Bella walked off to find a job to do. Probably a lucrative one. That left Javi and Wren alone to think about what they were going to do. They both concentrated hard to think about it.
I don’t know that much about Aether and what to do with it. I know I want a related class but I don’t know which is best for me. But, if I think about wanting to understand Aether directly I think there is a good choice. An Aether Manipulator. That allows the direct interaction and control of Aether. It seems the simplest and probably the best for me right now.
Wren looked over to Javi, “I think I know what class I’ll try to get. You know what you’re going for?”
“Yeah. I’m going to go with Shielder.”
That’s surprising. I thought he would go for the option that’s better in the long term.
“Why not Squire? Being able to advance into a Knight sounds like a good deal.”
Javi looked confusedly at Wren. It seems he had thought that Shielder was the obvious choice, “Can’t you see? Remember. We have unlimited class changes. I can get the benefits of a Shielder now and then still get the long term benefits later. It’s the best of both worlds.”
Shit. I hadn’t thought about that. We can do class changes that don’t seem like an improvement because we don’t have to worry about a limit like everybody else does. It’s our one cheat. Well, there is the Power of Friendship skill, but that hasn’t done anything yet.
“That’s good thinking. I don’t have a plan like that, but that does solidify my choice. I’ll be an Aether Manipulator. It seems like it’ll be the best for having a good foundation in Aether.”
The two gave each other a nod. They both had a plan for moving forward. Now to figure out where to get these classes. At this point, Bella walked over.
“Alright, you two know what classes you want to go with?”
“Shielder.”
“Aether Manipulator.”
“Perfect. Let’s get you some teachers then. Now, it is considered good manners to ask somebody you are acquainted with to teach you the class. As long as you know somebody who can teach you that class that is. Luckily, you two know people who have had those classes. Javi, go talk to Bulldraw. He is the best of the best when it comes to using a shield. Wren, talk to Elizabeth. She may not do much anymore, but she was a beast back in the day. She can teach you everything you need to know about Aether.”
And the two took off.
----------------------------------------
A knock on the door. “Mr. Bulldraw. Do you mind if I come in?”
A pen clattered back into its inkwell and was followed by a sigh, “Come on in. I’m always available.”
Swinging the door open with a creak, Javi walked in, “Heeeeey. So I was told to go to you in terms of getting the Shielder class. Would that be possible?”
Bulldraw actually looked a little happy at that. Because it’s not paperwork perhaps?
“Of course! I’m always happy to help the newer generation learn. It’s quite rare for somebody to want to be a shielder. Defense is not the most glorious part of combat but it can be vitally important. Especially when enemies aim at your vitals!” He gave a little chuckle at the joke he made, then stiffened up a bit when he noticed that Javi had not found it as funny as he had.
“Anyway. A shielder is a great class. And,” He paused and looked at Javi for a second, “with your stats, it shouldn’t be an issue to learn.” He held out his hand and an alert popped up in front of Javi.
Shielder class
Stats: +20 Strength, +10 Speed, +50 Durability
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Abilities: Absorb, Eyes on Me
Requirements: 30 Strength, 40 Durability, block a hit from someone with higher than 100 strength
Accept
Deny
Javi pressed accept but then another notification popped up.
Unable to finish acquiring class until all requirements are completed.
“Uhm, sir it says I need to complete the requirements before I accept. I don’t think I’ve ever taken a hit from someone with over 100 strength.”
“I see. Well, that shouldn’t be an issue. Just block a hit from me and you’ll be good to go.”
Javi thought back on how this was somebody called one of the best. He probably has a lot more than 100 strength. In fact, let’s see what he’s got.
Name: Bulldraw Vagrant
Class: Shield Master
Strength: 316
Speed: 198
Durability: 399
Intelligence: 136
Charisma: 113
Luck: 121
Abilities: Analyze(A), Absorb, Growth, Bestow Protection, Center of the World, Roots of the Earth, Reversal, Disruption, Fangs of the Hunted
Titles: Giant Kin, The Unbending
Do not fight. You will lose.
Yeah. More than 100 strength. This guy is probably one of the people Alicia was talking about when she was saying there were more people on her level at this branch.
“So, uh, are you going to hold back when you attack? Cause I certainly can’t block something at 300 strength.”
“Oh! Yes, yes, yes. I’ll hold back a bit. But I will need to hit at least as strong as someone with 100 strength, otherwise it won’t count.”
Bulldraw stood up from his desk. Seeing him stand for the first time was a terrifying experience. The man easily stood over six and a half feet tall and every inch of him was built up with muscle. He walked around his desk and right up to Javi. “Pull out your shield. Let’s get this over with.”
Javi scrambled for his shield and held it steadily in front of him. He put himself in a solid stance and used his weight to brace himself.
Bulldraw looked him up and down and nodded in approval, “Good form. The shield suits you. I’m proud of your choice.”
Then he reared back his fist and punched.
Javi was sent flying. He smashed into the door and knocked it off its hinges before collapsing to the ground. He was wheezing and gasping for air on the ground as everything around him blurred and shifted. It felt like he was getting hit by a car again. He could feel hands patting him and a voice checking if he was okay but he barely registered them. Blood pumped in his ears and his heart rate skyrocketed as adrenaline coursed through him as an instinctual protective measure.
It took a few more minutes but he eventually started to recover and make sense of his surroundings. Bulldraw was comforting him and he began to make out his voice, “Sorry about that bud. I think that hit was around 150 strength. Went a little harder than I needed to. Just didn’t want it to be too light and not count y’know?”
As Javi recovered he shrugged him off and sat up. In front of him he saw a new alert.
Before you change class, select one skill from the Adventurer class you would like to keep.
Locate
Storage
Javi thought about it for a second but the choice was obvious for him. Storage was very nice. It gave him extra storage space to keep things. But it couldn’t compare to the incredible alertness that Locate gave. He selected Locate and could immediately feel the change happen. He could tell that the shield he carried felt lighter now and the pain from the blow immediately lessened. He felt properly capable now. He looked at his hand.
Name: Javier Hernandez
Class: Shielder
Strength: 105
Speed: 76
Durability: 118
Intelligence: 50
Charisma: 75
Luck: 28
Abilities: Analyze(A), Power of Friendship, Locate, Absorb, Eyes on Me
Titles: Agent of Frantal
Javi felt proud of himself. He had come a long way from where he was when he got here. He was not some random guy from Earth anymore. He was a proper warrior of this world.