Freelance Saga: Learning Curves by Scottie Futch

could not be sure. Skill
books might also be rare for certain types of skills.
    “I’m a monster trainer. That means that even
though it is important for me to become as strong as possible, my
real skill lies in keeping my pets fully ready to fight.” Scott
mused on this for a moment then delved into the spell book
section.
    “Junk, junk, junk. There are so many
torchlight spells up here!” He did eventually discover a few spells
that might be good to work with, but their price tag for buying
without bidding was prohibitive. He did not want to bid at the
moment. He absolutely needed to buy something. In the future,
bidding would be better than outright purchasing most of the time,
he was sure.
    “Eighteen hundred dollars for a simple
defensive aura spell? Two thousand for a first circle healing
prayer spell?” He shuddered at the costs. He could buy only one,
but he needed at least one of them.
    He looked at the information screen carefully
and made his choice. The defensive aura was like torchlight. It
could be used once, and then lasted for a short time. You could not
stack the spell and could only cast it again once it wore off. The
healing spell only worked to heal an incredibly small amount of hit
points, but working with it would raise intelligence, charisma, and
faith over time.
    “If it only heals a small amount, then I can
probably train my unarmed combat skills till my knuckles are bloody
and raw. Use the healing spell to heal, then train some more.”
Scott told the empty air his plans then chose to purchase the
spell.
    Once he clicked the buy button, he entered
his information, and the request for payment appeared. He was not
certain how to pay for his item, since he had the money primarily
in cash. Strangely, however, there was an option for cash
purchase.
    A message screen popped up, followed by a
circular plate that floated in mid-air. “Please present the
money.”
    Scott looked at the message for a moment then
retrieved his wallet. He placed the money onto the plate and the
sale registered as complete. The plate, and his money, disappeared
immediately. In its place a new plate appeared. Atop it sat a skill
book entitled, “Divine guidance in trying times. Volume I”
    He took the book and the plate disappeared.
“So, this is a skill book?”
    He opened the book and nearly dropped it in
surprise. He had seen the effect of opening skill books before in
the game, but he had not expected that the same thing would happen
on Earth!
    The light of knowledge streamed into him and
after the mental dust cleared he was able to completely understand
the basics of divine healing and restoration. He had gained the
ability to lay hands on the injured and provide them solace through
divine grace.
    Of course, the power was restricted on Earth.
He was not strong enough to use his abilities here and might never
be.
    Scott quickly checked his spell list and
grinned. The information for healing prayer was listed. “I can heal
three hit points per use at this level of skill. That’s absurdly
low, but kind of perfect for training purposes.”
    Each use would cost him ten mana, however.
Over time it would become more powerful, but right now he could use
it ten times or so without running out of mana.
    The grin that crossed his face was both feral
and delightful. He was excited and really could not help himself.
He planned to stay in the other world for at least three days next
time. There was no time limit. He would be able to stay there for
as long as he wanted, but once there he had to remain for
twenty-four hours, and the same was true for when he came back
here.
    He still had a life here, as limited as it
was. He had family even if he did not have any real friends that he
would miss enough to never return to the other world. Plus, he
could only access the auction site here. That could prove useful in
the future.
    Scott looked at the auction site and then
checked his clock once more. The waiting was terrible, but the