hadn’t been the one to weaken them, she had still claimed three kills herself. Joseph wasn’t sure if experience carried over while delaying class advancement—but it was another experiment added to the pile.

He let her rest while he skinned the creatures. Their rubbery hides were five centimeters thick, with a spongy underlayer that reeked worse than death. Hours passed before he carved the skins free, leaving the corpses for scavengers.

By then, Tokko could barely stand. Joseph carried her back, put her straight to bed, and went out alone—hunting, experimenting, and attempting once more to summon a spirit worth keeping.

Name: Joseph

Class: Lesser Elemental Spirit Ranger [C+] (+3 Dexterity, +3 Agility, +4 Magic, +5 Spirit, +3 Wisdom)

Title: Survivor of the Unsurvivable, One Who Consumes Enemies Hearts

Level: 25 > 26

Vitality: 10
Strength: 20
Dexterity: 68 > 71
Agility: 68 > 71
Magic: 67 > 72
Spirit: 67 > 72
Wisdom: 0 > 7

Available Stat Points: 5 > 0

Active Skills: Channel Spirits(C), Spirit Sight(D), Magic-Spirit Communion(D), Condensed Fireball(E), Concrete Creation(D), Bursting Shot(D), Piercing Shot(D), Mana-Spirit Shockwave(E), Rippling Water Barrier(D), Electrostatic Discharge(D), Shadowmancy(E), Magic Echolocation(E), Spirit Sense(C), Lesser Spirit Summon(C), Contract Spirit(C), Mana Sense(C), Adaptive Film(C)

Passive Skills: Survivor(C), Spirit’s Affection(D), Exploit Weak Point(D), Mana Control(C), Concealed Presence(C), Silent Steps(C), Focused Hearing(C), Guardian(E), Structure Master(E), Sixth Sense(E), One with Nature(E), Analysis(E), Focus(E), Commune Spirits(C), Elemental Affinity(C), Control Elements(C)

The slowdown was impossible to ignore. While the last few days, were spent with Tokko, before that he had managed to painstakingly upgrade many of his skills stuck at E to D, today however, the results were even more than lackluster.

Hours of hunting and skill training had given him only small gains: two F-rank passives promoted to E, and a single level. Growth was clearly slowing, whether because of his level, the number of skills, or both compounding their effects together, he didn’t know.

Either or, it made him worried as he noted it down and reconsidered his priorities.

…

The following day, they found another Blubberhide patrol. This time, Tokko had a plan, one she had spent the whole morning constructing. She fought differently—attacking where skin stretched tight, layering shallow cuts to strip the layers of skin and fat away, and hacking at their feet to trip them.

The difference was staggering. She didn’t panic. She adapted, kept moving, and exploited their weakness. Slowly but surely, she drove them into exhaustion and collapse, much before her own. When it was over, she stood with bloodied spear and heavy breaths, triumphant.

Her eyes sparkled as she searched for Joseph, but he was nowhere in sight. Disappointment flickered, then hardened into determination. She gripped her spear tighter, convinced it still wasn’t enough.

Looking down, hidden he smiled. ‘Good, that fire inside her still has room to grow.’

That evening, after more battles and more hides skinned, Tokko nearly collapsed again. Joseph guided her home, using the trek to drill strategy and self-evaluation into her.

At the top of the hill, overlooking the sunset, he finally asked, “Stats change? Any new skills?”

Tokko looked guilty, then opened her status. “…I got some increases. Nothing new.”

Slightly surprised, he could only sigh it off as bad luck. “That’s fine. Fundamentals matter more. Don’t worry about it.”

But then her pupils dilated. Her breathing spiked. She snapped her gaze to him with wide, panicked eyes.

“I… a… class…”