Mash found Jill, and within a few seconds, he was out of the city. There was no need to tell her the plan. All of them were being given the plan by Priscilla, so he hadn’t had to say a single word. Once he arrived all she had to do was touch him to send him out of the city. The teleportation disoriented Lisa, but he was able to hold on to her. She grumbled once they were outside.

“That was odd.”

“You get used to it.”

Mash replied without much thought. His mind was still elsewhere. Not wrapped up in guilt or regret, but rather thinking about what to do about his class. He was close to his next advancement now, and his golden body had improved considerably. The change was surprising, and he wondered what the cause was. If he could recreate it once more, then he could finish it in one go.

“Do you have a c-coat or a heated stone? I am able t-t-to power those easily.”

Lisa shivered and she couldn’t speak without shaking a little. She hadn’t grabbed a coat or anything to brace against the cold. In fact, she wore the same thing robe that was definitely not meant to keep her warm. He hadn’t been conscious of her with all of the excitement, but the question broke the urgency in his mind a little bit. And like that, he became aware of the beautiful girl who was clinging to his arm. All be it one that was covered in a layer of wood and shaped into a hook. But his magic let him feel her through the wood, and Mash rapidly raised the surrounding temperature.

“Sorry, I can do that.”

Mash intentionally made it really hot to help cover for his embarrassment. Now was not the time for this. He reprimanded himself as Lisa stared around herself, distracted by the sudden change in temperature. Waving one hand in the air around her, she spoke full of amazement.

“Your mana control is incredible. And all the abilities you have are incredible. I know it’s inappropriate, but what is your class called? All of this seems a little unfair.”

She touched the wooden arm as she gestured at all of the different things he had done. Mash coughed a little as he responded. It felt too much like he was doing something wrong.

“I can feel you through the wood. I’m sorry, I should’ve said something earlier, but I forgot.”

He felt like he was making an excuse but he there wasn’t much else he could say. Lisa met his eyes and laughed in his face.

“All you’re doing is carrying me. I mean it would’ve been nice to know, but it wouldn’t have really mattered. I would’ve come with you even if I needed to climb on your back. I really do want to help.”

Mash let out a breath, finding it easier to respond now that he apologized.

“For your previous question, my class is chimeric vagabond. I think it’s unique though, I can’t be sure.”

Lisa’s cheek bulged as she pushed her tongue against the inside of it. Her gaze drifted down toward the ground. Mash wondered what she was doing. A few seconds later her head snapped up, and she spoke quickly.

“I know the vagabond class isn’t unique, but the prefix is something I haven’t heard before. And you can check if your class is unique. The auction house has a few people with skills that can determine that.”

Mash realized she had been thinking. That was just what she did when she was lost in thought. The words caught him off guard though.

“Wait, how?”

“They have classes to evaluate the worth of something. They can do it with pieces of information just as easily items most of the time. The ones in the city get plenty of tertiary information as well. The uniqueness of something is part of that.”

Well, that was certainly interesting. Plus, it seemed like classes and skills was a subject that Lisa enjoyed. When she talked about it, her words became more informal. They weren’t impolite, and he considered it to be a good thing.

“There are a lot of things I could get checked…”

He spoke while thinking of all the things he could check with them. Then he wondered what other classes could get extra information from information. Was there someone who could help him learn more about his skills or ideas? Could there be a skill that just lets someone know about the world owner? He knew that classes were versatile, but this opened a lot of possibilities.

“I wouldn’t share anything important unless you know them personally. Those classes are typically required to report any findings to their kingdoms. If you give up the wrong kind of information, it could wind up poorly. I have made that mistake already.”

She didn’t have to say more. The look she gave told him the story. He could only nod in response. It grew silent for a bit, and Mash tried to break it with a joke.

“I think it would be fine. My brother is probably going to be the next king, not to mention my sister is a saint for the moon goddess, who is my friend. And now that I think about it, Luke is probably going to become a god too.”

He said it with a smile. None of what he said was a lie, but he waited for her to react incredulously. Her eyes widened, and she stared at him in silence. Well, that was surprising. It seemed like she trusted everything he had said. Wich meant that he definitely shared too much.

“I can tell when someone is lying. Sorry, I should’ve told you.”

Mash shook his head quickly.

“What, why would you tell me? Wouldn’t that defeat the purpose?”

“It is considered rude to not tell people of skills that could be considered invasive in a private setting.”

She cleared her throat as she said. That was not something Mash had ever heard, though he guessed that this was a cultural thing.

“Oh. Well, I have a skill that lets me see everything within my domain completely.”

He seriously considered if that was something he would need to tell people when he met them. On top of making them uncomfortable, it just felt awkward. Lisa didn’t react as he expected and instead began interrogating him on it.

“What is the skill called? And how does the sight work? Do you see everything in it like you would with your eyes or is it something else?”

The series of questions surprised him. He had to think as he answered them all.

“First, it’s called chimeric domain. It’s not like sight. Um, it is more like the whole space is connected to me. The things inside of it are outlined by their shape, mana, life, and more. I can kind of perceive emotions and strength and stuff. “

He probably shouldn’t be explaining so much. And if the others were here, they would probably stop him. He just didn’t think that Lisa would be using the information poorly anytime soon. Not to mention it was hard to tell someone like her no. She was obviously doing things she wouldn’t have been able to do as a slave, and she was so earnest about it. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity as she prodded Mash about his class. And he answered most of the questions. Once they had gone back and forth for a little bit, she surprised him by turning the questions to him.

“If you want to know anything about my class, please ask. This feels too one-sided right now.”

Mash did have his own questions. He was about to ask her how she had seen through his trick when they first met, but he halted when he spotted the army.

“Later, I see them.”

The talk had been enjoyable, and he regretted letting it drop. Most people were so defensive about their classes, and he was interested in the subject too. While he wanted the information, it would have to be after they dealt with the army. Mash slowed as the army began to notice them. Mash could see as heads swung up to them and he wondered how they spotted him.

“And I think they see us. How did they manage that?”

“The trail of hot air is noticeable.”

Lisa responded smartly. He glanced back and saw what she meant. Raising the temperature around him functionally left a trail that any could see. The weather or time couldn’t hide that. Even now the air around them was turning to fog. He wondered why he hadn’t noticed that on his way to the city and remembered that he had only heated up his body at the time. He dropped from the air slowly, in what he thought was a non-threatening manner. It didn’t work, and Mash watched as a ball of fire flew toward him. He held up his free hand to stop it but noticed Lisa doing the same.

“I can handle this.”

She said it so certainly, that he let his hand drop. Despite the gesture, he prepared to form a shield of wind. He didn’t really know what her class did. Although, he got a good glimpse as he watched what she did with the mana.

She seemed to attach something to the fireball. He couldn’t see what it was until the fireball entered his domain. The fireball was large. Easily twice as large as he was, and it had similarly left a very noticeable trail. It showed him how indiscreet his own journey had been. He had been as invisible as a literal ball of fire. Now that the ball of fire was close, Mash could see what Lisa had done. There was an invisible mark on the fireball. His eyes couldn’t see it, but he could see its shape through the domain. The ball of fire turned sharply, spinning around them a few times before shrinking considerably.

It kept shrinking as it got closer. Like a moon, it kept rotating around them. By the time it reached them it was smaller than an egg. And it was hovering in place over Lisa’s palm. The skill wasn’t over. The fireball dissolved into a floating blue symbol. It was the mark he had seen earlier, only it was the size of a small coin. Then it fell onto her palm and vanished. Now he had more questions to ask when he got the chance. That was for later, as he landed. The army had stopped after the fast attack. Probably realizing that an enemy wouldn’t have made such a public arrival. Or someone recognized Lisa’s skill.

Mash landed a good distance away, the snow melting around them as they touched the ground. The two of them started walking toward the coming army. Lisa waved her hands happily, and three people split off from the army. Lisa pointed out the frontmost of the group.

“That’s the commander. His name is Jorgan, and he did the best he could in his position. He saved a lot of us. He wasn’t really a slave, but he was treated like one. I know you aren’t just going to be violent, but he, like everyone, will be justifiably angry.”

She glanced at Mash, who just shrugged. Although, he felt like there was some implication in her words.

“Angry at me? What did I do?”

He would’ve expected the opposite. Lisa replied without turning away from the incoming army.

“Not for what you did, but what you will do. They will want blood and a lot of it. Slavers were awful, but they weren’t the only awful people. Many people got bad when they owned a person.”

He couldn’t keep a polite expression, and his face twisted in disgust. But she was right. It wasn’t that he was going to defend such people, but he was going to leave it to General Irkish to deal with the punishments. That would almost certainly be death for most too, but it felt more right, which was enough for him. Mash didn’t care much for the people Lisa described, but he just wanted to do whatever felt most right for him. Lisa shouted once the man got in range.

“Jorg! It’s good to see you!”

Mash heard the man bellow back his response. His voice was far louder and deeper. It even made some of the snow between them rumble.

“You too! It’s a damn good day to be alive.”

He roared the words like a beast. The man laughed loudly, revealing a set of sharpened teeth. Mash’s own teeth were like that, and he couldn’t stop himself from smiling. He put his teeth on display as the commander got close enough to see. The man only seemed to take notice of Mash then. His gaze darted toward him, and Mash saw disturbingly full eyes. His pale blue irises almost completely filled his eyes. The pupil was unusually large too, and Mash could see as it narrowed on him. And Mash felt like he was in the odd position of looking at someone with more disturbing eyes than himself.