Chapter Ten: Rigged Dice
[You have rolled a 7. You have unlocked the Barbarian class. Would you like to use the Barbarian class?]
"Ugh, of course, it had to be barbarian. It's because I said something, isn't it? These dice are rigged." Why couldn’t it have been magic? If my dad had been a wizard instead of a warrior, none of this would have ever happened. You can still be a mage with only one hand. Where had that come from?
I could swear I heard a tiny bit of stifled laughter coming from the crystal, but instead, the text just said, [Prepare yourself; the transformation can be a little intense.]
Suddenly, a swirl of blue and gold light engulfed me, lifting me into an ethereal embrace as my body began a surreal transformation. My muscles and bones stretched and contorted as my throat burned from the eardrum-shattering scream I let out. My mind flooded with red-hot pain as my body changed. Abruptly, I fell back to the sewage below, small waves cascading out from me as it splashed in all directions.
I could immediately feel the difference as I got to my feet with slow, careful movements. The pain was gone; instead, my body felt powerful, like I could leap and touch the ceiling, grab a crate, and lift it above my head with a single hand. Did I get a boost to how strong I am?
[How do you feel, Rod?]
"I feel fine, great actually," I exclaimed, a wave of energy rushing through. I wanted to sprint, jump, kill. A feral grin spread across my face. "This is amazing. I don’t even remember why I was so disappointed. Let's get this party started." I paused. I wanted nothing more than to test my new power out firsthand. Still, if my previous run taught me anything, I needed to think before rushing into battle. “Wait, Don’t I still have three more boons? What do you think I should buy?”
[Oh. I would buy the audible Text boon and the map. If not those two, I would buy some stat boosts.] Crystal suggested.
“Hmm. The map is definitely useful, but I think I’m in need of stats, too, for now. I barely did anything to the bosses. Decisions, decisions. Oh, Crystal, couldn’t you roll a die and decide for me that way?” I asked, looking up.
[I have no control over the dice.] The parchment continued scrolling in response.
“Wait, what?”
[The dice are part of Penance and not something I have any control over.] She was slow again, each word coming out a full second after the other.
“Alright, then I think I’ll go for two stat boosts and the map. Is it random, like the classes? Or can I choose what stats improve?”
[It is only the classes that are random.]
“Alright, awesome. Then I would like to purchase a point of Potency and Vitality.”
I glowed the same Gold and blue light from earlier. I didn’t feel any more powerful, but all the same, I knew something was different.
"Crystal, please show me my full stats. Also, I missed a crate and some torches on the last run. Please remind me to grab stuff before I leave the room. If I miss something, that is?"
[That should be no problem, Rod. Remember to take the torch from this room before leaving.]
“Great, now the stats?"
[Here are your stats:]
Rod: Rank 1, Barbarian
Stat:
Level
Effect:
Health
55/55
Health is burned as fuel to keep you from dying.
Stamina
30/30
Stamina is burned as fuel to make skills function
Potency
5
Adds 1 point of damage to all physical attacks
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Vitality
11
Adds 5 points of health per level
Finesse
6
Adds 5 points of stamina per level
Defense
2
Blocks 1 point of damage from all physical attacks
Precision
6
Precision is the likelihood of your attacks hitting your target. Each point higher than the target’s evasion adds a 5% chance to hit.
A scroll unfurled before me, this time showing every slot available for my class. My smile, which had carried great joy for the past few minutes, fell into a frown as I noticed a significant problem.
Equipment
Slot
Name
Effect
Condition
Right Hand
Iron Greataxe
Deals 1-12 damage
20/20
Left Hand
Iron Greataxe
Deals 1-12 damage
20/20
Head
Can't equip
Can't equip
Can't equip
Chest
Can't equip
Can't equip
Can't equip
My eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Wait, so I can't equip a helm or chest piece as a barbarian?"
My voice came out unsteady, and a tinge of heat crossed my tongue. That would be a considerable loss of defense. I took a deep breath and immediately regretted the action.
[Yes, and you would have noticed if you actually read the description of the class. The barbarian has limited equipment due to your alignment restrictions.]
With a quick blink, I paused, memorizing that part about alignment restrictions. “What do you mean by alignment?”
[I don’t know what you mean,] Crystal responded innocently.
“You just said I have restrictions due to my alignment. What does that mean?” I creased my brow, anger simmering in my throat.
[I cannot complete that request. Please try again later.]
“What the…?” I grabbed the bridge of my nose as unease trickled into my thoughts. Crystal’s evasions sent a ripple of suspicion through me. But pushing it didn’t seem like a good idea. I shook my head and moved on. I left for the next room.
Run 2, Room 1L, Floor 1, Sewers of Aerlyn
This time, I was not at all afraid of what was coming. I knew that nothing posed a threat to me except the goblins and the necromancer. The first room had a torch, a crate, and a single rat. I kid you not; the rat spun around on the crate like a ballerina. I stared dumbfounded at the rat. I was starting to get tired of this place and its bizarre antics.
I wished I could say otherwise, but my nose was starting to acclimate to the vomit-inducing smells of the reverse sewage. The flickering torch on the wall cast dancing shadows, including a giant one of the dancing rat.
The rat finally noticed me and leaped forward, ready to attack. The instincts of my new class kicked in as I gripped the sturdy handle of my Iron GreatAx. I swung. The dice rolled. I knew the ax would destroy these rats, and I was immediately proven correct as the ax cleaved the rat perfectly in two.
[You deal 16 damage. Overkill! You have killed Giant Rat. For your first kill this run, you have received 1 Death Boon. Overkill! You have received 1 Death Boon.]
The rat sparkled, and I looted it. The die rolled.
[ You have received 1 rat meat.]
"Gross." I grimaced at the bloody chunk of rat meat in my grasp, already wary because of the vestiges of sewage on my hand and the stink in the air that clung to every surface. No way that's safe for human consumption. "Why on earth would I want this?"
[I assume you plan on eating and drinking at some point. However, I highly advise against drinking any liquids on this floor.]
I grimaced. I hadn't thought about food at all since entering the dungeon. It seemed like an afterthought while fighting to the death. And would food really matter if I just came back to life anyway? I thought about addressing my thoughts with Crystal but decided not to.
It was best to leave that loophole alone for now, in case asking would make me hungry or something. I put the rat meat away, noticing, as always, that it was banished into the nether space that was my inventory.
With my grip on the door handle, I was about to leave when Crystal broke the silence.
[Aren't you forgetting things? Namely, a crate and a torch?]
I didn't know where my head was with these crates. Merchant forbid I forget a boss corpse or a chest or something. I shook my head and returned to grab the torch off the wall before reaching into the crate. The dice rolled.
[You have received a cloth shirt. Congratulations.]
Sarcasm was hard to read through the text, but that certainly felt sarcastic.
"Stupid barbarian. Stupid not wearing a shirt. Stupid rigged dice." I put the shirt away, shivering, wishing I could at least put it on to protect myself from the cold air. I felt exposed.
[You have finished looting the room and may continue onward. There is no need to stand around wishing you could put on clothing.]
I left the room fuming. Crystal could do with a personality change. I liked it better when she only shared dice rolls and enemy names.