“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Noah hissed, as he stared at the massive oak tree that towered over him with perspiration coalescing on his forehead.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Were you a time travelling God too? ….No? Then shut up and climb, lad.” Liam replied as he flicked through another channel. Yes, he had the audacity to feign watching television as he demanded possibly neck-breaking stunts from Noah.

“How do I know that you’re who you say you are anyway?” Noah shot back, wondering if there could be a God this lackadaisical.

“Keep climbing, and I guess we’ll see,” Liam replied, and he’d finally settled on the re-run of an old British sitcom to watch, but for Noah’s sanity, the man at least had the decency to wear headphones.

Noah placed a hand on the massive tree's bark, trying to get a feel for the footholds he'd need to get to climb up to the lowest hanging branch for support. Tightly gripping the bark of the tree with both his hands, he extended his foot forward as he began the climb.

"Hmm," Noah muttered, as he had this odd sensation. Somehow, he felt like he knew where the optimal place to place his feet was. He decided to follow his instincts for now, and soon his other foot was off the ground as well. There was a slight boost to his athleticism, but the major difference he noticed was that his newfound senses allowed him to leverage his weight in a manner that he'd never known how to before. It had to be the free points he’d invested according to Liam’s instructions- 3 in dexterity and 2 in constitution.

Name Noah Smith

Level 2

Race Human

Titles Trailblazer

Primordial Spirit: (0/8 slots filled)

Combat Art -

Intelligence 4

Strength 2

Wisdom 2

Constitution 3

Dexterity 5

Luck 1

Free Points 0

It was as if a greater percentage of the hidden potential in his body was being utilized to higher efficiency, instead of elevating him to superhuman levels in a matter of minutes.

He stretched his right arm forward, finding purchase on the next gap provided by the tree bark. His left hand followed through soon after, and then came his legs. He got into a rhythm, his climbing speed increasing as his confidence levels rose.

The tree branches were clustered closely, but each of them had enough space for a fully grown man to have enough room to stand, though they thinned out as you neared the top. After a few minutes of climbing, Noah found himself next to one. Keeping his right arm locked in an iron grip, he stretched his left arm hoping to find purchase on the tree branch. His hand landed, he managed to latch on to the tree. Shifting his body weight, he let go of the tree bark as his right hand made a desperate grab for the branch. While his dexterity stat might provide him with guidance, it didn't make it any less nerve-racking. If he fell, not only would that make a lot of noise, but if he twisted his ankle or worse, he would just be a sitting duck waiting for death.

"Phew," he whispered, as he dangled with both his arms wrapped around the branch for dear life. Moments later he grunted and exerted all the force he could muster, using his upper body strength to hoist himself up. Taking a breather, he looked around and took in the structure of the tree, plotting a path upwards.

He let his senses guide him, instead of overthinking the situation. Because he feared that if he kept analyzing things, it would only create fear and panic instead of having any productive results. The branches were clustered densely enough to make for an easy ascent and caused him far less trouble compared to the initial climb.

When he was about some 30-35 meters above the ground level, the branches started to thin out. They seemed climbable, but the footholds were far smaller, and Noah wasn’t sure the branches could support his weight. He was about to tell Liam that this tree was a bust, but he took the initiative to start a conversation instead.

"Oi, lad. Looks like we hit the jackpot!” Liam pointed upwards and at Noah's right side, and Noah quickly craned his head to look at where Liam was pointing.

Roughly ten meters above Noah's present location was a thin branch that was only half the circumference of what would be required to serve as a foothold. At its very end was a small wooden box that was covered in dirt and moss, nestled between smaller outgrowths from the branch that served as support to prevent it from falling. Noah would’ve never managed to spot it from below, provided he knew where to look for it in the first place.

“A… dirty box? All that effort for a dirty box?” Noah looked at the box in dismay, looking at Liam suspiciously.

“Come on lad, don't be a Debby downer. Y’know, don’t judge a book by a cover and all those empty platitudes attractive people manage to get away with- well it actually applies here,” Liam said with a snide smile as if he were implying something.

“There’s no way I’m climbing that, it’s too risky. You wouldn’t want Earth’s last hope to die by falling off a tree, right?” Noah said, his gaze fixed upwards- wavering.

Liam made a grabbing gesture into the air a few times, and a book materialized out of thin air. The cover had Liam's adventuring guide scribbled over in the most terrible cursive writing Noah had ever borne witness to. Flipping through the pages quickly, he stopped when he was about halfway through the book.

"Look here, mate." Liam postured as if he were about to disseminate some useful information, and Noah perked up at the sight. "Adventuring rule #2384 clearly states that once you've seen it, you simply can't walk away from unclaimed treasure- or you're a daft git." Liam, it out loud from the book, with a completely straight face.

“Fine, FINE, alright, be an asshole. You wanted creativity, right? Well, I’ll give you your damned creativity,” Noah snapped and lunged for the last branch he was comfortable climbing. His right hand came first, and once his grip was secure, his left hand followed. Hefting his weight over the branch- thankfully, it seemed like it could bear his weight, for now, Noah stood upright on it and his left hand dug into the tree’s bark for support. Being this high up without any harnesses made him slightly dizzy at the thought, but he held on.

His new boots, colored in a black material that seemed to absorb the light, had made the climb easier for him. Not only did they make very little noise when he walked across the forest, but the things were just so damn comfortable, it felt like the material automatically adjusted to ensure that Noah felt the least possible impact from walking or climbing- akin to liquid cotton if such material were to exist.

Then, he accessed his inventory and pulled out the inferior spiked mace he’d received from one of the goblin skirmishers.

Next, Noah let go of the tree bark he'd been relying on for support- he felt terrified at the prospect of falling- but his newfound instincts gave him a gut feeling that he’d be fine, the only real obstacle he faced was his own mental inhibitions. Sure enough, it was like he was glued to the branch, his weight was balanced perfectly- and the terror he felt only took a few seconds to suppress.

Noah held the mace over his head, aimed at the branch that was only a few vertical meters up ahead, and let it fly as if he were shooting a three-pointer, desperately hoping he'd sink it with a lightly whispered “Swish, please.”

Noah watched the mace arc through the air, completing a few rotations before it made contact with the branch he had singled out. He was worried for a second, as his aim had been off by a few inches, causing the branch to violently jerk instead of landing a direct hit as he had intended. Thankfully, the weight of the mace was enough to give the delicately balanced box a slight nudge.

A loud crash from below that Noah resembling the sound of rotten wood splintering proved that his worries were for naught. Or maybe, they were only beginning- as he had practically sent out a flare broadcasting his location to both other challengers and monsters alike.

“Hahahaha, lad this is it! You can’t save the world without a little craziness. Hallelujah!” Liam bellowed with a loud, pleasantly surprised laughter.

“Are you praising yourself?” Noah sneered at Liam, though he couldn’t help a light smirk from coming over his face.

“Maybe,” Liam said, as Noah began his descent back to the ground.