Chương 7

My mind immediately went to my sneak attack of the goblin. If Lucas was able to unlock the Defender Class through his blind-spot tackle of the goblin, why did I get Assassin instead? Is the presence of Ben the difference? But that doesn't make sense. Lucas didn't 'defend' Ben, he tackled and killed a goblin. If he took an attack from the goblin while shielding Ben, that would have made more sense.

"Did you start your walkthrough immediately after getting here, or did you do anything else first?" I asked Lucas.

"As soon as I went through the assessment messages, I heard the sound of running behind me. I saw Natalie running towards us, with another of those creatures hot on her heels. I let her get past me then stepped in front of that creature's path. Me and Ben working together were able to get that creature down." Lucas answered. There it is. That sounds more like defending to me. I wonder if Ben got the same Class offered?

As I was about to ask Lucas what his reward was for reaching the top 10, I saw someone heading towards us from the corner of my eyes.

"Hi, I'm Sara. Pleasure to meet you." Sara held up her hand in greeting as she came to a stop near us, her eyes calculating.

"Alex. Nice to meet you too!" I replied with an easy smile. She wants to size me up. Bit rude though, interrupting our conversation. Could've waited a bit.

"So, how do you guys know each other?" She asked. Straight to the point.

"We were childhood friends. Amazing coincidence that we both ended up here, right Lucas?" I asked with a grin, turning towards Lucas. He immediately agreed, which seemed to put Sara at ease a bit.

"That must be nice. I hope someone I know is here as well." Sara said as she looked around a bit, a slight worry slipping through her otherwise composed expression.

"Anyways, what were you guys talking about?" she asked, her face back to being a maintained façade.

"Just trying to figure out the best way forward." I said before Lucas could say anything. I didn't even glance at Lucas. We knew each other well enough that he'd let me steer this conversation.

"Actually, good that you joined, three minds can work better than two. So far, we think that getting water should be the top priority, with understanding the System a very close second. What do you think?" I asked Sara. I'll play the slightly smart but overall an average guy for now. Lucas is one thing, but I'm not going to be trusting anyone else at this moment.

"That's a decent idea, but I think our priority should be in keeping everyone calm." Sara answered while looking at Lucas. Again, so direct. She really isn't shy about saying what's on her mind.

"Like it or not, both of us are now being looked at as leaders. We need to take responsibility and make sure everyone moves forward in the same direction, without letting unrest and panic dictate things." She continued while staring Lucas straight in his eyes. She came here not only to size me up but also to see what Lucas is actually like when away from the spotlight. She wants to know if he can actually be relied upon.

"Right, I didn't think of that. Don't worry, I'll do my best!" assured Lucas enthusiastically. Sara must have seen his sincerity, as a bit of her edge melted away.

"I'm glad to hear you say that. I actually came here to ask for your help right now, as everyone is still on edge." She said while pointedly looking around. We followed her gaze and saw much of the same as earlier. Loose groups with everyone speaking in quiet tones and subdued voices. A few were sitting with their backs against the longhouses, blank expressions on their faces as the world they knew was completely erased. Some were moving amongst the groups, faces desperate as their eyes searched for a loved one.

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"I didn't realize that." Lucas answered apologetically.

"I'll come and help out. Alex, we'll speak later." He said as he and Sara started walking towards a few of the more desperate looking people, leaving me alone once again. Good of him not to ask me to come along. I turned around and found a nice corner of a longhouse to rest my back against. My mind was still focused on the conversation me and Lucas were having. Him defending someone once was enough for the System to unlock Defender for him, while my one sneak attack got me Assassin.

One meaningful action might be enough to influence Class options… assuming I am not missing another factor. Higher rarities may have harder conditions to unlock. I was still unclear on how I was able to get Strategist. If someone else unlocks it, then I'll be able to better understand on how I unlocked it. That being said, what can I do to have better Class options for me?

About an hour had passed by, the sun going past its zenith and starting its descent now. A bunch of us were gathered near the trees. Four groups had been made to go into the forest, with each group heading into a different cardinal direction from the central square – the area in the middle of all three longhouses. Each group had about thirty members in them, with a fifth, larger group staying at the square trying to collect information about the System. My group was being led by Ben.

I had vehemently refused to lead a group when Lucas had asked me to, so he had then asked Ben to lead it. I asked to be put in Ben's group, to see if I could get a chance to ask him whether he unlocked Defender as well. However, my first priority was to try and see if I could unlock any other Class options. I had a few ideas that I wanted to try, if given the opportunity, though it would be difficult to get one with such a large group. Alternatively, I had an idea that I was quite excited to start working on.

Learning magic!

"Hi, I'm Alex." I greeted a guy who had a staff and was wearing blue robes – a mage! I had learned that selecting a Class grants you a beginner weapon; swords, axes, and spears for warriors based on their preference, shield and spear/sword for guardians, bow and arrows for rangers, staffs for mages, and so on. Class selection also granted armour for physical roles like Warrior or Rangers, and robes for Mages and Warlocks. Mages got blue robes while Warlocks got red.

"Hi, I'm Omar, nice to meet you too." He replied. Omar was tall; at least six-four, with dark skin and built like a wall. He also exuded cheer and had a permanent smile. He seemed like the most open out of all the mages here, and the most likely one to share class specific information with me. Weird that he chose to be a mage, but good for me. He's probably enthusiastic about magic and will easily theory-craft with me, giving me as much information as I want.

"So, I take it that you are a mage?" I asked.

"Yes! Why wouldn't anyone take mage I don't understand! Who would say no to magic!" he animatedly replied. Perfect!

"I know, right? I'm so excited about magic myself. But I'm still unsure which to pick – mage or warlock. I wish this System would give us some information." I answered in an enthusiastic tone. Even though my mind was still fixated on Assassin, I still was very excited about magic. Enough to say a small lie to a stranger.

"Well, the group at the square may have gathered some information for us by the time we get back, so you could ask them. Does this mean you still haven't picked your Class?"

"Yes, I'm still waiting. I'll probably pick one when I get back. Anyways, tell me about your Class. Did you get any spells?" I asked excitedly.

"Just one – Mana Bolt. The spell does not have any description at all, so I have no idea what it does yet" Omar grumbled.

"Well, why don't you try it and see what happens?" I asked, eager to see what a spell could do. Even though it sounds like a very simple beginner spell, I was still a bit excited. Though it is a bit weird that the system didn't even give a skill description, just like it had no descriptions for the classes. Omar's eyes lit up at the thought. I could see he had thought of this earlier too, though his excitement immediately shifted to worry as he looked around a bit.

"I'm not sure. I don't want to accidentally hurt someone, or somehow make a fool of myself." He glanced around a bit nervously as he said that. Is he one of those large but soft teddy-bear type guys?

"Don't worry, how about we go a bit to the side before trying? The group isn't setting off in the next few minutes, so we'll have plenty of time for one try." I spoke. He still looked a bit on the fence, so I thought of giving him an extra push.

"Come on, think about how awesome your first spell will feel. You'll be the first one to cast a spell!" I could see my words worked, as his nervous energy completely shifted to an excited one. He nodded and started heading off to a side amongst the trees with me hurrying along with excitement.

"This should be good enough," I said once we had walked for about twenty seconds.

"Right. Should I go for it?" asked Omar, visibly shaking from excitement. I should calm him down. I need him to relay what he feels to me in clear words.

"Take a deep breath first and try to relax. I think you should really try and get a feel about every little thing that happens when you do the spell, that way you'll be able to learn a lot more. You can tell me about what you felt after, then we can try and make sense of it together." I suggested. My words had an immediate effect as Omar took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Okay, I'm ready." He said after a few seconds of deep breathing.

"Go for it, then!" Finally, time to see magic!