Chapter 32

“The New Teacher”

“In this world, normally humans can only have one profession due to the restrictions imposed on their system and this option is only open to them as soon as they reach level 10. But our system allows us many more freedoms. We can have up to three professions, although most of them stay with one and specialize in it. Also, we don’t have to wait until we reach that level to choose them,” she commented with a bit of haughtiness. “Generally, there are races that specialize in one profession or another and exchange services with other races, humans being the exception to this rule. Dwarves, for example, specialize in engineering, mining and blacksmithing. Elves, on the other hand, whether these be common, light or night elves, tend to vary between jewelry, alchemy, trade, leatherworking, tailoring and herbalism.”

Am I supposed to stand for the whole class? Kalysto thought, and as he was about to ask if he could sit down, taking advantage of Artemis stared at her for a moment, perhaps making sure she was paying attention as she took a mini-breathing break. But immediately, her new teacher continued without giving her time to ask questions.

“These last three professions are also chosen by the semi-human races, with the exception of dragons.”

“Wait a minute! Are you saying that dragons are also humans?”

“No, I’m telling you that some races have evolved enough to adopt a human appearance like dragons, or semi-human like were-tigres, were-panthers or were-rabbits, who retain the characteristics of both species.”

There are many more species than I imagined. Kalysto thought, surprised at the discovery.

“If you ask me, were, unlike dragons, are the result of human experiments.”

So that’s why they hate us? She thought, but instead said:

“That sounds horrible.”

“It is. Especially since they despise them and see them as slaves or low-ranking soldiers, they send to their wars to avoid risking the lives of their precious fellow humans.”

“ Just like they do with the heroes they summon from other worlds?” Kalysto asked, certain that it was always like that in all the Isekai stories in novels and manga she had read or heard about.

“... Yes, something like that is...” an awkward silence stretched between them.

“May I sit down?” Kalysto interrupted, seizing the opportunity. And for a brief moment she thought she saw a look of annoyance on Artemis’ face before she quickly relaxed her expression and nodded her head. Immediately, Kalysto walked over to one of the one-person sofas in the small room behind her, lifted it up and placed it across from where Artemis was seated. From the frown both women made, neither seemed to like what she had done.

What, did they think I was going to sit on the floor? She thought wryly, making herself comfortable on the cushioned couch.

Artemis cleared her throat.

“...As I was saying, some species specialize in one or several professions, and others are simply a very varied mix of everything, like humans and demons. Unfortunately, this puts them in a very disadvantageous position for them, as they will hardly have access to the specialized knowledge of each profession that can only be discovered after many decades or centuries of study.” Artemis raised her head with dignity. “We fairies, for example, don’t care as much about archaeology as some demonic kingdoms do. We prefer to be explorers” that immediately caught her attention, and Artemis seemed to notice it.

So they are fairies? Weren’t fairies smaller and with wings? She thought, looking sideways at the guard, who seemed to be about two meters tall. If it weren’t for their strange hair color, they would pass for human at any moment. So does my new boss make deals with fairies or is he one of them too... Since when do fairies have the power to stop time on other planets?

Too many questions for too few answers, but with the attitude his new employer had had the last time she talked to him, it was best to wait a little longer, maybe start getting some results before starting to demand answers.

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“It’s a pity it’s not a profession humans can take up,” Artemis added with a thin smile full of arrogance on her lips. “It’s a calling that runs in our blood. You see, I believe your kind call it instinct. Because of our need to explore and know other territories, it usually becomes our second profession,” she added.

“And what does it do? Does it give them some special ability or something?” she asked with curiosity, pretending she hadn’t noticed anything strange about her previous behavior.

Suddenly Artemis’ attitude changed, starting to look nervous.

“... It gives us prestige among us.”

That is, nothing. Kalysto thought. This time it was she who gave her a half smile of silent satisfaction.

“I see.”

“It... and helps us with the creation of maps,” Artemis tried to defend herself, and an awkward silence returned to the room. Then she cleared her throat before continuing. “As a third option, we usually choose ‘illusionism’, which allows us to go unnoticed by other races while traveling and exploring.”

That seems useful. Kalysto thought.

“Besides the rest of the professions already mentioned, we focus on mining. And very few of us focus on enchantments and the inscription of glyphs and runes. The latter profession is more like a specialization in enchantments. And it’s these last two professions that you should take. But I need you to have enchantments at least level 40, ideally you should have it at level 50, so the system will allow you to more easily access the knowledge about the protective barriers that are necessary as part of the mission you have been given” Kalysto nodded” for a human normally that would take almost a lifetime, but in your case we don’t have all that time. So I will use a rather intensive and a bit aggressive type of training,” she added, pointing to the smaller table on which were several bottles of potions.

“Those are...” she couldn’t even finish talking about the large size of the bottles as Artemis interrupted her.

“Potions of mana, health and revitalizing potions, of superior concentration. They were not so easy to acquire so part of your training will consist of going and helping the elves who have so kindly provided them to us," Now that she was ready to count them she realized that there were forty bottles, which increased Kalysto’s distrust against Artemis. “They, as well as us fairies, have been contaminated with the black plague.”

Not liking where this was heading, Kalysto took the opportunity to divert the conversation to a doubt he had been left with from earlier.

“Wait a minute, did you say fairies?” Artemis nodded proudly. “I don’t want to sound rude, but it was my understanding that fairies were those little creatures with wings like butterflies or dragonflies.”

“I think you’re confusing us with nature spirits or with dryads, who live in trees and are smaller. But I think I understand, in part where your confusion comes from,” she then turned her head to the armored woman at her side and with a wave of her hand, instructed her to step forward. “Show your other forms to Kalysto.”

“Yes, ma’am,” immediately Galatea, at almost two meters tall, stopped looking like a human being to become a small ball of light of the same shade of dark green as her hair, which took Kalysto by surprise, since at that moment he remembered having seen a sphere of light similar to that one, although of a different color, during the day before the summoning, hanging around the garden at the entrance of the building where she had lived in the last few years.

“As long as a human is below level 20, that’s all he’ll see of us.“ Then she looked back at the guard. “Now Galatea changes back,” she ordered. And Galatea did so, no longer looking like a small sphere of light, but a tiny human form about the size of two open hands, with a pair of dragonfly-like wings attached to her back.

“That’s the way fairies appear in children’s stories from the world I come from,” commented Kalysto.

“That’s usually the form we use when interacting with other species," Artemis turned to Galatea, “You can change form again.”

“Thank you, my lady,” she commented in a solemn voice. Which made Kalysto wonder how hierarchies worked within the fairy world, and what position the woman who had become her teacher had.

“And this is our usual form, but it’s also the one we spend the most mana with,” she commented as she took a slice of a white-colored fruit from a plate that suddenly appeared on her lap.

And that when it got there? Kalysto wondered, sure she hadn’t noticed it before. Or was it there from the beginning and it was me who couldn’t see it until now? And that led her to another line of thought. If they can appear or disappear, things at will... Are we really alone in this room? And she wanted to be able to open her map and find a way to enlarge it to show her in detail how many people were near her at the moment.

“If you spend more mana this way, wouldn’t it be better not to use it?”

“Although we spend more mana, the expenditure is minimal and we can easily recover it by eating. Apart from giving us an advantage in size which helps us in our jobs, it allows us to regenerate our health much faster. So it has its advantages.”

“I see,” she commented, feigning interest, as she racked her brains trying to find a way to open her map and enlarge it without making her hand movements noticeable. But it was impossible.

Maybe having illusionism as a profession could be much more advantageous than I thought.