“Begin the ball bearing bash!”

“What’s a ‘bash’ even supposed to be?” Ritta asked.

At the same time, Julius called to me, “Take a step left.”

I stepped left with my left foot, not sure what he meant, only to nearly slip on a ball.

“No, I meant, like, just shimmy left,” Julius said, immediately annoyed.

Don’t blame me. You’re the one who was vague about it!

I put my foot back then moved to the right.

“Ok, now walk forward one footslength.” I did what Julius asked. “And again.” I stepped again. “And one more time, but put your foot-”

I assumed he wanted me to do the same thing, but it caused my left foot to slip on a small bundle of bearings before I could react to Julius’s command. I managed to stay balanced, but with great effort on my part.

Well, that was my fault.

“Could you, like, wait till I’m finished to walk forward...” Julius complained.

Meanwhile, I heard Ritta and Dota bantering with each other about how Dota’s eyes kept accidentally peeking through the blindfold. The [viinrught] seemed to be ahead of me.

“Ok, just shimmy right now,” Julius said.

I nodded and did so without issue. I didn’t want to stumble around the place on my introduction to the junior squad, and I wasn’t going to!

“Right foot up and right.” I put my right foot right onto solid ground, walking forth with vindicated steps!

...You can figure out whatever that’s supposed to mean yourself...

“Left foot left.” I put my left foot left, though I ended up spreading my legs painfully far. “Put your left foot just a little up and right.” I did what he asked successfully. For another minute or so I scuttled through the field, not falling or anything, and keeping pace with the clay bird guy.

“Right foot right- Wait, I mean left foot r-”

I smacked the ground hard, tripping on a ball bearing before stumbling on a couple dozen more, and finally falling face first.

I heard Julius walk through the field, then felt him help lift me back to my feet. “Are you ok? You didn’t break your nose or something?”

I appreciated the help, but was helping me up allowed? Evidently, it was, as Herbert said nothing. I nodded, dusting my white robes off.

“Ok, good.” He said, walking back to his spot. “Uhh, you can shimmy right then step right with your right foot and left with your left.” I did that, spread out too far again. “And then just walk forward like that.” I walked forth with outspread legs and managed to make it to Julius’s side. “Whew, finally.”

I took off the blindfold, revealing that Dota had just passed his blindfold, and handed it to Ritta.

I and Julius both looked at the blindfold, confused, then Julius looked up to our instructor. “Uhh, Herbert?”

“Yes?” the gallant knight said.

“How is Saya supposed to guide me?”

“By telling you...”

...

“Uhh...I-I mean, you aren’t restricted to voice! You can, uhh...physic...yes, you can physically guide the other person, I guess...!”

Well, this was going to be awkward. Julius shrugged while putting on his blindfold, keeping it just above his eyes so he could see me before we started. “So? How are you going to do this?”

After a few seconds of thought, glancing at the birdman and [human] working together normally, I wrote, {Walk where I tap my feet.}

“Ok, I can do that.” Julius slid the blindfold over his eyes.

I walked into the field and glanced at Cobaltio, who was watching me by the sidelines, curious. I averted my attention and tapped my foot on an open spot.

Julius put his right foot there.

I took a step back and tapped on another spot a little ahead, and to the left of that one, so he had to pivot on his right to place his left on it.

“I’m not sure what foot I’m supposed to use, but I guess this works,” he said with a shrug.

I grunted an agreement, backed off, and tapped on another spot. For the rest of the game, Julius followed where I tapped. Only once did he end up slipping on the ground, having stretched a little too far, but I caught him before he could fall and kept going. I could tell Julius was trying really hard, for whatever reason, so by the time he reached the end, he was exhausted.

Nobody was in a particularly competitive mood, not even me, so I wasn’t too disappointed when Julius stepped past the black string after the other two.

“Ok, that’s a wrap,” Herbert said when he did, prompting the [trapper] to untie his blindfold. “The winners are Dota and Ritta, and the loser is Tiffany, Kukaltl bless her soul. I hope you all had fun?”

“I guess we did. But was this whole thing worth the effort, Herbert?” Ritta asked, skeptical.

“No idea!” the instructor responded with enthusiasm.

The girl with the mule, who was absently brushing that mule while we raced, said, “You know, I expected a Gallant knight to be a little more...”

“Formal?” Herbert asked. “Yes, I get that often.”

{How long have you all been training?} I asked.

If it ever seems like I’m not reading the room, that’s because it’s a bit difficult to carry cohesive conversations with groups of people when all I can do is write and hope that people see what I ask.

“Just more than a week, in my case,” she said after glancing at my slate. “Milo and I moved from the Northern Dread Lands, and we only just got to the capital. I was already part of the guild when I was in the Dread Lands, so I just had to sign a bit of paperwork to migrate.”

Ritta shrugged. “I joined a year ago when I was revealed.” He said, referring to some event I didn’t know anything about. “The other two, though...”

“We’re Maladrain’s recommendations,” Dota said, motioning his head to Julius.

“He’s the guy with-” Julius began before I finished what I was writing.

{Oh, so am I.}

“Wait, Mal recommended you?” Julius asked, surprised.

I nodded.

“Well that’s quite funny,” Dota said, cackling. “That means three of the five of us are Maladrain’s recruits. I wonder if he wants to be the guildmaster in the future.”

“The votes would be in his favor,” Ritta said with a reserved shrug. “I hear he’s got connections, too.”

“Oh, Ritta, why isn’t June joining you all on the adventure again?” Herbert asked Ritta suddenly.

“Remember? She’s helping the blacksmith make our rings. Get your mind out of the gutter for once, Herbert,” Ritta said in a seemingly disrespectful manner.

“O-oh, I’m so sorry I forgot, Ritta! It’s difficult to remember you two are getting married so young...”

The younger boy crossed his arms. “Herbert, the only reason you aren’t is that you nearly got disowned. I’ve been slated to marry June as long as I can remember.”

“I suppose that’s true.”

A lot of couples make their wedding rings themselves, embedding a gem inside it with the help of a [priest] or [wedder], who could imbue the rings with a [soulbound] status that connected them. A few didn’t like to do it because they liked the privacy, and I’d say more on the subject but I don’t really care at all about that stuff.

Still, it was pretty weird he was marrying so young.

Needing my answers questioned, I raised my slate again, {Why do you all look ready to leave?} I asked, referring to how everyone had their bags, weapons, and other equipment on already.

Herbert waved it off. “We practice packing for adventures. Speaking off which -inventory time!” He clapped his hands, and the others lined up. I followed suit after buffering for a second. “Ok, first...Thraisly! Mule feed, spare saddle supplies, spear, the stuff you always have on Milo, brush, shortsword, hairbands, leg guards, survival pack, and component and plant pouches.”

“All in order, Herbert,” ‘Thraisly’ responded.

“Ok. Ritta! Rapier, gauntlets, chain vest, dagger, helmet, amulet of water affinity, component pouch, and your survival pack.”

“I’ve got it all.”

“Chill. Dota! Daggers, water pack, dusting brush, crossbow and bolts, dungeoneer pack.”

“Aye, aye, ready as expected,” Dota responded, saluting with a feathered arm.

“And Julius, you have your trap stuff, whip, crossbow and bolts, gunpowder pack, scribing set, axe, and survival pack?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you have your lighter?”

“...No.”

“Well, don’t forget that next time. Now, since many of you are going on your first official adventure tomorrow, we won’t be doing training today. You’re all welcome to explore the city and treat this like a day off...and also, prepare with anything you might need. Sorry it’s on such short notice.”

I was leaving to the mine tomorrow?

Ritta looked back to the field of ball bearings. “You totally forgot that we wouldn’t be able to use the field after you poured those everywhere, didn’t you?”

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about!” The knight said without hesitation. “But, before you all leave, I think we forgot to do proper introductions. I am Herbert Mana Gallant, age 27, Noble of the Gallant household, level 21, class: [field coach], and I like to teach people. Everyone, introduce yourself to Saya.”

Thraisly walked to me and held out her hand, which I shook. “I’m Thraisly of the Dread Lands, I’m age 15, level 12, class: [druid], and I like noodles.”

“Why noodles in specific?” Ritta asked, walking to me.

“Have you been to Eastmarch?”

“No, I suppose not.”

“Eat their noodles.”

“I can try,” Ritta responded. He looked back at me. “I am Ritta Tron Gallant, age 14, level 14, class: [noble]. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Saya.” He continued with a less formal tone, “You may have guessed already, but I’m Herbert’s nephew. Among the things I like is uhh...June. We’ll go with her.”

“What a noble [noble] nobleman,” Dota said, walking to me next.

“Was that intended as a jest?”

“Yes, it was,” the three-eyed clay bird dude said with a chuckle as he averted his attention to me. “And you may call me Dota, I am age 39, Level 11, class: [dread rogue].”

Huh?

“Oh, I see you aren’t too familiar with my kind. We don’t die of old age, but we also level up quite slowly.”

Herbert added, “Dota is only in the junior squad as a temporary arrangement since he’s low level and needs orientation. You can think of him as a student instructor.”

{[dread rogue] sounds like an [oathbreaker] class.} I finished writing before looking at them with an unamused expression.

Dota said, “Many people assume [oathbreaker] classes are impossible to obtain by any other means, but if you’ve got the right seal then you can bypass the requirements.”

Huh, that was interesting. The ‘right seal’...

“I also took the [navigator] class, because at one point I was part of a sailing crew. It’s quite the long story, so I’ll leave you on that!”

Julius walked to me last. “I’m Julius, age 14, level 14, class: [trapper].”

“And what do you like?” Dota asked.

He shook his head, clicking his tongue. “I dunno...uhh, I guess I like...helping people.”

“Interesting.”

“What about Saya’s class?” Thraisly asked once the introductions seemed finished, already on her mule, ready to leave.

“She has yet to reach level 10, from what I hear,” Herbert said.

{I’m Level 9, age 13, 50 Exp, [apprentice]} I wrote.

“Oh, ok. So I guess she’s had an easier life than the rest of us,” Thraisly said, annoying me. It wasn’t like that was my choice!

Dota cackled. “Oh, Thraisly, it seems you’ve annoyed our new friend! But really, we all know who’s had the easiest life here.”

All eyes fell on Rita. “What?” he asked, a little flustered.

“Right, he just bought his Exp,” Thraisly said, chuckling. “Besides, level 9 is a perfectly reasonable level for a 13-year-old, and she’s the youngest of us.”

“Whatever,” Ritta said, crossing his arms and walking away. “Just don’t slow us down.”

I could say the same.

The junior squad parted, but I was left with Herbert since he wanted to talk to me for a bit. He sat on a bench, getting comfortable in his shiny armor, while I didn’t feel particularly comfortable sitting beside him, so I just stood.

He unwrapped a set of cheese and crackers from a difficult-to-spot pocket and started eating.

“So, you’re another one of Maladrain’s kids, along with Julius and Dota, who is an adult, I guess. You want to be an adventurer?”

I nodded.

“Well, you should know it won’t be easy. You need components for your spells and don’t have a magic wing to help you jump anymore, so you’ve lost your compensation for being [mute].”

I nodded, surprised the dopey instructor was so well informed.

“Communication is important in a high-stakes scenario. Are you sure you can handle it?”

I nodded, determined.

“Heh, if you say so. So, what class do you plan on taking?”

{[avenger]}

“The [oathbreaker] class? That one deals with melee attacks, right? Hmm...sure, I guess that’s fine. Do you know magic at all?”

I nodded. {I’ve got two spells.}

“Ok...well, all the magic-users we have on the squad is Thraisly, Ritta, and his fiance, June, and I’m not sure if [noble] is such a great magic class. It might be good if you tried to learn some more.”

{I’m not very interested in magic.} I wrote. I was actually pretty good at magic, but I never tried too hard, so I didn’t get all that practiced.

“Well, now you are. Magic is, unfortunately, the most effective combat technique. If you don’t at least try to learn it when you have a good affinity for it, you’re wasting your potential. I’ll hook you up with a magic tutor once you’ve officially joined, and if you’re hopeless, we can call it a day. However, I expect you will try your best.”

I slowly nodded, not particularly happy with the arrangement, but satisfied enough. Magic, really, was a pain in the butt, especially when components entered the picture. It was mostly filled with algorithms, arbitrary code, high-level chemistry and physics, and repetition. A lot of repetition.

I was a natural at comprehending all that stuff, but...

It was still boring. So much repetition...so much...

“Aside from that, do you not plan on taking a mounted class?”

I shook my head.

“Monsters do grow up quite quickly. In three years your [drake] could easily be ridable.”

I looked over at Cobaltio, who had leaped back onto my shoulder. {He’s not meant for riding.}

“If you say so. Oh, and what class did you get him? I recommend [pet]. You don’t want to know how unfairly versatile that class is.”

{That’s a secret.}

“Uhh, if you say so. What, is he a legendary class?”

I shook my head. He almost guessed right.

“Ok. Anyway, I’ll wake you and Reco up early tomorrow. Just say if you need anything before you leave.”

I went back to Reco and my room and spent some time looking at classes, thinking about what I’d choose. I wished I knew a little more about them, but I guess the mystery is part of the fun.

And danger.

I could always choose to change classes if I contributed another 300 Exp after classing up, then I would be able to choose what class I wanted on any individual day.

I looked at Cobaltio’s available classes as I fed him for the day.

Locked classes: [dark mount], [dragon], [drake], [dark apostle], [pet], [breeder] are all locked due to [dragonborn]

Available class: [legendary mount] may be obtained for 300 Exp.

Current classes: [dragonborn]: this creature becomes sentient and becomes a part of the scarce race of the proud and noble part-dragons who relish in the fighting, the Dragonborn. A demihuman class. ‘Cobaltio’ is one-third dragon, one-third human, and one-third drake. This class cannot be changed.

[zethokin]: a creature that is either a [humanoid] or [animal] but uses a [monter] system.

[mutant] had turned into [zethokin] ever since it was mentioned by the cloaked man. It helped to learn the true name of his type, but it was quite strange.

[dragonborn]...from what I could tell, Cobaltio could have become more like a [dragon], had I chosen to make it his primary class, or more like a [drake], but there wasn’t an option for [human]. I knew monsters often had exclusive classes that focused on their innate abilities, so it was probably that.

Then, finally, there was [legendary mount]. Apparently, unlike his other intermediate classes(monsters didn’t have beginner classes), [legendary mount] could be gained without growing to level 10. Though, I didn’t know how it worked.

It really intrigued me, though, so I tried asking Menu about it directly.

{How does the [legendary class] work?}

...

Recalibrating...

Deciding...

Searching for a relevant god...Do you wish to request details from Draconis, Seraph, or Maophas?

Seraph was a no-go, and Maophas’s common title was ‘the evil god of death’, so I wrote {Draconis}. I was reluctant to ask for help from a god, but he seemed to like Cobaltio, so Draconis was probably ok.

Contacting...

ERROR 001: Permission Denied.

Reason: a meddling child is not meant to know such things.

Wow, I see how it is, Mrs.Dragon God. And here I thought you might be on my side.

{Try Maophas.} I wrote, any hesitation gone after my annoyance at the other god.

Contacting...

Permission Granted.

Reason: Read this document to the end. Do not give him a [legendary class] unless you are sure he is ready.

Open the document?

A shiver ran down my spine as I read a direct message from the evil god of death. I didn’t know how to feel about the scenario, but I opened the document regardless.