I had just finished prepping food and sent out my first party invites. I was worried about what they would see when they accepted the invites, but the benefits outweighed the awkward questions I might get. I only knew what Sam had told me about parties, which was that they would see my classes, pools, name, and title.

Most of what I had been worried about was no longer an issue with this group. The idea that they would see the title dungeon master didn’t bother me. Nor even that they knew my classes. Even if I couldn’t do much with them, what did worry me was if, along with my classes, it would show my levels. Sam didn’t tell me it would, but that was my big fear.

It was Renfry that broke the silence. “My lord, you’re an enchanter? Is that how my armor was made magical?”

As Renfry spoke, I saw his name and his pools appear in my vision. I focused on him and saw what I feared.

Renfry of house Redacted (Level 22)

Revenant

Champion of House Redacted of Westiral

Lancer 6/Render 3

HP: 100, SP: 90, MP: 50

I nodded slowly. “Yeah, when I was leaving the safe room, it was so I could work. I have to focus when working, and having others around makes it harder.”

Renfry nodded as he started to serve himself. Irwin then chimed in. “I didn’t know that you were a wild human. That could cause some problems. Your people aren’t the most well-liked.”

Kasidy got up, filled her bowl, looked at me, and frowned. “How is it that your level is zero?”

I sighed and filled up my bowl. I wasn’t sure how to answer Kasidy or even what to tell Irwin. Everything could cause a problem at some point, so it wasn’t like me being a wild human was the worst thing. Nope, Kasidy had zeroed in on one of my biggest secrets.

I slowly took a bite while thinking through how to answer. “I don’t know fully why I am level zero. I have a feeling that I pissed off a god, but I am not sure.”

Renfry and Irwin both gave kind of nervous laughs. Then Kasidy asked, “Which one?”

I shrugged. “I have been told that I made War angry, but he has already attacked me from that. No, the one I think I somehow made angry is the god of the greeters. I don’t know what I have done, but each time I have talked with him, the guy has been just shy of unhelpful.”

Irwin gave me a strange look and said. “Are you sure he is a god?”

I nodded. “I can’t think of anyone else he could be with the power he seems to have.”

Irwin nodded slowly. “And, you talk with him often?”

I nodded again. “Somewhat. There are things that I need to ask of him, and he is required to tell me. Told me there were some rules that were forcing him to answer my questions. Which is why I think he isn’t as helpful as he could be.”

Renfry nodded slowly. “Must be a petty god. I haven’t heard of any of the gods talking to anyone except through their priests.”

I looked around the group and nodded. “Yeah, he’s petty, alright. The way he almost doesn’t help when he has told me the rules means he has to point that way.”

Renfry laughed. “Not that kind of petty. But rather lesser or minor.”

Kasidy shook her head slowly. “I haven’t heard of a lesser god. None of the songs talk about the lesser ones.”

Renfry slowly nodded. “They might all have moved up in ranking. I followed the goddess of horses and the god of the sword. Both were petty gods, but still, they were the ones that most of the Lancers worshiped.”

Kasidy nodded slowly and asked. “Do you know their names?”

Renfry shrugged. “Only the main gods did I know names of, and with so many, it was hard to know them all.”

Irwin sat down at his bowl and looked at me. “How are you even alive with what you have been through? The stories that Kasidy has told us are amazing, and you have done it all at level zero? How have you not leveled up any?”

I shook my head slowly and sighed. “I can’t read, which means I can’t level my class. Since I can’t level my class, I can’t level.”

Irwin shook his head. “But what about your basic class you should have levels from that!”

Renfry nodded. “Everyone gets levels from a son class. What was yours?”

I shook my head. “Wild humans get racial levels. I have leveled my race several times but haven’t gotten general levels. I never had a son class.”

Kasidy was looking at me like I had two heads. Then she said. “To gain a class, you have to have those skills. There’s no way to have a class without the skills already.”

I looked back down at my food and then sighed. “Look, I don’t have many answers. The reason that I didn’t party before was because of these questions. I am weak, and I know I am. Because I am level 0, I gain skills quickly but not stats. The few stat gains I have gotten have been automatic things I didn’t direct myself.”

I took a deep breath and calmed down a bit. Then I said. “I can’t level until I learn to read, and I can’t learn to read until I get my intelligence higher. The problem is I don’t know how to do that.”

Everyone sat in silence for a moment. Then Renfry spoke up. “A tutor can help with that. The high-level ones can reduce stat restrictions while teaching. I don’t know by how much, but I know they can do it.”

Irwin asked. “Arn, my lord. How is your health pool so high with such a low level?”

I nodded and smiled. “When I took on the Tower Keeper title, I got 100 mana and health when out of the tower. Also, my armor is built to add Vitality. Any other questions about this?”

Renfry and Irwin glanced at each other and kind of shrugged. Kasidy, however, asked. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier about all of this?”

I looked over at my bard. I could tell she was hurt that she was just now finding out about everything. Well, what she thought was everything. She just didn’t seem to get my caution. But, then again, she didn’t know everything, and why Lannah had warned me not to tell too many people.

I took a deep breath in and then slowly let it out. “I was warned early on not to trust too many people about this. Told that people would try to take advantage of me. Also, you didn’t make a great first impression.”

Kasidy smiled at that last comment. “How was I to know that you weren’t someone attacking?”

I smiled and rubbed my nose. “I get it, but did you have to knock me out?”

Renfry started to laugh. “Wait! How did she knock you out?”

I tapped on my cast iron skillet. “Hit me across my head with my own skillet as I was coming into my own house. I was lucky I didn’t fall back down the stairs and die.”

Kasidy smiled and laughed; then she put her hand over her mouth. “Oh, I hadn’t thought about that, but you’re right. You might have died if you had fallen back through the trapdoor.”

As I nodded, Irwin spoke up. “With how low level you are, we need to figure out how to keep you alive. I know you tend to take things head-on, but that might not be the best idea with the Lich.”

Kasidy nodded, adding in. “Depending on how strong he is, it might make things hard for us to fight.”

I nodded and smiled. “Well, I have fought undead before, and while they tend to have numbers, I am sure we can cut through them. Besides, Renfry will get stronger and stronger as we go.”

Irwin smiled. “That is all well and good. The real problem is going to be giving the lich a final rest. When we kill the body, we should only have a few hours before it returns.”

Renfry shook his head. “Not always. We fought a lich once that bounced back in under ten minutes, and he was at full strength. I think the big challenge is going to be castle Westiral. The castle is much larger than the Tower and has its walls. Unless something has done major damage to it, it will be the hardest thing we have to overcome. Finding the phylactery is going to have to be our primary task.”

Kasidy leaned back, plucking her lyre, and asked. “How do we even know what it will look like?”

Renfry smiled. “I think that my Track Undead skill will help. But we might just have to look around a lot.”

Irwin scraped up the last bite of his food and whispered. “I hope we get him the first time. I don’t want a lich to pop up behind me.”

Kasidy stopped playing. “Yeah, that’s not a fun thought. Does the thing glow or anything?”

I shrugged. “No idea, but we don’t have to worry about it yet. We have to get there first. Once we do, we will have options. I might even turn the castle into a dungeon which could help us find where it is hidden.”

Renfry set his bowl down and nodded. “That could be helpful. We just need to hope that nothing has alerted the lich that we are coming.”

I laughed. “Knowing Blink, she has snuck through the lines and is figuring out the best way to rip the lich apart as he sleeps. So I don’t think we have to worry about her giving us away. It’s more our movements I am worried about.”

Irwin collected the bowls and started to clean them with a low-level fire jet. “Yeah, from what I have heard of Blink, she should already have killed the lich at least once.”

I smiled and stood up. “I’m going to bed now.”

I picked up my sleeping fur and moved back over to the stable side of things. I decided to give the crew time to talk amongst themselves. Besides, I needed some time to think through things on my own. Of course, they didn’t know everything about me, but they seemed to have taken my level easier than I thought they would have.

As I started to snuggle in for sleep, I heard Kasidy singing. I couldn’t pick out all the words but could have sworn I heard her singing about me. Of course, I knew she had been working on some songs, so it wasn’t a big deal. At least they had all given some sort of oath to me.

That night I dreamed.

* * *