Herald of death

"What did you choose?" Ethan asks the woman.

"I didn't have much of a choice; it made me a Merchant without asking me."

"I don't have that one."

"Which ones do you have?"

"Artificer, Assassin, Diplomat, Gunslinger, Pugilist, Tamer, Templar, Warlock, and Warrior."

"Almost every guard here had Gunslinger or Warrior."

"Huh," Ethan says. He picks up an AWM from the wall and sets it on the table. With a few manipulations, he separates the bolt assembly from the gun and continues. After a few seconds, the sniper rifle lies dismantled on the table.

"Adding the Crafting (Gun) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 67 has been applied."

Another card appears in the list, the Blacksmith.

Ethan reassembles the rifle and loads it with an empty magazine. Aiming through a tinted window, he sees a man holding back his apartment's door. It shakes under violent impacts, sending shards of paint flying.

Ethan unlocks the safety and cycles the gun. Compensating for the distance, he aims at the man's head and pulls the trigger. The gun clicks, and the announcement follows, "Adding the Ranged Weapon (Sniper rifle) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 59 has been applied."

The Marksman card appears. "The more skills I have, the more choices are proposed to me," he says, holding his phone. "What happens when you choose a class?"

"You can tap on it to get a description," she answers.

Ethan taps the Assassin card. The illustration fades away, the card widens, and it fills with text.

Assassin

Masters of stealth, assassins blend in the shadows to deliver lethal strikes to unknowing targets.

Every two levels in the Assassin class will grant you a Dexterity point.

Lv.0: Anonymity

Lv.5: Silent steps

Lv.10: Shadow Blend

Lv.15: Critical sight

Lv.20: Veil

He opens the Gunslinger card.

Gunslinger

Gunslingers fire off rounds with blinding speed and precision. Capable of dodging incoming attacks while keeping a steady aim and a cool head.

Every two levels in the Gunslinger class will grant you a Dexterity point.

Lv.0: Quick draw

Lv.5: Armorer

Lv.10: Sixth sense

Lv.15: Quick hands

Lv.20: Deadeye

He taps on 'Anonymity' at the end of the Assassin's page, but it does nothing. "Are operations still running?" he asks.

"We are currently confirming the survival of our clients and targets. Until, and if we call the mission off, you are to proceed as usual," she answers.

"I need a cleaning crew in the garage, one humanoid monster, and one man. All the apartments were breached, and their occupants are missing."

There's a long pause. "I have no visuals beside your apartment; it seems power has been cut out in the entire block. I will make sure someone fixes it. You can expect a cleaning crew tonight," she says.

"Keep me updated on government actions. I'd rather not be locked down again," Ethan mocks.

"And keep us updated on anything that happens with the … system."

"I will. Stay safe, Tombstone," Ethan says before hanging up. He turns to Russ, who is lying down on the couch. "Let's see what we can unlock," he jests.

He reiterates the sniper drill with a SCAR-H, M249, UMP45, and a Benelli M4. "Adding the Ranged Weapon (Battle rifle … Machine gun … Submachine gun … Shotgun) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 48 … 36 … 52 … 53 has been applied."

No new card makes an appearance. Ethan grabs a bow and shoots across the loft in a cardboard target.

"Adding the Ranged Weapon(Bow) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 37 has been applied." The Archer card appears at the end of the announcement.

He throws daggers at the same target. "Adding the Throwing Weapon(Dagger) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 38 has been applied."

"Russ, hide," Ethan orders while turning his back to the dog. After a minute, he starts searching for Russ. Following his scent, he finds him under the couch. "Adding the Tracking skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 41 has been applied." The Ranger appears in the available classes.

Ethan moves to the edge of the lot, where an open kitchen is set up. From the fridge, he takes tomatoes and mozzarella, quickly cutting them and placing them in alternate slices. He adds a dash of olive oil, basil, and salt. "Adding the Alchemy(Cooking) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 21 has been applied."

"There is even a skill for that," Ethan chuckles. The Chef class appears. Out of curiosity, Ethan taps it.

Chef

Chefs craft delicious meals that heal both the body and the mind.

Every four levels in the Chef class will grant you a Dexterity point. Starting at level two, every four levels in the Chef class will grant you an Intelligence point.

Lv.0: Identification, Chef Book

Lv.5: Flavor enhancement

Lv.10: Magic (Restorative enchantments)

Lv.15: Preservation

Lv.20: Purification

'Magic? If there is a class like Wizard or Sorcerer, shouldn't I have unlocked it with Ether Manipulation?' Ethan remarks, 'Thinking of it, what skills could have unlocked the Templar and Warlock classes?'

Templar

Driven by unmatched willpower, Templars embody resilience and strength. Their conviction fuels their fight, turning belief into divine might and protection.

Every four levels in the Templar class will grant you a Willpower point. Starting at level two, every four levels in the Templar class will grant you a Strength point.

Lv.0: Divine oath

Lv.5: Divine weapon

Lv.10: Shielded by faith

Lv.15: Preservation

Lv.20: Purification

Warlock

Devoid of their long-lost humanity, Warlocks enter pacts with demons, exchanging their life force and that of others for great powers.

Every four levels in the Warlock class will grant you an Intelligence point. Starting at level two, every four levels in the Warlock class will grant you a Charisma point.

Lv.0: Demonic pact

Lv.5: Soul harvest

Lv.10: Demonic summoning

Lv.15: Frightful presence

Lv.20: Dark bargain

"The Warlock class sounds quite ominous. Do Templars need to bind themselves to a god, swearing an oath they cannot break or lose their powers?" he asks.

"Woof," Russ answers.

Ethan smiles at Russ. "Bonjour," he says successively in various languages.

"Adding the Language (German … Italian … Russian … Arabic … Finish … Swedish … Japanese) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 52 … 49 … 37 … 32 … 35 … 36 … 3 has been applied."

Ethan waits for another card to appear. "Diplomat must already be the one related to languages," he guesses.

He switches the TV to the seventh channel, Arte. A German documentary on Pompeii is playing. He sits down to watch.

As they listen, Russ rests his head on Ethan's leg. A new window appears.

Animal bond

Russ's affection is high enough to form a bond. You're currently bonded to 0 animals out of a maximum of 1.

Once you bond with an animal, you'll be able to dictate their growth.

Would you like to form a bond with Russ? If either party starts to hate the other or dies, it will break the bond. Undoing a bond will cause temporary penalties.

YES NO

Ethan ponders for a moment and presses 'YES'. Russ's status window appears alongside Ethan's.

"By reaching a level of obedience of 40 with Russ, he gained two characteristic points."

"By reaching a level of obedience of 60 with Russ, he gained two characteristic points."

"By reaching a level of obedience of 80 with Russ, you gained the ability to communicate by thought."

Russ

Lv.0 (classless) Dog

Class change available

Bonded: Ethan Reed (Obedience 91)

Strength: 8 + Charisma: 6 +

Dexterity: 16 + Perception: 22 +

Constitution: 8 + Willpower: 14 +

Intelligence: 6 +

Available characteristic points: 4

Ability

Bond telepathy

'Sit,' Ethan thinks while looking at Russ.

Russ sits. He looks around, confused, searching for the origin of Ethan's voice.

"That will be useful," Ethan begins. He guesses, "Russ' class change." His own class cards disappear, replaced by only two: Warbeast and Ambush predator. Ethan taps on them successively.

Warbeast

Warbeasts are frenzied animals who claw and tear at anything they are thrown at.

Every two levels in the Warbeast class grants a Strength point.

Lv.0: Fury

Lv.5: Growth

Lv.10: Improved natural weapons

Lv.15: Dreadful roar

Lv.20: Berserk

Ambush predator

Ambush predators hide in the shadows, waiting for their prey to lower their guard and deliver a single fatal blow.

Every four levels in the Ambush predator class grants a Perception point. Starting at level two, every four levels in the Ambush predator class grants a Dexterity point.

Lv.0: Silent steps

Lv.5: Shadow blend

Lv.10: Camouflage

Lv.15: Hunter's mark

Lv.20: Territory

"I don't know what fury and berserk do, but it feels like it would change you. Do humans have classes like that too?" Ethan wonders.

"Adding the Knowledge(History) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 17 has been applied."

"I only needed to learn something to trigger the skill," Ethan thinks. He grabs his phone and reads the Wikipedia page for explosives.

"Adding the Alchemy(Explosive) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 29 has been applied."

He reiterates the operation for poisons and hydrocarbons.

"Adding the Alchemy(Poison) … Alchemy(Combustible) skill. Based on your previous experience a level of 34 ... 23 has been applied."

Two new cards appear: the Poisoner, and the Alchemist. He checks both for mentions of 'magic'.

Alchemist

Alchemists turn raw ingredients into powerful elixirs and poisons.

Every two levels in the Alchemist class will grant you an Intelligence point.

Lv.0: Identification, Alchemist Book

Lv.5: Detoxification

Lv.10: Magic (Potency enchantments)

Lv.15: Toxin resistance

Lv.20: Synthetization

'Both Alchemist and Chef gain Intelligence as they level up. My highest stat is Willpower. Did I unlock the Templar class because of it?' Ethan notes. He ponders, 'If I press that plus, do I actually get smarter?' He looks at Russ while tapping the '+' next to the dog's Strength stat.

Russ scratches his right front leg as Ethan sees the muscle definition of his dog increasing. He taps again, and the operation repeats itself.

Ethan grabs a rope toy and orders, "Bite." Russ catches it and starts pulling backward; his strength has certainly increased. "Let go," he says, and Russ drops the rope.

'Best-case scenario: I unlock magic. Worst-case scenario: I get smarter and realize it was a dumb idea,' Ethan thinks. He presses his Intelligence's plus, looking for new cards with each tap. At the third tap, a new card appears: the Mage.

Mage

Mages wield ether to shape complex spells. They can learn spells from any school of magic and specialize in one.

Every two levels in the Mage class will grant you an Intelligence point.

Lv.0: Spellcasting, Random Spell Book

Lv.5: Magic school

Lv.10: Elemental expertise

Lv.15: Enchanting

Lv.20: Mage grimoire

Ethan's head starts spinning. Memories start flowing from past teachings and knowledge he had long forgotten. He lays back on the couch, closing his eyes. He finds himself drawn to sleep despite the little time he spent awake.

"You come to the weaver of fates, the final whisper in the dark. Shall we weave your fate together?" An ethereal feminine voice announces.