James was again confronted by the taboo on asking about people’s stats, abilities, and level up’s. He really wanted to know what it was like for other people.

  He realised that maybe if he asked holistically, rather than on a personal level, he may get answers.

  “Hey Janine…”

  Janine sighed. “Yes?”

  “Is there some sort of general record I could look through for how leveling worked for different classes?”

  “Yes, there is.” Her voice took on a teacher’s cadence. “There’s guild records that we hand out to anyone before they pick their first class. It’s not perfect as level-up choices can be influenced by external factors. The training you’ve had, the experiences you've undergone, any traits you’ve received, the places you are fighting, what you have been fighting, and even who you have been fighting with. Fortunately there are some options that nearly always come up. Those are listed, and handed out.”

  “Interesting, can I get a copy?”

  “Sure, just ask Joe when we get back to the Guild.”

  She hesitated. “You won’t find anything on your particular class though.”

  “Yeah, I guessed that. It’s driving me a little crazy this taboo on asking people what they can do, what their level is, and their abilities. This may help bridge that gap a little.”

  “Ahhh, you are one of those people that are curious for curiosity's sake aren’t you?”

  He nodded.

  Janine explained, “It’s too dangerous to reveal that type of information to anyone but your closest friends and confidants. Even your own party, whom you have to rely on in battle, may be cataloguing your abilities for your enemies. True, it’s usually for dueling or something more benign, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry.”

  Edward roused. “Done!”

  “Now James, come here.”

  Curious, James came over.

  “Watch closely.” Edward pulled out his own short sword.

  “This is the proper way to thrust with a short sword,” Edward said.

  Edward took the time to orient his body, feet shoulder-width apart, his right foot slightly back.

  James was looking for the full body motion, knowing that power came from your whole body and core. However, unlike a punch, when he thrust, Edward’s shoulders stayed relaxed. Like a fencer, his front foot took a step forward and his hips drove the blade. Edward returned to his previous pose, sword withdrawing in the exact same angle.

  Edward repeated it a few times. Slow at first, emphasizing the way he held his elbow, and then faster, while still keeping his angles true.

  James tried it but couldn’t keep the blade along the same line. Given his strength and agility he wasn’t sure why.

  Edward’s sword disappeared, then he reached over and shifted James’s grip.

  “You do need a strong hold on the grip, but not so tight that your knuckles are white. Use your thumb and your forefinger to stabilize the sword, and your last two fingers are supposed to be for anchoring, like so.” Edward showed by moving James’s arm for him, making slight adjustments as needed.

  James practiced the motion a few times before Edward started pointing out corrections.

  Still, it wasn’t long before he understood the basics.

  After a few more minutes Ken came out of his stupor and also got to his feet.

  Ken’s fingers appeared to pluck a card from his arm and played it.

  System Notice - Aura of Hope detected.

  Source:

  Effects:

  Ken’s usually neutral face was split into a massive smile.

  Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

  James sheathed his short sword and ran over to Ken.

  Everyone was shouting congratulations.

  Janine and Nathan joined in as well, shouting in excitement.

  James got the sense that Ken had hit the jackpot.

  Ken held up his hand for quiet.

  “It’s my first gold card!”

  There was another round of shouting and congratulations.

  When things died down a little Ken’s face got serious.

  “It will last for an hour so we had better get moving.”

  “Yes, but first this foul smelling chest that Janine extracted for us” Ken nodded at Janine.

  James went over and inspected the chest without touching it, while pinching his nose shut.

  “How’d you move it, Janine if it opens on touch?”

  “There’s handles that don’t trigger the looting on the ends. I’ve run this dungeon a lot of times.” she said.

  “Ken?”

  “While on the seer’s quest it’s best if I do the looting, at least for chests,” Ken said.

  Ken walked over and touched the chest.

  [Party chat:– Gold ×100

  – Minor Rejuvenation ×1

  – Regalia piece (Common)

  James was torn. If he’d been party leader and those rewards had dropped then they all would have gotten it. But, would a Regalia piece have dropped…

  “Janine, what are the chances of Regalia to drop?”

  “Never. First I’ve heard of it,” she replied.

  James conceded defeat.

  Ken was in control of the party and everyone agreed he should get the Regalia.

  Ken also got the Minor Rejuvenation potion, and then split the gold amongst the three of them.

  A minute later Ken pulled an orb out of his inventory. The orb was dull until he touched it to his staff. The staff shifted shape in front of his eyes to cater for the orb at the top. It looked like a magician’s staff from a computer game, except real.

  Ken cast a bolt of light at the pile of dung. Simultaneously, a second lightbolt started weaving around the staff’s head.

  Edward thumped Ken on the back. “Congratulations!”

  “Yeah, that’s totally awesome!” James shouted.

  “It’s called the Splitting Orb of Preparedness and is part of the Seeker’s Journeyman Set.” Ken said, understandably excited.

  Janine spoke up. “Well that settles it. Until that set is completed Ken has to remain the party leader. That or until the seer’s quest is interrupted or failed.”

  She was looking at James, so he nodded. His feelings must have been showing.

  “Okay, let's get going. I have a new orb to test,” Ken spoke authoritatively.

  They headed down the stairs to the next level, following the same pattern.

  When Edward stepped down off the last step James saw something that both scared and excited him.

  The tree, not even that large, started moving. Roots threaded, buckled, and ripped up the floor as it went. Branches swept out in sweeps that looked like it would be painful if they hit.

  The room was big enough to keep their distance and it was not moving all that fast.

  “How are we supposed to hurt that thing?” James called out, holding all his bond companions back.

  The thought of Charlie running up to it and marking his territory amused him for a moment, or two.

  James waited but Janine and Nathan didn’t speak. They were on their own.

  Ken started using lightbolts on the tree creature. Scorch marks appeared on the wood, but clearly more would be needed for it to catch on fire.

  Edward pulled out his woodsman’s axe and slid it over to James.

  Meanwhile, Edward took his warhammer and smashed it into the tree. That worked really well, but he only got one hit in before he was knocked sprawling by a heavy branch swing and a tripping root.

  James scooped up the axe and went to move in but Ken motioned to stay back.

  Ken then ran up to the tree, ducking the same branch and avoiding getting his feet tangled.

  As soon as he was close his staff unleashed two waves of blue flame outwards in a 3-ft radius. Ken was completely unharmed by his flames, but wherever the flames had touched the tree, it ignited and was repelled backwards.

  The fire was rapidly consuming it when James realised he had not done any damage yet.

  He sheathed his sword and hefted the axe, ready to throw, when Edward shouted out “Don’t ruin my axe!”

  James instead swung down at the largest root he could find nearby instead. The root was completely severed with a loud thump. It would count.

  They all then backed off until the tree stopped moving altogether.

  The tree corpse started glowing, and not just from the fire.

  Bond Progress Increased – Vern: +10%

  “That was well done. Ken, since when did you become a fire mage?” Janine exclaimed.

  “Recent rewards,” is all Ken said.

  Ken walked up to a root in order to trigger the loot.

  “Wait!” James called out.

  Ken waited for James to elaborate.

  He wanted to bind the tree creature. He realised that Ken wanted to loot for his Regalia set.

  “No, go ahead,” he said magnanimously.

  Apparently Ken had already done his own need-before-greed calculations and come to the conclusion that it was too rare an opportunity.

  He was right. We could just re-run the dungeon to get the tree creature afterwards.

  [Party chat:– Heartwood x8 (Uncommon)

  – Heartwood roots X 20 (Uncommon)

  – Regalia piece (Common)

  It was clearly an uncommon creature, given the rewards. Still, that Regalia piece was all the proof he needed. Ken needed to stay party leader.

  James grumbled anyway.

  They decided James would hold onto the Heartwood and roots for now and they would get them appraised back at the Guild.

  Ken got the Regalia piece.

  This time he pulled a pair of dirty looking greenish brown boots out of nowhere. Ken treated them like they were truly special.

  Ken’s other shoes disappeared into his inventory. He carefully slipped his new pair over well kept, woolen socks. He stood proudly.

  “They’re so comfortable! They’re called ‘Journeyman Boots of the Forest’, and yes they are part of the set,” Ken said.

  “Do you get a set bonus yet?” James asked curiously.

  “Yes. I think each additional piece will have a larger bonus.” Ken was so excited that he was talking more than ever before.

  James waited, but Ken did not say what the set bonus actually was.