Chapter 2
Somehow I didn't see this coming.
The week following my Awakening was certainly pleasant if lonely. Everyone avoided me so it made it easier to level up stealth, which is currently a respectable (16/20). It definitely became harder to level up as it went up, however I noticed certain actions rewarded more experience. On the other hand, mindlessly using the skill doesn't reward much experience if at all.
For example, trying to be stealthy in a room full of people is more difficult than say... following a six year old girl around. Which gives experience accordingly if you are succesful and nothing at all if you fail. Trying to think of new ways and succesfully apply them in action also rewards much more experience.
"Hey! I'm talking to you!"
Right. I forgot about them.
I was just quietly enjoying petting a stray through the metal gates of the orphanage when those brats cornered me and started insulting me.
I looked at them silently, noting their thin frame and their frowns. I had already had them sorted into the bully category after just a week here. Stealth was useful that way to eavesdrop on people and I learned many things. Who stole what, secrets shared and who I should be careful around.
Well the last one was nothing that my memories couldn't tell me.
Still those three were nothing but annoying in the grand scheme of things and I just wanted them gone so I'll just be blunt.
"What do you want?"
I could see the brief surprise flicking on their face before sneers covered it. 'I know that I didn't talk much if at all before but there's no need to be surprised by that.'
"So you remember how to talk, freak? What, are we interupting your precious alone time?"
I could feel a brief flicker of annoyance before I squashed it. There was no need to take it out on children no matter how they acted. That and the matron won't ever side with me since she was convinced I was possessed by the devil. Turns out having magic meant that emotional outbursts could break things and set animals on people like they were rabid.
I heard a growl behind me and turned to see the dog with his hackles raised and licking his chops.
I sighed. 'Seems I need to work on control, wouldn't want to be exorcized now.' That was frustrating, but it is better to know now than later. So I turned back to them to tell them exactly what I thought about doing to them if they did not scram in the next five seconds. Being younger by a few years be damned.
"Go away."
I should definitely work on my delivery but it seems my utterly flat tone unnerved them at least.
"O-or what? Your dog can't protect you!"
"That's right! And it's not like you'll do anything right, doll?"
Orphanages are not good places if that's the kind children they raise and while those insults were childish they still hit a little part of me. A part that never could let go, a part that grew colder than the winter air each and every time something like this happened.
"Woof! Woof, woof!" Great, now the matron is gonna come and I'll be stuck inside.
"What are you doing?!" Talk about the devil and he shall appear. Or she in this case.
"You come inside now. And you better not bring any snow or mud in!" The glare she threw at them was positively burning and I think the brats agreed with me by the way they flinched. She sure knows how to run a tight ship if anything.
"And you, leave that mutt here. I have chores just for you." Of course you do.
I turn back to the stray, "Go boy, and take care of yourself alright?" I smiled despite him whining and went back inside under the suspicious glare she threw me.
_________________
Frankly I could have tried to make new skills but I was just too eager to max Stealth to do so. I just leveled up cooking to (3/20) and focused exclusively on stealth.
I was extremely close to the last level I could tell, I just needed to give it a last push. And in order to do so I decided to break in 's office to steal something. Probably not very smart but I looked at everyone's routine and nobody should be around for another 30 minutes which should be plenty.
I quietly approached the door and tried to open it only for it to be locked.
Right, of course she would lock it. Thankfully I brought some homemade lockpick I tried on my own door. Hopefully it'll be enough.
I must have spent what felt like an eternity before I heard a god send 'click'.
[You have learned a new skill! Lockpicking (C)]
Nice, very nice.
I entered quietly in the office, taking in the small cluttered desk, a couple cabinets and another door. Her bedroom maybe, I had no idea and didn't care for now. I just searched the desk for anything important or of interest.
I found a very interesting bottle in a drawer. Alcohol, ? My, what would the goverment say...
I left the drawer half open and made a mess of the desk before quietly retreating and closing the door.
[Stealth (C) has reached level Max!
Stealth (C) has evolved into the Skill Stealth (Un)!
You have leveled up!]
How very nice of you, Game. Now to put this bottle in that annoying brat's room and I'll be golden!
I did just that and went to my room to look at my status.
[Name: Ethan Shaw
Title: Traveler
Class: Rogue (2/5)
MP: 100
Stats
Dexterity: 12 - 14
Perception: 11 - 12
Stealth (Un) (1/40): You have become adept in the art of discretion. Learning to use misdirection, your environment and perfecting the bases has certainly taken you far from before but the journey is long still and you have only taken your first step.
Lockpicking (C) (2/20): Shame on you Gamer! Learning lockpicking to commit acts of petty thief! Truly, no acts of evil shall stop your on quest for riches... Or alcoholism. Simples locks are now able to be open by your hands however the more complex safe are still out of your ability.]
While I could feel mild irritation, it was quickly washed away in favor of my first level up! I was giddy with excitement with my new understanding of the system. It seemed I didn't need to kill things to level but to act accordingly to my class. So If I was a thief I just need to steal to level up.
Now that I think about it, was it a coincidence that I leveled up at the same time my skill evolved? Are skills and levels tied?
I would need to experiment on that later, for now I will just bask in the glow of my sucess!
___________________
*Several weeks later*
[You have leveled up!
Name: Ethan Shaw
Title: Traveler
Class: Rogue (4/5)
MP: 100
Stats
Dexterity: 14 - 18
Perception: 12 - 14
Skills:
Stealth (Un) (8/40)
Lockpicking (Un) (1/40)
Pickpocketing (C) (19/20)
Throwing (C) (7/20)
Coocking (C) (13/20)]
I smirked as I smoothly opened the door. Another level in the bag and a skill evolved.
I smoothly got up, closed the door and turned to get out of the alley. Now to get back to the orphanage.
As I mingled between the pedestrians, I relfected on the past few weeks. School had started again and february was in full swing as rain started to pick up. I had used every free moment to work on my skills and my progress showed.
Frankly, it was mostly boring repetition in between flashes of excitement when I decided being a delinquent was more interesting than being a good boy. School was a drag but I decided to slowly gain the confidence of the teacher by showing her I was just a shy but bright boy.
All lies of course
Honestly, that woman was too naive. I just had to smile shily when she complimented me because I answered a question correctly. Little smiles, biting my lips and blushing was all it took before I had her eating from the palm of my hands. She was too motherly that one.
And while it made feel a little bad, as long as it made the bullies stay away I won't hesitate.
It was downright infuriating how children could be cruel really. And I, for one, certainly didn't want to beat up kids for them to learn to stay away.
I waved between the pedestrians, looking for distraced targets.
'That level three was certainly useful', I mused as I swiped a wallet from a jacket hanging on a chair.
'People should be more careful' I rolled my eyes as I pocketed the wallet.
I didn't dare to try the same on the people brushing me, not only because I was caught once before and had to run, but I really don't need to be on my case. That would slow my leveling speed tremendously.
Back on topic, each odd level I received a new skill of my choosing from a list. I had the choice between Pickpocketing, Trapping, and Crafting this time and my eyes immediately zeroed on Pickpocketing. My thoughts had been, 'Money here I come!' but I still took note of the new skill.
So each time I could choose a new skill, another possibility presented itself which replaced my previous choice. That was important, as was the fact that it was Crafting and not another skill. It may imply that I could somewhat influence my next skill selection. And while that was not relevant now because skills at the common rarity could be easily created as shown by Cooking, Pickpocketing and Throwing, for higher rarities that could be the key to unlock them.
Especially for dangerous or double edged skills.
I hummed as I approached the metal gates for the orphanage. It really was a shithole wasn't it? Wear and tear was visibles on the walls, the gates were rusty and made a horrible screeching noise when moving, the roof tended to leak on the upper floors. Really underfunded, what was the government doing?
Well I ignored that and turned sharply in an alley to take the money. 'What a cheap bastard', I thought as I took my meagre prize. It will go under the loose plank under my bed, hopefully nobody will think of looking there.
I threw the wallet away and smiled. Even if it was slow, my life was looking up.
_________________
I could feel the sweat on my forehead as I ran, my breath was ragged and I just wished this day was over already.
The day started as usual. Wake up, wash up, eat breakfirst and go to school, pass the day bored out of my mind before trying to finally evolve Pickpocketing. It had been stuck at level (20/20) for a week now and for the life of me I couldn't make it evolve even though it was level max.
That had been a frustrating experience.
The event that made me decide that I was done with today was my particurlary dunderheaded idea to try and push myself by stealing from an alert target.
Not a very bright idea, that.
And it worked! Well at first, that is. I just made the mistake of looking back when I heard my target shout in surprise. It was, of course, at that moment that our gazes locked and he obviously saw that I was nervous.
His eyes just had time to narrow when I bolted.
[Pickpocketing (C) has evolved into Pickpocketing (Un)!]
So here I am being chased by a man at least twice my age.
At least my skill evolved so silver lining and all that, eh?
Less thinking and more running.
Well excuse me, princess! I reserve the right to complain about my stupidness!
I just heard a snort just as I swerved into an alley to try and lose my chaser when he caught up and threw me to the ground.
"Ow!"
"You'll regret that, brat."
Bastard, I'm not a brat! I'll show hi-
I looked at his furious eyes, messy brown beard, obviously tall frame compared to my measly 4.7 foot tall body and decided that I was in trouble.
He took a step forward and I suddenly noticed that he went to the gym.
Big trouble
"Mercy?"
He grinned, "Don't worry, I'll be gentle." He cracked his fists, "I'll just break a rib or two."
I gulped and decided to try and run again but he just grabbed me and held me against the wall. I saw him lift his hand and only had time raise my arms to try to block the hit.
The strike sent me again on the ground again and I could feel my elbow scrap the ground bloody.
'Damnit, That hurt!'
I looked up to see him grinning and all I could think of was how he hurt me and that bastard was enjoying i-
"Caw! Caw! Caw!"
"What?! get away! you damn birds!"
Suddenly crows descended on the man by the dozen, assaulting him in a frenzy. I admired the spectacle for a moment before deciding to book it.
[MP: 46/100]
"Hey! Get back here! You..."
What a fucking day...
________________
I was back in my room, carefully looking at my arms. They weren't too bad, my elbow was a bit bloody and my forearms will definitely bruise but it was better than the alternative.
All in all, that wasn't too bad.
And just why are you here? Weren't you sleeping?
What? And miss us being beaten bloody? Not on my watch.
Right, I'll just take what I can get.
That's the spirit! And speaking of...
The voice too damn cheery considering what happened but I ignored that in order to focus the more importants things.
[Pickpocket (C) has evolved into Pickpocket (Un)!
Congratulations you have leveled up!
You may now choose a Skill!
Trap making (Common): The prelude to hunting... Pranking! You may now create subtle or not so subtle mechanisms to prank people! These probably won't hurt someone, apart from any self esteem they may have had that is. Gives knowledge of basic trap making.
Crafting (Common): You are now able to craft crude tools, their durability and usefulness are doubtful but maybe you can make something of this... After all, neanderthals used this to hunt prey and survive in the wild. Maybe you'll be able to match them in a few decades?
Dagger arts (Uncommon): Daggers, knives, stilettos and many others. Through history, many were those who used these weapons to great effect. Easy to conceal, fast, throwable and versatile. What's not to love about them ? The greatest could slit a throat faster than you could blink and slip away undetected. For you howerver, the road will be long and arduous, you still are a mere apprentice but perhaps one day you will stand among them.]
This is...
Let's go in a descending order then.
Trap making: arguably the most useful currently, I need to protect the money I've been gathering and this the easiest and fastest way to that. I have seen some children hovering close to my door so it could be urgently needed.
Crafting: The easiest to get and the less useful. I probably will try to learn it but there is no way I am choosing this.
Dagger arts: The most difficult to get and my first uncommon choice. My knee jerk reaction would be to choose this instantly. Not only would it be pretty useful to defend myself but learning it the normal way would be a bloody affair I suspect. however I have no idea where to find a halway decent knife and its use in the near future should be zero. Emphasis on should however...
I never know when I will need it like today.
Another thing would be, will it be available in the next Skill list? Is it one time offer for completing a class? I have no idea but in the long term it would be better to lose an uncommon skill than a higher one.
[Trap making it is.
You may now choose another class.
Name: Ethan Shaw
Title: Traveler
Class: Rogue (5/5)! Pending...
MP: 100
Stats
Dexterity: 18 - 20
Perception: 14 - 15
Skills:
Stealth (Un) (10/40)
Lockpicking (Un) (1/40)
Pickpocketing (Un) (1/40)
Trap making (C) (1/20)
Throwing (C) (15/20)
Coocking (C) (14/20)]
I finally maxed this class, it took way too long.
I took a long look at my status. I have definitely come far from two months ago. Not only do I possess three uncommon skills but my dexterity doubled. And that had a more noticeable effect now that the numbers were bigger.
I was not strictly twice as dexterous as when I awakened but the increase was definitely important, especially when it came to skills. When I cooked I required much less attention to what I was doing, was more precise, hell I could even daydream while cooking now.
It was like actions took less... processing power? Yes let's go with that. I needed less processing power to perform the same actions with the same precision.
I could even twirl my pencil semi-decently now! I had missed doing that and re-teaching myself had been a pain but it was worth it.
And now for the main course...
[Choose a class: Fighter Magician Thief Gambler]
I breathed a sigh of relief, I still had access to the previous classes so that was good. I feared being locked into an archetype. Moreover I could now choose two new classes. Thief was no surprise but Gambler was. Was it because I had spent some time betting things with the other orphans? I certainly got no Skill for it...
Well, I have no idea what Gambler brings to the table even though I had guesses, so I'll just take Thief. Hopefully it'll give me some agility to avoid being caught again.
[Congratulations! You are now a Thief (1/10)!
Thief: The second lowest of the society, Thieves are quick, agile and cunning. They make for poor fighters but surprisingly able ambushers. However their main specialty remains stealing, thus don't expect much of them apart from roughing up a peon. The more competent know how to disarm and create traps. Gives +2 agility/+1 perception/+1 wisdom per level.
Name: Ethan Shaw
Title: Traveler
Class: Thief (1/10); Rogue (5/5)
MP: 100
Stats
Agility: 10 - 12
Perception: 15 - 16
Wisdom: 10 - 11]
No skills?
Disappointing but that is alright.
I got up and went to the bathroom, making a beeline to the sink to clean my elbow.
As the water ran, I looked at myself in the mirror. Blonde hair and gray eyes stared at me and I could only smile, a feeling of anticipation running through my body.
"This is only the start."