“I think I hate pork now,” Liliana groaned as she flopped down. She pulled her naginata into her lap and began to clean it, the habit deeply ingrained by now.

“Well, with the bodies we’re bringing back, expect to have pork for the next few meals,” Emyr responded as she set to cleaning his rapier. The last fight had been 10 Hedgehogs, lead by two Boars. One of which had crossed the threshold into Rank 7 and become a Metallic Hedgehog Boar. Its spikes had been coated with tips of metal, as had its tusks. It had given Lelantos a bit more of a challenge, but ultimately it couldn’t overcome such a level difference. Because of it, though, Alistair had been left alone against the other Boar and two other sows until Lelantos finished the biggest threat, leaving the bulk for Liliana and Emyr to clean up.

They’d worked out a good strategy where Liliana would goad the sows, Emyr would trip them at the apex of their charge and occasionally cause them to flip. With their spikes stuck in the ground, it left their less armored underbellies open for attacks. They’d taken care of three groups, or prickles as groups of Hedgehogs were called in this world, and by the last it had gone far smoother.

The second group had been the smallest, one boar and three sows. Alistair and Emyr had been kindly asked to sit out while Lelantos and Liliana took care of them. Liliana had been glad to get the experience for herself, as it had pushed her to level 41. She’d allocated 5 points into Strength and 2 into Wisdom. She needed more Strength to do damage against the Hedgehogs and the extra Mana helped with the multitude of skills and spells she rotated through in battle.

This latest battle had pushed her to Level 42, despite the experience share with Emyr. He’d taken two of the sows on almost by himself after Liliana had used [Shadows Sonata] on them and left him to take care of the frozen swine. Two levels in a day wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great. She remembered when a single day of effort netted her 11 levels. Now the experience curve had slowly begun to hit. She knew at higher levels to combat it, many went into dungeons, as the experience gain was better with the bonus given in dungeons and there was a guaranteed boss monster there. However, there weren’t any dungeons within a day’s ride of the manor.

Well, not yet, Liliana mentally corrected herself. The goblin dungeon would spawn in another month or two. It would be a good way for her to level herself faster than what she could hunting down the creatures that inhabited the lands. Finishing her cleaning, Liliana pulled up her stat sheet. After a moment, she dropped 3 points into Intelligence to increase her Mana regen and 4 points into Wisdom. Running out of Mana was a big concern for her when fighting. Her Stamina was less of an issue, as her class gave her a free 4 points there on every level. Finishing her allocation, she welcomed the small rush of warmth, far more comfortable when doing it level by level than multiple at once. She nodded as she looked over the new sheet. Status Sheet

Status Sheet

Name

Liliana Rosengarde

Age

14

Level

42

Class

Battle Dancer

Race

Human

Rank

9

Health

660

H-Regen

+6.5/1.1sec

Mana

750

M-Regen

+7/1.1sec

Stamina

1040

S-Regen

+10.4/1.1sec

Magic Power

850

Magic Control

870

Experience: 104,767/184,900

Vitality

66

Endurance

104

Strength

77

Dexterity

89 (96)

Wisdom

79

Intelligence

70

Speed

127 (139)

Charisma

106

Unallocated Stat Points: 0

Closing it out, she summoned her notifications, immediately dismissing the experience alerts. She focused on the Skills she’d leveled today.

[Identify] reached level 41

[Enhancement] reached level 34

[Dodge] reached level 33

[Dance of the Daystar] reached level 28

[Regeneration] reached level 24

[Dance of The Windsong] reached level 21

[Pierce] reached level 14

[Leap] reached level 13

[Dance Of The Vanishing Blade] reached level 12

[Polearms Mastery] reached level 47

[Dancing] reached level 36

[Pain Resistance] reached level 26

[Light Burst] reached level 38

[Light Burst Coat] reached level 29

[Tempo] reached level 27

[Will-o-Wisps] reached level 18

[Barrier] reached level 15

[Light Barrage] reached level 11

[Shadow Sonata] reached level 11

[Soul Strike] reached level 6

[Encouragement] reached level 5

+1 Stat Points to Strength

+2 Stat Points To Endurance

Liliana groaned at the pure wall of text that assaulted her eyes. Having so many skills and spells was great until she had to see them all level up. It felt excessive and she couldn’t imagine how higher leveled people would have handled it if skills and spells weren’t known to merge upon ranking up and getting class evolutions. She looked over the new updates to her skills, wincing at the reminder that [Regeneration] and [Pain Resistance] had leveled because she’d gotten hit in the last fight. Not too badly, all considering. It had been a hit to her shoulder. Two of the sows had launched a barrage of spikes at her that her [Barrier] and clothes hadn’t been able to entirely block. Liliana looked down at the wound and saw her clothes had already repaired the damage.

Liliana waved the notification away and looked around. Lelantos was laying next to her, looking a bit more pudgy than he had started the day as. He’d eaten well with the Hedgehogs they’d killed. What he couldn’t shove down his gullet they were taking back to the manor for food. Hedgehog meat was allegedly as good as farm grown pork, maybe a bit more so because of its Mana density. It wouldn’t improve someone’s Mana, but she’d been told eating Mana rich food could aid one’s Magic Power and Control growth. The better the monster, the better the results. There were cooks who even knew how to get buffs out of better quality meats and plants, sort of like kitchen alchemy.

Emyr was staring off into the shadows, an intense look on his face. Alistair was similarly staring off into space and Liliana assumed the two had either leveled up or been bombarded by skill and spell level up notifications. She knew Alistair was on the edge of Rank 7, and if today didn’t push him over, he’d be crossing the line soon. He’d be at the necessary level for the Academy, and from then on, he’d be raising his level for prestige there. Though with the lack of opponents close to or above his level in the area, his growth would probably plateau until the dungeon popped up, or he was sent off to grind at one of the dungeons within a week or so ride from them. They were under her father’s control, and therefore openly available to Alistair.

The thought of her stepbrother disappearing for weeks, maybe months, to level filled her with a confusing storm of emotions. During the day, he’d actually looked at her, even responded to things she said. While they weren’t really nice things, they lacked the venom he’d previously infused in his words. It felt like, maybe, just maybe, he was starting to see her as a person. Rather than as a worthless mongrel. She was jealous that he’d be able to level so easily with access to a dungeon. But she also thought… she might miss him. He hadn’t been a bad teammate, overall. Alistair was a good tank and held the aggro of the creatures that would be a bigger problem for her and Emyr nicely. He’d even grabbed aggro from her own monsters when they’d begun to overwhelm her in the last fight.

Then there was the fact that if he left, Emyr would too. And the emotions for that were a bit more clear. Liliana had begun to look at Emyr as a sort of friend. She knew if he left, the manor would be far more lonely for her. She’d gotten used to him coming to her rooms in the afternoon to play with Lelantos, or to show new tricks with his Dark Manipulation. He’d also paired wonderfully with her when it came to fighting.

Honestly, they all fit the group well. Alistair was a backup tank to Lelantos, who could weather the attacks of any Rank 8 or low Rank 7 monsters with little issues. Liliana provided the front line power needed while Emyr provided support for the entire battlefield by using his Shadows to manipulate it, and trip and trap opponents. She honestly thought that if they got more practice with each other, they might be a real te-

Stop that. You’re going solo. You’ll find Beasts to Tame that fill those gaps. There are several monsters you were looking at that could trip and trap opponents. The Arachneline, the Dandelion. Both of those have trapping and field control powers. You don’t need them. Thinking that way just leaves you open for a knife in the back. Or did you forget that they’re both fated to hate you? Did you really think a Bandit attack and a day of leveling was enough to undo years of conditioning from the Duchess for Alistair? Or that Emyr won’t drop you once you lose your mysterious shine? The voice in her mind almost didn’t even feel like her own, but it was true nonetheless. Still, a part of her didn’t really want to believe the words. The part of her that was just a lonely girl who wanted a friend.

She knew she couldn’t fully trust Emyr and Alistair. Perhaps she could become amicable with them, change that bit of her fate. But trusting them? With her life? That was far too much. Teams, real adventuring teams, had to be built on a firm foundation of trust. You were going into battle situations with them, sometimes situations that could end in death at the slightest slip up. You couldn’t go into something like that with people you didn’t trust, and Liliana didn’t fully trust Emyr, and certainly not Alistair. Not yet, anyway.

She wasn’t sure how to pin down where her suspicious nature had developed. Maybe back on Earth, when friends had slowly dropped off after she’d been hospitalized. Perhaps after she’d started pulling away from the other children who suffered terminal illnesses, since one day they too would leave her permanently. Or even it was when she was tricked by a goddess. Told her life would be difficult, but not that she’d have a deck stacked against her. Maybe it was when she’d fully assimilated the original Liliana’s memories and lived through them a life of tragedy and abuse. Oh, not the kind of abuse that left scars and bruises, not on the surface at least. But the kind that left scars and wounds on her heart, her soul. When she lived the life that had grown the original Liliana, the shy, soft-spoken but deeply suspicious and untrusting girl who had inhabited this body before her.

Whenever it had started, it was now as much a part of her as her stubbornness. Stubbornness might push her to her limits, to ram herself against an issue until she found a solution. But suspicion would keep her safe, keep her alive.

“All done?” Jason asked her, drawing her from her self-reflection. Liliana looked around and saw that Alistair and Emyr had both stood and looked ready to go. Even Lelantos was standing and watching her expectantly.

“Yes, I am ready to depart,” Liliana answered as she stood and stretched out her muscles. Grabbing her weapon, she walked to Lelantos and climbed into the saddle, far more comfortable now than she had been before. Taking the lead, she let Lelantos guide them back to the horses, his [Tracking] far better than her fumbling around with a map and compass.

I should learn mounted fighting styles. Lelantos is big enough to compensate for it, and it would keep me out of battle. Though most of my fighting style is ground, it would be good to diversify, Liliana considered as she looked at her weapon. It should be long enough to facilitate such a style. The memories were vague in her head, but she thought she recalled naginata were used for cavalry fighters as well.

They got back to the horses without any issues, most prey type beasts keeping away from Lelantos. While they had luck finding creatures, it wasn’t like the forest was teeming with beasts, ready to pop out from every shadow. A shame, really, as it would make leveling far easier.

Liliana resisted the urge to groan as the tailor flitted around her, going so fast Liliana was certain the man was wearing some kind of Speed enhancing gear. His hands moved so quickly they were blurs, pinning, pulling and adjusting the fabric. She didn’t voice her irritation at being poked and prodded, or twisted and turned like a doll. She knew he’d been paid for what was almost a rush order. Unlike Earth history, this world had skills and spells to speed up work. A high enough leveled Tailor could whip up a ball-gown in two days.

Liliana was curious about how crafters leveled. It hadn’t been something she’d looked into. With nothing else to focus on, she considered the question. Did they get power leveled? Go out with hired adventurers to Dungeons to gain levels? Or did they get experience from doing things related to their class? If it was specifically a non-combat class type. Were there other classes that could do that too? Were their scholar classes that got levels from learning?

She’d need to ask Astrid, or try to find a book on it. All the books in the manor she’d found had to do with combat related classes, no surprise really, as the Rosengarde family was a martial family. Sitting between two borders and holding the largest militia in the country caused such a thing.

“And we’re done, Lady Liliana,” the man told her, Alfred Tailor. Of no relation to Astrid, it was simply his name. Liliana had wanted to hire Astrid’s family for this gown, but Astrid had insisted they use Alfred, a family friend who had made ball-gowns for noble balls and galas before.

“Thank you, Sir Tailor,” Liliana inclined her head as she walked to the privacy screen, slipping behind it for Astrid to help remove the pinned garment carefully. The fabric slid like silk off of her, the dark blue catching in the light and throwing off a brighter shade. It was just the base of the gown. Apparently, there were details to be added. As it was, Liliana thought it was beautiful. She couldn’t imagine what else it might need. But she was no Tailor, and left such things for those who had more experience than she.

Astrid helped her dress back in her tea gown and Liliana came back from around the privacy screen. Astrid handed the pinned gown back to Alfred.

“It should be ready in three days,” Alfred informed them as he stored his tools in a storage ring. The privacy screen, various bits of fabric, pins, needles, even the stand Liliana had been posed on. Storage devices truly were a marvel. Liliana theorized one may be able to fit an entire house inside one if it was big enough.

“And it will come with the shoes as well?” Astrid asked, and Liliana watched with amusement as the two haggled about what else would be included with the dress delivery. In the end, Astrid got shoes and hair ornaments to be coupled with the dress for a small amount more. The jewelry they’d need to provide, though Liliana owned enough that she didn’t think it would be an issue.

Alfred bid them adieu, and Liliana collapsed into a loveseat with a groan.

“I hate dress fittings,” Liliana complained as Astrid poured tea for them both. Liliana took her cup, blowing on it delicately before taking a sip. A sweet, floral taste exploded on her tongue and she smiled as she leaned back.

“Well, if you do well at this ball, you may need to grow accustomed to them, my Lady,” Astrid warned her and Liliana pouted over her tea.

“Then I shall perform horribly,” Liliana answered with a smile. Astrid’s chiding glare had her smile slipping.

“I shall behave befitting my status of a Duke’s daughter,” Liliana conceded with another pout she hid in her cup.

“Have you been practicing your dancing, my Lady?” Astrid asked and Liliana resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she set her cup down.

“Seeing as my class is Battle Dancer, dancing is the least of my concerns. It’s the etiquette that’s murder on my mind,” Liliana rubbed her temples at the reminder of the last lesson with Miss. Beckett. Since the invitation, the woman had become savage in their lessons. Liliana could recite the entire royal family’s lineage in her sleep now, as well as half to nobles who would be in attendance.

She’d been drilled relentlessly on the correct way to address every noble, their children, their wives. Even how to react to their lovers, if any were brought to the ball. She’d been told which families were in favor with the crown, which weren’t, and who had such a bad reputation talking to them for more than a few minutes would ruin her own.

She’d been told which families had territory where, what their territories specialized in, what their main cash flow came from. It was dizzying, the amount of information she had to keep up with and she’d taken to writing it all out in a journal title ‘Noble Bullshit’, in English, of course. She was certain even Astrid would take offense to her use of a curse word in writing if she’d written it in the written language used in this world.

Then there were the influential players in the court who had no noble status but still mattered. The High Mage, the Academy Dean, the Prime Minister, the Knights and Generals who would be in attendance. Some noble, many simply extraordinary individuals who had stood out and been recruited by either the crown or other nobles.

Becoming a Knight was arguably the easiest, in theory, way to get a title for a commoner. Or rather, a very accomplished adventurer. Knight was a title granted only by the Queen, as their country was only ever ruled by Queens. The entire deal with them was kept tight-lipped. Liliana only knew that the Knights were actually bonded to the Queen because of the game and her own experience with Soul magic. In the game it had never been explained how, simply said that the Queen could send her power to the Knights or draw power from them to herself. Now she was certain it was a Soul Bond. A definite way to guarantee loyalty from her closest guardians.

The Knights could also be sent off to do the Queen’s bidding. A word from a Knight was to be taken as words from the Queen’s own lips. It wasn’t often it was needed, but if nobles tried to fight each other over whatever ridiculous thing they wanted to fight over a Knight would be dispatched to stop them. Sometimes they were even sent as emissaries to other countries. Liliana knew for sure there was a Knight in Gadria, the kingdom to the west of Cista. That was the only one she knew for sure. Even Miss Beckett hadn’t known for sure of any other countries where a Knight might be.

Besides the Knights, and other such influential players from their queendom, there were the foreign nobles and emissaries who would be attending. As it was a ball for the Crown Princess, there would be no shortage of foreign nobles trying to make an alliance. Either by charming the Princess or her mother. Liliana didn’t envy the girl. She’d probably be inundated with marriage proposals throughout the night. Even if their country didn’t believe in engagements before the age of 18. Her heart ached a little for the girl she hadn’t met yet in this life. Marianne Summerwarden had been one of her favorite characters to play in the game. Despite her having an inclination towards healing magic, and Liliana’s deep distaste for playing any kind of healer class.

No, what she had connected to had been the fact that until the age of 13 Marianne Summerwarden had suffered from a terminal illness that robbed her of her breath and filled her throat with bile and blood. Until she’d been Awakened, and given a Life Affinity by a priest and leveled with the help of her mother and her knights. Her Vitality had eventually progressed to be high enough to end her sickness.

The story of a sick girl, being healed of her deadly illness by magic, had called to Liliana’s soul in her last life. That had been what kept her playing Marianne play through after play through. Despite how hard it was to switch her to different classes, despite it being off meta to the extreme. Yet she hadn’t been able to help herself, watching this small girl who had once been just like her getting strong. Facing down dark beasts, even a dragon, and walking away with her head held high.

“I wonder, will she be the same?” Liliana murmured as she stared into her teacup, as if it had all the answers.