"So, if we were to be attacked, how well would you be able to defend yourself?" Kyle asked Millie as they walked down the road.

"N-not well," Millie said nervously. "Do you think we're going to be attacked?"

Kyle sighed. "It was a hypothetical. Based on my extremely limited experience of this world thus far, I'd guess that we will be attacked, but if you've not been attacked on this road before, we should be fine."

"So you think we're going to be attacked!" Millie cried.

"No, not really," Kyle said, trying to calm Millie down a little. "I just want to be aware of our resources and chances if we are."

"O-ok. Status: Skills," Millie said. "I have the Standard Array of skills, plus Tracking, Archery, Planting, Animal Care, and two low-level damage spells," she listed.

"So, in other words, if we get attacked by something smart enough to not go after us one at a time, we're screwed," Kyle summarized. "Should we get ganged up on, I don't think we could win."

"B-but you took down the bandits easily enough, right?" Millie asked.

"I cheated," Kyle put bluntly. "And they were stupid. Almost every one of them came at me by themselves, and gave me time to kill the others before they actually did much. If they had all charged at once, I wouldn't have had a chance. The other part of it is that I have a gun, which is extremely dangerous. Unfortunately, I think I'm running low on bullets, so using that to win is no longer something I want to do unless death is the other option." He'd grabbed his spare clip, but until he either got home or found a replacement, he didn't want to use it any more than he needed.

"What's a gun?" Millie asked curiously. "Why is it so dangerous?"

"This is a gun," Kyle said, pulling it out to show her, then putting it back. "It is essentially a high-power crossbow. What's the standard array of skills? Are there any combat related skills in there?"

"I think Identify is the only skill that is combat related in the standard array," Millie said. "The Standard Array is the combination of Identify, Status, Mana Sight, Mana Manipulation, Inventory, and List Inventory. It's a set of quality of life skills and a way to help you learn skills better."

"How do they help you learn skills better?" Kyle asked.

"Um, so several skills use mana to power them, and so Mana Sight lets you see what they're doing, and if you can copy it successfully a couple of times then The System rewards you with the skill. Mana Manipulation makes it easier to do that, but everyone just buys that skill. People buy Mana Sight fairly often too, but people also learn it naturally by using a pair of Mana Sight goggles," Millie explained.

"Can Identify work on skills?" Kyle asked. "Is there some way to get a description of skills?"

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"Yes, but most Interfaces nowadays have the Identify (System) built into them. It's a separate skill from the regular Identify," Millie said. "Identify shows a person's Level, Race, Class, HP and Mana. I've heard there's an advanced version that can show you people's skills, but I've never seen it."

Kyle nodded, looking thoughtful. "Are you going for a Mage, or a Ranger? Is the Archery something you want to have as a primary method of attack, or would you rather do spellcasting?"

"Um, t-that's a rather personal question, isn't it?" Millie said "I only told you my skills because you said that it was for if we got attacked, so you would know how to best help. It's rather rude to ask people about their stats and skills."

Oh, it is?" Kyle said, surprised. "I didn't know that. I'm sorry, in my world, we don't have a system, but we do have games that have very similar mechanics. We didn't find it rude, but we would sometimes undersell ourselves to surprise either our friends or enemies. It was fun to surprise my friends with a powerful skill that I kept hidden until we were close to losing." He grinned. "They took to asking if I had any surprises for them when we were getting into bad situations in boss fights."

"Do you have any surprises here?" Millie asked.

"I don't think so. Would you like to know my current skills?" Kyle offered. "It's only fair, since I know yours."

"Yes, please!" Millie squeaked excitedly. "I've never gotten to hear a Champion's skills before!"

"Whelp, I also have Tracking, I got a little bit lucky there. My other skills are Sneaking and Battle Focus," Kyle said. "I am a pretty good shot with a gun, but that isn't a System skill, and if you show me what to do, than I can usually do it."

"And you're a human, right?" Millie asked.

"Yes, last I checked," Kyle confirmed.

"So your racial skill should be Fast Learning," Millie said, nodding. "It allows you to learn a skill after only preforming it once."

"Racial skill?" Kyle said, confused. "Does each race have a racial skill?"

"Yes," Millie said. "Each race gets a zeroth level skill. Elves get Mana Manipulation, humans get Fast Learning, halflings get Inventory, and so forth. Several of the skills in the Standard Array come from the racial skills."

"Huh, that would explain why I got the skills I have so easily," Kyle said. "Thanks."

"You're welcome?" Millie responded, confused.

They walked in silence for some time, following the road. As they did, Kyle contemplated his two quests regarding Millie.

I've already told her a lot about my position, and she's helped me a lot in return. It sounds like she's currently sitting in a ranger playstyle, which fits her background. Hunting in the woods as an elf is pretty much exactly what I would expect for the background of a ranger. All she would need to complete the set is an animal companion. Regardless of whether she goes full spellcaster or ranger, she would likely be useful if she can get over her shyness. Kyle nodded.

"Would you like to join my party?" He asked her.

"W-wait, what?" Millie stammered, eyes wide. "I-I don't have any useful abilities! I can't fight! I'm not any good at anything!"

"From what you've told me, you currently sit in the ranger archetype," Kyle explained. "That's basically a hunter with a couple of spells. You can track, I can get you Sneaking, you have Archery, and that's just filling in the blanks of what you can do right now. If you wanted to go for a dedicated spellcaster, then you just have to learn some more and higher damage spells. I don't currently have anyone in my party at the moment, and so I can fill in the blanks around whatever you decided on. I'm still only level 8, so I'm not even that good at things myself."

"B-but-"

"If you don't want to, that's fine. We're going to your village either way. I should probably also warn you a little about what I've experienced so far," Kyle said, then gave a quick explanation of the contest and the quests. "Again," he said as he finished. "If you don't want to join me, that's fine. I'll still see you through to your village safely. So, do you want to join me?"

"C-can I wait until after we get to the village to decide?" Millie asked.

"Of course," Kyle agreed. "We wouldn't want you rushing in without careful consideration."

As they crested a hill, Kyle saw the top of a wall over the next hill. "Is that it?" he asked.

"Yes!" Millie said, excited, and began to run towards it.

Kyle chuckled, and jogged after her.