Reality Quest: Lookism

Jin woke up with a sharp inhale, his chest rising and falling as he felt a familiar rush of energy coursing through him. He blinked a few times, sitting up slowly. To his satisfaction, his body was completely healed, no scars, no bruises, no pain. He flexed his hands and rolled his shoulders, marveling at the absence of any lingering injuries.

"Recovery, huh?" Jin muttered, cracking a small grin. "Guess it's already pulling its weight."

He stood and stretched before turning to look at the tiger's corpse nearby. Its massive body was still, the once-ferocious predator now lifeless. Jin crouched next to it, running a hand over its fur thoughtfully.

"Sorry, buddy." he said softly. "But you came at the wrong guy."

Without wasting time, Jin salvaged what he could from the tiger. He stripped the meat with makeshift tools he fashioned from nearby stones and vines, grimacing at the effort it took. Once he had what he needed, he gathered his belongings and moved to a safer spot, mindful of the tiger's scent possibly attracting other predators.

Night had fallen by the time he settled at a new location. Jin set up a small camp near a rocky outcrop, the sound of crickets and the distant river filling the air. He lit a fire, the flames crackling as they illuminated his tired but satisfied face. The tiger meat roasted over the fire, its aroma filling the area.

Jin leaned back against a tree, tearing into the cooked meat with an almost primal hunger. Between bites, he pulled up the system notification log, curious to see what he had earned from the fight.

---

[System Notification: You have defeated a monster.]

Reward: 100 Credits.

New Skill Created: Wild Instincts.

[Skill Description: The user uses the primal ferocity of a beast, enhancing reflexes, strength, and awareness in battle, but losing technique and relying only on instincts.

Mana for activation required: 20 MP per second.

Can't use other skills during duration.]

---

Jin raised an eyebrow as he read the description, pausing mid-chew. "Damn." he muttered, swallowing a piece of tiger meat. "Have I become a bootleg Eli Jang?"

He chuckled, shaking his head. The skill wasn't perfect, it came with limitations, like the inability to use other skills while it was active, but it was undeniably useful. The thought of channeling raw, primal ferocity in a fight was thrilling.

"Pretty cool." he admitted, a satisfied grin spreading across his face.

Closing the notification log, Jin opened his stats panel. His eyes flicked to his MP, which was maxed out at 450, and the credits he'd earned.

---

[CHARACTER INFORMATION]

Name: Jin Lee

Class: Wild Guy

CURRENT STATS

HP: 2800/2800

MP: 450/450

Attack Power: 27

Defense: 31

Agility: 35

Mentality: 150

Credits: 110

---

Jin tapped on the MP section, deciding to spend all 110 credits on increasing it. The numbers flickered before updating.

---

[MP increased by 110.]

[New MP: 560.]

---

He leaned back against the tree, satisfied with the upgrade. "Alright." he said, taking another bite of tiger meat. "Now I can fight longer without worrying about running dry."

As the fire crackled, Jin stared into the flames, his mind racing with possibilities. Between the passive Recovery skill and the Wild Instincts he had just unlocked, his arsenal was steadily growing.

"Who needs canon when I'm writing my own story?" Jin murmured, smirking. He tore into another piece of meat, savoring the moment before closing his eyes to rest.

....

The days following Jin's encounter with the tiger were a blur of blood, sweat, and unrelenting struggle. Every sunrise brought with it a new trial, a new fight, and a new lesson. He had entered this jungle with only his wits and fists, but by now, he had become something more, a true predator in the wild.

Jin spent the first few days testing his limits. He increased his training regimen, pushing his body to the brink and then beyond. After crafting heavier weights from fallen logs and vines, he began punching trees to toughen his knuckles and forearms. Each strike sent jolts of pain through his body, but he gritted his teeth and continued, the dull ache in his fists turning into a badge of honor. The bark of the trees tore at his skin, but thanks to Recovery, his wounds healed overnight, allowing him to continue the brutal regimen the next day.

When the sun climbed high, Jin switched to explosive leg exercises. Strapping weights to his ankles, he leaped repeatedly, the added resistance building both strength and endurance. The jumps started low, but as his muscles grew accustomed to the burden, he began clearing higher distances. Each leap sent dust flying and tested the limits of his stamina. He even added lateral movements, mimicking the swift, unpredictable movements of the predators he had fought.

But it wasn't all training. The jungle was alive with danger. One night, a pack of monkeys ambushed Jin while he was eating roasted tiger meat. They were vicious and cunning, attacking from the trees with sharp claws and improvised weapons. Jin barely had time to react, activating Blind Spot Strike to counter their assaults. His enhanced reflexes allowed him to swat them out of the air one by one, but the battle left him battered and bruised.

"I guess you monkeys don't like sharing." he muttered, catching his breath as he stood over their fallen forms.

The monkeys were just the beginning. A few days later, Jin found himself face-to-face with a massive silverback gorilla. The creature's sheer size and raw power dwarfed anything Jin had faced so far. It roared, the sound echoing through the jungle, and charged at him like a freight train. Jin had no choice but to rely on Wild Instincts, activating the skill and feeling his body surge with primal energy.

The fight was savage and chaotic. Jin's attacks lacked precision, but they were brutal and relentless, each punch and kick powered by raw instinct. The gorilla matched him blow for blow, and for the first time, Jin felt his strength truly tested. The ground trembled under their strikes, and trees splintered as they slammed into them. In the end, it was a desperate uppercut to the gorilla's jaw, delivered with every ounce of strength he had, that brought the beast down. Jin collapsed next to it, covered in blood, breathing hard.

"Damn... I should've brought a camera. That would've made a killer profile picture." he joked weakly before passing out.

As the days passed, Jin became faster, stronger, and more durable. His reaction time sharpened to a razor's edge as he dodged predators that tried to ambush him. He learned to navigate the jungle with ease, memorizing the terrain and even predicting where the animals would strike. His use of Wild Instincts became more refined, allowing him to toggle between calculated precision and primal ferocity in the heat of battle.

Exploring the jungle also brought unexpected rewards. Jin stumbled upon hidden groves filled with fruits and herbs that replenished his energy. He discovered secluded watering holes where he could rest without fear of predators. And with every beast he defeated, the system rewarded him with credits, credits that piled up as Jin refused to spend them.

"Saving for a rainy day." he muttered every time the thought of spending them crossed his mind.

On one occasion, Jin encountered a cheetah. The feline's speed was unparalleled, forcing Jin to push his agility to its absolute limit. The chase lasted for hours, with Jin narrowly dodging the cheetah's claws and countering with strikes of his own. In the end, it wasn't strength that won the fight but sheer stamina. The cheetah collapsed from exhaustion, and Jin stood over it, panting but victorious.

By the final week, Jin had explored almost every corner of the jungle. His body was a far cry from what it had been when he entered. His muscles were denser, his strikes heavier, and his movements sharper. The wild had reshaped him into a true force of nature.

....

On the last day of the quest, Jin found himself at the edge of the inner jungle. The moment he stepped into the new terrain, the system chimed in his head.

---

[System Notification: You have entered the boss area.]

---

Jin paused, narrowing his eyes. The air here was different, thicker, heavier, charged with an ominous energy. The towering trees blocked out most of the sunlight, casting the area in eerie shadows.

He exhaled slowly and pulled up his status panel to take stock of himself.

---

[CHARACTER INFORMATION]

Name: Jin Lee

Class: Wild Guy

CURRENT STATS

HP: 2800/2800

MP: 560/560

Attack Power: 78

Defense: 93

Agility: 99

Mentality: 150

Credits: 5670

---

Jin grinned, clenching his fists. "Alright, boss. Let's see what you've got."

----

1459 words.

Alright, time to wrap this up.

Note: For some Jin speed of growth might seem slow but you need to understand that he is growing with his own effor and talent, he only used the system to increase his stats one time, the rest by training.

So he is reaching and surpassing people who trained for years in days.

And he still has the stat poins from the gun quest, let alone the bronze keys and the 5670 credits, that are 567 poins if invested into stats.

But Jin doesn't do it as it would be too easy.