Ok so which of the trials was I going to enter? I had some time to think about it at least as the queue was moving at a snail’s pace. So archery was definitely my best chance of passing the combat trials - given I had a skill and some experience of using a bow. As for the other combat trial I basically needed to pick the one I was going to lose the least humiliatingly so that if I did well enough at archery I still had a chance to progress to the academic tests; I wasn’t worried about those. Taking stock of most of the youths in the line ahead of me it was clear to see I was at least a head shorter than the shortest of them and somewhat lacking in the muscle department - there were some more slender boys in the queue but most of them were tall and lithe looking. So I was going to be completely out muscled - unarmed combat seemed a really stupid idea for me then - I would lack reach and strength and without any training in it to even the odds I predicted I’d be flat on my back in seconds. So that left the sword. Ok I had no training with a sword either, my sum total experience of fighting with a weapon was accidently stabbing a bandit and then using some sort of system cheat to kill another. Even so I could assume that not many of the boys in front of me had been trained either by the looks of them and in a way holding a sword, not knowing quite what to do with it, might make them forget the difference in strength between us and that actually they could just use the thing like a club and there’d be little I could do about it. I on the other hand knew I had no clue what I was doing so I could focus on dodging and hope like hell my opponent tripped on his shoe laces or something. So that was the plan. It was a rubbish plan but so far all my rubbish plans had just about worked out for me.

By the time I’d monologued all that in my head I had actually reached the front of the queue where a bored looking clerk took my name and what trials I wanted to enter. He barely looked up at me before pointing over to a large group milling around who were apparently the other competitors in the archery trial. I hurried over, not wanting to be late or something.

Now I was getting another new ‘not-a-princess’ anymore experience. For days I’d been worried I stunk, like I’d not washed in weeks unless you counted falling into bodies of water, and although I’d like to say I didn’t care the truth was I did. I felt disgusting and was surprised no one remarked on my reek. Now I knew why, gods the smell of dozens of teenage boys in one place was overpowering. I actually had to fight the urge to retch up the life sustaining double I’d just eaten. How did they smell this bad and did I need to smell that bad for the rest of my life - in which case this whole disguising myself as a boy and becoming a knight idea might have to be dropped.

I was still searching through my system for some sort of skill that turned off olfactory functions when I realised another knight, with not quite as shiny a cuirass and less gold braiding on his jacket than the guy I’d met earlier, had been talking to us for I don’t know how long. I forced myself to pay attention.

“Right,” the knight said in a bored monotone, “this isn’t hard. You all get an identical bow and twelve arrows. Behind me are seven targets starting from ten metres - and if you miss that well there’s no hope for you - and going up all the way to two hundred metres, which I’ll be surprised if many of you can manage. Scoring is standard but you’ll get a multiplier for every ten metres the target is away from you. The top sixty scoring candidates will be deemed to have passed the trial, and if you pass that means you don’t necessarily need to pass the next trial to progress. Now you’ll probably have noticed you are getting twelve arrows and there are seven targets. Well that’s because you’ll get 5 practice shots at fifty metres before you start for real. You’ll be called at random so pay attention, I’ll call you twice, after that I’ll just move onto the next person.”

He rambled on for a couple more minutes before calling the first name. I was actually excited - I’d made two hundred metre shots before, not consistently but not so infrequently I had hopes I could do it today, plus I’d recently levelled up and now had more strength than I had ever had. The double had taken my health up to the point I didn’t have a condition giving me faults anymore, I had no boosts either but I did have my accuracy boost from my archery skill. Looking around at the other boys I could see most looked like me, dirty and malnourished (not that I had been malnourished all my life - just the last few weeks - and that was a big advantage in terms of my underlying strength and fitness) and I probably had more experience with a bow, as limited as it was. However, there were some more confident, bigger, better dressed boys in the group as well - probably the sons of nobles or wealthy merchants who had probably received some training and developed skills in archery as I had and no doubt some of the poorer looking boys had hunter classes which should have given them some skills as well. Still I reckoned I had a chance of getting into the top sixty.

After an hour or so it was clear that most of the boys started to struggle after thirty metres and only a couple so far had hit the furthest target. The air was still and dry - perfect conditions - I just had to keep calm and trust in my experience and skill. Thankfully the bows being used were shortbows - if they had been longbows I doubted I’d have had the strength to draw the weapon - but a shortbow was something I had managed even before my increase in strength attributes.

“Neesh, whoever you are.” I suddenly heard; I leapt to my feet and went to collect my bow.

The bow it turned out was good quality and actually a short recurve bow, that meant a lot of power for the same draw strength as a normal short bow - suddenly two hundred metres looked more achievable than ever. The arrows were good quality, neatly fletched. They certainly intended for this to be a test of skill and accuracy - no blaming bad equipment here. I approached the practice target as confidently as I could, took five arrows from their quiver and planted them in the ground next to my feet. I knocked my first arrow, drew and loosed. A slight westerly breeze struck up and my arrow drifted to the outer ring of the target. Compensating for it with my next arrow I managed to hit the third ring, not too bad but I needed to do better. My next three arrows all hit the inner two rings and I grinned to myself, I could actually do this.

I waited a few minutes for the boy ahead of me to finish and then it was my turn. I pushed down my nerves and aimed with confidence. The first four targets at ten, twenty, thirty and forty metres I scored nine, ten, nine, seven - the last arrow I scuffed slightly with my finger as I released it, sending it off course. Still not bad, that gave me a score of eighty four out of a possible hundred going into the final three targets - much tougher prospects at seventy, one hundred and two hundred metres.

I aimed at the seventy metre target. I let my arrow fly just as a gust of wind blew across the trial grounds, blowing the arrow all the way out to the fourth ring, that would be just six points. For my next shot at the hundred metre target I waited to properly gauge the wind before aiming. I slowed my breathing, as I’d been taught by the royal huntsman, and carefully lined up my volley. Visualising my shot as I drew the bow. I loosed.

Accuracy Check [Tricky Shot]: Success Value = 18 Natural Value = [Dexterity] + [Strength]/2 = 11 + 7 = 18.

Accuracy Check [Tricky Shot]: Successful

My arrow sailed and hit the first ring - nine points - that was a great score at that distance. I smiled to myself, feeling a renewed confidence about my final shot.

Accuracy Check [Long Shot]: Success Value = 20 Natural Value = [Dexterity] + [Strength]/3 = 11 + 4 = 15

Accuracy Check [Long Shot]: Failed

Accuracy Check [Long Shot]: Skill Modifier = True: Skill [Archery] = + 3 to Accuracy Checks

Accuracy Check [Long Shot]: Modified Value = 15 + 3 = 18

Accuracy Check [Long Shot]: Failed

Luck Check [Tailwind]: Success Value = 8 Natural Value = [Luck]/2 = 8.5

Luck Check [Tailwind]: Successful

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Accuracy Check [Long Shot]: Luck Modifier = True: Luck Check [Tailwind] = + 2 to Accuracy Checks

Accuracy Check [Long Shot]: Modified Value 2 = 18 + 2 = 20

Accuracy Check [Long Shot]: Successful

I watched with bated breath ignoring the system messages that were flashing up in my mind as the arrow sailed straight and true to the target hitting the bullseye. I whooped with excitement - that meant three hundred and thirty two points for the last three targets giving me a total score of four hundred and sixteen out of a possible four hundred and seventy points. I was pretty sure that was a good score.

XP awarded for completion of special event: Archery Trial: +500 XP

Bonus XP awarded for bullseye on final target: +900XP

You are ready to level up! Level Up Y/N?

System Information:

Congratulations you have reached Level 11.

HP + 15 (HP: 50/117)

Mana + 1 (Mana: 20/21)

Stamina + 12 (Stamina: 25/52)

Strength + 1, Dexterity + 3, Intelligence + 1, Wisdom + 2

A new skill slot is available

Skill [Archery] is now Lv. 8

Cool, I thought, a new skill. Surely there was something that might help me not make a fool of myself in the next trial. I looked at my available skill list.

Available skills. Sort [A to Z]

Acrobatics

Dowsing

Fade

First Aid

Foraging

Forest Lore

Keen Eyesight

Music [Beginner]

Pickpocketing

Sharp Hearing

Storyteller

Swimming

Underhand Blow

No new skills had opened up for me so from what I could guess [Underhand Blow] and [Acrobatics] were the two that might potentially help me. Underhand Blow could be anything but would probably combine well with my [Sneak] skill as some sort of stealth attack. Useful but probably not in a one on one duel. [Acrobatics] would at least fit in with my dodge and hope plan. Ok Acrobatics it was and time to check out my new character sheet.

Name:

Age:

Gender:

Race

Class:

Neesh

14

Ambiguous

(the enquirer will see what they expect)

Human

Scout

Title:

Attributes:

Condition:

Character:

Alignments:

n/a

160cm

55kg

Shoe Size 5

Blood: Type O

[Could be better] no boosts or faults apply

Dominant traits:

Fair minded

Stubborn

Survivor

Ethics: 63/100

Order: 35/100

Selflessness: 55/100

Level:

HP:

Mana:

Stamina:

Regen Rates

11

(2060 XP to LvUP)

50/117

20/21

25/52

HP: 1pt/hour

Mana: 1pt/hour

Stamina: 1pt/min

Strength:

Dexterity:

Intelligence:

Wisdom:

Luck:

15

14

15

13

17

A new road lies before you. Time to see where it might lead

Skills (9 max)

Skill LV

Rarity

Description

Requirements

Literacy

10

Uncommon

You can read and write, that’s not as common as we’d like

Reading checks: +10

Intelligence >10

Numeracy

15

Rare

You have been taught actual mathematics rather than adding plus you’re a bit of a whizz at it

Mathematics Checks: + 15

Intelligence >10

Archery

8

Common

You can shoot straight, on a calm day

Equip: Short Bows, Composite Bows, Small Crossbows, Quiver

Accuracy Checks: +3

Damage: + 3

Strength > 5

Stamina 1/shot

Must have weapon and ammunition in inventory

Linguist

12

Rare

You can argue with even more people you meet

Language Checks: + 12

Intelligence > 9

Luck > 10

Melee Weapons [Basic]

1

Common

You know which end is the pointy end.

Equip: Knives, Short Swords, Clubs

Damage: +0

Strength > 10

Must have weapon in inventory

Wayfinding

1

Rare

You know where you are and where you’re going

Orientation Checks: + 4

Wisdom > 10

Intelligence >12

Hunting

1

Common

It’s eat or be eaten sometimes and you’re determined not to be lunch.

Damage: x2 damage vs animals

Stealth Checks: +2 vs animals

Ranged Weapon must be equipped.

Dexterity > 10

Sneak

1

Rare

You can move silently, like a shadow. Just try not to sneeze.

Stealth Checks: +3

Dexterity > 10

Tracking

1

Rare

You know how to follow your nose. Just try not to sniff out trouble.

Find Checks: +4

Intelligence > 12

Wisdom >10

Acrobatics

1

Common

You can jump and twirl with the grace of a cat.

Dodge Checks: + 2

Falls Damage: - 1

Dexterity > 11

So there it was my new skill, as expected it would help me dodge and the reduction in damage taken from falls was unexpected but welcome. Now all I had to do was compete in the sword trial and somehow not make a fool of myself.