Similar to his Life Mage skills [Sneaking] required activation. The initial cost was minor but then there was also a sustained cost to it which was increased by the strong daylight and large animal he was currently riding. Being only at level 4 it had absolutely no apparent impact on him or his horse. Maybe the horse’s hoofbeats were a bit muffled? He pulled up the skill and its description to refresh his memory on its details.

Sneaking (4/5) Conceal yourself to avoid detection. Additional targets and gear increase costs. Averse conditions increase costs. Increased skill level decreases costs and improves extent of concealment.

Yup suitably vague. With the skill still held active he started to try and direct its effects. No way was he reducing visibility at practically high noon on a half ton animal. Instead he pulled back on that aspect and directed it towards muffling the sound they were making and the smell of the horse. The ongoing cost dropped then increased as he played around with it. The hoofbeats were definitely softer, though still audible, and the smell was more tenable. He might have to use [Sneaking] as a stench reducer more often. Trying to extend the effect to Archie and his horse precipitated a great pressure then a sharp pain as it snapped back and he lost his hold on the skill.

Exhausted from the skill usage Linus slumped into his saddle, draping himself forward onto the horse’s neck.

“Everything alright?” Archie asked.

“Indeed, just overdid it on with [Sneaking]” Linus whispered back. “I should’ve maxed it out already but didn’t see the need for it after my father stopped caring about my activities for the most part.”

“Problem back there?” Asked Luke as he slowed down and fell in line with them.

“Not at all, just grinding a skill like you recommended.”

“Excellent, anything useful?”

“Just [Sneaking], so if you see anything off make sure it’s not me or Archie before you let loose with that bow of yours.” Luke nodded in return.

“Going for the Rogue class or something fancier?” Instead of answering the question Linus responded with one of his own.

“Why don’t you tell us a bit about yourself? I know you’re a Ranger from the army but are you an actual Ranger or just something similar? Any other pertinent classes or skills we should know about? And are you just our escort or will you be staying with us at the edge of nowhere?” Luke chuckled before answering.

“I guess those are all fair questions. I have a variant of the Ranger class and most of the related skills you’d expect for bows, tracking, woodcraft.”

“What Tier?” Asked Archie, eliciting another chuckle from Luke.

“Top Tier is 3 right now but I’ll definitely make it to 4 in the nearish future.”

“Excellent,” added Linus. “Please tell me you’ll be staying at the outpost.”

“Indeed I will be.” Luke didn’t elaborate any further and Linus and Archie didn’t pry, both were more than happy at the idea of a Tier 4 helping to protect their future home. While most enterprising adults would eventually make it to Tier 3, advancing to the 4th is when a real power gap emerged and Tier 5s were often considered strategic resources by countries.

For the rest of the day Linus practiced his [Sneaking] skills, feeling out the boundaries of its capabilities then trying to stretch them, and recovering. He focused the skill on just himself, excluding the horse to reduce its energy consumption. Then extending it to only part of the horse. He tried focusing it only on sight for him and sound for the horse. He flared the skill past the level it normally extended then drew it back so it barely had an effect. It was an exhausting exercise and harder than he had worked since trying to get his initial Mage class.

Inevitably their progress was slower than Luke wanted, between the skill grinding and the two inexperienced riders, and they ended up stopping at lunchtime only long enough to go to the bathroom and dole out rations. As the sun started to set Linus started to focus more on the sight portion of the skill that most people thought of when it came to stealth skills. He tried extending shadows already present, dimming reflective pieces of metal instead of his whole person or targeting the articles of clothing whose colors were most likely to clash with the surrounding woodlands. Finally after more sessions and recovery periods than he wanted to count Linus got the message he’d been hoping for.

Sneaking has increased to level 5.

New Classes Available.

With a thought Linus navigated to the new classes and was presented with another window.

New Classes Available: Amateur Thief, Amateur Rogue, Apprentice Cat Burglar

He'd been expecting the [Amateur Rogue] and [Amateur Thief] but [Apprentice Cat Burglar] was a surprise. [Sneaking] and one of his existing level 5 or higher skills must have been enought to unlock it. Ignoring the two thief related classes he pulled up the information on his intended class.

Amateur Rogue An untrained class focused on stealth, short blades and agility skills. Accept | Decline

Perfect, not the most combat focused class but avoid the conflict and stab something if you get caught aligned much better with Linus' outlook on life than a frontline fighter like [Warrior] or [Knight]. Before he could second guess it he accepted the class and received one last box.

Please Select New Skill Daggers | Sneak Attack

This time Linus decided to seek some advice from his party. Combat skills were not an area he was generally knowledgeable in and it was a bitch to remove a skill from a class.

"Hey Luke and Archie, I just accepted my new class and was wondering if you had any advice on which skill I should pick. My options are [Daggers] and [Sneak Attack]."

"[Sneak Attack]" Archie instantly replied with a small smile on his face. “If they see you coming you are already in trouble.” Luke laughed at that before weighing in himself.

“Do you currently have a dagger?

“No.”

“Planning to get one?”

“Um, I hadn't considered it until now.”

“I agree with Archie on [Sneak Attack] then. It is also the better skill in my opinion unless you are planning to go for a dagger focused class later down the line.” That got a laugh out of all of them before he continued.

“[Daggers] is focused on a specific type of weapon while [Sneak Attack] can be used with most weapons. Additionally if you want to pick up a weapon proficiency type skill, which I recommend, I’d suggest something more general such as [Blades] or [Swords]. So many more weapons fall under those categories.”

“Alright, I need no more convincing, [Sneak Attack] it is. Now please tell me we are almost done with traveling for the night and one of you is planning to make a glorious dinner for me to celebrate with?”

Linus was delighted to hear that they were indeed ready to make camp for the night but disappointed to find that dinner was more of the same hard bread and cheese from earlier. As he settled into his bedroll in the small but decidedly nice tent that Archie had pitched for him he pulled up his new status and smiled at what he saw, good progress for one day’s worth of work.

Status Name: Linus Class Slots: 6/7 Tiers: Top - 2, Total - 8 Classes and Skills Noble Progeny Gardener (Tier 2) Plant Mage (Tier 2) Leadership (6/10) Plant Lore (16/20) Growth (18/20) Precision Pruning (15/20) Enrich (8/20) Germination (4/20) Mana Manipulation (11/20) Improved Yield (12/20) Mutation (4/20) Amateur Alchemist Apprentice Life Mage Amateur Rogue Extract (9/10) Minor Heal (6/10) Sneaking (5/10) Concentrate (4/10) Invigorate (8/10) Sneak Attack (1/10) Non-Class Skills Napping (5/5) Persuasion (5/5) Writing (2/5) Repartee (5/5) Mental Resistance (5/5) Analyze (5/5) Arcane Lore (5/5) Inebriation (5/5) Mana Blade (5/5) Altered State (5/5) Increase Potency (3/5)