­­­­Luke P.O.V Dungeon Ending

Luke felt the power surge into him, far more than he had ever received from a simple level up. Whatever that creature had been, its soul was filled with power. Luke wanted to see what he got from absorbing it, but as soon as he tried, he would be forced to advance his class. Instead, he quickly moved to the others and checked their conditions. He went to Jill first as she had taken an attack head-on, only her armor had kept her alive.

Pressing his hand against her, he had to push past the shield that was still active. It was especially good at stopping magic, but also slowed the progress of his hand. Eventually, he managed to push through it, and he was able to check her condition. As he expected her soul was burned, and badly at that. With his current abilities, he could help but not as much as he would like. He did what he could, healing the wounds on her body and repairing the soul a little. Hopefully, his advancement would let him do more for the soul. Healing the body wouldn’t be enough for this wound.

Moving through the group he noticed that almost everyone had sustained minor burns, though only the bodyguard had been burned in a way that matched Jill. It seemed like the heat of the flame had been able to do damage to the soul too, and everyone had some damage. Well, everyone other himself had been damaged. He was undamaged, even though he had taken the strongest of the flames. He remembered the lightning that Jill managed to block. That had radiated an aura of death, and Luke somehow knew that was not something he could shrug off. Remembering the end of the fight, he was reminded of what he had done to the creature.

Bile rose in his throat as he recalled the sickening feeling of crushing the thing's soul. It seemed like most creatures lacked any real defense around their souls, even if they had the ability to attack it. With everyone checked and healed to the best of his ability, Luke tried to wake the bodyguard and Red. Even though the bodyguard had suffered the worst attacks and the most burns, she was still the best off. Plus, it seemed like she was healing passively somehow. They got up groggily, though each shook off the feeling in a panic. The bodyguard quickly checked the Princess’s condition.

“She’s fine. Everyone is for the most part, and if you two can watch me while I advance, I should be able to heal the rest.”

They nodded and the bodyguard quickly got into a ready position. Luke wasn’t expecting another fight but was relieved to see her being so proactive. However, before Luke advanced something else appeared in front of him. A cloak of some kind appeared folded neatly on the ground. He believed that these items were a part of the class system and not a function of the dungeon. It was a curious thought, and he grabbed the cloak, uncertain of what the item did. He would check it later and placed it into his storage space. There wasn’t much room left, as they had filled it with decent-quality weapons and armors. He was a little jealous that Mash’s item seemed to be growing with him and wished that he did too. He had been jealous of Mash’s growth in general, but after the recent incidents, he figured his growth would match or surpass Mash’s at this point. Getting back to that fact, he sat down to advance his class.

As his mind was carried to within his soul, Luke saw three pillars before him. Each pulsed with power. Reaching his hand toward the thickest of the pillars, he appreciated the golden glow it emitted.

Divine Soul Paladin: A mix of a healer and fighter, you use your magic to both strike the soul and restore it. Become a paragon of the soul and represent it in its divine nature.

There wasn’t much information on the class, but the name sounded appealing to him. The thing that surprised him about the class was the implied divinity and the fact that it was a paladin. He thought those only applied to classes related to God’s and wondered if the class would bind him to one. Was there some kind of God that was related to the soul? Foreign maybe? However, that made him wonder whether it would be possible to get a class related to a God he didn’t know about. He heard about classes related to unknown creatures. In fact, that was one of the methods people used to identify unknown monsters.

The class sounded good but he wasn’t going to make a hasty decision. Nobody ever did that, and he would not be the first. Reaching towards the next pillar he felt a sickness overcome him. It was a deep blue and it radiated with a power opposite to the previous pillar. Still, he chose to learn about the class.

Duality Mending Pseudo-Lich: On the borderline between Lich and Saint, your power is both to heal and destroy the soul. Devour the power of those weaker than you. Strengthen others beyond even yourself. One day claim dominion over life and death. Take the path to lichdom.

Luke froze upon reading the class, but not out of fear or disgust. It was pure confusion that wrapped his mind in place. He couldn’t comprehend what the class would even do. There were the obvious hints, mentioning an increase in his healing capabilities and offensive magic, but what was the significance of a pseudo-lich. Was that the opposite of a lich or was it some kind of parallel?

He wanted to reject the class reflexively, but he couldn’t. It wasn’t like Mash’s compulsion or anything, instead, it was just a series of images that flashed through his mind. His friends were bound for chaos, and he was on the road with them. There was no doubt in his mind that he would stick with them, and he wanted to always be able to do the most for them. These last two dungeons had shown him the power of soul magic, and how it could be needed at times. Even if he was using it to twist and steal souls, he could see the potential in it. If he picked this class, he would be much more capable of protecting his friends.

Furthermore, the class even mentioned claiming dominion over life and death.” If that could happen, he was certain that his friends would be able to stay safe. Even his family would be safe, and Luke could heal them from just about anything. His instincts told him that this might be necessary, but it was those same instincts that frightened him. If this led him to become a lich in truth, then he was more likely to kill his friends than save them. This was ultimately what pushed him away from the class. The last class was a mix of white and gold and he reached towards this final pillar. It shone and he felt strange as the information flooded his mind.

Holy Warsoul Cleric: One who has seen the end of a war and saved the souls of those he reaped. A grim reaper of battle who has stopped the leaders of invasion. You have taken the soul of a demon; you are an avenger of holy magic. Healing your allies and destroying your enemies is the only path of war cleric.

This class interested him, but it was not particularly unique. It was very similar to the first class, and it seemed the purpose was the only difference. The first seemed more generic, whereas this seemed more focused on big battles. That wasn’t necessarily a bad thing as it would mean that he would likely get a skill to let him heal and buff from a range. While his individual power was important, he knew that being able to provide more power to his friends would help him climb further.

The part about him having taken the soul of a demon was interesting. It must have been the creature he just fought, but it didn’t fit the description. From what he knew, a demon should have red skin and be far bulkier, although it did have horns. He would need to check with the guild and update their information if they didn’t know. All information on monsters was valuable, and he was eager to add his own. This was one of the only methods of properly identifying monsters, and he was glad for the information.

Back to the matter at hand, he had no reason to refuse this class. It was both further along the path he was on, and it would probably only improve his current capabilities. He didn’t need to become a dedicated paladin, plus a cleric class would let him level through healing and combat. His mind made up he choose his class.

Power flooded him as he awoke. Everyone was awake now and they were all watching him expectantly. He didn’t hesitate in the slightest and thought about his status.

Name: Lukas Class: Holy Warsoul Cleric

Level: 59 → 60

Health: 1410 / 1410

Stamina: 890 / 890

Mana: 1330 / 1330

Fortitude: 121 → +20 → 141

Endurance: 79 → +10 → 89

Strength: 98 → +10 → 108

Agility: 89 → +10 → 99

Intelligence: 113 → +20 → 133

Wisdom: 174 → +80 → 254

Charisma: 89

Free Stats: 5

Skills: Soul Absorption → Soul Judgment, Soul Mutation → Holy Soul Manifestation, Soul Enhancement, Return to State → Restore Body and Soul, Soul Brands → Divine Soul Marks, Corrupt Distortion, Holy Soul Fire, Strengthened Soul → True Holy Soul, One in Mind and Body, Untouchable Spirit, War Cleric’s Bond, Hero’s Mentality

Soul Judgment: Observe and judge the souls around you. In judging the soul of those you vanquish; you take even greater power from those who are deserving of your judgment. You decide the fates of the souls around you.

Holy Soul Manifestation: Let your soul manifest around you, shaping it and transforming your body to unbelievable power. Define your own limits.

Soul Enhancement: Improve their constitution and strengthen them. The bonus is improved based on your belief in them.

+50-100%

Restore Body and Soul: Heal people in their entirety. First, restore their soul, and then heal their body to match. Perfected healing of both their soul and body.

Divine Soul Marks: Bless the souls you deem worthy. Improve their abilities while gaining them as well. Get a small portion of the benefit you provide. Grows with the person’s belief in you.

­+50-100% increase, you gain 1-5% of the power

Corrupt Distortion: Stolen from a being of pure evil, you take its ability to crush and twist the soul, and as to be expected, the body will always follow the soul. Only affects creatures with a soul.

Holy Soul Fire: Stolen from a demonic being, your power redeems it turning the demonic fire into a holy one. Burn the very souls of your enemies.

True Holy Soul: A chosen soul of divine nature. It emanates with holy power, strengthening the good and condemning the evil. Resist even the evilest attempts to manipulate your soul.

One in Mind and Body: Your soul has guided your mind and body to equilibrium. Raising your mental stats will partly increase your physical ones as well.

Current ratio: 1/10

Untouchable Spirit: Your dedication is firm, and your path undaunted.

War Cleric’s Bond: Those you deem allies will be bonded to you. Cast your magic directly upon them from anywhere. So long as the connection is maintained, they are conduits for your magic.

Hero’s Mentality: The chosen path of the hero allows you to resist the temptation of evil. Gain resistance to any effects that would manipulate the mind.

Mash’s P.O.V Present

Mash glared at Luke as he got to his feet. Luke had explained in detail how much he had gained from his advancement, and he couldn’t help but be a little jealous. Taking two souls had given him so much power so quickly. While that should’ve been a good thing, it caused Mash to feel a little jealous. Luke had tried explaining that he only gained so many improvements because of the combination of stealing the demon’s soul and the advancement together, but it fell on deaf ears.

Honestly, even Jill and Red seemed annoyed by Luke’s explanation. Both were three levels away from their advancement and gave Luke an even colder stare than Mash did. It was unfair, Luke had around a hundred more stats than Mash did, and he was two levels higher. Even if he allocated his free stats, he would still be far beneath him. That was not to mention that he had two skills now that could improve his own stats by a hundred percent each. Luke called himself a healer, but those stats belonged to something far more intimidating.

Grumbling to himself, Mash rose to his feet. While he was a little disgruntled by the difference, he knew that they each had their strengths and weaknesses. Honestly, he was glad that Luke had the skills to overcome the lack of training that they did, and he hoped that Jill would get one as well. Red already had one, so only Jill lacked a way to make up the difference in training. Apparently, skills like that are common among those that level quickly. The class system wanted to help those that are striving for improvements.

“Let’s spar a bit. I got a few things I want to try.”

Mash grinned as he said the words to Luke and received one himself. Luke was just as eager as Mash to test his new abilities. Thinking about it Mash wanted to spar with his brother too, he could do that after though.