Loki started yelling as loudly as her tiny little body could manage, standing up to give herself more room for her lungs. ""

I leaned back a little. "No one has explained it yet. Doesn't really make sense..."

She sat down, and huffed. "Fine... it's pretty simple. When you Level Up, or sometimes just when you do something the Gods like, (the ones in heaven, not on this plane of existence,) they give you a Gift. Like Savant Syndrome, but an actual God-Given Gift."

"I... see..."

"No you don't. Most blacksmiths, for example, have to have the Blacksmith Skill before they are actually taken seriously. Even if you already know how to do something, the Skill is on a . And some skills include Supernatural advantages, like Hunter, which gives you an advantage against beast-type monsters, or Luck, which I think is self-explanatory. When you Level Up, you're given a choice, usually between two very different Skills." She hummed.

I blinked. "So it's not a Skill, it's more like... a Class Selection? The Gods are trying to see what direction I want to take as an adventurer?"

She nodded. "Correct. Most of the time, the skills are easy to comprehend... but they're random. It's impossible for me to influence it."

I nodded. "I see..."

"Why did you want a Blacksmith Skill? I thought you didn't do mechanics or anything like that?" She asked.

"I'm not good at the basic mechanics, but I'm good at the more minute, nano-mechanics. My study in Computer-Engineering was mostly in miniaturizing super-computers and creating smaller, more efficient machines. But I can't hammer metal or smelt it to save my life, so I'm reliant on someone else to do the Basic crafting... but not for long." I smirked.

She nodded. "I see. Alright... well, go get into some fights, and don't get caught, hmm?"

I chuckled. "So the rules are: I can't get caught? Or: no one can recognize me?" I asked, using Cinder Ella to change my face drastically.

She grinned savagely. "The latter."

I nodded and pulled my shirt on, then walked out.

---

I knelt in my room, and crossed my legs, pulling out my magic Journal. 'My armor... it is too ugly. I don't like ugly things... I need a way to make it ...' I started a new armor concept drawing.

The first layer was a thin, black fibrous material made of Dungeon Rowan, embedded with a hexagonal system of tiny Magic Stones. This paper-thin layer would coat the body, head to toe, completely securing it from any outside forces, though it would be porous around the nose and eyes, to allow for sight and breath.

Second: Muscles. I would need to be faster and stronger, and tougher.

Carbon Nanotubes were one of the strongest, most durable, and most useful material I'd ever studied. I would use their fiber design, which was an advance in science that had won the scientists who created it the Nobel Prize.

The fibers were approximately 200x more durable than Steel Wire, 200x Stronger than human muscles, and a 1Kilometer Weave was able to contract and expand fully, in less than 25 milliseconds.

Mine would be the thickness of human muscles, and make up the entire second layer of my armor, connecting to the base of my neck, and then to my Cerebral Column. In this way, I would be able to control the fibers as if they were my own muscles.

The third layer would be the first part of the Epidermis. Made of dragon scale, melted down and poured over the muscles, it would fit it perfectly, leaving no gaps or bumps, and be flexible enough for the muscles to flex and un-flex underneath it, once more leaving the wearer perfectly covered.

Following that would be an air pocket, filled with decompressed air, a semi-vacuum, which, should any hits get that far, would allow the armor to give a little, sans actually harming the wearer.

I'd thought I would need Tempest to do this, but I decided it was best if I didn't, so instead, I'd use simple physics.

Pushing the barriers together would create an area with only a limited amount of air. Sealing that zone, and then pulling it apart, would create a low-pressure zone in between the plates, as the air molecules moved further apart to fill the new space. A full Vacuum was relatively impossible to do without some kind of magic, though that would be Ideal.

The Fifth layer of the suit would be another layer of Dragon Scales, just like the first, though thinner, and more flexible. Another air-gap, and another layer of scales, would complete the Epidermis, and the Seventh layer of the suit.

All of this, once measured, added up to a 1-inch-thick armor, perfectly mirroring the human body, adding 2 inches to my height, but otherwise perfectly emulated my body, (except genitals and elf ears, which were a bitch to design, so I scrapped them,) and would be easily enchanted.

Next, I created actual armor pieces on the skin, and instead of focusing on flexibility and mobility, I focused on stopping power, and durability.

I still allowed for my full range of motion, of course, and modeled it after a Dark-Knight's Plate armor and Chain Mail, because I had a twisted sense of humor.

Satisfied with the drawings, I leaned back, smirking. "And well done, Dorian, well done..." I patted myself on the back.

"I know you didn't just do that." Johnny laughed, sitting down on his bed, groaning.

"You okay?"

"Yeah... Loki's initiation... not a joke." He groaned, and laid down.

"I thought you did that a week ago?" I hummed.

"No, she delayed it, for one reason or another..." he hummed, then tossed a balled-up paper at me. "Tell me if that's any good? Can't read it for shit."

'Jonathon Vincent Gyllenhaal III: LVL 1

STR: D520 DEX: D570

DEF: D520 MAG: H110

WPN: C600 SKL: N/A'

"Decent, definitely. Mine weren't nearly that high when I started. Don't worry though, apparently, the average is about a Year to Level Up, or so I'm told." I shrugged.

He huffed. "I feel like I fell into and RPG..."

I laughed. "Pretty close, huh? Get some rest, old man. I've got some techie stuff to do, and then some magic, and then we're going to go fight a big ass battle, so it's gonna be a wild day."

He groaned. "Don't tell me you pissed someone off again, and that someone's got a lot of friends..."

"I pissed off an entire , actually,-"

"Fffffuuuuuuuuuuuucckk Meeeeeeeeee."

"-and we're going rookie hunting tomorrow. So Rest up, like I said. You'll need it." I ignored his whining.

He rolled into his side. "Whatever... wake me when it's time to kick some ass..." **Snoooooore**

I chuckled, and went back to my work. 'The armor is done, (,) but now I need magic. Magical protection spells, and lots of them, all kinds...' I hummed.

Luckily, protection spells are very much more Energy Efficient than any other spell, only activating for as long as they were needed. I tried working through the problem of where to place each spell, so that it was maximally effective, but came up frustratingly empty.

I stood, grumbling, and looked over at Johnny. "You know what? I'm taking your line... if you need me, find me at the bar. I need a drink." I chuckled, and grabbed my jacket, keeping my sword and dagger on me.

---

I sat down at the bar, and paid the barkeep for an entire bottle, not having the patience to buy each drink.

I found a seat at the back, and sat down, pouring myself a glass, and pulling out my journal again.

As I studied the different types of protective talisman, the elf waitress walked up to me, clearing her throat gently.

"Yes?" I asked, glancing at her.

"You looked puzzled, and angry. I thought I'd offer help. I'm off, right now, and... well, it occurred to me that I was very rude, to you, and to your father, especially." She hummed.

I sighed. "I don't hold grudges. If I'd felt that you insulted me, I would've gotten even already. But yes, I am puzzled. I'm trying to figure out how to cast Protection Spells on myself without a Talisman. Talismans are easily removed, and I'd rather that my protection isn't easily taken away. I don't like getting caught with my pants down, you know?" I leaned away from my journal, sipping the whiskey in my glass.

She blinked. "Why not use a Tattoo?"

I blinked slowly. "That would work? You have here?" I asked incredulously.

She nodded slowly, and rolled up her sleeve, showing me her forearm, where nine different magic circles overlapped on her skin, glowing gently when she flexed.

"What are those?" I asked slowly.

"Protection Runes. You use a spell, and brand it into your body. It's permanent, but only about a quarter as powerful as the regular spell." She shrugged, rolling her sleeve back down.

I hummed. "Very interesting... thank you, I think you just helped a big part of my problem... and now where to get large amounts of Dragon Scales and Bones, and Graphene tubes..." I murmured, drawing the runes on her skin from memory.

She hummed softly. "I could... possibly be of help there, as well. There was a notice, in the Guild a few hours ago, about a dead Adventurer on the 13th floor. The family wants his remains back, but his belongings and loot goes to the person who retrieves him... and he was hunting on the 32 floor beforehand. He'll have Dragon loot."

I stood, grinning. "You're a font of information, beautiful! I'll be back tomorrow, eh? I'll treat you to a drink if this info pans out!" I popped the cork back into my whiskey, and stuck it in my jacket, then my journal as well, sprinting out towards the Castle.

---

"-And that's why I need you to come with me, right now, into the dungeon." I said swiftly.

"Because... there's a dead man... and you need his stuff?" Bete asked slowly, scratching his cheek sleepily.

"Exactly. It's a mission from Loki... sort of." I nodded.

He shrugged and pulled on his metal boots, then a shirt, and his jacket. "Alright... le's'go..." he mumbled, then yawned widely.

I nodded and darted out of the house, pulling up my hood and mask.

---

"So this is what's left, after we get killed by a monster, huh?" I tsk'ed, throwing a large sheet over the corpse, and then picking up the four corners, unceremoniously hauling it over my shoulder.

Bete picked up his large backpack, yawning, and I nodded, sprinting out of the floor, carrying the body, and the branches I'd picked up from around the Dungeon Rowan trees.

---

I hummed softly, rooting through the loot from the backpack, and grinned when I found a large bundle of what looked like slate, laid out and bundled with leather bands, and what looked like large bars of ivory, which I knew were the bones of a large reptile.

"You are remarkably nonchalant about going through a dead man's things." Riviera said softly, standing in the doorway.

"As long as I don't touch his money, everything's fine." I shrugged.

"Money? What's that about?"

"It's bad luck to take coins from a dead man's pocket. The coins bring only misfortune and more death. I left his coins with his family." I shrugged again.

"Superstitions... odd."

"You live in a world of magic, gods, and curses, and my superstitions are weird?" I raised an eyebrow critically, and grumbled in annoyance.

"True, but dead men's coins aren't cursed."

I glared over my shoulder at her, annoyed. "That's your opinion, and I respect your right to have one that differs from my own. But I respect your right to keep it to yourself."