Chapter 14: Job Change Quest

After around twenty-four days of taking it easy, I was starting to grow crazy. The only reason I have yet to jump into the job change quest was due to helping out Totsuka with his tennis training and my daily strength training quests. But even those had started to grow extremely easy.

With the upcoming official Gate raid I and that blue-haired girl, or Saki Kawasaki as I came to learn, would be a part of, I wanted to be as strong as possible. Completing this job change quest would only benefit me. Even if the Gate we would be taking on would be ranked within the E through C difficulty.

I decided to split the quest's rewards in half. Thirty-six stat points were added evenly into my five stats, and the other half of the rewards went into gift boxes. Instead of opening twelve individual boxes, I combined them into four rare boxes. Two out of the four boxes ended up as duds. Damn, gacha games.

[ ITEM: INFINITY PEN ]

[ TYPE: JUNK ]

[ CLASS: E ]

[ A pen with unending ink that will last until the end of time. ]

[ ITEM: KEY TO IT ALL ]

[ TYPE: JUNK ]

[ CLASS: E ]

[ A key that will open any and every lock. ]

Fortunately, the other two boxes contained terrific items.

[ RING OF REFLECTION ]

[ TYPE: ACCESSORY ]

[ CLASS: A ]

[ 15% Chance of sending an opponent's attacks against themselves. ]

[ BRACELET OF RECOVERY]

[ TYPE: ACCESSORY ]

[ CLASS: A ]

[ Player will regenerate 1% health every 60 seconds. ]

As I walked through the Gongenmori mountains to begin the job change quest, I looked down at the ring of reflection on my right pointer finger. The ring had a green emerald jewel with a gold and red band. On my right wrist was the bracelet of recovery, a thin black and silver metal bracelet with a gloss coating.

I touched a small wolf-head ruby gemstone containing a tiny flowing flame inside. The gem was attached to an ebony rope necklace that sat comfortably over my neck; this was the reward for killing the Red Wolf of Chaos from the A-ranked instance dungeon.

[ RED WOLF NECKLACE ]

[ TYPE: ACCESSORY ]

[ CLASS: A+ ]

[ +15 AGILITY ]

[ +15 VITALITY ]

With a mighty leap, I fell a few hundred feet and landed harmlessly on the grass field below. In preparation for the quest, I had also spent quite a bit of gold on health, mana, and stamina recovery potions. I grinned in anticipation as I double-checked all my items and weapons for the upcoming battle. If it was anything like the A-Rank instance dungeon. Then I'd have my hands full of difficult enemies to fight.

"Let's get started." I said, and a bolt of purple lightning shot down from the sky. A large surging portal sprang to life where the lightning had struck the ground. It was by far the largest portal I've ever seen. I grinned and walked towards it.

"Job change, huh? Let's see what you got for me."

x x x

[ (!) NOTIFICATION ]

[ You are not permitted to leave this dungeon until you have completed the job change quest. ]

[ (!) NOTIFICATION ]

[ Consuming potions within this dungeon will have no effect, and the shop function has been disabled. You will also not be able to recover your status upon leveling up. ]

"Son of a bitch!" I roared and dismissed the notifications. All my careful planning and potion stocking have just been rendered useless. Whatever quest this is, it must have been set to hardcore difficulty. "I'm going to have to play this slow and carefully. It's going to take me hours playing cautiously."

I sighed and looked where I ended up. Extremely high ceilings hung overhead, and several unlit golden chandeliers hung in the air throughout the fantastical and expensive castle I was in. The floor beneath me was pristine, grey marble with golden accents. The only light source in the castle were the small torches spread out every fifteen feet on the walls. Wordlessly, I summoned my stat's display window.

[ STATUS ]

[ NAME: HACHIMAN HIKIGAYA ]

[ JOB: NONE ]

[ TITLE: UNDEAD SLAYER ]

[ HP: 8678 ] ( +1% x 60 sec )

[ MP: 960 ]

[ LEVEL: 41 ]

[ FATIGUE: 1 ]

[ STRENGTH: 104 ]

[ AGILITY: 103 ] ( +15 )

[ SENSE: 80 ]

[ VITALITY: 81 ] ( +15 )

[ INTELLIGENCE: 77 ]

[ REMAINING POINTS: 0 ]

My stats are looking good. I should be able to handle myself until I reach the boss. My footsteps echoed in the long hall, their echoes reverberating back to me. Suddenly, the sounds of heavy armored footsteps clanged one after another. I focused on the poorly lit hall and saw a heavily armored knight step out of the shadows. His long broadsword glimmered as the light from the torches bounced off the sharp metal.

Extravagant medieval castle with a knight, so it's that kind of dungeon. The knight dashed towards me, but his heavy armor slowed him enough that he might as well have been waddling through water. With my strength stat at one hundred and four, I should be able to do this.

I threw a right hook into the knight's chest armor as I weaved to the right to avoid the descending broad sword. The knight's grey armor crumbled around my hand, and its body was launched deeply into the far wall. As it slid down the wall, I jumped towards it and grabbed the sides of its helmet. My knee flew up and shattered its protective armor, exploding his head into pieces of steel.

[ (!) NOTIFICATION ]

[ You have defeated [ KNIGHT ] ]

I turned around and saw a small troop of knights marching towards me. They were armed with various weapons but lacked any shields. Seven, ten, twelve… okay. Let's see how well this weapon does.

I held my right arm out, and the ice dragon fang dagger shimmered into my grasp. The black and purple tanto blade released a faint cold mist around its length. Let's see how much armor damage this thing can actually do.

[ Fatal Strike Lv. 1]

[ 70 mana required ]

[ For Daggers Only ]

[You've learned how to attack more efficiently. You can locate an opponent's weak spots and inflict fatal damage. ]

Fatal strike was a passive skill I learned during my time in the A-rank instance dungeon. It made it so I could easily spot the weak spots on an opponent, however, due to my inability to use mana recovery potions. It made it risky to use my mana recklessly. But with this many gathered knights bunched up together, I could use the skill once and quickly attack one after another.

The hall exploded in loud explosions of metal and steel. Armor and limbs flew in the air as I moved from one knight to another and quickly slashed into their fatal spots. This dagger is perfect for these guys. Other than the Atlantean dagger, I doubt that my other weapons would have been able to damage them through their armor.

[ You have defeated [ KNIGHT ] ]

[ You have defeated [ KNIGHT ] ]

[ You have defeated [ KNIGHT ] ]

[ You have … ]

I spun to a stop and looked back at the defeated knights. I walked over to their destroyed bodies and saw several different drops lying around.

[ ITEM: LEATHER POUCH ]

[ CATEGORY: MISCELLANEOUS]

[ A pouch for carrying money. ]

[ KNIGHTS CHESTPLATE ]

[ TYPE: ARMOR]

[ CLASS: B ]

[ Physical damage decreased by 7% ]

[ If strength is less than 80, movement speed will decrease. ]

I quickly equipped the armor and opened the leather pouch. Lucky. Inside the pouch was thirty thousand gold, which brought my overall hold up to six hundred thousand. With nothing more to do, I walked through the hall and saw another squad of knights. Behind them were several archers who lifted their bows in my direction. Feeling an itch at the back of my head, I swung my blade behind me and felt it cut through something solid.

The sounds of quivers being released caused me to grab the beheaded body of the assassin I just killed and use its dead body as a shield. My human shield jerked repeatedly as several arrows plunged deeply into its body. I lifted and tossed the assassin's body over the knight's heads and onto the two archers, knocking them back.

Instead of using my dash skill, I jumped on the far right wall and ran alongside it. Once close enough, I leaped into the center of the gathered knights and began to slice and punch away at them. My danger sense blared again, and I rolled to the side and avoided a blast of light magic. Great, now there's magicians?

[ FATIGUE: 25 ]

I bent down, grabbed one of the downed knight's swords, and dodged to the side to avoid another magical blast. Pulling my arm back, I launched the knight's sword through the air with a bang. A large hole exploded from the magician's stomach and crumpled to the floor.

I moved my head back and watched an arrow from an archer whizz by my nose. I ran towards them and hopped from side to side to avoid their speeding arrows. Once I was close, I used my blade to slice them down quickly. I avoided a falling attack from an assassin and delivered a spinning back kick that caved in my would-be killer's chest. I looked up and saw three more assassins on the ceiling; their arms were pulled back, and daggers rested in their grasps.

I dashed behind a pillar and heard several heavy thuds. Looking down at my foot, I saw one of the archer's bronze bows and grinned. Picking it up, I jumped out of the right side of the pillar and launched two arrows in quick succession directly into the face of one of the assassins. Looks like those arrows from the goblins came in handy.

The remaining two assassins were stunned momentarily when their comrade fell onto the pile of dead knights. I bent my knees and lunged directly at the center knight. Rearing my elbow back, I slammed it directly into the assassin's neck. A loud snap echoed in the large hall as I lunged at the last assassin. It swung a small blade towards my stomach, fully intent on slicing me open.

Unfortunately for the assassin, my agility was too high for it. My left hand blurred and grabbed the assassin's wrist and snapped its bone in a quick twist. Its blade fell uselessly to the ground. With a horizontal slash, the assassin's head went flying off. I fell onto the ground with a huff.

"Shit." I said as I saw even more knights, assassins, and archers heading my way from deeper within the hall. "Alright. Who's next!"

x x x

I sat against one of the castle's large walls with a torch hanging above me. I sipped greedily on a water bottle. Once I was done, I placed it back in my inventory along with the three other empty bottles. I've spent several hours fighting wave after wave of the castle's enemies. But it seemed that they had all run out.

Thanks to the countless enemies I've defeated, I leveled up to level forty-six. Alongside that, I was lucky to have found some more strong items as well.

[ WARDENS COLLAR ]

[ TYPE: ARMOR ]

[ CLASS: A ]

[ Physical damage decreased by 6% ]

[ KNIGHTS GAUNTLETS ]

[ TYPE: ARMOR ]

[ CLASS: B ]

[ Physical damage decreased by 9% ]

[ If strength is less than 73, movement speed will decrease. ]

[ ARCHERS GLOVES ]

[ TYPE: ARMOR ]

[ CLASS: C ]

[ Physical damage decreased by 5% ]

[ 25% more accurate when handling throwing weapons or bows and arrows. ]

[ MAGES RING ]

[ TYPE: ACCESSORY ]

[ CLASS: B ]

[ +5 INTELLIGENCE ]

[ -8% Mana consumption on skills. ]

[ ASSASSINS BOOTS ]

[ TYPE: ARMOR ]

[ CLASS: B ]

[ +7 AGILITY ]

[ When equipped, Player's footsteps will be silenced. ]

Overall, I felt good about my current situation. My fatigue was still in the high thirties, and I'd only used around two hundred mana points. Okay, break time is over. I stood up and headed deeper into the castle. I knew I was getting closer to the boss's room as I walked. The air and energy around me had begun growing heavier and more oppressive. I wanted to compare it to when I fought the boss in the A-rank instance dungeon, but this was on a completely different level.

There. Two large black and brass doors with a red jewel in the center stood at the end of the hall. The heavy energy I've felt here was heavily concentrated behind them. But before I could proceed further, a lone female knight stood guarding before the double doors.

[ KNIGHT LIEUTENANT - IRIS THE GREAT ]

The knight was armed in deep blue armor and a short white cape. She wore a Valkyrie helmet covering half of her face, exposing her pale mouth and jaw. From underneath her helmet flowed long, straight white hair that seemed to glow. Her arms were held in front of her, gauntlet-covered hands resting on a long, glowing, broad sword with a blue hilt and black grip. Its blade was a shining silver.

The knight's name was colored orange-red. Which meant her strength was not to be underestimated. I came to a stop and stared into her helmet-covered eyes. She didn't move a muscle.

"You must be the door guard. You here to stop me from reaching the boss?" I asked as I slid into my fighting stance. In my hands were the Atlantean and Ice Dragon daggers in reverse grips. If her armor was anything like the other knights I've fought, I'd need the weapons with the best armor-penetrating buffs. Hell, her armor might be even more robust than the grunts from before. "It doesn't matter, I'll just kick your ass and walk in."

With nothing more to say, I dashed forward using only my raw speed. I slashed diagonally with my right dagger, intent on cutting the knight across her chest. But with speed I wasn't expecting, she raised her glowing sword in both hands and parried my attack. Sparks flew between us as I looked at her unchanging face. Let's kick things up.

I began attacking and cutting away at her, but she quickly blocked or parried with every strike I threw. Why aren't you attacking? Growing annoyed, I activated my fatal strike and dash skills in unison. My speed and precision doubled, and I quickly overwhelmed her; her mouth grimaced as she failed to keep up with me. Cuts and cracks began to cover her armor, and her red blood began to fly through the air.

As I was about to stab her neck, I had to stop my attack and jump back quickly. The knight's glowing sword cut through the air, and a fast whizz passed in front of me. I looked down and saw a thin cut across my chest. I turned back to Iris and smirked. "That's more like it!"

With my opponent finally attacking back, we ran, dashed, jumped, and danced throughout the large hall in an epic battle of blades. As we fought, I couldn't help but smile in exuberance as I had to watch her attacks actively. Iris was not faster or stronger than me. No, she was extremely skilled. So skilled that if I let my guard down for even a second, I'd risk losing a limb. Proof of that was my cut-stricken body.

There! I had poured most of my strength into an upward swing that had broken her stance. I heard her grunt softly in a feminine voice. I moved forward and stabbed both blades into the sides of her torso. Yes! As I hoped, both blades freeze and poison buffs were applied to Iris. She stood frozen and helpless, thanks to the ice dragon blades.

Now's my chance! I grabbed her broad sword and pulled it down, stabbing it deeply into the floor. With her body unprotected, I pulled one of my daggers and stabbed it deeply into her chest. Iris jerked in pain and slowly fell to her knees. I fell with her and pulled my dagger out of her bleeding chest. As carefully as I could, I laid her down.

[ You have defeated [ KNIGHT LIEUTENANT - IRIS THE GREAT ] ]

[ You have leveled up! ]

"Thanks for the fight." I said and stood. As I walked towards the double doors, I missed the satisfied smile that grew on her pale face.

I pushed one of the enormous double doors open and felt a wave of pure energy wash over me. I narrowed my eyes as I stepped inside the expansive throne room. Several pillars stood scattered in clean patterns in the room, and a long red carpet led straight toward a lone empty throne. Several burning torches along the walls burned bright, filling the room with soft orange light.

"A throne without a king." I muttered as I walked closer to the throne. A horrible sensation flooded my body. I was overcome with pure, unadulterated fear. What is this? This chilly feeling.

Something tall and very red stepped out from behind a pillar. An armored gauntlet dragged a large gold and black broadsword along the ground. A slim, impressive suit of blood-red armor stepped over and stopped in front of the lone throne with its red cape billowing behind it. On the knight's helmet was a long, flowing crimson plum. The knight's two glowing, sharp white eyes looked at me coldly.

[ KNIGHT COMMANDER - IGRIS THE BLOOD RED ]

No way… his name is red and black. I bit my tongue, and a shock of pain stopped my body's excessive shaking. I spat out a glob of blood and wiped my mouth. I grinned at the knight and held my blades up.

"Bring it."

Igris, the knight commander, moved. My body reacted on instinct alone and dodged low. A powerful burst of air exploded from behind me. Pillars and large chunks of the floor ripped through the air. It was as if a hurricane had briefly passed by me. That was just a single swing of his sword! This guy is way overpowered!

I swung both of my daggers and watched as they sliced deep cuts into his blood-red armor. I snarled as I jumped into the air. Lifting both legs, I landed a powerful double kick onto Igris's chest that caused an ear-splitting boom to fill the room. I watched as he slid back several feet. It may have been a trick of the low light, but I could have sworn I saw him nod slightly.

I dashed after him and stabbed the ice dragon dagger into his face. His giant sword flew to intercept my attack, causing my arm to jerk above my head. Igris then used the opening I left to launch a bone-rattling kick into my side. I slid back and crashed through two pillars, sending dirt and rubble everywhere.

"You bastard." I whispered and stood up. My ribs yelled in agony as I pointed my Atlantean blade at the knight. "That all you got?"

Igris narrowed his eyes and blurred in front of me. His sword was held above him, and with a quick pull, it descended at my head like a torpedo. I dodged to the side, and the thick blade cut deep into the floor. Causing a massive shockwave that shook the room. I used the dust he kicked up from his attack and disappeared using my camouflage skill.

[ Advanced Dagger Wielding Lv. 1 ]

[ For daggers only. ]

[ Your skills with a dagger have increased due to wielding it for a long time. Damage increased by 33% when equipping a dagger. ]

Igris looked side to side but was suddenly attacked from all directions. I blitzed in and out and cut deep into his armor with my blades. He tried to find my position after every attack, but I would be gone just as he turned. I have to move fast! Faster than ever! His glowing white eyes found their way to me as I blurred in front of him.

Using the flat end of his sword, Igris slammed me across the room and into the throne. Shattering it to pieces. Before impacting the wall, I flipped my body and used my legs to catch me. I stood on the wall, crouched and peering at the red knight. If it weren't for all the armor I had, that would have hurt a lot more.

[ Fatal Strike Lv. 1]

[ 70 mana required ]

[ For Daggers Only ]

[You've learned how to attack more efficiently. You can locate an opponent's weak spots and inflict fatal damage. ]

[ ACTIVE SKILL ]

[ DASH - Lv. 1 ]

[ Skill: Dash has been activated. ]

[ Your speed has increased by 30% ]

I flexed my legs and bounded off the wall, causing it to explode into rubble and dust. I cut through the air and rushed Igris with a roar. My Ice Dragon blade sunk deeply into his lower stomach, and for a split second, Igris froze due to the dagger's buff. Leaving my blade inside him, I began slashing away at his stunned body in a violent flurry.

Take this, you bastard! I didn't raise my stats as high as I did to lose to you! Igris's arm shot up and grabbed my left wrist with crushing force. Before I could move, he yanked me over his shoulder and slammed me into the ground, causing a large crater to expand under me. I gasped in pain and saw him about to plunge his sword into my chest. My hands flew up and clamped onto the blade, stopping it from piercing me at the last second.

My arms shook as I fought against his strength; sweat covered my face as I looked up from the sword and saw him glaring at me. This is bad! If I don't get out of this, I'll die! My eyes looked over at Igris's stomach and saw that my Ice Dragon dagger was still stabbed into him. This is gonna hurt!

[ Fatal Strike Lv. 1]

[ 70 mana required ]

[ For Daggers Only ]

[You've learned how to attack more efficiently. You can locate an opponent's weak spots and inflict fatal damage. ]

With as much strength as possible, I moved the blade over my shoulder and let go. Igris slammed his sword through my trapezius muscle and lost his balance. I gritted my teeth and lifted my left leg, kicking the Ice Dragon blade deeper into Igris. He stepped back in pain and pulled my dagger out of his stomach just as the freeze buff kicked into effect. He froze just in time to see his own sword plunge deeply into his chest with a sickening crunch.

With Igris skewered by his blade, I used my dash skill and slammed him into the far left wall. As his body slammed into the cracked wall, I continued digging his sword deeper into his chest until the hilt stopped at his armor. I panted in pain as blood rushed down the deep slice in my shoulder and glared into Igri's glowing white eyes. I quickly let go of his blade and summoned both daggers into my hands.

[ Fatal Strike Lv. 1]

[ 70 mana required ]

[ For Daggers Only ]

[You've learned how to attack more efficiently. You can locate an opponent's weak spots and inflict fatal damage. ]

I swung both daggers inward into the sides of Igris's neck. Cutting deep through his armor and into his body. Once the freeze buff wore off, Igris lifted his arms and grabbed my forearms. Despite his deadly injuries, he began to push my daggers out of his neck slowly. As if I'd let you!

[ Fatal Strike Lv. 1]

[ 70 mana required ]

[ For Daggers Only ]

[You've learned how to attack more efficiently. You can locate an opponent's weak spots and inflict fatal damage. ]

I pushed my blades back into his neck and felt his arms jerk in pain. He continued to struggle against me for what felt like hours, but then his strength waned, and his arms dropped to his sides. The glow in his eyes dulled and finally vanished.

[ You have defeated [ KNIGHT COMMANDER - IGRIS THE BLOOD RED ] ]

[ You have leveled up! ]

[ You have leveled up! ]

I dismissed my blades and stood back. Igris hung skewered on his blade, dead and unmoving. I grabbed the handle and pulled the blade out of the wall and his body. Before he could fall on the ground face-first, I grabbed his shoulder and slid him down. I wasn't sure why I was treating the opponent who had tried to kill me with respect, but I couldn't stand the sight of my opponent hanging by his own weapon on a wall like an animal. It was dishonorable. Maybe it was the Japanese in me, but I couldn't stand for that.

"That was a great fight." I said and stabbed his blade beside him. I had debated on keeping it but decided against it. I slowly stood up and looked over to my rewards.

[ RED KNIGHTS HELMET ]

[ TYPE: ARMOR ]

[ CLASS: S ]

[ 15% Physical damage reduction. ]

[ +25 Stamina ]

[ +20 Strength]

[ RUNE STONE: RULERS HAND ]

[ TYPE: STONE ]

[ Breaking this stone will grant you a skill. ]

[ ITEM: LEATHER POUCH ]

[ CATEGORY: MISCELLANEOUS]

[ ITEM: HEARTSTONE ]

[ TYPE: CONSUMABLE ]

[ A quest exclusive item. If you break the heartstone, you will instantly leave the dungeon. If the job quest ends, the dungeon is automatically destroyed. Cannot be stored. ]

I grinned at the epic rewards and immediately crushed the rune stone. A swell of power exploded out of me. No way, telekinesis! And it takes no mana either?! I opened the leather pouch and found a whopping one million five hundred thousand gold! When I thought it couldn't get any better, I had also gotten an S-ranked piece of armor. Maybe this is where all my luck went in life. I quickly equipped the armor and looked down at the small green stone in my hand.

"Hold on." I said and lifted the stone to my face. A heartstone. But if this means what I think, then… "Does this mean… the quest isn't over?"

[ HP: 3308/10378 ] ( +1% x 60 sec )

[ MP: 589/997 ]

[ LEVEL: 49 ]

[ FATIGUE: 67 ] ( +20 )

"My battle with Igris really took my health down, but that's slowly recovering every second. Not to mention my stamina; if it weren't for the red knight's helmet, I'd be close to running out of steam." I turned my head when several small portals appeared in the destroyed throne room. One by one, several large knights stepped through the swirling portals. Swords, axes, maces, hammers, and spears could be seen strewn in their hands. There's got to be at least seventy-no, around a hundred in here.

[ THE JOB CHANGE QUEST WILL BEGIN ]

[ THE LONGER YOU LAST, THE MORE POINTS YOU CAN COLLECT THAT WILL PLACE YOU INTO A HIGHER-TIER JOB. ]

[ GOOD LUCK. ]

[ 00:00:02 ]

You're telling me it's starting just now! I scanned my surroundings and saw that I was completely surrounded. I summed the Ice Dragon and Atlantean daggers into my hands and bent my knees. So, this has turned into a roguelike challenge. If these guys were on the same level as Igris, I'd be as good as dead. But their titles are all silver. As long as I pace myself and avoid getting hit, my HP should slowly return to full health. I'm not too concerned about my MP. However, my fatigue will be what decides it all.

"Compared to Iris and Igris. You guys are nothing but low-level mobs." I said with a grin. "So? Shall we dance?"

I ran forward and sent a sideways kick into the chest of a knight. Crumbling its armor and launching it through several of his comrades. I used the ruler's hand and grabbed two knights that stood far to my left and right. With a thought, they barreled through the crowd, causing a domino effect. Several knights decided that now would be a great chance to attack me but were quickly taken out when I fell onto the ground and spun my body like a break dancer—kicking and slicing away at their exposed legs and feet.

Using a kick-up to return to my feet, I felt my danger sense blare at me but remained where I stood. A sharp spear tried to jam into my body, but its damage was quickly reflected at the knight. Killing it instantly. It seems the ring of reflection only works on lower-level enemies. None of Iris or Igris's attacks ever bounced back to them. I dashed to my left and hacked away at the knights.

Clangs and loud sparks filled the room as I battled the endless hoard of knights. But after an hour of fighting, I noticed that I hadn't been earning any XP. I frowned and jumped high onto the ceiling, sticking to its surface with my wall-crawling skill. I quickly scanned the room and saw magicians hiding in the background. If there are magicians here, why haven't they attacked me using magic?

I looked at one of the portals as it released more knights into the room and saw one of the magicians focusing their magic on it. These bastards are using summoning magic. With that in mind, I reared back my arm and threw my Atlantean dagger through the air. It cut cleanly through the magician, causing them to fall back on the floor. Immediately, several knights collapsed into scattered pieces of armor. Using the system's handy feature, I re-summoned my thrown dagger into my hand.

I have to find the rest of these guys. Otherwise, this will never end. I jumped from pillar to pillar and cut down each magician as I found them. It wasn't easy; these guys tried their best to hide behind their soulless knights like roaches. I rolled back onto the ground and threw one of my daggers through a knight; using the ruler's hand, I moved my dagger to fly throughout the room with fantastic speed. Cutting down any knight that stood in its way.

Danger! I backflipped away just in time as a larger knight slammed a large hammer onto the floor with incredible strength. As it tried to lift its weapon back up, I dashed forward and cut off his arms from the elbows down. The knight hobbled back, waving his stubs around in a panic. I took him out of his misery by slicing his head off.

[ 02:18:56 ]

[ FATIGUE: 88 ] ( +20 )

I panted as I caught my flying dagger and looked around for the remaining magicians. I was growing tired. Thanks to my danger sense skills, I could go untouched for the entire time the quest had begun. Thanks to the bracelet of recovery, my health was three quarts full now. Which was great, but without the stamina to keep fighting. I'd collapse from exhaustion. I have to end this! I won't be able to hold on much longer!

I spent the next hour fighting and killing more puppet knights. I had managed to find and kill four more magicians, but my body had begun running off fumes. I hid behind one of the pillars near the ceiling and used my camouflage skill to give me a moment of respite.

[ MAGICIAN IS USING SKILL: DETECTION ]

I watched as three eye icons appeared over the heads of three shadowed figures. The icons looked around the room quickly. Finally, one of them looked up in my direction and grew wide. The figure turned around and was revealed to be a cloaked magician. I memorized their positions and quickly moved.

[ Fatal Strike Lv. 1 ]

[ 70 mana required ]

[ For Daggers Only ]

[ You've learned how to attack more efficiently. You can locate an opponent's weak spots and inflict fatal damage. ]

[ ACTIVE SKILL ]

[ DASH - Lv. 1 ]

[ Skill: Dash has been activated. ]

[ Your speed has increased by 30% ]

[ You have defeated [ MAGICIAN ] ]

[ You have defeated [ MAGICIAN ] ]

[ You have defeated [ MAGICIAN ] ]

I slid to a stop and stood up straight. Three separate thuds echoed behind me, followed by dozens of metallic clangs. I slowly turned and saw all of the room's enemies dead and still. I collapsed forward and dropped my daggers. They shimmered back into my inventory as I gasped for breath.

[ HP: 9078/10378 ] ( +1% x 60 sec )

[ MP: 189/997 ]

[ LEVEL: 49 ]

[ FATIGUE: 93 ] ( +20 )

I'm exhausted! I sat on the floor, catching my breath. My clothes were drenched in sweat and clung to me uncomfortably; I reached up and removed my shirt and threw it aside with a wet plop.

[ All the monsters in the room have been slayed, the quest will end now. ]

[ You will be able to choose a class based on the points you have collected. ]

[ A job will be granted after the Player's actions have been analyzed. ]

"So it's finally over?" I stood up slowly and looked at the windows in front of me. "Granted? I don't get to choose?"

I couldn't help but wonder what I would get. My stats were well rounded, strength and agility having the edge over them all. It would make sense if I were given an assassin or fighter class.

[ Wherever the Player goes, the reaper follows. The Player's path is littered with corpses and the smell of blood. As the Player possesses strength, he does not leave anything to his teammates and overcomes everything alone. Your desire for strength burns strong enough to call those who wander the valley of death, and the army of the dead who follow your commands shall create a path where your thread will be the law, and you will never need another's help again. ]

[ Your job is "Necromancer"]

I hummed as I looked at the job title. Isn't this interesting? In gaming, Necromancy is the practice of black magic involving communication with the dead by summoning their spirits as apparitions to use as servants or soldiers. With this class, I could grow an army of undead to fight my battles for me.

"Yes! Rise my minions and punish all those who would besmirch my name and eyes! Go forth to my school and teach them all the name, Death Lord of Destruction Hachiman!"

"Big bro! You're being creepy again!"

I cringed as I buried my face in my hand. My memories of myself in early junior high school flashed through my mind. How I would tie a black sheet onto my back and wave around a long, thin stick in my room filled me with shame. I prayed that I had buried the memories of my delusional years under a heavy inch of cope, but it seemed I was wrong.

[ (!) NOTIFICATION ]

[ Will you accept your job? ]

[ ACCEPT ] [ REJECT ]

What should I do? While I was tempted to reject the job out of sheer cringe, I couldn't help but be tempted. The necromancer class was one I've never heard of any other hunter having. There were cases when special abilities such as creating shields, granting buffs, and even turning into a beast could be found in hunters. These hunters were extremely rare and were highly sought after by every guild in the world. The sheer number of extraordinary privileges that come with these rare classes could make a king drool.

I turned to look at the dead magician corpses and hummed. Would I be capable of summoning knights like these guys? It then clicked with me that this entire dungeon was a demo to show me what the necromancer class had to offer. The system is pushing to make this choice. Fine then. I looked back at the window and accepted.

[ Your job has been finalized. ]

[ Depending on the advancement points acquired, you may progress to a higher class. ]

[ You have exceeded the expected survival time. Bonus points will be awarded. ]

[ You have not used the instant Teleportation Stone. Bonus points will be awarded. ]

[ Leftover HP is over 75%. Bonus points will be awarded. ]

[ You have defeated all the enemies. Bonus points will be awarded. ]

[ Your total advancement points have exceeded the class threshold. ]

I watched as all the shadows in the throne room danced and surged in the air. They shot out towards me and surrounded me in a pitch-black wave. They sunk into my body, and I felt a surge of unimaginable power. Slowly, waves of black aura flowed lazily out of different parts of my body. Amazing.

[ Your job has changed from Necromancer to Shadow Monarch. ]

[ You have learned job-exclusive skills. ]

[ You have acquired bonus stats. ]

[ You have acquired [ TITLE: The One Who Overcame All Odds. ] ]

All those bonus points shot me from a basic necromancer to a Shadow Monarch. But is that the highest level I can reach? I guess I'll find out. I twitched at the sounds of several voices screaming behind me, shouting out for help. To be freed of their pain. I looked over at the dozens of dead knights and magicians. Above their bodies hung a title.

[ Shadow extraction is possible. ]

I see. Shadow extraction must allow me to transform the dead into my undead servants. I walked over to the center of the room and looked around at all the corpses.

[ Please designate a command word for [ Skill: Shadow Extraction ] ]

Hmm... how about 'Come forth!' or 'Rise my minions!'? I shook my head at the remnant phrases I would say in my childish middle school years. Strangely enough, there was a word that came to mind. It felt like the right thing to say. It's almost as if I've spoken it millions of times, but that couldn't be. Not even in my delusional years have I uttered such a word. With my mind made up, I looked over my soon-to-be servants and uttered my command.

"Arise."