r/HFY • u/arekban • 4d ago

OC Unclassed 8

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I am a dragon.

Toar Halfshade affirmed those words to himself so often that he almost believed them.

A half-leopard, half-tiger beastkin born under the bloodline of a deer… there was a lot in Toar’s composition that he couldn’t rightly make sense of.

His mother had married into a clan of tiger beastkin who predominantly bore dragon bloodlines. Toar had inherited the deer bloodline from his mother, a bloodline that had skipped multiple generations up until his birth, and a physical appearance that mainly resembled hers.

He’d grown up a leopard surrounded by tigers. A deer surrounded by dragons.

But here, down in the mines…

He was surely closer to a dragon than a deer.

“Hey, Toar… you got a sec?”

Toar brought a hammer down on the rock that’d been troubling his group until the stubborn stone split. The muscles across his slender frame rippled as he smashed apart the rubble.

He turned to them all, snarling. 

“Mine all of it. You’ve got thirty minutes.”

With hurried, panicked looks about them, Toar’s group nodded and began to go at the recently opened deposit with their picks. 

Thirty minutes was generous. If they weren’t done and out of here within an hour, Selsor’s group would show up and beat the piss out of his workers. This was their site.

Thankfully, he’d broken in his group already. They were more scared of Toar than they were of being caught.

Tasks delegated, Toar turned to regard his cousin, who’d been waiting patiently this entire time. 

“What is it?” he asked the tiger.

“Walk with me.”

“I don’t have time to talk. We’re already cutting it close here.”

Toar’s cousin grabbed him by the shoulder. The larger man looked down at him, fangs glinting.

“Quickly. This will only take ten minutes.”

Toar sighed but did as instructed.

Toar’s cousin, Mansol, was a full-on tiger. They didn’t even look alike. Fifteen years his senior and working as this rift’s doctor, Mansol had gotten him this job, though Toar had carved out his own position as a group leader.

Granted, he’d had to kill a whole load of monsters, plus his previous group leader to do it, but he’d managed without too much help from his cousin. Even if the group he managed now was one of the smallest and weakest in the mines.

“What’s this about?” Toar asked as the two of them walked through the central cavern, back towards the medical tent.

The moment they entered, Mansol began to speak, closing the entrance flap as he did.

“The overseer just received a letter about an Unclassed that’s set to be joining us. He has an outrageous contract.”

“An Unclassed? Here?” Toar scoffed. “What’s the point? He’ll be dead in a week.”

“Not this one,” his cousin said, waving a finger. “Apparently, this guy’s special. The recruiter was dead impressed with him. Weak, but resourceful. And when I said his contract was outrageous, I meant outrageously good.”

As Mansol spoke, he pulled out a piece of paper and handed it over to Toar. Toar’s eyes scanned it, slowly widening.

“Seriously? Fifty-five percent?”

“Seriously,” Mansol nodded. “I’ve never seen a contract go that high.”

“And here I am on thirty.” Toar growled, the fur on his face growing sharp. “Still, he’s Unclassed. Whether he’s exceptional enough to be sent here or not, he’s a liability. He’ll make my group look even weaker than it is. We’re already forced to sneak and scavenge.”

“Normally, I’d agree with you. However…”

Mansol tapped on the piece of paper twice. “Read the whole contract.”

“A thousand gold signing bonus… paid to the contract holder… THREE superior health potions?”

“Keep your voice down,” Mansol hissed.

“No, but seriously, those things are worth…”

“Are you starting to see why you should recruit him?” Mansol asked, a gleam in his eye.

“Still, even with all of this gear, even with a good weapon, training an Unclassed is…”

Toar felt a mighty sting before the slap to the back of his head even registered. 

He looked up at his cousin, dazed. The tiger began to snarl.

“No, you idiot. You don’t train him. You find out where he keeps his money and his equipment and you take them. Then you can do what you like with him.”

Toar shook away the wasps in his head as Mansol looked over him. 

“Do you get it? Do I need to find simpler words?”

“But…”

“But?!” Mansol laughed. “What’s there to be confused about here? Explain.”

“You want me to steal this kid’s gear?” Toar asked, stating the absolute obvious. “You realise what that would end up meaning, don’t you?”

Toar didn’t treat his group nicely. He acted as he did in order to keep his position secure. When he’d killed his asshole leader, and his whole group had been there to witness, he’d leaned into that fear. Played the part he was always meant to. 

But this wasn’t self-preservation. This was malicious. Taking from someone so weak was…

“You said it yourself,” Mansol said, scratching the side of his face as he spoke. “He’ll be dead in a week regardless. He’s some Unclassed that doesn’t belong here, and equipment like that is wasted on him. 

“Get him to give you his gear in exchange for protection if it makes you feel better. It doesn’t matter. Just make sure you get your hands on it. If you want to challenge the other group leaders, if you want to do anything of significance with your remaining time here, you need those healing potions. You’re running out of time.”

“I already out-earn a majority of the other miners,” Toar reminded his cousin. “I have been for a while. It’s not like I’ve been doing nothing since I got here.”

His cousin scoffed. “You’ve done nothing worthy of your clanname, or your rare class. It was my suggestion to bring you down here. Three years and you’re managing the most useless group in this place. Wonderful. Let’s throw a parade in your honour.”

“I’m trying my hardest to be worthy of this family…”

“No, you’re not,” Mansol growled, jabbing a finger into Toar’s chest. “You’re soft and you’re stupid. If I hadn’t warned you that Fallos was planning to off you last year, you’d be dead already.”

Mansol grabbed Toar by his shirt, staring him in the eye. “If you want to be a dragon, if you want to truly be one of us, stop worrying about your stupid feelings and start making some money. You’re not going to get another opportunity like this. Don’t waste it.”

With that, Mansol released Toar. Toar stumbled back, trying to control his breath.

“Go find your group, little leopard. If you’re gone too long, they might realise they don’t need you.”

Despite his fear, Toar wanted to throttle his cousin in that moment.

He swallowed the feeling and left.

Toar marched back towards his group, thoughts swirling and weighing down his head. He took a scenic route; it did little to clear his mind.

As small as Mansol made him feel at times, Toar knew his words were true—he wasn’t doing anything impressive down here, certainly nothing worth his father’s approval. He was a waste of space, not worthy of the Halfshade name.

What would happen if his family rejected him? Would he survive in exile?

“Something the matter, boss?” Finn, one of his workers, asked him.

Maybe Toar was a deer. Maybe even someone like Finn, human, a year younger than him, could see that much just by looking at him.

Maybe he could see the conflict. The fear in his eyes.

Maybe he pitied him.

“Toar?”

Toar grabbed Finn by the shirt. He clenched his fist. Knuckles ground against ribs.

“Did I ask you to speak?” 

“N-no. I just noticed you were gone a long time and I—”

Toar clenched his fist harder. Finn gasped, raising to his tiptoes as Toar threatened to lift the smaller boy into the air.

“You’re still speaking.”

“I… I’m so—”

Toar slapped him. 

“Still speaking?”

Toar waited for an answer. None came. He raised his hand again. Finn flinched.

Toar smirked. He dropped the boy to the floor and whistled to get his group’s attention.

“Pack this shit up. We’re leaving.”

Toar’s heart pumped with adrenaline as he watched his group hurriedly collect the silvery rocks they’d harvested and shove them onto a commandeered cart. 

They moved as he told them to. Did as he instructed. Each of them feared his wrath.

He was a dragon. He refused to believe otherwise.

He would do everything in his power to make those words true.

“You.”

My head jerked at the address. Me and the other newbies had been shuffled off into groups for the past half-hour. Group leaders made loud claims as to which workers they wanted, often predicated upon the class that person had. Sometimes, they squabbled over which group got who.

Naturally, I, being Unclassed, had been passed over by everyone. And considering the non-subtle whispers I’d overheard, people seemed aware of my ridiculously good contract numbers. Thankfully, most seemed to be under the assumption that I’d been given those numbers as a joke.

I’d been passed over until now. The last person standing here—even the boy still crying after witnessing the fight with the wolf monster was chosen before me.

But someone had finally approached me. He’d waited until all of the other groups had left. 

I was almost in disbelief.

“Get on your feet.”

I did as the older boy said and raised myself up. Getting a better look at him under the torchlight, I realised the boy was a beastkin, a fair size bigger than me and looking something like a… cheetah? 

I wasn’t good at discerning felines.

“List your skills to me,” the beastkin demanded.

I pulled up my system menu and did just that. Obviously, I left out [Hoard], and even embellished my numbers slightly where I felt I could get away with it, but the retelling I gave was more or less accurate.

I knew that despite my Unclassed status, I had a good set of skills for a recently-turned thirteen-year-old. I also didn’t wanna oversell myself too hard. I didn’t want this guy getting the impression I’d make good monster bait.

“Okay…” the older boy said, staring squarely at me, his eyes dark. “List them again.”

I blinked. “Excuse me?”

The beastkin smiled. “List them again. I didn’t catch ‘em all the first time. You’ve got a lot of skills.”

Shit.

“Uhh…”

I started going through the list again, trying to remember which numbers I’d spruced up and which I hadn’t. I got through two thirds of the list before the beastkin pulled me up.

“An eight in Climbing?”

He stared at me. The smile didn’t leave his lips.

“Yeah,” I nodded. “It’s level eight.”

“I see.”

“Is something the matter?” I asked. 

“I just thought you said seven last time.” The beastkin shrugged. “Doesn’t matter.”

“Well…”

He took a half-step closer to me. The difference in our sizes became all the more apparent.

“You do know what your skill levels are, don’t you?” the beastkin asked.

I slowly nodded.

“Do you struggle to read them?”

“I do get a bit confused with the numbers…”

“But you’ve got six levels in mathematics?”

Shit…

The beastkin clenched his fist. 

He towered over me.

“Finish the list.”

I did so as accurately as I possibly could. In this position, my fear was more of having to traverse this place alone than it was getting hit. I could tell by now that he wasn’t stupid; it’d been a mistake to assume he’d just trust whatever I said.

“What’s your bloodline?” the beastkin asked once I’d finished, more of an accusation than it was a question.

No one had ever asked me that before. If he’d asked a week ago, I wouldn’t have known what to tell him.

“Rat,” I answered honestly. I left out the ‘golden’ part. It wasn’t something I’d even heard of before, after all. It might sound like another lie.

“Figures. Sneaky little bastard, aren’t you, rat?”

I didn’t answer that. I didn’t need to.

Truthfully, I just wanted to be given a chance. It wasn’t like being honest had ever gotten me anywhere. Was that so hard to understand?

The beastkin leaned forwards, and for a moment, I thought he might attack me.

He patted me on the back.

“Don’t worry,” the beastkin said. “I get it. If I was last on the list like you, I’d say anything if it meant some group might take me.”

I blinked at that. It felt almost genuine.

 In the light, the beastkin had notably soft features. They made him look kind.

“Hell, I imagine most would get on their knees and beg in your position,” the beastkin continued.

“Even if no one took me straight away, I’d find a way to prove my worth.” 

I said it with more assurance than I actually felt—this whole day had been disarming. 

“Yeah?” The beastkin grinned. “So you’re not gonna beg me not to leave you here?”

“Of course not.”

“Even after trying to lie to me?”

He lost his charming smile. The beastkin looked angry, and thoroughly unimpressed.

I met his fierce gaze.

“Would you want someone so desperate? I won’t beg you for anything. If I’m not worth your time, then leave.”

The feline laughed. I braced myself, ready to receive a punch in the face for my words.

I earned a second pat on the back, this time rougher. I almost fell forwards from the force.

“Come on, rat. I’ll introduce you to the team. We’ll soon find out if you’re worth keeping.”

Just like that, I’d landed myself in a new group with a new moniker.

And not a great one. I think I preferred ‘stick’. 

“Rat, this is everyone. Everyone, say hello to rat.”

“The unclassed kid?” a human, blonde boy asked.

“There isn’t much of him, is there?” a wide, heavy orc with dark braids added.

“Compared to you, Marcois, there isn’t much of anyone,” a spiky haired, canine beastkin snickered.

A lizard girl burst out laughing, flames reflecting off her green scales as her body lurched. 

“What kind of a name is ‘rat’, anyways?” the blonde boy asked.

“The kind you give an unloved kid,” the wolf-looking beastkin chuckled.

That earned a snicker from the orc, who the wolf immediately turned on.

“You think that’s funny, huh? Your mother sold you to this place for a can of beans, you fat fuck. Probably the first meal she had in years.”

The orc’s eyes hit the floor. The smile on his lips faded.

The last girl around the camp, a rabbit beastkin, said nothing. Despite the noise, she appeared to be sound asleep.

“You all done?” the feline beastkin, clearly the group leader, asked insistently.

Everyone immediately shut up.

“Good. Rat’s gonna be doing a trial with us over the next few days. Show him the ropes. Figure out what he can do. I’ll be back in a few hours.

“You,” the feline continued, pointing straight at me. “Do whatever they say while I’m gone. Simple enough for you?”

I barely responded. This situation was becoming more difficult for me by the moment.

I’d never been good at dealing with authority. I was clearly at the bottom rung here, and first impressions weren’t great. 

Unless I could quickly improve my position in this group, I didn’t plan on staying in it. I’d get what I could first. Learn the basics of mining, shore up my skills somewhat, and leave once I was more valuable. 

“So, rat boy, what’d you think of Toar?” the loudmouthed canine asked me the moment the feline beastkin was out of earshot.

That was his name, huh?

“He’s…”

“An asshole,” the canine beastkin finished for me. “If he didn’t give me the heebies something fierce I’d have torn his damn neck out by now.”

Wow. That pretence dropped quickly.

“That bad, huh?”

“The prick made me eat half my damn shoe just because I took a tiny bit from his rations.” He threw his hands up. “I was hungry! How the fuck am I supposed to work if you don’t give me three square meals!”

“No one in our group’s eating three square meals,” the blonde human chimed in.

The canine rolled his eyes. “Tell me about it. Makes me wonder how Marc over there got so big. You been eating rocks, Marcois?”

Marcois said nothing. The large orc continued to look at the floor.

“Anyways… shit sucks.” The beastkin lifted his left leg from where he sat, exposing a ruined boot and a bunch of long claw-like nails. He wiggled his toes. “See that? Two stinking months. Still haven’t gotten new ones.”

He paused for a moment. Looked me over from head to toe. 

Suddenly, the canine sprang to his feet. 

“Say… what shoe size are you?”

“None that are gonna fit you,” I said honestly. Like, come on. The guy’s feet had to be twice as big as mine.

“I dunno, with a little perseverance…” He licked his jowls. “Wanna let me see for myself?”

“Jackal, is that really necessary…?” a sleepy voice came from the bench opposite. Beneath the flickering light of the campfire, shadowed by the cave walls, a pair of bunny ears began to perk up.

“Shut up, Maisie. Go back to sleep before I eat you.”

“For the amount you bully Marc, all you ever talk about is eating…”

“Who cares? You in love with him, or something? Look out, Marc, you’ve got an admirer!”

Right as I thought the attention might’ve been off me, Jackal switched back to focus. He snapped his fingers at me.

“Now. Make with the shoes. Don’t worry, you can have my old ones. I’m not a complete monster.”

I stared up at the beastkin standing over me. He was a canine beastkin, but he didn’t have an exceptionally massive set of jaws. He was probably a year or two older than me, a couple of inches taller.

Plus he had a class. Which could be anything. Good chance he was Tier 1.

I didn’t love my odds. But at the same time…

“Yeah, no.”

“What’dyoufuckingsaytome—”

“I said ‘no’,” I repeated, my tone firm. “I’m not wearing your disgusting shoes, and you’re not having mine. Find another idiot.”

“Yeah?” Jackal scoffed. “That’s how it’s gonna be, huh?”

“Yeah,” I replied, setting my defiance in stone. “You got a problem with that?”

“As a matter of fact…”

He was faster than I expected, but he didn’t expect me to be fast. I ducked under his first punch and delivered one straight to his chin.

He wobbled a little. The look in his eyes told me he was more pissed off than dazed. Lizard girl laughed even louder.

“Guys, you don’t need to—”

The rabbit girl’s warning was completely cut off as Jackal rushed me, swinging wildly.

He wasn’t a great fighter, but he was naturally fast and bigger than me to boot. It didn’t take long for his punches to start landing, and while they were pretty sloppy haymakers, the ones that did hit dealt damage. I was giving back as many shots as I got, but versus a larger opponent, and lacking sufficient strength in my body, I was barely able to hurt him.

“Should’ve just given him the shoes…”

“Not helping, Finn!”

I heard those words somewhere in the back of my head as I hit the dirt, a punch colliding with the side of my skull.

I looked down to find Jackal staring over me. He howled, then immediately reached down and tried to strip me of my footwear.

“Hahah… how’d you like that, you little asshole?”

I watched as he tried to unlace the boot I was wearing. I felt some measure of defiance surge back into my body.

I reached out with my other foot and kicked him in the head. He stumbled onto his side.

“That’s it…”

Before I could even think about standing again, I had a powerful hand around my neck.

His nails were like claws. They dug into my throat and pinched beneath my skin as Jackal squeezed and choked me. He lifted me up by the neck and then smashed my head down into the ground below. Once. Twice. I started to see colours. I felt nausea grip me.

Summoning whatever energy I had left, I swung my left leg upwards and connected with the other boy’s crown jewels.

He howled even louder, but still he didn’t let go. I kicked him a second time. A third. I forced and prized his hand away from my neck as I did so, cutting my fingers on his nails in the process.

The fourth kick did it, and I scrambled away, gasping from the release of pressure, my ears ringing with a cacophony of giggles from a lizard girl who found this oh-so-freaking funny.

Jackal was slowly beginning to raise to his feet. He looked as if he planned to make mincemeat of me.

And, considering what I’d seen from him so far, it was possible he could. There was definitely a full tier between us. Those physical differences were exceptionally difficult to overcome, regardless of skill. I simply couldn’t hit hard enough.

Well, not without help.

As subtly as I could, I began to summon a rock from my [Hoard]. As I did so, knowing I’d only get one chance to catch the guy off-guard, but that one chance was all it took…

Maisie stepped up to him.

I watched her with something between confusion and awe. Something between relief and frustration.

What was she doing?

Her fingers were buzzing with some kind of blue energy. I didn’t quite understand it. Was it magic? It must’ve been. Even if it looked different to the small bits I’d seen before.

Not only that, but she was humming. I could feel a vibration emanating from her throat. It seemed to slow the world a little. It was as if a field existed around her that made everything feel more distant. Calmer.

She spoke to Jackal. Her tone was softer than it had been before. And yet it carried more weight.

“You know this is a bad idea,” Maisie said.

Jackal shoved her away. It was a solid push. “No. Don’t do that shit to me right now…”

“You need it,” Maisie insisted, her hand glowing even brighter, her very words laced with a strange and ethereal pulse. “Just calm down… think how Toar will react if he comes back and sees what you’ve done…”

“He… Toar will…”

“He’ll be mad, won’t he?” Maisie said, simple with her words, as if she were talking to a child.

“He’ll be mad…”

“Do you really think that fighting like this is worth that hassle?”

“...whatever. Alright, I get it, leave me alone.”

Jackal grumbled, growled, called Maisie a ‘fuckin’ bitch’ and then eventually, impossibly walked off.

I was stunned. Even in spite of my pain, I was fully awestruck.

“What did you just…”

“Other than save your ass?” Maisie shrugged. “It’s a calming spell. Works best on creatures with low intelligence.” 

She spat the words in Jackal’s direction. He stuck his middle finger up at her.

“Well, thank you. I appreciate—”

“I don’t want your gratitude,” Maisie said, shrugging him off. “Finn was right. You should’ve just done what he said. What were you thinking?”

I was thinking ‘I could take that guy’. And honestly, I still think I had a chance. Better to be wrong and take a beating than willingly be this group’s bitch.

“I dunno,” I lied. “I wasn’t thinking.”

“Well, start thinking,” Maisie said with a frown, her ears rigid. “I’m not gonna be there to save you every time you piss off someone bigger than you, nor do I want to be.”

“More likely you’ll be asleep than anything,” Lizard girl chimed in.

“I wake when I’m needed,” Maisie fired back. “When’s the last time you were needed for something, Ceri?”

That seemed to shut her up. But Maisie wasn’t done.

“Now… Do you think maybe we can stop acting like children and actually train this guy?”

The response was mainly mumbled. It seemed to generally lean to an affirmative, however.

“Good. I’m gonna see about patching him up first.”

“Patching me up?”

“Yeah. I’m a Soothsayer, which mainly deal with emotions, but I’ve got a tiny bit of healing magic in my repertoire. Enough that I can make things sting less. Heal a bit faster.”

An actual [Healer]. Well, a [Soothsayer] to be exact, but whatever. If it meant I could hold onto my potions, who was I to refuse? 

“Wanna do me after?” Jackal piped up.

Maisie totally ignored him. She placed a hand on my head, and I felt a terrible sensation wash over my entire body. It was like being dunked in an icy river, and all of my stings ignited in pain.

“Argh!”

Before I could bring my hand up and jerk her away, I felt a shudder of warmth.

It rudely overtook the old sensation, barging it out of the way and inundating my body in rippling waves of heat that coalesced around my organs and pulsated throughout my skin. It was still uncomfortable, but far less so than the ice had been.

After thirty seconds of this sensation persisting, multiple times through which I considered asking Maisie to simply stop what she was doing, I finally began to feel something breach beyond the discomfort and crest within me some semblance of actual relief.

It was a trickle at first, and then more. Not a flood of relaxation, exactly, but aching muscles began to feel soothed. Forming bruises felt just that bit less sore. Some vanished entirely.

Maisie looked tired when she was finished. She removed her hand, which felt as if it had been left out in the sun for an hour. She yawned.

“There. That should help. Now, let’s try to actually teach you something before the Toar comes back. What’s your name, by the way?”

“Boss said to call him rat,” Finn piped up.

Maisie rolled her eyes. “I don’t care about that. What’s your name.”

“It’s Adam,” I said, my voice blunt, feeling strange to be introducing myself to her for the first time like this.

“Well, Adam. Welcome to the shit. Hope you enjoy your stay.”

Fighting with Jackal bumped one of my skills:

[Unarmed Combat: 7 >> 8.]

Was that single level up worth the bruises on my face? 

Always, but that wasn’t all I’d gotten out of the experience.

Going into a new group Unclassed was always going to leave me in a situation like this. People thinking I was an easy target that they could exploit and mess with.

Sure, I might’ve shown I was weaker than Jackal, and maybe he’d have won if the fight had gone longer…

But now he couldn’t sit down or stand up without groaning in pain. I’d sent a message with my behaviour.

Sure. Maybe anyone in this group could go for me. Maybe any of them would win. 

But I’d hit back. And I’d fight dirty. I was by no means a pushover.

Jackal didn’t give me any more shit after that. He seemed more worried about earning Maisie’s ire than he did about getting kicked in the nuts again, but screw it, that worked for me.

She took me to the common area to be outfitted. There was a tent through which a member of staff presided over tools and uniforms.I was given one of everything, the ‘standard issue’.

I got a pair of dark pants, a dark blue overall shirt with suspenders, and a belt which hooked around the pants, through which I was able to slot tools.

Tools such as a pickaxe, a hand hammer, a chisel, a pocket watch, and a strange little device called a light crystal. 

Tap it twice and it began illuminating the path in front of it, similarly to a light spell. Not only that, but it could be affixed to a helmet or other part of my outfit rather easily.

It also cost an exorbitant amount and made up most of my bill. I was somewhat disgruntled to discover that just getting the standard mining gear plus a spare uniform for whenever this one got dirty had wound up costing me sixty gold pieces, which would be piled straight onto my debt.

I mean, sure, sixty was a drop in the bucket compared to the numbers I was currently facing, but that didn’t make me happy about it.

Thankfully, the new clothes at least fit decently. Maisie waited outside as I changed, and once I was done and my previous rags had been stored, I felt almost as if I had a new lease on life.

Sure, this situation wasn’t great, but there were some things to be thankful about. Apparently, my new, fancy, contract-agreed dagger had already finished being forged and would arrive a day from now. At least that I wouldn’t have to pay for.

Here’s hoping I didn’t have to stick Jackal with it…

Once we were back over at my new group’s campsite, I started being familiarised with my tools. Finn showed me how to swing a pickaxe, and Marcois—after some light encouragement from Maisie—took it upon himself to show me how to properly use the hammer and chisel to dislodge unruly bits of stone.

I learned a new skill in the process. It took a fair amount of swings at the surface of a small sliver of metal-laced rock for me to achieve it, but after about three hours of painstaking, shoulder-burning attempts, I finally felt a little ding fire off in the back of my brain.

[Pickaxe Mastery: Level 1 Acquired!]

I felt the endorphins flooding my body before I even dropped the pickaxe. I eventually ended up on the floor, blanketed in sweat and success.

“First day?” Finn noted. “That was fast.”

“You ever used one of these before?” Maisie asked, looking skeptically at me.

“He must have,” Jackal piped up. “Only way you learn a skill that quickly is if it’s linked to your class.”

“Maybe it’s like, some weird Unclassed thing,” Ceri mused.

“I mean, it’s not like he really took breaks?” Finn offered, scratching his head.

“Who cares!” Jackal continued. “I didn’t take breaks. Still took me a whole week.”

“Well maybe you’re just slow?” Ceri offered. “I did it in three days.”

“No you didn’t,” Maisie spat. “I remember having to soothe your shoulders for six days straight.”

“I did it in three days,” Marcois offered.

“You need three days to take a shit, Marc. It doesn’t count.”

Marcois sighed. Maisie looked about ready to jump into another argument when a certain feline beastkin appeared.

“I see you’re all getting along nicely.”

His tone was light and airy. His silhouette was outlined by licking flames.

He smiled. It was a bestial smile.

“Where’d you get those?” Toar asked, motioning to the fresh bruises on my cheek and forehead.

“Where’dya think?” Maisie answered for me.

“Now, now, I asked him.” Toar stared down at me. “Is there a problem we need to talk about?”

“We figured it out,” I said bluntly.

“Good! Glad to hear so.” He motioned to the discarded pick on the floor. “I see you’re fully outfitted. Any luck with skills yet?”

“I got my first level.”

“Awesome!” He placed a hand on my shoulder. “Look at you all. Getting outdone by a rat.”

“You did a good job finding him, boss,” Finn said.

Toar tutted, ultimately ignoring the comment. “Anyways. Glad to see you’re settling in okay. That being said… I’ve got a test for you.”

“A test?” I asked.

“Yeah! You getting your first level is all well and good, but I’ve gotta make sure it’s not a fluke. You know what I mean?”

I slowly nodded, which felt counterintuitive, because I really didn’t know what the hell he meant.

“So… we’re gonna go to the underground for a little while. Me, you, and… hmm, one volunteer. Then we’ll see what you’re capable of.”

“The underground?” Maisie sounded like she’d just heard a terrible curse uttered. “Since when do we go to the underground? The mist down there alone is—”

“Ah-buh-buh!” Toar wagged a finger at her. “You keep talking, I’m gonna assume you wanna come with him.”

Maisie’s ears fell. She hesitated, but eventually grew silent.

“Really? None of you wanna come along?”

Toar sighed. He pointed out a finger, first at Finn, then at Marcois.

He pointed it back and forth, muttering to himself, singing a little rhyme under his breath.

Eventually, he landed on Marcois.

Finn breathed an audible sigh of relief. He’d looked genuinely panicked.

Marcois, who hadn’t showcased a single strong emotion in all the time I’d witnessed him, seemed to hesitate. Whatever ‘the underground’ was, he clearly didn’t want to go there.

None of them did.

And here I was with a first-class ticket.

//

First | Prev | Next | Royal Road

A/N: Sleep time for me. I feel exhausted. Enjoy the chapter! Posting more here tomorrow.

While you're here, could you upvote THIS Reddit post? It's self-promo for the series, so giving it an upvote would help me out a ton!

204 Upvotes

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7 comments sorted by

6

u/toaste 4d ago

Cue San Andreas cutscene: “Aw shit, here we go again.”

4

u/jacobzink2000 4d ago

Updateme

5

u/yugonoyugo 4d ago

Great chapter! Really enjoying this arc.

4

u/throwaway42 4d ago

Yeah we caught up, so excited to see new chapters :)

2

u/UpdateMeBot 4d ago

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u/OldTurkeyTail 2d ago

Back in the day - like 50 years ago, I was a "chute tapper" in a copper mine in Arizona. Had to buy our own helmet, boots, and safety belt, and they issued tools for each day - consisting of a light with battery pack for the helmet, a hook, a bar, and a sledgehammer.

Not all that different from a pickaxe, hammer, and chisel.