“So, what is your plan, at this point?”, Alex asked.

“To be honest… It’s pretty barebones. I know of two races I could visit. The aequor living south of the orks don’t sound like they have some high civilization.”

“The what?”, Vivi interrupted.

“They’re a species evolved from goblins to live outside the orks’ control. They have winged arms as far as I know and live in caves and crevices. The valleys down there are apparently covered by ocean.”

“Never heard of them”, Safrah said.

“Anyway. I don’t think they’re the number one candidate for finding capable thaumaturges. The forest to the east is an option but it’s teeming with dangerous wildlife. I could probably make it through but it would be tough and I don’t know if there are any intelligent species there.

“The east has a swamp area and there was some kind of reptilian people in the southern parts, right?”

“They’re a secluded people. We have very little trade. I would have to look up what they evolved from but I don’t think it’s dwarves.”

“If there are no other sapients nearby, it’s very likely to be dwarves”, I said, “Basically, I don’t think there’s much reason going east or west. Which leaves the north.”

“Humans, huh?”

I bobbed my head.

“I… might want to come along, in that case”, Alex said.

“No offence but you’re a little slow compared to me.”

“You could take the long way round through Trade Town”, Safrah suggested.

She put a hand on her chin.

“I’ll think about it.”

“What are humans like?”, Vivi asked.

“I don’t know in this world but they’re probably very diverse.”

“They’re uncivilized savages”, Safrah spat, “They have prisons and they need them. Not even the orks do that!”

Alex looked like she wanted to protest but I jumped in.

“The orks have prisons. They usually don’t use them because the perpetrator simply gets killed or enslaved. Sometimes, a prisoner is worth more, though.”

Safrah glared at me for a moment before her expression softened.

“Okay. That was a little unfair. Humans are definitely better than orks. Still, they’re no dwarves.”

“I’m well aware. I still am human. At least part of me.”

That made her eyes widen.

“Didn’t you say you’re an owl now?”

“I Am. What that is doesn’t matter. Back to the topic, I heard they have some kind of paladin order that ‘deals’ with thaumaturges?”

“They do. I don’t know a lot about them, though.”

“Wouldn’t that mean they don’t know much about how to fix things?”, Alex asked.

“Probably. But it’s my best chance. They at least know about the dangers.”

“Don’t get caught!”, Vivi said.

I narrowed my eyes.

“They can’t keep me contained!”, I smirked.

Safrah laughed.

“True. You can slip through the smallest opening. There’s no way they can force you to do anything.”

“So. Humans it is”, Alex said, “What about your level? Wouldn’t it be good to wait for 100 so you can get a second Class?”

“Good thought, but no. I level through friendship, magical discovery and exploration. Two of those I haven’t done much in the last year but only one I didn’t even attempt. I want to see the world and that will give me levels all on its own. I could also make another friend. If they’re human, I’ll probably get one or two levels on the spot.”

“You need to fly”, Vivi sent, “It’s what you are.”

“It is”, I nodded.

“Any ideas which Class you’re taking for your second?”

That made me hesitate. I had obviously thought about it but I did not know what I wanted. I had several options. [Thaumaturge] might be the most obvious but I could not see how a Class would help me with the craft. The dwarf I had talked to three months ago about taint and nodes was willing to tell me about the benefits as well. It gave magical Attributes which meant I would definitely consider it but the Skill themselves seemed… lacking. There were options for sensing vis, flux and essence, something to reduce the effects of warp and Skills to organize knowledge. The former two I did not need and the latter would be more easily gained and with better support Skills if I got [Librarian].

That was the second option I was considering. I had unlocked it last winter when I spent a few weeks in Serrington mostly just reading and cataloguing what I could find about my research topic. There were Skills for speed-reading, memorization, organization and repairing books. I had a much better idea of what the Class would give me compared to [Thaumaturge]. The higher-end Skills of such a rarely used Class were simply not well researched.

“Fio? Are you there?”

I blinked.

“Sorry. Got lost in my thoughts. I have some ideas but nothing set in stone. I was considering [Thaumaturge] but I don’t think it brings anything amazing to the table. [Librarian] would help me more for my research.”

“Hmm. What about combat?”

“That’s the second path I could take. Something like [Hunter] or [Scout]. I still have the options for the goblin variants of those Classes from when Roguk and the others taught me. The problem is finding something that synergizes with [Assassin]. It has to add to my potential damage output or sneakiness.”

“Makes sense. I think you could profit from a Class specialized on ranged attacks but many of those rely on weapons that might be difficult to use for you.”

“Yup. I could use some Skills to help my aim but in the end, my only ranged attack is magical so getting something to boost Intelligence and Wisdom seems just straight up better.”

“Are there no ranged caster Classes? Like [Firemage] or something?”

“What is that supposed to be?”, Safrah asked, “Some Class that gives you an ignis node in your body or something? Sounds like suicide.”

Alex rubbed her forehead.

“Right. Doesn’t really make sense. Sorry.”

“As much fun as that would be I don’t think it’s feasible. Something like it probably exists but if so, it’s far too rare for me to reliably go for it.

“The third option is a crafting-based Class. Something like [Artificer] might be very useful in the long run. It would take some time to level but I have that one unlocked, at least. Though I would prefer something that gives magical Attributes.”

“Well. Looks like there are a lot of options.”

“I can’t really help much”, Safrah said, “I’m still pretty low-level myself but I think [Thaumaturge] might not be that bad of an idea. Generally, you never get useless Skills. From Classes at least. You could also join a Clan and receive proper guidance in their field.”

Vivi meowed softly.

“Fio is herself better than a Clan. She needs to find her own way.”

Safrah smiled wryly.

“It was just an idea.”

I bobbed my head.

“I think I’ll figure it out. I could always just try some Class and if it doesn’t work out change it to a different one.”

“I don’t recommend that”, Safrah said, “Changing Class is… not pleasant.”

“Is it really that bad?”

“You lose all your Attributes and Skills from it. It feels very… violating. Don’t do it easily.”

Silence spread through the round. I looked at my empty tea bowl for a minute. Then, I opened my status menu.

Species: Sgiathan Dorcha Owl (adult)

Age: 2

Name: Fio Catori

Gender: female

Status: sapient, healthy, Beast Core (unique, enriched – medium)

Level: 97

Class: [Assassin lvl 91], -

Strength: 37

Constitution: 35

Dexterity: 41

Perception: 41

Intelligence: 95

Wisdom: 94

AP: 0

Skills:

Racial:

Utility: [Owl Senses lvl 7], [Preening lvl 4], [Owl Stomach lvl 7], [Sgiathan Dorcha lvl 7]

Offensive: [Solid Grip lvl 4], [Intimidating Screech lvl 4], [Owl’s Shadow lvl 7], [Aerial Combat lvl 4]

General:

[Imaginatics lvl 6], [Hidden Identify lvl 7], [Telepathy lvl 4], [Guidance lvl 4]

Assassin:

[Sneak lvl 7], [Shock Attack lvl 6], [Mingling lvl 7], [Eldritch Shift lvl 8], [Winged Death lvl 6]

I had gotten a lot stronger over the last year. And yet, I had plateaued a little. Most of my Skills were stuck at a Breakpoint, other than those purely related to combat and [Imaginatics]. [Eldritch Shift] was able to go up by one level but I did not expect it to get there anytime soon. Nymph only had two Skills that high and one of them only got to level 9 very recently.

From this it was clear a Class profiting from my high magic Attributes was the best choice. Something to help a few of my Skills along might be a good idea as well. And yet again, I had no idea how to go about that.

When I shared my thoughts with the others, they could not help me either. I almost considered reading up on the matter in Serrington’s library but… I wanted to spread my wings and fly. Find a new place. Meet new people. And hopefully, make my way towards a solution for our growing problem in the mountains.

“I’m just gonna wing it”, I decided. Vivi nuzzled my side.

“You’ll do great!”, she said.

“Yeah. You got this far already. You’ll keep going further.”

Alex smiled at me.

“Fine, then. I’ll follow you at my own pace. Are you two fine with that?”

Safrah and Vivi nodded.

“You go, girl!”

“Be safe!”

“I’ll make sure to spend some time in the human lands. If we miss each other, we’ll come back here to meet up again.”

“That’s what we’ll do.”

I formed a hand with my shadow tendrils and shook the metal one my friend held out.

“Oh, I know!”, Safrah spoke up, “I’ll make you some normal clothes in human size! That way, you’ll stand out less!”

“Appreciated”, Alex nodded.

“I’ll prepare some useful things in my workshop before I fly north. You’ll need a few weeks, anyway.”

“I’ll make my own stuff for myself. Don’t get stuck in your little world, Fio Catori!”

“That was one time! Let it slide, already!”

“You were gone for almost two months stuck in your little cave. What were you even trying to do.”

“That doesn’t really matter…”, I sulked.

Alex laughed, Safrah and Vivi joining in with chuckles.

“You can do it!”, the feline encouraged me.

“Thanks!”, I said.

“That’s enough of that!”, Safrah chimed in, “Let’s enjoy ourselves!”

“Ooooh!”, Alex cheered, “Made any plans?”

“There’s this new place just a few blocks down where up and coming poets battle each other with improvised lines. It’s really fun, apparently!”

“Well, what are we waiting for?”