His consciousness drifted away toward a place he remembered all too well. Pillars of light rose up to illuminate the darkness. This time he had three. Less than he had expected but each one felt completely different. He couldn’t feel his aches and pains anymore. Priscilla’s comforting connection was absent this time too. Within his soul, he floated in a space that was impossibly empty. The three pillars were the only true existence within it now.

The sense of glee that filled him was euphoric. He basked in the power radiating from the pillars. He had succeeded without mana or magic. This felt far more earned than his other advancements. And he just sat there, enjoying the moment of accomplishment. He managed to do it for all of ten seconds before he turned to the pillars. As much as his glory felt good, there was something far more exciting for him to check.

One pillar was a deep purple that seemed to take in more light than it gave off. He didn’t quite understand how it was glowing. It seemed to function by swallowing the darkness around it rather than shining on its own. He just stared at it for a moment. Then he slowly extended a gentle hand toward it. Or what approximated to his hand in this place. The information flooded his mind.

God of Hunger and Growth: Having created your own mark, you have touched upon the power of divinity. The mark of the devourer is the power to eat. Bestow the mark to followers, to let them share in your growth. As the God of Hunger all is for you to consume. As the God of Growth, there is never a limit to your powers. Your appetite is more endless than the cosmos. Your potential is vaster than the reach of the stars.

As a god, you inherit a part of divinity. Your world will change to accommodate the presence of your mark. Your power is fundamental to the structure of your world, as such you will be bound to that world and those it has suborned.

This choice will change the Class System to the God System.

Mash was officially out of his depths. It was one thing to meet a god and another to become one. Was he just skipping over the whole demigod phase that Luke was in? He also didn’t like the idea of having followers. He had seen religions, and they were not the things he wanted. Already the idea of worship bothered him. He did like the things about his power though. Those sounded like the things that would let him fight dragons or the other World Owners. He didn’t even want to consider the implication of owning a piece of divinity, although it was admittingly persuasive. More importantly than all of that was a question. What in the world was the God System?

He hesitantly left the pillar alone and drifted toward the next one. This was a black deeper than the darkest night. As he reached for it, it opened and revealed a swirl of colors. A multicolored rainbow that seemed to shine within that somehow defined everything. More than a little fascination caused him to just stop and stare at the far too-beautiful light. The information that trickled into his head was as enticing as the light.

Chimeric King of Magical Monsters: A King among creatures whose domain is as vast as your power. Magic is your essence, and it can never be taken from you. Conquer that which you know. Both magic and monsters define your being, and you rule over them. Monsters grow through consumption. A king of them consumes more than every other, for the king of monsters is the greediest among them. As an owner of a world, your kingdom is for you to control.

Your power is strongest within your kingdom. As a king, your land and its people are a part of your essence. A true king inherits a throne of power. Your world will adjust to accommodate the Throne of Magical Monsters. Your bloodline will change to pass down your power more easily to your descendants.

This choice will change the Class System to the King System.

Mash again was at a loss for words. What in the world was happening? Was he just done with the class system? He knew that had been what he wanted but trading it in for something new wasn’t the plan. Also, he didn’t want to be a ruler. Rather than a king or God, he would prefer a boss. That way at least he could leave all the work to some underling and be done with it. God and the king were in positions of rule. Neither of which was for him.

Even with those tendencies, he was still tempted. While the God class was probably more powerful, this seemed more versatile. It seemed to grant him some power over magic and his transformation. Developing those rather than focusing on his mark would be easier to adjust to. It would likely be simpler to use as well. Finally, the class directly mentioned his domain. Anything that improved it would be ridiculous. He didn’t actually know how much better it could get, so that alone was enticing. The part about his bloodline was bothersome though. It felt a little too much like the Lord he had just killed.

Also, what were these secondary pieces about? The first had been a piece of divinity, which he was fairly certain shouldn’t belong in the hands of someone his age. This throne gave him a bit of a picture in regard to the current king’s power though. If the king had something like this, then he would certainly be strong. Did the slave king have a throne? He was probably just pathetic despite it. A small like him probably had an equally small throne. That was a man he didn’t want to emulate. There was one more option, and his hand reached for it.

This pillar released light but also failed to do so. His mind couldn’t understand what was happening around it. Unlike the other pillars, it was clear, yet it still gave off light. The light was without color or substance, but he could feel it. The warmth that radiated the light was different from the other two. Its power was something unknown but familiar at the same time. The information that flooded his mind came smoothly.

Chimera of the End and Beginning: Your power is that of change. All that comes before is to be consumed, leaving behind an empty space for new beginnings. A force of nature, your power is ravenous, unyielding as the changing nature of time. Upend the structure that lesser beings conform to. Incite within them the freedom to escape the invisible bounds that constrict all things. The power of the end is oppressive, and its reach is endless. The power of beginnings is open and unknown. Your domain is limited only by your presence. Both are methods of change.

The Chimera of the End and Beginning is an aspect of a fundamental force. You inherit that aspect and imprint it upon the reality in which you exist. An aspect contains a power that cannot be limited by a single body. It leaks through you into the world you inhabit. Your power is one of change and the world cannot resist its influence.

This choice will change the Class System to Aspect Lord of Change System.

Well, he could he only be at a loss for words so many times in quick succession. Now he had too many things to say. Not just about this option but all of them. Every class if he could even call it that was ridiculous. Not just in the power they promised but in the responsibility that came with them. The first would turn him into a God. He could think of no one who had more responsibility than them. The next was a king, a ruler of men and, in his case, monsters. Finally, this class seemed to be responsible for the end and beginning of things. How did someone even do such a thing?

Beyond that responsibility, the class itself was ridiculous in what it promised. It sounded like it would make him as immutable as life and death. Even if the wording wasn’t the same, it was definitely close enough. Not to mention the whole thing about becoming an aspect. It was probably similar to the throne yet more generalized. It was a frightening thing to think about. To be an aspect of change sounded more than a little foreboding.

This one also felt the most personalized, in that the system it created was singular. The other classes sounded more directly powerful in some ways, but it was their systems that bothered him. All of them bothered him a bit. Now, that he had seen all the options there was really only one task left. Which option was he going to pick? Oddly, he found that he knew the answer as soon as he said it. His went out, and he felt the power suffuse him.