"This list seems kind of bland," I told him as I took it in. It seemed like class types in many of the games I've played over the years..
Arthurias snickered before speaking again. "Well, old sport. That list you are seeing is the surface. There are subclasses to subclasses that get even more in-depth than anything you have ever seen. From mid tier and higher, the classes blend so much that they don’t even really matter.." His accent was switching between that of being barely British to a faint Irish accent, and it was giving me quite the headache to try and follow. I pinched the bridge of my nose and looked back at the menu.
"Alright, so, does it really matter what I click on since I'm exploring at the moment?"
"Not at all, lad. Click whatever you feel like, I'll talk as you scroll through. The sooner we get this done, the better."
Alright then, so let's skip over the low tier classes and go straight into the mid tier ones. That way, I could skim through and see if there was anything I like. At a glance the list seemed sort of barebones, yet it was split up enough that I did have some choices to make. What sort of stuff did I want to specialize in?
Technology seemed pretty cool, so I selected that and glanced back at the list. More than likely I wouldn’t choose it, but it can remain for now. Ranged fighting I wasn’t sure about. It just didn’t seem to ring a bell with me. Nor did summoning, trapping or stealth. Which left me with magic, fist and melee.
Getting up close and personal with my fist didn’t seem all that great either, so really my last two choices were between magic and melee. So, I did the rational thing and selected both before clicking the search function.
It was not an exaggeration to say that there were hundreds of thousands of classes that appeared. There were so many that even just trying to settle in and search through them felt like it would take an eternity, and I was not about to have a repeat of my time as genetic scientist. So instead, I needed to figure out what weapons I would want to have since Arthus mentioned that there was weapon creation coming up after this.
Right off the bat, I wanted to focus on melee. Now what weapons would be good in a melee for me at least? Swords seemed really cool, but sword and boarding just felt like an option that was so overused in my eyes. I detested builds like that in a lot of RPGs I played. I wasn’t much of a fan of axs, mauls or anything like that. So really my options were limited to polearms and swords.
Out of those options, I really did like spears. They just felt amazing in my eyes, and that wasn’t even including the list of web novels I’ve read that used spears as a main weapon. I think that they didn’t get too much love in either books, nor games. So, I typed ‘spear' into the search filter, and then decided to narrow my other others down a bit more.
Next on the list was magic. Now this was going to be a bit tricky for me. There were easily dozens of types of magic that interested me. From runic magic, to varying degrees of card magic. Even elemental! There was just so much and it felt so restrictive to just choose from some. But I wasn’t sure what I’d want to settle on. I mean even abjuration was so interesting. So I was a little torn, and by a little, I mean a lot.
I stared blankly at the filer screen, and just couldn’t decide on what to type in. So instead of banging my head against the wall trying to decide, I let all forms of magic be included in the search. With that being finished, I confirmed my choice, and waited for the screen to process.
It felt like it took hours but finally it was finished. The hundreds of thousands of classes were now focused down into tens thousand. Well, it was better than nothing. But by god that was still an insane amount. “So what exactly is a class?” I asked as I pulled my attention away from the screen and towards Arturius.
“Well, that is a deep question.” The lank man paused for a second, as he considered my words. “But there is no simple answer. On the surface they are just a collection of skills. Deeper than that, they are a legacy left behind by former Administrators. If you’d so like, you could look at them like you would a history book since each class is a captured moment in time.” Once again the man paused and gazed across me.
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
Here I could see just how little humanity was in him. Though he looked human and sounded human, he gazed at me with the blank eyes of a computer, simply spouting out knowledge. “That is an interesting way to put it. So, all the classes are just memories of an Administrator?
“Exactly. Some of them were created simply to be placed here for the newest generation. Others are the classes from those that have long since died. Typically those are considered unique classes. However, do keep in mind, The System does not hold your hand with it. You could get the strongest class in existence, but a single poor choice could turn it to the weakest.” Arthurius crossed his arms, and pulled his gaze to me, before leaning back into his seat.
So it wouldn’t be good to consider this like a game then. How interesting. “Okay, so, does that mean I can essentially choose any class, and do whatever I want with it? What about classes from the species on my worlds?”
“That good sir, depends on you. Some species do not see classes as a part of life. To them, it could be just a talent, or they are prodigy in their field. Never make the mistake of limiting yourself into one line of thought. But to answer your question, you can take any class they create, and use it separately from yours, or blend it into yours. However, your class will always be permanently bound to you.”
That makes sense. So it would functionally allow me to research class stuff, and test the things that my races create. I actually really liked that. It made me feel like I could pull the curtain down on the inner workings of the universe, and seek knowledge that I as a mortal would have never been privy to. “Thank you Arthurius. But still, there are tens of thousands of classes here to choose from. Any suggestions on how I can narrow it down? I’ve already filtered it down to the stuff I like.”
A pensive sigh escaped from the man's lips as his foot bounced. “I’d love to help, but the system can get pretty restrictive at times when it comes to the new administrators. So I don’t really have much I can do. But if you tell me what you like mate, I can probably help you narrow it down.”
Honestly, talking about it out loud should probably help me narrow my thoughts. Staring at all these classes was giving me anxiety. “Well, I want a magic based martial class. Preferable with a spear. I want a healthy blend of protection, as well as offensive power.” As I spoke, I saw that the list was quickly starting to dwindle in size. “As for magic specifically, I’m not really sure what I want. Elemental stuff would be solid, but so would a few others.”
“Ah, well, with what you mentioned I narrowed the list down. There are not a lot of spell spears, but this list should be pretty spot on.” Arthurias smirked as he snapped his fingers, and a cigar appeared from thin air.
I brought my eyes to the list to give a quick glance and saw that the size was now a few hundred. Still, it was an obscene amount of classes but this was still much more bearable. I went into the search filter, selected the randomize function, and checked the first block of classes.
Falling Skies Roaring Heavens
Eternal Blizzard Piercing Sea
Dancing Lightspear The Way of the World Tree
Descending Sun The Great Turtle
Blossoming Spear Flowing Spear
The first ten spear classes had some pretty interesting names. But considering that the classes were remnants of past administrators, they felt hallowed. Like, I was gazing into the depths of the universe's past, and that felt me with trepidation. I reached out, and placed a finger against the first class, ‘Falling skies.’ and I received what looked like a memory.
There was a being walking towards me. Its form was obscured, but it seemed to be humanoid. In its hand was a long spear, and behind them the sky was filled with meteors that were racing down. The air was searing hot and blew into me with such force it made me take a step back. Fire roared, and the ground trembled in agony as the figure kept walking towards me. Occasional whispers of wind would reach my ears, and with it, it brought a few words. “End Bringer, Destroyer of worlds. The Walking Calamity.”
I pulled my hand away, and gazed at the class. Dread sank its icy talons into my heart as I realized that these classes were not just a legacy devoid of emotion. These were memories of a past life. The Administrators poured their mind, bodies and souls into these classes, and because of it, these classes retained a remnant. Only then did it dawn on me, just how powerful an Administrator was.