17 The polymorph

"The polymorph ?"

Sasaki had never heard of such a class in any of the MMORPGs she had played. So it was a class totally unknown to her, and she did not really know what to expect.

"How am I supposed to fight then, if I don't have any spell or skill ?" She asked with interest. She wanted to be strong ! But if she had to spend hours and hours staying weak while learning to play properly... She would have preferred a simpler class to tackle.

"As you did right now. You're feeding on the spells and skills of other classes to replenish your set. Your potential is unlimited, and the combinations you can do are endless. There are many different ways of playing the polymorph class." Explained Loptr who had walked to the bar counter and put his cut arm on the wood. He opened a drawer and retrieved a needle and thread, starting to sew it without hesitation.

"It doesn't... It doesn't hurt ?" The girl inquired, who could scarcely look at the scene, whose sight made her chill with disgust.

"It hurts. but it's the price to pay for my arm. Marigold, put Dylan's armor and sword in your inventory, mine is full. I'll see what to do with it later." He ordered his employee, who executed without delay, seizing the various pieces of metal scattered on the ground. Sasaki watched her, wondering what the inventory of this game looked like. Marigold's arm lit up as she held the helmet in the palm of her hand, and the piece of equipment disappeared, turning into luminous fireflies that came to be placed in the arm of the woman. She continued to do the same with the rest of the equipment.

A hand landed abruptly on Sasaki's shoulder, which almost jumped. She turned to the person who was so familiar with her, expecting to find Ofelya she had not seen for a while.

"You've done well. For me, he have seen through my spells." Omuge smiled at his friend, as if everything was normal, and they had known each other for a long time. Sasaki went away awkwardly, blushing, trying to hide her face with her hands.

"Y-yes, well, I didn't do much-" She answered in a trembling voice. She did not really know what to do, if she had to tell him she was really his friend, or continue to pretend to be an stranger... She was a little ashamed to appear in front of him in such an attire...

"Besides, you'll have to explain to me how you ended up there. I've been looking for you for a while, and you haven't answered any of my messages." Sasaki froze as dhe heard the words of her friend who had broken through without hesitation.

"H-h-how do you know I'm Sasaki ?"

"Maybe because everyone's calling you Sasaki n'avait ?" He laughed gently, looking at the girl in the face. It made it strange to be in front of her after all this time spent talking to her only by message. And even if she was just an avatar, Omuge thought that her appearance was probably not far from the one she had in reality.

"Ah yes... I would have preferred you to see me in a better light than that..." She said in a peevish voice, lowering her eyes.

"By the way, boss, how is it that Sasaki's spell worked on Dylan and not yours ? And mine, too, seemed to be working a little while."

"You cast a spell on him ? When ?" Asked Sasaki who had not seen Omuge do anything but lie and provoke the knight.

"I'm a poet. By my simple words I can calm or annoy other people... Well, apparently it doesn't work on those who are much stronger than me." The young man boasted, putting a hand on his chest as he spoke with a theatrical air. He really took his role to heart...

"To answer your question, know that there are different kinds of spells. I'm a necromancer, so I only master spells that use black magic. The petrification spell Sasaki cast is using neutral magic, without any attribute. I think Dylan's armor and his sword were only effective against black magic, so I could not do him any damage."

"I understand better... Anyway, it was a good idea to keep this blade in reserve." Omuge complimented him with a smile.

"It also makes me think that he came with the sole intention of confronting me... I'm going to have to be more vigilant in the future." Loptr finished, cutting the thread coming out of his skin. He had finished seaming his arm, and made a few movements with his hand to make sure everything was in place. Sasaki had trouble imagining that such a miracle was possible, but apparently it was the case for necromancers.

"Well, since the bar is unusable now, I'm forced to cut off your work day at all." Announced the boss to the few waitresses who were in the restaurant and who had been hiding during the fight. "Don't worry, you'll be paid anyway, I'll try to repair the damage as quickly as possible and I will contact you when you can come back to work here."

Gradually, the last girls who were in the restaurant with them left the place, some happy that their chore ended earlier, and others affected by what had happened. Marigold had remained standing beside her boss, proud and upright.

"Allow me to give you my help with the repairs ! I'll be helpful here, and we'll be two, it will be quicker." She said, bowing to the necromancer with respect. Sasaki was beginning to understand why she was the head waitress, she was so loyal and responsible... People like her unfortunately became more and more rare.

"No problem, I would not refuse such precious help. We'll start a little later however, before I'd like-"

A thud cut Loptr's voice as the door to the kitchens burst open. It had been blocked by debris that prevented its opening, and the girl who had been locked in the room next door had found another solution : the explosive arrow.

"Sasakiiiiiiiiiiiii !!" Ofelya threw herself into the arms of the poor girl who fell back against the ground as she suffered the impetus of her friend.

"I was so scared ! I thought he was going to kill you all, and I was stuck in the kitchen, I couldn't even help you..."

"Is she your friend ?" Omuge asked, squatting next to the two girls.

"Is he your friend ? He looks like a host with his hair discolored." Ofelya said looking at him without consideration.

"Hey, you're the closest to a hostess here, given what the waitresses are doing in this bar..." The young man defended himself as he stood up.

Sasaki did the same, trying not to look too embarrassed. She just hoped that Ofelya would not make her look like an idiot in front of her friend.

"Yes, it's the girl who was supposed to make me pass the tutorial, except that there were complications in the meantime, and I'll explain it to you later..."

"Understood ! My name is Omuge, nice to meet you." He introduced himself politely.

"Ofelya."

Loptr's two hands rested on Ofelya's shoulders. Cold hands like those of a dead man, which shook the little girl with fear.

"So it's because of you that Sasaki has no interface, right ? Well, anyway, I was saying that I would take her to the class pavilion before you cut me screaming. By the way, I don't know why your collar didn't work, I guess it's because of the magic interferences caused by the different spells I used... "

Ofelya remembered the collar she had around the neck, which fortunately had not electrocuted her again. She sighed with relief as she tried to get away from Loptr, which gave her goosebumps, but he grabbed her by the throat.

"Calm, I'm just taking off your collar." The necromancer removed the device from Ofelya's neck and did the same with Sasaki's, before storing them in his inventory.

"You won't need it any more. You won't work here anymore."