Sunlight dappled the valley, casting its gentle glow upon two figures locked in combat. I found myself dropping to my knees, my long platinum blonde hair tousled by the wind, narrowly evading the deadly arc of daggers wielded by my father. He was clad in the same training attire as me, and was relentless in his pursuit of perfection.

With a deft twist, my father altered the trajectory of one dagger, narrowly avoiding stabbing down into my eye. “You still forget to drop flat on your back during a knee slide,” he admonished, sheathing his blades before extending a hand to help me up. “Most opponents skilled enough would exploit that small opening. Artie, you have to do better.”

I accepted his hand, rising to my feet with a sigh. “You’ve already bested me, Dad. No need to rub it in,” I brushed off my training pants. “We both know I’d be no match for you if you weren’t holding back your power. You have, what, fifty years on me?”

My father smirked knowingly. “Roughly, but that’s not the issue. You possess myriad abilities your mother and I have taught you, yet you hesitate to utilize them. Case in point, a [Mana Slide] would have pulled you past me and back up so you could get in a stab at my backside. Why didn’t you use it?”

I fidgeted with embarrassment, ruffling my hair. “It doesn't feel fair. You can’t use magic—”

“Arthur Bajbub Neilson!” My father's charm evaporated, replaced by frustration as he prepared to lay down the law. “I may not be able to use magic, but my [Skills] put me in a class so far above you that it’ll take you twenty or more years to even approach me. I told you to use everything you had for this final training session and you fucking ignored me! How can I let you–”

“That's enough, Neil!” My mother’s voice cut through the tension, her golden-tanned complexion and auburn hair a stark contrast to my father’s pale skin and platinum blonde hair, traits I’d received from him. “I will not allow Arthur’s System Day be marred by this same old argument.”

I walked over and embraced my mother gratefully. “Thanks, Mom,’ I turned and stuck out my tongue at my father. “See, Mom’s on my side—”

“I didn't say that,” she retorted, stepping back. “Your magical potential surpasses even mine. If only you would apply it to combat spells as you did in training as a child.” With a flick of her wrist, she summoned elemental orbs the size of apples, unleashing their energy upon the mountainside in a display of power. "[Elemental Barrage], my favorite. With a little bit of focus on your [Arcane] stat, you could master it, eliminating the need for that... relic.”

“But, Mom, I prefer using a bow,” I protested, touching one of my mostly pointed ears. “It connects me to my golden elf heritage.”

“Golden elves rarely use bows outside of ceremonies,” she chided. “We’ve been predominantly mages for millennia. You should prioritize practicality. Even if you won’t embrace [Elemental Barrage], [Magic Missile] is effective and reliable. I used it throughout my career to conserve resources.”

I crossed my arms defiantly. “I don’t want to argue about this today. Can we drop it? I promise to use the necessary [Skills] and spells to survive in the world. Deal?”

My parents exchanged a glance before my father relented. “Agreed.”

“Likewise,” my mother added, wrapping her arms around me once more. “Now, let’s have breakfast before we present your birthday gifts.”

“Sounds good, Mom.”

Together, we ascended the path toward our family estate, passing through the vineyard and two different orchards, anticipation building for the celebration ahead.

I wonder what they’re going to give me? Mom and Dad always go all out, so it’s bound to be good. I already have Uncommon daggers, and armor. My protection amulet, bow, and spatial rings are all Rare. Maybe it’ll be something to help with camping? I don’t think they’d even be able to get Commons in Wyrm’s Rest, but the Rare and Legendary stuff people usually made here would be total overkill for a starting adventurer. A Unique would be unreasonable to hope for, but I wouldn’t put it past Grandpa to try and slip me one without Mom noticing.

Mom led the way into the sunroom, where plates covered with biscuits and gravy sat steaming before four seats. I licked my lips, biscuits and gravy was my favorite breakfast.

I did a double take at the fourth place setting before a smile began to form. “Who’s joining us for breakfast?” I slid into my usual seat to the left of Dad at the head of the table, and across from Mom.

She glared at me when I stared down at my breakfast longingly. “You’ll just have to wait. It shouldn’t be long.”

The double doors leading out to the sunroom from the house sprang open to reveal a tall golden skinned elf wearing a set of light green robes. He beamed at me. “Artie, my darling grandson, happy System Day!”

“Grandfather, you made it!” I sprang up from my chair and charged around the room to crash into him for a hug. Despite his advanced age, over three thousand years young as he would call it, he looked like he could be my thousand year old mother’s brother.

He spun me around with a wide grin. “Starchild, there’s nothing on Genovia that could have kept me away for your System Day.”

System Day, also known as the day I’d finally be considered an adult. Every race has them on different birthdays and with my heritage, there was a bit of math to figure out today was the day. I’m half gold elf, which would have made my hundredth birthday my System Day. My dad was one quarter dwarf, making me one eighth dwarf, a dwarf’s System day is on their fortieth birthday. The other three quarters of my father was human, who got access to the System on their eighteenth birthday. Math-wise, that should have made my System Day my sixtieth birthday, which would’ve been awful. However, what they say about humans is true, their blood runs true, because I matured just a little bit slower than the average human and at twenty-five years old, it was my time.

Today was my System Day and I would finally get to see the fruits of my labor. All those years of training with my parents and their friends, just trusting that I was improving myself, no more!

Two spins later, my grandfather set me down before pushing me gently toward my seat on the other side of the table. “Grab some breakfast. You weren’t born until the sun was at its highest point, so you have a little more time.” He blurred before reappearing in the chair next to my mom.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Archibald Sunbeam, the Ray of the East, AKA my grandfather, was one of the most powerful beings alive. At three thousand years old, he had seen the rise and fall of empires and he was still standing, unchanged. He was one of six publicly known S-Ranked Class bearers, though Mom and Dad assured me there were at least a few more they knew from their travels.

His [Signature Spell], [Thousand Rays of Destruction], was so powerful that he’d sworn never to use it again without the permission of the entire Elven Council. Not the golden elven council, the Elven Council, the governing body for all elven races on Genovia. The last time he used it, he destroyed the mountain above the dragon lair he was raiding and half of the dwarven capital. Luckily, it was the industrial sector in the middle of the night and only a few hundred people died. The Elven Council talked the dwarves down when they explained what had happened, the dragon had just woken up and would soon have ravaged the nations nearby, but in return they made my grandfather make the promise never to use it again if there was any chance of civilian casualties.

Breakfast was fantastic. Momo, my mother’s golden elven handmaiden, was a master chef. She’d served my mother’s family her entire life and didn’t seem to want to leave, as she stood behind her with a smile on her face.

“So, what Class do you think you’ll end up with?” My dad leveled his fork at me with a bit of sausage dangling. “What do you hope you’ll end up with?”

“I don’t know, not really. There are hundreds of thousands of Classes out there and at least half of those can use magic, and I can already do that, so there are a lot to choose from.” I hid my grin behind my napkin as I wiped my mouth. “You’re a [Blade Dancer] and Mom’s an [Archmage]. So maybe I’ll get something like a [Daggerspell Mage], or something like that?”

“Boring!” He thumped the table a few times until Mom leveled a glare that would have killed a weaker man. He coughed. “I mean, you’ve excelled with most things you’ve trained with, minus heavy armor and two-handed weapons. That Class wouldn’t fit someone like you, it’s too limiting. Plus, it’s only B-Ranked.”

“Dear, there’s nothing wrong with a B-Ranked Class, they’re just a bit more limiting than those of higher rank.” Mom wiped her mouth and slid her plate toward the center, she was always the first one done with dinner.

Mom’s [Archmage] Class was A-Ranked and Grandpa’s [Celestial Beacon] was the legendary S-Rank. Never did it cross my mind that I might end up with a Class as powerful as his, but it didn’t stop me from dreaming about it.

The most common Class rank was F, that’s where [Farmers] and the most unlucky [Peasants] landed, seventy-five out of one hundred people had classes from this rank. E was next, that’s where [Soldiers] and most basic crafting Classes landed and fifteen out of one hundred people landed here. D-Rankers held the advanced crafting Classes like [Alchemist] landed, it also covered the beginning specialized martial Classes like [Archer] were and they made up eight out of a hundred people. C was where you started to find people who had some sort of status, be it political or martial, and they made up most of the remaining two out of a hundred people. Dad’s [Blade Dancer] was on the upper edge of B-ranked, and I knew most successful adventurers had Classes in that rank, but they were rare with only around one in two hundred people ending up there. As for A and S Ranked Classes, they were almost unheard of, with fewer than one in a hundred thousand for A-Rankers and one in a hundred million for S-Rankers.

“My dream Class would be [Eldritch Warmaster], but that’s tied to those of noble blood in the Iroan Empire.” I leaned back in my chair, gauging my family’s reactions. Mom and Grandpa both nodded. Why wouldn’t I want the S-Ranked Class that matched closest to my training? I’d spent hundreds of hours pouring through tomes of magic/martial classes and it was perfect.

Dad was another story, he burst out laughing with his hands over his heaving belly. “You think you could get an S-Ranked Class like your grandfather?” He stopped dead when the light from the window grew brighter and started focusing in on him until only a single beam was left pointing at his forehead. “You know, you’re right. Your mother always said you were more talented with magic than she was,” the light in the window slowly went back to normal, “maybe you could get a Class like that.” Sweat poured down his face as he avoided looking at his father-in-law.

“I agree, with his talent, the sky’s the limit for my Starchild.” Grandpa’s eyes flicked from Dad back to me and I smiled.

Mom drained her orange juice and smirked. “I’m hoping for [Primal Weaver] or [Arcane Sage] for Artie. Either of them would suit his vast magical talents.” She chuckled. “[Starlord] would be a lot to ask for, but with Dad’s blood in your veins, it’s totally possible.”

I sat back and listened as Mom, Dad, and Grandpa tore into each other for nearly an hour over what Class they thought I should end up with. This was nothing abnormal for them, whenever the three of them came together they would spar verbally. It didn’t matter what the topic was, they would argue about anything. One time, they got into an argument that lasted three days over where to go on vacation, and each of them bounced from idea to idea, never agreeing. To get them to settle down, I asked to go to Grandpa’s beachside villa, which none of them had previously mentioned.

Momo cleared her throat, stopping them mid sentence. Somehow, she was always able to cut through their arguments. “The time for master Arthur’s System Integration draws near. We should adjourn to the patio in preparation.” Without waiting for an answer, she spun on her heel, walked over to the double doors, and gently opened them so they didn’t even touch the exterior walls despite being flush with the wall, her [Serene Maid] Class at work.

I wonder if her ability to cut through arguments is a [Skill] or just something she figured out or was born with? I’ll have to ask her sometime, because there’s no way I could do what she just did in so little time. It took me three hours to prompt the villa the last time!

Dad leapt backward over his chair from a seated position before pulling out Mom’s chair. “Milady, shall we adjourn to the patio?” He laid the charm on thick and I nearly gagged.

“We shall.” She got up gracefully before taking his extended arm beneath her own and walking with him out onto the patio.

I followed behind with Grandpa, mouthing, “Thank you,” to Momo. She smiled and followed behind us.

Besides the normal tables and chairs, one thing was different about the patio, there was a massive golden throne sitting in the middle of it radiating so much magic that I had to avert my eyes before turning off my [Arcane Sight].

I turned to my grandpa with my mouth dangling open. “You didn’t.”

“I did.” He pushed me toward the throne. “Only the best for my Starchild.”

I debated protesting, but gave up almost immediately. What was done was done. “Thank you, Grandfather. I will endeavor not to besmirch the [Throne of Kantor] with my failure to get a good Class.”

As I bowed low, I felt a gentle chop in the back of the head. When I looked back up, I saw him smiling down at me.

“No matter what Class you get, you’ll always be my grandson. That’s all I can ever ask for. Plus,” he leaned in conspiratorially, “I have an idea on how to make a grimoire to give someone with my blood my Class, even if they’ve already received theirs from the System. So, if you don’t like what you get? Fear not! I, Archibald Sunbeam, will never let you down!”

Yup, just as crazy as always, but I do appreciate it. If I were to get a Class that can’t do magic for some reason? I might have to take him up on that, even if it does delay my departure today.

“Thanks, Grandpa.”

I walked over and sat on the golden throne of the ancient golden elven royal family and felt the magic pulse through me, igniting my mother’s bloodline. My eyes glowed brightly enough that I noticed the reflection off my nose.

Something inside me released and I knew it was time.

“Wish me luck.” I slurred as I slumped down on the throne, unconscious.