Monica was extremely nervous. She knew it was necessary for her to impart as much knowledge as she could about fighting Dotty before she left the village for good. However, she winced at the fact that Dotty would have to put herself in real danger to fully internalize the lessons she had just imparted to her.
Even a ruthless fighter like her had found it hard and heartbreaking to try and train the girl this fast. But Monica knew that she didn't really have time to go through the proper motions, and that meant she needed to teach Dotty in the swiftest way possible.
The most important thing, Monica thought to herself, is that she finds the courage to do the right thing and gains enough confidence to take the chances she gets.
But Monica had exhausted Dotty enough that the girl wouldn’t be in top shape, which meant that Monica needed to even the playing field just a little.
And so, as she sneaked up upon the wolf, moving like a shadow, she suddenly stomped with all her strength on the joint of the wolf's foreleg, hearing a light crack and waking the beast with a whimper.
Before the wolf could move again, Monica stomped twice more. The wolf got up, but she saw that the foreleg couldn't now fully support the Crystal Wolf's weight.
"Good," Monica said out loud. "Let's go."
She quickly brought the wolf back and let the three men try to get an opening for Dotty, who was clutching Twilight's Edge as if her life depended on it, slowly leaning from one foot to the other unsteadily. But as Monica watched Tertius trying to sweep the creature's legs, she also noticed that Dotty's muscles were indeed relaxed.
The girl kept her eyes trained on the wolf. Monica suddenly saw an opening as the wolf winced and tensed as it rested on its injured foreleg when Lucca forced it off-balance.
That might be too small of an opening, she thought.
But in the next instant, she saw Dotty jumping on the beast, slashing at its maw. The blade caught the wolf's face, severing several jaw muscles, but the momentum of Dotty's attack carried her too close. The wolf, despite its injured leg, twisted with desperate fury and caught Dotty with its shoulder, sending her sprawling to the ground.
The beast lunged after her, its mangled jaw hanging at an unnatural angle. Dotty rolled, but not fast enough to fully escape. The wolf's weight came down on her legs as its remaining teeth sought her throat.
"Dammit!" Lucca shouted, moving to intervene. Monica's arm shot out, blocking his path.
"Wait," she said tensely.
Her fingers dug into her palm so hard they drew blood, but she held firm.
This was Dotty's fight.
The girl had managed to get her sword between herself and the wolf, but she was pinned beneath its bulk. Crystal shards from its hide cut into her arms as she struggled to keep its snapping jaws at bay. Blood - both hers and the beast's - spattered her face.
"Monica, please," Heidi pleaded from behind, "She needs help!"
Monica didn't move. Her eyes were fixed on Dotty's face, searching for any sign that the girl was giving in to panic. But despite the blood and the pain, Dotty's muscles remained loose, and her movements were fluid even under the crushing weight.
The wolf's injured leg buckled slightly, and Dotty seized her chance. She didn't try to push the beast off - instead, she let her sword arm relax for just an instant. The wolf's own weight drove it down onto the blade as Dotty twisted beneath it, guiding Twilight's Edge up through its throat.
The crystal-covered hide split like paper before Magic Rend. Blood gushed over Dotty as the blade tore through major vessels. The wolf thrashed once, twice, then went still, its massive form collapsing entirely onto the girl.
For several heartbeats, no one moved. The only sound was the dripping of blood onto the stone.
"Dotty?" Monica called softly, taking a half step forward.
There was a grunt, and then the wolf's corpse shifted. Slowly, painfully, Dotty pushed the dead weight off herself and rolled free. She lay on her back, chest heaving, covered in gore and crystal fragments, but still gripping Twilight's Edge.
She gestured to Heidi to stand down when the blonde woman was about to run and heal Dotty's injuries.
Monica went up to Dotty and put her hands gently on her frazzled hair. She summoned the Golden Flame, and soon, in a matter of seconds, all the bruises and cuts went away, restoring the normal appearance of the teenage girl. Monica also washed the rest of the girl's body in Golden Flame, making sure there was not one scratch on her.
She looked into the girl's clear eyes and saw a determination that had once been drained from her by a miserable life now finally reignited.
* * *
The next three days passed in a whirlwind of fights and Monica, despite her initial doubts, had become increasingly relieved by the bloody ordeal she had put Dotty through to teach her what to do. By now, the girl had surpassed every other fighter in Level, gaining herself two new Skills at Level 10 and 15, having reached Level 17 by the third night.
Tertius and Lucca had been the one with the most levels under their belt after Dotty, respectively at 15 and 13. The difference between Tertius’s training as a nobleman and Lucca had slowly gotten Tertius the lead.
Heidi had only gained three Levels, going from Level 9 to Level 12. However, what had pleased Monica to no end was the fact that the blonde had stopped whining. During every fight, Heidi had been extremely attentive to her role and provided as much support as she could. She was razor sharp and, quite honestly, vicious.
Rochus was now a Level 11 Thug, which was decent in Monica’s books. The man wasn’t particularly bright nor smart, but being a much more simple-minded creature than Lucca and Tertius, Monica was much more relaxed around him and had even given the Thug a few fighting tips.
Now, for the sore point of the Dungeon dive…
Ted strummed on the mandolin, his heart clearly not in it at all.
They were gathered outside the Dungeon, roasting meat that Monica had purified with the Golden Flame, and resting for the night.
Ted had been the only one person unable to gain even one Level.
He was still a Level 1 Bard.
Monica had been watching him and pondering to what extent she should have interfered with his own growth. Ted had made a promise to fight and go for the dream his mother had had, but Monica still had reserves about him. She quite liked the young man for some reason, but she was trying to see if he would crack under this little pressure. He was safe and in no physical danger while in the Dungeon with them.
However, she knew that frustration could get the best of him.
This was a good time to see whether he had what he needed to make it or not.
Was it cruel that Monica was withholding suggestions from him when she had been so thorough with Dotty? Perhaps.
However, Monica wanted to train Dotty to have her be a protector for the village and a new hope for her family.
When it came to Ted, instead, Monica had much bigger plans. But for him to be there with her for them, she needed to make sure beyond reasonable doubt that he was ready for it.
And right now, Ted wasn’t.
Monica took a brief look at her own status, trying to figure out her own future.
Name: Monica Monroe
Race: Earther
Title: Avatar of the Twin Phoenix (Unique)
1st Class: Phoenix Healer (Rare) - Lv. 9
2nd Class: None
Talent Class: None
Attributes:
Vitality - 64
Endurance - 45
Strength - 45
Dexterity - 80
Wisdom - 45
Spirit - 45
Intelligence - 45
Charisma - 45
Free Attributes: 0
Skills:
Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
Golden Flame (Healing Skill) - Lv. 19
Obsidian Flame (Offensive Skill) - Lv. 17
Phoenix Feathers (Constitution Skill) - Lv. 9
Fireball (Offensive Skill) - Lv. 7
Mana Sense (Perception Skill) - Lv. 20
Equipment:
Steel Talons (Uncommon)
Twin Phoenix Bracers (Divine) - Twin Phoenix Set (1/12)
Nightshade Battleware (Rare)
Racial Abilities (Earther):
Tutorial
Quest System
Inventory
Map
Myriad Tongues
She had been using Mana Sense nonstop and it had now become a very interesting experience. She hadn’t unlocked a Hidden Effect like she had with Fireball, thanks to her Obsidian Flame, but she knew there was something more to the Skill. And she knew she was close.
The more Monica used Mana Sense in battle, the more she got an almost preternatural battle sense that allowed to perceive the Crystal Wolves even when they were out of sight. It wasn’t perfect, but it was most certainly not something she would have expected from a skill called ‘Mana Sense.’
For tonight, however, she had other plans.
“Heidi,” Monica said, turning to the woman. “I have a proposal for you.”
The blonde frowned but had learned not to let her mouth run wild by now.
“What would it be?” The Healer asked.
“I hope you won’t take this the wrong way,” Monica said, “but you, as a Healer, suck.”
“Excuse me?” Heidi said, affronted.
“You’re too focused on the monsters, not enough on the people you have to heal. You do a good job, mind you. But you’re not a natural Healer. You’re not a nice person.”
“What are you saying?” Heidi asked, gritting her teeth.
“I’m not a nice person, either,” Monica winked, “which is why I punch things. Healing is a nice bonus. So, my point would be that you shouldn’t be a Healer. You’re made to be something else.”
“Are you suggesting I renounce my fate and change my Class?”
Heidi was stunned.
“I suggest you consider it,” Monica nodded and took out the two Skill Books from her Inventory. “I could help you out get a more… suited Class. You’re fiery—you should work with fire. I can take over the healing with no problem whatsoever, and, more importantly, you will be useless as a Healer during real fights as long as you’re with me since I, not anyone else here, would be the main melee fighter. And, well, I can take care of my own healing.”
Ted, who was watching the scene unfold before his eyes, winced, knowing just how insane the Healer was about to go.
However, completely surprising him, but not Monica, Heidi didn’t say anything.
The redhead gave her the Skill Books and said, “sleep on it. You can tell me what you want to do tomorrow morning.”
* * *
Monica was responsible for the first guard shift, needing less sleep than the others thanks to her Attributes. While true that she had gained less levels than anyone but Ted, her Class still granted her a whooping +5 to All Attributes, which meant she was effectively much stronger than her Level let on.
More importantly, she was curious to observe Heidi.
Monica could tell that Heidi had been going through something. Though Monica didn't remember much about her past life, she knew she'd had children and worked as a lawyer. She concluded that she must have had a good ability to read people, and it had turned out that in these past three days, she had gotten quite a read on everyone present except Ted.
Heidi had been the most interesting of them all. The fact that she wasn't a nurturing woman didn't faze Monica in the least. She herself felt that, despite her instincts with children, she didn't exactly have nurturing instincts, especially when it came to normal people.
Monica saw the girl tossing and turning in her cot, looked into the flames, and wondered what she was thinking about.
* * *
Heidi had her eyes open as she stared away from Monica, into the woods.
She felt tears brimming and threatening to spill from her eyelids.
She tried as hard as she could not to tear up, not to be a whiny child—that’s what she had been taught back at the Church of the Healer.
Heidi had been taken in when she was fourteen after her village had been razed to the ground and, in its aftermath, a plague had taken most of the lives of the people there.
By the time the Church of the Healer had come, it had been too late for almost everyone. One could have counted on two hands the number of survivors.
And among those, there weren’t Heidi’s parents.
No, after their village had been raided for supplies, they had used all the food they could on Heidi, giving her the little they had stashed away for one reason or the other.
However, when the disease started spreading among them, her mother, who had gotten the Healer Class without being Anointed, hadn’t been able to do anything. No, the disease took almost everyone. Without food, they were too weak to fight. One after another, they had fallen like flies.
Her parents had been among the last to go, worried about Heidi until their last moment.
She had been a sickly child back then, always pale and getting sick.
Her parents had been worried sick of getting her to become stronger, of getting her to survive the disease. Not for one moment—not one—they had thought of anything or anyone other than their sicklish daughter.
In their village, whenever her mother wasn’t gathering herbs and her father was dying leather, they spent all their time with her as she was often bedridden. They would tell stories, act little jokes for her, and find all the ways they could to make her happy.
She hadn’t been able to appreciate it back then. Being bedridden so often had always made her very resentful, angry with the children who could go out, play swords with long twigs, and roll in the mud.
Not her.
If Heidi ever rolled in the mud when she was younger, she would have fallen ill for days on end, sometimes weeks.
And that had made her bitter.
She knew for a fact that it wasn’t uncommon for useless children to be abandoned. She had been trained as a Healer in Valoria where more than once she had seen children thrown on the streets by cruel parents.
Only then she had truly been able to appreciate what her own parents had done, how they had given her life for a sickly child who had been almost guaranteed to die. Their love, and their love only saved her life.
When the Church of the Healer had arrived, as she would have found out later, an entire escort of them had been waiting on a Lord with a nasty cold that was bothering him before a great ball. When they had finally arrived to the raided village, they had decided to take in Heidi, probably because they had felt really guilty about it.
However, it had always nagged at Heidi, who had never vocalized such thoughts with herself, much less with the Church, that they had always said it was a great honor for her to be a part of the Church of the Healer.
Not once they had recognized that the only reason Heidi had been taken in was because she had no one. And she had no one because, instead of going to the raided village they had been notified about, they had waited around an idiot Lord to curry favor with him.
I’m such an idiot, Heidi realized.
She had always had this thought nagging at her in the back of her mind but, for whatever reason, she had never took the chance to make it explicit. To say what had happened, to say what the Church had done.
If she had to guess, she had been too afraid of being thrown out, of being a lonely orphan out on the streets where no one would have taken a chance on her.
And why would they have?
She had a terrible character, so untenable that, if she had to be honest, it explained why she had been sent so far away from everything with a group of nobodies. She had talent for magic, but she had virtually zero talent for personal relationships, for being soft and amicable. She had no friends in the church, and the few that had approached her over the years had soon taken distance from her.
She had been so harsh, so unforgiving with everyone. And now, it was all so stupidly clear.
The Church always said they took a chance on me and offered me a new life. But they were just offering themselves a way out.
As she mulled over these thoughts, she started sobbing and kept at it even in her sleep.
* * *
Heidi had puffy, red eyes when she rose to her cot and, still sleepy, went over to Monica, who, somehow, despite having taken the first shift, was already up.
“I want the Class,” Heidi said, sniffing.
“Sorry, I didn’t hear you,” Monica said innocently.
“I want the damn Class.”
“Alright,” Monica smiled and put her hands over Heidi’s thin shoulders. “Now, I want to give you a little gift. But it’s going to hurt. A lot.”
“I heard Ivor,” Heidi said, gritting her teeth. “I know getting the Fire Mage Class hurts.”
“Yeah,” Monica replied vaguely. “What I have in my mind is actually a little different. It will hurt, Heidi, more than what you imagine. But it will be worth it.”
“I said I want it,” Heidi snapped.
Now, the others started to stir and Lucca, who was posted on guard, looked over at them.
“Great,” Monica smiled cheekily. “You’ll need a change of clothes after we’re done.”
Heidi looked down at her white robes and nodded, “I’m done with this, anyway.”
“Yes. Now, step into the fire pit.”
Heidi raised an eyebrow but decided not to protest.
“It’s barely hot anymore,” Heidi said, looking at the warm ashes in the fireplace. “Am I supposed to get my feet burned, or what were you thinking exactly? Are we starting a new fire?”
“We’re starting a new fire, alright,” Monica smiled cattily as she circled Heidi with a smile.
Heidi thought Monica would have had her put a hand over the fire and kept healing her while she screamed like a madman. Why, then, was Monica asking her to stay there?
“Now,” Monica explained, finally stopping in front of her. “Are you willing to bear immense pain for a Class that fits you?”
“Yes,” Heidi said, resolute.
“Sit down if you want. In fact, it’s going to be easier that way.”
“I want to stand,” Heidi said. “Is that a problem?”
“Just don’t fall when we start.”
“Ok, so, do I look for a piece of ember and hold it or—”
Monica summoned a huge globe of Obsidian Flames in her hands at smiled at the blonde.
“This is going to hurt a lot, Heidi. I thought about it, and my ‘Avatar Instincts’ told me that this should work. See, we’re not giving you the Fire Mage, Class.”
“What?” Heidi suddenly said. “What Class, then? Pyromancer, already? And why did you summon those flames? Don’t we need normal flames? How would you—”
“No, no, no,” Monica winked, ignoring the question about the Obsidian Flame. “You would be useless as a normal Fire Mage or whatever with some useless, mortal flame. No, we’re giving you the strongest Class I know.”
“Huh?” Heidi frowned.
“Heidi,” Monica said slowly, “do you trust me?”
“Yes,” the Healer replied without skipping a beat.
“Are you ready to go through unspeakable pain, then? Once you say yes—”
“Yes,” Heidi shouted.
“You might die—”
“Yes, Monica, yes!”
“Well, then. Get ready for a Twin Phoenix Class,” Monica said, pouring all the black flames atop the Healer, who suddenly screamed at the top of her lungs as the Obsidian Flame and the magic started consuming her alive.