As the tutorial ended, a new message took its place.

Would you like to select a class? Note, there is no benefit to waiting, so not picking a class now would be kind of stupid.

I sat there a minute, digesting all of this information. Whatever had happened to me, it seemed like this system was mostly geared towards combat. The only question was... why?

In my experience, humans didn’t do that much fighting. Sure, I’d seen arguments break out, especially here at the... shipyard? Right, that’s why there were all these shipping containers. I glanced around but couldn’t see much other than the container across from mine.

Just then, my stomach growled, reminding me how hungry I was. Maybe I should go out and look for some food first. This didn’t seem like a decision I should be making on an empty stomach.

The words were still hovering angrily in front of me, though. No matter how much I twisted about, they moved to the center of my vision. The word ‘stupid’ began to flash.

Fine. If it would get me out of here faster and on to finding dinner, then I’d pick a class. Whatever that meant.

I concentrated on confirming. The words winked away, only to be replaced by a series of new ones.

Class choices available to level 0 canid:

1. Sled Dog — You feel the call of the cold and the wind. The need to run all day sings in your heart. And for some reason, the idea of a gold rush sets your legs all aquiver. Note: this is a Power-based support class.

2. Retriever — The mere mention of a shotgunned duck sends shivers down your spine. Jumping into the water and retrieving a dead animal is just another Tuesday for you. So long as you’re outside enjoying nature with your master, it’s all good. Note: This is an Agility-based support class.

3. Ratdog — You’ve spent too much time in the city, and now you’re accustomed to it. Scrounging for scraps, hunting vermin, and evading the local dogcatcher are all just part of your daily routine. Hey, you may not have a home, but at least you never got neutered. Note: This is a DPS-based melee class.

4. Pit Fighter — You’ve seen things that other dogs can’t even imagine. Brutality, inhumanity, and some really, really bad grooming habits. Your owner might consider you little better than a piece of meat, but so long as you’re on top, then you’re his piece of meat. Note: This is a tank-based melee class.

5. Wildling — As much wolf as dog, you’ve never fully forgotten the call of nature. Other dogs are wary around you, and humans are never entirely certain you aren’t going to rip out their throat while they sleep. But that’s okay. You were born alone, and if life is in any way fair, you’ll die alone, too. Note: this is an all-rounder melee class.

I read over the descriptions, then read them again. It was interesting how all of them mentioned dogs in one way or another. Guess that meant I still was one.

But as for which to pick... I pretty quickly eliminated the first two. While I didn’t fully understand what it meant by support class, I got the impression that it was meant to work with others.

Now, it’s not that I avoided other dogs intentionally, but after a few bad run-ins back in the city, I’d mostly kept to myself. Half the reason I moved into the shipyard in the first place was the lack of competition for food here. So, yeah, maybe I’d be willing to work with others, but that didn’t do me much good at the moment. I hadn’t seen another human or dog in, what, two, maybe three weeks? At least, not until the dead guy with the hamburger showed up.

So yeah, I didn’t entirely understand what was going on, but picking a choice that relied on others seemed like a bad idea. So no to Sled Dog and Retriever.

The next two were... interesting. If only I knew what DPS and tank meant. Though I had a distant image of some kind of vehicle that humans used for the second one, something also told me that wasn’t entirely correct. Unfortunately, I had yet to figure out a way to directly ask the system anything, so I’d just have to make the best guess I could.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Ratdog sounded like it could be promising. After all, I was in a city, and that might offer me some skills to survive if there was trouble. Except I already knew how to hunt for vermin and locate tasty scraps, so I wasn’t sure what new abilities it could offer.

Pit Fighter, conversely, sounded terrifying. I don’t know what these pits were about, but I never wanted to be involved in them. At the same time, whatever survival skills the class offered might be just the edge I needed.

But it was the last class, Wildling, that really drew my attention.

As I read the description, that tickling sensation came back again. I remembered the fire, warmth on my belly, and also, the distant smell of trees? Wind howling outside, and branches scraping against the window. And another memory, of rich earth in my nose, my legs pumping as I ran and leapt. Someone shouting for me to come back, but their voice growing ever distant...

I shook my head, the memory or dream or whatever it was dispersing. Looking over my options, I realized that it didn’t really matter what I picked, as I knew absolutely nothing about these classes, or what they would do. So, I went with my gut.

You have selected class: Wildling. You are now a level 0 Wildling Canid.

The system will now generate your racial skills. Please wait...

The words disappeared from my vision. Finally. I took a hesitant step forward and was pleased to find the shaking and wobbliness I’d experienced on waking had all departed. Feeling more confident, and with an aching stomach driving me on, I padded my way out of the shipping container.

And found the half-eaten corpse waiting for me outside.

I froze. With everything that had happened since I awoke, I’d honestly forgotten about it. Now the memories of my feast came back to me, along with the system message about ten days having passed while my race was changed.

If I needed any evidence of time’s passage, it lay before me. The human didn’t look human anymore. The parts of him I’d left behind had decayed over the last week and a half, and the stench of it filled my nostrils so quickly, I wondered how I hadn’t noticed before.

Quickly, I retreated back into the shipping container. The smell diminished to a tolerable level. I sat down and considered what to do next.

Which is when the system struck its next blow.

Skill generation complete! You have been assigned the following racial skills:

Night Vision — While it may not be true that dogs are completely color-blind, it is true that they see the world differently than humans. As a canid, you have some advantages over your more mundane brethren. You can see clearly in all but the darkest of conditions, and even then will still possess some low-level vision.

Enhanced Smell — You see the world around you with your nose as much as your eyes. You have a higher radius for detecting the presence of other lifeforms, and a 25% chance to know beforehand if they are friend or foe.

Song of the Night — You have the ability to communicate with all other canids and canid descendants. This includes, but is not limited to: dogs, wolves, coyotes, jackals, foxes, dholes, and Japanese tanuki.

Pack Loyalty — When meeting with other canids and dogs, you have an increased chance to automatically make them friendly towards you. If you are successful, there is a 50% greater chance they will join your party. Note: your party size is limited to your level plus one (current size = 1).

As I read the descriptions, the world around me started to shift. Suddenly, the back of the shipping container was no longer in shadow. I could make out its darkest recesses. Even the strands of a spiderweb in the corner shined as if in direct sunlight.

And the smells... my nose suddenly became more powerful. The smells outside wafted in, of concrete and steel and the distant tang of salt.

Most potent of all, though, the smell of the dead man. Of meat, rotted, fetid meat, baked in the sun and picked over by carrion, until it was a bloated swamp fit for nothing beyond flies and bacteria.

I dry heaved, my nostrils flaring in an effort to clear them. When that didn’t work, I fled from the container, turning immediately away from the corpse and loping through the shipyard. Several twists and turns later, the smell faded enough that I could stop and rest.

Another message appeared in my vision, not as obnoxious as before but still obscuring what I could see.

Would you like to select a class skill? Note, just like with your class, there is no benefit to waiting. Hint, hint.

I stared at the words. Before I could decide, my stomach gave another almighty gurgle. Now that I was away from the corpse, my natural instincts had kicked in. Hunger was eating away at me something fierce.

Also, there was a new scent in the air. Distant, but distinct. I could smell so much better than before, parse out so many different things. And one of them was clear as a bell.

Food. And it was close.

I eyed the message again, but the hunger gnawing at me was too great. The message could wait until my stomach was satisfied.

Following my new, more powerful nose, I set off to find the source of the delicious smell.