7. Four Fallen Kings (III)
The hand on Raziel’s mouth felt like inescapable iron. “Stay put,” a deep voice whispered in his ear. “Their names have been called. They look this way. If you run, they will follow you back to the village.”
It was Father Linus [Priest].
Raziel had never been this close to the [Priest]. Not even to receive his blessings. While the man was kind, his polite greetings felt as inorganic as his porcelain teeth. Father Linus never lost his composure. No matter what the villagers said, or did. He spoke perfectly, pristinely, every word rehearsed to death.
Only the [Mayor] caused that mask to waver.
The hand left as soon as Raziel quit fighting against it. Father Linus wiped his palm on his leather coat several times like Raziel had slobbered all over it.
“This is evil,” said Raziel faintly.
“Then we are in agreement.”
Their horrified faces were awash with firelight as they watched the ritual unfold. The chanting increased in volume, and the mana in the air thickened. Raziel grabbed the [Priest] by the collar, pulling him closer. “Why aren’t you doing anything? You’re a priest! This goes against everything you believe in, doesn’t it?” Suddenly, Raziel had a realization, and his fingers went slack. “This much magic… the beasts will come.”
Father Linus tugged his collar away from Raziel’s grasp. Every line on the [Priest]’s face was deep with age and sadness. “We’re far enough from Bramblebog that the beasts will have trouble finding the village.”
“What do you mean? What’s stopping beasts from finding our village?”
A tick appeared in Father Linus’s jaw. The ritual must’ve truly scraped the [Priest] raw - his usual collectedness was in tatters. “Go to school tomorrow, Raziel,” he said, adjusting his collar. He gave Raziel a significant look. “If you end up with a combat class, then find me in the church on Saturday. We’ll have a real discussion.”
Did that mean…?
Was True Leaf Terrace planning to do their annual Soul Awakening Ceremony tomorrow?
“But if you end up with a domestic class or [Child], then do yourself a favor, and stay out of the way.”
As if!
Even if Raziel ended up with the [Maid] class, or the [Gardener] class, he would never let this go!
“You better not hold out on me, old man,” said Raziel, venom sharp on his tongue, “I’ll burn down your church before I let this drop.”
The [Priest] ignored his last words, silently leaving once the ritual winded down. Raziel continued watching until the sky turned pink. Only Uncle Callum [Hunter] remained. The tattooed man went around the bonfire, stamping out embers. Raziel didn’t even feel the urge to confront his uncle. All of his burning hot anger had become cold and distant. He felt far away from himself and tired, so tired, sick of being confused and lied to and ignored. Sick of not knowing if his cousin was dead or alive.
Sunlight shone through the emerald canopy of leaves, dappling the forest floor with light. Raziel turned away.
A jackalope quietly nibbled on a fern.
Suddenly, soft and quiet as the shadows, a hand grasped the animal by the scruff. The jackalope wriggled in surprise. It had never sensed the threat.
Raziel lifted the jackalope so it was eye-level.
The creature had pink, beady eyes, and its neck was thick with muscle to help hold up its antlers. Soft, sumptuous fur. Softer than any rabbit.
“I’m starting to think you’re a bad omen,” he murmured.
Fifteen minutes later, Raziel exited the Dark Forest.
At the Ravenbone cottage, a girl with rosy blonde curls tended their garden. She hummed happily, inspecting the new sprouts. Verminta’s dress was torn and dirty at the hem but she didn’t seem to notice, walking barefoot in the dirt.
Did she always wait for him before school?
“Verminta, come here.” He gave her the jackalope he held in his arms. “I brought you a present.”
“Where did you find him?” she said excitedly.
Raziel gave her a half-shrug. “I think it likes me. I keep seeing it around.”
“If he bonded with you, then shouldn’t he be your new pet?”
“Pet?” scoffed Raziel. “I thought the fur would look nice on you.”
She hugged the jackalope close to her chest, protectively turning the animal away from him. “I’m going to name him Bobo.”
///
Bramblebog Village had one school which all children attended, and that was True Leaf Terrace. Not everyone went. Most of the outskirter kids couldn’t be bothered. A few parents preferred to tutor their own kids, or just saw school as a waste of time when their kids could be working instead.
Unfortunately, Raziel’s parents had been forcing him to go to True Leaf since he could walk.
He was a poor student in the first place. After Kindred’s disappearance one month ago, he hadn’t returned.
Raziel propped his head up on his arm, eyes half-lidded and lazily looking around the classroom.
Poor Timiny Topplesmith rolled into class in a wheelchair. Broke his leg or something. If that had happened to Raziel, he’d definitely take the year off.
“I can’t wait to see what classes we get,” whispered Verminta excitedly.
Raziel nodded.
The earliest someone could forcefully awaken their soul without causing soul damage was at eleven years old.
Previously, Raziel had been dreading the moment True Leaf Terrace announced their next annual Soul Awakening Ceremony. He hadn't qualified for any of the good classes yet.
A person’s first class was their easiest to obtain. Afterwards, class changes became harder and harder. That was why he’d been so desperate to prove to the system that he deserved the [Hunter] class - if he’d been saddled with a class like [Student] then the requirements to qualify for the [Hunter] class later on would be twice as difficult.
The other [Hunters] in their village had been offered [Hunter] as their first class. Though, most of them were outskirters except for Uncle Callum.
Raziel had two options. He could awaken his soul now, and gain access to his stats but potentially get a class like [Student] because he was so young. Or, he could train relentlessly without stats until his soul naturally awakened in his twenties for a better chance at landing [Hunter].
He preferred the former. While he desperately wanted to be a [Hunter], he wanted his soul awakened even more. Once awakened, you could truly start surpassing your natural limits as a mortal. Waiting until he was twenty was way too long.
But now, Raziel felt good about his chances of getting the [Hunter] class.
There were three True Family kids in his class. Including Olster. Raziel patiently lounged in his chair, methodically tapping his pencil against his desk, waiting for the boy to show up. The ritual in the forest last night had deeply unsettled Raziel. The True Families were the same people who hogged the front pews of Church, singing dutifully for the Great Immortal Zu’en’s blessings.
He needed to know what was going on. If Uncle Callum was part of their group, did that mean Kindred had been as well?
Was that how she knew so much about magic?
Finally, a white-haired boy crossed the threshold, a backpack slung over one shoulder. His dark eyes surveyed the room, lighting up maliciously when he saw Raziel, his favorite subject to taunt and bully.
An iron odor clung onto Olster like a second skin. Goat’s blood, thick and black like syrup, shining in the starlight. It smelled worse than death. The two other True Family kids reeked of it too.
Could no one else smell that?
“Are you in the right place, Raventrash? I haven’t seen you here in so long I thought you dropped out.”
Raziel grit his teeth as a sudden fury threatened to burst out of him. That smarmy voice. He hadn’t heard it since Olster taunted Kindred to do the White Pillar dare. Everything was all Olster’s fault!
Raziel stood up abruptly, his chair screeching back. The whole class fell silent.
“Yeah, I've been looking for my missing cousin. Thanks for that, by the way.”
The white-haired boy’s face instantly froze. Raziel was slightly vindicated to see a range of emotions spark in his eyes - he wanted Olster to feel guilty as sin, heart so heavy it would weigh him to the bottom of the sea.
That wasn’t what happened.
Olster covered his lapse expertly, giving Raziel a smug smile. “I’m sorry to hear that. But… why would you think I’d care? The less Ravenbones around the better.”
Raziel felt like he was about to explode. His face was hot. The world seemed like it was spinning slightly.
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“If you went missing too, that would make my day,” continued Olster.
Verminta’s chair hit the back wall. “You can’t say that!”
Olster snubbed his nose at her. “Hey, Raventrash. Tell your annoying, stinky girlfriend to shut up.”
“You’re the one stinking up the room, Olster,” snarled Raziel, grinding his molars together. “Did you take a bath in rotten goat’s blood recently?”
The white-haired boy’s eyes widened, and he shifted sharply to the left. Raziel’s punch missed him by a centimeter.
Raziel bared his teeth. “There aren’t any teachers around this time to save you.”
“Fine by me!”
As long as bones weren’t broken, adults tended to look the other way. This time, though, Raziel wasn’t intending to pull any punches. Over the last month his skills had improved exponentially.
Raziel didn’t realize just how pungent the odor wafting from Olster was until they were punching each other on the floor. Raziel’s stomach roiled. Olster’s grubby hands felt like they were everywhere at once, and every inch of his skin hurt, like he was developing a rash. With a burst of strength, Raziel kicked Olster from him.
“You got stronger,” accused Raziel.
“You got faster,” said Olster, kicking a backpack into Raziel’s face before pouncing, grabbing a fistful of his hair and pulling with all his might.
How could Raziel fight at his full capacity when he wanted to vomit his guts out?
Was Raziel really the only one who could smell it?
Pain suddenly erupted from his right eye. Olster’s hit had landed. Raziel ducked and rammed his head into Olster’s belly, causing the other to gasp in agony. Although Raziel landed hit after hit, the anger he felt towards Olster didn’t waver in the least. In fact, it made him angrier. For every kick he delivered, he earned one back. And after a few moments when it was clear that Olster was losing, his friends jumped into the fray.
Several hands pulled at both boys separating them.
“Not this again!” complained Mr. Grimble [Teacher]. Hearing the commotion, the man sprinted into the classroom. “Someone escort Olster to the nurse, he’s bleeding. Ravenbone, you’ve got detention for a month!”
Smiling smugly, Olster wiped the blood on his teeth.
“Ravenbone dog,” said Olster like he was chewing metal. “Give up. If Holt’s not dead, then she probably wishes she was.”
Fury pounded in Raziel’s veins as he pushed against the arms holding him back.
A hock of saliva landed on his cheek. Raziel’s ears burned hotly. Olster brushed off his classmates who begged him to go to the nurse. Instead, the white-haired boy kicked Timiny Topplesmith’s desk so the edge dug into his belly, and then stormed over to his own seat.
Olster took out his school supplies but then crossed his arms morosely, taking discreet sniffs of himself every once in a while. A kid next to Olster asked if he was alright but got a cold shoulder in reply.
“Are you okay?” Verminta asked Raziel quietly.
“No,” he said, glaring daggers at Olster’s forehead. “Not in the slightest.”
Raziel sat in his seat trembling minutely with anger. This wasn’t a silly childhood rivalry anymore. His animosity had deepened and evolved, glittering ever more brightly like a ruby with countless facets cut into it. This was real hatred. This wasn’t a feeling meant for kids - this was a consuming bloodflame demanding to be fed.
A small huff of laughter left him. Kindred would be pleased as a canary when she realized her little cousin got so upset on her behalf.
For now, he watched the three True Family kids across the room.
Verminta anxiously arranged and rearranged the pencils and other instruments on her desk, making sure everything lay perfectly straight.
Raziel was about to smack her hand when Mr. Grimble clapped his hands. The entire classroom went quiet. “Dear students!”
As Mr. Grimble’s students had grown taller, the man remained the same. Now he was only a few inches taller than them.
Mr. Grimble gave them a smug, all-knowing smile. “As some of you may have heard, I have a special lesson for you all today! We will be conducting the Soul Awakening Ceremony today! I hope everyone is excited to finally have a class! It will be like a whole new world has opened up for you kids.”
“I can’t wait to see how many people have the [Peasant] class,” said Olster Wealcroft. He swept his bangs out of his eyes, looking at Raziel. He smirked as his cronies laughed around him.
“Now, now, Mr. Wealcroft. There is no [Peasant] class. At least, not that I’ve seen.” Mr. Grimble chuckled. “Examples of a class would be [Farmer], or [Fisher], or even [Teacher] like me.”
“We don’t have jobs, Mr. Grimble. What classes will we have?” asked Verminta.
“I expect all of you will have the [Bramblebog Child] class. After the Spring Rites, you’ll graduate to [Bramblebog Villager] until you become proficient in a certain field. Okay let’s not dally. There’s thirteen of you to get through today. Everyone make a line in front of me, please.”
The whole class scrambled to form the line. Raziel ended up in the back, his hands in his pockets.
“This is the Soul Lighter Incense,” said Mr. Grimble. He cupped a burning stick of incense. The tip smoked a dark, illusive purple color that shifted blue and then pink as it swirled in the air. An odor like burnt sugar filled the room. Raziel had the inexplicable urge to step closer. The edges of his vision blurred as the smoky colors seemed to take over his entire field of vision. “When it’s your turn, take a deep breath of it through your nose and hold it in your lungs for as long as possible.”
In what felt like an instant, it was Raziel’s turn. His classmates were on either side of him, pointing at the classes above each other's heads in excited, awed tones.
Raziel breathed the smoke in deeply. His whole body began to tingle in an unpleasant way. He felt like he was about to fall over. Then, in his core, there came an unfurling sensation - a flower blossoming. That unwinding feeling spread from his core to the ends of his limbs and suddenly -
> [CLASS SELECTION]
>
> Qualified:
>
> [Child] - No additional benefits
>
> [Hunter] - While pursuing prey (+1 Strength, +3 Dexterity); [Hyper-Vigilance] specialization; [Hunt] category of spells & abilities unlocked
>
>
> [Vagrant] - Home is wherever you want it to be
>
> In-Progress:
>
> [Summoner] - Requires three Beast Cards in your core
>
> [Beast Hunter] - Requires one-hundred beast kills
>
> [Brawler] - Requires wins against twenty opponents of similar physical ability
>
> [Dark Sorcerer] - ???
>
> [Mana Manipulator] - ???
>
> [Augur] - ???
>
> [Seer] - ???
Relief fell over Raziel at seeing the [Hunter] class waiting for him. He couldn’t believe it. Nothing in his life was going well. He expected that his class selection would go wrong too.
Good thing too, because the other classes he qualified for were [Child] and [Vagrant]. [Child] provided no benefits, and honestly, [Vagrant] didn’t seem to either.
What gave him pause were the classes he partially filled the requirements for. He had almost died killing one beast. He couldn’t imagine killing one-hundred! Maybe there were beasts out there that were extremely easy to kill, so you could farm them until you hit one-hundred. Then, Raziel looked at the four classes at the bottom with mystery requirements.
Those classes seemed like proper alchemist classes. What had he done to partially fulfill their requirements?
Raziel stared at them for a little while before shaking his head. He gladly chose [Hunter] as his class.
> [HUNTER]
>
> Level - Mortal
>
> —------
>
> Species: Human
>
>
> Specialization: Hyper-Vigilance
>
> Aptitude: F-Rank
>
> HP: 100/100
>
> Mana: 100/100
>
> —---------
>
> ATTRIBUTES
>
> Strength: 4/10
>
> Dexterity: 5/10
>
> Body: 2/10
>
> Soul Power: 5/20
>
> Magic Power: 3/10
>
> Cognition: 5/10
>
> Insight: 5/10
>
> —-----------
>
> CARD REPOSITORY
>
> ???
“...”
Raziel stared at the projection.
HUH?!
Did that truly say F-Rank aptitude? He checked the soulpanes around him. D-Ranks and C-Ranks, mostly. A few B-Ranks. Verminta and Olster were the only two A-Ranks. There was only one F-Rank in the entire class and it was him.
What was aptitude exactly? Aptitude for what?
“[Hunter]?” muttered Olster, two spots of red appearing on his cheeks. Everyone else had [Bramblebog Child] as their class. Even Verminta! As soon as Olster laid his eyes upon Raziel’s aptitude his eyes popped open wide with disbelief and unrestrained joy. “F-Rank?? F-Rank!!”
"With an F-Rank aptitude, Raz must've gotten [Hunter] by accident..."
"Yeah, there's no way... I've been training non-stop and I still only had [Child] available..."
"Maybe [Hunter] isn't as hard to get as everyone says."
Mr. Grimble [Teacher] quickly approached Raziel, who had never felt so self-conscious in his whole life. There must be some mistake. How could he have the lowest aptitude? Even Quimby, who didn’t understand how to add numbers, was a D-Rank.
“Class! I think Mr. Ravenbone’s soulpane presents a great learning opportunity, so gather around. We will use his soulpane as an example for everyone’s questions.”
Raziel’s face burned hotly as the class gathered around him. The spirits of the D-Rankers were lifted knowing there was an F-Rank in the class.
“Can you explain aptitude, sir?” someone asked.
“Simply put, aptitude is… well, it’s a measure of your natural talent in alchemy.” Mr. Grimble’s face pinched with distaste. “In theory, those with high aptitudes, like Ms. Verminta Skell and Mr. Wealcroft, will find it easier to advance to Level 1 and beyond.” The man sighed. “I suppose the next question will be how many alchemists reside in our Bramblebog. I’m proud to say the answer is zero! We don’t approve of any sort of magic in the village. In fact, it’s totally banned.”
Verminta seemed disappointed that her valuable A-Rank was useless, while Olster’s face was carefully blank. The class asked question after question. How do you look inside your Card Repository? How do you use mana? These questions in particular upset Mr. Grimble.
Raziel numbly listened to the discussion, only perking up when someone asked about attributes.
“Your attributes will level up naturally by themselves. Reading books can improve your cognition, and working on a farm can level up your strength. Feel free to train stats like Strength, Dexterity, Cognition. Body and Insight… don’t bother with those. Certainly leave any ideas of increasing your Magic Power and Soul Power at the door. Intentionally increasing those two stats is highly illegal and dangerous.”
Though it was hard to feel any pleasure after the revelation of his poor aptitude, Raziel's stats were better than he expected. 5/10 was the natural limit of the mortal form. His Dexterity, Cognition, and Insight stats were at the limit of what would be possible for him to achieve naturally. If he had waited until his soul naturally awakened in his late teens or early twenties, he doubted he would've seen much improvement in those years.
“If you max out all your stats, you’ll advance to Level 1 and become an alchemist!” someone whispered excitedly.
Mr. Grimble’s face turned red. “Now, now, let’s not get into that. Us simple bogfolk don’t have any business with alchemy.”
Hortensia Briar spoke up. “My aunt told me you can take pills to boost your stats.”
“...That’s quite unnatural.”
“It can’t be that hard to max your stats out, right? I’m already 5/10 in Strength. That’s half way there,” said Timiny Topplesmith from his wheelchair.
“I’ve certainly seen people with a single maxed out attribute. All seven, though?” Mr. Grimble shook his head. “Insight is by far the hardest. It’s called the great bottleneck for aspiring alchemists.”
Mr. Grimble paused as he read Raziel’s attributes again. “...huh? Your insight is actually extremely high…”
There was some noise outside. Raziel was the first to hear it, but then seconds later the ears of his peers seemed to catch it too. Three students curiously went to the window, looking for the commotion. Multiple people were screaming and running through the courtyard. The noise seeped into the classroom from the slightly cracked window and then suddenly it was all anyone could hear.
“What’s going on?”
“What’s happening?”
“I see them! There are beasts outside!”
Raziel tongued his split lip. The [Priest] had been wrong. Beasts found the village after all.