(2 months later, The Arc Ship, real world)
Two months after the second evaluation and the Arc Ship's official entry into the 'Rainbow Stream,' the physical bodies of everyone on board had undergone significant changes.
Everyone appeared stronger and healthier, with some adults even gaining a few inches in height due to improved posture and decompressed spines.
Even those who had looked frail and malnourished just a few months earlier now resembled well-trained athletes, showcasing a remarkable transformation in such a short time.
Leo, who witnessed these changes firsthand, was astonished at just how much more effective everyone had become in their roles with each passing week. As a supervisor overseeing a group of workers from Sector E, he noticed the gradual gradient of their growth each day.
Tasks like chopping, preparation, washing, defreezing vegetables, kneading dough, and cooking, which used to take them six hours of constant work, could now be completed in just one hour and this progress was mind-blowing.
The craziest part was that Leo had witnessed this change happen rapidly before his own eyes.
The individuals he supervised became physically superior, faster, more dexterous, and stronger with each passing day and these improvements were evident in their daily performance.
Compared to the first day, when their strength and energy levels were the closest to their usual human form, 2 months later, everyone looked like their in-game characters, with significantly larger stamina reserves and improved physical function.
And it wasn't just them who had undergone this change either, as Leo himself had also undergone a massive change.
From his apartment in sector C to the Arc Ship Kitchen where he reported for duty daily, the distance was about a kilometer.
On the first day of work, it took him about 12-15 minutes of walking to cover that distance, however, after two months of being inside the Rainbow Stream, he could now cover the same distance in 3-4 minutes without breaking a sweat.
It was not like he was jogging or consciously trying to walk faster either, as it was just his natural cadence that had become that much faster with his body improving massively.
Another big change that happened was that usage of in-game skills in real-life became more and more common.
Leo had a worker under him who was a mage within the world of Terra Nova who could now use fireball spells in his cooking, which looked almost surreal to observe.
It wasn't just him who could do it either, as there were a lot of players who could use some of their skills outside the game, however, it was at this point that many discovered that while skills learnt naturally carried forward to reality, skills acquired through skill-scrolls did not.
Leo could now perform all of his skills in reality apart from 'mimic' and he practiced them often in his free time at his apartment.
Though Leo did not have an explicit reason for practicing his skills daily, his improved constitution and soaring energy levels made him feel restless and over-energetic if he didn't find an outlet.
This led him to spend time practicing his skills in addition to working out daily as only after intense training sessions did he feel a sense of calm return to his body.
Usually, he practiced inside the empty room in his apartment beside his bedroom where the mana density was higher than usual and it wasn't until one day when he decided to practice in his bedroom that Leo noticed the stark difference in skill execution between the two environments.
In the empty room with high mana density, performing his skills felt much easier, and the end results were significantly better.
The difference was like lighting a match in a normal heterogeneous mixture of air, containing only 21% oxygen, versus lighting the same match in pure 100% oxygen air.
Just like how in normal air, the match burns with a steady, small flame. However, in pure oxygen, the flame bursts forth much higher, brighter, and faster.
Similarly, practicing his skills in the mana-rich room was like the pure oxygen environment for the match. The skills flowed more naturally and powerfully, with the mana acting as a catalyst that enhanced his abilities, making the end result not only more potent but also more refined, allowing Leo to push the limits of his capabilities.
The dense mana in the empty room created an optimal setting for practice, much like how the oxygen-rich environment maximized the match's flame and understanding this, Leo prioritized his training sessions in the mana-dense room, seeking to harness its benefits fully and continue improving his abilities in the most effective way possible.
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( Meanwhile Sector E )
Another big shift that took place in the past two months was the shift in balance of power within Sector E.
Up till now, it was the mafia members who were naturally strong in physique from their time on Earth that formed gangs and bullied the weaker humans, however, with the influx of mana and everyone undergoing a constitution change, this equation changed rapidly.
The best players became the new top dogs of the lawless Sector E, where internal fights became common once again as the new status quo was under making.
The once predators now became prey, with many suffering broken bones and brutal beatings as the skills from the game world carried to real life.
Though less in number, fights also broke out amongst sector D members over usage of communal resources and while the ankle chips still protected the higher class citizens from attacks by lower class citizens, many upperclassmen who were not that strong of players now started to feel threatened in the presence of intimidating players who exuded the aura of stone cold killers.
With the lines between reality and game world blurring and everyone becoming increasingly like their gaming characters, the 'human' aspect of humanity seemed to be changing rapidly.
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/// A/N - Chapter 10/15, 5 more to come today.
After contemplation, I've decided to make a 2 month time-skip and recap all the important events that took place with each faction and character, because otherwise we would be stuck with 40-50 chapters worth of filler where no serious action occurs.
And while I do enjoy writing those small bits of the novel, I think it's time to progress the story in a meaningful way.
So please pay attention to the coming few chapters as it will have the information of 4-5 chapters compressed into one ///