Chương 19: Class Perks

The walk back to Lanterne wasn't long. They had drifted further away than planned to complete Lara's quest. Alexandra couldn't wait for their arrival, so she looked through her journal while she was walking, taking care not to stumble on a misplaced rock. She quickly found the page where her potential class perks were listed. There were three of them. Choose your level 2 class perk: Forecast – Peek at tomorrow's daily quest after finishing today's. Reroll – Once a day, reroll your daily quest.

Event Quests – Unlocks Event Quests. Three perks, and she could only choose one. She rubbed her chin. She was immediately tempted by Event Quests. The description was not helping, but it sounded interesting. So far, she'd relied exclusively on daily quests, and skill quests to increase her power. Skill quests were common to everyone, but daily quests were unique to her class, and from what she could tell, very powerful. Another type of quest would definitely make a difference.

That said, the question of whether or not the option she skipped would be available again in the future was worth considering. Especially in regards to Reroll. The memory of her struggles to keep her streak alive were still fresh in her mind, and a chance for an easier class was a lifesaver. Then again, it hadn't been enough in the end. She raised her head and looked at Lara who was walking beside her. Lara met her gaze.

"What's the matter?" Alexandra hesitated for an instant.

"I leveled up."

"Oh? Congratulations! I was wondering why you were staring at your class art. Anything good?"

"Yes. A few. But I can't remember if some of the offered perks can show up again if I pick another."

"They can. But it depends on the perk," Lara answered.

"There isn't a hard rule for how it works." She paused.

"But if the perk is essential to your class, it's usually offered again at some point." Alexandra nodded. It didn't really help. Was any of the listed perks essential? She didn't know. Forecast was also on her radar. Knowing in advance which quest she should prepare for could save her a lot of time. So far, she'd completed all her quests with great success. But, with one per day, she was bound to run into difficulties at some point. Anything that could preserve her streak would be invaluable.

Though, in that vein, Reroll seemed like the clear-cut better option. However, growing stronger was also a way to secure her streak, and she wagered that Event Quest promised just that. Even if she couldn't know how it would turn out.

"Choosing's never easy," Lara said, her hand resting on Alexandra's shoulder.

"Take your time."

"How do you do it?"

"I guess my method wouldn't work for you. My class is commonplace in the plains. There's plenty of experienced people who know exactly what each perk does, so I can pick the most adapted to my path. I already have an idea of what I'm going to pick next." Alexandra winced.

"I don't think I can do that." Heroine of Quests had to be a unique class. She'd gotten it after being summoned by the gods, something she preferred not to think about too much. Honestly, it was absurd. Unreal. But in practical terms, it meant that she couldn't rely on communal wisdom to make her choices for her. I guess I'll just follow my guts. It had worked out pretty well for her thus far. Reroll was nice, but in the end, it was limited.

Knowing about a quest in advance would help, but it couldn't compare to an extra quest, an extra chance for rewards. She was confident that she could keep her streak alive without the extra help. She selected Event Quests. The page turned blank. She flipped her journal, looking for a new entry. She found it right after her status. A brand new page. Event Quests: Floral Uprising: Destroy the beast behind the floral infestation in the plains of Baleria (0/1). Reward: rare skill.

Failure condition: the beast dies without your intervention. Alexandra licked her lips.

"Happy with your pick?" Lara asked. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

"Very." She smiled.

"Don't tell me you chose something dangerous." Alexandra paused. Her breath caught.

"Alexandra."

"L… Look, it should be fine. It's only dangerous if I go about it recklessly." Lara sighed.

"Whatever, do as you wish. But next time, go straight to Bamir instead of coming to us." She walked away. Alexandra followed in silence, half embarrassed, half focusing on her status. Name: Alexandra Ward Class: Heroine of Quests Level: 2 (0/100) Rank: Iron Strength (STR): 9 Dexterity (DEX): 10 Constitution (CON): 9 Intelligence (INT): 10 Perception (PER): 12 Class Art: [Quest Journal] – A living record bound to its bearer. Generates daily quests tailored to the surrounding environment.

Completing quests yields experience, rewards, and contributes to an ongoing Streak. The longer the Streak, the greater the bounty. Class Perks: [Event Quests] (Iron) General Skills: [Inflict Weakness] (Uncommon) - 4 [Sickle Mastery] (Common) - 5 [Dark Bolt] (Uncommon) - 2 Achievements: Defiance One hundred exp for level three, or ten days of dailies. It was still manageable. She noted the Iron that was now listed next to her rank, wondering what it was for. It came with the class perk, but what did it mean?

She wanted to ask Lara, but she decided not to. Amnesia can only excuse so much. Furthermore, her friend was not in a great mood. She turned her attention on her new quest instead. Of course, she was going to try, but she couldn't just jump into it blindly. Not mentioning the fact that she didn't know which beast was responsible, she was aware of her own inadequacy. She really only had Sickle Mastery, which wasn't going to cut it, and Dark Bolt in her arsenal.

Sacrificing more lifeforce to get a rare skill was not a trade she was sure she wanted to take. Furthermore, there was no guarantee that a single bolt would be enough to down the target of this quest. She wasn't sure how much lifeforce she could afford to squander. Alexandra ran through her options as she walked. Dark Bolt was too costly to rely on. Sickle Mastery was fine but limited. Maybe if she could evolve it to uncommon, and even then… She needed more. The skill quest backlog was the obvious answer.

She had quests she hadn't touched yet. If she could knock a few out before going after the beast—"You're doing it again." She looked up. Lara was a few steps ahead, not looking at her.

"Doing what?"

"That face." Lara turned around. Her arms were folded.

"You just picked something dangerous and now you're planning how to do it. I can tell." Alexandra opened her mouth.

"Don't." Lara's voice was even.

"I'm not angry. I just want you to understand something." She looked at her steadily.

"Therion and I have put ourselves in a difficult position for you. The village was already wary of us. Now…" She shook her head, turned and kept walking. Alexandra followed, her planning set aside for the moment.

"Lara!" Her friend stopped, and looked back at her.

"It's better if we don't speak about it right now. I might say things I will regret." She left her alone in the fields of flowers. Alexandra stared at her back until she disappeared past the first houses. She could guess, roughly, what those things were. That she was reckless. That she was ungrateful. That she kept putting herself in danger despite everything Lara and Therion had done for her, and that at some point the village's hostility toward her would turn to them. None of it would be wrong.

She'd shown up on their doorstep covered in blood on day one. She'd eaten their food, slept in their house, used their tools. She'd caught the animosity of the villagers — though that one wasn't really her fault. She'd been gone for two days with supplies meant for a few hours. She'd come back missing a finger with white hair looking like a cultist, and then laughed about it at the dinner table. And now this. Lara wasn't wrong to be tired of it.

Alexandra wasn't sure she'd have lasted this long in her position The flowers moved in the wind around her, bell clusters chiming faintly somewhere to her left. If she were them, she wouldn't even have taken her in. She knew it. She'd repay them. That was the only answer she had. Lara wasn't wrong, but Alexandra wasn't going to abandon her streak because of that. It was too important, the only thing that anchored her to reality. She wanted to keep going. She needed it.

There was no time limit on her quest, but it was possible — likely, even — that someone would get to the beast before her. She remembered Marick mentioning calling the Wardens for help. Bamir had argued not to, and offered to call upon his own organization instead. Alexandra was under the impression that the Hands of the Well was a group of healers. I guess the cult of a god was never going to be a pushover. There had to be combatants the Hands could call upon. The gears in her mind turned.

The Wardens were likely following another god. Maybe they were more specialized in ridding the common folks of monsters. It sounded dangerous. Were the gods not allied? Divine versus demons? Or perhaps they let their followers compete against each other. It wasn't like an organization hunting a monster before another counted as a significant conflict. She frowned. In any case, either the Hands or the Wardens coming would be an issue for her quest.

Considering that she was nowhere near as strong as Marick, and that he wasn't dealing with the issue himself… She needed to hurry. So, she flipped the pages of her journal, and landed on her skill quest list. Active Skill Quests: Running Diving Summon Lesser Fiend Basic Herbology Drain Life Life Curse"What the hell?" The list had extended again.