บท 26: Transition
Though Coming of Age Ceremonies were usually private affairs, affording those who participated the opportunity to keep their Class a secret, Asim requested Cairn, Kaia, Tarou, and all of the Neophytes to bear witness as he stood before a 20cm wide crystal ball, opposite from Bishop Adranis.
"May the Light of the Goddess guide me..." muttered Asim, extending his hand and placing it atop the crystal ball. As he did so, the previously clear orb became cloudy, similar to water transitioning into ice. A few moments later, predominately white symbols began materializing within the crystal ball, gradually forming the names of Classes.
Ignoring the white text, Asim focused on the three sets of blue present in the crystal. The inhabitants of Plainaire didn't have classifications such as Common, Rare, Epic, Unique, and Legendary. Instead, they determined a person's character and talent based on the quantity and color of Classes that appeared. White, or Opal, was considered the realm of the mundane. Sapphire denoted that, while a person might not possess an inborn talent, they made up for it with their exceptional drive. Amethyst characterized a person as having extraordinary potential, while the remaining two colors, Ruby and Gold, denoted a special heritage or outstanding achievements.
Though he hoped to acquire an Amethyst Class, Asim wasn't disappointed by his results. Only 1 in 10 people were lucky enough to acquire a Class during their Coming of Age Ceremony. In his case, he had sixteen options, three of which were the Sapphire Classes: Knight, Guardian, and Acolyte.
As Acolyte was a known precursor to the Amethyst Class, Crusader, the prerequisite to becoming a Paladin, Asim closed his eyes and brought his hands together, offering a silent prayer to the Goddess, Restia. As he did so, most of the options listed within the crystal vanished, leaving only the Acolyte Class, gradually glowing brighter as sapphire blue light enveloped Asim's body.
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Name: Asim
Species: Lionel
Gender: Male
Age: 16
Title: N/A
Class: Acolyte(Rare)
[Attributes]
Level: 23/65(125,749/134,726)[Neophyte(20)], [Acolyte(3/20)]
HP: 21,521/21,521
MP: 7,183/7,183
Str: 75+15->90+23
Agi: 68->70
Vit: 183+91->203+114
Int: 95+38->100+46
Dex: 81->82
Cha: 48+29->53+32
Talent(s): [Goddess of Light's Blessing(23/40)], [Corruption Resistance(20/20)], [Blessed Body(3/20)], [Lionel Physiology(23/65)], [Mace Mastery(20/73)], [Shield Mastery(28/59)], [Undead Slayer(19/49)]
Skill(s): [Light Healing(MAX)], [Purification(MAX)], [Regen(1/10)], [Consecration(1/10)], [Charge(MAX)], [Heavy Blow(9/10)], [Shield Bash(8/10)], [Stalwart(3/10)], [Lifestyle Magic(3/5)]
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"Congratulations, Asim," said Bishop Adranis, a faint smile adorning her lips as she added, "Acolyte may not have been the Class you sought, but with your work ethic, it's only a matter of time before you attain your goal of becoming a Paladin. May the Light of the Goddess guide you..."
"Always and forever..." replied Asim, placing his hand over his chest and offering a steeper-than-normal bow. Soon after, Tristan, Ariella, Chelsea, and the rest of his former-fellow Neophytes congregated around, some embracing him while others pat him on the shoulder. However, without exception, they were all unpretentiously congratulatory as they wished him well in the future...
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"It's not too late to change your mind," said Cairn, staring back over his shoulder as Asim, Tristan, Ariella, and Chelsea took one final look at the northern gate of Austral, the city they had called home for much of their lives.
"Sentiments are meant to be stored in the heart," replied Asim, turning to face Cairn, Kaia, and Tarou with a smile as he appended, "Besides, while she might not voice her displeasure aloud, Lady Restia would invariably be disappointed if we turned back after choosing to press forward. The Path of Light has innumerable twists and turns, but every route to the future is paved by conviction and absolution."
Shaking his head, Cairn adopted a smile of his own as he said, "So long as it gets us to the Capital before the Decennial Tournament of Champions, I don't care what route we take. Any suggestions?"
"The shortest path between Austral and Runegraad is the one we're on right now, the Central Meridian Highroad," replied Kaia, chiming into the conversation.
Nodding in affirmation, Asim added, "So long as we continue traveling north along this route, we'll eventually reach the Capital. En route, we'll pass through the cities of Salem, Rahst, Windrose, Prahksa, and Hyuule, Windrose serving as the midway point."
"It's also the confluence point of the Central Meridian and Central Parallel Highroads," said Tristan. "If you ever wish to travel to Fortas, the nation of the Dwarves, or Thania, the Elven capital, traversing the Central Parallel is the most secure route."
"I'll keep that in mind," replied Cairn. However, while he was curious about the nations of other races, he didn't care enough to visit them on a whim. Kaia had told him that the High Elves and Elder Dwarves were functionally immortal, some having lived for thousands of years, so it wasn't a stretch to imagine one or more Level 100s wandering about. The Grand Matron of the Elves, in particular, was known by two other titles, Grand Archivist and Archmage. She was also more than 6000 years old, so unless she was the literal embodiment of sloth, there was no way she wasn't Level 100...
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With the distance between Austral and Salem being 273km, traveling from one to the other on foot typically took around two weeks for a reasonably fit group of travelers. Fortunately, the upcoming Decennial Tournament of Champions represented 1,000 years since the founding of the Runegraad Kingdom. A thousand years was more than enough time for humanity and the other Sovereign Races to expand throughout Cliabhaan. By the end of their first day on the road, Cairn's group had passed through six medium-sized villages before settling in a cozy, single-inn townlet named after the Dungeon it had been built around, an underground cavern called the Frog Hollow.
Fortunately for Cairn, while there was a public bathhouse, the Inn they were staying in also had private, spacious, barrel-shaped baths in each room. The tub was large enough to accommodate Kaia, but she had to sit on her hind legs, leaving no space for Cairn to enter. As a result, when it was his turn to take a bath, he entered alone, soaking in the novel, barrel-shaped tub up to his chin.
"I could get used to this..." muttered Cairn, referring to how comfortable the tub was compared to the type that had you lie horizontally. A notable pressure enveloped his body, but that only served to make the bath more relaxing, kind of like wrapping himself in a warm, weighted blanket.
Hearing Cairn's remark, Kaia, sitting off to the side with a brush used to remove the water and grease from her fur, asked, "You really don't enjoy bathing with other people, do you?"
"As I said before, I'm just not used to it," replied Cairn, opening his eyes and staring at Kaia out of the corner of his eye as he added, "I think I've come pretty far, considering it hasn't even been a week since I arrived in this world..."
"You have," agreed Kaia, referring to the fact she was naked and Cairn exhibited no discernible discomfort. "However, your insistence on renting a separate room from the others was a bit..."
"It was necessary," contended Cairn, rising from the tub just enough to rest his arms on its rubbery perimeter as he explained, "It's going to take at least three months for us to reach the Capital. I don't want my Party to be filled out by members of the Church, so we have no choice but to keep a certain distance between Asim and his groupies..."
"That's what I don't fully understand," said Kaia. "The Church has made it clear they intend to support you. They even permitted us to take weapons and armor from the training hall, so why are you against letting additional members of the Church to our Party?"
"Because I enjoy making my own decisions," replied Cairn. "Things would have been fine with just Asim. The problem is the amount of rapport he's built with the others over many, many years. They might listen to me after learning of my status as the Champion, but then they would serve me out of a misplaced sense of duty or divine purpose...that's not how I envision my Party to be..."
"Then, how do you envision it—us?" asked Kaia, genuinely curious as she was effectively a permanent member of Cairn's Party.
"You and I are outcasts..." asserted Cairn, catching Kaia a little off guard. Then, as he gazed into the distance, seemingly staring into the future, he added, "My ideal Party is a group of outcasts, people with strange quirks or grand ambitions that transcend the 'reason' of society. If the members of our Party have strong ties to any existing groups or factions, it will only create drama or cause problems when we try to ascend the tower..."
Turning to meet Kaia's gaze, Cairn clarified, "With you and the Saintess, our Party already has a strong association with the Church. With Asim and the others, that connection would become a chain that binds us..."
Shaking his head, Cairn added, "What we need right now is someone who can cook, someone who can repair equipment, a mage that can deal with large groups of enemies in a single go, a thief that can detect and disable traps, a scholar who is familiar with the Frontier, and a skilled topographer to produce maps. Someone that can take a ton of punishment would also be nice, but I'm prepared to fill that role myself if necessary..."
"I see you've put a considerable amount of thought into this..." muttered Kaia, surprised by the fairly comprehensive list he had provided.
"It's because of this," replied Cairn, materializing an ancient-looking scroll covered in a waxy substance that made it waterproof.
"What's that?" asked Kaia, tilting her head slightly.
"It's the map showing the location of the Cave of Wonders," replied Cairn. "Using my Insight, I can see what monsters occupy the Dungeon and the resources we can expect to find. More importantly, the information on the scroll warns that once we enter, we'll be sealed within until we defeat the Guardian. Once we teleport out, the Dungeon will disappear, so if we want to make the most of this once-in-a-thousand-year opportunity, we'll need to spend at least a few months killing the monsters within and harvesting their resources."
"What kind of resources?" asked Kaia.
"Well, the main monsters are things like Rock Crabs, but as we move deeper, there are Mithril Tortoises and Adamantoises," revealed Cairn, causing Kaia's eyes to widen. Adamantoises were the only known source of the nearly indestructible mineral, Adamanitum, so the armies of entire nations would mobilize whenever one appeared. A single kilogram of the exceptionally rare substance could fetch as much as 100,000 Graadis at auction, so if they had free reign to harvest an entire Adamantoise, they could either use it to produce exceptionally powerful equipment or sell it off to ensure they never had to worry about funding.
"That's right," said Cairn. "So long as we can raid that Dungeon, we'll be set for the rest of our adventure. That's why, once we reach the Capital, I plan to search for talent using my Insight. We could also reach out to a few people through the Freelance Company, but I want to save that as a last resort."
"I understand," replied Kaia, fully supportive of Cairn's plan. She was still a little reluctant about parting with Asim and the rest, but she also knew their 'talent' was a bit lacking for a permanent member of the Champion's Party. Even she, who was considered the greatest prodigy of her people, only had a Level/Talent Cap of 88. If they were serious about entering the Tower of Ascension in the future, they needed to recruit people who could stand at the very pinnacle of their respective fields.
"I figured you might," mused Cairn, subsequently rising from the tub as he was starting to feel like a boiled egg. His smile cramped a little when Kaia offered to help him dry off, but he didn't refuse her, gradually getting used to the idea that the only boundaries between the people of his new world were those they set for themselves...
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(A/N: If you have any ideas regarding the composition of Cairn's Party, feel free to share (O w O). I have quite a few of my own, but nothing is set in stone until it's written.)
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