It took Andrew two months to reach level ten again. Quinn wouldn't let him out to hunt and without her permission he couldn't even use the teleporters, so he was forced to level purely using his skills. Thankfully, since a significant portion of the noble races essentially couldn't fight, they'd gotten leveling with skill use down to a science. If you had Walk, you didn't just walk. You walked blindfolded. You walked on balance bars. You walked backwards. You walked on your hands. Any and every way there was to make walking more difficult, they had it, and they knew how to push you to get the experience you needed. If Andrew had been able to dedicate his time to leveling, he probably could have gotten to level ten in just a few weeks, but unfortunately the basic education classes were mandatory and took up most of his time.

He briefly looked over his status.

[Race: Essence Changeling

Class: Trainee - 10 [+]

Strength: 10 > 40

Agility: 10 > 40

Will: 10 > 40

Intellect: 10 > 40

Energy: 10 > 52

Sensitivity: 444

Class Skill - Restful Self Examination: 28

Class Skill - Counter Kick + Walk > Swift Step: 14

Class Skill - Precise Navigation: 13 > 21

Class Skill - Stealth: 27

Class Skill - Kick + Concentrated Examination > Precise Kick: 22

Class Skill - Stomp + Kick > Heavy Kick: 25

Class Skill - Concentrated Examination + Energy Control > Affinity Management: 12

Skill Points: 0

AP: 0]

Everything was ready. He'd picked up four new skills, added Walk to Counter Kick to create Swift Step, which gave a boost to pretty much everything he did with his legs, and slightly increased the quality of his other two skills. All he needed to do was hit that little plus, and it'd be done. Taking one last deep breath, his eyes hardened and he began his Class Advancement.

*Welcome back, child.* The crow landed in front of him as Andrew arrived in the familiar clearing. *Things have certainly changed since you last arrived, now haven't they?* Andrew didn't think crows could grin, but this one seemed to be doing its best. *However, some things remain the same.* The crow waved its wing and the Voidwalker Class appeared in front of him, and Andrew let out a breath of relief. He wasn't sure he'd be offered it again with all the kicking skills he'd picked up, and he wasn't sure his navigation skill would give him a portal trait in a kicking Class. Not that he needed a portal trait, but even if he didn't visit the tribe, being able to portal wherever he'd been before was still ridiculously convenient. He reached out to select the Class, but the crow stopped him. *Wait. I know you wish to take this Class, but there is another I believe is more suited to you. It will give you… interesting options, though they may not be the ones you wish for at the moment.*

Andrew blinked. "What do you mean?"

*Let me show you.* The crow waved its wing again, and a new Class appeared.

"Essence Master?" Andrew muttered, frowning as he examined the Class. It only had one requirement: to be able to manipulate Essence. His frown deepened as he looked over the traits. His inner sight still allowed him to pick affinities, but only the usual advanced affinity, two intermediates, or four basics. Similarly, the traits for the other skills weren't awful, but they weren't great either, and it didn't increase his stats at all, since it was only a Rank two Class. "Why would I take this Class?" Andrew frowned at the crow. "It doesn't even seem to do anything for me."

The crow shook its head. *The importance of this Class isn't in what it gives you now, but what it will allow you to access once you have it. Essence Master is a Class like any other. Without the related skills, the traits available are mediocre at best. None of your skills will do you any good as an Essence Master. However, the only way to gain the skills that would make this Class worthwhile is by taking the Class.*

"So I need the Class in order to make it a good Class?" Andrew frowned. "But why? What's so good about this Class?"

*It allows you to master Essence!* The crow exclaimed, flapping its wings excitedly. *Essence is- it's- it's essential! It's one of the foundational forces of existence! A part of how every living being is formed! The Voidwalker is powerful, but if you can unlock the secrets of Essence hidden in this Class… you cannot even imagine the heights to which you could rise!*

Andrew paused as he listened to the crow's rant, his eyes widening as he suddenly made the connection he'd been missing. What this world referred to as Essence… was aura! If he was understanding right, this Class… This Class would teach him how to manipulate cores! To do whatever that strange force had done when it turned him into an Essence Changeling! Could he really pass on that opportunity?

Andrew's expression twisted slightly as he realized taking this Class would mean he'd probably never have access to portals, before he let out a frustrated groan. He had to go with the Essence Master Class. If it could help him figure out how to merge cores… Andrew shook his head. The things this Class could offer were just as the crow had said. The skills could mean everything to him. However… It meant giving up on the tribe completely. On Corek and the Shaman. He couldn't even imagine what Corek was going through… he'd been devastated before Andrew had disappeared! But there wasn't much he could do about that. Even if he did take the Voidwalker Class, what was he going to do? Just walk back into the tribe and say hello? No, he knew that was a bad idea, and if he showed up as a stranger, how would that help? Even with the Voidwalker Class, there wasn't much he could do. But with the Essence Master Class? Well, he still probably couldn't do much, but the possibilities… Maybe he could change the goblins somehow? The system had made him noble, hadn't it? With the same tools… couldn't he do the same for them? Couldn't he do it for the entire world? No more of this monstrous and noble bullshit. Just… people! He could already do something similar by simply switching out cores. This- this was possible!

Andrew went into the Essence Master Class, going over his traits. For navigation, he got Positional Awareness, which gave him an intuitive sense of his position in relation to his surroundings and for Swift Step, he got Double Speed, which did exactly what it sounded like. For Stealth, he got Silent, which muffled any sounds he made, and for Precise Kick, he got Sure Footed, which helped him stay balanced. For Heavy Kick, he got Powerful Legs, the same one he would have gotten for his Goblin Pathfinder Class, and for Affinity Management, he got Aspected Reserve, which would allow him to store Affinity Energy for later, though it could only be used for one type at a time. As for his affinities, he decided to get Lightning and Shadow again, because why not? He considered Space, but since he wasn't a Pathfinder, it didn't seem necessary. Then, with everything settled, Andrew let out another sigh, turning to give the Voidwalker Class one last look, before turning to the crow. "Done."

*Then rise, Essence Master.* The crow chuckled as it sent Andrew away with a wave. *I expect interesting things from you.*

*

Andrew opened his eyes to find Quinn glaring down at him, her arms crossed, tapping her foot in irritation. "Drew, please tell me you did not just Advance your Class!" She growled.

Andrew blinked. "Uh… I did not just Advance my Class?"

"Of course you didn't!" Quinn threw up her hands. "Because no one would be stupid enough to enter into one of the most vulnerable states you could be in, alone, without telling anyone!" She grabbed him by the shoulders, starting to shake him. "Do you know what could have happened to you?!? If anyone had noticed what you were doing, they could have broken in and done anything they wanted to you while you were unconscious! You wouldn't have been able to do anything to stop them, because you wouldn't even know it was happening! What were you thinking!?!"

"I- this place is safe, isn't it?" Andrew replied hesitantly. "We're in the middle of a city…" Andrew trailed off. Were cities safe on Earth? No they were not. Would a city in a place where people could see through walls and teleport be any safer? Absolutely fucking not! He was an idiot.

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Quinn covered her face with her hands. "Urgh! You just-!" She dropped her hands to give Andrew a serious look. "Drew, this world isn't safe! Especially for a changeling! The things people would use us for… you have to be careful! Never leave yourself in a vulnerable position without protection! Don't blindly trust strangers! Don't let anyone use you! Don't- don't let an abuser worm their way into your life…" Her expression twisted for a moment, before she shook her head. "I know this is all new for you, but- you have to stay safe, okay?"

Andrew nodded slowly. "I will. I just… wasn't thinking."

Quinn just sighed, shaking her head again. "As long as you don't do it again." She muttered, before sitting down next to him. "So, what Class did you get? And how did you manage to level up so quickly!?! You didn't rush your skills, did you? The school should have taught you about building a good foundation, right?"

"Uh…" Andrew hesitated. "My skills were fine, but… I was offered a weird Class and the- my guide suggested I take it instead of the Class I was going for, so… I'm an Essence Master now."

Quinn frowned. "Essence Master? I haven't heard of that one before… is it related to your race? You're an Essence Changeling, right? But… if you were aiming for a different Class, your skills couldn't have been a good fit."

Andrew nodded. "My guide believes that even with the… low compatibility between my current skills and the Class, the skills that the Class unlocks will be more than valuable enough to make it worth it."

Quinn raised an eyebrow. "And these skills would be related to Essence?" She paused. "What is Essence?"

Andrew shrugged. "I'm honestly not entirely sure. It's definitely important, and it's everywhere, but what it does or how it works… I'm not sure."

"Is it like Energy?" Quinn asked hesitantly.

Andrew shook his head. "No." He paused. "Though it can affect Energy… sort of. I don't know, it's so mixed up with everything else that it's hard to pin down exactly what it does. It has an effect on Energy, but it isn't Energy. It has an effect on the body, but it isn't the body. It pushes you in certain directions, but… it doesn't make you do anything." Andrew trailed off, before shrugging helplessly. "It's just a part of life, I guess. There's the physical side, the energy side, and then this, sort of in-between… Neither, but affecting both."

Quinn shook her head. "I have no idea what you're talking about, but if it makes sense to you… well, you go for it." She paused. "This doesn't exactly sound like a good combat Class, either…"

Andrew smirked. "Not really, no. Though I did pick up the lightning affinity, so I'm not completely helpless."

Quinn's eyebrows shot up. "Wait, you got the inner sight skill?!? At what quality!?! It has to be at least over two if you got lightning.”

Andrew paused. “The quality affects what affinities you get?”

“Duh.” Quinn rolled her eyes. “Why wouldn't it? So what's yours?”

“Uh… two point eight?” Andrew replied hesitantly.

Quinn's eyes widened. "You- you mean two point zero eight, right?”

“No, I mean two point eight zero.” Andrew replied. He probably could have hid it, but… well, he was planning on asking if he could run dungeons with her, and he'd probably need to use everything he had when he did, so she was going to figure it out eventually.

Quinn blinked at him, then blinked again, then a third time. "You- how many skill points did you spend on it?”

Andrew cocked his head. “Five?” He couldn't say four, or it'd give away the fact that he'd had it before he started leveling.

“You advanced it five times?!? Why would you waste your skill points like that!” Quinn snapped.

Andrew frowned. “I thought you meant how many I spent developing it. I haven't advanced it at all.”

Quinn froze. “You- You got a two point eight with the minimum amount of skill points?”

Andrew shrugged. “I guess.”

Quinn stared at him for a moment. “Are you a genius?”

“I'm not a genius!” Andrew snapped, a response that was practically instinctive after a prolonged period of teasing from Vinek and Corek.

Quinn frowned. “Where did that come from?” She narrowed her eyes. “Have they been teasing you at school?”

Andrew froze slightly before coughing awkwardly. “No, I just- I- I don't think I qualify as a genius… I know I'm not dumb, but I don't think I'm that much smarter than anyone else.”

Quinn eyed him cautiously for a moment, before letting out a sigh and shaking her head. “Well, you must have something going for you, because getting your inner sight skill that high this early is not normal.”

Andrew paused. “Would you say I have enough going for me that you'd be willing to take me dungeon diving?” He asked tentatively.

Quinn nodded absently. "Maybe, may-" She cut off as she processed what he'd said. "You want to go dungeon diving?" She asked, surprised. “Why?”

"I-" Andrew began, before pausing as he realized he actually didn't have a good reason anymore. When he was planning on picking up Voidwalker, he needed to be able to enter the dungeons to get stronger, so he could go wherever he wanted and keep himself safe, or at least as safe as possible. Now though… "They're interesting?" He offered hesitantly. "I like to explore, and what's better to explore than a dungeon? At least at my level, it's the safer option. Out in the wild, a random beast could be stronger than it appears, but in dungeons, all the beasts are around the same level. They're known quantities. Plus, the best way to level skills is to use them, right? What better place to use them than in a dungeon? Navigating the tunnels, dodging monsters with my footwork, taking them out with my Lightning affinity, using all my skills constantly to advance!"

Quinn chewed her lip as she nodded slowly. "Dungeons are great places to gain experience… Nothing pushes your skills further than a life or death encounter." She paused before glaring at Andrew. "Which you will not be seeking out! If I'm taking you dungeon diving, we're going to do it right! No unnecessary risks!"

Andrew nodded. "Got it. So when do we start?"

*

Quinn insisted on making sure Andrew could actually fight, so their first stop was the training hall, finding a secluded corner to spar in. Even so, the two attractive women managed to attract more than a few admirers, who didn't explicitly stop to observe them, but their little corner was clearly more crowded than it should be. Quinn scowled at a few of the more straightforward of the bunch, before focusing on Andrew. "Let's start with offense. I'm just going to defend while you hit me with everything you've got, alright?"

Andrew paused. "Everything?"

Quinn smirked. "Drew, I'm a professional Dungeon Streamer. Your little level ten tricks won't even scratch me."

Andrew shrugged. That was a fair point. Still, he decided to start slow, focusing solely on kicks. After a few tentative exchanges which didn't even cause Quinn to flinch, Andrew ramped things up, flashing kicks in as fast as he could, circling his opponent as he searched for any weak points. When that didn't elicit any reaction, he spent some Energy to activate Double Speed, his legs turning into vague blurs as he continued his attempts to break through Quinn's defenses. When the woman still proved unflappable, he resorted to one final trick. Mid kick, his leg shifted, growing longer and heavier as it flew at Quinn and her eyes widened. She blocked the attack with her arms, but it still sent her skidding back a few inches.

"What was that?!?" Quinn asked incredulously, staring at the leg that had quickly turned back to normal.

"I shifted my leg into another form for a moment." Andrew explained. "It's bigger and heavier, so I figured it'd do more damage…"

Quinn blinked at her. "You have another form? A combat form?"

"Combat form?" Andrew frowned. "No, it's just my old beast form. From before I became an uplift."

Quinn paused. The form of a beast that grew strong enough to kill a higher level member of the sapient races? "Can I see it?" She asked hesitantly.

Andrew cocked his head at her, before shrugging. "Sure." Suddenly, the small elf began to grow, shoulders widening, teeth sharpening, fur sprouting out all over, even Alana's enchanted clothing beginning to tear slightly as Andrew expanded beyond their normal limits. A few of the observers let out yelps, scrambling away from the fearsome beast that had suddenly appeared in the middle of the training hall.

Quinn's eyes widened as she looked up at the beast towering over her, taking in the fangs and claws, before glancing down at the spiked heels. If Drew could combine those with his kicking skills… Quinn gulped. "Okay, I'll take you dungeon diving."

"Really?" Andrew asked in a deep, rumbling voice that only let a hint of his surprise through. That was a bit too easy, wasn't it?

Quinn nodded. "The enemies in the level five dungeon I'm taking you to are rats, about knee high… in that form, you don't even need to be skilled! You just need to step on them."

Andrew glanced down at his feet, before chuckling. "Fair enough."

"You can change back now." Quinn added, glancing around. "I'm worried someone might try to hunt you soon."

Andrew nodded, quickly shifting back into his elf form, which gained him a different sort of attention as the tears in his clothing made them a bit more revealing than was strictly appropriate. Nothing explicitly indecent, thankfully, but close enough that Quinn felt the need to rush him back to the locker rooms. She was going to need to talk to Alana about getting him something special for the dungeon. Or at least make sure she brought an extra change of clothes. Andrew was just wondering how these guys would react if he pulled out his carapace trick.