Cless couldn't go home. She was too angry and too hungry to do anything. If she went home the way she was, she'd snap at someone of her guild and they didn't deserve that. She stopped at a bakery and ate her fill of freshly baked pastries and bought enough to fill two Deeppockets. The baker closed for the day and Cless left through the back alley, too avoid being seen by the angry patrons. Now that the speed of decay of stuff in her pockets was a tenth of the normal, she could stock food for longer. Cless also found a fancy cloak in a shop and bought it. She had her coin pouch inside the cougar bodysuit.

She hated the way the audience went. If she had anything in her dress' Deeppocket with her, it would be lost forever. The way she was treated was beyond acceptable and the thought of groveling before that Lord didn't-introduce-myself made her skin crawl. Cless thought the outcome was good overall but the details were grating her nerves. What kind of idiot uses a fire spell in a wooden building? It didn't burn but gaaaa! Did she have to receive that spell frozen like some sort of night critter that got a Light spell to the eyes?

She of all people? The girl that almost burned to death inside...

THAT'S IT.

Cless was going to eat that priest's soul. And then spit it out because she was sure it would taste bad.

Maybe not literally but she was going to make him regret to ever preach. She turned on her heels. She turned on her high heels and made a beeline to wherever the angry priest was being held at. She had no idea where. Cless returned to the Lord's estate and the stench of cologne assaulted her.

WOULD IT KILL YOU TO TAKE A BATH LIKE NORMAL PEOPLE?

It was the angry priest's cologne. The stench was going away from the Lord's mansion. Oh. So that's how Silverfang feels all the time. Cless followed the trail and soon found herself before a guard garrison. The city decentralized troop barracks was a strategy to allow fast response in the case of a monster outbreak or a migration. This was the south garrison. As she approached, the guards came to meet her.

"Milady, what brings you here?"

What happened to the "halt! state your business!" part of being a poorly paid gate guard? Was it her dress? It was the dress, wasn't it? Cless noticed she knew nothing about upper-class fashion. One more time Balthus words echoed. You can have the power to hit where you aim, but you have to know where and when to hit. Pushing these thoughts aside, she replied to the guard that was politely waiting for her to make up her mind.

"A priest was arrested earlier. I am here to give him spiritual counseling. I'm his superior."

Big fat lies, but in for a solidus, in for a crown. To her surprise, the guard opened the gate for her.

"This way, milady."

Another guard came to escort her and after going through the complex, she found herself before a cell door on the ground level where the priest should be in. The guard unlocked the door and Cless entered. The angry priest whose name she totally forgot was both parts scared and angry she was there.

"Couldn't wait and come here for the kill, girl? Afraid I am going to be released? Want to gloat about your victory there?"

Cless let the calm mask of falsehood fall on her face. "None of that, brother. I've come here to grant you redemption." She turned to the guard. "Leave us. He won't harm me."

The guard glared at the priest and was promptly ignored by both members of the clergy. He closed and locked the door behind Cless and she could feel him going away through [Tremorsense]. Glad that military buildings were made of stone, she waited for the priest to say something. Since he wasn't going to open up, she talked.

"Brother, there is something wrong here. I need your help."

He laughed. "Big fat lie. Say the truth, why did you come here?"

"I'll give you one chance at convincing me to annul your sentence. I put you here I can get you out. You go away and do the One God's work elsewhere. Or don't. So long we don't cross paths again, I don't care."

"What is that going to cost me?" He skeptically asked.

"To even hear what I have in mind, you'll have to promise me to forget all about me the moment you walk out of the gates and to never speak of me ever again."

The negotiation went as the many other Cless did. She had to appeal to the priest's survival instincts a few times but she got what she wanted. The priest was now an [Axe Thrower] and believed it was his since his rite. Cless got him out of the garrison and set him on the path to change classes a wandering Military Saint. That was the third tier class he was going to pick next town. Cless bound him to never harm her or her guild.

She felt vindicated even though it wasn't the best negotiation she'd ever done.

Trade completed.

You paid 300,000 Experience Points to Priest Herman. You gave the [Axe Thrower] Skill to Priest Herman.

You gained the D-rank Skill [Intimidating Authority]: When using aggression or intimidation on someone of a lower station, improve their susceptibility to your commands by one step and reduce the hostility gained.

You gained the D-rank Skill [Sundering Magic]: Your offensive spells that can damage objects deal (10+ Level / 2)% more durability damage to the enemy's equipment.

You gained 20 Stat Points.

She was intrigued by these reaction steps. Cless didn't want any headaches, so she appraised the in-depth information of the lowest-rated Skill she had that dealt with reaction steps. [Chick Magnet]

[Chick Magnet]

All females have their initial reaction adjusted one step friendlier to you.

The size of the step in the friendliness scale is related to the Charisma stat. A higher Charisma increases the size for the gains and reduces the size for the losses. Resisted by Wisdom.

That's the reason it took so little time to turn Clegane into a raving fanatic. The three hundred points of Charisma she bought were paying off. That was probably the reason the Association woman didn't fly at her throat along with these two idiots.

A little calmer now that she felt her wardrobe was vindicated, Cless took in her surroundings. The south side of town was really fancier. She saw two jewelry shops and even the building materials were better. She went inside a haberdasher and was amazed by the quality of the goods on display. Tambrill couldn't dream with this sort of luxury. All sorts of odds and ends of fancy buttons, embroidery with metal threads, even gold thread lace.

"May I help you, lady?" A polite man in a fancy coat came to greet her.

Fascinated, Cless mumbled without taking her eyes from the different lace patterns she was seeing. "Yes. I want it." She ran a gloved hand through the lace and ribbons, feeling their soft texture.

"Which one of these caught the lady's fancy?"

Her eyes sparkled and she finally turned to meet the shopkeeper's eyes. "All of them."

And, of course, her love story with the haberdasher would be dashed by the scowl the man-made when he saw her face underneath the hood.

"All of them, you say. They are quite expensive, milady."

She glowered at him. "They better be or I'd be wasting my time." She fished through a gap she opened in the side of the dress' balloon skirt and picked up a sovereign coin. "If it is about my purchasing power you are concerned with, I'm sure it won't be a problem."

"Yes, milady. I... I am sorry for my reaction."

Cless sighed. "I expect a discount on my purchase as your apology, sir. Are you the owner?"

"Indeed I am, miss."

"Good. Now I want..."

Cless almost repeated what she did at the bakery. She and the haberdasher came to a non-verbal agreement that a hundred crowns-worth sovereign coin was going to stay in the shop. All that was left was the issue of how big a portion of the shop's stock was leaving with her for the coin's worth. The answer was a lot. She bought bolts of silk, lace, buttons, and frills.

"Say, could you recommend me a good seamstress? I'd like to have a talk with one." She asked while they tallied her purchases.

"Yes, I know the one that works for the Lord's wife. She might be interested in taking a commission or two from the Lady."

"Excellent. Could you give me directions to her studio? I'm rather busy today but I'll surely visit her."

They finished negotiating and Cless was amazed at how much she was able to negotiate. She got the material and stuffed it in five new Deeppockets she opened in her silk dress. With the seamstress address and the new materials to make high-class clothes, she felt calmer.

Cless went on her way back home. She thought of the three hundred thousand Experience points she gave Herman the Angry Priest to balance their deal. Or how when she fought Xander her Skill determined that twenty-five thousand Experience was worth one Stat point. The exchange rate was only for that particular evaluation but the fact was that Experience was cheap. Maybe it was her own impression that drove the value of that commodity down.

But was it? Whenever she traded away her Experience, her Class and Profession values never moved. Most of her strength came from these, not her main level. What is the main level worth? The soft cap on her proficiencies? Defensive bonuses?

For normal people that have the Class and main experience tallies bound, they were always striving to increase their level. The offer of Experience for them was enticing. To her, it was just a means to boost her Class and Profession. She would gladly lose twice as much main Experience if she could add to these other tallies.

Could she? Yes, she could. There were several problems, secrecy being the biggest one. Another was that she had to do everything by herself. Extending from the idea of spell scrolls, she could do quest scrolls. A contract between a quest giver and a delver or adventurer with her as the middle person. The quest giver would pay in both Experience and... No. It was too risky. People would notice. Unless she made it an exclusive secret club, enforce the secrecy on the... No. She couldn't. It would point too many leads toward her. Smart people could figure out her Skill. That was an idea for later.

Her musings were interrupted by some insistent mewling. She looked around and saw several cats in a dark alley staring at her. Others were coming and stopped when they met her gaze. The felines were in a dark alley and probably hidden from sight but to her, it was as if they were in broad daylight. She looked at them and they meowed.

She didn't need to think twice to know what was happening. Or to bet that most of these cats were females. These cats would be a huge problem. They wouldn't let go of her if she fed them. Another bad thing was that Kate or Shad would probably eat them. Her heart would break if the cats she drew with these Skills became food for her tame monster. Shouldn't there be plenty of rodents around for these cats? Or were these furred beggars just trying to score easy food from her? Cless ignored the cats and went on her way.

Some cats followed her but it was only one or two. She wanted to toss them some bread but it would only encourage the behavior and it was premium bread.

She reached her front gate. Locked as it should be. She examined but could only see the wall blocking the view and splitting the way left and right after the gate. She Blinked inside behind the wall. The grass was spreading nicely and the dirt was damp. Vic's plant magic was doing a nice job.

She could only hope nothing would pop up to stop her from finishing her house.

Status:

Name: Queen Cless Hreidmar of Myrkheim and Infernal Realm (in exile)

Race: Human.

Level: 92 ( 3,938,700 / 4,278,000 Exp ) [Experience Threshold > level 40]

Class (tier) level (Experience):

— Dabbler (1) 25 ( 300,000 Exp / ** ) — Beast Tamer (2) 25 (900,000 Exp / ** ) — Vicar (3) 25 ( 1,500,000 Exp / ** )

— Wizard Princess (4+1) 19 (1,576,900 / 1,615,000 Exp )

Professions — Veteran Warmaster 25 (300,000 Exp / **) — Master Instructor 19 (650,212 / 665,000 Exp)

— Crafter 25 (*) — Farmer 25 (*) — Herbalist 25 (*) — Alchemist 25 (*) — Diplomat 25 (*) — Administrator 25 (*)

Base Stats — Strength: 95 [229] — Agility: 120 [290] — Health: 137 [331]

— — — — Intellect: 211 [426] — Wisdom: 200 — Charisma: 304 — Magic: 303 [612]

Available Status Points: 151

Skills:

S-rank: [Absolute Contract]

B-rank: [Fear Aura] — [Perfect Might] — [Succubus’ Kiss]

C-rank: [Appraise Immunity ] — [Craftsmen] — [Dangersense] — [Dragon Skin] — [Earth Magic] — [Eat Anything ]

— [Elven Longevity ] — [Master Miner] — [Perfect Accounting] — [Seductress' Charm] — [Shadow Eminence]

— [Shrinking] — [Underdog] — [Will of the Mage]

D-Rank: [Acute Smell] — [Alchemical Tolerance ] — [Alchemist ] — [Architectural Ingenuity ] — [Breathless] — [Curmudgeon crafter ]

— [Dancer’s Grace ] — [Darkness Resistance ] — [Diplomat] — [Druidwalk ] — [Farmer ] — [Gemsense ] — [Giant's Stamina ]

— [Great Leap ] — [Grounding] — [Herbalism] — [Intimidating Authority] — [Ladykiller] — [Merchant sense ] — [Miasma Sight]

— [Ore sense ] — [Poison Resistance ] — [Runner's Dash ] — [Sharp Mind ] — [Singer] — [Snakes' Flexibilty ] — [Spell Resistance ]

— [Steelshine ] — [Sundering Magic]— [Tinker ] — [Tremorsense ] — [Woodworking]

E-Rank: [Air sailing ] — [Burrower Bond ] — [Cat User] — [Chick Magnet] — [Coin Sense ] — [Enhanced touch ]

— [Food Conservation] — [Gravebreath ] — [Hearth’s warmth] — [Heavy Lifter] — [Howl ] — [Lady's Countenance] — [Pack Rat ]

— [Pickpocket] — [Seamstress] — [Silk Hair ] — [Splinters ] — [Sword User] — [Virility] — [Wanderlust ] — [Weavertouch ]

F-rank: [Florist’s Wonder] – [Gardener’s touch] – [Inner Compass]

Techniques:

— [Beast Taming VI] — [Beast Status] — [Share Skills]

— [Sanctuary]

— [Appoint Stronghold] — [Appoint Demesne] — [Appoint Protector III]

Spells (Master Instructor: +2 to all. Spells without a number are at the soft cap / * denotes a level 25th ultimate):

Divine: — Mending — Detoxify — Light — Turn Undead — Blessing — Holy Bolt — Purify — Protection

— — — Hallow — Flametongue — Cure — Uncurse — Banish — Heal — Warding — Revivify*

— — — Censure — Bulwark — Mass Mending — Sacred Dance — Judgement — Song of the Accord*

— — — Water Breathing — Shield of Faith — Sanctuary*

Mage: — Detect Magic — Mage Bolt — Armor — Firebolt — Icebolt — Lightning Grasp — Shield

— — — Fireball — Resistance — Shockwave — Magic Missiles — Wind Blade — Deeppockets* — Blink*

House: — Detect Dust — Doorwatch — Prestidigitation — Never Overdone! — Touch Up — Dry — Repair

— — — Clean — Bloom — Hearth Recall*

Earth: — Soften — Earth Armor — Spike — Stone Shape — Earthen Maw — Earthwave — Terrakinesis — Golem*

— — — Earth to Stone — Grasping Hand — Spike Wall — Construct*

Wiz.Princess: — ???? — ???? — ???? — ???? — ???? — ???? — ???? — ???? — ???? — 18: ????

Proficiencies (Master Instructor: +2 to all. Values under 10 hidden / {A} = Automatic Proficiency: Soft Cap +5):

Appraise: Status: 80

General: Prayer: 80 — Reading: 50

Academic: Magic Theory: 50 — Spellcraft: 50 — Architecture: {A}

Crafting (+9 Profession): Tailor: {A} — Embroidery: {A} — Knitting: {A}

Farming, plants (+38 Profession): Foraging: 30 — Forestry: 30 — Gardening: 40

Farming, livestock (+13 Profession): Dismantling: 30

Production (+9 Profession): Mining: {A} — Weaving: {A} — Quarrying: 35

Social (+25 profession): Negotiation — Persuasion — Bluff — Flirting: {A} — Sexual Technique: {A}

— — Etiquette: {A} — Dancing: {A} — Singing: {A} — Gambling: {A}

Movement: Running: {A} — Athletics: {A} — Balance: {A} — Jumping: {A}

Martial (+18 profession): Leadership: 80 — Intimidation: 80 — Tactics: 80

Weapon (+18 profession): Long Blades — Unarmed: 80 — Archery: 80 — Maces: 60 — Pickaxe: {A}