Class Change

"Objective fulfilled: Arrive in the royal capital, Athelens."

Eventually, I was set loose from the guard checkpoint, my official document in hand. Although I had almost certainly placed myself on the guards' - or worse - radar, at least I was not denied entry altogether. I also had a reasonably quick way into the capital, should I ever need to return, and I expected I would.

The official had mentioned something about a 'probationary period' - that I was allowed to enter the capital and the 'card' he had given me would indeed work as intended, but my presence was under review, and would be for some time. That meant, while they dug around in various channels to see if I was a notorious troublemaker or not, I would be dealt an extra heavy hand, should I start trouble of my own accord, while I was here.

"CHALLENGE OPPORTUNITY: START A CULT IN THE CAPITAL."

…It made little difference to me, as my intentions for coming here hadn't changed.

"CHALLENGE FAILED."

I needed money to live - and the easiest way forward in that regard was to register as an adventurer. I wondered what the process of doing that would entail, and would they, too, have some sort of issue with this class I had been saddled with.

"I don't even know how I got this class, or why, or how to change..." I thought to myself as I meandered through the streets. The capital was as hustle and bustle as I was expecting, especially near the gates. There was signage everywhere - for different establishments, different districts, etc - but none of it had the word "adventurer" on it, so I was still out of luck. It had been more than half a day since I had arrived, and I was starting to get hungry. I needed to find my destination, do some work, get paid...

There was still so much to do.

The constant flow of citizenry and travelers made it difficult to concentrate. Who knows how many faces I had seen, human or otherwise, in the short time I had been standing there? I tried to look for something that seemed like an information center, but the idea of an information kiosk to serve the interests of tourists seemed a little far-fetched for a fantasy setting like this. I probably needed to go to a tavern, have a few drinks, chat up the bartender for details and directions...

"Ahhh, it's all such a pain!" I thought in anguish, my hands reaching for my head in order to ruffle my own hair in exasperation. Instead of hair, however, my hands found some sort of cloth - had I accidentally drawn my hood? - instead. The movement knocked whatever it was free, disproving my initial theory, and I scrambled to catch it before it hit the ground.

And I found it to be...a white hat?

"A hat...a...chef's hat? How did...?" I wondered aloud, my voice drowned out by the crowd. It was only then that I noticed my sleeves were significantly less baggy than I remembered...and were now white. Similarly, my pants, which were now visible again due to a lack of robe, were now white.

The staff that had sat at my side all this time was now replaced with a large butcher's knife, resting in a thin sheathe, as if it were masquerading as a real blade.

"What in the-huh?!"

I looked over every each of my body - my outfit, indeed, had become the stereotypical attire of a chef.

A chef from MY world.

"Do they even look like this here?!" I wondered aloud, too confused and irritated to notice any uneasy stares from passersby. I quickly brought up my attribute information.

My stats were completely changed.

Gone was my heavy reliance on intelligence and wisdom. Instead, I was blessed with a slightly elevated strength stat, and a hearty investment into dexterity. As well as an extreme investment into...

Cooking.

"That wasn't there before!" I fumed. I noticed, through my growing frenzy, that the 'secrecy' stat had completely vanished, as well. Despite this, no one around me seemed to be paying me much mind, beyond reacting with mild annoyance at my outbursts.

This was the second time I had miraculously changed outfits - and classes - in public without a single soul wondering hey, what the hell?

"My class!" I cried in realization, fumbling for my card. Instead of finding it in my pocket, where I had stuck it in my robe, I found it instead in my apron, positioned at the front of my waist. It was, quite frankly, a miracle that it hadn't been dropped on the ground to fly away in the wind.

I read the contents of the card again:

"Name: Rhys Mephiston. Job: Unemployed. Class: Chef."

It had changed to reflect my current circumstance, as I had suspected. Strange, that chef was a class instead of a job. What if I used my chef skills to become a chef proper? Would it be chef, chef?

"Objective fulfilled: Learn a culinary skill. Objective fulfilled: Learn an advanced culinary skill. Experience threshold reached. Level advanced to 4. Objective fulfill-"

Penta bombarded me with experience to the point that I was again overwhelmed, my mind reeling. I had a better handle on it this time, having grown used to the sensation to an extent, but it felt like no amount of preparation was enough when she went overboard like this.

By the time it subsided, I noticed a few people had gathered around, looking mildly concerned.

"You alright there, stranger?" one asked, his tone neutral.

"Do you need us to get some help?" asked another, his tone more gentle.

"No no, sorry! I'm good, just a bit light headed, is all!" I replied, shaking my head furiously. My onlookers did not seem entirely convinced.

In the distance, I saw a few guards come into view, their heads on a swivel. Someone came into view behind them, pointing over in our general direction.

"I'm fine now, thank you, gotta go!" I hurriedly explained, gathering myself as best I could before awkwardly making my exit, heading in the direction opposite where the guards were approaching, no destination in mind.

I was a suspected...something, and had just spent the better part of ten minutes muttering to myself in the street. This was NOT the kind of first impression you want to make in a new city, let alone the royal capital, Athelens!

"Objective fulfilled: Evade the authorities."

"That's enough out of you!"

"CHALLENGE OPPORTUNITY: OVERPOWER THE AUTHORITIES."

"AS A CHEF?!"