Chương 34: Class Upgrade

Crust flakes off my eyelid as the world comes back into view. Hunger and pain pulse like an echo through my body. I moan before quickly rasping out a command.

"Kevin, don't feel pain." The sentence comes out in coughs, but the pain wracking my body evaporates into thin air. Hunger only grows with the other presence gone. I try to sit up, but my muscles protest. Weak to the bone and half numb, all I can do is raise my head a few inches before falling back down. The blue screen responds to my will as it expands above me. [5. 43 cycles until next phase] Of course. So much wasted time. A groan leaks from my lips as I press my hands to my face.

This is worse than the weakness. [Health: 425(80)] [Mana: 310] [Stamina: 305(46)] Yeah, I don't think I'm ever making it to full health again. And how is my stamina not at three digits after sleeping for more than a day!? Once more, I retreat into my body and start funneling mana to heal myself. Partway through, the drain gets a little larger, making the process a bit faster. It's so easy to get lost in the whirlpool.

The mana flows through every single imperceptible vein before taking the most efficient route to its destination. Once it finishes, satisfaction flows through me. That's- The thought halts in its tracks as hunger pierces through my entire body. I fold forward until my chest presses against my knees and clutch my stomach. Instinct takes over. Agony from my stomach rips through the command like it isn't even there. The sweet scent of iron hangs in the air nearby.

Crawling on all fours, I stumble towards the corpse of the troll. The entire time, pain seeps from my muscles. Weakness begs my body to collapse, but it refuses. Teeth come down on green skin. I bite with as much force as possible, even jerking my head side to side, but the skin won't tear. Like a wild animal, I scramble up the side of the beast's massive body and come to its neck. The area is mutilated, with bone showing, and half of the flesh missing. All of it's covered in a dried layer of blood.

My mind is revulsed at the sight, but it's nothing more than a squeaking mouse. It's hard to find a problem with the meal. My mouth rips off chunks of bloody meat, only chewing once or twice before forcing it down. The meat is cold, and blood flows slowly out of the new wounds. Meat makes its way down more easily as the dry sides of my throat are slicked with blood. Instinct exudes satisfaction with every single gulp. My mind begins to return, but I don't try to stop.

I'm reminded of the time my parents received an invitation to a fine dining restaurant. I was only fourteen at the time, but the medium-rare steak I ordered was the best meal I've had in my entire life. Still, it doesn't hold a candle to this. It's not even close. The blood flows over every inch of my tongue, passing over every single flavor group there is. The once-horrible texture is now springy, easily parting between my teeth. When the meal is gone, and my stomach is full, instinct is nowhere to be seen.

This time, it's my rational mind that licks troll blood off my fingers. I'm certain now. There's something seriously wrong with me. Are these things supposed to be delicious? Is everyone eating them? No, it can't be normal. They're humanoid. They may be monsters, but they still think and speak. Well, I never heard the troll speak, but it's intelligent enough to use a weapon, so I assume it can. My expression becomes troubled.

Rational thinking tells me that what I'm doing is abhorrent and that I should vomit everything I've eaten so far. Instinct is telling me to take another bite. Why is my instinct so powerful? Is it because I'm giving too much power with my commands, and it will slowly take over, revealing that I should be making my own decisions in some great life lesson? No, that can't be it. Surely not. I shake my head of errant thoughts and return to reality. Time for the real gains. Let's see those combat logs.

[You have slain (II) Juvenile Troll lv. 18] [Partial experience granted x2] [Tamer(lv. 14) > (lv. 15)] [Class upgrade selection available] [Human(lv. 14) > (lv. 15)] [Species evolution selection available] [Danger Sense(lv. 2) > (lv. 3)] [Enhanced Skeleton(lv. 7) > (lv. 8)] [Enhanced Skeleton(lv. 8) > (lv. 9)] [Empowered Control Tamed Being(lv. 4) > (lv. 5)] [Danger Sense(lv. 3) > (lv. 4)] Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. [Heal Tame(lv. 6) > (lv. 7)] The text brings a smile to my face. Pretty sure that's every single skill I have. After thinking, I don't see bleed immunity there. Doesn't internal bleeding count? I should've had a ton of that. Probably just not enough. [Title gained: Universal Re-Emergence]"System, for every new skill and title I get, just automatically list the description." With no delay, extra text pops up below.

[Universal Re-Emergence] [Awarded to users who have been the only member of their species to have obtained evolution within 1000000 cycles] [Grants rarer and more diverse evolution potential] It's concerning to only learn about the intricacies of the universe through my titles. What does this mean? Hasn't another human evolved within a million cycles? How many years is that? One million times two point five seven for conversion to days… Divided by three hundred and sixty-five… Ah, fuck it. It's been a long time.

The question is, how have no humans evolved since then? That means they were capable of it at some point, right? Or maybe there isn't a title for the first evolution ever, and I'm the first human ever to have done it. The system refers to tames as beings and not beasts, so shouldn't that mean humans can be tamed too? The concept of slavery concerns me, but the universe is apparently far larger than I first imagined. There's simply too much information I'm missing.

[Title gained: Cosmic Novelty] [Cosmic Novelty] [Awarded to users who have attracted the attention of 10 apotheosized individuals simultaneously at tier 3 or below.] [Grants slight resistance to presence suppression] Alright, now THAT is concerning. My head spins as I look around the dark cave. The only source of light is the torch that flickers on the ground a couple of dozen feet away. There's no movement or sound besides the shuffling I make.

I don't think the system would give me a title for a bunch of assassins watching me. What does apotheosized even mean? I tap the word on the screen multiple times, but nothing happens. Does it mean oracles or something? With an embarrassed smile, I turn and wave at the roof of the tunnel. God, I feel so stupid right now. The knowledge that people can constantly watch me… I don't like it. I thought the dungeon was some kind of disconnected area from reality, but clearly that isn't the case.

Or maybe it is, and people have no trouble peering between dimensions. If dimensions even exist, that is. Crap, there's too much that I don't know. Grunting to my feet, I collect both of my weapons. My legs ache like I ran a marathon yesterday, and my arms are not doing so well either. Pretty sure that my left arm is only barely not broken. My right arm is red and puffy from having its muscles overworked. The healing and a good night's sleep probably did wonders. Or should I say good day's sleep?

With a chuckle, I grab the torch and walk further into the cave. No way an enemy like this doesn't have a delectable reward hidden behind it. Sure enough, after only thirty seconds of walking, the end of the cave shows itself. Along with a waist-high chest lined with metal bracing. My hands rub together greedily. This chest is massive. With slow steps, I reach down and undo the latch, pushing the thing open. As expected, it's empty. Chime But the sound ringing in my head tells me all I need to know.

I turn around and begin the journey back out of the tunnel. I'm itching to advance myself right now. With the push of a few buttons, I can improve myself beyond belief. The urge to just sit down where I stand and do it is powerful, but I control myself and continue moving. Weakness is still infused into all of my limbs, especially my legs, which makes the journey take twice as long. When the door closes behind me, I drop all of my stuff on the ground and rush over to sit against the wall.

With a shining eye and a massive grin, the blue screen expands in front of me with a single line showing. [Class upgrade selection available] I tap eagerly, and text explodes onto the pane. Taking a deep breath, I close my eye for a second and think. Take this slow, Kevin. This is a big decision. I return to the world with a calmer mind and begin reading.

[Healing Tamer] (uncommon) [Status Allocation: 1 (Perception), 2 (Wisdom), 2 (Intelligence), 1 (Free)] [As an owner of the 'Heal Tame' skill, the Healing Tamer devotes themselves to keeping their tamed beings alive, dedicating all of their mana to healing.] [Class Skill: Tamer's Transference] Eh, not sure I like the stat spread very much. My build is crafted around being a brawler, so intelligence wouldn't do much for me. Plus, the class skill sounds ambiguous.

My finger presses down on the skill, but a description doesn't pop up. What? The system isn't going to show me what my own skills are going to be!? My annoyance grows as I realize that I'll have to trust my entire future to two words. If it ends up being something where I can transfer any of my resources to my tame, it'll have been a wasted skill. Grunting, I move to the next choice.

[Battle Tamer] (uncommon) [Status Allocation: 2 (Strength), 1 (Vitality), 1 (Fortitude), 1 (Endurance), 1 (Perception)] [Unlike a traditional Tamer, the Battle Tamer prefers to fight alongside their tames instead of watching idly.] [Class Skill: Enhanced Awareness] Now that's what I'm talking about. Perfect stat spread for my build, plus a skill whose purpose is clear and would complement my fighting style. Even though I have danger sense, which is probably leagues better, I'll keep a pin in this one.

[Bestial Caretaker] (rare) [Status Allocation: 3 (Wisdom), 2 (Intelligence), 1 (Endurance), 2 (Free)] [The Bestial Caretaker places their life on the line to keep their tames alive, spending every waking second attempting to make their tames as powerful as possible.] [Class Skill: Nurture Tame] Now that's interesting. Isn't rare quite good? And for my first class upgrade, as well. If nothing else, I'll be able to use the extra wisdom to heal myself. As for the skill, it's also quite vague. Nurture as in heal?

Calm the mind? Grow in some way? The only reason I would take this on is if nurture meant to increase growth in some fashion. Regardless, there's no way to truly know, which makes this choice a bit dicey. [Alpha of the Pack] (rare) [Status Allocation: 3 (Agility), 2 (Strength), 1 (Fortitude), 2 (Free)] [Giving up civilized ways, the Alpha leads their tames into battle using tooth, nail, and claw, using any method to lead their pack to victory.] [Class Skill: Empowering Aura] Oof, don't like that name very much.

If identify shows people's classes as it does with monsters' species, then I definitely don't want this one. My face reddens as I imagine walking into a crowd of people and someone saying, 'Hey! It's the alpha of the pack!' God, that would be a nightmare. Disregarding the cringey name, the stats actually look amazing. Looking at the description, I can immediately tell I got this one because of the way I savagely ripped the troll's neck apart with my teeth.

The skill looks like something that would buff all of my tames when I run into battle. Wait, am I actually even capable of buffing myself like I would do with tames? My healing skill can link to myself, but an aura is so much more intangible. With only one option left, I continue.

[Companionship Pact Leader] (epic) [Status Allocation: 2 (Vitality), 2 (Strength), 2 (Fortitude), 2 (Endurance), 2 (Wisdom)] [Harboring an unbreakable bond, the Pact Leader surrenders control and embraces the tamer's connection in its fullest, pushing them and their tame to incredible heights when fighting alongside each other.] [Class Skill: One Mind/Two Bodies] Epic. That word alone makes it the best class. There's no way to be sure, but I don't think I'm supposed to be getting something this good.

The stat spread is perfect. No better way to put it. The skill, however… One mind and two bodies seem to require something I don't have. That being a second body. The description noticeably mentions tame instead of tames, plural. Which means this class is crafted with a tamer and a single companion in mind. Then again, every class on the list is an advancement for a tamer, who would usually have a small group of followers. Going by skills, the safest choice is to go with battle tamer and get enhanced awareness.

But giving up an epic class for an uncommon one clashes with every single instinct I have. It feels like I'm denying myself the greatest level of growth. I bite my cheek as I look back and forth between the two options. Screw it, I'll take the gamble if it means an epic class. My finger inexorably comes down on Companionship Pact Leader.