Of the four base classes provided by the system, the scholar class was known to be exceptionally expensive. It wasn’t just the guild fees, either. Weapons for focusing ranged magical attacks were more expensive than other basic weapons and the lack of defensive or evasive skills early on meant that scholars required better armor than their more physical counterparts.

But most importantly, learning to focus mana took months if not years. And until that power was mastered, a scholar was scarcely better than a No Class player. It was rare for clans to take on first-year scholars and rarer still for them to sponsor a scholar’s guild membership. But Hana had seen enough of Willow to see that she had potential. And with barely a day’s worth of training (from a shield knight, no less), Willow had made the same progress you’d expect from a month of training at mage’s university.

Jinyoung’s eyes narrowed. During the day, he’d been too busy focusing on the weights and his own exhaustion to notice. But now, with Willow seated only a few feet away, he could have a closer look. More than that, he could [scan+] her.

“Willow, could you do that again?”

He saw-

- the mana flowed from her torso, through her arm into her hand where it swirled like a whirlpool. Some of the flow was smooth, but most of it was turbulent. Bleeding out.

“Can you… slow it down? It looks almost wasteful. Like the water’s overflowing out of a cup.”

Willow raised an eyebrow, but nodded and put her mind to the task.

The flow slowed. And so too did the turbulence. Instead of a whirlpool, it looked more like a softly spinning globe.

For Willow, the feedback was immediate. Willow instantly felt the difference. But more than that, she knew exactly how much mana to focus into her hand. She knew how to focus the mana into her hand.

She knew.

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***

The next morning, Jinyoung’s feet dragged through the dirt. It was too early for “jaunt through the forest” as Dae had put it. Of course, it was less of a jaunt and more of a sprint through the brush trying to avoid tripping over tree roots and close-calls with sudden drops and the occasional naturally formed pit.

By the time he came to a stop, Jinyoung felt like he was back in the Academy’s cadet boot camp. Which could only make sense since Dae had instituted the boot camp during his tenure as instructor.

“Time to put your cards on the table, boy.”

“What are you talking about, old man?”

“Hana told me, not everything mind you, but enough. She says that your skills work differently from everyone else. Not just that, but they level differently, too.”

Jinyoung shut his mouth. Hana had been the one to tell him the dangers of sharing this information. And, yet, if she’d told Dae it had to be for a good reason.

“She said you’ve unlocked two skill aspects and-”

“Three,” Jinyoung interjected. “I just unlocked one yesterday, but I didn’t want to try it. At least, not around the others. Just in case.”

Dae held up a hand in understanding. “There’s nothing wrong with a bit of caution before you try out a new skill.”

Jinyoung nodded. Now, it was common for players to know exactly the effects of any given skill before they unlocked it. But in the early days, players had to unlock new skills to see how they worked. That resulted in players having to change their entire battle strategies because a skill that once offered increased endurance now doubled that endurance but also reduced agility and speed. And, on occasion, skills could be dangerous. Especially when tried for the first time by novices.

The onion knight waved a hand around his surroundings. “Is that why you brought me out here?”

“You can never be too safe, boy.”

Dae stepped back and nodded at Jinyoung.

Jinyoung took a deep breath.

[Charge+].

He felt it immediately. It was the same electricity he felt running through his body when he used it before, but different. Before, he felt empowered but weighted by the increase in power. Now, it felt like the energy was wrapped around him pulling him up, if anything. He didn’t just feel stronger, he felt lighter. Faster.

“How do you feel, boy?”

Jinyoung (NOVICE CLASS, Level 17)

STRENGTH: 17 + 3.4

WISDOM: 17 + 3.4

AGILITY: 17 + 3.4

ENDURANCE:17 + 3.4

LUCK: 17 + 3.4

Jinyoung smiled.

“Awesome.”