I pulled to a stop as the notification came in, ending my brief running session. As it turned out, the academy was home to some pretty stellar gym facilities, complete with a track. It wasn’t something I’d ever considered, but in hindsight, of course there’d be a track -- if high schools back on Earth could manage it, then a training academy surely could as well.

While a mile wasn’t much in the grand scheme of things, I imagined that a good percent of people who first got their Running skill would be breathing a bit harder by the time they earned it. For my part, the energy expended wasn’t even noticeable. Rather than make me feel good about myself, though, this had the opposite effect: Flithus was right. It was pretty silly that I’d never picked up the skill considering how easy it was.

“Got it!” I shouted out to the aforementioned advisor sitting on the sidelines. I read through the notification as I jogged over to him.

You have learned a new skill: Running

Improves your running form. Increases traction and stability while running. Increases your effective Dexterity while running by 1% and improves your ability to handle your Dexterity when moving at high speeds.

Prerequisites: 15 Dexterity

“Good! Now, the skill may appear a touch lackluster at first, but it is a staple of all speed or combat Dexterity classes. If Running is a class-aligned skill, you can expect that someone of your age will have the skill trained up to around level 30, give or take. In addition to having two skill augments by then, you will note that for someone with 25 Dexterity, that also would give them an additional eight points of Dexterity whenever they run. That’s not even counting the fact that the skill itself is a prerequisite for other more advanced movement skills, as well as…”

Flithus kept on for a while, enumerating all the possible ways that the skill could evolve. It was interesting in that I’d yet to even see a skill that had another skill as a prerequisite, but unfortunately, it sounded like all of that would be a while off for me.

He was right though: Especially with my bonus from the Mana Feet class trial making movement skills class-aligned for me, Running was set to be a game-changer for me, especially with how easy it had been to get. Exactly how many skills like that had I been missing out on?

As if sensing my train of thought, Flithus segued from his rant to the next action item.

“Now! While we could stay here and allow you to continue to run for a while longer, I suggest we work to remedy your lack in the other important skills. Come along, then.”

“Flithus, please tell me you’re fucking with me.” The two of us were in a small personal training room, bare save for a bench, a mat, and them. I stared down at the wide selection of my least favorite objects, unable to believe what I was looking at.

“I assure you Miss Tess, I am not, as you put it, ‘fucking with you.’ Have you ever seen someone with particularly well-defined muscles? How did you suppose they got to that state?”

My mind immediately went to Alara, and then even further back, the mayor of Drawgin, Agath. I’d kind of just assumed they had a lot more Strength than I did? After all, Strength did seem to make my muscles more defined, at least a little bit.

“Flithus, level with me here. What’s the point of living in a magical universe where you can increase your Strength by adding stat points to it if you still have to work out?” I frowned at the row of weights arrayed before me. I truly thought I’d left the need for such things behind me.

“I apologize. Of course, you are not required to do so. You are likely one of the few people who could get away with lacking them, in truth. Most people who build Strength above all else require the skill, as it helps them to regulate the force they apply in day to day actions. On top of that, it’s often a prerequisite to get a decent class, which isn’t a concern for you. As your Perception grants you a sense of your body and your Dexterity gives you finer motor control, this isn’t as much an issue for you.”

So… I don’t actually have to work out?

Seeing the look on my face, Flithus continued on. “Of course, without the skill, you will always be significantly weaker than you could have been. And all your peers with similar Strength stats will be considerably stronger than you…”

He let that sentence linger in the air.

With no shortage of muffled grumbling, I eventually caved.

…

You have learned a new skill: Strength Training

Improves your muscle control and ability to regulate the force you use. Allows you to make the most of your Strength, increasing effective Strength by 1% whenever you exert yourself. Increases muscle definition.

Prerequisites: 15 Strength, 15 Endurance

~~~~~~~~~~

“Are there any of these skills that are fun to get? Skills I’ll actually enjoy training?” Having returned to the track, I took a tentative step forward, feeling as though I was about to stumble and fall to the side at any moment.

“Hmm. Perhaps we’ll do something less physical next time around?” The advisor walked along merrily, just enough behind me that he wouldn’t be in the danger zone if I fell over.

I could hardly blame him, either. Presently I was saddled with so much weight that I’d probably crush him if I ended up falling. Strapped to my back, my chest, and even my neck were bags filled with various junk and weights.

With my stats, the experience was actually fairly manageable, save for how unwieldy everything was. That was, however, partly the point, which the notification I finally got could attest to.

You have learned a new skill: Carry

Reduces the perceived weight of all carried objects by 1%. Increases your ability to move normally while overburdened. Reduces weight-based stamina drain by 1%. Effects are decreased when too greatly overburdened.

Prerequisites: 20 Endurance, 15 Strength

How often am I even going to use this? I have a spatial pouch!

Despite my internal grumbling, I knew that wasn’t the point. According to Flithus, the skill extended to all weight-based stamina drains. In the heat of battle, it would reduce the stamina I expended for wearing heavy armor. It even helped to reduce the stamina I expended moving my own body weight.

Apparently, there were even some classes that relied on that last bit, where people would work to increase their body weight as much as possible. With a high enough Carry level, the additional weight barely affected their speed or stamina drain, instead giving them a literal massive advantage to their force. More than that, paired with a high enough Constitution, bodies became as tough as metal, making every extra bit of fat akin to an additional layer of armor.

It was a sort of sumo-esque outlook on things, and while training the standard combat skills seemed to make most fighters fairly lean by default, it was interesting to hear that there wasn’t much of a stigma against fat or extra weight. Flithus assured me that in many more martially-focused areas of the world, it was exactly the opposite, in fact: An overly thin physique was viewed as a sign of weakness, no matter how well-muscled you were.

For my part, I wasn’t going to start force-feeding myself to get a bit of extra “natural armor.” At the same time, if I ever did start to put on some weight, then it sounded like I had all the more reason not to care.

Presently, however, all I wanted was to be carrying less weight.

Having achieved the skill I was after, I started unstrapping all the bags only to be stopped short by Flithus.

“While I’m glad you managed to get the skill, you are aware we need to carry all of those back to where we got them from, yes?”

I groaned.

I dabbed a sponge into a tannish paste before smearing it across my face. The result was… not so great. It was partly due to my lacking skills, partly due to where I was. The cosmetics in Sylum weren’t really built around “Yekkish” skin tones.

Thankfully, it appeared that my attempts were enough for the system.

You have learned a new skill: Appearance Alteration

Aids in altering your appearance to match whatever look you desire. At the Novice rank, this skill is limited mainly to skin-related appearances. Additionally, grants +1% to effective Charisma for all social skills.

Prerequisites: 15 Charisma

Not how I thought this lesson was going to go, but I guess a skill is a skill? Still…

“Is this supposed to help me in the dungeon somehow, or what’s the thought process here?” Suds had been clear that I was supposed to make the chamber look good and show off my strength to the various houses. He thankfully had not made plans to turn me into Sylum’s most eligible bachelorette.

“I do not believe that my job was simply to help you become a better fighter, was it? This is a skill advising course, and your Charisma skills are just as valuable as your others. You may be curious to hear that, for those select few who have the necessary stats, this is also a very popular skill for those who level Strength Training. At the higher levels, it can allow you to alter your body type should you not wish to appear quite as prodigiously muscled as you would be otherwise.”

I paused my judgment to give that some solid thought. Do I want to look super muscley? I pictured myself looking just like Alara did. We’d clasp hands and do a few reps at the gym. After throwing back a protein shake, we’d take turns flexing, and-

I shuddered.

Yeah, all right. Maybe this skill is worth more than I thought.

“Now! If you’ve successfully managed to pick up the skill…” Flithus eyed me skeptically as if he weren’t certain that my botched makeup attempts would have been recognized by the system. “Then I believe we’ll be calling it a day, yes? Though if you’d like to gain some more skills on your own time, I do highly encourage you to check out one of the skill compendiums in the academy libraries. Otherwise, next time, we’ll pick up where we left off.”

It felt as if our class slot had only just begun, but then again, when had I ever learned four new skills in such rapid succession?

Guess this class was the right option after all.

After my hasty skill acquisition with Flithus, the next week of classes came and went in something of a blur. I had my first real mining experience (not counting Slippy) under the stern tutelage of a disenthused instructor. I got to burn Warram a bit (and was unfortunately burned in return). My wood classes ended up being less hands-on than expected, starting off by teaching us the names and handling instructions for various tools. Some of those tools I knew from carving, but a good many were new to me.

With four completely new classes, it came as somewhat of a shock, then, when it was Dungeon Delving that was my first source of real stress for the semester.

I’d expected the actual dungeon part of the class to be a bit nerve-wracking at times, but the stress of fighting monsters paled in comparison to that of the true tribulations.

Logistics.

And socializing.

A few days prior, we’d received copies of the entire class’s team sign-up sheets. The day before the social event, the three of us had opted to get together in a local cafe. We sat at a small round table while reading through all of the sheets in an effort to find good party members and know who to approach at the event.

It was not going well.

“Tess, you would not, uh, happen to have a desire to specialize into healing, would you? You said you could heal a little?” Emin frantically sifted through the stack of papers before him, the tea he’d ordered sitting untouched to his side. “I, uh- I’m having trouble finding anyone. And I do mean anyone.”

I groaned, having been thinking much the same thing myself. I’d been hoping that Emin had been having better luck, though -- his Reading skill seemed to be leaps and bounds above mine, enabling him to move through the stack at a rate I could only dream of.

“I mean, I can probably heal us in a pinch, but no. A cantrip isn’t going to be enough to heal an entire party of five through a dungeon.” Of course, if I enhanced my weapons with life mana, I could also heal everyone by shooting them with life arrows, but that was an even worse option in my book. For starters, it assumed that I’d hit all of my shots, which was hardly guaranteed in a serious fight where everyone was moving around.

“PPG! DPM! I do not see why you are both fretting so much!” Alara occupied a third seat at the table, her space a twisted reflection of Emin’s: The pastry she’d ordered was already half gone, whereas the papers we’d given her were essentially untouched. “I am sure we could clear the dungeon all by ourselves! With two more companions, it will be child’s play, regardless of what skills they possess!”

Emin and I spent a few seconds blinking bemusedly, somehow failing to share in her boundless confidence. “Alara, we’re not clearing the dungeon without a healer. What happens if we get hurt?”

She waved the concern away with force. “We will not. And I can handle myself. Unless it is very high level like in the training arena, healing magic does not work well on me in any case.”

Healing magic does- “You’re resistant to healing magic too?” I groaned, not wanting to deal with this right now. “Let’s… let’s not think about that. The other four of us are going to need a healer. I feel like that’s a non-negotiable.” I wasn’t about to see someone senselessly die from a wound that a real healer could fix in a second.

Alara slammed her hands onto the table, both the force and the noise drawing the attention of a few cafe patrons and the workers. “Then we will find a healer! I believe you two worry too much. If we need a healer, then we will have one!”

Emin let out a strangled sort of whimper in response. “What does that even mean!” he exclaimed, his hands going to his head to tug at his hair. “Do you think someone will walk up to us and just say ‘Hi, I’m a healer and I’d like to join your team?’”

Alara beamed at the two of us, our collective disbelief doing nothing to discourage her. “Exactly, DPM! Exactly!”

“That’s… It’s… That’s just not happening, Alara.” The two of them devolved into a back and forth for a while, and we made little progress on the remaining sign-up sheets for the rest of the day.

A day later, and the event was upon us.

It was, in fact, a much larger affair than I’d expected it to be. As advertised, it had been set up near the various training rooms in case anyone needed to show off to prospective teammates. Past that, however, two adjoining rooms had been set up for our use with tables of food and drink lining the walls. While one was more social in nature, the other was a bit more martial, with a few dueling areas roped off in the center of the room. If anyone was eager or hot-headed enough to show off in front of everyone else, then possibly we’d get a good show out of it.

If not quite up to the decor or food selection of the Sylum mansion’s gala, it was nice. Far nicer than a school event had any right to be, honestly. Certainly it was a far cry from the ice cream socials and pizza parties I tended to associate with social events held in school buildings. Then again, I’d never gone to school with nobles.

Wanting to show a unified front, Emin, Alara, and I had all gotten together beforehand, walking in as a group. We’d made an effort to be reasonably early so that no good party members could be poached before we arrived, but it looked like we hadn’t been the only ones with that idea. Already, there were plenty of our classmates present.

As much as the entire thing looked pleasant, I found myself dreading what was to come. It would likely be hours of hunting for possible party members. As the night progressed, everyone would be frantically hopping from person to person in order to fill out their teams, and in this, we’d likely be no exception. Based on the concerning lack of available healers we’d noticed, the competition for them was bound to be extreme, and-

“Excuse me.” An unassuming man wearing a large and assuming belt split off from the crowd and called out as he headed our way. “You three are Alara, Emin, and Tess, right?” He stopped directly before us, his eyes lazily moving between the three of us.

It was Alara who answered with cheer. “It appears our reputation precedes us! You are correct! Hello!”

At the loud assault on his ears, it appeared the man considered turning around and walking away for a second, but instead continued with what he’d come for.

“Uh, yeah. Hi. So anyway, do you still have space in your party? I’m a healer, and I was hoping to join you guys.”

Before anyone could get a single word out, Alara wrapped Emin and I into a crushing side hug, nearly lifting us off our feet.

“You see? One should never doubt Alara’Valis!”