The princesses had left soon after receiving the item. They were excited to let their family know about the mask and would need to get them to clear the debt. Before they left Niviss had suggested that she might level up early, apparently it was something that happened more frequently among their family. She was fourteen, her birthday was only a few days after Mash’s own. It was obvious that people would do it since it was relatively easy to level up before turning fifteen. Mash had killed Jason for an early level, but the goblins had also given one. It would be easy enough for someone like Niviss to find monsters to kill, her family probably had a few in their castle for this specific purpose.

He had asked them about the risk of using her stats early, but she said that it wasn’t a worry. She had another item which would influence her class choices, and her family had another method for narrowing her classes. So, she wouldn’t need to allocate her stats, in fact, it wouldn’t do anything and would be more effective if she used them afterwards. Her methods had bothered him a little because he couldn’t understand why those methods weren’t made more public. Wouldn’t it be better if everyone knew about the methods? Thinking about it, he wasn’t so sure anymore. The bandits, and Ellis were prime examples of how problematic powerful individuals can be.

He had been ruminating on those thoughts for a while now and knew that he couldn’t keep delaying the talk with the others. He had told the others that he wanted to take a bath first, using the excuse to buy himself some more time to think. Though he had been dragging it on now and knew how frustrating that must be for them. Even he had his fair share of questions for Jill. It didn’t take long for him to get ready, and he made his way towards the conference room. Originally, he planned on not telling his siblings, but decided that they would want to hear it too.

He pushed open the door to the conference room, unsurprised to see everyone already sitting there. They glared at him as he took a seat, clearly frustrated for being made to wait. He didn’t bother with greetings or other conversation starters, moving directly to the main points.

“I need to tell you guys that the class system itself alters your minds. Every class, from the very first one you received changes you. Try and think about anything that changed when you got your first class.”

At first, he thought he had changed only after getting his class at fourteen, but thinking about it, he realized that he had been different before then. The runner class had been the first to corrupt his mind, to change who he was. The others didn’t immediately look at him like he was crazy, instead they seemed contemplative, to be thinking back on their pasts. As they thought on it, he continued, hoping that his experience might help them see their own changes.

“I became more eager to improve and started training a lot more. Also, in some weird way, it made me apathetic towards killing people. For the longest time I thought I was just a freak or a psychopath, and only recently accepted that it wasn’t just me. Ironically, it was Priscilla who had pointed it out to me. Even now she tells me when my mind shifts inexplicably. My current theory is that all combat classes change the way you perceive killing, of monsters or otherwise. I wanted to ask you guys how you felt when you first killed someone, I mean another human being.”

His friends and siblings were a little shaken, though a few seemed to realize what Mash was saying. Arthur for one looked as though he expected this, giving Mash a small nod in acknowledgment. Luna seemed strangely sad, and he was worried for her. When she noticed his glance, her expression fell further.

“I didn’t know you thought of yourself like that. I’m sorry. I should have…“

She was speaking quietly, and he could only hear her because of the silence that was hanging over the room. He shook his head, when Luna looked at him, dismissing her apology.

“You don’t need to apologize. After Arthur left, you were the only one that kept me on a good path.”

She didn’t say anything in response but started crying a little. Mash didn’t say anything else, waiting to see if the others would add anything.

“I don’t remember much from when I got my first class, but I definitely changed after the first advancement. The class forced me to take a creature’s soul, and I felt a craving to take whatever was nearest. I was moments away from taking my sisters, but managed to hold myself back. I found a scorpion, and took its soul, needing for something to fill the new void that had grown within me. I didn’t feel the slightest amount of remorse, despite having been disgusted with the idea moments before. I thought I was doomed, that I was the type of person who would become a necromancer. It was the real reason I left home and became an adventurer. I needed to get away, and I think I was secretly hoping that I would die as one. Meeting you guys had changed that though, your acceptance of me had meant a lot.”

He wasn’t expecting Luke to be the one to speak. Honestly, Mash assumed that only Jill and Arthur could relate, both having killed people. He knew that Jill had killed a bandit and guessed that Arthur must have killed someone by now. The things Luke said frightened Mash, a chill running down his spine when Luke mentioned becoming an adventurer to die. It was a surprisingly quiet way to kill oneself. For a second, he wondered if he had been hoping for something like that but didn’t think it had ever gotten that bad for him. Unable to find the right words, he just put his hand on Luke’s shoulder, trying to give him a real smile.

“Yeah, I felt weird after killing someone. I felt happy, a primal thrill from killing the bandit, from doing it in the same way that he tried to kill me. As soon as the feelings flashed through me, I was able to recognize how wrong it was, how different it was from my own thoughts. It was sickening.”

Shivering as she finished her recollection, Jill stared down at her hands. Slowly they all looked towards Red, though she didn’t need to add her own part. She didn’t have anything to say, shaking her head and letting them know.

“Sorry, but I can’t say that I experienced the same thing, though I might be the weird one for it.”

“So, what do we do about it? We don’t have a Priscilla to tell us when we’re being controlled.”

Jill spoke up, frustrated with her inability to do anything. She wasn’t looking at Mash for an answer, and he didn’t have a real solution. Priscilla was speaking in the back of his mind, telling him that they could accept one of her bodies. Not bothering to respond to her suggestion, he offered the group his thoughts on the matter.

“I have come up with something, but I don’t actually know if it will work. I told you guys about dungeons already, but this world should have someone who oversees it. My guess is that they made the classes and can remove them. So, either we become strong enough to surpass them, or at least get them to remove their influence.”

“How long do you think that will take, what if it’s too late? What if that doesn’t change anything?”

Letting his concerns be known, Luke questioned Mash’s plan. For his part, Mash just stared in silence, unable to come up with any response. That was all he could come up with, and all it really did was push the problem back. It was one of the reasons he didn’t want to bring it up, since it would become something that would nag at each of them. Although it was something he decided to do, to share some of his burdens with those willing to carry them. Nobody talked after Luke’s questions, trying to find an answer, but only ending up with nothing. There was nothing they could do immediately, and the silence grew heavier in the room.

“Well, that’s a good place to stop for the night. It’s getting late and we should all get some sleep. Remember that you guys have training in the morning.”

Clapping his hands to get their attention, his brother ended the meeting. Somehow, his brother managed to sound confident, even a little resolved. Mash couldn’t understand why though, Arthur couldn’t solve their problems. Despite being a higher level, Mash knew that he would catch up in level. His brother didn’t focus on it, his priorities were elsewhere. For now, they broke up, heading to their rooms to sleep, he was right that they would need to wake up relatively early. Mash still wanted to hear Jill’s story, but it didn’t seem like the right time for it. There would be time for that talk later.

He had woken up relatively early, feeling much better after getting a good night’s rest. He was waiting for the others now, eating a full breakfast while he waited. There was a wide variety of food, the butler having prepared it in advance. Although, he couldn’t really enjoy the flavor, his thoughts wandering towards the discussion from the night before. The food wasn’t enough of a distraction, so he made another wooden creation, trying to train with Priscilla. He wasn’t expecting to succeed, just needing to divert his mind.

The others woke up in time and found him stuffing his face while playing with a wooden limb. It was a replica of Priscilla, hoping that the shape would make it easier. Jill was the last one to wake up, and they left as soon as she finished eating. They didn’t talk about the night before, choosing to avoid any serious topics for now. Instead, they discussed the kinds of items they wanted from the vault. That discussion carried on, right up until they made it to the guild.

They were familiar with the path to the guild and had been told which training room they were supposed to go to, so they didn’t bother checking with the receptionist. Walking through a narrow hallway, they headed down a flight of stairs. There was only one room at the base of this staircase, and he pushed open the door.

Walking inside, he stared around at the perfectly made training grounds. Clear and open, there were several training dummies and weapons sitting in the corner. There were also several pieces of equipment that he had never seen before. There was no one in the room yet, and he didn’t expect there to be. There were still a few minutes before their start time, and he didn’t think the instructor would arrive early.

“Good, you’re here already. Then we can go ahead and get started.”

Mash was startled by the familiar voice, turning, and finding Jack descending the stairs. He was carrying a few objects, none of which looked familiar to him. He could see five metal plates, each of a unique color, and three blue crystals. The more noticeable feature though, was the training gear he was wearing, and Mash knew that he was not going to like the training today. As Jack got closer to them, he pushed them onto the ground with his presence alone.

“Are you our instructor?”

Mash couldn’t hide the dread from his voice, and Jack’s grin was enough of an answer. He couldn’t stop from releasing a small sigh, thinking that it couldn’t be that much worse than the fight with his brother. There were not that many ways to lose a fight.