A Loser

I wake up in the morning. I can't get enough of that feeling. "I'm a winner at life. This is my isekai where not only I'm golden, but about to enjoy the benefits of my MMO experience in an MMO world".

I brush my teeth half dressed, put on my shirt and shoes. I get outside and lock the door. The dorms are big, yet not crowded. My neighbors are either staff or students. Everyone gets their own room.

-"Hey Rune! Are you excited?" a kid from class asks.

"You bet!" I reply.

-"You kids are second year? Remember to think well before you allocate your stats heh?" says the janitor.

"Trust me, I'm confident with my choice". I reply with more confidence than I remember ever having.

The classmate joins my route. "Rune, what did you mean? Do you have any plans to allocate points differently from the recommendations?" he asks, stressed.

"I won't recommend this as I would generally agree with the school's guidelines, but I might strive for more area of expertise in the future so I wouldn't want my stats to only benefit one skill tree".

-"Woow, you actually think about things like that?! That's amazing Rune!" he replies sincerly.

"Thanks, but that would require further hard work in the future to balance this choice. Any damage I would lack in dagger because of stats, I will have to make up for in skill points, and personal skills. It's only through all-around skill and effort that I could afford losing a bit of "young damage" from the begining of the daggery path".

He looks impressed but also like he lost me. We reach the university. We enter the class and take our sits. I instinctively look to my side, almost waiting for Luna. This happens often.

"Young students, most of you have turned 15. Today we shall go outside and allocate stats as well as some skill points. Keep it sharp and good luck to everybody!" the teacher says as she seems exited as well.

Most of the students seem to immediately raise it all in Dexterity or at least most, while some chose getting some points in strengh as well. "I'd say it's not a bad choice", as my initial thought, but mostly I belittle their lack of creativity. I raise everything in Strength, aware that it will hurt the general dagger build, but provid better options in the future. That, by itself isn't that creative yet, but it's a start.

Everyone has around 15 in each stat available. They taught us that each year you get a stat point to allocate but also a 1 raise in all stats automatically. This means everyone who didn't start with 15 in all stats just hasn't turned 15 yet and started from 14 in all stats. That doesn't matter at all of course since they will just get "buffed" in a few days, weeks or months.

The thing about skill points is, you shouldn't allocate them without thinking, but you shouldn't be too scared either. I lived my whole life in my last world being too scared to even attempt starting it, until it actually ended. Thinking about it like that, if there is something I'm already good at, raising some skill points in it should be relatively safe.

I look at the skill trees and there are main ones for each profession and some that are more passsive and benefit all. These are where my attention goes to immediately. My mother, "Nana of the battleaxe", has mastered that weapon in swordsmenship school. It would make sense she has a lot of points allocated in both the tree of the weapon itself, and also in the general "swordsmenship" tree that contains a variety of buffs for close combat. I should keep this in mind while seeing where I could probably outdo her while relying on some skills that are relevant to general physical enhancements outside of these main builds' area.

"Now, go explore a bit in the forest, you have 3 hours. Most of the monsters in that forest aren't that dangerous, but try to be careful anyway", the teacher says.

I see some kids trying to form parties and think up strategies and builds. "It's almost unfair to them", I think to myself, as I literally have 90 years of experience to outdo them, at the very least, before reaching anywhere close to my mother, the OP.

We enter the forest and explore different paths. Mostly, each individual or party on their own. I peek while standing behind a bush. I see it. The second most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life. A cute little slime.

"Ohhh.... It's a slime! For so many years I started different journeys with you! My long lost Rival, NAY, partner! Oh you little precious thing..." I get overwhelmed by that mighty, slimey pressence.

"Oh no... Now I kindda want to let it live, I love the damn thing too much" I realize. "Well, I shall respect all our adventures up to now by challenging you directly!" I declare out loud.

I strike the slime with a swift blow from my dagger after only allocating 1 skill point in daggery. I deal massive damage in the first strike, but MISS the damage with the second one. "So everything I lack in the balance of dexterity, I reap with the damage of the strikes that properly hit. It will therefore be really advantageous to have gear that benefits daggery, and in the future change gear to compliment what I'm trying to achieve at the time", I think to myself, completing my own thesis of how to be the strongest, as a leader should be.

-"Hey Rune!" one of the kids from class notices me and tries to get my attention. The slime tries to run away at this chance. I quickly turn to the slime and throw a tracker item on it. It's effect works instantly. This is a relatively rare item drop that is considered kind of useless despite it's rarity so it is sold in shops for cheap. I bought it in advance knowing I have plenty of pocket money from my possibly celebrity parents.

"It is not over old friend" I say quitely and turn to my classmate. "What's up?" I ask.

-"Tai and his party said they found a world quest that grants a secret skill tree! That's kindda epic but not one of them dared trying it. It seems it was right around where you are heading so I thoguht I'd give you a shout. Hell, you might actually be able to get it since it's you".

My eyes shine with the overflowing lust for that unrivaled potential. "Thanks a bunch! I guess I will". I go ahead and encounter an astonishingly large tree. As I approach it, a quest appears before me. "World Quest: Are you prepared to take the path of exile? YES/NO".

I smile with unrivaled confidence and choose "YES". I notice my skill trees LOCK as the huge tree in front of me transforms into a boss mob. I realize I didn't allocate any more skill points but I'm confident nonetheless. The battle starts and with my natural and well trained agility, I dodge almost all of it's branches waving in the air, targeting me from afar. Most of my hits are rendered a MISS because of my lack of Dexterity stat, but the hits that manage to apply damage - hit big. I dance with that thing for a while until I hit the last hit and it falls down, disappearing.

I pick up a wooden dagger that it dropped with seemingly better stats than my "beginer's dagger" as well as a card. As I pick that card up, my skills get a new tree path but the rest of them stay locked. The quest is marked as completed and I see that most of the skills on that tree are labeled with a question mark on them instead of an explanation. The only one available to raise is the first one, so I do, and it says: "Conversion - Convert all basic damage to critical chance".

I get slightly confused. Then, I notice the slime from before. The tracker is working. I quickly stab it and it only deals 1 damage.

I panic.

I open my skills. The one above is still locked with the rest. A skill to the side of the one I raised got unlocked. "Double critical damage". I feel so relieved, and I raise that skill. It's max level is 1, just like the first.

I quickly charge at the slime and manage to hit a critical hit. It only deals 2 damage.

No... This can't be happening! It can't be... It can't, no, no, no, no, NO!

I fall on my knees.

I failed.

I'm no longer a leader, but a loser. That feeling of dread... is somewhat familier. I f***ed up.