“I'm sorry if I was annoying you,” Aern'Lenninisal said.

“Don't be sorry, be useful. I need information. How can I get three Quests a day so I can Level?”

“You could travel for new Quests, but every day you travel is day you are not Questing. The Dungeon is probably your best option.”

“What about Karma? Can I get enough from just killing things,” I asked.

“At higher levels. Repeating Quests is the best way to do that at lower Levels. You can get the Karma more than once, but you only get the Experience the first time,” he replied.

I groaned and said, “So I just keep grinding the same Quest. That's going to be boring after a while, but I'm good a grinding.”

“There is a limit. It is usually about ten times before you stop getting Karma. It is why we travel from city to city. After ten years, the Quests for [Good] deeds usually change enough to get Experience and Karma again.”

“Do you think I can get enough for two Boons at level 3,” I asked.

“Two Boons? That is ten times the Karma! You also must complete a Karma Quest. If you Level four times slower than an elf, I suppose it is possible. It will be a lot of work,” he answered. After pausing for a moment, he continued, “Why do you need an extra Boon at Level 3?”

“It's not just level 3. After Level 2 I plan on getting two Boons every Level. I'm getting [Armor of Justice] at Level 3. A brief burst of relative invincibility that gets stronger with my [Lawful Good] Magnitude. In need to min/max that. Hopefully I can fit another Boon it at Level 3. If my [Law] and [Good] Amplitudes are about equal the effect for [Armor of Justice] would mean the difference between an Amplitude of 40 and Amplitude of 60. And that would translate into...about fifty-six and eighty-four on my Amplitude.”

I had done a guesstimate of the what the square of the sum of the squares would be by multiplying by 1.4, a close approximation of the square root of two divided by two from the geometry a forty-five-forty-five -ninety triangle, but Aern'Lenninisal's eyes got wide when I gave the answer. He glanced both directions before whispering to me, “Do you know about the Pythagorean Theorem?”

Now it was my turn to be confused. Celestium had told me that higher math only existed as academic theory on Elfandrael. Aern'Lenninisal's words weren't exactly “Pythagorean theorem,” but the [Tongues] spell translated very clearly for me. How did a elven adolescent know about it?

“Yeah, on Earth, everybody has to learn about it in school,” I said. “How do you know about it?”

Aern'Lenninisal spoke in hushed tones, “My grandfather is a reserve Captain in the city guard. He taught me the Pythagorean Table when I showed an interest in the guard. I was told it was military technology and I could not share it. I would suggest you keep quiet about knowing it, or someone might show up to keep you quiet about it.” He nervously looked around the room again, to see if anyone was still listening to us.

His warning was friendly and sincere, but I got the message. “I know the Pythagorean Theorem, but why do you say the 'Pythagorean Table?'”

“Because the theorem requires you solve the square root of a number. Besides repeated guessing, there is no known way to solve that, not even with a Skill. The Pythagorean Table is a grid one hundred by one hundred and has the answer for all the completed squares for right triangles between one and one hundred. If the number you are are seeking the square root of is over one hundred, you keep dividing the numbers by one hundred until they get below one hundred, so you can use the table. Then you multiply the number in the table by ten for every time you had to divide by one hundred.”

I thought about it for second. That was a way to get a close approximation of the answer for finding a square roots and the solutions to right triangles, but it seemed very cumbersome. “That means have you to memorize ten thousand different answers from the table. How do you remember all that?”

“I do not. You only have to start to memorize most of the table. Once you spend a couple weeks on it, the System recognizes you are learning the Skill and then it becomes automatic. It is basically the same thing that happens when you create your own Skill.”

“Create your own Skill! You can do that,” I almost shouted.

Aern'Lenninisal looked around uncomfortably. Several people in the Guild's day room stopped what they were doing and looked in our direction. I blushed a little, grimaced, and mouthed “Sorry.”

After a few moments Aern'Lenninisal chuckled and said, “I forgot that you are new to this world. Yes, it is possible to make your own Skill, but it is seldom done. It is easy to make a mistake, unless you have the [Skill Design] Skill.”

“Of Course there's a [Skill Design] Skill,” I said while I shook my head. “So is that how you guys learn math. You just design a bunch of tables for everything?”

“No. The [Arithmetic] Skill a process. There are basic tables for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division; but there is process using the order of operations to solve math problems. I can still remember how to work those problems by hand, but it is faster to use the Skill,” he explained.

“You have a Skill for math? How often do you use math that you would dedicate a Skill slot to it,” I asked. This was a fantasy world with no advanced technology. I couldn't imagine what a medieval serf would need with the necessary math to learn algebra.

“[Identification] and [Analyze] will give the raw Statistics and damage for creatures, weapons, and Spells; but you still have to calculate the damage per second to make sure you can kill it. The [Arithmetic] Skill is a foundational Skill for [Consider] and [Evaluate Combat],” he said.

“What's a 'foundational Skill,'” I asked. Celestium hadn't said anything about that.

“A foundational Skill is one that feeds into another one. If I want to [Consider] a monster, [Identify] or [Analyze] will pass the raw Stats to [Consider] and then [Consider] will assume the best available damage I can take and deal. [Consider] then tells me what my chances of defeating that creature are. Another use of foundational Skills are the control sequences Wizards create to automate the commands for their constructs.”

This was starting to sound like programming subroutines, or at least something like a macro from a video game. “So Wizards use [Design Skill] to create custom Skills to say, control a golem army,” I asked.

Aern'Lenninisal nodded. “Not just Wizards. I am going to use it to create tactical combinations for me and my Summons. Sorcerers use it for organizing their Familiars. Generals learn standard Skills to control army Formations, but will create custom Skills to avoid being predicable. Lots of Classes use [Design Skill].”

My head was spinning with the possibilities. I felt a surge of joy and overwhelming relief. For the first time since coming to Elfandrael I had vision for myself in this world. The System had seemed fixed and static to me. There were lots of Classes and choices to be made, and even more possible combinations. Up until this point, it didn't seem like there was much room for creativity. I thought the Paths were to guide people toward ends that were predetermined by the gods. Custom Skills meant that mere mortals could shape their own path for them self. It gave me hope for my individuality.

This revelation also connected me to my old self from Earth. I had been studying computer engineering and was only a few years away from a six figure salary. Now, everything amazing about me about came from my Class and my Boons. Being an Archwizard was fun, but anybody from a wealthy family could do what I did. Celestium told me about Spells and magical devices that could suck XP away to allow young children to have as much Karma as I did. I felt like I was character in computer game, not a real person. In all the Isekai stories the hero has a special power that makes them OP. I hadn't know what my special power was going to be. I did now.

Computer science and computer engineering are related fields. The essential difference is that a computer scientist learns how to program computers, while a computer engineer learns how to get computers to follow programmed instructions. A simpler way to say it is computer scientists are software people and computer engineers are hardware people. Computer scientists will learn how to program first, and then if they specialize, might learn some advanced mathematics or algorithms to write an advanced program. Computer engineers learn the same advanced mathematics that other engineers do. If you wanted to make sure the controls of your robot worked, you'd call a computer engineer before you'd call a computer scientist. Computer engineers were closer to an electrical engineer or mechanical engineer.

A computer scientist could call on vast libraries of algorithmic code. They didn't need the math or techniques to write their programs. Why specialize in learning very difficult math, when someone else could figure it out for you. Computer engineers had to make sure the machines could handle the code at the most basic level. A computer scientist didn't need calculus or statistics to do their job. That level of math was one of the major things that set computer engineers apart from computer scientists. You needed to know calculus and statistics to understand statistical gradient descent, the algorithm behind the A.I. revolution in deep learning. You couldn't call up a deep learning algorithm from a library if the library didn't exist. You'd need an computer engineer to write it for you first. And I was a computer engineer!

It wasn't just A.I. algorithms. Aern'Lenninisal had said there wasn't a way to solve square roots on Elfandrael. I could use the Babylonian method for solving a square roots, or even create a more general, numeric function approximator like Newton's Method. My numerical methods class didn't just cover the powerful stuff like like gradient descent, I even had the infinite series methods for approximating trigonometric functions. I could build range finding scripts for mortars and trebuchets, or a targeting interface to calculate how to bounce spells of walls. Up until this point in Elfandrael I felt like script kiddie, just using the programs of others. I wouldn't be the Archwizard of Punching. I would be the Archwizard of Computer Engineering!

“I do not know what I said to make you smile like that, but it appears have been useful after all,” Aern'Lenninisal said, breaking me out of my fugue.

“Definitely useful,” I said enthusiastically.

“What was it that I said,” he asked.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

I hesitated a moment before I said, “The simple answer is that I have some skills from Earth that will translate well here, once I convert them into Skills.”

“Will they help you Level faster,” he asked.

“Not right away. It might take decades before they become practical to use, but it makes me feel good, knowing they wont go to waste. Speaking of Leveling. Could I go with you to Everdale?”

“I am willing. I will need to discuss it with our tour coordinator. I will let you know.”

I thanked him and we got back to teaching him [Teaching]. The next day he watched over me as I exhausted my [Stamina] again for the Guild Quest to get the [Sprint] Ability. On the third day I got it and it increased my maximum run speed by 50% + 1% for each Status Level I had.

The next Quest in the chain was the [Map] Quest. I had to visit nine Shrines. The reward was the [Map] Ability. It was pretty much like the browser based stuff on the internet back on Earth. It had a standard map, a topographic feature, and even a street view. All of it was based on my personal travels. I had to go there to put stuff in my [Map], but it was automatic. The streetview was like a personal image gallery of places I had been. Eventually I would be able to combine my [Measure] and [Mattersight] spells with the [Map] to create 3D maps of the world. Secret Chambers and their contents would belong to me!

The last Guild Quest was the [Recall] Quest. It was really simple. I had to go to a Shrine of Celestium and break this vial of alchemical reagants. That was it. Now I could activate [Recall] once every twenty-seven days, and be teleported back to the Shrine with my [Bind Point]. I tried it out just to see what it was like. It's kinda fun. I can't wait to get [Teleport]!

I spent every free moment for the next few weeks training anytime I wasn't Questing. I started by repeatedly casting [Matter Sight] until I got to Level 1. Once it was Level 1, I could put Mana into the Spell. That was the major limiting factor to how powerful Spell could be. You could only put 1 [Mana] into the Spell for every Level of Skill you had in the Spell. The maximum Level of Skill you could have in a Spell, or any Skill, was your Status Level.

After I exhausted my Mana pool from [Matter Sight], I used [Recharge Mana] to start the cycle over and over. It took a few days to get [Matter Sight] spell up to Level 2, followed closely by [Recharge Mana].

There are thousands of standard Spells in the Elfandrael Magical System. The Spells are divided into Schools of Magic, and the Schools are arranged in a hierarchy. The lowest rung of the hierarchy is the Elements. The four Elements are [Earth], [Water], [Air], and [Fire]. [Create Flame] is the first Tier 1 Spell in the Element of [Fire].

The lowest category, Elements, were the province of Mages. The next category up were the five Pathways, which are [Body], [Animal], [Plant], [Metal], and [Aether]. It was necessary to know Spells from the Pathways to be a High Mage. Above the Pathways are the Aspects and then the seven Spheres. The Spheres were the beginning of the advanced casting Classes. Wizard, Druid, and Sorcerer. A High Wizard needs spells from each of the eight Aspects, and an Archwizard needed a spell from each of the nine Structures. I was able to satisfy that requirement by gaining spells from [Limit Breaking] my Stats at Level 0. Above the nine Structures were the ten Sources of Magic.

Spheres, Facets, and Structures were Class Magics for Archwizards. By practicing [Matter Sight] and [Recharge Mana], I eventually learned my School Mastery in both [Matter] and [Psychic]! Now I had a bonus to all my [Matter] and [Psychic] Spells. I could also teach those Spells and Schools to Aern'Lenninisal in exchange for learning other Spells and School's of Magic from him, even if they weren't Class Magics for me.

I probably should have been seeing the sites of Neral City before I left, but I was broke and it was a choice between looking at stuff or actually casting Magic. Of course I was going to grind my Magic!

I met up with Aern'Lenninisal and other elves at dawn on the morning we left for Everdale. The entire elven crew was waiting around outside a warehouse. There was a crisp chill in the air as Fall was well in swing. Everyone was in some type of jacket or coat. I didn't have anything else, so I showed up in my bathrobe from the Dungeon over the top of my regular clothes. Thankfully, I had bought some longjohns from the hamper in the underwear store.

Aern'Lenninisal was standing alone, watching the the other nineteen of his elvish companions chat with each other. He lit up when he saw me approach, and said, “You made it.”

“Yes. Morning are easier to deal with when you have a supernatural Constitution. Any word yet,” I as asked.

He shook his head, “No. He said he would know this morning if you had to pay, or if you would be allowed to carry freight.”

“I don't have a lot of money. You can spot me until I get into the Dungeon. Right?”

“Yes. It will be as we agreed.”

“I hate to be a borrower, but I don't have much choice,” I responded.

Aern'Lenninisal tensed up. I figured out why when I saw six of the elves coming over to us. Aern'Lenninisal cast [Tongues] on me before they arrived.

A tall, but not taller than me, strutting elf in fancy engraved and polished armor spoke first in a haughty, dismissive tone. “Aern'Lenninisal, I have heard you have abandoned the [Good], but would not it be better if you do not also travel with the lawless?”

I was a little confused as to why he would call me 'lawless,' until [Tongues] translated for me. 'Lawless' was an elvish slur for humans, because most humans tended to follow [Chaos] or [Balance] instead of [Law].

The tall elf's companions didn't speak but they all had an expectant hunger in there eyes.

Aern'Lenninisal smiled politely and responded, “Did you know the my associate here is [Lawful Good]? Would not it be better if you did not assume that humans would not follow the Path of [Law]?”

The tall elf stiffened. The smug looks on his face and the faces of his entourage disappeared. The group of elves didn't look happy at losing their opportunity to bully Aern'Lenninisal. The tall elf turned his gaze my way, eyed my grungy bathrobe, and said, “I have heard that our appearance reflects our dedication to our Path.”

I really wanted to put this guy in his place, but I would be traveling with him for the foreseeable future, so I decided to play nice. I grabbed the lapels of my robe like they were suspenders. I fingered the little spot of rabbit blood that had stained my robes on my first day in the Dungeon and said, “It sure does. I work hard at being [Lawful Good].” I offered him my hand and said, “My name's Eric, nice to meet you.”

The elf bowed slightly, grasped my hand, and replied, “I am Nellamon.”

The [Tongues] Spell translated his name as “steadfast.”

The elf continued, “Would it not be better if you associated with those who follow the Path of [Lawful Good], instead of this deviant?” He cocked his head to indicate that Aern'Lenninisal was the deviant in question.

“How can I be [Good] to him if I'm not hanging around him?”

That seemed to set him back on his heels. An internal conflict played across his face before he changed targets and went by back to attacking my wardrobe. “I heard that hard work could keep your clothes clean too.”

Did this guy want to start a fight with me?

“Yeah, but my robe got this way delving a Dungeon. Got to reflect on my hard work there too. I'm not worried. I'll get the [Cleanse] and [Refurbish Cloth] Spells one day.”

Now he looked really frustrated. I don't if it was because I wouldn't take the bait and attack him, or if he was trying to figure a way around my humble-brag about delving a Dungeon. The little snot probably hadn't done that yet.

Now Aern'Lenninisal had the smug look, instead of Nellamon and his crew. He started to say something, but was interrupted by someone speaking through a P.A. system. “I am Harmin Meadowwalker. I will be your caravan master. We will start boarding now. When I call your name come forward and accept the [Contract].”

I turned to see a short, well dressed gnome speaking. He was wearing a fur-lined, white suede outfit with a hooded cape. The white fur matched the leather. The white complimented his pale skin well. Only his light brown curly hair fell out of the matching color pallet. Silver buckles and buttons at his waist and up his vest flashed in the early morning sun. White suede leggings were tucked into his matching boots. The silverwork on the boots was very ornate. There was an elf wearing all black, standing behind the caravan master.

“Aern'Lenninisal,” he said.

My friend said, “Ah the joys of alphabetical order. I will see you soon.”

He gave a reassuring nod before marching up to the merchant. There was a brief exchange of words, and few hand motions. Behind the gnome a rectangular patch of shimmering gray void opened up. Aern'Lenninisal walked right in.

The merchant called the next name. Slowly over the next twenty minutes the rest of the elves finalized their [Contracts] and entered the merchant's [Private Palace]. With Aern'Lenninisal gone, none of the elves spoke to me. I was the last person left when he finally called my name.

“Eric Swindall,”

I walked up and said, “Yes sir, that's me.”

The gnome looked me up and down and frowned. My mismatched clothes did not impress. He was about four foot eleven, shorter even than most of the elven women. He might have been short, but he had a confident ease about him. I was regretting wearing the robe now.

“Aern'Lenninisal tells me you have three cubic strides of inventory I can use for freight. Is that true?”

“Yes sir.”

I had put all my gear in bags and stored them all in one of my inventory slots.

“That's not very much. I don't have anything I need you to carry right now. When we get to Eddar Village I might have some produce for you to carry to Everdale. I would offer ten coppers a stride for you to carry that. Because you're not carrying freight I would need to charge you for a ticket. It would be a silver and twenty copper for a ticket to Everdale.”

He probably stopped talking when he saw my crestfallen face. I didn't have that much. Getting all the Guild Quests had wiped me out.

“However, as a favor to Aern'Lenninisal's mother, I can charge you thirty copper for the trip if you agree to carry freight from Eddar Village to Everdale. But only if you provide your own food. Does that sound fair.”

I wasn't sure if was getting cheated, but a free trip to Everdale was a deal if meant I could keep up with Aern'Lenninisal. Begrudgingly, I said, “Yeah. That sounds fair.”

He smiled and said, “Before I offer you a [Contract] do you have any special Abilities, Skills, or Spells that might be useful? I would hate to miss out on any opportunities.”

Revealing what you can do to strangers can be dangerous in this world. Just knowing someone's Class can be used to figure out their weaknesses and vulnerabilities. Merchant Meadowwalker was [Lawful Good] and an ally of the elves. I quickly considered my risk from the elf in black behind him, but dismissed the idea is irrelevant. Aern'Lenninisal had vouched for the merchant, so listed all my Spells and Skills for him.

When I was done he asked, “How much mana a day do you have for your [Recharge Chi] Spell?”

“Oh, I don't need Mana for that. I got that with a [Limit Break] at Level 0. I can recharge someone for 1 Chi per second all day long. I have the [Psychic] Structure too. So I can recharge 2 Mana per second.”

Suddenly there was a glint in his eye. He asked, “An [Recharge Stamina]? Do you have that as a Level 0 Spell too?”

“Yes, sir,” I said confidently. It felt my hope building.

He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. Then he said, “I'm going to offer you a standard services commission [Contract], along with the freight [Contract]. It will cover your food as well your room and transport cost. You will be on call for at least eight hours a day to perform Spellcasting services for me. Does that sound acceptable?”

A little blue box poped up in front of me.

Harmin Fineaus Meadowwalker has offered you this [Contract] for the following:

do you accept?

Thanks to Celestium I knew what to do. I first I concentrated on Query option. My first Query was “What are the breach conditions of this [Contract]?” A second window opened with my answer.

Harmin Fineaus Meadowwalker may end this [Contract] at will, with accrued payment due upon [Contract] termination.

Harmin Fineaus Meadowwalker may end this [Contract] for nonperformance by Eric Nial Swindall, with accrued payment due no sooner than the original termination date of this [Contract].

Eric Nial Swindell may end this [Contract] at will, with accrued payment due no sooner than the original termination date of this [Contract].

My second Query was, “Is there any clause in the [Contract] which could cause me to be forced to serve against my will or lose ownership of my Soul?” There were in fact devils you could sell your soul to in Elfandrael. Also, slavery was legal in some places. The answer I got relieved me of my concerns.

There are no provisions in the contracted for forced servitude. There are no provisions that could cost you your soul.

I was so excited, I didn't even bother to find out how much I was going to get paid. I just accepted the [Contract] with a big smile on my face.

“Excellent. Step into my [Personal Palace] and we will depart shortly,” he said.

I walked into the pane of shimmering gray void behind him.