Chương 3: Classes and Bloodlines

Kai stared at his two friends in disbelief. They had both chosen classes and now stood before him in different clothing, weapons in hand. Hakeem had stepped aside and was effortlessly swinging a massive sword. It didn't make sense; had he secretly taken fencing lessons? How on earth was he managing that thing so easily? The sheer speed of his swings was unreal. Did this have something to do with those stats they'd mentioned? He wondered. He buried his face in his hands.

None of it made any sense, yet the evidence was undeniable. The weapons appeared out of thin air; the sudden change in attire had to be magic. There was no other explanation. Glancing at Joe, he noticed the long stick in his hands and… farming clothes. He rubbed his eyes. No, he must be imagining things. He was confused, that was all. With a resigned shrug, he tried to steady himself.

"What's the worst that could happen?" Taking a deep breath, he thought, Status Window, and like before, that strange glowing screen materialized before him.

Status Name: Kairos Athanasiou Age: 26 Race: Human (Grade F - Rank 5) Level: 1 Alignment: Human (World 43) Class: N/A Professions: N/A, N/A Titles First Steps Stats Strength: 5 Agility: 5 Vitality: 5 Endurance: 3 Wisdom: 2 Intelligence: 2 Luck: 10 Hidden Stat: N/A Free Points: 0 System Credits: 100 He focused on the word Class like Marvos, the robot lady, had said, and a small second screen popped up over the first with a list of six names.

Class List: Archer (Common) City Builder (Unique) Austere City Mayor (Rare) Austere City Enforcer (Rare) Civilization Commander (Rare) Leader of Many (Rare) The list of Classes, he could only assume, going by the title, was weird. City Builder? City Builder (Unique) - As you journey into the Multiverse, this class can be chosen as someone dedicated to helping create a city for others to live in. You will gain experience as you create more and more advanced architecture with your bare hands.

Everything you create will have a purpose, just like you. That description was cool. He felt his prior worries and apprehension about this whole thing disappearing. He wondered how that would work; would he use magic to make buildings? And what did the Unique part mean? It left a lot of questions, but the possibilities were there. He glanced at the next Class. Austere City Mayor (Rare) - It is your job to lead others to a bright and safe future.

Your ability to guide others, whether through their choice, coercion, or just plain bribery, is entirely in your hands. Your communication skills will be unparalleled. That one sounded good at first, but it got dark. Coercion? Would he be able to control people? He was unsure about that one, so he went to the next Class. He had skipped entirely over the first Archer Class as he held no interest in that one. Austere City Enforcer (Rare) - It is your job to serve and protect others.

This Class focuses on strength and Endurance and will lead you to become a Giant in the face of adversity. The more people you protect, the stronger you will become. This Class felt too righteous for his tastes. Spending all his time protecting others. He didn't think that would be for him. The following Class looked very interesting.

Civilization Commander (Rare) - As a true up-and-coming leader of the Multiverse, you will have the power to lead others to great futures, command battlefields, and lead crusades against those who do not bend to your will. Your name will either bring fear to those who hear it, or you will die before reaching the pinnacle of advancement. There was no way he was choosing that Class. Lead crusades? Command an army? That sounded like too much work. He was about to read the final Class choice, but he hesitated.

It felt like he was wasting time. He already knew what class he wanted. The moment he saw the name, something clicked. How did he know? How could he be so sure? He'd never felt this certain about anything in his life. Yet here he was, in a strange place, staring at a magical screen summoned by a mere thought, with a peculiar robot woman looking on. And somehow, he just… knew. Deep down, as if the choice had always been there, waiting for him. It didn't make sense, but he couldn't shake the feeling.

It was the truth. Class City builder (Unique) Obtained. Congratulations Title Unique Class Obtained He started to glow.

"Oh boy." – Joe's head swung towards Kai, who had just stopped glowing and was staring at the chisel in his hands. Wait, did he also get a dud class? He opened his mouth to say something, but a loud, booming laugh cut him off.

"What... haha, what the hell... are you wearing?" Hakeem managed to wheeze between fits of laughter.

"Farmers gear?" He collapsed to his knees, shaking with uncontrollable laughter that seemed like it might never end. Thankfully, after about two minutes, he finally managed to calm down. Joe turned to Kai pleadingly, hoping for some backup, but Kai was doubled over, laughing almost as hard as Hakeem. Not quite as much, but it was close enough to sting.

"Alright, I get it," Joe said dejectedly.

"But I didn't get to choose a damn Class! The bloody stupid system just gave me one without a choice."

"What, Really?" Hakeem asked, still catching his breath.

"Yes!" Joe yelled, his composure unravelling."Bloody Farmer Unique! What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Did you say Farmer Unique?" Marvos asked Joe slowly turned towards the silver-skinned woman. To his surprise, her face betrayed an expression he could only describe as shock, something he hadn't expected, given that she'd shown no emotion at all until now. When she saw him staring, her face snapped back to its usual unreadable neutrality.

"Er, yes. Is that normal? To not be given a choice like that?" Joe asked hesitantly. She paused, seeming to weigh her response before speaking.

"To my knowledge, no."

"Great," he muttered dejectedly. Well, nothing he could do about it now, he supposed. He might as well figure out the specifics of his new Class, though the thought disappointed him. He pulled up his status window with a sigh, ready to check his Class, but something else caught his eye first: a change in his stats. The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Status Name: Joseph Caldwell Age: 27 Race: Human (Grade F - Rank 0) Alignment: Human (World 43) Class: Farmer (Unique) Level 1 Professions: N/A, N/A Titles First Steps, Unique Class Skills Basic Farming(Common). Basic Cooking(Common). Diabolical Quarterstaffmanship(Magic). Advanced Identify(Uncommon).

Stats Strength: 5 Agility: 6 Vitality: 6 Endurance: 6 Wisdom: 10 Intelligence: 10 Luck: 99 Hidden Stat: Dao Knowledge - 1 Free Points: 1 System Credits: 100 He had gained twenty stat points: ten of them in Wisdom and Intelligence alone. The rest were spread out: two in Endurance, two in Vitality, two in Agility, two in Strength, and one in a new stat called Dao knowledge. He had no idea what that meant, but at least he had one free point to allocate. Maybe this Farmer Class wasn't so bad after all.

Still, he couldn't understand why the stat distribution leaned so heavily toward magic when he didn't seem to have any magic-based skills. Oh right. He thought. He had a skill section. His status now listed four skills: Basic Farming, Basic Cooking, Diabolical Quarterstaffmanship, and Advanced Identify. The skill section was glowing: something about picking a Class skill floated through his mind. Nice. But first, he turned his attention to his Class description.

Farmer (Unique) - Normally, farming is considered a profession by most. But you are not most. You have transcended the limits of what a Farmer is. Now, as a combat magic-based Class, you can discover the true form of the Wandering Farmer, whose skill with a quarterstaff is unmatched in the Multiverse. All should fear your wrath, for not only can you bless the lands beneath your feet with life, but you can also soak them in the blood of your enemies.

He was quiet momentarily, unsure how to respond to such an over-the-top explanation. The system sure had a flair for the dramatic. Next up was picking a Class skill. He focused on the glowing skill section and… Upon choosing the Class Farmer (Unique), you can now pick one skill from the list below: Mana-Coating(Rare) - You can coat yourself and your weapons in mana, exponentially increasing your defensive and offensive capabilities. This skill is an active skill and slowly drains mana when used.

Magic Bolt(common) - You can create a small magic bolt to attack your target. This is a basic skill all magic classes learn by default. Magic Mask(uncommon) - You can create a magic mask that lasts 10 minutes x Intelligence before disappearing. This mask will protect your identity and make it impossible to identify you while wearing it. Fireball(Common) - You can create a ball of fire to attack your targets. This skill allows you to throw fire at anything foolish enough to get in your way.

There they were, the magic skills. His eyes lingered on the rare option, Mana-Coating. It sounded incredible. Exponential increases to both offence and defence? That had to be good, right? Rare clearly meant it was better than common or uncommon. This was the one. Skill Mana-Coating(Rare) Obtained Instantly, his mind flooded with knowledge. It was as if he'd always known exactly how to use it; no fumbling, no awkward trial and error—just perfect understanding. A small smile crept onto his face.

He was starting to feel much better about his Class. What had seemed like a disaster might actually turn out to be an incredible opportunity. He made a mental note: never jump to conclusions, especially about things he didn't fully understand. If this experience taught him anything, it was that the world was changing, and he'd have to adapt to the unexpected. Joe turned to his two friends, absentmindedly twirling his quarterstaff.

"You guys all settled with your Class? Did you get to pick a Class skill?"

"Yeah, I did," Hakeem replied with a wide grin.

"I picked the one called Sword Eruption; I can make whatever I strike with my sword explode." He mimed an explosion with his hands, complete with sound effects. Joe Blinked.

"That's fucking horrifying. Just… make sure I'm nowhere near you when you do that, please." Exploding swords? Holy crap, that sounded dangerous.

"Relax, I'll be careful. But won't you be spending most of your time in a field somewhere growing wheat or something?" Hakeem bellowed with laughter.

"I'll have you know I'm actually a rare magical farmer. Check this out:" Joe raised his quarterstaff and activated Mana-Coating. The staff began to glow faintly, emitting a low hum. Hakeem raised an unimpressed eyebrow and shook his head.

"Wow, that looks dangerous. Make sure I'm not too close when you make your stick glow," he chuckled. Joe frowned.

"I think it will be better in combat… I hope," he muttered, his confidence wavering slightly.

"So I'm a Farmer; Hakeem is a Knight. What Class did you get, Kai?" Kai approached them with a weary expression.

"I picked City Builder, a non-combat Class." He sighed deeply.

"I just want to go back and forget about all this. Maybe I can use this to help get a new job or something." Kai began to pace.

"This whole thing is very mentally draining," Kai admitted, rubbing his temples.

"You picked what called out to you. As Marvos said earlier, don't let others decide your path. Follow your gut. Now you can make me a house, right? With a discount, I hope?" Joe smirked"I will need a bigger house than his," Hakeem interjected, grinning.

"My sword is much bigger than his stick, after all."

"It's a quarterstaff, " Joe sighed, already resigned to Hakeem never calling it by its proper name.

"Sure it is," Hakeem quipped. Before Joe could retort, Marvos's voice cut through their banter.

"Now that you have all selected your Classes, it is time for us to proceed with the Bloodline selections." The trio turned back to Marvos, reminded of why they were here in the first place. So much had happened today that keeping track of everything was proving difficult. Marvos reached beneath the desk and pulled out a strange orb, placing it carefully on the table before her. The surface of the orb shimmered faintly as though alive.

"Kairos, please place your hand on the orb. You will be scanned to determine which of our Bloodlines are compatible with you," she instructed. Kai stepped forward hesitantly, stopping before the desk.

"Erm. What is a Bloodline?" He asked. Marvos's gaze was steady as she explained.

"A Bloodline is an imprint on your soul. It will impart knowledge based on criteria it deems necessary for your future. Think of it as part of who you are, who you will become, and a guiding light."

"Right…" Kai muttered, clearly overwhelmed.

"Sorry, I asked. I have no idea what any of that means." With a deep breath, he placed his hand on the orb and closed his eyes.

"By the way, what rank is your Class?" Joe whispered to Hakeem as they waited for their turns.

"Rare," Hakeem replied, his usual enthusiasm slightly dimmed.

"Not quite as good as your Unique, lucky bastard." Rare, huh? Joe thought. If it were anything like the games he'd played before, Rare should still be pretty good. How many skill points came with it? He was tempted to ask, but held back. It felt… wrong to ask. He wasn't sure why he thought that; it was like an instinct, as though the system had sent the thought into his mind. And what even was the system, anyway? So many questions circled through his thoughts. As he waited, he noticed something odd.

Marvos spoke to Kai, but he couldn't hear anything. No sound carried over despite them being just a few feet away. Was that some kind of skill? Was one of them blocking the sound? Is that even possible? He glanced at Hakeem, who had also noticed the strange phenomenon. Neither of them commented on it, though. Again, it felt instinctively wrong to pry. It made sense, Joe supposed. Judging by how things seemed inside this Gate, Bloodlines probably weren't something people would openly discuss.

He had read enough Chinese cultivation comics to know that. Kai stepped aside, and Marvos motioned for Hakeem to step forward. Hakeem followed the same process, placing his hand on the orb as he and Marvos began another silent conversation. About five minutes later, Hakeem moved aside, and Joe was motioned forward. As he approached the desk, he passed through an invisible barrier. The moment he stepped through, he could hear Marvos moving clearly.

It was a strange sensation, like the barrier had muted everything until he passed through.

"Please place your hand on the orb," she instructed. Joe raised his hand and pressed it to the orb. As he did, he glanced at Marvos. Something about her seemed off; she was avoiding his gaze entirely, actively looking away from him. That hadn't happened with the others, had it?

"Uh…" Joe began, but before he could finish, the orb exploded. The force threw him backwards. He crashed into the marble-like floor several metres away, skidding before slamming into the wall behind him. The desk Marvos had been standing behind was now reduced to splintered halves, and debris littered the area.

"Aaahhh!" Joe groaned, holding his chest. He noticed, somewhat dazed, that the explosion hadn't hurt nearly as much as it should have. Climbing shakily to his feet, a sound abruptly captured his attention. It was a new voice. For the first time in his life, he was completely frozen in fear. The sound wasn't something he could process; it filled him with primal dread, the kind that gripped his chest and refused to let go.

A faint flash caught his eye, and then a system message appeared in his vision: You are in the presence of a God. His fear deepened, morphing into pure, abject terror. – Marvos swiftly raised a mana shield as the orb detonated, sending Joseph hurtling backwards across the room. Her worst fears had been realized. From the moment he mentioned his unique Class, she had dreaded this possibility.

She'd clung to the faint hope that he might escape this fate, especially after seeing that the other young man, Kairos, also had a unique Class yet wasn't chosen for that Bloodline. But no… Joseph had been selected. She could only feel pity for what the young man was about to endure. Raising her hands toward the other two, Kairos and Hakeem, Marvos summoned two doors behind them. The doors swung open just as a booming voice echoed through the chamber.

"Yes! Where is he? Where is my new plaything!" Marvos closed her eyes and unleashed a wave of mana, propelling the two through the doors before they knew what was happening. The doors slammed shut behind them, sealing them away. Their trials would be challenging, but she had seen enough of fate to know they would survive. They would face difficulty, but they would not be in mortal danger. Opening her eyes, Marvos turned her gaze back to Joseph. A single tear formed at the corner of her eye as she lowered her head.

__ Joe was completely paralyzed. Something had entered the room, lurking just at the edge of his vision, and its gaze was fixed on him. He couldn't even move his eyes to see it clearly. The only thing he could focus on was Marvos, her head bowed low. Just before she had lowered it, he had caught a fleeting glimpse of sadness in her expression. Am I about to die? The thought clawed its way through the fog of his terror. Wasn't I supposed to gain a Bloodline? Did I fail the test?

Did the scan find something wrong inside me? Questions swirled in his mind, but fear pressed down on him like a suffocating weight. Someone stepped before him. It was the voice from earlier. A woman. No… a being. The most beautiful being he had ever seen. Joe began to cry, but his tears burned as they fell. Blood streaked down his cheeks in dark red trails. Before he could comprehend what was happening, his body crumpled. He was falling face-first toward the ground.

But the being caught him, her arms wrapping around him like steel bands.

"Now, now, my child," she said softly, her voice sweet yet laced with something far darker.

"It is not time for you to die yet. Your death has only just begun." Joe's blood tears continued to fall as an icy certainty gripped his soul. He didn't need to be told; he knew, deep within himself, that this being was going to kill him. And then, everything went black. __"Thank you, Marvos. You've brought me a fascinating subject this time," the woman, Catalina, said with a hint of delight.

"What number is he?"

"Number 623, Madam," Marvos replied instantly, her posture unchanging.

"Excellent. Six hundred and twenty-two deaths so far," Catalina mused, a sinister smile tugging at her lips.

"I can't wait to discover how long this one will last."