Each time Parry went through the Steps of Awakening, it felt distant, shrouded, as if he were performing the ritual with a small part of his mind but the rest of him was clinical. He could see himself in the circle, slate and chalk in hand. He saw his father reciting the spells, pouring essences and materials on to the floor to be soaked up by the diagram. The sound was blunted, like background music. Domo, handing his father ingredients one after another, seemed almost a shadow.

The sensation was familiar. He couldn't remember a single human life when he hadn't gone through one of these rituals, and even in his lifetimes as an animal or mystic creature there had been equivalents. It wasn't always an Awakening, sometimes it depended on the magic class or the source, but always it left him in this state: leveling up, no matter what triggered it, afforded him this peace and the chance to apply improvements to his stats and skills.

Peace, he thought, but not necessarily solitude.

Alert: You are undergoing [Ritual of the Second Step].

You have acquired nineteen (19) stat points. Stat points must be assigned during the [Ritual of the Second Step] or they will be lost.

Assign stat points? (y/n)

Nineteen! How long had Pharryl been holding him back? That was quite the backlog. Better get to work:

Strength: 35 / 35 Maximum: 100 Dexterity: 66 / 66 Maximum: 100 Fatigue: 91 / 100 Maximum: 100 Magic: 12 / 12 Maximum: 100 Health: 84 / 100 Maximum: 98

It was a relief to confirm he was almost completely over his ochre fever. Health might need more time, but the new maximum of "98" worried him.

Must be the night blindness. It's capping my maximum, but only a bit. That's a problem for later. Fatigue should work its way back to one hundred in a few more days.

Parry fought the urge to put every point into magic. His spells were so limited already, they wouldn't be as useful as, say, Dexterity. With care, he slotted in the new numbers:

Strength: 35 / 38 Maximum: 103 Dexterity: 66 / 71 Maximum: 105 Fatigue: 91 / 100 Maximum: 100 Magic: 12 / 20 Maximum: 108 Health: 84 / 101 Maximum: 101

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Health was non-negotiable: it had to rise above the human maximum of one hundred. Too many times Parry had died for having no margin against the expected human limits. That single point wasn't much, but it could mean the difference between life and death. No taking chances there.

Parry felt himself drawing a complex sigil on his slate in strokes of chalk both broad and fine. They had no obvious connections to the changes he was making to his stats, but he knew they corresponded precisely.

Probably no one else in this world experiences leveling up like I do. It's like looking behind the magic. Too bad it doesn't work this way outside my own mind.

Alert: You are undergoing [Ritual of the Second Step].

You have reached Shaper (Class) Level 9. You have acquired eleven (11) levels to assign your subclasses. Levels must be assigned during the [Ritual of the Second Step] or they will be lost.

Assign levels? (y/n)

Parry brought up the class page:

Shaper, class Level 9

So many levels! This could be a real bonanza, but he'd have to assign them carefully:

Shaper, locate materials Level 9 Shaper, refine materials Level 9 Shaper, assembly Level 3 Shaper, finishing Level 5 Shaper, quality Level 2 Shaper, turnaround Level 2

He was tempted to pour them all into turnaround to become faster at realizing his shapings, but that might be a mistake. What good completing something in an hour if it failed, or worse, produced dangerous results?

My levels are unbalanced, stunted from an overprotective father. That must be fixed:

Shaper, locate materials Level 9 Shaper, refine materials Level 9 Shaper, assembly Level 6 Shaper, finishing Level 5 Shaper, quality Level 6 Shaper, turnaround Level 6

There would be ample opportunity to maximize levels later. Don't forget just how powerful some spells and items are. The key is to avoid glaring weaknesses now.

Or you could be strong now. Very strong. The strongest of them all.

The voice purred, coming from just behind his shoulder.

That's when Parry realized he wasn't alone.