A red tenderloin laid on the ground a few meters away from the back door. The metal meat hook that pierced through the meat was connected with a metal chain leading back to the slight gap on the back door. Ken held on to it as he was the strongest at the moment. The little man didn’t hesitate to pour his points into strength as he never felt more alive being this strong. “How is it?” Ken asked.

Leo, who looked through the circular glass window on the back door, kept his eyes at the flashing lights in the dark jungle. Those lights were the many eyes of meat-eaters of the jungle, and using Identify confirmed it.

[Margay][Lv.2]

[A petite wildcat. It has beautiful markings of black rosettes and stripes over its short brown fur. Its large eyes help hunt small animals like monkeys, birds, and frogs.]

This little one was hiding underneath a thicket, waiting silently. This cat was one of the many that were lured by the scent of fresh meat on the ground. Leo had to wait another ten seconds before he could use Identify again, and after the cool down, he used it again. This time it was different.

[Jaguar][Lv.6]

[Large and agile. Its powerful bite allows it to pierce the carapaces of hard shell animals while also employing an unusual killing method. Biting directly through the skull of its prey between the ears to deliver a fatal blow to the brain.]

‘Now that’s fucking scary,’ reading the description alone was enough to make his hackle rose. This big cat was definitely something he should be cautious of. Unlike the jaguar they killed back then, this one was a higher level.

“Ken, you know a difference between a leopard and a jaguar?” Leo asked. He had never thought about it before as in his eyes they were pretty much looked the same.

“Just google it,” Ken said.

“Um, the jaguar is stockier and more muscular than the leopard, and their fur patterns differ by the spots inside the jaguar’s rosettes,” Luis explained.

Both Leo and Ken turned and stared at Luis with questions in their mind. “What are you? You’re some kind of big cat enthusiast or something?” Ken shot a question.

“Uh, I’m hoping to become a zoologist one day,” Luis said with an awkward smile. “Primarily on big felines.”

“Oh,” Leo uttered, realizing what they were about to do. “Hey, Luis, I don’t think you should do this.”

“Um, why not?” Luis didn’t understand. He thought they would be glad by his help. Before this, he did hear from Kareena in the lobby, shouting about there was a need to get to level ten. So he thought helping them might help him level up.

“Because we’re going to fucking kill them,” Ken blurted it out, annoyed from the clueless face on Luis.

“But why would you do that?” Luis stood up, glaring at both of them with a frown.

Ken glanced at Leo as if asking him whether this kid was for real. “Are you really asking that question? Haven’t you played a game before?”

“I do, but what’s that got to do with killing jaguars?” Luis was really asking them that question.

“What kind of game did you play, kid? This whole thing is an RPG, and in an RPG you kill things to level up,” Ken said straight to Luis’s face.

“What? That’s too cruel. You can’t do that,” Luis protested as his sense of justice for animals rose. Unlike what Leo and Ken thought, the only game Luis had played was animal-related games like Zoo Tycoon, Planet Zoo, and World of Zoo. Never in his eighteen years of life, had he played an RPG game much less a first-person shooting game.

“Fuck off, kid, before I kill you,” Ken said, the apparent threat was quite an overboard.

“Dude,” Leo slapped him by the shoulder.

“What? He’s going to be a hindrance. So of course I’m going for the threatening route,” Ken tried justifying his reason.

But before Leo could say something, Ken felt a tug on the metal chains. “It bit,” Ken said.

Leo grabbed the fire axe and tackled the door open. The lights on the back were bright enough to let him see the surrounding area within a ten-meter range. He saw the jaguar pulling the meat with its fangs locked in between the red meat.

The sudden sound of the door being opened made the jaguar aware of Leo’s presence. Yet it didn’t flee, standing its ground, not wanting to leave its meat for the evening to a scrawny-looking man with a fire axe. It growled at Leo with its upper lips twitching, showing its fangs at the enemy, a sign it was going to fight.

‘Shit, this is crazy,’ Leo thought, but his feet didn’t stop. Rushing forward as the thought of those precious stats fueled against the underlying fear. He pulled back his arms for a wide swing, and against a big cat like this, he needed all the power he could get.

“Stop!” yet someone tackled him from behind. The force pushed him forward, and any other man would stumble. But his feet were still planted on the ground, unmoving like a mountain as the strength attribute he had shown its worth. It felt great being strong, and unknowingly, Leo was smiling. He released the tension of his arm muscles and core as the man with brown eyes swung hard at the jaguar.

At the same time, Ken pulled the hook hard, matching the timing with Leo’s swing. The sudden pull made the jaguar unable to flee. Then the axe came and struck the jaguar right at the side of its head.

“No!” Luis’s screamed. His heart sank as he witnessed a barbaric act against the big cat he swore to protect one day. His grip on Leo’s waist loosened as the boy fresh out of high school dropped to his knees, staring at a beautiful jaguar that was now dead.

The teamwork between Leo and Ken made this fight end a bit too soon. It would have been longer if the jaguar managed to dodge it, but that perfect tug from Ken was the chef’s kiss of this instant battle.

Leo dislodged the axe from the jaguar’s head as his eyes wandered across the new windows.

[You have reached level 5]

[5 stat points have been given]

[Statistic Inheritor activated; +1 Strength]

[Congratulation. You have reached the first threshold.]

[Please choose your desired class.]

The new discovery, made Leo turn to Ken. The self-proclaimed larper also gazed at Leo. It seemed his assistance with the kill had been recognized by the system and it awarded him half of the experience of killing the jaguar. So, he too gained a level.

“Get in,” Ken said. “And drag the dead jaguar along.”

In time, Leo got back inside with the dead jaguar on the floor. Blood still seeped out from that cut he made at the head, but none of that matter right now. Both Leo and Ken was excited like a pair of kindergartener getting a new toy. Meanwhile, Luis sat at the corner, hugging his knees. The poor kid was probably traumatized.

Leo scanned the new window. A list of classes which he could choose according to his liking.

[Please choose:]

[Warrior]

[Archer]

[Mage]

[Bard]

[Knight’s Squire]

‘It’s pretty generic. I was hoping there would be some interesting classes, but I guess it’s still early in the game,’ his eyes went up and down, and his eyes couldn’t help but stay at the only class with two words. ‘Hmm, it would be good if I can see the detail explanation about this class,’ he stared with intent, and by chance, a new window opened up.

[Knight’s Squire]

[For honor and valor. A specific warrior class with skills geared towards a balance between heavy offense and heavy defense. Predominantly focused on utilizing their heavy full plate armor to the fullest. This class prowess shines even brighter when on top of a mount. Main stats: Strength, Vitality, Fortitude]

‘Hmm, typical of a knight, and not so tempting. To be fair, I don’t even know how to ride a horse,’ his eyes looked through the circle window on the door. ‘And I doubt I can ride a horse in a jungle like this. I probably should check the others.’

[Warrior]

[Striving to be the strongest. The most versatile physical-based class. They can use an arsenal of weapons from sword to shield and even barehanded. Further specialization depends on experience gained during their time as a warrior. Main stats: Strength, Vitality.]

[Archer]

[One with the bow. A ranged attacker with a sharp eye. They are quick on their feet with a versatile skill set from tracking enemies to trapping them in their man-made traps. Yet their biggest weakness is their lackluster defense. Main stats: Dexterity, Agility, Perception.]

[Mage]

[Those who love knowledge over everything else. Nothing matters to them but the arcane knowledge. Has the widest variation of skill that can be chosen. From healing spell, support spell, defensive spell, and a plethora of elemental offensive spells. Chosen set of spells determine future class progression. Main stats: Intellect, Spirit.]

[Bard]

[A free spirit untethered by anything. The magic behind their voice is a different path than those of the mages. Some say the first bard learned his first song from an ancient dragon. But who knows, it might be just an exaggeration of an entertaining bard. Their skills and songs vary in effect, some for support, some to disrupt, while some for offense. They wield their musical instrument like a weapon. But for those who love their instruments like their own life, the bard has no restriction in wielding other types of weapon. Main stats: Charisma, Spirit, Dexterity.]

‘Damn, this is going to be tough,’ Leo glanced at the descriptions between the Mage and the Bard. For someone who liked RPG, it would be a waste if he missed out on wielding the arcane. His childhood dream of being like those fictional characters was now right in front of him. It was either he took the leap or took the safe path of survival.

“So what are you going to choose?” Ken broke the silence.

“I don’t know, you?” Leo threw the question back.

“I’m torn between a warrior or the apprentice youxia,” Ken said as he was determined to take the path of being a close combatant.

“Youxia? What kind of class is that?” to Leo’s inquiry, Ken explained to him the classes he was offered. Comparing between his and Ken’s list, the only thing different was his Knight’s Squire and Ken’s Apprentice Youxia. As if these two classes were specifically given to them.

“If you ask me, I think this system is fucking racist,” Ken said. “Since I’m Chinese it gives me a Chinese warrior class, and since you’re white, it gives you a knight in shining armor class.” Ken scoffed at the end.

Ken was right. But perhaps there was a meaning behind the specific class. From what Leo inferred between his and Ken’s extra classes, both of them were pretty specific and probably a more advanced version of the general classes. But there was probably a hidden catch if someone chose it. Perhaps the progression would be more linear as compared to choosing the others, or in the future, the strength of these classes might be weaker than the advancement of other generic classes.

“I’m picking warrior,” Ken decided. New windows emerged in his eyes as something caught his attention. “You better choose one fast, Leo. Since there’s a lot of things to do after choosing one.”

Ken left Leo and dragged the dead jaguar into the freezer room. Luis, on the other hand, finally turned his head, staring at the dead jaguar. His heart ached once more seeing the loss of a creature as beautiful as that big cat.

“You good, kid?” Leo asked, noticing the kid’s reaction.

“Why did you have to kill it?” Luis asked, glaring at Leo.

“Because we have to,” Leo said. “If we don’t level up, we can’t open the main entrance, and we can’t go back home.”

“But that’s too cruel! There must be another way!” Luis was ardent in his opinion.

“Huh,” Leo sighed. “You need to wake up, kid. This isn’t our world anymore. This isn’t a world where animals like these need protection from us, and sooner or later, we might be facing more ferocious and monstrous creatures than this jaguar here.”

He patted Luis by the side of his shoulder and took his leave. He found himself sitting the near soda dispenser after getting a full glass of coke. Leo stared at the list of classes and remembered his words to Luis. It dawned on him that soon they would be facing more difficult creatures, and perhaps one of them could only be injured through magic-based attacks.

‘Since I’m probably doing this with Ken, I probably should support him from the rear,’ Leo thought, thinking it through like a team. ‘But who am I kidding. There’s no way I’m going to choose a warrior class with the opportunity of using magic right in front of me. And with Statistic Inheritor, I might not need to worry about being a glass cannon. So, let’s just do this and figure things out later.’

Leo made his decision.

[Congratulation. You are now a Mage.]