Before Alissa made any choices, she first took a peek at Ethan and Joshua using her [Analysis Lvl6] skill. The skill had leveled up during the last battle, though she had not noticed the level-up notification due to the circumstances of the time. Conveniently, it also meant she had the highest level of the skill amongst the three of them.
A look at Ethan returned a result of [Warrior Lvl20/Guardian Paladin Lvl1] while Joshua’s returned [Magi Lvl20/Blessed Sorcerer Lvl1]. It tracked with what they said, and also made sense. All of them had [Analysis] or [Identify] so they would be able to check each other’s classes with relative ease anyway. One thing Alissa found out was that as it leveled up, [Analysis] started to take some features of [Identify], like how she was able to focus on a specific class and see its description.
[Guardian Paladin]
A Faithful warrior who uses the blessings of the Gods to protect others.
Mistake not a guardian for one who only protects, for to eradicate those that could pose danger to those he protected is yet another form of protection as well.
That looked like a defensive class to her eyes, though given how Ethan’s skills had been related to tanking hits in one way or another, it made sense for him to choose to further focus on his defenses. From the description it didn’t sound like it fully skimped out on the offensive side either, so he probably chose that with the same thinking in mind.
[Blessed Sorcerer]
A Gifted Child of Magic blessed by the Gods themselves, who wields the might of the arcane.
With the laws of the world to bend to one’s whim, what need have one for other means to destroy an enemy with?
Joshua’s chosen class looked similar, though from the description it leaned way more to the offensive. It tracked with what Allissa had seen him do so far. Joshua’s magic was highly destructive, but he himself had few means of self-defense and was rather weak, physically. She also remembered how he would often get winded from mana exhaustion after overusing his spells.
With the classes her friends had as a basis for comparison, Alissa turned her eyes towards her own classes. The information she received from checking them out was more detailed, which was to be expected since they were her potential classes, she guessed. Without wasting time, she turned her eyes to the first one.
[Consecrated Warrior]
You are a Warrior blessed by the Gods of the world, your might directed at those who threaten the safety of the world at large.
Gain +10 Body +5 Mind +5 Soul upon Evolution
Gain +2 Strength +2 Dexterity +2 Constitution per level
Gain 2 Free Major Stat Points per level
Gain [Courageous Charge] Skill upon Evolution
Gain [Lead By Example] General Skill upon Evolution
Do you want to become a [Consecrated Warrior]? Yes/No
That class was simple enough. It was clearly a mostly physical option for if she wanted to pursue a more warrior-like approach. Nothing complicated and very straight forward, it seemed, with the free stats entirely focused on the physical. Alissa’s stat gains had been very spread out and balanced so far, so this class would allow her to focus on one side, likely to the detriment of the other possibilities.
She shelved it to the side for the moment and looked at the next class instead.
[Blessed Enchantress]
You are a Gifted Child of Magic blessed by the Gods themselves, who wields the might of the arcane to your whim.
Gain +15 Mind +5 Soul upon Evolution
Gain +3 Intelligence +2 Perception +1 Wisdom per level
Gain 2 Free Major Stat Points per level
Gain [Advanced Mana Manipulation] Skill upon Evolution
Gain [Mana Sight] General Skill upon Evolution
Do you want to become a [Blessed Enchantress]? Yes/No
Huh.
The second class was almost a carbon copy of Joshua’s in description, and the way it focused most everything on Mind and its sub-stats further strengthened the impression. Alissa thought that the [Advanced Mana Manipulation] was likely offered because she had not started out as a [Mage], as Joshua already learned a lesser version of it that he would likely evolve sometime soon.
Other than the obvious change of focus from being more of an all-rounder to a mage, however, the class affects surprisingly little of what she already had. [Divine Blessing] already buffs all stats, so it would be just as useful regardless of the path she walked. As for [Pierce the Heavens] and [Grasp the Soul], they did not specify that they must be used with a weapon, so chances are they would apply to magical attacks too.
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That said, the question remained. Namely whether she wished to become more of a mage-type or not. Given the stamina issues Joshua suffered from, Alissa was rather dismissive of the prospect. It was like carrying a six-shooter but having no extra ammo with her. While Joshua was devastating when he had mana to spare, he was also quickly spent, and once spent he offered little to nothing for the rest of the party.
Alissa did not like the idea of herself going that way all that much, so she decisively dismissed the class altogether from her thoughts. If she just had to choose between the two, she would have taken [Consecrated Warrior] any day of the week, easy.
The third class followed the pattern and also confirmed something she had wondered about since her arrival into this world.
[Messenger of Faith]
She who conveyed the words of the Gods to their believers, she who held an unshaken belief. Speak, faithful one, and let the world know what the Gods intend with them.
Gain +5 Body +5 Mind +15 Soul upon Evolution
Gain +2 Willpower +2 Intuition +3 Sanity per level
Gain 2 Free Major Stat Points per level
Gain [Gift of Rejuvenation] Skill upon Evolution
Gain [Preach the Faith] General Skill upon Evolution
Do you want to become a [Messenger of Faith]? Yes/No
What she saw confirmed that their party’s missing fourth member-to-be was likely a soul-based healer type. The classes she got offered basically allowed her, who started as an all-rounder, to double up on what the party might have needed, or whichever role she preferred. That said, there were several things that made her scrutinize the class closer, with some doubts in her mind.
The class offered the best amount of stats compared to the other two, though not by much. That probably hinted at either its higher quality or maybe the system was compensating for how their party lacked a certain role. Alissa was uncertain which. What made her doubt the class was how it seemed to depend so much on faith to the Gods of this world.
Alissa was no believer.
She had never been the most religious even in her previous world, much less in this new world, with the gods probably responsible for her being brought over without asking. She felt it would probably not be a good idea to pick the class without having faith in the so-called gods of this world. The worry she had was partly of self-preservation, and partly out of caution.
Who was to say that the gods would not make whoever chose the class a believer whether they liked it or not?
Without much hesitation, she tossed the class aside – figuratively – as well.
[Truthseeker]
From another world, you came unto this world without bias. Seek out the truths, witness them with your own eyes, and unveil the falsehoods for all to see.
Gain +5 Body +10 Mind +5 Soul upon Evolution
Gain +1 Dexterity +3 Perception +2 Intuition per level
Gain 2 Free Major Stat Points per level
Gain [Walk in the Shadows] Skill upon Evolution
Gain [For Your Eyes Only] General Skill upon Evolution
Do you want to become a [Truthseeker]? Yes/No
The fourth offered class was… Interesting to say the least. It was almost as if the system heard her unvoiced questions about the world she was in. On one hand, she personally liked what the class offered, but on the other hand, the ability of others to simply [Analyze] her and notice the class was a risk in itself. Her choosing that class alone would be equivalent to showing where she stood.
Perhaps the class had some manner of hiding itself? How that would work Alissa had no idea, but at the moment, she shelved the class as a “maybe” as well. It aligned with her personal thoughts, but was a risky choice to take overall, due to its potentially problematic nature if found out. The stat distribution was more on the balanced side, so that was a good thing, at least.
The skill names suggested some sort of stealth skill – at least she thought it looked like one – and another that hinted at some form of secrecy, so maybe that was indeed what she was looking for. Even so, Alissa delayed her choice as she still had another class to check.
[Chosen of the Gods]
O, Blessed One, the Gods had chosen thee to be their representative in the mortal realms. Be the will of the Gods made incarnate, and smite the heathens that blaspheme against them!
Gain +10 Body +10 Mind +10 Soul upon Evolution
Gain +1 Strength +1 Dexterity +1 Constitution +1 Intelligence +1 Perception +1 Wisdom +1 Willpower +1 Intuition +1 Sanity per level
Gain 2 Free Major Stat Points per level
Gain [Avatar of God] Skill upon Evolution
Gain [Detect Faith] General Skill upon Evolution
Do you want to become a [Chosen of the Gods]? Yes/No
Alissa frowned when she saw what the final class offered. It offered by far the most stats, both immediately and per level. However, the description and the skills both raised warning flags in her mind. The description alludes to her becoming some “will of the gods made incarnate”, and that practically triggered every doubt she had so far.
The most benevolent interpretation Alissa could think of – that the Gods were truly just giving power to their chosen hero – was extremely unlikely, to her thinking. The way things were worded, the power was given with the expectation for her to use it against those that stood against the gods themselves. That was not exactly the most encouraging thing.
It might have been fine if the world was cast in black and white and there was an easy divide between good and evil, but from what Alissa could see, the world she was in was by no means such a setting.
In fact, the worst possible scenario that came to her mind was of the “gods” somehow making her their puppet if she chose the class. It was a possibility she felt was not too likely, yet at the same time, couldn’t truly dismiss out of hand either. A worrisome scenario one way or another, and one that had at least some influence on her thinking.
She pondered between the available classes before her for a good while more. Fortunately the rest of the party was neither asking her about her class nor bothering her with other matters. All of them were already tired and went to rest as soon as they could. That gave Alissa some quiet moments to herself, with just her thoughts to accompany her.
Potential benefits and risks occupied her thought, as she balanced the classes she had to choose from in her mind. [Truthseeker] was definitely the one that she was most interested in, but the risks inherent to choosing the class made her pause and contemplate whether the class was worth the risks or not. It was a gamble, one way or another.
[Consecrated Warrior] was the safe choice, one that had minimal risks attached to it, but also the least potential gain out of it. Alissa placed it as her last option, in case she truly found herself unable to decide and ended up choosing a safe way out instead.
As for [Chosen of the Gods], if her only goal was power or just getting done with what she was told to do as soon as possible so she could get back home, that would have been the ideal choice. The potential problems hidden within the class made Alissa more than a little wary of it, however.
She spent a good bit of time – she had no idea how long – tossing and turning on her bedroll as she struggled with her thoughts. She weighed the benefits and risks many times, her thoughts at times leaning one way or another. It was only after an indeterminate amount of time spent worrying about the choices and consequences that she finally made up her mind.
It was quiet, most everyone in the party already asleep other than those few who were on guard duty. In the silence, Alissa quietly browsed the options on the interface before her one last time, her mind finally set on a choice.
In the quiet night, without anyone else realizing, Alissa O’Connor made her choice.