Liam followed Cindy, Mila, and Alv into the Adventurers Association building. Inside the building there were a lot of people looking for quests at the billboards and more in line to speak with the receptionists.
“Looks pretty busy right now,” Alv muttered.
“Yeah. I don’t know if there is any room for us anywhere,” Mila agreed.
Liam turned to look at the area with tables and saw almost all the tables were full. There were some tables that had open spaces around them, but still were occupied. As they looked to see if there were any with enough space, Liam noticed a hand rise up and wave in their direction.
Liam smiled as he recognized who it belonged to. He then turned to Mila and others while saying, “We might be in luck.”
The three looked at him as he started walking. Mila, with a confused look, turned in the direction he was walking in and was surprised. She started walking with Alv and Cindy close behind her.
“What’s up Liam?” Waylon greeted as Liam approached the table he and Knox were sitting at.
“Not much,” Liam responded as he gave the two men a smile. “Just came by to grab some lunch with Cindy, Mila, and Alv, one of her teammates.”
“Mila?” Knox questioned. “As in your cousin Mila?”
“Hey!” Mila greeted with a warm smile.
“Holy shit!” Waylon yelled as both he and Knox smiled. “I didn’t know you were here.”
“I didn’t know you guys were here too,” Mila said as she walked and gave both sitting men a hug. “How long have you been here on Paracosm?”
“For a couple years…I think,” Waylon said as he thought about it. “Has it already been a couple of years Knox?”
“I believe so,” Know replied before asking, “How about you?”
“Less then two more than a year and a half,” Mila answered. “Anyways, it looks like you guys have some room. Mind if we sit with you?”
“Go right ahead,” Waylon stated as he gestured to the seats. “We have a couple more people coming but there should be enough seats here at the table.”
Mila grabbed the seat next to Waylon as Alv grabbed the one next to her. Liam sat next to Knox as Cindy sat next to him.
Alv nodded as he looked at both men and said as he eyed them, “I’m Alv. Nice to meet you.”
“Knox,” Knox nodded back.
“Waylon,” Waylon replied as he gave him a short wave.
“If you don’t mind me asking, how do you know Mila?” Alv asked.
“Waylon and Knox are Liam’s friends from our home world. I know them through him,” Mila said as she smiled. She then looked at Knox and Waylon and questioned, “Are any of the others here too?”
“Levi and Wyatt?” Knox asked. He then nodded, “Yeah but they’re back in Lystia taking care of some things.”
“Lystia?” Liam questioned as he raised a brow.
“It’s an Adventurer city in the Human territory,” Knox responded. “It’s pretty cool. The entire city is run by and made by adventurers. You’ll have to check it out some time.”
Liam nodded as he said, “I’ll add it to a list of places to see.”
“If you’d like I can tell you some other places you need to check out,” Waylon suggested. “I know a few I think you’d really like.”
“I’d like that,” Liam smiled as he gave a nod of appreciation.
“Afternoon folks,” a lady greeted as she arrived at the table. She wore the same uniform Liam had seen the Adventurers Association employees wore. In her hand was a small notebook that flipped open. “Can I get you something to drink? Maybe something to eat as well?”
“Waylon and I are waiting on a couple more, but they might want to order something now, “Knox said as he gave the woman a wide smile.
Liam and the other three placed an order. Liam took the recommended sandwich Waylon insisted on him getting. It was a lemon season grilled chicken with lettuce, tomato, and a house dressing. It sounded good to him, so he got it.
“So, what are you guys up to today?” Knox asked before grabbing his cup and taking a sip as the waitress walked away.
“Cindy and I just got back from taking on a dungeon,” Liam said.
“That’s right,” Waylon started. “You were helping Cindy collect some materials right? How’d it go? What dungeon did you guys take on?”
“It went…alright,” Liam replied as he looked at Cindy. “We took on a Blue Dungeon called the Seaside Cave of the Sea Slimes.”
“I remember my first Slime dungeon,” Knox stated with a light chuckle.
“I take it that it went smoothly?” Waylon said, ignoring his friend.
“You could say that,” Liam smiled.
Knox and Waylon raised a brow.
“Did something happen?” Mila questioned as she grew curious.
Before Liam could dismiss it, Cindy sighed and said, “I made a mistake and forgot about one of the most basic dungeon rules.”
“Oh?” Mila asked. “What rule?”
“I brought him to a dungeon I had completed a few times already,” Cindy said looking ashamed.
“Oh,” Knox started. “Well at least it was in a low leveled Slime dungeon. What’s the worst that could happen? You fight more Slimes?”
“Well, it turns out that’s half right,” Liam said as he gave Cindy a playful smile.
“What do you mean?” Alv inquired, curious to know.
“The Dungeon Boss ended up being a Swarm type boss and it wasn’t a Slime…,” Cindy started to say. “It was an Engulfing Sea Ooze.”
Alv’s, Knox’s, Mila’s, and Waylon’s eyes widened.
“Are you serious?” Alv questioned.
Liam nodded. “Yeah. It was kind of fun to be honest.”
Cindy gave Liam a look that was a mix of a frown and confusion. “It wouldn’t have been fun if we didn’t figure it out as quickly as we did. It could have dropped on top of us and killed us. Or we could have died from a swarm of Slimes.”
“But we didn’t though,” Liam stated. “It was a good learning experience on my part. Definitely different than fighting skeletons and zombies.”
“What dungeons have those?” Mila asked as she gave Liam a confused look.
“You’ve fought in a Black Dungeon before?” Knox asked Liam while raising a brow.
“Yeah,” Liam nodded. “That was the dungeon I was assigned to back in the Tutorial Area.”
“Oof,” Waylon said. “That must have been rough. I heard skeletons are hard to fight against.”
“They can be, but after fighting so many you start to learn what is best to use against them,” Liam nodded in agreement.
“What about you Mila?” Knox said, changing the topic.
“My team and I are taking a break from doing some quests right now,” Mila responded. “Alv and I were doing some shopping for new armor since our last dungeon run lead to some pieces being too damaged to repair.”
“Sounds like fun,” Knox stated.
“What class did you get?” Waylon questioned giving her a curious look.
“I’m a Beast Illusionist,” Mila replied. “Alv here, is a Stone Guardian.”
“Hm, never heard of those classes before,” Knox said as he looked at them with a curious look. “What do they entail. I mean I can guess the illusionist part in yours and I can draw an idea from the name Stone Guardian, but what are their focuses?”
“As you can guess from the name, my class involves both Taming and Illusion magic,” Mila started. “Of course, I had to get my Focus Points Illusion Manipulation and Beast Control to Apprentice level in order to get the class. There was also a couple of other things, but a girl needs to have her secrets.” Mila winked.
Knox and Waylon chuckled at her.
“Alv here though can tell you about his,” Mila stated as she looked at him.
Alv looked at Mila before letting out a sigh. He then responded, “As you can guess, the guardian part is linked to the defender style class. The stone part is from me working on my Earth magic. When I got it at Apprentice level and got the Advanced Study of Geomancy I received this class. I’ve had it for some time now. I have idea where I want to take it, but it’ll take some time before I get to my next class evolution.”
“So essentially you’re a tank with an earth magic focus?” Knox questioned as he gave Alv an approving nod. “It sounds pretty tough to be honest.”
“It is,” Mila said as she gave Alv a pat on the back. “He’s one hell of a defender. It’s hard for some monsters to get past his defenses, especially when he uses his earth magic.”
Alv looked down at the table, blushing.
“What about you guys?” Mila asked, bringing the attention towards the two men.
“Well, I don’t want to brag or anything, but I’m a Mageblade,” Knox stated as he gave everyone a wide grin while bringing his right hand up and looking at his nails.
Liam shook his head as he watched his old friend look like a fool. He then said with a wry smile and a mock tone of astonishment, “You don’t say. That’s awesome! Oh no. Should I bow to your awesomeness? Or better yet, should I find a tall hill and shout, Look out world, I’m friends with a Mageblade!”
Knox shoved Liam as they both chuckled.
“Asshole,” Knox grinned.
Liam laughed a bit before saying, “Seriously though. What’s a Mageblade?”
“A Mageblade is a class that is both weapon and magic focused,” Waylon started.
“Way to simplify it,” Knox stated as he gave Waylon a faux frown. “It’s almost exactly what he said except, you need to have any bladed weapon skill at least at level thirty. You also need to have one or more elemental type magic at Journeyman level or higher and Advanced Study in said elemental magic at Apprentice level or higher.”
“That’s pretty cool,” Liam said as he nodded his head and gave Knox an impressed look.
“That’s not all though,” Knox added. “You need the Mana Type Manipulation of said element or elements at least level thirty. The reason for it is because the class helps you channel the element easier through the bladed weapon you are using. For example, the weapons I generally use are swords and lances. The elements I focused on are Fire and Lightning.”
“Nice!” Liam stated. He then looked at Waylon, waiting for him to reveal his class.
“I’m a Hydro Pally,” Waylon said as he gave Liam a smile.
“I thought you’d go paladin since that was your class in most games we used to play,” Liam said. “But what’s with the Hydro part?”
“The Hydro part is because I use Water Magic and focused on it more than my other magics,” Waylon said. He then saw the look in Liam’s face and swiftly said, “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” Liam asked trying to hold back a laugh.
“I know that look and I have an idea what you’re going to say so don’t say it,” Waylon said as he narrowed his eyes.
Everyone looked at the two with a confused look.
“I’m lost,” Mila stated as she looked at the others. “Do you know what he is thinking?”
Cindy and Alv shook their heads as they look just as confused as her.
As Knox looked at Liam, he understood what was going on. With a mischievous look on his face he said, “It’s exactly what you’re thinking Liam. He does make people feel better by getting them wet.”
“Oh god damn it,” Waylon suddenly stated as he turned his attention onto Knox. “You make my class sound so dirty.”
Mila’s and Cindy’s mouths dropped as understanding what he was implying hit them.
Alv swiftly brought a hand to his mouth, trying to stifle a laugh.
“My class is a mix of three things,” Waylon started back up trying to change the topic. “A defender type style with both healing and water magic mixed in. Some of my water magic has healing properties as well as defensive.”
“That’s pretty cool. I didn’t know you could do something like that,” Liam said with a look of astonishment.
“You’ll learn more on how to do stuff like that when you get higher in levels,” Waylon said. “If you have any magic you like I suggest you study them and work on them. Understand how they work through practice and manipulating them. After you do that for so long you’ll be able to mix magics together.”
Liam stared at him as he listened. A sudden thought popped in his head. Without thinking he asked, “What level are you?”
“Like personal or my magic and skills?” Waylon asked.
“Which ever you feel like telling me,” Liam said.
“My personal level is thirty five,” Waylon stated. “I would be higher, but I took a break from leveling my personal level to focus more on my magic and skills. Both of those help with class evolutions.”
“Good to know,” Liam said.
“I’m at level thirty six,” Knox suddenly said while giving a look of accomplishment of being a higher level than his friend.
Liam shook his head.
“What about you Liam?” Mila suddenly asked. “What’s your class?”
“Yeah,” Knox said, looking curious. “I see you’re using leather type armor. Are you a rogue or archer type class?”
Liam, now feeling a bit self-conscious, thought about what he was going to say. His class had evolved from Crafter to Spirit Weaver, but he had been telling others after coming here that he was a Crafter so he wouldn’t bring attention. But these were his friends and family.
Alv and Cindy were people he had just recently met, but Mila trusted Alv. As for Cindy, she was helpful and didn’t seem like someone who would go around blabbing about his class. Could he reveal his real class?
“I know you’re considering it, but I highly recommend you don’t. – Eri.”
The text notification almost scared Liam. He had almost forgotten about the way Eri communicated with him when he wasn’t in a dungeon.
But they are my friends and family. Liam said to her. Why should I keep something like that a secret from them when they divulged not only their classes, but how they got them?
“Two reasons. First, you don’t know who is listening in on your conversation. Second, this one is more towards your friends than your family, people change. Especially after not seeing them for a couple of years. – Eri.”
Liam knew what she was saying was true, but they didn’t act any differently than the last time he saw them. He contemplated what she said. He knew what Eri had said held a lot of merit, but there was a small part of him that wanted to think that they were the same guys he was friends with before they left and came here.
It might be a futile wish and he knew it was. However, he also knew Eri had been right so far about things and if she said to do something then he needed to listen.
He sighed internally before saying to Eri, Alright. We’ll do this your way.
“Good call. – Eri.”
The others watched as a few different emotions ran over Liam’s face while he sat there. They were confused why he would take so long to tell them what his class was.
“You alright man?” Waylon questioned. “I don’t think we asked a hard question.”
“Yeah, if you’re worried because you still have a starting class then you don’t have to worry about it. We just wanted to see what class you were,” Knox added. “Knowing what class you are can help us try and see where you would fit in with our party.”
“Fit in your party?” Liam said as he raised a brow.
“Yeah. We have a good party right now,” Waylon said with a smile.
“You’d want me to join your party? I’m still pretty low leveled right now so wouldn’t it clash with you guys and how high leveled you are?” Liam asked.
“Eh, don’t worry about stuff like that,” Knox said as he waved a hand. “You’re our friend. Gaining levels and growing is part of this world. As long as you put in the work you’ll be a good addition no matter what…”
“I highly disagree with that,” a haughty and irritated voice suddenly stated, causing everyone at the table to turn and see who was speaking.
Liam was confused as he stared at the familiar newcomer.
It was an elf with long golden hair wearing fancy elegant clothing. He stood at the edge of the table glaring down at Liam through his Forest green eyes. He had his arms crossed. Next to him stood a teenaged boy with black hair and golden brown skin carrying a backpack full of stuff.
“What are you on about now Chad?” Waylon questioned with a raised brow.
“I am against having this lowly cretin in our party,” Chad stated, irritation laced in his tone of voice.
“He’s not a lowly cretin Chad,” Knox sighed. “This is our friend Liam from earth. I’m sure Levi and Wyatt would agree…”
“Well, I don’t,” Chad interrupted. “I’m part of this party and I also have a say in who joins it. And I say he doesn’t get to join, regardless of if you have some friendship with him.”
Mila raised a brow as she listened to the elf. She turned to look at Knox and Waylon and asked, “Who’s this asshat?”
“Excuse you?” Chad questioned as he turned to look at her. “I am not an asshat. I am the healer of this party, The Hammer of Judgement. Who are you?”
“The Hammer of Judgement?” Mila asked the two guys as she kept a brow raised. “Really? Who named the group that silly name? It doesn’t sound like one you guys would have chosen.”
Chad looked appalled at what she had just said. “It is not a silly name. It is one full of pride and power. We are famous. Don’t tell me you haven’t heard of us.”
“Oh, I have heard of you before. I just didn’t expect you guys to be it,” Mila stated. She looked back at Knox and Waylon waiting for them to answer her earlier question.
Knox shrugged. “We didn’t have a hand in naming us. We left it to…” He suddenly trailed off as he looked at Liam.
Liam gave him a curious look as he noticed both Knox and Waylon turned to look at him.
“I was the one who officially named us that. Zoe had agreed that the name was perfect so we registered it before anyone could change their mind,” Chad announced looking proud of himself.
Liam stared at Chad. At first he was confused if he heard the name right. His second thought was it had to be a different person. However, after thinking about why his two friends had suddenly looked at him he started fitting things together. There was just one thing he wanted to see that would clear up why his two friends had tried to skirt around mentioning her name.
“Zo agreed to the name?” Liam asked. “Doesn’t sound like a name she would be thrilled about.”
“I agree. With her taste in things, I would have expected her to want a name more…practical,” Mila agreed.
Chad glared at Mila and Liam. With an irritated huff, he said, “What would you know about Zoe? Clearly you wouldn’t understand why a beautiful woman would agree to such a great name.”
Liam looked at Mila and asked with suspicion in his tone, “I think we aren’t asking the real question here.” Liam noticed that Mila was on the same page as him as she gave him the same look he had. He then turned to look at Chad and asked, “The real question is…,” As Liam started, he noticed a weird look start to form on Knox’s and Waylon’s faces as they looked down at the table. “What is Zo to you?”
“Why are you calling her by that ridiculous name. Her name is Zoe. You know what, it’s just best you don’t ever say her name ever with that filthy mouth of yours,” Chad dissed. “Your voice just ruins the sound of my beautiful girlfriend’s name.”
Figured as much. Liam thought to himself as he narrowed his eyes while looking at his two friends. Looks like she decided I wasn’t worth waiting for.
Liam followed Cindy, Mila, and Alv into the Adventurers Association building. Inside the building there were a lot of people looking for quests at the billboards and more in line to speak with the receptionists.
“Looks pretty busy right now,” Alv muttered.
“Yeah. I don’t know if there is any room for us anywhere,” Mila agreed.
Liam turned to look at the area with tables and saw almost all the tables were full. There were some tables that had open spaces around them, but still were occupied. As they looked to see if there were any with enough space, Liam noticed a hand rise up and wave in their direction.
Liam smiled as he recognized who it belonged to. He then turned to Mila and others while saying, “We might be in luck.”
The three looked at him as he started walking. Mila, with a confused look, turned in the direction he was walking in and was surprised. She started walking with Alv and Cindy close behind her.
“What’s up Liam?” Waylon greeted as Liam approached the table he and Knox were sitting at.
“Not much,” Liam responded as he gave the two men a smile. “Just came by to grab some lunch with Cindy, Mila, and Alv, one of her teammates.”
“Mila?” Knox questioned. “As in your cousin Mila?”
“Hey!” Mila greeted with a warm smile.
“Holy shit!” Waylon yelled as both he and Knox smiled. “I didn’t know you were here.”
“I didn’t know you guys were here too,” Mila said as she walked and gave both sitting men a hug. “How long have you been here on Paracosm?”
“For a couple years…I think,” Waylon said as he thought about it. “Has it already been a couple of years Knox?”
“I believe so,” Know replied before asking, “How about you?”
“Less then two more than a year and a half,” Mila answered. “Anyways, it looks like you guys have some room. Mind if we sit with you?”
“Go right ahead,” Waylon stated as he gestured to the seats. “We have a couple more people coming but there should be enough seats here at the table.”
Mila grabbed the seat next to Waylon as Alv grabbed the one next to her. Liam sat next to Knox as Cindy sat next to him.
Alv nodded as he looked at both men and said as he eyed them, “I’m Alv. Nice to meet you.”
“Knox,” Knox nodded back.
“Waylon,” Waylon replied as he gave him a short wave.
“If you don’t mind me asking, how do you know Mila?” Alv asked.
“Waylon and Knox are Liam’s friends from our home world. I know them through him,” Mila said as she smiled. She then looked at Knox and Waylon and questioned, “Are any of the others here too?”
“Levi and Wyatt?” Knox asked. He then nodded, “Yeah but they’re back in Lystia taking care of some things.”
“Lystia?” Liam questioned as he raised a brow.
“It’s an Adventurer city in the Human territory,” Knox responded. “It’s pretty cool. The entire city is run by and made by adventurers. You’ll have to check it out some time.”
Liam nodded as he said, “I’ll add it to a list of places to see.”
“If you’d like I can tell you some other places you need to check out,” Waylon suggested. “I know a few I think you’d really like.”
“I’d like that,” Liam smiled as he gave a nod of appreciation.
“Afternoon folks,” a lady greeted as she arrived at the table. She wore the same uniform Liam had seen the Adventurers Association employees wore. In her hand was a small notebook that flipped open. “Can I get you something to drink? Maybe something to eat as well?”
“Waylon and I are waiting on a couple more, but they might want to order something now, “Knox said as he gave the woman a wide smile.
Liam and the other three placed an order. Liam took the recommended sandwich Waylon insisted on him getting. It was a lemon season grilled chicken with lettuce, tomato, and a house dressing. It sounded good to him, so he got it.
“So, what are you guys up to today?” Knox asked before grabbing his cup and taking a sip as the waitress walked away.
“Cindy and I just got back from taking on a dungeon,” Liam said.
“That’s right,” Waylon started. “You were helping Cindy collect some materials right? How’d it go? What dungeon did you guys take on?”
“It went…alright,” Liam replied as he looked at Cindy. “We took on a Blue Dungeon called the Seaside Cave of the Sea Slimes.”
“I remember my first Slime dungeon,” Knox stated with a light chuckle.
“I take it that it went smoothly?” Waylon said, ignoring his friend.
“You could say that,” Liam smiled.
Knox and Waylon raised a brow.
“Did something happen?” Mila questioned as she grew curious.
Before Liam could dismiss it, Cindy sighed and said, “I made a mistake and forgot about one of the most basic dungeon rules.”
“Oh?” Mila asked. “What rule?”
“I brought him to a dungeon I had completed a few times already,” Cindy said looking ashamed.
“Oh,” Knox started. “Well at least it was in a low leveled Slime dungeon. What’s the worst that could happen? You fight more Slimes?”
“Well, it turns out that’s half right,” Liam said as he gave Cindy a playful smile.
“What do you mean?” Alv inquired, curious to know.
“The Dungeon Boss ended up being a Swarm type boss and it wasn’t a Slime…,” Cindy started to say. “It was an Engulfing Sea Ooze.”
Alv’s, Knox’s, Mila’s, and Waylon’s eyes widened.
“Are you serious?” Alv questioned.
Liam nodded. “Yeah. It was kind of fun to be honest.”
Cindy gave Liam a look that was a mix of a frown and confusion. “It wouldn’t have been fun if we didn’t figure it out as quickly as we did. It could have dropped on top of us and killed us. Or we could have died from a swarm of Slimes.”
“But we didn’t though,” Liam stated. “It was a good learning experience on my part. Definitely different than fighting skeletons and zombies.”
“What dungeons have those?” Mila asked as she gave Liam a confused look.
“You’ve fought in a Black Dungeon before?” Knox asked Liam while raising a brow.
“Yeah,” Liam nodded. “That was the dungeon I was assigned to back in the Tutorial Area.”
“Oof,” Waylon said. “That must have been rough. I heard skeletons are hard to fight against.”
“They can be, but after fighting so many you start to learn what is best to use against them,” Liam nodded in agreement.
“What about you Mila?” Knox said, changing the topic.
“My team and I are taking a break from doing some quests right now,” Mila responded. “Alv and I were doing some shopping for new armor since our last dungeon run lead to some pieces being too damaged to repair.”
“Sounds like fun,” Knox stated.
“What class did you get?” Waylon questioned giving her a curious look.
“I’m a Beast Illusionist,” Mila replied. “Alv here, is a Stone Guardian.”
“Hm, never heard of those classes before,” Knox said as he looked at them with a curious look. “What do they entail. I mean I can guess the illusionist part in yours and I can draw an idea from the name Stone Guardian, but what are their focuses?”
“As you can guess from the name, my class involves both Taming and Illusion magic,” Mila started. “Of course, I had to get my Focus Points Illusion Manipulation and Beast Control to Apprentice level in order to get the class. There was also a couple of other things, but a girl needs to have her secrets.” Mila winked.
Knox and Waylon chuckled at her.
“Alv here though can tell you about his,” Mila stated as she looked at him.
Alv looked at Mila before letting out a sigh. He then responded, “As you can guess, the guardian part is linked to the defender style class. The stone part is from me working on my Earth magic. When I got it at Apprentice level and got the Advanced Study of Geomancy I received this class. I’ve had it for some time now. I have idea where I want to take it, but it’ll take some time before I get to my next class evolution.”
“So essentially you’re a tank with an earth magic focus?” Knox questioned as he gave Alv an approving nod. “It sounds pretty tough to be honest.”
“It is,” Mila said as she gave Alv a pat on the back. “He’s one hell of a defender. It’s hard for some monsters to get past his defenses, especially when he uses his earth magic.”
Alv looked down at the table, blushing.
“What about you guys?” Mila asked, bringing the attention towards the two men.
“Well, I don’t want to brag or anything, but I’m a Mageblade,” Knox stated as he gave everyone a wide grin while bringing his right hand up and looking at his nails.
Liam shook his head as he watched his old friend look like a fool. He then said with a wry smile and a mock tone of astonishment, “You don’t say. That’s awesome! Oh no. Should I bow to your awesomeness? Or better yet, should I find a tall hill and shout, Look out world, I’m friends with a Mageblade!”
Knox shoved Liam as they both chuckled.
“Asshole,” Knox grinned.
Liam laughed a bit before saying, “Seriously though. What’s a Mageblade?”
“A Mageblade is a class that is both weapon and magic focused,” Waylon started.
“Way to simplify it,” Knox stated as he gave Waylon a faux frown. “It’s almost exactly what he said except, you need to have any bladed weapon skill at least at level thirty. You also need to have one or more elemental type magic at Journeyman level or higher and Advanced Study in said elemental magic at Apprentice level or higher.”
“That’s pretty cool,” Liam said as he nodded his head and gave Knox an impressed look.
“That’s not all though,” Knox added. “You need the Mana Type Manipulation of said element or elements at least level thirty. The reason for it is because the class helps you channel the element easier through the bladed weapon you are using. For example, the weapons I generally use are swords and lances. The elements I focused on are Fire and Lightning.”
“Nice!” Liam stated. He then looked at Waylon, waiting for him to reveal his class.
“I’m a Hydro Pally,” Waylon said as he gave Liam a smile.
“I thought you’d go paladin since that was your class in most games we used to play,” Liam said. “But what’s with the Hydro part?”
“The Hydro part is because I use Water Magic and focused on it more than my other magics,” Waylon said. He then saw the look in Liam’s face and swiftly said, “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” Liam asked trying to hold back a laugh.
“I know that look and I have an idea what you’re going to say so don’t say it,” Waylon said as he narrowed his eyes.
Everyone looked at the two with a confused look.
“I’m lost,” Mila stated as she looked at the others. “Do you know what he is thinking?”
Cindy and Alv shook their heads as they look just as confused as her.
As Knox looked at Liam, he understood what was going on. With a mischievous look on his face he said, “It’s exactly what you’re thinking Liam. He does make people feel better by getting them wet.”
“Oh god damn it,” Waylon suddenly stated as he turned his attention onto Knox. “You make my class sound so dirty.”
Mila’s and Cindy’s mouths dropped as understanding what he was implying hit them.
Alv swiftly brought a hand to his mouth, trying to stifle a laugh.
“My class is a mix of three things,” Waylon started back up trying to change the topic. “A defender type style with both healing and water magic mixed in. Some of my water magic has healing properties as well as defensive.”
“That’s pretty cool. I didn’t know you could do something like that,” Liam said with a look of astonishment.
“You’ll learn more on how to do stuff like that when you get higher in levels,” Waylon said. “If you have any magic you like I suggest you study them and work on them. Understand how they work through practice and manipulating them. After you do that for so long you’ll be able to mix magics together.”
Liam stared at him as he listened. A sudden thought popped in his head. Without thinking he asked, “What level are you?”
“Like personal or my magic and skills?” Waylon asked.
“Which ever you feel like telling me,” Liam said.
“My personal level is thirty five,” Waylon stated. “I would be higher, but I took a break from leveling my personal level to focus more on my magic and skills. Both of those help with class evolutions.”
“Good to know,” Liam said.
“I’m at level thirty six,” Knox suddenly said while giving a look of accomplishment of being a higher level than his friend.
Liam shook his head.
“What about you Liam?” Mila suddenly asked. “What’s your class?”
“Yeah,” Knox said, looking curious. “I see you’re using leather type armor. Are you a rogue or archer type class?”
Liam, now feeling a bit self-conscious, thought about what he was going to say. His class had evolved from Crafter to Spirit Weaver, but he had been telling others after coming here that he was a Crafter so he wouldn’t bring attention. But these were his friends and family.
Alv and Cindy were people he had just recently met, but Mila trusted Alv. As for Cindy, she was helpful and didn’t seem like someone who would go around blabbing about his class. Could he reveal his real class?
“I know you’re considering it, but I highly recommend you don’t. – Eri.”
The text notification almost scared Liam. He had almost forgotten about the way Eri communicated with him when he wasn’t in a dungeon.
But they are my friends and family. Liam said to her. Why should I keep something like that a secret from them when they divulged not only their classes, but how they got them?
“Two reasons. First, you don’t know who is listening in on your conversation. Second, this one is more towards your friends than your family, people change. Especially after not seeing them for a couple of years. – Eri.”
Liam knew what she was saying was true, but they didn’t act any differently than the last time he saw them. He contemplated what she said. He knew what Eri had said held a lot of merit, but there was a small part of him that wanted to think that they were the same guys he was friends with before they left and came here.
It might be a futile wish and he knew it was. However, he also knew Eri had been right so far about things and if she said to do something then he needed to listen.
He sighed internally before saying to Eri, Alright. We’ll do this your way.
“Good call. – Eri.”
The others watched as a few different emotions ran over Liam’s face while he sat there. They were confused why he would take so long to tell them what his class was.
“You alright man?” Waylon questioned. “I don’t think we asked a hard question.”
“Yeah, if you’re worried because you still have a starting class then you don’t have to worry about it. We just wanted to see what class you were,” Knox added. “Knowing what class you are can help us try and see where you would fit in with our party.”
“Fit in your party?” Liam said as he raised a brow.
“Yeah. We have a good party right now,” Waylon said with a smile.
“You’d want me to join your party? I’m still pretty low leveled right now so wouldn’t it clash with you guys and how high leveled you are?” Liam asked.
“Eh, don’t worry about stuff like that,” Knox said as he waved a hand. “You’re our friend. Gaining levels and growing is part of this world. As long as you put in the work you’ll be a good addition no matter what…”
“I highly disagree with that,” a haughty and irritated voice suddenly stated, causing everyone at the table to turn and see who was speaking.
Liam was confused as he stared at the familiar newcomer.
It was an elf with long golden hair wearing fancy elegant clothing. He stood at the edge of the table glaring down at Liam through his Forest green eyes. He had his arms crossed. Next to him stood a teenaged boy with black hair and golden brown skin carrying a backpack full of stuff.
“What are you on about now Chad?” Waylon questioned with a raised brow.
“I am against having this lowly cretin in our party,” Chad stated, irritation laced in his tone of voice.
“He’s not a lowly cretin Chad,” Knox sighed. “This is our friend Liam from earth. I’m sure Levi and Wyatt would agree…”
“Well, I don’t,” Chad interrupted. “I’m part of this party and I also have a say in who joins it. And I say he doesn’t get to join, regardless of if you have some friendship with him.”
Mila raised a brow as she listened to the elf. She turned to look at Knox and Waylon and asked, “Who’s this asshat?”
“Excuse you?” Chad questioned as he turned to look at her. “I am not an asshat. I am the healer of this party, The Hammer of Judgement. Who are you?”
“The Hammer of Judgement?” Mila asked the two guys as she kept a brow raised. “Really? Who named the group that silly name? It doesn’t sound like one you guys would have chosen.”
Chad looked appalled at what she had just said. “It is not a silly name. It is one full of pride and power. We are famous. Don’t tell me you haven’t heard of us.”
“Oh, I have heard of you before. I just didn’t expect you guys to be it,” Mila stated. She looked back at Knox and Waylon waiting for them to answer her earlier question.
Knox shrugged. “We didn’t have a hand in naming us. We left it to…” He suddenly trailed off as he looked at Liam.
Liam gave him a curious look as he noticed both Knox and Waylon turned to look at him.
“I was the one who officially named us that. Zoe had agreed that the name was perfect so we registered it before anyone could change their mind,” Chad announced looking proud of himself.
Liam stared at Chad. At first he was confused if he heard the name right. His second thought was it had to be a different person. However, after thinking about why his two friends had suddenly looked at him he started fitting things together. There was just one thing he wanted to see that would clear up why his two friends had tried to skirt around mentioning her name.
“Zo agreed to the name?” Liam asked. “Doesn’t sound like a name she would be thrilled about.”
“I agree. With her taste in things, I would have expected her to want a name more…practical,” Mila agreed.
Chad glared at Mila and Liam. With an irritated huff, he said, “What would you know about Zoe? Clearly you wouldn’t understand why a beautiful woman would agree to such a great name.”
Liam looked at Mila and asked with suspicion in his tone, “I think we aren’t asking the real question here.” Liam noticed that Mila was on the same page as him as she gave him the same look he had. He then turned to look at Chad and asked, “The real question is…,” As Liam started, he noticed a weird look start to form on Knox’s and Waylon’s faces as they looked down at the table. “What is Zo to you?”
“Why are you calling her by that ridiculous name. Her name is Zoe. You know what, it’s just best you don’t ever say her name ever with that filthy mouth of yours,” Chad dissed. “Your voice just ruins the sound of my beautiful girlfriend’s name.”
Figured as much. Liam thought to himself as he narrowed his eyes while looking at his two friends. Looks like she decided I wasn’t worth waiting for.
