Callum’s mind raced as he tried to process what he was seeing. There were so many question marks, with so little information getting through. He wasn’t sure where to begin for a moment when one piece stood out to him. ‘Crafted by’ and then question marks. That didn’t make any sense. He knew who it was crafted by, his friend Aaron.
Did that mean that Aaron hadn’t crafted it? If so, who did?
Those questions were almost too big to be answered, and he had a sinking feeling that he wouldn’t know for some time. His first thought was that maybe he could track Aaron down, but he instantly knew that was a long, long shot. Aaron had moved away for work after graduating from college. Before the apocalypse, he could have simply called him, but now, how was he supposed to get in touch with people?
There was also the matter of the ‘Scales with’ comment. That implied that the sword got better with something he could likely increase, but he had no idea what it could be. He briefly noted that his Identify had leveled up as well, but that barely registered as a thought as he dismissed the notification.
He was now realizing something else that stood out about his blade. It had never needed maintenance. He touched a finger to the point of the blade and found it just as sharp as ever. Curiosity getting the better of him, he walked over to a tree and stabbed, hard, but not so hard that it would cause real damage should he be wrong.
A deep hole was punched in the tree, but the blade was as sharp as it had been moments ago. He next tested how well the blade flexed, not sure what prompted him to do this. It bent a little, something his skill informed him was correct. From what he could tell, it flexed the exact amount it was supposed to, based on several factors including length, width, and weight.
He continued for several minutes, observing the blade through the lens of his skill. As far as he was concerned, it was the perfect sword.
[Rapier Novice 7 → Novice 8]
The day seemed to be full of surprises. Though, he was standing in the middle of a dungeon, that looked like a forest, that had been a city block not forty-eight hours ago.
A howl shook him out of his reverie. He was reminded of his task, and on high alert now. Seeing how well it had gone ambushing the wolves instead of the other way around, he set off in the direction of the howl.
The sight he found once reaching the source of the howl was similar to what he had found not thirty minutes prior. The wolves had surrounded another group of people. Callum double-checked his stamina, and finding it full, he charged into the fray.
He slayed the wolves in the same manner as he had earlier, finding it slightly easier this time. A similar scene played out with the people this time as well. He scanned the chest that spawned this time, finding no magical items this time. The only difference was that he remembered to point them in the direction of the town, once the dungeon had been completed.
This fight had pushed his Duellist level to nine, and his Rapier skill to Novice ten.
Callum continued to push through the dungeon, encountering two more sets of wolves cornering a group of people. The first got him Apprentice one but hadn’t opened an opportunity for specialization.
On the second set of wolves, disaster struck.
He heard the howl first and started running in that direction, though it was the furthest he had heard it. A minute later, he heard the cry for help and increased his speed. A second cry, and he fell into a flat-out sprint, covering the distance at speeds that were now superhuman.
Only thirty seconds later, he broke into the clearing, but the carnage had already begun.
Blade Dance was on, and he tore into the wolves. As focused as Blade Dance made him, he was fighting five wolves at once. Every so often he caught a glimpse of a mauled corpse, and it spurred him to fight harder.
He was like a whirlwind, tearing through the wolves. Putting absolute trust in his skills, he stabbed at every piece of flesh or fur he could. The wolves were having a hard time laying a claw on him, and with every attack, they paid a price for it in blood.
By the end of it, he was covered in blood, some was his, but mostly the wolves. His clothes had been completely shredded, again. The wolves were barely recognizable, a testament to his anger with them, considering his weapon.
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He stumbled away from the viscera, trying not to lose the contents of his stomach.
Callum understood that the world they all now lived in was one of constant danger, but seeing the people so indiscriminately slaughtered nearly broke him. By the time he was done with the wolves, there was nothing left but scraps of fur, bone, and a lot of blood.
That fight had pushed his class to level ten, but this notification was shunted to the side as he slumped down against a tree.
He had kept Blade Dance active for the entire fight. Something he had never attempted, but now found that he was paying the cost. His stamina was completely exhausted, and he was having a hard time staying awake.
He pulled a barely intact pack of crackers out of his pocket. It was at least something, though he had to practically drink it from how crushed it had become.
Slumped against the tree, he was forced to confront the fact that sometimes people would die. He could do his best to protect them, but ultimately it was up to them to defend themselves. Only, these people had never gotten that chance, completely unarmed.
He barked a short laugh, though that made him feel guiltier. It was a cruel world they all now lived in. He wanted to think he was helping the people who had been unintentionally displaced. The best thing to do for them was to help them get stronger.
Pulling himself out of the slump, he finally processed his notifications.
[Rapier Apprentice 1 → Apprentice 2]
[Duellist Level 9 → Level 10]
[Class Advancement Available (Note: Experience gain halted while pending class advancement)]
The notification was both fascinating and a little concerning. It was concerning because he was worried that he had lost experience. Though, this was the first time he heard anything about experience. That was an odd thing because he had levels, but had never seen anything that governed when he leveled up. He just did.
Eagerness overtaking him, he focused on the Class Advancement notification.
[Class Advancement Selection]
[Blade Dancer (Rare)] Emphasizing speed and volume of attacks, the Blade Dancer flies through combat hard to track, and even harder to hit. A whirlwind of deadly grace, the Blade Dancer is equally suited to groups of enemies as it is a single opponent. +1 Strength, +5 Dexterity, +1 Endurance, +1 Intelligence, +1 Wits, +2 Free Points, per level.
[Master Duellist (Rare)] The Master Duellist is near the pinnacle of single combat. With a guard that is nigh impossible to break through, attacks are turned away with a flick, and the riposte that comes after is certain death. +2 Strength, +4 Dexterity, +1 Endurance, +2 Intelligence, +2 Wits, +1 Free Point, per level.
[Spellblade (Rare)] Skilled in both combat magic and the blade, the Spellblade is not the greatest in either realm, but through the combination creates something better than their parts, putting them above a master of just one. +1 Strength, +4 Dexterity, +1 Endurance, +3 Intelligence, +2 Wits, +1 Free Point, per level.
Recognizing that he was going to need a moment to process all of this, Callum sat back down against the tree.
Going through the classes in the order that he saw them, he started with Blade Dancer. If the options he received were dependent on his actions, this one made a lot of sense. He extensively used Blade Dance in nearly every combat, though he was forced to survive most of them.
The class itself was interesting. He found himself outnumbered a lot, and the big bonus to dexterity would make his skills even better. Blade Dancer also gave him the most free points per level, meaning he could more easily shore up some of his lacking stats. It was certainly a tempting class.
Moving on, was the Master Duellist. This one, for some reason, didn’t call to Callum as much. He liked the idea of single combat, especially since that was what his first class was geared towards, but with so many monsters roaming about he couldn’t bring himself to consider it.
Finally, there was Spellblade. He had forced himself to learn magic because he wanted to. In this new world, magic seemed like it was going to become very common, and he wanted in on the ground floor, so to speak. This would allow him to do so, and potentially increase his ability to use magic.
He had narrowed it down to Blade Dancer and Spellblade, but between the two, it felt like there was no contest. It had to be Spellblade. The idea of casting spells was too tempting. With his mind made, he selected Spellblade and pulled up his status page.
Spellblade Level 10
HP: 180/180 MP: 140/140 SP: 195/195
Strength: 12
Dexterity: 33
Endurance: 3
Intelligence: 14
Wits: 22
Resolve: 2
Free Points: 1
Skills:
Rapier:
Rank: Apprentice 1
Proficiency: 80%
Riposte
Blade Dance
Discerning Intent
Identify:
Level: 3
Proficiency: 70%
Combat Magic:
Rank: Novice 3
Proficiency: 30%
The first obvious thing he noticed was that his health had skyrocketed. It had been at 110 at the last level and was now up to 180. That was much higher than he had been expecting. He concluded that health must be some combination of Endurance and Strength, though he wasn’t sure of the specifics. The rest of his stats had increased mostly as expected, though it seemed endurance had boosted his stamina a little as well.
Testing his hypothesis, he moved his free point into endurance, and his health shot up to 240. He breathed a sigh of relief. His health being that high made him feel a decent bit safer.
Looking through the rest of his sheet, he saw mostly what he expected, though his Basic Magic had turned into Combat Magic. That was curious but had to stem from the Spellblade class. If it was what he thought, a free specialization, then it was a massive boon.
He took a moment to feel for his mana, and it felt more tumultuous. Like it was searching for release. He jumped up and faced the tree he had been sitting against.
Focusing on his mana, he felt it flow up his arm and into his hand. It roiled with restrained power now, and it was all he could do to keep a hold of it. He stretched his hand out and released the charged mana.
Once released from him, it struck the tree with great speed but only succeeded in chipping away at some bark. This was not disappointing to Callum. He had a new toy to play with. Now to find some enemies to test it on.