The sound of hysterical laughter broke the monotonous silence of the void. Rising in volume, the sound had a distinct edge to it, as if the producer of said noise was on the verge of breaking down. The man's laughter gradually choked itself off, the quivering emotions hidden beneath the surface once more.

Katai attempted to pull himself together, trying his best not to laugh once more at the absurdity of the situation. A single event had taken the most important thing in his life from him – but, perversely, it had also given him something that could change his life forever. A Rare class.

The young man took a seat on the floor, crossing his legs with his head resting on his palms. He’d found the posture was surprisingly soothing, and with his elbows propped up on his thighs, he could maintain the position for quite some time. It seemed to help him think, which is exactly what he did now.

Ignoring all the major downsides to the class, there was a lot that attracted him. For one, the sheer rarity of the class. It would undoubtedly be powerful. If he’d managed to unlock an Uncommon class, he would have chosen it without too much hesitation. To unlock the next tier higher, something he hadn’t heard of anyone doing in the village, was incredible. To think that he and all of the village kids had dreamed of gaining an Uncommon Mage class, and here he was with a Rare one…

A Rare class might as well be as unreachable as Godhood, as far as he and the other villagers were concerned. Only a handful had managed to reach the Uncommon tier, by painstakingly levelling their Common class up to level fifty and transitioning into the next one. That's how Hiram had gained his class of Dragoon, reaching level fifty with his Warrior class and then selecting an evolution. Each tier higher gave better traits, bonuses and more specialised skills, at the cost of slower progression. Hiram was likely too old now to reach the minimum level for another tier progression, unless he went out into the wilds and spent all of his time fighting and taking risks.

A known strategy of levelling a class quickly was to put yourself in a dangerous situation. For example, classes involved in gathering and crafting were the slowest to level, as they were repetitive actions without much danger involved. On the other hand, Warriors who were in regular life-or-death situations were known to level quite quickly.

The Elders of the village advised against any kind of levelling strategy of course. They enthused a life of slow, methodical progression over one of turmoil and strife. Many stories were told of people who had thought of dangerous schemes to give themselves an advantage over their competitors. Traders who had hired local bandits to attack them while travelling between towns, only to end up getting robbed and murdered for the rest of their trade goods. Miners who descended into a Crystal mine without a guard, only to end up getting eviscerated by the powerful creatures within. There were far fewer tales of people who had succeeded using such dangerous strategies. But those who had, grew far more powerful in their lifetime than any others could possibly hope to.

Katai stood and stretched his limbs out. It was a strange sensation being cooped up in an endless space. You wouldn’t think that your body would get sore or tired, but Katai found he had to get up and walk around regularly. He didn’t get sore per se. But he did get quite uncomfortable staying in the one spot for too long.

Striding out in a random direction, Katai took off at a brisk walk. Since he wasn’t actually moving anywhere, it didn’t really matter where he went. Mind still firmly on the Blood Mage class he’d been presented with, he thought about the possible effects of choosing it as his second class.

The obvious, and main downside, was the inescapable fact that it was a forbidden class. He’d be an outlaw if he was discovered, and the nobility were pretty serious about this particular law. They’d likely send out hunters and Questors to find him and bring him back for Imperial justice. At best, he’d be publicly executed. At worst… well, it’d probably be better to take his own life.

Could he live as an outlaw? Or could he spend his life hiding from the nobility and their various servants and officials? Actually, thinking about it, Katai wasn’t too unhappy with the thought of hiding his existence. Questors only visited once or twice a year since their village was small and remote, and he could just travel up into the mountains when they came. Or, worst comes to worst, he could survive permanently on his own. The biggest downside to that was giving up his foster family, his friends, the village and all it provided for him, as well as his position in the Guard. That… was actually a lot. Pretty much everything he cared about. Everything that was left anyway.

Thinking of his life in the village was enough to trigger his memories. Salah’s face flashed into his mind, drained of blood, pale white and staring. Her unblinking eyes bore into his soul, as if to ask, why weren’t you there?

Katai physically flinched and tore himself away from those thoughts, before he got dragged down into another round of doubt and self-pity. Instead, he focused on thoughts of his foster family and his foster-brother, Silas. The distraction worked, calming his suddenly chaotic thoughts.

As young boys, he and Silas had been inseparable. Silas' parents had taken Katai in for many years, after his own parents had died from the wasting sickness. They were a rough but caring family, making sure he always had a place to stay. Even if it was tucked away in a corner on the straw-covered floor. Growing up together they had many adventures, causing plenty of mischief and mayhem for the hard-working villagers. In fact, even after joining the village guard when they were old enough, the Captain had been forced to separate them into alternating patrols, to keep them from causing mayhem in the ranks. The tactic had worked to a large extent, and the villagers had given a collective sigh of relief when Katai and Salah decided to settle down and start thinking of having their own family.

They had a close friendship, a bond forged over many years and adventures together. Choosing this class, how would it affect Silas and their friendship? Would Silas abandon him? It was, after all, a forbidden class. Even the closest of friendships would be tested.

Katai sighed with frustration, uncertain what he should do. With a mental command, he brought up the descriptions of the traits, hoping they might shed some light on the class.

Internal Blood Savant

Health regeneration increased by 400%.

Bleeding damage received reduced by 50%.

Poison damage received reduced by 50%.

Immune to all external healing magic and potion effects.

Bleeding Edge

Attacks that cause bleeding, increase damage and length of effect by 50%.

Analysing the traits Katai wasn’t surprised, given the class description, that the main trait was focused on vitality and survivability. The health regeneration combined with the Constitution bonus would make him very resilient. The negative effect that came with it however, made it a bit of a double-edged sword. Though they didn't have any healers in the village, nor could they afford potions, never having the option of using an enhancing or healing potion was a big downside. Instead he would be forced to always rely on his high constitution and regeneration, or avoid getting hit - as unlikely as that was going to be. Luckily his first class wasn’t an Alchemist!

The number of effects from the combined traits was also a surprise to Katai. With another mental prompt, he brought up the trait he’d gained from his Warrior class.

Relentless

Increase total stamina and stamina regeneration by 40%.

The difference between his Common Warrior class trait and the Rare Blood Mage was staggering. The higher tier class was showing exactly why it was at the Rare level.

Curiosity satisfied, Katai considered the class once more. The downsides of choosing a forbidden class outweighed the benefits. On that basis alone he knew he should simply ignore it, leave the Class Selection, and use his Warrior skills to try and escape... but he suddenly knew he wasn't going to do that.

Katai’s heart started to race, the realisation leaving him breathless with excitement and no small amount of fear. He was going to choose the forbidden class. It was the only way.

There were far more downsides for choosing it, he knew that. It was logical to refuse it and try to escape the bandit attack with his life.

But he wouldn’t.

There was very little chance that he would ever get justice from the bandits if he simply chose the easy route. They would get away with more carnage, maybe even pillaging other remote villagers. The Nobles would probably do nothing about it, more concerned with their internal politics and the ongoing strife around the Capital. They were on their own, against a force that was likely stronger and better equipped than they were. They needed a big advantage if they were ever to have a hope of striking back. That advantage would be him.

He would not let her killers walk free. If he didn't take up this class, there was no way he'd survive attacking them. He would choose strength and vengeance over cowardice.

Looking up at the inky black of the void, Katai smiled for the first time since he’d entered. It wasn’t a happy smile, no. Nor was it a fake smile, or a smile holding back the lingering pain he still felt deeply. No, it was a smile full of malicious promise.

Are you sure you wish to select Blood Mage as your second class? This action cannot be undone.

A cocktail of potent emotions; relief, excitement, fear, and anger all whirled to the surface, as Katai mentally gave his approval. Once again, the text faded away, the selection of the class echoing oddly around him. Skills started appearing before his eyes, the text quickly scrolling into view.

Blood Mage Skills - available selections: 2

Sense Blood: Sense bodies in an area around the caster. Activate/deactivate on command.

Lacerate: Cause bleeding wounds on a target. Ignores armour.

Absorb Blood: Drain health from target, on touch. Slightly restores your own health.

He considered the skills before him thoughtfully. If he was going to enact his plan of vengeance, he needed to be smart.

Sense Blood sounded like a decent utility. It would give him some kind of overview of the battlefield, as well as preventing sneak attacks - something that was pretty likely fighting bandits. Lacerate and Absorb Blood on the other hand both gave him an extra offensive punch to add to his Warrior capabilities. Lacerate was the more aggressive of the two and should work nicely with the class trait that gave him a bonus to bleeding attacks. Absorb Blood was a decent-sounding offensive skill, with some added health restoration for a defensive boost.

The big issue he had with Absorb Blood was the 'touch' requirement, which was almost impossible in the midst of a battle. Only after dealing a fatal strike would that skill be useful to him, making it less than ideal. The idea of stealing the life force from a helpless, wounded Warrior, or even a bandit, left a sour taste in his mouth. He may be choosing a forbidden class, but that didn’t mean it would change who he was. He wouldn’t become a monster.

Making up his mind, Katai selected the skills 'Sense Blood' and 'Lacerate', approving the selections when a second confirmation message popped up. Mentally preparing himself, he watched as the blackness of the void faded into the colours and noise of the real world, the final messages scrolling briefly into view.

You have selected the [Rare] Blood Mage class.

…

The following changes will be applied:

New Skill: Sense Blood (Novice) – Level 1.

New Skill: Lacerate (Novice) – Level 1.

…

Constitution + 4.

Wisdom + 1.

…

Magical Aptitude increased from 51% to 62% - Blood Magic (Life).

…

Resistance increased to 62%, Blood Magic (Life).

Resistance increased to 31%, Void.

Resistance decreased to -16%, Wither (Life).

Resistance decreased to -16%, Spirit.

Katai's Status

(In brackets indicates what was gained this chapter, or pending skill/attribute selections)

Katai D’Castro

1st Class: Warrior – level 16

2nd Class: Blood Mage – level 1 (+)

Skills

Lunge (Expert) – level 4

Parry (Expert) – level 3

Bash (Proficient) – level 3

Sense Blood (Novice) – level 1 (+)

Lacerate (Novice) – level 1 (+)

Attributes

Strength: 16

Dexterity: 16

Constitution: 20 (+4)

Intelligence: 15

Wisdom: 15 (+1)

Charisma: 17

Magical Aptitude

Blood (Life): 62% (+11)

Water: 9%

Resistances

Spirit: -16% (-16)

Void: 31% (+31)

Blood (Life): 62% (+62)

Wither (Life): -16% (-16)