Chapter 2 — An Unfortunate Trait

A hollowness ate at Toren as his Profession Core dissolved away and the mana that formed it was sucked into the mirror.

{New Professions available. Sufficient mana density to receive a trait. Receive your trait now?}

Toren stared at his status display as it changed to reflect his irreversible choice.

{Name: Toren of Theravos

Race: Human

Age: 20

Profession 1: [Choose a Profession]

Mana: 210→14

Strength: 16

Constitution: 12

Dexterity: 14

Agility: 12

Wisdom: 12

Intellect: 8

Will Power: 16

Perception 14

Appearance: 8

Charisma: 8

Luck: 10

Attribute Upgrade Points: 0

Traits:

[Trait pending.]

Abilities:

[None]

Ability Upgrade Points: 0

Profession Skills:

[None]

Skills:

Theravos Language (Speaking) 15

Theravos Language (Reading/Writing) 10

Religion 10

+Hunting 20

+Butchering 13

+Archery 19

+Spear 9

+Knife 12

+Stealth 16

Arithmetic 4

Club 8

Foraging 16

Tree Felling 6

Running 12

Mana Sensing 12

Wound Binding 8}

Though he was relieved to see that he had kept his Attributes, Skills, and skill progress, he couldn’t help staring at the empty space where his Profession and Abilities had been. Accomplishments that he had apprenticed for, trained for, achieved, and risked death to raise were simply gone as if so much of his life and effort had never existed.

Even as aimless as he had been the last few days since returning and doing his best to cope with Yana and her rebellious auburn hair and contagious grin no longer being there in their shared room, Avril and Owen not there to crack crude jokes at breakfast or dinner, the sight hit him harder than expected.

If his mind wasn’t in the mirror space, he was sure unsightly tears would be flowing down his face.

It wasn’t all bad, Toren reminded himself yet again. The earned Attribute gains were almost like free gains, in that he would get the Attribute Upgrade Points again while progressing through the levels just like before and his improved Skills, mana density, and accomplishments would open up better quality Professions for him to select from. Better quality abilities should be available for his new Profession as well.

This was the moment of truth, the moment that would set a new direction for his future, the moment that he would find out if his choice had been worth it.

Acquire Trait.

{Gained trait: [Sacrificial Guardian]}

Green text stared back at him.

Green. A Viridium rarity trait.

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Relief washed over him. With this he could join the colonization effort.

Mentally, he held his breath as he willed the Celestial Mirror to show the trait’s details.

{After receiving a mortal wound in defense of another, gain +20 durability and the status effect [Unkillable] until the target of your protection reaches safety or dies.}

The relief at getting an epic-rarity trait faded into a cold and empty dismay as he read.

The common understanding was that compatibility, desire, and need did influence what the World Spirit and the gods offered. Was it because he never wanted to see another person important to him die in front of him again…?

Was this the gods playing a cruel prank on him?

All his life’s effort sacrificed for a trait that could only be used when he was dying? It had to be a cruel joke!

He calmed his growing anger. As useless as the trait was, it would still qualify him for transport to the colonies.

And maybe, depending on how the World Spirit viewed what was a ‘mortal wound’, healing the wound with a potion or magic while he was [Unkillable] would let him use the trait without dying? If he could heal himself before it wore off or team up with someone who could…

Or if even wounds that would be ‘deadly if left untreated’ counted, then it was possible the trait was actually insanely strong. Could he cut a vein, become [Unkillable], then heal up after the fight?

No. That was stupid. Even if he was [Unkillable], he would still have to heal any injuries that would have killed him in addition to the one that triggered the trait’s effect. Then again, the durability boost might actually be more important, possibly preventing him from taking even worse injuries.

Feeling somewhat better about the unfortunate trait he had received, Toren turned his attention to the next choice, one he had more control over.

Show my Profession choices.

If he had control over his body, Toren would have blinked in stunned surprise at the list’s length—and rarity colors!

Thankfully, the flow of time was slowed for those touching the mirror. He didn’t need to worry about holding up the line. For those watching him and waiting, his entire interaction with the mirror would only take moments—just like it did for everyone else.

He could take his time making his choice.

Even so, he didn’t spend much time glancing over the greatly increased range of common Professions available to him. After what he had sacrificed, he was no longer interested in choosing a basic Profession to build upon and later evolve. As a new level 1 headed to a dangerous place, he needed the extra power the higher-rarity Professions would provide even if he lost some flexibility in his path forward.

The orange block of the uncommon-rarity Professions was significantly smaller: [Monster Hunter], a direct upgrade of his old Profession; the ironic [Bounty Hunter]; a pair of martial Professions in [Marksman] and [Ranger]; some less than lawful ones in [Assassin], [Rogue], and [Sneakthief]; a few merchant related ones such as [Traveling Merchant] and [Entrepreneur]; and surprisingly, [Scholar] and [Herbalist].

Maybe his efforts with learning [Foraging] and [Wound binding] had unlocked [Herbalist]? It was disturbing that he had unlocked the [Assassin] Profession, but that and [Bounty Hunter] were likely due to the one bounty request he and his group had taken on behalf of the local guards. He didn’t regret it.

With higher-rarity Professions being offered, Toren mainly looked through the lower ones to appease his curiosity about what his skills and achievements had garnered him and what his level 25 Profession evolution might have looked like. That said, with where he was headed while on the run from debt-collectors and the likelihood that he would be among criminals as he earned credits in the colonies, each of those Professions had reasons to be given consideration if the higher-rarity Professions didn’t pan out.

His attention passed over the gold-rarity Professions that he would have been thrilled to upgrade to just this morning—[Twilight Archer], [Hidden Blade], [Stillwind Scout], [Unrelenting Berserker], [Deathseer], [Bulwark of Blood and Steel]—but didn’t stop. Just below, his eyes were drawn to the names listed with the Viridium-rarity Professions and one Mithril rarity.

Names he knew well. Names most people would know well.

{[Oathsworn Warrior] (Ceothus)

[Burningblood Berserker] (Horevi)

[Arbiter of Nature’s Fury] (Elyneth)

[Assassin of the Silent Winds] (Nevanth)

[Voice of the Dead] (Moreva)

[Guardian of the Torch] (Horevi)}

If he wasn’t already frozen in time, his heart might have stopped.

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