The soft pitter-patter of rain woke Liam in the middle of the night. For some reason, even though he knew he only slept for a few hours, his body felt completely rejuvenated. Since he was awake anyway, perhaps he could pass the time figuring out more of the system.

To his left, he heard the sound of Nora's deep, rhythmic breathing. Although possible to fake, he doubted she would do so. He sighed. Although he did not want to go outside in the rain, he also did not believe it would be pleasant if he accidentally woke her.

In the end, he decided to exit the tent. He put his shoes back on as quietly as possible. Hoping his stealth skill would activate, he crouched and stepped toward the exit flap. When his hand brushed the fabric, the woman sat up straight, as though ready for an attack.

Turning his head to look at her, Liam whispered, “Go back to sleep.”

The woman blinked, her red eyes staring in half-awake confusion. Apparently, she had removed her hooded jacket, leaving her with only cloth undergarments. Blinking, Liam wondered if the woman was always so carefree or if she simply felt comfortable around him. Either way, it annoyed him, though he certainly took advantage of the opportunity to appreciate her curves and lean muscle.

“You're staring,” Nora said.

“I am,” Liam bluntly replied.

“Hmph... Where are you off to?” Nora asked.

“Outside, since I didn't want to wake you.”

“How nice,” she replied, half-smiling. She looked fully awake now.

“More like self-preservation,” Liam corrected, pointing at the knife in her hand.

Nora looked at it and let go. When she returned her gaze to Liam, he had already stepped halfway outside. Stopping him by pressing her bare foot against the back of his calf, she asked, “Are you not going back to sleep?”

“Probably not,” he answered.

“Do you happen to have any pain relief potions?” Nora asked, changing the subject.

“...No,” Liam answered, wondering why she asked such a thing.

Lying back down, she muttered, “Too bad, then...”

“Do you need them for something?” Liam asked, raising a brow out of curiosity.

“It's none of your business,” she replied, blanket already pulled over her head.

Shaking his head, Liam stepped the rest of the way outside and closed the flap. The woman obviously needed pain medication for something, otherwise, she would not have asked. It bothered him that he actually cared enough to worry about it.

“Hey!” Nora called out, voice muffled due to the tent's fabric.

“What?”

“If you hear me moaning or something, wake me up.”

“Fine,” Liam replied. For sure, some sort of ailment plagued her. Sighing, he stepped over to the log he sat on previously and took a seat, wetting his backside on the damp wood. He opened his status screen as well as the friend list. Grimacing, he stared at the single name listed on the second, smaller screen. To his surprise, he recognized the name, though it did not read as Masked Meister.

“Sanguis?” Liam muttered, recalling the name mentioned by the elderly stall owner. “The Masked Meister is Sanguis? Does that mean he's some sort of god here? Damn...”

The shock only lasted for a moment. Moving on, he mentally chose the name, causing an option box to pop up. The options listed were: Message, Invite, and Delete. Only the message option remained available. Both the invite and delete options were grayed out. For some reason, it irritated him.

Barred any other option, he messaged the Masked Meister. A moment later, another screen appeared. Liam nearly laughed at what he saw.

[What? Never seen a guy wear a sleeping cap while holding a teddy bear?]

Chuckling, Liam replied, “No, and the mask just makes it worse... or maybe better.”

[Glad you got a kick out of it.]

Liam could hear the guy's eyes rolling.

[Why'd you call me in the middle of the night?]

“Oh, right. I was going to ask something about classes.”

[What about it?]

“Before that, the list said your name is Sanguis.”

[Indeed. Be glad I graced you with my name.]

“Mhm. Yeah, sure. Anyway, are you worshipped by the masses or something?”

[Only in the Gakrud Empire.]

“Will it affect me in any way?”

[Probably not. Most of the followers are rather casual. If any of them cross you, it won't bother me if you kill them.]

“What a great god you are...” Liam muttered.

[I never asked for anyone to worship me. Anyway, get on with your question.]

“Fine. I wanted to ask if it was possible to have more than one class.”

[It is. There are Primary and Secondary classes that contribute to your overall stats and level. On top of that, you can also add a Tertiary class which won't contribute to overall stats and levels. You only get the skills from it. However, you usually need to meet requirements to add a Tertiary class.]

“That's it?”

The Masked Meister nodded.

“Sounds good.”

[Do you want advice on which class to pick?]

Liam raised a brow in suspicion.

[Well, you've certainly made it clear you don't like me, but I'll tell you this: you should choose the Contractor class.]

“Why? It obviously requires mana.”

[Of course, you need mana, but it'll have a major payoff in the long run. Trust me on that.]

“I can change classes, though, right?”

[Yes, but it's a bad idea to change classes all the time. You may not have realized it since you've gone through some hellish trials, but usually, leveling up is difficult. Also, I didn't mention it during the introductory speech, but changing classes can only be done five times.]

“Are you a bunch of sadists or something?”

[I won't deny some of us are. Anyway, it would be wise to stick to a class once you've chosen it.]

“Noted.”

[So you trust me?]

“No, but me getting stronger seems to be in your best interests, so I'll trust that.”

[Good enough. I'm going back to bed now. Bye.]

As usual, the Masked Meister's screen vanished on his own terms, leaving Liam alone in the drizzling rain. Turning his attention to his status, he changed the Secondary class to Contractor.

Before he could do anything else, he heard moaning coming from the tent. Pursing his lips, he stepped over and looked inside. Nora fidgeted in her sleep with face scrunched up in pain. Her pointy ears twitched violently. Sweat dripped from her forehead. As she requested previously, he attempted to wake her by grabbing her shoulder and shaking her.

Nothing happened.

“Nora!”

Her eyes shot open. They turned upward and looked at him. Immediately, he noticed fear in her gaze, though it quickly disappeared when she sat up.

“Thanks...” she muttered.

“So, what's this all about?” Liam inquired.

“Nothing. None of your business,” she snapped.

“Damn, that's rude.”

Nora took a few deep breaths. Then, averting her gaze, she said, “Sorry, shouldn't have reacted like that.”

“You sick or something? Am I going to catch it?” Liam asked.

“No.”

“Is this normal?”

Nora remained silent.

Sitting on his own blanket, Liam glared at her. If she was going to stay under his roof, then he didn't want this happening again.

“Is it because you're albino?” Liam asked.

“What?” Nora asked, looking at him with a confused expression.

“I was wondering about it since I met you. The white hair and red eyes.”

The woman grimaced and said, “Those are a curse.”

“The hell are you talking about?”

“What?”

“It's not a curse.”

“How would you know? You're not a Beastkin.”

“Albinism exists among humans, too.”

Furrowing her brows, the woman replied, “But this is a known curse among Beastkin.”

“It's a genetic defect, not a curse.”

Looking even more puzzled, Nora asked, “What does that mean?”

“It means... I guess you wouldn't know the science behind it, would you?”

“Try me.”

Sighing, Liam wondered what the hell he was doing trying to comfort her. “Ever seen someone born unable to use their legs?”

“No, but I've heard of it.”

“Same type of thing.”

Nora's eyes widened, displaying traces of fear and anger.

“Maybe not the best way to describe it...”

“No.”

“Well, bottom line, it's not a curse,” Liam concluded, wishing the conversation would end.

Hugging her knees, Nora muttered, “If it's not a curse, do you think I could heal it?”

“How should I know?”

“If... if it can be healed...” Nora paused. Then, she asked, “If you help me find it, I'll definitely repay you.”

Raising his brow, Liam asked, “How?”

“I have a secret stash. I'd give it all away to get rid of this... whatever it is.”

“I don't need more treasures,” Liam retorted.

Again, Nora fell silent, hugging her knees even tighter. Seeing it pricked his heart, contrary to everything he thought he knew about himself. I'm not turning into a damn pussy, am I? Since when did I ever worry about others? At this moment, he realized the change thrust upon him by Noctis may have changed more than his physical appearance. It ran deeper, far deeper. Even though he still maintained his personality, his sense of being, he started to recognize small mental differences.

In the past, he had been diagnosed with ASPD, and he ran with it. Back then, he accepted that part of himself and joined the military. Over time, he sated negative urges with the deaths of his enemies. If that part of him no longer existed...

“Anything you want, I'll obtain it for you,” Nora said, shattering Liam's inner reflection.

Sighing, he replied, “Don't worry about it.”

A tear dripped from the woman's eye. “Then... you won't help.”

“Not if you act like it's the death of you. You looked more attractive running from those soldiers.”

Lost for words, Nora stared at Liam.

Continuing, Liam said, “How about you travel with me for a while.”

Tears began to flow from Nora's eyes as though a dam broke, but she did not whimper. For several seconds, Liam watched the silent tears cascade from her face. As they gazed into each others' eyes, he pondered his hidden motive. He would use this woman to find out just how much his mind had changed. Perhaps it was just an excuse, but it made sense. If his heart now had the capacity to care for others, then he simply needed to become the greatest badass that ever lived to make up for it.