Alphonse awoke with a jolt and sudden gasping for breath six hours after he entered his trance. He clenched a hand to his chest as tears began leaking from his eyes. I chose not to comment on that as I understood the feeling all too well.
Dean Weber placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and wiped away her own tears with her other hand.
“So much,” Al finally said after a minute. “I was a dog. I was many dogs.”
“Dogs were animals then?” I asked, trying to confirm that his vision was like my own.
“Yes, dogs were animals. Humans kept them as pets and loyal companions. We cared for them in their darkest hours and they cared for us in ours. I understand what Loyalty is now more than I ever did before. It’s not supposed to be a one-sided thing.” The dogboy paused then looked sharply at the dean. “Skills, I need several. Do whatever it takes but I need you to get them. Mourning Howl, Ferocious Growl, Whimper, Scent Tracking, and an agility based movement style to compliment my Acrobatics skill.”
Dean Weber just nodded.
“Why those?” I asked, curious as to what he saw and heard that made him think of those skills.
Alphonse answered, his voice distant as he relived the memory, “There was a human, she was talking to me as I lived my many lives, narrating. She told me about the instinctual skills a dog knew and could use. Some of them were natural to my breed and others were natural among all breeds. The curse of breed isn’t a curse. Our breed tells us about the traits that were bred into us over the centuries . . . maybe millenia. They aren’t a curse at all. The mischievous nature of my breed, the Wheaten, makes us both playful and stubborn, willful even. But I’m also quite the tracker and hunter. And I’m athletic with finely honed reflexes.”
After hearing his story, I made a suggestion, “I would get more than just Scent Tracking. You should also get the common Tracking skill. I also know you’re at your limit for the six freebies with that one, but I would highly recommend learning a ranged fighting skill like Archery or Firearms. It was the one place I think you would have benefited in the lair.”
He looked from me to the dean who just nodded. It seemed she agreed and Al was going to be getting a lot of new skills.
“And the others?” Alphonse asked and again the dean nodded her ascent.
“Okay, I think that is enough,” the dean said, standing from her seat. “I will go get most of the promised skills. I will also bring you each a list of the available elemental skills for you to choose from.”
With that she left me and Alphonse alone in her office. Part of me wanted to go snooping around, but Al’s presence held the impulse at bay. Instead, I settled back into my chair and closed my eyes. While Alphonse was unconscious for six hours, I was able to practise Meditation and the manipulation exercises off and on.
Before I could settle into Meditation, Al asked, “Did you know?”
I opened my eyes and looked at him, “Know what?”
He frowned, “Did you know . . . I am the Hero? Did you know when we met?”
I knew Alphonse didn’t have a way to tell if I was lying, but I still debated telling him the truth. I settled on something in between. “I suspected, comrade. The news is all over Rychania, about the hero from Abbaio. When I saw you in the train station, I suspected, but I also doubted. You are not very . . . ah . . . heroic, no?”
He snorted and cracked a smile, though it didn’t last long as his face soured. “My sister would not agree with you. Hell, no one would even know I was the hero if not for her. My entire life has been completely upended by this . . . curse. And now I’m expected to save the world from some unknown danger. How many people are going to get killed because of me? Lulu died in that Lair because the gods’ cursed system made it more difficult. How is that fair?”
I frowned, “Comrade Alphonse, you are not at fault. There was nothing you could have done that would have prevented Lulu’s death. Instead, let her death be a lesson to you. A driving force to get stronger faster. If you don’t want kin to die for you, then get strong enough to protect them. To protect all kin. I do not have the Hero Job, but you can bet I will be doing everything in my power to get stronger so I won’t ever lose a comrade again.”
Alphonse looked at me incredulously then shook his head, “How are you more heroic than I am?”
“I’m better looking than you are too,” I quipped with a wide grin.
Al snorted. “You're something else, Belov.”
“I know,” I replied. “And just so you know, I was not sent here by my government to find you or to recruit you. I enjoy our . . . rivalry.”
He turned more serious, “Will you tell the others?”
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I shook my head. “It is not my place to tell them. That is something you will have to decide for yourself.”
Al slowly nodded. “I think I should. If they are going into such danger, they should know why and for whom they’ll be doing it.”
I felt a pang of guilt at that. I was equally to blame for the additional danger because of my Job and the mission I was tasked with. However, I couldn’t, and wouldn’t, be sharing my own culpability.
Finally, the dean returned. She placed a sheaf of parchment down before each of us and a small sack on top of it. “All the skills you requested and the list of available elemental skills as promised. Mister Belov, we did not have a Shadow Claw skill, but I have put out a request. Hopefully, something will come back soon.”
I nodded and opened my pouch and looked at the dozen skill stones. First, I went through and used each of the six Cooking subskills stones, one after another, the knowledge of each flooding through my mind as the stones crumbled to dust. I put a handout to steady myself when it was over, a small headache already starting to form at the back of my head from the influx of information. Checking my skill list, I could see that all the skills I had just learned were now available
Common Skills
Name
Rank
Cooking
Intermediate
- Blade Work
Beginner
- Sauce
Beginner
- Mix
Beginner
- Spice
Beginner
- Heat
Beginner
- Timing
Beginner
That made me smile. I knew the odds of learning any of the six subskills without a Cooking related Job were almost zero. But there they were in my skill list: Blade Work, Sauce, Mix, Spice, Heat, and Timing. I had all of the subskills required to become a Chef. If I ever chose to leave behind my current Job path, there was a whole other world of opportunity out there for me.
After learning those, I learned the three promised Mind skills.
Mystic Skills
Name
Rank
Mind Attunement
Beginner
Mind Manipulation
Beginner
Mind Protection
Beginner
And last, I learned Torpor, Thick Hide, Venom Resistance, and Natural Weapons Fighting.
Uncommon Skills
Name
Rank
Thick Hide
Beginner
Rare Skills
Name
Rank
Natural Weapons Fighting
Beginner
Venom Resistance
Beginner
Torpor
Beginner
Despite the pounding headache that I endured, I was happy when I finally learned all of those skills. Now, I only had to look through the list of Light skills, which was quite lengthy, and the number of Shadow skills, which was significantly less.
“Light Blade and Light Claws,” I said, looking eagerly toward the dean. None of the Shadow skills stuck out to me. There were some that might have helped but I didn’t think I needed them more than I needed these two. Light Blade was the Light attuned counterpart to Shadow Blade, a skill I relied on greatly. Getting Light Claws to match the Shadow Claws made sense, even if it was not on the list of available skills.
The dean gave me a frown as she took the list of skill stones back and slipped it into a pocket of her robe. “Are you sure you would rather have those? There are some very good Shadow skills on that list.”
“I’m sure,” I answered. “I also think I need to get into the Toughness class if that’s possible.” Thick Hide’s effectiveness was determined by my Toughness rank, which at Moderate was one of my higher statuses. Constitution had a lesser impact but was still important, though I didn’t feel right requesting yet another class.
The dean’s frown deepened. “You ask a lot, but I suppose it is not too much. Very well. I am sure Signore Barducci will appreciate the late addition, though it does happen. And you, Mister Romano? Will you require any change in classes?”
“Agility and Dexterity,” Alphonse answered immediately.
The old woman groaned tiredly. “Are you certain you want to take on that kind of work load?”
“I am,” he said confidently.
The dean sighed again. “Very well, but do not say I did not warn you.”
“Noted,” he replied glibly, getting yet another roll of the eyes from me.
Deciding that if Al could add more, then so could I. “If comrade Alphonse is good to add those, can I also add Constitution?”
The dean gave me a look and I could only smile nervously in response. “Anything else?”
“Is that a yes?” I asked, giving her a cheeky smile that was more in line with what Al would do.
The dean sighed, “Yes, but do not make me regret it.”
I gave her a quick, “Thanks,” and decided I’d gained enough.