The group found a small alcove along the cliff face, something defensible, and took up a basic perimeter as Lily pulled up her System and began looking through her class options for levelling up; three Basic classes that branched out from Rouge, Scout, Thief and Stalker, as well as the four foundation classes. Lily wanted to reduce her dependence on arrows, so taking a level in rouge or one of it's branches didn't appeal to her. She didn't really want to be out in front herself if she could help it and Lilac and Ashley were both already mages. Naturalist seemed like the best option, especially when MND was already Lily's second highest 'Main Stat' after DEX. The others still had to level up as well, and she was confident this was the best choice, so she picked it.

  An well-carved wooden bracelet materialised around Lily's wrist. It was actually kind of cute, far nicer than her bow or Ashley's staff, the carving made it almost look like a vine or something similar. Next up was Skill Selection and Lily was expecting a choice from the starter options that she would have gotten had she picked Naturalist at Level 0, instead she was presented with a massive list akin to what she had when getting her last level-up. Though the variety was much higher. Rouge and it's derivatives were mostly about stealth or something similar. Bow skills and Stealth Skills dominated the list. Naturalists branch paths were Beast Taming, Nature Magic and Wilderness Survival, and the skills presented brushed across all three disciplines. For a moment, she waited, seeing if that voice would speak to her again and provide direction. When it became clear that it wouldn't, she let out a soft sigh and began looking through the options. After just a couple of minutes, she settled on [Spirit Canid]

  Lilac wasn't really paying that much attention to her sister as she returned, it was Ashley's turn to go next so she was focused on keeping an eye out. That was until she noticed the off-white glow hat appeared by Lily's side. That, Lilac couldn't ignore. the glow was coming from some kind of spectral hound that was sitting next to the Rouge. At first, the Pyromancer panicked slightly, thinking that something had gotten through during the switch. the thing, she happily realised, was in fact sitting by her side calmly and looking not at her Sister, but outwards into the forest, like a dog protecting it's master.

  "It's my new skill." Lily's voice snapped Lilac out of her obvious staring "Cool right?"

  "Hell yeah! Puppy!" lilac gave the spectral hound a pat on it's head "Doesn't seem like a Rouge skill though"

  "I took a level in Naturalist to diversify my options a bit."

  "Ah I see, makes sense" Lilac nodded "I suppose there's no real reason not to right?"

  Before Lily could respond, Ashley came over and tapped Lilac on the shoulder "Your Turn"

  The Pyromancer blinked in surprise "That was quick"

  "I already knew what I was picking" Ashley shrugged, then turned "By the way Lily, why didn't you mention Skill Evolution?"

  "Huh?"

  "For gaining a Basic Class, I got a new System Skill"

  "... I took a second Foundation Class" Lily's voice came out a little dull as she stared at her Summon with a complicated look on her face.

  "Ah, Well." Ashley looked off to the side as she rubbed the back of her neck and Lilac could hear Chloe giggling slightly in the Background "If it makes you feel any better, it only works with specific skills and it requires Tokens"

  Lilac did not hear her Sister's response as she had made it to the protective nook and brought up her System Screen. She, too, had a good idea of what she wanted and so brought up the Class Select Menu ready to pick Apprentice. And stopped the moment she saw something unexpected. She should, logically, have seven Class choices, the three basic evolutions of Mage plus the four Foundation Stage Classes. But there was another; Sorcerer. how could the Pyromancer not be curious? She pulled up the Class Details

  Hey physique was giving her even more things, it seemed. Considering it was a Mage Root Class and it gave her a free skill, it seemed like a good option to pick. Lilac focused on the Skill and managed to prompt a description.

  Lilac failed to supress a giggle as she selected Sorcerer. Forget the plan, this was clearly a better option at this point in time. Lilac felt herself grow more powerful.

  lilac smiled; those were some good growths. The dull ache of her burnt soul was soothed out somewhat as well, likely due to the ANI growth. Now, onto skills. Originally, Lilac had planned to get some more Fire spells from the Basic Level as she was planning to level into apprentice. But she was confident she'd find something fun from Sorcerer regardless. Chain Cast was absolutely worth getting, so she wasn't overly upset. But as she opened the Skill Selector, she was greeted with a message that made her grin from ear to ear.

  Lilac read over the text a few times before dismissing it and searching through the selectable skills. Sure enough, a large number were taken from other classes, though mostly the Mage and Naturalist Trees. Before long, she found the skill she'd been after originally among their number, [Basic Fire Formula].

  Lilac's joyful giggling was more manic than even she was expecting it to be.

  Ashley saw Lilac return with a massive grin on her face and couldn't help but smile back "Get something good?"

  "Esoteric Class." Lilac's voice was filled with giddy joy "I was able to get it because of my Physique."

  "Seriously?" Lily's eyes widened slightly "That thing is already so strong though."

  "It did almost kill me, remember"

  Lily gave a shrug and a smile, clearly not too irritated. "So, what skill did you end up getting?"

  "Levelling into Sorcerer gave me this," Lilac showed off [Chain Cast] "and then I took this." Followed by [Basic Fire Formula]

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  The two of them nodded at [Chain Cast], Lily opening her mouth to say something before her gaze fell on the description for [Basic Fire Formula] "Bloody Hell, that's a bit wordy"

  lilac smiled "Yeah, it is. it's a good skill for me though, loads of options and it's a good skill to get early." The Pyromancer turned to Ashley "So, by the way, what did you get?"

  "Well first I got this" Ashley pulled up the Skill description of [Enhance Healing] "Then with 100 Tokens, I purchased [Foundational Elemental Magic] from the System Shop so I could do a little more in fights than just wait for someone to get hurt"

  Lilac nodded in understanding. "Must be frustrating not doing anything unless someone takes damage, especially seeing as both me and Chloe have barrier skills. Just don't use up too much MP"

  Ashley gave a soft giggle "I have 30 Max MP now and 28 in the tank after the level up as well. I don't think I'll run out that quckly"

  Lily and Lilac both gave an incredulous look, which was honestly somewhat cute when mirrored as it was by the twins. "Mana Spring" At Ashley's words, a look of understanding washed over both faces in tandem and the Healer couldn't help but giggle again.

  "Lilac!" Chloe called out "Catch!" The Martialist threw something at Lilac.

  The Sorcerer almost dropped it as it landed in her hands a bit awkwardly, but she managed to keep her grip just barely. Ashley watched as she unfurled her hand, revealing a pair of new-looking Bronze Knuckledusters.

  "I got a second pair from the Store" Chloe said "Considering you gave me fresh ones, I thought it might be a little rude to give used ones back so..."

  Lilac thought for a second before nodding and putting them on "Yeah, that tracks. Thanks Chlo." The two share a quick fistbump "What did you get, skill wise?"

  "I found something I think is kinda neat. Here"

  "Oh," Lily Smiled "You got a summon skill as well?"

  "Summoning a weapon," Lilac grinned "At least you won't have to worry about it breaking"

  "what Slot type?" Ashley asked

  "Active" Chloe summoned a longsword "makes it free MP wise, which is nice." She dropped the blade and summoned a spear "And the limit works in that when I summon a new weapon, it replaces the old one. It feels really flexible"

  "Alright!" Ashley gently clapped her hands together "Now that we've all levelled, shall we get a move on?"

  The group agreed in near unison and began to move once more towards the edge of the burning forest. The ground grew wetter underfoot as they approached the edge of the forest, eventually growing sodden as the treeline finally broke, revealing a muddy swamp beyond. Smoke rose into the sky at various points across the terrain before the, each column emerging from a pit in the ground. To the left, along the cliff wall that they had been following, was something large and seemingly made out of brass that glinted in the late afternoon light. Speaking of, the smoke layer was now light enough that the above sky be seen clearly and there, quite prominently in the sky opposite the sun was a glowing red moon that shone it's light onto the Mire below. To the right was the most eye catching, however, as there among the dead-look landscape stood a large stone chapel. The design of the building was clearly distinct from the Citadel that Lilac had found and described prior and it stood amongst a collection of squat dwellings that seemed to barely emerge from the bog around them.

  It didn't take long for the quartet to decided on their next course of action and they began heading into the direction of the chapel, almost black mud squelching around their shoes as they entered the mire proper. Around them, the air was filled with the scent of petrichor and moss mixed with an earthy smoke. As the group walked, they happened to pass by a pit that was emitting smoke. the pit itself was perhaps only a meter or two deep and the smoke was coming from what appeared to be a smouldering fire beneath the surface. They decided not to investigate the pit further, instead deciding that they didn't really poke around in burning holes.

  The village itself was reached not long after and offered more solid, if a little wetter, footing. Running at the edge of the village was what was likely once a clearly defined river bank, the remnants of the stonework flood barrier strewn about where they fell, time and neglect having reduced the defences to mossy rubble, the slow flowing water easily moving past it's one time edge and flood into the cobbled streets around the picturesque old style houses. The houses themselves were a simple affair, the main bodies made of a mixture of stone, mud brick and wood. The roofs were constructed of thatch and were falling apart in places. The truly odd thing was how many windows had glass panes. Or, indeed, the remnants of the pane clinging to the inside of the frame as glass was not common in dwellings when this simple style of house was built.

  Ashley pushed open one of the doors and stepped into the small cottage. It has a small lounge, a bedroom, a kitchen and what at first glance would be best described as a mix of modern chemistry lab and a witches potion room. Stepping around the cauldron, which was placed above a fire pit in the centre of the room, Ashley approached a bookshelf and took a leather bound book from it's spot, flipping it open to a random page. She was greeted by annotated diagrams of plants she didn't recognise in script that was entirely unfamiliar to her. The margins of the book were filled with annotations and notes with the same script but written slightly differently and with a different style of hand.

  "This place looks like a witches workshop" Lily stepped next to Ashley and pulled a different book from the shelf "The Symbology is strange but I almost feel a... nostalgic feeling looking at it"

  Ashley smiled "I got a similar feeling when I walked in. And honestly, I think this just is a witches workshop. Maybe it was the villages' apothecary?"

  "I'm not sure. The house next to this one seemed to have a similar room." Lily put the first book she had picked up back and picked up a different one "Oh, that's..."

  "What did you find?"

  "It's laid out like like a dictionary, but both sides use the same script as all the other books" Lily moves the book so Ashley can see it

  "Interesting." Ashley took the book and flipped through some pages "Some kind of common script I assume. No idea how old it is"

  "This place creeps me out" Lily sighs and looks around "It feels like it was only recently abandoned, but it also just feels old."

  "I know what you mean" Ashley nods and picks up a few more books "I'm going to store these in my inventory for now. Shall we go check out that chapel?"

  "Yeah, alright." Lily smiled nervously "Not like I want to stay here on my own"

  Ashley returned the smile as she took claim of more of the books, shunting them into her inventory. Turning towards the door, she almost felt for a moment as if there was a young woman there, watching her. But there was no-one, and the feeling dispersed quickly. As the two of them stepped out into the street, they were both struck with feelings of hollow melancholy, the winding paths taking on an almost Liminal aspect. Chloe and Lilac soon emerged from a nearby house and Chloe ran up and gave Ashley a hug, which the Healer promptly returned.

  "You okay Chloe?" Ashley used a hand to stroke her new girlfriends hair gently

  "Yeah, just sad." Chloe's voice came out a little weak "This place makes me feel all these weird things"

  "It's like some kind of Echo" Lilac said "I remember sometimes, when I snuck out and explored some abandoned buildings, I'd felt something like this walking around them. It wasn't as strong though."

  Chloe took a quick breath "Lets just... head to the Chapel, yeah?"

  The group nodded in assent and began to walk, everyone sticking close as they followed the slope of the road upwards, relative water levels receding as they climbed in elevation before finally, without any fanfare and far sooner than the had expected, the quartet stood before the towering stone edifice. It was an impressive building to be sure, but it had clearly seen better days; the stonework showed signs of heavy weathering on all of it's surfaces. plants grew alongside identical reliefs carved into the pillars of the stone building. Mud slumped against the base of each wall. Each stained glass window was covered in scratches and dents with their colour faded by time. The windows closer to the ground were all also boarded up.

  The large door, while still and heavy, was not impossible to open and with some effort, mostly from Chloe, the four of them managed to get inside the Chapel. The interior of the building showed much less of the obvious signs of the passing of time, with just a light covering of dust on the overturned furniture. The evening light filtered in gently through a window near the ceiling that was high enough that it had not been obstructed and shined upon a large statue near the back of the chapel. The statue was made in the likeness of a man, several feet tall wait a magnificent beard and hooded coat. In his hand was a long staff and resting at his feet was a large stone cauldron.

  Ashley stood at the base of the statue, near the cauldron, and looked up "He seems... familiar to me somehow"

  "He does?" Chloe stood next to Ashley and took a look herself "He doesn't ring any of my bells. You sure?"

  Ashley shook her head "Maybe I'm imagining it, but the feeling won't go away"

  Lily moved between the rows of overturned benches and tables "All of them are pointed at the front door... what happened here?"

  "Uh... guys? I've found something" Lilac called out, causing everyone to look in her direction "Looks like some kind of basement. Don't really want to go down on my own though, someone join me?"

  Chloe gave Ashley a quick smile and a pat on the back and then went to join Lilac. Ash just kept staring up, trying to dredge up any kind of information from her mind

  Lily walked up next to her, placing a gentle hand on the Healer's shoulder as she spoke "Hey, don't worry so much. It's probably just another emotional echo or something"

  Ashley shook her head in an attempt to clear her thoughts "Yeah... yeah, you're probably right. The feeling is just... so strong."

  Lily nodded "Yeah. apparently, according to Lilac's Urban Exploration friends, this stuff is getting more common on earth as time goes by too, ever since the System appeared"

  "According to her friends?"

  "Yeah, Lilac herself hasn't been out recently" Lily sighed "Mother has been getting worse and worse"

  "I see." Ashley felt a bit awkward and decided to double back to the previous topic "So... why does this place have Echoes? Isn't it generated by the System for the Tutorial? Surely it shouldn't have any lingering memories"

  "I don't know, but I do have some ideas. I think when the System glitched, the tutorial world failed to generate. And so the System grabbed what it could, a lingering memory from somewhere, and used it to build this place."

  "What do you mean?"

  "What I mean is this place wasn't made specifically for us." Lily turned to Ashley "I think that this 'Echo' thing is tied to Dungeon Generation. This place feels real, I've noticed too many small details in the forest that make it feel like an actual ecosystem. What if the System is supposed to take an Echo of an actual place that exists somewhere, clean it up, and then generate something with it. Our Tutorial glitched and it failed to scrub the Data properly"

  "That's... a lot of assumptions" Ashley sighed "but then again, I suppose my question did call for speculation." Ashley removed a book from her inventory and flips it open "This book, what does it look like to you?"

  Lily looked at the pages "I can't read it but... it kinda looks like a journal or diary of some kind."

  Ashley nodded "Yeah, my thoughts as well. This is part of the reason I'm going to give this stuff to a Guild when we get back"

  "Maybe we should investigate some of the other houses as well, see if we can find anything else"

  "I agree. At worst we find the same journal copied all over the place, and the same textbook with the same annotations. That'll prove it's just System Generation" Ashley let out a sigh "And if we find completely different things, then it's a discovery."

  Lilac giggled "Annoyed?"

  "A little" Ashley smiled weakly "All this bullshit is too much for me. Why couldn't we have just had a normal Tutorial?"

  Lilac went to answer but was cut off by a sound coming from downstairs, shouting. The Rouge and the Healer shared a quick glance of worry before rushing towards the stairwell to the lower level. Upon reaching the bottom floor, the two found themselves in a large antechamber with a large stone vault door at the far end. Standing about 6 meters in front of the door was Chloe and Lilac, who were slowly walking backwards. Standing between them and the vault door was two moving stone statues moving threateningly towards their team mates.

  Ashley swore as she summoned her staff, Lily's ephemeral looking dog-thing running forward to reinforce the frontline.