Dan asked my other team members, “What Trial did y’all want to do next?”
“Agility Trial,” quickly declared Leena. “I know I can get SS.”
“Don’t feel pressure to dot hat. F-rating is fine. Not dying is the goal,” said Dan.
“Well, I know I can get SS,” replied Leena.
“Okay. Just be careful, is all.”
Once they all arrived, Chet set the camera up at the Agility Trial. Dan asked Leena, “You want me to run through it again? As a refresher?”
Leena said, “No. I’m certain I could get SS on this without having the pattern memorized.”
Leena, Chet, Luke, and Nick entered the Trial. They had to move all the meal wrappers and trash out of the way before Leena started the Trial. She blew through it and made it look easy. She wasn’t even breathing hard when it finished.
The party collected their rewards before exiting.
While waiting for the Trial to reset, Dan walked those four through absorbing the Agility Grade-Enhancer. Nick and Luke had some issues, but Leena and Chet got it on the first try.
When it was Becky’s turn, she took off her loose pants and hoodie. In her short shorts and tank top, she tightened her ponytail and took some deep breaths to center herself.
She did pretty well for a while, but when the four lasers closed in and she had to jump through the little diamond shape they made, she yelled out, “Stop,” before getting cut to pieces.
She ended up with a B rating. Not too shabby. I was expecting her to get an F or C rating. She was decently nimble but not nearly to the extent of Leena.
She told her party, “I’m real sorry, guys. Leena made it look simple but it sure ain’t. It’s real hard. It ain’t like training. I hesitated for a second and that ended it. There was no way I was making it through that tiny hole I needed to jump through. I’ll try again once it resets.”
Outside the Trial, Dan was standing about 20 meters away from the group. Chet walked up to him and asked, “Is there a reason we shouldn’t switch up the parties and get everyone an SS with this Trial?”
Dan thought about it for a moment and said, “I can’t think of any reason not to. I should’ve thought of that myself.”
Leena left her party and joined Becky’s. Her second time through, she made getting SS look like a joke. Usually going from F-grade to C-grade Agility isn’t all that noticeable. It was in her case.
Chet wanted to go next, so they all made their way northeast to the Reaction Trial.
Dan always made his way on his own, and he always ran. Chet ran beside him this time. He said, “I don’t believe Austin should do this. He hasn’t taken practice seriously. I’m not certain if he can get an F rating. I should run both parties through.”
“Damn,” said Dan. “I wanted everyone to run through something once. You sure he can’t pull off an F?”
“It’s certainly possible. He could also fail and kill everyone in the Trial along with himself.”
After a few moments, Dan asked, “You been pushing yourself with those extra exercises?”
“I most certainly have. Every day I wake up extremely sore.”
“Good,” replied Dan. “You run everyone through the Reaction Trial then.”
It seemed like Dan had more to say but held back and just focused on breathing correctly during the run. Chet had the camera set up before Carlos and Luke, the stragglers, arrived.
I didn’t really believe Chet that there was some sort of algorithmic set to the parts and components of this Trial. I sort of know what an algorithm is, so I can kind of guess at what an algorithmic set means, but how this kid figured any sort of pattern from the random chaos of this Trial is beyond me.
Anyway, he ran the Trial twice and got everyone SS.
They decided to do the Strength Trial next. Since Luke was still injured, Carlos went first. He barely got the ball up and kept forgetting to move away from the light. His party had to yell at him the whole time to keep moving. His arms were shaking so badly before he was halfway through the time needed for F rating, I thought they were all dead.
As soon as he hit F, he dropped the ball as he hopped back. Carlos was a big guy. Was he a fat? Of course. But he was also a tall, very strong, and had a large frame. He got the heaviest version of the ball for his tier. Nick would’ve been a much better choice for this Trial, especially when considering his Trait.
Luke consoled Carlos while waiting for the reset. It was easy to tell that Carlos was extremely disappointed in his performance. Then it was Luke’s turn.
Luke looked kind of weak. And pathetic. He had a very average frame and build. Looks can be deceptive.
He easily hefted the ball and managed to stay a good distance away from the light the whole time until he got SS. He didn’t even drop the ball when it was over. He set it down. And remember, it was covered in tacks. Everyone drops it.
The parties were reformed. Luke’s second run through the Trial was even easier with his Strength at C-grade, and it increased a step naturally too.
Both Ace and Nick wanted Dan to run through the Speed Trial as a refresher before they went. Dan obliged. Even with his tier requiring a much faster time, he didn’t struggle nearly as much as before. He still had to rest for a long while when he finished though.
Then Ace went. He almost died on the first part, but once the obstacles were over and it was a clear track, getting SS wasn’t an issue.
Nick pulled Dan aside while the Trial was resetting and said, “Hey, I hate to say it and…and I don’t want you to think less of me, but I ain’t sure I can do this. Run that fast for that long. My leg only just healed. Ace and Leena tried helping me learn how to hurdle, but it just ain’t clicking. The right way to hurdle is unnatural and my body just don’t want to do it.”
It took Dan a few moments to reply. “You got to run one Trial, Nicky. This’ll all help you get a better Class. If you can’t do this one, what about the Strength Trial? Your Trait’ll help with that.”
“Yeah. I can do that one. Not sure I can get SS. I’m sure I could pull off at least an F.”
“We’ll do that then. This one takes a lot out of you. I hope Ace is up for running it again.”
Ace had no problem running it a second time, but Leena asked if she could instead. The ball never even kind of got close to her. She blew through the course like it was nothing and wasn’t even sweating when she finished. It did take her about half a minute to catch her breath though.
Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.
Dan asked Leena to run with him as they headed back to the Strength Trial.
“You think you can tolerate a lot of pressure for a few minutes,” asked Dan. “Pressure kind of like high gravity?”
“Why?”
“It’s risky,” said Dan, “but, if you can, there’s a way to increase your Soul-grade by a step. A lot of this stuff is coming natural to you. If you get that step increase, I reckon you should hold off getting a Class and spend the night reflecting on your revelation. It ain’t impossible for you to hit B-grade by morning.”
Leena smiled and said, “I’d definitely like to try. Whatever I need to do to get back to my hus…my ex and my kids, I’ll do.”
“Just keep thinking like that. Stay focused on getting stronger. That’s how we get out of here and you get back to your family.”
Nick was able to get an SS rating in the Strength Trial. He got the same weight ball as Luke, but remember, Luke had F-grade Strength when he got his first SS. Nick had B-rated Strength when he did it, so it wasn’t that impressive of a feat.
Then they all headed to the Soul Trial. Dan explained the best way to sit and told everyone they should quit as soon as they felt like they’d lose consciousness. Since they never saw Dan do this Trial, Chet asked if he’d run it so they could watch.
I just saw Dan do this Trial the day before, so I know he hammed it up a little to make it look harder for him than it was at his Soul-grade. He still exited with his eyes a little bloodshot and his skin a little messed up, but not all that noticeably so.
It was kind of getting late, so everyone ate while waiting for the reset. The Soul Trial has a much shorter reset than most, so it didn’t take long.
“Austin, you up first. Remember, don’t push it. You start losing consciousness, say stop. Got it?”
“I got it,” replied Austin as he entered the Trial. He got a B rating. Everyone else got an A rating besides Ace and Leena. Ace got an S rating.
Leena went last. She spent all the time waiting for her turn reflecting on her revelation. She somehow managed to pull off an SS. An impressive feat at Origin tier, but not nearly as impressive as doing so with an F-grade Soul. Plus, she had a little help you’ll learn of soon.
Leena looked terrible. Bearing the weight of an Archfiend really messed her up. She was bleeding out of everything. She urinated in her pants too.
Dan had talked to Leena about what to do if she attained SS. She moved the camera outside the reward room so everyone could get a look at the full revelations.
She spent a great deal of time looking at and reflecting on her own. Since she couldn’t track time and didn’t want the Trial to close on her before she got her reward, she sat in the tattoo chair well before she had to.
Listen to this. She somehow managed to increase her Soul-grade a step before even sitting in the chair.
Leena exited the Trial with a 2-Star Soul. It was late into the night by this time, but everyone was excited and wanted to go get their Class.
Leena said she needed to grab something and went to clean herself off in the stream. She cried the whole way back.
The Trial really took its toll on her. She had a ton of hairline fractures, her heart was messed up, and inside her body was bleeding in a few dangerous places.
I was very happy she didn’t tell anyone how injured she was. She sat and cried in the stream while repeating the same thing over and over again. “I will survive. I will get my family back. This doesn’t hurt as much as ruining my life.”
She changed into new clothes before joining everyone.
Back at the Class Trial, Dan told Chet and Austin the first weapon they’d select after completing Exhibit: History of the Game would be a shield.
You know how it works. Interacting with the Class Obelisk shows current mana-type, if they can level up or ascend, what mana-type will open if they don’t have a Class, and the Classes available to pick from.
Everyone but Austin got offered a bunch of Uncommon Classes. Chet was offered a few Rare Classes too. Leena was offered a 2-Star Epic Class.
Even though Austin would have darkness as a mana-type, Dan had him take the Healer basic Class.
Uncommon 0-Star Classes aren’t much better than basic ones, but Dan factored in what my team members thought they were good at, what they were actually good at, what they wanted to do, mana-type, all that. Well, besides for Austin. A Healer with darkness as a mana-type doesn’t make much sense.
Becky, Luke, and Nick all knew how to use a bow. No one else had weapon skills or training. Not any useful for the game. Plenty had shot firearms before.
Ace obviously knew a lot about the modern weapons of his world, but mechanical weapons aren’t allowed in the Game.
For mana-types, Nick would open sand, Ace would open bestial, Becky would open plant, Carlos would open rock, Luke would open dream, Chet would open steel, and Leena would open moon.
[Moon? I’ve heard of lunar, but never moon. Dream is new to me as well.]
I’ve seen both before, but the participants that had them died before learning any real mana-techniques.
Plant’s a lot more common, but still pretty rare. Same with steel. Even iron or metal aren’t all that common. Rock’s decently common, but not sand.
No earth or fire or any other prime type. In a group of eight, you usually see a couple prime types.
Do you know how Uncommon or Rare basic Classes work? I’m only asking just in case you don’t know the lower end of things.
[Somewhat. A wider selection of starter Orbments are offered.]
Exactly. And the name changes. It’s usually only Soldier, Guard, Mage, Healer, Sneak, and Freelancer.
Dan had Becky select Bowman, a Soldier subclass. The Class came with a Lesser Mana-Bow physical Orbment. Remember, her Trait was Boost Mana Weapon. She seemed a little disappointed. I think she wanted to be some type of healer.
Nick wanted to use a long weapon with reach. Since all the really long weapons can puncture and pierce even if they’re meant to chop or cut, Nick selected Piercer, another Soldier subclass. It came with a lesser version of the Pierce physical Orbment.
Ace wanted to be a melee fighter or tank with a shield. He didn’t have much of a preference for a weapon but if he had to pick one now, he’d go with either a mace or sword.
He wasn’t offered any decent Guard alternatives. Dan talked him into going for a Bard build since they could melee and off-tank and it would fit well with his Trait and mana-type.
Ace had no desire to sing in combat. Dan explained that intent was more important than the singing. He just had to make some noises for it to count, then make different noises for a different song or chant.
So, Ace ended up selecting Melodist, a Freelancer subclass with the Lesser Healing Song Orbment.
Carlos wanted to be a tank. His Trait was nonsense, so I’m guessing Dan didn’t factor it into anything. Tanking would go perfectly with his rock mana-type though. He selected Interceptor, a Guard subclass with the Lesser Intercept Orbment. That was a good choice. It would help him quickly move his fat ass to where it needed to be.
When Luke was up, I could only understand half the conversation, but it seemed like he wanted to use a crossbow. Since those aren’t in the Game, he settled on a bow. There was a lot of talking but Luke eventually picked Melodist, the same as Ace.
Chet wanted to have a power Orbment with a very low cooldown. The only Rare Mage subclass to fit that requirement was Apprentice with Lesser Darts.
Leena wasn’t happy with the Epic Class she was offered and asked Dan if there was any way to increase her selections. He…
[What was it? The Class she was offered?]
A utility Class called Stalker. Personally, I thought it was pretty awesome. Since it was 2-Star and Epic, it had a Slot Bonus. A really good Slot Bonus too.
Dan told her, “There ain’t much you could do besides completing the Reaction and Strength Trials yourself. But I wanted to get everyone to level 1 before we rack out.”
“What about the Combat and Mana Trials?”
“No. The Combat Trial’s way too risky for you to do alone and you need a Class to do the Mana Trial.”
Leena scoffed and said, “You did it without a Class.”
“I opened my mana-type naturally.”
“Then teach me how,” pleaded Leena.
“It won’t help none. You’d got to learn advanced mana techniques. That takes time.”
“If you learned them quickly, I can too.”
Dan sighed. “Look, I love this fire you got burning in you. Believe me, I don’t want to stifle it none, but the Combat and Mana Trial ain’t happening.”
I could see Leena deflating. A moment later, Dan said, “I guess you could wait till tomorrow and run the Combat Trial with a full party. You’d have a 3-Star Class then. One second. Let me think.”
Dan thought it through for a while before saying. “Yeah, we’ll see how it goes. After the others run it a few times, if it seems like SS is a safe option with you in the party, we’ll do that.
“I need to walk these guys through leveling up and clearing channels. If you want me there, I can go with you to the Reaction and Strength Trials when I’m done.”
Leena said, “I’m not sure I have the upper body strength to do the Strength Trial yet. I never focused on strength training. I wanted to look soft and curvy, not hard and blocky. And I should learn the pattern of the Reaction Trial from Chet so I can get SS.”
“No rush,” replied Dan. “We’ll figure it out tomorrow then.”
Dan was in the Class Trial with eight other people, or nine if you count the little punk-ass bitch Bonnie. His social anxiety was hitting orange, but it wasn’t going in the red, and a lot of people were pretty close to him. I hoped he wasn’t getting less crazy.
[I wonder why so much effort was put into these basic Classes if he planned for them to achieve SS on the Combat Trial. The reward would be a Soul Gem, correct? They’d all switch to 1-Star Classes with real Orbments after.]
I think he was setting them up for the long-term. For them to think and plan long-term too. And we’ll get to the real Classes very soon.