Loud thumping noises paired with short shrieks rang through Karion's ears, slowly waking him. The screeching from the Roosts had heavily disorientated his body. He couldn't concentrate his strength to swing his sword, and his vision remained blurry. Even with his impediments, Karion could still see Ruby desperately blocking or parrying the Roost's attacks, protecting him.
Throwing his sword behind the Roosts, he shouted, "Ruby, keep your shield up..!!"
"Master..?! Yes, sir!!"
[Recall..!]
Slashing through one of the Roosts while piercing straight through the other, Ataria lunged forward at great speed. Showing no signs of stopping, Karion's heart stopped. Knowing that Recall wouldn't stop for anything easily, he feared for Ruby's safety despite her shield. Before he could try canceling his magic, Ataria's blade blinked with light when it approached Ruby, flipping itself over her, before losing speed, and levitating slowly to Karion's hand.
He looked down at the sword, surprised by its sudden change of direction without instruction. With only one weakened Roost remaining, Ruby was able to parry and punch it back with ease. After both Roosts faded to smoke, dropping eggs and feathers, Ruby immediately turned to Karion, helping him stand.
"Are you alright, master..?? Forgive me, I should've warned you!"
"No, it was unavoidable. Thanks for holding them off." Karion's eyes were glued to his sword as he spoke.
[It's never done that before…]
"Shall we continue, sir?" Ruby asked, worried for Karion's safety.
"Y-Yeah, let's continue," After collecting the dropped items, Ruby took the lead and continued their exploration, "Just how were you able to endure that?"
Ruby pointed to her ear flaps, "Many demi-human ears are quite sensitive to the many sounds created by society. Many slaves are trained to withstand a degree of sound."
"Is that the kind of education you received in Strayice?"
"Yes, among other things, of course. I was taught basic etiquette, reading, writing, extensive history…" Ruby's voice grew softer, "A-And… how to please… my master…"
"O-Oh, I see…" Karion hesitantly laughed, "By the way, are there any efficient tactics to use against Roosts?"
"Yes, but it might be difficult without an archer or magician. Roosts always use their voices to disorient their targets, before solely using their claws. While screaming, they close their eyes, allowing for easy stationary targets if you can hit them from afar."
[She's right, that would be difficult for us alone. Ruby's only using a shield, while I only have a sword. The only magic I have is useful when I touch the enemy…]
"We might be too underprepared for this after all. Let's try to find the boss as soon as possible to leave."
"Forgive me sir, but is there a problem with leaving the floor now?"
"Eh-? We can leave now..??"
"Yes sir, just like mana loading, if we infuse the walls with mana, we can exit at any time…" Ruby noticed Karion's face of exhaustion, "I-It's not a well-known trick among new adventurers, please don't take it to heart..!!"
"Thank you, Ruby…"
Just as Ruby said, infusing the walls with mana created a door wooden door that led them back to the dungeon fortress. Not wanting to waste the day, they returned to the dungeon, only going as far as Dire Wolves before reentering. Repeating the process until the late afternoon, their last slot of storage was used to store goblin and hobgoblin ears, while pocketing the few materials of Dire Wolves.
[It's been enough time… Has anything changed?]
{
Karion - Age: 19 [Health: 20/20] [Mana: 50/50]
Active Class: [Swordsman Lv. 3], [EX - Jack+ Lv. 2] (Farmer Lv. 1, Villager Lv. 4)
Skills: [EX - Appraisal], [Pierce]
Equipment: [EX - Ivory Ataria]
}
[Jack+ increased! But my stats are no different… Swordsman is still level three - Just how strict are the conditions for that?]
Karion faced Ruby, wanting to ascertain Ruby's status.
{
Ruby - Age: 19 [Health: 110/110] [Mana: 10/10]
Active Class: [Villager - Lv. 5] [Taurus - Lv. 2] (Farmer - Lv. 2)
Skills: [Taunt]
Equipment: [Aspis Shield]
}
[Her levels increased too! Villager seems easy to increase, but Taurus… Hm?]
Looking closer, Ruby gained a new skill.
"Ruby, your storage cells increased You have more than I do, so could you store our spoils there?" Karion asked, emptying his pockets.
"They have..?" Ruby opened her card, shocked to see Karion was right, "You're amazing, sir..!!"
As she stored the materials in her storage, Karion continued to speak, "You also gained a new skill. Do you know how to use 'Taunt'?"
Ruby had a look of confusion, checking at her card once more before showing her class, "I'm still Villager, sir. My class didn't evolve yet…"
"Ahh, well… Ignore that for now. Do you know how to use it?" Karion avoided her words. He was certain she was able to use it from his Appraisal, but he knew explaining the truth when the status quo is lies would be too difficult to understand.
"If I had Taurus, I would only need to infuse myself with mana before chanting."
"Demonstrate it for me," Karion said with confidence.
"Y-Yes sir…" With a deep breath, she enveloped herself in her mana. Using appraisal, Karion confirmed her mana was reduced by five.
"Taunt.!" The moment she chanted, she felt the cloak of her mana briefly enveloping her, "Eh..?"
A wave of red mist dispersed around Ruby, dissolving as it traveled outward, "How did I just…?"
Distant screams echoed through the halls as a large horde of goblins began rushing towards them, walking over each other in their blind rage.
[Just as the name implies.] Karion readied his blade, [Even if they're weak, I shouldn't underestimate their numbers.]
Easily sweeping through their numbers, Karion took the moment to observe Ruby's stats, finding nothing changed, [It seems like just using Taunt won't affect her levels. With her high health and taunt ability, it seems like Taurus is a class meant for a tank role.]
"How are you feeling, Ruby?"
"I-I'm… at a loss for words. My card still says I'm a villager, but I'm able to use Taunt?"
"I said you could, didn't I?" Karion rested his hand on her shoulder, "Don't sweat the small stuff, it just means you've got amazing talent!"
"Y-You're who's amazing, sir…" Ruby couldn't find the words to say. Her perception of the world had been chipped from Karion's words. Despite this, she had still felt at ease, knowing it was him by her side.
After the fight with the goblin horde, Karion checked his status once more, hoping to see his Swordsman class level up, to his surprise, he gained a new class.
{
Karion - Age: 19 [Health: 20/20] [Mana: 50/50]
Active Class: [Swordsman Lv. 3], [EX - Jack+ Lv. 2] (Farmer Lv. 1, Villager Lv. 4, Taurus Lv. 1)
Skills: [EX - Appraisal], [Pierce]
Equipment: [EX - Ivory Ataria]
}
[…Taurus?]
From what Ruby told him, Taurus was a class-exclusive to her race. Karion considered the possibility of this being another instance of the world's false perceptions, however, after reflecting upon what he experienced thus far, he turned to Ruby.
"Do you know of the race-exclusive class for humans?"
"I'm sorry, sir," Ruby apologized, "Among the various races, humans are the only ones who don't have one."
With her answer, Karion had a grin he couldn't wipe from his face, "Is that so…"
[Jack was a class held by the bandit I faced. Even if my version is unique, I'm certain of it. Jack is an abbreviation - "Jack of All Trades". The race-exclusive ability for humans is to copy the exclusives of other races.]
Replacing Jack+ for Taurus, he wanted to try and use Taunt for himself.
"Ruby, is there anything wrong with depleting your mana?"
Karion had a past experience with his health replenishing his mana deficit, but whether having no mana alone was enough to drain health or not was a question lingering in his mind for a while.
"No, I don't believe so. If people didn't have enough mana to cast magic, the spell simply wouldn't work. Among new adventurers and seasoned sages, I'm certain I would've learned about anything harmful about mana depletion."
"In that case, use Taunt again. I want to test something," Karion massaged his arm.
"Yes sir."
Karion and Ruby repeated the process of attracting hordes of goblins with Taunt and mowing through their numbers. With Ruby needing to use potions to replenish her mana, their stock of mana vials quickly disappeared.
"I'm afraid I can't use Taunt anymore, sir. I apologize," Ruby lowered her head.
"Hey, hey, don't sweat it!" Karion lifted her head, "I'm sure it's getting late. Let's fight one more horde before we call it a day. Karion looked over his status.
{
Karion - Age: 19 [Health: 45/45] [Mana: 55/60]
Active Class: [Swordsman Lv. 3], [Taurus Lv. 2] (Farmer Lv. 1, Villager Lv. 4, EX - Jack+ Lv. 2)
Skills: [EX - Appraisal], [Pierce], [Taunt]
Equipment: [EX - Ivory Ataria]
}
[Let's see how it goes… Taunt!]
Karion could feel his mana being drained. A red mist dispersed around him.
"Master..?!"
Before Ruby could speak, Karion placed his finger over his mouth before pointing to the opposite end of the hall. A horde of goblins appeared, itching for a battle. After an easy victory, Ruby collected all of the goblin ears, keeping them in her card.
"How were you able to use Taunt…?" She asked in confusion.
Karion hesitated to answer Ruby. He wanted to share the truth, but he thought it was unwise to overwhelm her with so many things at once. Deciding to keep the truth secret for the moment, he brushed it off with a lie she could hear as truth.
He brandished Ataria, "One of the traits of my ranked weapon is to mimic an ability. Keep this a secret, okay?"
"Is that… so…"
Karion was unsure whether Ruby would believe it, hoping that her knowledge of ranked weapons was basic. Relieved that he won the gamble, he sheathed the blade, placing his hand on the wall to summon an exit door.
"Let's head back."