Seah's arms were crossed and she gave Johann a blistering glare.
"You just had to open your big mouth."
Meanwhile Hana's eyes teared up as she realized what a huge landmark she'd achieved. She looked at Jinyoung and he squeezed her hand reassuringly.
Only half of all students at the Academy would make cadet status. Of those, another half wouldn't graduate. Most of the students in Hana's year wouldn't see the inside of a dungeon for a year or two. And those that did wouldn't engage in combat for another year still.
But Jinyoung had overseen Hana's training himself. And by the time she had entered the Academy, he knew that she was stronger than he was. He was two years older than Hana when he defeated his first monster. But here was Hana. Defeating her first monster at barely 15 and able to point out her own weaknesses. He couldn't have been prouder.
"So, what do I do now?"
When players level up, the system allocates them skill and stat points. Skill points can be used to unlock new abilities or strengthen existing abilities. Stat points are allocated by the system automatically until the players reach level 10. That means at level 10, every player has the same base stat levels.
STRENGTH: 10 WISDOM: 10
AGILITY: 10 ENDURANCE: 10
LUCK: 10
Once they reach level 10, players are able to join a guild and change their class. This is where players can join the Scholar's guild to become a mage specializing in healing (White Mage), elemental sorcery (Arcanist), or one of many other specialties. The Fighter’s guild and Rogue’s guilds likewise have their own specialties and separate classes. It's at this point players can allocate their own stat points to play to their strengths or cover their weaknesses as required. Until level 10, players are locked into the “No Class” which has three basic skills: [dash], [scan], and [charge].
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
“Wait, I leveled up after defeating one monster. But Johann said that you’ve all been through tons of dungeons.”
“We have, but every time you level up, it takes more effort to reach the next level.”
“Then… what level are you all?”
“Johann hit level 8 last week and he’ll probably end up being level 9 once we finish this dungeon. Seah is at 9?” Seah nodded, so Jinyoung continued. “Yeah, 9. Both Cyrus and I have been at 10 since last year.”
Last year? Hana thought.
Jinyoung saw the look on Hana's face and explained the reason, “The system locks No Class players at level 10. You need to join a guild to continue to level up.”
Ahem. “I don’t mean to interrupt, but we should be moving on.” Cyrus motioned down the dark steps to the rest of the dungeon.
Jinyoung coughed and nodded his head. So did Hana, but even in the dark it was impossible to miss her wide grin.
Cyrus had found multiple hallways and doorways leading to other parts of the dungeon, but found none of the telltale signs of monsters. While the map the team was provided with was detailed, it only detailed the path of the test itself. Most dungeons hadn't been fully explored and while they could rely on existing maps and architecture from the old world, some dungeons had been warped resulting in rooms or pathways that previously hadn't existed. That meant that every unexplored door or hallway could hold dangers which meant they had to be careful.
Johann had confirmed that they were indeed on the right path and should find the checkpoint in less than an hour if they moved cautiously and carefully.
"There's one more set of undead on the floor below us before we get to the checkpoint. But I found something else."
On their way back, Seah questioned whether Johann should share this with the group. But once they reached the checkpoint, it wouldn't matter. It'd be obvious to everyone, including little Hana. To not share it with the others would be pointless.
"This dungeon has a mid-boss."